Adaptive and in-situ load/unload damage estimation and compensation

In a rigid disk data storage device having a rotating data storage disk and an actuator for supporting a transducer carrying slider in read/write confronting relation to said rotating disk and including a ramp structure for unloading the slider when pending read/write operations have been completed, a method for anticipating impending device failure comprising the steps of:

• defining a series of tracks within which the slider achieves read/write cooperation with the confronting disk surface when the slider is being loaded from said ramp, wherein said defining step further comprises establishing the sequence of tracks that encompasses radial track locations underlying the slider rail edge that first extends beyond the ramp during slider loading as the transducer approaches and first achieves data read/write cooperation with the disk;
• reading said series of tracks to enable sensing and recording of the number of read errors;
• comparing the current number of sensed read errors encountered reading said series of tracks to the number of read errors sensed during a prior reading of said series of tracks following transducer loading;
• identifying when the number of read errors sensed during the current reading of said series of tracks indicates that the corresponding slider/disk combination is approaching failure, wherein the identifying step further comprises identifying the increase in the read error count during a predetermined number of the most recent load/unload cycles;
• and
• excluding from each of said error counts sensed, following the loading of the slider from the ramp, predetermined lesser type errors, and wherein said method is conducted with respect to each slider/disk combination within said rigid disk data storage device.

In a rigid disk data storage device including a data storage disk, a transducer carrying slider, an actuator for supporting and positioning the transducer in alignment with a selected data track on the surface of said disk and a ramp structure for unloading the slider when the drive is not reading or writing data and to load the transducer to a read/write cooperating relationship with the disk surface when a read or write command is to be executed, a method for anticipating device failure comprising:

• selecting a band of tracks that includes the landing zone for the outermost rail edge of the slider air bearing surface;
• reading said band of tracks following each slider loading operation and recording the number of errors encountered, wherein the step of reading and recording read errors includes excluding selected read errors;
• determining the increase in the number of read errors over a predetermined number of the most recent transducer loading cycles;
• comparing said increase in the number of read errors to a threshold value;
• and
• initiating a warning when said increase in the number of read errors exceeds said threshold value.

In a rigid disk data storage device including a data storage disk, a slider carrying actuator for positioning a transducer, carried by the slider, in alignment with a selected data track on the surface of the disk and a ramp structure for unloading the slider when the drive is not operating to read or write data and to load the slider to place the transducer in a read/write cooperating relationship with the disk surface when a read or write command is to be executed, a method of adaptive control comprising:

• selecting a band of dedicated tracks including the sequence of radial track locations underlying the slider outermost rail edge that first extends beyond the ramp during slider loading;
• recording a test pattern on said band of tracks at an increased linear recording density;
• reading said band of tracks periodically and comparing the number of read errors to a first threshold value indicative of device degradation;
• altering device operation when the current number of read errors exceeds said first threshold;
• and
• comparing the number of read errors to a second, higher threshold indicative of imminent possibility of device failure and initiating a warning when said number of read errors exceeds said second threshold.