Base plate for suspension assembly in hard disk drive with stress isolation

摘要

A base plate comprising a hub, a flange having an outer flange region at an outer periphery of the flange and a clamping region that surrounds and is contiguous with the hub. A strain isolation region of the flange surrounds and is contiguous with the clamping region. The strain isolation region has a stress-reducing configuration that provides alternately patterned continuity areas and discontinuity areas between the modified region and adjacent areas of the outer flange region and the clamping region. The strain isolation region may be either a series of holes in the flange surrounding the clamping region, or a number of arcuate slots cut completely through the flange surrounding the clamping region.