Patent · US Expired

Adjustment feature for load/unload alignment ramp assembly

US6067208A · kind A · utility

11Cited by
10References
19Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateMay 14, 1998
Grant dateMay 23, 2000
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 14, 2018

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG11B5/54
  • WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A disk drive system includes a base, a disk stack rotatably attached to the base, and an actuator assembly movably attached to the base. A ramp assembly includes a set of ramps for loading and unloading the transducing elements to and from the disks in the disk stack. The ramp assembly is attached to the base. The ramp assembly has a series of fixed ramps which are either formed as one integral unit or formed of separate portions. The actuator assembly includes a set of arms. Attached to each arm is a suspension. Attached near the free end of each of the suspensions is a transducer. Also attached to the suspension is a load tang. The load tang rides over the surface of the ramp when the transducers are loaded to or unloaded from a disk surface. The load tang includes a plastically deformable portion which may be irreversibly deformed during assembly of the drive and more particularly, deformed when all of the heads are unloaded from the disk to the ramp assembly for the first time. The deformable portion would allow for z-height adjustment and attitude adjustment of the arm necessary to adjust for stack up tolerances of the various components of the disk drive. The load tang could …

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.