Disk drive enclosure with a sliding door having tabs with adjacent through-slots
View Patent ↗An information storage device includes a housing having a cavity, and a sliding door partially covering the cavity. The housing has a first groove and a second groove on opposite sides of the cavity. The sliding door includes first and second edges adjacent the first and second grooves, respectively. The sliding door also includes first and second tabs protruding from the first and second edges into the first and second grooves, respectively. The first and second tabs define first and second tab lengths measured parallel to the first and second edges, respectively. There are first and second through-slots in the sliding door adjacent the first and second tabs, respectively. The first and second through-slots define first and second through-slot lengths measured parallel to the first and second edges, respectively. The first and second through-slot lengths are greater than the first and second tab lengths, respectively.
1. A disk drive enclosure comprising:
a housing having a cavity, and a first groove and a second groove on opposite sides of the cavity;
a sliding door partially covering the cavity, the sliding door including;
a first edge adjacent the first groove;
an opposing second edge adjacent the second groove;
a first tab protruding from the first edge into the first groove, the first tab defining a first tab length measured parallel to the first edge;
a second tab protruding from the second edge into the second groove, the second tab defining a second tab length measured parallel to the second edge;
a first through-slot in the sliding door adjacent the first tab, the first through-slot defining a first through-slot length measured parallel to the first edge;
a second through-slot in the sliding door adjacent the second tab, the second through-slot defining a second through-slot length measured parallel to the second edge;
wherein the first through-slot length is greater than the first tab length and the second through-slot length is greater than the second tab length.
2. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the sliding door comprises a plastic material having a Young's modulus in the range 2 GPa to 4 GPa.
3. The disk drive enclosure of claim 2 wherein the housing and the sliding door comprise the same material.
4. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the first groove defines a first groove length that is greater than the first tab length and greater than the first through-slot length.
5. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the second groove defines a second groove length that is greater than the second tab length and greater than the second through-slot length.
6. The disk drive enclosure of claim 4 wherein the sliding door defines a door length measured parallel to the first edge, and wherein the first groove length is greater than the door length.
7. The disk drive enclosure of claim 6 wherein the first tab length is in the range 30% to 70% of the door length.
8. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the first through slot length is at least 1.4 times the first tab length.
9. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the first tab defines a first tab height measured in a height direction orthogonal to the first edge, and wherein the first tab height is in the range 1 mm to 3 mm.
10. The disk drive enclosure of claim 9 wherein the first through-slot length exceeds the first tab length by at least 10 times the first tab height.
11. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the first through-slot defines a first through-slot interior contour that is closed, so that the first tab is connected to the sliding door by a doubly supported beam.
12. The disk drive enclosure of claim 11 wherein the sliding door and the doubly supported beam are a single monolithic component having material continuity rather than being an assembly of subcomponents.
13. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the first through-slot defines a first through-slot interior contour that is open, so that the first tab is connected to the sliding door by a cantilevered beam.
14. The disk drive enclosure of claim 13 wherein the sliding door and the cantilevered beam are a single monolithic component having material continuity rather than being an assembly of subcomponents.
15. The disk drive enclosure of claim 1 wherein the first tab length is at least three times a smallest internal dimension of the first groove.