JPH08129853A - Card type storage device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To reduce a bit unit price and to increase utility by freely integrating and separating a first card type casing housing a recording medium and a second card type casing having a control means for controlling the card type casing. CONSTITUTION: A latch 15 is driven by a slide switch 16 operated by a user from the outside and having a notched part 16a and a HDA package 11 and a control card package 14 are connected and their connection is released. In this case, since the control card package 14 is commonly used for the HDA package 11 different for use, a cost per bit for a card type storage device including the control card package 14 is reduced. Further, even when the HDA package 11 is replaced by, for instance, larger capacity one, the control card package 14 can be used, performance is improved at minimum costs.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a card type storage device, and more particularly to information of a portable personal computer,
The present invention relates to a technique effectively applied to a card type storage device used for OA, communication, and control equipment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, as a card type storage device mounted in a personal computer system,
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-181565, a card type magnetic disk having a structure in which a head disk assembly package is inseparably integrated with a card type package including a control circuit, or both are fixed by screwing. The device is known. Even if the two packages are fixed by screwing, the structure was not designed so that the end user would replace them.
Similarly, for IC memory cards, memory IC
Was mounted on the same substrate as the control circuit, so it was not possible to separate the two.

[0003]

One of the factors that hinders the popularization of card type magnetic disk devices is the price thereof. Although it is small and lightweight, it is a great advantage for portable information devices, etc., but its bit cost is relatively high compared to other large form factor magnetic disk devices, and it is necessary to spread it like a floppy disk. The bit cost must be reduced.

The card type magnetic disk device is roughly composed of two parts like the small magnetic disk device.
One is a head disk assembly (HDA), and the other is a printed circuit board on which a control circuit is mounted. In the IC memory card, both of them, that is, the IC memory of the storage medium corresponding to the HDA and the control circuit thereof are integrally mounted or divided into two packages and screwed.

Here, when the HDA has a plurality of disks and magnetic heads corresponding to the respective disk surfaces, it is advantageous in terms of price composition with the printed circuit board, but one disk and one magnetic head. Alternatively, in the case of two, the cost ratio of the printed circuit board becomes high. Although the number of ICs mounted on the printed circuit board has been reduced due to the improvement in the degree of integration, the cost has not reached the level where the cost can be relatively underestimated relative to HDA.

An object of the present invention is to provide a card type storage device which can realize a reduction in price per bit.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a card type storage device capable of improving performance by replacing parts at a minimum cost.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a card type storage device which can realize a reduction in price by sharing storage media of different categories.

[0009]

A card type storage device according to the present invention includes a first card type housing containing a storage medium and a control means for controlling a plurality of types of first card type housings having different specifications. The second card-type housing on which is mounted is freely integrated and separated by a connection mechanism that is detachably connected by a manual operation without a tool.

Specifically, for example, a connection mechanism such as a manually operated latch mechanism requires a tool such as a screwdriver for an HDA package containing a head disk assembly (HDA) and a control card package. It can be separated and replaced without any need. The latch mechanism mounts and fixes the HDA package or releases the HDA package by, for example, a slide switch incorporated in the control card package side. In addition, the slide switch allows the connector on the printed circuit board to move to HDA.
Mating with the connector built into the package enables electrical connection.

Also, the HDA package incorporates ID information giving the HDA type, and this ID information is transmitted to the control card package through the connector. In the circuit in the control card package, for example, when the power is turned on or at the time of resetting, the ID information is read, and the set values of the register or the like for determining the control operation are determined according to the HDA type.

Further, as the first card type casing, an IC memory package having a built-in printed circuit board on which a semiconductor memory (IC memory) is mounted can be connected to the control card package by the same mechanism as described above.
DA (Japan Electronic Industry Development Associ
ation) / PCMCIA (Personal Computer MemoryCa
ATA (AT At) compliant with the rd International Association
It can also be used as a tachment) card. In this case as well, the IC memory package incorporates ID information, and this ID information is read by the control card package through the connector, for example, at power-on or reset, and is set as an ATA card. .

[0013]

According to the card type storage device of the present invention as described above, the control means of the second card type housing can be commonly used for many types of the first card type housing having different specifications. This makes it possible to reduce the unit price of bits as a memory device, improve availability, and improve productivity.
It can also be used as an ATA card.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of a card type memory device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a side view showing an example of the assembling operation in order, FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the assembling operation in order, and FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an example of a part of the assembly operation.
6 is a perspective view showing an example of a part of the configuration thereof, and FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration thereof.

In the present embodiment, as an example of a card type storage device, a case of application to a card type magnetic disk device will be described as an example. The card-type magnetic disk device of this embodiment includes a head disk assembly (HDA) package 1
1 and two parts of the control card package 14. These two parts are electrically connected to each other via a connector 12 (male) provided on the HDA package 11 side and a connector 17 (female) provided on the control card package 14 side, and a control card. The plurality of latches 15 provided on both ends of the package 14 are HD
By inserting and fitting into the corresponding plurality of latch grooves 13 of the A package 11, they are mechanically connected together.

Connector 12 on the HDA package 11 side
Is a recess 1 formed in the opposite surface of the HDA package 11.
2a and a plurality of electrode pins 12b vertically projecting inside the recess 12a. Further, the connector 17 on the control card package 14 side is provided inside the convex portion 17 b protruding on the surface of the control card package 14,
A plurality of indenter electrodes 17a into which a plurality of electrode pins 12b of the connector 12 are press-fitted are arranged.

The latch 15 is a slide switch 16 having a notch portion 16a which is operated by the user from the outside.
The HDA package 11 and the control card package 14 are connected to each other and are disconnected from each other.

The integrated control card package 14 and HDA package 11 are provided in a portable information processing device (not shown) via a connector 18 provided at one end of the control card package 14, for example, type III of PCMCIA standard. It is installed in a slot for a PC card or the like.

That is, to show an example of the dimensions of each part in the case of this embodiment, the HDA package 11 has a width W1 = 54.
0 mm, depth D1 = 70.0 mm, thickness H1 = 7.5 mm, while the control card package 14 has a width W2 = 54.
The depth is 0 mm, the depth D2 is 85.6 mm, and the thickness H2 is 3.0 mm. The width W (= W1 = W
2) = 54.0 mm, depth D (= D2) = 85.6 mm, and thickness H (= H1 + H2) = 10.5 mm, which is a structure satisfying the standard dimensions for the PCMCIA standard type III PC card.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the slide switch 16 and the two latches 15 are fixed to a common shaft 19 built in the side surface of the control card package 14, and the shaft 19 is fixed by a spring 20. It is always urged to the right of 4. Due to the action of the spring 20, the position of the latch 15 (slide switch 16) is fixed to a fixed position as described later in a state where no external force is applied, and the slide switch 16 is moved to the left side of FIG. 4 against the biasing force of the spring 20. The fixed state can be released by moving the fixed direction.

Next, an example of the internal structure of each of the HDA package 11 and the control card package 14 is shown in FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG.

The HDA package 11 includes a head disk assembly 21 and an ID information storage section 22 (FIG. 6). The head disk assembly 21 is, for example,
As illustrated in FIG. 5, a predetermined number of magnetic disks 32, which are rotationally driven by a spindle motor 31, are supported by one end of a head arm 33.
A magnetic head 34 for recording / reproducing information to / from the actuator, an actuator 35 for moving and positioning the magnetic head 34 via a head arm 33, and the like.

The ID information storage unit 22 is composed of a read-only memory or the like that stores information relating to specifications such as the recording density and the number (storage capacity) of the magnetic disks 32 in the head disk assembly 21, for example. The ID signal 24 is output to the control card package 14 side via the connectors 12 and 17. In addition, ID
The information storage unit 22 is not limited to being configured by a memory or the like, but may be configured by a circuit element or the like that brings the signal line for the ID signal 24 in the connectors 12 and 17 into a specific logic state or a termination processing state.

On the other hand, the control card package 14 has a central processing unit 14a (CPU) which controls the entire control, and a read / write control circuit 14 which performs various controls of the head disk assembly 21 under the control of the central processing unit 14a.
b, the servo control circuit 14c, the spindle motor control circuit 14d, and an HD for controlling the exchange of information with the host host side connected via the connector 18.
The C interface control circuit 14e is provided. The read / write control circuit 14b has an HDA interface 23.
The transfer control of the recording / reproducing data is performed via. The servo control circuit 14c controls the actuator 35 via the HDA interface 23 to move or position the magnetic head 34 in the seek direction 32a with respect to the magnetic disk 32. Spindle motor control circuit 14d
The rotation operation of the magnetic disk 32 is controlled via the DA interface 23.

In this case, the control card package 1 is further added.
4 is provided with a buffer register 14f which is referred to by the above-mentioned central processing unit 14a and various control circuits under it. This buffer register 14f contains HD
ID information storage unit 22 provided on the A package 11 side
The control information is set by the ID signal 24 read from the control card package 14, and the control card package 14 performs an appropriate control operation according to the specifications of the head disk assembly 21 in the HDA package 11.

An example of the operation of this embodiment of the card type magnetic disk device will be described below.

First, as illustrated in FIG. 2A,
With respect to the control card package 14 in the posture in which the connector 17 and the plurality of latches 15 face upward, the connector 12
Then, the HDA package 11 facing downward so that the plurality of latch grooves 13 correspond is opposed.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2B, the operator operates the slide switch 16 so as to move it to the left in the figure against the urging force of the spring 20, and the shaft 19 is inserted. Latches 15 that interlock with the slide switch 16
Are moved to directly below the opening 13a of the corresponding latch groove 13, and the state is maintained.

In this state, as shown in FIG.
The control card package 14 and the HDA package 11 are united, the connector 12 is fitted into the connector 17, and at the same time, each of the plurality of latches 15 is inserted into the corresponding opening 13a of the latch groove 13. The relationship between the individual latches 15 and the latch grooves 13 at this time is as shown in FIG.

After that, when the operator releases the fixing operation of the slide switch 16, as shown in FIG.
The plurality of latches 15 move to the right in FIG. 2 by the urging force of 0, and the fitting claws 15a of each latch 15 move into
It fits into the protrusion 13b inside. The relationship between the individual latches 15 and the latch grooves 13 at this time is as shown in FIG.

By such a series of operations, the HDA package 11 and the control card package 14 are united and stably fixed without any tools or the like, and the card type magnetic disk device is obtained. Moreover, the separation operation of both is
By performing the operations in FIGS. 2A to 2D in the reverse order,
realizable. And the integrated HDA package 1
1 and a control card package 14, a card type magnetic disk device is a PCMCI in an arbitrary information processing device via a connector 18 of the control card package 14.
It is used by loading it in the Type III slot of A.

As described above, according to the card type storage device of the present embodiment, the control card package 14 can be commonly used for the HDA packages 11 different in use, so that the card including the control card package 14 can be used. The cost per bit as a type memory device can be reduced. Further, even if the HDA package 11 is replaced with a larger capacity one, the control card package 14
Can be used as is, so at minimum cost,
It is possible to improve performance by replacing parts.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an example of a card type magnetic disk device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

In the case of the second embodiment, the structure for mechanically coupling the HDA package 11A and the control card package 14A and the structure of the connector for electrically connecting the two are different from those of the first embodiment. ing.

That is, a pair of latch mechanisms 50 as illustrated in FIG. 10 are built in at both ends of the control card package 14A. Each of the latch mechanisms 50 has a slide switch 51 having a notch 51a for manual operation, a shaft 52 linearly driven in the axial direction by the slide switch 51, and a screw carved on the shaft 52. The shaft 53 is screwed into the screw part 53 and the shaft 53 by the linear movement of the shaft 52.
2, a pair of latch claws 54 and 55 that rotate around 2, and a spring 56 that constantly biases the shaft 52 to the right in FIG. The screw portion 53 is made of, for example, a multi-thread screw, and is configured such that a large amount of rotational movement of the latch claw 54 and the latch claw 55 can be obtained by a slight axial displacement of the shaft 52. The latch mechanism 5 attached to each side end of the control card package 14A
0, the directions of the screw portions 53 are opposite to each other, and the linear displacement of the slide switch 51 in the same direction causes the pair of the latch claws 54 and 55 on each side to rotate in opposite directions.

When no external force acts on the slide switch 51, the latch claws 54 and 55 are urged by the spring 56 against the shaft 52 so that the latch claws 54 and 55 are located inside the storage hole 57 opened on the surface of the control card package 14A as shown in FIG. Then, by operating the slide switch 51, the slide switch 51 is projected from the surface of the control card package 14A as illustrated in FIG. The rotation angles of the latch claws 54 and 55 are, for example, 30 degrees at a position further outside the position (position shown by the solid line in FIG. 10) perpendicular to the surface of the control card package 14A (position shown by the broken line in FIG. 10). It is set to be tiltable.

Further, as illustrated in FIG. 11, at one end of the control card package 14A, a plurality of indenter electrodes for electrical connection are electrically connected from the surface of the control card package 14A by a rotating operation by a manual operation. A female connector 60 capable of vertically raising the arrangement surface of 60a.
Is provided. That is, the connector 60 is rotatable integrally with the control card package 14A by fitting the rotary shafts 61 provided on both side surfaces into the shaft holes 61a provided on the control card package 14A side. It is installed. Further, fixing protrusions 62 are provided on both side surfaces of the connector 60, and the fixing protrusions 62 are fitted into fixing holes 62a formed on the side of the control card package 14A. As illustrated, the control card package 14A is housed in a retracted state. The fitting force between the fixing projection 62 and the fixing hole 62a is adjusted so as to be easily released by a manual operation and not to be removed when an external force is not applied.

The connector 60 is electrically connected to the printed circuit board 64 on the control card package 14A side via the connection terminal 63a of the flexible printed circuit board 63 (FPC) so as not to restrain the tilting operation of the connector 60 with respect to the control card package 14A. Connected to each other.

A connector 18 is provided on the end surface of the control card package 14A opposite to the connector 60.

On the other hand, on both side surfaces of the HDA package 11A, latch grooves 54a and 55a are provided at positions corresponding to the latch claws 54 and 55 of the latch mechanism 50.
Is formed, and the latch claws 54 and 55 projecting on the surface of the control card package 14A are respectively fitted.

Further, on the surface of the HDA package 11A facing the control card package 14A, the first embodiment described above is used.
Male connector 70 having the same structure as the connector 12 in FIG.
Is provided and is configured to be fitted with the connector 60 on the control card package 14A side.

An example of an assembling procedure of the card type magnetic disk device of this embodiment will be described below. When the HDA package 11A and the control card package 14A are disjointed, there is no protrusion on the HDA package 11A side. Also, on the side of the control card package 14A,
The plurality of latch claws 54 and 55 are pulled into the storage hole 57, and the connector 60 is also pulled into the control card package 14A. There is no.

Next, when assembling, first, the connector 60 of the control card package 14A is tilted by a manual operation, so that the control card package 1
4A is raised vertically to the surface facing the HDA package 11A.

Further, the slide switch 51 is replaced by the spring 5
By manually moving the control card package 14A in the longitudinal direction (direction away from the connector 60) against the biasing force of 6, the plurality of latch claws 54 and 55 are projected to the outside of the storage hole 57, and the control is performed. It is moved from a position perpendicular to the plane of the card package 14A to a position further tilted outward (position indicated by a broken line in FIG. 10),
The slide switch 51 is held at that position. This state is illustrated in FIG.

Next, the HDA package 11A is brought into close contact with the control card package 14A, the connector 60 and the connector 70 are fitted together, and the slide switch 5
When the holding state of No. 1 is released, the biasing force of the spring 56 causes the shaft 52 to move in the direction opposite to that in the manual operation, that is, in the direction of approaching the connector 60, and accordingly, the latch claws 54 and 55 move. , So that it is perpendicular to the plane of the control card package 14A (HDA package 1
It tilts in a direction approaching the side surface of 1A) and stops at a position where it fits into the corresponding latch groove 54a and latch groove 55a on the side surface of the HDA package 11A, and that state is maintained by the biasing force of the spring 56. As a result, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the HDA package 11A and the control card package 14A are mechanically and electrically fixed together.

The HDA package 11A and the control card package 14A thus integrated are connected via the connector 18 of the control card package 14A, for example,
Type of PC card provided in portable information processing devices, etc.
It is loaded into a III-specification slot and operated.

As described above, also in the case of this embodiment, by manually operating the slide switch 51 of the latch mechanism 50,
The HDA package 11A and the control card package 14A can be easily integrated without a tool. Also,
On the control card package 14A side, the connector 60 is also
Since the control card package 14A can be folded so that it does not protrude to the outside, it is possible to reduce the storage space when handling a large number of control card packages 14A at once.

(Example 3) The above-mentioned Examples 1 and 2
Then, in each case, the control card packages 14 and 14
The case where the HDA packages 11 and 11A having the head disk assembly 21 built therein as the control target of A are integrated has been described. However, as described below, the IC memory card package 11B having an IC memory having a semiconductor memory as a storage medium is incorporated. It can also be controlled. The external shape and the mechanical and electrical connection methods are HDA
Since it is the same as the package 11, the HDA package 11 of FIG. 1 will be described as an IC memory card package 11B.

In this case, the circuit of the control card package 14 can be configured exclusively for the IC memory card, but the JEID
To realize the function of the ATA card proposed by A / PCMCIA, the circuit of the control card package 14 for the head disk assembly 21 illustrated in the first embodiment is
Use of the control card package 14 for both control of the HDA package 11 having the head disk assembly 21 and the IC memory card package 11B having the IC memory by adding an interface signal line dedicated to the ATA card. You can

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an example of the circuit configuration of the control card package 14 and the IC memory card package 11B of this embodiment.

The IC memory card package 11B has an IC memory 81 built therein as a storage medium.
The IC memory 81 is composed of, for example, a DRAM or a batch erasable EEPROM. Further, the ID information storage unit 82 stores the IC memory card package 11
Information about specifications such as the type of storage medium and the control method in B is stored.

The IC memory card package 11B and the control card package 14 include a connector 12 and a connector 1.
By fitting 7, the address control signal and the read / write signal 83 for accessing the IC memory 81 are exchanged.

As in the case of the first embodiment, the I and I are connected via the connector 12 and the connector 17, for example, when the power is turned on.
An ID signal 84 indicating the type of the IC memory 81 incorporated in the C memory card package 11B is transmitted to the control card package 14.

In the control card package 14, when shared with the HDA package 11, control circuits such as the read / write control circuit 14b, the servo control circuit 14c, and the spindle motor control circuit 14d exist without being used. Will be done.

As described above, in the case of the third embodiment, the control card package 14 is commonly used for various control objects regardless of the category of the storage medium such as the magnetic disk device or the IC memory. The control card package 14 and the control card package 1
It is possible to further promote the cost reduction per bit of the card type magnetic disk device and the card type IC memory using the No.

From the user's point of view, one control card package 14 is connected to the HDA packages 11 and I.
Since it can be shared by both the C memory card package 11B, even if the HDA package 11 is replaced with the IC memory card package 11B or vice versa,
It is not necessary to replace the control card package 14, and the performance improvement due to replacement can be realized at low cost.

[0058]

According to the card type storage device of the present invention, it is possible to reduce the price per bit.

Further, it is possible to obtain the effect that the performance can be improved by replacing the parts at the minimum cost.

Further, by sharing the storage media of different categories, it is possible to obtain the effect that the price can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of a card type storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A to FIG. 2D are side views sequentially showing an example of an assembling operation of the card type storage device which is an embodiment of the present invention.

3A to 3C are conceptual diagrams sequentially showing an example of an assembling operation of the card type storage device which is an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an example of a part of the configuration of a card type storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a partial configuration of a card type storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an example of an internal configuration of a card type storage device which is an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an example of a card type magnetic disk device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of an operation of a card type magnetic disk device which is another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing an example of an operation of a card type magnetic disk device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the internal structure of a card type magnetic disk device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the internal structure of a card type magnetic disk device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an example of a circuit configuration of a card type storage device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 ... HDA package, 11A ... HDA package,
11B ... IC memory card package, 12 ... Connector, 12a ... Recess, 12b ... Electrode pin, 13 ... Latch groove, 13a ... Opening, 13b ... Projection, 14 ... Control card package, 14A ... Control card package, 14a
... Central processing unit, 14b ... Read / write control circuit, 1
4c ... Servo control circuit, 14d ... Spindle motor control circuit, 14e ... HDC interface control circuit, 14f
... buffer register, 15 ... latch, 15a ... fitting claw,
16 ... Slide switch, 16a ... Notch part, 17 ... Connector, 17a ... Indenter electrode, 17b ... Convex part, 18 ... Connector, 19 ... Shaft, 20 ... Spring, 21 ... Head disk assembly, 22 ... ID information storage part, 23 … HDA
Interface, 24 ... ID signal, 31 ... Spindle motor, 32 ... Magnetic disk, 32a ... Seek direction, 33
... head arm, 34 ... magnetic head, 35 ... actuator, 50 ... latch mechanism, 51 ... slide switch, 5
1a ... Notch part, 52 ... Shaft, 53 ... Screw part, 54
... Latching claws, 54a ... Latching grooves, 55 ... Latching claws, 55
a ... Latch groove, 56 ... Spring, 57 ... Storage hole, 60 ... Connector, 60a ... Indenter electrode, 61 ... Rotation shaft, 61a ... Shaft hole, 62 ... Fixing projection, 62a ... Fixing hole, 63 ... Flexible printed circuit board, 63a ... Connection terminal, 64 ... Printed circuit board, 70 ... Connector, 81 ... IC memory, 82 ... I
D information storage unit, 83 ... Read / write signal, 84 ... ID
signal.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Koji Kodama 2880 Kozu, Odawara, Kanagawa Stock Company Hitachi Ltd. Storage Systems Division

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A first card type housing containing a storage medium, a second card type housing containing a control means for controlling the storage medium, and the first and second card type housings. A card-type storage device, comprising: a connection mechanism for connecting and disconnecting by a manual operation without tools. 2. A magnetic disk as the storage medium, a magnetic head for recording and reproducing information on the magnetic disk, and a positioning operation of the magnetic head with respect to the magnetic disk. A head disk assembly including an actuator and
2. The card type storage device according to claim 1, further comprising a memory package including a semiconductor memory as the storage medium. 3. The first card type housing has identification information for discriminating the specifications of the first card type housing,
2. The control unit of the second card-type housing switches the control operation by reading the identification information and determining the type of the first card-type housing.
Card type storage device described.