JPH0249032Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Technical field] This invention is intended for a tape cartridge in which the main body case has a back cover, and the front cover is pivotally connected so that the front cover and especially the back cover can be opened and closed smoothly. The front plate of the front cover is reinforced so that it can be opened and closed.

[Background technology]

For example, in a video tape cartridge, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, it is well known that a front cover 10 with a back cover 21 is pivotally connected to the front of a main body case 1 so that the front cover 10 can be opened and closed. . That is, when not in use, the front cover 10 covers the outside of the tape 2 led out to the front of the case, and when the player is loaded, the front cover 10 rotates upward to cover the tape 2.
can be pulled out to the front of the case. A tape loading pocket 19 is recessed in the front of the main body case 1, and the back cover 21 is pivotably pivoted inside the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 at the location where the pocket 19 is present. Supported. A part of the back cover 21 is linked to the main body case 1. Generally, as shown in Fig. 1, a sliding shaft 26 on the back cover 21 side is fitted and connected to a guide groove 23 on the main body case 1 side, and when not in use, the back cover 21 covers the back side of the tape 2 and the front The back cover 21 is configured to open in conjunction with the opening operation of the cover 10 without contacting or interfering with the tape 2.

In this manner, when the sliding shaft 26 slides along the guide groove 23, a certain amount of clearance is required between the two 23 and 26 to ensure smooth sliding guidance. If this clearance is too large, the back cover 21 will wobble when it is operated, and especially when the back cover 21 is in the closed position, the upper edge 21a of the back cover 21 will protrude from the top surface of the main case 1 as shown in FIG. 6, making it difficult to insert or remove the player. At times, the player-side member comes into contact with and interferes with the upper edge 21a of the back cover 21, causing damage to the corresponding part and other serious troubles. Further, a gap g is also created between the lower end of the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 and the lower edge of the back cover 21, and there is a possibility that dust may enter through this gap g and adhere to the tape 2. Therefore, it is necessary to set the clearance between the guide groove 23 and the sliding shaft 26 to a certain level or less, and to assemble them with high precision.

However, because the conventional front cover 10 is thinly molded from a plastic material (generally ABS resin, styrene resin, etc.) that has poor heat resistance and rigidity due to material cost, it is susceptible to deformation and damage when it comes into contact with other objects. easy to receive. In addition, if the tape cartridge is left in a high-temperature atmosphere for a long time, the front cover 10, especially the front plate 11, tends to be thermally deformed. That is, the left and right long front plate 11 may be twisted, or the left and right center portions of the front plate 11 may be bent and deformed toward the main body case as shown in FIGS. 7a and 7b, and as a result, the guide groove 23 and the sliding shaft 26 is set small, so that the sliding shaft 26 can fit into the guide groove 23.
This caused the back cover 21 to not open and close smoothly. Of course, thermal deformation occurs not only in the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 but also in the back cover mounting piece 2.
5, the sliding shaft 26 comes into contact with the rear guide surface 30 or the front guide surface 29 of the guide groove 23, the bottom surface of the groove, etc. in a complicated manner, and becomes strained.

Such problems can be overcome by molding the entire front cover 10 from a metal or plastic material with excellent heat resistance and rigidity. However, doing so would lead to a dramatic increase in production costs and is not a good idea. In addition, the pivot portion of the front cover 10 relative to the main body case 1 is made of different materials and is likely to wear out.

[Purpose of invention]

Focusing on this fact, the present invention is designed so that the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 is not easily deformed not only at room temperature but also when heated. The first priority is to guarantee certainty.

Another object of the present invention is to allow the front cover 10 to be molded from the same plastic material as in the past, thereby suppressing the increase in manufacturing costs.

[Summary of the idea]

In the present invention, a front cover 10 made of plastic is pivotally connected to the front of the main body case 1 so that it can be opened and closed, and a back cover 21 is pivotally connected to the inside of the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 so as to be able to swing freely. The present invention is based on a tape cartridge in which a back cover 21 is opened and closed in conjunction with the opening and closing operations of a lid 10. Here, the method of assembling the main body case 1, front cover 10, and back cover 21 is not particularly limited, and any conventionally known form may be adopted. For example, a typical example of the linking means between the main body case 1 and the back cover 21 is the above-mentioned sliding shaft 26 and guide groove 23.
Any device may be used as long as it restricts the movement of the back cover 21, and the front guide surface 29 or the rear guide surface 3 may be provided on the main body case 1 side.
0 may be provided, and the sliding shaft 26 may be always pressed against these guide surfaces (29 or 30) by appropriate spring means.

The present invention provides a tape cartridge having such a basic configuration, in particular, the front plate 1 as shown in FIG.
The entire front cover 10 including the front cover 1 is molded from plastic in the same manner as before, and the front cover 11 is integrally provided with a separate reinforcing member 31 having higher rigidity against heat.

As such a reinforcing member 31, a metal plate, such as a lightweight aluminum alloy plate, is preferably used, and the reinforcing member 31 is formed into a thin flat plate and is used as the front plate 1 of the front cover 10.
It is conceivable to fix it to the inner surface of 1 by suitable means. Furthermore, a metal reinforcing member 31 in the form of a flat plate, a line, or a mesh can be integrated into the front plate 11 during molding by insert molding. Further, as the reinforcing member 31, a plastic material having better heat resistance and rigidity than the plastic material of the front cover 10 may be integrated into the front plate 11 in the same manner as a metal material.

〔Example〕

The details will be explained below based on a small video tape cartridge shown in the drawings.

In FIGS. 2 and 3, 1 is a main body case. This is plastic upper and lower case 1
a, 1b are screwed together in a lid-like manner, and has tape reels 3, 3 on which the tape 2 is wound inside on the left and right sides. The tape reels 3, 3 are located above the left and right drive shaft insertion holes provided through the bottom wall 4 of the main body case 1,
A leaf spring 7 fixed to the inner surface of the upper wall 6 of the main body case 1
The center of rotation is biased downward. When the main body case 1 is loaded into a player, the drive shaft on the player side is fitted into the hub hole of each reel 3 through each drive shaft insertion hole. The main body case has tape path regulating pins 9, 9 at the left and right positions in the front, and the tape 2 is led out to the front of the case via these pins 9, 9.

A front cover 10 for protecting the main body case 1 with a tape that closes the front surface thereof is pivotally connected to the main body case 1 so as to be operable to open and close it.

The front cover 10 includes a front plate 11 that closes the front surface of the main body case 1 between the left and right sides, and a
A connecting piece 12 connected backward from both left and right ends of the
12, and pivot shafts 13, 13 protruding from the inner surfaces of both connecting pieces 12, 12 in an opposed manner. The left and right connecting pieces 12, 12 are connected to the front end concave portions 15a, 1 of the left and right side walls 15, 15 of the main body case 1.
5a and the pivots 13, 13 are fitted into the recessed portion 15.
The front cover 10 is fitted and pivotally supported in pivot holes 16, 16 provided in the a and 15a, respectively, and the front cover 10 rotates around the pivot 13 between a posture in which the front surface of the main body case 1 is closed and a posture in which the front surface is opened upward. It is pivoted to the closed position by a torsion spring 17 attached to a pivot shaft 13 on the right side of the figure.

When the tape cartridge is not in use, the front lid 10 is closed and covers and protects the outer front surface of the tape 2. When the tape cartridge is loaded into the player, the front lid 10 opens and covers the front edge of the main body case 1. A tape loading member on the player side enters into a pocket 19 formed in a large recessed shape in the left and right center portions and draws out the tape 2 to the front of the case.

Note that a gap 20 between the front end recess 15a of the right side wall 15 of the main body case 1 and the right side connecting piece 12 of the front lid 10
The torsion spring 17 described above and means for locking the front cover 10 in the closed position when the tape cartridge is not in use are incorporated therein.

The front lid 10 is located at the location where the pocket 19 is located.
As shown in Fig. 1, a plastic back cover 21 is pivotally connected to the inside of the tape 2 through a pivot 22, and the back cover 21 covers the back side of the tape 2, that is, the lower side, when not in use. The inner side and the upper surface of the opening of the pocket 19 are sealed to prevent dust from entering from the upper and lower opening surfaces of the pocket 19 and adhering to the tape 2. This back cover 21 is connected to guide grooves 23, 23 having approximately S-shaped cam profiles provided on the left and right sides of the pocket 19, and the back cover 21 is also pulled up as the front cover 10 is opened. It moves upward together with the front cover 10 without interfering with the tape 2 at all. And the front lid 10
Along with the closing operation, the back cover 21 also closes.

That is, back cover mounting pieces 25, 25 are integrally hung from the upper end side of the front plate 11 at locations near both left and right ends of the front plate 11 of the front cover 10, and these mounting pieces 25,
Pivot shafts 22, 22 protruding from both left and right ends of the upper and lower intermediate portions of the back cover 21 are pivotably supported on 25. Back cover 2
Sliding shafts 26, 26, which serve as cam followers, protrude from the left and right ends near the lower end of 1.
6 and 26 are engaged and connected to the guide grooves 23 and 23, respectively.

More specifically, as shown in FIG.
The left and right side surfaces of the pocket 19 having 3 are formed by a side wall 27 extending vertically from the front of the upper wall 6 of the upper case 1a, and a side wall erected on the bottom wall 4 of the lower case 1b connected to the tape path regulating pin 9. 28, and when the upper and lower cases 1a and 1b are connected, the rear end surface of the vertical side wall 27 and the forward stepped end surface formed on the pocket-side inner surface of the vertical side wall 28 are connected to the sliding shaft 26. These rear end faces and stepped end faces constitute the front and rear guide surfaces 29 and 30 of the guide groove 23.

In the tape cartridge having such a basic configuration, in the present invention, the front cover 10 is made of plastic molded from ABS resin, etc., but the front plate 11 is reinforced with a separate reinforcing member 31, so that the front cover 11 can be strengthened even under heating. The aim is to improve the rigidity so that it does not deform.

Specifically, as shown in Figures 1 and 5,
A reinforcing member 31 made of a laterally elongated metal thin plate was prepared, and was tightly fixed to the inner surface of the front plate 11 of the front lid 10 across the left and right sides. Examples of such thin metal plates include aluminum alloy plates, stainless steel plates, ordinary iron plates, etc., and plastic front cover 10.
Any material having higher rigidity may be used.

In the figure, welding protrusions 32, 32 are provided on the inner surface of the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 to protrude left and right, through holes 33, 33 are formed on the left and right sides of the reinforcing member 31, and each through hole 33 is fitted into the protrusion 32, respectively. In the assembled state, the reinforcing member 31 is integrally fixed to the inner surface of the front plate 11 by ultrasonic welding and caulking.

Although the illustrated example is as described above, in the present invention, the flat reinforcing member 31 may be adhesively fixed to the inner surface of the front plate 11 of the front lid 10. As mentioned above, the reinforcing members 31 may be made of a plastic material that has better heat resistance and rigidity than the plastic material used to form the front cover 10, or these reinforcing members 31 may be formed by insert molding. It may be integrated into the front plate 11. In addition, in the illustrated example, most of the inner surface of the front plate 11 is partially recessed, and the reinforcing member 31 is fitted flush with this recessed surface. The reinforcing member 31 may be stretched over the entire inner surface, or two or more reinforcing members 31 may be divided into upper and lower parts and integrated.

In addition, the means for connecting the back cover 21 to the main body case 1 is not limited to the illustrated example. for example,
The complete guide groove 23 may be formed only by the side wall 28 erected on the lower case 1b side, or the guide groove 23
It may also be a form in which a separate member having the following is assembled to the main body case 1. In addition, in the illustrated example, the upper surface plate portion of the back cover 21 covers the front end upper surface of the main body case 1 including the upper surface of the opening of the pocket 19 between the left and right sides. The left and right width may be such that the upper surface plate portion covers only the upper surface of the opening of the pocket 19. In addition, one of the left and right sliding shafts 26, 26 on the back cover 21 side is set to have a large diameter and the other to a small diameter, and the large diameter sliding shaft 26 exclusively regulates the movement of the back cover 21, and the diameter The small sliding shaft 26 may simply follow.

[Effect of idea]

As explained above, according to this invention, in a tape cartridge having a structure in which a front cover 10 with a back cover 21 is attached to a main body case 1, the front cover 10 is molded from plastic as in the conventional case. However, the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 is integrally provided with a separate reinforcing member 31 that is more rigid than the front plate 11 even at room temperature and under heating. The rigidity is increased, and the front plate 11 in particular is made to be less susceptible to thermal deformation. Therefore, not only the front plate 11 of the front cover 10 but also the back cover 2 which is pivotally supported inside the front plate 11.
1 is also hardly affected by heat, so the reliability of the opening and closing operations of the front cover 10 and the back cover 21 interlocked therewith can be well guaranteed over a long period of time.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 5 illustrate the tape cartridge according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 3, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the overall appearance,
FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway plan view thereof, FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the main parts, and FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing the front cover and reinforcing member, which are the constituent members of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional side view corresponding to FIG. 1 for explaining a defective state in the conventional example, FIGS. 7 a and b show a deformed state of the front cover in the conventional example, and FIG. 7 a is a schematic plan view; FIG. 7b is a longitudinal sectional side view corresponding to FIG. 1. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Main body case, 2...Tape, 3...Tape reel, 10...Front cover, 11...Front plate of front cover, 12...Connecting piece of front cover, 19...Pocket, 21... Back cover, 22... Pivot, 23... Guide groove, 25... Back cover mounting piece, 26... Sliding shaft, 31
...Reinforcement member.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A front lid 10 that covers the outside of the tape 2 led out to the front of the main body case 1 is pivotally connected to the main body case 1 so that it can be opened and closed.
In a tape cartridge in which a back cover 21 that covers the back side of the tape 2 is pivotally connected to the inside of the tape 2, a separate reinforcing member having higher heat resistance is attached to the front plate 11 of the front cover 10. 31 is integrally provided.