Patent Publication Number: US-2005132386-A1

Title: Disk device having reinforcing structure

Description:
The present application is based on and claims priority of Japanese patent applications No. 2003-411937 filed on Dec. 10, 2003, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of the Invention  
      The present invention relates to a disk device having a reinforcing structure by which the strength of the disk device is improved. More specifically, the invention relates to a disk device in which a frame constituting the disk device is partially formed to have a double rib structure.  
      2. Description of the Related Art  
      In a conventionally used disk device built into an electronic apparatus, an electronic apparatus or the like including a disk device that is capable of recording/reading videos and sounds in/from the disk placed on a retractable tray serving as a movable portion provided in the disk device has been used.  
      In recent years, in a product in which a disk device is built into such an electronic apparatus, in response to various needs of users, the disk device has been built into a television receiver or an electronic apparatus or the like having a radio function or the like.  
      A structure of the disk device built into such an electronic apparatus is disclosed, for example, in the Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-196951.  
      However, in the prior art, various devices and components are built into the electronic apparatus, and due to their weight, deform or the like of a casing which constitutes the body of the electronic apparatus has been a problem. In addition, most of the various devices and components built into the electronic apparatus generate heat when operated, and the heat generated by these devices and components tend to increase the deform or the like in the casing particularly when they are densely built into the relevant electronic apparatus to reduce the size or the like. Accordingly, in the electronic apparatus built into the disk device, there has been a problem that the deformation and the like of the frame in the electronic apparatus makes the smooth movement of the retractable tray provided for placing a disk thereon difficult.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention has been devised in view of the problems described above, and aims at providing a disk device having a reinforcing structure excellent in strength that prevents the disk device from deforming due to the deforming of the casing of the electronic device or due to heat generated by various devices and components built into the electronic device.  
      The present invention provides a disk device provided with an open-closable tray for placing a disk thereon, wherein a frame constituting the disk device is partly formed to have a double rib structure.  
      The frame constituting the disk device in the above-described structure is generally made of resin. The disk device comprises a tray for placing a disk thereon, a mechanism for making the tray open and close, a traverse unit for reading and the like of the disk, which are built therein.  
      The frame is generally formed in a box shape with a right side surface portion and a left side surface portion. A front portion of the frame is opened so that the tray for placing a disk which is arranged in the frame is capable of sliding out from the frame and retracting therein.  
      According to the above-described arrangement, since the frame constituting the disk device is partially formed to have a double rib structure, the frame has improved strength.  
      In the present invention, the frame portions between front leg portions and rear leg portions, which are provided for disposing the disk device in the frame, are partially formed to have the double rib structure.  
      In the frame constituting the disk device, leg portions are formed to dispose the disk device in the electronic apparatus. The leg portions are provided at four corners of the frame for stability of the disk device. In other words, the leg portions are provided in the front and the rear positions of both left and right side surfaces of the frame. In the above-described structure, forming the frame portion between the front leg portions and the rear leg portions to have the double rib structure means that the frame between the front and the rear leg portions provided on the side surfaces of the frame is of the double rib structure.  
      According to the above-described structure, it is possible to enhance the strength of the frame effectively without complicating the structure of the frame unnecessarily. In other words, it is not always necessary to reinforce the frame entirely because deformation or the like tend to occur in, for example, portions simply formed in a plate shape. In portions where a mechanism such as the leg portion is provided, because the mechanism itself exerts a function of a reinforcing structure, it is not necessary to reinforce the structure. Therefore, it is possible to enhance the strength of the frame effectively with the double rib structure without complicating the structure of the frame unnecessarily by reinforcing only the portions excluding the areas where the mechanism such as the leg portion is provided.  
      According to the present invention, the frame portions having the double rib structure have a cross-sectional surface formed in an angulated U-shape opening downward.  
      The strength of the frame is further enhanced by forming the cross-sectional surface of the frame portion having the double rib structure in an angulated U-shape. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing one preferred embodiment of an electronic apparatus including a disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the disk device viewed from a bottom side of a frame according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 4  is a plan view showing an internal structure of the disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the disk device with one portion of a side frame notched according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 6  is a plan view showing an internal structure in a state in which a tray of the disk device is closed according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 7  is a plan view of the frame of the disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 8  is a bottom view of the frame of the disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 9  is a side view of the frame of the disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention; and  
       FIG. 10  is a cross sectional view of the frame of the disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
      Now, the preferred embodiment of the present invention will be explained hereinafter with reference to  FIG. 1  through  5 . Please note that the following embodiment is a mere example for embodying the invention and are not intended to limit the invention within the scopes of the embodiments.  
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing one preferred embodiment of an electronic apparatus including a disk device.  
      An electronic apparatus  1  has its entire shape formed in a box shape by a front panel  2  and a casing  3 , both of which are flat panels. The front panel  2  disposed at the front surface of the electronic apparatus  1  is detachably attached to the casing  3 , and an opening  4  is formed substantially at the center of the front panel  2 .  
      In addition, plural operation buttons  5  are provided on appropriate positions of the front panel  2 . By operating these operation buttons  5 , opening and closing of a tray which will be described later, and recording or reading or the like will be performed. Note that the functions of these operation buttons  5  are not limited to those described above, and these operation buttons  5  may function in various ways.  
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the disk device  10  built into the electronic apparatus  1  viewed from an upper position.  FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a frame  10 A viewed from a bottom side.  FIG. 4  is a plan view showing an internal structure of the disk device  10 .  
      As shown in  FIG. 2 , an open-closable tray  13  for placing a disk thereon is provided in the disk device  10 . This tray is arranged to advance and retract via the opening  4  at the front panel of the electronic apparatus  1  described above.  
      Moreover, the whole disk device  10  is formed of a frame  10 A generally made of resin.  FIG. 7  is a plan view of the frame  10 A of the disk device according to the embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 8  is a bottom view of the same,  FIG. 9  is a side view of the same, and  FIG. 10  is across-sectional view of the same. The frame  10 A is generally formed in a box shape comprising a right side wall portion and a left side wall portion. In a front portion of the frame  10 A is formed an opening so that the tray for placing a disk, which is built in the frame, is capable of popping out from the frame. Leg portions are integrally formed at the four corners of the frame  10 A. More specifically, the leg portions are formed by front leg portions  11 F disposed at the front position of the disk device  10  and rear leg portions  11 R disposed at the rear position of the same. The disk device  10  is detachably attached by screwing to an appropriate position of the casing  3  of the electronic apparatus  1  via the front leg portions  11 F and the rear leg portions  11 R.  
      In addition, reinforcing portions  12  having a double rib structure, wherein the cross-sectional surface of the frame is formed in an angulated U-shape as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 5 , are formed between the front leg portions  11 F and the rear leg portions  11 R integrally formed to the frame  10 A. Consequently, for example, even in the disk device  10  having plural components concentrically disposed and thus heavy in weight, the present invention can prevent the deformation of the frame  10 A of the disk device  10  unfailingly.  
      Reference number  13  is a tray for placing a disk thereon, and this tray  13  is arranged so that it is capable of moving along internal side portions  14  of the reinforcing portions  12 . Note that extremely small spaces S are provided between the tray  13  and the internal side portions  14 , respectively. The spaces S described in the embodiment of the present invention are 2 mm or less.  
      In addition, a circular groove  13 A for placing a disk on the upper surface of the tray  13  is formed to match a circular shape of a disk as shown in  FIG. 2 . On the contrary, on a lower side of the tray  13 , a tray rack  15  is provided in a longitudinal direction of the disk device  10  as shown in  FIG. 4 . A substantially L-shaped tray guide groove  16  is disposed along the tray rack  15 .  
      The tray rack  15  engages with a gear  20  for sliding out and retracting the tray  13  and to open/close the tray, and a cam rod boss  21  is loosely fit to the tray guide groove  16 . A motor  22  serving as a power supply means drives the gear  20  to rotate, whereby the gear  20  advances and retracts the tray rack  15 .  
      Note that the tray  13  performs sliding out and retracting operations in a predetermined distance, in other words, opens and closes the tray in a predetermined distance, so that a user can place a disk on the tray  13 .  
      Furthermore, the tray guide groove  16  is formed by a longitudinal guide groove portion  16 A arranged parallel to the tray rack  15 , an inclined guide groove portion  16 B inclined to be extended from the longitudinal guide groove portion, and a lateral guide groove portion  16 C formed in a perpendicular direction with respect to the longitudinal guide groove portion  16 A. A curved portion  16 D is formed at a rear end of the longitudinal guide groove portion  16 A.  
      According to the above-described arrangement, in a state in which the tray  13  advances, that is, a state in which the tray  13  is open, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the curved portion  16 D of the tray guide groove  16  comes into abutment against the cam rod boss  21 , whereby the tray  13  is locked to stop. On the contrary, in a state in which the tray  13  retracts, that is, a state in which the tray  13  is closed, the cam rod boss  21  comes into abutment against the inclined guide groove portion  16 B, whereby the tray  13  is locked to stop. In other words, the tray  13  is operated to open and close guided by the cam rod boss  21  in the tray guide groove portions  16 .  
       FIG. 6  is a drawing showing a state in which the tray retracts to close. In a state in which the tray  13  is closed, the cam rod boss  21  is located in the inclined guide groove portion  16 B of the tray guide groove portion  16 , whereby the tray  13  stops. When the gear  20  rotates from this state, the cam rod boss  21  moves along the lateral guide groove portion  16 C.  
      By forming the frame between the front leg portions  11 F and the rear leg portions  11 R to have the double rib structure, even in the disk device having plural components concentrically disposed and heavy in weight, it is possible to prevent the deformation of the frame unfailingly, and when the movable portion such as the tray operates, it is possible to support the tray  13  to operate smoothly without failure. Thus, it is possible to provide a disk device  10  that has excellent reliability and has few failures.  
      According to a first aspect of the present disk device, even in a disk device having plural components concentrically disposed and heavy in weight, and even when the heat of the various devices and components in the electronic apparatus having the disk device is generated therein during operation, the present invention can prevent the deformation of the frame in the disk device. Furthermore, the disk device can support the operation of the tray smoothly and unfailingly when the movable portion such as the tray is operated, so a disk device excellent in reliability with few failures is provided.  
      In addition, since the deformation of the frame of the disk device is prevented, sliding out and retracting movements of the tray are not hindered even when the space between the tray and the frame is extremely small. Thus, it is possible to reduce the space between the tray and the frame as much as possible and save the space occupied by the device.  
      According to a second aspect of the disk device, it is possible to enhance the strength of the frame effectively without complicating the structure of the frame unnecessarily.  
      According to a third aspect of the present disk device, it is possible to further enhance the strength of the frame by forming the frame portion having the double rib structure to have a cross-sectional surface formed in an angulated U-shape.