Demagnetizer and cleaning cartridge

Claim 2

A cartridge-like demagnetizer and cleaner unit for a transducer head of a magnetic tape playback or recording apparatus, said unit comprising a cartridge-like housing having a top wall, a bottom wall and side walls joined to said top and bottom walls, an endless cleaning tape mounted in said housing for engaging and wiping the transducer head and for travel along a predetermined path in said housing, metallic means carried by said tape for travel therewith along said path and for signaling a predetermined length of travel for said tape along said path, a pressure member in said housing for engaging said cleaning tape and establishing a driving couple with a capstan of said magnetic playback or recording apparatus to transport said tape, a rotatable multi-polar permanent magnet for producing a reversing flux field, a shiftable carrier in said housing for carrying said magnet away from said transducer head to provide a decreasing intensity for said reversing flux field to demagnetize said transducer head, a cam having a spiral cam surface thereon and journaled on said housing for rotation and having a circular surface about which said tape is partially wrapped to turn said cam through a plurality of revolutions with travel of said tape, a cam follower associated with said carrier and connected to said spiral cam surface of said rotatable cam to shift said carrier and the permanent magnet thereon during the revolutions of the cam to provide a decreasing intensity for the reversing flux field.

Claim 3

A cartridge-like demagnetizer and cleaner unit for transducer head of a magnetic tape playback or recording apparatus, said unit comprising a cartridge-like housing having a top wall, a bottom wall and side walls joined to said top and bottom walls, an Endless cleaning tape mounted in said housing for engaging and wiping the transducer head, a pressure roller rotatably mounted in said housing for engaging said cleaning tape and establishing a driving couple with a capstan of said magnetic playback or recording apparatus to transport said tape, a rotatable multi-polar permanent magnet for producing a reversing flux field, said cleaning tape having a portion thereof wrapped about said permanent magnet for rotating it as said tape is transported, a slideable carrier in said housing for carrying said magnet rearwardly away from said transducer head to provide a decreasing intensity for said reversing flux field to demagnetize said transducer head, guide means in said cartridge housing for guiding said carrier for rectilinear sliding movement, a rotatable cam having a rim about which said cleaning tape is wrapped to turn said cam with travel of said cleaning tape, a cam groove means having a substantially spiral configured portion on said rotating cam, a cam follower stylus on said carrier projecting into said cam groove means for shifting said carrier with turning of said cam to provide a decreasing intensity for the reversing flux field, and a manually operated means for sliding said carrier forwardly from the position said carrier was shifted to by said cam.

Claim 4

A cartridge-like demagnetizer and cleaner unit for transducer head of a magnetic tape playback or recording apparatus, said unit comprising a cartridge-like housing having a top wall, a bottom wall and side walls joined to said top and bottom walls, an Endless cleaning tape mounted in said housing for engaging and wiping the transducer head, a pressure roller rotatably mounted in said housing for engaging said cleaning tape and establishing a driving couple with a capstan of said magnetic playback or recording apparatus to transport said tape, a rotatable multi-polar permanent magnet for producing a reversing flux field, said cleaning tape having a portion thereof wrapped about said permanent magnet for rotating it as said tape is transported, a slideable carrier in said housing for carrying said magnet rearwardly away from said transducer head to provide a decreasing intensity for said reversing flux field to demagnetize said transducer head, guide means in said cartridge housing for guiding said carrier for rectilinear sliding movement, a rotatable cam having a rim about which said cleaning tape is wrapped to turn said cam with travel of said cleaning tape, a cam groove means having a substantially spiral configured portion on said rotating cam, a cam follower stylus on said carrier projecting into said cam groove means for shifting said carrier with turning of said cam to provide a decreasing intensity for the reversing flux field, and a manually operated means for sliding said carrier forwardly from the position said carrier was shifted to by said cam.

Claim 5

A cartridge-like demagnetizer and cleaner unit for a transducer head of a magnetic tape playback or recording apparatus, said unit comprising a cartridge-like housing having a top wall, a bottom wall and side walls joined to said top and bottom walls, an endless cleaning tape mounted in said housing for engaging and wiping the transducer head, means on said tape for signaling a predetermined length of travel for said tape, a pressure member in said housing for engaging said cleaning tape and establishing a driving couple with a capstan of said magnetic playback or recording apparatus to transport said tape, a rotatable multi-polar permanent magnet for producing a reversing flux field, a shiftable carrier in said housing for carrying said magnet away from said transducer head to provide a decreasing intensity for said reversing flux field to demagnetize said transducer head, a cam rotatable by said cleaning tape through a plurality of revolutions, a cam follower associated with said carrier and connected to said rotatable cam to shift said carrier and the permanent magnet thereon during the revolutions of the cam to provide a decreasing intensity for the reversing flux field, and an elongated cam groove being formed in said cam to provide an elongated path of travel for said cam follower, said cam follower comprising a stylus fixed at one end to said carrier with another end projecting into said cam groove, and said carrier comprising a slide constrained for rectilinear travel.

Claim 6

A cartridge-like demagnetizer and cleaner unit for a transducer head of a magnetic tape playback or recording apparatus, said unit comprising a cartridge-like housing having a top wall, a bottom wall and side walls joined to said top and bottom walls, an endless cleaning tape mounted in said housing for engaging and wiping the transducer head, means on said tape for signaling a predetermined length of travel for said tape, a pressure member in said housing for engaging said cleaning tape and establishing a driving couple with a capstan of said magnetic playback or recording apparatus to transport said tape, a rotatable multi-polar permanent magnet for producing a reversing flux field, a shiftable carrier in said housing for carrying said magnet away from said transducer head to provide a decreasing intensity for said reversing flux field to demagnetize said transducer head, a cam rotatable by said cleaning tape through a plurality of revolutions, a cam follower associated with said carrier and connected to said rotatable cam to shift said carrier and the permanent magnet thereon during the revolutions of the cam to provide a decreasing intensity for the reversing flux field, and an elongated cam groove being formed in said cam to provide an elongated path of travel for said cam follower, said cam follower comprising a stylus fixed at one end to said carrier with another end projecting into said cam groove, and said carrier comprising a slide constrained for rectilinear travel.

Claim 7

A unit in accordance with claim 3 in which said cam groove is substantially spiral in shape and in which said cam overlies said carrier with the free end of said cam follower projecting upwardly into said spiral groove.

Claim 8

A unit in accordance with claim 4 in which said cam is provided with a circular rim about which is wrapped said cleaning tape for rotating said cam.

Claim 9

A unit in accordance with claim 3 in which guide means on said cartridge housing constrains said slide for rectilinear travel.

Claim 10

A unit in accordance with claim 6 in which a manual push button is connected to said carrier and is accessible through an opening in a side wall of said housing for manual operation to push said carrier to carry said magnet to a position adjacent said transducer head, said push button being movable by said carrier to indicate the progress of a demagnetizing and cleaning operation.