Inter-system transport mechanism for use with robotic data cartridge handling systems

Claim 1

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges comprising: plural carousel-type storage means each including plural columns of storage bins for storing said plurality of data cartridges, wherein each of said plural carousel-type storage means is rotatable to provide access to said plurality of data cartridges; and plural gripper means for moving said plurality of data cartridges to and from said plural carousel-type storage means, each of said plural gripper means associated with one of said plural storage means and capable of moving linearly along a first axis in order to access said plurality of data cartridges within said storage means; and plural conveyor means for moving data cartridges between said plural carousel-type storage means, each of said plural conveyor means associated with one of said plural carousel-type storage means and accessible by a respective one of said associated gripper means and constrained to move linearly along a second axis without rotation of data cartridges being moved by a respective one of the plural conveyor means to allow transfer of at least one of said plurality of data cartridges between said plural carousel-type storage means.

Claim 2

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges comprising: plural carousel-type storage means each including plural columns of storage bins for storing said plurality of data cartridges, wherein each of said plural carousel-type storage means is rotatable to provide access to said plurality of data cartridges; and plural gripper means for moving said plurality of data cartridges to and from said plural carousel-type storage means, each of said plural gripper means associated with one of said plural storage means and capable of moving linearly along a first axis in order to access said plurality of data cartridges within said storage means; and plural conveyor means for moving data cartridges between said plural carousel-type storage means, each of said plural conveyor means associated with one of said plural carousel-type storage means and accessible by a respective one of said associated gripper means and constrained to move linearly along a second axis without rotation of data cartridges being moved by a respective one of the plural conveyor means to allow transfer of at least one of said plurality of data cartridges between said plural carousel-type storage means.

Claim 5

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges comprising: plural storage assemblies for storing said plurality of data cartridges, each of said plural storage assemblies including a separate storage assembly having a plurality of storage locations for storing said plurality of data cartridges; plural gripper mechanisms for transporting one or more of said plurality of data cartridges to and from said plural storage assemblies, each of said plural gripper mechanisms associated with a respective one of said plural storage assemblies and capable of moving vertically to access said plurality of data cartridges within said respective one of said storage assemblies; and plural conveyor mechanisms constrained to linear motion for horizontally transporting at least one of said plurality of data cartridges along a linear path without rotation between said plural storage assemblies, each of said conveyor mechanisms associated with a respective one of said plural storage assemblies and positioned to enable transfer of said data cartridge between said plural storage assemblies, wherein the gripper mechanisms are separate from and do not move with the conveyor mechanisms.

Claim 6

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges comprising: plural storage assemblies for storing said plurality of data cartridges, each of said plural storage assemblies including a separate storage assembly having a plurality of storage locations for storing said plurality of data cartridges; plural gripper mechanisms for transporting one or more of said plurality of data cartridges to and from said plural storage assemblies, each of said plural gripper mechanisms associated with a respective one of said plural storage assemblies and capable of moving vertically to access said plurality of data cartridges within said respective one of said storage assemblies; and plural conveyor mechanisms constrained to linear motion for horizontally transporting at least one of said plurality of data cartridges along a linear path without rotation between said plural storage assemblies, each of said conveyor mechanisms associated with a respective one of said plural storage assemblies and positioned to enable transfer of said data cartridge between said plural storage assemblies, wherein the gripper mechanisms are separate from and do not move with the conveyor mechanisms.

Claim 10

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges, comprising: first and second storage libraries for storing said plurality of data cartridges, said first and second storage libraries including, respectively, first and second manipulators for receiving said data cartridges and transporting said data cartridges in a substantially vertical direction; and conveyor means, constrained for linear movement, for receiving data cartridges from said manipulators and for linearly transporting said data cartridges without rotation between said first and second storage libraries along a substantially horizontal axis, said horizontal axis being substantially perpendicular to said substantially vertical direction of said first and second manipulators.

Claim 11

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges, comprising: first and second storage libraries for storing said plurality of data cartridges, said first and second storage libraries including, respectively, first and second manipulators for receiving said data cartridges and transporting said data cartridges in a substantially vertical direction; and conveyor means, constrained for linear movement, for receiving data cartridges from said manipulators and for linearly transporting said data cartridges without rotation between said first and second storage libraries along a substantially horizontal axis, said horizontal axis being substantially perpendicular to said substantially vertical direction of said first and second manipulators.

Claim 13

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges comprising: plural storage means, each of said storage means including plural storage bins for storing said plurality of data cartridges; plural transport means, one associated with each storage means, for moving said data cartridges into and out of said plural storage bins; conveyor means, separate from the transport means, for moving data cartridges between said respective storage means, wherein said conveyor means is capable of receiving data cartridges from each of said transport means and is constrained to move in a linear direction; and at least one data transfer mechanism capable of receiving at least one of said plurality of data cartridges and capable of reading data from said data cartridges, wherein each of said at least one data transfer mechanism is capable of receiving data cartridges from a respective one of said transport means; wherein each of said transport means is capable of transporting data cartridges between a respective one of said storage bins, said conveyor means and a respective one of said at least one data transfer mechanism by moving substantially in a linear direction without rotating the transported data cartridges.

Claim 14

An apparatus for storing and handling a plurality of data cartridges comprising: plural storage means, each of said storage means including plural storage bins for storing said plurality of data cartridges; plural transport means, one associated with each storage means, for moving said data cartridges into and out of said plural storage bins; conveyor means, separate from the transport means, for moving data cartridges between said respective storage means, wherein said conveyor means is capable of receiving data cartridges from each of said transport means and is constrained to move in a linear direction; and at least one data transfer mechanism capable of receiving at least one of said plurality of data cartridges and capable of reading data from said data cartridges, wherein each of said at least one data transfer mechanism is capable of receiving data cartridges from a respective one of said transport means; wherein each of said transport means is capable of transporting data cartridges between a respective one of said storage bins, said conveyor means and a respective one of said at least one data transfer mechanism by moving substantially in a linear direction without rotating the transported data cartridges.