Manufacturing data-storage media using light-curable material
AssigneeHome Box Office, Inc.
InventorCraig D. Cuttner
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Instances of data-storage media having pits and lands, such as individual DVDs or CDs, are manufactured by selectively illuminating a light-curable material to form cured regions corresponding to the lands. The selective illumination of the light-curable material can be implemented using mask-based illumination or selective laser illumination or both. The mask used in mask-based illumination can have one or more extra opaque portions and/or one or more extra transparent portions corresponding to false pits and/or false lands, respectively, where selective laser illumination is used to convert one or more false pits/lands produced during mask-based illumination into true pits/lands for the competed medium.
Claims30
A method for manufacturing a data-storage medium having pits and lands, the method comprising:
- (a) applying a layer of a uncured, light-curable material to a substrate;
- (b) illuminating selected regions of the layer with material-curing light to cure portions of the material corresponding to the selected regions to generate at least one false-pit or false-land region;
- (c) separately selectively illuminating the false-pit or false-land region to convert (i) the false-pit region into a land region or (ii) the false-land region into a pit region;
- (d) removing uncured portions of the material from the substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions;
- and
- (e) completing the manufacturing of the data-storage medium, wherein:
- step (a) comprises applying the layer of material to a first substrate;
- and
- step (d) comprises:
- (1) removing uncured portions of the material from the first substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions on the first substrate;
- and
- (2) transferring the lands from the first substrate to a second substrate by applying pressure between the first and second substrates.
A method for manufacturing a data-storage medium having pits and lands, the method comprising:
- (a) applying a layer of a uncured, light-curable material to a substrate;
- (b) illuminating selected regions of the layer with material-curing light to cure portions of the material corresponding to the selected regions;
- (c) removing uncured portions of the material from the substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions;
- and
- (d) completing the manufacturing of the data-storage medium, wherein:
- step (a) comprises applying the layer of material to a first substrate;
- and
- step (c) comprises:
- (1) removing uncured portions of the material from the first substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions on the first substrate;
- and
- (2) transferring the lands from the first substrate to a second substrate by applying pressure between the first and second substrates.
Apparatus for manufacturing a data-storage medium having pits and lands, wherein the apparatus is adapted to:
- (a) apply a layer of a uncured, light-curable material to a substrate;
- (b) illuminate selected regions of the layer with material-curing light to cure portions of the material corresponding to the selected regions to generate at least one-false pit or false-land region;
- (c) separately selectively illuminate the false-pit or false-land region to convert (i) the false-pit region into a land region or (ii) the false-land region into a pit region;
- (d) remove uncured portions of the material from the substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions;
- and
- (e)complete the manufacturing of the data-storage medium, wherein the apparatus is adapted to:
- apply the layer of material to a first substrate;
- remove uncured portions of the material from the first substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions on the first substrate;
- and
- transfer the lands from the first substrate to a second substrate by applying pressure between the first and second substrates.
A method for manufacturing a data-storage medium having pits and lands, the method comprising:
- (a) applying a layer of a uncured, light-curable material to a substrate;
- (b) illuminating selected regions of the layer with material-curing light to cure portions of the material corresponding to the selected regions to generate at least one false-pit or false-land region;
- (c) separately selectively illuminating the false-pit or false-land region to convert (i) the false-pit region into a land region or (ii) the false-land region into a pit region;
- (d) removing uncured portions of the material from the substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions;
- (e) completing the manufacturing of the data-storage medium;
- (f) enabling a user to select content for the data-storage medium, wherein the data-storage medium is manufactured based on the user-selected content;
- and
- (g) determining whether a mask is available corresponding to the user-selected content, wherein:
- if the mask is not available, then step (b) comprises selectively illuminating one or more regions of the layer using laser light;
- and
- if the mask is available, then step (b) comprises selectively illuminating one or more regions of the layer using an optical mask.
Apparatus for manufacturing a data-storage medium having pits and lands, wherein the apparatus is adapted to:
- (a) apply a layer of a uncured, light-curable material to a substrate;
- (b) illuminate selected regions of the layer with material-curing light to cure portions of the material corresponding to the selected regions to generate at least one-false pit or false-land region;
- (c) separately selectively illuminate the false-pit or false-land region to convert (i) the false-pit region into a land region or (ii) the false-land region into a pit region;
- (d) remove uncured portions of the material from the substrate to create lands corresponding to the cured portions;
- (e) complete the manufacturing of the data-storage medium;
- (f) enable a user to select content for the data-storage medium, wherein the data-storage medium is manufactured based on the user-selected content;
- and
- (g) determine whether a mask is available corresponding to the user-selected content, wherein:
- if the mask is not available, then the apparatus selectively illuminates one or more regions of the layer using laser light;
- and
- if the mask is available, then the apparatus selectively illuminates one or more regions of the layer using an optical mask.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.