Head assembly including shorted head leads for preventing damage of head

Abstract

A head assembly including a suspension, a head slider mounted on a front end portion of the suspension and having a magnetoresistive element, and a pair of lead lines formed on the suspension and having first ends connected to the magnetoresistive element. The head assembly further includes a metal ball connected by bonding to the pair of lead lines. In handling the head assembly as a separate member, a current caused by static electricity flows through the metal ball short-circuiting the pair of lead lines, thereby preventing burning of the magnetoresistive element due to the current. After mounting the head assembly to an actuator arm, the metal ball is removed to electrically open the pair of lead lines.