Dynamic information storage or retrieval – With particular cabinet structure – With mechanism to place disc on a turntable
Reexamination Certificate
1997-09-19
2001-04-17
Klimowicz, William (Department: 2153)
Dynamic information storage or retrieval
With particular cabinet structure
With mechanism to place disc on a turntable
C369S077110
Reexamination Certificate
active
06219324
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a disk carrier mechanism in a disk player, and more particularly to a slot-in type of disk carrier mechanism.
2. Related Arts
As a mechanism for inserting a disk from a slot (insertion port) and carrying it to a reproducing position on a turn table, there is known one disclosed, for instance, in a Japanese Patent Kokai No. 58-189867.
When, in such mechanism, a disk is inserted through a slot into a housing of a disk player, swingable levers each with a pin engaging with a peripheral edge of the disk provided therein are swung, or feed rollers provided so as to hold the disk therebetween from top and down are rotated, and the disk is moved in a horizontal direction toward inside of the housing. When, thereafter the disk reaches a place above the turn table in the housing, a holding member such as a tray or the like for holding the disk is lowered in the vertical direction by using a cam plate or some other vertically moving means thereby to be placed on the turn table.
When, on the other hand, the disk is taken out therefrom, the holding member is raised to release the disk from the turn table, and the disk is carried in the horizontal direction toward the slot by the swinging levers or the like to be sent to outside of the housing.
As described above, the conventional type of carrier mechanism has not only means for moving a disk in the horizontal direction but also means for moving the disk in the vertical direction at a specified position in the housing, and for this reason, the mechanism is complicated in structure and also requires a large number of components, which is undesirable in view of reliability of the mechanism and manufacturing costs.
In the conventional type of carrier mechanism, there have been such problems as that the driving mechanism comprising rollers or the like can not be forcibly driven the disk is stuck inside the player during being carried, when the power source is cut off so that the disk left therein can not be ejected. Further, the carrier driving system may be damaged when the disk is forced to be pulled out therefrom.
For this reason, it has been desired to develop a carrier mechanism which has a simple structure with a small number of components therein and mechanical reliability so that any influence given to the driving system of the device can be evaded even if any load occurs during the loading and the disk can forcibly be ejected even when the disk is left inside the housing.
OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention was conceived in the light of the circumstances as described above, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a disk carrier mechanism in a disk player which can carry a disk in a horizontal direction as well as in a vertical direction with a simple structure, and with which reliability of the mechanism can be improved and costs can be reduced.
In the disk carrier mechanism according to the present invention for carrying a disk between a slot for inserting therein the disk and a reproducing position at which the disk is placed on the turn table to be reproduced, a pair of carrier levers are provided which are swingable within a plane parallel to the major surface of the disk. The carrier levers are respectively provided with abutting members each abutting the peripheral edge section of the disk and enabling holding of the disk in cooperation with each other. Each of the abutting members is so formed as to cause the disk to move in the direction vertical to the major surface thereof with the abutting members closely abutting each other or getting afar from each other by movement of the pair of carrier levers in the direction to which the levers approach the peripheral edge section of the disk or to which the levers leave away therefrom.
With the above configuration, it is possible to move a disk in a horizontal direction as well as in a vertical direction by only swinging movements of the pair of carrier levers.
The disk carrier mechanism according to the present invention has the configuration in which engagement of a rack gear supported by a driving cam plate which can freely reciprocate in the lever drive means for carrying a disk by causing the carrier levers to swing with a rotating gear is temporarily disengaged, when any load is generated in the opposite direction toward the rotating gear in the driving side to be engaged, therefrom by distortion of a supporting member to enable movement of a position of engagement thereof with the rotating gear because the rack gear is supported by the supporting member easy to be distorted in one direction in the reciprocation than that in the opposite direction.
With the above configuration, it is possible to prevent any influence due to the load given to another devices when a disk stops its movement with some trouble during the movement of the disk (e.g.during loading) or when the disk is forcefully pulled out therefrom, or it is possible to push a driving cam plate into the housing with an operation from the outside when the disk left inside the housing is taken out (is forced to be ejected) while the power source is being cut off.
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patent: 4498162 (1985-02-01), Schatteman
patent: 4513409 (1985-04-01), Staar
patent: 4641298 (1987-02-01), Ikedo et al.
patent: 4674079 (1987-06-01), Agostini
patent: 4733387 (1988-03-01), Yoshimura
patent: 4969140 (1990-11-01), Koiwa et al.
patent: 4979160 (1990-12-01), Araki
patent: 5416763 (1995-05-01), Ohsaki
patent: 0 200 705 (1986-12-01), None
patent: 2 120 831 (1983-12-01), None
patent: 2 279 490 (1995-01-01), None
patent: 2 280 536 (1995-02-01), None
patent: 60-160061 (1985-08-01), None
Nakai Takashi
Saitoh Masayuki
Sato Shogo
Fields Kenneth W.
Klimowicz William
Morgan & Lewis & Bockius, LLP
Pioneer Electronic Corporation
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