Patents by Inventor Satoshi Ohkawara

Satoshi Ohkawara 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).

  • Publication number: 20240033867
    Abstract: There is provided a cutting blade stock apparatus that stocks multiple cutting blades used for cutting of a workpiece. The cutting blade stock apparatus includes a case placement stage at which a case capable of housing the cutting blade is placed, a case conveying unit that conveys the case placed at the case placement stage, a shelf that supports and stocks the case conveyed by the case conveying unit, a case identification information reading unit that reads case identification information given to the case, a case opening unit that opens the case, a cutting blade conveying unit that carries out the cutting blade from the case opened by the case opening unit, and an input interface to which information that specifies the cutting blade to be carried out by the cutting blade conveying unit is input.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 13, 2023
    Publication date: February 1, 2024
    Inventors: Aimi YAMATO, Satoshi OHKAWARA, Masaaki HIYAMA, Takuto KAMIMURA
  • Patent number: 11365062
    Abstract: There is provided a conveyance system that conveys a workpiece to each of plural processing apparatuses. The conveyance system includes a conveyance passage, an automated workpiece conveying vehicle that travels on the conveyance passage, a stock unit, and a control unit. The conveyance passage is set in a space directly above the processing apparatus across the plural processing apparatus. The stock unit includes a placement base on which a workpiece stocker capable of housing plural workpieces is placed, two temporary putting bases on which the workpiece carried out from the workpiece stocker on the placement base is temporarily put, a temporary putting base movement part that moves the two temporary putting bases in such a manner as to interchange the two temporary putting bases between a first position that faces the placement base and a second position adjacent to the first position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2022
    Assignee: DISCO CORPORATION
    Inventor: Satoshi Ohkawara
  • Publication number: 20200172345
    Abstract: There is provided a conveyance system that conveys a workpiece to each of plural processing apparatuses. The conveyance system includes a conveyance passage, an automated workpiece conveying vehicle that travels on the conveyance passage, a stock unit, and a control unit. The conveyance passage is set in a space directly above the processing apparatus across the plural processing apparatus. The stock unit includes a placement base on which a workpiece stocker capable of housing plural workpieces is placed, two temporary putting bases on which the workpiece carried out from the workpiece stocker on the placement base is temporarily put, a temporary putting base movement part that moves the two temporary putting bases in such a manner as to interchange the two temporary putting bases between a first position that faces the placement base and a second position adjacent to the first position.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 22, 2019
    Publication date: June 4, 2020
    Inventor: Satoshi OHKAWARA
  • Patent number: 10622237
    Abstract: A conveying mechanism for conveying a wafer unit having a wafer disposed inside of and supported on an annular frame by a holding tape includes a housing tray housing the wafer unit therein and a transport unit supporting and transporting the housing tray between wafer treating apparatus. The housing tray includes a ceiling plate and a bottom plate that are interconnected by a pair of side walls facing each other across an opening defined in a side through which the wafer unit can be taken into and out of the housing tray. An air flow generator is disposed on the ceiling plate for generating air downflows in the housing tray that are directed from the ceiling plate into the opening. The transport unit conveys wafer units, one by one, between the wafer treating apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2020
    Assignee: DISCO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kazunari Tanaka, Satoshi Ohkawara
  • Publication number: 20190326135
    Abstract: A conveying mechanism for conveying a wafer unit having a wafer disposed inside of and supported on an annular frame by a holding tape includes a housing tray housing the wafer unit therein and a transport unit supporting and transporting the housing tray between wafer treating apparatus. The housing tray includes a ceiling plate and a bottom plate that are interconnected by a pair of side walls facing each other across an opening defined in a side through which the wafer unit can be taken into and out of the housing tray. An air flow generator is disposed on the ceiling plate for generating air downflows in the housing tray that are directed from the ceiling plate into the opening. The transport unit conveys wafer units, one by one, between the wafer treating apparatus.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2019
    Publication date: October 24, 2019
    Inventors: Kazunari TANAKA, Satoshi OHKAWARA
  • Patent number: 7644747
    Abstract: A rectangular substrate dividing apparatus, which can divide a rectangular substrate in a smaller space, accommodate devices, formed as individual pieces by the division, into device cases, and pick up the devices reliably and efficiently from a protective tape affixed to the back of the rectangular substrate, is provided. This apparatus separates a rectangular substrate, to whose back a protective tape is affixed and on which a plurality of devices are partitioned by a lattice of scheduled-separation lines, along the scheduled-separation lines to divide the rectangular substrate into the individual devices, and accommodates the devices in device cases. In a cutting-responsible region, the rectangular substrate is carried out of cassettes, cut by a cutter, and then cleaned by a cleaner. In a tape peeling-responsible region, the devices are picked up with the protective tape being peeled off. In a device accommodation-responsible region, the picked-up individual devices are accommodated into device cases.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2010
    Assignee: Disco Corporation
    Inventors: Satoshi Ohkawara, Kuniharu Izumi, Shigeru Ishii, Ryu Komine
  • Patent number: 7329079
    Abstract: A semiconductor wafer processing machine comprising a cassette-placing mechanism having a cassette-placing table for placing a cassette storing a semiconductor wafer, a workpiece take-in/take-out mechanism for taking out the semiconductor wafer stored in the cassette placed on the cassette-placing table and taking the semiconductor wafer into the cassette, a workpiece conveying mechanism for conveying the semiconductor wafer taken out by the workpiece take-in/take-out mechanism, a chuck table mechanism having a chuck table for holding the semiconductor wafer conveyed by the workpiece conveying mechanism, and a processing mechanism for processing the semiconductor wafer held on the chuck table, wherein the cassette-placing mechanism comprises an aligning mechanism for aligning the crystal orientation of the semiconductor wafer, which is situated below the cassette-placing table.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2008
    Assignee: Disco Corporation
    Inventors: Satoshi Ohkawara, Takaaki Inoue
  • Publication number: 20060113595
    Abstract: A rectangular substrate dividing apparatus, which can divide a rectangular substrate in a smaller space, accommodate devices, formed as individual pieces by the division, into device cases, and pick up the devices reliably and efficiently from a protective tape affixed to the back of the rectangular substrate, is provided. This apparatus separates a rectangular substrate, to whose back a protective tape is affixed and on which a plurality of devices are partitioned by a lattice of scheduled-separation lines, along the scheduled-separation lines to divide the rectangular substrate into the individual devices, and accommodates the devices in device cases. In a cutting-responsible region, the rectangular substrate is carried out of cassettes, cut by a cutting means, and then cleaned by a cleaning means. In a tape peeling-responsible region, the devices are picked up with the protective tape being peeled off.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 29, 2005
    Publication date: June 1, 2006
    Inventors: Satoshi Ohkawara, Kuniharu Izumi, Shigeru Ishii, Ryu Komine
  • Publication number: 20040265100
    Abstract: A semiconductor wafer processing machine comprising a cassette-placing mechanism having a cassette-placing table for placing a cassette storing a semiconductor wafer, a workpiece take-in/take-out mechanism for taking out the semiconductor wafer stored in the cassette placed on the cassette-placing table and taking the semiconductor wafer into the cassette, a workpiece conveying mechanism for conveying the semiconductor wafer taken out by the workpiece take-in/take-out mechanism, a chuck table mechanism having a chuck table for holding the semiconductor wafer conveyed by the workpiece conveying mechanism, and a processing mechanism for processing the semiconductor wafer held on the chuck table, wherein the cassette-placing mechanism comprises an aligning mechanism for aligning the crystal orientation of the semiconductor wafer, which is situated below the cassette-placing table.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2004
    Publication date: December 30, 2004
    Inventors: Satoshi Ohkawara, Takaaki Inoue
  • Patent number: 6386466
    Abstract: A cleaning apparatus includes a nozzle having an ejection port, a cleaning liquid path communicating with the ejection port, and a compressed gas path communicating with the ejection port. The cleaning apparatus further includes a cleaning liquid feeding component for feeding a cleaning liquid to the cleaning liquid path, and a compressed gas feeding component for feeding a compressed gas to the compressed gas path. The compressed gas is ejected from the ejection port through the compressed gas path, while the cleaning liquid is ejected from the ejection port through the cleaning liquid path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2000
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2002
    Assignee: Disco Corporation
    Inventors: Naritoshi Ozawa, Xiaoming Qiu, Satoshi Ohkawara