Abstract: A head suspension assembly (HSA) for positioning a floating head assembly over selected tracks on the surface of a rotating data storage device, said head suspension assembly comprising a first surface, a proximal end region, a gimbal region acting as a gimbal flexure, and a head assembly with electric terminals attached to the gimbal region. The HSA also includes a spring region adjacent the proximal end region and a monocoque region located in between the gimbal region and the spring region. The monocoque region is a hollow shell having a closed plane figure cross sectional profile and includes a ceiling region and a floor region separated and spaced from each other, and an aperture that traverses both the ceiling region and the floor region. An integrated circuit having a plurality of control pins and a plurality of read-write pins fits into the aperture.

Abstract: A head suspension assembly includes a load beam, a flexure and a constraint structure for limiting range of motion of the flexure tongue. The constraint structure directly engages a free end of the flexure tongue to restrict the range of motion of the free end of the flexure tongue. This constraint structure is on the disk-confronting surface of the load beam to overlap the proximal end of the flexure tongue. The constraint structure may be formed in one piece with a proximal extension of the flexure.A method for manufacturing a head suspension assembly of the type including a load beam and a flexure, includes a step of incorporating into the suspension assembly a constraint structure for directly engaging the free end of the flexure tongue to restrict the range of motion of the flexure tongue.

Abstract: An integrated lead disk drive suspension including a load beam and one or more conductive leads. The load beam has a mounting region on a proximal end, a head bonding platform on a distal end, and one or more spring regions connecting the head bonding platform to the mounting region. The conductive leads are integrated with and insulated from the load beam by an adhesive dielectric layer, and extend between the head bonding platform and the mounting region. The leads are adapted to reduce mechanical effects of the leads and/or dielectric layer on spring characteristics of the spring regions. One embodiment of the leads includes at least a first compensating portion which extends off the load beam and traverses a nonlinear path around at least a portion of one or more of the spring regions. In another embodiment the portions of the conductive leads extending between the distal end of the load beam and the head bonding platform are substantially free from the dielectric layer.

Abstract: Laminate structures for attachment to a head suspension assembly in a hard disk drive. The laminate structures include a spring metal layer, a conductive layer, and an intermediate insulator/adhesive layer. The conductive layer can act as an interconnect assembly, as a gimbal, and as a spring region. The method of manufacture of the laminate structures incorporates manufacture of an interconnect assembly into the manufacture of spring structures such as a load beam or a gimbal. The laminate structures are manufactured by etching the layers from the outside in, using other layers as etching masks. Unique configurations are possible where either or both metal layers can be discontinuous, thanks to the manufacturing support of the second layer. The second layer can also be shaped into a plurality of panels, thus freeing the metal layers to act as the spring elements.

Abstract: Laminate structures for attachment to a head suspension assembly in a hard disk drive. The laminate structures include a spring metal layer, a conductive layer, and an intermediate insulator/adhesive layer. The conductive layer can act as an interconnect assembly, as a gimbal, and as a spring region. The method of manufacture of the laminate structures incorporates manufacture of an interconnect assembly into the manufacture of spring structures such as a load beam or a gimbal. The laminate structures are manufactured by etching the layers from the outside in, using other layers as etching masks. Unique configurations are possible where either or both metal layers can be discontinuous, thanks to the manufacturing support of the second layer. The second layer can also be shaped into a plurality of panels, thus freeing the metal layers to act as the spring elements.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a disk drive suspension including a load beam and a microactuator. The load beam and microactuator are formed from three sheets of laminated material. A first sheet of material is chemically etched to form the load beam and lower electromagnetic field generating coil members of the microactuator. A second sheet of material is chemically etched to form stationary and moving pole members of the microactuator, and a third sheet of material is chemically etched to form upper magnetic field generating coil members. The sheets of material are bonded together to form first and second magnetic field generating coils surrounding the stationary pole member. A moving pole member is chemically etched from the second sheet of laminated material and has a free end mounted between the coils at the ends of the stationary pole member. The opposite end of the moving pole member is mounted to a distal end of the load beam.

Abstract: A head gimbal measurer for measuring the force loading on a head, the head having a plurality of air bearing surfaces, to predict the fly height of a selected one of the plurality of air bearing surfaces when the head is in operation relative to a rotating magnetically coated disc, including a measurement device for measuring the total normal force on the head and the differential normal force on each air bearing surface. A comparing device for comparing the measured total normal force on the head and the differential normal force on each air bearing surface with a known total normal force on the head and a known differential normal force on each air bearing surface to predict a fly height of the head when in operation relative to the rotating magnetically coated disc. The invention is further a load distribution measurement and adjustment device designed to shape a load arm of a head gimbal assembly used to transfer data to and from a rotating magnetically coated disc.

Abstract: A disk drive head suspension assembly for supporting a head slider over selected tracks of a rotatable data storage disk. The suspension assembly includes a load beam having proximal and distal ends and a bearing cover portion. A gimbal on the distal end of the load beam includes a flexure pad having a slider-engaging first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface. A ball-receiving hole extends through the flexure pad. A ball is mounted in the ball-receiving hole. The ball has a load point portion which extends from the second surface of the flexure pad and engages the bearing cover portion of the load beam. A static attitude compensating portion of the ball extends from the first surface of the flexure pad. A head slider is bonded to the slider-engaging first surface of the flexure pad by a layer of adhesive.

Abstract: A head suspension for attachment to a disk drive rigid arm comprises a load beam in which the flexure has a tongue provided with a shaped feature oriented toward the head on the slider-confronting surface of the tongue along at least one static offset torque axis. The shaped feature, in conjunction with an adhesive bond area between the flexure tongue and the top of the slider, is used to eliminate static roll and/or static pitch offsets between the suspension and the slider.

Abstract: A suspension for positioning a floating read-write head assembly over selected tracks on the surface of a rotating data storage device. It includes a planar and resilient load beam having a proximal end portion that may be constructed for attachment to an actuator arm, a gimbal region located at a distal end portion constructed for supporting a read-write head assembly for gimballed motion relative to the surface of the data storage device, a spring region between the proximal end portion, and a rigid floor region located between the spring region and the gimbal region. The suspension also includes a sheet material shell region having side wall regions supporting a ceiling region over a face of the rigid floor region of the load beam. The wall regions may include longitudinally extending edge flanges projecting generally away from the ceiling region and from the rigid region, lip edges to facilitate attachment, and lift surfaces.

Abstract: A head suspension for attachment to a disk drive rigid arm comprises a load beam in which the flexure has a tongue provided with a shaped feature oriented toward the head on the slider-confronting surface of the tongue along at least one static offset torque axis. The shaped feature, in conjunction with an adhesive bond area between the flexure tongue and the top of the slider, is used to eliminate static roll and/or static pitch offsets between the suspension and the slider.

Abstract: A disk drive suspension including a load beam having a rigid region, a base on a proximal end of the load beam and a flexure for receiving and supporting a read/write head on the distal end of the load beam. A microactuator on the load beam moves the flexure and read/write head about a tracking axis with respect to the rigid region. The microactuator includes a moving pole member mounted to the flexure, a stationary pole member mounted to the rigid region of the load beam adjacent to the moving pole, and coils around the stationary pole member.

Abstract: In positioning a transducer head with respect to a supporting arm, the transducer head is subject to both a normal force and a moment force and has first and second air bearing surfaces. The apparatus includes a controller and first and second sensors for detecting the overturning moment and being adapted for providing data representative of the overturning moment to the controller. A first actuator varies the position of the load arm and a second actuator varies the position of the transducer head. The first and second actuators act in concert to negate the overturning moment. A third sensor detects the position of the first air bearing surface with respect to a known level reference and a third actuator positions the first air bearing surface of the transducer head. A fourth sensor detects the position of the second air bearing surface with respect to a known level reference and a fourth actuator positions the second air bearing surface of the transducer head.

Abstract: A sector on a disk contains position information used to determine position error of a transducer over the disk. The sector has a normal field with a first side and a second side. The first side is oriented opposite the second side on the disk. A first quadrature field is located on the first side of the normal field and a second quadrature field is located on the second side of the normal field.

Abstract: A demodulator system demodulates position information signals provided by a transducer in response to position information. The position information is read from a quadrature field and a normal field on a disk in a data storage system. A rectifier rectifies the position information signals to provide rectified position signals. An integrating capacitor integrates the rectified position signals to produce position error signals representative of trasducer position.

Abstract: Transducer position is determined relative to a disk in a data storage system. Track identification information is read from a disk in the data storage system to provide a coarse position signal identifying a track that the transducer is positioned over. Position error samples are read from a disk in the data storage system to provide a fine position signal representing transducer position error within a track that the transducer is positioned over. Then, the coarse position signal and the fine position signal are correlated so they correspond to the same track on the disk.

Abstract: A rotary actuator for a magnetic disc drive includes a stationary arcuate permanent magnet and a thin, arcuate voice coil formed of a single winding of aluminum wire. Both the magnet and voice coil are curved about a pivot axis of a rotating shaft supporting a movable head arm assembly of the rotary actuator. The coil is integral with the head arm assembly, and pivots the head arm assembly responsive to electrical current introduced into the coil. Opposite ends of the pivot shaft are received into fixed race bearings supported by spaced apart upper and lower bearing plates, one of which is slightly elastically deformed to secure the shaft by their restoring force. Leaf springs provide a biasing force against the selected bearing plate and cooperate with parallel, spaced apart flexure members in the selected bearing plate to compensate for thermal expansion coefficient mismatch.

Abstract: A suspension is provided for supporting a magnetic transducing head with respect to a carriage, for movement with the carriage and relative to a substantially planar magnetic recording surface. Two parallel and spaced apart flexure arms extend from the carriage, and are extremely thin in the dimension perpendicular to the recording surface. The remote ends of the flexure arms are joined by an elongate rigid cross-bar directed transversely of the arms. The transducing head is fixed to the cross-bar, intermediate the flexure arms. When the recording surface is moved, an air bearing between the recording surface and head stabilizes the head, and the flexure arms are constrained to behave as elastic beams fixed at both ends. In particular, the flexure arms are subject to lengthwise torsional bending, and pure bending about axes parallel to the cross-bar, enabling the head/cross-bar assembly to respond in gimbal fashion to recording surface irregularities.

Abstract: A disk memory assembly has a carriage structure which has a coil assembly secured to one end and is supported by bearings for rectilinear movement in response to the energization of a voice coil. The carriage has four fins, a tower member and a horizontal shoe member. The tower supports a plurality or arms carrying heads. The heads read or write upon disks rotated by a spindle about a spindle axis. A servo system is provided to energize the coil to position the heads at the desired locations on the disks. Rectilinear movement of the carriage in response to the servo excites resonances in the carriage. The carriage structure is designed to minimize low frequency resonance modes and to increase the frequency of the first major resonance mode of the carriage to improve servo control. The four fins of the carriage are orthogonally disposed with respect to one another and disposed at 45.degree. angles with respect to the spindle axis.

Abstract: A time optimal function generator in a coarse positioning system for magnetic heads in a magnetic disc device is designed to accelerate the magnetic heads as rapidly as possible to the exact point at which they must decelerate as rapidly as possible to stop at the new track location when moving from an old track location. This device uses as an input the output of a difference register which contains the difference between the present track address and the new track address. The system is designed to control the servo transducer positioning system in a generally linear fashion as it approaches the new track address but in a square root fashion when the difference is large. The system contains a square root response portion and a linear response portion with weighting devices to control the proportional response of the system.