Motion video signal processing for recording or reproducing – Local trick play processing – With randomly accessible medium
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-27
2002-10-22
Christensen, Andrew (Department: 2615)
Motion video signal processing for recording or reproducing
Local trick play processing
With randomly accessible medium
C360S069000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06470133
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an integrated circuit, and electronic equipment and its assembly method which uses suitable integrated circuits when preparing many kinds of electronic equipment having varieties of functions from an upper rank to a lower rank function respectively, according to demand.
These electronic equipment include a magnetic recording and regenerative unit, video recorder/player, video-cassette recorder and the like. In this case, the additional functions to the magnetic recording and regenerative units include, for example, an on-screen display (OSD), PAL system applicable to a plurality of different languages, HiFi, and two-head system or four-head system having a specification of HiFi or NTSC/PAL regenerative system.
The conventional technologies are explained in an example for the magnetic record and/or the generative apparatus or video tape recorder (hereinafter called “VTR”). The basic structure of this VTR is shown by big block view in FIG.
1
.
In
FIG. 1
,
101
is a TV signal processing portion which processes signals from a tuning circuit
102
of the TV signal,
103
is a video signal processing portion which outputs TV signals being output from said TV signal processing portion to a recording and/or generative circuit
104
where signal recording and generation thereof are performed in conjunction with a magnetic tape and rotary magnetic heads
105
having two-head system or four-head system, and
113
is an antenna terminal.
Number
106
is a timer portion which counts time for a reservation of TV program and for present time,
107
is a key interface portion which inputs a signal from the key input portion
108
,
109
is a driver portion which controls an indication to a fluorescent indicating tube
110
, and
111
is a driving control portion which outputs the control signal to the driving mechanism
113
which controls magnetic head
105
and capstan
112
for a servo control (speed control, phase control).
A system control portion
120
controls the whole VTR with input and output signals through connections to the tuning circuit
102
, timer portion
106
, magnetic signal processing portion
103
, key interface portion
107
, fluorescent indication tube driver portion
109
, and the driving control portion
111
, respectively.
Formerly, in the VTR described above, the tuner portion
106
, fluorescent indicator tube driver portion
109
, and the system control portion
120
are stored in an integrated circuit
121
. On the other hand, the drive control portion
111
is structured to an exclusive integrated circuit called a “digital servo integrated circuit” (this structure is hereinafter called “system
1
”). However, in the case of a four-headed system, special regeneration (especially slow regeneration) cannot be smoothly operated in this structure, and a special regenerative integrated circuit or an expensive servo integrated circuit having such function must be additionally used. Thus, in the above structure system
1
, when the four-headed system is used, the following two structures are widely used:
a structure wherein the system control portion
120
and the driving control portion
111
are stored in an integrated circuit
122
, while the timer portion
106
and the fluorescent indicating tube driver portion
109
are stored in another integrated circuit
123
(this structure is hereinafter called “system
2
”); or a structure wherein the system control portion
120
, driving control portion
111
and the timer portion
106
are stored in an integral circuit
124
, and the fluorescent indicating driver portion
109
is used as an exclusive integrated circuit (this structure is hereinafter called “system
3
”).
At present, various kinds of VTRs are manufactured and distributed according to user's requests, e.g., even in the VTR of the NTSC system in Japan and the U.S., there exist 2-headed and four-headed systems, and those two systems have further functional additions (e.g., OSD, HiFi, etc.). Such production of various types in small amounts impedes cost reductions. To overcome this, even when many kinds of VTRs having different functional additions are made, common use of parts incorporated into an inner portion and the preparation step are performed. Particularly, when the layout of the circuit boards is made in common, since the common parts are assigned at the same position on the circuit board, an automatic insertion of parts is available by using an automatic inserter, or manual insertion by hand becomes easy, thereby increasing productivity. In other words, in the case of automatic insertion, if the positions of commonly usable parts thereof are memorized, then its insertion can be performed by correction or addition of each memory provided at a certain part according to each kind without any memory of inserting position from first. In addition, in the case of manual insertion, the generation of insertion errors by the operator decreases because the insertion position is the same with respect to the part.
However, when this common usage of parts is enlarged to integral circuits, among the VTR of two- and four-headed systems having various kinds of functional additions, the specification of said integrated circuit is set so that the highest rank function VTR having the largest number of functional additions may operate, then said integrated circuit is allowed to keep the interchangeability to the lower rank function, and accordingly, the VTR in which said integrated circuit is incorporated, includes unused functions.
Accordingly, in order to decrease manufacturing cost, VTRs of a two-head system are made to be common in circuit board and parts by using the structure of system
1
, while VTRs of a four-head system are made to be common in circuit board and parts by using the structure of system
2
or
3
.
As is illustrated in systems
1
,
2
and
3
, at least two large-scale integrated circuits were used as its main structures, resulting in increased costs.
Further, as the system control portion and the fluorescence indicating tube driver portion, or the system control portion and the driving control portion were provided in separate large-scale integrated circuits, both integrated circuits were connected with copper foil wires on the circuit board. Accordingly, noises from other devices provided both inside and outside the unit, overlap at the copper foil wires through which the control signal is sent, and cause mistakes in operation. In addition, when the package shape of said integrated circuit (including number of pin) becomes a plurality, the manufacturing step of the integrated circuit and its examination are performed at different organizations, and the results of the examination become different. Accordingly, the simplification of the manufacturing steps of the integrated circuit becomes difficult, and the decrease in cost of the integrated circuit body is also difficult.
On the other hand, if a single integrated circuit is used, the memory circuit (such as ROM, etc.) for software mounted on said integrated circuit requires a great memory capacity for keeping the highest function. Accordingly, the VTR products which use only the lowest function carry unnecessary and expensive memory and no meaning to use a single integrated circuit can be found.
This invention solves such problems and its objects include the following:
1. To make the package shape (number of pins) in the integrated circuit for electronic equipment system control in common use;
2. To select and use one of said integrated circuit groups having a necessary and the minimum suitable ROM capacity corresponding to each of a plurality of functional additions;
3. To decrease the manufacturing cost of the equipment by restricting large-scale integrated circuits to be used to only one; and
4. To decrease the cost of the assembly step by making the main printed circuit board commonly useful and making the inserting positions of the electronic parts to be mounted to the same position; and
to eliminate the wiring between circuit boar
Higuchi Yoshio
Maeda Osamu
Christensen Andrew
Funai Electric Co. Ltd.
Lackenbach Siegel Marzullo Aronson & Greenspan
Onuaku Christopher
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