US5619429A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Apparatus and method for inspection of a patterned object by comparison thereof to a reference
Assignee: Applied Materials Israel Ltd
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Filing: 1991-11-27
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Granted: 1997-04-08
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Expires: 2011-11-27
Abstract
Abstract An inspection method including the steps of providing a patterned object to be inspected and compared with a reference, inspecting the patterned object and providing an output of information relating to the visual characteristics of the patterned object, comparing binary level information relating to the visual characteristics of the patterned object to binary level information relating to the visual characteristics of the reference, and comparing gray level information relating to the visual characteristics of the patterned object to gray level information relating to the visual characteristics of the reference.
Inventors
- 👤 Meir Aloni
- 👤 Amir Alon
- 👤 Yair Eran
- 👤 Itzhak Katz
- 👤 Yigal Katzir
- 👤 Gideon Rosenfeld
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 06:56
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06T; G06T7/00; G06T7/0002; G06T7/0004; G06T7/001; G01; G01N; G01N21/00; G01N21/84; G01N21/88; G01N21/95; G01N21/956; G01N21/95607; G06T2207/00; G06T2207/10; G06T2207/10056; G06T2207/30; G06T2207/30108; G06T2207/30148
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 10
Claim 1
Independent Claim
140 words
An inspection method comprising: providing a patterned object to be inspected and compared with a reference; initially inspecting the patterned object and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object; comparing the information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object to information relating corresponding visually sensible characteristics of the reference, thereby to provide an output indication of differences between the patterned object and the reference, representing possible defects, and simultaneously storing information regarding visually sensible characteristics of areas of the patterned object at which possible defects are indicated; and automatically carrying out a further inspection of visually sensible characteristics of said areas of the patterned object using said stored information, and wherein said automatically carrying out comprises comparing the visually sensible characteristics of at least some of said areas to a reference.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
140 words
An inspection method comprising: providing a patterned object to be inspected and compared with a reference; initially inspecting the patterned object and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object; comparing the information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object to information relating corresponding visually sensible characteristics of the reference, thereby to provide an output indication of differences between the patterned object and the reference, representing possible defects, and simultaneously storing information regarding visually sensible characteristics of areas of the patterned object at which possible defects are indicated; and automatically carrying out a further inspection of visually sensible characteristics of said areas of the patterned object using said stored information, and wherein said automatically carrying out comprises comparing the visually sensible characteristics of at least some of said areas to a reference.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
106 words
An inspection method comprising: providing a patterned object to be inspected and compared with a reference; initially inspecting the patterned object and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object; comparing the information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object to information relating corresponding visually sensible characteristics of the reference, thereby to provide an output indication of differences between the patterned object and the reference, representing possible defects, and simultaneously storing information regarding visually sensible characteristics of areas of the patterned object at which possible defects are indicated; and also comprising displaying said stored information to an operator.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
106 words
An inspection method comprising: providing a patterned object to be inspected and compared with a reference; initially inspecting the patterned object and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object; comparing the information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object to information relating corresponding visually sensible characteristics of the reference, thereby to provide an output indication of differences between the patterned object and the reference, representing possible defects, and simultaneously storing information regarding visually sensible characteristics of areas of the patterned object at which possible defects are indicated; and also comprising displaying said stored information to an operator.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
136 words
An inspection method comprising: providing a patterned object to be inspected and compared with a reference; inspecting the patterned object and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object; comparing the information relating to the visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object to the reference, thereby to provide an indication of differences between the patterned object and the reference; and automatically carrying out a second inspection of the visually sensible characteristics of at least some areas of the patterned object thereby to complement said providing by enhancing said output indication of differences provided by said providing, wherein the first and second inspections of characteristics of at least some areas of the patterned object are based on different alignments of at least some areas of the patterned object to the reference.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
136 words
An inspection method comprising: providing a patterned object to be inspected and compared with a reference; inspecting the patterned object and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object; comparing the information relating to the visually sensible characteristics of the patterned object to the reference, thereby to provide an indication of differences between the patterned object and the reference; and automatically carrying out a second inspection of the visually sensible characteristics of at least some areas of the patterned object thereby to complement said providing by enhancing said output indication of differences provided by said providing, wherein the first and second inspections of characteristics of at least some areas of the patterned object are based on different alignments of at least some areas of the patterned object to the reference.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
97 words
An inspection system comprising: apparatus for comparing an inspected object to a reference and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the inspected object; first apparatus for providing an indication of differences between the inspected object and the reference; and second apparatus for automatically carrying out a second inspection of visually sensible characteristics of at least some areas of the inspected object and for complementing said first apparatus and comprising apparatus for enhancing said indication of differences provided by said first apparatus, wherein the second apparatus operates off-line relative to the first apparatus.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
97 words
An inspection system comprising: apparatus for comparing an inspected object to a reference and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the inspected object; first apparatus for providing an indication of differences between the inspected object and the reference; and second apparatus for automatically carrying out a second inspection of visually sensible characteristics of at least some areas of the inspected object and for complementing said first apparatus and comprising apparatus for enhancing said indication of differences provided by said first apparatus, wherein the second apparatus operates off-line relative to the first apparatus.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
103 words
An inspection system comprising: apparatus for comparing an inspected object to a reference and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the inspected object; first apparatus for providing an indication of differences between the inspected object and the reference; and second apparatus for automatically carrying out a second inspection of visually sensible characteristics of at least some areas of the inspected object and for complementing said first apparatus and comprising apparatus for enhancing said indication of differences provided by said first apparatus, wherein the first apparatus and the second apparatus each comprise a misalignment detector and an alignment corrector.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
103 words
An inspection system comprising: apparatus for comparing an inspected object to a reference and providing an output of information relating to visually sensible characteristics of the inspected object; first apparatus for providing an indication of differences between the inspected object and the reference; and second apparatus for automatically carrying out a second inspection of visually sensible characteristics of at least some areas of the inspected object and for complementing said first apparatus and comprising apparatus for enhancing said indication of differences provided by said first apparatus, wherein the first apparatus and the second apparatus each comprise a misalignment detector and an alignment corrector.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2000-04-07 | 2000-10-07 | 2001-04-08 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2004-04-07 | 2004-10-07 | 2005-04-08 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2008-04-07 | 2008-10-07 | 2009-04-08 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |