Dynamic information storage or retrieval – Dynamic mechanism subsystem – Access of multiple storage elements
Patent
1997-06-23
1999-10-12
Letscher, George J.
Dynamic information storage or retrieval
Dynamic mechanism subsystem
Access of multiple storage elements
369 37, G11B 1726, G11B 1722
Patent
active
059663650
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to an apparatus for storing data carriers with automatic access to the individual data carriers, having at least one storing apparatus for keeping the data carriers, a reading-writing station for the data carriers and a gripping and transferring apparatus to transfer each data carrier individually between the storing apparatus and the reading-writing station or vice versa.
The invention is concerned in particular with the keeping of optical storage discs, for example so-called compact discs (CDs). After having been introduced in the audio sector a few years ago, these discs have in the meantime become the most popular data carriers in the electronic data processing sector because of their high data capacity.
For use in single-station installations, there are reading devices which in principal can be operated similarly to floppy disc drives. The desired compact disc is in this case fetched from a depository and pushed manually into the reading device. At the end of the reading operation, the disc is removed manually again from the reading device and deposited again in accordance with an expedient plan.
However, in work which requires frequent access to various compact discs, such as for example data bases with a plurality of compact discs or various complementary data bases, the required manipulations of the compact discs may quickly become time-consuming and tiresome extra things to do. To simplify the manipulations in the case of multiple access to various discs, there are therefore already reading devices which can be fitted with a cartridge holding, for example, six discs, or the installations are equipped with a plurality of reading devices.
In view of the success of the compact disc in the case of single-station installations, there should actually be an even greater success to be found in the case of organizations operating in an information network, such as administrative authorities, universities, libraries, data bases etc., because, apart from the wide variety of applications of so-called "electronic publishing", compact discs are used within a relatively large organization for the ideal storage of internal organizational data. Furthermore, due to the digitalization of telephone systems, or the forthcoming interlinking of computer and telephone systems, there are opening up additional applications as a voice tank for long-term speech archiving.
However, up till now this breakthrough for compact discs has failed, at least partly, in the case of networked installations because the manipulation problems already mentioned above as occurring in the case of single installations are even more in evidence here. To allow working with compact discs, it is admittedly possible in the case of networked computer installations to equip each PC with its own reading device, but with an increasing number of PCs this requires considerable expenditure in terms of financial and organizational means. At operations working with central computer systems and where workplaces are thus equipped only with terminals, only the central installation of a number of reading devices comes into consideration. The manual fitting and removing of compact discs is, however, difficult to implement in this case for organizational and technical reasons, particularly in the case where computer and workplace are geographically separate.
In the case of decentrally administered compact discs, there is also a problem when a disc is needed which is not in the area readily accessible from the workplace.
To procure a compact disc with information which a relatively large group of users may use occasionally appears to be nonsensical if the person potentially interested in certain information first of all has to spend a great deal of time making inquiries throughout the operation as to the whereabouts of the disc. If computer and workplace are geographically separate, there is then additionally the need for transportation by courier or mail. In the case of in-house archiving discs, furthermore, it is not recommendable f
REFERENCES:
patent: 5251082 (1993-10-01), Elliot et al.
patent: 5541897 (1996-07-01), Baca et al.
patent: 5640288 (1997-06-01), Horie
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