Global Patent Index - EP 0862779 A4

EP 0862779 A4 20000223 - HEAD CLEANING BY LOADING HEADS AT LOW SPEED

Title (en)

HEAD CLEANING BY LOADING HEADS AT LOW SPEED

Title (de)

KOPFREINIGUNG DURCH KOPFLADEN MIT NIEDRIGER GESCHWINDIGKEIT

Title (fr)

NETTOYAGE DES TETES PAR CHARGEMENT A FAIBLE VITESSE

Publication

EP 0862779 A4 20000223 (EN)

Application

EP 96940346 A 19961106

Priority

  • US 9617978 W 19961106
  • US 56086995 A 19951120

Abstract (en)

[origin: WO9719449A1] In a hard disk drive (20), heads (36) are cleaned by loading them onto a storage disk (10) and rotating the disk at a low speed which produces a high force of contact between the head and the disk to clean the head. Periodically, a more thorough cleaning cycle is manually initiated. The heads are loaded onto a cleaning cartridge which has a disk surface which is mildly abrasive to the head. A low frequency is applied to the actuator arm (32) to vibrate the heads radially on the medium which is rotating at low speed. Thereafter, the speed of the spindle (29) is increased up to the operating speed at which the heads are in pseudo contact with the disk surface. This cleaning cycle is repeated five times to clean the heads. The cleaning cycle is initiated by depressing the eject button (26) for longer than five seconds and placing the cleaning cartridge in the drive in response to a flashing LED (27).

IPC 1-7

G11B 21/02; G11B 15/46; G11B 5/82

IPC 8 full level

G11B 5/41 (2006.01); G11B 5/60 (2006.01); G11B 23/50 (2006.01)

CPC (source: EP)

G11B 5/41 (2013.01); G11B 5/6005 (2013.01); G11B 23/505 (2013.01)

Citation (search report)

Designated contracting state (EPC)

DE FR GB IE NL

DOCDB simple family (publication)

WO 9719449 A1 19970529; EP 0862779 A1 19980909; EP 0862779 A4 20000223; JP 2000510635 A 20000815

DOCDB simple family (application)

US 9617978 W 19961106; EP 96940346 A 19961106; JP 51976397 A 19961106