Patents Examined by Chris Fiorilla
  • Patent number: 6923928
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of shaping hollow boards (11) that consist of a thermoplastic material and that have at least one cavity (17) in the interior of the board that is open towards the board edge (18). According to the inventive method, said cavity (17) is sealed at the board edge (1), thereby closing the cavity towards the exterior in a substantially gas-tight manner. Once the cavity (17) is closed in this manner, the hollow board (11) that has been softened by heating is shaped by a shaping pressure to which it is subjected from the exterior. The invention also relates to a device for carrying out the inventive method. The invention provides a method and a device which prevents the interior structure of the hollow board being deformed in an undesirable manner during the shaping process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2000
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2005
    Assignee: KR-Porsiplast Verpackungssysteme GmbH
    Inventor: Markus Feurer
  • Patent number: 6923235
    Abstract: This device comprises a support for a spool (9) of adhesive tape (10) and two spaced drive means (A and B), of the belt or chain type, describing an endless trajectory whilst passing over a drive wheel (14 or 15) and at least one idler wheel (16 or 17), this trajectory being such that during it the adhesive face (10a) of the tape (10) is pressed against the portions (12a or 13a) of these means, and a common electric motor (20) imparts the same motion to the two portions (12a, 13a). According to the invention, these two drive means (A and B) are disposed in such a way that the active portion (12a, 13a) has an edge (12b, 13b) disposed substantially in the same plane as that of the juxtaposed portion, this plane being parallel and merged with that of the tape, these two active portions (12a, 13a) being spaced from each other by a distance less than the width of the adhesive tape (10) such that their edges (12b, 13b) cooperate with the longitudinal borders of said tape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2005
    Assignee: CEFMA
    Inventor: Cyriaque Petitjean
  • Patent number: 6921436
    Abstract: An aging unit (DAC) for processing a wafer W having a coated film formed thereon includes a disposing plate, a temperature control circulating device for controlling the temperature of the disposing plate, a chamber, a gas supply mechanism for supplying an ammonia gas containing a water vapor into the chamber, an input section for inputting the processing time of the wafer W, and a control device for controlling the temperature of the disposing plate, the supply rate of the ammonia gas, and the amount of the water vapor contained in the ammonia gas so as to permit the processing of the wafer W to be finished in the processing time inputted into the input section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2002
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2005
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventor: Yuji Ueda
  • Patent number: 6916376
    Abstract: A painting booth, which includes: a frame which supports a plurality of movable walls (3) made of deformable material, whose internal surfaces bound a volume which can contain objects to be painted; at least one distributor arranged inside the volume and suitable to distribute painting powders meant to be applied to the surface of the objects to be painted; and removable means (10) which are suitable to interact operatively with the movable walls, so as to facilitate the removal of residual painting powders which deposit on their internal surfaces; and actuation means (6, 7, 11) which are suitable to move the movable walls with respect to the removal means. The actuation means include coupling means (11) for coupling to the movable walls, which are suitable to move the movable walls so as to keep the internal surfaces constantly taut.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2005
    Assignee: Transmetal S.p.A.
    Inventor: Achille Borzone
  • Patent number: 6915827
    Abstract: An offset measuring mechanism and method used in a bonding apparatus, in which the object plane of a position detection camera is set on a hypothetical bonding working plane, and the image of imaging elements within the imaging plane is projected onto a bonding working plane. Furthermore, the tip end of a bonding tool is aligned with the bonding working plane. The object plane of the offset measuring camera is set on the bonding working plane, and the image on the bonding working plane is projected onto the imaging elements of the imaging plane of the offset measuring camera. The imaging elements detect the projected image of the imaging elements of the position detection camera or the image of the tip end of the bonding tool and output this data to the image position measuring part or tool position measuring section of the control block.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2005
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Shinkawa
    Inventor: Manabu Haraguchi
  • Patent number: 6916375
    Abstract: The present invention provides a truck trailer manufacturing facility for coating workpieces such as metal plates or grating sections with a thermal spray anti-slip coating that provides a durable, high coefficient of friction surface on the workpieces. The manufacturing facility of the invention includes at least one surface preparing machine and at least one coating machine housed in a truck trailer. The present invention also provides a method of coating a workpiece with the truck trailer manufacturing facility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2005
    Assignee: W. S. Molnar Company
    Inventors: William S. Molnar, Kevin J. Heinl, Brian P. Pelto, Joseph J. Schulte
  • Patent number: 6912969
    Abstract: A device for gel-coating seeds includes: a plurality of nozzles into each of which a gelling agent is filled and a seed is charged and held in the gelling agent to form a gel-coated seed; a pair of upper and lower nozzle casings joined with each other through a joint surface; galleries for the gelling agent formed on the junction surface; and passages formed in the lower nozzle casing which extend from the respective galleries to the respective gel-filled portions of the nozzles below the galleries. The nozzles vertically penetrate the upper and lower nozzle casings which may be comprised of a bottom plate and nozzle sleeves. The joint surface is arranged higher than a gel-filled portion of each nozzle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2005
    Assignee: Agritechno Yazaki Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kazushi Nakatsukasa
  • Patent number: 6913060
    Abstract: An adhesive tape dispenser having an improved mechanism for gripping the device while dispensing tape. The dispenser has spaced apart side walls and an upper wall connected thereto. The upper wall has a leading edge that is provided with a blade for cutting the adhesive tape. The upper wall is also provided with a shallow recess for placement of the index finger of the user. The recess may include a plurality of corrugations. The position of the recess allows the user to have both an improved grip on the dispenser and to apply directed pressure to the upper wall thereby allowing the tape to be cut more easily. The upper wall of the dispenser is also provided with wings that offer increased protection to the palm of the user's hand so that the rotating roll of tape does not cause injury to the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2002
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2005
    Assignee: Conros Corporation
    Inventor: Ashok V. Chandaria
  • Patent number: 6911091
    Abstract: Systems and methods are described for environmental exchange control for a polymer on a wafer surface. An apparatus for controlling an exchange between an environment and a polymer on a surface of a wafer located in the environment includes: a chamber adapted to hold the wafer, define the environment, and maintain the polymer in an adjacent relationship with the environment; and a heater coupled to the chamber. A method for improving performance of a spin-on material includes: forming the spin-on material on a surface of a wafer; then locating the spin-on material in an environment so that said environment is adjacent said spin-on material; and then controlling an exchange between the spin-on material and said environment. The systems and methods provide advantages because inappropriate deprotection is mitigated by careful control of the environmental temperature and environmental species partial pressures (e.g. relative humidity).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2002
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2005
    Assignee: ASML Netherlands B.V.
    Inventors: Emir Gurer, Ed C. Lee, Tom Zhong, Kevin Golden, John W. Lewellen, Scott C. Wackerman, Reese Reynolds
  • Patent number: 6911088
    Abstract: A slit nozzle includes a solution feeding mechanism having an elastic element and a plurality of piezoelectric devices and embedded in a side surface of a flow passage near a slit in the slit nozzle. Control is effected so that the piezoelectric devices are vibrated to cause the elastic element to produce traveling waves toward the slit. A resist solution serving as a processing solution is pumped by the traveling waves, thereby to be discharged through the slit toward a substrate. This provides a substrate processing apparatus capable of smoothly discharging the processing solution to accomplish high discharge accuracy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2005
    Assignee: Dainippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Kitazawa, Tsutomu Ueyama
  • Patent number: 6908576
    Abstract: In a method of manufacturing a plastic optical fiber by heating and drawing either one end portion of a transparent plastic rod, a plastic optical fiber having a cross sectional form approximately similar to the cross sectional form of the transparent plastic rod, the transparent plastic rod is heated by exposing near infrared ray which is radiated from a near infrared ray source. This can prevent the plastic optical fiber from causing to blow many bubbles on the surface and heat degradation to allow the plastic optical fiber to be obtained with a high quality.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 2001
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2005
    Assignee: Kuraray Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Katashi Saito, Osamu Shinji
  • Patent number: 6905546
    Abstract: A conveyor system for a powder paint spray booth including spaced continuous parallel first and second moving belts supported by a plurality of spaced rollers enclosed within a sealed housing and a powder paint collector located below the powder paint spray booth which receives powder paint from between the sealed housings. The continuous belts are formed of stainless steel each having a width of less than ten inches and grating is provided between the housings permitting personnel to walk over the conveyor system without damaging the stainless steel belts. The collector system includes a V-shape baffle having an apex located between the conveyor housings directing powder paint into collectors on opposed sides of the conveyor units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2005
    Assignee: Acco Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: William Mainieri, Bernd Kreuzer, Richard A. Cantin, Bradley M. Hare
  • Patent number: 6905641
    Abstract: A method and instrument to irradiate a light adjustable lens, for example, inside a human eye, with an appropriate amount of radiation in an appropriate intensity pattern by first measuring aberrations in the optical system containing the lens; aligning a source of the modifying radiation so as to impinge the radiation onto the lens in a pattern that will null the aberrations. The quantity of the impinging radiation is controlled by controlling the intensity and duration of the irradiation. The pattern is controlled and monitored while the lens is irradiated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2001
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2005
    Assignee: Calhoun Vision, Inc.
    Inventors: Ben C. Platt, Christian A. Sandstedt, James A. Ebel
  • Patent number: 6896025
    Abstract: In an adhesive tape adhering device, a small distance is provided between a bottom surface of an outer case and lower end surfaces of a pair of left and right side wall plates. A portion of the bottom surface behind a tape exit opening of the outer case is the same horizontal surface as that of a lower end surface of the side wall plate of the outer case. It is preferable that the pressing roller passes through the tape exit opening by a forward swinging operation of the inner case, and projects from the lower end surface of the side wall plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2005
    Inventor: Sakae Urushizaki
  • Patent number: 6896022
    Abstract: A label affixer shoe, having an application blade with an edge, a first surface, and second surface, and a pivot. The shoe pivots between first and second orientations. The first surface, edge, said second surface separate a label from a liner when the label and liner are moved from the first surface of the shoe past the edge toward the second surface. The shoe may be incorporated into an affixer carriage, also including a pivot actuator. The shoe may be incorporated into an affixer module, with a translation actuator, a card feed mechanism, and a label feed mechanism. When the blade is in the first orientation, the shoe does not obstruct the feeding of the card to or from the label receiving position. The translation of the shoe from the first position to the second position while the blade is in the second orientation applies the label to the card.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2005
    Assignee: Datacard Corporation
    Inventors: Donald J. Galles, Gary T. Schultze, Robert W. Lundstrom
  • Patent number: 6889738
    Abstract: An apparatus and method determine a size of a bonding film for bonding a bonding target having a size which varies due to temperature variation, at an environmental temperature which is different from a temperature during use. The method includes measuring an actual size of the bonding portion of the circuit electrode at the first temperature, comparing the actual size of the bonding portion with a designed size of the bonding portion at the first temperature, and determining a cutting size of the bonding material based on a comparison result and mounting the bonding material over the bonding portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2005
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Akihiro Yamamoto, Sakae Kobayashi, Shinzou Eguchi, Kazuhiro Murata, Kouichi Yoshida
  • Patent number: 6887313
    Abstract: An in-line marking system for marking indicia on a markable medium. The system includes a dispenser for dispensing a markable medium onto a conveyor belt assembly. The conveyor belt assembly conveys the medium from a first position to a second position, wherein a marking device located between the first position and the second position marks indicia on the medium. The conveyor belt assembly has a plurality of belts forming a conveyor surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2005
    Assignee: Microboards Technology, LLC
    Inventor: Wray Russ
  • Patent number: 6884462
    Abstract: A method and apparatus is provided for more efficient application of photoresist to a wafer surface. One aspect of the method comprises applying solvent to the wafer and spinning it to coat the entire wafer surface prior to the application of photoresist. This reduces surface tension on the wafer and reduces the amount of resist required to achieve a high quality film. The apparatus comprises adding a third solenoid and nozzle to the coating unit to accommodate the application of solvent to the center of the wafer surface. The method also describes incorporating a new solvent comprising diacetone alcohol, which is a low-pressure solvent, providing extended process latitudes and reduced material expenditures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2005
    Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: John Whitman
  • Patent number: 6883573
    Abstract: In a lamination system for laminating a film with a heat adhesive layer on at least a surface of a plastic card applying heat and pressure by heat rollers, each of two rectification devices for rectifying warp in the laminated card is provided independently of each other, at the downstream of the heat rollers, respectively along each of sides of the card along card transfer direction. Each of the rectification devices comprises a pair of rotatable rollers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2005
    Assignee: Japan Servo Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naotaka Sasaki, Kenji Sugaya, Shunichi Kawamata, Kensuke Shoji
  • Patent number: 6881267
    Abstract: A photoresist supply apparatus is provided. The photoresist supply apparatus includes a lower photoresist sensor and an upper photoresist sensor respectively installed near the bottom and the top of a trap tank to detect a photoresist in the trap tank. A drain line is connected to an upper side of the trap tank to release air. A photoresist-blocking valve is installed at the drain line, the photoresist-blocking valve structured to be opened to release air or closed to prevent photoresist loss according to signals detected by the lower photoresist sensor and the upper photoresist sensor. While the photoresist is supplied into the trap tank, the photoresist-blocking valve is opened to release air. After the photoresist supply into the trap tank is completed, the photoresist-blocking valve is closed to prevent the loss of a large amount of the photoresist through the drain line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2005
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kwang-Il Kim