Patents Examined by Timothy H. Meeks
  • Patent number: 7985440
    Abstract: A method of applying a coating to a stent supported by a mandrel is disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: Advanced Cardiovascular Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Stephen D. Pacetti, Mohammed E. Moein
  • Patent number: 7985441
    Abstract: Various embodiments of methods and devices for coating stents are described herein. Among these embodiments are methods of manufacturing an implantable medical device by purifying a polymer with a fluid capable of swelling the polymer, and subsequently coating a device with the purified polymer or fabricating a device from the purified polymer. A preferred polymer is poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 4, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Inventors: Yiwen Tang, Stephen D. Pacetti, Qing Lin, Ni Ding
  • Patent number: 7985450
    Abstract: A method for the vapor deposition of aluminum films is provided. Such method employs a dialkyl amido dihydroaluminum compound of the formula [H2AlNR1R2]n wherein R1 and R2 are the same or different alkyl groups having 1 to 3 carbons, and n is an integer of 2 or 3. The aluminum films may be thick or thin and may be aluminum films or may be mixed metal films with aluminum metal. Both CVD and ALD methods may be employed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: UP Chemical Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hyun Koock Shin, Bum Soo Kim, Jin Sik Kim, Jun Young Kim, Young Seop Kim, Bo Yearn Cho
  • Patent number: 7981461
    Abstract: An implantable device composed of a biocompatible material having an enhanced surface topography that has an implanted calcium ion concentration and method of making the same.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Inventors: Frederick S. Georgette, Lee Allen Stouse
  • Patent number: 7981471
    Abstract: A process for producing a thin film and an optical member which are free from discoloration of a lens and exhibit a good antistatic property and a good water repellency. The thin film is formed by a vacuum deposition of a water repellent solution which contains (a) a water repellent having a perfluoroalkyl group, (b) a mixture of a silane coupling agent, a modified silicone oil introduced with an organic group into its side chain and/or both terminal ends, and a perfluoroether compound, and (c) at least one conductive substance selected from the group consisting of fullerenes, carbon nanotubes and graphite compounds.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Assignee: Hoya Corporation
    Inventors: Takeshi Mitsuishi, Terufumi Hamamoto, Ken-ichi Shinde
  • Patent number: 7981462
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for applying paints or varnishes with the aid of an application device in order to apply a color design on surfaces of buildings or public or civil engineering works in accordance with a previously executed implementation of a digital image model in a previously recorded digital surface object that represents the surface of the object. According to the invention, the application device moves on the surface of the object while contacting the surface thereof, the position of the application device is continuously measured or calculated using motion sensors and paint is applied in accordance with said implementation depending on the position thus determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Inventor: Burkhard Büstgens
  • Patent number: 7976907
    Abstract: This invention relates to a process for the functionalization of a transparent or translucent substrate by formation of a layer, characterized in that it comprises the stages consisting in evaporating over the substrate at least one type of organic or organometallic functionalization molecule, simultaneously with the formation, by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition, of an inorganic glass matrix forming part of the layer; a substrate made according to this process; a device for the implementation of this process; and the applications of this substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France
    Inventors: Alfred Hofrichter, Alfred Hans
  • Patent number: 7976897
    Abstract: One embodiment thermal chemical vapor deposition method includes exposing a substrate within a chamber to first and second deposition precursors effective to thermally chemical vapor deposit a material on the substrate, and exhausting unreacted first and second deposition precursors from the chamber through a vacuum pump via a first exhaust line comprising a filter. A reactive gas is flowed to the material on the substrate, with the reactive gas being reactive with the material. After flowing the reactive gas, an inert purge gas is flowed through the chamber and through the vacuum pump. The flowing of the inert purge gas to the vacuum pump is through a second exhaust line not comprising the filter. The exposing, the flowing of the reactive gas, and the flowing of the inert purge gas are repeated effective to deposit material of desired thickness on the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc
    Inventors: Vishwanath Bhat, Gordon Morrison
  • Patent number: 7976891
    Abstract: The apparatus and method use an optical feedback system to align a transducer with a stent strut. Once alignment is achieved, the transducer causes a coating to be ejected onto the stent strut and the transducer is moved along the stent strut to coat the stent strut.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Advanced Cardiovascular Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Jason Van Sciver, Yung-Ming Chen, Lothar Kleiner
  • Patent number: 7976909
    Abstract: Process for depositing, on a substrate, a coating based on titanium oxide, which is characterized in that the coating with photocatalytic properties is deposited by chemical vapor deposition, especially from a gas mixture comprising at least one organometallic precursor and/or a metal halide of said metal oxide, the deposition being enhanced by a plasma source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France
    Inventors: Anne Durandeau, Maxime Duran, Corinne Victor
  • Patent number: 7972649
    Abstract: A thin film formation method is used for forming a thin film by providing a conductance valve on an exhaust path connecting a depressurizable processing chamber and a vacuum pump, arranging a processing object substrate inside the processing chamber, performing once or plural times a cycle including a first step of supplying a first reactive gas and a second step of supplying a second reactive gas into the processing chamber during a film formation processing period to cause a chemical reaction between the first reactive gas and the second reactive gas, and using the chemical reaction to form the thin film on the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2011
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventor: Toshiharu Hirata
  • Patent number: 7972648
    Abstract: A method of forming an implant to be implanted into living bone is disclosed. The method comprises the act of roughening at least a portion of the implant surface to produce a microscale roughened surface. The method further comprises forming a nanoscale roughened surface on the microscale roughened surface. The method further comprises the act of depositing discrete nanoparticles on the nanoscale roughened surface though a one-step process of exposing the roughened surface to a solution including the nanoparticles. The nanoparticles comprise a material having a property that promotes osseointegration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2011
    Assignee: Biomet 3I, LLC
    Inventors: Bruce Berckmans, III, Ross W. Towse, Robert L. Mayfield
  • Patent number: 7972653
    Abstract: A coating film removal method for a coated member having a coating film formed over the surface of a substrate is disclosed, which can easily achieve a coating film removal, even for a carbon-based coating film containing carbon as a main component, besides a carbon-based coating film containing a metal element etc. A coated member regeneration method is also disclosed, which removes a coating film from a coated member, and then forms a new coating film over the member, to regenerate the coated member. The coating film removal method is adapted to remove a carbon-based coating film from a coated member (10) including a substrate, and the carbon-based coating film coated on at least a portion of a surface of the substrate while containing carbon as a main component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2011
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toyota Chuo Kenkyusho
    Inventors: Hideo Tachikawa, Ken-ichi Suzuki, Fumio Shimizu, Takashi Iseki
  • Patent number: 7968154
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and apparatus for applying and forming a coating on a substrate surface by the application of at least one atomized coating forming material onto the substrate to form the coating. The atomized coating forming material, upon leaving a suitable atomizer which can be an ultrasonic nozzle or nebulizer for example, passes through an exciting medium and, upon leaving the exciting medium, passes to the substrate. The substrate is positioned remotely from the exciting medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: P2i Limited
    Inventor: Luke John Ward
  • Patent number: 7968145
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for depositing a film on a substrate includes introducing a material and a carrier gas into a heated chamber. The material may be a semiconductor material, such as a cadmium chalcogenide. A resulting mixture of vapor and carrier gas containing no unvaporized material is provided. The mixture of vapor and carrier gas are remixed to achieve a uniform vapor/carrier gas composition, which is directed toward a surface of a substrate, such as a glass substrate, where the vapor is deposited as a uniform film.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: First Solar, Inc.
    Inventors: Ricky Charles Powell, Andrew Kelly Gray, Todd Alden Coleman
  • Patent number: 7968146
    Abstract: A method for forming a coating over a surface is disclosed. The method comprises depositing over a surface, a hybrid layer comprising a mixture of a polymeric material and a non-polymeric material. The hybrid layer may have a single phase or comprise multiple phases. The hybrid layer is formed by chemical vapor deposition using a single source of precursor material. The chemical vapor deposition process may be plasma-enhanced and may be performed using a reactant gas. The precursor material may be an organo-silicon compound, such as a siloxane. The hybrid layer may comprise various types of polymeric materials, such as silicone polymers, and various types of non-polymeric materials, such as silicon oxides. By varying the reaction conditions, the wt % ratio of polymeric material to non-polymeric material may be adjusted. The hybrid layer may have various characteristics suitable for use with organic light-emitting devices, such as optical transparency, impermeability, and/or flexibility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: The Trustees of Princeton University
    Inventors: Sigurd Wagner, Prashant Mandlik
  • Patent number: 7964250
    Abstract: A manufacturing method for a flat panel display device includes forming a barrier layer on a flexible plastic substrate by RF sputtering, forming an amorphous silicon layer on the plastic substrate, and subjecting the amorphous silicon layer to a rapid heat treatment so as to thereby improve electrical characteristics and/or homogeneity of the amorphous silicon layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2011
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Byoung-June Kim, Sung-Hoon Yang, Jae-Ho Choi
  • Patent number: 7964241
    Abstract: An insulating film is formed on a target substrate by CVD, in a process field to be selectively supplied with a first process gas containing a silane family gas, a second process gas containing a nitriding gas or oxynitriding gas, a third process gas containing a boron-containing gas, and a fourth process gas containing a carbon hydride gas. A first step performs supply of the first process gas and a preceding gas, which is one of the third and fourth process gases, while stopping supply of the second process gas and a succeeding gas, which is the other of the third and fourth process gases. A second step performs supply of the succeeding gas, while stopping supply of the second process gas and the preceding gas. A third step performs supply of the second process gas while stopping supply of the first process gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2011
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Kazuhide Hasebe, Pao-Hwa Chou, Kota Umezawa, Kentaro Kadonaga, Hao-Hsiang Chang
  • Patent number: 7959984
    Abstract: In a plasma processing system, a method of reducing byproduct deposits on a set of plasma chamber surfaces of a plasma processing chamber is disclosed. The method includes providing a deposition barrier in the plasma processing chamber, the deposition barrier is configured to be disposed in a plasma generating region of the plasma processing chamber, thereby permitting at least some process byproducts produced when a plasma is struck within the plasma processing chamber to adhere to the deposition barrier and reducing the byproduct deposits on the set of plasma processing chamber surfaces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2011
    Assignee: Lam Research Corporation
    Inventors: Shrikant P. Lohokare, Andrew D. Bailey, III
  • Patent number: 7959971
    Abstract: When a multiple-panel forming process for producing a plurality of panels on a large-size substrate is employed, when production thereof is continued over a long period, or in other cases, a predetermined film thickness distribution can be stably obtained according to a method of the present invention. Vapor deposition on a substrate is performed by evaporating particles from a vapor deposition source arranged opposite to the substrate in a vacuum chamber. By changing a distance between the substrate and an opening provided at the vapor deposition source by a vapor deposition source position control mechanism, change with elapse of time in the film thickness distribution of a thin film formed on the substrate is controlled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2011
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Nobutaka Ukigaya