Cassette loading machine

An improved cassette storing, feeding and handling mechanism is provided for a machine for loading magnetic tape into C-Zero video tape cassettes. The machine is of the type having a tape loading cycle which includes cutting the cassette leader into two sections, splicing one leader section to the end of a supply of magnetic tape, winding the one leader section and a predetermined length of magnetic tape into the cassette, severing the magnetic tape, and splicing the trailing end of the tape wound into the cassette to the second leader section. The improved mechanism comprises a magazine adapted to store C-Zero cassettes, means for feeding cassettes one at a time from the magazine, a cassette carrier, guide means for guiding cassettes fed from said magazine to said carrier, means for reciprocating the cassette carrier from a first cassette receiving position to a preselected cassette loading position, means for holding a C-Zero cassette in said loading position for the duration of a loading cycle and then discharging the loaded cassette. The improved mechanism also may include means for assuring that a cassette is properly positioned on the carrier and means for accumulating a selected number of cassettes and discharging them as a group to a receiver or conveyor. The mechanism is arranged so that it may be easily adapted for handling two different types of video cassettes.

This invention relates to machines for splicing and winding tapes and in 
particular to machines for loading a length of flexible information 
recording material into a cassette. While the invention was made to 
facilitate the loading of magnetic tape, other use tapes such as strips of 
photographic film may be loaded into cassettes with this invention. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
A variety of magnetic tape cassettes have been developed which employ two 
rotatable hubs or spools with magnetic tape connected to both hubs and 
wound upon one or both hubs. Usually the cassette includes sections of a 
leader tape attached to each spool or hub, with the magnetic tape having 
its opposite ends spliced to the two leaders. Cassettes of this type have 
been developed for both audio and video magnetic tape. Magnetic tape 
cassettes of the audio type are generally shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 
3,423,038, 3,753,835, 3,797,770, 3,167,267, and 4,062,719. Video cassettes 
are more complicated than audio cassettes and generally have a door which 
is normally closed to conceal the magnetic tape and leader. When the video 
tape cassette is to be used, the door is opened so as to allow the tape to 
be transported past the Read and Write magnetic heads of a VCR (video tape 
cassette recorder) machine. 
Two types of VCR machines have achieved substantial commercial success. One 
type, known as the VHS format machine, uses a cassette having a pivoted 
door along one side, first releasable door locking means at a first side 
of the cassette body for keeping the door locked, and second releasable 
hub locking means for preventing rotation of the cassette hubs. The second 
type of commercially successful VCR machine, known as the Betamax format 
machine, uses a cassette which is similar to the VHS cassette but differs 
in size, has its door locking means located at the second or opposite side 
of the cassette, and has a hub locking mechanism which is unlocked with 
the door. 
Cassettes loaded with a selected amount of magnetic tape are generally 
manufactured in one of two ways. The first, commonly called "hub loading", 
involves starting with two hubs and a length of leader tape secured to and 
extending between the two hubs, severing the leader tape into two 
sections, splicing magnetic tape to the leader section connected to a 
first one of the two hubs, winding a selected length of magnetic tape onto 
that first hub, splicing the trailing end of the magnetic tape to the 
leader section connected to the second hub, and then inserting the two 
hubs into a cassette body. The second common method is to load magnetic 
tape directly into a C-Zero cassette. A "C-Zero cassette" is one which 
consists of a cassette body, two hubs rotatably mounted in the cassette 
body, and a length of leader tape connecting the two hubs. This type of 
cassette loading, commonly called "in-cassette loading", also involves 
cutting the leader tape to form two discrete leaders, splicing one end of 
a magnetic tape to the leader connected to a first cassete hub, winding 
magnetic tape onto the first hub, and splicing the trailing end of the 
magnetic tape to the second leader section. Where in-cassette loading is 
the practice, the procedure further involves the additional step of slowly 
winding the trailing end of the magnetic tape into the cassette after the 
second splice has been made, so that the magnetic tape and the trailing 
leader are fully pulled into the cassette. 
The design of machines for accomplishing in-cassette loading of video tape 
cassettes has been hampered by a number of factors or requirements which 
include the following: (1) VHS and Betamax cassettes have leaders which 
are relatively short and differ in length, (2) VHS and Betamax cassettes 
are of different size and employ different locking mechanisms, (3) the 
splicing tape must be applied to the inner surface of the leader when 
making a splice, (4) manufacturers of video cassettes may require that the 
length of the leader at one or both ends of the the magnetic tape be 
within certain prescribed limits, (5) because of the relatively high cost 
of video tape cassettes, manufacturers are concerned about the cosmetic 
appearance of the cassettes and are unwilling to utilize loading machines 
which may damage the exterior appearance of the cassette, provide uneven 
loading of magnetic tape, or damage the tape. As a result state of the art 
in-cassette video tape loading machines suffer from one or more of the 
following limitations: (a) they are capable of loading only one type of 
cassette and hence two different machines are required to be purchased for 
loading VHS and Betamax cassettes, (b) relatively low production rates, 
(c) slow and complicated means for extracting the leader from a cassette 
and placing it in position to be cut and spliced to the magnetic tape 
which is to be loaded into the cassette, (d) various tape-handling 
components are spread apart from one another to an extent that causes the 
machines to be relatively large and slow, (e) relatively large cost, and 
(f) slow and cumbersome cassette storing and feeding machanisms due to 
concern about preventing damage to the cassettes. 
Still other disadvantages, problems and limitations of existing in-cassette 
video tape loading machines are well known to persons skilled in the art. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The primary object of this invention is to provide a new and improved 
automatic winding machine which includes a novel cassette storing and 
feeding mechanism and avoids many of the foregoing drawbacks of prior 
in-cassette loading machines. 
A more specific primary object of this invention is to provide an automatic 
cassette loading machine having improved means for (a) holding a plurality 
of cassettes to be loaded, (b) moving the cassettes one at a time on 
command to a predetermined forwarding position, and (c) means for holding 
each cassette in loading position and releasing said each cassette after 
it has been loaded with a predetermined amount of a use tape such as 
magnetic tape. 
A further object is to provide a machine of the type described which has 
means for feeding empty cassettes from a storage magazine to a preselected 
loading position quickly and efficiently and without damaging the 
cassette. Another object is to provide an in-cassette tape loading machine 
having novel means for holding an empty cassette in loading position. 
Still another object is to provide a machine having novel means for 
unlocking the door of a cassette in loading position. A further object is 
to provide an in-cassette tape loading machine having novel means for 
receiving and stacking loaded cas- settes. 
These and other objects are achieved by providing a machine having a front 
panel, a splicing block assembly comprising first and second splicing 
blocks, a support for said blocks on said panel, means for moving one 
block relative to the other on said support, means for pivoting said 
support as a unit about an axis fixed relative to the panel, a magazine 
for holding a supply of cassettes to be loaded, feeding means for feeding 
cassettes from said magazine and delivering them one at a time to a 
predetermined loading position adjacent to said splicing block assembly, 
said feeding means comprising a first stage characterized by reciprocating 
means for discharging cassettes one at a time from said magazine, and a 
second stage characterized by a reciprocating cassette carrier for 
conveying cassettes to said loading position, means for holding a cassette 
conveyed by said carrier in said loading position adjacent to the splicing 
block assembly and discharging the cassette after it has been loaded, a 
splicer mounted to said panel in front of said splicer block assembly, a 
rotatable supply reel spindle adapted to support a reel of a selected use 
tape, a first motor for rotating said supply reel spindle so as to feed 
tape to a cassette in loading position, means for selectively operating 
said first motor, a takeup spindle movable into and out of engagement with 
one of the two hubs of a cassette in loading position, a second motor for 
rotating said takeup spindle so as to rotate said one hub, and selectively 
operable means for energizing said second motor so as to wind use tape 
onto said one hub. 
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention are described or 
render obvious in the following detailed specification which is to be 
considered together with the accompanying drawings wherein like numerals 
indicate like parts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Turning now to FIGS. 1 and 2, the illustrated machine is adapted for 
loading magnetic tape directly into C-Zero VHS cassettes. As disclosed 
hereinafter, the machine shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 may be adapted by the 
change of certain parts to provide in-cassette loading of Betamax 
cassettes. It also may be adapted for loading another type of use tape, 
e.g., a strip of photographic film or typewriter ribbon. 
Turning now to FIGS. 1-3, the illustrated cassette tape splicing and 
winding machines comprises a console 2 having a front panel 4 which 
supports a splicing block assembly 5, an adhesive tape-dispensing splicer 
mechanism 6, a rotatable hub 7 for holding a reel of magnetic tape 8 that 
is used in filling cassettes, and a cassette storing and feeding mechanism 
9. Also mounted on front panel 4 is a plurality of fixed guide rollers 10 
and a counter wheel 11 which cooperate with a guide roller 12 mounted on a 
shaft 14 on a dancer arm 13 (FIG. 4) to determine the path of movement of 
tape 8 from hub 7 to the splicing block assembly. Counter wheel 11 forms 
part of an electrooptical transducer assembly 15 (FIG. 4) which generates 
tape footage-counting pulses. The transducer assembly 15 and counter wheel 
11 are well known in the art and hence need not be described in detail 
(see U.S. Pat. No. 4,061,286). 
Also referring to FIGS. 2-4, 9 and 10, the machine includes a carriage 16 
which carries a servo motor 18 for driving a rotatable winding or takeup 
spindle 20 (FIG. 2) which is adapted to mate with and drive one of the 
hubs of a cassette (not shown) which is positioned in a selected loading 
position on the front of the machine by cassette feeder mechanism 9. The 
machine also includes a servo motor 19 mounted on the rear side of panel 4 
for driving the supply reel hub 7. Although not shown, it is to be 
understood that motor 19 includes an electrically operated brake for 
stopping the motor's output shaft when the motor is turned off. Servo 
motor 18 is controlled by movement of dancer arm 13. Shaft 14 extends 
through a curved slot 27 in panel 4 and arm 13 is connected to the 
operating shaft of a rotary potentiometer 21 mounted on the rear side of 
panel 4. Arm 13 is biased toward the splicing block assembly by a biasing 
mechanism comprising a small electric motor 33 and a string 35 which 
extends between the output shaft of motor 33 and arm 13. Motor 33 applies 
a predetermine pull on string 35 which is sufficient to move arm 13 to the 
right hand end (as seen in FIG. 1) of slot 37 when servo motors 18 and 19 
are off. During operation of the machine the tension on tape 8 will vary 
and will cause arm 13 to move in accordance with the tension change. The 
output signal of potentiometer will vary with movement of arm 13 and this 
signal is used to control servomotor 18 for tension control purposes. 
Simultaneous control of servomotors 18 and 19 to maintain constant tension 
on tape being wound may be done by various known techniques, but 
preferably it is done in accordance with the invention described and 
claimed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 290,417 of Joseph P. Deyesso 
for Tape Winding System. 
Turning now to FIGS. 1-3 and 5-8, the splicing block assembly 5 comprises 
two splicing vertically spaced blocks 22 and 24. Both blocks are attached 
to a support plate 26 which is positioned in an aperture 28 formed in the 
front panel 4. Support plate 26 is pivotally mounted to front panel 4 by 
means of two pairs of pivot lugs 30 and 32, (FIGS. 3 and 5) attached to 
front panel 4 and plate 26 respectively, and a pair of pivot studs 34. 
Splicing block 22 is rigidly mountd to plate 26. However, splicing block 24 
is pivotally mounted to plate 26. For this purpose plate 26 has a pair of 
spaced pivot lugs 36 (FIG. 3), splicing block 24 has a lateral extension 
38 which fits between the lugs 36, and a pivot stud 40 extends through 
holes in lugs 36 and the extension 38 so as to pivotally attach the 
splicing block 24 to plate 26. For convenience, splicing blocks 22 and 24 
are hereinafter referred to as the "stationary" and "movable" splicing 
blocks, but it is to be understood that those terms are employed only to 
designate which of those members is movable with respect to support plate 
26. 
As seen in FIGS. 5-10, stationary splicing block 22 has a single track 42 
and block 24 has two identical tracks 46 and 48 for accommodating a leader 
or use tape. Blocks 22 and 24 are hollow so as to define suction chambers 
43, 47 and 49 (FIG. 5). The bottom surface of track 32 is provided with a 
plurality of elongated apertures 44 which communicate via suction chamber 
43 with a suction source so that suction may be applied to hold tape in 
track 42. Tracks 46 and 48 also are provided with elongated apertures 44 
which communicate via chambers 47 and 49 with separate suction sources so 
that suction may be applied selectively to hold tapes in those tracks. 
Tracks 46 and 48 are arranged at an angle of approximately 30.degree. to 
one another. Also, as shown in FIGS. 6-8, splicing block 24 is prismatic 
in cross-section, having two flat surfaces 50 and 52 which also extend at 
an angle to one another. The surfaces 50 and 52 are arranged so that when 
splicing block 24 is rotated on its pivot 40, its rotatational travel is 
limited by engagement of either surface 50 or surface 52 with the front 
surface of plate 26. When surface 52 engages plate 26, track 46 is in 
exact alignment with the track 42 of splicing block 22, and when surface 
50 engages the plate 26, track 48 is in exact alignment with track 42 and 
the flat bottom of track 46 will be displaced 30.degree. from the bottom 
surface of track 42. 
Rotation of splicing block 24 relative to support plate 26 is controlled by 
means of a pneumatic actuator 54 affixed to the rear side of plate 26. In 
this connection it is to be noted that a number of actuators are used in 
the machine. Such actuators may be of the single-acting type wherein the 
piston/piston rod assembly is spring biased in one direction and driven in 
the opposite direction by application of high pressure air, or of the 
double-acting type wherein pressurized air is applied selectively at one 
or the other end of the cylinder to cause movement of the piston/piston 
rod assembly in one direction or in the opposite direction. The type of 
actuator used is a matter of choice. 
In this case the piston rod 56 of actuator 54 is attached to a bifurcated 
yoke 57 (FIGS. 4 and 5). The latter is pivotally connected to an arm 58 
which is affixed to splicing block 24. Arm 58 extends through an elongate 
opening 59 (FIG. 4) in plate 26 and has an elongated slot 60 (FIG. 6) to 
accommodate a pivot pin 61 anchored in yoke 57. The arm 58 extends through 
a slot 63 in the yoke 57 and is captivated by pivot pin 61. Because of the 
shape of slot 60, arm 58 can pivot and also move longitudinally relative 
to pivot pin 61. When the actuator 54 is operated so as to extend its 
piston rod 56, yoke 57 will cause arm 58 to swing in an arc, with the 
result that splicing block 24 will rotate on its pivot so as to bring 
track 48 into alignment with track 42. When the piston rod 56 is 
retracted, the splicing block 24 pivots back until its surface 52 again 
engages plate 26, placing track 46 in alignment with track 42. 
Referring now to FIGS. 2-8, the normal or at-rest position of support plate 
26 is when it is co-planar with panel 4. During operation of the machine, 
plate 26 is pivoted through an angle of about 50.degree. so as to align 
track 42 of stationary block 22 with splicer 6. Pivotal movement of plate 
26 is accomplished by means of an actuator 64 which has its cylinder 
attached to the rear side of panel 4 and has a yoke 68 affixed to its 
piston rod 66. A link 70 has one end pivotally connected to yoke 68 and 
its other end pivotally attached to an L-shaped bracket 72 bolted to the 
rear side of plate 26. When piston rod 66 is retracted, plate 26 is flush 
with panel 4. When piston rod 66 is extended, plate 26 is pivoted to an 
angle of 50.degree. relative to panel 4. When plate 26 is pivoted by 
retraction of piston rod 66, plate 26 is stopped when it is flush, i.e., 
co-planar with panel 4, by its engagement with splicer holding assembly 
member 94 hereinafter described. A mechanical stop 74 on the rear side of 
panel 4 stops movement of plate 26 when it is at an angle of 50.degree. 
relative to panel 4, in which position it is is parallel with the support 
arm 90 of splicer 6. More precisely, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 9, mechanical 
stop 74 has a recess 75 characterized by a vertical surface 76 which 
extends at an angle of 50.degree. to panel 4 and stops plate 26 when the 
piston rod of actuator 64 is extended. When plate 26 is swung to its 
angular position by extension of actuator 64, track 42 of splicing block 
22 will be in coplanar alignment with the plunger 134 hereinafter 
described of the splicer mechanism 6. At the same time, depending upon 
whether or not the actuator 54 is retracted or extended, either the track 
46 or the track 48 will be aligned with the track 42. 
Referring now to FIG. 3, stationary splicing block 22 is provided with a 
fitting 82 whereby its suction chamber 43 may be connected by a hose (not 
shown) to a suitable source of vacuum (not shown) located behind the front 
panel 4. Similarly, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, splicing block 24 has two 
hose fittings 83 and 84 whereby suction chambers 47 and 49 respectively 
are connected by suitable hose lines (not shown) to sources of vacuum 
(also not shown) located behind the front panel 4. The provision of 
suction chambers connecting through apertures in tape guiding tracks is 
old and well known in the art, as illustrated by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,737,358 
and 4,062,719 and other patents therein mentioned. 
Referring now to FIGS. 1, 6 and 11, splicer 6 is attached to a supporting 
arm in the form of an elongated bar 90 which is pivotally coupled to a 
block 92 secured to the front side of panel 4. The block has two slots 93 
and 94 cut into its front surface at different angles about the pivot axis 
of bar 90, and the vertical face of each slot is provided with a hole as 
shown at 95 to receive the inner end of a springbiased pin 96 which is 
carried by a small mounting block 97 attached to bar 90. The right hand 94 
slot extends at and angle of 50.degree. to panel 4, and the left hand slot 
93 is displaced about 90.degree. from the right hand slot. When bar 90 is 
located in one of the slots 93 or 94 and the pin 96 is engaged with the 
hole 95 associated with that slot, the bar 90 will be locked against 
movement and the splicer 6 will be held in a fixed position. The bar 90 is 
locked in slot 94 when the splicer is to be used in the course of a 
cassette loading operation and is moved to slot 93 when it is desired to 
provide access to the splicing block assembly. 
The splicer forms no part of the present invention. Moreover various forms 
of splicers may be used with the present invention. Accordingly, the 
splicer shown in the drawings is described herein only to the extent 
required to understand the operation of the present invention. 
It is preferred to use a conventional splicer of the type shown in the 
drawings which is generally the same as the splicer shown in U.S. patent 
application No. 183,472 of David Kincheloe (now U.S. Pat. No. 4,364,791), 
and U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,835 James L. King. 
As seen in FIGS. 1, 6 and 11, the splicer has a back plate 110 and mounted 
on the back plate is a one-way clutch mechanism 112 (FIG. 1) having an 
operating arm 114. Operating arm 114 is pivotally attached to the end of 
the piston rod of a pneumatic actuator 118 which is secured to a plate 111 
attached to plate 110. Actuator 118 normally has its piston rod in the 
retracted position shown in FIGS. 1 and 11. Each time actuator 118 is 
pressurized with air via a hose fitting 120 (FIG. 11), the arm 114 is 
caused to move through arc of predetermined length. Rotation of arm 114 
causes clutch 112 to rotate a feed wheel 124. The latter is adapted to 
feed an adhesive splicing tape from a supply roll (not shown) mounted on a 
hub 126 into position where it may be cut and applied to two tapes which 
are to be spliced. 
As seen in FIG. 11, the splicer has a pair of parallel members 128 and 130 
and a header plate 131 defining a channel 132 in which is mounted a 
reciprocal hollow plunger 134. The plunger is attached to the piston rod 
of a pneumatic actuator 135 which is fixed to plate 131. Attached to the 
side of the plunger is a cutter blade 136 which reciprocates with the 
plunger. The bottom side of the plunger has a resilient pad 140 provided 
with openings (not shown) which communicate with openings (also not shown) 
in the bottom side of the plunger, whereby suction may be applied to hold 
a piece of splicing tape to the pad. Vacuum is applied to the interior of 
the plunger and to the apertures in pad 140 through a hose fitting 142 
which is mounted to the plunger and is used to connect the splicer plunger 
to a source of vacuum. 
Splicing tape from the supply roll (not shown) mounted on hub 126 is fed 
into channel 132 via an aperture in plate 130. Feeding of the splicing 
tape is achieved by coaction of feed wheel 124 and a second feed wheel 
144. Feed wheel 144 is driven by means connected to feed wheel 124, so 
that each time arm 114 is operated by extension of actuator 118, the two 
feed wheels will advance a predetermined length of splicing tape beneath 
the plunger 134 (no advancement of splicing tape occurs when the piston 
rod of actuator 118 is retracted due to the one-way action of clutch 112). 
Additionally each time actuator 135 is operated, plunger 134 is moved 
along channel 132 far enough for cutter blade 136 to cut a piece of 
splicing tape extending beneath pad 140 from the remaining portion of the 
splicing tape. The cut piece of splicing tape will adhere to the pad by 
suction until the pad deposits it on the splicing blocks 22 and 24 to 
effect splicing between a leader and a section of magnetic tape held by 
those blocks The vacuum applied through the apertures in pad 140 is 
terminated as the pad presses the splicing tape into contact with the two 
tapes to be spliced, so that when the plunger moves back to its original 
retracted position, the splicing tape will tend to stay with the spliced 
tapes rather than adhere to the resilient pad. 
Turning now to FIGS. 2-4, 9, 10 and 12, the carriage 16 for takeup motor 18 
and take-up spindle 20 comprises a takeup motor carriage plate 152 which 
is slidably mounted on a carriage support assembly in the form of a plate 
154 which is secured behind and parallel to the front panel 4 by means of 
four elongated rods 156, and screws 157 (FIGS. 4, 10 and 11) and screws 
159 (FIGS. 2 and 3) which are screwed into threaded holes in the rear and 
front ends respectively of rod 156. Carriage plate 152 has four bushing 
assemblies 158 attached to its four corners which are mounted on and make 
a smooth sliding connection with rods 156 so that the carriage plate can 
reciprocate smoothly between plate 154 and front panel 4. 
Carriage plate 152 has two apertures 153 and 155 (FIG. 3). Aperture 153 is 
vertically elongated and aperture 155 has two radial extension slots 147 
and 149. Servo motor 18 is affixed to the rear side of carriage plate 152 
and has an output shaft 33 to which is connected an electromagnetic clutch 
160. Preferably clutch 160 is a type SL (shaft mounted) electromagnetic 
friction clutch having a housing 161 containing the field coil, a rotor 
162 having a hub 163 secured to the output shaft 23 of motor 18, and an 
armature assembly 164 having a hub 165 on which is affixed to wind spindle 
20. Take-up spindle 20 has a front end shaped so that it will easily enter 
the depression on the rear side of the lower hub of a VHS cassette in 
loading position and cause the hub to rotate with it. The field coil 
housing 161 surrounds and is rotatably mounted to rotor hub 163, and hub 
165 of armature assembly 164 is rotatably mounted on the output shaft of 
motor 18. The head of a screw 167 screwed into a tapped hole in the end of 
shaft 23 holds armature assembly 164 on shaft 23. Housing 161 has a radial 
projection 166 which extends into the radial extension slot 147 of plate 
152, whereby plate 152 locks housing 161 against rotation. Hence with 
housing 161 locked against rotation, so long as the field coil is 
deenergized, armature assembly 164 and rotor 162 will be rotatable 
relative to one another, so that if motor 18 is energized while the field 
coil is deenergized, the rotor will turn with output shaft 23 but spindle 
20 will not rotate. However, if the field coil is suitably energized, the 
resulting magnetic field will force the armature to frictionally engage 
the rotor, with the result that the armature and rotor will be clutched 
together. Hence, if motor 18 is energized at the same time as the clutch 
field coil, spindle 20 will be driven by motor 18. The machine's control 
system (hereinafter described) is arranged so that clutch 160 and motor 18 
are deenergized and energized at the same time. The radial extension 149 
of carriage plate 152 accommodates the electrical leads (not shown) for 
motor 18. 
As seen in FIGS. 9 and 10, carriage 16 is movable toward and away from the 
panel 4 by means of a pneumatic actuator 169 which is attached to plate 
154 and has its piston rod 168 connected to carriage plate 152 by means of 
a bracket 170 which is attached to the piston rod and also to motor 18. 
The function of actuator 169 is to move spindles 20 and 200 (hereinafter 
described) into and out of driving engagement with the two hubs of a 
C-Zero cassette which is in the loading position hereinafter described. In 
this connection it is to be noted that front panel 4 is provided with an 
enlarged aperture 180 (FIG. 3) of irregular shape located directly in 
front of servomotor carriage 16 and in FIG. 9 the piston rod 168 of 
actuator 169 is shown in its retracted position. In this position the 
forward ends of spindles 20 and 200 do not project from the front side of 
panel 4. In FIG. 11 the piston rod of actuator 169 is shown in its 
extended position. In this position spindles 20 and 200 will project 
through aperture 180 and be engaged with the cassette hubs if a cassette 
is in the loading position. The forward limit position of plate 152 is 
determined by its engagement with the rear side of panel 4, while its back 
or rear limit position is determined by engagement of bracket 170 with 
plate 154. 
Turning again to FIGS. 2 and 3, the front side of carriage plate 152 serves 
as a support for an adaptor plate 182 which is designed to facilitate 
loading of VHS video cassettes. 
Adaptor plate 182 is releasably attached to the front of the carriage plate 
120 by means of screws and is provided with a large aperture 188 near its 
bottom end in concentric relation with spindle 20 and clutch 160. Aperture 
188 is oversized with respect to clutch 160. Attached to and projecting 
forwardly from plate 182 are three cassette locator pins 190, 192 and 194 
and a cassette door unlocking pin 195. The front ends of pins 190 and 192 
terminate in tapered ends and have shoulders 193 spaced rearward of the 
tapered front ends by like amounts. The front end of pin 194 terminates in 
a flat surface which is co-planar with shoulders 193. Attached to the rear 
side of adaptor plate 128 directly above aperture 188 is a leader-shifting 
assembly comprising a small electric motor 198 having a spindle 200 
attached to its output shaft. The function of motor 198 is to transfer 
excess leader tape from the bottom hub to the top hub of the cassette 
being loaded, so as to assure that when the leader is cut the section 
attached to the bottom hub will have a predetermined length. Motor 198 
projects rearwardly through the opening 153 in carriage plate 152, while 
spindle 200 projects through an oversized hole in adaptor plate 182. 
Spindle 200 has a front end shaped so that it will easily enter the 
depression on the rear side of the upper hub of a VHS cassette disposed in 
loading position and cause the hub to rotate with it. Spindle 200 also 
helps to center or align a cassette in loading position. A cassette having 
its upper and lower hubs engaged by spindles 200 and 20 respectively and 
also mated with locator pins 190 and 192 is considered to be in the 
cassette loading position. 
The cassette adaptor plate 182 also carries a flat forwardly projecting arm 
204 (FIG. 2) which serves as a door opener for a VHS cassette in cassette 
loading position. 
The adaptor plate also carries a lower leader extractor assembly in the 
form of a pneumatic actuator 210 having an enlarged extractor pin support 
member 214 affixed to the end of its piston rod 212. Pin support 214 is 
restrained against rotation on its axis by virtue of its being slidably 
keyed to a guide 212 attached to actuator 210. Pin support member 214 
carries a forwardly projecting pin 216 which is used to extract the leader 
adjacent the bottom hub of a cassette located in loading position. Pin 216 
is rotatably mounted in member 214 by means of bearings 217 and extends 
perpendicularly to the adaptor plate and panel 4. Also pin 216 is tapered 
at its front end so as to facilitate proper entry into a cassette for 
leader extracting and has a groove for guiding tape during the winding 
operation. In addition a small pneumatic actuator 218 is mounted in the 
rear side of guide 212 at a point spaced from the limit position of pin 
support member 214 when the piston rod of actuator 210 is fully extended. 
The piston rod 219 of actuator is disposed in a bore 220 that extends 
through to the front side of guide 212. Actuator 218 normally has its 
piston rod retracted as shown in FIG. 13, so that it will not interfere 
with pin support member 214. However, when piston rod 219 is extended to 
the limit of its travel in bore 220 it will block pin support member 214 
from reaching its full extended position. 
A second leader extractor assembly is mounted for movement with carriage 
plate 152. This second leader extractor assembly comprises an actuator 232 
(see FIGS. 2-4, 10 and 11) whose cylinder is attached to an actuator 
support member 234 attached to one of the bushing assemblies 158. This 
second leader extractor assembly also includes an extractor pin support 
guide 236. Actuator 232 is mounted at an angle and its piston rod carries 
an extractor pin support member 238 which is incapable of rotating on its 
axis by virtue of being slidably keyed to guide 136. Pin support member 38 
carries a small flat bar 242 (FIG. 3) which has one end secured to member 
238 by a screw 244 and has a leader extractor pin 248 projecting forward 
from its opposite end. Pin 248 has a conically tapered front end, extends 
perpendicularly to the adaptor plate, and is disposed so that it can 
project through aperture 180 when the carriage is moved forward. The angle 
of bar 242 relative to the piston rod may be adjusted by releasing screw 
244, pivoting it about screw 244, and then retightening screw 244 to hold 
it in its new position. The angular position of bar 242 is set according 
to whether a VHS or Betamax cassette is to be loaded. In FIGS. 2 and 3, 
bar 242 is in the position required for loading a VHS cassette. 
In this connection it is to be noted that VHS and Betmax cassettes differ 
in size, notably in the spacing between their cassette hubs. Therefore, to 
accommodate this difference in cassette sizes, the carriage support 
assembly 17 is adapted to be shifted vertically by an amount sufficient to 
permit the machine to handle either type of cassette This feature is 
illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 where the front panel 4 is shown to have four 
vertically elongated, openings 250, two disposed above and two disposed 
below the irregular aperture 180, to accommodate screws 159 which lock 
slide rods 156 to the panel. By loosening screws 159, it is possible to 
move the carriage support assembly 17 up or down as required to handle a 
VHS or Betamax cassette Preferably the openings 250 are sized in length so 
that when the screws 159 are shifted to the bottom ends of the openings 
(FIGS. 2 and 3), the machine is set to load VHS cassettes, and when the 
screws are shifted to the upper ends of the openings (FIG. 18), the 
machine is set to load Betamax cassettes. 
Cutting of the leader tape of a C-Zero cassette and the magnetic tape which 
is wound into the cassette is achieved by a knife mechanism which, as 
shown in part in FIGS. 2-4, 9, 10 and 14, comprises a bracket 270 which is 
attached to the rear side of panel 4. Attached to bracket 270 is an 
actuator 272 having a piston rod 274 to which is attached a connecting arm 
276. The latter also is connected to the rear end of a slide rod 278 which 
slidably extends through two bushings 280 attached to two lateral 
extensions of bracket 270. The forward end of slide rod 278 carries a 
knife holder 282. A knife blade 284 (FIGS. 2 and 3) is releasably secured 
to holder 282 by a screw 286. When actuator 272 is cycled, the knife blade 
will reciprocate into and out of the narrow gap 290 (FIG. 5) which exists 
between splicing blocks 22 and 24, whereby any magnetic tape or leader 
tape extending across the gap will be severed by the knife. A further 
detailed description of the knife assembly is not believed to be necessary 
since such cutters are well known in the prior art and various forms of 
knife assemblies may be used in practicing this invention. 
The cassette storing and feeding mechanism 9 shown in FIGS. 1 and 15-23 is 
designed to hold a plurality of VHS type C-Zero cassettes to be loaded and 
to feed such cassettes one at a time to the loading position. It includes 
a magazine 300 comprising a back mounting plate 301, two side wall plates 
302 and 303 and a back wall plate 304 which is spaced from mounting plate 
301. The plates 302 and 303 are rigidly secured to mounting plate 301 and 
the entire magazine is mounted to the side panel of the console 2 by a 
plate 306 which is attached by screws to front panel 4. The magazine is 
mounted so that its side plates 302 and 303 are inclined to front panel 4 
as shown. 
Attached to the forward side of plate 301 are four stub shafts 308 which 
carry rollers 310 having circumferentially-extending V-shaped grooves 312. 
The rollers 310 serve to guide a slide plate 314. Attached to the opposite 
edges of slide plate 314 are two bars 316 which have V-shaped edges that 
ride in the grooves of rollers 310. Slide plate 314 is capable of moving 
up and down along a path which is parallel to the longitudinal axes of the 
parallel plates 316. Two rods 320 are secured to and extend perpendicular 
to the plane of plate 314. The outer ends of rods 320 are enlarged and 
preferably have a frusto-conical shape as shown at 324. Back wall plate 
304 is provided with a pair of parallel slots 326 which allow the rods 320 
to move up and down with slide plate 314. 
The upper end of slide plate 314 is attached to the piston rod 330 of a 
pneumatic actuator 332. The cylinder of actuator 332 in turn is attached 
to and movable with the piston rod 334 of a second pneumatic actuator 336. 
The cylinder of actuator 336 is secured to rear wall plate 304. The 
actuators are disposed so that their piston rods extend parallel to slots 
326. 
Slide plate 314 is movable between an upper limit position (FIGS. 15, 17 
and 18) which is determined by the full retraction of the piston rods 330 
and 334 and a lower limit position (FIG. 20) which is determined by the 
full extension of piston rods 330 and 334. Additionally, as described 
hereinafter, slide plate 314 may occupy a third position (FIG. 19) which 
occurs when the piston rod of actuator 336 is retracted and the piston rod 
of actuator 332 is extended. 
Referring now to FIGS. 17-20, the magazine further includes clamping means 
for locking a cassette in a selected position. Such means comprises a 
stationary block 340 which is attached to the inner side of side panel 
302. The inner side of plate 340 is contoured from top to bottom so as to 
have in descending order an inclined surface 342, a flat surface 344, an 
oppositely inclined surface 346, a flat surface 348, a right angle surface 
350, and a flat surface 352 which is parallel to but is offset from 
surface 344. Surfaces 344, 348, and 352 extend parallel to side plate 302. 
Thus, the plate 340 has a groove 354 with a dimension extending parallel 
to side panel 302 which is slightly larger than the thickness of the 
cassettes C which are to be stored in the magazine. The surfaces 350 and 
352 function as a lip for supporting a cassette as explained in detail 
hereinafter, while surfaces 342 and 344 limit sidewise movement of a 
cassette toward side plate 302 while allowing the cassette to drop down 
into the discharge opening defined by side plate 303 and surface 352. 
Surface 346 guides a clamped cassette toward surface 348. 
The clamping means further includes a pneumatic actuator 358 which is 
attached by a bracket 360 to side panel 303. The latter has a hole 362 
which is sized to pass a plunger 364 attached to the piston rod of 
actuator 358. The plunger 364 has a flat face 368 at its outer end which 
extends parallel to and is in opposed relation to the surface 348. The 
plunger 368 has a height dimension parallel to the plane of panel 303 
which is less than the thickness of a cassette C, while the same dimension 
of surface 348 exceeds the cassette thickness. When the piston rod of 
actuator 358 is in its fully retracted position, end face 368 of plunger 
364 is flush with the inner surface of panel 303 or preferably is 
withdrawn into the opening 362 so as not to obstruct decending movement of 
cassettes in the magazine. However, when the piston rod is extended, 
plunger 368 will project into the magazine and, if a cassette is disposed 
between it and surface 348 it will force the cassette into groove 352 
tight against surface 348, so as to clamp it in the magazine. 
Turning now to FIG. 1, a large L-shaped support plate 370 is releasably 
secured to front panel 4 of the machine. Plate 370 is notched so as to fit 
around the opening 180 in the front panel. A cassette guide 380 is 
attached to plate 370 below magazine 300. Guide 380 is provided with a 
curved front surface 382 which extends adjacent the bottom end of panel 
304 to a point where it is in the same plane as the front surface of plate 
370. Additionally, the guide has a right angled flange 384 at its right 
hand side (as seen in FIG. 1). 
Still referring to FIG. 1 and referring also to FIGS. 17-21, the cassettes 
are fed one at a time from the magazine to the cassette loading position 
by a cassette conveyor mechanism which comprises a slide 386 which is 
disposed within and slides longitudinally along a slot 389 in plate 370. 
Attached to the slide is a cassette carriage 390 which serves as the floor 
of a VHS cassette carrier 392. The latter includes a front wall 394 and a 
right hand side wall 396 held to carriage 390 by screws. The upper portion 
of front wall 394 is bent outwardly as shown at 395 so as to extend at an 
angle relative to plate 370. The cassette carrier extends up far enough so 
as to be able to receive cassettes as they fall out of the magazine and 
drop downward along the guide surface 382. The outwardly inclined portion 
395 and the curved surface 382 function as a mouth or funnel so as to 
assure that a falling cassette will drop down onto the carriage and be 
engaged by the vertical walls of the carrier. 
The slide is reciprocated along the slot 390 by means of a drive mechanism 
comprising a double-acting pneumatic actuator 400 having pulleys 401 
attached to its opposite ends, two cables 402 and 404, and a Ushaped 
coupling member 406. Coupling member 406 is attached directly to the 
carriage. Cables 402 and 404 each have one end attached to the coupling 
406. The other ends of cables 402 and 404 are attached to the opposite 
ends of the piston of actuator 400. The actuator is attached to plate 370 
and the opposite ends of its cylinder are provided with seals which allow 
the cables 402 and 404 to move in and out of the cylinder without leaking 
pressurized air from the cylinder. When pressurized air is applied to one 
end of the cylinder via a hose fitting (not shown), the piston of the 
actuator is caused to move to the right as seen in FIG. 1), thereby 
causing slide 386 and carrier 392 to move to the left toward the splicing 
block assembly. When pressurized air is applied to the opposite end of the 
cylinder via a hose fitting (not shown), the cables are caused to move 
cassette carrier 392 away from the splicing block assembly back toward the 
cassette guide plate 380. Slot 389 has a length such that when slide 386 
is at one end of the slot, the cassette carrier 392 will be in the 
position shown in FIG. 1 directly in front of the cassette guide 380, with 
the side wall 396 of the carrier being even with or slightly to the right 
of the side flange 384 of guide 380. When slide 386 reaches the other end 
of slot 389, the cassette carrier will be located so that a cassette 
disposed in the holder will have its two hubs aligned with the spindles 20 
and 200. 
In order to make certain that each cassette to be loaded is properly 
located in the preselected loading position, provision is made for 
assuring that the cassette will be resting against the walls 394 and 396 
when the carrier reaches the limit of its travel toward the splicing block 
assembly. This is achieved by providing (FIGS. 1 and 22) two balls 416 
which are mounted in circular holes 418 in plate 370. The front ends of 
each hole 418 is spherically curved so that its opening in the front side 
of plate 370 is smaller than the diameter of balls 416. On its rear side 
plate 370 is swaged or peened over at one or ore points around the holes 
so as to prevent the balls from falling out when the plate is removed from 
front panel 14. Since the diameter of balls 416 is larger than that of the 
holes 418 on the front side of plate 370, only portions of the balls can 
protrude from the front face of plate 370. Holes 418 are long enough to 
permit the balls to move back to panel 4 at least far enough so as not to 
project out of the front face of plate 370. Just behind holes 418 panel 4 
has two aligned holes 420. O-rings 422 are seated in counterbores in the 
front face of panel 4 around holes 420 and hose fittings 424 are secured 
in the holes 420 on the back side of panel 4. The O-rings are compressed 
by plate 370 and thus prevent air leakage between panel 4 and plate 370. 
The fittings 424 are connected by hose lines (not shown) to a source of 
pressurized air. So long as pressurized air is applied to the fittings, 
the balls 416 will be pressed forward in holes 418 and portions of the 
balls will project beyond the front face of plate 370. However, if the 
balls are forced rearwardly by hand or by the pressure of a cassette, 
pressurized air will bleed around the balls out of holes 418, thereby 
reducing the forward bias on the balls created by the pressurized air and 
making it easier to keep the balls from projecting from the front face of 
plate 370. 
As a result, when a cassette supported by carrier 392 is advanced toward 
the splicing block assembly, the cassette will engage balls 416 and will 
be pressed forward against the front wall 394 of the carrier. At the same 
time the balls will exert a dragging force on the cassette urging the 
cassette to be seated tight against the side wall 396 as the carrier 
continues to advance the cassette toward the splicing block assembly. The 
balls are located so that the cassette being advanced will clear the balls 
just as the cassette reaches the preselected loading position and the 
holder stops. Preferably the upper surface of the carriage 390 and the 
inner surfaces of walls 394, 396 are covered with a layer of a cushioning 
material, e.g., a felt, which will prevent damage to a cassette as it is 
received from magazine 300. Additional cushioning material may cover guide 
surface 382 for the same purpose. 
Still referring to FIG. 1, the plate 370 further supports a cassette clamp 
(FIGS. 1 and 22) in the form of a pivot block 512 attached to plate 370 
and a clamp arm 514 which is pivotally mounted to the pivot block 512. As 
seen in FIG. 22, the clamp may be biased so that its bottom end will 
engage a cassette and hold it tight against the portion of plate 370 
surrounding aperture 180. This biasing is accomplished by means of a 
pneumatic actuator 518 mounted to plate 270 and having its piston rod 520 
extending into an oversized blind hole in a small block 520 affixed to the 
upper end of arm 514. The actuator projects rearwardly through a hole in 
panel 4. When the clamp is not biased, it will hang vertically and in this 
position the gap between the bottom end of the arm and the plate 370 will 
exceed the thickness of a cassette so that a cassette may be moved by 
carrier 392 between the arm into loading position and panel 4. As soon as 
carrier 396 has moved a cassette in to loading position, actuator 518 is 
operated so as to extend its piston rod and thereby cause clamp arm 514 to 
clamp the cassette tight against plate 370. The clamp remains in this 
position until the cassette has been loaded. At the conclusion of the 
loading cycle, actuator 518 is operated so as to allow the clamp arm to 
release the cassette, whereupon the cassette will fall free by gravity 
down onto the chute 472. 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 23, a cassette delivery chute and cassettes 
receiver assembly is mounted on the front panel of the machine to the left 
of plate 370 below the splicing block assembly. This mechanism comprises a 
removable cover plate 459 which conceals the actuator 400 and has a curved 
and recessed top surface 461 which functions as a chute for directing 
loaded cassettes onto a platform 470 hereinafter described. A plate 434 is 
attached to the front panel 4 and has an aperture to accommodate a 
circular pusher type cassette ejector disc 462 attached to the piston rod 
464 of a cassette eject actuator 469 (FIG. 26) attached to the rear side 
of panel 4. Attached to plate 434 is a plurality of parallel rods 471 and 
a side plate 472 is attached to the outer ends of rods 471. A plate 470 
secured on rods 471 between plate 434 and side plate 472 serves as an 
inclined cassette platform. Extending between and rotably mounted to plate 
434 and side plate 472 is a shaft 480 having attached thereto a narrow 
radially extending plate 484 which functions as a flapper type gate for 
cassettes. A radially extending arm 483 is affixed to shaft 480 and is 
pivotally attached to the piston rod 455 of a pneumatic actuator 457 
mounted to plate 434. This gate is located at the discharge end of 
platform 470. Side plate 472 extends above platform 470 and this acts to 
stop cassettes pushed laterally by ejector disk 462. A switch 473 (FIG. 1) 
affixed to the inner side of plate 472 is caused to change states when 
engaged by a cassette on platform 470. Switch 473 is connected so as to 
operate a solenoid valve 475 (FIG. 26) which controls operation of 
actuator 457. 
Preferably platform 472 is wide enough to accommodate eleven cassettes. A 
resilient bumper 497 (FIG. 23) attached to plate 434 just above the gate 
mechanism acts to cushion the cassettes as they fall down from chute 461. 
Chute 461 is narrow so as to accomodate only one cassette at a time and 
bumper 497 does not extend forward from plate 434 more then the width of 
chute 461. Ejector disk 462 is moved forward only about the width of a 
cassette so as to cause the cassette to clear the bumper and descend 
further into contact with the flapper gate. 
A removable cassette tray 490 is associated with the chute. The tray has a 
floor, two side walls and an end wall remote from chute 461. The other end 
is open and has a curved lip extension 491 which hangs over one of the 
rods 471 near shaft 480. The other end rests on another rod 471. The floor 
of the tray is flush with the platform 472 so as to permit cassettes to 
enter the tray as they slip off of the platform. The tray is just wide 
enough to accomodate ten trays. 
As each cassette drops down onto platform 472 against bumper 497, disk 462 
is operated to slide the cassette forward against side plate 472. When the 
tenth cassette is received and pushed forward by disk 462, the first disk 
will be forced against switch 473 and thereby cause the flapper gate to 
turn to its down position so as to allow the ten cassettes to fall down 
into tray 490. 
As seen in FIGS. 1 and 22, the pivot block 512 also acts as a rigid support 
for a VHS door unlocking means in the form of an actuator 519 which has a 
tapered member 521 on the end of its piston rod. The piston rod of 
actuator 519 is normally retracted and is extended only when a VHS 
cassette is in loading position, so as to unlock the door of the cassette. 
Referring now to FIGS. 24 and 25, a typical VHS cassette 440 comprises a 
cassette body having top and bottom wall sections 442 and 443, a rear side 
wall section 444, and two end sections 445 and 446. At its front end the 
cassette has a door or cover member 447 having a top wall section 448, 
opposite end wall sections 450 and 451, and a front wall section 452. 
Cover member 447 is pivotally secured to the cassette body end wall 
sections 445 and 446 and is spring-biased so that it will tend to remain 
closed. The cassette also has a spring-biased locking pin 458, and a 
depression 460 in the inner surface of end section 450 of door member 447 
receives locking pin 458 when the door is in closed position. A spring 
biased unlocking pin 459 projects from end wall section 445 into an edge 
slot in cover section 450. When pin 459 is pressed into the cassette, 
locking pin 458 will move out of depression 460 so as to unlock the door 
447. The cassette body additionally has a number of cavities 463, 464 and 
465 and edge slots 471 and 473. 
The cassette 440 also includes two rotatable cassette hubs 467 and 468 each 
formed with a spindle-receiving depression 469 defined by a series of 
teeth 470 that allow the hubs to be lockingly engaged by the two cassette 
spindles of a VCR machine. 
Cavities 463 and 464 are merely blind holes which receive locator pins 190 
and 192 respectively. Cavity 465 leads to a hub locking mechanism (not 
shown) and receives hub unlocking pin 195 which will unlock the two hubs. 
FIG. 26 shows schematically the control system for the machine. The control 
system employs a microprocessor based programmable controller 474 for 
controlling the operating sequence of the motors 18, 19 and 198 and a 
plurality of solenoid operated valves that control application of 
pressurized air to the several actuators and vacuum to the splicing block 
assembly and the plunger of splicer 6. 
Various types of programmable controllers may be employed in practicing the 
present invention but a programmable microprocessor-based controller is 
preferred since it permits precise control of the timing of the operations 
which make up the operating cycle of the machine, and also is reliable and 
takes up relatively little space in the console. 
FIG. 26 shows the actuators 54, 64, 118, 135, 169, 210, 218, 232, 272, 332, 
336, 358, 400, 469, 457, 518, and 519 connected to a plurality of solenoid 
actuated control valves 484A-484R which control the application of air to 
the above-identified actuators and also for controlling application of 
vacuum to splicing block tracks 42, 46 and 48 and the plunger 134 of 
splicer 6. The air supply is typically an electrically powered air 
compressor (not shown) and the vacuum generator is typically a vacuum pump 
or a venturi-type vacuum device. The microprocessor based controller has 
signal lines connected to the solenoids of the aforesaid control valves 
and is programmed so as to cause the valves to apply pressurized air or 
vacuum to the various components in the sequence required to permit the 
machine to operate in the manner hereinafter described. The controller is 
connected to motors 18 and 19 and the brake of motor 19 via servo circuits 
489 and 490 as shown which control operation of the motors and brake in 
response to signals from the controller. The controller also is connected 
to leader motor 198, clutch 160 and tension motor 33 so as to control 
their operation and also is connected to receive the signal outputs of 
potentiometer 21 and the footage counting transducer 15. Additionally, as 
shown in FIG. 1, the machine includes a plurality of manually operated 
switches 492 which are connected to controller 474 and are arranged so as 
to selectively cause the controller to cause the machine to accomplish 
specific operations, e.g., automatic loading of cassettes or individual 
testing of specific functions, e.g., splicing, cutting, shifting of 
splicing block 24, movement of splicing block support 26, etc. 
Controller 474 is programmed to cause the machine to operate automatically 
in the manner hereinafter described. For this purpose the controller is 
programmed so as to cause supply reel motor 19 to run at a selected speed 
during winding of tape and to accelerate and decellerate smoothly 
according to a predetermined function The controller also is programmed to 
control the speed of servomotor 18 in accordance with the tension signal 
output of potentiometer 21 so as to maintain a suitable constant tension 
on tape 8 as it is being unwound from the supply reel and loaded into a 
cassette The program of the controller also controls (1) operation of 
motor 198 so as to shift the leader in the manner hereinafter described, 
(2) energization of motor 33 whenever the machine is turned on, (3) 
actuation of clutch 160 when-ever motor 18 is turned on, and (4) the 
stopping of motors 18 and 19 and the actuation of the supply reel brake 
whenever the count of signals from the transducer 15 reaches a 
predetermined value representative of the length of tape required to be 
loaded into a cassette. 
Operation of the machine shown in FIGS. 1-26 will now be described. 
Assume that the machine motors 18, 19, 33 and 198 are off and the brake of 
motor 19 is on, no cassettes are in the magazine, cassette clamp arm 514 
is relaxed, cassette support rods 320 are in their top limit position, the 
splicing block assembly is in the position shown in FIG. 9 so that the 
support 26 is flush with front panel 4 and tape tracks 42 and 46 are 
aligned with one another, vacuum is being applied to tape tracks 42, 46 
and 48, cassette carrier 392 is in the position shown in FIG. 1, and gate 
484 is in down position. Assume also that a reel of blank magnetic tape 8 
to be loaded into a cassette is attached to supply hub 7 and that the 
magnetic tape extends from the supply reel to the track 48 via idler rolls 
10, counter wheel 11, and idler 12. Assume also that the leading end of 
the magnetic tape in track 48 has been previously cut square by operation 
of the cutter mechanism and is flush with the end of the track 48 adjacent 
the gap 290. Now a plurality of VHS cassettes is loaded into the magazine 
300 so as to rest on rods 320 (FIG. 18). The cassettes are stacked one on 
the other in the magazine with the top of each cassette facing up. 
Operation of the machine is now initiated. 
Immediately controller 474 will cause motor 33 to be energized and draw 
tension arm 13 toward the right hand end of slot 37 (as seen in FIG. 1). 
At the same time the controller will cause actuator 332 to move rods 320 
down to their intermediate position (FIG. 19) which is the thickness of 
one cassette below groove 354 and then actuator 358 is operated to clamp 
the second cassette C2 to clamp block 340 as shown in FIG. 19. Then the 
controller will cause actuator 336 to lower rods 320 down to their lower 
limit position so as to free the first cassette C1. The latter slides 
laterally off of rods 320 onto guide 380 and is guided by that guide and 
portion 395 down into the cassette carrier 392. 
Thereafter, the rods 320 are returned to their upper limit position. 
However, as or just before the rods again reach the intermediate position 
shown in FIG. 19, clamp actuator 358 is operated to withdraw plunger 362 
from the magazine thereby allowing the second cassette C2 to be moved up 
again by rods 320. The rods remain in their upper limit position until 
another cassette is to be loaded. 
After a C-Zero cassette has been deposited in carrier 392, actuator 400 is 
operated so as to cause the carrier to convey that cassette to the loading 
position. As the carrier moves toward the splicing block assembly, the 
cassette will engage balls 416. The latter will press the cassette against 
front wall 394 and also will tend to force the cassette to bear against 
side wall 396. When slide 386 reaches the left hand end of slot 389, 
actuator 518 will be operated so as to cause arm 514 to clamp the cassette 
tight against plate 370. Immediately actuator 519 will be operated so that 
its tapered end 521 will engage and depress unlocking pin 461 of the 
cassette so as to unlock its door 447. The carrier then moves back to its 
at-rest position (FIG. 1) to await cassette C2 from the magazine. 
With the first cassette now in loading position and its door unlocked due 
to pin 461 being depressed by member 521, the controller will cause drive 
motor carriage 16 to move forward far enough so that (a) pin 194 will 
engage the back surface 433 of the first cassette, (b) locator pins 190 
and 192 will enter the locator holes 463 and 464 of the first cassette and 
thereby hold it against lateral movement, (c) pin 195 will enter the hole 
465 to unlock the two hubs 467 and 468, (d) arm 204 will engage the edge 
of the front wall 452 of door 447 so as to cause the latter to open wide 
enough to allow its leader tape (shown in phantom at 449 in FIG. 25) to be 
withdrawn as hereinafter described, (e) drive spindles 20 and 200 enter 
the depressions 469 in upper and lower hubs 467 and 468 respectively, (f) 
and leader extractor pins 216 and 244 enter the edges slots 471 and 473 of 
the cassette behind leader tape 449. At this point the front side of the 
first cassette is restrained by clamp arm 514 while at its back side it is 
restrained by the end surface of pin 194 and the shoulders 193 of pins 190 
and 192. When the cassette is engaged by pins 190, 192, and 194, it will 
be forced away from plate 370 a slight amount and its loading position 
will be determined by the those pins. 
Thereafter controller 474 causes motor 198 to be energized so as to unwind 
the leader from hub 468 and wind it onto hub 467. Motor 198 is on just 
long enough to unwind as much leader as possible without detaching it from 
hub 468. Then controller 474 causes actuators 210 and 232 of the two 
leader extractor assemblies to be operated so as to cause their piston 
rods to be extended, whereby extractor pins 216 and 244 will (a) engage 
the leader 449, (b) withdraw it from the cassette and (c) place it in 
tracks 42 and 46. Then motor 198 is again operated briefly and, since at 
this time vacuum is being applied to all of the tracks of the splicing 
block assembly, the tension caused by motor 198 will cause the withdrawn 
leader 449 to be drawn tight in tracks 42 and 46 to improve the suction 
effect of the vacuum. The leading end of tape 8 will likewise be held by 
suction in track 48. Once the leader has been placed in tracks 42 and 44, 
the controller causes leader extractor pins 216 and 244 to be returned to 
their normal position and also causes cutter actuator 272 to be operated 
so that the knife blade 282 will reciprocate forwardly and backwardly 
through gap 290 to cut the leader tape into two sections. As soon as the 
cutter blade has been retracted to its normal at-rest position, controller 
474 causes actuator 54 to rotate movable splicing block 24 so as to align 
the magnetic tape in track 48 with the leader section in track 42 (FIG. 
5). Then controller 474 causes actuator 64 to pivot plate 26 to the 
position shown in FIGS. 7 and 9 so as to place tracks 42 and 48 in 
alignment with plunger 134 of splicer 6. The controller then causes 
splicer actuator 135 to be operated so as to cause a length of splicing 
tape to be cut and pressed over the abutting ends of the leader and 
magnetic tape. As soon as the plunger of the splicer has retracted to its 
normal at-rest position, the controller 474 causes actuator 64 to swing 
plate 26 swing back to its original flush position (FIG. 5), thereby 
placing the tracks 48 and 42 in a plane which extends at a right angle to 
panel 4 and is parallel to a plane through the axes of spindles 20 and 200 
(FIGS. 5 and 6). As soon as the splicing block assembly reaches this 
parallel position, the controller operated through the appropriate 
connected valves to (a) interrupt the vacuum connection to tracks 42 and 
48, (b) cause blocking actuator 218 to extend its piston rod in bore 220, 
(c) cause the lower leader extractor to extend leader extractor pin 
support 214 to the extent permitted by the extended piston rod of actuator 
18, (d) cause clutch 160 to be actuated, (e) turn on servomotors 18 and 19 
and release the supply reel brake, so as to accomplish winding of tape 
onto the hub 468 of the first cassette. The partially extended position of 
pin support 214 causes extractor pin 216 to function as a guide roller for 
the tape being wound so as to control the angle at which the tape enters 
the cassette This helps avoid damage to the tape and allows it to be wound 
into the cassette at a relatively high speed. 
After a predetermined amount of magnetic tape has been wound into the 
cassette, as determined by the output from counter transducer 15, 
controller 474 causes (a) servomotors 18 and 19 to be turned off and the 
brake of motor 19 to be turned on and (b) vacuum to be reapplied to the 
inside track 48 of splicing block 24 and track 42, whereby the feeding of 
tape is stopped and tension is created in the supply tape between the 
splicing block and the supply reel. Then the controller first causes 
actuator 218 to retract its piston rod and then it causes the lower leader 
extractor pin 216 to be fully extended briefly so as to make certain that 
the magnetic tape is seated in the tracks 42 and 48 and a loop is created 
in the tape to facilitate shifting of the splicing block. Then controller 
causes the cutter mechanism to again operate to sever the magnetic tape. 
Thereafter, the controller causes splicing block 24 to be rotated to place 
the second leader section in track 46 in alignment with the tape in track 
42 (FIG. 9). Then the controller causes actuator 64 to again pivot plate 
26 to the position shown in FIG. 7. Next the controller causes splicer 6 
to apply a piece of splicing tape to the abutting ends of the second 
leader section and the end of the magnetic tape wound into the cassette. 
Once this has been done, controller 474 causes actuator 64 to rotate plate 
26 again to place track 42 into a plane extending at a right angle to 
panel 4 and parallel to the axes of spindles 20 and 200. Then the 
controller causes the vacuum to tracks 42 and 46 to be turned off and 
takeup motor 18 is again turned on briefly so as to wind the trailing end 
of the magnetic tape and the second leader section into the cassette. 
Then controller 474 causes motor 18 to stop and carriage 16 to be retracted 
so as to free the motor spindles 20 and 200, the several locator pins and 
the leader extractor pins from the cassette. At this time the controller 
causes actuator 400 to start advancing the cassette carrier with a new 
cassette (the cassette C2 shown in FIG. 20) toward the splicing block 
assembly in the manner previously described. As the carriage 16 is 
withdrawn, the cassette door 447 is free to close under its operating 
spring bias. As soon as the carriage has retracted free of the loaded 
cassette, the controller will cause actuator 518 to release clamp arm 514, 
thereby allowing the loaded cassette to be discharged by gravity from the 
machine down onto platform 470 via guide chute 461. Before the loaded 
cassette is released and preferably around the time that the magnetic tape 
is spliced to the first leader section of cassette C1, the controller 
causes actuators 332, 336 and 358 to again operate in the manner 
previously described so as to discharge cassette C2 from the magazine into 
the carrier 392. Then, commencing with clamping of the cassette C2 by arm 
514, the operations above-described are then repeated to load tape into 
that second cassette and to discharge that cassette after it has been 
loaded onto platform 470. At the time that the upper leader extractor is 
extended to place the extracted leader in tracks 42 and 46, actuator 469 
is operated to extend the eject disk 462 so as to shove the loaded 
cassette previously deposited on platform 470 toward the side plate 472. 
Gate 484 remains in its up position until ten cassettes have accumulated on 
platform 470. After the tenth loaded cassette has been deposited on the 
platform, the next operation of eject disk 462 will force the cassettes 
against switch 473, whereupon actuator 457 will be operated to lower the 
gate so as to allow the ten loaded cassettes to slide by gravity down onto 
tray 490. Tray 490 may then be removed and replaced by another empty tray. 
In the event that it is desired to load magnetic tape into Betamax type 
cassettes, the machine is subjected to a mechanical changeover which 
adapts it for the handling of Betamax cassettes. This change-over involves 
modifying the upper leader extractor assembly by releasing the screw 248 
and pivoting the short bar 242 so that its leader extractor pin 244 is in 
the down position shown in FIG. 27. The changeover also requires the 
takeup motor carriage 16 to be shifted by releasing the screws 159, moving 
the carriage assembly up for the full length of the holes 250, and then 
retightening screws 159. 
The changeover for loading Betamax cassettes further involves replacing the 
block 340 with a block 340A which is actually identical except that it is 
thicker due to the shorter length of the Betamax cassette. Cassette 
carrier 392 is modified by replacing carrier walls 394 and 396 with a 
second arrangement comprising walls 394B, 396B and a bottom wall 397 
(FIGS. 17,19 and 22A-C). Front wall 394 is bent as shown at 395B to 
facilitate entry of a cassette into the carrier. Walls 394B and 396B are 
attached by screws to carriage 390 and bottom wall 397 is spaced above the 
carriage so as to accommodate for the shorter length of the Betamax 
cassette. Also wall 396B is offset from the plane previously occupied by 
wall 396 due to the narrower dimension of the Betamax cassette. This is 
achieved providing wall 396B with an angulated tab 399 which is secured to 
carriage 390 by screws. Bottom wall 397 supports a Betamax cassette at the 
proper height to place it in cassette loading position. 
The Betamax carrier also includes a different means for unlocking the 
cassette door as hereinafter described. 
Except for the manner in which the cassette door is unlocked, operation of 
the machine when loading Betamax cassettes is substantially the same as 
when loading VHS cassettes. 
Attention is drawn to FIGS. 29 and 30 which illustrate a Betamax cassette. 
In this case the cassette does not have a separate hub locking mechanism. 
Instead it has a hub locking mechanism (not shown) which is unlocked at 
the same time that the cassette door or cover is unlocked. The Betamax 
type cassette 500 has a spring-biased pivoted door 502 which has a small 
aperture 504 at one side which receives a spring-biased latch pin 506 
which extends through a hole in the side of the body adjacent the hinge 
pivot for the cover. When pin 506 is depressed so as to move it out of 
aperture 504, the door is free to be opened and at the same time the two 
cassette hubs are unlocked for rotation. 
Accordingly, adaptor plate 182B for the Betamax cassette has two locator 
pins 510 and 512 which are identical to locator pins 190 and 192 and which 
enter apertures 514 and 516 in the rear end of the cassette. It also has a 
flat ended pin corresponding to pin 194 to help support a cassette. The 
motor spindles 20 and 200 are adapted to fit into the recesses 518 in the 
rear of the two cassette hubs 520 and 522 and engage the teeth 524. 
Additionally, the adaptor plate has a small arm 524 similar to the arm 204 
for pushing the door open. Arm 524 is shaped and located so that it may 
engage the rear edge of the front wall 503 of the door 502 near the end 
opposite to the end having aperture 504 when the carriage 16 is moved to 
its forward position. 
The latch pin 506 is part of a pivoted latch member 528 which is situated 
in the recess in the cassette body. Latch member 528 is located behind an 
aperture 530 in the front end of the cassette. The cassette door is 
unlocked by engaging member 528 via aperture 530 and pressing it inward 
far enough to free pin 506 from the cover, whereby the cover may be opened 
by arm 524. 
As seen in FIGS. 22A-C, the modified carrier 392B has a small hole 530 in 
its bottom wall 397, and attached to the underside of the bottom wall is a 
leaf spring 532 which has a conically shaped pin 534 at its free end. Pin 
534 projects through hole 530 and is located so that when a Betamax 
cassette is discharged from the magazine into the carrier, the pin will be 
positioned directly under the aperture 504. As soon as a Betamax cassette 
drops into the carrier, pin 534 will engage latch pin 506 and press it 
into the cassette far enough to unlock the cassette door 502. The leaf 
spring will be biased downward under the weight of the cassette but pin 
534 will still keep the door unlocked. Accordingly, when subsequently the 
cassette is placed in loading position and controller 474 causes the 
takeup motor carriage 16 to move forward, arm 524 will engage the door and 
cause the latter to pivot outwardly to expose leader 449. When loading of 
a Betamax cassette has been completed, carriage 16 is moved rearwardly as 
previously described, whereupon the door of the cassette will close 
automatically under its spring bias. 
The primary advantage of this invention is that it provides an improved 
means for storing cassettes to be loaded in a magazine and feeding them 
one at a time to a predetermined loading position quickly and without 
damaging the cassettes. Another primary advantage is that it facilitates 
the handling of cassettes and the winding of tape, thereby permitting the 
machine to load video cassettes in less time than is required with prior 
machines. 
Obviously the invention may be practiced otherwise than as described above. 
Thus, for example, magazine 300 may be constructed otherwise than as 
described. Plate 26 may be pivoted by actuator 64 simultaneously with or 
before or after splicing block 24 is pivoted by actuator 54. A different 
splicer or cassette feeder mechanism or a different tape cutter mechanism 
may be employed without departing from the essence of the invention. 
Moreover, if it is desired to dedicate the machine so that it will load 
only one type of cassette, the adaptor plate may be omitted and the leader 
motor 198, the lower leader extractor and the locator and door opening 
pins may be mounted directly to the carriage plate 152. Additionally the 
machine may be modified so as to handle a tape with a different width or a 
different kind of tape. Still other changes will be obvious to persons 
skilled in the art.