Patent ID: 7370339
Filing Date: 2008-05-06
Classification: G11B

Abstract:
1. A disc drive apparatus comprising: a disc drive section which holds and rotates a disc-shaped recording medium, and performs information processing for the recording medium; a fixed unit on which the disc drive is arranged; a collapsible unit which is held movably in a predetermined expanding/contracting direction, between a contracted position wherein the collapsible unit is laid over the fixed unit and an expanded position wherein at least a part of the collapsible unit projects from the fixed unit to define a disc housing area capable of housing the recording medium, and has a distal end surface provided in the expanding direction of the expanding/contracting direction, and a disc insertion opening provided in the distal end surface, through which the recording medium is inserted into and ejected from the disc housing area in the expanding/contracting direction; an expansion/contraction mechanism which moves the collapsible unit to the fixed unit in the expanding/contracting direction; a disc loading mechanism which loads the recording medium inserted through the disc insertion opening, on the disc drive section; and an outer housing which is fixed to the fixed unit, covers the fixed unit and the collapsible unit moved to the contracted position, and has a front side provided with a window capable of passing the collapsible unit, the collapsible unit including an outer surface exposed to the outside of the outer housing when moved to the expanded position, and an operation panel for setting operation states, which is provided on the outer surface of the collapsible unit and operable from the outside of the outer housing.