JP2978578B2 - Automatic cartridge mounting device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic cartridge mounting device which automatically draws a cartridge magnetic tape inserted from an insertion slot of a device to a specified position at the back of the device and interlocks with a cartridge driving mechanism.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Cartridge type magnetic tapes are widely used for backing up a magnetic disk, which is a storage means of a computer, or for exchanging data with another system. As a means for mounting this type of cartridge magnetic tape (hereinafter, referred to as a cartridge) to a drive mechanism, automatic mounting apparatuses having various mechanisms have been proposed. For example, Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 1-140648 shows a cartridge magnetic tape device in which a cartridge is mounted on a cartridge drawer and moved. In this cartridge drawer, the cartridge magnetic tape is pressed and supported by rollers of a roller arm urged by a spring.

[0003]

According to the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, the cartridge on the drawer is fixed only by the force of the spring, but this is not reliable and prevents the rearward displacement of the cartridge on the drawer. There was a problem that it was not possible.

[0004]

An automatic cartridge mounting apparatus according to the present invention is an automatic cartridge mounting apparatus for moving a tray on which a cartridge is set and linking the cartridge to a cartridge driving mechanism. A stopper push-up lever which is pushed down by the front end of the cartridge set on the setting surface of the cartridge, and which is provided on the tray, abuts on the lower rear portion of the cartridge in conjunction with the pushing down of the stopper push-up lever, and the cartridge is moved to a predetermined position. A stopper lever that locks to the rear end of the ridge at the lower rear of the cartridge when
Provided in the vicinity of the rear end, during movement of the tray caused by the mounting of the cartridge is swung downward against the Sutoppareba, cartridge the Sutoppareba without during movement of the tray caused by the extraction of the cartridge pivots by pressing down downward And a stopper releasing lever for releasing the locking of the stopper.

[0005]

When the cartridge is set in the tray, the stopper push-up lever is pushed down by the cartridge. The stopper lever rises in conjunction with the lowering of the stopper lifting lever, and abuts on the lower rear portion of the cartridge. When the cartridge moves to a predetermined position, the stopper lever is locked to the rear end of the ridge at the lower rear portion of the cartridge, and the cartridge is prevented from coming off. When the tray engaged with the cartridge moves in the cartridge mounting direction, the stopper release lever is pushed by the stopper lever to swing, but when the tray moves in the cartridge removal direction, the stopper lever is locked by the stopper release lever. To release the cartridge.

[0006]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An automatic cartridge mounting apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an insertion opening 4 for a cartridge 3 is formed on the front surface of the housing 2, and a shutter 5 that opens inward is provided.
Is provided. A box-shaped substrate 6 is provided inside the housing 2. The substrate 6 has a pair of left and right side plates 7, 7 and a top plate 8, and each side plate 7 is formed with three guide grooves 9 continuously as horizontal and vertical downwards. ing. In the drawing, reference numeral 10 denotes a tray on which the cartridge 3 is set. The tray 10 has a substantially box shape with a front end and a rear end opened. At the center of the setting surface of the bottom plate 11 on which the cartridge 3 is placed, there is a circular hole that exposes a clutch (not shown) on the lower surface of the cartridge 3 downward. The introduction plate 1 is provided at the rear end of the tray 10.
0a is provided. On both sides of this tray 10,
Three guide rollers 12 as guide means are rotatably provided by three, and are movably engaged with the respective guide grooves 9 of the side plate 7. That is, the guide groove 9 of the side plate 7 and the guide roller 12 engaging with the guide groove 9 allow the tray 10 to move horizontally with respect to the substrate 6 and subsequently move vertically downward. The tray 10 is provided with a cartridge pressing roller 13.

Next, the driving mechanism of the tray 10 will be described. A motor 14 is provided inside the housing 2. The output of the motor 14 is transmitted to a drive shaft 19 via gears 15 and 16, a worm 17 and a worm wheel 18. When the drive shaft 19 is at a lower position where it does not contact the tray 10, the side plate 7, the horizontal direction orthogonal to the insertion / movement direction of the cartridge 3,
It is installed between the seven. Further, a small gear 20 is provided on the drive shaft 19 on the outer surface of the side plate 7, and each small gear 20 meshes with a large gear 21 rotatably provided on the outer surface of the side plates 7, 7, respectively. .

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the gear 21
, A pair of driving members 22 and 23 are provided coaxially and swingably. Operation pieces 22a, 23 opposed to each other at an interval from one end of each drive member 22, 23.
The operation pieces 22a and 23a are connected by a spring 24 as an elastic member. And each side plate 7
Of the three guide rollers 12 provided in each case, the center guide roller 12 has an operation roller 25 on the outer surface side of the side plate 7.
Are provided coaxially, and the operation roller 25 is rotatably held between opposing operation pieces 22a and 23a of the drive members 22 and 23. In addition, each driving member 22, 23
On the other end side, there are provided drive pieces 22b and 23b opposed to the operation pieces 22a and 23a in the opposite direction. Between the driving pieces 22b and 23b, the gear 2
The drive pin 26 protruding from the end face of the first pin is engaged.

That is, when the large gear 21 rotates, the driving pin 26 applies a force to, for example, the driving piece 22b of the one driving member 22 to rotate it. Since the other driving member 23 is connected to the driven driving member 22 by a spring 24, the driving members 22, 23 pivot while holding the operation roller 25 between the operation pieces 22a, 23a. Therefore,
The tray 10 is guided by the guide grooves 9 and the guide rollers 12, and can move in parallel in the horizontal and vertical directions.

Next, the tray 10 is provided with a push-out lever 30 for the cartridge 3. Extrusion lever 30
Is attached to the side of the upper plate of the tray 10 with a support shaft 31. At the tip of the push lever 30, a roller 32 is provided downward with the rotation axis being vertical. The roller 32 is used for the cartridge 3 inserted in the tray 10.
Abuts the center of the front end. A substantially central portion of the push lever 30 and the insertion port 4 side of the upper surface of the upper plate of the tray 10 are connected by a spring 33, whereby the push lever 30 is urged in a direction for discharging the cartridge 3. It has become. In addition, the extrusion lever 30
The support shaft 31 is provided with a gear, and meshes with the gear of the rotary shaft of the rotary damper 34 provided on the tray 10. That is, the pushing lever 30 moves the cartridge 3 to the tray 1
0, the force of the spring 33 acts at a stroke to prevent the cartridge 3 from being ejected.
The cartridge 3 can be moved to the insertion port 4 side with the constant pressing force suppressed by the above.

Next, a lock lever 35 is provided substantially at the center of the upper plate of the tray 10. The lock lever 35 has a base end supported by a support shaft 36. Lock lever 35
Is connected to the upper plate of the tray 10 by a spring 37 oriented in a direction perpendicular to the insertion direction of the cartridge 3. As a result, the tip of the lock lever 35 is urged toward the pushing lever 30 and is constantly in contact with the rollers 32 of the pushing lever 30.

Further, at the center of the lock lever 35,
The base end of the horizontal holding lever 38 is rotatably connected. The distal end of the horizontal holding lever 38 is attached to the upper plate of the tray 10 via a long hole 39 and a pin 40. At the other end of the horizontal holding lever 38, a roller 41 is provided downward with the rotation axis being vertical.

Therefore, when the cartridge 3 is inserted into the tray 10, the front end of the cartridge 3 pushes the pushing lever 30. Push lever 3 engaged with the side edge of lock lever 35
The zero roller 32 rides over the tip of the lock lever 35, and at the same time, the lock lever 35 moves to the pushing lever 30 side and locks with the roller 32 of the pushing lever 30 to lock the operation of the pushing lever 30. At this time, the horizontal holding lever 38 moves toward the center in the horizontal direction orthogonal to the insertion direction of the cartridge 3, and the roller 41 provided at the tip of the lever 38 engages the side surface of the cartridge 3.

A lock release lever 42 is rotatably provided near the center of the lock lever 35.
The lock release lever 42 is provided between the base end of the lock lever 35 and the spring 4.
3 and engages with a locking projection 44 fixed to the base end of the lock lever 35. Above the tray 10, a lock release roller 45 is provided to project downward from the lower surface of the top plate 8 of the substrate 6. That is, when the cartridge 3 is set and the push lever 30 is locked, and the tray 10 returns toward the insertion slot 4, the unlock lever 42 is engaged with the unlock roller 45 and pushed. Accordingly, the lock release lever 42 pushes the locking projection 44 to pivot the lock lever 35 outward, whereby the pushing lever 30 is disengaged from the lock lever 35 so that the cartridge 3 can be pushed out by the spring force.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 46 denotes a lock sensor, which is a piece 35a provided at the tip of the lock lever 35.
And detects that the mechanism has entered the locked state.
In the figure, reference numeral 47 denotes a set sensor,
To detect whether the cartridge 3 is set at a predetermined position.

A fixing device for fixing the rear end of the set cartridge 3 is provided on the side of the insertion opening 4 of the tray 10, and is shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG.
This is explained using 0.

An opening 50 is provided in the bottom plate 11 of the tray 10 at a side of the insertion opening 4. This opening 50
Below, a horizontal support shaft 51 orthogonal to the insertion direction of the cartridge 3 is provided. The support shaft 51 is provided with a stopper lifting lever 52 rotatably.
A torsion coil spring 53 is interposed between the stopper push-up lever 52 and the bottom plate 11 of the tray 10 through the support shaft 51. As a result, the stopper lifting lever 52
Are urged upward and project from the opening 50 onto the setting surface of the tray 10.

Next, a stopper lever 5 is provided on the support shaft 51.
4 is provided rotatably. The locking portion 55 at the front end of the stopper lever 54 is to be locked to the rear end of the ridge 3 a on the lower surface of the cartridge 3.
0a. A torsion coil spring 56 is interposed between the base end of the stopper lever 54 inserted through the support shaft 51 and the stopper lifting lever 52. Thus, the stopper lifting lever 52 and the stopper lever 54 are interlocked in a fixed connection posture. However, if a force is applied, the levers 52 and 54 can relatively swing about the support shaft 51.

Next, a stopper release lever 57 is pivotally supported at the rear end of the side plate 7 near the rear end of the tray 10. The operation piece portion 58 of the stopper release lever 57 faces obliquely upward in the insertion direction of the cartridge 3 as shown in FIG. 13, and further engages with the locking portion 55 of the stopper lever 54 as shown in FIG. It is arranged in. A torsion coil spring 59 is interposed between the stopper release lever 57 and the side plate 7,
The stopper release lever 57 is stationary by receiving a biasing force in a direction in which the operation piece portion 58 swings upward. Therefore, the operation piece portion 58 swings downward when the stopper lever 54 moving in the insertion direction hits from the front, but does not move even when the stopper lever 54 moving in the pushing direction hits from the rear. Works downward.

As shown in FIG. 2, a file motor 60 for driving the cartridge 3 and a clutch 61 provided on a drive shaft thereof are provided below the automatic cartridge mounting apparatus 1 having the above-described configuration. That is, if the cartridge 3 is pulled down horizontally and then descends by the above-described mechanism, the clutch 61 on the lower surface of the cartridge 3 engages with the clutch 61, and the cartridge 3 can be driven.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. First, loading of the cartridge 3 will be described. (1) FIGS. 5 and 13 show a state of waiting for cartridge insertion.

(2) As shown in FIGS. 6 and 14, the cartridge 3 is inserted. The front end of the cartridge 3 pushes up the shutter 5. When the stopper push-up lever 52 is pushed down on the lower surface of the cartridge 3, the stopper lever 5
4 is lifted, and the locking portion 55 of the stopper lever 54 comes into contact with the ridge 3 a on the lower surface of the cartridge 3. When the cartridge 3 is further inserted, the front end of the cartridge 3 hits the roller 32 of the pushing lever 30 and moves the pushing lever 30 toward the back. When the push lever 30 swings to the back, the lock lever 35 that contacts the roller 32 of the push lever 30 moves in the horizontal direction, and the horizontal holding lever 38 linked to the lock lever 35 also moves outward in the horizontal direction. When the lateral holding lever 38 moves outward in the lateral direction, the roller 41 provided at the tip thereof also moves outward, facilitating the insertion of the cartridge 3.

(3) As shown in FIGS. 7 and 15, the cartridge 3 is inserted to a fixed position on the tray 10. The lock lever 35 is disengaged from the roller 32 of the pushing lever 30, and the lock lever 35 returns to the original position by the urging force of the spring 37. For this reason, the tip of the lock lever 35 is
Of the pushing lever 30 in the direction of the insertion opening 4 is prevented. At the same time, the horizontal holding lever 38 also returns, and the roller 41 of the horizontal holding lever 38 presses the side surface of the cartridge 3 to position the cartridge 3 in the left-right direction. When the cartridge 3 is set at the fixed position on the tray 10, the locking portion 55 of the stopper lever 54 is
Into the rear end of the cartridge 3, and the rearward displacement of the cartridge 3 is prevented.

(4) As shown in FIGS. 8 and 16, the tray 10 and the cartridge 3 are pulled in by driving the motor 14. That is, when the motor 14 is driven and the small gears 20 on both sides rotate clockwise in the drawing, the large gears 21 on both sides meshing with the small gears 20 rotate counterclockwise in the drawing. Inside the large gear 21 are a pair of drive members 22 and 23 connected by a spring 24. When the drive pin 26 of the large gear 21 contacts the drive piece 22b of one drive member 22 and moves the drive member 22 counterclockwise, the other drive member 23 connected by the spring 24 also moves in the same direction. . An operation roller 25 is provided coaxially with the guide roller 12 provided on the tray 10 and engaged with the guide groove 9 of the side plate 7.
5 is an operation piece 22a, 23a of the driving member 22, 23
It is sandwiched between. Therefore, when the driving members 22 and 23 move counterclockwise, the tray 10 horizontally moves leftward in FIG. 16 using the L-shaped guide groove 9 as a guide, and FIG.
It moves vertically downward as shown in FIG. Then, when the clutch on the lower surface of the cartridge 3 is engaged with the clutch 61 of the file motor 60, the motor 14 is stopped.

As shown in FIG. 16, the stopper 55 of the stopper lever 54 is moved by the stopper release lever 57 during the horizontal movement.
Press down. Further, the tray 10 moves and the locking portion 5
When the lever 5 comes off the stopper release lever 57, the stopper release lever 57 returns to the original position by the urging force of the torsion coil spring 59.

(5) As shown in FIGS. 9 and 17, when the tray 10 and the cartridge 3 move vertically downward and the cartridge 3 and the file motor 60 are connected, the cartridge 3 relatively moves on the tray 10. It is lifted, and the upper surface side is locked and fixed to the cartridge holding roller 13 provided on the tray 10. When the motor is overrun at the motor stop position, only the drive member 22 pressed by the drive pin 26 moves counterclockwise, the spring 24 expands, and the other drive member 23 stops. Therefore, the impact due to the overrun is absorbed, and at the same time, the urging force of the spring 24 applies a downward pressing force to the cartridge 3. Next, the unloading of the cartridge 3 will be described.

(6) As shown in FIGS. 10 and 18, the motor 14 is driven in the reverse direction, and the driving members 22 and
23 rotates clockwise to move the tray 10 in the vertical direction, and the cartridge 3 and the file motor 60 are disengaged from each other. When the tray 10 starts to move horizontally toward the insertion slot 4, the locking portion 55 of the stopper lever 54 comes into contact with the stopper release lever 57, the stopper lever 54 is pushed down, and the locking portion 55 of the stopper lever 54 It comes off from the ridge 3a. Subsequently, the unlock lever 42 comes into contact with the unlock roller 45 provided on the top plate 8 of the substrate 6, and the lock lever 35 starts to move outward in the lateral direction. When the tip of the lock lever 35 comes off the roller 32 of the pushing lever 30, the lateral holding lever 38 also moves outward in the horizontal direction, and the roller 41 at the tip separates from the side surface of the cartridge 3.

(7) As shown in FIGS. 11 and 19, the unlocked pushing lever 30 swings toward the insertion port 4 side by the urging force of the spring 33, and the roller 3 of the pushing lever 30 is rotated.
The cartridge 3 whose front end face is in contact with 2 is pushed out toward the insertion port 4 side. At this time, the operation of the rotary damper 34 allows the cartridge 3 to be smoothly pushed out. Also,
When the cartridge 3 is pushed out, the lock lever 35 and the horizontal holding lever 38 return to their original positions. Subsequently, the tray 10 moves toward the insertion port 4 side, and when it reaches a predetermined position, the motor 14 stops. In this process, the stopper lever 54 is pushed down by the stopper release lever, passes under the operation piece portion 58 of the stopper release lever 57, and the locking portion 55 contacts the lower surface of the ridge 3a of the cartridge 3 again. .

(8) As shown in FIGS. 12 and 20, when the motor 14 does not stop at the predetermined position and overruns,
Since only the driving member 23 on the side driven by the driving pin 26 of the large gear 21 swings clockwise against the urging force of the spring 24, the shock is absorbed. When the cartridge 3 is taken out from the insertion slot 4, the cartridge 3
The stopper pressing lever 52, which has been in contact with the lower surface of, rises, the stopper lever 54 lowers, and returns to the state of waiting for insertion. In addition, the shutter 5 is moved with the removal of the cartridge 3 to close the insertion port 4, but the stopper lever 54 is closed.
Therefore, the stopper lever 54 and the shutter 5 do not interfere with each other.

As described above, according to the automatic cartridge mounting apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, a part of the tray 10 moving along the guide groove 9 is connected to the drive member 22 by a set of two drive members 22 connected by the spring 24. , 23, and the drive members 22, 23 are rotated by the motor 14 to move the tray 10.
Therefore, when the motor 14 overruns, the spring 24
Is extended and only one of the driving members is turned, so that no excessive force is applied to the mechanism and the impact is absorbed.

Further, since the push-out lever 30 is provided, it is easy to take out the cartridge 3, and when the cartridge 3 is set at a predetermined position, the push-out lever 30 becomes the lock lever 3
5 locks securely. Further, there is an effect that the lateral positioning of the cartridge 3 is performed by the horizontal holding lever 38 that is interlocked with the lock lever 35.

The tray 10 on which the cartridge 3 is set is provided with a stopper push-up lever 52 pushed down by the cartridge 3 and a ridge 3
Since there is the stopper lever 54 that engages with a, the cartridge 3 is reliably prevented from coming off. When the tray 10 moves in the discharge direction, the locking by the stopper lever 54 is released by the function of the stopper release lever 57.

[0033]

According to the automatic cartridge mounting device of the present invention, the stopper lever engages with the lower rear portion of the cartridge in conjunction with the stopper push-up lever which is pushed down by the cartridge. The stopper lever is pushed down by the stopper release lever to release the stopper.

Therefore, the rearward displacement of the cartridge on the tray can be reliably prevented, and the automatic mounting operation can be stably performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan sectional view showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a main part of a tray driving mechanism in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of the vicinity of a stopper lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a view for explaining the operation of a pushing lever, a lock lever, and a horizontal holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining the operation of a pushing lever, a lock lever, and a horizontal holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a view for explaining the operation of a pushing lever, a lock lever, and a lateral holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the pushing lever, the lock lever, and the horizontal holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a view for explaining the operation of the pushing lever, the lock lever, and the lateral holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a view for explaining the operation of an extrusion lever, a lock lever, and a horizontal holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a view for explaining the operation of the pushing lever, the lock lever, and the lateral holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a view for explaining the operation of an extrusion lever, a lock lever, and a horizontal holding lever in the embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a view showing the operation of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Automatic cartridge mounting apparatus, 3 ... Cartridge, 9 ... Guide groove as guide means, 10 ... Tray, 52 ... Stopper push-up lever, 54 ... Stopper lever , 57 ... Stopper release lever.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. An automatic cartridge mounting apparatus for moving a tray on which a cartridge is set and linking the cartridge to a cartridge driving mechanism in an interlocking manner. A stopper push-up lever, which is provided on the tray, abuts against the lower rear portion of the cartridge in conjunction with the depression of the stopper push-up lever, and contacts the rear end of the ridge at the lower rear portion of the cartridge when the cartridge moves to a predetermined position. Lock the stopper lever and the tray
Provided in the vicinity of the rear end, during movement of the tray caused by the mounting of the cartridge is swung downward against the Sutoppareba, cartridge the Sutoppareba without during movement of the tray caused by the extraction of the cartridge pivots by pressing down downward An automatic cartridge mounting device comprising a stopper release lever for releasing the locking of the cartridge.