Recording apparatus, recording method, program, and recording medium

A recording method for writing data to a data recording medium having at least two rewritable recording layers, said recording method comprising the steps of:

• dividing for management purposes a recording area of a first recording layer of said data recording medium into a plurality of first recording regions and a recording area of a second recording layer of the same medium into a plurality of second recording regions at substantially the same physical positions as said first recording regions;
• controlling data recording to said data recording medium in such a manner that if one of said first regions targeted to be written with first data for formatting or one of said second regions in substantially the same position as the first region has an unrecorded sector devoid of said first data or of second data designated by a user, then said first data is written to an unrecorded sector in the first region of interest or in the second region which has a same physical position as the first region;
• said controlling step further controlling the data recording in such a manner that if said first data or said second data is written to said first region or said second region thus eliminating the unrecorded sector from said first or said second region and if an unrecorded sector is detected in said first or said second region different from a respective region from which the unrecorded sector has been eliminated, then said first data is written to the detected unrecorded sector;
• and
• storing information for determining the position to which said second data was last written,
• wherein, if an unrecorded sector is detected in any one of all said first regions in said first recording layer and in the second region at substantially the same position as the first region of interest in said second layer, then the controlling step controls the data recording to said data recording medium in such a manner that writing of said first data is started with priority by said first data being written to the unrecorded sector in said first or said second region in the recording layer which is different from the recording layer having the region to which said second data was last written as determined by said information.

A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having stored thereon a program for causing a computer to write data to a data recording medium having at least two rewritable recording layers, said program comprising the steps of:

• dividing for management purposes a recording area of a first recording layer of said data recording medium into a plurality of first recording regions and a recording area of a second recording layer of the same medium into a plurality of second recording regions at substantially the same physical positions as said first recording regions;
• controlling data recording to said data recording medium in such a manner that if one of said first regions targeted to be written with first data for formatting or one of said second regions in substantially the same position as the first region has an unrecorded sector devoid of said first data or of second data designated by a user, then said first data is written to an unrecorded sector in the first region of interest or in the second region which has a same physical position as the first region;
• said controlling step further controlling the data recording in such a manner that if said first data or said second data is written to said first region or said second region thus eliminating the unrecorded sector from said first or said second region and if an unrecorded sector is detected in said first or said second region different from a respective region from which the unrecorded sector has been eliminated, then said first data is written to the detected unrecorded sector;
• and
• storing information for determining the position to which said second data was last written,
• wherein, if an unrecorded sector is detected in any one of all said first regions in said first recording layer and in the second region at substantially the same position as the first region of interest in said second layer, then the controlling step controls the data recording to said data recording medium in such a manner that writing of said first data is started with priority by said first data being written to the unrecorded sector in said first or said second region in the recording layer which is different from the recording layer having the region to which said second data was last written as determined by said information.

A recording apparatus for writing data to a data recording medium having at least two rewritable recording layers, said recording apparatus comprising:

• a division management section to divide for management purposes a recording area of a first recording layer of said data recording medium into a plurality of first recording regions and a recording area of a second recording layer of the same medium into a plurality of second recording regions at substantially the same physical positions as said first recording regions;
• a recording control section to control data recording to said data recording medium in such a manner that if one of said first regions targeted to be written with first data for formatting or one of said second regions in substantially the same position as the first region has an unrecorded sector devoid of said first data or of second data designated by a user, then said first data is written to an unrecorded sector in the first region of interest or in the second region which has a same physical position as the first region;
• said recording control section further controlling the data recording in such a manner that if said first data or said second data is written to said first region or said second region thus eliminating the unrecorded sector from said first or said second region and if an unrecorded sector is detected in said first or said second region different from a respective region from which the unrecorded sector has been eliminated, then said first data is written to the detected unrecorded sector;
• and
• a storage device to store information for determining the position to which said second data was last written,
• wherein, if an unrecorded sector is detected in any one of all said first regions in said first recording layer and in the second region at substantially the same position as the first region of interest in said second layer, then said recording control section controls the data recording to said data recording medium in such a manner that writing of said first data is started with priority by said first data being written to the unrecorded sector in said first or said second region in the recording layer which is different from the recording layer having the region to which said second data was last written as determined by said information.