JP2006244624A - Recording disk cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a recording disk cartridge which has high rigidity. <P>SOLUTION: This disk cartridge has a base frame 10 which encloses a magnetic disk medium DM radially and has an access opening C2 on the side to expose it to the outside, a lower plate 20 which composes the lower wall of the cartridge case C and has a center hole C3 for the chuck to engage the spindle SP of the disk drive D with the magnetic disk medium DM, an upper plate 30 which composes the upper wall of the cartridge case C, a rotary shutter 40 which opens and closes the side opening, and a swing shutter 50 which, being disposed between the magnetic disk medium DM and the lower plate 20 and connected to the rotary shutter 40, rocks following the turning of the rotary shutter 40 to open or close the center chuck hole C3. At least, one of the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 is made of a metal sheet. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording disk cartridge in which a recording disk medium is accommodated in a cartridge case.

  Conventionally, a recording disk cartridge in which a recording disk medium such as a flexible magnetic disk medium in which a magnetic layer is formed on both sides of a disk-shaped support made of a polyester sheet, a magneto-optical disk medium, a phase change disk medium, etc. is stored in a cartridge case It has been known. These recording disk media have been recorded with high density year by year, and the recording track width has become narrower and the recording length has become shorter. For this reason, the magnetic disk cartridge is prone to read errors when only a small amount of dust is interposed between the magnetic disk medium and the magnetic head. In addition, although optical disk media is said to be relatively resistant to dust, when the recording density is high, the aperture ratio of the lens of the optical pickup increases, which necessitates close proximity between the media and the lens. Is likely to occur.

As the part where dust enters the recording disk cartridge, an access opening provided in the cartridge case for allowing the magnetic head and the optical pickup to access the recording disk medium, and the spindle of the disk drive are coupled to the recording disk medium. There is a center hole for chuck provided in the center of the cartridge case. The conventional recording disk cartridge is configured to close the access opening and the chuck center hole when not in use in order to prevent dust from entering the cartridge case (for example, Patent Document 1, 2 and 3).
JP 2004-013921 A JP 2002-063778 A JP 2004-348885 A

  However, in the conventional recording disk cartridge, since the shutter for closing the access opening and the chuck center hole is operated outside the cartridge case, there is a possibility that the recording disk cartridge may be opened by being caught by another object when being carried or stored. It was. Further, since the conventional recording disk cartridge can be easily contacted from the outside, there is a possibility that the shutter may be opened carelessly. In the conventional recording disk cartridge, since the access opening is provided on the upper surface and / or the lower surface of the cartridge case parallel to the recording disk medium, when the shutter is opened, the recording disk medium Is exposed to a large amount and easily contaminated. Further, the conventional recording disk cartridge has a problem that since the access opening is formed on the upper surface and / or the lower surface of the cartridge case, the rigidity of the cartridge case is lowered and it is difficult to make the cartridge case thinner.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a background, and the present invention provides a recording disk cartridge having high rigidity by preventing dust from entering the cartridge case and fouling of the recording disk medium as much as possible. Let it be an issue.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a recording disk cartridge comprising a recording disk medium and a cartridge case for storing the recording disk medium, the cartridge substantially surrounding the outside in the radial direction of the recording disk medium. A base frame that forms a side wall of the case and has a side opening that exposes the recording disk medium to the outside; a lower wall of the cartridge case that is disposed below the recording disk medium; and a spindle of the disk drive A lower plate having a chuck center hole for coupling to the recording disk medium; an upper plate disposed above the recording disk medium and constituting the upper wall of the cartridge case; and rotating in the cartridge case. By moving A rotary shutter that opens and closes a side opening; and a chuck that is disposed between the recording disk medium and the lower plate and is engaged with the rotary shutter so as to swing according to a rotating operation of the rotary shutter. A swing shutter that opens and closes the center hole, and at least one of the upper plate and the lower plate is made of a metal plate.

  According to such a recording disk cartridge, the side opening that exposes the recording disk medium to the outside, that is, the access opening for the magnetic head and the optical pickup to access the recording disk medium forms the side wall of the cartridge case. Provided in the base frame, the upper plate and the lower plate constitute the upper wall and the lower wall of the cartridge case, respectively, and block the upper side and the lower side of the base frame. Therefore, the rigidity of the cartridge case is prevented from being lowered due to the access opening being formed on the upper surface or the lower surface of the cartridge case. Further, since the access opening is formed only on the side wall, even when the user opens the rotary shutter that opens and closes the access opening, the edge of the outer periphery of the recording disk medium can be seen from the access opening. It is difficult to directly touch the recording surface of the recording disk medium. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the recording surface of the recording disk medium from being soiled. Since the size of the access opening is minimized, it is difficult for dust to enter the cartridge case.

Further, since at least one of the upper plate and the lower plate is made of a metal plate, it is possible to ensure high rigidity while preventing the recording disk medium from being damaged while keeping the overall thickness thin. Furthermore, since electromagnetic waves are attenuated by the cartridge case, the generation of noise in the magnetic head can be suppressed.
In addition, since the swing shutter that opens and closes the chuck center hole is positioned between the lower plate and the flexible disk, that is, inside the lower plate, other objects are not caught on the swing shutter during carrying or storage.
It should be noted that the upper plate and the lower plate in the present invention usually have a disk drive that accesses the chuck portion of the recording disk medium from below. It goes without saying that the lower plate of the recording disk cartridge of the invention can be used horizontally or upward.

In the recording disk cartridge described above, the swing shutter is swingably supported by at least one of the lower plate and the upper plate, and at least the swing shutter of the lower plate and the upper plate is swingably supported. It is desirable that the object to be made is a metal plate.
As described above, since the lower plate and the upper plate that support the swing shutter in a swingable manner are made of a metal plate, the support portion of the swing shutter is worn even when the recording disk cartridge is repeatedly used. It is difficult to achieve high durability.
When a metal plate is used for at least one of the lower plate and the upper plate, the base frame may be made of resin, and the metal plate may be inserted during the injection molding of the base frame. By using such insert molding, the metal plate and the resin can be reliably bonded, and the rigidity of the cartridge case can be further increased.

In addition, one of the lower plate and the upper plate may be formed of a transparent plate that makes the inside of the cartridge case visible. The transparent plate at this time can be made of, for example, a resin material.
By using a recording disk cartridge that allows the inside to be visually confirmed, an abnormality in the recording disk cartridge such as an abnormality in the recording disk medium can be immediately recognized. Further, by using a resin material, even when an impact is applied to the cartridge case, the cartridge case is not easily damaged.

The thickness of the cartridge case is preferably 1.5 to 2.2 mm. Moreover, as for the thing which consists of a metal plate among the said lower plate and the said upper plate, it is desirable that the thickness is 0.08-0.2 mm. In particular, the thickness of the cartridge case is more preferably 1.8 to 2.0 mm.
By setting such a thickness, practical rigidity can be ensured, and it can be applied to a disk drive that matches the size of a card type device such as the CompactFlash (registered trademark) standard or the PCMCIA standard. .

It is desirable that either one of the lower plate and the upper plate is made of a resin plate, and the resin plate has at least part of a temperature indicating material that changes color at a specific temperature.
In this way, by using a temperature indicating material for at least a part of the lower plate or the upper plate, it is possible to recognize at a glance that the recording disk cartridge has been exposed to high temperatures, so that the recording disk cartridge is in an inappropriate environment for recording and reproduction. It is possible to recognize that the user has been placed and to take safety measures against data errors.

  According to the present invention, the rigidity of the cartridge case can be improved, and the recording disk cartridge can be made thinner. Further, it is possible to prevent dust from entering the cartridge case and the recording disk medium from being damaged. Further, the swing shutter that opens and closes the chuck center hole can be prevented from being caught by an external object.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate. In the present embodiment, a case of a magnetic disk cartridge that employs a magnetic disk medium as an example of a recording disk medium will be described.
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a magnetic disk cartridge and a disk drive according to an embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the magnetic disk cartridge with an access opening opened as seen from below. In the following description, the upper and lower directions are based on the typical use state of the magnetic disk cartridge, and for convenience, the direction perpendicular to the surface of the magnetic disk medium is the upper and lower sides, and there is a chuck center hole that exposes the center core to the outside. Is down. Further, description will be made using the front, rear, left and right directions shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is configured by storing a magnetic disk medium DM in a cartridge case C. The cartridge case C includes a base frame 10, a lower plate 20 joined to the lower side of the base frame 10, and an upper plate 30 joined to the upper side of the base frame 10.
The cartridge case C has a card shape whose outer shape is substantially rectangular in plan view. One corner of the rectangle is cut out in a chamfered shape to form a chamfered portion C1 and is used as a mark in the direction of insertion into the disk drive D. The insertion direction is set so that the chamfered portion C1 is located on the right front in a plan view, but is not limited thereto.

In the direction orthogonal to the insertion direction, in FIG. 1, an access opening C2 is formed on the right side as a side opening that allows the magnetic disk medium DM to face the outside. The swing arm SA having the magnetic head H at the tip of the disk drive D enters the inside of the cartridge case C through the access opening C2 and accesses the magnetic disk medium DM.
The access opening C2 is closed by the rotary shutter 40 when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is not used, for example, during storage, and is opened by rotating the rotary shutter 40 during use.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a chuck center hole C3 for coupling the spindle SP (see FIG. 1) of the disk drive D to the magnetic disk medium DM is formed in the center of the lower side of the cartridge case C. Yes. The chuck center hole C3 is closed by the swing shutter 50 when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is not used, and is opened by swinging the swing shutter 50 during use, and has a chuck portion that the magnetic disk media DM has. The center core 61 (chuck part 61a) is exposed to the outside.

Next, details of the magnetic disk cartridge 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the magnetic disk cartridge 1, FIG. 4 is an enlarged exploded perspective view of the base frame, (a) is a perspective view seen from above, and (b) is a perspective view seen from below. It is. 5A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VV in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5B is a view corresponding to the VV cross-sectional view in FIG. 1 of the cartridge case formed by insert molding. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the magnetic disk cartridge with the upper plate removed, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the rotary shutter as viewed from below.
As shown in FIG. 3, the base frame 10 constitutes a side wall of the cartridge case C, and is a C-shape formed in a shape in which one side of a rectangular frame that substantially surrounds the magnetic disk medium DM is cut out. It is a member. Specifically, the access opening C2 described above is formed on the right side 10R. The access opening C2 is sufficient if it is open to the side of the base frame 10. Therefore, the access opening C2 is not necessarily formed by cutting out one side of the base frame 10. For example, the access opening C2 is formed by thinning a part of one side. Or may be formed by providing a slit on one side. Further, a slit-like opening C4 for shutter operation is formed in the left side 10L of the base frame 10 along the front and rear. The shutter operation opening C4 is an opening through which the rotary shutter 40 is exposed to the outside.
As shown in FIG. 4A, the inner circumference of the base frame 10 has a cylindrical inner wall 11 that matches the outer circumference of the rotary shutter 40 (see FIG. 3). It is pivotally supported. Of the inner periphery of the base frame 10, a portion on the left front side is recessed outward from the cylindrical inner wall 11. This recessed portion is a spring accommodating portion 17 that accommodates a lock spring 64 (see FIG. 3) described later.

The base frame 10 is divided into a main frame 10X and a subframe 10Y. The sub-frame 10Y is a strip-shaped member that forms the upper side of the shutter operation opening C4. The left side 10L of the main frame 10X is thinly formed to form a shutter operation opening C4 corresponding to the subframe 10Y (referred to as “thin piece portion 12a”). At both ends of the left side 10L of the main frame 10X, joint bases 12b that are one step higher than the thin piece portion 12a are formed. By joining the subframe 10Y to the joining base 12b, a slit-like shutter operation opening C4 is formed between the thin piece portion 12a and the subframe 10Y (see FIG. 3). Further, both ends in the front-rear direction of the shutter operation opening C4 are grooves 18 having a predetermined width continuous with the shutter operation opening C4 when viewed from the outside (see FIG. 8A).
The height of the joining base 12b is set so that the upper surface 13a of the subframe 10Y is flush with the upper surface 13a of the main frame 10X after joining the subframe 10Y to the joining base 12b. In the present embodiment, the base frame 10 is configured by joining two members of the main frame 10X and the subframe 10Y. However, the base frame 10 may be integrally formed or divided into three or more members. It may be configured.

Further, ribs 14 are formed on the outer peripheral edge of the base frame 10 so as to extend up and down over substantially the entire circumference. The height of the rib 14 from the upper surface 13a and the lower surface 13b of the base frame 10 is the same as or higher than the thicknesses of the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30. For this reason, when the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 are joined to the base frame 10, the edge 29 of the lower plate 20 and the edge 39 of the upper plate 30 are hidden by the ribs 14 as shown in FIG. When handling 1, the edges 29 and 39 are not caught. For this reason, the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 are difficult to peel from the base frame 10.
In this sense, the height of the rib 14 from the upper surface 13a and the lower surface 13b (see FIG. 4B) is preferably higher than the thicknesses of the upper plate 30 and the lower plate 20, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the chamfered portion C1 of the base frame 10 is formed with a dovetail recess 15 that increases in width toward the back. The recess 15 stores functional parts. For example, a transparent plastic piece (referred to as “identification member 66”) corresponding to the recess 15 can be disposed in the recess 15 as an optical component (see FIG. 3). Such an identification member 66 may be changed depending on the type of the magnetic disk cartridge 1 and used to identify the magnetic disk cartridge 1. For example, if the color and reflectance of the identification member 66 are changed, the magnetic disk cartridge 1 can be identified by detecting the reflectance and color of the identification member 66. Thus, the chamfered portion C1 can be used as an identification site. The identification member 66 is not limited to using such an optical component, and an RFID tag may be used. When the RFID tag is arranged in the chamfered portion C1, the magnetic disk cartridge 1 can be identified by accessing the RFID tag from the two directions of the front side and the right side of the magnetic disk cartridge 1.

  In the base frame 10, a through-hole 16 for bonding that penetrates vertically is formed behind the recess 15. The joining through hole 16 is used when joining the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30.

  As the material of the base frame 10, it is desirable to select a resin because it is easy to mold a complicated shape, but a metal, ceramics, or the like may be selected.

As shown in FIG. 3, the lower plate 20 is a substantially rectangular plate member that constitutes the lower wall of the cartridge case C, and has a chuck center hole C3 that exposes the center core 61 to the outside. The size of the lower plate 20 in plan view is slightly larger than that of the rotary shutter 40, and the outer peripheral portion of the rotary shutter 40 is located inside the edge portion of the lower plate 20. A chamfered portion C1 ′ is formed at the right front corner of the lower plate 20 following the chamfered portion C1. Further, on the upper surface 20a of the lower plate 20, in the vicinity of the left front corner, interference between the convex portion 21 for swingably supporting the swing shutter 50 and the engaging convex portion 42c of the rotary shutter 40 is avoided. A relief groove 22 is formed.
The convex portion 21 is formed in a cylindrical shape by burring. A bearing 51 of the swing shutter 50 is fitted on the outside of the convex portion 21, and a retaining pin 63 is fitted on the inner cylinder portion 21a.
The escape groove 22 is located on an arc concentric with the chuck center hole C3. This is because the engaging projection 42c rotates concentrically with the center of the cartridge case C (center of the magnetic disk medium DM) in accordance with the rotation operation of the rotary shutter 40. The depth of the escape groove 22 only needs to be deep enough to avoid interference with the engaging convex portion 42c. If the upper surface 20a of the lower plate 20 (corresponding to the inner surface of the cartridge case C) is sufficiently smooth, the friction caused by the sliding between the engaging convex portion 42c and the lower plate 20 is small, and no abrasion powder is generated, escape The groove 22 may not be provided.

  Near the right front corner portion of the lower plate 20, a joining claw portion 23 raised upward corresponding to the joining through hole 16 is formed. The joining claws 23 are pressed into the joining through holes 16 of the base frame 10 to generate a joining force between the base frame 10 and the lower plate 20. The base frame 10 and the lower plate 20 are joined without using the joining claws 23, using an adhesive, press-fitting the lower plate 20 and the ribs 14, and forming caulking projections on the base frame 10. There are methods such as heat caulking after fitting into 20 appropriate openings, but the method is not particularly limited.

  The upper plate 30 is a substantially rectangular plate member that constitutes the upper wall of the cartridge case C, and a chamfered portion C1 ′ is formed at the right front corner following the chamfered portion C1. The size of the upper plate 30 in plan view is slightly larger than the rotary shutter 40, and the outer peripheral portion of the rotary shutter 40 is located inside the edge of the upper plate 30. A protrusion 31 that fixes the center core 61 when not in use is formed at the center of the lower surface 30 a of the upper plate 30. Further, in the vicinity of the right front corner portion of the upper plate 30, a joining claw portion 33 that protrudes downward corresponding to the joining through hole 16 is formed. The joining claws 33 are press-fitted into the joining through holes 16 of the base frame 10 to generate a joining force between the base frame 10 and the upper plate 30. The base frame 10 and the upper plate 30 can be joined by other methods in the same manner as the base frame 10 and the lower plate 20 are joined.

  A liner 65 for cleaning the flexible disk FD is affixed to the lower surface 30 a of the upper plate 30, that is, the portion corresponding to the inner surface of the cartridge case C. As the material of the liner 65, a nonwoven fabric, a sheet obtained by foaming ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene, or the like can be suitably used. The liner 65 is a circular sheet-like member, and has a circular through hole 65 a that matches the size of the center core 61 at the center. Further, a notch 65b that prevents interference with the swing arm SA is formed in accordance with the operating range of the swing arm SA.

The material of the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 is not particularly limited, but at least one, preferably both are made of a metal plate, preferably stainless steel, so that necessary rigidity can be ensured even if it is thin. Particularly, like the lower plate 20 of this embodiment, the plate on the side that supports the swing shutter 50 so as to be swingable is made of a metal plate, so that the swing shutter can be used even when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is used repeatedly. Wear due to 50 swinging operations can be suppressed, and high durability can be realized.
The metal that can be suitably applied to the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 can be appropriately selected from materials having a rust prevention effect and rigidity in addition to stainless steel.
Further, the base frame 10, the lower plate 20, and the upper plate 30 are not configured as separate members, but the base frame 10 and the lower plate 20 may be integrally formed of resin, aluminum alloy, magnesium alloy, or the like. The base frame 10 and the upper plate 30 may be integrally formed using these materials.
Further, when the shape of the base frame 10 is complicated or when there is an undercut shape, a part of the base frame 10, for example, the main frame 10X and the lower plate 20 is formed integrally, and the base frame 10 For example, the subframe 10Y and the upper plate 30 may be integrally formed. By adopting a structure in which the base frame 10 is divided in this way, it is possible to smoothly perform die cutting and increase the shape accuracy of the product.

  Furthermore, when the base frame 10 is made of resin, the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30 made of a metal plate may be inserted and molded when the base frame 10 is injection molded. For example, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the base plate 10 and the base frame 10 so that the edge portion 29 'of the lower plate 20 is embedded in the base frame 10 and the edge portion 29' is held by the holding portion 14 'shown in the figure. If the lower plate 20 is insert-molded, the base frame 10 and the lower plate 20 can be securely connected, and the rigidity of the magnetic disk cartridge 1 can be further increased. In this molding, if the edge 29 'of the lower plate 20 is shifted inward (upper plate 30 side) as shown in FIG. 5B, the overall thickness of the cartridge case C is not increased. The edge 29 ′ of the lower plate 20 can be embedded in the base frame 10. In the modification of FIG. 5B, the base frame 10 and the lower plate 20 are insert-molded, but the base frame 10 and the upper plate 30 may be insert-molded.

Further, the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30 on the side not supporting the swing shutter 50 can be constituted by a transparent plate. By using a transparent plate, the inside of the cartridge case C can be visually recognized from the outside. Therefore, in the unlikely event that dust has entered the cartridge case C or the flexible disk FD is bent, it is immediately visible. Can be confirmed. As the transparent plate at this time, a glass material or a resin material can be used, but by using the resin material, it can be manufactured at a low cost and is hardly damaged even when an impact is applied.
Further, by using such a transparent plate, it is possible to increase the degree of aesthetics and design freedom.

The thicknesses of the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 are preferably 0.08 to 0.2 mm. By adopting such a thickness, the necessary rigidity can be ensured with a minimum thickness. Further, the total thickness of the cartridge case C including the lower plate 20, the base frame 10, and the upper plate 30 is desirably 1.5 to 2.2 mm, and more desirably 1.8 to 2.0 mm. With such a thickness, practical rigidity can be ensured, and it can be applied to a disk drive that matches the size of a card type device such as the CompactFlash (registered trademark) standard or the PCMCIA standard.
Further, the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 may have different thicknesses. For example, the lower plate 20 can be made thicker, the rigidity of the cartridge case C can be secured by the base frame 10 and the lower plate 20, and the upper plate 30 can be made thinner. Further, by increasing the thickness of the lower plate 20, it is possible to form the protrusions 21 that support the swing shutter 50 so as to be swingable when the protrusions 21 are formed by burring.

In addition, when either one of the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30 is formed of a resin plate, it is preferable that the resin plate is formed entirely or partially from a temperature indicating material that changes color at a specific temperature.
As this temperature indicating material, for example, a paint in which two kinds of reactive substances of different colors are mixed and one of the reactive substances is sealed in a heat-meltable microcapsule can be applied. In such a temperature indicating material, when the temperature rises to a predetermined temperature, the microcapsule melts and the two kinds of reactive substances mix and react to change to a color different from that before the microcapsule melts. . It is also possible to apply a temperature indicating material using a liquid crystal compound.
For the magnetic disk cartridge 1 of the present embodiment, a paint made of these temperature indicating materials is applied to the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30, or a label having the temperature indicating material is attached to the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30. It is good to keep it. In addition, when the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30 is made of a transparent plate, if a coating made of a temperature indicating material is applied to the inside thereof or a label having the temperature indicating material is pasted, There is no risk that the temperature indicating material will peel off. When the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30 is formed of a transparent plate, the temperature indicating material is provided at other positions such as the base frame 10, the center core 61, and the inner surface of the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30 on the non-transparent plate side. It is also possible.
Although the temperature indicating characteristic of the temperature indicating material depends on the material constituting the flexible disk FD, for example, when polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is used as the support of the flexible disk FD, the color should be changed at 50 to 60 ° C.
In this manner, by using the temperature indicating material for the lower plate 20 or the upper plate 30, it is possible to recognize at a glance that it has been exposed to a high temperature, so that there is no accident of recording data after accidentally exposing to a high temperature. For example, when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is used to store a digital image taken with a digital camera, it is difficult to retake the image, but by using this temperature indicating material, it is confirmed in advance whether or not the recording disk cartridge has failed. Can prevent accidents due to recording errors.

The rotary shutter 40 includes a C-shaped shutter member 41 and a reinforcing plate 42 bonded to the lower side of the shutter member 41.
The shutter member 41 is a member formed by injection molding of resin, for example, and as shown in FIG. 6, a driven gear 41a is formed over about one third of the outer periphery. The driven gear 41a is exposed to the outside from the shutter operation opening C4, and meshes with a drive gear 110 (see FIG. 1) of the disk drive D when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is inserted into the disk drive D. Therefore, the rotary shutter 40 is rotated by the drive gear 110 by the insertion operation of the magnetic disk cartridge 1, and the rotary shutter 40 can be opened.

As shown in FIG. 7, the shutter member 41 has sliding contact ribs 41b along the lower edge of the outer periphery. The lower end surface of the sliding contact rib 41b is in sliding contact with the lower plate 20 on a certain circumference (see FIG. 5A. Note that the sliding contact rib 41b is shown in a displacement diagram), and is relative to the lower plate 20. The rotary shutter 40 can be smoothly rotated. However, the slidable contact rib 41b is not formed on the entire circumference of the shutter member 41, but forms a window 41b 'instead of being formed in a certain range facing the portion cut into the C shape. The window portion 41 b ′ is formed so that the shutter member 41 does not interfere with the operation of the swing shutter 50. More specifically, the swing shutter 50 is pivotally supported on the radially outer side of the shutter member 41 and swings between the rotary shutter 40 (shutter member 41) and the lower plate 20, as shown in FIG. The sliding contact rib 41b, which is the sliding contact portion between the lower plate 20 and the shutter member 41, is partially cut away to prevent interference between the swing shutter 50 and the shutter member 41 (sliding contact rib 41b). Thereby, the smooth operation of the swing shutter 50 is enabled.
The sliding contact rib 41b is not limited to being formed as a continuous rib, but can be formed as an intermittent protrusion, but in order to prevent dust from entering from the outside of the cartridge case C, The rib shape is desirable.

As shown in FIG. 3, the reinforcing plate 42 is a substantially circular member made of a metal plate such as stainless steel, for example, and has a center hole 42a through which the center core 61 formed in the center is inserted, and an operating range of the swing arm SA. It has the notch 42b and the engaging convex part 42c which protruded below (swing shutter 50 side). The same liner 65 as the liner 65 attached to the upper plate 30 is attached to the upper surface of the reinforcing plate 42.
The reinforcing plate 42 is a member that reinforces the rigidity of the shutter member 41 and forms an engaging portion (in this embodiment, an engaging convex portion 42c) for transmitting the operation of the rotary shutter 40 to the swing shutter 50. is there. If the shutter member 41 has sufficient rigidity and has an engaging portion that engages with the swing shutter 50, the reinforcing plate 42 is not necessarily required.
Further, the center hole 42a only needs to allow the center core 61 to pass therethrough, so that the center hole 42a may be formed larger than the present embodiment, and may be, for example, an opening continuous with the notch 42b.
Furthermore, since the notch 42b is for facilitating the swing arm SA to enter the cartridge case C, it is not always necessary if there is a space for the swing arm SA to enter the cartridge case C.

As shown in FIG. 3, the swing shutter 50 is a member for opening and closing the chuck center hole C <b> 3 of the lower plate 20, and is interposed between the lower plate 20 and the rotary shutter 40. The swing shutter 50 is a substantially fan-shaped plate having a narrow base end side and a wide tip end side, and a wide end portion has a size sufficient to close the chuck center hole C3.
A bearing 51 formed in a cylindrical shape by burring is formed on the base end side of the swing shutter 50. The bearing 51 is fitted on the convex portion 21 of the lower plate 20, and the swing shutter 50 is pivotally supported by the lower plate 20 so as to be swingable. The swing shutter 50 that is externally fitted to the convex portion 21 of the lower plate 20 is prevented from falling off the lower plate 20 by the retaining pin 63 being fitted to the inner cylindrical portion 21a of the convex portion 21. The retaining pin 63 has a pin part 63 a and a head part 63 b, and the outer periphery of the head part 63 b has substantially the same diameter as the outer periphery of the bearing 51.
The swing shutter 50 has a substantially elongated engagement hole 52 formed along the outer periphery in the middle between the proximal end and the distal end. The engagement hole portion 52 engages with the engagement convex portion 42 c and performs a function of transmitting the rotation operation of the engagement convex portion 42 c to the swing shutter 50. There is a possibility that the front end (lower end) of the engaging convex part 42 c engaged with the engaging hole part 52 slightly protrudes below the engaging hole part 52, but this protruding part is accommodated in the escape groove 22. Therefore, the smooth operation of the rotary shutter 40 is not hindered.

  In the present embodiment, the engagement hole portion 52 is formed as a through hole, but may be an engagement portion that is not limited to the through hole. For example, it may be formed as a groove (engagement groove portion) instead of the through hole, or the through hole or groove may be opened at the edge of the swing shutter 50. Further, the rotary shutter 40 and the swing shutter 50 are engaged by the engagement convex portion 42c of the rotary shutter 40 and the engagement hole portion 52 of the swing shutter 50, but the relationship between the projections and depressions may be reversed. That is, the swing shutter 50 may be provided with an engaging convex portion that protrudes toward the rotary shutter 40, and the rotary shutter 40 may be formed with an engaging hole or an engaging groove portion that engages with the engaging convex portion. .

  The head portion 63b of the retaining pin 63 and the outer periphery of the bearing 51 are formed to have the same diameter so as to form one continuous shaft, and this continuous shaft is not used for the magnetic disk cartridge 1. Sometimes a lock spring 64 is supported to stop unnecessary rotation of the rotary shutter 40.

  The lock spring 64 includes a lock leg portion 64 a, a spring leg portion 64 b, an unlocking leg portion 64 c, and a bearing portion 64 d for pivotally supporting them on the retaining pin 63. As shown in FIG. 6, in the lock spring 64, the tip of the lock leg portion 64a is engaged with the driven gear 41a of the shutter member 41, and the spring leg portion 64b is the inner circumference of the base frame 10, specifically, the spring housing. It abuts against the inner wall of the portion 17. The lock release leg 64c faces the outside of the cartridge case C from the shutter operation opening C4, and the bearing 64d of the lock spring 64 is externally fitted to the retaining pin 63 and the bearing 51 (see FIG. 3). ing. In the state of FIG. 6, the spring leg portion 64b generates a biasing force between the spring leg portion 64b and the inner wall of the spring accommodating portion 17, and generates a clockwise torque that presses the lock leg portion 64a toward the driven gear 41a. A lock spring 64 locks the rotation of the rotary shutter 40. On the other hand, when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is inserted into the disk drive D, the drive gear 110 comes into contact with the unlocking leg 64c, and the lock leg 64a is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. Is configured to release the lock of the rotary shutter 40.

As shown in FIG. 3, the magnetic disk medium DM is composed of a flexible disk FD and a center core 61.
The flexible disk FD has a disk shape having a circular opening FD1 at the center, and is generally configured by providing a magnetic layer on both sides or one side of a support made of a resin film such as polyester. The material and the layer structure of the support and the magnetic layer can be appropriately selected from those conventionally known, and are not particularly limited.
The center core 61 is a member having a certain degree of rigidity that is joined to the opening FD1 by the sticking member 62. The center core 61 is generally made of a magnetic material such as a plated steel plate or magnetic stainless steel so that the spindle SP of the disk drive D can be magnetically attracted.

As shown in FIG. 3, the center core 61 is composed of a frustoconical chuck portion 61a and a flange portion 61b extending radially outward from the large diameter portion of the chuck portion 61a. A center hole 61c penetrating vertically is formed at the center of the chuck portion 61a. The center hole 61c is formed to have a size capable of engaging with the center protrusion SP1 (see FIG. 1) of the spindle SP in order to align the center with the spindle SP. Further, the size of the center hole 61c also corresponds to the size of the protrusion 31 of the upper plate 30 described above. The conical surface 61d on the outer periphery of the chuck portion 61a serves as an engaging slope for abutting the swing shutter 50 and pushing the center core 61 itself into the cartridge case C when the swing shutter 50 is closed.
The center core 61 is disposed with the small diameter side of the chuck portion 61a facing downward, and the flexible disk FD is attached to the flange portion 61b from the lower side, that is, the side from which the chuck portion 61a protrudes.

The magnetic disk cartridge 1 configured as described above is used as follows.
8A and 8B show the operation of the rotary shutter. FIG. 8A is a perspective view of the closed state as viewed from the left front, and FIG. 8B is a perspective view of the open state as viewed from the left front. FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the magnetic disk cartridge. FIG. 9A shows a state where the rotary shutter is closed, and FIG. 9B shows a state where the rotary shutter is opened.

  When the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is not in use, the rotary shutter 40 closes the access opening C2 as shown in FIG. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the rotary shutter 40 is locked because the tip of the lock leg 64a of the lock spring 64 is engaged with the driven gear 41a of the shutter member 41. Never open. Therefore, dust does not easily enter the cartridge case C, and errors in recording / reproducing data on the flexible disk FD are suppressed. Further, as shown in FIG. 9A, the center hole 61c of the center core 61 is engaged with the protrusion 31 formed on the lower surface 30a of the upper plate 30, so that the movement in the diametrical direction is suppressed and flexible. The disk FD is not damaged.

When the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is inserted into the disk drive D, it is inserted with the insertion direction shown in FIG. As a result of this insertion operation, as shown in FIG. 8A, the drive gear 110 of the disk drive D enters the groove 18 and comes into contact with the unlocking leg 64c of the lock spring 64, and the locking leg 64a and The engagement of the driven gear 41a is released. When the driving gear 110 enters further into the groove 18, as shown in FIG. 8B, the driving gear 110 meshes with the driven gear 41a, and the driven gear 41a is rotated, that is, the rotary shutter 40 is rotated.
When the rotary shutter 40 rotates, the engaging convex portion 42c (see FIG. 3) of the rotary shutter 40 engages with the engaging hole portion 52 (see FIG. 3) of the swing shutter 50 to push and move the swing shutter 50. It is swung clockwise in FIG. As the swing shutter 50 swings, the chuck center hole C3 is opened, and the center core 61 is exposed to the outside from the chuck center hole C3 as shown in FIG.

  At this time, as shown in FIG. 6, the rotary shutter 40 is slidably contacted with the lower plate 20 by the slidable contact ribs 41b formed along the circumference, and thus rotates smoothly. The swing shutter 50 swings between the rotary shutter 40 and the lower plate 20, but does not interfere with the sliding contact rib 41b because the swing shutter 50 swings in the range of the window 41b 'where the sliding contact rib 41b is cut. The rotary shutter 40 can be swung while the smooth rotation is maintained. Then, as shown in FIG. 9B, the center core 61 is detached from the protrusion 31 of the upper plate 30 and can move freely. At the same time, the rotation of the rotary shutter 40 itself causes the opening portion of the shutter member 41 to be aligned with the access opening portion C2 so that the flexible disk FD is exposed to the outside from the access opening portion C2.

  Then, the spindle SP of the disk drive D is coupled to the center core 61 by magnetic attraction to hold the magnetic disk medium DM. At this time, the center projection SP1 of the spindle SP is engaged with the center hole 61c of the center core 61 to perform centering. In addition, the flexible disk FD is positioned approximately at the center in the vertical direction (thickness direction) of the cartridge case C. For this reason, when the magnetic disk medium DM is rotated, the flow of air above and below the flexible disk FD is stabilized, and surface deflection of the flexible disk FD is suppressed.

  Next, the magnetic disk medium DM starts rotating by the rotation of the spindle SP. The swing arm SA of the disk drive D enters the cartridge case C from the access opening C2 opened on the right side of the magnetic disk cartridge 1, and the magnetic head H provided on the swing arm SA is loaded on the flexible disk FD. The

After data is recorded / reproduced by the magnetic head H, the swing arm SA is withdrawn from the cartridge case C and the magnetic head H is unloaded. Further, the spindle SP is detached from the center core 61.
When the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is taken out from the disk drive D, an operation opposite to that at the time of insertion is performed. That is, when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is pulled out from the disk drive D, the drive gear 110 is rotated in the direction to close the rotary shutter 40, and the engaging convex portion 42 c of the rotary shutter 40 is moved by the rotation operation. The swing shutter 50 is pushed and moved by engaging with the engagement hole 52, and is swung counterclockwise in FIG. By this swinging operation, the chuck center hole C3 is closed by the swing shutter 50. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 9B to 9A, the swing shutter 50 contacts the conical surface 61d of the center core 61 to push the magnetic disk medium DM into the cartridge case C. Then, the center hole 61c of the center core 61 and the protrusion 31 are engaged, and the magnetic disk medium DM is fixed in the cartridge case C.

  Further, when the drive gear 110 is retracted from the groove 18 from the state of FIG. 8B to the state of FIG. 8A, the lock release leg 64c of the lock spring 64 and the drive gear 110 are disengaged, and the lock spring is released. The 64 locking leg portions 64a rotate clockwise in FIG. 6 and engage with the driven gear 41a to lock the rotation of the rotary shutter 40.

According to the magnetic disk cartridge 1 of the present embodiment described above, the following effects are obtained.
First, since the opening C2 for access is not provided in the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30, but is formed in the side part, specifically, the side part of the base frame 10, the opening of the cartridge case C is minimized. It is limited, and dust is hard to enter. Further, since only the side surface of the magnetic disk medium DM can be seen from the access opening C2, the recording surface of the flexible disk FD cannot be directly touched by a hand or the like, so that the flexible disk FD is unexpectedly soiled. There is nothing. Therefore, the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is less prone to errors due to these dusts and contamination.

  The rotary shutter 40 is arranged inside the base frame 10, and the outer peripheral portion of the rotary shutter 40 is arranged inside the edges of the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30, so that the rotary shutter 40 is not used when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is not used. The shutter 40 is not moved by being caught from the outside.

  Further, since the swing shutter 50 operates inside the lower plate 20 and closes the chuck center hole C3, the swing shutter 50 is not unexpectedly opened by being caught by an external object. In particular, since the swing shutter 50 is configured to close the chuck center hole C3 with a single member, it is difficult to be caught by an external object.

  Around the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30, ribs 14 formed around the base frame 10 are disposed. Since the height of the rib 14 is larger than the thickness of the lower plate 20 and the upper plate 30, The edges 29 and 39 of the plate 20 and the upper plate 30 are not caught by external objects.

  Since the upper plate 30 and the lower plate 20 are made of a metal plate, high rigidity can be secured and damage to the magnetic disk medium DM can be prevented while the entire thickness is reduced. In addition, since the electromagnetic wave is attenuated by the cartridge case C, the generation of noise in the magnetic head can be suppressed. Further, since the lower plate 20 that supports the swing shutter 50 so as to be swingable is made of a metal plate, even if the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is repeatedly used, the support portion of the swing shutter 50 is not easily worn and has high durability. Can be realized.

  Since the rotary shutter 40 is in sliding contact with the lower plate 20 by sliding contact ribs 41b formed along the circumference, a smooth rotation operation is possible. In addition, a part of the sliding contact rib 41b is cut out so as not to hinder the swinging operation of the swing shutter 50 to form the window 41b ', so the operation of the swing shutter 50 is also good.

Moreover, since the rotary shutter 40 has the reinforcing plate 42 on the lower plate 20 side, a stable rotation operation is possible.
Further, the rotation of the rotary shutter 40 is transmitted to the swinging operation of the swing shutter 50 by the engagement of the engagement convex portion 42 c formed on the reinforcing plate 42 and the engagement hole portion 52 of the swing shutter 50, and the rotary shutter. The rotary shutter 40 and the swing shutter 50 can be moved simultaneously only by the operation of moving the 40 from the outside. Although this engagement convex part 42c may protrude a little from the engagement hole part 52, since the interference with this protrusion part and the lower plate 20 is avoided by the escape groove 22 formed in the lower plate 20, Smooth rotation operation of the rotary shutter 40 is ensured, and generation of dust due to sliding contact between the engaging projection 42c and the lower plate 20 can be prevented.

  Since the center core 61 is engaged with the protrusion 31 when the magnetic disk cartridge 1 is not used, the magnetic disk medium DM is fixed and the magnetic disk medium DM is not damaged. Therefore, the clearance between the magnetic disk medium DM and the base frame 10 can be minimized, and the storage capacity can be increased by increasing the size of the magnetic disk medium DM.

  Since the access opening C2 is provided in the direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the magnetic disk cartridge 1, in the embodiment, on the right side, the swing arm SA and the like are arranged on the right side to reduce the depth of the disk drive D. can do. For this reason, the card-type disk drive D which is thin and has a small depth can be realized.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention can be implemented with appropriate modifications and is naturally not limited to the above-described embodiment.
For example, the recording disk medium is not limited to a magnetic disk medium, but may be an optical disk medium such as a magneto-optical disk medium or a phase change disk medium, and is not limited to a flexible disk medium, but a rigid disk such as a DVD-RAM. It may be media.
In the embodiment, the swing shutter 50 is swingably supported by the lower plate 20. However, the swing shutter 50 may be swingably supported by the upper plate 30 or the base frame 10.
Further, the drive gear 110 is not limited to one fixed in the disk drive D, and may be one that is rotationally driven.

1 is an external perspective view showing a magnetic disk cartridge and a disk drive according to one embodiment. FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of a magnetic disk cartridge with an access opening opened as viewed from below. It is a disassembled perspective view of a magnetic disk cartridge. An enlarged exploded perspective view of a base frame is shown, (a) is a perspective view seen from above, and (b) is a perspective view seen from below. (A) is VV sectional drawing of FIG. 1, (b) is a figure corresponded to VV sectional drawing of FIG. 1 of the cartridge case formed by insert molding. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the magnetic disk cartridge with an upper plate removed. It is the perspective view which looked at the rotary shutter from the lower part. The operation of the rotary shutter is shown, (a) is a perspective view of the closed state seen from the left front, and (b) is a perspective view of the opened state seen from the left front. Sectional views of the magnetic disk cartridge are shown, in which (a) shows a state where the rotary shutter is closed, and (b) shows a state where the rotary shutter is opened.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Magnetic disk cartridge 10 Base frame 14 Rib 20 Lower plate 30 Upper plate 40 Rotary shutter 50 Swing shutter 61 Center core 110 Drive gear C Cartridge case C2 Access opening C3 Chuck center hole C4 Shutter operation opening D Disk drive H Magnetic Head DM Magnetic disk media SA Swing arm SP Spindle

Claims (6)

A recording disk cartridge comprising a recording disk medium and a cartridge case for storing the recording disk medium,
A base frame having a side opening that substantially surrounds a radially outer side of the recording disk medium and constitutes a side wall of the cartridge case and faces the recording disk medium to the outside;
A lower plate which is disposed below the recording disk medium to form a lower wall of the cartridge case and which has a chuck center hole for coupling a spindle of a disk drive to the recording disk medium;
An upper plate disposed above the recording disk medium and constituting an upper wall of the cartridge case;
A rotary shutter that opens and closes the side opening by rotating in the cartridge case;
A swing shutter that is disposed between the recording disk medium and the lower plate and engages with the rotary shutter to swing and open the chuck center hole by swinging according to the rotational operation of the rotary shutter. Prepared,
A recording disk cartridge, wherein at least one of the upper plate and the lower plate is made of a metal plate.   The swing shutter is swingably supported by at least one of the lower plate and the upper plate, and at least the swing shutter that supports the swing shutter among the lower plate and the upper plate is made of a metal plate. The recording disk cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the recording disk cartridge is a recording disk cartridge.   2. The recording disk cartridge according to claim 1, wherein one of the lower plate and the upper plate is formed of a transparent plate that allows the inside of the cartridge case to be visually recognized.   The recording disk cartridge according to claim 3, wherein the transparent plate is made of a resin material.   The cartridge case has a thickness of 1.5 to 2.2 mm, and the lower plate and the upper plate made of a metal plate have a thickness of 0.08 to 0.2 mm. The recording disk cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 4.   The one of the lower plate and the upper plate is made of a resin plate, and the resin plate has at least a part of a temperature indicating material that changes color at a specific temperature. Recording disk cartridge.

Images