Patent ID: 6982851

Claim:
A flying head slider that is incorporated in a disk storage apparatus, which records and reproduces information to and from a disk-shaped storage medium, wherein a face of said flying head slider, which faces said storage medium, comprises three types of surfaces, which are a positive pressure generating surface; a step that has a lower height than said positive pressure generating surface; and a recess that has a lower height than said step, wherein said positive pressure generating surface comprises: a U-shaped leading pad that comprises a projection on an air inflow side and is positioned at a front part of said slider; two side pads that are positioned behind said leading pad and to the right and the left side; and a center pad that comprises a recess on the air inflow side and is positioned between said two side pads and behind said leading pad; said step comprises: a leading step that extends from a front edge of said leading pad to a front edge of said slider; two side steps that extend from the behind of said leading pad and to the right and the left and to connect to said two side pads, respectively; and a center step that comprises a projection on the air inflow side and extends forward from a front edge of said center pad; said recess is formed at the peripheries of said center pad and of said center step, which are surrounded by said leading pad and said side steps; said side steps extend from side parts of said side pads to the side edges of said slider; form a width of said leading pad narrower than a total width of said slider; said leading step and said side steps are joined at the side parts of the slider and extend to the side edges of said slider; said side steps are wider at the rear; the rear edge of said center pad is positioned further behind the rear edges of said side pads; and a head is positioned near the rear edge of said center pad.