Skew estimation and compensation in tape drives with flangeless rollers

Magnetic tape remains the medium of choice for long-term data storage at the lowest possible cost. Moreover, tape-cartridge capacities are expected to maintain a compound annual growth rate of about 40%, resulting in a 128 TByte tape-cartridge capacity by 2022, as forecast by the Information Storage Industry Consortium (INSIC) roadmap. To achieve these capacities in future tape products, the data track width has to be aggressively reduced through ultra-precise tape head positioning.