Semiconductor device for compressing video signals with copy protection information

• US 7,248,739 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2002
• Issued: 07/24/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Socionext Inc.
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Takahashi, Tetsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Bella; Matthew C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hung; Yubin
• Application Number:
  US10/102,739
• Publication Number:
  US 20030021438A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,950 Days
• Field of Search: 382/166, 382/232, 382/233, 348/390.1, 358/426.01, 358/426.12, 358/434, 358/438, 375/240.01, 375/240.26, 375/240.29, 708/203, 380201-204, 386/94, 705/57, 726/32
• US Class Current: 382/232
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 9/007 Transform coding, e.g. discrete cosine transform
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00768 wherein copy control information is used, e.g. for indicating whether a content may be copied freely, no more, once, or never, by setting CGMS, SCMS, or CCI flags
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/10527 Audio or video recording; Data buffering arrangements G11B20/12 - G11B20/18 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91328 the copy protection signal being a copy management signal, e.g. a copy generation management signal [CGMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 on disks or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 for scrambling ; for copy protection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/088 the inserted signal being digital
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction

Abstract

A semiconductor device capable of deleting data already recorded on a recording medium when information indicative of prohibition of copying is detected from picture signal. Input portion receives an input picture signal, and copy protection information detecting portion detects copy protection information included in the picture signal input from the input portion. Compressing portion compresses the picture signal, and compressed data output portion outputs compressed data obtained by the compressing portion. Specification information output portion generates and outputs specification information specifying a position of the compressed data where the information indicative of prohibition of copying was detected first by the copy protection information detecting portion. A device for recording the compressed data can specify the head of unnecessary compressed information by looking up the specification information, whereby the unnecessary information can be deleted from the recording medium.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a picture signal;

detecting copy protection information included in the received picture signal;

compressing the received picture signal;

outputting the compressed picture signal;

outputting specification information indicating for which part of the compressed picture signal the detected copy protection information takes effect on, as determined from a head position where the copy protection information is first detected, the copy protection information indicating copying is prohibited; and

specifying and deleting, based on the specification information, a part of the compressed data that has been recorded on a storage unit even though copying is prohibited, after detecting more than one time that the copy protection information indicates that copying is prohibited.

2. A method of deleting portions of compressed data, comprising:

outputting specification information indicating which part of the compressed data includes copy protection information, as determined from a head position in a storage unit where the copy protection information is detected; and

specifying and deleting, based on the specification information, at least a part of the compressed data after confirming more than one time that the copy protection information indicates that copying is prohibited.

3. A semiconductor device for compressing picture signal, comprising:

an input portion for receiving a picture signal;

a copy protection information detecting portion for detecting copy protection information included in the picture signal input from the input portion;

a compressing portion for compressing the picture signal;

a compressed data output portion for outputting compressed data obtained by the compressing portion;

a specification information output portion, coupled to said copy protection information detecting portion and compressing portion, for outputting specification information indicating which part of the compressed data the detected copy protection information takes effect on, as determined from a head position where the copy protection information is first detected, the copy protection information indicating copying is prohibited; and

a data deletion portion, which specifies and deletes, based on the specification information, a part of the compressed data that has been recorded on a storage unit even though copying is prohibited when the copy protection information detecting portion detects more than one time that the copy protection information indicating copying is prohibited.

4. The semiconductor device according to claim 3 wherein, when the copy protection information has been detected a plurality of times by the copy protection information detecting portion, the specification information output portion outputs information specifying at least one of a set of copy protection information detected the plurality of times.

5. The semiconductor device according to claim 3 wherein the specification information indicates an amount of data from a head of the compressed data to the corresponding part of same, to thereby specify a position where the copy protection information has been detected.

6. The semiconductor device according to claim 3, further comprising compressing operation stopping portion for stopping compressing operation of the compressing portion when the copy protection information has been detected a predetermined number of times by the copy protection information detecting portion.

7. An apparatus comprising:

means for receiving a picture signal;

means for detecting copy protection information included in the received picture signal;

means for compressing the received picture signal;

means for outputting the compressed picture signal;

means for outputting specification information indicating for which part of the compressed picture signal the detected copy protection information takes effect on, as determined from a head position of the part where the copy protection information is first detected, the copy protection information indicating copying is prohibited; and

means for specifying and deleting, based on the specification information, a part of the compressed data that has been recorded on a storage unit even though copying is prohibited when the means for detecting copy protection information detects more than one time that copying is prohibited according to the copy protection information.