Preformatting an optical disk with positioning information in boundary areas between non-written information block areas

A reading device comprising:

• a reading unit for reading information represented by optically readable marks in a track pattern on a record carrier using a beam of electromagnetic radiation;
• and
• means for positioning the reading unit with respect to the information carrier depending on the marks read from the record carrier;
• and in which:
• the information blocks are arranged on the record carrier in a reading direction;
• the positioning means jump the reading unit to a position preceding an information block to be read;
• and
• the positioning means displace the reading unit in the reading direction after making the jump to the position preceding the information block to be read.

A reading device comprising:

• a reading unit for reading information represented by optically readable marks in a track pattern on a record carrier using a beam of electromagnetic radiation;
• and
• means for positioning the reading unit with respect to the information carrier depending on the marks read from the information carrier;
• and in which:
• the positioning means determine an actual average track pitch in the track pattern of the record carrier and position the reading unit with respect to the information carrier depending on the actual average track pitch.

A reading device comprising:

• a reading unit for reading information blocks represented by optically readable marks in a track pattern on a record carrier using a beam of electromagnetic radiation;
• and
• means for positioning the reading unit with respect to the information carrier depending on the marks read from the record carrier;
• and in which:
• the positioning means detect track crossings of the beam depending on positioning information written in boundary areas in areas of the track pattern in which information blocks are not written in information block areas;
• and
• the positioning means position the reading unit with respect to the information carrier depending on the detected track crossings.

A reading device comprising:

• a reading unit for reading information represented by optically readable marks in a track pattern on a record carrier using a beam of electromagnetic radiation;
• and
• means for positioning the reading unit with respect to the information carrier depending on the marks read from the record carrier;
• and in which:
• the reading unit is a reading/writing unit for also writing areas of the record carrier using the beam of electromagnetic radiation with marks representing information;
• the positioning means position the reading unit depending on a track structure defining a track pattern on the record carrier;
• the reading device further comprises:
• first means for detecting information block areas of the record carrier which are for writing information blocks of an information signal;
• second means for detecting non-written boundary areas adjoining the information block areas;
• and
• initialization means for writing the non-written boundary areas with positioning information for determining the position of the beginning of information block areas.

A record carrier of the rewriteable type for storing information blocks, comprising:

• a substrate;
• a track structure on the substrate defining a track pattern of the record carrier;
• the track structure including multiple information block areas and multiple boundary areas, the information block areas being proceeded by adjacent boundary areas;
• marks written in the track pattern using a beam of electromagnetic radiation, the marks indicating information;
• the information including information blocks written in the information block areas;
• the information including position information position information in the boundary areas;
• the information including status information about the nonwritten or written state of information block areas on the record carrier.

A method of reading information, comprising the steps of:

• providing a record carrier with written marks in a track pattern for reading using a beam of electromagnetic radiation, the marks representing information blocks in information block areas and positioning information in boundary areas before or after the information block areas and adjacent to the information block areas;
• reading the positioning information or other positioning information from the record carrier;
• jumping the reading unit to a position for searching for the beginning of an information area on the record carrier, the position to which the reading unit is jumped depending on the positioning information read from the record carrier;
• reading the positioning information from the boundary area;
• determining the position of the reading unit with respect to the information block area, depending on the position information read from the boundary area, regardless of whether the information block area has been written with information blocks;
• and
• beginning the reading the information area depending on the determined reading unit position.