Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.v.

Quantum Corporation

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies

Hitachi Global Storage Netherlands, B.v.

Stanley Yen Wong

Ta-Chang Fu

Andrew Keith Hanlon

Robert Lenicheck

Sattar Malek

Kunihiro Shida

Ungtae Kim

Jr-Yi Shen

Steven Alf Hanssen

Andre Sirilutporn Chan

Thomas Edward Karis

John Martin Burns

Daniel Robert Stacer

Tisha Jefferson

Kim Ungtae

Don E De Leo

Gregory Allen Lyons

James B Sullivan

Maziar Amirkiai

Robert Carl Reinhart

Ali Hosseinzadeh

Malika Dothresa Carter

Charles E Hignite

Richard Kroeker

Emmanuel N Tatarakis

Satter Malek

Steve Hanssen

Embodiments of the present invention pertain to sealing an enclosure for a disk drive form factor. According to one embodiment, material is removed from a base casting for the disk drive form factor to enable insertion of a component. The removal of the material results in a portion of the base casting being thin enough to potentially cause an inadvertent hole in the base casting. A hole is purpose created in the base casting to avoid development of the inadvertent hole. A seal is used to cover the created hole in a manner that allows for insertion of the component.

Sealing an enclosure for a disk drive form factor

An apparatus and method for correcting static and dynamic imbalance with a single mass in a hard disk drive is disclosed. The method provides for determining a static imbalance of a hard disk assembly and for determining a dynamic imbalance of the hard disk assembly. A greater imbalance from the static imbalance and the dynamic imbalance is determined. A single mass is applied to the hard disk assembly to correct the greater imbalance.

Apparatus and method for correcting static and dynamic imbalance with a single mass in a hard disk drive

A system and method for reducing corrosion in a fluid dynamic bearing is disclosed. In one embodiment, a fluid dynamic bearing comprising a rotor portion and a stator portion is formed. In addition, a corrosion inhibitor containing lubricating fluid is provided between the rotor portion and the stator portion of the fluid dynamic bearing, wherein the corrosion inhibitor containing lubricating fluid does not react with either the rotor portion or the stator portion of the fluid dynamic bearing.

Fluid dynamic bearing comprising a lubricating fluid having tolutriazole

A device 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.

Apparatus and system for centering media disks on the hub of a spindle motor in a hard disk drive

An improved disk drive system that employs a lubricant with improved charge control is provided. The disk drive system is comprised of a rotatably mounted magnetic disk. A rotor is coupled to the disk and rotatably retained by a stator. A bearing is formed that serves as an interface between the stator and the rotor. A motor coupled to the rotor rotates the magnetic disk via the rotor. Located in the bearing is a lubricant having a low relative electrical permittivity.

Disk drive system with hydrodynamic bearing lubricant having charge-control additive comprising dioctyldiphenylamine and/or oligomer thereof

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 disk clamp for securing data storage disks to the hub of a spindle motor in a hard disk drive has a circumferential rib protruding from a lower surface of the disk clamp. A complementary recess is formed in the hub of the spindle motor for closely receiving the rib on the disk clamp. The inner diameter of the rib and the outer diameter of the recess are closely toleranced to provide a very precise centering feature for mounting and aligning the disk clamp with respect to the hub and spindle motor. This design reduces the complexity of the tooling and fixtures required to complete the assembly and the overall part cost is reduced.

System and method for hard disk drive with disk clamp annular rim inner wall engaging hub annular recess outer wall

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.

System for assembling a hard disk drive

A spindle motor is equipped with pre-installed adjustable balance clips on a stainless steel motor hub to facilitate better balance correction. A balance clip holder feature is formed in the hub and has grooves to hold the balance clips. The balance clip holder can be an integrally formed part of the hub, or it can be a separate piece that is assembled to the hub before the complete motor is assembled. In addition, the balance clips are provided with an improved coating to reduce friction during adjustment of the clips in the balance process. Each clip has a coating of nickel-Teflon to achieve a better coating quality and cleanliness over prior art designs. The nickel-Teflon combination yields unexpected results, such as a significantly smoother surface with more uniform coating thickness, and significantly less particle sloughing to reduce contamination.

Balance clip holder feature on a spindle motor with nickel-teflon coating on balance clips for reducing friction during clip adjustment in balance process

A method of using a balance clip in a hard disk drive spindle motor for disk pack balance correction provides the balance clip with one end that is offset from the circular shape of the balance clip. The offset end is located opposite the precise bent tab that provides tooling engagement in the balance clip. The offset end of the balance clip is offset at a radius that is less than the radius of the balance clip, or at a lesser radial offset from the circular shape. The edge of the offset end does not make contact with the groove in which the balance clip is seated. This design eliminates scratching between the offset end and motor hub, and reduces friction and particle generation during clip adjustment in the disk pack balancing process.

Method balancing a disk pack in a hard disk drive

Hard disk drive with disk clamp inner wall engaging bearing sleeve outer wall

A balance clip in a hard disk drive spindle motor facilitates improved disk pack balance correction. The balance clip has one end that is offset from the semi-circular shape of the body of the balance clip. The offset end is located opposite the precise bent tab that provides tooling engagement in the balance clip. The offset end of the balance clip is offset at a radius that is less than the radius of the balance clip, or at a pre-determined, lesser radial offset from the original circular shape. Consequently, the cross-sectional edge of the clip at the offset end does not make contact with the surface of the groove in which the balance clip is seated. This design eliminates scratching between the offset end and motor hub, and thereby greatly reduces friction and particle generation during clip adjustment in the disk pack balancing process.

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Stanley Yen Wong