Disk player using a single motor in common for driving its tray and optical pickup

#1. Field of the Invention

#The present invention relates to a disk player for use in recording and reproducing data in an optical disc or a magneto-optical disc such as a CD, DVD, or MD, using a motor in common for putting different drive systems in operation.

#2. Related Art

#FIG. 1 is a plane view of a disk player according to one embodiment of the present invention with its disk tray appearing out of the housing;

#FIG. 2 is a plane view of the disk player with its disk tray entering the housing;

#FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b) are plane and side views of a cam rod which can traverse the housing;

#Referring to FIG. 1, the disk player has its disk tray 1 put in opening position, in which the disk tray 1 appears from the casing 35. The disk tray 1 has a circular depression made on its upper surface for accommodating a disk. It has a tray rack 2 and an “L”-shaped guide slot 3 made on its lower surface. First and second trains of gears allotted for driving the disk tray 1 and an optical pickup 23 respectively are mounted in the housing 35. The first train of gears can be detachably coupled with the second train of gears via an intervening drive switching gear assembly 12 and 19 (FIG. 5) and a cam rod 10 (FIG. 3). The cam rod 10 has its boss 5 movably fitted in the guide slot 3. The tray rack 2 and associated tray drive gear 4 are combined to provide a rack-and-pinion, which can move the disk tray 1 back and force when the drive motor 6 is energized to drive the first train of gears.

#When the drive motor 6 rotates the tray drive gear 4 counterclockwise, the disk tray 1 is made to advance a predetermined distance, reaching the opening position (FIG. 1), and when the drive motor 6 rotates the tray drive gear 4 clockwise, the disk tray 1 is made to withdraw the predetermined distance, reaching the closing position (FIG. 2). This controlled reciprocation and the data-reproducing operation subsequent to withdrawal of the disk tray 1 in housing 35 can be performed by the unique mechanism according to the present invention, which comprises the “L”-shaped guide slot 3, the cam rod 10 operatively connected to the “L”-shaped guide slot 3, and the drive-switching gear assembly 12 and 19 operatively connected to the cam rod 10 and the first train of gears. All of these parts work together so as to permit the single drive motor 6 to switch and selectively drive the disk tray 1 or the optical pickup 23.

#As shown in FIG. 1, the “L”-shaped guide slot 3 is composed of a longitudinal slot section 7, a lateral slot section 8, and a longitudinal-to-lateral transient slot section 9. Longitudinal slot section 7 is bent in the vicinity of its end as indicated at 30. Referring to FIG. 3, the cam rod 10 comprises an orthogonal, horizontal-and-vertical guide plate assembly. As shown in the drawing, the horizontal guide plate has cam rack 11 formed at one end on one longitudinal side, a boss 5 standing upright close to the one end, a longitudinal guide groove 14, a projection 42 formed on the one longitudinal side, chamfered projection 29 formed on the other longitudinal side (see FIG. 3a). The guide groove 14 comprises a relatively narrow groove section 16b, a relatively wide groove section 16a and an oblique, narrow-to-wide groove transient section 17. On the other hand, the vertical guide plate has an “escalator-like” guide groove 15 made therein (FIG. 3b). Finally referring to FIG. 5, a drive-switching gear assembly comprises a drive-switching gear 12 and an associated gear 19, both connected by an arm 20. The arm 20 has a projection 32, and a stationary spring wire 33 is caught by the projection 32, pushing the drive switching gear 12 apart from the leading gear or pickup-feeding gear 13 of the second train of gears. Thus, the drive-switching gear assembly is normally spring-biased toward the disconnecting position in which the first train of gears for driving the disk tray 1 is disconnected from the second train of gears for driving the pickup 23.