Information providing method and system

• US 6,980,872 B2
• Filed: 10/09/2001
• Issued: 12/27/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Ina, Hideki, Kano, Ichiro, Ogura, Masaya, Ogushi, Nobuaki, Sugimori, Takashi, Utamura, Shinji, Mizushiri, Kaoru, Ohtake, Masahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Cabrera, Zoila
• Application Number:
  US09/971,648
• Publication Number:
  US 20020046140A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,540 Days
• Field of Search: 700108-110, 700/121, 700/111, 700/174, 700/175, 700/177, 702182-185
• US Class Current: 700/108
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

An information providing system which includes a reception unit that receives first information concerning a process to be performed by an apparatus from a customer via a network, a processing unit which simulates the process based on the first information and prepares second information based on a result of the simulation, and a transmission unit which transmits the second information to the customer via a network.

Claims

1. An exposure system comprising an exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate to a pattern, said system comprising:

a transmission unit which transmits first information concerning a use condition of the exposure apparatus to an information providing system via a network, wherein the information providing system is arranged to simulate a process to be performed by the exposure apparatus under the use condition based on the first information and to prepare second information concerning a performance of the exposure apparatus under the use condition based on a result of the simulation; and

a reception unit which receives the second information from the information providing system via a network.

2. An information acquiring method applied to an exposure system comprising an exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate to a pattern, said method comprising steps of:

transmitting first information concerning a use condition of the exposure apparatus to an information providing system via a network, wherein the information providing system is arranged to simulate a process to be performed by the exposure apparatus under the use condition based on the first information and to prepare second information concerning a performance of the exposure apparatus under the use condition based on a result of the simulation; and

receiving the second information from the information providing system via a network.

3. An exposure system comprising an exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate to a pattern, said system comprising:

a transmission unit which transmits first information concerning a target performance of the exposure apparatus to an information providing system via a network, wherein the information providing system is arranged to determine a use condition of the customer'"'"'s apparatus based on the first information and to prepare second information concerning the use condition; and

a reception unit which receives the second information from the information providing system via a network.

4. An information acquiring method applied to an exposure system comprising an exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate to a pattern, said method comprising steps of:

transmitting first information concerning a target performance of the exposure apparatus to an information providing system via a network, wherein the information providing system is arranged to determine a use condition of the customer'"'"'s apparatus based on the first information and to prepare second information concerning the use condition; and

receiving the second information from the information providing system via a network.