3m Innovative Properties Company

Jeffrey E Clements

Mark E Gardiner

Mark R Dupre

William J Bryan

Nelson D Sewall

Timothy L Hoopman

Jennifer L Trice

Charles N DeVore

Greg E Schrank

A cutting tool assembly having a tool post capable of lateral movement along a work piece to be cut and an actuator with at least one machined tool tip and possibly other tool tips. The actuator provides for control of the movement of the tool tip in an x-direction into and out of the work piece in order to make continuous or discontinuous diffractive features in it. The machined work piece can be used to make articles having diffractive features such as optical films having lenslets.

Optical film having a set of diffractive features randomly repeating at variable distances

A cutting tool assembly having a tool post capable of lateral movement along a work piece to be cut and a shank on the tool post holding at least one machined tool tip and possibly other tool tips. The tool tip has diffractive features in contact with the work piece in order to machine macro-scale features having nano-scale features. The machined work piece can be used to make articles having diffractive features such as optical films having lenslets.

Cutting tool using one or more machined tool tips with diffractive features

Cutting tool using one or more machined tool tips with diffractive features in a continuous or interrupted cut fast tool servo

In one embodiment, a cutting tool assembly used for creating grooves in a microreplication tool is described. The cutting tool assembly includes a mounting structure and multiple diamonds mounted in the mounting structure. For example, first and second tool shanks having first and second diamond tips can be positioned in the mounting structure such that a cutting location of a diamond cutting tip of the first tool shank is a defined distance from a cutting location of a diamond cutting tip of the second tool shank. The defined distance may correspond to an integer number of pitch spacings, and may be accurate to within a tolerance of less than approximately 10 microns.

Multi-diamond cutting tool assembly for creating microreplication tools

In one embodiment, a tool used for creating grooves in a microreplication tool is described. The tool includes a mounting structure and a multi-tipped diamond mounted in the mounting structure. The different tips of the diamond may correspond to different grooves to be created in the microreplication tool. In this manner, the creation of a microreplication tool using a diamond can be simplified and/or improved.

Growing community of inventors

Oakdale, MN, United States of America

Jeffrey E Clements