A polishing apparatus is provided. Another aspect pertains to a self-leveling polishing apparatus for smoothing diamonds. Yet another aspect of the present system uses a ball and swivel joint in a diamond polishing machine. A further aspect employs a polishing apparatus including a diamond-holder, an elongated arm using gravity to apply downward polishing pressure of the diamond workpiece against a polishing wheel, and a sweeping transmission to cause the holder to radially move across the rotating polishing wheel.

The diamond surface polishing method according to the present invention involves polishing a polished object, the surface of which is made of diamond, by rubbing a polishing member having an elongated shape such as a linear or belt-like shape and containing at least a metal or a metal oxide against the diamond surface, wherein a pressing force of the polishing member is controlled in accordance with material properties of the polishing member and/or a shape of the polished object and a diamond crystal size in a rubbing section so that contact surface pressure in a machining area becomes uniform.

The diamond surface polishing method according to the present invention involves polishing a polished object, the surface of which is made of diamond, by rubbing a polishing member having an elongated shape such as a linear or belt-like shape and containing at least a metal or a metal oxide against the diamond surface, wherein a pressing force of the polishing member is controlled in accordance with material properties of the polishing member and/or a shape of the polished object and a diamond crystal size in a rubbing section so that contact surface pressure in a machining area becomes uniform.

Carbon atoms of a single-crystal diamond and active abrasives are used to produce a chemical reaction to form carbides under a specific grinding condition of no higher than a graphitization temperature, and a hard abrasive is used to remove the carbides.

Among all the materials available on earth, diamond has demonstrated outstanding properties for general-purpose applications. Nevertheless, due to the total lack of processability, artificial diamonds have never captured large industrial markets for the recognized performance. However, theoretical chemists recently paid attention to an old but highly efficient way of producing new facets on gem diamonds by manual self-abrasion. They found by using molecular dynamics calculations that the rate-determining step in the self-abrasion sp.sup.3-sp.sup.2 order-disorder transition on the crystal surface. The product of such a transition is an amorphous layer, which chemically decomposes to produce a new facet. Taking advantage of the self-abrasion mechanism thus found, we designed a novel spheroidization method and experimental apparatuses, wherein the self-abrasion works preferentially on mechanically weak portions like vertices and edges but hardly on stronger surfaces. Spherical diamonds lack self-aggregation properties, are resistant against shocks, have mechanically strong surface and offer a new material.

Among all the materials available on earth, diamond has demonstrated outstanding properties for general-purpose applications. Nevertheless, due to the total lack of processability, artificial diamonds have never captured large industrial markets for the recognized performance. However, theoretical chemists recently paid attention to an old but highly efficient way of producing new facets on gem diamonds by manual self-abrasion. They found by using molecular dynamics calculations that the rate-determining step in the self-abrasion sp.sup.3-sp.sup.2 order-disorder transition on the crystal surface. The product of such a transition is an amorphous layer, which chemically decomposes to produce a new facet. Taking advantage of the self-abrasion mechanism thus found, we designed a novel spheroidization method and experimental apparatuses, wherein the self-abrasion works preferentially on mechanically weak portions like vertices and edges but hardly on stronger surfaces. Spherical diamonds lack self-aggregation properties, are resistant against shocks, have mechanically strong surface and offer a new material.

A gemstone positioning fixture, including a base and a cover plate applied over the base. The cover plate has apertures, one for each gem to be worked on. At least one biasing member is positioned beneath the plate. The biasing member applies an upward force to the gems to contact the cover plate. The plate is formed of materials that conduct electricity, so as to conduct any charged particles away from the gem work surface.

The present embodiments relate to systems and methods for generating all possible gemstone faceting arrangements. An apparatus can include a computer, a computerized file storage system for saving results, and a mechanism that generates faceting arrangements satisfying user-defined constraints. The apparatus can feature a program that enables loading gemstone faceting designs and can offer adjustable settings to control the specific geometric parameters. The program can also provide users with 3D models satisfying geometric constraints. Additionally, the apparatus may incorporate a ray-tracing engine to assess the light performance qualities of the virtual gemstone model. The present embodiments can also include methods for optimizing diamond cut using a genetic algorithm.

The present embodiments relate to systems and methods for generating all possible gemstone faceting arrangements. An apparatus can include a computer, a computerized file storage system for saving results, and a mechanism that generates faceting arrangements satisfying user-defined constraints. The apparatus can feature a program that enables loading gemstone faceting designs and can offer adjustable settings to control the specific geometric parameters. The program can also provide users with 3D models satisfying geometric constraints. Additionally, the apparatus may incorporate a ray-tracing engine to assess the light performance qualities of the virtual gemstone model. The present embodiments can also include methods for optimizing diamond cut using a genetic algorithm.

The diamond surface polishing method according to the present invention involves polishing a polished object, the surface of which is made of diamond, by rubbing a polishing member having an elongated shape such as a linear or belt-like shape and containing at least a metal or a metal oxide against the diamond surface, wherein a pressing force of the polishing member is controlled in accordance with material properties of the polishing member and/or a shape of the polished object and a diamond crystal size in a rubbing section so that contact surface pressure in a machining area becomes uniform.