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US 2009/0154018 A1Published application
Shrouding a data storage disc with disc facing surfaces that define protuberant features
AssigneeSeagate Technology LLC
InventorsXu Zuo, Xiaohong Sun
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Shrouding a disc to attenuate excitation energy of windage created by rotating the disc, with a shroud defining an edge-wise gap between the shroud and the disc, and the shroud further defining surface-wise gaps between the shroud and opposing disc surfaces, wherein the surface-wise gaps are characterized by opposing parallel surfaces having protuberant features depending therefrom toward each other that define minimum clearances with the disc surfaces.
Claims21
A shroud comprising:
- an arcuate edge surface sized to facingly engage an edge of a disc operably disposed in the shroud to define a constant edge-wise gap entirely along the arcuate edge surface;
- opposing plates defining respective first and second parallel plate surfaces extending from the arcuate edge surface and forming an upstream inlet with respect to a direction that the disc operably rotates;
- and
- opposing protuberant members depending from the first and second plate surfaces and terminating at distal third and fourth surfaces defining a gap smaller than the inlet but sized to operably receive the disc.
1 more element
A method, comprising:
- admitting only a first portion of fluid currents created by a rotating disc into an inlet of a shroud encompassing both opposing planar surfaces and a contiguous edge of the disc in close mating engagements, the shroud configured for attenuating excitation energy of fluid in a flowpath through the shroud;
- and
- passing only a second portion of the first portion of fluid currents from the inlet through a gap between the shroud and the disc that is downstream of and smaller than the inlet, wherein fluid currents in the first portion but not in the second portion are radially diverted from the inlet out of the shroud.
A system, comprising:
- a rotatable disc;
- and
- means for attenuating excitation on a member acting in conjunction with the disc, caused by windage created by rotating the disc, by progressively diverting portions of the windage away from the member and by reducing the excitation energy of the portions not diverted away.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.