Hard disk drive with lube on demand actuators

Details Hard disk drive with lube on demand actuators Hard disk drive with lube on demand actuators

1998-10-27

2001-06-12

Hudspeth, David (Department: 2651)

Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval

Automatic control of a recorder mechanism

Controlling the head

C360S254800

Reexamination Certificate

active

06246534

ABSTRACT:

TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates in general to hard disk drives and in particular to a hard disk drive with lube on demand actuators.
BACKGROUND ART
Magnetic recording files, such as hard disk drives, are commonly known in the art. Hard disk drives typically employ a plurality of magnetic read/write heads on the end of movable suspension actuator arms to read/write with magnetic disks. Some hard disk drives are required to withstand high G-force impacts and a large number of start/stop cycles. The drives also must unload the heads off the disk surfaces to prevent damage to the system.
One solution to this problem is to provide a off-loading ramp near the outer edge of each of the disks for engaging the actuator arms. Each ramp is positioned so that when the head is moved past the outer diameter of the disk, the head moves off of the disk and onto the stationary ramp. The ramps may be formed from materials which will not shed particles and may be lubricated to prevent ramp wear. The ramps also may have narrow rails formed to reduce static friction and hold the arms in place when they are retracted from the disks.
One prior art device, U.S. Pat. No. 5,408,375, provides a ramp with a cam surface or detent to retain the arm after it is retracted. The ramp has a groove on an opposite side of the detent adjacent to the holding position of the arm when it is retracted. The groove is provided for containing a lubricant which lubricates the arm each time it is retracted. When the arm moves the head back onto the disk, the ramp is lubricated to reduce wear. Although this design is workable, the ramp does not require lubrication for every arm retraction. Excessive lubrication of the ramp causes the lubricant to overmigrate, which can interfere with the operation of or damage the hard disk drive. An improved ramp design with selective lubrication capability is needed.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
A hard disk drive contains magnetic disks which are accessed by a series of pivotable arms. Each arm has a pair of flexible, cantilevered suspensions and a head gimbal assembly with a magnetic read/write head secured to each suspension. A tab extends from and forms part of the end of each head gimbal assembly. The hard disk drive also has a stationary cam member located near the outer edges of the disks. The cam member has a series of rigid cantilevered fingers with contoured surfaces. Each surface has a three spaced apart detents with a recess located between each adjacent pair of detents. The second recess on each surface has a lubricant-filled reservoir.
For the majority of its operation, the drive pivots the arms between an operational range adjacent to the disks, and a park position in the first recess when the drive is not in use. The tabs slide along the support surfaces of the fingers when the arms move to the retracted position. At selected intervals, the support surfaces of the fingers may be lubricated by briefly moving the arms to a lube position with the tabs in the second recess. The small amount of lubricant applied to the tabs is sufficient to relubricate the support surfaces of the fingers as the tabs slide on the fingers for a number of cycles.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a top schematic view of a hard disk drive constructed in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 2
is an enlarged top view of a portion of the hard disk drive of FIG.
1
.
FIG. 3
is a sectional side view of a portion of the hard disk drive of
FIG. 1
taken along the line
3
—
3
of FIG.
2
.
FIG. 4
is a top schematic view of a second embodiment of the hard disk drive of FIG.
1
.
FIG. 5
is an enlarged top view of a portion of the hard disk drive of FIG.
4
.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4686592 (1987-08-01), Carroll et al.
patent: 5237477 (1993-08-01), Hodapp et al.
patent: 5394281 (1995-02-01), Kajitani
patent: 5408375 (1995-04-01), Asano
patent: 5585980 (1996-12-01), Bouaghou
patent: 5644451 (1997-07-01), Chan et al.
patent: 5663846 (1997-09-01), Masuoka et al.
patent: 6091576 (2000-07-01), Eckerd et al.
patent: 06215435 (1994-05-01), None
Jun. 1995 IBM Technical Bulletin (Slider Load/Unload Ramp For Magentic Recording Files).

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