1867results about How to "Shorten cycle time" patented technology

An improved gas deposition chamber includes a hollow gas deposition volume formed with a volume expanding top portion and a substantially constant volume cylindrical middle portion. The hollow gas deposition volume may include a volume reducing lower portion. An aerodynamically shaped substrate support chuck is disposed inside gas deposition chamber with a substrate support surface positioned in the constant volume cylindrical middle portion. The volume expanding top portion reduces gas flow velocity between gas input ports and the substrate support surface. The aerodynamic shape of the substrate support chuck reduces drag and helps to promote laminar flow over the substrate support surface. The volume reducing lower portion helps to increase gas flow velocity after the gas has past the substrate support surface. The improved gas deposition chamber is configurable to 200 mm diameter semiconductor wafers using ALD and or PALD coating cycles. An improved coating method includes expanding process gases inside the deposition chamber prior to the process gas reaching surfaces of a substrate being coated. The method further includes compressing the process gases inside the deposition chamber after the process gas has flowed past surfaces of the substrate being coated.

A photomask for eliminating antenna effects in an integrated circuit and integrated circuit manufactured with the photomask are disclosed. The photomask includes a substrate and a patterned layer formed on at least a portion of the substrate. The patterned layer may be formed using a mask pattern file created by analyzing a pattern in a mask layout file to identify a region including an antenna ratio less than a first design rule. A feature located in the identified region is moved based on a second design rule from a first position to a second position in the mask layout file to create a space in the identified region. A grounding feature is placed in the space and automatically connected to a gate feature in the mask layout file such that the antenna ratio is increased to greater than or approximately equal to the first design rule.

A system and method for generating a mask layout file to reduce power supply voltage fluctuations in an integrated circuit are disclosed. The method includes analyzing a pattern in a mask layout file to identify a region in the pattern to add one or more decoupling capacitors. Once the region is identified, a feature located in the identified region is moved based on a design rule from a first position to a second position in the mask layout file to create a space in the identified region. The decoupling capacitors are automatically placed in the space in the identified region.

Interconnection elements for electronic components, exhibiting desirable mechanical characteristic (such as resiliency, for making pressure contacts) are formed by using a shaping tool (512) to shape an elongate core element (502) of a soft material (such as gold or soft copper wire) to have a springable shape (including cantilever beam, S-shape, U-shape), and overcoating the shaped core element with a hard material (such as nickel and its alloys), to impart to desired spring (resilient) characteristic to the resulting composite interconnection element. A final overcoat of a material having superior electrical qualities (e.g., electrical conductivity and/or solderability) may be applied to the composite interconnection element. The resulting interconnection elements may be mounted to a variety of electronic components, including directly to semiconductor dies and wafers (in which case the overcoat material anchors the composite interconnection element to a terminal (or the like) on the electronic component), may be mounted to support substrates for use as interposers and may be mounted to substrates for use as probe cards or probe card inserts. The shaping tool may be an anvil (622) and a die (624), and may nick or sever successive shaped portions of the elongate elements, and the elongate element may be of an inherently hard (springy) material. Methods of fabricating interconnection elements on sacrificial substrates are described. Methods of fabricating tip structures (258) and contact tips at the end of interconnection elements are also described.

Reusable vacuum bags are provided which include a fabric layer containing reinforcement fibers and a release surface disposed on at least the first side of the fabric layer. The vacuum bag is capable of withstanding multiple mold cycles of the vacuum of less than ambient pressure without significant leakage. In addition, the described vacuum bag can be used in resin transfer molding and standard bagging operations with commercial benefit.

A system and a method for policy management in a web services environment includes a policy design tool, a policy storage and a policy manager controller. The policy design tool creates (or updates) a policy for association with a web service. The policy storage stores the policy. The policy manager controller provides an interface for transmission of the policy to a policy enforcement tool and also receives messages relating to the policy from the policy enforcement tool. In addition, a system and method for policy enforcement in a web services environment includes a policy enforcement controller, a policy enforcement repository, an enforcer, a policy enforcement framework, and a policy container. The policy enforcement controller receives and commits a policy and the policy enforcement repository stores the committed policy. The enforcer module receives a request to invoke the policy and the policy enforcement framework determines whether the requested policy is committed in the policy enforcement repository and whether the policy is instantiated. The policy container determines whether the policy is enforceable.

Protective layers are formed on a surface of an atomic layer deposition (ALD) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor. Parts defining a reaction space for an ALD or CVD reactor can be treated, in situ or ex situ, with chemicals that deactivate reactive sites on the reaction space surface(s). A pre-treatment step can maximize the available reactive sites prior to the treatment step. With reactive sites deactivated by adsorbed treatment reactant, during subsequent processing the reactant gases have reduced reactivity or deposition upon these treated surfaces. Accordingly, purge steps can be greatly shortened and a greater number of runs can be conducted between cleaning steps to remove built-up deposition on the reactor walls.

A sole mold for manufacturing a sole from a plurality of particles includes at least one first opening for supplying the particles, and at least two second openings for supplying a gaseous and/or liquid medium to bond and/or fuse the particles together. At least a portion of the sole mold is manufactured by an additive manufacturing method.

An inventory control and identification apparatus uses a storage space with a plurality of inventory items. Identification labels are positioned in physical correspondence with the inventory items. Each of the identification labels provides a transceiver. A coordinate communications network of further transceivers is set in a fixed position relative to the storage space and is enabled for wireless communication with the identification labels. A data processor is enabled for wireless communication with the coordinate network and the identification labels so as to receive data from the labels and the network. Inventory items have RF ID tags. Interrogation by the labels enables the tags to emit codes identifying the presence and location of the inventory to the labels. Triangulation of signals transmitted by the labels enables location of the labels in three-space.

An instrument for performing highly accurate PCR employing a sample block in microtiter tray format. The sample block has local balance and local symmetry. A three zone film heater controlled by a computer and ramp cooling solenoid valves also controlled by the computer for gating coolant flow through the block controls the block temperature. Constant bias cooling is used for small changes. Sample temperature is calculated instead of measured. A platen deforms plastic caps to apply a minimum acceptable threshold force for seating the tubes and thermally isolates them. A cover isolates the block. The control software includes diagnostics. An install program tests and characterizes the instrument. A new user interface is used. Disposable, multipiece plastic microtiter trays to give individual freedom to sample tubes are taught.

A method and apparatus for controlling a gas supply to a plasma arc torch uses a proportional control solenoid valve positioned adjacent the torch to manipulate the gas flow to the torch, thereby extending electrode life during arc transfer and shutdown. Swirl ring design can be simplified and gas supply and distribution systems become less complicated. The invention also allows manipulation of shield gas flow to reduce divot formation when making interior cuts. The system can be controlled with a digital signal processor utilizing a feedback loop from a sensor.

A method for distributed automated software GUI testing includes maintaining a centralized queue, which stores test instances to be executed by distributed test execution computers (“test computers”). Each test computer includes a client platform and is connected to one or more server platforms, the client and server platforms collectively providing client-server combinations against which the tests may be executed. For each test computer: (1) a request for a test instance is received from a test computer in response to completion of a preceding test by the test computer; (2) in response, a test instance is retrieved from the queue and communicated to the test computer for execution using a testing component supported by the test computer; (3) the component performs automated software GUI testing and produces test results; and (5) in response to execution of the instance, a test result for the executed instance is received and stored.

A method for configuring software includes communicating a business configuration interface to a user and receiving a selection of a business configuration from the user. In addition, the method includes communicating a business topology interface to the user that includes one or more functional elements associated with the selected business configuration. The method also includes receiving a selection of a functional element, which includes one or more business functions, from the user. In addition the method includes communicating a functional element interface to the user, the functional element interface including one or more business functions associated with the selected functional element, and receiving a selection of a business function from the user, the business function having one or more associated business processes. Furthermore, the method includes communicating one or more business process interfaces to the user and receiving software configuration information from the user via the one or more business process interfaces.

An integrated product data environment for system design and optimization, e.g., a Collaborative Engineering Environment (CEE). The CEE provides a multi-disciplinary engineering team with immediate access to all relevant product information. It is an enterprise system at the program as well as the company levels, managing product information as a program and corporate asset. Product-centric collaborative capabilities for the CEE are provided by extending the functionality of a commercial Product Data Management (PDM) System. Emerging web-centric commercial-off-tho-shelf (COTS) PDM capabilities, object-oriented technologies, associated rapid application development environments, sophisticated engineering toolsets, and COTS computing and communications technologies have been leveraged to establish the CEE for the complex electronic systems integration domain. The CEE offers substantial improvements in productivity, cost savings, cycle time reductions, product integrity and lifetime support of a system.

The present invention provides an improved process for preparing β-D and β-L 2′-C-methyl-nucleosides and 2′-C-methyl-3′-O-ester nucleosides.

Automatic error recovery systems and methods for automated manufacturing plants and factories are disclosed. Such facilities normally have multiple automated control systems, including an automated material handling system (AMHS), all of which run automatically, typically under the control of a computerized manufacturing execution system (MES). The disclosed issue resolution (ISR) systems and methods involve providing components, which may be supervised and operated by an issue resolution management (ISRM) system, if desired, that interfaces with the MES, AMHS, and/or production control system(s) which operate the tools and other stations within the automated factory. The components, which may be considered customized logic cells, may each be written for handling a specific kind of incoming error condition, problem or other issue that might occur and which is amenable to automatic resolution or recovery. These errors often occur between or across the boundaries of the various interactive systems and automated equipment. Each cell may cycle through a sequence of possible error resolution or recovery steps until the specific issue is resolved or until the sequence of steps is exhausted. Other components of the ISR system may provide results-oriented messages and/or facilitate the collection of data as to whether and which corrective commands from the ISR system resolved the reported error conditions automatically. The disclosed ISR systems and methods for resolving errors and other issues automatically helps improve the overall productivity of automated factories by reducing downtime and the need for human intervention to correct problems, thereby increasing factory throughput.

A liquid droplet ejecting apparatus of the present invention includes a cleaning unit, a regular flushing unit, capping unit, and an ejection-amount measuring unit as droplet ejecting head maintenance units used for function maintenance, function recovery, adjustment, or inspection of a liquid ejecting head. The droplet ejecting head maintenance units are arranged in a group in a movable platen as a maintenance-unit installing section. The movable platen is supported by an accessory stand physically separated from a main body.