Patents Examined by Hoa Van Le
  • Patent number: 7163783
    Abstract: A rinse-processing composition of the present invention comprises a compound represented by R—(OC2H4)n—OH, wherein R is an alkyl group containing 8 to 13 carbon atoms and n is an integer of 10 to 30, but comprises neither aldehyde compounds nor hexamethylenetetramine derivatives, and a processing method and a processing apparatus of the present invention uses such a rinse-processing composition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2007
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Hiroyuki Seki
  • Patent number: 7160674
    Abstract: A bundle for simultaneous refilling of chemicals for processing color photography silver halide materials in an automatic processing apparatus, wherein the bundle comprises at least one bottle with the refilling solution for a color developer and at least two bottles with refilling solutions for a bleach-fixing bath, characterized in that the bottle with the refilling solution for the color developer comprises more than 60 g of color developer substance per 1 L of bottle volume, is distinguished in that the capacity of the bundle is increased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2007
    Assignee: A&O Imagining Solutions GmbH
    Inventor: Ralf Wichmann
  • Patent number: 7157213
    Abstract: There is provided a developer agent for a positive type photosensitive compound having a near infrared wave length region laser sensitive characteristic in which a photosensitive portion of the compound exposed and reacted with a laser of the near infrared wavelength region is enabled to be dissolved in the developer liquid. This developer agent contains a) water; b) either one of or two kinds or more of tetramethyl ammonium hydroxide, benzyl triethyl ammonium hydroxide, ortho silicate soda, etc., applied as either organic or non-organic alkali capable of becoming a major material; and c) potassium pyrophosphate, tripolyphosphate soda, etc., applied as liquid agent having dampening action for preventing a reduction in pH value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2007
    Assignee: Think Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Tsutomu Sato
  • Patent number: 7153643
    Abstract: The present invention provides a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material including a substrate, and photographic constituent layers having at least one each of an yellow color-developing blue light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer, a magenta color-developing green light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer, a cyan color-developing red light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer and a non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layer, wherein the at least one yellow color-developing blue light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer includes a silver halide emulsion having a sphere-corresponding diameter of 0.7 ?m or less, and a silver chloride content of 90 mol % or higher, which silver halide emulsion has been subjected to selenium and gold sensitizations, and the total gelatin amount in the photographic constituent layers is from 3 to 6 g/m2, or the total silver coating amount in the photographic constituent layers is from 0.2 to 0.5 g/m2, and an image-forming method using the same.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Naoto Ohshima
  • Patent number: 7153646
    Abstract: A photothermographic material having, on at least an image forming layer including at least an organic silver salt and a non-photosensitive layer on the image forming layer, wherein the photothermographic material further has a non-photosensitive intermediate layer between the image forming layer and the non-photosensitive layer, and 50% by weight or more of a binder of the non-photosensitive intermediate layer is formed by a polymer latex, and the photothermographic material contains a metal phthalocyanine dye represented by formula (PC-1): wherein, M represents a metal atom, at least one of R1, R4, R5, R8, R9, R12, R13, and R16 is an electron-attracting group, and R2, R3, R6, R7, R10, R11, R14, and R15 each independently represent a hydrogen atom or a substituent. The invention provides a photothermographic material which exhibits high sharpness, preferable image tone, and excellent image storability.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kouta Fukui, Seiichi Yamamoto, Keiichi Suzuki
  • Patent number: 7150964
    Abstract: Disclosed is an image forming process having the steps of exposing by an exposure device a photothermographic dry imaging material with a support having thereon an image forming layer containing photosensitive silver halide, a reducing agent for silver ions, a binder and a light-insensitive organic silver salt, and developing the photothermographic dry imaging material by a developing device, while the photothermographic dry imaging material is transported, wherein a surface having the image forming layer is brought into contact with sticky rollers during or before each of exposing and developing so as to make an amount of peel-off static electrification between the photothermographic dry imaging material and the sticky roller to be from ?5 to +5 kV.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 1, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2006
    Assignee: Konica Minolta Medical & Graphic, Inc.
    Inventor: Hiroyuki Yanagisawa
  • Patent number: 7150960
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a developer composition comprising (a) alkali metal carbonate salt; (b) alkali metal bicarbonate salt; (c) nonionic surfactant of the following formula (I): wherein, R1, R2, n, and m are define the same as the specification; and (d) nonionic surfactant of the following formula (II): wherein, R3, p, and q are define the same as the specification. The present invention also relates to a developer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2006
    Assignee: Everlight USA, Inc.
    Inventor: Chi-Sheng Chen
  • Patent number: 7150957
    Abstract: Fluorinated vinyl ethers are provided having the structure of formula (I) the structure of formula (I) wherein at least one of X and Y is a fluorine atom, and L, R1, R2, R3, R4 are as defined herein. Also provided are copolymers prepared by radical polymerization of (I) and a second monomer that may not be fluorinated. The polymers are useful in lithographic photoresist compositions, particularly chemical amplification resists. In a preferred embodiment, the polymers are substantially transparent to deep ultraviolet (DUV) radiation, and are thus useful in DUV lithographic photoresist compositions. A method for using the composition to generate resist images on a substrate is also provided, i.e., in the manufacture of integrated circuits or the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2006
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard A. DiPietro, Hiroshi Ito
  • Patent number: 7150962
    Abstract: A method for forming images on a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material having a substrate and photographic structural layers thereon, including at least three silver halide color photosensitive layers having different photosensitive regions, respectively, and at least one non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layer, is disclosed. At least one of the photosensitive layers contains 90 mol % or more of silver chloride. Shortly after the silver halide color photographic photosensitive material has been scan-exposed with laser beams, the material is rapid-processed with a low replenishing amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoto Ohshima, Akito Yokozawa, Naoya Shibata
  • Patent number: 7150958
    Abstract: Polymeric material, containing a latent acid which can be converted to an acid by irradiation by a laser and optionally further ingredients.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2002
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2006
    Assignee: Ciba Specialty Chemicals Corporation
    Inventor: Michael Heneghan
  • Patent number: 7147998
    Abstract: Thermally developable imaging materials have an outermost protective layer that is composed of one or more hydrophilic film-forming components. The predominant film-forming component is a negatively-charged latex polymer that has negatively-charged ionic groups other than carboxy groups. The latex polymer is present as latex particles that have been prepared in the presence of a nonionic stabilizer in an amount of at least 0.5% (by weight) that has an HLB value of 7 to 20. The nonionic stabilizer becomes associated with the latex polymer particles. Both thermographic and photothermographic materials can be prepared with such protective layers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2006
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventors: Jon A. Hammerschmidt, Jeffrey W. Leon
  • Patent number: 7144673
    Abstract: The present subject matter relates to a method of stripping a photoresist after the photoresist film has been subjected to a high dose and high energy ion implant process. The method involves soaking the photoresist film in DI water, dry etching with oxygen plasma, and immersing in Caro's acid solution to improve the throughput of removing the film from the underlying substrate. The method can also be used to strip photoresist that has been hardened or altered by other types of processes such as dry etch transfer steps and chemical treatments. In some applications, the dry etching step may be omitted from the stripping process or the dry etching step may be combined with the water soak in an integrated process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2006
    Assignee: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Fei-Yun Chen, Jen-Shian Shieh, Hao-Chih Yuan, Yuan-Ko Hwang, Shih-Shiung Chen
  • Patent number: 7141361
    Abstract: Buried backside conductive layers with increased conductive efficiency can be provided for thermally developable materials using a specific organic solvent mixture to coat a protective overcoat directly disposed over the conductive layer. This organic solvent mixture comprises an alcohol in which one or more film-forming polymers used in the formulation are soluble at room temperature. The alcohol is used in an amount of more than 10 and up to 90 weight % of the organic solvent mixture.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2006
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventors: Thomas J. Ludemann, Aparna V. Bhave, Gary E. LaBelle, Darlene F. Philip, Samuel Chen
  • Patent number: 7141358
    Abstract: A developer comprising at least one carbonate, at least one hydrogen carbonate and at least one alkali silicate, wherein the ratio of the total molar concentration “a” of the carbonate and the hydrogen carbonate to the molar concentration “b” of the SiO2 component present in the alkali silicate: “a/b” ranges from 1:0.3 to 1:2, the total molar concentration of “a” and “b”: “a+b” ranges from 0.1 to 2 mole/L, and the pH value thereof ranges from 9 to 13; and an image-forming method which comprises the steps of imagewise exposing a negative-working image-forming material which comprises a substrate provided thereon with an image-recording layer comprising an infrared light absorber, a polymerization initiator, an ethylenically unsaturated bond-containing monomer and a polymer binder, and then developing the imagewise exposed image-forming material with the foregoing developer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Hiroyuki Nagase
  • Patent number: 7135275
    Abstract: A solid bleach-fixing composition for a silver halide color photographic light-sensitive material, comprising at least one specific 5-membered heterocyclic azoliumthiolate compound, particularly, a solid bleach-fixing composition wherein the specific thiolate compound is a diazolium-thiolate compound substituted by a water-soluble group. A method for processing a silver halide color photographic light-sensitive material, comprising using a bleach-fixing solution containing a specific 5-membered heterocyclic azoliumthiolate compound, and regenerating at least 50 mass % of the used bleach-fixing solution as a bleach-fixing processing agent for replenishment; and a method for processing a silver halide color photographic light-sensitive material, comprising regenerating at least 30 mass % of the used processing solution further containing used rinsing solution as a bleach-fixing processing agent for replenishment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kazuaki Yoshida
  • Patent number: 7132188
    Abstract: A direct organic fuel cell includes a formic acid fuel solution having between about 10% and about 95% formic acid. The formic acid is oxidized at an anode. The anode may include a Pt/Pd catalyst that promotes the direct oxidation of the formic acid via a direct reaction path that does not include formation of a CO intermediate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2006
    Assignee: The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
    Inventors: Richard I. Masel, Cynthia A. Rice, Piotr Waszczuk, Andrzej Wieckowski
  • Patent number: 7129023
    Abstract: Photoresist polymers and photoresist compositions are disclosed. A photoresist polymer comprising a polymerization repeating unit represented by Formula 1 is less sensitive to change in the amount of energy due to its higher active energy than that of a conventional photoresist polymer. As a result, a phenomenon that a pattern of an outer field region that receives a relatively large amount of light becomes too thin is alleviated without additional dummy patterns when pattern is formed, and pattern collapse caused by a high aspect ratio due to high etching resistance is prevented. Formula 1 wherein R1–R12, a, b, c and d are as defined in the description.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2006
    Assignee: Hynix Semiconductor Inc.
    Inventor: Min Seok Son
  • Patent number: 7118850
    Abstract: A concentrated composition of a color developer replenisher for a silver halide color photographic material, the composition comprising a single solution, wherein the solution comprises 0.14 mol/liter or more of a p-phenylenediamine color developing agent, the solution has a specific gravity of 1.2 or more, the solution has pH of 13.3 or more, the solution comprises from 0.2 to 1 mol/liter of at least one compound selected from benzenesulfonic acids which may be substituted with an alkyl group, and lactams, and the solution comprises substantially no alkanolamine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2003
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Fujita, Kazuaki Yoshida
  • Patent number: 7112400
    Abstract: An image forming method including a step of imagewise exposing a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material having, on a support, photographic constituent layers including at least one blue sensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one green sensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one red sensitive silver halide emulsion layer, and at least one non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layer, a color developing step, a bleach-fixing step and a rinsing step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shin Soejima, Kentaro Okazaki
  • Patent number: 7108962
    Abstract: A photographic processing composition, containing at least one compound of formula (I) or (II): A1-X-L-Y-A2??(I) wherein A1 and A2 each are a specific aryl or aromatic heterocyclic group; L is a specific arylene or divalent aromatic heterocyclic group; X and Y each are a specific divalent group; the compound of (I) contains at least two of —SO3M or —CO2M, but not contains —N?N— or —SH; M is a hydrogen, alkali or alkali earth metal, ammonium, or pyridinium; wherein A11 is a specific tri- or tetra-valent aromatic hydrocarbon or aromatic heterocyclic group; A12 is an aryl or aromatic heterocyclic group; X1 is a divalent group; M1 is a hydrogen, alkali or alkali earth metal, ammonium, or pyridinium; the molecule of (II) does not contain —N?N— or —SH; n is 3 or 4; r and s each are 0 to 10, (r+s) is 2 or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2006
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Makoto Suzuki, Yasufimi Nakai
  • Patent number: 4967811
    Abstract: A device is described for accurately transferring multiple individual fluids from multiple source containers into a single receiving container. Fluid flows from the multiple source containers through individual fluid conduits to a chamber having a single fluid outlet conduit. The fluid outlet conduit is in fluid communication with a single receiving container. A pressure conduit is in communication with the chamber for alternately creating positive and negative pressures in the chamber to cause fluid to flow from the individual source containers into the chamber, and to cause fluid to flow from the chamber into the receiving container in response to commands from a control means in the device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 1988
    Date of Patent: November 6, 1990
    Assignee: Clintec Nutrition Company
    Inventors: Aleandro DiGianfilippo, James R. Hitchcock, Robert E. Lewis, Randall A. Zielsdorf, James P. Vos, Rudolph Starai, Michael J. Becker, Donald W. Warner, Leon Huang