LSI Assigned Three Patents

Storage device having write signal with multiple-slope data transition
LSI Corp.www.lsi.com, San Jose, CA, has been assigned a patent (8,699,161) developed by five co-inventors for a “storage device having write signal with multiple-slope data transition.”

The co-inventors are Boris Livshitz, Eagan, MN, Jeffrey A. Gleason, Burnsville, MN, Jason S. Goldberg, Saint Paul, MN, Paul Mazur, Cottage Grove, MN, and Cameron C. Rabe, Inver Grove Heights, MN.

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: “A hard disk drive or other disk-based storage device comprises a storage disk, a read/write head configured to read data from and write data to the disk, and control circuitry coupled to or otherwise associated with the read/write head. The control circuitry comprises a write driver configured to generate a write signal for data to be written to the storage disk, and a multiple-slope transition controller associated with the write driver and configured to control a data transition in the write signal such that the data transition comprises at least two different segments each having a different slope, with the transition controller comprising separate slope control mechanisms for each of the segments. By way of example, the data transition may comprise a dual-slope transition having first and second segments arranged sequentially between a start point and an end point of the data transition.”

The patent application was filed on March 9, 2012 (13/416,443).

Preamplifier-to-channel communication in storage device
LSI Corp., San Jose, CA, has been assigned a patent (8,711,502) developed by Ross S. Wilson, Menlo Park, CA, and Jason S. Goldberg, St. Paul, MN, for “preamplifier-to-channel communication in a storage device.”

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: “An apparatus comprising a preamplifier, a channel, and a controller. The preamplifier may be configured to read/write data to a drive with a read/write head, in response to (i) a plurality of digital control signals multiplexed to be sent/received over a first bus and (ii) one or more analog data signals sent/received over a second bus. The channel may be configured to (i) connect to the first and second bus, and (ii) send/receive the plurality of digital control signals through (a) a plurality of interconnects and (b) the first bus. The controller may be configured to send/receive the digital control signals over the interconnects. The apparatus may be configured to (i) read/write the analog data signals to the drive and (ii) generate the digital control signals, in response to one or more input/output requests received from a drive interface.”

The patent application was filed on Oct. 12, 2012 (13/650,474).

Disk-based storage device having read channel memory
selectively accessible to disk controller
LSI Corp., San Jose, CA, has been assigned a patent (8,711,509) developed by David M. Springberg, Fort Collins, CO, and Jefferson E. Singleton, Westminster, CO, for a “disk-based storage device having read channel memory that is selectively accessible to disk controller.”

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: “A hard disk drive or other disk-based storage device comprises a storage disk, a read/write head configured to read data from and write data to the storage disk, and control circuitry coupled to the read/write head and configured to process data received from and supplied to the read/write head and to control positioning of the read/write head relative to the storage disk. The control circuitry comprises a disk controller and read channel circuitry, with the read channel circuitry comprising a read channel memory. The control circuitry is further configured to selectively permit the disk controller to access the read channel memory. For example, the disk controller may be permitted to access the read channel memory only when the read channel circuitry is not performing a read operation.”

The patent application was filed on Oct. 31, 2011 (13/285,47).