Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America

Toshio Inaji

Hiroshi Kohso

Keizo Miyata

Makoto Gotou

Eiji Ueda

Keisuke Matsuo

Makoto Umeda

Hiromi Onodera

Hideki Kuwajima

Kozo Ezawa

Hiroshi Mitani

Shuichi Yoshida

Noriaki Wakabayashi

Tsukasa Yoshiura

Kenichi Honjo

Yusuke Monobe

Masahiro Inata

Yoshihiko Matsukawa

Soichiro Fujioka

Hiroshi Okamoto

Hiroshi Minakuchi

Takeshi Shimamoto

Yoshiaki Igarashi

Yoshihiro Ueno

Khang Nguyen

Susumu Yamamoto

Yuji Adachi

Souichirou Fujioka

Nobuyoshi Yokobori

Mitsuo Tokura

Noriaki Wakabashi

A movement control apparatus includes: an actuator that causes a driven body connected to a driving coil to perform reciprocating movement; a signal generation unit that generates a velocity command signal which indicates a target velocity of the driven body; a driving unit that supplies electric current corresponding to a driving signal to the driving coil; a voltage detection unit that detects induced voltage generated in the driving coil, and outputs a voltage signal corresponding to the induced voltage; a signal correction unit that corrects, based on the driving signal and the voltage signal, the voltage signal to adjust a shift of a resistance value from a reference resistance value of the driving coil, thereby generating a velocity signal; and a control unit that generates the driving signal based on the velocity command signal and the velocity signal, and outputs the driving signal to the driving unit.

Movement control apparatus, movement control method, and movement control circuit

An image capturing apparatus includes: an imaging device which receives incident light through an optical system, and converts the received light into image data of an image; a memory which stores the image data converted; a motion detecting unit which detects a motion of the image capturing apparatus during an exposure period; an image generating unit which generates an image indicating the detected motion; and a display control unit which causes the display unit to display the generated image.

Image capturing apparatus and method for displaying a subject of image capturing and indicating motion of the image capturing apparatus during the image capturing

An autonomous mobile device has its movement controlled by a control device and includes a first sensing unit for sensing an obstacle. The control device includes a first storage unit for storing information as to a temporary positional fluctuation of the obstacle and sets as a virtual obstacle region a region where it is predicted that the obstacle sensed by the first sensing unit travels following a predetermined time passage based on the information as to the temporary positional fluctuation of the obstacle stored in the first storage unit.

Autonomous mobile device, and control device and program product for the autonomous mobile device

A disk apparatus includes (a) an actuator having a head supporting arm with a tab formed on the arm and a voice coil fixed to the arm, which arm is rotatable on a horizontal rotary shaft as well as on a vertical rotary shaft, (b) a voice coil motor having an upper yoke with a magnet fixed to the upper yoke and a lower yoke sandwiching and confronting the voice coil, and (c) a ramp section guiding and holding the tab at a refuge place. When the actuator at the refuge place starts loading with a starter command, a pulsed driving current is applied to the voice coil temporarily for urging the tab against a tab-holding plane of the ramp section, thereby making use of repulsion force generated on the actuator, so that the tab can leave the refuge place efficiently for carrying out the loading operation.

Method of controlling an actuator, and disk apparatus using the same method

A disk storage apparatus including a position detection section for producing position error information corresponding to the current position of a head from servo information which has been previously recorded on a disk and is detected by the head, a position control section for producing position control information corresponding to the position error information, a voltage detection section for detecting a voltage generated in driving an actuator for positioning the head with respect to the disk, and for outputting a voltage signal, a disturbance estimation section for estimating the magnitude of a disturbance exerted on the head from the voltage signal by the voltage detection section and from a drive signal by a drive section of the actuator, and producing disturbance estimation information, a correction section for correcting the position control information by the position control section with the disturbance estimation information and producing the drive signal, and a disturbance monitor section for monitoring the disturbance estimation information, and prohibiting a record by the head if the disturbance estimation information exceeds an allowable range, wherein even if the head is largely dislocated from a target track due to a large shock or vibration at data recording, an erroneous erasing of the adjacent track can be prohibited.

Disk storage apparatus

In a disk storage apparatus having an actuator for loading/unloading a magnetic head with respect to a magnetic disk, a voltage signal generated when the actuator is driven is detected by a voltage detector, a speed load estimator estimates moving speed of the head and level of load disturbance added to the magnetic head from a driving signal in a driver of the actuator and the voltage signal, and outputs a speed estimating signal and a load estimating signal, a speed controller generates and outputs a speed control signal based on a speed command signal and the speed estimating signal, a synthesizer generates a driving signal from the load estimating signal and a speed control signal, and the apparatus loads and unloads the head at a stable speed against the load disturbance caused by friction or the like on a ramp block.

A head positioning apparatus capable of positioning a head at high speed and with high accuracy is provided. The head positioning apparatus includes a magnetic head, a head supporting mechanism, a coarse actuator, a fine actuator, a head position detection part, a fine movement control system for controlling the fine actuator based on the head position detected by the head position detection part, a head moving distance estimation part estimating the head moving distance representing the distance the magnetic head moves, and the coarse movement control system for controlling the coarse actuator based on the head moving distance estimated by the head moving distance estimation part.

Head positioning apparatus

A head positioner has a configuration employing a dual-stage actuator method, wherein positioning control is performed for a write/read according to cooperative operations of a coarse actuator and a fine actuator, and the fine actuator is configured using a piezoelectric device. A positioning control unit for controlling the coarse actuator and the fine actuator is configured to include a coarse control system including a coarse drive unit for driving the coarse actuator and coarse control unit for controlling the coarse drive unit, a fine control system including a fine drive unit for driving the fine actuator and a fine control unit for controlling the fine drive unit. In addition, a driving-signal limiting unit is provided. The piezoelectric device is prone to property deterioration because of erosion due to an electrochemical reaction. The driving-signal limiting unit limits the level of a fine control signal fed from the fine control unit to the fine drive unit to be below a threshold at which property deterioration of the piezoelectric device is caused by an electrochemical reaction. Further, as a median-value signal, a relative displacement signal ranked in the center of a plurality of relative displacement signals sent from a plurality of the individual fine actuators is selected. The coarse actuator is controlled according to the selected median-value signal.

Head positioner and information recording/replaying apparatus

A first estimatorestimates the position of a head based on a VCM driving signal uand a voltage signal Va output from a VCMto output a first head position estimation signal x. The first estimatorestimates the disturbance acting on a head supporting mechanismto output a disturbance estimation signal &#x3c4;. A second estimatorestimates the displacement of the head based on a control signal cfor a fine adjustment actuatorto output a displacement estimation signal x. The first head position estimation signal xand the displacement estimation signal xare added together to obtain a second head position estimation signal x. A position error signal e is generated using a head position signal x obtained by detecting the servo information and the second head position estimation signal x. A disturbance compensatorsynthesizes a VCM control signal cwith the disturbance estimation signal &#x3c4;to generate the VCM driving signal u.

Head positioning method, and disk apparatus using the same

A head positioning system includes: a positioning mechanism sectionfor positioning a head; a position controllerfor detecting a head position signal x to output a position control signal U; a velocity detectorfor detecting the relative velocity of the headwith respect to a diskbased on the head position signal x; a counter electromotive voltage detectorfor outputting an estimated head velocity signal Vthat is obtained by estimating the absolute velocity of the headbased on a counter electromotive voltage signal Vof an actuator; an estimated velocity correctorfor correcting an estimation error of the estimated head velocity signal Vbased on a velocity signal detected from the head position signal x so as to output a corrected estimated velocity signal V'; and an estimation controllerfor outputting a velocity control signal Ubased on the corrected estimated velocity signal V&#x2032;, wherein the actuatoris controlled by a control amount signal U that is obtained by adding at least the velocity control signal Uto the position control signal U.

Head positioning system, disk drive apparatus using the same, and head positioning method

A disk apparatus includes: an actuator; a driver; a voltage detectorfor outputting first voltage signal Ed which is produced in a driving coilof the actuator; a voltage signal adjusterfor outputting pseudo disturbance signal ur and generating second voltage signal Edfrom pseudo disturbance signal ur, driving signal u, first voltage signal Ed, and disturbance estimation signal &#x3c4;d; a disturbance estimatorfor estimating the magnitude of disturbance load &#x3c4;d applied to a magnetic headfrom driving signal u and second voltage signal Edto output disturbance estimation signal &#x3c4;d; a position detectorfor generating position error signal e which corresponds to a current position of the magnetic head; a position controllerfor generating control signal c from position error signal e; and a correctorfor generating driving signal u from disturbance estimation signal &#x3c4;dand position control signal c.

Disk apparatus and head positioning method

A position detector generates a position error signal corresponding to a current position of a head, a position controller generates a position control signal from the position error signal, a voltage detector detects a voltage signal generated when driving an actuator by a driver, a disturbance estimator generates a disturbance estimation signal from a driving signal and the voltage signal, and a corrector outputs the driving signal from the disturbance estimation signal and the position control signal. The disturbance estimator includes a comparator which compares the disturbance estimation signal with a voltage signal and which outputs a deviation signal, and an adder which adds a signal obtained by multiplying an integral signal, which is obtained by integrating the deviation signal, by a first coefficient and a signal obtained by multiplying a proportional signal proportional to the deviation signal by a second coefficient, and which generates the disturbance estimation signal. The disturbance estimation signal suppresses a tracking deviation of the head due to a disturbance such as an inertial force applied to the head actuator and stabilizes head positioning control.

Disk drive and disk drive control method

A disk storage apparatus includes: an actuator positioning a head with respect to a disk; a drive device driving the actuator; a voltage detection device detecting a voltage signal induced in driving the actuator; a disturbance estimation unit estimating the magnitude of load disturbance exerted on the head from a drive signal and the voltage signal, and outputting a disturbance estimation signal; a filter unit cutting off a high frequency component of the disturbance estimation signal, and outputting a filter signal; a position detection unit producing a position error signal corresponding to a current position of the head; a position control unit producing a position control signal based on the position error signal; and a correction unit outputting the drive signal based on the filter signal and the position control signal, and the apparatus controls stable positioning of the head against a resistance value fluctuation of a drive coil of the actuator and a resistance value change.

Disk storage apparatus and disk storage apparatus control method

A disturbance compensation signal is produced by estimating the magnitude of disturbance acting upon an actuator based on a driving signal and a voltage signal generated when driving the actuator. A control signal is produced by multiplying the disturbance compensation signal by a gain adjustment coefficient. A head position error signal is produced based on the target position of a magnetic head and the current position of the magnetic head that is detected based on servo information recorded in advance on a magnetic disk. A gain adjuster obtains the driving signal by adding together the control signal and a position control signal. The actuator is driven with the driving signal output from the gain adjuster.

A motor speed control apparatus is provided in which the controllable frequency band of the control system can be sufficiently enhanced with a comparatively simple structure even if the frequency generator equipped into the motor is low in output frequency and the rotational accuracy can be highly improved even if the disturbance of high frequency components of load torque is applied to the motor. The frequency band of the control system can be improved by using the estimated speed signal as the speed feedback signal. A motor speed control apparatus superior in disturbance control characteristic can be realized through the feed forward compensation of an estimated load torque.

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Osaka, Japan

Toshio Inaji