AUDIO DATA AND STILL PICTURE RECORDING MEDIUM AND CORRESPONDING PLAYBACK APPARATUS WHICH ENABLE DISPLAYING OF A STILL PICTURE AT A PLURALITY OF PREDETERMINED TIMINGS DURING PLAYBACK OF RECORDED AUDIO DATA

• US 6,687,454 B1
• Filed: 05/10/1999
• Issued: 02/03/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: JVC Kenwood Corporation
• Original Assignee: Victor Company of Japan Limited (JVC Kenwood Corporation)
• Inventors: Kuroiwa, Toshio
• Primary Examiner(s): Boccio, Vincent
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fletcher, James A
• Application Number:
  US09/307,722
• Time in Patent Office: 1,730 Days
• Field of Search: H04/N.591, 386/96, 386/83, 386/104, 386/124
• US Class Current: 386/241
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/005 Non-interactive screen display of musical or status data
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• 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]

Abstract

A recording medium such as a video CD, for recording both audio and still picture data, has all audio data recorded on successive tracks within one recording region and data of all of the still pictures recorded together within another recording region as successive data sets expressing respective ones of a plurality of groups of still pictures. Each of recorded sets of track control information specifies, for the corresponding track, a still picture group which includes all of the still pictures that are to be displayed during playback of that track, those pictures (within that group) which are actually to be displayed during that playback, and respective display starting time points for the specified pictures. The playback apparatus includes a still picture data memory, and a control section which, when playback of a selected track is designated, judges whether the data of the corresponding still picture group are already stored in the memory, reads out those data and stores in the memory if necessary, and thereafter reads out the requisite still picture data from memory as indicated by the track control information of the selected track during playback of that track.

Claims

1. A playback apparatus for executing playback of an optical recording medium having an audio data recording region formed with a plurality of tracks having respective sets of audio data recorded therein, a still picture data recording region having sets of data recorded therein which express respective ones of a plurality of still pictures, and a track control information recording region having recorded therein respective sets of track control information for each of said tracks,

said still picture data recording region having said still picture data recorded as a plurality of still picture groups with each of said groups formed of data of one or more still pictures, said still picture groups being recorded consecutively in units of groups within said still picture data recording region, and with data of respective still pictures of a group being recorded consecutively in units of still pictures,

wherein said track control information corresponding to a specific track includes information which specifies a still picture group which is to be linked to playback of the audio data of said track, information which designates respective still picture data sets of said group, and information which specifies respective display timings for said still picture data sets of said group;

said apparatus comprising

a still picture data memory,

control means, operating when playback of the audio data of a selected one of said tracks is specified, for utilizing said track control information corresponding to said selected track to store in said still picture data memory the respective still picture data of a group which is linked to said selected track,

means for initiating playback of said audio data of said selected track after completion of storing said data expressing said still picture group corresponding to said selected track in said still picture data memory, and

means for utilizing said track control information of said selected track to obtain a combination of information including information for specifying data of a still picture which is within the still picture group corresponding to said selected track, and information for specifying a display timing corresponding to said specified still picture data, and for using said combination of information for reading out said still picture data from said still picture data memory and for initiating display of said still picture data at a timing which is based on said specified display timing.

2. A playback apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising control means whereby, following termination of an operation of playback of said audio data of a selected one of said tracks, data of said still picture group corresponding to said selected track are held stored in said still picture data memory, and whereby when it is judged that a still picture group which is linked, in said track control information, to a succeeding track for which audio signal playback is to be executed is identical to said still picture group whose data are held stored in said still picture data memory, no operation is performed for storing said still picture group corresponding to said succeeding track in said still picture data memory.

3. An optical recording medium having an audio data recording region formed with a plurality of tracks having respective sets of audio data recorded therein, a still picture data recording region having sets of data recorded therein which express respective ones of a plurality of still pictures, and a track control information recording region having recorded therein respective sets of track control information for each of said tracks,

said still picture data recording region having said still picture data recorded as a plurality of still picture groups with each of said groups formed of data of one or more still pictures, said still picture groups being recorded consecutively in units of groups within said still picture data recording region, and with data of respective still pictures of a group being recorded consecutively in units of still pictures;

wherein each set of said track control information corresponding to a specific track comprises a combination of

information which specifies the recording start position of a still picture group which is to be linked to playback of the audio data of said track, for thereby designating said still picture group,

information specifying respective recording start positions, within said still picture group, of said one or more still pictures of said still picture group, and

information specifying respective display timings for said one or more still pictures of said still picture group.