The present invention relates to a disc device that can be loaded with a disc used for recording or reproduction such as CD (compact disk) or DVD (digital versatile disk) or with a disc contained in a case, and can record/reproduce various information signals with respect to the disc.
In recent years, a DVD recorder capable of recording/reproducing information signals such as video signals with respect to an information medium (DVD etc.) has begun to be available rapidly. For more widespread use of the DVD recorder in the future, it has been required to develop a device that differs in form from a conventional device.
In the conventional disc device, a tray system or slot-in system has been the mainstream as a configuration that allows a user to insert a disc into the device. Moreover, one of the other configurations is known from Patent Document 1.
A disc device disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a main body having a turntable and a cover that can open and close so as to cover the front of the main body including the turntable. The cover is provided with a damper for clamping a disc.
A disc is loaded in the disc device by putting it between the main body and the cover, and then the cover is closed, thereby clamping the disc with the turntable and the clamper.
Patent Document 1: JP 1(1989)-151453 U
Problem to be Solved by the Invention
In the above conventional configuration, however, the turntable protrudes from the surface of the main body on which the disc is placed. Therefore, the disc touches the turntable while a user inserts the disc into the device. This may damage the disc and the turntable. Moreover, when the cover is opened for insertion/removal of the disc, the turntable is seen from the outside and thus is not desirable in terms of appearance.
The present invention solves the above conventional problems and has an object of providing a disc device that can facilitate the loading of a disc when it is inserted/removed, protect the traverse portion, and improve the appearance.
Means for Solving Problem
To achieve the object, a disc device of the present invention is capable of recording/reproducing information signals with respect to a disc and includes the following: a traverse base that can be moved between a recording/reproducing position and a standby position, on which an optical pickup for recording/reproducing the information signals with respect to the disc and a turntable for rotating the disc at a position where the optical pickup can record/reproduce the information signals with respect to the optical disc are mounted; a front cover including a disc carrying surface that can carry the disc and is fixed between a position of a disc holding portion of the turntable when the traverse base is at the recording/reproducing position and a position of the disc holding portion of the turntable when the traverse base is at the standby position, and an aperture that is formed in the disc carrying surface so as to allow the traverse base to be moved between the standby position and the recording/reproducing position; a clamp base that can be moved between a first position where the clamp base is located parallel to the disc carrying surface and does not overlap the disc carrying surface and a second position where the clamp base overlaps the aperture, has a size large enough to cover the aperture at the second position, and includes a damper for clamping the disc to the turntable; and an open/close member that is movably provided at the back of the front cover and can be moved to cover/uncover the aperture. When the disc is clamped, the clamp base is moved from a standby position to a position where the clamp base overlaps the aperture, then the open/close member is moved from a position where the aperture is closed to a position where the aperture is opened, and subsequently the traverse base is moved from the standby position to the recording/reproducing position, thereby clamping the disc with the turntable and the clamper.
With this configuration, the turntable is always hidden by the cover and cannot be seen from the front of the device during the period between the insertion/removal of the disc and the recording/reproducing state. Thus, it is possible to achieve excellent effects of facilitating the loading of a disc, protecting the traverse portion, and improving the appearance of the disc device.
As described above, the present invention uses the open/close member for covering the aperture that is formed in the disc carrying surface and allows the turntable to pass through, and the clamp member for clamping the open/close member and the disc to the turntable, thereby always hiding the traverse portion so as not to be seen from the front of the device during the period between the insertion/removal of the disc and the recording/reproducing state. Thus, it is possible to achieve excellent effects of facilitating the loading of a disc, protecting the traverse portion, and improving the appearance of the disc device.
1 Turntable
2 Optical pickup
3 Front cover
3
a Disc carrying surface
3
b Aperture
4 Disc
5 Traverse base
9 Open/close member
10 Clamp base
11 Clamper
The disc device of the present invention may have the following configuration. During the transition from the insertion of the disc to the recording/reproducing state, the clamp base is moved to a position where the clamp base covers the aperture that is exposed as the open/close member opens. During the transition from the recording/reproducing state to the removal of the disc, the clamp base stays at the position to cover the aperture until the open/close member closes so that the aperture disappears, and subsequently is moved to the standby position.
The open/close member may have a recess in a portion opposed to the turntable.
Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
First, the configuration of a disc system including a disc device of the present invention will be described.
In
A control portion 51 for performing various operations of the disc system 50 is provided near the opening 52 of the disc system 50. The operations performed by the control portion 51 may be, e.g., a reproduction operation of reproducing the information signals recorded on the disc 4, a recording operation of recording the information signals on the disc 4, and an ejection operation of shifting the disc 4 from the recording/reproducing state to the disc loading state, but are not limited thereto.
A front cover 3 supports the disc 4 that has been inserted into the disc device by the user. The front cover 3 includes a disc carrying surface 3a, an aperture 3b for exposing a turntable and an optical pickup mounted on the lower portion of the disc carrying surface 3a, and a rib 3c for controlling the position of the disc 4 in a downward direction. While the disc 4 is loaded in the disc device, a part of the recording surface is supported by the disc carrying surface 3a, and a part (lower edge) of the outer circumference is supported by the rib 3c.
An open/close member 9 is a substantially plate-shaped member and has a principal surface large enough to cover the aperture 3b. The open/close member 9 is located at the back of the disc carrying surface 3a and movable in either direction of the arrow P or Q.
A clamp base 10 is located over the disc carrying surface 3a in the disc system 50 and movable in either direction of the arrow P or Q. A clamper 11 for clamping the disc 4 is provided in the back of the clamp base 10.
The operations of the disc system 50 will be described below.
The disc system 50 is in the state of
In operating the disc system 50, the power is turned on by manipulating the control portion 51 in the state of
Next, a traverse (not shown) on which the turntable and the optical pickup are mounted is moved to a position accessible to the disc 4, and thus the disc 4 can be clamped with the turntable and the damper 11. At this time, while the center hole of the disc 4 comes into contact with a tapered portion of the turntable, the disc 4 is guided by the tapered portion and moved upward. Accordingly, the outer circumference of the disc 4 is moved to a position not in contact with the rib 3c.
Next, the turntable rotates the disc 4, and the information layer of the disc 4 is irradiated with a light beam using the optical pickup, thereby reproducing the information signals recorded on the disc 4. Although the reproduction operation of the disc 4 has been described above, the recording operation for recording the information signals on the disc 4 also can be performed in the same manner. In the above description, the reproduction button is actuated after the power is on. However, it is also possible to actuate only the reproduction button with the power remaining off, so that the power of the disc system 50 is turned on, and the disc 4 is shifted in the reproducing state.
When the disc 4 is taken out of the disc system 50, an ejection button of the control portion 51 is actuated in the state of
A specific configuration of the disc device of Embodiment 1 will be described below.
In FIGS. 3 to 9, a turntable 1 holds the disc 4 and is rotationally driven with a motor to rotate the disc 4 during recording or reproduction. A tapered portion (see
An optical pickup 2 is used to record/reproduce the information signals with respect to the information layer of the disc 4. The information signals recorded/reproduced by the optical pickup 2 may be, e.g., digitized and compressed video signals or sound signals, or various information signals that can be handled with a computer.
The front cover 3 is substantially in the form of a plate and covers the front of the disc device. The front cover 3 includes the disc carrying surface 3a, the aperture 3b, the rib 3c, guide portions 3d, a wall portion 3e, and guide grooves 3f to 3i.
The disc carrying surface 3a is located perpendicular to the direction of the optical axis of the optical pickup 2. When the disc 4 is put on the front cover 3 and loaded in the disc device, the disc carrying surface 3a supports the recording surface of the disc 4.
The aperture 3b is formed substantially in the middle of the disc carrying surface 3a. As shown in
The rib 3c is formed in the vicinity of the lower end of the front cover 3, as shown in
The guide portions 3d are formed on the back of the front cover 3 in the vicinity of the upper and lower edges of the aperture 3b, respectively, as shown in
The wall portion 3e is formed around the disc carrying surface 3a, as shown in
The guide grooves 3f and 3g are formed in the upper end of the front cover 3, and the upper end of the clamp base 10 is slidably supported by the guide grooves 3f, 3g. As shown in
The guide grooves 3h and 3i are formed in the lower end of the front cover 3, and the lower end of the clamp base 10 is slidably supported by the guide grooves 3h, 3i. As shown in
A chassis 16 is fixed to the front cover 3 and covers the back that is on the other side of the disc carrying surface 3a.
The turntable 1 and the optical pickup 2 are mounted on a traverse base 5. The traverse base 5 is supported by the chassis 16 so as to be rotatable about a shaft 5a between a standby position and a recording/reproducing position. The “standby position” is where the disc holding surface of the turntable 1 and the optical pickup 2 do not protrude from the disc carrying surface 3a of the front cover 3 (i.e., they are positioned lower than the disc carrying surface 3a). The “recording/reproducing position” is where the disc holding surface of the turntable 1 protrudes from the disc carrying surface 3a of the front cover 3, and the disc 4 is placed on the disc holding surface of the turntable 1. The rotational mechanism of the traverse base 5 is not shown, but may include, e.g., a motor and a gear.
The optical pickup 2 is movably supported by guide shafts 6. A drive motor 7 has a shaft 7a that can output a rotational driving force. The optical pickup 2 is threadably mounted on the shaft 7a, and the rotation of the shaft 7a can move the optical pickup 2 in the radial direction of the disc 4 while being supported by the guide shafts 6.
The open/close member 9 is slidably provided inside the front cover 3 and can slide between a first position where it covers the aperture 3b, as shown in
As shown in
In the disc loading state of
The transfer mechanism 21 can cause a sliding movement of the clamp base 10 and includes a double gear 17, a motor gear 18, and a motor 19. The motor gear 18 is mounted on an output shaft of the motor 19. The double gear 17 is engaged with both the motor gear 18 and the rack 10f. Thus, a rotational driving force output from the motor 19 is transferred to the rack 10f via the motor gear 18 and the double gear 17, and the clamp base 10 can slide.
The damper 11 for clamping the disc 4 to the disc holding surface of the turntable 1 is provided in the clamp base 10 so as to be movable in the direction perpendicular to the disc holding surface of the turntable 1. The damper 11 contains a magnetic body and is attracted to the disc holding surface of the turntable 1, containing an oppositely polarized magnetic body, by the magnetic force between the two magnetic bodies.
A cam lever 13 can pivot about a pivotal axis 13b formed in the front cover 3. The cam lever 13 has a slot 13a in which the pin 9b of the open/close member 9 is movably inserted. Moreover, teeth 13c are formed at the end of the cam lever 13.
A motor gear 15 is mounted on an output shaft of a motor (not shown) for sliding the open/close member 9 and engaged with a double gear 14 (which will be described later).
The double gear 14 is engaged with both the teeth 13c of the cam lever 13 and the motor gear 15 and transfers a driving force from the motor gear 15 to the cam lever 13.
The operations of the disc device having the above configuration will be described below.
First, in the disc loading state of
Next, a user puts the disc 4 on the rib 3 and actuates a switch (not shown) to start the recording or reproduction operation. Then, the clamp base 10 is moved from the standby position shown in
The clamp base 10 is moved by the transfer mechanism 21. In
Subsequently, the open/close member 9 in the state of
The open/close member 9 can be moved by transferring a rotational driving force from a motor (not shown) to the teeth 13c of the cam lever 13 via the motor gear 15 and the double gear 14. When the driving force is transferred from the double gear 14, the cam lever 13 pivots about the pivotal axis 13b from the position shown in
Next, the traverse base 5 rotates about the shaft 5a from the position shown in
In this case, due to the force of attraction generated between the magnetic body in the damper 11 and the oppositely polarized magnetic body in the turntable 1, the damper 11 is attracted to the disc holding surface of the turntable 1. Thus, the disc 4 is clamped with the turntable 1 and the damper 11, resulting in the recording/reproducing state, as shown in
Subsequently, the disc 4 can be rotated by rotating the turntable 1 with a motor (not shown). Then, the optical pickup 2 can be operated to record the information signals on the disc 4 or to reproduce the information signals recorded on the disc 4.
Next, the operation of removing the disc 4 from the disc device will be described.
When an ejection switch (not shown) is actuated while the disc 4 is at the recording/reproducing position, as shown in
Next, as shown in
A motor (not shown) for driving the open/close member 9 is operated to transfer a rotational driving force to the cam lever 13 via the motor gear 15 and the double gear 14 in
Subsequently, the motor 19 shown in
As described above, the aperture 3b through which the turntable 1 can pass is provided in a part of the front cover 3. Moreover, the rib 3c is provided in a part of the front cover 3. Therefore, this embodiment only requires the user to put the disc 4 on the rib 3c and operate the device to start reproduction or recording. Then, the disc 4 is moved automatically so that the center of the disc 4 is aligned with the center of the turntable 1, and thus the disc 4 can be loaded easily.
The clamp base 10 is withdrawn to a position that does not overlap a projection plane of the disc carrying surface 3a of the front cover 3 in the vertical direction. Accordingly, the clamp base 10 is not an obstacle, but can make it easier for the user to insert/remove the disc.
Moreover, the clamp base 10 is moved perpendicularly to the direction of movement of the optical pickup 2. This can reduce the outer dimensions of the disc device in the direction of movement of the optical pickup.
For loading of the disc, the clamp base 10 is moved to the clamp position shown in
Due to the presence of the open/close member 9, the mechanism such as the traverse base 5 inside the front cover 3 cannot be seen from the outside before loading the disc, and thus the aesthetic appearance and distinction can be improved. In the state of
The open/close member 9 and the surface (the disc carrying surface side) of the clamp base 10 may be formed with the same color, material and treatment as those of the disc carrying surface 3a. This can enhance the conformity with the disc carrying surface 3a when the open/close member 9 is at the first position, thus improving the distinction of the disc device.
In this embodiment, the open operation of the open/close member 9 is started after the clamp base 10 has been moved to the clamp position. However, the open operation of the open/close member 9 may be started before the clamp base 10 reaches the clamp position.
For example, the clamp base 10 in the state of
Reversing the above procedure can make a transition to a state in which the disc 4 can be removed. Specifically, the open/close member 9 in the state of
These operations can reduce the time required for insertion/removal of the disc 4. Moreover, in the course of movement of the open/close member 9 and the clamp base 10, a part of the clamp base 10 and a part of the open/close member 9 overlap, as shown in
This embodiment also can be applied to the loading of a disc contained in a case (referred to as “cartridge” in the following). The device loaded with a cartridge differs from that loaded with a disc in that, although not shown in the drawings, the former requires a shutter open/close mechanism for opening the shutter of the cartridge before the traverse is moved to the recording/reproducing position and closing the shutter after the traverse is moved to the standby position.
Moreover, this embodiment can be applied to a disc device dedicated to a disc that can record/reproduce only a disc, a disc device that can record/reproduce only a cartridge, and a disc device that can record/reproduce both a disc and a cartridge.
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.
The disc device of the present invention can facilitate the loading of a disc, protect the traverse portion, and improve the appearance, and therefore is useful for a stationary disc device such as a DVD player or DVD recorder, a CD player, a computer equipped with a disc drive, etc.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
2004-271104 | Sep 2004 | JP | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
PCT/JP05/17037 | 9/15/2005 | WO | 3/15/2007 |