Patents Represented by Attorney James A. Lucas
  • Patent number: 6640851
    Abstract: A stump grinding apparatus of the type adapted to be mounted in a frame on the end of a boom is described. The apparatus comprises a grinding wheel mounted between hubs keyed to a shaft that is connected though belts and gears to a source of motive power, such as a diesel engine. A pair of non-adjustable roller bearings are used to provide relative movement of the shaft and grinding wheel in the frame. The apparatus includes means for providing lubrication between relatively moving parts so that the life of the bearings and other component parts can exceed 5000 hours of use without failure. The shaft assembly includes dimensional tolerances that protect the moving parts from the ingress of dirt and other debris. The materials of construction are selected to also enhance trouble-free operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2003
    Inventor: John T. Bennington
  • Patent number: 6637019
    Abstract: Software modeling of hardware components is conducted by partitioning the software into components or parts that are comparable to the components of the hardware. The parts are then configured through the use of plugs and connectors to replicate the hardware. The plugs are either import, export, splitter or compound plugs. The connectors ensure that the parts are capable of interfacing with one another in a communicative manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2000
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Mark Anthony Rinaldi
  • Patent number: 6625857
    Abstract: A method of forming a capacitive element for a circuit board or chip carrier having improved capacitance is provided. The element is formed from a pair of conductive sheets having a dielectric component laminated therebetween. The dielectric component is formed of two or more dielectric sheets, at least one of which can be partially cured followed by being fully cured. The lamination takes place by laminating a partially cured sheet to at least one other sheet of dielectric material and one of the conductive sheets. The total thickness of the two sheets of the dielectric component does not exceed about 4 rolls and preferably does not exceed about 3 mils; thus, the single dielectric sheet does not exceed about 2 mils and preferably does not exceed about 1.5 mils in thickness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2001
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Bernd K. Appelt, John M. Lauffer
  • Patent number: 6589639
    Abstract: A composition usable in hole filling of a metal layer and to planarize the metal layer is provided. The metal layer is part of a substrate which can be part of a multilayer printed circuit board or chip carrier. The composition comprises a fluoropolymer dielectric metal, a filler material, and a coupling agent, the filler material having at least a partial coating of the coupling agent thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2001
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Donald S. Farquhar, Konstantinos I. Papathomas
  • Patent number: 6574090
    Abstract: A capacitive element for a circuit board or chip carrier having improved capacitance and method of manufacturing the same is provided. The structure is formed from a pair of conductive sheets having a dielectric component laminated therebetween. The dielectric component is formed of two or more dielectric sheets, at least one of which can be partially cured or softened followed by being fully cured or hardened. The lamination takes place by laminating a partially cured or softened sheet to at least one other sheet of dielectric material and one of the sheets of conductive material. The total thickness of the two sheets of the dielectric component does not exceed about 4 mils and preferably does not exceed about 3 mils; thus, the single dielectric sheet does not exceed about 2 mils and preferably does not exceed about 1.5 mils in thickness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2001
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporatiion
    Inventors: Bernd K. Appelt, John M. Lauffer
  • Patent number: 6564383
    Abstract: A method and system is provided for capturing, organizing, and presenting information generated from a television program. The method monitors closed caption data of television programs for transition symbols and user defined search parameters and scheduling information. Information relating to captured television programs is entered into a capture management database for assembly into an interactive results file. The interactive results file allows a user to browse, view and navigate the captured television program information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 1997
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: James Lee Combs, William Walter Vetter
  • Patent number: 6545226
    Abstract: The details of a printed wiring board (PWB) sub-assembly and the method of producing the same are described. The sub-assembly comprises a printed circuit board electrically joined through a plurality of connections to one or more area array devices, such as modules or printed wiring boards. The sub-assembly can serve as a part of an original assembly. The sub-assembly can function as an after market item that can be readily substituted as a replacement for a failed component wherein the dimensional space between the printed circuit board and one or both of the area array devices must provide sufficient clearance for surface mounted devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 8, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: William Louis Brodsky, Benson Chan, Michael Anthony Gaynes, Voya Rista Markovich
  • Patent number: 6542379
    Abstract: Passive electrical components such as capacitors, resistors, inductors, transformers, filters and resonators are integrated in to electrical circuits utilizing a process which maximizes the utilization of the planar surfaces of the substrates for high density placement of active components such as logic or memory integrated circuits. The passive components are integrated into a conventional circuit board utilizing a photoimageable dielectric material. The dielectric is photoimaged and etched to provide one or more recesses or openings for the passive devices, and photovias interconnecting the inputs and outputs of the integrated circuit board. The electronic structure comprising at least one of the passive devices integrated into a photoimaged dielectric is described as well as the method of manufacturing the same.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: John M. Lauffer, David J. Russell
  • Patent number: 6534179
    Abstract: A halogen-free dielectric resin mixture is described for use in microvia and other similar applications. The resin mixture contains a cyanate ester monomer or prepolymer a bismaleimide, an epoxy and a flame inhibiting compound selected from the group consisting of a phosphinic acid anhydride, a phosphonic acid andydride and a phosphonic acid half-ester. The flame inhibitor is present in an amount wherein the elemental phosphorus content is between about 2% and about 20% by weight, based on the weight of the resin mixture. The resin mixture can also include one or more coloring, fluorescent and UV absorbing agents. Prepregs based on the resin mixture with inorganic or organic reinforcing agents, as well as circuit boards and chip carriers made from the prepregs are also described. A resin coated article for use in microvia laser applications is likewise included.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Robert Maynard Japp, Konstantinos I. Papathomas, Mark D. Poliks
  • Patent number: 6532185
    Abstract: Network processors commonly utilize DRAM chips for the storage of data. Each DRAM chip contains multiple banks for quick storage of data and access to that data. Latency in the transfer or the ‘write’ of data into memory can occur because of a phenomenon referred to as memory bank polarization. By a procedure called quadword rotation, this latency effect is effectively eliminated. Data frames received by the network processor are transferred to a receive queue (FIFO). The frames are divided into segments that are written into the memory of the DRAM in accordance with a formula that rotates the distribution of each segment into the memory banks of the DRAM.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2003
    Assignees: International Business Machines Corporation, Alcatel
    Inventors: Jean Louis Calvignac, Peter Irma August Barri, Ivan Oscar Clemminck, Kent Harold Haselhorst, Marco C. Heddes, Joseph Franklin Logan, Bart Joseph Gerard Pauwels, Fabrice Jean Verplanken, Miroslav Vrana
  • Patent number: 6524654
    Abstract: In accordance with the present invention, a method of treating the surface of an organic substrate, particularly a circuitized surface of an organic substrate, which method reduces the spread of adhesive resin that is subsequently deposited on the surface, is provided. This method comprises the steps of applying a treatment solution comprising a fatty acid compound, an alkalizing agent, and a solvent comprising water and from about 5% to about 90% by volume of an organic solvent selected from the group consisting of an alcohol, a glycol ether, and combinations thereof to the surface; and then removing substantially all of the solvent from the solution to provide a thin film on the surface of said substrate. The film comprises the fatty acids that were present in the treatment solution. In a preferred embodiment the treatment solution further comprises a chelating agent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2000
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: John Joseph Konrad, Konstantinos I. Papathomas, John A. Welsh
  • Patent number: 6496356
    Abstract: A method of forming a capacitive core structure and of forming a circuitized printed wiring board from the core structure and the resulting structures are provided. The capacitive core structure is formed by providing a central conducting plane of a sheet of conductive material and forming at least one clearance hole in the central conducting plane. First and second external conducting planes are laminated to opposite sides of the ground plane with a film of dielectric material between each of the first and second external planes and the central conducting plane. At least one clearance hole is formed in each of the first and second external planes. A circuitized wiring board structure can be formed by laminating a capacitive core structure between two circuitized structures. The invention also relates to the structures formed by these methods.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2001
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2002
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Robert M. Japp, John M. Lauffer, Konstantinos I. Papathomas
  • Patent number: 6488806
    Abstract: A method for assembling a flip-chip package having a low stress chip comprises providing a laminate chip carrier having a chip electrically connected thereon, applying the underfill material between the chip and the laminate chip carrier, providing a cover plate and applying an adhesive to the cover plate or chip or both, placing the cover plate adjacent to the chip such that the adhesive contacts the chip and the cover plate, and curing the underfill material together with the adhesive. The resultant flip-chip package has low internal. stress and experiences enhanced fatigue life during thermal cycling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2001
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2002
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Timothy F. Carden, Aleksander Zubelewicz
  • Patent number: 6473838
    Abstract: The ability of network processors to move data to and from dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips used in computer systems is enhanced in several respects. In one aspect of the invention, two double data rate DRAMS are used in parallel to double the bandwidth for increased throughput of data. The movement of data is further improved by setting 4 banks of full ‘read’ and 4 banks of full ‘write’ by the network processor for every repetition of the DRAM time clock. A scheme for randomized ‘read’ and ‘write’ access by the network processor is disclosed. This scheme is particularly applicable to networks such as Ethernet that utilize variable frame sizes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2000
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2002
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian Mitchell Bass, Jean Louis Calvignac, Marco C. Heddes, Steven Kenneth Jenkins, Michael Steven Siegel, Michael Raymond Trombley, Fabrice Jean Verplanken
  • Patent number: 6452822
    Abstract: A semiconductor content addressable memory (CAM) is described that has the enhanced capability of simultaneously performing content search operations between two sets of input data and stored data. This invention utilizes a segmented ML scheme, where one long ML is separated into two parts: a SML (Segmented ML) and a main ML. The SML is for evaluation of the comparison between input A and the content stored in an array of CAM cells A, and the main ML is for evaluation of the comparison between input B and the content stored in an array of CAM cells B. A specialized circuit that ties the SML and the main ML together is provided. The SML sense & restore is utilized to sense the value on the SML, send the result to the main ML if the enable signal (enable SML) is on, and restore the SML to a precharge state, if necessary, after SML evaluation. The circuit is able to discharge the ML if the SML shows a mismatch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2001
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2002
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Chiaming Chai, Jeffrey Herbert Fischer, Michael ThaiThanh Phan
  • Patent number: 6443003
    Abstract: A sensor for measuring changes in mass air flow is described that uses one or more thermoelectric devices, each of which serves both as a heating element and as a differential temperature sensor. The thermoelectric device or devices are sandwiched between two surface plates. The sensor operates the device or devices in constant current or in pulsed current mode. The operation in constant current mode involves passing the current through one thermoelectric device to create a temperature differential between the two surfaces. A second thermoelectric device generates a voltage in response to the differential, the voltage being proportional to the air flow rate. In another embodiment, the device contains a single thermoelectric device that operates in a pulsed mode, first to create a temperature differential using an applied current, and then to measure the voltage. When the voltage reaches zero, the cycle is repeated. The cycle time determines the air flow rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2000
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2002
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Robert Thomas Bailis
  • Patent number: 6443041
    Abstract: A milling system to be used in the manufacturing of electronic card for chamfering the edge of a card (e.g. a SIMM card) to facilitate its insertion in a socket on a board. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the card to be chamfered (e.g. a SIMM card) is linearly moved within a milling system including two motor mills. The two mills are inclined with respect to each other forming an angle of about 90°. The card passes through the apex of this angle. The mills are mounted on a bracket system having a guide which guarantees the correct positioning of the milling system with respect to the card edge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2000
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2002
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Donato Pirovano, Luigi Penati, Paolo Zogno
  • Patent number: 6432182
    Abstract: In accordance with the present invention, a method of treating the surface of an organic substrate, particularly a circuitized surface of an organic substrate, which method reduces the spread of adhesive resin that is subsequently deposited on the surface, is provided. This method comprises the steps of applying a treatment solution comprising a fatty acid compound, an alkalizing agent, and a solvent comprising water and from about 5% to about 90% by volume of an organic solvent selected from the group consisting of an alcohol, a glycol ether, and combinations thereof to the surface; and then removing substantially all of the solvent from the solution to provide a thin film on the surface of said substrate. The film comprises the fatty acids that were present in the treatment solution. In a preferred embodiment the treatment solution further comprises a chelating agent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2000
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2002
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: John Joseph Konrad, Konstantinos I. Papathomas, John A. Welsh
  • Patent number: PP13041
    Abstract: A Guzmania hybrid having large lavender pink floral bracts that fade to light pink. The inflorescence is very large, being 10″-12″ wide and 17-18″ tall making it suitable for growing in 6″ containers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2001
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2002
    Assignee: Ken't Bromeliad Nursery, Inc.
    Inventor: Jeffrey C. Kent
  • Patent number: PP13261
    Abstract: A compact Bromeliad hybrid having large dark red floral bract coloration and medium foliage. The size of the plant and the foliage makes this hybrid suitable for growing in 4″-5″ containers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2002
    Assignee: Kent's Bromeliad Nursery, Inc.
    Inventor: Jeffrey C. Kent