Positioner for maintaining an object in a substantially weightless condition
AssigneeinTEST Corporation
InventorNathan R. Smith
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system for positioning an electronic test head of a test system with respect to an electronic device handler. A housing is provided having a vertical shaft. A positioner assembly moves vertically with respect to the shaft and provides substantial movement in the horizontal plane with six degrees of freedom. The positioner assembly includes a section for attaching the test head. A counterbalancing assembly is coupled to the positioner assembly and has a counterweight to provide a substantially weightless condition to the positioner assembly with the test head attached.
Claims5
A system for maintaining an object in a substantially weightless condition without the effect of gravity comprising
- support means,
- positioner means coupled to the support means and having vertical movement with respect to the support means and movement in the horizontal plane, the positioner means including means for attaching the object,
- counterbalancing means coupled to the positioner means to provide substantially weightless condition to the positioner means with the object attached, and
- the positioner means and the support means including at least three parallel continuously vertical axes so that as the positioner means is extended in the horizontal plane, the three vertical axes themselves support the weight of the positioner means with the object and two of the three vertical axes being simultaneously free to rotate about their respective axes as the positioner means is manually rotated about said two vertical axes without the effect of gravity, at least one of said two vertical axes being free of vertical movement with respect to the positioner means.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.