Patent ID: 6539165
Filing Date: 2003-03-25
Classification: G11B,H04N

Abstract:
Apparatus for reproducing a first digital information signal, recorded in slant tracks on a longitudinal record carrier, in a trick play reproduction mode, the record carrier being transported, in said trick play reproduction mode, with a speed which equals n times a nominal reproduction speed, n being a constant whose magnitude is larger than 1, said slant tracks comprising a main signal recording portion in which sync blocks of information are recorded, the main signal recording portion comprising sync blocks containing a portion of information of said first digital information signal, and sync blocks containing a portion of a second digital information signal, said second digital information signal being a signal for reproduction in another reproduction mode,said sync blocks of information further comprising: track identification information, identifying the tracks in subsequent groups of a fixed number of subsequent tracks; and sync block identification information, identifying the sync block in the sequence of sync blocks in said main signal recording portion of a track, said sync blocks comprising a portion of information of the first digital information signal being recorded in trick play segments located at various locations in said main signal recording portions in said tracks, the apparatus comprising: read means for reading information from said record carrier, said read means comprising at least a first and a second read head having mutually different azimuth angles located on a rotatable head drum; transport means for transporting the record carrier with a specified speed; tracking control means for carrying out a tracking control during reproduction in said trick play reproduction mode in response to a tracking control signal thereby enabling said read means to read information from said trick play segments, the tracking control means comprising: means for generating a tracking error signal from said track identification information and said sync block identification information; and means for deriving said tracking control signal from said tracking error signal, whereby the tracking control means controls the speed of the record carrier such that the path that said first or second read head follows across the record carrier during one revolution of the rotatable head drum is controlled towards a reference path for said trick play reproduction mode across said record carrier, said reference path enabling optimal reproduction of information from said trick play segments for said trick play reproduction mode.