JPH0264980A - Disk cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the damage or dirt of a disk by fitting a stopper, which holds a shutter in an opening position, attachably and detachably. CONSTITUTION:When a disk cartridge 21 is set into an assembled-type recording and reproducing device, a shutter 27 is opened and a stopper 32 is fit to the moving position of the shutter so that the shutter 27 can be always kept in an open condition. Then, in such a condition, the disk cartridge 21 is set to the assembled-type recording and reproducing device. When the disk cartridge 21 is taken out of the assembled-type recording and reproducing device and used, the stopper 32 is detached and fit to a shutter keeping place 33. When the stopper 32 is detached from the traveling position of the shutter 27, the shutter 27 is automatically returned to a closing position. Thus, the dust, dirt and crack can be prevented from being stuck to a disk 22.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention provides a disc-shaped recording medium (hereinafter simply referred to as a disc), such as an optical disc, which has an opening for recording and reproduction and an opening for inserting a drive unit. This invention relates to a disk cartridge housed in a cartridge case.

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIGS. 6, 7, and 8, a conventional disc cartridge 1 of this type includes a disc 2 and a cartridge case 3 for housing the disc 2. The disk 2 has a hole (hereinafter referred to as a disk insertion hole) 4 in the center for attaching the drive device of the recording/reproducing device, and the cartridge case 3 allows the drive device to be inserted at a position corresponding to the center of the stored disk 2. It has an opening 5 for recording and reproducing the disc 2 (hereinafter referred to as a hole for recording and reproducing) 6 (hereinafter referred to as a recording and reproducing hole). Further, in order to prevent dirt, debris, etc. from entering through the disc clamp hole 5 and the recording/reproducing hole 6, and to prevent damage to the disc, a shutter 7 that covers these holes is slidable. A shutter spring 8 for keeping the shutter 7 in the closed position and a slider 9 for opening the shutter 7 are connected to the shirt tough. When the disc cartridge 1 is removed from the recording/reproducing apparatus, the shutter spring 8 keeps the shutter 7 closed, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 8. On the other hand, as shown in Figure 8,
The recording and reproducing apparatus is provided with a cartridge holder 10 for guiding the cartridge 1 and bins IIA and IIB on its inner surface. When the cartridge 1 is inserted into the cartridge holder 10, the pin IIB engages with the slider 9, and the slider 9 is pushed in the direction of arrow A, and the shutter 7 is moved in the direction of arrow B to open the disk clamp hole 5 and the recording/reproducing hole 6, resulting in the state shown in FIG. Moreover, if the cartridge 1 is taken out from the cartridge holder 10,
The shutter 7 is closed by the action of the shutter spring 8.

As described above, the shutter 7 attached to the cartridge 1 opens and closes every time the cartridge 1 is inserted into or removed from the recording/reproducing apparatus.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention Although the disk cartridge having the above configuration poses no particular problem when used in a recording/reproducing device of the type in which the disk cartridge is manually inserted by an operator, it is difficult for the operator to directly handle the disk cartridge. When used in a collective recording/playback device that automatically operates disk cartridges, a drive device is required to open and close the shutter 7, and there is also a countermeasure against failures in the event that the shutter 7 does not open and close properly. The problem was that it was complicated.

2. Description of the Related Art Much of the information recorded on disks as recording media, particularly optical disks used in offices, is important, and there is often a high degree of urgency in retrieving the information. Therefore, no matter what the reason, it must never occur that a failure occurs and the information recorded on the disk cannot be retrieved. Even if there is a fault, it should not take a long time to recover from the fault. Generally, tubes with moving parts such as sliding parts and drive parts are prone to failure, and how to reduce such parts is an important point in designing the device.

If we consider the case where the shutter does not open properly, the following failures may occur.

(1) Unreasonable force is applied to the drive device for opening and closing the shutter, resulting in damage to the drive device.

(2) If the shutter is set in the recording/playback device with the shutter closed, the disk clamp hole and the recording/playback hole will be hidden, which may damage the disk clamp section, recording/playback section, and shutter of the recording/playback device. there is a possibility.

These are serious failures that require a lot of time to recover from.

In order to prevent these failures, it is possible to detect them before they occur by installing a sensor that detects the opening and closing of the shutter and a device that checks the force acting on the driving device for opening and closing the shutter. However, the number of parts in the device increases, which is not a good direction considering the generally accepted idea that failures are proportional to the number of parts. Also,
It doesn't change the fact that failures occur.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and does not require an increase in the number of parts in the device, and also eliminates sliding parts within the device, thereby reducing the causes of failures. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a disc cartridge that can

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is provided with a structure in which a stopper for holding the shutter in the open position is removably attached to the disk cartridge.

Function When the disk cartridge of the present invention is used in a collective recording/reproducing device, the stopper is installed at a position that keeps the shutter in the open position. As a result, the shutter is always kept in the open position, so there is no need to provide any mechanism for opening and closing the shutter in the collective recording/reproducing apparatus, and no trouble occurs due to poor opening operation of the shutter. In addition, inside the collective recording/playback device, the cartridge case does not come into contact with human hands, and the inside of the device is always kept in a clean condition (the lens of the recording/playback section does not want to get flaky). , will not damage or stain the disc.

Also, when the disk car with the above configuration is used after being removed from the collective recording/reproducing device, the stopper is removed. As a result, the shutter is closed by the shutter spring and returns to its original state. It is preferable that the removed stopper be attached to a location on the cartridge case that does not interfere with opening and closing the shutter, so that the stopper can be used when necessary.

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described in detail below. 1 and 2 are perspective views showing a disk cartridge 21 according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 shows a state in which the shutter is kept open by a stopper, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which the shutter is closed. It shows. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the disk cartridge 21 includes a disk n, which is a recording medium, and a cartridge case n, which houses the disk n. A disk center hole 24 is formed in the disk B, and a disk clamp hole 5 and a recording/reproducing hole 26 are formed in the cartridge case N. On both sides of the cartridge case, a disc clamp hole 5 and a shutter for opening and closing the recording/reproducing device are slidably attached, and the tip of the shutter holder is fitted so that it can be moved freely. There is. As shown in FIG. 4, the shutter υ has a flat U-shape and has a claw na bent inward near the base of the negative side. When the shutter n is attached to the cartridge case n, this pawl 27a engages with a groove 29 (see Fig. 2) formed on one side of the cartridge case n, and prevents the shutter n from coming off from the cartridge case n. To prevent.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, a slider I is movably provided on the side surface of the cartridge case n, and this slider I is connected to each shutter inside the cartridge case, and the slider I is in the state shown in FIG. 1, the shutter n opens and the disk clamp hole δ and the recording/reproducing device are exposed. Although not shown, a shutter spring is connected to the shutter spring inside the cartridge case to normally maintain the shutter in the closed position shown in FIG. 2.

In FIG. 1, a stopper 32 is attached to the side edge of the cartridge case n along which the shutter moves, with the shutter n in an open state, to prevent the shutter thorn from returning to the closed position. This stopper 32 has a U-shape as shown in FIG. 3, and the tip of one side thereof is bent inward to form a claw 32a. The stopper 32 is fitted into the side edge of the cartridge case η in the same manner as the shutter, and is attached by engaging the claw 32a with the groove 4 on the side surface of the cartridge case, so that it does not easily fall off. In addition, in order to attach or remove this stopper 32, the elasticity of the stopper 32 may be used to elastically deform it, and the pawl 32a may be engaged with or removed from the groove 4. Furthermore, the cartridge case n has a stopper storage location O at a location that does not interfere with the movement of the shutter n, and as shown in FIG. 2, the stopper 32 is attached when the stopper 32 is not in use. There is. As shown in Fig. 5, this stopper storage area is made to match the shape of the stopper 32, and has a thickness that is approximately the same as the U-shaped inner dimensions of the stopper 32. ing. This groove is formed at a position where the pawl 32a of the stopper 32 is inserted, and when the stopper 32 is attached, the pawl 32a is inserted into the groove so that it will not easily come off. Stopper 3 for this stopper storage location
2 is also attached and detached by utilizing the elasticity of the stopper 32 and elastically deforming it.

Next, a method of using the disk cartridge having the above configuration will be explained.

Disc recording and reproducing devices include a collective recording and reproducing device that incorporates a plurality of disc cartridges and one or more recording and reproducing devices, and a single recording and reproducing device.

In a collective type recording and reproducing device, the setting and resetting of a disk cartridge in the built-in recording and reproducing device are automatically performed by instructions (signals) from outside the device.

On the other hand, when the recording/reproducing apparatus is used alone, the operator manually sets and resets the disk cartridge. Furthermore, each device has a recording/reproducing section, and the lenses used there are designed to keep the inside of the device clean at all times, as the lenses used there do not want to get scratched or dirty. Therefore, when a disk cartridge is set in each device, there is little need to use a shutter to prevent dust from sticking. Furthermore, since the disc cartridges are not touched by human hands in the collective recording/reproducing apparatus, there is no need for a shutter to prevent scratches.

Therefore, when setting the disk cartridge 21 shown in the above embodiment into the collective recording/reproducing apparatus, the shutter n is opened and the stopper is adjusted so that the shutter n is always kept open as shown in FIG. 32 at the moving position of the shutter. In this state, set the disk drive (IJ) to the collective recording/playback device. In this way, in the collective recording/playback device, each time recording/playback is performed,
There is no need to open and close the shutter, a mechanism for opening the shutter can be omitted, and troubles caused by improper opening of the shutter can be avoided.

Further, when the disk cartridge is taken out from the collective type recording/reproducing apparatus and used, the stopper 32 is removed and attached to the shutter storage location 33 as shown in FIG. When the stopper 32 is removed from the shutter travel position, the shutter valley is automatically returned to the closed position by the shutter spring, making it possible to prevent dust, dirt, and scratches from adhering to the disc.

When using this disc car) IJudge alone in a recording/playback device, insert the disc cartridge into the recording/playback device in the same way as a normal disk cartridge, and the bin of the recording/playback device will press the slider and release the shutter. can be opened.

As mentioned above, if the stopper 32 is installed in the stopper storage area, the stopper 32 will not be lost, and when the disk cartridge is installed in a collective type recording/reproducing device and used, the stopper can be immediately moved to the shutter travel position. The stopper can be kept open by attaching it to the stopper.

In the above embodiment, a U-shaped stopper was used to keep the shutter in the open position, and this stopper was attached to the shutter movement position to prevent the shutter from closing. However, the stopper is not limited to this shape. First, any material can be used as long as it can maintain the shutter in the open position. For example, it may be in the shape of a pin that passes through the cartridge case. However, the illustrated U-shaped stopper is preferable because it is easy to handle, such as installation and removal.

Effects of the Invention As is clear from the above description, the present invention has a structure in which a stopper for holding the shutter in the open position is removably attached to the disk cartridge.
When using this disk cartridge in a collective type recording/playback device, the shutter can be kept in the open position at all times by installing the stopper in a position that keeps the shutter open. This eliminates the need to provide any opening/closing mechanism, and has the effect that failures due to shutter opening malfunctions do not occur, and the disk cartridge with the above configuration can be used by removing it from the collective recording/reproducing device. When the disk cartridge is used, the stopper is removed, and the shutter is closed by the shutter spring, returning to its original state, and has the effect that it can be used as a normal disk cartridge with a shutter.

In addition, as shown in the illustrated embodiment, the removed stopper is
If the shutter is attached to a location on the cartridge case where it will not interfere with opening and closing the shutter, the stopper will not be lost and the stopper can be used anytime and anywhere.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a disc cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a state in which the shutter is kept open by a stopper, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the disc cartridge in which the shutter is shown in a closed state. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a stopper used in this embodiment, Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a shutter used in this embodiment, and Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the shutter used in Fig. 1.
Arrow sectional view, Figures 6 and 7 are conventional disc cars)
These are perspective views of the IJ. Figure 6 shows the shutter closed, Figure 7 shows the shutter opened, and Figure 8 shows the inside of a conventional disk cartridge and the cartridge holder of the main recording/reproducing device. FIG. 21...disk cartridge, n...disk,
23... Cartridge case, U... Disc center hole, 5... Hole for disc clamp, 26... Hole for recording/reproduction, n... Shutter, 27a... Claw, 4...
・Groove, I...Slider, 32...Stopper, 32a
...Claw, 33...Stosoba storage place, 34...Groove. Name of agent: Patent attorney Shigetaka Awano and 1 other person

Claims (1)

[Claims] A disc, a cartridge case that stores the disc, a shutter that opens and closes an opening for recording and playback formed in the cartridge case, a shutter spring that normally keeps the shutter in a closed position, and a shutter spring that can be detached from the cartridge case. a stopper attached to the disk cartridge for holding the shutter in an open position.