JPH0336641A - Memory control system for memory card - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To execute the memory control of a memory card by including first and second areas in a memory area, including a second display showing the prohibition possibility of writing to the area instructed by a first display, and writing information to the memory unit without prohibition. CONSTITUTION:Picture data 22 of one packet are stored in an arbitrary cluster 14. Concerning the cluster 14 for which one part of the data 22 is accumulated in a MAT area 18, the identification information of the cluster 14 are included to accumulate the data to be linked out of the remained picture data. When there are no remained picture data, an end is shown by a prescribed code. A start cluster number and the number of the clusters to be used are accumulated for each packet 22 in a directory area 16. The remained area of a memory area 12 is used as a picture data area 20. The capacity of the cluster 14 is made enough for accumulating about the 1/integer of the picture data. Thus, the stored data can be speedily reproduced in prescribed order.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a storage management system for a memory card, for example, a storage management system for storing data such as image data on a memory card as a file.

For example, in a digital electronic still camera, when image data representing captured images is stored on a memory card, there is a method that also stores management data indicating the order in which each image is stored in the memory and the cleanliness of the memory. , pending patent application by the applicant, patent application No. 1200-1982
The application was filed in 1973. This image data recording device is
You can selectively erase each image, and you can rearrange or rearrange the order of images. This is achieved by adding a recording order code representing the recording order of images when recording image data. In this method, specific images that have already been recorded are erased and other images are recorded, and in order to be able to play back these images in the appropriate order, their recording order codes must be rewritten and reassigned. do. This reassignment took a lot of time.

A pending patent application, Japanese Patent Application No. 1-10997, also filed by the same applicant as the present application, proposes a memory management system that can efficiently store data of variable size. According to this, in a memory card storage management method in which the storage area of a memory card is divided into a plurality of clusters and information storage is managed for each cluster, among the plurality of clusters,
For example, the relationship between 1 frame of image information to be stored is specified in the memory allocation table (MATI),
The cluster is configured such that a directory indicates a cluster in which the beginning part of one frame of image information is stored. In this prior art, when one image is erased individually, the erased portion of the directory is filled in and the recorded contents are shifted to meet the request for reproduction according to the chronological order of recording.

However, the demands of users of -M, digital electronic still cameras, etc. are becoming more diverse. It is required to be able to reproduce images in a desired order.

Note that in this specification, the term "memory card" refers not only to a storage medium in which a semiconductor memory element is supported on a card-like support and is removably connected to another device, but also refers to, for example, a memory medium in which a semiconductor memory element is supported in a card-like support and is removably connected to another device. Refers to a semiconductor storage medium that is removably connected to other devices, such as a memory cartridge that is enclosed in a package and is removably connected to other devices.

Shell--0 In view of such demands, an object of the present invention is to provide a storage management system for a memory card that allows stored pigs to be quickly reproduced in a desired order.

According to the present invention, in a memory card storage management method in which an information storage area of a memory card is divided into a plurality of storage units each having a predetermined storage capacity, and information storage is managed for each storage unit. , storing in a storage area of the memory card a first display indicating which one of the plurality of storage units is to store a set of related information; The storage area includes a second display indicating whether or not writing is prohibited, and when writing information to the memory card, consider selecting one of the plurality of storage units whose second display does not indicate write protection. and write information to that storage unit.

According to the present invention, there is provided a memory card that is compatible with such a storage management method, and includes a first storage area that stores a first display, and at least one of a plurality of storage units, and which stores information. a second storage area different from the first storage area for storing the information, and the first storage area further includes a second storage area for storing data in the storage unit specified by the first display among the plurality of storage units. The second display is referred to when writing information to the memory card, and the second display among the plurality of storage units indicates write protection. The information will be written to those that are not registered.

According to the present invention, there is also provided a memory card storage device suitable for such a memory card, which stores a first set of related information among a plurality of storage units.
a first writing means for writing an indication of ``indication'' into a first storage area; a devising means for searching out a plurality of storage units whose second indication does not indicate write protection; and a devising means for writing information into a memory card. and a second writing means for writing information into the devised storage unit in which the second display does not indicate write protection among the plurality of storage units, and the first writing means performs the writing. The second display is written to the first storage area as write-inhibited for the storage unit.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a memory card playback device suitable for the above-mentioned memory card, which
A first display and date and time data representing the time when information was written to the memory card are stored in the storage area,
The playback device includes a first reading means for reading out the first display and date/time data from the first storage area, and for the plurality of storage units, in the order represented by the read first display.
or a second reading means for reading information in the second storage area according to the first display in the order represented by the read date and time data.

According to the present invention, the playback device also includes an input means for inputting a third display indicating the order in which a set of information should be played back, and a writing means for writing the input third display into the first storage area. The first reading means reads the third display from the first storage area, and the second reading means includes:
Information in the second storage area is read out in the order represented by the third display for a plurality of storage units in accordance with the read first display.

! DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, embodiments of a memory card storage management system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1 conceptually showing the storage management system of this embodiment, in this embodiment, the storage area 12 of the memory card 10 (FIG. 2) is divided into clusters 14 of a predetermined storage capacity. Directory as management data (DIR+1
6 (Figure 2) In addition to the memory allocation table (
MATI 18 has been introduced. The remaining area of the storage area 12 is used as an image data area 20 for storing image data in this embodiment. The capacity of the cluster 14 may be any size, but for example, data necessary to represent one image as a standard format video signal, which is called a "packet", can be a positive integer of image data. It is sufficient to accumulate only 1/2 of the total amount.

In this embodiment, basically one packet of image data 22
is stored in an arbitrary cluster 14. The MAT area I8 stores data indicating the relationship of the clusters 14 in which 1 packets of image data 22 are stored, that is, MAT data. &IAT data is an example.

Regarding the cluster 14 in which a part of the image data 22 of the l packet is stored, the identification information of the cluster 14 that is directly connected to it among the remaining image data, but contains the identification information, for example, the number, of the cluster 14. 6 There is no remaining image data. When the cluster 14 is the last of the packet 22, it is indicated by a predetermined sign, such as "all l" (binary value). In the directory area 16, identification information indicating the cluster 14 in which the first image data of the image data is stored for each image, that is, for each packet 22, such as a start cluster number and a used cluster acid, is stored. This specifies which cluster 14 the image data of one image is stored in.

For example, in an example where the storage capacity of the memory card IO is 6414 bits, the size of the cluster 14 can be set to 64 bits, and a cluster 14 of 1024 g can be provided. Each cluster 14 is numbered #0 to #10 in order of physical location.
Grant 23. Cluster #0. Management data is stored in #1 and #2. In this embodiment, the management data is the fourth
As shown, header 400. It includes a directory I6 and a MAT 18, which are stored in respective subareas. The remaining clusters #3 to #1023 have
Image data is stored, which also includes the image data 4υ2 specific to each individual image.

One packet 22 is stored in one or more clusters 14. Therefore, a packet can also be said to be a logical area in which image data representing one image is stored. The packets 22 are numbered in a practical order, such as the input order of image data, and when a certain packet 22 is deleted, that number becomes vacant and will be used from next time onwards.
Newly added to the image data to be stored. 1 packets of image data 22 are stored in one or more clusters 14. The cluster 14 at the end has a free space 14a (
Figure 1) may exist. The capacity of the packet 22 that can be stored in the memory card IO is equal to the number of clusters that store image data, that is, [the number of clusters 14 of the card IO]−[the number of clusters that store management data 1].

One header 15 uses 16 bytes in this embodiment, and the fifth
Management data as illustrated in the figure is stored. Among these management data, in particular, the number of clusters 14 recorded in the memory card IO is represented by the number of used clusters 404, and the number of remaining usable rasters 14 is represented by the number of remaining clusters 406.

In this embodiment, 16 bytes are used for the directory area 16 per packet as shown in FIG.
and the usage class R410 are stored.

In this embodiment, since the number of clusters is 1024, 2 bytes are used for the start cluster number. The area for storing the start cluster number and the number of used classes in an unused directory is represented by "all O". Since cluster 14 does not store image data, no contradiction occurs.

In this embodiment, the memory area to be used by a specific packet 22 is designated by the first cluster number 408 and the number of used classes 410 in this way.

As shown in Figure 6, the directory area @16 also contains
The six directories 16, which are provided with a kind of read/write protection indication as an attribute 28, are provided corresponding to packets, so this attribute is also managed on a packet-by-packet basis.

In this example, the attribute 28 is the lower two bits r XX of one byte in this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
These 2 bits that use J are "00" which means that the packet 22 can be read and written, "Ol" which means that reading is prohibited, and "
1o'' indicates that writing is prohibited, and rllJ indicates that reading and writing are prohibited. In any case, in this embodiment, the significant bit "l" indicates prohibition. Note that writing also includes erasing. Such attribute display does not necessarily mean that
16, for example, the MAT area I described later.
8 may be provided.

The directory area 16 also has a date and time area 412 of 6 bytes per packet, into which the date and time when the packet 22 was recorded on the memory card IO is written. In this embodiment, this date and time information includes the last two digits of the Western calendar year to the second, so that it can also be used for quick photography.

As shown in FIG. 6, the directory area 16 also has an area 420 for storing image numbers, which is an area in which the user writes an image number that can be arbitrarily assigned to the packet 22. The user can use this image number 420
can be used to edit the image frames so that they are played in the desired order. In other words, the image number 420 is a display that defines the order in which the user wants to reproduce the images.

The directory area 18 further includes information classification 4149, image method 416, and image quality mode 41, each of which is 1 byte.
8 is also recorded. These have bit configurations as shown in FIGS. 7, 8, and 9, respectively. For example, the information classification 414 uses two bits to indicate the type of information to be recorded, that is, images, audio, and data.
In the AL standard color television system, the lower 1 bit is assigned to indicate color/black and white, and the lower 5 bits are assigned to display the number of pixels. Furthermore, the image quality mode 418 converts the upper 4 bits into discrete cosine transform, differential PC, etc.
The lower 4 bits are assigned to display the compression ratio in order to display the compression method such as M or delta PCM. An example of the contents of the directory 16 that stores this information is shown in FIG.
In the figure, data regarding clusters is omitted. Further, the DIR number means the address arrangement order on the directory area.

In this embodiment, these attributes 28, the first cluster 408,
Number of clusters used 4IO9 Date and time 412 and image number 42
The storage area of G is provided for each directory, that is, for each packet 22. However, this is not necessarily necessary, and all packets 22 may be stored together for each type of information.

For example, the attribute 28 may be stored together for all packets, the first cluster 408 may be stored together for all packets, and similarly, the number of used clusters 41, 0, date/time 412 and image number 420 may be stored together for all packets. . Also, for example, the attribute 28, the first cluster 408, and the number of used classes 410 may be stored together in the order of the packets.In terms of search and writing, it is better to store this information for each packet 22. However, it is advantageous to store them collectively for each type of information.

In the MAT area 18, as shown in FIG. 11, 2 bytes are used per cluster, and information specifying the cluster 14 that should follow is stored. In the present embodiment, the value of MAT 18 is set to "0" when no image data is stored in the cluster 14, for example, when it is in an unused state or an erased state.
When it is the end of the packet 22, it takes "all 1", that is, rFFFFJ in hexadecimal. In this embodiment, the cluster 14 used for storing the packet 22 is 1021.
It is individual. If there is another cluster 14 following a certain packet 22, as shown in FIG.
In this embodiment, the value 1 corresponds to the storage location address of the storage area 20 where the continuation cluster 14 is stored.In this embodiment, the value indicates the upper IO bit.

An embodiment in which such a storage management system is applied to a digital electronic still camera is shown in FIG. 2. This embodiment has a digital electronic still camera 52 to which a memory cartridge IO is detachably connected by a connector 50. The camera 52 is connected to an imaging device 56 through an imaging lens 54.
This is a still image photographing device that photographs a subject scene and stores image data representing the scene in a memory card 10.

The output of the imaging device 52 is subjected to signal processing such as color adjustment by a signal processing circuit 58, and converted into corresponding digital data by an analog/digital fA/DJ conversion circuit 60. This digital data is color separated and compressed and encoded by the signal processing circuit 62, and outputted to the connector 5o through the data selector 64.

The camera 52 manually inputs various instructions such as exposure instructions, data compression mode specifications, and write protect specifications, and also receives various instructions such as an alarm indicating that there are no empty clusters necessary for recording image data. It has an operation display section 66 that displays the status of the device to the user. Instructions input to the operation display section 66 are sent to the system control section 68, and the status of the apparatus is also given to the mock display section 66 from the control section 68.

The system control unit 68 is a control device that controls the overall operation of the camera 52, and also controls writing to the memory card 10. In this embodiment, a part of the storage area used by the system control circuit 68 includes an empty cluster/DIR table 3
00 is set. Free cluster/DIR table 30
0 is a table that displays the empty/busy status of each directory 'J16 of the memory card IO connected to the camera 52 and the empty/busy status of each cluster 14 of the memory card IO.

Also connected to the system controller 68 is a clock 430 that generates date and time data. This is a calendar circuit that mainly provides the system control circuit 68 with data on the shooting date and time recorded in the date and time area 412 of the directory area 16.

A compression rate setting circuit 70 is connected to the system control unit 68, and this circuit sends a signal indicating the encoding compression rate of image data according to the data compression mode instructed on the operation display unit 66 under the control of the system control unit 68. This circuit is set in the processing circuit 62. As the compression encoding method, for example, orthogonal transform such as two-dimensional cosine transform, subsampling, quantization, etc. are advantageously applied.

The data selector 64 is a selection circuit that selectively sends image data from the signal processing circuit 62 and control data related to the system control unit 68 to the memory card IO through the connector 50. and an empty cluster designation circuit 74 are connected. The DIR-MAT information write circuit 72 is a write circuit that generates data to be written to the direct 1J16 and MAT 18 of the memory card 10. The empty cluster designating circuit 74 is a circuit that manages whether the clusters 14 in which the image data of the memory card 10 is multiplied by M is empty or blocked, and searches out the MAT 18 and designates an empty cluster to the system control circuit 74.

Memory card IO has an addressing circuit 76 to which an address specifying its storage location is provided from system control circuit 68 through connector 50. The memory card IO has an address bus 78i5 and a data bus 80 for storage areas 16, 18 and 20, the former being connected to the addressing circuit 76 and the latter to the connector 50.

When the card IO is loaded into the camera 52, the system control unit 68 checks the logical consistency of the directory 16 and the MAT 18. This is to enable efficient use of the card 10 even if there is a discrepancy between the two management data. Camera 52 via connector 50 of card 10
The system control unit 68 connects to an empty cluster/DIR.
Execute the initial setting mode to create the table 300.

In this initial setting mode, all the directories 16 of the card IO are searched, and for the directory that is displayed as being used, the one AT lδ specified by the directory is traced and all the clusters I4 belonging to it are restored, and the free cluster/DIR table is An in-use display rlJ is set up at a position corresponding to 300. This search is performed in directory area 16
This is done for attribute 28 of . In this example, writing is permitted for clusters 14 in which "0" is set in the second bit of the attribute area 28 (FIG. 10).

The operator sets the compression mode of the image data using the operation display section 66. The system control unit 68 calculates the number of rasters 14 required to store the data in the image data area 20 of the card IO based on the amount of data after compression, and uses the free cluster/DIR table 300 to calculate the number of rasters 14 required for storing the data in the image data area 20 of the card IO.
Search for. If the number of free clusters is greater than the number of rasters necessary for the image data to be stored, the system control unit 68 specifies the free cluster 14 and waits.

When a shooting instruction is input by operating the operation display section 66,
The system control unit 68 drives the imaging device 56 to image the subject, and the output of the imaging device 56 undergoes processing such as color adjustment by the signal processing circuit 58, and is converted into a corresponding digital signal by the A/D conversion circuit 60. The signal processing circuit 62 converts the data into compression rate setting circuit 70.
The data is compressed at the compression rate set in and stored in the data buffer 63. At the same time, the system control unit 68 generates an address for the image data storage area 20 according to the number of the cluster 14 that has already been designated, and these data and addresses are input to the memory card 10 through the connector 50.

The cluster 14 used for storing image data has an attribute 28
It has a sign that allows writing. The order may be arbitrary, preferably the order of the directories 16, so that one
Even when a directory is deleted, the deleted directory is used without shifting subsequent directories to fill it.

In the memory card l mouth, the directory according to the specified address! Directory data to 6, MAT 18
The directory data and MAT data are supplied from the system control unit 68 to the old R-MAT information writing circuit 72, and the circuit 72 writes them into the directory area 16. , this data includes date and time data obtained from the clock 43σ, and the first cluster number 408 . of the selected clusters 14. Number of classes used: 410. Information classification 4
141 Image method 416. The image quality mode data stored in the 8 image quality modes 418, including i5 and image quality modes 418 (FIG. 6), are those set in the system control section 68 from the operation display section 66. In the attribute area 28 of the directory 16 corresponding to the cluster 14 into which image data has been newly written in this way, the system control unit 68 normally writes the lower 2 bits, that is, the write protect indication (Figure 1O) to rlJ. 0 The created directory 16 will be the same as shown in Figure 13, but it will not be written to the 1 image number area 420. In the same figure, used indications are indicated by circles and unused indications are indicated by X. ing.

As will be seen from now on, according to this method, by including an indication regarding write and read protection in the attribute area @28 provided in the directory area 16, for example, a cluster in the middle of a series of clusters 14 can be can be erased and image data of other packets 22 can be written therein. Therefore, cluster 14 to be recorded
Image data can be written quickly without the need for processing such as reconfiguring the directory 16.

In this way, data from different directories 16 can be quickly written to the memory card l opening, so that the electronic still camera 52 can appropriately handle high-speed snapshots.

The memory card 10 with the image data stored in this way is
It can be played back using a playback device 200 as illustrated in FIG. Connector 5 connected to memory card L port
0 is connected to the signal processing circuit 20 through the data selector 202.
The signal processing circuit 204 is a circuit that expands and decodes compressed image data using a predetermined expansion method. The decoded image data is converted into a corresponding analog signal by a digital/analog (D/A) conversion circuit 206. This analog signal is sent to another signal processing circuit 2.
At step 08, the signal is converted into an RGB signal or a standard television signal such as NTSC, and outputted from its output 210 to a video monitor device 212, where it is displayed as a visible image.

The decompression method and decompression rate used by the signal processing circuit 204 are set to be the same as the data compression method and decompression rate used when the camera 52 records data on the memory card l slot. This setting is performed by the compression ratio setting circuit 216 under the control of the system control section 214. In this embodiment, the system control unit 214 reads the image quality mode data 418 (FIG. 9) including the compression method and compression rate stored in the header 400 of the directory area 16 and sets it in the signal processing circuit 204 from the setting circuit 216. .

The system control unit 214 is a control device that controls the overall operation of the digital electronic still player 200 in response to the operation display unit 222, and includes an image number writing circuit 218 and a DIRMAT information reading circuit 220 as shown in the figure. The 8 image number writing circuit 2!8 to which is connected is a circuit that writes image number data 420 into the directory area 16 of the memory card 10. This image number is
This is a desired number input by the operator from the operation display section 222, and defines the order in which images should be reproduced. Also old R-
The MAT information reading circuit 220 reads the directory 16 and the MAT information from the memory card l port connected to the device 200.
This is a circuit that reads out 18.

From these read data, the system control opening section 21
Step 4 arranges the data and creates a cluster table. These tables are created as time series tables 450 and 452. The time series table 450 is a table in which data indicating directory numbers read out from the directory area 16 is rearranged in the order of the shooting date and time data 412. FIG. 14 illustrates a table 450 created for the example shown in the figure. The image number table 452 is also a table in which directory number data is rearranged in the order of image numbers.
It is shown in Figure 5.

The operation display section 222 inputs data necessary for editing such as designation of image frames to be played back in this device, designation of the playback order described later, instructions regarding playback and deletion, and image numbers, and also inputs data necessary for editing such as image numbers. This is a manual operation display device that displays the status to the operator.

The operation of the playback device 200 will be explained. When the memory card l port is connected to the playback device 200 through the connector 50, the system control unit 214 responds to this by reading out the directory i6 and MAT 18 of the card IO via the old RMAT information reading circuit 220. , a time series table 450 i5 and an image number table 452 are created from these data.

In normal operation, for example, when the operation display section 222 is operated to input the number of the frame to be played, these tables 450:! 3 and 452, the system controller 2
14 generates the address of the cluster in which the image of the frame to be reproduced is stored and reads out the image data from the 1-image data area 20. This readout is performed in the directory area 16.
This is done based on the attribute 28 of. In this example, the cluster 14 whose least significant bit (FIG. 1O) of the attribute area 28 is set to "0" is permitted to be read. The read image data is read into the playback device 200 from the connector 50, decompressed by the signal processing circuit 204, and stored in the data buffer 205. This accumulated image data is
The D/A conversion circuit 206 converts it into a corresponding analog signal. This analog signal is converted into a television signal format by a signal processing circuit 208, and then displayed on a monitor 212.
is reproduced as a visible image.

By the way, in this device, the order of the frames to be played back can be arbitrarily set by inputting the image numbers from the operation display section 222. When this image number is input, the system control unit 214 writes the image number into the directory area 16 of the memory card l port via the image number writing circuit 218. Therefore, the image number input by the user on the operation display unit 222 is FIG. 13 shows an example of the directory 16 in which one image number is written, which is also held in the directory 16 of the memory card l port.

In this device, a plurality of frames of images, that is, a packet 22
is the target of playback, the system control unit 214
works like this: When chronological playback of those frame images is specified from the operation display unit 222, the system control unit 214 performs playback in the order in which the frame images were recorded in the directory 16 by the recording device, for example, the camera 52, and the same date and time. If a plurality of packets are recorded, they are played back in the order of direct+716, thereby making it possible to properly play back the continuously shot images. This time series reproduction is performed with reference to the time series table 450 created by the system control unit 214. Also 1
When playback in the order of image numbers is specified, the system control unit 21
4 refers to the image number table 452 and reproduces according to the image numbers assigned by the device or stored in the memory card slot. In the default state where the reproduction order is not specified, directory 16
are played in the order of the address array on the directory area.

According to the present invention, data in different directories can be quickly written to a memory card, so that an electronic still camera can appropriately handle high-speed snapshots. Furthermore, when applied to an electronic still camera, three playback orders can be set: playback according to the order of photographed frames, playback according to the order of shooting date and time, and playback by specifying an arbitrary order. Playback in the order of the photographed frames allows, for example, recording another image in the erased frame, so that playback suited to the user's intuition is realized.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the concept of a memory card storage management system according to the present invention; FIGS. 2 and 3 are functional block diagrams showing examples in which the present invention is applied to a digital electronic still camera and a playback device, respectively; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the structure of the storage area of the memory card in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. FIGS. 5, 6, and 11 are the storage areas shown in FIG. 4. In. header, directory and MA respectively
An explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of a T area. 7 to 1 are in the directory area shown in FIG. 6. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of an information classification area, 5 image system area, 1 image quality mode area, and attribute area, respectively. FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the configuration of areas corresponding to individual clusters in the IIAT area shown in FIG. 11. FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the storage contents of the directory in the playback state in the same embodiment, and FIGS. 14 and 15 are created by the playback apparatus of the same embodiment. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing examples of contents of a time series table and an image number table, respectively. 10゜14゜16゜18゜20, . 22°66, . 68.214゜72゜74, . 218. 220, . 30G... main . 'fe2's! Memory card cluster directory AT Image data packet operation display unit System control unit Directory/MAY change circuit Free cluster designation circuit Image number writing circuit DIR-MAY information reading circuit Free cluster/DIR table 43G. Clock 450. Time series table 452. image number table

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A memory card storage management method in which an information storage area of a memory card is divided into a plurality of storage units each having a predetermined storage capacity, and information storage is managed for each storage unit, comprising: A first display indicating which of the plurality of storage units is to be stored a set of related information is stored in a storage area of the memory card, and one of the plurality of storage units which the first display indicates is stored. The storage area includes a second display indicating whether or not writing is prohibited to the memory card, and when writing information to the memory card, the second display among the plurality of storage units indicates write protection. A storage management method for a memory card, characterized in that information that is not present is searched for and the information is written in the storage unit. 2. In a memory card formatted such that an information storage area of the memory card includes a plurality of storage units having a predetermined storage capacity, the storage area is configured to store a group of related information among the plurality of storage units. a first indication indicating what is to be stored;
and a second storage area that is different from the first storage area and that includes at least one of the plurality of storage units and is for storing the information, and the first storage area further includes: , a second display indicating whether or not to prohibit writing to the storage unit indicated by the first display among the plurality of storage units, the second display being referred to when writing information to the memory card. and thereby the information is written to one of the plurality of storage units whose second display does not indicate write protection. 3. In a memory card storage device in which an information storage area stores information for each storage unit in a memory card including a plurality of storage units each having a predetermined storage capacity, the storage area includes the plurality of storage units. a first display indicating which one of the plurality of storage units stores a set of related information; and a second display indicating whether or not to prohibit writing to the storage unit indicated by the first display among the plurality of storage units. a second storage area that is separate from the first storage area and that includes at least one of the plurality of storage units and is used to store the information; The apparatus includes: a first writing means for writing a first display in a first storage area regarding a set of related information among the plurality of storage units; and a second display for writing among the plurality of storage units. a search means for searching for a unit whose second indication does not indicate write prohibition among the plurality of storage units when writing information to the memory card; a second writing means for writing the information, the first writing means writing a second indication as write-prohibited in the first storage area for the storage unit in which the writing is performed. storage device. 4. The device according to claim 3, further comprising a clock means for generating date and time data representing the date and time, and the first writing means, when writing information to the memory card, the clock means at a time when writing information to the memory card. A storage device for a memory card, characterized in that date and time data obtained from the above is written in a first area related to the storage unit in which the writing is performed. 5. In a memory card playback device that reads information from a memory card in which the information storage area includes a plurality of storage units each having a predetermined storage capacity, the storage area is a first memory card.
and a second storage area, the first storage area having a first storage area that specifies a unit in which a set of related information is stored among the plurality of storage units.
, a second storage area includes at least one of the plurality of storage units in which the information is stored, and the device reads the first display from the first storage area. 1 reading means; and a second reading means for reading out information in a second storage area in the order represented by the read first display for the plurality of storage units. Device. 6. In a memory card playback device that reads information from a memory card in which the information storage area includes a plurality of storage units having a predetermined storage capacity, the storage area is a first memory card.
and a second storage area, the first storage area having a first storage area that specifies a unit in which a set of related information is stored among the plurality of storage units.
and date and time data representing the time when information was written to the memory card, the second storage area including at least one of the plurality of storage units in which the information is stored, the device a first reading means for reading a first display and date/time data from a first storage area; and a second storage area according to the first display in the order represented by the read date/time data for the plurality of storage units. and second reading means for reading out information of a memory card. 7. In a memory card playback device that reads information from a memory card in which the information storage area includes a plurality of storage units each having a predetermined storage capacity, the storage area is a first memory card.
and a second storage area, the first storage area having a first storage area that specifies a unit in which a set of related information is stored among the plurality of storage units.
the second storage area includes at least one of the plurality of storage units in which the information is stored; an input means for inputting the second display; a writing means for writing the input second display into a first storage area; and a first reading means for reading the first and second displays from the first storage area. and a second reading means for reading out information in the second storage area in the order represented by the second display according to the read first display for the plurality of storage units. playback device.