Disk Drive Suspension Laser Bending for Vibration and Angle Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing manufacturing methods for disk drive suspensions face challenges in effectively suppressing flexure vibrations while maintaining gimbal movement precision, leading to increased manufacturing costs and complexity.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the precise calculation and irradiation of laser beams to form bent portions on outriggers, optimizing the pitch and roll angles of the flexure to reduce vibrations and improve manufacturing efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a damper member is attached to the flexure to suppress vibrations, then vibration suppression is improved, but the stiffness of the flexure changes which unfavorably influences gimbal movement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the vibration suppression function from a separate damper member and integrates it into the outrigger structure itself through laser-formed bent portions. This eliminates the need for additional damper components while maintaining vibration suppression effectiveness without adversely affecting flexure stiffness or gimbal movement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the structural support function of the outrigger with the vibration suppression function by forming bent portions directly in the outrigger. This combination allows the outrigger to simultaneously provide mechanical support and dampen vibrations, eliminating the need for separate damper members and avoiding stiffness changes that would affect gimbal movement.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a damper member is attached to the flexure or pitch/roll angle correction is performed, then vibration suppression or angle precision is improved, but the number of manufacturing steps increases leading to higher manufacturing cost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple manufacturing operations into a single integrated process. The laser beam forms both the bent portions for vibration suppression and makes necessary angular corrections to the outrigger in one step, eliminating the need for separate damper attachment or angle correction steps and reducing manufacturing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The laser beam processing step serves multiple functions simultaneously: it creates the bent portions for vibration suppression, adjusts the pitch and roll angles of the outrigger, and completes the vibration suppression treatment in one operation. This multi-functionality reduces the total number of manufacturing steps and lowers production costs.
3Quantity of substance
If the head gimbal assembly is made smaller to increase recording density, then recording density is improved, but vibration suppression becomes more difficult while needing to maintain precise gimbal movement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality changes by forming bent portions at specific locations on the outrigger structure. These localized bent portions create targeted vibration suppression at the source without requiring overall structural changes to the entire head gimbal assembly, allowing small-sized designs to maintain effective vibration control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical vibration suppression methods (such as separate damper members) with a laser-formed structural modification approach. The bent portions created by laser processing provide passive vibration suppression through the outrigger's own structure, eliminating the need for additional mechanical components in the compact head gimbal assembly.
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 approach effectively suppresses flexure vibrations, maintains gimbal movement precision, and reduces manufacturing costs by eliminating the need for additional components like damper members, while enhancing the quality and yield rate of disk drive suspensions.
Implementation Method 1
irradiating a first laser beam to a first position on the outrigger to form a bent portion
Implementation Method 2
irradiating a first laser beam to a first position on the outrigger to form a bent portion, the bent portion being bent in a thickness direction
Data Source
AI summary
According to an embodiment, a manufacturing method of a disk drive suspension comprises determining a first position on the outrigger at which a bent portion is to be formed by irradiating a first laser beam, calculating predicted values of pitch and roll angles of a tongue in a case where the bent portion is formed at the first position, determining a second position on the outrigger to which a second laser beam is to be irradiated to make the predicted values approximate to predetermined target values, and irradiating the first laser beam to the first position to form the bent portion, and the second laser beam to the second position.