Patent ID: 7020664
Filing Date: 2006-03-28
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
1. A file management apparatus for managing files stored therein, comprising: a file storage unit operable to store a file that contains at least two pieces of data, each piece of data being video data or other data, ach piece of video data containing a piece of numerical information being a time code; a segment judging unit operable to read a piece of data from the file stored in the file storage it, make a to extract apiece of numerical information being a time code from the read piece of data, and judge whether the piece of numerical information has been extracted from the read piece of data, the segment judging unit further reads another piece of data from the file store in the file storage unit, extracts a piece of numerical information being a time code from said another piece of data, and judges whether the extracted two time codes are continuous in time series; and a segment generating unit operable, if the segment judging unit judges that the piece of numerical information has not been extracted from the read piece of data, to generate a segment composed of piece of video data, each of which contains a piece of numerical information being a time code, that are present in the file until immediately before the read piece of data, the segment generating unit further generates a segment that contains to read two pieces of video data if the segment judging unit judges that the two time codes are continuous, wherein the segment generating includes: a position information storage unit; a position obtaining unit operable, if the segment judging unit judges that the two pieces of numerical information are continuous, to obtain two pieces of position information respectively of the two pieces of data from the file storage unit; and a position information write unit operable to, recognizing the two pieces of data as the segment, generate a segment name for identifying the recognized segment, and write into the position information storage unit (ii) the segment name and (ii) the two pieces of position information as an entry that corresponds to the segment name, the two pieces of position information indicating a storage position of the segment, wherein if the segment judging unit judges the two pieces of numerical information are not continuous, the segment generating unit generates a segment that contains one of the read two pieces of data, and generates another segment that contains the other of the read two pieces of data and if the segment judging unit judges that the two pieces of numerical information am not continuous, the position obtaining unit obtains two pieces of position information respectively of the two pieces of data from the file storage unit, and the position information write unit, recognizing the two pieces of data as two different segments, generates two segment names for identifying the two segments, and writes into the position information storage unit (i) the two segment names and (ii) the two pieces of position information as entries that respectively correspond to the two segment names, the two pieces of position information indicating storage positions of the two segment, respectively.