Patent ID: 6091573
Filing Date: 2000-07-18
Classification: G06F,G11B

Abstract:
A system for signal transduction using a rotatable data storage media that is rotatable about a central drive axis and has a given radius, the system comprising:a housing having a lateral dimension greater than the media diameter and a depth less than the media radius;a deployable retainer that is movable from a nested position to a deployed position, the retainer in the nested position being located within the housing and the retainer in the deployed position protruding from the interior of the housing to the exterior of the housing for retaining the media in an operative position such that the media is located partially inside the housing and principally outside the housing;a deployable media drive including a terminal media drive, the deployable media drive being movable between a nested position and a deployed position such that when the deployable media drive is in the nested position, the deployable media drive and terminal media drive are located within the housing where the terminal media drive cannot engage the media center, and when the deployable media drive is in the deployed position, the deploy able media drive protrudes from the interior of the housing to the outside of the housing and the terminal media drive is located outside the housing and is engageable with the media center to rotate the media without requiring full insertion of the media into the housing; anda deployable transducer mechanism operable between a nested position and a transducing position, the deployable transducer mechanism in the nested position being located within the housing and the deployable transducer mechanism in the transducing position being able to transduce signals to or from the media in the operative position such that signal transduction operations are carried out without requiring full insertion of the media into the housing.