Video data storage and playback scheme with automatic playback continuation after overtaking

• US 6,272,278 B1
• Filed: 11/30/1998
• Issued: 08/07/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
• Inventors: Takahata, Minoru, Nishimura, Kazutoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Wendy R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Boccio, Vincent F.
• Application Number:
  US09/201,109
• Time in Patent Office: 981 Days
• Field of Search: H04/N.591, 386/125-126, 386/68, 386/70, 386/46, 386/109, 386/112, 360/7, 369/60, 369/32
• US Class Current: 386/216
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording

Abstract

A video data storage and playback scheme in which the playback of video data that has been interrupted due to the occurrence of the overtaking at the storage device can be automatically resumed at the playback device is disclosed. The storage device is controlled to transmit the read out video data to the playback device by attaching control data indicating that it is video data read out after an overtaking occurred, when the read out video data is video data stored after an occurrence of the overtaking in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device. Then, the playback device is controlled to resume playback of video data that has been interrupted due to the occurrence of the overtaking, upon detecting the control data.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a video data storage and playback system having a playback device for playbacking digital video data and a storage device for storing video data and reading stored video data and transmitting read out video data to the playback device in response to a request from the playback device, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) controlling the storage device to transmit the read out video data to the playback device and attaching control data indicating that it is video data read out after an overtaking occurred, when the read out video data is video data stored after an occurrence of the overtaking in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device; and

(b) controlling the playback device to resume playback of video data that has been interrupted due to the occurrence of the overtaking, upon detecting the control data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at the step (a), the storage device is controlled to transmit the read out video data in which the control data is periodically inserted among video data, to the playback device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein at the step (a), when the overtaking occurred, the storage device is controlled to interrupt video data reading and transmit an overtaking notice to the playback device, then read out video data written into the storage device after the overtaking notice, in an ordinary mode, and then transmit the read out video data after the occurrence of the overtaking to the playback device by attaching the control data having a prescribed value.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at the step (b), the playback device is controlled to interrupt video data playback after playbacking video data remaining in buffer memories of the storage device and the playback device upon receiving an overtaking notice from the storage device, and then resume video data playback in an ordinary playback mode upon detecting receiving of video data read out after the occurrence of the overtaking from the storage device according to the control data.

5. A video data storage and playback system, comprising:

a playback device for playbacking digital video data; and

a storage device for storing video data and reading stored video data and transmitting read out video data to the playback device in response to a request from the playback device;

wherein the storage device transmits the read out video data to the playback device and attaching control data indicating that it is video data read out after an overtaking occurred, when the read out video data is video data stored after an occurrence of the overtaking in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device; and

the playback device resumes playback of video data that has been interrupted due to the occurrence of the overtaking, upon detecting the control data.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the storage device transmits the read out video data in which the control data is periodically inserted among video data, to the playback device.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein when the overtaking occurred, the storage device interrupts video data reading and transmits an overtaking notice to the playback device, then reads out video data written into the storage device after the overtaking notice, in an ordinary mode, and then transmits the read out video data after the occurrence of the overtaking to the playback device by attaching the control data having a prescribed value.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein the playback device interrupts video data playback after playbacking video data remaining in buffer memories of the storage device and the playback device upon receiving an overtaking notice from the storage device, and then resumes video data playback in an ordinary playback mode upon detecting receiving of video data read out after the occurrence of the overtaking from the storage device according to the control data.

9. The system of claim 5, wherein the storage device includes a memory unit for storing video data, a writing control unit for writing video data supplied from an external into the memory unit, and a reading control unit for reading video data from the memory unit and transmitting the read out video data to the playback device in response to the request from the playback device, where the reading control unit has a control data attaching mechanism for attaching the control data indicating that it is video data read out after the overtaking occurred, to video data read out from the memory unit, when the read out video data is video data stored after the occurrence of the overtaking.

10. The system of claim 5, wherein the playback device includes a playback control unit for requesting video data reading to the storage device and controlling playback of video data transmitted from the storage device, and a decoding unit for decoding video data transmitted from the storage device, where the decoding unit has a control data detection mechanism for detecting the control data and the playback control unit commands resuming of video data playback that has been interrupted due to the occurrence of the overtaking when the control data is detected by the control data detection mechanism of the decoding unit.

11. A method for controlling a storage device for storing digital video data and reading stored video data and transmitting read out video data to a playback device for playbacking video data, in response to a request from the playback device, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) controlling the storage device to carry out a video data reading and transmission processing in a mode specified from the playback device; and

(b) controlling the storage device to interrupt video data reading and transmit an overtaking notice to the playback device, then read out video data written into the storage device after the overtaking notice, in an ordinary mode, and then transmit read out video data after an occurrence of an overtaking to the playback device and attaching control data having a prescribed value indicating that it is video data read out after the overtaking occurred, when the overtaking, in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device, occurred during the video data reading and transmission processing of the step (a).

12. A method for controlling a playback device for playbacking video data received from a storage device by making a request to the storage device storing digital video data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) controlling the playback device to carry out a video data playback processing in a mode specified from a user; and

(b) controlling the playback device to interrupt video data playback after playbacking video data remaining in buffer memories of the storage device and the playback device upon receiving an overtaking notice from the storage device during the video data playback processing of the step (a), the overtaking notice indicating an occurrence of an overtaking in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device, and then resume video data playback in an ordinary playback mode upon detecting receiving of video data read out after the occurrence of the overtaking from the storage device according to control data having a prescribed value indicating that it is video data read out after the overtaking occurred, which is attached to video data received from the storage device.

13. An article of manufacture, comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for causing a computer to function as a controller of a storage device for storing digital video data and reading stored video data and transmitting read out video data to a playback device for playbacking video data, in response to a request from the playback device, the computer readable program code means includes;

first computer readable program code means for causing said computer to control the storage device to carry out a video data reading and transmission processing in a mode specified from the playback device; and

second computer readable program code means for causing said computer to control the storage device to interrupt video data reading and transmit an overtaking notice to the playback device, then read out video data written into the storage device after the overtaking notice, in an ordinary mode, and then transmit the read out video data after an occurrence of an overtaking to the playback device by attaching control data having a prescribed value indicating that it is video data read out after the overtaking occurred, when the overtaking, in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device, occurred during the video data reading and transmission processing by the first computer readable program code means.

14. An article of manufacture, comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for causing a computer to function as a controller of a playback device for playbacking video data received from a storage device by making a request to the storage device storing digital video data, the computer readable program code means includes;

first computer readable program code means for causing said computer to control the playback device to carry out a video data playback processing in a mode specified from a user; and

second computer readable program code means for causing said computer to control the playback device to interrupt video data playback after playbacking video data remaining in buffer memories of the storage device and the playback device upon receiving an overtaking notice from the storage device during the video data playback processing by the first computer readable program code means, the overtaking notice indicating an occurrence of an overtaking in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device, and then resume video data playback in an ordinary playback mode upon detecting receiving of video data read out after the occurrence of the overtaking from the storage device according to control data having a prescribed value indicating that it is video data read out after the overtaking occurred, which is attached to video data received from the storage device.

15. A storage device for storing digital video data and reading stored video data and transmitting read out video data to a playback device for playbacking video data, in response to a request from the playback device, the storage device comprising:

a reading and transmission unit for carrying out a video data reading and transmission processing in a mode specified from the playback device; and

an overtaking processing unit for interrupting video data reading and transmitting an overtaking notice to the playback device, then reading out video data written into the storage device after the overtaking notice, in an ordinary mode, and then transmitting read out video data after an occurrence of an overtaking to the playback device by attaching control data having a prescribed value indicating that it is video data read out after the overtaking occurred, when the overtaking, in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device, occurred during the video data reading and transmission processing by the reading and transmission unit.

16. A playback device for playbacking video data received from a storage device by making a request to the storage device storing digital video data, the playback device comprising:

a playback processing unit for carrying out a video data playback processing in a mode specified from a user; and

an overtaking processing unit for interrupting video data playback after playbacking video data remaining in buffer memories of the storage device and the playback device upon receiving an overtaking notice from the storage device during the video data playback processing of the playback processing unit, the overtaking notice indicating an occurrence of an overtaking in which a reading position of video data in a process of being read out from the storage device in response to the request from the playback device overtook a writing position of video data in a process of being written into the storage device, and then resuming video data playback in an ordinary playback mode upon detecting receiving of video data read out after the occurrence of the overtaking from the storage device according to control data having a prescribed value indicating that it is video data read out after the overtaking occurred, which is attached to video data received from the storage device.