Method of selecting medium in optical disk memory device and optical disk memory system

• US 6,400,657 B1
• Filed: 06/08/2000
• Issued: 06/04/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Maxell, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Tanaka, Kazuaki, Kobayashi, Yuichi, Soeda, Kazuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, TAN X
• Application Number:
  US09/589,066
• Time in Patent Office: 726 Days
• Field of Search: 369/30.05, 369/30.06, 369/30.19, 369/30.2, 369/30.28, 369/30.38, 369/34.1, 369/30.01, 707/204
• US Class Current: 369/30.06
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 17/228 Control systems for magazines G11B17/225 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99955 Archiving or backup

Abstract

An optical disk recording system includes a plurality of slots housing portable optical memory media and operative to select a desired optical recording medium to perform data read/write or includes a plurality of recording media housed in a magazine having the function of replacement. It is decided, during writing data to a recording medium, whether writing to the recording medium held in a slot is permissible and if writing is impermissible, writing to a recording medium of another slot is carried out. In the case of a medium exchangeable memory device having a detachable magazine having a plurality of slots, when writing to a slot of one magazine is impermissible, writing to a recording medium held in a slot of another magazine is carried out. Writing can be carried out without considering the state of the recording medium.

Claims

1. A method of controlling a memory device having a plurality of exchangeable optical recording media, comprising the steps of:

selecting one of a plurality of slots housing the optical recording media in accordance with a command from a master unit;

detecting a residual recording capacity of an optical recording medium of the selected slot; and

writing data to an optical recording medium of another slot, when the detected capacity is too deficient to be written with the data.

2. A memory device control method according to claim 1, wherein the data to be written to the optical recording medium is data of backup software to be written to a backup device such as streaming tape.

3. A memory device control method according to claim 1, wherein individual optical recording media are assigned with identification numbers, and when the capacity of an optical recording medium is too deficient to be written with data, the data is written to an optical recording medium of an identification number which is next as viewed in the order of increasing of identification number.

9. A memory device control method according to claim 1, wherein in a memory device having a plurality of detachable magazines each having at least one slot, when write of data to an optical recording medium of another slot of one magazine is impermissible, the data is written successively to an optical recording medium housed in a slot of another magazine.

4. A method of controlling a memory device having a plurality of exchangeable optical recording media, comprising the steps of:

assigning identification numbers to individual slots housing the optical recording media;

deciding whether a slot of a designated identification number is in a deficient state in which data write is impermissible; and

writing data successively to an optical recording medium of a slot having an identification number which is next as viewed in the order of increasing of identification number, when said slot of the designated identification number is deficient.

5. A memory device control method according to claim 4, wherein the deficient state is a state in which any optical recording medium is not housed in a slot for housing an optical recording medium.

6. A memory device control method according to claim 4, wherein the deficient state is a state in which an optical recording medium which is unwritable is housed in a slot for housing an optical recording medium.

7. A memory device control method according to claim 4, wherein the deficient state is a state in which an optical recording medium so formatted as to be unreadable/unwritable is housed in a slot for housing an optical recording medium.

8. A memory device control method according to claim 4, wherein in the case of the deficient state, writing of data to the optical recording medium is suspended.

10. A memory device control method according to claim 4, wherein in a memory device having a plurality of detachable magazines each having at least one slot, when a slot of the next identification number in one magazine is in a deficient state, data is written successively to an optical recording medium housed in a slot of another magazine.

11. A memory device control method according to claim 10, wherein when a slot having the head identification number in one magazine is in a deficient state, data is written successively to an optical recording medium housed in a slot of another magazine.

12. An optical disk memory system having a plurality of exchangeable optical recording media, comprising:

a plurality of slots having identification numbers and operative to house the optical recording media; and

an optical data backup controller which decides whether writing to a recording medium housed in a slot of a designated identification number is permissible and if impermissible, writes data to an optical recording medium of a slot having an identification number which is next as viewed in the order of increasing of identification number.

13. An optical disk memory system according to claim 12, wherein said data backup controller detects a capacity of the optical recording medium housed in the slot of the designated identification number to decide whether data write is permissible.

14. An optical disk memory system according to claim 12, wherein said data backup controller detects whether an optical recording medium is housed in the slot of the designated identification number to decide whether data write is permissible.

15. An optical disk memory system according to claim 12, wherein said data backup controller detects whether a read-only optical recording medium is housed in the slot of the designated identification number to decide whether data write is permissible.

16. An optical disk memory system according to claim 12, wherein said data backup controller detects whether an optical recording medium for file system is housed in the slot of the designated identification number to decide whether data write is permissible.

17. An optical disk memory system according to claim 12 further comprising a plurality of detachable magazines each having at least one slot, wherein when writing to an optical recording medium of another slot in one magazine is impermissible, said data backup controller writes data to an optical recording medium housed in a slot of another magazine.

18. An optical disk memory system according to claim 17, wherein when a slot having a designated head identification number in one magazine is unwritable, said data backup controller writes data successively to an optical recording medium housed in a slot of another magazine.