Patents by Inventor William J. Gibbons

William J. Gibbons 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: 4827436
    Abstract: Apparatus is disclosed for optically detecting the position of an edge of a workpiece (such as an IC lead tip) in a sensing plane, involving the emission of electromagnetic energy from a known source region in the sensing plane such as to cause the edge to create a shadow having a penumbra in the sensing plane. Two detectors determine the amount of energy which reach two known detection regions in the sensing plane and wholly within the penumbra. The amount of energy detected by one detector determines a first curve in the sensing plane on which the edge must lie, and the amount of energy detected by the other determines a second such curve. The intersection of these two curves fully determines the position of the edge in the sensing plane. Preferably, the source region and both detector regions are all essentially line segments oriented parallel to a z-axis, the two detection regions being disposed axially but spaced from each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 1987
    Date of Patent: May 2, 1989
    Assignee: Micro Component Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Andrew P. Sabersky, Nicholas Littlestone, Jack E. Abbott, William J. Gibbons, Robert R. D'Orazio, Nathan R. Smith