JP2011076662A - Information recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information recording device which prevents loss of information to be recorded when a main recording means fails and stops recording operation, and restores the main recording means to a normal state in a comparatively short time. <P>SOLUTION: An HDD 31 is booted independently from an information recording and reproducing device body 2 by providing a power supply 32 dedicated to the HDD 31 in addition to a power supply for the information recording and reproducing device body 2. When a failure occurs in the HDD 31, the information recording and reproducing device 1 selects a nonvolatile memory 23 for recording instead of the HDD 31, and records the information input from an external camera 11 on a nonvolatile memory 23. The HDD 31 is rebooted by changing a switching mode of the power supply 32 dedicated to the HDD 31 by a CPU 20, while continuing information recording by the nonvolatile memory 23. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information recording apparatus capable of recording information such as video input from the outside.

  A technique relating to data backup processing in an information recording apparatus is disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example. The external storage device disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a host computer, a history storage hard disk drive (Hard Disk Drive; abbreviated as HDD) device, and a plurality of data storage HDD devices. In this external storage device, a history storage HDD device dedicated to data update history storage is arranged directly under the host computer by using bucket relay type data transfer of the FCAL (Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop) protocol. The history storage HDD device monitors all the write commands and data transmitted to the downstream data storage HDD device, and records and stores them in its recording medium without the intervention of the host computer. When a failure occurs in the external storage device, after restoring the data from the backup that was regularly acquired, the data immediately before the failure is restored using the update history information saved in the history storage HDD device. To do.

JP 2004-362111 A

  In the external storage device disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, update history information is used to restore data immediately before the occurrence of a failure, so that data can be restored with relatively high accuracy. A large number of HDDs such as a device and a data storage HDD device are required. HDDs are more expensive and consume more power than other recording media such as non-volatile memories. When a large number of HDDs are provided as in the external storage device disclosed in Patent Document 1, there are problems that the device becomes expensive and power consumption increases.

  In addition, in an information recording apparatus using an HDD as a recording medium, if an abnormality occurs during a recording operation to the HDD, the HDD can be restored to its normal state by temporarily disconnecting the power supply and connection and restarting the HDD. is there. In this case, since the power source of the information recording apparatus main body needs to be once cut off, there is a problem that it takes a long time for the entire information recording apparatus to return to normal.

  In addition, since the primary purpose of the information recording device for monitoring is to record video data, some backup measures should be taken so that the recording operation can be continued even when the main recording medium is abnormal or during recovery work. It may be necessary to take

  In the external storage device disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, recording as a backup on another recording medium is not considered when the HDD is powered off. There is a problem that data is lost while you are.

  An object of the present invention is to prevent loss of information to be recorded during a period when the recording operation of information by the main recording unit is stopped when an abnormality occurs in the main recording unit and recording is relatively short. It is an object to provide an information recording apparatus capable of returning the main recording means to normal in time.

  The information recording apparatus of the present invention is an information recording apparatus capable of recording information input from the outside, and is configured to be activated independently of the information recording apparatus main body and the information recording apparatus main body. A main recording means for recording, and when the information recording apparatus main body detects an abnormality in the main recording means by the detecting means for detecting an abnormality in the main recording means, and the detecting means, When it is detected by the auxiliary recording means for recording the information and the detection means that an abnormality has occurred in the main recording means, the information recording operation by the auxiliary recording means is detected from the information recording operation by the main recording means. Control means for switching to a recording operation and restarting the main recording means is provided.

  According to the information recording apparatus of the present invention, the information recording apparatus includes the information recording apparatus main body and the main recording means, and the information recording apparatus main body includes the detection means, the auxiliary recording means, and the control means. . When no abnormality has occurred in the main recording means, information input from the outside is recorded in the main recording means. When the detection means detects that an abnormality has occurred in the main recording means, the control means switches from the information recording operation by the main recording means to the information recording operation by the auxiliary recording means, and the main recording means is restarted. Is done. Since the main recording means can be activated independently of the information recording apparatus main body provided with the auxiliary recording means, the main recording means can be individually restarted while continuing to record information by the auxiliary recording means. Therefore, it is possible to prevent loss of information to be recorded during a period in which the recording operation of information by the main recording unit is stopped due to an abnormality in the main recording unit, and to return the main recording unit to a normal state in a relatively short time. Is possible.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 which is the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of CPU20 regarding the data recording process in the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of CPU20 regarding the data recording process in the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of CPU20 regarding the data recording process in the information recording / reproducing apparatus of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of CPU20 regarding the data recording process in the information recording / reproducing apparatus of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is configured to be able to record input information and to reproduce recorded information. Therefore, the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 has a function as an information recording apparatus capable of recording input information. The information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is used for monitoring purposes. The information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 includes an information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2 and a main recording apparatus 3. The information recording / reproducing apparatus body 2 corresponds to the information recording apparatus body.

  The information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2 includes an input terminal 12, a video decoder 13, a multiplexer 14, an output interface 15, a video encoder 16, an output terminal 17, a compressor 18, a decompressor 19, and a central processing unit (abbreviation: CPU) 20, memory 21, recording medium interface 22, nonvolatile memory 23, external interface 24, and communication interface 25. The main recording device 3 includes a hard disk drive (abbreviation: HDD) 31 and a dedicated power source 32. The recording medium interface 22 of the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2 is connected to the HDD 31 of the main recording apparatus 3.

  Information (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “data”) is input to the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 from the outside via the input terminal 12. In the present embodiment, the camera 11 is connected to the input terminal 12. The camera 11 outputs an analog video signal as data representing a captured video (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “camera video”). The video signal output from the camera 11 is given to the video decoder 13 via the input terminal 12.

  The video decoder 13 converts the video signal supplied from the camera 11 via the input terminal 12 into a digital video signal and supplies the digital video signal to the multiplexer 14. The multiplexer 14 changes the pixel size of the digital video signal supplied from the video decoder 13 as necessary. When the digital video signal supplied from the video decoder 13 is recorded, the multiplexer 14 changes the pixel size of the digital video signal to a preset pixel size and sends the changed digital video signal to the compressor 18. give. When outputting the digital video signal supplied from the video decoder 13 as it is, the multiplexer 14 supplies the digital video signal supplied from the video decoder 13 to the output interface 15 as it is without changing the pixel size.

  The compressor 18 adjusts the information supplied from the multiplexer 14, specifically, the information amount of the digital video signal, and supplies the adjusted information to the memory 21. More specifically, the compressor 18 compresses the digital video signal given from the multiplexer 14, converts it into a preset image compression rate, and gives it to the memory 21. The multiplexer 14 and the compressor 18 correspond to information amount adjusting means. The memory 21 temporarily stores the compressed digital video signal given from the compressor 18. The digital video signal temporarily stored in the memory 21 is given to the HDD 31 of the main recording device 3 via the recording medium interface 22.

  The HDD 31 records information provided via the recording medium interface 22, specifically a digital video signal. The HDD 31 is a recording medium on which information is mainly recorded (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “main recording medium”), and corresponds to a main recording unit. The HDD 31 is connected to a dedicated power source 32. The dedicated power source 32 is connected to the CPU 20 of the information recording / reproducing apparatus body 2. The switching mode of the dedicated power supply 32 changes based on a predetermined control signal given from the CPU 20.

  When the dedicated power source 32 is supplied with a control signal (hereinafter referred to as an “on signal”) indicating that power is supplied to the HDD 31 from the CPU 20, the switching mode is turned on. The dedicated power source 32 supplies power to the HDD 31 when the switching mode is turned on. Further, when the dedicated power supply 32 is given a control signal (hereinafter referred to as “off signal”) indicating that the power supply to the HDD 31 is stopped from the CPU 20, the switching mode is turned off. The dedicated power supply 32 stops supplying power to the HDD 31 when the switching mode is turned off. As described above, the HDD 31 is supplied with power from the dedicated power source 32 provided separately from the power source of the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2. Therefore, the HDD 31 can be activated independently of the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2.

  When the video based on the digital video signal recorded on the HDD 31 is reproduced, the digital video signal recorded on the HDD 31 is given to the memory 21 via the recording medium interface 22 and temporarily stored. Thereafter, the digital video signal temporarily stored in the memory 21 is given to the decompressor 19. The decompressor 19 decompresses the digital video signal supplied from the memory 21 into a digital video signal having a pixel size before being converted by the multiplexer 14 and an image compression rate before being compressed by the compressor 18, and outputting the output interface 15. To give.

  The output interface 15 supplies the digital video signal supplied from the multiplexer 14 or the decompressor 19 to the video encoder 16. The video encoder 16 restores the digital video signal supplied from the output interface 15 to an analog video signal that is an original video signal. The video signal restored by the video encoder 16 is output from the output terminal 17. The video signal output from the output terminal 17 is applied to a display device such as a liquid crystal display connected to the output terminal 17, and an image based on the video signal is displayed on the display device.

  The CPU 20 includes a video decoder 13, a multiplexer 14, an output interface 15, a video encoder 16, a compressor 18, a decompressor 19, a memory 21, a recording medium interface 22, an external interface 24 and a communication interface 25 that constitute the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2. Are connected to hardware resources including a dedicated power source 32 constituting the main recording device 3. The CPU 20 comprehensively controls the aforementioned hardware resources connected to the CPU 20 according to a control program stored in advance in the nonvolatile memory 23. Specifically, the CPU 20 performs a series of processes of the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1, such as a process of recording information such as a video signal input from the input terminal 12, and a video signal recorded on a recording medium such as the HDD 31. Controls the process of reproducing information. Further, the CPU 20 detects an abnormality of the HDD 31 by determining whether or not the state of the HDD 31 is normal. The CPU 20 corresponds to detection means and control means.

  The nonvolatile memory 23 stores the aforementioned control program. Further, the nonvolatile memory 23 is, for example, when an abnormality occurs in the HDD 31 and information such as a video signal given from the camera 11 via the input terminal 12 cannot be recorded in the HDD 31. The video signal given through the recording medium interface 22 is recorded. The non-volatile memory 23 is a recording medium on which information is recorded in an auxiliary manner when information cannot be recorded in the HDD 31, and corresponds to auxiliary recording means. The nonvolatile memory 23 is configured by a flash memory. The nonvolatile memory 23 is fixed to the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2.

  The external interface 24 is connected to a mouse and a remote controller (abbreviation: remote control) that function as input means for inputting information to the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2. As a user interface, a graphical user interface (abbreviation: GUI) is used. In the GUI, in order to execute information recording and reproduction processing, screen display information such as a setting menu is generated based on information input via the external interface 24, and the generated screen display information is converted into the video encoder 16. Is output from the output terminal 17 by superimposing the screen display information on the video signal.

  A communication line (not shown), for example, a local area network (abbreviation: LAN) is connected to the communication interface 25, and data communication via the LAN is possible. For example, when an abnormality occurs in the HDD 31, an abnormality has occurred in the HDD 31 in a communication device (hereinafter referred to as "monitoring center communication device") provided in an external monitoring center connected via a LAN through the communication interface 25. Anomaly occurrence information (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “error information”) can be notified. The monitoring center is provided, for example, at a location away from the installation location of the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1. The installation location of the monitoring center may be a remote place far away from the installation location of the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1, or may be a relatively close place such as in the same building as the installation location of the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1. The communication interface 25 corresponds to a transmission unit and a notification unit.

  2 and 3 are flowcharts showing a processing procedure of the CPU 20 regarding data recording processing in the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The processing of the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is started when the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is turned on, that is, turned on by the user, and power is supplied to the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1, and the process proceeds to step a1. When power is supplied to the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1, the CPU 20 gives an on signal to the dedicated power source 32 of the main recording device 3, starts supplying power from the dedicated power source 32 to the HDD 31, and starts the HDD 31.

  In step a1, the CPU 20 causes the data input from the input terminal 12 to be recorded in the HDD 31 with the pixel size and image compression rate preset for the HDD, and proceeds to step a2. In the present embodiment, a digital video signal of a camera video is recorded as data. Specifically, the CPU 20 causes the multiplexer 14 to convert the data size of the digital video signal, specifically the pixel size, into a pixel size preset for the HDD. In addition, the CPU 20 compresses the digital video signal by the compressor 18 and converts the image compression rate of the digital video signal into an image compression rate preset for the HDD. Then, the CPU 20 gives the converted digital video signal stored in the memory 21 to the HDD 31 via the recording medium interface 22 for recording.

  In step a2, the CPU 20 determines whether or not the state of the HDD 31 is normal. The CPU 20 gives a confirmation signal for confirming the state of the HDD 31 to the HDD 31 and determines whether or not the state of the HDD 31 is normal based on the presence / absence and type of the response from the HDD 31 to the confirmation signal. When the CPU 20 receives a response to the confirmation signal from the HDD 31 and the response is not an error response indicating that an error has occurred, the CPU 20 determines that the state of the HDD 31 is normal. When the response to the confirmation signal cannot be received from the HDD 31 and when the response received from the HDD 31 is an error response, the CPU 20 determines that the state of the HDD 31 is not normal. If it is determined in step a2 that the state of the HDD 31 is normal, the process proceeds to step a3. If it is determined that the state of the HDD 31 is not normal, that is, abnormal, the process proceeds to step a4.

  In step a3, the CPU 20 determines whether or not to end the data recording operation based on whether or not the data to be recorded in the HDD 31 remains in the memory 21. If the data to be recorded in the HDD 31 remains in the memory 21, the CPU 20 determines that the data recording operation is not terminated. If the data to be recorded in the HDD 31 does not remain in the memory 21, the data recording operation Is determined to end. If it is determined in step a3 that the data recording operation is to be terminated, all processing procedures are terminated. If it is determined in step a3 that the data recording operation is not terminated, that is, the recording operation is continued, the process returns to step a1.

  In step a4, the CPU 20 determines whether or not an error response has been received from the HDD 31 of the main recording device 3 as abnormality occurrence information indicating that an abnormality has occurred in the HDD 31. The error response includes, for example, the content of the error. If it is determined in step a4 that an error response has been received from the HDD 31, the process proceeds to step a5. If it is determined that no error response has been received from the HDD 31, the process proceeds to step a6.

  In step a5, the CPU 20 stores log data regarding the received error response in the memory 21. As the log data, for example, the date and time when the error response is received and the content of the error included in the error response are stored. After the process of step a5 is completed, the process returns to step a1.

  In step a6, the CPU 20 switches the recording medium for recording data from the HDD 31 to the nonvolatile memory 23. More specifically, the CPU 20 instructs the recording medium interface 22 to switch the output destination of given data from the HDD 31 to the nonvolatile memory 23. When the recording medium is switched to the nonvolatile memory 23, the process proceeds to step a7.

  In step a <b> 7, the CPU 20 records data in the nonvolatile memory 23. Since the non-volatile memory 23 has a relatively smaller recording capacity than the HDD 31, the CPU 20 uses the multiplexer 14 and the compressor 18 to set the data amount that is the amount of data to be recorded to a value preset for the HDD. Also, the data is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23 with a small change. In the present embodiment, the CPU 20 has a video signal, which is data to be recorded, having a pixel size smaller than a pixel size preset for the HDD and an image compression rate preset for the HDD. After changing so as to be higher than the image compression rate, it is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23. When data is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23, the process proceeds to step a8.

  In step a8, the CPU 20 restarts the HDD 31. More specifically, the CPU 20 first gives an off signal to the dedicated power source 32 of the main recording device 3. The dedicated power source 32 stops supplying power to the HDD 31 based on the off signal given from the CPU 20. Next, the CPU 20 gives an ON signal to the dedicated power source 32 of the main recording device 3. The dedicated power supply 32 supplies power to the HDD 31 based on an ON signal given from the CPU 20. As a result, the HDD 31 is restarted. When the HDD 31 is restarted, the process proceeds to step a9 in FIG.

  In step a9 in FIG. 3, the CPU 20 determines whether the state of the HDD 31 is normal in the same manner as in step a2. If it is determined in step a9 that the state of the HDD 31 is normal, the process proceeds to step a10. If it is determined that the state of the HDD 31 is not normal, that is, it is abnormal, the process proceeds to step a13.

  In step a10, the CPU 20 switches the recording medium for recording data from the nonvolatile memory 23 to the HDD 31. More specifically, the CPU 20 instructs the recording medium interface 22 to switch the output destination of given data from the nonvolatile memory 23 to the HDD 31. When the recording medium is switched to the HDD 31 in step a10, the process proceeds to step a11.

  In step a11, the CPU 20 transmits information indicating that the HDD 31 has been restarted (hereinafter referred to as “reboot information”) to the monitoring center communication device connected via the LAN via the communication interface 25. When the restart information is transmitted, the process proceeds to step a12.

  In step a <b> 12, the CPU 20 stores log data regarding the restart of the HDD 31 in the memory 21. As the log data, for example, restart information and the date and time when the restart information is transmitted to the monitoring center communication device are stored. After the process of step a12 is completed, the process returns to step a3. When it returns to step a3 from step a12 and it is determined not to end the data recording operation and returns to step a1, in step a1, the CPU 20 sets the pixel size and image compression rate changed in step a7 to the HDD. The data is recorded on the HDD 31 by returning to the pixel size and the image compression rate set in advance.

  When the process proceeds from step a9 to step a13, in step a13, the CPU 20 sends, via the communication interface 25, switching information indicating that the recording medium on which data is to be recorded has been switched from the HDD 31 to the nonvolatile memory 23 as abnormality occurrence information. To the monitoring center communication device. If switching information is transmitted, it will transfer to step a14.

  When receiving the abnormality occurrence information transmitted from the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1, specifically, the switching information, the monitoring center communication device displays the reception information indicating that the abnormality occurrence information has been received, for example, on the display means. , Notify the maintenance staff of the monitoring center. In response to this, the maintenance staff of the monitoring center goes to the place where the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 in which the abnormality has occurred in the HDD 31 is installed, and removes only the HDD 31 in which the abnormality has occurred in the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1. Thus, the HDD 31 is replaced with a normal HDD, that is, capable of recording.

  The maintenance staff then performs an operation to restore the HDD 31 to the operation for executing the data recording operation. At this time, the maintenance staff confirms the log data recorded in the memory 21, and the video signal is recorded as image data in the non-volatile memory 23 between the occurrence of an abnormality in the HDD 31 and the replacement of the HDD 31 with the normal HDD 31. It is judged whether it is done. The maintenance staff can take out the image data from the non-volatile memory 23 when the image data is recorded between the occurrence of an abnormality in the original HDD 31 and the replacement to the normal HDD 31. .

  In step a14, the CPU 20 determines whether or not to end the data recording operation in the same manner as in step a3. If it is determined in step a14 that the data recording operation is to be terminated, all processing procedures are terminated. If it is determined in step a14 that the data recording operation is not terminated, that is, the recording operation is continued, the process proceeds to step a15.

  In step a15, the CPU 20 records data in the nonvolatile memory 23 in the same manner as in step a7. More specifically, the CPU 20 has a pixel size and an image compression rate of the video signal, which is data to be recorded, smaller than a pixel size preset for the HDD, and an image compression preset for the HDD. The data is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23 after being changed so as to be higher than the rate. When data is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23, the process returns to step a8.

  As described above, according to the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, when the CPU 20 detects that an abnormality has occurred in the HDD 31 in step a2 of FIG. Is switched to the memory 23. As a result, the recording operation of data input from the outside is switched from the recording operation by the HDD 31 to the recording operation by the nonvolatile memory 23. In step a8, the HDD 31 is restarted.

  Even if the HDD 31 is restored by a single reboot, data loss occurs. However, even in the period until the HDD 31 is restored by the reboot, in the present embodiment, the nonvolatile memory 23 records data. So no data loss occurs. This is because the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2 and the HDD 31 are separated from each other as a system including a power supply, that is, the HDD 31 and the dedicated power supply 32 that is the power supply thereof, This is realized by having a separate structure.

  In other words, in the present embodiment, the dedicated power source 32 of the HDD 31 has a separate structure from the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2 and can be controlled by the CPU 20. Therefore, in step a 8 in FIG. The information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2 provided can be activated independently. As a result, the HDD 31 can be individually restarted while information recording is continued by the nonvolatile memory 23. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent loss of information to be recorded during a period in which the recording operation of information by the HDD 31 is stopped due to an abnormality in the HDD 31, and to restore the HDD 31 as the main recording unit to a normal state in a relatively short time. Is possible.

  In the present embodiment, when the video signal input from the external camera 11 is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23 in step a7 in FIG. 2 or step a15 in FIG. 3, it is recorded by the multiplexer 14 and the compressor 18. The data amount of the video signal to be adjusted is adjusted. Specifically, the pixel size and image compression rate of the video signal to be recorded are changed to the pixel size and image compression rate corresponding to the nonvolatile memory 23. As for the pixel size and the image compression rate, the maximum time from when an abnormality occurs in the HDD 31 to when the maintenance staff rushes and the HDD 31 is repaired is assumed, and data loss during that time is backed up by the capacity of the nonvolatile memory 23. The pixel size and the image compression rate in consideration of the recording capacity of the nonvolatile memory 23 are set so as to be able to do so.

  Thus, the recording capacity of the nonvolatile memory 23 can be saved by changing the data amount of data to be recorded between the HDD 31 and the nonvolatile memory 23. That is, in the present embodiment, since the video signal can be recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23 with the information amount corresponding to the recording capacity of the nonvolatile memory 23, the remaining amount of the nonvolatile memory 23 is insufficient and can be recorded. It can be avoided as much as possible. Therefore, when recording by the HDD 31 cannot be performed, recording by the nonvolatile memory 23 can be more reliably realized.

  Further, the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes an HDD 31 as main recording means. The HDD has a larger recording capacity than the nonvolatile memory. Therefore, by using the HDD 31 as the main recording unit as in the present embodiment, it is possible to record a larger amount of data than when a nonvolatile memory or the like is used. It is possible to record a large high-quality video.

  Moreover, the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of this Embodiment is provided with the non-volatile memory 23 as an auxiliary recording means. Nonvolatile memory is cheaper than HDD and consumes less power. Therefore, by providing the non-volatile memory 23 as auxiliary recording means as in the present embodiment, when recording by the HDD 31 as the main recording means is impossible, recording by the auxiliary recording means is inexpensive and as low as possible. It can be realized with power consumption.

  Further, in the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, even when data is being recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23 in step a15 in FIG. 3, the state of the HDD 31 is periodically checked in step a9. Is monitoring. As a result, when the HDD 31 recovers from the transient abnormal state and the recording operation becomes possible, the process returns to step a1 in FIG. 2 to transfer the data to the HDD 31 with the preset pixel size and image compression rate. The data recording operation can be resumed.

  Further, in step a13 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, switching information indicating that the recording medium has been switched from the HDD 31 to the nonvolatile memory 23 is provided as one of the abnormality occurrence information indicating that an abnormality has occurred in the HDD 31. To the monitoring center communication device. As a result, maintenance personnel at the monitoring center can be urged to perform repair work, so that the recording operation by the HDD 31 can be restarted at an early stage.

  If the maintenance staff does not come from the monitoring center while the data recording operation to the nonvolatile memory 23 continues, the remaining recording capacity of the nonvolatile memory 23 is lost, and the data recording operation cannot be continued. Can be considered. In this case, since the transmission of the switching information to the monitoring center in step a13 in FIG. 3 is repeatedly performed, when the transmission of the switching information is repeated, in step a15, the recording capacity of the nonvolatile memory 23 is determined. Depending on the remaining amount value, the data amount is further reduced and recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23. Specifically, according to the remaining capacity value of the recording capacity of the nonvolatile memory 23, the multiplexer 14 further reduces the pixel size, and the compressor 18 further increases the image compression rate.

<Second Embodiment>
Next, an information recording / reproducing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The hardware configuration of the information recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present embodiment is the same as the hardware configuration of the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment described above, and therefore is common to the illustrated and first embodiments. Description is omitted.

  4 and 5 are flowcharts showing a processing procedure of the CPU 20 regarding data recording processing in the information recording / reproducing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The processing of the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 is started when the information recording / reproducing apparatus is turned on, that is, turned on by the user, and power is supplied to the information recording / reproducing apparatus, and the process proceeds to step b1.

  Since each process of step b1-step b8 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 4 is the same as each process of step a1-step a8 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 2, description is abbreviate | omitted. Further, steps b9 to b10 and steps b12 to b16 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 5 are the same as steps a9 to a15 in the flowchart shown in FIG.

  In the present embodiment, when the recording medium is switched to the HDD 31 in step b10, the process proceeds to step b11. In step b11, the CPU 20 causes data to be copied from the nonvolatile memory 23 to the HDD 31. More specifically, the CPU 20 causes the data recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23 to be copied and recorded in the HDD 31 during a period when the data recording operation is stopped due to an abnormality in the HDD 31. When data is copied from the nonvolatile memory 23 to the HDD 31, the process proceeds to step b12.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when data is once recorded as a backup in the nonvolatile memory 23 and then the HDD 31 returns to normal operation, the CPU 20 performs the nonvolatile memory via the recording medium interface 22. The data recorded in the HDD 23 is written back to the HDD 31. At this time, the recording data in the HDD 31 is written back so as to be continuous in time series. With this operation, data can be continuously recorded on the HDD 31 without losing data to be recorded even during a period in which the data recording operation is stopped due to an abnormality in the HDD 31.

  The first and second embodiments described above are merely examples of the present invention, and the configuration can be changed within the scope of the present invention. For example, the pixel size and the image compression rate of the data to be recorded need not be fixed to values set in advance as values when data is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23. The nonvolatile memory 23 at the time of recording is not necessarily fixed. May be adjusted according to the remaining recording capacity.

  In the first and second embodiments, an external backup device may be connected to the communication interface 25 of the information recording / reproducing apparatus body 2. When recording to the non-volatile memory 23 becomes impossible by connecting an external backup device, such as when an abnormality occurs in the non-volatile memory 23 or when the remaining recording capacity is exhausted, Data can be transmitted and recorded to a backup device external to the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 via the communication interface 25. As a result, even if data cannot be recorded by any recording means of the HDD 31 and the nonvolatile memory 23, the data can be recorded in the backup device. Therefore, the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 can realize a sufficient backup function with the minimum necessary configuration.

  The backup device may be a recording medium that can perform a recording operation as a backup, and may be configured by, for example, an HDD, a DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disk-Read Only Memory), or a DVD-R (Digital Versatile). It may be constituted by an optical recording medium such as a disk-recordable (DVD-RW), a digital versatile disk-rewriteable (DVD-RW), a Blu-ray disc (BD), or a high definition-digital versatile disk (HD-DVD).

  In the first and second embodiments described above, the non-volatile memory 23 is fixed to the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2. However, in other embodiments of the present invention, the non-volatile memory 23 is detachably provided. May be.

  When the non-volatile memory 23 is provided fixed to the information recording / reproducing apparatus body 2, the configuration of the information recording / reproducing apparatus body 2 can be simplified. Therefore, as described above, the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 that can prevent loss of information when an abnormality occurs in the HDD 31 and can return the HDD 31 to a normal state in a relatively short time can be realized at low cost.

  When the non-volatile memory 23 is provided so as to be removable from the information recording / reproducing apparatus main body 2, the data recorded in the non-volatile memory 23 between the occurrence of an abnormality in the HDD 31 and the replacement of the normal HDD 31 can be easily obtained. Can be taken out to the outside. Therefore, the maintenance staff at the monitoring center can easily collect the data recorded in the nonvolatile memory 23 between the occurrence of an abnormality in the HDD 31 and the replacement with the normal HDD 31. In addition, by replacing the nonvolatile memory 23 in which data is recorded with a new nonvolatile memory 23, the recording operation by the HDD 31 can be restarted at an early stage.

  In the first and second embodiments described above, the main recording medium as the main recording unit is configured by the HDD 31, but is not limited thereto, and may be configured by a recording medium other than the HDD. Good. The non-volatile memory 23 serving as auxiliary recording means is constituted by a flash memory, but may be any recording medium that can perform a recording operation as a so-called backup when a data recording operation cannot be performed on the HDD 31. For example, it may be constituted by an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory).

  Further, the information recording / reproducing apparatus 1 of the first and second embodiments described above is used for monitoring purposes, but is not limited to this, and may be used for other purposes.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Information recording / reproducing apparatus, 2 Information recording / reproducing apparatus main body, 3 Main recording apparatus, 11 Camera, 12 Input terminal, 13 Video decoder, 14 Multiplexer, 15 Output interface, 16 Video encoder, 17 Output terminal, 18 Compressor, 19 Decompression 20 CPU, 21 memory, 22 recording medium interface, 23 non-volatile memory, 24 external interface, 25 communication interface, 31 HDD, 32 dedicated power supply.

Claims (7)

An information recording apparatus capable of recording information input from the outside,
An information recording device main body;
The information recording apparatus main body is configured to be activated independently of the information recording apparatus main body, and includes main recording means for recording the information.
The information recording apparatus main body is:
Detecting means for detecting an abnormality of the main recording means;
An auxiliary recording means for recording the information when the detecting means detects that an abnormality has occurred in the main recording means;
When the detection means detects that an abnormality has occurred in the main recording means, the information recording operation by the main recording means is switched to the information recording operation by the auxiliary recording means, and the main recording means An information recording apparatus comprising: control means for restarting the computer.   The information recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information recording apparatus main body further includes an information amount adjusting unit that adjusts an information amount of the information recorded in the main recording unit and the auxiliary recording unit. The information recording apparatus main body further comprises transmission means capable of transmitting the information to an external recording means via a communication line,
3. The information according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the transmission unit to transmit the information to the external recording unit when the auxiliary recording unit cannot record the information. 4. Recording device. The information recording apparatus main body further includes notification means for notifying the outside of abnormality occurrence information indicating that an abnormality has occurred in the main recording means,
The control means controls the notification means so as to notify the abnormality occurrence information to the outside when the detection means detects that an abnormality has occurred in the main recording means. The information recording device according to any one of 1 to 3.   When the detection unit detects that an abnormality has occurred in the main recording unit and then detects that the abnormality has been resolved, the control unit detects the information from the information recording operation by the auxiliary recording unit. Switching to the information recording operation by the main recording means, and the information recorded in the auxiliary recording means during the period when the abnormality has occurred and the information recording operation by the main recording means is stopped to the main recording means The information recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein recording is performed.   The information recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the main recording unit is a hard disk drive.   The information recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary recording unit is a nonvolatile memory.

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