International Business Machines Corporation

Harvey R Fraser, Jr

Francis E Hauke

Gerald W Baumann

Thomas M Fowler

A rotating head magnetic tape recording apparatus wherein a helical wrap of magnetic recording tape is formed about a cylindrical mandrel and the headwheel. The headwheel is of a larger radius than the mandrel; thus the headwheel protrudes or penetrates beyond the adjacent mandrel surfaces. This headwheel penetration operates to (1) compensate for mandrel misalignment, if any, and (2) stress the tape in the localized track coincident with the headwheel's path. A magnetic head is mounted on the headwheel to protrude or penetrate radially outward therefrom. The head includes a surface profile causing; th head to fly relative to the tape's recording surface, i.e., a thin air film surrounds the head. The combination of the protruding headwheel and the protruding head produces a stable recording platform at the tape/head interface. The headwheel produces localized tape stress coincident with the headwheel's path. The head produces a moving tent of additional localized tape stress at the tape/head interface.

Rotating head apparatus having a protruding diameter headwheel which

Various pneumatic means are shown for lifting tape locally away from a rotating head as the rotating head moves. Only the tape in the vicinity of the head is lifted. The lifting is done with minimal pneumatic force, and done only locally about the head so that recovery time for read/write operations after a lifting operation is short, Air to lift the tape can be blown from passages around the head, from passages through the head, or from passages in front of the head. Local lifting about the head is enhanced by insuring that the pneumatic air flow to lift the tape does not easily dissipate in air space between the mandrel and the head rotor.

Growing community of inventors

Boulder, CO, United States of America

Harvey R Fraser, Jr