U.S. Names 5 Firms to Receive Grants for High-Definition TV
In the first move by the federal government to support U.S. firms trying to catch up with the Japanese and Europeans in high-definition television, a Pentagon agency Tuesday picked five firms to receive government funds to develop better display technologies.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which is planning to spend a total of $30 million over the next three years on HDTV, named two Silicon Valley firms--Newco of San Jose and Menlo Park-based Raychem. It also named Texas Instruments in Dallas, Projectavision of New York and Photonics Technology of Northwood, Ohio. The amounts of the awards will be subject to negotiation.
The Pentagon said it could not predict how many other contractors might receive federal grants as well.
But DARPA, which has long played a role in funding U.S. industrial research projects, did not name the best-known proposal from a joint venture between Zenith, the last remaining U.S.-based television manufacturer, and AT&T.;
Zenith and AT&T; said they would continue their work even if they did not receive government funds.
Commerce Secretary Robert A. Mosbacher, responding to intense interest in HDTV from members of Congress, has promised to present a federal plan to support U.S. development of the industry.
High-Resolution Screen Is Key
Advocates for HDTV said the choices highlight the need for Congress to boost Pentagon funding for HDTV to $100 million a year to provide help for a larger number of projects. DARPA received 87 applications for its high-definition television program, which was announced last December, and said earlier this year that 49 proposals were worthy of support.
The Pentagon’s primary goal is developing a high-resolution screen that can display text, characters or video signals with great clarity to be used inside new helicopters and airplanes, training simulators, computer-aided design and on other military applications.
The department also hopes that by providing money for new research, it can help U.S. electronic and semiconductor companies forge ahead in developing the next generation of TV sets for commercial use.
High-definition television, which is expected to hit the market sometime in the next decade, offers the promise of bringing movie-quality images and crystal-clear sound to the home.
A Raychem official, in a telephone interview, said the DARPA selections appear aimed at those firms working on newer display technologies rather than at ones focusing on improving the traditional cathode ray tubes used in today’s TV sets.
“The Japanese have the lead in CRTs,” said Paul Cook, a Raychem executive. “We’re trying to leap past them.”
Raychem is working with Xerox Corp. on a process to combine its liquid crystal technology with thin film transistors developed at Xerox’s Palo Alto Research Center on a flat panel display, company officials said.
Newco has told the Pentagon that it is working with Spectra Physics as a subcontractor. Newco officials could not be reached for comment.
Texas Instruments, which is by far the largest of the firms selected, plans to combine its efforts with the David Sarnoff Research Center, which is run by SRI International and has developed a number of HDTV projects.
Projectavision and Photonics Technology did not identify any partners.
