JPH0438713A - Library device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To lighten the burden on an operator by executing cleaning or the exchange of a cleaning medium and so on by a library device itself when recording/reproducing operation is executed more than definite quantity or the cleaning medium is used more than definite number of times. CONSTITUTION:The number of read/write sectors executed by a read/write device 17 is counted, and when this count value becomes more than a prescribed value, and in addition, read/write is not being executed for definite period of time, the cleaning medium 16 is loaded in the read/write device 17, and the device 17 is made to execute the cleaning. Thus, since the operator need not monitor the operation quantity of the read/write operation of the read/write device 17 and instruct the executing time of the cleaning, the burden of the operator can be lightened. Besides, even if the operator forgets the operation, the cleaning is executed at the proper time.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Summary] Regarding a library device that stores a recording medium such as an optical disk or a magnetic tape, and records/reproduces information on the recording medium, the present invention relates to a read/write device that can read/write without any operation by an operator. A read/write device that records/reproduces information on a recording medium, as well as a cleaning medium and a recording medium for cleaning the read/write device, with the purpose of cleaning or replacing the cleaning medium. In the library device, the library device is equipped with a storage unit that measures the amount of recording/reproducing operation of the read/write device, and when the motion meter measured by the measuring device reaches a predetermined value or more. , and cleaning medium control means for cleaning the read/write device using the cleaning medium.

(Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a library device that stores a recording medium such as an optical disk or a magnetic tape, and records/reproduces information on the recording medium.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, library devices have been known that store a recording medium such as an optical disk or a magnetic tape inside, move the recording medium to a read/write device, and record/reproduce information on the recording medium. Furthermore, a library device has been realized in which a cleaning medium is stored in addition to the recording medium, and the recording/reproducing head of the read/write device can be cleaned using the cleaning medium.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Part 2 In conventional library apparatuses, it was necessary for the operator himself to input a command to move the cleaning medium from the operation unit, move the cleaning medium to the saw 1:/write apparatus, and clean the apparatus. In this case, the cleaning ability of the cleaning medium decreases as the number of times it is used increases, so it is necessary to replace the cleaning medium after it has been used a certain number of times.

However, in the library device mentioned above, is it okay to clean the read/write device?
Or when to replace the cleaning media?
The operator had to make the decision himself, which increased the burden on the operator. Furthermore, if the operator forgets to carry out cleaning operations, there is a problem in that the recording/reproducing head cannot be cleaned or the cleaning medium cannot be replaced at an appropriate time.

The present invention aims to enable cleaning of a read/write device or replacement of a cleaning medium without any operation by an operator.

[Means to solve the problem]

FIG. 1 is a diagram explaining the principle of the present invention.

In FIG. 1A, read/write devices 1 to 1 are devices that record/reproduce information on a recording medium 14. As shown in FIG.

The measuring means 2 is means for measuring the amount of recording/reproducing operation of the two-part read/write device 1.

The cleaning medium control means 3 cleans the read/write device using the cleaning medium 16 when the amount of operation measured by the measuring means 2 exceeds a certain value.

Further, in FIG. 1(b), the counting means 4 is a means for counting the number of times the cleaning medium 16 is used, and the notifying means 5 is a means for counting the number of times the cleaning medium 16 is used. This is a means for notifying a host device or an operator of replacement of the medium 16.

[Function] In the configuration described above, when the amount of operation of the recording/reproducing operation of the read/write device 1 exceeds a predetermined value, the cleaning medium 16 is set in the read/write device 1 by the cleaning medium control means 3, and the device is activated. cleaning is performed.

Furthermore, when the number of uses of the cleaning medium 16 recorded by the counting means 4 exceeds a predetermined value, this fact is notified to the first place device or the operator.

Therefore, there is no need for an operator to instruct cleaning 1 or replacement of the cleaning medium, and the burden on the operator is reduced.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of a main part of a library device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, an accessor 11 selects a recording medium 14 (for example) stored in a cell 13 under the control of an accessor control unit 12.

An optical disk, a magnetic tape, etc.) or a cleaning medium 16 stored in a cleaning medium cell 15 is taken out and moved to a read/write device 17.

The read/write device 17 uses the accessor 12 to read/write it.
It is a device that writes and reads information to and from the recording medium 14 that has been moved from each cell, and is controlled by the RGRLJ-F/write device control section 18 in accordance with instructions from a host device.

Cleaning medium control unit] 9 is a cleaning medium 16
νF to read/write I/recording/playback of device 17 using
This is a circuit that performs cleaning.

This cleaning medium control unit 19 has an R/W counter (described later) that counts the number of read/-) write sectors notified from the write device control unit 18 by a + number, and the value of the count is If it becomes -1- or more than the predetermined value, it instructs the accessor control unit 12 to remove the cleaning medium 1.
6 is moved to the read/write device 17, and the recording/reproducing head is cleaned.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a non-volatile RAM provided in the cleaning medium control section 19 that stores the number of sectors in which recording/reproducing operations have been performed. This non-volatile RAM corresponds to multiple read/write devices #0 to #n.
A plurality of counter areas are provided, and the number of recording/reproducing sectors of each of the read/write devices #0 to #n is stored in the corresponding R1W counter C.

The upper-level interface control unit 20 in FIG. 2 controls the accessor to control instructions for moving the recording medium 14, writing information, reading information, etc., in accordance with commands received from the L-level device via a higher-level interface unit (not shown). 12 and 1/'/write device control section 18.

Next, the operation of the embodiment configured as above will be explained. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention.

First, the R/W counter C that stores the number of read/write (+ sectors) of the recording/playback head is cleared and the counter C is initialized (FIG. 4, Sl).Next, the R/W counter C It is determined whether or not the content of is equal to or greater than a predetermined value (in this embodiment, 3500 sectors) (S2).

If the content of R/W counter C is less than 3500,
That is, if the number of recording/reproducing head sectors -1, . When the read/error (1-) command is not output, a timer T (not shown) is incremented to measure the time until the next read/write command is output (S4).

- On the other hand, when a read/write command is output, the number of read/write sectors at that time is counted by the R/W counter C. (S5).

Also, since the read/write command has been output, the timer T is cleared to "0" and the timer is initialized (S6).

If the content of the counter C is 3500 or more in the determination in step S2, that is, if more writing or reading is being performed than the number of sectors that should be cleaned, the process advances to step S7, and the time counted by the timer T is a constant value. Determine whether or not it is greater than or equal to Here, the value of timer T is compared with a constant value because timer T
Since the time elapsed since the write command was output is measured, when this time T is longer than a predetermined reference time,
That is, the cleaning operation of the read/write device 17 is started in steps S8 and S9, which will be described later, only when reading/writing has not been performed on the recording medium 14 a certain number of times or more.

The number of read/write sectors of the read/write device 17 is r
3500 J or more and no read/write command has been output for a certain period of time, the cleaning medium control unit 19 instructs the accessor control unit 12 to move the cleaning medium 16 to the read/write device 17 (S
8). Then, the read/write device 17 loads the cleaning medium 16 into the device and cleans the recording/reproducing head.
6 is unloaded (S9). When the cleaning medium control unit 19 recognizes that the cleaning medium 16 has been unloaded via the read/write device control unit 18,
Instructs the accessor control unit 12 to remove the cleaning medium 1.
6 to the cleaning medium cell 15 (SIO
).

As described above, in the above embodiment, the read/write device 17
counts the number of read/write sectors performed by the device, and when the counted value exceeds a predetermined value and no read/write has been performed for a certain period of time, the cleaning medium 16 is loaded into the read/write device 17 for cleaning. I made it run. As a result, the read/write device 17
Since it is no longer necessary for the operator to monitor the amount of the glue read/write operation and instruct when to perform cleaning, the burden on the operator can be reduced. Further, even if the operator forgets to perform the operation, cleaning is performed at an appropriate time.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

The library device of the second embodiment includes a plurality of read/write devices #0 to #n and a number of cleaning media #0 to #n corresponding to the read/write devices. The cleaning medium control device 19 includes an R/W counter C (third
In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, n cleaning counters C2 are provided to count the number of times each of n cleaning media #0 to #n is used.

Further, each cleaning counter C2 is provided with a VALID flag indicating whether or not the corresponding cleaning medium 16 is stored in the cleaning medium cell 15.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the cleaning medium control unit 19 initializes the cleaning counter C2 to "0" (S11). Next, at that time, the read/write device 17 reads the cleaning medium 1.
6 is used (S12). When a cleaning medium 16 is used, a cleaning counter C2 corresponding to the cleaning medium 16 is displayed.
is incremented to update the number of times the cleaning medium 16 has been used (S13). Further, it is determined whether the updated count value of the cleaning counter C2 is equal to or greater than a certain number of times, and it is determined whether the cleaning medium 16 should be replaced (S14).

At this time, if the number of times the cleaning medium 16 has been used is less than a certain number of times, the process returns to step S12 and repeats the process described above.

On the other hand, when the number of times the cleaning medium 16 has been used reaches a certain number, the host device is notified that it is time to replace the cleaning medium 16 (315).
).

If it is determined in step S12 that the cleaning medium 16 is not being used in the read/write device J7, the process advances to step 316 and it is determined whether the cleaning medium 16 loaded into the library device has been moved to an empty cell.

If the cleaning medium 16 has not been moved, it is then determined whether the cleaning medium 16 has been discharged to the outside of the library device (S17). When the cleaning medium 16 is discharged to the outside, the cleaning counter C2 corresponding to the discharged cleaning medium 16 is cleared and the VALID flag is turned off (318).

When it is determined in step 31.6 that the inserted cleaning medium 16 has been moved, this means that the newly inserted cleaning medium 1G for replacement has been moved to an empty cell, so the next step S19 The corresponding cleaning counter C2 is initialized to "0", and since a new leaning medium 16 has been stored, the VALID flag is turned on.

In the second embodiment described above, the number of times the cleaning medium 16 is used is counted by the cleaning counter C2, and when the count result exceeds a certain number of times, the host device is notified that the cleaning medium I6 should be replaced. did. This allows the operator to
There is no need to manage how much the cleaning medium 16 has been used and instruct the library device to replace the cleaning medium 16. Furthermore, it is possible to prevent the user from forgetting to replace the cleaning medium 16 and performing cleaning using the cleaning medium 16 whose cleaning ability has decreased.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

In this embodiment, when the number of times the cleaning medium 16 has been used exceeds a certain number of times, the cleaning medium 16 is discharged to the outside.

The embodiment with =1 also has a nonvolatile RAM having the same configuration as the second embodiment, and the number of times each cleaning medium 16 is used is counted by a cleaning counter C2.

Among the processes shown in FIG. 7, those that are the same as those in the flowchart of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 6 will not be described.

In steps S21 to S24 in FIG. 7, similarly to steps Sll to S14 in FIG.
9 is the current read/write from the value of cleaning counter C2.
The number of uses of 1G of cleaning medium that has been written is
Determine whether the number of times exceeds a certain value.

When the number of times the cleaning medium 16 has been used exceeds a certain number, the accessor control unit 12 is instructed to discharge the cleaning medium 16 to the outside of the library device (S25). Furthermore, it reports this to the higher-level device (
326). Also, the cleaning counter C2 corresponding to the discharged cleaning medium 16 is cleared to "0", and V
Al turns off the ID flag (S27).

If it is determined in step S22 that the cleaning medium 16 is not being used in the read/write device W17, the process advances to step 32B and it is determined whether a new cleaning medium 16 has been inserted into the library device. When a new cleaning medium 16 is input, the state of the VALID flag is checked and the vacant cleaning medium cell 1 is
5 exists (329). At this time,
If there is no empty cell, the charged cleaning medium 16 is discharged to the outside (S30).

On the other hand, if there is an empty cell, the cleaning medium 16 placed in the empty cell is moved (S31).
. As a result, the cleaning medium 16 has been replaced, so the cleaning counter C corresponding to the empty cell
2 is cleared to "0" and the VALID flag is turned on (S32).

As described above, in the third embodiment, when the cleaning medium 16 is used a certain number of times or more, the used cleaning medium 16 is discharged to the outside of the library apparatus, and the cleaning medium 16 needs to be replaced. Since the cleaning medium 16 can be replaced without any operation by the operator, the cleaning medium 16 can be replaced without any operation by the operator. Further, even in a library device incorporating a plurality of cleaning media 16, the cleaning media 16 can be replaced at an appropriate time without the operator having to manage the number of times each cleaning media 16 is used.

Although not shown in the flowchart of FIG. 7, if the cleaning medium 16 is ejected only when no read/write command is output for a certain period of time, the read/write device The cleaning medium 16 can be replaced without interfering with the operation of the cleaning medium 17.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the library device itself performs cleaning or replaces the cleaning medium when a certain amount of recording/reproducing operation is performed or when the cleaning medium is used more than a certain number of times. There is no need for the operator to perform any operations, and the burden on the operator is reduced.

Also, cleaning or replacement of the cleaning medium is thereby always carried out at the appropriate time.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the principle of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of main parts of a library device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a non-volatile RAM according to the first embodiment. The figure is an operation flowchart of the first embodiment, FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of the nonvolatile RAM of the second embodiment, FIG. 6 is an operation flowchart of the second embodiment, and FIG. 7 is the third embodiment. It is an operation flowchart. ■・・Read/write device, measurement means, cleaning medium control means, counting means, notification means.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) A read/write device (1) for recording/reproducing information on a recording medium, a cleaning medium (1, 6) for cleaning the read/write device (1), and a recording medium. A library apparatus comprising: a storage section for storing a recording/reproducing operation of the read/write device (1); becomes a predetermined value or more, the read/write device (1) uses the cleaning medium (16).
cleaning medium control means (3) for cleaning
A library device comprising: 2) The cleaning medium control means (3) determines that the amount of operation measured by the measuring means (2) is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, and that no recording/reproduction command is output to the read/write device (1) for a predetermined period of time or more. 2. The library apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the library apparatus starts a cleaning operation when: 3) Equipped with a read/write device (1) for recording/reproducing information on a recording medium, a cleaning medium (16) for cleaning the read/write device (1), and a storage section for storing the recording medium. In the library device, cleaning medium control means (16) for cleaning the read/write device using the cleaning medium (16);
3), a counting means (4) for counting the number of times the cleaning medium (16) is used, and when the counting result by the counting means (4) exceeds a predetermined value, replacing the cleaning medium (16). A library device characterized by comprising a notification means (5) for notifying a higher-level device or an operator. 4) The cleaning medium control means (3) discharges the cleaning medium (16) to the outside of the apparatus when the counting result by the counting means (4) exceeds a predetermined value. library equipment. 5) The cleaning medium control means (3) controls the cleaning medium when the counting result by the counting means (4) is equal to or higher than a predetermined value and no recording/reproduction command is output to the read/write device (1) for a certain period of time or more. The library device according to claim 3, characterized in that the medium (16) is ejected to the outside of the device.