Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.v.

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies

Sattar Malek

Ta-Chang Fu

Stanley Yen Wong

Ungtae Kim

Robert Lenicheck

Daniel Robert Stacer

Don E De Leo

Gregory Allen Lyons

Kim Ungtae

A method for centering and securing data storage disks to the hub of a spindle motor in a hard disk drive has a chamfer and a countersink on the top of the spindle motor shaft center. During the hard disk drive assembly process, a disk centering tool engages and uses these features to locate and center the disks that are installed on the spindle motor. The features are closely toleranced to provide a very precise centering feature for mounting and aligning the media disks with respect to the hub and the spindle motor. The present design reduces the complexity of the tooling and fixtures required to complete the assembly. As a result, the overall part cost is reduced and the manufacturing yield is improved.

Method of centering media disks on the hub of a spindle motor in a hard disk drive

A hard disk drive has a motor mounting bracket with mounting screws that attach from outside the drive and external to the seal with a screw bolt pattern diameter that is larger than an outer diameter of the motor hub. This configuration greatly reduces contamination inside the disk drive since all contaminants due to the screws are sealed from entering the disk drive. Consequently, the bottom of the mounting bracket is extended to the form factor limit to increase the internal space that is provided for the stator/winding of the motor. In relatively high platter count disk drives, the bottom disk is positioned very close to the motor bracket with this approach, which normally would cause the air drag to increase drastically and thereby impede the performance of the disk drive. Bosses may be used on the bracket to accommodate blind tap hole depths from the external surface of the bracket.

Screw attachment from exterior of disk drive enclosure for motors with mount bracket screw bolt pattern diameter larger than the motor hub outside diameter

A method of enabling a reliable, motor-to-base merge process is designed for motors that are attached to a base with screws that mount from outside of the base. An assembly fixture receives the motor, which has a tooling hole for circumferentially locating the motor relative to the base. The assembly fixture closely receives the motor and has a tooling pin that engages the tooling hole to prevent rotation of the motor relative to the assembly fixture. During the motor-to-base merge process, the motor is inverted with the tooling pin in the tooling hole. The assembly fixture aligns the threaded screw holes in the motor with the mounting holes on the base.

Method of assembling a hard disk drive having a motor bracket tooling hole for inverted motor-to-base merge process

A system for enabling a reliable, motor-to-base merge process is designed for motors that are attached to a base with screws that mount from outside of the base. An assembly fixture receives the motor, which has a tooling hole for circumferentially locating the motor relative to the base. The assembly fixture closely receives the motor and has a tooling pin that engages the tooling hole to prevent rotation of the motor relative to the assembly fixture. During the motor-to-base merge process, the motor is inverted with the tooling pin in the tooling hole. The assembly fixture aligns the threaded screw holes in the motor with the mounting holes on the base.

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Sattar Malek