The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Aug. 08, 1989
Filed:
Aug. 20, 1987
Arthur M Gerber, Solana Beach, CA (US);
Other;
Abstract
A digital recording medium formed of a thermoplastic substrate having rows of equally-spaced microscopic optically-alterable mirrors each supported by a mesa projecting from one surface. The medium can be formed from a single transparent thermoplastic substrate with an array of indentations in a first surface. The bottom of each indentation is coated with a reflective material. When viewed from the opposite surface of the substrate, the indentations become mesas. The mirrors serve as timing and tracking markers during pretesting, recording, and read-out. The area and location of each information bit is determined prior to recording: not as a result of the recording process. The medium is pretested for defects prior to recording by scanning with a laser beam of sufficiently low energy that the reflectivity of the storage areas is not significantly reduced. Storage areas having lower than the predetermined reflectivity are 'fenced off' prior to recording. Recording is by exposure to a laser beam that reduces the reflectivity of selected mirrors. After exposure to the recording laser beam, the mirrors retain enough reflectivity to be distinguishable from the intervening valleys.