Abstract:
A storage device for optical media comprises a body defining an upper surface. A plurality of adjacent slots formed in the upper surface of the body extend in a first direction from the upper surface and define upper guiding cavities and lower engaging cavities. The upper guiding cavities guide optical media into the lower engaging cavities, which have openings to the upper cavities. The lower engaging cavities engage lower arcuate portions of the optical media. The lower engaging cavities independently support the optical media in the adjacent slots in a parallel relationship when the storage device is located on a flat supporting surface. The lower engaging cavities have a trapezoidal-shaped cross section. The upper cavities have a generally “U”-shaped cross section.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to storage devices, and more particularly to storage devices for optical storage media.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Optical storage media such as compact discs (CDs), digital versatile discs (DVDs), and optical media for future data formats store digital content such as music, video, still pictures, software and other data. Playback devices such as CD players/recorders, DVD players/recorders, computers, and gaming devices use a laser to read back digital content that is stored on the optical storage media. Optical storage media such as CDs and DVDs are meant to be stored in jewel cases or other protective storage devices such as CD and DVD wallets and/or albums. However, users tend to leave the optical storage media outside of the jewel cases or other protective storage devices.  
         [0003]     For example, uncased CDs are often left sitting in a vehicle, on top of a computer desk and/or near an entertainment center where they are played. When the user removes the CD from the player, it takes time to locate the correct jewel case for the CD. During busy times, it may be inconvenient to locate the correct jewel case or other protective storage devices. Sometimes, a user will temporarily store the CD in the incorrect jewel case, which often makes it difficult to find the CD later. As a result, the CDs may be left unprotected, stacked on top of each other, etc. The failure to properly care for the CDs may damage the CDs. In addition, the loose CDs may clutter the area around the computer desk or entertainment center. It also may be difficult for the user to locate a particular CD quickly.  
         [0004]     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , an exemplary optical medium  10  is shown. CDs typically have a diameter of 120 mm and a center hole having a diameter of 15 mm. Data is usually stored from a radius of 25 mm (after a lead-in portion) to a radius of 58 mm (where a lead-out portion begins). The data on the CD is divided into three areas. The lead-in portion (from radius 23 mm to 25 mm) contains digital silence in the main channel and a Table of Contents in a subcode Q-channel. The lead-in portion also allows a laser pickup head of the playback device to synchronize before the start of a program portion. The length of the lead-in portion may vary. The lead-in portion provides sufficient space for the Table of Contents, which may include up to 99 tracks.  
         [0005]     The program portion (from the radius at 25 mm to the radius at 58 mm) contains data that divided into tracks. A lead-out portion contains zero data and defines the end of the program portion. Optical media is typically rotated at a constant linear velocity (CLV). The angular velocity (rpm) reduces from the lead-in portion to the lead-out portion. In other words, pits retain the same geometry wherever they reside on the CD.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006]     A storage device according to the present invention for optical media comprises a body defining an upper surface. A plurality of adjacent slots formed in the upper surface of the body extend in a first direction from the upper surface and define upper guiding cavities and lower engaging cavities. The upper guiding cavities guide optical media into the lower engaging cavities, which have openings to the upper cavities. The lower engaging cavities engage lower arcuate portions of the optical media.  
         [0007]     In other features, the lower engaging cavities independently support the optical media in the adjacent slots in a parallel relationship when the storage device is located on a flat supporting surface. The lower engaging cavities have a trapezoidal-shaped cross section. The plurality of slots are generally parallel to each other.  
         [0008]     In still other features, a first width of the upper guiding cavities generally decreases with a depth of the upper guiding cavities. A second width of the lower engaging cavities generally decreases with a depth of the lower engaging cavities. A third width of the lower engaging cavities adjacent to the opening is greater than a fourth width adjacent to a bottom surface of the lower engaging cavities. The fourth width is between 1.25 mm and 1.5 mm. The slots are spaced at a fifth width that is greater than 10 mm and less than 25 mm.  
         [0009]     In yet other features, the upper cavities have a generally “U”-shaped cross section. The optical media includes at least one of compact discs and digital versatile discs. Opposite sides of the body include a generally “C”-shaped recess. Opposite side walls of the trapezoidal-shaped cavities are sloped at an angle that is greater than 0° relative to a line that is perpendicular to the flat supporting surface. The lower engaging cavities have a depth that is between 10 mm and 14 mm at a center of the body and wherein the depth decreases towards opposite sides of the body.  
         [0010]     Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]     The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description and the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
         [0012]      FIG. 1  is a perspective and cross-sectional view of an exemplary optical medium;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a first storage device for optical media according to the present invention;  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is a plan view of the first storage device of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is a side view of the first storage device of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is an end view of the first storage device of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is a side view of the first storage device of  FIG. 1  that stores optical media;  
         [0018]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a second storage device for optical media;  
         [0019]      FIG. 8  is a plan view of the second storage device of  FIG. 7 ;  
         [0020]      FIG. 9  is an end view of the second storage device of  FIG. 7  storing an exemplary optical medium;  
         [0021]      FIG. 10  is a side view of the second storage device of  FIG. 7  storing optical media;  
         [0022]      FIG. 11  is a cross sectional view of the second storage device of  FIG. 7  storing optical media;  
         [0023]      FIGS. 12A and 12B  show enlarged cross sectional views of slots; and  
         [0024]      FIGS. 13A and 13B  show a contact region for the storage devices in  FIGS. 1 and 7 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0025]     The following description of the preferred embodiment(s) is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention, its application, or uses. For purposes of clarity, the same reference numbers will be used in the drawings to identify similar elements.  
         [0026]     Referring now to  FIGS. 2-6 , a storage device  20  for storing optical storage media according the present invention is shown. The storage device  20  includes a body  22  having an upwardly facing surface  24 , end surfaces  28  and  30  and side surfaces  32  and  34 . The end surfaces  28  and  30  have lower edges  38  and  40 , respectively, that are generally parallel to each other and that abut a flat supporting surface  50  ( FIG. 5 ) such as a table, play back device or other surface when the storage device  20  is placed thereon. In one implementation, the side surfaces  32  and  34  have generally “C”-shaped recesses  46  and  48  to reduce the amount of material that is required to produce the storage device  20 . However, the side portions  32  and  34  may optionally extend to a plane defined by the flat supporting surface  50 .  
         [0027]     The storage device  20  defines a plurality of slots  44 - 1 ,  44 - 2 ,  44 - 3 , . . .  44 -N (collectively slots  44 ), which are arranged in a generally parallel relationship. Each slot  44  is adapted to receive an optical medium  10  such as a CD, DVD, and optical media having future data formats. As will be described further below, the slots  44  support the optical media  10  in a spaced apart relationship. The slots  44  are preferably spaced apart by a sufficient distance to allow the user to easily grab the optical medium  10  without grabbing or otherwise disturbing the optical media  10  stored in adjacent slots. In one embodiment, the slots are spaced between 10 mm and 25 mm apart. In a preferred embodiment, the slots are spaced 15 mm to 18 mm.  
         [0028]     The slots  44  define an upper generally “U”-shaped cavity  60  and a lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  64 . The “U”-shaped cavity  60  has a width that decreases with the depth of the “U”-shaped cavity  60 . The lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  64  also has a width that decreases with the depth of the lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  64 . The lower cavity  64  has a depth of approximately 2 mm. In one embodiment, side walls of the lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity form an angle with respect to a line perpendicular to the plane  50  that is greater than 0° and less than 5°. In a preferred embodiment, the angle is greater than 0° and less than 1°. In the embodiment in  FIGS. 2-6 , the angle is 0.5°. The angled side walls reduce the likelihood that the optical media  10  will get stuck in the lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  64 . The angled sidewalls also facilitate removal of the storage device from a mold when the storage device  10  is produced.  
         [0029]     Referring now to  FIGS. 7-10 , a perspective view of a second storage device  100  for optical media is shown. The storage device  100  includes a body  102 , upwardly facing surface  124 , end surfaces  128  and  130  and side surfaces  132  and  134 . The end surfaces  128  and  130  have lower edges  138  and  140 , respectively, that are generally parallel to each other and that abut a flat supporting surface  150  ( FIG. 10 ). In one implementation, the side surfaces  132  and  134  have generally “C”-shaped recesses  146  and  148 . However, the side portions  132  and  134  may extend to a plane defined by the flat supporting surface  150 .  
         [0030]     The storage device  120  defines a plurality of slots  144 - 1 ,  144 - 2 ,  144 - 3 , . . .  144 -N (collectively slots  144 ), which are arranged in a generally parallel relationship. Each slot  144  is adapted to receive an optical medium  10  such as a CD, DVD, and optical media having future data formats. As will be described further below, the slots  144  support the optical media in a spaced apart relationship. The slots  144  are preferably spaced apart by a sufficient distance to allow a user to easily grab the optical medium  10  without grabbing or otherwise disturbing the optical media  10  stored in adjacent slots. The body  102  defines an elliptical surface  156  that meets with a groove  158  that receives and guides the optical media  10 . In this embodiment, the upwardly facing surface  124  is defined by the body  102  between the slots  144 .  
         [0031]     Referring now to  FIGS. 11, 12A  and  12 B, the slots  144  have an upper generally “U”-shaped cavity  160  and a lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  164 . The “U”-shaped cavity  160  has a width that decreases with the depth of the “U”-shaped cavity  160 . The “U”-shaped cavity  160  guides the optical media  10  into the lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  164 . The lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  64  has a width d 4  that decreases with the depth of the lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  164  to a minimum width d 3 , which is greater than the width of the optical medium  10 . In other words, d 4 &gt;d 3 . In one embodiment, side walls of the trapezoidal-shaped cavity  164  form an angle with respect to a line perpendicular to the supporting surface  56  that is greater than 0° and less than 5°. In a preferred embodiment, the angle greater than 0° and less than 1°. The angle is approximately 0.5° in  FIGS. 7-10 . The dimension d 3  is preferably a bit larger than the thickness of the optical media. For example, d 3  is between 1.25 and 1.40 mm. The angled sides reduce the likelihood that the optical media  10  will get stuck in the lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  164 . The angled sidewalls also facilitate removal of the storage device  100  from a mold when the storage device is produced. The depth d 2  of the lower trapezoidal-shaped cavity  164  is between 8 mm and 20 mm. In a preferred embodiment, d 2  is between 10 and 14 mm. In  FIGS. 7-10 , d 2  is 12 mm at the center and reduces to zero at the sides. The spacing d 1  between adjacent slots  144  is between 10 mm and 20 mm. Preferably, the spacing d 1  is 14 mm to 20 mm.  
         [0032]     The storage devices  20  and  100  provide an easy-to-use temporary storage location for optical media  10 . The storage devices  20  and  100  protect the optical media  10  as well as eliminate location clutter around the computer desk, entertainment center and other locations. The optical media  10  is protected until returned to permanent storage devices such as jewel cases, CD albums, etc. The storage device  20  is also ideally suited for staging optical media for the copying and/or software installation. For example, when installing software such as an operating system, the optical media may be lined up in order in successive slots. When copying optical media  10 , two storage devices may be used to further simplify the copying process. One storage device  20  is used to hold the blanks and another storage device holds the originals. Using this approach makes it easier to track.  
         [0033]     The storage device is molded from plastic and has a thickness between 1 mm and 3 mm. In a preferred embodiment, the body has a thickness of 2 mm. The plastic material may polycarbonate, acrylic or similar materials. One or more bumpers  180  for example shown in  FIG. 4  may extend downwardly from the body to reduce inadvertent sliding of the storage devices  20  and  100 . While five and six slots are shown, additional and/or fewer slots may be used. The storage device is designed to minimize contact between the storage devices  20  and  100  and the optical media  10  to reduce scratching. For example and referring to  FIG. 13A , the data stored on optical medium starts at the center of the optical medium and can occupy up to the outer 2 mm of radius as shown in  FIG. 1 . The last 2 mm of radius is the area that the storage device  20  according to the present invention contacts area  200  when the optical media  10  is seated in the slots  44  and  144 . As a result, there is a very minimal chance that using the storage devices  20  and  100  will scratch the optical media  10 . In  FIG. 13B , a contact area  202  corresponding to the storage device  100  in  FIGS. 7-10  is shown.  
         [0034]     Those skilled in the art can now appreciate from the foregoing description that the broad teachings of the present invention can be implemented in a variety of forms. Therefore, while this invention has been described in connection with particular examples thereof, the true scope of the invention should not be so limited since other modifications will become apparent to the skilled practitioner upon a study of the drawings, the specification and the following claims.