High precision polishing of optics using an industrial robot

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Building larger and more powerful telescopes is a critical necessity for the advancement of astronomy and**astrophysics. A major bottleneck in the construction of larger telescopes is manufacturing larger high precision**mirrors. However, bigger mirrors are thicker and heavier, and therefore their manufacturability is beyond the**capabilities of the existing manufacturing methods. Dynamic Structures (DS) has developed a new polishing**system, the HyDRA Robotic Polisher, which will enable manufacturing large high-precision optical surfaces**with complex shape at a lower cost and a higher speed. This new system integrates a hydrodynamic polishing**tool (HyDRa) with a 6-axis KUKA industrial robot. While the developed system has achieved highly**promising results in preliminary tests, in order to extend its capabilities to polish larger and more complex**optical surfaces, advanced surface metrology methods and control strategies will be implemented in**collaboration with the Dynamics and Digital Manufacturing lab at UVic.**Canada is a major partner in the development of the largest observatories in the world such as Thirty Meter**Telescope (TMT), and DS' expertise in the areas of adaptive optics and enclosure design is instrumental in the**success if those project. Expanding DS' capabilities into the area of optical manufacturing will further improve**Canada's position as a leader in the field of astronomy.