PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORDS OF DIGITAL INFORMATION AND PLAYBACK SYSTEMS INCLUDING OPTICAL SCANNERS

• US 3,806,643 A
• Filed: 11/26/1971
• Issued: 04/23/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/1966
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Optical Recording Corp.
• Original Assignee: James T. Russell
• Inventors: Russell, James T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cardillo, Jr., Raymond F.
• Application Number:
  US05/202,471
• Time in Patent Office: 879 Days
• Field of Search: 178/6.7R,7.6,DIG.27,DIG.28 340/173LM 250/219Q,219R,219FR 350/241,266,272,285 179/1.3B
• US Class Current: 369/125
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/218 Write-once discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/90 Tape-like record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/3027 used signal is digitally coded
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/00 Recording or reproducing by optical means, e.g. recording using a thermal beam of optical radiation by modifying optical properties or the physical structure, reproducing using an optical beam at lower power by sensing optical properties; Record carriers therefor G11B11/00, G11B13/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/0033 with cards or other card-like flat carriers, e.g. flat sheets of optical film
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 13/04 using optical elements ; using other beam accessed elements, e.g. electron or ion beam
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 3/08 having a moving reflector
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/926 by pulse code modulation H04N5/919 takes precedence

Abstract

An electrical signal recording and playback system is described in which an analog input signal is converted to a digital signal that pulses a light source to form a single, series-recorded track of binary coded digital information including information spots arranged in groups separated by synchronzing spots recorded on a photographic film which is played back in a similar manner. The photographic film is a compact, permanent record of long, useful lifetime which may be photographically copied to provide a plurality of inexpensive copies. A spiral track photographic record is used in one embodiment which can be employed to provide a music system of high quality. In one embodiment, a photographic record having bits arranged in lines or columns is held in a fixed position and a fan-shaped laser beam is moved horizontally over the record in a primary scan, and a row of microlenses focus line segments of the columns in seriatim on a row of photocells, the microlenses being stepped vertically from line to line in a vertical secondary scanning. In another embodiment, a laser beam is scanned horizontally and vertically to illuminate pages of information on a photographic element one after another, and, during the illumination of the pages, a matrix of lenslets, each covering one page, is scanned vertically over the height of a page, to transmit the lines of the illuminated pages seriatim to a row of photocells.

Claims

1. In a playback apparatus, a holder for holding a record in a fixed position, primary scanning means for moving a beam across the record, at least one row of light detectors, a row of optical means, and means for moving the optical means from line to line of the record for focusing line segments of bits from the record one after another onto the row of light detectors.

2. The method of playing back information on a photographic record wherein said information is recorded in multiple locations disposed in columns and rows, said method comprising:

holding a photographic record in a fixed position, scanning the record substantially in a direction parallel to said rows and crossways of the columns with a light beam to illuminate information from columns sequentially, and scanning along a plurality of columns of the record simultaneously with movable optical means so that light is transmitted from the column illuminated.

3. The method of playing back information on a photographic record wherein said information is recorded in multiple locations disposed in columns and rows, said method comprising:

holding the record in a fixed position, horizontally scanning the record substantially in a direction parallel to said rows and crossways of the columns with a thin, fan-shaped, vertically oriented beam of light to illuminate information from columns sequentially, and vertically scanning along a plurality of columns simultaneously with plural movable lens means so that light is transmitted from the column illuminated.

4. An information storage and retrieval system for providing information from a relatively fixed record element including an image of lines of a recorded track correlated to a digital electrical input signal, said system comprising:

primary scanning means for moving a light beam across the record element, at least one row of light detectors, secondary scanning means including a row of optical means, and means for providing relative movement between the row of optical means and the light detectors for imaging successive lines of the record element at said detectors so the detectors can read bits of information from the lines imaged thereon.

5. Apparatus for playing back information on a photographic record comprising:

means for holding a photogrAphic record in a fixed position, a primary means including a light deflection means for scanning a light beam across the record in two dimensions, and a secondary scanning means including an array of optical means and means for moving said array of optical means to scan small areas successively illuminated by said primary means.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the optical means are lens means.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the optical means are zone plate means.

8. In an information storage and retrieval system, a holder for supporting in a fixed position a photographic record having thereon a photographic image of a light signal correlated to a digital electrical input signal and being in the form of a plurality of spots in a single series-recorded track representing digital information recorded at a high density on said record element, said track including spots arranged in segmented lines in column-like array, detector means including at least one row of light detectors supported in a fixed position;

primary means including a light deflection means for scanning a light beam across the record to transmit light signals to the detectors, secondary scanning means including a row of optical means one behind each column and means for moving the row of optical means for imaging successive lines at said detectors, and output means connected to detector means for transmitting said output signal from said detector means to a utilization device.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the columns are segmented to form pages, the primary scanning means including means for stepping the beam from one page to the next, the field of each optical means of the secondary scanning means spanning the width of a page, and the means for moving the rows of optical means successively imaging successive line segments of each page at said detectors.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the optical means are lenses.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the means for moving the lenses has a scanning amplitude as great as the length of a column-like array.

12. The system according to claim 8 further including circuit means for producing a synchronous output in response to asynchronous signals provided by said detectors, said circuit means comprising a circulating storage loop provided with gating means for entering information corresponding to information from said detectors, said information being rapidly recirculated in said storage loop, said storage loop being provided with further gating means disposed along said loop and timed for withdrawing information in an uninterrupted synchronous manner.

13. The system according to claim 12 wherein said asynchronous signals are read into said storage loop and read out of said storage loop in blocks or words, with time gaps selectively occurring between words as entered into said storage loop, and wherein the storage loop contents regenerate in one output word time.