Circuit and method for determining the position of a read head for a magnetic disk drive device

A method for determining a position of a head relative to a magnetic record track on a magnetic disk for storing data, comprising the steps of:

• receiving in succession a pair of variable signals, each variable signal corresponding to a position signal recorded on the magnetic disk and having alternating positive and negative peaks;
• for each of the variable signals, generating a first signal representing a weighted average of the positive peaks of the variable signal;
• for each of the variable signals, generating a second signal representing a weighted average of the negative peaks for the variable signal;
• and
• for each variable signal, averaging the first and second signals together to obtain an output signal representing a lateral position of the head relative to the magnetic record track on the magnetic disk.

An apparatus for determining a position of a head relative to a magnetic record track on a magnetic storage disk, comprising:

• a first circuit for receiving in succession a pair of variable signals, each variable signal corresponding to a position signal recorded on the magnetic disk and having alternating positive and negative peaks;
• a second circuit for generating, for each of the variable signals, a first signal representing a weighted average of the positive peaks of the variable signal;
• a third circuit for generating, for each of the variable signals, a second signal representing a weighted average of the negative peaks for the variable signal;
• and
• a fourth circuit for averaging, for each of the variable signals, the first and second signals together to obtain an output signal representing a lateral position of the head relative to the magnetic record track on the magnetic disk.