Protective garment
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The disposable protective garment is a rear-entry coverall that has five seams and a closure. According to the inventors, minimal seams make the garment stronger than those with seams to join legs and sleeves to a torso section. Garments can be breathable as well as liquid and particle resistant. The garment is made from a single sheet of material, such as polyester or polyvinyl chloride, which has right and left body sides. Each body side has a first and second leg, sleeves, torso and top body side edges. The closure joins the right and left sides of the suit's body. Sleeve seams join the first and second sleeve edges and inseams join the first and second leg edges on each body side. A back seam joins the top edge of the right sleeve to the top the right body side. The top of the left sleeve is joined at the top edge of the left body side.
Patent number: 6,029,274
Date granted: February 29, 2000
Inventors: Debra Nell Welchel, Alan Edward Wright, Jay Amedee Poppe and Vivian Gray,
Kimberly-Clark Worldwide Inc. (Neenah, WI)
Wafer bonder
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The device prevents silicon wafers from deforming from the presence of particles in the bonding process. It is equipped with a holder that has a chuck surface that holds one of the two wafers. A suction device and a support form the holder. Within the chuck are two tiny recesses of predetermined sizes that capture airborne particles.
Patent number: 6,032,715
Date granted: March 7, 2000
Inventors: Yasunori Ohkubo, Hiroshi Satoh and Yoshihiro Miyazawa, Sony Corp. (Tokyo)
Substrate surface treatment
The invention is a method of treating substrate surfaces with carbon dioxide fluid. The surface of the substrate is immersed in a pressurized fluid containing carbon dioxide and a surface treatment component, like fluoroacrylate polymers and copolymers, which lower surface tension. Such carbon dioxide or dry cleaning methods seal the substrate from contaminants and particles. The method is also an alternative to using hydrocarbons, chlorinated solvents and chlorofluorocarbons, which have increased environmental concerns. This method is also useful for creating stain-resistant fabrics.
Patent number: 6,030,663
Date granted: February 29, 2000
Inventors: James B. McClain, Timothy J. Romack and James P. DeYoung, MiCell Technologies Inc. (Raleigh, NC)
Safety goggles with ventilation system
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The cleanroom goggles can be outfitted with HEPA or ULPA filters and hydrophilic protection to prevent fogging and contamination from facial hair or skin products. An active ventilation system uses hydrophilic fibers, which trap moisture as well as particles and reduce discomfort because of the gentle movement of air through the goggles. Air is circulated by an explosion-proof, DC microfan that is powered by a lithium ion battery.
Patent number: 5,966,746
Date granted: October 19, 1999
Inventors: Mark G. Reedy and Kevin L. Barton, Board of Regents, University of Nebraska (Lincoln, NE)
Static-dissipative garment
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A smock or a pant suit, the garment is made from a fabric that is laced with carbon strands. The pant suit has a pair of side seams between the torso section and each leg. The smock includes a similar pair of side seams in the torso section. Seams extend the length of each arm to the upper part of the torso to the collar. Along the seams is an electrically conductive ribbon, which overlaps a significant length of the sleeves. The ribbons of the sleeve and side seams overlap each other at the collar. An electrical connector is attached to the ribbon of at least one side seam. An electrical conductor is fastened to the connector, which removes static electricity that accumulates on the garment. Side seams can also be terminated at the cuffs. Transverse ribbons are mounted across the torso section of the suit and a pair of electrical connectors to remove static electricity is connected to a ground wire. Boots and gaiters can be manufactured to include similar electrically conductive ribbons.
Patent number: 6,026,512
Date granted: February 22, 2000
Inventor: David L. Banks (Los Angeles, CA)
Rotary filler
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The filler bottles liquids, especially beverages, into plastic bottles in an ultra clean minienvironment. Within the minienvironment, there are several filling valves that are peripherally arranged on the rotor. Powered by cams and rods, the rotor turns the valves. Bottles beneath the valves are then pressed onto the filling valve openings, filling the bottles. Filled bottles are then transferred to a closing station. Some beverages, especially non-alcoholic and non-carbonated, must be bottled in a cleanroom or minienvironment to prevent contact with pests and molds.
Patent number: 6,026,867
Date granted: February 22, 2000
Inventor: Hermann Klarl, Krones AG Hermann Kronsender Maschinenfabrik (Germany)
Send your inventions
Information on the patents highlighted above was obtained through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Inventors who have been granted patents within the last six months for new cleanroom and contamination technology are encouraged to submit them to CleanRooms magazine for publication. Send a brief description of the invention along with a detailed drawing to Mark A. DeSorbo, associate editor, CleanRooms, 98 Spit Brook Road, Nashua, NH 03062, or e-mail at [email protected].