International Business Machines Corporation

Lyle R Tufty

James M Rigotti

Jeffrey Fred Boigenzahn

Darrell Eugene Bratvold

Richard Edward Lagergren

Brian Lee Rappel

Gregory Allen Lyons

Michael Scott Good

Dale E Goodman

Dale C Goeke

Charles Allan Brown

John Beck

Herman Russell Wendt

Steven Harry Voss

Luke A Cossette

Michael N Zell

Laurence J Schmidt

Daniel C Stucky

Gerald M Vettel

Randall L Severson

A data storage disk drive is provided with a spindle which supports a plurality of disks having at least one magnetic disk surface to form a spindle assembly for rotation of the disk surfaces about a common axis and a rotary actuator which supports magnetic transducers for movement in unison about respective disk surfaces. The disk drive includes a disk drive enclosure having die-cast generated predetermined zero draft geometries for mounting the spindle motor shaft and the actuator bearing shaft. The enclosure includes a base casting and a cover casting, each casting including structure for locating and retaining electrical connectors used for connecting to a planar electronics card located outside the drive enclosure. The disk drive includes an effective and easily manufacturable electrical path from a flex circuit to an actuator comb. The disk drive includes a tubular chemical breather filter arranged with integral housing and diffusion channels formed in the cover casting.

Structure and enclosure assembly for a disk drive

A data storage disk drive is provided with a spindle which supports at least one disk having at least one magnetic disk surface to form a spindle assembly for rotation of the disk surfaces about a common axis and a rotary actuator which supports at least one magnetic tranducers for movement about respective disk surfaces. The enclosure includes a base casting and a cover casting. The base casting include predetermined registration surfaces for mounting the spindle and the rotary actuator and having a mating face. The cover casting has a mating face for engaging the base mating face to define the disk drive enclosure for enclosing the spindle, the at least one disk surface, the at least one magnetic transducer and the actuator. The mating faces extend along the length of the disk drive enclosure. The base casting including a locational and retention cast pocket structure for locating and retaining electrical connector and a flexible cable used for connecting to a planar electronics card located outside the drive enclosure.

Enclosure assembly for a disk with a locational and retention cast

A data storage disk drive is provided with a spindle which supports a plurality of disks having at least one magnetic disk surface to form a spindle assembly for rotation of the disk surfaces about a common axis and a rotary actuator which supports magnetic transducers for movement in unison about respective disk surfaces. The disk drive includes a voltage reference tab provided for quick assembly and removal from an actuator comb. The voltage reference tab maintains the magneto-resistive transducers and the magnetic disks at the same reference voltage potential thus minimizing electrical discharge from the transducer to the disk. The voltage reference tab is a copper tab having symmetrical slots about a fastening hole to facilitate the bending operation and to reduce the rate at which heat is conducted during the soldering process. The tab maintains the voltage reference potential between the head and disk through an extension of the flex cable attached to the actuator.

A disk drive structure is shown which maximizes the axial length available for mounting disks within a predetermined height such as dictated by a form factor. A cast aluminum box frame is used which supports the spindle and actuator assemblies and forms a part of the head disk enclosure in cooperation with a drawn metal cover. The box frame captures the spindle and actuator shafts at each end to ensure maximum overall assembly stiffness and minimize the axial length required by the structure supporting the spindle. The box casting geometry is angled to establish the casting/cover joint region at a location beyond the zone of tangency of the disks nearest the form factor so that only the thinner cover is interposed in the region where the disks most closely approach the form factor. The cover and box frame are sealed and secured to one another by a thin compliant tape that does not contribute stress to the box frame during thermal cycling.

Head-disk enclosure assembly for a magnetic disk storage device

A disk drive within the dimensional confines of a form factor can optimize volumetric density by using the full height dimension to house disks, but must thereafter utilize the remaining space for electrical components. The structure shown uses a stack of parallel cards with an interface card on the rear end wall to provide the principal drive control and data circuits exterior of the head-disk assembly (HDA). The motor driver circuitry is mounted on a flat flexible cable and is secured to the front wall at the opposite end of the drive in heat transfer relation. The heat generating motor drive circuits are physically isolated from the data/control circuits by the frame and HDA while some of the printed circuit cards are secured to the frame in a manner that enhances rigidity; the allocation of modules to the cards anticipates flow of data and control signals to minimize the number of connections and signal delays that impair performance.

Integrated electronic card-frame assembly for a rigid disk drive

A fastening structure is provided to secure a shaft between parallel walls of a box shaped casting which will secure ans locate the shaft without inducing a distortion of the casting walls. One end of the shaft is secured to the adjacent wall and the other end of the shaft is secured through a wall opening using an annular slug and a deformable washer which is compressed by a bolt attached axially to the shaft end to cause the deformed washer to engage the surfaces defining the wall opening. The uniform axisymmetric expansion of the washer does not affect the position of the shaft and the radial fore secures the shaft end without influencing the structure of the casting.

Noninfluencing fastener for disk drives

A disk pack assembly for use in a disk drive has disks which are alternately diametrically offset about a spindle axis of rotation. The disks are positioned as a function of their outer edges such that alternate opposite outer edges line up as though they were the outer edges of centered nominal diameter disks. This results in an increase in the number of axial nodal points for potential imbalance moments and reduces the amplitude of associated vibrations. Disk spacers are also alternately diametrically offset about the spindle axis so tht pairs of like components tend to balance each other to minimize potential vibrations.

Alternately centered disk pack assembly and method

A spindle assembly has a shaft with at least two axially spaced expandable shaft sections. The expandable shaft sections serve to couple the spindle to a bearing assembly having inner races. The expandable shaft sections are expanded elastically and uniformly into retentive contact with the inner races to provide radial and axial support for the spindle assembly.

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Elgin, MN, United States of America

Lyle R Tufty