CN101312045A - Configured Metal Frame Piezoelectric Microactuator with Lower Stiffness Suspension Design - Google Patents

Abstract

A frame assembly having a lower stiffness suspension design and a method of making the frame assembly are disclosed. In one embodiment, the framing assembly pattern is cut from a thin planar material, such as metal. The pattern is then bent to form a frame assembly having a base, two arms, and a support for a web. In an alternative embodiment, the base member includes a rear support member and a support base. In another embodiment, excess material surrounding the pattern is cut away to allow for the most efficient use of the material.

Description

Configured Metal Frame Piezoelectric Microactuator with Lower Stiffness Suspension Design

This application is a divisional application of the Chinese patent application No.02829226x with the same name submitted by the applicant Xinke Industrial Co., Ltd. on June 26, 2002.

technical field

The present invention relates to magnetic hard disk drives. More specifically, the present invention relates to methods of manufacturing frame assemblies for microactuators.

Background technique

In the prior art, different methods are used to increase the recording density of hard disk drives. FIG. 1 shows a typical disk drive with a typical drive arm 102 configured to read from and write to a magnetic hard disk 104 . Typically, a voice coil motor (VCM) 106 is used to control the movement of the hard drive arm 102 over the magnetic hard drive 104 . Microactuators 110 are now used to "fine tune" the position of head 108 due to inherent tolerances (dynamic movement) that exist when recording head 108 is positioned by VCM 106 alone. The VCM 106 is used for coarse adjustment, and the microactuator 110 is then corrected in smaller increments to compensate for tolerances of the VCM 106 (and arm 102). This results in a smaller recordable track width, increasing the "tracks per inch" (TPI) value of the hard drive (increasing recording density).

Figure 2 provides an example of a microactuator used in the prior art. Typically, slider 202 (including a read/write head, not shown) is used to maintain a predetermined flying height above disk surface 104 (see FIG. 1). The microactuator may have flexible stringers 204 connecting a support device 206 to a slider housing unit 208 so that the slider 202 can move independently of the drive arm 102 (see FIG. 1 ). An electromagnetic assembly or an electromagnetic/ferromagnetic assembly (not shown) may be used to provide fine adjustment of the orientation/position of the slider/head 202 relative to the arm 102 (see FIG. 1 ).

Existing designs often have dynamic issues. These problems are due to variations in bending cables caused by environment, handling, or manufacturing. In addition, existing microactuator frames are typically made of materials such as lead zirconate titanate (PZT) or zirconia, which tend to be relatively heavy, affecting the ability of the head gimbal assembly's magnetic read/write head to move rapidly across the disk. ability. Certain microactuators also have problems with particle generation, which can damage parts in the disk drive. Lighter and less rigid microactuators can significantly improve the dynamic performance of disk drives.

Contents of the invention

According to one aspect of the present invention, a microactuator frame assembly includes:

A reference piece molded from a single thin planar material that will fit onto the head gimbal assembly;

a first arm molded from the single thin planar material bent perpendicular to the surface of the datum at the first side of the datum; and

a second arm molded from the single thin planar material bent perpendicular to the surface of the datum on a second side of the datum;

a first support for fitting to a connecting plate on the magnetic head, the first support bent perpendicular to said first arm; and

A second support of the connection plate for fitting onto the magnetic head, the second support being bent perpendicular to said second arm.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a system includes:

disk containing data;

head gimbal assembly with suspension assembly;

a magnetic read/write head for reading said data from said disc;

a printed circuit assembly for controlling the magnetic read-write head;

a connection plate electrically coupling the magnetic read/write head to a printed circuit assembly; and

a frame assembly molded from a single thin planar material for assembling said magnetic read/write head to said head gimbal assembly, wherein the frame assembly comprises:

datum for assembly to said head gimbal assembly;

a first arm bent perpendicular to a surface of the datum on a first side of the datum;

A second arm bent perpendicular to the surface of the datum on a second side of the datum.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a method includes:

A frame assembly pattern for a microactuator is generated from a thin planar material, the frame assembly pattern comprising:

Datums for assembly to head gimbal assemblies,

first arm, and

second arm;

bending the first arm to a position perpendicular to the datum;

bending a first support member to be perpendicular to the position of the first arm, the first support member is adapted to be assembled to a connection board, and the connection board electrically couples the magnetic head to a printed circuit assembly;

bending the second arm to a position perpendicular to the datum; and

A second support for fitting to the web is bent perpendicular to the position of the second arm.

Description of drawings

Figure 1 shows an internal view of a disk drive as used in the prior art including a drive arm configured to read and write to a magnetic hard disk;

Fig. 2 shows the microactuator used in the prior art;

Figures 3a-b illustrate a hard disk drive head gimbal assembly (HGA) with a U-shaped microactuator according to the principles of the present invention;

Figures 4a-b illustrate one embodiment of a frame assembly;

Figures 5a-c illustrate embodiments of magnetic read/write heads, piezoelectric material stripes, and HGAs used in the present invention;

Figures 6a-b illustrate a method of assembling a frame assembly to a head gimbal assembly;

Figures 7a-b illustrate a method of assembling a magnetic read/write head and stripes of piezoelectric material to a frame assembly;

Figures 8a-d illustrate a first method of making a frame assembly;

Figures 9a-d illustrate a second method of making a frame assembly;

Figures 10a-b illustrate an alternative design of the frame assembly;

Figures 11a-e illustrate a first method of making the optional frame assembly described above;

Figures 12a-e illustrate a second method of making the optional frame assembly described above.

Detailed ways

A frame assembly having a reduced stiffness design and a method of making the frame assembly are disclosed. In one embodiment, the frame assembly pattern is cut from a sheet of thin planar material, such as metal-like stainless steel. The pattern is then bent to form a frame assembly with a datum, two arms, and brackets for connecting the plates. In an alternative embodiment, the datum includes a rear bracket and a supporting datum. In another embodiment, excess material surrounding the pattern is cut away to allow for the most efficient use of material. Microactuators configured with PZT metal frames fabricated by this method tend to have high shock performance greater than 1400G vertically inclined drop shock, high displacement of 2.5μm peak-to-peak value per 20+/-20V excitation voltage, and high resonance frequency greater than 250kHz .

Figure 3a depicts an embodiment of a hard disk drive head gimbal assembly (HGA) with U-shaped microactuators in an upside-down orientation. In one embodiment, a magnetic read/write head or slider 302 is mounted to a frame assembly 304 to form a U-shaped microactuator. In another embodiment, a U-shaped microactuator has piezoelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT) beams (arms) 306 attached to arms 308 on each side of frame assembly 304 . In one embodiment, printed circuit assembly 310 is electrically coupled to slider 302 to control read and write functions. Microactuator 306 is mounted to suspension assembly 312 , which is part of head gimbal assembly (HGA) 314 . A first hole 316 is cut in the HGA 316 to reduce weight. Second hole 318 allows HGA 314 to be mounted on a pivot. Figure 3b shows this embodiment in the opposite direction.

Figures 4a-b illustrate one embodiment of a frame assembly 402 for creating a microactuator and attaching the microactuator to slider 302 and HGA 314. Figure 4a shows a top view of one embodiment of a frame assembly. In one embodiment, the frame assembly 402 has a datum 404 from which two arms 406 extend. In another embodiment, each arm 406 has a support 408 extending therefrom. In one embodiment, the support 408 is between the two arms 406 . Figure 4b shows a side view of one embodiment of a frame assembly. In one embodiment, the support member 408 is in a plane parallel to but different from the reference member 404 so as to maintain a parallel gap between the slider 302 and the suspension tongue 312 . In one embodiment, frame assembly 402 is metal, such as stainless steel.

FIGS. 5 a - c illustrate embodiments of various components that, when assembled to the frame assembly 402 , will form the HGA 314 and the microactuator with the read/write head 302 . One embodiment of a read/write head 302 is shown in FIG. 5 a. FIG. 5b shows two strips of PZT material 306 . In one embodiment, two electrical contact pads 502 are on the outside of each strip of PZT material 306 . One embodiment of HGA314 is shown in FIG. 5c. The HGA has a suspension assembly or tongue 312 for fitting to the frame assembly. In another embodiment, the HGA 314 has a connection plate 504 that allows the printed circuit assembly 310 to be electrically coupled to the magnetic read/write head 302 . In one embodiment, slider electrical pads 506 and microactuator electrical pads 508 are affixed to connection board 504 . In one embodiment, two protruding beams 510 are fitted to the suspension tongue 312 . Each protruding beam has a bend 514 to maintain a parallel space between the suspension tongue 312 and the load beam 512 .

FIG. 6 a shows a top view of one embodiment of frame assembly 402 assembled on HGA 314 . Datum 404 fits to hanging tongue 312 of HGA 314 . In one embodiment, the fiducial 404 is assembled to the suspension tongue 312 by welding. In an alternate embodiment, fiducial 404 is mounted to suspension tongue 312 using UV cured epoxy. The connection plate 504 is assembled on the support 408 . In one embodiment, the connection plate 504 is assembled to the support 408 by laser welding. In an alternative embodiment, the connection plate 504 is mounted to the support 408 using UV cured epoxy. FIG. 6 b shows a side view of one embodiment of frame assembly 402 assembled on HGA 314 . The support 408 is located between the connecting plate 504 and the suspension tongue 312 . The datum 404 is fitted to the suspension tongue 312 on a side outside the HGA 314 . In one embodiment, the difference between the parallel planes of the fiducial 404 and the support 408 helps maintain a parallel gap between the connection plate 504 or microactuator frame support 408 and the suspension tongue 312 . In one embodiment, a protrusion 602 helps the protruding beam 510 maintain a parallel gap between the suspension tongue 312 and the load beam 512 .

FIG. 7 a shows a top view of one embodiment of strips of PZT material 306 assembled to frame assembly 402 . In one embodiment, each strip of PZT material 306 is fitted to one arm 406 of frame assembly 402 . In another embodiment, each contact pad 502 on the outside of the strip of PZT material 306 is electrically coupled to a microactuator electrical pad 508 fixed on the connection plate 504 .

FIG. 7b shows a top view of one embodiment of the magnetic read/write head 302 mounted to the HGA 314. FIG. In one embodiment, a magnetic read/write head is mounted to the connection plate 504 . In another embodiment, the magnetic read/write head is also electrically coupled to the slider electrical pad 502 fixed on the connection plate 504 .

One embodiment of a method of making a frame assembly 402 is shown in FIGS. 8a-d. FIG. 8 a shows a series of frame component patterns 802 cut from a single thin planar material 804 . In FIG. 8 b , the frame assembly pre-plan 802 is separated from the other patterns and remaining material 804 . In one embodiment, the fiducial 404, the arms 406, and the support 408 are all in a pattern. In FIG. 8 c , the arm 406 is bent perpendicular to the reference member 404 . In FIG. 8d the support 408 is bent perpendicular to the arm 406 .

An alternative embodiment of a method of making a frame assembly 402 is shown in FIGS. 9a-d. FIG. 9 a shows material 902 surrounding a series of frame component patterns 904 cut from a single thin planar material 906 . In one embodiment, each pattern includes a fiducial 404 , two arms 406 , and a support 408 . In FIG. 9 b , the arm 406 is bent perpendicular to the reference member 404 . In FIG. 9c the support 408 is bent perpendicular to the arm 406 . In Figure 9d, a single frame assembly 402 is separated from other frame assemblies.

An alternative embodiment of the frame assembly 402 is shown in FIGS. 10a-b. Figure 10a shows a top view, while Figure 10b shows a side view. This embodiment of the frame assembly 402 has two arms 406 with a support 408 per arm, while the reference 404 has a rear support 1002 and support base 1004 . In one embodiment, one or both arms 406 are connected to rear support 1002 while frame assembly 402 is assembled to HGA 314 at support base 1004 . In one embodiment, rear support 1002 is perpendicular to support base support base 1004 and arm 406 is perpendicular to rear support 1002 and support base 1004 .

11a-e illustrate one embodiment of a method of making an alternative embodiment of a frame assembly 402. FIG. FIG. 11 a shows a series of frame component patterns 1102 cut from a single thin planar material 1104 . In FIG. 11 b , frame component pattern 1102 is separated from other patterns and remaining material 1104 . In one embodiment, rear support 1002, support base 1004, arms 406, and support 408 are all in a pattern. In FIG. 11 c , the support base 1004 is bent perpendicular to the rear support 1002 . In FIG. 11d the arms 406 are bent perpendicular to the rear support 1002 . In FIG. 11d the support 408 is bent perpendicular to the arm 406 .

12a-e illustrate an alternative embodiment of a method of making an alternative embodiment of a frame assembly 402. FIG. FIG. 12 a shows material 1202 surrounding a series of frame component patterns 1204 cut from a single thin planar material 1206 . In one embodiment, each pattern includes a rear support 1002 , a support base 1004 , two arms 406 , and a support 408 . In FIG. 12 b , the arms 406 and rear support 1002 are bent perpendicular to the support base 1004 . In FIG. 12c the support 408 is bent perpendicular to the arm 406 . In FIG. 12d , a single frame component pattern 1204 is separated from other frame component patterns 1204 . In FIG. 12e the arms 406 are bent perpendicular to the rear support 1002 .

Although several embodiments have been specifically described herein, it should be understood that modifications and variations of the present invention are covered by the above description and fall within the purview of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims (9)

1. A method comprising: A frame assembly pattern for a microactuator is molded from a thin sheet material, the frame assembly pattern comprising: the first arm and the second arm for assembling the magnetic head, first side arm, and second side arm; a rear support bending the first side arm to a position perpendicular to the rear support; bending a first side arm to a position perpendicular to the first arm, the first side arm is adapted to fit to a connection plate electrically coupling the magnetic head to a printed circuit assembly; bending the second arm to a position perpendicular to the rear support; and Bend a second side arm to a position perpendicular to the second arm for fitting to a connection plate 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising assembling said frame assembly to a suspension assembly of said head gimbal assembly. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the frame assembly is constructed of metal. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising bending a side arm of the datum to a position perpendicular to a rear support of the datum for fitting to the head on the gimbal. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first arm and the second arm are bent perpendicular to the first side arm and the second side arm, the first arm and the second arm being connected to the magnetic head. 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising a first strip of piezoelectric actuator material coupled to the first arm. 7. The method of claim 1, further comprising a second strip of piezoelectric actuator material coupled to the second arm. 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the frame component pattern is fabricated by cutting the frame component pattern from the thin planar material. 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the frame element pattern is produced by cutting away excess material from the thin planar material and then dividing the remaining frame element pattern groups.

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