JP2008176867A - Cartridge system for information recording medium, and information recording/reproducing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cartridge system for an information recording medium, which is easily attached to/detached from an information recording/reproducing device and easily handled. <P>SOLUTION: This system is provided with a small cartridge (1, 3) for housing a thin flexible optical disk (13, 33), and a large cartridge (2, 4) capable of housing at least two or more of the small cartridges (1, 3) and attached to an information recording/reproducing device. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a cartridge for storing an information recording medium. The present invention also relates to an information recording / reproducing apparatus using such a cartridge system.

  In recent years, optical information recording media have been put into practical use as recording media for storing not only computer information but also information such as audio, still images, and moving images. Optical information recording media are being developed for higher density and higher speed transfer. At the same time, the optical information recording medium itself should be thinner and thinner, considering the future thinness and miniaturization of drive devices that perform recording and playback, and the lighter and smaller size when storing media. Optical information recording media are being developed.

  In general, such an ultra-thin optical information recording medium is stacked in one or a plurality of sheets and accommodated in a cartridge, and the cartridge is mounted on an information recording / reproducing apparatus to record and reproduce information. Patent Document 1 describes a cartridge in which a plurality of ultra-thin optical information recording media having a recording layer formed on one surface of a flexible substrate are stacked and stored.

JP 2004-134019 A

  Some information recording / reproducing apparatuses can mount a plurality of cartridges, for example, 10, 50, and 100 cartridges in a stacked manner. In such a case, it is necessary to mount a plurality of cartridges so that they are all aligned at the reference position for accessing the disk, and the cartridge must be removed and mounted during replacement for each cartridge. For this reason, as the number of cartridges to be connected increases, it takes a lot of work time to attach to and detach from the information recording / reproducing apparatus.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an information recording medium cartridge system that can be easily attached to and detached from an information recording / reproducing apparatus. The present invention also provides an information recording / reproducing apparatus using such an information recording medium cartridge system.

  In order to solve the above problems, an information recording medium cartridge system according to the present invention can store a small cartridge for storing a thin flexible optical disc and at least two small cartridges, and can be mounted on an information recording / reproducing apparatus. It consists of a large cartridge.

  Preferably, a rib, a protrusion or a groove for restricting the movement of the small cartridge only to the slide in the insertion / extraction direction is provided inside the large cartridge.

  Preferably, when stored in the large cartridge, all the small cartridges are provided with a positioning mechanism that stops at a position where the surfaces for accessing the thin flexible optical disk are the same surface.

  Preferably, a fixing mechanism for fixing the small cartridge accommodated in the large cartridge is provided.

  Preferably, the small cartridge includes a shutter that can be opened and closed.

  Preferably, the shutter of the small cartridge is opened and closed by sliding a shutter open / close button.

  When the small cartridge is inserted into the large cartridge, the shutter opening / closing button of the small cartridge slides, and the shutter of the small cartridge may be opened.

  An information recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention includes the above-described disk cartridge system, and includes means for loading a thin flexible optical disk housed in the disk cartridge system and means for recording / reproducing information on the loaded thin flexible optical disk. It is characterized by.

  A means for sliding the shutter opening / closing button of the small cartridge may be provided.

  According to the present invention, an information recording medium cartridge system that can be easily attached to and detached from the information recording / reproducing apparatus and is easy to handle is realized.

  Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments, and it goes without saying that modifications, additions, and substitutions can be made without departing from the essential scope of the present invention.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the disk cartridge system of the present invention. The disk cartridge system of the present invention comprises a small cartridge 1 that stores a plurality of thin flexible optical disks, for example, 10 to 20, and a large cartridge 2 that can store at least two small cartridges 1 (four in this example). .

  The small cartridge 1 has a disk access opening for inserting and removing a thin flexible disk in the insertion direction (arrow in the figure) into the large cartridge 2, and a shutter 11 that can be opened and closed is provided in the disk access opening. ing. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the structure of the shutter 11 of the small cartridge 1. The shutter 11 is composed of two flexible thin plates such as resin, and can be opened and closed by sliding a shutter open / close button 12 provided on the side of the small cartridge 1.

  The large cartridge 2 has an opening on each of a pair of facing surfaces. The small cartridge 1 is taken in and out from one opening, and the thin flexible optical disk is taken in and out from the other opening. Inside the large cartridge 2, ribs, protrusions, or grooves that restrict the movement of the small cartridge 1 only to the slide in the insertion / extraction direction are provided. In the example of this figure, the large cartridge 2 includes a rib 21. The small cartridge 1 can be accommodated in the large cartridge 2 by the inner wall of the large cartridge 2 and the rib 21 without rattling in the vertical and horizontal directions.

  The large cartridge 2 includes a slit 22 that is parallel to the insertion / extraction direction of the small cartridge 1 and that is open in the direction in which the small cartridge 1 is inserted. The slit 22 functions as an opening / closing mechanism for the shutter 11 of the small cartridge 1.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the operation of such a shutter opening / closing mechanism that opens and closes the shutter 11. When the small cartridge 1 is inserted into the large cartridge 2 along the rib 21 from the side having the disk access opening, the shutter opening / closing button 12 of the small cartridge 1 is fitted into the slit 22 of the large cartridge 2 and inserted to some extent. At that time, it hits the end of the slit 22 and when it is further inserted, the shutter opening / closing button 12 slides to open the shutter 11. When the insertion is completed, the shutter 11 opens completely and enters the inside of the small cartridge 1. The stored thin flexible optical disk 13 can be taken out.

  It is desirable to provide a small cartridge alignment mechanism that stops when the small cartridge 1 is inserted into the large cartridge 2 so that the disk access openings of all the small cartridges 1 are on the same plane. Furthermore, it is desirable to provide a small cartridge fixing mechanism for fixing the small cartridge in this state in order to prevent it from falling. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing such a mechanism. When the small cartridge 1 is inserted into the large cartridge 2, as shown in FIG. 4B, the small cartridge 1 comes into contact with the protrusion 23 provided on the large cartridge 2 and stops at a fixed position. The large cartridge 2 is also provided with an elastic member 24 having a convex portion. Usually, the convex portion of the elastic member 24 protrudes to the inside of the large cartridge 2, but when the small cartridge 1 is inserted into the large cartridge 2, it is pushed out by the small cartridge 1 as shown in FIG. . When the small cartridge 1 is inserted to the position shown in FIG. 4B, the convex portion of the elastic member 24 fits into the concave portion 14 provided in the small cartridge 1, and the small cartridge 1 is fixed to the large cartridge 2. As a result, when the large cartridge 2 is mounted on the information recording / reproducing apparatus, the disk access openings of all the small cartridges 1 that are accommodated are on the same surface, and therefore the disk loading mechanism of the information recording / reproducing apparatus operates accurately. Will be able to. Further, it is possible to prevent the small cartridge 1 from inadvertently moving in the front-rear direction inside the large cartridge 2 or dropping. FIG. 4C is a perspective view showing the small cartridge alignment mechanism. FIG. 4D is a side view showing the small cartridge fixing mechanism.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the disk cartridge system of the present invention. The disc cartridge system of the present invention comprises a small cartridge 3 for accommodating a plurality of thin flexible optical discs, for example, 10-20, and a large cartridge 2 for accommodating at least two small cartridges 3 (four in this example). .

  The small cartridge 3 is substantially the same as the small cartridge 1 in FIG. 1, and has an opening for inserting and removing a thin flexible disk in the insertion direction (arrow in the figure) into the large cartridge 4. An openable / closable shutter 31 is provided. The shutter 31 can be opened and closed by sliding a shutter open / close button 32 provided on the side of the small cartridge 3.

  The large cartridge 4 has an opening on each of a pair of facing surfaces. The small cartridge 3 is taken in and out from one opening, and the thin flexible optical disk is taken in and out from the other opening. Inside the large cartridge 4, ribs, protrusions, or grooves that restrict the movement of the small cartridge 3 only to the slide in the insertion / extraction direction are provided. In the example of this figure, the large cartridge 4 includes a rib 41. A groove 42 is further provided inside the large cartridge 4 so as not to hinder the movement of the shutter opening / closing button 32 of the small cartridge 3 to be inserted. The large cartridge 4 also has a slit 43 through which a shutter opening / closing arm described later accesses the shutter opening / closing button 32 of the small cartridge 3. When the small cartridge 3 is inserted into the large cartridge 4 along the rib 41 from the side having the disk access opening, the shutter open / close button 32 of the small cartridge 3 is fitted into the groove 42 of the large cartridge 4 to open / close the shutter. The button 32 is stored without sliding. The small cartridge 3 can be accommodated in the large cartridge 4 by the inner wall of the large cartridge 4 and the rib 41 without rattling in the vertical and horizontal directions.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a shutter opening / closing mechanism used in the cartridge system of FIG. The large cartridge 4 containing the small cartridge 3 is attached to the information recording / reproducing apparatus. The shutter opening / closing arm 5 provided in the information recording / reproducing apparatus slides the shutter opening / closing button 32 of the small cartridge 3 through the slit 43 of the large cartridge 4. As a result, the shutter 31 is opened, and the thin flexible optical disk 33 accommodated in the small cartridge 3 can be taken out.

  The small cartridge 3 and the large cartridge 4 are also preferably provided with a small cartridge alignment mechanism and a small cartridge fixing mechanism as described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration of an information recording / reproducing apparatus using the cartridge system as described above. The cartridge system 71 is mounted on the information recording / reproducing apparatus, and the thin flexible optical disk 72 accommodated in the cartridge system 71 is taken out by the loading mechanism 73 and chucked by the spindle motor 74. At this time, in the case of the cartridge system shown in FIG. 5, it is necessary to open the shutter of the small cartridge by the shutter opening / closing arm provided in the information recording / reproducing apparatus. The thin flexible optical disk 72 is rotated by a spindle motor 74 and information is recorded and reproduced by an optical pickup 75. Each element other than the cartridge system 71 may be the same as the conventional one.

  As described above, the disc cartridge system of the present invention can arrange a plurality of small cartridges containing thin flexible optical discs and store them in a large cartridge to form a large-capacity cartridge as one aggregate. Such a disk cartridge system of the present invention has a very simple configuration, and therefore has a high reliability of the mechanism, is functional, and can be manufactured at low cost. In addition, since a plurality of small cartridges can be attached to the information recording / reproducing apparatus at a time, workability is improved in the information recording / reproducing apparatus having a changer mechanism having a mechanism for recording / reproducing a plurality of thin flexible optical disks. Can be made.

  The present invention is applicable to a disk cartridge system in an information recording / reproducing apparatus using a thin flexible optical disk.

1 is a perspective view showing an example of a configuration of a disk cartridge system of the present invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of a shutter. It is a perspective view which shows operation | movement of a shutter opening / closing mechanism. (A) And (b) is a top view which shows a small cartridge alignment mechanism and a small cartridge fixing mechanism, (c) is a perspective view which shows a small cartridge alignment mechanism, (d) is a side view which shows a small cartridge fixing mechanism FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the other example of a structure of the disc cartridge system of this invention. It is a perspective view explaining a shutter opening and closing mechanism. It is a figure which shows the structure of the information recording / reproducing apparatus of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1, 3 Small cartridge 2, 4 Large cartridge 5 Shutter opening / closing arm 11, 31 Shutter 12, 32 Shutter opening / closing button 13, 33, 72 Thin flexible optical disk 14 Recess 21, 41 Rib 22, 43 Slit 23 Protrusion 24 Elastic member 42 Groove 71 Cartridge system 73 Loading mechanism 74 Spindle motor 75 Optical pickup

Claims (9)

A small cartridge for storing a thin flexible optical disk;
A disk cartridge system comprising: a large cartridge capable of storing at least two small cartridges and capable of being mounted on an information recording / reproducing apparatus.   2. The disk cartridge system according to claim 1, wherein a rib, a protrusion or a groove is provided inside the large cartridge to restrict the movement of the small cartridge only to the slide in the insertion / extraction direction.   3. The disk according to claim 1, wherein when the cartridge is stored in the large cartridge, all the small cartridges are provided with an alignment mechanism that stops at a position where a surface for accessing the thin flexible optical disk is the same surface. Cartridge system.   4. The disk cartridge system according to claim 1, further comprising a fixing mechanism that fixes the small cartridge stored in the large cartridge.   5. The disk cartridge system according to claim 1, wherein the small cartridge includes a shutter that can be freely opened and closed.   6. The disk cartridge system according to claim 5, wherein the shutter of the small cartridge is opened and closed by sliding a shutter open / close button.   7. The disk cartridge system according to claim 6, wherein when the small cartridge is inserted into the large cartridge, a shutter opening / closing button of the small cartridge slides to open a shutter of the small cartridge. A disk cartridge system according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
Means for loading a thin flexible optical disk housed in the disk cartridge system;
An information recording / reproducing apparatus comprising: means for recording / reproducing information on a loaded thin flexible optical disk. A disk cartridge system according to claim 6,
Means for sliding a shutter open / close button of the small cartridge;
Means for loading a thin flexible optical disk housed in the disk cartridge system;
An information recording / reproducing apparatus comprising: means for recording / reproducing information on a loaded thin flexible optical disk.

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