PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-7827568-B1
Application Number: US-79847604-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B1

Title: Integration of structural and cosmetic bezel having a disk guide for a slot loading optical drive

Abstract:
An optical drive bezel assembly for coupling to an optical drive. The optical drive bezel assembly includes a functional bezel having a first opening to receive an optical disk and a first plurality of attachment features. The functional bezel is coupled to the optical drive. A disk guide is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel. A cosmetic bezel has a second opening to receive the optical disk and a second plurality of attachment features. The cosmetic bezel is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel. A cosmetic screen is attached to the cosmetic bezel. The first opening and the second opening are in alignment.

Claims:
1. An apparatus comprising:
 a functional bezel having a first opening to receive an optical disk and a first plurality of attachment features; 
 a cosmetic bezel having a second opening to receive the optical disk and second plurality of attachment features wherein the first opening and the second opening are in alignment; 
 a disk guide wherein the disk guide includes a ramp feature forming a lower surface of an opening having a ramp up toward an external side to point the optical disk downward into an optical drive during injection and to point the optical disk upward during ejection; and 
 a cosmetic screen disposed adjacent to the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel and fixedly attached to one of the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel, 
 wherein the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel are attached to form an integrated optical drive bezel, the integrated optical drive bezel configured to be coupled to the optical drive after the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel are attached to form the integrated optical drive bezel, and wherein the integrated optical drive bezel is configured such that removal of the cosmetic bezel will also remove the functional bezel which is attached to the cosmetic bezel. 
 
     
     
       2. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the functional bezel provides structural rigidity for the optical drive. 
     
     
       3. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the functional bezel includes a plurality of mounting points for mounting the functional bezel to the optical drive and for mounting the functional bezel to an enclosure that houses the optical drive. 
     
     
       4. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the functional bezel includes a plurality of mounting points for mounting the functional bezel to various configurations of various optical drives. 
     
     
       5. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the first plurality of attachment features of the functional bezel matches the second plurality of attachment features. 
     
     
       6. The apparatus of  claim 1  further comprising wherein the disk guide facilitates proper attachment of the optical disk into the optical drive. 
     
     
       7. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the ramp feature is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel and wherein the ramp feature points the optical disk down into the optical drive during injection and points the optical disk up during ejection and wherein the cosmetic screen is disposed between the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel. 
     
     
       8. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the cosmetic bezel includes a recess configured to receive the cosmetic screen. 
     
     
       9. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the second opening in the cosmetic bezel is larger than the first opening in the functional bezel to facilitate injection or ejection. 
     
     
       10. The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the cosmetic screen performs at least one of minimizing contaminants into the optical disk drive and wiping the optical disk as the optical disk is being inserted into the optical drive. 
     
     
       11. An optical disk drive assembly comprising:
 an optical disk drive; 
 an optical drive bezel having a functional bezel rigidly attached to a cosmetic bezel, a disk guide including a ramp feature forming a lower surface of an opening having a ramp up toward an external side to point the optical disk downward into the optical drive during injection and to point the optical disk upward during ejection, and a cosmetic screen disposed adjacent to the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel, wherein a slot is provided in the optical drive bezel assembly to allow an optical disk to pass therethrough and wherein the slot remains open when a disk is in the optical drive, wherein the optical drive bezel assembly is coupled to the optical disk drive after the functional bezel is rigidly attached to the cosmetic bezel, and wherein the integrated optical drive bezel is configured such that the removal of the cosmetic bezel will also remove the functional bezel which is attached to the cosmetic bezel. 
 
     
     
       12. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the functional bezel has a first opening to receive the optical disk and a first plurality of attachment features, the functional bezel coupled to the optical drive, and the cosmetic bezel has a second opening to receive the optical disk and second plurality of attachment features, wherein the first opening and the second opening are in attachment to form the slot. 
     
     
       13. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the functional bezel provides structural rigidity for the optical disk drive. 
     
     
       14. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the functional bezel includes a plurality of mounting points for mounting the functional bezel to the optical disk drive. 
     
     
       15. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the functional bezel includes a plurality of mounting points configured for mounting the functional bezel to the slot loading optical disk drive. 
     
     
       16. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein a first plurality of attachment features of the functional bezel matches a second plurality of attachment features. 
     
     
       17. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the disk guide facilitates proper attachment of the optical disk into the optical drive. 
     
     
       18. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the ramp feature is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel and wherein the ramp feature points the optical disk down into the optical drive during injection and points the optical disk up during ejection and wherein the cosmetic screen is disposed between the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel. 
     
     
       19. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the cosmetic bezel includes a recess configured to receive the cosmetic screen. 
     
     
       20. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein a second opening in the cosmetic bezel is larger than a first opening in the functional bezel to facilitate injection or ejection of the optical disk. 
     
     
       21. The optical disk drive assembly of  claim 11  wherein the cosmetic screen performs at least one of minimizing contaminants into the optical disk drive and wiping the optical disk as the optical disk is being inserted into the optical disk drive. 
     
     
       22. A computer system comprising:
 an enclosure; 
 an optical drive coupled to the enclosure; 
 a functional bezel having a first opening to receive an optical disk and a first attachment feature; 
 a cosmetic bezel having a second opening to receive the optical disk and second attachment feature, the cosmetic bezel rigidly coupled to the functional bezel through a coupling of the first and the second attachment features, wherein the first opening and the second opening are in alignment through the coupling of the first and the second attachment features; 
 a disk guide wherein the disk guide includes a ramp feature forming a lower surface of an opening having a ramp up toward an external side to point the optical disk downward into the optical drive during injection and to point the optical disk upward during ejection; and 
 a cosmetic screen disposed adjacent to the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel and fixedly attached to one of the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel, 
 wherein the cosmetic bezel is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel to form an integrated bezel assembly, the integrated bezel assembly coupled to the optical drive and the enclosure after the cosmetic bezel is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel to form the integrated bezel assembly 
 wherein the integrated bezel assembly is arranged such that the removal of the cosmetic bezel will also remove the functional bezel. 
 
     
     
       23. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the optical drive is rigidly mounted to the enclosure. 
     
     
       24. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the cosmetic bezel includes a recess configured to receive the cosmetic screen. 
     
     
       25. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the functional bezel provides structural rigidity for the optical drive. 
     
     
       26. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the functional bezel includes a plurality of mounting points for mounting the functional bezel to the optical drive. 
     
     
       27. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the first attachment feature of the functional bezel matches the second attachment feature. 
     
     
       28. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the disk guide facilitates proper attachment of the optical disk into the optical drive. 
     
     
       29. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the ramp feature is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel and wherein the ramp feature points the optical disk down into the optical drive during injection and points the optical disk up during ejection and wherein the cosmetic screen is disposed between the functional bezel and the cosmetic bezel. 
     
     
       30. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the second opening in the cosmetic bezel is larger than the first opening in the functional bezel to facilitate injection or ejection of the optical disk. 
     
     
       31. The computer system of  claim 22  wherein the functional bezel facilitates slot loading of the optical disk into the optical drive.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     Aspects of the present invention include an optical drive bezel for an optical disk drive that includes integration of structural and cosmetic bezels for a slot loading optical drive. 
     A personal computer system may be thought of as a general-purpose, single-user microcomputer that is designed to be operated by a person. A small and low cost personal computer (PC) may include a monitor connected to a computer, each of which may receive power from an ordinary outlet. In operation, the monitor accepts video signals from a graphic card within the computer over a cable assembly and displays this information on a screen. 
     A computer system may include at least one optical disk drive configured to receive an optical disk such as a DVD or a CD disk for data processing. The optical disk drive is coupled to the motherboard of the computer system as is well known in the art. The optical disk drive is mounted in the computer system via a chassis that has an enclosure case.  FIG. 1  shows a conventional way of mounting a slot loading optical disk drive  102  in a chassis  104  of a computer system (partially shown). The chassis  104  includes an enclosure  106  and a cosmetic piece  108  affixed to the enclosure  106 . The cosmetic piece  108  includes a slot  110  to receive an optical disk  112 . The optical disk  112  can be loaded into the optical drive  102  as is known in the art. The cosmetic piece  108  is not fixed to the optical drive  102  and there is no mechanical fastener directly between the cosmetic piece  108  and the optical drive  102 . Thus, the cosmetic piece  108  can be decoupled or misaligned with the face of the optical drive  102 . The decoupling or misalignment possibility can cause reliability problems when inserting and/or ejecting the optical disk  112 . For example, the optical disk  112  can be easily damaged during ejection or injection. Additionally, the optical disk  112  can be jammed during ejection or injection due to the misalignment thus causing installation failure. 
       FIG. 2  shows another conventional way of mounting a slot loading optical disk drive  102  in a chassis  104  of a computer system (not shown). The chassis  104  includes an enclosure  107  which also functions as a cosmetic piece. The enclosure  107  includes a slot  110  to receive an optical disk  112 . The optical disk  112  can be loaded into the optical drive  102  as is known in the art. The enclosure  107  is not fixed to the optical drive  102  and there is no mechanical fastener directly connecting the enclosure  107  and the optical drive  102 . A functional structure  111  having a slot  113  is coupled to the optical drive  102 . The functional structure  111  provides some alignment mechanism for the optical disk  112  during injection and ejection. Misalignment of the slot  113  with the slot  110  is still a possibility depending on how the functional structure  111  is mounted in the chassis  104 . The misalignment possibility can cause reliability problems when inserting and/or ejecting the optical disk  112 . 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An optical drive bezel assembly for coupling to an optical drive. The optical drive bezel assembly includes a functional bezel having a first opening to receive an optical disk and a first plurality of attachment features. The functional bezel is coupled to the optical drive. A disk guide is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel. A cosmetic bezel has a second opening to receive the optical disk and a second plurality of attachment features. The cosmetic bezel is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel. A cosmetic screen is attached to the cosmetic bezel. The first opening and the second opening are in alignment. 
     In another embodiment, an optical disk drive assembly comprises an optical disk drive coupling to an optical drive bezel assembly, the optical drive bezel having a functional bezel rigidly attached to a cosmetic bezel, and a cosmetic screen disposed between the functional bezel and the cosmetic screen and fixedly attached to the cosmetic bezel, wherein a slot is provided in the optical drive bezel to allow an optical disk to pass therethrough. 
     In another embodiment, a computer system comprises a chassis or enclosure housing a computer system which has an optical drive. The optical drive is attached to the chassis or enclosure. A functional bezel having a first opening to receive an optical disk and a first plurality of attachment features is coupled to the optical drive and the chassis or enclosure. A disk guide is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel. A cosmetic bezel has a second opening to receive the optical disk and a second plurality of attachment features and is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel. A cosmetic screen is attached to the cosmetic bezel. The first opening and the second opening are in alignment. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a conventional way of mounting a slot loading optical disk drive in a computer system; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates another conventional way of mounting a slot loading optical disk drive in a computer system; 
         FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary optical disk drive assembly with an optical drive bezel in accordance to embodiments of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a detail view of an exemplary optical drive bezel; 
         FIG. 5  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of assembling the optical drive bezel to an optical drive; 
         FIGS. 6-7  illustrate an exemplary disk guide used with an optical drive; 
         FIGS. 8-10  illustrate three different views of a functional bezel of an optical drive bezel; and 
         FIGS. 11-12  illustrate two different views of a cosmetic bezel of an optical drive bezel. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an optical disk drive assembly  300 . The optical disk drive  300  includes an optical disk drive  302  which is coupled to an optical drive bezel assembly  306 . Embodiments of the present invention pertain to the configuration and integration of various parts of the optical drive bezel assembly  306 . In one embodiment, the optical disk drive  302  is a slot loading optical disk that can accommodate at least one of a CD or a DVD disk. The optical disk drive  302  is also coupled to an electrical interconnect  304 . In one embodiment, the electrical interconnect  304  is a flexible cable that provides an electrical interface of the optical disk drive to the motherboard of a computer system. The optical drive bezel assembly  306  includes a functional bezel rigidly attached to a cosmetic bezel, and a cosmetic screen disposed between the functional bezel and the cosmetic screen and fixedly attached to the cosmetic bezel (see below). A slot (not shown here) is provided in the optical drive bezel assembly  306  to allow an optical disk to pass therethrough. The optical disk drive  302  is further coupled to a chassis bracket  308  to allow the optical disk drive  302  to mount to a chassis or enclosure. The chassis bracket  308  may also be mounted to the optical drive bezel assembly  306 . The optical drive bezel assembly  306  thus can also provide a structural rigidity for the optical disk drive  302 . 
       FIG. 4  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the optical drive bezel assembly  306 . One feature of the optical drive bezel assembly  306  is that all parts of the optical drive bezel assembly  306  are integrated as one unit before being attached to the optical disk drive  302 . Misalignment is thus minimized or eliminated. The optical drive bezel assembly  306  includes a functional bezel  308  having a first opening  310  to receive an optical disk (not shown) and a first plurality of attachment features  312  and  314 . The attachment features  312  are for attachment to the top side of the functional bezel  308  and the attachment features  314  are for attachment to the bottom side of the functional bezel  308 . The optical drive bezel assembly  306  also includes a disk guide  341  rigidly coupled to the functional bezel  308 . The disk guide  341  is clipped onto section  316  of the functional bezel  308  which is approximately the middle section of the functional bezel  308 . The optical drive bezel assembly  306  also includes a cosmetic bezel  318  having a second opening  320  to receive the optical disk. The optical drive bezel assembly  306  includes a second plurality of attachment features (not shown in this view). The cosmetic bezel  318  is rigidly coupled to the functional bezel  308  through the attachment features. The first plurality of attachment features  312  and  314  are thus complimentary to the second plurality of attachment features. The optical drive bezel assembly  306  also includes a cosmetic screen  322  disposed between the functional bezel  308  and the cosmetic bezel  318 . The cosmetic screen  322  is fixedly attached to the cosmetic bezel  318 . The functional bezel  308 , the cosmetic bezel  318 , and the cosmetic screen  322  are rigidly attached to each other such that the first opening  310  and the second opening  320  are in alignment. 
       FIG. 5  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the optical drive bezel assembly  306  being coupled to the optical drive  302  and how these units can be attached to a chassis or enclosure of a computer system. The optical drive  302  is shown to be attached to the chassis bracket  308  which is attached to a chassis or enclosure (not shown) that houses the optical drive  302 . The chassis bracket  308  includes a plurality of mounting mechanisms  324  which can be nuts and screws as is know in the art. The mounting mechanisms  324  allows for the mounting of the optical drive  302  to the chassis or enclosure. Normally, the optical drive is not easily removable by a user. In other words, the optical drive is normally fixed in placed and is not designed to be removed by a simple sliding in/out procedure which is available on certain types of laptop computers (e.g., IBM&#39;s Thinkpads have “Ultrabays” which allow for easy inserting or removal of optical drives). The optical drive  302  is also shown to be attached to the electrical interconnect  304  and a back chassis bracket  326  through another set of mounting mechanism  328  (e.g., nuts and for screws). The optical drive bezel assembly  306  is attached to the chassis bracket  308  through a mounting mechanism  330 . The optical drive bezel assembly  306  is attached to the optical drive  302  via a plurality of mounting points  334  provided on the optical drive bezel assembly  306  which are configured to be in alignment with a plurality of mounting points  332  on the optical drive  302 . 
     In one embodiment, the functional bezel  308  provides a structural rigidity of the slot loading optical drive  302 . The slot loading optical drive  302  can be one in a desktop format kind of computer or a portable computer (laptop or notebook computer). Such computer system includes a chassis or enclosure that houses the computer system&#39;s motherboard and the optical drive  302  and the functional bezel  308  are mounted to chassis or enclosure. In addition, the functional bezel  308  also provides structural mounting points for the optical drive  302  to attach to the internal chassis or enclosure of the computer system. Additionally, the functional bezel  308  also provides attachment locations for the cosmetic bezel  318  as previously described. 
     In one embodiment, to prevent an optical disk from being scratched, jammed, or misaligned during injection or ejection, the disk guide  341  is installed on the functional bezel  308 . In one embodiment the disk guide  341  is clipped onto the middle section  316  of the functional bezel  308 . In one embodiment, the disk guide  341  is made of a lubricious plastic. The disk guide  341  also prevents the optical disk from getting stuck on the functional bezel  308  during ejection or on the cosmetic bezel  318  during injection. The disk guide  341  is configured so that it is tapered as shown in  FIGS. 6-7 .  FIG. 6  illustrates a three dimensional view of the disk guide  341  and  FIG. 7  illustrates a cross-sectional view of the disk guide  341 . The disk guide  341  is tapered to ramp down toward the side  336  which will be the side that faces the optical drive  302  and to ramp up toward the external side  338  which will be the side that faces the cosmetic bezel  318 . When an optical disk is inserted into the optical drive  302  through the optical drive bezel assembly  306 , the optical disk is guided slightly downward toward the optical drive  302 . The disk guide  341  thus guides the optical disk in a proper alignment into the optical drive  302 . The optical disk is guided so that it is injected into the optical drive  302  below the top surface of the opening in the optical drive bezel assembly  306  and straight into the optical drive  302 . This way, jamming or scratching the optical disk during injection is minimized. The angle of the ramp down is configured so that the disk will be guided in a proper alignment into the optical drive  302 . 
     When an optical disk is ejected from the optical drive  302  through the optical drive bezel assembly  306 , the optical disk is guided slightly upward toward the opening  330  cosmetic bezel  318 . The optical disk is guided so that it is ejected from the optical drive  302  above the bottom surface of the opening in the optical drive bezel assembly  306  and straight out of the optical drive  302 . This way, jamming or scratching the optical disk during ejection is minimized. The angle of the ramp up is configured so that the disk will be guided out of the opening in the optical drive bezel  306  without jamming against the optical drive bezel assembly  306 . In one embodiment, the ramp up may have an angle of approximately 8.5 degrees. 
     Returning to  FIGS. 8-10  illustrate the functional bezel  308  in more details the features that allow the functional bezel  308  to be rigidly attached to the cosmetic bezel  318  and the optical drive  302 .  FIGS. 8-10  illustrate the functional bezel  308  in three different views, two different back views of the functional bezel  308  and a front view of the functional bezel  308 . 
       FIGS. 8 and 10  illustrate the front view of the functional bezel  308  showing two mounting holes  340  for mounting the functional bezel  308  to a computer system&#39;s chassis or enclosure. The functional bezel  308  may also include a plurality of threaded holes  344  which are used for mounting the functional bezel  308  to the chassis or enclosure. The functional bezel  308  may also include a tab  342  that can engage a slot provided on the optical drive  302  to provide additional fixture or attachment points. Also, the functional bezel  308  includes the mounting points  334 , which could be tabs, created on the functional bezel  308 . The mounting points  334  can engage or hook into the mounting points  361 , which could be slots provided on the optical drive  302  ( FIG. 5 ) to allow the functional bezel  308  to be attached to the optical drive. 
       FIG. 9  illustrates a plurality of alignment features such as attachment features  312 ,  314 , and  346 . The attachment features are located on the functional bezel  308  in accordance to the configuration and/or design of the cosmetic bezel  318 . The attachment features are also alignment features that help align the functional bezel  308  and the cosmetic bezel  318  together properly for optimal attachment and integration. In one embodiment, the plurality of attachment features  312  provided on the functional bezel  308  are heat stake wells to allow the functional bezel  308  to be (adhered to mended via heat) to complimentary heat stake posts on the cosmetic bezel  318  (see below). The attachment features  312  provide top attachment points for the functional bezel  308  to the cosmetic bezel  318 . It is to be appreciated that other attachment techniques can be used such as welding, using adhesive, and other mechanical attachment techniques. In one embodiment, the plurality of attachment features  314  provided on the functional bezel  308  are also heat stake wells to allow the functional bezel  308  to be adhered or mended via heat to complimentary heat stake posts on the cosmetic bezel  318 . The attachment features  314  provide bottom attachment points for the functional bezel  308  to the cosmetic bezel  318 . Additionally, the attachment features  346  on the functional bezel attach to recesses or mounting points  332  in the optical drive  302 . 
       FIG. 11  illustrates the back view of the cosmetic bezel  318  and  FIG. 12  illustrates the front view of the cosmetic bezel  318 . From the back view, it can be seen that the cosmetic bezel  318  includes alignment features  350  which align with alignment features  352  provided on the functional bezel  308  ( FIGS. 8 and 10 ). Additionally, the cosmetic bezel  318  also includes a plurality of attachment features  354 , which in one embodiment are heat stake posts created on the cosmetic bezel  318 . The attachment features  354  are complimentary to the attachment features  312 . The attachment features  354  are positioned on the topside of the cosmetic bezel  318 . In the embodiment where the attachment features  354  are heat stake posts and the attachment features  312  (on the functional bezel  308 ) are heat stake wells, the functional bezel  308  and the cosmetic bezel  318  are adhered to each other when heat is applied to the attachment features. The cosmetic bezel  318  also includes a plurality of attachment features  356  positioned at the bottom side of the cosmetic bezel  318 . The attachment features  356  are complimentary to the attachment features  314  on the functional bezel  308 . In the embodiment where the attachment features  356  are heat stake posts and the attachment features  314  are heat stake wells, the functional bezel  308  and the cosmetic features  318  are adhered to each other when heat is applied to the attachment features. It is to be appreciated that other techniques to attach the functional bezel  308  to the cosmetic bezel  318  can be used instead of heat staking. It is also to be anticipated that either the attachment features on the functional bezel  308  or the attachment features on the cosmetic bezel  318  can be the heat stake wells or the heat stake posts. 
     In one embodiment, the cosmetic bezel  318  also includes a plurality of mounting points  358  to mount the cosmetic bezel  318  to the chassis or enclosure of the computer system. 
     In one embodiment, the cosmetic bezel  318  includes a recess (not shown) for the cosmetic screen  322  to be attached thereto. The cosmetic screen  322  can be positioned in the recess and attached in a way that it is flushed against the cosmetic bezel  318 . The cosmetic bezel  318  also includes alignment points  348  for alignment the cosmetic screen  322  with the cosmetic bezel  318 . The cosmetic screen  322  includes alignment points  349  ( FIG. 4 ) which are to be aligned with alignment points  348  on the cosmetic bezel  318  for a proper attachment of the cosmetic screen  322  to the cosmetic bezel  318 . The cosmetic screen  322  can be attached to the cosmetic bezel using adhesive, heat staking, or other suitable mechanical bonding techniques. 
     In one embodiment, the cosmetic screen  322  functions to prevent contaminants such as dust, particles, or the like to get into the optical drive  302 . The cosmetic screen  322  also wipes the optical disk prior to or as it is being injected into the optical drive  302 . The cosmetic screen may also provide EMF (Electromagnetic Field) shielding to prevent RF (Radio Frequency) energy which is generated within the chassis to leak outside of the chassis. The cosmetic screen  322  can be adjusted in thickness to control, for example, the contact friction induced on the optical disk during ejection, effectively controlling the ejection speed of the optical disk. In one embodiment, the cosmetic screen  322  is a composite of chamois adhesive and a polymer film such as Mylar (Mylar is a Trademark of Dupont). The Mylar is installed on the cosmetic screen  322  to help the installation of the cosmetic screen  322  onto the cosmetic bezel  318 . The Mylar can provide some rigidity to the cosmetic screen  322  because without the Mylar, the cosmetic screen  322  is flimsy making it difficult to be properly aligned on the cosmetic bezel  318  for attachment. In one embodiment, the cosmetic screen  322  includes a slit  360  to allow the optical disk to be injected and ejected therethrough. The slit  360  is in alignment with the opening  310  of the functional bezel  308  and the opening  320  of the cosmetic bezel  318  to allow an optical dish to pass through. Incorporating the Mylar also helps keeping the slit  360  in the cosmetic screen  322  from becoming wavy when it is being installed onto the cosmetic bezel  318 . The cosmetic screen  322  can be made to match the aesthetic quality of the computer system chassis or enclosure. 
     In one embodiment, the opening  320  in the cosmetic bezel  318  is larger than the opening  310  in the functional bezel  308  to facility injection or ejection or the alignment of the optical disk into and out of the optical drive  302 . 
     The exemplary embodiments described herein are provided merely to illustrate the principles of the invention and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the subject matter of the terms of the claimed invention. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. Moreover, the principles of the invention may be applied to achieve the advantages described herein and to achieve other advantages or to satisfy other objectives, as well.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20040310
Publication Date: 20101102
Grant Date: 20101102
Priority Date: 20040310
Inventors: BANKO JOSHUA DAVID
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "G11B33/027", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G11B33/027", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G11B17/051", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G11B17/051", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 43016095