Happy National Eight Track Tape Day

Happy National Eight Track Tape Day! Yes, that’s right, April 11^th is National Eight Track Tape Day in the U.S.

Like many born after 1980, I am not personally familiar with eight track tapes. But, I have heard of them, mostly in TV shows or movies set in the heyday of the eight track tape (particularly the 1970s). However, when I learned that today is their national day, I couldn't help but think about their invention, which subsequently led to this post.

The inventor of the technology for both the tape and its player is William P. Lear, better known as the Lear behind Lear Jet Industries and holder of multiple jet component patents (like engines). He filed applications for a series of magnetic tape and player patents starting in 1964.

I found some aspects of searching for these patents a little challenging. I encountered the first searching the inventor field. The field code operator simplifies searching specific fields, but not for multiple names of one individual. (William AND Lear).inv. was the best search phrase; results may include inventors named William, but not Lear, and vice versa, but it was better than others. (William Lear).inv. did not seem to require inventor lists with both names, even among separate people. (“William Lear”).inv. had zero results; presumably due to filing with William Lear's middle name or initial. Still, the best results listed 274 patents filed by William and Lear inventor(s), too many to review (Image 1).

Image 1: Search history for William Lear on Patent Public Search

 

I decided to use a search method that I hadn’t yet attempted in the new Patent Public Search: date ranges (and I did not know the patents' names, numbers, or other identifiers). Eight track tapes and the mobile-adapted player were invented in the 1960s; I wasn’t sure of the exact dates. I tried several approaches before re-reading help documents, where I saw searching date ranges does not use standard wildcard symbols.

Despite implementing the correct date range search phrases, I still did not find both player and tape patents in one result set. Why I found success only with search 23's phrase, ((William AND Lear).inv.) AND (@py>=1960<=1970), is still baffling. Let me know if you figure it out (Image 2).

Image 2: Search history for date range in Patent Public Search

Moreover, this phrasing allowed me to view how many patents related to the eight track tape Lear filed during that period! I still sometimes forget that inventors need to file separate patents for multiple parts of an invention. Along with the tape and player anticipated, I also found patents for the spooling mechanism, the housing cartridge, the combination of a radio with the player, and more (Image 3). It’s quite a break in the long, long list of Mr. Lear's jet-focused inventions. 

Image 3: List of patents by William Lear, many related to eight track tapes

Anyway, eight track tapes were the first widely-available portable recording format, and probably led to changing the way consumers listened to music. While it didn’t immediately end radio, I think it was one of the first steps towards the fading radio industry we’re witnessing today. For over 50 years since Mr. Lear first filed his patent, people expect music and recordings to be easily transportable in a small size, largely thanks to his inventions.

Download the patent for the spool construction here, and the patent for the housing for radio and tape player here.

I’m left with only two questions: Who decided to designate an eight track tape day, and why?