JPH07235118A - Disk-extrusion-member driving mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To adopt a disk-extrusion-member driving mechanism which is driven by the same driving source as that of a disk conveyance means by a method wherein, as long as the existence of a disk inside a carrier is detected, a driving force is restrained from being transmitted to a driving gear. CONSTITUTION:When a cartridge is extruded to a cartridge holding frame from a stocker, a pressure part 42b for a disk detection part pushes up a part to be pressed at a regulation arm 32. As a result, the arm 32 is turned clockwise. After the extrusion operation of the cartridge has been completed, a gullet gear is turned clockwise, a gear arm 33 is rocked, and the coupling of a planetary gear 34 to the gullet gear 36 is detached. Thereby, a disk extrusion operation by an extrusion operating member 38 is performed only when the cartridge does not exist inside a carrier, and it is not performed when the cartridge exists.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mechanism for pushing a disc from a disc housing portion to a disc holding carrier to drive a disc pushing member, and more particularly to a drive for driving a disc carrying means such as a loading roller. The present invention relates to a disc pushing member driving mechanism that operates using a motor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a disc autochanger (for example, an in-vehicle CD autochanger) is equipped with a magazine capable of accommodating a plurality of discs, and a loading roller rotatable in forward and backward directions allows the disc to be reproduced from the magazine to a reproducing portion. On the contrary, the disc is moved from the disc reproducing section to the magazine. That is, the disc autochanger is configured to repeat the following operations (1) to (3).

(1) A disc is pushed out of a magazine, and the disc is pulled in and taken out by a loading roller which rotates in a predetermined direction, and the disc is conveyed to a reproducing section. (2) A disc is mounted in the reproducing section and is reproduced. (3) The disc is conveyed and stored in the magazine by the loading roller that rotates in the opposite direction to that in (1).

[0004] The magazine has disk accommodating regions stacked on each other, and a disc ejecting mechanism for ejecting the disc to the loading roller side is provided for each disc accommodating region. The disc can be taken out from the magazine by operating the disc pushing mechanism and rotating the loading roller.

As a concrete example of the disc pushing mechanism, there is one having a pushing lever 3 as shown in FIG. The magazine 1 is mounted on the disc autochanger with the opening 1a thereof being close to the loading roller 2. Push lever 3 on the back side of magazine 1.
Is rotatably provided, and an extruding portion 3a that pushes the edge of the disk D is formed at the tip end portion thereof, and a pressed portion 3b that is pressed by the tip end portion of an extruding operation member 4 described below at the base end portion.
Are formed.

As a device for driving such a disc pushing-out mechanism, a disc pushing-out member driving mechanism is conventionally provided in a frame supporting the loading roller 2. As shown in FIG. 18, this mechanism is provided with a push-out operation member 4 slidable in the magazine 1 direction. When the pushing operation member 4 slides to the magazine 1 side, the tip portion pushes the pushed portion 3b of the pushing lever 3.
As a result, the push-out lever 3 rotates in the clockwise direction in the figure, and the push-out portion 3a causes the disc D to load onto the loading roller 2.
Push to the side.

In the above-mentioned disc pushing member driving mechanism,
Although an independent drive source may be used, a drive source of the loading roller 2 is conventionally known in order to prevent the structure of the mechanism from becoming large and complicated.

For example, the following has been proposed as a structure of a conventional disk pushing member driving mechanism. That is, when the loading roller 2 is rotated in the disc ejection direction by the driving force of the drive motor (not shown),
The gear arm swings due to the friction of the drive-side gear, the gear and the gear on the push-out operating member 4 side are connected, and the driving force of the drive motor is also transmitted to the push-out operating member 4 so that it can move forward. There is. Further, when the push-out operation member 4 is moved forward once to push out the disc, the above transmission is released by the action of the toothless gear in the connecting portion. Of course, when the loading roller 2 rotates in the direction in which the disc D is stored in the magazine 1 (the direction opposite to the above-mentioned rotation direction), the friction direction of the drive gear with respect to the gear arm is reversed and the gears are connected. Therefore, the driving force of the drive motor is not transmitted to the push-out operation member 4 due to the action of the drive gear.

According to the disc pushing member driving mechanism as described above, the disc D is taken out from the magazine only when the loading roller rotates in the disc taking-out direction by using the drive motor as the driving source of the loading roller. Can work. Such a technique is described in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-230364.

The present applicant has proposed an MD autochanger as a new disc autochanger, and has already filed various patent applications for this autochanger. Here, an example of this type of autochanger will be specifically described with reference to FIG. That is, an insertion port 11 through which the cartridge C of the MD can pass is formed on the front surface, and a carrier 12 through which the cartridge C can pass is disposed in the back side of the insertion port 11 so as to be vertically movable. A loading roller 13 that conveys the cartridge C is rotatably formed on the upper surface of the carrier 12. Further, a stocker 14 capable of stacking and accommodating four cartridges C is arranged on the back side of the carrier 12, and a disc reproducing section 15 for reproducing an MD is provided below the carrier 12. Reference numeral 15A is a turntable.

In the disk device having such a structure, in addition to storing the cartridge C in the stocker 14, the carrier 12 holds the cartridge C, thereby increasing the number of cartridges C to be stored without increasing the size of the device. You can At the same time, since the MD can be directly attached to the turntable 15A of the disc reproducing unit 15 while the carrier 12 holds the cartridge C, excellent usability can be ensured.

In the MD autochanger described above, at least when the cartridge C is inserted into or removed from the insertion port 11, the insertion port 11 and the stocker 1 are used.
One of the four storage areas (in the example shown in the figure, the uppermost storage area 14a) can be stored on the same plane. With such a configuration, when the cartridge C is stored in the uppermost storage area 12a of the carrier 12, the transport path of the cartridge C can be aligned, and the stock time of the cartridge C with respect to the storage area 14a can be reduced. Can be completed in the shortest time.

[0013]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

(1) By the way, for the MD autochanger,
It is assumed that the disk pushing member driving mechanism that operates by the same driving motor as the loading roller 13 is adopted as described above. In this case, the disc pushing-out member driving mechanism operates when the loading roller 13 rotates so as to draw the cartridge C from the stocker 14. The following problems can be considered in such a conventional technique.

That is, in the MD autochanger, the cartridge C in the carrier 12 is inserted into the insertion port 11
In the case of ejecting from the loading roller 13, the loading roller 13 rotates in the same direction (clockwise direction in FIG. 19) as the rotation direction when the cartridge C is pulled into the carrier 12 from the stocker 14. That is, the disc pushing member driving mechanism operates while the cartridge C is performing the discharging operation in the carrier 12.

When the cartridge C in the carrier 12 is ejected from the insertion port 11, the carrier 12 is naturally
And the insertion port 11 are located on the same plane. Further, as described above, in the MD autochanger, the insertion opening 1
1 and the uppermost storage area 14a are located on the same plane. That is, when the cartridge C in the carrier 12 is ejected from the insertion port 11, the insertion port 11, the carrier 12, and the storage area 14a are located on the same plane, and the transport path of the cartridge C is straight.

With respect to such an MD autochanger, after inserting a cartridge (referred to as C1) into the carrier 12 from the insertion opening 11, the cartridge C1 is inserted from the insertion opening 11 without being stored in the stocker 14. It is assumed that the operation of ejecting or the operation of ejecting the cartridge from the accommodating area other than the accommodating area 14a and ejecting from the insertion port 11 is performed. At this time, the uppermost storage area 14a
It is assumed that the cartridge (this is C2) is already stored in. First, the loading roller 13 is shown in FIG.
Rotate in the clockwise direction to insert the cartridge into the insertion slot 11
Discharge from. As described above, in the MD autochanger of FIG. 19, during the ejection operation of the cartridge C1,
Since the disc pushing-out member drive mechanism operates, the cartridge C2 in the storage area 14a exits the stocker 14 and enters the carrier 12 by this operation. Therefore, the loading roller 13 may eject not only the cartridge C1 but also the cartridge C2 from the insertion port 11. After discharging the cartridge D1,
If it is not possible to detect that the cartridge D2 is inserted into the carrier 12, the carrier 12 may be moved up and down before the cartridge D2 is completely inserted into the carrier 12, which may hinder the operation.

(2) When the carrier 12 faces the insertion opening 11, the insertion opening 11 and the carrier 12 are inserted into the stocker 1.
When the conventional disk pushing member drive mechanism is adopted in the disk device which is not flush with the storage area of No. 4, there are the following problems.

That is, since an optical disk such as a CD or LD, or a cartridge type disk such as an MD or a floppy disk has a small thickness, the disk array pitch in the stocker 14 is small, so that each disk storage area of the stocker 14 is small. The arrangement pitch of the disc push-out levers 3 provided on the disk is also reduced. Therefore, even when the carrier 12 reaches the position facing the insertion opening 11, the carrier 12 is positioned close to a specific disc storage area, and the disc push-out member drive mechanism moves to the disc storage area. There is a possibility that the provided disc push-out lever 3 may be pushed (behaves erroneously).

Of course, only when the carrier 12 is completely aligned with the disk storage area of the stocker 14, the disk push-out member driving mechanism provided in the carrier 12 causes the disk push-out levers provided in each disk storage area of the stocker 14 to operate. If each component of the disc device is accurately manufactured and attached so as to push the disc by abutting against the disc 3, such a problem does not occur, but the manufacturing error must be extremely small. The configuration of the device becomes troublesome. Further, for example, when the disk device is configured to be mounted on a vehicle, it is necessary to reduce the size of the device itself, which requires higher accuracy.

If the disk is pushed out from the storage area in a state where the carrier 12 and the disk area of the stocker 14 do not face each other, the disk cannot be stored in the carrier 12, so in the worst case, a failure of the disk device will occur. May invite.

As described above, in the case of the disk device in which the carrier 12 for transferring the disk is arranged between the disk insertion port 11 and the stocker 14, when the carrier 12 faces the insertion port 11, the carrier 12 and the insertion hole are inserted. Regardless of whether the plane including the port 11 is flush with the predetermined disc storage area of the stocker 14, the conventional disc pushing member driving mechanism cannot be applied as it is.
On the other hand, providing an independent drive source for the disc pushing member driving mechanism causes a problem that the mechanism itself becomes large and complicated. Therefore, a disk pushing member driving mechanism that can be used in the disk device having the above-described structure has been awaited while the mechanism is simplified.

In view of the above circumstances, it is a first object of the present invention to provide a disc pushing member drive mechanism which is driven by the same drive source as the disc conveying means so that it can be used in the disc device having the above construction. To do.

A second object of the present invention is to further simplify the structure of the disc pushing member driving mechanism.

[0024]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the invention of claim 1 is for inserting an information recording disc into which the information recording disc is inserted, and to hold the disc which is arranged at the back side of the insertion port. A carrier, a storage unit for storing the disc held in the carrier, a disc transfer unit for transporting the disc between the insertion opening and the carrier, and between the carrier and the storage unit, A disk drive comprising a drive motor for supplying a driving force to a disk carrying means, and a disk push-out member arranged in the storage section and for pushing out a disk stored in the storage section to the carrier. A driving force transmitting means for receiving a driving force from the driving motor to drive the driving motor, and the disc carrying means pulls the disc from the storage portion to the carrier. A driving gear that receives the driving force from the driving force transmitting means to rotate, and a pushing operation member that slides by the turning force of the driving gear to move the disc pushing member by this movement. In the disc pushing member drive mechanism,
Disc detecting means for detecting the presence of the disc in the carrier, and drive force for preventing the drive force from being transmitted from the drive force transmitting means to the drive gear as long as the disc detecting part detects the disc. And a blocking means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, an elastic member is attached to the push-out operating member for urging the push-out operating member in the same direction as the moving direction of the push-out operating member after the disc push-out operation by the disc pushing-out member is completed. A planetary gear capable of meshing with the drive gear is provided in the drive force transmitting means, and the drive force cutoff means includes a swingable gear arm for rotatably supporting the planetary gear; When the disc detection unit detects the disc, the disc detection unit includes a restriction arm that engages with the gear arm and maintains the planet gear and the drive gear separated from each other.

According to a third aspect of the invention, the drive gear is a toothless gear.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the portion of the drive gear that starts to mesh with the planetary gear is formed to have elasticity.

[0028]

In the invention of claim 1 having the above-mentioned structure, the drive force cutoff means separates the drive force transmission means from the drive gear as long as the disk detection means detects the disk existing in the carrier. The drive force is continuously prevented from being transmitted from the drive force transmitting means to the drive gear. Therefore, even if the driving force transmission means is driven by receiving the driving force from the driving motor, the driving force is not transmitted from the driving force transmission means to the driving gear and the driving gear does not rotate. Therefore, the push-out operation member does not slide, and the disc push-out member also does not move.

On the other hand, when the disc detecting means does not detect the presence of the disc in the carrier, the driving force cutoff means releases the transmission of the driving force from the driving force transmitting means to the driving gear. In this state, when the disc conveying means receives the driving force from the driving motor and operates so as to pull the disc into the carrier from the storage portion, the driving force transmitting means also receives the driving force from the driving motor and rotates. When the drive gear is rotated by receiving the driving force of the driving force transmission means at this time, the pushing operation member is slid by this rotational force. The disc pushing means operates by the sliding operation of the pushing operation member, and the disc stored in the storing portion can be taken out to the carrier. Further, when the push-out operation member operates and the disc push-out operation ends, the transmission of the drive force from the drive force transmission means to the drive gear is released by the restoring force of the push-out operation member.

In the present invention as described above, even when the disc carrying means operates so as to pull the disc from the storage portion, the disc pushing operation by the pushing operation member is performed only when the disc is not present in the carrier. , If it exists, it is not done.

According to the second aspect of the invention, after the disc pushing operation is completed, the elastic member biases the pushing operation member in the same direction as the moving direction of the pushing operation member. Since the push-out operating member is a member that slides by the rotational force of the drive gear, the moving direction of the push-out operating member is nothing but the rotational direction of the drive gear. That is, when the elastic member biases the push-out operation member, a strong biasing force is applied to the drive gear in the rotating direction, and as a result, the drive gear rapidly rotates. The rapid rotational force of the drive gear at this time is transmitted to the gear arm via the planetary gear, and the gear arm swings largely, so that the planetary gear and the drive gear are separated from each other. As a result, the transmission of the driving force from the driving force transmission means to the drive gear is released. In this state, the restriction arm engages with the gear arm, and the planetary gear and the drive gear are kept separated from each other. As described above, according to the second aspect of the invention, the elastic force of the elastic member is used to separate the meshing between the planetary gear, which is the driving force transmission means, and the driving gear. The regulation arm itself may not exert the force for separating the driving force transmission means and the driving gear. Therefore, it is possible to simplify the structure of the driving force cutoff means.

In the invention of claim 3, since the drive gear is a toothless gear, in the invention of claim 4, the drive gear is
Since the portion that starts meshing with the planetary gear has elasticity, the drive gear can surely mesh with the driving force transmission means.

[0033]

Embodiments (1) Configuration of Embodiments One embodiment of the disc pushing member driving mechanism of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, for example, a disc pushing-out mechanism (slide plate 1 of the publication is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 5-254572).
6) is operated. Further, this embodiment is adopted in a disk device similar to the MD autochanger shown in FIG. 19, for example. Therefore, the same members as those in the conventional example shown in FIG. 19 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. However, the disk pushing mechanism in the carrier 12 and the stocker 14 has a specific configuration.

[Carrier 12] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a frame body constituting the carrier 12, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the carrier 12. In FIG. 2, a part of the outer frame 31 is broken. As shown in the figure, the carrier 12 is a cartridge C.
Holding frame 21 for holding
It is composed of an outer frame 31 which covers from the outside. Of these, a loading roller drive mechanism is provided on the cartridge C holding frame 21 side, and most of the disc pushing member drive mechanism of the present invention is provided on the outer frame 31 side. Outer frame 3
A support shaft 12 a for supporting the carrier 12 on the side of the main body of the disk device is provided on the side surface of 1.

[Disc Pushing Mechanism] FIGS. 3 and 4 are plan views of the disc pushing mechanism driven by this embodiment. FIG. 3 shows the cartridge C in the storage area of the stocker 14.
4 shows a state in which the cartridge C is pushed out, and FIG. 4 shows a state in which the cartridge C is pushed out from the storage area of the stocker 14. The disc pushing mechanism includes a disc pushing member 41 and a disc pushing lever 42. Disc pushing member 4
1 is slidably provided in the storage area of the stocker 14, and a pressed portion 41a to be pressed according to the present embodiment is formed at an end portion on the front side (lower side in the drawing) near the carrier 12. . An engaging portion 41b that engages with the disc pushing lever 42 is formed at the end portion on the back side (upper side in the drawing) of the disc pushing member 41.

By the way, the cartridge C in the stocker 14
When the cartridge is stored, the protrusion 43a of the suction member 43 is engaged with the side surface of the cartridge C. The suction member 43 has a contact surface 4 that contacts the edge of the cartridge C.
3b are provided. Further, a reversing spring 45 is applied between the suction member 43a and the disc pushing member 41, and the reversing force of the reversing spring 45 acts on the cartridge C in a state where the protrusion 43a is inserted into the engagement hole 44 of the cartridge C. At this time, the cartridge C is sucked into the storage area of the stocker 14.

The disc push-out lever 42 is rotatably arranged on the storage area of the stocker 14 about the support shaft 42a, and the disc push-out member 41 is provided at the right end portions 3 and 4 in the drawing. An engaged portion 42b that is engaged with the engaging portion 41b is formed. A push-out portion 42c for pressing the contact surface 43b of the suction member 43 is formed at the left end of the disc push-out lever 42. The rotating plate 45 shown on the left side of the drawing is a detecting means for detecting the presence of the cartridge C in the stocker 14.

[Loading Roller Driving Mechanism] The loading roller driving mechanism will be described below with reference to FIGS. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the loading roller driving mechanism, and FIG. 6 is a side view of the I-I end surface of FIG. In addition,
The side view shown in FIG. 6 is the side view shown in FIG. 16 viewed from the opposite side, and the holding frame 21 in FIG. 5 omits a part thereof and shows only the P1 portion in FIG.

The drive motor 22 includes a holding frame 21 and an outer frame 3.
A drive gear 22a, which is a worm gear, is attached to both of the two or one of them.
A substantially triangular gear plate 23 is provided on the holding frame 21 adjacent to the drive gear 22a so as to be rotatable around a support shaft 23a. The gear plate 23 has three gears 23b (on the side of the stocker 14) and 23c which mesh with each other.
(Center) and a gear 23d (on the insertion port 11 side) are rotatably provided. The drive gear 22a meshes with a gear 23c located at the center of the two.

Further, adjacent to the gear plate 23, the support shaft 2
Roller arms 24L and 24R centering on 4a and 24b
Is rotatably provided. Roller arms 24L, 2
4R is a member that rotatably supports the loading roller 13. Gears 25, 26, 27 are rotatably provided on the roller arm 24L from the stocker 14 side along the longitudinal direction of the arm so as to mesh with each other. Of these, the gear 27 meshes with the gear 23b of the gear plate 23. Similarly, the roller arm 24R is also provided with gears 28, 29, 30 which are meshed with each other so as to be rotatable from the stocker 14 side along the longitudinal direction of the arm. Of these, the gear 28 is connected to the right gear 2 of the gear plate 23.
3d meshes. Further, the gear 25 at the left end of the roller arm 24L and the gear 3 at the right end of the roller arm 24R.
A loading roller 13 is mounted coaxially with the zero roller.

Here, the drive force transmission paths from the drive motor 22 to the loading roller 13 will be summarized. The transmission path to one of the loading rollers 13 is the drive gear 22.
a, the gear 23c of the gear plate 23, the gear 23b, the gears 27, 26, 25 of the roller arm 24L, and the loading roller 13. The transmission path to the other loading roller 13 is the drive gear 22a, the gear 23c of the gear plate 23, the gear 23d, and the gear 2 of the roller arm 24R.
8, 29, 30 and the loading roller 13.

[Driving Force Transmission Means to Partial Tooth Gear 36 (Drive Gear)] Next, a driving force transmission means for transmitting the driving force from the drive motor 22 to the partial tooth gear 36 (drive gear) will be added to FIG. This will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the disc pushing member driving mechanism of the present embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a side view of the II-II end face of FIG. Since the disc pushing-out member driving mechanism of this embodiment uses the same driving source (driving motor 22) as the loading roller driving mechanism, the driving force transmission paths of both mechanisms are the same halfway. That is, in the driving force transmission means of this embodiment, the driving force transmission path from the drive motor 22 to the gear 27 of the roller arm 24L is the same as the driving force transmission path to the loading roller 13. Therefore, the driving force transmission means from the gear 27 to the toothless gear 36 will be described.

In FIG. 7, in addition to the driving force transmitting means up to the tooth-chipped gear 36, the tooth-chipped gear 36 and the push-out operation member 3 are shown.
8, the spring 40 and the driving force cutoff means are shown.
Further, a part of the outer frame 31 is omitted, and only the P2 portion of FIG. 1 is shown. The side surface shown in FIG. 8 is the side surface shown in FIG. 16 viewed from the opposite side.

The transmission gear 39 is included in the gear 27 shown in FIG.
The large gear 39a on the input side of is engaged. Transmission gear 39
Is composed of the large gear 39a and the output side small gear 39b. The planetary gear 34 meshes with the small gear 39b. The planetary gear 34 is a gear that is rotatably provided at the lower right end of the gear arm 33, which will be described later, and can mesh with the toothless gear 36. Here, the drive force transmission paths from the drive motor 22 to the toothless gear 36 are summarized as follows: the drive gear 22a, the center gear 23c of the gear plate 23, the left gear 23b, the gear 27 of the roller arm 24L, and the transmission gear 3.
9, a planetary gear 34, and a toothless gear 36.

[Toothless gear 36, push-out operating member 38 and spring 40] Next, the toothless gear 36, the push-out operating member 38 and the spring 40 will be described with reference to FIGS. The tooth-missing gear 36 is rotatably provided inside the side surface of the outer frame 31 around the support shaft 36a, and has a gear portion 36b and a tooth-missing portion 36c formed around the gear. The groove Y is formed on both sides of the starting portion of the toothless portion 36c so that elasticity is generated.
Are formed. Further, the cam pin 37 is attached to the toothless gear 36.
Is fixed.

The push-out operating member 38 is slidably attached to the inside of the side surface of the outer frame 31 (further inside the toothless gear 36), and when it is slid toward the stocker 14, the push-out operating member 38 (see FIG. 3). , 4) is operated. The guide groove 38 is provided on the side surface of the pushing operation member 38.
a, 38c and a control groove 38b are formed. Of these, the guide grooves 38a and 38c at both ends are linear,
Guide pins 31b and 31c fixed to the outer frame 31 are inserted.

FIG. 13 shows a side surface shape of the pushing operation member 38. As is apparent from the figure, the arcuate portion X1 (left side / stocker 14) that bulges downward at both ends of the control groove 38b.
Side), X2 (right side / insertion port 11 side) are formed,
The middle portion Z has no arc portion and is linearly configured. As will be described later, the arc portions X1 and X2 are formed so that the gear arm 33 can swing to the left and right when the regulated pin 35 is inside thereof. When there is the regulation pin 35, the arc portion X is held so that the gear arm 33 holds the state in which it is tilted leftward or rightward.
It is formed to be narrower than 1 and X2.

The control groove 38b is formed on the side surface of the outer frame 31.
An arcuate restriction groove 31a (illustrated by a chain line in FIG. 8) is formed at a position corresponding to. The arcuate portion of the restriction groove 31a has the same curvature as the arcuate portions X1 and X2.
The restriction groove 31a defines a swing range of a gear arm 33 described later. Therefore, it is not necessary to have an arc shape such as a rectangle.

A substantially V-shaped cam portion 38d is formed below the control groove 38b, and the cam pin 37 contacts the cam portion 38d. Further, a pressing portion 38e for pressing the pressed portion 41a of the disc pushing member 41 is provided at the end of the pushing operation member 38 on the stocker 14 side.

The spring 40 is attached between the push-out operating member 38 and the outer frame 31, and the push-out operating member 3 is attached.
8 is always biased toward the insertion port 11 side.

[Driving Force Shutoff Means] Next, the driving force shutoff means of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The driving force cutoff unit includes a gear arm 33 that rotatably supports the planetary gear 34, and a restriction arm 32 that can be engaged with the gear arm 33. The gear arm 33 is the transmission gear 3
9 is arranged coaxially with 9, and is configured to be swingable around a support shaft 33a provided in the outer frame 31.

A regulated pin 35 is fixed to the gear arm 33 so as to project at a right angle from the gear arm 33. The inner end (right side in FIG. 2) of the regulated pin 35 is inserted into the control groove 38b of the pushing operation member 38. The pushing operation member 38 is moved as shown in FIG. 11, and the regulated pin 35 moves to the middle portion Z of the control groove 38b.
When it is positioned at, the regulated pin 35 is sandwiched by the intermediate portion Z, and the gear arm 33 cannot swing. In addition, regulated pin 3
The outer end (left side in FIG. 2) of 5 is capable of abutting against the restriction arm 32 and is inserted into the restriction groove 31a on the side surface of the outer frame 31.

The regulating arm 32 is rotatably provided on the outer frame 31 of the carrier 12 about the support shaft 32a. At the tip of the regulation arm 32, a wedge-shaped regulation portion 32b,
A convex pressed portion 32c is provided. A spring 32d is attached between the restriction arm 32 and the outer frame 31. The regulating arm 32 is biased in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 8 by this spring 32d.

[Disc Detection Means] Among the members constituting this embodiment, the disc detection means is provided not on the outer frame 31 side but on the cartridge C holding frame 21 side.
Hereinafter, the disc detecting means will be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described with reference to 15. 14 and 15 show III of FIG.
FIG. 14 is a front view of an end face of III, FIG. 14 shows a non-disk detection state, and FIG. 15 shows a disk detection state.

The disc detecting means is the disc detecting section 41.
And a detection plate 42. The disc detection portion 41 is arranged along the left bottom surface portion of the cartridge holding frame 21, and its cross-sectional shape is, for example, a mountain shape, the support plate 43 is fixed to the end portion on the insertion port 11 side, and the end on the stocker 14 side. The detection plate 42 is fixed to the section.
The detection plate 42 and the support plate 43 are rotatably attached to the cartridge holding frame 21 about a support shaft (support 42a for the support plate 42). Therefore, the disc detection unit 41 fixed to the plates 42 and 43 is configured to rotate in the vertical direction with respect to the cartridge holding frame 21. When the cartridge C does not exist in the cartridge holding frame 21, the disc detection unit 41 projects from the bottom surface of the cartridge holding frame 21 into the storage area of the cartridge C.

A pressing portion 42b is formed on the left end of the detection plate 42. The pressing portion 42b is arranged so as to press the pressed portion 32c of the regulating arm 32 from below when the cartridge C is housed in the carrier 12 (see FIG. 8). The disc detection unit 4
When the 1 detects the cartridge C, the detection plate 42
Rotates clockwise and the pressing portion 42b is in the raised position. Further, when the disc detection unit 41 does not detect the cartridge C, the detection plate 42 rotates in the counterclockwise direction and the pressing portion 42b is in the lowered position.

(2) Operation of the Embodiment The operation of this embodiment having the above-mentioned structure is as follows.

[Disc Loading Operation] FIG. 8 shows the initial position of the pushing operation member 38. When performing the disc loading operation, the drive gear 22a is rotated forward by the operation of the drive motor 22, and this rotational force is transmitted to the loading roller 13 through the transmission path of the loading roller drive mechanism described above, and the loading roller 13
From the insertion port 11 to the carrier 12 or the carrier 1
The cartridge C rotates from 2 to the stocker 14. At this time, the transmission gear 39 that meshes with the gear 27 (FIGS. 5 and 6) rotates counterclockwise in FIG. This rotational force is transmitted to the planetary gear 34 via the large gear 39a on the input side and the small gear 39b on the output side of the transmission gear 39, and the planetary gear 34 rotates clockwise in FIG. Therefore, as shown in FIG.
Away from. Therefore, even if the loading roller 13 rotates, that is, the planetary gear 34 rotates, the partly tooth-missing gear 36 does not rotate. Therefore, the cam pin 37 does not slide the pushing operation member 38, and the pushing operation member 38 does not press the disc pushing member 41. Note that, like FIG. 8, FIG. 9 is a side view of the II-II end face of FIG.

[Disc Pushing Operation Accompanied by Disc Unloading Operation] Next, the operation of driving the disc pushing mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS. Note that FIGS. 10 to 12 are similar to FIG.
It is an end surface side view.

In the initial state of FIG. 8, the cam pin 37 is inserted into the concave portion of the cam portion 38d by the elastic force of the spring 40. In addition, the pressing portion 42b of the detection plate 42
(FIG. 14) is lowered and the restricting portion 3 of the restricting arm 32 is
2b is located below the control groove 38b. That is,
The restriction arm 32 not pressed by the pressing portion 42b receives the force of the spring 32d, and the restriction portion 32b is separated from the regulated pin 35. This is the disk detector 4
1 indicates that the disc is not detected.

When performing the disk unloading operation in such a state, when the drive gear 22a is rotated in the reverse direction by the operation of the drive motor 22, this rotational force passes through the transmission path of the loading roller drive mechanism described above. Transferred to the roller 9, the loading roller 9 rotates so as to send the cartridge C from the carrier 12 to the insertion port 11 or from the stocker 14 to the carrier 12.
At this time, the transmission gear 39 that meshes with the gear 27 is
Rotate clockwise. As shown in FIG. 9, the gear arm 33 swings to the right and friction with the transmission gear 39 causes the gear arm 33 to rotate in the clockwise direction, causing the planet gear 34 to move to the toothless gear 36 (toothless portion 36c). Start meshing with the start part). Further, as shown in FIG. 8, when the gear arm 33 is swinging to the left (when the planet gear 34 and the toothless gear 36 are already in mesh).
, Power transmission is started as it is.

Depending on the timing at which the planetary gear 34 and the toothless gear 36 mesh with each other, both gears 34, 36 may be in a so-called "meshed" state and cannot rotate. In the embodiment, the groove Y is formed in the starting portion of the toothless portion 36c so as to generate elasticity, and the starting portion is bent, so that the "bite" state is immediately released.

Then, the tooth-chipped gear 36 starts rotating in the clockwise direction while resisting the elastic force of the spring 40 applied from the pushing operation member 38. Due to the rotation of the partly tooth-missing gear 36, the cam pin 37 causes the cam portion 3 of the pushing-out operation member 38.
8d is pushed while moving downward, and the guide groove 38
While the a and 38c slide on the guide pins 31b and 31c, the pushing operation member 38 slides in the stocker 14 direction. By the operation of the push-out operation member 38, the pressing portion 38e causes the pressed portion 41a of the disc pushing-out member 41 to be pressed.
(Figs. 3 and 4) are pushed inward. As the push-out operation member 38 slides, the regulated pin 35 inserted in the control groove 38b moves from the arc portion X1 through the intermediate portion Z to the arc portion X2 (see FIG. 10). .

The operation of the disc pushing mechanism will now be described. At this time, the disc pushing mechanism shifts from the state of FIG. 3 to the state of FIG. First, the disc pushing member 41 is slid by the pushing portion 38e, and the engaging portion 41b is engaged with the engaged portion 42 of the disc pushing lever 42.
When b is pressed, the disc push-out lever 42 rotates clockwise around the support shaft 42a in the figure. Then, the pushing portion 42c presses the contact surface 43b of the suction member 43,
The cartridge C is pushed out from the storage area of the stocker 14 to the carrier 12 side. At this point, the loading roller 9 is rotating so as to send the cartridge C from the stocker 14 to the carrier 12, so that the cartridge C extruded from the stocker 14 is sent into the cartridge holding frame 21 by the rotation of the loading roller 9. Be done.

Returning to FIG. 10, when the tooth-chipped gear 36 rotates 180 degrees from the initial state, the cam pin 37 re-enters the concave portion of the cam portion 38d. In this state, the pushing operation of the pushing operation member 38 is completed. Absent. When the toothless gear 36 continues to rotate and the inclined portion of the cam portion 38d and the line connecting the central axes of the cam pin 37 and the toothless gear 36 become a right angle state (the state shown in FIG. 10), the pushing operation member Three
The pushing operation by 8 is completed.

In the state shown in FIG. 10, since the cartridge C is pushed out from the stocker 14 to the cartridge holding frame 21, the cartridge 7a naturally exists inside the cartridge holding frame 21. Then, the cartridge C pushes down the disc detection unit 41, and the disc detection unit 41 enters the detection state of the cartridge C. Therefore, the detection plate 42 is arranged around the support shaft 42a as shown in FIGS.
5, the pressing portion 42b pushes up the pressed portion 32c of the regulation arm 32 (FIGS. 14 to 15).
Transition to the state). For this reason, as shown in FIG. 10, the restriction arm 32 rotates clockwise against the elastic force of the spring 32d. Therefore, at the time when the ejection operation of the cartridge C is completed, the regulation portion 32b operates in the ejection operation. It projects into the arc portion X2 of the control groove 38b of the member 38.

[Driving Force Blocking Operation for Partial Tooth Gear 36 After Disc Extruding Operation] From the position shown in FIG. 10, the partial tooth gear 36 further rotates in the clockwise direction, and the inclined portion of the cam portion 38d and the cam pin are rotated. When the line connecting the central axes of 37 and the tooth-chipped gear 36 exceeds a right angle, the moving direction of the pushing operation member 38 by the tooth-chipped gear 36 faces the insertion port 11 side. By the way, since the spring 40 constantly urges the push-out operating member 38 toward the insertion port 11, the drive motor 22 drives the push-out operating member 38 from the drive motor 22 when the moving direction of the push-out operating member 38 due to the toothless gear 36 faces the insertion port 11. Direction of the toothless gear 36 due to the driving force of the spring 4 and the spring 4 applied via the cam pin 37
The moving direction of the partly tooth-missing gear 36 due to the elastic force of 0 coincides. Therefore, a strong force is applied to the toothless gear 36 in the clockwise direction, and the toothless gear 36 rapidly rotates in the same direction.

As a result, a rotational force in the counterclockwise direction is applied to the gear arm 33, but at this time, the regulated pin 3
5 is located in the arc portion X2. Therefore, the regulated pin 35 slides in the arc portion X2, and the gear arm 33 swings counterclockwise (see FIG. 11). The swing of the gear arm 33 disengages the planetary gear 34 and the toothless gear 36.

As described above, the restricting portion 32b of the restricting arm 32 projects into the arc portion X2, but the position of the restricting pin 35 and the restricting portion 32b are switched by the movement of the restricted pin 35. . That is, the regulated pin 35 positioned on the stocker 14 side of the regulation portion 32b moves over to the insertion port 11 side, overcoming the regulation portion 32b. FIG. 11 shows an intermediate state of this replacement.

As described above, the engagement between the planetary gear 34 and the partly tooth-missing gear 36 is released.
8 tries to return to the original position by the elastic force of the spring 40. At this time, since the drive motor 22 continues to be driven, friction with the transmission gear 39 causes the gear arm 3 to move.
3 tries to return to the original position by rotating in the clockwise direction again, but since the regulated pin 35 enters the intermediate portion Z of the control groove 38b while the pushing operation member 38 returns to the original position, Until the arm Z exits and enters the arc X1, the gear arm 33
The angle of will remain restricted.

By the way, the regulated pin 35 has the regulating arm 3
When moving to the insertion port 11 side of No. 2, there is no restriction from the stocker 14 side with respect to the restriction arm 32, so the restriction arm 32 receives the elastic force of the spring 32d and rotates in the counterclockwise direction. The rotation of the regulation arm 32 is
The pressed portion 32c is regulated by coming into contact with the pressing portion 42b of the detection plate 42. At this time, if the cartridge C is present in the cartridge holding frame 21, the pressing portion 42b of the detection plate 42 is in the raised position. When the pressed portion 32c comes into contact with the pushing portion 42b in the raised position, the regulation portion 32b at the tip of the regulation arm 32 projects into the regulation groove 31a of the outer frame 31 (see FIG. 12). Therefore, due to friction with the transmission gear 39, the gear arm 3
Even if 3 rotates clockwise and returns to its original position, the restricting portion 32b restricts the regulated pin 35. As a result, the rotation of the gear arm 33 is restricted, and the drive motor 2
Even if the rotation of 2 continues, the re-engagement of the planetary gear 34 and the toothless gear 36 can be prevented. Then, even when the drive gear 22a of the drive motor 22 rotates forward to house the cartridge C in the carrier 12 and then reversely rotates again to eject the cartridge C, the cartridge C remains in the cartridge holding frame 21. Is present, the pressing portion 42b of the detection plate 42 continues to be in the raised position, so that the planetary gear 34 and the tooth-chipped gear 36 are not re-engaged.

In this embodiment as described above, the pushing operation is performed even when the cartridge C is repeatedly inserted / discharged into / from the carrier 12 and the rotation direction of the drive motor 22 repeats forward / reverse rotation. The disc pushing operation by the member 38 is performed only when the cartridge C is not present in the carrier 12, and is not performed when it is present.

Further, in this embodiment, since the control groove 38b of the push-out operation member 38 is provided with the intermediate portion Z for restricting the movement of the regulated pin 35, the disk detection by the disk detection unit 41 is delayed and the detection plate is detected. Pressing portion 42b of
Even if the rising timing at
There is no worry that 3 will reverse and return to its original position.

(3) Other Embodiments The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but includes the following other embodiments.

[1] After the disc pushing operation is completed, immediately after the gear arm 33 is reversed, the regulating portion 32 of the regulating arm 32 is provided.
If b is configured to prevent movement of the regulated pin 35, the intermediate portion Z of the control groove 38b of the above-described embodiment is formed into the arc portion X1 ,.
It is also possible to form it with the same width as X2.

[2] In the above embodiment, the groove Y is provided at both ends of the toothless portion 36c of the toothless gear 36.
The groove Y may be provided only at the start portion of one toothless portion where gear engagement is performed.

[3] Further, in the above description, the tooth-missing gear is used as the gear 36, but it is not necessary that the tooth missing. That is, after the disc pushing-out operation by the pushing-out operation member 38 is completed, the gear arm 33 is swung to disengage the gear 36 from the planetary gear 34, and thereafter, the restricting arm 32 is rotated to prevent re-engagement. It is not particularly necessary to provide the gear 36 with a toothless portion. However, when teeth are formed on the front circumference of the gear 36, when the pushing operation member 38 starts to operate, that is, the gear arm 33 swings clockwise as shown in FIGS. 9 to 8, and the planetary gear 34 moves to the gear 36. Since there is a possibility that the meshing may not be performed well when meshing with the gears, a toothless portion is formed in a part of the gear 36 as in the present embodiment, and the planetary gear 34 starts meshing at the tooth start portion. It is good to do so. When the gear 36 is provided with a toothless portion, a so-called "bite" state is formed by forming a groove Y (the left-side groove Y in FIG. 8) at the start portion of the tooth and giving the tooth elasticity as described above. Can be prevented.
Of course, in order to prevent the above-mentioned “biting” when teeth are formed on the entire circumference of the gear 36, the portion of the gear 36 where the planet gear 34 starts to mesh may be made to have an elastic structure. Therefore, when the gear 36 is made of resin or the like, the cavity 60a may be formed inside the portion where the engagement is started, for example, like the gear 60 shown in FIG.

[4] In the above description, the regulating arm 32 is a mechanism for mechanically detecting that the disc is accommodated in the carrier 12 (the disc detecting portion 41 and the detecting plate shown in FIGS. 14 and 15). 42), the presence of a disk in the carrier 12 is detected by using an optical sensor, a microswitch, or the like, and an electromagnetic solenoid or the like is energized according to the detection result to regulate the arm. 32 positions may be regulated.

[5] The present invention is not limited to a cartridge built-in disc such as an MD or a floppy disc,
It can also be applied to CDs and LDs.

[6] According to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 19, when the carrier 12 faces the insertion slot 11 of the disc, they are stored in the uppermost storage area 14a of the stocker 14.
However, the invention may be applied to a disk device located on the same plane as the storage area at any position other than the uppermost part of the stocker 14. Further, it may be applied to a disc device in which the carrier 12 does not lie on the same plane as a predetermined storage area of the stocker 14 when the carrier 12 faces the disc insertion opening 11.

[7] Further, in the present invention, it goes without saying that the number of stockers 14 to be stored does not matter. That is, the number of discs to be stored is not limited to a plurality of discs, and only one disc may be stored.

[8] Further, it is applicable not only to the carrier 12 but also to a disk device capable of raising and lowering the stocker 14.

[9] According to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 19, the disk device has the carrier 12 at the back of the disk insertion port 11 and the stocker 14 at the back thereof (schematic plan view in FIG. 17A). However, for example, as shown in FIG. 17B, the present invention is applied to a disc device having a carrier 12 at the back of a disc insertion opening 11 and a stocker 14 beside it. May be.

[10] Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, as shown in FIG. 19, the loading roller 13 for carrying the disc is arranged only above the carrier 12. Therefore, the cartridge C pulled into the carrier 12
However, it may be pressed downward by the loading roller 13 to cause friction with the lower surface of the carrier 12, impairing the smoothness of the retracting operation of the cartridge C. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 20, a rotatable guide roller 13a (which can be freely rotated or driven by a motor) may be provided on the lower surface side of the carrier 12.

In the case of such a structure, the cartridge C drawn into the carrier 12 moves while being pressed by the loading roller 13 and the guide roller 13a from above and below, so that the space between the carrier 12 and the cartridge C is increased. Can be reduced, and the retraction operation of the cartridge C can be made smoother. Further, even if dust or the like adheres to the loading roller 13 due to long-term use, the assisting of the guide roller 13a works effectively, so that the reduction of the loading force can be prevented.

In FIG. 20, the guide roller 1
Although 3a is provided at a position facing the loading roller 13, it does not necessarily have to be provided at a position accurately facing. Further, instead of providing the guide roller 13a,
By coating the lower surface of the carrier 12 with a resin or the like, it is possible to reduce the frictional resistance with the cartridge C and to make the retracting operation of the cartridge C smooth.

[11] Further, when the present invention is applied to the MD autochanger, it is possible to provide the carrier 12 with an MD shutter opening mechanism. As this shutter opening mechanism, for example, one disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 5-254595 can be adopted. In this case, the shutter opening mechanism can utilize the power of the motor that is a common drive source for the loading roller and the disc pushing member driving mechanism.

[12] In the above embodiment, the disk is conveyed by using the loading roller 13. However, in the case of an MD changer, for example, a recess provided on the lower side surface of the MD cartridge insertion side. It may be a conveyance mechanism of a type in which a cartridge is retracted by rotating an arm that can be engaged with. In the present invention, the disc pushing member drive mechanism can be operated by using the power of the drive motor of the arm type transport mechanism.

[0089]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A disc detecting means for detecting the presence of the disc in the carrier, and a drive force cutoff means for preventing the drive force from being transmitted from the drive force transmitting means to the drive gear as long as the disc detecting portion detects the disc. With such a configuration, the disc pushing member drive mechanism operates in association with the disc discharging operation by the disc transporting means, and the disc device in which the insertion port and one region of the storage portion are located on the same plane, and It was possible to use a disc pushing member driving mechanism that is driven by the same driving source as the conveying means.

In particular, according to the second aspect of the invention, after the disc pushing operation is completed, by providing the elastic member for urging the pushing operation member in the same direction as the moving direction of the pushing operation member, the driving force interruption means itself. Does not need to exert the force for separating the driving force transmitting means and the partly tooth-missing gear, and the structure of the driving force cutoff means can be simplified.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a carrier 12 in a disk device that employs an embodiment of the present invention, showing a single frame body that constitutes the carrier 12.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a carrier 12 in a disk device that employs this embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of a disc pushing-out mechanism driven according to the present embodiment (the cartridge C is stored).

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the disc pushing-out mechanism driven according to the present embodiment (the pushing-out state of the cartridge C).

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a loading roller drive mechanism in a disk device that employs this embodiment.

6 is a side view of the I-I end face of FIG. 2. FIG.

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the present embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the II-II end surface of FIG. 2 (initial state).

FIG. 9 is a side view of the II-II end surface of FIG. 2 (disk loading state).

10 is a side view of the end face II-II of FIG. 2 (a state in which the disc is being pushed out).

FIG. 11 is a side view of the end surface of II-II in FIG. 2 (disc extrusion operation completed state).

FIG. 12 is a side view of the end surface of II-II in FIG. 2 (disc extrusion operation completed state).

FIG. 13 is a side view of the push-out operation member 38.

FIG. 14 is a front view of the end surface of III-III in FIG. 2 (non-disk detection state).

FIG. 15 is a front view of the end surface of III-III in FIG. 2 (disk detection state).

FIG. 16 is a front view of a drive gear according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a schematic plan view of a disk device adopting the present invention, FIG. 17A shows a disk device to which this embodiment is adopted, and FIG. 17B shows a disk device having another configuration.

FIG. 18 shows a conventional example of a disc pushing mechanism.

FIG. 19 is a model diagram showing the configuration of an MD autochanger.

FIG. 20 is a model diagram showing an improved example of a loading roller in an MD autochanger.

[Explanation of symbols]

11: insertion port 12: carrier 13: loading roller 13a: guide roller 14: stocker 21: cartridge holding frame 22: drive motor 23: gear plate 23b, 23c, 23d, 25, 26, 27, 28, 2
9, 30: Gears 24L, 24R: Roller arm 31: Outer frame 32: Restricting arm 33: Gear arm 34: Planetary gear 35: Projecting pin 36: Partial tooth gear (driving gear) 37: Cam pin 38: Pushing operation member 39: Transmission Gear 40: Spring

Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Osamu Sakurai 5-35-2, Hakusan, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo Clarion Co., Ltd.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An insertion opening for inserting an information recording disk, a carrier for holding the disk, which is arranged on the inner side of the insertion opening, and a storage section for storing the disk held by the carrier. A disk transfer means for transferring the disk between the insertion opening and the carrier, and between the carrier and the storage section; a drive motor for supplying a drive force to the disk transfer section; A drive force transmitting means for receiving a drive force from the drive motor to drive the disc device, the drive device including a disc pushing member for pushing the disc stored in the storing portion to the carrier. When the disk carrying means operates to pull the disk from the storage part into the carrier, it rotates by receiving the driving force from the driving force transmitting means. In a disc pushing-out member driving mechanism including a driving gear for driving and a pushing operation member for performing a sliding action by the rotational force of the driving gear and operating the disc pushing member by this action, the disc exists in the carrier. And a drive force cutoff unit that prevents the drive force from being transmitted from the drive force transmission unit to the drive gear as long as the disc detection unit detects the disc. Drive mechanism for disc extruding member. 2. An elastic member for urging the pushing operation member in the same direction as the movement direction of the pushing operation member after the disc pushing operation by the disc pushing member is attached to the pushing operation member, and the driving force transmission The means is provided with a planetary gear capable of meshing with the drive gear, and the drive force blocking means includes a swingable gear arm that rotatably supports the planetary gear, and the disc detection unit. 2. The disc pushing member drive mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the disc pushing member drive mechanism comprises a regulating arm that engages with the gear arm when the disc is detected and keeps the planet gear and the drive gear separated from each other. 3. The disk pushing member drive mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the drive gear is a toothless gear. 4. The disc pushing-out member driving mechanism according to claim 2, wherein a portion of the driving gear that starts meshing with the planetary gear is formed to have elasticity.