"The Greenthread Patents cover foundational semiconductor technologies in the design and manufacture of integrated circuits such as memory, including but not limited to DRAM and NAND flash, and image sensors. Specifically, the Greenthread Patents describe semiconductor devices that employ graded dopants and well regions for, e.g., creating electric fields for aiding and/or retarding the movement of carriers to and/or from the semiconductor surface to/from the semiconductor substrate."
Few patents mentioned in the filing list G. R. Mohan Rao as an inventor:
US8421195B2 “Semiconductor Devices with Graded Dopant Regions”
US8106481B2 “Semiconductor Devices with Graded Dopant Regions”
US9647070B2 “Semiconductor Devices with Graded Dopant Regions”
The filing has an interesting info about Samsung S5K2X7SP sensor that allegedly infringes on the '070 patent above. This is fairly modern 24MP 0.9um Tetracell sensor featuring DTI, vertical transfer gate (VTG), and many other recent innovations from Samsung:
"Upon information and belief, the Accused Image Sensor Instrumentalities are in relevant part substantially similar to the exemplary S5K2X7SP CMOS image sensor, in particular with regard to the manner in which the Accused Image Sensor Instrumentalities include and utilize regions with graded dopant concentrations. Upon information and belief, Samsung fabricates the Accused Image Sensor Instrumentalities according to processes that utilize substantially similar process steps, including process steps for creating regions with graded dopant concentrations."
OMG! How was this ever granted? Graded profiles were already used by Kosonocky in CCDs and are consistently used throughout the industry. Looking forward to seeing the patents nullified and the process charges transferred to Greenthread so that this troll goes bankrupt. Patents are given away much too easily. Any idiot can get a patent on any stupid and most likely old idea. The reviews are laughable and that hurts the entire industry
ReplyDeleteNot the only crazy press this week. Anyone saw the Espros newsletter on global warming?
ReplyDeleteYes, I've seen it. It's sort of irrelevant to image sensors, other than coming from a CEO of image sensor company. So, I did not re-post it here.
DeletePatent examiners are just humans with lots of pressure for throughput and with less depth of knowledge than people reading this blog. Without reading the wrapper it is hard to know how much back and forth there was. But, when I read the claims I did not see how they were allowed. It is always too bad when bad patents get issued and then used by trolls. Let's hope the patent gets invalidated.
ReplyDelete