Kit for servicing tape cartridge playback unit
Contents
1. 17 retain the car tridge casing in place in a well known manner and the insertion of the cartridge case 10 in slot 11a activates the unit by depression of a microswitch not shown in a conventional fashion With the unit thus actuated flywheel 12 will drive capstan 13 causing it to rotate At this point the user of the kit may observe the rotating capstan 13 through the opening in the front wall 10f of hollow cartridge case 10 and may similarly observe sensing poles 15 and 15a and playback head 14 A deci sion will then be made as to whether these various parts need cleaning If it is observed that the capstan has broken Mylar tape or the like wrapped about its outer surface the cutter head 60 is selected and may be secured either to shaft 39 of tool holder 41 or shaft 27 of tool holder 21 via adapter 42 in the manner described more fully here inabove The selected tool holder is then inserted through the opening in the front wall 10f along parallel trackways 18a and 18b which are directly aligned with capstan 13 as shown in FIG 14 Base 61 is so dimen sioned that it will securely fit between trackways 18a and 185 to unerringly guide the edges 65 and 66 of blades 63 and 64 into contact with the outer surface of capstan 33 The blades 63 and 64 will remove any cut tings which have adhered to the outer surface of cap stan 33 and such cuttings will be attracted to and held by magnet 67 to permit easy removal thereof from the un2. a skilled maintanance person and was extremely time consuming Certain solutions to the cleaning problem have been proposed For example one of the more common com mercially available cleaning devices involves a car tridge having a cleaning tape coated with an abrasive material substituted for the ordinary magnetic tape 10 25 30 35 40 45 50 35 60 65 2 This type of device has proven to be unsatisfactory in many respects among which are the undue wear which it causes on the playback head the limited area of the drive capstan which it is able to clean the wear on the drive capstan and the build up of foreign material which it causes on either side of the cleaning tape Other cleaning devices of various sorts have also been proposed but none of these has been entirely successful I am aware of the following patents which are not necessarily prior art with respect to my invention in this general area U S Pat Nos 3 407 431 Melnick 1968 3 439 922 Howard 1969 3 594 850 Wellington 1971 3 647 990 Eul 1972 3 701 178 Kuntz 1972 3 761 994 Becht 1973 3 881 195 Ono 1975 3 955 214 Post 1976 3 997 919 Thompson 1976 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention there is provided a kit for servicing the interior working parts of a cartridge type tape playback unit which includes a hollow cartridge designed to be inserted in the normal tape cartridge receiving sl
3. head may be checked To this end with the hollow cartridge case 10 still in place in the playback unit 1 the manual program changer button not shown of the unit may be actuated and the playback head 14 may be visually observed to ensure that it prop erly changes from one track to another in response to the actuation of the program changer button For exam ple in an 8 track tape player unit the playback head 14 would shift between four different heights or program positions After it has been observed that the playback head 14 is properly shifting in response to the actuation of the manual program changer button not shown it is desir able to test the operation of the sensing poles 15 and 15a which are normally shunted by a small metal strip at the end of a tape being played Shorting of sensing poles 15 and 15a conventionally actuates a solenoid to shift the playback head 14 to the next adjacent track To test the foregoing for proper operation the program changing probe 50 of FIG 11 is selected and is secured to the desired mounting tool The probe 50 is inserted through the hollow cartridge case 10 so as to momentarily touch the poles 15 and 15a and thereby electrically short same together as seen in FIG 12 which should then result in a shifting of the playback head 14 This shunting opera tion may be repeated as often as necessary to ensure proper operation and is helpful in detecting and isolat ing any malfunctions without r
4. includes an upper wall 10a a bottom wall 10 a rear wall 10c a front wall 10f and side walls 10d and 10e Apertures 30a and 30b are provided in side walls 10d and 10e respectively for a purpose which will appear more fully hereinbelow The conventional car tridge case 10 is modified by providing parallel track ways 18a and 18b on the interior sides of side walls 10d and 10e respectively for a purpose which will be ex plained more fully hereinbelow Provided with the kit of the present invention is a tool holder 21 having a handle portion 26 and a shaft 27 which may have for example a bayonet slot 28 in its end for lockingly receiving a plurality of interchange able service heads such as cleaning heads 22 23 and 24 Cleaning head 22 has a concave abrasive surface for mating with a drive capstan cleaning head 23 has a concave felt surface for cleaning the drive capstan while cleaning head 24 takes the form of a cotton swab or the like In the illustrated embodiment cleaning heads 22 23 and 24 are respectively provided with shafts 25a 25b and 25c having projections 29a 296 and 29c thereon for lockingly engaging bayonet slot 28 of tool holder 21 Turning to FIGS 5 6 7 8 and 9 the above described features of the tool holder and interchangeable cleaning heads shown in FIG 1 may be more readily observed As seen in FIG 5 the concave abrasive surface 22 which is used for honing the capstan 13 is designed to mate clos
5. magnet means posi tioned on said service head for attracting said pieces of magnetic tape removed by said cutter means 26 A kit for servicing the components of a cartridge playback unit having a rotating drive capstan and an opening for receiving a cartridge enclosed tape com prising a hollow cartridge case having a substantially open front end for providing unobstructed viewing of said components when said cartridge case is in serted in said opening separate non affixed tool holder means for mounting cutter means for removing foreign matter from said rotating capstan and access means in the rear end of said cartridge case for permitting said tool holder means to pass through said cartridge case from said open front end and selectively engage said rotating capstan 27 A kit as set forth in claim 26 wherein said cutter means comprises blade means having a cutting edge extending parallel with the rotational axis of said cap stan and in contact with the outer surface thereof for removing pieces of magnetic tape therefrom during rotation thereof 28 A kit as set forth in claim 27 wherein said blade means comprise a pair of substantially planar parallel blades whose respective cutting edges are parallel with said axis and further comprising magnet means posi tioned on said tool holder means for attracting said pieces of magnetic tape removed by said cutter means 29 A kit for servicing the components of a cartridge tape pla
6. service heads used for cleaning the drive capstan FIG 6 is a sectional view taken along line 6 6 of FIG 5 looking in the direction of the arrows FIG 7 is a plan view of one of the interchangeable service heads for cleaning the drive capstan FIG 8 is a plan view of another interchangeable service head for cleaning the drive capstan FIG 9 is a partial perspective view of one manner in which the interchangeable heads may engage with the tool holder FIG 10 illustrates an auxiliary feature of the present invention whereby the tension on the cartridge may be measured FIG 11 is a perspective view of yet another service head utilized for checking the proper operation of the sensing poles FIG 12 is a partial side sectional view illustrating the manner in which the service head of FIG 11 may be positioned to test the operation of the sensing poles FIG 13 is a partial sectional view of the components illustrated in FIG 12 and taken along line 13 13 of FIG 12 looking in the direction of the arrows FIG 14 is a side partial sectional view illustrating yet another alternative embodiment of a service head uti lized to clean the drive capstan of the playback unit FIG 15 is an enlarged partially sectional view of the service head of FIG 14 and taken along line 15 15 thereof looking in the direction of the arrows 25 40 45 50 55 60 65 4 FIG 16 is an enlarged side elevation of the cutting service h
7. understood that while the invention has been described hereinabove by way of an illustrative embodiment adapted to an 8 track cartridge the inven tion is not so limited Of course the present invention may be adapted for use with any magnetic tape car tridge configuration including cassettes and 4 track systems currently available commercially While the present invention has set forth six specific servicing tools it will be apparent that other servicing tools including cleaning tools repair tools or the like are within the contemplation of the present invention While a particular embodiment of the present inven tion has been shown and described it will be appreci ated by those skilled in the art that changes and modifi cations may be made therein without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention which is de fined in the claims appended hereinbelow I claim as my invention 1 A kit adapted to be used with a cartridge tape playback unit having a plurality of components which may need servicing and including an opening for receiv ing a cartridge enclosed tape which comprises a hollow cartridge case having a substantially open front end for providing unobstructed viewing of said components when said cartridge case is in serted in said opening separate non affixed tool holder means for mounting at least one service head for servicing at least one of said components and access means in the rear end of s
8. unit when it is inserted in the unit and provide the user of the kit with an unobstructed view of the playback head the capstan and the sensing poles as well as other similarly disposed interior work ing parts over which the tape would normally travel A tool holder having a plurality of interchangeable ser vice heads is provided Two of the heads one of abra sive material and the other of felt or the like are formed with a concave cleaning surface and are dimensioned so as to be received between the guides in the side walls of the cartridge case Another cleaning head includes cut ter blades and a magnet and is also sized so as to be received within the guides The guides are aligned with the capstan so as to direct these heads into intimate contact with the capstan surface Another service head is formed as a swab of cotton like material and is de signed for cleaning the sensing poles and playback head A still further service head is formed as a transparent plate having indicia positioned thereon for checking the alignment of the playback head while yet another ser vice head is formed as a metal probe for shunting the sensing probes to check proper operation thereof 39 Claims 21 Drawing Figures U S Patent Jun 19 1979 Sheet 1 of 4 4 158 871 U S Patent Jun 19 1979 Sheet 2 of 4 4 158 871 U S Patent Jun 19 1979 Sheet 3 of 4 4 158 871 o 38 FIG L1 0 FIGS ZO U S Patent Jun 19 1979 S
9. United States Patent 15 Leaming 54 KIT FOR SERVICING TAPE CARTRIDGE PLAYBACK UNIT 76 Inventor Raymond C Leaming 721 S Washington Liberal Kans 67901 Notice The portion of the term of this patent subsequent to Dec 27 1994 has been disclaimed 21 Appl No 862 919 22 Filed Dec 21 1977 Related U S Application Data 63 Continuation in part of Ser No 609 009 Aug 29 1975 Pat No 4 065 801 51 Int Cl we eccseeeeees G11B 5 41 A47L 25 00 52 WS CM ccsssccsssescstsssestsccvssvescsssec sns 360 137 15 32 360 132 58 Field of Search 360 137 132 128 93 15 246 257 100 145 159 R 23 56 References Cited U S PATENT DOCUMENTS B 449 892 3 1976 Thompson cccscececeeee 360 132 3 407 431 10 1968 Melnik rasei 15 32 3 761 994 10 1973 Becht ou eesecssscecsseeseneecees 360 128 3 881 195 4 1975 Ono 360 128 3 955 214 5 1976 Post etal savjassiensbiccces 360 137 OTHER PUBLICATIONS Admiral Tape Player 846 Chassis Service Manual 5 74 p 5 11 4 158 871 45 Jun 19 1979 Primary Examiner Jay P Lucas Attorney Agent or Firm Berman Aisenberg amp Platt 57 ABSTRACT A kit for servicing the interior working parts of a car tridge type tape playback unit comprising a completely hollow cartridge case having parallel track guide means disposed in its two sides The hollow cartridge case is designed to actuate the
10. aid cartridge case for permitting said tool holder means to pass through 4 158 871 9 said cartridge case from said open front end and selectively service said at least one of said compo nents 2 A kit as set forth in claim 1 wherein said at least one of said components comprises a rotating drive cap stan and said at least one service head comprises cutter means for removing foreign matter from said rotating drive capstan 3 A kit as set forth in claim 2 wherein said cutter means comprises blade means having a cutting edge extending parallel with the rotational axis of said cap stan and adapted to be placed in contact with the outer surface thereof for removing pieces of magnetic tape therefrom during rotation thereof 4 A kit as set forth in claim 3 wherein said blade means comprise a pair of substantially planar parallel blades whose respective cutting edges are parallel with said axis and further comprising magnet means posi tioned on said service head for attracting said pieces of magnetic tape removed by said cutter means 5 A kit as set forth in claim 1 wherein said at least one of said components comprises a pair of sensing poles and said at least one service head comprises probe means for shunting said pair of sensing poles together 6 A kit as set forth in claim 5 wherein another of said components comprises magnetic playback head means shiftable through a plurality of positions so as to enable playback of a
11. artridge case 10 As an alternate embodiment to the bayonet slot mounting illustrated in FIG 9 the base support 61 may include a tapped bore 62 for receiving a threaded end 40 of a shaft 39 having a handle 41 con nected to the distal end thereof As illustrated in FIGS 20 and 21 an adapter 42 may be provided so as to permit the cutter head 60 to be mounted onto the tool holder 21 is so desired Adapter 42 includes a threaded shaft 43 extending from one end thereof and adapted to threadingly receive the tapped bore 62 of base support 61 Extending from the other end of adapter 42 is a projection 44 for fitting within the bayonet slot 28 of the shaft 27 of tool holder 21 of FIG 1 In this manner it may be appreciated that the several different service head designs may be interchanged with the several different tool holder means described and set forth although it is clear that the invention is not so limited and other constructions will suggest themselves to a person of ordinary skill in the art Referring now to FIG 11 a program changing probe is indicated generally by reference numeral 50 and is adapted to shunt or short out the sensing poles 15 and 15a to permit testing of the proper operation thereof Probe 50 includes a support base 38 having a tapped bore in one end thereof for receiving the threaded end 40 of shaft 39 of the tool holder On the other end of base 38 is mounted a metal tip 36 which preferably includes a raised centra
12. ead illustrated in FIG 14 in somewhat greater detail FIG 17 is a side sectional view illustrating a pre ferred embodiment of a service head utilized for check ing the alignment of the playback head FIG 18 is an enlarged partial sectional view of the alignment service head of FIG 17 and taken along line 18 18 thereof looking in the direction of the arrows FIG 19 is a cross sectional view of the alignment tool illustrated in FIG 18 and taken along line 19 19 thereof looking in the direction of the arrows FIG 20 is an exploded partial side partial sectional view of an adapter which may be utilized in conjunction with the present invention and FIG 21 is a sectional view of the adapter illustrated in FIG 20 and taken along line 21 21 thereof looking in the direction of the arrows DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawings and in particular to FIG 1 there is shown a portion of a conventional 8 track playback unit 11 having an opening 11 therein for normally receiving an 8 track cartridge Certain of the elements of the kit of the present invention for ser vicing the components of the playback unit are gener ally designated by the reference numeral 20 The elements 20 of the kit include a hollow cartridge 10 formed of plastic or the like and which may be conveniently made by removing the inner parts of a conventional 8 track cartridge tape The hollow car tridge case 10
13. ein said service head means further includes another service head not used for cleaning said components 20 A kit as set forth in claim 19 wherein said compo nents include a pair of sensing poles and said another service head comprises probe means for shunting said pair of sensing poles together 21 A kit as set forth in claim 20 wherein said pair of sensing poles comprise a pair of spaced parallel termi nals separated by insulation and wherein said probe means comprises a metallic tip for electrically connect ing said pair of terminals together 22 A kit as set forth in claim 20 wherein said service head means further includes a cleaning service head for cleaning said at least one of said components 23 A kit as set forth in claim 22 wherein said at least one of said components comprises a rotating drive cap stan and said cleaning service head comprises cutter means for removing foreign matter from said rotating capstan 24 A kit as set forth in claim 23 wherein said cutter means comprises blade means having a cutting edge 4 158 871 it extending parallel with the rotational axis of said cap stan and in contact with the outer surface thereof for removing pieces of magnetic tape therefrom during rotation thereof 25 A kit as set forth in claim 24 wherein said blade means comprise a pair of substantially planar parallel blades whose respective cutting edges are parallel with said axis and further comprising
14. ely with the surface of the capstan and may be conveniently formed by providing a plastic base with a thin strip of abrasive material such as 500 grit emery cloth This construction may be seen in the cross sec tional view of FIG 6 FIG 7 illustrates the abrasive surface of cleaning head 22 while FIG 8 illustrates the felt or similar material which may be applied to a plastic base or the like comprising the cleaning head 23 As 4 158 871 shown in FIG 9 in general form any one of the projec _ tions 29 is designed to mate with bayonet slot 28 by _ 5 sliding movement thereinto and twisting the shaft 25 in a well known manner Referring now to FIGS 14 15 and 16 an additional capstan cleaning head is illustrated and is indicated generally by reference numeral 60 Cleaning head 60 comprises a cutter probe which includes a pair of sub stantially flat parallel blades 63 and 64 which are de signed to remove any broken magnetic tape which may become adhered to the outer surface of the capstan 33 The blades 63 and 64 include a pair of forwardly dis posed cutting edges 65 and 66 which extend in a direc tion parallel to the rotational axis of capstan 33 The blades 63 and 64 are mounted in a base support 61 and preferably have disposed therebetween a magnet 67 for picking up any magnetic tape shavings removed from the capstan 33 Base 61 is sized as are heads 22 and 23 so as to be guidingly received within trackways 18a and 18b of c
15. equiring dismantling of the playback unit The service kit of the present invention also permits the alignment of the playback head 14 to be checked without requiring dismantling of the unit To this end the additional service head 70 which comprises an alignment gauge is selected and is mounted to the de sired tool holder As illustrated in FIGS 17 and 19 the base 75 of the alignment gauge 70 is guided and held in position by trackways 18a and 18b to maintain one end of the transparent plate 76 in proper position while the other end thereof is maintained in proper position by placement of tab 81 between the bifurcated tips 73 and 74 of tape guide 72 It is clearly quite important that indicia 77 78 79 and 80 be properly positioned in front of playback head 14 to allow an accurate reading to be made and provision of the double ended support means for the transparent plate 76 ensures same 45 55 60 65 8 If any misalignment of playback head 14 is observed such that for example magnetic pickups 81 and 82 are not parallel with indicia 78 and 80 respectively the decision may then be made to remove the chassis of the playback unit to properly align the playback head 14 The alignment gauge 70 of the present invention may be used after the chassis is removed to make the necessary adjustments to correct both playback head azimuth and height for proper tracking The latter adjustments may have to be performed by a skilled tec
16. erethrough The transparent plate 76 has preformed thereon a plurality of indicia 77 78 79 and 80 for checking the alignment of the pickups 81 and 82 and hence that of magnetic head 14 As an alternative to the rectangular configuration of indicia 77 78 79 and 80 such indicia may be provided as a plurality of horizontally or vertically disposed lines or the like At the free end of plate 76 is formed a support tab 81 which is sized to fit between the bifurcated tips 73 and 74 of the tape guide 72 to provide additional support and proper alignment for the gauge 70 As stated herein above the other end of plate 76 is supported in proper alignment by means of the base 75 fitting within guide ways 18a and 18b In the event that it becomes neces sary for the serviceman to release handle 41 of the head holding tool an additional shaft support member 82 may be provided for guiding along shaft 39 Tool 82 serves the function of stabilizing the tool holder and thereby increasing the accuracy of the visual alignment test Referring now to FIGS 2 3 4 12 13 14 and 17 the operation of the preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described Hollow tape cartridge case 10 is inserted in slot 11a so that a cut out portion 33 in rear wall 10c of cartridge casing 10 surrounds capstan 13 a cut out portion 34 surrounds playback head 14 and a cut out portion 35 surrounds sensing poles 15 and 15a Lock spring 16 and pressure roller
17. f the present invention permits the user of the kit to visually observe any signs of wear or malfunction of the head drive capstan or other components Additionally the drive capstan may be observed throughout its entire circumferential extent as it rotates thus permitting the user of the kit to thor oughly clean this component which would not be the case if the capstan were only observed at rest in a single position with a portion of its surface hidden from view Thus it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a kit for servicing tape player components It is a further object of the present invention to pro vide a hollow cartridge for insertion in the tape player to create an unobstructed view of the working compo nents of the player A still further object of the present invention is to provide a kit for cleaning testing aligning and other general servicing of tape player components which includes a tool holder having a series of interchangeable 4 158 871 3 service heads each adapted to perform a separate and distinct service function Yet another object of the present invention is to pro vide a hollow cartridge insertable in a tape player and having guide means aligned with the drive capstan to permit accurate positioning of a cleaning tool to clean the capstan as well as of an alignment tool for checking playback head alignment An additional object of the present invention is to provide a tape player se
18. fter the devices have been in use over an extended period of time Small bits and pieces of the mfgnetic tape itself can also adhere to these components Such accumulations on the playback head give rise to noise and distortion as the tape is played back Further the deposits on the drive capstan often result in slippage of the tape causing wow and flutter as the tape is being played back since the play back speed will not be constant In addition to the clear need for servicing these com ponents by cleaning same certain tests or checks should also be performed at regular intervals to ensure that the playback unit is functioning properly For example it is very important that the tape playback head be main tained in proper alignment both with respect to azi muth angle and height since a misaligned head can cause crosstalk between adjacent tracks on the tape Proper operation of the sensing poles is also important since they are utilized to automatically shift the play back head from one tape track to another when they are shorted by a small metal strip at the end of the tape In the past servicing of the tape playback head the drive capstan and the sensing poles as well as the other related components of the playback unit required the laborious disassembly of the entire unit in order to gain access to these various parts Such a procedure was obviously unsatisfactory from an economic standpoint since it required the services of
19. heet 4 of 4 4 158 871 4 158 871 1 KIT FOR SERVICING TAPE CARTRIDGE PLAYBACK UNIT CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation in part of U S Ap plication Ser No 609 009 filed Aug 29 1975 now U S Pat No 4 065 801 issued Dec 27 1977 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1 Field of The Invention The present invention relates to servicing various components of a magnetic tape player of the cartridge type and more particularly relates to a kit for effecting cleaning testing and alignment of the player compo nents 2 Description of The Prior Art Recently the use of cartridge type prerecorded tapes and particularly those of the 8 track variety has become extremely widespread Along with the conve nience and pleasure which these cartridges provide have come problems which are peculiar to the construc tion of the playback units The playback units of the cartridge type include playback heads and related structures which are nor mally mounted in an enclosed location since the car tridges are positioned for playing by being inserted in a slot like aperture It has been found that the playback head the drive capstan the sensing poles utilized for switching tracks in an 8 track tape and other related components of the playback unit which contact the moving tape or which are immediately adjacent to the moving tape tend to accumulate deposits of Mylar or other tape coating oxides a
20. hnician If at any point during the above described alignment testing or correcting process the serviceman requires the use of both hands the tool holder may be supported in trackways 18a and 18b by means of the auxiliary support member 82 Turning now to FIG 10 an auxiliary feature of the present invention which permits the person servicing the tape playback unit 11 to measure the tension on the cartridge is illustrated As is well known the cartridge is retained in place by the pressure exerted through pressure roller 17 and lock spring 16 From time to time this pressure changes and must be adjusted so that the cartridge does not bear too heavily against playback head 14 and capstan 13 In order to measure the existing pressure on the cartridge peg 31 is inserted in apertures 30a and 30b and the hollow cartridge 10 is inserted in place as above described Spring scale 32 may then be hooked around peg 31 and the scale pulled in the direc tion of the arrow in FIG 10 A reading may then be visually taken from spring scale 32 at the instant when pressure roller 17 disengages from hollow cartridge case 10 and the cartridge comes loose This will provide an indication of the actual pressure exerted on a tape cartridge when it is inserted in the playback unit If the pressure is too large or too great it may be adjusted in a conventional manner by changing the position of lock spring 16 through an adjustment hole not shown It will be
21. it This procedure may be repeated as necessary until capstan 33 is free of such cuttings Abrasive cleaning head 22 may then be locked to tool holder 21 in the manner described hereinabove The tool is then inserted through the opening in front wall 10f along parallel trackways 18a and 18b as shown in FIG 2 Abrasive honing head 22 is also dimensioned to 4 158 871 7 securely fit between trackways 18a and 18b and there fore be unerringly guided into intimate contact with the surface of capstan 13 After the honing operation has been performed for approximately 10 seconds tool holder 21 is removed from trackways 18a and 18b abrasive cleaning head 22 is replaced by felt cleaning head 23 which may be dipped in methyl alcohol or the like and the above described operation is repeated this time to remove all remaining foreign matter from the surface of the cap stan In order to clean the playback head 14 and the sens ing poles 15 and 15a as illustrated in FIG 3 tool holder 21 is fitted with swab cleaning head 24 which may be dipped in methyl alcohol or the like the tool is inserted through the opening in the front wall 10f of hollow cartridge case 10 and the surfaces of these components may be cleaned At this point the major components of the playback unit have been thoroughly and properly cleaned and as part of a normal maintenance checkup the operation of the sensing poles may be tested and the alignment of the playback
22. l portion 37 for fitting between the adjacent sensing poles 15 and 15a to thereby electri cally short same Referring now to FIGS 17 through 19 a still further service head which may be utilized with the kit of the present invention is indicated generally by reference numeral 70 and comprises a visual alignment gauge to assist in checking the angular azimuth and vertical alignment of the tape playback head 14 Indicated in FIG 17 is a conventional tape guide 72 which in a common construction is rigidly affixed to the sensing poles 15 and 15a by means of a transverse support bracket 71 Tape guide 72 is a substantially planar plate which is positioned perpendicularly to the support bracket 71 Tape guide 72 conventionally includes a pair of bifurcated tips 73 and 74 FIG 18 between which the Mylar or other conventional recording tape normally passes The alignment gauge 70 includes a support base 75 which is also tapped in one end thereof to receive the threaded end 40 of shaft 39 of the tool holder Base 75 is also sized similarly to base 61 so as to be guided and 10 15 20 25 35 40 45 55 65 6 _ securely positioned by guideways 18a and 18b of car tridge case 10 Extending laterally from the base 75 and perhaps molded integrally therewith is a plate 36 which extends over playback head 14 and is preferably trans parent so as to permit visual observation of the mag netic pickups 81 and 82 of head 14 th
23. ot of the playback unit and to actuate the machine Also included in the kit are a tool holder having a plurality of interchangeable service heads Three of the heads are designed so as to specifi cally adapt them for cleaning the drive capstan while another head is of a more generalized type preferably taking the form of a cotton swab and being useful for cleaning the playback head and the sensing poles Yet another service head is provided for facilitating the checking of the alignment of the tape playback head while a further service head is designed to test for proper operation of the sensing poles in shifting the playback head from track to track Disposed on the inner side walls of the hollow car tridge are parallel trackways in alignment with the capstan These trackways serve as a guide for the inser tion of the capstan cleaning heads so that the user of the kit does not have to visually align the tool with the capstan as well as a precision support for one end of the alignment service head The front portion of the car tridge is completely open while the back portion of the cartridge contains cut out portions surrounding respec tively the capstan the playback head and the sensing poles to permit ready access to these components when the cartridge is inserted in place In addition to provid ing access to the components for cleaning testing alignment and other general servicing purposes the completely hollow cartridge o
24. plurality of different tracks on a magnetic tape said pair of sensing poles serving when shunted to shift said head whereby said probe means permits visual inspection through said cartridge case of the shifting operation of said playback head 7 A kit as set forth in claim 5 wherein said pair of sensing poles comprise a pair of spaced parallel termi nals separated by insulation and wherein said probe means comprises a metallic tip for electrically connect ing said pair of terminals together 8 A kit as set forth in claim 1 wherein said at least one of said components comprises a playback head having magnetic pickup means thereon and which may be adjusted in both azimuth and height with respect to the magnetic tape played back thereby and wherein said at least one service head comprises means for checking the alignment of said playback head 9 A kit as set forth in claim 8 wherein said means for checking the alignment comprises transparent piate means adapted to be positioned adjacent said playback head and having alignment indicia means formed thereon for permitting visual observation of said mag netic pickup means therethrough 10 A kit as set forth in claim 9 wherein another of said components comprises guide means positioned adjacent said playback head for normally guiding said magnetic tape and wherein said at least one service head includes support means which may be coupled to said guide means for properly positioning
25. rality of components which may need servicing and including an opening for receiv ing a cartridge enclosed tape which comprises a hollow cartridge case having a substantially open front end for providing unobstructed viewing of said components when said cartridge case is in serted in said opening separate non affixed tool holder means for individu ally and separately mounting one of a plurality of service head means for servicing said components said service head means including at least one ser vice head not used for cleaning said components and access means in the rear end of said cartridge case for permitting said tool holder means to pass through said cartridge case from said open front end and selectively service at least one of said components 17 A kit as set forth in claim 16 wherein said compo nents include a playback head and said at least one service head not used for cleaning said components comprises means for checking the alignment of said playback head 18 A kit as set forth in claim 17 wherein said play back head includes magnetic pickup means thereon and which may be adjusted in both azimuth and height and wherein said means for checking the alignment com prises transparent plate means adapted to be positioned adjacent said playback head and having alignment indi cia means formed thereon for permitting visual observa tion of said magnetic pickup means therethrough 19 A kit as set forth in claim 17 wher
26. rvicing kit which permits align ment of the playback head to be checked proper opera tion of the sensing poles to be tested and cleaning of all exposed components to be effected without requiring dismantling of the entire unit thereby substantially reducing the time required to service the unit as well as the necessity and expense of a skilled serviceman BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Various objects aspects features and attendant ad vantages of the present invention will be more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood from the following detailed description of the present invention when considered in connection with the ac companying drawings in which FIG 1 is a perspective view of some of the compo nents of a preferred embodiment of the kit of the present invention and indicating the manner in which the hol low cartridge is inserted in a tape playback unit FIG 2 is a sectional view showing the hollow car tridge of the present invention inserted in the playback unit with a mounting tool having a service head posi tioned for cleaning the drive capstan FIG 3 is a sectional view similar to FIG 2 but indi cating the manner in which the mounting tool and asso ciated service head may be positioned to clean other components of the playback unit FIG 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4 4 of FIG 3 looking in the direction of the arrows FIG 5 is a partial side elevation showing one of the
27. said transpar ent plate means 11 A kit as set forth in claim 10 wherein said guide means comprises a bifurcated tip forming a guide slot through which said magnetic tape normally passes and wherein said support means comprises a tab extending from one end of said transparent plate means and adapted to fit in said guide slot 12 A kit as set forth in claim 11 wherein said hollow cartridge case further includes side walls and trackway means provided on the interior of said side walls for guiding said at least one service head into proper posi tion adjacent said playback head 20 25 45 50 60 65 10 13 A kit as set forth in claim 12 wherein said at least one service head includes a base member to which is attached the other end of said transparent plate means 14 A kit as set forth in claim 13 wherein another of said components comprises a rotating drive capstan positioned on the side of said playback head that is opposite to the side on which is positioned said guide slot said trackway means adapted to be in substantial alignment with said capstan when said cartridge case is positioned in said playback unit 15 A kit as set forth in claim 14 wherein said tool holder means further includes a shaft and means posi tioned on said shaft and sized to fit within said trackway means for further supporting said tool holder means therewithin 16 A kit adapted to be used with a cartridge tape playback unit having a plu
28. sparent plate means and adapted to fit in said guide slot 36 A kit as set forth in claim 35 wherein said hollow cartridge case further includes side walls and trackway means provided on the interior of said side walls for guiding said means for checking the alignment into proper position adjacent said playback head 37 A kit as set forth in claim 36 wherein said means for checking the alignment includes a base member to which is attached the other end of said transparent plate means 38 A kit as set forth in claim 37 wherein another of said components comprises a rotating drive capstan positioned on the side of said playback head that is opposite to the side on which is positioned said guide slot said trackway means adapted to be in substantial alignment with said capstan when said cartridge case is positioned in said playback unit 39 A kit as set forth in claim 38 wherein said tool holder means further includes a shaft and means posi tioned on said shaft and sized to fit within said trackway means for further supporting said tool holder means k k
29. tic pickup means thereon which may be adjusted in both azimuth and height and an opening for receiving a cartridge enclosed tape comprising a hollow cartridge case having a substantially open front end for providing unobstructed viewing of said components when said cartridge case is in serted in said opening separate non affixed tool holder means for mounting means for checking the alignment of said playback head and access means in the rear end of said cartridge case for permitting said tool holder means to pass through said cartridge case from said open front end 33 A kit as set forth in claim 32 wherein said means for checking the alignment comprises transparent plate means adapted to be positioned adjacent said playback head and having alignment indicia means formed thereon for permitting visual observation of said mag netic pickup means therethrough 34 A kit as set forth in claim 33 wherein another of said components comprises guide means positioned adjacent said playback head for normally guiding said magnetic tape and wherein said means for checking the alignment includes support means which may be cou pled to said guide means for properly positioning said transparent plate means 35 A kit as set forth in claim 34 wherein said guide means comprises a bifurcated tip forming a guide slot through which said magnetic tape normally passes and wherein said support means comprises a tab extending from one end of said tran
30. yback unit having a pair of sensing poles and an opening for receiving a cartridge enclosed tape com prising a hollow cartridge case having a substantially open front end for providing unobstructed viewing of said components when said cartridge case is in serted in said opening separate non affixed tool holder means for mounting probe means for shunting said pair of sensing poles together and access means in the rear end of said cartridge case for permitting said tool holder means to pass through said cartridge case from said open front end and selectively engage said sensing poles 30 A kit as set forth in claim 29 wherein another of said components comprises magnetic playback head means shiftable through a plurality of positions so as to enable playback of a plurality of different tracks on a magnetic tape said pair of sensing poles serving when shunted to shift said head whereby said probe means permits visual inspection through said cartridge case of 60 therewithin the shifting operation of said playback head 10 25 35 40 45 50 55 65 12 31 A kit as set forth in claim 29 wherein said pair of sensing poles comprise a pair of spaced parallel termi nals separated by insulation and wherein said probe means comprises a metallic tip for electrically connect ing said pair of terminals together 32 A kit for servicing the components of a carti tape playback unit having a playback head with mag ne
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