A multi-layer piezoelectric microactuator assembly has at least one poled and active piezoelectric layer and one poled but inactive piezoelectric layer. The poled but inactive layer acts as a constraining layer in resisting expansion or contract of the first piezoelectric layer thereby reducing or eliminating bending of the assembly as installed in an environment, thereby increasing the effective stroke length of the assembly. Poling only a single layer would induce stresses into the device; hence, polling both piezoelectric layers even though only one layer will be active in use reduces stresses in the device and therefore increases reliability.

A storage device comprises tape reel(s) holding tape media for storing data, a head assembly, motor(s) configured to actuate the head assembly, a sealed casing, and a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) configured to control operations of the motor(s). The head assembly comprises a support structure, a head bar with read head(s) and write head(s), and a suspension system connecting the head bar to the support structure. The sealed casing encloses in its interior the tape reel(s), the head assembly, and the motor(s). Meanwhile, the PCBA is mounted on an external surface of the casing.

According to one embodiment, there is provided a hard disk drive including a first recording surface, a second recording surface, a first magnetic head, a first actuator and a second actuator that move the first magnetic head, a second magnetic head, a third actuator and a fourth actuator that move the second magnetic head, a fifth actuator that moves the second actuator and the fourth actuator, a drive circuit that implements at least one of a first mode in which the second actuator and the fourth actuator operate differently from each other or a second mode in which the first and third actuators operate differently from each other, and a controller that controls the drive circuit.

A method, computer system, and computer program product for determining head wear of magnetic tape head elements of tape drives during operation. The method may include receiving a first calibration parameter for a first tape head element at a first time. Calibration parameter for the first tape head element may be compared with a reference parameter. Determination may be made whether to remove the first tape head element from service or generate a warning, based on a result of the comparison. Method may include generating the first calibration parameter by calculating midpoint bias voltage for the first tape head element as a function of bias current and head resistance. The first calibration parameter for the first tape head element may be bias current parameter or bias resistance parameter. The first calibration parameter for the first tape head element may be less than, equal to, or greater than the reference parameter.

A tape may be mounted into a tape drive. Mounting the tape into the tape drive may include loading the tape from a storage slot. The tape drive may request a first record of the tape from a tape storage subsystem. The tape drive may determine whether the first record of the tape exists in the tape storage subsystem. The tape drive may load the first record of the tape in random access memory (RAM) of the tape drive. The first record may include one or more data entries. The tape drive may append a new data entry to the first record. The first record may be transitioned to a second record upon being appended with the new data entry. The tape may be unmounted from the tape drive.

A tape embedded drive can include tape media for storing data, a first tape reel and a second tape reel, each coupled to one end of the tape media, and a head stack assembly (HSA). The HSA can include a first head assembly having at least one read head and one write head and a second head assembly having a non-operable head incapable of reading or writing. In an embodiment, the first head assembly is configured to be placed along a first side of the tape media and the second head assembly with the non-operable head is configured to be placed along a second side of the tape media opposite the first side of the tape media.

According to one embodiment, a magnetic disk device includes a magnetic disk, a magnetic head, a first actuator that moves the magnetic head to a predetermined position on the magnetic disk, a second actuator that is provided in the first actuator and adjusts a position of the magnetic head, a control unit that controls operations of the first actuator and the second actuator, and a storing unit that stores a coefficient of an approximation polynomial calculated based on an approximation formula for approximating voltage dependency of a gain of the second actuator. When controlling the operation of the second actuator, the control unit calculates the gain amplitude of the second actuator from the approximation polynomial in which the coefficient is used and amplitude of a voltage input to the second actuator.

A head gimbal assembly for a data storage device is provided. The head gimbal assembly includes a suspension, and a slider mounting point on the suspension. The slider mounting point includes an adhesive pocket bounded by a dielectric standoff. The dielectric standoff includes a projection disposed along a length of the dielectric standoff.

An approach to a piezoelectric (PZT) device, such as a hard disk drive microactuator, includes one or more layers of poled PZT material, with top and bottom surfaces coupled with respective electrode layers coupled with a power source to drive the active PZT layer(s). The electrode layers have different thicknesses, where the particular thicknesses may be configured to mitigate the variation of out-of-plane motion or bending associated with operational variations in the z-height between a corresponding actuator arm and recording medium and, likewise, the phase variation of flexure vibration.

An information processing apparatus includes an n-th parameter adjuster and an (n+1)-th parameter adjuster. The n-th parameter adjuster adjusts an n-th parameter set so that an n-th evaluation value set based on the n-th parameter set approaches an n-th target value set. The (n+1)-th parameter adjuster adjusts an (n+1)-th parameter set so that an (n+1)-th evaluation value set based on the (n+1)-th parameter set approaches an (n+1)-th target value set. In addition, the n-th parameter adjuster acquires, based on initial value set or search value set of the n-th parameter set, an n-th actual measured value set or an n-th predicted value set, acquires an (n+1)-th target value set based on the initial value set or the search value set of the n-th parameter set, and searches for the n-th parameter set that optimizes the (n+1)-th target value set under a restriction that the n-th evaluation value set approaches the n-th target value set using the acquired n-th actual measured value set or the n-th predicted value set and the acquired (n+1)-th target value set.