JPH08329647A - Tape cassette - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To perform the positioning of a large size cassette highly accurately by the position defining member of a device side in a recording/reproducing device, in which a plurality of cassettes having different sizes are loaded. CONSTITUTION: In an L cassette 1 having engaging parts 3x and 3v in its front face, the engaging part 3x forms a wide surface from a cassette side face part to a cassette center, its one part and the engaging part 33x of an S cassette 31 are laid over the other and the engaging part 3v is formed in a region different from the engaging part 33v of the S cassette 31. Cassette holder position defining parts are respectively formed in positions relative to the engaging parts 3v, 33v and 33x. The S cassette 31 is positioned in the 33v and 33x positions and the L cassette 1 is positioned in the 3v and 33x positions.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a means for restricting insertion of a plurality of tape cassettes selectively used in a recording / reproducing apparatus into the recording / reproducing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a magnetic recording / reproducing apparatus,
In order to satisfy both the need for long-time recording and the need for miniaturization and weight reduction, there are systems having the same recording format but different cassette sizes. For example, VT for broadcasting
As R, the "D3 format standard" corresponds to the system. In this "D3 format standard", three types of cassettes (S, M, L) having different sizes are standardized.

FIG. 50 is a plan view showing a case where an S cassette having the shortest recording time and an M cassette having an intermediate recording time are mounted in a recording / reproducing apparatus. M cassette 101
Has a supply reel 102 and a take-up reel 103,
The magnetic tape 107 is stretched over the front surface in the space of the opening 106 by the guide posts 104 and 105 set up in the cassette. The triangular area represented by the tangent lines 109 and 110 extending from the tape maximum winding diameter of the supply reel 102 and the outer diameter of the reel hub 108 indicates that the magnetic tape 107 is the M cassette 101.
Is a tape guide area 111 that can be guided to the outside of the cassette space without contacting the upper and lower cassette halves. for that reason,
The first post for guiding the magnetic tape 107 coming out of the cassette must be arranged so that the magnetic tape 107 is present in this tape guiding area 111. The position of the tangent line 109 is determined by the configuration of the upper and lower half sidewalls. One tangent 11
0 is determined by a tangent connecting the guide post 104 and the reel hub 108.

The S cassette 112 has the same size of the opening 106 and the positions of the guide posts 104 and 105 as the M cassette 101. Also, other structures are almost the same as the M cassette 101, but with the limitation of the cassette size,
Due to the positional relationship of the reel hub 113, the tape guide area 119 of the S cassette is smaller than the tape guide area 111 of the M cassette 101 and is included in the tape guide area 111 of the M cassette 101.

Next, a tape running system for selectively recording and reproducing by mounting the two cassettes on the recording and reproducing apparatus will be described. The rotating head cylinder 115 has a magnetic tape wound around 180 degrees and rotates at high speed. Reference numeral 116 is a capstan motor, and 117 is a pinch roller. Since the magnetic tape 107 that has exited the supply reel 102 is wound around the post 118 in the tape guide area 119 of the S cassette 112, the magnetic tape 107 that has exited the supply reel 120 of the S cassette 112 is also in a non-contact state including the upper and lower halves. Guided to post 118. Similarly, the arrangement of the post 121 is also considered so that the take-up reel 103 and the magnetic tape 107 between the take-up reel 122 and the post 121 are guided in a non-contact manner with all other objects.

A magnetic tape 107 stretched over the front surface is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, the front cover 123 and the back cover 124 cover the front cover 123 and the back cover 124 to protect them from being easily touched from the outside. The front cover 123 is biased by an elastic member in the closing direction and is held at this position by a lock member (not shown). When mounted on the recording / reproducing apparatus, the lock by the lock member is released, and the front lid 123 is rotated against the elastic member as shown in FIG. 49 to expose the magnetic tape. The opening operation of the front cover 123 is performed when a part of the back cover 124 is opened.
When the M cassette 101 comes into contact with 25 and the M cassette 101 descends, the back lid 124 is opened, and the front lid 123 interlocking with the back lid 124 is also opened.

As described above, in a system in which a plurality of types of tape cassettes are mounted in the same recording / reproducing apparatus for recording / reproducing, various contrivances are made for each cassette. For example, when a positioning hole for inserting a positioning member for positioning the cassette in the apparatus with high precision is arranged as shown in FIG. 50, the positioning hole becomes a common position.

FIG. 51 shows an L cassette 130 and an S cassette 1.
FIG. 12 shows a rear view when 12 is arranged with an opening at a common position. Positioning holes 135 and 136 across opening 106
Are provided in the L cassette 130 and the S cassette 112, respectively. As for the positioning hole, 135 is a perfect circle hole and 136
Is a long hole. A hatched area around the positioning holes 135 and 136 indicates an area where the height of the cassette can be received. This is also common to the L and S cassettes. The L cassette 130 has wide hatching areas 131 and 132 at the rear. This is also the height receiving area. Similarly, S cassette 112 has 137, 13
There are eight height receiving areas. With such a configuration, in a device in which the S cassette 112 and the L cassette 130 can be mounted, the positioning members are arranged at positions corresponding to the positioning holes 133 and 134.

This positioning member is provided in the height receiving area 1
The collars corresponding to 33 and 134 are formed so as to receive the height of the cassette. When the S cassette 112 is mounted, the height receiving pins are arranged at positions corresponding to 137 and 138, and when the L cassette 130 is mounted, the height receiving pins are arranged at positions corresponding to 131 and 132. To do. Although the S cassette 112 and the L cassette 130 have been described, the S cassette 112 and the M cassette 10 have been described.
Combination of 1, M cassette 101 and L cassette 130
The combination is basically the same.

FIG. 52 shows the S cassette 112 and the M cassette 1
01 and L cassettes 130 are shown as viewed from the front lids. Hatched 112a and 112b near both side surfaces of the S cassette 112 are front lids 112c.
It is the projection of the lower half that faces from the notch. This protrusion 1
12a and 112b are exposed almost to the surface of the front lid 112c, and abut on a locking member 139 provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus to regulate the position of the S cassette 112, as shown in FIG.

That is, it is a position regulating portion in the cassette insertion direction when the cassette is inserted into the cassette holder that conveys the cassette to the take-out position and the recording / reproducing position. When the projections 112a and 112b of the S cassette 112 are inserted to a position where they abut the locking member 139, the cassette is automatically conveyed to a predetermined position by a motor or the like. The locking member 139 and the protrusion 11
The position of the cassette in the cassette holder is regulated by the contact between the 2a and 112b. M cassette 101,
Similarly for the L cassette 130, front lids 101c and 130c
From the cutouts of the protrusions 101a, 101b, 130a, 1
30b is facing. Although the size of the cassette is different, the position of this protrusion is almost the same. This is because the locking member 139 can be commonly used as shown in FIG.

[0012]

As described above, the use of a common projection position has the advantage that a single position restricting member can be configured to be engaged with the projection. However, the common position has a different cassette size. Determined by the S cassette. S
This is performed at two points as close as possible to the side surface of the cassette. This is wide enough for S cassette 2
Although it is a point, it is hard to say that it is sufficiently wider than the cassette size when viewed from the largest L cassette.

Therefore, if the relative positions of the two position regulating members in the cassette insertion direction are shifted, the cassette takes a posture rotated two-dimensionally to the correct position. As a result, the position of the various components of the cassette may deviate from the correct position.

If such a shift occurs, the positioning member is not inserted into, for example, the positioning hole of the cassette, the reel lock releasing member does not enter the hole for releasing, etc., no matter how accurately the conveyance of the cassette holder is controlled. Problem arises. From such a viewpoint, the cassette is required to have a configuration in which the positioning of the cassette by the position regulating member is performed with high accuracy. Since the distance between the protrusions of the L cassette is narrower than the lateral width of the cassette, it is expected that the position of the L cassette will vary greatly compared to other cassettes.

An object of the present invention is to provide a plurality of cassettes selectively used in the same apparatus as described above, wherein the position of the recording / reproducing apparatus in the cassette holder varies greatly, and the cassette is used in the recording / reproducing apparatus. Cannot be positioned correctly. Then, the objective of this invention is providing the cassette structure which can perform position control in a cassette holder in each cassette with high precision.

[0016]

In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides a method in which a locking portion of a large cassette is provided with a first locking portion at a position common to a locking portion of a small cassette. Since the second locking portion is provided at a position close to both side portions of the large cassette, if the large cassette is positioned using the second locking portion, even if the mechanism accuracy is the same, the interval is wide. Therefore, the position can be controlled with high precision.

[0017]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The invention according to claim 1 of the present invention can be similarly mounted on a recording / reproducing apparatus to which a small cassette is mounted, and a cassette positioning member provided on the recording / reproducing apparatus is inserted. A large cassette having two positioning holes and an engaging portion that comes into contact with a cassette insertion regulating member provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus, wherein the two positioning holes have the same position as the two positioning holes of the small cassette. When the first and second locking portions are disposed in close proximity to both side portions of the small cassette that abuts the cassette insertion regulating member of the recording and reproducing device, the first locking portion is located at a common position with one locking portion. And a plurality of second locking portions provided in the vicinity of both side portions of the cassette in a lower half, wherein a plurality of cassettes are selectively used in the same apparatus. Also By providing the regulating member for locking the cassette holder to a second engaging portion provided in proximity to both side surfaces of the large cassette, large cassette can be very accurately positioned.

(Embodiment 1) An embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. Both the tape cassette with a long recording time (hereinafter referred to as L cassette) and the small tape cassette with a short recording time (hereinafter referred to as S cassette) are shown on the left or right, but are symmetrical unless otherwise specified. It is.

FIGS. 2A, 2B and 2C are an external plan view, side view and front view of the L cassette 1. FIG. The L cassette 1 is mainly composed of an upper half 2, a lower half 3, a front lid 4 and a canopy 5. FIG. 3 is a rear view of FIG. The lower half 3 has a reel hole 3a through which the reel is exposed, a reel lock hole 3b, positioning holes 3c to 3f, and a start / end LED hole 3
g is constructed. The hatched parts 3h to 3k are
In a height receiving area (hereinafter referred to as a support portion) serving as a cassette height reference, four independent locations are provided near the four corners of the L cassette 1. These four support parts 3h ~
Reference numeral 3k indicates a range in which the cassette height determining pin provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus can be arranged.

The positioning holes 3e and 3f at the front are provided on both sides of the space of the opening 3p and are located at positions separated from the four support portions.
d is provided within a range of two support portions 3h and 3i among the above-mentioned four support portions, and at a position very close to both side surfaces of the cassette.

FIG. 10 is a rear view of the lower half 3 similar to FIG.
11A is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 10, FIG. 11B is a sectional view taken along line BB in FIG.
FIG. 11C is a sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 10. As shown in FIG. 11B, the positioning holes 3c and 3d are formed on the lowermost surface portion (line indicated by the alternate long and short dash line) that serves as a support portion, while the positioning holes 3e and 3f are as shown in FIG. 11A. At the position depressed by d1 from that, the holes 3 for the start and end LEDs are
g is configured at a position d2 recessed which is larger than d1.

The opening 3p will be described later in detail, but a space opened to the bottom of the cassette lower half 3 communicates with the upper surface of the upper half 2 as can be seen from the lid open view of FIG.

FIG. 13 shows a state in which the lid is closed. Even in this state, a space is similarly formed to the vicinity of the upper surface of the upper half 2 behind the back lid 13 (the space where the cam groove 3r is formed). ing. Therefore, there is no problem even if the positioning holes 3e and 3f in the opening 3p space are depressed by d1 as shown in FIG. 11A. Similarly, start and end LE
Even if the hole 3g for D is depressed by d2 as shown in FIG. 11 (c), there is no other effect.

Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the positioning hole 3
e, 3f are located in the positioning holes 3e, 3f.
The surface is sufficiently larger than the hole diameter of. As will be described later, this is because the recess is formed with a slightly large surface in order to avoid interference with the large diameter portion of the positioning member having the height determining portion of the S cassette. The positioning holes 3d and 3f are circular holes, but the positioning holes 3c and 3e are elongated holes. FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the magnetic tape 14 whose start and end are locked by the supply reel 8 and the take-up reel 10 is wound around and guided by the tape guide portion 3 m formed on the front surface of the lower half 3.

FIG. 1 shows the correspondence between the L cassette 1 and the traveling system. The tape guide portion 55 indicated by hatching is an area for guiding the magnetic tape, and the post 51 of the recording / reproducing apparatus must be arranged so that the incoming and outgoing magnetic tape 14 enters this area. Then, the magnetic tape 14 reaches the post 51 of the traveling system without contacting any part of the cassette from the supply reel 8 and the take-up reel 10, so that the tape traveling can be performed with extremely high accuracy.

5 to 7 show a reel lock mechanism. The left half of FIG. 5 shows a brake off state in which the reel lock claw 7 is separated from the supply reel 8, and the right half shows a brake on state in which the reel lock claw 7 is engaged with the claw portion 10 a of the take-up reel 10. FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the brake on, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the brake off. Since the reel lock claw 7 is urged in the reel direction by the spring 9, normally, as shown in the right half of FIG.
Engages with the claw portion 10a of the take-up reel 10 to inhibit the rotation of the take-up reel 10.

The take-up reel 10 is configured to take up the tape when rotated in the clockwise direction, so that it is difficult to rotate in the counterclockwise direction and is easy to rotate in the clockwise direction. The reverse is true for the supply reel 8. The reel lock claw 7 is provided with a recess 7b that opens downward at a reel lock hole 3b position provided in the lower half 3 of the cassette shown in FIG. When the shaft 11 of the recording / reproducing apparatus enters the recess 7b, the reel lock claw 7 retreats against the spring 9 as shown in FIG.
Is separated from the claw 8a of the supply reel 8 and the claw 10a of the take-up reel 10, and each of the reels can rotate.

Next, the structure of the supply reel 8 will be described with reference to FIGS. Upper and lower flanges are integrally formed on the supply reel 8, and the above-mentioned claw portion 8a is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the lower flange. The convex portion 8b at the upper center of the reel is urged downward by a reel pressing spring (not shown) provided in the upper half 2. FIG. 8 shows an engagement state between the supply reel 8 and the reel table 12 provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus.
A plurality of outwardly opening blades 12a provided at the tip of the reel table 12 engage with blades 8c similarly provided on the supply reel 8 to rotate integrally with the reel table 12. ing.

As shown in FIG. 9, a cylindrical portion 8d is provided below the blade portion 8c of the supply reel 8, and a conical portion 8e is provided below the cylindrical portion 8d.
Is configured. The cylindrical portion 8d performs centering with the reel table 12 when engaged with the reel table 12, and minimizes rotational runout when the supply reel 8 rotates. In addition, the conical portion 8e is
And a guide portion for smooth engagement of the reel table 12 with the reel table 12. On the lower surface of the supply reel 8, a reel receiving portion 8f of an annular projection abutting on the reel table 12 and an annular projection slightly smaller than the reel hole 3a provided in the lower half 3 in a concentric configuration. Holder 8g
Is configured. As shown in the figure, an annular recess 8h is formed between the reel receiving portion 8f and the reel holding portion 8g, which are the two annular protrusions. In the non-engagement state with the reel table 12, the position of the supply reel 8 is regulated by the fitting between the reel hole 3a of the lower half 3 and the reel holding portion 8g of the supply reel 8.

The lid structure for covering the magnetic tape 14a stretched over the front surface shown in FIG. 16 comprises a canopy 5, a back lid 13 and a front lid 4, as shown in FIG. Each configuration will be described with reference to the external perspective view of each lid shown in FIG. In the front lid 4, a shaft 4a provided on a side surface 4d has a cutout portion 2b of the upper half 2 and a cutout portion 3 of the lower half 3 shown in FIG.
It is sandwiched between n and is rotatably supported, and is biased in the counterclockwise direction (direction to close the lid) by a spring (not shown). A shaft 5a provided on a side surface 5b of the canopy 5 is rotatably supported in engagement holes 4b at both ends of the front cover 4. Further, a support hole 5c is formed from the center of the canopy 5,
The shaft 13a of the back cover 13 is engaged with the support hole 5c so that the back cover 1
3 is rotatable.

The other shaft 5d of the canopy 5 is shown in FIGS.
Guide groove 2 formed in side surface portion 2c of upper half 2 shown in FIG.
It is engaged and guided by a. Also, the guide shaft 13b of the back cover 13
Is the cam groove 3 formed on the side surface of the opening 3p of the lower half 3.
Guided by engagement with r.

As described above, since the canopy 5, the back cover 13 and the front cover 4 are linked and guided by the upper half 2 and the lower half 3, when the front cover 4 is rotated, it is connected thereto. The canopy 5 and the back lid 13 have a cam groove 3r and a guide groove 2a.
It is guided by and moves backward.

The opening / closing operation of the lid mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS. By bringing a lid opening member (not shown) of the recording / reproducing apparatus into contact with a part of the side surface portion 4d of the front lid 4 and lowering the tape cassette relatively, the front lid 4 moves clockwise around the shaft 4a. Rotate. Accordingly, the canopy 5 moves rearward along the guide groove 2a to the upper part of the upper half. The back cover 13 also moves upward along the cam groove 3r. When the front cover 4 is rotated about 90 degrees, the magnetic tape 14a stretched on the front surface is exposed as shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 shows a cross section of the lower half 3 taken along line D--D shown in FIG. The lower half 3 is provided with the most protruding locking portions 3v and 3x on both sides of the opening 3p. The locking portion 3x has a wider range than 3v. When the locking portion 3x is disposed so as to overlap with an S cassette 31 described later (FIG. 38), the locking portion 3x1 in the range where the S cassette exists and the 3x2 outside the range are provided.
It is divided into 3v is outside the range where the S cassette 31 exists.

The locking portions 3v and 3x2 which are located outside the range and close to the side surface of the L cassette 1 are second locking portions.
3x1 is a first locking portion (hereinafter, 3v and 3x are simply referred to as locking portions). The locking portions 3v and 3x are shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the front cover 4 is provided so as to be exposed, and is substantially flush with the surface portion 4g of the front cover 4.

The locking portions 3v, 3x abut on a cassette position restricting member provided on a cassette holder (not shown) of the recording / reproducing apparatus to restrict the position of the cassette in the cassette holder. The opening 3p is located at a position slightly depressed from the locking portions 3v and 3x, similarly to the locking portions 3v and 3x.
Are formed on both sides with the lid interposed therebetween. The lid locking portions 3u and 3w come into contact with the rear surface 4h (see FIG. 13) of the front lid 4 to determine the attitude when the front lid 4 is closed, and also to make the front lid and the lower half tight in the cassette. To ensure.

Note that the lid locking portions 3u, 3w,
The structure and concept of the locking portions 3v, 3x and the front cover 4 are those already adopted in the VHS and the 8 mm video cassette. Further, the lower half 3 is provided with a recess 3s that is recessed by d3 from the locking portion 3v at a position between the lid locking portion 3u and the locking portion 3v. As shown in FIG. 23, the front cover 4 covers the front surface 4f and the side portions 4
In addition to d, a projection 4e, which is a plane parallel to the lower half 3 at the same height, is provided corresponding to the depression 3s. Therefore, since the recess 3s is covered by the protrusion 4e of the front lid 4, the hermeticity is not impaired. As shown in FIG. 16, the hollow 3 s is
It is outside the magnetic tape path leading to zero, and the outside air does not directly touch the magnetic tape.

FIG. 4 is a view showing the lid lock mechanism. FIG. 4B is a plan view showing the front cover 4 by an imaginary line. FIG.
(A) is a side view. The lid lock claw 6 provided on the side surface of the lower half 3 so as to be rotatable around a shaft 6d is urged clockwise by a spring (not shown). Therefore, the projection 4c of the front cover 4 and the claw portion 6a of the cover lock claw 6 engage,
Clockwise rotation of the front cover 4 is prohibited. Since the projection 6b of the lid lock claw 6 is configured to be exposed from a part of the lower half 3 and the front of the projection 6b of the lower half 3 is cut out, it is within the range of the hatched portion 6c shown in the figure. If a release member (not shown) is inserted from the recording / reproducing device, the lid lock claw 6 does not interfere with the cassette.
, And the lid lock claw 6 can be turned counterclockwise against the spring. As a result, the front lid 4 is unlocked and can be rotated clockwise about the shaft 4a.

FIG. 16 shows a detection optical path 15 for detecting the start and end of the tape. Start and end LE of lower half 3
By inserting the light emitting element provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus into the D hole 3g and arranging the light receiving elements at positions outside the cassette on the optical path, the beginning and end of the tape can be detected. FIG.
Although the lid 7 is in an open state, an optical path hole 16 is provided in the side surface of the lower half 3 to form an optical path between the light receiving element and the light emitting element.
This optical path hole 16 is shown in FIG. 17 only when the front cover 4 is opened.
When the front cover 4 is exposed and the front cover 4 is closed,
Since the side surface 4d of the above blocks the optical path hole 16, the hermeticity can be secured.

Next, the function of exchanging information recorded on the tape between the recording / reproducing apparatus and the cassette will be described. FIG.
FIG. 18B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line EE of FIG.
(A). Reference numeral 17 denotes a memory P plate, which is provided with four terminals 17a for exchanging signals between the semiconductor memory and the outside. The memory P plate 17 is inserted and held from above in a slit 3t provided in the lower half 3 shown in FIGS. The slit 3t is open on the side of the opening 3p, and the terminal 17a is exposed on the side of the opening 3p. Behind the memory P plate 17, a start / end LED hole 3g is formed.

FIGS. 19 to 21 show the state of contact between the signal transmission / reception connector provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus and the memory P plate 17. The appearance of the connector 18 is shown in FIG. 40. The light-emitting element 19 and four leaf spring-like connector terminals 20 are shown in FIG.
And is provided fixed to the recording / reproducing device. Four
The connector terminal 20 has a biasing force in the clockwise direction in FIG. 19, and is in contact with the terminal 17a of the memory P plate 17 with a constant contact pressure. Therefore, writing of information to the semiconductor memory of the memory P plate 17 through this terminal 17a,
Readout is possible.

The terminal 17a is positioned below the memory P board 17, and the bent portion 20a of the connector terminal 20 and the terminal 1 are
By increasing the distance between the contact 20b and the contact 7a, the terminal 1
The spring constant of 7a is small. That is, even if the relative position of the cassette 18 and the connector 18 varies, the contact pressure of the connector terminal 20 with respect to the memory P plate 17 is small, and a stable contact pressure and a highly reliable contact structure can be secured. The connector terminal 20 is formed in a U shape and the bent portion 20a is located upward so that the connector terminal 20 is protected from being deformed by an unreasonable force when the cassette is loaded or unloaded. This is because

An S cassette which is compatible with the L cassette 1 described above will be described. FIG. 24 (a),
(B), (c) is an external plan view, side view, and front view of the S cassette 31. Like the L cassette 1, the S cassette 31 mainly includes an upper half 32, a lower half 33, a front lid 34, and a canopy 35. Also, the S cassette 31 is L
The recording time is shorter than that of the cassette 1, and the plane size of the cassette is also small. Regarding the thickness, the thickness H2 of the L cassette 1
On the other hand, the thickness H4 of the S cassette 31 has a relationship of H2> H4.

FIG. 25 is a rear view of FIG. Locking portions 33v and 33x are provided on both sides of the lower half 33 with the opening 33p interposed therebetween. This locking part 3
As shown in FIG. 24B, 3v and 33x are provided so as to be exposed from the front cover 34, and are substantially flush with the surface portion 34g of the front cover 34. The locking portions 33v and 33x abut on a cassette position regulating member provided on a cassette holder (not shown) of the recording / reproducing apparatus to regulate the position of the cassette in the cassette holder.

Further, the lower half 33 has a reel hole 33.
a, reel lock hole 33b, positioning holes 33c to 33
f, a starting and ending LED hole 33g is formed. In addition, four hatching portions 33h to 33k are independently provided near four corners of the S cassette 31 in a height receiving area (hereinafter, referred to as a support portion) serving as a cassette height reference. These four support portions 33h to 33k indicate a range in which a cassette height determining pin provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus can be arranged. The positioning holes 33e and 33f at the front are
It is provided on both sides of p and is within the range of the support parts 33j and 33k.

On the other hand, positioning holes 33c and 33d at the rear
Is also within the range of the support portions 33h and 33i. These positioning holes 33c and 33d are provided at positions very close to both side surfaces of the S cassette 31 similarly to the positioning holes 3c and 3d of the L cassette 1. FIG. 26A shows G in FIG.
26B is a sectional view taken along line H-H in FIG. 25. The positioning holes 33c to 33f are formed on the lowermost surface portion (line indicated by the alternate long and short dash line) serving as a support portion, but the start and end LED holes 33g are formed at positions depressed by d4. The tape center height H1 from the lowermost portion of the lower half 3 of the L cassette 1 and the tape center height H3 from the lowermost portion of the lower half 33 of the S cassette 31 shown in FIGS. Are different from H1> H
3, the L cassette 1 is larger with the overall thickness of the cassette. In such a structure, the dimensional relationship of the L cassette 1 and the S cassette 31 in the cassette thickness direction is as follows.

H1-d1 = H3 (1) H1-d2 = H3-d4 (2) Equation (1) is expressed as L when two cassettes are considered with respect to the center of the tape. The plane in which the positioning holes 3e and 3f of the cassette 1 exist is the positioning holes 33c to 33f of the S cassette 31.
And a plane where the hatching portions 33h to 33k exist, that is, a plane having the same height as the lowermost surface of the lower half 33. As shown in FIG. 41, S cassettes 31 having different thicknesses
And the L cassette 1 are positioned and supported so that the center of the tape is at the same height. At that time, L configured in the lower half 3
This means that the plane where the positioning holes 3 c and 3 d of the cassette 1 exist, that is, the height of the depression is exactly equal to the lowermost surface of the lower half 33 of the S cassette 31.

Further details will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 56A is a diagram in which the positioning pin 142 is engaged with the positioning hole 33f of the S cassette 31 (of course, the same applies to 33e). The positioning pin 142 is implanted in the chassis 143, and includes a positioning portion 142b having the same diameter as the positioning hole 33f and a cassette receiving portion 142a having a diameter larger than the diameter. The cassette receiving portion 142a is in contact with the lower half 33 of the S cassette 31, and the cassette receiving portion 142a regulates the height of the S cassette 31. Since the positioning hole 33f exists within the range of the support portion 33k, the cassette receiving portion 142a is in contact with the support portion 33k and correctly holds the S cassette 31.

On the other hand, FIG. 56 (b) shows the same positioning pin 14
FIG. 3 is a diagram in which the L cassette 1 is positioned at 2. As described above, the cassette bottom of the L cassette 1 is located at a position lower by H1-H3 = d1 when the tape center is considered as a reference. Since the positioning holes 33f and 33e of the L cassette 1 are also recessed by d1 from the cassette lower half 33, when the positioning pin 142 is engaged with the positioning hole 33f, the cassette receiving portion as shown in FIG. Part 142a
The upper surface of the L cassette comes into contact with the recessed surface to define the height of the L cassette 1. The diameter of the cassette receiving portion 142a may be set so that the outer diameter portion does not interfere with the side wall of the recess.

In the equation (2), when the two cassettes are considered with respect to the center of the tape, the plane in which the start and end LED holes 3g of the L cassette 1 exist and the start and end LED holes 33g of the S cassette 31 exist. The plane indicates that the planes have the same height.

Since the area of the tape guide portion 53 shown in FIG. 34 is the same as 55 shown in FIG. 1, the post 54 must be provided so that the magnetic tape is guided to this area.
The magnetic tape 44, whose start and end are locked by the supply reel 38 and the take-up reel 40, is wound around and guided by a tape guide portion 33m formed on the front surface of the lower half 33. The distance L1 between the magnetic tape 44a stretched between the tape guides 33m and the positioning holes 33e and 33f is the same as the similar distance L3 of the L cassette 1 shown in FIG.

The positioning hole 33e of the S cassette 31
The distance L2 between L and 33f is the same as the distance L4 between the positioning holes 3e and 3f of the L cassette 1. This means that the positioning pins on the recording / reproducing apparatus side can be shared by the L cassette 1 and the S cassette 31. As a result, as shown in FIG. 38, the magnetic tapes 4a and 44a stretched over the front surface are at the same position.

At this time, the positioning holes 3c and 3d provided on the rear side of the L cassette 1 and the positioning holes 33c and 33d provided on the rear side of the S cassette 31 naturally have different positions. Further, since the cassettes are provided near the side surface portions of the cassettes, respectively, the sizes of the cassettes are different, so that the relative positional relationship between the positioning holes is not the same.

27 to 29 show a reel lock mechanism, the structure is basically the same as that of the reel lock mechanism of the L cassette 1, so the description of the structure is omitted. Here, the reel lock hole 33b of the S cassette 31 and the L cassette 1
When the reel lock hole 3b of FIG. 38 is arranged as shown in FIG. 38, its position is different. Therefore, the member fixed to the recording / reproducing apparatus cannot be used for both cassettes, but it can be unlocked by the member of the same shape. Therefore, the shaft 11 which is the reel lock release member of the L cassette 1 is movable, and the reel lock of the S cassette 31 can be released.

FIG. 35 shows the structure of the supply reel 38. Since the reel structure is basically the same as that of the supply reel 8 of the L cassette 1, only different parts will be described.
On the lower surface of the supply reel 38, there is provided a reel receiving portion 38f, which is an annular protrusion that contacts the reel table 42. In the L cassette 1, the reel receiving portion 8f and the reel holding portion 8g are concentrically arranged, but in the S cassette 31, only the reel receiving portion 38f has a reel hole 33a which is slightly larger than the reel receiving portion 38f. By doing so, the position of the supply reel 38 is regulated by fitting the reel hole 33a of the lower half 33 and the reel receiving portion 38f of the supply reel 38.

FIG. 41 shows a view in which the L cassette 1 and the S cassette 31 are mounted on the same reel table 50. In FIG. 41, the right side shows the engagement state between the S cassette 31 and the reel table 50, and the left side shows the engagement state between the L cassette 1 and the reel table 50. Blade part 8c, cylindrical part 8d, conical part 8
As for e, the S cassette 31 and the L cassette 1 have the same structure, and can engage the reel table 50 and transmit the rotational force. As described above, the L cassette 1 and the S cassette 31 have different heights from the center of the tape to the lower half, so that the reel receiving portions 3f and 38f of the respective cassettes are also different as shown in the drawing.

However, the reel receiving portion 38 of the S cassette 31
f is smaller in diameter than the reel receiving portion 8f of the L cassette 1, and since the height of the reel receiving portion 8f of the L cassette 1 is lower than the lowermost portion of the lower half 33 of the S cassette 31, The reel table 50 abuts against the reel receiving portions 38f and 8f, respectively, so that the reel supporting portions 50a and 50b that guarantee the height of each reel can be configured independently.

Next, the lid structure and the lid opening / closing operation will be described with reference to FIGS.
3, the canopy 35 and the back lid 43 are similar to the L cassette 1.
And a front cover 34. The external configuration is the same as that of the L cassette 1 shown in FIG. 23, but the only difference is the structure shown in FIG. In the L cassette 1, a recess 3s is provided in the lower half 3 and, correspondingly, a partial protrusion 4e is formed on the front lid 4.
However, in the S cassette 31, the abutting portion of the front cover 34 and the lower half 33 does not have the protrusion 4e as seen in the L cassette 1, and the front cover 34 is provided with the magnetic tape 44a.
Front surface 44f and side surface 44d (not shown, L
The same as the side surface portion 4d of the front cover 4 of the cassette 1), and has a substantially U shape.

FIG. 30 is a view showing a lid lock mechanism.
(A) is a plan view and (b) is a side view. Since the lid lock mechanism has the same configuration as the L cassette 1, detailed description will be omitted.

FIG. 34 shows a detection optical path 45 for detecting the start and end of the tape. Beginning end L of lower half 33
By inserting the light emitting element provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus into the ED hole 33g and arranging the light receiving elements at positions outside the cassette on the optical path, the start end and the end of the tape can be detected.
Although the opening / closing of the lid of the L cassette 1 and the opening / closing of the optical path hole 16 have been described with reference to FIG. 17, the S cassette 31 has the same configuration.

FIGS. 36, 37, and 39 show a mechanism for holding the memory P plate 17. FIG. As described in the formula (2), the planes where the start and end LED holes 3g and 33g of the L cassette 1 and the S cassette 31 are located at the same height with respect to the tape center. The position of the memory P plate 17 provided above the start and end LED holes 3g and 33g has the same height relationship from the tape center of the two cassettes. When arranged as shown in FIG. 38, the memory P plates 17 of the L cassette 1 and the S cassette 31 are in common positions. In other words, in the recording / reproducing apparatus in which two cassettes can be mounted, one connector 18
It can support both cassettes.

The positioning of the cassette with respect to the recording / reproducing apparatus when the S cassette 31 and the L cassette 1 are arranged as shown in FIG. 38 will be described. First, there are a total of four positionings, two for each of the front and rear positions of both cassettes. In this arrangement, the front positioning holes 3e, 3f, 33e, 33f are commonly used. Therefore, 3e and 3f of the L cassette 1 and 33 of the S cassette 31
Positioning pins are provided for e and 33f. Correspondingly, the height determining pins for guaranteeing the height of the cassette are arranged at the rear 3h and 3i in the L cassette 1, and at the rear 33h and 33i in the S cassette 31. Respectively.

Since 3h and 3i do not interfere with the S cassette 31, the height determining pin for the L cassette 1 can be selected at an appropriate position. The height determining pin 52 for the S cassette 31 is provided at the position shown in FIG. A sectional view of the reel 8 portion when the L cassette 1 is mounted is shown in FIG. (A) The position of the height determining pin 52 shown in the figure is the position of the annular concave portion 8h between the reel holding portion 8g and the reel receiving portion 8f of the reel 8. As described above, since the S cassette 31 is located at a position higher by d1 than the L cassette 1,
Although the height determining pin 52 of the cassette 31 interferes by the height difference d1, the annular recess 8h is at a position higher than the bottom surface of the S cassette 31 as is apparent from the enlarged view of FIG. Therefore, set the height determining pin 52 to the L cassette 1
Even if it is not moved at the time of mounting, it becomes the position of the annular recessed portion 8h between the reel holding portion 8g and the reel receiving portion 8f, and interference can be avoided. Although the reel 8 rotates, 8g and 8f are annular protrusions, and since this recess is also an annular recess, it does not interfere even if it rotates.

In FIG. 38 in which the positioning holes 3e, 3f, 33e and 33f are arranged at a common position, the plane of the locking portions 3x and 3v provided on the front surface of the lower half 3 of the L cassette 1 and the lower half of the S cassette 31 Locking portions 33x, 3 on the front surface of 33
The 3v plane is the same plane. Locking part 3 of L cassette 1
x has a receiving surface wider than the locking portion 3v, and when arranged in this manner, the locking portion 33 of the S cassette 31 as described above.
The first locking portion 3x1 that partially overlaps x and the second locking portion 3x2 near the side surface of the L cassette are connected. On the other hand, the locking portion 3v does not overlap with the locking portion 33v of the S cassette 31 and forms a second locking portion near the side surface.

When the cassettes are arranged as shown in FIG.
The width G1 of the opening 3p of the cassette 1 is wider than the width G2 of the opening 33p of the S cassette 31, but the tape guide 53 largely overlaps 55. Therefore, a common post can be arranged to guide the tape of any cassette to this common part. S cassette 3
At the position of the left side surface portion 34a of the front cover 34, there is a recess 3s of the lower half 3 of the L cassette 1. FIG. 42 is a relational diagram in which this portion is enlarged and the cassette lid opening member 56 is provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus.

42, in order to open and close the lid of the L cassette 1, an opening pin (L) 58 is provided at a position in contact with the side surface portion 4d of the front lid 4, and similarly, a left side surface portion of the side surface portion 34 of the S cassette 31. An open pin (S) 57 is provided at a position 34a slightly lower than the open pin (L) 58. The two release pins are attached to a substantially U-shaped cassette lid release member 56, and the release pin (S) 57 and the cassette lid release member 56 are located in the recess 3 s of the lower half 3 of the L cassette 1. Interference with the lower half 3 is avoided.

Next, FIG. 44 shows a locus of lid opening of the front lid 44 by the lid opening pin (S) 57. Regarding (a) to (f), the positions of the cassettes are displayed while the position of the lid opening pin (S) 57 is made common. In the case of the S cassette 31, the lid is opened by contacting the left side surface portion 34a of the front lid 34,
There is no problem because it does not interfere with the lid opening pin (L) 58. FIG. 43 shows the trajectory of the front cover 4 by the cover release pin (L) 58, and the front cover 4 by the cover release pin (L) 58.
5 shows the positional relationship between the lid opening pin (S) 57, the front lid 4, and the lower half 3 in the lid opening / closing trajectory. Here, the lid opening pin (S) 5
7 is at the position of the recess 3s of the lower half 3 of the L cassette 1, that is, at the position of the protrusion 4e of the front lid 4, but as is apparent from the respective locus positions, the protrusion 4e and the lid opening pin (S) are shown.
57 does not interfere at any position.

Next, an example of mounting such tape cassettes having different cassette sizes in a recording / reproducing apparatus will be described. FIG. 46 shows the L cassette 1 mounted on the recording / reproducing apparatus, and FIG. 47 shows the S cassette 31 mounted on the same recording / reproducing apparatus. The magnetic tapes 14 and 44 are guide posts 6
6, 61, 62, 65, a rotating head cylinder 60, a capstan 64, and a pinch roller 63. The reel table 50 that engages with the supply reel 8 and the take-up reel 10 is rotatably supported with the rotation center of the relay gear 67 as a rotation axis. In FIG. 46, it is moved to the reel position of the L cassette 1, and in FIG. 47 it is moved to the reel position of the S cassette 31 to be positioned.

The driving force of the capstan 64 is transmitted to the center gear 69 by the belt 70, and the relay gear 67 is selectively driven by the driving gear 68 which comes into contact with the center gear 69. As described above, the load on the mechanism can be reduced even if the reel positions are different.

Next, the positioning when the cassettes are inserted into the cassette holder 75 for transporting such two cassettes to the cassette take-out position of the recording / reproducing apparatus and the recording / reproducing position will be described with reference to FIGS. 53 to 55. When the two cassettes are arranged as shown in FIG. 38, the two cassettes must be similarly arranged and held in the cassette holder 75. First, the S cassette 31 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, the position of the cassette holder 75 is controlled in the central portion so as to be separated from the left and right side plates 75d. Although the position control means in the left-right direction will not be specifically described here, various methods have been proposed in the past, and the left-right position is controlled by some method to insert from the P direction.

Then, the locking portions 33x and 33v formed in the lower half abut on the cassette insertion restricting members 75a and 75b of the cassette holder 75, respectively, and the position with respect to the cassette holder 75 is determined. On the other hand, L cassette 1
53 is similarly inserted from the P direction while being guided by the left and right side plates 75d of the cassette holder 75 as shown in FIG. Then, the position with respect to the cassette holder 75 is determined by coming into contact with the cassette insertion restricting members 75a and 75c provided on the cassette holder 75.

The cassette insertion restricting member 75b is 75c,
75a, which is on the same plane as the locking portion 3 of the L cassette 1.
lid locking portion 3u recessed by the thickness of the front lid 4 from x, 3v
Since they oppose each other, there is a gap between 75b and 3u. Therefore, the lower half 3 of the L cassette 1 is 75a, 75
The position is determined by c.

FIG. 55 illustrates an example in which the L cassette 1 is inserted into the cassette holder 76 of the recording / reproducing apparatus which uses only the L cassette 1. In this case, the cassette position restricting members 76a, 7a are located at positions particularly close to the side surfaces of the restricting portions 3x, 3v.
6b may be located. The cassette can be received at a sufficiently wide interval with respect to the width of the cassette, and the position of the cassette can be regulated with extremely high accuracy.

[0074]

As described above, according to the present invention, when two cassettes having different sizes are selectively used in the recording / reproducing apparatus, they are provided at a common position with one of the locking portions provided in the small cassette. The position of the cassette can be regulated by the first locking portion provided and one of the plurality of second locking portions provided near the side surface portion of the large cassette. Since these two intervals are sufficiently larger than the interval between the two locking portions of the small cassette, the planar attitude of the large cassette can be accurately positioned. On the other hand, in a recording / reproducing apparatus that uses this large cassette alone, it is possible to regulate the planar attitude of the cassette at a wide interval close to the width of the cassette by using the second locking portion near the side of the cassette. it can. As described above, the present invention provides a cassette that can control the position with higher precision than the conventional system in either a recording / reproducing apparatus that can selectively use two cassettes or a recording / reproducing apparatus that uses only two cassettes. Can be.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an L cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external plan view, a side view, and a front view of the L cassette.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the L cassette.

FIG. 4 is a plan view and a side view of a lid locking mechanism of the L cassette.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a reel lock of the L cassette.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the L cassette during a reel lock operation.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the L cassette when the reel lock is not operated.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the L cassette when the reel is engaged with a reel table.

FIG. 9 is a side view of a reel of the L cassette.

FIG. 10 is a rear view of the lower half of the L cassette.

FIG. 11 is a view showing cross sections AA, BB, and CC of FIG. 10;

12 is a view showing a cross section DD of FIG.

FIG. 13 is a side view of the lid mechanism of the L cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a side view of the lid mechanism of the L cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a side view of the lid mechanism of the L cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a plan view of the L cassette.

FIG. 17 is a side view of the L cassette when the lid is opened.

FIG. 18 is a plan view and a side view of the semiconductor memory unit of the L cassette.

FIG. 19 is a side view of the memory cassette of the L cassette, which is equipped with a connector for writing and writing.

FIG. 20 is a front view of FIG. 19;

FIG. 21 is a plan view of FIG.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view of the upper and lower halves of the L cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a lid mechanism of the L cassette.

FIG. 24 is an external plan view, side view, and front view of the S cassette.

FIG. 25 is a rear view of the S cassette.

FIG. 26 is a view showing cross sections GG and HH of FIG. 25.

FIG. 27 is a reel lock plan view of the S cassette according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 28 is a sectional view of the S cassette during a reel lock operation.

FIG. 29 is a sectional view of the S cassette when the reel lock is not operated.

FIG. 30 is a plan view and side view of the lid lock mechanism of the S cassette.

FIG. 31 is a side view of a lid mechanism of the S cassette.

FIG. 32 is a side view of the lid mechanism of the S cassette.

FIG. 33 is a side view of the lid mechanism of the S cassette.

FIG. 34 is a plan view of the S cassette.

FIG. 35 is a side view of the S cassette when the reels are engaged with the reel table.

FIG. 36 is a front view of a semiconductor memory unit of the S cassette.

FIG. 37 is a side view of FIG. 36.

FIG. 38 is a plan view of the S and L cassettes according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 39 is a perspective view of a semiconductor memory portion of the S cassette.

FIG. 40 is a perspective view of the connector according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 41 is a side view of the engagement of the S and L cassettes with the reel table according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 42 is a plan view of the lid opening mechanism of the S and L cassettes.

FIG. 43 is a side view of the lid opening trajectory of the L cassette.

FIG. 44 is a side view of a lid opening mechanism of the S cassette.

FIG. 45 is a plan view and side view of the height positioning mechanism of the S cassette.

FIG. 46 is a plan view showing the application of the L cassette to a recording / reproducing device.

FIG. 47 is a plan view showing the application of the S cassette to a recording / reproducing device.

FIG. 48 is a side view of a lid opening / closing portion in a conventional tape cassette.

FIG. 49 is a side view of completion of lid opening in the conventional tape cassette.

FIG. 50 is a plan view of application of two tape cassettes of different sizes to a recording / reproducing apparatus in the related art.

FIG. 51 is a rear view of an arrangement of conventional S and L cassettes.

FIG. 52 is a view of the conventional tape cassette as seen from the direction of the front lid.

FIG. 53 is a plan view of the L cassette of the present invention inserted in a cassette holder.

FIG. 54 is a plan view of the S cassette of the present invention inserted in a cassette holder.

FIG. 55 is a plan view of the L cassette of the present invention inserted in a cassette holder.

FIG. 56 is a configuration diagram of positioning of two tape cassettes of different thicknesses according to the present invention to a recording / reproducing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 L cassette 2 upper half 3 lower half 3c, 3d, 3e, 3f positioning hole 3x first locking portion, second locking portion 3v, 3 × 2 second locking portion 31S cassette 33 lower half 33c , 33d, 33e, 33f Positioning holes 33x, 33v Locking portions 75a, 75b, 75c Position regulating portions

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yoshinori Shiomi 1006 Kadoma, Kadoma, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (72) Akihiro Nishimura, 1006 Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A pair of positioning holes which can be similarly mounted to a recording / reproducing apparatus in which a small cassette is mounted, and into which a cassette positioning member provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus is inserted.
A large cassette having a locking portion that comes into contact with a cassette insertion regulating member provided in the recording / reproducing apparatus, wherein the two positioning holes are arranged at the same position as the two positioning holes of the small cassette; A first locking portion located at a common position with one locking portion of two locking portions provided close to both side portions of the small cassette abutting on the cassette insertion regulating member of the recording and reproducing device; A tape cassette in which a plurality of second locking portions provided near both side surfaces of the cassette are formed in a lower half.