Patent ID: 7367866

Claim:
An apparatus for polishing objects, said apparatus comprising: at least one polishing surface; a first object carrier positioned over said at least one polishing surface; a second object carrier positioned over said at least one polishing surface; a first object relay device including a first load/unload cup configured to independently pivot said first load/unload cup about a first axis to at least one of said first and second object carriers to transfer at least some of said objects between said first load/unload cup and at least one of said first and second object carriers, said first axis being located between said first and second object carriers; and a second object relay device including a second load/unload cup configured to independently pivot said second load/unload cup about a second axis to at least one of said first and second object carriers to transfer at least some of said objects between said second load/unload cup and at least one of said first and second object carriers, said second axis being located between said first and second object carriers, wherein at least one of said first and second object relay devices is configured to pivot one of said first and second load/unload cups from said first object carrier to said second object carrier to transfer at least some of said objects from said first object carrier to said second object carriers.