Patent ID: 7733598

Claim:
A tape system comprising: a tape drive including a read/write head and at least two drive mounted tape guides, the drive mounted tape guides being spaced apart at a fixed distance from each other, each of the drive mounted tape guides including an upper flange and a lower flange, and the read/write head being moveable toward and away from the drive mounted tape guides; a tape cartridge including tape, at least two tape reels to receive the tape, at least two cartridge tape guides spaced apart at a fixed distance from each other, and a housing having a side wall and a base wall, the base wall defining a cutout between the cartridge tape guides to receive the drive mounted tape guides, and the side wall defining an access opening to expose a portion of the tape that extends between the cartridge tape guides to the read/write head; and wherein loading the tape cartridge in the tape drive moves the drive mounted tape guides through the cutout in the base wall to align the drive mounted tape guides and the cartridge tape guides in a linear relationship, locates the tape between the read/write head and the drive mounted tape guides, guides the tape between the upper and lower flanges of the drive mounted tape guides, and provides the read/write head access to engage the tape through the access opening in the side wall of the housing to create a recessed portion in the tape between the drive mounted tape guides, the recessed portion extending generally perpendicular to a plane parallel to a longitudinal axis of the drive mounted tape guides.