Abstract: A data storage and retrieval system includes a head carriage unit having multiple heads disposed at a working surface and a tape drive unit configured to move the tape past the working surface of the head carriage unit in a direction substantially parallel to a tape length. The heads are configured to write primary data tracks to or read primary data tracks from the tape as the head carriage unit rotates and the tape moves past the working surface, the primary data tracks having an arcuate shape and extending substantially along a tape width. The heads are also configured to write at least one secondary data track to or read at least one secondary data track from the tape as the head carriage unit rotates and the tape moves past the working surface, the at least one secondary data track extending substantially along the tape length.

Abstract: There is provided a spindle motor for a 2.5? type disk driving device, including: a base having a stator core seating part protruding upwardly in an axial direction; a stator core including a ring-shaped coreback part, a tooth part, and a front end part; and a coil wound around the stator core, wherein when a length of the stator core from an inner end portion of the coreback part to the endmost part of the front end part is defined as L and a height of the wound coil from the lowermost edge of the coil in an axial direction to the uppermost edge thereof is defined as H, a ratio (H/L) of the height of the wound coil to the length of the stator core in which back electromotive force (B-EMF) is 0.35 V/Krpm or more when the supply of power is stopped satisfies 0.524?H/L?0.703.

Abstract: Provided is a shaft supporting structure, an optical pickup moving structure including the shaft supporting structure, and an optical disc drive. The shaft supporting structure includes a base chassis, a shaft installed on the base chassis, an axis support that supports an end of the shaft, and a rotatable locker for preventing the shaft from being separated from the axis support.

Abstract: In one embodiment, an optical pickup device includes a fixed portion 100, a movable portion 11, first and second elastic supporting members 12a and 12b, one and the other ends of which are secured to the fixed portion 100 and the movable portion 11, respectively, and an objective lens 8 secured to the movable portion 11. The objective lens 8 is arranged inside of the area that is defined between two lines that are respectively drawn from one and the other ends of the first elastic supporting member 12a perpendicularly to the first elastic supporting member 12a and outside of the area defined between the first and second elastic supporting members 12a and 12b.

Abstract: A pickup damper is provided. The pickup damper is configured to be installed adjacent to a plurality of guide shafts installed on opposite sides of an opening of a base chassis, configured to collide with a pickup and relieve shock via at least three steps in response to an external shock being applied, and configured to prevent the pickup from colliding with the guide shafts to protect the pickup.

Abstract: A tilt adjusting device for an optical pickup head (OPU) is fixed on a chassis of an optical drive. The device includes a first screw and a secondary guide rail. The secondary guide rail includes a guide rail part, a base part, an extension part, and an elastic element. The guide rail part is embedded into a rail notch of the OPU and the extension part has a first end and a second end connected with the base part and the guide rail part. A first compressible space is defined between the base part, the elastic element and the chassis. The first screw is penetrated through the base part and the first compressible space and screwed in the chassis. By changing a screwed depth of the first screw in a screw hole, an altitude of the guide rail part is correspondingly adjusted.

Abstract: Provided is an objective lens (OBL) holder and the like making it possible to easily supply an adhesive to a coil accommodated in an enclosure-shaped holder. An OBL holder of the present invention includes: a main surface portion provide with a fixing part on which an objective lens is fixed; and a first side-wall portion and a second side-wall portion provide with bobbins around each of which a tracking coil for driving the OBL holder itself by using a magnetic effect is wound. In the present invention, a communication hole provided in each of the bobbins penetrates the first side-wall portion and allows a region inside the OBL holder to communicate with the outside. A focusing coil is disposed in the region. This makes it possible to supply the adhesive to the focusing coil through the communication holes.

Abstract: Provided is a compact-type objective lens (OBL) holder and the like provided with a bobbin making it possible to appropriately wind a coil therearound. An OBL holder of the present invention includes: a main surface portion provided with a fixing part on which an objective lens is fixed; and a first side-wall portion and a second side-wall portion provided with bobbins around which tracking coils for driving the OBL holder itself by using a magnetic effect are wound. Further, in the present invention, each bobbin includes a tubular portion and a through-hole penetrating the tubular portion in a thickness direction thereof. Thus, an adhesive can be supplied to the tracking coil through the through-hole.

Abstract: An optical disc driving device having a metallic exterior casing and an internal unit to be housed in the exterior casing, the internal unit further including an optical pickup unit for performing recording or reproduction of information signals on an optical disc, and a printed wiring substrate on which a connector electrically connected to the optical pickup unit and serving for transmission and reception of electrical signals from and to external electronic equipment via an external-connection cable is mounted, wherein the exterior casing has an opening for allowing the connector to be projected outside, the connector is so provided as to be connected to the external-connection cable in a direction that orthogonally crosses with a projecting direction of the connector from the opening, and the external-connection cable is so provided as to extend from the connector along a surface of the exterior casing.

Abstract: A suspension system is provided for an objective lens housing. The objective lens housing is supported by the suspension system and is moved in either a tracking direction Y or focusing direction Z by an electro-magnetic actuator. The objective lens housing is supported by upper and lower suspension springs. The suspension springs are moveable in the tracking direction by flexing the suspension springs and are moveable in a focusing direction by compressing a front portion and a back portion to fold the suspension spring at bends formed in an intermediate portion of the suspension springs.

Abstract: Stable performance of additional recording and erasing and rewriting operations is allowed regardless of a change in inclination of a guide layer separable optical disc. An optical pickup device includes an angle variable reflection mirror (an optical axis angle variable element) which changes directions of optical axes of first and second light beams when the first light beam for recording or reproduction and the second light beam for servo signal detection are emitted from laser diodes and incident upon the optical disc through an objective lens. When additional recording is performed on the optical disc, the optical axis angle of the angle variable reflection mirror is adjusted such that a tracking error signal detected from a record layer with the first light beam is reduced to almost zero while tracking control is being performed on a guide layer with the second light beam.

Abstract: A mounting structure of an optical element, includes: an optical element; an elastic member usable when the optical element is mounted; and a holding unit configured to be mounted with the optical element and the elastic member, the elastic member configured to be pressed into the holding unit, the holding unit configured to be mounted with the optical element by use of the elastic member.

Abstract: A drive device for an optical disc apparatus, comprising: a traverse chassis; a vertically moving lever arm for covering part of the lower surface of the traverse chassis and supporting the traverse chassis; a first circuit board disposed on the upper surface of the traverse chassis; a second circuit board disposed on the lower surface of the traverse chassis; and a flexible cable that passes between the traverse chassis and the lever arm, is connected by one end thereof to the first circuit board, and is connected by the other end thereof to the second circuit board; wherein an opening that has a greater width than the width of the flexible cable is provided to a section of the lever arm in contact with the flexible cable.

Abstract: An optical pickup device is provided, a cover of which covering a housing is prevented from deforming. A principal surface of an optical pickup device of the present invention is covered with a cover 13. The cover 13 includes: a cover portion 13G; a hole portion 13 provided at an end in the longitudinal direction and is screwed; an engagement portion 13A provided at the other end in the longitudinal direction and is engaged with the housing; and an engagement portion 13D engaged with the opening portion of the housing in the middle part. The engagement portion 13D placed in the middle part of the cover portion 13G is engaged with the housing to prevent the cover portion 13G from bulging outward.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a disc chucking apparatus having claws that horizontally move and provide elasticity to improve performance in centering and chucking a disc. The disc chucking apparatus includes: a centering base to which an inner circumferential surface of a disc is fixed; a plurality of chuck chips arranged at regular intervals along an outer circumferential surface of the centering base; and a plurality of elastic support parts disposed to be opposite to the chuck chips on the centering base, rotating horizontally when the disc is mounted, and pressing the inner circumferential surface of the disc in an outer diameter direction thereof.

Abstract: A portable electronic device includes a first main body and a disc drive. The disc drive is received in the first main body. The disc drive includes a second main body, a driving element, and a laser assembly. The second main body is rotatably received in the first main body. The driving element is arranged on the second main body for driving a disc. The laser assembly includes a laser slidably received in the first main body. The disc drive is in a use state when the second main body is rotated to cause the driving element to face the laser.

Abstract: A spot position control device includes a light irradiation and light sensing unit irradiating an optical recording medium with first light via an objective lens and sensing reflection light of the first light from the optical recording medium having a pit string where an interval between pit formable positions on one round is limited to a first interval, a tracking mechanism unit displacing the objective lens, a clock generation unit generating a clock corresponding to the interval between the pit formable positions, a timing selector signal generation unit generating a plurality of timing selector signals, a tracking error signal generation unit generating tracking error signals, a linear tracking error signal generation unit generating a linear tracking error signal indicating a tracking error amount linearly, a tracking servo control unit performing a tracking servo control, and an offset giving unit giving an offset to a tracking servo loop.

Abstract: A recording apparatus includes: a light-emitting/receiving unit which emits a recording beam, an ATS beam, and a position control beam toward an optical disc recording medium via a common object lens; a tracking mechanism which drives the object lens in a tracking direction parallel to a radial direction of the optical disc recording medium; a reference plane-side tracking error signal generation unit which generates a reference plane-side tracking error signal; a reference plane-side tracking servo signal generation unit which generates a reference plane-side tracking servo signal to cancel out a tracking error; a tracking driving unit which drives the tracking mechanism; an ATS-side tracking error signal generation unit which generates an ATS-side tracking error signal; an ATS control signal generation unit which generates an ATS control signal to cancel out a tracking error; and a signal providing unit which provides the ATS control signal to a tracking servo loop.

Abstract: A recording apparatus includes: a light illumination and light sensing unit configured to illuminate an optical disc recording medium including a reference surface having address information recorded and a recording layer, with recording light and light for position control; a recording unit which performs recording on the recording layer; and a control unit which controls, when data instructed to be recorded is to be recorded from an instructed recording start address, the recording unit to perform recording of dummy data on an area adjacent to a front side at least from the recording start address over a range of equal to or greater than the maximum spot deviation amount between an illumination spot of the light for position control and an illumination spot of the recording light and to perform recording of the data instructed to be recorded in succession to a recorded area of the dummy data.

Abstract: An optical recording medium in which recording is performed by a recording device that is configured such that tracking servo control of recording light is performed by irradiating the recording light and ATS light for an adjacent track servo and by an adjacent track servo based on reflected light of the ATS light, wherein while a recording layer in which a mark is formed according to an irradiation of the recording light is included, a mark row is formed in advance by a pitch that is twice a distance between an irradiation spot of the recording light and an irradiation spot of the ATS light or greater in the recording layer.

Abstract: Disclosed is an optical recording head which is provided with a surface emitting laser that emits laser light which is efficiently introduced into a waveguide through a grating coupler (diffraction grating). Specifically disclosed is an optical recording head which is provided with a surface emitting laser comprising at least a light source, and a waveguide that is connected thereto through a diffraction grating and irradiates a recording medium with the light from the light source. The light source has a two-dimensional photonic crystal structure in the surface that faces the waveguide. Regions of the two-dimensional photonic crystal structure other than the region facing the diffraction grating are converted, and the region facing the diffraction grating serves as a surface emitting.

Abstract: Multiple regulating portions protruding more than tooth portions of the rack are provided in positions, between which a feed shaft is interposed, in the vicinity of the tooth portions. Each regulating portion has an inclined surface which is opposed to a periphery of the feed shaft, and which is isolated more from the feed shaft as the inclined surface becomes farther from arm portions. Thereby, it is possible to restrain thin portions of the rack from twistedly deforming when the tooth portions come out of mesh with a groove of the feed shaft. In addition, it is possible to prevent the rack from coming off the feed shaft to a large extent.

Abstract: Provided is a low-cost, high-accuracy optical pickup supporting device by simplifying a structure for fixing guide shafts to a chassis. To this end, an optical pickup supporting device includes: a frame-shaped chassis; a first guide shaft and a second guide shaft, two ends of each of which are fixed to the chassis; an optical pickup device movably supported by the two guide shafts; and a spindle motor fixed to the chassis with a motor supporting member interposed in between. Furthermore, in a first fixation region in which the first guide shaft is fixed to the chassis, the position of the first guide shaft is fixed with higher accuracy by: a fixation area obtained by protruding parts of the chassis; and a position regulating portion which is a part of the motor supporting member.

Abstract: Provided is a high-accuracy optical pickup supporting device by fixing guide shafts to a chassis by use of adjustment screws accurately. To this end, in the optical pickup supporting device, an end portion of a second guide shaft for supporting an optical pickup device is fixed to the chassis by use of: a coil spring included in an accommodation area of the chassis; and an adjustment screw. In addition, the adjustment screw is screwed to a fixation plate accommodated in an accommodation part of the chassis. Accordingly, a repulsive force produced by the coil spring does not concentrate on any part of the chassis. For this reason, the chassis is prevented from deforming and breaking due to this repulsive force.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for preventing a collision between a recording medium and a lens are disclosed. The method for preventing the collision between the recording medium and the lens includes controlling a gap error signal (GES) between the recording medium and the lens to be maintained at a near field level, detecting a collision between the recording medium and the lens, pulling out the lens from the recording medium during a predetermined time so as to prevent a re-collision between the recording medium and the lens, and re-controlling the gap error signal (GES) between the recording medium and the lens to be re-maintained at the near field level.

Abstract: An integrated disk driving module is disclosed, the module including a base unit formed with a first motor fixture concavely formed on an upper plate, and a second motor fixture bent from the upper plate in opposition to the first motor fixture, wherein the first and second motor fixtures are integrally formed on the upper plate; a spindle motor secured inside the first motor fixture to rotate a disk; and a stepping motor rotatably secured to the second motor fixture.

Abstract: An integrated disk driving module is disclosed, the module including a base unit including a stepping motor fixture bent from an upper plate toward an accommodation space, wherein the stepping motor fixture is integrally formed with the upper plate, and a stepping motor rotatably fixed to the stepping motor fixture.

Abstract: In an optical disc drive, a degradation of traveling performance of an optical pickup under hard acceleration or hard deceleration in a random access operation or the like results in a degradation of recording/reproducing performance. Groove structure is provided between two gears of a guide feed provided in an optical pickup, and the groove forms bending structure. Thus, the engagement state between a screw gear and the gears of the guide feed is stabilized. This makes it possible to prevent tooth jumping and step-out from occurring in the gears during the traveling of the optical pickup, achieving stable traveling. In consequence, the recoding/reproducing performance of the optical disc drive can be improved.

Abstract: An optical-pickup apparatus includes first and second objective lenses that focus first and second laser light on information-recording layers of first and second optical discs, the second optical disc having an information-recording format different from that of the first optical disc; and a lens holder that integrally holds the first and second objective lenses in an adjacent manner, a disc surface of the first optical disc and of the second optical disc being substantially parallel to confronting faces of the first and second objective lenses, that confront the disc surface, a minimum distance between the disc surface and the confronting faces in a direction of an optical axis of the turntable being greater than a thickness of the turntable in a direction of a rotation axis of the turntable, either one or both of the first and second objective lenses configured to focus bluish-violet laser light on an optical disc.

Abstract: High-performance and reliable objective lens driving apparatus and optical pickup wherein the tilt of an objective lens relative to an optical disc is suppressed are provided. The optical pickup is equipped with a semiconductor laser, an electro-optic component, and the objective lens driving apparatus. In this optical pickup, the objective lens driving apparatus is comprised of: a moving part including an objective lens, a holder that holds the objective lens, a focusing coil, and a tracking coil; a holding member for elastic support members that couples together multiple elastic support members providing elastic support on a fixed part and the moving part and is mounted on the moving part; the elastic support members that elastically support the moving part from the fixed part; and the fixed part. The holding member for elastic support members mounted on the moving part and the holder that holds the objective lens are joined together by fitting together a concavity and a convexity.

Abstract: The present invention provides an electromagnetic field generating element, an information recording/reproducing head, and an information recording/reproducing apparatus. The electromagnetic field generating element makes it possible to restrain magnetic field attenuation or magnetic field delay in a high frequency recording/reproducing head for use in thermally assisted magnetic field recording/reproduction using a near field. The information recording/reproducing head and the information recording/reproducing apparatus can carry out high frequency magnetic recording/reproducing. The electromagnetic field generating element of the present invention includes: (i) a substrate, (ii) conductors each provided on the substrate and each serving as a supporting section, (iii) a plate-like-shaped conductor provided on the conductors and (iv) a semiconductor laser element provided on the substrate.

Abstract: The invention relates to a suspension arm actuator for a scanning device, comprising a suspension arm which is designed as a two-arm lever, is allocated to a disk-shaped data carrier and is mounted to a support such that it can be pivoted about a pivot axis extending perpendicularly in relation to the suspension arm. At one end of a lever arm, the suspension arm supports a sensor and, on the other lever arm, comprises a component (focus coil 5) for a magnetic drive initiating a focusing motion of the sensor perpendicular in relation to the data carrier. The component is arranged at a recess having the shape of a circular arc, with the inner leg of a yoke that is permanently attached to the support projecting into said recess and forming a magnetic yoke, wherein said yoke is provided with a shell-like magnet on its outer leg in order to form the magnetic drive.

Abstract: An optical disc apparatus capable of reducing looseness vibrations resulting from a gap between a sub-guide shaft and a bearing is provided. According to an optical disc apparatus in the present invention, both ends of the sub-guide shaft are supported by being sandwiched between a pair of support parts formed in a chassis and a pair of pressing members mounted on the chassis. The support part is formed by bending a protruding portion both protruding in an inward direction of a hole from an edge of the hole of the chassis and extending along the direction perpendicular to the sub-guide shaft.