Clamp for mounting head-load beam slider arm in a disk drive
AssigneeDigital Equipment Corporation
InventorSigmund Hinlein
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An assembly and method for mounting a head in a disk drive (such as a disk reader or servowriter), comprising a detachable load beam slider arm adapted to carry the head on a distal end thereof, an actuator arm, and a threaded clamp for releasably attaching the proximal end of the load beam slider arm to the actuator arm, the threaded clamp being adapted to remain attached to the actuator arm when the load beam slider arm is removed. Alternatively, the slamp is adapted to remain attached to the load beam slider arm when the load beam slider arm is removed. Thus, the head may easily be removed and/or replaced simply by removing the head and load beam slider arm as a unit from the actuator arm and replacing it with another head-load beam slider arm unit.
Claims22
An assembly for mounting a head in a disk drive, comprising
- a detachable arm having a distal end adapted to carry the head and a planar proximal end,
- a mounting arm that includes a planar mounting surface, and
- a threaded clamp having a planar clamping surface, said clamp being attached to the mounting arm for releasably gripping the proximal end of the detachable arm between said planar mounting surface and said planar clamping surface to secure said planar proximal end of the detachable arm to the mounting arm, said clamp being adapted to remain attached to the mounting arm when said detachable arm is removed.
A disk drive comprising
- a pair of spaced disks,
- a pair of heads for communicating with said pair of disks,
- a pair of detachable head-supporting arms, each detachable arm having one of the pair of heads secured to a distal end thereof and also having a planar proximal end,
- a mounting arm for said pair of detachable arms, said mounting arm including a planar mounting surface, and
- a threaded clamp having a planar clamping surface, said clamp being attached to said mounting arm for releasably gripping said planar proximal ends of said pair of detachable arms between said planar mounting surface and said planar clamping surface to secure said detachable arms to said mounting arm, said clamp being adapted to remain attached to the mounting arm when one or both of the detachable arms are removed.
A method of mounting and replacing a head attached to a distal end of a detachable arm in a disk drive, comprising the steps of
- tightening a threaded clamp that includes a planar clamping surface and is attached to a mounting arm that includes a planar mounting surface to grip a planar proximal end of the detachable arm between said clamping surface and said mounting surface and thereby attach the detachable arm to the mounting arm in a predetermined, fixed position within a mounting cavity,
- removing the detachable arm from the mounting arm by loosening the clamp and withdrawing the planar proximal end of the detachable arm from the mounting cavity while maintaining the clamp attached to the mounting arm,
- inserting the proximal end of a replacement detachable arm, carrying a respective head, into the mounting cavity on said mounting arm, and
- tightening the clamp to attach the proximal end of said replacement arm in the predetermined fixed position within the mounting cavity.
An assembly for mounting a head in a disk drive, comprising
- a detachable arm having a distal end adapted to carry the head,
- a mounting arm having a planar mounting surface, and
- a threaded clamp having a planar clamping surface for releasably gripping a planar proximal end of the detachable arm between said planar mounting surface and said planar clamping surface to secure said detachable arm to the mounting arm, the threaded clamp being secured to the proximal end of the detachable arm to remain attached to the detachable arm when said detachable arm is removed.
An assembly for mounting a head in a disk drive, comprising
- a detachable arm including a distal end region adapted to carry the head on a surface thereof, a planar proximal end, and a pair of side regions longitudinally disposed along the arm, the side regions being angularly disposed with respect to the surface to form a channel with the surface for receiving the head,
- a mounting arm having a planar mounting surface, and
- a threaded clamp having a planar clamping surface for releasably gripping the planar proximal end of the detachable arm between said planar mounting surface and said planar clamping surface to attach said detachable arm to the mounting arm, the clamp being adapted to remain attached to either the mounting arm of the detachable arm when the detachable arm is removed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.