Disc processing and treating system

Abstract

A disc, such as a floppy disc, a compact disc, or either of the compact disc or the hard disc is divided into a number of areas formed by tracks and sectors. Some of the areas are unformatted and unused. An actuating or driving program is used to actuate a recording head to process and record the areas of the disc, particularly the unformatted or unused areas of the disc. The actuating program typically is introduced directly into a memory of the hard disc or of the computer, or if may be stored in an independent working station.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to an apparatus, and more particularly to an apparatus and related method for using or processing or treating or reading or writing a disc, such as a floppy disc, a compact disc, a hard disc, etc.

[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art

[0004] Typical discs, such as floppy discs, compact discs, hard discs, etc., are required to be formatted before they may be used and read and written. The floppy discs and the compact discs each includes a single disc member. As best shown in FIG. 1, the typical hard discs each normally includes one or more compact discs 70 stacked or superposed with each other with a hub or the like, and received in a housing 80 (FIG. 3). As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the computer or the hard disc includes one or more magnetic or recording head 73 supported with flexures 71 and coupled to an electromagnetic driver 72 with the flexures 71, for processing or treating or reading or writing the discs 70, such as the floppy discs, the compact discs of the hard disc. The disc or the computer for processing the compact disc or floppy disc may include a built-in program to process or to format or to treat or to read or to write the discs.

[0005] As shown in FIG. 4, the typical discs 70 will be treated by the built-in program of the computer or of the hard disc and formatted into a number of formatted tracks 74 and a number of unformatted tracks 77 that are alternatively formed on the disc 70. For example, as counted from the outer peripheral portion to the radially inner portion of the disc 70, the 1th, the 3rd, the 5th, the 7th . . . etc. tracks of the disc 70 will be formatted and may then be read and written with any computer information or programs, such as the WINDOWS, WORD, ETC. The 2nd, the 4th, the 6th . . . etc., tracks 77 of the discs, for example, will be the unformatted tracks. The disc 70 will also be formatted into a number of sectors; i.e., the formatted tracks 74 will further be formatted into a number of sectors so as to form a number of formatted areas 76. However, some of the areas in the formatted tracks 74 may not be formatted and are thus be called as the unformatted areas. Both the unformatted areas 78 and the unformatted tracks 77 may all be called as the unused areas and may not be processed or treated or read or written by the recording head 73; i.e., the present existed built-in programs of the computer or of the hard disc may not instruct or actuate the recording head 73 to process or to treat or to read or to write the disc 70.

[0006] Accordingly, after being formatted, the floppy discs, the compact discs, or the compact discs of the hard disc may each include a number of unused areas that may not be used or processed or treated or read or written by the built-in program of the computer to the hard disc. About or more than one-half of each of the discs will be wasted and may not be used.

[0007] The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional disc reading and writing processes and systems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a system for formatting or processing or treating or reading or writing the unused areas of the discs, such as the floppy discs, the compact discs, or the compact discs of the hard disc.

[0009] The other objective of the present invention is to provide a system having a program provided for formatting or processing or treating or reading or writing the unused areas of the discs.

[0010] In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a system comprising at least one disc divided into a plurality of areas, a recording head for processing and recording the disc, and means for actuating the recording head to process everyone of the areas of the disc, particularly the unformatted or unused areas of the disc.

[0011] The disc includes a plurality of tracks and a plurality of sectors formed therein to form the areas therein, the areas of the disc include a plurality of formatted and usable areas and include a plurality of unformatted and unused areas.

[0012] The actuating means is provided for actuating the recording head to process the formatted and usable areas of the disc, and/or to process the unformatted and unused areas of the disc.

[0013] The actuating means includes a memory coupled to the recording head, and an actuating program provided in the memory to actuate the recording head to process the areas of the disc.

[0014] The actuating means includes a working station having a first memory coupled to the recording head, and an actuating program provided in the first memory to actuate the recording head to process the areas of the disc.

[0015] A second memory is further provided and coupled between the working station and the recording head. The first memory is preferably an erasable programmable read only memory.

[0016] The working station further includes a processing unit coupled between the recording head and the first memory, and further includes a second memory coupled to the processing unit.

[0017] Further objectives and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a careful reading of a detailed description provided hereinbelow , with appropriate reference to accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an inner structure of a typical prior art hard disc;

[0019] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the reading and writing process for the typical prior art compact disc or hard disc;

[0020] FIG. 3 is a plan schematic view illustrating the reading and writing method for the typical prior art compact disc or hard disc;

[0021] FIG. 4 is a plan schematic view illustrating the typical prior art compact disc or hard disc after being formatted or illustrating the formatted areas of the typical prior art compact disc or hard disc;

[0022] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an apparatus for practicing a method in accordance with the present invention to use or to process or to treat or to read or to write the disc; and

[0023] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating the apparatus and related method to use or to process or to treat or to read or to write the unused areas of the disc.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0024] Referring to the drawings, and initially to FIG. 5, a typical hard disc 10 or a typical disc driver of a computer may include a recording head 11 for processing or treating or reading or writing the disc 13, and may include a memory 12 for storing the program to actuate the recording head 11 to process or to treat or to read or to write the disc 13. The recording head 11 may include the typical recording head supported by a flexure and coupled, with the flexure, to an electromagnetic driver.

[0025] An apparatus in accordance with the present invention comprises providing an independent card, or a circuit board or a working platform or a working station 30 having a processor unit (CPU) 31 or the like provided therein, and having one more memories 32 for storing purposes and one or more erasable programmable read only memories (EPROM) 33 provided therein and coupled to the CPU 31. The working station 30, such the CPU 31 of the working station 30 is coupled directly to the recording head 11 or indirectly to the recording head 11 via the memory 12. The working station 30 of the present invention provides a driving or an actuating program in the EPROM 33 to actuate the recording head 11 to process or to treat or to read or to write or to format or to use the unused areas 77, 78 (FIG. 4) of the disc 13.

[0026] It is to be noted that the driving or the actuating program of the present invention may also be directly introduced into the memory 12 of the hard disc 10 or of the disc driver 10 of the computer in order to actuate the recording head 11 to process or to treat or to read or to write or to format or to use the unused areas 77, 78 (FIG. 4) of the disc 13. The working station 30 may also be the other independent floppy discs, the other independent compact discs, the other independent hard discs, etc.

[0027] Referring next to FIG. 6, illustrated is an example of a block diagram of the present invention to process or to treat or to read or to write orto format or to use the unused areas 77, 78 (FIG. 4) of the disc 13. For example, when the computer or the hard disc 10 is actuated or started 40, the basic input/output system (BIOS) of the computer or of the hard disc 10 will first be actuated or initiated 41. The system will then be interrupted or actuated or controlled by the driving or the actuating program in the EPROM 33 and will be treated by the actuating program of the present invention as shown in the block 42. The actuating program in the EPROM 33 and will then be actuated or started as shown in the block 43, and will move (44) the recording head 11 to the unformatted or unused areas of the disc 13, and to format (45) the unused areas 77, 78, (FIG. 4) of the disc 13, and then to process or to treat or to read or to write or to record (46) the unformatted or unused areas 77, 78 of the disc 13. After the unformatted or unused areas of the disc 13 is used or processed, the EPROM will be ended at 47 and will then moved out of the block 42 and will then be entered into the typical processing system 48, such as the disc operating system (DOS), the programs, the files, and any other operation systems of the computer or of the hard disc.

[0028] It is to be noted that about or more than one-half of each of the typical discs will be wasted and may not be used. The areas in the typical discs may thus be treated by the present invention to have about double of the areas to be usable. The information or records of the disc 13 will be stored in the other formatted or used areas of the disc 13 that is less then one-half of the typical discs 13. Accordingly, for example, all or some of the information stored in the formatted or used areas of the disc13 may be copied into the unused areas 77, 78 of the disc 13 that are newly formatted. When the information stored in the previously formatted or used areas of the disc 13 is damaged inadvertently, for some reasons, the information copied or stored in the unused and newly formatted areas 77, 78 of the disc13 may then be used and treated or processed, or may be copied into the previously formatted or used areas of the disc 13 to replace the damaged information. The unused and newly formatted areas 77, 78 of the disc 13 may also be used to store or to record the other information or the programs or the like.

[0029] The typical discs, such as the floppy discs, the compact discs, the compact of the hard disc may each be previously formatted into a number of areas, including a number of tracks and sectors. The actuating program of the working station of the present invention may be used to format and to process and to use all of the unformatted areas of the typical discs. The actuating program of the working station of the present invention may also be used, directly, to format and to process and to use all of the areas of the discs that have never been formatted or used.

[0030] Accordingly, the apparatus in accordance with the present invention may be used for formatting or processing or treating or reading or writing the unused areas of the discs, such as the floppy discs, the compact discs, or the compact discs of the hard disc.

[0031] Although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made by way of example only and that numerous changes in the detailed construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus for processing a disc having a plurality of usable areas and a plurality of unused areas, said apparatus comprising:

a recording head for processing and recording the disc, and

means for actuating said recording head to process the unused areas of the disc.

2. An apparatus for processing a disc having a plurality of usable areas and a plurality of unused areas, said apparatus comprising:

a recording head for processing and recording the disc,

means for actuating said recording head to process the usable areas of the disc, and

means for actuating said recording head to process the unused areas of the disc.

3. An apparatus comprising:

at least one disc divided into a plurality of areas,

a recording head for processing and recording said at least one disc, and

means for actuating said recording head to process every one of said areas of said at least one disc.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said at least one disc includes a plurality of tracks and a plurality of sectors formed therein to form said areas therein, said areas of said at least one disc include a plurality of formatted and usable areas and include a plurality of unformatted and unused areas.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein said actuating means is provided for actuating said recording head to process said formatted and usable areas of said at least one disc.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein said actuating means is provided for actuating said recording head to process said unformatted and unused areas of said at least one disc.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said actuating means includes a memory coupled to said recording head, and an actuating program provided in said memory to actuate said recording head to process said areas of said at least one disc.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said actuating means includes a working station having a first memory coupled to said recording head, and an actuating program provided in said memory to actuate said recording head to process said areas of said at least one disc.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8 further comprising a second memory coupled between said working station and said recording head.

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein said first memory is an erasable programmable read only memory.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein said working station further includes a process unit coupled between said recording head and said first memory.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein said working station further includes a second memory coupled to said processing unit.