2778results about "Undesired vibrations/sounds insulation/absorption" patented technology

A hard disk drive having a housing with a base and a cover connected to each other, a spindle motor connected to the base, a disk mounted on the spindle motor and rotating with respect to the base, and an actuator rotatably connected to the base and supporting a slider with a magnetic head mounted on a front end thereof. The magnetic head writes and / or reads data to and / or from the disk. The hard disk drive also has a blade protruding from a surface of the base and / or a portion of the cover facing the disk. The blade guides an air flow caused by rotation of the disk toward an outer edge of the disk.

A hermetic sealing approach involves welding an Aluminum cover onto a low-cost Aluminum housing. According to an example embodiment of the present invention, a metal housing having a base and sidewalls extending upward therefrom is adapted to receive and couple to an HDD arrangement. The metal housing is formed using material and processing (e.g., cold formed or die cast Aluminum) that are relatively inexpensive. A feedthrough arrangement including a plurality of communication pins extends through an opening in the base and is coupled thereto, with the communication pins adapted to pass signals between the inside and the outside of the metal housing. A metal cover is welded to an upper portion of the sidewalls and, with the feedthrough arrangement, hermetically seals the metal housing.

A hard disk system having a disk housing shock mounted in an environmental housing employs a device to transfer heat from the disk housing while avoiding any mechanical connection that would impose significant rigidity between the disk housing and the environment housing so as to defeat the shock mounting. In one embodiment, a Peltier effect heat pump has a cold side in contact with the disk housing and a hot side in contact with heat-conducting spring fingers contacting the environmental housing. In another embodiment, a fan is positioned in a space between the outside of the disk housing and the inside of the environmental housing to circulate air around the disk housing, while a Peltier effect heat pump moves heat to the environmental housing. In yet another embodiment, the fan is positioned in the space between the disk housing and the environmental housing, and the Peltier effect heat pump has a cold side in contact with an exterior surface of the environmental housing and a hot side in contact with a heat sink. In still another embodiment, a flexible heat pipe comprising a shell containing a low vapor-point liquid is positioned in the space between the outside of the disk housing and the inside of the environmental housing with respective ends in contact with each of the housings.

A novel information storage device is disclosed and claimed. The information storage device includes a disk drive having a disk drive top surface, a disk drive bottom surface, a disk drive periphery, and a disk drive printed circuit board. The disk drive defines a Z direction that is normal to the disk drive top surface. The disk drive defines a disk drive height measured in the Z direction from the disk drive bottom surface to the disk drive top surface. The information storage device includes a first conductive shield over the disk drive. The first conductive shield includes a peripheral capacitive flange that at least partially overlaps the disk drive periphery. The peripheral capacitive flange is separated from the disk drive periphery in a direction normal to the Z direction by a clearance. The overlap in the Z-direction is at least 5 times the clearance.

A chassis for receiving a plurality of disk drives includes a plurality of disk drive receiving stations. Each station is configured to carry out testing and / or servo writing operations on a received disk drive. Each station includes a base, a nest assembly and a plurality of elastomeric mounts that elastically couple the nest assembly to the base to enable movement of the nest assembly relative to the base. The nest assembly includes a nest configured to receive and mate with the disk drive and a printed circuit board. Each station includes a separate vibration isolating mass that is coupled to the nest. The vibration isolating mass at least partially isolates vibrations originating within the nest from being transmitted through the elastomeric mounts to other nests in the chassis and at least partially isolates vibrations originating outside the nest from being transmitted through the elastomeric mounts to the nest assembly.

A magnetic data storage fixed hard disk drive using stationary Microhead Array Chips in place of conventional Flying-Heads and Rotary Voice-Coil Actuators or other Servo-Tracking mechanisms. Every Microhead Array Chip has a minimum of one thousand or maximum of four billion individual and addressable microhead read and write data-transducers built into it. The hard disk drive unit assembly that uses the Microhead Array Chip approach will have within its assembly as few as two or as many as twenty-eight installed Microhead Array Chips. The Microhead Array Chip hard disk drive unit assemblies will have at least one storage disk-platter with two disk-platter data-surfaces containing a multiplicity of concentric data-tracks that rotates at a substantially constant angular velocity. While Microhead Array Chips are made stationary by specially designed circuit boards, that positions a Microhead Array Chip over each of two data-surfaces of every disk-platter within the hard disk drive assembly. The total number of microheads within a stationary positioned Microhead Array Chip's Microhead Array is what determines the total number of available tracks on and across a data-platter's data-surface (i.e., 65,000 microheads would equal 65,000 cylinder / tracks).

Systems and methods of the invention relate to managing an inventory of items within a storage container. A storage container can house one or more items for distribution among one or more users such as, for instance, employees. The storage container discussed herein provides authentication of a user, tracking of the inventory each user removes or returns, video / image capture of user during access of the storage container, wireless tracking of items housed within the storage container, among others.

A method of reducing rotational vibration effects in a disk drive by sensing vibration in a sensor and generating corresponding sensor data; deriving a statistical sensor (SS) value based on the sensor data; deriving a statistical position error signal (SPES) value from servo sectors read by the head; comparing the SS value to a SS-threshold value; comparing SPES value to a SPES-threshold value; and generating a feed-forward command effort signal for reducing rotational vibration effects if the SS value exceeds the SS-threshold value and if SPES value exceeds the SPES-threshold value.

A disk drive is disclosed comprising an actuator arm, a head attached to a distal end of the actuator arm, a voice coil motor for rotating the actuator arm about a pivot, and an optical sensor operable to generate a first position signal representing a position of the actuator arm with respect to the disk, wherein the first position signal is substantially unaffected by a vibration mode of the actuator arm. Servo sectors recorded on the disk are processed to generate a second position signal representing a position of the head with respect to the disk, wherein the second position signal comprises a significant component due to the vibration mode of the actuator arm. A control signal is applied to the voice coil motor in response to the first and second position signals.

Embodiments of the invention provide a magnetic disk drive which has improved electrical properties owing to a reduction in the loss of transmission line, improved vibration properties owing to a reduction in the stiffness of wiring around the head, and a flat impedance in the transmission line. In one embodiment, a magnetic disk drive comprises a suspension; a magnetic head coupled with the suspension and configured to write and read information to and from a magnetic recording medium; and a transmission line disposed on the suspension to transmit writing and reading information to and from the magnetic head. The transmission line includes a writing line and a reading line, a lower conductor disposed underneath the writing line and the reading line, and an insulating layer interposed between the lower conductor and the writing and reading lines. The lower conductor comprises copper or copper-based alloy and has a thickness of substantially less than 25 μm, desirably about 2-12 μm, and more desirably about 5 μm.

A system for mounting a hard disk drive inside an electronic apparatus in such a way that the hard disk drive is isolated from vibration and noise and heat generated by the hard disk dive is radiated to a cover of the electronic apparatus to prevent overheating. A foam heat transmission sheet is placed between the hard disk drive cover and an outer casing that is mounted to the electronic apparatus and far-infrared ray transmitting and receiving sheets are attached to the outside of the outer casing and to the inside of the cover of the electronic apparatus to transmit heat from the hard disk drive to the exterior of the apparatus.

A disk drive includes a disk drive base, a disk, and a head stack assembly rotatably coupled to the base adjacent the disk surface of the disk. The disk drive includes an airflow channeling enclosure. The enclosure includes an airflow inlet disposed downstream of the head stack assembly and configured to receive the disk rotation induced airflow therethrough. The enclosure further includes an airflow channel extending along the disk surface from the airflow inlet. The enclosure further includes an outer wall extending along the disk surface from the airflow inlet and defining the airflow channel radially interior to the outer wall. The enclosure further includes an airflow outlet disposed upstream of the head stack assembly extending from the outer wall and the channel opposite the airflow inlet for modifying the disk rotation induced airflow passing from the channel.

A disk drive is disclosed comprising a disk, a head actuated over the disk, and a spindle motor for rotating the disk. The spindle motor comprises a rotating component, a stationary component, and a first and second bearing assembly disposed between the rotating component and stationary component for rotating the rotating component about the stationary component, wherein the disk is attached to the rotating component. The bearing assemblies comprise a stationary component surface and a rotating component surface having a lubricant disposed there between. The first bearing assembly employs an anionic lubricant such that a first voltage forms between the stationary component surface and the rotating component surface when the rotating component rotates about the stationary component. The second bearing assembly employs a cationic lubricant such that a second voltage forms between the stationary component surface and the rotating component surface when the rotating component rotates about the stationary component. A polarity of the second voltage being opposite a polarity of the first voltage to thereby reduce the potential at the disk surface.

A disk drive support assembly has a clamp arrangement for releasably clamping a disk drive to a massive block. The clamp arrangement may be an inflatable actuator that is operable to clamp the disk drive to the block via a disk drive carrier. Various clamp assemblies for clamping a disk drive to a substrate, such as a disk drive carrier, are also disclosed. A disk drive carrier that can be adapted for use with different types of disk drive is also disclosed. Such disk drives include those that provide for electrical and / or data connections under the disk drive, those that provide for electrical and / or data connections at the rear of the disk drive, and those that have their own so-called product card associated therewith.

Embodiments of the invention provide a disk drive device excellent in reliability that can reduce influence of a temperature change in an environment of use. In one embodiment, a disk drive device includes a disk drive mechanism that records information in a disk or reproduces information stored in the disk and a housing in which the disk drive mechanism is housed. The disk drive device further includes a humidity control element that controls humidity in the inside of the housing, a temperature sensor that detects ambient temperature of the disk drive device or temperature of a portion where temperature changes substantially in the same manner as the ambient temperature, and a control circuit that controls the temperature control element on the basis of a rapid change in temperature detected by the temperature sensor.

A disk drive comprises a housing including a base; a disk rotatably attached to the base; a printed circuit board coupled to the base and including a plurality of circuit board pads; a head stack assembly pivotally coupled to the base about a pivot axis and a flex-to-board connector. The head stack assembly includes a head for reading and writing to the disk and a flex cable assembly that includes a flexible film including a plurality of conductive traces that are electrically coupled to the head. The flexible film includes a connecting portion in which each of the plurality of conductive traces defines a trace pad. Each trace pad is disposed on a surface of the flexible film that is generally parallel to the pivot axis. The flex-to-board connector is attached to the base and is configured to couple to the connecting portion of the flexible film and to maintain the surface of the flexible film on which the trace pads are disposed in an orientation that is generally parallel to the pivot axis. The flex-to-board connector includes a plurality of conductive fingers, each configured to electrically connect one of the trace pads to a corresponding one of the plurality of circuit board pads.

A data storage device includes a housing in which is mounted a data storage unit, such as a hard disk drive. Pads serve as shock mounts at the corners of the data storage unit and separate the data storage unit and the housing. A flex circuit electrically couples the data storage unit and a connector at the front of the device. The flex circuit has, e.g., an “N” shape configuration, which advantageously provides flexibility in many directions. The data storage device may convert the number of pin connections from the data storage unit to a different number of pin connections. A docking module that receives the portable data storage device may also convert the number of pin connections from the data storage device to a different number of pin connections used by a host system. The docking module includes a slide for receiving and ejecting the portable data storage device.

A disk drive includes a pivot-bearing cartridge configured to pivotally support the head stack assembly on the base of the drive. A tolerance ring is coupled to the pivot-bearing cartridge and includes a single sleeve defining an inner sleeve surface facing the pivot-bearing cartridge and an outer sleeve surface facing away therefrom, and a layer of dampening material disposed on the inner or outer sleeve surfaces so as to be in contact with the pivot-bearing cartridge or the bore surface of the through bore that is defined in the body portion of the head stack assembly, respectively.

A portable disk drive in accordance with the present invention includes a housing made from aluminum alloy. The housing is provided with a front cover having a hook release button mounted thereon. The housing is provided with transparent side panels, which is illuminated when standby. A rear panel integrally formed with a supporting bracket on which a printed circuit board is mounted. The printed circuit board is mounted LED with respect to the transparent side panels. The supporting bracket is provided with a latch, which interlocks with a hook of the hook release button when the support bracket is inserted into the housing. When the portable hard disk drive is electrically connected, the LED illuminates the side panels.

A disk drive including a disk drive base and a cover attached to the disk drive base. The disk drive further includes a rotatable disk including a disk surface extending to an outer periphery. The disk drive further includes a spindle motor including an axis of rotation. The spindle motor is rotatably coupled to the disk drive base for rotating the disk about the axis of rotation. The disk drive further includes a shroud surface concentrically formed about and adjacent the outer periphery. The disk drive further includes a cavity formed in the shroud surface. The cavity extends to a cavity opening adjacent the outer periphery. The disk drive further includes an airflow diverter element extending from the cover towards the disk surface radially between the cavity opening and the axis of rotation for diverting disk rotation induced airflow adjacent the disk surface.

A data storage cartridge comprising a hard drive and a cartridge housing. The hard drive includes a non-tape storage medium and an electronic data connector including a plurality of connection pads for accessing the non-tape storage medium. The cartridge housing substantially encloses the hard drive. The plurality of connection pads are transversely accessible by a cartridge drive.

A disk drive that includes a head disk assembly (HDA) comprising a base having a top base surface and a bottom base surface, and a top cover secured to the top base surface; a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) in communication with the HDA and comprising a first PCBA surface and a second PCBA surface wherein the first PCBA surface faces the bottom base surface; and a bottom cover fastened to and substantially covering the bottom base surface. The invention further includes an acoustic damping shield assembly placed between the bottom cover and the second PCBA surface, wherein the acoustic damping shield assembly comprises first and second acoustic absorption layers having major surfaces; an acoustic barrier layer placed in between the major surfaces; and the major surfaces and the acoustic barrier layer are fixed in a stacked relationship.

A mounting apparatus includes a bracket (20), a slidable member (40), a retention member (50), and a pair of shock absorbers (80). The bracket is for receiving a storage device (10) therein, the bracket including a pair of opposite first and second sidewalls (24, 26), and a pair of through holes (246) is defined in the first sidewall. The slidable member is movably attached to the first sidewall of the bracket. The retention member is spring-loaded, and is movable relative to the slidable member and the first sidewall respectively in different directions. A pair of latches (54) is formed on the retention member, the latches being capable of being extended through the through holes respectively for engaging the storage device. The shock absorber is arranged to an internal surface of the second sidewall for engaging the storage device.

An environmental control system, or data pack, is provided in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. The system allows for audio and video recording on hard drive media in situations where temperature, vibration and humidity would otherwise have prevented the use of such technology. The system can be used in conjunction with an event recorder for use in motor vehicles, trains and the like. The environmental control system includes a thermoelectric module connected to the hard drive and to a housing. The thermoelectric module is for transferring heat between the hard drive and the housing in response to an applied voltage in order to maintain a hard drive temperature within a hard drive operable temperature range. The vehicle operating temperature range includes temperatures outside the hard drive operable temperature range.

An actuator for a disk drive. The actuator includes an actuator body defining an axis of rotation and including a body lateral surface disposed generally parallel to the axis of rotation. The actuator further includes an actuator arm extending from the actuator body. The actuator arm includes an arm base disposed adjacent the actuator body. The actuator further includes a coil support extending from the actuator body opposite the actuator arm. The coil support includes a coil support base disposed adjacent the actuator body. The actuator further includes a constrained layer damper disposed upon the body lateral surface extending from the arm base to the coil support base for mitigation of resonant vibration of the actuator arm and the coil support.