The present invention relates generally to mounting of storage media, and more particularly but not by limitation to mounting of discs in a disc drive.
Disc drives are being developing with increased areal density of information storage on rotating disc surfaces. As the areal density increases, the fly height (spacing between a read/write head and the disc surface) needs to be increasingly smaller which, in turn, leads to a requirement for extreme flatness for the disc surface. Any imperfection in the flatness of the disc results in some loss of fly height, which increases the possibility that the read/write head can crash into the disc surface. A lack of flatness of the disc is the one of the main contributors in fly height loss. One main contributor to lack of flatness is distortion of the disc surface due to disc clamping forces applied directly at a center hub on the disc. Small mechanical imperfections in the clamping components lead to non-uniform clamping forces that distort the disc surface. Due to the non-uniform stress distribution, the disc hub (when clamped) distorts to follow the surface contour of the clamping components (such motor hub, disc clamp and spacer) at the place of contact and cause the imperfection in disc flatness near to the contacting zone. The imperfection in disc flatness will further extend from disc ID (inside diameter) to disc OD (outside diameter). This problem is further complicated by the variation of clamping forces due to normal temperature variations and differences in thermal expansion coefficients, referred to as a “thermal disc flatness problem”.
A method and apparatus are needed to provide mounting of discs in a disc drive with reduced distortion due to clamping forces. Embodiments of the present invention provide solutions to these and other problems, and offer other advantages over the prior art.
Disclosed are a method and mounting system for mounting a storage medium. The mounting system comprises a washer. The washer has a peripheral rim that is subject to a mounting distortion.
The mounting system comprises a storage medium. The storage medium comprises a mounting rim facing the peripheral rim. The mounting rim is separated from the peripheral rim by an isolation space.
The mounting system comprises isolation material disposed in the isolation space. The isolation material supports the storage medium on the washer. The isolation material deforms to relieve transmission of the mounting distortion to the mounting rim.
Other features and benefits that characterize embodiments of the present invention will be apparent upon reading the following detailed description and review of the associated drawings.
In the field of storage media, requirements for non-operation mechanical shock are increasing, leading to requirements for higher clamping forces to withstand the shock without disturbing disc mounting concentricity. At the same time, increasingly thinner storage media discs are needed to fit into smaller form factor disc drives such as 1 inch drives. These thinner storage media discs are more easily distorted by clamping forces than the previous thicker discs. Thermal disc flatness problems are also greater with these thinner, more flexible discs.
Due to limitations of current manufacturing machining, grinding and stamping processes, it is very difficult from an economical standpoint to improve the flatness of the clamping components (such motor hub, disc clamp and spacer) to reduce clamping distortion. In current storage media designs, the clamping force is exerted directly on an inner rim of a disc, and any irregularity in the clamping surfaces tends to distort the surface of disc. Distortion of the flat surface of the disc leads to loss of fly height and head crashes.
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The mounting system 200 also comprises a storage medium 220 that has a mounting rim 222 facing the peripheral rim 204. The mounting rim 222 is separated from the peripheral rim 204 by an isolation space 224. The storage medium 220 does not have a clamping force applied directly to it. The storage medium 220 can comprise a substrate of metal, ceramic or other known hard disc substrates. the storage medium 220 also comprises a surface layer or layers that are capable of storing or reproducing information when accessed by a read/write head.
The mounting system 200 also comprises isolation material 230 disposed between the mounting rim 222 and the peripheral rim 204 in the isolation space 224. The isolation material 230 radially and resiliently supports the storage medium 220 while the washer 202 axially supports the storage medium 220. The isolation material 230 deforms to relieve transmission of the mounting distortion to the mounting rim 222. The support provided by the isolation material 230 preferably provides an elastic support for smaller support forces and provides an inelastic, slowly creeping, relaxation support that relieves higher mounting distortion forces and reduces transmission of the higher mounting distortion forces to the storage media 220. The creeping relaxation can relieve changing forces to avoid thermal disc clamping problems. The isolation material creeps and conforms to the disc inside diameter (ID) when the disc ID changes size at different temperatures.
The storage medium 220 comprises a storage medium surface 226 and the deforming of the isolation material 230 reduces distortion of the storage medium surface 226. The storage medium 220 preferably comprises a hard disc, and the storage medium surface 226 preferably comprises a flat disc surface. The deforming of the isolation material 230 reduces distortion of the flat disc surface 226. The isolation material 230 deforms in an inelastic manner to relieve transmission of the distortion. The storage medium 220 is only indirectly mounted on the spindle motor via forces transmitted through the isolation material 230. The isolation material 230 transmits a support force between the storage medium 220 and the washer 202, and the isolation material 230 deforms in an elastic manner to the support force.
The isolation material 230 is preferably disposed in a continuous circle to comprises a ring of isolation material. In one preferred arrangement, the ring has an irregular side wall 240 that protrudes into the inner rim 222. In another preferred arrangement, the ring has an irregular side wall 242 that protrudes into the peripheral rim 204. One or both of protruding irregular sidewalls 240, 242 can be used to provide additional mounting support for a thicker, heavier disc.
In one preferred arrangement, the storage medium 220 rests on the protruding rim 208 to form a slip joint 244. The slip joint 244 has two smooth, sliding surfaces so that the storage medium 220 is free to move sideways relative to the washer 202. The slip joint 244 provides additional underside support for the storage medium 220 in case the mounting system 200 is dropped.
The isolation material 230 can comprise any material that provides the needed mechanical characteristics of an elastic range adequate for smaller support forces, and an inelastic range where stress relaxation can relieve larger mounting distortion forces. The isolation material 230 can comprise a temperature stable polymer, an ultraviolet (UV) cured epoxy resin, a silicone rubber, a thermosetting resin, a glass or a solder with the needed mechanical characteristics. The isolation material 230 also preferably has a temperature range compatible with a device storage temperature range, and low outgassing characteristics compatible with a storage device into which the mounting system 200 is integrated.
Clamping force by the clamping components is imposed on the disc holder (washer) 202 instead of storage medium 220. In order to increase the holding strength, the shapes of the peripheral rim 204 and the mounting rim 222 can be adjusted to improve the holding strength of the isolation material 230.
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There is no effective direct strain coupling between the disc and the clamping components.
In
The isolation ring 230 is cured-in-place to provide a high bond strength in bonding to the disc and the washer in order to withstand non-operating shock without separation of the bond. The isolation material also has the advantage of providing vibration isolation and damping to the disc during mechanical shock events. The isolation material can comprises a thermally stable polymer. The thermally stable polymer can comprise epoxy resin, which may include fillers and plasticizers. The thermally stable polymer can also comprise silicone rubber, or other adhesives. A large variety of thermally stable polymers are commercially available. The mechanical dimensions of a disc inner rim, a washer peripheral rim, and an isolation material thickness can be adjusted to optimize isolation of clamping stresses while providing mounting stability for a selected isolation material type. Glasses and solders that have creep relaxation characteristics can also be used for the isolation material.
The mounting system presently described reduces transmission of imperfection in flatness of the clamping components (such motor hub, disc clamp and spacer) to the disc surface. With the mounting system described herein, there is no direct distortion coupling between the clamping components and the disc. The flatness of the disc will be largely independent of clamping imperfections and mounted disc flatness will be close to the flatness of an unmounted disc.
The mounting system as presently described is compatible with existing motor hubs and disc clamps. The profile of the motor hub and the profile of the disc clamp can be similar to that of a conventional design. The disc clamp can be a one screw clamp or multiple screw clamp or even a clamp without screws.
If desired, an alignment fixture can be used to concentrically align the disc and the washer when the isolation material is cured in place. The alignment fixture can also be used to set an axial spacing between the disc and the washer to control a thickness of the isolation material. The isolation material is preferably applied as a liquid, and allowed to set to form bonds with contacting surfaces. In a preferred arrangement, the isolation material is applied and allowed to set before the assembled disc, isolation material and washer are assembled into a disc drive. This reduces the cycle time for the disc drive assembly process. If a disc is found to be defective after installation in a disc drive, the assembled disc, isolation material and washer can be removed as an assembly and replaced with a substitute. Isolation materials can include ultraviolet (UV) cured epoxies, thermosetting resins, solvent based adhesives, or other suitable temperature stable polymer-based material.
The disclosed mounting system can be used in a disc drives over a complete range of form factor sizes and with discs having a complete range of disc thicknesses. The mounting system is scalable to match a particular disc drive design without losing the benefits of the mounting isolation.
The isolation material behaves like a buffer zone and tends to smoothen out the stress and stress concentration introduced by the clamping and the imperfection in clamping component flatness. Since no clamping force is imposed directly onto the disc or the isolation material, the imperfection in disc flatness due to the clamping and clamping component flatness will be very low. The disc assembly flatness will be very near to the disc flatness at component level.
The washer can be produced by means of machining or grinding or both. The material for the washer can comprise metal such as steel, aluminum, brass and other metals. The isolation material is preferably free of particle contamination and with low outgassing characteristics suitable for use in a hard disc drive application. An epoxy resin is preferred with proper hardness (after curing) so that it will not cause stress concentration on the disc or transfer stress concentration to the disc from the clamping components (such as motor hub, spacer and disc clamp). The isolation material smoothens out stress concentrations on the clamping ring due to the poor flatness of the clamping components, such as motor hub and disc clamp.
It is to be understood that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of various embodiments of the invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of various embodiments of the invention, this disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of structure and arrangement of parts within the principles of the present invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed. For example, the particular elements may vary depending on the particular application for the mounting system while maintaining substantially the same functionality without departing from the scope of the present invention. In addition, although the preferred embodiment described herein is directed to a mounting for use in a disc drive, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the teachings of the present invention can be applied to mounting other types of storage media to avoid distortion of a flat media surface, without departing from the scope of the present invention.