TU77 UsersGuide

This document is the TU77 Magnetic Tape Transport User's Guide (EK-TU77-UG-001), published by Digital Equipment Corporation in February 1979.

It provides comprehensive information for the installation, operation, and routine maintenance of the TU77, a 9-track magnetic tape transport.

Key aspects covered include:

• General Description: An introduction to the TU77, detailing its ability to record and read data in 9-track NRZI (800 BPI) or PE (1600 BPI) formats at 125 inches per second (IPS). It explains how the TU77 interfaces with DEC systems (like PDP-11, DECsystem-20, VAX) via a Massbus controller and a TM03 tape formatter, supporting both "master" units (with TM03) and "slave" units (without TM03), with up to four TU77s per formatter. It also outlines the physical components, functional subsystems (like capstan and reel servos, pneumatic system, read/write subsystem), and detailed mechanical and electrical specifications.
• Installation: Instructions for site planning (space, power, environmental requirements), unpacking, mechanical installation for single and multi-transport setups, detailed cabling, and comprehensive acceptance testing. Acceptance tests include various tape loading sequences (without tape, inhibited autoload, autoload, manual load) and diagnostics to verify proper system function.
• Operation: A guide to the TU77's control panel, explaining each button and indicator. It provides step-by-step operating procedures for power on/off, autoload and manual tape loading (including conditions for selection, like reel size and cartridge use), mid-reel loading, unloading, rewinding, and switching the transport online/offline.
• Customer Care and Preventive Maintenance: Outlines customer responsibilities, best practices for caring for magnetic tape to prevent errors, and a preventive maintenance schedule. This includes daily cleaning instructions for tape path components (heads, air bearings, capstan, buffer boxes) using a specific cleaning kit.

In essence, the guide is a complete technical manual for users and installers of the TU77 magnetic tape transport system.