JPS6334148Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention relates to an adapter for a small tape cassette, and in particular, an object of the invention is to provide an adapter for a small tape cassette that is configured so that it can be used without any problem in a so-called front loading type recording/reproducing device. do.

The applicant has previously provided a tape cassette that is smaller than the standard tape cassette, and an adapter that is used to attach this small tape cassette to a standard recording/reproducing device. This adapter accommodates a small tape cassette and performs tape loading to form a tape path in the adapter that corresponds to the front tape path of a standard tape cassette. Similarly,
It is attached to a recording/reproducing device.

On the other hand, the cassette loading mechanism of a standard tape cassette recording/playback device has a mechanism in which the cassette is loaded from the top side of the device, as well as a mechanism in which the cassette is partially inserted into the cassette insertion slot on the front of the device. The mechanism is operated by a motor,
The cassette is drawn into the device, then moved down and attached to the mounting section, and when the cassette eject operation is performed, the above mechanism operates in the opposite direction, raising the cassette and partially feeding it out of the cassette insertion slot and ejecting it. There is a so-called front loading mechanism in the configuration. Additionally, in this front loading mechanism, a detection piece is provided above the cassette insertion space to detect when a cassette is partially inserted. There are some configurations that allow relative sliding during horizontal movement.

Furthermore, in the above adapter, the upper surface of the tape protection lid on the front side and the lid of the stored small tape cassette in an open state are lined up to form the same plane, but there is no space between them. There is a somewhat wide gap due to the storage and removal of small cassettes. Therefore, in some cases, especially during the adapter removal operation, the detection piece may get into the gap, and the adapter may become caught on the detection piece, making it difficult to eject the adapter smoothly. ,
There was a problem that there was a risk of accidents such as stopping midway.

The present invention solves the above problems, and one embodiment thereof will be described below with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the tape cassette adapter 1 consists of an adapter housing 2 and a front lid 3.
It has substantially the same external dimensions as a standard tape cassette, and has a small tape cassette storage section 4 inside. This adapter 1 has a small tape cassette 5 which is smaller than a standard tape cassette in a storage part 4.
, close the top cover 6 to cover the small tape cassette 5, and then rotate the operating knob 7 to load the tape within the adapter to form a predetermined tape path and start standard recording. It is inserted into the cassette housing of the playback device and attached to the device.

As shown in Fig. 2, the small tape cassette 5 consists of a cassette housing 8 that houses a magnetic tape, and a lid 9 that is normally closed and is provided on the front side of the cassette housing 8 to protect the magnetic tape inside. Become. This lid 9 has a pin 10 between the closed lid position and the horizontal open position.
It rotates around , and is held in each position by the action of a U-shaped leaf spring and a pressing rod.

When the operating knob 7 is rotated clockwise, the special chain 11 is pulled into the J-shaped guide groove 12a of the fixed guide plate 12, and the loading arm 13 is pulled by the special chain 11 and the pin 14 is pulled in. Rotate clockwise around the center to the position shown by the two-dot chain line. Further, the rotation of the arm 13 is transmitted via the link 15 (moves in the direction of arrow _X1 ) and the gear train 16, and the loading arm 17
rotates counterclockwise about the pin 18 to the position shown by the two-dot chain line.

By the rotation of each loading arm 13, 17, the poles 19, 20 pull out the magnetic tape 21 from the small tape cassette 5 stored in the cassette storage section 4, and a tape loading operation is performed within the adapter 1. A tape path 22 is formed that corresponds to the front side tape path of a standard tape cassette. In this state, the adapter 1 is attached to a standard recording/reproducing apparatus, and recording/reproduction is performed on the magnetic tape 21 of the small tape cassette 5, as in the case of a standard tape cassette.

In addition, when taking out the small tape cassette 5 from the storage section 4 after using the adapter 1, use the operation knob 7.
counterclockwise. By this operation, the special chain 11 is let out from the fixed guide plate 12, the arm 13 is rotated counterclockwise, and the link 15 (moves in the direction of arrow _X2 ) and the gear train 16 are rotated counterclockwise.
The arm 17 rotates clockwise through the cassette 5, and the rotation of the operating knob 7 is further transmitted through the gear train 23 to the take-up reel 24 in the small tape cassette 5, which rotates clockwise to remove the tape. Wind up. As a result, the tape 21 is wound and stored in the cassette 5, and tape unloading is performed. After that, the top cover 6 is opened and the small tape cassette 5 is pushed up and taken out from the storage section 4.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the top cover 6 includes a main body 30 and arms 3 on the left and right sides of the front edge.
1 and 32, and the bearing part 3 at the base of the arm part.
3 and 34 respectively, the pin member 35 of the adapter housing 2,
The lid is supported by
(Fig.). Further, the top cover 6 is biased in the opening direction by a torsion coil spring 37. Further, the top cover 6 is normally locked in the closed position by having the hook portion 38 locked by a locking arm portion 40 (see FIG. 4).

This top cover 6 can be removed by sliding the sliding knob 41 on the top surface of the adapter housing 2 in the direction of _arrow
When the lock is released, the torsion coil spring 35 rotates the lid in the direction of arrow _A1 to a vertical position, and the lid opens automatically as shown in FIG. Also top cover 6
By rotating the lid in the direction of arrow _A2 and pushing it down, the lid is locked in the closed state by the action of the inclined surfaces 42 and 43, as shown in FIG.

Further, the sliding knob 41 is slidably provided on the top plate of the adapter housing 2, and is biased in the direction of arrow _X2 by a compression coil spring.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, lid locking portions 45 and 46 are formed inside each arm portion 31 and 32 of the top cover 6. As shown in FIGS. This lid locking part 45,
Reference numeral 46 serves to automatically open the lid 9 of the small tape cassette 5 and maintain it in the open state. As shown in FIG. 5, the lid locking portion 45 has an inclined surface 45a that extends downwardly toward the main body 30 so as to protrude from the back surface of the main body 30 at one end. As shown in FIG. 6, another lid locking portion 46 is a triangular prism with an inclined surface 46a on the main body portion 30 side. Each lid locking portion 45, 46 is formed to extend downward from the upper surface of the arm portions 31, 32 by the thickness of the lid 9 of the small tape cassette 5.

As shown in FIG. 9, the small tape cassette 5 is handled with the lid 9 closed, positioned, and pushed down in the direction of arrow _Z1 into the storage section 4.
stored inside. At this time, the lower edges of the left and right sides of the lid 9 are guided by the inclined surfaces 45a and 46a of the lid locking parts 45 and 46, and the lid 9 rotates in the direction of arrow _B1 . When the small tape cassette 5 is completely stored in the storage section 4, the lid 9 is opened as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9.
It opens slightly and protrudes to the other side of the lid locking parts 45, 46, and the back side faces the lid locking parts 45, 46. In response to the subsequent closing operation of the top cover 6, the lid 9 is locked by the lid locking parts 45 and 46, and the lid 9 is locked in the direction indicated by the arrow.
B It is further rotated in _one direction and then clicked to the horizontal position.

When the top cover 6 is closed, the small tape cassette 5 is opened as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7.
The upper surface of the cassette housing 8 is covered with a main body part 30,
The lid 9 is opened on the same surface as the upper surfaces of the arms 31, 31. In particular, the lid 9 has lid locking portions 4 on the back side of the left and right ends.
5, 46, it is in a locked state, and arrow Z ₁
Even when a force is applied in this direction, the lid remains in the open position without closing. Therefore, even if the lid 9 is pressed by mistake, it will not close, and furthermore, the adapter 1
This can also be applied without any problem to a front loading type recording/reproducing device in which the lid 9 is pressed by a roller.

Also, when the top cover 6 is opened and the small tape cassette 5 is pushed up in the direction of arrow _Z2 to be removed from the storage section 4, the lid 9 is attached to the main body 3 of the top cover 6.
The lid is locked to the front edge 30a of the lid and rotated in _{the two} directions of arrow B to automatically close the lid. Here, the front edge 3
0 is an inclined surface so as to lock a portion of the lid 9 away from the pin 10. Therefore, the lid 9 closes smoothly in conjunction with the cassette removal operation.

Next, to explain the main parts of the present invention, in FIG. position). Further, a somewhat wider gap 51 exists between the lid 3 and the lid 9.

Figures 10 and 11 show the above adapter 1, respectively.
The relationship between the adapter 1 and the adapter insertion detection member during the adapter insertion process and the adapter ejection process when front loading a standard type tape cassette recording/reproducing apparatus is shown. In each figure, 61 is an adapter insertion detection member, which is provided on the lower surface of the top plate 63 of the adapter insertion hole 62 of the recording/reproducing apparatus. This detection member 61 is pivotally supported by a pin 64 on the entrance side of the insertion hole 62, and has a hanging finger portion 65 at the tip. Further, the detection member 61 is rotationally biased by a spring 66 in the direction in which the hanging finger portion 65 moves downward (in the direction of arrow _C1 ).
Further, in FIG. 1, 67 and 68 are relative movement trajectories of the hanging fingers 65 with respect to the upper surface of the adapter when the adapter is inserted and ejected, respectively.

When the adapter 1 is inserted into the insertion hole 62 from the lid 3 side, the hanging finger 65 is pushed up at the recess 60, the detection member 61 is rotated in the direction of arrow _C2 , the switch 70 is closed, and the motor is started. Then, an adapter (cassette) loading mechanism (both not shown) is operated, and the adapter 1 is further retracted in the direction of arrow _D1 . At this time, the hanging fingers 65 sequentially move and slide from the bottom of the recess 60 to the top surface of the opened lid 9 to the top surface of the top cover 6, as shown in FIG. During this insertion process, the tip of the hanging finger 65 fits into the gap 51, but due to its positional relationship with the pin 64, the tip of the upper lid 9 kicks it up and the hanging finger 65 easily escapes from the gap 51.
The adapter 1 is installed smoothly.

Further, when the adapter is detached, an adapter loading mechanism (not shown) operates in the opposite direction, and the adapter 1 rises, and then moves in the direction of arrow _D2 and is partially ejected. During this movement, the hanging finger portion 65 is
In the pressed state, the top surface of the top cover 6 → the lid 9 →
The lid 3 is moved, and when moving from the lid 9 to the lid 3, it fits into the gap 51 as shown in FIG. 11.
Here, if the lid 3 does not have the recess 50, the direction in which the lid 3 pushes the hanging fingers 65 is not in the kicking up direction but in the biting direction. does not easily escape from the gap 51, and the lid 3 becomes stuck by the hanging fingers 65, and ejection of the adapter 1 is restricted midway. However, in the present invention, since the recess 50 is formed, the hanging fingers 6 fitted into the gap 51
5 moves into the recess 50 as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 11 without being caught, and the adapter 1 is smoothly ejected. In particular, the side facing the gap 51 at the bottom of the recess 50 may be formed as an inclined surface. In this case, the hanging finger portion 65 fitted into the gap 51 is guided by the inclined surface and smoothly moves out of the gap 51. It slips out and moves into the recess 50.

As mentioned above, the small tape cassette adapter of the present invention is an adapter for small tape cassettes used when a tape cassette smaller than a standard tape cassette is attached to a recording/playback device for standard tape cassettes. Among the tape protection lids that are installed on the front side of the adapter and lined up with the horizontally opening lid of the small tape cassette stored in the adapter, the adapter detects the recording/playback device for standard tape cassettes when the adapter is removed. Since the structure has a recess formed at the position where the piece acts,
If there is a somewhat wide gap between the tape protection lid of the adapter and the open lid of the small tape cassette, and the detection piece is likely to fit into the gap during installation and removal, the detection piece The tape will enter this recess without being caught by the tape protection lid, and will smoothly transfer from the small tape cassette lid to the tape protection lid of the adapter. It has the advantage that it can be used without any problem in a recording/reproducing apparatus having a front loading mechanism equipped with an adapter (cassette) detection piece that acts on the cassette.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of the adapter for a small tape cassette according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an example of a small tape cassette housed in the adapter of FIG. 1, and FIGS. The figures are a plan view and a front view of the top cover, respectively, and FIGS. 5 and 6 are cross-sectional views taken along lines - and - in FIG. , Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 are diagrams showing the states of the locking mechanism for the lid and loading mechanism of the small tape cassette when the top cover is closed and opened, respectively, and Fig. 9 shows the state of the locking mechanism for the small tape cassette when the small tape cassette is stored. FIG. 10 shows the operation of attaching the small tape cassette adapter shown in FIG. 1 to a recording/playback device equipped with a front loading mechanism. 11 is a diagram showing the relationship between the top surface of the adapter and the adapter detection piece during the adapter entry process, and FIG. It is a figure which shows the state which escaped from the gap and faced the inside of the recessed part of a tape protection lid. 1... Tape cassette adapter, 2... Adapter housing, 2a... Top plate, 2b... Right side, 3...
...Front lid, 4...Small tape cassette storage section, 5
...Small tape cassette, 6...Top cover,
7...Operation knob, 8...Cassette housing, 9...
Lid, 10...Pin, 11...Special chain, 12
...Solid guide plate, 13,17...Loading arm, 14,18...Pin, 15...Link,
16, 23...gear train, 19,20...pole,
21...magnetic tape, 22...tape path, 24
...Take-up reel, 30...Main body, 31, 32...
...Arm part, 33, 34...Bearing part, 35, 36...
Pin member, 37... Torsion coil spring, 38... Hook portion, 40... Locking arm portion, 41... Sliding knob, 4
2, 43... Inclined surface, 44... Coil spring, 4
5, 46... Lid locking portion, 45a, 46a... Inclined surface, 50... Recess, 51... Gap, 61... Adapter insertion detection member, 62... Adapter insertion hole, 6
3...Top plate, 64...Pin, 65...Drooping finger part,
66... Spring, 67, 68... Movement trajectory of the hanging finger, 70... Switch.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] This is a small tape cassette adapter used when a tape cassette smaller than a standard tape cassette is attached to a standard tape cassette recording/reproducing device, and is provided on the front side of the adapter and is housed within the adapter. A recess is formed in the tape protection lid that is aligned with the horizontally opening lid of a small tape cassette, at a position where the adapter detection piece of the standard tape cassette recording and reproducing device acts when the tape cassette is removed. Adapter for small tape cassettes.