JPH0469876A - tape cassette - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a tape cassette, and more particularly to a tape cassette suitable for a magnetic recording/reproducing device such as a video tape recorder.

Conventional technology In general, tape cassettes installed in magnetic tape devices such as video tape recorders cover the magnetic tape stretched on the front of the case body only with a front cover provided on the front of the case body, and the tape cassette is stretched on the front side. A cutout groove for opening the front cover was provided at a position that did not overlap with the tape (see, for example, 1. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 60-214488).

Hereinafter, a conventional tape cassette as described above will be explained with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a conventional tape cassette, FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a notch for opening the lid, and FIG. 12 is a plan view of essential parts of a conventional tape cassette.

In FIGS. 1.0 to 12, the tape cassette has an upper cassette case 102 with a built-in tape reel 101.
A and a lower cassette case 102b are fitted together to form a cassette case 102. There are three openings on the front of this cassette case 102] 1 part 103a, 1
03b and 103c are formed, and these open L1 parts 10
The magnetic tape 104 wound on the tape reel 101 is stretched along lines 3a, 103b, and 103c.

105 indicates these openings 103a, 103b, 1
．． This is a front cover rotatably provided on the side surface of the cassette case 102 to cover the front surface of the magnetic tape 104 located along the line 03C.

The above tape cassettes can be used with a magnetic recording and reproducing device (hereinafter referred to as VTR).
), the cassette case 10
A lid opening/closing fitting 107 installed on the VTR side is located below the front notch 106 of 2. When the tape cassette moves downward, the front lid 105 first comes into contact with the lid opening/closing fitting 107, and then the lid opening/closing fitting 107 comes into contact with the front lid 105. The front cover 105 is rotated about the fulcrum 10B, and the front cover of the cassette case 102 is opened to enable recording and reproduction.

Furthermore, the discharge from the VTR is performed in exactly the opposite manner.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in the above configuration, the magnetic tape stretched over the front of the cassette case is covered only by the front cover, and the front and upper ends are covered, so the back and lower ends of the magnetic tape are There was a problem in that the tape was not protected the same way, and the tape could be damaged by dust or touch.

In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention has a structure in which the front cover and back cover completely cover the magnetic tape stretched on the front of the cassette case, thereby preventing tape damage due to manual contact or dust adhesion. In addition, at least one of the grooves for opening the front cover is located at a distance from the side of the cassette, which prevents direct impact from the outside and maintains a stable opening position for the front and back covers. The purpose of this invention is to provide a tape cassette that can.

Furthermore, the present invention provides a tape cassette which has two or more parts for opening the lid, thereby increasing the degree of freedom in the configuration of the VTR side which opens and closes the front and back lids.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the tape cassette of the present invention includes:
A pair of tape reels that wind the tape and disconnect both ends of the tape, a cassette case with the tape stretched on the front and a built-in pair of tape reels, and a cassette case with the tape stretched on the front and inside the tape. An opening provided in the cassette case, a front cover that pivots on the side of the cassette case and rotates to cover the front of the tape stretched on the front, and a front cover that pivots on the front cover and rotates on the back of the tape. A back cover covered by the
A guide groove is formed on the cassette case to restrict the rotation of the back cover, and a notch groove for opening the front cover is provided on the front of the cassette case where the tape is not stretched and is located away from the side of the cassette case. It was established.

According to the present invention, with the above-described configuration, the tape stretched over the front surface of the cassette case is completely covered by the front cover and the back cover, so that the dustproof property against dust and human touch is improved. Also, at least one of the front lid opening grooves for opening the front lid.
One is located at a distance from the side of the cassette, so
The opening position of the front cover and back cover can be maintained at stable positions without being susceptible to damage to the lid opening part caused by external shocks. Further, since two or more grooves for opening the front cover are provided, it is possible to provide a tape cassette that allows a greater degree of freedom on the VTR side for opening and closing the front cover and back cover.

EXAMPLE Hereinafter, a tape cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 9.

Fig. 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of the present invention with the upper cassette case and front cover removed, Fig. 2 is a plan view with the back cover removed, and Fig. 3 is a plan view of the tape cassette. 4
Figures 5 and 5 are sectional views of the tape cassette in the X-X section with the lid closed and the lid open. Figures 6 and 7 are sectional views of the tape cassette in the Y-Y section with the lid closed and the lid open. The figure shows a plan view of the main part of the tape cassette for the M loading running system, and FIG. 9 shows a plan view of the main part of the tape cassette for the U loading running system.

In Figures 1 to 7, as is clear from the figures, the tape cassette 1 has an upper cassette case 2 and a lower cassette case 3 that fit together to form a flat cassette case, and the tape cassette 1 is identical in appearance. Two cassette reels 4a and 4b arranged on a plane
, and a magnetic tape 5.

The cassette reels 4a and 4b each have the starting end or the ending end of the magnetic tape 5 fixed, and the magnetic tape 5 is placed around them.
is being wound around.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a front cover that covers the top and front surface of the magnetic tape 5, and has a substantially U-shape as shown in FIGS. Furthermore, upper and lower cassette cases 2,
A pair of front cover rotation support shafts 6a, 6b provided on the left and right end side plates of the front cover 6 are supported by the front M6, and the front M6 is supported by the rotation support shafts 6a, 6.
Rotates around b. Furthermore, the front M6 is always biased in the lid closing direction by a front lid biasing spring 7 provided on the rotation support shaft 6b. This biasing spring 7 is constituted by a torsion coil spring, and one end is supported by the upper cassette case 2, and the other end is supported by a pin 6c provided on the front cover rotation support shaft 6b.

8a and 8b are the magnetic tape 5 placed in the upper and lower cassette cases 2 and 3.
This opening is a space into which a boss (not shown) that is pulled out from the lower cassette case 3 enters, and is separated by a partition 3a that protrudes from the lower cassette case 3.

Furthermore, a slack prevention plate 3b is provided on the front side of the partition portion 3a to prevent the magnetic tape 5 stretched on the front side from loosening backward.
A first positioning hole 3c for positioning the tape cassette 1 is further provided in the partition portion 3a.

This partition is provided on the longitudinal center line of the cassette reel 4a, and is located at the position where the distance between the walls of the upper and lower cassette cases 2, 3 and the magnetic tape 5 stretched over the entire surface is the shortest. The area of the openings 8a and 8b is made as wide as possible, and the symmetrical opening 8b is provided approximately at the center of the tape cassette 1.

The magnetic tape 5 is guided by stainless steel guide bosses 9a and 9b located approximately at the left and right ends of the upper and lower cassette cases 2 and 3.
is projected from the front of the upper and lower cassette cases 2 and 3.

The stainless steel guide posts 9a and 9b are made of a non-magnetic material with high precision and a surface roughness of 0.4 μm or less.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a back cover that covers the back side of the opening 8 of the magnetic tape 5. In the back cover 10, a pair of back cover rotation support shafts 10a and 10b that protrude left and right are supported by a bearing part 6e of a bracket part 6d integrally provided with the front cover 6. The back cover 10 is rotatable around pivot shafts 10a and lOb.

11a is a guide groove that guides the guide bin 10c at the left end of the lid 10, and the opening 8a of the lower cassette case 3
The guide groove 11a does not overlap the guide post 9a in the width direction A of the tape cassette 1, and is disposed substantially at the rear of the guide post 9a.

11, b is a guide groove for guiding the right guide vinyl 10c at the right end of the back cover 10, and is provided at the right end of the opening part 8b of the -1ζ cassette case 3.As is clear from the figure, , the left and right guide grooves 113.llb have different distances from 1b in the tape cassette 1, and
a and llb are configured with different groove shapes.

Dotted lines in Figures 1 and 2! 5a and 5h do not have a tape bus area from which the magnetic tape 5 can be pulled out from the left and right tape rolls 13a and 13b during normal running.

These tape bus areas 5a and 5b are formed within a range that does not come into contact with the guide posts 9a and 9b inside the tape cassette.
``'tT is there.

Dot-dashed lines 5c and 5d indicate tape buses pulled out from the left and right tape rolls 13a and 1.3b during high-speed running,
The guide posts 9a and 9b are in contact with each other.

Reference numeral 12 denotes a notch in the lower cassette 1-case 3 that is cut out because the guide post 9a is moved closer to the opening 8a in order to enlarge the left tape bus area 5a during normal running.

10e is provided at the left end of the camera back 10, and a left guide 1' is provided at the left end of the back cover 10.
d, and when the lid is closed, the notch 12
The bracket part 6d of the front cover 6 and the rib 10e of the back cover 10
cIt has a structure that covers it.

13a, L3b, the magnetic Arp 5 is connected to the cassette reel 4a,
It is a tape roll wound up in 4b.

Reference numeral 14 denotes a lighthouse consisting of a photodiode that emits light toward a light receiving element (not shown) in order to detect the start and end ends of the magnetic tape 5.

Reference numeral 15 designates an insertion hole provided on the bottom surface of the lower cassette case 3 through which the light stand 14 enters into the tape cassette 1.

When the lid is opened, the light from the lighthouse 14 inserted into the insertion hole 15 passes through the light receiving paths 16a and 16b from the inside of the lower cassette cases 2 and 3 to the light receiving holes provided on the left and right sides of the upper and lower cassette cases 23. It passes through 17a and 17b and is guided to the outside.

18a and 18b are second cassettes provided in the lower cassette case 3.
This is the cassette case positioning hole.

Reference numeral 19 denotes a lock part (not shown) provided on the side plate of the front cover 6 to prevent the front cover 6 from opening inadvertently and damaging the magnetic tape 5 when the VTR (not shown) is not attached to the VTR. 21a and 21b are locking members that engage and lock the front M6, and the locking member biasing spring 20 always biases the locking member 19 in the direction of engaging with the front MIJ hook portion. tape 5
The shafts 22a and 22a provided in the upper and lower cassette cases 2 and 3 are brake gears for preventing tape slack due to careless rotation of the cassette reels 4a and 4b wound around the cassette reels 4a and 4b.
22b, and is constantly biased by a biasing spring (not shown) in a direction in which the tip engages with the cassette reels 4a, 4h.

23a and 23e are cutout grooves provided in the upper and lower cassette cases 2 and 3, and the cover opening provided on the VTR side allows a member (not shown) to enter either groove and move the front M6 in the cover opening direction. The lid opening for pushing up the lid is a service groove, and when the lid is closed, the lid opening of the front cover 6 is the part 6f, the lid opening is the usage groove 23a, and the lid opening is the part 6.
g and the opening groove 23c face each other.

For opening the lid, the groove 23a has a substantially triangular shape with the cassette case 2.3 as the bottom surface, and one oblique side 23b of the groove 23a
is the tape bus area 5 at the maximum diameter of the tape roll 13b.
It is approximately parallel to b, so that the tape bus area can be made as wide as possible.

Reference numeral 24 denotes a locking member rotation shaft on which the locking member 19 rotates.

Reference numeral 25 denotes a reel brake release hole into which a brake release bin (not shown) on the VTR side is inserted, which rotates the reel brakes 21a, 21b in the direction of detaching from the cassette reels 4a, 4b.

The configuration on the VTR side will be explained with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. 26 is a cylinder for recording and reproducing signals.

Reference numerals 27a and 27h are a vertical post and an inclined post of a supply side loading post that wraps the magnetic tape 5 around the left half of the cylinder 26, and both are the same moving member (not shown).
planted on top.

Reference numerals 27c and 27d are winding posts for winding approximately the right half, and both are mounted on the same moving member (not shown).

28 is a tension post that controls the tension of the magnetic tape 5 while it is running.

29 is a pinch roller, 30 is a drawer post on the winding side,
31 is a full erase head for erasing information on the magnetic tape 5; 32 is an A/C head for determining the running speed of the magnetic tape 5 and the rotational phase with the cylinder 26; 33 is a capstan that pinches the magnetic tape 5 with the pinch roller 29 and drives the tape.

34a, 34b, 34c, and 34d are a group of loading posts installed on the only loading ring 35.

36 is the center line of the tape cassette 1, and the cylinder 26
approximately coincides with the center of

The operation of the tape cassette 1 constructed as above will be described below.

The fourth state is a diagram with the lid closed, and the openings 8a and 8b are normally open.
The magnetic tape 5 that is stretched is covered by a front cover 6 and a back cover 10, respectively.

Even if you intentionally try to open the front lid 6 upward, the locking member 19 and the front lid rotor portion (not shown) of the front lid 6 will come into contact with each other.
It does not rotate in the direction of the arrow ■.

In this way, damage to the tape due to careless opening of the front cover 6 is prevented.

Next, when the tape cassette 1 is inserted into a VTR (not shown), the locking member 19 is rotated clockwise around the shaft 24, becoming 19a shown by a broken line, and the locking member 19 is disengaged from the front cover locking portion. 6, the lid can be opened upward.

Next, by moving the tape cassette 1 in the direction of the arrow ■,
The lid opening member (not shown) provided on the VTR side is the front lid 6.
The lid opening of the upper and lower cassette cases 2 and 3 provided inside enters into the groove 23, and when the tape cassette 1 moves in the ■ direction, the front M6 is rotated around the front lid rotation support shafts 6a and 6b. A force is generated that tries to rotate it clockwise. Further arrow
When the front M6 is moved in the direction, the front M6 is opened upward against the front lid biasing spring 7 around the support shafts 6a and 6b.

Further, the back cover 10 has a left guide groove 11a provided in the lower cassette case 3 around the pair of left and right back cover support shafts 10a and 10b.
, while being regulated by the right guide groove 11b, rotates integrally with the front cover 6, and enters the state shown in FIGS. 4 to 7.

At this time, the opening heights of the front cover and back cover are determined by the opening portion 6f or 6g of the front cover 6.

Here, the groove shapes of the left and right guide grooves 11a and llb are a pair of left and right rotation support shafts 10a provided on the same straight line.

When the back IEIO is rotated a certain amount around 10b,
The left and right guide bins llc and lid have different positions from the rotation support shafts 10a and 10b. 10f draws the same locus.

In this way, as the front M6 rotates, the back cover IO opens and closes the notch 12 on the back surface of the magnetic tape 5 using the bracket part 6d and the rib 10e of the front M6.

Further, at the same time as the front cover 6 and the back 110 are opened and closed, a reel brake release member (not shown) installed inside the VTR enters the reel brake release hole 25, and the cassette reels 4a, 4
Reel brakes 21a and 21b that stopped the rotation of b
The cassette reel 4a is rotated in a direction to separate from the cassette reels 4a and 4b.

Release the restriction of 4b. Furthermore, the reel stand inside the VTR (
(not shown) are the respective cassette reels 4a.

4b and becomes freely rotatable.

On the other hand, a lighthouse 14 provided in the VTR for detecting the beginning and end of the magnetic tape 5 enters into the insertion hole 15.

In this way, when the magnetic tape 5 is running at high speed or while being pulled out, the guide posts 9a,
Contact 9b. Therefore, the magnetic tape 5 is not damaged.
Alternatively, in order to ensure highly accurate tape running performance, the guide posts 9a and 9b may be
High precision is required for surface roughness.

Next, the loading operation in the M loading travel system shown in FIG. 8 will be explained.

Loading bosses 27a, 27b on the supply side and tension post 28 for winding the magnetic tape 5 around the rotating cylinder 26 are located in the opening 8a of the tape cassette 1, loading posts 27c, 27d on the winding side and the pinch roller 2 are located in the opening 8a of the tape cassette 1.
9 and the winding side drawer post 30 are bilaterally symmetrical opening 8
Enter b.

In response to the loading command, the magnetic tape 5, which is projected from the position indicated by the broken line by each boss l-, is pulled out within the tape bus area 5a15b during normal running and moved to the position indicated by the solid line.

As a result, the cylinder 26, the full erase head 31,
The A and /C heads 32 are caused to wrap and run by a predetermined amount.

As shown in the figure, in a format where the distance between the cylinder 26 and the A/C head is long, the cylinder 26 must be attached to the tape cassette 1 in order to achieve a compact arrangement of the running system.
is placed on the left side of

That is, the posts constituting the traveling system from the tape cassette 1 are arranged so that they do not protrude from the tape cassette 1 to a large extent in the width direction.

In loading in such a traveling system, the opening 8a on the left side is the loading post 27a.

This is effective for inserting the 27b1 tension post 28.

Furthermore, the loading operation in the U loading travel system shown in FIG. 9 will be explained.

Winding side ports 34a and 34b for winding the magnetic tape 5 around the rotating cylinder 26 and a vinyl
- The tensicompost 28 enters into the left opening 8a, where the roller 29 and the winding-side drawer post 30 are symmetrical, and the tensicompost 28 enters into the left opening 8a, as shown by the wavy line.

Next, by the loading command, loading ring 3
Posts 34a, 34b, 3 planted on 5
4 c35dl! By rotating the loading ring 35 counterclockwise, the magnetic tape 5 is wound around the cylinder 26.
The position is shown by the solid line. The tension post 28 and the winding-side drawer boss 30 also move from the wavy line state to the solid line state.

In this way, in the U loading method, a large number of loading bosses 34a are arranged approximately concentrically with the cylinder 26.
, 34b, 34c, and 34d are arranged. If each post were driven independently, the number of parts and cost would increase significantly. Therefore, conventionally, each post has been arranged in one loading ring 35 to simplify the process.

In order for each post installed on the loading ring 35 to pass through the opening 1'' portion 8b and pull out the magnetic tape 5 smoothly, the opening 8b should have a more symmetrical shape. It is clear from the diagram that 8b can be used effectively.

Although the mounting operation for mounting the J-tape cassette 1 at the cassette mounting position of the VTR has been described above, the operation for removing the tape cassette 1 from the VTR is performed in the complete opposite manner to the mounting operation.

In the present invention, since the magnetic tape 5 is sent from the cassette reel 4a to the cassette reel 4b in the M running system shown in FIG. The opening 1 is provided on the right side of the section 8b. However, when the running direction of the magnetic tape 5 is completely opposite, the opening 8a is replaced with a substantially symmetrical opening 8.
It may be provided on the right side of b.

Further, although the second opening groove 23c is provided at the left end of the lid 6, it may be provided at the right end or both ends.

Effects of the Invention As described above, the present invention completely covers the tape stretched over the front of the cassette with the front cover and back cover to prevent damage to the tape due to dust and manual contact, and also prevents the tape from being damaged by dust or human touch. At least one of the grooves for opening the lid is located at a distance from the side of the cassette, making it less susceptible to damage to the lid opening part caused by external shocks and stabilizing the opening positions of the front and back lids. Can be kept in position. Furthermore, since there are generally two or more grooves for opening the front cover, the VTR side has a large degree of freedom in opening and closing the front cover and back cover.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 shows an upper cassette reel according to an embodiment of the present invention, a flat chamber with the front cover removed, Fig. 2 shows a sectional view of the tape cassette with the back cover closed along YY section, and the tape cassette in an open state. Figure 8 is M
Fig. 9 is a plan view of the main parts of the tape cassette for the loading transport system, Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the conventional tape cassette, and Fig. 11 is a cross-section of the part where the lid is opened. 12 are plan views of essential parts from the bottom of the tape cassette. 1... Tape cassette, 2... Upper cassette case, 3... Lower cassette case, 3a.
・・・・・・Partition part, 5...Magnetic tape, 5a
, b...Tape bath area, 6...Front lid, 6f, 6g...Lid opening part, 8a, b...
...Opening, 10...Back cover, 23a, 23
c...The lid opens with a groove. Name of agent Patent attorney Shigetaka Awano 1 person Figure 10 Figure 11 Figure 12 Dimensions and make-up, -1/ \-1〆-1\1

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) A pair of tape reels for winding a tape and locking both ends of the tape, a cassette case with the tape stretched over its entire surface and housing the pair of tape reels, and a cassette case that is stretched on the front. an opening provided in the cassette case inside the tape; a front cover that rotates to cover the front surface of the tape that is supported pivotably on the side surface of the cassette case and stretched on the front surface; a back cover that is supported and rotates to cover the back surface of the tape; a guide groove formed in the cassette case that restricts the rotation of the back cover; and a front surface of the cassette case where the tape is not stretched; A tape cassette characterized by comprising a notch groove for opening the front cover provided at a position separated from the side surface of the cassette case. (2) Claim (1) characterized in that the notch groove for opening the front cover has a substantially triangular shape with the front side of the cassette case as the base.
) Tape cassette described. (3) a pair of tape reels for winding tape and locking both ends of the tape; a cassette case with the tape stretched on the front side and housing the pair of tape reels; an opening provided in the cassette case on the inside of the tape; a front cover that rotates to cover the front surface of the tape that is pivoted on the side surface of the cassette case and stretched on the front surface; a back cover that is supported and rotates to cover the back surface of the tape; a guide groove formed in the cassette case that restricts the rotation of the back cover; and a front surface of the cassette case where the tape is not stretched; A first notch for opening the front lid provided at a position apart from the side surface of the cassette case, and a second groove for opening the front lid provided at at least one of the left and right ends of the front lid. Featured tape cassette. (4) The tape cassette according to claim (3), wherein the first front cover opening notch groove has a substantially triangular shape with the front side of the cassette case as its base.