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US 5,353,179 AGranted
Auto-loading of tape cartridges
AssigneeM4 Data Limited
InventorsRobert V. Elliott, Brian K. Hext
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Auto-loader apparatus for tape cartridges comprises a cartridge deck having an exposed or exposable supply hub; a device that moves a cartridge along a first, preferably linear, path from an initial position in a cartridge rack and moves the cartridge along a second path which passes through the supply hub of the cartridge deck until the cartridge engages the exposed supply hub.
Claims5
Auto-loader apparatus for storing, moving and loading tape cartridges, the apparatus comprising:
- a cartridge rack that stores the tape cartridges arranged along a helix;
- a cartridge transfer device that
- (1) moves one of the tape cartridges along a first, substantially linear path from an initial position in the cartridge rack, while holding the tape cartridge in substantially the same plane as the tape cartridge is oriented in the cartridge rack, and
- (2) moves the tape cartridge along a second, helical path that is substantially coaxial with the helix along which the tape cartridges are arranged in the cartridge rack;
- and
- a cartridge deck having an exposed or exposable supply hub that is arranged to receive one of the tape cartridges after movement of the tape cartridge along said second, helical path;
- wherein the second, helical path intersects the exposed or exposable supply hub of the cartridge deck and the cartridge transfer device moves said tape cartridge along the helical path until the tape cartridge engages the supply hub.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.