Information recording apparatus and process for recording on a recording medium with pit edges shifted in a step-wise fashion

DETAILED DESCRIPTION We claim: 1.
An information recording apparatus of the type which includes recording means for recording digital information on an information recording medium from which recorded information is reproduced by an optical detection system which scans said information recording medium along pit rows by a light beam, wherein the improvement comprises that the recording means records each information pit so that edge positions of each information pit are shifted in a step-wise fashion from a predetermined reference position in response to digital information to be recorded, wherein said digital information is recorded as shift amounts of multiple stages of said edge positions, wherein said recording means records on said information recording medium an education pit, inserted into a pit row, whose edge positions are shifted in a step-wise fashion from said predetermined reference position in response to education data and which is predetermined in response to an insertion position.
2.
The information recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said recording means records on said information recording medium a reference pit inserted into a pit row and whose edge position shift amount is set to a minimum value.
3.
The information recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said recording means records on said information recording medium a reference pit inserted into a pit row and whose edge position shift amount is set to a maximum value.
4.
An information recording process of the type wherein digital information is recorded as pits on an information recording medium which can be reproduced by an optical detection system which obtains a reproduced signal corresponding to each information pit by scanning the information recording medium along pit rows, wherein the improvement comprises the steps of: shifting an edge position of each information pit during recording in a step-wise fashion from a predetermined reference position in response to digital information to be recorded, wherein said digital information is recorded as shift amounts of multiple stages of said edge positions; and inserting an education pit into a pit row, the edge position of the education pit being shifted in a step-wise fashion from the predetermined reference position in response to education data which is pre-determined in response to an insertion position