Disc player capable of automatically interchanging a plurality of loaded discs

• US 5,862,107 A
• Filed: 06/27/1997
• Issued: 01/19/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kenwood USA Corporation (JVC Kenwood Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Kenwood
• Inventors: Goto, Souju
• Primary Examiner(s): Miller, Brian E.
• Application Number:
  US08/883,961
• Time in Patent Office: 571 Days
• Field of Search: 369/30, 369/32-33, 369/36-37, 369/191-192, 369/47-50, 369/54-58, 360/92, 386/125, 386/126
• US Class Current: 386/361
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 17/056 with sliding loading means
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 17/225 wherein the disks are transferred from a fixed magazine to a fixed playing unit using a moving carriage
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 17/24 the magazine having a toroidal or part-toroidal shape
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 19/12 by sensing distinguishing features of or on records, e.g. diameter end mark
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/20 Disc-shaped record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/213 Read-only discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2545 CDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/65 wherein solid state memory is used for storing indexing information or metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/002 Programmed access in sequence to a plurality of record carriers or indexed parts, e.g. tracks, thereof, e.g. for editing; transfer of record carriers from magazine G11B15/68, G11B17/10; G11B17/22
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/11 by using information not detectable on the record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/329 on a disc [VTOC]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/36 Monitoring, i.e. supervising the progress of recording or reproducing for digital recording G11B20/00 and s.gr.; for monitoring, testing or measuring of TV recorders of the type covered by H04N5/76 and subgroups, see H04N17/06
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 33/10 Indicating arrangements; Warning arrangements G11B15/04, G11B19/04, G11B27/34, G11B27/36 take precedence

Abstract

A changer type disc player capable of reproducing discs in a proper order depending upon the type of disc. The changer type disc player can load a plurality of discs and automatically interchange and reproduces discs, and includes a controller for reading disc management information of all discs after the discs are loaded and controlling to reproduce the plurality of discs in a predetermined order depending upon the types of discs.

Claims

1. A changer type disc player capable of loading a plurality of discs and automatically interchanging and reproducing the discs, each of the plurality of discs is loaded in a disc tray with a serial number, the disc player comprising:

means for reading disc management information from each of the discs after the discs are loaded,

means for detecting on the basis of the read disc management information whether or not the disc is a video disc,

means for detecting on the basis of the read disc management information whether or not the video disc belongs to a set of video discs having a same title,

means for extracting from the read disc management information a sequential number of the video disc when the video disc belongs to a set of video discs having the same title, and

means for reproducing the plurality of discs in a predetermined order depending on whether or not the discs are video discs and whether or not the video discs belong to a set of video discs having a same title,

wherein the video discs belonging to the set of video discs having the same title are are automatically reproduced in the order reproduced in the order of the sequential number extracted from the disc management information of each video disc, and the discs other than the video disc or the video discs each having a different title are automatically reproduced in the order of the serial number appended to each disc tray.

2. A changer type disc player according to claim 1, further comprising a display having a first display area for displaying respective recording formats of loaded discs in correspondence with a disc tray serial number.

3. A changer type disc player according to claim 2, wherein the display has a second display area for discriminating between a disc tray serial number for a video disc to be first reproduced among video discs having the same title and a disc tray serial number for each of the discs not to be first reproduced but to be later reproduced among video discs having the same title.

4. A changer type disc player according to claim 3, wherein the second display area displays a first mark of a predetermined shape under the disc tray serial number for a video disc to be first reproduced among video discs having the same title, and a second mark different from the first mark under the disc tray serial number for each of the video discs not to be first reproduced but to be later reproduced among video discs having the same title.

5. A changer type disc player according to claim 3, wherein the display has a third display area for displaying an unloaded disc among a plurality of video discs having the same title, the presence of the unloaded disc being detected on the basis of that the disc management information can not be read.

6. A changer type disc player according to claim 3, wherein the display is adapted to identify disc tray serial numbers for loaded discs if there is an unloaded disc among a plurality of video discs having the same title, the presence of the unloaded disc being detected on the basis of that the disc management information can not be read.