Disc separator plate with air dam

• Main Authors: NELSON ELDON L, HARRISON CHAD R, ALLSUP DAVID S, NICHOLS JACKSON W, KRUM RICHARD G, AHMAD MOHAMMAD N
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 01.04.2003
• Edition: 7
• Subjects: INFORMATION STORAGE; INFORMATION STORAGE BASED ON RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN RECORDCARRIER AND TRANSDUCER; PHYSICS

A stationary disc separator plate for use in a disc drive to suppress turbulence near a disc drive read/write head used to read data from and write data to a rotatable disc. The stationary plate is supported adjacent the disc and has substantially circular inner and outer circumferences. A leading edge and a trailing edge of the plate define an open portion to accommodate radial movement of the head adjacent the disc. A trailing edge air dam disposed at the trailing edge of the plate diverts a substantial portion of an airflow generated by rotation of the disc away from the open portion to reduce an airflow velocity at the head. In disc drives having multiple discs, a plate is preferably disposed between each pair of adjacent discs. Air vents preferably extend through the thickness of the plate to reduce aerodynamic drag and hence power consumption by the drive.