Patent ID: 7072287

Claim:
An optical reproduction apparatus for reproducing information recorded on an optical medium having an aligned prepit portion straddled on a plurality of tracks in a radial direction, the prepit portion including first and second prepit portions divided in a track direction, a synchronous information prepit of the respective first and second prepit portion being arranged on a boundary of the respective tracks, the first prepit portion including the synchronous information prepit arranged at every two-track pitch in the radial direction, the second prepit portion including the synchronous information prepit arranged at every two-track pitch in the radial direction, the first prepit portion and the second prepit portion being arranged at opposite boundaries of the same track, and the prepit portion including a gap between the first and second prepit portions, the optical reproduction apparatus comprising: an irradiation source for irradiating a light spot on the optical recording medium; an optical detection means for detecting a reflected light from the optical recording medium; and a reproduction means for reproducing information by using a signal from the optical detection means.