Abstract:
In certain embodiments, an apparatus includes a drive carrier that has a damping material positioned between an inertia weight and the drive carrier. In certain embodiments, a method includes attaching a damping material to a drive carrier and attaching a mass to the damping material.

Description:
SUMMARY 
       [0001]    Various embodiments of the present invention are generally directed to an apparatus and methods for reducing vibration of a drive while in a drive carrier. 
         [0002]    In certain embodiments, an apparatus includes a drive carrier that has a damping material positioned between an inertia weight and the drive carrier. In certain embodiments, a method includes attaching a damping material to a drive carrier and attaching a mass to the damping material. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0003]      FIG. 1  provides an isometric, exploded view of an exemplary drive carrier, in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
           [0004]      FIG. 2  provides a cross-sectional view of the exemplary drive carrier of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0005]      FIG. 3  provides an isometric, exploded view of an exemplary drive carrier, in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
           [0006]      FIG. 4  provides an isometric view of an exemplary drive carrier, in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
           [0007]      FIG. 5  provides a cross-sectional view of the exemplary drive carrier of  FIG. 4 . 
           [0008]      FIG. 6  provides an isometric view of an exemplary drive carrier, in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. 
           [0009]      FIG. 7  provides a cross-sectional view of the exemplary drive carrier of  FIG. 6 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0010]    Drive carriers retain storage drives so that the carrier and drive can be inserted, for example, into a housing or bay in a storage rack for testing or operating the drive. Storage racks may be placed near other storage racks and may include, among other devices, cooling fans and multiple drives—each of which subject the storage rack and drives to vibrations, which can cause errors and/or performance throughput loss in the drives. Attempts to reduce vibration in drive carriers have not adequately addressed rotary and linear vibration mitigation. Moreover, previous techniques lacked the design flexibility and effectiveness associated with damping vibration by isolating inertia weights from drive carriers. 
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is an exploded view of a drive carrier  100 , drive  102 , damping material  104 , and inertia weight  106 . When assembled, the drive carrier  100  retains the drive  102  so that the drive  102  and carrier  100  can be inserted storage rack housings or bays. The drive  102  may include single or multiple suitable storage devices, including but not limited to a solid state drive, a hard disc drive, or a combination of both. 
         [0012]    The carrier  100  includes a damping material  104  and an inertia weight  106 . The damping material  104  may be positioned between the carrier  100  and the inertia weight  106 . For example, the damping material  104  may be attached to the carrier  100 , and the inertia weight  106  may be attached to the damping material  104 . The damping material  104  and inertia weight  106  may be attached to the carrier  100  by any suitable means, including adhering or fastening the elements together. 
         [0013]    The damping material  104  is positioned on the carrier  100  such that, when the carrier  100  is subjected to rotational and linear vibration, the damping material  104  is placed in shear between the inertia weight  106  and another surface—for example, the carrier  100  or another inertia weight. When the damping material  104  is subjected to shear movement, rotational and linear vibration is mitigated because the damping material  104  isolates the inertia weight  106  and converts the vibrational energy to thermal energy. The inertia weight  106  does not directly contact the carrier  100  and is therefore isolated from the carrier  100 . Mitigating the vibrational energy may reduce the noise created by the drive  102 , may reduce the energy required to operate the drive  102 , and may reduce the number of storage drive errors thereby increasing throughput performance. In addition, the damper/mass combination may be modeled as a spring-mass-damper system, for example, by modifying a contact area between the damping material  104  and the inertia weight  106 , which changes the effective stiffness of the damper/mass system. 
         [0014]    In some exemplary embodiments, the position of the damper/mass combination  104  and  106  can be optimized for different applications. For example, the damping material  104  and inertia weight  106  may be placed at a corner of the drive where rotational vibration may be the greatest. Alternatively, the damper/mass combination  104  and  106  may be placed such that the center of mass of the carrier  100  is modified. The damper/mass combination  104  and  106  may be enclosed within the carrier  100  and therefore not visible.  FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of the carrier  100 , damping material  104 , and inertia weight  106 . 
         [0015]    As shown in  FIG. 3 , a drive carrier  200  includes a plurality of damping material sections  202  (hereinafter referred to as damping material  202 ) and a plurality of inertia weights  204  (hereinafter referred to as inertia weights  204 ). The damping material  202  may be positioned between the inertia weights  204 , one of which can be attached to the drive carrier  200 . The damping material  202  and the inertia weights  204  may be positioned on the top, bottom, and/or sides of the drive carrier  200 . Multiple sections of damping material  202  may be positioned between the inertia weights  204  and drive carrier  200 . The damping material  202  is positioned such that, when subjected to vibration, the damping material  202  is placed in shear, thereby mitigating the vibration. 
         [0016]      FIG. 4  is an isometric view of a drive carrier  300  having a damping material  302 , and inertia weight  304 . The inertia weight  304  can be suitably shaped, for example, to fit available space on the drive carrier  300  or to alter the carrier&#39;s center of mass.  FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the carrier  300 , damping material  302 , inertia weight  304 , and spacer  306 . The damping material  302  couples the inertia weight  304  with the drive carrier  300  such that damping material  302  is subjected to shear during vibration, thereby mitigating the vibration. The spacer  306  is positioned such that the inertia weight  304  is isolated from the drive carrier  300 . 
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is an isometric view of a drive carrier  400  having a damping material  402 , a plurality of inertia weights  404 , and fastener  406 . The inertia weights  404  can be suitably shaped, for example, to fit into the shaped damping material  402 .  FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of the carrier  400 , damping material  402 , inertia weight  404 , and fastener  406 . The damping material  402  is positioned such that the inertia weights  404  are isolated so that the damping material  402  is subjected to shear during vibration and the inertia weights  404  do not directly contact the carrier  400 . The fastener  406 , shown as a shoulder bolt, attaches the damping material  402  to the drive carrier  400 . 
         [0018]    It is to be understood that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of various embodiments of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of various embodiments of the invention, this detailed description is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of structure and arrangements of parts within the principles of the present invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.