Method and apparatus for recording and reading a multiplexed video signal

• US 5,604,838 A
• Filed: 11/15/1994
• Issued: 02/18/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Schaefer, Louis F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thai Q.
• Application Number:
  US08/341,035
• Time in Patent Office: 826 Days
• Field of Search: 369/99, 369/102, 369/124, 369/48, 369/49, 369/50, 369/100, 369/109-111, 369/97, 358/342, 358/335, 358/310, 358/322, 360/22-23, 360/33.1, 360/35.1
• US Class Current: 386/314
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/003 with webs , filaments or wires, e.g. belts, spooled tapes or films of quasi-infinite extent
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/84 using optical recording H04N5/80, H04N5/89, H04N5/91 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/919 by dividing samples or signal segments, e.g. television lines, among a plurality of recording channels

Abstract

The present invention relates to video recording and playback techniques and devices which create relative movement between a laser and an optical medium such as a flexible optical tape to permit recording of relatively high bandwidth signals. Further, the present invention relates to video recording and playback techniques and devices which optimize relative movement between a laser source and the optical medium in a cost-effective manner. Data spots having a set of predetermined feature sizes (i.e., set of varying hole sizes) can thus be recorded at a rate useful for high bandwidth signals (e.g., television video signals). Further, recording on a flexible optical medium (e.g., optical tape) can be performed in a manner which optimizes space efficiency on the tape.

Claims

1. Apparatus for storing and reading video information on an optical recording medium comprising:

means for receiving an analog video signal having a first frequency bandwidth, said receiving means including a first low pass filter having a first predetermined cutoff frequency;

distributing means for sampling the analog video signal and distributing the sampled analog signal into a number of distributed channels, each of which has a frequency bandwidth less than said first frequency bandwidth, and each of which includes a low pass filter having a second cutoff frequency, said first predetermined cutoff frequency being a multiple of said second cutoff frequency, said multiple corresponding to said number of distributed channels;

means for recording a signal from each of said distributed channels onto the optical recording medium and for reading said distributed signals from the optical recording medium, said means for recording and for reading including a scanning laser which receives signals from a multiplicity of said plurality of distributed channels;

means for reproducing said analog video signal by reassembling said distributed signals read from the optical recording medium; and

means for outputting said reproduced analog video signal.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said distributing means includes:

a sample and hold circuit for sampling said analog video signal to generate the sampled analog signal, the sampled analog signal having a first sample frequency; and

a multiplexer for distributing said sampled analog signal into the plurality of channels, each of said channels including a signal with a frequency less than said first sample frequency.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said means for recording further includes:

a laser source in each of said channels.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said means for reproducing further includes:

a sample and hold circuit in each of said channels; and

a multiplexer for reassembling the data produced by each of said channel sample and hold circuits.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said output means includes a low pass filter having a cutoff frequency which corresponds to said first predetermined cutoff frequency of said first filter.

6. Apparatus for according to claim 5, wherein said optical recording medium is a flexible optical tape.

7. Apparatus for recording video information on an optical recording medium comprising:

means for receiving an analog video signal having a first frequency bandwidth, said receiving means including a first predetermined cutoff frequency;

means for sampling the analog video signal and distributing the sampled analog signal into a number of distributed channels having frequency bandwidths less than said first frequency bandwidth, each of said number of distributed channels including a low pass filter having a second cutoff frequency, said first predetermined cutoff frequency being a multiple of said second cutoff frequency with said multiple corresponding to said number of distributed channels; and

means for recording signals in each of said distributed channels onto a separate channel of the optical recording medium, said recording means including a scanning light source for receiving signals from multiple channels of said number of distributed channels.

8. Apparatus for reading video information from an optical recording medium comprising:

means for reading distributed video signals from a number of channels of data stored on an optical recording medium, said reading means including a scanning laser for receiving sampled analog signals from multiple channels of said number of channels, each of said number of channels including a low pass filter with a first cutoff frequency;

means for reproducing an input analog video signal by reassembling said distributed signals read from the optical recording medium into a signal having a bandwidth greater than the bandwidth of each of said channels; and

means for outputting said reproduced analog video signal, said outputting means including a low pass filter having a second cutoff frequency, said second cutoff frequency being a multiple of said first cutoff frequency with said multiple corresponding to said number of said channels.

9. Method for storing and reading video information on an optical recording medium comprising the steps of:

receiving an analog video signal having a first frequency bandwidth by filtering said analog video signal with a first low pass filter having a first predetermined cutoff frequency;

sampling said analog video signal and distributing the sampled analog signal into a number of distributed channels, each of which has a frequency bandwidth less than said first frequency bandwidth and each of which includes a low pass filter having a second cutoff frequency, said first predetermined cutoff frequency being a multiple of said second cutoff frequency, with said multiple corresponding to said number of distributed channels;

recording a sampled signal from each of said distributed channels onto the optical recording medium using a scanning laser which receives signals from a multiplicity of said distributed channels and subsequently reading said signals from the optical recording medium using said scanning laser;

reproducing said analog video signal by reassembling said signals read from the optical recording medium; and

outputting said reproduced analog video signal.

10. Method according to claim 9, wherein said step of distributing further includes the steps of:

sampling said analog video signal at a first sampling rate; and

distributing said sampled analog video signal into a plurality of channels such that the bandwidth of each of said channels is less than the bandwidth of said analog video signal.

11. Method according to claim 10, wherein said step of reproducing further includes the steps of:

sampling the distributed analog video signal in each of said channels; and

reassembling each of said distributed analog video signals into a single analog video signal having a bandwidth greater than the bandwidth of any one channel.

12. Method according to claim 11, wherein said step of outputting further includes the step of:

reproducing said analog video signal received during said step of receiving.

13. Method according to claim 12, wherein said optical recording medium is a flexible optical tape.