Winding – tensioning – or guiding – Coil holder or support – Spool or core
Reexamination Certificate
1997-06-04
2001-04-10
Nguyen, John Q. (Department: 3653)
Winding, tensioning, or guiding
Coil holder or support
Spool or core
C242S345000, C242S610600, C360S132000, CD14S129000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06213425
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a tape reel for a tape cassette, and more particularly to a tape reel adapted to be rotatably incorporated in a tape cassette to take up a tape thereon and deliver it therefrom.
A conventional tape reel used for such a purpose includes a reel flange, which is provided on a bottom surface thereof or a surface thereof opposite to a tape receiving surface thereof with reinforcing ribs in a manner to radially or concentrically extend thereon in order to prevent deformation of the reel flange due to a weight of a tape wound on the tape reel, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Publication No. 80747/1979.
However, an increase in width of the reinforcing rib to a level larger than a thickness of the flange causes sink marks to occur on a surface of the flange on which the ribs are not provided or the above-described tape receiving surface of the flange. Thus, in the conventional tape reel, it is required that the reinforcing ribs are formed with a width equal to or smaller than a thickness of the reel flange. Also, a weight-saving of the tape reel for the purpose of reducing a manufacturing cost thereof requires to reduce a thickness of the reel flange and concurrently reduce a width of the reinforcing ribs to avoid any sink mark.
Unfortunately, the conventional tape reel in which the reinforcing ribs are radially or concentrically arranged while reducing a thickness of the flange causes an increase in warpage of the flange and/or deflection thereof when a cycle time of molding the tape reel is shortened or reduced; whereas a variation in shape of an inner side of a reel stabilizing surface of the tape reel and/or shape of the ribs or an increase in the number of ribs causes an increase in weight of the tape reel. Thus, the conventional tape reel fails to uniformly reinforce the whole flange while keeping a weight of the flange from being increased. In particular, when the reinforcing ribs formed on the flange for the purpose of preventing any sink mark of the flange are reduced in width, the flange fails to exhibit sufficient strength or stiffness; so that a weight of a tape wound on the tape reel causes deformation of the reel flange. Such deformation is amplified during storage of the tape reel at a high temperature.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made in view of the foregoing disadvantage of the prior art.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a tape reel for a tape cassette which is capable of substantially shortening or reducing a cycle time of molding the tape reel.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a tape reel for a tape cassette which is capable of preventing deformation thereof due to a weight of a tape wound thereon and restraining deformation thereof during storage thereof at a high temperature.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a tape reel for a tape cassette which is capable of reducing in a manufacturing cost thereof and simplified in structure thereof.
In accordance with the present invention, a tape reel for a tape cassette is provided. The tape reel includes a reel hub on which a tape is wound, a disc-like flange formed by molding it integrally with the reel hub and having an inner surface which receives the wound tape and an outer surface opposite from the inner surface, a core stabilizing surface rib arranged on the outer surface of the disc-like flange, and reinforcing ribs provided on the disc-like flange. The reinforcing ribs includes an annular rib arranged on the outer periphery of the disc-like flange and a plurality of linear ribs arranged on the outer surface of the disc-like flange so as to extend from the core stabilizing surface rib to the annular rib. The linear ribs are so arranged that each of the linear ribs intersect at least one of the other linear ribs at a position which is further than a midpoint between the core stabilizing surface rib and the annular rib.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the linear ribs are so arranged that each of the linear ribs intersects at least one of the other linear ribs at a position located on the annular rib.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the linear ribs are so arranged that each of the linear ribs intersects another one of the linear ribs at a position located on the core stabilizing surface rib.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the linear ribs are so arranged that every two of the linear ribs opposite to each other with the reel hub being interposed therebetween are aligned with each other on a straight line. The linear ribs are so arranged that each linear rib intersects one of the other linear ribs at a position located on the annular rib and intersects another one of the linear ribs at a position located on the core stabilizing surface rib. Thus, the linear ribs in association with each other form a substantially star-like reinforcing rib structure.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the linear ribs are each formed with a width substantially equal to a thickness of the flange and tapered toward a distal end thereof, resulting in being a trapezoid in section.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3099414 (1963-07-01), Kulka
patent: 3289972 (1966-12-01), Hafner
patent: 4664328 (1987-05-01), Yamada
patent: 5409180 (1995-04-01), Stewing
patent: 5472150 (1995-12-01), Teuber et al.
patent: 0 136 504 A1 (1985-04-01), None
patent: 0 549 289 A2 (1993-06-01), None
patent: 2531688 (1984-02-01), None
patent: 2009101 (1979-06-01), None
patent: 54-80747 (1979-08-01), None
Kaneda Hiroshi
Okamura Masatoshi
Umeki Sadatoshi
Lerner, David, Littenberg, Krumholtz & Mentlik, LLP
Nguyen John Q.
TDK Corporation
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