GB2078334A - Record player drive means - Google Patents

Abstract

A record player comprises a turntable (34) mounted for rotation about a central axis (S) and driven by an electric motor (18), the motor being mounted so that the driving spindle (19) thereof extends upwardly beneath the turntable (34) and is spaced from the axis of rotation (S) thereof. A drive means for transmitting drive from the motor spindle to the turntable comprises a jockey wheel (26), carried on an arm (23) which is pivotally mounted for rotation about an axis (30) parallel to the axis (C) of the motor spindle (19), engaging a downwardly extending flange (25) provided on the underside of the turntable (34) and centred on the axis of rotation (S) of the turntable, and the motor spindle (19) which is located radially outwardly of the flange (35). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Record player drive means This invention relates to record player drive means.

There are presently two well known types of indirect drive means for record players, a large proportion of the total of mass produced record players employing one or the other of said indirect drive means i.e. a drive means wherein a turntable of the record player is not mounted directly upon a drive spindle of an electric motor but, in one type is driven by means of an endless belt which is engaged around the drive spindle of the driving motor and around a drum provided on the underside of the turntable, and in the other type is driven by means of a jockey wheel which is engaged with the spindle of the driving motor and a circular flange provided on the turntable, thus transmitting the drive from the spindle to the turntable.

In the case of the latter type, i.e. the jockey wheel type, the circular flange of the turntable usually depends from its underside and is provided by a peripheral rim of the turntable. The spindle on the driving motor is positioned radially within the circular confine of the flange and the jockey wheel which engages the spindle, transmits the drive to the internal surface of the flange.

With the former type of drive, i.e. belt drive, the driving spindle is positioned radially outside the drum beneath the turntable, spaced from the external surface of the drum.

Thus in production, two completely different types of record player need to be produced, very many of the components being different for each type of drive. For example, in the jockey wheel type of drive, it is necessary to provide a downwardly depending edge flange whereas in the belt type drive, it is necessary for the turntable to be provided with a drum.

The object of the invention is to provide an improved form of drive means which reduces the cost of production of record players by achieving a substantial degree of standardisation of parts as between record players having a jockey wheel type of drive and record players having a belt type of drive.

According to the invention we provide a record player comprising a turntable mounted for rotation about a central axis and driven by an electric motor, the motor being mounted so that the driving spindle thereof extends upwardly beneath the turntable and is spaced from the axis of rotation thereof, a drive means for transmitting drive from the motor spindle to the turntable, the drive means including a jockey wheel and a downwardly extending flange provided on the underside of the turntable and centred on the axis of rotation of the turntable, the motor spindle being located radially outwardly of said flange, the jockey wheel engaging the spindle of the motor and the external surface of the flange to transmit drive from the motor spindle to the turntable.

As the motor spindle is located radially outwardly of the central flange, by omitting the jockey wheel and engaging an endless belt around the circular flange, which provides a drum, and the motor spindle, the record player may be easily converted from a jockey wheel type drive to a belt type drive, without having to replace any other components.

Conversely, by inserting a jockey wheel, a belt type drive can readily be converted to a jockey wheel type drive.

Further, production is considerably facilitated as a record player can be assembled to an advanced stage and then the type of drive with which it is to be provided can be selected, without having to replace or modify components.

Preferably, the turntable is mounted on a deck plate, and the motor is located below the deck plate, the spindle of the motor extending upwardly from the deck plate. The motor may conveniently be mounted on a mounting plate which is adapted to be secured to the deck plate and the arm on which the jockey wheel is carried may also be mounted on the mounting plate.

The jockey wheel may be carried on an arm, the arm being pivotally mounted for rotation about an axis parallel to the axis of the motor spindle.

Thus the mounting plate, arm, jockey wheel and motor may comprise a sub-assembly to further facilitate production. An alternative sub-assembly may comprise a further mounting plate of similar configuration and dimensions to the mounting plate of the above described sub-assembly, and a motor only, the spindle of the motor extending upwardly, to provide a belt drive. Both sub-assemblies may be manufactured to alternatively produce the same record player with either a jockey wheel type drive or belt type drive respectively, it only being necessary during production to either insert the jockey wheel type of sub-assembly or the belt drive type of sub-assembly, as required.

The jockey wheel type drive record player may be provided with spring means to urge the arm and hence the jockey wheel into a gap provided between the external face of the flange and the motor spindle.

This spring means may be attached at one end to the arm and at the other end to the mounting plate and therefore comprise part of said sub-assembly.

Preferably, the mounting plate is secured on top of the deck plate, the motor depending from the mounting plate and the spindle extending upwardly through an aperture therein.

The jockey arm may be pivotally mounted on a post comprising part of the mounting plate, by means of a loose connection to enable the spring means to urge the jockey wheel so that it engages the external surface of the flange and the motor spindle with equal pressure.

The jockey wheel may have a rubber or other high friction edge to increase frictional contact between the jockey wheel and the external surface of the flange and the motor spindle.

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawing which is a plan view of part of a record player according to the invention through a turntable showing a deck plate and mounting plate.

The record player has a mounting plate 10 comprising a metal pressing of a generally triangular outline having a base 11 with two apices 12,13 and an extended jockey arm mounting part 14 at the upper end thereof provided a third apex, to which mounting part 14 a jockey arm 15 is mounted as hereinafter described.

The plate 10 has three screw apertures 16 which enable the plate to be mounted on a deck plate 17 of the record player as shown.

The mounting plate 10 has secured to the underside thereof an electric motor 18, three further screw apertures 18a being provided in the plate 10 for this purpose.

A driving spindle 19 of the motor 18, projects upwardly from the deck plate 17 of the record player through a circular hole 20 in the mounting plate 10.

It will be appreciated that as seen in the drawing, the mounting plate 10 is located upon the deck plate 17 and the electric motor 18 depends below the deck plate.

The jockey arm 15 comprises a plastic moulding of generally inverted F-shape having a main limb 23 from which project two transversely extending limbs 24,25. A jockey wheei 26 is mounted near the end of the limb 24 and is freely rotatable about an axis 28.

The free extremity of the main limb 23 of the F-shaped arm 15 is formed with a generally oval shaped hollow boss 29, by means of which the arm 15 is loosely pivotally mounted on an upstanding post 30, fixed to the jockey arm mounting part 14 of the mounting plate 10.

The post 30 is parallel to the axis C of the driving spindle 19 of the motor 18. The remaining limb 25 has an aperture 31 therein in which one end of a coil spring 32 is received, the other end of the spring being received in an aperture 33 in the mounting plate.

The turntable, indicated at 34, is formed on its underside, radially inwardly of the spindle 19, with a downwardly extending circular flange 35 which is concentric with the central axis S of the turntable 34.

The radius of the flange 35 is such that a gap 38 is provided between the exterior of the circularflange 35 and the driving spindle 19 which gap 38 is smaller than the diameter of the jockey wheel 26.

The coil spring 32 acts between the jockey arm 15 and the mounting plate 10 to draw the jockey wheel 26 into the gap 38 thereby engaging the spindle 19 and the exterior of the flange 35 to transmit drive from the spindle to the turntable 34.

The jockey wheel 26 is of known type having a rubber or similar frictional substance on the edge thereof, to improve frictional gripping between the wheel 26,flange 35 and the spindle 19.

It will thus be seen that the complete drive means comprises only a simple metal pressing for the mounting plate 10 and the post 30, a simple moulding in plastics material for the F-shaped arm 15, the jockey wheel 26, coil spring 32 and motor 18.

If desired, the drive arrangement hereinbefore described can easily be changed to a belt drive by eliminating the F-shaped jockey arm 15, wheel 26 and spring 32, and providing instead, an endless belt which engages around the circular flange 35 and the driving spindle 19.

In production, two alternative types of subassembly are produced, one being as shown in the drawing comprising the mounting plate 10, electric motor 18, jockey arm 15, wheel 26, and coil spring 32, and the second sub-assembly consisting of a mounting plate of generally similar configuration and dimensions to the plate 10 and an electric motor only secured to the mounting plate.

The remaining components of the record player, including the turntable 34, are thus the same for either type of drive and need not be changed or modified if it is desired to substitute, for example, a belt type drive for the jockey wheel type drive.

To make such a conversion, the belt type drive sub-assembly replace the jockey wheel drive subassembly and an endless belt is engaged around the spindle of the motor and the circular flange which acts as a drum. Thus the jockey wheel type of drive as shown in the drawings or the alternative endless belt type of drive could be used as desired with a standard design of record player, because the choice of whichever type of drive to be used does not interefere with the design of the remainder of the record player.

The motor need not be mounted on a mounting plate as shown, but may, if desired, be mounted directly on the deck plate.

Claims (12)

1. A record player comprising a turntable mounted for rotation about a central axis and driven by an electric motor, the motor being mounted so that the driving spindle thereof extends upwardly beneath the turntable and is spaced from the axis of rotation thereof, a drive means for transmitting drive from the motor spindle to the turntable, the drive means including a jockey wheel, and a downwardly extending circular flange provided on the underside of the turntable and centred on the axis of rotation of the turntable, the motor spindle being located radially outwardly of said flange, the jockey wheel engaging the spindle of the motor and the external surface of the flange to transmit drive from the motor spindle to the turntable.

2. A record player according to Claim 1 wherein the turntable is mounted on a deck plate, and the motor is located below the deck plate, the spindle of the motor extending upwardly from the deck plate.

3. A record player according to Claim 2 wherein the motor is mounted on a mounting plate which is adapted to be secured to the deck plate.

4. A record player according to any one of Claims 1 to 3 wherein the jockey wheel is carried on an arm, mounted for rotation about an axis parallel to the axis of the motor spindle.

5. A record player according to Claim 4 when dependant upon Claim 3 wherein the arm on which the jockey wheel is carried is also mounted on the mounting plate.

6. A record player according to Claim 4 or Claim 5 wherein spring means are provided to urge the arm and hence the jockey wheel into a space between the external face of tha flange and the motor spindle.

7. A record player according to Claim 6 when dependant upon Claim 5 wherein the spring means is attached at one end to the arm and at the other end to the mounting plate.

8. A record player according to any one of Claims 3 3 to 7 when dependant upon Claim 3 wherein the mounting plate is secured on top of the deck plate, the motor depending from the deck plate, and the spindle extending upwardly through an aperture therein.

9. A record player according to any one of Claims 4 to 8 when dependant upon Claim 3 wherein the jockey arm is pivotally mounted on a post provided on the mounting plate, by means of a loose pivotal connection.

10. A record player according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the jockey wheel is provided with a rubber or other high friction edge.

11. A record player substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawing.

12. Any novel feature or novel combination of features disclosed herein and/or as shown in the accompanying drawing.