JPH08180547A - Automatic position adjustment method for transport unit in library device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To obtain a method for automatically adjusting the position of a transport unit which can set the transport unit to a proper position and can exchange a medium without ending in error. CONSTITUTION: When a medium does not move properly between a transport unit 3 and a magazine 1 or a drive 2, the transport unit 3 is moved left and right by a specific amount and retry is performed for a plurality of times. And, when the retry operation succeeds, the position of the transport unit 3 at that time is stored and the transport unit is positioned considering the stored value when positioning the transport unit next time. Also, while moving the transport unit 3 in both directions from a reference position P by a specific amount each time, the medium is moved between the transport unit 3 and the magazine 1 or the drive 2. When, an error is detected, the position of the transport unit 3 at that time is stored and an adjustment position for positioning the transport unit 3 is calculated based on the stored position.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In recent years, large-capacity storage media such as magneto-optical disks have been put to practical use, and there is an increasing need for systems having large-capacity storage devices such as electronic filing systems. Along with this, a library device has been developed, in which a plurality of storage media such as magneto-optical disks are stored in a magazine, the desired storage media are automatically taken out from the magazine, set in a drive, and read / write. It is being converted.

The present invention relates to the above library device,
More specifically, the position of the transport unit that takes out the medium from the magazine, stores the medium in the magazine, sets the medium in the drive device, and takes out the medium from the drive device is automatically adjusted to the optimum position. The present invention relates to a method for automatically adjusting the position of a transport unit that allows smooth medium exchange.

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art A magazine for storing a plurality of storage media,
A library device provided with a drive device for reading / writing a medium and a transport unit for transporting and setting a medium from an arbitrary slot of a magazine to a drive device has been developed and put into practical use. A library device was proposed (see Japanese Patent Application No. 5-244935).

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the overall structure of the above-described library device which is the premise of the present invention. FIG. 12 (a) is a view of the library device from above, and FIG. 12 (b) is a view from the side. is there. In the figure, 10 is a library device, 11 is a magazine that stores media, and a plurality of media are stored in the slots of the magazine 11. Reference numeral 12 is a drive device for reading / writing a medium, 13 is a transport unit for taking out a medium from a magazine and setting it in the drive device 12,
Reference numeral 14 is a motor for driving the carrying unit in the direction of the arrow in the figure, and a gear that meshes with the worm shaft 15 is provided in the lower part of the carrying unit 13, and when the worm shaft 15 rotates, the carrying unit 13 moves in the direction of the arrow in the figure. Move to.

The transport unit 13 has a take-in arm 13a for taking out the medium 100 from the magazine 11, a roller (to be described later) for feeding the taken-out medium to the opposite side of the carry unit 13, and a pushing arm 13b for pushing the medium into the drive unit 12. The transport unit 13 is provided and takes out the medium 100 from the magazine 11 by the take-in arm 13a which moves back and forth, and then moves in the direction of the arrow in FIG.
Set to the drive device 12 by b. Further, the medium taken out from the drive device 12 is moved in the same manner as described above and returned to the magazine 11 (for the mechanism inside the transport unit 13, see Japanese Patent Application No. 5-244935).

13 and 14 show the medium 1 from the magazine 11
FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an operation of the transport unit when taking out 00 and setting it in the drive 12. Magazine 11 to medium 1
To take out 00, first, as shown in FIG. 13A, the loading unit 13c of the transport unit 13 is moved to the magazine 11 side, the taking-in arm 13c is closed, and the leading end thereof is hooked in the groove of the medium 100.

Next, as shown in FIG. 13B, the loading portion 13c is returned, the medium 100 is caught in the roller 13c, and the arm 13a is opened. Then, as shown in FIG. 13C, the rollers 13d and 13d ′ are rotated to rotate the medium 10
0 is taken in and the rollers 13d and 13d 'are stopped. The medium is returned from the transport unit 13 to the magazine 11 by operating the transport unit in the reverse order of the above.

On the other hand, when setting the medium 100 from the transport unit 13 to the drive device 12, first, the transport unit 13 is moved in front of the drive 12 and the loading unit 1 is moved.
3c is moved to the magazine 11 side. Then, a clutch (not shown) is driven to engage the load portion 13c and the pushing arm 13b so that the pushing arm 13b can be pushed by the loading portion 13c, and as shown in FIG. 14 (d), the rollers 13d and 13d 'are driven. Then, the medium 100 is pushed into the drive side.

Then, as shown in FIG. 14 (e), the load portion 13c is moved to the drive 12 side, and the medium 100 is pushed to the drive 12 side by the pushing arm 13b to complete the setting of the medium. Finally, the loading section 13c
Is moved to the magazine 11 side to disengage the load portion 13c from the pushing arm 13b by the clutch, and the load portion 13c is returned to the original position to finish.

When the medium 100 is returned from the drive unit 12 to the transport unit 13, the medium ejected from the drive unit 12 is taken in by the roller 13d ', and the medium is moved by the rollers 13d and 13d' to move the medium in the transport unit. Store it in the specified position. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the system configuration of the above-described library apparatus. In FIG. 15, 13 is a transport unit, and 14 is a transport motor for moving the transport unit 103 including a pulse motor or the like.

Further, 13e, 13f and 13g are motors provided in the transport unit 13, 13e is a roller driving motor for driving a roller for moving the medium, 13f is a moving arm 13a and a pushing arm 13b. Reference numeral 13g denotes a motor for driving the load portion to be driven, and 13g is a motor for driving a clutch for operating the take-in arm 13a and the push-in arm 13b.

Reference numeral 12 is a drive device for reading / writing a medium, 31 is a driver board for driving the motors 14 and 13e to 13g, and taking in the output of a sensor (not shown), and 32 is for controlling the library device. A control board, 33 is a power supply unit, and 34 is a host computer.
Then, when a medium exchange command or the like is sent from the host computer 34, the control board 32,
The transport motor 14 is driven by the triber board 31 to move the transport unit 13 to the slot of the magazine 11 or to a preset position in front of the drive device 12 (this position is hereinafter referred to as a reference position), The motors 13e, 13f, etc. provided in the drive are driven to exchange the medium. That is, the medium set in the drive 12 is taken out by the take-in arm 13a to take out the magazine 1
1 and then magazine 1 by transport unit 13
1 Remove the next medium stored in drive 1
Set to 2.

[0013]

In the above-described library apparatus, as described above, the medium is exchanged by moving the transport unit 13 to the preset reference position in front of the slot of the magazine 11 or the drive unit 12. There is. Therefore, the reference position where the transport unit 13 is positioned is not always the optimum position due to the influence of variations in mechanical parts and assembly accuracy. When setting a medium in a magazine, a drive device, or a transport unit,
In some cases, the medium could not be set normally and ended in error.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to automatically adjust the position of a carrying unit with respect to an arbitrary slot of a magazine and a drive unit. , Thereby eliminating the influence of variations in mechanical parts and assembling accuracy, setting the transport unit to the optimum position, and performing the medium position replacement without error termination, the automatic position adjustment method of the transport unit in the library device. Is to provide.

[0015]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the principle of the present invention. FIG. 1A is a diagram showing a library device which is a premise of the present invention, in which 1 is a magazine storing a medium, 2 is a drive for reading / writing the medium, and 3 is a magazine for taking in the medium set in the drive 2. Back to 1, then
This is a transport unit that takes out the next medium stored in the magazine 1 and sets it in the drive 2.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention of claim 1 of the present invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 1A, a carrying unit for housing and carrying a medium, and the carrying unit stores a plurality of media. 1 (b) in the method of automatically adjusting the position of the transport unit in the library device that moves the media to and from the specified magazine and drives the media into and out of the magazine, sets the media in the drive, and takes in the media from the drive. As shown in the figure, when the transport unit is positioned at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive to move the media between the transport unit and the magazine or drive, and the media does not move normally, move the transport unit from the above reference position. It is designed to move by a fixed amount and retry multiple times until it succeeds.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, when the retry operation is successful, the difference between the position of the transport unit at that time and the reference position where the transport unit is positioned before the retry is stored. Then, when the transport unit is next positioned in front of the magazine or the drive, the transport unit is positioned in consideration of the stored difference.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1A, a transport unit for storing and transporting media is provided, and the transport unit is provided in front of a magazine and a drive storing a plurality of media. In the method for automatically adjusting the position of a transport unit in a library apparatus that moves a medium to and from a magazine, sets the medium in the drive, and takes in the medium from the drive, as shown in FIG.
Position the transport unit at the reference position in front of the drive, and if the medium does not move normally when loading the medium from the drive into the transport unit, move the transport unit from the reference position by a predetermined amount and retry multiple times. In addition, at the time of retry, the transport unit is moved in both directions by a predetermined amount to take in the medium.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1A, a transport unit for storing and transporting media is provided, and the transport unit is provided in front of a magazine and a drive storing a plurality of media. In the method for automatically adjusting the position of a transport unit in a library apparatus that moves a medium to and from a medium, sets a medium in a drive, and loads a medium from the drive, as shown in FIG.
After positioning the transport unit at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive, move the transport unit from the reference position in both directions by a predetermined amount until an error is detected,
Move the medium between the transport unit and the magazine or drive at each position, store the position of the transport unit when an error is detected, and calculate the adjustment position to position the transport unit based on the stored position of the transport unit. It is something that is done.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transport unit for accommodating and transporting the medium, and the transport unit is moved in front of a magazine and a drive storing a plurality of media, and the medium is taken in and out of the magazine. In the method for automatically adjusting the position of the carrier unit in the library device that sets the medium in the drive and takes in the medium from the drive,
After positioning the transport unit at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive, move the transport unit by a predetermined amount from the reference position in both directions until an error is detected, and then at each position, move the media between the transport unit and the magazine or drive. When the error is detected, the transport unit is returned to the position immediately before the position where the error is detected, and the distance between the error detection position and the position immediately before that is 1 / X (X is 1).
To an integer of n) to move the transport unit by the distance of 1 / X, and when an error is detected during medium movement between the transport unit and the magazine or drive, the position of the transport unit at that time is stored and stored. The adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the position of the transport unit.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to the fourth or fifth aspect, when the medium is returned from the transport unit to the magazine, the transport unit is returned to the reference position where it was initially positioned. is there. Claim 7 of the present invention
In the invention of claim 4 or claim 5, when the medium is moved from the transport unit to the drive, the medium is returned to the transport unit before the medium is chucked by the drive.

The invention of claim 8 of the present invention is the invention of claim 4
In the invention of claim 5, 6 or 7, the movable range of the transport unit is set in advance, and when the transport unit reaches the limit position of the movable range before an error is detected, the position is stored and the stored transport is performed. The adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the position of the unit.

The invention of claim 9 of the present invention is the invention of claim 4,
In the fifth, sixth, seventh or eighth aspect of the invention, the calculated adjustment position is not adopted when the movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is smaller than a predetermined value. The invention of claim 10 of the present invention includes claims 4, 5,
In the invention of claim 6, 7, 8 or claim 9, when the approximate movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is known in advance, the transport unit is moved in one direction to obtain the error detection position, and then the transport is performed. The unit is moved from the error detection position to the other direction by a distance smaller than the movement width, and the transport unit is moved from the position to the other direction by a predetermined amount to detect the error.

The invention according to claim 11 of the present invention is the invention according to claim 4,
In the invention of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or claim 10,
When the accurate movement width of the transport unit until the error is detected is known in advance, the transport unit is moved in one direction to obtain the error detection position, and the transport unit is positioned based on the movement width and the error detection position. The power adjustment position is calculated.

The invention of claim 12 of the present invention is the same as that of claim 4,
In the invention of claim 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 or claim 11, the adjustment position of the transport unit with respect to an arbitrary slot of the magazine is obtained, and the slot is determined based on the obtained adjustment position and the reference position of the transport unit with respect to the slot. The adjustment position of the transport unit with respect to the slots other than is calculated.

[0026]

In the invention of claim 1 of the present invention, FIG.
As shown in (b), when the transport unit is positioned at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive and the medium is moved between the transport unit and the magazine or drive,
When the medium does not move normally, the transport unit is moved from the reference position by a predetermined amount and retry is performed multiple times until it succeeds, so the possibility of error termination is reduced and the medium is inserted / loaded securely. can do.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, when the retry operation is successful, the difference between the position of the transport unit at that time and the reference position at which the transport unit is positioned before the retry is stored. Then, when positioning the transport unit in front of the magazine or drive next time, the transport unit is positioned in consideration of the stored difference. Since it can be immediately positioned at the correct position that does not cause the process, the processing time can be shortened.

In the invention of claim 3 of the present invention, FIG.
As shown in (b), when the transport unit is positioned at the reference position in front of the drive and the medium is not moved normally when the medium is taken into the transport unit from the drive, the transport unit is moved by a predetermined amount from the reference position. In addition to moving and retrying multiple times, when retrying, the transport unit was moved in both directions by a predetermined amount to take in the medium, so even if the medium hits the transport roller etc. and does not move smoothly, Can be captured easily.

In the invention of claim 4 of the present invention, FIG.
As shown in (c), after the transport unit is positioned at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive, the transport unit is moved in both directions from the reference position by a predetermined amount until an error is detected, and at each position. When the medium is moved between the transport unit and the magazine or drive and an error is detected, the position of the transport unit at that time is stored and the adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the stored position of the transport unit. Therefore, the optimum position of the transport unit can be automatically obtained without being affected by variations in mechanical parts and assembly accuracy, and the medium can be reliably inserted / loaded.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, after the transport unit is positioned at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive, the transport unit is moved from the reference position by a predetermined amount in both directions until an error is detected. , Move the medium between the transport unit and the magazine or drive at each position, and when an error is detected, return the transport unit to the position immediately before the position where the error was detected, and set the distance between the error detection position and the position immediately before it. 1 / X (X is an integer of 1 to n) to move the transport unit by the distance of 1 / X, and when an error is detected, the position of the transport unit at that time is stored, and the stored transport unit is stored. Since the adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the position of, the resolution of the error detection position can be improved and the transport unit can be moved. Optimum position of Tsu bets can be determined accurately.

In the invention of claim 6 of the present invention, in the invention of claim 4 or 5, when the medium is returned from the transport unit to the magazine, the transport unit is returned to the reference position where it was initially positioned. The risk of the media hitting the magazine slot and being damaged can be avoided. In the invention of claim 7 of the present invention, in the invention of claim 4 or 5, when the medium is moved from the transport unit to the drive, the medium is returned to the transport unit before being chucked by the drive. Therefore, the chucking time of the medium in the drive can be omitted and the operation time can be shortened.

In the invention of claim 8 of the present invention, in the invention of claim 4, 5, 6 or 7, the movable range of the transport unit is set in advance, and the transport unit is movable before the error is detected. When the limit position of the range is reached, the position is stored and the adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the stored position of the transport unit, so there is no need to perform an error detection operation more than necessary. The operating time can be shortened.

In the invention of claim 9 of the present invention, in the invention of claim 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8, when the movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is smaller than a predetermined value, it is calculated. Since the adjustment position is not adopted, it is possible to avoid the risk that an inappropriate adjustment position is set and the medium operation is hindered. Claim 1 of the present invention
In the invention of No. 0, in the invention of claim 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9, when the approximate movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is known in advance, the transport unit is moved in one direction. After the error detection position is obtained by moving the transfer unit, the transfer unit is moved in the other direction from the error detection position by a distance smaller than the above movement width, and the transfer unit is moved from that position in the other direction by a predetermined amount to generate an error. Since the detection is performed, the search operation time for the error detection position in the other direction can be shortened.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the invention of the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth or tenth aspect, an accurate movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is known in advance. In this case, the transport unit is moved in one direction to obtain the error detection position, and the adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the movement width and the error detection position. The adjustment position can be calculated by the operation, and the operation time can be significantly shortened.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the invention of the fourth, fifth, sixth, eighth, ninth or tenth aspect, the adjustment position of the transport unit for any slot of the magazine is obtained, and the obtained adjustment is made. Since the adjustment position of the transport unit with respect to the slots other than the slots is calculated based on the position and the reference position of the transport unit with respect to the slot, the adjustment position with respect to the slot of the magazine can be obtained in a short time.

[0036]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A method for adjusting the position of a carrying unit according to the present invention will be described below.
Assuming that the library device shown in FIG. 5 is used, the medium can be smoothly replaced by automatically adjusting / setting the position of the transport unit with respect to the magazine or the drive device during operation or adjustment of the library device. It was made possible.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the operation of this embodiment. In FIG. 2, 11 is a magazine, 11a is a slot of the magazine, and 13 is a carrier. A unit, 13d are rollers provided in the transport unit 13, and 100 is a medium. This embodiment shows an embodiment in which the retry operation is performed while moving the transport unit when the insertion / removal of the medium fails. Here, the case where the medium is returned from the transport unit to the slot of the magazine will be described. In this example,
When loading media from the magazine to the transport unit,
When loading media from the drive device to the transport unit,
The same can be applied when the medium is pushed into the drive device from the transport unit.

Next, this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 3, the control boat 32
Initializes the retry counter provided in the
1), the transport unit 13 is moved to the reference position (reference position A in FIG. 2) (step S2, the initial value of the retry movement step is 0). Next, at the reference position A, the medium 100 is moved from the transport unit 13 to the slot of the magazine 11 by the roller 13d, and the medium insertion operation is performed (step S3).

If the above-mentioned operation is normally performed, the operation is terminated. If the operation is not normally performed, it is determined whether or not the value of the retry counter has reached the maximum value (step S4, step S4). S5). Whether or not the above operation is normally performed is determined by, for example, whether or not the medium has moved normally within a predetermined time, or whether the load of the motor for feeding the medium has become larger than a predetermined value. It is possible to make a distinction by detecting the like.

If the value of the retry counter is not the maximum value, 1 is added to the retry counter (step S
6) It is determined whether or not the value of the retry counter is an even number (step S7), and if it is an even number, the transport unit 13
Is moved in the + direction by (n + 1) / 2 steps (position A1 in FIG. 2), and the moving step is stored (step S1).
0).

Then, returning to step S3, a retry operation of inserting the medium 100 into the slot of the magazine 11 from the transport unit 13 is performed at the position A1 as described above, and it is determined whether or not the operation is normally performed. (Step S3, step S4). As described above, while the movement step is stored, the transport unit 13 is moved to the position A1 → the position A2 → the position A3 → the position A4 in FIG. 2 according to the count value of the retry counter, and the retry operation is performed to move the position A4. When the retry is successful, the process ends. Also,
If the count value of the retry counter reaches the maximum value before the retry is successful, the process proceeds to step S11 and error processing is performed and the process ends.

Then, when the transport unit 13 is moved to the front of the slot of the magazine 11, the transport unit 13 is positioned by being displaced from the reference position by the movement step amount stored in step S10. For example, when the retry is successful at the position A4 in FIG. 2, the distance between A and A4 is stored, and when the transport unit 13 is positioned before each slot of the magazine 11 from the next time onward, the distance from the reference position is changed. It is positioned at a position displaced by the distance between A and A4.

As a result, even if the position of each slot of the magazine 11 is deviated from the reference position, the medium can be returned to the slot of the makajin without performing the retry operation at the time of the operation of the transport unit after the next time. it can.
As described above, in the present embodiment, when the insertion of the medium into the magazine fails, the retry operation is performed while moving the position of the transport unit, so that the position of each slot of the magazine 11 is deviated from the reference position. However, the medium can be returned to the slot of the magazine without ending in error.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the operation of this embodiment. In this embodiment, the medium discharged from the drive device is taken into the transport unit. FIG. 4 shows an example of the case.
, 12 is a drive device, 13 is a transport unit,
13d is a roller provided in the transport unit 13, 100
Is the medium.

Note that FIG. 5 is obtained by adding step S12 and step S13 between step S10 and step S3 of FIG. 3, and other steps are the same as in FIG.
In FIG. 5, steps S6 to S9 are omitted. In the present embodiment, when the medium ejected from the drive device 12 is taken into the transport unit 13, the transport unit 13 is shaken in the + and − directions by Δd as shown in FIG. Even if the position is slightly deviated from the medium ejection position of the drive device 12, the medium can be smoothly taken into the transport unit.

That is, in steps S12 and S13 of FIG. 4, the transport unit is moved in the + and-directions, and the medium is taken in in step S3. Accordingly, even when the medium ejection position of the drive device 13 and the position of the roller of the transport unit are slightly displaced, the medium can be smoothly taken into the transport unit.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing the operation of this embodiment. In FIG. 6, 11 is a magazine, 11a is a slot of the magazine, and 13 is a carrier. A unit, 13d are rollers provided in the transport unit 13, and 100 is a medium. This embodiment shows a method of automatically setting the positioning point of the transport unit to an optimum position at the time of adjustment before shipment of the library device or after installation. Here, the position of the transport unit with respect to the slot of the magazine is set. Although the adjustment will be described, the present embodiment can be similarly applied to the position adjustment of the transport unit with respect to the drive device.

Next, this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. In FIG. 7, first, the transport unit 13 is moved to the front of the magazine 11 (reference position A in FIG. 6) (step S1), the medium is set in the transport unit 13 from the slot, and then the medium is returned to the slot of the magazine 11. (Step S2), it is determined whether or not an error has occurred (step S3).

If no error has occurred, the transport unit 13 is moved in a predetermined direction (for example, the left direction in FIG. 6), the process returns to step S2, and the above process is repeated until an error is detected. . And position E in FIG.
If an error occurs in step S4, the error detection position E in that direction is stored (step S4).

Next, it is determined whether or not an error has been detected in both (step S5). If no error has been detected in both, the moving direction is reversed (step S5).
7) Return to step S1, return the transport unit 13 to the reference position b again, and similarly move the transport unit 13 in the opposite direction until an error is detected until the medium between the magazine 11 and the transport unit 13 is detected. Repeat the movement. Then, when an error is detected at the position E ′ in FIG. 6, the position E ′ is stored, and the error detection positions E in both directions are stored.
The center of E ′ (position P in FIG. 6) is set as the adjustment position of the transport unit (step S8).

Then, the position adjusting operation is performed for each slot of the magazine, and each adjusting position is stored in advance.
When operating the library apparatus, the transport unit is moved to the front of the slot of the magazine with the adjustment position as the reference position. Further, in the above embodiment, when the insertion / return of the medium fails in the first operation, the transport unit is moved in the positive direction or the negative direction by a predetermined amount, and the position is set as the reference position, and the same position as above is used. Make adjustments. This movement of the transport unit is performed until it succeeds within a fixed number of times, and if it fails after a certain number of attempts, an error process is performed and the process ends.

The above position adjustment can be performed for all the slots of the magazine. However, for example, it is necessary to perform the position adjustment for every plurality of slots to obtain the adjustment positions and calculate the adjustment positions for the slots in between. Various adjustment methods can be adopted accordingly. For example, the adjustment position of the transport unit for the unadjusted slot can be calculated from the adjustment position obtained for the arbitrary slot.

That is, position adjustment is performed on any of a plurality of slots, adjustment positions for these slots are obtained, and the difference between these adjustment positions and the reference position of each slot is averaged. Then, the average value is added to the reference position of the unadjusted slot to obtain the adjusted position of the transport unit for the unadjusted slot. That is, the number of arbitrary slots is n, the adjustment positions for the arbitrary slots are P1 to Pn, and the reference positions of those slots are A1 to Pn.
An, where A is the reference position for the unadjusted slot, the adjusted position of the transport unit for any unadjusted slot of the magazine can be determined by the following equation. {(P1-A1) + (P2-A2) + ... + (Pn-An) / n} + A In the above embodiment, the position of the transport unit is set to the reference position only when the medium is returned from the transport unit to the slot. It can also be returned to. By doing so, it is possible to avoid damage to the medium when the position of the transport unit is largely displaced from the reference position.

That is, even if the position adjusting operation is possible, if the transport unit is largely displaced from the reference position, the medium may collide with the slit of the slot, and the transport unit is returned to the reference position to remove the medium. By returning it, it becomes possible to avoid the above danger. FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the position adjustment of the transport unit with respect to the drive device in the third embodiment, and in this case as well, the transport unit 13 is driven by the drive device as in the embodiment shown in FIGS. The position 12 can be moved in the left-right direction until an error is detected, the error detection positions E and E ′ are stored, and the center position P can be set as the adjustment position.

However, in the position adjustment with respect to the drive device, when the medium is sent from the transport unit to the drive device, an operation of transporting the medium halfway and returning it to the transport unit is performed. That is, when the medium is completely set in the drive device, the medium is chucked by the drive device, and it takes time to release the chucking when the medium is returned. Therefore,
By transporting the medium halfway and returning it to the transport unit as described above, the time for chucking and the time for releasing it can be omitted, and the time required for position adjustment can be shortened.

FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing the operation of the present embodiment. In FIG. 9, 11 is a magazine, 11a is a magazine slot, and 13 is a carrier. A unit, 13d are rollers provided in the transport unit 13, and 100 is a medium. Similar to the third embodiment, this embodiment shows a method of setting the positioning point of the transport unit to an optimum position at the time of adjustment before shipment of the library apparatus or after installation, and this embodiment is the third embodiment. In this embodiment, the error detection position can be obtained more accurately. Although the position adjustment of the transport unit with respect to the slot of the magazine will be described here, the present embodiment can be similarly applied to the position adjustment of the transport unit with respect to the drive device.

Next, this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. First, as in the third embodiment, the transport unit 13 is moved to the reference position A of the magazine 11, the medium is set in the transport unit 13 from the slot, and then the medium is returned to the slot of the magazine 11 to determine whether an error has occurred. Determine whether or not. If no error has occurred, the transport unit 13 is moved in the determined direction and the above process is repeated until an error is detected. When an error is detected at the position E in FIG. 9, (step S in FIG.
1) Return to the position Eb immediately before error detection (step S
2).

Then, as shown in FIG. 9, the moving distance d is set to 1 / X and the transport unit is moved in the same direction by d / X (step S3). When an error is detected (step S4), the position is stored (step S8), and the process ends. If no error is detected, it is determined whether the counter value set to the initial value 0 matches X-1 (step S5). If they match, X is determined.
The position for the second time (the position E where the error was detected first) is stored and the process ends (step S7).

If the value of the counter does not match X-1 in step S5, the counter is incremented by 1, and the process returns to step S3 and the above process is repeated until an error is detected. As described above, the error detection positions on the left and right of the transport unit are obtained, and the adjustment position P is obtained from the obtained positions, as in the third embodiment.

Here, if the error detection position is obtained by reducing the moving distance from the beginning, the accuracy of position adjustment can be improved, but it takes time. In the present embodiment, as described above, the error detection position is moved at an appropriate interval,
After the error is detected, the position is returned to the position immediately before the error is detected, and the movement distance is set to 1 / X to perform the position adjustment operation. Therefore, the resolution can be increased by X times without increasing the position adjustment time.

In the position adjustment with respect to the magazine and the drive device, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, a range R in which the transport unit can move is set in advance, and the range of the transport unit is limited before the error is detected. When the position is reached, the position can be stored and the adjusted position can be obtained from the position. That is, if the position adjusting operation can be performed within a certain width or more, it does not hinder the operation of the medium. Therefore, the time for the adjusting operation can be shortened by performing the above.

In the position adjustment for the magazine and the drive unit, when the operable range of the position adjustment is below a certain width (for example, within Rmin in FIGS. 6 and 8), the operation is obtained. It is also possible not to adopt the adjusted position set. That is, in the position adjustment, if the position adjustment is not possible within a certain width, there is a risk that the medium may be in trouble, and the operable range of the position adjustment is below the certain width as described above. In the event of an error, it is desirable to terminate the error and manually check and adjust the faulty part.

Further, in the position adjustment for the magazine and the drive device, when the approximate value of the width for which the position adjusting operation is possible is known in advance, as shown in the flow chart of FIG. After obtaining the detection position, the transport unit is moved from the error detection position in the positive direction to the negative direction by a distance slightly smaller than the width in which the above operation is possible, and the transport unit is moved from that position in the same manner as in the previous embodiment. Then, the error detection position in the negative direction can be obtained.

That is, when the width of the position adjustment operation is known in advance, if the error detection position on one side is known, the error detection position on the other side can be roughly predicted. Therefore, as shown in the third embodiment, the time required for the position adjustment is reduced by performing the position adjustment operation of the transport unit from a position slightly before the error detection position in the other direction without returning to the reference position. It can be shortened.

Furthermore, when the accurate value of the width in which the position adjusting operation is possible is known, when the error detection position in the positive direction is known, the error detection position EP in the positive direction and the error detection position The adjusting position P of the transport unit can be obtained from the width R that allows the position adjusting operation by the following formula. P = Ep- (R / 2)

[0066]

As described above, the following effects can be obtained in the present invention. (1) When the medium does not move normally, the transport unit is moved from the reference position by a predetermined amount and retries are performed multiple times until it succeeds, reducing the possibility of error termination and inserting the medium securely. / Can be imported.

The difference between the position of the transport unit when the retry operation is successful and the reference position where the transport unit is positioned before the retry is stored, and when the transport unit is positioned next to the magazine or drive, By positioning the transport unit in consideration of the stored difference, the transport unit can be immediately positioned at the correct position without causing an error when the medium is inserted / loaded next time, and the processing time can be shortened. it can. (2) Move the transport unit by a predetermined amount in both directions from the reference position, move the medium between the transport unit and the magazine or drive at each position, and store the position of the transport unit when an error is detected during medium movement. Since the adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the stored position of the transport unit, the optimal position of the transport unit is automatically determined without being affected by variations in mechanical parts and assembly accuracy. You can ask.

In particular, since the above-mentioned work can be automatically performed without requiring any manpower, the medium is surely inserted by the transport unit by obtaining and storing the adjustment position in advance before shipping the apparatus. / It can be taken in and the reliability of the device can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

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

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining position adjustment with respect to the drive device in the third embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a process when the operable width for position adjustment is known.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a library device which is a premise of the present invention.

13 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the transport unit of the library device shown in FIG.

FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the transport unit of the library device shown in FIG.

15 is a diagram showing a system configuration of the library device shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1,11 Magazine 2,12 Drive 3,13 Transport unit 11a Magazine slot 13d Roller 100 Medium

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor ▲ Matsu ▼ Ichiki 2 No. 98, Unoki-nu, Unoki-cho, Hebei-gun, Ishikawa Prefecture PFU-U Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Koichi Minami Unoke-cho, Kawakita-gun, Ishikawa Prefecture 2 in 98, Unoke Nu PIE Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Isao Nagata Unoke, Kawakita-gun, Ishikawa Prefecture 2 in 98 Unou Nu Co., Ltd. (72) inventor Yoshiyasu Tagawa Kawakita, Ishikawa Prefecture No. 98, Unoke-nu, Ueno-Ku No. 2 inside PFU Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kazuaki Umi, No. 98, Unoke-Ku, Unoku-cho, Kawakita-gun, Ishikawa Prefecture

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A transport unit for accommodating and transporting a medium, the transport unit being moved in front of a magazine and a drive storing a plurality of media for loading / unloading the medium into / from the magazine and setting the medium in the drive. In the method for automatically adjusting the position of the transport unit in a library device that takes in media from the drive, when the media is moved between the transport unit and the magazine or drive by positioning the transport unit at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive, Is not normally moved, the transport unit is moved from the reference position by a predetermined amount and retries are performed a plurality of times until it succeeds. 2. When the retry operation is successful, the difference between the position of the transport unit at that time and the reference position where the transport unit is positioned before the retry is stored, and when the transport unit is then positioned in front of the magazine or drive. The automatic position adjusting method for the transport unit in the library apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transport unit is positioned in consideration of the stored difference. 3. A transport unit for accommodating and transporting a medium, the transport unit being moved in front of a magazine and a drive storing a plurality of media, loading / unloading the medium into / from the magazine, and setting the medium in the drive. In the method of automatically adjusting the position of the transport unit in the library device that loads media from the drive, when the transport unit is positioned at the reference position in front of the drive and the medium is not moved normally from the drive to the transport unit The automatic position of the transport unit in the library apparatus, characterized in that the transport unit is moved from the reference position by a predetermined amount and retry is performed a plurality of times, and the transport unit is moved by a predetermined amount in both directions at the retry position to take in the medium. Adjustment method. 4. A transport unit for accommodating and transporting a medium, the transport unit being moved in front of a magazine and a drive storing a plurality of media for loading / unloading the medium into / from the magazine and setting the medium in the drive. In the method for automatically adjusting the position of the transport unit in the library device that takes in media from the drive, after positioning the transport unit at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive, set a predetermined amount until the transport unit detects an error in both directions from the above reference position. Move one by one,
When the medium is moved between the transport unit and the magazine or drive at each position, and when an error is detected, the position of the transport unit is stored and the adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the stored position of the transport unit. A method for automatically adjusting the position of a transport unit in a library apparatus, comprising: 5. A transport unit for accommodating and transporting a medium, the transport unit being moved in front of a magazine and a drive storing a plurality of media, loading / unloading the medium into / from the magazine, and setting the medium in the drive. In the method for automatically adjusting the position of the transport unit in the library device that takes in media from the drive, after positioning the transport unit at the reference position in front of the magazine or drive, wait until the error is detected in both directions from the reference position. Move by a fixed amount, move the media between the transport unit and the magazine or drive at each position, and when an error is detected, return the transport unit to the position immediately before the position where the error was detected, and check the error detection position and the position immediately before it. The distance between the positions is 1 / X (X
Is an integer from 1 to n) and moves the transport unit by the distance of 1 / X, and when an error is detected during medium movement between the transport unit and the magazine or drive, the position of the transport unit at that time is stored. A method for automatically adjusting the position of a transport unit in a library apparatus, wherein an adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated based on the stored position of the transport unit. 6. The method for automatically adjusting the position of a transport unit in a library apparatus according to claim 4, wherein when the medium is returned from the transport unit to the magazine, the transport unit is returned to the reference position where it was initially positioned. 7. The transport unit in the library apparatus according to claim 4, wherein when the medium is moved from the transport unit to the drive, the medium is returned to the transport unit before being chucked by the drive. Automatic position adjustment method. 8. A movable range of a transport unit is set in advance, and when the transport unit reaches a limit position of the movable range before an error is detected, the position is stored and the transport is performed based on the stored position of the transport unit. 6. An adjustment position for positioning the unit is calculated.
6. A method for automatically adjusting the position of a transfer unit in the library device according to claim 6 or 7. 9. The calculated adjustment position is not adopted when the movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is smaller than a predetermined value, according to claim 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8. A method for automatically adjusting the position of a transfer unit in a library device. 10. When the approximate movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is known in advance, the transport unit is moved in one direction to obtain an error detection position, and then the transport unit is moved from the error detection position to another position. 6. The error detection is performed by moving the transport unit in a direction by a distance smaller than the moving width, and moving the transport unit in the other direction by a predetermined amount from the position to detect an error. A method for automatically adjusting the position of a transfer unit in the library device according to claim 9. 11. When an accurate movement width of the transport unit until an error is detected is known in advance, the transport unit is moved in one direction to obtain an error detection position, and based on the movement width and the error detection position. 10. An automatic position adjusting method for a transport unit in a library apparatus according to claim 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9, wherein an adjustment position for positioning the transport unit is calculated. 12. An adjustment position of a transport unit for an arbitrary slot of a magazine is obtained, and an adjustment position of the transport unit for slots other than the above slots is calculated based on the obtained adjustment position and a reference position of the transport unit for the slot. 6. The method according to claim 4, 5, 6,
A method for automatically adjusting the position of a transfer unit in a library device according to claim 8, 9, 10, or 11.