Patent ID: 7903885

Claim:
A data converting apparatus, comprising: a converting unit configured to convert a first type data into a second type data, the second type data being different from the first type data; a storing unit configured to store the first type data transferred from an external apparatus; and a control unit configured to determine one of a first path going through a main memory and a second path bypassing the main memory as a transfer path, and configured to have the first type data, which is stored in the storing unit, inputted into the converting unit via the determined transfer path, wherein the converting unit is one of a video codec, an encrypting unit, a decrypting unit, and a signal converter, and the storing unit includes: a first buffer into which the first type data transferred from the external apparatus is stored according to a first-in first-out method; and a second buffer into which the first type data received by the converting unit is stored according to the first-in first-out method, and the control unit is configured to determine the transfer path in accordance with whether or not the second buffer is full and whether or not a third buffer in the main memory is empty.