Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval – Record transport with head stationary during transducing – Drum record
Patent
1998-07-31
2000-02-29
Cao, Allen T.
Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval
Record transport with head stationary during transducing
Drum record
G11B 554
Patent
active
06031690&
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a latch for releasably locking a disc drive actuator at a fixed position during power down conditions. The latch is intended to withstand considerable shock without allowing the actuator to be dislodged, thereby preventing damage to data storage discs having magnetic storage media coated or deposited thereon. More particularly, the present invention relates to an improved latch for a disc drive actuator assembly which releases automatically in response to the aerodynamic force generated by rotation of the storage disc, and which latches and recaptures the actuator arm and holds the arm and transducer supported thereby in fixed position.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It is known in the technology that air flow is generated incident to the rotation of data storage discs in a disc drive. The characteristics of the air flow have been analyzed and discussed in the prior art, as for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,997 to Westwood, and in the IBM Journal of Research and Development, November 1974, pages 480-488. It is known that two commonly mounted spaced apart rotating discs generates significantly greater air flow than generated by a single rotating disc, and that the amount of air flow is also known to be a function of disc diameter and angular velocity. The air flow force is greatest adjacent the periphery of the rotating disc and especially at the region defined between two rotating discs, and fall off rapidly as a nonlinear function as one moves away from the disc periphery.
In rotating, non-removable data disc storage devices, a data read/write transducer flies upon an air cushion or bearing in extremely close proximity to the data surface. In many disc drives, including those which are of extremely small size, that transducer lands upon and takes off from a particular predefined landing region. It is possible, when shocks are applied to the disc drive, that the transducer can move or bounce across the surface of the disc, causing erosion or scarring of the magnetic film coating on the disc surface leading to hard and soft data failures. In addition, the hard transducer head may dent the surface in response to sharp jarring forces attributable to sharp or rough handling of the drive.
While aerodynamically actuated latches have been described in the above referenced Westwood patent as well as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,193, such latches have not been effective because of a lack of the sensitivity and responsiveness to the available air flow, especially since disc drives must be built to withstand increasingly large shocks. Further, the spring force that restrains the transducer actuator assembly in the landing zone must be carefully selected so that the force can be overcome when the discs begin to move.
Thus, a need has arisen for a reliable latch mechanism responsive to the air flow generated in a small form factor disc drive to reliably latch and release the actuator mechanism, while restraining the actuator against relatively strong shocks.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A general object of the present invention is to overcome limitations and drawbacks to prior art aerodynamically operated latches for transducer actuated assemblies in a disc drive.
A further object of the invention is to provide an effective aerodynamic transducer latch mechanism within the confines of a miniaturized disc drive structure.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an effective, aerodynamically responsive transducer latch which is capable of reliably holding the actuator arm from uncontrolled movement away from a landing zone position in response to significant linear shocks exceeding 300 Gs and rotary (rotational) shocks exceeding 15,000 radians/s.sup.2.
Another object of the present invention is to combine a low cost, low-mass non-electrically powered latch mechanism cooperating with a disc drive actuator arm such that while the mass of the latch mechanism is significantly less than the mass of the actuator arm, the latch mechanism is capable of effectively re
REFERENCES:
patent: 5319511 (1994-06-01), Lin
patent: 5715118 (1998-02-01), Tacklind
patent: 5793572 (1998-08-01), Lalouette et al.
Chang Alexander W.
Kelemen Andrew P.
Moir Michael B.
Cao Allen T.
Seagate Technology Inc.
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