HD for car

  • Thread starter Thread starter Raff
  • Start date Start date
R

Raff

Hi to all,

I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
thank you

Raffaele
 
Raff said:
Hi to all,

I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
Click to expand...

Hard disk technology has come a long way in the last few years. Heads
now ride in contact with the surface. And the surface is some sort of
very hard, whizzy cobalt alloy. I carted notebook computers around for
years, throwing them up in airline overhead storage compartments, trunks
of cars, in and out of meeting rooms, etc. The only failure I suffered
was the time when an oaf pushed his way threw a crowd and knocked over
my suitcase that was supporting my PC. It fell from about 2', the hard
disk started having errors and had to be replaced.
 
Raff said:
I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
Click to expand...

A 2.5" HD would be preferable for 2 reasons: smaller size; and better
adaptation to motion, because it was initially designed as a mobile unit.

That said, the motion of a car is much more significant overall than that
seen by a laptop computer in normal use. You should do some research into
vibration damping and shock mounting. You might look into the Panasonic
Toughbooks and other "hardened" laptops, and the components and enhancements
used in them.
 
Raff said:
I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
Click to expand...

A 2.5" HD would be preferable for 2 reasons: smaller size; and better
adaptation to motion, because it was initially designed as a mobile unit.

That said, the motion of a car is much more significant overall than that
seen by a laptop computer in normal use. You should do some research into
vibration damping and shock mounting. You might look into the Panasonic
Toughbooks and other "hardened" laptops, and the components and enhancements
used in them.
 
Raff said:
I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
Click to expand...

A 2.5" HD would be preferable for 2 reasons: smaller size; and better
adaptation to motion, because it was initially designed as a mobile unit.

That said, the motion of a car is much more significant overall than that
seen by a laptop computer in normal use. You should do some research into
vibration damping and shock mounting. You might look into the Panasonic
Toughbooks and other "hardened" laptops, and the components and enhancements
used in them.
 
Raff said:
I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
Click to expand...

A 2.5" HD would be preferable for 2 reasons: smaller size; and better
adaptation to motion, because it was initially designed as a mobile unit.

That said, the motion of a car is much more significant overall than that
seen by a laptop computer in normal use. You should do some research into
vibration damping and shock mounting. You might look into the Panasonic
Toughbooks and other "hardened" laptops, and the components and enhancements
used in them.
 
William said:
Hard disk technology has come a long way in the last few years. Heads
now ride in contact with the surface. And the surface is some sort of
very hard, whizzy cobalt alloy. I carted notebook computers around for
years, throwing them up in airline overhead storage compartments, trunks
of cars, in and out of meeting rooms, etc.
Click to expand...

Banging a notebook around when it's off is an entirely different matter
than banging it around when the disk is spinning.
 
A 2.5" HD would be preferable for 2 reasons: smaller size; and better
adaptation to motion, because it was initially designed as a mobile unit.

That said, the motion of a car is much more significant overall than that
seen by a laptop computer in normal use. You should do some research into
vibration damping and shock mounting. You might look into the Panasonic
Toughbooks and other "hardened" laptops, and the components and enhancements
used in them.
Click to expand...


If you get the spec sheet for the HDD model you are considering from
the manufacturer's web site you will see the G-force limits (and
temps) for operating and non-operating conditions. I think you will
find that your disk is good to several 10's of G's while running, and
much more when off. Considering that you've probably never felt
anywhere near 1 G in any car you've ever been in, you're OK. You need
to use some rubber mounts to isolate low amplitude-high frequency
vibrations, but that doesn't take much.

A toughbook (a wonderful PC, BTW) is probably designed to take a 3 ft
fall to concrete, with G forces much higher than you'll ever see in
car, possibly even in a crash, because the car has crumple zones
designed in.
 
Raff said:
Hi to all,

I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
thank you

Raffaele
Click to expand...

The short answer is you'll be better off with a notebook drive. You can
also reduce the chances of failure, at the expense of response time, by
powering it down as soon as possible after any use (control panel power
settings I mean, not turning off the computer).

The longer answer depends on what you mean by 'install it in a car'.
'Installed' how?

Vibration dampening is not at all obvious and simply using something
'cushy' can create even worse problems if it sets up resonate vibrations
(which is more likely than you may think). What you need is a material that
actually dampens vibration, not 'springy' (as in rubber). Sorbothane is
such a material. It deforms but does not 'spring' back; it slowly recovers
(a bit like why your car doesn't ride on just springs but also has shock
absorbers. Which, btw, is going to be as important in keeping shock down as
the computer mounting will be since that's your 'first line' shock handler).

A place to start looking into those kinds of problems might be here:

http://www.sorbothane.com/

They have a section on computer isolation concepts.
 
Al said:
If you get the spec sheet for the HDD model you are considering from
the manufacturer's web site you will see the G-force limits (and
temps) for operating and non-operating conditions. I think you will
find that your disk is good to several 10's of G's while running, and
much more when off. Considering that you've probably never felt
anywhere near 1 G in any car you've ever been in, you're OK.
Click to expand...

Your interpretation of the spec is a bit optimistic. Those 'multiple 10s'
of Gs you speak of are for a 2ms half sine wave and you won't see shock in
a car that's only 2ms in duration.

And, btw, it doesn't take all that much momentum to look like 20Gs when
it's constrained into 2ms. Which is why dropping an object onto something
'soft' is safer than onto something hard. The exact same amount of momentum
that's 'safe' onto a soft landing gets turned into astronomical Gs when the
falling object stops 'instantly' on the hard surface. The point is, what to
your soft pliable butt, sitting on a soft pliable seat, feels like a 'minor
bump' can be a huge G shock to something rigidly mounted to the car.

The more relevant numbers are the vibration specs, of which there are two:
Linear: 20-300 Hz, 0.75 G (0 to peak) and, the more real world
representative one, Random: 10-300 Hz, 0.004 g2/Hz.

Those are not 'sustained' global Gs, though, as you are thinking when you
say "you've probably never felt anywhere near 1 G in any car you've ever
been in." No, you don't 'feel' it because they're shock/vibration (not a
skid pad test) and your body gives with the shock/vibration, and absorbs
them. But to something rigid they're 'multiple Gs' nonetheless.
You need
to use some rubber mounts to isolate low amplitude-high frequency
vibrations, but that doesn't take much.
Click to expand...

Rubber mounts are a bad idea because they'll resonate and actually amplify
certain vibration frequencies.
 
Hi to all,

I would to install a computer in my car. I want to use an hd too, just i'm
worried if it can work fine because vibrations. do you think a 2"5 hd can go
better?
thank you
Click to expand...
Unless you shock mount it, it won't matter what size it is, it'll crash,
but the smaller the better. You'd be much better off with several flash
drives.
 
David Maynard said:
The short answer is you'll be better off with a notebook drive. You can
also reduce the chances of failure, at the expense of response time, by
powering it down as soon as possible after any use (control panel power
settings I mean, not turning off the computer).

The longer answer depends on what you mean by 'install it in a car'.
'Installed' how?

Vibration dampening is not at all obvious and simply using something
'cushy' can create even worse problems if it sets up resonate vibrations
(which is more likely than you may think). What you need is a material that
actually dampens vibration, not 'springy' (as in rubber). Sorbothane is
such a material. It deforms but does not 'spring' back; it slowly recovers
(a bit like why your car doesn't ride on just springs but also has shock
absorbers. Which, btw, is going to be as important in keeping shock down as
the computer mounting will be since that's your 'first line' shock handler).

A place to start looking into those kinds of problems might be here:

http://www.sorbothane.com/

They have a section on computer isolation concepts.
Click to expand...

Sorbothane looks like sponge, i was thinking about the possibility to use a
"spongy box". Anyway 2"5 hd are very light so the resulting force from
acceleration must no be so high. I have to make some tests and counts.
Thank you for all

Raffaele
 
Raff said:
can go



Sorbothane looks like sponge, i was thinking about the possibility to use a
"spongy box".
Click to expand...

Don't go by 'looks'. It isn't the 'appearance' of the material but what the
material is that matters and sorbothane is a viscous elastic.
Anyway 2"5 hd are very light so the resulting force from
acceleration must no be so high.
Click to expand...

True, but then it takes less force to affect it too. The point here is that
too 'stiff' an absorbing material will look 'rigid' to it and, so, not
absorb the vibrations. That's the reason for spreading the sorbothane in a
'spongy' configuration: it makes for a larger, easier to handle and use as
a mount, absorber but with less rigidity than if it were solid. The
sorbothane, however, is still acting as a dampened absorber.
 
Back
Top