1. A cable assembly for interconnecting an electrical device having a two-terminal output, to another electrical device having a two-terminal input, said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output each comprising at least a first terminal, and a second terminal, said cable assembly comprising:
a plurality of, discrete, insulated electrical cables each having at least one pair of insulated conductors, a first one of said insulated conductors of a first one of said plurality of discrete insulated electrical cables being connected to at least one of: said first terminal at each of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and said second terminal at each of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and a second one of said insulated conductors of said first one of said plurality of discrete insulated electrical cables being connected to a different one of: said first terminal at each of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and said second terminal at each of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and at least one of said pair of insulated electrical conductors of another one of said discrete insulated electrical cables also being connected to one of said first terminal at each of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and said second terminal at each of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output.
2. The cable assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said first terminal is designated with a label selected from the group: a center pin, a positive terminal, a ground shell, and a negative terminal, and wherein said second terminal is designated with a different label selected from the group: center pin, a positive terminal, a ground shell, and a negative terminal.
3. The cable assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said at least one pair of insulated electrical conductors comprises a twisted pair of insulated electrical conductors.
4. The cable assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said plurality of discrete electrical cables are interrelated in at least one of the ways: braided together, and twisted together.
5. The cable assembly as recited in claim 1, further comprising an electrically conductive mother shield at least a portion of which is configured and dimensioned to surround said plurality of discrete electrical cables, said mother shield being electrically connected to least one of: a ground connection independent of said first terminal and said second terminal, said first terminal of at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and said second terminal of at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output.
6. The cable assembly as recited in claim 5, wherein the mother shield is configured and dimensioned to substantially completely surround said plurality of discrete electrical cables.
7. The cable assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said-plurality of, discrete, insulated electrical cables comprise shields, said shields of said plurality of discrete, insulated electrical cables being electrically connected to at least one of: a ground connection independent of said first terminal and said second terminal, said first terminal of at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and said second terminal of at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, according to at least one of the following shield connection topologies: at least one shield is electrically connected at at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output; at least one shield is electrically connected to at least one other shield and said interconnected shields are connected at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output; and at least one shield is electrically connected to at least one other shield and said interconnected shields are connected at said two-terminal input and at least one, but not all, of said interconnected shields are connected to said two-terminal output.
8. The cable assembly as recited in claim 7, wherein said first terminal is designated with a label selected from the group: a center pin, a positive terminal, a ground shell, and a negative terminal, and wherein said second terminal is designated with a different label selected from the group: center pin, a positive terminal, a ground shell, and a negative terminal.
9. The cable assembly as recited in claim 7, wherein said at least one pair of insulated electrical conductors comprises a twisted pair of insulated electrical conductors.
10. The cable assembly as recited in claim 7, wherein said plurality of discrete electrical cables are interrelated in at least one of the ways: braided together, and twisted together.
11. The cable assembly as recited in claim 7, further comprising an electrically conductive mother shield at least a portion of which is configured and dimensioned to surround said plurality of discrete electrical cables, said mother shield being electrically connected to least one of: a ground connection independent of said first terminal and said second terminal, said first terminal of at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output, and said second terminal of at least one of said two-terminal input and said two-terminal output.
12. The cable assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the mother shield is configured and dimensioned to substantially completely surround said plurality of discrete electrical cables.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A media library appliance comprising:
an optical disc drive field-replaceable unit comprising two optical drives oriented vertically;
a disc cartridge housing discs stored in a horizontal stack;
disc handling robotics comprising a disc picker assembly that slides laterally with respect to the disc cartridge and the optical disc drives to access discs stored in the cartridge to load into the optical drives; and
a shuttle cartridge that removably attaches to the disc cartridge to import and export a smaller number of discs from the larger disc cartridge.
2. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the appliance has a maximum width of 17.5 inches and is rack mountable in a standard 19 inch rack.
3. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the shuttle cartridge further comprises shuttle cartridge flash used to carry metadata about discs in the shuttle cartridge.
4. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the disc cartridge further comprises cartridge flash used to carry metadata about discs in the cartridge.
5. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the disc cartridge is removable from the library, and wherein the media library appliance further comprises a cartridge key rod to lock and unlock the cartridge to the library and to lock discs into the cartridge when the cartridge is removed from the library.
6. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the two optical drives oriented vertically in the field-replaceable unit are oriented to read opposite sides of a disc having media on both sides.
7. The media library appliance of claim 1, further comprising another optical disc drive field-replaceable unit comprising two optical drives oriented vertically, wherein the disc handling robotics also load discs into the optical drives of this other optical disc drive field-replaceable unit, and wherein two optical disc drive field-replaceable units are positioned on opposite sides of the disc handling robotics.
8. The media library appliance of claim 1, further comprising another disc cartridge housing discs stored in a horizontal stack, wherein the two disc cartridges are positioned on opposite sides of the disc handling robotics, and wherein the disc handling robotics slide laterally with respect to both disc cartridges to access discs stored in the cartridges to load into the optical drives.
9. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the disc handling robotics comprises redundant front and rear disc picker assemblies that slide laterally with respect to the disc cartridge and the optical disc drives to access discs stored in the cartridge to load into the optical drives.
10. The media library appliance of claim 1, further comprising an access door in a housing of the media library appliance that allows access to the optical disc drive field-replaceable unit without requiring the media library appliance to power down.
11. The media library appliance of claim 10, wherein the access door comprises a fan field-replaceable unit.
12. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the disc cartridge and the disc handling robotics only contact discs on a disc edge or center hole to avoid damage to areas that store data.
13. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the disc cartridge further comprises a spring finger to flag the presence of a disc within a slot of the disc cartridge.
14. The media library appliance of claim 1, wherein the disc handling robotics further comprise a collision sensor module to prevent collision of a moving disc picker assembly with an object in the disc picker assembly’s path.
15. The media library appliance of claim 1, further comprising a disc detection system comprising an arc array of phototransistors opposite an arc array of LED transmitters to sense a disc edge.
16. The media library appliance of claim 15, wherein the disc detection system further comprises a linear array of phototransistors opposite a linear array of LED transmitters to sense a gross disc location.
17. The media library appliance of claim 1, further comprising a disc picker assembly that operates on a closed-loop control signal based on outputs from two sensors.