Recording/reproducing device

Claim 2

A recording/reproducing device provided for a rewritable recording medium which comprises an information recording region for recording information therein, a lead-in region for recording additional information therein concerning each information recorded in the information recording region and absolute address parts formed at least in each of the regions for providing absolute addresses as information concerning positions for recording and reproducing, and comprising memory means for storing additional information concerning reproducing procedures and the like therein for each information recorded in the information recording region on the recording medium and recording means for recording the additional information stored in the above-mentioned memory means in the lead-in region.

Claim 3

A recording/reproducing device as set forth in claim 1, wherein the memory means is composed so that, in accordance with above-mentioned absolute addresses, it can store additional information in the lead-in region which was read when the recording medium was placed in, another additional information showing identification numbers, recording ranges and the like of the information newly recorded in the information recording region and the other additional information entered from outside for specifying reproducing procedures and the like of each recorded information.

Claim 4

A recording/reproducing device provided for a rewritable recording medium which comprises: an information recording region for recording information therein; a lead-in region for recording additional information therein concerning each information recorded in the information recording region; and absolute address parts formed at least in each of the regions for providing absolute addresses as information concerning positions for recording and reproducing; and said device being composed of: input means for entering instructions, information and the like required for the recording/reproducing device to be desirably operated; memory means which, in accordance with above-mentioned absolute addresses, can store additional information in the lead-in region which was read when the recording medium was placed in, another additional information showing identification numbers, recording ranges, and the like of the information newly recorded in the information recording region and the other additional information entered from outside for specifying reproducing procedures and the like of each recorded information; recording means for recording the additional information stored in the memory means in the lead-in region while recording information in the information recording region; reproducing means for successively reproducing each information recorded in the information recording region according to the additional information for reproducing procedures etc. stored in the memory means; display means for displaying the additional information stored in the memory means, if necessary, while also displaying the reproducing positions corresponding to said absolute address parts in reproducing the information recorded in the information recording region; and control means for reading above-mentioned absolute addresses in accordance with the recording/reproducing positions, the additional information stored in said memory means, and the like when the recording medium is placed into the recording/reproducing device or when the predetermined instructions from the input means are entered to, and for permitting the recording/reproducing device to perform predetermined operations such as recording or reproducing while systematically combining each of the above-mentioned means etc.

Claim 5

A recording/reproducing device provided for a rewritable recording medium which comprises: an information recording region for recording information therein; a lead-in region for recording additional information therein concerning each information recorded in the information recording region; and absolute address parts formed at least in each of the regions for providing absolute addresses as information concerning positions for recording and reproducing; and said device being composed of: input means for entering instructions, information and the like required for the recording/reproducing device to be desirably operated; memory means which, in accordance with above-mentioned absolute addresses, can store additional information in the lead-in region which was read when the recording medium was placed in, another additional information showing identification numbers, recording ranges, and the like of the information newly recorded in the information recording region and the other additional information entered from outside for specifying reproducing procedures and the like of each recorded information; recording means for recording the additional information stored in the memory means in the lead-in region while recording information in the information recording region; reproducing means for successively reproducing each information recorded in the information recording region according to the additional information for reproducing procedures etc. stored in the memory means; display means for displaying the additional information stored in the memory means, if necessary, while also displaying the reproducing positions corresponding to said absolute address parts in reproducing the information recorded in the information recording region; and control means for reading above-mentioned absolute addresses in accordance with the recording/reproducing positions, the additional information stored in said memory means, and the like when the recording medium is placed into the recording/reproducing device or when the predetermined instructions from the input means are entered to, and for permitting the recording/reproducing device to perform predetermined operations such as recording or reproducing while systematically combining each of the above-mentioned means etc.

Claim 6

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 3, wherein said input means comprises a group of operation keys which enter instructions required for the user to operate the recording/reproducing device, information for the reproducing procedures concerning the reproducing order, reproducing number of times and the like of each information recorded in the recording medium, and other necessary additional information to the above-mentioned control means.

Claim 7

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 3, wherein said memory means comprises a TOC memory which stores the identification numbers, the recording start positions according to the absolute addresses and the like recognized by the above-mentioned control means with respect to information during its reproducing operation.

Claim 8

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 5, wherein said TOC memory is composed so that it can store such as the identification numbers and recording positions according to the absolute addresses of the information during the recording operation when the user makes a decision and enters certain instructions to the control means using the input means.

Claim 9

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 5, wherein said TOC memory is composed so that, in case there is contained sub-code information showing the identification numbers, recording start positions, etc. of the information in source signals sent from outside, it can store said identification numbers, recording start positions, etc. directly entered to the control means by said sub-code.

Claim 10

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 5, wherein said TOC memory is composed so that it can store additional information concerning reproducing procedures etc. entered by the user through input means for specifying reproducing orders, reproducing number of times, and the like of each information while the recording/reproducing device is in a stand-by state or in a reproducing operation.

Claim 11

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claims 1 or 3, wherein said recording means comprises a magnetic coil for applying magnet fields varying according to recording signals onto a recording medium and a coil driver for inducing magnetic fields varying according to recording signals on said magnetic coil.

Claim 12

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 3, wherein said recording means comprises an optical head for applying light beam with an output required for recording in the recording part of the recording medium and an optical head driver for driving said optical head to the recording part so as to make same apply the light beam.

Claim 13

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 10, wherein above-mentioned optical head is composed so that by applying a higher output of light beam than that in reproducing on the recording parts of above-mentioned recording medium, it may locally raise the temperature of above-mentioned light beam applied-parts adjacent to Curie temperature, decrease the coercive force of the light beam applied-parts, and magnetize the parts in the same directions with those of the magnetic fields applied by a magnetic coil or the like from outside in order to perform recordings of information.

Claim 14

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 3, wherein said recording means comprises an optical head for applying light beam with an output required for reproducing in the reproducing part of the recording medium and an optical head driver for driving said optical head to the reproducing part so as to make same apply the light beam.

Claim 15

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 12, wherein above-mentioned optical head is composed so that it may apply a lower output of light beam than that in recording on the reproducing parts of the recording medium, detect polarization with rotated polarization plane according to the direction of magnetization in the reproducing parts of the recording medium, convert them into electric signals and then enter to a reproducing amplifier for amplifying audio signal elements etc. corresponding to information recorded on the recording medium and to an uneven signal reproducing amplifier for amplifying uneven signal elements corresponding to the information of absolute address parts.

Claim 16

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 3, wherein above-mentioned display means including for example, liquid crystal displays and the like, displays the identification number, recording start position, elapsed time and the like of information in its reproduction according to the instructions of the control means when the reproducing operation is performed according to the reproducing procedures information.

Claim 17

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 14, wherein above-mentioned display is composed so that it may display additional information read from above-mentioned lead-in region by the control means according to the instructions entered by the input means, if necessary, in relation to the reproducing order, reproducing number of times and the like of each information

Claim 18

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 3, wherein above-mentioned control means comprises a controller for controlling an optical head driver serving as recording/reproducing means so as to apply light beam with necessary output for recording or reproducing respectively onto the recording medium, and for releasing information of recording/reproducing positions to said optical head driver.

Claim 19

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 16, wherein above-mentioned controller is composed so that it may release information of recording positions to a coil driver in order to drive a magnetic coil to a recording part.

Claim 20

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 16, wherein above-mentioned controller is composed so that it may receive information of recording/reproducing positions on the recording medium from an address decoder which converts uneven signal elements into digital signals having a fixed data format, and also recognizes said absolute addresses.

Claim 21

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 16, wherein above-mentioned controller is composed so that it may read additional information recorded in a lead-in region and permit memory means to store said additional information when the recording medium is placed in the recording/reproducing device.

Claim 22

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 16, wherein above-mentioned controller is composed so that it may rewrite contents of the lead-in region of the recording medium in the following cases: when recording of the information is finished; immediately before the recording medium is taken out of the recording/reproducing device; when instructions from the user are entered thereto at his/her will through the input means.

Claim 23

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 16, wherein above-mentioned controller is composed so that it may read additional information concerning reproducing procedures and the like from the memory means and store same when a reproducing instruction is entered by the input means, and then validate the position of information to be reproduced while comparing it with the information of reproducing positions read from the absolute addresses entered from the address decoder, thereby permitting the recording/reproducing device to perform a reproducing operation according to the specified reproducing procedures.

Claim 24

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 16, wherein above-mentioned controller is composed so that it may read additional information concerning the reproducing procedure, reproducing number of times, and the like of each information according to instructions entered by the input means for permitting above-mentioned display means to display said additional information.

Claim 25

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 1 or 3, wherein said recording medium is that of a rewritable disk type or a card type.

Claim 26

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 23, wherein above-mentioned rewritable recording medium is a magneto-optical disk to be recorded or reproduced magneto-optically.

Claim 27

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 1 or 3, wherein above-mentioned recording medium comprises a recording layer formed of, for example amorphous alloy or the like, and is provided for recording or reproducing of information by using phase change.

Claim 28

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 1 or 3, wherein above-mentioned recording medium is a digital audio tape.

Claim 29

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 1 or 3, wherein each of above-mentioned absolute address parts has a data format including: a preamble for reproduction synchronization, an address mark for showing the head of respective absolute address parts, an address number for showing each address which is successively incrementing one by one from the innermost-track of the recording medium, an error detection code for detecting errors when the address numbers are detected.

Claim 30

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 27, wherein each of above-mentioned absolute address parts is formed on the recording medium with such intervals that the address decoder can identify an absolute address once every second according to a constant linear velocity that the reproducing means possesses to the recording medium.

Claim 31

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 27, wherein above-mentioned absolute address parts are predeterminately formed on the recording medium in physically uneven pit-like shape.

Claim 32

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 27, wherein above-mentioned absolute address parts are predeterminately formed on a recording layer of the recording medium made of amorphous alloy etc. by using phase change between crystalline structure and non-crystalline structure.

Claim 33

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 9, wherein each of above-mentioned recording signals has a data format of one frame information including: a frame synchronizing signal, a data field having data of 24 bytes corresponding to information and an additional parity of 8 bytes for error detection and correction, a sub-code wherein the identification number, time information, etc. for each of above-mentioned data field are recorded.

Claim 34

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 23, wherein above-mentioned disk type recording medium is controlled by constant linear velocity control means so as to have a constant linear velocity to the recording/reproducing means according to radius positional information read from the absolute address parts formed on the recording medium.

Claim 35

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 32, wherein above-mentioned constant linear velocity control means comprises a CLV control circuit and a rotary encoder.

Claim 36

A recording/reproducing device as defined in claim 33, wherein above-mentioned CLV control circuit, when the radius positional information read from the absolute address parts formed on the recording medium is entered therein from the control means, finds a pulse frequency reference value of the rotary encoder at the radius position, and controls the recording medium to keep a constant linear velocity to the recording/reproducing means of the recording medium by making a pulse frequency of the rotary encoder according to an actual revolving velocity of the rotational driving means equal to above-mentioned pulse frequency reference value.

Claim 37

A recording/reproducing apparatus for a rewritable recording medium in which information relating to the required manner of reproducing of information recorded in a main recording area of the medium can be programmed by the user into a memory of the apparatus, means being provided for recording the programmed information from the memory into a lead-in area of the medium itself.

Claim 38

A recording/reproducing apparatus for a rewritable recording medium in which information relating to the required manner of reproducing of information recorded in a main recording area of the medium can be programmed by the user into a memory of the apparatus, means being provided for recording the programmed information from the memory into a lead-in area of the medium itself.