Time Based Parameter Patents (Class 369/53.34)
  • Patent number: 7586820
    Abstract: A pattern of an input sync signal is compared with sub patterns in a first sync pattern. The sub patterns in the first sync pattern are equal to the patterns of true sync signals, respectively. When the pattern of the input sync signal agrees with none of the sub patterns in the first sync pattern, the pattern of the input sync signal is compared with sub patterns in a second sync pattern. The sub patterns in the second sync pattern have temporal fluctuations with respect to the patterns of the true sync signals. Each of the sub patterns in the second sync pattern is assigned to only one of the true sync signals. It is determined that a sync signal is detected when the pattern of the input sync signal agrees with one of the sub patterns in the first and second sync patterns.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2009
    Assignee: Victor Company of Japan, Ltd.
    Inventor: Tsuyoshi Oki
  • Patent number: 7586831
    Abstract: In order to help maximize the capacity of an optical storage device, and increase the efficiency of addressing, a unique addressing scheme is utilized to provide addressing for an optical storage disk. Importantly, this scheme is compatible with multilayer disks and helps to minimize the potential for errors. In the addressing scheme of the present invention, the storage media is provided with a wobbled groove, which includes addressing information for the media. More specifically, the surface of the media is divided into predetermined sections, or portions, each portion having a selected number of wobble periods. Within these wobble periods, the amplitude of one single wobble period is either reduced or eliminated. The location of this reduced or eliminated wobble signal can then be determined by the readout system of the present invention and utilized to provide addressing information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2009
    Assignee: Alliance Storage Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Johannes J. Verboom, Kurt W. Getreuer
  • Patent number: 7583578
    Abstract: An optical disc drive having an optical pickup head emitting a light beam to an optical storage medium, detecting the light beam reflected from the optical storage medium, and outputting a signal based on the received reflected light, having a jitter measuring unit measuring jitter in signals output from the optical pickup head and having an evaluation unit determining from the measured jitter if the optical storage medium is good or defective. The jitter measuring unit measures jitter in a train of 3T or longer marks or spaces from an optical storage medium to which digital information is recorded as a train of marks or spaces of length kT based on a period T and an integer k of two or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2009
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Shin-ichi Kadowaki, Mamoru Shoji, Atsushi Nakamura, Takashi Ishida
  • Patent number: 7580334
    Abstract: An optical disc drive having an optical pickup head emitting a light beam to an optical storage medium, detecting the light beam reflected from the optical storage medium, and outputting a signal based on the received reflected light, having a jitter measuring unit measuring jitter in signals output from the optical pickup head and having an evaluation unit determining from the measured jitter if the optical storage medium is good or defective. The jitter measuring unit measures jitter in a train of 3T or longer marks or spaces from an optical storage medium to which digital information is recorded as a train of marks or spaces of length kT based on a period T and an integer k of two or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2009
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Shin-ichi Kadowaki, Mamoru Shoji, Atsushi Nakamura, Takashi Ishida
  • Patent number: 7573789
    Abstract: An information recording device includes a buffer memory, a buffer management unit and a phase adjusting unit. The buffer memory temporarily stores data to be written in a recording medium. The buffer management unit starts writing the data in the recording medium if a size of the data stored in the buffer memory exceeds a first predetermined size, and suspends writing the data in the recording medium if the size of the data stored in the buffer memory becomes less than a second predetermined size. Additionally, the phase adjusting unit starts adjusting a phase error between a signal synchronous to the data and a signal synchronous to a location on the recording medium when the buffer management unit starts writing the data in the recording medium, and finishes adjusting the phase error so that the phase error becomes substantially zero before the buffer management unit suspends writing the data in the recording medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2009
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Haruyuki Suzuki
  • Patent number: 7570563
    Abstract: The object is to provide an optical recording method improving the recording characteristics and uniformity in a CAV recording on a phase-change optical recording medium, particularly a high-speed rewritable DVD medium, and a phase-change optical recording medium and an optical recording apparatus used by the method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2009
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd
    Inventors: Hajime Yuzurihara, Hiroshi Deguchi, Katsuyuki Yamada, Shinya Narumi, Mikiko Abe, Eiko Hibino, Hiroshi Miura
  • Patent number: 7570548
    Abstract: This optical pickup has a nonvolatile memory from which data can be electronically read out, and stores as data the difference between the spherical aberration when the readout signal jitter reaches a minimum, and the spherical aberration when the tracking error signal amplitude reaches a maximum. The positioning of an optical detector or detection lens is adjusted so that the focus error signal is almost zero when the readout signal jitter reaches a minimum. The invention provides a method for performing high-precision adjustment of the focus offset and spherical aberration, even in the case of a disk which does not have data recorded on it.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2009
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takahiro Kurokawa, Hiromi Kudo, Harukazu Miyamoto
  • Patent number: 7564750
    Abstract: A reproducing apparatus includes a reading unit configured to generate a reproduced signal containing information data recorded in a track using a reflected light of an optical beam, a clock generation unit configured to generate a clock having a frequency associated with a wobbling cycle of the track, and a control unit configured to detect a phase difference between the reproduced signal and the clock, and to control the clock generation unit using the phase difference detection result.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2009
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yasuyuki Tanaka, Shinichi Yamashita
  • Patent number: 7545716
    Abstract: A method for determining an optimum write power for writing data to an optical disc is disclosed. The method includes utilizing a plurality of candidate write powers for writing data to the optical disc; measuring at least a writing quality parameter corresponding to each of the candidate write powers, respectively; determining a characteristic curve of the writing quality parameters to the candidate write powers; and determining the optimum write power according to a write power corresponding to a target inflection point of the characteristic curve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2009
    Assignee: MediaTek Inc.
    Inventors: Chih-Ching Yu, Yu-Chun Lin
  • Patent number: 7529167
    Abstract: On an optical disk medium according to the present invention, address information is recorded along a wobbling track groove 2. The track groove 2 is made up of a plurality of unit sections 22, 23. Each of these unit sections 22, 23 has side faces that are displaced periodically in a disk radial direction. This displacement oscillates at a single period in a tracking direction. However, the displacement pattern differs depending on “each bit of address information (subdivided information)” allocated to each of the unit sections 22, 23.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2009
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Junichi Minamino, Atsushi Nakamura, Shigeru Furumiya, Hiromichi Ishibashi, Takashi Ishida, Toyoji Gushima
  • Patent number: 7525887
    Abstract: When generating a sampling clock of an A/D converter for digitizing a playback signal from an optical disc, an over sampling clock generated by a PLL is used. Further, zerocross position information and reference information of a playback digital signal that is obtained by A/D conversion using the over sampling clock are converted into those synchronized with the channel bit clock by an operation cycle conversion unit, and then supplied to a PRML signal processing unit and a level judgement binarization unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2009
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Youichi Ogura, Toshihiko Takahashi, Kazutoshi Aida, Kouji Okamoto
  • Publication number: 20090097373
    Abstract: A jitter counter according to the present invention is connected to a PLL circuit for generating a clock signal, which is necessary for signal processing, from a binary signal, and counts jitters of the binary signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 14, 2008
    Publication date: April 16, 2009
    Applicant: Rohm Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Takahiro Nishiyama
  • Patent number: 7515811
    Abstract: The present method of maintaining edit summary information on a rewritable storage medium maintains edit summary information (TableOfFastEditInfo) about real play list files, virtual play list files, and clip information files recorded on a rewritable storage medium such as a BD-RW with a view to facilitating editing of a play list, thereby making it possible to delete a part or the whole of a real play list selected by a user fast by consulting the edit summary information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2009
    Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc.
    Inventors: Mi Hyun Kim, Sung Ryun Cho, Byung Jin Kim, Kang Soo Seo, Sung Wan Park
  • Patent number: 7512051
    Abstract: An information processing apparatus capable of reducing propagation delay differences and error factors, capable of realizing high precision binarization control, and accordingly capable of realizing high precision reproduction, including a comparator for converting an RF signal to a binarized signal; an edge position measurement unit for measuring the edge position of the binarized signal in a time axis by multi-phase clocks; a jitter measurement unit for measuring the amount of jitter based on the edge position information; an edge interval measurement unit for measuring the edge interval length based on the edge position information; a propagation delay difference control amount calculation unit for controlling propagation delay amount between an input and an output of the comparator by injecting a slice level voltage of the comparator through a DAC based on the measured amount of jitter and edge interval length; and a channel data discrimination unit for reproducing the data corresponding to the channel c
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Tsuneo Hayashi
  • Patent number: 7505380
    Abstract: An apparatus for preventing a writing error from occurring on an optical disc. The apparatus includes an interpolation ATIP sync signal detector, a number determiner, and a writing speed adjuster. The interpolation ATIP sync signal detector receives a wobble signal from the wobble signal generator of an optical disc drive to detect an interpolation ATIP sync signal from the wobble signal. The number determiner determines a number of interpolation ATIP sync signals and generates a writing speed transformation control signal based on the determination result. The writing speed adjuster receives the writing speed transformation control signal from the number determiner to adjust a writing speed of the optical disc drive.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2009
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Jae-hee Moon, Seung-beom Lee
  • Patent number: 7496010
    Abstract: A push-pull signal is detected from light reflected from a disk-shaped storage medium on which wobbling grooves are formed as recording tracks and address information is recorded by forming pre-pits on lands between adjacent grooves. A fundamental amplitude variation signal indicating the fundamental amplitude variation of the push-pull signal is acquired, and a reference voltage is generated by adding an offset voltage to the fundamental amplitude variation signal. Pre-pits are detected by comparing the push-pull signal with the reference voltage. Because the reference voltage is produced on the basis of the fundamental amplitude variation signal indicating the variation components of the push-pull signal due to the wobbling of grooves and noise, the variation components due to the wobbling and noise are reflected in the reference voltage. Furthermore, the variation components of the push-pull signal corresponding to the pre-pits are also reflected to a properly small extent in the reference voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Shinji Ohta, Tatsushi Sano
  • Patent number: 7489608
    Abstract: Wobble detection for detecting data in a wobble signal modulated with a base signal includes sampling the wobble signal at a substantial maximum and a substantial minimum of a base signal within a wobble period, producing a value of the wobble signal at the substantial maximum of the base signal with an unchanged sign and a value of the wobble signal at the substantial minimum of the base signal with a reversed sign, determining a sum of the values within the wobble period, and decoding the sum to detect data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2009
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Akio Tanaka
  • Patent number: 7486602
    Abstract: An apparatus for scanning a track on a record carrier has a head for scanning the track and generating a read signal. The tilt between the head and the record carrier (11) is compensated via a tilt servo loop. Thereto the head is provided with tilt compensating actuators (42). A measure of the tilt is jitter in the read signal generated by a front end (43) and filter (44). A wobble generator (40) provides a wobble signal to the actuators and to an input of multiplier (45) for synchronous detection of the jitter. The output of the multiplier (45) is coupled to a low pass filter (46) for generating a tilt error signal coupled to a tilt controller (47) for generating a tilt control signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2009
    Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.
    Inventor: Jeroen Arnoldus Leonardus Johannes Raaymakers
  • Patent number: 7486596
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for compensating tilt. The tilt compensation method includes: obtaining one of a jitter best, an RF envelope, and a focus DC offset (FODC) from a detection signal of the ROM data region and determining whether the obtained value is within a tolerance range; and obtaining an initial skew compensation value using the obtained value when the obtained value is within the tolerance, changing the magnitude of current applied to an actuator designed to perform driving in at least three-axis directions to drive an objective lens of an optical pickup assembly in a radial tilt direction when the obtained value is not within the tolerance range, and repeating the obtaining of one of the jitter best, the RF envelope, and the FODC and changing the magnitude of the current until the obtained value is within the tolerance range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2009
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Byung-youn Song, Jong-koog Lee, Dong-ryeol Lee, Pyong-yong Seong, Kyung-ui Park, Dong-won Kim
  • Patent number: 7480219
    Abstract: Disclosed is a tilt controlling method and apparatus in which an FE signal track at a point where an RF signal is the maximum or an RE signal track at a point where a jitter is the minimum is detected as a tilt control signal to induct a DC component according to the disk shape and an AC component according to the surface vibration of the disk. Further, the fact is used that an RF envelope has a maximum value when the disk is parallel to an object lens or there is no tilt. Thus, in a tilt initialization step, a tilt track as the RF Max. is obtained for one rotation and the central potential of this track is set as a tilt control reference voltage, and when the RF envelope becomes a phase corresponding to a condition of a controller or a differential value of the RF envelope in the tilt window signal becomes a desired phase, tilt control is started so that the RF envelope always has the maximum value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2001
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2009
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventor: Sang On Park
  • Patent number: 7471599
    Abstract: A write signal control circuit in an optical disk drive for adjusting the duty cycle of the write signals by a duty cycle adjusting unit. The write signal control circuit includes a write signal generator for converting an EFM signal into the write signals according to the write strategy waveform generating rules, a duty cycle adjusting unit for adjusting the duty cycle of each write signal according to adjusting parameters and for outputting adjusted write signals, and a duty cycle detector for detecting the duty cycle of each adjusted write signal and outputting a respective duty cycle control signal. The duty cycle adjusting unit further receives the duty cycle control signal to adapt the adjusting parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: Mediatek Inc.
    Inventors: Tse-Hsiang Hsu, Chih-Cheng Chen, Yuan-Chin Liu
  • Patent number: 7471604
    Abstract: An apparatus for detecting and correcting an error in a wobble signal, includes a window generator which generates a window signal using a phase locked wobble signal, which is generated in synchronization with a raw wobble signal rwb obtained by binarizing the wobble signal read from an optical recording medium, and a control operation unit which corrects the error in the rwb signal and outputs the corrected rwb signal where the error in the rwb signal is detected in the window signal. Accordingly, the error in the wobble signal can be detected and corrected using the window signal, thereby increasing the performance of an optical recording/reproducing system and improving a phase locked loop (PLL) circuit using the apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hyun-soo Park, Jae-seong Shim
  • Patent number: 7471600
    Abstract: The invention provides a data recording device comprising: an interval counter; an ? counter; and a segment counter, wherein the interval counter and the ? counter operate with a clock having a constant frequency which is independent of clock information, the interval counter is reset when division information is detected and, also, is reset and activates the ? counter when it reaches a count value corresponding to a segment length, the ? counter is reset when the division information is detected and, also, is reset and increments the count value of the segment counter when it reaches a count value corresponding to a predetermined length smaller than the segment length, and the segment counter increments its count value when the division information is detected and outputs a writing inhibition signal when it reaches a count value corresponding to the frame length.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventors: Katsuhiko Fukuda, Takanobu Kashiwagi, Akiyoshi Uchida
  • Publication number: 20080298194
    Abstract: In order to ensure recording quality while suppressing the adverse effects due to performance variations among apparatuses and disc radial positions on an optical disc, an optical disc apparatus according to the present invention performs, at the time of data recording, the steps of: acquiring a jitter value and ? value from a reproduced signal based on laser light reflected from the optical disc in relation to a disc radial position; learning a ? value when the acquired jitter value is a minimum as a target ? value; and, if a jitter value acquired thereafter is larger than the minimum jitter value by a preset reference value or above, correcting recording power based on the magnitude relation and the difference between the ? value associated with the acquired jitter value and the target ? value or performing trial record processing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 29, 2008
    Publication date: December 4, 2008
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Wada, Koichi Watanabe, Toshio Shoji, Takakiyo Yasukawa, Naohito Ikeda
  • Patent number: 7460451
    Abstract: The present invention provides highly reliable PLL without influence of variations in amplitude of a reproduced signal or variations in inclination of an edge. An information-reproducing apparatus according to the present invention includes a unit for detecting a phase difference between a reproduced signal and a reproducing clock signal, a PLL circuit for regulating a frequency of the reproducing clock signal to compensate for the detected phase difference, a unit for detecting a state of the PLL circuit, and a unit for regulating a loop gain of the PLL circuit corresponding to the detected state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hisatoshi Baba
  • Patent number: 7460456
    Abstract: The invention relates to a radial slaving method and to a reproduction device implementing it for optical discs. In an optical head of a conventional reproduction device using a four-quadrant detector with four photodiode is distributed on either side of a direction parallel to the axis of the track, the individual signals of the photodiodes (d1 to d4) are combined in order to obtain read signals along the two diagonals (diag1, diag2) by subtraction (21, 22). A phase comparison signal circuit (100) makes it possible to construct a radial error signal (Sr) by measuring the phase shift of the diagonal read signals. The invention applies in particular to phase discs with slightly phase-shifting marks.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Thales
    Inventors: Joseph Colineau, Jean-Claude Lehureau
  • Patent number: 7460457
    Abstract: A counter 11 continuously reads in the EFM signal from a binarizing circuit 4, resets its count value each time the polarity of the EFM signal changes, counts counter clocks higher in frequency than the EFM signal during each EFM period of the EFM signal, and transfers the count values to a FIFO 12 sequentially. The FIFO 12 temporarily stores the count values transferred, and writes a predetermined number of count values into a buffer RAM 7 in a batch each time the predetermined number of count values are stored.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hidemitsu Senoo, Tomonori Kamiya, Yuichiro Tsukamizu
  • Patent number: 7457213
    Abstract: An aligned write signal generator with alignment calibration utilizes an alignment unit to align a plurality of write signal. The aligned write signal generator includes a write signal generator for receiving an EFM signal and converting the EFM signal into a plurality of write signals according to a write strategy waveform generating rule, an alignment unit for receiving the plurality of write signals, aligning the write signals and outputting phase adjusted write signals, and a phase calibration unit for receiving the phase adjusted write signals, detecting phase error between the phase adjusted write signals, and outputting phase control signals. The alignment unit further receives the phase control signals to adjust the delay time of each write signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2008
    Assignee: Mediatak Inc.
    Inventors: Tse-Hsiang Hsu, Chih-Cheng Chen
  • Patent number: 7451269
    Abstract: A method and system for servicing read requests directed to a storage medium by reordering the read requests when advantageous to do so and when the read requests can be serviced in a time-sensitive manner is provided. A reorder system determines whether it would be advantageous to reorder an identified read request that is currently scheduled to be serviced before another read request and whether there is enough time to service the other read request before servicing the identified read request. If there is enough time and it would be advantageous, the reorder system reorders the read requests so that the other read request is serviced before the identified read request.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2008
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Hakuro Matsuda, John M. Harding
  • Patent number: 7433286
    Abstract: In a jitter detection apparatus, a playback RF signal 3 detected from an optical disc medium 1 is subjected to waveform shaping, and thereafter, converted into a digital RF signal 6 with a sampling clock having a cycle twice as long as a cycle of a channel clock. Thereafter, an offset variation in a high-frequency band is corrected by an offset correction circuit 9, and data that are missing in the time direction are restored by a Nyquist interpolation filter 23. Then, positions where jitter is to be extracted are selected from an output signal of the Nyquist interpolation filter 23, by a jitter detection preprocessing circuit 28, according to the playback speed of the optical disc medium 1 and the arithmetic capacity of a digital signal operation circuit 29, whereby highly accurate jitters can be extracted by using the digital signal operation circuit 29.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2008
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Youichi Ogura, Toshihiko Takahashi, Shinichi Konishi
  • Patent number: 7427934
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for recovering a clock from a run-length-coded data stream, said method making it possible for a phase-locked loop to lock in a rapid manner, and also to a circuit for implementing the method. An inventive method for recovering a clock from a run-length-coded data stream comprises the steps of: ascertaining the distribution of symbol lengths in the data stream for a chosen clock period; determining the deviation of the maxima of the distribution of symbol lengths from integer multiples of the chosen clock period; and regulating the chosen clock period on the basis of the deviation determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 23, 2008
    Assignee: Thomson Licensing
    Inventor: Christof Ballweg
  • Patent number: 7426165
    Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer-readable recording medium are disclosed, for recording information in an information recording medium. The method includes a first step of outputting, in response to an initialization request for initializing the information recording medium, termination information indicative of termination of the initialization before the initialization starts, and a second step of starting the initialization at a predetermined timing after the output of the termination information. In this procedure, it is possible to start to record data in a blank disc sooner than in conventional methods.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 16, 2008
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Yoshiyuki Sasaki
  • Patent number: 7423948
    Abstract: In a phase error detecting circuit used in a synchronous clock extracting circuit for extracting a clock which is synchronized with reproduced data, a cross reference value generator 72 inputs, as a rising cross reference value S5, rising phase error data S3 calculated in a phase error calculator 71 to a rising cross detector 70a and inputs, as a falling cross reference value S6, falling phase error data S4 similarly calculated to a falling cross detector 70b. Each of the cross detectors 70a and 70b calculates a difference value between the value of the reproduced data at a sampling point and the inputted cross reference value (cross offset value) S5 or S6 and outputs a rising or falling cross detection signal when one of two difference values at consecutive sampling points is negative and the other thereof is positive. Accordingly, a capture range is enlarged.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2008
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Akira Kawabe, Kouji Okamoto
  • Patent number: 7403456
    Abstract: An optical disc recording method and apparatus is capable of overwriting a phase change optical disc at high speed. With a preceding erasing beam out of two laser beams, a modulation component in an RF signal recorded on an optical disc is erased to a state where no problem occurs (the reflectance difference is reduced) and the top level is decreased to 70 to 40% of a top level of an original RF signal. After that, with the subsequent recording beam, a space is recorded at a laser power at which top level is reset to the original state (before the erasing process), and a mark is recorded at a laser power which can sufficiently decrease the bottom level. Consequently, even when the recording speed is the quadruple speed (about 1.6 to 2 times of a specification) much higher than a specific recording speed (for example, 2 to 2.4×) of a phase change optical disc, overwriting can be performed with a recording characteristic which can satisfy a regenerating characteristic specification.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Koichiro Ogihara
  • Patent number: 7400566
    Abstract: A information recording and reproducing apparatus is capable of recording received audio data in real time in a recording medium, in a searchable state with respect to each piece of music, with simple processing. The information recording and reproducing apparatus receives a data stream including, together with an audio stream, additional information of the piece of music which is currently being transmitted by the audio stream. The additional information includes time information such as the musical performance time of the piece of music and the elapsed time. The information recording and reproducing apparatus records the received audio stream sequentially in an HDD, without change, and on the basis of the received additional information, the reception ending time of the piece of music which is currently being received in the audio stream is calculated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Kazuyuki Takahashi, Hirofumi Kasai, Muzaffar Husain Bin Fakhruddin, Takafumi Yanagimoto
  • Patent number: 7397750
    Abstract: An optical disk apparatus for detecting synchronization signals of an optical disk. Marks and spaces are alternately arranged as synchronization signals of the optical disk. An encoding/decoding circuit of the optical disk apparatus utilizes a rule for alternately arranging synchronization signals, thereby verifying a detected synchronization signal. When the polarity of a synchronization signal detected from a preceding synchronization frame is a mark, the next synchronization signal is a space. When the polarity of a detected synchronization signal is a space, the signal is determined to be a correct synchronization signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: TEAC Corporation
    Inventor: Akira Mashimo
  • Publication number: 20080130453
    Abstract: This optical disc drive has an optical pickup head that emits a light beam to an optical storage medium, detects the light beam reflected from the optical storage medium, and outputs a signal based on the received reflected light; a jitter measuring unit for measuring jitter in signals output from the optical pickup head; and an evaluation unit for determining from the measured jitter if the optical storage medium is good or defective. The jitter measuring unit measures jitter in a train of 3 T or longer marks or spaces from an optical storage medium to which digital information is recorded as a train of marks or spaces of length kT based on a period T and an integer k of two or more.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Publication date: June 5, 2008
    Inventors: Shin-ichi Kadowaki, Mamoru Shoji, Atsushi Nakamura, Takashi Ishida
  • Publication number: 20080130454
    Abstract: This optical disc drive has an optical pickup head that emits a light beam to an optical storage medium, detects the light beam reflected from the optical storage medium, and outputs a signal based on the received reflected light; a jitter measuring unit for measuring jitter in signals output from the optical pickup head; and an evaluation unit for determining from the measured jitter if the optical storage medium is good or defective. The jitter measuring unit measures jitter in a train of 3T or longer marks or spaces from an optical storage medium to which digital information is recorded as a train of marks or spaces of length kT based on a period T and an integer k of two or more.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Publication date: June 5, 2008
    Inventors: Shin-ichi Kadowaki, Mamoru Shoji, Atsushi Nakamura, Takashi Ishida
  • Patent number: 7369625
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for slicing an RF signal and compensating for the slice level of an RF signal reproduced from a disk, which minimizes a block error rate by optimizing the slice level of the RF signal according to variations in symmetry of the RF signal when slicing the RF signal. A comparator converts the RF signal reproduced from the disk into a digital signal by comparing the RF signal with a slice level, a low-pass filter low-pass filters the digital signal and provides the result to the comparator as the slice level, and a slice level compensator compensates for the slice level provided to the comparator by the low-pass filter according to variations in symmetry of the RF signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2008
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Joo-yeup Kim, Sung-ro Go
  • Patent number: 7362671
    Abstract: A data recording and/or playing method for recording or playing data to or from an optical disc having a first recording area, where a frame sync signal and the data are recorded, and a second recording area, where a predetermined pattern is preformed, and having address data recorded therein, while rotating the optical disc by a rotation drive unit. The optical disc rotated by the rotation drive unit is scanned by a head unit, and when the head unit is scanning the first recording area, the rotation drive unit is controlled in a first rotation control mode. When the head unit is scanning the second recording area, the rotation drive unit is controlled in a second rotation control mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoichiro Sako, Takashi Kihara, Toyokazu Noda, Mamoru Akita, Takamasa Yamagishi
  • Patent number: 7362681
    Abstract: A push-pull signal Spp fetched with tracking open is smoothed to a smoothing signal Spp to remove signal components generated wobbling due to radial runout, and the smoothing signal is binarized to compute an autocorrelation value in the autocorrelation computing circuit 210. This computing is made by multiplying the binarized signal by a signal delayed by the half cycle and sign-negated to compute the integrated value, and the integrated value output signal Dint is generated. A maximum value of the integrated value output signal Dint within a predetermined period of time is computed by the maximum value holding circuit 220 to output a maximum value output signal Dout. Depending on the amplitude of the maximum value signal Dout, the CPU 105 determines whether the recording medium is a writable one or read only one. Wobble determination can be made keeping tracking open, and a type of a recording medium is carried out accurately.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2008
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventor: Yuji Tawaragi
  • Publication number: 20080080333
    Abstract: An optical disk apparatus includes a signal detection unit which detects a signal corresponding to a wobbling guide groove formed on an optical disk, a timing signal generating unit which generates first and second timing signals in accordance with an amplitude level of the signal detected, a photodetector which detects reflective light from the optical disk, and a wobble signal generating unit which outputs as a wobble signal a signal which is amplified with a low gain amount by the first timing signal in a case where an arithmetic signal, which is generated for the wobble signal on the basis of a signal detected by the photodetector, is at a high amplification level, and outputs as the wobble signal a signal which is amplified with a high gain amount by the second timing signal in a case where the arithmetic signal is at a low amplification level.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 19, 2007
    Publication date: April 3, 2008
    Inventor: Shigeru FUKINUKI
  • Patent number: 7352674
    Abstract: Herein disclosed are an apparatus and method for encoding a wobble signal to be recorded on an optical disc, and an apparatus and method for decoding a wobble signal read from the optical disc. The encoding apparatus performs a minimum shift keying modulation operation for a wobble signal to be recorded as physical address information on a writable optical disc, by adjusting a first frequency f1 and second frequency f2 of the wobble signal with coherence. Therefore, a peak point of the wobble signal is formed at a point of time that the frequencies change. The decoding apparatus band pass filters an analog wobble signal read from the optical disc, converts the filtered wobble signal into a digital wobble signal, detects a peak point of the converted digital wobble signal, outputs a peak detection signal with a level transition at the detected peak point, and detects/outputs original wobble data on the basis of the outputted peak detection signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2008
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Jung Bae Park, Won Bae Joo, Sang Woon Suh
  • Patent number: 7349303
    Abstract: In an information recording method and apparatus, a sequence of sync frames indicative of data is recorded onto tracks of an optical recording medium. In the recording medium, prepits are formed on lands between the tracks at given intervals, and sync patterns, providing synchronization on a sync-frame basis, are inserted in the sync frames such that each sync pattern has a length in a track direction larger than a length of one of the prepits and a position of each sync pattern matches with a position of at least one of the prepits. Codes that represent sync patterns for the sync frames are selected such that each sync pattern is formed as a space on the recording medium. Modulation codes are generated based on the sync frames in which the selected codes are inserted, by modulating the sync frames containing the selected codes in accordance with a predetermined modulation scheme. A sequence of recording pulses is generated by converting the modulation codes through a predetermined conversion scheme.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2008
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Naruhiro Masui
  • Patent number: 7349305
    Abstract: A wobble signal reproducing device and method. The wobble signal reproducing device may include a computation unit for outputting a push-pull signal by use of a signal picked up by wobbling an optical disc; a wobble band pass filter (BPF) unit for applying band pass filtering to the push-pull signal based on a first control signal, applying low pass filtering to the band pass filtering-applied signal based on a second control signal, and outputting a wobble signal; a wobble phase locked loop (PLL) unit for generating a channel clock signal based on the wobble signal, wherein the first and second control signals correspond to the channel clock signal, the wobble BPF unit applies the band pass filtering at a center frequency varying based on the first control signal, and applies the low pass filtering at a cutoff frequency varying based on the second control signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2008
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Han-seung Lee, Jung-eun Lee
  • Publication number: 20080062840
    Abstract: A method to determine the diameter and shape of the loaded optical disk without any additional sensor. By accelerating a disk for a certain period of time and then monitoring the rotational speed before the spindle lock, the diameter and shape of the loaded optical disk is detected.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 13, 2006
    Publication date: March 13, 2008
    Applicants: MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD., PANASONIC SEMICONDUCTOR ASIA PTE., LTD.
    Inventors: Kim Hee NG, Norio HATANAKA
  • Patent number: 7324421
    Abstract: An invention is provided for data bit align. The invention includes a multiplexer that receives a data sample word as data input and also receives a clock sample word as select input. The multiplexer selects a data bit from the data sample word based on the clock sample word. Generally, the multiplexer can select the data bit from the data sample word corresponding to a position of the clock edge in the clock sample word. The invention also includes an output register, which is coupled to the multiplexer. The output register stores the selected data bit from the multiplexer and provides the selected data bit to remaining system components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2008
    Assignee: Adaptec, Inc.
    Inventors: Barry Allen Davis, Walter F. Bridgewater
  • Patent number: 7292513
    Abstract: A circuit for correcting a clock of a compact signal and a method therefor. The method comprises: receiving a data signal and a clock signal; and generating a sync pattern signal by using the clock signal to check the data signal. Then, a detection window signal according to a clock number during a timing of a last sync pattern signal and a first preset timing is generated, and the detection window signal having a second preset timing width. Finally, a clock of the sync pattern signal and the detection window signal are compared, and the clock signal is corrected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2007
    Assignee: VIA Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Pei-Jei Hu, Mel Lai, Sl Ouyang
  • Patent number: 7289409
    Abstract: A wobble signal is generated from at least two elementary signals (A,B,C,D) detected by scanning a wobbled track of a data carrier. The invention proposes a solution for eliminating the noise of various origins in the wobble signal, notably the high frequency data leakage into the wobble signal due to radial asymmetry introduced in the diffraction pattern on the detector, whatever the reason for this radial asymmetry. According to the invention, the at least two elementary signals are filtered with at least an adaptive filter (40), and said filtered elementary signals are subtracted (44) from said wobble signal (PP) thereby generating an improved wobble signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2003
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2007
    Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N. V.
    Inventors: Bin Yin, Cornelis Marinus Schep, Aalbert Stek, Alexander Padiy, Theodorus Petrus Henricus Gerardus Jansen, Mohammed Meftah
  • Patent number: RE40639
    Abstract: An optical disc having marks for dispersed addresses that can be easily detected with high precision. A dispersed address comprises synchronization marks, positive marks, and negative marks. Synchronization marks, positive marks, and negative marks are formed along a groove as partial discontinuities or partial modifications in the wobbled groove.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2000
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2009
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Shigeru Furumiya, Hiromichi Ishibashi, Takashi Ishida, Yoshiharu Kobayashi