Abstract: An FET write driver providing high rates of data transfer to a magnetic storage medium by effectively utilizing the voltage swing provided by supply voltage. A first and a second p-channel FET power switch are coupled between the voltage supply and the inductive head, each having a high aspect ratio for low resistance. A first and a second current mirror are coupled at their inputs to the inductive head and a current source, each current mirror having a reference arm coupled to the current source and a mirror arm coupled to the inductive head. Each current mirror has an output coupled respectively to a first and a second mirror enabling FET switch, each having a high aspect ratio for low resistance.

Abstract: A non-contact wound treatment device having a flexible portion to accommodate patient motion without peeling off. A removable wound heater may be used to treat the wound area.

Abstract: The present media storage library has magazine storage bins which have front open sides and back open sides so that magazines containing data storage media can be inserted in or withdrawn from the bins from the front open sides by a front magazine picker or inserted in or withdrawn from the back open sides by a back magazine picker. Front and back transport assemblies, which provide a backup for each other, are associated with the front and back magazine pickers, respectively, for transporting magazines to magazine mounts which are located adjacent drives which, in turn, are located at first and second ends of the storage bins. A plurality of magazine mounts can be adjacent each drive for increasing the queue of requested media in close proximity to a drive. The magazines, the magazine storage bins and the magazine mounts adjacent the drives can be kept full for maximizing storage capacity, except for selected empties in some of the components for supporting an exchange scheme.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for improving the signal-to-interference ratio and signal-to-noise ratio of a signal transmitted on a reverse channel from a mobile transmitter in a land mobile communications system by using a sectored cell in which the same channel is received by each sector of the cell. Each directional antenna is coupled to a unique associated receiver tuned to the same frequency or frequencies as the other receivers associated with each other directional antenna within the same sectored cell. Depending upon the location of the mobile end system with respect to the antenna pattern of each directional antenna, each signal will typically be redundantly received over more than one, but less than all, of the antennas. In accordance with the present invention, only one of the received signals is to be communicated from the base station to an intermediate system and all others are to be discarded.

Abstract: A system and method for mining databases includes a computer-implemented program which identifies patterns of transaction sequences that are stored in a database and which recur in the database with a user-defined regularity. The invention first identifies which sequences are large, i.e., which recur with the defined regularity, and then determines which sequences are maximal, i.e., which large sequences are not subsets of other large sequences. The set of maximal large sequences is returned to the user to indicate recurring purchasing patterns over time.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for (1) transmitting large amounts of data between a least a first and second station over a single twisted pair, (2) reducing cross talk in a network using carrierless amplitude modulation and phase modulation encoding (CAP) with independent data clock source at each station, (3) providing a relatively simple and fast data detection apparatus, (4) maintaining synchronization between stations during idle periods while minimizing cross talk, (5) providing a technique to allow filters to be trained during idle periods, and (6) providing a technique which allows automatic gain control to be used with CAP. Particular signalling symbols are associated with each of the following conditions: (1) idle state, (2) preamble, (3) start of frame detection, (4) test condition, (5) each possible combination of five binary bits representing 32 different data symbols, and (6) jam condition.

Abstract: A high energy multilayer ceramic capacitor formed of alternating ceramic and electrode layers, the capacitor being suitable for use in implantable medical devices. The ceramic layers are comprised of a dielectric composition of lead magnesium niobate with small amounts of dopants, namely, lithium niobate, copper oxide, magnesium titanate, manganese niobate, and zirconium oxide, with appropriate electrical terminations connected to the electrode layers. The capacitor thus fabricated exhibits greatly reduced ferroelectric effect, namely, less than 30% over a bias range of 0-1,000 volts. It has a breakdown voltage of at least 700 volts, a leakage current less than 10 pico amps at 1,000 volts, an energy density of greater than 10 J/cc, has a rectangular form factor 1.5 inches by 2.0 inches by 0.06 inch thick, and weighs no more than 30 grams.

Abstract: Virtual data storage cartridges are created on a data storage subsystem to/from which volume writes and reads are directed. When a number of data volumes have been written, the controller may migrate them to the tape drive, a much faster process than writing directly to tape and enabling multiple logical volumes to be written to a single physical tape. With the present invention, virtual scratch cartridges are virtually premounted in a virtual drive loader while the virtual drive is accessing another virtual cartridge. When the host calls for a new scratch cartridge, it can be mounted in the virtual drive almost immediately, having already been virtually pre-loaded.

Abstract: A method is provided for making an assembly that has an integrated suspension, actuator arm and actuator coil. At least one actuator coil layer is located in the actuator arm region. The actuator coil layer is mounted to at least one homogeneous support layer which extends between terminal ends of the assembly for supporting all layers. A hole is provided through all layers in the actuator region at a pivot point for receiving an actuator spindle. In some embodiments of the invention, a transducer coil layer may be integrated in the suspension region and may be located in substantially a common plane with the actuator coil layer. The actuator region may be provided with a silicon base which contains integrated processing circuits which are connected to the transducer coil layer. A device may be carried by the assembly for bending the suspension region with respect to the actuator arm region.

Abstract: An inductive write head has a pole tip region between an air bearing surface (ABS) and a flare point, and a yoke region located between the flare point and a back gap. The write head includes first and second pole piece layers, wherein the second pole piece layer has first and second components. The first component extends from an ABS end, which is located at the ABS, to a recessed end which is located in the yoke region. The second component extends from a recessed end, which is spaced from the ABS, to the back gap. The second component interfaces with the first component in a stitched region so that the first component defines a pole tip in the pole tip region and the second component defines a yoke in the yoke region. A first insulation layer extends from a recessed end, which is spaced from the ABS, into the yoke region. The recessed end of the first insulation layer defines a zero throat height. The first component is sandwiched between the first insulation layer and the second component.

Abstract: A method is provided for making a thin film magnetic write head with a notch structure located on top of one of two pole layers. The notch structure is a generally U-shaped thin film layer which forms a trench inside the U for the containment of one or more pole tip layers in the pole tip region of the head. The notch structure has front surfaces at the tips of the legs of the U which lie in a plane that forms a part of the air bearing surface. The thickness of the notch layer is substantially equal to the thickness or thicknesses of the one or more pole tip layers located in the trench. A method of manufacturing the write head includes forming a very thin photoresist layer for defining the notch structure. The notch structure is well-defined which in turn allows the one or more pole tip layers to be well-defined with a very narrow trackwidth in the trench.

Abstract: A data storage system establishes streamlined data exchange paths between stored data and multiple system hosts, decreasing contention among the hosts and expediting host access to the data. First, one or more storage directors receive an initial host request to access a data block contained in part of a shared data resource. This part of the shared data resource may comprise a magnetic disk drive device, part of a physical device, a logical volume, a logical device or another data group. In response, the storage director performs a predetermined series of initial access steps to facilitate the data transfer. For example, the data block is copied from the shared data resource into a cache, if not already present therein. Then, a data path is formed between the host and the device containing the data block. Next, a fast path map is updated to indicate establishment of the data path between the host and the device containing the data block.

Abstract: A hard disk drive head actuator includes a plurality of arms for holding the heads over the disks. Each arm is formed with one or more cutouts, to reduce the rotational inertia of the actuator. To prevent increased viscous dissipation, or windage losses, that would otherwise be caused by the cutouts, the cutouts are filled with lightweight plastic inserts. Advantageously, filling the cutouts improves structural damping of an arm and enhances the dynamic response of an actuator assembly that incorporates one or more such arms.

Abstract: Track information decoding circuitry of a data storage device servo control system decodes binary track information in a readback servo signal by detecting opposite polarity track information pulse pairs so as to produce a track information signal "one" bit if the presence of an opposite polarity pulse pair is detected and produce a track information signal "zero" bit in the absence of an opposite polarity pulse pair, wherein a one bit is produced only if there has been detected a second pulse of a readback signal pulse pair having a magnitude greater than a predetermined threshold value and having a correct polarity. The polarity of the last di-bit of the servo signal AGC field can be used to set the polarity in the pulse qualification process.

Abstract: An apparatus for supporting a human or animal body, while selectively cooling weight-bearing areas of the body in order to prevent or reduce damage from ischemia includes a cooling layer that is partitioned into a plurality of zones, and a surface disposed over the cooling layer to support the body. Each zone of the cooling layer is disposed for cooling a respective portion of the surface. A mechanism is provided to selectively operate one or more zones of the plurality of the zones to cool a portion of the surface that receives pressure from a weight-bearing surface of the body being supported.

Abstract: An array controller of a log structured array dynamically defines segments as data is taken from a write buffer and recorded into disk storage units of the log structured array such that a segment includes blocks selected from the various disk storage units at the time of segment definition so as to minimize disk arm travel. Each time a segment from the write buffer must be written to disk, the new disk segment is defined in response to current disk arm position for each disk platter in a disk storage unit. The array controller maintains a segment definition table that indicates the disk storage unit locations corresponding to each segment. In addition, garbage collection of used blocks is performed in response to disk arm idle time such that garbage collection is not performed only when there are too few empty segments. Rather, garbage collection is performed when a disk arm has been idle for a predetermined time. A variety of garbage collection schemes are described.

Abstract: The present invention employs a ZTH defining insulation layer with a relatively long flat region along with a scheme for eliminating reflective notching from the next insulation layer on top of the ZTH defining insulation layer. This has been accomplished by providing the next insulation layer with a plurality of sloping surfaces which are oriented so that light reflected by the sloping surfaces is directed to areas remote from a pattern of a second pole tip in a photoresist layer which is employed for fabricating the second pole tip. The sloping surfaces terminate at a non-linear front edge which may include a plurality of straight edges extending in predetermined directions. The directions of these straight edges will define the orientations of the sloping surfaces. In one embodiment the straight edges may all be non-parallel and non-perpendicular to the ABS.

Abstract: A method for partitioning programs into multi-procedure modules for efficient compilation. During interprocedural analysis, a weighted callgraph of the program is constructed in which weights on nodes represent code size of each procedure and weights on edges between the nodes represent execution counts between procedures. A coloured interference graph is built from the analysis information, and is used to induce weighted sub-graphs of the callgraph containing no interferences between procedures in each sub-graph. The procedures from a single sub-graph are combined into one or more modules; procedures with the highest weighted edges between them are combined in a module first until the cumulative node weight of the module reaches a preset limit on memory size.