Fujitsu Corporation

Hisashi Kaneko

Tsuneyori Ino

Yukihiro Komura

Mitsuhiro Izumi

Shinji Fujimoto

Masaharu Sugimoto

Tsuyoshi Furukawa

Katsuaki Ishida

Kei Funabashi

Shinichi Fukuzawa

Masaki Jinbo

Tomoo Sukagawa

Mitsuaki Yoshida

Yoshiaki Nagasawa

Masato Shibuya

Mitsuhisa Sekino

Yoshiharu Matsuda

Hiroyuki Iwahara

Masaya Suwa

Osamu Yamazaki

Keishi Shimizu

First and second shroud surfaces are defined along an imaginary cylinder coaxial to a recording disk. A shroud plate is located between the first and second shroud surfaces. Airflow flows outward along the surface of the rotating recording disk based on the centrifugal force. The shroud plate serves to establish the continuity of the first and second shroud surfaces. The first and second shroud surfaces and the shroud plate serve to reliably suppress turbulence of the airflow. Vibration of the recording disk is suppressed than ever. An inflow opening is located in a space between the first and second shroud surfaces. The rectifier plate is located downstream of the inflow opening. The rectifier plate serves to direct the airflow flowing along the first shroud surface to the inflow opening. A larger amount of airflow can be introduced into the inflow opening. A dust catcher receives airflow of a sufficient amount.

Recording disk drive having shroud

A fixing member is spaced from a head actuator by a predetermined distance. A flexible printed circuit board extends at least from the head actuator to the fixing member. The flexible printed circuit board is superposed on the surface of the fixing member. A viscoelastic layer and a protecting layer are overlaid on the surface of the flexible printed circuit board. A clip clips all the fixing member, the flexible printed circuit board, the viscoelastic layer and the protecting layer together. When a head slider is positioned, the head actuator changes its attitude relative to a recording disk. The inertial force based on the rotation causes the first flexible printed circuit board to vibrate when the actuator block stops rotating. The viscoelastic layer serves to absorb this residual vibration of the first flexible printed circuit board. Vibration of the flexible printed circuit board can be suppressed.

Recording disk drive capable of suppressing vibration of flexible printed circuit board

A magnetic disk device comprises a magnetic disk in which a data zone is formed. An actuator has a voice coil and a head slider carrying a magnetic head, the actuator being swung to move the magnetic head over the disk between an innermost position of the data zone and an outermost position of the data zone. A magnet has a magnetization center and is opposed to the voice coil so that a voice coil motor which swings the actuator is formed, the magnet having a north pole and a south pole confronting each other via the magnetization center. The magnetic disk device is provided so that a deviation of a center of the voice coil from the magnetization center when the magnetic head is in the innermost position of the data zone is substantially equal to a deviation of the center of the voice coil from the magnetization center when the magnetic head is in the outermost position of the data zone.

Magnetic head actuator with centered deviation

Magnetic head actuator with equalized deviation

A thermal component is mounted on the front surface of an isolator sheet within a first specific area. A thermally-conductive material is located on the back surface of the isolator sheet on the back of the first specific area. An electrically-conductive material is located on the front surface of the isolator sheet within a second specific area. A thermally-insulating material is located on the back surface of the isolator sheet on the back of the second specific area. The flexible printed circuit board unit of this type allows heat of the thermal component to efficiently radiate from the thermally-conductive material. An increase in temperature can be suppressed in the thermal component. Heat can reliably stay in the electrically-conductive material when a solder material is applied to the surface of the electrically-conductive material. The solder material is allowed to reliably fuse.

Flexible printed circuit board unit contributing to reliable soldering and suppression of increased temperature

A magnetic or other disk drive device includes a base having an opening through which electrical signal lines in a cable pass. The signal lines are preferably in a flexible printed circuit (FPC). The opening is sealed by adhesively securing a cover to the base around the periphery of the opening, either directly or indirectly. In one embodiment, the cover is secured directly to the base, except of course where it crosses signal lines, while in other embodiments the FPC is secured directly to the base and the cover is secured to the FPC. In the latter embodiments, a portion of the FPC extends around the periphery of the opening, and the signal lines pass through the opening. Double sided adhesive tape may be used to secure the FPC to the base, if desired.

Disk drive device

A method and an apparatus for controlling a disk drive are contrived to reduce consumed electric power of a spindle motor of the disk drive while an operation continues. The disk drive has a disk storage medium, the spindle motor for rotating the disk storage medium, and a head for reading data on the disk storage medium. This control method comprises a first step of detecting a load of the spindle motor or a load capacity of a power source of the disk drive, and a second step of selecting any one of a first mode of revolving the spindle motor at a comparatively high speed and reading the data on the disk storage medium by the head, and a second mode of revolving the spindle motor at a comparatively low speed and reading the data on the disk storage medium by the head in accordance with a detected result of the first step.

Method of and apparatus for controlling disk drive

A structure for mounting at least a spring arm on at least a head arm is disclosed, which can meet the requirement for high recording density in a disk apparatus by effectively reducing the vibration of the head unit in operation. A head actuator includes at least a pair of heads mounted at the forward end of the head arm through the spring arm for reading/writing information in a discoidal recording medium. The base of the spring arm is fixedly welded to a fixing member. The head arm and the fixing member are coupled to each other by a caulking protrusion as a coupler formed on the fixing member. The overlapped portion of the head arm and the fixing member other than the coupler is formed with a vibration damping layer for preventing vibrations of one of the head arm and the fixing member from propagating to the other. This vibration damping layer is composed of a simple air gap or a vibration damping material filled in the air gap.

Structure and jig for mounting spring arm on corresponding head arm

A magnetic disk drive having one or more magnetic disks, one or more read/write heads each recording or reproducing information for a corresponding one of the magnetic disks, a servo head reading control information from a predetermined one of the magnetic disks, and an actuator supporting the one or more read/write heads and the servo head includes first leads extending from the one or more read/write heads along one side of the actuator, and second leads extending from the servo head along the other side of the actuator so that the second leads can be distanced in space from the first leads.

Magnetic disk drive and flexible printed board used in such drive

A rotary driving apparatus controls the generation of vibration and noise due to high speed rotation, to realize high accuracy rotation, so that a storage apparatus such as a disk drive can have high speed rotation and improved storing density on its recording medium. The apparatus includes a fixed shaft for rotatably supporting a rotor, a bearing fitted between the shaft and the rotor, at least two projections projecting from the surface of the shaft, and a stator coil mounted on the projections. The projections absorb stator vibration, and isolate the head, the storage disk and other parts from the stator vibrations. A gap area is formed between the stator coil and the shaft to dampen vibrations created by the stator. The gap may be filled with vibration-absorbing material.

Apparatus for absorbing stator vibrations in computer storage apparatus

A spindle assembly for a disk drive uses fewer than the maximum number of disks, reducing power consumption of a spindle motor without reducing the dust collecting ability of an air filter. The spindle assembly includes a shaft adapted to be fixed to a housing of the disk drive, and a spindle hub rotatably mounted on the shaft. A first set of disks spaced from each other a given distance is mounted on a lower portion of the spindle hub, and a second set of disks spaced from each other the above given distance is mounted on an upper portion of the spindle hub. A dummy ring is mounted on an intermediate portion of the spindle hub to define a large space between the first set and the second set. The intermediate portion does not have disks. A clamp is secured to the spindle hub by screws, thereby fixing the first and second sets of disks to the spindle hub.

Spindle assembly for a disk drive using less than a full compliment of

Disclosed is a magnetic disk apparatus having a large internal accommodation space. This magnetic disk apparatus comprises a case defining accommodation space inside, magnetic disks disposed in the accommodation space, a spindle motor, magnetic heads and a rotary actuator. The case includes a cover having a first flat portion and a first upright portion standing upright on the first flat portion at a peripheral portion thereof, and a base having a second flat portion and a second upright portion standing upright on the second flat portion at a peripheral portion thereof. This design can ensure a sufficient strength even if the case is made thin, thus allowing the internal accommodation space to be increased. The magnetic disk apparatus also has a printed circuit board, which is provided at the case and has a control circuit mounted thereon for controlling the magnetic heads. The printed circuit board supplies a source voltage to the case. Accordingly, the magnetic disks and the magnetic heads can be kept at the same potential via the case.

Magnetic disk apparatus

A breather filter unit for a magnetic disk drive including a base and a cover fixed to the base, the cover having a vent. The breather filter unit includes a casing fixed to an inner surface of the cover, the casing having a vent inlet communicating with the vent of the cover and a vent outlet communicating with an inside of the magnetic disk drive, and a first filter contained in the casing at a position adjacent to the vent inlet, the first filter being formed from a plurality of fibers extending in a direction substantially parallel to that of an air flow from the vent inlet to the vent outlet. The breather filter unit further includes a second filter bonded to the casing so as to cover the vent outlet, and an activated carbon layer contained in the casing at a position between the first filter and the second filter.

Growing community of inventors

Kawasaki, Japan

Hisashi Kaneko