Reduced head population detection in a disc drive
US6373649B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 18, 1999 |
| Grant date | Apr 16, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 18, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11B21/00
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An apparatus and method for determining the configuration of a disc drive head-disc assembly (HDA). The HDA includes an array of rotatable discs and an actuator adjacent the discs, with the actuator supporting a maximum number of heads in a fully populated configuration and a reduced number of heads in a depopulated configuration. Each head is disposed at a unique head position. During each spin-up of the disc drive, a servo circuit determines an impedance of a selected head position having a head when the disc drive is fully populated, but not when the disc drive is depopulated. The servo circuit identifies this configuration of the HDA in relation to the determined impedance, and initializes the drive accordingly. The drive then identifies the configuration of the HDA based on the value of the impedance, initializing the drive accordingly.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.