International Business Machines Corporation

James C Simkins

Paul Y Hu

Alex Chliwnyj

Frank David Gallo

Scott M Rockwell

Will A Wright

Hartmut Ernst Hausler

Loyal Keith Whitted

Kevin Keith Kartchner

Donald W Lloyd

Stephen J Roffinoli

John Raymond Haider

The present invention provides a cleaning apparatus for cleaning the air bearing surface of a magnetic head of a tape drive by employing components of an actuator for oscillating the magnetic head against bristles of a brush assembly. Circuitry is provided which senses the appropriate time to commence the cleaning action and continues the cleaning action for an appropriate duration when the magnetic tape is off the magnetic head. The circuitry causes the actuator to move the magnetic head in oscillatory motion against stationary bristles of a brush assembly which are selectively brought into engagement with the magnetic head. The engagement and disengagement of the bristles with respect to the magnetic head are implemented by a lever arm which has camming surfaces which are engageable with a leader pin which moves a leader block and magnetic tape about a guide and across the magnetic head.

Oscillating magnetic head and stationary brush cleaning apparatus

An interlock system is provided for removable-media drive unit to prevent the drive loader from attempting to pull in and mount a data cartridge before it is released by a mechanical gripper or human hand. The interlock system includes a light source and a photodetector positioned in front of the drive on opposite sides of the path cartridge takes when it is being inserted or removed from the drive loader. The presence of the cartridge, gripper or other object in the path interrupts a light beam from the light source thereby signalling the drive controller to disable the drive loader. When the gripper has released the cartridge and withdrawn, or when the path is otherwise clear, the photodetector again detects the light beam and signals the drive controller that the loader can be safely enabled. In one embodiment, the light source and photodetector are mounted on a card which plugs into the face of the drive. The presence of the card indicates to the drive controller that the drive is installed in a library environment and causes the drive controller to execute appropriate program code to interpret signals from the photodetector and enables and disables the drive loader in response.

Removeable media drive unit with loader interlock to indicate presence

An automated storage library having the ability to store and manipulate data storage elements in three dimensions. Data storage elements such as tape cartridges are stored in storage compartments separated by low-friction downward sloping sliding planes each capable of holding a plurality of data storage elements. The automated storage library further includes a magnetic picker apparatus having two electromagnetic coils. In one embodiment, the two coils are energized simultaneously with the first coil used to reposition an L-shaped flipper. This flipper raises a roller gate positioned at one end of a storage compartment to release a stored data storage element. The second electromagnetic coil supplements the gravitational pull on the data storage element by attracting a steel strip on the face of the data storage element and an associated coil carriage retrieves the data storage element from the compartment.

Gravity feed data storage library having magnetic picker

Growing community of inventors

Tucson, AZ, United States of America

James C Simkins