GB2091021A

GB2091021A - Storing Information and Index on Record

Info

Publication number: GB2091021A
Application number: GB8136244A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-12-04
Filing date: 1981-12-01
Publication date: 1982-07-21
Also published as: GB2091021B; DE3147436A1; SE439210B; FR2495871A1; JPS57147175A; SE8008539L

Abstract

Information is stored in sequentially numbered subsets one record 8 which also has recorded an index which contains both search words and said sequential numbers. This index is fed into the memory (5) of a control unit (4) by record player 1. Thus a search word fed to the control unit via keyboard 7 is converted to a sequential number which the record player uses to find the required information subset. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Method and Device for Storing and Utilizing Index for Information in a Video Record or the Like This invention relates to a method of storing and utilizing an index for information in a record and to a device for carrying out the method.

In recent years discs such as video records have been developed for the storage of information consisting, for example, of still pictures, moving pictures, sound, text, binary number sequences etc.

Several different systems for storing and, respectively, scanning the information are at present under development.

The different systems have in common, however, that the information is stored in a record, in "grooves". The number of grooves is very great, and the amount of information possible to be stored is extremely great.

As an example can be mentioned that a system developed by "Philips" Data Systems B.V. in Holland comprises a record with the diameter 12", in which 1010 bits can be stored. This corresponds to about 500 000 typewritten pages.

Another version of the same record contains 50 000 still pictures on each side.

The video record is intended to be played in a video record player, which comprises a certain control equipment for controlling a reading head so as to scan a desired information stored in the record. Such control equipment is restricted, with knowledge of an information denotation in the form of a sequential number, to control the -eading head to the position corresponding to said number.

In view of the very great amount of information possible to be stored in only one video record, the medium is extremely suitable, for example, for information of the type book work, reference work, educational programmes etc., in addition to other information, to which rapid access is necessary.

The known technique of solving the problem is to connect to the video record player a computer, in which the series number in the record is translated to some kind of alpha-numeric code, and vice versa. A memory medium, thus, is coupled here to the computer, into which information on the content of different video records is fed. The information in different records possibly can be built-up according to some system, in which case a code system applying to several records is stored in the computer memory.

An essential disadvantage of this known technique is, that a computer must be programmed and provided with memory information for certain specific video records. The technique, therefore, should be utilized only for special types of information, such as data information or information, which from one record to another is built-up in the same way, for example storage of a number of musical pieces with associated movable picture of the orchestra, As regards information being specific for each video record, for example a reference work stored in a video record, there is further a very great problem in that the search words are arranged in alphabetic or alphanumeric order while the information in a video record is arranged numerically.

It is not possible, thus, with knowledge of the entry word in questio,; : ^ . rapidly locate on the video record the information associated with said word.

This problem exists for any kind of information stored in a video record where the information per se cannot be arranged in a strictly numerical order so that numerical "search words" can be used.

The present invention offers a simple solution of this problem, whereby the video record technique can be utilized directly even for such purposes as indicated above as examples.

The present invention relates to a method of storing and utilizing an index for information in a record, where the information is stored sequentially with a number for every picture or series of pictures, sounds or a combination thereof, and is characterized in that an index containing both search words and said sequential numbers coupled to each other is stored in a part of the record, which index prior to the utilization of the information stored is read into a memory of a control unit connected to a record player, which control unit is capable upon manual or mechanic indication of a search word, for example by a keyboard associated with the control unit, to produce a sequential number associated with the search word and by said number in known manner to actuate the record player to directly locate the information marked with the sequential number in the record.

The invention further relates to a device having substantially the characterizing features as defined in the attached claim 4.

The invention is described in greater detail in the following, partially with reference to the accompanying drawing, the Figure in which is a schematic block diagram of a device according to the invention.

In the Figure, a block diagram is shown in a schematic manner where an upper dashed block 1 designates a video record player comprising the record player 2 and a control unit 3. What is illustrated by the block 1, thus, may belong largely to known art. The Figure further shows a lower dashed block 4 including a control unit with a memory 5, a calculating unit 6 and a keyboard 7.

The device shown schematically in the Figure is a device for storing and utilizing an index for information in a video record 8, in which the information is stored sequentially with one number for every picture or series of pictures, sounds or a combination thereof. Sequential storage in this connection is to be understood so that to every part of the total information in the record is attached a number, which is written in connection to the information, or which indicates, for example, the groove, counted from the outside, in which the information in question Is stored. The series of numbers is built-up logically with respect to the position of the information in the video record.

The control unit 4 is capable via cables 9 to cooperate with or, alternatively, to be included as an integral unit in the video record player 1.

According to the present invention, an index concerning the information of a video record is stored in the video record proper at its manufacture.

The control unit 4 is capable to feed into the memory 5 the index stored in a video record 8.

The index contains search words and sequential numbers associated therewith belonging to a certain information stored in the record. A reading head 10 reads said index upon instruction by the calculating unit 6, which also is capable to control the input to the memory 5, which is an RAMmemory.

When information is to be read from the video record, in a first step an index stored according to the method of the invention is read into the video record. This index corresponds to the information stored in the video record. The reading-in of the index preferably takes place automatically upon instruction from the calculating unit, before any information stored in the video record is scanned.

The keyboard 7 is intended for the manual input of search words or corresponding matter to the control unit 4, which is capable upon receipt of signals from the keyboard corresponding to a search word keyed therein to produce, by control of the calculating unit 6, from the memory 5 a sequential number associated with the search word.

The control unit 4 thereafter emits via the conductor 9 a signal corresponding to said number to the video record player 1, so that the player by means of its control unit 3 in known manner and by known means locates and reads on the video record the information associated with the sequential number.

The calculating unit 6 is a microcomputer or microprocessor with associated programme memory. The memory 5 is a RAM-memory, the memory capacity of which according to a preferred embodiment is such, that index only in one video record at a time is held in the memory.

The object thus, is to hold stored in the memory only the index being of immediate interest, i.e. the index which is stored in a record located on the record player.

The components comprised in the control unit 4 each are well-known per se and, therefore, are not described here in detail.

The method according to the present invention for storing and utilizing an index for information in a video record, where sequential storage is applied, can be divided into two steps, viz. a first step in which an index for the information stored in the video record is stored in the video record.

Said index comprises, as mentioned, search words or corresponding matter and a sequential number associated therewith. The term search word is to be understood as search word in its broadest sense, i.e. linguistic words, codes and/or alphanumeric combinations. The term number is to be understood as a number in the meaning of address at data storage.

According to a preferred embodiment, the index is stored in the first programme grooves in the video record. In a second step of the method, the index is read into the control unit 4 associated with the memory 5 when a video record is positioned on the video record player. The index is utilized according to the present invention in that a search word fed-in by the keyboard is converted by the calculating unit 6 and memory 5 of the control unit 4 to a sequential number, by which the video record player is controlled in known manner so as to directly locate on the video record the information related to this number.

The aforesaid can be exemplified, in that the content of a reference book is stored in alphabetic order in a video record where to every title or object a number is attached which consists of a sequence of figures. Information on the word "record" thus is found in the memory position 94031, and the word "video" is found in the memory position 138384. The word after "record" is found in the memory position 94032, and the word before "video" in the position 138383.

Said index at this example includes all words and a number coupled to each of them. When a person keys-in the word "record" in the keyboard, in the memory 5 the number is searched which belongs to the word "record", viz. 94031. This number is the address to the information concerning the word "record", and thereby the control signal to the video record player to read the information.

As has become apparent from the aforesaid, the index is stored in the video record, with which it is associated and, therefore, is bound entirely to the content of the video record. It is, therefore, automatically easy by the present invention to find the desired information in an arbitrarily selected video record. This is not the case, as mentioned in the introductory portion, with systems where the information on a great number of video records is stored according to so,ne special system intended to facilitate the search for the information.

It is, thus, possible by the present invention to store and utilize information in a video record of substantially any kind and thereby to have rapid access to certain parts of the information stored.

The invention, of course, can be varied in many ways obvious to the expert without abandoning the idea of the invention.

The invention, thus, must not be regarded restricted to the embodiments and examples described above, but can be varied within the scope of the attached claims.

Claims

1. A method of storing and utilizing index for information in a record where the information is stored sequentially in subsets with one number for every subset of information, characterized in that an index containing both search words and said sequential numbers coupled together are stored in a portion of the record, which index prior to the utilization of the information stored is caused to be read into a memory of a control unit connected to a record player, which control unit is capable upon manual or mechanical indication of a a search word, for example by a keyboard associated with the control unit, to produce from the memory a sequential number associated with the search word and by this number to actuate the record player to directly locate the information marked by the sequential number in the record.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said index is stored in the first programme grooves of a record.

3. A method as defined in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said index is designed so that to search words arranged in alphabetic or alphanumeric order sequential numbers are attached.

4. A device for storing and utilizing index for information in a record where the information is stored sequentially in subsets with a number for every subset of information, characterized in that a control unit comprising a memory, a calculating unit and a keyboard is arranged to co-operate with a record player and capable to feed into said memory an index stored in a record, which index contains both search words and said sequential numbers associated therewith for the information stored in the record, and that the control unit is capable upon receiving signals from said keyboard corresponding to a search word keyed therein, by means of the calculating unit to produce from the memory a sequential number associated with the search word and thereby to emit a signal corresponding to this number to the record player, so that this locates on the record the information associated with the sequential number.

5. A device as defined in claim 4, characterized in that said memory is an RAM-memory intended to simultaneously contain an index stored only in one record.

6. A device as defined in claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the control unit is capable at the start of the record player to emit a signal to the player, which signal is formed so that the record player scans said index before any information stored in the record is scanned.

7. A device or method for storing and utilising an index for information according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the record and record player are a video record and video record player.

8. A device or method for storing and utilising an index for information substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawing.

9. A record for use in a device or method according to any one of the preceding claims, said record having recorded thereon: (a) a multiplicity of items of information; and (b) an index containing search words and sequential numbers associated with said items.