Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Japan, Ltd.

Hitachi Metals, Ltd.

Hitachi-Lg Data Storage, Inc.

Yukio Katou

Mikio Tokuyama

Kouki Uefune

Hiroshi Nishida

Jyousei Shimizu

Yasuo Kojima

Masaaki Matsumoto

Masatoshi Kanamaru

Yoshiaki Yamauchi

Ikuo Nishida

Seiichi Katou

Tetsuya Hamaguchi

Masaya Horino

Kouhei Takita

Hiroyuki Nagatomo

Masaru Matsushima

Yasuhiro Hamaguchi

A magnetic-head supporting mechanism includes a slider having a chamfered bleed portion, a mounting portion on which the slider is mounted, a flexible finger portion extending in a longitudinal direction and supporting the mounting portion, a load beam extending in the longitudinal direction that connects at an end to a positioning mechanism, and that applies a load to the slider, and a regulating member extending from the load beam in the longitudinal direction for preventing change of an attitude of the slider when an angular attitude of the slider exceeds a predetermined angle. The regulating member extends over and above the flexible finger portion and over and above the slider and has an end in the longitudinal direction at a position approximately equal to an end of the flexible finger portion in the longitudinal direction.

Magnetic head supporting mechanism with regulating member which prevents over angulation of the slider support

An optical disc apparatus includes a main guide shaft and a subsidiary guide shaft disposed so as to guide movement of a sliding base which holds an optical pickup. The optical pickup enables information recording and reproducing operations on an optical disc. The main guide shaft and the subsidiary guide shaft are configured so as to suppress vibrational resonance caused between the main guide shaft and the subsidiary guide shaft.

Optical disc apparatus with consistently differing guide shafts

An optical switch includes an input optical fiber, first and second output optical fibers, a movable mirror for switching over an optical path between the input optical fiber and an output optical fiber, and collimator lenses disposed on optical paths formed between the input optical fiber and the output optical fibers. When drive force is applied, the movable mirror assumes a first or second position to form an optical path between the input optical fiber and the first or second output optical fiber. When drive force is not applied to the movable mirror, an optical path is formed between the optical path in the first position and that in the second position. In the first position, a first part of the movable mirror comes in contact with a substrate. In the second position, a part of the movable mirror different from the first part comes in contact with the substrate.

Optical switch and optical switch array

A magnetic disc apparatus having a magnetic disc on which information is recorded, a magnetic head and a magnetic head supporting mechanism. The magnetic head supporting mechanism includes a slider having the magnetic head mounted thereon, a load beam having an arm mounting portion and a pivot, and a gimbal having a mounting portion on which the slider is mounted, two flexible finger portions spaced from the load beam and supporting the mounting portion so that the slider is rotatable with respect to the pivot, and a base end portion which is joined to the load beam. The load beam has two openings formed therein in proximity to the pivot which enable viewing of a back surface of the mounting portion which is opposite to a surface of the mounting portion of the gimbal on which the slider is mounted.

Magnetic head supporting mechanism with two openings proximate to pivot of load beam

A magnetic disc apparatus having a magnetic head supporting mechanism which includes a slider, a load beam having a spring portion and a pivot, and a gimbal having a mounting portion on which the slider is mounted. The gimbal has flexible finger portions spaced from the load beam which support the mounting portion so that the slider is rotatable with respect to the pivot, and a base end portion which is joined to the load beam. The load beam has elongation portions extending with respect to both sides of the pivot and being connected together in a proximity of a tip end portion of the flexible finger portions so as to be spaced from the pivot of the gimbal and for delimiting a window. The pivot is provided on a projection portion of the load beam which projects in the window from a spring portion side of the window.

Magnetic head supporting mechanism utilizing elongated portions of a load beam to define an opening in the load beam

A magnetic-disc apparatus includes a magnetic disc, a magnetic head, and a magnetic-head supporting mechanism having a suspension which includes a load beam having a spring portion and an end portion with a pivot and a gimbal having a mounting portion for a slider loaded with the magnetic head. The gimbal has two flexible finger portions that are extended along both sides of the mounting portion. One surface of the end portion which is directed toward a surface of the magnetic disc and one surface of the flexible finger portions which opposes the one surface of the end portion are spaced so as to be out of contact with each other in a region of a tip portion of the gimbal except when the mounting portion undergoes rotational movement.

Magnetic-head supporting mechanism

A magnetic-disc apparatus for recording or reproducing information in which a slider loading a magnetic-head is supported on a magnetic disc. A supporting mechanism for supporting the slider on the magnetic-disc includes a first supporting member mounting the slider and a second supporting member connected with the first supporting member. The first supporting member includes a mounting portion for mounting the slider, at least one flexible finger portion provided at opposite sides of the mounting portion and a connecting portion connected to the second supporting member. The second supporting member including at a tip portion, a constricted portion extended to an end direction having a narrow width than that between inner side edges of the two flexible finger portions and a projecting portion projecting from the constricted portion to the direction of width. The projecting portion is overlapped with the flexible finger portion in the outward direction of surface.

If a large external impact is applied to a magnetic disc apparatus, a slider jumps from a disc surface and rotates. When the slider jumps and rotates, its edges re-contact the disc surface to damage this surface. To reduce the rotation angle of the slider to control its position if an impact is effected, the present invention provides a roof on a load arm to reduce the contact angle at which the slider contacts the disc surface in order to relax the impact upon a contact.

A slider support mechanism of a leaf-spring type movable only in a direction perpendicular to a surface of a disk and having a torsional rigidity equal to or more than 100 gfmm/rad and a spring constant within a range of 0.01-0.5 mg/.mu.m acts a load of 20-100 mg on a magnetic head slider to permit the slider to run in a liquid flying or contact condition. The load equal to or less than 100 mg is stably loaded on the magnetic head slider. Further, the magnetic head slider is not substantially rotated with respect to the magnetic disk surface. Accordingly, a slider running system of a liquid flying type or a solid contact type having a flying amount of 10-40 nm is made possible. Thus, the magnetic disk apparatus of high-density recording and high reliability is provided.

Growing community of inventors

Ibaraki-ken, Japan

Yukio Katou