Patent GB-1446743-A (GB)
Title: Splicing head assembly
IPC: G11B27/06
Filed: 1973-11-19
Abstract: 1446743 Tape splicers KING INSTRUMENT CORP 19 Nov 1973 [29 Jan 1973] 53595/73 Heading G5R A splicing assembly comprises tape guide members 50, 52, 54 each having means for releasably holding a tape in position thereon and the guide members being mounted so that guides 52 and 54 are reciprocable together between a first position in which guides 50 and 52 are aligned and a second position in which guides 50 and 54 are aligned. To fill a tape cassette 12 with magnetic tape, e.g. video tape, from a reel 18 a pneumatic actuator 94 is operated to slide a carriage mounting guides 52, 54 and a roller 128 to a position in which guides 50 and 54 are aligned and tape 20 is then manually positioned around roller 28, a roller 32 connected to a tape length counter (36), Fig. 5 (not shown), and around roller 128 on to guide 54. A cutter (46), Figs. 2A, 2D (not shown), mounted on an arm 44, is then operated by a pneumatic actuator (48) to cut the tape at the left.hand end of guide 54. Actuator 94 then moves guides 52, 54 to align guides 50, 52 and the leader tape 21 extending between hubs 23 of cassette 12 is manually located along guide surface 186 and along guides 52, 50 and around rollers 27, 26. The tapes 20, 21 are retained in the guides 50, 52, 54 by suction applied through holes in the bottom of grooves in the guides. A start switch 38A is then operated to initiate an automatic cycle in which the cutter (46) is first operated to divide the leader tape between guides 50, 52; guide 54 is aligned with guide 50 and a splicing tape dispenser 8 is operated to  join the start of tape 20 to the leader tape in guide 50; air turbines are actuated to drive reel 18 and to drive hub shaft 24 to wind tape 20 into cassette 12 until the counter (36) has counted a predetermined tape length whereupon it gives an output signal stopping the turbine drives and applying brakes; the cutter (46) is again operated to divide tape 20 between guides 50 and 54; actuator 94 then aligns guides 50 and 52 and the splicing tape dispenser 8 operates to splice the end of the magnetic tape on guide 50 to the leader tape 21 on guide 52. The spliced tapes 20, 21 are then lifted off guides 50, 52, guide surface 186 and rollers 26, 27, the cassette 12 is removed from the holder 10 and one of the hubs 23 is rotated to draw the loose tape into the cassette. When loading cassettes with prerecorded tape, a playback head mounted on guide 50 or 54 may be used to sense signals recorded between programmes in order to stop the rotation of reel 18 and shaft 24. The splicing tape dispenser 8 forms an assembly which is vertically movable towards and away from guide 50 by a pneumatic actuator (162). A control member 174 is engageable with fixed pins 176 whereby during upward movement of the dispenser assembly a drive is operated to rotate feed rolls 168, 170 to feed adhesive splicing tape from a reel 167 into a channel 172. When the assembly is at its bottom position a pneumatic actuator 178 is operated to move a member 180 in the channel 172 to cut off the length of splicing tape fed thereinto and apply such length to the end parts of tapes in guides 50 and 52 or 54. The actuators (48), 94, (162) and 178 may alternatively be hydraulic or solenoid type actuators, and the shaft 24 and reel 18 may alternatively be driven by electric motors. The arrangement of the driving and braking of reel 18 and hub shaft 24 and for tape length counting, the tape cutter and the splicing tape dispenser 8 may be as disclosed in Specification 3,717,314.