International Business Machines Corporation

Douglas W Johnson

Steven L Felde

Jeffrey Fred Boigenzahn

Randy J Bornhorst

James M Rigotti

Richard Edward Lagergren

Todd Phillip Fracek

Zine-Eddine Boutaghou

Armando Jesus Argumedo

Jerome Thomas Coffey

Don G East

Marvin A Schlimmer

Wayne T Comeaux

Bryan W Bicknese

Thomas R Albrecht

James Howard Eaton

Paul Y Hu

Michael Scott Good

Brian Lee Rappel

David C Graves

Robert P Zammit

Guillermo S Robles

Laurence J Schmidt

Subrahmanyan Nagarajan

Dennis Ronald Ziegenhagen

Guy F Hudson

Kenneth J Lusk

Robert R Sidebotham

A data zone optimization method and architecture for optimizing the location of the data zone on a data storage disk is disclosed. The data zone is preferably biased toward the outer diameter of the disk, and is referenced to a data zone starting location established proximate a load/unload ramp apparatus. An optimum starting location for the data zone of an initially unformatted data storage disk is preferably determined by contacting the load/unload ramp with the transducer assembly, disengaging the transducer assembly from the ramp, and writing servo information indicative of the data zone starting location at a disk location proximate the ramp and transducer assembly contact point. Servo information indicative of the data zone is written at inner diameter disk location with respect to the optimum data zone starting location. The optimized data zone architecture may have a predetermined or variable data storage capacity.

Method and apparatus for a real and positional optimization of a storage disk data zone

Disclosed is a disk drive for storing data which includes disks and an actuator mounted on a frame or first housing part. A second housing part, when joined with the first housing part, forms a disk enclosure. The disk enclosure includes rails which have openings therein for mounting the disk drive to the user frame of a computer system. Deformable inserts are placed into the openings in the rails and screws are passed through openings in the frame of the computer system and into the inserts in the openings in the rails of the disk drive. The inserts are more forgiving and result in less distortion than in a mounting system in which the screws are passed directly into tapped holes in the rails of the disk drive. The inserts also electrically insulate the disk drive from the user frame of the computer system.

Direct mounting system for a disk drive

A novel inertial actuator latch assembly adapted for use within the compact housing configuration of a very small form factor data storage system comprises an actuator latch and a separate latch spring. A portion of an inertia member of the actuator latch extends over a portion of a surface of the data storage disk and is separated therefrom by a clearance gap having a size typically on the order of tenths of a millimeter. A novel tilt limiting apparatus prevents deleterious contact between the inertia member and the sensitive surface of the data storage disk in response to a strong external rotational shock force being exerted on the data storage system housing. Automatic registration and coupling features provide for easy and efficient installation of the tilt limiting inertial actuator latch assembly in a top-down assembly process.

Tilt limiting inertial actuator latch for a data storage system

A disk drive or direct access storage device (DASD) of the type having multiple disks and multiple actuator arms, both the disks and the actuator arms assembled in a stacked manner, advantageously assembled with the locating surface or flange of the actuator disposed on the opposite side of the stacked actuator arms from the side of the disk stack having the locating surface or flange for the disk hub. This opposite flange design results in a substantial reduction in the effects of tolerance buildup and therefore permits the design of the disk drive equal in all other respects to a conventional same side flange arrangement, but permitting additional disks, lower height, less tightly defined tolerances on components or the use of cheaper manufacturing techniques and technologies for recording data.

Direct access storage device with opposing actuator and spindle flanges

A resilient and compliant shock rail is provided on the sides of the bottom cover for a PCMCIA standard Direct Access Storage Device. The shock rails, being of a resilient and easily deformable material, lengthen the impact time and attenuates the shock forces exerted on the DASD, thereby bringing the deceleration forces to acceptable levels. The shock rail may be further provided with low friction surfaces by bonding thin metal plates to the top and bottom surfaces of the shock rails to ease insertion and withdrawal of the PCMCIA DASD. The shock rail is provided with reinforcing members to insure that the keying scheme required for proper insertion is effective.

Compliant rail for shock protection of a PCMCIA DASD

A clamp for securing one or more data storage disks to a hub is formed as a slightly frusto-conical shaped annulus of resilient material with inwardly and upwardly extending lobes that are displaced radially outward during installation about a hub. Clamping force is derived from the compression of the lobes which are captured by the hub and the twisting of the annulus from the frusto-conical configuration to a substantially radial orientation. The clamp is formed of a material that is softer than the disk to cause the clamp to be compliant and conform to the disk irregularities and thereby avoid compromising disk flatness. The clamp component material composition is also modified to achieve a coefficient of linear expansion that is identical to the disk. The outer periphery of the clamp presents an interrupted flange that permits a tool to engage the clamp, perform the assembly about the hub and be disengaged using automated equipment.

Resilient compliant clamp for data storage disk drives

A compliant tape guide in a tape cartridge loads edge of a tape with an optimum pressure and a minimum of vibration by a series of compliant spring arms which transmit a guiding load to the edge through a flexible metal foil. The metal foil contacts the tape over a specified arc length in which the tape is supported by a curved guide bearing.

Compliant tape guide

A magnetic tape has three evenly spaced-apart longitudinally-extending servo track areas. Four equal-sized longitudinally-extending data track areas are disposed between said servo track areas and between longitudinal edges of the tape and one of said longitudinally-extending data track areas. For track following, all servo track areas are simultaneously sensed for producing one head positioning signal. Data tracks are arranged into four groups of tracks, one-half of the data tracks in each group are concurrently accessed. The data tracks on the tape are arranged in clusters. Each cluster has one track from each of the groups of tracks. Two laterally-adjacent track clusters constitute four data track wraps for serpentine scanning of data tracks. The concurrent track accessing respectively occurs in first and second halves of a data track wrap (there is a number of wraps equal to one half the number of track clusters). Each servo area indicates two lateral positions of the tape to the head. The lateral spacing between the lateral positions is equal to about a data track width. This arrangement makes the servo areas field writable. The magnetic head has a number of data write and read gaps equal to the number of clusters. A set of four servo gaps are interposed between four groups of write and read gaps and positioned to simultaneously sense all three servo track areas.

Servo and data format for magnetic tape having plural spaced-apart servo

A tape cartridge having a high performance tape path therein. The tape cartridge includes one or more gas bearing tape guides and/or one or more recesses in an edge of a gas/tape bearing surface. The gas bearing assemblies include a plenum having a metal foil gas bearing surface bonded thereto using a die-cut adhesive sheet. The compliant members are each inserted into a recess adjacent the edge of the bearing surface to permit edge guiding while providing lateral support for the tape immediately before and after the recesses in the direction of tape movement.

Tape cartridge tape path

A tape reel brake which is mounted in a well in the top of a tape reel hub. The well is inside the tape bearing surface of the hub. The brake is mounted to be compliantly biased away from the base of the well. The hub is seated against a first inside surface of a tape cartridge housing. The hub and brake are seated in the tape cartridge such that teeth on the periphery of the brake are biased against the opposite inside surface of the cartridge housing about the periphery of an opening therein. The biasing of the brake against the opposite inside surface both prevents the rotation of the reel and shields out dust when the tape cartridge is removed from a tape drive. To rotate the reel, a tape drive clutch enters the opening in the opposite inside surface and depresses the brake into the well to mate with a smaller diameter portion of the hub or a recessed portion of the brake. The hub is always maintained on the inside surface of the housing, thereby eliminating lateral motion which could disrupt the tape path.

Tape reel with brake and dust shield

A tape path having an implicit squeeze bearing. In such a tape path, one end of the tape is wound upon a first reel, the tape extends around one or more guides, briefly comes into close proximity with itself at the outer wrap of the tape wound upon the first reel, and is wound upon a second reel. By coming within close proximity with itself, the tape forms an implicit squeeze bearing which damps tape tension variation, inhibits the transmission of vibrations from one reel to the other, and eliminates the entrapment of entrained air without any additional rollers or other components. The tape path is suitable for use in a peripheral storage device, such as a magnetic tape drive, and is compatible with a variety of tape cartridge configurations.

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Rochester, MN, United States of America

Douglas W Johnson