Head suspension and method of manufacturing head suspension

• US 8,390,957 B2
• Filed: 07/15/2010
• Issued: 03/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NHK Spring Company Limited
• Original Assignee: NHK Spring Company Limited
• Inventors: Takikawa, Kenichi, Fuchino, Hideki, Yokota, Masaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Renner, Craig A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dravininkas, Adam B
• Application Number:
  US12/836,936
• Publication Number:
  US 20110013318A1
• Time in Patent Office: 964 Days
• Field of Search: 360/244.2, 360/244.3, 360/244.5, 360/244.8, 360/244.9
• US Class Current: 360/244.9
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/4833 Structure of the arm assembly, e.g. load beams, flexures, parts of the arm adapted for controlling vertical force on the head G11B5/484 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49032 Fabricating head structure or component thereof

Abstract

A head suspension 11 includes a load beam 17 having a base plate 13, a hinge part 15 resiliently supported by the base plate, and a rigid part 14 joined with the hinge part, a reinforcing plate 25 joined with the rigid part at a portion proximal to the hinge part, and a bend 17c on the load beam formed by bending the load beam toward the reinforcing plate along an edge 25a of the reinforcing plate. Only by accurately joining the reinforcing plate with the load beam in a sway direction (a widthwise direction of the head suspension), the load beam is easily and properly bent without torsion to form the bend 17c along the edge of the reinforcing plate that defines a bending strength boundary.

Claims

1. A head suspension comprising:

a load beam having a rigid part and a hinge part;

a base plate resiliently supporting the rigid part through the hinge part of the load beam;

a reinforcing plate comprising a metal plate, and being joined with a portion of the rigid part proximal to the hinge part, the metal plate including a portion defining an edge of the reinforcing plate on a middle portion of the load beam; and

a bend formed on the middle portion of the load beam overlapping the portion of the metal plate defining the edge of the reinforcing plate in a thickness direction by plastically bending the load beam toward the reinforcing plate along the edge of the reinforcing plate, so that a front part of the load beam with respect to the bend shifts toward the reinforcing plate in the thickness direction relative to a base part of the load beam with respect to the bend.

2. The head suspension of claim 1, further comprising:

a through hole formed through the reinforcing plate.

3. The head suspension of claim 1, further comprising:

a flexure resiliently supporting a write/read head, attached to a opposite side portion of the load beam with respect to the reinforcing plate.

4. The head suspension of claim 1, further comprising:

longitudinal bends formed by bending each longitudinal edge of the rigid part of the load beam toward the reinforcing plate side.

5. The head suspension of claim 1, wherein the metal plate portion defining the edge where the bend in the load beam occurs is away from the hinged part.

6. A head suspension comprising:

a load beam having a rigid part that extends proximal to a hinge part;

a base plate distal to the rigid part and hinge part, and resiliently supporting the rigid part through the hinge part located between the base plate and the rigid part; and

a reinforcing plate situated along the load beam and comprising a metal plate, the reinforcing plate being joined with a portion of the rigid part proximal to the hinge part, the metal plate having a most proximal edge defining a most proximal edge of the reinforcing plate at a middle portion of the load beam; and

wherein the load beam has a bend at said middle portion at the most proximal edge of the metal plate, said bend bending toward the reinforcing plate so that a proximal part of the load beam proximal to the bend shifts toward the reinforcing plate in a thickness direction relative to a distal part of the load beam distal to the bend.