JPH103728A - Autochanger equipped with cartridge discriminating mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To attain reliable management etc. by discriminating a cartridge as an applicable object and its mode of use. SOLUTION: A horizontal carrier part 38 for horizontally carrying a cartridge PCR (cartridge housing phase changeable optical disk medium) is provided on a movable table 36 capable of vertical movement facing to the side of a rack 2. A medium hole detecting sensor MS such as a microswitch etc. are fixed in a prescribed position on an upper part of the horizontal carrier part 38. Under the holding state of the cartridge PCR, the movable part 36 and the horizontal carrier part 38 are moved into the prescribed position on the upper part to bring the cartridge PCR in close proximity to the sensor MS. At this approaching time, based on a signal outputted from the sensor MS, whether the cartridge PCR and the sensor MS are brought into contact with each other or not is checked, and whether the cartridge PCR is provided with the medium holes 20 and 2 or not is decided, so that the kind etc. of the medium housed in this cartridge PCR is automatically decided accordingly.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an autochanger for accommodating a plurality of cartridge-type recording media, and more particularly to an autochanger having a cartridge discriminating mechanism for automatically discriminating the type of a recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, cartridge-type recording media (hereinafter, referred to as cartridges) used for video equipment and audio equipment and computer-mounted equipment have been put into practical use, and a wide variety of video information, music information, computer programs and the like have been developed. Information can be handled by these devices.

[0003] However, since the amount of information that can be recorded or reproduced is limited with one cartridge, an autochanger capable of accommodating a large number of cartridges has been developed. Functions such as automatic search and storage of cartridges have been dramatically improved, and it has become possible to automatically process a huge amount of information.

[0004]

Various types (standards) of cartridges have been put to practical use. In the case of an autochanger, in order to surely search and store a cartridge or perform recording and reproduction, it is necessary to determine a predetermined target cartridge to be applied and exclude other types of recording media from the target. .

[0005] In addition, even if the cartridge is an object to be applied, a cartridge case in which a read-only medium is housed in both sides, a medium in which a rewritable medium is housed in both sides, or only one side is housed. It has a standard configuration that can meet the needs of the user, such as a usable medium in which a usable surface contains a read-only or rewritable medium.

As described above, in the autochanger, it is necessary to determine the type of the medium accommodated in the cartridge case at the same time as determining the cartridge to be applied.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and a cartridge capable of realizing reliable management and the like by discriminating a type of a cartridge to be applied and a medium contained in the cartridge. It is an object of the present invention to provide an autochanger having a discrimination mechanism.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided an autochanger comprising: a rack having a plurality of slots for accommodating a plurality of cartridges; And a movable means for moving the horizontal transport unit in a direction substantially perpendicular to the horizontal transport direction of the cartridge, and a media hole detection sensor provided at a predetermined position in the substantially orthogonal direction. Moving the horizontal transport unit holding the cartridge to a position close to the media hole detection sensor by the movable means, and detecting the presence or absence of contact between the cartridge and the media hole detection sensor. Thus, a configuration is provided in which a determination unit that determines the presence or absence of a media hole in the cartridge is provided.

[0009]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, a so-called phase-change optical disc medium in which information is recorded based on a difference in reflectance due to a phase change of a crystal of a medium that changes due to a difference in cooling rate after heating by laser light is used. The description will be made by taking an example of an autochanger to which the accommodated cartridge (hereinafter, referred to as cartridge PCR) is applied. In the drawings used for explanation, for convenience of explanation,
It is assumed that orthogonal coordinates are used in which the x direction is the transport direction of the cartridge PCR, and the y direction and the z direction are orthogonal to the x direction.

In FIG. 1, this autochanger is
A rack (not shown) for storing a plurality of standardized cartridges PCR and a recording / reproducing apparatus 4 for writing and reading information to and from a disk medium contained in the cartridges PCR are provided in a housing (not shown). Have been.

In the cartridge PCR applied to the autochanger of the present embodiment, a disk medium (not shown) is accommodated in a cartridge case 6 formed by overlapping rectangular shells.

The disk medium has both sides (A side and B side).
There are four types, one of which is rewritable together, and one of which is usable only on one side and this usable surface is read-only or rewritable.

A pair of circular through holes 8 and 10 are formed at predetermined ends on both sides of the cartridge case 6 in the transport direction x. The through holes 8 and 10 are positioning holes which are fitted with positioning pins provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus 4 when the cartridge PCR is loaded into the recording / reproducing apparatus 4, and the arrangement and shape of these holes are provided. Are standardized differently according to the type of medium to be accommodated, that is, the medium type such as a magnetic disk medium and a magneto-optical disk medium.

A pair of rectangular through holes (hereinafter referred to as notches) 12, a predetermined distance from the through holes 8, 10, are provided.
14 are drilled and each notch 12, 14 has x
Switch pieces 16 and 18 slidable in the directions are provided, and a so-called write protect mechanism is constituted by such a configuration. That is, the switch piece 16 is
When the notch 12 is shifted to the rear end side of the CR, the notch 12 is closed, and when the switch piece 16 is shifted to the front end side of the cartridge PCR, substantially half of the rear end side of the notch 12 is opened, and the notch 12 is opened. Become open. The other notch 1
4 and the switch piece 18 are configured to perform the same operation as the notch 12 and the switch piece 16.

The notch 12 and the switch piece 16 are a write protect mechanism for the B side of the disk medium, and the notch 14 and the switch piece 18 are a write protect mechanism for the A side.

When the notch 12 is closed by the switch piece 16, the side B can be rewritten. On the contrary, when the notch 12 is opened, the side B is set to write-protection. When the notch 14 is closed by the switch piece 18, A
When the notch 14 is open, the side A is set to write-protected.

As shown in the drawing, a predetermined end on the upper surface of the cartridge case 6 and inside the notch 12 has a small-diameter bottomed hole if the B side of the contained disk medium is read-only. (Hereafter referred to as the media hall) 20
Is molded and if its B side is rewritable,
The bottomed hole 20 is not formed. Similarly, a small-diameter bottomed hole (hereinafter referred to as a media hole) is provided at a predetermined end on the lower surface of the cartridge case 6 and inside the notch 14 if the A side of the contained disk medium is read-only. ) 22 is formed, and if the surface A is rewritable, the bottomed hole 22 is not formed.

As described above, depending on whether or not the notches 12 and 14 are opened and closed and whether or not the media holes 20 and 22 are provided, the form of the A-side and the B-side of the contained disk medium and the write-protection or the A-side and the B-side of the disk medium are accommodated. It is standardized in advance so as to set a re-writable mode. As shown in FIG.
It is possible to set four combinations for each plane.

In the illustrated embodiments 4 and 8, there is a contradiction that the medium is set to be rewritable in spite of being a read-only medium. Only the usable surface is standardized as indicating that the usable surface contains a read-only or rewritable so-called single-sided disk medium.

When such a cartridge PCR is loaded into the recording / reproducing apparatus 4, the slide door 24 slidably provided in the cartridge case 6 is opened to expose a part of the disk medium, thereby recording or reading data. Reading becomes possible.

The rack 2 is open toward the side where the cartridge PCR is inserted,
A large number of slots 26 for individually storing
It is formed in multiple stages along the direction. Each throttle 26
Are automatically numbered by the control unit 68 shown in FIG. 2 to automatically manage slots in which cartridges PCR are stored and slots in which cartridges PCR are not stored.

In the recording / reproducing apparatus 4, one cartridge PCR is attached / detached via an insertion port 28 oriented in the same direction as each slot 26 of the rack 2.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, a front panel provided in the housing has an insertion port for inserting a new cartridge PCR into the autochanger or discharging the already stored cartridge PCR. Is provided.

In the space between the rack 2 and the recording / reproducing device 4 and the back of the front panel, a cartridge PCR newly inserted through the slot is inserted into a specific empty slot 2.
A transport mechanism 30 is provided to transport the cartridge PCR stored in the specific slot 26 or to draw out the cartridge PCR already stored in the specific slot 26 and discharge it from the slot.

The transport mechanism 30 includes two shafts 32 and 34 erected in the z direction, and these shafts 32 and 34
Rectangular movable table 36 slidably supported in the z direction
And a horizontal transporting unit 38 swingably supported by the movable table 36.
It has.

At one end of the movable base 36, there is provided a timing belt 4 which is moved in the z-direction by an elevating motor (not shown).
0 is fixed, and the timing belt 40 moves upward or downward in accordance with the command of the control unit 68 in FIG. 38 to the shaft 32,
It is raised and lowered while being supported by. By this elevating operation, the horizontal transport unit 38 is made to face the slot 26 at the address designated by the control unit 68 and the recording / reproducing apparatus 4.

The horizontal transport section 38 has a pair of opposed flat plates 42 and 44 which are parallel to the xy plane in the drawing and are opposed to each other at a predetermined interval in the z direction. The cartridge PCR moves in the x direction in the gap thus formed.

A pair of through holes are formed at one end of one of the opposed flat plates 42 along the y direction, and a feed roller 46 is arranged to face the other opposed flat plate 44 through these through holes. The feed roller 46 is rotated forward or backward by a feed motor 48 fixed to one end of the opposing flat plate 42, so that the cartridge PCR existing in the gap between the opposing flat plates 42 and 44 is transferred to the rack 2 or the recording / reproducing device 4. Side, or reversely to the input side of the front panel.

Gears 50a, arm members 50b, loading motors (not shown), rollers 50c, 50d standing on the arm members 50b, etc. are provided at the left and right ends of the opposed flat plates 42, 44 on the rack 2 side. Loading mechanism 50 is provided. In FIG. 1, only the loading mechanism on the left side is shown.

The loading mechanism 50 is configured so that the newly inserted cartridge PCR is
When it is inserted into the gap between the rollers and horizontally conveyed to the rack 2 or the recording / reproducing apparatus 4 side by the feed roller 46, the gear mechanism 50a operates by the driving force of the loading motor, and the arm member 50b and the rollers 50c and 50d are moved. By swinging into the gap and pressing the rear end of the cartridge PCR, the cartridge PCR is securely mounted in the slot 26 or the recording / reproducing apparatus 4.

On the other hand, when taking out the cartridge PCR already stored in the slot 26 or the recording / reproducing apparatus 4,
The gear mechanism 50a operates by the reverse rotation driving force of the loading motor, and the arm member 50b and the rollers 50c and 50d swing in opposite directions.
Opposing flat plate 4 while sandwiching both ends of cartridge PCR
The paper is drawn out into the gap between the rollers 2 and 44 and discharged to the input port in cooperation with the feed roller 46 rotating in the reverse direction.

Further, at the upper end of the opposed flat plate 42, there are provided support portions 52 and 54 which are opposed to each other along the x direction, and the horizontal transport portion 38 can swing on the movable table 36 by these support portions 52 and 54. It is supported by.

A semicircular gear 56 is formed on the outer end of the support portion 54. At one end of the movable base 36, a gear mechanism 58 that meshes with the half-moon gear 56, and a transport unit rotation motor 60 that drives the gear mechanism 58 are provided.

When the conveying unit rotation motor 60 rotates in a predetermined direction, the engagement of the half moon gear 56 and the gear mechanism 58 causes
By pivoting the horizontal transfer section 38 located below the movable table 36 about the axis of the support sections 52 and 54, the movable table 36
Is placed upside down.

When the horizontal transport section 38 is positioned upside down on the movable table 36 as described above, the reverse rotation of the transport section rotating motor 60 causes the half-moon gear 56 and the gear mechanism 58 to mesh with each other. As a result, the horizontal transport section 38 is swung in the opposite direction about the axis of the support sections 52 and 54, and the horizontal transport section 38 is disposed below the movable table 36 as shown in FIG. .

At the left and right ends of the opposing flat plate 42, support portions 5 are provided.
A pair of locking claws 62,
A locking hole 66 is formed at one end of the movable base 36 to lock the locking claws 62 and 64.

As shown in FIG. 1, when the horizontal transfer section 38 is located below the movable table 36, one of the locking claws 64 is locked in the locking hole 66 from below, so that the horizontal transfer section 38 is locked. 38
Is fixed to the movable base 36 to maintain the equilibrium state, and when the horizontal transport unit 38 is turned over above the movable base 36 as described above, the locking claw 62 is locked in the locking hole 66 from the upper side. The horizontal transfer section 38 is fixed to the movable base 36 to maintain a parallel state.

A second photo-interrupter PD2 for optically detecting passage of the cartridge PCR is provided at a predetermined position on the right end of the opposed flat plates 42 and 44.
At a predetermined position on the left end of each of the photointerrupters 2 and 44, a first photointerrupter PD1 and a third photointerrupter PD3 are provided along the x direction.

The first to third photo interrupters PD1 to PD1
The PDs 3 are provided at predetermined intervals and arrangements corresponding to the intervals in the x direction between the through holes 8, 10 and the notches 12, 14 provided in the cartridge PCR. Specifically, the third photo interrupter PD3
It is provided at a position closest to the insertion side of the CR, and then the second photo interrupter PD2 and the first photo interrupter P
D1 are arranged in this order.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 (a plan view of a main part of the autochanger viewed from above), the opposing plate 42 has first and third photointerrupters PD1 and PD1.
A notch BH is formed between the PDs 3, and a media hole detection sensor MS composed of a microswitch is fixed at a predetermined position above the notch BH (in the z direction) and higher than the recording / reproducing device 4. . Although not shown, a notch corresponding to the notch BH is also formed in the opposed flat plate 42 near the second photointerrupter PD2.

The autochanger having such a structure has a built-in control unit composed of a microcomputer system as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 2, the microprocessor (MP
Control unit 68 for performing a predetermined program control in U)
Receives the detection signals of the first to third photointerrupters PD1 to PD3 and the media hole detection sensor MS, and based on these detection signals, determines whether or not the cartridge PCR is inserted, the type of the disk medium contained, and the like. judge. The control unit 68 includes a drive circuit 70 for controlling the drive of the feed motor 48, a drive circuit 72 for controlling the drive of the loading motor of the loading mechanism 50, and swinging of the horizontal transport unit 38. A drive circuit 74 for driving and controlling the transport unit rotation motor 60 for driving, a drive circuit 76 for driving and controlling a lifting / lowering motor for moving the timing belt 40 up and down, and the recording / reproducing apparatus 4 are connected.

The control unit 68 is connected to an interface circuit 78 for connecting to an external device such as a so-called personal computer. Based on the control command supplied from the external device to the control unit 68 via the interface circuit 78, the newly inserted cartridge P
The CR is stored in the empty slot 26, the cartridge PCR already stored is pulled out, the write data transferred from the external device is written in the cartridge PCR loaded in the recording / reproducing device 4, the recording / reproducing device 4
It performs processing such as transferring data read from the cartridge loaded in the external device to an external device.

Next, the newly inserted cartridge PC
A specific operation for determining the type of R and the like will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 shows the positional relationship between the cartridge PCR horizontally transported by the horizontal transport unit 38 and the first to third photo interrupters PD1 to PD3.
Are the photointerrupters PD1 to PD during the horizontal transfer.
3 shows a waveform of a detection signal output from No. 3.

FIG. 5A shows notches 12 and 14.
Shows the waveforms of the respective detection signals when the cartridge PCR in which both of them are closed, that is, the AB surface is set to the rewritable state is inserted. FIG. 2B shows the notch 1
2 shows the waveforms of the respective detection signals when the cartridge PCR in which the notch 14 is closed and the notch 14 is opened, that is, the side A is write-protected and the side B is set to be rewritable, is inserted. FIG. 3C shows that the notch 12 is opened and the notch 14 is opened.
Shows the waveforms of the respective detection signals when the cartridge PCR is set in the closed state, that is, when the cartridge PCR in which the side A is set to the rewritable state and the side B is set to the write-protected state. Figure (d)
Is a state in which the notches 12 and 14 are both opened, that is, AB
Cartridge P whose surfaces are both set to write-protected
The waveform of each detection signal when CR is inserted is shown.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, when the cartridge PCR is not inserted into the horizontal transport section 38, all the photointerrupters PD1 to PD3 do not enter a light-shielding state, and thus the logical levels of all the detection signals output therefrom are eliminated. Becomes "H".

On the other hand, the cartridge PCR is inserted into the opposed flat plates 42, 4 of the horizontal transport section 38 through the slot of the front panel.
4, the detection signal is inverted from logic "H" to "L" by first blocking the third photo-interrupter PD3 from light at the tip of the cartridge PCR. A detection signal of the photo interrupter PD2,
Next, the logic is inverted from “H” to “L” in the order of the detection signal of the first photointerrupter PD1. Furthermore, depending on the presence or absence of the openings of the through holes 8 and 10 and the notches 12 and 14,
The logic levels of these detection signals are inverted.

More specifically, in FIGS. 5A to 5D, after the third photo-interrupter PD3 is shielded from light at the tip of the cartridge PCR at time tin, the first photo-interrupter PD1 is turned on at time ts. When the light is shielded, the rotation of the feed roller 46 starts.

During a period of time (ts to t1), all the photo interrupters PD1 to PD1
PD3 is shielded from light, and the logic of these detection signals becomes "L".

Next, after the detection signal changes to logic "L", "H", and "L" as the through-hole 8 passes through the third photointerrupter PD3 (periods t1 to t).
2) All the detection signals again become logic "L" (period t2)
~ T3).

Next, when the through hole 10 passes through the second photointerrupter PD2, the detection signal changes to logic "L", "H", or "L" (period t3 to t4).

The control unit 68 sets the time from the time ts to the time t4.
After analyzing the change pattern of each detection signal up to and detecting the change pattern shown in the figure, the cartridge PCR to be applied is
Is determined to have been inserted. That is, in the present embodiment, it is determined that the inserted cartridge is the cartridge PCR containing the phase-change optical disk medium. On the other hand, when a pattern other than such a change pattern is detected, it is determined that a recording medium that is not applicable has been inserted, and the feed roller 4
6 is rotated in the reverse direction to return it through the input port.

Next, at time t4, after the cartridge PCR to be applied is determined, each detection signal corresponding to the opening / closing of the notches 12, 14 during the period t4 to te shown in FIGS. 5 (a) to 5 (d). Is determined based on the change pattern of the write permission. The time te is
The time when the rear end of the cartridge PCR has passed the third photointerrupter PD3 is shown.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the notches 12, 14
When the closed cartridge PCR is inserted, the detection signals of all the photointerrupters PD1 to PD3 remain at logic "L" in the period t4 to t5, and in the period t5 to te, the through-hole 8 is detected. , Only the detection signal of the first photointerrupter PD1 is inverted to logic “H”. The control unit 68 operates during the period t4 to te
By analyzing the mutual change patterns of these detection signals in the above, it is determined that both the AB surfaces of the disk medium are set to be rewritable.

As shown in FIG. 5B, when the cartridge PCR with the notch 12 closed and the notch 14 opened is inserted, the detection signals of all the photointerruptors PD1 to PD3 during the period t4 to t5. Remains at logic "L", and during a period from t5 to te, the detection signal of the first photo-interrupter PD1 becomes logic "H" with the passage of the through hole 8, and then with the passage of the notch 14, The detection signal of the second photo-interrupter PD2 is logic "H".
(Time t5 '). The control unit 68 operates for a period t4 to
By analyzing the mutual change pattern of these detection signals at te, it is determined that the surface A of the disk medium is set to write-protected and the surface B is set to be rewritable.

As shown in FIG. 5C, when the cartridge PCR in which the notch 12 is opened and the notch 14 is closed is inserted, in the period t4 to t5, the first and second photo interrupters PD1, While the detection signal of PD2 remains at logic “L”, the detection signal of the third photointerrupter PD3 becomes logic “H” as the notch 12 passes. During the period t5 to te, the detection signals of the second and third photointerrupters PD2 and PD3 change to logic "L", and the detection signal of the first photointerrupter PD1 changes to logic "H" as the through-hole 8 passes. Become. The control unit 68 analyzes the mutual change pattern of these detection signals in the period t4 to te, and determines that the surface A of the disk medium is set to be rewritable and the surface B is set to write-protected.

As shown in FIG. 5D, notches 12 and 1
When the cartridge PCR with both of them opened is inserted, the detection signals of the first and second photointerrupters PD1 and PD2 remain at logic "L" during the period t4 to t5, The detection signal of the third photo-interrupter PD3 becomes logic “H” as the notch 12 passes. During the period t5 to te, the detection signal of the first photointerrupter PD1 becomes logic "H" as it passes through the through hole 8, and then the second photointerrupter PD2
Becomes logic "H" as the notch 14 passes (time t5 '). The control unit 68 analyzes the mutual change patterns of these detection signals during the period t4 to te, and determines that both the AB surfaces of the disk medium are set to write-protected.

As described above, the control unit 68 controls the first to third photo interrupters PD based on a predetermined algorithm predetermined by a computer program.
By analyzing the change patterns of the detection signals of 1 to PD3, the cartridge PCR to be applied is determined.

Next, when the third photo interrupter PD3 detects the trailing end of the cartridge PCR, the feed roller 46 is stopped at the time point te, whereby the cartridge PC
R is held in the horizontal transport unit 38, and the presence or absence of the media holes 20 and 22 is detected by performing processing based on the flowchart of FIG.

In FIG. 6, in step S100, the movable table 36 and the horizontal transport section 38 are raised to a reference position in accordance with a command from the control unit 68. Here, the reference position refers to the cartridge P held by the horizontal transport unit 38.
This is a position where the upper surface of the cartridge case 6 of the CR approaches the media hole detection sensor MS via the cutout portion BH, and is stored in the control unit 68 in advance as data.

Next, the control unit 68 executes step S1.
At 10, an output signal of the media hole detection sensor MS is input, and based on the output signal, the media hole 20 is detected.
Is determined.

That is, when the media hole 20 is not formed in the cartridge PCR, the switch piece provided at the lower end of the media hole detection sensor MS comes into contact with the cartridge case 6 and is pushed in.
An “ON” signal is output from the media hole detection sensor MS.

On the other hand, when the media hole 20 is formed, the switch piece of the media detection sensor MS is inserted into the media hole 20 as shown in FIG. 7 (a front view showing the main structure of the autochanger). . Since the depth of the media hole 20 is larger than the on / off stroke of the switch piece, the media detection sensor M
S remains off, and no on signal is output.

In step S130, the movable table 36 is lowered to a position where the horizontal transfer section 38 can be swung. In step S140, the horizontal transfer section 38 is swung upwardly of the movable table 36. Thereby, the cartridge PCR is turned over,
The surface B of the disk medium is directed upward, and the surface A is directed downward.

Next, in step S150, the movable table 36 and the horizontal transport section 38 are raised again to the reference position.

Next, the control unit 68 executes step S1.
At 60, the output signal of the media hole detection sensor MS is input, and based on the output signal, the media hole 22 is detected.
Is determined.

That is, when the media hole 22 is not formed in the cartridge PCR, the switch piece provided at the lower end of the media hole detection sensor MS comes into contact with the cartridge case 6 and is pushed in.
An “ON” signal is output from the media hole detection sensor MS.

On the other hand, when the media hole 22 is formed, the switch piece of the media hole detection sensor MS is inserted into the media hole 22 as shown in FIG. 8 (a front view showing the main structure of the autochanger). You. Since the depth of the media hole 22 is larger than the on / off stroke of the switch piece, the media hole detection sensor MS remains off, and no on signal is output.

Next, in step S170, the control unit 68 executes any one of the modes shown in FIG. 9 based on the data by the write protection mechanism and the data on the presence or absence of the media hole obtained by the series of processes up to now. judge.

Next, in step S180, the address to accommodate the designated cartridge PCR is recognized from the external device via the interface circuit 74, and the movable unit is moved to the designated slot 26 or a position facing the recording / reproducing apparatus 4. The table and the horizontal transport unit 38 are moved.

In step S190, the feed roller 4
6 and the loading mechanism 50 are operated, and the cartridge PCR is mounted on the designated slot 26 or the recording / reproducing apparatus 4.

In step S200, step S170
The aspect data of the cartridge PCR analyzed in
Corresponding to the slot 26 or the address of the recording / reproducing apparatus 4,
The data is stored in a predetermined memory area, and the cartridge discrimination processing ends.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the media hole detection sensor MS is provided at a predetermined position above the horizontal transport unit 38, and the horizontal transport unit 38 and the When the movable base 36 is moved to bring the cartridge PCR held in the horizontal transport unit 38 close to the media hole detection sensor MS, the media hole is determined by the presence or absence of contact between the media hole detection sensor MS and the cartridge PCR. Since the presence or absence of 20, 22 is determined, no special complicated mechanism is required,
A reliable cartridge determination can be performed.

In this embodiment, a case has been described in which a cartridge having at most one media hole provided on each side of the cartridge case is determined. Can be easily dealt with simply by appropriately adjusting the number and mounting positions of the media detection sensors.

Further, in this embodiment, the processing operation in the case where the cartridge PCR is inserted with the side A facing upward has been described. However, the horizontal transfer section 38 has a mechanism for swinging with respect to the movable table 36. Therefore, the same determination process can be performed even when the cartridge PCR is inserted with the B side facing upward.

Further, the cartridge PCR is inserted in a state where the horizontal transport section 38 is located below the movable base 36, and the horizontal transport section 38 is moved to determine whether or not there is a media hole 22 on the back side of the cartridge PCR. The case where the cartridge PCR is swung upward has been described. However, in the reverse case, that is, the cartridge PCR is inserted while the horizontal transport unit 38 is positioned above the movable base 36, and the media hole 20 of the cartridge PCR is inserted. It is also possible to judge the type of the cartridge PCR by swinging the horizontal transport unit 38 downward on the movable base 36 in order to determine the presence or absence of the cartridge PCR.

Further, even in an autochanger having a relatively simple structure in which the horizontal transport section 38 is fixed to the movable table 36 in advance and does not swing the horizontal transport section 38, the same medium hole detection sensor MS as in the present embodiment is used. Is provided, the presence or absence of a media hole in the cartridge PCR can be detected. That is, with the cartridge held, the horizontal transport unit 38 is brought close to the media hole detection sensor MS, and the cartridge and the media hole detection sensor MS are moved.
The presence or absence of a media hole can be determined by detecting the presence or absence of contact.

In the above-described embodiment, a changer in which a cartridge containing a phase-change optical disk medium is applied has been described. However, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to a magnetic disk medium and an optical disk medium. The present invention is also applicable to an autochanger to which a cartridge containing a medium of a type is applied.

[0079]

As described above, in the automatic changer of the present invention, the horizontal transport unit is moved to a position close to the media hole detection sensor while holding the cartridge, and the cartridge and the media hole detection sensor are moved. By detecting the presence or absence of contact, the presence or absence of a media hole in the cartridge is determined.
The type and the like of the cartridge can be reliably determined without providing a particularly complicated mechanism.

Further, by reading the information of the medium accommodated in the cartridge by a recording / reproducing device or the like, the type standardized for the cartridge is determined instead of the type of the cartridge. In addition, the cartridge can be directly stored in the slot of the rack from the horizontal transport section, and the processing speed for management and the like can be greatly improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a main structure of an autochanger according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control unit provided in the autochanger of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a main part when the autochanger of FIG. 1 is viewed from above.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a horizontal transport operation of the cartridge.

FIG. 5 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of the discrimination mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a media hole detection operation.

FIG. 7 is a main part front view of the auto changer for explaining the operation of detecting a media hole.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the main part of the autochanger for further explaining the operation of detecting a media hole.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram for describing the standard of the cartridge.

[Description of References] 2 ... Rack, 4 ... Recording / playback device, 6 ... Cartridge case,
8, 10 ... through-hole, 12, 14 ... notch, 16, 18 ...
Switch pieces, 20, 22: media hole, 24: slide door, 26: slot, 28: insertion port, 30: transport mechanism, 32, 34: shaft, 36: movable table, 38: horizontal transport section, 40: timing belt , 42, 44 ... opposed lithography, 46 ... feed roller, 48 ... feed motor,
50 loading mechanism, 52, 54 support, 56
Half moon gear, 58: gear mechanism, 60: transport section rotating motor,
62, 64: locking claw, 66: locking hole, 68: control unit, 70 to 76: drive circuit, 78: interface circuit, PCR: cartridge, PD1 to PD3: photointerrupter, MS: media hole detection sensor.

Claims (1)

[Claims] A rack having a plurality of slots for accommodating a plurality of cartridges; a horizontal transport unit for transporting the cartridge horizontally to the rack; and a horizontal transport unit for moving the cartridge in a horizontal transport direction of the cartridge. A movable means for moving in a direction substantially perpendicular to the medium hole detecting sensor provided at a predetermined position in the direction substantially perpendicular to the medium; A cartridge that includes a determination unit that determines whether or not a cartridge has a media hole by moving the cartridge to a position close to a detection sensor and detects the presence or absence of contact between the cartridge and the media hole detection sensor. An autochanger with a discrimination mechanism.