Trw Limited

Advanced Bionics Corporation

Richard P Malmgren

James C Lau

Kenneth Lui

Ronald A DePace

Michael Roush

James C Kei Lau

Janusz A Kuzma

Glen A Griffith

Steven S Chan

Lani A Smith

Yoshio Saito

A hair clip for use with a cochlear implant system retains a headpiece assembly, including a transmitting coil, in an aligned position relative to an implanted stimulator. In one embodiment, the hair clip provides a retention system that uses a magnet which forms part of the transmitting coil. A comb or plurality of prongs forms part of the retention system. In another embodiment, the comb has central teeth that are made from ferromagnetic material, and typically also has a non-central teeth that are made from non-ferromagnetic material. The comb is placed and secured in the patient's hair over the area where a cochlear implant is implanted. The transmitting coil is then placed next to the comb, and the magnet within the transmitting coil attaches to the ferromagnetic teeth of the comb. In another embodiment, the transmitting coil is housed in a headpiece, and the headpiece and comb or hair clip are fastened together, along an edge of the comb or hair clip where the teeth or prongs are bonded, with a hinge attachment spring. In a further embodiment, the hair clip is formed from a single sheet of stainless steel, and a plurality of prongs engage a lower surface of the headpiece while a retaining band, with an integral spring, securely holds the headpiece in place against the prongs. The hair clip is opened by applying a manual force against the spring and retaining band.

Hair clip retention system for headpiece of cochlear implant system

An implantable medical device, such as an implantable cochlear stimulator (ICS) system, utilizes laminated, sectionalized or particle-ized permanent magnets and/or keepers in both the implant portion and external (non-implanted) portion so as to reduce the electrical energy absorbed by both the implant device and the external device when in use. In one embodiment, the implant device employs a sectionalized, laminated or particle-based &ldquo;keeper&rdquo;, while the external device employs a sectionalized, laminated or particle-ized magnet, making the implant device immune to being damaged by MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). The combination of the sectionalized/laminated/particle magnets and the sectionalized/laminated/particle keepers creates a very high electrical resistance path across the boundaries of the laminations, sections, or particles, thereby reducing the magnitude of eddy currents that would otherwise flow transversely through the keeper in the presence of a magnetic flux passing through the keeper or magnet. The reduction of eddy currents, in turn, reduces energy loss.

Laminated magnet keeper for implant device

A method of fabricating an electrical interconnect are provided. A first transparent dielectric layer is disposed on top of a support structure. A conductive circuit layer is plated above the first dielectric layer. Separate conductive layers are plated on top of the conductive circuit layer to produce conductive vias. A second transparent dielectric layer is disposed around the conductive layers. Contact tips are electrically connected to the top surface of the separate conductive layers. The interconnect may be visually aligned so that the contact tips brought into contact with target connections. In addition, the support structure may be partially removed to allow a flexible interconnect.

Method for manufacturing a massive parallel interconnection attachment

In method of forming a hermetically sealed electrical feedthrough comprising, a feedthrough is positioned in a hole, the hole passing through a structure. The feedthrough includes a first material and the structure including a second material. A compressive force directed at the structure is applied to the feedthrough, and an equal force directed at the feedthrough is applied to the structure. The equal force is applied in a direction opposite the compressive force. The feedthrough and the structure are heated to a diffusion temperature whereat the first material and the second material undergo diffusion so as to cause a hermetically sealed bond between the first and second materials, and the hermetically sealed bond is thereby formed between the feedthrough and the structure.

Brazeless ceramic-to-metal bonding for use in implantable devices

In a method and apparatus for forming a hermetically sealed bond for use in implantable medical devices, a first structure, made from a first material, is positioned against a second structure, made from a second material. A compressive force directed at the second structure is applied to the first structure, and an equal force directed at the first structure in a direction opposite the compressive force is applied to the second structure so that the first and second structures are isodynamically pressed together. The first and second structures are heated to a diffusion temperature whereat the first material and the second material undergo diffusion, thereby forming a hermetically sealed bond between the first and second materials.

Brazeless ceramic-to-metal bond for use in implantable devices

A connector is disclosed for electrically coupling groups of contact points formed on a first and second electronic circuit chip. The connector is constructed by applying a layer of dielectric material to a planar electrically conductive base, lithographically printing a pattern onto the dielectric material, etching the pattern and creating a plurality of wells extending through the dielectric material and a matching plurality of cavities in the surface of the base, and electroplating the pattern and filling the wells with an electrically conductive electroplate material. The electroplate thereby forms a plurality of conductive members, each extending through the dielectric material. The base is then removed from the dielectric material, thereby forming a connector board having the conductive members extending therethrough for electrically coupling the first and second groups of contact points on the circuit chips.

Connector for integrated circuit chips

An electrical testing device is provided for testing integrated circuits located on a wafer. The testing device employs a multi-layer test circuit having a plurality of contacts for contacting the integrated circuits on a wafer. The layers of the test circuit are embedded in a flexible transparent dielectric material which allows vertical flexing of the contacts and visual transparency through the circuit. Alignment markers are provided on the circuit and wafer and one or more viewing tubes may be used to allow a user to view the alignment markers so as to bring the circuit into proper alignment with the wafer. A microscope may further be employed with each viewing tube to provide accurate alignment examination. A stretching fixture is mounted on the circuit which enables a user to stretch the circuit to achieve a larger size when necessary.

Testing device for integrated circuits on wafer

An electrical interconnect and a method of fabricating an electrical interconnect are provided. A first transparent dielectric layer is disposed on top of a support structure. A conductive circuit layer is plated above the first dielectric layer. Separate conductive layers are plated on top of the conductive circuit layer to produce conductive vias. A second transparent dielectric layer is disposed around the conductive layers. Contact tips are electrically connected to the top surface of the separate conductive layers. The interconnect may be visually aligned so that the contact tips brought into contact with target connections. In addition, the support structure may be partially removed to allow a flexible interconnect.

Massive parallel interconnection attachment using flexible circuit

Method of making connector for integrated circuit chips

An electrical testing device is provided for testing integrated circuits located on a wafer. The testing device employs a multi-layer test circuit having a plurality of contacts for contacting the integrated circuits on a wafer. The layers of the test circuit are embedded in a flexible, supportive dielectric material which allows vertical flexing of the contacts. Cross bar switches are further employed to switch among the plurality of contacts thereby enabling the testing of individual dies of the water to be tested. A microprocessor is further included for controlling the switching and the testing of each die. In an alternate embodiment, the plurality of contacts are mechanically moved relative to the wafer to allow testing of the dies without the need for the switches.

On-wafer integrated circuit electrical testing

An integrated waveguide/stripline signal transition structure and method for fabricating the same are provided for allowing high frequency signal transitions. The signal transition structure includes a waveguide which has a conductive cavity for guiding electromagnetic waves therethrough. A first conductive circuit layer is fabricated within the conductive cavity and is electrically connected thereto. A second conductive signal layer is fabricated within the conductive cavity and is isolated from the conductive cavity and the first conductive signal layer. A plurality of dielectric layers are provided which suspend the first and second conductive signal layers within the conductive cavity. The second conductive signal layer and the conductive cavity thereby allow for signal transitions therebetween. The first and second conductive signal layers and dielectric material are integrally fabricated on top of a removable material which is subsequently removed. In an alternate embodiment, a single dielectric layer is provided for suspending the first and second conductive signal layers. In addition, an array of signal transition structures may be integrally fabricated within a housing structure.

Integrated waveguide/stripline transition

This invention discloses a method of fabricating a plurality of diamond semiconductor wafers from a single crystal diamond semiconductor boule, where the diamond boule is grown by a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. Initially, a single crystal diamond seed is polished and an impurity layer is deposited on the polished seed crystal. The CVD growth process is then initiated to deposit a layer of single crystal diamond over the impurity layer to form the diamond boule. At desirable intervals, the CVD growth process is stopped and a surface of the diamond boule is polished in order to accept another impurity layer. Each impurity layer is photolithographically patterned in order to generate an alternating configuration of impurity regions and hole regions. The impurity regions and the hole regions enable the bond between the diamond layers to be weakened without causing the crystalline orientation to deviate. Once the diamond semiconductor boule is developed by this process, it can be easily sliced by a laser slicing process into a plurality of diamond semiconductor wafers along the impurity layers.

Growing community of inventors

Castaic, CA, United States of America

Richard P Malmgren