Media substrate gripper including a plurality of snap-fit fingers

Description

BACKGROUND

Plating, polishing, and cleaning processes are an essential part of media disk fabrication. In a media disk polishing operation, media disks are loaded in and out of a polishing machine via a transverser. For example, a transverser is an apparatus that can hold a plurality media disks simultaneously (e.g., 50 or more), and allows rapid loading and unloading of the media disks at the polisher machine to maximize machine utilization and to prevent dry-out of the polishing pad.

The transverser has a plurality of disk grippers (e.g., 50 or more) that each include a pair of chuck bodies each coupled to a respective gripper finger via a fastener such as a screw and/or a bolt. The gripper fingers of the disk gripper, when supplied with compressed air, move away from each other in a linear manner, gripping a media disk at its inner diameter. Similarly, a compressed air supply moves the fingers towards each other to release the media disk from its grip. In this way, loading and unloading of media disks from a polishing machine can be enabled.

In the event that media disks of a different form factor (e.g., 95 mm to 65 mm or vice-versa) need to be loaded into the polishing machine, the chuck body mounted on the gripper fingers will need to be changed to match the inner diameter of the media disks for proper gripping. Since a chuck body is mounted on a gripper finger via multiple fastener bolts, it takes time to change the chuck body as it involves unfastening the chuck body from the gripper finger by removing the screw and/or bolt, and then fastening a new chuck body on the gripper finger to accommodate media disks of a different form factor. The process of dismounting and attaching 50 pairs of chuck bodies will involve considerable machine downtime for each transverser, which creates a loss of production.

In addition, screw-mounted chuck bodies have screw holes with considerable tolerance, which can cause the chuck body to be mounted at the gripper finger with height differences. Therefore, height alignment during chuck body mounting is crucial to bring each of the chuck bodies' working chamfer surfaces into same working height. Failure to do this will cause the chuck bodies to be unable to pick up the disk—a “chuck miss” event. Due to inconsistencies of alignment during chuck body change, chuck body height alignment is difficult to control.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a substrate processing system.

FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a media disk gripper.

FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a disk picker.

FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating an exploded view of an exemplary embodiment of a disk picker.

FIGS. 3A-3D are diagrams illustrating an exemplary embodiment for removing a chuck body from a gripper finger.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating an exemplary embodiment of matching contours of the adapter of a gripper finger.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an exploded view of a media disk gripper including a snap fit mount according to an exemplary embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various exemplary embodiments of the present invention and is not intended to represent the only embodiments in which the present invention may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the concepts of the present invention.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any embodiment described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. Likewise, the term “embodiment” of a system, apparatus, or method does not require that all embodiments of the invention include the described components, structure, features, functionality, processes, advantages, benefits, or modes of operation.

In the following detailed description, various aspects of a media disk processing system will be presented. These aspects of a media disk processing system are well suited for dismounting and attaching various components of the processing system resulting in minimal machine downtime and reduced misalignment of machine components. Those skilled in the art will realize that these aspects may be extended to all types of media disk system components such as a chuck body, a gripper finger, an adapter, a gripper body, gripper body shafts, and/or a mount used to transfer media disks between processing machines. Accordingly, any reference to a specific system, apparatus, or method is intended only to illustrate the various aspects of the present invention, with the understanding that such aspects may have a wide range of applications.

One aspect of an assembly configured to grip a substrate includes a gripper including a first finger and a second finger, a first chuck body snap-fit to the first finger, and a second chuck body snap-fit to the second finger.

One aspect of a substrate polishing apparatus includes a supporting base configured to support a plurality of substrates during a polishing process, and a device configured to unload the plurality of substrates off of the supporting base after the polishing process, the device comprising a plurality of gripper assemblies each configured to grip a substrate, each gripper assembly comprising a gripper including a first finger and a second finger, a first chuck body snap-fit to the first finger, and a second chuck body snap-fit to the second finger.

One aspect of an assembly configured to receive a plurality of substrates during a recording media fabrication process includes a base comprising a first adapter and a second adapter, and a mount snap-fit to the first adapter and the second adapter, the mount configured to receive the plurality of substrates during the recording media fabrication process.

It will be understood that other aspects of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, wherein it is shown and described only several embodiments of the invention by way of illustration. As will be realized by those skilled in the art, the present invention is capable of other and different embodiments and its several details are capable of modification in various other respects, all without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating a media disk processing system 100 according to an exemplary embodiment. For example, the media disk processing system 100 can include a media disk processing machine 108 configured to polish a plurality of media disks 106, such as a recording media substrate, during a polishing process. With reference to FIG. 1A, the media disk processing system 100 can include a transverser 102 that is used to load and unload a plurality of media disks 106 into and out of the media disk processing machine 108. The transverser 102 can include a plurality of gripper assemblies 104 each comprising one or more disk pickers 114, a more detailed view of which can be seen in FIG. 1B. As illustrated in FIG. 1B, a gripper assembly 104 can be attached to the transverser 102 via a shaft 110 that is coupled to a support plate 112. One or more disk pickers 114, seen in FIG. 1B, can be mounted to the support plate 112. For example, the disk pickers 114 can each be coupled to the support plate 112 using a slide bush 158, and the slide bush 158 can be coupled to the support plate 112 using one or more screws or bolts. In an exemplary embodiment, each of the one or more disk pickers 114 are configured to grip a respective media disk 106 during a loading/unloading process into and out of the media disk processing machine 108.

FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a disk picker 214 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2B is an exploded view of the disk picker 214 illustrated in FIG. 2A. Referring to FIG. 2A, the disk picker 214 can include a picker shaft 216 coupled to a mount 218. For example, the picker shaft 216 can be coupled to the mount 218 using one or more screws, bolts, adhesives, or the like. Alternately, the picker shaft 216 can form a unitary structure with the mount 218. As seen in FIG. 2A, a gripper body 222 is coupled to the mount 218 using a pair of adapters 220. For example, each of the pair of adapters 220 can be configured to be received into a respective cavity 236 in the gripper body 222. Referring FIG. 2B, the mount 218 can include a pair of recesses 232, each of which is configured to receive one of the pair of adapters 220 of the gripper body 222. In an exemplary embodiment, each of the recesses 232 in the mount 218 can be shaped to substantially mirror the external contour of the adapters 220 and configured to receive one of the pair of adapters 220 in a snap-fit manner. For example, each of the recesses 232 can be shaped and configured such that at least one wall of each of the recesses 232 flexes outwardly allowing its respective adapter 220 to be received therein. Once the adapter 220 is fully received within its respective recess 232, the walls of the recess 232 flex back into their original position providing the required interference to securely retain the adapter 220 within the recess 232 to couple the gripper body 222 to the mount 218. In this way, the gripper body 222 can be attached to the mount 218 in a snap-fit manner. The gripper body 222 can be detached from the mount 218 by applying a sufficient force to the outer wall of the recess 232 (e.g., by twisting the gripper body 222) that allows the outer wall of the recess 232 to flex away from the adapter 220, and the adapters 220 to slide out of its respective recess 232. This decouples the gripper body 222 from the mount 218. In this way, a gripper body 222 can be easily and quickly changed into and out of a disk picker 214.

With further reference to FIG. 2B, the gripper body 222 also includes a pair of gripper fingers 228 that are configured to move away from one another in a linear manner, when supplied with compressed air. In an exemplary embodiment, each of the gripper fingers 228 include an adapter 224 coupled thereto. For example, the adapter 224 can be attached to its respective gripper finger 228 using a screw 238, a bolt (e.g., not shown), an adhesive (e.g., not show), or the like. Alternately, the adapter 224 can be integrally formed with the gripper finger 228, such that the gripper finger 228 and its adapter 224 form a unitary member. As illustrated in FIG. 2A, a pair of chuck bodies 226 can each be mounted to one of the gripper fingers 228 (seen in FIG. 2B). In an exemplary embodiment, each of the chuck bodies 226 includes a recess that is shaped to mirror the external contour of the adapter 224. For example, with reference to FIG. 4, the recess 438 formed in the chuck body 426 is shaped and sized to match the outer contour of the adapter 424 that allows for precise alignment of each of the chuck bodies 426. In this way the chuck body 426 can mate with the adapter in a snap-fit configuration with high height precision. Referring again to FIGS. 2A and 2B, each chuck body 226 can also include an internal groove (not shown) that is shaped and configured to fit around a gripper finger 228. In this way, the chuck body 226 can be attached to the gripper finger 228 in a snap-fit manner.

FIGS. 3A-3D illustrate an exemplary embodiment for dismounting the chuck bodies 326L, 326R coupled to the gripper fingers 328 of a gripper body 322 in accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure. With reference to FIG. 3A, a force F_L can be applied to a lower portion 326La of the left chuck body 326L in an outward direction with respect to the gripper body 322. When the applied outward force F_L is of sufficient strength, the upper portion 326Lb of the left chuck body 326L disengages from the left adapter 324L mounted on the left gripper finger 328L. This causes rotation R_L of the left chuck body 326L away from the left gripper finger 324L as depicted in FIGS. 3B-3D. Similarly, to remove the right gripper chuck 326R, a force F_R can be applied to a lower portion 326Ra of the right gripper chuck 326R in an outward direction with respect to the gripper body 322. When the applied outward force F_R is of sufficient strength, the upper portion 326Rb disengages from the right adapter 324R mounted on the right gripper finger 328R. This causes rotation R_R of the right chuck body 326R away from the right gripper finger 324R as depicted in FIGS. 3C and 3D. In this way, the snap-fit configuration allows each of the chuck bodies 326L, 326R to be efficiently removed from its respective gripper finger 328L, 328R.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an exploded view of an assembly 500 configured to receive a plurality of media disks during a recording media fabrication process. The assembly 500 can include a mount 540 that includes a plurality of slots 542, each configured to receive a media disk (not shown). The mount 540 can be coupled to a moveable base 548 with a pair of adapters 546. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the mount 540 can include a pair of recesses 544, each of which is configured to receive one of the pair of adapters 546. For example, each of the pair of adapters 546 can be configured to be received into a respective cavity 550 in the moveable base 548. In an exemplary embodiment, the pair of recesses 544 in the mount 540 are each shaped based on the external contour of an adapter 546 and configured to receive one of the adapters 546 in a snap-fit manner. For example, each of the recesses 544 can be shaped and configured such that at least one wall of each of the recesses 544 flexes outwardly allowing its respective adapter 546 to be received therein. Once the adapter 546 is fully received within its respective recess 544, the walls of the recess 544 flex back into their original position providing the required interference to “lock” the adapter 546 within the recess 544. In this way, the mount 540 can be coupled to the moveable base 548 in a snap-fit manner. The mount 540 can be detached from the moveable base 548 by applying a force to the outer wall of the recess 544 (e.g., by twisting the mount 540) that is sufficient to allow the outer wall to flex away from the adapter 546 as it slides out of the recess 544. In this way, the mount 540 used to receive media disks (not shown) in a recording media fabrication process can be easily switched out with another component (e.g., a different mount having the same or different specifications as mount 540).

The various aspects of this disclosure are provided to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the present invention. Various modifications to exemplary embodiments presented throughout this disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the concepts disclosed herein may be extended to other magnetic storage devices. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the various aspects of this disclosure, but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language of the claims. All structural and functional equivalents to the various components of the exemplary embodiments described throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §112(f) unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase “means for” or, in the case of a method claim, the element is recited using the phrase “step for.”