Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6807674
-
Patent Number
6,807,674
-
Date Filed
Friday, November 16, 200123 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, October 19, 200420 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 360 131
- 360 132
- 360 133
- 369 772
- 369 272
- 369 287
- 369 289
- 369 292
- 369 7721
- D14 474
- D14 478
- D14 479
- D14 480
- 720 718
- 720 720
- 720 725
- 720 728
-
International Classifications
- G11B724
- G11B2303
- G11B3302
-
Abstract
A disk cartridge accommodating a disk includes a case receiving the disk and having openings. A shutter opens and/or closes the openings, where the openings deviate a predetermined distance from a middle position of the case toward one side.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims the benefit of Korean Application No. 2001-26785, filed May 16, 2001, in the Korean Industrial Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disk cartridge for receiving an information recording/reproducing medium, and more particularly, to a disk cartridge in which structures of openings for a pick-up providing access to a disk are improved so that a size of the disk cartridge can be advantageously reduced.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, as shown in
FIGS. 1 and 2
, a disk cartridge
10
is intended to receive a disk D to be used in a recording/reproducing apparatus
100
. The disk cartridge
10
includes a case
18
having upper and lower portions
11
and
12
which form an internal space for receiving the disk D, a holder
13
which is inserted into and joined to the case
18
having the upper and lower portions
11
and
12
while supporting the disk D, and a shutter
14
for selectively opening and closing openings
11
a
and
12
a
formed through the case
18
having the upper and lower portions
11
and
12
so that a pick-up
130
of the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
can have access to the disk D. Receiving holes
11
b
and
12
b
are formed to be connected to the openings
11
a
and
12
a
, respectively, so that a turntable
110
and a clamper
120
of the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
can clamp a clamper area D
1
(See
FIG. 2
) of the disk D upward and downward. The receiving holes
11
b
and
12
b
are opened or closed by the opening and closing operations of the shutter
14
.
In addition, an opening lever
150
is installed on a cover
101
of the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
for opening and closing the shutter
14
. As the disk cartridge
10
seated on a tray
140
moves into the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
, one end of the opening lever
150
engages with an engagement portion
14
a
and opens the shutter
14
while the opening lever
150
pivots, as shown in
FIGS. 3A and 3B
. A spring
151
is provided for restoring the opening lever
150
to an original position when the cartridge
10
is moved out of the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
.
Recently, a size of the disk D has been gradually reduced, and a recording density of the disk D has increased. Also, the apparatus
100
for recording on/reproducing from the disk D tends to be smaller, and therefore the disk cartridge
10
for receiving the disk D is required to be smaller. However, as shown in
FIG. 2
, widths Wb of the openings
11
a
and
12
a
for the pick-up
130
to have access to the disk D, as described above, and reserved spaces Wc for the opening/closing operations of the shutter
14
, are required to be included in an overall width Wa when determining the size of the cartridge
10
.
Consequently, when a width of the shutter
14
and the widths Wb of the openings
11
a
and
12
a
are assumed to be nearly the same, it can be considered that an overall width Wa of the cartridge
10
needs to be at least 3 times the widths Wb of the openings
11
a
and
12
a
. Therefore, though a method of reducing the widths Wb of the openings
11
a
and
12
a
can be considered so as to make the cartridge
10
smaller, the widths Wb of the openings
11
a
and
12
a
cannot be reduced as desired because the openings
11
a
and
12
a
must allow the pick-up
130
to have access to the disk D. That is, if the cartridge is not intended to be used in a special recording/reproducing apparatus employing a very small pick-up, a width allowing a general-sized pick-up to have access to the disk D must be maintained. Therefore, a disk cartridge having a structure capable of reducing an overall size thereof without reducing the sizes of the openings
11
a
and
12
a
is desirable.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Various objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.
To solve the above problem, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved disk cartridge having a smaller overall size while maintaining conventional dimensions of openings.
Accordingly, to achieve the above and other objects of the invention, there is provided a disk cartridge accommodating a disk including a case for receiving the disk and having openings, and a shutter for opening/closing the openings, wherein the openings deviate a predetermined distance from a middle position of the case towards one side.
These together with other objects and advantages, which will be subsequently apparent, reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The above object and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which:
FIG. 1
is a perspective view illustrating a conventional disk cartridge in a recording/reproducing apparatus;
FIG. 2
is an exploded perspective view illustrating the disk cartridge shown in
FIG. 1
;
FIGS. 3A and 3B
are perspective views illustrating a procedure of opening a shutter of the disk cartridge shown in
FIG. 1
;
FIG. 4
is an exploded perspective view illustrating a disk cartridge according to the present invention;
FIG. 5
is a perspective view illustrating a procedure of opening a shutter of the disk cartridge shown in
FIG. 4
;
FIG. 6
is a plan view illustrating the procedure of opening the shutter of the disk cartridge shown in
FIG. 4
;
FIG. 7
illustrates an adapter for receiving the disk cartridge shown in
FIG. 4
where first and second side walls of the adapter have different widths;
FIG. 8
illustrates the adapter for receiving the disk cartridge shown in
FIG. 4
where the widths of the first and second side walls of the adapter are same; and
FIGS. 9 and 10
are perspective views illustrating a procedure of reversing a recorded/reproduced surface of an internal disk in the disk cartridge shown in FIG.
4
.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Hereinafter, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals used in the drawings denote same elements having the same functions.
FIG. 4
shows a disk cartridge according to the present invention. A disk cartridge
20
includes a case having upper and lower portions
21
and
22
forming a space for receiving a disk D, a holder
23
which is inserted into and joined to the case having the upper and lower portions
21
and
22
while supporting the disk D, and a shutter
24
for selectively opening and closing openings
21
a
and
22
a
, and receiving holes
21
b
and
22
b
formed at the upper and lower portions
21
and
22
of the case, respectively.
Center lines C of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are positioned to deviate a predetermined distance d to one side from center points of the receiving holes
21
b
and
22
b
, where the center points are opposite each other. That is, the center lines C of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are not positioned at a middle position of the case having the upper and lower portions
21
and
22
. A first width, W
1
, and a third width, W
3
, of the upper and lower cases
21
and
22
are set to be different from each other (W
1
>W
3
) so that the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are formed to deviate to one side of the upper and lower cases
21
and
22
, respectively, having a predetermined width, W
2
.
In addition, a shutter
24
slides in a direction opposite to a direction of the deviation as indicated by an arrow A in FIG.
4
. The shutter
24
exposes or closes the openings
21
a
and
22
a
. Therefore, the first width W
1
onto which the shutter
24
slides is longer than that of the case in which the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are positioned. When the disk cartridge
20
has a same size as a conventional cartridge, the first width W
1
of the upper and lower cases
21
and
22
onto which the shutter
24
slides is longer than that of the conventional upper and lower cases
21
and
22
. In other words, when the first width W
1
onto which the shutter
24
slides when the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are opened, is set to be the same as in the conventional art, the size of the disk cartridge
20
can be made smaller than the conventional cartridge
10
. When the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are formed to be deviated toward one side so that the shutter
24
slides in a direction opposite to the direction of deviation to open the openings
21
a
and
22
a
, sizes of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
and the shutter
24
for opening/closing the openings
21
a
and
22
a
remain unchanged while the disk cartridge
20
is made smaller than the conventional cartridge
10
.
Referring to
FIG. 5
, when the disk cartridge
20
configured as above is seated on the tray
140
(FIG.
1
), and is inserted into the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
(FIG.
1
), one end of the opening lever
150
engages with an engagement portion
24
a
and opens the shutter
24
. The opening lever
150
then pivots causing the shutter
24
to slide in a direction opposite to the direction to which the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are deviated. Thereafter, as shown in
FIG. 6
, the pick-up
130
has access to the disk D through the opened openings
21
a
and
22
a
and the recording/reproducing apparatus records/reproduces information on/from the disk D. Therefore, because the size of the disk cartridge
20
having a configuration in which the openings
21
a
and
22
a
are deviated toward one side, as in the present invention, can be reduced compared to the conventional disk cartridge
10
while the sizes of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
and the shutter
24
remain unchanged, compactness of the disk cartridge
20
and of the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
(
FIG. 1
) employing the disk cartridge
20
can be effectively achieved.
In addition, when the above-described disk cartridge
20
is a small cartridge receiving, for example, an 80 mm disk, and is intended for use in a recording/reproducing apparatus for a large size disk, for example, a 120 mm disk, the disk cartridge
20
may be fitted to one of adapters
30
and
40
shown in
FIGS. 7 and 8
. Auxiliary shutters
33
and
43
each of which is joined to the shutter
24
of the disk cartridge
20
, is slid by the opening lever
150
to open/close the shutter
24
.
As shown in
FIG. 7
, an adapter
30
receives the disk cartridge
20
and is configured so that a width L
1
of a first arm of the adapter
30
and a width L
2
of a second arm of the adapter
30
are set to be different widths. The difference in widths is intended to cause the widths L
1
and L
2
of the first and second side walls to have a difference corresponding to the deviation of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
(L
1
<L
2
). Thus, when the disk cartridge
20
is joined to the adapter
20
, the deviation of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
can be offset by the difference in widths and the openings
21
a
and
22
a
can be positioned at a middle position of the adapter
30
. That is, as shown in
FIG. 7
, when a first section of the disk cartridge
20
has a first width W
1
and a second section of the disk cartridge
20
has a width W
3
, and the widths of the first and second side walls
31
and
32
of the adapter
30
are L
1
and L
2
, L
1
+W
1
=L
2
+W
3
is satisfied. The adapter
30
compensates for the deviation of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
when the recording/reproducing apparatus
100
permits the disk cartridge
20
having the openings
21
a
and
22
a
to be positioned at a center portion thereof.
The adapter
40
shown in
FIG. 8
is configured so that the widths L
1
and L
2
of first and second side walls
41
and
42
of the adapter receiving the disk cartridge
20
are the same. Therefore, after the cartridge
20
is joined to the adapter
40
, the openings
21
a
and
22
a
remain deviated toward one side. The adapter
40
can be used in a recording/reproducing apparatus that permits the disk cartridge
20
having the deviated openings
21
a
and
22
a
to be used therein when only the size of the disk cartridge
20
is enlarged to fit in the recording/reproducing apparatus. Therefore, when one of these adapters
30
and
40
is employed, the small disk cartridge
20
, according to the present invention, can be used with ease in the recording/reproducing apparatus for a conventional disk.
In addition, recently, a double-sided disk of which both sides are utilized is frequently used. In the disk cartridge according to the present invention, when it is necessary to change the disk D from one side to the other, the holder
23
is extracted from the case having the upper and lower portions
21
and
22
of the disk cartridge
20
as shown in
FIG. 9
, and is then reversed and joined to the case again as shown in FIG.
10
. Because in this state the other side of the disk D can be used as the previous one, the double-sided disk may be used in the cartridge according to the present invention without any problems.
As described above, the disk cartridge
20
according to the present invention has a smaller size than conventional disk cartridges while the sizes of the openings
21
a
and
22
a
remain unchanged by forming the openings
21
a
and
22
a
to be deviated toward one side of the case and permitting the shutter
24
to move in a direction opposite to the direction of deviation.
While this invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Claims
- 1. A disk cartridge accommodating a disk, comprising:a case receiving the disk and having openings; and a shutter opening/closing the openings, wherein the case comprises upper and lower portions, each comprising a first width W1 and a third width W3 being different from each other so that the openings having a second width W2 deviate a predetermined distance from a middle position of the case toward one side of the upper and lower portions, respectively, where a difference between the first width W1 and the third width W3 compensate for the deviation of the openings.
- 2. A disk cartridge accommodating a disk in a recording/reproducing apparatus comprising a pick-up, the disk cartridge comprising:a case receiving the disk and having openings to enable the pick-up access of the disk; and a shutter opening/closing the openings, wherein the case comprises upper and lower portions, each comprising a first width W1 and a third width W3 being different from each other so that the openings having a second width W2 deviate a predetermined distance from a middle position of the case toward one side of the upper and lower portions, respectively, and the shutter moves toward a direction to expose the openings and allow the pick-up to access the disk, where a difference between the first width W1 and the third width W3 compensate for the deviation of the openings.
- 3. An apparatus, comprising:a disk cartridge accommodating a disk and comprising: a case receiving the disk, wherein openings deviating a predetermined distance from a middle position of the case toward one side, and a shutter opening/closing the openings; and an adapter supporting the cartridge between first and second side walls, wherein a difference between widths of the first and second side walls compensate for the deviation of the openings.
- 4. The apparatus as recited in claim 3, wherein widths of the first and second side walls are the same.
- 5. The apparatus as recited in claim 3, wherein a difference in the widths of the first and second side walls is set to be same as the deviation of the openings from the middle position of the case so that when the cartridge is joined with the adapter, the deviation of the openings is offset by a difference in the widths and the openings are positioned at a middle position of the adapter.
- 6. A disk cartridge accommodating a disk, comprising:a case comprising upper and lower portions forming a space to receive the disk, the case having openings and spindle receiving holes; and a shutter selectively opening/closing the openings and spindle receiving holes, wherein upper and lower portions, each comprises a first width W1 and a third width W3 being different from each other so that the openings having a second width W2 deviate a distance toward one side of the upper and lower portions, respectively, from corresponding center points of the spindle receiving holes, where a difference between the first width W1 and the third width W3 compensate for the deviation of the openings.
- 7. The disk cartridge as recited in claim 6, wherein:the upper portion comprises a first section on one side of the opening formed through the upper portion and a second section on another side of the opening formed through the upper portion, the lower portion comprises a first section on one side of the opening formed through the lower portion and a second section on another side of the opening formed through the lower portion, the first section of the upper portion and the first section of the lower portion are same widths and opposite each other, and the second section of the upper portion and the second section of the lower portion are same widths and opposite each other.
- 8. The disk cartridge as recited in claim 7, wherein the widths of the first sections of the upper and the lower portions are different from the widths of the second sections of the upper and the lower portions.
- 9. The disk cartridge as recited in claim 7, wherein the widths of the first and second sections of the upper and the lower portions are same.
- 10. The disk cartridge as recited in claim 6, wherein the disk is a double-sided disk.
- 11. The disk cartridge as recited in claim 6, wherein the disk is a single-sided disk.
- 12. An apparatus, comprising:a disk cartridge accommodating a disk comprising: a case receiving the disk and having openings formed to deviate a predetermined distance from a middle position of the case toward one side, and a shutter opening/closing the openings; an opening lever; and an adapter comprising first and second side walls supporting the disk cartridge, the adapter comprising: an auxiliary shutter joined to the shutter of the disk cartridge and slid by the opening lever to open and close the shutter, wherein a difference between widths of the first and second side walls compensate for the deviation of the openings.
- 13. The apparatus as recited in claim 12, wherein widths of the first and second side walls are the same.
- 14. The apparatus as recited in claim 12, wherein the difference of the widths of the first and second side walls correspond to the deviation of the openings.
- 15. The apparatus as recited in claim 14, wherein the case comprises upper and lower portions forming a space to receive the disk.
- 16. The apparatus as recited in claim 15, wherein:the upper portion comprises a first section on one side of one of the openings formed through the upper portion and a second section on another side of the one of the openings, the lower portion comprises a first section on one side of another of the openings formed through the lower portion and a second section on another side of the another of the openings, the first section of the upper portion and the first section of the lower portion are same widths and opposite each other, and the second section of the upper portion and the second section of the lower portion are same widths and opposite each other.
- 17. The apparatus as recited in claim 16, wherein the width of the first section of the upper portion and the lower portion is W1, the width of the second section of the upper portion and the lower portion is W3, and widths of the openings is W2, and widths of the first and second side walls of the adapter are L1 and L2 satisfying a following relationship: L1+W1=L2+W3.
- 18. The apparatus as recited in claim 14, wherein a difference in the widths of the first and second side walls is set to be same as the deviation of the openings from the middle position of the case so that when the cartridge is joined with the adapter, the deviation of the openings is offset by a difference in the widths and the openings are positioned at a middle position of the adapter.
- 19. An adapter receiving a disk cartridge comprising a case having openings deviating a predetermined distance from a middle position of the case toward one side and a shutter opening/closing the openings, the adapter comprising:a first side wall having a width L1; a second side wall having a width L2, wherein the disk cartridge is supported between the first and second side walls; and an auxiliary shutter joined to the shutter of the disk cartridge and slid by an opening lever to open and close the shutter, wherein a difference between widths L1 and L2 compensate for the deviation of the openings.
Priority Claims (1)
| Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
| 2001-26785 |
May 2001 |
KR |
|
US Referenced Citations (10)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
| Number |
Date |
Country |
| 6-76524 |
Mar 1994 |
JP |
