Gear-driven docking apparatus for removable mass-storage drives
AssigneeApple Computer, Inc.
InventorsWilliam M. Becker, Sung H. Kim
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A gear-driven docking apparatus for removable mass-storage drives comprises a guide rail, mounted inside a computer chassis, and a drive carrier, bearing a mass-storage drive. The drive carrier includes an alignment groove for slidingly receiving the guide rail and a gear train for engaging a rack profile formed at the proximal end of the guide rail, The rack profile and the gear train incorporate a mechanism that provides gear-and-rack synchronization under all operating conditions. Data and power connectors of the mass-storage drive are terminated to a printed circuit board that is movably attached to the drive carrier. The circuit board merges the separate power and data connectors into a single docking connector having registration pins.
Claims17
A docking apparatus, comprising:
- carrier means for supporting a removable mass-storage drive;
- alignment means for guiding said carrier means into a computer chassis;
- drive means for docking said carrier means in said computer chassis:
- regulatory means for synchronizing said drive means;
- wherein said alignment means comprises a guide rail rigidly and removably mounted in said computer chassis and an alignment groove formed in said carrier means to slidingly engage said guide rail;
- wherein said drive means comprises a gear train incorporated in said carrier means and a rack profile formed at a proximal end of said guide rail;
- wherein said gear train comprises an input-drive gear having an actuation lever, an idler gear meshing with said input-drive gear, and
- an output-drive gear meshing with said idler gear;
- and
- wherein said regulatory means comprises a lockout cam ring formed on said output-drive gear and a lockout key formed on said guide rail to prevent engagement of said output-drive gear and said rack profile by interfering with said lockout cam ring when said output drive gear is not synchronized with said rack profile.
A docking apparatus for a removable mass-storage drive comprising:
- carrier means for supporting removable mass-storage drive, said carrier means is removably mounted in a computer chassis alignment means for guiding said carrier means into said computer chassis;
- drive means for docking said carrier means in said computer chassis;
- and regulatory means for synchronizing said first element to said second element of said drive means, wherein said carrier means is capable of utilizing any one of a plurality of interchangeable front panels having various geometries to accommodate removable mass-storage drives of different types and configurations.
An apparatus for docking a removable mass-storage drive in a drive bay of a computer chassis, said apparatus comprising:
- a guide rail mounted in a drive bay of a computer chassis;
- a drive carrier having an alignment groove formed to slidingly engage said guide rail;
- a gear train incorporated into said drive carrier;
- and
- a rack profile located at a proximal end of said guide rail,
- wherein said gear train comprises a partial gear having an actuation lever, a first gear meshing with said partial gear, and a second gear meshing with said first gear, said gear train supported in a gear-train housing.
An apparatus for docking a plurality of mass-storage drives in a computer chassis, said apparatus comprising:
- a plurality of guide rails rigidly and demountably installed in a computer chassis, each of said plurality of guide rails having a rack profile formed at a proximal end thereof;
- and
- a plurality of drive carriers each having an alignment groove formed to slidingly engage one of said plurality of guide rails;
- a gear train including a partial gear having an actuation lever, a first gear meshing with said partial gear, and a second gear meshing with said first gear, said gear train supported in a gear-train housing;
- a printed circuit board that merges separate power and data connectors of each of a plurality of removable mass-storage drives into a single docking connector having registration pins and blind-matable to said computer chassis, said printed circuit board movably and demountably attached to said drive carrier;
- and
- a plurality of ribs formed in each drive bay of said computer chassis to support each of said plurality of drive carriers.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.