MXPA00010211A - Optical recording medium and entertainment system that employs it - Google Patents

Abstract

It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical recording medium having a new information recording part and an entertainment system employing it. According to an optical recording medium of the present invention, a new information recording part (210) is formed on parts other than the information recordable part (200O, 200D, 200I), and information can be written, read and erased.

Description

MEDIUM OPTICAL RECORDER AND ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM THAT EMPLOYS FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to an optical recording medium that performs the new recording of information, using different parts of existing recordable information parts, and to an entertainment system that employs it.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Recently, there have been several types of optical recording media that employ laser light; among them, figure 1 shows an example of a so-called CD-ROM. This CD-ROM 200 has a disk-shaped substrate formed of polycarbonate and has a structure in which aluminum is deposited by vapor deposition in recordable portions with information in which depressions are formed and protected with a protective layer, in such a way that the aluminum parts are incrusted by vapor deposition. In Figure 1, the data area 200D is formed primarily as the recordable part of information. In the manufacture of the CD-ROM 200, a procedure is adopted in which information is recorded with laser light on a mask disk protective, this is developed to make depressions, a metal mask is made from the electroplate discs and then the stamp is made from the mother disk. Figure 2A shows the state in which a transparent disk 201 S is made, made for example of polycarbonate, with a stamp 203. Figure 2B shows the state in which a film of metal 204 is deposited in vapor phase for reflection , made for example of aluminum. Figure 2C shows the state in which a protective layer 205 is formed so as to embed the metal film 204. When the recordable information portion of a CD-ROM is read, laser light is radiated from below the disc 201 S shown in Figure 2C, to read the presence or absence of depressions and reproduce the information. In a CD-ROM having a structure and a manufacturing method as described above, the reproduction information required by the user is inscribed to the recordable part of information, such as the data area 200D, and transcribed. But recently, in addition to this reproduction information, additional information has been required to be registered, such as secret information to suppress the appearance of counterfeit software that is made by illegally copying the recorded data on the CD-ROM and personal information, such as the end-user ID number or the number of your playback device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention to provide an optical recording medium in which a new information recording part is formed, so that in an optical medium, not limited to a CD-ROM, it can be written, read or, if necessary, delete additional information required. Still another object of the present invention is to provide an entertainment system employing an optical recording medium in which the information recording part described above is formed. The invention fulfilling the subjects described above and others have the following specified characteristics of the invention: (1) in an optical recording medium in which information is written and read with laser light, a new information recording part is formed in the different part of the recordable part of information. (2) In the first prior aspect of the present invention, said new information recording part is at least one of a part within an input area and outside an output area of the optical recording medium. (3) In the first previous aspect of the present invention, said new information recording part is formed of a material that changes by means of laser light. (4) In the first previous aspect of the present invention, said new information recording part is made so that the recording information either by reaction or by discoloration of a photosensitive material due to the irradiation of laser light. (5) In the first previous aspect of the present invention, said new information recording part erases the information by uniform reaction or discoloration of a photosensitive material due to the irradiation of laser light. (6) In the first prior aspect of the present invention, at least either secret information or personal information is recorded in said new information recording part. (7) In an optical recording medium in which the information is written and read with laser light, the laser light that either records, reproduces or erases the information of the new information recording part in the different part of the recordable part of information, it is either laser light for reading by the user or high-performance laser light. (8) An entertainment system is suggested, in which one practices games with an optical recording medium in which the information is written and read with laser light, reading a game program that is recorded in said recordable part of information of the medium optical recorder in which is formed, in the different part of the recordable part of information, a new information recording part. (9) In the eighth aspect of the present invention, such a new information recording part in the entertainment system records at least either secret information or personal information. (10) In the entertainment system of the eighth aspect, the recording, reproduction and deletion of information to said new information recording part is executed, either with laser light for reading or with high-performance laser light.

BRIEF EXPLANATION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a plan view of a conventional CD-ROM; Figures 2A to 2C schematically show the final parts of a disc manufacturing process of the prior art; Figure 3 is a diagram showing the final parts of the manufacturing process of the optical recording medium of the present invention; Figure 4 shows a schematic structure of a CD-ROM playback machine; Figure 5 is a plan view of a video game device; Figure 6 is a rear view of a video game device, used to explain its slots; Figure 7 is a perspective view of the video game device; and Figure 8 is a block diagram of an example of the specific composition of the main parts of the machine of video game.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODALITY An embodiment of this invention will be described herein, with reference to Figures 3 and 4. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of a CD-ROM that is an embodiment of this invention. In the cross-section of the CD-ROM 200, the right-hand end of the drawing represents the outer peripheral end face of the CD-ROM 200 and the left-hand end represents the inner peripheral end face. The area between the arrow A and the end of the right side is an output area 200O, the area between the arrows A and B is the data area 200D and the area between the arrows D and C is the input area 200I. Also, the area between arrow D and the end of the left side is a fixing area. In this example, a new information recording part 210 is formed within the entry area 200I between the arrows D and C (see also FIG. 1). Provided in this new information recording part 210 is a material that changes, if subjected to laser light. In this case, examples such as the following can be suggested as examples in which the irradiation of laser light causes changes: (1) a material that is sensitive to laser light is mixed with polycarbonate, (2) a photosensitive material is embedded in a part of the area of the optical disc and (3) is coated with a photosensitive material the region of part of the area of the optical disc. That is, irradiation of laser light is considered as a reaction due to photosensitivity. Alternatively, (4) an aluminum OS film 21 is previously formed by vapor deposition, which is much thinner than the aluminum film formed by vapor phase deposition in the data area 200D, as shown in FIG. Figure 3, and it is decolorized by Irradiation of laser light, and the irradiation of the laser light is considered as a reaction by discoloration of the optical disc. Certain information, such as secret information or personal information, may be recorded by the reaction pattern of this photosensitive material or the discoloration of the aluminum film by vapor deposition. In this case, the recording of information can be done, also when the CD-ROM is made, with laser light of the reproduction device on the part of the user, as is possible even with the end user, that is, information can be written with laser light for reading or with laser light in which the laser energy for reading is increased a little. Also, information can be erased obtaining a uniform reaction or discoloration by uniform writing to the entire new information recording part 210 with laser light from the user. With the writing of the information, for example writing it as secret information when the CD-ROM is made, this secret information it can be recognized and stored on the side of the reproduction machine by the end user at the time of reproduction or the end user can subsequently delete it by writing the uniform information as described above. As well, such as personal information, an ID number or other information can be described by the end user. Thus, with respect to the recording, reproduction and deletion of information and the new information recording part 210, according to the purpose of the information, the recording is made when the CD-ROM is made, or the recording, the Reproduction and erasure are done by the end user with laser light whose laser energy for reading is increased or with laser light for reading. Although a case has been described in which the area within the entry area is made in the new information recording part, it can also be made in the area outside the entry area. The above description applies to a CD-ROM. However, the new information recording part can also be formed in another light-recording medium by laser light. With respect to CD-ROM 200, Figure 4 schematically shows a CD-ROM playback machine. The laser light from a laser light emitter 211 traveling through a beam splitter 213 by a diffraction grating 212 to the CD-ROM 200 held by the machine is divided by a collimator lens 210 into a parallel beam which is collected by the objective lens 215. The reflected light, read by the CD-ROM 200, travels through of the collimator lens 214, is reflected by the beam splitter 213 and is caused to impinge on a photodiode 217 through a lens 216. Here, in relation to the CD-ROM 200, reading, reproduction and erasure is made of information with said laser reading light with respect to the new information recording part, and reading and erasing information with laser light that is more intense than the reading laser light. Here, laser light is obtained that has more intensity than the reading laser light, increasing the output of the laser emitter or increasing the degree of light convergence and this can be done by manipulation, for example by switching the energy supplied to the emitter of the laser. laser or switching the optical system. Figures 5 to 8 show an entertainment system that is a video game machine and the CD-ROM which is the modality described above, is shown as an optical recording medium loaded in this video game machine. Figure 5 shows schematically a video game machine as an example of an entertainment system. A videogame device 1 is used, for example, to read a game program recorded on an optical disc, etc., executed in accordance with the instructions of the user (game practitioner). The execution of a game mainly means controlling the progress, visualization and sound of a game. A main unit 2 of the video game device 1 has a disk loading unit 3, in the center of which a CD-ROM or other optical disk is loaded, which is a recording medium for supplying video games or other application programs or for recording secret information or personal information, a reset switch 4 for resetting the game at will, a power switch 5, a disk operation switch 6 for operating the optical disk load and, for example, two slots 7A and 7B. Two operating devices or controllers 20 may be connected to slot 7A and 7B, allowing two users to practice competition games, etc. One can also insert into these slots 7A and 7B devices with memory cards that can save and read (memorize) game data, or portable electronic devices that can play a game, being separated from the main unit. The information device or controller 20 has the first and second operating units 21 and 22, the left-hand button 23L and the right-hand button 23R, a start button 24, a selection button 25, operation units 31 and 32 which are capable of analogous operation, a mode selector switch 33 which selects the operating mode of these operating units 31 and 32, and a display unit for displaying the selected operating mode. Figure 6 shows the video game device 1 with the slots 7A and 7B provided in front of the main unit 2 of the video game device 1. Each of the slots 7A and 7B is formed in two levels; provided on the upper level are the insertion units of memory cards 8A and 8B into which a memory card 10 or a portable electronic device 100 is inserted, and provided in the lower level are the control connecting units (female connectors) 9A and 9B to which the connecting terminal part (connector) 26 is connected to the controller 20. The insertion hole (slot) of the memory card insertion units 8A and 8B is formed more or less asymmetrically, with a structure that prevents a memory card from being inserted erroneously. The controller connection units 9A and 9B are also formed more or less asymmetrically, with a structure which prevents the terminal connection part 26 of the controller from being misconnected; moreover, its insertion hole is shaped differently from the insertion units of memory cards 8A and 8B to prevent a memory card from being inserted erroneously. Figure 7 shows the state in which a portable electrical device 100 is inserted in the memory detergent insertion unit 8A in the slot 7A provided in front of the video game device 1. Next, Figure 8 is a block diagram showing an example of the schematic composition of the circuit of the main part of the video game device 1. The video game device 1 includes a control system 50 that includes a central processor device ( CPU) 51 and peripheral devices; a graphic system 60, which includes a graphics processing unit (GPU) 62, which connects to the inertial memory of cycles 63, etc .; a sound system 70 that includes a sound processing unit (SPU) 71 that generates music and sound effects; an 80 optical disc driver that controls an optical disc in which application programs are recorded and used to record secret information and personal information; a communication controller 90 that controls the input and output signals of the controller 20 to which user instructions are input, and to the same, and data of the memory card 10, in which game scenes are stored, etc., and the portable electronic device 100 and a common line (COMMON LINE), to which the above-mentioned units are connected. The control system 50 further has the CPU 51, a peripheral device controller 52 that performs the interrupt control and control of direct access transfers to the memory (DMA), etc .; a main memory 53 consisting of random access memory (RAM); a main memory 53 and a read-only memory (ROM) 54, in which programs such as the so-called operating system controlling the graphic system 60, the sound system 70, etc. are stored. As the term is used here, the main memory is capable of executing programs in that memory. CPU 51 is one that controls the entire video game device 1 by running the operating system stored in ROM 54 and consists for example of a 32-bit RISC (fixed instruction small computer) CPU. In the video game device 1, when the power is activated, the CPU 51 of the control system 50 executes the operating system stored in the ROM 54 and the CPU 51 thus controls the graphic system 60, the system of 70 sound, etc. Also, when the operating system is executed, the CPU 51 performs the initialization of the entire video game device 1, including the confirmation of the operation and then controls the optical disk controller 80 to execute the game or other application program stored on the disk. optical. By executing this game or another program, the CPU 51, according to the input by the user, controls the graphic system 60, the sound system 70, etc. and also controls the visualization of images and the generation of musical sound and sound effects. With the optical disk controller, secret information is read and deleted, and personal information is recorded, reproduced and deleted. Also, the graphics system 60 has a geometry transfer artifact (GTE) 61 that executes processing, such as coordinate transformations; a GPU 62 that draws according to the drawing instructions of the CPU 51; a cycle buffer 63 which stores images extracted by the GPU 62; and an image decoder 64 that decodes compressed image data encoded by orthogonal transformations, such as discontinuous cosine transformations. The GTE 61 has, for example, a parallel computing mechanism that executes multiple operations in parallel and is capable of performing such calculations at high speed such as coordinate transformations, calculations of light sources and calculations of matrices or vectors in response to CPU calculation requests 51. Specifically, in the case of operations in which uniform shading is done, where, for example, a single polygon is drawn in the form of a triangle with a single color, this GTE 61 is able to perform coordinate calculations up to approximately 1.5 million polygons per second, thus making it possible, with this videogame device to both reduce the load on the CPU 51 and perform high-speed coordinate operations. Also, the GPU 62 draws polygons, etc. to the cycle buffer 63 according to the drawing controls of the CPU 51. The GPU 62 is capable of drawing up to approximately 360,000 polygons per second. In addition, the cycle buffer 63 consisting of a so-called RAM of noble doors, is able to simultaneously carry out the drawing of the GPU 62 or transfers from the main memory and read to display. Cycle buffer 63 has capacity, for example, of one megabyte and can handle a matrix consisting of 1024 image elements horizontally and 512 image elements vertically, each image element having 16 bits. The cycle buffer 63 has, in addition to a display region that is extracted as a video output signal, a CLUT region in which a color search box (CLUT) is stored which is referenced when the GPU 62 draws polygons, etc., and a texture region that is transformed by coordinates and represented as polygons, etc., to be drawn by the GPU 62 when the drawing is done. The CLUT and the texture regions change dynamically as the display region changes, etc. Likewise, the GPU 62 can be, in addition to the aforementioned uniform shading, Gourod shading, in which the color within a polygon is determined by interpolation from the colors of the polygon vertices, and the representation in texture, in the which is projected onto a polygon a texture stored in the texture region. If this Gourod shading or texture representation is done, the GTE 61 can perform operations with coordinates up to approximately 500,000 polygons per second. In addition, the image decoder 64 decodes the image data of still images or moving images stored in the main memory 53 and stores the result in the main memory 53, under the control of the CPU 51. Also, these data can be used. of images generated as background for images drawn by the GPU 62, storing them in the cycle buffer 63 by means of the GPU 62. The sound system 70 has a SPU 71 that generates musical sound and sound effects based on instructions from the CPU 51; a sound buffer 72 in which the waveform data, etc., is stored by the SPU 71; and the speaker 73 that emanates the musical sound and the sound effects generated by the SPU 71. The SPU 71 has, for example, a decoding function of ADPCM (adaptive differential PCM) that regenerates audio data in which 16-bit audio data is adaptively encoded by the ADPCM as 4-bit difference signals; a reproduction function that reproduces sound effects, etc., by reproducing waveform data stored in the sound separator 72; and a modulation function that modulates and reproduces the waveform data stored in the sound buffer 72. With such functions, the sound system 70 can be used as a so-called electronic switching sound source, which generates musical sound. and sound effects based on the waveform data stored in the sound buffer 72 by instructions of the CPU 51. The optical disk controller 80 includes an optical disk device 81 that reproduces the programs and data, including data secrets, etc., that are recorded on an optical disc; a decoder 82 that decodes programs and data, etc. that have been recorded, for example, with an error correction code (ECC) added; a buffer 83 which accelerates the reading of data from the optical disk, by temporarily storing in it the data of the optical disc device 81. A sub-CPU 84 is connected to the decoder 82. Also, since the audio data is read by the optical disc device 81 and are recorded on the optical disc, there is, in addition to the aforementioned ADPCM data, the so-called PCM data, in which an analog / digital conversion is made in the audio signals. Furthermore, as described above, the optical disk controller 80 also has the function of erasing secret information and the function of recording and deleting personal information. As examples of ADPCM data, the audio data in which the 16-bit digital data differences are expressed in 4 bits and recorded, are decoded by the decoder 82, are then supplied to the aforementioned SPU 71, are carried after processing, such as digital / analog conversion, in the SPU 71, and then used to drive the speaker 73. As examples of PCM data, the audio data recorded as 16-bit digital data is decoded by the decoder 82 and then used to drive the loudspeaker 73. In addition, the communication system 90 includes a communication control machine 91 that controls communication with the CPU 51 through the common line (COMMON LINE). Provided in the control machine 91 are the controller connection units 9A, 9B to which the controller 20 that inputs user instructions and the units for insertion of memory cards 8A and 8B are connected, to which the card is connected. memory 10 as an auxiliary memory device that stores game scene data, etc., and portable electronic device 100. Controller 20, which is connected to the connecting unit of the controller 9A, 9B, has for example 16 instruction keys for entering user instructions and sends the state of those instruction keys to the communication control machine 91 by synchronous communication approximately 60 times per second, in accordance with the instructions of the communication control machine 91. And the communication control machine 91 sends the status of the instruction keys of the control 20 to the CPU 51. Thus, the user instructions are input to the CPU 51 and the CPU 51 performs the processing according to user instructions based on the game program etc., which is running. Here, it is necessary to transfer a large amount of high-speed image data between the main memory 53, the GPU 62, the image decoder 64 and the decoder 82, etc., when a program is being read, displaying images or drawing, etc.,. In the video game device, as described above, it is possible to carry out so-called DMA transfers, in which the data is directly transferred between the main memory 53, the GPU 62, the image decoder 64 and the decoder 82, etc., under control of the peripheral device driver 52 without being transferred through the CPU 51. This makes it possible to reduce the load on the CPU 51 that it causes by transferring data and performing data transfers at high speed. When it is necessary to store scene data, etc., of the game that is being played, the CPU 51 sends the data to be stored in the communication control machine 91 and the communication control machine 91 writes the data of the CPU 51 to the memory card 10 or the portable electronic device 100 inserted in the slot of the memory card insertion unit 8A or the insertion unit for memory cards 8B. Here, a protection circuit is installed to the communication control machine 91, to avoid electrical damage. The memory card 10 and the portable electronic device 100 are separated from the common line (COMMON LINE) and can be connected or disconnected while energizing the main unit of the device. Therefore, although there is no longer enough memory capacity in said memory card 10 or portable electronic device 100, a new memory card can be inserted without deactivating the power to the main unit of the device. Thus, the game data that needs to be protected is not lost and, by inserting a new memory card, the necessary data can be written on the new memory card. Also, an input-output interface (PIÓ) 96 and a serial input-output interface (SIO) 97 installed in parallel are interfaces for connecting the memory card 10 or the portable electronic device 100 and the video game device 1. As described above, with the present invention, an information recorder part can be formed in addition to the recordable part of existing information and can be used as a source of secret information or personal An optical recording medium can be obtained and an entertainment system can be obtained, as desired.

Claims (10)

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION CLAIMS

1. - An optical recording medium in which information is written and read with laser light, comprising: a new information recording part formed on a part of the recording medium different from the recordable information part.

2. The optical recording medium according to claim 1, further characterized in that said new information recording part is provided at least in an area within the input area and an area outside the output area of the optical recording medium.

3. The optical recording medium according to claim 1, further characterized in that said new information recording part contains a material that changes when it is subjected to laser light.

4.- The optical recording medium in accordance with the claim 1, further characterized in that said new information recording part is made in such a way that the recording of information is performed by one of a reaction and a discoloration of a photosensitive material due to the irradiation of laser light.

5. The optical recording medium according to claim 1, further characterized in that the information of said new information recording part is erased by one of a uniform reaction and a discoloration of a photosensitive material due to the irradiation of laser light.

6. - The optical recording medium according to claim 1, further characterized in that at least one of secret information or personal information is recorded in said new information recording part.

7. An optical recording medium in which information is written and read with laser light, further characterized in that the laser light, whether it records, reproduces or erases information from the new information recording part in the different part of the recordable part of information, it is either laser light for reading by the user or high-performance laser light.

8. - An entertainment system in combination with an optical recording medium in which information is written and read with laser light, further characterized by the fact that one practices games by reading a game program that is recorded in a recordable part of information of the optical recording medium, including said optical recording medium a new information recording part formed in a part of the optical recording medium different from said recordable information part.

9. An entertainment system according to claim 8, further characterized in that at least one of secret information or personal information is recorded in said new information recording part.

10. The entertainment system according to claim 8, further characterized by the recording, reproduction and the erasure of information in said new information recording part are executed by a laser light for reading and high performance laser light.