Abstract: A down converter includes an interface section, which connects the down converter to switches and respective driver circuits, wherein the driver circuits and the switches are combined on an integrated circuit. The driver circuits include a high-side driver circuit, and a low-side driver circuit. The integration of the driver circuits with the switches reduces parasitic inductance, particularly in power applications.

Abstract: In an optical disc drive, adapted for forming a label on the label side 14 of a recordable optical disc 10, a determination of the rotation angle a is provided, so that the marking of the label side 14 can be synchronized upon. The method to determine the rotation angle a is based upon one or two of the signals 17?, 18?, 19? generated by the Hall-effect elements 17, 18, 19 which are normally present in an optical disc drive and are used to generate the tacho signal 24. Advantageously, the actual relationship between rotation angle a and the amplitude of these signals is recorded in a calibration procedure, so as to allow for a higher precision of the rotation angle a determined. This calibration procedure may be performed in the factory or by the user, and may not require any additional ad-hoc equipment if a synchronization pattern present in an optical disc is used.

Abstract: A variable lens system includes a chamber with an optical axis extending through the chamber. The chamber contains a first fluid and a second fluid in contact over a meniscus extending transverse the optical axis. The perimeter of the meniscus is fixedly located on an internal surface of the chamber. The fluids are substantially immiscible and have different indices of refraction. A pump is arranged to controllably alter the shape of the meniscus by altering the relative volume of each of the fluids contained within the chamber.

Abstract: A record carrier stores audio data as audio tracks in audio files and associated management information. To avoid annoying clicks at the end or beginning of live recorded audio tracks, if those tracks are not played back seamlessly but by suppressing of introductory audio data stored in the pre-track, a seamless playback information is provided in the management information indicating if an audio track has to be played back seamlessly after a particular other audio track.

Abstract: Optical disk systems comprising photo detectors (1) for detecting optical disks comprising amplifiers and slicers (2-5) and delay-difference detectors (6) for detecting delay differences in sliced amplified detection signals are improved by installing delaylineless delay-difference detectors (6) comprising combinatorial-logic circuits (7,8) like inverters, ORs, NORs, ANDs, NANDs and sequential-logic circuits (11-18) like SetResetFlipFlops. Without the prior art delay lines, said delay-difference detectors (6) are of a lower complexity and low costly and can be well integrated. By introducing a first pair of sequential-logic circuits (11,12,15,16) for detecting delay differences between rising edges and a second pair of sequential-logic circuits (13,14,17,18) for detecting delay differences between falling edges, both kinds of edges are being used and the influence of time-jitter is less compared to the situation where just one kind of edge is used.

Abstract: The electronic device comprises a body (40) of electrically insulating material that is provided with a through-hole or cavity. In the cavity or through-hole an electric component (20) is present. This component is attached to the body through an attachment layer (13). The surface of this attachment layer is provided with a pattern of electrical conductors for electrically coupling the component to other components and/or contact means for external coupling. At least one of which electrical conductors extends to a surface of the body.

Abstract: An optical arrangement of at least a coherent light source (1), a strongly scattering object (5) (the PUF), and a pixe-lated photo-detector (6), wherein the pixels are comparable in size with the bright and dark patches of the speckle pattern produced by coherent radiation traversing the scattering object (5). Quantitively, the pixel size should be roughly ?/NA, where ? is the wave-length, and (i) NA=a/z for free-space geometry, with a being the beam radius and z being the distance between the exit surface of the PUF (5) and the pixelated detector (6), or (ii) NA is the numerical aperture of a lens (7) in an imaging geometry. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, there are tentative requirements that the pixels should be at least smaller than ?max?NA and preferably larger than ?max?/NA, where (in an exemplary embodiment) ?max=5 and ?min=0.05, say.

Abstract: The invention relates to an information carrier (101) intended to be read and/or written by a periodic array of light spots, said information carrier (101) comprising a data area (105) defined by a set of elementary data areas, a first periodic structure (108) intended to interfere with said periodic array of light spots for generating a first moiré pattern, a second periodic structure (109) intended to interfere with said periodic array of light spots for generating a second moiré pattern, said second periodic structure (109) being arranged perpendicularly to said first periodic structure (108). The invention also relates to an apparatus for reading and/or writing said information carrier (101).

Abstract: The invention relates to an information carrier, and a system for positioning such an information carrier in an apparatus. This system comprises an optical element (102) for generating a periodic array of light spots (103) intended to be applied to an information carrier (101), said information carrier (101) comprising a first periodic structure (108) intended to interfere with said periodic array of light spots (103) for generating a first Moiré pattern, and a second periodic structure (109) intended to interfere with said periodic array of light spots (103) for generating a second Moiré pattern, analysis means for deriving from said first and second Moiré patterns, the angle value (S) between said periodic array of light spots (103) and said information carrier (101), and actuation means (AC1-AC2-AC3) for adjusting the angular position of said information carrier (101) with respect to said array of light spots (103), from control signals (114) derived based on said angle value (S).

Abstract: A preprocessing unit converts an analog signal to a processed signal at a sample rate controlled by a first clock signal. A digital phase locked loop locks on the processed signal and outputs a phase signal using the first clock signal. A bit decision unit outputs a digital signal and a third clock signal using the phase signal, the first clock signal and an output signal from the preprocessing unit. A clock divider produces the first clock signal from the second clock signal. A quantizer produces the output signal by quantizing the analog signal amplitude. A phase detector determines a phase difference between the output signal and the second clock signal to feed an amplitude that indicates a phase difference. A sample and hold unit samples the output signal using the second clock signal and holds samples of the output signal for a clock period of first clock signal.

Abstract: An apparatus for recording a sequence of video data signals on a record carrier includes input structure for receiving video data signals, generating structure for generating characteristic point information signals, processing structure for processing the characteristic point information signals for a plurality of characteristic points into a sequence of characteristic points information signals (CPI) and writing structure for writing the sequence of video data signals and the sequence of characteristic points information signals on the record carrier. The characteristic point information signals identify a characteristic point in the sequence of video data signals. Various measures are proposed in relation to the CPI aiming at providing compact way of storing information related to a size of I-pictures.

Abstract: When writing data to an optic disc with a constant linear velocity, and encountering a disc error, data is written into the defect management area of the disc without changing the rotational speed of the disc, or at least without changing the rotational speed of the disc sufficiently to maintain a constant linear velocity. This allows an increase in the rate at which data may be written to the optical disc. It also avoids or reduces the need for the rotational speed of the disc to be changed, which allows a further improvement in the time taken to write data to the disc. In order to continue writing data to the disc without changing the rotational speed, the data rate must be increased while writing to the defect management area. For this to be possible, the data must be written into an “iced” or unformatted part of the defect management area.

Abstract: An optical record carrier (1) is provided with tracks having a groove (4) wobbled in a transverse direction and predetermined positions (18) along the track. The wobble comprises a substantially monotonous undulation (15). Local excursions (16) of the groove superposed on the undulation at the predetermined positions represent position information, such as addresses. The spatial frequency of the undulation is lower than that of the excursions.

Abstract: For determining aberrations of an optical imaging system (PL), a test object (12,14) comprising at least one delta test feature (10) is imaged either on an aerial scanning detector (110) or in a resist layer (71), which layer is scanned by a scanning device, for example a SEM. A new analytical method is used to retrieve from the data stream generated by the aerial detector or the scanning device different Zernike coefficients (Zn).

Abstract: A method of recording information stores lead-out information on a multilayer record carrier of an opposite track path type. A two part recording area across two layers is logically interrupted by an intermediate zone. The recording area is preceded by a lead-in zone located at the start of the first recording layer and followed by a lead-out zone located at the end of the second recording layer. An outer lead-out part and an inner lead-out part are recorded separated by an unrecorded area and together constituting the lead-out information on the second recording layer. The inner lead-out part covers a predefined radial position range corresponding to a range of radial positions used by reading devices for accessing the second recording layer during a disc loading procedure. The outer lead-out part is recorded at the end of an area of the second recording layer containing user information.

Abstract: A data compression apparatus receives a digital information signal, determines a probability signal from the digital information signal and at least one previously determined value of the probability signal, entropy encodes the digital information signal into a compressed digital information signal, in response to the probability signal, and transmits or records the compressed signal. Also, a data expansion apparatus receives the compressed signal and entropy decodes the compressed signal into a expanded replica of the digital information signal, in response to a second probability signal determined from the replica and at least one previously determined value of the second probability signal. Thus, complex division operations can be avoided.

Abstract: A memory device has an information plane (32) for storing data bits in a magnetic state of an electro-magnetic material at an array of bit locations (31). The device further has an array of electro-magnetic sensor elements (51) that are aligned with the bit locations. The information plane (32) is programmable or programmed via a separate magnetic writing device (21). In particular a read-only sensor element (60) is described for a read-only magnetic memory.

Abstract: The present invention discloses an optical device comprising a container enclosing an insulating liquid (A) and an electrically susceptible liquid (B), the insulating liquid (A) and the electrically susceptible liquid (B) being immiscible and being in contact with each other via an interface (14), at least one of the liquids (A; B) being at least partially placed in a light path through the container. The optical device further comprises heating means (2, 12, 20) that preferably are responsive to a temperature sensor (30) for heating the insulating liquid (A) and the electrically susceptible liquid (B). Consequently, an optical device is obtained in which the influence of the temperature dependence of the physical properties of the insulating liquid (A) and the electrically susceptible liquid (B) on the behavior of the optical device is reduced, thus yielding an optical device with improved optical characteristics at low temperatures.

Abstract: Presently known codes have long trains consisting of 2T runs that reduce the performance of the bit detector. By using a code with an RMTR constraint of 2 an improvement in the bit detection is achieved. A code constructed is a systematic way that provides an RMTR constraint of 2 is presented. Several variations of such a code are disclosed where one or more sub-codes are used, where coding states are divided into coding classes and where code words are divided into code word types. Then, for a given sub-code, a code word type t can be concatenated with a code word of the next sub-code if the subsequent code word of the next sub-code belongs to one of coding states of the coding class with index Tmax+1?t.

Abstract: A position determining system for determining a position of a rotor of a rotating motor has sensors that are coupled to the rotor. The sensors generate, in response to a rotation of the rotor, a quadrature signal that has sine and cosine components. The position determining system calculates a sum (A2) of a squared value of the sine component (A2sin2x) and a squared value of the cosine component (A2cos2x). An amplitude correction factor (A) is calculated as the squared root of the sum (A2). An amplitude corrected sine component (sin(x)) is obtained by dividing the sine component (Asin(x)) by the amplitude correction factor (A). An amplitude corrected cosine component (cos(x)) is obtained by dividing the cosine component (Acos(x)) by the amplitude correction factor (A).