Spindle motor and disk clamp mechanism used therein

Claim 2

A disk clamp mechanism, comprising: a disk placement surface defined by a hub on which a recording disk is mounted; and clamp means for clamping the recording disk place on the disk placement surface, wherein the disk placement surface of the hub is substantially flat, a ring shaped recess, the cross section of which is substantially in the shape of semi-circle, is provided above the disk placement surface of the hub, the distance from the placement surface to the lower edge of the recess is set slightly smaller than the thickness of the recording disk, the clamp means is formed from an elastic ring, the cross section of the elastic ring is circular, and one recording disk is elastically held between the disk placement surface and the elastic ring by mounting the elastic ring in the recess.

Claim 3

A disk clamp mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the outer diameter of the elastic ring is substantially equal to or slightly greater than that of the ring-shaped recess.

Claim 4

A disk clamp mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the diameter of the recording disk is 40 to 70 mm.

Claim 5

A spindle motor, comprising: a bracket including an inner surface providing a first ring-shaped recess; a stator mounted on the bracket; a hub rotatable relative to the bracket and on which a recording disk is mounted, the hub including a main body made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy, the main body including a top surface outwardly projecting in the shape of a circular disk from a side surface of the main body, the top surface providing a substantially flat disk placement surface, and the side surface providing a second ring-shaped recess having a substantially semi-circular cross-section; an elastic ring mounted in the second ring-shaped recess for holding the recording disk to be interposed between the second ring-shaped recess and the top surface of the main body of the hub; bearing means disposed between the bracket and the hub; a cup-shaped holder formed from a magnetic material, the holder being mounted on a bottom end section of the main body of the hub; a rotor magnet mounted on an inner surface of the holder; and the holder and the rotor magnet having end sections extending into the first ring-shaped recess of the bracket in close proximity with walls provided by the first ring-shaped recess so that the first ring-shaped recess, the end sections of the holder, and the rotor magnet constitute a labyrinth seal construction.

Claim 6

A spindle motor, comprising: a bracket including an inner surface providing a first ring-shaped recess; a stator mounted on the bracket; a hub rotatable relative to the bracket and on which a recording disk is mounted, the hub including a main body made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy, the main body including a top surface outwardly projecting in the shape of a circular disk from a side surface of the main body, the top surface providing a substantially flat disk placement surface, and the side surface providing a second ring-shaped recess having a substantially semi-circular cross-section; an elastic ring mounted in the second ring-shaped recess for holding the recording disk to be interposed between the second ring-shaped recess and the top surface of the main body of the hub; bearing means disposed between the bracket and the hub; a cup-shaped holder formed from a magnetic material, the holder being mounted on a bottom end section of the main body of the hub; a rotor magnet mounted on an inner surface of the holder; and the holder and the rotor magnet having end sections extending into the first ring-shaped recess of the bracket in close proximity with walls provided by the first ring-shaped recess so that the first ring-shaped recess, the end sections of the holder, and the rotor magnet constitute a labyrinth seal construction.