Patent ID: 8337280
Filing Date: 2012-12-25
Classification: B24B

Abstract:
1. A rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk device apparatus that rotates workpieces in flat-surfaced single-sided abrading contact with a rotating abrading platen, the apparatus comprising: a) an abrading machine frame; b) a rotatable, wire-driven circular workholder disk device apparatus frame attached to the abrading machine frame; c) a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk having rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk opposed flat disk surfaces where the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk has a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk center located at a rotational center of the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk and the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk has a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk thickness and the rotatable wire-driven circular disk has a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter and a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference; d) a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire having a flexible drive-wire length and the flexible drive-wire has a flexible drive-wire cross-section shape that has a flexible drive-wire centroid wherein the flexible drive-wire has a flexible drive-wire axis that intersects the flexible drive-wire cross-section shape centroid and where the flexible drive-wire axis extends along length-segments of the flexible drive-wire length and where the flexible drive-wire is selected from the group consisting of metal wires, polymer monofilaments, braided, twisted or woven polymer strands, braided, twisted or woven organic material strands and braided, twisted or woven metal strands; e) wherein the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference has a drive-wire groove in the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk thickness where the drive-wire groove extends around the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference where the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference drive-wire groove has a drive-wire groove shape that is configured to restrain and guide a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire that contacts at least thirty degrees of circular arc-length of the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference and where the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk has a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter drive-wire inlet side and the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk has a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter drive-wire outlet side; f) wherein the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk is positioned at a fixed location relative to the rotatable wire-driven circular disk workholder device apparatus frame by at least two rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-positioning idlers having rotatable disk-position idlers' outer diameters where the rotatable disk-position idlers have rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumferences that have a rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumference-shape that is selected from the group consisting of a double-angled knife-edge rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumference-shape, a cylindrical-surface rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumference-shape, a curved-surface rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumference-shape, a double-flanged rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumference-shape and a double-flange cylindrical-flat-surfaced bottom rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumference-shape where each selected rotatable disk-position idler outer diameter circumference-shape has rolling contact with the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference to position-restrain and engage the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk at a desired location relative to the rotatable wire-driven circular disk workholder device apparatus frame; g) wherein a first and a second rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-position idlers are position-spaced at locations that are at least 10 degrees of rotatable disk-position idlers' separation arc-length apart from each other where the rotatable disk-position idlers' separation arc-length is measured along the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference and where the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-position idlers are attached to the rotatable wire-driven circular disk workholder device apparatus frame at the respective rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-position idlers' position-spaced separation arc-length locations and wherein the first rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-positioning idler is positioned at the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter drive-wire inlet side and the second rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-positioning idler is positioned at the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter drive-wire outlet side; h) a flexible drive-wire motor having a flexible drive-wire motor with a rotatable motor drive-shaft where a flexible drive-wire motor rotatable flexible drive-wire motor pulley is attached to the flexible drive-wire motor rotatable drive-shaft where the flexible drive-wire motor pulley has a flexible drive-wire motor pulley outer diameter where the flexible drive-wire motor pulley has a rotatable flexible drive-wire motor pulley outer diameter circumference and where the flexible drive-wire motor pulley has a flexible drive-wire-contact surface that is configured to restrain and guide a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire that contacts at least thirty degrees of arc-length of the drive-wire motor pulley outer diameter circumference where the drive-wire motor pulley arc-length is measured along the drive-wire motor pulley outer diameter circumference and wherein the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire motor can be either attached to the rotatable wire-driven circular disk workholder device apparatus frame or attached to the rotatable wire-driven circular disk workholder device abrading machine frame; and i) at least two rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idlers that each have a flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler thickness and each flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler has a flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler outer diameter and each flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler has a flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler outer diameter circumference wherein each flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler outer diameter circumference has a flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler wire-groove in the flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler thickness where the flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler wire-groove extends around the flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler outer diameter circumference where the flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler wire-groove has a wire-groove shape that is configured to restrain and guide a rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire that contacts at least five degrees of arc-length of the flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler outer diameter circumference where the rotatable wire-guide idler arc-length is measured along the flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler outer diameter circumferences; and j) wherein the at least two rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idlers are attached to the rotatable wire-driven circular disk workholder device apparatus frame wherein a first rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler is positioned at the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter drive-wire inlet side and a second rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler is positioned at the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter drive-wire outlet side and wherein the first and second rotatable wire-driven rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idlers are position-spaced at locations that are at least 30 degrees of wire-guide idler separation arc-length apart from each other where the flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler separation arc-length is measured along the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk outer diameter circumference and where the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idlers are position-spaced at flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler separation arc-lengths that are greater than the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-position idlers' separation arc-lengths; k) wherein the respective rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire are routed around and in contact with the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire rotatable motor drive-wire pulley circumference and routed to be in contact with at least a first rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler circumference and routed to be in contact with the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk circumference and routed to be in contact with at least a second rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire circular rotatable wire-guide idler circumference and routed back to and in contact with the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire motor drive-wire pulley circumference; l) a wire-tensioning device that applies a wire tension force to the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk's flexible drive-wire wherein the respective rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire urges the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk against the at least two rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk rotatable disk-positioning idlers; m) a lower rotatable abrading platen having an approximately-horizontal flat annular abrading-surface that has a lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface radial width and a lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface inner radius and a lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface outer radius and a lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface outer circumference and a lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface centerline that is positioned midway between a lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface inner radius and a lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface outer radius and where the lower abrading platen can be rotationally driven about a lower rotatable abrading platen rotation axis located at a rotational center of the lower rotatable abrading platen and wherein the lower rotatable abrading platen is attached to the abrading machine frame; and n) wherein the lower rotatable abrading platen approximately horizontal flat annular abrading-surface has an abrasive coating provided by an abrasive device selected from the group consisting of flexible abrasive disks, flexible raised-island abrasive disks, flexible abrasive disks with resilient backing layers, flexible abrasive disks with resilient backing layers having a vacuum-seal polymer backing layer, flexible abrasive disks having attached solid abrasive pellets, flexible chemical mechanical planarization resilient disk pads with liquid abrasive slurries, flexible chemical mechanical planarization resilient disk pads having nap covers, flexible shallow-island chemical mechanical planarization abrasive disks, flexible shallow-island abrasive disks with resilient backing layers having a vacuum-seal polymer backing layer, flexible flat-surfaced metal or polymer disks, and liquid abrasive-slurry coatings; o) wherein the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk is positioned where the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk center is located on the lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface centerline; p) workpieces having parallel opposed flat workpiece-top surfaces and flat workpiece-bottom surfaces and the workpieces have workpiece cross-sectional shapes and the workpieces have approximately-equal thicknesses; q) wherein the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disks have workpiece receptacle-holes that extend though the respective rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disks' thicknesses where the respective rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk's workpiece receptacle-holes have cross-sectional shapes that have the same approximate shapes as the workpieces' cross-sectional shapes wherein the respective rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disks' open workpiece receptacles are suitable to contain the workpieces wherein the flat workpiece-bottom surfaces are approximately parallel to the respective rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disks' circular flat-surfaced shapes; r) wherein the workpieces having flat workpiece-bottom surfaces can be inserted into the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk's open workpiece receptacle-holes wherein the respective open receptacles contain the approximately-equal thicknesses flat-surfaced workpieces and wherein the flat workpiece-bottom surfaces are in flat-surface contact with the abrasive coating of the selected abrasive device on the lower rotatable abrading platen annular abrading-surface; s) wherein controlled workpiece abrading forces are applied to the respective workpieces' flat workpiece-top surfaces by weights on the workpieces' flat workpiece-top surfaces or application of abrading forces to the workpieces' flat workpiece-top surfaces wherein the controlled workpiece abrading forces applied to the respective flat workpiece-top surfaces are transferred through the respective workpiece approximately-equal thicknesses to the respective flat workpiece-bottom surfaces which are in abrading contact with the abrasive surface of the lower rotatable platen annular abrading-surface; t) wherein the flexible drive-wire motor rotatable drive shaft can be rotated wherein the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire is moved along the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk flexible drive-wire axis to rotate the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk about the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk's center of rotation wherein the workpieces inserted into the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk's open workpiece receptacle-holes are rotated about the rotatable wire-driven circular workholder disk's center of rotation and wherein the lower rotatable abrading platen can be rotated to single-sided abrade the workpiece-bottom surfaces.