Reader design for interlaced magnetic recording

• US 9,858,961 B2
• Filed: 05/28/2015
• Issued: 01/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/24/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seagate Technology LLC (Seagate Technology Holdings Plc)
• Original Assignee: Seagate Technology LLC (Seagate Technology Holdings Plc)
• Inventors: Zhu, Wenzhong, Haapala, Kenneth A., Gao, Kaizhong, Gage, Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): Young, Wayne
• Assistant Examiner(s): Habermehl, James L
• Application Number:
  US14/724,523
• Publication Number:
  US 20160148645A1
• Time in Patent Office: 950 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0238 Memory management in non-volatile memory, e.g. resistive RAM or ferroelectric memory
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/1044 Space efficiency improvement
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/152 Virtualized environment, e.g. logically partitioned system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/21 Employing a record carrier using a specific recording technology
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/70 Details relating to dynamic memory management
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/1217 on discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/1238 track, i.e. the entire a spirally or concentrically arranged path on which the recording marks are located
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/1292 Enhancement of the total storage capacity
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/012 Recording on, or reproducing or erasing from, magnetic disks G11B17/00, G11B19/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/09 Digital recording

Abstract

A storage device includes a multi-reader transducer head with a first reader and a second reader having an effective cross-track separation equal to a multiple of a defined track-pitch of a storage medium of the storage device. The effective cross-track separation may permit for a simultaneous data read of two non-adjacent data tracks.

Claims

1. A storage device comprising:

a storage media including a plurality of data tracks having a defined track pitch; and

a transducer head including a first reader and a second reader with an effective cross-track separation that is an even integer multiple of the defined track pitch; and

a controller configured to;

operate the first reader and the second reader to simultaneously read data of two non-adjacent data tracks into a temporary memory buffer; and

store the read data within the temporary memory buffer while writing new data to at least one interlaced data track between the two non-adjacent data tracks.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the effective cross-track separation is equal to twice the defined track pitch.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the effective cross-track separation is equal to four times the track pitch.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of data tracks correspond to a logical block address (LBA) sequence and the first reader and the second reader are configured to simultaneously read non-adjacent data tracks corresponding to a continuous, consecutive portion of the LBA sequence.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first reader and the second reader are positioned symmetrically about a center of rotation of the transducer head.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first reader and the second reader are co-planar.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transducer head further comprises:

a third reader configured read data from a same data track as the first reader, the third reader positioned down-track from the first reader and offset from the first reader in the cross-track direction.

8. A method comprising:

simultaneously reading two non-adjacent data tracks storing data of a continuous, consecutive LBA sequence.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the data of the two non-adjacent data tracks is read into a temporary memory buffer and the method further comprises:

writing data to at least one interlaced data track between the two non-adjacent data tracks.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

re-writing data of the two non-adjacent data tracks from the temporary memory buffer.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the two non-adjacent data tracks are separated by a single interlaced data track.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the two non-adjacent data tracks are separated by three interlaced data tracks.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the non-adjacent data tracks are read by two readers positioned symmetrically about a center of rotation of a transducer head.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the two readers are co-planar.

15. Apparatus comprising:

a storage device controller configured to substantially align each of a first reader and a second reader with a center of one of two non-adjacent data tracks and to operate the first reader and the second reader to simultaneously read data from the two non-adjacent data tracks, a first data track of the two non-adjacent data tracks storing data corresponding to a first portion of a continuous, consecutive LBA sequence and a second data track of the two non-adjacent data tracks storing data corresponding to a second consecutive portion of the continuous, consecutive LBA sequence.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first reader and the second reader have an effective cross-track separation equal to twice a defined track pitch of the storage device.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first reader and the second reader have an effective cross-track separation equal to four times a track pitch of the storage device.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first reader and the second reader are positioned symmetrically about a center of rotation of the transducer head.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first reader and the second reader are co-planar.