25 Facts About Punched tape

Punched tape or perforated paper tape is a form of data storage that consists of a long strip of paper in which holes are punched.

Punched tape was used throughout the 19th and for much of the 20th centuries for programmable looms, teleprinter communication, for input to computers of the 1950s and 1960s, and later as a storage medium for minicomputers and CNC machine tools.

Punched tape was used to transmit data for manufacture of read-only memory chips.

The resulting paper Punched tape, called a "chain of cards", was stronger and simpler both to create and to repair.

The Punched tape reader used compressed air, which passed through the holes and was directed into certain mechanisms of the caster.

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In computer numerical control machining applications, paper tape is uncommon, but some modern systems still measure the size of stored CNC programs in feet or meters, corresponding to the equivalent length if the data were actually punched on paper tape.

The bits on the narrower width of the Punched tape were generally the least significant bits, when the code was represented as numbers in a digital system.

Many early machines used oiled paper Punched tape, which was pre-impregnated with a light machine oil, to lubricate the reader and punch mechanisms.

The plastic Punched tape was sometimes transparent, but usually was aluminized to make it opaque enough for use in high-speed optical readers.

Chad from oiled paper Punched tape was particularly problematic, as it tended to clump and build up, rather than flowing freely into a collection container.

Variation on the Punched tape punch was a device called a Chadless Printing Reperforator.

Disadvantage to this technology was that, once punched, chadless tape did not roll up well for storage, because the protruding flaps of paper would catch on the next layer of tape so it could not be coiled up tightly.

However, the mechanical Punched tape readers used in most standard-speed equipment had no problem with chadless Punched tape, because they sensed the holes by means of blunt spring-loaded mechanical sensing pins, which easily pushed the paper flaps out of the way.

Punched tape was used as a way of storing messages for teletypewriters.

Paper Punched tape was an important storage medium for computer-controlled wire-wrap machines, for example.

The Punched tape was used for inventory tracking, recording department and class numbers of items sold.

Punched paper tape was used by the newspaper industry until the mid-1970s or later.

The paper Punched tape canister is a tamper-resistant container that contains features to prevent undetected alteration of the contents.

The hole patterns of punched tape can be decoded by eye if necessary, and even editing of a tape is possible by manual cutting and splicing.

In cryptography applications, a punched tape used to distribute a key can be rapidly and completely destroyed by burning, preventing the key from falling into the hands of an enemy.

Rewinding a Punched tape required a takeup reel or other measures to avoid tearing or tangling the Punched tape.

In some uses, "fan fold" Punched tape simplified handling as the Punched tape would refold into a "takeup tank" ready to be re-read.

The information density of punched tape was low compared with magnet tape, making large datasets clumsy to handle in punched tape form.

Paper Punched tape loop controlling paper positioning in a IBM 1403 line printer .

Late-1970s heavy-duty Punched tape punch used by the US National Security Agency for secret code distribution.

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