Coburn Optical Industries, Inc.

Stephen Kulan

Kenneth L Smith

Ronald T Hyslop

Johnny P Ellis

Larry Penner

Ray Gregory

William D Brennan

James K Hays

An air pressurized chuck has a spindle journalled in a housing for rotation about a longitudinal axis. One means is mounted in a penultimate portion of the spindle and rotatable therewith for longitudinally reciprocating along the axis in one direction in response to the bias of a coil spring disposed concentrically about the axis between the spindle and the reciprocating means and in an opposite direction in response to a pneumatic force selectively applied to the reciprocating means in excess of the bias. Another means is mounted in an ultimate portion of the spindle and rotatable therewith for concentrically reciprocating gripping portions thereof in relation to the longitudinal axis in an outward direction in response to movement of the longitudinal reciprocating means in the one direction and in an inward direction in response to movement of the longitudinal reciprocating means in the opposite direction. A third means fixed to the spindle and rotatable therewith establishes a reference plane transverse to the longitudinal axis. The spring has a diameter smaller than a smallest outer diameter of the spindle. The small diameter spring minimizes wobble in the rotating spindle. Maintaining the reference plane independent of the concentric reciprocating means assures consistent positioning of a workpiece to be gripped longitudinally in relation to the chuck.

Air pressurized chuck

A tool for fining/polishing an opthalmic lens has a spindle and a pliant casing containing a conformable filler connected to the spindle for rotation therewith. A pliant pad adhered to the casing has a plurality of slots extending from its perimeter toward its center defining a plurality of fingers which are contoured to the surface of the lens by the filler. Preferably, the lens is rotated about a vertical fixed axis substantially transverse to the lens and the tool is rotated about a fixed axis intersecting the lens and substantially normal to a surface of the lens to be fined/polished with the tool disposed above the lens. The axis of the horizontal displacement of the tool can be selectively varied in relation to the lens axis. The angular disposition of the tool axis in relation to the lens axis can be selectively varied. The radial displacement of the tool in relation to the lens along the tool axis can be selectively varied to bring the pad into and out of abutment with the surface of the lens and to vary the pressure exerted on surface of the lens by the tool.

Conformal tool operating apparatus and process for an ophthalmic lens

An apparatus for use in the generation of ophthalmic products from blanks comprises a mechanism for rotating the blank about an axis of rotation. A cutter tool imparts a desired surface configuration onto the rotating blank. A first moving mechanism moves the cutter tool in a first direction oriented parallel to the axis of rotation of the blank. A second moving mechanism moves the cutter tool in a second direction oriented transverse to the first axis. A digital electronic system controls the angular displacement of the blank with respect to a reference plane containing the blank, and controls the movements of the cutter tool in the first and second directions. The movements of the cutter tool in the first and second directions, and the angular displacement of the blank about the axis of rotation are all controlled independently of one another by the digital electronic system.

Apparatus for generating ophthalmic products from blanks and a method of

A lens grinding apparatus is capable of generating, in a lens blank, a power curve less than three diopters and having both a base characteristic and a cross curve characteristic. A plate is pivotably mounted on a base means, a first slide is slidably mounted on the plate, a second slide is pivotably mounted on the first slide, and a tool is mounted on the second slide for rotation about a tool axis of rotation. During a sweep of the tool across a lens blank, the position of the tool relative to the lens blank is continuously sensed to control a micro-processor. Under the control of the micro-processor, the first slide is continuously slid along the plate, and the second slide is continuously pivoted about an axis relative to the first slide. This is performed so that the sweep radius and the real head angle of the tool are continually changed in a manner maintaining a constant radius of curvature of the curve, and a constant effective head angle of the tool.

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Muskogee, OK, United States of America

Stephen Kulan