Improvement of the user interface for video cassette recorders by 'memory-in-cassette'

It is shown that the user interface of a VCR can be much improved by providing a nonvolatile memory attached to the video cassette, which holds basic cassette and tape information as well as TOC (tables-of-contents) and UTOC (user TOC) data. The appropriate technology is EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory) with serial interface as increasingly used for chip cards. The concept described provides the choice between a serial interface EEPROM for the standard cassette and a simple hard-wired PROM (programmable read-only memory) for low-cost products. The concept may be best applied to the next-generation VCR standard.<>