Patents by Inventor Robert S. Dodsworth

Robert S. Dodsworth has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20040247921
    Abstract: An etched dielectric film for use in a hard disk drive. The dielectric film has a thickness of about 25 &mgr;m or greater when it is attached to a supporting metal substrate, and is subsequently etched to a thickness of about 20 &mgr;m or less.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2004
    Publication date: December 9, 2004
    Inventors: Robert S. Dodsworth, Guoping Mao, Vicki L. Richmond, Rui Yang
  • Patent number: 6815620
    Abstract: A flexible circuit incorporating an electrostatic discharge limiting feature, comprising a dielectric substrate selected from polyimide or liquid crystal polymer film having at least one conductive trace coated on at least one surface of the substrate wherein the discharge limiting feature includes a thin conductive polymer coating selectively applied over a at least a portion of the non-critical region of the circuit, said feature reducing the surface resistivity of the circuit to about 104 ohms to about 108 ohms and having tribocharging of less than about 50 V.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2004
    Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company
    Inventors: Robert S. Dodsworth, John B. Scheibner, Ke Zhang, Chee Tat Ee, Juang Meng Mok, Yong Peng Lee
  • Publication number: 20030062194
    Abstract: A flexible circuit incorporating an electrostatic discharge limiting feature, comprising a dielectric substrate selected from polyimide or liquid crystal polymer film having at least one conductive trace coated on at least one surface of the substrate wherein the discharge limiting feature includes a thin conductive polymer coating selectively applied over a at least a portion of the non-critical region of the circuit, said feature reducing the surface resistivity of the circuit to about 104 ohms to about 108 ohms and having tribocharging of less than about 50 V.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 26, 2002
    Publication date: April 3, 2003
    Inventors: Robert S. Dodsworth, John B. Scheibner, Ke Zhang, Chee Tat Ee, Juang Meng Mok, Yong Peng Lee
  • Publication number: 20020139569
    Abstract: A flexible circuit incorporating electrostatic discharge (ESD) limiting features and being suitable for use in the fabrication of hard disk drives for computer applications. Conductive polymer strips are implemented to enhance the static dissipative characteristics of the flexible circuit and to protect magnetorestistive (MR) heads of a hard disk drive (HDD) from damage during the manufacture of the head gimbal assembly (HGA) of the HDD.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 29, 2001
    Publication date: October 3, 2002
    Inventor: Robert S. Dodsworth
  • Patent number: 6459043
    Abstract: A flexible circuit incorporating electrostatic discharge (ESD) limiting features and being suitable for use in the fabrication of hard disk drives for computer applications. Conductive polymer strips are implemented to enhance the static dissipative characteristics of the flexible circuit and to protect magnetorestistive (MR) heads of a hard disk drive (HDD) from damage during the manufacture of the head gimbal assembly (HGA) of the HDD.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2001
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2002
    Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company
    Inventor: Robert S. Dodsworth
  • Patent number: 4099816
    Abstract: An electrical connector system which may be used to prototype electrical circuits utilizing standard integrated circuit packages on a perforated circuit board. A plurality of spring contact elements having oppositely directed resilient jaws are carried in an insulating housing. An insulating contact retainer, carrying a plurality of spring compression reserve wire contact elements, is placed on the opposite surface of the perforated circuit board from the connector housing, with a tail of each contact element extending through a perforation in the circuit board into one set of jaws of a spring contact element aligned with the perforation. The contact leads of an integrated circuit package are similarly inserted into the oppositely directed, spring contact element jaws. Electrical contact to the contact leads of the integrated circuit package is then made through the spring contact elements and the wire contact elements to wires connected by the wire contact elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 1977
    Date of Patent: July 11, 1978
    Assignee: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
    Inventors: John E. Bittner, Robert S. Dodsworth
  • Patent number: 4012102
    Abstract: A solderless electrical contact comprising a thin resilient flat plate having at least one pair of parallel extended legs defining an open-ended wire-receiving slot, and a method for making the contact. The legs of the contact are similarly coined along the wire-receiving slot, the coining being progressively deeper into the thickness of the flat plate from the open end of the slot toward the closed end thereof to taper the slot from a width adjacent the open end of the slot of less than the thickness of the flat plate to a lesser width adjacent the closed end of the slot. The contact permits effective electrical connection to two small diameter insulated conductors pressed into the wire-receiving slot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 1976
    Date of Patent: March 15, 1977
    Assignee: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
    Inventors: Thomas M. Cherney, Robert S. Dodsworth