JP3097290B2 - Magnetic disk drive - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a housing structure of a magnetic disk drive, and more particularly to a magnetic disk drive in which a plurality of magnetic disk drives are stored.
The present invention relates to a housing structure capable of minimizing a rise in temperature even when a blower such as a cooling fan fails.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional magnetic disk drive in which a plurality of magnetic disk drives are stored, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 62-239394, independent air passages and air blowers surround each magnetic disk drive. A means was provided to separate and cool each magnetic disk drive. Also, as described in JP-A-2-266599, the upper and lower surfaces of the case of each magnetic disk drive are opened,
A fan for generating a cooling air flow from below to above is provided,
The stacked magnetic disk drives were sequentially cooled.

As a measure against failure of the blower, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-97187, two blowers are provided for each magnetic disk drive, and when one blower fails, the other blower is used. The operation was switched to blowing means. .

[0004]

The prior art described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 62-239394 is a very efficient cooling means, but the air blowing means of each magnetic disk drive are separated and independent. Therefore, when one blower stops due to a failure, the temperature of the magnetic disk drive in which the blower has stopped rises. Further, in the prior art described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-266599, since the stacked magnetic disk drives are sequentially cooled from below to above, the cooling air exchanges heat generated from the magnetic disks with heat, so that the downstream side of the flow is cooled. Temperature rises,
The temperature is higher in the upper magnetic disk drive. In particular, when the number of stacked layers in the vertical direction increases, as in a disk array, the temperature difference between the upper and lower directions tends to increase. Therefore, these two methods may cause a decrease in the positioning accuracy of the disk drive, and may reduce the reliability of the magnetic disk device.

The prior art described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-97187 is a technique for taking measures against a failure of the air blowing means. A large number of them are required, and the occupied space and cost increase, and further, there is a problem that a switching control circuit for the blower is required when the blower fails.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to efficiently cool each magnetic disk drive, reduce the temperature rise of each magnetic disk drive equally, and even if the air blower of the magnetic disk drive fails and stops, It is an object of the present invention to provide a highly reliable magnetic disk drive by minimizing the temperature rise of a magnetic disk drive having such a blowing means. It is another object of the present invention to provide a structure in which maintenance and replacement of a magnetic disk drive can be easily performed in a minimum unit (each unit). Another object of the present invention is to reduce the heat off-track which is indispensable for preventing the shortening of the service life of the components and improving the positioning accuracy.

[0007]

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a magnetic disk for storing information, a magnetic head for reading and writing information from and to the magnetic disk, and a method for positioning the magnetic head. In a magnetic disk drive in which a plurality of magnetic disk drives in which a carriage mechanism and a housing are sealed by a housing are housed in a magnetic disk drive housing, a partition is provided between the magnetic disk drives to separate and arrange the magnetic disk drives. Forming a storage chamber of the magnetic disk drive, providing a blower for cooling the magnetic disk drive in the storage chamber, and providing an opening through which the cooling air communicates between the storage chambers adjacent to the partition. is there.

[0008]

The magnetic disk drive is covered by the housing to prevent foreign matter from entering the head and the disk surface. A plurality of the integrated magnetic disk drives are stored in the housing. At this time, each magnetic disk drive is individually partitioned by a partition, and is used for maintenance and inspection.
By the way, each chamber in which the magnetic disk drive is stored is provided with a blowing means such as a fan for cooling each magnetic disk and a ventilation hole for supplying or discharging air to the means. Thus, in the present invention, in which each magnetic disk drive can be efficiently cooled, in addition to these holes, an opening is further provided in a partition separating each chamber. Thus, even if the fan for blowing air to the original magnetic disk drive becomes unable to blow due to a failure or the like, a part of the airflow from the fan blowing to the neighboring magnetic disk drive is stopped through the opening. By leading to the disk drive, all the magnetic disk drives can be cooled. In addition, since cooling air can be blown to any of the magnetic disk drives, a rise in the temperature of the magnetic disk drive can be minimized, and the occurrence of read / write failure or failure can be prevented.

Further, by providing a fluid resistance such as a filter on the upstream side or the downstream side in the flow direction of the fan, it is possible to prevent the backflow of the cooling air flow and to supply sufficient cooling air to each magnetic disk drive. .

[0010]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire housing structure of a magnetic disk drive in which a plurality of magnetic disk units 31a are stored in one housing.

The disk unit 31a is
In this example, a total of 20 units are stored in the vertical direction, and 38 is a door for fully opening and closing, 39 is a cooling air inlet provided below the door 38, 40 is a cooling air outlet, and 41 is a cooling air outlet. Reference numeral 42 denotes a power supply and control circuit of the entire magnetic disk drive, and 43 denotes a leg or a caster of the housing 9. It is desirable that the power supply and control circuit 42 and the like be cooled by a fan different from the blowing fan 13 attached to each disk unit. However, in some cases, a configuration in which each disk unit 31a is cooled by the cooling air 41 that has been cooled is used. Good. The cooling air that has flowed in through the inlet 38 provided at the lower part of the door 38 and the housing 9 rises,
Each of the disk units 31a is distributed by each blowing fan 13 and flows in the duct of each disk unit 31a.
a) to cool the magnetic disk drive 1 (also referred to as a magnetic disk assembly),
4 together, and rises out of the housing 9 through the outlet 40 above the housing 9.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the housing 9 shown in FIG. 1, illustrating the above-described cooling method. 45 is a floor surface on which the housing 9 is installed. In this embodiment, another fan may be provided in the collection duct 44 of the cooling air 41 to increase the amount of cooling air obtained by the blowing fan 13 of each disk unit 31a. The location of the other fan is preferably near the outlet 40 of the collection duct 44.
Further, an upward air guide plate may be provided in the collection duct 44 immediately after the cooling air 41 exits from each disk unit 31a so that the warmed cooling air 41 easily rises.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view showing another embodiment of the housing 9. The cooling air 41 is the downward facing door 4 in front of the door 38.
6a, flows in the horizontal direction from the inlet 39, flows through the duct of each disk unit 31a, and
Then, the magnetic disk drive 1 and the like in the area a are cooled, and then discharged from the housing 9 in a horizontal direction from the outlet 40 of the upward facing door 46b. The selection of the cooling method (how to flow the cooling air 41) in FIGS. 2 and 3 is determined by the place where the housing 9 is placed, restrictions, and the like, and it is also possible to combine both. For example, it flows in the horizontal direction from the inflow port 39 of the downward facing door 46a in front of the door 38, and finally the recovery duct 4
There is a method of assembling at 4 and ascending, and discharging outside the housing 9 from the outlet 40 above the housing 9. Of course, door 38
And an inflow port 39 and a door 38 provided at a lower portion of the housing 9.
A combination of using both of the inlets 39 of the downward facing door 46a of the side surface may be used.

The operation of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a part of the housing of the magnetic disk drive according to one embodiment of the present invention. Three magnetic disk drives 1 are stored in one housing 9, and a duct-like partition 10 is provided between the magnetic disk drives 1. The duct 10 has a suction port 11 and a discharge port 12 for cooling air, and the suction port 11 is provided with a blowing fan 13 as an example of a blowing unit. In addition to the inlet 11 and the outlet 12, the duct 10 is provided with an opening 14 through which cooling air can be communicated between the adjacent magnetic disk drives 1. In the figure, one fan 13 is provided for each magnetic disk drive 1, and the opening 14 is provided near a housing 47 to which the cooling air from the fan 13 is directly blown.

Assuming that all the fans 13a and 13b are rotating normally, the pressure distribution of the cooling air flow 15 flowing through each magnetic disk drive 1a and 1b is equal to the suction port.
The cooling air flow 15 does not leak from the adjacent magnetic disk drive 1 through the opening 14 even if the opening 10 is formed in the duct 10 because it is the same along the outlet 12a from the outlet 11a. Therefore, all the fans 13
Does not cause any problem with the structure of the housing 9, the magnetic disk drive 1 is efficiently cooled, and the temperature rise is reduced.

Next, the case where the fan 13a stops due to a failure will be considered. Assuming that the two fans 13b are rotating normally, the cooling airflow 15 generated by the fan 13b is blown to the magnetic disk drive 1b to cool the magnetic disk drive 1b efficiently. At the same time, the pressure of the blowing section 17 on the discharge side of the fan 13b becomes higher than that of the surroundings.
Of the fan 1 through the opening 14 of the present invention
3a reaches the failed magnetic disk drive 1a. However, when the pressure loss from the opening 14 in the direction of the suction port 11a of the fan 13a is smaller than that in the direction of the discharge port 12a (the ventilation resistance in the direction of the discharge port 12a is large), a part 15a of the airflow 15 becomes the magnetic disk drive 1a. , And then flows toward the fan 13a. However, even at this time, a part of the magnetic disk drive 1a is exposed to a part 15a of the airflow 15. For this reason, the magnetic disk drive 1a in which the fan 13a has stopped due to a malfunction is
Cooled by a, the temperature does not rise abnormally. If there is no opening 14 (conventional), there is no method for cooling the magnetic disk drive 1a, so that the temperature rises and data cannot be read.

In another embodiment shown in FIG. 5, an air filter 16 for removing dust is provided at the inlet of the fan 13, and this is one of the flow resistances. That is, the opening 1
More pressure loss to the suction port 11a directions outlet 12a to 4
Direction (the airflow resistance in the direction of the discharge port 12a decreases), and a portion 15a of the airflow 15 reaches the magnetic disk drive 1a and then flows in the direction of the discharge port 12a along the housing 47 of the magnetic disk drive 1a. . In this case, the cooling performance is better than that of FIG.
However, the temperature rise of the magnetic disk drive 1a in which the failure is stopped can be further suppressed. 29 is a flow path through which the cooling air flows. The resistance for adjusting the pressure loss (ventilation resistance) is not the dust-removing air filter 16, but, for example, a method of devising the shape of the discharge-side blowing portion 17 of the fan 13 or adjusting the gap of the flow path. May be.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show one of the magnetic disk drives 1.
FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of a three-stage, three-row arrangement in a row (vertical direction) and three rows (left-right direction). This is II in FIG.
Corresponds to I-III section. Of course, the number of stages and the number of columns are not limited to these, and may be larger. At this time, openings 14 are provided in the upper and lower partitions 10 and the left and right partitions 10, respectively. For example, when the fan 13a of the magnetic disk drive 1a of A stops, the three magnetic disk drives 1b adjacent thereto rotate normally. Fan 1
A portion 15a of the cooling air 15 from 3b flows into the magnetic disk drive 1a and is cooled. Of course, up and down,
Only one of the openings 14 provided in the left and right partition walls 10 may be provided.

FIG. 7 shows an embodiment in which the flow 15 of cooling air is reversed, and a suction fan 13 is provided as blowing means. Naturally, the positions of the suction port 11 and the discharge port 12 are reversed with respect to FIG. 4 and the like, but the same effect as described above can be obtained by the opening 14 provided in the partition wall 10. FIG. 7 also shows a case where the fan 13a of the magnetic disk drive 1a stops. Also in this case, the temperature rise of the magnetic disk drive 1a can be reduced by the effect of the present invention.

Next, an embodiment of a disk unit including a magnetic disk drive stored in the housing 9 of FIG. 6 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is a front partial cross-sectional view of a magnetic disk unit stored in a housing, and a partition wall 1 for individually partitioning a plurality of disk units 31b.
0 is previously provided regularly in the housing 9 separately from the disk unit 31b, and the partition walls 10 are provided with openings 14 through which the cooling air 15 can communicate. The plurality of disk units 31b are stored separately between the partition walls 10. Here, each disk unit 31
As shown in a perspective view in FIG. 9, b includes the magnetic disk drive 1, a blowing fan 13 which is a blowing means of the magnetic disk drive 1, and a frame 50 supporting them. Compared with a disk unit 31a in FIG. 10 described later, the duct 2 as a partition is not provided in the disk unit. FIG. 9 shows an example in which a drive power supply and a control circuit board 32 are added downstream of the disk unit 31b.
1b comprises only the magnetic disk drive 1 and the blowing fan 13).

Another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this example, the partition is simplified and the disk unit is included in the duct 2. Toes
The magnetic disk drive 1 and the duct 2 and the magnetic disk drive.
Blowing fan 13 which is a blowing means of disk drive 1
One disk unit 13a is composed of
Has formed. In this embodiment, the magnetic disk drive 1
The duct 2 of the disk unit 31a functions as a partition 10 and the cooling air communicates between adjacent magnetic disk drives in addition to the cooling air inlet 11 and the outlet 12 A possible opening 14 is provided in the partition. The opening 14 is provided on each surface of the duct 2 (excluding the surface having the inlet 11 and the outlet 12).
Surface). Of course, the numerical aperture may be two or more with surfaces provided, the shape is not rectangular, but may be any shape such as a circle. In this embodiment, a part of the duct 2 which is a partition provided on four surfaces around the magnetic disk drive 1 is replaced with a control circuit board 32 described later.
Alternatively, it may be constituted by a part of 52b (see FIG. 19). For example, one surface of the duct 2 is
Or 52b, and the control circuit board 32 also has the opening 1
4 is provided. Here, the cooling air flows through a clearance (flow path 29) between the duct 2 and the magnetic disk drive 1. Also, an example is shown in which the disk unit 31a is provided with a drive power supply for the magnetic disk drive 1 and a control circuit board 32 in addition to the magnetic disk drive 1.
Of course, only the magnetic disk drive 1 is mounted on the disk unit 31a, and the drive power supply and the control circuit board 3
2 may be cooled in the same manner as the power supply and control circuit 42 of the entire magnetic disk device shown in FIG. An example of the blowing means is a blowing fan 13 (pressure-feeding axial flow fan) of a type that blows cooling air to the magnetic disk drive 1.
It is attached to the suction port 11 side. Although one blower fan 13 is used in the drawing, several blower fans having a small diameter may be used instead . As this, the temperature of the blowing fan 13 provided blowing fan 13 to the suction port 11 side can be kept low, there is an advantage that the life of the fan 13 can be maintained longer. Generally, the life of a fan is closely related to the temperature, and the higher the temperature, the higher the failure rate of the bearing of the fan. For this reason, the fan 13 includes the magnetic disk drive 1 and the drive power supply and control circuit board 3
2 (on the side of the discharge port 12), the temperature of the cooling air 41 rises due to the waste heat of those heat sources, so that the temperature of the fan 13 also rises, and the bearing failure rate of the fan 13 increases.
Further, when the blowing fan 13 is provided on the suction port 11 side,
The pressure in the disk unit 31a is higher than that of the surroundings. If an air filter or the like is provided on the suction port 11 side, there is an advantage that dust does not enter the disk unit 31a. In contrast, providing the suction to the discharge port 12 side viewed off <br/> § emissions 13 (the suction fan), the pressure in the disk unit 31a is lower than the ambient, unwanted gaps in addition to the suction port 11 However, even if an air filter or the like is provided on the suction port 11 side, there is a disadvantage that dust easily enters from unnecessary clearances.

FIG. 11 is a partial cross-sectional view from the front showing one embodiment of the housing 9 when a plurality of (only eight shown) disk units 31a are accommodated in the housing 9 of the magnetic disk drive. FIG. In the housing 9, there is provided a framework 33 that can individually partition the plurality of disk units 31a. Of course, a sufficient gap 34 is provided between the frames 33 so that cooling air can flow.
Although only a horizontal frame 33 is shown in the figure, a vertical frame may be added for reinforcement or the like. A rail 35 that is long in the depth direction is provided above the horizontal frame 33 so that each disk unit 31a can be stored smoothly. In this case, the disk unit 31a
Wheels or the like may be provided at the lower part of the vehicle. That is, the disk unit 31 a is housed in the housing 9 by sliding on the rail 35. After storage, the disk unit 31a is securely fixed by a stopper, a screw, or the like. In the figure, four disk units 31a are mounted on one horizontal frame 33, and two rails 35 are provided on one disk unit 31a. However, it is not limited to this.

FIG. 10 stored on a horizontal frame 33
Since the openings 14 are provided in the ducts 2 of the four disk units 31a shown in FIG. 7, the positions of the openings 14 of the disk units 31a are adjusted so that the cooling air can communicate between the adjacent disk units 31a. Needless to say, it is necessary to prevent the cooling air from leaking out of the duct 2 from between the adjacent openings 14 and the gaps 36. For this purpose, the opening 14
A flexible member may be attached to the periphery so that the adjacent openings 14 are in good contact with each other. In the disk unit 31a located at the end (in contact with the outer frame of the housing 9), the opening 14 may not be provided on the surface of the duct 2 where there is no adjacent disk unit 31a. When it is necessary to provide the opening 14 on each surface of the duct 2 due to productivity or the like, a measure such as providing a cover plate for closing the unnecessary opening 14 later may be performed. The gap 37 between the outer frame 2 and the outer frame of the housing 9 may be eliminated or made as narrow as possible to increase the flow path resistance so as not to leak.

FIG. 12 is a partial longitudinal sectional view showing one embodiment of the disk unit 31a and the magnetic disk drive 1 shown in FIG. 10, and FIG. 13 is a sectional view perpendicular to the axis of a main part of the magnetic disk. A schematic configuration example of the magnetic disk drive 1 will be described with reference to these drawings. The magnetic disk drive 1 is hermetically sealed by a housing 47 so as to hermetically seal the inside from the surrounding air. Inside the magnetic disk drive 1, a plurality of stacked magnetic disks 3 for storing information rotate at high speed around a spindle 4. Also, a number of head arms 6 mounted on the tip of a magnetic head 5 for reading and writing information on the magnetic disk 3 are accessed at high speed by a voice coil motor 8 via a carriage mechanism 7, and the magnetic head 5 It is accurately positioned at a predetermined position above.

There are two positioning control methods for the magnetic disk drive. One is a servo surface servo method which has a large number of data surfaces and a dedicated servo surface on which positioning information is recorded, and the positioning is constantly controlled based on the servo information on the servo surface. The other is a data surface servo method in which positioning information is recorded on a part of a data surface without having a dedicated servo surface as positioning information, and positioning is controlled based on the servo information on the data surface. The present invention
This is particularly effective for a magnetic disk drive having a positioning control method of a servo surface servo method. This is because, in the servo surface servo method, for example, one servo head 5a shown in FIG.
, A large number of data heads (heads other than 5a) are always positioned and controlled. Therefore, if the temperature of the magnetic disk drive 1 rises or the temperature distribution in the magnetic disk drive 1 becomes large, the distance between each magnetic disk 3 and each head arm 6 increases. This is because a difference in thermal expansion is generated in the above, and the positioning accuracy is reduced.

The structure of the magnetic disk drive 1 need not be limited to the one described above. For example, in this embodiment, the magnetic head 5 and the carriage mechanism are linear types that make a linear motion, but may be swing types that make an arcuate rotary motion, and the number of magnetic disks 3 may be one or more. Good. Further, the diameter of the magnetic disk 3 may be as large as 8 to 10 inches or more.
5.25 inch, 3.5 inch, 2.5 inch and 1.
It may be as small as 8 inches. Further, the magnetic disk 3 may be placed vertically (the spindle is horizontal) as shown in FIG. 12, or horizontally (the spindle is vertical).
May be.

The opening 14 through which the cooling air 15 can communicate is provided in the duct 2 near the surface of the housing 47 of the magnetic disk drive 1. Under these conditions, the temperature of the magnetic disk drive 1 rises due to windage loss due to rotation of the magnetic disk 3, windage damage due to the drag of a number of head arms 6, and heat generation of the voice coil motor 8. Therefore, cooling of the magnetic disk drive 1 is indispensable for improving reliability.

14 to 18 show examples in which fins are provided on the magnetic disk drive 1 to enhance the cooling effect.

In order to improve the cooling efficiency, the cooling air 15 in the form of a jet having a swirl component generated by the blowing fan 13 is blown to the front surface 47 of the housing of the magnetic disk drive 1.
c, and a large number of heat dissipating fins 18 are provided in a portion where the heat transfer is good. In particular, as shown in FIG. 12, when the portion having good heat transfer is on the disk chamber side having the magnetic disk 3, the magnetic disk 3 rotates at a high speed in the disk chamber inside the housing 47. Communication is very good. The heat transfer outside the housing 47 is also very good due to the jet cooling and the radiation fins 18 as described above, and the overall heat transmission rate (the reciprocal of the thermal resistance, which indicates the ease with which heat is transmitted) is remarkable. Get better. For this reason, extremely efficient cooling is performed, and the temperature rise of the magnetic disk drive 1 can be greatly reduced.
As an example, the shape of the radiation fins 18 is several (5 in FIG. 15) as shown in the perspective view of the magnetic disk drive 1 shown in FIG.
May be thin plate-shaped fins. In addition, the radiation fin 1
8 is desirably a material having good thermal conductivity, and if it is formed integrally with the housing 47, an aluminum material (aluminum alloy, aluminum casting, etc.) is preferable. In the above embodiment, the radiation fins 18 are provided only on the front surface 47c of the housing of the magnetic disk drive 1 to which the jet-shaped cooling air 15 is directly blown.
Naturally, since the cooling air 41 flows backward along the housing 47 of the magnetic disk drive 1, the heat radiating fins 18 may be further provided on the entire surface or a necessary portion of the housing 47 to further improve the cooling efficiency. The radiation fins 18 may be shared with reinforcing ribs on both surfaces (47a, 47b) of the housing that supports the spindle portion of the magnetic disk drive 1 by devising the shape.

In FIG. 15, reference numeral 48 denotes a motor for driving the magnetic disk 3. In this embodiment, the motor 48 is directly connected to one end of a spindle. In such a configuration, the motor 48 generates heat due to the loss, and a temperature difference is easily generated between the housing surface 47a having the motor 48 and the opposite housing surface 47b having no motor 48. In this case, the area of the radiating fins 18 provided on the housing surface 47a having the motor 48 is made larger than the area of the opposite housing surface 47b having no motor 48, or alternatively, the cooling air 1 flowing through the housing surface 47a having the motor 48 is not used.
5, the opposite housing surface 47b without the motor 48
What is necessary is just to make it faster and heat transfer good. Further, both of them may be combined.

FIGS. 16 to 18 show other fin shapes viewed from the direction of the blowing fan.

FIG. 16 shows the linear fins 18a arranged in parallel, which are provided at the blowing portion 17 of the fan 13 and its periphery. The linear fins 18a may be further subdivided and arranged in a staggered arrangement (zigzag or staggered). FIG. 17 shows the blowing unit 17 of the fan 13.
Is provided with radial straight fins 18b, and the fan 1
3 flows to the outer periphery along the radial fins 18b. The radial radiating fins 18b may not be straight toward the outer periphery but may be bent with a curvature in the direction of the air flow blown out by the fan 13. FIG. 18 shows pin-shaped fins 18c which are provided in a large number on the blowing portion 17 of the fan 13. Although the heat transfer coefficient of the pin-like fins 18c is very good, they need to be arranged very densely in order to increase the heat dissipation area. One example is very thin (1mm
Hereinafter, it is preferable to manufacture the pin-shaped fins 18c and finely arrange them in the housing 2. The cross-sectional shape of the pin-shaped fin 18c is not circular, but may be elliptical, rectangular, or the like.

As a method of further improving the cooling efficiency (radiation efficiency), there is a method of generating a vortex by disturbing the flow of the cooling air 41 flowing along the magnetic disk drive 1 in the duct 2. This is a turbulence promoter (turbulence promoter) generally referred to. One of the radiator fins 18 can be used as it is, and as another means, a large number of fine projections and irregularities may be provided on the inner wall surface of the duct 2. For the production of the projections and irregularities, a foreign substance may be attached with an adhesive or the like as a post-processing after completion of the duct 2, sand or the like may be sprayed by sand blast to roughen the inner wall surface, or the duct may be roughened. It may be manufactured by a manufacturing method such as pressing and machining as an integral part of 2. Such a contrivance is achieved by adding the magnetic disk drive 1 to the disk unit 31a.
When the driving power supply and the control circuit board 32 are added, it is desirable to provide the same on the inner wall surface of the duct 2 around the same.

FIGS. 19 and 20 show a method of cooling the drive power supply and the control circuit board 32 when the drive power supply and the control circuit board 32 are added to the disk units 31a and 31b shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, for example. This is one embodiment. 52a and 52b are examples of a circuit board placed in the drive power supply and control circuit board storage box 32 and a circuit board placed outside the box. In the duct 2,
When a sufficient space is provided between the magnetic disk drive 1 and the box 32 of the drive power supply and control circuit board, as shown in FIG. 19, the ports through which the cooling air 41 flows into the front 32a and the rear 32b of the box. Provided, magnetic disk drive 1
What is necessary is just to make the cooling air 41 which cooled this flow inside the box. At this time, the substrates 52 placed inside and outside the box
a and 52b are preferably arranged neatly along the flow. On the other hand, when the space between the magnetic disk drive 1 and the box of the drive power supply and the control circuit board 32 is not sufficient, the cooling is forcibly performed at the front side 32c rather than at the front of the box as shown in FIG. It is preferable to provide an inlet for taking in the air 41 and an outlet on the rear surface. At this time, as shown in the drawing, the substrate 52a placed in the box body is arranged such that the front end portion is gradually shortened from the center of the box body to the end portion so that each substrate 52a is efficiently cooled by the cooling air 41. It may be devised. In some cases, the drive power supply and control circuit board 32
May not be provided in the box, and may be exposed, for example, like the substrate 52b. At this time, care must be taken of insulation and the like.

FIGS. 21 and 22 show the fan 13 in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing only a part, and is an embodiment for forcibly controlling a flow 15 of cooling air when the fan 13 is stopped. Reference numeral 19 denotes a fan guide, and reference numeral 20 denotes a damper of opening / closing means for controlling an air flow 15 provided in the fan guide 19, and is provided for each fan 13. FIG. 21 shows a state where the fan 13 is rotating normally, and the dampers 20a and 20b are returned and spread by the air pressure of the fan 13 (open state). On the other hand, FIG. 22 shows a state in which the fan 13 has failed or stopped, and the dampers 20a and 20b are closed by a restoring force (closed state). A spring or the like may be used for the restoring force. The provision of such opening / closing means (damper 20) has the following effects. For example, in FIG. 4, when each fan 13 is rotating normally, the damper 20 is in an open state, and the cooling airflow 15 of each fan 13 flows from the intake port 11 to the exhaust port along the housing 47 of each magnetic disk drive 1. 12 and there is no flow interference between the magnetic disk drives 1. On the other hand, when the fan 13a fails or stops, the damper 20 of the fan 13a is closed by restoring force (the other fans 13 are open),
A part 15a of the airflow 15 from the adjacent fan 13b flows into the blowing portion 17a of the fan 13a that has stopped operating, and cannot pass through the failed fan 13a. And forced to flow. That is, the damper 20 acts as a flow ventilation resistance in the same manner as the dust removal air filter 16 shown in FIG. Of course, the damper 20 has a higher resistance, so that the effect is also greater. Damper 20 shown in FIGS. 21 and 22
Although the opening and closing are performed using the air pressure generated by the fan 13, there is another method of detecting the on / off state of the operation of the fan 13 and forcibly opening and closing the damper 20 based on the output. However, at this time, a driving force is required. The damper 20 is divided into two parts (20a, 2a) as shown in FIG.
0b), and may be further divided into three or more divisions. The opening / closing means is also shown in FIGS.
It is not necessary to limit to the damper 20 as in FIG.

FIG. 23 is a side sectional view showing a state where the disk unit 3 is housed (cooled) in the housing 9 according to one embodiment of the present invention. 2 and 3, the disk unit 3
In FIG. 23, the disk unit 31 (31a or 31b) is arranged so that its longitudinal direction (flow direction of cooling air) is inclined at an angle θ with respect to the horizontal direction. One purpose of this is to make the flow of the cooling air 41 smooth, and the air warmed by the cooling of the disk unit 31 tends to rise due to the decrease in density. The end is inclined upward. The inclination angle θ needs to be large to some extent, but is limited by the size of the housing 9 and the disk unit 31, so that a slight effect can be expected if the inclination is a little. Spaces 53a and 53b generated by the inclined arrangement can be used for storing accessories. The inclination angle θ may be a negative value.
If the cooling air 41 flows in from the rear part of the housing 9 and flows out from the front part, the cooling air 41 flows in the disk unit 31 from the rear part to the front part.
This is because it is better to lift the front part of the disk unit 31. That is, the inclination angle θ may be a plus value or a minus value as long as the inclination direction does not make it easy for the cooling air 41 to flow.

Next, an embodiment of the shape of the rail 35 for accommodating the disk units 31 (31a and 31b) will be described. 8 and 11 described above.
As shown in FIG. 24, the cross-sectional shape when viewed from the front is circular at the contact portion with the disk unit 31 and is made of metal such as SUS (stainless steel) or ethylene tetrafluoride resin (PTFE).
It is composed of a single material such as a material. In the rail 35,
The shape of the contact portion with the disk unit 31 may be rectangular or trapezoidal. Alternatively, the rail 35 may be made of an elastic material such as rubber, and may also be used as a shock mount for absorbing the self-vibration of the disk unit 31 and blocking external vibration. FIG. 25 shows another embodiment of the rail 35 in which the main body of the rail 35 is made of an elastic material such as rubber for removing vibration, and a thin SUS plate 35a is provided on the surface (the contact portion with the disk unit 31). This is an example in which a metal plate is provided. With this configuration, the disk unit 31 can be smoothly housed in the housing together with the function as a shock mount. Even in this case, the shape of the rail 35 may be rectangular or trapezoidal.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention, one magnetic disk drive 1 is cooled for each disk unit 31 constituted by one fan 13 and the duct 2 (or partition 10) surrounding the fan 13. In the case of failure, maintenance, etc., the disk unit 31 can be removed from the housing 9 in the minimum unit, so that there is no need to stop the other disk unit 31 (magnetic disk drive 1) at all and the operation can be continued. . here,
The removal of the disk unit 31 from the housing 9 may be achieved, for example, only by pulling the disk unit 31 forward (toward the door 38) in FIG. This is a major feature of the present invention, along with highly efficient cooling. However, when a certain disk unit 31 is taken out of the housing 9, that portion in the housing 9 becomes a space, and the cooling air 41 leaks into the space from the opening 14 of the adjacent disk unit 31. Of course it is necessary. As a countermeasure, for example, when the upper right disk unit in FIG. 6 is not mounted, the opening 14 of each disk unit 31 adjacent to the disk unit is used.
The cover plate 55 may be provided at the bottom. In this case, two are provided.

In the above embodiment, the blowing or suction fan 13 is used as the blowing means. However, if high-pressure cooling air is required as the magnetic disk device, a blower or a compressor is provided as the device, and the compression device formed there is provided. The air may be guided to the respective disk units 31 by pipes and ducts. Even at this time, the present invention is applied to the fan 1
The same effect as when using No. 3 can be expected. In order to further reduce the temperature rise of the magnetic disk drive 1, the fan 1
3 and the aforementioned cooling air 41 produced by a blower and a compressor.
Is cooled to a temperature lower than the ambient air temperature of the housing 9 by a cooler, and the cooled cooling air 41 is supplied to each disk unit 31.
You may lead to. At this time, of course, in order to prevent moisture from entering, it is necessary to take care that the temperature of the cooling air 41 does not become lower than the dew point temperature. In addition, if the cooling air 41 which has finished cooling the magnetic disk drive 1 is not discharged to the outside of the casing 9 but is collected and guided to the cooler inlet as it is, a closed loop of the cooling air 41 can be formed. It is possible to further prevent dust from entering the device. As a cooling medium for the cooler, if there is a large-sized computer or the like cooled by cooling water around it, a part of the cooling water may be guided and used, or a heat pump or the like newly provided in the magnetic disk drive may be used. May be a refrigerant by the refrigeration cycle. Here, the refrigeration cycle is constituted by a compressor, a condenser, an evaporator (a cooler for obtaining the cold cooling air 41), an expander, a switching valve such as a four-way valve, and a pipe connecting them. is there. As a shape example of the cooler, a fin tube type heat exchanger is preferable,
Cooling air for cooling the magnetic disk drive 1 is caused to flow between the fin surfaces, the cooling medium is caused to flow in the tube, and heat is exchanged to obtain cold cooling air 41. As another cooler, a heat pipe, an electronic refrigeration element (Peltier element), or the like can be used. Further, when the refrigeration cycle is used, when the magnetic disk drive 1 is started, the cooler is switched by switching a valve (for example, a four-way valve) in the refrigeration cycle so that the magnetic disk drive 1 quickly reaches a predetermined temperature. To act as a condenser, make hot air with the condenser,
The hot air may be guided to the disk unit 31 to quickly raise the temperature of the magnetic disk drive 1. When a predetermined temperature is reached, the valve is switched so that the cooler functions as an evaporator, which is the original purpose. With this configuration, the temperature rise time of the magnetic disk drive 1 is shorter than before, and it is possible to suppress the heat off-track and the like occurring at that time, and to improve the reliability and positioning accuracy of the magnetic disk device. Become.

In the various embodiments of the present invention described above, a detector for detecting the operating status of each fan 13 (blower means) of each disk unit 31 is added to the apparatus housing 9 to further enhance the reliability. However, a system may be provided that informs the user that the blower means 13 has stopped by the output signal of the detector when the blower means 13 has failed.

FIG. 26 shows an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is provided with a detector 21 for detecting the operating state of the fan 13, and a signal line 22 thereof is connected to a control circuit 23. The detector 21 may detect the current or power of the fan 13. Then, when the detector 21a of the fan 13a detects that a certain fan 13a has failed, the control circuit 23 notifies the user of the failure by a signal which can be recognized by eyes or ears via an output line 24. In this method, 2
There are a method using a display lamp such as 5; a method using a speaker such as 26;
These methods may be used alone or in combination. These control methods shown as examples in FIG. 26 are more effective when combined with other embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 27 shows an embodiment in which the stop detector is used in a magnetic disk drive, and shows only the vicinity of the center magnetic disk drive 1a in FIG. The same applies to other magnetic disk drives 1. 20c and 20d are shown in FIG.
The opening / closing means is similar to the damper shown in FIG. When the fan 13a rotates normally, the damper 2
When 0 is 20c (broken line), the cooling airflow 15 generated by the fan 13 flows toward the outlet 12a. When the fan 13a fails or stops, the detector 21a
Detects that the fan 13a is out of order, and detects the opening 1 of the duct-like partition 10 of the magnetic disk drive 1a having the fan 13a by the output line 24a of the control circuit 23.
4 is moved to the state of 20d (solid line), and the cooling air flow 1 of the adjacent magnetic disk drive 1 is moved.
5 is guided to the duct-like flow path 29 of the magnetic disk drive 1a. Further, at the same time, another output line 24b of the control circuit 23 informs the user through a display lamp 25, a speaker 26 and a print 27 as shown in FIG. The damper 20 serving as the opening / closing means shown in FIG. 27 may be a slide type instead of a rotary type.

FIG. 28 shows an example of a detection method for detecting the operation state of the fan 13. The detector 21 includes an ammeter 21 a for detecting the current of the drive power supply of the fan 13, and a wind speed for detecting the flow velocity of the blowout portion of the fan 13. The pressure gauge 21c for detecting the pressure of the air before and after the fan 21 and the pressure gauge 21c is preferable. These may be used alone or in combination. Then, these signal lines 22 are guided to the control circuit 23 and subjected to the above-described control. Further, even if the blower is not the fan 13, the present detector 21 can be used.

The following can also be performed using the detector. If the fan 13 that is cooling a certain disk unit 31 fails, the detector notifies the user of the failure of the fan 13 and the disk unit 3
Cooling fan 13 for the disk unit 31 adjacent to
Is controlled by the output of the detector to increase the amount of supplied air. This is because, when the fan 13 has failed or stopped, the disk unit 31 adjacent to the disk unit 31 from which the fan 13 has failed or stopped
When the rotation speed of the fan 13 is constant, the flow rate of the cooling air 15 of the adjacent disk unit 31 is reduced by the amount leaked. To compensate for this, it is desirable to increase the rotation speed of the fan 13 of the adjacent disk unit 31.

FIGS. 29 to 31 show another embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 29 and 31 are sectional views taken in the same direction as the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and FIG. 30 corresponds to FIG. It is sectional drawing. FIG. 29 shows that there is no partition 10 between the three magnetic disk drives 1 and there is no partition 10 between the three magnetic disk drives 1.
Is an embodiment in which all openings 14 are provided, and the number of magnetic disk drives 1 having no partition wall 10 may be three or more.
In the figure, the number of magnetic disk drives 1 and the number of fans 13
Are the same, but may be different in some cases. The direction of air flow by the fan 13 is 15a.
(Spraying) or 15b (sucking). Even with this configuration, when the three fans 13 are rotating normally, each magnetic disk drive 1 is efficiently cooled, and even if one fan 13 fails and stops, the other A part of the airflow from the magnetic disk drive 13 flows into the magnetic disk drive having the failed fan 13 to prevent the temperature of the magnetic disk drive 1 from abnormally rising. Further, as another embodiment, a shape in which the opening 14 is larger than that in FIG. 4 and the opening 14 is not as large as in FIG.

FIG. 30 shows an example in which the housing 9 of the embodiment of FIG. 29 is stacked in several stages, and a partition 10 is provided only in the vertical direction (the partition 10 is provided in the horizontal direction between magnetic disk drives).
No, the left-right direction between the magnetic disk drive each other is an opening portion 14 Te all <br/>). Of course, the partition 10 and the opening 14 may be reversed in the vertical and horizontal directions, or the partition 10 may be entirely in the opening 14 in the vertical and horizontal directions.
(The outer frame of the housing 9 alone and no partition 10) may be used.

FIG. 31 shows an embodiment in which two magnetic disk drives 1 are always paired and a duct-like partition 10 is provided, and the partition 10 between the two magnetic disk drives 1 is provided.
There is no opening between the two magnetic disk drives . Also in this case, the number of magnetic disk drives 1 and the number of fans 13 do not need to match. This effect is similar to that of FIG.

[0048]

According to the present invention, even if the blower of some magnetic disk drives fails, a part of the cooling air flows from the blower of the adjacent magnetic disk drive through the opening. As a result, the temperature rise of the magnetic disk drive in which the blower is stopped can be minimized, and a highly reliable magnetic disk device can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a housing of a magnetic disk drive of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the housing shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the housing shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the housing of the magnetic disk drive.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of still another embodiment of the housing of the magnetic disk drive.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the magnetic disk drive.

FIG. 8 is a partial front sectional view showing a state in which the magnetic disk unit is incorporated in a device housing.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a magnetic disk unit using a frame structure instead of a duct.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a magnetic disk unit having a duct.

11 is a front sectional view showing a state in which the magnetic disk unit shown in FIG. 10 is incorporated in an apparatus housing.

FIG. 12 is a longitudinal sectional view of the magnetic disk drive.

FIG. 13 is a longitudinal sectional view of the magnetic disk drive.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of a magnetic disk drive having a radiation fin.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a magnetic disk drive having radiation fins.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram of a linear radiation fin.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram of radial radiating fins.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram of a pin-shaped heat radiation fin.

FIG. 19 is a top sectional view showing a method of cooling the power supply and the circuit board.

FIG. 20 is a top sectional view showing a method of cooling the power supply and the circuit board.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory view of a fan having an opening / closing means (when opened).

FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram of a fan (when closed) having opening / closing means.

FIG. 23 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state where the magnetic disk unit is attached to the housing at an angle.

FIG. 24 is a front sectional view showing a shape of a rail.

FIG. 25 is a front sectional view showing a shape of a rail.

FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram of a control system that notifies a failure of a fan.

FIG. 27 is a diagram showing a magnetic disk drive having opening / closing means.

FIG. 28 is a diagram showing types of detectors and mounting positions.

FIG. 29 is a sectional view of a housing according to another embodiment of the present invention.

30 is a sectional view taken along the line QQ in FIG. 29.

FIG. 31 is a sectional view of a housing according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... disk drive, 2 ... duct, 3 ... disk, 5
... head, 9 ... housing, 10 ... partition wall, 11 ... suction port, 12
... outlet, 13 ... fan, 14 ... opening, 21 ... detector, 33 ... skeleton, 35 ... rail.

Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Toshio Ohira 2880 Kokuzu, Odawara-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture, Ltd.Odawara Plant, Hitachi, Ltd. ) inventor Yuji Nishimura Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture Kozu 2880 address, Ltd. Hitachi, Ltd. Odawara in the factory (56) references JitsuHiraku Akira 60-172390 (JP, U) (58 ) investigated the field (Int.Cl. ^7, DB name ) G11B 33/14 501

Claims (9)

(57) [Claims] 1. A magnetic disk drive in which a magnetic disk for storing information, a magnetic head for reading and writing information from and to the magnetic disk, and a carriage mechanism for positioning the magnetic head are sealed by a housing. In a magnetic disk drive in which a plurality of magnetic disk drives are stored in an apparatus housing, a partition is provided between the magnetic disk drives to separate and arrange the magnetic disk drives to form a storage room of the magnetic drive, and the magnetic storage is formed in the storage room. the blowing means for cooling the disk drive is provided, an opening between the storage chamber adjacent to the partition wall cooling air is communicated, said blowing means
The magnetic data blown by the cooling air blown by the
A magnetic disk drive, wherein a radiation fin is provided on a housing of a disk drive . 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said air blowing means is provided with a flow path opening / closing means for stopping a flow of cooling air, and a control means for opening said flow path opening / closing means when said air blowing means is operated. 2. The disk device according to 1. 3. The magnetic disk drive according to claim 1, further comprising a detector for detecting an operation state of a blower of the magnetic disk drive. 4. The magnetic disk drive according to claim 3, wherein an opening opening / closing means controlled by an output of said detector and capable of opening and closing said opening is provided at an opening of said partition. 5. A magnetic disk drive in which a magnetic disk for storing information, a magnetic head for reading and writing information from and to the magnetic disk, and a carriage mechanism for positioning the magnetic head are sealed by a housing. In a magnetic disk drive in which a plurality of magnetic disk drives are stored in a housing, a partition is provided between the magnetic disk drives so as to separate and arrange the magnetic disk drives, and a space between the storage chambers storing the magnetic disk drives adjacent to the partition is provided. An opening through which cooling air passes is provided, and the partition wall is a duct that surrounds the magnetic disk drive and a magnetic disk drive that constitutes a magnetic disk unit together with air blowing means of the magnetic disk drive, and is provided inside the magnetic disk device housing. Supporting the magnetic disk units individually Magnetic disk apparatus characterized in that a set. 6. A magnetic disk drive in which a plurality of magnetic disk drives in which a magnetic disk for storing information, a magnetic head for reading and writing the information, and a carriage mechanism for positioning the magnetic disk are sealed by a housing are housed in an apparatus housing. A partition for separating the magnetic disk drives is provided between the magnetic disk drives, and an opening for communicating the cooling air with the adjacent magnetic disk drive is provided on the partition in addition to an inlet and an outlet for cooling air. And a frame on which a magnetic disk drive constituting a magnetic disk unit is mounted together with the magnetic disk drives and the air blowing means of the magnetic disk drives, and the magnetic disk units are respectively housed in the magnetic disk device housing. Characterized in that the partition walls individually supported are provided. The magnetic disk device that. 7. The magnetic disk drive according to claim 5, wherein a drive power supply for the magnetic disk drive and a control circuit board are provided in each of the disk units. 8. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said opening through which said cooling air can communicate is provided near said housing surface.
7. A magnetic disk drive according to claim 6. 9. The magnetic disk drive according to claim 5, wherein each of the disk units or each of the magnetic disk drives stored in the magnetic disk drive housing is arranged to be inclined with respect to a horizontal direction. The magnetic disk device according to any one of the above.