Sony Corporation

Tomohisa Kamimura

Makoto Suzuki

Yoshikazu Takano

Mitsunobu Fujikawa

An automatic cassette changer is provided for use with a cassette VTR of the type having push-buttons depressible for selecting at least recording, reproducing and rewinding modes, respectively, of the VTR, and a cassette holder movable between a raised position for receiving or delivering a cassette and a lowered position at which a cassette in the holder can have its tape acted upon by the VTR in a selected one of its modes. The automatic cassette changer provides a magazine for housing a plurality of cassettes; cassette-manipulating devices operative in a plurality of modes in succession for removing a cassette from the magazine and inserting the same into the cassette holder at its raised position, moving the cassette holder to its lowered position so that the VTR can act to record, reproduce or rewind the tape of the cassette in the holder, and discharging the cassette from the holder upon the return of the latter to its raised position; a mode selecting assembly actuable for selecting the modes of the cassette-manipulating means; a first motor for driving the mode selecting assembly, actuators adapted to be driven for causing operation of the cassette-manipulating devices in each selected one of the modes of the latter determined by said mode selecting assembly; and a second motor for driving said actuators.

Automatic cassette changer

In a magnetic recording and/or reproducing apparatus having a tape guide drum, at least one rotary magnetic head moved in a circular path coinciding with the circumferential surface of the drum for scanning a magnetic tape wrapped about at least a portion of that surface, a tape supply such as, a cassette containing reels on which a magnetic tape is wound, a capstan spaced from the guide drum, a holder for receiving and positioning the cassette at a location spaced from the guide drum, and a tape loading and unloading device which comprises a support ring rotatable around the drum between inactive and operative positions in a substantially horizontal arcuate path that extends adjacent the capstan and the holder, a tape engaging member including a pinch roller extending upwardly from the support ring and being movable with the latter in the aforementioned arcuate path for projecting from below into an opening of the cassette positioned by the holder and engaging the tape extending across such opening with the support ring in its inactive position and for withdrawing a progressively extended loop of tape from the cassette and wrapping one side of the extended tape loop about at least a portion of the guide drum circumference in response to movement of the support ring from the inactive to the operative position at which the pinch roller is located within the tape loop adjacent the capstan with the tape of the loop therebetween; the support ring of the tape loading and unloading device is formed of first and second arcuate parts which are pivotally connected to each other in end-to-end relation to permit swinging of the first part relative to the second part between a raised position coplanar with the second part and a depressed position in which the first part is inclined downwardly from the second part, the first part of the support ring carries all of the tape engaging members and extends toward the cassette holder in the inactive position of the support ring, and the support ring is carried by a plurality of rollers spaced apart about the arcuate path with each one of the rollers carrying the first part of the support ring in the inactive position of the latter being substantially vertically movable to move the first part between its raised and depressed positions. By reason of the foregoing, the cassette holder may have a fixed horizontal base over which the cassette can be slidably moved to and from an operative cassette position with the first part of the ring in its depressed position to dispose the tape engaging members below the holder base. With the cassette in its operative position, the first part of the support ring can be moved to its raised position for projecting the tape engaging members into the cassette opening. Further, reel drive members are movable axially between depressed positions below the holder base and raised or operative positions in which the reel drive members project through the holder base for engagement with the reels in a cassette operatively positioned on such base, and a control mechanism is provided for simultaneously moving the first part of the support ring and the reel drive members between their respective depressed and raised positions.

Growing community of inventors

Ichikawa, Japan

Tomohisa Kamimura