Information recording medium, information recording method and apparatus, and information playback method and apparatus

• US 6,215,746 B1
• Filed: 08/03/1999
• Issued: 04/10/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Ando, Hideo, Mimura, Hideki, Kikuchi, Shinichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thang V.
• Application Number:
  US09/365,708
• Time in Patent Office: 616 Days
• Field of Search: 369/58, 369/47, 369/54, 705/52, 705/53, 705/54, 380/287, 386/95, 386/96, 386/105, 386/106
• US Class Current: 369/53.2
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/1087 wherein a selection is made among at least two alternative ways of processing
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/211 Discs having both read-only and rewritable or recordable areas containing application data; Partial ROM media
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/216 Rewritable discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/218 Write-once discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2516 Hard disks
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2562 DVDs [digital versatile discs]; Digital video discs; MMCDs; HDCDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2575 DVD-RAMs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2583 wherein two standards are used on a single disc, e.g. one DVD section and one CD section
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/455 said record carriers being in one device and being used as primary and secondary/backup media, e.g. HDD-DVD combo device, or as source and target media, e.g. PC and portable player
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/3027 used signal is digitally coded
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/329 on a disc [VTOC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/77 between a recording apparatus and a television camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/7921 for more than one processing mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8047 using transform coding

Abstract

An information recording medium of this invention has a first area which records common information which can be commonly played back by a plurality of types of information playback apparatuses provided by different manufacturers or distributors and complies with common standards, a second area which records specific information which can be played back by only an information playback apparatus of a specific type provided by a specific manufacturer or distributor, and a third area which records link information indicating the links between the common information and specific information.

Claims

1. An information recording medium comprising:

a first area which records common information which can be commonly played back by a plurality of types of information playback apparatuses provided by different manufacturers or distributors and complies with common standards;

a second area which records specific information which can be played back by only an information playback apparatus of a specific type provided by a specific manufacturer or distributor; and

a third area which records link information indicating a link between the common information and specific information.

2. An information recording method of recording predetermined information on a predetermined information recording medium, comprising the steps of:

recording common information which can be commonly played back by a plurality of types of information playback apparatuses provided by different manufacturers or distributors and complies with common standards;

recording specific information which can be played back by only an information playback apparatus of a specific type provided by a specific manufacturer or distributor; and

recording link information indicating a link between the common information and specific information.

3. An information recording apparatus for recording predetermined information on a predetermined information recording medium, comprising:

recording means for recording common information which can be commonly played back by a plurality of types of information playback apparatuses provided by different manufacturers or distributors and complies with common standards, recording specific information which can be played back by only an information playback apparatus of a specific type provided by a specific manufacturer or distributor, and recording link information indicating a link between the common information and specific information.

4. An information playback method applied to an information playback apparatus of a specific type, which is provided by a specific manufacturer or distributor, and plays back an information recording medium,

the information recording medium comprising:

a first area which records common information which can be commonly played back by a plurality of types of information playback apparatuses provided by different manufacturers or distributors and complies with common standards;

a second area which records specific information which can be played back by only the information playback apparatus of the specific type provided by the specific manufacturer or distributor; and

a third area which records link information that indicates a link between the common information and specific information, and contains at least one ID information of ID information indicating a manufacturer of the information playback apparatus of the specific type, and ID information indicating a distributor of the information playback apparatus of the specific type,

the information playback apparatus of the specific type, comprising;

ID information storage means for storing at least one ID information of ID information indicating the manufacturer of the information playback apparatus of the specific type, and ID information indicating the distributor of the information playback apparatus of the specific type, and

said method comprising the step of;

comparing the ID information stored in said ID information storage means and the ID information contained in the link information played back from the information recording medium, and playing back the specific information on the condition that the two pieces of ID information match each other.

5. An information playback apparatus for playing back an information recording medium,

the information recording medium comprising:

a first area which records common information which can be commonly played back by a plurality of types of information playback apparatuses provided by different manufacturers or distributors and complies with common standards;

a second area which records specific information which can be played back by only an information playback apparatus of a specific type provided by the specific manufacturer or distributor; and

a third area which records link information that indicates a link between the common information and specific information, and contains at least one ID information of ID information indicating a manufacturer of the information playback apparatus of the specific type, and ID information indicating a distributor of the information playback apparatus of the specific type,

said information playback apparatus of the specific type, comprising;

ID information storage means for storing at least one ID information of ID information indicating a manufacturer of said information playback apparatus of the specific type, and ID information indicating a distributor of said information playback apparatus of the specific type; and

playback means for playing back the common information, specific information, and link information recorded in the first, second, and third areas of the information recording medium.

6. A recording medium comprising:

a first area for recording video information; and

a second area for recording management information which is referred to when the video information recorded in said first area is reproduced,

wherein said second area has an area for recording manufacturer'"'"'s information, said second area including a third area for recording ID of a manufacturer, a fourth area for recording specific information of the manufacturer, and a fifth area for recording time required for recording the specific information of the manufacturer.

7. The recording medium according to claim 6, wherein said area for recording manufacturer'"'"'s information further has a sixth area for recording the number of items of the manufacturer'"'"'s information.