JP2005243112A - Disk transport mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make the disk transport structure of a disk player simple and compact and to transport a disk without damaging or causing dust, etc. to adhere to the signal surface of the disk manually inserted into a disk insertion port. <P>SOLUTION: A disk transport mechanism 5 carries in or carries away the disk 4 located between the disk insertion port 2 and a disk playing part 3 of the disk player 1 and is provided with: a holding part 10 which holds a part near the periphery 4c of the disk 4 in a thickness direction at a holding state in the carrying-in and carrying-away of the disk 4; and a link mechanism 20 which transfers, by means of a drive motor 21, the disk 4 held by the holding part 10 which holds the disk 4 between positions of the disk insertion port 2 and the disk playing part 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a disk transport mechanism. More specifically, the present invention relates to a disk transport mechanism that transports a disk used as a data storage medium such as a CD and a DVD between an insertion port position of a disk player and a playback position of the disk.

Generally, in a disc player that plays a disc such as a CD or a DVD, a disc transport device that sucks a disc manually inserted into a disc insertion slot and transports the disc to a playable position (on a turntable). Is provided. More specifically, the transport roller is rotatably provided in the vicinity of the insertion port. When a predetermined amount of the disk is inserted from the insertion port, the insertion is detected and a driving force is supplied to the transport roller. . The disk is transported in the insertion direction or the ejection direction by the rotational force accompanying the contact friction between the back surface of the disk and the transport roller (at this time, the surface of the disk is also supported by the surface shape of the roller, etc. Is).
In addition, recently, it has become possible to shorten the distance from the disc insertion slot to the disc playback unit by making it possible to move the arrangement position of the conveyance roller and retracting the conveyance roller when the disc rotates. is there.
In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described example. In recent years, a disc player has been devised to be lightweight and compact in order to be mounted on a vehicle or to function by being incorporated in a computer. In particular, many proposals have been made so far regarding an apparatus for transporting a disk that affects the overall size of the disk player. For example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 described below can be cited.

JP 2002-117602 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-21626

However, in the above-described conventional technique, a mechanism for moving the transport roller is required when the transport roller for transporting the disk is moved and retracted during disk reproduction. That is, after the disk is transported to the disk reproducing section, trigger processing or the like is performed, and the transport roller must be moved to the retracted position by the drive mechanism.
In any case, the disc player needs a retreat space for retracting the transport roller, and the overall structure is increased in size (for example, when the transport roller is retracted in the vertical direction, it is increased in the thickness direction). I was invited.
Further, when the disk is transported by the transport roller, friction between the two is accompanied by contact, so that the signal surface of the disk is damaged, or dirt such as dust and dirt attached to the roller adheres to the signal surface. In some cases, there was a risk of trouble when reading the signal.

  The present invention was devised to solve the above-described problems, and the problem to be solved by the present invention is a configuration for simplifying and compacting the disc transport structure of a disc player, In addition, the disk can be transported without damaging the signal surface of the disk manually inserted into the disk insertion slot or attaching dust or the like.

In order to solve the above problems, the disk transport mechanism of the present invention takes the following means.
First, a first invention of the present invention is a disk transport mechanism for loading or unloading a disk between a disk insertion slot of a disk player and a disk reproducing unit, and a portion near the outer periphery of the disk is thickened when the disk is loaded or unloaded. Gripping means for holding in a gripping state in a direction, and a gripping means for gripping the disk, and a drive conveying means for appropriately moving the gripped disk between the disk insertion slot position and the disk reproducing unit position by the driving means. Is.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the disk is held in a state where the vicinity of the outer periphery is gripped in the thickness direction by the gripping means at the time of carry-in or carry-out. The gripping means for gripping the disk is transported by the driving means of the drive transporting means so as to move the disk between the disk insertion slot position and the disk reproducing unit position.

Next, according to a second invention of the present invention, in the first invention described above, the gripping means is configured to engage and hold the disk from the thickness direction by inserting the disk in the surface direction. The engagement holding force is a holding force that does not release when the disc is loaded and unloaded.
According to the second invention, when the disc is inserted in the surface direction, the disc is engaged and held from the thickness direction by the gripping means. As a result, an engagement holding force that does not disengage from the gripping means when the disc is carried in or out acts on the anti-insertion direction of the disc.

Next, according to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect described above, the gripping means includes a stopper member having a U-shaped cross section that is wider than the thickness dimension of the disk, and a U-shaped cross-section of the stopper member. A cam member rotatably supported by the stopper member; and an engagement force biasing means for exerting an engagement holding force for sandwiching the disk in the thickness direction of the cam member. The cam member has a cam shape. The disc is arranged in such a direction as to bite into the disc during relative movement in the counter-insertion direction.
According to the third aspect of the invention, the disk is inserted between the stopper member having a U-shaped cross section and the cam member pivotally supported so as to be rotatable with respect to the stopper member. . The engagement force biasing means causes the cam member to exert an engagement holding force so as to sandwich the inserted disk in the thickness direction. As a result, the cam member applies an acting force in the direction of biting into the disk surface when the disk is moved relative to the inserted disk in the counter-insertion direction.

The present invention can obtain the following effects by taking the above-described means.
First, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a disk can be transported with a simple configuration without using a disk transport roller as in the prior art. Therefore, since the conveyance roller is not necessary, an arrangement space at the time of use can be omitted. That is, the distance between the disc insertion slot and the disc reproducing unit can be shortened. Further, since the space for retracting the transport roller (mainly the retracting space in the vertical direction) is not required, the entire apparatus can be reduced in thickness. Further, since there is no portion that contacts the signal surface of the disk when the disk is transported, the disk can be transported without damaging the signal surface or attaching dust or the like.
Furthermore, according to the second aspect of the present invention, the configuration for gripping the disc does not require a drive mechanism, and therefore the configuration can be simplified. In addition, the disc in the gripped state can be stably transported without being removed when it is carried in or out between the disc insertion slot and the disc reproducing section.
Furthermore, since the third invention of the present invention applies the engagement holding force with the rotation of the cam shape, even the discs having different thicknesses can stably hold the gripped state. .

  Embodiments of the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  First, the disk transport mechanism 5 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 is a plan view showing an outline of the disc transport mechanism 5, FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view of the main part of the disc transport mechanism 5, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the grip portion 10 in a state before the disc 4 is inserted. FIG. 4 is a side view of the grip portion 10 in a side view after the disc 4 is inserted.

As shown well in FIG. 1, the disc transport mechanism 5 of the present embodiment carries the disc 4 manually inserted into the disc insertion slot 2 of the disc player 1 to the disc playback section 3 and at the time of ejection, the disc playback section 3 This is for carrying out the disk 4 positioned at the position to the disk insertion slot 2.
More specifically, the disc transport mechanism 5 grips the vicinity of the outer periphery 4c of the disc 4 in the thickness direction (so as to sandwich the front surface 4a and the back surface 4b of the disc 4) when the disc 4 is carried in or out. The holding part 10 that holds the disk 4 is moved by the holding part 10 that is held and the rotational force (driving force) transmitted by the drive motor 21 to move the disk 4 between the disk insertion slot 2 position and the disk reproducing part 3 position. And a link mechanism 20 that is moved at the same time. Specifically, the link mechanism 20 rotates about the rotation center 20a to move the grip portion 10.
In addition to this, the disc transport mechanism 5 also transports discs 4 of different sizes (for example, 12 cm discs and 8 cm discs are well known) to the position of a certain disc reproducing unit 3. A switching structure (not shown) for adjusting the amount of rotation of the link mechanism 20 is provided so as to be able to do so. Furthermore, a configuration (not shown) such as a sensor for detecting that the disc 4 is manually inserted into the disc insertion slot 2 and starting the drive motor 21 is also provided. In addition, about these structures, since a conventionally well-known means can be used, detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.
Here, the gripping part 10 corresponds to the gripping means of the present invention, the link mechanism 20 corresponds to the drive conveying means of the present invention, and the drive motor 21 corresponds to the drive means of the present invention.

Next, the configuration of the grip portion 10 will be described in detail. As shown well in FIGS. 2 to 4, the grip portion 10 includes a stopper member 11 having a U-shaped cross section, an elastomeric cam member 12 disposed on the lower side 11 b of the U-shape, and a stopper. And a torsion spring 13 having both ends locked to the member 11 and the cam member 12, respectively. Here, the torsion spring 13 corresponds to the engaging force biasing means of the present invention.
Specifically, as shown well in FIGS. 3 and 4, the U-shaped stopper member 11 is such that the distance between the upper side 11 a and the lower side 11 b constituting the U-shape is larger than the thickness of the disk 4. Is formed.
The cam member 12 has a cam shape in which the dimension from the shaft center 12a to the surface portion 12b changes smoothly as a whole, and a bulging portion 12d bulging at a predetermined location is formed. A shaft pin 14 is inserted through the shaft 12 a through which the cam member 12 is passed, and is supported by the lower side 11 b of the stopper member 11. Thereby, the cam member 12 is in a state in which the cam member 12 can be rotated in the cross-sectional direction (the U-shaped cross-sectional direction of the stopper member 11) at the lower side 11 b of the stopper member 11.

Next, as well shown in FIG. 2, the torsion spring 13 has one end 13 a locked to the engaging portion 12 c of the cam member 12 and the other end 13 b locked to the engaging portion 11 c of the lower side 11 b of the stopper member 11. Thus, a restoring force (restoring force due to elasticity) corresponding to the amount of change accompanying the rotation of the cam member 12 is applied. Specifically, the engagement portion 12c of the cam member 12 (made of elastomer) has a configuration in which one end 13a of the torsion spring 13 is bitten and locked by its elasticity.
More specifically, the configuration of the cam member 12 will be described in detail. As shown in FIG. 3, the torsion spring 13 causes the bulging portion 12d to move from the lower side 11b to the upper side 11a. The arrangement angle is set so as to face (toward). Further, when the disc 4 is inserted (the disc 4 is inserted in the surface direction), the outer periphery 4 c of the disc 4 comes into contact with the bulging portion 12 d of the cam member 12. When the cam member 12 is rotated by the pressing force accompanying the insertion of the disk 4, the cam member 12 rotates while the bulging portion 12 d is pushed in the insertion direction of the disk 4 according to the thickness dimension of the disk 4. . As a result, a restoring force (an urging force in the rotational direction) corresponding to the amount of rotation (the amount of elastic deformation of the torsion spring 13) is applied to the cam member 12. That is, the cam member 12 exerts an engagement holding force that sandwiches the inserted disk 4 from the thickness direction (sandwiched between the cam member 12 and the upper side 11 a of the stopper member 11) by the biasing force.

  By the way, as described above, in a state where the disc 4 is engaged with and held by the grip portion 10 (see FIG. 4), the disc 4 is carried in or out between the disc insertion slot 2 and the disc reproducing portion 3. Therefore, the disk 4 does not detach from the grip portion 10 even if it is moved. That is, as shown well in FIG. 4, when an acting force acts on the disk 4 in the anti-insertion direction as the disk 4 is moved in or out, the cam member 12 is acted upon by the biasing force of the torsion spring 13. The bulging portion 12d applies an acting force in the direction of biting into the back surface 4b (near the outer periphery 4c) of the disk 4. Thereby, it is possible to apply an engagement holding force having such a size that the disk 4 is not detached from the grip portion 10. In addition, the engagement holding force acting in the anti-insertion direction is more effective than the engagement holding force acting in the insertion direction of the disk 4.

Then, the usage method of the disc conveyance mechanism 5 of a present Example is demonstrated.
First, the link mechanism 20 and the gripping part 10 of the disk transport mechanism 5 are in a state where the gripping part 10 is arranged on the disk insertion slot 2 side as shown in FIG. When the disc 4 is manually inserted into the disc insertion slot 2 so as to be inserted in the plane direction, the portion in the vicinity of the outer periphery 4c of the disc 4 is held in a state of being gripped by the grip portion 10 in the thickness direction.
Next, when the disk 4 is further inserted, the insertion is detected by a sensor (not shown), and the drive motor 21 is switched to the starting state. When the drive motor 21 is started, the link mechanism 20 is rotated to move the grip portion 10 in the grip state of the disc 4 toward the disc reproducing portion 3. Specifically, the link mechanism 20 rotates about the rotation center 20a. At this time, the disc 4 held in the holding portion 10 is given an engagement holding force in the thickness direction by the cam member 12 by the biasing force of the torsion spring 13. Therefore, when the acting force in the anti-insertion direction accompanying the movement is applied to the disk 4 in this state, the acting force is applied in the direction in which the bulging portion 12d of the cam member 12 bites into the back surface 4b of the disk 4, The disc 4 is stably carried into the disc reproducing unit 3 without detaching from the grip unit 10.

  When a predetermined amount of the disk 4 is loaded and reaches the disk reproducing unit 3, a predetermined mechanism is operated to chuck the central portion of the disk 4 to the disk reproducing unit 3. When this chucking is detected, the link mechanism 20 is further rotated in the carry-in direction (upward as viewed in FIG. 1) by driving the drive motor 21, and the grip portion 10 in the grip state of the disc 4 is further moved in the carry-in direction. Move. As a result, the disk 4 is detached from the grip portion 10. That is, the disk 4 is given an acting force in the anti-insertion direction with respect to the grip portion 10 by the driving force supplied from the drive motor 21, and relatively moves in the anti-insertion direction against the engagement holding force of the grip portion 10. Then, when the disc 4 is detached from the gripping portion 10 and a gap is formed between them, the disc 4 can be reproduced. Note that when the disk 4 is in a reproducible state, the drive motor 21 is stopped.

  Next, a method for ejecting the disk 4 will be described. If the ejection operation is performed in a state where the disk 4 is located in the disk reproducing unit 3 (a state where the disk 4 can be reproduced), the drive motor 21 described above rotates in the reverse direction to move the link mechanism 20 in the unloading direction (the reverse direction of the loading direction). ) To move the grip 10 toward the disc insertion slot 2. When the gripping part 10 reaches the position of the chucked disk 4 in the disk playback part 3, the disk 4 is inserted into the gripping part 10, and the vicinity of the outer periphery 4c of the disk 4 is gripped and held in the thickness direction. Is done. Thereafter, the chucking state of the disk 4 is released by the operation of a predetermined mechanism, and the link mechanism 20 is further rotated in the unloading direction by the drive motor 21. As a result, the grip portion 10 in the state of gripping the disc 4 is moved in the carry-out direction, and the disc 4 is ejected from the disc insertion slot 2. When the ejection of the disk 4 is completed, the drive motor 21 is stopped.

  As described above, the disk transport mechanism 5 according to the present embodiment includes the grip unit 10 that holds the disk 4 in the thickness direction and the link mechanism 20 that can move the grip unit 10 with the drive motor 21. 4 can be carried in or out between the disc insertion slot 2 and the disc reproducing unit 3. That is, the disk 4 can be transported by such a simple configuration without using a transport roller for transporting the disk as in the prior art. Accordingly, since the conveyance roller is not required, the dimension from the disk insertion opening 2 to the disk reproducing unit 3 can be shortened by the dimension for setting the conveyance roller. Further, since a space for retracting the transport roller is not necessary, the entire disc player 1 can be reduced in thickness. Further, when the disk 4 is transported, the transport roller does not come into contact with the signal surface of the disk 4 as in the prior art. Therefore, the disk 4 can be transported without damaging the signal surface of the disk 4 or attaching dust or the like.

  Further, in this embodiment, the cam member 12 is rotatably provided in the grip portion 10, and the cam shape is rotated by the operation of inserting the disk 4 so that the disk 4 is sandwiched in the thickness direction and the engagement holding force is obtained. It is set as the structure made to act. Therefore, since the amount of rotation of the cam member 12 is appropriately changed in accordance with the thickness dimension of the disk 4, even in the case of the disks 4 having different thicknesses, a stable gripping state can be obtained individually. Further, since a large drive mechanism (a drive mechanism for gripping the disk 4 in the thickness direction) is not required for gripping the disk 4, such a configuration is simplified. Further, the gripping portion 10 is configured such that the engagement holding force for the relative movement in the counter-insertion direction is larger than the engagement holding force for the relative movement in the insertion direction of the disk 4. Therefore, the disk 4 can be easily held and can be stably transported without detaching the disk 4 from the grip portion 10 when the disk 4 is transported. Note that the magnitude of the engagement holding force acting on the disk 4 can be easily adjusted by changing the elasticity (spring force) of the torsion spring 13, the elasticity of the cam member 12, or the shape of the cam member 12. .

  Next, the disk transport mechanism 6 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a usage state of the disk transport mechanism 6. In the present embodiment, the description of the parts having the same configuration and operation as those of the disk transport mechanism 5 of the first embodiment will be omitted, and different parts will be described in detail.

  In the disk transport mechanism 6 of this embodiment, an engagement protrusion 31 made of elastomer is fixedly provided on the lower side 11b of the grip portion 30 having a U-shaped cross section corresponding to the grip means of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 5, the engagement protrusion 31 is formed in a fan shape in cross section, and is arranged so as to stand up smoothly from the U-shaped opening side of the grip portion 30 toward the inward side. ing.

Further, when the disc 4 is inserted in the surface direction, the gripping portion 30 acts so as to sandwich a portion in the vicinity of the outer periphery 4c of the disc 4 from the thickness direction by the engagement protrusion 31 and the upper side 11a. Specifically, the engagement protrusion 31 is elastically deformed by the thickness of the disk 4 due to the pressing force associated with the insertion of the disk 4, whereby the disk 4 has a restoring force (elastic force) corresponding to the deformation of the engagement protrusion 31. It is given in the thickness direction. That is, the grip portion 30 is configured to engage and hold the disc 4 from the thickness direction by insertion in the surface direction of the disc 4.
In a state where the disc 4 is engaged with and held by the grip portion 30, the disc 4 is gripped even if the disc 4 is moved to be carried in or out of the disc insertion slot 2 and the disc reproducing portion 3. It does not leave the part 30. That is, when an acting force acts on the disk 4 in the anti-insertion direction as the disk 4 is moved in or out, the engaging protrusion 31 is elastically deformed by the action of the restoring force accompanying the elastic deformation of the engaging protrusion 31. In this manner, an acting force is applied in the direction of being wedged into the back surface 4b (near the outer periphery 4c) of the disk 4. Therefore, by this action, the engagement protrusion 31 gives a resistance force accompanying frictional sliding to the disk 4, and an engagement holding force of a magnitude that does not cause the disk 4 to be detached from the grip portion 30 acts. Further, the grip portion 30 is configured such that the engagement holding force with respect to the relative movement in the anti-insertion direction is larger than the engagement holding force with respect to the relative movement in the insertion direction of the disk 4.

  Next, a method for using the disk transport mechanism 6 of this embodiment will be described. First, when the disc 4 is manually inserted into the disc insertion slot 2 so as to be inserted in the surface direction, a portion in the vicinity of the outer periphery 4c of the disc 4 is held by the grip portion 30 in a gripped state in the thickness direction. Further, the subsequent usage method is omitted because it overlaps with the usage method of the first embodiment. When a predetermined amount of the disk 4 is loaded and reaches the disk reproducing unit 3, the central part of the disk 4 is chucked by the disk reproducing unit 3, and the gripping unit 30 holding the disk 4 further moves in the loading direction. Is done. As a result, the disk 4 is detached from the grip portion 30. That is, the disk 4 is given an acting force in the anti-insertion direction with respect to the grip portion 30 by the driving force supplied from the drive motor 21, and relatively moves in the anti-insertion direction against the engagement holding force of the grip portion 30. Further, the ejection operation of the disk 4 is performed in the reverse order of the above-described usage method.

  As described above, in the disk transport mechanism 6 of the present embodiment, the engagement protrusion 31 has a sectional fan shape made of an elastomer, so that the disk 4 can be easily held and the disk 4 Stable transport can be performed without detaching the disk 4 from the grip portion 10 during transport. The magnitude of the engagement holding force acting on the disk 4 can be easily adjusted by changing the elasticity or shape of the engagement protrusion 31.

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described with reference to two examples, the present invention can be implemented in various forms in addition to the above-described example.
For example, in the first embodiment, the cam member 12 is pivotally supported on the lower side 11b of the stopper member 11. However, the cam member 12 may be pivotally supported on the upper side 11a. Even in this case, the same operation and effect as the above-described embodiment can be obtained. In the second embodiment, the elastomer engaging protrusion 31 is fixed to the lower side 11b. However, it may be fixed to the upper side 11a.
Further, in addition to the forms shown in the first and second embodiments, for example, an elastic material is incorporated into the stopper member 12 having a U-shaped cross section, and the upper side 11 a and the lower side 11 b are changed to the disc 4 as the disc 4 is inserted. It may be configured to be elastically deformed (relatively elastically displaced) in the thickness direction. Even with such a configuration, an engagement holding force that does not cause the disc 4 to be detached can be applied.
Further, the shapes of the cam member 12 and the engagement protrusion 31 in the first and second embodiments are not particularly limited. When the disk 4 is loaded or unloaded, the disk 4 is removed from the gripping portions 10 and 30. Any device can be used as long as it can apply an engagement holding force to such an extent that it cannot be released.
Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the torsion spring 13 may not be provided. That is, if the cam member made of elastomer is formed so as to always contact the inserted disc 4, it is engaged when the disc 4 is moved in or out. Due to the action of the restoring force accompanying the elastic deformation of the protrusion 31, the engaging protrusion 31 can apply an acting force in the direction of being wedged into the back surface 4 b (near the outer periphery 4 c) of the disk 4 while being elastically deformed. .
Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the cam member 12 is shown in which the shaft pin 14 is inserted through the shaft center 12a and is pivotally supported by the lower side 11b of the stopper member 11. However, the cam member 12 and the shaft pin 14 are connected to each other. It is good also as the form shape | molded integrally (form which the pin protruded in the both ends of the axial direction of a cam member).

It is a top view which shows the outline of the disc conveyance mechanism of 1st Example. It is the elements on larger scale of the principal part of a disk conveyance mechanism. It is sectional drawing which looked at the holding part in the state before insertion of a disk by the side view. It is sectional drawing which looked at the holding part in the state after insertion of a disk side view It is a figure which shows the use condition of the disc conveyance mechanism of 2nd Example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Disc player 2 Disc insertion slot 3 Disc reproduction | regeneration part 4 Disc 4a Front surface 4b Back surface 4c Outer periphery 5,6 Disc conveyance mechanism 10 Gripping part (gripping means)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Stopper member 11a Upper side 11b Lower side 11c Engagement part 12 Cam member 12a Shaft center 12b Surface part 12c Engagement part 12d Expansion part 13 Torsion spring (engagement force biasing means)
13a one end 13b other end 14 shaft pin 20 link mechanism (drive conveyance means)
20a Center of rotation 21 Drive motor (drive means)
30 Gripping part (gripping means)
31 Engagement protrusion

Claims (3)

A disk transport mechanism for loading or unloading a disk between a disk insertion port of a disk player and a disk playback unit,
Gripping means for holding the vicinity of the outer periphery of the disk in the thickness direction when the disk is loaded and unloaded,
A gripping means for gripping the disk, a drive conveying means for appropriately moving the gripped disk between a disk insertion slot position and a disk reproducing unit position by a driving means;
A disk transport mechanism comprising: The disk transport mechanism according to claim 1,
The gripping means is configured to engage and hold the disc from the thickness direction by inserting the disc in the surface direction, and the engagement holding force in the counter-insertion direction is a holding force that does not release when the disc is loaded and unloaded. A disc transport mechanism. The disk transport mechanism according to claim 2,
The gripping means includes a stopper member having a U-shaped cross section that is wider than the thickness of the disk, a cam member pivotally supported by the U-shaped stopper member, and the cam member. Engaging force urging means for exerting an engaging holding force for sandwiching the disk in the thickness direction, and the cam member has a cam shape that is set in a direction of biting into the disk when the disk is moved in the opposite direction of the disk. A disc transport mechanism characterized by being arranged.

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