Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.v.

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies

International Business Machines Corporation

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies B.v.

Andrei Khurshudov

Donald Ray Gillis

Jorge F Escobar

Brian D Strom

Son Van Nguyen

Cherngye Hwang

Peter Michael Baumgart

Norbert A Feliss

Vinod Sharma

Debasis Baral

Hard disk drive housing including at least one inlet, at least one outlet. The inlet is situated near spindle and above disk in hard disk drive. The outlet is situated near outside diameter of disk. When disk rotates, air pressure near the inlet is lower than air pressure near the outlet, causing a flow of air through the hard disk drive from the inlet to the outlet, tending to cool the hard disk drive. The inlet may include inlet filter. Outlet may include outlet filter. Manufacturing the housing by providing the inlet and the outlet. The disk cover as manufacturing product. Operating the hard disk drive containing the housing. The hard disk drive containing the housing, and manufacturing the hard disk drive. The hard disk drive as manufacturing product. A system containing at least one of the hard disk drives. Manufacturing the system, and the system as a manufacturing product.

Method and apparatus for circulating air through a hard disk drive

This invention includes a method providing at least two boot environments with only one hard disk drive, by using at least two disk surfaces within the hard disk drive. The invention includes the hard disk drives implementing the method. The hard disk drive may include more than two disk surfaces and support more than two boot environments. The invention includes making the hard disk drive, and the product of that process. The invention includes computer systems including at least one of these hard disk drives. The invention also includes removable storage systems which include at least one hard disk drive, and which may communicate via a wireline and/or wireless physical transport with a computer system.

Method and apparatus for multiple boot environments within a hard disk drive

A device for extending an event time of a physical shock imparted on an electronic device. The device includes a rigid or semi-rigid frame and a resiliently elastic material coupled to the frame, the resiliently elastic material suspending an electronic device with respect to the frame. The resiliently elastic material may be in the form of a sheet, a strap, a rib, and combinations thereof. One preferred resiliently elastic material is a polymeric material.

Protective device for reducing the impact of physical shock

A hard disk drive with a controller that controls a movement of a head relative to a disk. The controller causes the head to avoid a defect on the disk during a seek routine. The location of the defect is previously identified and stored in the drive. The drive may create a 'no-fly' zone about the defect to insure no contact with the head. The no-fly zone can be avoided by delaying the start of a seek routine, varying the displacement profile of the head or other techniques.

Method to avoid contact between the head and disk protrusions

Determining a contact condition between read-write head and accessed disk surface inside hard disk drive, where micro-actuator assembly mechanically couples to slider and electrically interacts through signal path. Signal path sensed, creating sensed feedback signal, used to determine contact condition, which indicates when read-write head is, or is not, in contact with accessed disk surface. Means for implementing this process. Contact condition is product of process. The process may respond to contact condition, altering read-write head flying height. Process may be implemented as operations of embedded control system and/or servo controller. Method of predictive failure analysis using the contact condition to estimate performance parameter and create performance degradation warning. Manufacture process collecting contact condition to partly create reliability estimate of the hard disk drive, which may be form of Mean Time to Failure. Manufacturing may further include screening the hard disk drive based upon the reliability estimate.

Methods for detecting contact between a read-write head and the accessed disk surface in a hard disk drive

A method and program product supporting adjusting a temperature of a hard disk drive (HDD) during testing. An HDD test program is performed within a pre-determined optimal test temperature range. The HDD is kept within this pre-determined test temperature range by switching HDD operation modes back and forth between a higher heat generating Rapid Seek Mode and a lower heat generating IDLE mode. The HDD is thus kept within the optimal test temperature range without the use of external heating and/or cooling devices.

Drive temperature self-adjustment for temperature-sensitive measurements

A method of thermally bonding lubricant over a surface of a magnetic disk in a disk drive involves providing a heat source at an air bearing surface (ABS) of a magnetic head; causing the heat source to be energized to produce heat; and causing the magnetic head to be moved across a surface portion of a magnetic disk so that lubricant is thermally bonded over the surface portion from the heat produced by the heat source. Preferably, this lubricant bonding mode of operation is performed on a regular or periodic basis. Alternatively, the mode is activated based on a predetermined environmental condition (e.g. temperature or humidity) or from an external signal. In one example, the heat source is comprised of first and/or second pole pieces of the magnetic head through which an electrical current is passed. In another example, the heat source is comprised of a separate heating element which is formed on or within the magnetic head (which may be the same heating element utilized for thermal-assist writing to the magnetic disk). In yet another example, heat for thermally bonding lubricant is generated by reading data from a data block on the magnetic disk and writing the data back to the data block in a repetitive fashion.

Methods and apparatus for thermally bonding lubricant to a disk surface with use of a heat source in a magnetic head

A hard disk drive (HDD) capable of controlling its own internal temperature during testing. A test program embedded in the HDD is run only within a pre-determined optimal test temperature range. The internal temperature of the HDD is kept within this pre-determined test temperature range by switching HDD operation modes back and forth between a higher heat generating Rapid Seek Mode and a lower heat generating IDLE mode. The HDD is thus kept within the optimal test temperature range without the use of external heating and/or cooling devices.

Hard disk drive having drive temperature self-adjustment for temperature-sensitive measurements

A computer system that adjusts an internal temperature of a hard disk drive (HDD) during HDD testing. An HDD test program under the control of the computer system is performed within a pre-determined optimal test temperature range. The HDD is kept within this pre-determined test temperature range by the computer system switching HDD operation modes back and forth between a higher heat generating Rapid Seek Mode and a lower heat generating IDLE mode. The HDD is thus kept within the optimal test temperature range without the use of external heating and/or cooling devices.

Computer system having drive temperature self-adjustment for temperature-sensitive measurements

Methods and apparatus for thermally bonding lubricant to a disk surface by the repetitive writing of data

Methods and apparatus for thermally bonding lubricant to a disk surface with use of a heating element formed in a magnetic head

A storage system slider having a trailing edge pad and method for making the same is disclosed. A trailing edge pad to provide a carbon-carbon contact between the storage medium surface and slider and by reducing the thickness of the DLC so that the magnetic spacing is reduced. A slider body is formed having a first side, a second side, a leading edge and a trailing edge, an air bearing surface is formed on the slider body and a trailing edge pad is formed at the trailing edge of the slider. The air bearing surface may also include a protective overcoat with decreased thickness over the air bearing surfaces. The decrease in thickness of the protective overcoat may correspond to an increase in a magnetic spacing caused by the addition of the trailing edge pad to the slider, or may be greater than the corresponding increase in a magnetic spacing caused by the addition of the trailing edge pad to the slider. Moreover, the forming of the protective coat may be omitted. In this case, the trailing edge pad provides the only carbon-carbon interface between the slider and the disk.

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Andrei Khurshudov