Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval – Head mounting – For shifting head between tracks
Reexamination Certificate
1998-05-11
2001-05-01
Ometz, David L. (Department: 2754)
Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval
Head mounting
For shifting head between tracks
C360S244500
Reexamination Certificate
active
06226157
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an actuator for a hard disk drive, and in particular, to an actuator of which the arm, assembled around a pivot shaft in a hard disk drive, is made separable to allow the number of arms and number of heads attached to the arms to be increased according to the capacity of the drive.
2. Description of the Related Art
A hard disk drive is used as an auxiliary memory device for a computer, for recording or reading information on or from a disk having a magnetic medium by a magnetic head. The hard disk drive generally has a frame including a base, a cover, and so on, a spindle motor for supporting and rotating the disk, the magnetic head for recording and reproducing data, an actuator for controlling the position of the magnetic head by a voice coil motor (VCM), a circuit for controlling the driving devices and performing electrical process
2
D, and an interface for connecting the drive to a body. Such a hard disk drive is comprised of electronic and mechanical devices, for recording and reproducing data by converting digital electrical pulses into a magnetic field.
The disk in the hard disk drive fixedly rotates around the spindle motor at a high speed. The magnetic head moves over the disk at a very small height due to an air flow generated on a disk surface by the rotation of the disk. The magnetic head is fixed to a head gimbals at the tip of an arm of the actuator for rotating by the VCM, and moves to a target track for a data search to thereby perform read/write operations.
The actuator is rotatably installed around a pivot shaft, and has a bobbin in an end portion thereof. The bobbin moves by operation of the VCM and then the magnetic head installed in the other end portion of the actuator records or reads data on or from a track of the disk. When the hard disk drive stops or the power is off, the actuator moves to a parking zone located on an inner track of the disk to prevent damage to the disk.
The actuator conventionally has three or four arms. When all of the arms are not used, for example, two or three arms are used to stack heads, dummy heads are applied to the other unused arms, thus increasing the weight of the actuator and adversely influencing drive performance. Addition, even if all the arms, for example, four arms are used, a single Pivot Shaft passes through four arm holes to stack heads on the arms. Thus, the arms are highly susceptible to warpage due to the impact of the Pivot Shaft. Furthermore, since the arms are weaker than the Pivot Shaft, cracks are produced around the arm hole, in many cases.
On the other hand, in the case of assembled arms, the four arms can be assembled, with a Pivot Shaft passing through a single hole, minimizing the failure of each arm. The current trend of a hard disk drive is to derive several side models from a basic model due to a short life cycle, so that drastically changing world's demands are rapidly satisfied and a drive having an optimum structure is timely provided for user demands.
The following patents each disclose features in common with the present invention but do not teach or suggest the separable arm actuator for a hard disk drive of the present invention: U.S. Pat. No. 5,153,794 to Hinlein, entitled
Assembly And Method For Securing Head Suspensions On Actuator Arms
, U.S. Pat. No. 5,323,284 to Pecha et al., entitled
Magnetic Transducer Receiver For A Disk Drive
, U.S. Pat. No. 4,835,641 to Maeda, entitled
Magnetic Disk Apparatus
, U.S. Pat. No. 5,095,396 to Putnam et al., entitled
Unitary E-Block Assembly For Use In A Disk Drive
, U.S. Pat. No. 4,879,617 to Sampietro et al., entitled
Actuator Assembly For Hard Disk Drives
, U.S. Pat. No. 5,296,984 to Fick, entitled
Adapter Plate For Coupling A Head To An Actuator Arm In A Disk Drive Assembly
, U.S. Pat. No. 4,912,583 to Hinlein, entitled
Clamp For Mounting Head-Load Beam Slider Arm In A Disk Drive
, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,491,599 to Sogabe, entitled
Magnetic Disk Apparatus.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide an actuator for moving a head over a recording medium in a hard disk drive, of which the arm is made separable, so that the performance of the drive is increased by reducing unnecessary parts and the weight of the actuator.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an actuator which is so in expensive and easily replaced as to reduce parts in developing several side models from a basic model, and which is lightweight, thereby increasing drive performance and decreasing seek time.
To achieve the above objects, there is provided an actuator for a hard disk drive. The actuator has a separable arm. The separable arm is assembled adjacent the actuator to add an additional head or heads to an actuator having two or four heads; and thereby allowing a large drive.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4716478 (1987-12-01), Walsh et al.
patent: 4835641 (1989-05-01), Maeda
patent: 4879617 (1989-11-01), Sampietro et al.
patent: 4912583 (1990-03-01), Hinlein
patent: 5095396 (1992-03-01), Putnam et al.
patent: 5109310 (1992-04-01), Ohkjita et al.
patent: 5153794 (1992-10-01), Hinlein
patent: 5296984 (1994-03-01), Fick
patent: 5305169 (1994-04-01), Anderson et al.
patent: 5323284 (1994-06-01), Pecha et al.
patent: 5404636 (1995-04-01), Stefansky et al.
patent: 5491599 (1996-02-01), Sogabe
patent: 5495375 (1996-02-01), Baasch et al.
patent: 5691581 (1997-11-01), Umehara et al.
patent: 5805377 (1998-09-01), Lerdal et al.
patent: 5828521 (1998-10-01), Hasegawa
patent: 5854721 (1998-12-01), Lim
Bushnell , Esq. Robert E.
Castro Angel
Ometz David L.
Samsung Electronics Co,. Ltd.
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