METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF VIDEO QUALITY

The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for measuring the quality of video (e.g., television) signals. In particular, the methods and apparatus of the present invention allow for the measurement of various quality parameters of analog or digital video signals at a set-top terminal 10 or similar device, without the need for external test equipment. A video signal 14, which contains a test signal, is received at a decoder 20. The video signal 14 is decoded and temporarily stored in memory 40. A processor 30 associated with the decoder 20 and the memory 40 analyzes the test signal and calculates a quality parameter for the received video signal 14 based on the test signal. The quality measurements can also be accessed remotely and downloaded, for example, by a cable television provider at a cable television headend. The video quality measurement may include various indicators of end-to-end system performance, including the performance of the set-top terminal 10 or similar device.