Patent ID: 7233553

Claim:
A method for simultaneously recording and reproducing a plurality of pieces of real time data in accordance with a simultaneous recording and reproduction model, wherein the simultaneous recording and reproduction model includes a pickup P for accessing an area on an information recording medium, an encoding module EMi for encoding real time data Di, a recording buffer WBi for accumulating the encoded real time data Di, a reproduction buffer RBj for accumulating real time data Dj read from the information recording medium, and a decoding module DMj for decoding the real time data Dj accumulated in the reproduction buffer RBj, the method comprising the steps of: searching for an unassigned area in a volume space in the information recording medium and assigning at least one unassigned area in the volume space as an area Ai in which the real time data Di is to be recorded; executing a recording operation Wi for recording the real time data Di accumulated in the recording buffer WBi in the area Ai; executing a reproduction operation Rj for reading the real time data Dj from an area Aj having the real time data Dj recorded therein; determining whether the recording buffer WBi is empty or not while the recording operation Wi is being executed; when the recording buffer WBi is determined to be empty, switching the recording operation Wi to another recording operation Wi or a reproduction operation Rj; and when the recording buffer WBi is determined not to be empty, continuing the recording operation Wi; and determining whether the reproduction buffer RBj is full or not while the reproduction operation Rj is being executed; when the reproduction buffer RBj is determined to be full, switching the reproduction operation Rj to another reproduction operation Rj or a recording operation Wi; and when the reproduction buffer RBj is determined not to be full, continuing the reproduction operation Rj; wherein: each of the at least one area assigned as the area Ai is structured to fulfill a condition that the recording buffer WBi can be made empty by at most one access operation and at most two recording operations; each of at least one area assigned as the area Aj is structured to fulfill a condition that the reproduction buffer RBj can be made full by at most one access operation and at most two reproduction operations; and i is any integer of 1 or greater and m or less, j is any integer of (m+1) or greater and n or less, m is any integer which fulfills m<n and is 1 or greater, and n is any integer of 2 or greater which represents the number of the plurality of pieces of real time data for simultaneous recording and reproduction.