Seagate Technology Incorporated

David Douglas Koester

Dennis R Nielsen

Michael William Pfeiffer

Michael D Schroeder

Eric Douglas Johnson

Stephen Peter LeClair

Kevin James Spiczka

Lawrence E Hanke

David F Borning

Kenneth Lee Pottebaum

John W Elsing

Kurt J Korkowski

Peter Roman Janik

William J Kostecka

Glenn A Benson

Paul D Lofstrom

Lawrence E Hanks

Leon Zhao

Ram V Pazhayannur

Scott A Bengtson

Various aspects of the present disclosure are directed towards an apparatus/method including rolling elements, an outer ring surrounding an inner ring and the inner and outer rings guiding rotation of the rolling elements in a rotation region therebetween, and a cap secured to the inner ring. The apparatus further includes a bearing shield arrangement secured to one of the outer and inner rings and configured with the other of the outer and inner rings to define a gap for the flow of vapor or lubricant from the rotation region through a vapor restricting pathway.

Apparatuses and methods having a bearing shield arrangement

A method of manufacturing a disc drive actuator is provided. The method includes manufacturing a disc drive actuator and machining a peripheral surface of the actuator. The peripheral surface is machined to obtain a desired profile dimension and thereby reduce variations in resonance characteristics from one actuator to the next.

Machining actuator periphery to reduce resonance variation

A method for balancing a spindle assembly for compensating for dynamic imbalance of the spindle assembly. The method uses a plurality of adjustable eccentric rings for dynamically balancing the spindle assembly. The plurality of eccentric rings are preassembled with the spindle assembly and the method includes the steps of measuring an imbalance of a combination of the spindle assembly and the eccentric rings preassembled with the spindle assembly and balancing the spindle assembly by adjusting the eccentric rings based upon a measured imbalance of the combination of the spindle assembly and the eccentric rings.

Method for balancing a rotating assembly using eccentric rings

A balancing system for a spindle assembly for compensating for dynamic imbalance of the spindle assembly. The spindle assembly includes a rotor rotatable about a shaft. The rotor includes a plurality of radially concentric channels supporting adjustable eccentric rings for dynamically balancing the spindle assembly. The spindle assembly is balanced by adjusting the balanced of eccentric rings assembled with the spindle assembly based upon a measured balance of the spindle assembly and the eccentric rings.

Balancing system with adjustable eccentric rings for a disc drive assembly

A cover for a disc drive assembly including multiple damped cover plates. The multiple damped cover plates include a first cover plate and a second cover plate. Each of the first and second cover plates includes a damped structure, such as a viscoelastic damping layer, to damp vibration of the cover to reduce acoustic.

Cover including multiple cover plates with damped layers

An information handling system including a base, a disc rotatably attached to the base; and an actuator assembly movably attached to the base. The actuator assembly also has a main body which includes a pivoting portion, an actuator arm attached to the main body, and a yoke attached to the main body. The yoke has a roughened bonding surface. A voice coil bonded to the yoke. The bonding surface has a plurality of grooves therein. The grooves or any roughening results in a plurality of features on the bonding surface of the yoke which increases the area of the bonding surface for bonding the voice coil to the yoke of the actuator assembly. The plurality of features in the bonding surface are designed to minimize cracks or potential cracking in the yoke of the actuator assembly.

Actuator assembly with enhanced bonding surface for bonding a voice coil to a yoke

Disclosed is a disc drive voice coil magnet and spacer arrangement. Voice coil magnets and/or pole pieces are spaced from one another by spacers. On of the spacers is located beyond the coil end of the actuator. This allows the actuator to be lowered into the drive deck in an off-disc position without colliding with the spacer, thereby facilitating in-deck merging of the actuator.

Magnet spacer location facilitating in-deck merge

Low power high speed disc drive spindle seal

A housing structure for a disc drive including a rigid housing having opposed inner and outer surfaces and a spindle opening. A spindle cap is sized to fit in the spindle opening and includes opposed inner and outer surfaces. The inner surface of the spindle cap is raised above or spaced from the inner surface of the rigid housing for spindle clearance.

Housing cover with spindle cap

An improved bearing cartridge to rotationally couple an actuator block supporting a plurality of heads to a chassis of a disc drive. The improved bearing cartridge having increased radial stiffness and including first and second concentrically aligned elongated sleeves. The first sleeve is coupled to the chassis and the second sleeve is coupled to the actuator block. The first and second sleeves are spaced to define a rotation gap therebetween. The bearing cartridge includes first and second spaced bearings positioned proximate to opposed ends of one of said first or second sleeves and at least one intermediate bearing spaced from the first and second bearings and positioned between the first and second bearings to rotationally connect the first and second sleeves.

Bearing for an actuator of a disc drive

An E-block has an actuator arm carrying a slider; the E-block being rotatable to position the slider over a selected track of a recording disc of a magnetic disc drive. The E-block has a stop pin arranged to engage a first stop when the slider is positioned adjacent an inner track on the disc and to engage a second stop when the slider is positioned adjacent an outer track on the disc. A damping mechanism is attached to the E-block and engages the stop pin to dampen vibration in the stop pin. In one embodiment, the damping mechanism includes a rigid arm mounted to the E-block and a resilient damper mounted to the arm and to the pin. In one form of this embodiment, the resilient damper includes an aperture, and the stop pin is supported within the aperture in interference fit to the damper.

Mechanism to dampen vibration of a stop pin of a disc drive actuator arm

A bistable latch assembly is disclosed which includes a latch lever supported on a pivot pin adjacent the rotating discs and the actuator arm, and rotatable between two stable positions defined at the opposite end of the lever from the pivot pin by a pair of stop pins. The latch lever includes a magnet movable between these two stop pins, the attraction of the magnet to the pins defining the two stable positions for the lever. An edge of the lever facing the disc includes a notch which captures a pin extending from the actuator arm. When the latch lever engages the actuator arm pin in the notch, then the magnet of the latch lever is held by magnetic attraction against one of the stop pins. When the actuator arm is to be put to use in the disc drive, the voice coil motor is actuated, and has sufficient power to cause the stop pin on the actuator arm to disengage from the notch. As the pin slides along an edge of the latch lever, it moves the magnet from one stable position to the other stable position causing the latch lever to rest against the other stop pin.

Voice coil actuated bi-stable latch assembly

In a magnetic head carrying device a method and apparatus for removing a magnetic head carrying arm from a support arm wherein ball stake mounting is used to affix the magnetic head carrying arm to the support arm. Tool receiving holes are provided in the magnetic head carrying arm, in a mounting plate, and in the support arm. Raised portions of a first tool may be inserted into the tool receiving holes of the magnetic head carrying arm and of the mounting plate. Raised portions of a second tool may be inserted into the tool receiving hole of the support arm. As the first and second tools are forced together, the ball stake mount is disassembled.

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Chanhassen, MN, United States of America

David Douglas Koester