JP2011096362A - Digital information recorder and reproducer, and transmitter - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method of managing expiration date of information and deleting expired information in order to permit temporary recording or copying of copy-prohibited information or information permitted to be copied only once, while preventing a medium used for copying from being used for other than the purpose against the intention of a copyright holder. <P>SOLUTION: A retention period showing a valid period in the recording medium, a viewing period showing the valid period after the start of reproduction, and a copying period permitting copying on an another medium, as conditions for temporary recording. The copy-prohibited information is permitted to be moved to another medium on condition that the information is erased in the medium. The expired information is erased based on predetermined rules. There is limitations on the number of moves and playbacks, to enhance management of the use conditions. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for recording or reproducing digital information such as video and audio, and in particular, digital information recording capable of giving viewing or copying restrictions to the recorded or reproduced information according to the authority of the copyright holder or the like. The present invention relates to a device and a playback device. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a transmission apparatus that suitably transmits digital information to such a recording / reproducing apparatus.

  In the field of television broadcasting and recording and reproducing devices, and in the field of package media such as movie software, digital broadcasting has started, and consumer-use digital recording and reproducing devices corresponding to this have been released. Package software for this device will appear in the near future.

  An advantage of a digital recording apparatus is that there is no or very little quality degradation during the recording and reproduction process. However, if a large number of high-quality copies are made and distributed without knowing the copyright holder, there is a problem that the profit is not returned to the copyright holder. This is an issue where measures have been studied in various directions since it became a problem with digital audio tape decks. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-146378 discloses a method of making it impossible to make a good quality copy by degrading the quality in advance when digitally recording information.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-146378

  The matter disclosed in the above prior art provides one solution for solving the problem. However, the copyright problem cannot be solved by a method in which either the copyright owner, the broadcasting or software development company, or the general user suffers profit or loss.

  Currently, a copy control signal for controlling copying by a user from the creator side of information data is being studied. For example, Copy Never (copy prohibited), Once Copy (copy allowed only once), No More Copy (copied once with Once Copy, no more can be copied), Copy Free (may be copied) There is a code that puts a code in a header portion of data, or a WM (Water Mark) that is embedded in an image so as to be extremely difficult to detect. This can be a means for solving problems without unilateral loss by either the copyright owner or the user.

  However, even when a strong prohibition is imposed, such as Copy Never, there is a need to record temporarily on a hard disk in the receiving device and view it, for example, so as to reduce the loss on the user side. That means is also necessary. In this case, consideration must be given to reducing the loss on the copyright owner side at the same time.

  In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a means for allowing a user to perform conditional viewing without causing unauthorized copying.

  The Once Copy is for giving the user the convenience of backing up information temporarily recorded on, for example, a hard disk. As a general rule, once you make a copy from here, it becomes No More Copy, and no more copies can be made. However, if copying is permitted only once for the temporarily recorded material, it remains uneasy for the copyright holder to leave the copy permission for a long time. On the other hand, once it became No More Copy, it became impossible to change the medium for storing the contents, which caused inconvenience to the user.

  In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide means for solving the above-mentioned inconvenience of the copyright holder and inconvenience of the user in such a way that the interests of the user, the copyright owner and the like are compatible.

  A further object of the present invention is to provide means for restricting the conditions for permitting reproduction of recorded information, for example, and further controlling the use range of information to the copyright holder.

  In order to achieve the above object, the digital information recording apparatus of the present invention starts with the time when the digital information is recorded on the recording medium, and holds information on a holding period indicating a period during which the digital information is allowed to be held in the recording medium, A recording circuit for recording information including a viewing period information indicating a period during which information is allowed to be reproduced starting from a time at which the information was first reproduced after the information was recorded on the recording medium. In the digital information reproducing apparatus of the present invention, the digital information is reproduced based on the detection circuit that detects the holding period and the viewing period information from the reproduced digital information, and the detected holding period and viewing period information. A control circuit for controlling the operation or the output operation from the device to the outside.

  Here, the control circuit stops the reproduction operation of the digital information or the output operation from the apparatus to the outside when the reproduction time point is expired for either the detected holding period or the viewing period. Alternatively, the control circuit, when the reproduction time point is expired with respect to the detected retention period and is included in the viewing period and continues the reproduction operation, from the digital information reproduction operation or the device. The output operation to the outside is continued within the viewing period unless the device is stopped or temporarily interrupted. Further, the control circuit makes it impossible to reproduce again the digital information once reproduced among the digital information recorded on the recording medium.

  In the digital information reproducing apparatus of the present invention, the detection circuit for detecting the holding period and the viewing period from the reproduced digital information, and the information recorded on the recording medium based on the information on the holding period and the viewing period detected by the detection circuit. A disabling circuit that disables reproduction of at least part of the digital information. The digital information reproducing apparatus of the present invention, when reproducing digital information from a recording medium, continues to reproduce on the recording medium that has been reproduced regardless of the information of the holding period and viewing period detected by the detection circuit. A disabling circuit for disabling reproduction of at least part of the digital information;

  Further, in the digital information recording apparatus of the present invention, after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, a period in which the duplication recording is allowed only once from the first recording medium to the second recording medium different from the first recording medium is performed. And a recording circuit for recording on the first recording medium including the information of the replication period shown. In the digital information reproducing apparatus of the present invention, the reproduced digital information is output for duplication and recording on the second recording medium based on the detection circuit for detecting the duplication period information and the detected duplication period information. And a control circuit for controlling the operation.

  Here, the control circuit stops the output operation of the digital information when the reproduction time point is expired with respect to the detected duplication period. In addition, the control circuit is within the duplication period in which the reproduction operation is started, and even if the reproduction period has expired during the reproduction operation, the control circuit does not Continue to output information.

  In the digital information recording apparatus of the present invention, after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, it is prohibited to copy and record the digital information from the first recording medium to a second recording medium different from the first recording medium. Even if the information is recorded, it is recorded on the second recording medium including movement permission information that allows the digital information to be moved on the assumption that at least a part of the digital information on the first recording medium is disabled to be reproduced. It has a recording circuit. In the digital information reproducing apparatus of the present invention, the reproduced digital information is moved to the second recording medium based on the detection circuit for detecting the movement permission information and the detected movement permission information from the reproduced digital information. And a control circuit that controls the operation to be output, and a playback disable circuit that disables playback of at least part of the digital information on the first recording medium.

  Here, the movement permission information includes information indicating the number of movement permission times when the digital information on the first recording medium is moved to the second recording medium.

  Further, the digital information recording apparatus of the present invention has a recording circuit for recording including information of a reproducible period indicating a period during which reproduction of the digital information recorded on the recording medium is permitted. In the digital information reproducing apparatus of the present invention, a detection circuit for detecting the reproducible period from the reproduced digital information, and a reproduction operation of the digital information or an external operation from the apparatus based on the detected information of the reproducible period. And a control circuit for controlling the output operation.

  In the digital information recording apparatus of the present invention, the digital information includes a recording circuit that records information including the number of reproducible times indicating the number of times digital information recorded on the recording medium is allowed to be reproduced. In the digital information reproducing apparatus of the present invention, a detection circuit for detecting the number of reproducible times from the reproduced digital information, and a reproducing operation of the digital information or an output from the device to the outside based on the information of the reproducible number of times detected. And a control circuit for controlling the operation. Here, the control circuit rewrites the reproducible number of times at a predetermined timing.

  Furthermore, in order to achieve the above object, the digital information transmitting apparatus according to the present invention starts with the time when the digital information is recorded on the recording medium, and holds the holding period information indicating the period during which the digital information is allowed to be held in the recording medium. After the information is recorded on the recording medium, it has a transmission circuit that transmits information including a viewing period information indicating a period in which the information is allowed to be reproduced starting from the first reproduction time.

  In the digital information transmitting apparatus according to the present invention, after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, the duplication indicating a period in which duplication recording is permitted only once from the first recording medium to the second recording medium different from the first recording medium. A transmission circuit for transmitting information including period information is included.

  In the digital information transmitting apparatus of the present invention, after digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, it is prohibited to copy and record the digital information from the first recording medium to a second recording medium different from the first recording medium. Even if the digital information is transferred, the digital information on the first recording medium is transmitted on the second recording medium including movement permission information that allows the digital information to be moved on the assumption that reproduction is disabled. A transmission circuit;

  The digital information transmitting apparatus according to the present invention further includes a transmission circuit that transmits information including a reproducible period or a reproducible number of times indicating a period or number of times the digital information recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus is allowed to be reproduced.

  As described above, according to the present invention, information with a strong copy restriction can be temporarily recorded by defining the holding period and the viewing period. In addition, since the playback period is limited, the copyright holder or the like can protect the authority. That is, it is possible to achieve both the benefits of the user and the copyright holder. In addition, there is an effect that it is possible to secure safety against illegal copying and the like by deleting information when the period has passed. Furthermore, the process can be simplified by erasing the data for each time and data amount, or by erasing only a specific portion of the recorded information.

  In addition, once the copy restriction of Once Copy is imposed, the time limit can be set by specifying the duplication period, and the anxiety of the copyright holder due to the fact that the Once Copy remains for a long time can be solved. Even after “No More Copy” was introduced, by introducing a mode to move on the premise of erasing the information on the original medium, it is possible to transfer the medium to the user even under the condition that there is only one copied medium. Give a replacement flight. Further, there is an effect that the period during which the movement can be performed can be limited as necessary.

  Furthermore, the process can be simplified by erasing the data for each time and data amount, or by erasing only a specific part of the recorded information. In addition, by limiting the number of times of movement, the number of times of reproduction, the reproducible period, etc., there is also an effect that the use condition management can be further strengthened.

1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an entire digital information transmission / reception recording / reproduction system to which a digital information recording apparatus, reproduction apparatus and transmission apparatus according to the present invention are applied. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the digital information transmitter by this invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the digital information receiving side in FIG. 1. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the recording circuit of the digital information recording device by this invention. It is a block diagram of a recording / reproducing unit of a digital information recording apparatus and a reproducing apparatus according to the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a reproducing circuit of a digital information reproducing apparatus according to the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows other embodiment of the reproducing circuit of the digital information reproducing | regenerating apparatus by this invention. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the 1st control information in this invention. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the copy control information in this invention. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the 2nd control information in this invention. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the recording data on the recording medium in this invention. It is a block diagram which shows other embodiment of the reproducing circuit of the digital information reproducing | regenerating apparatus by this invention. It is a block diagram which shows other embodiment of the recording circuit of the digital information recording device by this invention. It is a block diagram which shows other embodiment of the digital information reproducing | regenerating apparatus by this invention. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an erasing circuit of a digital information reproducing apparatus according to the present invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings as necessary. If the copyright holder or the like has originally imposed strong copy restrictions such as Copy Never, it is unavoidable that the items permitted by the user are restricted as such.

  For this reason, in the present invention, firstly, it is possible to define a valid period of information permitted to be temporarily recorded in the recording medium. The device has a means to prevent playback and viewing after a specified time has elapsed after recording, thereby preventing the temporary recording of the medium from being used for a later date. Can do. Here, the valid period in the recording medium is referred to as a “holding period”. Further, it is possible to define a valid period after the start of reproduction. Since the apparatus has a means for preventing playback and viewing again after a specified time has elapsed after the start of the first playback, it can be prevented from being viewed by an unspecified number of users. Here, this period is referred to as a “viewing period”.

  The holding period is often set to be equal to or longer than the viewing period, but it is not necessary to limit to this. In addition, many playback apparatuses can temporarily stop (Pause) or stop (Stop) the operation during playback. Therefore, even if playback is started during the viewing period, the holding period may end before reaching the end. In this case, the operation may be set by the apparatus so that further reproduction cannot be performed simultaneously with the end of the holding period. On the other hand, for the user, it is also possible to continuously view the place and beyond only once to the end. In this case, it is also possible to make it a condition that no further interruption or stop is possible.

  Next, in the description of the embodiment of the present invention described below, the description will be made including the case where the part once viewed cannot be viewed again. This can be realized by making it impossible to reverse the medium, or by making it impossible to reproduce the portion that has been played once even if it is reversed.

  Even if the copyright holder or the like originally imposes copy restrictions such as Once Copy, the items permitted for the user are limited to some extent. In order to prevent the temporarily recorded information from staying in the medium for a long time in the Once Copy state, in the present invention, first, after the information is recorded, it is possible to define an effective period for staying as the Once Copy in the recording medium. . After the specified time has elapsed after recording, the device treats the information as No More Copy, and has a means to prevent copying, eliminating concerns on the copyright owner side by staying on Once Copy for a long time. To do. Here, the above-described effective period is referred to as a “duplication period”. In a medium whose duplication period has expired or a medium copied within this duplication period, the information is No More Copy and cannot be copied. However, it is possible to move to another medium on the assumption that the original information is erased. This eliminates inconvenience on the user side. Further, if necessary, a period during which this movement can be performed after No More Copy or a period during which the movement can be performed again after this movement is determined. Here, this is called a “movable period”.

  Even if copying is started during the duplication period, if the operation is temporarily interrupted (Pause) or stopped (Stop) during playback, the period may end before reaching the end. sell. In this case, the operation may be set by the apparatus so that no more copies can be made simultaneously with the end of the duplication period. On the other hand, for the user, it is also possible to continuously copy from the place to the end only once. In this case, it is also possible to make it a condition that no further interruption or stop is possible.

  First, the entire transmission / reception recording / reproducing system including an information provider will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. This includes a recording medium, a recording apparatus, a reproducing apparatus and a transmitting apparatus according to the present invention. 1 is a reproducing circuit, 2 is a recording circuit, 3 is an information providing station such as a broadcasting station, 4 is a relay station, 5 is a receiving RF (Radio Frequency) unit, 6 is a recording / reproducing unit, and 7 is a display.

  The information providing station 3 such as a broadcasting station transmits a signal radio wave modulated by information via a relay station 4 such as a broadcasting satellite. Of course, other than that, for example, transmission by cable may be used. In the receiving RF unit 5 on the receiving side, after being received and demodulated, it is converted into a signal suitable for recording on the recording medium by the recording circuit 2 and recorded in the recording / reproducing unit 6. When this information is reproduced from the recording / reproducing unit 6, a reproduction signal is given to the display 7 via the reproduction circuit 1, and the original information such as video and audio can be viewed. Although not shown, the received information can be directly viewed. When information recorded in advance on a removable recording medium is provided, the reproducing operation and subsequent operations in the recording / reproducing unit 6 are performed.

  The block diagram of FIG. 2 shows one embodiment of the configuration of the information providing station (transmitting apparatus) 3 such as a broadcasting station. Reference numeral 31 denotes a source generation unit, 32 denotes an encoding circuit that performs compression by the MPEG method, 33 denotes a scramble circuit, 34 denotes a modulation circuit, 35 denotes a transmission antenna, 36 denotes a management information addition circuit, and 37 denotes an input terminal.

  Information such as video and audio generated by the source generation unit 31 including a camera and a recording / reproducing device is compressed by the encoding circuit 32 so that the information can be transmitted in a smaller occupied band. After being encrypted so that only a specific viewer can view and modulated by the modulation circuit 34 to be a signal suitable for transmission, the signal is transmitted from the transmission antenna 35 to a relay station such as a broadcasting satellite. Are emitted as radio waves. At this time, the management information adding circuit 36 adds copy control information, information such as a holding / viewing period / duplication period, and the like. In addition to this, current time information or the like may be given so that it can be used as the starting point of the holding period / duplication period. Further, although not shown in FIG. 1 above, for example, request information is input from the input terminal 37 via a telephone line or the like. This is utilized in a system for determining information to be transmitted in response to a viewer's request such as video on demand.

  The block diagram of FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the reception RF unit 5 shown in FIG. Reference numeral 51 is an RF / IF conversion circuit, 52 is a demodulation circuit, 53 is a descrambling circuit for canceling the encryption applied to the signal, and 54 is an output terminal.

  For example, radio waves from a relay station such as a broadcasting satellite are input to the RF / IF conversion circuit 51. Here, the radio wave in the RF band is frequency-converted to an IF band (Intermediate Frequency), becomes a signal in a certain band independent of the reception channel, and after the modulation operation performed for transmission in the demodulation circuit 52 is demodulated, The descrambling circuit 53 cancels the encryption and outputs it to the output terminal 54.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the recording circuit 2. 201 is an input terminal for a signal to be recorded, 202 is a storage means such as a semiconductor memory, 203 is a recording encoding circuit, 204 is an output terminal for a signal to be recorded on a recording medium, 205 is a control detection circuit, 206 is a recording control circuit, 107 Is a clock, and an input terminal 208 is an input terminal for recording a control signal during reproduction, which will be described later.

  Various control codes are attached to the signal input from the input terminal 201, and a case will be described in which there is one for specifying the holding period and the viewing period as described above, for example, Copy Never regarding copy information. In the case of broadcasting, for example, the information is added to the information from the management information adding circuit 36 of FIG. The input data is temporarily stored in the storage unit 202 for each block. This is given to the control detection circuit 205, and the above-described copy-related control information is detected. Further, based on this, the recording control circuit 206 determines whether or not this signal can be recorded, and sends the result to the recording encoding circuit 203. When the recording encoding circuit 203 is supplied with the data from the storage means 202 and the recording is prohibited based on the control signal from the recording control circuit 206, the signal is cut off and the recording is permitted. Performs modulation suitable for the medium to be used and outputs to the output terminal 204. The output signal is recorded on a medium such as a tape or a disk. For example, even if the control information is Copy Never, if a valid holding period and viewing period are specified, the control information is temporarily recorded on the medium. Of course, the control signal may not be detected by the control detection circuit 205 but may be supplied from the outside separately from data such as video and audio.

  When recording is possible, the recording control circuit 206 generates copy control information, information such as a holding period and a viewing period, and the recording encoding circuit 203 adds the information to the recording signal. Further, the current time at the time of recording output from the clock 107 is simultaneously recorded as necessary. If the current time is included in the received information, it may be used, or the clock 107 may be calibrated with the received information. Thereby, alteration of the current time to be recorded can be prevented.

  If the previous control information is Once Copy, if an effective duplication period and a movable period are designated as necessary, the Once Copy information is temporarily recorded on the medium as it is. If the control information is No More Copy, for example, the output of the recording encoding circuit 203 is cut off so that it cannot be copied in principle. However, in the case of an apparatus that permits the above-described movement mode, recording on a medium is permitted while performing No More Copy on the premise that the corresponding information on the apparatus sending information side is deleted. At this time, it may be necessary to send information about whether or not the erasing operation of the sending device is a device corresponding to the movement mode to the recording device. The above control information including this information is not detected by the control detection circuit 205 but may be supplied from the outside separately from data such as video and audio.

  Further, when specifying the movable period as described above, even if the apparatus is compatible with the movement mode, the movement cannot be performed after this period. Even if the detected control information is Once Copy, when there is no information such as a duplication period, the control information is preferably changed to No More Copy by the recording encoding circuit 203 when recording.

  The block diagram of FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of the recording / reproducing unit 6 shown in FIG. Reference numeral 61 denotes an input terminal, 62 denotes a recording amplifier, 63 denotes a recording medium drive equipped with a recording medium such as a hard disk, digital video disk, and video tape, 64 denotes a reproduction amplifier, 65 denotes an output terminal, 66 denotes a mechanism control circuit, and 67 denotes an input Terminal.

  An output signal from the recording circuit 2 is supplied to the input terminal 61. This is amplified by the recording amplifier 62 so that the laser generating element and the magnetic head can be driven, and then recorded on the recording medium as described above by the recording medium drive 63. The signal reproduced from here is amplified to a level at which the signal processing in the subsequent stage can be performed by the regenerative amplifier 64 and then output to the output terminal 65. Reference numeral 66 denotes a mechanism control circuit such as a motor for driving the recording medium drive 63, which controls the recording medium by a control signal from the input terminal 67. Although not shown, a control signal input to the input terminal 67 is input from the recording circuit 2 or the reproduction circuit 1.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the reproducing circuit 1 of the information reproducing apparatus according to the present invention. 101 is a reproduction signal input terminal, 102 is a reproduction decoding circuit, 103 is a block reproduction circuit, 104 is a storage means such as a semiconductor memory, 105 is an error correction circuit, 106 is a signal output circuit, 107 is a clock, 108 is a video compression Decoding circuit for decoding, 109 is a decoding circuit for WM (digital watermark) embedded in the image, 110 is an output terminal for sending a signal to the display, 111 is a control signal detection circuit, 112 is a reproduction signal based on the control signal An output control circuit that determines whether output is possible, 113 is an output terminal of a signal before the encryption is canceled, 114 is an output terminal of a determination result, and 116 is an output terminal of control information to the input terminal 208 of the recording circuit 2.

  First, the case where the reproduction signal supplied to the input terminal 101 includes data related to the holding period and the viewing period will be described. This signal is given to the reproduction decoding circuit 102. Here, the modulation applied on the recording side for recording / reproducing on the medium is demodulated, the waveform is equalized, and the data is determined by the clock. Next, the block reproduction circuit 103 detects a synchronization signal, an ID signal, etc., and the reproduction data is temporarily stored in a predetermined position of the storage means 104 based on the detection. The error correction circuit 105 detects an error in the code generated in the recording / reproducing process and corrects it to a correct value by an arithmetic operation from the stored data. The data after error correction is sent to the decoding circuit 108 via the signal output circuit 106.

  The output of the signal output circuit 106 is also given to the output terminal 113. This is used for further copying with another recording device connected to this terminal. However, in the case of a signal subjected to strong copy restriction as described above, the signal output here is the Never Copy, and often cannot be copied. Further, the output of the output control circuit 112 described later may be given to the signal output circuit 106, and the signal may not be given to the output terminal 113 here.

  On the other hand, the data of the holding period and the viewing period are detected by the control signal detection circuit 111 from the data subjected to the error correction. As will be described later, this information is sufficient if it is once per frame of an image. For example, in the case of a tape medium, it may be in the header of a recording track. Further, it may be once for every predetermined amount of data. Further, when recorded more frequently, it may be detected by thinning out during reproduction. Next, the output control circuit 112 determines whether or not reproduction output is possible based on the detected holding time, viewing time, reproduction start time, recording time, current time from the clock 107, and the like, and the decoding circuit 108. Control the output to. The control detection circuit 111 also detects control signals such as Copy Never and No More Copy, and controls the signal output circuit 106 with the output of the output control circuit 112. When copying is prohibited, the signal is reproduced to the output terminal 113. The signal may not be output.

  The output of the output control circuit 112 is also given to the output terminal 114. This is information that allows recording / reproduction with an externally connected device, for example, to a signal detected by the control detection circuit 111. It is used when sending it to the outside, such as when there is. For example, when it is determined that the retention period has already expired, this information may be sent from the output terminal 114 to the input terminal 67 of FIG. 5 and the recording medium drive 63 may be stopped.

  The output of the previous signal output circuit 106 is decoded by moving picture data compression performed before transmission by the decoding circuit 108, and is given to the output terminal 110 so that it can be viewed on a display connected thereto. The output from the output terminal 110 may be a decoded digital signal as it is, or may be converted into an analog signal and output.

  Note that the WM decryption circuit 109 performs detection when a copyright holder, copy control information, or the like is embedded as an electronic watermark in an image. Similar control may be performed using information detected from the digital watermark instead of the signal detected by the control detection circuit 111.

  The watch 107 is naturally required to have a certain degree of accuracy. Anything that can be easily changed by the user's malicious intentions will not serve the purpose. It is desirable that the time information from a broadcasting station or the like be controlled. If the time is changed intentionally, the apparatus may not be operated thereafter.

  Next, when the reproduction signal supplied to the input terminal 101 includes data relating to the above-described duplication period, a different part from the above will be described. In this case, the control signal detection circuit 111 detects copy control information such as Once Copy and data of the duplication period. The output control circuit 112 determines whether copying is possible based on the detected control information, duplication period, recorded time, current time from the clock 107, and the like, and sends the result to the signal output circuit 106. Here, if it is Copy Once and within the duplication period, the reproduction signal is passed. On the medium of the external device that creates the copy, the control signal has changed to No More Copy. If it is Copy Once but the replication period has passed, it can be rewritten as No More Copy, and copying with an external device can be disabled. If necessary, the information in the medium may be rewritten as “No More Copy” by a recording circuit, which is not shown in the figure. Of course, the rewriting on the reproducing side is not limited to the signal output circuit 106 but may be performed by another reproducing circuit block.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the reproducing circuit according to the present invention. The same components as those in the embodiment of FIG. The difference from FIG. 6 is that the decoding circuit 108, the WM decoding circuit 109, and the output terminal 110 are removed. These are often built in the display 7 of FIG. 1, and in this case, the reproduction circuit is separated as a single unit, and the configuration of FIG. 7 is obtained. The output control circuit 112 sends a control signal to the signal output circuit 106 based on information such as the holding period, viewing period, duplication period, and copy control information detected by the control detection circuit 111, and whether or not the signal can be output to the outside. Control rewriting of control information. As in the embodiment of FIG. 6, the signal at the output terminal 113 may be given to another external recording device in addition to the display.

  FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the first control signal transmitted from the information providing station 3 and recorded on the recording medium at the time of recording in the above embodiment. For example, in the case of a tape medium, it suffices if one piece is recorded on one recording track, but it is naturally recorded in a fixed relationship with data such as video and audio, and can be easily separated during reproduction. The program number 300 indicates the number of the program on the medium. The sector information 301 is a sector number obtained by dividing the program by a predetermined unit. The division may be a fixed unit, for example, a unit of 2 kbytes, or a fixed unit of information, for example, a unit for division when encoding. The number may be given in the program or may be a serial number for the entire recording medium. Information such as a recording time 305 to be described later is added in units of sectors. The time information 302 indicates how much time has passed since the program started. The type 303 indicates attribute information such as whether the program is sold, rented, self-made, or broadcast. The copy control 304 indicates the control information described above such as Copy Never and Once Copy.

  FIG. 9 shows the configuration of the copy information 304. Reference numeral 311 denotes version information indicating which version the information is of. As described below, the copy control 304 needs to be flexible enough to add or delete items other than those shown in FIG. 9 as necessary. Therefore, version management is performed so that what kind of information is arranged in any order can be determined in any number of ways. For example, if 8 bits are assigned to the version information 311, 256 types of copy control 304 can be used.

  Reference numeral 312 denotes output control information that controls whether output from the digital output terminal 113 or the analog output terminal 110 is permitted. In the output control, whether or not output is possible may be controlled depending on whether the security can be ensured by encryption or the like according to the output form. Furthermore, output permission / inhibition may be controlled by resolution or the like. For example, in the case of a high-resolution video signal such as a high-definition video, the output may be rejected as it is, but control may be performed so that an output is possible if the video signal has a reduced resolution.

  Reference numeral 313 denotes copy control information (CGMS: Copy Generation Management System) to the digital recording device. For example, it is 2-bit information, if 11 is Copy Never (copy prohibited), 10 is Once Copy (copy is allowed only once), 01 is No More Copy (one copy by Once Copy, If it is 00, “Copy Free” is acceptable. Different CGMS may be given to each of the digital signal output and the analog signal output.

  Reference numeral 314 denotes copy control information (APS; Analog Protection System) for an analog recording device, which controls whether or not copying is possible by adding a pseudo sync pulse to the analog video signal.

Reference numeral 315 denotes information about whether or not the move (movement) is possible. MOVE is to erase recorded information after copying to another medium. In this way, since there is always only one piece of copied information, the copy state can be maintained substantially only once, regardless of how many times the information is copied. For normal copy, Once
When Copy information is copied, the copy information is changed to No More Copy to prevent further copying. However, when MOVE is performed, the information is returned to Once Copy and sent to the copy destination. And erase the original information after copying. The move information 315 may define the number of times the move can be performed in addition to whether the move is possible. In this case, the number of times of information may be reduced every time MOVE is performed. For example, if 4 bits are assigned to MOVE 305, the number of moves from 0 to 15 can be defined. Also, in this case, when all 4 bits are 1, the number of times may be defined as unlimited, not 15 times.

  Reference numeral 316 defines the number of times PB (reproduction) can be performed. Of course, this is defined as necessary. This is used when it is desired to limit the number of reproductions as well as the effective period due to the holding period. Similarly to the MOVE count, this information may be reduced every time playback is performed, and if all bits are initially 1, it may be handled that there is no limit on the count.

  Reference numeral 317 denotes information on a reproducible period, which is used when a time limit is imposed on the reproduction operation. For example, if 16 bits are allocated in units of minutes, a limit of up to about 45 days is possible. Again, if all bits are 1, it may be treated as unlimited.

  318 specifies the time during which PAUSE (pause) can be performed. The handling of this is the same as in the reproducible period 317. Reference numeral 319 designates a restriction on the use start time. As described in the explanation of the retention period above, in addition to the method of restricting use starting from the recorded time, use is permitted starting from absolute time, such as midnight on January 1, 2001, for example. There is a need. Use this when you want simultaneous release. If this is exceeded, for example, reproduction output is permitted. The information may indicate the absolute time itself, or may indicate the time difference from the time agreed upon by the same company (for example, midnight on January 1, 1970). If all the bits are 0, the recording time may be set as the starting point.

  As described above, all of the contents of the copy control 304 in FIG. 9 are not essential, and some of them may be omitted. Further, a movable period 307B to be described later may be added instead of the position shown in FIG. 8, for example, between the move 315 and the PB 316.

  In FIG. 8, the recording time 305 records, for example, the time of the clock 107 in FIG. 4 or the time given by the management information adding circuit 36 in FIG. Recording at the recording time 305 is performed in units of sectors, for example.

  Reference numeral 306A denotes a holding time, 306B denotes a duplication period, 307A denotes a viewing period, and 307B denotes information about a movable period. 306A, 306B, 307A, and 307B may all have information, but only two of 306A and 307A, only two of 306B and 307B, or only one of 306B, for example, may be written. is there.

  In the information set as Copy Never, the holding period 306A and the viewing period 307A are defined by the copyright owner or the software creator as described above. For example, the holding time is 9 hours and the viewing time is 2 hours. . If you do not need to limit the period, you can add the No Limit code. In addition to this, a limit on the number of times of reproduction may be defined. The same applies to the duplication period 306B and the movable period 307B in the information set as Once Copy, and the latter is given only when necessary. A restriction on the number of movements may also be specified.

  The user identification 308 is recorded when a user-specific code is used so that information recorded on the medium can be reproduced only by the same device or user as when recording. The encrypted information 309 is used when decrypting at the time of reproduction when it is encrypted and recorded on a recording medium. These will be further described later with reference to FIGS. Since the information itself has a large amount of data, a code number may be recorded, and the corresponding information stored in advance by the playback device may be extracted and used. The above is recorded at a relatively fine time pitch such as every frame of video or every fixed amount of data as required. Although the present invention can be implemented by adopting the configuration of the control signal as described above, the configuration shown in FIG. 8 is an example, and various configurations such as configuration, recording position on the medium, and frequency can be applied.

  FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the second control signal recorded during reproduction in this embodiment. 321 is a reproduction start time, 322 is a reproduction start sector, and 323 is a reproduction end sector. The reproduction start time 321 is recorded, for example, as given by the clock 107 in FIG. When the reproduction is stopped, the sector number at that position is recorded in the reproduction end sector 323. Since the reproduction time of the sector in the middle can be calculated from the reproduction start time 321, the reproduction times of all the reproduced sectors can be known. Of course, the reproduction time may be recorded for each sector.

  Further, for example, in the case of a tape medium, each control information shown in FIG. 10 may be recorded somewhere near the stop when returning to the stop mode during reproduction. Such control information can be recorded using, for example, the recording circuit of FIG.

  The recording positions of these control signals on the medium will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 schematically shows the recording position of the control signal on the recording medium and the information data such as video and audio. In the figure, (a) is suitable for a tape medium. In this case, it is desirable that the control signal block be provided for each recording track, for example. Therefore, for example, a control signal block is arranged in the header portion of each track in advance of information such as video and audio. (b) is suitable for a digital video disc or the like. In this case, it is desired that there is a certain amount of information for each sector. Therefore, each sector is arranged in its header part. (c) is suitable for a hard disk or the like. In this case, information such as video and audio and the control signal are recorded at positions separated on the disk so that the entire control signal can be read within a short time at the time of activation. Alternatively, the first control information may be recorded in the header portion, and the second control information may be recorded at a remote position. Since the second control information is information to be recorded or rewritten at the time of reproduction, it must be recorded at an independent position. The second control information may be recorded not in the recording medium but in, for example, a storage element attached to the exterior of the recording medium, the storage unit 104, or a storage element in an independent apparatus.

  Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 12 is a block diagram of the reproducing circuit 1 and FIG. 13 is a block diagram of the recording circuit 2. Components that are the same as those in FIGS. 6 and 4 are given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted. This embodiment is effective when it is required to allow only a predetermined user to view or when charging is required.

  In FIG. 12, 131 is a decryption circuit, 132 is an input terminal for an identification code unique to the apparatus, 233 is an encryption circuit in FIG. 13, and 234 is an input terminal for an identification code of the apparatus that is unique to the apparatus or permits reproduction.

  In the encryption circuit 233 of FIG. 13, encryption is performed using the device identification code from the input terminal 234. Two types of encryption may be performed in layers without descrambling by the reception RF unit 5. In the decryption circuit 131 of FIG. 12, decryption is performed by the device identification code from the input terminal 132. If the identification code is not a predetermined one, normal decryption is not performed and viewing is impossible.

  Here, an example is shown in which encryption is performed using an apparatus identification code. However, this code may be recorded in addition to the control signal block described above, and may be detected on the reproduction side to determine whether the signal can be output. Encryption may be performed in units of programs. However, if encryption is performed by changing the encryption key in units of sectors and each key is recorded, processing can be performed in units of sectors.

  Next, an example of the control for the holding period 306A and the viewing period 307A during reproduction will be described. First, at the start of reproduction, if the difference between the recording time 305 of the sector to be reproduced and the current time indicated by the clock 107 is within the holding period 306A, reproduction is started. At the same time, the reproduction start time 321 and the reproduction start sector 322 are recorded as the second control information. When the reproduction is stopped, the reproduction end sector 323 is recorded. When paused, the playback end sector 323 is recorded in the same manner as when playback is stopped, and when pause is released, the same processing as when playback is started is performed. That is, the time is confirmed again, and if it is within the holding period 306A, reproduction is started. When reverse feed is performed, the playback time of the place is confirmed, and if the difference from the current time is within the viewing period 307A, playback is permitted. Further, when fast-forwarding is performed, it can be understood that the place where fast-forwarding has been performed is not reproduced by confirming the second control information. Therefore, when reproducing, only the holding period 306A is involved regardless of the viewing period 307A. To determine whether or not playback is possible. That is, the playable period after recording by the holding period 306A and the playable period after playing once by the viewing period 307A are controlled.

  In addition, the period during which suspension is possible can be controlled by the viewing period 307A. In this case, whether or not the first reproduction is started is controlled by the holding period 306A, and after the reproduction is started, when the reproduction is stopped or paused, the stopped period is measured and is within the viewing period 307A. If so, resumption of reproduction is permitted, and resumption of reproduction is prohibited if the viewing period 307A is exceeded. Further, by prohibiting reverse feed, it is possible to reliably permit only one playback. In this case, control can be performed without recording the second control information.

  When the information controlled in the holding period 306A or the viewing period 307A is output as a digital signal from the output terminal 113 after reproduction, the holding period 306A or the viewing period 307A of the control information added to the information is reduced, or , 0 can also be considered.

  The case where 306B indicates a duplication period and 307B indicates a movable period is as follows. First, at the start of reproduction, if the difference between the recording time 305 of the sector to be reproduced and the current time indicated by the clock 107 is within the duplication period 306B, normal reproduction is started and a reproduction signal for duplication is output to the outside. As described above, since the copy control information remains as Once Copy in the signal that is reproduced and output to the outside, it can be recorded by an external device. However, since it is rewritten as “No More Copy” at the time of recording, no further copying is possible. If playback is stopped or paused after playback is started and playback is next started, if the copy period has already expired, for example, the copy control information may be changed to No More Copy to prohibit replication. In addition, if it is only once, reproduction may be performed with the Once Copy as it is until the end, and duplication may be permitted.

  In other words, the period during which copying is possible after recording by the duplication period 306B is controlled. After the duplication period expires, other recording devices are only allowed to move to another medium on the premise of erasing the original information. If it is detected at the start of reproduction that the duplication period has expired by the above method, the information in which the copy control information is rewritten as No More Copy is added with the information of the movable period 307B as necessary. The original information is moved to an external recording device, and the original information is erased from the medium by a method described later. Thereafter, if the difference between the recording time 305 and the current time indicated by the clock 107 is within the movable period 307B, the movement between the media is possible. If this also expires, it cannot be moved. If the movable period 307B is not given, there is no restriction on the period of movement. In other words, the movable period after the end of the duplication period is controlled by the movable period 307B.

  Up to this point, when copying to an external recording device within the replication period, the copy control information on the original recording medium has been described as changing from Once Copy to No More Copy along with the copy. As a change, a plurality of first-generation copies may be made.

  There are several methods for managing whether to output (viewing, copying, or moving) information to be reproduced when viewed in time units. This is also a problem associated with the control signal recording method described above. If one image, that is, a holding period, a viewing period or a duplication period is managed for each frame, the strictest management is possible. However, the management for each frame imposes a considerable burden on the hardware operation, including the problem of erasure described later. Therefore, the processing load can be reduced by performing management in a certain time unit. For example, if the holding period 306A to the viewing period 307A is controlled to have an allowable range of 1 minute and the holding period 306A to the viewing period 307A is 120 minutes, the control may be performed between 120 minutes and 121 minutes. Can be managed. Further, an allowable range may be provided for each predetermined number of image units or for a fixed amount of data.

  The management of the number of MOVE (movement) and the number of PB (reproduction) shown in FIG. 9 will be described. In the case of movement, basically, every time it is performed, the reproduction signal is given to the external recording device by reducing the number of times by one. If the copy control signal is No More Copy while the number of times is specified, this may be changed to Once Copy and output, and may be changed to No More Copy when recording with an external recording device. Further, the number of times may be reduced by one and output only when the external recording device is a device corresponding to movement in view of the erasing action described later. On the other hand, if the device does not support movement, the number of times may be rewritten to 0 and output so that further movement is impossible. It should be noted that the device on the reproduction signal sending side needs to have an erasing action corresponding to movement as described later. A control signal indicating this may be sent to an external recording device.

  On the other hand, with respect to the number of playbacks, for example, when the playback is interrupted, the management method becomes a problem. There is a method in which the number of times is managed by one content and the number of times is reduced by 1 after a certain period of reproduction. Pause is good, but when stop is applied, the number of times may be reduced by one. Although the stop is good, the number of times may be reduced by 1 when the medium is fed backward.

  The management of the reproducible period 317 will be described. If the reproducible period ends before the program reaches the end during the playback operation, the playback output operation may be prohibited. However, the playback output may continue until the end unless the playback operation is stopped. . In the latter case, playback can be performed once unless it expires at the start of playback. Detection of these pieces of information during reproduction is performed by the control detection circuit 111 in FIG. Information rewriting is performed, for example, by the signal output circuit 106 of FIG. Thereby, further strengthening of use condition management can be aimed at.

  Next, a method for erasing information on the medium will be described. Here, “erasing” includes not only literally erasing but also a case where valid information cannot be reproduced by rewriting at least part of information on the medium. In some cases, the management of the effective period as described above in the reproducing circuit may not be sufficient for the future. If a medium on which information is recorded remains, even if playback and viewing cannot be performed at the present time, there is a possibility that a method that can be viewed by breaking the method will appear. Therefore, if the information on the medium is deleted after reproduction or after the holding period 306A and the viewing period 307A have passed, the safety can be further improved. In addition, when the above-described move (move) is performed, it is necessary to erase information on the medium after copying.

  First, consider the unit of information to be deleted. First, when the time expires, it can be considered to erase in units of frames. For example, management is performed in a larger time unit, and for example, it is possible to manage every minute and delete items that are within one minute until expiration. Further, management may be performed in units of a plurality of image frames, and those that have been within a specified time until expiration may also be erased together. The same operation may be performed for each fixed amount of data.

  Consider the timing to erase. As described above, there is a method of deciding the erasing timing by linking to the holding period and the viewing period in some form. In addition, here, once viewed, if it is not allowed to view again, it is possible to erase it when it is played back even before the expiration date. When the media expires and cannot be erased when it expires, it can be erased when it is next loaded.

  Also in the case of movement, it is conceivable to erase information moved to the next medium in units of frames. It is conceivable that management is performed in a larger time unit, for example, management every 1 minute, and erasing data within one minute after movement. Further, it may be managed in units of a plurality of image frames, and may be erased collectively at a specified time. The same operation may be performed for each fixed amount of data. Further, after one program has been copied to the next medium, all the programs may be erased together.

  Next, an actual erase operation will be described with reference to the drawings. The method of erasing varies depending on what the medium is. First, an application example in a disk medium will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the information reproducing apparatus of the present invention. The block diagram of the reproduction circuit shown in FIG. 6 and the circuit block diagram shown in FIG. 4 are integrated, and a medium detection circuit 207 is further added. Of course, a reproducing circuit having the configuration shown in FIG. 7 or 12 may be used instead of FIG.

  FIG. 14 is suitable for a disk medium. There are RW (or RAM) type in which recording can be rewritten many times, and R type that cannot be rewritten once recorded. The fact that it cannot be rewritten means that it cannot be erased, and when applying the erasure after the expiration date assumed here, or when moving, the recording in the R form must be rejected from the beginning. The medium detection circuit 207 is provided for this purpose. When an R-shaped disk is mounted and erasure or movement after the expiration date is assumed, a control signal is sent to the recording encoding circuit 203 for recording. Block sign output. As a medium detection method, several methods are known, such as reading a symbol attached to the outside of the recording unit of the medium, reading a code recorded in advance in a part of the recording unit, and judging by reflectance. .

  The output of the output-side output control circuit 112 is also sent to the recording encoding circuit 203. Based on the previous holding period, viewing period, etc., or when movement is performed, the output control circuit 112 generates a control signal instructing erasure. In response to this, the recording / coding circuit 203 generates a code for erasing the corresponding portion on the medium. This may be a code that has no meaning as information. As described above, there is a method of erasing the entire data by managing in units of frames. However, this may not be practical considering the processing time. Even if it is a frame unit, for example, even if only the control signal portion shown in FIG. 8 is erased, or especially only the encrypted information 309 is erased, the purpose can be sufficiently achieved.

  This is applicable not only in the frame unit management but also in the time unit, image group unit, or prescribed data amount unit. For example, management is performed in units of one minute, and it is preferable to delete control signals for data that is within one minute until the expiration date expires or data that is within one minute after movement. When encrypted information is recorded, there is a method of deleting only scramble information.

  Furthermore, control signals for each unit to be managed, for example, when encrypted, scramble information is recorded together in one place on the medium. At the time of reproduction including movement, these are collectively reproduced, stored in a specific location in the storage means 104, and deleted from the medium. When playback is stopped halfway, the process of erasing can be simplified by performing the operation of re-recording the control signal of the part not being viewed on the medium. In this case, in order to prevent the control signal from being lost due to power interruption during reproduction, it is preferable to use non-volatile storage means such as flash memory for all of the storage means 104 or at least a part for storing this information. In particular, in the case of movement, the entire program may be collected after the movement operation is finished and deleted by the method described above.

  A read-only device such as a CD-ROM drive does not naturally have a recording circuit block corresponding to the lower half of FIG. 14, but corresponds to a recording encoding circuit 203 having a function of generating a code for erasure. If there is a component, the circuit can be operated similarly. Needless to say, the medium detection circuit 207 is unnecessary in an apparatus using a hard disk as a recording medium.

  FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the information reproducing apparatus of the present invention. An erasing device 115 is further added to the block diagram of the reproducing circuit shown in FIG. Of course, a reproducing circuit having the configuration shown in FIGS. 7 to 12 may be used instead of FIG.

  FIG. 15 is suitable for a tape medium. If the holding period and the viewing period are specified, and the portion once viewed cannot be rewound or moved, it is erased when played back on the tape medium. The erasing device 116 is for that purpose, and actually comprises an erasing head or the like. During reproduction, the output control circuit 112 sends a control signal to the erasing device 115 to determine whether or not to perform an erasing operation. For example, if a holding period and a viewing period are specified, deletion may be continued following reproduction. As the erasing device 115, a method using a full erase head fixed on a tape running mechanism, a method using a flying erase head mounted on the same rotating drum as the video head, and a method disclosed in JP-A-7-244924 are disclosed. However, there is a method of using another video head that is not used as a playback head in the playback mode.

  If a full erase head is used, it must be attached to a position to be erased after scanning of the video head. If a flying erase head or an unused video head is used as an erasing device, it must also be in a position following the playback head on the tape scan. In the latter case, it is sufficient that the mounting position happens to satisfy this, but otherwise the height needs to be moved. Even in the former case, it is necessary to move the height or attach another head.

  In any method, since the information to be recorded is digital information, unlike analog information, there is no quality problem even if the information is erased with a DC magnetic field without using an AC magnetic field. In practice, when erasing while reproducing, it is difficult to prevent interference by magnetic induction from the erasing head to the reproducing head. This can be solved by using direct current. It is also conceivable to configure the erasing device with a permanent magnet. However, there is a problem that a mechanism for moving the place is required when the erasing operation is not performed, and the tension applied to the tape changes depending on whether the erasing is performed or not, and the mechanism control becomes difficult. In that case, it is better to use the above-mentioned head as an electromagnet.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Reproduction circuit, 102 ... Reproduction decoding circuit, 106 ... Signal output circuit, 107 ... Clock, 108 ... Decoding circuit, 111 ... Control signal detection circuit, 112 ... Output control circuit, 115 ... Erase device, 2 ... Recording circuit, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 203 ... Recording encoding circuit, 205 ... Control detection circuit, 206 ... Recording control circuit, 207 ... Medium detection circuit, 3 ... Information provision station, 36 ... Management information provision circuit, 4 ... Relay station, 5 ... Reception RF part, 6 ... Recording / reproducing unit, 63 ... Recording medium drive, 66 ... Mechanism control circuit, 7 ... Display, 300 ... Program number, 301 ... Sector information, 302 ... Time information, 303 ... Type information, 304 ... Copy information, 305 ... Recording time 306A: Retention period, 306B: Duplication period, 307A ... Viewing period, 307B ... Movable period, 308 ... User identification information, 309 ... Encryption information, 31 ... Version information, 312 ... Output control information, 313 ... Copy control information (CGMS), 314 ... Copy control information (APS), 315 ... MOVE information, 316 ... Reproduction count information (PB), 317 ... Reproducible period, 318 ... PAUSE time, 319 ... use start time, 321 ... reproduction start time, 322 ... reproduction start sector, 323 ... reproduction end sector.

Claims (44)

In a digital information recording apparatus for recording digital information including video information or audio information on a recording medium,
Information on a holding period indicating a period in which the digital information is allowed to be held in the recording medium, starting from the time when the digital information was recorded on the recording medium;
After the digital information is recorded on the recording medium, information on a viewing period indicating a period of time allowed to be reproduced starting from the time of the first reproduction;
A digital information recording apparatus comprising a recording circuit for recording the digital information included in the digital information. In a digital information reproducing apparatus for reproducing digital information from a recording medium on which digital information including video information or audio information is recorded,
The digital information includes a retention period information indicating a period during which the digital information is recorded in the recording medium, and a period during which the digital information is allowed to be retained in the recording medium. Including the viewing period information indicating the period of time allowed to be played back starting from the time of the first playback after being recorded,
A detection circuit for detecting the holding period and the viewing period from the reproduced digital information;
A control circuit for controlling the reproduction operation of the digital information or the output operation from the device to the outside based on the information of the holding period and the viewing period detected by the detection circuit;
A digital information reproducing apparatus characterized by comprising:   The control circuit stops the reproduction operation of the digital information or the output operation from the device to the outside when the reproduction time point is expired for either the holding period or the viewing period in which the reproduction is detected. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 2.   The control circuit is configured to reproduce the digital information or the apparatus when the reproduction period is included in the viewing period and the reproduction operation is continued even if the reproduction period is expired with respect to the detected retention period. 3. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the output operation from the outside to the outside is continued within the viewing period unless the apparatus is stopped or temporarily interrupted.   5. The digital information reproduction according to claim 3, wherein the control circuit makes it impossible to reproduce again the digital information that has been reproduced once among the digital information recorded on the recording medium. apparatus.   6. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the control circuit makes it impossible to drive the recording medium to a recording medium position where the digital information reproduced once is recorded. In a digital information reproducing apparatus for reproducing digital information from a recording medium on which digital information including video information or audio information is recorded,
The digital information includes a retention period information indicating a period during which the digital information is recorded in the recording medium, and a period during which the digital information is allowed to be retained in the recording medium. Including the viewing period information indicating the period of time allowed to be played back starting from the time of the first playback after being recorded,
A detection circuit for detecting the holding period and the viewing period from the reproduced digital information;
A disabling circuit for disabling reproduction of at least a part of the digital information recorded on the recording medium based on the information of the holding period and the viewing period detected by the detection circuit;
A digital information reproducing apparatus characterized by comprising:   The disabling circuit prevents the digital information recorded on the recording medium from being reproduced when the reproduction time point is expired with respect to either the detected holding period or the viewing period. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein at least a part of the information is erased.   The disabling circuit is configured to prevent the digital information recorded on the recording medium from being reproduced when the reproduction time point is expired with respect to the detected holding period and the reproduction operation is not being performed. 8. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a part thereof is erased.   The disabling circuit expires on the recording medium after the viewing period expires or the reproduction operation is stopped when the reproduction time period is expired with respect to the detected holding period and the reproduction operation is in progress. 8. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein at least part of the digital information is erased so that the recorded digital information cannot be reproduced.   11. The disabling circuit blocks the digital information in a predetermined unit, and erases the digital information in the block in a unit of the block. Digital information reproducing apparatus.   11. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the disabling circuit erases encrypted information included in the digital information.   When reproducing the digital information from the recording medium, at least one of the digital information on the recording medium that has been reproduced following the reproduction operation, regardless of the information of the holding period and the viewing period detected by the detection circuit. 3. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a disabling circuit for disabling reproduction of the unit.   14. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the disabling circuit erases at least a part of the digital information on the recording medium that has been reproduced.   14. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the disabling circuit erases encrypted information included in the digital information on the recording medium that has been reproduced. In a digital information recording apparatus for recording digital information including video information or audio information on a first recording medium,
After the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, information on a duplication period indicating a period in which duplication recording is permitted only once from the first recording medium to a second recording medium different from the first recording medium is obtained. A digital information recording apparatus comprising a recording circuit for recording information. In a digital information reproducing apparatus for reproducing digital information from a first recording medium on which digital information including video information or audio information is recorded,
The digital information includes a duplication period indicating a period in which duplication recording is permitted only once from the first recording medium to a different second recording medium after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium. Contains information,
A detection circuit for detecting the duplication period from the reproduced digital information;
A control circuit for controlling an operation of outputting reproduced digital information to the second recording medium based on information on the duplication period detected by the detection circuit;
A digital information reproducing apparatus characterized by comprising:   18. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the control circuit stops the output operation of the digital information when the reproduction time point is expired with respect to the detected duplication period.   The control circuit is within the duplication period in which the time point at which the reproduction operation is started is detected, and even when the reproduction operation has expired with respect to the duplication period, 18. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the digital information output operation is continued. In a digital information recording apparatus for recording digital information including video information or audio information on a first recording medium,
Even if it is prohibited to copy and record the digital information from the first recording medium to a different second recording medium after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, On the premise that at least a part of the digital information on the first recording medium is made unplayable, movement permission information that allows the digital information to move to the second recording medium is included in the digital information. A digital information recording apparatus comprising a recording circuit for recording.   21. The digital information according to claim 20, wherein the movement permission information includes information indicating a number of times of movement permission when moving the digital information on the first recording medium to the second recording medium. Recording device. In a digital information reproducing apparatus for reproducing digital information from a first recording medium on which digital information including video information or audio information is recorded,
In the digital information, after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, it is prohibited to copy and record the digital information from the first recording medium to a second recording medium different from the first recording medium. Even if the information is included, movement permission information that allows the digital information to move to the second recording medium is included on the assumption that at least a part of the digital information on the first recording medium is disabled to be reproduced. And
A detection circuit for detecting the movement permission information from the reproduced digital information;
A control circuit for controlling an operation of outputting the reproduced digital information to move to the second recording medium based on the movement permission information detected by the detection circuit;
A reproduction disabling circuit for disabling at least part of the digital information on the first recording medium;
A digital information reproducing apparatus characterized by comprising: The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 17,
In the digital information, after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, the digital information is copied and recorded from the first recording medium to the second recording medium different from the first recording medium. Is permitted to move the digital information to the second recording medium on the assumption that at least a part of the digital information on the first recording medium is disabled to be reproduced even if the digital information is prohibited. Information included,
The detection circuit detects the duplication period and the movement permission information from the reproduced digital information,
The control circuit is based on the detected movement permission information even when control information indicating that the reproduction time point is expired with respect to the detected copy period or no further copy is permitted is detected. Moving the reproduced digital information to the second recording medium,
A digital information reproducing apparatus comprising: a reproduction disable circuit that disables reproduction of at least part of the digital information on the first recording medium. The movement permission information includes information indicating the number of times of movement permission when moving the digital information on the first recording medium to the second recording medium,
If the movement of the digital information is permitted by the number of times permitted for movement, the control circuit rewrites the number of times permitted for movement included in the digital information reproduced from the first recording medium to a number obtained by reducing the number of times by one. 24. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 22, wherein the digital information reproducing apparatus moves to a second recording medium. The movement permission information includes information indicating the number of times of movement permission when moving the digital information on the first recording medium to the second recording medium,
If the movement of the digital information is permitted by the number of permitted movements, but the second recording medium is a medium that cannot move the information to another recording medium, the control circuit can detect the first recording medium. 24. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 22 or 23, wherein the movement permission count included in the reproduced digital information is rewritten to 0 and moved to the second recording medium.   When the digital information is moved to the second recording medium, the reproduction disable circuit blocks the digital information on the first recording medium in a predetermined unit and erases the digital information in the block unit. 24. A digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 22 or claim 23.   25. The reproduction disable circuit erases encrypted information contained in the digital information on the first recording medium when the digital information is moved to the second recording medium. 24. A digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 23.   23. The reproduction disable circuit erases the digital information on the first recording medium in units of video or audio programs when moving the digital information to the second recording medium. Or the digital information reproducing | regenerating apparatus of Claim 23.   When the digital information is moved to the second recording medium, the reproduction disable circuit is adapted to reproduce the digital information from the first recording medium, and then reproduce the digital information on the first recording medium. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 22 or 23, wherein at least part of the information is erased. In a digital information recording apparatus for recording digital information including video information or audio information on a recording medium,
A digital information recording apparatus comprising: a recording circuit for recording information including a reproducible period indicating a period during which reproduction of the digital information recorded on the recording medium is permitted. In a digital information reproducing apparatus for reproducing digital information from a recording medium on which digital information including video information or audio information is recorded,
The digital information includes information of a reproducible period indicating a period during which reproduction of the digital information recorded on the recording medium is permitted,
A detection circuit for detecting the reproducible period from the reproduced digital information;
A control circuit for controlling the reproduction operation of the digital information or the output operation from the device to the outside based on the information of the reproducible period detected by the detection circuit;
A digital information reproducing apparatus characterized by comprising:   2. The control circuit according to claim 1, wherein when the reproduction time point is expired with respect to the detected reproducible period, the control circuit stops the reproduction operation of the digital information or the output operation from the apparatus to the outside. Item 32. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to Item 31.   The control circuit, after starting the reproduction operation, even if the reproduction time point expires with respect to the detected reproducible period, unless the reproduction operation of the device is stopped or temporarily interrupted, 32. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 31, wherein the digital information reproducing operation or the output operation from the apparatus to the outside is continued. In a digital information recording apparatus for recording digital information including video information or audio information on a recording medium,
A digital information recording apparatus comprising: a recording circuit for recording information including the number of reproducible times indicating the number of times the digital information recorded on the recording medium is permitted to be recorded. In a digital information reproducing apparatus for reproducing digital information from a recording medium on which digital information including video information or audio information is recorded,
The digital information includes information on the number of reproducible times indicating the number of times the digital information recorded on the recording medium is allowed to be reproduced,
A detection circuit for detecting the reproducible number of times from the reproduced digital information;
A control circuit for controlling the reproduction operation of the digital information or the output operation from the device to the outside based on the information on the number of reproducible times detected by the detection circuit;
A digital information reproducing apparatus characterized by comprising:   The control circuit executes a reproduction operation from the recording medium when the number of reproductions is within the number of reproductions possible, and rewrites the number of reproductions included in the reproduced digital information to a number obtained by reducing the reproduction number by one. 36. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 35, wherein an output operation from the apparatus to the outside is performed.   37. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 36, wherein the control circuit rewrites the reproducible number of times after a predetermined time elapses after the reproduction is started.   37. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 36, wherein the control circuit performs the rewriting of the reproducible number of times when the reproduction operation is stopped halfway after the reproduction is started, at the time when the reproduction operation is stopped.   37. The digital information reproducing apparatus according to claim 36, wherein the control circuit performs the rewriting of the reproducible number of times when the recording medium is reversely fed after the reproduction is started, at the point of reverse feeding. In a digital information transmitting apparatus for transmitting digital information including video information or audio information to a recording / reproducing apparatus,
Information on a holding period indicating a period in which the digital information is recorded in the recording medium as a starting point and allowed to be held in the recording medium;
After the digital information is recorded on the recording medium, information on a viewing period indicating a period of time allowed to be reproduced starting from the time of the first reproduction;
A digital information transmission apparatus comprising a transmission circuit for transmitting the digital information. In a digital information transmitting apparatus for transmitting digital information including video information or audio information to a recording / reproducing apparatus having a first recording medium,
After the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, information on a duplication period indicating a period in which duplication recording is permitted only once from the first recording medium to a second recording medium different from the first recording medium is obtained. A digital information transmission apparatus comprising a transmission circuit for transmitting information. In a digital information transmitting apparatus for transmitting digital information including video information or audio information to a recording / reproducing apparatus having a first recording medium,
Even if it is prohibited to copy and record the digital information from the first recording medium to a different second recording medium after the digital information is recorded on the first recording medium, On the premise that at least a part of the digital information on the first recording medium is made unplayable, movement permission information that allows the digital information to move to the second recording medium is included in the digital information. A digital information transmitting apparatus comprising a transmitting circuit for transmitting. In a digital information transmitting apparatus for transmitting digital information including video information or audio information to a recording / reproducing apparatus,
A digital information transmitting apparatus comprising: a transmission circuit for transmitting information including a reproducible period indicating a period during which reproduction of the digital information recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus is permitted. In a digital information transmitting apparatus for transmitting digital information including video information or audio information to a recording / reproducing apparatus,
A digital information transmitting apparatus comprising a transmission circuit for transmitting information including the number of reproducible times indicating the number of times the digital information recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus is permitted to be reproduced.

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