The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 03, 2000
Filed:
Jul. 10, 1998
Shu-Hsin Kao, Redwood City, CA (US);
William F Lapson, Cupertino, CA (US);
Charles J Regan, Moraga, CA (US);
David E Weldon, Santa Clara, CA (US);
Aplex Inc., Sunnyvale, CA (US);
Abstract
A polishing tool uses a seal cavity containing a fluid that supports polishing pads against an object being polished. The boundaries of the cavity include a support structure, a portion of a polishing material, and a seal between the support structure and the polishing material. The polishing material moves relative to the support structure and seal. A variety of seal configurations can maintain the fluid within the cavity. In one embodiment the seal mechanism is a labyrinth seal including multiple ridges. In one embodiment, the seal mechanism is a face-sealing seal which includes a jacket with a u-shaped cross section with a compressible element positioned within it. The face-sealing seal is in a groove positioned outside of the cavity. Alternatively, the face-sealing seal forms the outer edge of the cavity. In a further embodiment, the seal is an o-ring seal positioned within a double dove-tailed groove.