Patent · US Expired

Mechanisms for a closed loop head positioner for streaming tape drives

US5371636A · kind A · utility

35Cited by
5References
17Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateAug 6, 1992
Grant dateDec 6, 1994
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 6, 2012

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG11B33/08
  • WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

Apparatus for fine positioning a tape head relative to a head carriage that is coarsely positionable by a lead screw. The fine positioning apparatus includes parallel first and second resilient support beams oriented generally parallel to the direction of tape travel and having their ends fixedly secured to the head carriage so as to be deflectable in a direction transverse to the direction of tape travel. The centers of the parallel first and second support beams have their centers secured to a tape head frame which contains the tape. A linear motor drives the tape head frame against the resilience of the first and second resilient support beams in response to a drive signal which, for example, is derived from tracking error information produced pursuant to reading of servo information on tape. Pursuant to the displacement of the tape head frame against the resilience of the support beams, the magnetic tape head is moved along a linear path transverse to the tape travel direction. For operation with tapes without servo information on tape, a piezoelectric transducer detects the deflection of one of the support beams and provides an output which is utilized to provide damping of th…

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