Abstract: Disclosed is a disc drive voice coil magnet and spacer arrangement. Voice coil magnets and/or pole pieces are spaced from one another by spacers. On of the spacers is located beyond the coil end of the actuator. This allows the actuator to be lowered into the drive deck in an off-disc position without colliding with the spacer, thereby facilitating in-deck merging of the actuator.

Abstract: A latch mechanism is used with a disc drive. The latch mechanism includes an arm portion with an extending end portion. The extending end portion is configured to allow rotation of an actuator on the disc drive into an operable position during merging of the actuator onto a disc stack in the disc drive.

Abstract: A bistable latch assembly is disclosed which includes a latch lever supported on a pivot pin adjacent the rotating discs and the actuator arm, and rotatable between two stable positions defined at the opposite end of the lever from the pivot pin by a pair of stop pins. The latch lever includes a magnet movable between these two stop pins, the attraction of the magnet to the pins defining the two stable positions for the lever. An edge of the lever facing the disc includes a notch which captures a pin extending from the actuator arm. When the latch lever engages the actuator arm pin in the notch, then the magnet of the latch lever is held by magnetic attraction against one of the stop pins. When the actuator arm is to be put to use in the disc drive, the voice coil motor is actuated, and has sufficient power to cause the stop pin on the actuator arm to disengage from the notch.