Methods and apparatuses for drying electronic devices
First Claim
1. An apparatus comprising:
- a low-pressure chamber defining an interior and having the interior configured for placement of an electronic device in the interior and removal of the electronic device from the interior,at least one evacuation pump connected to the low-pressure chamber;
a heater connected to the low-pressure chamber;
at least one control system connected to the at least one evacuation pump and to the heater, the at least one control system controlling removal of moisture from the electronic device by controlling the at least one evacuation pump to decrease pressure within the low-pressure chamber, and controlling operation of the heater to add heat to the electronic device, wherein the at least one control system is further configured for;
controlling at least one of the at least one evacuation pump or a valve in the low-pressure chamber to increase the pressure within the low-pressure chamber such that the increased pressure is substantially equal to pressure outside the low-pressure chamber, the decreasing the pressure and the increasing the pressure comprising a first cycle,repeating the controlling the at least one evacuation pump to decrease the pressure within the low-pressure chamber and the controlling the at least one of the at least one evacuation pump or the valve to increase the pressure within the low-pressure chamber such that the increased pressure is substantially equal to the pressure outside the low-pressure chamber, the repeating of the decreasing the pressure and of the increasing the pressure comprising a second cycle, anddetermining whether to stop or continue removing the moisture from the electronic device based on data from at least one of the first cycle or the second cycle.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Methods and apparatuses for drying electronic devices are disclosed. Embodiments include methods and apparatuses that heat and decrease pressure within the electronic device. Some embodiments increase and decrease pressure while adding heat energy, such as by using a heated platen in contact with the electronic device or by supplying a gas (e.g., air), which may be heated, into the interior of the electronic device. Embodiments include heating the gas supplied into the interior of the electronic device with pump used to decrease pressure within the electronic device and/or a separate heater. Still other embodiments include controlling the temperature of the gas supplied into the electronic device. Still further embodiments automatically control, such as by using an electronic processor, some or all aspects of the drying of the electronic device.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. An apparatus comprising:
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a low-pressure chamber defining an interior and having the interior configured for placement of an electronic device in the interior and removal of the electronic device from the interior, at least one evacuation pump connected to the low-pressure chamber; a heater connected to the low-pressure chamber; at least one control system connected to the at least one evacuation pump and to the heater, the at least one control system controlling removal of moisture from the electronic device by controlling the at least one evacuation pump to decrease pressure within the low-pressure chamber, and controlling operation of the heater to add heat to the electronic device, wherein the at least one control system is further configured for; controlling at least one of the at least one evacuation pump or a valve in the low-pressure chamber to increase the pressure within the low-pressure chamber such that the increased pressure is substantially equal to pressure outside the low-pressure chamber, the decreasing the pressure and the increasing the pressure comprising a first cycle, repeating the controlling the at least one evacuation pump to decrease the pressure within the low-pressure chamber and the controlling the at least one of the at least one evacuation pump or the valve to increase the pressure within the low-pressure chamber such that the increased pressure is substantially equal to the pressure outside the low-pressure chamber, the repeating of the decreasing the pressure and of the increasing the pressure comprising a second cycle, and determining whether to stop or continue removing the moisture from the electronic device based on data from at least one of the first cycle or the second cycle. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. An apparatus comprising:
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a low-pressure chamber defining an interior and having the interior configured for placement of an electronic device in the interior and removal of the electronic device from the interior, at least one evacuation pump connected to the low-pressure chamber; a heater connected to the low-pressure chamber; at least one power and control system connected to the at least one evacuation pump and to the heater, the at least one power and control system controlling removal of moisture from the electronic device by controlling the at least one evacuation pump to decrease pressure within the low-pressure chamber, controlling operation of the heater to add heat to the electronic device, and determining whether to stop or continue removing the moisture from the electronic device based on data associated with at least one of the electronic device or the low-pressure chamber. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An apparatus comprising:
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a low-pressure chamber defining an interior and having the interior configured for placement of an electronic device in the interior and removal of the electronic device from the interior, an evacuation pump connected to the low-pressure chamber; a heater connected to the low-pressure chamber; at least one control system connected to the evacuation pump and to the heater, the at least one control system controlling removal of moisture from the electronic device by controlling the evacuation pump to decrease pressure within the low-pressure chamber, and controlling operation of the heater to add heat to the electronic device, wherein the apparatus is in communication with a computing device, wherein the computing device executes a computing application for at least one of receiving, processing, or transmitting data associated with at least one of the electronic device or the apparatus. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification