Magnetic tape recorder

Claim 1

A TAPE TRANSDUCING APPARATUS COMPRISING (A) AN ELONGATED TAPE FOR MOVEMENT IN THE DIRECTION OF ITS LENGTH DIMENSION, (B) TAPE GUIDING MEANS FOR GUIDING SAID TAPE FOR MOVEMENT ALONG AN ARCUATE TAPE PATH OF CONFIGURATION SUBSTANTIALLY CONFORMING TO A PORTION OF A CYLINDRICAL SURFACE, (C) A PLURALITY OF TRANSDUCER HEADS FOR SCANNING COOPERATION WITH THE PORTION OF THE LENGTH OF SAID TAPE MOVING ALONG SAID ARCUATE TAPE PATH, (D) MEANS MOUNTING SAID HEADS FOR ROTATION ABOUT A HEAD ROTATION AXIS DISPOSED OBLIQUELY TO THE LENGTH DIMENSION OF THE TAPE AT SAID TAPE GUIDING MEANS AND TENDING TO PROVIDE FOR ORBITAL HEAD MOVEMENT IN A PLANE OF HEAD ROTATION LYING AT RIGHT ANGLES TO SAID HEAD ROTATION AXIS, (E) MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID HEADS ABOUT SAID OBLIQUELY DISPOSED HEAD ROTATION AXIS TO MOVE THE HEADS SUCCESSIVELY ACROSS THE TAPE AND THUS TRACE SUCCESSIVE SCANNING LINES EXTENDING OBLIQUELY ACROSS SAID TAPE, (F) SAID MOUNTING MEANS MOUNTING SAID HEADS WITH SUBSTANTIAL FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT IN A DIRECTION TRANSVERSE TO THE PLANE OF HEAD ROTATION, AND (G) HEAD GUIDING MEAN FOR GUIDING SAID HEADS AS THEY MOVE ACROSS SAID TAPE, SAID HEAD GUIDING MEANS HAVING AN IRREGULAR GENERALLY SINUSOIDAL CONFIGURATION BUT WHICH CONFIGURATION DEFINES A SUBSTANTIALLY STRAIGHT LINE WITH RESPECT TO A FLAT PLANE DEVELOPMENT THEREOF, AND SAID HEAD GUIDING MEANS DISPLACING THE SUCCESSIVE HEADS FROM SAID PLANE OF HEAD ROTATION IN ONE TRANSVERSE DIRECTION AS THEY TRAVEL ALONG A FIRST PART OF THE TRANSVERSE EXTENT OF THE TAPE AND DISPLACING THE HEADS FROM THE PLANE OF HEAD ROTATION IN AN OPPOSITE TRANSVERSE DIRECTION AS THEY TRAVEL ALONG A SECOND PART OF THE TRANSVERSE EXTENT OF THE TAPE AND THUS GUIDING THE HEADS TO TRACE STRAIGHT OBLIQUE SCANNING LIES ON THE TAPE WITH RESPECT TO A FLAT PLANAR CONDITION OF THE TAPE.