Tape transport apparatus incorporating porous air bearing
US5777823A · kind A · utility
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 27, 1996 |
| Grant date | Jul 7, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 27, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11B15/64
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A linear-type tape transport includes a pair of air bearings on each side of a transducer when viewed in reference to the tape transport direction. Each air bearing includes a housing and a bear member formed of a porous material. The housing and the bearing member form a plenum connectable to a pressurized air source such that air flow through the porous material creates an air cushion to support a tape medium during transport. The porous material is preferably a ceramic that is between two and fifty percent open. The bearing member has a datum face with the bearing surface thereof being planar and at a small obtuse angle to the datum face thereby to automatically urge an edge of the tape against the datum face. The housing is preferably U-shaped in cross-section with an arcuate bottom and parallel sidewalls.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.