JPH04339327A - Cleaning mechanism for optical pickup device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To securely clean a optical pickup and furthermore to improve the reliability of the device. CONSTITUTION:A microcomputer 4 moves an objective lens 1 (a) to a position where the lens contacts a brush part 20a of a cleaning disk 20 arranged at a disk housing position and controls the lens, and under this state, controls the driving of a slide motor 2 and a spindle motor 3.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning mechanism for an optical pickup device equipped with an optical pickup for recording/reproducing information on a recording medium such as a magneto-optical disk.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an optical pickup device such as a magneto-optical disk device is generally equipped with an optical pickup for recording/reproducing information on a recording medium such as a magneto-optical disk.

This optical pickup is equipped with an objective lens that irradiates the signal surface of the disk with a laser beam, and by driving this objective lens in a focusing direction and a tracking direction by an objective lens driving means, the objective lens is The laser beam irradiated onto the disk from the lens is focused on an appropriate position on the target track of the disk.

[0004] Furthermore, the objective lens provided in the above optical pickup is placed facing the signal surface of the disc and is therefore exposed within the apparatus. For this reason, dust etc. tend to accumulate on the surface of the objective lens, and if left as is,
Normal irradiation of laser light from the objective lens is obstructed. Therefore, in order to remove dust and the like accumulated on the surface of the objective lens, the objective lens is now cleaned by a service person or a general user.

[0005]

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the conventional objective lens cleaning described above, when a service person performs the cleaning, there is no problem because he has technical knowledge, but when a general user performs the cleaning, there is no problem. Since the objective lens is manually cleaned by touch using a cleaning kit sold separately, cleaning can only be done in one direction, the direction of insertion and removal of the disk, and furthermore, the cleaning operation method varies depending on the individual. Since there is a difference between the two methods, it is impossible to reliably clean the objective lens, and in the worst case, there is a problem in that the constituent members such as the objective lens are damaged.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The cleaning mechanism for an optical pickup device of the present invention takes the following measures to solve the above problems.

That is, a spindle motor that rotationally drives a disk as a recording medium, an optical pickup equipped with an objective lens that can move forward and backward in a direction perpendicular to the signal surface of the disk, and an optical pickup that moves forward and backward in the radial direction of the disk. An optical pickup device comprising: a slide motor for moving; a drive control means for individually controlling the driving of the spindle motor, the optical pickup, and the slide motor; and a cleaning disk on which a brush portion is formed. The drive control means controls the movement of the objective lens to a position where it comes into contact with the brush portion of the cleaning disk disposed at the disk storage position, and in this state controls the drive of the spindle motor and the slide motor. .

[0008]

[Operation] According to the above structure, the objective lens is brought into contact with the brush portion of the cleaning disc placed in the disc storage position, and in this state, the drive control means drives the slide motor and the spindle motor. This allows the objective lens to be reliably cleaned under certain conditions.

[0009]

[Embodiment] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the optical pickup device according to this embodiment includes an optical pickup 1 that records/reproduces information signals onto/from a disk (not shown) as a recording medium.
A slide motor 2 moves the optical pickup 1 forward and backward in the radial direction of the disk, a spindle motor 3 rotates the disk, and the drives of the optical pickup 1, slide motor 2, and spindle motor 3 are individually controlled. The device includes a microcomputer 4 as a drive control means, an operation key section 5 for inputting various operation commands to the device, and a display section 6 for displaying the operating status of the device.

The optical pickup 1 is equipped with an objective lens 1a that irradiates the signal surface of the disk with laser light. The laser beam irradiated from the objective lens 1a is driven by an objective lens driving means (not shown) into a focusing direction (A1-A2 direction), which is a direction perpendicular to the signal surface of the disk, and a tracking direction (B1 direction).
-B2 direction), the focus is focused on the appropriate position of the target track on the disk.

The microcomputer 4 includes each driver iC1.
1, 12, 13, and 16, the optical pickup 1, slide motor 2, spindle motor 3, and display section 6
are connected, and the operation key section 5 is also connected. The microcomputer 4 controls the optical pickup 1, the slide motor 2, the spindle motor 3, and the display section 6 in response to various operation commands input from the operation key section 5.
is controlled by each driver iC11, 12, 13, and 16.

The optical pickup device according to this embodiment also includes a cleaning disk 20, and the operation key section 5 is provided with a cleaning key (not shown) for instructing the microcomputer 4 to select a cleaning mode.

The cleaning disk 20 has brush portions 20a formed on both upper and lower surfaces thereof, and also has brush portions 20a formed on both upper and lower surfaces thereof.
It has the same external dimensions as a playback disc, and can be stored in the disc storage position.

Further, when the cleaning key provided on the operation key section 5 is turned on, the microcomputer 4 controls each driver's iC.
By controlling the drive of the optical pickup 1 and the slide motor 2 via 11 and 12, the objective lens 1a is moved to A1.
The optical pickup 1 is moved from the inner circumferential direction to the outer circumferential direction of the disk, and from the outer circumferential direction to the inner circumferential direction of the disk. 3 to rotate. At this time, the display section 6 is driven and controlled by the microcomputer 4 via the driver iC 16 to display the cleaning mode.

In the above configuration, the cleaning process of the optical pickup 1 by the cleaning mechanism of the optical pickup device of the present invention will be explained below.

First, when the user of the device stores the cleaning disk 20 in the disk storage position and turns on the cleaning key of the operation key section 5, the microcomputer 4 activates the driver iC.
11, the optical pickup 1 is driven and controlled to advance and move the objective lens 1a in the A1 direction.
and the brush portion 20a of the cleaning disc 20 are maintained in contact with each other.

Next, with the objective lens 1a and the brush portion 20a of the cleaning disk 20 in contact with each other as described above, the microcomputer 4 drives and controls the slide motor 2 via the driver iC12 to move the optical pickup 1. is moved from the inner circumferential direction to the outer circumferential direction of the disk, and from the outer circumferential direction to the inner circumferential direction of the disk, and the microcomputer 4 drives and controls the spindle motor 3 via the driver iC13,
The cleaning disk 20 is driven to rotate. Furthermore, at this time,
A display indicating a cleaning mode is displayed on the display unit 6.
The user of the device can confirm the cleaning operation of the optical pickup 1 by this display.

When the slide motor 2 and spindle motor 3 are driven for a predetermined period of time as described above,
The microcomputer 4 stops the drive control of each motor 2 and 3, cancels the advancing movement of the objective lens 1a in the A1 direction, and then ejects the cleaning disk 20 from the disk storage position, thereby removing the optical pickup 1. cleaning is completed.

As described above, the cleaning mechanism of the optical pickup device according to the present embodiment is provided in the operation key section 5 with the cleaning disk 20 on which the brush section 20a is formed placed in the disk storage position. By turning on the cleaning key, the objective lens 1a of the optical pickup 1 is automatically cleaned. For this reason, unlike the conventional manual and tactile cleaning performed by the user of the device using a separately sold cleaning kit, this method can be used reliably and easily without damaging component parts such as the objective lens 1a. The objective lens 1a can be cleaned.

[0021]

Effects of the Invention As described above, the cleaning mechanism for an optical pickup device of the present invention includes a spindle motor that rotationally drives a disk as a recording medium, and an objective lens that can advance and retreat in a direction perpendicular to the signal surface of the disk. A brush portion is formed of an optical pickup having an optical pickup, a slide motor for moving the optical pickup forward and backward in the radial direction of the disk, a drive control means for individually controlling the driving of the spindle motor, the optical pickup, and the slide motor, and a brush portion. The drive control means controls the movement of the objective lens to a position where it comes into contact with the brush portion of the cleaning disk disposed at the disk storage position, and in this state, This configuration controls the driving of a spindle motor and a slide motor.

[0022] This allows the surface of the objective lens, where dust and the like easily accumulates, to be reliably cleaned under certain conditions, so general users can clean the objective lens using a separately sold cleaning kit, unlike in the past. Unlike in the case where cleaning is performed, the objective lens and other constituent members are not damaged, and furthermore, it is possible to provide a convenient optical pickup device that automatically performs reliable cleaning of the objective lens.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an optical pickup device in an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Optical pickup 1a Objective lens 2 Slide motor 3 Spindle motor 4 Microcomputer (drive control means) 20 Cleaning disc 20a Brush part

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim 1: A spindle motor that rotationally drives a disk as a recording medium, an optical pickup equipped with an objective lens that can move forward and backward in a direction perpendicular to the signal surface of the disk, and an optical pickup that moves forward and backward in the radial direction of the disk. An optical pickup device comprising: a slide motor for moving; a drive control means for individually controlling the driving of the spindle motor, the optical pickup, and the slide motor; and a cleaning disk on which a brush portion is formed. The drive control means controls the movement of the objective lens to a position where it comes into contact with the brush portion of the cleaning disk disposed at the disk storage position, and in this state controls the drive of the spindle motor and the slide motor. A cleaning mechanism for an optical pickup device, characterized in that: