JPH0744977A - Auto-changer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To eliminate waiting time for continuous reproducing requests by moving two sets of disk transporting means on common guide rails and selecting and transporting a next disk while one disk is being reproduced. CONSTITUTION:A disk transportation section 100a is moved in the direction of an arrow in the Fig and is stopped at an address position 122 and an objective CD is transported. Then, the section 100a is moved in B direction and stopped at a disk reproducing mechanism section 100a. Then, the section 100a transports a CD and the CD is reproduction-processed by the section 110a. A disk transportation section 100b is moved in the arrow direction in order to select and transport the CD stored in an address position 123. At that time, transportation sections 100a and 100b are integrally moved on guide rails 131 and are stopped at the address position 123. Then, the section 100b stores the CD and selection and transportation processes of the disk are performed at the section 100a during a reproducing. Thus, the disks, to which continuous reproducing requests are made, are alternatively reproduced and waiting time is eliminated.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a disc on which information is reproducibly recorded, for example, an optical compact disc (C).
The present invention relates to an automatic changer device that enables continuous reproduction by arbitrarily selectively exchanging one disc from a plurality of discs such as D) stored therein.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an autochanger device of this type, for example, when dealing with a CD disc, a Japanese Patent Publication No.
A disc autochanger device disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 1907 is known. This device comprises a disc storage tray unit for storing a large number of CDs and a disc search performance mechanism unit for automatically selecting a predetermined CD from the disc storage tray unit and playing it. The disc search unit, the disc transfer mechanism unit, and the disc playing mechanism unit are integrally unitized. When performing continuous CD reproduction, the disc autochanger device selects a CD by the following procedure, and performs loading, reproduction and unloading.

The disc search performance mechanism section first moves based on the disc access information, and the disc search section searches for a target CD.

The CD searched by the disc transfer mechanism unit is taken out from the disc storage tray unit and loaded into the disc playing mechanism unit.

The disc playing mechanism plays a CD.

After the reproduction of the CD is completed, the disc search performance mechanism unit is moved to the original disc tray position of the CD, and the CD transfer mechanism unit unloads the CD into the disc storage tray unit.

In order to reproduce the next required CD, the above-mentioned
Repeat the procedure.

[0008]

However, in the above-described disc autochanger device, in response to a demand for reproducing a plurality of discs in succession, during the reproduction of one disc, the selection process and the loading process of the next required disc are performed. Then, after reproducing one disc, the disc is conveyed from the information reproducing means to the disc conveying portion and the next disc is conveyed to the information reproducing means to reproduce the disc. For this reason, a waiting time is required until the next disc is reproduced after the reproduction of one disc is completed. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an autochanger device capable of eliminating the waiting time when there are continuous disk reproduction requests.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, according to the present invention, a disc storing means in which a plurality of discs on which information is recorded so as to be reproducible are aligned and mounted, and a disc mounted in the disc storing means is loaded to reproduce information. Then, two sets of information reproducing means, which are arranged by being shifted by the thickness of the conveying mechanism, and two sets of disc conveying means, which select a disc placed in the disc accommodating means and convey the discs independently to the information reproducing means, are provided. A structure is provided in which the disc carrying means selects a disc placed in a disc storing means designated in advance, takes out the disc, conveys it to the information reproducing means, and returns the disc whose information has been reproduced to a predetermined position of the disc storing means. In the automatic changer device described above, the two sets of disc transfer means are interlocked with each other on the shared guide rails or independently moved to move the discs. One in which was configured to perform the transmission.

[0010]

Therefore, according to the automatic changer device of the present invention, two disc transporting portions are provided for the two information reproducing means, and the two disc transporting portions are integrally or independently moved to transport the discs. This disc transport unit is capable of performing selective transport processing of the next requested disc during playback of one disc in response to a plurality of disc playback requests. It is possible to eliminate the waiting time required until the next disc is reproduced after the reproduction is completed. In addition, 2 at the same time
It is also possible to play one disc.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A CD is an automatic changer device according to the present invention.
An example in which the present invention is applied to continuous reproduction will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an automatic changer device showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which the automatic changer device is removed from a cabinet (not shown).

Reference numerals 100a and 100b are two independent CD disc transport portions, and a pair of disc storage portions 12 are provided for the disc transport portions 100a and 100b.
0a and 120b are arranged. Disk transport unit 100
a and 100b are disk storage units 120a, 100b, which are provided by two independent wire moving mechanisms 132a, 132b along a common guide rail 131 fixed to the chassis 130.
It reciprocates parallel to 120b. In addition, the two reproducing mechanism units 110a and 110b are provided in the disk storage units 120a and 12b.
0b, which are respectively arranged at the rear of the disk storage unit 110.
b is displaced rearward by the thickness of the disc transport unit 100a.

The disk storage portions 120a and 120b are respectively provided with guide plates 140, which are provided on the chassis 133.
It is arranged so as to be slidable on the 141 in the direction of the arrow (in the direction of the front panel (not shown)) so as to be detachable. When a CD reproducing request is issued from a control unit (not shown), the disc conveying unit 100 is moved to the target CD, the disc conveying unit 100 that selects the disc 150 and conveys it to the disc reproducing mechanism unit 110 is activated.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing how the target disc 150 is conveyed from the disc accommodating section 120 to the disc conveying section 100 by the transfer roller 103a.
Initially, the disc 150 is stored at a predetermined position in the disc storage portion 120. At this time, the bottom surface 121 of the disc storage portion 120 is recessed along the disc shape, so that the disc 150 is stable.
0, and the transfer roller 103 of the transport unit 100
It is located at a height that does not contact a.

When the disc lift 102 pushes up the disc 150, the disc 150 moves to the transfer roller 103a.
Is the height at which the upper part of the disk comes into contact with the transfer roller 103a when moving together with the frame 104 in the direction of the arrow.
Therefore, the disk 150 is drawn in by the transfer roller 103a while rotating toward the center of the disk transport unit 100.

The disk 150 and the disk storage portion 120
Flat bottom surfaces of both the facing disk transport unit 100
Rotate the minute while moving as shown in FIG.
Transfer when 50 moves to the center of the disc transport unit 100
Of the frame 104 to which the roller 103a for mounting is attached
The movement stops and the movement of the disc also stops. That is, Di
The disk 150 is shown in FIG. 2 as the locus of the center point 0 of the disk 150.
As shown, _0, 0₁, 0₂, 0₃ Along the trajectory of
Transfer from disk storage unit 120 to disk transport unit 100
It is moved by the roller 103a.

Then, the disc carrying section 100 carries the disc 150 to the reproducing mechanism section 110 located behind the disc housing section 120. The disc 150 held by the disc transport unit 100 is transported to the disc playback mechanism unit 110, and thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3, the transport roller 103b moves the disc 150 from the disc transport unit 100 to the transport roller 103b in the arrow direction. When moving together with the frame 104, the upper portion of the disc comes into contact with the transfer roller 103b and is drawn into the disc reproducing mechanism 110 while rotating.

The disk 150 moves as shown in FIG. 3 while rotating the flat bottom surfaces of both the disk transporting section 100 and the disk reproducing mechanism section 110 which faces it, and the disk 150 is recessed along the disk shape. When the shoulder of the bottom surface 111 of the disc reproducing mechanism 110 is caught, the disc itself naturally fits in a predetermined position in the disc reproducing mechanism 110 due to its own weight. That is, the disk 150 is 0 ₄ , 0 ₅ , 0 ₆ as shown by the locus of the center point 0 of the disk 150 in FIG. The moving roller 103b moves from the disc transport unit 100 to the disc reproducing mechanism unit 110 along the locus.

Thereafter, although not shown, the disk 150 is
It is pushed into the turntable 112 at the rear of the disk 150, rotated by a motor, and reproduced by an optical pickup. The operation of the automatic changer apparatus according to the present invention configured as described above when a continuous CD reproduction request is made will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining the operating principle of the device of the present application. In FIG. 4, reference numerals 120a, 1
Reference numeral 20b is a disc storage portion for storing n CDs. Here, the CD stored in the address position 122 of the disc storage portion 120a and the disc storage portion 12
It is assumed that continuous reproduction requests are made in the order of the CDs stored in the address position 123 of 0b. The initial positions of the disc transport units 100a and 100b are next to the disc reproduction mechanism units 110a and 110b.

First, the disk transport unit 100a is moved in the direction of arrow A, which is the front direction of the apparatus, and the address position 122 is reached.
When it comes to, the movement is stopped and the target CD is transported to the disc transport unit. The disc transport unit 100a moves in the direction of arrow B, which is the rearward direction of the apparatus, stops moving when it reaches the disc reproducing mechanism unit 110a, and moves in the direction of arrow C, which transfers the CD to the disc reproducing mechanism unit 110a. It is transported and regenerated.

Subsequently, in order to select and carry the CD stored in the address position 123, the disk carrying unit 10
0b is moved in the direction of arrow A, which is the front direction of the apparatus. At that time, a current value equivalent to the current value applied to the drive motor (not shown) of the disc transport unit 100b is added to the drive motor of the disc transport unit 100a (not shown), and the disc transport unit 100a is integrated with the disc transport unit 100b. To move. The disk transport unit 100 is located at the address position 123.
The movement is stopped when b comes and the disc transport unit 100a
Also stop moving.

Then, the disc transport unit 100b stores the target CD, and the disc transport units 100a and 100b move in the direction of the arrow B which is the rearward direction of the apparatus, and move when they reach the disc reproducing mechanism unit 100b. Is stopped, the CD is conveyed to the disc reproducing mechanism 110b in the direction of arrow D, and the process waits until the CD reproducing process of the disc reproducing mechanism 110a is completed. Then, the disk reproducing mechanism section 110a
Immediately after the CD reproduction process of step S3 is completed, the CD reproduction process of the disc reproduction mechanism unit 110b starts, the CD in the disc reproduction mechanism unit 110a is conveyed to the disc conveyance unit 100a, and the disc conveyance unit 100a independently moves in the arrow A direction. Then, the CD is returned to the address position 122.

[0024]

As described above, according to the autochanger device of the present invention, it is possible to carry out the selection / conveying process of the next disc during the reproduction of one disc. It is possible to eliminate the waiting time required for the next disc to be reproduced after the reproduction of one disc is completed. Also, two discs can be reproduced at the same time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a schematic configuration showing an embodiment of an autochanger device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a state where a disc is conveyed from the disc storage portion to the disc conveying portion of the auto changer device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a disc is conveyed from the disc conveying portion of the auto changer device according to the present invention to a disc reproducing mechanism portion.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the operating principle of the device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 100 Disc Conveying Section 101 Disc Conveying Section Bottom 102 Disc Lift 103 Transfer Roller 104 Frame 110 Disc Reproducing Mechanism Section 111 Disc Reproducing Mechanism Section Bottom 112 Turntable 120 Disc Storage Section 121 Disc Storage Section Bottom 122,123 Address Position 130 Chassis 131 Guide rail 132 Wire moving mechanism 133 Chassis 140, 141 Guide plate 150 Disc

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A disc storage means in which a plurality of discs having reproducibly recorded information are aligned and mounted, and two sets of information reproduction means for loading the discs mounted in the disc storage means to reproduce information. , Two sets of disc conveying means for selecting a disc placed in the disc storing means and independently conveying the discs to the information reproducing means,
A structure in which a disc placed on a disc storing unit designated in advance by the disc conveying unit is selected and taken out, and this is conveyed to the information reproducing unit and the disc whose information has been reproduced is returned to a predetermined position of the disc storing unit. In the automatic changer device, the two sets of disc transporting means are interlocked or independently moved on a shared guide rail to transport the disc. 2. While one of the two sets of disc carrying means carries out information reproduction of the disc by one of the information reproducing means, the other carrying means reproduces the disc of the other information. 2. The automatic changer device according to claim 1, wherein the automatic changer device is conveyed to a reproducing means to be ready for a next reproduction start. 3. The disc transporting means of two sets simultaneously transports two discs, thereby transporting to the information reproducing means and transporting to the disc storage portion. Auto changer device.