Scan Converter
The colloquial term signal converter or English scan converter describes a converter used in video technology , which digitizes an incoming video signal, stores it and outputs it again in a different format. A common use for a scan converter is the conversion of VGA into a composite video signal in order to process it in image mixers that are not equipped with VGA inputs.
A distinction is made between upconverters, which scale a signal to a higher resolution (e.g. PAL to XGA ) and downconverters, which reduce the resolution (e.g. XGA to PAL).
In principle, a scan converter also fulfills the function of a time base corrector .