(Acu-Gage: Hudson, NH) -- Acu-Gage Systems has been awarded Patent No. 10,088,304 by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its ACU-THIK precision thickness measuring system. All 21 patent claims were approved readily because there is no other machine available that can match ACU-THIK for thin substrate thickness accuracy across all X, Y coordinates.

ACU-THIK is an automated thickness measurement tool incorporating dual contact probes for high-accuracy inspection of semiconductor wafers and other thin substrates. Six Heidenhain measuring devices are integrated into the ACU-THIK system, which can be configured to accommodate wafer diameters of 100 mm–400 mm and larger.

Diagnosing as well as controlling thickness, bow, and warp in semiconductor wafer production is now automated when ACU-THIK users preprogram multiple pattern operations to fulfill planned production cycles. Additionally, the system supports robotics integration to free up operators’ time for other important tasks.

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