Sony Develops Fluid-Filled Bags For Hard Disks 144
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.
Solid state (Score:5, Insightful)
Besides, I just don't know about fluid filled electronics. I've played around with liquid cooling in the past and have never been able to come up with a reliable (read: long term=years) solution that does not leak. We run our systems 24/7 and I thought that perhaps Apple had come up with a decent solution for liquid cooling on their older G5 towers, but we currently have a dual G5 in the shop that had managed to pee all over itself. Needless to say, that is a system that is awaiting a part from IBM and is down, not doing anything productive. Apple had the right idea in dumping the IBM and their liquid cooling necessity and I think that for the time being, I'll avoid drives bathed in liquid as well... Especially given that the articles focus is for equipment that receives more physical impacts than a desktop machine.
P.S.... Not sure why this was posted under YRO...
Re: (Score:1, Funny)
Because all the idiots are about to start complaining that this shouldn't be patentable because their fanfiction about robots with breast implants is prior art...
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Solid state (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Solid state (Score:4, Insightful)
Yeah, but that gel is in an absolutely sealed envelope. Nothing (wires) needs to get in or out, whereas with a hard drive, unless you are powering by induction and have a wireless (radio or optical) way of transmitting data, you need wires to penetrate the envelope. *That* is where failure occurs.
So? (Score:2, Funny)
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Re: (Score:2)
*: I'd say all, but I'm sure that if I say that, nature will prove me wrong once more.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Well, what a stupid theory.
I could take it further though. How did the liquid get into the envelope? It had to penetrate the envelope!
Now spend few minutes thinking how you could shape a tightly sealed envelope wit
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
You don't have to resort to being an ass here...
I could take it further though. How did the liquid get into the envelope? It had to penetrate the envelope!
But then you can seal it with no need for "ports" to be maintained which as any engineer who deals with these sorts of problems will tell you, *are* failure points. Thus the whole industry of gaskets, seals etc...etc...etc... My point is that unless the benefits greatly outweigh the costs/hassle of dealing with liquids in elec
Re: (Score:2)
I don't have to resort to it, since it's my permanent state.
But then you can seal it with no need for "ports" to be maintained which as any engineer who deals with these sorts of problems will tell you, *are* failure points. Thus the whole industry of gaskets, seals etc...etc...etc...
Those are failure points because they let you put air/water/whatever inside the device or let it out. In the case with hard drives, the hard drives are not floating in water thems
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
"In the case with hard drives, the hard drives are not floating in water themselves, they are surrounded by a sealed packet of liquid."
No, they actually are in the liquid themselves (well, technically they have a waterproof shell, but that is in the liquid solution). This is a patent for a system in which the hard drive is suspended in liquid (and no, its not simply filling a baggie with water and dropping the device in it, its a bit more complicated that that). Yes, the /. summary did not exactly make
Re: (Score:2)
You don't have to resort to being an ass here...
No, he is correct. You are being stupid. One could say, you don't have to resort to posting your clearly stupid theories. Maybe you can learn from that next time.
Caramilk Secret (Score:3, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
"Now spend few minutes thinking how you could shape a tightly sealed envelope with liquid around a disk, and leave a hole for cables without using ice-pick to puncture it. Come on, it's not hard."
Well, no, the disk is inside the bag, you can't shape it around the disk after its been tightly sealed. I'm fairly certain its still possible to seal the thing (we have had waterproofing technology for some time now), but its not as simple as shaping a fluid filled bag around the disk.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Yes, if both the wires and enclosure were not well bonded, this would be where failure would be likely to occur. However, if you thermally bond the HD enclosure to the insulation of the wires, attach the HD through an open
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I'd guessed it was silly. It was the CFC part that was the bait for someone to give me an OHNOES!
Your response is rational and fine.
What ever happened to the 'solid state' drive that used DVD material but had no moving parts? Not only is it vaporware but the must have inhaled the vapor. It sounded like an outstanding idea.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
That seems like an easy enough problem to solve... sandwich the hard drive (and wires, etc) in between two or more envelopes. Same effect, no penetration.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Most gel-filled shoes... (Score:2)
Re:Solid state (Score:5, Informative)
I even managed to find a picture of one on Ebay [ebay.com]
FTA: Why is it called an "air bag" if it is filled with liquid?
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Unscientific quick example, 160Gb 2.5" IDE harddrive = £70, 16Gb 2.5" IDE flash memory harddrive = £280. 10x the space for 1/4 the price.
I know the price of flash memory storage is falling, but in comparison the price of harddrive storage is plummeting.
Re: (Score:2)
P.S.... Not sure why this was posted under YRO...
I was about the say the same thing. This is definitely a patentable invention, and is quite novel. The idea of "fluid filled bags" may not be new, but the R&D to make it work, is substantial.
Sometimes in this current "DRM/stupid patents/bullying" days, I forgot that Sony is primarily a electronics company that have actually invented some amazing stuff, and some of them have become VERY successful in their own right (eg the 3.5inch floppy drive, Trinitron TV)
why... (Score:1)
Because.. (Score:1, Funny)
(at least, it 's a possible reason. I don't have any problem with patents, myself.)
- A. C.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Because it's about patents (Score:3, Insightful)
Liquid-filled airbag? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Liquid-filled airbag? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Liquid-filled airbag? (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Or what about an air-filled liquid-filled-airbag to protect people in automobile accidents? Genius!
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
But "airbag" just sounds more benign than "grenade bag"...
rj
Re: (Score:2)
Mod parent "+1, Owes me a Mt. Dew"
Definitions. (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
rj
Re: (Score:2)
Flash memory? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
If the camera is carrying one of the several models of microdrives [wikipedia.org], they do. I've always stuck with CF because of write times and storage density, but I know a couple of photographers who like 'em.
Surely a cushion of water wouldn't protect something like a cell phone hitting the concrete
I would assume that the liquid would be considerably more viscous than plain water.
Re:Flash memory? (Score:5, Informative)
To demonstrate this in the real world, My last cellphone survived a fall of 70 feet onto a rock bed just because it hit on part of the plastic case that wasn't connected to the motherboard. If it would have hit on the bottom metal connector, it would have had very little or no chance. If instead there were a thin
Re: (Score:2)
Why is this not patentable? The method they proposed does not seem obvious (using irises). Do you know of some prior art, or this just the typical
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
OO? (Score:4, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
My girlfriend's cell phone (Score:5, Funny)
Sigh.
Re: (Score:1, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
Re:My girlfriend's cell phone (Score:5, Funny)
Kiff (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:1)
Gotta do it.. (Score:2)
Also An Anti-Piracy Measure (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:1)
UGLY BAGS OF MOSTLY WATER (Score:2)
There is already stuff like this out there. (Score:3, Interesting)
I hate to think what airlines would think of all this evil liquid being allowed on board as well.
Something I'm missing... (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Extra Feature (Score:2, Redundant)
Flower kit surely (Score:2)
Gel bags and terror threat (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
YRO? (Score:1)
Next step - ST: Voyager? (Score:1)
Oh no! This is completely original! (Score:2)
Fluid-Filled Bags (Score:2)
saline or silicon implants for hard drives.... (Score:1)
Funbags? Fatsacks? (Score:2)
I'm strangely attracted to my HD now (Score:1)
LIQUID-filled AIRbag? (Score:1, Redundant)
Hahahaha (Score:1)
Hmm...sounds familiar. (Score:1)
I was thinking... (Score:5, Funny)
Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all night.
Why not air... (Score:2)
2. And won't cause 'hardware casualties' upon container penetration (read: water or silicon gel all over your gadget/laptop).
I just hope they use liquids because I'm missing something obvious (likely), and not because they're patently stupid (unlikely), or stopped by patents (a bit more likely).
Re: (Score:2)
FTA : "The idea is that the electronics will be wrapped in a fluid-filled bag"
Better analogy : strapping yourself in a 10 inch layer of bubblewrapping before driving your car.
(Hmm... something to try when I drive home from work. Gotta keep those non-geek colleagues a bit scared.)
HDD breathing holes (Score:1)
Flashback from the 90s... (Score:2)
Obvious (Score:2)
SONY, stick to what you're good at: Incompatible Consumer Electronics, rootkits, exploding batteries, and your stake in the RIAA Mafia.
USPTO: Yeah, well, We'd expect nothing less from you.
Phooey (Score:2)
Besides, using a gel or fluid to spread the force of an impact is an ancient idea. Come on, the stench of obviousness can be detected a mile away. Might as well patent using a pointing device for online shopping. There could certainly be some patentable as
What Patents are For (Score:2)
Fun-bags! (Score:2)
Prior Art (Score:2)
Hmm... (Score:2)
Ummm... (Score:2)
Chris Mattern