Dynamic information storage or retrieval – Dynamic mechanism subsystem – Access of multiple storage elements
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-22
2001-07-17
Letscher, George J. (Department: 2652)
Dynamic information storage or retrieval
Dynamic mechanism subsystem
Access of multiple storage elements
C369S075210
Reexamination Certificate
active
06262963
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a disc changer in which a plurality of discs are installed to select any one of the discs for recording/playing.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In a conventional disc changer, a disc holding means is configured to house a plurality of subtrays in a stocker having a plurality of shelves, and a vertical driving means for selecting the position of an arbitrary disc is configured to drive all of the stocker, the plurality of subtrays, and the plurality of discs in the vertical direction.
In the conventional disc changer, however, while the vertical driving means for driving a disc holding means to select an arbitrary disc position is effecting driving, the large weight of the stocker having the plurality of shelves and the disc holding means for driving all of the plurality of subtrays and discs may cause a vertical driving motor to consume a large amount of energy or cause falling of finished discs or inappropriate vibration. In addition, the large number of parts increases costs.
Then, a recently contemplated disc changer comprises a disc holding means
204
for detachably supporting a plurality of spacers
203
on a pair of spindles
201
and
202
using a holding claw
200
, a vertical driving means
205
for driving the spacers
203
in the vertical direction to select arbitrary positions of a plurality of discs
223
and
224
held by the plurality of spacers
203
, a spindle driving means
206
for driving the holding claw
200
to engage and disengage the plurality of spacers
203
with and from the upper spindle
201
, a horizontal transfer means
207
for transferring discs
223
and
224
to a recording/playing position E from arbitrary spacers
203
held by the holding claw
200
, while supporting the discs on subtrays
225
, and a disc clamp means
208
for clamping the discs
223
and
224
at the recording/playing position E, for example, as shown in
FIGS. 43
to
45
.
The disc changer of this configuration can drive in the vertical direction the plurality of spacers
203
and plurality of discs
223
and
224
installed on both spindles
201
and
202
to shift the arbitrary disc
223
or
224
from the spindle
201
or
202
to the recording/playing position E, then to an unloading position G, and back to a housing position F on the spindle
201
or
202
, and can select the arbitrary disc
223
or
224
for recording/playing. Thereby, this configuration eliminates the needs for a stocker having a plurality of shelves or a plurality of subtrays to reduce the weight and costs, and provides a disc changer having excellent housing and operating capabilities.
In this disc changer, however, separate elevating cams
209
and
210
, connecting mechanisms
211
and
212
and lock means
213
and
214
were used to execute driving including the elevation and lowering of the disc holding means
204
using the spindles and the elevation and lowering of the disc clamp means
208
to clamp the discs
223
and
224
at the recording/playing position E. Consequently, the apparatus was complicated and loads of the elevating cams
209
and
210
enormously varied when the spindles
202
of the disc holding means
204
and the disc clamp means
208
were simultaneously driven to elevate and lower, respectively, resulting in problems such as an unstable operation during the elevating driving caused by an insufficient driving force and a high operation noise during the lowering driving.
Furthermore, since a horizontal transfer means
207
for transferring a tray
215
depended on driving based on the engagement between a single driving gear
216
and racks
217
and
218
provided for each part, the driving was carried out at a single reduction gear ratio to preclude the reduction gear ratio from being adjusted to account for operation loads, thereby preventing requirements for both the operation time and load margin from being met.
Furthermore, due to the independency between a vertical driving system for driving in the vertical direction the spacers
203
holding the discs
223
and
224
and a horizontal driving system for driving the elevation and lowering of the spindle and transferring the tray
215
, separate driving sources had to be provided for these systems, and intermediate gears were also required. As a result, the number of required parts was increased to increase the size and costs of the apparatus.
Moreover, in order to compactify the changer, an attempt was made to reduce the distance between the recording/playing position E and the disc holding position F so that the disc
224
at the recording/playing position E appeared to partly overlap the disc
224
at the disc holding section as seen from above. Due to vibration, however, the disc housed adjacent to the disc
224
under recording/playing at the disc holding section contacted the disc
224
under recording/playing to cause an accidental track shift or to damage the disc.
Furthermore, in order to integrate the independent driving sources into a single common source, an attempt was made to allow part of the gear train to be shared by both the driving system for the vertical driving of the spacers
203
and the horizontal driving system and to use a gear that slided in the axial direction to select the engaged driving system, as a means for switching the driving. When, however, the gear sliding in the axial direction started to engage with the gear of the driving system upon driving switching, it was blocked and failed to effect switching, causing the apparatus to stop with an abnormal noise.
Moreover, the disc clamp means
208
was elevated from and lowered to the recording/playing position E by engaging a lateral pair of pins
221
on a disc playing means
220
with cam grooves
219
formed in right and left elevating cams
210
. In this case, during elevation and lowering, the disc playing means
220
might be rotationally moved via the pins
221
. If two left pins and one right pin were used instead of the lateral pair of pins
221
to solve this problem, the stroke of the right and left elevating cams
210
increased, resulting in another new problem that size of the apparatus increased.
Furthermore, when the tray
215
was opened to change the disc, a disc of a small diameter
223
such as 8 cm might accidentally fall into the apparatus due to a large opening
222
in the front surface of the apparatus.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of this invention to provide a small disc changer of a simple configuration that can avoid operation noise or unstable operations due to the variation of operation loads, that enables a disc playing means to be elevated and lowered with its posture maintained in the horizontal direction, and that can prevent a disc from accidentally falling into the apparatus when a tray is opened.
To achieve this object, a disc changer according to this invention comprises an apparatus body, a disc transfer means for transferring a disc in the apparatus body between a disc housing position and a disc playing position, and a vertical pair of spindles detachably holding a plurality of spacers at the disc housing position, and comprises a disc holding means capable of relatively elevating and lowering the spindles and driving the spacers in the vertical direction to deliver the disc to the disc transfer means, a disc playing means supported on the apparatus body at the disc playing position so as to be able to elevate and lower, an elevating means for elevating and lowering the spindles and the disc playing means, and a horizontal driving means capable of driving the disc transfer means and the elevating means, wherein the elevating means is configured so that a single part simultaneously effects the driving of the spindles and the disc playing means.
This invention can drive in the vertical direction the plurality of spacers and plurality of discs installed on both spindles to shift the arbitrary disc from the spindle to a disc playing position, then to an unloading position, and back to a disc housing position on the spindle, an
Miyoshi Seizo
Morioka Yukio
Nakamura Masahiko
Ota Takeshi
Letscher George J.
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
Parkhurst & Wendel L.L.P
Watko Julie Anne
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