Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval – Record transport with head stationary during transducing – Tape record
Reexamination Certificate
1998-07-24
2001-05-29
Klimowicz, William (Department: 2652)
Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval
Record transport with head stationary during transducing
Tape record
C312S009510, C369S036010
Reexamination Certificate
active
06239941
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the storage of information, and particularly to automated cartridge handling systems such as cartridge libraries which store cartridges or cassettes of magnetic tape.
2. Related Art and other Considerations
The economic and compact storage of information is increasingly important in the computer industry, particularly so as the computer unleashes new potentials in numerous fields such as audio visual and/or multimedia.
In the early days of computers, information requiring storage could be transmitted from a computer to a tape drive, whereat the information was magnetically recorded on or read from a large reel of tape. Upon completion of an operation of recording on the tape, for example, the reel would be removed manually from the tape drive and mounted in a rack. Another reel from the rack could then be manually mounted, if necessary, in the drive for either an input (tape reading) or output (recording to tape) operation.
Eventually it became popular to enclose magnetic tape in a cartridge, the cartridge being considerably smaller than the traditional tape reels. While many persons are familiar with tape cartridges of a type which can be loaded into a “tape deck” for reproduction of audio information (e.g., music), it is not as commonly realized that similar cartridges, although of differing sizes, can be used to store such information as computer data. For years now magnetic tape cartridges have proven to be an efficient and effective medium for data storage, including but not limited to computer back-up.
Large computer systems have need to access numerous cartridges. To this end, automated cartridge handling systems or libraries for cartridges have been proposed for making the cartridges automatically available to the computer. Many of these automated libraries resemble juke boxes. Typically, prior art automated cartridge libraries have an array of storage positions for cartridges, one or more tape drives, and some type of automated changer or cartridge engagement/transport mechanism for picking or gripping a cartridge and moving the cartridge between a storage position and the tape drive.
The following United States patents, all commonly assigned herewith and incorporated herein by reference, disclose various configurations of automated cartridge libraries, as well as subcomponents thereof (including cartridge engagement/transport mechanisms and storage racks or magazines for housing cartridges):
U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,106 to Herger et al., entitled “CARTRIDGE LIBRARY SYSTEM AND METHOD OF OPERATION THEREOF”;
U.S. Pat. No. 4,972,277 to Sills et al., entitled “CARTRIDGE TRANSPORT ASSEMBLY AND METHOD OF OPERATION THEREOF”;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,059,772 to Younglove, entitled “READING METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CARTRIDGE LIBRARY”;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,986 to Marlowe, entitled “CARTRIDGE RACK”; and,
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,237,467 and 5,416,653 to Marlowe, entitled “CARTRIDGE HANDLING APPARATUS AND METHOD WITH MOTION-RESPONSIVE EJECTION”.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,116 to Woodruff et al., entitled “ENTRY-EXIT PORT FOR CARTRIDGE LIBRARY”.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,579 to Woodruff et al., entitled “PICKER MECHANISM FOR DATA CARTRIDGES”.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,339 to Woodruff et al., entitled “CARTRIDGE RACK AND LIBRARY FOR ENGAGING SAME”.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,739,978 to Ellis et al., entitled CARTRIDGE HANDLING SYSTEM WITH MOVING I/O DRIVE”.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,059,772 to Younglove discloses a cartridge library wherein the cartridge magazines each have a reflective indicia used for precise placement of the magazine.
What is needed, and an object of the present invention, is an effective way for mounting certain magazines to a cartridge library frame.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An automated cartridge library comprises a magazine mounting assembly which holds at least one magazine to a library frame, the magazine accommodating at least one cartridge of information storage media. A cartridge transport system transports cartridges between the magazine and a drive.
The magazine mounting assembly comprises a magazine mounting surface having a reflection region which is of contrasting reflectivity with another region of the magazine mounting assembly. The reflection region is preferably a reflection plate which is secured to the magazine mounting assembly. The reflection plate fits over an internal cavity of the magazine mounting assembly.
A magazine guide flange extends from the magazine mounting surface and has a label-bearing facet formed thereon for each cell of the magazine, each facet being aligned with a corresponding cell. The magazine guide flange is preferably angularly inclined with respect to the magazine mounting surface. A cartridge label, e.g., barcode label, can be secured to the facet
The magazine mounting assembly further has two side walls extending from a rear of the magazine mounting surface, planes of the two side walls being angularly inclined toward one another whereby a rear section of the magazine mounting assembly forms a wedge. Rear edges of the two side walls intersect with a backwall, the backwall forming a semicylindrical concavity which mates with a drum center cylindrical post about which a cartridge storage section of the library rotates. The backwall has at least one dowel extending therefrom for extending into the drum center cylindrical post.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3757944 (1973-09-01), Goodman
patent: 4807208 (1989-02-01), Geiger
patent: 4934891 (1990-06-01), Hawkswell
patent: 4937690 (1990-06-01), Yamashita et al.
patent: 5654838 (1997-08-01), Motoyama et al.
patent: 5790338 (1998-08-01), Kanai et al.
patent: 6-76453 (1994-03-01), None
patent: 10-312619 (1998-11-01), None
Exabyte Corporation
Klimowicz William
Nixon & Vanderhye P.C.
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