Sony Develops Fluid-Filled Bags For Hard Disks

MsManhattan writes "Sony has filed for a US patent on a liquid-filled airbag that cushions hard disks from heavy shocks in portable electronic devices. 'The liquid used could be water or silicon oil,' and 'the electronics would of course be in a liquid-tight case.' Sony expects to use the technology in mobile devices such as cameras, media players, smartphones, and laptops." The article mentions a clever approach Sony has come up with to handle shocks of varying intensity.

There is already stuff like this out there.

[lhaeh]

My 10 year old Panasonic Toughbook had a gel casing for the hard drive. I like that solution better since there is no potential for leaks. Even if the fluid was nonconductive you would still have to replace it.

I hate to think what airlines would think of all this evil liquid being allowed on board as well.

Re:Solid state

[cowscows]

I think a system like the article is describing could also create some interesting challenges in regards to cooling as well. If you're basically wrapping hardware in a bag, then you need to create some way of getting the heat out. Perhaps the liquid filled bag itself could act as a sort of heat sink, but it seems like that would be quite a challenge to work out, finding the proper liquid/bag materials that absorb impacts properly and transmit heat well. Plus this system sounds like it involves the liquid moving around, which means that if the liquid plays an important part in dealing with the heat, you have to account for the amount of liquid in a particular place changing.

Re:Solid state

[nwbvt]

I was just thinking that (I actually still have one of those), but according to TFA, there is a lot more to it than the /. summary (as usual).