METHOD OF STORING INFORMATION ON AND RETRIEVING INFORMATION FROM A MAGNETIC DRUM

• US 3,599,178 A
• Filed: 03/21/1969
• Issued: 08/10/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Link Flight Simulation Corporation Kirkwood Industrial Park Binghamton NY 13902-1237
• Original Assignee: Bernie F. Jackson, David G. Jackson
• Inventors: Jackson, David G., Jackson, Bernie F.
• Application Number:
  US04/809,323
• Time in Patent Office: 872 Days
• US Class Current: 711/4
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0016 Selecting or retrieving of images by means of their associated code-marks, e.g. coded microfilm or microfiche microfilm reading G03B21/11; computers therefor G06F16/00; teaching devices G09B5/02; accessing record carriers G11B27/002; static digital stores using optical elements G11C13/04; intermediate storage of facsimile picture signals H04N1/21
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/391 Resolution modifying circuits, e.g. variable screen formats

Abstract

The disclosed embodiment of the present invention is a method of storing pictorial information on and retrieving pictorial information from a movable storage media to permit rapid access and retrieval of such information for displaying either the whole or a submultiple of the whole of the pictorial information in a minimum of time. The disclosed method comprises writing blocks of such information on a magnetic drum, with each block being formed of one or more lines of the scanned information. The blocks are arranged in step fashion on the drum with each successive block being spaced along the direction of travel of the drum a distance equal to the line length of the smallest picture to be displayed. In the disclosed embodiment, each block is formed of four scan lines written in 16-bit parallel format on the drum, and the spacing of each block is equal to the distance occupied by onefourth of a scan line of information. Since the scanned information is greater than the displayed information, that portion of the information which is to be displayed is read from the drum, compressed by means of logic circuits, and supplied to a display storage. The information in the display storage is continuously read and supplied to a CRT for display to an operator.

Claims

1. A method of mapping information on a movable storage media, wherein said information defines n lines of m elements per line of a scanned image for construction of at least one display therefrom which comprises n/x lines of m/y elements per line, wherein x is equal to or greater than unity and equal to or less than n and y is equal to or greater than unity and equal to or less than m, comprising the sTeps of recording at least one line of said information along at least one track of the storage media, and recording a subsequent line of said information along another track of the storage media and spaced along the path of travel of the storage media from the beginning of the recording of said one line by a distance occupied by m/y elements of information.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein x and y are integral numbers.

3. A method as defined in claim 2, wherein x is equal to y.

4. A method of mapping information on and retrieving information from a movable storage media, wherein said information comprises n lines of m elements per line of a scanned image, for construction of at least one display therefrom which comprises n/x lines of m/y elements per line, comprising the steps of recording at least one line of said information along at least one track of the storage media, recording a subsequent line of said information along another track of the storage media and spaced along the path of travel of the storage media from the beginning of the recording of said one line by a distance occupied by m/y elements of information, sensing a plurality of elements from said one line, and compressing the data represented by said plurality of elements to form a display information bit.

5. A method as defined in claim 4, wherein the data is compressed by a factor which is inversely proportional to x.