Once again BOW Industries provides a solution to the magnetic tape user with the introduction of the Model CD1200A. The CD1200A is the first device to provide truly effective cleaning, gentle handling and optical inspection for D1 & D2 (19 mm) high-density digital cassettes. The CD1200A employs the basic time proven cleaning principles that have been the hallmark of BOW's commitment to quality tape care.

When a cassette is inserted, the Model CD1200A senses which cassette size has been inserted (Small, Medium or Large) and moves the reel motors into the proper position. The cassette is then automatically lowered onto the tape deck and the tape is extracted from the cassette's shell by flangeless roller guides. The CD1200A will then run a complete cleaning/inspecting cycle, which is from BOT to EOT and then back. Optical inspection takes place in the 'reverse' mode. When the cycle is completed the tape is retracted into the cassette shell and automatically ejected. The units are also capable of fully manual operation.

In one cycle the tape is automatically extracted from the cassette, wrapped around four automatically advancing tissue stations, scrapped by a sapphire cleaning blade, optically inspected and then ejected. The automatically advancing cleaning tissues are made of non-shedding nylon material that are placed such that both the oxide and back sides of the tape are cleaned, both upstream and downstream of the sapphire cleaning blade. The cleaning blade, which burnishes the tape, is a precise bi-directional double-edged sapphire blade designed to remove debris adhered to the tape. The CD1200A also has operator selectable cleaning cycles, allowing the CD1200A to be run unattended. These selections are: "one pass with tissue and blade", "two passes with tissue only", "four passes with tissue and blade", and "four passes with blade and two with tissue only".

The CD1200A incorporates the most advanced tape path in the digital cassette industry. It is comprised of a completely "flangeless guiding" tape path and a breakthrough "active guide" design that provides totally safe and gentle handling of high-density digital tape. This breakthrough design will not damage the tape in any manner, further it will handle previously damaged tape as well.

Active guiding has been the subject of many discussions and experiments throughout the tape industry. It has long been recognized that flanged guides if not properly aligned will cause significant edge damage. Further, poor tape stack quality has been traditionally solved by the use of a pack wheel or pack roller that removes air between layers of tape to provide a precision stack, but use of a pack wheel is not possible with digital cassettes. BOW Industries’ "active guiding" system provides a uniform tape stack by simply sensing where the tape is coming out of the cassette shell and making minor corrections to guide the tape through the tape path and onto the other reel.

The front control panel provides the operator with clear at a glance information. Displayed are; tape in motion, blade remaining, blade in/out, replace tissue, clean cycles, cassette size and tape footage. A System Monitor is provided and is always operational. If a failure should occur, a number is displayed to tell the technician which board or assembly has failed and should be repaired or replaced.

The tissue spools and sapphire cleaning blade are easily accessible through a top access door, which is located directly over the cleaning station.

In 1978, BOW Industries pioneered the idea of optically scanning the tape for physical damage. Over the years this technology has been improved to its current level, which is now available in the Model CD1200A. The optical inspector is a reflective device that looks for physical damage such as folds, creases, scratches, and oxide 'nicks' along the helical or transverse scan line. By placing the sensors along the helical or transverse scan line, we can simulate the potential loss of data under recording conditions. User adjustable sensitivity controls allow you to change the length of the 'lost' scan line and the number of scan lines from 1 to 64. Defects are registered as Center Defect and Upper/Lower Edge Defects. After the tape has been cleaned and inspected, an UP/DOWN scan feature, which works in conjunction with a footage counter, locates the footage at which the defects occurred. This information can be displayed or printed out for review.

A Stop on Defect (SD) option, which works in conjunction with the optical inspector, can also be added that will allow the operator to stop the tape at a defect location and view the physical defect in the cassette window.

With a fast operating speed of 200 ips (inches per second), gentle tape handling, precise cleaning and optical inspection, the Model CD1200A is the choice for maintaining your D1 and D2 digital cassette tape library.