Media system having preemptive digital audio and/or video extraction function

• US 20070239699A1
• Filed: 04/11/2006
• Published: 10/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Harman International Industries Incorporated (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Harman International Industries Incorporated (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Murrells, Nicholas, Sears, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 8,369,971 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/64 Browsing; Visualisation therefor generation of a list or set of audio data G06F16/638
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/68 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]

Abstract

A media system is disclosed that uses preemptive recording of media files to reduce playback latency when media tracks are subsequently selected for playback during the recording process. The media system comprises a primary storage device capable of storing media files and a secondary storage device capable of reading digital media files from a removable storage medium. The system also includes a media player capable of playing media files stored on the primary storage device and a recorder that is connected to read digital media data from the secondary storage device. The recorder stores media files corresponding to the digital media data of the removable storage medium on the primary storage device. To reduce subsequent playback latency when media tracks are selected for playback during the recording process, the recorder automatically stores only predetermined portions of each media file read from the storage medium on the primary storage device when the removable storage medium is, for example, initially engaged with the secondary storage device. The preemptive recording may also occur at advantageous times other than the time at which the removable storage medium is initially engaged with the secondary storage device. Further, preemptive recording may be limited to the media files selected by the user for complete recording from the secondary storage device to the primary storage device.

Claims

1. A media system comprising:

a primary storage device capable of storing audio files;

a secondary storage device capable of reading audio files from a removable storage medium;

a media player capable of playing audio files stored on the primary and secondary storage devices;

a recorder coupled to record audio files from the removable storage medium to the primary storage device, where the recorder preemptively records only predetermined portions of one or more of the audio files to the primary storage device before completely recording another of the one or more audio files to the primary storage device.

2. The media system of claim 1 where the predetermined portions comprise beginning portions of each audio file.

3. The media system of claim 1 where the predetermined portions comprise approximately five to ten seconds of a beginning section of each audio file.

4. The media system of claim 1 where the primary storage device comprises a hard disk drive.

5. The media system of claim 1 where audio files are stored on the primary storage device in a compressed audio format selected from the group of compressed audio formats consisting of MP3, ADPCM, FLAC, and VORBIS.

6. The media system of claim 5 where audio files are stored on the second storage device using a lossless audio compression format.

7. A media system comprising:

a primary storage device having files containing media stored in a first data format;

a secondary storage device capable of reading removable storage media, the removable storage media having files containing media stored in a second data format, where the media files of the secondary storage device are logically arranged in corresponding tracks;

a media player that plays the files of the primary and secondary storage devices;

a media recorder that converts the media files of the secondary storage device to the first data format and saves the converted media files to the primary storage device, where the media recorder automatically converts and stores a predetermined portion of two or more tracks of the removable storage media prior to complete conversion and storage of the two or more tracks thereby reducing initial playback latency of the two or more tracks during playback.

8. The media system of claim 7 where the predetermined portions of each media file comprise beginning portions of each audio file.

9. The media system of claim 7 where the predetermined portions of each media file comprise approximately five seconds of a beginning section of each media file.

10. The media system of claim 7 where the secondary storage device is capable of reading an optical disk selected from the group consisting of CD audio discs, DVD audio discs, super audio compact discs, DVD video discs, CD video discs, CD multimedia discs, and DVD multimedia discs.

11. The media system of claim 10 where the primary storage device comprises a fixed media storage drive.

12. The media system of claim 11 where the primary storage device comprises a hard disk drive.

13. The media system of claim 7 where the media files on the primary storage device comprise audio files.

14. The media system of claim 13 where the first data format comprises a compressed audio format.

15. The media system of claim 14 where the compressed audio format is selected from the group of compressed audio formats consisting of MP3, ADPCM, FLAC, and VORBIS.

16. The media system of claim 14 where the second data format comprises a lossless audio compression format.

17. The media system of claim 7 and further comprising a user interface having at least a track selection input, where the media player plays a media file corresponding to a track of the removable storage media in response to the track selection input, and where the media player begins playing the given track using the predetermined portion of the given track stored on the primary storage device.

18. A media system comprising:

a primary storage device capable of storing compressed audio files in a first data format;

an optical disk reader capable of reading audio files from an optical medium using a second data format, where the audio files are logically arranged in audio tracks;

a media player that plays the compressed audio files of the primary storage device;

a media recorder that converts audio files read by the optical disk reader to the first data format and saves the converted audio files in corresponding compressed audio files on the primary storage device, where the media recorder automatically converts and stores a predetermined audio portion of two or more audio tracks on the primary storage device prior to complete conversion and storage of the two or more audio tracks on the primary storage device.

19. The media system of claim 18 where the predetermined portions of each audio file comprise beginning portions of each audio file.

20. The media system of claim 18 where the predetermined portions of each audio file comprise approximately five seconds of a beginning section of each audio file.

21. The media system of claim 18 where the optical disk reader is capable of reading an optical disk selected from the group consisting of CD audio discs, DVD audio discs, and super audio compact discs.

22. The media system of claim 18 where the primary storage device comprises a hard disk drive.

23. The media system of claim 18 where the first data format comprises a compressed audio format is from the group of compressed audio formats consisting of MP3, ADPCM, FLAC, and VORBIS.

24. The media system of claim 23 where the second data format comprises a lossless audio compression format.

25. The media system of claim 18 and further comprising a user interface having at least a track selection input, where the media player plays compressed audio files corresponding to a track of the optical medium in response to the track selection input, and where the media player begins playing the given track using the predetermined portion of the given track stored on the primary storage device.

26. A media system comprising:

means for reading media files from a removable storage medium;

means for detecting insertion of the removable storage medium into the means for reading;

means for encoding the media files read from the removable storage medium, where the means for encoding automatically encodes predetermined portions of two or more media files when the means for detecting initially indicates insertion of the removable storage medium; and

means for storing the encoded media files.

27. The media system of claim 26 where the predetermined portions of the two or more media files comprise beginning portions of each media file.

28. The media system of claim 26 where the predetermined portions of the two or more media files comprise approximately five seconds of a beginning section of each media file.

29. A media system comprising:

means for reading media files from a removable storage medium and storing corresponding media files on a further storage medium;

means for preemptively recording predetermined portions of the media files of the removable storage medium to reduce latency during subsequent playback of the corresponding media files from the further storage medium.

30. The media system of claim 29 where the predetermined portions of the media files comprise beginning portions of each media file.

31. The media system of claim 29 where the predetermined portions of the media files comprise approximately five seconds of a beginning section of each media file.

32. A media system comprising:

a primary storage device capable of storing multimedia files;

a secondary storage device capable of reading multimedia files from a storage medium;

a multimedia player capable of playing multimedia files stored on the primary storage device;

a recorder connected to the secondary storage device, where the recorder stores multimedia files corresponding to the multimedia files of the secondary storage device on the primary storage device, and where the recorder automatically stores only predetermined portions of each multimedia file read from the storage medium on the primary storage device.