Advanced Intelligent Tape


Advanced Intelligent Tape is a discontinued high-speed, high-capacity magnetic tape data storage format developed and controlled by Sony. It competed mainly against the DLT, LTO, DAT/DDS, and VXA formats. AIT uses a cassette similar to Video8. Super AIT is a higher capacity variant using wider tape in a larger, single-spool cartridge. Both AIT and SAIT use the helical scan method of reading and writing the tape.

Form factors

AIT technology was available in two form factors.
In March 2010, Sony announced the discontinuation of the AIT product line, and renewed collaboration with Hewlett-Packard on further development of the DDS tape format,

Compatibility

One of the most compelling features of the AIT format is that many generations are both backwards and forwards compatible. This allows multiple generations of tape drives to both read and write to multiple generations of tape media.

AIT generations

AIT-1

GenerationAIT-3AIT-3ExAIT-4AIT-5AIT-6
Release Date2001200620052006cancelled
Native Capacity 100150200400800
Max Speed 12182424
EncodingExtended TC-PRMLTurbo-coded modulationTurbo-coded modulation
Tape Length 230246246
Tape Thickness 5.34.84.8
WORM CapableYESYESYESYES

AIT-3

GenerationSAIT-1SAIT-2SAIT-3SAIT-4
Release Date20032006cancelledcancelled
Native Capacity 50080020004000
Max Speed 3045120240
Tape Length 600640
Tape Thickness 8.6

SAIT-1

The AIT format was developed and is controlled by Sony.

SAIT-2

Released in 2006 by Sony, available only in libraries, 800 GB native and 45 MB/s sustained transfer rate.

Technical features

AME

Advance Metal Evaporated is a different formulation of tape media.

MIC

Memory in Cassette
Memory chip in the cartridge that keeps relevant information about the tape.

R-MIC

Remote - Memory in Cassette
Like MIC except it does not require physical contact.

WORM

functionality, useful for archive keeping.