JP2012089209A - Recording reproducer, reproduction cache processing method, program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To quickly reproduce remaining content without a waiting time, when forwarding reproduction is performed during reproduction of the content recorded in an optical disk.SOLUTION: A recording reproducer 1 includes an optical disk drive in which a disk 2, in which content is recorded, is to be inserted and a nonvolatile memory 54, to reproduce the content. The recording reproducer 1 includes a reproduction cache accumulating part 58 for accumulating constant amount of data to be reproduced after the position that is currently reproduced in the content recorded in the disk 2 that is inserted in the optical disk drive, in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache; and a reproduction cache reproducing part 60 for, when a part corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content is reproduced, reading the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory 54 to reproduce it.

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording / reproducing apparatus using an optical disc, a reproduction cache processing method, a program, and a recording medium.

  Conventionally, various devices have been proposed and developed as devices for recording content. For example, a hard disk, an optical disk, and a flash memory are representative. These devices have merits and demerits, and are used for applications in which the characteristics can be utilized.

  For example, an optical disk is portable and has a large amount of recording capacity while being small. Therefore, it is widely used for selling multimedia contents such as movies and games. In addition, a player device for reproducing such an optical disc has been actively developed and sold in the past. In addition to the types that can only be played back, some types of optical discs can be recorded. Accordingly, development of recorder devices for recording broadcast programs using such optical discs has also become active.

  In particular, in recent years, the development and popularization of Blu-ray discs, which are optical discs having both high image quality, high sound quality, and large capacity, have become popular. Blu-ray discs are evolving to further increase capacity through multilayer technology. Furthermore, the development of next-generation optical discs having a larger storage capacity is also in progress.

  However, optical disks have certain technical limitations. In particular, it is well known that it takes a considerable amount of time after an optical disk is inserted into an optical disk drive until data can be read and written from the optical disk. In the optical disk drive, there are various mechanical mechanisms necessary for reading and writing the optical disk. These need to be adjusted every time an optical disk is inserted into the optical disk drive, and the adjustment takes time. This is because there are various types of optical discs, and the characteristics are different for each manufacturer, so that the optimum adjustment value is different for each optical disc.

  Accordingly, various techniques have been proposed in order to improve convenience when used for optical disks.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a data storage device that reads out corresponding cache data from a magnetic disk device and stores it in a cache memory corresponding to the drive device when an optical disc is loaded in the drive device. According to this apparatus, it is possible to increase the amount of data to be stored without delaying the access time.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a cache device that uses a hard disk as a secondary cache of an optical disk. According to this apparatus, a cost-effective and technically effective cache for improving the access time to the optical recording medium is realized.

  Patent Document 3 discloses a simple resume device that stores reproduction information indicating a reproduction position of a content in a nonvolatile storage unit, and refers to the reproduction information stored in the storage unit when the content is resumed. Yes. According to this apparatus, resume playback can be executed even when playback is stopped by stopping the supply of power during playback of video and audio.

JP 6-52027 A (published February 25, 1994) JP 7-225714 A (published on August 22, 1995) JP 2003-77222 A (published March 14, 2003)

  However, in the techniques of Patent Documents 1 and 2, reproduced data is merely cached. Therefore, when the content is advanced and reproduced, the data necessary for the reproduction is inevitably read from the optical disc. Therefore, no matter how much the cache is held, a certain waiting time occurs during the forward playback.

  Further, with the technique of Patent Document 3, it is only possible to store reproduction position information and resume reproduction therefrom. That is, when the content is postponed and reproduced after the resume reproduction, data that needs to be reproduced from now on must be read from the optical disc. For this reason, a certain waiting time occurs during the forward playback.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems, and its purpose is to quickly reproduce the continuation without causing a waiting time when the forward reproduction is performed during the reproduction of the content recorded on the optical disc. The present invention provides a recording / reproducing apparatus, a reproduction cache processing method, a program, and a recording medium.

In order to solve the above problems, a recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention provides:
A recording / reproducing apparatus that includes an optical disc drive into which an optical disc on which content is recorded is inserted and a nonvolatile memory, and reproduces the content,
Reproduction cache storage means for storing a predetermined amount of data reproduced after the current reproduction position in the content recorded on the optical disc inserted in the optical disc drive in the nonvolatile memory as a reproduction cache;
When reproducing a portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content, the reproduction cache reproduction means for reading out the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory and reproducing it is provided.

  According to the above configuration, the recording / reproducing apparatus stores, in the nonvolatile memory as a reproduction cache, a certain amount of data reproduced after the current reproduction position in the content recorded on the optical disc inserted in the optical disc drive. accumulate. How far from the current playback position is stored as a playback cache is determined in advance in the recording / playback apparatus, or dynamically determined by the recording / playback apparatus in accordance with the operation status and the characteristics of the optical disc.

  In general, an optical disk drive can only perform data read-ahead in a track following type. Therefore, when the content is arranged in pieces on the optical disc, a certain amount of time is required for searching and reading the data in the subsequent portion when the content is to be played forward. As a result, a waiting time is generated until the reproduction of the subsequent portion is started.

  Therefore, the recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention reads out the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory and reproduces it when reproducing the portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content. The reproduction cache is stored as a fixed amount of data that is reproduced after the current reproduction position. Therefore, if the playback position is changed from the current position to a position later than the current position as a result of fast-forward playback during content playback, if the data at the changed position has already been stored as a playback cache Instead of reading the data from the optical disc, the reproduction cache can be read from the nonvolatile memory. That is, since it is not necessary to read data to be played back from the optical disc, the data (playback cache) can be quickly read and played back.

  As described above, the recording / playback apparatus has an effect of being able to quickly play back the continuation without causing a waiting time when the forward playback is performed during the playback of the content recorded on the optical disc.

In order to solve the above problems, a recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention provides:
A reproduction cache processing method executed by a recording / reproducing apparatus that includes an optical disc drive into which an optical disc on which content is recorded is inserted and a nonvolatile memory, and reproduces the content,
A reproduction cache accumulation step of accumulating a predetermined amount of data reproduced after the current reproduction position in the content recorded on the optical disc inserted in the optical disc drive in the nonvolatile memory,
And a playback cache playback step of reading the playback cache from the nonvolatile memory and playing back the portion corresponding to the playback cache in the content.

  According to said structure, there exists an effect similar to the recording / reproducing apparatus based on this invention.

  It is preferable that the playback cache storage unit stores a certain amount of past data played back before the current playback position in the content as the playback cache.

  According to the above configuration, when there is an instruction for backward playback at the time of content playback, the data at the designated position can be quickly read and played back.

  The certain amount is preferably equal to the data amount for the time skipped by the skip reproduction process at the time of reproducing the content.

  According to the above configuration, when skip reproduction is performed during content reproduction, the designated position can be quickly read and reproduced.

  The certain amount is preferably a certain size from the current reproduction position in the content.

  According to the above configuration, it is possible to easily manage the area for storing the reproduction cache.

  The certain size is preferably equal to the size of data for the time skipped by the skip reproduction process when the content is reproduced.

  According to the above configuration, when skip reproduction is performed during content reproduction, the designated position can be quickly read and reproduced.

The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention further comprises optical disk drive monitoring means for monitoring the state of the optical disk drive,
The reproduction cache storage means preferably starts accumulation of the reproduction cache when the optical disk drive monitoring means detects that the optical disk drive has not been accessed for a certain period of time.

  According to the above configuration, the reproduction cache is accumulated by sewing between the intervals when the optical disk drive is used. Therefore, the user is not made aware of the existence of the reproduction cache. Further, the user can comfortably operate the recording / reproducing apparatus.

  The playback cache storage means preferably stores the playback cache as part of a process when the recording / playback apparatus is powered off.

  According to the above configuration, the reproduction cache is accumulated by sewing between the intervals when the optical disk drive is used. Therefore, the user is not made aware of the existence of the reproduction cache. Further, the user can comfortably operate the recording / reproducing apparatus.

The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention comprises:
Stop instruction receiving means for receiving an instruction to stop the reproduction of the content during the reproduction of the content;
After the above instruction is received, the optical disc control means for rotating the optical disc as it is without stopping the rotation is further provided.
Preferably, the playback cache storage means continues the storage process of the playback cache before the current playback position in the content after the instruction is received.

  According to the above configuration, after the viewing of the content is stopped, the reproduction cache after that point is continuously accumulated. Therefore, when reproduction of the same content is resumed from the time of interruption, the accumulated reproduction cache can be used, so that the content can be reproduced without waiting time.

A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
Preferably, the playback cache storage means stores the playback cache of the last played content among the plurality of contents with higher priority than the playback cache of other content.

  According to said structure, the reproduction | regeneration cache of content with high possibility that a user will view can be accumulate | stored preferentially. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
The playback cache storage means preferably stores the playback cache of the content recorded last on the optical disc among the plurality of contents in preference to the playback cache of other content.

  According to said structure, the reproduction | regeneration cache of content with high possibility that a user will view can be accumulate | stored preferentially. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention further comprises content list presenting means for presenting a content list that lists the information of the plurality of contents to the user,
It is preferable that the reproduction cache accumulation unit accumulates the reproduction cache of the content selected by the user in the content list among the plurality of contents with priority over the reproduction cache of other contents.

  According to said structure, the reproduction | regeneration cache of content with high possibility that a user will view can be accumulate | stored preferentially. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention further comprises content list presenting means for presenting a content list that lists the information of the plurality of contents to the user,
It is preferable that the playback cache storage unit stores the playback cache of the content represented by the information positioned higher in the content list among the plurality of contents more preferentially.

  According to said structure, the reproduction | regeneration cache of content with high possibility that a user will view can be accumulate | stored preferentially. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention further comprises optical disk drive monitoring means for monitoring the state of the optical disk drive,
The reproduction cache storage means, when the optical disk drive monitoring means detects that access for reproducing other content different from the content is made to the optical disk drive during accumulation of the reproduction cache, It is preferable to stop the reproduction cache accumulation.

  According to the configuration described above, when the content reproduction cache storage process competes with another content reproduction process different from the content, the latter is prioritized. Therefore, the user can comfortably operate the recording / reproducing apparatus.

The optical disc is a rewritable disc,
The recording / reproducing apparatus further includes reproduction cache rewriting means for rewriting the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory in the same manner when a portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content recorded on the optical disc is rewritten. Preferably it is.

  According to the above configuration, when trying to play back a portion of the content that has been rewritten and changed, it is possible to prevent the playback cache of the previous content from being played back accidentally and to prevent the playback cache of the correct content from being played back. Can play.

The recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention
Optical disc insertion / extraction detection means for detecting whether the optical disc is inserted into or removed from the optical disc drive;
If the optical disc insertion / extraction detecting unit detects that the optical disc has been removed from the optical disc drive or replaced with another optical disc when the recording / reproducing apparatus is powered off, It is preferable to further include a reproduction cache deleting means for deleting from the nonvolatile memory.

  It is assumed that the optical disk inserted in the optical disk drive is removed or replaced with another optical disk while the power of the recording / reproducing apparatus is off. In this case, when the power of the recording / reproducing apparatus is turned on again, no optical disk is inserted in the optical disk drive, or an optical disk different from the optical disk inserted before the power is turned off is inserted. In other words, the same optical disk is not continuously inserted before and after the recording / reproducing apparatus is turned off. In other words, the optical disc corresponding to the stored reproduction cache is not inserted into the optical disc drive.

  Therefore, according to the above configuration, the recording / reproducing apparatus detects that the optical disk has been removed from the optical disk drive or replaced with another optical disk when the recording / reproducing apparatus is powered off. , Delete all playback caches from the non-volatile memory. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being read and reproduced.

The recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention
Optical disc insertion / extraction detection means for detecting whether the optical disc is inserted into or removed from the optical disc drive;
When the optical disc insertion / extraction detection unit detects that another optical disc different from the optical disc on which the content storing the playback cache is recorded is inserted in the optical disc drive, the playback cache is It is preferable to further include a reproduction cache deletion unit that deletes all data from the nonvolatile memory.

  It is assumed that the optical disk on which the content stored in the reproduction cache is recorded is extracted from the optical disk drive, and another optical disk different from this optical disk is inserted into the optical disk drive. At this time, there is a high possibility that the reproduction cache stored in the nonvolatile memory does not match the content recorded on the optical disk currently inserted in the optical disk drive. Therefore, if the current reproduction cache is read as it is, there is a possibility that an erroneous reproduction cache is reproduced.

  Therefore, according to the above configuration, when the recording / reproducing apparatus detects that another optical disc different from the optical disc on which the content storing the reproduction cache is recorded is inserted into the optical disc drive, the recording / reproducing device uses the reproduction cache. Delete everything from non-volatile memory. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being read and reproduced.

The recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention
Optical disc insertion / extraction detection means for detecting whether the optical disc is inserted into or removed from the optical disc drive;
The optical disc insertion / extraction detection means detects that an optical disc that is the same optical disc as the optical disc on which the content stored in the reproduction cache is recorded, but has a different recording state is inserted in the optical disc drive. In this case, it is preferable to further include a reproduction cache deleting means for deleting all the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory.

  It is assumed that the optical disk on which the content stored in the reproduction cache is recorded is temporarily extracted from the optical disk drive, the optical disk is used in another recording / reproducing apparatus, the recorded contents are rewritten, and the original recording / reproducing apparatus is inserted again. At this time, the optical disk in which the reproduction cache is stored and the optical disk currently inserted in the optical disk drive are exactly the same disk, but the recording state is different. Therefore, the current playback cache may be different from the content data recorded on the optical disc. As a result, there is a possibility that an erroneous reproduction cache is read and used.

  Therefore, according to the above configuration, the recording / reproducing apparatus is the same optical disc as the optical disc on which the content storing the reproduction cache is recorded, but an optical disc having a different recording state is inserted in the optical disc drive. Is detected, all of the replay cache is deleted from the non-volatile memory. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being read and reproduced.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention further comprises reproduction cache releasing means for releasing all of the reproduction cache stored in the nonvolatile memory when the reproduction of the content is started from a position not corresponding to the reproduction cache. It is preferable.

  According to the above configuration, the reproduction cache that is no longer needed when the content is reproduced is released. Therefore, the replay cache can be used efficiently.

  The recording / playback apparatus according to the present invention releases all of the playback cache stored in the non-volatile memory when playback of other content different from the content stored in the playback cache is about to start. It is preferable to further include a regenerative cache releasing means.

  According to the above configuration, the playback cache that does not match the new content is released. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being reproduced.

A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
When the area for storing the playback cache in the non-volatile memory is exhausted, the area that stores the playback cache of the content whose current playback position is closer to the end of the plurality of contents is given priority. It is preferable that a replay cache releasing means for releasing is further provided.

  According to the above configuration, an area for accumulating a reproduction cache of content that is less likely to be viewed by the user is more preferentially released. Therefore, the replay cache can be used efficiently.

A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
When the area for storing the reproduction cache in the non-volatile memory is exhausted, the area for storing the reproduction cache of the content recorded on the disc that is older than the plurality of contents is more preferentially released. It is preferable to further include a regenerative cache releasing means.

  According to the above configuration, an area for accumulating a reproduction cache of content that is less likely to be viewed by the user is more preferentially released. Therefore, the replay cache can be used efficiently.

A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
When the area for storing the playback cache in the non-volatile memory is exhausted, the area that stores the playback cache of the content with the oldest playback date among the plurality of contents is given priority. It is preferable that a replay cache releasing means for releasing is further provided.

  According to the above configuration, an area for accumulating a reproduction cache of content that is less likely to be viewed by the user is more preferentially released. Therefore, the replay cache can be used efficiently.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus may be realized by a computer. In this case, a program for realizing the recording / reproducing apparatus in the computer by operating the computer as each of the above means and a computer-readable recording medium recording the program also fall within the scope of the present invention.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention has an effect of quickly reproducing the continuation without causing a waiting time when the forward reproduction is performed at the time of reproducing the content recorded on the optical disc.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the recording / reproducing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the whole process when a recording / reproducing apparatus accumulate | stores a reproduction | regeneration cache in a non-volatile memory at the time of reproduction | regeneration of a content. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process when a recording / reproducing apparatus secures the area | region for accumulating reproduction | regeneration cache. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process when a recording / reproducing apparatus writes a reproduction | regeneration cache to a non-volatile memory. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the whole process when a recording / reproducing apparatus accumulate | stores a reproduction | regeneration cache in a non-volatile memory at the time of non-reproduction | regeneration of a content. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process when a recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces | regenerates a content. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is not accumulate | stored in a non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is accumulate | stored in the non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is accumulate | stored in the non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is accumulate | stored in the non-volatile memory. It is explanatory drawing which shows the data flow in a recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of starting reproduction | regeneration of a content when the reproduction | regeneration cache is accumulate | stored in the non-volatile memory. It is a figure which shows the specific example of the content which a recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces, and the specific example of the reproduction | regeneration cache of the said content, respectively. It is a figure explaining from which reproduction | regeneration cache data is read when skip reproduction | regeneration is repeated in a recording / reproducing apparatus. It is a block diagram showing the structure of the modification of the recording / reproducing apparatus which concerns on this invention.

  An embodiment of a recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

(Configuration of recording / reproducing apparatus 1)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a recording / reproducing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in this figure, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 includes a remote control receiving unit 10, an antenna 12, a tuner 14, a content reception processing unit 16, a system control unit 18, a content reproduction processing unit 20, an output unit 22, a display device 24, and a content. Control unit 26, power supply control unit 28, content cache management unit 30, disk drive monitoring unit 32, disk insertion / removal detection unit 34, disk recording / playback unit 36, disk recording unit 38, disk playback unit 40, disk control unit 42, optical disk drive 43, a cache area management unit 50, a nonvolatile memory control unit 52, a nonvolatile memory 54, a reproduction cache control unit 56, a reproduction cache storage unit 58, and a reproduction cache reproduction unit 60.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is an apparatus that reproduces content such as a moving image recorded on the disc 2 or records (records) content such as a broadcast program on the disc 2. The disc 2 is a so-called optical disc, specifically a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) or a BD (Blu-ray Disc). The disk 2 can only read data, or can both read and write. Since the disc 2 generally has a large capacity (several gigabytes or more), a large number of long-time contents can be recorded.

  The disc 2 is used by being inserted into the optical disc drive 43. At that time, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 automatically performs adjustment according to the inserted disc 2, and when the adjustment is completed and the rotation state of the disc 2 is stabilized, content can be read from and written to the disc 2. Hereinafter, the state in which the disk 2 is stable is referred to as “disk ready”. The process from when the disc 2 is inserted into the optical disc drive 43 until it becomes “disc ready” is called “disc loading” or “loading”.

  The user operates the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 using a remote controller (not shown). The remote controller receiving unit 10 receives a signal generated from the remote controller and outputs the signal to the system control unit 18. The system control unit 18 controls the operation of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 according to the content of the received signal.

  The content reception processing unit 16 receives broadcast waves through the antenna 12 and the tuner 14 and decodes them to generate content. At that time, channel selection is instructed by the system control unit 18. The content acquired from the outside of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 by the content reception processing unit 16 is finally recorded on the disc 2 through the disc recording unit 38.

  The content playback processing unit 20 processes content played back by the recording / playback apparatus 1. At that time, the system control unit 18 receives an instruction on the output format. The content playback processing unit 20 has a playback buffer of a certain size. The content reproduction processing unit 20 once accumulates a certain amount of content data in the reproduction buffer, and then reads and reproduces the reproduction target data from the reproduction buffer. The content reproduction processing unit 20 outputs the reproduction target data to the output unit 22. The output unit 22 outputs the received data to be reproduced to the display device 24. In this way, content such as a broadcast program is displayed on the display device 24 and can be viewed by the user.

  The power control unit 28 controls a power source (not shown) in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1. That is, control for turning on or off the power is executed.

  The content control unit 26 comprehensively controls content processed in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1. That is, the content to be recorded or reproduced is always controlled by the content control unit 26. At that time, the content control unit 26 controls the content without being aware of whether or not the content is cached. The content cache management unit 30 takes over management and control of the content cache.

  The disk drive monitoring unit 32 monitors the state of the optical disk drive 43. For example, when there is an access to the optical disk drive 43, it is detected.

  The disk insertion / removal detection unit 34 detects whether the disk 2 is inserted into the optical disk drive 43 or whether the disk 2 is removed from the optical disk drive 43.

  The disk recording / playback unit 36 reads / writes data from / to the disk 2. The disc recording / reproducing unit 36 includes a disc recording unit 38 and a disc reproducing unit 40. The disk recording unit 38 records data on the disk 2. The disc playback unit 40 reads data from the disc 2. The disk control unit 42 controls the disk 2. Reading / writing data from / to the disk 2 is finally performed through the disk control unit 42.

  The playback cache control unit 56 controls and manages the playback cache in the recording / playback apparatus 1 in an integrated manner. The playback cache control unit 56 includes a playback cache storage unit 58 and a playback cache playback unit 60. The playback cache storage unit 58 stores the playback cache in the nonvolatile memory 54. The playback cache playback unit 60 reads the playback cache from the nonvolatile memory 54. The nonvolatile memory control unit 52 controls the nonvolatile memory 54. Reading / writing of the reproduction | regeneration cache with respect to the non-volatile memory 54 is finally performed through the non-volatile memory control part 52. FIG.

  The nonvolatile memory 54 is a recording medium such as a flash memory that can hold data even after the supply of power is lost.

  The cache area management unit 50 manages a cache area formed in the nonvolatile memory 54. In the present embodiment, the management target is an area for storing the reproduction cache. Specifically, the cache area management unit 50 manages the reproduction cache area as a ring buffer structure or a list structure.

(About content list)
The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 holds a content list for managing content recorded on the disc 2. Hereinafter, the content list will be described in detail.

  When the disc 2 is inserted into the optical disc drive 43, the recording / playback apparatus 1 includes information indicating the substance of the file and related information such as the program name, recording date and time, and viewing state for all contents recorded on the disc 2. And generate and manage a content list that associates with each other. This content list is held in the nonvolatile memory 54 until the disc 2 being managed is ejected from the optical disc drive 43.

  When receiving a content list display instruction from the user, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 creates a content list from the content list and displays it on the display device 24. In the content list displayed at this time, various ideas are made to make it easier for the user to search for the content that the user wants to view. For example, not only a program name and recording date and time but also a still image thumbnail and a moving image thumbnail are included. As a result, the contents can be presented to the user in an easy-to-understand manner. In addition, the recording date and time can be rearranged and filtered using various parameters such as new / old, unviewed / previewed, or genre.

(Outline of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1)
The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 accumulates in the nonvolatile memory 54 a certain amount of data reproduced after the current reproduction position in the content recorded on the disc 2 inserted in the optical disc drive 43. The distance from the current reproduction position to the reproduction cache is determined in advance in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 or dynamically according to the operation status of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 and the characteristics of the disc 2.

  In general, the optical disk drive 43 can only perform data read-ahead in a track following type. Therefore, when the content is arranged in pieces on the disc 2, a certain amount of time is required for searching and reading the data in the subsequent portion when the content is to be played forward. As a result, a waiting time is generated until the reproduction of the subsequent portion is started.

  Therefore, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 reads the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory 54 and reproduces it when reproducing the portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content. The reproduction cache is stored as a fixed amount of data that is reproduced after the current reproduction position. Therefore, if the playback position is changed from the current position to a position later than the current position as a result of fast-forward playback during content playback, if the data at the changed position has already been stored as a playback cache Instead of reading the data from the disk 2, the reproduction cache can be read from the nonvolatile memory 54. That is, since it is not necessary to read out the data from the disk 2, the data (reproduction cache) can be quickly read out and reproduced.

  As described above, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can quickly reproduce the continuation without causing a waiting time when the forward reproduction is performed at the time of reproducing the content recorded on the disc 2.

  The content to be stored in the reproduction cache may be only one content that is currently being reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus 1. At this time, even if a plurality of contents are recorded on the disc 2, the reproduction cache records only one of the contents. On the other hand, when there are a plurality of contents recorded on the disc 2, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 may store reproduction caches for two or more contents in the nonvolatile memory 54 separately.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 accumulates a certain amount of past data reproduced before the current reproduction position in the content as a reproduction cache. As a result, when an instruction for backward playback is given during playback of the content, the data at the designated position can be quickly read and played back.

(Replay cache size)
The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 preferably makes a certain amount of data stored as the reproduction cache equal to the data amount for the time skipped by the skip reproduction process at the time of content reproduction. Here, more specifically, it is desirable that the fixed amount of future data is equal to the data amount for the time skipped first by the skip reproduction process at the time of content reproduction. On the other hand, with respect to past data, it is desirable that the data amount for the time to be skipped later by the skip reproduction process at the time of content reproduction is equal. Thus, when skip playback is performed during content playback, the designated position can be quickly read and played back.

  In addition, it is preferable that the certain amount at this time is a data amount of a certain size from the current reproduction position in the content. Here, more specifically, it is preferable that the fixed amount of future data is a data amount of a certain size ahead of the current reproduction position in the content. On the other hand, it is preferable that a certain amount of past data is a data amount of a certain size after the current playback position in the content. In this case, the area for storing the reproduction cache can be easily managed. For example, when the area for storing a new reproduction cache next is depleted from the nonvolatile memory 54, the reproduction cache is released and the reproduction cache for new contents is accumulated in that area. . At this time, it is not necessary to consider the recording rate of the reproduction cache, and the released area can be used as it is. This eliminates the need for processing such as adjusting the size of the area, so that the area can be managed efficiently.

  Here, the fixed size may be a value obtained by dividing the total size of the area for storing the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 by the number of contents that can be recorded on the disc 2. In this case, the area for storing the reproduction cache can be easily managed. The fixed size may be a size calculated from, for example, the time required for loading the disk 2 × the maximum recording rate. Alternatively, the size may be divided equally by the number of contents to be recorded as a reproduction cache.

  Further, the certain size here is preferably equal to the size of the data for the time skipped by the skip reproduction process at the time of content reproduction. In this case, when skip reproduction is performed during content reproduction, the designated position can be quickly read and reproduced.

(Playback cache setting)
Depending on the operation status of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1, it may be desirable not to store or update the reproduction cache. This is the case when playback without updating the playback start position is performed, for example, when a moving image thumbnail is played on the content list, or when the operation program of the recording / playback apparatus 1 is updated. Therefore, in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1, it is possible to set whether the reproduction cache function is enabled or disabled. This setting may be automatically performed by the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 according to the situation, or may be set by the user. In any case, information indicating whether or not the reproduction cache is valid is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 54 of the recording and reproduction apparatus 1.

(Replay cache storage processing)
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the overall flow of processing when the recording / playback apparatus 1 stores a playback cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 during playback of content.

  First, the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the reproduction cache is valid (step S1). When the determination result in step S1 is “false” (No), the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 stands by until the reproduction cache becomes valid. On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S1 is “true” (Yes), the content cache management unit 30 determines whether trick playback of the content is currently being performed (step S2). Trick playback refers to playback in a form different from normal playback, such as fast forward playback, backward playback, skip playback, chapter skip playback, and the like. When the result of the determination in step S2 is “true” (Yes), the processing shown in FIG. 2 returns to step S1. That is, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 does not accumulate the reproduction cache during the trick reproduction of the content.

  On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S2 is “false” (No), the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the content is being reproduced (step S3).

  When the determination result in step S3 is “true” (Yes), the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the reproduction cache of the content to be reproduced already exists in the nonvolatile memory 54 (step S4). . When the result of the determination in step S4 is “true” (Yes), the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 skips the process of step S5. On the other hand, when the result of determination in step S4 is “false” (No), the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the playback buffer in the content playback processing unit 20 is full (step S5).

  When the result of the determination in step S5 is “false” (No), the processing in FIG. 2 returns to step S1. That is, when the reproduction cache is not accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 54, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 does not start accumulation of the reproduction cache until the reproduction buffer becomes full.

  On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S5 is “true” (Yes), the cache area management unit 50 secures an area for storing the reproduction cache (step S6). Details of this processing will be described later. Next, the cache area management unit 50 determines whether or not the area has been successfully secured (step S7). When the result of the determination in step S7 is “false” (No), the processing in FIG. 2 returns to step S1. On the other hand, when the result of determination in step S7 is “true” (Yes), the replay cache storage unit 58 stores the replay cache in the secured area (step S8). Details of this processing will be described later. Thereafter, the processing of FIG. 2 returns to step S1.

  As described above, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 repeatedly executes a reproduction cache accumulation process during normal reproduction of content.

  When the result of determination in step S3 is “false” (No), that is, when the content is not being played back, the cache area management unit 50 secures an area for storing the playback cache (step S9). Details of this processing will be described later. Next, the playback cache control unit 56 determines whether or not the area has been successfully secured (step S10). When the result of the determination in step S10 is “false” (No), the processing in FIG. 2 ends. That is, when content is not reproduced when content is not reproduced, the reproduction cache cannot be accumulated any more, and the accumulation process is terminated.

  On the other hand, when the result of determination in step S10 is “true” (Yes), the replay cache storage unit 58 stores the replay cache in the secured area (step S11). Details of this processing will be described later. Thereafter, the processing of FIG. 2 returns to step S9. That is, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 continues the reproduction cache accumulation process as long as the area is successfully secured while the content is not being reproduced.

(Reserve reclaim cache area)
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing when the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 secures an area for storing the reproduction cache.

  First, the cache area management unit 50 determines whether or not the non-volatile memory 54 has reserved the entire area for storing the reproduction cache for the content for which the reproduction cache is currently stored (step S21). When the result of the determination in step S21 is “false” (No), the cache area management unit 50 determines whether or not there is a free space in another reproduction cache area (step S22). The other reproduction cache area referred to here is a reproduction cache area for other content different from the content to be reproduced. When the result of the determination in step S22 is “false” (No), the cache area management unit 50 selects a reproduction cache area to be released from areas already reserved as reproduction cache areas for other contents ( Step S23). Then, the selected area is released (step S24). Thereby, a free reproduction cache area is created.

  Therefore, the cache area management unit 50 secures an entire area for storing the reproduction cache for the content for which the current reproduction cache is to be accumulated (step S25). The entire area secured here is composed of a plurality of individual areas, and no reproduction cache is stored in each individual area yet. That is, all are free areas. Therefore, the cache area management unit 50 secures an individual area for storing the reproduction cache from the reserved free areas (step S26). As a result, the result of the process shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S22 is “true” (Yes), a free area already exists. Therefore, the cache area management unit 50 secures an entire area for storing the reproduction cache from the free area (step S25). The reproduction cache is not yet accumulated in the entire area secured here. That is, all are free areas. Therefore, the cache area management unit 50 secures an individual area for storing the reproduction cache from the reserved free areas (step S26). As a result, the result of the process shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S21 is “true” (Yes), the cache area management unit 50 determines whether or not there is a free space in the secured entire area (step S26). When the result of the determination in step S26 is “true” (Yes), the cache area management unit 50 secures an individual area for storing the reproduction cache from the free area (step S25). As a result, the result of the process shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S26 is “false” (No), this content reproduction cache cannot be stored any more. Therefore, the result of the process shown in FIG. 3 is “reproduction cache full”.

(Write replay cache)
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing when the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 writes the reproduction cache into the nonvolatile memory.

  First, the reproduction cache control unit 56 determines whether or not the size of unwritten data among the data to be written as the reproduction cache is “0” (step S31). When the result of the determination in step S31 is “true” (Yes), since all the reproduction caches have been written successfully, the processing in FIG. 4 ends.

  On the other hand, when the result of determination in step S31 is “false” (No), that is, when there is data that has not yet been written as a reproduction cache, the disk drive monitoring unit 32 determines whether or not the optical disk drive 43 is accessed. Is determined (step S32). If the result of determination in step S32 is "true" (Yes), priority is given to access to the disk 2, so the processing in FIG. 4 is terminated to interrupt the reproduction cache storage processing.

  On the other hand, when the result of determination in step S32 is “false” (No), the disc playback unit 40 reads data to be recorded as a playback cache from the disc 2 (step S33). Next, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 writes the data read in step S34 into the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache (step S35). Thereafter, the processing of FIG. 4 returns to step S31. That is, the process of FIG. 4 is repeated until all the data to be written as the reproduction cache is written in the nonvolatile memory 54.

(Regeneration cache storage mode)
The reproduction cache storage unit 58 records the data recorded on the disk 2 as it is in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache. That is, data encrypted in the disk 2 is recorded in an encrypted state. On the other hand, unencrypted data in the disk 2 is recorded in an unencrypted state. That is, a faithful copy of the data in the disk 2 is generated in the nonvolatile memory 54 without altering the data in the disk 2.

  On the disc 2, key information for decrypting the data on the disc 2 is separately recorded. Without this key information, the content recorded on the disc 2 cannot be reproduced. In the recording / reproducing apparatus 1, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 does not record the key information in the nonvolatile memory 54. This maintains the restriction that the content cannot be reproduced unless the disc 2 is inserted into the optical disc drive 43. This is for the purpose of preventing the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 from being reproduced in the absence of the disk 2.

(Accumulation of replay cache)
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the overall flow of processing when the recording / playback apparatus 1 stores the playback cache in the nonvolatile memory when content is not played back.

  First, the system control unit 18 determines whether or not the power-off process of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is being executed (step S41). Here, when the result of the determination in step S41 is “true” (Yes), the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 skips the process of step S42 and executes the processes after step S43. That is, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 executes the reproduction cache accumulation process during the power-off process.

  On the other hand, when the result of determination in step S41 is “false” (No), the disk drive monitoring unit 32 determines whether or not there is no access to the optical disk drive 43 for a certain period of time (step S42). When the determination result in step S42 is “false” (No), that is, when there is access to the optical disk drive 43 or when there is no access for a certain period of time, the processing of FIG. Returns to step S41. That is, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 executes reproduction cache accumulation processing when there is no access to the optical disk drive 43 for a certain period of time.

  When the determination result in step S42 is “true” (Yes), the replay cache control unit 56 secures an area for accumulating the replay cache (step S43). This process corresponds to the process shown in FIG. Next, the reproduction cache control unit 56 determines whether or not the area has been successfully secured (step S44). When the result of the determination in step S7 is “false” (No), the processing in FIG. 2 ends. In other words, when the content is not reproduced and the allocation of the area fails, the reproduction cache cannot be accumulated any more and the accumulation process is terminated.

  On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S44 is “true” (Yes), the replay cache storage unit 58 stores the replay cache in the secured area (step S45). This process corresponds to the process shown in FIG. Thereafter, the processing of FIG. 2 returns to step S41. That is, when the content is not reproduced, the reproduction cache accumulation unit 58 continues the reproduction cache accumulation process as long as the area is successfully secured.

(Reproduction cache accumulation timing)
As described above, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 starts accumulating the reproduction cache when it is detected that the optical disk drive 43 is not accessed for a certain period of time. As a result, the reproduction cache is accumulated by sewing between the intervals when the optical disk drive 43 is used. Therefore, the user is not made aware of the existence of the reproduction cache. Further, the user can operate the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 comfortably.

  In addition, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 accumulates a reproduction cache as part of the processing when the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is powered off. As a result, the reproduction cache is accumulated by sewing between the intervals when the optical disk drive 43 is used. Therefore, the user is not made aware of the existence of the reproduction cache. Further, the user can comfortably operate the recording / reproducing apparatus.

(Replay cache replay)
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing when the recording / playback apparatus 1 plays back content.

  First, the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the reproduction cache of the content to be reproduced is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 (step S51). When the determination result in step S51 is “true” (Yes), the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the data read range is in the reproduction cache (step S52). When the result of determination in step S52 is “true” (Yes), the reproduction cache reproduction unit 60 reads data (that is, reproduction cache) from the nonvolatile memory 54 (step S53). Next, the reproduction cache management information is updated (step S54). In this way, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces the reproduction cache read from the nonvolatile memory 54 (Step S59).

  On the other hand, when the result of determination in step S51 is “false” (No), the disc playback unit 40 reads data to be played back from the disc 2 (step S56). When the determination result in step S52 is “false” (No), the reproduction cache control unit 56 discards the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 (step S55), and then the disk reproduction unit 40 performs reproduction. Are read from the disk 2 (step S56). Next, the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the content is being normally reproduced (step S57). When the determination result in step S57 is “true” (Yes), the content cache management unit 30 determines whether or not the reproduction buffer of the content reproduction processing unit 20 is full (step S58). When the result of determination in step S <b> 58 is “false” (No), the disc playback unit 40 reads the next data from the disc 2. Thus, reading of data from the disk 2 is continued until the reproduction buffer becomes full.

  On the other hand, when the determination result in step S57 is “false” (No), that is, when trick playback such as forward playback or backward playback is being executed, the content playback processing unit 20 is read from the disc 2. Play back the recorded data. Further, also when the determination result in step S58 is “true” (Yes), the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces the data read from the disc 2.

(Data flow in the recording / playback apparatus 1 during content playback)
7 to 15 are explanatory diagrams showing a data flow in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 when the reproduction of the content is started when the reproduction cache is not accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 54.

  In the example described below, a digital broadcast program is recorded on the disc 2 as content. At that time, the original digital broadcast program is recorded as it is. Accordingly, the maximum bit rate at the time of content output (playback) is 3 MB / s (24 Mbps).

  Content data is recorded on the disk 2 in units of blocks. Specifically, a total of 234 blocks from block 1A to block 9Z are recorded. The size of each block is uniformly 3 MB. Data is read from the disk 2 in units of blocks. The data reading speed from the disk 2 is 9 MB / s.

  The recording / playback apparatus 1 plays back one block of content per second. The content reproduction processing unit 20 has a reproduction buffer for three blocks. In the nonvolatile memory 54, content data is written as a reproduction cache in units of 3 MB blocks. The data write speed to the nonvolatile memory 54 is 13 MB / s, while the read cache read speed from the nonvolatile memory 54 is 15 MB / s.

  In the nonvolatile memory 54, a total area of 40 blocks is secured as a content reproduction cache area. Of these, 10 blocks are used to store past data. On the other hand, the remaining 30 blocks are used for storing future data.

  7 to 19, “WP” indicates a write position of the reproduction cache. RP indicates the read position of the reproduction cache. PP indicates the current playback position in the content.

  First, before the content is reproduced, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 takes the state shown in FIG. Specifically, content is recorded on the disc 2. On the other hand, no data is recorded in the reproduction buffer and nonvolatile memory 54.

  From this state, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 1A to 1C for three blocks from the disk 2 (FIG. 8). These data are written in the reproduction buffer of the content reproduction processing unit 20. As a result, the playback buffer becomes full. At this time, the first empty block in the block group in the nonvolatile memory 54 becomes WP. That is, when the reproduction cache is written in the nonvolatile memory 54, data is stored from this empty block.

  Next, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces data 1A for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 9). Thereby, actual playback of the content is started. As a result, the data 1A is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. In parallel with this processing, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 1D to 1F for three blocks from the disk 2. These data are written in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache by the reproduction cache storage unit 58. At that time, the block storing the data 1D becomes RP, and the empty block next to the block storing the data 1F becomes WP.

  Next, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces the data 1B for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 10). As a result, the data 1B is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. Only the data 1C is left in the reproduction buffer. In parallel with this playback process, the disk playback unit 40 reads data 1G to 1I for three blocks from the disk 2. These data are written in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache by the reproduction cache storage unit 58. At that time, the empty block next to the block storing the most recently accumulated data 1I becomes the WP.

  Next, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces data 1C for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 11). As a result, the data 1C is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. Also, the playback buffer is completely emptied. Accordingly, in parallel with the reproduction process at this time, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 reads data 1D to 1F, which is data for three blocks and is a continuation of the data 1C, from the nonvolatile memory 54. These data are written in the reproduction buffer of the content reproduction processing unit 20. Further, the RP in the nonvolatile memory 54 moves from the block storing the data 1D to the block storing the data 1G. As a result, the next time the playback cache is read from the nonvolatile memory 54, the data 1G becomes the read target.

  In parallel with these processes, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 1J to 1K for two blocks from the disk 2. At this time, the data for one block smaller than the example of FIG. 10 is read for the following reason. That is, in the example of FIG. 11, both reading and writing of the reproduction cache are performed from the nonvolatile memory 54. In such a case, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 gives priority to the reproduction cache read processing. That is, after the reading process is completed, data is written using the remaining time. At this time, only the time for writing data for two blocks remains, so in the example of FIG. 11, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 writes the data 1J to 1K for two blocks to the nonvolatile memory 54. As a result, the empty block next to the block storing the most recently accumulated data 1K becomes the WP.

  Next, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces the data 1D for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 12). As a result, data 1D is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. Further, PP in the nonvolatile memory 54 is a block storing data 1D. Furthermore, one block of the playback buffer becomes empty. Accordingly, in parallel with the reproduction processing at this time, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 reads data 1G, which is data for one block and is a continuation of the data 1F, from the nonvolatile memory 54. This data is written into an empty block of the playback buffer. As a result, the playback buffer becomes full again. Further, the RP in the nonvolatile memory 54 moves from the block storing the data 1G to the block storing the data 1H. As a result, the next time the reproduction cache is read from the nonvolatile memory 54, the data 1H becomes the read target.

  In parallel with these processes, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 1L to 1N for three blocks from the disk 2. Since only one block of data has been read from the non-volatile memory 54, a time margin for writing data of three blocks remains. Therefore, in the example of FIG. 12, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 writes the data 1L to 1N for three blocks to the nonvolatile memory 54. As a result, the empty block next to the block storing the most recently accumulated data 1N becomes the WP.

  After the processing in FIG. 12, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 reproduces data for one block and reads out data for three blocks from the disk 2 and stores the data in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache in FIG. Continue until state is reached. In FIG. 13, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces data 1M. Therefore, in the nonvolatile memory 54, PP is a block storing data 1M. RP is a block storing data 1Q. Further, the WP becomes the next empty block after the block storing the data 2O. In the nonvolatile memory 54, only the remaining two blocks are empty among all the blocks reserved for storing the content reproduction cache.

  Next, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces data 1N for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 14). As a result, the data 1N is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. Further, PP in the nonvolatile memory 54 is a block storing data 1N. Furthermore, one block of the playback buffer becomes empty. Accordingly, in parallel with the reproduction processing at this time, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 reads data 1Q, which is data for one block and is a continuation of the data 1P, from the nonvolatile memory 54. This data is written into an empty block of the playback buffer. As a result, the playback buffer becomes full again. Further, the RP in the nonvolatile memory 54 moves from the block storing the data 1Q to the block storing the data 1R. As a result, the next time the reproduction cache is read from the nonvolatile memory 54, the data 1R becomes the read target.

  In parallel with these processes, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 2P to 2R for three blocks from the disk 2. Here, at this time, only two blocks are vacant in the nonvolatile memory 54. That is, in order to store these three data, another free block is required. Therefore, the reproduction cache control unit 56 releases the block in which the data 1D that is the oldest data is stored among all the reproduction caches accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 54. At this time, a total of three blocks become free blocks including the released blocks.

  In this way, a block in which three data can be written is secured. Therefore, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 writes the data 2P to 2R for three blocks in the nonvolatile memory 54. As a result, the end portion of the block storing the most recently accumulated data 2R becomes the WP. This is because there are no more empty blocks at this point.

  The reproduction cache is completely stored in the reproduction cache area (block) secured in the nonvolatile memory 54 by the series of processing described above. Therefore, in the subsequent processing, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 repeats data reproduction, reading from the disk 2, and accumulation as a reproduction cache for each block of data. The processing at that time will be described with reference to FIG.

  First, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces data 10 for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 15). As a result, the data 1O is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. Further, the PP in the nonvolatile memory 54 is a block storing data 1O. Furthermore, one block of the playback buffer becomes empty. Accordingly, in parallel with the reproduction processing at this time, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 reads data 1R, which is data for one block and is a continuation of the data 1Q, from the nonvolatile memory 54. This data is written into an empty block of the playback buffer. As a result, the playback buffer becomes full again. Further, the RP in the nonvolatile memory 54 moves from the block storing the data 1R to the block storing the data 1S. As a result, the next time the reproduction cache is read from the nonvolatile memory 54, the data 1S becomes a read target.

  In parallel with these processes, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 2S for one block from the disk 2. Here, at this time, there is no empty block in the nonvolatile memory 54. That is, in order to store the data 2S, one free block is required. Therefore, the reproduction cache control unit 56 releases the block storing the data 1E which is the oldest data among all the reproduction caches accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 54.

  Thus, a block in which one data can be written is secured. Therefore, the reproduction cache storage unit 58 writes the data 2S into the nonvolatile memory 54. As a result, the end portion of the block storing the most recently accumulated data 2S becomes the WP. This is because there are no more empty blocks at this point.

  As described above, when the content reproduction cache is not stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 at the time of starting the reproduction of the content, the recording / reproduction device 1 reproduces the content while reproducing the content. It accumulates in 54. At that time, more data than the amount of data to be reproduced per unit time is stored as a reproduction cache. Therefore, as the reproduction of content progresses, the total amount of reproduction cache accumulated increases. As a result, when the reproduction of the content proceeds to a certain extent, a sufficient amount of the reproduction cache is accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 54. Therefore, even if the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 performs trick reproduction such as fast-forward reproduction or backward reproduction of content, data to be reproduced next by the trick reproduction is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54. It can be quickly read from the memory 54 and reproduced.

(Another example of data flow in recording / reproducing apparatus 1 during content reproduction)
The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 uses the reproduction cache in the non-volatile memory 54 even when the content reproduction cache is sufficiently accumulated in the non-volatile memory 54 and is reproduced from the middle instead of the beginning of the content. Play content quickly. In addition, while reproducing the content, the necessary reproduction cache is continuously accumulated. The processing at this time will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  FIGS. 16 to 19 are explanatory diagrams showing the flow of data in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 when the reproduction of content is started when the reproduction cache is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54.

  First, before the content is reproduced, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 takes the state shown in FIG. Specifically, content is recorded on the disc 2. On the other hand, no data is recorded in the reproduction buffer. However, in the nonvolatile memory 54, data 1F to data 2S among the data constituting the content to be reproduced is recorded as a reproduction cache. Furthermore, all the blocks for replay cache are used, and there is no empty block.

  From this state, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 starts reproduction from the middle of the content, specifically from the data 2A. This data 2A is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache. Therefore, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 reads the data 2A from the non-volatile memory 54, not from the disk 2. However, since the playback buffer is completely empty at the start of playback, the data 2A is not played back suddenly, but first, processing for completely filling the playback buffer is performed.

  Specifically, first, the reproduction cache reproduction unit 60 reads the data 2A to 2C for three blocks from the nonvolatile memory 54 (FIG. 17). These data are written in the reproduction buffer of the content reproduction processing unit 20. As a result, the playback buffer becomes full. At this point, RP becomes a block storing data 2D. On the other hand, PP is a block storing data 2A. Therefore, measures are taken to leave the past data for the past 10 blocks from the PP, that is, the past data for 10 pieces including the data 2A in the nonvolatile memory 54. Specifically, data 1R to data 2A are left as a reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54.

  The replay cache control unit 56 releases all blocks that store data 1F to 1Q, which are past data. As a result, all these blocks become empty blocks. These empty blocks are arranged next to the block storing the data 2S which is the most future reproduction cache at present.

  In parallel with these processes, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 2T to 2U for two blocks from the disk 2. At this time, only the time for writing the data for 2 blocks remains, so the reproduction cache storage unit 58 writes the data 2T to 2S for 2 blocks in the nonvolatile memory 54. As a result, the empty block next to the block storing the most recently accumulated data 2S becomes the WP.

  Next, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces the data 2A for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 18). Thereby, actual playback of the content is started. As a result, the data 2A is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. The PP is a block storing the data 2A. In parallel with this processing, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 2V to 2X for three blocks from the disk 2. These data are written in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache by the reproduction cache storage unit 58. At this time, the block storing the data 2E becomes RP, and the empty block next to the block storing the data 2X becomes WP.

  Next, the content reproduction processing unit 20 reproduces the data 2B for one block in the reproduction buffer (FIG. 19). As a result, the data 2B is displayed on the screen of the display device 24. The PP is a block storing the data 2B. At this time, 11 past data exceeding the limit of 10 is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache. Therefore, the reproduction cache control unit 56 releases the block storing the data 1R which is the oldest data. In this way, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 always leaves a certain amount of past data, dynamically releases blocks that store past data, and newly stores future data. Use as

  In parallel with these processes, the disk reproducing unit 40 reads data 2Y to 3A for three blocks from the disk 2. These data are written in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache by the reproduction cache storage unit 58. At this time, the block storing the data 2F becomes RP, and the empty block next to the block storing the data 3A becomes WP.

(Specific examples of content)
FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of content that the recording / playback apparatus 1 plays back and a specific example of a playback cache of the content.

  In the example of this figure, the content is an original digital broadcast program. In FIG. 20, 100 represents a time axis, 102 represents the beginning of the content, and 104 represents the end of the content. This content consists of a main part (program) and a commercial (CM). Each main story and each CM are one of the chapters. In FIG. 20, it is assumed that the CM is Chapter A and the main part that is reproduced after the CM is Chapter B. In the recording / reproducing apparatus 1, when the chapter skip process which is one of trick reproduction is performed, it is possible to move to the head of each chapter.

  Assume that the total content reproduction cache area is 512 MB. At this time, in the example of FIG. 20, the past data stored as the reproduction cache is 120 MB. Since the content output rate is 3 MB / s, 40 seconds of data is accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 54 as past data. On the other hand, the future data is all the rest. That is, 512 MB-120 MB = 392 MB of data is stored as a reproduction cache.

  The reason why a sufficient amount of future data is secured is that it is assumed that the CM is completely skipped by the chapter skip processing. That is, as shown in FIG. 20A, it is assumed that the chapter skip 108 is executed when the current reproduction position 106 is at the head of the CM. At this time, future data including all the CMs and further to the middle of the next main part is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 20B, after the chapter skip 108, the current playback position is moved to the beginning of the main part of chapter B. The playback cache at this position has already been stored in the nonvolatile memory 54. . Therefore, since the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can read and reproduce the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory 54, the chapter skip process can be made successful without causing a waiting time.

(Seconds of past data)
The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can perform trick reproduction such as 30-second skip and 10-second skip. The 30-second skip is a process of moving the current playback position to the future or past part of 30 seconds in the content. The 10-second skip is a process of moving the current playback position to the future or past part of 10 seconds in the content.

  When the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 skips the CM by skipping 30 seconds, if it accidentally skips to the start of the main part, the recording / playback apparatus 1 has enough time to return the skipped part by skipping 10 seconds. The past data of 40 seconds (30 seconds + 10 seconds) is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache. The details of this device will be described below with reference to FIG.

 FIG. 21 is a diagram for explaining from which reproduction cache the data is read when skip reproduction is repeated in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1. As shown in FIG. 21 (a), it is assumed that the 30-second skip 110 is performed once after entering the CM. As a result, as shown in FIG. 21B, the current playback position 106 moves to the middle of the CM.

  Next, it is assumed that the 30-second skip 110 is further performed three times. As a result, as shown in FIG. 21C, the current playback position 106 moves near the end of the CM. Originally, it is immediately before the next main part, so it should be waited for the main part to start as it is, but it is assumed that the skip 110 is performed by mistake for 30 seconds. As a result, as shown in FIG. 21D, the current reproduction position 106 moves to a position that greatly exceeds the start position of the main part. At this time, the user performs a 10-second skip 112 to return the reproduction start position to the past for 10 seconds. As a result, the current playback position 106 moves to the position shown in FIG.

  However, since it has not yet returned to the start position of the main part, the 10-second skip 112 is performed once again to return the reproduction start position to the past 10 seconds. As a result, the current reproduction position 106 moves to the position shown in FIG. However, since it has not yet returned to the start position of the main part, the 10-second skip 112 is performed once again, and the reproduction start position is returned to the past 10 seconds. As a result, the current playback position 106 returns to the position shown in FIG. 21G, that is, the position before the start of the main part.

  As described above, when past data of 40 seconds is stored in the non-volatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache, when an excessive skip due to an extra 30 second skip is attempted to return to a desired position by a 10 second skip. In addition, the reproduction cache can be read from the nonvolatile memory 54 and reproduced. Accordingly, even during such processing, the content can be quickly reproduced without causing a waiting time.

(Future data seconds)
Future content data is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache for a minimum of 120 seconds. The reason is as follows. In Chapter 18 of the Broadcasting Standards of the National Broadcasting Corporation, CM is defined as 10% of the program time for broadcast programs longer than 30 minutes. Therefore, a one-hour program such as a drama includes about 360 seconds of CM. If the main part is divided into three parts, it will be 120 seconds per CM, and if it is divided into four parts, it will be 90 seconds per part. Therefore, it is desirable that past data for about 120 seconds from the current playback position is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a playback cache so that the playback cache can be read even if the CM section is skipped at once.

(Stop playback cache accumulation processing)
As shown in FIGS. 20 and 21, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can perform various trick reproductions. Trick playback here refers to playback in a form different from normal playback, and playback that greatly changes the current playback position in the content. Trick playback greatly changes the current playback position in the content. Accordingly, even if the reproduction cache accumulation process based on the current reproduction position is continued during trick reproduction, the reproduction cache at a position greatly deviating from the current reproduction position after trick reproduction may be accumulated.

  Therefore, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 stops the reproduction cache accumulation process while performing trick reproduction of the content. Then, if normal playback is resumed after completion of trick playback, playback cache storage processing is also resumed. Thereby, it is not necessary to accumulate useless reproduction cache. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. Those skilled in the art can make various modifications to the present invention within the scope of the claims. That is, a new embodiment can be obtained by combining appropriately changed technical means within the scope of the claims.

(Use of replay cache)
When the reproduction of the content is about to start while the rotation of the disk 2 inserted in the optical disk drive is stopped, the reproduction cache reproduction unit 60 stores the data at the reproduction start position of the content as a reproduction cache in a non-volatile manner. When the data has already been stored in the volatile memory 54, it is preferable to read the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory 54 and reproduce it. Thereby, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can normally reproduce the content until the disc 2 is in a stable state. That is, when reading data, there is no need to wait until the rotation of the optical disk is stabilized, and the data can be read quickly.

(Reproduction cache accumulation timing)
The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 may rotate the disc 2 without stopping the rotation of the disc 2 after receiving an instruction to stop the reproduction of the content during the reproduction of the content. Then, after the above instruction is accepted, the reproduction cache accumulation processing before the current reproduction position in the content is continued. In this case, after the viewing of the content is stopped, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 continuously accumulates the content after that point. Therefore, when reproduction of the same content is resumed from the time of interruption, the accumulated reproduction cache can be used, so that the content can be reproduced without waiting time.

  Also, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 stops accumulating the reproduction cache when it is detected during the accumulation of the reproduction cache that there is an access to the optical disc drive 43 for reproducing other content different from the content being reproduced. To do. Thereby, when the storage processing of the reproduction cache and the access to the optical disc drive 43 compete, the latter is prioritized. Therefore, the user can operate the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 comfortably.

(Replay cache accumulation procedure)
It is assumed that the content reproduction cache is not stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 when content reproduction is started. In this case, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 reads and accumulates data from the disk 2 until the reproduction buffer of the content reproduction processing unit 20 is sufficiently filled. Meanwhile, no replay cache is stored in the non-volatile memory 54. When sufficient data is accumulated in the reproduction buffer, the reproduction of the content is started using the reproduction buffer. In parallel with this, the subsequent data is read from the disk 2 and stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a reproduction cache. At that time, the reproduction cache accumulation processing is continued until the reproduction buffer is exhausted.

  Through such a series of processes, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can accumulate a sufficient amount of reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 while reproducing the content.

  Also, assume that a content reproduction cache is stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 when content reproduction is started. In this case, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 reads the reproduction cache corresponding to the subsequent data of the reproduction target data from the nonvolatile memory 54 and accumulates it in the reproduction buffer, and more newly accumulates the data accumulated as the reproduction cache. Data subsequent to the data is read from the disk 2 and stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 as a new reproduction cache. That is, the content is reproduced while executing the reproduction cache reproduction processing and storage processing in parallel.

(Preferential accumulation of replay cache)
The user usually has a high possibility of viewing the content reproduced last with priority over other content. Therefore, it is preferable that the playback cache storage unit 58 stores the playback cache of the last played content among the plurality of contents recorded on the disc 2 more preferentially. In this case, it is possible to preferentially store a reproduction cache of content that is likely to be viewed by the user. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

  Also, the user is more likely to view the content recorded on the disc 2 more preferentially. Therefore, it is preferable that the reproduction cache storage unit 58 more preferentially stores a reproduction cache of content newly recorded on the disk 2 among the plurality of contents recorded on the disk 2. In this case, it is possible to preferentially store a reproduction cache of content that is likely to be viewed by the user. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

  Also, the user usually looks at the content list presented through the screen of the display device 24, and the content selected in the list is more likely to be viewed with higher priority. Accordingly, the playback cache storage unit 58 stores the playback cache of the content selected by the user in the content list among the plurality of contents recorded on the disc 2 with higher priority than the playback cache of other content. Is preferred. As a result, it is possible to preferentially store a reproduction cache of content that is likely to be viewed by the user. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

  In addition, the user usually looks at the content list presented through the screen of the display device 24, and the higher the content, the higher the possibility of viewing the content list. Accordingly, the playback cache storage unit 58 stores the playback cache of the content represented by the information positioned higher in the content list among the plurality of contents recorded on the disc 2 with higher priority than the playback cache of the other content. It is preferable to do. As a result, it is possible to preferentially store a reproduction cache of content that is likely to be viewed by the user. Therefore, the stored reproduction cache can be used efficiently.

(Playback cache synchronization editing)
The reproduction cache control unit 56 preferably rewrites the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 in the same manner when the disk 2 is a rewritable disk and a portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the disk 2 is rewritten. As a result, it is possible to prevent the reproduction cache having the previous contents from being reproduced erroneously and to reproduce the reproduction cache having the correct contents when an attempt is made to reproduce a portion of the content that has been rewritten and the content has changed.

  The specific processing flow of such synchronous editing will be described below. In the following, an example will be given in which the content X recorded on the disc 2 is edited, and data for one minute (block B to block C) is deleted from a location that has been offset for 30 seconds from the beginning.

  1. First, the content control unit 26 instructs the content cache management unit 30 to delete blocks B to C of the content X.

  2. The content cache management unit 30 instructs the disk control unit 42 to delete the blocks B to C of the content X.

  3. The content cache management unit 30 refers to the non-volatile memory 54 and detects that the blocks B to C, which are sections to be deleted, are accumulated as the reproduction cache of the content X.

  4). The content cache management unit 30 instructs the playback cache control unit 56 to delete the blocks B to C in the playback cache of the content X.

  5. The reproduction cache control unit 56 deletes the blocks B to C in the reproduction cache of the content X.

  6). The reproduction cache control unit 56 returns the deleted two blocks to the cache area management unit 50.

  4. ~ 6. This process may be performed after confirming that the content X on the disc 2 has been successfully edited.

(Delete replay cache)
The reproduction cache control unit 56 detects that the disk 2 has been removed from the optical disk drive 43 or replaced with another disk 2 when the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is powered off. In this case, it is preferable to delete all the reproduction caches from the nonvolatile memory 54.

  If the disk 2 inserted in the optical disk drive 43 is removed or replaced with another disk 2 when the power of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned off, the power of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned on again. In this case, the disc 2 is completely inserted into the optical disc drive 43, or a disc 2 different from the disc 2 inserted before the power is turned off is inserted. That is, the same disk 2 is not continuously inserted before and after the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned off. That is, the disk 2 corresponding to the stored reproduction cache is not inserted into the optical disk drive 43.

  Therefore, when it is detected that the disk 2 is removed from the optical disk drive 43 or replaced with another disk 2 when the power of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned off, the entire reproduction cache is stored from the nonvolatile memory 54. delete. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being read and reproduced.

  At this time, the reproduction cache control unit 56 does not delete the reproduction cache when the same disk 2 is continuously inserted before and after the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is powered off. Therefore, since the correct playback cache can be used immediately after the recording / playback apparatus 1 is turned on, the time required to start playback of the content after the power is turned on can be shortened.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can detect that the disk 2 has been removed from the optical disk drive 43 or replaced with another disk 2 when the power of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned off. First, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 includes a disk insertion detection switch that is pressed when an arbitrary disk 2 is inserted into the optical disk drive 43, and a disk loading that is pressed when an arbitrary disk 2 is loaded into the optical disk drive 43. And a detection switch. As a result, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 causes the disc 2 to be inserted into the optical disc drive 43 when the disc insertion detection switch is depressed and the disc loading detection switch is not depressed when the recording / reproducing device 1 is powered on. It is determined that it is inserted but not attached. As a result, with a simple configuration, when the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is powered on, it can be detected that an arbitrary disk 2 is inserted into the optical disk drive 43 but not mounted.

  Further, while the disc 2 is loaded in the optical disc drive 43, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 records a mounting flag (a mounting flag having a value of 1) indicating that in the nonvolatile memory 54. Then, when the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned on and the mounting flag having a value of 1 is recorded in the non-volatile memory 180, the power of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned off while the disk 2 is loaded in the disk drive 43. Judge that it was. Thereby, it can be reliably detected that the power of the optical disk drive 43 is turned off while the disk 2 is loaded.

(Delete replay cache)
When the disc insertion / extraction detection unit 34 detects that another disc 2 different from the disc 2 on which the content storing the reproduction cache is recorded is inserted in the optical disc drive 43, the reproduction cache control unit 56 It is preferable to delete all the reproduction caches from the nonvolatile memory 54.

  During the operation of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1, the user has extracted the disk 2 on which the content stored in the reproduction cache is recorded from the optical disk drive 43 and inserted another disk 2 different from the disk 2 into the optical disk drive 43. To do. At this time, there is a high possibility that the recorded reproduction cache does not match the content recorded on the disc 2 currently inserted in the optical disc drive 43. Therefore, if the current reproduction cache is read as it is, there is a possibility that an erroneous reproduction cache is reproduced.

  Therefore, when it is detected that another disc 2 different from the disc 2 on which the content storing the reproduction cache is recorded is inserted into the optical disc drive 43, the reproduction cache control unit 56 sets the reproduction cache to be non-volatile. All are deleted from the memory 54. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being read and reproduced.

  The disk insertion / removal detection unit 34 records a predetermined identifier uniquely recorded for each disk 2 in the nonvolatile memory 54 every time the disk 2 is inserted. Then, the most recently recorded identifier is compared with the identifier of the disc 2 newly inserted into the optical disc drive 43. If they are different from each other, the disc 2 on which the content storing the reproduction cache is recorded It detects that another disc 2 with a different disc is inserted in the optical disc drive 43.

(Delete replay cache)
The reproduction cache control unit 56 detects that the disk 2 is the same as the disk 2 on which the content stored in the reproduction cache is recorded, but the disk 2 having a different recording state is inserted into the optical disk drive 43. When it is detected by the unit 34, it is preferable to delete all the reproduction caches from the nonvolatile memory 54.

  During the operation of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1, the user once removes the disk 2 on which the contents stored in the reproduction cache are recorded from the optical disk drive 43, and uses the disk 2 in another recording / reproducing apparatus 1 to record the recorded contents. And re-inserted into the original recording / reproducing apparatus 1. At this time, the disk 2 in which the reproduction cache is stored and the disk 2 currently inserted in the optical disk drive 43 are exactly the same disk, but the recording state is different. Therefore, there is a possibility that the current reproduction cache is different from the content data recorded on the disc 2. As a result, there is a risk of reading and using an incorrect reproduction cache.

  Therefore, the reproduction cache control unit 56 detects that the disk 2 that is the same as the disk 2 on which the content accumulated in the reproduction cache is recorded, but has a different recording state is inserted into the optical disk drive 43. In the case where the reproduction cache has been deleted, the entire reproduction cache is deleted from the nonvolatile memory 54. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being read and reproduced.

  The disk insertion / removal detection unit 34 records a binding non- stance recorded on the disk 2 in addition to a predetermined identifier uniquely recorded for each disk 2 in the nonvolatile memory 54 every time the disk 2 is inserted. To do. The binding nonce is a random number used to collectively encrypt the encryption key (title key) for each content recorded on the disc 2. When content is newly added to the disc 2, when content is deleted from the disc 2, or when content on the disc 2 is edited, the title key is added, abolished, or changed. In this case, in order to encrypt all the title keys together, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 uses a new binding nonce (random number) and records the random number on the disc 2. Accordingly, the binding nonce takes different values depending on the recording state of the disc 2. On the other hand, the identifier takes a unique fixed value for each disc 2 regardless of the recording state of the disc 2.

  The disk insertion / removal detection unit 34 compares the identifier recorded most recently with the identifier of the disk 2 newly inserted into the optical disk drive 43. If both are the same, the binding nonce most recently recorded is compared with the binding nonce of the disc 2 newly inserted into the optical disc drive 43. When the two are different, it is detected that the disc 2 is the same as the disc 2 on which the content stored in the reproduction cache is recorded, but the disc 2 having a different recording state is inserted into the optical disc drive 43.

(Reclaim cache release)
The reproduction cache control unit 56 preferably releases the reproduction cache stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 when the reproduction of the content is started from a position not corresponding to the reproduction cache. In this case, the playback cache that is no longer needed when the content is played is released. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being reproduced.

  The playback cache control unit 56 preferably releases the playback cache stored in the nonvolatile memory 54 when playback of other content different from the content stored in the playback cache is about to start. . In this case, a playback cache that does not match the newly played content is released. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an erroneous reproduction cache from being reproduced.

  In the recording / reproducing apparatus 1, when a plurality of contents are recorded on the disc 2 and the area for storing the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 is exhausted, the reproduction cache control unit 56 Of these, it is preferable to preferentially release an area in which a reproduction cache of content that is less likely to be viewed by a viewer is accumulated. As a result, the regenerative cache storage area can be used efficiently.

  In addition, when the area for storing the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 is exhausted, the reproduction cache control unit 56 selects an area in which a reproduction cache of contents whose current reproduction position is closer to the end among a plurality of contents is accumulated. It is preferable to release more preferentially. Alternatively, it is preferable to preferentially release an area in which a reproduction cache of the content recorded on the disc 2 that is older is stored among a plurality of contents. Alternatively, it is preferable to preferentially release an area in which a reproduction cache of content having an older reproduction date and time among the plurality of contents is accumulated.

  In any of these cases, an area for accumulating a reproduction cache of content that is less likely to be viewed by the user is more preferentially released. Therefore, the replay cache can be used efficiently.

  Further, even when the area for storing the reproduction cache is exhausted, the reproduction cache control unit 56 is configured to use the existing area if the content to be stored in the reproduction cache is older than any other contents recorded on the disc 2. May not be released, and the current state of the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory 54 may be maintained as it is. In other words, the content reproduction cache is not recorded on the disc 2. As a result, it is possible to prevent the reproduction cache of the content that is the oldest and most likely not to be viewed by the user from being accumulated in the nonvolatile memory 54, so that the accumulated reproduction cache can be used effectively.

(Other structure of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1)
The recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can also be realized as a configuration shown in FIG. FIG. 22 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a modified example of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 according to the present invention.

  7 includes a remote control receiving unit 10, an antenna 12, a tuner 14, a content reception processing unit 16, a system control unit 18, a content reproduction processing unit 20, an output unit 22, a display device 24, and a content control unit 26. , A power control unit 28, and a disk drive 43a. The disk drive 43a includes a content cache management unit 30, a disk drive monitoring unit 32, a disk insertion / removal detection unit 34, a disk recording / playback 36, a disk recording unit 38, a disk playback unit 40, a disk control unit 42, a cache area management unit 50, a nonvolatile memory A regenerative memory control unit 52, a non-volatile memory 54, a replay cache control unit 56, a replay cache storage unit 58, and a replay cache replay unit 60.

  The disk drive 43 shown in FIG. 1 is a conventional general-purpose device. On the other hand, the disk drive 43a shown in FIG. 22 includes all of the processes related to content cache management that can be executed by the recording / playback apparatus 1 shown in FIG. You can do it yourself. Accordingly, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 22 can be realized by providing the disk drive 43a in a conventional general recording / reproducing apparatus. That is, a device having a function equivalent to that of the recording / reproducing device 1 shown in FIG. 1 can be manufactured by a simple operation of replacing the disk drive.

(Program and recording medium)
Finally, each block included in the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 may be configured by hardware logic. Alternatively, it may be realized by software using a CPU (Central Processing Unit) as follows.

  That is, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 includes a CPU that executes instructions of a program that realizes each function, a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores the program, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that expands the program into an executable format, and And a storage device (recording medium) such as a memory for storing the program and various data. With this configuration, the object of the present invention can be achieved by a predetermined recording medium.

  This recording medium only needs to record the program code (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) of the program of the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 which is software that realizes the above-described functions so that it can be read by a computer. This recording medium is supplied to the recording / reproducing apparatus 1. Thereby, the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 (or CPU or MPU) as a computer may read and execute the program code recorded on the supplied recording medium.

  The recording medium for supplying the program code to the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is not limited to a specific structure or type. That is, the recording medium includes, for example, a tape system such as a magnetic tape and a cassette tape, a magnetic disk such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk / hard disk, and an optical disk such as a CD-ROM / MO / MD / DVD / CD-R. System, a card system such as an IC card (including a memory card) / optical card, or a semiconductor memory system such as a mask ROM / EPROM / EEPROM / flash ROM.

  Further, even if the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is configured to be connectable to a communication network, the object of the present invention can be achieved. In this case, the program code is supplied to the recording / reproducing apparatus 1 via a communication network. The communication network is not limited to a specific type or form as long as it can supply the program code to the recording / reproducing apparatus 1. For example, it may be the Internet, intranet, extranet, LAN, ISDN, VAN, CATV communication network, virtual private network, telephone line network, mobile communication network, satellite communication network, and the like.

  The transmission medium constituting the communication network may be any medium that can transmit the program code, and is not limited to a specific configuration or type. For example, wired communication such as IEEE 1394, USB (Universal Serial Bus), power line carrier, cable TV line, telephone line, ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) line, infrared rays such as IrDA and remote control, Bluetooth (registered trademark), 802.11 It can also be used by radio such as radio, HDR, mobile phone network, satellite line, terrestrial digital network. The present invention can also be realized in the form of a computer data signal embedded in a carrier wave in which the program code is embodied by electronic transmission.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention can be widely used as a recording / reproducing apparatus (recorder apparatus) for reading and writing various optical discs such as a Blu-ray disc.

1 Recording / playback device 2 Disc (optical disc)
10 Remote control receiving part (stop instruction receiving means)
12 antenna 14 tuner 16 content reception processing unit 18 system control unit 20 content reproduction processing unit (content list presenting means)
22 output unit 24 display device 26 content control unit 28 power supply control unit 30 content cache management unit 32 disk drive monitoring unit 34 disk insertion / removal detection unit (optical disk insertion / removal detection means)
36 Disc recording / reproducing unit 38 Disc recording unit 40 Disc reproducing unit 42 Disc control unit (optical disc control means)
50 Cache area management unit (reclaimed cache release means)
52 Non-volatile memory control unit 54 Non-volatile memory 56 Reproduction cache control unit (reproduction cache deletion means)
58 Reproduction cache storage unit (reproduction cache storage means, reproduction cache rewrite means)
60 playback cache playback unit (playback cache playback means)

Claims (26)

A recording / reproducing apparatus that includes an optical disc drive into which an optical disc on which content is recorded is inserted and a nonvolatile memory, and reproduces the content,
Reproduction cache storage means for storing, in the nonvolatile memory, a certain amount of data reproduced after the current reproduction position in the content recorded on the optical disc inserted in the optical disc drive;
A recording / reproducing apparatus comprising: reproduction cache reproduction means for reproducing the portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content by reading the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory.   2. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reproduction cache accumulating unit accumulates a certain amount of past data reproduced before the current reproduction position in the content as the reproduction cache.   3. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined amount is equal to a data amount for a time skipped by skip reproduction processing at the time of reproduction of the content.   The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the certain amount is equal to a data amount corresponding to a certain size from the current reproduction position in the content.   5. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the certain size is equal to a size corresponding to a time skipped by a skip reproduction process during reproduction of the content. Optical disc drive monitoring means for monitoring the status of the optical disc drive,
6. The reproduction cache accumulation means starts accumulation of the reproduction cache when the optical disk drive monitoring means detects that the optical disk drive is not accessed for a certain period of time. 2. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1.   7. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reproduction cache accumulating unit accumulates the reproduction cache as part of a process when the recording / reproducing apparatus is powered off. Stop instruction receiving means for receiving an instruction to stop the reproduction of the content during the reproduction of the content;
After the instruction is attached, it further comprises optical disc control means for rotating the optical disc as it is without stopping the rotation,
8. The reproduction cache accumulation unit continues the accumulation process of the reproduction cache before the current reproduction position in the content after the instruction is received. The recording / reproducing apparatus described in 1. Optical disc drive monitoring means for monitoring the status of the optical disc drive,
The reproduction cache storage means, when the optical disk drive monitoring means detects that access for reproducing other content different from the content is made to the optical disk drive during accumulation of the reproduction cache, 9. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein accumulation of the reproduction cache is stopped. A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
The reproduction cache storage means stores the reproduction cache of the last reproduced content among the plurality of contents with higher priority than the reproduction cache of other contents. 2. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1. A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
The reproduction cache storage means stores the reproduction cache of the content recorded last on the optical disc among the plurality of contents with higher priority than the reproduction cache of other content. 10. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to any one of 9 above. A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
It further comprises a content list presenting means for presenting a content list that lists information on the plurality of contents to the user,
The reproduction cache storage means stores the reproduction cache of the content selected by the user in the content list among the plurality of contents with higher priority than the reproduction cache of other content. The recording / reproducing apparatus of any one of 1-9. A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
It further comprises a content list presenting means for presenting a content list that lists information on the plurality of contents to the user,
10. The reproduction cache accumulation unit accumulates the reproduction cache of the content represented by information higher in the content list among the plurality of contents more preferentially. 2. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1. The optical disc is a rewritable disc,
The recording / reproducing apparatus further includes reproduction cache rewriting means for rewriting the reproduction cache in the nonvolatile memory in the same manner when a portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content recorded on the optical disc is rewritten. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein Optical disc insertion / extraction detection means for detecting whether the optical disc is inserted into or removed from the optical disc drive;
If the optical disc insertion / extraction detecting unit detects that the optical disc has been removed from the optical disc drive or replaced with another optical disc when the recording / reproducing apparatus is powered off, 15. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising reproduction cache deletion means for deleting from the non-volatile memory. Optical disc insertion / extraction detection means for detecting whether the optical disc is inserted into or removed from the optical disc drive;
When the optical disc insertion / extraction detection unit detects that another optical disc different from the optical disc on which the content storing the playback cache is recorded is inserted in the optical disc drive, the playback cache is 15. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a reproduction cache deleting unit that deletes all data from the nonvolatile memory. Optical disc insertion / extraction detection means for detecting whether the optical disc is inserted into or removed from the optical disc drive;
The optical disc insertion / extraction detection means detects that an optical disc that is the same optical disc as the optical disc on which the content stored in the reproduction cache is recorded, but has a different recording state is inserted in the optical disc drive. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a reproduction cache deleting unit that deletes all of the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory.   The reproduction cache release means for releasing all of the reproduction cache stored in the nonvolatile memory when reproduction of the content is started from a position not corresponding to the reproduction cache. The recording / reproducing apparatus of any one of 1-17.   When the reproduction of another content different from the content in which the reproduction cache is stored is about to be started, a reproduction cache releasing means for releasing all the reproduction cache stored in the nonvolatile memory is further provided. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein A plurality of contents are recorded on the optical disc,
When the area for storing the playback cache in the non-volatile memory is exhausted, priority is given to the area that stores the playback cache of the content that is less likely to be viewed by the viewer among the plurality of contents. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a reproduction cache releasing unit that releases the target automatically.   The replay cache release means stores the replay cache of the content whose current replay position is closer to the end of the plurality of contents when the area for storing the replay cache in the nonvolatile memory is exhausted 21. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the area is released more preferentially.   When the area for storing the playback cache in the non-volatile memory is exhausted, the playback cache releasing means stores the playback cache of the content recorded on the disc that is older than the plurality of contents. 21. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the recording / reproducing device is released more preferentially.   When the area for storing the reproduction cache in the non-volatile memory is exhausted, the reproduction cache releasing means accumulates the reproduction cache of the content having the oldest reproduction date and time among the plurality of contents. 21. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the area is released more preferentially. A reproduction cache processing method executed by a recording / reproducing apparatus that includes an optical disc drive into which an optical disc on which content is recorded is inserted and a nonvolatile memory, and reproduces the content,
A reproduction cache accumulation step of accumulating a predetermined amount of data reproduced after the current reproduction position in the content recorded on the optical disc inserted in the optical disc drive in the nonvolatile memory,
A reproduction cache processing method, comprising: a reproduction cache reproduction step of reading out the reproduction cache from the nonvolatile memory and reproducing the portion corresponding to the reproduction cache in the content.   A program for operating the recording / reproducing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 23 for causing a computer to function as each of the above means.   The computer-readable recording medium which has recorded the program of Claim 25.

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