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Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR GUIDING AND SUPPORTING A WEB WITHOUT MECHANICAL CONTACT BETWEEN SAID WEB AND SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING; A SURFACE HAVING ONE OR MORE AIR ORIFICES CUT THEREIN, MEANS FOR EXHAUSTING AIR UNDER PRESSURE THROUGH SAID ORIFICES AGAINST THE LOWER SIDE OF SAID WEB, TWO SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL FLANGES MOUNTED UPON SAID SURFACE NORMAL THERETO ONE ON EITHER SIDE OF SAID ORIFICES SO THAT SAID ONE OR MORE ORIFICES ARE CENTRALLY LOCATED, SAID FLANGES BEING OF SUFFICIENT HEIGHT TO EXTEND ABOVE SAID WEB WHEN SAID WEB IS LOCATED BETWEEN SAID FLANGES IN A POSITION SUPPORTED ABOVE SAID SURFACE BY SAID AIR EXHAUSTING FROM SAID ORIFICES, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID FLANGES BEING SLIGHTLY GREATER THAN THE WIDTH OF SAID WEB FORMING A CLEARANCE BETWEEN THE EDGES OF SAID WEB AND SAID FLANGES IN THE ORDER OF MAGNITUDE OF THE CLEARANCE BETWEEN THE WEB AND SAID SURFACE WHEN SAID WEB IS IN SAID SUPPORTED POSITION, THE AMOUNT OF SAID CLEARANCE BEING SELECTED SO THAT LATERAL MOVEMENT OF SAID WEB TOWARD ONE OF SAID FLANGES CREATES AN UNBALANCED IMPEDANCE TO THE FLOW OF SAID AIR ABOUT THE EDGES OF SAID WEB RESULTING IN A NET FLOW OF SAID AIR TOWARD THE OTHER OF SAID FLANGES RETURNING SAID TAPE TO A CENTER POSITION BETWEEN THE FLANGES.