Communications: electrical – Condition responsive indicating system – Specific condition
Reexamination Certificate
2001-06-26
2003-07-15
Trieu, Van (Department: 2632)
Communications: electrical
Condition responsive indicating system
Specific condition
C340S679000, C360S075000, C360S097020
Reexamination Certificate
active
06593855
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a shock measurement apparatus, and in particular to a shock measurement apparatus that can accurately detect and record shock received by a hard disk drive installed in a notebook personal computer (PC).
2. Description of the Related Art
Hard disk drives are the most popular data storage means for computers. A hard disk drive is composed of one or more magnetic disks arranged coaxially and driven by a spindle motor. Data is read/written by a magnetic head facing the magnetic disk and the magnetic disk is driven by an actuator, typically a voice coil motor. The magnetic disk, the magnetic head, and the actuator are enclosed in a housing called an enclosure case.
A hard disk drive is sensitive to shock because it includes dynamic mechanics, such as the spindle motor for rotating the magnetic disk and the actuator for the magnetic head. Moreover, a hard disk drive is often installed within a notebook PC that can experience shock events. For example, it can bump against obstacles while being carried or fall to the floor. Notebook PCs receive greater and more frequent shocks than desktop PCs. Accordingly, a hard disk drive installed in a notebook PC requires high shock-resistance.
Improving the shock-resistance of the hard disk drive requires that the shock that the hard disk receives be accurately measured. Several uses of such a measurement exist. For example, the shock received by a notebook PC during operation may be measured, and if the measured value exceeds a predetermined value, read/write operation of the hard disk drive can be suspended. Additionally, failure of the PC may be predicted based on measurements of the shock received by the notebook PC during operation.
In order to measure the shock accurately, the shock received by the hard disk drive must be measured while the hard disk drive is installed in the notebook PC. Unfortunately, attaching a shock measurement instrument to the hard disk drive or the notebook PC would change the size and center of mass of the system. These changes increase the difficulty of accurately measuring the shock received by a hard disk drive installed in a notebook PC.
Many instruments for measuring and recording shock received by equipment have been proposed, including those described in Published Unexamined Patent Application Nos. 2-179479, 4-152268, 5-133974, 2000-97730, 2000-97965, and 2000-99868.
For example, in Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 2-179479, a shock recording apparatus is disclosed which comprises means for detecting shock in X, Y, and Z directions, recording means for recording information about the shock, a battery for power supply, and a connector for providing the information recorded in the recording means to an external indicating or recording means, all contained in a small portable case.
In Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 5-133974, a hard disk drive is disclosed in which a sensor with piezoelectric polymer film is installed. Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 5-133974 discloses a shock apparatus which senses shock received by a hard disk drive and provides a write stop signal to the read/write head.
As mentioned above, many proposals have been made concerning apparatus for sensing and recording shock. However, they are inadequate for accurately measuring the shock received by a hard disk drive. That is, if the shock recording apparatus proposed in Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 2-179479 is attached to a notebook PC, the measured shock value would be inaccurate due to the altered weight and center of mass of the system.
In the process of developing a new note book PC, shock received by a hard disk drive attached to the PC may be measured, and the result of the measurement may be reflected in the design of the PC. The apparatus proposed in Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 5-133974 can measure shock without making substantial change to the physical characteristics of a notebook PC because it uses the shock sensor made of piezoelectric polymer film. However, that apparatus is designed to measure shock during operation. It provides a write stop signal to the read/write head after sensing shock received by the hard disk drive and does not accommodate measurement during development that can be reflected in the design of a new notebook PC.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a shock measurement apparatus that can accurately measure shock received by equipment, such as a notebook PC, without altering the physical characteristics of the equipment. It is another object of the present invention to provide a shock measurement apparatus that allows the result of the shock measurement to be reflected in the design of new equipment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The inventor conceived the idea of constructing a shock measurement apparatus with an enclosure similar to a hard disk drive in order to measure shock received by the hard disk drive of a notebook PC without altering the physical characteristics of the PC. The components, such as magnetic disks, of the hard disk drive are contained in a housing called an enclosure case and the size of the enclosure case is specified by a specification called a “form factor.” In current notebook PCs, a hard disk drive having a 2.5-inch form factor is used, and a region called a “media bay” (or device bay), intended for receiving the hard disk drive is provided in the body of the notebook PC. The hard disk drive is attached to this bay. Therefore, if a shock measurement apparatus is fabricated, which has an enclosure of the same size as the form factor of the hard disk drive and the same weight, shock measured with this shock measurement apparatus attached to the media bay of the notebook PC would imitatively measure shock actually received by the hard disk.
The current 2.5-inch form factor of the hard disk installed in notebook PCs typically has dimensions of 100 mm (l), 70 mm (w), and 9.5 mm (t). A major problem with fabricating the shock measurement apparatus using an enclosure of this size is that the thickness is limited to 9.5 mm. Great difficulty arises in finding a power supply battery that supplies power sufficient to drive the shock measurement apparatus and fits within this thickness range. The notebook PC; however, contains a battery for driving the PC, and the power problem can be solved by arranging the shock measurement apparatus so as to receive electric power from that battery. A connector compatible with a power connector for the hard disk drive is provided in the shock measurement apparatus of the present invention to allow the shock measurement apparatus to be supplied with power by the battery of the notebook PC.
The present invention takes account of the above-mentioned considerations and provides a shock measurement apparatus for measuring shock received by a hard disk drive device installed in a computer. The apparatus comprises: a sensor for detecting the shock, a power receiving connector for receiving power from the computer, and an enclosure containing the sensor and the power connector and having the same size as a disk drive device.
Because the enclosure case of the shock measurement apparatus according to the present invention has the same size as a disk drive device, the shock measurement apparatus can measure shock while attached to a region in the computer that is intended for installation of a disk drive device, the media bay of a notebook PC. This means that shock can be measured without altering the physical characteristics of the computer under measurement. Therefore, the shock that would actually be received by the disk drive unit can be precisely measured in an imitative manner. That the enclosure case of the shock measurement apparatus has the same size as a hard disk drive device does not require an exact physical match. In the case of a hard disk drive, it only requires that the shock measurement apparatus can be attached to the media bay as though it were a hard disk drive. The size specificat
Fujino Takane
Okasaka Kazutaka
Takahashi Keishi
Bracewell & Patterson L.L.P.
Martin Robert B.
Trieu Van
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