US 5,686,718 AGranted

Recording method, decoding method, and decoding apparatus for digital information

AssigneeSharp Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorsToshiyuki Iwai, Atsushi Aoki, Masahiro Esashi, Hiroaki Niwamoto

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Abstract

There is provided a method for recording digital information that, when digital information is recorded as a two-dimensional pattern on a planar recording surface, the digital information can be easily coded and decoded. A specific pattern for representing a location within the recording surface is made up by giving marks in a specified pattern to a plurality of meshes which are adjoined to one another into a specific shape. A rectangular block is composed of a plurality of meshes adjoined to one another longitudinally and transversely into a rectangular shape and has longitudinal and transverse dimensions larger than those of the specific pattern. A segment in which the specific patterns are overlaid in the units of meshes or circumscribed to the rectangular block is set. An information recording area for expressing the two-dimensional pattern is composed by arraying a plurality of the segments without clearances on the recording surface. The digital information to be recorded is divided according to the number of the segments and then resulting pieces of unitary information are recorded into the segments.

Claims36

Dependent claims

A method for recording digital information, comprising the steps of virtually setting in a matrix form meshes corresponding to bits on a planar recording surface, providing the meshes with optically recognizable marks corresponding to digital information to be recorded, and recording the digital information to be recorded as a two-dimensional pattern, and further comprising the steps of:

setting a specific pattern for representing a location within the recording surface, said specific pattern being made up by giving the marks in a predetermined pattern to a plurality of meshes which are adjoined to one another into a specific shape, and setting a rectangular block which is composed of a plurality of meshes adjoined to one another longitudinally and transversely into a rectangular shape and which has longitudinal and transverse dimensions larger than those of the specific pattern;
setting a segment in which the specific patterns are overlaid or circumscribed to the rectangular block in the units of meshes;
setting an information recording area in which the two-dimensional pattern is to be expressed, by arraying a plurality of the segments without clearances on the recording surface;
preparing pieces of unitary information by dividing the digital information to be recorded according to a number of the segments, and assigning the pieces of unitary information to the segments, respectively;
and
recording the pieces of unitary information to meshes other than those occupied by the specific patterns within the respective segments.

3 more elements

A method for recording digital information, comprising the steps of virtually setting in a matrix form meshes corresponding to bits in a generally rectangular information recording area provided within a planar recording surface, providing the meshes with optically recognizable marks corresponding to digital information to be recorded, and recording the digital information to be recorded as a two-dimensional pattern, and further comprising the steps of:

arranging a plurality of specific patterns for representing a location within the recording surface in such a way that the specific patterns are spaced from and paralleled to one another with specified intervals in directions of row and column in the information recording area, said specific patterns being made up by giving the marks in a specified pattern to a plurality of meshes which are adjoined to one another into a specific shape;
and
arranging the specific patterns arrayed in the direction of row or column to locations where the specific patterns protrude out of the information recording area with respect to at least one side of the information recording area.

setting rectangular small blocks composed of a plurality of adjoining meshes;
arraying a plurality of the small blocks without clearances on the recording surface to thereby set an information recording area where the two-dimensional pattern is to be expressed;
and
preparing pieces of unitary information by dividing the digital information to be recorded according to a number of the small blocks, and assigning and recording the pieces of unitary information to the small blocks, respectively;
and further comprising the step of:
recording to small blocks present at particular locations in the information recording area, index information representing at least one of an array state of the small blocks, size of digital information recorded in the information recording area, and coding method and error correction method for the pieces of unitary information recorded in the small blocks.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.