Patent ID: 6876512

Claim:
Docking apparatus operative to receive a tape cartridge and mount and demount said cartridge relative to a tape read/write assembly, comprising: (A) a bay structure adapted to receive said cartridge to define a received/extended position therefor; (B) a pawl element including a first pawl end portion and a second pawl end portion opposite said first pawl end portion and movable between an advanced position and a withdrawn position, said first pawl end portion adapted to engage and disengage said tape cartridge when said tape cartridge is in the received/extended position and said pawl element is in the advanced position; (C) a cam assembly engaging said second end portion of said pawl element, said cam assembly operative upon being driven in a first mode to move said pawl element from the advanced position to the withdrawn position thereby to move the cartridge from the received/extended position to a received/retracted position and further operative to advance the cartridge into a mounted state relative to said tape read/write assembly, said cam assembly operative upon being driven in a second mode to move the cartridge from the mounted state into a demounted state relative to said tape read/write assembly and further operative to move said pawl element from the withdrawn position to the advanced position thereby to move the cartridge from the received/retracted position to the received/extended position; and (D) a drive operative to actuate said cam assembly selectively in the first and second modes.