Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval – Record transport with head stationary during transducing – Tape record
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-23
2002-11-12
Nguyen, Hoa T. (Department: 2652)
Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval
Record transport with head stationary during transducing
Tape record
C360S099060
Reexamination Certificate
active
06480352
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is effectively applied to a technique for loading a cartridge, particularly a magnetic tape cartridge, into a drive unit. More specifically, the present invention relates to a drive system equipped with an autoloader mechanism, and an autoloading device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In this type of technique for loading a cartridge into a drive unit known is a cartridge autoloading device having a mechanism in which a unit capable of accommodating a plurality of cartridges is provided at an insertion/ejection port side of a general-purpose drive unit so that these cartridges may be selectively loaded into the drive unit.
FIG. 2
is an example of system overview of a typical cartridge autoloading device.
In this figure, reference numeral
21
denotes a drive unit where data in a cartridge
22
mounted therein can be read and written under a control from a host device.
An autoloading device
24
includes a magazine
25
capable of accommodating the cartridge in tiers. While a carrier unit
26
is guided by a guide rail
27
to move up and down in the autoloading device, it can selectively remove the cartridge
22
from the magazine
25
and accommodate it therein. In other words, the carrier unit
26
serves to selectively load the cartridge
22
into the drive unit
21
from the magazine
25
and return the cartridge
22
ejected from the drive unit
21
to the magazine
25
.
In this arrangement, for replacement of the cartridge
22
in the drive unit
21
, the carrier unit
26
in a standby mode at an insertion/ejection port
21
a of the drive unit
21
receives the cartridge horizontally ejected from the drive unit
21
, and the carrier unit
26
elevates and lowers up to a predetermined position in height where the cartridge
22
is returned to a certain empty tier of the magazine
25
positioned at the side opposite to the drive unit
21
.
Also, when a new cartridge is loaded into the drive unit
21
, the carrier unit
26
receives the cartridge
22
from the magazine
25
, and elevates/lowers to the position at the insertion/ejection port
21
a
of the drive unit
21
where the cartridge
22
held by the carrier unit
26
is then ejected to the drive unit
21
side to thereby load the cartridge into the drive unit
21
.
Therefore, in both cases of returning and loading the cartridge
22
, a series of the following operations must be repeated: horizontally retracting/advancing the cartridge, elevating/lowering the carrier unit, and then horizontally retracting/advancing the cartridge again. This involves complicated steps, making the structures of the carrier unit
26
and the drive unit
21
complicated, and requires sufficient space to install the entire system.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-stated problems, and its technical object is to achieve a drive system having a simple structure in which a cartridge can be supplied or replaced in small installation space.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to solve the foregoing technical problems, according to the present invention, a drive unit is positioned beneath a cartridge autoloading device so that the number of steps for conveying a cartridge between a magazine and the drive unit may be reduced.
More specifically, a carrier unit structure is employed in which a cartridge is horizontally retracted from a magazine capable of horizontally inserting/removing the cartridge and then held therein. Further, a drive unit is located beneath the carrier unit, and the cartridge held in the carrier unit is released so that the cartridge can be dropped and loaded into the drive unit.
Further, the magazine itself is rotated about the pivot portion and falls down to the outside of the drive unit to expose a cartridge receiving section to the external. This allows the magazine or the cartridge received within the magazine to be easily replaced.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5231552 (1993-07-01), Schneider et al.
patent: 5337297 (1994-08-01), Kvifte et al.
patent: 5659440 (1997-08-01), Acosta et al.
patent: 5907531 (1999-05-01), Fujita et al.
patent: 6115207 (2000-09-01), d'Alayer de Costemore d'Arc et al.
Kato Yuji
Miyamoto Takahisa
Okada Tomoyuki
Saito Hirofumi
Takano Akira
Greer Burns & Crain Ltd.
Nguyen Hoa T.
Watko Julie Anne
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