Patents by Inventor Shashank Sharma

Shashank Sharma 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: 20190364217
    Abstract: Some embodiments include a camera system having a first camera unit and a second camera unit. The first camera unit may include a first actuator. The second camera unit may include a second actuator. In some embodiments, the first actuator may move one or more components of the first camera unit to provide autofocus and/or optical image stabilization functionality to the first camera unit. In some embodiments, the second actuator may move one or more components of the second camera unit to provide autofocus and/or optical image stabilization functionality to the second camera unit. In some examples, the first camera unit may be configured to capture a first image of a first visual field. The second camera unit may be configured to capture, simultaneously with the first camera unit capturing the first image, a second image of a second visual field.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2019
    Publication date: November 28, 2019
    Applicant: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Shashank Sharma, Scott W. Miller, Aurelien R. Hubert
  • Patent number: 10429666
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a camera includes a lens assembly in a lens carrier, an image sensor for capturing a digital representation of light transiting the lens, and a voice coil motor. In some embodiments, the voice coil motor includes a spring suspension assembly for moveably mounting the lens carrier to an actuator base, a plurality of permanent magnets mounted to the actuator base through a magnet holder assembly and a focusing coil fixedly mounted to the lens carrier and mounted to the actuator base through the suspension assembly. In some embodiments, the permanent magnets each generate a magnetic field of a respective permanent magnet field strength, and the magnet holder assembly generates a holder magnetic field of a holder magnetic field strength.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2019
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott W. Miller, Steven Webster, Shashank Sharma
  • Publication number: 20190271901
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a camera unit of a multifunction device may include an optical package and an actuator for moving the optical package. In some embodiments, the actuator may include an asymmetric magnet arrangement. The asymmetric magnet arrangement may include a lateral position control magnet situated at a first side of the optical package, and a pair of transverse position control magnets situated at respective second and third sides of the optical package opposite one another with respect to an axis between the optical package and the lateral magnet. In some embodiments, the actuator may include one or more position sensor magnets attached to the optical package, and one or more magnetic field sensors for determining a position of the position sensor magnets.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 17, 2019
    Publication date: September 5, 2019
    Applicant: Apple Inc.
    Inventor: Shashank Sharma
  • Patent number: 10382698
    Abstract: A camera system may include a first camera unit and a second camera unit. The first camera unit may include a first actuator. The second camera unit may include a second actuator. The first actuator may move one or more components of the first camera unit to provide autofocus and/or optical image stabilization functionality to the first camera unit. The second actuator may move one or more components of the second camera unit to provide autofocus and/or optical image stabilization functionality to the second camera unit. In some examples, the first camera unit may be configured to capture a first image of a first visual field. The second camera unit may be configured to capture, simultaneously with the first camera unit capturing the first image, a second image of a second visual field.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2019
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Shashank Sharma, Scott W. Miller, Aurelien R. Hubert
  • Publication number: 20190235202
    Abstract: Various embodiments include a camera with folded optics and lens shifting capabilities. In some examples, a folded optics arrangement of the camera may include one or more lens elements and light path folding elements (e.g., prisms). Some embodiments include voice coil motor (VCM) actuator arrangements, carrier arrangements, and/or suspension arrangements to provide autofocus (AF) and/or optical image stabilization (OIS) movement. Furthermore, some embodiments include position sensor arrangements for position sensing with respect to AF and/or OIS movement.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 25, 2019
    Publication date: August 1, 2019
    Applicant: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Nicholas D. Smyth, Alred N. Mireault, Scott W. Miller, Shashank Sharma
  • Publication number: 20190212632
    Abstract: Various embodiments include a camera with folded optics and lens shifting capabilities. Some embodiments include voice coil motor (VCM) actuator arrangements to provide autofocus (AF) and/or optical image stabilization (OIS) movement. Some embodiments include suspension arrangements.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 9, 2019
    Publication date: July 11, 2019
    Applicant: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott W. Miller, Alfred N. Mireault, Brad V. Johnson, Nicholas D. Smyth, Rummel R. Adriano, Shashank Sharma, Steven Webster
  • Patent number: 10317649
    Abstract: A camera module includes an optical package, a camera actuator for moving the optical package, a camera subassembly, and one or more resilient members arranged within the camera subassembly to prevent, reduce, or cushion contact between the optical package and other components of the camera. The resilient members may be mounted on the lens carrier of the optical package and configured to come into resistive contact with components of the camera subassembly and/or mounted on components of the camera subassembly and configured to come into resistive contact with the optical package. In either case, the resistive cushioning provided by the resilient members may reduce or prevent contact (and an associated rattling noise associated with the contact) between the optical package and the hard components of the camera subassembly. The resilient members may be configured to cushion, but also allow hard stop contact. In embodiments bumpers (e.g., elastomeric pads) may be used.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2019
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Shashank Sharma, Scott W. Miller, Alfred N. Mireault
  • Publication number: 20190172716
    Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to enable the formation of a metal gate structure with a reduced effective oxide thickness over a similar structure formed via conventional methods. A plasma hydrogenation process followed by a plasma nitridization process, or a single-step plasma hydrogenation and nitridization process, is performed on a metal nitride layer in a film stack, thereby, according to some embodiments, removing oxygen atoms disposed within layers of the film stack and, in some embodiments, adding nitrogen atoms to the layers of the film stack. As a result, an effective oxide thickness of the metal gate structure is reduced with little or no accompanying flatband voltage shift.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 9, 2019
    Publication date: June 6, 2019
    Inventors: Houda Graoui, Johanes S. Swenberg, Wei Liu, Shashank Sharma
  • Patent number: 10303041
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a camera unit of a multifunction device may include an optical package and an actuator for moving the optical package. In some embodiments, the actuator may include an asymmetric magnet arrangement. The asymmetric magnet arrangement may include a lateral position control magnet situated at a first side of the optical package, and a pair of transverse position control magnets situated at respective second and third sides of the optical package opposite one another with respect to an axis between the optical package and the lateral magnet. In some embodiments, the actuator may include one or more position sensor magnets attached to the optical package, and one or more magnetic field sensors for determining a position of the position sensor magnets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2019
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventor: Shashank Sharma
  • Publication number: 20190157143
    Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to a sequential hydrogenation and nitridization process for reducing interfacial and bulk O atoms in a conductive structure in a semiconductor device. A hydrogenation and plasma nitridization process is performed on a metal nitride layer in a conductive structure prior to deposition of a second metal layer, thereby reducing interfacial oxygen atoms formed on a surface of the metal nitride and oxygen atoms present in the bulk metal layers of the conductive structure. As a result, adhesion of the second metal layer to the metal nitride layer is improved and the electrical resistance of the contact structure is reduced.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 28, 2019
    Publication date: May 23, 2019
    Inventors: Johanes S. SWENBERG, Wei LIU, Houda GRAOUI, Shashank SHARMA, Shankar MUTHUKRISHNAN, Rene GEORGE
  • Publication number: 20190141248
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a camera actuator includes an actuator base, an autofocus voice coil motor, and an optical image stabilization voice coil motor. In some embodiments, the autofocus voice coil motor includes a lens carrier mounting attachment moveably mounted to the actuator base, a plurality of shared magnets mounted to the base, and an autofocus coil fixedly mounted to the lens carrier mounting attachment for producing forces for moving a lens carrier in a direction of an optical axis of one or more lenses of the lens carrier. In some embodiments, the optical image stabilization voice coil motor includes an image sensor carrier moveably mounted to the actuator base, and optical image stabilization coils moveably mounted to the image sensor carrier within the magnetic fields of the shared magnets, for producing forces for moving the image sensor carrier in a plurality of directions orthogonal to the optical axis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 10, 2017
    Publication date: May 9, 2019
    Applicant: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Aurelien R. Hubert, Qiang Yang, Douglas S. Brodie, Scott W. Miller, Shashank Sharma
  • Publication number: 20190115219
    Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to enable the formation of a metal gate structure with a reduced effective oxide thickness over a similar structure formed via conventional methods. A plasma hydrogenation process followed by a plasma nitridization process is performed on a metal nitride layer in a film stack, thereby removing oxygen atoms disposed within layers of the film stack and, in some embodiments eliminating an oxygen-containing interfacial layer disposed within the film stack. As a result, an effective oxide thickness of the metal gate structure is reduced with little or no accompanying flatband voltage shift. Further, the metal gate structure operates with an increased leakage current that is as little as one quarter the increase in leakage current associated with a similar metal gate structure formed via conventional techniques.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 12, 2018
    Publication date: April 18, 2019
    Inventors: Johanes S. SWENBERG, Wei LIU, Houda GRAOUI, Shashank SHARMA
  • Patent number: 10264188
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a first camera unit includes a first actuator for moving a first optical package configured for a first focal length. A second camera unit of the multifunction device for simultaneously capturing a second image of a second visual field includes a second actuator for moving a second optical package configured for a second focal length, and the camera system includes a shared magnet positioned between the first camera unit and the second camera unit to generate magnetic fields usable in creating motion in both the first camera actuator and the second camera actuator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2019
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott W. Miller, Shashank Sharma, Simon S. Lee
  • Patent number: 10256005
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to thermal processing of substrates. More specifically, embodiments described herein relate to flash on spike annealing processes and apparatus suitable for performing such processes. In one embodiment, a thermal processing apparatus may include a lamp radiation source, a laser source, and a reflector plate disposed between the lamp radiation source and the laser source. One or more apertures may be formed in the reflector plate and the laser source may be positioned adjacent to the reflector plate such that a laser beam emitted from the laser source propagates through the one or more apertures. In one embodiment, the reflector plate may be substantially circular and the one or more apertures may approximate a sector of the reflector plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2019
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Joseph M. Ranish, Shashank Sharma, Diwakar N. Kedlaya, Aaron Muir Hunter
  • Patent number: 10236207
    Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to a sequential hydrogenation and nitridization process for reducing interfacial and bulk O atoms in a conductive structure in a semiconductor device. A hydrogenation and plasma nitridization process is performed on a metal nitride layer in a conductive structure prior to deposition of a second metal layer, thereby reducing interfacial oxygen atoms formed on a surface of the metal nitride and oxygen atoms present in the bulk metal layers of the conductive structure. As a result, adhesion of the second metal layer to the metal nitride layer is improved and the electrical resistance of the contact structure is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Johanes S. Swenberg, Wei Liu, Houda Graoui, Shashank Sharma, Shankar Muthukrishnan, Rene George
  • Publication number: 20190052780
    Abstract: A camera module includes a lens carrier that houses a lens, electrical components of optical path modifiers positioned on the lens carrier, an image sensor, and a controller that is to generate commands for operating the optical path modifiers. A printed circuit assembly positioned on the lens carrier is electrically coupled to suspension wires. The printed circuit assembly includes a printed circuit that has installed thereon a serial bus communications interface circuit that is to receive the commands from the controller through one of the suspension wires, and a translation circuit that is to translate the commands into control signals that are to operate or drive the optical path modifiers via the electrical components and according to the commands, respectively. Other embodiments are also described.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 19, 2018
    Publication date: February 14, 2019
    Inventors: Shashank SHARMA, Douglas S. BRODIE
  • Publication number: 20190020822
    Abstract: Various embodiments include a camera voice coil motor (VCM) actuator configured to shift an image sensor along multiple axes. Some embodiments include a magnet and coil arrangement. Some embodiments include a position sensing arrangement. Some embodiments include a flexure arrangement. Some embodiments include a coil structure and coil carrier assembly.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 16, 2018
    Publication date: January 17, 2019
    Applicant: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Shashank Sharma, Scott W. Miller
  • Patent number: 10103027
    Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to enable the formation of a metal gate structure with a reduced effective oxide thickness over a similar structure formed via conventional methods. A plasma hydrogenation process followed by a plasma nitridization process is performed on a metal nitride layer in a film stack, thereby removing oxygen atoms disposed within layers of the film stack and, in some embodiments eliminating an oxygen-containing interfacial layer disposed within the film stack. As a result, an effective oxide thickness of the metal gate structure is reduced with little or no accompanying flatband voltage shift. Further, the metal gate structure operates with an increased leakage current that is as little as one quarter the increase in leakage current associated with a similar metal gate structure formed via conventional techniques.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2018
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Johanes S. Swenberg, Wei Liu, Houda Graoui, Shashank Sharma
  • Patent number: 10063783
    Abstract: A first camera unit of a multifunction device captures a first image of a first visual field. The first camera unit includes a first optical image stabilization actuator for moving a first optical package configured for a first focal length. A second camera unit of the multifunction device simultaneously captures a second image of a second visual field. The second camera unit includes a second optical image stabilization actuator for moving a second optical package configured for a second focal length. The first focal length is different from the second focal length.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2018
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott W. Miller, Shashank Sharma, Simon S. Lee
  • Patent number: 10021280
    Abstract: A camera module includes a lens carrier that houses a lens, electrical components of optical path modifiers positioned on the lens carrier, an image sensor, and a controller that is to generate commands for operating the optical path modifiers. A printed circuit assembly positioned on the lens carrier is electrically coupled to suspension wires. The printed circuit assembly includes a printed circuit that has installed thereon a serial bus communications interface circuit that is to receive the commands from the controller through one of the suspension wires, and a translation circuit that is to translate the commands into control signals that are to operate or drive the optical path modifiers via the electrical components and according to the commands, respectively. Other embodiments are also described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2018
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Shashank Sharma, Douglas S. Brodie