Tape Head Cylindrical Support Surface Friction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tape heads face challenges in maintaining contact with tape while minimizing friction, leading to wear and requiring additional components or complex assembly processes to manage wrap angle variations, which increases size and complexity.
Innovation Solution
A read/write head design featuring a cylindrical support surface with partial slots limited to an intermediate region, eliminating the need for inactive outriggers and allowing for flexible wrap angle tolerance, reducing friction and assembly complexity by integrating hybrid modules that function as both active and outrigger components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If transverse slots are introduced across the entire width of the tape head, then air is vented to maintain tape contact, but friction increases across the entire width leading to wear
Solution Approach 1:
The support surface is divided into an intermediate region with slots for air venting and outboard regions without slots for reduced friction. This segmentation allows different regions to serve different functions: maintaining contact where needed while minimizing friction where possible.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the support surface have different properties: the intermediate region has slots for air venting to maintain contact, while the outboard regions have continuous surfaces to minimize friction. This local differentiation optimizes both contact maintenance and friction reduction in their respective zones.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If flat support surfaces with reduced lengths are used, then active contact area is reduced to minimize friction, but wrap angle control becomes more precise requiring additional components
Solution Approach 1:
The active head module and outrigger functions are merged into a single integrated contour. The outboard regions of the support surface serve dual purposes: they are part of the active head structure and simultaneously function as outriggers that tolerate wrap angle variations without requiring separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The outboard regions of the support surface perform multiple functions: they provide structural support as part of the active head, act as air vents to maintain contact, and serve as outriggers that accommodate wrap angle variations. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate outrigger components.
3Adaptability or versatility
If outriggers are added to accommodate wrap angle variations, then wrap angle tolerance is improved, but device size and assembly complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The outrigger function is merged with the active head structure. The outboard regions of the support surface serve as both active head components and outriggers, eliminating the need for separate outrigger modules and their associated assembly processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The outboard regions perform multiple functions including structural support, air venting, and wrap angle accommodation. This multi-functionality reduces the overall device complexity by eliminating dedicated outrigger components while maintaining adaptability to wrap angle variations.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design reduces friction, simplifies manufacturing, and allows for easier integration into tape drives, while maintaining performance and flexibility in handling wrap angle variations, resulting in a more cost-effective and compact tape drive system.
Implementation Method 1
a cylindrical support surface with partial slots limited to an intermediate region
Implementation Method 2
air is introduced between the tape and the tape head, thereby disrupting contact between the tape and the tape head
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~7
Figure 8~11
AI summary
A read/write head is provided with a body having a body length and a support surface to support data storage media as the data storage media is conveyed longitudinally across the support surface. The support surface of the body is curved about an axis in a widthwise direction of the elongate body. The support surface of the body has a reduced longitudinal length relative to the body length only in an intermediate region. At least one read/write device is provided on the intermediate region of the support surface of the body to read and/or write data on the data storage media as the data storage media is conveyed across the support surface. A tape drive system is provided with the read/write head, the at least one read/write device, and a motor to drive the data storage tape.