Western Digital Technologies, Inc.

University of Washington

Seagate Technology International

Chaw-Wu Tseng

Kamran Oveyssi

Shawn E Casey

Ken L Chang

Jr-Yi Shen

I-Yeu Shen

Seong Woo Kang

Seungman Chang

Tomokazu Ishii

This application discloses a Load-UnLoad (LUL) hard disk drive comprising a disk base, a spindle motor mounted on the disk base for rotating at least one disk to create at least one rotating disk surface, and a head stack assembly pivotably coupled to the disk base and configured to engage an actuator latch when the sliders of the head stack assembly are to be parked. The actuator latch includes a latch beam coupled through a latch pivot to the disk base and a boss coupled to the latch beam and configured to limit the stroke of latch motion in the event of a rotary non-operational shock.

Head stack latch assembly

A method is disclosed for analyzing the vibrational characteristics of rotating devices, such as hard disk drives and jet engines, that are coupled through bearings to flexible supports. In the method, the rotating device is discretized, for example, using a mesh suitable for finite element analysis. The support is also discretized. The natural frequency of elastic vibration modes for the rotating device is calculated and the natural frequency of vibration modes for the support is calculated. The mode shapes are then calculated and a set of modal basis corresponding to the mode shapes is utilized. Bearing stiffness and damping matrices are input, and the Lagrangian equations of motion are integrated numerically in the modal space, to calculate the vibrational response of the rotating device and support. The modal space results are then transformed into ordinary space. The vibrational analysis may be used to design devices having desired vibrational characteristics.

Method for predicting vibrational characteristics of rotating structures

An actuator for a disk drive. The actuator includes an actuator body The actuator body includes a main body section defining a horizontal plane orthogonal to an axis of rotation. The actuator body further includes an actuator arm extending from the main body section. The actuator body further includes two parallel support extensions extending from the main body section opposite the actuator arm. The support extensions cooperatively form a channel between the support extensions. The actuator body further includes a coil support tab disposed adjacent the support extensions and extending orthogonal to the horizontal plane. The actuator further includes a vertical coil defining a coil plane disposed orthogonal to the horizontal plane. The coil is disposed in mechanical communication with the support extensions and the coil support tab for supporting the coil within the channel.

Actuator including an actuator body with parallel support extensions and coil support tab for supporting a coil and method of making the same

A head stack assembly for a disk drive. The head stack assembly includes an actuator body. The actuator body includes a main body section defining a horizontal plane orthogonal to an axis of rotation. The actuator body further includes an actuator arm extending from the main body section. The actuator body further includes a flex cable guiding support extending from the main body section adjacent the actuator arm orthogonal to the horizontal plane. The head stack assembly further includes a flex cable including a substantially flat main cable body disposed in mechanical communication with the flex cable guiding support in planes orthogonal to the horizontal plane parallel to the axis of rotation.

Head stack assembly with an actuator body and flex cable guiding support and method of making the same

A head stack assembly for a disk drive. The head stack assembly includes an actuator body defining an axis of rotation. The actuator body includes a main body section and a coil support portion extending from the main body section. The head stack assembly further includes an actuator coil supported by the coil support portion. The head stack assembly further includes insulated wiring extending between the actuator coil and the main body section in a direction orthogonal to the axis of rotation. The head stack assembly further includes a lateral wiring protector disposed laterally about the insulated wiring and extending from the main body section in a direction parallel to the axis of rotation. The lateral wiring protector includes an open channel with the insulated wiring disposed within the open channel.

Head stack assembly with insulated wiring extending between actuator coil and actuator main body section disposed in lateral wiring protector extending from actuator body

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Chaw-Wu Tseng