Design of Hydrodynamic Bearing for Miniature HDDs

This paper discusses major challenges in miniature hydrodynamic bearings, and covers the thinness of their structure, the mass-productivity of small bearing parts, and the improvement of bearing performance and reliability in relation to changes in air pressure. The basic design of a new type of this miniature bearing with an oil circulation mechanism that has the function of expelling air and eliminating bubbles inside the bearing cavity that would otherwise break the oil film find its potential application in mobile equipment and in spindle motors that require long-term reliability