JPH08138346A - Tape cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] To provide a tape cartridge capable of accurately knowing the remaining tape amount in the middle of use and confirming to which of a plurality of recorded contents the current tape position belongs. [Structure] In a tape cartridge having a window 6 for confirming the remaining amount of tape, a sticking area 8 is provided adjacent to the window 6, and a content display label 7 is stuck to the sticking area 8.
The window 6 includes a reference edge 6a that traverses the fully wound tape winding layer from the inner edge to the outer edge, and is formed in a parallelogram shape that is long in the left and right directions. A remaining amount display 12 that quantitatively displays the remaining amount of tape is printed on the peripheral line of the content display label 7 facing the reference edge 6a.
The remaining amount display 12 is formed by a remaining time number and a scale line. By comparing the present tape position with the items written on the remaining amount display 12 and the content display label 7, the remaining time of the tape and the recorded contents corresponding to the tape position can be known.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a tape cartridge provided with a window for confirming the remaining amount of tape on the outer surface of a main body case.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a tape cartridge having a window for confirming the remaining amount of tape, forming a scale or an index for indicating the remaining amount on the outer surface of a window plate is known, for example, from Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 4-8545. is there. In another Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-38790, a label is attached to the outer surface of the main body case, and the remaining amount scale is printed along the side of the label facing the window plate. In addition to the remaining amount scale, the label is printed with the tape running direction display, manufacturer name, model number, etc., but the recorded contents are written on an index card. A label sheet is attached to the tape cartridge sold as so-called raw tape, and several kinds of labels such as a content display label for entering the content recorded in the tape cartridge and a label for entering a title are attached to the label sheet. Has been done. Corresponding to these labels, a sticking area is provided on the outer surface of the body case. For example, actual development Sho 61-12
In the tape cartridge for 8 mm video disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 6476, attachment areas are provided on the upper wall and the back wall of the main body case so that title labels can be attached respectively.

[0003]

As described above, in the conventional tape cartridge, it is possible to know the remaining amount of the tape from the remaining amount scale or index provided on the window or its peripheral portion. However, it is not possible to quantitatively know the remaining tape amount because the kind of scale line or the like shows only the rough remaining tape amount and the diameter of the remaining tape amount per unit time gradually decreases. Therefore, the estimated amount of remaining tape is likely to be excessive or insufficient, and a new tape cartridge may be used or the required amount of tape may be insufficient to cover the end of the recording target despite the fact that there is a sufficient amount of remaining tape. It may not be possible to record. For example, it is possible to accurately grasp the remaining tape amount using a tape deck, but it is difficult to confirm the remaining amount and rewind, and it is not possible to deal with the time and equipment for such confirmation work.

A tape cartridge with a content display label attached to the upper wall of the main body case shows the recording order of the contents recorded in the tape cartridge and the rough recorded contents from the described items, but the tape reel on the feeding side feeds it. When the recording is in the middle, it is not possible to immediately know which recording content the current tape position belongs to. It is difficult to know the starting position of each recorded content.
For a small tape cartridge for 8 mm video or the like, it is necessary to check the recorded contents by referring to the index card, and it becomes more difficult to know the recorded contents at any tape position.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to quantitatively and accurately grasp the remaining amount of tape at an arbitrary tape position at a glance, and to which recorded content the current tape position corresponds in an arbitrary tape feeding state. You have to get a tape cartridge that you can easily see.
The object of the present invention is to provide a large area content display label on the upper wall of the main body case for a small tape cartridge for 8 mm video or the like, and to know the recorded content without having to refer to the index card. Is to be able to. An object of the present invention is to provide a small-sized tape cartridge which is capable of surely knowing the remaining amount of tape despite the small area of the window for confirming the remaining amount of tape and improving the case strength of the main body case. To provide.

[0006]

In the tape cartridge of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, a window 6 for confirming the remaining amount of tape is provided on the outer surface of the main body case 1, and the recorded contents are entered adjacent to the window 6. A sticking area 8 for the content display label 7 is provided. The window 6 is formed in an arbitrary shape including a reference edge 6a that traverses the fully wound tape winding layer from its inner edge to its outer edge. The pasting area 8 is at least the reference edge 6
As shown in FIG. 3, a recess is formed on the outer surface of the main body case 1 in the state of being adjacent to a. A remaining amount display 12 that quantitatively displays the remaining amount of tape is printed along the peripheral line of the content display label 7 facing the reference edge 6a of the window 6.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the reference edge 6a of the window 6 is formed linearly along an imaginary tangent line circumscribing the hub peripheral surface of the tape reel 2. The outer shape of the window 6 is formed in a left-right laterally long substantially parallelogram shape having a pair of arcuate edges 6c along the peripheral line of the tape reel 2 and linear reference edges 6a. The window 6 is arranged in a semicircular region on the case rear wall side of the tape winding layer on the payout side, and the reference edge 6a is provided substantially parallel to the long side portion 1a of the main body case 1.

[0008]

Since the sticking area 8 is provided adjacent to the reference edge 6a of the window 6 and the content display label 7 on which the remaining amount display 12 is printed is stuck thereto, the current position of the peripheral line of the tape winding layer is a reference. Only by reading which part of the remaining amount display 12 facing the edge 6a, it is possible to quantitatively know the remaining amount of tape at that time. For example, the remaining tape amount can be grasped as the usable time. If the recorded content is entered in the content display label 7 in a state corresponding to the remaining amount display 12, it is determined which recorded content the current tape position belongs to, and what position the recorded content is at. You can know.

The reference edge 6a of the window 6 is formed linearly along an imaginary tangent to the peripheral surface of the hub of the tape reel 2 by increasing the transverse length of the reference edge 6a with respect to the tape winding layer so that the tape remains. This is so that the amount can be confirmed in more detail. The reason why the window 6 is formed in the shape of a parallelogram that is horizontally long in the left and right direction, including the linear reference edge 6a along the virtual tangent line, can be seen through the window 6 when the window area is constant. This is because the circumference of the tape winding layer is increased to make it easier to visually recognize the remaining tape amount. It is necessary to provide the window 6 only in the tape winding layer on the feeding side in the semicircular region on the rear wall side of the case.
This is because the attachment area 8 having a large area is secured by the upper wall of the main body case 1 and the amount of information that can be written on the content display label 7 is increased.

[0010]

According to the present invention, the sticking area 8 is provided adjacent to the reference edge 6a of the window 6, and the remaining quantity display 12 of the content display label 7 stuck on the sticking area 8 can quantitatively grasp the remaining quantity of the tape. I chose This makes it possible to know the tape remaining amount accurately just by looking at the tape cartridge without having to take the trouble of checking the tape remaining amount using a tape deck, etc. The tape cartridge can be used appropriately according to the purpose of use, such as being available for. Furthermore, by directly comparing the recorded content entered on the content display label 7 with the tape position,
It is easy to know which recording contents the current tape position corresponds to, so it is possible to know the recording contents to be played from the current tape position, the time from the start position of the unused part, and the approximate number of the counter. Knowing this, the so-called cueing operation can be performed more quickly.

[0011]

1 to 4 show an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a tape cartridge for 8 mm video. In FIG. 1, the tape cartridge has a laterally long main body case 1 in which a pair of left and right tape reels 2 and 2 are accommodated, and the tape reel 2 on the left side (feeding side) as viewed in the drawing.
The video signal or the like is recorded or reproduced while the tape 3 wound on the tape is wound on the tape reel 2 on the right side. A front lid 4 and a back lid 5 that cover the front and rear surfaces of the tape 3 when not in use are provided on the front portion of the main body case 1 so as to open upward. The tape reel 2 is provided with a flange on each of the upper and lower surfaces of the hub on which the tape 3 is wound, and the upper flange of the two flanges is made of a transparent plastic material.

In order to confirm the remaining amount of tape, a window 6 is arranged on the upper wall of the main body case 1 so as to correspond to the tape reel 2 on the feeding side, and a content display label 7 is attached adjacent to the window 6. Area 8 is provided. The window 6 is arranged in a semicircular region on the case rear wall side of the feeding side tape winding layer, and as shown in FIG. 2, a reference edge 6a and a rear edge 6b respectively parallel to the long side portion 1a of the main body case 1, and a tape reel. The arcuate edge 6c and the inner arcuate edge 6d along the peripheral edge line of 2 form a left-right laterally long substantially parallelogram shape. The window plate 9 formed of a transparent plastic material is fitted into the window opening 10 provided in the upper wall of the main body case 1 from the inner side of the case as shown in FIG. The window 6 is formed by welding. After molding the upper half of the body case 1, the window plate 9 may be molded by secondary molding.

The reference edge 6a of the window 6 is formed in a straight line along an imaginary tangent line circumscribing the center of the rear surface of the hub peripheral surface of the tape reel 2, and the tape winding layer in a fully wound state extends from the inner edge to the outer edge. It is installed in the state of crossing. By doing so, only the tape winding layer can be seen through the window 6, and it is possible to prevent the unnecessary portion such as the hub portion of the tape reel 2 from being seen. Further, the opening area of the window opening 10 is made smaller than that of the conventional tape cartridge, and the main body case 1 is correspondingly reduced.
The case strength is improved, and the rigidity, bending strength, and torsion strength can be increased.

The pasting area 8 is formed in a generally oblong rectangular shape in a state of being adjacent to the reference edge 6a and the arc edge 6c of the window 6,
As shown in FIG. 3, the entire body is recessed from the outer surface of the upper wall of the main body case 1 with a recessed dimension that is equal to or slightly larger than the thickness dimension of the content display label 7. If the recessed surface is roughened by a fine uneven pattern or the like, the content display label 7 can be easily replaced. The lateral area of the pasting area 8 is about 60 mm or more, and the anteroposterior area is about 40 mm to make the area as large as possible.

The content display label 7 is formed to have an outer shape slightly smaller than the pasting area 8 and a remaining amount display for quantitatively displaying the remaining amount of tape along a linear peripheral line facing the reference edge 6a of the window 6. 12 is printed, and the other blank area is used as the user writing section 13. The remaining amount display 12 is a tape remaining time number in minutes when the tape feeding mode is the standard state,
It is composed of a scale line corresponding to each numeral and an auxiliary scale line that divides the scale lines at regular intervals. A ruled line is continuously printed on the scale line in the user entry section 13, and a title of the recorded content, a recording date, a serial number when the recorded content is the same target can be written therein. The label 7 is detachably provided on the back surface of the instruction manual together with a title label or the like attached to the back wall of the main body case 1.

According to such a tape cartridge, by sticking the content display label 7 to the sticking area 8, the remaining tape can be seen at a glance at the position of the peripheral line of the tape winding layer in the middle of use of the tape. The usable real time of the winding layer can be accurately known from the remaining amount display 12. When a plurality of recording targets have already been recorded, it is also possible to know which recording contents the current tape position corresponds to from the contents entered in the user entry unit 13. Furthermore, the details of the recorded contents and the conditions at the time of recording can be known in detail from the filled contents.

The tape cartridge is sold in the bookcase type protection case 15 shown in FIG. 4 together with the above-mentioned instruction manual. The protective case 15 is formed of an opaque plastic sheet, for example, a polypropylene sheet, which is low in material cost. Protective case 15
An opening 17 is provided in the surface wall of the main wall 16 facing the window 6 so that the remaining amount of the tape can be visually recognized while the tape cartridge is stored in the housing, and the content display label 7 is attached adjacent to the opening 17. There is a pasting area 18 for this. The opening 17 is formed in a parallelogram shape which is the same as or slightly larger than the window 6. The label to be attached to the attachment area 18 may be a dedicated label different from the content display label 7, but it must be provided with a remaining amount display 12 similar to the content display label 7 and a user entry section 13 having ruled lines. Required.

FIG. 5 shows another embodiment of the present invention, in which the window 6 is arranged in the semicircular region on the left half side of the tape reel 2 on the feeding side and is parallel to the short side portion 1b of the main body case 1. The reference edge 6a and the side edge 6e, the rear edge 6b connecting the both 6a and 6e, and the front arc edge 6c along the peripheral line of the tape reel 2 form the window 6 in a trapezoid shape that is long in the front and rear direction. There is. The pasting area 8 is formed in a laterally long rectangular shape adjacent to the reference edge 6a and the rear edge 6b.

Besides the above-mentioned embodiment, the shape of the window 6 in plan view is
It can be changed to an oval, rectangular, or triangular shape. Therefore, the reference edge 6a may be formed in an arc shape. The pasting area 8 can be provided so as to be adjacent to only the reference edge 6a of the window 6. The present invention can be applied to large-sized video tape cartridges such as VHS type.
The window 6 and the sticking area 8 may be provided at two locations corresponding to the left and right tape reels 2.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a tape cartridge.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a window portion with a label attached.

3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a protective case.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Main body case 6 Window 6a Reference edge 7 Content display label 8 Attachment area 12 Remaining amount display 13 User entry section

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A window 6 for confirming the remaining amount of tape is provided on the outer surface of the main body case 1, and an affixing area 8 for a content display label 7 for writing recorded contents is provided adjacent to the window 6. In the tape cartridge, the window 6 is formed in an arbitrary shape including a reference edge 6a that traverses the fully wound tape winding layer from its inner edge to its outer edge, and the attachment area 8 is at least adjacent to the reference edge 6a. In this state, the remaining amount display 12 is formed on the outer surface of the main body case 1 along the peripheral line of the content display label 7 facing the reference edge 6a of the window 6 to quantitatively display the remaining amount of tape. It is a tape cartridge. 2. The tape cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the reference edge 6a of the window 6 is formed linearly along an imaginary tangent line circumscribing the peripheral surface of the hub of the tape reel 2. 3. An outer shape of the window 6 is formed in a left-right laterally long substantially parallelogram shape having a pair of arcuate edges 6c along a peripheral line of the tape reel 2 and linear reference edges 6a. The tape cartridge according to claim 1 or 2. 4. The window 6 is arranged in a semicircular region on the case rear wall side of the tape winding layer on the feeding side, and its reference edge 6a is provided substantially parallel to the long side portion 1a of the main body case 1. Or the tape cartridge according to item 3.