JP2004288312A - Disk cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance the reliability of the opening and closing operation of an aperture with a rotary shutter. <P>SOLUTION: A lower shutter member 7D has a roughly cylinder shaped shaft cylinder part 11 which is inserted into a center hole 4a and a lower shell 4 has a plurality of protruding parts 15 on which the shaft cylinder part 11 slides. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a disk cartridge that rotatably accommodates a disk-shaped information recording medium, and more particularly to a structure of a sliding portion between a lower shell and a lower shutter member.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, in a mobile device such as a digital camera, for example, an ultra-small magnetic disk cartridge called “click!” Is used as a recording medium (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). FIG. 7 shows an example of a conventional ultra-small magnetic disk cartridge called “click!”. The disc cartridge 1 of FIG. 7 has a diameter of about 1.8 having a storage capacity of 40 MB in a housing provided with upper and lower shells 3 and 4 made of flat metal thin plates having a width of 50 mm, a depth of 55 mm, and a thickness of 1.95 mm, for example. An information recording medium 5 made of an inch (46.5 mm) magnetic disk is rotatably accommodated.
[0003]
The upper shell 3 and the lower shell 4 are provided with an opening (not shown) for the recording / reproducing head of the disk drive to access the information recording medium 5, and the information recording medium 5 is provided at the center of the lower shell 4. A center hole 4a is formed to allow the center core 10 provided at the center of the core to face the outside. A rotary shutter 7 for opening and closing the opening is provided in the upper and lower shells 3 and 4.
[0004]
The rotary shutter 7 includes an upper shutter member 7U and a lower shutter member 7D, and the upper shutter member 7U and the lower shutter member 7D are engaged with each other. An upper liner 8U for wiping off dirt adhering to the surface of the information recording medium 5 is attached to the surface of the upper shutter member 7U that faces the information recording medium 5. Similarly, a lower liner 8D is attached to the opposite surface of the lower shutter member 7D that faces the information recording medium 5.
[0005]
The upper shutter member 7U is rotatably supported by a cylindrical body 3a formed on the upper shell 3. A retaining member 9 called a center pin for preventing the upper shutter member 7U from being pulled out from the cylindrical body is fixed to the tip of the cylindrical body 3a by welding.
[0006]
On the other hand, the lower shutter member 7D is provided with a shaft cylinder portion 11 projecting downward around the center hole 4a. The shaft cylinder portion 11 is rotatably supported by being inserted into the center hole 4a. ing. In addition, a crimping portion 12 for preventing detachment is formed by crimping the tip of the shaft tube portion 11, and the lower shutter member 7 </ b> D is held against the lower shell 4 by the crimping portion 12.
[0007]
Here, the outer diameter of the shaft tube portion 11 is formed to be substantially the same as the circumference of the central hole 4a formed in a substantially circumferential shape. Therefore, when the lower shutter member 7 </ b> D rotates with respect to the lower shell 4, the entire outer periphery of the center hole 4 a rotates while sliding with the outer surface of the shaft tube portion 11.
[0008]
[Patent Document 1]
US Pat. No. 6,133,544 gazette
[Patent Document 2]
US Pat. No. 5,995,346 [0010]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, in order to smoothly rotate and move the lower shutter member 7D, it is preferable that the sliding resistance between the shaft tube portion 11 and the center hole 4a is small. On the other hand, for example, it may be possible to reduce the sliding resistance by providing a gap between the shaft cylinder portion 11 and the center hole 4a. However, the lower shutter member 7D cannot rotate and move correctly, and the rotary shutter 7 is opened and closed. There is a problem that the operation becomes unstable.
[0011]
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a disc cartridge capable of improving the reliability of opening / closing of an opening by a rotary shutter.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The disc cartridge according to the present invention is a disc cartridge in which a disc-shaped information recording medium having a center portion fixed to a center core is rotatably accommodated in a flat housing having upper and lower shells, and the housing includes: A center hole formed in the lower shell that faces the center core to the outside, an opening for allowing a recording / reproducing head provided in a disk drive to access the surface of the information recording medium, and a rotary that opens and closes the opening A disk cartridge comprising: an upper shutter member rotatably supported by the upper shell; and a lower shutter member rotatably supported by the lower shell. The lower shutter member has a substantially cylindrical shaft tube portion to be inserted into the center hole, and the lower shell is It is characterized in that the edge of the center hole and has a plurality of protrusions to slide the shaft cylindrical portion.
[0013]
Here, the lower shutter member may be pivotally supported with respect to the lower shell, or may be held rotatably.
[0014]
Further, the plurality of convex portions only have to support the rotation of the lower shutter member by sliding the shaft tube portion, and are, for example, spaced apart at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the center hole.
[0015]
Furthermore, a plurality of convex portions may be formed at the edge of the center hole, and the plurality of convex portions may be formed by making the edge of the center hole substantially wave-like.
[0016]
Furthermore, the lower shutter member may be provided with a crimping portion for rotatably holding the lower shutter member on the lower shell at the tip of the shaft tube portion. At this time, the lower shell preferably has a stepped portion for accommodating the crimped portion, and the upper surface side facing the stepped portion at the tip of the crimped portion is chamfered.
[0017]
The disc cartridge of the present invention is a disc cartridge in which a disc-shaped information recording medium having a center portion fixed to a center core is rotatably accommodated in a flat housing having upper and lower shells, and the housing A center hole formed in the lower shell that exposes the center core to the outside, an opening for allowing a recording / reproducing head included in a disk drive to access the surface of the information recording medium, and opening and closing the opening And a rotary shutter that is rotatably supported by the upper shell, and a lower shutter member that is rotatably supported by the lower shell. The lower shell has a substantially cylindrical shaft tube portion protruding upward along the edge of the center hole, and the lower shutter Material is cylindrical portion is inserted, is characterized in that the one having a plurality of insertion holes projections formed on the edge to slide cylindrical portion.
[0018]
【The invention's effect】
According to the disk cartridge of the present invention, the lower shutter member has the substantially cylindrical shaft tube portion inserted into the center hole, and the lower shell slides on the shaft tube portion at the edge of the center hole. By having the convex portion, when the rotary shutter rotates, the shaft tube portion slides only on the plurality of convex portions of the center hole, so that the sliding resistance between the lower shutter member and the lower shell can be reduced. Thus, the reliability of the opening / closing operation of the rotary shutter can be improved.
[0019]
If a plurality of convex portions are provided by forming the edge of the center hole in a substantially wave shape, the tip shape of the convex portion becomes a substantially arc shape. The sliding resistance generated between the rotary shutter and the rotary shutter can be reduced, and the reliability of the opening / closing operation of the rotary shutter can be further increased.
[0020]
Further, if the corners on the lower shutter member side of the caulking portion are chamfered, the sliding resistance between the caulking portion and the step portion can be reduced, and the reliability of the opening / closing operation of the rotary shutter is further increased. be able to.
[0021]
According to the disk cartridge of the present invention, the lower shell has the substantially cylindrical shaft tube portion protruding upward along the edge of the center hole, and the shaft tube portion is inserted into the lower shutter member. By having an insertion hole formed at the edge of a plurality of projections on which the shaft tube portion slides, when the rotary shutter rotates, the shaft tube portion slides only on the projection of the insertion hole The sliding resistance between the lower shutter member and the lower shell can be reduced, and the reliability of the opening / closing operation of the rotary shutter can be improved.
[0022]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of a disk cartridge of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. 1A, 1B, and 1C are a plan view, a side view, and a bottom view of the rotary shutter 7 in a closed state, and FIGS. 2A and 2B show the rotary shutter 7 opened. The top view and bottom view in a state are each shown.
[0023]
This disk cartridge 1 is a flat plate having a width of 50 mm, a depth of 55 mm, and a thickness of 1.95 mm, which is constituted by a frame 2 called a normal stabilizer made of resin including a pushing portion 2a and upper and lower shells 3 and 4 made of a thin metal plate. A disc-shaped information recording medium 5 having a storage capacity of 40 MB and having a diameter of about 1.8 inches (46.5 mm) is rotatably accommodated in a simple housing. The information recording medium 5 includes a flexible disk-shaped information recording medium 5 and a center core 10 provided at the center of the information recording medium 5.
[0024]
The housing also has a V-shaped opening 6 for allowing the magnetic head of the disk drive to access the surface of the information recording medium 5 and a rotary shutter 7 for opening and closing the opening 6. When the disk drive performs information recording / reproduction with respect to the information recording medium 5, the rotary shutter 7 is opened and the magnetic head is inserted from the opening 6. On the other hand, in order to prevent dust and the like from entering the opening 6 when the disk drive is taken out, the rotary shutter 7 is closed to close the opening 6.
[0025]
Further, the lower shell 4 of the housing is formed with a circular center hole 4a for allowing the center core 10 of the information recording medium 5 to face the outside, and an arcuate groove 4b concentric with the rotary shutter 7, and the rotary shutter 7 (lower The shutter member 7D) is fixedly provided with a shutter knob 7b that projects from the arc-shaped groove 4b and moves along the arc-shaped groove 4b to open and close the rotary shutter 7. When the disk cartridge 1 is loaded into the disk drive, the rotation drive source of the disk drive holds the center core 10 exposed from the center hole 4a, and rotates the information recording medium 5.
[0026]
FIG. 3 shows a sectional view of the disk cartridge 1 of FIG. In FIG. 3, the rotary shutter 7 includes upper and lower shutter members 7U and 7D engaged with each other, and upper and lower liners 8U and 8D are interposed between the upper and lower shutter members 7U and 7D and the information recording medium 5, respectively. Yes.
[0027]
Here, the upper shutter member 7U is pivotally supported by inserting the cylindrical body 3a provided in the upper shell 3, and prevents the upper shutter member 7U provided at the tip of the cylindrical body 3a from being pulled out. A retaining member 9 called a center pin is held by welding. Thus, the upper shutter member 7U is held in a rotatable manner with respect to the upper shell 3.
[0028]
On the other hand, the lower shutter member 7D has a substantially cylindrical shaft tube portion 11 inserted into the center hole 4a, and is pivotally supported by the shaft tube portion 11 being inserted into the center hole 4a. Further, a caulking portion 12 is provided at the tip of the shaft cylinder portion 11 by caulking, and the lower shutter member 7D is held by the lower shell 4 by the caulking portion 12. As a result, the lower shutter member 7D is held rotatably with respect to the lower shell 4.
[0029]
Further, the lower shell 4 is provided with a step portion 4 </ b> R for accommodating the caulking portion 12. This is to prevent the caulking portion 12 from protruding from the lower shell 4. Here, the upper surface side of the caulking portion 12 that faces the step portion 4R is chamfered. The chamfered portion of the caulking portion 12 may be formed by, for example, a sag generated when a metal plate to be the lower shutter member 7D is stamped and punched, or an R-shaped die after stamping by stamping You may form by pressing. Thereby, sliding resistance when the crimping | crimped part 12 slides on the lower shell 4 can be made small.
[0030]
FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the shape of the center hole 4 a of the lower shell 4. A plurality of convex portions 15 are formed at the edge of the center hole 4 a in FIG. 4, and the outer diameter of the circle connecting the tips of the plurality of convex portions 15 is substantially the same as the outer diameter of the shaft tube portion 11. ing. Therefore, when the lower shutter member 7D rotates, only the tip portion of the plurality of convex portions 15 slides with the shaft tube portion 11 and slides over the entire periphery of the edge of the center hole 4a like a conventional disk cartridge. The sliding resistance can be reduced as compared with the case of moving, and the opening / closing reliability of the rotary shutter 7 can be improved.
[0031]
In FIG. 4, the four convex portions 15 are provided with their phases shifted by, for example, approximately 90 degrees so that the four convex portions 15 are formed at symmetrical positions. Alternatively, the three protrusions 15 may be formed in a state where the phases are shifted by 120 degrees.
[0032]
Further, the plurality of convex portions 15 are formed by making the edge of the center hole 4a substantially wave-like, and the tips of the convex portions 15 are formed in a substantially arc shape. As a result, the sliding resistance between the shaft tube portion 11 and the plurality of convex portions 15 can be reduced, so that the opening / closing reliability of the rotary shutter 7 can be further increased.
[0033]
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a second embodiment of the disk cartridge of the present invention. The disk cartridge 20 will be described with reference to FIG. In the disk cartridge 20 of FIG. 5, the same reference numerals are given to portions having the same configuration as the disk cartridge 1 of FIG. 3, and the description thereof is omitted.
[0034]
The disc cartridge 20 of FIG. 5 is different from the disc cartridge of FIG. 1 in the structure of the shaft tube portion and the crimping portion. In the disc cartridge 20 of FIG. 5, the shaft tube portion 21 is provided on the lower shell 4 side, and the shaft tube portion 21 is provided so as to protrude toward the inside of the housing of the lower shell 4. Further, the lower shutter member 7D is formed with an insertion hole 27Da to be inserted into the shaft tube portion 11 so that the lower shutter member 7D is pivotally supported by the shaft tube portion 11. Further, a caulking part 12 by caulking is provided at the tip of the shaft cylinder part 11, and the lower shutter member 7 </ b> D is held by the lower shell 4 by the caulking part 12.
[0035]
Here, as shown in FIG. 6, a plurality of convex portions 15 are provided at the edge of the insertion hole 27Da of the lower shutter member 7D. Then, when the lower shutter member 7D rotates, only the tip portion of the convex portion 15 slides with the shaft tube portion 11. Therefore, the sliding resistance can be reduced compared to the case of sliding over the entire periphery of the edge of the center hole 4a as in the conventional disk cartridge, and the opening / closing reliability of the rotary shutter 7 can be improved.
[0036]
In FIG. 5, since the caulking portion 12 is not provided outside the lower shell 4, a step portion for accommodating the caulking portion 12 is not necessary on the lower shell 4 side, and therefore the caulking portion 12 is chamfered. (See FIG. 3). In FIG. 6, the four convex portions 15 are provided in a state where the phases are shifted by, for example, approximately 90 degrees so that the four convex portions 15 are formed at symmetrical positions. Alternatively, the three protrusions 15 may be formed in a state where the phases are shifted by 120 degrees.
[0037]
According to each of the above-described embodiments, as shown in FIG. 3, the lower shutter member 7D has the substantially cylindrical shaft cylinder portion 11 inserted into the center hole 4a, and the lower shell 4 has the center hole 4a. By having a plurality of convex portions 15 that slide on the shaft tube portion 11 at the edge portion, when the rotary shutter 7 rotates, the shaft tube portion 11 is only on the plurality of convex portions 15 at the edge portion of the center hole 4a. Since sliding, the sliding resistance between the lower shutter member 7D and the lower shell 4 can be reduced, and the reliability of the opening / closing operation of the rotary shutter 7 can be improved.
[0038]
Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5, the shaft tube portion 11 is provided on the lower shell 4 side, and the edge of the insertion hole 7H into which the shaft tube portion 11 provided on the lower shutter member 7D side is inserted has a plurality of convex portions 15. Even when the rotary shutter 7 is rotationally moved, since the shaft tube portion 11 slides only on the plurality of convex portions 15 at the edge of the insertion hole 27Da, the lower shutter member 7D and the lower shell 4 And the reliability of the opening / closing operation of the rotary shutter 7 can be improved.
[0039]
Further, if the plurality of convex portions 15 are formed by making the edge portion of the center hole 4a substantially wave-shaped, the tip shape of the convex portion 15 protrudes in a substantially arc shape. The sliding resistance generated between the rotary shutter 7 can be reduced, and the reliability of the opening / closing operation of the rotary shutter 7 can be further increased.
[0040]
Furthermore, if the corner on the lower shutter member 7D side of the caulking portion 12 is chamfered, the sliding resistance between the caulking portion 12 and the stepped portion 4R can be reduced.
[0041]
The embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, although the plurality of convex portions 15 are formed in a substantially arc shape in plan view (see FIGS. 4 and 6), they may be formed in a substantially arc shape in sectional view. Even in this case, since the sliding resistance between the shaft tube portion 11 and the center hole 4a or the insertion hole 27Da can be reduced, the reliability of opening and closing of the rotary shutter 7 can be improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIGS. 1A and 1B are a plan view and a bottom view showing a state in which a rotary shutter in a preferred embodiment of the disk cartridge of the present invention is in a closed state. FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the disk cartridge of FIG. 3. FIG. 4 is a plan view of the center hole of the lower shell in the disk cartridge of FIG. Fig. 6 is a schematic view showing a second embodiment of the disk cartridge. Fig. 6 is a plan view showing an insertion hole of a lower shutter member in the disk cartridge of Fig. 1. Fig. 7 is a schematic view showing an example of a conventional disk cartridge. Description】
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 20 Disc cartridge 3 Upper shell 4 Lower shell 4a Center hole 4R Step part 5 Information recording medium 6 Opening part 7 Rotary shutter 7U Upper shutter member 7D Lower shutter member 7Da Insert hole 7H Insert hole 10 Center core 11, 21 Shaft cylinder part 12 Caulking part 15 Convex part 27 Da Insertion hole

Claims (5)

A disc cartridge in which a disc-shaped information recording medium having a central portion fixed to a center core is rotatably accommodated in a flat housing having upper and lower shells, and the housing faces the center core to the outside. A central hole formed in the lower shell; an opening for allowing a recording / reproducing head provided in a disk drive to access the surface of the information recording medium; and a rotary shutter for opening and closing the opening. In the disk cartridge, the shutter is constituted by an upper shutter member rotatably held by the upper shell and a lower shutter member rotatably supported by the lower shell.
The lower shutter member has a substantially cylindrical shaft tube portion inserted into the center hole,
The disc cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the lower shell has a plurality of convex portions on which the shaft tube portion slides at an edge portion of the center hole. 2. The disc cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of convex portions are formed by making the edge portion of the center hole substantially wave-like. The lower shutter member includes a caulking portion for rotatably holding the lower shutter member on the lower shell at a tip of the shaft tube portion, and the lower shell includes a step portion for accommodating the caulking portion. The disk cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the disk cartridge has a chamfered upper surface side facing the stepped portion at the tip of the caulking portion. A disc cartridge in which a disc-shaped information recording medium having a central portion fixed to a center core is rotatably accommodated in a flat housing having upper and lower shells, and the housing faces the center core to the outside. A central hole formed in the lower shell; an opening for allowing a recording / reproducing head provided in a disk drive to access the surface of the information recording medium; and a rotary shutter for opening and closing the opening. In the disk cartridge, the shutter is constituted by an upper shutter member rotatably held by the upper shell and a lower shutter member rotatably supported by the lower shell.
The lower shell has a substantially cylindrical shaft tube portion protruding upward along the edge of the center hole,
The disc cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the lower shutter member has an insertion hole in which a plurality of convex portions sliding on the shaft tube portion are inserted at an edge portion, into which the shaft tube portion is inserted. 5. The disc cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of convex portions are formed by making the edge portion of the insertion hole substantially wave-like.

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