JP3670464B2 - Tape cartridge - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a tape cartridge provided with a stopper for preventing rotation of a reel when not in use, and has a feature in a method of incorporating a compression coil spring acting on the stopper.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An example of this type of tape cartridge is shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 (Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-75113). 4 shows a plan view of the reel detent mechanism portion of the tape cartridge, and FIG. 5 shows a longitudinal side view of the reel detent mechanism portion, in which a main body case formed by abutting plastic upper and lower cases 1a and 1b. 1 includes a pair of left and right reels 3 and 3 around which a tape 2 is wound, and a stopper 4 having a lock claw 13 that prevents the reel 3 from rotating when not in use.
[0003]
On the inner bottom surface between the rear side wall 10 of the lower case 1b and the reels 3 and 3, a pair of left and right parallel guide regulating ribs 9 and 9 are formed so as to run from the inner surface of the side wall 10 in the reel direction. Yes. The stopper 4 is fitted between the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9 so that the locking claw 13 comes into contact with and engages with the teeth 20 on the outer periphery of the lower flange 3 a of the reel 3, and the rear unlocking is released from the teeth 20. It is movable in the front-rear direction over the position. A compression coil spring 5 is interposed between the stopper 4 and the side wall 10, and this spring action always presses and urges the stopper 4 toward the front lock position.
[0004]
When not in use, the stopper 4 is in the forward locked position, and the lock claw 13 is in contact with and engaged with the reel 3, and in this state, the reel 3 is restricted from rotating in the tape loosening direction. When loaded on the deck, the unlocking operation member on the deck side is inserted into the case through the operation port 7 opened between the guide regulating ribs 9 on the inner bottom surface of the lower case 1b and is engaged with the engagement hole 14 of the stopper 4. And the stopper 4 is moved to the rear unlock position against the spring force of the compression coil spring 5.
[0005]
In such a tape cartridge, the reel 3, the stopper 4, the compression coil spring 5 and other necessary parts are first assembled in the lower case 1 b, and then the upper case 1 a is covered with the lower case 1 b.
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the compression coil spring 5 is connected to the spring receiving projection 16 of the stopper 4 so that the end winding portion 19 of the compression coil spring 5 is not easily detached from the stopper 4, but is seated at the other end. The winding part 17 is merely pressed against the inner surface of the side wall 10 of the lower case 1b. For this reason, during automatic assembly, when the lower case 1b containing the reel 3, the stopper 4, etc. is transported to the process of placing on the belt conveyor and covering the upper case 1a, when receiving vibrations of the belt conveyor, Since the compression coil spring 5 is easy to slide upward on the inner surface of the side wall 10 and the stopper 4 is also displaced in accordance with this, the smooth and rapid assembly is hindered.
[0007]
As a countermeasure for this, for example, it is conceivable to provide a recess or protrusion on the inner surface of the side wall 10 of the lower case 1b, and to fit the end winding portion 17 of the compression coil spring 5 into the recess or protrusion. However, in the method of providing the protrusions on the inner surface of the side wall 10, the portion becomes an undercut portion when the lower case 1b is formed, and the die must be formed by attaching a slide core or the like to the die, which complicates the die structure. This causes problems such as inconvenience and the occurrence of sink marks due to the thick part. Further, in the method of providing the concave portion on the inner surface of the side wall 10, since the thickness of the side wall 10 is not originally thick, it is difficult to provide the concave portion having a depth sufficient to fit the end winding portion 17 of the compression coil spring 5. . Moreover, since the said location of the side wall 10 will become thin if a recessed part is provided, it will become easy to warp and deform | transform the said location outwardly by the reaction force of the compression coil spring 5, and when placed in a high temperature environment especially In addition, the warpage deformation is promoted. When the amount of deformation is large, there arises a problem that, for example, troubles are caused in and out of the deck. Therefore, this measure is not a good idea.
[0008]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above problems, and to provide a tape cartridge that can be assembled easily by devising how to incorporate a stopper into a lower case of a compression coil spring. It is in.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The tape cartridge of the present invention has a main body case 1 formed by abutting upper and lower cases 1a and 1b as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and a reel 3 around which the tape 2 is wound is rotatable inside the main body case 1. Contained. On the inner bottom surface between the side wall 10 of the lower case 1b and the reel 3, a pair of parallel guide restricting ribs 9, 9 are provided, and a stopper 4 for preventing rotation of the reel is provided under the guide restricting ribs 9, 9. Thus, the guide restricting ribs 9 and 9 are mounted so as to be movable over a locked position where the reel 3 is contacted and engaged and an unlocked position where the reel 3 is released. A compression coil spring 5 that presses and urges the stopper 4 in the lock position direction is interposed between the stopper 4 and the side wall 10. The compression coil spring 5 is fixed by press-fitting and fixing the end winding portion 17 at one end thereof between the base portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9 and the outer periphery of the effective coil portion. It is separated from the guide regulating rib 9. The compression coil spring 5 may be cylindrical or conical, and when the conical compression coil spring 5 is employed, the guide winding portion 17 on the side where the coil diameter becomes larger is guided and restricted. Press-fit between ribs 9 and 9.
[0010]
[Action]
In the lower case 1b, the compression coil spring 5 covers the lower case 1b with the upper case 1a when the end winding portion 17 is fixed by press fitting between the base portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9. Even if an external force such as vibration is applied to the lower case 1b in the above process, the compression coil spring 5 can be prevented from inadvertently moving in the lower case 1b, and is stably held together with the stopper 4 in the lower case 1b. .
[0011]
Since the guide restricting rib 9 of the stopper 4 is used to fix the compression coil spring 5, a protrusion, a recess, or the like different from the guide restricting ribs 9 and 9 is formed on the lower case 1b in order to fix it. There is no need, and a simple assembly method is sufficient in which the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9 are dropped together with the stopper 4 from above and mounted. Since the outer periphery of the effective coil portion of the compression coil spring 5 is separated from the guide regulating rib 9, there is no problem in the spring action of pressing and urging the stopper 4 in the lock position direction.
[0012]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
1 and 2 show an embodiment of a tape cartridge according to the present invention. The tape cartridge is formed by abutting a plastic upper case 1a and a lower case 1b, and reels 3 and 3 around which the tape 2 is wound are rotatably accommodated and arranged on the left and right sides of the upper case 1a and the lower case 1b. A reel detent mechanism including a stopper 4 and a compression coil spring 5 is provided at the left and right central portions in the rear of the main body case 1.
[0013]
A long operation hole 7 is opened in the front-rear direction in the bottom wall 6 at the rear left and right center portion in the lower case 1b, and a pair of guides that run in parallel on the inner surface of the bottom wall 6 with the operation hole 7 therebetween. The regulating ribs 9 and 9 are erected integrally so as to face straight forward from the inner surface of the side wall 10. The front end of each guide restriction rib 9 is connected to a reel movement restriction rib 11 erected on the inner surface of the bottom wall 6 so as to surround the outer periphery of the reel 3.
[0014]
A stopper 4 is incorporated between the pair of parallel guide regulating ribs 9. The stopper 4 is a plastic molded product having a slide block 12 and a pair of left and right lock claws 13, 13 that can project from the front end in an eight-letter shape. An engagement hole 14 is formed on the lower surface of the slide block 12 to allow the locking operation member on the deck side to be engaged through the operation hole 7, and a recess 15 is formed on the rear surface of the slide block 12. A spring receiving projection 16 is formed inside. The compression coil spring 5 is formed in a conical shape, and the outer diameter of the end winding portion 17 on the larger coil diameter side is slightly smaller than the distance A between the base portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9 and the side walls 10. It is set large. Before the compression coil spring 5 is assembled into the lower case 1b, the end winding portion 19 on the side having a smaller coil diameter is fitted into the spring receiving projection 16 of the stopper 4 in advance so that both are integrally assembled beforehand. ing.
[0015]
Thus, in order to assemble this tape cartridge, first the reel 3 is assembled into the lower case 1b, and then the stopper 4 having the compression coil spring 5 assembled in advance as described above is dropped between the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9 from above. At the same time, the end winding portion 17 on the side of the compression coil spring 5 having the larger coil diameter is press-fitted and fixed between the root portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9. Due to the press-fitting of the end turn part 17, the end turn part 17 is slightly contracted, a contact pressure is generated between the contact surfaces with the base parts 9a and 9a, and when the compression coil spring 5 is subjected to an external force such as vibration, This frictional force can sufficiently resist this. At that time, if the end surface of the end turn portion 17 is also brought into contact with the inner surface of the side wall 10 as in the illustrated example, a contact pressure is generated between the contact surfaces of the end turn portion 17 and the inner surface of the side wall 10, further. A firm fixed state is obtained.
[0016]
When the stopper 4 and the compression coil spring 5 are assembled in the lower case 1b as described above, the compression coil spring 5 is stably and reliably held between the stopper 4 and the side wall 10, and the outer periphery of the effective coil portion is guided. It will be in the state away from the regulation ribs 9 and 9. Accordingly, the compression coil spring 5 always presses and urges the stopper 4 forward, and the lock claw 13 is brought into a locked state in which the lock claw 13 comes into contact with and engages with the teeth 20 of the lower flange 3a of the reel 3.
[0017]
Even if the lower case 1b that has not yet covered the upper case 1a is subjected to external force such as vibration, the compression coil spring 5 remains between the contact surfaces of the end turn portion 17 and the root portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9. The generated frictional force opposes the external force and does not move in the lower case 1b, and is maintained in a stable state. Accordingly, the stopper 4 and the compression coil spring 5 are inadvertently moved in the lower case 1b in the process up to the next step in which the upper case 1a is covered with the lower case 1b in a cover-like manner and integrally joined with screws or the like. It can be well prevented and the assembly can proceed smoothly.
[0018]
FIG. 3 shows another embodiment. In this embodiment, the compression coil spring 5 is a cylindrical one. The outer diameter of the end winding portion 17 in contact with the side wall 10 of the compression coil spring 5 is larger than the outer diameter of the effective coil portion and slightly larger than the distance A between the base portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9. The end turn part 17 is press-fitted between the root parts 9a and 9a.
[0020]
【The invention's effect】
According to the tape cartridge of the present invention, it is possible to facilitate the assembly by simple means of press-fitting the end winding portion 17 of the compression coil spring 5 between the base portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9. Can do.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a main part showing a reel detent mechanism portion.
FIG. 2 is a longitudinal side view of a main part.
FIG. 3 is a plan view showing another embodiment corresponding to FIG.
FIG. 4 is a plan view of a conventional reel detent mechanism portion.
FIG. 5 is a longitudinal side view of a conventional example .
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body case 2 Tape 3 Reel 4 Stopper 5 Compression coil spring 9 Guide regulation rib 10 Side wall 17 End winding part

Claims (2)

It has a body case 1 formed by abutting upper and lower cases 1a and 1b,
Inside the body case 1, a reel 3 around which the tape 2 is wound is rotatably accommodated.
On the inner bottom surface between the side wall 10 of the lower case 1b and the reel 3, a pair of parallel guide restricting ribs 9, 9 are provided, and a stopper 4 for preventing rotation of the reel is under the guide restricting ribs 9, 9. The guide restricting ribs 9 and 9 are movably mounted between a locking position where the reel 3 comes into contact with engagement and an unlock position where the reel 3 is unlocked.
Between the side wall 10 and the stopper 4, a compression coil spring 5 that presses and urges the stopper 4 in the lock position direction is interposed.
The compression coil spring 5 has an outer diameter of the end winding portion 17 at one end thereof larger than the outer diameter of the effective coil portion, and a distance between the base portions 9a and 9a of the guide restriction ribs 9 and 9 and the side wall 10 It is set larger than the dimension A,
The end winding portion 17 is press-fitted and fixed between the base portions 9a and 9a of the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9 and the outer periphery of the effective coil portion is separated from the guide regulating ribs 9 and 9. A tape cartridge.   The tape cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the compression coil spring (5) is formed in a conical shape, and the end winding portion (17) for enlarging the coil diameter is press-fitted and fixed between the root portions (9a, 9a) of the guide regulating ribs (9, 9). .

Images