Patents by Inventor Choku Tanaka

Choku Tanaka has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6141310
    Abstract: The invention relates to a disc playing apparatus, in which a disc inserted through a disc inserting slot is held on a turntable for playing back data with an optical pick-up, and released from the turntable and forced back to the outside of the disc inserting slot. The disc playing apparatus can be simple in construction, small in size, and inexpensive in the cost of manufacture. A disc holder for transferring the disc takes hold of the outer edge of the disc. The operations of the disc holder and a clamping mechanism are controlled by a timing control mechanism, which is driven by a single motor. The timing control mechanism has a partial gear. The timings of operation of various parts are controlled by selectively using a with-teeth portion and a without-teeth portion of a partial gear. The timing control mechanism is reversibly operable in dependence on the direction of motor rotation. Various parts of the apparatus are reversibly operable when loading and unloading the disc.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2000
    Inventors: Choku Tanaka, Shinsaku Tanaka, Akira Iwakiri, Shozo Nishimura
  • Patent number: 5764612
    Abstract: A disc playing apparatus is disclosed, which is simple, small in size and can be manufactured at a low cost of manufacture. In this disc playing apparatus, a first chassis with left and right movable guides and a second chassis with a disc drive and a playing unit are linked together such that they can be brought toward and away from each other. The movable guides are separated from a disc when the two chassis are brought toward each other, and are brought to a position to engage with the disc when the two chassis are brought away from each other. A selective close/away holding mechanism holds the two chassis in a close-to-each-other state or an away-from-each-other state. The two chassis are brought toward each other when the disc is inserted while pushing the selective close/away holding mechanism. The disc is pushed by the mechanism when the two chassis are brought away from each other by an eject lever.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 9, 1998
    Assignee: Tanashin Denki Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Choku Tanaka, Shinsaku Tanaka, Shigeru Akatani, Akira Iwakiri