Optical disk playback device with three-dimensional playback functionality

• US 8,687,470 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2011
• Issued: 04/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies General IP PTE Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: LSI Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Freund, Joseph Michael, deGarrido, Diego P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Yodichkas, Aneeta
• Application Number:
  US13/279,975
• Publication Number:
  US 20130100788A1
• Time in Patent Office: 890 Days
• Field of Search: 369/103
• US Class Current: 369/44.37
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/005 Reproducing G11B7/0065 takes precedence

Abstract

An optical disk playback device comprises one or more lasers, an optical assembly, an optical detector, and controller circuitry coupled to the optical detector. The optical assembly is configured to direct incident light from the one or more lasers so as to form first and second scanning spots on a surface of an optical disk, and is further configured to direct corresponding reflected light from the first and second scanning spots on the surface of the optical disk to the optical detector. The optical detector is configured to process the reflected light from the first and second scanning spots to generate respective first and second data streams, and the controller circuitry is configured to generate a three-dimensional image signal from the first and second data streams.

Claims

1. An optical disk playback device comprising:

one or more lasers;

an optical assembly;

an optical detector; and

controller circuitry coupled to the optical detector;

the optical assembly being configured to direct incident light from the one or more lasers so as to form first and second scanning spots on a surface of an optical disk;

the optical assembly being further configured to direct corresponding reflected light from the first and second scanning spots on the surface of the optical disk to the optical detector;

wherein the optical detector is configured to process the reflected light from the first and second scanning spots to generate respective first and second data streams; and

wherein the controller circuitry is configured to generate a three-dimensional image signal from the first and second data streams.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the first and second scanning spots at least partially overlap one another on the surface of the optical disk.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the one or more lasers comprise first and second lasers.

4. The device of claim 3 wherein polarization of the incident light from the first laser is approximately 90°

out of phase with polarization of the incident light from the second laser,

5. The device of claim 3 wherein polarization of the incident light from the first laser has approximately the same phase as polarization of the incident light from the second laser.

6. The device of claim 3 wherein the first and second lasers are configured to generate the incident light at substantially the same wavelength,

7. The device of claim 6 wherein at least one of the first and second lasers comprises a blue laser having a wavelength of approximately 400 nanometers.

8. The device of claim 3 wherein the first and second lasers are configured to generate the incident light at different wavelengths.

9. The device of claim 3 wherein at least one of the first and second lasers has a wavelength particularly adapted for reading stored information from a first type of optical disk that is not configured for three-dimensional playback.

10. The device of claim 9 wherein the first type of optical disk is a Blu-ray optical disk configured for two-dimensional playback.

11. The device of claim 1 wherein the controller circuitry generates the three-dimensional image signal by introducing a phase offset between an image generated from the first data stream and an image generated from the second data stream.

12. The device of claim 1 wherein the controller circuitry generates the three-dimensional image signal by introducing a color offset between an image generated from the first data stream and an image generated from the second data stream.

13. The device of claim 1 wherein the optical detector comprises a first photo-detector array configured to generate the first data stream using the reflected light from the first scanning spot and a second photo-detector array configured to generate the second data stream using the reflected light from the second scanning spot.

14. An optical disk playback system comprising the optical disk playback device of claim 1.

15. A method comprising:

forming first and second scanning spots on a surface of an optical disk using incident light from one or more lasers;

processing the reflected light from the first and second scanning spots to generate respective first and second data streams; and

generating a three-dimensional image signal from the first and second data streams.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of forming first and second scanning spots further comprises configuring first and second lasers to form the respective first and second scanning spots such that polarization of the incident light from the first laser is approximately 90°

out of phase with polarization of the incident light from the second laser.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of forming first and second scanning spots further comprises operating first and second lasers at substantially the same wavelength to form the respective first and second scanning spots.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of generating the three-dimensional image signal further comprises introducing a phase offset between an image generated from the first data stream and an image generated from the second data stream.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of generating the three-dimensional image signal further comprises introducing a color offset between an image generated from the first data stream and an image generated from the second data stream.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having embodied therein executable code for performing steps of:

forming first and second scanning spots on a surface of an optical disk using incident light from one or more lasers;

processing the reflected light from the first and second scanning spots to generate respective first and second data streams; and

generating a three-dimensional image signal from the first and second data streams.