Patent · US Expired

Circuit and methodology for reading and tracking binary data from magnetic tape independently of the data pattern on the tape

US4644420A · kind A · utility

33Cited by
5References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateMar 29, 1984
Grant dateFeb 17, 1987
Priority date
Expiry dateMar 29, 2004

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG11B20/1403
  • WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

Binary information recorded on magnetic tape is read from the tape and tracked in a manner which is independent of the data pattern on the tape. The time displacement error, TDE (used hereinafter interchangeably) between the data pulses from the tape and a phase-locked-loop reference signal is sampled and then held until the next subsequent opportunity at which the data from the tape can be updated. The TDE between a read binary one and a reference signal is measured by counting a plurality of reference pulses occurring between a reference edge marking the beginning of a data time window and the time at which a binary one is read from the tape. The accummulated count is sampled by a counter whose contents are then stored in a latch when the total TDE has been measured. The TDE in the latch is then used in the phase-locked-loop circuit to adjust the frequency of the reference signal to more nearly match the frequency of the data read from the tape. Thus, whenever a binary one is read from the tape, the TDE is measured, stored and used until the next binary one is read and the time displacement error can then be updated.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.