Hutchinson Technology Corporation

Mark G Lowry

Michael Wayne Davis

Jacob D Bjorstrom

Alan D Maki

Mohammed Kazemi

A disk drive head suspension including a load beam having a load beam load point region and a flexure, attached to the load beam, having a flexure load point region. A mass of viscoelastic material is fixedly attached to both load beam load point region and flexure load point region to form a pinned load point. A method for manufacturing a disk drive head suspension of the type having a flexure with a flexure load point region on a load beam with a load beam load point region. The flexure load point region is spaced apart from the load beam load point region. A load point is formed by applying a mass of viscoelastic material to the load point region of at least one of the flexure and the load beam.

Head suspension having viscoelastic load point

A disk drive head suspension includes a load beam designed for damping of torsion and sway resonance modes. The load beam includes a proximal end portion and a distal end portion, and the proximal end portion includes a proximal edge. The load beam also includes a strain-inducing feature that is formed into an upper planar surface of the load beam and extends from the proximal edge of the load beam. A flexure is attached to and supported by the load beam for carrying a magnetic head slider. A hinge attached to the load beam and to the base mounting structure, the latter of which is for coupling the head suspension to a disk drive actuation system. A damping element is on the load beam at the proximal end portion that spans across the strain-inducing feature and is adjacent to the proximal edge of the load beam.

Damped high strain region beam for a disk drive head suspension

A disk drive head suspension includes a load beam, a flexure for carrying a magnetic head slider, a base mounting structure for coupling the head suspension to a disk drive actuation system, a hinge, and a damping material. The load beam includes a proximal end portion and a distal end portion. The flexure is attached to and supported by the load beam. The hinge is attached to the base mounting structure and to the load beam and includes a constraint layer portion extending toward the distal end portion of the load beam. The damping material is located between and in contact with the constraint layer portion of the hinge and the load beam for damping resonance vibrations in the head suspension.

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Minneapolis, MN, United States of America

Mark G Lowry