Microfiche drive assembly and transport assembly

Claim 2

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots, means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel and means for mounting said rack and for preventing movement of said rack by said positioning means along said path of travel during said relative movement.

Claim 3

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots, means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel and means for mounting said rack and for preventing movement of said rack by said positioning means along said path of travel during said relative movement.

Claim 4

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots, means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel and means for mounting said rack and for preventing movement of said rack by said positioning means along said path of travel during said relative movement.

Claim 5

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots, means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel and means for mounting said rack and for preventing movement of said rack by said positioning means along said path of travel, said mounting and preventing means comprising means for pivotably mounting said rack to enable the pivotal movement of said rack.

Claim 6

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots, means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel and means for mounting said rack and for preventing movement of said rack by said positioning means along said path of travel, said mounting and preventing means comprising means for pivotably mounting said rack to enable the pivotal movement of said rack.

Claim 7

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, said slots being serially disposed along said rack and enclosed in an elongated apertured portion of said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel.

Claim 8

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, said slots being serially disposed along said rack and enclosed in an elongated apertured portion of said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel.

Claim 9

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots, at least one slot of said plurality of slots includes means for releasably lockingly engaging at least one of said plurality of drive pins, said engaging means includes an inclined edge portion of said one slot, and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel.

Claim 10

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots, at least one slot of said plurality of slots includes means for releasably lockingly engaging at least one of said plurality of drive pins, said engaging means includes an inclined edge portion of said one slot, and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel.

Claim 11

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, said rack including a first longitudinal axis and said plurality of slots extending to depths in said rack along longitudinal axes that are substantially inclined to said first longitudinal axis, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel.

Claim 12

A drive assembly comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, said rack including a first longitudinal axis and said plurality of slots extending to depths in said rack along longitudinal axes that are substantially inclined to said first longitudinal axis, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said rack by receipt within said slots and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said rack and said drive pins along a path of travel.

Claim 13

A drive assembly as defined in claim 5 wherein at least one of said plurality of slots extends to a greater depth than the average depth of the remaining ones of said plurality of slots.

Claim 14

A drive assembly for moving a driven member along a path of travel comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, said slots being serially disposed along said rack and enclosed within an elongated apertured portion of said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said slots and means for rotatably positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots tO enable the stepwise movement of said driven member along said path of travel.

Claim 15

A drive assembly for moving a driven member along a path of travel comprising an elongated rack, a plurality of slots disposed along said rack, said slots being serially disposed along said rack and enclosed within an elongated apertured portion of said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said slots and means for rotatably positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots tO enable the stepwise movement of said driven member along said path of travel.

Claim 16

A drive assembly for moving a driven member along a path of travel comprising a first plurality of serially disposed slots, a first plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said slots and first means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to enable the stepwise movement of said driven member along a first portion of said path of travel, said positioning means including rotatable means for fixedly mounting said first plurality of drive pins thereon and motive means rotating said rotatable mounting means, said rotatable mounting means comprises a rotatable pin disc having said plurality of drive pins fixedly positioned thereon and a drive disc positioned between said pin disc and said motive means for engaging said pin disc to enable the rotation of said pin disc by said motive means.

Claim 17

A drive assembly for moving a driven member along a path of travel comprising a first plurality of serially disposed slots, a first plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said slots and first means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to enable the stepwise movement of said driven member along a first portion of said path of travel, said positioning means including rotatable means for fixedly mounting said first plurality of drive pins thereon and motive means rotating said rotatable mounting means, said rotatable mounting means comprises a rotatable pin disc having said plurality of drive pins fixedly positioned thereon and a drive disc positioned between said pin disc and said motive means for engaging said pin disc to enable the rotation of said pin disc by said motive means.

Claim 18

In combination, means for mounting and securely retaining a microfiche, first means for transporting said mounting means along a first portion of a path of travel and second means for transporting said mounting means along a second portion of said path of travel, said second portion of said path of travel being angularly disposed to said first portion of said path of travel, said first transporting means being actuable independently of said second transporting means to transport said mounting means along said first portion of said path of travel and said second transporting means being actuable independently of said first transporting means to transport said mounting means along said second portion of said path of travel, said first transporting means including a plurality of serially disposed slots, an elongated rack housing said slots, said slots being serially disposed along said rack and enclosed within an elongated apertured portion of said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said slots and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to enable the stepwise movement of said mounting means along said first portion of said path of travel.

Claim 19

In combination, means for mounting and securely retaining a microfiche, first means for transporting said mounting means along a first portion of a path of travel and second means for transporting said mounting means along a second portion of said path of travel, said second portion of said path of travel being angularly disposed to said first portion of said path of travel, said first transporting means being actuable independently of said second transporting means to transport said mounting means along said first portion of said path of travel and said second transporting means being actuable independently of said first transporting means to transport said mounting means along said second portion of said path of travel, said first transporting means including a plurality of serially disposed slots, an elongated rack housing said slots, said slots being serially disposed along said rack and enclosed within an elongated apertured portion of said rack, a plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said slots and means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to enable the stepwise movement of said mounting means along said first portion of said path of travel.

Claim 20

A transport assembly for a microfiche comprising means for receiving and securely retaining said microfiche in a stationary relative condition first means for biasing said receiving and retaining means for movement in a first direction along a first portion of a path of travel, first means for transporting said receiving and retaining means along said first portion of said path of travel in a second direction substantially opposite to said first direction, second means for biasing said receiving and retaining means for movement in a third direction along a second portion of said path of travel, second means for transporting said receiving and retaining means along said second portion of said path of travel in a fourth direction substantially opposite to said third direction, said second portion of said path of travel being angularly disposed to said first portion of said path of travel, said first transporting means being actuable independently of said second transporting means to transport said mounting means along said first portion of said path of travel and said second transporting means being actuable independently of said first transporting means to transport said receiving and retaining means along said second portion of said path of travel.

Claim 21

A transport assembly for a microfiche comprising means for receiving and securely retaining said microfiche in a stationary relative condition first means for biasing said receiving and retaining means for movement in a first direction along a first portion of a path of travel, first means for transporting said receiving and retaining means along said first portion of said path of travel in a second direction substantially opposite to said first direction, second means for biasing said receiving and retaining means for movement in a third direction along a second portion of said path of travel, second means for transporting said receiving and retaining means along said second portion of said path of travel in a fourth direction substantially opposite to said third direction, said second portion of said path of travel being angularly disposed to said first portion of said path of travel, said first transporting means being actuable independently of said second transporting means to transport said mounting means along said first portion of said path of travel and said second transporting means being actuable independently of said first transporting means to transport said receiving and retaining means along said second portion of said path of travel.

Claim 22

A transport assembly as defined in claim 10 wherein said first transporting means comprises a first plurality of serially disposed slots, a first plurality of drive pins releasably engageable with said slots and first means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to enable the stepwise movement of said receiving and retaining means along said first portion of said path of travel in said second direction.

Claim 25

A method as defined in claim 12 wherein said presetting step includes the steps of selecting a first set of one or more drive elements from a plurality of interchangeable drive elements and placing said first set in an operative association with said motive means to control the transporting of said first microfiche along said path of travel.

Claim 26

A method as defined in claim 13 wherein said resetting or readjusting step includes the steps of selecting a second set of one or more drive elements, having substantially different physical characteristics than said first set, from said plurality of interchangeable drive elements and placing said second set in an operative association with said motive means to control the transporting of said second microfiche along said path of travel.

Claim 27

A drive assembly comprising an elongated member, a plurality of elongated slots disposed along said member, each of said slots having an elongated slot axis or slot centerline disposed in the center of each of said slots and along the length of each of said slots and a plurality of elongated drive pins releasably engageable with said member by receipt within said slots, each of said drive pins having an elongated pin axis or pin centerline disposed in the center of each of said drive pins and along the length of each of said drive pins, the distance between the pin centerlines of adjacent drive pins being greater than the distance between the slot centerlines of adjacent slots to enable one of said drive pins to engage said member exteriorly of and adjacent to said slots while another one of said drive pins is positioned within one of said slots.

Claim 28

A drive assembly comprising an elongated member, a plurality of elongated slots disposed along said member, each of said slots having an elongated slot axis or slot centerline disposed in the center of each of said slots and along the length of each of said slots and a plurality of elongated drive pins releasably engageable with said member by receipt within said slots, each of said drive pins having an elongated pin axis or pin centerline disposed in the center of each of said drive pins and along the length of each of said drive pins, the distance between the pin centerlines of adjacent drive pins being greater than the distance between the slot centerlines of adjacent slots to enable one of said drive pins to engage said member exteriorly of and adjacent to said slots while another one of said drive pins is positioned within one of said slots.

Claim 29

A drive assembly as defined in claim 15 further comprising means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to thereby cause relative movement between said member and said drive pins along a path of travel, said positioning means including a rotatable pin disc having said plurality of drive pins fixedly positioned thereon.

Claim 30

A drive assembly as defined in claim 16 wherein said positioning means further includes a motor for rotating said pin disc to cause the rotation of said plurality of drive pins.

Claim 31

A drive assembly as defined in claim 16 further comprising means for mounting said member and for preventing movement of said member by said positioning means along said path of travel during said relative movement.

Claim 32

A drive assembly as defined in claim 18 wherein said mounting and preventing means comprises means for pivotably mounting said member to enable the pivotal movement of said member.

Claim 33

A drive assembly as defined in claim 15 wherein said slots are serially disposed along said member and enclosed in an elongated apertured portion of said member.

Claim 34

A drive assembly as defined in claim 15 wherein at least one of said plurality of slots includes means for releasably lockingly engaging at least one of said plurality of drive pins, said engaging means including an inclined edge portion of said one slot.

Claim 35

A drive assembly as defined in claim 15 wherein said member includes a first longitudinal axis and wherein said plurality of slots extend to depths in said member along longitudinal slot axes that are substantially inclined to said first longitudinal axis.

Claim 36

A drive assembly as defined in claim 22 wherein at least one of said plurality of slots extends to a significantly greater depth than the average depth of the remaining ones of said plurality of slots.

Claim 37

A transport assembly for a microfiche comprising means for receiving and securely retaining said microfiche in a stationary relative condition, first means for biasing said receiving and retaining means for movement in a first direction along a first portion of a path of travel, first means for transporting said receiving and retaining means along said first portion of said path of travel in a second direction substantially opposite to said first direction, said first transporting means including a first elongated rack, a first plurality of elongated slots disposed along said rack, each of said slots having an elongated slot axis or slot centerline disposed in the center of each of said slots and along the length of each of said slots and a first plurality of elongated drive pins releasably engageable with said first rack by receipt within said slots, each of said drive pins having an elongated pin axis or pin centerline disposed in the center of each of said drive pins and along the length of each of said drive pins, the distance between the pin centerlines of adjacent drive pins being greater than the distance between the slot centerlines of adjacent slots to enable one of said drive pins to engage said first rack exteriorly of and adjacent to said slots while another one of said drive pins is positioned within one of said slots, and first means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to enable the stepwise movement of said receiving and retaining means along said first portion of said path of travel in said second direction.

Claim 38

A transport assembly for a microfiche comprising means for receiving and securely retaining said microfiche in a stationary relative condition, first means for biasing said receiving and retaining means for movement in a first direction along a first portion of a path of travel, first means for transporting said receiving and retaining means along said first portion of said path of travel in a second direction substantially opposite to said first direction, said first transporting means including a first elongated rack, a first plurality of elongated slots disposed along said rack, each of said slots having an elongated slot axis or slot centerline disposed in the center of each of said slots and along the length of each of said slots and a first plurality of elongated drive pins releasably engageable with said first rack by receipt within said slots, each of said drive pins having an elongated pin axis or pin centerline disposed in the center of each of said drive pins and along the length of each of said drive pins, the distance between the pin centerlines of adjacent drive pins being greater than the distance between the slot centerlines of adjacent slots to enable one of said drive pins to engage said first rack exteriorly of and adjacent to said slots while another one of said drive pins is positioned within one of said slots, and first means for positioning said drive pins in varying ones of said slots to enable the stepwise movement of said receiving and retaining means along said first portion of said path of travel in said second direction.