Western Digital Corporation

Walter Wayne Butler

Payman Hassibi

Tami Ogle

Kamran Oveyssi

John Robert Edwards

Andrew John Hudson

Sudha Narayanan

Mark A Hathaway

A magnetic disk drive with a head stack assembly having a pass-through flex circuit cable is disclosed. The pass-through flex circuit cable is mounted to a side of the head stack assembly to extend straight forward in an initial unfolded position during handling and assembly and to then be folded over into a final position in a substantially opposite direction and with a desired flex cable trajectory. The head stack assembly includes a post, preferably of rectangular profile, that is integrally formed and spaced away from the actuator body. An outer surface of the post defines the flex cable trajectory. The flex circuit cable, located in the space between the actuator body and the post, extends past the post in the initial position and wraps around the post in the final folded over position. The flex circuit cable is secured to the post in the final folded over position, preferably with a flex clip that removably mounts to the post. The pass-through flex circuit cable of the present invention makes it less likely that the flex cable circuit will be damaged and provides more room for electronic components and for performing lead attachment operations.

Head stack assembly for a magnetic disk drive with a pass-through flex

A magnetic disk drive includes a base which supports a head stack assembly having a coil portion, a flex circuit cable having a grounding portion, and a flex clamp. The disk drive further includes a voice coil motor (VCM) formed from the coil portion's interaction with upper and lower VCM plates that carry at least one permanent magnet. The disk drive includes a Z-shaped grounding portion which wraps around one end of the flex clamp and permits a single screw to secure that end of the flex clamp to the base and simultaneously make grounding contact with the grounding portion and an elongated protrusion extending from one of the VCM plates that is adjacent to the flex clamp to hold that end of the flex clamp against the base when the VCM plates are fastened to the base.

Magnetic disk drive having a Z-shaped grounding portion in the flex

A magnetic disk drive includes a base which supports a head stack assembly having a coil portion, a flex circuit cable having a grounding portion, and a flex clamp and in which a voice coil motor (VCM) is formed from the coil portion's interaction with upper and lower VCM plates that carry at least one permanent magnet. The disk drive includes a Z-shaped grounding portion which wraps around one end of the flex clamp and permits a single screw to secure that end of the flex clamp to the base and simultaneously make grounding contact with the grounding portion and an elongated protrusion extending from one of the VCM plates that is adjacent to the flex clamp to hold that end of the flex clamp against the base when the VCM plates are fastened to the base.

Magnetic disk drive having a VCM plate which includes an elongated

A magnetic latch assembly for immobilizing a read/write head of a disk drive is provided which magnetically couples to an actuator assembly housing the read/write head with enhanced force. A disk drive which includes the magnetic latch assembly is also provided. The magnetic latch assembly includes a magnet and a magnet holder including ferromagnetic material which at least partially surrounds the magnet and provides a medium through which flux produced by one pole of the magnet travels to an opposing pole of the magnet. The latch assembly magnetically couples the actuator assembly by contacting the actuator assembly in an area adjacent one of the poles of the magnet. In one embodiment, the magnet holder includes ferromagnetic material which surrounds the magnet. In another embodiment, the magnet holder includes a plurality of ferromagnetic flanges which at least partially surround the magnet.

Magnetic latch assembly for a disk drive including a ferromagnetic

A pivot bearing assembly for mounting to an enclosure of a head disk assembly to support a head stack assembly of a disk drive is disclosed. The pivot bearing assembly comprises a shaft for being affixed to the enclosure and defining a longitudinal axis, a first and second set of bearings, the second set of bearings longitudinally spaced from the first set of bearings, and each set of bearings surrounding a respective portion of the shaft. The pivot bearing assembly also comprises an inner sleeve member and an outer sleeve member, both sleeve members surrounding the shaft. A pair of channels is located between the outer and inner sleeve members. Alternatively, the pair of channels is located between the shaft and the sets of bearings. The channels contain a cured cast-in-place material, preferably, an ultra violet cured polyurethane compound having a hardness between approximately 24 Shore A to 79 Shore A. The material provides damping of any vibratory wave propagating between an outer surface of the outer sleeve member and the shaft. Furthermore, a portion of the cured cast-in-place material defines an exterior surface of the pivot bearing assembly.

Growing community of inventors

Felton, CA, United States of America

Walter Wayne Butler