Claims
- 1. An audio playback device for playing prerecorded audio represented by an array of dots and carried by a substrate carrying an image in substantially the same area thereas, a substrate carrying an image and including an array being substantially identical, to an average unaided human eye, to the same substrate and image not including an array, the audio playback device comprising:
a detector that detects the array of dots and outputs a first signal representative thereof; a decoder interconnected to said detector that receives and decodes said first signal to produce a second signal corresponding to the first signal; and audio emitter interconnected to said decoder that receives said second signal generates sounds corresponding to the second signal.
- 2. The audio playback device of claim 1 wherein detector detects the array of dots optically.
- 3. The audio playback device of claim 1 wherein the dots are dots of ink.
- 4. The audio playback device of claim 3 wherein the ink is an infra-red (IR) absorbing ink with little absorption in the visible spectrum.
- 5. The audio playback device of claim 1 wherein said audio is encoded using Reed-Solomon encoding.
- 6. The audio playback device of claim 1 including a wand-like arm having a slot through which said substrate is inserted.
- 7. The audio playback device of claim 1 wherein said encoding includes a high-frequency checkerboard modulation of said array of dots.
- 8. A method of playing a prerecorded audio signal encoded as an array of dots and carried by a substrate carrying an image in substantially the same area thereas, a substrate carrying an image and including an array being substantially identical, to an average unaided human eye, to the same substrate and image not including an array, said method comprising the steps of:
(d) detecting the array on the substrate and outputting a first signal corresponding thereto; (e) decoding said first signal and outputting a second signal (f) receiving the second signal in an audio emitter and generating sounds corresponding to the second signal.
- 9. The method of claim 8 including detecting the array of dots optically.
- 10. The method of claim 8 including detecting the dots using at least the infrared spectrum.
- 11. The method of claim 8 including providing the dots using an infrared absorbing ink with little absorption in the visible spectrum.
- 12. A method as claimed in claim 8 wherein said audio signal is Reed-Solomon encoded prior to creation of the array of dots.
- 13. A method as claimed in claim 8 including modulating said array of dots with a high frequency checkerboard signal component.
Parent Case Info
[0001] Continuation application of U.S. Ser. No. 09/693,078 filed on Oct. 20, 2000
Continuations (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09693078 |
Oct 2000 |
US |
Child |
10636220 |
Aug 2003 |
US |