JP2005293837A - Drive device, program for drive device, storage medium, and drive method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize efficient use of a drive device and to prevent annulment of data caused by accidental trouble. <P>SOLUTION: The drive device connected to a data transfer device B transferring data for recording and writing optically information in an optical recording medium according to data transferred from the data transfer device, is provided with an optical pickup 3 irradiating the optical recording medium 1 with a laser beam, a receiving means receiving data for recording transferred from the data transfer device B with the prescribed unit, a caching means caching received data in a cache memory, a signal generating means generating a write-in start indication signal so that write-in operation of information is executed between reception of a previous data block and reception of succeeding data block out of data blocks constituting data transferred from the data transfer device B, and a write-in means drive-controlling the optical pickup 3 according to data cached in the cache memory in accordance with the generated write-in start signal and writing optically information in the optical recording medium 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention is applied to an optical recording medium such as an optical disk (CD-ROM / CD-R / CD-RW / DVD-ROM / R / RW / RAM / DVD + RW / + R / WORM), magneto-optical disk (MO / MD), etc. The present invention relates to a technique for optically writing information, and in particular, a data transfer device, a drive device, an optical information recording device, a program for a data transfer device, a program for a drive device, a storage medium for storing a program for a data transfer device, and a drive device The present invention relates to a storage medium for storing a computer program, a data transfer method, and a drive method.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a data transfer device (for example, a personal computer or a recorder) that transfers data for recording, and a drive device (such as an optical disk) that optically writes information to an optical recording medium (for example, an optical disk) according to the data transferred from the data transfer device. For example, a device having a system configuration including an optical disk drive device) has been put into practical use. Some of these devices employ a configuration in which a data transfer device and a drive device are integrated, and a typical example is a DVD recording device. The recording device for DVD is composed of a DVD drive device and a DVD recorder for transferring recording data to the DVD drive device as its internal configuration.

  In a device that employs such a system configuration, data for recording, for example, a video signal, is converted into data that can be processed by the drive device by a data transfer device. Then, the data transfer device transfers data to the drive device. The drive device caches the received data in the cache memory, and outputs the cached data to the cache memory at the timing when the cache memory is almost full or at the timing when the data transfer device receives an instruction. The corresponding writing operation is executed on the optical disk or the like. At this time, the command from the data transfer device is transferred to the drive device at the timing when the transfer data ends. Such a data output operation in the drive device based on a command from the data transfer device is called a synchronized cache.

On the other hand, when the optical disc includes a discontinuous area such as a zone boundary, data up to immediately before the discontinuous area is written by one recording operation, and the subsequent data is left on the cache memory. An information recording method has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In the recording method described in Patent Document 1, when there is an instruction to access a subsequent continuous area, data remaining on the cache memory and data received later are recorded together.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-106143

  By the way, in the drive device, the information write processing based on the data stored in the cache memory depends on the processing in the drive device. In other words, the timing at which the data stored in the cache memory is output is a matter determined by the drive device, and there is no room for the data transfer device to be involved. For this reason, the data transfer processing by the data transfer device and the data output processing from the cache memory by the drive device do not necessarily have a close relationship.

  However, at present, the data transfer device and the drive device have a function called a buffer underrun prevention function. This function is a buffer underrun error, that is, an error that occurs because data transmission from the data transfer device to the drive device is not in time when data is written. By such a buffer underrun prevention function, writing is normally performed no matter what timing data is transferred.

  However, it cannot be determined on the side of the data transfer device that transferred the data whether or not the data transferred to the drive device has actually started to be written. For this reason, when there is no continuity in the data transfer interval from the data transfer device, the data transferred to the drive device is not written while being held in the drive, and the efficiency is significantly reduced. In addition, if an unexpected accident such as a power interruption occurs during that time, a fatal problem that the transferred data is discarded occurs.

  An object of the present invention is to realize efficient use of a drive device.

  Another object of the present invention is to prevent data destruction due to an accident.

  The invention according to claim 1 is a drive device connected to a data transfer device for transferring data for recording, and optically writes information on the optical recording medium according to the data transferred from the data transfer device. An optical pickup that irradiates a laser beam to the laser, a receiving unit that receives recording data transferred in predetermined units from the data transfer device, a caching unit that caches the received data in a cache memory, and Signal appearance means for causing a write start instruction signal to appear so that an information write operation is executed between reception and subsequent data reception, and data cached in the cache memory in accordance with the appeared write start signal The optical pickup is driven and controlled to write information on the optical recording medium. It includes a viewing means. As a result, even during the period between the reception of the data that normally causes the drive device to go to sleep and the reception of the subsequent data, the drive device performs an information write operation, and the drive device can be used efficiently. Realize. In addition, since the drive device operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent data from being stored in the cache memory as much as possible. As a result, even if an unexpected accident such as power failure occurs, transfer is possible. The fatal problem that the discarded data is discarded is less likely to occur.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the drive device according to the first aspect, the signal appearance means receives a write start instruction signal from the data transfer device. Thereby, the writing of data is started in the drive device in response to the received write start instruction signal, and even between the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data that normally causes the drive device to go to sleep, An information writing operation is executed in the drive device.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the drive device according to the first or second aspect, the signal appearance means generates a write start signal when the amount of data cached in the cache memory exceeds a specified amount. To do. As a result, an information write operation is executed in the drive device in response to a write start signal generated when the amount of data cached in the cache memory exceeds a specified amount, and the drive device is normally put to sleep. Even between the reception of the previous data and the reception of the subsequent data, the information writing operation is executed in the drive device. The generation of the write start signal according to claim 7 which refers to claim 5 is effective when data transfer is performed from the data transfer apparatus to the drive apparatus at a fixed bit rate (CBR (Constant Bit Rate)). is there. When data is transferred at a fixed bit rate, the write start signal generation timing according to the amount of data cached in the cache memory is constant even if the specified amount is constant. This is because the information writing operation in the drive device corresponding to the time is also made uniform in time. On the other hand, the generation of the write start signal in claim 7 quoting claim 6 is performed when data transfer is executed from the data transfer device to the drive device at a variable bit rate (VBR (Variable Bit Rate)). Is also effective. When data is transferred at a variable bit rate, if the specified amount is constant, the generation timing of the write start signal corresponding to the amount of data cached in the cache memory is not constant. However, in this case, according to the sixth aspect of the invention, data writing is started in the drive device in response to the received write start instruction signal. Even between reception and reception of subsequent data, the information writing operation can be performed by the drive device. In other words, the processing according to the invention of claim 7 in which the signal appearance means generates a write start signal when the amount of data cached in the cache memory exceeds a prescribed amount, according to the received write start instruction signal. When the data transfer is executed from the data transfer device to the drive device at a variable bit rate by complementing the processing of the invention according to claim 6 to start the data write in the drive device, the write start signal is It can be generated at the optimum timing.

  According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided the drive device according to the first aspect, further comprising notification means for notifying the data transfer device of information relating to the amount of data cached in the cache memory. As a result, a better timing setting is expected as the timing at which the timing setting means of the data transfer device causes the write start instruction signal to appear in the drive device.

  The machine-readable program for a drive device according to claim 5 is connected to a data transfer device for transferring recording data, and optically records information on an optical recording medium according to the data transferred from the data transfer device. A receiving function for receiving recording data transferred to the computer in a predetermined unit from the data transfer device; a caching function for caching the received data in a cache memory; A signal appearance function for causing a write start instruction signal to appear so that an information write operation is performed between reception of previous data and subsequent data, and caching in the cache memory in response to the write start signal that has appeared Irradiating the optical recording medium with laser light according to the recorded data A write function of the optical pickup drive controller to write information optically on the optical recording medium, thereby to execute. As a result, even during the period between the reception of the data that normally causes the drive device to go to sleep and the reception of the subsequent data, the drive device performs an information write operation, and the drive device can be used efficiently. Realize. In addition, since the drive device operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent data from being stored in the cache memory as much as possible. As a result, even if an unexpected accident such as power failure occurs, transfer is possible. The fatal problem that the discarded data is discarded is less likely to occur.

  The invention of the storage medium according to claim 6 stores the program for the drive device according to claim 5. Therefore, it has the same effect as the drive device program according to the fifth aspect.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a drive method that is executed in a drive device that is connected to a data transfer device that transfers recording data and optically writes information to an optical recording medium in accordance with the data transferred from the data transfer device. A receiving step for receiving recording data transferred from the data transfer device in a predetermined unit, a caching step for caching the received data in a cache memory, reception of previous data, and reception of subsequent data; A signal appearance step for causing a write start instruction signal to appear so that an information write operation is performed between the two and a laser beam on the optical recording medium according to data cached in the cache memory in accordance with the appeared write start signal Optically writing information on the optical recording medium by driving and controlling the optical pickup It includes non-write step. As a result, even during the period between the reception of the data that normally causes the drive device to go to sleep and the reception of the subsequent data, the drive device performs an information write operation, and the drive device can be used efficiently. Realize. In addition, since the drive device operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent data from being stored in the cache memory as much as possible. As a result, even if an unexpected accident such as power failure occurs, transfer is possible. The fatal problem that the discarded data is discarded is less likely to occur.

  According to the present invention, an object of the present invention is to realize efficient use of a drive device or to prevent data destruction due to an accident or the like.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  This embodiment is an example applied to an apparatus capable of writing and reproducing information on, for example, a DVD + RW. Therefore, in the apparatus of the present embodiment, an optical disk drive A as a drive apparatus and a DVD recorder B as a data transfer apparatus are configured integrally or separately. Hereinafter, the basic configuration of the optical disc drive A and the DVD recorder B will be described, and subsequently the processing contents will be referred to.

[Optical disk drive A]
First, an optical disk drive A that is an optical recording apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of an optical disk drive.

  The optical disc drive A optically records information on the optical disc 1 that is an optical recording medium. In FIG. 1, 1 is an optical disk, 2 is a spindle motor, 3 is an optical pickup, 4 is a motor driver, 5 is a read amplifier, 6 is a servo means, 7 is a DVD decoder, 8 is an ADIP decoder, 9 is a laser controller, DVD encoder, 11 DVD-ROM encoder, 12 buffer RAM, 13 buffer manager, 14 DVD-ROM decoder, 15 API / SCSI interface, 16 D / A converter, 17 ROM, 18 CPU, 19 Indicates RAM, LB indicates laser light, and Audio indicates an audio output signal.

  In FIG. 1, arrows indicate the direction in which data mainly flows, and for simplification, the CPU 18 that controls each block in FIG. Is omitted.

  A CPU 18, a ROM 17, and a RAM 19 that are shown without connection to each block are microcomputers that control each block. The ROM 17 constituting such a microcomputer stores data that must be stored for a long period of time, such as a control program written in a code readable by the CPU 18 and control parameters for various media. When the optical disk drive A is turned on, the control program is loaded into a main memory (not shown), and the CPU 18 controls the operation of each unit according to the program and temporarily stores data necessary for the control. Save in the RAM 19. As another embodiment, if a battery backup or nonvolatile RAM 19 is used, the control program may be stored in the RAM 19.

  In such an optical disk drive A, the optical disk 1 is rotationally driven by a spindle motor 2. The spindle motor 2 is controlled by the motor driver 4 and the servo means 6 so that the linear velocity or the angular velocity is constant. This linear velocity or angular velocity can be changed stepwise.

  The optical pickup 3 includes a semiconductor laser, an optical system, a focus actuator, a track actuator, a light receiving element, and a position sensor (not shown), and irradiates the optical disc 1 with a laser beam LB. The optical pickup 3 can be moved in the sledge direction by a seek motor. These focus actuator, track actuator, and seek motor are positioned at a target location on the optical disc 1 by the motor driver 4 and the servo means 6 based on signals obtained from the light receiving element and the position sensor. To be controlled.

  At the time of reading, the reproduction signal obtained by the optical pickup 3 is amplified and binarized by the read amplifier 5 and then input to the DVD decoder 7. The input binarized data is demodulated 8/16 in the DVD decoder 7. Note that the recording data is modulated in units of 8 bits and modulated (8/16 modulation). In this modulation, 8 bits are converted to 16 bits. In this case, the combined bits are attached so that the number of previous “1” s and “0” s are equal on average. This is called “DC component suppression”, and the slice level fluctuation of the DC-cut reproduction signal is suppressed.

  The demodulated data is subjected to deinterleaving and error correction processing. Thereafter, this data is input to the DVD-ROM decoder 14, and further error correction processing is performed in order to increase the reliability of the data. The data that has been subjected to the error correction processing twice as described above is temporarily stored in the cache memory 12 by the buffer manager 13 and is assembled as sector data, and then the DVD recorder B at once through the ATAPI / SCSI interface 15. Transferred. In the case of music data, the data output from the DVD decoder 7 is input to the D / A converter 16 and extracted as an analog audio output signal Audio.

  At the time of writing, the data sent from the DVD recorder B via the ATAPI / SCSI interface 15 is temporarily stored in the cache memory 12 by the buffer manager 13. Thereafter, the write operation is started. In this case, it is necessary to position the laser spot at the write start point before that. In DVD + RW / + R, this point is calculated | required by the wobble signal previously carved on the optical disk 1 by the meandering of the track. The writing start point is obtained by a land pre-pit instead of a wobble signal in DVD-RW / -R, and by a pre-pit in DVD-RAM / RAM / WO.

  The wobble signal in the DVD + RW / + R disc includes address information called ADIP (ADless In Pre-groove), and this information is extracted by the ADIP decoder 8. The synchronization signal generated by the ADIP decoder 8 is input to the DVD encoder 10 so that data can be written at an accurate position on the optical disc 1. For the data in the cache memory 12, an error correction code is added or interleaved in the DVD-ROM encoder 11 or the DVD encoder 10, and then the laser controller 9 drives the optical pickup 3 based on such data. The information is recorded on the optical disc 1 under control.

  As another embodiment, a configuration may be used in which address information is obtained from land prepits or prepits. The ATAPI / SCSI interface 15 is exemplified as an example of the external interface, but is not limited thereto, and USB, IEEE 1394, etc. may be adopted.

[DVD recorder B]
Next, a DVD recorder B that is a data transfer apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the DVD recorder B. As shown in FIG. The DVD recorder B includes a controller 54 having a microcomputer configuration including a CPU 51, a ROM 52, and a RAM 53. The ROM 52 constituting such a microcomputer stores data that must be stored for a long time, such as a control program written in a code decodable by the CPU 51. When the power of the DVD recorder B is turned on, the control program is loaded into a main memory (not shown), and the CPU 51 controls the operation of each unit according to the control program and temporarily stores data necessary for control in the RAM 53. . As another embodiment, if a battery backup or nonvolatile RAM 53 is used, the control program may be stored in the RAM 53.

  The DVD recorder B has a video signal generator 55 that generates a video signal such as MPEG, for example, and a data conversion unit 56 that converts the video signal into data that can be processed by the optical disc drive A, with such a controller 54 at the center. And an external interface control system 57. These units are controlled by the controller 54. Further, the video signal generator 55, the data converter 56, and the external interface control system 57 are not different from the same components provided in a general DVD recorder, and thus description thereof is omitted. For the external interface control system 57, ATAPI, SCSI, USB, IEEE 1394, etc. can be adopted.

  Here, the data converter 56 executes a data conversion process for converting the recording data into data that can be processed by the optical disc drive A in a predetermined unit. Further, the external interface control system 57 executes a data transfer process for transferring the converted data to the optical disc drive A. The controller 54 causes the data conversion unit 56 and the external interface control system 57 to repeat such data conversion processing and data transfer processing multiple times. Here, the function of the data transfer conversion means (process, function) is executed.

  Thus, the DVD recorder B has a function of converting the video signal into data writable to the optical disc drive A, and can control the amount of data to be converted.

[Processing contents in optical disc drive A and DVD recorder B]
In the present embodiment, data is transferred from the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A. In this case, the speed of data transfer is generally called a bit rate. The higher the bit rate, the larger the amount of data, and the lower the bit rate, the smaller the amount of data.

  FIG. 3 is a graph showing the relationship between the elapsed time and the data amount related to data transfer with a high set bit rate and a large amount of data, and FIG. 4 is the elapsed time and data related to data transfer with a low set bit rate and a small amount of data. It is a graph which shows the relationship with quantity. In FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, “a” indicates that the video signal generated by the video signal generator 55 and converted by the data converter 56 is transferred to the optical disc drive A via the external interface control system 57. It means time required. “B” means the time required for the data conversion unit 56 to convert the video signal generated by the video signal generator 55. Here, as described above, in the conventional optical disc drive, the received data is cached in the cache memory, and the DVD recorder as the data transfer device transmits when the cache memory is almost full or when the transfer of the entire data is completed. The cached data is output to the cache memory at the timing of receiving the command, and the optical disk or the like is caused to perform a writing operation according to this data. For this reason, the optical disk drive A receives data transfer in the section “a” in the graphs shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. On the other hand, the “b” section is in a dormant state. Therefore, as described above, when the data transfer interval from the DVD recorder B as the data transfer device is not continuous, the data transferred to the optical disc drive A as the drive device is held in the cache memory 12 in the optical disc drive A. As a result, writing is not performed and the efficiency is remarkably reduced. In addition, if an unexpected accident such as a power interruption occurs during that time, a fatal problem that the transferred data is discarded occurs.

  In the present embodiment, in order to solve such a problem, a write start instruction signal is generated in the optical disc drive A at the time “c” in the graphs shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Thus, writing of data that has already been transferred and stored in the cache memory 12 of the optical disk drive A during a time when no control is performed on the optical disk drive A, that is, when the optical disk drive A is in a standby state. To start. As a result, the optical disk drive A can be used efficiently, and a fatal problem that the transferred data is discarded even when an unexpected accident such as a power failure occurs is unlikely to occur. .

  For this reason, in the present embodiment, in the DVD recorder B, information is transmitted by the optical disk drive A during the data conversion process by the data conversion unit 56 based on the data amount and the data transfer speed of the data transferred to the optical disk drive A. Is set so that the write start instruction signal appears on the optical disc drive A (timing setting means, timing setting function, timing setting step), and at the set timing “c”. A write start instruction signal appears on the optical disc drive A (signal appearance means, signal appearance function, signal appearance step). That is, here, regardless of the bit rate of data transfer (see FIGS. 3 and 4), the timing “when the optical disk drive A performs an information write operation during the data conversion process by the data converter 56”. The process of causing the write start instruction signal to appear on the optical disc drive A is executed at “c”. At this time, the DVD recorder B recognizes the bit rate of data transfer in advance and also recognizes the size of data to be transferred by itself. For this reason, the DVD recorder B refers to the data amount of the data to be transferred to the optical disc drive A and the bit rate of the data transfer, so that the information on the optical disc drive A can be stored during the data conversion processing by the data conversion unit 56. The timing “c” at which the write start instruction signal appears in the optical disc drive A can be easily set so that the write operation is executed. Thus, in the present embodiment, the write start instruction signal at the timing “c” so that the information write operation is executed in the optical disc drive A during the data conversion process by the data converter 56 in the DVD recorder B. Are transferred from the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A.

  Since the external interface of the optical disc drive A is the ATAPI / SCSI interface 15, the write start instruction signal is an ATAPI packet command (Write command) when the external interface control system 57 of the DVD recorder B is also in the ATAPI system. By using the combination of options, it is possible to easily transfer to the optical disc drive A.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing processing from data reception to data writing executed by the CPU 18 in accordance with the control program loaded in the main memory in the optical disc drive A.

  When the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A receives data for recording from the DVD recorder B (receiving means, receiving function, receiving process), the received data is cached in the cache memory 12 (caching means, caching function, caching process). At this time, the time required to receive the recording data from the DVD recorder B and cache the received data in the cache memory 12 is generated by the video signal generator 55 in the graphs shown in FIGS. This is the time “a” required for transferring the video signal converted by the data converter 56 to the optical disc drive A via the external interface control system 57.

  Next, when receiving the recording data from the DVD recorder B, the CPU 18 of the optical disk drive A waits for the determination of the presence / absence of the write start instruction signal. When the writing start instruction signal is not received, the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A drives and controls the optical pickup 3 and executes the conventional writing process. As described above, the conventional writing process is performed at the timing when the cache memory 12 is almost full or at the timing when the instruction transmitted from the DVD recorder B is received when the transfer of the entire data is completed. In this process, the cached data is output to the optical disc 1 and a writing operation according to the data is executed on the optical disc 1.

  On the other hand, when the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A determines reception of the write start instruction signal (signal appearance means, signal appearance function, signal appearance step), the optical pickup 3 is selected according to the received write start instruction signal. And the like, and the writing operation is executed on the optical disc 1 according to the data cached in the cache memory 12 (writing means, writing function, writing process). The execution timing of the writing operation on the optical disc 1 is the timing “c” in FIGS. 3 and 4 generated by the DVD recorder B. As described above, this timing is that data conversion processing by the data conversion unit 56 is being executed from the DVD recorder B, and between the reception of the previous data and the reception of the subsequent data from the optical disc drive A. Positioned. Therefore, the optical disc is usually in the middle of executing the data conversion process in the DVD recorder B where the optical disc drive A becomes dormant, or between the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data reception in the optical disc drive A. An information writing operation is executed in the drive A, and the optical disc drive A is used efficiently. Further, since the optical disk drive A operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent the state where data is stored in the cache memory 12 as much as possible. As a result, even when an unexpected accident such as power interruption occurs. The fatal problem that the transferred data is discarded can be prevented as much as possible.

  In the processing of the present embodiment described above, the write start instruction signal is transferred to the optical disc drive A at the timing “c” set on the DVD recorder B side. In this case, the transfer of the write start instruction signal is sequentially executed every time a predetermined unit of data is transferred to the optical disc drive A. In this case, the CPU 51 of the DVD recorder B recognizes both the amount of data to be transferred and the bit rate of the data transfer, so that the timing “c” can be set to an ideal timing.

  On the other hand, the data transfer illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 has a constant bit rate (CBR (Constant Bit Rate)). The timing “c” for generating the write start instruction signal can be made constant to some extent. Such control will be described based on the flowchart of FIG. 6 as another embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing processing from data reception to data writing executed by the CPU 18 in accordance with the control program loaded in the main memory in the optical disc drive A.

  When the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A receives data for recording from the DVD recorder B (receiving means, receiving function, receiving process), the received data is cached in the cache memory 12 (caching means, caching function, caching process). At this time, the time required to receive the recording data from the DVD recorder B and cache the received data in the cache memory 12 is generated by the video signal generator 55 in the graphs shown in FIGS. This is the time “a” required for transferring the video signal converted by the data converter 56 to the optical disc drive A via the external interface control system 57.

  Next, when the recording data is received from the DVD recorder B, the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A determines whether the data amount matches or exceeds the prescribed amount. Specifically, by determining the data size to be cached in the cache memory 12, it is determined whether the data amount matches or exceeds the prescribed amount. The specified amount in this case may be notified in advance by the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A, or may be set by the optical disc drive A itself. In any case, the prescribed amount determines the timing for generating the write start instruction signal. The timing for generating such a write start instruction signal is from the DVD recorder B when the data conversion process is being performed by the data converter 56, and from the optical disc drive A, the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data are received. Positioned between. In this sense, when the DVD recorder B notifies the optical disc drive A of a prescribed amount in advance, the prescribed amount is data for the optical disc drive A to generate a write start instruction signal at a set timing. become. The notification of the specified amount from the DVD recorder B to the optical disk drive A is performed when the external interface control system 57 of the DVD recorder B is also set to the ATAPI system because the external interface of the optical disk drive A is the ATAPI / SCSI interface 15. Can be easily transferred to the optical disc drive A by using an ATAPI packet command (Vender Unique Page of Mode Sense / Select command).

  If the CPU 18 of the optical disk drive A does not determine that the amount of data received from the DVD recorder B matches or exceeds the specified amount, the CPU 18 drives and controls the optical pickup 3 and the like to perform the conventional writing process. Execute. As described above, the conventional writing process is performed at the timing when the cache memory 12 is almost full or at the timing when the instruction transmitted from the DVD recorder B is received when the transfer of the entire data is completed. In this process, the cached data is output to the optical disc 1 and a writing operation according to the data is executed on the optical disc 1.

  On the other hand, when the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A determines that the amount of data received from the DVD recorder B matches or exceeds the specified amount, the CPU 18 generates a write start instruction signal (signal Appearance means, signal appearance function, signal appearance process). Then, the optical pickup 3 and the like are driven and controlled in accordance with the generated write start instruction signal, and a write operation is performed on the optical disc 1 according to the data cached in the cache memory 12 (writing means, writing function, writing process). The execution timing of such a writing operation on the optical disc 1 is the timing “c” in FIGS. 3 and 4 generated by the optical disc drive A itself. As described above, this timing is that data conversion processing by the data conversion unit 56 is being executed from the DVD recorder B, and between the reception of the previous data and the reception of the subsequent data from the optical disc drive A. Positioned. Therefore, the optical disc is usually in the middle of executing the data conversion process in the DVD recorder B where the optical disc drive A becomes dormant, or between the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data reception in the optical disc drive A. An information writing operation is executed in the drive A, and the optical disc drive A is used efficiently. Further, since the optical disk drive A operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent the state where data is stored in the cache memory 12 as much as possible. As a result, even when an unexpected accident such as power interruption occurs. The fatal problem that the transferred data is discarded can be prevented as much as possible.

  FIG. 7 is a graph showing the relationship between the elapsed time and the data amount related to data transfer when the bit rate and the data amount are not constant. The graphs of FIGS. 3 and 4 exemplify a case where data transfer from the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A is performed at a constant bit rate (CBR (Constant Bit Rate)). On the other hand, when data transfer from the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A is performed at a variable bit rate (VBR (Variable Bit Rate)), it is generated by the video signal generator 55 and converted by the data converter 56. The time “a” required to transfer the recorded video signal to the optical disc drive A via the external interface control system 57 is also required to convert the video signal generated by the video signal generator 55 by the data converter 56. The time “b” is not constant. This can be seen at a glance by looking at data 1, data 2, and data 3 in FIG. Therefore, when the data transfer from the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A is performed at a fixed bit rate (CBR (Constant Bit Rate)), the timing “c” for generating the write start instruction signal is made constant. It becomes impossible to set the timing “c” to an ideal timing.

  Therefore, as yet another embodiment, it is necessary to perform control different from the second embodiment described above. Such control will be described based on the flowchart of FIG. 8 as another embodiment. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing processing from data reception to data writing executed by the CPU 18 in accordance with the control program loaded in the main memory in the optical disc drive A.

  When the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A receives data for recording from the DVD recorder B (receiving means, receiving function, receiving process), the received data is cached in the cache memory 12 (caching means, caching function, caching process). At this time, the time required to receive the recording data from the DVD recorder B and cache the received data in the cache memory 12 is generated by the video signal generator 55 in the graphs shown in FIGS. This is the time “a” required for transferring the video signal converted by the data converter 56 to the optical disc drive A via the external interface control system 57.

  Next, when receiving the recording data from the DVD recorder B, the CPU 18 of the optical disk drive A waits for the determination of the presence / absence of the write start instruction signal.

  If no write start instruction signal is received, it is determined whether the data amount of the recording data received from the DVD recorder B matches or exceeds the prescribed amount. Specifically, by determining the data size to be cached in the cache memory 12, it is determined whether the data amount matches or exceeds the prescribed amount. The specified amount in this case may be notified in advance by the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A, or may be set by the optical disc drive A itself. In any case, the prescribed amount determines the timing for generating the write start instruction signal. The timing for generating such a write start instruction signal is from the DVD recorder B when the data conversion process is being performed by the data converter 56, and from the optical disc drive A, the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data are received. Positioned between. In this sense, when the DVD recorder B notifies the optical disc drive A of a prescribed amount in advance, the prescribed amount is data for the optical disc drive A to generate a write start instruction signal at a set timing. become. The notification of the specified amount from the DVD recorder B to the optical disk drive A is performed when the external interface control system 57 of the DVD recorder B is also set to the ATAPI system because the external interface of the optical disk drive A is the ATAPI / SCSI interface 15. Can be easily transferred to the optical disc drive A by using an ATAPI packet command (a combination of a Write command and an option).

  If the CPU 18 of the optical disk drive A does not determine that the amount of data received from the DVD recorder B matches or exceeds the specified amount, the CPU 18 drives and controls the optical pickup 3 and the like to perform the conventional writing process. Execute. As described above, the conventional writing process is performed at the timing when the cache memory 12 is almost full or at the timing when the instruction transmitted from the DVD recorder B is received when the transfer of the entire data is completed. In this process, the cached data is output to the optical disc 1 and a writing operation according to the data is executed on the optical disc 1.

  On the other hand, when the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A determines that the amount of data received from the DVD recorder B matches or exceeds the specified amount, the CPU 18 generates a write start instruction signal (signal Appearance means, signal appearance function, signal appearance process). Then, the optical pickup 3 and the like are driven and controlled in accordance with the generated write start instruction signal, and a write operation is performed on the optical disc 1 according to the data cached in the cache memory 12 (writing means, writing function, writing process). The execution timing of such a writing operation on the optical disc 1 is the timing “c” in FIGS. 3 and 4 generated by the optical disc drive A itself. As described above, this timing is that data conversion processing by the data conversion unit 56 is being executed from the DVD recorder B, and between the reception of the previous data and the reception of the subsequent data from the optical disc drive A. Positioned. Therefore, the optical disc is usually in the middle of executing the data conversion process in the DVD recorder B where the optical disc drive A becomes dormant, or between the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data reception in the optical disc drive A. An information writing operation is executed in the drive A, and the optical disc drive A is used efficiently. Further, since the optical disk drive A operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent the state where data is stored in the cache memory 12 as much as possible. As a result, even when an unexpected accident such as power interruption occurs. The fatal problem that the transferred data is discarded can be prevented as much as possible.

  On the other hand, when the bit rate is low and the amount of data is small like data 2 in FIG. 7, the optical disc drive A cannot be used effectively by the control based on the above-mentioned prescribed amount. In such a case, the optical disk drive A generates the write start instruction signal earlier than the write start instruction signal when the data cached in the cache memory 12 matches or exceeds the prescribed amount. This is because there is less time for the computer to go to sleep.

  Therefore, in such a case, the DVD recorder B generates a write start instruction signal and transfers this write start instruction signal to the optical disc drive A. Thereby, the CPU 18 of the optical disc drive A determines reception of the write start instruction signal (signal appearance means, signal appearance function, signal appearance process), and drives and controls the optical pickup 3 and the like according to the received write start instruction signal. Then, the writing operation to the optical disc 1 is executed according to the data cached in the cache memory 12 (writing means, writing function, writing process). As a result, it is possible to minimize the time for which the optical disk drive A is put to sleep. Therefore, the optical disc is usually in the middle of executing the data conversion process in the DVD recorder B where the optical disc drive A becomes dormant, or between the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data reception in the optical disc drive A. An information writing operation is executed in the drive A, and the optical disc drive A is used efficiently. Further, since the optical disk drive A operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent the state where data is stored in the cache memory 12 as much as possible. As a result, even when an unexpected accident such as power interruption occurs. The fatal problem that the transferred data is discarded can be prevented as much as possible.

  Furthermore, in the first and third embodiments described above, the DVD recorder B executes processing for setting the timing “c” at which the write start instruction signal appears in the optical disc drive A. In setting the timing “c”, the DVD recorder B recognizes the bit rate of data transfer in advance and also recognizes the size of the data to be transferred by itself. Refer to the amount of data and the bit rate of the data transfer. In this case, if the DVD recorder B can know the amount of data cached in the cache memory 12 of the optical disc drive A, the more ideal timing “c” as the timing “c” at which the write start instruction signal appears in the optical disc drive A will be described. c "can be set. The amount of data cached in the cache memory 12 defines the time required for the writing operation in the optical disk drive A. For example, depending on the amount of caching data, the write start instruction signal appears in the optical disk drive A earlier. This is because a good case is assumed.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, a process of informing the data size data as the amount of data cached in the cache memory 12 from the optical disk drive A to the DVD recorder B is executed. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a data amount transfer process executed in the DVD recorder B.

  First, a transfer request for the data size cached in the cache memory 12 is transmitted from the DVD recorder B to the optical disc drive A. Then, in response to the request, the optical disk drive A acquires data of the data size cached in the cache memory 12 and transmits it to the DVD recorder B (notification receiving means in the DVD recorder B, the optical disk drive A). Notification means). In such communication between the DVD recorder B and the optical disk drive A, the external interface of the optical disk drive A is the ATAPI / SCSI interface 15, so that the external interface control system 57 of the DVD recorder B is also the ATAPI system. Can be easily executed by using an ATAPI packet command (Vender Unique Page of Mode Sense / Select command).

  Therefore, the DVD recorder B knowing the amount of data cached in the cache memory 12 of the optical disc drive A sets a more ideal timing “c” as the timing “c” at which the write start instruction signal appears in the optical disc drive A. can do.

〔The invention's effect〕
The invention according to claim 1 is a drive device connected to a data transfer device for transferring data for recording, and optically writes information on the optical recording medium according to the data transferred from the data transfer device. An optical pickup that irradiates a laser beam to the laser, a receiving unit that receives recording data transferred in predetermined units from the data transfer device, a caching unit that caches the received data in a cache memory, and Signal appearance means for causing a write start instruction signal to appear so that an information write operation is executed between reception and subsequent data reception, and data cached in the cache memory in accordance with the appeared write start signal The optical pickup is driven and controlled to write information on the optical recording medium. In general, the drive device can execute the information write operation even between the reception of the previous data where the drive device goes to sleep and the subsequent data reception. Thus, efficient use of the drive device can be realized. In addition, since the drive unit operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent the state where data is stored in the cache memory as long as possible. It is possible to prevent a fatal problem that discarded data is discarded.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the drive device according to the first aspect, since the signal appearance means receives a write start instruction signal from the data transfer device, data is transmitted by the drive device in accordance with the received write start instruction signal. Therefore, it is possible to cause the drive device to perform an information write operation even between the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data reception that normally causes the drive device to go to sleep. Can do.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the drive device according to the first or second aspect, the signal appearance means generates a write start signal when the amount of data cached in the cache memory exceeds a specified amount. Therefore, it is possible to execute an information write operation in the drive device in response to a write start signal generated when the amount of data cached in the cache memory exceeds a specified amount. The information writing operation can be executed by the drive device even between the reception of the previous data that causes the device to go to sleep and the reception of the subsequent data. In particular, the generation of the write start signal in claim 7 quoting claim 5 is effective when data transfer is executed from the data transfer device to the drive device at a fixed bit rate (CBR (Constant Bit Rate)). For this reason, the processing can be made uniform and simplified. In addition, the generation of the write start signal according to claim 7 quoting claim 6 is also effective when data transfer is executed from the data transfer apparatus to the drive apparatus at a variable bit rate (VBR (Variable Bit Rate)). Therefore, it can contribute to diversification of processing.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the drive device according to the first aspect, the data transfer device includes notification means for notifying the data transfer device of information relating to the amount of data cached in the cache memory. As a timing at which the means causes the write start instruction signal to appear in the drive device, a better timing can be expected.

  The machine-readable program for a drive device according to claim 5 is connected to a data transfer device for transferring recording data, and optically records information on an optical recording medium according to the data transferred from the data transfer device. A receiving function for receiving recording data transferred to the computer in a predetermined unit from the data transfer device; a caching function for caching the received data in a cache memory; A signal appearance function for causing a write start instruction signal to appear so that an information write operation is performed between reception of previous data and subsequent data, and caching in the cache memory in response to the write start signal that has appeared Irradiating the optical recording medium with laser light according to the recorded data A write function for optically writing information to the optical recording medium by controlling the driving of the optical pickup, and usually between the reception of the previous data and the subsequent data that the drive device goes to sleep. Even so, the information writing operation can be executed by the drive device, and the drive device can be used efficiently. In addition, since the drive device operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent data from being stored in the cache memory as much as possible. As a result, even if an unexpected accident such as power failure occurs, transfer is possible. It is possible to prevent a fatal problem that discarded data is discarded.

  The invention of the storage medium according to the sixth aspect stores the program for the drive device according to the fifth aspect, and thus has the same effect as the program for the drive device according to the fifth aspect.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a drive method that is executed in a drive device that is connected to a data transfer device that transfers recording data and optically writes information to an optical recording medium in accordance with the data transferred from the data transfer device. A receiving step for receiving recording data transferred from the data transfer device in a predetermined unit, a caching step for caching the received data in a cache memory, reception of previous data, and reception of subsequent data; A signal appearance step for causing a write start instruction signal to appear so that an information write operation is performed between the two and a laser beam on the optical recording medium according to data cached in the cache memory in accordance with the appeared write start signal Optically writing information on the optical recording medium by driving and controlling the optical pickup A write process, so that the drive apparatus can execute an information write operation even between the reception of the previous data and the reception of the subsequent data. And efficient use of the drive device can be realized. In addition, since the drive device operates without going to sleep, it is possible to prevent data from being stored in the cache memory as much as possible. As a result, even if an unexpected accident such as power failure occurs, transfer is possible. It is possible to prevent a fatal problem that discarded data is discarded.

It is a functional block diagram of a drive device (optical disk drive). It is a block diagram which shows the hardware constitutions of a data transfer apparatus (DVD recorder). It is a graph which shows the relationship between the elapsed time and data amount regarding data transfer with the set bit rate and high data amount. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the elapsed time and the data amount regarding the data transfer with the low bit rate set and the small data amount. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process from the data reception performed in a drive apparatus (optical disk drive) to data writing. It is a flowchart which shows another example of the process from the data reception performed in a drive apparatus (optical disk drive) to data writing. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the elapsed time and the data amount regarding the data transfer when the bit rate and the data amount are not constant. It is a flowchart which shows another example of the process from the data reception performed in a drive apparatus (optical disk drive) to data writing. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the data amount transfer process performed in a data transfer apparatus (DVD recorder).

Explanation of symbols

3 Optical pickup 12 Cache memory A Drive device (optical disk drive)
B Data transfer device (DVD recorder)

Claims (7)

In a drive device that is connected to a data transfer device for transferring data for recording and optically writes information to an optical recording medium in accordance with the data transferred from the data transfer device,
An optical pickup for irradiating the optical recording medium with laser light;
Receiving means for receiving recording data transferred in predetermined units from the data transfer device;
A caching means for caching received data in a cache memory;
Of the data blocks constituting the data transferred from the data transfer device, a write start instruction signal is generated so that an information write operation is executed between reception of the previous data block and reception of the subsequent data block. Signal generating means for causing
Writing means for optically writing information to the optical recording medium by driving and controlling the optical pickup according to the data cached in the cache memory according to the generated writing start signal;
A drive device comprising:   2. The drive device according to claim 1, wherein the signal generating means receives a write start instruction signal from the data transfer device.   3. The drive apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the signal generation unit generates a write start signal when the amount of data cached in the cache memory exceeds a predetermined amount.   2. The drive device according to claim 1, further comprising notification means for notifying the data transfer device of information relating to the amount of data cached in the cache memory. It is connected to a data transfer device that transfers data for recording, and is installed in a computer provided with a drive device that optically writes information to an optical recording medium according to the data transferred from the data transfer device.
A receiving function for receiving data for recording transferred in a predetermined unit from the data transfer device;
A caching function that caches received data in cache memory;
Of the data blocks constituting the data transferred from the data transfer device, a write start instruction signal is generated so that an information write operation is executed between reception of the previous data block and reception of the subsequent data block. Signal generation function
A write function for optically writing information to the optical recording medium by driving and controlling an optical pickup that irradiates the optical recording medium with laser light in accordance with data cached in the cache memory according to the generated write start signal;
A program for a machine-readable drive device characterized in that the program is executed.   A storage medium for storing the drive device program according to claim 5. In a drive method executed in a drive device connected to a data transfer device for transferring data for recording and optically writing information to an optical recording medium according to the data transferred from the data transfer device,
A receiving step of receiving recording data transferred in a predetermined unit from the data transfer device;
A caching process for caching received data in a cache memory;
Of the data blocks constituting the data transferred from the data transfer device, a write start instruction signal is generated so that an information write operation is executed between reception of the previous data block and reception of the subsequent data block. A signal generation process to
A writing step of optically writing information to the optical recording medium by driving and controlling an optical pickup that irradiates the optical recording medium with a laser beam according to data cached in the cache memory in response to an appearing writing start signal;
A drive method comprising:

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