Selection of optimal read/write channel parameters in a hard disc drive

摘要

Method for optimizing parameter values in a read/write channel of a disc drive. A population of error rate points is obtained from selected ranges of a plurality of read/write channel parameters, each error rate point corresponding to a unique combination of parameter values and having an associated error rate value. A weight is determined for each of the error rate points through normalization to the minimum error rate value in the population. A threshold value is determined based upon the error rate values in a plurality of nominally identical disc drives and the weights are compared to the threshold value. Those error rate values having weights less than the threshold are selected and a center of gravity is determined therefrom. At such times that the entire population of error rate values has weights greater than the threshold value, the optimum parameter values are those that map to the center of gravity. Otherwise, for each error rate value having a weight greater than the threshold, the average and standard deviation are determined for neighboring (immediately adjacent) error rate values and the error rate value having the tightest distribution in the neighboring error rate values provides the optimum parameter values.