Title:

CD HOLDER

United States Patent Application 20030111937

Kind Code:

Abstract:

A CD holder to hold multiple compact disks basically consists of a first housing (10) and a second housing (20) pivotally connected to the first housing (10). The second housing has multiple slots (25) to arrange the CDs inside and a selecting device (30) secured between the first housing (10) and the second housing (20) to pick up a selected CD. The selecting device (30) is comprised of a shaft (31) and a roller (34) mounted around the shaft (31), wherein the roller (34) has multiple resilient blocks (36) mounted on the periphery to contact the corresponding CD. The first housing (10) is able to clamp the selected CD when the roller (34) rotates to the corresponding position.

Inventors:

Yang, Shyh-min (Taichung Hsien, TW)

Application Number:

10/013359

Publication Date:

06/19/2003

Filing Date:

12/13/2001

Export Citation:

Click for automatic bibliography generation

Primary Class:

312/9.15

Other Classes:

312/9.28, G9B/33.014

International Classes:

G11B33/04; G11B33/04; (IPC1-7): A47B81/06

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Attorney, Agent or Firm:

ROSENBERG, KLEIN & LEE (3458 ELLICOTT CENTER DRIVE-SUITE 101, ELLICOTT CITY, MD, 21043, US)

Claims:

What is claimed is:

1. A CD holder adapted to hold multiple compact disks, the CD holder comprising: a first housing (10) having a cushion (12) attached on an inner periphery of a first end and an opening (14) defined in a second end and of the first housing (10); a second housing (20) pivotally connected to the first end of the first housing (10) and having multiple slots (25) arranged inside the second housing (20) to respectively hold a CD in each slot (25); a selecting device (30) pivotally attached inside the opening (14) of the first housing (10) and composed of a shaft (31) and a roller (34) rotatably mounted around the shaft (31), wherein multiple resilient blocks (36) are mounted on an outer periphery of the roller (34) respectively at different angular positions and each resilient block (36) is adapted to hold one of the CDs in association with the cushion (12); wherein a cross-section area of the first housing (10) between the cushion (12) and the selecting device (30) is larger than at least half the area of the CD.

2. The CD holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the roller (34) has a channel (35) axially defined in the roller (34) with axial detents to rotatably mount the roller (34) around the shaft (31); and the shaft (31) has at least one bump (33) formed on a periphery of the shaft (31) to correspond to the axial detents in the channel (35) to hold the roller (34) in position.

3. The CD holder as claimed in claim 2, wherein each resilient block (36) has a concave face (361) for contacting the CD.

4. The CD holder as claimed in claim 3, wherein the first housing (10) has a mortise (17) defined in each side plate (13); and the shaft (31) has a tenon (32) formed on each end face to correspond to the mortises (17) and secure the shaft (31) on the first housing (10).

5. The CD holder as claimed in claim 4, wherein the roller (34) has a series of symbols marked on an end face around the channel (35) and each symbol corresponds to one resilient block (36); and a hole (140) defined in the side of the first housing (10) to make one of the symbols visible via the hole to select the symbol.

6. The CD holder as claimed in claim 5, in which a pair of guiding plates (24) extend from an inner side-face of the second housing (20) between which multiple slots (25) are formed.

7. The CD holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first housing (10) has two ears (11) protruding from opposite sides of a first end of the first housing (10), each ear (11) has a pivot hole (111) defined through the ear (11); and the second housing (20) has two connecting portions (21) corresponding to the respective ear (11) of the first housing (10), each connecting portion (21) has a pivot pin (220) secured on the connecting portion (21) to insert into the corresponding pivot hole (111) of the first housing (10).

8. The CD holder as claimed in claim 6, wherein the first housing (10) has two ears (11) protruding from opposite sides of a first end of the first housing (10), each ear (11) has a pivot hole (111) defined through the ear (11); and the second housing (20) has two connecting portions (21) corresponding to the respective ear (11) of the first housing (10), each connecting portion (21) has a pivot pin (220) secured on the connecting portion (21) to insert into the corresponding pivot hole (111) of the first housing (10).

9. The CD holder as claimed in claim 7, in which a pivoting device (40) is mounted between the ears (11) of the first housing (10) and is comprised of an inner tube (41), an outer tube (42) and a coil spring (43); wherein, the inner tube (41) is securely attached to the first housing (10); the outer tube (42) is securely attached to the second housing (20) and receives the inner tube (41) inside; and the coil spring (43) has one end secured on the inner tube (41) and the other end secured on the outer tube (42) to provide a restitution force between the first housing (10) and the second housing (20).

10. The CD holder as claimed in claim 8, in which a pivoting device (40) is mounted between the ears (11) of the first housing (10) and is comprised of an inner tube (41), an outer tube (42) and a coil spring (43); wherein, the inner tube (41) is securely attached to the first housing (10); the outer tube (42) is securely attached to the second housing (20) and receives the inner tube (41) inside; and the coil spring (43) has one end secured on the inner tube (41) and the other end secured on the outer tube (42) to provide a restitution force between the first housing (10) and the second housing (20).

11. The CD holder as claimed in claim 9, in which a locking device (50) is attached between the first housing (10) and the second housing (20).

12. The CD holder as claimed in claim 10, in which a locking device (50) is attached between the first housing (10) and the second housing (20).

13. The CD holder as claimed in claim 11, wherein the locking device (50) is secured on the second housing (20) and is comprised of a clamp (51), a resilient sheet (52) and a trigger block (53); wherein, the clamp (51) is secured on the second housing (20); the resilient sheet (52) is V-shaped and has one end firmly attached to the clamp (51); the trigger block (53) is pivotally attached to the second housing (20) and has a cutout (54) defined in a side face toward the second housing (20); a tongue (57) protruding from the trigger block (53) and emerging from the second housing (20); and a hook (56) formed on the trigger block (53) to buckle with the first housing (10); wherein, another side of the V-shaped resilient sheet (52) is attached in the cutout (54) of the trigger block (53) whereby the resilient sheet (52) provides a restitution effect to the trigger (53) to re-lock the CD holder.

14. The CD holder as claimed in claim 12, wherein the locking device (50) is secured on the second housing (20) and is comprised of a clamp (51), a resilient sheet (52) and a trigger block (53); wherein, the clamp (51) is secured on the second housing (20); the resilient sheet (52) is V-shaped and has one end firmly attached to the clamp (51); the trigger block (53) is pivotally attached to the second housing (20) and has a cutout (54) defined in a side face toward the second housing (20); a tongue (57) protruding from the trigger block (53) and emerging from the second housing (20); and a hook (56) formed on the trigger block (53) to buckle with the first housing (10); wherein, another side of the V-shaped resilient sheet (52) is attached in the cutout (54) of the trigger block (53) whereby the resilient sheet (52) provides a restitution effect to the trigger (53) to re-lock the CD holder.

Description:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a compact disk (CD) holder, and more particularly to a CD holder that ejects a selected CD.

[0003] 2. Description of Related Art

[0004] A conventional CD holder is composed of a foldable case and multiple sleeves mounted inside the case. Multiple CDs can be retained in the sleeves. When a user want to select a specific CD, the multiple sleeves have to be scanned individually to find the desired CD. Therefore, the conventional CD holder is not convenient to use.

[0005] To overcome the aforementioned problem, the present invention is provided to obviate and/or alleviate the problem of the conventional CD holder.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] The main objective of the invention is to provide a CD holder that ejects a selected CD automatically.

[0007] Other advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a CD holder in accordance with the present invention;

[0009] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the CD holder in FIG. 1;

[0010] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side plan view of the CD holder along 3-3 line in FIG. 2;

[0011] FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional side plane view of a selecting device of the CD holder in FIG. 3; and

[0012] FIG. 5 is an operational cross-sectional side view of the CD holder in FIG. 3, when the CD holder is opened.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0013] With reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, a CD holder in accordance with the present invention comprises a first housing (10), a second housing (20), a selecting device (30), a restitution device (40) and a locking device (50).

[0014] The first housing (10) adapts to partially receive CDs inside and has two side plates (13) and a top plate (110) integrally formed with the two side plates (13) to define a receiving chamber (A). An ear (11) protrudes from each side plate (13), and a pivot hole (111) is defined in each ear (11). A cushion (12) is attached inside the housing (10) between the ears (11) to cushion the CDs. An opening (14) is defined in the top plate (110) at a second end of the first housing (10), and an upper notch (15) is defined in an edge periphery near the opening (14). A flange (1 6) is inwardly formed on an inner periphery near the upper notch (15) of the first housing (10), and a triangular mortise (17) is defined in each side plate (13) of the first housing (10). Additionally, a hole (140) is defined in each side plate (13) near the triangular mortise (17).

[0015] The second housing (20) corresponds to the first housing (10) to form a compartment to receive the CDs. The second housing (20) has two connecting portions (21) formed on a first end and corresponds to the ear (11) of the first housing (10). A pivot pins (220) is formed on an inner face of each connecting portion (21) to correspond to the respective pivot hole (111) in the ears (11). A lower notch (23) is defined in an edge periphery of a second end of the second housing (20) and corresponds to the upper notch (15) when the CD holder is closed. A pair of guiding plates (24) extends from an inner side-face of the second end of the second housing (20), and multiple slots (25) are formed between the pair of guiding plates (24) to respectively hold individual CDs. Moreover, a support plate (27) protrudes from the inner side face below the lower notch (23).

[0016] The selecting device (30) is rotatably mounted inside the opening (14) of the first housing (10) and composed of a shaft (31) and a roller (34). The shaft (31) has two ends, and a triangular tenon (32) is formed on the face of each end to mate with the corresponding triangular mortises (17) in the first housing (10). Moreover, at least one bump (33) is formed on a periphery of the shaft (31). A channel (35) is axially defined through the roller (34) to rotatably mount the roller (34) around the shaft (31). Multiple axial detents (not numbered) are formed in the channel (35) to receive the at least one bump (33) and hold the roller (34) in position. A series of symbols (not shown) is marked on the periphery around the curved channel (35) and can be seen through the hole (140) in the first housing (10). A resilient block (36) corresponding to each symbol is mounted at a different angular position on an outer periphery of the roller (34), and each resilient block (36) has a concave face (361) defined in a top of the resilient block (36) to contact the corresponding CD.

[0017] The pivoting device (40) is mounted between the ears (11) of the first housing (10) and composed of an inner tube (41), an outer tube (42) and a coil spring (43) mounted between the inner tube (41) and the outer tube (42). The inner tube (41) is securely attached to the first housing (10), and the outer tube (42) is securely attached to the second housing (20). The outer tube (42) partially receives the inner tube (41) inside and the coil spring (43) has one end secured on the inner tube (41) and the other end secured on the outer tube (42).

[0018] The locking device (50) is attached on the second end of the housing (20) and comprises a clamp (51), resilient sheet (52) and a trigger block (53). The clamp (51) is mounted on the support plate (27) of the second housing (20), and resilient sheet (52) is V-shaped and has one side firmly inserting into the clamp (51). The trigger block (53) is pivotally attached beside the support plate (27) of the second housing (20) and has a cutout (54) defined in a side face toward the second housing (20). A tongue (57) laterally and outwardly protrudes from the trigger (53) and emerges from the lower notch (23). A hook (56) upwardly is formed on the trigger block (53) on a side opposite to the tongue (57) to buckle with the flange (16) of the first housing (16) and then lock the CD holder. Additionally, another side of the V-shaped resilient sheet (52) is attached in the cutout (54) of the trigger (53) whereby the resilient sheet (52) provides a restitution effect to the trigger (53) to re-lock the CD holder.

[0019] When the first housing (10) engages the second housing (20), the cross-section area of the chamber (A) of the first housing (10) between the cushion (12) and the selecting device (30) is larger than at least half the area of the CD. Therefore, the first housing (10) is able to encase the CD when the first housing (10) is opened.

[0020] With reference to FIGS. 1, 3, 4, and 5, when opening the CD holder, a user selects a desired CD by rotating the roller (34) until the corresponding symbol on the roller (34) is visible through the hole (140) in the first housing (10). Then, the resilient block (36) corresponding to the symbol presses an edge of the CD with the cushion (12) to hold the CD. After selecting the CD, the tongue (57) is pressed inwardly so that the hook (56) disengages from the flange (16) of the first housing (10), and the first housing (10) with the selected CD is automatically opened because of the stored torque in the coil spring (43). Whereby, the user enables to pick up the selected CD from the first housing (10) easily because the selected one is decided by the corresponding number and separated from other CDs in the second housing (20) when it is held by the opened first housing (10).

[0021] In addition, another embodiment of CD holder in this invention that the coil spring (43) is selectively secured on the pivoting device (40) in a reverse situation to provide a restitution force of keeping the CD holder closed. The locking device (50) can be omitted.

[0022] When closing the CD holder, the first housing (10) is pushed back to mate with the second housing (20), wherein the resilient sheet (52) provides a restitution force for the trigger (53) to make the hook (56) engage the flange (16) to lock the first housing (10).

[0023] As demonstrated in the foregoing description, the operation of the CD holder in accordance with the present invention is convenient for selecting and picking up the desired CD inside the holder.

[0024] Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

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