Fairchild Semiconductor Corporation

National Semiconductor Corporation

Raymond A Roberts

Michael Harley-Stead

Alvin Sugerman

Roger H Doherty

Philip C Zuk

John V Vogt, Iii

Clarence A Smith

A radio frequency identification (RFID) tag antenna system includes a planar two arm logarithmic spiral antenna with a suitably small form factor. There are two arms are of conductive foils or etched copper plating on a substrate the extend outwardly from a center in a logarithmic fashion. The two arms are identical to each other but rotated in the plane by 180 degrees. The arms also grow proportionally in width as they extend outward, but at any given distance from the center the width of both arms are equal to each other and, preferably, equal to the spaces between the arms. An impedance matching network receives the RF signal received by the dual spiral antenna and feed the RF signal to an electronic circuit that rectifies and multiplies the signal to form a DC signal that charges a capacitor. The electronics may be built onto the same substrate as the planar antenna, but preferably, the electronic circuit is built onto a second substrate is mounted, making appropriate electrical connections, to the antenna bearing substrate.

RFID tag wide bandwidth logarithmic spiral antenna method and system

An ESD protection device including a compound transistor structure having a trigger transistor and an ESD protection transistor. The trigger transistor includes a breakdown potential between the standoff voltage of a circuit to be protected and the breakdown potential of the ESD protection transistor. When activated, the trigger transistor operates to turn on the ESD protection transistor that is designed to carry the bulk of the conduction current associated with an ESD event. The trigger transistor is designed with an internal gain mechanism to ensure that it will not be turned off when a modified snapback voltage is reached during the ESD protection transistor operation. The trigger transistor is a minor contributor to the conducting current with the ESD protection transistor after such time as protection circuit operation acts. A process for fabricating a suitable compound transistor structure is disclosed.

Internally triggered electrostatic device clamp with stand-off voltage

A machine provides automated counting of integrated circuit (IC) parts packed in a shipping tube which may be, for example, an opaque shipping rail for translation of the rail along the track. An elongate support or track receives and holds a shipping rail. A first rail sensor positioned adjacent to the track senses the presence of a rail on the support track and generates a start count signal. A second rail sensor positioned along the track generates a stop count signal after the scanning of the rail by the sensors is completed. An IC parts sensor provided by an inductive proximity sensor is positioned adjacent to the track between the first and second rail sensors and senses the presence of IC parts contained in the shipping rail. A roller drive translates the shipping rail and the sensors relative to each other for scanning of the rail by the sensors. The parts sensor generates parts counting signals from the start count signal to the stop count signal. A computer processor processes the parts counting signals, calculates the number of IC parts in a rail, and accumulates and displays the count of rails and parts.

Machine for counting IC parts in a shipping rail

Growing community of inventors

Saco, ME, United States of America

Raymond A Roberts