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US 6,388,971 B2Granted
Disc recording and/or reproducing apparatus and disc reproducing apparatus
AssigneeSony Corporation
InventorHirotoshi Fujisawa
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A disc recording and/or reproducing apparatus, employing a disc cartridge housing a disc with a diameter of approximately 64 mm, small enough to be placed in a user's pocket for easy transportation. The disc recording and/or reproducing apparatus has a spindle motor and optical pickup device mounted such that a surface of the spindle motor and the pickup is fitted into the base to reduce the thickness of the apparatus.
Claims13
A disc reproducing apparatus employing a disc cartridge having housed therein a disc having a diameter of approximately 64 mm, said disc cartridge having an aperture for exposing the disc, said disc reproducing apparatus further comprising:
- a main casing body portion having a longer side and a shorter side;
- a casing base provided on said main casing body portion as a metallic plate, the casing base having a cut-out of substantially the same size as the aperture in the disc cartridge;
- a cartridge holder configured to hold the disc cartridge and coupled to an upper surface of said casing base by a cartridge holder support configured to provide a rotational axis parallel to the shorter side of the main casing body portion around which said cartridge holder is configured to rotate to place the cartridge holder in a first position spaced apart from the upper surface and in a second position next to said upper surface;
- a casing lid coupled to the upper surface by a casing lid support configured to provide a rotational axis parallel to the shorter side of the main casing body portion around which the casing lid is configured to rotate said casing lid being configured to rotate with said cartridge holder;
- a spindle motor having a rotational shaft extending therefrom, with a portion of said spindle motor being fitted into and attached to said casing base
- a rotational driving unit having a disc table configured to be protruded from the upper surface of said casing base with the disc in said disc cartridge held by said cartridge holder being set on said disc table when said cartridge holder is in said second position, the rotational shaft of the spindle motor being coupled to the disc table to rotationally drive the disc table;
- a pickup feed motor configured to be fitted into and attached to said casing base, said pickup feed motor having a rotational shaft extending therefrom in a direction substantially parallel to a direction of extension of the rotational shaft of said spindle motor;
- and
- a feed unit arranged on said opposite surface of the casing base including a feed screw coupled to the rotational shaft of the feed motor and a pickup having at least a pickup portion extending into said cut-out in said casing base, with rotation of the rotational shaft of the feed motor driving the lead screw coupled thereto to move the pickup portion in said cut-out along a radial disc direction,
- wherein said pickup has a light source, an objective lens for condensing a light beam from said light source on to the disc and an actuator for driving said objective lens, said actuator being included in the pickup portion that is intruded via said cut-out in the casing base into the aperture in said disc cartridge when said cartridge holder is in said second position.
7 more elements
A disc recording and/or reproducing apparatus employing a disc cartridge having housed therein a disc, said disc cartridge having an aperture for exposing the disc, said disc recording and/or reproducing apparatus further comprising:
- a main casing body portion having a longer side and a shorter side;
- a casing base provided on said main casing body portion, the casing base as a metallic plate having a cut-out of substantially the same size as the aperture in the disc cartridge;
- a cartridge holder configured to hold the disc cartridge and coupled to an upper surface of said casing base by a cartridge holder support configured to provide a rotational axis parallel to the shorter side of the main casing body portion around which said cartridge holder is configured to rotate to place the cartridge holder in a first position spaced apart from the upper surface and in a second position next to said upper surface;
- a casing lid coupled to the upper surface by a casing lid support configured to provide a rotational axis parallel to the shorter side of the main casing body portion around which the casing lid is configured to rotate said casing lid being configured to rotate with said cartridge holder;
- a spindle motor having a rotational shaft extending therefrom, with a portion of said spindle motor being fitted into and attached to said casing base;
- a rotational driving unit having a disc table configured to be protruded from the upper surface of said casing base with the disc in said disc cartridge held by said cartridge holder being set on said disc table when said cartridge holder is in said second position, the rotational shaft of the spindle motor being coupled to the disc table to rotationally drive the disc table;
- a pickup feed motor configured to be fitted into and attached to said casing base, said pickup feed motor having a rotational shaft extending therefrom in a direction substantially parallel to a direction of extension of the rotational shaft of said spindle motor;
- and
- a feed unit arranged on said opposite surface of the casing base including a feed screw coupled to the rotational shaft of the feed motor and a pickup having at least a pickup portion extending into said cut-out in said casing base, with rotation of the rotational shaft of the feed motor driving the lead screw coupled thereto to move said pickup portion in said cut-out along a radial disc direction,
- wherein said pickup has a light source, an objective lens for condensing a light beam from said light source on to the disc and an actuator for driving said objective lens, said actuator being included in the pickup portion that is intruded via said cut-out in the casing base into the aperture in said disc cartridge when said cartridge holder is in said second position.
7 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.