Seagate Technology Incorporated

David S Allsup

Alvin E Cox

Mark S Maggio

Steven S Eckerd

Peter Roman Janik

Michael A Cain

Brent R Brown

Matthew James Dozier

Richard G Krum

Nigel Frank Misso

John D Stricklin

Kenneth Lee Pottebaum

Curtis A Trammell

Stephen R Genheimer

Srinivas Tadepalli

Carl Fred Adams

Jackson Wagner Nichols

Eldon Leroy Nelson

Loren D Skarky

Phillip R Ridenour

Mohammad Noman Ahmad

Tom Metzner

Matthew Glenn Duvall

Carrie R McKie

Maureen A Aragon

Chad R Harrison

Jeffery Don Andress

Jess B Pool

This disclosure includes a portable data storage device comprising a mass data storage device, a cartridge housing enclosing a mass data storage device, and a flexible interconnect. The flexible interconnect includes an external electrical connector mechanically coupled to the cartridge, an internal electrical connector mechanically and electrically coupled to a data port of the mass data storage device, and a set of flexible electrical conductors electrically coupling the external electrical connector to the internal electrical connector. The flexible electrical conductors are routed within the cartridge such that no portion of the set of flexible electrical conductors lies in a volume defined by the space between the external electrical connector and the internal electrical connector.

Mass data storage device cartridge flexible interconnect

This disclosure includes an elastic shock mount for a mass data storage device cartridge comprising a shock mount body forming a void configured to receive a mass data storage device; and a set of elastic shock mount protrusions extending outward from the shock mount body. The elastic shock mount protrusions are configured to transfer shock forces experienced by the cartridge housing to durable portions of the mass data storage device.

Durable mass data storage device cartridge

A storage apparatus that electrically connects to a central processor unit includes an enclosure having a surface and a printed circuit board. The printed circuit board is fixedly coupled to the surface of the enclosure and configured to operate the storage apparatus. The printed circuit board has a plurality of contact pads. The storage apparatus also includes an electrical connector having a plurality of conductive pins electrically coupled to the plurality of contact pads. An overmold section couples the electrical connector to the surface of the enclosure.

Data storage device enclosure with overmolded connector to provide conductive lead support

An airstream conditioning apparatus for a data storage device. The data storage device has an enclosure supporting a spinning data disc and an actuator operably interfacing with the data disc in a data transfer relationship. The apparatus comprises a shroud supportable in the enclosure only downstream of the actuator with respect to air currents generated by the spinning disc. The shroud furthermore comprises a fin extending from the shroud in planar alignment with the disc.

Downstream finned shroud airstream conditioning apparatus for a data storage device

A stationary disc separator plate for use in a disc drive to suppress turbulence near a disc drive read/write head used to read data from and write data to a rotatable disc. The stationary plate is supported adjacent the disc and has substantially circular inner and outer circumferences. A leading edge and a trailing edge of the plate define an open portion to accommodate radial movement of the head adjacent the disc. A trailing edge air dam disposed at the trailing edge of the plate diverts a substantial portion of an airflow generated by rotation of the disc away from the open portion to reduce an airflow velocity at the head. In disc drives having multiple discs, a plate is preferably disposed between each pair of adjacent discs. Air vents preferably extend through the thickness of the plate to reduce aerodynamic drag and hence power consumption by the drive.

Disc separator plate with air dam

A disc drive, includes a base, a disc stack rotatably attached to the base, and an actuator assembly movably attached to the base. The actuator assembly includes arms on one end for holding the one or more transducers and a portion of a voice coil motor on the other end of the actuator assembly. A bearing cartridge is attached to an opening in the actuator assembly. A tolerance ring is used to attach the bearing cartridge to the opening in the actuator assembly. The tolerance ring includes a dampening material therein. The tolerance ring includes a layer of viscoelastic material which can be a viscoelastic damping adhesive material. The viscoelastic material is sandwiched between the first layer of metallic material and the second layer of metallic material. The tolerance ring includes a plurality of ridges formed about the periphery of the tolerance ring.

Dual metal laminate tolerance ring for acoustic and vibration damping

Apparatus and method for improving operational performance of a disc drive by detecting and compensating for translational vibration modes in a disc drive actuator. The actuator is configured to support a head adjacent a recording disc and pivots about a stationary shaft by way of a cartridge bearing assembly having a pair of ball bearing assemblies. A proximity probe detects translational movement of the actuator assembly relative to the shaft due to, for example, abrupt acceleration and deceleration of the head during a seek operation, or externally applied mechanical shocks. The output of the proximity probe is used to generate a bearing translation signal which is fed into an actuator control servo circuit to modify the amount of current applied to an actuator motor to compensate for the translational vibrations during track following and seek operations.

Active damping of actuator bearing translational mode

An apparatus is disclosed for reducing disc deflection in response to the application of a non-operational mechanical shock to a disc drive. The disc drive comprises discs rotatable about a disc axis and each having an outer diameter. A circumferentially extending snubber is provided proximate a substantial portion of the outer diameter of each of the discs. The snubber includes a shroud portion immediately proximate the outer diameter of each disc and snubber arms which extend from the shroud portion in a direction toward the disc axis. The snubber limits deflection of the outer diameter of each disc in response to the application of a nonoperational mechanical shock to the disc drive.

Circumferentially extending disc snubber

A disc drive is provided with rotatable discs and an actuator assembly having heads adjacent the discs. A flex circuit assembly providing electrical connection between the heads and the disc drive circuitry comprises flex strips routed on the actuator assembly from the heads and a flex affixed on the actuator assembly. A flex support snubber mounted on the side of the actuator assembly has a body portion with a plurality of arms extending therefrom. Each pair of the arms form a groove so that the arms are disposed above and below discs while the discs extend into the grooves. A plurality of slits are interposed between the grooves to support the flex strips therein. An opposite end of the flex support snubber curves to form a U-shaped snubber bend for turning and guiding a dynamic portion of the flex.

Flex support snubber

A snubber assembly for a disc drive having a plurality of rotatable discs and an actuator assembly supporting read/write heads for flying support above the data surfaces of the discs, the snubber assembly being positioned outboard to the outer perimeters of the discs in a disc clearing position when the disc drive is in the operational mode. The snubber assembly has a plurality of snubber members that nest the discs to limit the deflection of the discs when the snubber assembly is moved to a disc nesting position. A latch member secures the actuator assembly when the snubber assembly is moved to the disc nesting position. In the preferred embodiment, ramp members extend from the snubber members to lift the heads from the data surfaces when the snubber assembly is moved to the disc nesting position.

Rotary snubber assembly for a disc drive

Apparatus for reducing the mass and the responsive inertia of a bearing cartridge for a disc drive actuator assembly, the bearing cartridge including a stationary shaft, a bearing assembly and a bearing sleeve. The bearing assembly is disposed between, and rigidly attached to, the stationary shaft and the bearing sleeve, to facilitate radial movement of the bearing sleeve relative to the stationary shaft. The disc drive actuator assembly has an actuator rigidly attached to, and supported by, the bearing cartridge. The bearing assembly has an inner race rigidly attached to the stationary shaft, and an outer race rollingly engaging a plurality of roller bearings disposed between the inner and outer races. The outer race has a chamfered edge in a plane between a reference vertical axis and a reference horizontal axis, and the bearing sleeve has an internal taper matingly joining the chamfered edge to provide a miter joint therebetween.

Bearing cartridge for a disc drive

Method and apparatus for an improved insulating wire guide for a disc drive actuator assembly. The insulating wire guide is integrally formed with an actuator arm and comprises a rigid, non-conductive material formed onto the actuator arm, the wire guide having a base portion on which head wires rest and tabs extending from the base portion to form a channel through which the head wires are routed. The wire guide and actuator arm are formed from an extrusion having a cross-sectional shape substantially that of the actuator arm, the extrusion including dams forming a channel along one side of the extrusion. The non-conductive material is applied to the extrusion, substantially filling the channel, and, after the non-conductive material is cured, the extrusion and the cured non-conductive material is machined to provide the desired configuration of the actuator arm and the wire guide.

Insulated wire guides for an actuator assembly

An apparatus connects a flexible circuit to an actuator arm of a disc drive. The actuator arm supports a transducer head assembly, and the flexible circuit includes an electrical circuit supporting structure supporting a first electrical circuit coupled to the transducing head assembly. The apparatus comprises a solder joint. In one embodiment, the solder joint comprises a pin, respective first and second pin receiving holes in the actuator arm and supporting structure, and a solder connection between the pin and the supporting structure. Connecting the flexible circuit to the actuator arm entails inserting the pin through the second pin receiving hole, press-fitting the pin into the first pin receiving hole, and soldering it to the supporting structure. Another embodiment includes a solder connection between a ground plane on the supporting structure and the pin.

Apparatus connecting a flexible circuit to an actuator arm of a disc

A transducer signal terminator for providing electrical connections between a plurality of read/write transducer lead wires and a preamplifier includes a substrate having a plurality of layers and has a plurality of intermediate strips attached to the substrate. A plurality of head pads are located on the substrate to provide interconnection points between the lead wires and the substrate. Each intermediate strip is placed on the substrate such that each of a plurality of holes therein is aligned with one of the head pads on the substrate. An electrical connection is then formed between each head pad and a corresponding conductive pad of the intermediate strip.

Transducer signal terminator

An apparatus for predicting twist out torque of a swage mount measures work done by a swage ram during a swaging operation. The apparatus includes a position sensor for sensing the position of the ram and a force sensor for sensing the force of the ram during the swaging operation. The apparatus gathers position and force information and calculates swaging work. Swaging work correlates with twist-out torque for a swage mount. Calculated swaging work is compared with a minimum acceptable swaging work value which is related to a minimum acceptable twist out torque level. If the swage work of a particular swage mount is below the minimum acceptable swage work level, an operator can reswage the mount and thereby strengthen the mount to avoid future failure due to rotation at the swage mount.

Growing community of inventors

Oklahoma City, OK, United States of America

David S Allsup