Storage device with adaptive voltage generation system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9530438-B1
Application number	US-201615005633-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Jan 25, 2016
Priority date	Apr 30, 2015
Publication date	Dec 27, 2016
Grant date	Dec 27, 2016

Abstract

Apparatus and method for generating supply voltages in a data storage device. In some embodiments, the apparatus includes a data transducer adjacent a rotatable magnetic recording medium, the data transducer having a write coil and an electromagnetic source for thermally assisted recording by the write coil. A preamplifier/driver circuit (preamp) has a write driver adapted to supply write currents to the write coil and a source driver adapted to supply source voltage to the electromagnetic source. A voltage regulation circuit applies a first positive supply voltage to the write driver and a different, second positive supply voltage to the source driver.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a programmable controller circuit; and
a voltage source circuit configured to apply a first positive rail voltage to a write driver circuit adapted to supply write currents to a write element to write data to a storage medium and to apply a lower, second positive rail voltage to a source driver circuit adapted to supply electrical current to an electromagnetic source to apply electromagnetic energy to the storage medium, the second positive rail voltage having a magnitude selected responsive to a programming input from the controller circuit.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the voltage source circuit is further configured to apply a first negative rail voltage to the write driver circuit and to apply a second negative rail voltage to the source driver circuit.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the first negative rail voltage is nominally equal to the second negative rail voltage.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the programming input is selected responsive to a radial position of a transducer with respect to the storage medium.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the programming input is selected responsive to a head selection value with respect to the storage medium.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , in combination with the write element characterized as a perpendicular magnetic write coil and in combination with the electromagnetic source characterized as a laser diode.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , in combination with a preamplifier/driver circuit which incorporates the write driver circuit and the source driver circuit, the preamplifier/driver circuit affixed to a rotary actuator adjacent the storage medium.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the voltage source circuit comprises a programmable DC-DC converter circuit that outputs the second positive supply voltage with a magnitude within a predetermined range less than the first positive supply voltage responsive to the programmable input from the controller circuit.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the DC-DC converter is a switching regulator.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the DC-DC converter is a linear regulator.

11. A data storage device comprising:
a head disc assembly (HDA) comprising a sealed enclosure which houses a rotatable data recording medium, a data transducer moveable with respect to the medium, and a preamplifier/driver circuit coupled to the data transducer, the transducer comprising a write element and an electromagnetic source, the preamplifier/driver circuit comprising a write driver circuit configured to apply write currents to the write element and source currents to the electromagnetic source; and
a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) affixed to the HDA comprising a controller circuit and a voltage regulation circuit, the voltage regulation circuit configured to supply a fixed positive rail voltage to the write driver circuit and a variable positive rail voltage, less than the fixed positive supply voltage, to the source driver circuit, the variable positive rail voltage having a magnitude established by a programming input value supplied by the controller circuit.

12. The data storage device of claim 11 , wherein the programming input value is selected responsive to a temperature value associated with the data storage device.

13. The data storage device of claim 11 , wherein the HDA comprises first and second data transducers adjacent different data recording medium surfaces, wherein the controller circuit supplies a first programming input value to the source driver circuit to output a first variable positive rail voltage responsive to selection of the first data transducer, and supplies a different, second programming input value to the source driver circuit to output a different, second variable positive rail voltage responsive to selection of the second data transducer.

14. The data storage device of claim 11 , wherein the voltage regulation circuit further supplies a negative rail voltage to each of the write driver circuit and the source driver circuit.

15. The data storage device of claim 11 , wherein the voltage regulation circuit supplies a first negative rail voltage to the write driver circuit and a second, different negative rail voltage to the source driver circuit.

16. The data storage device of claim 11 , wherein the programming input is selected responsive to a radial position of a transducer with respect to the storage medium.

17. A method comprising:
positioning a data transducer adjacent a rotatable data storage medium, the data transducer comprising a write element adapted to write data to the medium and an electromagnetic source adapted to apply electromagnetic energy to the medium;
applying a first positive rail voltage to a write driver circuit to supply write currents to the write element; and
applying a lower, second positive rail voltage to a source driver circuit to supply source currents to the electromagnetic source responsive to a programming input value.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the rotatable data storage medium is a perpendicular magnetic recording medium, the write element is a perpendicular write coil, and the electromagnetic source is a heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) system comprising a laser diode.

19. The method of claim 17 , further comprising sensing a temperature associated with the data transducer, and selecting the programming input value responsive to the sensed temperature.

20. The method of claim 17 , further comprising sensing a radial position of the transducer with respect to the medium, and selecting the programming input value responsive to the sensed radial position.

Assignees

• Seagate Technology Llc

Inventors

• Trantham Jon D
• Lammers Todd M

Classifications

• G11B5/09 Primary

  Digital recording · CPC title

• G11B5/02

  Recording, reproducing, or erasing methods; Read, write or erase circuits therefor · CPC title

• G11B2005/0021

  Thermally assisted recording using an auxiliary energy source for heating the recording layer locally to assist the magnetization reversal · CPC title

• G11B2005/0024

  Microwave assisted recording · CPC title

• G11B5/4853

  Constructional details of the electrical connection between head and arm · CPC title