Maxtor Corporation

Seagate Technology Incorporated

Western Digital Technologies, Inc.

Bernhard Hiller

Erhard Theodor Schreck

Francis P Crimi

William Bernard Boyle

Michael L Mallary

Michael M Lee

Don Brunnett

Paul B Keenan

Bruce C Schardt

Stan Shepherd

Maurice L Schlumberger

Jih-Ping Peng

Chandra Shaker Buddhavaram

Mark Rice

Larry Ernest Wittig

David Chew

Andrew LeFebvre

Pantelis Alexopoulos

David M Sigmond

Samuel Richard Duell

Glenn Douglas Albert

Eric Kvamme

Leroy L Leach

Craig Smith

Dennis Chen

Robert L Kimball

Richard Sonnenfeld

William Dale Robertson

Thierry Chatard

Dick Yaeger

Jeff Griffiths

Johanna Hernandez

James McGrath

Anthony P Sannino

Kathleen Fitzgerald, Legal Representative

Robert Milby

Haibao Zhao

Richard Yaeger

A plurality of commands is received from a host to perform at least one of reading data and writing data on a magnetic storage media of a Data Storage Device (DSD). The plurality of commands is clustered for performance based at least in part on a timing control of a fly-height heater of the DSD that is configured to adjust a flying height of a head of the DSD while the head is flying over the magnetic storage media. A cluster of commands is performed including the plurality of commands by controlling the head to perform at least one of reading and writing data on the magnetic storage media for the cluster of commands.

Command clustering for data storage device

A disk drive includes a drive housing, a storage disk, a head suspension assembly, an actuator assembly and a controller. The storage disk has a disk surface including a data region that stores data. In one embodiment, the head suspension assembly includes a slider and an attitude adjuster. The slider has an inner side edge, an outer side edge and a data transducer. The attitude adjuster can adjust a roll attitude and/or a pitch attitude of the slider relative to the disk surface. The slider moves between a first position wherein the data transducer is not positioned directly over the data region and a second position wherein the data transducer is positioned directly over the data region during one of a load operation and an unload operation. The controller controls an electrical signal to the attitude adjuster during one of the load operation and the unload operation to dynamically adjust the attitude of the slider. The attitude adjuster can include one or more piezoelectric elements that expand and/or contract to adjust the orientation of the slider relative to the storage disk.

Slider of a disk drive having data favorable load/unload attitude

An apparatus includes: a media; a head over the media; and control circuitry, coupled to the heads, configured to: select an operational head from the heads based on margin data collected under a lube waterfall condition, and perform an access to the media with the operational head.

Electronic system with media recovery mechanism and method of operation thereof

Systems and methods from loading/unloading a data head for a disk drive provide for more efficient use of disk space. A method of loading/unloading a data head for a disk drive comprises determining a disk phase of a spinning disk arrangement, determining a loading/unloading position based on the disk phase, and loading or unloading the data head on or from, respectively, the spinning disk arrangement based on the determined disk phase. The determining a disk phase may be based on zero crossing of voltages for a three-phase motor associated with the spinning disk arrangement.

Disk-synchronized loading/unloading of magnetic head

A RAID system is provided which can be implemented as a hardware RAID system while avoiding certain shortcomings of previous RAID systems. The RAID system makes it possible to avoid or reduce the number of buffers or processors and can take advantage of drive logic to achieve RAID functions or enhancements. RAID functionality can be provided in a manner to accommodate one or more ATA drive interfaces. To avoid drive replacement problems, host requests for drive serial numbers are responded to with a mirror serial number. In one embodiment, the read address is used to select which drive will perform a read operation.

RAID system and method compatible with improved drive select

A disk drive includes a drive housing and a storage disk rotatably coupled to the drive housing. In one embodiment, the storage disk includes a first substrate, a spaced-apart second substrate, a damping layer and a rigid substrate spacer. The first substrate is formed from a first material having a first composition and the second substrate is formed from a second material having a second composition. The damping layer is positioned at least partially between the first substrate and the second substrate. The rigid substrate spacer is positioned at least partially between the first substrate and the second substrate, and is formed from a third material having a third composition that is different from the first composition and the second composition. In one embodiment, the first composition is different than the second composition. The first substrate has a first thickness and the second substrate has a second thickness that can be different than the second thickness. In another embodiment, the disk drive includes a disk clamp having an upper portion and a lower portion. The rigid substrate spacer can be at least partially positioned directly between the upper and lower portions.

Storage disk having increased damping characteristics in a disk drive

A controller is provided having a circuit that uses non-repeatable run-out data and temperature data to provide a compensation for a fly height of a head. A disk drive may also be provided having a head for reading data from a disk, a thermistor, and a controller for controlling a fly height of the head based on temperature data obtained from the thermistor to refine a pressure determination. A method can include estimating a first pressure by the use of non-repeatable run-out data and temperature data corresponding to a disk drive.

Fly height compensation using temperature and non-repeatable runouts

Compositions and materials for use in load/unload ramps in magnetic disk drive assemblies are disclosed, particularly compositions or materials to improve at least one of the desired characteristics of low wear, low cost, high mechanical stability and high moldability. Thermoplastic polymers, such as acetal homopolymers, acetal copolymers, polyetherimides, polyphenylene sulfides, and polysulfones, are combined with other compositions, such as polyaramides, to improve the characteristics of a load/unload ramp constructed therefrom. Additionally, another material may be added, such as a polytetrafluoroethylene or perfluoropolyether.

Load/unload ramps and their compositions

The present invention generally relates to a disk drive and methods for operating the same. A venting assembly of this disk drive generally includes a slider having an air bearing surface system for generating positive pressure to urge the slider away from a data storage disk, and a suction cavity for generating negative pressure to urge the slider toward the surface of the disk. The slider of the venting assembly also generally includes a first venting hole extending through the slider within the suction cavity. A first valve of the venting assembly is generally associated with the first venting hole to at least assist in controlling airflow through the same. Contact between a load beam of the venting assembly and a corresponding load/unload ramp of the disk drive during unloading of the slider generally tends to open the first valve and substantially dissipate the negative pressure within the suction cavity.

Load/unload-type disk drive slider having a negative pressure reduction hole

A method and apparatus for reducing the acoustic output of a computer disk drive during a load or unload operation are provided. According to the invention, a pulse train having pulse widths that vary from one pulse to the next is provided to a voice coil motor while the transducer head is being loaded to or unloaded from the surface of the disk. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a proportional term equal to the inverse of the pulse width is supplied to the controller such that, with all other inputs to the controller being equal, a pulse train having pulses of equal total power are produced. By providing pulses of varying widths, the acoustic output of the disk drive is spread among multiple frequencies, and the amplitude at any one frequency is diminished as compared to a pulse train having pulses of equal width.

Method and apparatus for the acoustic improvement of the pulsed current method for controlling the velocity of a transducer head

Compositions and materials for use in load/unload ramps in magnetic disk drive assemblies are disclosed, particularly compositions or materials to improve at least one of the desired characteristics of low wear, low cost, high mechanical stability and high moldability. Thermoplastic polymers, such as acetal homopolyrners, acetal copolymers, polyetherimides, polyphenylene sulfides, and polysulfones, are combined with other compositions, such as polyaramides, to improve the characteristics of a load/unload ramp constructed therefrom. Additionally, another material may be added, such as a polytetrafluoroethylene or perfluoropolyether.

A method for overcoming a stiction condition in a disk drive is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes the steps of: (1) providing a plurality of disks each having a pair of disk surfaces, each of the disk surfaces having a corresponding actuator arm assembly including a head; (2) providing a spin motor for rotating said plurality of disks when a stiction condition does not exist; (3) providing a voice coil motor for positioning said heads relative to said disk surfaces when a stiction condition does not exist; (3) providing a microprocessor for controlling application of a voice coil motor current to said voice coil motor and for controlling application of a spin motor current to said spin motor; (4) applying a spin motor current to said spin motor; (5) sensing that the spin motor is not rotating said plurality of disks and, hence, a stiction condition exists; (6) applying a first oscillating current to said voice coil motor in response to said stiction condition, said first oscillating current having a fixed frequency and a first amplitude; (7) determining whether said spin motor is rotating in response to said first oscillating current; and, (8) continuing to apply said first oscillating current for at least one commutation state of said spin motor after determining that said spin motor is rotating in response to said first oscillating current.

Method for overcoming a stiction condition in disk drive

This invention generally relates to dynamic load/unload technology in magnetic disk drive assemblies and, more particularly, to a combination of load/unload ramps with shipping combs and/or limiters, such as disk, tab, flexure, suspension or arm limiters, to provide protection to the head assemblies, arms and disks of the magnetic disk drive assemblies.

Universal load/unload ramp

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Bernhard Hiller