Patents by Inventor Joshua Woodward Smith

Joshua Woodward Smith 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).

  • Patent number: 5873161
    Abstract: Method for making Z-axis interconnections between adjacent circuit layers with electrically conductive traces, in multi-layered circuits, include connecting a conducting member of a deformable material to a circuit board layer and depositing an adhesive layer over an adjacent circuit board layer. The adjacent circuit layers are aligned, with the conducting member substantially collinear with the conductive traces of the adjacent circuit layers, and the circuit layers are brought together by pressure, such that the conducting member penetrates the adhesive layer and deforms until it "cracks". The cracking exposes fresh (unoxidized) material that contacts a conductive trace, joining the circuit layers together and creating a low resistance electrical connection. The adhesive serves to bound expansion of the deformable conducting member, reducing any potential contacts with adjacent conducting members.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 1996
    Date of Patent: February 23, 1999
    Assignee: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
    Inventors: Yu Chen, Joel Arthur Gerber, Joshua Woodward Smith