Earl Masterson: a fresh slant on videorecording

Both the video cameras and the video cassette recorder-players so popular today use a helical-scan mechanism. This magnetic-tape configuration provides the high data rates necessary for video recording and playback, and solves vexing problems inherent in other options that were intensely studied and developed in the 1950s. The challenge in video recording was to have the recording head move at high speed across the tape surface, yet have the tape move relatively slowly from reel to reel to allow sufficient playing time. In the innovative configuration that turned out to be superior to the other options, the tape winds helically around a cylinder carrying a spinning head, so that closely spaced tracks cross the pickup and recording gaps on a diagonal. This videotape concept originated with Earl Masterson, and here, the author presents an overview of his career