JP2001128280A - Audio device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance the operability of a user interface function in a system where sound of a mobile audio device is outputted by an on-vehicle audio device. SOLUTION: A headphone terminal of a mobile audio device is connected to an AUX terminal of an on-vehicle audio device. Thus, communication of display information and operation information signal can be attained as user interface information. Then in the on-vehicle audio device, an operation information signal in response to an operation applied to its own operation section is outputted to the mobile audio device to control it. Furthermore, based on display information outputted from the mobile audio device, the operating state of the mobile audio device is displayed by its own display section. Thus, the user interface function of the mobile audio device can be realized by the on- vehicle audio device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an audio device capable of inputting an audio signal output from an external audio device when the external audio device is connected and outputting the audio signal to a speaker or the like, for example. It concerns equipment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, portable audio equipment having a configuration suitable for carrying has been widely known as audio equipment. Such portable audio devices are
For example, tape cassette, CD (Compact Disc), MD (Min
It is known that playback can be performed on media such as i. Discs, and that recording is possible on media that can be recorded.

In such portable audio equipment, generally, headphones are connected to the portable audio equipment body to listen to the audio output equipment.
As the above-mentioned headphone, for example, a headphone in which an operation unit is provided in a cable between a portable audio device and an ear driver of the headphone is known. By operating the operation unit, the user can perform various operations related to, for example, reproduction on the portable audio device. It is also known that headphones are provided with a small display unit such as a liquid crystal display in addition to the operation unit described above, and a user looks at the display contents displayed on the display unit to check the current portable audio system. You can know the playback status of the device. For example, it is possible to know various situations such as a track number currently being reproduced, a reproduction progress time of a track, and the like.

In recent years, on-board audio equipment has become widespread. 1 of in-vehicle audio equipment
For example, an audio device called a so-called head unit is known. The head unit is equipped with, for example, an audio device such as a tuner and a reproducing device corresponding to a predetermined recording medium, and can output an audio signal output from the audio device as a sound by a speaker. In addition, an operation panel for controlling these audio devices comprehensively,
And a display unit for displaying the operation status thereof. If necessary, the user can set up an audio system such that sound is reproduced via the head unit by connecting another audio device to the head unit, for example.

[0005]

By the way, it is natural that some users desire to listen to the sound reproduced by the portable audio device in the vehicle.
In response to such a demand, in a vehicle-mounted audio device such as the above-described head unit, for example, by connecting a portable audio device with a cable or the like, an audio signal output from the portable audio device can be input. Is known. Then, the head unit operates to output the input audio signal as sound from, for example, a speaker.

[0006] However, at present, only the above-mentioned audio signals are input and output by connecting the portable audio device and the head unit. In other words, this means that, for example, control information and the like relating to the user interface are not input / output between the portable audio device and the head unit.

As a result, the following problem arises.
That is, for one, when the sound being reproduced by the portable audio device is output by the head unit, the operation of the portable audio device is controlled by operating the operation unit of the portable audio device. Have to do it. In order to check the reproduction status, it is necessary to look at the display unit of the portable audio device. Since this display is small, it is difficult for the user to see. Some of the display units on the portable audio device side are not provided with a backlight. With such a display unit, it is almost impossible to see the display contents at night. Furthermore, some portable audio devices have a display unit only in the middle of the above-described headphone cable, and do not have a display unit in the device body. And
If the audio output terminal of this type of device is only this headphone terminal, the audio output terminal of this headphone terminal will be used for connection to the head unit, so the playback status cannot be checked at all. Disappears.

As described above, at present, when an audio signal reproduced by a portable audio device is output from an audio device such as a head unit, a user interface such as an operation and display related to the reproduction is performed by the portable audio device. This has a problem that it is not easy to use because it is performed on the side.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention considers the above-described problems and, when constructing a system in which audio output from an external audio device is output as audio by an audio device, the audio device side It is another object of the present invention to realize a user interface function related to an external audio device to improve usability.

For this reason, the audio device is configured as follows. An audio signal input terminal for inputting an audio signal output from an external audio device; output means capable of outputting an audio signal input from the audio signal input terminal; A user interface input / output terminal for inputting or outputting predetermined user interface information, and a predetermined user interface information output via the user interface input / output terminal or a predetermined input received via the user interface input / output terminal And control means capable of executing required control processing based on the user interface information.

According to the above configuration, the audio device and the external audio device of the present invention have a function of inputting and outputting as audio a sound output from the external audio device. Based on the user interface information input and output between the devices, for example, the audio device of the present invention can have a predetermined user interface function corresponding to an external audio device.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. Here, the audio device according to the embodiment of the present invention is an example of a vehicle-mounted audio device called a head unit. The external audio device connected to the in-vehicle audio device of the present embodiment is not particularly limited, but here, audio data is stored on a magneto-optical disk called an MD (Mini Disc). An MD recorder / player capable of recording and reproducing. The MD recorder / player has a portable configuration.

First, an outline of an audio system according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The audio system of the present invention is assumed to be the above-described audio equipment for a vehicle as a head unit and a portable MD recorder / player.

FIG. 1 shows an external appearance of a portable MD recorder / player as an external audio device. The MD recorder / player 1 shown in this drawing has a predetermined size and shape as a portable type. And this M
The D recorder / player 1 can be loaded with a disk cartridge 91 configured to store the MD 90. MD recorder / player 1
Now, the MD9 in this loaded disc cartridge
0 is recorded or reproduced. In this case, in addition to a predetermined terminal group provided as the headphone terminal unit 21, the main body of the MD recorder / player 1 can input a sound signal for recording such as a microphone terminal or a line input terminal. In addition to an audio signal input terminal and the like, for example, a line output for outputting a reproduced audio signal is provided as necessary, but is not shown here. Further, for example, an operation unit and a display unit for performing predetermined operations related to recording and reproduction may be provided, but these are not shown here. The headphone terminal 21 is provided for connecting a headphone 30 described below.

A headphone 30 is provided for the user to listen to the reproduced sound of the MD recorder / player 1. The headphones 30 in this case are, for example, as shown in FIG.
A connector 32 is provided at one end of the cable 31, and an ear driver 34 including a pair of ear drivers for the right ear and the left ear is provided at the other end.
Then, the connector section 32 is connected to the headphone terminal section 21 of the MD recorder / player 1 so as to be fitted. When a disc is reproduced in the MD recorder / player 1, the reproduced sound is transmitted to the ear driver unit 3.
4 is output.

A part as an operation / display unit 33 is provided at an intermediate position in the cable 31 of the headphone 30. The operation / display unit 33 is actually provided with various operators for performing predetermined operations related to reproduction and the like on the MD recorder / player 1, for example, and the user has the operation / display unit 33, for example. By performing the predetermined operation, the operation for the MD recorder / player 1 can be performed. Further, the operation / display unit 33 is provided with a small window as a display panel 33a. The display panel 33a is configured by, for example, a liquid crystal display. On the display panel 33a, if a track number or a track name is registered, the track name is displayed by characters or the like. Also, the progress time of the playback track and the setting status of the playback mode such as repeat, shuffle, and program playback are displayed.
The user can grasp the reproduction status of the MD recorder / player 1 by looking at the display panel 33a.

The function of the operation / display unit 33 is such that an audio signal (analog audio signal) reproduced by at least the MD recorder / player 1 via the headphone terminal unit 21 and the connector unit 32 is transmitted to the ear driver unit. 34
And an operation information signal based on an operation performed on the operation / display unit 33 by the MD recorder / player 1.
And a path for transmitting display information for display from the MD recorder / player 1 to the operation / display unit 33.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a system including the MD recorder / player 1 as the external device shown in FIG. 1 and a vehicle-mounted audio device as the audio device of the present embodiment. The in-vehicle audio device 50 shown in this figure is used, for example, by actually attaching the front panel 51 to a user on the front console in an automobile so that the front panel 51 is exposed to the user. In this case, an operation unit 54 and a display unit 53 are arranged and provided on the front panel 51 of the in-vehicle audio device 50, and thus have a function as a user interface.

As the operation unit 54, various keys for operating the operation of the vehicle-mounted audio device 50, and operators such as a jog dial are arranged at predetermined positions on the front panel 51.

On the display unit 53, a required display is performed according to the operation state of the vehicle-mounted audio device 50. For example, the in-vehicle audio device 50 can select a CD audio, a tuner audio, and an AUX audio, which is an input audio of an external audio device connected to the in-vehicle audio device 50, as audio sources, as described later. However, the display unit 53 displays which of these audio sources is selected. Also, the operation status according to the selected source is displayed. For example, when CD audio is selected,
Track and its playback time are displayed.

The front panel 51 is provided with a CD insertion slot 52 for inserting a CD. The user can use this C
A CD can be inserted into and ejected from the D insertion slot 52.

As described above, the in-vehicle audio device 50 uses a CD as an output source of the audio source.
And a tuner unit for playing back a CD. AUX for supporting external audio equipment
Audio can be input. Then, one of these audio sources is selected by a predetermined operation on the operation unit 54, and the sound can be output from a speaker (not shown) in the vehicle.

In the vehicle-mounted audio device 50 of the present embodiment, in order to enable connection with a portable MD recorder / player 1 which is an external audio device,
AUX input terminal 5 for the side of front panel 51
5 are provided. By connecting the AUX input terminal 55 of the in-vehicle audio device 50 to the headphone terminal 21 of the MD recorder / player 1 with the adapter cable 40, the MD recorder / player 1 is connected.
Is used as the source of AUX audio
Will be connected to.

In this case, the adapter cable 40 is configured by attaching connector portions 42, 42 to both ends of the cable 41. Here, the shape of the AUX input terminal section 55 is the same as that of the headphone terminal section 21, and correspondingly, the connector section 4 of the adapter cable 40 is provided.
Both 2 and 42 have the same plug shape. According to the present invention, for example, the shape of the AUX input terminal unit 55 does not necessarily have to be the same as that of the headphone terminal unit 21, but in this case, when connecting using an adapter cable, This eliminates the need to check the shape of the connector portion of the adapter cable according to the difference in the shape of the headphone output terminal of the MD recorder / player and the shape of the AUX input terminal of the in-vehicle audio device 50.

As described above, the headphone terminal 21 of the MD recorder / player 1 is originally for connecting the headphone 30 and is connected via the headphone terminal 21 of the MD recorder / player 1. , The audio signal output reproduced by the MD recorder / player 1 and M
Output of display information from D recorder / player 1 and MD
An operation information signal is input to the recorder / player 1.

Accordingly, when the MD recorder / player 1 is connected to the vehicle-mounted audio device 50 as described above, the audio signal as an AUX sound is transmitted from the MD recorder / player 1 to the vehicle-mounted audio device 50. In addition to the MD recorder /
A path for outputting display information from the player 1 to the on-vehicle audio device 50 can be formed. Further, the MD recorder / player 1 can form a path for inputting an operation information signal from the in-vehicle audio device 50. In the present embodiment, this path can be covered by one adapter cable 40.

For example, the operation unit 54 of the vehicle-mounted audio device 50 originally operates the vehicle-mounted audio device 50. That is, for example, the built-in C
The main operation is performed on the D player unit and the tuner unit. Also, the display unit 53 should originally display the content corresponding to various operations in the in-vehicle audio device 50 as described above, for example. For example, as described above, when any of the built-in CD player section, tuner section, or the like is selected as an audio source, display according to the operation status of these sections is performed.

In this embodiment, when the audio of the MD recorder / player 1 connected to the audio equipment 50 mounted on the vehicle via the adapter cable 40, that is, the AUX audio is selected as the source, the following is performed. It is configured to obtain a simple system operation. For one thing,
When a predetermined operation related to, for example, a playback operation is performed among operations performed on the operation unit 54 of the in-vehicle audio device 50, the in-vehicle audio device 50 transmits a message to the MD recorder / player 1. On the other hand, an operation information signal corresponding to this operation is output. As a result, a predetermined reproduction operation in the MD recorder / player 1 can be controlled by an operation performed on the operation unit 54 of the in-vehicle audio device 50.

By the way, for example, the operation unit 54 is provided with controls for performing operations related to various playback functions corresponding to a CD. The MD recorder / player 1 is, like a CD, a disc medium. It is a device that can be played back, and its playback function has many common features. Therefore, an operation on the operation element provided corresponding to the CD may be an operation on the MD recorder / player 1. In this way, for example, it is not necessary to additionally provide an operator for operating the MD recorder / player 1 as an external device.

Further, one is an MD recorder / player 1
Display according to the operation status of the in-vehicle audio device 50
Is displayed on the display section 53 of the display. In the MD recorder / player 1, as described with reference to FIG.
Display information for displaying on the display panel 33a of the headphones can be output from a predetermined terminal forming the headphone terminal unit 21. Therefore, the in-vehicle audio device 50 operates such that display information output from the MD recorder / player 1 is input, and the display unit 53 displays the content corresponding to the display information.

For example, conventionally, when an external audio device such as a portable MD recorder / player is connected to a vehicle audio device, only an audio signal is output from the external audio device to the vehicle audio device. To be. For this reason, in order to operate the reproduction operation of the external audio device, it is necessary to operate the operation unit provided on the external audio device side. Such an operation is troublesome, for example, in a situation in a vehicle, and has a problem in terms of driving safety when the user is a driver. Further, since the display of the in-vehicle audio device does not cooperate with the external audio device, it is necessary to look at the display on the external audio device side in order to confirm the operation status of the external audio device at this time. This is difficult for the user to see, especially in a car situation, as described above as a conventional problem,
Driving safety may be impaired. Also, for example, depending on the configuration of the device such that the display unit is not provided in the main unit, or on conditions such as nighttime, it may be substantially impossible to see the display on the external audio device side.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the operation of the above-described system is obtained, so that the operation on the external audio device can be performed on the vehicle-mounted audio device 50 side. Can also be displayed on the in-vehicle audio device 50 side. As a result, the above-described problem is solved, and usability when the sound of the external audio device is output by the vehicle-mounted audio device is improved. In particular, in the case of the in-vehicle device as in the present embodiment, it is possible to avoid that driving safety is hindered.

In FIG. 2, the AUX input terminal 55 of the audio equipment 50 is mounted on the front panel 51.
, But is not limited to this. For example, considering the usability in actual use, in a state where the in-vehicle audio device 50 is properly attached to the front console of the car,
What is necessary is that the AUX input terminal unit 55 is disposed in a position where the user can easily connect the MD recorder / player 1 so that the AUX input terminal unit 55 is exposed. Therefore, the AUX input terminal 55 may be provided at a predetermined position on the front surface of the front panel of the in-vehicle audio device 50, for example, as indicated by a broken line in FIG. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3, for example, a cable 56 of a predetermined length is provided so as to be pulled out from the back side of the in-vehicle audio device 50, and an AUX input terminal 55 is provided at an end of the cable 56. It is good also as a simple structure.

Subsequently, a configuration for realizing the system operation of the above-described on-vehicle audio device 50 and the MD recorder / player 1 will be described. First, the MD recorder / player 1 which is an external audio device will be described. Will be described.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the portable MD recorder / player 1. MD recorder / player 1
As described above, MD90 which is a magneto-optical disk
The recording and reproducing operation of audio data is enabled for the.

The MD 90 is housed in a cartridge,
By opening and closing a shutter mechanism provided in the cartridge at the time of recording or reproduction, it is possible to irradiate light from the optical pickup (optical head 3) or to apply a magnetic field from the magnetic head. . MD9
0 is CLV (constant linear velocity: cons
The rotation is controlled to tant liner velocity).

The optical head 3 is provided at a position facing the magnetic head 6a with the MD 90 loaded therebetween. The optical head 3 includes an objective lens 3a, a two-axis mechanism 4, and a semiconductor laser (not shown) and a light receiving unit that reflects light emitted from the semiconductor laser on the surface of the magneto-optical disk and receives the reflected light. Have been. The biaxial mechanism 4 has a focusing coil for driving the objective lens 3a in the direction of coming into contact with and separating from the MD 90, and a tracking coil for driving the objective lens 3a in the radial direction of the magneto-optical disk. Further, a sled mechanism 5 for moving the entire optical head 3 largely in the radial direction of the MD 90 is further provided.

The reflected light information detected by the light receiving section in the optical head 3 is supplied to the RF amplifier 7 and is subjected to current-voltage conversion. Then, matrix calculation processing is performed, and the focus error signal FE and the tracking error signal TE are processed. Is generated and an RF signal is also generated. The RF signal, which is a reproduction signal, is generated based on the detected magnetic field vector by detecting the magnetic field vector using the magnetic Kerr effect of the reflected light when the MD 90 is irradiated with light with a lower laser power than during recording. Will be done.

The focus error signal FE and the tracking error signal TE generated by the RF amplifier 7 are subjected to phase compensation, gain adjustment, and the like in the servo circuit 9 and then to a two-axis mechanism 4 via a drive amplifier (not shown). Are applied to the focusing coil and the tracking coil. Further, a sled error signal is generated from the tracking error signal TE via an LPF (low pass filter) in the servo circuit 9, and a sled drive amplifier (not shown)
Is applied to the thread mechanism 5. Further, the RF signal generated by the RF amplifier 7 is binarized by the EFM / CIRC encoder / decoder 8 and EFM demodulated (eight).
to fourteen modulation) and CIRC
(Cross interleave read solomon coding) Error correction processing is performed, and the result is supplied to the memory controller 12.

A groove (groove) is provided in the MD 90 in advance in a meandering manner at a predetermined frequency (22.05 KHz in this example), and address data is recorded by FM modulation. The address data is extracted by the address decoder 10 through FM demodulation through a BPF (Band Pass Filter) passing only a predetermined frequency. EFM /
In the CIRC encoder / decoder 8, the binarized EFM is used.
Based on the signal or the address decoder extracted by the address decoder 10, a spindle error signal for controlling the rotation of the disk is generated and applied to the spindle motor 2 via the servo circuit 9. Further EFM / CIR
The C encoder / decoder 8 controls the pull-in operation of a PLL (Phase Locked Loop) based on the binarized EFM signal, and generates a reproduction clock for decoding.

The binary data after error correction is written into the buffer memory 13 by the memory controller 12 at a transfer rate of 1.4 Mbit / sec. When data of a predetermined amount or more is accumulated in the buffer memory 13, the memory controller 12 reads the data from the buffer memory 13 at a transfer rate of 0.3 Mbit / sec, which is sufficiently lower than the transfer rate of writing, and outputs the data as audio data. Offer. Since data is temporarily stored in the buffer memory 13 and then output as audio data, unnecessary track jumps or the like occur due to disturbances such as vibrations, so that continuous data reading from the optical head 3 can be performed. Even if the sound is interrupted, the data corresponding to the time required for the optical head 3 to be relocated to the address where the track jump has occurred is stored in the buffer memory 13 in advance. Output). In this case,
When a 4 Mbyte RAM is used as the buffer memory 13, it is possible to store about 10 seconds of audio data while the data written in the buffer memory 13 is full. The operation of the memory controller 12 is controlled by the system controller 11.

The data read from the MD 90 is stored in a predetermined compression method (for example, ATRAC (Acoustic tr
The data read from the buffer memory 13 by the memory controller 12 is converted into digital data decompressed by an audio compression encoder / decompression decoder 14, and / A converter 15.

The D / A converter 16 converts the digital data decompressed by the audio compression encoder / decompression decoder 14 into an analog audio signal AU. This analog audio signal AU is supplied to the headphone terminal 2
1 is output to the audio terminal tAU. For example, when the headphone 30 is connected to the headphone terminal unit 21, the analog audio signal AU output from the audio terminal tAU is supplied to the headphone 30 and output as sound by the ear driver unit 34. In this case, the analog audio signal AU is also branched and output to the audio signal output terminal 16.

At the time of such a reproducing operation, the system controller 11 transfers various servo commands to the servo circuit 9 in accordance with the operation of the operation unit 19 and controls the memory controller 12 to control the buffer memory 13. Or the display unit 20 controls the display unit 20 to display character information such as the elapsed playing time and the title of the program being played back, and performs spindle servo control by the EFM / CIRC encoder / decoder 8 and the like. Control decoding processing. For example, if operations such as playback, fast forward, rewind, and AMS are performed as operations on the operation unit 19, the necessary functional circuit units are controlled so that these operations can be obtained. In addition, a play mode (for example, one-track repeat, all-track repeat, shuffle, etc.) and a sound mode are set in accordance with various mode operations. If an operation for recording is further performed, control for recording the input audio signal as digital data in the MD 90 is executed.

When the MD recorder / player 1 records audio such as music in the MD 90, the audio signal is supplied to an audio signal input terminal 17. In this case, the audio signal input terminal 17 receives, for example, an analog audio signal obtained by collecting sound with a microphone (not shown) or an analog audio signal output from an analog output terminal of a reproducing apparatus such as an external CD player. Is entered. Then, the signal is converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 18 and supplied to the audio compression encoder / decompression decoder 14.

The digital audio signal input to the audio compression encoder / decompression decoder 14 is ATRAC (Aco
The digital audio signal compressed and encoded by the ustic transferred adapted coding) method is temporarily stored in the buffer memory 13 via the memory controller 12 at a transfer rate of 0.3 Mbit / sec. The memory controller 12 detects that a predetermined amount of the compressed data stored in the buffer memory 13 has been stored, and permits reading from the buffer memory 13.

The compressed data read from the buffer memory 13 is subjected to processing such as addition of an error correction code of the CIRC system and EFM modulation in the EFM / CIRC encoder / decoder 8 and supplied to the magnetic head drive circuit 6. The magnetic head drive circuit 6 drives the magnetic field of the N-pole or S-pole of the magnetic head 6a according to the supplied data. At the time of recording in which such a magnetic field is applied, the system controller 11 controls the output power of the semiconductor laser (not shown) of the optical head 3 to a higher power than at the time of reproduction to heat the surface of the magneto-optical disk to the Curie temperature. To do. As a result, the magnetic field information applied from the magnetic head 6a is fixed on the disk recording surface. That is, data is recorded as magnetic field information.

At the time of recording, the system controller 11
Transfer various servo commands to the servo circuit 9,
A command to control the buffer memory 13 is given to the memory controller 12, control is performed to cause the display unit 20 to display the recording elapsed time and the track number of the recorded program, and the EFM / CIRC encoder is used. The spindle servo control and the encoding process control in the decoder 8 are performed.

In this case, among the terminals constituting the headphone terminal section 21, the power supply terminal tVDD, the common terminal tCOM, the display information terminal tDD, and the operation information terminal tS
S is connected to the system controller 11. The system controller 11, for example, includes a VDD terminal and a terminal t.
The power supply voltage is supplied by COM. As a result, FIG.
A power source for operating the operation / display unit 33 of the headphone 30 shown in FIG. In addition, the system controller 11 normally operates / displays the display information terminal tDD.
It outputs display information DD for executing display on the display panel 33a of the display unit 33. Therefore, the system controller 11 generates and outputs the required display information DD according to the operation status at that time.
The operation information signal SS is input to the system controller 11 via the operation information terminal tSS. The operation information signal SS is originally transmitted to the headphone terminal 21.
Operation / display unit 3 of headphones 30 connected to
3 is output from the operation / display unit 33 in response to an operation performed on the headphone terminal unit 21.
When the in-vehicle audio device 50 is connected via the terminal, the command signal CMD output from the in-vehicle audio device 50 is input as the operation information signal SS via the operation information terminal tSS. The operation / display unit 33 will not be described in detail,
A functional circuit unit for generating an operation information signal SS according to an operation performed on the display unit 33 is provided. This circuit section operates by a power supply voltage supplied from the system controller 11 side.

The system controller 11 can control various operations based on the operation information signal SS input through the operation information terminal tSS, similarly to the case where the operation is performed on the operation unit 19. Have been able to.

These operation information signals SS also serve as wake-up signals. In other words, the controller 11 checks the wake-up input as a sleep state by a standby power supply (not shown) even when the power is off (during standby), and when the operation information signal SS is input or the operation unit 19 performs any operation. Is turned on assuming that there is a wake-up input.

In this manner, the headphone terminal 21
Is provided with the above-mentioned terminals together with the above-mentioned audio terminal tAU, so that the output of the analog audio signal which is the reproduction signal, the output of the display information DD, and the operation information signal SS
And a connection part for supplying power to the operation / display unit 33.

As a supplementary explanation, in the MD recorder / player 1 capable of reproducing and recording data,
In addition to the audio data, the MD 90 can record each program (one song, track) as the audio data and character information corresponding to the entire disc, that is, the character information of the track name and the disc name (name). For this purpose, as the operation unit 19, the user can input character information as name registration.

The system controller 11 has an operation unit 19
Is stored on the RAM 24,
When the character string is determined by the determination operation, the character string is registered in a state corresponding to the program selected at that time. The selected program is a program that is in a state such as reproduction, recording, or suspension at that time. If this is not the case and the program is not selected, the input character string is treated as character information corresponding to the entire disc.

The registered character information is stored in a U-TO described later.
When the data is written to the MD 90 as the data of the C sector 1, the data is determined on the MD 90. Updating of the U-TOC data is performed at a predetermined timing after a recording operation or a character input operation.

However, when performing the recording / reproducing operation on the MD 90, the management information recorded on the MD 90, that is, P-TOC (pre-mastered TOC), U-TOC
(User TOC) must be read. The system controller 11 determines the address of the area to be recorded on the MD 90 and the address of the area to be reproduced on the MD 90 according to the management information. This management information is held in the buffer memory 13. Therefore, the buffer memory 1
Reference numeral 3 indicates that a buffer area (data area) for recording data / reproduction data and an area (TOC area) for holding these management information are divided and set, as described later. Then, when the MD 90 is loaded, the system controller 11 reads out the management information by executing a reproduction operation on the innermost peripheral side of the disc on which the management information is recorded, and stores the read management information in the buffer memory 13. Thereafter, it can be referred to at the time of recording / reproducing / editing operation for the MD 90.

The U-TOC is rewritten in accordance with data recording and various editing processes, but the system controller 11 performs the U-TOC every time a recording / editing operation is performed.
C update processing is performed by the U-TO stored in the buffer memory 13.
This is performed on the C information, and the U-TOC area of the MD 90 is also rewritten at a predetermined timing in accordance with the rewriting operation.

FIG. 2 shows a power supply unit 22.
The power supply unit 22 supplies a DC voltage of a predetermined level obtained from, for example, a battery (not shown) to each functional circuit unit as an operation power supply. In this case, the power supply unit 22 operates, for example, in response to turning on / off of the main power supply, and the power supply unit 22 in the system controller 11 operates even when the main power supply unit is turned off and stopped. Is constituted by a standby power supply unit for supplying power so that the power supply can be performed. On / off of the main power supply unit can be controlled by the system controller 11.

The portable MD recorder / player 1
Is not limited to the configuration described above. For example, although a configuration capable of recording and reproduction is shown here, a reproduction-only type MD recorder / player is widely known as a portable MD recorder / player.
It may be a player. That is, the audio signal input terminal 17 and the A / D converter 1 are different from the configuration shown in FIG.
8, and the components necessary for recording, such as the magnetic head drive circuit 6 and the magnetic head 6a, are deleted,
The other functional circuit units also have a configuration corresponding to reproduction only. Further, in order to promote further reduction in size and weight, the operation and display are performed in the operation / display unit 33 of the headphones 30, and the operation unit 19 provided on the main body side,
Omitting the display unit 20 may be considered. Further, it is also conceivable that the audio signal output terminal 16 as a line output terminal is omitted, and the audio signal is output only from the headphone terminal unit 21.

Next, FIG. 5 shows an example of the internal configuration of the vehicle-mounted audio device 50 of the present embodiment. A system controller 60 provided in the vehicle-mounted audio device 50 shown in FIG. 1 is configured to include, for example, a microcomputer, and mainly executes control of each internal functional circuit unit. When an operation is performed on the operation unit 54, various necessary control processes are executed so that an operation corresponding to the operation is obtained. In this case, the system controller 60 is shown as having a ROM 60a and a RAM 60b. The ROM 60a stores a program for operating the system controller 60, as well as information necessary for various control processes. Also,
Various information set by the user through a predetermined operation can also be stored. For example, data for preset tuning in the tuner unit and the like are stored. RAM 60b
Is used as a work area when the system controller 60 executes arithmetic processing. Note that the control processing operation of the system controller 60 related to the features of the present embodiment will be appropriately described in the following description.

As described above, the in-vehicle audio device 50 of the present embodiment can output tuner audio and CD audio as the output source of the audio source. And the tuner 6 as shown in the figure.
1, a CD player unit 62 is provided.

The tuner section 61 can receive and select a broadcast of each band of, for example, AM and FM. In this tuner section 61. For example, a broadcast wave received by an antenna (not shown) is input, and a broadcast station having a required frequency is selected. Then, necessary processing is performed on the signal of the selected broadcasting station, and in this case, a tuner sound is output by an analog audio signal. This tuner audio is output to the tuner audio input terminal T · TNin of the source selector 63.

The CD player section 62 is provided with the CD player shown in FIG.
This is a recording portion for reproducing the CD inserted from the insertion slot 52. Here, the digital audio data reproduced from the CD is converted into an analog audio signal. CD audio input terminal T of source selector 63
-Input is made for CDin.

The source selector 63 also has an AUX audio input terminal T.AUXin, and an AU obtained through a terminal t5 of an AUX input terminal unit 55 described later.
An analog audio signal AU as X voice is input. That is, tuner audio, CD audio, and AUX audio are input to the source selector 63 in this case.

The system controller 60 selects one of the audio signals input to the source selector 63 according to, for example, a source selection operation performed on the operation unit 54, / Amplifier part 6
4 is output. The electronic volume / amplifier unit 64 varies the level of the audio signal input by the electronic volume, amplifies the level by an amplifier, and outputs the amplified signal to, for example, a speaker output terminal Tout. Speaker output terminal T
For example, a vehicle-mounted speaker (not shown) is connected to out, and the sound of the currently selected audio source is output from this speaker. Note that the electronic volume is varied by the system controller 60 controlling the electronic volume in response to a volume adjustment operation performed on the operation unit 54, for example.

As described above, the AUX input terminal section 55 has the same structure as the headphone terminal section 21 on the MD recorder / player 1 side.
For example, as shown, five terminals t1 to t5 are provided. In this figure, the headphone terminal 21 on the MD recorder / player 1 side is also shown for easy understanding of the description.
The state where the AUX input terminal section 55 is connected to the adapter cable 40 is shown.

An analog audio signal AU output via the terminal tAU of the headphone terminal section 21 of the MD recorder / player 1, that is, from the MD, is connected to a terminal t 1 of the AUX input terminal section 55 of the vehicle-mounted audio device 50. The reproduced audio signal is input. The analog audio signal AU is input to an AUX audio input terminal T.AUXin of the source selector 63. In other words, the analog audio signal AU, which is the reproduction sound from the MD,
It is treated as UX audio.

The display information output via the terminal tDD of the headphone terminal 21 of the MD recorder / player 1 is input to the terminal t2 of the AUX input terminal 55. This display information is input to the system controller 60. The control process of the system controller 60 according to the input of the display information DD will be described later.

The terminal t1 of the AUX input terminal 55 is provided corresponding to the operation information signal SS. As described above, the system controller 60 can treat the predetermined operation performed on the operation unit 54 as an operation on the MD recorder / player 1 connected as an AUX audio source. In other words, the MD recorder / player 1 can be controlled according to the operation performed on the operation unit 54 by the configuration described below.

The operation section 54 outputs an operation signal SC corresponding to the operation performed thereto to the system controller 60. In a state where the AUX sound is selected in the source selector 63, the system controller 60 outputs the operation signal SC
If the recorder / player 1 is of a type to be controlled, a command CMD for enabling control of the MD recorder / player 1 according to the content of the operation signal SC is generated. That is, for example, the command CMD
May be a format according to the operation information signal SS output from the operation / display unit 33 of the headphones 30. Then, the command CMD is output via the terminal t1.

The command CMD output as described above
Is set to M as an operation information signal SS via a terminal tSS of the headphone terminal unit 21 of the MD recorder / player 1.
The data is input to the system controller 11 of the D recorder / player 1. The system controller 11 of the MD recorder / player 1 performs necessary control processing as described above based on the operation information signal SS input in this manner. As a result, the MD recorder / player 1 operates according to the operation performed on the operation unit 54 of the vehicle-mounted audio device 50. That is, it is possible to control the MD recorder / player 1 by operating the in-vehicle audio device 50.

In this case, since there is no need to supply the power supply voltage from the MD recorder / player 1 to the audio equipment 50 mounted on the vehicle, the MD recorder / player 1 is not required.
TDD, terminal tC on the side (headphone terminal 21)
The in-vehicle audio equipment 5 (AUX
The terminals t3 and t4 of the input terminal section 55) are dummy.

The system controller 60 includes a display unit 53
Is also performed. In the present embodiment, the display unit 53 displays the AUX audio source MD
It is possible to display contents corresponding to the operation status of the recorder / player 1. That is, as described above, the display information DD for controlling the display on the display panel 33a of the headphone 30 is originally transmitted to the system controller 60 of the in-vehicle audio device 50.
It is input from the D recorder / player 1 side. Then, in a state where the AUX sound is selected by the source selector 63, the system controller 60 controls the display unit 53 according to the information content of the input display information DD. Thereby, the content displayed on the display unit 53 corresponds to the information content of the input display information DD. That is, the content to be displayed on the display panel 33a of the headphone 30 is displayed on the display unit 53 of the in-vehicle audio device 50.

As a matter of course, when the tuner sound or the CD sound is selected by the source selector 63, a display is performed according to the operation state of the tuner section 61 and the CD player section 62.

The power supply section 66 is capable of generating a DC power supply voltage by inputting power supplied from, for example, a vehicle-mounted battery (not shown). Then, a DC power supply voltage of a required level is supplied to each functional circuit unit. The power supply unit 66 also includes a main power supply unit and a standby power supply unit that supplies power so that the system controller 60 can operate when the main power supply unit is turned off. On / off of the main power supply unit can be controlled by the system controller 60.

Subsequently, a system controller 60 for realizing the above-described user interface function of the MD recorder / player 1 in the audio equipment 50 mounted on the vehicle.
6 is shown in FIG.

In the process shown in this figure, first, in step S101, it is determined whether or not an operation for turning on the main power is being performed as an operation on the operation unit 54. Here, if it is determined that the operation for turning on the main power has not been performed, this routine is terminated as it is. If it is determined that the operation for turning on the main power has been performed, the process proceeds to step S102. It is made to advance to.

In the system controller 60, according to an audio source selection operation performed by the user on the operation unit 54, which audio source is to be selected and output by the source selector 63 is set. However, in step S102, it is determined whether or not the currently selected audio source is AUX audio.

For example, if a negative result is obtained in step S102 assuming that the tuner sound or the CD sound is selected, the process proceeds to step S116. In this step S116, A currently selected as the audio source
Control is performed so that audio sources other than UX audio are output as audio. In this case, the audio source actually selected is either the tuner audio or the CD audio, but the system controller 60 inputs an audio signal corresponding to the selected audio source to the source selector 63. So that the tuner 61 or C
The operation of the D player unit 62 is controlled. The source selector 63 also performs control so that the audio signal of the selected audio source is output to the speaker output terminal Tout. Then, the process returns to step S101.

On the other hand, if a positive result is obtained in step S102 because the AUX sound is currently selected, the process proceeds to step S103. In step S103, a command CMD for turning on the power is output to a device (shown as an AUX device in the figure) connected as an AUX audio source, that is, the MD recorder / player 1. This command CMD is input to the MD recorder / player 1 as an operation information signal SS. As described above, the operation information signal SS also functions as a wake-up signal for the MD recorder / player 1. Therefore, the command CMD for turning on the power is an MD recorder /
Any signal can be used as long as the signal can be accepted by the player 1 as the operation information signal SS, and an appropriate command other than the command to instruct power-on may be used.

When the command CMD for turning on the power is output as described above, if the MD recorder / player 1 is connected to the on-vehicle audio device 50,
For example, the main power is turned on in response to the operation information signal SS as the command CMD. Then, in response to the power-on and startup, the system controller 11 of the MD recorder / player 1 outputs display information DD for displaying the display panel 33a through the terminal tDD of the headphone terminal unit 21. I do. Conversely, MD
If the recorder / player 1 is not connected to the vehicle-mounted audio device 50, no display information is output at this time. Therefore, by monitoring the presence or absence of output of the display information DD, the in-vehicle audio device 50 can recognize the MD recorder / player 1. That is, the MD recorder / player 1 which is a device as an AUX audio source is connected to the AUX input terminal unit 5.
5 can be determined.

Therefore, in step S104, it is determined whether or not the MD recorder / player 1, which is a device as an AUX audio source, has been recognized based on, for example, whether or not the display information DD has been output as described above. And
MD recorder / player 1 cannot be recognized, ie MD
When the determination result that the recorder / player 1 is not connected is obtained, the process proceeds to step S117, and the display unit 53 indicates that the MD recorder / player 1 as the AUX audio source is not connected. The control is executed so that the contents are displayed. The display form at this time is not particularly limited. For example, as shown in the figure, it is conceivable that the display form is represented by characters such as “NO AUX”. On the other hand, if the recognition is obtained because the MD recorder / player 1 is connected, the process proceeds to step S105.

The recognition processing for the AUX device (MD recorder / player 1) in step S104 may be performed by a method other than the above-described determination based on whether or not the display information DD is output. For example, a circuit capable of voltage detection is provided for the terminals t2 and t3 of the AUX input terminal unit 55 described as being open in the above description, and determination is made based on the detection result of this voltage detection circuit. Such a configuration is also conceivable.
That is, when the main power supply of the MD recorder / player 1 is turned on, the system controller 11 sends the power supply terminal tVDD of the headphone terminal section 21 and the common terminal tCO
The supply of the power supply voltage via M starts. Therefore, the system controller 60 of the in-vehicle audio device 50 can recognize the AUX device by monitoring whether or not a voltage is detected by the voltage detection circuit.

In step S105, control is performed on the source selector 63 so that AUX audio is selected as the audio source, and the flow advances to step S106.

In step S106, a reproduction command is output to the MD recorder / player 1 as a command CMD. The system controller 11 of the MD recorder / player 1 receives the playback command output as described above as the operation information signal SS for playback, and starts playback of the MD. That is, in the present embodiment, considering that the AUX sound is selected as the source, control is performed so that the reproduction is automatically started in consideration of the in-vehicle use. And
The analog audio signal AU obtained by reproducing the MD is input to the in-vehicle audio device 50 as AUX audio, and is finally output as audio from an in-vehicle speaker.

When the reproduction is started as described above, M
The system controller 11 of the D recorder / player 1 generates and outputs display information DD having contents corresponding to the reproduction status. In the next step S107,
As described above, the display information DD output from the MD recorder / player 1 (AUX device) is input and acquired.
Then, in the next step S108, display control for the display unit 53 is executed based on the acquired display information DD. As a result, for example, the display unit 53 displays the content according to the disc playback status of the MD recorder / player 1. For example, information indicating a playback track such as a track number and a track name,
The playback progress time, the currently set play mode, and the like are displayed.

In the next step S109, it is determined whether or not an operation has been performed on the operation unit 54. Here, as long as no operation is performed on the operation unit 54, the process returns to step S107. That is, while the display on the display unit 53 is changed according to the current reproduction state, the operation unit 54 waits for an operation to be performed. If any operation is performed on the operation unit 54, step S is performed in accordance with the type of the operation.
The process is shifted to any one of 110, S112, and S114.

For example, the operations determined in step S109 include, for example, AMS (track cueing),
If the operation is a kind of operation related to the reproduction system such as the specification of the one-track repeat or all-track repeat mode or the specification of the shuffle reproduction mode, the operation signal is recognized in step S110, and in the next step S111, A command CMD corresponding to the recognized operation is output. In response to the input of the operation information signal SS as the command CMD, the system controller 11 of the MD recorder / player 1 executes control processing so as to obtain required reproduction-related operations such as AMS control and change of the play mode. . Then, the process returns to step S107.

If the operation determined in step S109 is an operation for instructing display switching, the operation signal is recognized in step S112, and then the process proceeds to step S113. Then, in step S113, a command CMD for switching the display is output. Command CM for this display change
The system controller 11 of the MD recorder / player 1 that has input D as the operation information signal SS outputs display information DD corresponding to the display content to be changed.
Then, the display information DD is input to the system controller 60 of the in-vehicle audio device 50. Then, after the process of step S113 is completed, the process returns to step S107. After the process of step S113, the process of step S107 → S108 is executed again, so that the display unit 53 is changed. The display is performed based on the display information DD corresponding to the display content. That is, the display contents are changed. Note that the display switching here corresponds to, for example, display switching of the reproduction time. For example, the playback time can be switched between a display indicating the progress time and a display indicating the remaining time, and the display of the playback time in track units can be replaced with the display of the playback time in units of the entire disc. Switching.

If the operation determined in step S109 is, for example, an operation for switching the source and turning off the power to the on-vehicle audio device 50, the operation is performed in a manner other than the above. Recognition of the signal is performed in step S114. Also, here
The in-vehicle audio device 5 according to the recognized operation signal
The required control processing is executed for the inside. That is, if the source switching operation is performed, the source selector 63 is controlled so that the audio source specified by the operation is selected. If the control for powering off is executed, the on-vehicle audio device 5
The control for turning off the main power supply 0 is executed. However, the control of turning off the main power supply may be actually performed after executing the processing of step S115 described below, for example. When the process of step S115 is completed, the process returns to step S101 and subsequent steps.

The present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, but may be conceived. For example, in the above embodiment, the external device (AUX device) connected to the in-vehicle audio device 50 is a portable audio device compatible with the MD. For example, a tape cassette, a CD, and a flash memory For example, the present invention may be applied to a portable audio device corresponding to a medium having a memory element such as a portable audio device. Further, the present invention is not particularly limited to portable devices. For example, even if it is a stationary device, any device that has a configuration that outputs user interface information such as display information and operation information signals to the outside of the main body is adopted. Connection is possible. Also,
The audio device of the present invention is not limited to the in-vehicle audio device 50 shown in the above embodiment,
The configuration can be changed as appropriate. In addition, the effects of the audio device of the present invention are particularly effective if the audio device is mounted on a vehicle, but need not be limited to the vehicle device.

[0092]

As described above, the present invention relates to a case in which an external audio device is connected to an audio device and a system for outputting audio output from the external audio device on the audio device side is constructed. By connecting to the audio device through the terminal through which the user interface information of the external audio device is input / output, the user interface function of the external audio device is realized on the audio device. Is done. According to this configuration, the user interface function of the system is centralized on the audio device side. That is, even when the interface function of the external audio device is used, it can be performed on the main audio device side. Thereby, the usability of the system is improved.

According to the present invention, an operation information signal (user interface information) corresponding to an operation performed on an operation unit provided in the audio device is output to the external audio device. . The external audio device operates according to the operation information signal. With such a configuration, an operation on the external audio device can be performed on the audio device side as a user interface function, and the usability on the operation side is improved.

As the user interface function, display information output from the external audio device in accordance with the operation state is input to the audio device, and the user is provided in the audio device based on the input display information. Display is performed on the display unit. In this case, the display function is integrated on the audio device side as the user interface function. That is, the user only needs to look at the display unit of the audio device to grasp the operation status of the system. This also improves the usability and convenience of the system.

A terminal group consisting of an audio signal input terminal on the audio device side and a user interface input / output terminal for inputting / outputting user interface information;
The terminal group consisting of the audio output terminal on the external audio device side and the user interface input / output terminal is connected by one connector each, and this connector is connected by a cable. That is, according to the present invention, audio signals and user interface information are input and output between the audio device and the external audio device by a single connector cable. Thus, the connection operation can be performed more easily than in a case where, for example, the audio signal line and the user interface information are connected by separate cables.

The audio output terminal of the external audio device and the user interface input / output terminal include:
It is for connecting headphones (audio output means with a user interface function) provided with an operation unit and a display unit. In other words, it originally functions as a headphone terminal. And on the audio device side,
The connection is made using the headphone terminal section. Since the head font and the headphone terminal of the external audio device are usually connected by one cable, the audio device and the external audio device are connected by one cable also in this case. Can be easily adopted. An external audio device provided with such a headphone terminal is generally of a portable type, so that the effect is particularly exhibited when a portable audio device is used as the external audio device.

When the audio device of the present invention adopts the configuration of a vehicle-mounted device, in addition to the above-described effects, for example, it is possible to ensure driving safety.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a portable MD recorder / player which is an external audio device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a system configuration including an on-vehicle audio device and an external audio device according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 3 shows an AUX in the audio device of the present embodiment.
It is a perspective view which shows the example of a form of attachment of an input terminal part.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of an internal configuration as a portable MD recorder / player.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of an internal configuration of the on-vehicle audio device of the present embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing operation for realizing a user interface function in the in-vehicle audio device according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 MD recorder / player, 11 system controller, 21 headphone terminal section, 22 power supply section, 3
0 headphone, 31 cable, 32 connector section, 33 operation / display section, 33a display panel, 34
Ear driver section, 40 adapter cable, 41 cable, 42 connector section, 50 in-vehicle audio equipment, 53 display section, 54 operation section, 55 AUX input terminal section, 60 system controller, 61 tuner section,
62 player section, 63 source selector, 64 electronic volume / amplifier section, 66 power supply section, 90 MD, 9
1 disk cartridge, t1 to t5 terminals, tAU
Audio terminal, tCOM common terminal, tDD display information terminal, tSS operation information terminal, tVDD power supply terminal

Claims (6)

[Claims] An audio signal input terminal for inputting an audio signal output from an external audio device; output means capable of outputting an audio signal input from the audio signal input terminal; A user interface input / output terminal for inputting or outputting predetermined user interface information between audio devices; and outputting predetermined user interface information via the user interface input / output terminal, or the user interface input / output Required control processing based on predetermined user interface information input via the terminal,
An audio device, comprising: control means capable of executing the following. 2. The control unit outputs control information for controlling the external audio device, which is generated based on an operation performed on an operation unit included in the audio device, as the user interface information. The audio device according to claim 1, wherein the audio device is configured to be capable of being configured. 3. The display unit provided in the audio device based on display information as the interface information output from the external audio device, which is input through the user interface input unit, and is provided in the display unit provided in the audio device. 2. The audio device according to claim 1, wherein control for performing the display is performed. 4. In the external audio device, a terminal group including a terminal connected to the audio signal input terminal and a terminal connected to the user interface input / output terminal is in a form connectable to one connector. A terminal group consisting of the audio signal input terminal and the user interface input / output terminal of the audio device is connected to a connector to which the terminal group of the external audio device is connected via a cable. 2. The audio device according to claim 1, wherein the audio device is arranged so as to be connectable to two connectors. 5. In the external audio device, a terminal group consisting of a terminal connected to the audio signal input terminal and a terminal connected to the user interface input / output terminal comprises an audio output from the external audio device. 2. A signal output means for outputting a signal as sound and being connected to a connector of a sound output means with a user interface function having a predetermined user interface function corresponding to input and output of predetermined user interface information. Audio equipment according to. 6. The audio device according to claim 1, wherein the audio device is a vehicle-mounted device.