Slit Full Disk Shroud for Hard Drive Airflow and Flutter Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing thinness and size of hard drive disks lead to disk flutter, which negatively impacts track media registration (TMR), and existing solutions to reduce flutter, such as full disk shrouds, compromise air filter efficiency by relocating the filter to a low airflow area.
Innovation Solution
A full disk shroud with slits formed in the gaps between disks allows air to flow from high airflow regions through the shroud and into the air filter, maintaining continuous airflow and filter efficiency while reducing turbulence and disk flutter.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a full disk shroud is used to reduce disk flutter, then disk flutter is reduced, but air filter efficiency is compromised due to relocation to a low airflow area
Solution Approach 1:
The shroud is segmented with vertical slots that divide the airflow path while maintaining the continuous shroud structure. These slots allow air to pass through the shroud body, creating multiple airflow channels that maintain filter efficiency while preserving the shroud's flutter-reducing function.
Solution Approach 2:
The vertical slots act as intermediaries that facilitate airflow through the shroud. They enable air to transition from the high airflow region around the disks to the filter area while maintaining the shroud's structural integrity and continuous form.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the shroud is made continuous to reduce turbulence, then disk flutter is reduced, but airflow to the filter is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The shroud incorporates vertical slots that segment the airflow path without breaking the shroud's continuous structure. This allows air to flow through the shroud body while maintaining the smooth, continuous form that reduces turbulence and disk flutter.
Solution Approach 2:
The shroud has different properties in different regions: the main body remains continuous and smooth to reduce turbulence, while the vertical slots provide localized openings for airflow. This local differentiation allows the shroud to simultaneously reduce flutter and maintain filter airflow.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution maintains air filter efficiency and reduces disk flutter by ensuring continuous airflow around the disks, improving track media registration without breaking the shroud's integrity.
Implementation Method 1
A number of arcuate gas channels are in the shroud, wherein each arcuate gas channel is horizontally aligned with a corresponding disk gap. The arcuate gas channels connect the disk gaps to the upwardly sloping gas channel.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided herein is an apparatus including a hard drive base. A number of disks are rotatably connected to the hard drive base, and there are a number of disk gaps between the disks. A shroud extends in a circumferential span around the disks, wherein the shroud extends less than the circumference of the disks. The shroud is positioned between the disk gaps and an upwardly sloping gas channel. A number of arcuate gas channels are in the shroud, wherein each arcuate gas channel is horizontally aligned with a corresponding disk gap. The arcuate gas channels connect the disk gaps to the upwardly sloping gas channel.