Patents by Inventor William Harlow

William Harlow has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6985317
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method, apparatus and program product for testing the reliability of a disk drive. The head-to-disk clearance of a disk drive is measured at different slider airbearing conditions. The change in head-to-disk clearance between the slider airbearing conditions is calculated. If the calculated head-to-disk clearance change between airbearing conditions for each of the heads in the disk drive exceeds a predetermined threshold, the disk drive is verified as having passed the reliability test. Differences in slider airbearing conditions are generated by varying pressures and/or temperatures under which the drive is operated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2006
    Assignee: Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.V.
    Inventors: William Harlow McConnell, Molly Smith, legal representative, Gordon James Smith
  • Patent number: 6947234
    Abstract: Provided are a method, system, and program for performing error correction in a storage device having a magnetic storage medium. A plurality of zones are defined in the magnetic storage medium, wherein each zone comprises a plurality of addressable locations in the magnetic storage medium. A determination is made as to whether a change of a signal-to-noise ratio for one subject zone of the plurality of zones exceeds a threshold. An operation is performed to improve the signal-to-noise ratio with respect to the subject zone of the magnetic storage medium after determining that the change of the signal-to-noise ratio exceeds the threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2005
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Bernd Lamberts, William Harlow McConnell, Adam Daniel Polcyn, Frank J. Wang
  • Publication number: 20050108134
    Abstract: There are methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for managing an investment portfolio. For example, there is a method that includes receiving asset classes with corresponding sets of financial data, determining variation information for the sets of financial data, and determining a final set of factors based on the variation information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2003
    Publication date: May 19, 2005
    Inventors: William Harlow, Ralph Wolf, Eric Penanhoat
  • Publication number: 20040017629
    Abstract: Provided are a method, system, and program for performing error correction in a storage device having a magnetic storage medium. A plurality of zones are defined in the magnetic storage medium, wherein each zone comprises a plurality of addressable locations in the magnetic storage medium. A determination is made as to whether a change of a signal-to-noise ratio for one subject zone of the plurality of zones exceeds a threshold. An operation is performed to improve the signal-to-noise ratio with respect to the subject zone of the magnetic storage medium after determining that the change of the signal-to-noise ratio exceeds the threshold.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 23, 2002
    Publication date: January 29, 2004
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Bernd Lamberts, William Harlow McConnell, Adam Daniel Polcyn, Frank J. Wang
  • Publication number: 20030206357
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method, apparatus and program product for testing the reliability of a disk drive. The head-to-disk clearance of a disk drive is measured at different slider airbearing conditions. The change in head-to-disk clearance between the slider airbearing conditions is calculated. If the calculated head-to-disk clearance change between airbearing conditions for each of the heads in the disk drive exceeds a predetermined threshold, the disk drive is verified as having passed the reliability test. Differences in slider airbearing conditions are generated by varying pressures and/or temperatures under which the drive is operated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2002
    Publication date: November 6, 2003
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: William Harlow McConnell, Gordon James Smith
  • Patent number: 5870254
    Abstract: In a disk drive system transducer suspensions are swaged to the actuator arms. The end actuator arms in the arm stack experience unbalanced forces which detrimentally effect the flying height of the transducers. A compensating swage plate is swaged on the opposite surface of each of the end actuator arms such that these unbalanced forces are canceled and the transducer maintains the proper flying height.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 9, 1999
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Erik Baserman, Charles D. Cullom, III, Norman Kermit Frater, Brad Vaughn Johnson, William Harlow McConnell