Pioneer Electronic Corporation

Kiyoshi Furukawa

Yoshiya Nonaka

Toshiyuki Kimura

Hitoshi Sato

Fumio Endo

Akira Hayama

Junichi Nishida

Kenji Kaneko

Yoshio Aoyagi

Seiji Kato

Hiroyuki Abe

Kazuhiro Kiyoura

Alex Bradshaw

Koichiro Haraguchi

Chiaki Hirano

Kazunori Matsuo

Shigetoshi Kato

Yoichi Yamazaki

An audio disk/memory disk player. At the time of playing a disk, TOC information in a lead-in area will be read out first after loading of the disk is complete. The player determines whether the disk to be played is an audio disk (CD) or a memory disk (CD-ROM) based on identifying information in the TOC information. If the disk is the memory disk, the operation goes directly to a pause mode so that upon reception of a read command transition to the searching for a designated address is promptly executed to quickly read out the desired data. Only when the disk being played is the audio disk, the audio system is changed to the audio disk from another source, thus permitting a user to view a map while listening to the previous source. When playing for an area having a series of group information recorded is complete in special play mode, the mode is quickly changed to the pause mode in the case of the memory disk to wait for the read command, thus ensuring quick reading of designated map data. If the disk discrimination result indicates the memory disk, a muting process is performed to inhibit a sound generation from a loudspeaker. If in this case there are operation commands originating from erroneous confirmation by the user, at least one of the commands is ignored.

Disk player having automatic control based upon audio disk or memory disk determination

An optical disk reproducing device has a spindle servo control in which when a focusing error or a tracking error occurs, the spindle control voltage immediately before the error occurred is detected and stored in a memory. During the spindle servo is being off, the spindle control voltage is retrieved from the memory and applied to the spindle motor. Because the spindle motor is rotating at a speed corresponding to the track now being traced during the spindle servo off period, the spindle servo can be established quickly.

Optical disk reproducing device provided with improved spindle motor

A recording medium reproducing device comprises: reading means using a pickup to read data from a recording medium, and outputting the data thus read; memory control means for controlling the output data of the reading means to store the data in a memory; reproducing means for reading data from the memory and converting the data into a reproducing signal; and a microcomputer for controlling the reproducing means. In the reproducing device, the microcomputer varies a threshold value set for the memory, according to the time of absence or the frequency of absence of the output data of the reading means. Thus, the reproducing device eliminates the difficulty that the user feels unpleasant because of the frequent pause of sound reproduction.

Recording medium reproducing device

A disk selection control device for a multidisk player, in which disk content identifying information and TOC information of the disks are preliminarily stored correspondingly with each other, and the disk content identifying information and disk holding position information of the disks are stored correspondingly with each other according to the TOC information when it is read-out. By inputting the disk content identifying information, the disk holding position information corresponding to the input disk content identifying information can be obtained from the above correspondency therebetween to thereby select a desired disk.

Disk selection control device for multidisk player

Disclosed is a CD player that ensures a setup operation and reproduction of information even when a partially recorded CD-R is set therein. The CD player sequentially performs the setup operation, starting from the first setup position located at the innermost periphery of the CD, predetermined for the setup operation, until the setup operation is complete at any of n-th (n=2, 3, . . . ) setup positions lying outwardly of the first setup position. If the setup operation is not completed even at an n-th setup position located at the outermost periphery of the CD, the CD player performs the setup operation again at at least one setup position lying inwardly of the n-th setup position. Also disclosed is a CD player that can discriminate a partially recorded, additionally recordable CD-R, and can execute the reproduction control for the PRD. This CD player discriminates a set disk as an additionally recordable one when a mirror-finished portion is detected in the control to detect the lead-in area or when the lead-in area cannot be detected and the TOC information cannot be read.

Method and apparatus for executing a CD playback setup operation in a CD

Method and Apparatus for playing a CD are designed to allow playback of a partially recorded disk of CD-Rs (CD-Recordable) having the DRAW (direct read after write) capability. It is determined if a target disk is a partially recorded CD-R recording medium. When a reverse command to return to a predetermined address of the recording medium to execute playback is input, the absolute time for information being reproduced is detected and it is then determined if the absolute time is within a predetermined actual pause period. When the absolute time is determined to be within the actual pause period, the reverse command is canceled. It is therefore possible to properly operate a servo system within that recording area of the recording medium where information has already been recorded, thereby allowing a return to a predetermined address associated with the reverse command. This prevents the loss of control of the servo system. When the pickup position is in a lead-in area of the partially recorded CD-R recording medium, thus ensuring the proper reading control.

Method and apparatus for reproducing information from a partially

Method and apparatus for discriminating type of disks positioned on a CD

A map display apparatus for displaying a wide area map and an enlarged map is disclosed. When a display mode is shifted from the mode of displaying the enlarged map to the mode of displaying the wide area map, a cursor frame is displayed on a position on a parent screen corresponding to the divided area which has been displayed in an enlarged manner just before the shift of the display mode, so that the position on the parent screen of the area which has been displayed in the enlarged manner so far can be easily discriminated.

Map display apparatus

A display apparatus for a multidisk player including a memory for storing data of titles and disk kinds for a plurality of disks, and a controller for reading all the stored data and displaying the title and the disk kind of each disk on a display in accordance with the read data. Accordingly, a user can acknowledge the content of each disk at a glance without actually playing the disks. Furthermore, the user can conveniently distinguish an audio disk from a ROM disk and select a desired one of these disks.

Growing community of inventors

Kawagoe, Japan

Kiyoshi Furukawa