A method of manufacturing a workpiece includes heating a pre-formed blank of a first fiber reinforced thermoplastic material in an oven. A second fiber reinforced thermoplastic material is heated in an extruder. The second fiber reinforced thermoplastic material is extruded from the extruder, within the oven, to form an extrudate. The extrudate is positioned on the pre-formed blank of the first fiber reinforced thermoplastic material, within the oven, to form a composite blank. The extrudate may be formed into a shape before being positioned onto the pre-formed blank, after being positioned onto the pre-formed blank. The composite blank may then be transferred to a final shaping station.

A method includes bringing into contact respective first sides of a plurality of dies and a die attach film on a major surface of a carrier wafer, and simultaneously heating portions of the die attach film contacting the plurality of dies in order to simultaneously bond the plurality of dies to the die attach film.

The present invention provides a system for the manufacture of membrane electrode assemblies, comprising: a first carriage traversable along a first track, the first carriage having a support platform; a second carriage traversable along a second track, the second carriage having a support platform; sheet supplying means for supplying sheets comprising a gas diffusion layer onto the support platforms of the carriages; and supply means for supplying a continuous web comprising an ion-conducting membrane between at least a portion of the first and second tracks, wherein the system is arranged to align the first and second carriages either side of the continuous web with the support platforms of the first and second carriages facing the continuous web, whereby the system is suitable for adhering sheets carried thereby to opposite sides of the continuous web in an aligned configuration.

A laminate is directly transferred from a first robot arm that carries the laminate from a bonding chamber to an overlapping chamber, to a second robot arm that carries out the laminate from the overlapping chamber to the outside.

Compositions and designs are described for a sectional porous carrier used in processing microelectronics where thin device substrates are affixed by adhesive to the carrier and form an impervious bonded stack that is resistant to thermal and chemical products during processing and is easily handled by a substrate handling vacuum robot, and subsequently allows rapid removal (debonding) in batch operations by directional penetration into sectional porous regions by selective liquids which release the carrier from the device wafer without harm. The invention carrier with porous regions is used for temporary support of thin and fragile device substrates having capabilities of selective penetration of chemical liquids to pass through the porous regions, access and breakdown the bonding adhesive, and allow it to release without damage to the device substrate. The sectional porous nature of the carrier allows passive diffusion of chemical liquids, the manner which in contrast to mechanical, thermal, or radiative methods, is considered to be a higher yield practice and one which enables batch processing in a manufacturing environment utilizing practices of high throughput and low cost. Preferred designs include the use of porous metal forms, including laminates, as well as surface treatment of the porous regions to facilitate exclusion principles and achieve an inert support mechanism during the stages of device manufacture. These benefits allow design flexibility and low-cost batch processing when choosing practices to handle thinned device substrates in the manufacture of semiconductors and other microelectronic devices.

A method includes dicing a wafer to form discrete components; transferring the discrete components onto a transparent carrier, including adhering the discrete component to a carrier release layer on the transparent carrier; and releasing one of the discrete components from the transparent carrier, the one of the discrete components being deposited onto a device substrate after the releasing.

A method of manufacturing a workpiece includes heating a pre-formed blank of a first fiber reinforced thermoplastic material in an oven. A second fiber reinforced thermoplastic material is heated in an extruder. The second fiber reinforced thermoplastic material is extruded from the extruder, within the oven, to form an extrudate. The extrudate is positioned on the pre-formed blank of the first fiber reinforced thermoplastic material, within the oven, to form a composite blank. The extrudate may be formed into a shape before being positioned onto the pre-formed blank, after being positioned onto the pre-formed blank. The composite blank may then be transferred to a final shaping station.

A method and apparatus for laying composite tape. The method may comprise driving a plurality of robots, each having a respective movement system across a movement surface, in which the movement surface faces a workpiece, and laying composite tape from the plurality of robots in a coordinated manner on the workpiece.

Compositions and designs are described for a sectional porous carrier used in processing microelectronics where thin device substrates are affixed by adhesive to the carrier and form an impervious bonded stack that is resistant to thermal and chemical products during processing and is easily handled by a substrate handling vacuum robot, and subsequently allows rapid removal (debonding) in batch operations by directional penetration into sectional porous regions by selective liquids which release the carrier from the device wafer without harm. The invention carrier with porous regions is used for temporary support of thin and fragile device substrates having capabilities of selective penetration of chemical liquids to pass through the porous regions, access and breakdown the bonding adhesive, and allow it to release without damage to the device substrate. The sectional porous nature of the carrier allows passive diffusion of chemical liquids, the manner which in contrast to mechanical, thermal, or radiative methods, is considered to be a higher yield practice and one which enables batch processing in a manufacturing environment utilizing practices of high throughput and low cost. Preferred designs include the use of porous metal forms, including laminates, as well as surface treatment of the porous regions to facilitate exclusion principles and achieve an inert support mechanism during the stages of device manufacture. These benefits allow design flexibility and low-cost batch processing when choosing practices to handle thinned device substrates in the manufacture of semiconductors and other microelectronic devices.

Systems, apparatus, and methods of manufacturing an article using electroadhesion technology for the pick-up and release of materials, respectively.