Apple Inc.

Alexander M Hoffman

Matthew S Rogers

Dale N Memering

Christopher D Jones

Srikanth Kamireddi

Ping Chen

Chien-Wei Huang

A system for heat treating sapphire components to increase strength while maintaining the optical finish and/or transparency of the component. The system may include a fixture positioned in a furnace and configured to suspend an array or group of sapphire components. The fixture may include notches or other features to assist in locating and positioning the sapphire components. Shield elements or enclosures may also be interspersed with the sapphire components and may help produce a more uniform heat distribution and protect the sapphire components from emissions or deposits. Some aspects are directed to a sleeve tool and fixture jig that can be used to assemble the sapphire components onto the fixture in a way that reduces the risk of marring or otherwise damaging the sapphire components.

System for heat treating a sapphire component

Ultrasonic polishing systems and methods of polishing brittle components for electronic devices using ultrasonic polishing systems are disclosed. The ultrasonic polishing system may include an ultrasonic driver and a polishing head operatively coupled to the ultrasonic driver. The ultrasonic drive may have a surface shape that corresponds to a non-planar feature formed in the brittle component. The ultrasonic polishing system may also include an abrasive slurry configured to be disposed between the non-planar feature of the brittle component and the polishing head. The ultrasonic driver may be configured to displace the polishing head toward and away from the non-planar feature formed in the brittle component.

Ultrasonic polishing systems and methods of polishing brittle components for electronic devices

Growing community of inventors

Cupertino, CA, United States of America

Alexander M Hoffman