JP2014081977A - Recording medium, inspection device, and inspection method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To inspect a recording medium and a record reproducing device.SOLUTION: There are recorded in a recording medium first information which is recorded so that a first error amount is detected contained in a range of a first error when reproduced with a predetermined reproducing condition, and second information which is recorded so that a second error amount is detected contained in a range of a second error deteriorated more than the range of the first error when reproduced with the predetermined reproducing condition. The record reproducing device reproduces the first information and the second information to detect the amount of respective PI errors (S12, S14) and discriminates whether the PI errors are caused by deterioration of the recording medium (S13) or deterioration of the record reproducing device (S16).

Description

  TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a recording medium such as an optical disk, and an inspection apparatus and inspection method for inspecting such a recording medium and a recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of a recording operation and a reproducing operation for such a recording medium. About.

  As an inspection apparatus for inspecting a recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of a recording operation and a reproducing operation for such a recording medium, for example, an inspection apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 has been proposed. Specifically, Patent Document 1 discloses an optical pickup device provided in a recording / reproducing apparatus using a first test disk having one recording layer and a second test disk having two recording layers. An inspection apparatus for inspecting the above is disclosed. That is, Patent Document 1 discloses an inspection device that inspects an optical pickup device included in a recording / reproducing apparatus using a plurality of test disks.

JP 2009-170022 A

  It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording medium, an inspection apparatus, and a method that make it possible to inspect the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus by a new method with respect to such a conventional inspection apparatus. To do.

  In order to solve the above problems, a recording medium includes first information recorded so that a first error amount included in a first error range is detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition, and the predetermined reproduction condition. And the second information recorded so that the second error amount included in the second error range that is worse than the first error range is detected during reproduction.

  In order to solve the above problems, an inspection apparatus is an inspection apparatus that inspects the recording medium and a recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of a recording operation and a reproducing operation with respect to the recording medium. First detection means for detecting a third error amount detected during reproduction of the first information, and second detection means for detecting a fourth error amount detected during reproduction of the second information by the recording / reproducing apparatus; And determining means for determining the deterioration of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus based on the third error amount and the fourth error amount.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, an inspection method is an inspection method for inspecting a recording medium and a recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of a recording operation and a reproducing operation with respect to the recording medium. A first detection step for detecting a third error amount detected during reproduction of the first information, and a second detection step for detecting a fourth error amount detected during reproduction of the second information by the recording / reproducing apparatus; And a determination step of determining deterioration of each of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing device based on the third error amount and the fourth error amount.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an example of an external shape of an optical disc and a data structure diagram showing a data structure of the optical disc. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of an inspection apparatus with the structure of a recording / reproducing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of operation | movement of a test | inspection apparatus. It is a graph which shows the experimental result of this inventor, etc., Comprising: It is a graph which shows the numerical value of the specific PI error detected by reproducing | regenerating 1st test | inspection information, adjusting the tilt amount of an optical disk. It is a table | surface which shows the experimental result of this inventor, etc., Comprising: It is a table | surface which shows the numerical value of the specific PI error detected by reproducing | regenerating 1st test | inspection information, adjusting the tilt amount of an optical disk. It is a graph which shows the experimental result of this inventor, etc., Comprising: It is a graph which shows the numerical value of the specific PI error detected by reproducing | regenerating 1st test | inspection information and 2nd test | inspection information, adjusting reproduction | regeneration power. It is a graph which shows the experimental result of this inventor, etc., Comprising: It is a table | surface which shows the numerical value of the specific PI error detected by reproducing | regenerating 1st test | inspection information and 2nd test | inspection information, adjusting reproduction | regeneration power. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the test | inspection apparatus of a 1st modification. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of operation | movement of the test | inspection apparatus of a 1st modification. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of operation | movement of the test | inspection apparatus of a 2nd modification.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a recording medium, an inspection apparatus, and a method will be described in order.

(Embodiment of recording medium)
<1>
The recording medium according to the present embodiment has the first information recorded so that the first error amount included in the first error range is detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition, and during reproduction under the predetermined reproduction condition. The second information recorded so as to detect the second error amount included in the second error range that is worse than the first error range is recorded.

  According to the recording medium of the present embodiment, two types of information having different error amounts detected during reproduction are recorded. Specifically, first information and second information are recorded.

  The first information includes the first error amount included in the first error range at the time of reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition (further, at the time of reproduction under the condition that the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus are not deteriorated). Information recorded to be detected. Therefore, if the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus do not deteriorate, when the recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces the first information under a predetermined reproducing condition, an error amount substantially the same as the first error amount is detected. The On the other hand, when the recording medium or the recording / reproducing apparatus deteriorates, even if the recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces the first information under a predetermined reproducing condition, an error amount different from the first error amount is detected. May be.

  The second information includes the second error amount included in the second error range during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition (further, during reproduction under the condition that the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus are not deteriorated). Information recorded to be detected. Therefore, if the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus do not deteriorate, when the recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces the second information under a predetermined reproducing condition, an error amount substantially the same as the second error amount is detected. The On the other hand, when the recording medium or the recording / reproducing apparatus deteriorates, even if the recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces the second information under a predetermined reproducing condition, an error amount different from the second error amount is detected. May be.

  The predetermined reproduction condition is typically preferably a suitable reproduction condition (more preferably an optimum reproduction condition) that satisfies the requirements defined by the standard.

  The first error range is an error range with better reproduction quality than the second error range. In other words, the second error range is an error range whose reproduction quality is worse than that of the first error range. That is, in this embodiment, it can be said that two types of information with different reproduction quality are recorded.

  Note that two types of information with different reproduction quality (that is, the first information and the second information) may be realized by changing the reproduction quality of the information itself. That is, two types of information with different reproduction quality (that is, first information and second information) are realized by recording information with relatively good reproduction quality and information with relatively deteriorated reproduction quality on a recording medium. May be. Alternatively, two types of information with different reproduction quality (that is, first information and second information) may be realized by recording the same reproduction quality information in two recording areas with different reproduction quality. That is, a recording area with relatively good reproduction quality (for example, a recording area with a relatively small change in physical structure or shape structure (ie, relatively flat) or a small tilt amount) and a reproduction quality of Information of the same reproduction quality on a relatively deteriorated recording area (for example, a recording area having a relatively large change in physical structure or shape structure (that is, a relatively deformed) or a large tilt amount). Two types of information with different reproduction quality (that is, first information and second information) may be realized by recording. However, by recording information of different reproduction quality in a recording area with relatively good reproduction quality and a recording area with relatively deteriorated reproduction quality, two types of information (that is, first information and first information with different reproduction quality) are recorded. 2 information) may be realized.

  According to the recording medium of the present embodiment, the inspection device described later includes a third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device and a four error amount detected when the second information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device. The recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus can be inspected based on the above.

  Note that the third error amount detected when the recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces the first information does not necessarily match the first error amount. Similarly, the fourth error amount detected when the recording / reproducing apparatus reproduces the second information does not necessarily match the second error amount. This is because the amount of error can change depending on the degree of deterioration of the recording medium and the degree of deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus.

  Here, according to the experiment by the inventors of the present application, the first information recorded with relatively good reproduction quality (that is, recorded with a relatively small first error amount) The amount of error detected at the time of reproduction is less likely to fluctuate (typically less likely to deteriorate even if the degree of deterioration increases) in accordance with deterioration (for example, dirt on the optical pickup provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus). It was confirmed. On the other hand, second information recorded with a relatively poor reproduction quality (that is, recorded with a relatively large second error amount) is detected at the time of reproduction in accordance with the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus. It was confirmed that the amount of error that is generated is likely to fluctuate (typically, the degree of deterioration increases as the degree of deterioration increases). On the other hand, in both the first information and the second information, the amount of error detected at the time of reproduction tends to fluctuate according to the deterioration of the recording medium (typically, the degree of deterioration increases as the degree of deterioration increases). ) Information was confirmed. Therefore, the third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device is included in the first error range (or not worse than the first error amount), while the recording / reproducing device. If the fourth error amount detected during the reproduction of the second information is worse than the second error amount, it is estimated that there is a high possibility that the recording / reproducing apparatus has deteriorated. On the other hand, if the third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus is not included in the first error range (or worse than the first error amount), the recording medium It is estimated that there is a high possibility that

  As described above, the inspection apparatus described later records, based on the third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device and the fourth error amount detected when the second information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device. It is possible to individually determine whether the medium is deteriorated or the recording / reproducing apparatus is deteriorated. That is, the inspection apparatus can suitably inspect the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus using the recording medium of the present embodiment.

<2>
In another aspect of the recording medium of the present embodiment, in the first error range, when the first information is reproduced under the predetermined reproduction condition, correction of the reproduction error of the first information is not started by error correction processing. It is an error range that includes a small amount of error.

  According to this aspect, the first information recorded so as to detect the first error amount included in the first error range is detected at the time of reproduction according to whether the recording / reproducing apparatus is deteriorated. The amount of error does not vary easily. Therefore, the various effects described above are favorably enjoyed.

  Note that the state that “the correction of the reproduction error is not started by the error correction process of the first information” means a state in which the first information can be reproduced without correcting the reproduction error, for example. Such an “error range including an error amount that is so small that correction of a reproduction error is not started by error correction processing” is typically an error range corresponding to a preferable specification defined by the standard of the recording medium.

<3>
In another aspect of the recording medium of the present embodiment, the second error range is such that when the second information is reproduced under the predetermined reproduction condition, correction of the reproduction error of the second information is started by error correction processing. And an error range including an error amount large enough to correct the reproduction error by the error correction processing.

  According to this aspect, the second information recorded so as to detect the second error amount included in the second error range is the error amount detected during reproduction according to the deterioration of the recording / reproducing device. Becomes information that tends to fluctuate. Therefore, the various effects described above are favorably enjoyed.

  Note that “error range including an error amount that is large enough to enable correction of reproduction error by error correction processing and correction of reproduction error by error correction processing” cannot be corrected, for example. The error range is the upper limit of the error amount immediately before.

<4>
In another aspect of the recording medium of the present embodiment, a plurality of pieces of the first information having different first error amounts detected during reproduction under the predetermined reproduction condition are recorded.

  According to this aspect, the inspection apparatus can suitably inspect the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus based on the plurality of error amounts detected when reproducing the plurality of first information.

<5>
In another aspect of the recording medium of the present embodiment, a plurality of pieces of the second information having different second error amounts detected during reproduction under the predetermined reproduction condition are recorded.

  According to this aspect, the inspection apparatus can suitably inspect the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus based on the plurality of error amounts detected when reproducing the plurality of second information.

  In addition, depending on the characteristics of the recording / reproducing apparatus, the second information whose reproduction quality is relatively deteriorated cannot be reproduced (that is, even if error correction processing is performed, the reproduction error cannot be corrected). There is a risk. Even in such a case, the inspection apparatus performs recording based on a plurality of fourth error amounts detected during reproduction of other second information different from the second information that cannot be reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus. The medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus can be suitably inspected.

<6>
In another aspect of the recording medium of the present embodiment, each of the first error amount and the second error amount is a PI (Parity Inner) error.

  According to this aspect, for example, a PI error used in a DVD or the like can be used as the first error amount and the second error amount.

  In this case, it is preferable that the third error amount and the fourth error amount are also PI errors.

<7>
In another aspect of the recording medium in which the first error amount and the second error amount are PI errors as described above, the first error range is an error range in which the PI error is 0 or more and less than 20, and the first error range is the error range. The 2 error range is an error range in which the PI error is 200 or more and less than 1300.

  According to this aspect, the first information recorded so that the first error amount included in the first error range is detected is the error amount detected at the time of reproduction according to the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus. Becomes information that is hard to fluctuate. Further, in the second information recorded so that the second error amount included in the second error range is detected, the error amount detected at the time of reproduction is likely to vary according to the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus. Information. Therefore, the various effects described above are favorably enjoyed.

<8>
In another aspect of the recording medium of the present embodiment, each of the first error amount and the second error amount is a random SER (Symbol Error Rate).

  According to this aspect, for example, random SER used in BD or the like can be used as the first error amount and the second error amount.

  In this case, it is preferable that the third error amount and the fourth error amount are also random SER.

<9>
In another aspect of the recording medium in which the first error amount and the second error amount are random SER as described above, the first error range is an error range in which the random SER is 0 or more and less than 1 × 10 ^−3. In addition, the second error range is an error range in which the random SER is 1 × 10 ⁻³ or more and less than 4 × 10 ⁻³ .

  According to this aspect, the first information recorded so that the first error amount included in the first error range is detected is the error amount detected at the time of reproduction according to the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus. Becomes information that is hard to fluctuate. Further, in the second information recorded so that the second error amount included in the second error range is detected, the error amount detected at the time of reproduction is likely to vary according to the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus. Information. Therefore, the various effects described above are favorably enjoyed.

(Embodiment of inspection apparatus)
<10>
The inspection apparatus of the present embodiment inspects the recording medium of the present embodiment described above (including various aspects thereof) and the recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of the recording operation and the reproducing operation on the recording medium. A first detecting means for detecting a third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus; and a fourth error detected when the second information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus. Second detection means for detecting the amount, and determination means for determining the deterioration of each of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus based on at least the third error amount and the fourth error amount.

  According to the inspection apparatus of the present embodiment, the discriminating unit includes the third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device (that is, the error amount detected by the first detecting unit) and the first error amount detected by the recording / reproducing device. Deterioration of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus can be determined based on the four error amounts detected when reproducing the two information (that is, the error amount detected by the second detecting means). The reason why it is possible to determine the deterioration of each of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus is as described above. That is, the inspection apparatus of the present embodiment can suitably inspect the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus using the recording medium of the present embodiment.

  Incidentally, in response to the various aspects that the recording medium of the present embodiment can take, the inspection apparatus of the present embodiment may also take various aspects.

<11>
In another aspect of the inspection apparatus of the present embodiment, the determination unit determines that the recording medium is deteriorated when the third error amount is not included in the first error range.

  According to this aspect, as described above, the first information recorded with relatively good reproduction quality (that is, recorded with a relatively small first error amount) is stored in the recording / reproducing apparatus. The amount of error detected at the time of reproduction is unlikely to fluctuate according to deterioration. Therefore, the cause that the reproduction quality of the first information has deteriorated to such an extent that the third error amount is not included in the first error range is not the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus, but the possibility of the deterioration of the recording medium is relatively high. It is guessed. This is because even if the recording / reproducing apparatus deteriorates, the reproduction quality of the first information hardly deteriorates to such an extent that the third error amount is not included in the first error range. Therefore, the determination unit can preferably determine the deterioration of the recording medium.

<12>
In another aspect of the inspection apparatus of the present embodiment, the determination means includes the third error amount included in a first error range, and the fourth error amount is worse than the second error amount. In this case, it is determined that the recording / reproducing apparatus has deteriorated.

  According to this aspect, it is assumed that the cause of the deterioration of the reproduction quality of the second information to the extent that the fourth error amount becomes worse than the second error amount is at least one of the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus and the deterioration of the recording medium. Is done. On the other hand, in this aspect, since the reproduction quality of the first information has not deteriorated to such an extent that the third error amount is not included in the first error range, the possibility that the recording medium has deteriorated is relatively low. It is guessed. For this reason, in the situation where the quality of the first information is not deteriorated to such an extent that the third error amount is not included in the first error range, the second error amount is increased to the extent that the fourth error amount becomes worse than the second error amount. It is presumed that the cause of the deterioration of the reproduction quality is not the deterioration of the recording medium but the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus. Therefore, the determining means can preferably determine the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus.

  In addition, the state where the “fourth error amount is worse than the second error amount” mentioned here may typically mean a state where the fourth error amount is larger than the second error amount. However, it may mean a state in which the fourth error amount is larger than the second error amount by a predetermined amount or more. However, in consideration of the detection accuracy of the fourth error amount and the like, in the state where “the fourth error amount is worse than the second error amount”, the fourth error amount is larger than the second error amount by a predetermined amount or more. It is preferable to mean the state of being.

<13>
In another aspect of the inspection apparatus of the present embodiment, the determination means includes the third error amount included in the first error range, and the fourth error amount is not worse than the second error amount. In this case, both the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus are not deteriorated.

  In this aspect, the second information is not so deteriorated that the reproduction quality of the first information is deteriorated to the extent that the third error amount is not included in the first error range, and the fourth error amount is deteriorated more than the second error amount. Therefore, it is estimated that the possibility that both the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus are not deteriorated is relatively high. Therefore, the determination unit can preferably determine the deterioration of each of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus.

(Embodiment of inspection method)
<14>
The inspection method of the present embodiment is an inspection method for inspecting the recording medium of the present embodiment described above (including various aspects thereof) and the recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of the recording operation and the reproducing operation on the recording medium. A first detection step of detecting a third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device, and a fourth error detected when the second information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing device. A second detection step of detecting the amount, and a determination step of determining the deterioration of each of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus based on the third error amount and the fourth error amount.

  According to the inspection method of the present embodiment, it is possible to suitably enjoy the same effects as the various effects that can be enjoyed by the above-described inspection apparatus of the present embodiment.

  Incidentally, in response to the various aspects that can be taken by the above-described inspection apparatus of the present embodiment, the inspection method of the present embodiment may also take various aspects.

  Such an operation and other advantages of the present embodiment will be further clarified from examples described below.

  As described above, the first information and the second information are recorded on the recording medium of the present embodiment. The inspection apparatus according to the present embodiment includes first detection means, second detection means, and determination means. The inspection method of this embodiment includes a first detection process, a second detection process, and a determination process. Accordingly, the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus can be inspected.

  Hereinafter, examples will be described with reference to the drawings.

(1) Optical Disc First, the optical disc 100 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an example of the external shape of the optical disc 100 and a data structure diagram showing the data structure of the optical disc 100.

  As shown in the upper part of FIG. 1, the optical disc 100 has a disk shape with a diameter of about 12 cm, like DVD. The optical disc 100 may be a write once type (so-called write once type) optical disc capable of recording data only once. Specifically, for example, the optical disc 100 may be a CD-R, a DVD ± R, a BD-R, or the like. Alternatively, the optical disc 100 may be a rewritable (so-called rewritable type) optical disc capable of recording data a plurality of times. Specifically, for example, the optical disc 100 may be a CD-RW, a DVD ± RW, a DVD-RAM, a BD-RE, or the like. Alternatively, the optical disc 100 may be a read-only (so-called ROM (Read Only Media) type) optical disc in which data cannot be recorded. Specifically, for example, the optical disc 100 may be a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a BD-ROM, or the like.

  In the present embodiment, the optical disc 100 has a function of inspecting the optical disc 100 for deterioration. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the optical disc 100 also has a function of inspecting the presence or absence of deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 that can perform at least one of the recording operation and the reproducing operation with respect to the optical disc 100. .

  Specifically, the optical disc 100 has first inspection information 110 and second inspection information 120 as a function for inspecting whether the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are deteriorated. That is, the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 are recorded on the optical disc 100. The first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 may be recorded in an arbitrary recording area on the optical disc 100. The first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 may be recorded in advance when the optical disc 100 is manufactured. Alternatively, the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 may be recorded in advance when the optical disc 100 is manufactured.

  The first inspection information 110 is a predetermined reproduction condition (for example, an ideal (in other words, good or optimum) defined in the standard of the optical disk 100 under the condition that the optical disk 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are not deteriorated. ) Is information that becomes an initial good value included in a good error range in which a PI (Parity Inner) error is 0 or more and less than 20 at the time of reproduction under the reproduction condition). In other words, if the non-degraded recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110 recorded on the optical disc 100 that is not degraded under the predetermined reproduction condition, the detected PI error is 0 or more and less than 20 It almost coincides with the initial good value included in the good error range.

  A plurality of first inspection information 110 may be recorded on the optical disc 100. At this time, the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 of the plurality of first inspection information 110 under a predetermined reproduction condition is the other of the plurality of first inspection information 110. It is preferable that the PI error detected by reproducing the one inspection information 110 under a predetermined reproduction condition is different. In other words, it is preferable that a plurality of PI errors detected by reproducing a plurality of first inspection information 110 under a predetermined reproduction condition are different from each other.

  The second inspection information 120 is a predetermined reproduction condition (for example, an ideal (in other words, good or optimum) defined in the standard of the optical disk 100 under the condition that the optical disk 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are not deteriorated. ) Information that becomes an initial deterioration value included in the deterioration error range in which the PI error is 200 or more and less than 1300 at the time of reproduction under the reproduction condition). In other words, if the non-degraded recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120 recorded on the optical disc 100 that is not degraded under the predetermined reproduction condition, the detected PI error is 200 or more and less than 1300. It almost coincides with the initial deterioration value included in the deterioration error range.

  Here, two types of inspection information with different PI errors detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition (that is, the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120) are obtained by changing the reproduction quality of the inspection information itself. It may be realized. That is, inspection information with relatively good reproduction quality (for example, inspection information with relatively small deterioration in pit shape, etc.) and inspection information with relatively low reproduction quality (for example, deterioration in pit shape, etc.) By recording relatively large inspection information), two types of inspection information (that is, first inspection information 110 and second inspection information 120) with different PI errors detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition are realized. Also good. Alternatively, two types of inspection information with different PI errors (that is, the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120) detected at the time of reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition can be obtained by using the same reproduction quality inspection information. You may implement | achieve by recording on two different recording areas. That is, a recording area with relatively good reproduction quality (for example, a recording area with a relatively small change in physical structure or shape structure (ie, relatively flat) or a small tilt amount) and a reproduction quality of Inspection information of the same reproduction quality to a relatively deteriorated recording area (for example, a recording area having a relatively large change in physical structure or shape structure (that is, a relatively deformed) or a large tilt amount). The two types of inspection information (that is, the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120) having different PI errors detected at the time of reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition may be realized. However, by recording information of different reproduction quality in a recording area having a relatively good reproduction quality and a recording area having a relatively deteriorated reproduction quality, two PI errors detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition are different. Types of inspection information (that is, first inspection information 110 and second inspection information 120) may be realized.

  That is, the second inspection information 120 is information in which the detected PI error is larger than the first inspection information 110 (that is, the reproduction quality is deteriorated). In other words, if the second inspection information 120 is assumed to be reproduced under the same reproduction condition, the detected PI error is larger than the PI error detected when the first inspection information 110 is reproduced. (That is, the reproduction quality has deteriorated).

  A plurality of second inspection information 120 may be recorded on the optical disc 100. At this time, the PI error detected by reproducing the second inspection information 120 of the plurality of second inspection information 120 under a predetermined reproduction condition is the other of the plurality of second inspection information 120. 2 It is preferable that the PI error detected by reproducing the inspection information 120 under a predetermined reproduction condition is different. In other words, it is preferable that the plurality of PI errors detected by reproducing the plurality of second inspection information 120 under a predetermined reproduction condition are different from each other.

  Thus, in the present embodiment, the presence / absence of deterioration of the optical disc 100 and the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 using two types of inspection information having different reproduction quality (that is, the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120). The presence or absence of this is inspected. Hereinafter, details of the inspection of the presence or absence of deterioration of the optical disc 100 and the presence or absence of deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 will be described together with the inspection apparatus 200 that inspects the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 using such an optical disc 100.

(2) Inspection Device Next, an inspection device 200 for inspecting the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing device 300 will be described with reference to FIGS.

(2-1) Configuration of Inspection Device First, the configuration of the inspection device 200 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the inspection apparatus 200 together with the configuration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the inspection apparatus 200 includes an error detection unit 210 that is a specific example of “first detection unit” and “second detection unit”, and a deterioration determination unit that is a specific example of “discrimination unit”. 220. The error detection unit 210 and the degradation determination unit 220 are typically logical processing blocks that operate according to a program on a central processing unit such as a CPU. However, the error detection unit 210 and the degradation determination unit 220 may be physical processing blocks such as an IC chip.

  The error detection unit 210 detects a PI error when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the optical disc 100. The error detection unit 210 preferably detects the PI error by acquiring the PI error detected by the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 (typically, the recording / reproducing means 353 included in the recording / reproducing apparatus 300). Alternatively, the error detection unit 210 may detect a PI error by acquiring a reproduction signal from the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 and analyzing the reproduction signal independently. However, considering the ease of processing, it is preferable that the error detection unit 210 detects the PI error by acquiring the PI error detected by the recording / reproducing apparatus 300.

  In particular, the error detection unit 210 detects a PI error when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110. In addition, the error detection unit 210 detects a PI error when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120.

  The degradation determination unit 220 detects the PI error detected by the error detection unit 210 (particularly when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110 and when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120). On the basis of the PI error), it is determined whether or not the optical disc 100 is deteriorated and whether or not the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is deteriorated.

  Note that the PI error detected when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110 does not always coincide with the initial good value. More specifically, the PI error detected when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110 under ideal reproduction conditions does not always coincide with the initial good value. Similarly, the PI error detected when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120 does not always coincide with the initial deterioration value. More specifically, the PI error detected when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120 under ideal reproduction conditions does not necessarily match the initial deterioration value. This is because the detected PI error can change depending on the degree of deterioration of the optical disc 100 and the degree of deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. Therefore, the inspection apparatus 200 according to the present embodiment takes into account the PI error detected when the first inspection information 120 and the second inspection information 120 are actually reproduced (that is, the influence of deterioration of the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300). And the initial good value and the initial deterioration value (that is, the PI error before the influence of the deterioration of the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is taken into account) or the good error range and the deterioration error range. Thus, the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are inspected. Details of the inspection will be described later (see FIG. 3).

  For reference, as shown in FIG. 2, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 includes an optical disc 100, a spindle motor 351, an optical pickup 352, a signal recording / reproducing unit 353, a CPU (drive control unit) 354, a memory 355, and a bus 357. It has.

  The spindle motor 351 rotates and stops the optical disc 100 and operates when accessing the optical disc 100. More specifically, the spindle motor 351 is configured to rotate and stop the optical disc 100 at a predetermined speed while receiving spindle servo from a not-shown servo unit or the like.

  The optical pickup 352 includes, for example, a semiconductor laser device and a lens in order to perform recording / reproduction on the optical disc 10. More specifically, the optical pickup 352 irradiates the optical disc 100 with a light beam such as a laser beam at a first power as reading light during reproduction, and modulates with a second power as writing light at the time of recording. Irradiate.

  The signal recording / reproducing unit 353 controls the spindle motor 351 and the optical pickup 352 to perform recording / reproduction with respect to the optical disc 100. More specifically, the signal recording / reproducing means 353 is constituted by, for example, a laser diode driver (LD driver) and a head amplifier. The laser diode driver drives a semiconductor laser (not shown) provided in the optical pickup 352. The head amplifier amplifies the output signal of the optical pickup 352, that is, the reflected light of the light beam, and outputs the amplified signal.

  The memory 355 is used in general data processing and OPC processing in the disk drive 300, such as a buffer area for recording / reproducing data and an area used as an intermediate buffer for conversion to data usable by the signal recording / reproducing means 353. The memory 355 stores a program for performing operations as these recorder devices, that is, a ROM area in which firmware is stored, a buffer for temporarily storing recording / playback data, and variables necessary for the operation such as a firmware program. It consists of a RAM area and the like.

  The CPU (drive control means) 354 is connected to the signal recording / reproducing means 353 and the memory 355 via the bus 357, and controls the entire disk drive 300 by giving instructions to various control means. Normally, software or firmware for operating the CPU 354 is stored in the memory 355.

  In FIG. 2, the inspection apparatus 200 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are separate and independent apparatuses. However, the inspection apparatus 200 may be integrated inside the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. In this case, typically, the error detection unit 210 and the degradation determination unit 220 are realized as logical processing blocks that operate on the CPU 354 according to a program.

(2-2) Flow of Operation of Inspection Apparatus Subsequently, the flow of operation of the inspection apparatus 200 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation flow of the inspection apparatus 200.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110. At this time, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 preferably reproduces the first inspection information 110 under the ideal reproduction conditions described above. As an ideal reproduction condition, for example, a reproduction condition in which the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is zero and the defocus amount of the laser light emitted from the optical pickup 352 is minimum is given as an example. As a result, the error detection unit 210 detects a PI error when the first inspection information 110 is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 (step S11).

  Thereafter, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines whether or not the PI error detected in step S11 is 20 or more (step S12). That is, the degradation determination unit 220 determines whether or not the PI error detected in step S11 is not included in the good error range (that is, whether or not it has deviated) (step S12).

  As a result of the determination in step S12, when it is determined that the PI error detected in step S11 is 20 or more (that is, not included in the good error range) (step S12: Yes), the deterioration determination unit 220 Then, it is determined that the optical disc 100 has deteriorated (step S13). Thereafter, the inspection apparatus 200 ends the operation.

  On the other hand, as a result of the determination in step S12, when it is determined that the PI error detected in step S11 is not 20 or more (that is, less than 20 and included in the good error range) (step S12: No) The deterioration determining unit 220 does not determine that the optical disc 100 has deteriorated. In other words, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines that the optical disc 100 has not deteriorated.

  If it is determined that the optical disc 100 has not deteriorated, then the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120. At this time, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 preferably reproduces the second inspection information 120 under the ideal reproduction conditions described above. As a result, the error detection unit 210 detects a PI error when the second inspection information 120 is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 (step S14).

  Thereafter, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines whether or not the PI error detected in step S14 is worse than the initial deterioration value (that is, whether or not it is larger than the initial deterioration value) (step S15). .

  As a result of the determination in step S15, when it is determined that the PI error detected in step S14 is worse than the initial deterioration value (that is, larger than the initial deterioration value) (step S15: Yes) ), The deterioration determining unit 220 determines that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated (step S16). That is, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines that the optical disc 100 has not deteriorated and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated (step S16). Thereafter, the inspection apparatus 200 ends the operation.

  On the other hand, if it is determined as a result of the determination in step S15 that the PI error detected in step S14 is not worse than the initial deterioration value (that is, not larger than the initial deterioration value) (step S15: No), the deterioration determining unit 220 does not determine that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated. In other words, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has not deteriorated. That is, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines that both the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are not deteriorated. Thereafter, the inspection apparatus 200 ends the operation.

  In step S15, the deterioration determination unit 220 may determine whether the PI error detected in step S14 has deteriorated by a predetermined amount or more than the initial deterioration value. That is, the deterioration determination unit 220 may determine whether or not the PI error detected in step S14 is larger than the initial deterioration value + a predetermined amount. When it is determined that the PI error detected in step S14 has deteriorated by a predetermined amount or more than the initial deterioration value, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated. Good. On the other hand, if it is determined that the PI error detected in step S14 has not deteriorated by a predetermined amount or more than the initial deterioration value, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has not deteriorated. May be.

  Alternatively, in step S15, the deterioration determination unit 220 may determine whether or not the PI error detected in step S14 is worse than a predetermined deterioration value included in the deterioration error range. At this time, the predetermined deterioration value is preferably a value worse (that is, larger) than the initial deterioration value. For example, when the initial deterioration value is 200, the predetermined deterioration value may be 500, for example. When it is determined that the PI error detected in step S14 is worse than a predetermined deterioration value, the deterioration determination unit 220 may determine that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated. On the other hand, if it is determined that the PI error detected in step S14 has not deteriorated beyond the predetermined deterioration value, the deterioration determining unit 220 determines that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has not deteriorated. Good.

  Here, the technical reason why the optical disk 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 can be inspected for deterioration by the operation shown in FIG. 3 will be described in more detail below.

  Through the experiments by the inventors of the present application, the following technical characteristics of the deterioration of the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 have been clarified.

  First, the first inspection information 110 (that is, with relatively good reproduction quality) having an initial good value included in a good error range in which a PI error detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition is 0 or more and less than 20. It has been clarified that the recorded first inspection information 110) does not greatly deteriorate the PI error detected during reproduction even if the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 deteriorates. In the experiment conducted by the inventors of the present application, the deterioration of the optical component (for example, the lens provided in the optical pickup 352) included in the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is treated as the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. However, the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 means the deterioration of electric parts (for example, a semiconductor laser or a photodiode included in the optical pickup 352) included in the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 or the deterioration of other parts included in the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. It may be. Such deterioration is typically caused by external deterioration (for example, adhesion of dirt) or internal deterioration (for example, component life (in other words, aging deterioration), component displacement).

  On the other hand, the second inspection information 120 (that is, with relatively poor reproduction quality) in which the PI error detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition becomes an initial deterioration value included in the deterioration error range of 200 or more and less than 1300. The recorded second inspection information 120 clearly shows that the PI error detected during reproduction greatly fluctuates (typically, the deterioration becomes worse) depending on the degree of deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. It was done.

  The above characteristics will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 7 using specific PI error values obtained by experiments by the present inventors. FIG. 4 is a graph showing experimental results of the inventors of the present application and the like, and is a graph showing specific numerical values of PI errors detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 while adjusting the tilt amount of the optical disc 100. It is. FIG. 5 is a table showing experimental results of the inventors of the present application and the like, and is a table showing specific numerical values of PI errors detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 while adjusting the tilt amount of the optical disc 100. It is. FIG. 6 is a graph showing the experimental results of the inventors of the present application, and the specific numerical values of PI errors detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 while adjusting the reproduction power. It is a graph which shows. FIG. 7 is a table showing the results of experiments by the inventors of the present application, and specific PI error values detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 while adjusting the reproduction power. It is a table | surface which shows.

  The vertical axis of the graph shown in FIG. 4 indicates the PI error. Further, the horizontal axis of the graph shown in FIG. 4 indicates the tilt amount. The experiments whose results are shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 were performed using the optical disc 100 in which only the first inspection information 110 was recorded. In this case, a PI error obtained when reproducing the first inspection information 110 in a state where the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is relatively small (that is, a state corresponding to the area A in FIG. 4) is the reproduction of the first inspection information 110. This corresponds to the PI error that is sometimes obtained (that is, the PI error detected in step S11 in FIG. 3). On the other hand, a PI error obtained when the first inspection information 110 is reproduced in a state where the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is relatively large (that is, a state corresponding to the region B in FIG. 4), the reproduction of the second inspection information 120 is performed. This corresponds to the PI error that is sometimes obtained (that is, the PI error detected in step S14 in FIG. 3). This is because, when the tilt amount is relatively small (that is, good), the reproduction of information having relatively poor reproduction quality is performed when the tilt amount is relatively large (that is, deteriorated). This is because it is substantially equivalent to the reproduction of information with relatively good reproduction quality.

  In the above description, the description focusing on the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is in progress. However, the reproduction of information with relatively poor reproduction quality in a state where the tilt amount of the objective lens included in the optical pickup 352 is relatively small (that is, relatively good) is also the tilt of the objective lens. This is substantially equivalent to the reproduction of information with relatively good reproduction quality when the amount is relatively large (that is, deteriorated). Alternatively, the reproduction of information with relatively poor reproduction quality in a state where the defocus amount of the laser light emitted from the optical pickup 352 is relatively small (that is, relatively good) is also the defocus amount. Is substantially equivalent to the reproduction of information with relatively good reproduction quality in a relatively large (ie, deteriorated) state. That is, in summary, the reproduction of information with relatively poor reproduction quality when the reproduction conditions are relatively good is the information with relatively good reproduction quality when the reproduction conditions are relatively deteriorated. Is substantially equivalent to the reproduction of

  4 and 5, the laser irradiated from the optical pickup 352 indicates that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated (specifically, the optical pickup 352 is dirty). This is realized by adjusting the reproduction power of light. This is because as the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 deteriorates (specifically, as the dirt of the optical pickup 352 increases), the reproducing power tends to decrease. Accordingly, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 that has not deteriorated corresponds to the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 that performs reproduction using laser light having a reproduction power of 0.7 mW. On the other hand, the deteriorated recording / reproducing apparatus 300 corresponds to the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 that performs reproduction by a laser beam having a reproducing power of 0.2 mW.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the reproduction result of the first inspection information 110 (that is, the reproduction result of the first inspection information 110 in the area A in FIG. 4) is deteriorated by the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 ( That is, even if the reproduction power is changed from 0.7 mW to 0.2 mW, the PI error of the first inspection information 110 is not greatly deteriorated. On the other hand, the reproduction result of the second inspection information 120 (that is, the reproduction result of the first inspection information 110 in the region B in FIG. 4) is that the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 deteriorates (that is, the reproduction power is 0. This indicates that the PI error of the second inspection information 120 is greatly deteriorated (by changing from 7 mW to 0.2 mW).

  Further, not only a pseudo experimental result that the reproduction of the first inspection information 110 with the tilt amount increased corresponds to the reproduction of the second inspection information 120 but also the second inspection information actually recorded on the optical disc 100. The PI error detected by reproducing 120 will also be described with reference to FIGS.

  The vertical axis of the graph shown in FIG. 6 indicates the PI error. Further, the horizontal axis of the graph shown in FIG. 6 indicates the reproduction power. A white mark in FIG. 6 indicates a PI error detected by reproducing the second inspection information 120 while adjusting the reproduction power. In particular, the white square mark in FIG. 6 is detected by reproducing the second inspection information 120 while adjusting the reproduction power while the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is optimal (that is, 0). Indicates a PI error. On the other hand, the white circle in FIG. 6 is detected by reproducing the second inspection information 120 while adjusting the reproduction power while the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is tilted tangentially for 30 minutes. Indicates an error. As shown in FIG. 6, with respect to the second inspection information 120, it can be seen that the detected PI error becomes worse as the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 deteriorates (that is, the reproduction power decreases).

  On the other hand, the black mark in FIG. 6 indicates a PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 while adjusting the reproduction power. In particular, the black squares in FIG. 6 are detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 while adjusting the reproduction power in a state where the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is optimal (that is, 0). Indicates a PI error. As shown in FIG. 6, with respect to the first inspection information 110, it can be seen that even if the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 deteriorates (that is, the reproduction power decreases), the detected PI error hardly deteriorates.

  For reference, the black circles in FIG. 6 are detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 while adjusting the reproduction power while the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is tilted tangentially for 30 minutes. PI error indicated. That is, a black circle in FIG. 6 indicates a PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 with the tilt amount increased (that is, reproducing the pseudo second inspection information 120). Is shown. As shown in FIG. 6, the PI error obtained when reproducing the first inspection information 110 when the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is relatively large is the same as the PI error obtained when reproducing the second inspection information 120. It can be seen that changes. That is, from the experimental results, the PI error obtained when reproducing the first inspection information 110 when the tilt amount of the optical disc 100 is relatively large corresponds to the PI error obtained when reproducing the second inspection information 120. I understand. In other words, the reproduction of information with relatively poor reproduction quality when the tilt amount is relatively small (that is, good) is relative to the reproduction when the tilt amount is relatively large (that is, deteriorated). It can also be seen from the experimental results that it is substantially equivalent to the reproduction of information with good reproduction quality.

  As described above, the inspection apparatus 200 according to the present embodiment has the characteristics of the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 (for example, the characteristics in the region A in FIG. 4) and the second inspection. Inspecting the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 by positively utilizing the difference from the characteristic of the PI error detected by reproducing the information 120 (for example, the characteristic in the region B in FIG. 4). Can do. In particular, the inspection apparatus 200 can individually determine whether the optical disc 100 is deteriorated or the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is deteriorated by considering both characteristics.

  Specifically, in the inspection apparatus 200, when the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 is deteriorated (in other words, it is no longer included in the good error range), the optical disc 100 Can be determined to have deteriorated. This is because the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is unlikely to cause the deterioration of the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 (see region A in FIG. 4).

  On the other hand, the inspection apparatus 200 reproduces the second inspection information 120 while the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 is not deteriorated (in other words, included in the good error range). When the PI error detected by this is worse (in other words, worse than a predetermined value (for example, initial deterioration value) within the deterioration error range), the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is deteriorated. Can be determined. This is because the deterioration of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is unlikely to cause deterioration of the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110, while the PI error detected by reproducing the second inspection information 120. It is because it is easy to cause deterioration of (refer the area | region B of FIG. 4).

  On the other hand, in the inspection apparatus 200, the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110 is not deteriorated, and the PI error detected by reproducing the second inspection information 120 is not deteriorated. In this case, it can be determined that the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are not deteriorated.

  As described above, the inspection apparatus 200 according to the present embodiment preferably inspects the optical disk 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 by using the optical disk 100 in which both the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 are recorded. Can do.

In the above description, the description has been focused on the PI error. However, the inspection apparatus 200 may inspect the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 based on an error amount other than the PI error. For example, the inspection apparatus 200 may inspect the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 based on a PO (Parity Outer) error. Alternatively, if the optical disc 100 (for example, BD) different from the optical disc 100 (for example, DVD) in which PI error and PO error are mainly used is targeted, the inspection apparatus 200 is based on random SER (Symbol Error Rate). Thus, the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 may be inspected. When the random SER is used, the good error range is preferably an error range that is 0 or more and less than 1 × 10 ⁻³ (provided that there is no burst error). On the other hand, the deterioration error range is preferably an error range that is 1 × 10 ⁻³ or more and less than 4 × 10 ⁻³ (provided that there is no burst error). Alternatively, the PI error, PO error, and random SER all indicate the error amount of the signal after the signal recording / reproducing means 353 performs demodulation. However, the inspection apparatus 200 may inspect the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 based on the error amount of the signal before the demodulation in the signal recording / reproducing means 353 (so-called general error rate). The same applies to the modifications described below.

  In the above description, the first inspection information 110 in which the initial good value included in the good error range where the PI error is 0 or more and less than 20 is detected, and the deterioration error range where the PI error is 200 or more and less than 1300. An example is shown in which two types of inspection information, the second inspection information 120 from which the included initial deterioration value is detected, are recorded. However, a plurality of pieces of inspection information for detecting PI errors that gradually or continuously deteriorate from a predetermined value within the good error range toward a predetermined value within the deterioration error range may be recorded. In this case, the plurality of pieces of inspection information include not only the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 described above, but also a third PI error included in an error range between the good error range and the deteriorated error range. Inspection information may be included. Specifically, for example, the optical disc 100 includes one or a plurality of first inspection information 110 in which a PI error that gradually deteriorates under the condition that it is included in the good error range, the good error range and the deterioration. One or a plurality of third inspection information in which a PI error that gradually deteriorates under the condition that it is included in the error range between the error ranges and the condition that it is included in the deteriorated error range A plurality of second inspection information 120 for detecting a PI error that is getting worse may be recorded. With this configuration, the various effects described above can be enjoyed regardless of variations in the initial characteristics of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. This is because the optimal first inspection information 110 for inspection among the plurality of first inspection information 110 may change due to variations in initial characteristics of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 or the like. Similarly, the optimal second inspection information 120 for inspection among the plurality of second inspection information 120 may change due to variations in initial characteristics of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 or the like. Similarly, due to variations in initial characteristics of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300, any of the plurality of third inspection information may become the optimal first inspection information 110 or second inspection information 120 for inspection. Because. For this reason, with this configuration, the inspection apparatus 200 selects the optimal first inspection information 110 and second inspection information 120 according to variations in the initial characteristics of the recording / reproducing apparatus 300, and then performs the inspection described above. It can be carried out.

(3) Modified Example Next, a modified example will be described with reference to FIGS.

(3-1) First Modification In the above description, the inspection apparatus 200 uses the optical disk 100 in which both the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 are recorded, and uses the optical disk 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. I am inspecting. However, the inspection apparatus 200a of the first modification inspects the optical disk 100a and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300a using the optical disk 100a in which the first inspection information 110 is recorded but the second inspection information 120 is not recorded. . In this case, the first inspection information 110 may be recorded on the entire optical disc 100a. Alternatively, the first inspection information 110 may be recorded on a part of the optical disc 100a.

  Hereinafter, the first modification will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the inspection apparatus 200a of the first modification. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation flow of the inspection apparatus 200a of the first modification. In addition, about the structure and operation | movement same as the structure and operation | movement of the test | inspection apparatus 200 mentioned above, the same referential mark and step number are attached | subjected and the detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the inspection apparatus 200a of the first modification is different from the above-described inspection apparatus 200 in that it includes a reproduction condition setting unit 230. The playback condition setting unit 230 sets (in other words, adjusts or changes) playback conditions when the recording / playback apparatus 300a plays back the optical disc 100a. An example of the playback condition is a playback condition caused by an operation parameter related to the optical disc 100a. As such reproduction conditions, for example, the tilt amount of the optical disc 100a itself, the tilt amount of the objective lens included in the optical pickup 352, the defocus amount of the optical pickup 352, the optical component or the electrical component included in the recording / reproducing apparatus 300a, Examples include the position (for example, the position of the beam expander), the operating point of the electrical component provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus 300a (for example, the operating state of the liquid crystal tilt element), and the like.

  In addition, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300a of the first modified example is different from the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 described above in that it includes a reproduction condition changing mechanism 358. The reproduction condition changing mechanism 358 actually changes the reproduction condition when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the optical disc 100a based on the reproduction condition set by the reproduction condition setting unit 230. In order to change the reproduction condition, the reproduction condition change mechanism 358 includes, for example, a tilt mechanism that can adjust the tilt amount of the optical disc 100a itself, a tilt mechanism that can adjust the tilt amount of the objective lens included in the optical pickup 352, A servo mechanism or the like that can adjust the defocus amount of the pickup 352 may be provided.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the operations from step S11 to step S13 are also performed in the first modified example. That is, the inspection apparatus 200a of the first modified example determines whether or not the optical disc 100a has deteriorated based on the PI error detected by reproducing the first inspection information 110.

  If it is determined that the optical disk 100a has not deteriorated (that is, the PI error detected in step S11 is not 20 or more), then the playback condition setting unit 230 causes the recording / playback apparatus 300 to play back the optical disk 100a. The reproduction condition is changed (step S22). Specifically, the reproduction condition setting unit 230 sets a reproduction condition that is worse than the reproduction condition (for example, ideal reproduction condition) when the first inspection information 110 is reproduced in step S11 as a new reproduction condition. As described above, the playback condition is changed. The deterioration of the reproduction condition is realized, for example, by increasing the tilt amount of the optical disc 100a, increasing the tilt amount of the objective lens provided in the optical pickup 352, or increasing the defocus amount of the laser light emitted from the optical pickup 352. Is done.

  Thereafter, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110 under the reproduction condition changed in step S22 (that is, the deteriorated reproduction condition). As a result, the error detection unit 210 detects a PI error when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110 (step S23).

  In order to reproduce the first inspection information 110 under the reproduction condition changed in step S22, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 is not illustrated in the drawing of FIG. 8, for example, under the control of the reproduction condition setting unit 230. The tilt amount of the optical disc 100a may be changed using a disc tilt mechanism. Alternatively, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 changes the tilt amount of the objective lens included in the optical pickup 352 using, for example, a lens tilt mechanism (not shown in the drawing of FIG. 8) under the control of the reproduction condition setting unit 230. May be. Alternatively, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 controls the defocus amount of the laser light emitted from the optical pickup 352 using, for example, a lens actuator not shown in the drawing of FIG. It may be changed. Even when other playback conditions are set, the recording / playback apparatus 300 may appropriately change the playback conditions using a known mechanism or the like.

  As described above, the reproduction of information with relatively poor reproduction quality when the reproduction condition is relatively good is relatively good when the reproduction condition is relatively deteriorated. Is substantially equivalent to the reproduction of information. For this reason, the PI error detected when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the first inspection information 110 under the reproduction condition changed in step S22 (that is, the deteriorated reproduction condition) is substantially the second inspection information. This is equivalent to a PI error detected when 120 is reproduced. That is, the inspection apparatus 200a of the first modified example uses the optical disk 100a in which the first inspection information 110 is recorded but the second inspection information 120 is not recorded. The optical disc 100a and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 can be inspected in the same manner as in the case of using the optical disc 100a on which both pieces of information 120 are recorded.

  For this reason, the reproduction condition setting unit 230 determines that the reproduction of the first inspection information 110 under the changed reproduction condition is the second inspection information 120 (specifically, a PI error detected during reproduction under the ideal reproduction condition). Is preferably changed so as to correspond to the reproduction of the second inspection information 120) having the initial deterioration value. In particular, the reproduction condition setting unit 230 performs reproduction of the first inspection information 110 under the ideal reproduction condition under the reproduction condition after the change in a virtual situation where the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproduction device 300 are not deteriorated. It is preferable to change the reproduction condition so as to correspond to the reproduction of the second inspection information 120. That is, it is preferable that the reproduction condition setting unit 230 changes the reproduction condition so that reproduction of the first inspection information 110 under the changed reproduction condition corresponds to reproduction in the region B in FIG. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4, if the first inspection information 110 is reproduced under the reproduction condition in which the tilt amount becomes zero in step S11 of FIG. 9, the reproduction condition setting unit 230, for example, the optical disk 100a It is preferable to change the reproduction condition so that the tilt amount of the image becomes about 0.3 to 0.5 (or about 0.3 to 0.5).

  Thereafter, also in the first modification, the operations from step S15 to step S16 are performed. That is, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines whether or not the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated based on the PI error detected in step S23.

  As described above, the inspection apparatus 200a of the first modified example uses the optical disk 100a in which the first inspection information 110 is recorded but the second inspection information 120 is not recorded, but the first inspection information 110 is used. In addition, the optical disc 100a and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 can be inspected in the same manner as in the case of using the optical disc 100a on which both the second inspection information 120 is recorded. Therefore, the various effects described above can be suitably enjoyed.

(3-2) Second Modification In the above description, the inspection apparatus 200 uses the optical disk 100 in which both the first inspection information 110 and the second inspection information 120 are recorded, and uses the optical disk 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300. I am inspecting. However, the inspection apparatus 200b of the second modification inspects the optical disk 100b and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 using the optical disk 100b in which the second inspection information 120 is recorded while the first inspection information 110 is not recorded. . In this case, the second inspection information 120 may be recorded on the entire optical disc 100b. Alternatively, the second inspection information 120 may be recorded on a part of the optical disc 100b.

  Hereinafter, the second modification will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an operation flow of the inspection apparatus 200b according to the second modification. In addition, about the operation | movement same as operation | movement of the inspection apparatus 200 mentioned above, the same step number is attached | subjected and the detailed description is abbreviate | omitted. In addition, the configuration of the inspection apparatus 200b of the second modification may be the same as the configuration of the inspection apparatus 200 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120. At this time, the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 preferably reproduces the second inspection information 120 under the ideal reproduction conditions described above. As a result, the error detection unit 210 detects a PI error when the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 reproduces the second inspection information 120 (step S14).

  Thereafter, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines whether or not the PI error detected in step S14 is worse than the initial deterioration value (that is, whether or not it is larger than the initial deterioration value) (step S15). .

  As a result of the determination in step S15, when it is determined that the PI error detected in step S14 is worse than the initial deterioration value (that is, larger than the initial deterioration value) (step S15: Yes) ), The deterioration determining unit 220 determines that at least one of the optical disc 100b and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated (step S31).

  On the other hand, if it is determined as a result of the determination in step S15 that the PI error detected in step S14 is not worse than the initial deterioration value (that is, not larger than the initial deterioration value) (step S15: No), the deterioration determining unit 220 does not determine that at least one of the optical disc 100b and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 has deteriorated. That is, the deterioration determination unit 220 determines that both the optical disc 100 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 300 are not deteriorated.

  As described above, the inspection apparatus 200b according to the second modification uses the optical disk 100b in which the second inspection information 120 is recorded while the first inspection information 110 is not recorded, and the optical disk 100a and the recording / reproducing apparatus. 300 can be inspected.

  Further, the present invention can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist or idea of the invention which can be read from the claims and the entire specification, and the recording medium, apparatus and method accompanying such a change are also included in the present invention. Included in technical thought.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Optical disk 110 1st test | inspection information 120 2nd test | inspection information 200 Inspection apparatus 210 Error detection part 220 Degradation discrimination | determination part 230 Playback condition setting part 330 Recording / reproducing apparatus 351 Spindle motor 352 Optical pick-up 353 Signal recording / reproducing means 354 CPU
355 Memory 357 Data bus

Claims (14)

First information recorded so that a first error amount included in the first error range is detected during reproduction under a predetermined reproduction condition;
Second information recorded so as to detect a second error amount included in the second error range that is worse than the first error range during reproduction under the predetermined reproduction condition is recorded. A recording medium characterized by the above.   The first error range is an error range that includes an error amount that is small enough that correction of the reproduction error of the first information is not started by error correction processing when the first information is reproduced under the predetermined reproduction condition. The recording medium according to claim 1.   In the second error range, when the second information is reproduced under the predetermined reproduction condition, correction of the reproduction error of the second information is started by an error correction process and the reproduction error is corrected by the error correction process. The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein the recording medium has an error range including an error amount as large as possible.   2. The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of pieces of the first information having different first error amounts detected during reproduction under the predetermined reproduction condition are recorded.   The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of pieces of the second information having different second error amounts detected during reproduction under the predetermined reproduction condition are recorded.   The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein each of the first error amount and the second error amount is a PI (Parity Inner) error. The first error range is an error range in which the PI error is 0 or more and less than 20.
The recording medium according to claim 6, wherein the second error range is an error range in which the PI error is 200 or more and less than 1300.   The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein each of the first error amount and the second error amount is a random SER (Symbol Error Rate). The first error range is an error range in which the random SER is 0 or more and less than 1 × 10 ⁻³ ,
The recording medium according to claim 8, wherein the second error range is an error range in which the random SER is 1 × 10 ⁻³ or more and less than 4 × 10 ⁻³ . An inspection apparatus for inspecting the recording medium according to claim 1 and a recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of a recording operation and a reproducing operation for the recording medium,
First detection means for detecting a third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus;
Second detection means for detecting a fourth error amount detected during reproduction of the second information by the recording / reproducing apparatus;
An inspection apparatus comprising: a discriminating unit that discriminates deterioration of each of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus based on the third error amount and the fourth error amount.   The inspection apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the determination unit determines that the recording medium has deteriorated when the third error amount is not included in the first error range. .   When the third error amount is included in the first error range and the fourth error amount is worse than the second error amount, the determination unit deteriorates the recording / reproducing device. The inspection apparatus according to claim 10, wherein it is determined that the inspection apparatus is present.   When the third error amount is included in the first error range and the fourth error amount is not worse than the second error amount, the determination unit is configured to record the recording medium and the recording / reproducing device. It is discriminate | determined that both of have not degraded, The inspection apparatus of Claim 10 characterized by the above-mentioned. An inspection method for inspecting the recording medium according to claim 1 and a recording / reproducing apparatus that performs at least one of a recording operation and a reproducing operation with respect to the recording medium,
A first detection step of detecting a third error amount detected when the first information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus;
A second detection step of detecting a fourth error amount detected when the second information is reproduced by the recording / reproducing apparatus;
An inspection method comprising: a determination step of determining deterioration of each of the recording medium and the recording / reproducing apparatus based on the third error amount and the fourth error amount.

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