JP2004043019A - Disk preservative container - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make it possible to quickly, easily and effectively insert and remove disks. <P>SOLUTION: A disk holding mechanism provided on the rear part cover of a disk preservative container comprises a plurality of first surfaces 37a, 37b, 37c, 37d extending upward from the rear part cover and inward in the direction of the central position of a disk, and a set of upstanding tabs 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d extending upward from the first surfaces 37a, 37b, 37c, 37d. The upstanding tabs 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d are respectively provided with holding tabs 40a, 40b, 40c, 40d that hold disks. The disk holding mechanism is also connected with the upstanding tabs 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d, and has one piece of upstanding tabs restraining means 42 that restrains the movement of the upstanding tabs 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d while it is pressed to remove the disks. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a disc storage container for one or more audio, audio-visual or computer media discs, including CDs, CD-ROMs, CD-RWs, DVDs and the like.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Compact discs for recording music (ie, CD), compact discs for recording data (ie, CD-ROM, CD-R or CD-RW) and compact discs for recording video are widely used as general-purpose products. . These types of discs are usually stored in plastic storage containers known as jewelry boxes. Generally, these containers have various types of center holding mechanisms that hold the disk by using a center hole of the disk (for example, Patent Documents 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8). , 8, 9 and 10).
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
US Patent No. 6,398,022 [Patent Document 2]
US Patent No. 6,419,084 [Patent Document 3]
US Patent No. 5,829,582 [Patent Document 4]
US Patent No. 438,418 [Patent Document 5]
US Patent No. 439,786 [Patent Document 6]
US Patent No. 5,944,181 [Patent Document 7]
US Patent No. 5,788,068 [Patent Document 8]
US Patent No. 5,526,926 [Patent Document 9]
US Patent No. 5,685,427 [Patent Document 10]
US Pat. No. 5,887,713
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, some of the containers shown in these patents exert an undesirable force on the disk to remove the disk. Also, another container disclosed in the above patent, while solving this problem, requires excessive pressure on the center retention mechanism before removing the disk. In addition, other containers have alleviated such problems, but only hold the disk in a fragile manner.
[0005]
Further, the container disclosed in the above patent has a holding mechanism that causes a problem such as breakage or loss of holding force after repeated use of inserting and removing the disk from the container. There are also things.
[0006]
Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide a disk storage container that solves the conventional problems. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a disk storage container which allows a disk to be inserted and removed in a quick, simple and effective manner. It should be noted that various other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art reading this application, and in particular, novel features may be found in the appended claims.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention relates to a disk storage container having a front cover and a rear cover for holding a disk having a hole in the center. The front cover and the rear cover are connected via a rotating shaft. The container can be opened and closed by moving the front cover and the rear cover apart or closer. The rear cover has a horizontal rear surface and a disk holding mechanism. The horizontal rear surface and the disk holding mechanism have an articulated structure. The disk holding mechanism has a plurality of first surfaces that are connected to a horizontal rear surface and protrude upward. The plurality of first surfaces extend inward toward the center of the disk holding mechanism. When the disk is held by the disk holding mechanism, the center position of the disk holding mechanism is in horizontal contact with the center of the disk. The disk holding mechanism has a plurality of upright tabs. These upstanding tabs abut each of the plurality of first surfaces and rise up therefrom. Further, the disc holding mechanism has a plurality of holding tabs. Each retention tab is formed at the tip of each upright tab. Each holding tab extends outward from a center position of the disk holding mechanism. The size and position of the holding tab on the rear cover are set so that the disk can be held directly in contact with the upper surface near the center of the disk. The disk holding mechanism has one upright tab restricting member connected to the plurality of upright tabs, thereby restricting the movement of the upright tab.
[0008]
One of the features of the present invention is that the upright tab limiting member is one central release button that connects to each upright tab. The center release button is responsible for moving the upright tab in the direction of the center position of the disc holding mechanism when pressed to release the held disc. The upright tab restricting member restricts the movement of the upright tab and also the movement of the holding tab. Therefore, the upright tab restricting member can also be referred to as a holding tab restricting member.
[0009]
A further feature of the invention is that its central release button is connected to the lower portion of each upright tab and is sized to limit the inward movement of each upright tab when the central release button is depressed. .
[0010]
A further feature of the present invention is that the disk holding mechanism has four first surfaces, four upright tabs and four holding tabs, each of the first surface, the upright tab and the holding tab being centrally located. That is, they are arranged so as to be concentrated and arranged so as to form a square opening at the center of the four upright tabs.
[0011]
One of the further features of the present invention is that each of the four first surfaces has one protruding surface and one horizontal surface adjoining the protruding surface, and the retained disc has A circular portion near the central hole can be placed on each horizontal surface of the four first surfaces.
[0012]
One of the features of the present invention is that the disk holding mechanism is further disposed between each pair of adjacent first surfaces and is concentrated around the center position, and the disk holding mechanism is disposed from the rear surface of the rear cover. It has four second surfaces extending upwards toward a central location. Each of the four second surfaces includes a respective horizontal surface disposed between each pair of horizontal surfaces of the four first surfaces, and substantially all of the circumference near the central hole of the retained disc is the first surface. The horizontal surface of the surface and the horizontal surface of the second surface are arranged.
[0013]
Another feature of the present invention is that the container has a second disk holding mechanism for holding the second disk.
[0014]
Another feature of the present invention is that all members are connected to each other.
[0015]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
A container for storing a disk for audio-visual or computer media, referred to herein simply as disk storage container 10 or container 10, is shown in FIG. The disc storage container 10 is designed for storing audio CDs, video discs known as DVDs, or computer discs such as CD-ROMs, CD-Rs and CD-RW discs. Of course, as with other types of discs that are currently rarely used, other types of discs and discs of various sizes can be stored, including discs called minidiscs.
[0016]
The container 10 has one front cover (or lid) 12, one rear cover (or base) 14 and a spine (= rotation axis) 16. The spine 16 is connected to both the front cover 12 and the rear cover 14 and functions as a hinge so that the container 10 can be closed in a manner well known in the art. The spine 16 functions in a manner that is well known in the art, and further description thereof is omitted herein. The front cover 12 is provided for holding a pamphlet or other thin item inside the container and has a pair of clips 18 as is well known in the art.
[0017]
Next, FIG. 2 which is a schematic top view of the rear cover 14 will be referred to. The rear cover 14 has a single retaining ring 20 that abuts the rear cover 14 and extends upwardly therefrom. The retaining ring 20 has one circular ring-shaped ridge 22 extending along its inner circumference. The ridge 22 is sized so that the outer peripheral edge of the compact disk can be sufficiently accommodated in the ridge 22 when the disk is inserted into the storage container 10. The surface of the ridge 22 in which the disk fits is slightly above the rear surface 24 of the rear cover 14 so that there is a small space between the lower surface of the information bearing disk and the rear surface 24 of the rear cover 14.
[0018]
A disk holding mechanism 30 is provided on the rear surface 24. The disk holding mechanism 30 is illustrated in FIGS. As shown in the enlarged top view of FIG. 3, the disk holding mechanism 30 has many members, and preferably, all the members are connected to each other and integrally formed. The four sets of surfaces 32a, 32b, 32c, 32d, which are arranged at 45, 135, 225 and 315 degrees respectively from the position P, extend inward toward the center point C and extend on the rear surface 24 of the rear cover 14. From above (while extending inward). Each surface 32 (ie, 32a, 32b, 32c, and 32d) terminates at a respective one of the horizontal angled surfaces (= horizontal plane) 33 (ie, 33a, 33b, 33c, and 33d) extending along plane B (FIG. 4). As shown in FIG. 4 which is a side cross-sectional view of the disc holding mechanism 30, the rear surface 24 extends along a plane A having a plane B above and parallel thereto. Here, the surface 32 and the horizontal angle surface 33 constitute the second surface 31.
[0019]
Returning to FIG. 3, the disc holding mechanism 30 has four rectangular protrusions (= protrusion surfaces) 34a, 34b, 34c, 34d extending in both the inward and upward directions, similarly to the surfaces 32a, 32b, 32c, 32d. (Collectively referred to as protrusions 34). As shown, the protrusions 34a, 34b, 34c, 34d are arranged around the center point C so as to be 0, 90, 180, and 270 degrees with respect to the position P, respectively. Further, each end of each protruding portion 34a, 34b, 34c, 34d is connected to a horizontal plane 35a, 35b, 35c, 35d (similar in design to the surface groups 32a-32d and 33a-33d) (collectively referred to as a horizontal plane 35). ). The horizontal surfaces 35a to 35d are arranged horizontally and extend along the plane B. Here, the protruding portion 34 and the horizontal surface 35 form a first surface 37.
[0020]
The upright tabs 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d (collectively, upright tabs 38) abut and rise from each horizontal plane 35a, 35b, 35c, 35d. Each upstanding tab 38 has a respective retaining / raising tab 40 near its distal end (ie, 40a, 40b, 40c and 40d shown in FIG. 3). Each retention / elevation tab 40 abuts each upright tab 38 and extends outwardly (horizontally) therefrom. The holding / raising tabs 40b, 40d are also shown in FIG. As will be discussed further below, the retention / elevation tabs 40a, 40b, 40c, 40d serve to retain the disk after insertion into the storage container 10 of the present invention, and that the disk is removed during removal of the disk. It also has the role of assisting in the rise. The upright tabs 38 and the retaining / raising tabs 40 are properly positioned and positioned so that the retaining / raising tabs 40 are immediately positioned on the insertion disk and the edges of the retaining / raising tabs 40 contact the inner circumference of the stored disk. It is provided in the size. Further, after insertion of the disk (i.e., when the disk is placed in the disk storage container 10), the inner portion of the disk (immediately adjacent to the center hole of the disk) has horizontal angular surfaces 33a-33d and horizontal surfaces 35a-35d. Get on both.
[0021]
The lower interior of each of the four upright tabs 38a-38d (i.e., the portion closest to the center point C) is connected to a single rectangular center release button (= an example of upright tab limiting means) 42. The connection between the center release button 42 and the upright tabs 38a-38d is best shown in FIG. FIG. 4 shows a connection state between the upright tab 38b and the upright tab 38d with the center release button 42 interposed therebetween. As shown in FIG. 4, the center release button 42 may have a concave bottom.
[0022]
During handling of the disc storage container 10 of the present invention, the inserted disc is placed directly on the rear surface 24 of the rear cover 14 so that the disc fits within the circular portion of the retaining ring 20 (see FIG. 2). The disc is placed down so that its inner circular edge is directly over the four retaining / raising tabs 40a, 40b, 40c, 40d. In this position, the disc is pushed slightly down. Preferably, a light, uniform force is applied to the lower surface of the disc. While the disc is being pushed down, the holding / raising tabs 40a-40d provided on the upright tabs 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d are likewise pushed down. As the upright tabs 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d move downward, the horizontal planes 35a-35d (in contact with the upright tabs 38) are also pushed downward in order. In this manner, the upwardly extending end of each of the protrusions 34a, 34b, 34c, 34d that is in contact with each of the horizontal surfaces 35a, 35b, 35c, 35d is pressed downward. As a result, each of the protrusions 34a to 34d bends (slightly) downward about the portion in contact with the rear surface 24 of the rear cover 14.
[0023]
As each protrusion 34a-34d, which contacts the horizontal planes 35a-35d and the upright tabs 38a-38d, flexes downward, the relatively horizontal position of the upright tabs 38a-38d will change to the center point C until the position shown in FIG. Approach. As shown in FIG. 5 and in contrast to the initial positions of the various members shown in FIG. 3, each upright tab 38a-38d is closer to the center release button 42. In this manner, each holding / elevating tab 40a-40d is closer to the center release button 42 (and center point C). When the holding / raising tabs 40a-40d are pushed down (by the disc resting thereon), the retaining / raising tabs 40a-40d pass through the center hole of the disc as the disc is pushed down. The relative lengths of the members are designed to move sufficiently inward (as a result of the operations discussed above) to allow for The retaining / raising tabs 40a-40d are best shown in FIG. 4, as the retaining / raising tabs 40a-40d further facilitate downward and inward movement toward the center point C when the disk is pushed downward. Has a gently sloping upward edge so that
[0024]
After the holding / raising tabs 40a-40d have completely passed through the center hole of the disc, there is no longer any downward force on these retaining / raising tabs 40a-40d. The downward force on the members abutting the retention / raising tabs 40a-40d, including the upright tabs 38a-38d, the horizontal surfaces 35a-35d and the protrusions 34a-34d, is similarly eliminated. As a result, all the retaining / raising tabs 40a-40d move away from the center point C and move over each portion of the disk (immediately adjacent the central hole in the disk), thereby securing the disk. The members flex in the direction returning to their initial home position. Further, as discussed above and partially shown in FIG. 4, each upstanding tab 38a-38d is connected to a central release button 42 at each of their lower inner ends. Thus, such a connection between the upright tabs 38a-38d and the center release button 42 will cause the retaining / raising tabs 40a-40d to further facilitate the securing of the disc on the upright tabs 38a-38d. Gives an additional upward bias.
[0025]
In the fixed position discussed above, the outer periphery of the disk rests on the ridge 22 of the retaining ring 20 (FIG. 2) and is the inner periphery of the disk, immediately adjacent to the center hole of the disk, having a horizontal angular surface. As with 33a, 33b, 33c, and 33d (just above the plane B shown in FIG. 4), they rest on the horizontal planes 35a, 35b, 35c, and 35d. Since the ridge 22 on which the disk rests is slightly above the rear surface 24 of the rear cover 14, there is a small gap between the data storage portion of the disk and the rear surface 24 of the rear cover 14.
[0026]
To release the disc from the locked position, the center release button 42 is pressed in a direction that exerts a downward force on the upright tabs 38a-38d connected thereto. The upright tabs 38a-38d approach the center point C to the position shown in FIG. 5, analogously to the so-called insertion of the disc described earlier. As the upstanding tabs 38a-38d move inward and downward toward the center point C, the retention / lift tabs 40a-40d likewise move inward and downward, and during such operation, the retention / lift tabs 40a-40d pass down through the center hole of the disk, thereby releasing the disk. In addition to releasing the disc, immediately when the upright tabs 38a-38d and the retaining / raising tabs 40a-40d are in the position shown in FIG. 5, the central release button 42 may cause various members to weaken or break. This prevents the upright tabs 38a-38d from being pushed down to a lower position, which would be an undesirable condition. As discussed above, in addition to facilitating the securing of the disk and facilitating the release of the disk, the central release button 42 provides stability between all movable members of the present invention. , Restricting the movement of various parts to predetermined positions. Further, according to the present invention, all members of the disk holding mechanism 30 and the rear cover 14 are securely connected to each other. Thus, if any member is damaged, these broken members or the entire container 10 will not fall apart. In other words, the container 10 of the present invention greatly enhances the design safety standard compared to the conventional design.
[0027]
FIG. 6 shows another disk storage container (also simply referred to as a container) 60 for implementing the present invention. As shown, the disk storage container 60 has all the members described in the above embodiment. That is, the disc storage container 60 includes one front cover (or lid) 62, one rear cover (or base) 64, one spine 66, and a pair of clips 68. The container 60 further has one second disk holder extension (referred to as “second disk holder”) 70 connected to the spine 66. As shown in FIG. 7, which is an enlarged side view of the spine 66 showing the front cover 62 and the rear cover 64, the spine 66 has two sets of holders 72 (1 in FIG. 7). Only pairs are shown). Each holder 72 receives and holds its second disk holder 70 by a grip opening 74 (opening 74 shown in FIG. 6). The second disk holder 70 functions similarly to the holding ring 20 and the disk holding mechanism 30 in the above embodiment, and has one holding ring 78 and one disk holding mechanism (= second disk holding mechanism) 80. Having. Here, this level is used, and further description is omitted.
[0028]
The invention described herein can be modified within the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the various surfaces can be changed without affecting the functionality of the described disk retention mechanisms 30,80. For example, the surfaces 32a, 32b, 32c, 32d shown in FIG. 3 are described as extending upward as well as inward toward the center point C. However, these surfaces connected to the horizontal angle surfaces 33a-33d need not necessarily extend upward, but extend from the rear cover 24 (FIG. 2) along the same plane (ie, plane A in FIG. 4). Is also good. Further, the protrusions 34a-34d and the horizontal planes 35a-35d connected thereto (see FIG. 3) may be replaced by a single plane that extends upward from the rear surface 24.
[0029]
It should be noted that the invention described in the appended claims is to be construed as including all the embodiments described herein, the above-described modifications, and equivalents thereto.
[0030]
Further, the above-described embodiment is merely an example, and is not intended to limit the present invention to only one, and is evaluated as the best embodiment together with the attached drawings.
[0031]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a disk storage container that enables quick, easy and effective insertion and removal of a disk.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a disk storage container according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a top view of the rear cover of the disk storage container of the present invention as viewed from the inside.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged top view of the disk holding mechanism of the present invention provided inside the rear cover.
FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of the disk holding mechanism of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the disc holding mechanism of the present invention in a state where the disc is pushed downward when the disc is inserted.
FIG. 6 is another embodiment of the disk holding container of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is an enlarged side view of a spine in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6;
[Explanation of symbols]
Reference Signs List 10 Disk storage container 12 Front cover 14 Rear cover 16 Spine (rotary axis)
24 Rear surface 30 Disk holding mechanism 31 Second surface 33 Horizontal angle surface (horizontal plane)
34 Projection (projection surface)
35 Horizontal surface 37 First surface 38 Upright tab 40 Holding tab 42 Center release button (Upright tab restricting means)
60 Disk storage container 62 Front cover 64 Rear cover 66 Spine (rotary axis)
70 second disk holder 80 second disk holding mechanism

Claims (9)

A front cover,
A rear cover that can hold a disk having a hole in the center and that is coupled to the front cover via a rotating shaft so that the front cover can be opened and closed by separating or approaching the front cover;
With
The rear cover has one planar rear surface for holding a disk, and one disk holding mechanism integrally formed with the rear surface,
The disk holding mechanism,
Extending upwardly from the rear surface on the plane, and each of which extends inward toward a central position of the disk holding mechanism that is aligned with a center of the disk when held by the disk holding mechanism; A plurality of first surfaces;
A plurality of upright tabs each contacting each of the plurality of first surfaces and extending upwardly from the respective first surface;
Each is formed at the tip of each of the plurality of upright tabs and extends outward from the center position of the disk holding mechanism so that the disk can be held by being in contact with the inner periphery of the disk. A plurality of holding tabs set in size and position with respect to the rear cover,
Upright tab limiting means coupled to the plurality of upright tabs to limit movement of each of the plurality of upright tabs;
A disk storage container, comprising: The upright tab limiting means is a single central release button connected to each of the plurality of upright tabs,
The center release button is configured such that pressing the center release button causes each of the plurality of holding tabs to move toward the center position of the disk holding mechanism, so that the held disk is released from the disk holding mechanism. The disk storage container according to claim 1, wherein the container is formed. The center release button is connected at a lower portion of each of the plurality of upright tabs, and is sized to limit inward movement of each of the upright tabs when the center release button is pressed. 3. The disk storage container according to claim 2, wherein: The disc holding mechanism has four of the first surfaces, four of the upright tabs, and four of the holding tabs, and the four upright tabs form a square opening in the center. 2. The disk storage container according to claim 1, wherein the first surface, the upright tab, and the holding tab are centrally arranged. The upright tab limiting means is a square center release button having four sides, and the four upright tabs are connected to each side of the center release button,
The center release button is configured such that pressing the center release button moves each of the four holding tabs in the direction of the center position of the disk holding mechanism so that the held disk is released from the disk holding mechanism. The disk storage container according to claim 4, wherein the storage container is formed. The four first surfaces each have one protruding surface and one horizontal surface adjoining the protruding surface, and the circular portion near the center hole of the retained disc is 5. The disk storage container according to claim 4, wherein each of the first surfaces of the plurality of first surfaces rests on the horizontal plane. The disk holding mechanism is further disposed at a central portion thereof between the pair of adjacent first surfaces, and is arranged in a direction from a horizontal rear surface of the rear cover to a center position of the disk holding mechanism. Having four extending second surfaces,
Each of the four second surfaces is articulated with a respective horizontal plane disposed between each pair of horizontal planes of the four first surfaces, so that substantially the entire inner circle of the retained disc. 7. The disk storage container according to claim 6, wherein the peripheral portion is adapted to be in a horizontal plane of the four first surfaces and a horizontal plane connected to the four second surfaces. The disk storage container according to claim 1, further comprising a second disk holder including a second disk holding mechanism for holding the second disk. The horizontal rear surface of the rear cover and the first surface of the disc retaining mechanism, the upright tab, and the retaining tab are all formed integrally with each other. Disc storage container as described.

Images