Recording and reproducing system having redundant recording and selective reproduction

Claim 1

A RECORDING AND REPRODUCING SYSTEM FOR RECORDING AN APPROXIMATELY PERIODICAL SIGNAL IN A RECORDING MEDIUM FOR FUTURE REPRODUCTION, COMPRISING INPUT TERMINAL MEANS TO WHICH SAID PERIODICAL SIGNAL IS SUPPLIED DURING THE RECORDING OPERATION, OUTPUT TERMINAL MEANS FROM WHICH THE RECORDED SIGNAL IS TAKEN DURING THE REPRODUCING OPERATION RECORDING AND REPRODUCING TRANSDUCER MEANS, FIRST COUPLING MEANS FOR ELECTRICALLY COUPLING SAID TRANSDUCER MEANS TO SAID INPUT TERMINAL MEANS, SECOND COUPLING MEANS FOR ELECTRICALLY COUPLING SAID TRANSDUCER MEANS TO SAID OUTPUT TERMINAL MEANS, SCANNING MEANS FOR CAUSING SAID TRANSDUCER MEANS TO REPEATEDLY SCAN SAID RECORDING MEDIUM IN A PREDETERMINED DIRECTION, TRANSPORTING MEANS FOR MOVING SAID RECORDING MEDIUM RELATIVE TO SAID TRANSDUCER MEANS IN A DIRECTION TO INTERSECT A LINE ALONG SAID PREDETERMINED DIRECTION RECORDING BOUNDARIES ON SAID RECORDING MEDIUM, SAID SCANNING MEANS AND SAID TRANSPORTING MEANS COOPERATING TO DEFINE ON SAID RECORDING MEDIUM A RECORDED PATTERN COMPRISING SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL PATHS HAVING THEIR ENDS SUBSTANTIALLY AT SAID BOUNDARIES, EACH OF SAID PARALLEL PATHS BEING ARRANGED SO AS TO CONTAIN A RECORDED LENGTH CORRESPONDING TO AT LEAST ONE OF THE APPROXIMATE PERIODS OF SAID PERIODICAL SIGNAL AND TO CONTAIN A REDUNDANT PORTION CORRESPONDING TO THE PREDICTED MAXIMUM DEVIATION OF AT LEAST ONE OF THE FREQUENCY AND PHASE OF THE REPEATING SCAN OF SAID SCANNING MEANS FROM THE CORRESPONDING FREQUENCY AND PHASE OF SAID PERIODICAL SIGAL, AND CONTROL MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID RECORDED SIGNALS AT SAID BOUNDARIES FOR PRODUCING CONTROL SIGNALS TO BE SUPPLIED TO SAID COUPLING MEANS TO SELECTIVELY ENERGIZE AT LEAST ONE OF SAID FIRST AND SAID SECOND COUPLING MEANS FOR AT LEAST ONE OF THE APPROXIMATE PERIODS OF SAID PERIODICAL SIGNAL WHILE EACH OF SAID PARALLEL PATH IS SCANNED BY SAID TRANSDUCER MEANS.