Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval – Automatic control of a recorder mechanism – Controlling the record
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-19
2001-10-09
Sniezek, Andrew L. (Department: 2651)
Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval
Automatic control of a recorder mechanism
Controlling the record
C360S069000, C318S268000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06301070
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disk device, and, in particular, to a disk device which performs information recording and reproducing on any of a plurality of types of disks on which recording and reproducing are performed at different disk rotation speeds.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional 3.5-inch FDD (Floppy Disk Drive), generally, the rotation speed of a disk is set to either 300 rpm or 360 rpm in accordance with the type of the disk. In a high-capacity FDD, because a negative-pressure-type magnetic head is used as a recording and reproducing head, it is necessary to rotate a disk at high speed (3600 rpm).
Therefore, when the high-capacity FDD has an arrangement such that the high-capacity FDD can perform recording and reproducing on a type of a disk on which recording and reproducing is performed by the conventional 3.5-inch FDD, it is necessary to contrive a disk-motor control method for this purpose.
The negative-pressure-type magnetic head will now be simply described.
The negative-pressure-type magnetic head used for performing recording and reproducing on a high-capacity floppy disk is disposed so that the disk (magnetic sheet) does not come into contact with the magnetic head when the disk cartridge is loaded in the disk device. Then, as a result of the disk being rotated at high speed, a negative pressure occurs between the magnetic-head surface and the disk surface, by which the magnetic sheet is attracted to the magnetic head, and recording and reproducing is performed on the disk by the magnetic head. That is, the negative-pressure-type magnetic head has a property reverse to a property of a floating-type magnetic head used in an HDD (Hard Disk Drive).
When a high-capacity floppy-disk cartridge is loaded in the disk device, as a result of the disk rotating at high speed, that is, 3600 rpm, the spindle motor is controlled so that the spindle motor stops rotating when the high-capacity floppy-disk cartridge is ejected from the disk device. However, due to the inertia of the spindle motor, when the high-capacity floppy-disk cartridge is ejected, a maximum time of approximately 2 sec. is required for the spindle motor to completely stop.
The shape of a high-capacity floppy-disk cartridge has an arrangement approximately the same as that of the low-capacity floppy-disk cartridge.
FIG. 1
shows a plan view of a floppy-disk cartridge, and
FIG. 2
shows a sectional view in which a floppy disk is loaded on a spindle motor of a disk device.
In the floppy-disk cartridge
41
, a hub
43
is fixed at the center of a disk-shaped recording medium
42
. The recording medium
42
is covered by a resin shell
44
. An opening
45
is formed in the shell
44
. The opening
45
is usually covered by a shutter
46
. The shutter
46
is opened so as to cause the opening
45
to be uncovered when the disk cartridge
41
is loaded in a predetermined position of a disk device. When the shutter
46
is open, a portion of the recording medium
42
is exposed from the shell
44
through the opening
45
.
The hub
43
is exposed from the shell
44
, and engages with a chucking stand
53
fixed to a rotation shaft
52
of a spindle motor
51
. The hub
43
is made of metal, and is fastened onto the chucking stand
53
as a result of a magnet
50
fixed to the chucking stand
53
attracting the hub
43
.
A positioning hole
47
is formed in the hub
43
of the recording medium
42
. A driving pin
48
planted on the spindle motor
51
engages with the positioning hole
47
.
A distinguishing hole
49
for distinguishing the type of the floppy disk is formed in the shell
44
. When the floppy-disk cartridge
41
is loaded in the disk device, the position of the distinguishing hole
49
is detected by a plurality of microswitches, and, thereby, it is determined whether the loaded floppy disk is the high-capacity floppy disk or the low-capacity floppy disk.
FIGS. 3A
,
3
B and
3
C show a process in which the positioning hole
47
of the floppy disk (recording medium
42
) is engaged by the driving pin
48
of the spindle motor
51
.
FIG. 3A
shows a condition immediately after the floppy disk (recording medium
42
) is loaded on the chucking stand
53
,
FIG. 3B
shows a condition in which the spindle motor
51
is rotated and the driving pin
48
is inserted into the positioning hole
47
, and
FIG. 3C
shows a condition after the driving pin
48
engages with the positioning hole
47
.
When the floppy-disk cartridge
41
is loaded in the predetermined position of the disk device, the driving pin
48
is not always inserted in the positioning hole
47
, as shown in FIG.
3
A. Then, the spindle motor
51
is slowly rotated, and, thereby, the driving pin
48
is caused to be inserted into the positioning hole
47
, as shown in FIG.
3
B.
As a result of further rotation of the spindle motor
51
, the driving pin
48
comes into contact with the rotation-direction end of the positioning hole
47
, as shown in
FIG. 3C
, and the rotation-driving force of the spindle motor
51
is positively transmitted to the hub
43
.
In the disk device in the related art, when an ejecting button is pressed unsatisfactorily, and, then, the ejecting button is returned, the disk is once removed from the chucking stand of the spindle motor, and, then, the disk is again chucked onto the chucking stand.
When the low-capacity floppy-disk cartridge is loaded in the disk device, the spindle motor rotates at a relatively low speed. However, when the high-capacity floppy-disk cartridge is loaded in the disk device, the spindle motor rotates at a speed equal to or more than ten times the speed of the low-capacity floppy-disk cartridge. Therefore, the high-capacity floppy disk may be seriously damaged as a result of the above-mentioned situation, in which the disk is once removed from the chucking stand, and, then, the disk is again chucked onto the chucking stand, occurring while the spindle motor is rotating at the high speed.
Further, when the spindle motor starts running, the rotation speed of the spindle motor is sharply increased in the related art. Thereby, the spindle motor races without engagement of the driving pin of the chucking stand with the positioning hole of the hub of the floppy disk, and, thereby, the driving pin and/or the hub may be damaged.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to eliminating the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a disk device in which a spindle motor and a floppy disk are appropriately engaged with one another without damage to either a driving pin of a chucking stand of the spindle motor or a positioning hole of a hub of the floppy disk.
A disk device, according to the present invention, which performs information recording and reproducing on a recording medium of a disk cartridge loaded therein, comprises:
a motor rotating the recording medium of the disk cartridge loaded in the disk device;
a disk-type detecting unit detecting whether the recording medium of the disk cartridge loaded in the disk device is a high-capacity recording medium or a low-capacity recording medium;
a motor driving controlling unit causing the motor to rotate in accordance with a given reference clock signal, the motor driving controlling unit being set to a first mode for rotating the motor at a first rotation speed, at which information recording and reproducing is performed on the low-capacity recording medium, when the disk-type detecting unit detects that the recording medium of the loaded disk cartridge is the low-capacity recording medium and being set to a second mode for rotating the motor at a second rotation speed, at which information recording and reproducing is performed on the high-capacity recording medium, when the disk-type detecting unit detects that the recording medium of the loaded disk cartridge is the high-capacity recording medium, the second rotation speed being higher than the first rotation speed; and
a reference-clock-signal controlling unit
Anderson Kill & Olick P.C.
Sniezek Andrew L.
Teac Corporation
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