阅读说明：本技术 竖直平移用于冷存储数据存储设备的装载/卸载坡道机构 (Vertical translation load/unload ramp mechanism for cold storage data storage devices ) 是由 J·雅戈比 D·梅尔斯 于 2019-07-18 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明题为“竖直平移用于冷存储数据存储设备的装载/卸载坡道机构”。一种磁头减少的硬盘驱动器(HDD)的方法涉及一种装载/卸载(LUL)坡道子系统,该坡道子系统包括坡道组件,该坡道组件包括可平移杆构件和耦接到该可平移杆构件的LUL坡道构件,以及通过一组挠曲件与该坡道耦接的互连升降机接合部。该坡道子系统被配置为使得响应于由HSA施加到杆的足够力,坡道的远侧端部被定位成使得HDD的记录磁盘的外周边离开坡道的远侧端部处的通道。子系统还可包括马达,该马达被配置为驱动与坡道组件附接的导螺杆旋转,以驱动坡道组件竖直平移,从而提供将可竖直平移的HSA装载到多个磁盘堆叠中的每个磁盘上和从多个磁盘堆叠中的每个磁盘卸载的功能。(The invention provides a vertical translation loading/unloading ramp mechanism for cold storage data storage devices. A method of a head reduced Hard Disk Drive (HDD) involves a load/unload (LUL) ramp subsystem including a ramp assembly including a translatable rod member and a LUL ramp member coupled to the translatable rod member, and an interconnecting lifter interface coupled to the ramp via a set of flexures. The ramp subsystem is configured such that, in response to sufficient force applied to the rod by the HSA, the distal end of the ramp is positioned such that the outer periphery of the recording disk of the HDD exits the channel at the distal end of the ramp. The subsystem may further include a motor configured to drive rotation of a lead screw attached to the ramp assembly to drive vertical translation of the ramp assembly to provide functionality for loading and unloading the vertically translatable HSA onto and off of each disk in the plurality of disk stacks.)

1. A vertically translatable load/unload (LUL) ramp system for a head-reduced Hard Disk Drive (HDD), the system comprising:

a ramp assembly, the ramp assembly comprising:

a translatable LUL ramp member;

a translatable rod member coupled with the LUL ramp member and configured for mechanical interaction with a Head Stack Assembly (HSA);

a plurality of interconnected structured lift interfaces coupled with the LUL ramp member; and

a plurality of flexures interconnecting the elevator interface and the LUL ramp member.

2. The LUL ramp system according to claim 1, wherein the first operating state of the ramp assembly is characterized by:

applying zero or negligible force to the rod member by the HSA; and is

A distal end of the LUL ramp member is positioned such that an outer periphery of a recording disk of an HDD is disposed within a channel at the distal end of the LUL ramp member.

3. The LUL ramp system according to claim 2, wherein the first operating state of the ramp assembly is further characterized by:

the plurality of flexures are in a relaxed state.

4. The LUL ramp system according to claim 2, wherein the first operating state of the ramp assembly is further characterized by:

the plurality of flexures are in a deflected state.

5. The LUL ramp system according to claim 1, wherein the second operational state of the ramp assembly is characterized by:

applying sufficient force to the rod member by the HSA such that a distal end of the LUL ramp member is positioned such that an outer periphery of a recording disk of an HDD exits a channel at the distal end of the LUL ramp member.

6. The LUL ramp system according to claim 5, wherein the second operational state of the ramp assembly is further characterized by:

the plurality of flexures are in a relaxed state.

7. The LUL ramp system according to claim 5, wherein the second operational state of the ramp assembly is further characterized by:

the plurality of flexures are in a deflected state.

8. The LUL ramp system according to claim 5, wherein the second operational state of the ramp assembly is further characterized by:

a rod member is in contact with a sensor configured to detect that the HSA has translated the rod member a distance to clear the outer perimeter of the recording disk from a channel at a distal end of the LUL ramp member.

9. The LUL ramp system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a stepper motor configured to drive rotation of a lead screw to drive translation of the ramp assembly along an axis of the lead screw.

10. The LUL ramp system according to claim 1, further comprising:

one or more guide rails configured to engage with respective corresponding elevator engagements of the plurality of structured elevator engagements of the ramp assembly; and

a stepper motor configured to drive rotation of a lead screw to drive translation of the ramp assembly along an axis of the lead screw and supported by the one or more guide rails.

11. A LUL ramp system according to claim 10, wherein:

a first elevator joint of the plurality of structured elevator joints is positioned around a first rail of the one or more rails;

a second internally threaded elevator engagement of the plurality of structured elevator engagers is positioned around the lead screw; and is

A third elevator joint of the plurality of structured elevator joints is positioned around a second rail of the one or more rails.

12. A LUL ramp system according to claim 11, wherein:

a first flexure of the plurality of flexures is positioned between the first elevator engagement portion and the second elevator engagement portion; and is

A second flexure of the plurality of flexures is positioned between the second elevator engagement portion and the third elevator engagement portion.

13. The LUL ramp system according to claim 1, wherein the ramp assembly further comprises:

a proximity sensor positioned proximate a distal end of the LUL ramp member and configured to detect a vertical position of the ramp assembly corresponding to each recording disk in a multi-disk stack of an HDD.

14. A hard disk drive comprising the LUL ramp system according to claim 1.

15. A head-reduced Hard Disk Drive (HDD), comprising:

a plurality of n recording disk media rotatably mounted on a spindle;

a plurality of less than 2n head sliders, each head slider including a read-write transducer configured to read from and write to at least two of the plurality of disk media;

an actuator assembly configured to move the plurality of head sliders to access portions of the at least two disk media;

an actuator lift subassembly configured to move the actuator assembly to access the at least two disk media; and

a ramp assembly, the ramp assembly comprising:

the LUL ramp portion may be translated and,

a translatable rod portion coupled with the LUL ramp portion and configured for mechanical interaction with a Head Stack Assembly (HSA) housing the plurality of head sliders,

a plurality of interconnected structured lift interfaces coupled with the ramp portion, an

A plurality of flexures interconnecting the elevator interface and the ramp portion.

16. The head reduced HDD of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more guide rails configured to engage with respective corresponding elevator engagements of the plurality of structured elevator engagements of the ramp assembly; and

a stepper motor configured to drive rotation of a lead screw to drive translation of the ramp assembly along an axis of the lead screw and supported by the one or more guide rails.

17. The head reduced HDD of claim 15, wherein the first operational state of the ramp assembly is characterized by:

applying zero or negligible force to the stem portion by the HSA; and is

A distal end of the LUL ramp portion is positioned such that an outer periphery of a disk media of the plurality of disk media is disposed within a channel at the distal end of the LUL ramp portion.

18. The head reduced HDD of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more guide rails configured to engage with respective corresponding elevator engagements of the plurality of structured elevator engagements of the ramp assembly; and

a stepper motor configured to drive rotation of a lead screw to drive translation of the ramp assembly along an axis of the lead screw and supported by the one or more guide rails;

wherein a second operational state of the ramp assembly is characterized by sufficient force being applied by the HSA to the rod portion such that a distal end of the LUL ramp portion is positioned such that an outer periphery of a disk of the plurality of disk media exits a channel at the distal end of the LUL ramp portion, and the ramp assembly is positioned to be translated by the stepper motor.

19. A load/unload (LUL) ramp system for a head-reduced Hard Disk Drive (HDD), the system comprising:

a multi-disk LUL ramp including a respective disk ramp portion corresponding to a position corresponding to each of a plurality of recording disks;

a stepper motor configured to drive rotation of a lead screw to which a carriage is translatably coupled; and

a ramp adapter coupled with the carriage and positioned adjacent to the LUL ramp;

wherein the carriage and the ramp adapter translate vertically along an axis of the lead screw and in response to rotation of the lead screw to position the ramp adapter adjacent a particular disk ramp portion of the multi-disk LUL ramp.

20. The LUL ramp system according to claim 19, further comprising:

a proximity sensor configured to detect a vertical position of the carriage and ramp adapter.

21. A hard disk drive comprising the LUL ramp system according to claim 19.

Technical Field

Embodiments of the invention may relate generally to head-reduced hard disk drives with actuator lift mechanisms, and in particular to methods for vertically translating and rotating load/unload ramp mechanisms.

Background

There is an increasing demand for archival storage. Tape is a traditional solution for data backup, but access to data is very slow. Archive files are increasingly becoming "active" archive files, which means that a certain degree of continuous random read data access is required. Conventional Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) may be used, but the cost may be considered undesirably high. Other methods contemplated may include, for example, HDDs with very large diameter disks and HDDs with ultra-high form factors, both of which require significant capital investment due to the unique components and assembly processes, have low value positioning at a cost savings, and impede application in the marketplace due to the unique large form factors.

Any methods described in this section are approaches that could be pursued, but not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Accordingly, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches described in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their inclusion in this section.

Drawings

Embodiments are illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings and in which like reference numerals refer to similar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a data storage system architecture, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 2A is a perspective view of an actuator subsystem in a hard disk drive showing head reduction according to one embodiment;

FIG. 2B is an isolated perspective view illustrating the actuator subsystem of FIG. 2A, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 2C is an isolated top view illustrating the actuator subsystem of FIG. 2A, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 3A is a perspective view illustrating an elevator ramp assembly according to one embodiment;

FIG. 3B is a perspective view illustrating an elevator ramp assembly according to one embodiment;

FIG. 4A is a perspective view illustrating a rotatable ramp assembly according to one embodiment;

FIG. 4B is a top view of the rotatable ramp assembly of FIG. 4A shown in a first operational state within a hard disk drive, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 4C is a top view of the rotatable ramp assembly of FIG. 4A shown in a second operational state within a hard disk drive, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 4D is a perspective view illustrating a vertically translatable rotatable ramp assembly within a hard disk drive, in accordance with one embodiment;

FIG. 5A is a perspective view illustrating a vertically translatable articulated ramp assembly in a first operational state, according to one embodiment; and is

Fig. 5B is a perspective view illustrating the articulated ramp assembly of fig. 5A in a second operational state, according to one embodiment.

Detailed Description

A method of a multi-disk hard drive with an actuator lift mechanism and a ramp lift mechanism is described. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the invention described herein. It will be apparent, however, that embodiments of the invention described herein may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the embodiments of the invention described herein.

Physical description of an exemplary operating Environment

Embodiments may be used in the context of multiple disks, reduced read and write heads, digital Data Storage Devices (DSDs) such as Hard Disk Drives (HDDs). Thus, according to one embodiment, a plan view illustrating a conventional HDD100 is shown in FIG. 1 to help describe how a conventional HDD typically operates.

FIG. 1 shows the functional arrangement of the components of HDD100 including slider 110b, slider 110b including magnetic read and write head 110 a. The slider 110b and the magnetic head 110a may be collectively referred to as a magnetic head slider. The HDD100 includes at least one Head Gimbal Assembly (HGA)110 with a head slider, a lead suspension 110c attached to the head slider, typically via a flexure, and a load beam 110d attached to the lead suspension 110 c. HDD100 also includes at least one recording medium 120 rotatably mounted on a spindle 124 and a drive motor (not visible) attached to spindle 124 for rotating medium 120. Read-write head 110a (which may also be referred to as a transducer) includes a write element and a read element for writing and reading, respectively, information stored on media 120 of HDD 100. The media 120 or multiple disk media may be attached to the spindle 124 using a disk clamp 128.

The HDD100 also includes an arm 132 attached to the HGA110, a carriage 134, a Voice Coil Motor (VCM) including an armature 136 containing a voice coil 140 attached to the carriage 134 and a stator 144 containing voice coil magnets (not visible). An armature 136 of the VCM is attached to the carriage 134 and is configured to move the arm 132 and HGA110 to access portions of the media 120, which are collectively mounted on a pivot shaft 148 with an interposed pivot bearing assembly 152. In the case of a HDD having multiple disks, the carriage 134 may be referred to as an "E-block" or comb because the carriage is arranged to carry an array of arms linked in sets, giving it the appearance of a comb.

The assembly including the head gimbal assembly (e.g., HGA110) including the flexure to which the head slider is coupled, the actuator arm (e.g., arm 132) and/or the load beam to which the flexure is coupled, and the actuator (e.g., VCM) to which the actuator arm is coupled may be collectively referred to as a Head Stack Assembly (HSA). However, the HSA may include more or fewer components than those described. For example, HSA may refer to a component that also includes electrical interconnect features. In general, the HSA is a component configured to move the head slider to access portions of the media 120 for read and write operations.

With further reference to FIG. 1, electrical signals (e.g., current to voice coil 140 of the VCM) including write signals to magnetic head 110a and read signals from magnetic head 110a are carried by a Flexible Cable Assembly (FCA)156 (or "flex cable"). The interconnect between the flex cable 156 and the magnetic head 110a may include an Arm Electronics (AE) module 160, which may have an on-board preamplifier for read signals and other read channel and write channel electronic components. The AE module 160 may be attached to the carriage 134 as shown. The flex cable 156 may be coupled to an electrical connector block 164, which in some configurations provides electrical communication through electrical feedthroughs provided by the HDD housing 168. HDD enclosure 168 (or "case base" or "base plate" or simply "base") together with the HDD cover provides a semi-sealed (or hermetically sealed in some configurations) protective enclosure for the information storage components of HDD 100.

Other electronic components, including disk controllers and servo electronics including Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), provide electrical signals to the drive motor, the voice coil 140 of the VCM, and the heads 110a of the HGAs 110. The electrical signal provided to the drive motor rotates the drive motor, providing a torque to the spindle 124, which is in turn transmitted to the media 120 attached to the spindle 124. Thus, media 120 rotates in direction 172. The rotating media 120 forms an air bearing that acts as an air bearing for the Air Bearing Surface (ABS) of the slider 110b to ride on so that the slider 110b flies above the surface of the media 120 without making contact with the thin magnetic recording layer where information is recorded. Similarly, in HDDs utilizing lighter-than-air gases (such as helium for a non-limiting example), the rotating medium 120 forms an air bearing that acts as a gas or fluid bearing on which the slider 110b rides.

The electrical signal provided to the voice coil 140 of the VCM enables the head 110a of the HGA110 to access the track 176 on which information is recorded. Thus, the armature 136 of the VCM swings through the arc 180, which enables the head 110a of the HGA110 to access various tracks on the medium 120. Information is stored in a plurality of radially nested tracks on medium 120 that are arranged in sectors (such as sector 184) on medium 120. Accordingly, each track is made up of a plurality of sectorized track portions (or "track sectors") such as sectorized track portion 188. Each sectorized track portion 188 may include recorded information and a header containing error correction code information and servo burst patterns, such as ABCD-servo burst patterns (which are information identifying track 176). In accessing the track 176, the read element of the head 110a of the HGA110 reads a servo burst signal pattern that provides a Positioning Error Signal (PES) to the servo electronics, which controls the electrical signal provided to the voice coil 140 of the VCM, thereby enabling the head 110a to follow the track 176. Upon finding track 176 and identifying a particular sectorized track portion 188, head 110a reads information from track 176 or writes information to track 176 in accordance with instructions received by a disk controller from an external agent (e.g., a microprocessor of a computer system).

The electronic architecture of the HDD includes a number of electronic components for performing their respective HDD operational functions, such as hard disk controllers ("HDCs"), interface controllers, arm electronics modules, data channels, motor drives, servo processors, buffer memory, and the like. Two or more such components may be combined on a single integrated circuit board referred to as a "system on a chip" ("SOC"). Several, if not all, of such electronic components are typically arranged on a printed circuit board that is coupled to the bottom side of the HDD, such as to HDD housing 168.

The information storage devices sometimes referred to as "hybrid drives" may be included herein with reference to hard disk drives, such as HDD100 shown and described with reference to FIG. 1. A hybrid drive generally refers to a storage device having the functionality of a conventional HDD (see, e.g., HDD 100) in combination with a solid State Storage Device (SSD), which is electrically erasable and programmable, using non-volatile memory, such as flash memory or other solid state (e.g., integrated circuit) memory. Since the operation, management and control of different types of storage media are typically different, the solid-state portion of the hybrid drive may include its own corresponding controller functionality, which may be integrated into a single controller along with the HDD functionality. The hybrid drive may be constructed and configured to operate and utilize the solid-state portion in a variety of ways, such as using solid-state memory as cache memory for storing frequently accessed data, for storing I/O intensive data, and so forth, as non-limiting examples. In addition, the hybrid drive may be constructed and configured to function essentially as two storage devices in a single enclosure, i.e., a conventional HDD and SSD, with one or more interfaces for host connection.

Introduction to the design reside in

Reference herein to "an embodiment," "one embodiment," or the like, is intended to mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. However, examples of such phrases are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

The term "substantially" should be understood to describe features that are mostly or almost structured, configured, dimensioned, etc., but in practice manufacturing tolerances, etc., give rise to situations where structures, configurations, dimensions, etc., are not always or necessarily as precise as stated. For example, describing a structure as "substantially vertical" will give the term its ordinary meaning, such that the sidewall is vertical for all practical purposes, but may not be exactly at 90 degrees.

Although terms such as "best," "optimized," "minimum," "minimized," and the like may not have certain values associated therewith, if such terms are used herein, it is intended that one of ordinary skill in the art would understand that such terms are to include affecting values, parameters, metrics, and the like, in beneficial directions consistent with the entirety of the present disclosure. For example, describing a value of something as "minimum" does not require that the value actually be equal to some theoretical minimum (e.g., zero), but should be understood in a practical sense as corresponding to the goal of moving the value in a beneficial direction toward the theoretical minimum.

Recall that there is an increasing demand for cost-effective "active" archival storage devices (also referred to as "cold storage"), preferably having a conventional form factor and using many standard components. According to an embodiment, a method involves a standard HDD form factor (e.g., 3.5 "form factor) and largely universal HDD architecture with n disks in one rotating disk stack, but containing less than 2n read and write heads. Such storage devices may utilize an articulation mechanism that can move the heads to mate with different disk surfaces (for non-limiting examples, only 2 heads but more than 5 disks for an air drive or more than 8 disks for a helium drive), where the major cost savings may result from eliminating the vast majority of heads in the drive.

Ramp load/unload (LUL) technology relates to a mechanism for moving a Head Stack Assembly (HSA) including a read/write head slider away from and away from a magnetic disk and safely positioning them onto a cam-like structure. The cam typically includes a shallow ramp on the side closest to the disk. During a power-up sequence, for example, when the disk reaches an appropriate rotational speed, the read-write head is loaded by moving the slider off the ramp and onto the disk surface. Thus, the term used is that the slider or HSA is "loaded" onto or "loaded" onto the disk (i.e., off the ramp) into an operational position, and "unloaded" (i.e., moved onto the ramp) from the disk, such as in an idle position. In the context of a multi-disk HDD with an actuator lift mechanism, to move the heads up and down to a different disk, the heads need to be backed off the ramp and then re-engaged to the ramp at the next disk location.

Actuator subsystem for head-reduced hard disk drive

Fig. 2A is a perspective view illustrating an actuator subsystem in a head-reduced Hard Disk Drive (HDD), fig. 2B is an isolated perspective view illustrating the actuator subsystem of fig. 2A, and fig. 2C is an isolated plan view illustrating the actuator subsystem of fig. 2A, all according to an embodiment. Fig. 2A-2C collectively illustrate an actuator subsystem that includes a low-profile ball screw cam assembly 202 (or "cam 202") that converts rotational motion into linear motion, in which a stepper motor 204 (or "stepper motor") is disposed to form an actuator lifter subassembly that is disposed within an actuator pivot and pivot bearing (e.g., "pivot cartridge") of the actuator subsystem and is configured to vertically translate at least one actuator arm 205 (see, e.g., arm 132 of fig. 1) with a corresponding HGA 207 (see, e.g., HGA110 of fig. 1). According to one embodiment, the actuator subsystem for a head-reduced HDD consists of two actuator arm 205 assemblies, each actuator arm 205 assembly having a corresponding HGA 207 (e.g., a modified HSA in which the actuator arm assembly translates or raises vertically while the VCM coil 209 may be fixed in a vertical direction) that houses a corresponding read-write head 207a (see, e.g., read-write head 110a of fig. 1). In general, the term "head reduced HDD" is used to refer to an HDD in which the number of read and write heads is less than the number of magnetic recording disk media surfaces.

2A-2C also illustrate, with respect to electrical signal transmission, a flexible cable assembly 208 ("FCA 208") configured to include a dynamic vertical "ring" 208a ("FCA vertical ring 208 a") for vertical translation of one or more ends coupled to the actuator lift sub-assembly and/or another portion of the actuator subsystem. This FCA vertical ring 208a is a complement to typical dynamic horizontal rings used for horizontal translation purposes when an actuator connected at one end to it is rotated. The actuator subsystem also includes at least one connector housing 210 for housing electrical connectors for transmitting electrical signals (e.g., motor power, sensor signals, etc.) between the actuator lift sub-assembly and a ramp lift assembly (described in more detail elsewhere herein).

2A-2C further illustrate an arm lock stator system 206 coupled to or comprising a coil support assembly 212 configured to mechanically interact with an outer race scram device 211 ("ODCS 211") to lock and unlock the actuator lift subassembly, as described in more detail elsewhere herein, with respect to actuator arm locking.

Elevator load/unload ramp assembly for head-reduced hard disk drive

In the case of a head reduced HDD, one approach to the LUL ramp may be to employ a conventional static ramp. Fig. 3A is a perspective view illustrating an elevator ramp assembly according to an embodiment, and fig. 3B is a perspective view illustrating a similar elevator ramp assembly (with slight variations in motor carriage configuration) according to an embodiment. The illustrated elevator ramp assembly or ramp mechanism is generally positioned in the a-a area (fig. 2A) and includes a multi-disk ramp 310 and a single ramp adapter 302 coupled to a stepper motor carriage 313 of a stepper motor 312. Accordingly, the stepper motor 312 drives the ramp adapter 312 in vertical translation such that the ramp adapter 302 may move synchronously or asynchronously in conjunction with an actuator elevator subassembly of an actuator subsystem (see, e.g., fig. 2A-2C) such that the ramp adapter 312 may mate with a desired "level" of the ramp 310. Each level of the ramp 310 corresponds to a respective disk ramp portion 310a-310n of the ramp 310 (where n is a number that may vary depending on the implementation depending on the number of disks in a given HDD), which corresponds to the location of the respective disk 120 when installed in the HDD. When the ramp adapter 312 reaches the desired level of the ramp 310, then a Head Stack Assembly (HSA) may be driven by a VCM (see, e.g., the VCM of fig. 1) to engage the ramp adapter 302 and then engage the appropriate level of the ramp 310 so that the HSA may ultimately be loaded into an operational position relative to the desired disk in the multi-disk stack.

The drive mechanism of the ramp adapter 302 includes a stepper motor 312 having a carriage 313 (FIG. 3A), 313A (FIG. 3B), a lead screw 304 to which the carriage 313 can be translatably coupled, and a support or guide 306. When ramp adapter 302 is fixedly coupled with stepper motor carriages 313, 313a, ramp adapter 302 is driven by rotation of lead screw 304 under the control of stepper motor 302.

The proximity sensing subassembly for ramp adapter 302 position sensing and driver feedback purposes is configured to sense the carriage 313, 313a and thus the Z position (e.g., vertical height) of the ramp adapter 302. The type/form of sensing mechanism used may vary from implementation to implementation. For example, according to one embodiment, the sensing is based on the position of the carriages 313, 313a and ramp adapter 302 relative to the magnetic encoder strip and ultimately relative to the disk stack. The proximity sensing subassembly includes a magnetic encoder strip 308 positioned in proximity to at least one corresponding position sensor 314 mounted on the carriages 313, 313 a. According to one embodiment, one or more Hall effect sensors are used to implement one or more position sensors 314 that cooperate with a closely positioned magnetic encoder strip 308 mounted on a support structure or stiffener. Generally, a hall effect sensor (or simply "hall sensor") measures the magnitude of a magnetic field, where the output voltage of the sensor is proportional to the strength of the magnetic field passing through the sensor. In other embodiments, other magnetic or non-magnetic based sensing mechanisms may be used for position detection (see, e.g., the inductive sensing mechanisms of fig. 5A, 5B). A Flexible Cable Assembly (FCA)316 including a vertical "loop" or slack may be implemented to transmit electrical signals from one or more position sensors 314 to an electrical connector on the connector housing 210 and on to some form of controller electronics.

Rotatable loading/unloading ramp assembly

A fixed load/unload (LUL) ramp, such as ramp 310 (fig. 3A-3B), engages each disk in a multi-disk stack at the same time, so more material (e.g., plastic) would be required to form the multi-stage ramp. Thus, if only one disk needs to be accessed at a time, having such multi-stage ramps is not considered cost effective, and the multi-stage ramps inhibits the ability to introduce tighter disk spacing within the disk stack.

Fig. 4A is a perspective view illustrating a rotatable ramp assembly according to one embodiment. The rotatable ramp assembly 400 or ramp mechanism includes a base 402 with a rotary latch coupling 404 coupled to the base 402. The rotary latch coupling 404 is configured to rotate about an axis 404a (counterclockwise) through physical interaction with a portion of a Head Stack Assembly (HSA), such as through interaction with the actuator arm 205 (see, e.g., fig. 2A-2C). The latch link 404 is mechanically coupled with a rotary ramp holder 406, to which rotary ramp holder 406 the LUL ramp 410 is coupled. It is noted that the hill-hold 406 and the hill 410 may be integrated together and formed as a unitary structure, i.e., a single component. When latch link 404 is driven to rotate counterclockwise, ramp holder 406 and ramp 410 are driven to overcome the magnetic attraction between magnet 407 secured to ramp holder 410 and latch stop 408 and rotate clockwise to a point of contact with latch stop 408, thereby moving ramp 410 into and out of engagement with the disks in the multi-disk stack.

FIG. 4B is a top view and FIG. 4C is a top view of the rotatable ramp assembly of FIG. 4A in a first operational state within a hard disk drive and FIG. 4C is a top view of the rotatable ramp assembly of FIG. 4A in a second operational state within a hard disk drive, both according to one embodiment. The operational state shown in fig. 4B illustrates the LUL ramp assembly 400 generally located in the a-a region (fig. 2A) that engages a disk (see, e.g., recording media 120 of fig. 1) in a multi-disk stack, whereby the distal end of the ramp 410 is positioned such that the outer periphery of the disk 120 is disposed within the channel at the distal end of the ramp 410, and wherein the HSA is shown as resting on the ramp 410. In this way, the ramp retainer 406 is latched or temporarily secured by the magnetic attraction between the magnet 407 and the latch stop 408. This first operational state of the rotatable ramp assembly 400 allows the HSA to be loaded onto the disk for the HSA to perform various seek/read/write operations under the control of the VCM. The operating state shown in fig. 4C illustrates the LUL ramp assembly 400 disengaged from a disk 120 in a multi-disk stack, whereby the distal end of the ramp 410 is positioned such that the outer periphery of the disk 120 exits (i.e., is not disposed within) the channel at the distal end of the ramp 410, and the HSA is shown removed from the ramp 410 in response to sufficient force applied to the latch link 404 by the actuator arm 205. Thus, the ramp holder 406 is unlatched from the magnetic attraction of the latch stop 408 and the magnet 407 and is in a rotated position in which the top end of the ramp 410 is clear of the disk surface. According to one embodiment, this second operational state of the rotatable ramp assembly 400 allows the HSA to perform a disk seek operation (i.e., a disk-to-disk translation operation) under the control of an actuator elevator subassembly that includes the cam 202 and the in-pivot stepper motor 204 (fig. 2A-2C). Likewise, the second operational state of the rotatable ramp assembly 400 allows the ramp assembly 400 to translate vertically, such as described in more detail with reference to fig. 4D. In response to removal of the force applied to the latch coupling 404 by the actuator arm 205, the ramp holder 406 latches again by the magnetic attraction between the magnet 407 and the latch stop 408, i.e., when the actuator arm 205 is withdrawn from contact with the latch coupling 404, the magnetic attraction between the magnet 407 and the latch stop 408 is strong enough to pull the ramp 410 back into the disk 120 area.

FIG. 4D is a perspective view illustrating a vertically translatable rotatable ramp assembly within a hard disk drive, according to one embodiment. The illustrated translatable ramp assembly includes a ramp assembly (similar to rotatable ramp assembly 400, wherein like numbered components are the same or similar in construction and operation as described with reference to fig. 4A) or ramp mechanism generally located in the a-a region (fig. 2A), which includes a plurality of structured interfaces 402A for coupling with a lead screw 414 configured to be driven by a stepper motor 412, and at least one guide rail 416. The stepper motor 412 drives vertical translation of the ramp assembly 400 such that when in the second operational state shown in fig. 4C, the ramp 410 may be moved in conjunction with an actuator elevator subassembly of an actuator subsystem (see, e.g., fig. 2A-2C) such that the ramp 410 may mate with a desired disk 120 in a multi-disk stack. When the ramp 410 reaches a desired level of the disk stack, then a Head Stack Assembly (HSA) may be driven by a VCM (see, e.g., the VCM of fig. 1) to engage the ramp 410 so that the HSA may ultimately be loaded into an operational position relative to the desired disk in the multi-disk stack, such as the first operational state shown in fig. 4B. According to one embodiment, at least one of the joints 402a (e.g., the joint 402a associated with the base 402 and/or the latch coupling 404) includes a bushing. According to another embodiment, at least one of the joints 402a (e.g., the joint 402a associated with the base 402 and/or the latch coupling 404) includes a linear bearing.

Similar proximity sensing sub-assemblies, such as those illustrated and described with reference to fig. 3A-3B, may be implemented for purposes of ramp 410 and/or ramp assembly 400 position sensing and driver feedback (not shown here for simplicity and clarity of the drawing), and may be configured to sense the Z position (e.g., vertical height) of ramp 410 relative to the magnetic encoder strip and ultimately the disk stack. That is, according to one embodiment, the proximity sensing subassembly may include a magnetic encoder strip (e.g., magnetic encoder strip 308 of fig. 3A-3B) positioned in proximity to at least one corresponding position sensor (e.g., one or more position sensors 314 of fig. 3A-3B) mounted on the ramp assembly 400.

Articulated loading/unloading ramp assembly

Fig. 5A is a perspective view illustrating a vertically translatable articulated ramp assembly in a first operating state, and fig. 5B is a perspective view illustrating the articulated ramp assembly of fig. 5A in a second operating state, both given in accordance with an embodiment. The articulating ramp assembly 500 or ramp mechanism, which is typically positioned in the area a-a (fig. 2A), includes a rod portion 502 or member and a ramp portion 510 or member coupled together in a substantially vertical relative positioning (although a vertical relative positioning is not required). The stem portion 502 and the ramp portion 510 are coupled with a plurality of interconnecting structured elevator joints 506 by a plurality of flexures 504 that act as cantilevered spring beams. At least one of the elevator interfaces 506 is movably coupled with a lead screw 514 configured to be driven by a stepper motor 512, while the other one or more elevator interfaces are movably coupled with a respective guide rail 516. The rod portion 502 is configured for translation through physical interaction with a portion of a Head Stack Assembly (HSA), such as through interaction with the actuator arm 205 (see, e.g., fig. 2A-2C).

FIG. 5A shows an articulated ramp assembly 500 in a first operating state within a hard disk drive, and FIG. 5B shows an articulated ramp assembly in a second operating state within a hard disk drive. The operational state shown in fig. 5A illustrates articulating assembly 500 engaged with a disk (see, e.g., recording media 120 of fig. 1) in a multi-disk stack, whereby the distal end of ramp portion 510 is positioned such that the outer periphery of disk 120 is disposed within the channel at the distal end of ramp portion 510, and wherein the HSA is shown resting on ramp 510. This first operational state of the articulated ramp assembly 500 allows the HSA to be loaded onto the disk for the HSA to perform various seek/read/write operations under the control of the VCM.

The operational state shown in fig. 5B illustrates hinged ramp assembly 500 disengaged from a disk 120 in a multi-disk stack, whereby the distal end of ramp 510 is positioned such that the outer periphery of disk 120 is clear of (i.e., not disposed within) the channel at the distal end of ramp 510. When drive rod portion 502 is actuated to translate to the right, flexure 504 flexes (e.g., in spring tension) and the interconnected ramp portions 504 are likewise actuated to the right, thereby moving ramp portions 510 out of engagement with the disks in the multi-disk stack. Thus, ramp portion 510 is in a translated position with the ramp tip off the disk surface. According to one embodiment, this second operational state of the articulated ramp assembly 500 allows the HSA to perform disk seek operations (i.e., disk-to-disk translation operations) under the control of an actuator elevator subassembly that includes the cam 202 and the in-pivot stepper motor 204 (fig. 2A-2C). Likewise, the second operational state of the articulated ramp assembly 500 allows the ramp assembly 500 to translate vertically, such as described in more detail elsewhere herein.

Note that the illustrations of fig. 5A-5B show flexure 504 in a relaxed or neutral position when ramp portion 510 is engaged with disk 120, and flexure 504 in a flexed position (e.g., in a spring tension state) when ramp portion 510 is disengaged from disk 120. However, this arrangement may vary from implementation to implementation, as the articulating ramp assembly 500 may be configured such that the flexure 504 is in a relaxed or neutral position when the ramp portion 510 is disengaged from the disk 120, and the flexure 504 is in a flexed position when the ramp portion 510 is engaged with the disk 120.

Similar to the rotatable ramp assembly 400 (see, e.g., fig. 4A), according to one embodiment, the articulating ramp assembly 500 is considered a vertically translatable articulating ramp assembly within a hard disk drive in that the plurality of structured lift interfaces 506 are configured to couple with a lead screw 514 that is configured to be driven by a stepper motor 512 and at least one guide rail 516. The stepper motor 512 drives the ramp assembly 500 to translate vertically such that when in the second operational state shown in fig. 5B, the ramp portion 510 is movable in conjunction with an actuator lifter subassembly of an actuator subsystem (see, e.g., fig. 2A-2C) such that the ramp portion 510 can mate with a desired disk 120 in a multi-disk stack. When the ramp portion 510 reaches a desired level of the disk stack, then a Head Stack Assembly (HSA) may be driven by a VCM (see, e.g., the VCM of fig. 1) to engage the ramp portion 510 such that the HSA may ultimately be loaded into an operational position relative to the desired disks in the multi-disk stack, such as the first operational state shown in fig. 5A. As with the rotatable ramp assembly 400, at least one of the elevator interfaces 506 may include a bushing and/or at least one of the elevator interfaces 506 may include a linear bearing.

Although similar proximity sensing subassemblies, such as the embodiments illustrated and described with reference to fig. 3A-3B, may be implemented for ramp assembly 500 position sensing and drive feedback purposes and configured to sense the Z position (e.g., vertical height) of ramp portion 510 relative to the magnetic encoder strip, according to one embodiment, sensor 508 is coupled to a portion of ramp assembly 500 and positioned as shown in fig. 5A-5B to directly sense the position of the disk edge, rather than sensing position based on an object remote from the disk stack (e.g., the magnetic encoder strip). According to one embodiment, a non-contact inductive proximity sensor and associated electronics 508a are used for the sensor 508 and are positioned as close to the disk stack as practicable. Thus, the inductive sensor 508 relies on the principles of electromagnetic induction and is implemented in the form of one or more coils embedded in a Flexible Printed Circuit (FPC) and/or a flexible cable assembly (such as a portion or electrical extension of the FCA 513) that may ultimately be mated with the FCA208 (fig. 2A-2C). In one form of inductive sensor 508, a coil (e.g., an inductor, such as in an LCR circuit comprising an inductor, a capacitor, and a resistor) may be used to generate a changing magnetic field, and another coil may be used to detect changes in the magnetic field introduced by a metal object, such as nickel plating covering the edges of the disk 120. In another form of inductive sensor 508, a metal object (such as nickel plating covering the edge of the disk 120) moving past one or more coils will change the inductance in the coils and thus change the resonant frequency of the LCR circuit electrically coupled to the electronic circuit 508a, thereby detecting a change in resonant frequency. The electronic circuit 508a then converts this change in resonant frequency to a standard DAC (digital to analog converter) output that can be used for servo control of the stepper motor 512. Thus, as the media moves from the air gap to the media, a change in the resonant frequency of inductive sensor 508 may be detected, and thus, the positioning of ramp assembly 500 relative to the disk stack may likewise be determined. The type/form of sensing mechanism used may vary from implementation to implementation.

Extension and substitution

In the foregoing specification, embodiments of the invention have been described with reference to numerous specific details that may vary from implementation to implementation. Accordingly, various modifications and changes may be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the embodiments. Thus, the sole and exclusive indicator of what is the invention, and is intended by the applicants to be the invention, is the set of claims that issue from this application, in the specific form in which such claims issue, including any subsequent correction. Any definitions expressly set forth herein for terms contained in such claims shall govern the meaning of such terms as used in the claims. Hence, no limitation, element, property, feature, advantage or attribute that is not expressly recited in a claim should limit the scope of such claim in any way. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense.

Further, in this description, certain process steps may be shown in a particular order, and alphabetic and alphanumeric labels may be used to identify certain steps. Unless explicitly stated in the specification, the embodiments are not necessarily limited to any particular order of performing such steps. In particular, these labels are merely used to facilitate identification of the steps, and are not intended to specify or require a particular order of performing such steps.