Ex parte Maeda

Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences

Jun 15, 2000

08609234 (B.P.A.I. Jun. 15, 2000)

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THIS OPINION WAS NOT WRITTEN FOR PUBLICATION
The opinion in support of the decision being entered
today (1) was not written for publication in a law
journal and (2) is not binding precedent of the Board.
Paper No. 20
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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BEFORE THE BOARD OF PATENT APPEALS
AND INTERFERENCES
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Ex parte YASUAKI MAEDA
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Appeal No. 1998-1476
Application No. 08/609,234
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ON BRIEF
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Before KRASS, JERRY SMITH, and LALL, Administrative Patent Judges.
KRASS, Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL
This is a decision on appeal from the final rejection of claims
1, 5 and 20. Claim 21, the only other remaining claim, has been
Appeal No. 1998-1476
Application No. 08/609,234
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indicated by the examiner as being directed to allowable subject
matter.
The invention is directed to a recording/reproducing apparatus
having a system controller, a memory and a memory control. More
particularly, the memory control creates, autononomously with respect
to the system controller, a sector data storing area and an additive
storing area in each sector-based data storing area in the memory.
Prescribed data is stored in the additive data storing area in
accordance with the sector-based data which is stored in the sector
data storing area. This prescribed data in the additive data storing
area is at least one of track number, track change information,
identification code of stereo/monaural, emphasis information,
information of inhibit/permit copyright, error information, segment
link information, and running time. The processing load of the
system controller is reduced by storing additive data for sector data
in the memory (a buffer RAM) and releasing the system controller from
the processing load involved in carrying out the address calculation
of the additive data.
Independent claim 1 is reproduced as follows:
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Application No. 08/609,234
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1. A recording and/or reproducing apparatus of the type
including:
a system controller;
a memory means for storing, in a sector-based data storing
area, data to be recorded on a recording medium and/or data which is
read out from the recording medium and in which a recording operation
of the data on the recording medium or a reproducing operation of the
data from the recording medium is carried out by writing data into
the memory means and reading the data out of the memory means;
a memory control means for controlling the writing of data into
the memory means and the reading of data out of the memory means,
wherein the improvement comprises that the memory control means,
autonomously with respect to the system controller, creates a sector
data storing area and an additive data storing area in each sector-
based data storing area in the memory means to store prescribed data
in the additive data storing area in accordance with the sector-based
data which is stored in the sector data storing area and stores the
prescribed data in the additive data storing area in accordance with
the sector-based data stored in the sector data storing area.
The examiner relies on the following reference:
Maeda et al. (Maeda) 5,410,526 Apr. 25, 1995
(filed Feb. 4, 1993)

Claims 1, 5 and 20 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(e) as
anticipated by Maeda.
Reference is made to the briefs and answer for the respective
positions of appellant and the examiner.
OPINION
Appeal No. 1998-1476
Application No. 08/609,234
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We reverse.
While we agree with the examiner that Maeda discloses a system
controller, 7, a memory means, 6, and a memory control means, 8, in a
similar environment as the claimed subject matter, instant
independent claim 1 requires that the memory control means
“autonomously with respect to the system controller,” creates a
sector data storing area...
Thus, in accordance with the instant disclosure, the memory
control means creates the recited sector data storing area
independently of the system controller. As explained throughout the
specification, this reduces the processing load of the system
controller since the system controller is not required to calculate
addresses corresponding to additive data.
While the examiner contends that this is taught by Maeda
because “the sub-data address generator 25, by way of RAM interface
19, still performs the claimed recording/reproduction operation of
the additive data in the memory means 6 autonomously with respect to
the system controller 7" [Answer-page 3], we do not agree in view of
Maeda’s disclosure. Maeda discloses, at column 7, lines 22-30, for
example, that the system controller 7 detects the addresses in the
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voice data recording region and supplies the detected data to sub-
data address generator 25. It seems clear that if the system
controller 7 of Maeda is detecting addresses and supplying the
detected data to sub-data address generator 25 which, in turn, feeds
RAM interface 19 [generator 25 and RAM interface 19 being part of the
memory controller] for addressing RAM 6, the memory control means is
not acting independently, or “autonomously with respect to the system
controller,” in creating a sector data storing area, as claimed.
Accordingly, the examiner’s decision rejecting claims 1, 5 and
20 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(e) is reversed.
REVERSED
ERROL A. KRASS )
Administrative Patent Judge )
)
)
)
)
JERRY SMITH ) BOARD OF PATENT
Administrative Patent Judge ) APPEALS AND
) INTERFERENCES
)
)
Appeal No. 1998-1476
Application No. 08/609,234
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)
PARSHOTAM S. LALL )
Administrative Patent Judge )
ek/rwk
PHILIP M SHAW
LIMBACH & LIMBACH
2001 FERRY BUILDING
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94111