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US 10,269,378 B1Granted
Backward compatibility tape read head
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsTsuyoshi Miyamura, Eiji Ogura, Tomoko Taketomi
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A magnetic tape head module read element array includes servo readers and read elements configured in accordance with a tape standard. Each read element includes a plurality of read sensors. A microprocessor receives the generation of the tape technology standard and identifies, based on the generation, a combination of read sensors in each read element. Data signals from each read sensor in each combination are buffered. The microprocessor performs error detection and error correction operations on the buffered signal data for each combination of read sensors to generate verified track data in accordance with the generation of tape.
Claims17
An apparatus comprising:
- a magnetic tape head module read element array that includes one or more servo readers and a plurality of read elements, wherein the servo readers and the plurality of read elements are configured in the tape head module read element array in accordance with a magnetic tape technology standard;
- each read element of the plurality of read elements further comprising a plurality of read sensors;
- a microprocessor operated to receive information indicative of a generation of the magnetic tape technology standard;
- the microprocessor further operated to identify, based on the generation, a combination of read sensors in each read element from a plurality of combinations associated with a corresponding plurality of generations;
- the microprocessor further operated to buffer signal data associated with each read sensor in each identified combination that results from electrical signals generated by each read sensor from magnetic transitions recorded on a magnetic tape recording medium in accordance with the generation of the magnetic tape technology standard as the magnetic tape recording medium passes by the tape head module read element array;
- the microprocessor further operated to perform error detection and error correction operations on the buffered signal data for each identified combination of read sensors to generate verified track data in accordance with the generation of tape.
3 more elements
A tape appliance comprising:
- a special purpose magnetic tape head module that includes a read element array that includes one or more servo readers and a plurality of read elements, wherein the servo readers and the plurality of read elements are configured in the tape head module read element array in accordance with a magnetic tape technology standard, and wherein each read element of the plurality of read elements further comprises a plurality of read sensors;
- a servo control circuit that performs servo tracking of the magnetic tape head module, based on electrical signals received from the one or more servo readers;
- a read/write dataflow circuit that controls data transfer operations from each of the read sensors to a data buffer, based on electrical signals generated by each read sensor from magnetic transitions recorded on a magnetic tape recording medium as the magnetic tape recording medium passes by the tape head module read element array;
- a microprocessor controller that controls the operation of the servo control circuit and the read/write dataflow circuit, wherein the microprocessor controller operates to:
- receive information from a tape cartridge memory indicative of a generation of the magnetic tape technology standard with which data was written to the magnetic tape recording medium of the tape cartridge;
- identify, based on the generation, a combination of read sensors in each read element from a plurality of combinations corresponding to a plurality of generations;
- cause the servo control circuit to perform servo tracking based on the generation of the tape cartridge, such that the identified combination of read sensors in each read element track a data tracks of the magnetic tape recording medium of the tape cartridge;
- cause the read/write dataflow circuit to write to the data buffer data received from each of the identified read sensors in each read element;
- perform error detection and error correction operations on the buffered signal data for each identified combination of read sensors to generate verified track data in accordance with the generation of tape.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.