JP2005116118A - Disk cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a disk cartridge surely holding a disk medium in a case in non-use condition. <P>SOLUTION: In this disk cartridge 10, a disk medium 12 is rotatably housed in the inner wall 34 of a case 14, and when the pressing projected part 98 of an annular wall 72 unmovable in the diameter direction of the disk medium 12 abuts on a projected part 96 to be pressed, the annular wall 72 supports the restoring force of a leaf spring part 72 to be held in the state of abutting on the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12, and a disk holding part 92 supported on the inner wall 34 through the leaf spring part 94 holds the disk medium 12 in the case 14. When an operation part is operated to rotate the annular wall 72 in an arrow direction D, the pressing projected part 98 moves apart in a peripheral direction from the projected part 96 to be pressed, and the disk holding part 92 moves apart from the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12 by the restoring force of the leaf spring 94. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a disk cartridge in which a disk-shaped disk medium used as a recording / reproducing medium for information or video is rotatably accommodated in a case.

  For example, disk-shaped disk media such as optical disks and magneto-optical disks are used as portable computer recording / reproducing media and video recording / reproducing media. When such disc media are recorded or reproduced, the laser head irradiates the recording surface with laser light while being rotated by the spindle shaft while being loaded in the disc drive device. As a result, on disk media, information is recorded by pit formation, phase change, magnetization, etc. due to decomposition of the dye layer on the recording surface, or reproduction of information recorded based on differences in the reflectance and polarization angle of laser light Is to be done.

  In order to prevent dust from adhering to the recording surface of the disk media (the cover layer that covers the recording surface) along with the increase in the recording capacity of such disk media, a disk cartridge that houses the disk media inside the case Known (for example, see Patent Documents 1 to 3). In such a disc cartridge, an opening for accessing a center hole and a recording surface of the disc medium is provided in the case, and the opening is opened and closed by a shutter member.

  However, since the disk cartridge as described above is not provided with a mechanism for holding the disk medium with respect to the case, there is a problem that the disk medium is rattled in the case during transportation. If the disk media is scratched by this rattling or the case or shutter member (inner rotor that drives the disk) is damaged and dust such as abrasion powder is generated, it causes dropout.

  In addition, a configuration is known in which an insertion port is provided on the upper surface (top plate) opposite to the lower surface (bottom plate) provided with an opening for accessing the disk media in the case so that the disk media can be replaced. (For example, see Patent Document 4 and Patent Document 5).

  In the configuration described in Patent Document 4, a drop prevention mechanism is provided in order to prevent the disc medium from dropping from the case insertion opening. This drop-off prevention mechanism holds a plurality of drop-off prevention pieces or drop-off prevention members in a state where the disk medium is housed in the case at a position overhanging the upper surface (non-recording surface) of the disk medium. When falling off, the above-mentioned drop-off preventing piece engages with the outer peripheral portion of the disk medium to prevent the drop-out. However, with this drop-off prevention mechanism, rattling of the disk media cannot be prevented as in the case of the disk cartridge not provided with the insertion slot. Further, in the single-sided recording type disk media, the non-recording surface may be used as a printing surface, but there is also a concern that the printing surface is damaged by the engagement of the above-mentioned drop-off preventing piece and the disk media.

  On the other hand, in the configuration described in Patent Document 5, various mechanisms for preventing rattling of the disk medium are shown. As such a rattling-preventing mechanism, for example, a downward inclined surface of a member or part provided on a case or a shutter member is applied to an upper edge portion (ridge) of the outer periphery of the disk medium by an elastic force (biasing force). It is described that the disk medium is pressed against the shutter member or the bottom plate of the case and is prevented from moving in the radial direction. Further, for example, the disk holding member is made of an elastic material that is substantially elliptical in a natural state, and two locations on the minor axis on the inner surface of the disk holding member in an elastically deformed state are brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium. A configuration for preventing rattling of the disk media is also described. However, since these rattling prevention mechanisms are all held by the disk medium by an urging force based on the elastic deformation of the elastic member or the elastic part, the holding state of the disk medium is easily released by, for example, a drop impact or the like. There's a problem.

Further, in Patent Document 5, a disk holding portion having the inclined surface is provided on a shutter member locked at a position where an opening is closed by a lock mechanism, and a disk medium is applied by an urging force of an elastic member that urges and closes the shutter member. Is also described (for example, see the thirteenth embodiment). However, even in this configuration, the shutter member may move because the lock mechanism is easily detached due to, for example, a drop impact. In addition, since the disk holding portion is provided on the shutter member, in other words, since the moving direction of the shutter member and the holding release direction of the disk medium by the disk holding portion are the same direction, the shutter member is slightly moved by a drop impact or the like. There is a concern that the holding state of the disk medium is released only by the positional deviation.
JP 2003-115184 A JP 2003-115181 A JP 2003-115182 A JP 2003-115183 A JP 2003-228948 A

  As described above, in the conventional disk cartridge, it is difficult to reliably prevent the disk media from rattling in the case, and there is still room for improvement in the mechanism for preventing the rattling.

  In view of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to obtain a disk cartridge that can securely hold a disk medium against a case when not in use.

  In order to achieve the above object, a disk cartridge according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a case for rotatably accommodating a disk-shaped disk medium, and the disk medium via an elastically deformable support portion. A disc holding portion that is supported by the case so as to be movable along a radial direction of the disc, contacts the outer peripheral surface of the disc medium by deformation of the support portion, and is separated from the outer peripheral surface by restoration of the support portion; On the other hand, the disk medium is provided so as not to move in the radial direction of the disk medium and to be movable in a direction crossing the radial direction. A holding position for maintaining the state where the disc holding portion is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disc medium, and a distance from the disc holding portion. A switching means that can take a release position, and an operating portion that is provided in the switching means and is operated from the outside of the case to move the switching means between the holding position and the release position. .

  In the disk cartridge according to claim 1, when the operation unit is operated and the switching unit moves to the holding position, the switching unit comes into contact with the disk holding unit from the outside in the radial direction of the disk medium, and the support unit is the axis of the disk medium. Elastically deforms to the side. As a result, the disc holding unit is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disc medium, and the switching unit supports the restoring force of the support unit, and the pressed state is maintained. In this state, the disc medium accommodated in the case is prevented from rattling with respect to the case. On the other hand, when the operation unit is operated and the switching unit moves to the release position, the support unit resists the restoring force of the support unit by the switching unit, and the support unit is restored from the elastically deformed state, and the disk holding unit is Separate from the outer peripheral surface of the media. As a result, the disk medium is released from the restriction on the case.

  Here, the disk holding portion is configured to maintain a state in which the switching member that cannot move in the radial direction of the disk medium is in contact with the case from the outer side in the radial direction so as to be pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium from the outer side in the radial direction. In other words, the switching member positioned at the holding position holds the disk medium in a radially immovable manner with respect to the case via the disk holding part while preventing the deformation (restoration) of the support part. In the medium holding state, there is basically no portion that is deformed or displaced in the radial direction of the disk medium. For this reason, it is difficult to release the holding state of the disk medium due to, for example, an impact when the disk cartridge is dropped. That is, release of the holding state of the disk medium based on the deformation of the elastic member, which is a concern with the configuration in which the disk medium is held by the urging force of the elastic member or the like as in the past, is prevented.

  In addition, since the moving direction between the holding position and the release position of the switching member is a direction intersecting with the radial direction of the disk medium (preferably, a circumferential direction of the disk medium, a tangential direction, or an orthogonal direction such as an axial direction). If this is done, the pressing direction of the disc medium by the disc holding portion is different from the moving direction of the switching member for releasing the pressing state, so the stroke for releasing the contact of the switching member with the disc holding portion is compared. If the length is set to be long, even when the switching member is displaced from the holding position (the position moved by the operation of the operation unit), it is possible to maintain the holding state of the disc medium by the disc holding unit.

  Thus, in the disk cartridge according to the first aspect, the disk medium can be securely held to the case when not in use.

  In order to achieve the above object, a disk cartridge according to a second aspect of the present invention includes a disk medium formed in a disk shape, rotatably accommodated inside an annular inner wall, and is attached to the disk medium. A case having an opening for access, a shutter part capable of opening and closing at least a part of the opening, and an annular part supported so as to be coaxially rotatable relative to the inner wall on the radially outer side of the inner wall The shutter portion opens and closes the opening by the relative rotation, and the support member that is elastically deformable between the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium and the inner peripheral surface of the annular portion in the case. It is supported so as to be movable in the radial direction of the disk medium. A disk holding part that is spaced apart from the outer peripheral surface, and a fixedly provided on the annular part, and the shutter part abuts the disk holding part at a rotational position that closes the opening, and the disk holding part is moved to the disk medium. A pressing portion that is pressed against an outer peripheral surface and is separated from the disk holding portion at a rotational position where the shutter portion opens the opening.

  3. The disk cartridge according to claim 2, wherein an opening (a part) for accessing a disk medium provided in the case and accommodated in the case rotates relative to the inner wall of the case so that the annular portion of the shutter mechanism is coaxial. As a result, the shutter portion of the shutter mechanism moves to open and close. The shutter part may rotate integrally with the annular part, or may move relative to the annular part with relative rotation between the annular part and the inner wall (case).

  When the shutter portion closes the opening, the pressing portion fixed to the annular portion is in contact with the disc holding portion from the outside in the radial direction of the disc media, and the support portion is elastic to the axial center side of the disc media. In a deformed state, the disc holding portion is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disc medium, and the annular portion supports the restoring force of the support portion, and the pressed state is maintained. As a result, the disk medium accommodated in the case is held against the case, and rattling is prevented. From this state, when the annular part rotates with respect to the case and the shutter part opens the opening, or in the process of opening the opening, the pressing part is separated from the disk holding part in the circumferential direction, and the restoring force of the support part is provided by the annular part. The resisting support state is released, the support portion is restored from the elastically deformed state, and the disc holding portion is separated from the outer peripheral surface of the disc medium. As a result, the restriction on the case of the disk medium is released. When the annular part rotates again with respect to the case and the shutter part closes the opening, or in the closing process of the opening, the pressing part comes into contact with the disk holding part from the outside in the radial direction of the disk medium, and holds the disk medium on the case Return to the state. The disk holding part can be brought into contact with and separated from the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium inside the annular part through a hole or a notch provided in the inner wall, for example.

  Here, the disk holding portion is in a state in which the outer circumferential surface of the disk medium is pressed from the outer side in the radial direction by the pressing portion provided in the annular portion that is immovable in the radial direction of the disk medium from the outer side in the radial direction against the case. In other words, the annular part located at the closed position of the opening prevents the support part from being deformed (restored) and prevents the disk medium from moving radially with respect to the case via the disk holding part. Therefore, there is basically no portion that is deformed or displaced in the radial direction of the disc medium in the holding state of the disc medium. For this reason, it is difficult to release the holding state of the disk medium due to, for example, an impact when the disk cartridge is dropped. That is, release of the holding state of the disk medium based on the deformation of the elastic member, which is a concern with the configuration in which the disk medium is held by the urging force of the elastic member or the like as in the past, is prevented.

  In addition, since the annular portion is configured to switch between holding the disk media and releasing the held state by rotating coaxially with the inner wall that positions the disk media on the inner side, in other words, Since the pressing direction and the moving direction of the annular portion for releasing the pressing state are different, if the rotation angle of the annular portion for releasing the contact of the pressing portion with the disc holding portion is set to be relatively large, the annular portion Even when the portion is displaced from the closed position of the opening, it is possible to maintain the disc media holding state by the disc holding portion.

  Thus, in the disk cartridge according to the second aspect, the disk medium can be securely held to the case when not in use.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a disc cartridge according to the first or second aspect, wherein a plurality of the disc holding portions are provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the disc medium. .

  In the disk cartridge according to claim 3, since the plurality of disk holding portions are provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the disk medium, the disk medium can be held in the case without being pressed against the case (inner wall) or the like. . In particular, if a configuration having three or more disk holding portions is provided, the disk medium can be stably held against forces in all directions along the surface of the disk medium.

  A disk cartridge according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the disk cartridge according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the disk holding portion is made of a material having a lower elastic modulus than the disk medium. It is characterized by that.

  In the disc cartridge according to the fourth aspect, since the disc holding portion is made of a material having a lower elastic modulus than the disc medium, the disc holding portion is unlikely to damage the disc media. In addition, the deformation of the disk holding portion absorbs dimensional errors and the like of each portion, and it is possible to prevent unnecessary force from being applied to the held disk medium and the disk medium from being deformed. Further, since the disk medium is held with its outer periphery biting into the disk holding part, even if the disk holding part is deformed by a drop impact or the like, the holding state by the disk holding part may be released. Absent.

  A disk cartridge according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the disk cartridge according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the disk holding portion is formed in the case and accommodates the disk medium. It is characterized in that it is arranged near the bottom of the part.

  In the disk cartridge according to claim 5, since the disk holding part is disposed on the bottom surface side of the disk accommodating part in the thickness direction of the disk medium, the disk medium is stably brought into contact with the bottom surface by the disk holding part. It becomes possible to hold. In addition, the bottom surface of the disk housing portion can be constituted by, for example, a bottom plate of the case, a shutter member that closes the opening, or a member (such as an inner case) independent of these.

  A disc cartridge according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the disc cartridge according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the case has an insertion / removal port through which the disc medium can be inserted and removed. It is said.

  In the disk cartridge according to the sixth aspect, the disk medium can be exchanged by providing the insertion / removal opening. Since the disk medium is held on the case by the disk holding unit when the disk medium is not used, the disk medium is prevented from falling off the case.

  As described above, the disc cartridge according to the present invention has an excellent effect that the disc media can be securely held to the case when not in use.

  A disk cartridge 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. An arrow A appropriately shown in each drawing indicates the loading direction of the disk cartridge 10 into the drive device, and for convenience, the side indicated by the arrow A that is the loading direction into the drive device will be described as the front side. The direction indicated by arrow B is the upper side, and the direction indicated by arrow C is the right side.

  FIG. 1 shows an external appearance of the disk cartridge 10 in a perspective view, and FIG. 2 shows the disk cartridge 10 in an exploded perspective view. As shown in these drawings, the disk cartridge 10 includes a disk medium 12 as an information recording / reproducing medium formed in a disk shape, a case 14 that rotatably accommodates the disk medium 12, and a case 14 that opens downward. A pair of shutter members 18 that can open and close an opening 16 for accessing the disk medium 12, an inner rotor 20 that is rotated by a drive device to drive the shutter member 18 to open and close the opening 16, and the disk medium 12 Main components are a lock member 22 for preventing the rotation of the inner rotor 20 and maintaining the closed state of the opening 16 when not in use, and a disk holding mechanism for holding the disk medium 12 in the case 14 when not in use. It is configured. First, the schematic overall configuration of the disc cartridge 10 excluding the disc holding mechanism will be described, and then the detailed configuration of the disc holding mechanism which is the main part of the present invention will be described.

(Overall configuration of disk cartridge)
The disk medium 12 has a center hole 12A engaged with and held by the rotating spindle shaft of the disk drive device at the axial center thereof, and a recording surface 12B formed on the lower surface thereof by a cover layer (not shown). The coating is protected. The recording surface 12B is formed in an annular shape in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the lower surface of the disk medium 12 and in a portion excluding a predetermined range around the center hole 12A. An area between the center hole 12A and the recording surface 12B on the lower surface of the disk medium 12 is a chucking area 12C for the rotating spindle shaft of the drive device to hold the disk medium 12. In the present embodiment, the diameter (outer diameter) of the disk medium 12 is approximately 120 mm.

  The case 14 is configured in a substantially rectangular flat container shape by joining the upper shell 24 and the lower shell 26. Specifically, the case 14 is formed in such a manner that the front edge portion is formed in a substantially symmetrical arc shape in plan view, and the rear end corners are obliquely cut out, and this shape causes the drive device to be formed. It is designed to prevent erroneous loading. Hereinafter, the case 14 will be specifically described.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the upper shell 24 includes a top plate 28 having a shape corresponding to the shape of the case 14 in plan view, and a peripheral wall 30 erected downward substantially along the outer edge of the top plate 28. Yes. At the right end portion of the top plate 28, an upper groove wall 32 projecting rightward from the right peripheral wall 30 is extended over substantially the entire length in the front-rear direction. The upper groove wall 32 constitutes a guide groove 50 that is long in the front-rear direction and opens forward and right in the right side portion of the case 14 together with a lower groove wall 48 described later of the lower shell 26.

  Further, an inner wall 34 formed in an annular shape in a bottom view is erected from the inner side of the peripheral wall 30 on the lower surface of the top plate 28. The upper shell 24 accommodates the disk medium 12 inside the inner wall 34. That is, the inner wall 34, the top plate 28, and a disk portion 70 (to be described later) of the inner rotor 20 constitute a disk storage portion that is a space for storing the disk media 12. The inner wall 34 is provided with a disk holding portion 92 and the like constituting the disk holding mechanism 100. The disk holding portion 92 and the like will be described later.

  Further, a rotor guide groove 35 coaxial with the inner wall 34 is provided on the outer side in the radial direction of the inner wall 34 in the top plate 28, and an annular wall 72, which will be described later, of the inner rotor 20 is provided on the outer circumferential side of the rotor guide groove 35. It is designed to be slidably inserted into the groove wall. The groove wall on the inner peripheral side of the rotor guide groove 35 coincides with the outer peripheral surface of the inner wall 34. The top plate 28 of the upper shell 24 bulges upward from the center to the rear end where the edge is formed in a substantially U shape.

  The peripheral wall 30 is provided with a cutout portion 30 </ b> A by cutting out the central portion in the front-rear direction of the right side portion of the upper shell 24. This notch portion 30A, together with a notch portion 44A described later of the lower shell 26, constitutes a shutter operation window 52 that exposes the inner rotor 20 to the outside (guide groove 50).

  Further, a lock support shaft 36 that pivotally supports the lock member 22 so as to swing is projected from the right front corner of the bottom surface of the top plate 28. The lock support shaft 36 is located between the peripheral wall 30 and the inner wall 34, and a cutout portion 30B is formed by cutting out the peripheral wall 30 behind the lock support shaft 36 and in front of the cutout portion 30A. Yes. The notch 30 </ b> B and the notch 44 </ b> B, which will be described later, of the lower shell 26 constitute a lock release window 54 for projecting the release operation part 88 of the lock member 22 into the guide groove 50.

  Further, a first stopper 38 is erected continuously from the front peripheral wall 30 on the left side of the lock support shaft 36 on the lower surface of the top plate 28, and is used for restricting the rotation of the inner rotor 20 on the closing side. Yes. On the other hand, a second stopper 40 is provided continuously from the rear peripheral wall 30 at a position slightly to the right of the center in the left-right direction in the vicinity of the rear end of the bottom surface of the top plate 28, and the opening of the inner rotor 20 on the open side is rotated. It is for regulatory purposes.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, the lower shell 26 includes a bottom plate 42 having a shape substantially corresponding to the top plate 28 and a peripheral wall 44 having a shape substantially corresponding to the peripheral wall 30. The opening 16 is provided in the bottom plate 42. The opening 16 has a substantially circular hub hole 16A having a diameter larger than the outer diameter of the center hole 12A of the disk medium 12 and slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the chucking area 12C (the inner diameter of the recording surface 12B), and a hub. It is composed of a substantially rectangular recording / reproducing head window portion 16B continuously provided in front of the center line along the left-right direction of the hole 16A, and is formed in a substantially U-shape opening forward as a whole.

  The hub hole 16A is disposed so as to be substantially coaxial with the inner wall 34 (the disk medium 12 accommodated therein) in a state where the upper shell 24 and the lower shell 26 are joined. The hub hole 16A is configured to have the above dimensions, so that only the center hole 12A and the chucking area 12C are exposed to the outside, and the recording surface 12B is not exposed to the outside. Further, the recording / reproducing head window 16B for exposing the recording surface 12B is widened so that the left edge thereof is located to the left of the tangent along the front-rear direction of the hub hole 16A, and the front portion thereof is The peripheral wall 44 is also cut out and opened to the front of the lower shell 26.

  The rotating spindle shaft of the drive device enters the hub hole 16A to rotate the disk medium 12 while engaging and holding the center hole 12A of the disk medium 12, and the recording / reproducing head window 16B. In this case, a recording / reproducing head of the drive device enters to record or reproduce information on the recording surface 12B of the disk medium 12. Since the recording / reproducing head window 16B is also opened forward, the recording / reproducing head can easily access the outer peripheral portion of the recording surface 12B. The hub hole 16A and the recording / reproducing head window 16B may be provided independently of each other.

  In the bottom plate 42, dust-proof ribs 46 each having a front end continuous to the peripheral wall 44 are provided in the vicinity of the front ends of the left and right edges of the recording / reproducing head window 16B. Each dust-proof rib 46 has a height equal to the thickness of the shutter member 18, and the inner rotor 20 slides on the upper surface thereof. Further, the positions of the rear end portions of the respective dustproof ribs 46 are determined so as to come into contact with the shutter member 18 closing the opening 16.

  Further, a lower groove wall 48 projecting to the right from the right peripheral wall 44 is extended at the right end of the bottom plate 42 over substantially the entire length in the front-rear direction. The lower groove wall 48 is opposed to the upper groove wall 32 of the upper shell 24 so that a guide groove 50 is formed on the right side of the case 14. The guide groove 50 has peripheral walls 30 and 44 whose upper and lower ends are abutted against each other by joining the upper shell 24 and the lower shell 26, and are long in the front-rear direction of the case 14 as described above. In addition to opening to the right, this embodiment also opens to the rear.

  Further, the peripheral wall 44 on the right side of the lower shell 26 has a notch 44A formed corresponding to the notch 30A of the peripheral wall 30 and a notch 44B formed corresponding to the notch 30B. Is provided. Thus, in the case 14 where the upper shell 24 and the lower shell 26 are joined, the shutter operation window 52 that opens at the center in the longitudinal direction at the groove bottom of the guide groove 50 and the guide groove 50 in front of the shutter operation window 52 are formed. A lock release window 54 that opens to the groove bottom is formed.

  Further, cam projections 56 project from the left and right sides of the bottom plate 42 across the opening 16. The pair of cam protrusions 56 are disposed at positions symmetrical to each other with respect to the axis of the hub hole 16A, more precisely, the rotation center of the inner rotor 20. These cam protrusions 56 enter cam grooves 66 (described later) of different shutter members 18 to form positive cams together with the cam grooves 66, and the shutter member 18 is opened 16 by relative rotation between the case 14 and the inner rotor 20. It is made to move between the closed position and the open position.

  The lower shell 26 described above is joined to the upper shell 24 by screws to form the case 14 with the upper end surface of the peripheral wall 44 abutted against the lower end surface of the peripheral wall 30. The upper shell 24 and the lower shell 26 may be joined by, for example, ultrasonic welding, instead of the screws.

  Returning to FIG. 2, the pair of shutter members 18 are formed in a substantially semicircular plate shape that is substantially the same shape as each other, and a part of the opening 16 can be closed by abutting the abutting portions 60 that are the respective chord portions. It is said that. Specifically, the pair of shutter members 18 closes the hub hole 16A and a portion near the front end of the recording / reproducing head window portion 16B by closing each other's butting portions 60 (FIG. 8). And an open position (see FIG. 10) where the opening 16 is opened by substantially matching the respective butt portions 60 with the left and right edges of the opening 16.

  The abutting portion 60 is configured to reliably prevent dust from entering the case 14 by being superimposed one above the other when the pair of shutter members 18 are positioned at the closed position. Specifically, a step portion 60A in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction is formed at the center portion in the longitudinal direction of the butting portion 60, and along the upper surface on one side in the longitudinal direction with the step portion 60A as a boundary. A tongue 60B that is a thin portion is formed, and a tongue 60C that is a thin portion along the lower surface is formed on the other side.

  As shown in FIG. 8 with the lower shell removed, when the pair of shutter members 18 are located at the closed position, the tongue portion of the other shutter member 18 is below the tongue portion 60B of the one shutter member 18. 60C is overlaid, and the tongue 60B of the other shutter member 18 is overlaid on the upper side of the tongue 60C of the one shutter member 18. The overlapping surface of each tongue 60B, 60C with the counterpart is a gently inclined surface (not shown) so as to attract the counterpart.

  A shaft hole 64 is provided in the vicinity of one longitudinal end of the chord portion of each shutter member 18, and each shaft hole 64 is used for supporting the shutter member 18 to the inner rotor 20. Each shutter member 18 is provided with a cam groove 66 into which a different cam projection 56 of the case 14 enters. Each cam groove 66 is formed in a linear slit shape that is long in a linear direction passing through the axis of the shaft hole 64 in each shutter member 18 and is provided so as to be parallel to each other in the assembled state. That is, each cam groove 66 is provided so as to be symmetrical with respect to the rotation center of the inner rotor 20, as with each cam protrusion 56. Each cam groove 66 penetrates the shutter member 18 in the plate thickness direction, and ensures the engagement depth with the cam projection 56.

  Further, at least one shutter member 18 (the shutter member 18 in which the shaft hole 64 moves across the opening 16 in accordance with the opening / closing of the opening 16) is provided with a dust-proof portion 68 protruding from the arc portion. Yes. When the one shutter member 18 is located at the closed position, the dust-proof portion 68 abuts against the rear end surface of the dust-proof rib 46 located on the right edge side of the opening 16 and contacts the upper surface of the bottom plate 42 and the disc portion 70 ( The gap with the lower surface of the later-described is filled (see FIG. 8). Further, the end portion of the one shutter member 18 near the shaft hole 64 abuts the rear end surface of the other dust-proof rib 46 when positioned at the closed position, and a gap between the upper surface of the bottom plate 42 and the lower surface of the disc portion 70 is formed. It is supposed to fill. In addition, you may provide the dust-proof part 68 in each shutter member 18, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the inner rotor 20 includes a disc portion 70 formed in a disc shape and an annular wall 72 erected upward along the outer periphery of the disc portion 70. Further, the disk portion 70 is provided with an opening 74 having substantially the same shape as the opening 16. The opening 74 opens to the outer side in the radial direction of the inner rotor 20 by notching the lower part of the annular wall 72 by an amount corresponding to the height of the peripheral wall 44 of the lower shell 26 at the outer peripheral end of the disk part 70. ing.

  As described above, the inner rotor 20 is fitted into the rotor guide groove 35 of the upper shell 24 so as to be slidable in the circumferential direction, and is supported to be rotatable with respect to the case 14 independently of the disk medium 12. In this state, the disc portion 70, the top plate 28 of the case 14, and the inner wall 34 positioned inside the annular wall 72 form a disc accommodating portion that accommodates the disc medium 12. Corresponds to the “bottom surface of the disc housing portion”. The inner rotor 20 moves between a closed position and an open position while sliding a pair of shutter members 18 disposed between the inner rotor 20 and the bottom plate 42 of the case 14 between them. It is supposed to let you.

  In addition, support protrusions 76 project from two locations on the lower surface of the disk portion 70 that are symmetrical with respect to the center of rotation of the inner rotor 20, and shaft holes 64 of different shutter members rotate on the support protrusions 76. Fits freely. That is, each shutter member 18 is pivotally supported by the inner rotor 20 so as to be rotatable around each support protrusion 76, and can be rotated around each support protrusion 76 to take the closed position and the open position. It has become. One support protrusion 76 is disposed in the vicinity of the edge corresponding to the right edge of the opening 16 in the opening 74 (the edge that is not widened) and in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the disc part 70.

  Since the cam projections 56 of the case 14 enter the cam grooves 66 of the shutter members 18 to form positive cams, as described above, the pair of shutter members 18 are moved by the relative rotation of the inner rotor 20 with respect to the case 14. It is driven between a closed position and an open position. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, when the pair of shutter members 18 are in the closed position, the inner rotor 20 has its opening 74 shifted to the left by a predetermined angle (approximately 50 ° to 60 °) with respect to the opening 16. The disk portion 70 and the annular wall 72 close the front portion of the opening 16 (the portion not closed by the shutter member 18) from the inside. At this time, each cam projection 56 enters the end of the cam groove 66 far from the shaft hole 64.

  9, when the inner rotor 20 is rotated with respect to the case 14 in the direction of the arrow D as shown in FIG. 9, the shutter walls of the shutter members 18 are directed in the direction opposite to the arrow D by the cam projections 56. And are rotated in directions away from each other around the supporting projections 76. Then, as shown in FIG. 10, when the inner rotor 20 is rotated to a position where the opening 74 coincides with the opening 16 of the case 14, the abutting portions 60 of the shutter members 18 are located at the left and right edges of the opening 16 (74). The openings 16 are positioned substantially coincident with each other so that the opening 16 is completely opened (each shutter member 18 reaches the open position). In this state, each cam projection 56 enters the end portion of the cam groove 66 closer to the shaft hole 64.

  On the other hand, when the inner rotor 20 is rotated in the direction of the arrow F opposite to the arrow D from the open state of the opening 16, the pair of shutter members 18 are moved to the closed position (shown in FIG. 10) by the operation opposite to the above operation. (Status).

  As can be seen from FIGS. 8 to 10, the pair of shutter members 18 overlap the case 14 with the rotation associated with the rotation of the inner rotor 20 and the rotation around the support protrusion 76 with respect to the inner rotor 20. However, when viewed with the shutter members 18, the abutting portions 60 and 62 (mutual cam grooves 66) are kept in contact with each other while being kept parallel to each other.

  Returning to FIG. 5, a driven gear portion 78 is provided projecting radially outward from a part of the outer peripheral portion of the annular wall 72 of the inner rotor 20 in the circumferential direction. A part of the driven gear portion 78 protrudes from the shutter operation window 52 into the guide groove 50. The driven gear portion 78 is an opening / closing member on the drive device side that moves in the guide groove 50 in the longitudinal direction in the rotation range of the inner rotor 20 that moves the shutter member 18 between the closed position and the opened position. A certain drive rack 100 is provided in a range that can always be engaged. In the present embodiment, when the shutter member 18 is positioned at the closed position, the driven gear portion 78 is provided to the extent that an engagement portion 86 (described later) of the lock member 22 can be engaged (engaged). Yes.

  As a result, when the drive rack 100 moves backward in the guide groove 50 with respect to the case 14, the inner rotor 20 rotates in the direction of arrow D to open the opening 16, and the drive rack 100 moves into the guide groove 50 in the case 14. On the other hand, when it moves forward, the inner rotor 20 rotates in the direction of arrow F and the opening 16 is closed.

  Further, an end portion on the arrow F side of the driven gear portion 78 protruding outward from the annular wall 72 is a closing side stopper portion 80. The closing side stopper 80 abuts against the first stopper 38 of the case 14 when the shutter member 18 is located at the closing position, and prevents the inner rotor 20 from rotating in the direction of arrow F beyond the closing position. (See FIG. 8). On the other hand, an open-side stopper portion 82 projects from a position separated from the driven gear portion 78 on the outer surface of the annular wall 72 by a predetermined distance (angle) on the arrow D side. The opening-side stopper portion 82 abuts against the second stopper 40 of the case 14 when the shutter member 18 is located at the opening position, and prevents the inner rotor 20 from rotating in the direction of arrow D beyond the opening position. (See FIG. 10).

  The shutter member 18 and the inner rotor 20 described above correspond to the “shutter mechanism” in the present invention. Further, at least one of the shutter member 18 and the disk portion 70 of the inner rotor 20 corresponds to the “shutter portion” in the present invention, and the annular wall 72 of the inner rotor 20 corresponds to the “annular portion” in the present invention. The inner rotor 20 (the annular wall 72) corresponds to the “switching means” in the present invention, which will be described later.

  The lock member 22 includes a main body portion 84 formed in a substantially “h” shape or a substantially “k” shape in plan view. The main body 84 is fitted to the lock support shaft 36 of the case 14 in the vicinity of the bent portion, and is supported by the case 14 so as to be swingable around the lock support shaft 36. One end of the main body 84 is an engaging portion 86 that can be engaged with the driven gear portion 78 of the inner rotor 20, and the lock member 22 is an inner rotor in a state where the engaging portion 86 is engaged with the driven gear portion 78. In this configuration, the rotation of the 20 cases 14 is prevented.

  The other end portion of the main body portion 84 is a release operation portion 88 that advances and retreats from the lock release window 54 to the guide groove 50 as the main body portion 84 rotates about the lock support shaft 36. The lock member 22 is configured to project the release operation portion 88 into the guide groove 50 in a state where the engaging portion 86 is engaged with the driven gear portion 78, and the drive rack 100 moves backward in the guide groove 50. When the release operation part 88 is pressed rearward by this, the main body part 84 swings in the direction of arrow G (see FIG. 11) to release the engagement with the driven gear part 78 of the engaging part 86.

  Further, a leaf spring portion 90 extends from the vicinity of the bent portion of the main body portion 84 so as to be parallel to the front side of the engaging portion 86 side portion. The leaf spring portion 90 is in contact with the peripheral wall 30 on the front side of the case 14 in a state of being elastically deformed in the direction approaching the main body portion 84, and always urges the main body portion 84 in the direction opposite to the arrow G. ing. Due to the urging force of the leaf spring portion 90, the lock member 22 maintains the engagement between the engaging portion 86 and the driven gear portion 78. Thereby, when not in use, the rotation of the inner rotor 20 is prevented, and the closed state of the opening 16 by the pair of shutter members 18 is maintained. Further, when the engagement between the release operation unit 88 and the drive rack 100 is released from the unlocked state by the drive rack 100 as described above, the lock member 22 receives the engagement portion 86 by the urging force of the leaf spring portion 90. The locked state is engaged with the drive gear portion 78.

(Disk holding mechanism configuration)
Next, a disk holding mechanism for holding the disk medium 12 with respect to the case 14 when the disk medium 12 is not used will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the inner wall 34 of the case 14 is provided with a plurality of (three in the present embodiment) disk holding portions 92 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. As shown in FIG. 6, each disk holding portion 92 is attached to a leaf spring portion 94 as a “support portion” formed on the resin inner wall 34. Each leaf spring portion 94 is integrated with the lower portion of the inner wall 34 (that is, the disc portion 70 side) as an uncut portion of a notch portion 95 formed by notching the upper portion of the inner wall 34 in the circumferential direction. Is formed. Disc holding portions 92 are attached to the center portions of these leaf spring portions 94 in the longitudinal direction (the circumferential direction of the inner wall 34) by bonding or the like.

  Each leaf spring 94 is positioned along the outer periphery of the inner wall 34 in a natural state, and is configured to bend inward when pressed from the radially outer side. As a result, each disk holding portion 92 protrudes into the inner wall 34 due to inward deformation of the respective plate spring portion 94, and a contact position (see FIG. 7B) that contacts the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12. By restoring the leaf spring portion 94, a separation position (see FIG. 7A) that is spaced radially outward from the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12 can be taken. Further, each disk holding portion 92 moves between the contact position and the separation position along the upper surface of the disk portion 70 of the inner rotor 20, and the disk medium 12 placed on the disk portion 70 at the contact position. It comes to contact | abut to the outer peripheral surface.

  Each disk holding portion 92 is made of a material having a sufficiently low elasticity relative to the disk medium 12 made of engineering plastic such as polycarbonate, specifically, rubber, elastomer, polyurethane foam, or the like. For this reason, the disc holding portion 92 located at the abutting position is configured to abut on the outer peripheral portion so as to bite the outer peripheral portion of the disc medium 12.

  In addition, the leaf spring portion 94 may be configured with one end portion in the longitudinal direction (which may be an attachment portion of the disc holding portion 92) as a free end, and a separate member is provided at the edge portion of the notch opening at the lower end of the inner wall 34. One end portion or both end portions of a leaf spring or the like may be latched (for example, a metal leaf spring may be attached to the inner wall 34 of the case 14 made of resin molding).

  Further, on the back side (outer peripheral surface) of the disc holding portion 92 in each leaf spring portion 94, a pressed protrusion 96 is provided to protrude. Each pressed protrusion 96 is formed in an arc shape coaxial with the inner wall 34 (leaf spring portion 94), and the thickness (the amount of protrusion in the radial direction from the leaf spring portion 94) of the disk holding portion 92. This corresponds to the movement stroke between the contact position and the separation position.

  The radially outer surface of the inner wall 34 of the pressed protrusion 96 is slidable with the inner peripheral surface of the annular wall 72 that coaxially rotates on the outer side of the inner wall 34 as the opening 16 of the inner rotor 20 opens and closes. A contact surface 96A is provided. That is, each pressed protrusion 96 corresponds to the width of the gap S so that the gap S between the outer peripheral surface of the inner wall 34 and the inner peripheral surface of the annular wall 72 is filled in the radial direction in the natural state of the leaf spring portion 94. Then, it protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the leaf spring portion 94. Further, the end face on the arrow D side of each pressed protrusion 96 is a tapered surface 96B that faces both the arrow D direction and the radially outer side of the inner wall 34.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, from the inner peripheral surface of the annular wall 72 of the inner rotor 20, there are three pressing protrusions 98 as “pressing parts” corresponding to the pressed protrusions 96. It protrudes at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. Each pressing protrusion 98 is also provided continuously on the disc part 70. That is, each pressing protrusion 98 is disposed at a portion where the opening 74 is not formed in the inner rotor 20. Each of the pressing protrusions 98 has a radially inner surface of the annular wall 72 as a contact surface 98A that can slide on the outer peripheral surface of the inner wall 34, and fills the gap S in the radial direction. ing. Further, the end face on the arrow F side of each pressing protrusion 98 is a tapered surface 98B that faces both the arrow F direction and the radially inner side of the annular wall 72.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, these pressing protrusions 98 are spaced apart from the corresponding pressed protrusions 96 in the circumferential direction so that the disk holding portion 92 is positioned at the separation position (of the leaf spring portion 94). Each disc holding portion 92 is brought into contact with the release position (allowing restoration) and the contact surfaces 98A of the corresponding pressed projections 96 as shown in FIG. 7B. The holding positions positioned at the positions are arranged so as to be synchronized with each other. When each pressing protrusion 98 is located at the holding position, the annular wall 72 that enters the rotor guide groove 35 and cannot move in the radial direction of the disk medium 12 supports the restoring force of the leaf spring portion 94, thereby supporting the disk holding portion 92. Is held at the contact position.

  Further, the respective pressing protrusions 98 located at the respective holding positions make the respective contact surfaces 98A contact the contact surfaces 96A of the corresponding pressed protrusions 96 over substantially the entire length in the circumferential direction. It has become. Therefore, even if the pressing protrusion 98 is displaced in the circumferential direction with respect to the pressed protrusion 96, the pressing protrusion 98 is in contact with the disk holding portion 92 within a range where the contact surface 98 A is maintained in contact with the contact surface 96 A. It is designed to be held in the contact position. In the disk holding mechanism, each pressing protrusion 98 is positioned at the holding position in the rotation position of the inner rotor 20 with respect to the case 14 that positions the pair of shutter members 18 in the closed position (see FIG. 8). In the rotational position of the inner rotor 20 that is positioned at the open position with respect to the case 14, each pressing protrusion 98 is positioned at the release position (see FIG. 10).

  As described above, the disc holding mechanism maintains the holding state of the disc medium 12 by the disc holding portion 92 within a predetermined rotation range of the inner rotor 20, and separately the disc media 12 by the disc holding portion 92 within a predetermined rotation range. The holding state is released. In the present embodiment, each pressed protrusion 96 and each pressed protrusion 98 are formed relatively short with respect to the circumferential length of the inner wall 34 and the annular wall 72, so that the inner rotor 20 is in the vicinity of the closed position. A relatively narrow range located at the position is the predetermined rotation range (holding range), and the rotation position of the inner rotor 20 at the closed position is grasped as a holding position in a narrow sense, whereas this holding range is defined in a broad sense. It can be grasped as a holding position.

  The disk holding mechanism is configured such that when the tapered surfaces 96B and 98B come into contact with each other when the annular wall 72 (inner rotor 20) rotates in the direction of arrow F with respect to the inner wall 34 (case 14), these tapered surfaces 96B, 98B slides against each other and converts a part of the rotational force of the annular wall 72 into a deformation force inward of the inner wall 34 of the leaf spring portion 94, that is, a moving force inward of the disk holding portion 92 in the radial direction. The surface 98A rides on the contact surface 96A. On the other hand, when the annular wall 72 rotates in the direction of the arrow D with respect to the inner wall 34 and the pressing protrusion 98 moves away from the pressed protrusion 96 toward the arrow D side, the disk holding portion 92 is moved by the restoring force of the leaf spring portion 94. It is configured to return to the separation position. Accordingly, the disk holding portion 92 can move between the contact position and the separation position as the inner rotor 20 rotates.

  As described above, the disc holding mechanism causes the three disc holding portions 92 to abut on the outer peripheral surface of the disc media 12 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction when the opening 16 is closed, that is, when the disc media 12 is not used. Thus, the movement of the disk medium 12 relative to the case 14 is prevented. When the disc medium 12 is used, the inner rotor 20 rotates in the direction of arrow D with respect to the case 14 in accordance with the operation of loading the disc cartridge 10 into the drive device, so that each disc holding portion 92 moves to the separated position. However, when the disk medium 12 in which the opening 16 is completely opened is used, the disk medium 12 is configured to be rotatable with respect to the case 14.

  Thus, it turns out that the inner rotor 20 (annular wall 72) provided with the press protrusion 98 corresponds to the "switching means" in this invention. Further, the driven gear portion 78 provided on the inner rotor 20 corresponds to an “operation portion” in the present invention. Further, it is also possible to grasp that the pressed protrusion 96 to which the pressing protrusion 98 is directly pressed (contacted) corresponds to the “disk holding portion” in the present invention together with the disk holding portion 92.

  Since the leaf spring portion 94 is not configured to hold the disc medium 12 by a restoring force, the restoring force, that is, the spring constant of the leaf spring portion 94 can move the disc holding portion 92 from the contact position to the separated position. The smaller one is preferable within a possible range. By setting the spring constant of the leaf spring portion 94 small, the force for moving the disk holding portion 92 from the separated position to the contact position, that is, the force for rotating the inner rotor 20 in the direction of arrow F immediately before the opening 16 is closed, and the plate The frictional force between the pressed protrusion 96 (contact surface 96A) and the pressing protrusion 98 (contact surface 98A) at the initial stage of the opening operation of the opening 16 using the restoring force of the spring portion 94 as a drag is reduced, and the inner rotor 20 is reduced. Works smoothly.

  Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.

  In the disk cartridge 10 configured as described above, the pair of shutter members 18 are positioned at the closed position and close the opening 16 when not in use such as during storage or transportation. In this state, the engaging portion 86 of the lock member 22 engages with the driven gear portion 78 of the inner rotor 20 to prevent the inner rotor 20 from rotating in the direction of arrow D, and the pair of shutter members 18 are in the closed position. Is held in. That is, the closed state of the opening 16 is maintained.

  Further, in this state, each pressing protrusion 98 of the inner rotor 20 is positioned at the holding position, so that each disk holding portion 92 is held at a contact position where the disk holding portion 92 is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12. The movement of the twelve cases 14, that is, the rattling of the disk media 12 in the case 14 is prevented.

  When the disc cartridge 10 is used, that is, when information is recorded on the disc medium 12 or when information recorded on the disc medium 12 is reproduced, the disc cartridge is loaded in the drive device along the direction of arrow A. With this loading operation (relative movement between the disk cartridge 10 and the drive device), the drive rack 100 of the drive device enters the guide groove 50 of the case 14 and relatively moves backward in the guide groove 50.

  Then, the release operation portion 88 of the lock member 22 is pressed by the drive rack 100, and the main body portion 84 swings in the arrow G direction against the urging force of the leaf spring portion 90. As a result, the engagement state of the engagement portion 86 with the driven gear portion 78 is released, and the inner rotor 20 becomes rotatable. When the drive rack 100 moves further rearward while maintaining the contact state with the release operation portion 88, the drive rack 100 rotates the inner rotor 20 in the direction of arrow D while meshing with the driven gear portion 78.

  As the inner rotor 20 rotates in the direction of arrow D, the pair of shutter members 18 follow the rotation in the direction of arrow D, and the groove wall of the cam groove 66 is pressed by the cam protrusion 56 of the case 14 to support the protrusion 76. The arrow E also turns around. That is, the pair of shutter members 18 moves in the opening direction of the opening 16. When the disk cartridge 10 is loaded into the drive device to a predetermined depth and the relative movement with respect to the drive rack 100 is lost, the pair of shutter members 18 reach the open position, and the opening 16 is completely opened. When the inner rotor 20 is further rotated in the direction of arrow D from this state, the opening-side stopper portion 82 of the inner rotor 20 contacts the second stopper 40 of the case 14 and moves toward the arrow D side beyond the opening position of the inner rotor 20. Is prevented from rotating.

  At this time, due to the rotation of the inner rotor 20 in the direction of arrow D, the contact surface 98A of each pressing protrusion 98 slides with the corresponding contact surface 96A of the pressed protrusion 96, and then the contact surfaces 98A, 96A. The contact state of is released. That is, each pressing protrusion 98 moves to the release position. Then, due to the restoring force of each leaf spring part 94, each disk holding part 92 moves to the separation position, and the holding state of the disk medium 12 with respect to the case 14 is released. That is, in conjunction with the opening (initial) operation of the opening 16 due to the movement of the shutter member 18, the holding (restraining) state of the disc medium 12 with respect to the case 14 is released.

  Next, the disk cartridge 10 is positioned in the drive device, and in this positioning state, the rotary spindle shaft of the drive device enters from the hub hole 16A of the opening 16, and the rotary spindle shaft enters the center hole 12A (and the chuck) of the disk medium 12. The disc medium 12 is held by engaging with the king area 12C). When the rotary spindle shaft rotates, the disk medium 12 is driven to rotate in the case 14 in a non-contact manner. The recording / reproducing head of the drive device enters from the recording / reproducing head window 16B of the opening 16. With this recording / reproducing head, information is recorded on the recording surface 12B of the disk medium 12, or information recorded on the recording surface 12B is reproduced (the disk medium 12 is used).

  After use of the disk medium 12, the disk cartridge 10 is ejected from the drive device. With this discharge operation, the drive rack 100 moves relatively forward in the guide groove 50. As the drive rack 100 moves, the inner rotor 20 rotates in the direction of arrow F, and the pair of shutter members 18 move to the closing side. When the drive rack 100 moves to a position where the meshing with the driven gear portion 78 is released, the pair of shutter members 18 reach the closed position, and the opening 16 is completely closed. If the inner rotor 20 is further rotated in the direction of arrow F from this state, the closing side stopper portion 80 of the inner rotor 20 contacts the first stopper 38 of the case 14 and moves to the arrow F side beyond the closing position of the inner rotor 20. Is prevented from rotating.

  At this time, the respective pressing protrusions 98 slide the tapered surfaces 98B with the corresponding tapered surfaces 96B of the pressed protrusions 96 by rotating the inner rotor 20 in the direction of the arrow F. Pressing radially inward of the disk medium 12 causes the leaf spring portion 94 to be deformed inward of the inner wall 34. As a result, each disk holding portion 92 reaches the contact position and is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12. When the contact surface 98A of each pressing protrusion 98 rides on the corresponding contact surface 96A of the pressed protrusion 96, that is, when each pressing protrusion 98 reaches the holding position, deformation of the leaf spring portion 94 is prevented. (Restoring force is supported by the annular wall 72), and each disk holding portion 92 is held in a state of being pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12. When the inner rotor 20 returns to the rotational position where the pair of shutter members 18 are positioned at the closed position, each pressing protrusion 98 has a holding position where the contact surface 98A contacts the contact surface 96A over substantially the entire length (described above). Return to the narrow holding position). As a result, the disc holding mechanism returns to the initial state that prevents the disc media 12 from rattling against the case 14.

  When the drive rack 100 moves further forward and the engagement state with the release operation portion 88 of the lock member 22 is released, the main body portion 84 of the lock member 22 is opposite to the arrow G by the urging force of the leaf spring portion 90. The engaging portion 86 engages with the driven gear portion 78. Thereby, the rotation of the inner rotor 20 is prevented, and the pair of shutter members 18 is returned to the initial state in which they are held at the closed position. In this state, the disk cartridge 10 is completely ejected from the drive device.

  Here, the disk holding portion 92 has an outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12 because the pressing protrusion 98 provided on the annular wall 72 that cannot move in the radial direction of the disk medium 12 abuts against the case 14 from the radially outer side. In other words, the pressing protrusion 98 (annular wall 72) positioned at the holding position prevents deformation (restoration) of the leaf spring portion 94 while maintaining the state of pressing the disk from the radially outer side. Since the disk medium 12 is held so as not to move in the radial direction with respect to the case 14 via 92, there is basically no portion that is deformed or displaced in the radial direction of the disk medium 12 when the disk medium 12 is held. For this reason, it is difficult to release the holding state of the disk medium 12 due to, for example, an impact when the disk cartridge 10 is dropped. That is, the holding state release of the disk medium 12 based on the deformation of the elastic member, which is a concern with the configuration in which the disk medium 12 is held by the urging force of the elastic member or the like as in the past, is prevented.

  In addition, since the annular wall 72 rotates coaxially with the inner wall 34 that positions the disk media 12 on the inside, the holding of the disk media 12 and the release of the held state are switched. Since the pressing direction of the medium 12 is different from the moving direction of the annular wall 72 for releasing the pressing state, the holding position which is the rotation position of the inner rotor 20 with respect to the case 14 is not a single point but the above-described holding position (holding) Range) is realized. For this reason, even if the inner rotor 20 is released from the locked state by the locking member 22 due to a drop impact or the like and rotates in the arrow D direction, the pressing protrusion 98 is displaced in the circumferential direction with respect to the pressed protrusion 96. The holding state of the disk medium 12 by the disk holding portion 92 is maintained within a range in which the contact state between the contact surface 98A and the contact surface 96A is maintained.

  As described above, in the disk cartridge 10 according to the present embodiment, the disk medium 12 can be securely held to the case 14 when not in use. For this reason, the disk medium 12 does not rattle in the case 14, and the recording surface 12 </ b> B is damaged due to the rattling, or the inner rotor 20 and the case 14 are damaged and wear dust (dust) is generated in the case 14. It is prevented from being generated.

  Further, since the three disk holding portions 92 are provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the disk medium 12, the disk medium 12 can be stably held in the case 14 without being pressed against the case 14 (inner wall 34). it can.

  Further, since each disk holding portion 92 is made of a material having a lower elastic modulus than that of the disk medium 12, there is no possibility that these disk holding portions 92 damage the disk medium 12. Further, the deformation of the disk holding portion 92 absorbs dimensional errors and the like of each portion, and it is possible to prevent unnecessary force from being applied to the disk medium 12 held in the case 14 and deformation of the disk medium 12. . Furthermore, since the outer periphery of the disk medium 12 is held so as to bite into the disk holding part 92, even if the disk holding part 92 is deformed by a drop impact or the like, the holding state is not released.

  Furthermore, since the disc holding portion 92 is disposed below the inner wall 34, that is, in the vicinity of the disc portion 70 of the inner rotor 20, the disc media 12 is inclined with respect to the case 14 in contact with the upper surface of the disc portion 70. The disc holding unit 92 can stably hold the disc.

  Next, a modification of the embodiment of the present invention will be described. Note that components / parts that are basically the same as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in the above embodiment, and description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a disc cartridge 110 according to a modification. As shown in this figure, the disk cartridge 110 includes a case 112 that replaces the case 14 and accommodates the disk medium 12 in a replaceable manner. The case 112 is configured by joining an upper shell 114 and a lower shell 26, and the upper shell 114 includes an insertion / removal port 116 through which the disk media 12 can be inserted into and removed from the top plate 28. Is different.

  Specifically, the inner edge of the insertion / removal port 116 coincides with the inner peripheral surface of the inner wall 34 in plan view, and is a circular hole having a diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the disk medium 12. As a result, the disk medium 12 can be inserted into and removed from the case 112 through the insertion / removal port 116. Therefore, different disk media 12 can be accommodated in the case 112. Further, since the top plate 28 of the case 112 is provided with the insertion / removal port 116, the upward bulging portion provided in the case 24 is not formed. Other configurations of the case 112 are the same as those of the case 14.

  When the disc medium 12 is accommodated in the case 112, first, the release operation portion 88 of the lock member 22 is pushed into the case 112 to release the rotation locked state of the inner rotor 20, and the inner rotor 20 is rotated in the direction of arrow D. . Then, when the disc holding portion 92 moves to the separation position, the rotation of the inner rotor 20 is stopped, and the disc medium 12 with the recording surface 12B facing downward is placed on the disc portion 70 of the inner rotor 20. From this state, the inner rotor 20 is rotated in the direction of arrow F to a position where the inner rotor 20 is rotationally locked by the lock member 22. As a result, each disk holding portion 92 is pressed against and brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium 12, and the disk medium 12 is held on the case 112.

  In this disk cartridge 110, the insertion / removal opening 116 is provided, so that dust may adhere to the upper surface (non-recording surface) of the disk medium 12. However, when not in use, the opening 16 opens to the shutter member 18 (and the inner rotor 20). ) To prevent dust from adhering to the recording surface 12B.

  As described above, in the disk cartridge 110 according to this modification, the disk medium 12 can be replaced by providing the insertion / removal opening 116. When the disk medium 12 is not used, the disk medium 12 is held by the disk holding unit 92 with respect to the case 112, so that the disk medium 12 is prevented from falling out of the case 112. Further, in the disc cartridge 110, since the bulging portion is not provided on the top plate 28, the overall thickness is reduced. Other effects of the disk cartridge 110 are the same as those of the disk cartridge 10 according to the above embodiment.

  FIG. 12 shows a disk holding mechanism according to a modification. This disc holding mechanism is different from the disc holding mechanism in the above embodiment in that a release hole 120 is provided in the annular wall 72 of the inner rotor 20 in place of the pressing protrusion 98.

  In this modification, the annular wall 72 is configured such that the inner peripheral surface thereof slides with the outer peripheral surface of the inner wall 34 as the opening 16 is opened and closed (the gap S is not set). The annular wall 72 is provided with release holes 120 arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and each release hole 120 has different pressed protrusions at the rotational positions at which the shutter members 18 are located at the open positions. 96 enters (by the restoring force of the leaf spring portion 94).

  Therefore, in the disc holding mechanism according to this modification, the annular portion 72 itself corresponds to the “pressing portion”, and the holding state of the disc medium 12 by the disc holding portion 92 at the position where the opening 16 is completely opened (in the immediate vicinity thereof). The disc medium 12 is held on the case 14 by the disc holding portion 92 in a wide range other than this. Therefore, even when the inner rotor 20 is largely rotated in the direction of arrow D due to a drop impact or the like when not in use, the holding state of the disc medium 12 by the disc holding portion 92 is reliably maintained. Other effects of the disk cartridge provided with the disk holding mechanism according to the present modification are exactly the same as those of the disk cartridge 10 or the disk cartridge 110 according to the above-described embodiment or modification. In this configuration, the annular wall 72 supports the restoring force of the leaf spring portion 94 while supporting the restoring force of the leaf spring portion 94 in almost the entire rotation range of the inner rotor 20 that opens and closes the opening 16. For sliding with 96A, it is preferable to reduce the sliding resistance (friction coefficient) between the inner peripheral surface of the annular wall 72 and the contact surface 96A by material selection, surface treatment, or the like.

  In the above-described embodiment and each modified example, the inner rotor 20 that is a mechanism for driving the shutter member 18 for opening and closing the opening 16 is a preferable configuration that constitutes the switching means of the disk holding mechanism. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the disk holding mechanism may be driven independently of the shutter mechanism. Therefore, for example, a switching member that moves up and down in the case 14 by an operation in which the disk cartridge 10 contacts and separates from the rotating spindle shaft of the drive device is provided, and the switching member is covered at a position where the rotating spindle shaft holds the disk media 12. The switching member is separated from the abutting surface 96A of the pressing protrusion 96 to allow the disk holding portion 92 to move to the separation position, and the switching spindle is at the position where the rotating spindle shaft is separated from the disk medium 12 in the axial direction. The disk holding portion 92 may be held at the contact position by contacting the contact surface 96A.

  In the above embodiment and each modification, the inner rotor 20 is configured to open and close the opening 16 by driving the shutter member 18. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the shutter member 18 is not provided. Only the disk portion 70 of the inner rotor 20 may be a shutter portion that opens and closes the recording / reproducing head window portion 16B (the hub hole 16A does not necessarily need to be closed). In the present invention, a member that moves relative to the case 14 when the opening 16 is opened and closed is preferably applied as a drive mechanism of the disk holding mechanism, but is not limited by the structure that opens and closes the opening 16. Therefore, for example, a shutter member (mechanism) that is formed in a rectangular shape in plan view and moves in the left-right direction to open and close the opening 16 is provided, and the portion that moves in the tangential direction of the inner wall 34 along with the movement of the shutter member is pressed. A portion 98 can also be provided.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment and each modified example, three disk holding portions 92 are provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the inner wall 34. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, disk holding Only one section 92 may be provided to hold the disk media 12 between the disk holding section 92 and the inner wall 34. Two or more disk holding sections 92 may be provided, and a plurality of disk holdings may be held. A part or all of the portion 92 may be arranged at unequal intervals in the circumferential direction.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment and each modification, the disk holding portion 92 has a preferable configuration that is made of a material having a lower elastic modulus than the disk medium 12, but the present invention is not limited to this. The disk holding portion 92 may be provided integrally with the leaf spring portion 94 (inner wall 34).

  Further, in the above-described embodiment and each modification, the disk holding portion 92 provided at the lower portion of the inner wall 34 has a preferable configuration for holding the disk medium 12 placed on the disc portion 70 of the inner rotor 20. The invention is not limited to this, and for example, the disc holding unit 92 may hold the disc medium 12 in a state of being separated from the disc unit 70.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the opening 16 is formed only below the case 14, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a disk medium having recording surfaces 12B provided on both upper and lower surfaces is used. In the case 14 to be accommodated, an opening 16 that can be opened and closed by a pair of shutter members 18 may also be provided on the top plate 28. Further, the opening 16 for accessing the disk medium 12 may include a plurality of recording / reproducing head windows 16B into which the recording / reproducing heads enter independently.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment and each modification, the diameter of the disk medium 12 is approximately 120 mm. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the disk cartridge 10 including the disk medium 12 of any size is also applicable. Needless to say, the present invention is applicable. Further, for example, it goes without saying that the disk medium 12 may be a read-only disk medium in which information recording by the user is disabled.

1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of a disk cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a disk cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a bottom view of the upper shell which constitutes the disc cartridge concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a top view of the lower shell which comprises the disk cartridge which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a bottom view of the inner rotor which comprises the disk cartridge which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view showing a part of a disk holding mechanism constituting the disk cartridge according to the embodiment of the present invention. 1A is an enlarged view showing a part of a disk holding mechanism constituting a disk cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. B) is a partially cut-out bottom view showing a holding state of the disk medium. It is the bottom view which removed the lower shell which shows the opening obstruction | occlusion state of the disc cartridge concerning embodiment of this invention, and was seen. FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the disc cartridge according to the embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the bottom shell showing the process of closing or opening the opening. FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the disc cartridge according to the embodiment of the present invention, viewed from a state where the lower shell showing an open state of the disc cartridge is removed. It is a perspective view which shows the disc cartridge which concerns on the modification of embodiment of this invention. 7A and 7B are views showing a modification of the disk holding mechanism constituting the disk cartridge according to the embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 7A is a bottom view corresponding to FIG. 7A, and FIG. It is a bottom view corresponding to.

Explanation of symbols

10 Disc cartridge 12 Disc media 14 Case 16 Opening 18 Shutter member (shutter part, shutter mechanism)
20 Inner rotor (switching means, shutter mechanism)
70 Disc part (shutter part, shutter mechanism)
72 annular wall (switching means, annular part, shutter mechanism, pressing part)
78 Driven gear (operating part)
92 Disc holding part 94 Leaf spring part (supporting part)
96 Pressed protrusion (disc holding part)
98 Pressing protrusion (switching means, pressing part)
110 Disc cartridge 112 Case 116 Insertion / removal port

Claims (6)

A case for rotatably accommodating a disk-shaped disk medium; and
It is supported by the case so as to be movable along the radial direction of the disk medium via a support part that can be elastically deformed, abuts against the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium by deformation of the support part, and A disc holding portion spaced from the surface;
It is provided so that it cannot move in the radial direction of the disk media with respect to the case and is movable in a direction crossing the radial direction. A switching means capable of taking a holding position for keeping the disk holding portion pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium and a release position for separating the disk holding portion from the disk holding portion;
An operation unit provided in the switching unit, and operated from outside the case to move the switching unit between the holding position and the release position;
Disc cartridge with A case in which a disk-shaped disk medium is rotatably accommodated inside an annular inner wall and has an opening for accessing the disk medium;
A shutter part capable of opening and closing at least a part of the opening; and an annular part supported on the radially outer side of the inner wall so as to be coaxially rotatable relative to the inner wall. A shutter mechanism for opening and closing the opening;
Between the outer peripheral surface of the disk medium in the case and the inner peripheral surface of the annular portion, the support is movably supported in the radial direction of the disk media via a support portion that is elastically deformable. A disc holding portion that abuts on the outer peripheral surface of the disc medium and is separated from the outer peripheral surface by restoration of the support portion;
The annular portion is fixedly provided, the shutter portion abuts against the disc holding portion at a rotational position where the opening is closed, and the disc holding portion is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the disc medium, and the shutter portion is opened to the opening A pressing portion that is spaced apart from the disk holding portion at a rotational position that releases
Disc cartridge with The disk cartridge according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the disk holding portions are provided at equal intervals in a circumferential direction of the disk medium. 4. The disk cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the disk holding portion is made of a material having a lower elastic modulus than the disk medium. 5. The disk cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the disk holding portion is disposed in the vicinity of a bottom surface of a disk storage portion that is formed in the case and stores the disk medium. The disk cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the case has an insertion / removal opening through which the disk medium can be inserted and removed.

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