JPS62267931A - Optical head cleaning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily remove foreign matter sticking on the surface of the front end of a stop lens which is inserted into an optical recording and reproducing device and provided to the front end of an optical head by including a rotary brush which is supported rotatably in contact with the stop lens. CONSTITUTION:When an optical head cleaning device is inserted into the optical recording and reproducing device from the opening 26 of its front panel 25, a door 30 is rotated and then the device is inserted under the guidance of a cartridge holder 27 until the case part 3 is restrained by the front panel 25. The diameter D of a rotary brush is larger than the height H of a case insertion part, so the rotary brush 4 contacts the front end of the stop lens 46 at the front end of the optical head. Further, the optical head 44 is as long as the axial length of the rotary brush 4 wherever it is in the conveyance direction, so the stop lens 4 and rotary brush 4 contact each other. A control circuit 15 operates with a switch 14 pressed to drive and rotate a motor 7 for a certain time and then the rotary brush 4 is rotated to remove automatically foreign matter sticking on the front end surface of the stop lens 46 contacting it.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to optical recording in which information signals are recorded or reproduced with high density by concentrating a laser beam into a minute beam using an optical head and irradiating it onto an optical disk. The present invention relates to an optical head cleaning device used in a playback device.

In a conventional optical recording/reproduction device, the quality of recording and reproducing information signals is greatly influenced by the optical disk and the optical head.

Optical discs are generally provided with an optically transparent protective layer of about 1.2 ni so that even if there is some dust or scratches on the surface, there is relatively little hindrance to signal recording and reproduction. However, in order to prevent dust, scratches, and fingerprints from forming on optical discs used in the data information field, and in consideration of storage, the mainstream is to use cartridges that house optical discs in a rotatable manner. I'm about to go. On the other hand, with optical heads, the surface of the aperture lens installed at the tip of the optical head cannot be sealed due to its structure. Dirt and dust can accumulate over a long period of time, or condensation can form on the surface of the aperture lens, which can adversely affect signal recording and playback. affect

Conventionally, foreign matter adhering to the aperture lens surface has been directly removed by hand using a cotton swab or a soft cloth.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in a so-called front-loading optical recording/reproducing device that is inserted from the front of the IJ ridge, the above method is extremely difficult, or it is not expected of the user. It can be said that it is close to possible. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention provides an optical head cleaning device that can easily remove foreign matter adhering to the surface of the aperture lens tip of an optical head.

Means for Solving the Problems The optical head cleaning device of the present invention includes a rotary brush inserted into an optical recording/reproducing device and rotatably supported in contact with an aperture lens provided at the tip of the optical head, and a motor. A case housing a transmission means for transmitting the driving force of the motor to a rotary brush, a power source for rotationally driving the motor, and a drive control unit for controlling the drive of the motor, and at least a part of the case is inserted into an optical recording/reproducing device. Consists of.

According to the above-described configuration, the present invention inserts an optical head cleaning device into an optical recording/reproducing device, rotates the rotary brush by driving the motor, and removes foreign matter on the tip surface of the aperture lens of the optical head that comes into contact with the rotary brush. can be automatically removed.

Embodiment FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an optical head cleaning device in a first embodiment of the present invention.

Reference numeral 1 denotes a case, which has approximately the same height and width as a cartridge to be described later, and a case insertion part 2 that is inserted into an optical recording/reproducing device.
and the other case part 3. Notches 2a and 2b are provided at both ends of the front surface of the case insertion portion 2.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a rotary brush, which is composed of a brush 4a formed of fine bristles made of vinyl chloride, for example, and a shaft core portion 4b that fixes and holds the brush 4a. The axial direction of the rotary brush 4 is the same as the moving direction of the optical head, which will be described later, and the length of the rotary brush 4 in the axial direction is larger than the moving length of the optical head. Further, the diameter of the rotary brush is made larger than the height H of the case insertion portion 2 so that the optical head and the rotary brush come into contact with each other.

Both ends of the rotary brush 4 are rotatably supported by bearings 6a and 6b, and a pulley 6 is attached to one end of the rotary brush 4.
It is integrated with.

7 is a motor and 7a is a motor shaft. rotary brush 4
The transmission means for transmitting the rotational driving force of the motor 7 to the rotary brush in order to rotate the rotary brush has one end fixed to the pulley 8,
The other end is composed of a shaft 10 rotatably supported by the case 1 and connected to the motor @7a by a joint 9, and a rubber belt 11 stretched around the pulleys 6 and 8.

Reference numeral 12 denotes a power source for driving the motor, and in this embodiment, a dry battery is used. Reference numeral 13 denotes a drive control section for rotating and stopping the motor 7. The connections between the power source 12 and the drive control section 13 and the connections between the drive control section 13 and the motor 7 are omitted in FIG. The configuration of the drive control section 13 will be explained with reference to the block diagram shown in FIG.

The drive control section 13 includes a switch 14 and a control circuit 16. The switch 14 is a bush-type switch that is pressed and operated by the user. However, it is also possible to configure the switch 14 to be automatically pressed and operated when the optical head cleaning device is inserted into the optical recording/reproducing device to a predetermined position. When the switch 14 is operated, the control circuit 15 receives this command and rotates the motor 7 for a certain period of time. The rotation direction of the motor 7 may be either forward rotation or reverse rotation.

However, since the tip of the aperture lens of the optical head is generally concave, rotating the rotary brush 4 in both directions rather than in one direction allows the rotary brush 4 to more reliably contact the entire surface of the tip of the aperture lens. . For this reason, a relay is built into the control circuit 16, and the polarity of the power supplied to the motor is switched, so that the motor 7 is rotated in the forward direction, then in the reverse direction, and then stopped.

Next, an optical recording and reproducing apparatus using the cartridge and the optical head cleaning device of the present invention will be explained.

FIGS. 3a and 3b show perspective views of an example of the cartridge. The cartridge 16 has an upper nozzle 17a and a lower nozzle 17.
a substantially rectangular parallelepiped casing 17 made up of b, and an optical disc 1 rotatably housed in a space formed inside the casing 17;
8, a shutter 19, a slider 2o that engages with the shutter 19 and moves the shutter 19 in the direction of the arrow;
The slider 20 is constituted by a tension spring (not shown) that always elastically urges the slider 20 in the direction of arrow A'. 21 is a head window into which an optical head is inserted, and 22 is a drive body insertion hole into which a rotary drive body for rotationally driving the optical disk 18 is inserted. Reference numerals 23 and 24 indicate positioning holes for positioning the cartridge 16 at a proper position when the cartridge 16 is inserted into an optical recording/reproducing apparatus. Protrusion 2 provided on slider 2Q
When 0a is moved in the direction of arrow B, the shutter 19 is slid in the direction of arrow B, and the head window 21 is moved as shown in FIG.
And the driver insertion hole 22 is opened.

FIG. 4 shows a side sectional view of the main parts of an example of an optical recording/reproducing device.

26 is a front panel, which is provided with an opening 26 into which the cartridge 16 is inserted. Reference numeral 27 denotes a car that is movable up and down, and is the main component for correctly inserting and mounting the IJ jig 16 into the optical recording/reproducing device using an IJ jig holder. The cartridge holder 27 has an insertion opening 2.
9, the rotatable door 3o, and the shutter 19 engage with the protrusion 20a of the slider 2o described above.
An engaging piece 31 for opening the clamp, a clamp guide pin 32, and an arm protrusion 33 are provided. A clamp arm 34 is rotatable around a shaft 35 and is always biased by a coil spring 36 so as to rotate clockwise. A clamp 37 is provided at the tip of the clamp arm 34 and is engaged with the clamp arm 34 and guided by the clamp guide pin 32.

Reference numeral 38 denotes a drive body for rotating the optical disc 18, which includes a turntable 4o provided integrally with a rotating shaft 39;
Centering body 41 that centers the optical disc 18
It is composed of etc. 42 is a positioning pin for positioning the cartridge 16 times. Reference numeral 43 denotes a loading lever that is movable left and right in FIG. When the cartridge 16 is inserted through the opening 26 of the front panel 26, the loading lever 43 moves the front end of the loading lever 43 into contact with the loading lever 43, and when the cartridge 16 has been inserted into the normal position, the cartridge holder 27 is moved to the driver 38. Although the cartridge is movable in the direction and the cartridge is installed in a predetermined position, its specific configuration will be omitted. Reference numeral 44 denotes an optical head, which records and reproduces information signals by focusing the light emitted from the semiconductor laser 45 through optical components (not shown) into a minute light spot with a diameter of about 1 μm using an aperture lens 46, and irradiating the light onto the optical disc. do. The optical head 44 is moved in the direction of arrow C by a transport mechanism (not shown) to record and reproduce information on a desired diameter of the optical disc. 47 is the exterior.

The operation of the optical head cleaning device of this embodiment configured as above will be explained.

When the optical head cleaning device is inserted through the opening 26 of the front panel 26 of the optical recording/reproducing device, the door 30 is first rotated counterclockwise due to the insertion force, and then guided by the cartridge holder 27 to open the front panel. Panel 2
5, the case portion 3 is inserted until it is regulated. During insertion, the brush 4a of the rotary brush 4 comes into contact with the opening 26, the door 30, etc., but since the brush 4a is made of thin vinyl chloride hands, it bends easily and does not pose a problem during insertion. In addition, there are notches 2a at both front ends of the case insertion portion 2.
, 2b, the loading lever 43 is not operated and the cartridge holder 27 is not lowered.
Since the diameter of the rotary brush is made larger than the height H of the case insertion portion, the rotary brush 4 and the tip of the aperture lens 46 at the tip of the optical head come into contact. A sectional view of the main part in this state is shown in FIG. Moreover, since the optical head 44 has the same length in the axial direction of the rotary brush 4 as described above, the diaphragm lens 46 and the rotary brush 4 are in contact with each other no matter where the optical head 44 is located in the transport direction.

When the switch 14 is pressed in this state, the control circuit 15 operates to rotate the motor 7 for a certain period of time. This rotational driving force is applied to the joint 9. Shaft 10° pulley 8. The rotary bluff 4 is rotated by a transmission means such as a rubber belt 11, and foreign matter adhering to the front end surface of the aperture lens 46 in contact with the rotary bluff 4 is automatically removed.

In the embodiment described above, the drive control section 13 is composed of the switch 13 and the control circuit 16, but it may be composed only of the switch. In this case, a slide switch 13' is used as the switch, and the power source 12 and the motor 7 are directly connected, and the motor 7 is rotated or stopped by controlling electrical continuity with the slide switch 13'. This requires the user to operate the slide switch 13' when the motor 7 is rotating and operate it again when the motor 7 is stopped, but there is no difference in terms of removing foreign matter attached to the aperture lens 46.

FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of another embodiment of the optical head cleaning device. Components with the same functions as those shown in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals, and the explanation will focus on the different parts.

The optical head cleaning device shown in FIG. 8, like a cartridge, comes into contact with the loading lever 43 when inserted into the optical recording/reproducing device to a predetermined position, and is mounted together with the cartridge holder 27 in the direction of the driver 38. be.

For this purpose, the case 1 is provided with a driver insertion hole 48 and positioning holes 49 and 50. 7' is a thin motor, and a pulley 51 is fixed to the motor shaft.

A rubber belt 53 is stretched across the pulley 52 and the pulley 51 fixed to the shaft 10.

The power source 12 here uses a thin mercury battery.

Further, the outer diameter of the rotary brush 4 can be made smaller than the height H of the case 1 in this embodiment.

This embodiment provides a compact optical head cleaning device that is approximately the same size as a cartridge.
FIG. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of the main part when inserted into an optical recording/reproducing device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, an optical head cleaning device is inserted into an optical recording/reproducing device, and a rotary brush is rotated to clean the tip of the optical head, which adversely affects the recording and reproduction of information signals. It can automatically remove dirt, dust, and other foreign matter from the surface of the aperture lens, and its practical effects are impressive.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a first embodiment of the optical head cleaning device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the main part of FIG. 1, and FIGS. FIG. 4 is a sectional side view of a main part showing an example of an optical recording/reproducing device.
FIG. 6 is a sectional side view of the main part of the optical head cleaning/cleaning device shown in FIG. 1 inserted into an optical recording/reproducing device.
This figure is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a side sectional view of the main part of the optical head cleaning/cleaning device shown in FIG. 6 inserted into an optical recording/reproducing apparatus. 1... Case, 4... Rotary brush, 7... Motor, 12... Power supply, 13
... Drive control section, 14 ... Switch,
44...Optical head, 46...Aperture lens. Name of agent: Patent attorney Toshio Nakao and 1 other person6-
Pulley Figure 2 Figure 3 (a-) Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) A rotary brush that is inserted into an optical recording/reproducing device and is rotatably supported and comes in contact with an aperture lens provided at the tip of the optical head, a motor that rotationally drives the rotary brush, and a motor that drives the rotary brush, and the driving force of the motor is transferred to the rotary brush. a power source for driving the motor;
1. An optical head cleaning device comprising: a drive control section for controlling the drive; and a case, at least a portion of which houses the drive control section, and which is inserted into the optical recording/reproducing device. (2) The optical head cleaning device according to claim 1, characterized in that the drive control section is constituted by a switch, and the rotation of the motor is stopped by opening and closing the switch. (3) The optical head cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the drive control section includes a switch and a control circuit that drives the motor for a certain period of time and then stops the motor according to the operation of the switch. (4) The optical head cleaning device according to claim 3, wherein the control circuit is configured to rotate the motor in one direction, then rotate it in the other direction, and then stop the motor.