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17 Jun 2002
Computer-controlled polishers are set to bring a shine to optics.
UK researchers have created a new breed of robotic polishing machine for lenses and mirrors. Pioneered at the Optical Sciences Laboratory (OSL) of University College London, the technology has since been developed and commercialized by OSL spin-off Zeeko while working alongside OSL. David Walker, director of OSL and Zeeko, claims that the robots have capabilities that have never before been achieved.
The machines are based on a small-tool polisher with seven axes that control motion. According to Walker a crucial component of the polisher is its pressurized, bulged tool. Unlike traditional tools, if the bulged tool is pressed against a workpiece it moulds itself round the surface. Walker and his team are also developing sensors that will monitor any process changes that could affect the final surface finish, such as the force applied to the workpiece.
"The tool spins about its axis to achieve high removal rates," explained Walker. "A precession process controls the surface texture and a software package determines the optimum [polishing path] for the tool."
Walker started work on computer-controlled polishing seven years ago when he realized that industrial optics needed a different and more flexible approach. Focusing first on small-scale aspherics, Zeeko has now extended its range to larger optics and will shortly deliver a 600 mm robot that can polish glass, crystal, plastic and metal surfaces.
Intending to supply the technology on a global scale, Zeeko's key markets include remote sensing, photolithography, scientific instrumentation and defense systems. But, Walker and his company don't intend to stop here.
"We are also seeing opportunities for this technology that we never dreamt of when we started, " said Walker. "Now we are looking toward polishing spectacle lenses, semiconductor wafers, prosthetic joints and turbine blades."
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