JP2001202690A - Disk device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To arbitrarily select at least two modes, i.e., a quick mode which conducts seek, data reading and writing in a high speed and a low noise mode which conducts seek and data reading and writing with low speed/power consumption/noise. SOLUTION: The disk device rotates a disk shaped recording medium, moves a head to a target position of the medium and records and reproduces data to and from the medium. The device is provided with a switch to make effective the low noise mode. The switch is activated by a command from a host device. In the mode, current required to rotate the medium is limited. Moreover, the command from the host device is generated when the disk device is driven by a battery.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a disk drive,
In particular, a high-speed transfer / high-speed access mode in which a disk recording medium is rotated at a high speed and a head is moved at a high speed to perform seek and recording / reproducing (read / write), and a seek / recording / reproducing operation is performed by rotating a disk recording medium at a low speed and moving the head at a low speed. A low-power consumption and low-noise mode for reading and writing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-156470 (Document 1), an audio signal such as a control signal TOC has been used in a compact disc (CD) or digital audio tape recorder (DAT). Automatically set a second speed faster than the normal voice signal reading speed for reading signals other than
There is known a playback device that is improved in operability.

FIG. 8 shows a schematic configuration of a disk device described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-2095963 (Document 2). In FIG. 1, a magnetic disk drive 1 is a magnetic disk 2
, A disk drive motor 3, a magnetic head 5, a disk circuit section 13, and standby control means 14. The standby control means 14 performs the following operations. That is,
In addition to the normal operation mode (write / read mode) and the stop mode in which all power is turned off, the standby control unit 14 controls the I / F, the detection amplifier, When the power of the circuit unit 13 such as the head control circuit is turned off or in a standby state, and the disk drive motor 3 rotates at a normal speed, a first standby mode is continued. F, a detection amplifier, and a second standby mode in which the power supply of the circuit unit 13 such as the head control circuit is turned off or in a standby state and the disk drive motor 3 rotates at a low speed, thereby reducing power consumption. ing.

Further, as described in, for example, JP-A-63-87663 (Document 3), in a magnetic disk drive, if the next read / write start time is known in advance, the time from the start of seek to the start of read / write is determined. By detecting the waiting time and controlling the seek speed (moving speed) of the head so that the difference between the waiting time and the average seek time previously obtained for each moving distance of the head is almost zero,
There is a known head that avoids excessive acceleration and deceleration of the head and saves power during seeking.

[0005]

According to the prior art of the above-mentioned document 1, in a CD or DAT, an audio signal required by a user is reproduced at only one kind of normal speed, and a user such as a control signal is used. The unused signal is reproduced at a higher speed than the normal speed. No consideration is given to recording / reproducing arbitrary data used by the user at various medium speeds such as high speed, standard speed, and low speed according to the user's request, and to saving power consumption. Not.

Further, in the prior art of the above document 2, the power supply of the head control circuit is turned off in a standby mode (first and second standby modes) in which reading and writing (including seeking) is not performed, and a second standby mode is set. In the mode, the rotation speed of the disk drive motor is made lower than the normal speed, and the read / write speed is only the normal speed (one type).
No consideration is given to setting various reading / writing speeds of arbitrary data in accordance with a user's request.

However, first, in general, the frequency of occurrence of a state in which reading and writing is not performed is not always so high in a disk device, and generally, a state in which reading and writing is not performed is a non-operating state where power is not turned on. Since the power consumption is the second lowest after the state (power consumption 0 W) (the highest power consumption is at the time of motor startup, and the second highest power consumption is at the time of file access. In both cases, reading and writing are performed while the motor is rotating). Even if the standby mode (second standby mode) is set and the disk motor speed is reduced in a state where the reading and writing are not performed, as described in Document 2, even if the disk motor speed is reduced, the overall power consumption is low. No reduction effect can be obtained. Rather, when the read / write state is divided in the second standby mode, it is necessary to start up the disk motor at the time of shifting from the standby mode to the write / read operation, so that large power is temporarily consumed.

Secondly, in Document 2, a problem arises in that the start-up of writing / reading is delayed and the operating speed is delayed since a start-up time of the motor is required when shifting from the standby mode to the writing / reading operation.

The prior art of Reference 3 adjusts the seek speed in accordance with the read / write start time known in advance so that the seek ends immediately before. There is no idea to use a high-speed seek capable of high-speed processing and a low-speed seek performed with low noise and low power in response to a user request. Also, in Reference 3, as in References 1 and 2, it is not possible to read and write arbitrary data at various read / write speeds such as high speed, standard speed, and low speed in response to a request from the user. Not even considered.

By the way, in the magnetic disk device and the optical disk device, the demand for the performance of the user can be roughly classified into two types as follows.

In order to satisfy the performance of high-speed transfer and high-speed access, low power consumption and low noise, it is necessary to increase the read / write speed of the disk, that is, the rotational speed and the seek speed of the head. It is necessary to reduce the read / write speed (rotation speed) and the seek speed of the head. These two performances are contradictory to each other, and there is no disk device that simultaneously satisfies the two performances at the same time, and there is only a model having one type of data read / write speed and seek speed. For this reason, the user must
Prepare at least one model for each device that satisfies each of the performance requirements, and adjust the usage conditions for each use (whether to use the device under the regulation of noise level or maximum power or to emphasize transfer / access speed). It is inevitable to select a magnetic disk device having suitable performance.

In this case, the following problem occurs.

[0013] Even when the intended use conditions are not clear, a magnetic disk device having either performance must be selected.

During use due to changes in the use conditions,
When you want to switch to another performance for the magnetic disk drive, there is no other way than to re-purchase or replace it. Performance cannot be switched in a timely manner depending on the usage.

Particularly, such a problem occurs in a disk device attached to a personal computer, such as a notebook personal computer, which shares a commercial AC power supply and a built-in battery power supply. When using commercial power on this type of computer,
Since sufficient power can be obtained, it is desirable to increase the head seek speed and disk read / write speed sufficiently when accessing files, while when using the built-in battery power supply,
In order to extend the continuous use time of the system, it is desirable to use the head seek speed and the disk read / write speed at low power consumption.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art and to perform a quick mode (high-speed transfer / high-speed access mode) for performing high-speed seek and data reading / writing.
Arbitrarily selecting at least two modes, a low-speed, low-power consumption, low-noise seek mode and a silent mode for reading and writing data (low-speed, low-power consumption, low-noise mode), according to a user's request It is to provide a disk device that can perform.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a disk device attached to a personal computer in which a commercial power supply and a built-in battery power supply are shared, wherein the quick mode is selected when the commercial power supply is used, and the built-in battery power supply is used. In such a case, it is an object of the present invention to provide a disk device having a switching function so that the silent mode is selected.

[0018]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is configured as follows.

(1) A low-noise mode is provided in a disk device for rotating a disk-shaped recording medium and moving a head toward a target position on the recording medium to record data on or reproduce data from the recording medium. And a switch for enabling the low-noise mode according to a command from a higher-level device.

(2) In the above (1), the low noise mode is configured to be obtained by limiting a current for rotating the disk-shaped recording medium.

(3) In the above (1), the command from the host device is issued when the disk device is driven by a battery.

[0022]

The operation based on the above configuration will be described.

According to the above arrangement, the seek movement speed of the head and the rotation speed of the recording medium (disk) are each set to 2
It is possible to switch more than one stage,
If you want to write and read signals at high speed with one disk device, you can write and read in the state where the quick mode (the maximum speed of both the head and the disk) is selected, and you want to reduce power consumption with low noise. In some cases, writing and reading may be performed in a state in which the silent mode (both the head and the disk have the lowest speed) is selected. Since the operation mode can be selected in this manner, even if the use conditions are not determined in advance, the use conditions can be determined later and an operation mode suitable for the use conditions can be selected. There is no need to purchase the device, and the user can change the operation mode even during use according to the use conditions.

As for the speed mode switching mechanism, in order to allow the user to freely select each mode at any time, the mode is switched by a command from the host device to the microprocessor in the disk device as in the above configuration. By doing so, the user can easily select the required mode by operating the keys. Alternatively, each mode can be switched by a hardware switch such as a Japan connector provided on the head drive circuit and the disk motor drive circuit of the disk device.

According to the above arrangement, when a commercial power supply is used as a power supply for the personal computer and the disk device, the quick mode of high-speed reading / writing and high-speed seek is selected.
High-speed, high-performance data transfer / access is possible.When the built-in battery power is used, low-speed reading / writing and low-speed seek silent mode are selected, and data transfer / access that can operate continuously for a long time with low noise and low power consumption is selected. it can.

[0026]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a magnetic disk drive according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, a disk drive 1 comprises a magnetic disk 2 as a recording medium, a motor 3 for rotating and supporting the disk 2, a head 5 for writing and reading signals to and from the disk 2, and a head drive mechanism 6. , A motor drive circuit 4 for driving the motor 3, and a head drive circuit 7 connected to the head drive mechanism 6. Both drive circuits 4, 7
Is connected to the microprocessor 8.

The microprocessor 8 has switches 9-1.
2, at least one switch is connected, and in the case of FIG. 1, four switches are connected. Various operation modes can be set by a combination of these switches as described later.

Two operation modes are set in the microprocessor 8, one of which has a motor rotation speed of 720.
A quick mode in which the seek movement time of the head is 8 ms at 0 rpm, and the other is a motor rotation speed of 540
0 rpm (current value at startup is the same as in quick mode),
This is a silent mode in which the seek movement time of the head is 10 ms (acceleration / deceleration is the same as in the quick mode). The quick mode is a mode that can realize high-speed transfer and high-speed access to the disk device, while the silent mode is a mode that can realize low power consumption and low noise.

These two modes can be selected by setting switches 9 to 12 connected to the microprocessor 8. For example, when the switch 9 is set to the off state, the operation mode is set to the quick mode, and when the switch 9 is set to the on state, the operation is performed in the silent mode. In FIG. 1, since four switches 9 to 12 are connected, up to 24 operation modes can be set by a combination of these switches. In the case of FIG. 1, the operation mode is set by switches 9 to 12 provided on a disk device such as a jumper switch, and cannot be set by a command from a higher-level device (system).

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a disk drive according to a second embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is provided with a drive circuit that switches the operation mode in accordance with an instruction from a higher-level device (system). It is.

In FIG. 2, the disk device 1 includes a disk 2 as a recording medium, a motor 3 for rotating and supporting the disk 2, a head 5 for writing and reading signals to and from the disk 2, a head driving mechanism 6, A motor drive circuit 4 for driving the motor 3 and a head drive circuit 7 connected to a head drive mechanism 6 are provided. Both drive circuits 4 and 7 are connected to a microprocessor 8.

The microprocessor 8 has two operation modes, a quick mode and a silent mode, and further has a built-in switch circuit 15 for switching between these two operation modes in accordance with an instruction from a higher-level device (system). I have. The switch circuit 15 in the microprocessor 8 is equivalent to the switch circuits 9 to 12 shown in FIG. 1, and various operation modes are determined according to the setting state.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a disk drive according to a third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a case where a current limiting circuit 16 is built in a microprocessor 8 is shown. In FIG. 3, a disk device 1 includes a disk 2 as a recording medium, a motor 3 for rotatably supporting the disk 2,
Head 5 for writing and reading signals to and from disk 2
, A head drive mechanism 6, a motor drive circuit 4 for driving the motor 3, and a head drive circuit 7 connected to the head drive mechanism 6. Both drive circuits 4 and 7 are connected to the microprocessor 8. .

In the microprocessor 8, two operation modes, a quick mode and a silent mode, are set, and further, a switch circuit 15 for switching between these two operation modes by an instruction from a higher-level device (system);
A current limiting circuit 16 for individually determining the maximum current value flowing through both drive circuits 4 and 7 is built in.

The maximum current value determined by the current limiting circuit 16 is linked to the operation mode selected by the setting of the switch circuit 15. For example, when the quick mode is selected, the maximum current value is limited. No, the motor drive circuit 4 is 2 A, the head drive circuit 7 is 0.9 A (each value is determined by voltage and resistance), and when the silent mode is selected, the maximum current value is Circuit 4
Is determined to be 1.5 A, and the head drive circuit 7 is determined to be 0.6 A, for example.

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of a disk drive according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
7 shows a case in which current limiting circuits 17 and 18 are built in.

In FIG. 4, the disk device 1 includes a disk 2 as a recording medium, a motor 3 for rotating and supporting the disk 2, a head 5 for writing and reading signals to and from the disk 2, a head driving mechanism 6, A motor drive circuit 4 for driving the motor 3 and a head drive circuit 7 connected to a head drive mechanism 6 are provided. Both drive circuits 4 and 7 are connected to a microprocessor 8.

In the microprocessor 8, two operation modes, a quick mode and a silent mode, are set, and a switch circuit 15 for switching between these two operation modes by a command from a higher-level device (system) is built in. ing.

The maximum current value determined by the current limiting circuits 17 and 18 is associated with the operation mode selected by the setting of the switch circuit 15. For example, when the quick mode is selected, the maximum current value is determined. , The motor 3 and the head drive mechanism 6 are operated by the drive circuits 4 and 7 without limitation, and the maximum current value flowing through each drive circuit 4 and 7 is 2 A for the motor drive circuit 4 and 0.9 A for the head drive circuit 7 ( Each value is determined by a voltage and a resistance value. When the silent mode is selected, the maximum current value is 1.5 A for the motor drive circuit 4 and 0.6 A for the head drive circuit 7. Is determined so that the motor 3 and the head driving mechanism 6 operate. Accordingly, although two types of motor drive circuits and two head drive circuits are apparently set, the operation is equivalent to that of the drive circuit of FIG.

FIG. 5 shows a change in the rotation speed (FIG. 5A) and a change in the current value (FIG. 5B) when the disk motor is started (until the steady rotation speed is reached) in the above embodiment. . Solid lines indicate changes in the motor rotation speed v and the current value I over time in the quick mode.
It corresponds to 3 and 4 quick modes. The dashed line indicates changes in the motor rotation speed and the current value over time in the silent mode without current limitation, and corresponds to the silent mode in FIGS. The broken lines indicate changes in the motor rotation speed and the current value over time in the silent mode with the current limitation, and correspond to the silent mode in FIGS. FIG. 5 shows the operation at the time of starting the motor.
When the motor is stopped, the reverse operation is performed.

FIG. 6 shows a change in the moving speed (FIG. 6A) and a change in the current value (FIG. 6B) when the head moves in the above embodiment.

The solid line shows the change in the head moving speed v and the current value I with the lapse of time in the quick mode, and corresponds to the quick mode in FIGS. The alternate long and short dash line indicates that the acceleration / deceleration is the same as the quick mode and the maximum speed is v1.
1 shows changes in the head moving speed and the current value over time in the silent mode restricted to the silent mode, and corresponds to the silent mode in FIGS. The dashed line indicates the change in the moving speed and the current value over time in the silent mode in which the current value during acceleration / deceleration is limited to I1, -I1 without limiting the maximum speed, and corresponds to the silent mode in FIGS. .

In addition, a silent mode in which both the maximum speed and the current value during acceleration / deceleration are limited can be considered.

In the above embodiment, two types of operation modes, ie, a quick mode and a silent mode, are used. However, a normal (standard) mode, a quick mode which can be accessed at a higher speed, a lower speed and a lower power consumption than the normal mode. It is also possible to configure so as to switch and select three or more operation modes of the power silent mode.

In the above embodiment, once the system starts up in a certain mode, the disk motor speed is constant unless the mode is changed midway, so that the operation of raising the motor rotation speed for each individual access becomes unnecessary. ,
There is no delay in the read / write operation associated with startup.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation relationship between the disk device and the host device in the present invention.

First, the power of the host apparatus main body including the disk device is turned on (701), and the power of the disk device is also turned on (702).

Immediately after the power is turned on, the operation mode is set according to the information stored in the ROM, and a stable state is reached (703). Immediately thereafter, the operation mode stored on the disk surface at the time of the previous termination is obtained. Is loaded, and the information is stored in the RAM (704). Then, a stable operation state is reached in the operation mode based on the information stored in the RAM (705). At this time, a normal mode in which an intermediate performance between the quick mode and the silent mode can be set in the ROM is set in advance.

When the operation mode of the disk device is to be changed (706), the operation mode list stored in the ROM of the disk device is loaded from the upper device by the operation of the user of the upper device. (707).
The loaded operation mode list is highlighted on the display of the host device, especially the operation mode set last time, and the user selects one operation mode (708). Accordingly, the operation mode information stored in the RAM is rewritten to the operation mode information selected by the user, and the operation mode is determined (709). When the operation mode is changed by the user as described above, it waits for the operation mode to be stable again.

Thereafter, file access from the higher-level device to the disk device is started in the set operation mode, and required data transfer is performed.

When the termination processing of the host device is started (710), the information of the last operation mode stored in the RAM of the disk device is recorded in a specific location on the disk surface (711). The “previous operation mode” is used when the host device is restarted next time.

When all the above processes are completed, the power supplies of the host device and the disk device are turned off (712).

Next, as a fifth embodiment, an embodiment will be described in which the disk device of the present invention is applied to a computer in which a commercial AC power supply and a built-in battery power supply are shared, for example, a notebook personal computer (personal computer). .

In general, the notebook type personal computer 20 uses a built-in battery as a power source when it is used for portable use and a commercial 100 VAC when used in an office or the like. When a built-in battery is used for a portable device, the power consumption of the system directly affects the continuous use time, and it can be said that the longer the continuous use time is, the better the disk device with low power consumption is. On the other hand, when 100 VAC is used as a power supply, there is no need to pay special attention to power consumption unless a power failure occurs. Therefore, a disk device capable of writing / reading information at a higher speed when accessing a file is better. It can be said that the performance is good. Therefore, a notebook-type personal computer consumes little power when used as a portable computer, but a disk device that can access a file at high speed as needed can be said to be convenient.

However, the conventional disk device has only one of the performances or the one having an intermediate performance which cannot be said either. This is because it is technically difficult to simultaneously achieve low power consumption and high-speed file access.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the disk device 1 having a plurality of operation modes of each of the above embodiments is applied to a notebook type personal computer (personal computer), and a commercial AC power supply is used as a power source for the personal computer and the attached disk device. When using the power supply, the quick mode of high-speed access is automatically selected, and when using the internal battery power supply, the silent mode with low power consumption is automatically selected. These operation modes can be switched at any time by an instruction from a higher-level device (notebook-type personal computer), so that good performance can always be provided for the higher-level device.

As a specific mode switching instruction method from the above-mentioned device (personal computer), the following method is devised, so that the user does not need to hit the keyboard to input a command each time.

That is, first, a means for measuring an external power supply voltage (not shown) is provided in the power receiving unit of the host device as a mechanism for detecting whether or not power is being supplied from an external power supply. Normally, a notebook type personal computer is provided with a diode or the like for preventing a backflow from a battery to a commercial power supply, and is automatically switched to an internal battery when the external commercial power supply is cut off. Therefore, if the sensing mechanism detects that power is not being received from an external power source, that is, that the built-in battery detects that the host device is being used, an operation mode (silent mode) for low power consumption is performed on the disk device. Mode). When the sensing mechanism senses that the higher-level device is receiving power from an external power supply, it instructs the disk device to operate in an operation mode (quick mode) for high-speed file access to the disk device. I do. Putting a command from the host device to the disk device is, in other words, equivalent to the disk device sensing the state of the host device. As described above, the relationship between the use mode of the notebook type personal computer and the operation mode of the disk device is such that the operation mode of low power consumption is automatically set when the personal computer is used for portable use, and the operation mode is used for office use. Is related to automatically setting an operation mode for performing high-speed file access.

As the magnetic disk device used in the present invention, a magnetic disk device having a magnetic head having a negative pressure slider structure can be used. This magnetic head is in contact with the disk surface when the magnetic disk is stationary, but when the rotational speed of the disk exceeds a predetermined value, regardless of the rotational speed (in any of the above operation modes, ) A constant flying height is maintained.

In the above embodiments, the magnetic disk device has been described. However, the present invention can be similarly applied to an optical disk device and a magneto-optical disk device.

[0063]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, the seek speed of the head and the rotational speed of the disk recording medium can be switched in two or more stages with one disk device. An operation mode that meets the needs of the user, such as selecting a low-speed silent mode when requesting file access with low noise and low power consumption and data transfer, and selecting a quick mode when requesting high-speed file access or data transfer. Can be arbitrarily selected. Further, since the conventional standby mode (standby mode in which the rotation speed of the disk motor is lower than the rotation speed at the time of reading and writing between individual access reading and writing) is not adopted, the motor rotation speed is increased at the time of successive data access ( (Start-up) operation is not required, and an effect that a delay in the read / write operation accompanying the start-up does not occur can be obtained.

If the operation mode is selectively switched from the host device, the user can easily select a required mode.

Further, when the present invention is applied to a personal computer such as a notebook type personal computer which shares a commercial power supply and a built-in battery power supply, when a commercial power supply is used, a quick mode of high-speed reading / writing and high-speed seek is selected. High performance data transfer / access, low-speed read / write and low-speed seek silent mode are selected when battery power is used, so that it can be operated continuously for a long time with low noise and low power consumption. Is obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a disk device including a drive circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a disk device having a drive circuit that switches modes according to an instruction from a higher-level device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a disk device including a drive circuit having a current limiting circuit in a microprocessor according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of a disk device including a drive circuit having a current limiting circuit in each drive circuit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a change in rotation speed and a change in current value when the motor is started.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a change in a head moving speed and a change in a current value.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a related operation of the disk device and the host device according to the embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 8 is a configuration diagram of a disk device provided with a conventional drive circuit.

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view of a notebook personal computer to which the disk device of the present invention is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Disk device 2 Disk (medium) 3 Motor 4 Motor drive circuit 5 Head 6 Head drive mechanism 7 Head drive circuit 8 Microprocessor 9-12 Switch 13 Disk circuit unit 14 Standby control means 15 Switch circuit 16-18 Current limiting circuit 20 Note Book type personal computer

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] April 26, 2001 (2001.4.2
6)

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] Claims

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[Claims]

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A low-noise mode in a disk device for rotating a disk-shaped recording medium and moving a head toward a target position on the recording medium to record data on or reproduce data from the recording medium. A disk device, comprising: a switch for enabling the low-noise mode according to a command from a host device. 2. The disk device according to claim 1, wherein the low noise mode is obtained by limiting a current for rotating the disk-shaped recording medium. 3. The disk device according to claim 1, wherein the command from the higher-level device is issued when the disk device is driven by a battery.