JP2008004207A - Library device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a library apparatus, and more particularly to a library apparatus that includes a movable cartridge storage rack to improve the storage rate of a cartridge type recording medium.
The present invention provides a plurality of cartridge storage racks for storing recording media in the depth direction with respect to the storage surface, and moves the cartridge storage rack by a moving mechanism to secure an area for placing a robot mounted with a hand. Then, the robot is moved to the area by the moving mechanism to position the hand at the instructed cartridge storage position.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a library apparatus, and more particularly to a library apparatus that includes a movable storage rack to improve the storage rate of a cartridge type recording medium.

  As a data backup, a library apparatus using a magnetic tape or an optical disk stored in a cartridge as a recording medium is often used. In recent years, data to be backed up has increased, and it has been required to improve the storage rate of recording media stored in the library apparatus.

  A conventional library apparatus with improved storage rate will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 11 shows a schematic mechanism as viewed from the upper surface of the library apparatus. The library apparatus 10 includes a cartridge storage rack 20 for storing cartridges, and a drive 30 for recording on a recording medium in the cartridge and for reproducing the recording. , A hand 40 for inserting, removing and gripping cartridges into / from the cartridge storage rack 20 or the drive 30; a robot 50 mounted with the hand 40 and positioned at the shelf or drive 30 in which the cartridge storage rack 20 is stored; The control unit 70 is configured to control the entire library apparatus 10 in response to a command from a computer connected to the input / output mechanism 60 and the library apparatus 10.

  These operations will be described in the case where a cartridge designated in response to a command from the computer is taken out from the cartridge storage rack 20, moved while gripping the cartridge, and inserted into the drive 30. First, the control unit 70 that has received a command from the computer obtains which cartridge storage rack the designated cartridge is stored in and which position in the storage rack by referring to a table indicating the cartridge storage position (not shown). Then, the amount of movement that moves from the current position of the hand 40 to the storage position of the cartridge is obtained, and the hand 40 is moved by the robot 50. Now that the hand 40 is positioned at the position where the cartridge is stored, the hand 40 is rotated so as to face the storage surface of the cartridge storage rack 20 (in this example, the hand 40 can rotate every 90 degrees). The cartridge stored in the picker (not shown) provided in the hand 40 is taken out. Subsequently, when the controller 70 obtains an instruction to move from the current position of the hand 40 to the drive 30, the robot 50 moves the hand 40 holding the cartridge to the drive 30 (the cartridge has been transported). ) Then, the hand 40 rotates so as to face the insertion port of the drive 30, and the cartridge is inserted. The drive 30 records information sent from the computer on the inserted recording medium and sends information reproduced from the recording medium to the computer.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the cartridge storage rack 20 is arranged in a “U” shape to increase the storage rate of cartridges. If the amount of data to be backed up is small, one cartridge storage rack 20 is sufficient.

As a proposal to increase cartridge storage efficiency, the cartridge storage shelves of the magnetic tape library device can be moved in the width direction and arranged in multiple rows in the depth direction. When accessing the cartridge, the cartridge storage shelves are moved in the width direction to store the accessors. A method of positioning to a position has been proposed. Since a plurality of rows of cartridge storage shelves can be arranged, cartridge storage efficiency can be improved (for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2004-178702 A

  As described above, it is required to increase the storage efficiency of the cartridge. As a conventional method, for example, a cartridge storage rack is arranged in a “U” shape to increase storage efficiency. However, in order to cope with the further increase in the amount of data to be backed up, it is necessary to greatly increase the cartridge storage efficiency.

  The method proposed in Patent Document 1 is considered to be an effective method capable of improving cartridge storage efficiency because a plurality of rows of cartridge storage racks are arranged. The present invention provides a library apparatus that improves the storage efficiency of cartridges by a method different from the proposed Patent Document 1.

The library apparatus of the present invention is configured as follows.
(1) 1st invention 1st invention arrange | positions several movable cartridge storage racks, secures the area | region which moves a cartridge storage rack according to the instruction | indication from a control part, and arrange | positions a robot there. It is a library device that can be moved to position the head at the storage position.

  1st invention comprises a storage rack, a robot, a moving mechanism, and a control part.

  The storage rack is a shelf that stores a plurality of cartridge-type recording media, and a plurality of storage racks are arranged in the depth direction with respect to the storage surface.

  The robot mounts a hand that inserts or removes the recording medium and grips the recording medium, and positions the hand on the storage rack in a movable manner.

  The moving mechanism moves the storage rack and the robot in the depth direction. The movement can be moved back and forth in the depth direction.

Based on the instruction information from the external computer, the control unit secures an area in which the robot is placed by moving the storage rack by the moving mechanism, moves the robot to this area, and moves the storage rack to which the hand is instructed. Control to position the storage position.
(2) Second invention The second invention has a retreat area in which the robot of the first invention retreats the hand, and retracts the hand to the retreat area when the robot moves to the area secured by the storage rack. A space for allowing the storage rack to pass through the inside of the robot is created, and the robot is moved through the storage rack by the moving mechanism.
(3) Third invention In the third invention, in the library apparatus according to the first and second inventions, the storage rack is provided with storage shelves on both the front and rear surfaces, and the hand rotates 180 degrees to It is characterized by being inserted into and removed from the storage rack.
(4) Fourth invention In a fourth invention according to the library apparatus of the first to third inventions, the robot is mounted with a drive for recording / reproducing a recording medium and moves with the robot, and the hand is moved every 90 degrees. And the recording medium is inserted into and removed from the drive.
(5) Fifth Invention The fifth invention is the library device of the first to fourth inventions, wherein the moving mechanism is a rail on which the storage rack and the robot are placed, and a movable part installed on the storage rack and the bottom of the robot. It is characterized by comprising.

  According to the first invention, since a plurality of storage racks can be arranged, it is possible to provide a library apparatus in which the cartridge storage rate is remarkably improved.

  According to the second aspect of the invention, by creating a space for allowing the robot to pass the storage rack, the target storage rack can be accessed with a simple structure.

  According to the third aspect of the invention, since the cartridge is stored on both sides of the storage rack, the storage rate can be further improved.

  According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the drive is installed on the movable robot, so that the cartridge taken out from the storage rack can be mounted on the drive with a short path, and a short access time can be realized.

  According to the fifth invention, since the storage rack or the robot is moved on the rail, it can be moved smoothly with a simple structure.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  First, a structural example of the library apparatus of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1, the library apparatus 100 includes a movable storage rack 200, a front fixed storage rack 300, a rear fixed storage rack 400, a movable robot 500, a movable storage rack rail 210, and a movable robot rail 510.

  The movable storage rack 200 is provided with cartridge storage shelves (cells) on the front and back surfaces, respectively, and has four units in FIG. FIG. 2 shows the movable storage rack 200 in more detail, and shows that cartridges can be stored on both sides. The movable storage rack 200 of FIG. 2 has 5 × 17 cells on the front and back surfaces, and can store a total of 170 cartridges 250. A movable mechanism (not shown) is provided at the bottom of the movable storage rack 200 and can move on the movable storage rack rail 210. The movable storage rack rail 210 is disposed above the bottom plate of the movable robot 500 described later, and the movable storage rack 200 can pass inside the frame of the movable robot 500.

  Returning to FIG. 1, the front fixed storage rack 300 and the rear fixed storage rack 400 are arranged such that the cartridge storage shelves are on one side and the storage surfaces face inward. Both the front fixed storage rack 300 and the rear fixed storage rack 400 are fixed and do not move.

  The movable robot 500 includes a movable mechanism (not shown) at the bottom, and can move on the movable robot rail 510. Details of the movable robot 500 are shown in FIG. The movable robot 500 has a rack access area at the bottom and a hand evacuation area at the top. The movable robot 500 includes a hand mounting base 520 on which the hand 600 is mounted. The hand mounting base 520 can be moved up and down by a hand moving rail 540 arranged on a frame of a side plate of the movable robot 500. Furthermore, a hand moving rail 530 is also provided on the hand mounting base 520 so that the hand 600 can be moved in the width direction. Furthermore, the hand 600 has a rotating shaft and can rotate every 90 degrees. Each of the movable robot 500, the hand mounting base 520, and the hand 600 includes a movable mechanism (not shown), and moves and rotates according to a control command from a control unit (not shown). The movable robot 500 is provided with a drive 700, and a drive loading / unloading port 710 for loading or unloading the cartridge 250 on or from the drive 700 is provided on the frame of the side plate. Since the drive 700 is attached to the movable robot 500, it moves together when the movable robot 500 moves.

  Next, an example of the movable structure of the movable storage rack 200 and the movable robot 500 will be described with reference to FIG. The movable robot rail 510 in FIG. 4A is arranged at the lowermost part of the library apparatus 100 and moves the movable robot 500 via the robot movable mechanism 550. The robot movable mechanism 550 is controlled by a control unit (not shown) with, for example, electric wheels. The movable storage rack rail 210 is disposed above the bottom frame of the movable robot 500, and enables the movable storage rack 200 to be moved via the storage rack movable mechanism 220. Similarly to the robot movable mechanism 550, the storage rack movable mechanism 220 is also controlled by a control unit (not shown) with, for example, electric wheels. FIG. 4B is a view of FIG. 4A as viewed from the plane “A”. As shown in this figure, the movable storage rack 200 can pass through the inside (inside) of the movable robot 500. Structure and external dimensions. Therefore, the movable robot 500 can move while passing the movable storage rack 200 in the state where the hand 600 shown in FIG. 3 is moved to the retreat area.

  Although FIG. 4 shows a structure in which the movable storage rack 200 and the movable robot 500 are moved on the rail, the rail can be arranged on the upper portion to form a suspension structure. FIGS. 5A and 5B show an example of a suspension structure. A movable storage rack 200 and a movable robot are arranged by a “U” -shaped suspension rail 230 installed inside the frame of the movable robot 500. 500 can be moved while suspended.

  The mechanism of the movable storage rack 200 and the movable robot 500, which is the point of the present invention, has been described above. Next, an example of the configuration and flow of the library apparatus 100 having these mechanisms as viewed from the control aspect will be described. Also here, the movable rack 200 has a configuration of four, and a front fixed storage rack 300 and a rear fixed storage rack 400 are arranged before and after that. The rack numbers from A to F are attached from the front fixed storage rack 300 toward the rear fixed storage rack 400.

  FIG. 6 shows a configuration example of the library apparatus 100. Information is exchanged through a control unit 110 that controls the entire library apparatus 100 including control of the movable storage rack 200 and the movable robot 500, and a computer and a channel (not shown). A channel IF (Interface) 120 for performing recording, a drive 130 for recording / reproducing a recording medium, a movable storage rack 200 for storing and moving a cartridge, a movable robot 500 for positioning the hand 600 in a cell of the movable storage rack 200, a cartridge A rack robot that stores the positions of the movable storage rack 200 and the movable robot 500 when accessing the hand 600 for handling, the cartridge position table 140 storing the position of the stored cartridge, and the rack number stored (or stored). Position Composed of Bull 150.

  Next, data examples of the cartridge position table 140 and the rack / robot position table 150 will be described.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of data in the cartridge position table 140, which is composed of fields of “cartridge ID”, “storage rack No.”, and “cell position”. “Cartridge ID” is identification information uniquely assigned to the cartridge, and a computer (not shown) connected to the library apparatus 100 designates the cartridge ID to instruct recording or reproduction. “Storage rack No.” is a number assigned to a fixed and movable storage rack. “Cell position” indicates the position of the cell in the storage rack, and the position is indicated by X and Y. For example, the data in the first row in FIG. 7 indicates that the cartridge ID is “ABC123” and that the cartridge is stored in the cell in the fifth row in the second column of the B2 rack. Since the rack B2 is a movable rack and has cells on both sides, the rack B is divided into B1 (front surface) and B2 (back surface) for identification.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of data in the rack / robot position table 150, which includes fields of “rack No.”, “movable rack position”, and “movable robot”. “Rack No.” is the same as “Rack No.” shown in FIG. 4 and is a number assigned to the rack. In this embodiment, since the movable rack has a structure having cells on both sides, as described above, in this case, the movable rack is divided into two as B1 and B2. The “movable rack position” is the rack number of the cartridge that is stored (or that is about to be stored). Indicates the position taken by the movable rack for access. In FIG. 8, there are four movable racks “B”-“E”, and the positions thereof are shown. The “movable robot” indicates the position of the movable robot 500 and the direction of the hand.

  Possible positions of the movable rack and the movable robot are positions “a”-“e” as shown in FIG. 9, for example. FIG. 9A shows an example of the operation position 1, and if the cartridge is stored in A or B1 of the storage rack (or if it is going to be stored), the movable storage rack 200 and the movable robot 500 are shown. The position is in this state. That is, the position of the movable robot 500 is “a”, B of the movable storage rack 200 is “b”, C is “c”, D is “d”, and E is not “e”. Don't be. The position of the movable robot 500 is “a”. If the cartridge is in A which is the front fixed storage rack 300, the direction of the hand is “F” indicating the front, and if the cartridge is in B1 of the movable storage rack 200, the direction of the hand is “B” indicating the back. The data created in this way is the data of the rack / robot position table 150 of FIG.

  Returning to FIG. 9, for example, when the cartridge is stored in “C2”, in order to access this cartridge, from the rack / robot position table 150 of FIG. The respective positions are controlled to be “a”, “b”, “d”, “e”, the movable robot 500 is “c”, and the direction of the hand 600 is “F”.

  Next, an operation flow when the cartridge 250 is removed from the storage rack 200 (300, 400) and mounted in the drive 700 will be described with reference to FIG. Here, it is assumed that the cartridge ID is instructed from the computer.

  First, by referring to the cartridge position table 140, information on which position of which storage rack the specified target cartridge is stored is acquired. That is, it is information of the storage rack number and the cell position (X, Y) in which the cartridge is stored (S100, S110).

  Subsequently, referring to the rack / robot position table 150, the positions of the movable storage rack 200 and the movable robot 500 and the orientation of the hand 600 are determined based on the storage rack number storing the target cartridge acquired in S110. Get information. (S120, S130).

  Next, the hand 600 mounted on the movable robot 500 is retracted to the hand retracting area, and the movable storage rack 200 is first moved based on the acquired position information. After confirming that the movement of the movable storage rack 200 is completed, the movable robot 500 is moved. When the movement of the movable robot 500 is completed, the direction of the hand 600 is changed to the designated direction, and the hand 600 is moved from the hand evacuation area and positioned at the X and Y positions of the cell acquired in S110 (S140-S170).

  The hand 600 takes out the cartridge from the positioned cell, changes the direction of the hand 600 to the direction of the drive loading / unloading port 710 of the drive 700 installed in the movable robot 500, and moves to the drive loading / unloading port 710 while holding the cartridge. . The hand 600 inserts the cartridge into the drive loading / unloading port 710 and mounts it on the drive 700 (S180-S200).

  With the operation flow described above, cartridge storage efficiency can be improved by employing a movable storage rack 200 structure for the library apparatus. When the amount of data to be backed up further increases, it is also a feature of the present invention that the number of cartridges can be easily increased by extending the movable rails 210 and 310 and adding the movable storage rack 200.

In addition to the above examples, the following additional notes are disclosed.
(Appendix 1)
A library apparatus for storing cartridge type recording media,
A storage rack storing a plurality of the recording media, and a plurality of storage racks arranged in the depth direction of the storing surface;
A robot that inserts or removes the recording medium into / from the storage rack and that has a hand for gripping the recording medium, and that positions the hand movably in the storage rack;
A moving mechanism for moving the storage rack and the robot in the depth direction;
Based on the instruction information from the external computer, the storage mechanism is moved by the moving mechanism to secure an area for placing the robot, the robot is moved to the area, and the hand is instructed for the storage rack. And a control unit positioned at the storage position.

(Appendix 2)
The robot has a retreat area for retreating the hand, and creates a space for retreating the hand to the retreat area and passing the storage rack through the inside of the robot when the robot moves to the secured area. The library apparatus according to appendix 1, wherein the robot is moved through the storage rack by the moving mechanism.

(Appendix 3)
The storage rack has storage shelves on both the front and back sides,
The library apparatus according to appendix 1 or appendix 2, wherein the hand rotates 180 degrees and inserts and removes the recording medium from the storage rack.

(Appendix 4)
The robot is equipped with a drive for recording / reproducing the recording medium, moves with the robot,
The library apparatus according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 3, wherein the hand rotates every 90 degrees to insert and remove the recording medium from the drive.

(Appendix 5)
The library apparatus according to any one of appendix 1 to appendix 4, wherein the moving mechanism includes a rail on which the storage rack and the robot are placed, and a movable portion installed at the bottom of the storage rack and the robot.

(Appendix 6)
The library apparatus according to any one of appendix 1 to appendix 4, wherein the moving mechanism includes a rail for suspending the storage rack and the robot, and a movable portion installed on the storage rack and the upper portion of the robot.

(Appendix 7)
The storage racks arranged in a line are storage racks having a storage shelf on one side on the outermost side, and the storage shelves on one side are fixed so that the storage surfaces face each other, and are arranged on the inner side sandwiched by the outermost side. The storage rack has storage racks on both sides and is movable between the outermost storage racks,
The library apparatus according to appendix 1 or appendix 2, wherein the hand rotates 180 degrees and inserts and removes the recording medium from the storage rack.

It is a structural example of the library apparatus by this invention. It is an example of a structure of a movable rack. It is a structural example of a movable robot. It is a structural example (the 1) of a movable rack and a movable robot. It is a structural example (the 2) of a movable rack and a movable robot. It is an example of a function structure of a library apparatus. 4 is a data example of a cartridge position table. It is an example of data of a rack hand position table. It is an example of an operation position of a rack and a hand. It is an example of an operation | movement flow. It is the example of arrangement | positioning of the cartridge storage rack in the conventional library apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Library apparatus 20 Cartridge storage rack 30 Drive 40 Hand 50 Robot 60 Loading / discharging mechanism 70 Control part 100 Library apparatus 110 Control part 120 Channel IF
130 Drive 140 Cartridge Position Table 150 Rack / Robot Position Table 200 Movable Storage Rack 210 Movable Storage Rack Rail 220 Storage Rack Movable Mechanism 230 Suspension Rail 250 Cartridge 300 Front Fixed Storage Rack 400 Rear Fixed Storage Rack 500 Mobile Robot 510 For Mobile Robot Rail 520 Hand mounting base 530 Hand moving rail 540 Hand moving rail 550 Robot movable mechanism 600 Hand 700 Drive 710 Drive loading / unloading port

Claims (5)

A library device for storing a cartridge type recording medium,
A storage rack storing a plurality of the recording media, and a plurality of storage racks arranged in a depth direction of the storing surface;
A robot that inserts or removes the recording medium into / from the storage rack and that has a hand for gripping the recording medium, and that positions the hand movably in the storage rack;
A moving mechanism for moving the storage rack and the robot in the depth direction;
Based on the instruction information from the external computer, the storage mechanism is moved by the moving mechanism to secure an area for placing the robot, the robot is moved to the area, and the hand is instructed for the storage rack. And a control unit positioned at the storage position. The robot has a retreat area for retreating the hand, and creates a space for retreating the hand to the retreat area and passing the storage rack through the inside of the robot when the robot moves to the secured area. The library apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the robot is moved through the storage rack by the moving mechanism. The storage rack has storage shelves on both the front and back sides,
The library apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the hand rotates 180 degrees to insert and remove the recording medium from the storage rack. The robot is equipped with a drive for recording / reproducing the recording medium and moves with the robot,
The library apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the hand rotates every 90 degrees to insert and remove the recording medium from the drive. The library apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the moving mechanism includes a rail on which the storage rack and the robot are placed, and a movable portion installed on the storage rack and a bottom of the robot.

Images