Across all advanced industries, from aerospace to semiconductor, there is a relentless push for tighter tolerances, superior surface finishes, and higher performance. Achieving these goals often requires motion systems that can operate beyond the limits of traditional precision components like a mechanical spindle. This is where air bearing technology becomes an enabling technology. Utilizing a proven and robust design with high load capacity and stiffness, our high-precision spindles meet the most extreme demands with frictionless, vibration-free motion and nanometer-level accuracy across a wide performance range from 0 to over 30,000 RPM.
Here are five critical spindle applications where ABTech’s custom spindles deliver superior performance.
The Challenge: In optical lens manufacturing, the surfaces of high-performance lenses, mirrors, and optical components for telescopes, satellites, and lithography systems demand near-perfect form and a flawless, super-smooth finish, often measured in angstroms.
The Air-Bearing Solution:
Target Industries: Optics, Aerospace, Semiconductor.
The Challenge: The goal of high precision machining and diamond turning is to machine complex components from non-ferrous materials to a mirror-like finish directly on the machine. This bypasses the need for secondary polishing operations, saving time and money, but requires incredible rotational stability.
The Air-Bearing Solution:
Target Industries: Manufacturing, Medical (implants), Aerospace, Automotive.
The Challenge: Achieving high material removal rates on hard or brittle materials, like industrial ceramics or semiconductor wafers, without introducing thermal damage, micro-cracks, or compromising the part's geometric accuracy.
The Air-Bearing Solution:
Target Industries: Energy (turbine components), Aviation, Semiconductor, Manufacturing.
The Challenge: To measure a component with nanometer-level accuracy, the reference axis used for measurement must be an order of magnitude more accurate than the part itself. This is the core of precision spindle metrology.
The Air-Bearing Solution:
Target Industries: All, but especially Aerospace, Automotive, and Aviation, where validation is critical.
The Challenge: The manufacturing of microchips involves multiple steps—lithography, scanning, inspection—where the silicon wafer must be moved and positioned with extreme smoothness and precision in a cleanroom environment.
The Air-Bearing Solution:
Target Industries: Semiconductor.
ABTech delivers engineered spindles built to meet the highest performance, durability, and integration standards. Whether you need a custom high speed spindle, a precision spindle for metrology, or a robust air turbine spindle for grinding, our modular platforms adapt to your system.
Design Benefits:
ABTech provides complete precision motion systems and custom solutions. Explore our full line of precision components:
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