JP5024549B2 - Stacked tray and tray unfolding mechanism - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording / reproducing apparatus that records or reproduces information on a plurality of optical disks, and stacks a plurality of optical disks into a compact storage tray, and expands the optical disk from the stacked trays to a plurality of recording / reproducing apparatuses. The present invention relates to a mechanism device that transports and transports.

  In recent years, as the amount of information handled by computers has increased, the capacity of storage devices that store information has increased significantly.

  The main storage devices include disk-shaped storage media such as hard disks and optical disks, and magnetic tapes.

  Hard disks are used as main storage devices because they have better recording / playback speed and random access than the other two, and are used for archiving and backup applications as disk-shaped storage media such as optical disks and magnetic tapes. It has been.

  A magnetic tape is superior to a disk-shaped storage medium such as an optical disk in terms of low cost and a large recording capacity per unit volume, but is inferior in terms of random accessibility and storability.

  Therefore, the advent of a storage device that combines the advantages of a disk-shaped storage medium such as an optical disk and a magnetic tape, has a low price, a large capacity, and is excellent in random accessibility and storability.

In relation to the above, Patent Document 1 (Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 59-107770) discloses an invention relating to a magnetic disk cartridge.
The magnetic disk cartridge of the invention of Patent Document 1 incorporates a flexible disk-shaped recording medium. This magnetic disk cartridge is characterized by the following. A through hole is formed inside the corner of the cartridge. A substantially cylindrical holding member having a plurality of notches is inserted into the through hole. A release button formed on the other end of the elastic claw member biased so as to be fitted into the notch is exposed from the cartridge side opening. A plurality of cartridges can be stuck to the holding member.

Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-64158) discloses an invention relating to a disk device.
The disk device of the invention of Patent Document 2 is characterized in that a plurality of disk supports, an initial guide part, and a rotation drive member are provided. Here, the plurality of disc supporters are provided with a disc and are arranged so as to overlap in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the disc. The support member supports the disk support so as to be movable in a direction crossing the disk surface. The initial guide portion is provided with a selection member that moves relative to the support member and sets the position of the disk support according to the movement position, and the selection member has a selection member at the initial position. Adjacent disk supports are supported at predetermined intervals. The rotary drive member is provided with an expanding guide portion that increases the interval between adjacent disk support bodies as the selected member moves from the initial position, and when the distance between the disk support bodies is increased, The disk on the disk support body is supported so as to be rotatable.

Patent Document 3 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-145973) discloses an invention relating to a disk drive device.
The disk drive device of the invention of Patent Document 3 is configured to stack a plurality of sheet-like flexible optical disks and store them in a disk cartridge, and chuck and rotate the optical disk. This disk drive device is characterized in that it is provided with an interval extending means. This interval extending means extends the gap between the optical discs to at least the interval at which the optical pickup can be inserted in the chucked state of the optical disc.

Patent Document 4 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-216156) discloses an invention relating to a tray.
The tray of the invention of Patent Document 4 includes a plurality of information recording disks and a tray body that stores the plurality of information recording disks. The tray is characterized in that a plurality of information recording disks are stacked in contact with each other and stored in the tray body. The plurality of information recording disks have central holes with different diameters. The plurality of information recording disks are stacked coaxially and in contact with each other so that the diameter of the central hole in the plurality of information recording disks is reduced in a predetermined direction, and are stored in the tray body.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No.59-107770 JP-A-10-64158 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-145973 JP 2006-216156 A

  As a method for increasing the capacity of a storage medium such as an optical disk, which is excellent in terms of random accessibility and storability, a plurality of stacked optical disks are used. When transporting the stacked optical disks to the recording / reproducing apparatus, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-216156, an example in which the optical disks stacked on the optical disk case are sequentially taken out and conveyed, or the inner diameters of the disks are sequentially reduced. An example using a stepped spindle is shown. However, in these cases, it takes time to transport the disk because it is sequentially removed from the top, and various types of inner diameter disks are required, which increases the cost of the apparatus due to the complexity of the disk and the spindle configuration. Was a problem.

  It is an object of the present invention to be able to store optical disc storage media in a compact stack without having a special structure, and to load optical disc storage media into a plurality of recording / reproducing devices simultaneously. Thus, an object of the present invention is to provide a stacked tray, a tray developing mechanism, and a stacked tray developing system capable of forming an appropriate gap between the storage media.

  The stacked tray according to the present invention is a tray for mounting a predetermined disk-shaped storage medium. The stacked tray includes a recess for storing a disk-shaped storage medium, and a plurality of hole groups arranged around the recess and penetrating the tray in the thickness direction. Each of the plurality of hole groups includes a plurality of holes distributed in a predetermined shape on the tray. The shape of the depression has a diameter that is equal to or greater than the diameter of the disk-shaped storage medium and a thickness that is equal to or greater than the thickness of the disk-shaped storage medium. This stacked tray can be stacked in the thickness direction with the disk-shaped storage medium stored in the recess.

  With the stacked tray of the present invention, disk-shaped storage media can be stacked and stored compactly. Further, by using this stacked tray, it is possible to develop and transport from the stacked tray to the optical disk drive without having a special structure for each disk.

  With reference to the accompanying drawings, the best mode for carrying out the stacked tray and the tray unfolding mechanism according to the present invention will be described below.

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the number of optical disk stacking trays to be developed is nine, but this numerical value is merely an example, and there is no problem even if it is a different value.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the entire stacked tray developing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 105 is a stocker for storing the optical disk cartridge 101, 106 is a developing mechanism for expanding the optical disk cartridge 101, 108 is an optical disk drive for recording / reproducing information from / on the optical disk 110, and 107 is a suction tweezer for performing suction operation by air pressure. The suction optical tweezers 107 convey the optical disk 110 from the deployment mechanism 106 to the optical disk drive 108.

  FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the optical disk cartridge 101 in which nine trays for mounting the optical disk 110 are stacked in the thickness direction. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the state of the box when the optical disc cartridge 101 is stored in the stocker 105 in a compact manner.

  In this embodiment, the uppermost tray is the first tray 111, the lower tray is the second tray 112, and the third tray 113, the fourth tray 114,. In order to accommodate the trays from the first tray 111 to the ninth tray 119, the cartridge cover 102 is formed at the top and the cartridge base 103 is formed at the bottom. Further, one optical disk 110 is stored on each tray from the first tray 111 to the ninth tray 119.

  Since the basic structure is the same for each tray from the first tray 111 to the ninth tray 119, description will be made using the nth nth tray 109 shown in FIG. (In this embodiment, 1 ≦ n ≦ 9)

  A circular recess 140 for mounting the optical disk 110 is formed at the center of the nth tray 109. The outer diameter and thickness of the recess are slightly larger than the outer diameter and thickness of the optical disc 110.

  Further, there are 10 positions of 130a, 131a,..., 139a with pitch α in order along the x axis as positions of circular holes with φF from the position a0 away from the side surface in the −x direction of the tray n. The hole a with the number (130 + n) is shielded. That is, nine holes are provided side by side except for a (130 + n).

  These series of holes are collectively referred to as a hole group.

  Similarly, there are 10 positions of 130b, 131b, 132b,..., 139b in the order of the pitch β along the y-axis as positions of the circular holes with φF from the position b0 away from the side surface in the −y direction. The hole b with the number (130 + n) is shielded. That is, nine holes are provided side by side except for b (130 + n). Further, there are 10 positions of 130c, 131c, 132c,..., 139c in order along the x axis at a pitch γ as positions of circular holes with φF from a position c0 away from the side facing + x direction, of which numbers (130 + n C) hole is shielded. That is, nine holes are provided side by side except for the number (130 + n) c.

  Therefore, in the case of this figure, it can be expressed that one tray has three hole groups.

  In the case of the n-th tray 109, in order to support the tray by inserting guide shafts 120... 129 to be inserted into the holes of the optical disk cartridge 101 from below in the unfolding mechanism, the positions a, b, and c of the hole position numbers (130 + n). The hole position becomes a place for supporting with the guide shaft, and these three holes are closed. Moreover, in the hole position of numbers other than hole position number (130 + n), the hole is opened in order to let a guide shaft pass. However, since the guide shaft is inserted from below, the guide shaft does not penetrate through a hole having a number greater than (130 + n). Therefore, a hole with a number larger than the number (130 + n) may be closed, but the hole is opened in this embodiment. It should be noted that the hole positions of the three positions a, b, and c of the hole position number (130 + n) for supporting the n-th tray are such that the n-th tray 109 is stably supported. It is selected to fit in a triangle with the three support points as vertices.

  FIG. 5 is a top view of each tray. With reference to this figure, the hole on the tray will be specifically described.

  The ninth tray 119, which is the lowermost tray, is closed with the holes 139a, 139b, and 139c among the aforementioned holes 130 to 139, and is supported by the guide shaft at the three points. Similarly, the following eighth tray 118 from below has the holes 138a, 138b, and 138c among the above-described holes 130 to 139 closed, and the guide shaft is supported at these three positions. The other positions 130 to 137 are provided with holes because the guide shafts for supporting other trays pass therethrough. The hole 139 does not need to be provided because the guide shaft does not penetrate and is not used, but here, a hole is provided.

  Similarly, the fourth tray from the bottom is supported on the guide shaft at these three positions where the holes 135a, 135b, and 135c are closed among the holes 130 to 139 described above. Further, other holes 130 to 134 and 136 to 139 are provided.

  The uppermost first tray is supported by the guide shaft at these three positions where the holes 131a, 131b, and 131c are closed among the holes 130 to 139 described above. Holes 130 and 132-139 are provided.

  6 to 8 are perspective views of a deployment mechanism for deploying the optical disc cartridge 101. FIG.

  FIG. 6 shows the height of H0, H1, H2, H3,..., H9 along the x axis on the base side surface 104a on the + y direction side on the base 104 at 120a, 121a, 122a,. A guide shaft extending in the vertical direction in this order is shown.

  Here, in this figure, the plurality of guide shafts 120a to 129a are collectively referred to as a guide shaft group.

  Similarly, FIG. 7 shows that the base side surface 104b on the −x direction side on the base 104 is 120b, 121b, 122b,..., 129b and β pitches along the y axis at H0, H1, H2, H3,. A guide shaft extending in the vertical direction in the order of the heights.

  Similarly, FIG. 8 shows that the base side surface 104c on the −y-direction side on the base 104 is 120c, 121c, 122c,..., 129c and γ pitch along the x-axis at H0, H1, H2, H3,. A guide shaft extending in the vertical direction in the order of the height of H9 is shown.

  Therefore, in the case of this figure, this unfolding mechanism can be expressed as having three guide shaft groups.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, an unfolding operation by the unfolding mechanism of the optical disk cartridge 101 is shown.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the cartridge base 103 of the optical disc cartridge 101 is lowered using an actuator (not shown) in the deployment mechanism. The corresponding guide shafts 110a, 111a,..., 119a are sequentially inserted into the holes of 130a, 131a,..., 139a provided in the optical disc cartridge 101 on the side surface 104a. , 130b, 131b,..., 139b, the corresponding guide shafts 110b, 111b,. On the side surface 104c side, corresponding guide shafts 110a, 111a,..., 119a are sequentially inserted into the holes 130a, 131a,.

  In the tray 111, three holes 131a, 131b, and 131c on the tray are shielded. Therefore, the end surfaces of the guide shafts 121a, 121b, and 121c and the tray 111 come into contact with each other at the H1 height of the guide shafts 121a, 121b, and 121c corresponding to the holes, and stop descending. That is, the tray 111 is supported at three points (positions of the holes 131a, 131b, and 131c) by the guide shafts 121a, 121b, and 121c.

  Further, the tray 112 is shielded from the three holes 132a, 132b and 132c on the tray. Therefore, the tray 112 comes into contact with the end surface at the height H2 of the guide shafts 122a, 122b, and 122c corresponding to the respective holes, and is supported.

  Similarly, the tray 113 is supported at the height of the end surface H3 of the guide shafts 123a, 123b, and 123c, and the tray 114 is supported at the height of the end surface H3 of the guide shafts 124a, 124b, and 124c.

  At the end of the unfolding operation, as shown in FIG. 10, when the cartridge base 103 is further lowered to the lowest point, the tray 115 is raised by the guide shafts 125a, 125b, and 125c in the same manner as the trays 111 to 114. The tray 116 is supported at the position H5 by the guide shafts 126a, 126b, and 126c, the tray 117 is supported at the height H7, the tray 118 is supported at the height H8, and the tray 119 is supported at the height H9. The

  By the operation of these unfolding mechanisms, the tray 111 to the tray 119 are positioned at the heights H1, H2,.

  FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of the suction tweezers 107 when the optical disk 10 is being sucked.

  In addition, at the tip of each suction tweezer 107, a set of three suction pads 152a, 152b, and 152c for sucking the upper surface side of the optical disc 110 while avoiding the central hole of the optical disc 110 is provided.

  Each suction pad 152a, 152b, 152c is a sucker-like member made of rubber or the like, and is connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) via a pressure-resistant tube or the like, and is vacuumed by an on / off operation of the vacuum pump or an opening / closing valve operation. A suction operation or a release operation of the optical disk 110 by pulling is performed.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 12 to FIG. 16, an operation of developing the optical disc 110 from the optical disc cartridge 101 and transporting each optical disc 110 to a commercially available optical disc drive 108 will be described.

  12 is a perspective view of the stacked tray developing system in a state where the optical disk cartridge 101 is pulled out on the developing mechanism 106, and FIG. 13 is an enlarged perspective view particularly in the tray developing mechanism portion.

  The stocker 105 stores a plurality of optical disk cartridges 101. The selected optical disc cartridge 101 is pulled out from the stocker 105 to the upper part of the deployment mechanism 106 by an arm 142 which is a movable part on the actuator 141.

  Next, as described above, in the deployment mechanism 106, the optical disk 110 is mounted from the optical disk cartridge 101 by moving the table 144 vertically downward from the top of the deployment mechanism 106 by the linear actuator 143 movable in the vertical direction. An unfolding operation is performed on each of the trays 111 to 119.

  FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the tray unfolding mechanism where the trays 111 to 119 carrying the optical disk 110 are unfolded.

  FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the stacked tray developing system in which the trays 111 to 119 on which the optical disk 110 is mounted are developed. With respect to each optical disk 110 on the trays 111 to 119, the operation moves to the operation of transporting each optical disk 110 to each optical disk drive 108 using nine suction tweezers 107.

  Each of the nine suction tweezers 107 is in a recess 40 on each tray from the first tray 111 to the ninth tray 119 using an actuator 146 that moves in the horizontal direction and an actuator 147 that moves in the vertical direction. Move on each optical disk 10.

  The suction pads 52a, 52b, 52c of the suction tweezers 8 are in contact with the optical disk 10, generate a suction force using a vacuum generator such as a vacuum pump (not shown), and suck the optical disk 110 by switching the electromagnetic valve or the like. Then, the optical disk 110 is attracted to each suction tweezer 107.

  FIG. 16 shows the conveyance of the suction tweezers 107 sucking the optical disk 110 from the deployment mechanism 106 from the first tray 111 to the ninth tray 119 to the drive tray 156 on each optical disk drive 108 using the actuator 146 and the actuator 147. It is a perspective view of a state.

  Each suction tweezer 107 that sucks the optical disk 110 moves on the drive tray 156 of each optical disk drive 108 by using the actuator 146 and the actuator 147, and the suction tweezers are brought into a vacuum breaking state by using an electromagnetic valve or the like (not shown). Then, by removing each optical disk 110 from each suction tweezer 107, the optical disk 110 is mounted on the drive tray 156. FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a state in which the optical disk 110 has been transported to the drive tray 156.

  Information is recorded on and reproduced from the optical disc 110 on the drive tray 156 after the loading operation of the optical disc drive 108.

  With the above operation, the optical disc 110 is developed from the optical disc cartridge 101, and each optical disc 110 is efficiently conveyed to the optical disc drive 108, and information can be recorded on and reproduced from the optical disc 110.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the entire stacked tray developing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the laminated optical disk cartridge. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the laminated optical disk cartridge. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the nth tray. FIG. 5 is a top view of each tray. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the main part of the deployment mechanism. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the main part of the deployment mechanism. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the main part of the deployment mechanism. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the main part of the developing mechanism in a state where the optical disk cartridge is being developed. FIG. 10 is a side view of the main part of the deployment mechanism. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the suction tweezers. FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the entire apparatus. FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the deployment mechanism. FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the deployment mechanism. FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the entire apparatus. FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the entire apparatus. FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the entire apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

101 Optical disk cartridge 102 Cartridge cover 103 Cartridge base 104 Bases 104a to 104c Base side surface 105 Stocker 106 Deployment mechanism 107 Suction tweezers 108 Optical disk drive 109 Nth tray 110 Optical disk 111 First tray 112 Second tray 113 Third tray 114 Fourth tray 115 5th tray 116 6th tray 117 7th tray 118 8th tray 119 9th tray 120a-129c Guide shaft 131a-139c hole 140 recess 141 Actuator 142 Arm 143 Actuator 144 Table 146 Actuator 147 Actuator 151 Arm 153a-153c Suction pad 156 drive tray

Claims (4)

Equipped with a disk-shaped storage medium,
A stacked tray configured by stacking trays in which holes are formed in the thickness direction,
In a state where all trays are stacked, each tray has a common central axis in the thickness direction,
A stacked tray, wherein the number of holes sharing the central axis decreases in the stacking order.   A stacked tray having at least three holes according to claim 1 on each tray. A deployment mechanism for expanding and supporting the stacking direction interval of each tray constituting the stacked tray according to claim 1 to a predetermined interval, respectively.
A guide shaft for supporting and guiding each tray in the stacking direction;
The guide shaft exists at a position where the center axis of the hole and the center of the guide shaft coincide with each other,
The guide shafts have different lengths in the stacking direction,
There are as many guide shafts as there are holes in each tray,
Insert the guide shaft in the stacking direction of the stacked trays into the holes of each tray,
An unfolding mechanism that supports each tray according to the length of the guide shaft in the stacking direction. The deployment mechanism according to claim 3, wherein the support of each tray is
A deployment mechanism characterized in that the back surface of each tray is supported by end surfaces of the guide shafts having different lengths.

Images