Bulk feeding disk drives to disk drive testing systems

• US 8,041,449 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2008
• Issued: 10/18/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Teradyne Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Teradyne Incorporated
• Inventors: Noble, Scott, Merrow, Brian S., Polyakov, Evgeny, Garcia, Edward, Truebenbach, Eric L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Crawford; Gene
• Assistant Examiner(s): CUMBESS, YOLANDA R
• Application Number:
  US12/104,869
• Publication Number:
  US 20090262445A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,279 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 700/213
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 17/225 wherein the disks are transferred from a fixed magazine to a fixed playing unit using a moving carriage
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/1816 Testing
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2516 Hard disks
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/41 Flat as opposed to hierarchical combination, e.g. library of tapes or discs, CD changer, or groups of record carriers that together store one title
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/36 Monitoring, i.e. supervising the progress of recording or reproducing for digital recording G11B20/00 and s.gr.; for monitoring, testing or measuring of TV recorders of the type covered by H04N5/76 and subgroups, see H04N17/06
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 33/128 of the plurality of recording/reproducing devices, e.g. disk drives, onto a chassis

Abstract

A method of supplying disk drives to a disk drive testing system includes placing a disk drive tote, carrying multiple disk drives, in a presentation position accessible to an automated transporter of the disk drive testing system. The method includes actuating the automated transporter to retrieve one of the disk drives from the disk drive tote, and actuating the automated transporter to deliver the retrieved disk drive to a test slot of the disk drive testing system and insert the disk drive in the test slot.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

performing one or more of first operations or second operations;

wherein the first operations comprise;

loading, by a first disk drive tote, multiple disk drives into a disk drive testing system;

actuating an automated transporter to retrieve a first disk drive from the multiple disk drives in the first disk drive tote;

actuating the automated transporter to deliver the first disk drive to a first test slot of the disk drive testing system;

inserting the first disk drive in the first test slot; and

unloading the first disk drive tote from the disk drive testing system; and

wherein the second operations comprise;

loading a second disk drive tote into the disk drive testing system;

actuating the automated transporter to retrieve a second disk drive from a second test slot of the disk drive testing system;

actuating the automated transporter to deliver the second disk drive to the second disk drive tote; and

unloading, by the second disk drive tote, the second disk drive from the disk drive testing system.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

actuating the automated transporter to retrieve a disk drive transporter;

wherein actuating the automated transporter to retrieve the first disk drive comprises;

actuating the automated transporter to retrieve the first disk drive from the first disk drive tote by using the disk drive transporter to carry the first disk drive; and

wherein actuating the automated transporter to deliver the first disk drive to the first test slot comprises;

actuating the automated transporter to deliver the disk drive transporter carrying the first disk drive to the first test slot.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the automated transporter retrieves the first disk drive from the first disk drive tote with the disk drive transporter by performing operations comprising:

positioning the disk drive transporter below the first disk drive;

lifting the first disk drive off a disk drive support of the first disk drive tote; and

carrying the first disk drive in the disk drive transporter away from the first disk drive tote.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the disk drive transporter, carrying the first disk drive, is inserted into the first test slot, engaging the first disk drive with a connector of the disk drive testing system, and providing closure of the first test slot.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first disk drive tote is held in a presentation position by a transfer station configured to hold multiple disk drive totes in the presentation position for servicing by the automated transporter.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

actuating the automated transporter to retrieve a third disk drive from the multiple disk drives in the first disk drive tote; and

actuating the automated transporter to deliver the retrieved third disk drive to a third test slot of the disk drive testing system and to insert the third disk drive in the third test slot.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first disk drive tote is supported in a presentation position by a tote presentation support system.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the tote presentation support system comprises first and second opposing pairs of tote support arms configured to be received by respective arm grooves defined by a tote body of the first disk drive tote.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

placing the first disk drive tote in a loading position on a transfer station; and

actuating the transfer station to move the first disk drive tote from the loading position to a presentation position for servicing by the automated transporter.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

reading a tote marking on the first disk drive tote; and

wherein actuating the transfer station to move the first disk drive tote comprises;

actuating the transfer station to move the first disk drive tote from the loading position to the presentation position based on the tote marking.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the tote marking comprises a barcode.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the tote marking comprises a color marking.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising assigning the first disk drive tote a function property that affects usage of the first disk drive tote in the disk drive testing system.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the function property is dynamically re-assignable during usage of the first disk drive tote in the disk drive testing system.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the transfer station comprises:

a transfer station housing;

multiple tote presentation support systems disposed on the transfer station housing, a tote presentation support system configured to receive and to support at least the first disk drive tote in the presentation position for servicing by the disk drive testing system; and

a tote mover disposed on the transfer station housing and configured to move at least the first disk drive tote between the loading position and the presentation position at one of the multiple tote presentation support systems.

16. A method comprising:

performing one or more of first operations or second operations;

wherein the first operations comprise;

loading multiple disk drives into a first disk drive tote;

placing the first disk drive tote in a loading position on a transfer station;

loading, by the first disk drive tote in the loading position, the multiple disk drives into a disk drive testing system;

actuating a tote mover of the transfer station to move the first disk drive tote from the loading position to a presentation position for retrieval of at least one of the multiple disk drives by the disk drive testing system; and

unloading the first disk drive tote from the disk drive testing system; and

wherein the second operations comprise;

placing a second disk drive tote in the loading position on the transfer station;

loading the second disk drive tote into the disk drive testing system;

actuating a tote mover of the transfer station to move the second disk drive tote from the loading position to the presentation position for receipt of a disk drive retrieved from a test slot of the disk drive testing system; and

unloading, by the second disk drive tote, the disk drive from the disk drive testing system.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first disk drive tote comprises a tote body defining multiple disk drive receptacles configured to each house a disk drive.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

opening a door to an open position, the door being pivotally attached to a transfer station housing of the transfer station and configured to provide closure of a tote supply opening defined by the transfer station housing;

placing the first disk drive tote in a preloading position on the door, the door being configured to receive and to support the first disk drive tote; and

closing the door by rotating the door to a closed position.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the tote mover comprises a multi-axis actuator assembly configured to move the first disk drive tote between the loading position and the presentation position.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the multi-axis actuator assembly comprises a vertical actuator, a horizontal actuator, and a pitch actuator.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the multi-axis actuator assembly comprises:

a first linear actuator disposed on a side wall of the transfer station housing;

a lift carriage coupled to the first linear actuator;

a second linear actuator disposed on the lift carriage and pivotally coupled to a tote loading support configured to support at least the first disk drive tote; and

a third linear actuator pivotally coupled to both the second linear actuator and the tote loading support, the third linear actuator configured to rotate the tote loading support.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the first disk drive tote is supported in the presentation position by one of multiple tote presentation support systems disposed on a transfer station housing of the transfer station.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the multiple tote presentation support systems are arranged vertically with respect to each other.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein a tote presentation support system comprises first and second opposing pairs of tote support arms configured to be received by respective arm grooves defined by a tote body of the first disk drive tote.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the arm grooves are releasably locked into a predetermined position on the tote support arms, thereby holding the first disk drive tote in the presentation position.

26. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

loading multiple disk drive totes onto the transfer station, wherein the multiple disk drive totes comprise at least the first disk drive tote and the second disk drive tote, and wherein each of the multiple disk drive totes houses disk drives, and wherein loading the multiple disk drive totes comprises;

sequentially placing each disk drive tote in the loading position on the transfer station; and

actuating the tote mover to move each disk drive tote to the presentation position at one of the multiple presentation positions for servicing by the disk drive testing system.

27. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

reading a tote marking on the first disk drive tote; and

actuating the tote mover to move the first disk drive tote from the loading position to the presentation position at one of the multiple tote presentation support systems based on the tote marking.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the tote marking is read by a marking reader disposed on the tote mover.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein the tote marking comprises a barcode.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein the tote marking comprises a color marking.

31. The method of claim 27, further comprising assigning the first disk drive tote a function property that affects the usage of the first disk drive tote in the disk drive testing system.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the function property is dynamically re-assignable during usage of the first disk drive tote in the disk drive testing system.

33. A transfer station for a disk drive testing system, the transfer station comprising:

a transfer station housing;

multiple tote presentation support systems disposed on the transfer station housing, a tote presentation support system configured to receive and to support at least a first disk drive tote in a presentation position for servicing by the disk drive testing system; and

a tote mover disposed on the transfer station housing and configured to (i) move at least the first disk drive tote between a loading position and the presentation position at one of the multiple tote presentation support systems, and (ii) perform one or more of first operations or second operations;

wherein the first operations comprise;

loading, by the first disk drive tote, multiple disk drives into the disk drive testing system; and

following retrieval of at least one of the multiple disk drives from the first disk drive tote;

unloading the first disk drive tote from the disk drive testing system; and

wherein the second operations comprise;

loading a second disk drive tote into the disk drive testing system; and

following receipt of at least one disk drive in the second disk drive tote;

unloading, by the second disk drive tote, the at least one disk drive from the disk drive testing system.

34. The transfer station of claim 33, further comprising:

a door pivotally attached to the transfer station housing and configured to provide closure of a tote supply opening defined by the transfer station housing;

wherein the door is further configured to pivot between (i) an open position, for receiving and supporting the first disk drive tote, and (ii) a closed position, for placing the first disk drive tote in the loading position.

35. The transfer station of claim 33, wherein the tote presentation support system comprises first and second opposing pairs of tote support arms configured to be received by respective arm grooves defined by a tote body of the first disk drive tote.

36. The transfer station of claim 33, wherein the tote mover comprises a multi-axis actuator assembly having a vertical actuator, a horizontal actuator, and a pitch actuator.

37. A transfer station for a disk drive testing system, the transfer station comprising:

a transfer station housing;

multiple tote presentation support systems disposed on the transfer station housing, a tote presentation support system configured to receive and to support a disk drive tote in a presentation position for servicing by the disk drive testing system;

a tote mover disposed on the transfer station housing; and

a tote loading support pivotally coupled to the tote mover and configured to receive and to support the disk drive tote, the tote loading support further configured to pivot and to move between first and second positions;

wherein the tote mover is configured to (i) move the tote loading support between a first position, for supporting the disk drive tote in a loading position, and a second position, for supporting the disk drive tote in the presentation position at one of the multiple tote presentation support systems, and (ii) load the disk drive tote into the disk drive testing system.

38. The transfer station of claim 37, wherein the tote mover comprises a multi-axis actuator assembly.

39. The transfer station of claim 38, wherein the multi-axis actuator assembly comprises a vertical actuator, a horizontal actuator, and a pitch actuator.

40. The transfer station of claim 38, wherein the multi-axis actuator assembly comprises:

a first linear actuator disposed on a side wall of the transfer station housing;

a lift carriage coupled to the first linear actuator;

a second linear actuator disposed on the lift carriage and pivotally coupled to the tote loading support; and

a third linear actuator pivotally coupled to both the second linear actuator and the tote loading support, the third linear actuator configured to rotate the tote loading support.

41. The transfer station of claim 37, wherein the first position of the tote loading support is substantially horizontal and the second position of the tote loading support is substantially vertical.

42. The transfer station of claim 37, further comprising a staging platform disposed on the transfer station housing and configured to receive the disk drive tote transferred from the tote loading support.

43. The transfer station of claim 42, wherein the staging platform is disposed on an opposite side of the transfer station housing of at least one of the multiple tote presentation support systems.

44. The transfer station of claim 42, further comprising a door pivotally attached to the transfer station housing and configured to provide a closure over the staging platform while in a closed position.

45. The transfer station of claim 37, further comprising:

a door pivotally attached to the transfer station housing and configured to provide closure of a tote supply opening defined by the transfer station housing;

wherein the door is further configured to pivot between (i) an open position, for receiving and supporting the disk drive tote, and (ii) a closed position, for placing the disk drive tote in the loading position.

46. The transfer station of claim 37, wherein the multiple tote presentation support systems are each disposed on a same side of the transfer station housing and are arranged vertically with respect to each other, each tote presentation support systems having a different elevation with respect to the others.

47. The transfer station of claim 37, wherein the tote presentation support system comprises first and second opposing pairs of tote support arms configured to be received by respective arm grooves defined by a tote body of the disk drive tote.

48. The transfer station of claim 37, wherein the disk drive tote comprises a tote body defining multiple disk drive receptacles configured to each house a disk drive.

49. A disk drive testing system comprising:

an automated transporter;

multiple racks arranged around the automated transporter for access by the automated transporter;

multiple test slots housed by at least one rack in the multiple racks, a test slot being configured to receive a first disk drive for testing; and

a transfer station arranged for access by the automated transporter, the transfer station comprising;

a transfer station housing;

multiple tote presentation support systems disposed on the transfer station housing, a tote presentation support system configured to receive and to support at least a first disk drive tote in a presentation position for servicing by the disk drive testing system; and

a tote mover disposed on the transfer station housing and configured to (i) move at least the first disk drive tote between a loading position and the presentation position at one of the multiple tote presentation support systems, and (ii) perform one or more of first operations or second operations;

wherein the first operations comprise;

loading, by the first disk drive tote, multiple disk drives into the disk drive testing system; and

following retrieval of at least one of the multiple disk drives from the first disk drive tote;

unloading the first disk drive tote from the disk drive testing system; and

wherein the second operations comprise;

loading a second disk drive tote into the disk drive testing system; and

following receipt by the second disk drive tote of at least a second disk drive;

unloading, by the second disk drive tote, the second disk drive from the disk drive testing system.

50. The disk drive testing system of claim 49, wherein the tote presentation support system comprises first and second opposing pairs of tote support arms configured to be received by respective arm grooves defined by a tote body of the first disk drive tote.

51. The disk drive testing system of claim 49, wherein the tote mover comprises a multi-axis actuator assembly having a vertical actuator, a horizontal actuator, and a pitch actuator.

52. The transfer station of claim 49, wherein the tote mover comprises:

a first linear actuator disposed on a side wall of the transfer station housing;

a lift carriage coupled to the first linear actuator;

a second linear actuator disposed on the lift carriage and pivotally coupled to the tote loading support; and

a third linear actuator pivotally coupled to both the second linear actuator and the tote loading support, the third linear actuator configured to rotate the tote loading support.

53. The transfer station of claim 49, wherein the transfer station further comprises:

a marking reader configured to read a tote marking on the first disk drive tote; and

wherein the tote mover is configured to move the first disk drive tote between the loading position and the presentation position at one of the multiple tote presentation support systems based on the marking read by the marking reader.