Abstract: There is disclosed an apparatus for carrying an information recording medium, in which recording of information on and/or reproduction of information from the recording medium is effected by causing a base for holding the recording medium to reciprocally move to an optical head for recording and/or reproducing. The apparatus has a feeding mechanism for feeding the recording medium to the base, and an ejecting mechanism for ejecting the recording medium from the base. The ejecting mechanism is provided on the base.

Abstract: A cassette recording system having both a primary memory and an auxiliary memory associated with the cassette. A mechanism is provided for sequentially reading information from and writing information to the primary memory as well as randomly reading information from and writing information to the auxiliary memory. The auxiliary memory may be used to retain programming information. The system enables a cassette to be transferred from one recorder to another, with the recording schedule, being included in the auxiliary memory associated with the cassette, being similarly transferred.

Abstract: One of cassette shell halves has a cylindrical body protruding toward the other cassette shell half. The cylindrical body has a rivet press-fit hole and is constituted of elastic engagement pieces. The other cassette shell half has an opening for rivet insertion formed in an outer surface, and an engagement piece receiving hole, which communicates from the opening for rivet insertion to the inner surface of the other cassette shell half and has a tapered inner wall surface having the diameter increasing from an end, that stands facing the one cassette shell half, toward the opening for rivet insertion. When the elastic engagement pieces have been inserted into the engagement piece receiving hole, the elastic engagement pieces are brought into pressure contact with the tapered surface of the engagement piece receiving hole by a rivet, which is press-fitted through the opening for rivet insertion and into the rivet press-fit hole, and the cassette shell halves are thus temporarily assembled to each other.

Abstract: A pair of parallel frame members 30 and 31 are formed in the inner bobbin faces of recording/reproducing and erasing coil assemblies 3, 4 on the opposite sides and spaced equidistant from a core tip center line T. An orthogonal frame member 32 is formed on the outer side of each of the bobbin end face to extend in a direction perpendicular to the parallel frame members 30 and 31. The end of the orthogonal frame member 32 extending toward an auxiliary sliding face 15 of a slider 2 extends outwardly from one of the parallel frame members 31. The recording/reproducing and erasing coil assemblies 3 and 4 are disposed asymmetrically to each other about the core tip center line T. When the recording/reproducing and erasing coil assemblies 3 and 4 are respectively housed in coil assembly receiving portions 26 and 27, the coil assemblies 3 and 4 will not extend outwardly beyond a slider plane projection line C.

Abstract: A spindle motor shaft having variable geometrical features for adjusting the torsion mode frequency of the shaft/stator assembly. The variable geometric features allow the torsion mode frequency to be tuned away from the driving force frequency of the motor. Variable geometrical features for the shaft may include circumferential grooves, radial slots cut through the shaft, or transverse holes disposed along the axis of the shaft. The radial slots have a longitudinal axis that is parallel to the axis of the shaft. Where circumferential grooves are used, the circumferential grooves may be designed to form a locator region along the shaft axis to promote axial alignment of the shaft and stator. Thermal track-misregistration (TMR) or screw torque problems are not introduced in the process of reducing or eliminating the acoustic problem thereby establishing a torsion mode frequency which is not subject to change due to temperature or time.

Abstract: A disk player capable of replacing disks while another disk is being played. A stocker houses a number of disks placed on carriers at its loading steps. A first transport unit transports a carrier between the stocker and the outside of the disk player. A second transport unit transports a carrier between the stocker and a playing unit. The stocker is raised or lowered by a stocker moving unit. It is possible to transport a disk on the carrier to the outside of the disk player and replace it with a new disk, while another disk on the carrier is being played.

Abstract: A tape loading device includes: a plate, cam which moves in a straight line at a constant speed; a rack provided on the plate cam; an arm load gear provided with a gearwheel which engages with the rack and rotates as the plate cam executes linear motion; a lever mechanism which moves as the arm load gear rotates; a tape guide provided at the end of the lever mechanism which withdraws the tape from the cassette starting from the unloaded position and finishing in the loaded position; and a guide member provided with a guide hole which guides the tape guide from the unloaded position to the loaded position. The gearwheel on the arm load gear which engages with the rack includes a first tooth having a pitch circle of a first radius, and a second tooth having a pitch circle of a second radius which is larger than the first radius so as to prevent tape slack by slowing the tape loading process down just before the process ends.

Abstract: A storage disk module includes a frame, and a disk drive unit having a storage disk. The disk drive unit is accommodated in the frame. A circuit unit controls the disk drive unit, and is accommodated in the frame. A power source supplies the disk drive unit and the circuit unit with energy. The power source is accommodated in the frame. The disk drive unit, the circuit unit and the power source are arranged side by side in the frame in a direction perpendicular to a direction in which the storage disk module is inserted into a locker. A back panel is formed in a back portion of the frame. The back panel electrically connects the disk drive unit, the circuit unit and the power source to each other.

Abstract: A biaxial actuator with a first or focusing coil and a second or tracking coil wound around a bobbin and disposed opposite to a magnet, wherein the bobbin has a hollow cylindrical body and flanges formed at both ends of the cylindrical body. Coil retaining portions are formed in the flanges, and the first coil is wound around the cylindrical body, while the second coil is wound around the retaining portions, whereby accidental slip-off of the coils can be prevented. The tracking coil is wound around the retaining portions with inclination of a predetermined angle to the magnet. And both the focusing coil and the tracking coil are retained at projections formed on at least one of the flanges.

Abstract: A cassette loading apparatus of the present invention is capable of loading a plurality of tape cassettes different in size from each other, while achieving the following effects. Tape damage or tape breakage when the lids of the tape cassette are opened/closed can be prevented. The opening height of a rear lid when the lids are opened can be maintained constant, and at the same time, a gap is not produced between the lids when the lids are closed, thereby preventing an increase of drop-outs due to the invasion of dust or the like into the gap. Damage of a rear lid opener or the rear lid when the lids are opened/closed can be prevented. These effects are accomplished by providing the tape cassettes with rear lids each having a laterally extending protruding portion and a bottom end located below the protruding portion. The cassette loading apparatus has the rear lid opener positioned and configured to advantageously abut against the protruding portion of the rear lid in order to open the rear lid.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel high magnetic moment material for the pole pieces as well as a metal-in-gap configuration for the pole tips of either an inductive magnetic head only or the inductive portion of a MR head. The novel material is Ni.sub.45 Fe.sub.55. In the MIG configuration each pole piece of the inductive head or the inductive head portion of a MR head has a combination of layers, each combination of layers including a first layer of high magnetic moment material Ni.sub.45 Fe.sub.55 adjacent to a transducing gap and a second layer of low magnetic moment material such as Permalloy (Ni.sub.81 Fe.sub.19) further away from the gap. Since both layers are made of NiFe all the desirable properties of this type of material can be employed as well as simplifying its construction with similar plating baths. The saturation of the first layers is 50 to 60 percent higher than the saturation of the second layers.

Abstract: The present invention provides a magnetic tape cartridge driver for opening a tape protecting door of a tape cartridge, enabling contact between a magnetic head of the magnetic tape cartridge driver and a magnetic tape housed within the tape cartridge, which can accept not only a conventional tape cartridge but also an enlarged tape cartridge containing a larger capacity, by providing a slider mounted in the cartridge tape driver for engaging with a guide groove formed on a side of an inserted tape cartridge, thereby sliding the tape cartridge along the guide rails to the specified position, where the slider tip comes into contact with an edge of the tape protecting door before the engagement of the guide rails with the guide grooves.

Abstract: A cassette loading mechanism for loading either a smaller tape cassette or a larger tape cassette into a recording/reproducing apparatus, having apparatus for causing the large cassette to avoid obstructions in a cassette holder during insertion of the large cassette and of enabling the stable insertion of the larger tape cassette in the cassette holder. The cassette loading mechanism has a cassette holder provided with contact members disposed so as to engage only the larger tape cassette and so as to move members provided on the cassette holder for use with the smaller tape cassette to a retracted position. The member for use with the smaller tape cassette and the contact member are formed in an integral unit to ensure the correct operation of the cassette loading mechanism.

Abstract: A protective package in an album format for a compact disc having a recording on one side thereof, the other side being unrecorded. The album is defined by interhinged rectangular front and rear cover panels of cardboard or other flexible material. Secured to the inner surface of the rear panel is a face panel having a circular opening die cut therein which is backed by the rear panel to create a well in which the compact disc is nested, with its recorded side lying against the rear panel, the unrecorded side being flush with the exposed surface of the face panel. When the front cover panel is folded over to close the album, the compact disc is then surrounded by the face panel and is sandwiched between the front and rear cover panel and is thereby fully protected. To remove the compact disc from the album, the front cover panel is unfolded and the rear cover panel is flexed to pop out the disc.

Abstract: A disc cartridge is provided with an improved opening/closing slider mechanism which is small in size for positive opening/closing operation for a shutter. The disc cartridge has a front insertion side edge which has a reinforcement portion with guide rail mechanism in proximity thereto. The slider mounted on the guide rail mechanism has a longitudinally extending front face portion to the reverse side of which are integrated so as to form grooves interacting with the guide rail mechanism.

Abstract: A loading device for a disc-shaped recording medium, such as an optical disc, includes a recording/reproducing unit, a loading member, a transport mechanism, a control mechanism and a chuck mechanism. The recording/reproducing unit has a rotating driving mechanism for rotationally driving the disc-shaped recording medium and a head for recording and/or reproducing information signals on or from the disc-shaped recording medium. The loading member is arranged facing the recording/reproducing unit on the chassis for movement along the chassis surface. The transport mechanism transports the disc-shaped recording medium introduced into the apparatus as far as the recording/reproducing unit. The control mechanism releases the disc transport operation by the transport mechanism by the loading member being moved on the chassis.

Abstract: An optical disk cartridge and an optical disk apparatus wherein, whether or not an optical disk has a different thickness, the distances of a pair of optical heads to a pair of recording faces of the optical disk can be set readily with a high degree of accuracy. The optical disk cartridge comprises a cartridge including a pair of halves between which an optical disk is accommodated for rotation, and a sample plate having a thickness corresponding to the thickness of the optical disk and disposed in parallel to the optical disk at a position in the cartridge in which the sample plate does not interfere with the optical disk. A pair of restricting elements are provided in the optical disk apparatus and contacts, when the optical disk cartridge is loaded, with the opposite surfaces of the sample plate to mechanically restrict the distances of the optical heads from the recording faces of the optical disk.

Abstract: A disk storage drive is provided with a brushless drive motor having a stator (34) with a winding. An external rotor housing (32) including a permanent magnet (33) coaxially surrounds the stator and is spaced therefrom by a substantially cylindrical air gap. A hub (31) is provided that is concentric to the rotor housing (32) and is connected to the rotor housing for rotation therewith. A bearing (47) above the stator rotatably supports an upper end of the rotor housing on a stationary shaft (46) and a bearing (37) below the stator braces the open end of the rotor housing by a ring element (35) having substantially the same heat expansion characteristics as the rotor housing (32).

Abstract: In an optical disk according to the present invention, a part of a disk is heat pressed to thereby connect a clamping plate to the central part of the disk. The heat pressed part of the optical disk is heat pressed into a discontinuous form during connection of the clamping plate to the disk. An apparatus for manufacturing such an optical disk connects the clamping plate to the disk by heat pressing a part of the disk onto which the clamping plate is mounted. This is carried out by a pressing surface of a heat press member. The heat press member is provided in its annular pressing surface with radially elongated grooves, so as to divide the annular pressing surface into a plurality of portions by the grooves.

Abstract: The playback of a compact disc is enhanced by adhering to the compact disc an annular ring to increase the frictional engagement between the disc and the spindle upon which it turns. The playback is further enhanced by adhering a layer of soft, flexible material to dampen vibrations caused by the variations in speed by which the compact disc turns.