Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval – Head mounting – For shifting head between tracks
Reexamination Certificate
1997-05-30
2001-10-09
Letscher, George J. (Department: 2652)
Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval
Head mounting
For shifting head between tracks
Reexamination Certificate
active
06301082
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to disk drives of the type that accept removable disk cartridges. More particularly, this invention relates to an improved disk drive that has an improved system for and method of ejecting a disk cartridge from a disk drive, an improved system for and method of retracting the read/write heads and holding the heads in a parked position, an improved system of and method for operating an eject system and a retraction system of a disk drive and an improved system for and method of loading a motor for engaging a hub of a disk cartridge.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Disk drives for storing electronic information are found in a wide variety of computer systems, including workstations, personal computers, and laptop and notebook computers. Such disk drives can be stand-alone units that are connected to a computer system by a cable, or they can be internal units that occupy a slot, or bay, in a computer system. Laptop and notebook computers have relatively small bays in which to mount internal disk drives and other peripheral devices, as compared to the much larger bays available in most workstation and personal computer housings. The relatively small size of peripheral bays found in laptop and notebook computers, can place significant constraints on the designer of internal disk drives for use in such computers. Techniques that address and overcome the problems associated with these size constraints are therefore important.
Disk drives of the type that accept removable disk cartridges have become increasingly popular. One disk drive product that has been very successful is the ZIP™ drive designed and manufactured by Iomega Corporation, the assignee of the present invention. ZIP™ drives accept removable disk cartridges that contain a flexible magnetic storage medium upon which information can be written and read. The disk-shaped storage medium is mounted on a hub that rotates freely within the cartridge. A spindle motor within the ZIP™ drive engages the cartridge hub when the cartridge is inserted into the drive, in order to rotate the storage medium at relatively high speeds. A shutter on the front edge of the cartridge is moved to the side during insertion into the drive, thereby exposing an opening through which the read/write heads of the drive move to access the recording surfaces of the rotating storage medium. The shutter covers the head access opening when the cartridge is outside of the drive, to prevent dust and other contaminants from entering the cartridge and settling on the recording surfaces of the storage medium.
The ZIP™ drive is presently available for workstations and personal computers in both stand-alone and internal configurations. In order to provide a version of the ZIP™ drive for use in laptop and notebook computers, the size constraints of the peripheral bays of such computers must be considered. In particular, for an internal drive to fit in the majority of laptop and notebook peripheral bays, the drive must be no longer than 135 mm. The height of the drive must be in the range of 12 to 15 mm. These dimensions place many constraints on the design of such a drive, and give rise to numerous design problems. The present invention addresses and overcomes some of the problems presented in designing a disk drive to these specifications.
A disk drive typically includes an actuator that has heads for interfacing with a disk cartridge, a head retraction system for moving these heads to a retraced position, an eject system for ejecting a disk cartridge from the disk drive and an operating system for powering the head retraction system and the eject system. By way of background a general overview of the operation of a disk drive employing these features is provided.
A disk cartridge is inserted into the disk drive. In order to remove the disk cartridge from the drive, an eject button disposed on the periphery of the drive is typically depressed. This button causes the operating system to power the head retraction system. When powered, the head retraction system causes the heads to move away from the disk cartridge and into a retracted position. After the heads have been retracted the operating system powers the eject system and ejects the disk cartridge from the disk drive.
Due to the limited length and height of a disk drive designed to be incorporated into a lap top computer, each of these systems must operate in a relatively small volume. Furthermore, many of the known prior art systems cannot be integrated into a disk drive having these limitations. While the eject system, head retraction system, operating system and motor loading system are advantageous for their intended applications, there is a need for improved systems that can be implemented in lower profile disk drives, such as that described above. The present invention satisfies these needs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An improved disk drive includes an improved operating system, an improved eject system, an improved head retraction system and an improved motor loading system.
An improved operating system for a disk drive includes a motor, a head crank, an eject crank and an actuator. The actuator selectively links the output of the motor to either the head crank or the eject crank. When powered, the head crank causes the heads to be retracted from the disk cartridge and move to a retracted position. In the retracted position the likelihood of damage to the heads is decreased. Similarly, the eject crank can be powered by the output of the motor to eject a disk cartridge from the disk drive.
The actuator selectively controls the output of the motor by moving between a first position and a second position. In a first position, the output of the motor is linked to the eject crank. When activated, the actuator functions to direct the output of the motor to a second position where it is linked to the head crank. In this position, the motor will cause rotation of the head crank and operation of the heads. After the heads have been retracted, the activator functions to couple the output of the motor back to the first position and to power the eject crank. When powered, the eject crank functions to eject a disk cartridge from the disk drive.
In a preferred embodiment of this invention, the output of the motor is linked to a gear train that can be selectively controlled by the actuator to be directed to either the eject crank or the head crank. Included within this gear train may be an output gear to which either an eject gear disposed on the eject crank or a head gear disposed on the head crank may be selectively connected. This gear train provides a gear reduction so that the proper torque and speed of the eject crank and the head crank can be achieved.
The actuator may be an electo-mechanical device that responds to signals from a typical central processing unit to selectively direct the output of the motor to either the eject crank or the head crank. Alternatively, the actuator may be a purely mechanical device that provides forces that operate with the force exerted by the rotation of the motor to switch the output of the motor between the eject crank and the head crank.
An improved head retraction system includes a drive link and a trolley that operate in conjunction with a spring and a head crank to retract the heads from a disk cartridge. The heads are preferably mounted on a carriage assembly that rides in a groove of a retainer. In a preferred embodiment the trolley engages a post extending from the carriage assembly to hold the carriage assembly to the retracted position. The head crank is preferably operated by the improved operating system described above to move the trolley to a spring loaded position. Power from the head crank is then removed and the trolley is driven by spring pressure to contact the post of the carriage assembly and hold it in the retracted position.
In a preferred embodiment, the head crank has a capture feature that captures a wire that links the head crank to a drive link. The drive link is coupled to the trolley to link the head c
Angellotti Thomas J.
Briggs John C.
Hale Carl
Jones David E.
Moody Reed J.
Iomega Corporation
Letscher George J.
Woodcock Washburn Kurtz Mackiewicz & Norris LLP
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