Thomson Licensing S.a.

Fran&ccedil;ois Bourdon

Claude Chapel

Jean-Yves Quintard

A control interface for the bit rate of digital data to be recorded as well as a control interface for the bit rate of digital data emanating from a reading device, particularly when the digital data constitutes a high bit rate uninterrupted data stream such as a video data stream in the MPEG II format. Each control interface comprises a memory circuit for storing the data to be recorded or to be read and a device for storing the data to be recorded or read in the memory circuit so as to fill the memory circuit to a predetermined level. The storing device includes a gauge for generating an information item giving the fill level of the memory.

Bit rate control interface for the recording and/or reading of digital data

The coder makes it possible to convert a succession of video and/or audio blocks, consisting of binary combinations of N bits, into a succession of binary data blocks consisting of combinations of N bits, each binary data block corresponding to one video and/or audio block. The coder codes each end binary combination 0 or 2,of each video and/or audio block in the form of a coded binary combination consisting of a nature information item In and a position information item Ip. The nature information item In gives the nature, 0 or 2,, of the end binary combination, and the position information item Ip gives the position which the end combination occupies in the video block. Conversely, the decoder makes it possible to reconstruct a succession of video and/or audio blocks, consisting of binary combinations of N bits, from a succession of binary data blocks such as the ones mentioned above, that is to say ones for which the end combinations 0 or 2,of each video and/or audio block are coded in the form of a nature information item In and a position information item Ip.

Growing community of inventors

Rennes, France

François Bourdon

Growing community of inventors

Rennes, France

Fran&ccedil;ois Bourdon

François Bourdon