Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090267737 | RFID SYSTEM WITH DISTRIBUTED READERS - A system in one embodiment includes a plurality of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) readers, each reader being capable of using a single antenna for both transmit and receive functions, wherein, during operation, one of the readers transmits and at least another of the readers receives a response to the transmission from an RFID device. A system in another embodiment includes a plurality of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) readers, each reader having at least one antenna mounted on a housing thereof, wherein, during operation, the reader transmitting emits a signal sufficient to communicate with a battery assisted passive RFID device at a range of at least 20 meters. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 10-29-2009 |
20120001732 | VARIABLE RATE PREAMBLE DETECTION USING RATIOMETRIC METHODS - A method for detecting a pattern in a signal according to one embodiment includes determining a time between symbol transitions in a signal derived from a radio frequency signal; determining ratios of relational times between consecutive symbol transitions; and comparing a sequence of the ratios to a target pattern for determining whether the sequence corresponds to the target pattern. Such methodology may also be implemented as a system using logic for performing the various operations. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120002758 | SUBCARRIER FREQUENCY ACQUISITION AND COMPLEX DEROTATION TO BASEBAND - A method for demodulating a radio frequency signal according to one embodiment includes receiving digital signals derived from a radio frequency signal; converting the digital signals to baseband signals; generating a frequency error signal using the baseband signals during an acquisition period; and shifting a frequency of the digital signals towards zero frequency error during the acquisition period using the frequency error signal, with the proviso that the digital signals are not phase locked during the shifting. Such methodology may also be implemented as a system using logic for performing the various operations. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120002760 | VARIABLE LENGTH CORRELATOR - A method for processing a signal derived from a radio frequency signal at some rate in a range of allowable data rates according to one embodiment includes downconverting an incoming signal derived from a radio frequency signal to complex near-baseband signals; processing the complex near-baseband signals in two data correlators corresponding to data 0 and data 1; and changing effective lengths of the correlators based on a symbol data rate of the incoming signal. Such methodology may also be implemented as a system using logic for performing the various operations. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120002762 | SINGLE OR DUAL COMPLEX SUBCARRIER DOWNCONVERSION - A method for subcarrier downconversion and data detection according to one embodiment includes determining whether to use an upper sideband frequency section of a complex downconverter output, a lower sideband frequency section of the complex downconverter output, or both sideband frequency sections of the complex downconverter output; and processing the output corresponding to the selected sideband frequency section or sections based on the determination, wherein the processing includes correlation and data detection. Such methodology may also be implemented as a system using logic for performing the various operations. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120002763 | HALF BIT CORRELATOR COMBINING FOR DATA DEMODULATION - A method for demodulating a data signal according to one embodiment includes processing baseband signals using multiple complex correlators each having a half-Tbit length; summing outputs of the complex correlators for a first data state; and differencing outputs of the complex correlators for a second data state. A system for demodulating a data signal according to one embodiment includes a correlator module having logic for: processing baseband signals using multiple complex correlators each having a half-Tbit length; summing outputs of the complex correlators for a first data state; and differencing outputs of the complex correlators for a second data state. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120002765 | AUTOMATIC GAIN CONTROL AND BASEBAND PREINTEGRATION TO REDUCE COMPUTATION REQUIREMENTS AT LOWER DATA RATES - A method for processing baseband signals according to one embodiment includes receiving I and Q baseband signals; and selectively reducing an amount of samples of the baseband signals to be processed in a correlator, wherein the reduction rate is based on a data rate of the baseband signals. A preintegrator module according to one embodiment includes an automatic gain control section for performing automatic gain control on I and Q baseband signals; a first preintegrator coupled to an output of the automatic gain control section, the first preintegrator being for selectively reducing an amount of samples in the I baseband signal based on a data rate of the I baseband signal; and a second preintegrator coupled to an output of the automatic gain control section, the second preintegrator being for selectively reducing an amount of samples in the Q baseband signal based on a data rate of the Q baseband signal. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120002766 | RSSI ESTIMATE ON VARIABLE LENGTH CORRELATOR OUTPUT - A method for estimating a strength of a radio frequency signal according to one embodiment includes receiving a correlator magnitude signal from a correlator module; performing a gain scaling on the correlator magnitude signal; and averaging the scaled correlator magnitude signal or value associated therewith to generate an output indicative of a strength of the signal. Such methodology may also be implemented as a system using logic for performing the various operations. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120002772 | DATA CLOCK RECOVERY LOOP JAM SET USING SUBCARRIER FREQUENCY ESTIMATE - A method for jam setting an initial frequency of a data clock recovery loop according to one embodiment includes generating a frequency error signal in a frequency error detector from sideband signals within a backscattered radio frequency signal, wherein the frequency error accumulates in a frequency error filter coupled to an output of the frequency error detector; at about an end of an acquisition period, freezing the accumulated frequency error in the frequency error filter; and using the frozen accumulated frequency error to jam set an initial frequency of a data clock recovery loop. Such methodology may also be implemented as a system using logic for performing the various operations. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120003938 | DYNAMIC SIGNAL DETECTION THRESHOLD - A method for setting a signal detection threshold according to one embodiment includes determining a measure of a noise floor in a signal derived from a radio frequency signal received by an antenna using a same circuit used to detect a subcarrier signal during transmitting and prior to sending a command to a transponder to respond; and setting a signal detection threshold above the noise floor. Such methodology may also be implemented as a system using logic for performing the various operations. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120003951 | END OF MODULATION DETECTION - A method for detecting an end of modulation in a backscattered radio frequency signal according to one embodiment includes generating a fast average of a magnitude or power of an incoming signal; generating a slow average of the magnitude or power of the incoming signal; determining an end of modulation based on a relationship between the fast and slow averages; and outputting an end of modulation signal upon determining the end of modulation. A system for detecting an end of modulation in a backscattered radio frequency signal according to one embodiment includes a window integrator for generating a fast moving average of a magnitude or power of an incoming signal; a leaky integrator for generating a slow moving average of the magnitude or power of the incoming signal; logic for determining an end of modulation when the fast moving average crosses below the slow moving average; and logic for outputting an end of modulation signal. Additional systems and methods are also presented. | 01-05-2012 |
20120056722 | RFID READER WITH CAMERA, VIDEO, AND/OR AUDIO CAPTURE DEVICE - A media capture device coupled to an RFID reader and/or antenna. A system in one embodiment includes a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) reader; an antenna coupled to the RFID reader; and a media capture device coupled to at least one of the reader and the antenna. A method in another embodiment includes capturing media using a media capture device coupled to at least one of a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) reader and an antenna coupled to the RFID reader upon occurrence of a trigger event. | 03-08-2012 |
20120223814 | RFID DEVICES, SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ACCURATE EQUIPMENT AND ASSET TRACKING - A method according to one embodiment includes conummicating with a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag coupled to a reusable transport item (RTI); and determining whether the RTI has passed a predetermined useful lifetime thereof based on information received from the RFID tag. A method according to one embodiment includes conummicating with a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag coupled to a reusable transport item (RTI); and determining both a horizontal and vertical position of the RTI. A method according to yet another embodiment includes communicating with a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag coupled to a reusable transport item (RTI); and performing an action based at least in part on at least one of a location and a determined inactivity of the RTI. | 09-06-2012 |
20130257598 | INTERFERENCE DETECTION AND MITIGATION IN RFID READERS AND SYSTEMS - One embodiment of the present invention includes a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) reader configured to detect radio frequency (RF) interference in and/or outside a band of RFID operation. The RFID reader includes a receive channel for receiving incoming RF signals; and hardware for detecting interference in and/or outside a band of RFID operation. A method for mitigating radio frequency (RF) interference in and/or outside a band of RFID operation, according to one embodiment, includes detecting interference in and/or outside a band of RFID operation; and controlling an aspect of operation of the RFID reader for mitigating the detected interference. | 10-03-2013 |
20140253297 | RFID SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ASSOCIATING IMAGES OF DOCUMENTS WITH RFID TAG-RELATED DATA - A method for associating an image of a document with information relating to a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag, according to one embodiment, includes receiving information relating to an RFID tag, the information including at least one of a trip identifier, an identifier of the RFID tag, an identifier of a transport item, and a document identifier; receiving an image of a document; storing the image of the document; associating the image of the document with the information relating to the RFID tag; and storing the association of the image with the information relating to the RFID tag. | 09-11-2014 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20100229890 | Method of Particle Contaminant Removal - Apparatus and methods for removing particle contaminants from a surface of a substrate includes coating a layer of a viscoelastic material on the surface. The viscoelastic material is coated as a thin film and exhibits substantial liquid-like characteristic. An external force is applied to a first area of the surface coated with the viscoelastic material such that a second area of the surface coated with the viscoelastic material is not substantially subjected to the applied force. The force is applied for a time duration that is shorter than a intrinsic time of the viscoelastic material so as to access solid-like characteristic of the viscoelastic material. The viscoelastic material exhibiting solid-like characteristic interacts at least partially with at least some of the particle contaminants present on the surface. The viscoelastic material along with at least some of the particle contaminants is removed from the first area of the surface while the viscoelastic material is exhibiting solid-like characteristics. | 09-16-2010 |
20100269285 | APPARATUS AND SYSTEM FOR CLEANING SUBSTRATE - An upper processing head includes a topside module defined to apply a cleaning material to a top surface of a substrate and then expose the substrate to a topside rinsing meniscus. The topside module is defined to flow a rinsing material through the topside rinsing meniscus in a substantially unidirectional manner towards the cleaning material and opposite a direction of movement of the substrate. A lower processing head includes a bottomside module defined to apply a bottomside rinsing meniscus to the substrate so as to balance a force applied to the substrate by the topside rinsing meniscus. The bottomside module is defined to provide a drain channel for collecting and draining the cleaning material dispensed from the upper processing head when the substrate is not present between the upper and lower processing heads. The upper and lower processing heads can include multiple instantiations of the topside and bottomside modules, respectively. | 10-28-2010 |
20100288311 | Multi-Stage Substrate Cleaning Method and Apparatus - A first application of a cleaning material is made to a surface of a substrate. The cleaning material includes one or more viscoelastic materials for entrapping contaminants present on the surface of the substrate. A first application of a rinsing fluid is made to the surface of the substrate so as to rinse the cleaning material from the surface of the substrate. The first application of the rinsing fluid is also performed to leave a residual thin film of the rinsing fluid on the surface of the substrate. A second application of the cleaning material is made to the surface of the substrate having the residual thin film of rinsing fluid present thereon. A second application of the rinsing fluid is then made to the surface of the substrate so as to rinse the cleaning material from the surface of the substrate. | 11-18-2010 |
20110048467 | Apparatus and System for Cleaning Substrate - An upper processing head includes a topside module defined to apply a cleaning material to a top surface of a substrate and then expose the substrate to a topside rinsing meniscus. The topside module is defined to flow a rinsing material through the topside rinsing meniscus in a substantially uni-directional manner towards the cleaning material and opposite a direction of movement of the substrate. A lower processing head includes a bottomside module defined to apply a bottomside rinsing meniscus to the substrate so as to balance a force applied to the substrate by the topside rinsing meniscus. The bottomside module is defined to provide a drain channel for collecting and draining the cleaning material dispensed from the upper processing head when the substrate is not present between the upper and lower processing heads. The upper and lower processing heads can include multiple instantiations of the topside and bottomside modules, respectively. | 03-03-2011 |
20110094538 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MONITORING WAFER STRESS - A method of using a processing system that is operable to deposit liquid and to remove liquid by way of negative pressure. The method includes arranging a device to have at least one of the liquid deposited thereon by the processing system and the liquid removed therefrom by the processing system. The device has a sensor portion disposed thereon. The sensor portion can provide a sensor signal based on pressure related to the at least one of the liquid being deposited thereon by the processing system and the liquid being removed therefrom by the processing system. The method further includes performing at least one of depositing, by the processing system, the liquid onto the device and removing the liquid, by the processing system, from the device. The method still further includes providing the sensor signal, by the sensor portion, based on the pressure related to the at least one of the liquid being deposited onto the device and the liquid being removed from the device. | 04-28-2011 |
20130068261 | MULTI-STAGE SUBSTRATE CLEANING METHOD AND APPARATUS - A first application of a cleaning material is made to a surface of a substrate. The cleaning material includes one or more viscoelastic materials for entrapping contaminants present on the surface of the substrate. A first application of a rinsing fluid is made to the surface of the substrate so as to rinse the cleaning material from the surface of the substrate. The first application of the rinsing fluid is also performed to leave a residual thin film of the rinsing fluid on the surface of the substrate. A second application of the cleaning material is made to the surface of the substrate having the residual thin film of rinsing fluid present thereon. A second application of the rinsing fluid is then made to the surface of the substrate so as to rinse the cleaning material from the surface of the substrate. | 03-21-2013 |
20140083463 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MONITORING WAFER STRESS - A method of using a processing system that is operable to deposit liquid and to remove liquid by way of negative pressure. The method includes arranging a device to have at least one of the liquid deposited thereon by the processing system and the liquid removed therefrom by the processing system. The device has a sensor portion disposed thereon. The sensor portion can provide a sensor signal based on pressure related to the at least one of the liquid being deposited thereon by the processing system and the liquid being removed therefrom by the processing system. The method further includes performing at least one of depositing, by the processing system, the liquid onto the device and removing the liquid, by the processing system, from the device. The method still further includes providing the sensor signal, by the sensor portion, based on the pressure related to the at least one of the liquid being deposited onto the device and the liquid being removed from the device. | 03-27-2014 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090014324 | INTEGRATED APPARATUS FOR EFFICIENT REMOVAL OF HALOGEN RESIDUES FROM ETCHED SUBSTRATES - A method and apparatus for removing volatile residues from a substrate are provided. In one embodiment, a method for volatile residues from a substrate includes providing a processing system having a load lock chamber and at least one processing chamber coupled to a transfer chamber, treating a substrate in the processing chamber with a chemistry comprising halogen, and removing volatile residues from the treated substrate in the load lock chamber. | 01-15-2009 |
20090032880 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TUNABLE ISOTROPIC RECESS ETCHING OF SILICON MATERIALS - Methods and apparatuses to etch recesses in a silicon substrate having an isotropic character to undercut a transistor in preparation for a source/drain regrowth. In one embodiment, a cap layer of a first thickness is deposited over a transistor gate stack and spacer structure. The cap layer is then selectively etched in a first region of the substrate, such as a p-MOS region, using a first isotropic plasma etch process and a second anisotropic plasma etch process. In another embodiment, an at least partially isotropic plasma recess etch is performed to provide a recess adjacent to the channel region of the transistor. In a particular embodiment, the plasma etch process provides a recess sidewall that is neither positively sloped nor more than 10 nm re-entrant. | 02-05-2009 |
20100258142 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR USING A VISCOELASTIC CLEANING MATERIAL TO REMOVE PARTICLES ON A SUBSTRATE - The embodiments provide apparatus and methods for removing particles from a substrate surface, especially from a surface of a patterned substrate (or wafer). The cleaning apparatus and methods have advantages in cleaning patterned substrates with fine features without substantially damaging the features on the substrate surface. The cleaning apparatus and methods involve using a viscoelastic cleaning material containing a polymeric compound with large molecular weight, such as greater than 10,000 g/mol. The viscoelastic cleaning material entraps at least a portion of the particles on the substrate surface. The application of a force on the viscoelastic cleaning material over a sufficiently short period time causes the material to exhibit solid-like properties that facilitate removal of the viscoelastic cleaning material along with the entrapped particles. A number of forces can be applied over a short period to access the solid-like nature of the viscoelastic cleaning material. Alternatively, when the temperature of the viscoelastic cleaning material is lowered, the visoelastic cleaning material also exhibits solid-like properties. | 10-14-2010 |
20100313917 | METHOD OF PARTICLE CONTAMINANT REMOVAL - Apparatus and methods for removing particle contaminants from a solid surface includes providing a layer of a viscoelastic material on the solid surface. The viscoelastic material is applied as a thin film and exhibits substantial liquid-like characteristics. The viscoelastic material at least partially binds with the particle contaminants. A high velocity liquid is applied to the viscoelastic material, such that the viscoelastic material exhibits solid-like behavior. The viscoelastic material is thus dislodged from the solid surface along with the particle contaminants, thereby cleaning the solid surface of the particle contaminants. | 12-16-2010 |