Audio reproducing apparatus

• US 20050190659A1
• Filed: 03/01/2005
• Published: 09/01/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Shirakihara, Futoshi, Fujita, Takeshi, Ohta, Katsutoshi, Sogabe, Tomoko
• Application Number:
  US11/067,915
• Publication Number:
  US 20050190659A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 369/30.08
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs

Abstract

To allow high speed search for audio files described in a play list and to quickly perform reproduction of the audio files according to the play list even when a plurality of audio files are recorded on a recording medium, a matching comparison unit for performing a search for a file name described in the play list from file names included in a file name list is provided in a signal processing circuit for performing processing such as decoding of an audio file. When reproduction using the play list is instructed, respective file numbers of the audio files detected in the search by the matching comparison unit are output to a control circuit.

Claims

1. An audio reproducing apparatus for reading one or more audio files recorded on a recording medium according to a play list to indicate a reproduction order and reproducing an audio signal, the apparatus comprising:

a signal-processing processor for reproducing the audio signal; and

a control processor for controlling an operation of the audio reproducing apparatus,

wherein, based on one or more file names included in the play list, the signal-processing processor performs a search in a file list to indicate the one or more audio files recorded on the recording medium for read-out file information to be used for reading each of the one or more audio files from the recording medium, and

wherein the control processor controls reproduction of the audio signal in an order according to the play list using the read-out file information detected in the search.

2. The audio reproducing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an external memory for storing the file list and the play list,

wherein the file list includes a file name given to each of the one or more audio files recorded on the recording medium,

wherein the control processor outputs an address of the file list stored in the external memory to the signal-processing processor and instructs, using the read-out file information detected in the search, the signal-processing processor to perform reproduction of the audio signal in the order according to the play list, and

wherein the signal-processing processor includes an internal memory formed of a memory for temporarily storing the file list and the play list and for performing a data input/output operation at higher speed than an operation speed of the external memory and reproduces the audio signal by reading the file list from the address output by the control processor to the internal memory, comparing the file name described in the read out file list with a file name described in the play list, outputting read-out file information of an audio file having a matching file name and reading the audio file in the order instructed by the control processor in the internal memory.

3. The audio reproducing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the file list includes a file name given to each of the one or more audio files recorded on the recording medium,

wherein when a character code system of the file name included in the file list is different from a character code system of a file name included in the play list, the control processor instructs the signal-processing processor to convert at least one of the character code system of the file name included in the file list and the character code system of the file name included in the play list into a predetermined character code system so that the character code systems of the file name included in the file list and the file name included in the play list become the same, and

wherein the signal-processing processor performs the search according to an instruction by the control processor after the conversion for the character code systems has been performed.

4. The audio reproducing apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the control processor outputs information indicating the size of the file list to the signal-processing processor, and

wherein the signal-processing processor further includes an internal memory for temporarily storing the file list, reads the file list by performing read operations of a plurality of times, and performs the search at each time when a read operation is performed.

5. The audio reproducing apparatus of claim 4, wherein the signal-processing processor has a first reading function of reading a certain number of characters of a file name described in the file list to the internal memory, regardless of a length of the file name, and a second reading function of reading all characters of the file name into the internal memory, and

wherein the control processor instructs the signal-processing processor which of the first reading function or the second reading function is used to read the file name.

6. The audio reproducing apparatus of claim 1, wherein when performing the search to part of the file list, the control processor instructs the signal-processing processor in what range of the file list the signal-processing processor performs the search, and

wherein the signal-processing processor performs the search to the range of the file list.

7. The audio reproducing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an external memory to which the file list is read,

wherein the one or more audio files recorded on the recording medium is stored in a hierarchical structure,

wherein the file list further includes a directory name to identify a directory in a hierarchy,

wherein in the play list, a directory name is described so as to correspond to the file name,

wherein when the file list is read to the external memory, the control processor outputs a first address in which information for the file name included in the file list is stored and a second address in which information for the directory name included in the file list to the signal-processing processor, and

wherein the signal-processing processor performs a search for the file reading information, based on the file name included in the play list, from the information for the file name read out from the first address, and a search for information to specify a directory for reading each of the audio files from the recording medium from the information for the directory name read out from the second address.

8. The audio reproducing apparatus of claim 7, wherein the recording medium allows storage of audio files having a same file name,

wherein when an audio file corresponding to the read-out file information detected in the search by the signal-processing processor is not included in the directory to which the search is performed, the control processor instructs a re-search in the file list, and

wherein when the re-search is instructed, the signal-processing processor performs a search to part of the file list which has not been subjected to a search.