Abstract: A nut driven by a lead screw and stepper motor has an internal concave recess for holding high viscosity grease that is semi-solid at ambient temperature and spaced from the lead screw. Grease flow ensues with lead screw motion causing a slow flow of grease coating the lead screw with a thin coating of grease as the nut travels back and forth over the lead screw. The nut may be an anti-backlash nut or a single member nut with both having a concave recess about the lead screw for the grease.

Abstract: A disk drive includes a disk that has a data side and an unread side. A first read head faces and is adjacent the data side. The disk drive also includes a cylindrical shroud wall that is substantially orthogonal to the unread side and that completely encircles the disk outer periphery. A radial spacing between the cylindrical shroud wall and the disk outer periphery nowhere exceeds 1 mm. The disk drive does not include any read head that faces and is disposed adjacent the unread side.

Abstract: A step motor integrates its mounting face and heat sink into the stator design. In particular, mounting holes (typically, four in number) are provided through the stator stack in outer perimeter areas. The stator stack itself becomes the mounting surface, allowing the heat generated from the stator to conduct directly to the mounting plate. The front end cap for holding the rotor in alignment is situated inside of the stator's mounting surface and takes no part in mounting the motor to the mounting surface. The end caps only hold the rotor in proper relation within the stator and contain the bearing assembly for the rotor's axial drive shaft. The perimeter of the stator assembly between the mounting screw holes may have saw-tooth cutouts that define heat-dissipation fins.

Abstract: A stepper motor is provided in which a permanent ring magnet is sandwiched in an outer part of the stator winding assembly located far from the gap between rotor and stator teeth, so that magnetic flux in the gap is dominated by the Ampere-turns of energized stator coils and therefore more easily controlled for reduced vibration at low stepping speeds. The rotor need not contain any permanent disk magnet. If one is provided, it can be completely embedded within the rotor and merely supplement the primary flux from the stator to enhance torque. In most cases, where the rotor lacks any permanent magnet, the motor's axial shaft can have a larger diameter and may, together with the rotor, form a linear actuator.

Abstract: A method and system for content replication control are provided. In one embodiment, a content replication system receives a request to replicate content in a plurality of memory devices, wherein each memory device is associated with a respective unique identifier. For each of the plurality of memory devices, the content replication system sends a request to a transport encryption key server for a transport encryption key, the request including the unique identifier of the memory device. If the unique identifier of the memory device is authorized to receive the transport encryption key, the content replication system receives the transport encryption key and sends the transport encryption key to the memory device. The content replication system then receives encrypted content from a content server, wherein the encrypted content is encrypted with the transport encryption key. The content replication system then sends the encrypted content to the plurality of memory devices.

Abstract: A memory device and method for adaptive protection of content are disclosed. In one embodiment, a memory device is provided comprising a memory operative to store content and a controller in communication with the memory. The controller is operative to generate a content protection algorithm that is different from at least one content protection algorithm previously generated by the controller, protect the content in accordance with the content protection algorithm, generate virtual machine code containing instructions on how to unprotect the protected content, and provide the protected content and the virtual machine code to a host in communication with the memory device.

Abstract: A memory device and method for updating a security module are disclosed. In one embodiment, a memory device is provided comprising a memory operative to store content and a controller in communication with the memory. The controller is configured to send an identification of the memory device's security module to a host and receive an identification of the host's security module. If the memory device's security module is out-of-date with respect to the host's security module, the memory device receives a security module update from the host. If the host's security module is out-of-date with respect to the memory device's security module, the memory device sends a security module update to the host.

Abstract: A storage device and method for providing a scalable content protection system are disclosed. In one embodiment, a storage device is provided comprising a memory operative to store a plurality of versions of content, wherein each version of the content is of a different quality and is associated with a different level of content protection. The storage device receives information from the host identifying a level of content protection supported by the host. The storage device sends, to the host, a version of the content that is associated with the level of content protection supported by the host, wherein the version of the content is sent to the host using the level of content protection that is supported by the host. In another embodiment, different levels of content protection are applied to different types of content.

Abstract: A method of controlling a start-stop vehicle transmission pump, includes: assessing how long an engine has been turned off; and when the engine has been turned off for longer than a predetermined threshold and the vehicle is on, priming the transmission pump.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a host device creates a super-distribution token by encrypting a content encryption key with a super-distribution key and stores the super-distribution token and encrypted content retrieved from a source storage device in a target storage device. In another embodiment, a host device provides a super-distribution token to a server, wherein the server is configured to generate an activation token from the super-distribution token, receive the activation token from the server, retrieve a content encryption key from the activation token, and decrypt encrypted content received from a storage device using the content encryption key retrieved from the activation token.

Abstract: A storage device and method for resuming playback of content are provided. In one embodiment, a storage device comprises a memory operative to store a plurality of versions of content. The storage device receives a request for one of the versions of the content from a host, provides the requested version of the content to the host, and provides bookmark information from which the host can determine a location where to resume playback of the content, wherein the bookmark information indicates where playback ended for a different version of the content.

Abstract: A method of controlling a start-stop vehicle transmission pump, includes: assessing how long an engine has been turned off; and when the engine has been turned off for longer than a predetermined threshold and the vehicle is on, priming the transmission pump.

Abstract: A stepper motor is provided in which a permanent ring magnet is sandwiched in an outer part of the stator winding assembly located far from the gap between rotor and stator teeth, so that magnetic flux in the gap is dominated by the Ampere-turns of energized stator coils and therefore more easily controlled for reduced vibration at low stepping speeds. The rotor need not contain any permanent disk magnet. If one is provided, it can be completely embedded within the rotor and merely supplement the primary flux from the stator to enhance torque. In most cases, where the rotor lacks any permanent magnet, the motor's axial shaft can have a larger diameter and may, together with the rotor, form a linear actuator.

Abstract: A wire extends through a ceramic body. The wire comprises a material selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, osmium and alloys of platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, and osmium. The wire directly contacts the ceramic body to form a substantially hermetic seal between the ceramic body and the wire.

Abstract: A wire extends through a ceramic body. The wire comprises a material selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, osmium and alloys of platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, and osmium. The wire directly contacts the ceramic body to form a substantially hermetic seal between the ceramic body and the wire.

Abstract: A stepper motor has electromagnetically driven stator segments facing corresponding rotor segments. In order to reduce vibration of the stator segments, motor body end caps are provided with a stepped annular rim along an inside diameter of a centering sleeve. The stepped rim bears against each axial end of the stator segments, with a radial dimension and an axial dimension bracketing a stator segment end in place.

Abstract: A step motor having a stator constructed with six teeth per pole is achieved for a stator inner diameter (ID) less than one inch (25.4 mm) by a either (1) reducing the pitch angle of the outer teeth of each pole (e.g., to at most 6.8 degrees for a 19 mm stator ID), or (2) narrowing the tooth width of those outer teeth (e.g., to at most 0.0175 inch or 0.444 mm for a 19 mm stator ID), or (3) combination of both. These changes allow sufficient space (i.e., wider than 0.052 inch or 1.321 mm) between poles for passage of a winding needle, even with the extra stator teeth. Although narrowing the pitch angle and reducing the tooth width do sacrifice some torque contribution from each tooth, there still results a net overall gain in torque.

Abstract: A method for controlling a vehicle powertrain during launch includes controlling slip across a first clutch that transmits engine torque through the first clutch and the current gear while a transmission operates in a current gear other than a launch gear, disengaging the first clutch, engaging the launch gear, and controlling slip across a second clutch that transmits engine torque through the second clutch and the launch gear.

Abstract: A method for controlling an amount of power delivered by a power source (16) to a power line (32). An energy storage unit (38) receives portions of energy generated by the source and provides stored energy to supplement power output from the source to the power line. Maximum and minimum limits define a range of change in the power delivered to the power line by the power subsystem. An amount of power to be delivered by each of the source and the energy storage unit to the power line is based on (i) a determined amount of power available for delivery directly to the power line from the power source, (ii) a determined level of energy in the storage unit available for delivery to the power line, and (iii) the limits in the range of change in the power to be delivered by the power source to the power line.

Abstract: Data scrambling techniques implemented externally to a flash memory device are disclosed which can be used in concert with flash memory on-chip copy functionality operating internally to the flash device, thus supporting high performance copying operations. All the data stored in the flash may be scrambled, including headers and control structures. Robust file system operation may be achieved, including the capability to tolerate a power loss at any time, and yet be able to relocate data internally within the flash without having to de-scramble and then re-scramble the data. An exemplary hardware based solution has little or no impact on overall system performance, and may be implemented at very low incremental cost to increase overall system reliability. The data scrambling technique preferably uses a logical address, such as logical block address or logical page address, rather than a physical address, to determine a seed scrambling key.