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Description  |
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The present invention generally relates to protective packages for video
disc records, and more particularly, it relates to locking mechanisms for
video disc packages.
In systems involving high density information records, such as video discs,
it has been found desirable to provide a package/player combination
wherein a record is inserted into, and removed from, the player while it
remains enclosed in its package. U.S. patent appications, Ser. Nos.
801,603 and 801,604, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,133,540, concurrently filed on
behalf of L. A. Torrington on May 31, 1977 illustrate, respectively, a
record package and a player-mounted, package handling mechanism, which
eliminate manual handling of the record. The aforesaid Torrington patent
applications are assigned to the assignee of the subject application. In
the therein disclosed system, the package includes a jacket which has an
edge opening in communication with a record enclosing cavity. A record
retainer (or tray) is removably received within the jacket. The record
retainer has an opening for receiving a disc record, and it has a portion
which cooperates with the edge opening of the jacket to form a
substantially sealed record enclosing cavity.
When an occupied jacket is inserted into the player, a record extracting
apparatus provided in the player grasps the record retainer, so that the
retainer and the enclosed record are removed from the jacket during
subsequent jacket withdrawal. A platform is disposed in the player to
support the removed record, which is transferred to the turntable for
playback when the platform is depressed. To retrieve the record, an empty
jacket is reinserted into the player.
In the above-mentioned type systems, it is desirable to prevent the
enclosed record from accidentally falling out of its protective package,
and it is also desirable to deter indiscriminate access to the enclosed
record.
Pursuant to the present invention, a retainer/jacket locking mechanism is
provided. The record retainer is provided with an integrally molded,
flexural locking member with a free end which is subject to deflection in
a direction at right angles to the major surface of the retainer. A
protruding tab is disposed on the flexural locking member near the free
end thereof. The protruding tab has an obtusely disposed edge remote from
the free end of th flexural locking member, such that the engagement of
the obtusely disposed edge and an interior surface of the jacket causes
deflection of the flexural locking member to permit insertion of the
record retainer into the jacket. The protruding tab further has an edge
adjacent to the free end of the flexural locking member, which is disposed
substantially perpendicularly to the retainer major surface. The jacket is
provided with a depression in communication with the interior portion of
the jacket. The depression has an edge which is disposed substantially
perpendicularly with respect to a major surface of the jacket. Arrival of
the retainer at a fully inserted position in the jacket causes engagement
of the perpendicularly disposed edges to preclude removal of the record
retainer from the jacket during such an engagement. The free end of the
flexural locking member is arranged in the path of an unlocking member
disposed in the player, during insertion of the retainer/jacket assembly
into the player, causing disengagement of the perpendicularly disposed
edges to allow separation of the record retainer from the jacket.
In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, the record retainer
is provided with an additional flexural locking member having a protruding
element which is disposed on the opposite side of the retainer from the
side having the first-mentioned protruding element. The jacket is provided
with an additional depression for reception of the second-mentioned
protruding element upon full insertion of the record retainer therein. An
additional unlocking member is arranged in the path of the
second-mentioned flexural locking member during insertion of the
retainer/jacket assembly into the player, causing disengagement of the
second-mentioned protruding element from the second-mentioned depression,
to allow separation of the record retainer from the jacket. An advantage
of this arrangement is that a jacket can be inserted into the player
without regard to which face is upward for record retrieval. Also, the
retainer/jacket assembly can be inserted into the player with either face
upward to load a record into the player.
In the accompanying drawings:
FIG. 1 shows a record caddy comprising a retainer and a jacket, and
incorporating a locking mechanism in accordance with the principles of the
instant invention;
FIG. 2 illustrates a player incorporating a caddy unlocking mechanism, also
pursuant to the subject invention, suitable for use with the caddy of FIG.
1;
FIGS. 3 and 4 depict parts of the aforesaid caddy unlocking mechanism
incorporated in the player of FIG. 2;
FIGS. 5-7 illustrate the operation of the caddy locking and unlocking
mechanisms on one side of the player of FIG. 2;
FIGS. 8-10 represent the operation of the caddy locking and unlocking
mechanisms on the other side of the player of FIG. 2;
FIG. 11 depicts a lift plate provided in the player of FIG. 2, which
supports the above-mentioned caddy unlocking mechanism and a record
extracting apparatus;
FIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate the operation of the above-said record
extracting apparatus; and
FIGS. 14 and 15 diagrammatically show steps involved in the transfer of a
record retained in the player from the lifting plate to the player
turntable for rotation therewith.
Shown in FIG. 1 is a caddy 20 comprising a record retainer 22 and a jacket
24. The jacket 24 has an edge opening 26 in communication with a record
enclosing cavity 28. The record retainer 22, which is removably received
within the jacket 24, consists of a spine 30 and an annular portion 32 in
the form of a strip having its ends secured to the spine. The annular
portion 32 restrains planar movement of an enclosed record 34 relative to
the retainer 22. A projecting portion 36 is disposed on the record
retainer 22 bearing the record side identifying indicia (e.g., side 1). A
cutout 38 is provided in the jacket 24 for receiving the projecting
portion 36 upon insertion of the record retainer 22 into the jacket.
Another set comprising a projecting portion 40, carrying the record side
identifying indicia (e.g., side 2), and a cutout 42 is provided on the
opposite side of the caddy, such that the record retainer 22 can be
replaced in the jacket 24 without regard to relative orientation thereof.
The record side identifying system of this type is disclosed in the U.S.
patent application, Ser. No. 821,200, filed in behalf of F. R. Stave et
al., on Aug. 2, 1977 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,138,703. The Stave et al. patent
application is assigned to the same assignee as the assignee of the
instant application.
The leading element 44 of the retainer spine 30 cooperates with the edge
opening 26 of the jacket 24 to form a substantially sealed record
enclosing cavity 28, when the record retainer is fully inserted within the
jacket. The leading element 44 is provided with a hole 46 for receiving
record extracting jaws arranged in the player in the manner to be
subsequently described. A pair of wiping pads 48 are affixed to the upper
and lower interior surfaces of the jacket 24 adjoining the edge opening 26
to clean the record during its passage to and from the record enclosing
cavity 28 and to prevent dust and debris from entering into the record
enclosing cavity.
The spine 30 and the jacket halves can be advantageously made from suitable
plastic (e.g., 10-12% fiberglass-filled polystyrene) by a conventional
process, such as injection molding. The strip 32, in the form of a piece
of wire, can be secured to the spine 30 by insert molding its ends into
the body of the spine. The jacket halves can be secured to each other by
any suitable process, such as ultrasonic welding.
In accordance with the principles of the present invention, the record
retainer 22 is provided with a pair of integrally molded, flexural locking
members 50 and 52, which are equispaced from the centerline of the spine
30, and which have free ends which are adapted for deflection in a
direction perpendicular to a pair of parallel, major surfaces 54 and 55 of
the spine. Respective protruding elements 56 and 58 are disposed on the
opposite sides of the spine 30, adjacent to the free ends of the
respective flexural locking members 50 and 52, as shown in FIGS. 1, 5 and
8. The respective protruding elements 56 and 58 have edges 60 and 62,
remote from the free ends of the respective flexural locking members 50
and 52, which are disposed obtusely with respect to the major surfaces of
the spine 30, as shown in FIGS. 5-7 and 8-10. The obtusely disposed edges
60 and 62 of the protruding elements 56 and 58 engage the respective
interior surfaces of the jacket 24 to cause deflection of the flexural
locking members 50 and 52 during insertion of the record retainer 22 into
the jacket. The respective protruding elements 56 and 58 have further
edges 64 and 66, adjacent to the free ends of the respective flexural
locking members 50 and 52, which are disposed perpendicularly relative to
the major surfaces of the spine 30, in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 5-7
and 8-10.
The spine 30 is further provided with guard members 112 and 114 (FIGS. 1, 5
and 8) for protecting the flexural locking members 50 and 52.
The jacket 24 is provided with a pair of depressions 68 and 70 for
releasably receiving the respective protruding elements 56 and 58 upon
arrival of the record retainer 22 at a fully inserted position in the
jacket, as illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 9. The depressions 68 and 70 define
edges 72 and 74, adjacent to the edge opening 26 in the jacket 24, which
are disposed substantially perpendicularly to the major surfaces 76 and 78
of the jacket for engagement with the perpendicularly disposed edges 64
and 66 of the flexural locking members 50 and 52 to preclude removal of
the record retainer 22 from the jacket during the aforementioned
engagement.
The free ends of the flexural locking members 50 and 52 are arranged in the
path of respective unlocking members 80 and 82 (as shown, respectively, in
FIGS. 3, 5 and 7 and 4, 8 and 10) during insertion of the caddy into the
player for causing disengagement between the respective, perpendicularly
disposed edges, as illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 10, to allow separation of
the record retainer 22 from the jacket. As shown in FIG. 11, a lift plate
96 is disposed in the player for supporting the caddy unlocking members 80
and 82. The operation of the lift plate 96 will be later explained in
conjunction with FIGS. 12-14. The unlocking members 80 and 82 have
slanting surfaces 84 and 86 which are inclined in the opposite directions
relative to the direction of caddy insertion to, respectively, cause the
flexural locking members 50 and 52 to be oppositely deflected in order to
dislodge the protruding elements 56 and 58 from the respective depressions
68 and 70 in the jacket 24.
A pair of hold-down members 88 and 90 are arranged in the player near the
unlocking members 80 and 82, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, to assure proper
lateral and vertical alignment of the spine 30 in the player. The
hold-down member 88 is seated in a recess 92 (see FIGS. 1 and 5) provided
in the spine 30, when the caddy is fully inserted into the player. Another
recess 94 is provided on the opposite side of the spine 30 to receive the
hold-down member 88, when the caddy is inserted into the player with its
opposite side facing upward. The recess 94 can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 8.
The hold-down member 90 engages the top surface of the spine 30 and the
jacket 24 in the manner shown in FIG. 10.
Because the flexural locking members of the spine, depressions in the
jacket and the unlocking members of the player are symmetrically disposed
about the direction of insertion, it will be seen that either the empty
jacket or the record occupied caddy can be inserted with either face
upward, and the locking and unlocking mechanisms will work satisfactorily.
The operation of the rest of the player mechanism will now be explained
with the aid of FIGS. 2 and 11-15. FIG. 2 shows a video disc player 98
(e.g., of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,842,194, issued to
Clemens) which has an input slot 100 disposed at the front end thereof. To
load a record into the player, a caddy is inserted through the input slot
100. The lift plate 96 (FIG. 11) is mounted in the player for motion
between an elevated position (FIG. 14) and a depressed position (FIG. 15).
The lift plate 96 is provided with tracks (not shown) which are aligned
with the input slot 100, when the lift plate is in the elevated position,
for guiding insertion of the caddy into the player. A record extracting
apparatus 102 (FIGS. 14 and 15) is mounted on the lift plate 96 at a
location indicated by 104 in FIG. 11. As shown in FIG. 12, the record
extracting apparatus 102 includes a pair of jaws 106 and 108, which are
received in the hold 46 disposed in the spine 30 during insertion of the
caddy into the player. Upon arrival of the caddy at the fully inserted
position in the player, the jaws 106 and 108 open up to latch the spine 30
to the lift plate 96 in the manner shown in FIG. 13. Subsequent withdrawal
of the jacket from the player, leaves the record and the retainer in the
player resting on the lift plate 96 as shown in FIG. 14. When the lift
plate 96 is depressed, the retained record is transferred to the turntable
110 for rotation therewith. When an empty jacket is inserted into the
player for record retrieval after playback, the above steps are repeated
in a reverse sequence. The jaws 106 and 108 of the record extracting
mechanism 102 are indexed to release the spine 30 from the lift plate 96.
As the caddy is withdrawn from the player, the flexural locking members 50
and 52 return the protruding elements 56 and 58 thereon to the depressions
68 and 70 in the jacket to lock the retainer to the jacket.
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