US 5,987,735 AGranted

Compliant collet assembly

AssigneeSeagate Technology LLC

InventorsSteve Gregory Horning, James Randy Jenkins

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Abstract

A collet assembly for picking and placing a disc pack in an automated assembly process, the collet assembly having a retractable cylinder that extends to spreadingly engage a segmented collet against a lifting surface of the disc pack to support the disc pack during a lifting operation. The collet assembly is positioned by a positioning assembly to an engaging position adjacent the disc pack. A locking cylinder supports a lower pad and an upper pad on opposing sides of a flange portion of the collet assembly, to provide a fixed mode in a retracted position of the locking cylinder wherein the collet assembly position is fixed relative the positioning assembly, and to provide a compliant mode in an extended position of the locking cylinder wherein the collet assembly is free to compliantly float in a two-axis plane relative to the positioning assembly.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A head and disc assembling apparatus for assembling a disc drive from a plurality of component parts, the component parts comprising a disc drive motor having a plurality of discs attached thereto to form a disc pack, and the head and disc assembling apparatus comprising a positioning assembly for selectively positioning the disc pack, the positioning assembly supporting a gripping collet comprising:

a support plate attached to the positioning assembly;
a collet body supported by said support plate, comprising:
an annular passageway;
and
a flange portion disposed adjacent said annular passageway;
a cylinder supported at a proximate end of said collet body, said cylinder having an extensible shaft moveable between a retracted and an extended position;
a segmented collet supported by a distal end of said collet body, wherein said segmented collet is spreadably movable to grip the disc pack;
an actuating pin supported by said cylinder and slidingly disposed in said annular passageway;
a tooling ball attached to a distal end of said actuating pin, said pin clearingly disengaging said segmented collet in a retracted position of said shaft, and said pin spreadingly engaging said segmented collet in an extended position of said shaft to grip the disc pack;
a clamping assembly for clamping said collet in a fixed mode relative said support plate, and for unclamping said collet in a compliant mode relative said support plate, said clamping assembly comprising:
a locking cylinder having an extensible shaft;
an upper pad disposed between said locking cylinder and said flange portion of said collet body;
and
a lower pad supported by a distal end of said locking cylinder shaft and opposingly engaging said flange portion of said collet body in the retracted position of said locking cylinder.

11 more elements

A gripping collet comprising:

a support plate;
a collet body supported by said support plate, comprising:
an annular passageway;
and
a flange portion disposed adjacent said annular passageway;
a cylinder supported at a proximate end of said collet body, said cylinder having an extensible shaft moveable between a retracted and an extended position;
a segmented collet supported by a distal end of said collet body, wherein said segmented collet is spreadably movable to grip a member;
an actuating pin supported by said cylinder and slidingly disposed in said annular passageway;
a tooling ball attached to a distal end of said actuating pin, said pin clearingly disengaging said segmented collet in a retracted position of said shaft, and said pin spreadingly engaging said segmented collet in an extended position of said shaft to grip the member;
a clamping assembly for clamping said collet in a fixed mode relative said support plate, and for unclamping said collet in a compliant mode relative said support plate, said clamping assembly comprising:
a locking cylinder having an extensible shaft;
an upper pad disposed between said locking cylinder and said flange portion of said collet body;
and
a lower pad supported by a distal end of said locking cylinder shaft and opposingly engaging said flange portion of said collet body in the retracted position of said locking cylinder.

11 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.