Abstract: In one embodiment, a system includes a robotic accessor for transporting media between multiple storage slots and one or more data storage drives; a controller for controlling the robotic accessor; a memory in communication with and/or integrated with the controller for storing information about the media and the storage slots, the information including data corresponding to a physical distribution of the media in the storage slots; and logic integrated with and/or executable by the controller, the logic being adapted to: position the robotic accessor at a computed optimal position during an idle period of the robotic accessor, the computed optimal position being based at least in part on the physical distribution of the media in the storage slots.

Abstract: A multimedia drive receives different types of media in a single drive. The multimedia drive includes a drive to receive a media cartridge, such as a tape media cartridge or a non-tape media cartridge. The multimedia drive includes a tape media interface to connect to a tape cartridge, and includes a non-tape media interface to connect to a non-tape media cartridge.

Abstract: The present invention avoids a case in which a pickup lens and a lens protector come into contact with a structure of a disk cartridge and are damaged. When an operation distance is short and there is a disk cartridge 203 and the disk cartridge 203 is not an exclusive cartridge, a moving range of the pickup 107 is restricted or an actuating operation thereafter is stopped depending upon whether the optical disk medium 101 loaded into the optical disk apparatus is an optical disk medium having a short operation distance, whether there is a disk cartridge 203, and whether a structure of the disk cartridge 203 is prevented from coming into contact with a pickup lens or the lens protector which is exclusive for the optical disk medium having the short operation distance.

Abstract: A disk unit-integrated display includes a door member opening and closing when projecting and housing a disk tray, and including a door portion and an arm portion for rotating the door portion, and a housing including an opening for projecting and housing the disk tray and a plurality of operating portions. The plurality of operating portions of the housing are arranged at a height position to overlap with the arm portion, in a region other than a region in which the arm portion located on a lower side end of the door portion is arranged, so as to hold the arm portion therebetween.

Abstract: When a medium selection button 101 is operated, an optical disc reproduction apparatus 1 recognizes which medium is selected according to inputted medium selection information, and then opens a tray 104. Next, when a medium selection button 101 is operated, the optical disc reproduction apparatus 1 determines the inputted medium selection information and closes the tray 104. Next, the optical disc reproduction apparatus 1 acquires a priority list 16 and modifies the priority list 16 such that the order of the selected medium in the priority list 16 is a first priority and the remaining orders of the other media are successively lowered. The optical disc reproduction apparatus 1 performs a medium check for each of the media in accordance with the orders of the modified priority list 16.

Abstract: A disk drive according to the present invention includes: a mechanical chassis; a pickup for reading and/or writing information from/on a disk storage medium; a rotation drive section with a turntable to mount and rotate the storage medium thereon; a pickup supporting member having a bottom portion for supporting the pickup and the rotation drive section and a standup wall that stands upright from the bottom portion toward the turntable, the pickup supporting member being supported on the mechanical chassis so as to turn around an axis of rotation that is defined through the standup wall; and a pickup raising/lowering portion, which is provided for the mechanical chassis in order to drive the pickup supporting member to either a first position in which the pickup is ready to perform a read or write operation on the storage medium that is mounted on the turntable or a second position in which the turntable has been retracted so as to avoid contact with the storage medium being inserted or ejected.

Abstract: The tray 30, which can mount both of a cartridge type recording medium and a bare-disc type recording medium, includes a placing surface 31 having a detection hole 34 for detecting information of the recording medium; a rising portion 32 formed so as to rise from the placing surface 31 at a front side end. The rising portion 32 has a disc holder 35 rotatably provided for positioning the bare-disc type recording medium. Hence, the disc holder 35 can be moved to an accommodation position A for being displaced not to cover the detection hole 34 in the placing surface 31. Accordingly, an area on the placing surface 31, in which detection portions such as the detection hole 34 are formed becomes wider, so that the detection portions such as the detection hole 34 can be sufficiently formed as well as a space for providing the detection portions corresponding to a cartridge containing a variety of information can be sufficiently obtained.

Abstract: An optical disk device including a tray in which recording mediums having differing outer diameters can be selectively mounted. The tray carries the recording media into the main body of the optical disk device wherein it is, chucked by a turntable. Holding members for holding the recording medium at a predetermined position relative to a mounting face of the tray are provided in a front portion and a rear portion respectively relative to the transport direction of the tray. At least one of the holding members is movable between a first holding position for holding a small diameter recording medium, and a second holding position for holding a large diameter recording medium. The holding member is biased toward the first holding position by a biasing member.

Abstract: An optical disk drive which decreases unit costs and reduces the size of a product. The optical disk drive includes a frame, a base chassis rotatably installed on the frame, a spindle motor and a pick-up device installed on the base chassis, a tray moving into and out of the frame when a disk cartridge is mounted on the tray, a loading device for operating the tray and the base chassis, and a disk cartridge recognizing device for sensing whether or not recognition holes formed through a disk cartridge case are opened or closed to display data of the disk cartridge. The disk cartridge recognizing device includes switches fixed to a front part of the frame, and a switch operating portion for operating the switches according to whether or not the recognition holes are opened or closed.

Abstract: An optical disk player with improved opening and closing of a door, transport of a tray, and an improved pivoting structure of a chassis to pivot a turntable. The optical disk player includes: a body; a tray to move in and out of the body so as to transport an optical disk; a chassis installed to pivot inside the body; an optical pickup, which is installed to be able to move back and forth in the chassis, to record/reproduce information onto/from the optical disk that is rotatably placed on the turntable; a cover installed on a front of the body, the cover including: a door holder with an aperture through which the tray moves; a door to be able to slide along the door holder so as to open and close the aperture; and a cam driving device to activate the tray, to pivot the chassis, and to open and close the door by sliding.

Abstract: A disk drive includes: a cartridge holder that holds a disk cartridge including a disk, and has a holder opening, through which the cartridge is inserted and ejected; two guide walls arranged near the holder opening to define a direction in which the cartridge is inserted; a disk motor for rotating the disk mounted; a head for reading and/or writing information from/on the disk; a base for supporting the head and motor; first and second guide grooves cut through the holder; and first and second guide members movable along the first and second grooves, respectively, and engaging with respective portions of the cartridge.

Abstract: A disc ejecting mechanism 43 that ejects an optical disc 1 disposed on a turntable 23 to a slot 10A is provided with a first disc feeding mechanism 61 disposed on a rear side in a drive unit body 10 and a second disc feeding mechanism (a disc guide mechanism 41) that is disposed on a slot 10A side relative to the first disc feeding mechanism 61 and continuously feeding the optical disc 1 fed by the first disc feeding mechanism 61 in a direction toward the slot 10A. The optical disc 1 having a small diameter can be transferred from the turntable 23 to the slot 10A by the first disc feeding mechanism 61 and the second disc feeding mechanism which are respectively disposed on the rear side and a front side of the slot 10A, thereby ejecting the optical disc 1 to the outside.

Abstract: A disk apparatus comprises a slot for inserting a disk-shaped recording medium therethrough, a first guide member for guiding one side of the disk inserted through the slot, a second guide member for guiding the other side of the disk inserted through the slot, a disk abutting portion for abutting the disk inserted through the slot, a disk support arm for carrying the disk by supporting and swinging the disk and a recording/reproducing unit for recording and/or reproducing information on and/or from the disk carried into the apparatus by the disk support arm, wherein a first disk having a diameter dA is loaded or unloaded by swinging the disk support arm, and wherein the disk support arm is disposed such that the disk abutting portion abuts and the disk support arm inhibits further insertion of a second disk having a diameter dB that is smaller than dA before the entire insertion of the second disk into the apparatus through any place of the slot while waiting for the insertion of the first disk through the s

Abstract: A disk drive including a tray having a seating portion in which a disk or disk cartridge is seated, and an opening hole, and further having a disk cartridge holder installed on the tray to be capable of sliding, the disk cartridge holder fixing the disk cartridge to the seating portion. The disk cartridge holder includes a plurality of ribs which protrude toward the opening hole and which prevent the disk, to be seated in the seating portion, from becoming caught between the disk cartridge holder and the tray.

Abstract: An apparatus to accommodate and load a disc cartridge in a drive includes a tray on which the disc cartridge is accommodated, a locking lever having a locking hook caught in a groove formed at a side wall of the disc cartridge when accommodated on the tray and which restricts/releases the disc cartridge using the locking hook. A sliding holder is slidably installed at the tray to prevent the disc cartridge from moving by pressing the disc cartridge restricted by the locking lever in one direction.

Abstract: The present invention provides a slot-in type optical disk player which has a guide unit to guide an optical disk, inserted into an inlet, to a central portion of the inlet of the optical disk player, and a disk guide device to allow the optical disk player to play either of 80 mm and 120 mm optical disks. The disk guide device includes a chucking plate, a guide arm, a select arm, a push arm and a push lever. As such, the optical disk player of the present invention plays either of the 80 mm and 120 mm optical disks, so that the optical disk player is economical and practical. Furthermore, the optical disk player has the guide unit which is provided in a disk loading part.

Abstract: An optical disc drive includes: a tray to mount a cartridge including a disc and having a positioning hole; a chassis for supporting the tray to move in a first direction; a spindle motor; an optical head; a traverse base, which is supported on the chassis so as to rotate around an axis defined in a second direction near one end of the chassis in the first direction and which mounts the spindle motor and the optical head thereon, the second direction being parallel to the disc and perpendicular to the first direction; a traverse holder coupled to the traverse base; a positioning pin provided for the traverse holder and fitting in with the positioning hole, thereby positioning the cartridge; and an elevating portion for moving a portion of the traverse holder in a third direction perpendicularly to the disc.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a disc guiding mechanism, having: a main body which provided with a teeth array at one side; a first sliding bar and a second sliding bar both of which are provided on the main body; a transmission element provided on the main body and engaged with both of the sliding bars; a first hook and a second hook rotatably provided on each sliding bar respectively; and a first elastic member and a second elastic member provided on each sliding bar to provide an elasticity on the hooks. According to the disc guiding mechanism of the present invention, a disc is guided by the hooks and carried into an optical disc device, the transmission element restricts the first and the second sliding bars to slide symmetrically, so that the disc is guided and carried in a correct direction. Accordingly, a disc jamming in the optical disc device resulted from loading in an incorrect direction is avoided.

Abstract: Disclosed is a disc insertion preventive device comprising a housing having a disc slot made on its front side, a generally stopper and a swinging mechanism. The stopper comprises a flat plate and front and rear blocking pieces dependent from the opposite lateral edges of the flat plate. The stopper is pivotally fixed to the housing with the front blocking piece directed toward the disc slot of the housing. The swinging mechanism is responsive to absence of a disc in the housing for inclining the stopper with the rear blocking piece down and with the front blocking piece up, thus preventing advance of a disc beyond the descendent rear blocking piece, and is responsive to presence of a disc in the housing for inclining the stopper with the rear blocking piece up and with the front blocking piece down, thus preventing insertion of another disc from the disc slot.

Abstract: A vehicle instrument panel assembly includes a console provided in a center stacking area receiving one or more vehicle components including a media player. A trim bezel configured for use with the one or more vehicle components is secured to the console. An alignment mechanism cooperates with the media player and an opening in the trim bezel to load and unload removable media. The alignment mechanism includes a load funnel securable adjacent an opening in the media player and an eject funnel cooperating with an opening in the trim bezel.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for detecting a type of a disc in a disc drive system includes measuring an elapsed time between when a disc tray is in an open state and when it completely closes, comparing the elapsed time with a predetermined reference value, and determining whether the disc is a cartridge-type or a general-type based on the comparison result.

Abstract: A loading and unloading module for optical disk drives includes a track plate, a moving plate, a guiding plate, a guiding arm and three rollers for three-point anchoring to achieve the functions of retrieving a disc, conveying the disc and ejecting the disc to substitute for conventional tray loading type or leaf-actuation loading type designs. The optical module is prevented from being scraped or damaged, and space utilization is improved. It also is adaptable for handling different sizes of discs.

Abstract: A reproducing/recording apparatus includes a first reproducing/recording mechanism (21) for reproducing data from and/or recording data onto a cartridge/disk combination (first disk) (1) or a bare disk (second disk) (2), the disk main body (1A) being contained in the cartridge (1B). The first reproducing/recording mechanism (21) has a traversing mechanism (50) disposed oppositely relative to the recording area of the first disk (1) or the second disk (2), a clamping mechanism (60) disposed oppositely relative to the traversing mechanism (50) with the first disk (1) or the second disk (2) interposed between them in order to clamp the first disk (1) and a keep member (64) adapted to bias the first disk (1) toward the side of the first disk tray at the time of clamping the first disk (1) by the clamping mechanism (60).

Abstract: A recording medium loading apparatus. When the position detection of the carrier unit 70 capable of loading different types of recording medium 11, 12, 13 is performed, switches SW1˜3 are installed on the carrier unit 70 and carrier position detecting cam 140 is installed on the holder 40 for selectively operating the switches SW1˜SW3 in response to the move of the carrier unit 70. Then, the position detection of the carrier unit 70 is performed by the combination of on/off of the switches SW1˜SW3. Therefore, the structure is simplified and the cost is reduced.

Abstract: An object is to drive a plurality of types of disc cartridges, in different formats but with similar external dimensions. A disc drive apparatus is configured to use a single spindle motor 32 to drive a first disc cartridge 1, having a first cartridge 1a housing a first disc 10 and a first pair of positioning holes 1c, 1d in the first cartridge 1a, as well as a second disc cartridge 2 having a second cartridge 2a housing a second disc 13 with the same outer diameter as the first disc 10 and a second pair of positioning holes 2c, 2d in the second cartridge 2a; positioning shaft location means 40, 41 are provided; when the first disc cartridge 1 is driven, these positioning shaft location means 40, 41 position the positioning shafts 40a, 41a in positions corresponding to the first pair of holes 1c, 1d, and when the second disc cartridge 2 is driven, the positioning shaft means 40, 41 position the positioning shafts 40b, 41b in positions corresponding to the second pair of holes 2c, 2d.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to a disk-positioning device for use in an optical disk device that can receive and position optical disks of different sizes. Embodiments of the device comprise a substrate, a locking rod having a locking extension, a right positioning plate, a left positioning plate, a trigger arm and a sliding element. A gear rack and a spur gear are integrally formed with the left positioning plate and the right positioning plate respectively, and the spur gear and gear rack are in mesh when the optical disk device is in use. Furthermore, two locking notches are integrally formed with the right positioning plate. When the disk having a first size is loaded, the locking pin of the locking rod disengages from one of the two locking notches. When a disk having a second size is loaded, the locking rod maintains its lock with the right positioning plate.

Abstract: Disclosed is a disk recording and reproduction apparatus for recording and/or reproduction of optical disks of multiple different formats impossible to record or reproduce with a single pickup. A disk recording and reproduction apparatus containing a base unit (25) with two separate optical pickups (31) and (32) corresponding to two different format types and installed around the center of a turntable (27) for rotating a disk.

Abstract: A disc guide device for guiding and placing a disc cartridge and a bare disc in a predetermined position on a tray of a disc player. When a bare disc is loaded on the tray, a guide portion is projected through and above a guide hole by the elastic force of a spring to contact the circumference of the disc. When a disc cartridge is loaded on the tray, a protrusion is inserted into a reference hole, and the guide portion is pressed down by the disc cartridge and buried below the guide hole. Since the device guiding the disc cartridge and the device guiding the bare disc are integrated in the disc guide device, it is possible to fabricate the disc guide device with fewer parts, lower material cost, and with a simpler structure.

Abstract: An optical disc drive with a memory medium accessing module to access an optical disc and a memory medium. The optical disc drive includes a main body, a tray, a memory medium transformer and a connector. The tray is disposed on the main body. The tray supports the optical disc when the optical disc is used. The memory medium transformer is placed on the tray to load the memory medium electrically connected thereto. The connector is disposed in the main body. The tray is received in the main body and the connector is electrically connected to the memory medium transformer when the memory medium is used and the tray supports the memory medium transformer.