JPH0519912Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to tape cassettes, and is particularly concerned with chipping of the end portion of the cassette casing due to obstruction of the flow of molten resin that occurs during molding of the cassette casing, and problems with flatness accuracy. This invention relates to a tape cassette that eliminates degradation.

(Prior art) Figure 3 shows a general video tape recorder (hereinafter referred to as
This figure shows a tape cassette used in a VTR (VTR). The tape cassette 20 has a magnetic tape (not shown) wound in a cassette casing (hereinafter simply referred to as the casing) 21, and a supply reel and a take-up reel on which the magnetic tape is wound are respectively set at predetermined positions. It is rotatably housed at a predetermined position in the housing 21 with a distance of . Furthermore, the magnetic tape is constructed so that it can be pulled out from the front side of the housing 21.
A cover 22 for protecting the magnetic tape is pivotally supported on the front surface of the tape cassette so as to be openable and closable, and the cover 22 is closed when the tape cassette is not in use. During recording and playback, this opening/closing lid 22 is connected to a VTR (device not shown).
The cassette case 21 is opened by a lid opening mechanism, and a magnetic tape drawer mechanism pulls the magnetic tape out of the cassette housing 21 and brings it into contact with a magnetic head.

Here, the process of attaching the conventional tape cassette 20 to a VTR will be explained together with means for preventing erroneous insertion. Figure 5 shows the application of a conventional tape cassette.
FIG. 3 is a front view of the cassette holder of the VTR main body. A tape cassette is usually a cassette holder that has a cassette insertion slot on the top of the VTR, or
The tape cassette is inserted into a cassette holder having a cassette insertion opening provided on the front surface of the tape cassette, with the opening/closing lid on the front surface of the tape cassette placed first.

As mentioned above, the tape cassette 20 is inserted into the cassette holder 4 of the VTR 40 with the front opening/closing lid 22 first.
However, at this time, the tape cassette 20 may be inserted into the cassette insertion slot 42 in the wrong direction (for example, if the tape cassette 20 is inserted with the back side 25 first, with the opening/closing lid 22 behind, or upside down). The device is equipped with means to prevent incorrect insertion.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a tape cassette 20
In order to prevent incorrect insertion, a guide groove 23 is provided at the center of the lower edge of the opening/closing lid 22 of the cassette 21. They are located on the same straight line and are formed to communicate with each other.

On the other hand, the tape cassette 2 is located below the tape insertion slot 42 inside the cassette holder 41 on the VTR side.
A stopper 43 made of, for example, a rib-shaped member (protrusion) is provided at a position corresponding to the guide grooves 23 and 24 of 0.

Therefore, with the tape cassette 20 in the correct direction,
(In other words, if you insert the tape cassette 22 with the opening/closing lid 22 first and the guide grooves 23 and 24 downward), the stopper 43 of the cassette holder 41 and the guide grooves 23 and 24 of the tape cassette 20 will align and they will fit into each other. and the cassette holder 4 of the tape cassette 20.
Insertion into 1 is allowed.

However, when trying to insert the tape cassette 20 upside down, the opening/closing lid 2 of the housing 21
If the upper edge of the tape cassette 20 comes into contact with the stopper 43, or if you try to insert the tape cassette 20 with the front and back reversed, the back surface 25 of the housing 21 (there is no guide groove)
comes into contact with the stopper 43, thereby preventing the tape cassette 20 from being inserted into the cassette holder 41 in either case. And tape cassette 20 is a VTR
40, the magnetic tape is pulled out from the housing 21 by a magnetic tape pull-out mechanism (not shown) in the VTR and brought into contact with the magnetic head.

By the way, recently there has been a desire for smaller VTRs,
VTRs that are shorter in width and shorter in depth are being produced than before. Therefore, the location of the magnetic tape pull-out mechanism, magnetic head, and rotational movement mechanism within the VTR is important.

Therefore, when inserting a tape cassette into a VTR, do not first insert the opening/closing lid 22 of the housing 21 into the cassette insertion slot 42 of the VTR 40 as described above.
A structure is also manufactured in which the side surface 30 or 31 of the housing 21 is inserted into the cassette insertion slot first. FIG. 6 shows a front view of a VTR cassette holder having this insertion structure. In this figure, the opening/closing lid 22 of the tape cassette 20 is inserted so as to be in contact with the front right side of the cassette insertion opening 47 of the cassette holder 46 of the VTR 45, and the cassette housing 21 is inserted into the VTR 45.
This is a diagram showing a structure in which a magnetic tape (not shown) inside is pulled out to the front right side when viewed from a cassette insertion slot 47 of a VTR 45.

The conventional housing 21 has a VTR 45 of the above insertion type.
Guide grooves 32, 26 for preventing incorrect insertion corresponding to
33 extends in the longitudinal direction of the bottom plate 27 separately from the guide grooves 23 and 24 described above. This guide groove 3
2, 26, 33 are opening/closing lids 2 across the tape reel.
2 (towards the rear surface 25).
As shown in FIG. 6, the tape cassette 20 is inserted with one side surface 30 of the housing 21 first, and the guide grooves 32, 26, 33 for preventing incorrect insertion of the bottom plate 27 are located on the lower left front side of the cassette insertion opening 47. will be inserted so that it is located at .

On the other hand, at the lower inside of the cassette insertion opening 47 of the cassette holder 46 on the VTR 45 side, there is a means for preventing erroneous insertion, such as a rib-shaped member (protrusion), at a position corresponding to the guide grooves 32, 26, and 33 of the tape cassette 20.
A stopper 48 is provided.

Therefore, if the tape cassette 20 is inserted into the cassette insertion slot 47 of the VTR 45 in the correct direction as described above, the stopper 48 of the cassette holder 46 and the guide grooves 32, 26, 33 of the tape cassette 20 will be aligned.
match, these fit together and the tape cassette 2
0 into the cassette holder 46 is permitted.

However, when trying to insert the tape cassette 20 upside down, the side surface 3 of the housing 21
If the upper edge of the tape cassette 20 comes into contact with the stopper 48, or if the other side part 31 is inserted first, the lower edge of this side part 31 will come into contact with the stopper 48, and in either case, the cassette of the tape cassette 20 Insertion into holder 46 is prevented.

Furthermore, in the conventional housing 21, as shown in FIG.
33 is formed, and the housing 21 is made up of an upper half 34 and a lower half 35 which are divided into upper and lower halves, and these halves are connected with screws or the like in a lid-fitting state to form an integral structure.

FIG. 4 shows a bottom view of the lower half 35 of the tape cassette 20. As shown in the figure, the lower half 35
In this case, a resin injection port 28 is arranged on the front side of the guide grooves 32, 26, and 33. Incidentally, FIG. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of the mold 50 for molding the lower half 35 (at a position corresponding to the cross-sectional view taken along line a-b shown in FIG. 4). The lower half 35 is formed by press-fitting molten resin through the resin injection port 28 and filling the entire interior of the mold 50.

(Problems to be solved by the invention) By the way, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 7, the lower half 35 is molded by press-fitting molten resin into the mold 50 through the resin injection port 28'. , lower half 3
In order to mold the downward concave groove that will become the guide groove 26 for preventing incorrect insertion of No. 5, a mold 50 corresponding to the same part is used.
forms a convex portion 26'. Therefore, the molten resin press-fitted from the resin injection port 28' flows into the mold 50.
The flow is obstructed by the convex portion 26' of the mold 50, and the fluid does not flow to the end portion of the mold 50 while maintaining sufficient pressure. Therefore, the lower region 29 (shown in FIGS. 4 and 7) separated by the guide grooves 32, 26, and 33 when viewed from the resin injection ports 28 and 28' is located in the upper area opposite to the guide grooves 32, 26, and 33. area 36
(shown in FIGS. 4 and 7), the molten resin is not sufficiently press-fitted over the entire mold, and the planar accuracy of the region 29 is extremely reduced, and the end portion 3 of the region 29 is
In No. 7 and No. 38, there was a problem that the molten resin did not flow sufficiently and the molding was partially chipped and formed into a corrugated shape.

Therefore, the present invention was developed so that the flow of molten resin is not obstructed by the guide groove when molding the lower half.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a tape cassette which can eliminate deterioration in planar accuracy and chipping at the end portion of the casing.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention rotatably stores a tape reel wound with magnetic tape in a cassette casing, and the magnetic tape is inserted into the cassette casing. The cassette cassette is constructed so that it can be pulled out from the front, and has an openable/closable lid for protecting the magnetic tape on the front of the cassette casing, and a guide groove extending in the longitudinal direction on the bottom plate of the cassette casing to prevent incorrect insertion. In a tape cassette formed of
A guide groove for preventing incorrect insertion extending in the longitudinal direction is formed at a position parallel to one longitudinal side of the bottom plate and at a distance from the one side, and within a reel arrangement area in the tape cassette. , the left and right sides of the cassette housing are arranged so as to be on the same straight line across the middle part where there is no guide groove, and the resin injection port for forming the bottom plate is arranged in the middle part and to prevent the erroneous insertion. The present invention provides a tape cassette which is provided approximately in the middle of a guide groove for use with a tape cassette, and further on the side of the reel insertion port from the guide groove.

(Function) In the tape cassette having the above structure, when molding the lower half, the downward concave groove of the guide groove for preventing incorrect insertion is not formed near the molten resin injection port 12 of the lower half 17 as in the conventional example ( The molten resin press-fitted from the injection port (there is a space 13 without a guide groove) is transferred to the upper part of the lower half 17, that is, to the reel arrangement area 19 (shown in FIGS. 2 and 8), and also to the lower guide. The lower half 17 can be formed by flowing into the groove direction, that is, the reel arrangement region 18 (shown in FIGS. 2 and 8) while maintaining sufficient pressure.

(Embodiment) An embodiment of the tape cassette according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tape cassette, which is an embodiment of the tape cassette according to the present invention, as viewed from the bottom side.

In the figure, guide grooves 8 and 9 are formed in the longitudinal direction of the bottom plate 15 of the tape cassette 1 from the left and right side surfaces 6 and 7, respectively, to prevent incorrect insertion. The guide grooves 8 and 9 extend parallel to the back surface 14 from each side surface 6 and 7 by a required length (for example, 1/4 of the longitudinal width).
1/3), and the middle part 1
3 (the part without the guide groove) and are arranged on the same straight line.

The cassette housing 2 consists of an upper half 16 and a lower half 17 which are divided into upper and lower halves, and these halves are integrally connected with screws or the like with their lids mated together. FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the lower half 17 of the tape cassette 1 according to the present invention. In FIG. 2, the guide grooves 8 and 9 extending in the longitudinal direction from the side surfaces 6 and 7 of the lower half 17 are located substantially below the tape reel insertion openings 61 and 62 (in the direction of the back surface 14 of the tape cassette). extending to the middle part 13
(portion where there is no guide groove) and are formed on the same straight line, with the guide grooves 8 and 9 not existing in the vicinity of the resin injection port 12. Note that the resin injection port 12 is provided within the intermediate portion 13 and at a substantially intermediate position between the guide grooves 8 and 9, and furthermore, is located closer to the reel insertion ports 61 and 62 than the guide grooves 8 and 9. ing. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, in the lower half 35 of the conventional tape cassette 20, the guide grooves 32, 26, 33 extending in the longitudinal direction from the side surfaces 30, 31 do not cut in a straight line. A guide groove 26 is also arranged below the resin injection port 28 (in the direction of the back surface 25 of the tape cassette 20).

In addition, Fig. 8 shows tape cassette 1 according to the present invention.
2 is a cross-sectional view (a cross-sectional view taken along line a'-b' shown in FIG. 2) of a mold 51 used when molding the lower half 17 of FIG. As a result, the molten resin press-fitted from the resin injection port 12' is not hindered in any way.
(As shown in FIG. 7, in the mold 50 for molding the lower half of the conventional tape cassette, the guide groove 2
(There was a convex part 26' for forming 6, which obstructed the flow of the press-fitted molten resin), and the entire mold was filled while maintaining sufficient pressure. Therefore, even in the reel arrangement area 18 (shown in FIGS. 2 and 8) on the side of the guide grooves 8 and 9 when viewed from the injection port 12, the reel arrangement on the opposite side to the guide grooves 8 and 9 and the injection port is Area 19 (shown in Figures 2 and 8)
Similarly, the molten resin is sufficiently press-fitted throughout the mold, and the end portion is also molded without chipping.

Note that the arrows in FIGS. 2, 4, 7, and 8 represent the flow of the molten resin.

Next, the process of mounting the tape cassette according to the present invention formed as described above into a VTR will be explained together with the guide groove for preventing erroneous insertion. As shown in FIG. 1, the tape cassette 1 of the present invention rotatably accommodates tape reels 60a and 60b wound with magnetic tape (not shown) in a cassette housing 2, and the magnetic tape is inserted into the cassette. The cassette cassette 2 is constructed so that it can be pulled out from the front surface, and an openable/closable lid 3 for protecting the magnetic tape is provided on the front surface of the cassette casing 2, and a bottom plate 15 is provided with a longitudinal side extending from both side surfaces 6 and 7. This tape cassette is provided with a pair of guide grooves 8 and 9 extending in the direction of the tape cassette for preventing erroneous insertion. Also, this cassette is installed in Figure 6.
The front view of the VTR cassette holder is shown.

In the figure, insert the tape cassette 1 with the side surface 6 first, and insert the opening/closing lid 3 of the cassette so that it touches the front right side of the cassette insertion slot 47 of the VTR 45.
5, the magnetic tape in the cassette case 2 is
This figure shows a VTR structured to be pulled out to the front right side when viewed from the cassette insertion slot 47 of the VTR 45. Also VTR
Tape insertion slot 47 of the cassette holder 46 on the 45 side
Below, at a position corresponding to the guide groove 8 of the tape cassette 1, there is provided a stopper 48, which is a means for preventing erroneous insertion, such as a rib-shaped member (protrusion). Although only a front view of the cassette holder 46 is shown, the cassette holder 46 actually has a cassette insertion space (not shown) following the cassette insertion opening 47, and the stopper 48 is a comparison of the cassette insertion space. It is located at the back of the target.

Therefore, when the tape cassette 1 is inserted with the side surface 6 first and the guide groove 8 of the bottom plate 15 positioned at the lower left of the front of the cassette insertion opening 47, the stopper 48 of the cassette holder 46 and the guide groove 8 of the tape cassette 1 are inserted. The tape cassette 1 is inserted into the cassette holder 46 by matching and fitting together. However, if you try to insert the tape cassette 1 upside down, the upper edge of the side surface 6 of the cassette housing 2 will come into contact with the stopper 48, or if you try to insert the other side surface 7 first, the upper edge of the side surface 6 will come into contact with the stopper 48. The lower edge of the portion 7 abuts against the stopper 48, thereby preventing the tape cassette 1 from being inserted into the cassette holder 46 in any case.

In addition, the opening/closing lid 3 of the tape cassette 1 is connected to the VTR 4.
When viewed from the front of the VTR 45, the magnetic tape inside the cassette case 2 is inserted into the VTR 45 so that it is located on the front left side of the cassette insertion slot 47 of No.
Some VTRs have a structure that pulls out on the left side. In this case, the tape cassette 1 is inserted with the other side surface 7 of the cassette housing 2 first and with the guide groove 9 for preventing incorrect insertion of the bottom plate 15 positioned at the lower right of the front of the cassette insertion opening 47. A stopper 49 is provided below the tape insertion opening 47 inside the cassette holder 46 on the VTR side at a position corresponding to the guide groove 9 of the tape cassette 1 (a different position from the stopper 48 mentioned earlier). However, in the following explanation, only the case where the magnetic tape in the cassette housing 2 is installed in the VTR 45 will be explained so that it is pulled out to the right when viewed from the front of the VTR 45.

By the way, recently, recording is sometimes performed on standard VHS (registered trademark) tape cassettes in a recording format for special business use, which is different from that for general home use, but even if standard VHS tapes of the same shape are used,
Because the recording formats are different, tape cassettes recorded in the home format and tape cassettes recorded in the professional format are not compatible, and can only be played back on VTRs that are compatible with each. . However, since both tape cassettes have the same shape, they are often inserted incorrectly. Therefore, there is a need for a means for preventing erroneous insertion that also takes into account differences in recording formats. Therefore, for example, the tape cassette of the present invention is used for recording in a business format, and the conventional tape cassette is used for recording in a home format. For home VTRs, a stopper is formed below the tape insertion slot at a position corresponding to the guide groove of the tape cassette and relatively close to the front of the tape insertion slot.
At a position below the tape insertion slot that corresponds to the tape guide groove and relatively deep in the tape insertion slot (when the tape cassette 1 is completely installed, the cassette insertion position is lower than the position corresponding to the terminal end 10 of the guide groove 8). Form a stopper at the position (in the direction of the back).

With this structure, even if the tape cassette 1 of the present invention recorded in a commercial format is accidentally inserted into a home-use VCR, the terminal end 10 of the guide groove 8 of the tape cassette 1 will not close to the stopper 48 (home-use
Even on a VTR, the front view of the cassette slot is
The cassette is similar to that shown in FIG. 6, except that the stopper is formed at a position relatively close to the front of the cassette insertion slot, and the cassette cannot be inserted, thereby preventing incorrect insertion.

Note that 11 is the end surface of the guide groove 9.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, the tape cassette of the present invention is configured such that a tape reel wound with magnetic tape is rotatably housed in the cassette casing, and the magnetic tape can be pulled out from the front surface of the cassette casing. Further, a tape cassette is provided with an openable/closable lid for protecting the magnetic tape on the front surface of the cassette cassette, and a guide groove extending in the longitudinal direction to prevent erroneous insertion in the bottom plate of the cassette cassette. In,
A guide groove for preventing incorrect insertion extending in the longitudinal direction is formed at a position parallel to one longitudinal side of the bottom plate and at a distance from the one side, and within a reel arrangement area in the tape cassette. , the left and right sides of the cassette housing are arranged so as to be on the same straight line across the middle part where there is no guide groove, and the resin injection port for forming the bottom plate is arranged in the middle part and to prevent the erroneous insertion. By providing the reel at a position approximately in the middle of the guide groove for the tape cassette, and closer to the reel insertion port than the guide groove, when molding the lower half of the tape cassette, the molten resin is injected to the end portion while maintaining sufficient pressure. Therefore, it has the advantage of preventing the end portion of the cassette half from being chipped and being molded, and also improving the flatness accuracy of the cassette half.

Furthermore, by providing the resin injection port at the position described above, there is also the effect that moldability can be improved without providing an additional injection port.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a tape cassette which is an embodiment of the present invention as seen from the bottom, Fig. 2 is a bottom view of the lower half of the tape cassette of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a conventional tape cassette. FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the lower half of a conventional tape cassette; FIG. 5 is a front view of a VTR cassette holder into which the tape cassette is inserted with the front side first; FIG. The figure is a front view of a VTR cassette holder into which the tape cassette is inserted with the side surface first, and Figure 7 is a sectional view of a mold for molding the lower half of a conventional tape cassette (taken along line a-b in Figure 4). Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of the mold for molding the lower half of the tape cassette of the present invention (Figure 2 a'--
(a cross-sectional view along line b'). 1...Tape cassette, 2...Cassette housing,
3... Lid body, 8, 9... Guide groove for preventing incorrect insertion, 12... Resin injection port, 13... Middle part, 15
... Bottom plate, 17 ... Lower half, 51 ... Mold, 6
0a, 60b...tape reel, 61, 62...
Reel insertion slot.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] A tape reel wound with magnetic tape is rotatably housed in a cassette casing, and the magnetic tape is drawn out from the front of the cassette casing. In the tape cassette, an openable/closable lid for protecting the magnetic tape is provided on the front surface, and a guide groove for preventing erroneous insertion extending in the longitudinal direction is formed in the bottom plate of the cassette housing, in the longitudinal direction of the bottom plate. parallel to one side of
In addition, a guide groove for preventing incorrect insertion extending in the longitudinal direction is formed at a position distant from one side and within the reel arrangement area in the tape cassette, and there is no guide groove from both left and right sides of the cassette cassette. They are arranged so as to be on the same straight line across the middle part, and the resin injection port for forming the bottom plate is located within the middle part and at a position approximately in the middle of the guide groove for preventing erroneous insertion. A tape cassette characterized by being provided closer to the reel insertion opening than the groove.