Seagate Technology Incorporated

Magnetic Peripherals Inc.

Mark August Toffle

Brent Melvin Weichelt

Lon R Buske

Brent Marvin Weichelt

Rodney Dale Dahlenburg

Xu Zuo

Jason Paul Zimmerman

Thomas Henry Sexton

William John Raphael

Joel Daniel Phillips

Louis John Fioravanti

Mark Dennis Anderson

John J Pecha

Wayne Allen Bonin

Srinivas Tadepalli

John F Runyon

Xiaohong Sun

Niandong Liu

Kevin Lambert Mayer

Colin Graham Presly

Steve Sheeran

Daniel Smith

Paul J Poisson

Yaling D Fan

Brent Melvin Weiehelt

Aldeen R Goehring

Vincent John Reis

A directional control valve comprising: a body, an actuator configured to switch the directional control valve between two or more states, a manual activation button configured to initiate actuation of the actuator when pressed, a safety member configured to slide along a guide of the body between a first position and a second position, a coupling member configured to couple the directional control valve to other directional control valves, and a guard removably disposed between the safety member and the coupling member. The safety member prevents the manual actuation button from being actuated when it is in the first position and the manual actuation button can be manually actuated when the safety member is in the second position. In addition, the guard is configured to prevent the safety member from sliding to the second position when the guard is disposed between the safety member and the coupling member.

Control valves with safety guards

Apparatus and method for supporting a data recording medium adjacent a spindle motor hub. In some embodiments, an annular disc spacer has a plurality of nominal dimensions and is formed of a glass material and at least one additive to provide the disc spacer with a selected color. The color of the disc spacer is selected responsive to at least one of the plurality of nominal dimension of the disc spacer. The color may have a wavelength in the human detectable range of from about 350 nanometers, nm to about 700 nm.

Color coded glass disc spacer

Storing data to a storage medium with a device that has moving parts supported by a bearing and which maintains separation between opposing bearing surfaces in the bearing with a pressurized working fluid.

Writer with working fluid bearing

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to establishing a desired position control over a workpiece by compensating for thermal cycling affecting a member supporting the workpiece during processing.

Position control with compensation for thermal cycling of a workpiece support

An actuator and associated method is provided, the actuator having an arm defining an aperture, an electrical circuit supported by the arm and terminating at a contact, a flexure assembly defining a boss and supporting a second electrical circuit terminating at a second contact, wherein the contacts are resultingly positioned in operable mating engagement with each other placing the electrical circuit in electrical communication with the second electrical circuit when the boss is operably disposed within the aperture and there affixed to the arm.

Baseplate interconnect

A mechanism provides compliance between a tool and a robotic arm and includes a base with a first face. The mechanism includes a post assembly with a thrust washer and a mounting post attached to the thrust washer. The thrust washer engages the first face to form a compliance joint that permits a compliance range of sliding translational motion along the first face. The mechanism comprises springs that slideably engage an outer rim surface of the post assembly and providing a compliance force resisting the sliding translational motion. A retainer is mounted to the base and compresses the thrust washer against the first face and limits rotational motion of the assembly out of a plane of the first face.

Robotic compliance mechanism

An apparatus including a cantilevered head assembly is disclosed. The apparatus includes a flow control device to control flow proximate to the cantilevered head assembly. In one embodiment, the flow control device includes a blower assembly coupleable to a pressure source and/or vacuum assembly to limit flow disturbances proximate to the cantilevered head assembly.

Flow or windage control for a cantilevered head assembly

Various embodiments of the present invention are generally directed to attenuating excitation energy of a rotatable storage medium using one or more plates each having a plurality of parallel channels to buffer fluid flow across an associated medium surface. A preferred embodiment includes a plurality of channels in facing relation to a common surface of a rotatable storage medium. Further included in a preferred embodiment, the plurality of channels are sequentially arranged into a first, second, and third channels with differing sidewall characterizations. In an alternative embodiment, a plurality of storage mediums which are axially aligned have a plurality of channels in facing relation to either a top or bottom surface of a rotatable storage medium.

Pressure equalizing fluid flow stripper apparatus

A servo track writer assembly and method are provided for recording servo pattern information on a disc. The servo track writer assembly includes a spindle assembly, an actuator assembly and a servo recording head. The spindle assembly has a hub, which supports the disc and a spindle motor for rotating the hub. The actuator assembly has an actuator arm supported by an actuator bearing for positioning the actuator arm relative to the disc. At least one of the spindle motor and the actuator bearing has a gas-lubricated bearing with a working fluid, which includes helium. The servo recording head is supported by the actuator arm relative to the disc to record the servo pattern information on the disc as the spindle motor rotates the disc and the actuator bearing positions the actuator arm.

Servo track writer with helium bearing

A vertically-oriented servo track writer assembly and method for recording servo pattern on a disc surface includes a spindle hub assembly that rotates one or more discs in a substantially vertical plane and an actuator assembly that pivots an E-block about a substantially horizontal axis. The E-block includes one or more actuator arms and associated flexures, with each flexure including a servo recording head. Pivoting motion of the E-block moves each servo recording head in a substantially vertical plane adjacent a surface of an associated disc to record servo pattern information on the disc surface. The method further includes laterally moving the actuator assembly into and out of engagement with the spindle hub assembly to simplify loading and unloading discs from the spindle hub assembly.

Vertically-oriented servo track writer and method

An actuator assembly and method for orienting a head over a disc within a multi-disc servo-track writer incorporates an actuator block, rotational air bearing, translational air bearing, adaptor plate, E-block and actuator arm/head assembly. Rotation of the E-block, and hence actuator arm/head assembly, is directly controlled by the movement of the rotational air bearing, which is rotated by a motor. The air bearing provides for reduced friction and, as a result, decreased eccentricity of the head as compared to related art configurations. A translational air bearing laterally positions the actuator assembly within the multi-disc servo-track writer for servo-track recording.

Servo track writer with actuator vibration isolation

A method and apparatus for transducer position detection uses inert contact surfaces to engage an actuator temporarily. The inert contact surfaces are part of an apparatus that also includes an optical sensor such as a retroreflector or diffraction grating. The assembly is thus configured to permit multiple uses while exerting a near-zero net torque about the length of the arm that supports the transducer. This is useful where there is a temporary need for especially precise position control, such as when servowriting a data storage media surface.

Detecting transducer position precisely with a reusable sensor assembly

An ex-situ Servo Track Writer (STW) uses a support element that can extend between discs in a stack, and can also retract, permitting a high level of variation in the stack's positioning. The support element preferably has an engagement surface that is wide enough to permit the element to support the actuator throughout the element's range of (rotary) motion. Because the support structure is retractable, it can use low angles of approach like those of hyperbolic-shaped cams, without losing access to the outermost portions of the discs. The support structure may therefore be moved out of the servowriter actuator's path while position data is written to the outermost portions of the data surface.

Writing position data ex situ using an actuator retractable by a retractable support element

An air flow control device for reducing turbulence on a rotating multi-disc stack. Air flow control device includes a first air dam having cavities formed by a series of alternating plate sections forming gaps therebetween adjacent plates. Gaps define cavities capable of receiving discs when disc stack is rotating. A method for writing data onto an annular writeable surface of a plurality of discs including the steps of mounting the plurality of discs into a coaxial stack, extending one or more dam plates each between a consecutive pair of the plurality of discs and adjacent at least a selected one of the writeable surfaces; and writing data onto the selected surface while a first one of the dam plates overlaps enough of the selected surface so that the first dam plate limits a windage-induced error in the written data.

Windage suppression device and associated method for a retractable air flow control

Apparatus and method for orienting a head over a disc within a multi-disc servo-track writer preferably uses two gas bearings, an adaptor plate, and an actuator assembly including an E-block and arm/head assembly. Rotation of the E-block, and hence actuator arm/head assembly, can be controlled by the movement of a rotational gas bearing, which is rotated by a motor. The gas bearing provides for reduced friction and, as a result, decreased eccentricity of the head as compared to related art configurations. A translational gas bearing can be used for laterally positioning the actuator assembly for servo track recording.

Growing community of inventors

St. Louis Park, MN, United States of America

Mark August Toffle