JPH04238122A - Information recording and reproducing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To regulate the large oscillation of an objective lens of an optical head by the vibration and impact while the above device is not used by disposing a regulating member near the movable range of the objective lens. CONSTITUTION:A stopper spring 17 is provided near the end of the optical card insertion direction of a lifting up plate 15 of this device. One end of this spring 17 is fixed to the plate 15 and the body is so formed as to project upward of the plate 15 from a notch 24 formed in the plate 15. The contact point of the optical head 20 with the objective lens 21 is formed of a material to relieve impact. If a shuttle 13 is locked and the body of the spring 17 is projected while the device is not used, the lens 21 is disposed to face in this position.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information recording and reproducing apparatus for optically recording and/or reproducing information using an information recording medium such as an optical card.

0002

[Prior Art] Like optical disks, some optical cards cannot be rewritten with information, but compared to magnetic cards, they have a storage capacity of 1 to 2 Mbytes, which is several thousand to 10,000 times larger. ing. Therefore, they are becoming widely used as bank passbooks, portable maps, prepaid cards used for shopping, and the like.

This optical card uses an optical card device shown in FIG. 9 to optically read and write information. Specifically, the optical head 3 of the optical card device
A light beam is irradiated onto the optical card 32 through the optical fiber 1, and the reflected light is received.

The optical head 31 also has an objective lens 33 facing the surface of the optical card 32, and this objective lens 33 is supported movably in the focusing direction and the tracking direction by a wire. ing. During information recording/reproducing operations, the optical card 32 is controlled to maintain a constant position relative to the data recording surface of the optical card 32. Since the objective lens 33 is not controlled when the optical card device is not in use, the objective lens 33 is placed at a dead weight drop position where the weight of the objective lens 33 and the spring force of the wire supporting the objective lens 33 are balanced. It is in a hanging state. Therefore, the optical
When vibrations or shocks are applied to the target device, the objective lens 33 vibrates in the focusing direction or the tracking direction. The optical card 32 can be moved by a drive section 35 while being held by the shuttle 34, and the optical head 31 can also be moved in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the shuttle 34 by a drive section (not shown). It looks like this.

As mentioned above, when the optical card device is not used, the objective lens 33 vibrates greatly in the focusing and tracking directions, so it is necessary to suppress the vibrations in the focusing and tracking directions to below a predetermined amount. For this reason, some optical heads are provided with a fixed objective lens stopper that is always located near the objective lens.

[0006]

[Problem to be solved by the invention] The above conventional example is
If vibrations or shocks are applied to the device during transportation, the objective lens will vibrate significantly in the focusing and tracking directions, which may cause it to collide with the shuttle and bend the wire, or deteriorate the optical performance of the objective lens. There is a problem of it being put away. Also, due to large vibrations of the objective lens,
There is a problem in that the normal movement range of the objective lens is exceeded, and the deformation of the wire exceeds the elastic range, resulting in plastic deformation and deterioration of the optical function and operational performance of the objective lens. In addition, the objective lens collides with the push-up plate of the shuttle and damages the push-up plate, making it difficult to insert the optical card into the shuttle smoothly. There is a problem that the optical card may be damaged.

Furthermore, among the conventional examples described above, those in which the objective lens stopper is fixedly provided on the optical head have the following disadvantages. In other words, the distance between the optical head and the surface of the optical card inserted into the shuttle varies greatly due to the accumulation of processing tolerances of each component from the optical head to the shuttle, so if a fixed stopper is provided on the optical head, When the objective lens facing the warped optical card follows the optical card, it first hits the stopper and cannot fully follow the warpage of the optical card, making it impossible to record or reproduce data. In particular, this problem has a large effect on those with a small working distance. On the other hand, if a user attempts to increase the allowable amount of warpage of an optical card, the stopper must be removed from the optical head.

The present invention has been proposed to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it prevents the objective lens of the optical head from vibrating greatly even if vibrations, shocks, etc. are applied when the optical card device is not in use. The object of the present invention is to provide an information recording/reproducing device that prevents damage to the lens and other members near the objective lens.

[0009]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an information recording/reproducing apparatus that optically records/reproduces information on an information recording medium. This information recording and reproducing device is provided with a member that restricts the movement range of the objective lens.

0010

[Function] As mentioned above, a member for regulating the movement range of the objective lens is provided near the movement range of the objective lens, so even if the objective lens tries to vibrate greatly, the movement range is restricted.
This makes it possible to avoid collisions with other members, and to prevent damage to the objective lens itself and other members.

[0011]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of the entire apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. A front panel 2 is provided on the front of the outer cover 1, and an optical fiber is mounted on this front panel 2.
An insertion opening 4 for the card 3 is formed. The insertion slot 4 has a concave surface, and a guide portion 5 is formed to protrude toward the inside of the device so as to guide the optical card 3 into the device. It is formed into an inclined surface that can come into contact with the inclined surface of.

A mechanical unit having an upper frame 5 and a lower frame 6 is disposed in the internal space of the device formed by the outer cover 1 and the front panel 2. The lower frame 6 is provided with an optical head, an optical head drive section, etc., and a shutter section, a cleaning section, a loading section, a shuttle, a shuttle drive section, etc. are provided on the lower frame 6.

Of the above, the shutter 7 is provided deep in the insertion slot 4 in the direction in which the optical card 3 is inserted, is biased by a spring 8 in the direction of closing the insertion slot 4, and is moved vertically by a guide pin (not shown). It is supported so that it can move freely in the direction. A portion of the shutter 7 that comes into contact with the inclined surface of the guide portion 5 is formed into an inclined surface so as to be able to come into contact with the inclined surface. When the shutter 7 is moving in the direction of closing the insertion slot 4, the inclined surface of the shutter 7 and the inclined surface of the guide portion 5 come into contact with each other, thereby closing the optical card insertion path. Note that the shutter 7 is engaged with a solenoid (not shown), and is moved in the direction of opening the insertion port 4 against the elastic force of a spring 8 due to the suction operation of the solenoid.If the solenoid does not operate, the urging force of the spring 8 The insertion port 4 is moved in the direction of closing.

A cleaning device 9 and an opposing roller 10 are provided deep in the shutter 7 in the direction in which the optical card 3 is inserted, and the optical card 3 is configured to pass between them. ing.

The optical card 3 of these cleaning devices 9, etc.
Card conveyance rollers 11 and 12 are provided at the deep part in the insertion direction. Of these, the roller 11 is arranged on the underside of the optical card 3, and is rotated by a drive mechanism (not shown) in the direction of drawing the optical card 3 into the device and in the direction of ejecting it from the device. There is. Further, the roller 12 is an arm disposed on the upper surface side of the optical card 3 at a position facing the roller 11, and supported so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction by a link mechanism (not shown). is connected to. The roller 12 is moved to the position 12' by a solenoid (not shown), so that it comes into pressure contact with the roller 11, and rotates as the optical card 3 sandwiched between both rollers moves. It has become.

Optical card of rollers 11 and 12 for card conveyance
A shuttle 13 that can reciprocate in the direction of insertion of the optical card 3 while holding the transported optical card 3 is disposed at a deep portion in the direction of insertion of the card 3 . As shown in the rear view of FIG. 2, the shuttle 13 is provided with a card holding plate 14 at the top.
A push-up plate 15 is provided below the card holding plate 14 and is elastically biased upward by a spring 16. After the optical card 3 is conveyed by the rollers 11 and 12, it is inserted between the card holding plate 14 and the push-up plate 15, and the card holding plate 14 is pushed up by the pushing-up force of the push-up plate 15. The height position is regulated by hitting the object.

A stopper spring 17 is provided near the end of the push-up plate 15 in the direction in which the optical card 3 is inserted. One end of the stopper spring 17 is fixed to the push-up plate 15, the main body is formed so as to protrude upward from the upper surface of the push-up plate 15 through a notch 24 formed in the push-up plate 15, and the other end is connected in a series so as to face downward. It is formed. The main body of the stopper spring 17 is made of a softer material than the objective lens and lens frame of the optical head, which will be described later. A similar effect can be obtained by disposing another soft material in the portion of the stopper spring 17 facing the objective lens. Note that when the apparatus is not in use, the shuttle 13 is locked and the main body of the stopper spring 17 protrudes above the upper surface of the push-up plate 15, so that the objective lens 21 provided on the optical head 20 and falling under its own weight is opposed to it. It has become.

The shuttle 13 is driven by a VCM (voice coil motor) 18 provided below. In other words, by supplying current to the coil body disposed between the fixed magnets, this coil body
It is designed to reciprocate in the card insertion direction. Since the shuttle 13 is fixed to the coil body, the shuttle 13 moves as the coil body moves. In this case, the shuttle 13 reciprocates along a guide shaft 19 arranged parallel to the card insertion direction. In addition, shuttle 13
A locking mechanism (not shown) is provided at one end of the reciprocating region for fixing the shuttle 13 in a predetermined position when the device is not in use.

An optical head 20 is disposed above the shuttle 13, and an objective lens 21 provided on the optical head 20
is arranged to face the information recording surface of the optical card 3 inserted into the shuttle 13. The objective lens 21 is provided on the side of the optical head 20 facing the optical card, and is movably supported by wires in the focusing direction and the tracking direction. Note that the movable region in the tracking direction may be configured to be extremely small compared to the movable region in the focus direction. Optical head 2 in the tracking direction
Since the entire 0 is movable by the VCM, the objective lens 2
This is because the amount of movement of the lens 1 itself may be smaller than that in the focus direction.

The optical head 20 is supported so as to reciprocate along two guide shafts 22 disposed in a direction perpendicular to the reciprocating direction of the shuttle 13. A VCM 23 is disposed outside the guide shaft 22 and is configured to apply a driving force to the optical head 20. The upper frame 5 housing the optical head 20 is provided with a locking mechanism (not shown) for positioning and fixing the optical head 20 at a predetermined home position.

The upper frame 5 and the lower frame 6 are connected by positioning pins to form a mechanical unit.

Next, the operation of the apparatus according to this embodiment configured as described above will be explained. First, when the user inserts the optical card 3 into the device through the insertion slot 4, the shutter 7 is opened by a sensor (not shown), and the roller 10 for transporting the card is opened.
, 11 and 12, the optical card 3 is pulled into the device, and the card holding plate 14 and push-up plate 1 of the shuttle 13
5.

As the optical card 3 is further conveyed into the apparatus by the rollers 11 and 12, the tip of the optical card 3 pushes down the main body of the stopper spring 17, and finally the main body is moved to the position shown in FIG. It is located on the bottom surface of the optical card 3 as shown in FIG. The main body of the stopper spring 17 is located in the notch 24 formed in the card push-up plate 15, so when it is not pushed down by the optical card 3, it protrudes upward from the notch 24 and is not pushed down. If it is in the state where it is, it will be located below the notch 24. In this case, since the card holding plates 14 are located on both sides of the notch 24, they do not interfere with the operation of the stopper spring 17.

After the optical card 3 is attached to the shuttle 13, data is read/written via the optical head 20. When data reading/writing is completed, the shuttle 13 moves to the front of the device, is positioned at the loading position, and is locked. On the other hand, the optical head 20 is locked at the home position.

After that, the optical card 3 is transferred to the conveying roller 11.
, 12, the stopper spring 17, which had been pressed down by the optical card 3, is released from the restriction of the optical card 3 and its main body protrudes upward from the notch 24. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the stopper spring 17 protrudes and the main body is located near the objective lens 21 of the optical head 20. Note that this state is the same as before the optical card 3 is inserted into the shuttle 13. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the stopper spring 17 protrudes from the notch 24. The objective lens 21 of the optical head 20 is located above the end of the shuttle 13 in the card insertion direction, and if it is not controlled, the weight of the objective lens 21 and the wire supporting the objective lens 21 will be affected. It is located at the dead weight drop position, which is the position where the spring force is balanced.

Therefore, if vibration or impact is applied to the apparatus in this state, the objective lens 21 tends to swing significantly in the focusing direction and the tracking direction since the servo is not applied to the objective lens 21. However, in this embodiment, the objective lens 2
Since there is a stopper spring 17 near the stopper spring 17, the objective lens 21 that is about to swing a lot comes into contact with it and is stopped before it can swing a lot. Objective lens 2 of stopper spring 17
Since the contact portion with 1 is made of a material that cushions the impact, damage to the objective lens 21 can be prevented, and the impact force is also alleviated. moreover,
This can prevent the objective lens 21 from colliding with other nearby members and causing damage.

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of the present invention, in which parts corresponding to those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals. In this embodiment, the stopper spring 17 is fixed to the shuttle 13 side. The main body of the stopper spring 17 is the push-up plate 1
As in the first embodiment, it is possible to protrude upward from a notch 24 formed in 5. The other configurations are also similar to those of the first embodiment, and have similar effects.

FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the present invention, in which a buffer member 25 is used when the distance between the objective lens 21 and the shuttle 13 is small, and is fitted into a notch in the push-up plate 15. It is something. In this embodiment, the buffer member 2
5 does not protrude upward from the notch of the push-up plate 15, the objective lens 21 can be disposed close to the shuttle 13. If the objective lens 21 swings significantly in the focus direction, it comes into contact with a buffer member 25 fixed to the push-up plate 15 and is regulated. In each of the embodiments described above, after the optical card 3 is inserted into the shuttle 13, the stopper spring 17, the buffer member 25
The objective lens 21, which follows even when a warped optical card is inserted, as in the conventional example, hides under the optical card.
will not come into contact with the stopper spring 17 or the buffer member 25 and become unable to follow it. Since the portion of the buffer member 25 that abuts the objective lens 21 is made of a soft material, the objective lens 21 will not be damaged even if the objective lens 21 swings greatly and comes into contact with the buffer member 25 when the apparatus is not in use.

In the above embodiments, the direction of large deflection of the objective lens 21 is mainly taken into consideration in the focusing direction, but there may be cases where large deflection in the tracking direction must also be taken into consideration. FIG. 8 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention, in which a stopper spring 17 made of resin is used so as to prevent large vibrations in the tracking direction. In other words, the stopper spring 17 is constructed using a hinge spring, and the main body is formed with a recess 17a for regulating the deflection of the objective lens 21 in the tracking direction, and the objective lens 21 is configured to fit into the recess 17a. Therefore, large deflection of the objective lens 21 in two directions can be restricted.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention, when the objective lens is not controlled when the apparatus is not in use,
Even if the apparatus is subject to large shakes due to vibrations or shocks applied to the apparatus, a regulating member such as a stopper spring is disposed near the movable range of the objective lens, so that large shakes of the objective lens are regulated. Further, since the portion of the regulating member that abuts the objective lens is formed of a soft material, the impact when abutting the regulating member is alleviated. Therefore, the wire supporting the objective lens is bent and plastically deformed due to the large swing of the objective lens, which deteriorates the operational performance and optical function of the objective lens, or the optical performance deteriorates due to damage to the objective lens itself. You can prevent it from being put away. Furthermore, it is possible to prevent the shuttle from colliding with and damaging the push-up plate, which would impede card insertion.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal configuration of the entire device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the vicinity of the shuttle.

FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged side view of the vicinity of the stopper spring.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a stopper spring in a protruding state.

FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view of the shuttle.

FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged side view of the vicinity of a stopper spring according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged side view of the vicinity of a buffer member according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a partially enlarged perspective view of a shuttle according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a partial front view of a conventional device.

[Explanation of symbols]

3. Optical card 13 Shuttle 14 Card holding plate 15 Push up plate 17 Stopper spring 20 Optical head 21 Objective lens

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An information recording/reproducing device for optically recording/reproducing information on an information recording medium, characterized in that a member for regulating the movement range of the objective lens is provided near the movement range of the objective lens of the optical head. Information recording and reproducing device.