Front loading disc player

A front-loading disc player comprising:

• a housing having an aperture formed in a substantially vertically oriented outer panel thereof;
• playing means disposed within said housing for supporting and rotating a disc to read out the contents thereof;
• a disc transport mechanism for transporting a disc to be played by said playing means, comprising a tray which is slidably mounted for movement directed inward and outward with respect to said housing along a substantially horizontal first predetermined direction, with at least a portion of said tray passing through said aperture, said tray having an aperture formed therein having a diameter greater than that of said disc, said disc transport mechanism further comprising a container mounted to permit only substantially vertically directed movement relative to said tray and having a portion thereof provided with a disc supporting surface being disposed at a lower part of said tray aperture, said container being provided with a plurality of engaging protrusions formed extending substantially horizontally therefrom, first and second cam members of elongated shape mutually disposed on opposite sides of said tray substantially parallel to said first predetermined position and slidably mounted on said tray for movement along said predetermined position, said cam members being respectively formed with a plurality of cam apertures of inclined shape formed therein, positioned to engage said engaging protrusions of said container such that said container is supported by said cam members, and further comprising an elongated rack gear portion formed along said first cam member, said disc transport mechanism further comprising a linking mechanism coupled to mutually link said first and second cam members such that movement of said first cam member along said first predetermined position produces a corresponding movement of said second cam member in the opposite direction, said tray being movable to a first predetermined position at which said tray aperture is disposed substantially entirely out of said housing and a second predetermined position at which said tray aperture is disposed within said housing with said disc aligned in a predetermined vertical relationship with respect to said playing means, said disc transport mechanism further comprising a rack drive gear wheel meshing with said rack gear portion of said first cam member, drive means coupled to said rack drive gear wheel, operable to rotate said rack drive gear wheel such as to drive said first cam member inward with respect to said housing along said first predetermined position, and locking means for locking said linking mechanism with respect to said tray while said disc transport mechanism is in any position other than said second predetermined position and for holding said linking mechanism in a freely operable condition when said disc transport mechanism is at said second predetermined position thereof;
• said drive means being thereby operable to drive said disc transport mechanism inward with respect to said housing from said first predetermined position to said second predetermined position with a disc mounted on said container supporting surface, acting through said rack drive gear wheel, said rack gear portion, and said first cam member fixedly coupled to said tray by said locked linking mechanism, and, when said second predetermined position is reached and said locked condition of said linking mechanism is released, acting to drive said first cam member further inward with respect to said housing, said linking mechanism thereby being moved from a non-operating position thereof in which said disc is supported by said container supporting surface to an operating position thereof in which said container is lowered to mount said disc on said playing means.