HK1083921B - Recording medium, method of configuring control information thereof, recording and/or reproducing method using the same, and apparatus thereof - Google Patents

Description

Recording medium, method of configuring control information thereof, method of recording and/or reproducing using the same, and apparatus thereof

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a method of recording control information on a recording medium such as a recordable optical disc having at least one recording layer, and more particularly, to a method of including recording speed information and write strategy parameters in the disc control information. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method of recording or reproducing data to or from the recording medium using the writing speed information.

Background

High-density optical recording media called HD-DVDs are widely used to record and store high-definition video data, a large amount of program data, high-quality audio data, and the like. Blu-ray disc represents the next generation of HD-DVD technology.

A global standardized technical specification for the blu-ray disc, including a standard for a write-once blu-ray disc (BD-WO), is now being established. Meanwhile, the rewritable blu-ray disc, which is referred to as a 1x speed BD-RE and is in question, should be compatible with BD-RE discs that expect BD-REs having higher writing speeds, i.e., 2x and above. The BD-WO specification for high recording speeds is also in progress. An efficient solution for coping with the high writing speed of the high-density optical disc is urgently required, and specifications are made that should ensure mutual compatibility.

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to an optical disc control information recording method that substantially obviates one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method of recording disc control information as specified information corresponding to a plurality of recording speeds, by which recording speed information is included in the disc control information so that recording and reproduction of an optical disc can be performed based on pre-recorded disc information.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a data structure for configuring disc control information.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of recording disc control information corresponding to a plurality of recording speeds in a specific area of an optical disc, by which information of a specific recording speed for each recording layer is recorded in a specific order to provide mutual compatibility between similar discs.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a recording and reproducing method and apparatus thereof, by which user data can be recorded to and reproduced from an optical disc using pre-recorded disc control information.

Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.

To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, an apparatus for recording control information on a recording medium having at least one recording layer according to the present invention includes: a controller for generating control information including first information indicating a maximum recording speed, second information indicating a minimum recording speed, third information indicating a predetermined recording speed different from the maximum and minimum recording speeds, and fourth information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the recording medium; and a recording unit for recording the control information on a specific area of the recording medium.

In another aspect of the present invention, in configuring disc control information within a management area of an optical disc, a method of recording control information of a recording medium, comprising the steps of: generating the control information, the control information including a plurality of recording speed information and at least one write strategy related to a recording speed, wherein one of the plurality of recording speed information is basic recording speed information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the recording medium; and recording the control information on a specific area of the recording medium.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method of recording speed information on an optical recording medium, comprising the steps of: generating recording speed information, wherein the recording speed information includes: first information indicating a maximum recording speed, second information indicating a minimum recording speed, third information indicating a predetermined recording speed different from the maximum or minimum recording speed, and fourth information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the optical recording medium; and recording the recording speed information on a specific area of the optical recording medium.

In another aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for recording disc control information on an optical disc having at least one recording layer, includes: a controller for generating the disc control information, the disc control information including a plurality of recording speed information and a plurality of write strategies related to a plurality of recording speeds, wherein one of the plurality of recording speed information is basic recording speed information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the optical disc; and a recording unit for recording the disc control information on a specific area of the optical disc.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a single layer disk to which the present invention is applicable;

fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a dual layer disc to which the present invention is applicable;

fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a management area in which disc control information of the present invention is recorded, wherein a recording format of the disc information is schematically shown in a corresponding area;

fig. 4A to 4C are schematic diagrams of disc information recorded according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5A and 5B are schematic diagrams of a disc recording method according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6A to 6C are schematic diagrams of disc information recorded according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7A to 7D are schematic diagrams of disc information recorded according to a third embodiment of the present invention; and

fig. 8 is a block diagram of an optical disc recording and reproducing apparatus using disc control information according to the present invention.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

The blu-ray disc is taken as an example of an optical disc according to the present invention. However, the concept of the present invention is characterized in that the optical disc having the disc control information recorded thereon is applicable to a DVD-RAM, a DVD-RW, a DVD + RW, a DVD-R, DVD + R, and the like. Although most terms used herein are well known, some terms are selected by the applicant, and thus the present invention should be understood in the intended meaning of the terms used by the applicant. For example, "disc control information" of the disc is recorded in a designated area, i.e., a recordable area or a pre-recorded area of the disc (sometimes referred to as a bulged area in which manufacturer data is recorded and re-recording is impossible), and includes information required to play back the recorded disc. The disc control information is referred to as "disc information" or "DI" for blu-ray disc technology, but is typically referred to as "physical format information" for DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, DVD + RW, DVD-R, and DVD + R discs. Therefore, it should be apparent that the technical background of the present invention is equally applicable to physical format information. Further, the disc information according to the present invention is recorded as an unspecified information unit, which may be counted as the first or second information, for example.

Fig. 1 and 2 illustrate the structure of an optical disc according to the present invention, in which all recordable optical discs can be applicable to the present invention. The recordable disc may be, for example, a rewritable optical disc or a write-once optical disc.

Referring to fig. 1, illustrating an optical disc having a recording layer, a lead-in area is provided as a management area on an inner circumference of the optical disc, but a lead-out area is provided as a management area on an outer circumference of the optical disc. In the inner circumferential area, a pre-recorded area and a rewritable (or write-once) area are provided, respectively. In the BD-RE and BD-WO technologies, the pre-recorded area is referred to as a PIC area where permanent information and control data are recorded, and disc information is recorded in the PIC area. The data area is composed of a user data area where user data is recorded and inner and outer spare areas ISA and OSA used to replace data of the defective area. In the case of a BD-WO disc, a Temporary Defect Management Area (TDMA) is provided for recording defect information and for general management. This TDMA is unnecessary in the case of BD-RE discs having a corresponding area designated as a reserved area.

The present invention is intended to provide a method of recording Disc Information (DI) in a pre-recorded or recordable area as disc control information required for recording and/or reproducing a disc. It is apparent that the recording method in the pre-recorded area is differently applied to each type of disc. In the case of BD-RE and BD-WO discs, the pre-recorded area is a PIC area recorded using a bi-phase high frequency modulated signal reproduced according to a specific playback method to obtain the disc information.

Fig. 2 illustrates an optical disc having dual recording layers, in which an inner circumferential area of the disc has a lead-in area of a first recording layer (layer 0) corresponding to a lead-out area of a second recording layer (layer 1). In this case, one PIC area is provided in each of the lead-in and lead-out areas, and the same disc information is recorded in each PIC area.

Fig. 3 illustrates a PIC area formatted according to the present invention. In configuring disc information of the PIC area of the BD-RE or BD-WO disc, the smallest recording unit is one cluster, 544 clusters constitute one segment, which is one higher recording unit, and 5 segments constitute the PIC area. The disc information is recorded in a first cluster of the first segment IFO. The disc information is repeatedly recorded by each recording layer, and the recording speed is permitted by the corresponding optical disc. One disc information includes 112 bytes, sometimes called DI frame. To cope with the disc information loss, the same contents of the disc information are repeatedly recorded in each first cluster of the remaining segments.

Information representing a corresponding recording layer, information representing a recording speed, and write strategy information corresponding to the recording speed are included in each disc information. The above-mentioned information is used in recording and reproducing the optical disc to provide an optimum recording power for each recording layer and each recording speed.

The disc information of the present invention is characterized in that specific recording speed information supported by a disc and associated write strategy information is provided, and more particularly, in that a specific recording speed supported by each recording layer and associated write strategy information is provided via a method specified for a disc having a plurality of recording layers.

The specific structure of the disc information is for a blu-ray disc, which may be different from the structure based on a DVD disc. Specifically, the recording DI capacity for the blu-ray disc is 112 bytes or equivalent. By specifying the disc information of the same recording layer as one information, i.e., not repeating all the same information, the write strategy structure is different for each recording speed.

In addition to the method of recording specific parameters of the write strategy, the media properties of an optical disc are typically modified by applying a laser beam to its recording layer via a pickup to perform recording. To do this, the signal intensity (recording power) and duration of the laser beam should be determined. The above-mentioned recording-related information is generally referred to as a Write Strategy (WS) parameter for implementing a specific "write strategy".

Fig. 4A to 4C and 5A and 5B illustrate a first embodiment of the recording disc control information of the present invention, in which different recording speeds coping with a high speed are classified into a recording speed group to be recorded.

A first embodiment of the present invention relates to a method of recording disc information, a method of recording data on an optical disc, and the like, which cope with high speed, and more particularly, to a method which is advantageous in coping with a Constant Angular Velocity (CAV) system applicable to a high speed disc. However, the present invention is not limited to CAV systems.

In the CAV system, the disc is rotated at a constant speed such that the inner and outer circumferences of the disc each have a rotational speed corresponding to the applicable radius length. For blu-ray discs the speed of the outer circumference is about 2.4 times greater than the inner circumference. Thus, for example, if recording on the inner circumference using the CAV system is performed at 1x speed or 4x speed, the outer circumference recording must be performed at about 2.4x speed or 9.6x speed, respectively, whereas 6x speed recording on the outer circumference means that the inner circumference recording must be performed at about 2.5x speed. In other words, the adoption of the CAV system requires different speeds between the inner and outer circumferences of the disc, and thus an optimum recording speed and write strategy for recording must be selected according to the applicable disc position. Further, the above-mentioned information should be provided as specified disc information to utilize the optimal recording speed and Write Strategy (WS) in the corresponding system.

Fig. 4A illustrates an embodiment of controlling recording of disc information by an optical disc according to the present invention, in which a disc information structure is exemplarily shown. Referring to fig. 4A, each disc information order is determined by a sequence number and recorded using one byte. For example, the information is recorded in the fifth byte of the disc information (i.e., "DI frame sequence number in DI module", which may be expressed as 00h, 01h, 02h, 03h, 04h, 05h, 06h, or 07h), where 00h or 07h of the fifth byte represents the first or eighth disc information, respectively. In other words, a byte (e.g., a fifth byte) determining the order of the disc information may be defined to represent not only the order in a specific recording layer but also an applicable recording speed. For example, "00 h" refers to 1 x-speed disc information of the first recording layer, "01 h" refers to 1 x-speed disc information of the second recording layer, and the like.

Further, in a specific area within the disc information, recording speed information specified by the corresponding disc information and a Write Strategy (WS) for the corresponding recording speed is written in a specific location previously stipulated. For example, recording speed information of corresponding disc information is written in bytes N to (N +4), and the Write Strategy (WS) for corresponding recording speed is written in bytes M to 111.

Specifically, the present invention is characterized by providing disc information coping with a high recording speed, the recording speed information and a Write Strategy (WS) being written for each of a plurality of recording speed information, i.e., an optimum recording speed Vnom, a maximum recording speed Vmax, a minimum recording speed Vmin, and an intermediate recording speed Vint.

At the optimum recording speed, the basic recording speed information is written, and the basic recording speed generally starts at 2x speed in a high-speed disc. When the applicable recording speed increases, the basic recording speed also increases. At the maximum recording speed, information on the maximum recording speed applicable by the corresponding disc is written. At the minimum recording speed, information on a recording speed obtained by dividing the maximum recording speed applicable by the corresponding disc by "2.4" is written. At the intermediate recording speed, information on a recording speed obtained by multiplying the minimum recording speed by "1.7" is written. For convenience of explanation, the relationship of the recording velocity values of the maximum, minimum and intermediate recording velocities is determined by considering a radius ratio between the inner and outer circumferences of the BD applicable to the present invention. It is apparent that the above-described relationship may be variably applied to other types of discs, and the recording velocity value may be set to different values according to disc characteristics, regardless of the same BD.

As for the optimum recording speed (2x speed), information thereof is preferably recorded in each disc information. Preferably, the maximum, minimum and intermediate recording speeds are differently determined according to a maximum recording speed value applicable by the corresponding disc information.

Further, the intermediate recording speed can be repeatedly created. The invention is characterized by having at least one intermediate recording speed. Therefore, at least four recording speed information are included in one disc information. The more recording speed information exists, the more beneficial it is for system operation. Therefore, by maximally utilizing the recordable area within the disc information, it is preferable to provide it with much intermediate recording speed information.

Fig. 4B illustrates a specific recording method for recording disc information having a plurality of recording speed information according to the present invention like fig. 4A, wherein the disc information is written while maintaining compatibility with the 1x speed BD-RE disc information in question, and wherein there is, for example, one intermediate recording speed information.

Three kinds of recording speeds, such as an optimal recording speed (Vnom), a maximum recording speed (Vmax), and a minimum recording speed (Vmin), are written in the 32 th to 35 th bytes within the disc information in accordance with a predetermined definition. Write power information per Write Strategy (WS) as recording speeds for the three kinds is recorded in 48 th to 71 th bytes. The start time of a write pulse of another Write Strategy (WS) as to each of the three kinds of recording speeds is recorded in 76 ~ 84 bytes. The start time of the erase pulse of another Write Strategy (WS) as to each of these three kinds of recording speeds is recorded in 89 th to 97 th bytes.

In addition to the basic three kinds of recording velocities Vnom, Vmax, and Vmin, the present invention further records at least one piece of information about the intermediate recording velocity Vint, which is recorded using a reserved area within the disc information. For example, the intermediate recording speed is recorded in the 19 th byte according to a predetermined definition, the write power information as a write strategy coping with the intermediate recording speed is recorded in 8 bytes in total of the 20 th to 23 th bytes and the 44 th to 47 th bytes, the start time of a write pulse as another Write Strategy (WS) coping with the intermediate recording speed is recorded in the 99 th to 101 th bytes, and the start time of an erase pulse as another Write Strategy (WS) coping with the intermediate recording speed is recorded in the 102 th to 104 th bytes.

As described above, if it is desired to record a plurality of intermediate recording speeds, information related to another intermediate recording speed may be recorded in a reserved area within the disc information as well.

Fig. 4C schematically shows disc information recorded in the case of recording the disc information of fig. 4A, particularly, in the case of a dual layer having two recording layers. The same principle can be applied to a single layer having one recording layer.

For example, when three different recording speed information is required for each recording layer of an optical disc, six disc information corresponding to each recording speed is required. Each disc information is assigned and recorded with a sequence number in a predetermined area, and velocity information and Write Strategy (WS) corresponding to the sequence number are recorded.

For example, if the recording speeds are expressed as 1x speed, 2x speed, and 6x speed, the first, second, and third disc information refer to disc information for the first recording layer. The first disc information is 1 x-speed disc information of the first recording layer and has a serial number of "00 h". The corresponding recording speed and write strategy are recorded in previously reserved locations, whereby the recording speed information is recorded in N ~ (N +4) bytes, and the write strategy is recorded in M ~ (111) bytes.

The second disc information is 2 x-speed disc information of the first recording layer and has a serial number of "01 h". The corresponding recording speed and write strategy are recorded in previously reserved locations like the first disc information. The third disc information is 6 x-speed disc information of the first recording layer and has a serial number of "02 h". The corresponding recording speed and write strategy are recorded in previously reserved locations like the first or second disc information.

Meanwhile, the 4 th to 6 th disc information refer to disc information for the second recording layer. The fourth disc information is 1 x-speed disc information of the second recording layer and has a serial number "03 h". The fifth disc information is 2 x-speed disc information of the second recording layer and has a serial number of "04 h". The sixth disc information is 6 x-speed disc information of the second recording layer and has a serial number of "05 h". Each corresponding recording speed and write strategy of the fourth to sixth disc information is recorded in the same location.

The first embodiment of the present invention shown in fig. 4A to 4C is exemplified by employing a Write Strategy (WS) in which a plurality of recording speed information and each recording speed are recorded within one disc information. If necessary, one Write Strategy (WS) associated with specific recording velocity information may be recorded in one disc information and the rest in another disc information.

For example, in the case where four kinds of recording speed information are required, more than four times as much disc information are required than the above-described embodiments of the present invention. However, as shown in fig. 3, the PIC area is an area sufficient to record therein a lot of 112 bytes of disc information, so that a large amount of disc information can be sufficiently recorded therein if necessary. Therefore, if one Write Strategy (WS) is recorded within the disc information, it is advantageous to allocate more areas for recording the intermediate recording speed therein.

On the contrary, it is possible to record information previously recorded generally in each disc information as common information and change only the write strategy of recording each recording speed.

Fig. 5A and 5B are schematic diagrams of a recording method of performing recording on an optical disc according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 5A relates to a case where one intermediate recording speed is used, and fig. 5B shows an example where at least two intermediate recording speeds are used.

That is, once an optical disc is loaded into the optical recording/reproducing unit, write strategies related to the maximum recording speed (Vmax), the minimum recording speed (Vmin), and the intermediate recording speed (Vint), respectively, within the optical disc are read out as disc control information. The recordable area between the inner circumference and the outer circumference is essentially divided into three portions. The maximum recording speed (Vmax), the minimum recording speed (Vmin), and the middle recording speed (Vint) are applied to the outer circumferential area, the middle area, and the inner circumferential area, respectively, to perform recording thereon. This means that recording is performed by applying an appropriate recording speed and a Write Strategy (WS) associated with the corresponding recording speed to a specific area where the recording is to be performed to adjust a write power, a write pulse timing, etc.

For example, if the maximum recording speed applicable by the disc is 6x speed, disc information related to the 6x speed is read out. In the case where the maximum recording speed (Vmax) is 6x speed, 2.5x speed (Vmax/2.4) for the minimum recording speed and 4.25x speed (1.7Vmin) for the intermediate recording speed and a write strategy for the corresponding recording speed are recorded within the disc information. The recording/playback unit previously confirms a recording speed and a Write Strategy (WS) to be applied to a specific area where recording is to be performed, thereby enabling the Write Strategy (WS) to be promptly coped with in performing recording on the corresponding area and using the optimal recording speed to reduce the probability of error occurrence.

Fig. 5B schematically illustrates a method of performing recording on an optical disc in a case where a plurality of intermediate recording speeds are recorded within disc information. The recordable area of the optical disc is substantially divided into as many sections as there are recording speeds within the disc information except Vnom. A maximum recording speed (Vmax) and a minimum recording speed (Vmin) are applied to the outer circumferential area and the inner circumferential area, respectively, to perform recording thereon. The middle area of the disc is divided into as many areas as the number of the set intermediate recording speeds to which the intermediate recording speeds Vint-1 to Vint-n are respectively applied. Accordingly, the corresponding recording is performed on the divided area. Accordingly, an optimum recording speed of the corresponding portion is determined, whereby the recording is implemented using a determined Write Strategy (WS) corresponding to each of the respective determined recording speeds.

Fig. 6A to 6C illustrate a second embodiment of recording disc control information of the present invention, in which recording speed information indicating a corresponding recording speed and a write strategy corresponding to the recording speed is recorded within each disc information to cope with a high speed.

Fig. 6A shows an example of an optical disc recording disc information according to a third embodiment of the present invention, in which a disc information structure is schematically illustrated.

Referring to fig. 6A, the order of each disc information is determined by a sequence number, and the corresponding order is written by 1 byte. For example, corresponding information is recorded in the fifth byte within the disc information, which is referred to as a "DI frame sequence number in DI module" field and is briefly denoted by "00 h, 01h, 02h, …". That is, the information of the fifth byte is defined in the following manner. First, if the information of the fifth byte is "00 h", the "00 h" refers to the first disc information. "07 h" refers to 8 th disc information.

In a specific area within the disc information, each recording speed information permitted by the disc is represented by a specific bit to be recorded in a specific position previously reserved within the disc information. For example, if four different recording speed information is required for each recording layer of the corresponding disc, 4 bits are allocated to each recording speed, recording speed information for the first recording layer (layer 0) is recorded in the nth and (N +1) th bytes within the disc information, and recording speed information for the second recording layer (layer 1) is recorded in the mth and (M +1) th bytes within the disc information. If the disc has a single layer, the Mth and (M +1) th bytes are set to a "zero" value. If at least four kinds of different recording speed information are required, bytes such as an nth byte, an (N +1) th byte, an (N +2) th byte, etc. are additionally allocated for use. Accordingly, the recording speed corresponding to its serial number is recorded in a specific position previously reserved, as shown in fig. 6A, whereby it is convenient to confirm the recording speed information possessed by the corresponding disc information. In addition, the remaining bytes, for example, 44 th to 111 th bytes are used to record the write power, write parameters, and the like in detail.

Fig. 6B schematically shows disc information recorded in the case of representing recording speed information like fig. 6A, especially, in the case of a single layer. If the optical disc requires four kinds of different recording speed information, four disc information corresponding to the respective recording speeds are required. Each of the disc information is recorded by assigning 4 bits to a sequence number and 4 bits to a recording speed corresponding to the sequence number. For example, if the recording speeds are expressed as 1x speed, 2x speed, 4x speed, and 8x speed, respectively, the first disc information has a serial number corresponding to "00 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "0001 b" expressing 1x speed, the second disc information has a serial number corresponding to "01 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "0010 b" expressing 2x speed, the third disc information has a serial number corresponding to "02 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "0100 b" expressing 4x speed, and the fourth disc information has a serial number corresponding to "03 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "1000 b" expressing 8x speed. In doing so, each recording speed is represented by binary information. Therefore, if 4 bits are allocated per one, the maximum applicable recording speed (denoted by "1111 b") will be 15x speed. If the maximum applicable recording speed is greater than 16x speed, at least 5 bits should be allocated each.

Since it is shown as a single layer in fig. 6B, the M-th and (M +1) -th bytes representing recording speed information for the second recording layer (layer 1) are set to "zero" as unused information to be processed.

Fig. 6C schematically shows disc information recorded in the case of representing recording speed information like fig. 6A, especially, in the case of a dual layer. If the optical disc requires a total of four kinds of different recording speed information, a total of eight disc information corresponding to the respective recording speeds are required. Each of the disc information is recorded by assigning 4 bits to a sequence number and 4 bits to a recording speed corresponding to the sequence number. For example, if the recording speeds are expressed as 1x speed, 2x speed, 4x speed, and 8x speed, respectively, the first disc information has a serial number corresponding to "00 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "0001 b" expressing 1x speed, the second disc information has a serial number corresponding to "01 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "0010 b" expressing 2x speed, the third disc information has a serial number corresponding to "02 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "0100 b" expressing 4x speed, and the fourth disc information has a serial number corresponding to "03 h" to express the corresponding recording speed by "1000 b" expressing 8x speed. The first to fourth disc information are information for the first recording layer (layer 0) and are recorded in the nth and (N +1) th bytes of the disc information, and 4 bits of binary information represent each recording speed. Also, recording speed information for the second recording layer, which is recorded in the M-th and (M +1) -th bytes, can be expressed in the same manner. That is, the fifth disc information has a serial number corresponding to "04 h" to indicate a corresponding recording speed by "0001 b" indicating a 1x speed, the sixth disc information has a serial number corresponding to "05 h" to indicate a corresponding recording speed by "0010 b" indicating a 2x speed, the seventh disc information has a serial number corresponding to "06 h" to indicate a corresponding recording speed by "0100 b" indicating a 4x speed, and the eighth disc information has a serial number corresponding to "07 h" to indicate a corresponding recording speed by "1000 b" indicating an 8x speed.

In the second embodiment, a write strategy for write power, write parameters, etc. and the recording speed information suitable for each recording speed are recorded in other areas within the disc information. Accordingly, within one disc information, a serial number of the corresponding disc information, recording speed information indicated by the corresponding disc information, a Write Strategy (WS) coping with the corresponding recording speed, and the like are separately recorded.

Further, in the speed information representing the recording like the second embodiment, the fifth byte information is previously defined as a specific recording speed, so that the recording speed information is recorded in the nth, (N +1) th, mth and (M +1) th bytes to confirm it.

For example, it was previously defined that "00 h" of the fifth byte information means "1 x speed disc information of the first recording layer", and "07 h" of the fifth byte information means "8 x speed disc information of the second recording layer". Four bits are allocated to each of the nth, (N +1) th, M-th and (M +1) th bytes, so that an accurate recording velocity value is recorded as "0001 b" (1x velocity) or "0100 b" (8x velocity). Accordingly, it is confirmed again that the corresponding disc information is 1x or 8x speed.

Fig. 7A to 7D are schematic diagrams of recording disc information according to a third embodiment of the present invention, in which applicable recording speed information is recorded to cope with a high speed.

In order to obtain disc information related to a desired specific writing speed of a specific recording layer from a plurality of existing disc information, it should take much time for the entire disc information to be read. For example, if there are four recording layers and each recording layer has eight applicable writing speeds, thirty-two disc information is required in total. The recording/reproducing unit should search for thirty-two total disc information in total whenever the value of the disc information and the writing speed for a specific recording layer are required. Accordingly, the present invention is characterized in that "disc-applicable writing speed information" and "recording layer information existing in the disc" are recorded within the disc information to implement a disc information search by a specified method and using the recording information.

That is, the "disc applicable writing speed information" and the "recording layer information existing in the disc" are equally commonly recorded within each disc information, and the order of a plurality of disc information is determined using these information, thereby facilitating acquisition of disc information related to a specific recording layer and a writing speed to be searched.

Further, one Write Strategy (WS) is recorded within each disc information and identification information for identifying the type of the corresponding Write Strategy (WS) is separately recorded, whereby the record playback apparatus (fig. 8) facilitates the use of the Write Strategy (WS). In addition, disc manufacturers can be facilitated by selecting and recording a Write Strategy (WS) for a specific writing speed and a specific recording layer in disc information.

A method of recording disc information according to a third embodiment of the present invention is explained below by referring to fig. 7A to 7D.

Fig. 7A illustrates a schematic structure of disc information for explaining a method of recording disc information according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 7A, the order for disc information is determined by a sequence number and recorded by 1 byte. For example, information recorded in the fifth byte within the disc information is referred to as a "DI frame sequence number in DI module" field, and is briefly denoted by "00 h, 01h, 02h, …".

That is, if the information of the fifth byte is "00 h", it refers to the first disc information. If the information of the fifth byte is '07 h', it refers to eighth disc information. The meaning of the order of the fifth byte will be determined by the nth and lth bytes, which will be explained later.

Writing speed information applicable to a corresponding disc is recorded in a specific area (nth byte) within the disc information, which is referred to as a "writing speed identification" field. For example, whether a specific writing speed of eight kinds of writing speeds is applicable to a corresponding disc is represented by 1 bit in the same area having 1 byte allocated thereto. That is, it may be defined that if one bit value is '0 b' in all bits, the corresponding writing speed is not applicable (unsupported), or if the bit value is '1 b', the corresponding writing speed is applicable (supported). Accordingly, each of the bits b0 through b7 within 1 byte becomes identification information indicating the presence or absence of applicability of a specific writing speed.

For example, if 1x speed is applicable only by the corresponding disc, "00000001" is written in the nth byte. If all eight kinds of writing speeds are applicable, "11111111" is written in the nth byte.

In the above explanation, the 1x and 2x speeds used by all the disks are almost predetermined. However, the writing speed determined by the specification may be used as other writing speeds from the third writing speed. For example, it is possible to set the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth writing speeds (third X, fourth X, fifth X, sixth X, seventh X, eighth X) to 5X, 6X, 8X, 12X, 14X, and 16X speeds, respectively.

Therefore, if the corresponding disc allows the writing speed to reach the fourth writing speed, it will be written as "the writing speed identification 00001111 b". However, if the corresponding disc does not allow the third writing speed but allows the fourth writing speed, "00001011 b" is not allowed. That is, in the "writing speed identification" field, if the higher bit is set to "1 b", the corresponding lower bit should be set to "1 b". Therefore, this means that the lower bit cannot be set to "0 b" regardless of "1 b" of the upper bit. Meanwhile, recording layer information indicating the number of recording layers present within the corresponding disc is recorded in another specific area (lth byte) within the disc information, which is referred to as a "number of recording layers" field. For example, a value indicating the number of recording layers may be represented by a binary number in the same area having 1 byte allocated thereto. In the case where the recording layer is a single layer in fig. 1, "00000001" is written in the lth byte. In the case where the recording layer is a dual layer in fig. 2, "00000010" is written in the lth byte. In the case where there are four recording layers, "00000100" is written in this lth byte.

Since the number of recording layers for the current consideration is limited, which is currently two recording layers, 4 bits within the lth byte are sufficient to represent a total of fifteen recording layers (in the case of "1111"). In this case, it is apparent that other effective information can be written in other areas (4 bits) of the lth byte.

Also, identification information for identifying a Write Strategy (WS) type, which is recorded in bytes P to 111, is written in another specific area (mth byte) within the disc information, which is referred to as a "Write Strategy (WS) type" field.

That is, in the disc information of the present invention, one Write Strategy (WS) is recorded for a specific writing speed, and a specific recording layer and write strategy are arbitrarily selected from among different kinds of specified write strategy types by a disc manufacturer. Accordingly, if the corresponding disc information is the first type write strategy WS-1, "00000001" is written in the mth byte. If the corresponding disc information is the second type write strategy WS-2, "00000010" is written in the mth byte. And, an actual Write Strategy (WS) is recorded in bytes P to 111. However, the actual Write Strategy (WS) is recorded in the mth byte as a value interoperating with the determined Write Strategy (WS) type. The Write Strategy (WS) type is selectively recorded in all disc information via the mth byte. Also, it is possible to impose a specified Write Strategy (WS) type in a mandatory manner in the 1 x-speed disc information, which is expected to be supported by all record playback apparatuses (fig. 8).

Also, the Write Strategy (WS) may be recorded in various methods. When the disc becomes very dense and has a higher speed, the writing speed, i.e., the disc RPM and the media properties of the recording layer, are significantly affected. Therefore, a more accurate system is required. Also, for example, various Write Strategies (WS) are explained as follows.

First, there is a system having a write pulse smaller than the recording mark size (n) formed on the recording layer medium by "1", which may be referred to as "(n-1) WS". Secondly, there is a system having a write pulse amounting to half the size of the recording mark (n), which may be referred to as "n/2 WS". In addition, new Write Strategies (WS) are continuously being developed. For different types of Write Strategies (WS), when there are various Write Strategy (WS) types, as parameters applied to the Write Strategies (WS) different from each other, a disc manufacturer tests write power according to the Write Strategy (WS) recorded in the selected mth byte and then records the test result as the Write Strategy (WS) in the pth to 111 th bytes within the disc information.

From the "writing speed information" of the nth byte and the "recording layer information" of the lth byte recorded above, the recording and reproducing apparatus (fig. 8) confirms how much disc information exists in the corresponding disc. That is, the amount of disc information present is obtained by multiplying the number of applicable writing speeds by the number of recording layers. When the present invention applies a Write Strategy (WS) for a specific writing speed and a specific recording layer, it may not be necessary to consider the type and number of the Write Strategies (WS) in determining the amount of disc information.

The above-determined information on the total disc information amount may be also recorded in a specific area (e.g., a fourth byte, etc.) within the disc information (not shown in the drawing).

Accordingly, it is possible to program a plurality of the above-determined disc information such that the order of the disc information (which is written in the fifth byte as mentioned in the above description) is dependent on the sequence number, and such that each disc information specifies the previously determined writing speed and recording layer by the order.

For example, it is known that there are four applicable writing speeds of the disc if the nth byte is "00001111" and two recording layers within the disc if the lth byte is "00000010", a total of eight disc information is required, and thus the order will be "00 h to 07 h". Also, "00 h", "01 h", "02 h", "03 h", "04 h", "05 h", "06 h", and "07 h" are determined in advance to relate to the 1x speed, the first recording layer, respectively; 2x speed, second recording layer; 2x speed, first recording layer; 2x speed, second recording layer; a third writing speed, a first recording layer; a third writing speed, a second recording layer; a fourth writing speed, a first recording layer, and a fourth writing speed, a second recording layer.

In the example set forth above, this writing speed is prioritized. However, it is apparent that the recording layer can be prioritized.

Therefore, in order to obtain disc information for a specific target writing speed and a specific target recording layer, the recording and reproducing apparatus (fig. 8) facilitates checking which disc information is related to the specific target writing speed and recording layer from among "writing speed information" of an nth byte and "recording layer information" of an lth byte, which are usually recorded within the respective disc information, instead of checking the entire disc information by reproducing.

Fig. 7B shows an example of an extension of the third embodiment of the invention in fig. 7A. In the case where the applicable writing speeds by the disc are more than eight, the nth byte ("writing speed identification" field) in fig. 7A is extended to indicate the presence or absence of the applicability of the 1 st to 8 th writing speeds by an identification ("writing speed identification 1" field) in the nth 1 th bytes, and another byte is allocated to show the presence or absence of the applicability of the 9 th to 16 th writing speeds by an identification in the N2 th byte. The contents written in the other bytes are equivalent to those in fig. 7A of the third embodiment of the present invention, and thus are skipped in the following description.

Fig. 7C illustrates an example of recording disc information by the third embodiment of the present invention in fig. 7A. It is known from the nth byte ("00000010 b") generally recorded in the entire disc information that there are two (1X, 2X) applicable writing speeds, and from the lth byte ("00000010 b") that there are two recording layers within the disc.

Therefore, in the example of fig. 7C, there are four pieces of disc information in total (two recording layers × two writing speeds), and the order of the disc information becomes "00 h" (1X, L0) → "01 h" (1X, L1) → "02 h" (2X, L0) → "03 h" (2X, L1). This is what is specified in a predetermined order, and as mentioned in the above description, may be changed to a different order according to the specification.

Except at the nth and lth bytes, an inherent Write Strategy (WS) is recorded in other bytes within each disc. Specifically, information of a Write Strategy (WS) type written in bytes P to 111 within corresponding disc information is recorded in an mth byte. That is, the information written in the mth byte and the P to 111 th bytes may be different in each disc information.

In the example of fig. 7C, "00 h" (1X, L0) and "01 h" (1X, L1) relate to the application of the first type of write strategy (WS-1), and "02 h" (2X, L0) and "03 h" (2X, L1) relate to the application of the second type of write strategy (WS-2).

Fig. 7D illustrates another example of recording disc information according to the third embodiment of the present invention in fig. 7A. It is known from the nth byte ("11111111 b") generally recorded in the entire disc information that there are eight (1X, 2X, …, 16X) applicable writing speeds, and from the lth byte ("00000100 b") that there are four recording layers. Therefore, in another example of fig. 7D, there are thirty-two disc information (four recording layers × eight writing speeds) in total, and the order of the disc information becomes "00 h" (1X, L0) → "01 h" (1X, L1) → "02 h" (1X, L2) → "03 h" (1X, L4) → "04 h" (2X, L0) → … → "31 h" (16X, L4).

Except at the nth and lth bytes, an inherent Write Strategy (WS) is recorded in other bytes within each disc. Specifically, information of a Write Strategy (WS) type written in bytes P to 111 within corresponding disc information is recorded in an mth byte. That is, the information written in the mth byte and the P to 111 th bytes may be different in each disc information.

In another example of fig. 7D, if the record playback unit (fig. 8) intends to search for disc information related to 2X speed (2X, L0) of the first recording layer to perform recording by applying the Write Strategy (WS) within the corresponding disc information, it can be known that there are thirty-two disc information (four recording layers × eight writing speeds) in total in the corresponding disc, in the order of the disc information, such as "00 h" (1X, L0) → "01 h" (1X, L1) → "02 h" (1X, L2) → "03 h" (1X, L4) → "04 h" (2X, L0) → … → "31 h" (16X, L4), according to information generally recorded in the nth and lth bytes in the entire disc information.

Accordingly, the record playback apparatus (fig. 8) can confirm that disc information associated with the 2X speed (2X, L0) of the searched first recording layer is '04 h', and confirm that the corresponding disc information ('04 h') is recorded as the first-type write strategy (WS-1) according to the Write Strategy (WS) type identification information ('00000002 b') recorded in the mth byte within the corresponding information ('04 h'), thereby reading out parameter values of the first-type write strategy (WS-1) via the P-111 th bytes to be utilized at the time of recording.

Likewise, if it is intended to search disc information related to the 16X speed (16X, L3) of the fourth recording layer to perform recording by applying the Write Strategy (WS) within the corresponding disc information, the record playback unit (fig. 8) confirms that the corresponding disc information is '31 h' through the same procedure and that the write strategy type (WS) is the second type (WS-2), thereby enabling to use them at the time of recording.

Therefore, if the host or the control unit ("20" in fig. 8) intends to perform recording on a specific recording layer at a specific writing speed, the record playback apparatus (fig. 8) facilitates searching for corresponding disc information, thereby being able to confirm the Write Strategy (WS) recorded within the corresponding disc information.

For reference, the information of the first and third embodiments may be commonly recorded in Disc Information (DI) or separately recorded in separate disc control information (not shown in the drawings). In this case, the applicable speed information disclosed in the third embodiment may have a priority order. Whether a corresponding specific writing speed is applicable or not will depend on the information disclosed in the third embodiment, since the maximum writing speed, the minimum writing speed, the nominal writing speed and a part of the other writing speed information may not be applicable per se.

Fig. 8 illustrates an optical disc recording and reproducing apparatus using disc control information according to the present invention. The recording and reproducing apparatus includes a recording/reproducing unit 10 for recording and reproducing data to and from an optical disc, and a controller 20 for controlling the recording/reproducing unit 10. The controller 20 generates a recording or playback command for a specific area and the recording/playback unit 10 performs a recording/playback function for the specific area accordingly. The recording/playback unit 10 includes: an interface 12 for communicating with an external device, i.e., a controller (or a host); a pickup 11 for performing reading and writing operations with respect to the optical disc; a data processor 13 for modulating an input signal of the pickup to perform a recording operation and for demodulating an output signal of the pickup to perform a reproducing operation; a servo 14 for controlling read and write operations of the pickup; a memory 15 for temporarily storing disc control information and user data to be recorded or read; and a microcomputer 16 for individually controlling each unit of the recording/reproducing unit.

Industrial applicability

In the system described above, it is also possible that the control unit 20 is not needed to control the recording and/or reproduction of the data. In that case, the microcomputer 16 can control all units in the recording/reproducing unit 10 when the functions of the control unit 10 are performed.

In recording data to an optical disc according to the present invention, the optical disc recording and reproducing apparatus first reads the entire disc management area of an inserted optical disc, the read information being disc information of the present invention, which is temporarily stored in the memory 15. Thus, the recording layer information, the recording speed information, and the write strategy suitable for the corresponding recording speed are read out and temporarily stored.

If it is desired to perform writing on a specific area within the optical disc, the controller 20 changes such an intention into a write command and then transmits it to the recording/reproducing unit 10 together with data for writing location information to be recorded. Upon receiving the write command, the microcomputer 16 determines a corresponding recording speed applicable to a target recording layer within the optical disc from the management information stored in the memory 15, and then executes the write command using the most appropriate write strategy by referring to the determined recording speed.

Specifically, in the case of performing recording on an optical disc by the first embodiment of the present invention, the microcomputer 16 performs the recording in a manner of applying different writing speeds and Writing Strategies (WS) to each area within the disc by considering maximum, intermediate, minimum, and other writing speeds.

Accordingly, the present invention provides various methods of coping with disc control information of a higher writing speed in a high-density optical disc, thereby enabling unified application of the standardized disc control information to efficiently cope with recording/reproduction of the optical disc.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the present invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims (22)

1. An apparatus for recording control information on a recording medium having at least one recording layer, comprising

A controller for generating control information including first information indicating a maximum recording speed, second information indicating a minimum recording speed, third information indicating a predetermined recording speed different from the maximum and minimum recording speeds, and fourth information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the recording medium, wherein the control information further includes applicable recording speed information indicating at least one recording speed applicable to the recording medium, and wherein the applicable recording speed information is configured in such a manner that: if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the higher applicable recording speed is applicable or not applicable; if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is not applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that only the higher applicable recording speed is not applicable; and

a recording unit for recording the control information on a specific area of the recording medium.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, the control information further comprising:

a plurality of recording speed parameters to be used or already used for recording data by respective recording speeds.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, the recording unit records the control information in such a manner that the first to fourth information are included in a recording velocity group.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the recording unit records the control information in such a manner that the first to fourth information are included in each recording layer of the recording medium.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fourth information includes at least two basic recording speeds.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the applicable recording speed information indicates each applicable recording speed in a bit position.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the applicable recording speed information has a priority over the recording speed information in determining applicability of a specific recording speed.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, the control information further comprising: write strategy type information indicating a write strategy type applicable for recording data on the optical recording medium.

9. A method of recording control information of a recording medium, comprising the steps of:

generating the control information, the control information including a plurality of recording speed information and at least one write strategy related to recording speeds, wherein one of the plurality of recording speed information is basic recording speed information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the recording medium, wherein the control information further includes applicable recording speed information indicating at least one recording speed applicable to the recording medium, and wherein the applicable recording speed information is configured in such a manner that: if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the higher applicable recording speed is applicable or not applicable; if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is not applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that only the higher applicable recording speed is not applicable; and

the control information is recorded on a specific area of the recording medium.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of recording speed information further includes maximum recording speed information applicable to the recording medium, minimum recording speed information, at least one intermediate recording speed information indicating an intermediate recording speed between the maximum and minimum recording speeds.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein a plurality of write strategies respectively associated with the respective recording speeds are recorded together with the plurality of recording speed information.

12. A method of recording speed information on an optical recording medium, comprising the steps of:

generating recording speed information, wherein the recording speed information includes: first information indicating a maximum recording speed, second information indicating a minimum recording speed, third information indicating a predetermined recording speed different from the maximum or minimum recording speed, and fourth information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the optical recording medium, wherein the recording speed information further includes recordable speed information indicating at least one recording speed applicable to the recording medium, and wherein the recordable speed information is configured in such a manner that: if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the higher applicable recording speed is applicable or not applicable; if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is not applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that only the higher applicable recording speed is not applicable; and

the recording speed information is recorded on a specific area of the optical recording medium.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising: a step of recording applicable recording speed information indicating that the maximum, minimum, basic, and predetermined recording speeds exist.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising: recording write strategy type information indicating a write strategy type applicable for recording data on the optical recording medium.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising: and recording a plurality of recording speed parameters to be used for recording data at the respective recording speeds.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the recordable speed information indicates each recording speed in a bit position.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the recordable speed information has priority over the recording speed information in determining applicability of a specific recording speed.

18. An apparatus for recording disc control information on an optical disc having at least one recording layer, comprising

A controller for generating the disc control information, the disc control information including a plurality of recording speed information and a plurality of write strategies related to a plurality of recording speeds, wherein one of the plurality of recording speed information is basic recording speed information indicating a basic recording speed that must be used when recording and reproducing data to and from the optical disc, wherein the disc control information further includes applicable recording speed information indicating at least one recording speed applicable to a recording medium, and wherein the applicable recording speed information is configured in such a manner that: if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the higher applicable recording speed is applicable or not applicable; if the bit for the lower applicable recording speed is set to indicate that the lower applicable recording speed is not applicable, the bit for the higher applicable recording speed is set to indicate that only the higher applicable recording speed is not applicable; and

a recording unit for recording the disc control information on a specific area of the optical disc.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the plurality of recording speed information includes maximum and minimum recording speed information applicable to the optical disc.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the plurality of recording speed information includes at least one intermediate recording speed information indicating an intermediate recording speed between the maximum and minimum recording speeds applicable to the optical disc.

21. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the optical disc is a recordable blu-ray disc.

22. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the optical disc is a recordable DVD.