JPH0281358A - Floppy disk device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To directly confirm the positioning of a head to an outermost peripheral track when a floppy disk is inserted into a floppy disk device by providing a function to read and check the special information of the outer-most peripheral track on the positioned head. CONSTITUTION:When a floppy disk 1 is inserted into a floppy disk device, the device positions a head to the outer-most peripheral track, and following the completion of the positioning, the device reads the specified part of the recording information of a track. By reading the recording information, the positioning of the head is directly confirmed to the outer-most peripheral track, at this time, when an abnormal positioning is confirmed, the revolution of a spindle motor 2 of the device is stopped, and the abnormality can be reported to a host controller 7. Thus, the positioning of the head to the outer-most peripheral track of the floppy disk can be early confirmed only by the floppy disk device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a floppy disk device, and more particularly to a floppy disk device suitable for extending the life of a floppy disk and ensuring the safety of information recorded in the floppy disk.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, in order to extend the life of floppy disks, head load control is used to turn on the head only when recording or reproducing information, and the rotation of the spindle motor of the device is stopped when the disk is not in use for a long period of time. When the specified rotation is not achieved, the rotation of the motor is stopped.

Also, the spindle motor is stopped when the head leaves the recording track and moves further to the inner circumference. In conventional devices, positioning to the outermost track is determined by a distance position using a sensor, and is indirect positioning that is unrelated to recorded information. The related technology is Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-44351.
Publication No.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

In the conventional technology, the positioning of the head to the outermost track of the floppy disk is determined by the distance from the reference position of the device using a sensor, and the positional relationship with the track within the floppy disk is not directly detected. However, depending on the malfunction of the head positioning mechanism on the device side (such as an abnormal distance dimension).

Even if the positioning of the floppy disk to the outermost track is not set correctly, the floppy disk device will operate normally, and the abnormality will not be confirmed until the track recording information is read from the host controller. However, even during this time, the floppy disk is still being rotated by the device's spindle motor, which shortens the life of the recording medium. In addition, if there is a defect such as a scratch on the outermost track on the recording medium side due to the intrusion of foreign matter, the recording medium will not be attached to the spindle of the device until the system reads the recorded information on the outermost track. Since it is rotated by a motor, track defects such as scratches on the recording medium are magnified, information is easily destroyed, and safety is compromised.

An object of the present invention is to provide a floppy disk device that solves the above problems.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention positions the head at the outermost 1-rack when a floppy disk is inserted into a floppy disk device, and after this positioning is completed, the device reads a specific part of the recorded information of the track. . Usually, specific control management information is recorded on the outermost track based on a specific format, so setting of information for read verification is easy. By reading the recorded information, head positioning can be directly confirmed for the outermost track, and if abnormal positioning is confirmed at this point, the rotation of the spindle motor of the device can be stopped and the abnormality can be reported to the higher-level control device. shall be. Previously, problems could not be confirmed unless this control was performed by the system, but this allows early confirmation using only the floppy disk device. If the inserted floppy disk has not been formatted, a message to that effect is sent to the floppy disk device in advance.
Execution of this control may be controlled by giving an instruction using a switch function or the like.

[For production]

When a floppy disk system performs control, it is necessary to first read and recognize specific control management information recorded on the outermost track, so when a floppy disk is inserted into the device, the floppy disk device Positioning the head on the outermost track improves system efficiency and is not a problem. Information on the outermost track is usually recorded with specific information in a specific format using a specific recording method, so it is suitable for checking the reading of information, and since no writing is performed during the check, there is no problem. System efficiency is increased because it also serves as an operation check for the readout circuit system of the device. When an unformatted floppy disk is inserted, if the spindle motor stops rotating because predetermined information cannot be obtained, the floppy disk becomes unusable. To cope with this, if the floppy disk device has a switch function or a function that can be controlled by instructions from the transmission signal line, any floppy disk can be used, so there is no problem.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. The control circuit 7 in the floppy disk device outputs the signal d when the sensor 5 detects that the floppy disk 1 is inserted into the device using the signal a, and the control circuit 7 outputs the signal d.
to rotate the floppy disk 1. on the other hand,
The step motor 3 is driven under the control of the signal C so that the head 8 is positioned on the outermost track based on the output signal C of the sensor 4. The drive of the step motor 3 is converted into linear motion, and the head 8 moves to the detection point of the sensor 4,
Stops at a predetermined position condition. Control by this sensor 4 is the same as the conventional method, and the head 8 is placed on the outermost track by setting the position of the sensor 4 and the distance dimension of the head moving mechanism.
is positioned. After that, the control circuit 7 reads the information signal f of the outermost track from the head 8. The signal f read from the outermost track outputs the track information of one rotation of the floppy disk 1. Information in a specific range is checked based on the index signal generated from index hole 1. It is of course possible to check all the information for one round of the outermost track, but the floppy disk inserted at this time must be recorded in a predetermined format.

By checking the read signal f, for example, the signal f
If an abnormality is detected, such as no data is present, the read signal is abnormally small, or the data value is different, the control circuit 7 outputs the signal d.
is cut off, and the rotation of the spindle motor 2 is stopped.

If the floppy disk 9 is unformatted, a signal e to that effect is sent to the control circuit 7 of the device in advance.
A switch 6 is installed for control such as inputting the signal f and inhibiting the check function of the signal f. The function corresponding to the switch 6 can also be performed outside the device (for example, a control signal). This allows the device's head positioning mechanism (step motor 3,
After the head 8 is positioned by the position setting of the sensor 4, etc., it is possible to check only with the floppy disk device before system control operation whether the head 8 is actually positioned at the center of the outermost track of the floppy disk 1. .

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the positioning of the head to the outermost track can be directly confirmed when the floppy disk is inserted into the floppy disk device, so that the following effects can be obtained.

1) An error in head positioning can be confirmed when the floppy disk is inserted into the device.

2) You can check whether the inserted floppy disk is appropriate or not at the time of inserting the floppy disk.

3) Since the head is positioned on the outermost track when a floppy disk is inserted, there is no need for the system to control the positioning of the head on the outermost track.

4) It is possible to use a floppy disk that has not been formatted in a specified manner by using a switch function or the like.

5) The lifespan of floppy disks can be extended.

6) It is possible to suppress the spread of defects such as scratches in the recording medium, thereby increasing the security of recorded information such as preventing information destruction.

7) Troubleshooting becomes easier because abnormalities can be confirmed early.

8) Since abnormalities can be confirmed before system control is implemented, system downtime can be reduced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Floppy disk, 2... Spindle motor, 3... Step motor, 4... Sensor, 5... Sensor, 6... Switch, 7... Control circuit, 8... head.

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In a floppy disk device that reads and writes information on a floppy disk, when a floppy disk is inserted into the device, the head positioning mechanism positions the head to the outermost track, and the positioned head moves to the outermost track. A floppy disk device having a function of reading and checking specific information, and stopping rotation of a spindle motor if the specific information is not read correctly.