WO1992022062A1

WO1992022062A1 - Housing with ejection mechanism for storing a recording support carrier element or the like

Info

Publication number: WO1992022062A1
Application number: PCT/BR1992/000009
Authority: WO
Inventors: Richard Dieter Buschle
Original assignee: Richard Dieter Buschle
Priority date: 1991-06-05
Filing date: 1992-06-05
Publication date: 1992-12-10
Also published as: BR9102328A; AU1781392A; EP0587627A1

Abstract

The present invention refers to a housing with an ejection mechanism for storing a recording support carrier element or the like, having a top panel (1), sidewalls (3, 4), a back wall (2) between the sidewalls, an elongated insertion/ejection opening for the recording support carrier element or the like, and a spring (12) associated with one (3) of the sidewalls so as to apply a sideways force to the carrier element (20) when the latter is in a fully inserted position in the housing and to apply a force having a component in an ejection direction to the carrier element when the latter assumes an ejection position that is rotated with respect to the fully inserted position. The other sidewall (4) is joined to the back wall by an angled wall portion (14) and there is a support surface (13) between the sidewall (3) having the spring and the back wall, the said angled wall portion and the support wall being arranged in such a way that, when the carrier element is in the fully inserted position and manual pressure is applied to its front side adjacent the other sidewall, a first rear corner of the element will slide along the angled portion and a second rear corner of the element will slide on the support surface in a pre-ejection movement which is carried out substantially without friction contact between the carrier element and the side and back walls of the housing. An elastic catch (25, 26) is also described, which prevents unintentional ejection of the carrier element from within the housing whilst permitting intentional insertion and ejection thereof. A carrier element manipulator (37) is also provided in the upper panel (1) of the housing, which permits withdrawal of a cassette from the carrier element (cassette box) and its return thereto, using only one hand.

Description

Title: HOUSING WITH EJECTION MECHANISM FOR STORING A RECORDING SUPPORT CARRIER ELEMENT OR THE LIKE".

A housing system for the storage of cassettes that occupies a minimum amount of space requires that the housings be maintained very close to each other, this making it diffi¬ cult to obtain a suitable finger hold on the cassettes. Many known systems attempt to solve this problem in the most vari¬ ous ways and manners. The more elegant solutions are those that succeed in storing the housings in the minimum space pos- sible and have an ejection mechanism that can be operated by only one hand.

Various types of modular housings are already known, such as those disclosed in EP 0 333 271, DT 26 22 958 e and AU 17.424/76. An advantage of such arrangements are their modu- lar characteristics which permit good use of the available space, but they do not have ejection mechanisms and the user has to utilise both hands. The reduced spacing between cas¬ settes obviously makes their withdrawal difficult. Apart from this, the cassettes cannot be inserted completely into the housings which means that they project slightly out therefrom with the consequence that they are exposed to dust.

Other publications do not disclose arrangements with acceptable economy of space, as is obtained with modular housings, since they are boxes with various compartments for various cassettes. Some of these systems have a pivotong mech¬ anism which permits rotation about a pivot point, on pressing in an outer edge of the cassette, which makes a diagonal di¬ mension of the cassette come out of the housing so as to pres¬ ent an area sufficient for one to pick out the cassette with one's fingers. There are also some that have in addition an ejection mechanism. The cassettes are stored in individual boxes with an economy of space, but the shape of the box makes piling problematic since the combination can only be made up of a plurality of the dimensions of any given box.

EP 0 023 977 discloses the principle of various box- shaped systems in which a cassette may be rotated about a pivot point so as to assume a diagonal configuration from which it may be withdrawn. GB 88 10 796.8 and DE 38 10 842 disclose box-like arrangements in which the cassette may be rotated or pivoted against a stop so as to place a diagonal of the cassette in a position for withdrawal. This means that the distance that the cassette will project from the housing will be proportional to the degree of rotation but that the space required will also depend on such factor. Apart from this, the greater the lever¬ age (moment), the greater not only the amount of rotation but also the force necessary, which in its turn means that one has to use the other hand to prevent the cassette from falling out of the housing.

All such arrangements have the disadvantage of not taking into consideration the irregularities on the surfaces of the cassettes, such as, for example, slots, logos or the like, since the irregularities tend to interfere with the pivot point.

US patent 4 549 775 discloses a box type arrangement with rotation about a pivot point, a laterally arranged sup¬ plementary ejection spring being actuated on pressing a corner of the cassette inwardly. The most significant disadvantages of this system are:

- a large amount of space is required for the spring which is designed to be made of metal and involves elevated production costs;

- when withdrawal of the cassette is initiated by finger pressure, the friction force of the cassette against the two pivot points as well as the lateral force of the spring have to be overcome overcome, this latter increasing in proportion with the lever (moment) created by the pivot point;

- on rotating the cassette, the spring force is in- creased until the pont of actuation reaches the corner of the cassette. At this moment, the spring force is liberated with a catapult effect and the cassette, in its turn is literally shot out of the housing. As a result, the cassette may fall onto the ground in view of the complementary finger pressure on the opposite side of the cassette; and

- many commercially available cassettes have slots, logos and the like on their lateral portions. During ejection, the cassette may catch on the pivot point and the spring will create a ratchet like friction. With such a system, one does not have the convenience of single handed operation.

DT 24 27 103 discloses a modular housing with dovetailed connecting elements and a lateral ejection spring. With this arrangement, the cassette is caught against an in- clined wall on the opposite side which prevents the cassette from jumping out of the housing. Only after the cassette is lifted slightly next to the spring and pushed inwardly can the spring carry the cassette over the inclined wall to assume the diagonal withdrawal configuration. This is a technically ex- pensive solution as regards the production of the respective injection mould since the housing is closed on five sides and requires a complicated demoulding procedure, apart from a fix¬ ing means for the metal spring.

The present invention is, in part, an improvement in the invention disclosed in international patent application PCT/BR 90/00013 of September 12, 1990 (corresponding to Brazilian application BR 8904598 of September 12, 1989), with a view to overcoming the following disadvantages:

- rotation of the cassette in the housing about the pivot points and the support of the cassette on the bottom surface causes an increase in friction. This friction requires a corresponding increase in the force of the ejection spring which has to be dimensioned accordingly. Equally this re¬ quires an increase in the finger pressure on initiating ejection. Irregularities in the back wall of the cassette such as, for example, slots, logos, corners and the like, hamper pivoting;

- the spring shape is not favourable since the spring can catch in the grooves or ribbing on the side wall of the cassette. Apart from this, it has reduced elasticity;

- on tilting the housing, the cassette may fall out; and

- on repeated use, the cassette can become scratched which is an aesthetic problem.

The object of the present invention is to create a system for storing cassettes, with a highly favourable cost/benefit ratio, which occupies a minimum of space and has an ejection mechanism permiting comfortable withdrawal of the cassette using only one hand, and which may also be provided with a safety catch to prevent the cassette falling out unin¬ tentionally.

Another object of the present invention is a modular cassette storage system simple to manufacture at the lowest possible cost which thus presents a favourable cost relation¬ ship with the costs of the cassettes themselves (recording supports) which are becoming less and less expensive. This is made possible by large scale production from plastics mate¬ rial. It is therefore an important aspect of the object of the present invention that the housings can be made by an injecton moulding process using a mould of simple structure, without complicated drawer and jaw arrangements which require move¬ ments perpendicular to the opening of the injection moulding machine. This would considerably increase the cost of the man- ufacture and maintenance of the injection mould and conse¬ quently the manufacturing process.

All the housing components described herein, such as the springs, ramps deflectors and security catches, can be made as part of the housing and moulded in a single injection process, without the necessity of additional mounting oper¬ ations.

It is proposed herein that, when the user selects a given cassette in his well organised storage system, he may simply indicate the desired cassette with his finger and press it lightly ("soft-touch") whereby it will jump easily to a comfortable withdrawal position.

A cassette collection is "alive" in that it changes constantly to adapt itself to new acquisitions, changes of taste or fashion, etc. This means that it is necessary to pro- - 5 -

vide for periodical changes in the grouping of the collection. The invention disclosed in PCT/BR 90/00013 permits such types of modification. When such changes are made, obviously, piles of cassettes have to be removed and hand held, often in an in- clined position. In order to prevent the cassettes from fall¬ ing out of the housings, an automatic safety catch must be incorporated therein.

The present invention refers, therefore, to a hous¬ ing with ejection mechanism for storing a recording support carrier element or the like, having first and second side walls, a transverse rear wall between first ends of the side walls, an elongate entry/ejection opening for the recording support carrier element or the like, defined between second opposite ends of the side walls, and a spring associated with the second side wall so as to apply a sideways force to the carrier element when the latter is in a fully inserted posi¬ tion in the housing and to apply a force having a component in an ejection direction to the carrier element when the latter assumes an ejection position, rotated with respect to the fully inserted position.

According to the invention the first side wall is joined to the rear wall by an angled wall portion and there is a support surface between the second side wall and the rear wall, the angled wall portion and the support surface being so arranged that, when the carrier element is in the fully in¬ serted position and manual pressure is applied to its front side adjacent to said first side wall, a first rear corner of the element adjacent the first side wall slides along said an¬ gled wall portion and a second rear corner of the element ad- jacent said second side wall slides on said support surface in a pre-ejection movement until it reaches the ejection posi¬ tion, the said pre-ejection movement being effected substan¬ tially without friction contact between the carrier element and the said side and rear walls of the housing. Preferably, the spring is a composite spring com¬ prising a first blade spring portion having a first end joined to the second side wall substantially midway therealong and extending substantially parallel to the second side wall to¬ wards said opening to -a second end, and a second blade spring portion joined to the second end of the first blade spring portion by means of an expansion spring portion, the said sec¬ ond blade spring portion extending backwardly beyond said mid¬ way point and being curved away from the second side wall to a free end, the said free end comprising a deflector in the form of a step towards the first side wall, followed by a portion bent back towards the rear wall.

The housing may also be provided with a bottom panel having a periphery raised above the plane of the rest of the panel. Preferably, the said periphery is joined to the rest of the panel by means of an inclined ramp-like surface.

As previously mentioned, the housing is preferably a module designed to be mounted on a similar module, the said module being formed with a top panel and no bottom panel, such bottom panel being provided by the top panel of the said simi¬ lar module.

Further in accordance with the invention and with a view not to permit the recording support element (cassette container) from falling from the housing on handling the lat- ter, the front edge of the upper panel limiting said entry/ejection opening, is provided with a lower elastic stop having shaped front and back edges, to prevent the accidental ejection of the carrier element when in the fully inserted po¬ sition and to permit entry and ejection of the carrier element when rotated with respect to the fully inserted position.

In another embodiment of the invention, instead of having an angled wall portion between the first side wall and the rear wall, the housing includes a first roller adjacent the said second end of the first side wall and a second roller in the proximity of the mid-point of the rear wall. Apart from this, the said support surface may be provided by the surface of a third roller mounted at the free end of the spring.

The invention will be better understood from the following description, given by way of example and made with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a bottom perspective view of a modular housing according to the present invention;

Figure 2 is a top perspective view of the modular housing according to the present invention; Figure 3 is a plan view of the modular housing shown in Figures 1 and 2, showing the lateral spring, the deflec¬ tors, the ramps and the catch;

Figure 4 is a front elevation of the modular hous- ing;

Figure 5 is a side view of the modular housing; Figure 6 is a section taken along line A-A of Figure

3;

Figures 7, 8 and 9 are sectional details of the mod- ular housing of the invention, showing in detail a cassette insertion sequence and the lever effect of the ejection spring on bearing against its pivot point;

Figure 10 is a detail of the end of the ejection spring, showing the shape of the area of contact with the side of a certain type of cassette found on the market, having ribs and irregular profiles;

Figure 11 is a cross section of the modular housing, showing the cassette an instant before ejection and the spacings thereof from the pivot points and with the ejection spring in its lever position;

Figure 12 is a detail in perspective showing a safety catch on the modular housing shown in Figures 1 and 2;

Figures 13 and 14 are top and front views, respec¬ tively, showing the catch illustrated in Figure 12; Figure 15 is a detail of the catch taken in section along line A-A;

Figure 16 is a partial perspective view of a housing at the moment of cassette insertion, showing liberation of the catch on the insertion side; Figure 17 ia a partial perspective view of a housing at the moment of cassette ejection, showing liberation of the catch on the ejection side;

Figures 17a and 17b are views somewhat similar to that of Figure 11 of another embodiment of a safety catch; Figures 18, 19 and 20 are sectional views of two stacked modular housings, showing the cassette support area reduced as a result of the ramps;

Figure 21 is a bottom plan view of a modular housing showing one possibility for the ejection spring formed inte- grally with a lateral connection spring and removably mounta- ble on the housing;

Figure 22 is a cross section of another embodiment of modular housing with rollers at the pivot points and at the end of the ejection spring, showing the cassette an instant prior to ejection;

Figure 23 is a sectional detail of one of the roll¬ ers shown in the modular housing shown in Figure 22;

Figure 24 is a perspective view of yet another em- bodiment of modular housing, showing the addition of a manipu¬ lator that serves to permit opening of the cassette container and withdrawal of the cassette using only one hand, this being a common necessity in vehicles;

Figures 25, 26 and 27 are sectional views of various stacked modular housings, the uppermost one being equipped with a manipulator, as shown in Figure 24, and mounted to¬ gether in the panel of a vehicle, for example. Figure 25 being a section along line B-B and Figure 27 being a section along line A-A, respectively; Figure 28 is a lateral sectional view of various modular housings, the uppermost one being provided with a ma¬ nipulator as shown in Figure 24, with a cassette in its posi¬ tion at the moment of opening the cover of the box thereof using only one hand, and prior to withdrawal of the cassette itself; and

Figure 29 is a perspective view showing a stack of modular housings, the uppermost one being provided with a ma¬ nipulator as shown in Figure 24, with a cassette in its posi¬ tion at the moment of withdrawal using only one hand, and further showing one way of mounting the arrangement in the console of a vehicle.

With refernce to Figures 1 to 11 of the drawings, a modular housing in accordance with the present invention com¬ prises an upper panel 1 and, depending from three of its edges, a back wall 2 and two side walls 3 and 4. The height of the walls 2, 3 and 4 is substantially the same as that of the recording medium carrier element 20 (audio cassette box, for example) to be received in the inner cavity defined thereby together with the upper panel 1. The modular housing is designed to be mounted over the upper panel of another identical housing by means of con¬ nections 5 that will not be described since they are not rele¬ vant to the present invention which refers precisely to the shape of the housing and to the means for ejecting the carrier element from its interior and for maintaining it therein dur¬ ing normal use. For the purposes of the present invention, it will be sufficient to appreciate that the housing will be as¬ sembled over a similar one and that the upper panel of the housing on which it is assembled will serve as a bottom panel for its inner cavity.

The housing is also provided with male lateral con¬ nections 6 and 7 for permitting it to be joined laterally to other similar modular housings independently of whether they have the same overall dimensions or not.

Internally the back wall 2 comprises a straight por¬ tion 8 along a little more than a half of its length, ending in a pivot point 8a and followed by a portion 9 that is in¬ clined backwardly and extends to a point 10. The left hand side wall 3 (as seen in Figure 11) comprises internally a short straight portion 11 at its front end that is orthogonal to portion 8 of back wall 2, followed by a portion thast accomadates a spring 12. At a position opposite male con¬ nection 6, the wall 3 is formed with a protuberance 3a. A sup- port surface inclined at approximately 45° joins the rearward region of wall 3 to the left hand end of the straight portion 8 of back wall 2.

The inner surface of side wall 4, after laterally outwardly curved front pointed end, is straight and parallel to the short portion 11 of side wall 3, being spaced therefrom by a distance slightly greater than the width of the carrier element 20 to be received in the housing. The straight portion of wall 4 terminates at a point 13 aligned with the straight portion 8 of wall 2. The end point 10 of wall 2 and the end point 13 of wall 4 are joined by a guide surface 14 inclined at an angle of about 60° from wall 4.

Spring 12 is formed integrally with the modular housing and more specifically originates approximately at the mid-point of side wall 3, in the form of a first straight blade spring portion 15 parallel to wall 3. The straight blade portion 15 ends adjacent the rear end of the straight portion 8 of wall 2, where it is formed with a horeseshoe shaped expansion spring portion 16 that is followed by a sec- ond blade spring portion 17. The second blade portion 17 ex¬ tends parallel to the first balde portion 15 up to a point corresponding to the beginning of the first blade portion 15, after which it is curved away from wall 2 towards its free end 19. Shortly before end 19, there is a step-like discontinuity 18 towards wall 4. Starting from step 18, end 19 is bent backwardly towards back wall 2. As can be seen from Figure 11, step 18 is such that it will coincide substantially with the beginning of support surface 13 when free end 19 is deflected to the left. The upper surface of upper panel 1 of the modular housing has a marginal strip 21 on a higher plane than its re- mining portion 22, strip 21 and the remaining portion 22 being joined by a narrow inclined ramp surface 23. It will be seen that the marginal strip corresponds only to walls 2, 3 and 4 and that it does not exist along front edge 24 of the panel.

Front edge 24 of panel 1 is cut away, as best seen in Figures 2 , 3, 16 and 17 to define a blade spring 25 pro¬ vided at its free end with a catch portion 26 in the form of a small downward projection. The catch 26 on the blad spring 25 is illustrated in Figures 12 to 15 which show that the lower surface of the catch portion 26 is curved and has a width X (see Figure 12) the relevance of which will be mentioned later.

Figures 7 to 11 show how a recording support carrier 20 can be introduced to the modular housing and later ejected therefrom. In order to introduce the carrier 20 into the cav¬ ity of the modular housing, one first inserts the right hand rear edge of the element, as shown in Figure 16. On pushing element 20 inwardly in this orientation that is slightly ro- tated with respect to the opening of the cavity, the upper rear edge of the element will touch the lower curved surface of catch 26, making the catch lift (see the vertical arrow in Figure 17) against the force of its blade spring 25. In this manner, element 20 may be introduced into the cavity without interference from the catch 26. It should be mentioned at this point that the width X is chosen to be greater than the width of the discontinuity 20' between the cover 20a and the body of element 20, which is usual in audio cassette boxes. This pre- vents the catch from being caught in the discontinuity 20' during insertion of the box into the housing.

Next, element 20 is pushed inwardly from a point in the region of its front right hand side (see Figure 7), its rear left hand corner making contact with the curved part of the second plate spring portion 17 of spring 12 which straightens up as the movement of insertion continues. When the rear corner of element 20 reaches step 18 (see Figure 8), continued movement will cause an increased flexion of the spring, the corner climbing the step and over the free end 19. When the rear wall of element 20 reaches the straight portion 8 of back wall 2 of the housing to assume the fully inserted position, the middle part of the second plate spring portion 17 will abut the central protuberance 3a of wall 3. In this fully inserted position, spring 12 applies a sideways force to element 20, as indicated by the arrow shown in Figure 9. This force will maintain the element 20 in place under normal con¬ ditions.

It wll also be seen that, in this fully inserted po¬ sition, the front edge of carrier element 20 is already behind catch 26 which returns under the force of leaf spring 25 to its normal position in which its rear surface prevents element 20 from coming out of the housing.

Figure 10 is a detail of free end 19 and step 18 of spring 12, showing that such smooth end is designed to dimin- ish friction with any serrations 27 that are often found on the side walls of audio cassette boxes (carrier element 20).

Figure 11 shows how carrier element 20 is ejected from the modular housing. On pressing the front right corner of element 20 with a finger, the element is caused to begin to incline or rotate anti-clockwise about pivot point 8a. Almost at the same time, the rear right hand corner of element 20 is caused to slide backwardly and to the left along guide surface 14 towards point 8a, whereas its rear left hand corner will slide forwardly and to the left along support surface 13. Since the angle of inclination of the support surface 13 is greater with respect to wall 2 than that of guide surface 14, this movement will bring the back wall of element 20 away from wall 2 along all its length. At the same time, the free end of spring 12 is forced to the left until it passes below sup¬ port surface 13, the corner of element 20 sliding over the smooth surface of free end 19 (see Figure 11). When the rear left hand corner reaches the end of the smooth surface of free end 19 (at the same time as it reaches the end of support sur- face 13), it passes forwardly of step 18 of spring 12 and the configuration that is then assumed is the ejection position shown in full lines in Figure 11.

Slightly before element 20 assumes the ejection po¬ sition, its upper front edge (already at a small angle with respect to the plane of the receiving cavity entrance opening) abuts the lower curved surface of catch 26 that is forced to rise against the force of spring 25, this permitting element 20 freely to pass below it.

Once the ejection position is reached, the end of spring 12 will be in a leftmost position in which it will ap¬ ply to element 20 its maximum transverse force towards side wall 4 as a result of the moment produced about protuberance 3a. Thus, in this configuaration, the transverse force is the result not only of the normal force of blade portion 17, but also of a moment about protuberance 3a due to the combined action of the first blade portion 15 and the expansion spring portion 16. Since the corner of the element is caught by step 18 of spring 12, when the finger finger pressure is reduced (but not totally removed), the spring will force the element to the right with its rear right hand corner sliding back along guide surface 14 and passing through the position indi¬ cated 20 by the dashed lines 28 until it reaches the end of surface 14. During this movement, element 20 rotates about step 18 that starts to apply a forwardly directed force in an ejection direction whereby, with the return of the spring to the configuration shown in Figure 8, the carrier element will assume its ejected position indicated by the dashed lines 29 in Figure 11. In this position, the element projects suffi¬ ciently from the modular housing to permit one to grasp it in one's hand and remove it totally.

The disposition and arrangement of the internal parts of the modular housing shown in Figures 1 to 17 ensure a smooth ("soft touch") ejection that makes it unnecessary to use stiffer springs and larger finger pressures due to the re¬ duction to the minimum of friction forces. The minimal fric¬ tion is due to the following:

(a) on initiating the ejection operation, element 20 begins to rotate about pivot point 8a at the junction of straight portion 8 and inclined portion 9 of back wall 2. In the absence of the angled support wall 13, the rear wall of element 20 would slide over the pivot point 3a as the element slides to the left toards the position shown in full lines in Figure 11. Thanks to support surface 13, however, the element is almost immediately lifted off point 8a as indicated in Fig¬ ure 11 by reference 30. This means that, during the movement of the element under finger pressure, the only sliding is be¬ tween the rear corners (always rounded) of the element and the guide and support surfaces 14 and 13, which means minimal friction;

(b) the dimensions of the housing are such that ele¬ ment 20 can arrive at the ejection position (full lines in Figure 11) without its right hand side touching the side wall 4 of the housing, there even being a slight gap 31 in the ejection position;

(c) when the finger pressure is reduced to permit element 20 to pass to the ejected position shown by the dashed lines 29 in Figure 11, the finger controls and opposes the force of spring 12, which results in the substantial lack of contact between the left side of element 20 and the straight portion 11 of wall 4; and

(d) element 20 is only supported at the bottom of the housing, that is to say, on the top surface of upper panel 1 of the modular housing immediatamel below, along the raised marginal region 21 or the ramps 23 of such panel 1. This means a minimum contact area and consequently also minimum friction. This will be easily understood from the schematic illus¬ trations of Figures 18, 19 and 20.

Although Figure 11 shows that the corner of element 20 slides along support surface 13, lifting with it the free end 19 of spring 12, until it reaches the ejection position, it is interesting to note that if a stiffer spring were to be used, the corner of element 20 would not need to contact sur- face 13 at all, at least during the final part of such move¬ ment. Instead, the free end 19 of the spring would act as a support surface that would give elastically during sliding (see Figure 10). It would then even be possible to eliminate surface 13 totally. Figures 17a and 17b show an alternative and pres¬ ently preferred safety catch arrangement instead of the spring 25 and safety catch 26 best shown in Figures 12 to 17. In the case of Figures 17a and 17b, a safety catch spring 25a is formed integrally with side wall 3, effectively substituting the short straight wall portion 11 shown in Figure 11. The forwardly directed free end of spring 25a is bent sideways and ends in a rounded tip so as to define the safety catch 26a it¬ self. With this arrangement, the front end of the left hand side 3 of the housing will project slightly further forward than the front end of right hand side wall 4.

Figure 17a shows how, during ejection, the applica¬ tion of finger pressure to the front right hand side of ele¬ ment 20 will liberate the front left hand corner of the element from catch 26a due to the diagonal position assumed by element 20 as it approaches the ejection position. Similarly, the inserted position of Figure 17b shows how, after having entered the housing in a similar diagonal orientation so as to avoid interference with catch 26a, carrier element is not only firmly prevented from accidental ejection by catch 26a but also the sideways force of spring 25a will cooperate with spring 12 to maintain element 20 firmly in place.

A further alternative (not shown) for the safety catch arrangement would be identical to that of Figures 17a and 17b except that the two springs 12 and 25a could be formed by a single spring, spring 25a comprising an elongation of the forward extension of spring 12 and catch 26a being the expan¬ sion spring portion 16, with its shape suitably altered if necessary.

Figure 21 shows an alternative for ejection spring 12. Although one great advantage of the modular housing illus¬ trated in Figures 1 to 17 is the possibility of manufacturing it as a single piece using plastic injection moulding tech¬ niques (which makes the product considerably less expensive), 5 certain advantages in terms of quality can be obtained if the ejection spring is manuactured separately since this allows the use of the most appropriate material possible for that component. Thus Figure 21 shows an additional component 32 comprising the male connection 6, the protuberance 3a and the

10 whole spring 12, all of which are identical to those described with reference to Figures 1 to 17. Wall 3 of the modular housing, however, is formed with a lateral opening in the re¬ gion designed for male connection 6, the front and back edges of the opening having reentrances 34 for small connecting arms

15 35 on component 32. Figure 21 shows how component 32 may be mounted on the housing, indicating the fitment of arms 35 in the reentrances 34. This results in a modular housing for all effects identical to that of Figures 1 to 17.

Figure 22 shows a considerably different ejection

20 system which, however, also eliminates almost all the friction forces. Apart from this, the system of Figure 22 would appear to represent a simpler and therefore better system - which would be true were its manufacture not more expensive. In the case of Figure 22 the support and guide surfaces 13 and 14 of

25 the first embodiment are eliminated and at pivot point 8a, at the free end of spring 12 and at the front end of right hand side wall 4, there are three rollers 8b, 19a and 4a. Figure 22 shows the ejection operation which corresponds largely to that shown in Figure 11 with reference to the first embodiment of

30 the invention with the difference that sliding movementsare totally eliminated due to the use of the rollers. Figure 23 shows how roller 8b, for example, is mounted on an expansion pin 36 moulded on the lower surface of panel 1 of the modular housing.

35 As another alternative, roller 19a of Figure 22 could be eliminated and the free end of the spring could be substantially identical to the final portion 19 at the end of spring 12 of the modular housing of Figures 1 to 17.

Figures 24 to 29 show a modular housing identical to that of Figures 1 to 17 but especially adapted for use as the uppermost housing of a stack. The modification comprises a cassette manipulator 37 at the front edge of upper panel 1. Manipulator 37 defines a channel having a rear wall 38, a bot- torn 39, a front wall 40 and end walls 41 and 42. End walls 41 and 42 are formed with elastic wall portions 41a and 42a and the channel is dimensioned (see Figure 29) so that it may re¬ ceive a carrier element (box) 20 in a vertical position with one of its larger sides supported on the bottom 39 of the channel, the sides of element 20 being held under pressure by wall portions 41a and 42a.

Front wall 40 of the channel is slightly shorter than the bottom of the channel so as to define spaces 43 be¬ tween its ends and the end walls 41 and 42. Apart from this, front wall 40 is cut away at 40a in the region of its upper end corners.

Immediately below the channel, there are projections 44 spaced from one another.

Manipulator 37 is specially useful when the modular assembly is used in an automobile, as shown in Figure 29. Thus, it will be seen that, by using only one hand, an audio cassette box 20 may be removed from its modular housing in the manner described above and then placed, still in its closed state, in a vertical position in the channel of the manipula- tor. The box will stay firmly in place due to the pressure ap¬ plied thereto by the elastic wall portions 41a and 42a of end walls 41 and 42. Using a finger of just one hand (see Figure 28), the lid 20a of the box 20 can then be opened downwardly, the thin side walls 20b of the lid being accomodated in the spaces 43 and the front opening 23c (common to all audio cas¬ sette boxes) allowing the lid to be opened without interfering with front wall 40 of the manipulator. The cut-away regions 40a ensure that there is no interference of this nature when the box 20 is of a type in which the front opening 20c in the lid has angled upper corners. When lid 20a reaches the hori¬ zontal position shown in Figure 28, the lower portions of the rear edges of its side walls 20b will abut stops 44 so that this position is maintained while the user, still with only one hand, takes the cassette out of its box. After listening 20 and the box may be closed while still in the manipulator and then the box may be placed back in its modular housing, all this being done with the use of a single hand.

Claims

1. Housing with ejection mechanism for storing a re¬ cording support carrier element or the like, having first and second side walls, a transverse rear wall between first ends of the side walls, an elongate entry/ejection opening for the recording support carrier element or the like, defined between second opposite ends of the side walls, and a spring associ¬ ated with the second side wall so as to apply a sideways force to the carrier element when the latter is in a fully inserted position in the housing and to apply a force having a compo¬ nent in an ejection direction to the carrier element when the latter assumes an ejection position, rotated with respect to the fully inserted position, characterised in that the first side wall is joined to the rear wall by an angled wall portion and in that there is a support surface between the second side wall and the rear wall, the angled wall portion and the sup¬ port surface being so arranged that, when the carrier element is in the fully inserted position and manual pressure is ap¬ plied to its front side adjacent to said first side wall, a first rear corner of the element adjacent the first side wall slides along said angled wall portion and a second rear corner of the element adjacent said second side wall slides on said support surface in a pre-ejection movement until it reaches the ejection position, the said pre-ejection movement being effected substantially without friction contact between the carrier element and the said side and rear walls of the hous¬ ing.

2. Housing according to claim 1, characterised in that the said support surface comprises another angled wall portion joining the second side wall to said rear wall.

3. Housing according to claim 1, characterised in that the support surface comprises a portion at a free end of the said spring, which, in the fully inserted position of the carrier element, applies the said sideways force to the car- rier element adjacent the said second back corner thereof.

4. Housing according to claim 2 or 3, characterised in that the spring is a composite spring comprising a first blade spring portion having a first end joined to the second side wall substantially midway therealong and extended sub- stantially parallel to the second side wall towards said open¬ ing to a second end, and a second blade spring portion joined to the second end of the first blade spring portion by means of an expansion spring portion, the said second blade spring portion extending backwardly beyond said midway point and be¬ ing curved away from the second side wall to a free end, the said free end comprising a deflector in the form of a step to¬ wards the first side wall, followed by a portion bent back to¬ wards the rear wall.

5. Housing according to claim 4, characterised by comprising a protuberance on the second side wall adjacent said midway point and having a height such that, in the re¬ laxed state of the spring, there is no contact between the second blade spring portion and the protuberance.

6. Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised by comprising a bottom panel having a periphery raised above the plane of the rest of the panel.

7. Housing according to claim 6, characterised in that the said periphery is joined to the rest of the panel by means of an inclined ramp-like surface.

8. Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised by comprising a module designed to be mounted on a similar module, the said module being formed with a top panel and no bottom panel, such bottom panel being pro- vided by the top panel of the said similar module.

9. Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised by comprising a top panel having a front edge limiting said entry/ejection opening, said front edge be¬ ing provided with a lower elastic stop having shaped front and back edges, to prevent the accidental ejection of the carrier element when in the fully inserted position and to permit entry and ejection of the carrier element when rotated with respect to the fully inserted position.

10. Housing according to any one of the claims 1 to 9, characterised in that said second side wall is provided, adjacent said entry/ejection opening, with a safety latch engageable with the front edge of a carrier element inserted in said housing so as to prevent accidental ejection thereof, said latch being elastically mounted for deflection towards said second side wall due interference contact with a corre¬ sponding side wall of said carrier element during intentional insertion and ejection of said element.

11. Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised by comprising a top panel formed with a transverse channel substantially above said entry/ejection opening and having a bottom substantially of the same dimen¬ sions as the opening, the ends of the channel including elas¬ tic wall portions inclined towards each other and the front side of the channel having its ends slightly spaced from the ends of the channel.

12. Housing according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the said spring comprises a sep¬ arate part from the rest of the housing and the spring has a base with snap engagement means for cooperation with corre¬ sponding means on the said second side wall.

13. Housing with ejection mechanism for storing a re¬ cording support carrier element or the like, having first and second side walls, a transverse rear wall between first ends of the side walls, an elongate entry/ejection opening for the recording support carrier element or the like, defined between second opposite ends of the side walls, and a spring associ¬ ated with the second side wall so as to apply a sideways force to the carrier element when the latter is in a fully inserted position in the housing and to apply a force having a compo¬ nent in an ejection direction to the carrier element when the latter assumes an ejection position, rotated with respect to the fully inserted position, characterised in that the spring is a composite spring comprising a first blade spring portion having a first end joined to the second side wall substan¬ tially midway therealong and extended substantially parallel to the second side wall towards said opening to a second end, and a second blade spring portion joined to the second end of the first blade spring portion by means of an expansion spring portion, the said second blade spring portion extending backwardly beyond said midway point and being curved away from the second side wall to a free end, the said free end compris¬ ing a deflector in the form of a step facing the first side wall, followed by a support surface curved backwardly towards the rear wall, the said housing including a first roller adja¬ cent the said second end of said first side wall and a second roller in the region of the mid-point of said rear wall.

14. Housing according to claim 13, characterised in that the said curved support surface comprises the surface of a third roller mounted at the free end of the spring.

15. Housing according to claim 13 or 14, characterised in that the said second roller is located nearer the second that the first side wall.