JPH0620416A - Loading and unloading mechanism of recording and reproducing device for rotating disk - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To execute stabler loading and retreat fixing by executing the loading by utilizing a change in the shape of a shape memory alloy and providing a lifting mechanism with a level difference part. CONSTITUTION:The supporting mechanism of a head slider 1 is provided with a shape memory alloy actuator 2 and the lifting mechanism consisting of a retreat driving part 4a and a retreat fixing part 4b is provided with the level difference part. A suspension arm 3 is first lifted on the retreat fixing part 4b by passing a current to the shape memory alloy actuator 2 at the time of starting the device. The head slider 1 is driven toward a disk 5. The current of the actuator 2 is turned off to lose the shape memory effect and to load the slider 1 where the slider arrives at the disk surface. The stabler loading than heretofore is, therefore, executed and since the level difference part is provided, the sure retreat fixing is executed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a load / unload mechanism for a head slider in an information recording / reproducing apparatus equipped with a disk-shaped medium for rotation driving such as a hard disk apparatus and a magneto-optical disk apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art According to a conventional load / unload mechanism,
When the disk is stopped, the suspension arm that supports the head slider is moved to the outermost circumference of the disk, and the suspension arm is slid up along the inclined surface of the lift mechanism provided near the outer circumference to separate the head slider from the disk surface. Has become. At the start of rotation of the disk, the suspension arm is slid down on the inclined surface of the lift mechanism to load the head slider onto the disk surface.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a rotary disk recording / reproducing apparatus using a conventional load / unload mechanism. Figure 3
3, 31 is a head slider for reading and writing data, 33 is a suspension arm for supporting the head slider 31, 35 is a disk for recording information, and has a disk shape, and 34 is a lift mechanism having an inclined surface in the disk direction. , 39 indicate the moving direction of the suspension arm 3. The head slider 31 can be moved up and down by sliding a part of the suspension arm 33 on the inclined portion of the lift mechanism 34 installed near the outermost peripheral portion of the disk 35. A load / unload mechanism of this type is disclosed in USP 4,933,785.

By the way, as the suspension arm, a load beam for applying a pressing force to the head slider,
The one that consists of two members of the arm that drives and supports the load beam, and the one that has these two functions used for the explanation this time and that is made of the same member and has an integrated arm. -186117)) have been proposed in the past.

[0005]

However, in the above structure, since the head slider is loaded on the disk while sliding the inclined surface of the lift mechanism, the frictional resistance between the lift mechanism and the suspension arm causes an influence. There is a problem in that the head slider cannot vibrate due to vibrations of the head slider and loading of the suspension arm on the disk while the suspension arm is bent at an inclined surface. Further, as a means for fixing the head slider in the retreat area when the apparatus is stopped, it is ideal that a step is provided at the end of the inclined portion to restrict the movement of the suspension arm in the horizontal direction. If there is a step on the
The suspension arm must be capable of overcoming the step even at the time of start-up, and in the end, it will not be a fixing means that can withstand such a large impact.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and can favorably load a head slider in a rotary disk recording / reproducing apparatus, and further, can sufficiently suspend even if a large shock is applied when the apparatus is stopped. An object of the present invention is to provide a load / unload mechanism capable of fixing an arm to a retreat area.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a load / unload mechanism in a rotary disk recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention flexibly moves a head slider for recording / reproducing information on a disk which is rotationally driven. A head support mechanism that supports the head support mechanism, an elevating means that is attached to the head support mechanism, and that changes the shape in a predetermined temperature range to elevate and lower the head support mechanism, and supports the head support mechanism when the head slider retracts. A head supporting / fixing section, wherein the head supporting / fixing section includes a retracting drive section and a retracting / fixing section of the head support mechanism, and the retracting drive section is a wedge-shaped inclined section in the disk direction at the outermost peripheral section of the disk. The retractable fixing portion further has a step in the outer peripheral direction of the disc from the apex of the inclined portion.

[0008]

According to the above construction, by loading the head slider by utilizing the shape change of the shape memory alloy, the influence of the vibration due to the frictional resistance between the inclined surface and the suspension arm, which has been a conventional problem, and the inclined surface are affected. There is no problem that the suspension arm is bent at an angle and is loaded on the disk, and more stable loading can be performed. Further, by providing the step portion in the lift mechanism, the horizontal movement of the suspension arm can be restricted when the apparatus is stopped. This restriction can be easily removed by the elevating means using the shape memory alloy.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A load / unload mechanism according to the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a load / unload mechanism according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, 1 is a head slider for reading and writing data, and 2 is a U-shaped wire shape memory alloy made of a shape memory alloy material and having a shape memory in a direction of lifting a suspension arm 3 to be described later. An actuator 3 has a suspension arm that supports the head slider 1 through a spring-like member 3a having three degrees of freedom at its tip end, and a suspension arm 4 has a wedge-shaped inclined portion 4a in the disk 5 direction at the outermost peripheral portion of a disk 5, which will be described later. And a lift mechanism 5 having a step portion 4b in the outer peripheral direction of the disk 5 from the apex of the inclined portion, which records information and has a disk shape,
Reference numeral 6 denotes a shape memory alloy supporting / fixing portion that supports the open end of the shape memory alloy actuator 2 and fixes it to the suspension arm 3, and 7 supports a U-shaped bent portion of the shape memory alloy actuator 2, and also to the suspension arm 3. An arm holding portion that fixes the suspension arm 3 and applies a lifting force to the suspension arm 3 and a feed line 8 for supplying a current to the shape memory alloy actuator 2 are shown.

In this embodiment, the suspension arm 3 exerts a load load on the head slider 1, so that the suspension arm 3 is in the vicinity of its central portion (the portion indicated by the broken line 3b in the figure).
It is bent downward at.

Next, the operation of the load / unload mechanism according to the present invention will be specifically described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a side view showing an operating method of the load / unload mechanism according to the present invention. In FIG. 2, the arrow indicated by 10 indicates the operating direction of the suspension arm 3 during unloading, and the arrow indicated by 11 indicates the operating direction of the suspension arm 3 during loading. Other symbols are the same as those in FIG.

As shown by the arrow 10 in FIG. 2, the head slider 1 which is stably floating on the disk 5 during the drive of the apparatus is driven toward the outer circumference of the disk 5 when the apparatus is stopped, and the suspension arm 3 is kept as it is. The evacuation drive unit 4a
The head slider 1 is pulled away from the disk 5 while riding on the inclined surface of the disk. Further, the suspension arm 3 driven in the outer peripheral direction is fixedly supported by the step portion of the retractable fixing portion 4b.

Next, at the time of starting the apparatus, as shown by an arrow 11 in FIG. 2, first, an electric current is applied to the shape memory alloy actuator 2 to suspend the suspension arm 3 on the retractable fixing portion 4b.
Lift up. Then, the head slider 1 is driven in the direction of the disk 5, and when it reaches the surface of the disk 5, the current flowing in the shape memory alloy actuator 2 is cut off, and the shape memory operation of the shape memory alloy actuator 2 is lost by the natural heat dissipation effect. Then, the head slider 1 is loaded onto the disk 5 by the downward bending force of the suspension arm 3.

With the above-mentioned structure, compared to the conventional loading by sliding the inclined surface, the suspension arm 3 is loaded on the disk 5 while the suspension arm 3 is bent obliquely on the inclined surface in the influence of vibration due to frictional resistance. The problem of will disappear and it will be possible to perform more stable loading. Further, since the shape memory alloy actuator 2 is used so that it can be driven in the vertical direction, it is possible to regulate the movement in the horizontal direction by utilizing the step portion. That is, in the present invention, a step portion is provided in the lift mechanism 4 as the retractable fixing portion 4b, and it is possible to regulate the suspension arm 3 so as not to move even when a large impact is applied when the apparatus is stopped.

Although the shape memory alloy actuator of this embodiment uses a U-shaped wire, similar effects can be obtained as long as the suspension arm can be lifted, such as an I-shaped or spring-shaped one. To be

Although the arm-integrated suspension is used in this embodiment, the same effect can be obtained by using the arm and the load beam which are generally used in the past as separate members. To be

In this embodiment, the retracting drive portion has the wedge-shaped inclined surface, but the same effect can be obtained as long as the cam-like suspension arm can be converted into vertical movement.

In the present embodiment, for the purpose of explanation, the loading / unloading is performed at the outermost peripheral portion of the disk, but the same effect can be obtained at the innermost peripheral portion.

[0019]

As described above, according to the present invention, the load is utilized by utilizing the shape change of the shape memory alloy, so that the influence of the vibration due to the frictional resistance is exerted as compared with the conventional load by sliding the inclined portion. On the inclined surface, there is no problem that the suspension arm is bent at an angle and is loaded on the disk, and more stable loading can be performed. Further, since it can be driven in the vertical direction, the suspension arm can be fixed by the stepped portion that restricts the movement in the horizontal direction when the apparatus is stopped, and the head slider can be reliably held by the retractable fixing portion even if a large impact is applied. be able to.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a load / unload mechanism according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing an operating method of the load / unload mechanism according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a rotary disk recording / reproducing apparatus using a conventional load / unload mechanism.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Head Slider 2 Shape Memory Alloy Actuator 3 Suspension Arm 3a Spring Member 3b Suspension Arm Bending Part 4 Lift Mechanism 4a Retraction Drive Part 4b Retraction Fixing Part 5 Disk 6 Shape Memory Alloy Support Fixing Part 7 Arm Lifting Part 8 Feed Line

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A head slider for recording and reproducing information,
A head support mechanism that flexibly supports on a disk that is rotationally driven, an elevating means that is attached to the head support mechanism, and that elevates and lowers the head support mechanism by changing the shape in a predetermined temperature range, and the maximum of the disk. A load / unload mechanism in a rotary disk recording / reproducing apparatus, comprising: a head supporting / fixing portion which is installed at an outer peripheral portion and supports the head supporting mechanism when the head slider is retracted. 2. The head supporting and fixing portion comprises a retracting driving portion and a retracting and fixing portion of a head supporting mechanism, and the retracting driving portion has a wedge-shaped inclined portion in the disc outermost peripheral portion in the disc direction, 2. The load / unload mechanism in the rotary disk recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the fixed portion has a step in the outer peripheral direction of the disc from the apex of the inclined portion.