Disk cartridge

Details Disk cartridge Disk cartridge

1999-11-16

2004-06-22

Letscher, George J. (Department: 2653)

Dynamic information storage or retrieval

Storage medium structure

Adjuncts or adapters

Reexamination Certificate

active

06754167

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to disk cartridges each containing a signal recording medium in the form of a disk, such as an optical disk, magnetic disk or optomagnetic disk.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A disk cartridge
7
comprising a flat rectangular parallelepipedal cartridge body
70
and a disk
71
enclosed in the cartridge body as shown in FIGS.
10
(
a
) and
10
(
b
) is conventionally used for optical disk players by which signals are optically recorded on or reproduced from optical disks or optomagnetic disks.
The cartridge body
70
is formed with a window
72
for exposing the signal bearing surface of the disk
71
, and has a shutter
8
slidably attached to the body for opening and closing the window
72
. Arranged inside the cartridge body
70
along a side wall
7
b
extending in the direction of sliding of the shutter
8
are a torsion spring
73
for biasing the shutter
8
in a closing direction, and a lock mechanism
5
for locking the shutter
8
in a closed position. The cartridge body
70
has a bottom wall formed with a first positioning cavity
74
and a second positioning cavity
75
for positioning the disk cartridge
7
in the recording-playback position to be described below.
In the optical disk player for use with the disk cartridge
7
for recording signals on the disk therein or reproducing signals therefrom, a chassis
1
has mounted thereon a motor
12
for drivingly rotating the disk
71
of the disk cartridge
7
, and a cartridge holder
11
for setting the disk cartridge
7
in the recording-playback position is supported on the chassis
1
so as to be movable upward and downward about a pivot
10
as shown in FIG.
9
. Further provided on the chassis
1
are a first positioning pin
15
and a second positioning pin
14
which are insertable into the first and second positioning cavities
74
,
75
to place the cartridge
7
in the recording-playback position on the chassis
1
.
The shutter
8
of the disk cartridge
7
is usually locked in the closed position by the lock mechanism
5
, whereas when the cartridge
7
is inserted into the cartridge holder
11
of the optical disk player as shown in
FIG. 9
, an unlocking mechanism (not shown) provided on the cartridge holder
11
releases the shutter
8
from the lock mechanism
5
with the advance of the cartridge
7
indicated by an arrow A in the drawing. When the cartridge
7
is further pushed into the holder
11
, the unlocking mechanism pushes the shutter
8
open against the elasticity of the torsion spring
73
in the course of this movement.
The cartridge holder
11
is then depressed to an engaged position on the chassis
1
, whereby the disk cartridge
7
in the holder
11
is set in the recording-playback position. At this time, the first positioning pin
15
and the second positioning pin
14
on the chassis
1
fit into the first positioning cavity
74
and the second positioning cavity
75
in the disk cartridge
7
, whereby the cartridge
7
is positioned in place. The first positioning pin
15
on the chassis
1
has its head cut obliquely and is thereby formed with a slope
16
to avoid interference with the front wall
7
a
of the cartridge
7
when the cartridge
7
is advanced. Further the first positioning cavity
74
in the cartridge body
70
is in the form of an elongated cavity to avoid interference with the first positioning pin
15
due to the pivotal movement of the cartridge holder
11
[see FIG.
10
(
b
)].
With the disk cartridge
7
set in the recording-playback position as described above, signals are recorded on or reproduced from the disk
71
through the window
72
of the cartridge body
70
. When the disk cartridge
7
is thereafter ejected, the shutter
8
is allowed to move in the closing direction with the retraction of the cartridge
7
and closed by being biased by the torsion spring
73
. The lock mechanism
5
then functions to lock the shutter
8
in the closed position.
In compliance with the demand in recent years for more compact disk players, attempts have been made to provide disks of higher recording density and reduced size for use in disk cartridges, and there arises a need to make the cartridge body
70
also compacted by positioning the four peripheral walls thereof as close as possible to the outer periphery of the disk
71
. However, the disk cartridge externally so shaped as shown in FIGS.
10
(
a
) and
10
(
b
) and heretofore in wide use has the problem of being limited in size reduction.
Furthermore, the user is unable to realize the direction of insertion, shown by the arrow A, from the appearance of the conventional disk cartridge
7
of FIGS.
10
(
a
) and
10
(
b
), so that it is practice to print a mark on the surface of the cartridge for indicating the direction of insertion. Nevertheless, it is still difficult for the user to realize the direction of insertion.
Since the first positioning pin
15
provided on the chassis
1
of the disk player has the slope
16
formed by obliquely cutting the head as shown in
FIG. 9
, the first pin
15
is not only costly to make but has the problem that in mounting the first pin
15
on the chassis
1
for assembly, the pin
15
, which has directionality, requires a larger number of steps and a higher cost than the second positioning pin
14
which has no directionality.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A first object of the present invention is to provide a disk cartridge which comprises a compacted cartridge body and which readily indicates the direction of insertion of the cartridge into the disk player.
A second object of the invention is to provide a disk cartridge for use in a disk player wherein all the positioning pins to be mounted on the chassis for assembly can be those so shaped as to have no directionality.
The present invention provides a disk cartridge which includes a cartridge body
20
comprising opposite side walls
2
b
,
2
c
formed in parallel to the direction of insertion of the cartridge into a signal recording-reproduction device, and a front wall
2
a
facing toward the direction of insertion, a shutter
3
being mounted on the cartridge body and slidable along one of the side walls. The front wall
2
a
is in the form of a curved wall or polygonal wall extending along the arc form of outer periphery of a disk
21
in the cartridge body and has a central portion formed in the closest proximity to the outer periphery of the disk
21
and opposite side portions formed as retracted toward a direction opposite to the direction of insertion.
With the disk cartridge of the present invention, the front wall
2
a
of the cartridge body
20
is in the form of a curved wall or polygonal wall along the arc form of the outer periphery of the disk
21
, so that the cartridge body
20
can be smaller in size than the conventional rectangular cartridge body by the amount of retraction of the front wall side portions. Of the four peripheral walls of the cartridge body
20
, the front wall
2
a
only has a curved or polygonal form projecting in the direction of insertion. The overall appearance of the cartridge body
20
therefore readily indicates the direction of insertion.
Usable as the front wall
2
a
of the cartridge body
20
are, for example:
a cylindrical wall having a center of curvature on the center line of the disk
21
extending through the center of rotation of the disk in the opposite direction to the insertion direction or on the center line of the cartridge body
20
extending in parallel to the disk center line,
a wall comprising a cylindrical wall portion having a center of curvature on the center line of the disk
21
extending through the center of rotation of the disk in the opposite direction to the insertion direction or on the center line of the cartridge body
20
extending in parallel to the disk center line, and a planar wall portion formed at each of opposite sides of the cylindrical wall portion and orthogonal to the direction of insertion, and
a wall comprising a central planar wall portion formed in the central portio

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