JPH0877524A - Tape cassette and tape device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To obtain the tape cassette and the tape device, capable of performing sure and effective cleaning only by setting the tape cassette in the tape device and preventing the tape device from flawing. CONSTITUTION: The tape cassette 2 is provided with a cassette memory 9 stored with 1st information for discriminating whether a wound tape 3 is an ordinary recording and reproducing tape or a cleaning tape a 2nd information for discriminating a grinding speed of the cleaning tape when the cleaning tape. The contents of the cassette memory 9 are read out by the tape device, and based on the 1st information, when the tape is the recording and reproducing tape, an ordinary tape operating mode is effected, and when the tape is the cleaning tape, the grinding speed of the cleaning tape is recognized from the 2nd information, and the most suitable tape traveling time and tape traveling speed are decided based on information stored in a system memory 13, and then the tape is traveled during this time and at this speed and stopped.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a tape cassette used for a VTR and a tape device such as a VTR.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a tape device such as a VTR is used for a long time, dust such as magnetic powder or lubricant peeled from the tape adheres to a tape running path of the tape device or a recording / reproducing head to run the tape. Quality is deteriorated, and the recording / reproducing output is reduced, so that the quality of a reproduced image or sound is deteriorated. Also,
When such dust increases, the running system and the recording / reproducing head may be damaged, and the damaged running system and the recording / reproducing head may damage the tape on which important information is recorded.

In order to avoid such problems, cleaning tape cassettes have been commercially available. In these conventional cleaning tape cassettes, a cleaning tape is wound around an ordinary recording / reproducing cassette shell. The user inserts the cleaning tape cassette into the tape device and runs the tape for a predetermined time to perform cleaning.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional configuration, there is a problem that the user is responsible for all cleaning. This is because when using a conventional cleaning tape cassette, the device cannot distinguish between a normal tape cassette and a cleaning tape cassette, so all special operations and precautions necessary for cleaning must be done by the user. Is.

The cleaning tape is coated with an abrasive in order to remove dust adhering to the running system and the recording / reproducing head and to repair scratches. Therefore, the cleaning effect is maximized when the tape is run for a predetermined running time according to its abrasiveness. Abrasiveness depends on the materials of both the tape and the running system and recording / reproducing head. If the user runs the cleaning tape more than necessary, the running system and the recording / reproducing head may be damaged or worn. Further, since the cleaning tape has dust and polishing debris attached to the tape once it has run, it may damage the running system and the recording / reproducing head if it is reused. Therefore, it is better not to rewind the tape.

As described above, when using the cleaning tape, the user must pay close attention and the probability of failure is high. Further, as far as head cleaning of a tape device having a rotary head is concerned, the conventional tape device has the following problems. FIG. 4 is a view showing the front surface of the head. 6 is a head, 7 is a gap, and 8 is a sliding portion with the tape. In many heads, as shown in FIG. 4, the core width CW is larger than the width GW of the gap 7. The sliding portion 8 is widened to fill the core width CW. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the trajectory of the rotary head on the tape. Reference numeral 3 is a tape, and 18 is a scanning locus of the head 6, that is, the center of a track. TP shown in the figure is the pitch of adjacent tracks.

In many tape devices, the gap width GW of the head 6 is made larger than the track pitch TP at the time of recording in order to perform guard bandless recording using the azimuth recording method. That is, the core width CW is much larger than the track pitch TP. This means that at least the adjacent scanning loci of the sliding portion 8 of the head 6 with the tape 3 shown in FIG. 5 overlap each other on the tape.

The cleaning of the head with the cleaning tape is intended to smooth the unevenness of the head surface by polishing the surface of the head in a small amount. At this time, the head material and dust scraped off and scraped off are often attached to the cleaning tape. If the sliding portion 8 of the head 6 scans the cleaning tape once again, there is a possibility that the head material or dust attached to the cleaning tape will instead damage the head 6 and damage the tape device.
In the conventional tape device, since the scanning locus of the head on the cleaning tape is the same as that on the normal recording / reproducing tape, the effect may not be expected even if the cleaning tape is used for the above reason.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art. A user can set the tape cassette in the tape device for reliable and effective cleaning, and a tape cassette that does not damage the tape device. An object is to provide a tape device.

[0010]

A tape cassette according to claim 1, which is a tape cassette in which a tape is wound,
An information storage means for storing tape identification information for identifying whether or not the tape is a cleaning tape is provided. The tape cassette according to claim 2 is the tape cassette according to claim 1.
In the described tape cassette, when the tape is a cleaning tape, the information storage means stores cleaning information for identifying the polishing rate of the cleaning tape.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a tape device having an information reading means for reading the tape identification information from the information storage means of the tape cassette according to the first aspect, and when the tape identification information detects that the tape is a cleaning tape. In addition, it is characterized in that the cleaning tape is run for a predetermined period of time and then stopped. A tape device according to a fourth aspect is provided with an information reading means for reading the tape identification information and the cleaning information from the information storage means of the tape cassette according to the second aspect, and when the tape identification information detects that the tape is a cleaning tape. In addition, the tape running time is determined based on the cleaning information, and the cleaning tape is run for the tape running time and stopped.

A tape device according to a fifth aspect is the tape device according to the third or fourth aspect, which has a rotary head,
The tape speed at which the pitch of the track on the tape of the rotary head becomes larger than the width of the tape sliding part of the rotary head in the direction perpendicular to the track when it is detected from the tape identification information that the tape is a cleaning tape. It is characterized in that the cleaning tape is made to run.

[0013]

By using the tape cassette and the tape device of the present invention, the tape device automatically executes the cleaning of the tape device when the cleaning tape is loaded, and automatically stops the tape. By using the tape cassette according to claim 1 in the tape device according to claim 3, when the tape identification information detects that the tape is a cleaning tape, the cleaning tape is run for a predetermined time. Stop.

By using the tape cassette according to claim 2 in the tape device according to claim 4, when it is detected from the tape identification information that the tape is a cleaning tape, the tape running time is determined based on the cleaning information. By deciding, and running the cleaning tape for the tape running time and stopping it, the cleaning tape is not run for more than the required time and the tape device is not damaged.

By using the tape cassette according to claim 1 or 2 in the tape device according to claim 5, when the tape is detected as the cleaning tape from the tape identification information, the cleaning tape is loaded for a time longer than necessary. The cleaning tape is run without running and at a tape speed such that the pitch of the track on the tape of the rotary head is larger than the width of the tape sliding portion of the rotary head in the direction perpendicular to the track on the tape. When running, the adjacent tracks of the sliding parts of the rotary head do not overlap, so the sliding parts of the rotary head are always abraded by the non-running parts of the cleaning tape to maximize the cleaning effect. Does not damage the tape device.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a tape cassette and a tape device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
1 is a tape running mechanism, 2 is a tape cassette, 3 is a tape, 4 is a tape guide post, 5 is a rotary drum on which two heads 6 allocated at 180 degrees are mounted, and 9 is built in the tape cassette 2. Cassette memory (information storage means) 10, a connector provided in the tape running mechanism 1 for reading the contents of the cassette memory 9, 11 an information reading circuit (information reading) for reading the contents of the cassette memory 9 connected by the connector 10. Means), 12 is a running mechanism control circuit for controlling the operation of the tape running mechanism 1, 13 is a system memory in which data for cleaning operation is stored, 14 is an operation input means for a user to operate the tape device, Reference numeral 15 is a display device provided in the tape device, and 16 is provided in the tape running mechanism 1. Cassette-in sensor for detecting whether the tape cassette 2 is loaded, 17 is a system controller for controlling determines the operation of the tape device.

When the tape cassette 2 is loaded in the tape device, the cassette memory 9 contained in the tape cassette 2 is electrically connected to the information reading circuit 11 via the connector 10. The cassette memory 9 stores the following two pieces of information (A) and (B). (A) First information: information for identifying whether the tape wound around the tape cassette 2 is a recording / playback tape or a cleaning tape (tape identification information) (B) second information: cleaning tape Information for identifying the polishing rate (cleaning information) Here, the polishing rate needs to be standardized, and as the most general definition, the polishing rate =
The standard tape device is a tape device in which the following (1) to (6) are set to a predetermined value, which is the head wear amount when the cleaning tape is run for a certain time in the standard tape device. (1) Tape running speed (2) Drum diameter of rotating drum (3) Number of drum rotations (4) Tape winding angle (5) Tape tension (6) Initial head protrusion amount The above (1) to (6) relate to the present invention. It is desirable that the value be close to the value used in the format of the tape cassette and tape device to be applied. Table 1 shows a measurement example of the polishing rate of the cleaning tape and the conditions of the standard tape device at that time.

[0018]

[Table 1]

The operation of the tape cassette 2 and the tape device thus constructed will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing a series of operations performed by the system controller 17. When the system controller 17 detects that the tape cassette 2 has been loaded in the tape running mechanism 1 by the cassette-in sensor 16 (S1), the information reading circuit 11 causes the cassette memory 9 to read the first data from the cassette memory 9.
Information is read (S2), and it is determined by the first information whether the tape 3 wound around the inserted tape cassette 2 is a cleaning tape (S3). If it is a normal recording / reproducing tape, the operation mode of the normal tape is entered (S4). If it's a cleaning tape,
The display device 15 displays that the tape is a cleaning tape (S5), and interrupts are prohibited so that an operation input other than cassette ejection cannot be accepted (S6).

Next, the second information is read from the cassette memory 9 (S7), the polishing speed of the cleaning tape is recognized, the tape running time Tc is determined based on the information stored in the system memory 13, and The tape running speed Vt is determined (S8). Table 2 shows an example of the correspondence relationship between the polishing speed and the traveling time stored in the system memory 13. The unit of the polishing rate in Table 2 is μ
The unit of m and traveling time is second.

[0021]

[Table 2]

If the polishing rate is too high (Table 2
For 3 or more), the tape running time is set to 0 (S9), the unusability is displayed on the display device 15 (S10), and then the tape cassette 2 is ejected (S18). The traveling speed Vt of the cleaning tape is set as follows. The relationship between the tape running speed Vt and the track pitch Tp on the tape is represented by (Equation 1).

[0023]

## EQU1 ## Tp = {Vt / (N × R)} × sin [tan
^-1 {π × D × sin θ / (π × D × cos θ−Vt /
R)}] where N is the number of heads attached to the rotating drum, R is the number of revolutions per second of the rotating drum, D is the diameter of the rotating drum, and θ is head scanning when the tape speed is zero. It is an angle (still angle) formed by the locus and the tape running direction. The system controller 17 sets the tape speed Vt calculated in (Equation 1) based on the core width CW stored in the system memory 13 and the like so as to satisfy (Equation 2).

[0024]

## EQU00002 ## Tp> CW By making the track pitch Tp larger than the core width CW shown in FIG. 4, the loci 19 of the sliding portion of the head do not overlap on the tape as shown in FIG. By doing so, the head surface material, dust, and the like, which are scraped off by the cleaning tape by polishing the head surface and attached to the cleaning tape, do not reattach to the head 6. Therefore, the cleaning effect is maximized.

After determining the running time Tc and the tape speed Vt of the cleaning tape in this way, the system controller 17 displays the cleaning process on the display device 15 (S11) and loads the tape 3 onto the tape running mechanism 1 ( S12), and travel at the traveling speed Vt (S1
3) After counting the time Tc (S14, S15), a command is issued to the running mechanism control circuit 12 to stop the tape and unload the tape (S16). When the series of cleaning operations is completed, the completion of cleaning is displayed on the display device 15 (S17).

As described above, according to this embodiment, the user simply inserts the cleaning cassette into the tape device, and the cleaning tape runs for a time most suitable for the tape device and automatically stops, which is necessary. As described above, the cleaning tape is not run and the tape device is not damaged. In addition, the tape speed of the cleaning tape is automatically set to a speed suitable for cleaning, and when the cleaning tape runs, adjacent tracks of the sliding parts of the rotary head do not overlap, so the sliding part of the rotary head is always cleaned. It is polished by the non-running part of the tape to maximize the cleaning effect, and
Does not damage the tape device.

Further, in the above embodiment, the tape cassette 2
The cassette memory 9 built in the tape stores two pieces of tape identification information (first information) and cleaning information (second information).
However, for the tape cassette 2 in which only the tape identification information is stored in the cassette memory 9, the system controller 17 stores the predetermined fixed information stored in the system memory 13. After the cleaning tape is made to travel for the time Tc as the tape travel time Tc, the cleaning tape is stopped. Therefore, also in this case, it is possible to prevent the user from accidentally running the tape for a long time and excessively wearing or damaging the head.

[0028]

According to the tape device of claim 3,
By using the described tape cassette, when it is detected that the tape is a cleaning tape by the tape identification information, the cleaning tape is run for a predetermined time and then stopped, so that the user does not care for a long time. You can run the tape and prevent the head from being excessively worn or damaged. That is, only by the user setting the tape cassette in the tape device, the cleaning tape can be reliably and effectively cleaned without running the cleaning tape for a long time and damaging the tape device.

By using the tape cassette according to claim 2 in the tape device according to claim 4, when the tape identification information detects that the tape is a cleaning tape, the tape running time is determined based on the cleaning information. By deciding and running the cleaning tape for the tape running time and stopping it, the user can perform reliable and effective cleaning simply by setting the tape cassette in the tape device and running the cleaning tape longer than the required time. Do not damage the tape device.

By using the tape cassette according to claim 1 or 2 for the tape device according to claim 5, when the user detects that the tape is a cleaning tape from the tape identification information, the user causes the tape device to enter the tape cassette. Cleaning can be performed reliably and effectively just by setting the tape, and the pitch of the track on the rotary head tape does not run on the tape of the rotary head tape sliding part without running the cleaning tape longer than necessary. Since the cleaning tape is run at a tape speed that is larger than the width in the direction perpendicular to the locus, the adjacent loci of the sliding parts of the rotary head do not overlap when the cleaning tape runs, so the sliding of the rotary head The part is always polished by the non-running part of the cleaning tape to maximize the cleaning effect. With can be exhibited in, there is no damage the tape device.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a tape cassette and a tape device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the tape device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a tape speed of the tape device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a head of a tape device.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a head scanning locus of a conventional tape device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Tape Travel Mechanism 2 Tape Cassette 3 Tape 4 Tape Guide Post 5 Rotating Drum 6 Head 7 Head Gap 8 Sliding Part 9 Cassette Memory (Information Storage Means) 10 Connector 11 Information Reading Circuit (Information Reading Means) 12 Running Mechanism Control Circuit 13 System memory 14 Operation input means 15 Display device 16 Cassette in sensor 17 System controller

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A tape cassette in which a tape is wound, wherein the tape cassette is provided with information storage means for storing tape identification information for identifying whether or not the tape is a cleaning tape. 2. The tape cassette according to claim 1, wherein, when the tape is a cleaning tape, cleaning information for identifying a polishing rate of the cleaning tape is stored in the information storage means. 3. An information reading means for reading tape identification information from the information storage means of the tape cassette according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning tape is detected when the tape identification information detects that the tape is a cleaning tape. A tape device characterized in that it is made to run for a predetermined time and then stopped. 4. An information reading means for reading tape identification information and cleaning information from the information storage means of the tape cassette according to claim 2, wherein the tape identification information detects that the tape is a cleaning tape. A tape device, wherein a tape running time is determined based on cleaning information, and the cleaning tape is run for the tape running time and stopped. 5. The tape device according to claim 3, further comprising a rotary head, wherein the tape identification information detects that the tape is a cleaning tape.
The cleaning tape is run at a tape speed such that the pitch of the track on the tape of the rotary head is larger than the width of the tape sliding portion of the rotary head in the direction perpendicular to the track on the tape. Tape device.