JPS6332784A - Small-sized tape cassette - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To open a cover without providing a new lock releasing means to the side of device to be mounted by providing a lock releasing projection projected from the side face of a cassette enclosure to the locking piece of the cover. CONSTITUTION:The rear end 16d of the locking piece 16 to be deformed elastically locking a cover 4 is fitted to the supporting part 18 of a cassette half 3A and the locking part 16c of the other end is engaged with the engagement 4a of the cover 4. Then the lock releasing projection 16e is provided to the outer side face of a locking piece main body 16a and projected outward from the side face of the cassette enclosure. In mounting the cassette 13 to the side of device, the projection 16e is depressed by a holder inner wall 21 to release the lock of the cover 4. Thus, it is not required to provide newly a releasing means to the device side to simplify the device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention provides a tape cassette that is smaller than the standard type and is too small to be directly attached to an A-type video cheap playback. The present invention relates to a small-sized tape cassette that requires an adapter, for example, to be used in a type of recording/reproducing apparatus, and particularly relates to a small-sized tape cassette whose lid is securely locked.

(Prior Art) It is well known that standard-sized tape cassettes are generally used in recording and reproducing apparatuses such as video tape recorders (VTRs). It is also well known that in recent years, smaller compact tape cassettes have been developed that enable recording and playback while maintaining compatibility with equipment that uses these standard tape cassettes. It is.

Although this type of small tape cassette can be recorded and played back by a recording/playback device exclusively designed for small tape cassettes, when used with a recording/playback device that uses a standard type tape cassette, it is almost the same as the standard type. By storing it in the shaped tape cassette adapter, it can be used in the same way as the standard type tape force set 1~.

FIG. 6 is an external perspective view of a general small tape cassette, with the lid closed.

The small tape cassette 1 has a cassette housing 3 that stores a magnetic tape 2 and is composed of an upper half 3A and a lower half 3B with their lids pressed together, and a front opening of the cassette 1-D cassette 3 that is closed for 1ft. The lid body 4 is rotatably supported by a pivot shaft (pin) 10. Further, the upper half 3A is formed with a notch 3d for allowing a gear 7a formed on the outer peripheral surface of the take-up reel hub 7, which will be described later, to face the side surface of the cassette housing 3. This notch 3d is defined when the upper and lower halves 3A and 3B are assembled. Note that reference numeral 12 denotes a groove for preventing erroneous insertion, which is formed at the rear side of the notch portion 3d, passing through the upper and lower halves 3A, 3B.

The magnetic tee 72 is usually protected by closing the lid 4 while being guided by the left and right guide rollers 5.5 across the frontage.

The lid 4 is closed in a click manner by a sliding piece 8 which is biased by a sliding force from a leaf spring 11 fitted into a U-shaped recess 9 formed in the front of one side of the cassette housing 3. The configuration is such that the position and the lid closing position are set.

When this small tape cassette 1 is used in a recording/reproducing device exclusively for small tape cassettes (not shown), by inserting this small tape cassette 1 to a predetermined position in the device,
By rotating the cassette 4 to a substantially horizontal position as shown in the figure, and then lowering the small tape cassette 1, for example, the supply side reel hub 6 is fitted into the supply reel feather, and the outer circumferential surface of the take-up reel hub 7 is fitted. The gear 7a formed in the above meshes with the drive gear of the device, and the vertical J'3, inclined loading ball, and capstan of the device enter into the recesses 3a, 3b, and 3c on the opening side of the cassette housing 3, respectively. It is installed in a recording/reproducing device.

In addition, when this small tape cassette 1 is used by being attached to a standard type recording/reproducing device, it is possible to use a tape cassette of the same shape as the standard type tape cassette as shown in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-37739, as described above. It is used while being stored in the adapter storage section.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) By the way, the small tape cassette 1 having the above structure does not have a locking mechanism for the lid 4, so if the lid 4 is rotated beyond a predetermined angle, the leaf spring The elastic force of 11 causes the lid to close on the m instep via the sliding piece 8, and as a result,
There may be problems in that the signal recording surface of the magnetic tape 2 is exposed to the outside and dust or the like adheres to the signal recording surface, causing damage to the tape and preventing stable recording and reproduction.

In addition, in order to eliminate this problem, if a locking mechanism such as that used in standard tape cassettes is adopted for this small tape cassette 1, the operation section for unlocking this locking mechanism is mounted on the cassette housing. Because it is located inside the side of the small tape cassette, it is necessary to provide a special lock release gate on the dedicated recording/playback device "2" that uses this small tape cassette, or on the adapter for use with a standard type recording/playback device. Not only is it not compatible with current devices, but the mechanical parts of each device are complicated, leading to problems such as an increase in the number of parts.

(Means for solving the problems) The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks,
It is smaller than a standard tape cassette, which has a rotatably supported lid that covers a tape bus of a predetermined length formed on the front of a cassette housing consisting of an upper half and a lower half, and can be attached to a standard type recording/playback device. 4 small tape cassettes that are housed in an adapter and used when the tape is opened, and are always biased with rotational force in the direction of closing the lid by elastic means;
The cassette housing has an operating part protruding from the side surface thereof, and a locking part formed at one end is faced so as to lock an engaging part formed on the lid body, and a fixing part at the other end is provided. It consists of an elastically displaceable lock piece that protrudes from the inner surface of the upper half and is fitted into a supporting part, and slopes are formed on the top, bottom, left and right sides of the operating part of the lock piece, respectively, to form a mountain shape. The present invention provides a small tape cassette characterized by the following.

(Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a partially enlarged external perspective view showing the locking mechanism of the lid of the small tape cassette according to the present invention, and this is a side view of the take-up reel hub 7 side of the small tape cassette 1 shown in FIG. This shows the inside of the upper half 3A as seen from above. Fig. 2 is a side view of a small tape cassette according to the present invention, Fig. 3 is a side view showing the lid in an open state, and Figs. 4 (A) to (D) constitute a part of the main parts of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a partial plan view showing the pivot portion of the lid body.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the same parts as in FIG. 6 are given the same reference numerals, and detailed explanation thereof will be omitted.

In the small tape force set 1 to 13 of the present invention, 1 to -1
- The four 0-shaped parts 9, P!, which serve as means for opening and closing the lid 4 of the small tape cassette 1 shown in FIG. ! Moving piece 8
and a configuration in which the leaf spring 11 is removed. 1, i.e.
As shown in FIG. 5, the container body 4 has one end secured to the lid body 4,
The torsion spring 14, whose other end is locked to the cassette housing 3, is attached to the pivot pin 10, so that the assembly is such that a biasing force is always applied in the direction of closing the lid.

In FIG. 1, the inner surface 15 corresponding to the notch 3d formed to allow the gear 7a of the take-up reel hub 7 to face the side surface of the upper half 3Δ has an elastic material for preventing rotation of the lid 4. A deformable root-shaped locking piece 16 is arranged close to the upper plate 17 side of the upper half 3Δ. This lock piece 16 is integrally formed of, for example, synthetic resin, and includes a wide main body part 16a that corresponds to the position of the above-mentioned notch part 3d of the cassette housing 3, and this main body part 16a and a stepped part 16.
It is generally constituted by a thin, narrow and elastically displaceable displacement portion 16b that is connected via f.

This locking piece 16 is shown in FIG. 4(A) so that a hook-shaped locking part 16c formed at the tip of the displacement part 16b locks an engaging part 4a formed protruding from the inner surface of the lid body 4. As shown, the rear end portion 16d of the main body portion 16a faces the upper half 3 of the cassette housing 3 while maintaining a predetermined play dimension 11.
This upper half 3△ is fitted into the abbreviated support part 18 formed in the upper half 3A near the rear of the notch 3d formed in A (near the groove 12 for preventing erroneous insertion).
4. Can be removably attached to. By attaching the lock piece 16, the locking portion 16G is located close to the pivot shaft 10. Therefore, assembling the lock piece 16 to the cassette case 3 is extremely easy! You can go to p. This lock piece 16 is prevented from moving in the +1+1 person direction by the end face of the lower half 3B that is combined with the upper half 3A.

Small tape cassette 1 with this lock piece 16 attached
3, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the engaging portion 4a is locked by the locking portion 16c at a position where the lid body 4 is close to the pivot @10, and the main body portion of the lock piece 16 is locked. 16a
An operating portion 16e provided in the cassette housing 3 protrudes a predetermined amount from the side surface of the cassette housing 3 through a through hole 19 in the upper half 3A that is bored at a position close to the lid 4 side. In this way, lock piece 1
By locking the lid body 4 near the pivot shaft 10 of the lid body 4 where a predetermined shaft torque is applied by the torsion spring 14, the locking portion 16c of No. 6 locks the lid body 4 in the vicinity of the pivot shaft 10 of the lid body 4. Since a large closing force acts near the shaft 10, the engaging portion 4a of the lid 4 displaces the locking portion 16G with a large force, and then
By overcoming this, the lock is reliably achieved, and the reliability of the locking function by the lock piece 16 is improved. Furthermore, by setting the lock position of the lock piece 16 in this way, the biasing force of the torsion spring 14 itself can be reduced, and accordingly, the load on the closing lid structure on the apparatus side can be reduced.

In addition, the operating portion 16 (3) of the lock piece 16 is formed into a mountain shape by forming inclined surfaces 16e+ and 16e2 in the vertical and horizontal directions, respectively, so that the small tape cassette 13 can be attached horizontally and vertically to the device. It becomes possible to respond appropriately to the loading operation in the direction, and a smooth unlocking operation can be performed.

Reference numeral 20 in FIG. 1 is a stopper that projects integrally from the upper half 3A to restrict the displacement position of the main body 16a of the lock piece 16, and as shown in FIG. By preventing displacement of 16C beyond a predetermined amount, the idler roller and magnetic tape 2 inside the cassette housing 3 are protected.

Here, the operation of the lock mechanism of the small tape cassette 13 according to the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG.

When this small tape cassette 13 is installed, for example, in a dedicated device, when the small tape cassette 13 is inserted horizontally into a holder (not shown), the operation part 16C protruding from the side surface of the cassette housing 3 by 12 4. From the state shown in FIG. 4 (A) to the state shown in FIG.
is elastically displaced by being pressed, and the engaging portion 4a of the lid 4 is disengaged from the locking portion 16c of the cock piece 16. The pivot @
The lid body 4 is closed by turning KjJ around the torsion spring 10 against the force of the torsion spring 140 as shown in FIG.

For example, if the distance between the inner wall 21 of the holder and the side surface of the cassette housing 3 becomes a distance f1444 that is smaller than the prescribed distance i3, as shown in FIG.
6 comes into contact with the collars 1 to 20 and further movement of -1- is restricted, so that the internal parts will not damage the idle roller or the magnetic tape 2.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3(D), when the distance between the inner wall 21 of the holder and the cassette housing 3 becomes a distance 111ii5 which is larger than the prescribed distance thu3, the lock piece 1
Although the engagement state between the locking portion 16G of the device 6 and the engagement portion 4a of the lid body 4 is not completely released, the l? il
Rose! When the lWI closes the six body 4, the thin displacement portion 16b is further deformed as shown by the two-dot chain line, and the lock piece 16 is forcibly released.

When the small tape cassette 13 according to the present invention is installed in a standard type recording/reproducing device, by loading it into the housing section of an adapter (not shown) marked 1, the operating section 16e of the lock piece 16 is connected to the adapter. Pressed against the inner wall of
Since they are elastically displaced so as to move together in the P direction, the engagement state between the engagement portion 4a of the lid body 4 and the engagement portion 16C of the lock piece 16 is released. Therefore, the lid body 4 is forcibly closed by the locking portion within the adapter against the force of the torsion spring 14.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, the small tape cassette according to the present invention has a locking portion formed at one end of the lid body which is always biased with rotational force in the direction of closing the lid by an elastic means. The engaging part formed on the F half is made to face so as to be locked, and the fixing part at the other end is fitted into a supporting part protruding from the inner surface of the F half, which is elastically displaceable. Because of this, the lid can be reliably returned to the closed lid locking position with great force, which improves the reliability of the locking mechanism and prevents the urging force of the elastic means from being unnecessarily increased. Without,
Since slopes are formed on the top, bottom, left and right sides of the operation unit and these are shaped like a mountain, the lock piece can be smoothly unlocked when storing a special adapter or device in a holder, allowing for stable storage. can be operated on. In addition, when the cassette is not in use, the cap does not close easily, and as a result, the magnetic tape inside will not be contaminated or damaged by the operator's fingers. There are advantages.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 shows the locking mechanism of the lid of the small tape cassette according to the present invention, and is a partially enlarged external perspective view showing the inside of the upper half as seen from the take-up reel hub side, and Fig. 2 shows the small tape cassette according to the present invention. A side view of the cassette, FIG. 3 is a side view showing the closed state of the lid body, and FIGS. Figure 5 is a partial plan view showing the four pivot parts, and Figure 6 is an external perspective view of a general small tape force set 1~ seen from the bottom. 3... Cassette housing; 3△...upper half, 3B...
・Lower half, 4...4 bodies, 4a...engaging part, 10.
...Pivot shaft, 13...Small tape cassette, 14...
・Torsion spring, 16... Lock piece, 16a... Main body part, 16b... Displacement part, 16G... Locking part, 16e...
...Operation unit, 20...Stopper, 21...Inner wall of holder. Figure 6 Procedural Amendment Document January 22, 1988 Patent Application No. 175986 of 1985? 1 Name of the invention Small tape cassette 3 Person making the amendment (Relationship with 1 Patent applicant address 3-12-4 Moriya-cho, Kanayō-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture
, Date of amendment order Voluntary amendment 5, The entire text of the amended exemption statement shall be amended as in the attached amended specification. Amended Description 1, Name of the Invention, Small Tape Cassette 2, Claims (1) A cassette consisting of an upper half and a lower half. A 1U2 type tape cassette with a rotatable lid that covers the tape path formed on the front. It can also be set to hold a large amount of tape, making it a small tape force set. 3. Detailed Description of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention provides a tape force set 1 that is smaller than the standard type, for example.
- For small tape cassettes that are too small to be attached directly to a standard type video tape recorder, etc., and therefore require an adapter, for example, to be used in a standard type recording/playback device, and in particular to securely lock the lid. Regarding small tape cassettes. (Prior Art) It is well known that standard-sized tape force sets 1 to 1 are generally used in recording and reproducing apparatuses such as video tape recorders (VTRs). It is also well known that in recent years, compact tape cassettes have been developed that are smaller than the standard type tape cassettes and are capable of recording and reproducing while maintaining η loss characteristics with equipment using this standard type tape cassette. Although this type of small tape cassette can be recorded and played back by a recording/playback device exclusively designed for small tape cassettes, when used with a recording/playback device that uses a standard type tape cassette, it is almost the same as the standard type. By storing it in a shaped tape cassette adapter, it can be used in the same way as a standard type tape cassette. FIG. 6 is an external perspective view of a general small tape cassette, with the lid closed. The small tape cassette 1 is constructed of an upper half 3A and a lower half 3B, which house the magnetic chip 12, which are screwed together.
The lid body 4 for opening and closing the front side opening of the lid body 4 is rotatably supported by a pivot shaft (bin) 10. Further, a cutout 3d is formed in the lower half 3B for allowing a gear 7a formed on the outer peripheral surface of the lower flange of the take-up rule 7, which will be described later, to face the side surface of the cassette housing 3. This cutout 13d is defined when the upper and lower halves 3A and 3B are assembled. Note that 12 is a groove for preventing incorrect insertion, which is formed by cutting the upper and lower halves 3Δ and 3B at the rear side of the notch 3d. Then, the magnetic tape 2 is normally guided by the left and right guide rollers 5.5 so as to cross the opening, and the lid 4 is placed at rl.
Protected by IM. The lid 4 is also supported by a leaf spring 11 fitted into a 0-shaped recess 9 formed on one side of the cassette housing 3.
Sliding piece 8 that can freely slide back and forth and is given a biasing force in the lateral direction.
The structure is such that the lid is clicked into the closed position and held in the closed lid position. When this small tape cassette 1 is used in a recording/reproducing apparatus exclusively for small tape cassettes (not shown), by inserting this small tape force set 1-1 into the apparatus up to a predetermined position d, the lid body 4 is opened as shown in the figure. By rotating the small tape cassette 1 to a horizontal position and then lowering it, for example, the supply reel 6 is fitted into the supply reel disk of the device, and the gear formed on the outer circumferential surface of the lower flange of the take-up reel 7 is fitted. 7a meshes with the drive gear of the device, and the vertical and inclined loading balls and main bustan 11 of the device are inserted into the recesses 3a, 3b, and 3c on the opening side of the cassette housing 3, respectively, when the device is installed in the recording/reproducing device. It is something that In addition, when this small tape cassette 1 is used by being attached to a standard type recording/reproducing device, it is possible to use a tape cassette of the same shape as the standard type tape cassette as shown in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-37739, as described above. It is used while being stored in the adapter storage section. (Problems to be Solved by the Invention) By the way, the small tape cassette 1 having the above structure does not have a locking mechanism for the lid body 4 by itself, so when the lid body 4 is rotated beyond a predetermined angle, the leaf spring is released. 11 and the sliding piece 8, the lid is easily closed, and as a result,
There are problems such as the signal recording surface of the magnetic Arp 2 being exposed to the outside and dust adhering to the signal recording surface, or the tape being damaged by contact with fingers, etc., making stable recording and playback impossible. Ta. In addition, in order to eliminate this problem, if a locking mechanism for the lid body is adopted for this small tape cassette 1 as is adopted for a standard type tape cassette, a lock for unlocking this locking mechanism is provided. Since a release means is required on the device side, it is necessary to provide a new lock release means on the dedicated recording/playback device that uses this compact tape force set 1- or on the adapter for use with a standard type recording/playback device. Not only will it not be possible to use it with current devices that do not have lock release means and will not maintain compatibility, but the Ia structure of each device will be complicated and the number of parts will increase. occurs. (Means for solving the problems) The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks,
A small tape cassette in which a lid body covering a tape bus formed on the front surface of the cassette housing is rotatably supported on both sides of a cassette housing consisting of an upper half and a lower half, the lid body A locking means for locking the cassette in a closed state is provided, and an unlocking means is provided comprising a protrusion for unlocking protruding outward from the side surface of the cassette case. The present invention provides a small tape cassette characterized in that the lid is unlocked by the locking means by pressing a lock release protrusion protruding from a side surface of the casing. (Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a partially enlarged external perspective view showing the locking mechanism of the lid of the small tape cassette according to the present invention. Upper half as seen: There is something showing the inside of 3A. Fig. 2 is a side view of a small tape cassette according to the present invention, Fig. 3 is a side view showing the lid in a closed state, and Figs. 4 (A) to (D) show some of the main parts of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the operating state of the constituent lock pieces, and FIG. 5 is a partial plan view showing the pivot portion of the lid body. In the embodiment of the present invention, the same parts as in FIG. 6 are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed explanation thereof will be omitted. In the small tape cassette 13 of the present invention, the sixth
The small tape cassette 1 shown in the figure has a 0-shaped recess 9 as a means for opening the lid 4, and has a configuration in which the moving piece 8 and the leaf spring 11 are removed. That is, the lid body 4 is
As shown in the figure, a torsion spring 14 is connected to a pivot shaft (pin>1
0, the assembly is such that a biasing force is always applied in the direction of closing the lid. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a locking means for locking the lid 4 in the closed state is provided on the side of the cassette housing 3. Hereinafter, one embodiment of this [cock means and <yo rack removal means] will be described. 16 is the inner surface 1 of the upper half 3A corresponding to the notch 3d.
5 is a plate-shaped locking piece provided in the main body 16a, which is integrally formed of, for example, synthetic resin, and has a wide elastically deformable main body 16a, and an elastically deformable displacement plate connected to the tip of this main body 16a. portion 16b, and a lock release convex portion 16e provided on the outer surface of the main body portion 16a and protruding outward.
It is roughly composed of: This locking piece 16 is secured by attaching the rear end 16d of the main body 16a to an abbreviated support part 18 formed near the rear of the upper half 3A (near the groove 12 for preventing incorrect insertion). It can be detachably attached to the upper half 3A to simplify the assembly work, and its movement in the insertion direction is prevented by the end face of the lower half 3B that is combined with the upper half 3A. Furthermore, the displacement portion 16b has a narrow width due to the stepped portion 16f, and is thin-walled to further impart elastic deformation force. Engage with the engaging portion 4a formed on the inner surface of the side wall of the body 4 with the required play, for example, as shown in FIG. 4(A).
As shown in the figure, the lid body 4 is locked in the closed state by the engagement of the two with a predetermined play dimension 11 maintained. Note that this locking portion 16C engages with the engaging portion 4a at a position close to the pivot shaft 10, that is, the locking portion 16c of the lock piece 16 engages with the lid body 4 on which a predetermined axial torque is applied by the torsion spring 14. By locking the lid body 4 near the pivot shaft 10,
Even if the lock piece 16 is in the locked position as shown in FIG. 4(A) when the lid 4 is in the rNU lid-like open state, the lid 4
When rotates in the lid closing direction, a large closing force acts near this pivot shaft 10 due to the relationship between force and length, so δ
After the engaging portion 4a of the body 4 displaces the locking portion 16C with a large force, it overcomes this and is securely locked, and the lock piece 1
6 improves the reliability of the lock function. By setting the lock position of the lock piece 16 in this way, the biasing force of the torsion spring 14 itself can be reduced, and accordingly, the load on the opening Mm mechanism on the device side can be reduced. Further, the lock release convex portion 16e provided on the outer surface of the main body portion 16a is inserted through the through hole 19 of the upper half 3A bored at a position close to the lid 4 side, as shown in FIG. 4(A). , the distance defined between the side surface of the cassette housing 3 and the inner wall 21 on the device side! 41 (gap) Projection Flt larger than i3
12 and protrudes outward from the side surface of the cassette housing 3. An inclined surface 16e I toward the vertical and horizontal directions. By forming the tape cassettes 16e2 into a mountain shape, it is possible to smoothly load the small tape cassette 13 into the device in the horizontal and vertical directions, as shown in (see below), and at the same time, it is possible to smoothly release the lock. I am trying to get them to do this. Reference numeral 20 in FIG. 1 is a stopper that projects integrally from the upper half 3A so as to restrict the displacement position of the main body portion 16a of the lock piece 16, and as shown in FIG. By preventing displacement of the magnetic tape 2, the guide rollers and the magnetic tape 2 inside the cassette housing 3 are protected. Here, the operation of the locking means and the lock W removal means of the small tape cassette I/13 according to the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG. For example, this small tape cassette 13 may be used in a special packaging:
When the small tape cassette 13 is inserted horizontally into a holder (not shown), the lock release protrusion 16e protrudes from the side surface of the cassette r1 to the housing 3 by 12.
is changed from the state shown in FIG. 4A to the state shown in FIG. The main body part 16a and the displacement part 16b are elastically displaced, and the engaging part 4a of the lid body /) and the locking part 1 of the lock piece 16
6G is disengaged, the lid 4 is unlocked, and the 171 mm bridge (not shown) of the device pivots the lid 4 to the pivot shaft 1.
Rotate around 0 against the force of the torsion spring 14,
This lid body 4 is closed as shown in FIG. At this time, the inlet end of the holder comes into contact with the inclined surfaces 16e+ and 16e2 formed on the top, bottom, left and right sides of the lock release projection 16e, and presses the lock release projection 16e along the slope, thereby releasing the lock. The insertion operation of the small tape cassette 13 is not obstructed by the entrance end of the holder being caught on the convex portion 16e, and the storage operation of the small tape cassette 13 is performed smoothly, and at the same time, the lock is released smoothly. In addition, if the distance between the inner wall 21 of the holder and the side surface of the cassette housing 3 becomes a distance tilt4 smaller than the specified distance 13 as shown in FIG. Since the piece 16 comes into contact with the stopper 20 and further movement is restricted, there is no possibility of damaging the internal guide roller or the magnetic tee 12. On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
If a holder with a significantly larger distance 15 exists, the engagement between the locking portion 16c of the lock piece 16 and the engaging portion 4a of the lid 4 will not be completely released, but the device When the closing mechanism closes the lid body 4, both the main body portion 16a and the displacement portion 16b are elastically deformed, and the displacement portion 16b is further deformed as shown by the two-dot chain line, forcing the lock piece 16. to be canceled. When the small tape cassette 13 according to the present invention is installed in a standard type recording/reproducing device, by loading it into the storage part of an adapter (not shown) marked F, the lock release protrusion of the lock piece 16 16e is pressed against the inner wall of the adapter and elastically deforms so as to rotate in the P direction, so that the engagement portion 4a of the lid body 4 and the locking portion 16G of the lock piece 16 are disengaged, and the lid body 4 will be unlocked. Therefore, the lid body 4 is rotated by the M mechanism inside the adapter against the force of the torsion spring 14, and is closed. (Effects of the Invention) As described above, the small tape cassette of the present invention is provided with a locking means for locking the lid in the closed state, and a lock provided so as to protrude outward from the side surface of the cassette housing. A lock release means consisting of a release protrusion is provided, and by pressing the lock release protrusion protruding from the side surface of the cassette case, the lid body is unlocked by the lock means. Because there is a small tape cassette, the lid can be unlocked without adding a new unlocking means to the holder or adapter of the device that loads this small tape cassette, and the lid is small and has a lock that maintains compatibility with current devices. In addition to being able to provide a tape cassette, it is also possible to prevent problems such as complication on the device side and an increase in the number of parts. In addition, since slopes are formed on the top, bottom, left and right sides of the lock release convex part to form a mountain shape, the lock piece can be smoothly released and supported when storing the dedicated adapter or device in the holder. You can perform additional storage operations. Also,
Practical advantages include the fact that the lid does not close easily when the cassette is not in use, and as a result, the magnetic tape inside will not be contaminated or damaged by contact with the operator's fingers. There is. 4. f in the drawing! i Simple Explanation Fig. 1 shows the locking mechanism of the lid of the small tape force set 1~ according to the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a partially enlarged external perspective view showing the inside of the upper half as seen from the take-up reel side. 3 is a side view of the small tape cassette according to the present invention, FIG. 3 is a side view showing the lid in a closed state, and FIGS. FIG. 5 is a partial plan view showing the pivot portion of the lid, and FIG. 6 is an external perspective view of a general small tape cassette seen from the bottom. 3...Cassette housing, 3A...upper half, 3B...
・Lower half, 4... Lid body, 4a... Engagement part, 10.
...Pivot shaft, 13...Small tape cassette, 14...
- Torsion spring, 16... Lock piece, 16a... Main body part, 16b... Displacement part, 16c... Locking part, 16. e
...Lock release protrusion, 20...Stopper, 21.
...Inner wall of the holder.

Claims (1)

[Claims] It is smaller than a standard tape cassette, which has a rotatably supported lid that covers a tape bus of a predetermined length formed on the front of a cassette housing consisting of an upper half and a lower half, and can be attached to a standard type recording/playback device. A small tape cassette that is housed in an adapter and used when the tape is opened, and a lid body that is constantly biased with rotational force in the lid closing direction by an elastic means;
The cassette housing has an operating part protruding from the side surface thereof, and a locking part formed at one end is faced so as to lock an engaging part formed on the lid body, and a fixing part at the other end is provided. It consists of an elastically displaceable lock piece that is fitted into a support part that is formed protruding from the inner surface of the upper half, and sloped surfaces are formed on the top, bottom, left and right sides of the operating part of the lock piece to form a mountain shape. A small tape cassette characterized by: