Abstract: A hard disk drive enclosure with conductive paths. A base plate comprising an electrically conductive material with at least one contact surface that allows for an electrically conductive path, wherein the at least one contact surface has a substantially flat surface. A cover comprising an electrically conductive material comprising at least one tab with a substantially flat surface for contacting the at least one contact surface of the base plate, wherein the at least one tab contacts the at least one contact surface of the base plate with a force and forms an electrically conductive path between the cover and the based plate, and wherein the at least one tab deforms upon the contact with the at least one contact surface of the base plate with the force.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide a magnetic disk drive having improved vibration characteristics and a reduced size. In one embodiment, a magnetic disk drive comprises: a motor shaft for rotating a magnetic disk; a sleeve for rotatably supporting the motor shaft; and a motor hub into which the motor shaft is press fit. The motor hub supports the magnetic disk and includes a projection portion having an inner surface and an outer surface. The inner surface is in contact with the press-fit motor shaft in directions perpendicular to the rotational axis of the motor shaft. The outer surface faces the sleeve.

Abstract: A card insulator is formed with slits that conform to height changes required by the components mounted to a card. The insulative sheet has simple linear slits that extend completely through the sheet and allow the insulator to deform with simple linear bends when contacted by the tall components mounted to the card. The linear bends allow the surface of the deformed insulator to be flexible without buckling the insulator and without bowing the card.

Abstract: Components and assemblies for a hard disk drive (HDD) with a recessed actuator joint are described. A rotary actuator hub assembly comprises a shaft having a flange, and a pivot seat on which the flange is seated when the shaft is fastened to an HDD chassis. According to an embodiment, the pivot seat has at least one “contact-reducing feature” recessed from the surface of the pivot seat at which the seat contacts the flange. A purpose of the contact-reducing feature(s) of the pivot seat is to weaken the joint between the actuator hub assembly and the chassis, thereby mechanically loosening the rotary actuator assembly from the chassis. Consequently, movements to and vibrations from the chassis are less likely to be transmitted to the rotary actuator assembly and, ultimately, to the HDD read/write head(s).

Abstract: A stacked piezoelectric element obtained by alternately stacking a piezoelectric ceramic layer and an electrode layer, wherein said electrode layer mainly comprises an electrically conducting base metal electrode material, and the region held between the electrode layer positioned at the top of each ceramic layer and the electrode layer positioned at the bottom of each ceramic layer contains a material having no piezoelectricity, in which a constituent element of said material having no piezoelectricity is uniformly dispersed so as not to have local distribution of a distributed strength exceeding 2 times the distributed strength which is distributed in a largest number of places and is not 0.

Abstract: A card insulator is formed with slits that conform to height changes required by the components mounted to a card. The insulative sheet has simple linear slits that extend completely through the sheet and allow the insulator to deform with simple linear bends when contacted by the tall components mounted to the card. The linear bends allow the surface of the deformed insulator to be flexible without budding the insulator and without bowing the card.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention make high-speed rotation of a magnetic disk, suppression of an increase in electric power consumption, and suppression in shaft falling vibration compatible together in a magnetic disk device. In one embodiment, a magnetic disk device comprises a magnetic disk that records information, and a drive unit that rotates the magnetic disk about a shaft. The drive unit comprises a rotary section that holds the magnetic disk, and a stationary section that supports the rotary section through a fluid bearing. The fluid bearing comprises a radial fluid bearing that bears a load in a direction perpendicular to an axial direction, and a thrust fluid bearing that bears a load in the axial direction. The thrust fluid bearing comprises a first thrust fluid bearing having a small diameter and a shallow clearance, and a second thrust fluid bearing positioned outside an outer periphery of a shaft and being larger in diameter and deeper in clearance than the first thrust fluid bearing.

Abstract: A method for generating mask pattern data of a photomask used to form microlenses divides a pattern formation surface of a mask pattern to be used for the photomask into a plurality of grid cells, acquires data which represents transmitted light distribution of the mask pattern to be used for the photomask, determines whether to place a shield on each of the plurality of grid cells by binarizing the plurality of grid cells in order of increasing or decreasing distance from a center of the pattern formation surface using an error diffusion method to acquire the transmitted light distribution, and generates mask pattern data which represents an arrangement of the shields based on results from the determining step.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention help to achieve a solder joining structure having high reliability, in which even if a componential material of a flange of a feed-through of a sealed magnetic disk drive is an iron-based material such as kovar, and a componential material of a base of the drive is an aluminum-based alloy, leakage of low-density gas is dramatically reduced. According to one embodiment, a base has a stepped portion in the inside of a periphery of an opening, and an inclined surface extending to the outside of the base is formed at an edge of a surface of the stepped portion, on which a flange of a feed-through is placed, thereby when the stepped portion of the base is joined by soldering with the flange of the feed-through, a solder fillet is formed not only in the inside of the base, but also in the outside thereof.

Abstract: In a disk drive device in which low-density gas is sealed, embodiments of the present invention help to improve joint reliability at a solder joint section between a feedthrough and an enclosure with respect to stress applied by deformation due to changes in temperature environment in use. According to one embodiment, helium gas is sealed in an interior space of an HDD. A feedthrough is solder jointed to a feedthrough mounting surface of a base. At a part with relatively large thermal stress, a width of the feedthrough mounting surface is increased, and at a part with relatively small thermal stress, a width of the feedthrough mounting surface is decreased. This prevents a crack penetrating path from being generated at the solder joint section due to the thermal stress and prevents the solder joint section from contacting pins.

Abstract: When a cover is joined with the base of a magnetic disc drive by welding, bubbles in the die casting suddenly expand due to high temperature at the time of welding and blow off fused metal, and a blowhole occurs. Low density gas sealed up in a casing is liable to easily leak through a leak path made by joining of blowholes. Embodiments of the present invention provide a joint structure of a base and a cover so that helium does not easily leak through the blowholes by filling low density gas such as helium gas in a disc drive so as to be capable of sealing for a long period of time. According to one embodiment, after assembly of a magnetic disc drive, the magnetic disk drive is put into a basket and sent in a vacuum container containing low vapor pressure oil. After that, the vacuum container is vacuumed, and the magnetic disc drive put in the basket is immersed in low vapor pressure oil, and a valve is opened to make the vacuum container atmospheric pressure condition.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a magnetic disk drive that can estimate the amount of gas filled in a housing precisely and simply. According to one embodiment, a magnetic disk drive including a housing in which a magnetic disk and a magnetic head are accommodated and gas having lower density than air is filled, a heating body provided in the housing, and means for holding a reference value of a parameter representing the temperature change speed of the heating body when the heating body is heated in the housing filled with a predetermined reference amount of the gas.

Abstract: Embodiments in accordance with the present invention improve bonding reliability in a feedthrough sealing portion. According to one embodiment of the present invention, an opening of a through hole is provided on the bottom of the base of the magnetic disk device and a feedthrough mounting plane which is one of the steps formed toward the outside of the device is provided around the opening. The feedthrough includes a flange and pins which are fixed to the flange by a glass material and pass an electric signal. The flange is larger in outer shape than the opening of the base. The periphery of the flange of the feedthrough is mounted on the feedthrough mounting plane of the base from the outside and bonded thereto by solder.

Abstract: A method of producing a laminated dielectric element of high quality, free of delamination. A method of producing a laminated dielectric element 1 by alternately laminating dielectric ceramic layers 12 and base metal electrode layers 13, comprising the steps of printing electrodes by applying a paste material for the base metal electrodes onto the surfaces of at least one side of the ceramic green sheets, laminating and press-adhering the ceramic green sheets to fabricate a laminate thereof, dewaxing the laminate, reducing the electrodes to form base metal electrode layers by heating the laminate while flowing an atmospheric gas and by reducing the paste material for the base metal electrodes, and sintering the laminate.

Abstract: A rotational member and a stationary member included in a spindle motor provided with air bearings are electrically connected while the bearing is rotating, and abrasion of the rotational member and the stationary member at stages of starting and stopping and damaging the rotational member and the stationary member by external shocks that may be exerted thereon during transportation and handling are avoided. In one embodiment, a sleeve is formed integrally with a motor base. The sleeve has an inside surface serving as a radial-bearing surface that forms a radial bearing together with the outside surface of a rotational shaft, and a thrust-bearing surface that forms thrust bearing together with a thrust plate attached to the rotational shaft. The radial-bearing surface of the sleeve is provided with a recess (groove) for holding lubricating oil while the rotational shaft is rotating.

Abstract: This invention provides a stacked ceramic body that prevents reaction between components of dielectric layers and components of electrode layers of an unsintered stacked body during sintering and in which both components do not easily form a liquid phase, and a production method of such a stacked ceramic body. A print portion 13 is formed on a green sheet 1, 12 containing lead by use of an electrode paste consisting of copper oxide as its main component. A desired number of print sheets 10 are stacked to give an unsintered stacked body 15. Degreasing is conducted in an atmosphere to degrease organic components. The print portion 13 is subjected to reducing treatment in a reducing atmosphere containing hydrogen and is converted to a print portion 13 containing copper as its main component. The unsintered stacked body 15 is sintered in a reducing atmosphere.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide a magnetic disk drive having improved vibration characteristics and a reduced size. In one embodiment, a magnetic disk drive comprises: a motor shaft for rotating a magnetic disk; a sleeve for rotatably supporting the motor shaft; and a motor hub into which the motor shaft is press fit. The motor hub supports the magnetic disk and includes a projection portion having an inner surface and an outer surface. The inner surface is in contact with the press-fit motor shaft in directions perpendicular to the rotational axis of the motor shaft. The outer surface faces the sleeve.

Abstract: This invention provides a method of producing a laminate type dielectric device free from peeling of an electrode layer and a ceramic layer and from voids in both electrode layer and ceramic layer, and an electrode paste material. The invention relates also to an electrode paste material for constituting electrode layers of a laminate type dielectric device produced by at least the steps of alternately laminating ceramic layers 11 containing a lead element as a constituent component and electrode layers 2, and degreasing and baking the laminate, wherein the electrode paste material contains CuO as a principal component of a starting material of an electrically conductive material, a solvent, a binder, and a cooperative material consisting of at least one kind of the main components constituting the ceramic layer 11.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention make high-speed rotation of a magnetic disk, suppression of an increase in electric power consumption, and suppression in shaft falling vibration compatible together in a magnetic disk device. In one embodiment, a magnetic disk device comprises a magnetic disk that records information, and a drive unit that rotates the magnetic disk about a shaft. The drive unit comprises a rotary section that holds the magnetic disk, and a stationary section that supports the rotary section through a fluid bearing. The fluid bearing comprises a radial fluid bearing that bears a load in a direction perpendicular to an axial direction, and a thrust fluid bearing that bears a load in the axial direction. The thrust fluid bearing comprises a first thrust fluid bearing having a small diameter and a shallow clearance, and a second thrust fluid bearing positioned outside an outer periphery of a shaft and being larger in diameter and deeper in clearance than the first thrust fluid bearing.

Abstract: This invention provides a stacked ceramic body that prevents reaction between components of dielectric layers and components of electrode layers of an unsintered stacked body during sintering and in which both components do not easily form a liquid phase, and a production method of such a stacked ceramic body. A print portion 13 is formed on a green sheet 1, 12 containing lead by use of an electrode paste consisting of copper oxide as its main component. A desired number of print sheets 10 are stacked to give an unsintered stacked body 15. Degreasing is conducted in an atmosphere to degrease organic components. The print portion 13 is subjected to reducing treatment in a reducing atmosphere containing hydrogen and is converted to a print portion 13 containing copper as its main component. The unsintered stacked body 15 is sintered in a reducing atmosphere.