Abstract: A disc cartridge housing a disc-shaped recording medium in a main cartridge body portion is disclosed. The disc cartridge includes a main cartridge body portion having a circular medium housing section for rotationally housing a disc-shaped recording medium, a recording and/or reproducing opening for exposing at least a portion of the disc-shaped recording medium to outside and a driving opening for allowing intrusion of a rotating driving unit adapted for rotationally driving the disc-shaped recording medium. The disc cartridge also includes a shutter mechanism having a shutter member rotated along the major surface of the main cartridge body unit in a region provided with the medium housing section to open/close the recording and/or reproducing opening and a plurality of cartridge supporting portions at plural corner regions of larger area outside a region provided with the medium housing section of the main cartridge body unit.

Abstract: An optical disk drive includes, a main body, a tray driven by a loading motor transporting a disk in or out of the main body, and a base chassis on which an optical pickup emitting a beam onto a recording surface of the disk is mounted. A rotary chassis, installed to rotate with respect to the base chassis, has a turntable on which the disk is to be placed. Also, the optical disk drive includes a skew adjustment mechanism controlling skew between the disk placed on the turntable and the optical pickup mounted on the base chassis by rotating the rotary chassis. The optical disk drive dynamically controls skew between the disk and the optical pickup so that light is incident on the disk in a precise direction, thereby increasing its performance of data recording and reproducing.

Abstract: A magnetic sensor. According to one embodiment, the sensor comprises a synthetic antiferromagnetic (SAF) layer having first and second wing regions and an active region therebetween. The SAF layer includes a non-magnetic metal layer having first and second wing region portions and an active region portion therebetween, the non-magnetic metal layer including first and second opposing surfaces. The SAF layer also includes a first ferromagnetic layer adjacent a first surface of the non-magnetic metal layer and having first and second wing region portions and an active region portion therebetween. The SAF layer further includes a second ferromagnetic layer adjacent the second surface of the non-magnetic metal layer and including a first wing region portion adjacent the first wing region portion of the non-magnetic metal layer and a second wing region portion adjacent the second wing region portion of the non-magnetic metal layer.

Abstract: A magnetic recording medium, which includes a substrate and an amorphous magnetic layer, made of an amorphous magnetic material, for magnetic recording of data, is provided with an underlayer between the substrate and the amorphous magnetic layer, the underlayer being made of amorphous metal element, and having a mean thickness of 10 nm or less. In this manner, movement of magnetic domain walls of the amorphous magnetic layer is effectively limited by minute irregularities on a surface of the underlayer. This realizes a stable formation of a minute recording mark. This realizes recording having a sufficient signal quality, even when the high-density recording is performed by forming such a minute recording mark that a shortest length of the recording mark is less than 100 nm. Moreover, this allows the magnetic recording medium to have a simplified layer structure.

Abstract: In a magnetic tape cassette, a top end portion of a reel urging plate spring for urging a tape reel is subjected to a surface treatment to prevent from a friction. A distance between a couple of flanges of the tape reel is selected to keep a form of the wound magnetic tape, and to prevent the tape running from being disturbed by the increase of a contact resistance of the tape edges to the flanges. Additionally, positioning portions for positioning the magnetic tape cassette relative to a magnetic tape drive device are formed of a differential resin from the resin of the remaining part of the cassette case. Additionally, at least one of both end faces of each guide roller is surface treated so that the end face is not worn through its contact with the cassette half. Further, an information presenting section for displaying variable information is provided at a location other than label areas of the tape cassette.

Abstract: A protective cover for protecting a read side of an optical disk, including a circumferential frame for receiving and engaging the optical disk and a shield. The frame includes a continuous end wall, an annular base extending radially inwardly from a lower edge of the end wall and a plurality of spaced apart tabs extending radially inwardly from an upper edge of the end wall for engaging an upper surface of an optical disk. The shield is transparent and has an inner edge defining a central opening, an outer edge and a generally planar annular surface extending between the outer edge and the inner edge. The shield is carried by the annular base for receiving and covering the read side of the optical disk.

Abstract: Disclosed are magneto-optical recording media including at least a reflection layer, a recording layer and a dielectric layer laminated on a substrate in this order, wherein the thickness of the dielectric layer is not less than 140 nm or wherein the dielectric layer is provided by the lamination of upper dielectric layer and lower dielectric layer in which the thermal conductivity of the upper dielectric layer is higher than that of the lower dielectric layer. By arranging the thickness of the dielectric layer in a specific range, the surface roughness of a media in not more than 1.5 nm, and providing a reflection layer composed of a noble metal alloy, achieved is a magneto-optical recording medium able to record constantly in near-field magneto-optical recording, suitable for narrow track pitch, and having excellent SNR, resolution, and recording sensitivity.

Abstract: An actuator arm design having a close cross section which greatly improves the performance of the disc drive. The actuator arm is formed of a top skin, a bottom skin, and a core. The core may be formed of a corrugated metal, or a foam metal, or a combination of the two. As a result of this structure of the arm, the arm is highly stiff, yet low mass which yields an arm having a high resonant frequency.

Abstract: A lower pole layer and/or an upper pole layer is formed by plating a NiFe alloy having a Fe composition ratio of 76% by mass to 90% by mass, or having an average crystal grain diameter of 130 Å to 175 Å and a Fe composition ratio of 70% by mass to 90% by mass. As a result, the saturation magnetic flux density can be increased to 1.9 T or more, and a thin film magnetic head excellent for a higher recording density can be manufactured.

Abstract: The invention relates to a turntable (1) for a disc-shaped information carrier. The turntable is provided with a central element (2), which has a central shaft opening (8), a support surface (6) for the information carrier extending perpendicularly to a central axis of the shaft opening, and a driving member (3) having an output shaft (12) for rotationally driving the central element and the support surface. The output shaft and the shaft opening together form a clamping connection, and the output shaft extends in the shaft opening over an insertion length (1). According to the invention, the output shaft (12) is in clamping contact with the shaft opening (8) exclusively via a contact portion of the output shaft having a contact length which is smaller than the insertion length. Preferably, the contact portion exclusively comprises a first part (22) and a second part (23) respectively situated near both end portions of the shaft opening.

Abstract: An integrated gimbal suspension includes a flexure with an integrated, built-in gimbal, and includes a limiter structure that constrains motions of the gimbal in multi-degrees of freedom. The limiter structure includes one or more tab-shaped limiters and corresponding stops integrally formed into the gimbal assembly at strategic locations, which interact to provide the desired constraints to the motions of the flexure gimbal to prevent permanent damage from over-straining the gimbal or flexure beyond its designed range. The limiters may be pre-formed tab-shaped structures that are bent from the plane of the flexure. As the gimbal moves from its nominal position, one or more limiters engage the stops before such motion reaches the limit of the designed range of motion of the gimbal.

Abstract: A disc driving apparatus is provided with: a turn table on which a disc type record medium is loaded; a clamper opposed to the turn table for clamping the disc type record medium on the turn table by means of a magnetic force applied between the turn table and the clamper; and a spindle motor for rotationally driving the turn table. The clamper has at least 3 abutting portions for abutting to the disc type record medium such that only one of the abutting portions is respectively on a line passing through a center of the clamper in a plain parallel to a record surface of the disc type record medium.

Abstract: A rotary positioning stage which enables a high speed and high precision positioning. The rotary positioning stage includes an arc-like portion 7a for forming an arc with respect to a rotation shaft 10, a rotary stage 2 on which a workpiece 5 can be mounted, a pulley 12 contacting the arc-like portion 7a, first positioning means 3 for positioning the workpiece 5 by rotating the rotary stage 2 via the pulley 12, second positioning means 4 for positioning the workpiece 5 by slightly moving the first positioning means 3 in a straight line-like manner in a tangent line direction at a contact point between the arc-like portion 7a and the pulley 12, wherein the straight line motion of the first positioning means 3 is converted into a rotational motion of the rotary stage 2 to position the workpiece 5.

Abstract: An aspect of the invention can be regarded as a disk drive that includes a disk drive base and a spindle motor hub rotatably coupled to the disk drive base. The disk drive further includes a first disk disposed about the spindle motor hub and having a first disk stiffness. The disk drive further includes a second disk disposed about the spindle motor hub and having a second disk stiffness different than the first disk stiffness. According to another aspect of the present invention, the second disk has a second disk thickness different than a first disk thickness. According to another aspect of the present invention, the second disk is formed of a second material having a second material stiffness different than a first material stiffness.

Abstract: A disk clamp has a data position in a recording track that is resistant to positional deviations even after temperature cycling is conducted. The distribution of data positions can be centered in the vicinity of the center position. A disk top clamp and hub are made from materials that are stable in terms of chemical properties over a temperature range in which the disk recording apparatus is used and have such a coefficient of elasticity that a clamping force required to clamp the recording disks while the disk recording apparatus is in use can be obtained from the tightening force to tighten the screws. The material of the top clamp and the hub has a thermal expansion coefficient that is close to that of the recording disk.

Abstract: A write head for writing information bits to magnetic storage media includes a first write pole for producing a first magnetic field in a first direction and a second write pole for producing a second magnetic field such that the combined field from the two poles lies either substantially along the first direction or in a second direction that is substantially orthogonal to the first direction. The second write pole includes a free layer having magnetization controlled by spin transfer torque, and a first spacer positioned between the free layer and the first write pole. The write head can further include a pinned layer and a second spacer positioned between the pinned layer and the free layer. A disc drive that includes the write head and a method of writing to magnetic storage media that utilizes the write head are also included.

Abstract: A disc cartridge having a case to accommodate a disc, a shutter to open or close an opening formed in the case to enable a recording and/or reproducing job with respect to the disc, a discharge path provided at one side of the case to allow the flow of air formed therein during rotation of the disc, and an opening/closing mechanism to open/close the discharge path. Thus, since the discharge path through which the flow of air produced inside the cartridge during rotation of a disc is smoothly discharged to the outside is provided, contamination of the disc by foreign material such as dust can be considerably reduced.

Abstract: A memory storage disk handling system includes a housing, an elevator pin mounted on the housing for lifting disks, a servo motor with a cam arm. The servo motor rotates to pivot the cam arm, which cams against the elevator pin to lift the elevator pin.

Abstract: A tunneling magnetoresistive (TMR) stack configured to operate in a current-perpendicular-to-plane (CPP) mode has a plurality of layers including a spin valve and a barrier layer. The spin valve is used to inject a spin polarized sense current into the barrier layer for increasing a magnetoresistive (MR) ratio of the TMR stack.

Abstract: It is an object of the invention to provide a magnetic head in which coils can be miniaturized while shortening the manufacturing time and improve the yield, and a method of manufacturing the same. A coil is formed in a form of continuum in which a first winding unit wound clockwise around a bottom pole and a second winding unit wound counterclockwise around a top pole are alternatively coupled. If the number of turns of the coil is increased, spaces between each of coil parts become close. However, spaces between each of other coil parts are sufficiently kept apart. The former coil part is required to be formed with high precision while the latter coil parts do not require such precision. Therefore, portion of the thin film coil which requires high precision is reduced.