Oracle International Corporation

Storage Technology Corporation

Daniel W Underkofler

Phillip Monroe Morgan

William Joseph Vanderheyden

Scott David Wilson

Steven Suttle

Timothy Craig Ostwald

Daniel James Plutt

Joseph Paul Manes

David C Black

Donovan M Janssen

Christian Allen Todd

Roger Harry Grow

William Thomas Veno

Peter R Coburn

A tape guide is provided for use with a tape drive that is configured to receive a length of tape having a tape width. The tape guide includes a body having an outer surface for receiving the tape thereon, and flanges on opposite ends of the body. The flanges may be spaced apart by a distance that is 125 to 500 microns greater than the tape width.

Tape guide with flanges

An optical pickup assembly includes a first optical pickup unit (OPU) and a second OPU. The OPUs are either stacked on each other in separate housings or integrated together in a common housing such that the OPUs are arranged laterally across a tape path and are positioned at a longitudinal position along the tape path.

Optical pickup assembly having optical pickup units laterally arranged across a tape path

A tape guide roller, for use with a tape drive that is configured to receive a length of tape, includes a roller body having an outer surface with one or more grooved areas and one or more non-grooved areas. The one or more grooved areas make up seventy-five percent or less of the outer surface, and the one or more non-grooved areas make up at least twenty-five percent of the outer surface. Furthermore, the one or more grooved areas are configured to affect traction between the roller body and the tape as the tape passes over the roller body.

Grooved tape guide roller

A control system for a tape drive that uses position error signals (PESs) generated by a tape head assembly of the tape drive during longitudinal movement of a tape through the drive to dynamically adjust a lateral and/or angular position of tape to enhance tape drive performance (e.g., the ability of a tape head assembly to precisely follow one or more data and/or servo tracks on the tape). In one arrangement, the PESs and/or PES metrics are used as feedback into the system to steer the tape by moving one or more tape path guides until subsequently generated PESs or PES metrics have been optimized or have at least moved back into an acceptable range or to acceptable levels. The disclosed control system facilitates achieving increased stringencies on PES minimization that come with increased tape drive magnetic track densities.

Closed loop control of tape media positioning within tape drive using position error signal feedback

A tape cartridge is provided with a reel mounted for rotation in a housing. Tape with a length, a width and a thickness, is wound upon the reel in a length direction of the tape. A leader is mounted to a free end of the tape. The leader has at least one portion with a width greater than the tape width to clean a tape path, such as a guide and/or a lens. Another tape cartridge is provided with a reel mounted for rotation in a housing. Tape is wound upon the reel in a length direction of the tape. A leader is mounted to a free end of the tape. A brush is mounted to a portion of the leader for cleaning a tape path.

Data storage device tape path cleaner

A tape guide mechanism in a storage device is disclosed for defining an improved roller guide tape path. A cartridge reel is provided for supplying tape to a take-up reel. Multiple flanged guides are provided located remotely from the cartridge and take-up reels. A non-flanged post guide is provided located proximate to the take-up reel for increasing a length of the tape path and for permitting the flanged guides to be located remotely from the cartridge and take-up reels so that the flanged guides are not located in proximity to the cartridge or take-up reels. An axis of symmetry exists longitudinally about one or two read/write heads. The tape path length is generally symmetrically disposed about this axis of symmetry.

Roller guide tape path

A tape reel within a tape path is disclosed for storing a tape. The tape reel includes a first flange having an inner surface and an outer surface. The first flange is attached to a hub. The tape reel also includes a second flange attached to the hub. The second flange is substantially parallel to the first flange. The second flange has an inner surface and an outer surface. The inner surface of the second flange is tapered with respect to the axis of the hub. The reel is tilted with respect to a plane of the tape path so that the tapered inner surface is moved so that it is located in a plane that is horizontal to a plane of the tape path at the point of exit of the tape from the tape reel.

Tape reel flange having an effective zero taper

A spool system for packing tape on a hub. The spool has upper and lower flanges on the hub, and a flexure positioned on the hub between the two flanges. The flexure is normally parallel to the flanges, but when a force is applied to the tape lead-in edge of the flexure, that edge of the flexure is pressed toward one of the flanges. This causes the tape lead-in side of the spool system to have a wider opening than the tape packing side of the spool system. The width of the space on the tape packing side is preferably equal to or narrower than the width of the tape to be packed, so that the flexure presses against the edge of tape as it loads, reducing stagger of the tape.

Method for packing tape on a spool without tape edge wear

A tape drive includes a drive body and a tape guide supported by the drive body. The tape drive further includes a threading mechanism having a first member pivotally associated with the drive body, and a cleaning member supported by the first member and moveable therewith. The cleaning member is engageable with the tape guide so as to clean the tape guide.

Moveable tape guide cleaning member

A tape drive for use with magnetic tape includes a drive body and a cleaning member supported by the drive body. The tape drive also includes a tape guide moveably associated with the drive body, such that the tape guide is moveable between a tape-unloaded position and a tape-loaded position. When the tape guide moves between the tape-unloaded position and the tape-loaded position, the tape guide engages the cleaning member such that the cleaning member may remove debris from the tape guide.

Tape guide cleaning member

The pass thru mechanism for automated cartridge library systems serves to interconnect two juxtaposed operationally independent automated cartridge library systems and provides a simple apparatus that makes use of gravity to obviate the need for complex mechanical mechanisms to pass the media cartridge between the juxtaposed automated cartridge library systems. In particular, the pass thru mechanism comprises a media cartridge receiver that accepts a media cartridge from an automated cartridge library robot and then deposits the media cartridge in a media cartridge positioning mechanism. The media cartridge positioning mechanism uses gravity to tumble the media cartridge down a ramp into a media cartridge transport that delivers the media cartridge to the robot located in the juxtaposed media cartridge receiving automated cartridge library system. The media cartridge positioning mechanism operates to reorient the media cartridge from a horizontal orientation to a vertical orientation while concurrently turning the media cartridge as it tumbles through its path to present the label end of the media cartridge to the robot that is located in the media cartridge receiving automated cartridge library system.

Growing community of inventors

Lafayette, CO, United States of America

Daniel W Underkofler