Automatic tape threading system for use in a tape transport system

Claim 1

A tape transport device for use with cartridge including a single reel carrying a tape of a given width and having a central drive hub, including in combination a frame; a hub driving mechanism for a cartridge reel drive hub, said hub driving mechanism support by said frame; a base plate supported by said frame; a driven take-up hub having a leader of a given width which is wider than said tape, and a web surface for winding said leader and said tape, said take-up hub supported by said frame; a transducer, said transducer supported by said base plate and located intermediate said cartridge drive hub and said take-up hub, said transducer having transducing surface portions; a first fixed bearing-guide member having curved surface portions, and a second fixed guide-member having curved surface portions, said first and second fixed bearing-guide members supported by said base plate and bracketing said transducer and positioned so that a plane tangent to said curved surface portions of both said bearing-guide members will intersect said transducer behind said transducing surface portions; and a cover plate spaced apart from and substantially parallel to said base plate, said cover plate and said base plate sandwiching said transducer and said first and second fixed bearing-guide members thereinbetween, wherein the improvement comprises: a substantially continuous sinous tape threading path, of definite length, including structure defining a pair of tracks in said base plate and said cover plate, which tracks from an open channel having a given width which is greater than the width of said tape and less than the width of said leader, said substantially continuous tape threading path being intermediate said cartridge drive hub and said take-up hub and winding past said curved surface portion of said first fixed bearing-guide member without making contact therewith, past said transducer without making contact with said transducing surface portions, and past said curved surface portions of said fixed second bearing-guide without making contact therewith; and tape transducing path of definite length and structure and different from said threading path, said tape transducing path being intermediate said cartridge drive hub and said take-up hub and running substantially tangentially from said cartridge drive hub to said first fixed bearing-guide member, wrapping around and making contact with a portion of said curved surface portions of said first fixed bearing guide member and then running tangentially from said first fixed bearing-guide member to said transducer, wrapping around and making contact with said transducing portions of said transducer and then running tangentially from said transducer to said second fixed bearing-guide member, wrapping around and making contact with a portion of said curved surface portions of said second fixed bearing-guide member, and then running tangentially from said second fixed bearing-guide member to said web of said take-up hub.