US3381299A - Information storage device - Google Patents

Description

April 30, 1968 YOW-JIUN HU 3,381,299

INFORMATION STORAGE DEVI GE Filed June 13, 1966 INVENTOR Yaw-Jun Hu BY h w ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,381,299 INFORMATION STORAGE DEVICE YoW-Jiun Hu, 5831 Quantrell Ave., Apt. 401, Alexandria, Va. 22312 Filed June 13, 1966, Ser. No. 556,924 Claims. (Cl. 346-21) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An information storage device comprising an endless wax coated band surrounded by an endless translucent band. The bands are moved together over spaced parallel rollers and under embossing members arranged to strike the translucent band and displace the wax coating to store the desired information. The information is removed by separating the bands.

addition, the machines have limited capacity for paper.

supply and therefore require continual stoppage of operation to provide a new paper supply. This is costly and time consuming.

In accordance with the present invention, a new temporary record is provided which is reusable and of low initial cost, wherein the paper record of the prior art is replaced by an endless record member of the type known in the prior art as a Magic Slate. The Magic Slate material is formed in an endless band around a tension roller and a pressure roller which are separated in space.

The endless band includes a wax coated black tape layer and a translucent tape layer, the layers being separated just prior to recording thereon by a separator and waxer to clear the record. An adhesive layer can be incorporated onto the black tape layer, if desired, to act as a bond.

ing agent. The record is formed by printing thereon with embossed members such as typewriter keys, the record being formed in the same manner as the well known Magic Slate and being revolved aboilt the rollers by a ratchet member in the well known manner.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an inexpensive reusable information record for use with typewriters, calculators and the like which does not require an ink ribbon.

It is a further object of'this invention to provide an endless reusable record for typewriters, calculators and the like.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide an endless Magic Slate including a separator of the Slate" layers and a waxer for one of the Slate layers to enable continual use.

The above objects and still further objects of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art when considered in view of the following specification of a preferred embodiment of the invention which is provided by way of example and not by way of limitation, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a view in elevation of the preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side view of the recording medium with rollers and separator;

FIGURE 3 is a view taken along the line 33 of FIGURE 2; and

3,381,299 Patented Apr. 30, 1968 FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view of the recording medium with printing thereon taken along the line 4-4 of FIGURE 2.

Referring now to FIGURE 1, there is shown the information recording device of the present invention as it would be incorporated into a typewriter, calculator and the like. The recording device 1 includes a resilient roller 3 and a tension roller 5. The resilient roller 3 includes a shaft 7 fixedly positioned in side plates 9 and Y11 in well known manner. The shaft 7 passes through the side plate 11 and includes a ratchet 13 thereon rotated by a panel 13' for rotating the shaft 7 when a force is applied to the teeth 15 thereof in the well known manner.

The side plates 9 and 11 include rectangular apertures 17 and 19 therein in which the alignment member 23 of the tension roller 5 can move. The shaft 21 is retained in alignment by the alignment members 23 secured to the shaft 21 and of smaller cross-section than the apertures 17 and 19. An alignment member 23 is positioned inside the apertures v17 and 19. The alignment members 23 include an extending plug member 25 integral therewith or secured thereto for retaining tensioning springs 27 which are also secured to plug members 29 on the side plates 9 and 11. The resilient roller 3 includes an outer rubber portion 53 and an inner metal portion 55 secured around the shaft 7 (FIGURE 2) whereas, the tension roller 5 includes an outer rubber portion 57 and an inner metal portion 59 secured around the shaft 21.

Also secured to the side plates 9 and 11 is a separator and waxer 31 (FIGURES 2 and 3), this member being secured to the side plates by its shaft 33 and securing members 61 secured thereto. The separator and waxer 31 includes a metal core which is the shaft 33, the portion 35 thereof comprising a hard wax, preferably a parafiin wax.

An endless ban-d recording elemen 37 is positioned around the rollers 3 and 5 and is under tension due to the action of the springs 27. The recording element includes the materials of the well known Magic Slate and includes, as better shown in FIGURES 2 to 4, a translucent tape outer layer 41, a wax coated black tape inner layer 39, and an optional adhesive layer 40 therebetween, between the black tape 39 and the wax layer thereon. The separator and waxer 31 separates the layers 39, 40 and 41 and provides a wax coating to the adhesive layer 40 as it passes thereover. Both tapes 39 and 41 can be made of well known plastics, examples of which are polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene, Myler, etc. The adhesive layer 40 is formed with the layer 39 and stays therewith upon separation.

The recording element 37 is held flush with the resilient roller 3 by means of pressure rollers 43 which are positioned on the shaft 45. The shaft 45 is secured for rotation in the side plate 11 and is biased against the roller 3 by a spring member 47. A printing hammer 49 is shown having embossed indicia 51 for entering data onto the recording element 37.

In operation, the combined tapes 39 and 41 appear white. Data is recorded on the recording element 37 by the impingement of the embossed printing hammer 49 thereon in well known manner. This causes the translucent tape layer 41 to be depressed in the shape of the embossing into the wax coated black layer 39 to provide a visible black recording 63 of the indicia on the printing hammer. This is continued line by line with the rotation of the ratchet 13 until the recording element passes around the tension roller 5 whereupon the layer 39 with the adhesive layer 40 thereon is separated by the separator and waxer 31 from the layer 41 to remove the recorded indicia therefrom and add wax to the layer 39 and adhesive layer 40 so that it is conditioned to repeat the recording operation unimpaired. The adhesive layer 40 is positioned on the 3 tape 39 for the purpose of receiving wax from the waxer 31.

Due to the unequal length of the two tape layers 39 and 41, it is possible to distribute the printing zone uniformly over the entire tape surface. In other words, the length of the translucent 41 can be made to be a non-integer multiple of the line advance (pitch) as determined by the ratchet mechanism 13 so that the same area on the tape does not fall exactly under the printing zone after each complete cycle thereof. The layers 39 and 41 would then always engage each other at fresh areas on successive passes through the printing zone.

The tension roller 5 can be replaced by an endless tape cartridge to provide additional capacity. Such cartridges are well known in the magnetic tape art.

In addition, the above described system can be used with a ribbon or carbon paper or both and paper to provide single or multiple permanent copies of the data being recorded in addition to the temporary storage of data described hereinabove.

While the invention has been described with respect to preferred embodiments thereof, many variations and modifications thereof will immediately become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is therefore the intention that the appended claims be interpreted as broadly as possible in view of the prior art to include all such variations and modifications.

What is claimed is:

1. A reusable recording device which includes an endless translucent sheet, a dark colored endless sheet having a deformable wax coating thereon substantially coextensive with said translucent sheet, positioned within said translucent sheet and in intimate contact therewith, means positioned within said endless sheets for maintaining said sheets under tension, and means positioned between said translucent sheet and said coated sheet for separating said sheets.

2. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said means positioned between said sheets further includes means for applying wax to said dark colored sheet.

3. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 1, further including an adhesive layer positioned on said dark colored sheet.

4. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said means positioned within said endless sheets includes a first roller rotatable on its axis and a second roller, said second roller including tensioning means for providing a predetermined tension to said sheets.

5. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said means positioned within said endless sheets includes a first roller rotatable on its axis and a second roller, said second roller including tensioning means for providing a predetermined tension to said sheets.

6. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 1, further including means to step said means positioned within said sheets in a step-by-step manner, each said step rotating said sheets a predetermined distance, the length of said dark colored sheet being longer than said translucent sheet by an amount equal to a non-integral multiple of said predetermined distance, whereby said translucent sheet will move relative to said deformable sheet .an amount equal to said non-integral multiple of said predetermined distance for every revolution of said sheets.

7. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 5, further including means to step said means positioned within said sheets in a step-by-step manner, each said step rotating said sheets a predetermined distance, the

length of said dark-colored sheet being longer than said translucent sheet by an amount equal to a non-integral multiple of said predetermined distance, whereby said translucent sheet will move relative to said dark sheet an amount equal to said non-integral multiple of said predetermined distance for every revolution of said sheets.

8. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 4, wherein said means positioned between said sheets is positioned between said rollers to separate the sheets before winding over the first roll.

9. A reusable recording device as set forth in claim 5, wherein said means positioned between said sheets is positioned between said rollers to separate the sheets before winding over the first roller.

10. A recording device comprising spaced parallel rollers, an endless band having a deformable coating thereon trained about the rollers, a translucent band trained over the endless band and in contact with said coating, means driving the bands about the rollers, and means for separating the bands prior to winding over one of the rollers.

11. A device as defined in claim 10 wherein the driving means comprises a ratchet connected to drive said one roll.

12. A device as defined in claim 10 wherein the separating means comprises a roller between said parallel rollers.

13. A device as defined in claim 12 further including means for embossing information on said deformable coating.

14. A device as defined in claim 13 wherein the embossing means comprises printing hammers.

15. A device as defined in claim 10 wherein the other roll is an endless tape cartridge.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,706,046 8/ 1926 Tisdale 34621 FOREIGN PATENTS 637,863 4/1962 Italy.

RICHARD B. WILKINSON, Primary Examiner.

EDITH SIMMONS, Assistant Examiner.

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