Patents by Inventor Shannon Hill

Shannon Hill 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: 20240077951
    Abstract: An input device includes a control surface for a color correction system. The control surface includes a housing with an upwardly facing control panel. The control panel has a proximal edge which is nearest a user and a distal edge that is furthest from a user in normal use. The control panel includes a plurality of controls. The plurality of controls includes: a plurality of trackballs, wherein each trackball comprises a ball and a control ring, said ball cooperating with at least one encoder to generate a multi-dimensional control signal based on motion of the ball, and said control ring cooperating with at least one encoder to generate a one dimensional control signal based on the rotational motion of the ring, wherein the ball of said trackball is mounted concentrically with said control ring; a plurality of control buttons; and a plurality of knobs coupled to respective rotary encoders.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 5, 2023
    Publication date: March 7, 2024
    Inventors: Grant David Petty, Simon Milne Kidd, John Anthony Vanzella, Shannon Howard Smith, Andrew James Godin, Benjamin Hill, Lachlan James Karp
  • Publication number: 20230418167
    Abstract: A system and method for cleaning an optical element of an EUV optical system is disclosed. The system and method may include receiving design data of one or more samples. The system and method may include simulating a plurality of irradiance distributions at a plane of an EUV optical sub-system based on the design data and one or more parameters. The system and method may include aggregating the plurality of irradiance distributions to generate an aggregated irradiance distribution. The system and method may include determining a predicted contaminate distribution based on both the aggregated irradiance distribution and a contaminate growth rate. The system and method may include determining a cleaning recipe for the one or more optical elements based on the predicted contaminate distribution.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 13, 2022
    Publication date: December 28, 2023
    Inventors: Yun Xie, Rui-Fang Shi, Shannon Hill
  • Patent number: 11543757
    Abstract: Systems for cleaning optical surfaces of overlay inspection systems are disclosed. In particular, systems for optical-path coupling of light for in-situ photochemical cleaning in projection imaging systems are disclosed. A system for cleaning optical surfaces of overlay inspection systems includes a first illumination source, a detector, a set of illumination optics, and a set of imaging optics. In some embodiments, the system may include at least one of a second illumination source and a third illumination source, each of which may be configured to cause or aid the removal of contaminants from one or more optical surfaces of the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2023
    Assignee: KLA Corporation
    Inventors: Shannon Hill, Gildardo Delgado
  • Publication number: 20220334504
    Abstract: Systems for cleaning optical surfaces of overlay inspection systems are disclosed. In particular, systems for optical-path coupling of light for in-situ photochemical cleaning in projection imaging systems are disclosed. A system for cleaning optical surfaces of overlay inspection systems includes a first illumination source, a detector, a set of illumination optics, and a set of imaging optics. In some embodiments, the system may include at least one of a second illumination source and a third illumination source, each of which may be configured to cause or aid the removal of contaminants from one or more optical surfaces of the system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 20, 2021
    Publication date: October 20, 2022
    Inventors: Shannon Hill, Gildardo Delgado
  • Publication number: 20220260156
    Abstract: A vacuum system includes a wall of a vacuum chamber, a flange of the vacuum chamber, an outer seal disposed between the wall and the flange, and an inner seal disposed between the wall and the flange. The outer seal includes a first material; the inner seal includes a second material distinct from the first material. The inner seal is closer to the interior of the vacuum chamber than the outer seal and is separated from the outer seal by a gap. The outer seal may be capable of providing tighter vacuum sealing between the wall and the flange than the inner seal. The inner seal may be more resistant than the outer seal to a gas to be used to clean the interior of the vacuum chamber. The vacuum system also includes a path to couple the gap to a first vacuum pump, to evacuate the gap.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 31, 2021
    Publication date: August 18, 2022
    Inventors: Francis Chilese, Shannon Hill