Patents by Inventor David A. Ziegler

David A. Ziegler 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: 6172853
    Abstract: A head suspension for supporting a head slider over a disk surface within a rigid disk drive includes a load beam with a flexure at a distal end of the load beam. The head suspension includes a motion limiter for restricting the range of motion of the flexure relative to the load beam. Toward this end, the motion limiter of the present invention includes a hook formed by bending a cantilever arm of the flexure to position a hook tip of the hook substantially over a load point of the suspension. The motion limiter constrains the load beam between the hook tip and the flexure in order to limit vertical displacement of the flexure relative to the load beam, as can occur through deflections caused by a shock load, through excessive pitch and roll motion of the flexure, or through operational movement of the head suspension assembly within the disk drive.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 1999
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2001
    Assignee: Hutchinson Technology Incorporated
    Inventors: Michael W. Davis, David A. Ziegler
  • Patent number: 5901430
    Abstract: A gimbal and corresponding head suspension assembly including a planar flexure platform having integral static attitude compensation, nominal angle adjustment, and load point etched or etched-formed raised features. The head suspension assembly can also include a load point cover with etched or etched-formed load point features. The etched features are manufactured by masking a pivot point at about the intersection of the roll axis and the pitch axis, thus leaving a raised protuberance having either a pivot point or a load point feature. The process of manufacturing etched-formed features includes etching protuberances and slots. A punch press is then applied to the protuberances. The slots help control the formation of raised domes and provide additional static compensation and nominal angle adjustment pivoting clearance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 11, 1999
    Assignee: Hutchinson Technology Incorporated
    Inventors: David A. Ziegler, Ryan A. Jurgenson, Brent D. Lien, Thomas K. Christiansen, James Roger Mahoney
  • Patent number: 5748409
    Abstract: In a suspension assembly for a disk drive, a welding isolation structure for creating an isolated weld point and for substantially eliminating undesirable propagation of welding stresses during the welding of elements of the suspension assembly. The welding isolation structure is placed on selected locations on suspension assembly elements. The isolation structure includes a welding area, at least one isolation slot including a through aperture delineating at least a portion of the perimeter of the welding area, and at least one junction tab bridging the isolation slot and connecting the welding area to the remainder of the load beam. The isolation slots are designed to substantially relieve and contain welding stresses. In the suspension assembly, the tabs of each weld point are oriented generally in directions other than towards other weld points, such that additive and uneven propagation of welding stresses is prevented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 1997
    Date of Patent: May 5, 1998
    Assignee: Hutchinson Technology Incorporated
    Inventors: Mark T. Girard, Jeffry S. Bennin, David A. Ziegler
  • Patent number: 5608590
    Abstract: A gimbal and corresponding head suspension assembly including a planar flexure platform having integral static attitude compensation, nominal angle adjustment, and load point etched or etched-formed raised features. The head suspension assembly can also include a load point cover with etched or etched-formed load point features. The etched features are manufactured by masking a pivot point at about the intersection of the roll axis and the pitch axis, thus leaving a raised protuberance having either a pivot point or a load point feature. The process of manufacturing etched-formed features includes etching protuberances and slots. A punch press is then applied to the protuberances. The slots help control the formation of raised domes and provide additional static compensation and nominal angle adjustment pivoting clearance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 1994
    Date of Patent: March 4, 1997
    Assignee: Hutchinson Technology Incorporated
    Inventors: David A. Ziegler, Ryan A. Jurgenson, Brent D. Lien, Thomas K. Christensen, James R. Mahoney
  • Patent number: 4700044
    Abstract: Fine wires are soldered without flux to solder pads on a flexible circuit of a workpiece by a laser. The laser beam is aligned and moved over the solder pad to describe a rectangle by movement of mirrors on a programmed, motor driven X-Y-Z linear table. Wires are deeply sunk into the solder pads by the weight of a cone brought against the wire carried by the X-Y-Z table. Vaporized insulation is restrained within the cone to maintain a clean microelectronic workpiece.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 1986
    Date of Patent: October 13, 1987
    Assignee: Hutchinson Technology Inc.
    Inventors: John M. Hokanson, Kenneth S. Bentz, Terrence G. Field, David A. Ziegler