US2782029A - Reeling system - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 19, 1957 J. M. uRl'ns 2,782,029

REELING SYSTEM Filed March 31, 1954 1 N VEN TOR.

(fax 015 4mm 1 TTORNE 1' United States Patent- REELING SYSTEM Joseph M. Uritis, Haddonfield, N. J., assignor to Radio Corporation of America, a corporation of Delaware Application March 31, 1954, Serial No. 420,055

4 Claims. (Cl. 2712.6)

The present invention relates to reeling systems, and more particularly to self-centering guide means for preventing a reelable web from departing from a pair of drive rollers when the two edges of the web are unequal in length.

It has been observed that relatively thin web materials, such as magnetic recording tapes, are occasionally distorted, either in manufacture or through use, so that one edge of the tape is longer than the other. When such a distortion is present, the tape or web tends to curve in the major plane thereof. When such a distorted tape is pulled along a substantially straight path by a conventional driving system, one side of the tape carries the load and is tightly drawn while the other side of the tape is loose. Under such conditions, the tape has a tendency to climb towards the tight side and eventually run 01? the driving rollers. When fixed guide means are used in an effort to prevent the tape from being guided out of its normal path, the fixed guide means normally bear on one or the other of the edges of the tape. Since these tapes are very thin and fragile, the fixed guide means usually damage the tight edge.

It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide an improved guide means which obviates the foregoing difiiculties.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved guide means as set forth wherein the guide means is floatingly mounted.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved reeling system including self-centering guide means which prevent distorted webs from running ofi of the driving means.

In accomplishing these and other objects, there has been provided in accordance with the present invention a reeling system wherein a tape guide member is positioned along the path of the tape in advance of the driving rollers and pivotally mounted about an axis substantially above the plane of the tape. Inequalities in the tension in the two sides of the tape cause the guide member to pivot about its pivot axis in a direction to compensate for the distortion in the tape and thereby maintain the feed relationship of the tape to the drive means relatively constant.

A better understanding of this invention may be had from the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing in which the single figure is a schematic representation of a portion of a reeling system embodying the present invention.

Referring now to the drawing in more detail, there is shown a ribbon-like web member 2. The web member may be a magnetic recording tape which comprises, for example, a plastic base member having a coating of magnetizable material. The web 2 is driven in the direction indicated by the arrows 4 by a driving roller 6 and a pressure roller 8. The driving roller 6 is, of course, driven by a suitable driving means not shown. The pressure roller 8 is positioned parallel to and in contact with the driving roller 6 whereby the web memher 2 may be fed between the two rollers and driven thereby.

A guide member 10 is positioned along the path of the web member in advance of the driving roller. The guide member includes a web engaging or supporting arm 12 and a mounting arm 14. The mounting arm 14 is pivotally carried by a pivot member 16. The pivot member 16 is, of course, suitably mounted on supporting apparatus not shown. The axis of the pivot is substantially parallel to, but somewhat removed from, the direction of feed of the web member 2, and is positioned to be centered above the web. The guide member 10 is free to rotate about the pivot member 16 in a direction substantially transverse to the direction of advance of the web member 2.

In operation, the web member is fed into the web supporting arm 12 of the guide member 10 and between the drive roller 6 and the pressureroller 8. The guide member is so positioned along the path of the web member that the web member is in close engagement with the web supporting arm 12. This may be accomplished in the manner illustrated by allowing the guide member to cause a bend in the web as the web passes thereover. The bend, of course, is in the direction of the thickness dimension of the web. If, as aforesaid, the web has become deformed such that one edge is longer than the other, the engagement between the web and the guide means will not be uniform over the width of the web. Such lack of uniformity in the pressure of the engagement causes the guide means to rotate about its pivot member 16 in a direction to reestablish a uniformity of contact pressure. Such pivotal motion is, of course, accompanied by a translational motion of the web supporting arm of the guide means. The direction of this translational motion is such as to compensate for the tendency'of the web member to ride out from between the driving roller and the pressure roller. It has been observed that, when the compensation is not applied as by the instant device, the web member. exhibits a tend ency to climb towards the tight side. Thus, the deviation in the path caused by the pivoting of the guide member is in the direction towards the loose side of the web. This deviation, it has been found, is of a magnitude and direction to compensate for the tendency of the web to ride out from between the rollers. The result is that, even though the web is badly deformed, it will remain in uniform driving relation with the driving means.

What is claimed is:

1. In a reeling system for a ribbon-like web member, a driving roller, a pressure roller, said rollers being positioned to receive a web member therebetween in web driving relation, and a web guide member positioned to guide said web member into alignment with said rollers, said guide member including a web supporting arm, a mounting arm and means pivotally supporting said guide means for pivotal motion about an axis and in a direction transverse of the web member, said supporting arm and said axis lying on opposite sides of said web member, said guide member being pivotally movable under the influence of inequalities in the tension in the edges of the web member.

2. In a reeling system for reeling a ribbon-like web, driving means for driving the web, a guide member for guiding said web into driving relation with said driving means, and a pivotal mounting means for said guiding means, said guide means including a web supporting arm and a mounting portion, said mounting portion being pivotally carried by said mounting means, said supverse of the direction of advance of said vveb under the influence of inequalities in tension in the edges of said web.

3. A self-aligning guide means for reelable ribbonlike web member, said guide means comprising a Web supporting arm, a mounting arm, and pivot means, said mounting arm being pivotally mounted on said. pivot means; said web supporting arm being rigidly carried by said mounting arm in a position depending from said pivot means, said web supporting arm being positioned to extend across and engage the width of the Web member, said guide means being responsive to inequalities in relative tension in the edges of the web through rotational movement about said pivot means to effect a compensation for distortions in said Web causing said inequalities.

4. A self-aligning guide means for magnetic tape records, said guide means comprising a. tape supporting arm, a mounting arm, and pivot means, said mounting arm being pivotally mounted on said pivot means, said Web supporting arm being rigidly carried by said mounting arm in a position depending from said pivot means with said pivot means being substantially centered above a tape record when supported by said support arm, said tape supporting arm being positioned to extend across and engage the Width of the tape record, said guide means being responsiveto inequalities in relative tension in the edges of the tape through rotational movement about said pivot means to effect a compensation for dis tortions in said tape causing said inequalities.

Ramse -Seine in me are or this "patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 163,207 Kellberg May i], 1875

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