The increasing demand for alternatives to herbicides in weed management requires innovative approaches to integrated weed management, particularly due to the EU Soil Strategy which aims to reduce the use of pesticides in agriculture by 50% by 2030. Laser-based weed control provides an alternative to chemical methods allowing precise single plant weeding in the direct vicinity of crop plants. However, laser weeding must become more efficient and effective to compete with conventional methods. Optimizing the use of laser entails a wide array of parameters to analyze, such as laser wavelength, beam diameter, angle of irradiation and treatment point. Each parameter needs to be analyzed individually to gain knowledge of its effect on the laser weeding process. In this article, we show plant experiments to determine if the treatment point of the plant has an effect on the laser weeding process and which treatment point yields the highest success rate in damaging the plant. In a first set of experiments, we evaluated two potential treatment points of the plant: the meristem and the stem of the plant. We irradiated test plants with a 1940nm laser system, as this laser wavelength is well absorbed by the water within the plant, promising a high damage potential. We irradiated plants at a young growth stadium of up to four leaves and assessed each plant individually based on their damage level after a period of three weeks. To further improve our understanding of the laser weeding process, we recorded some experiments with a thermal imaging camera to visualize the heat distribution within the plant, as laser weeding is a thermal process, where heat is generated where the laser beam hits the plant.
The development of MEMS comprises the structural design as well as the definition of an appropriate manufacturing
process. Technology constraints have a considerable impact on the device design and vice-versa. Product
design and technology development are therefore concurrent tasks. Based on a comprehensive methodology the
authors introduce a software environment that links commercial design tools from both area into a common design
flow. In this paper emphasis is put on automatic low threshold data acquisition. The intention is to collect
and categorize development data for further developments with minimum overhead and minimum disturbance of
established business processes. As a first step software tools that automatically extract data from spreadsheets
or file-systems and put them in context with existing information are presented. The developments are currently
carried out in a European research project.
The development of micro and nano tech devices based on semiconductor manufacturing processes comprises
the structural design as well as the definition of the manufacturing process flow. The approach is characterized
by application specific fabrication flows, i.e. fabrication processes (built up by a large variety of process steps
and materials) depending on the later product. Technology constraints have a great impact on the device design
and vice-versa. In this paper we introduce a comprehensive methodology and based on that an environment
for customer-oriented product engineering of MEMS products. The development is currently carried out in an
international multi-site research project.
KEYWORDS: Product engineering, Molecular nanotechnology, Manufacturing, Microelectromechanical systems, Custom fabrication, Fabrication, Process engineering, Data processing, CMOS technology, Control systems
Product engineering of micro and nano technology (MNT) devices differs substantially from product engineering
in more traditional industries. The general development approach is mostly bottom up, as it centers around
the available fabrication techniques and is characterised by application specific fabrication flows, i.e. fabrication
processes depending on the later product. In the first part of this paper we introduce a comprehensive customer-oriented
product engineering methodology for MNT products that regards the customer as the driving force
behind new product developments. The MNT product engineering process is analyzed with regard to application-specific
procedures and interfaces. An environment for the development of MNT manufacturing processes has
been identified as a technical foundation for the methodology and will be described in the second part of this
paper.
The development of MEMS devices differs substantially from product engineering methods used in more traditional
industries. The approach is characterized by a close customer involvement and product specific fabrication
processes. A large number interdependencies between device design on the one hand and manufacturing process
development on the other hand make product engineering in the MEMS area a rather tedious and complicated
task. In this paper we discuss a comprehensive customer-oriented MEMS product engineering methodology.
Both MEMS design and fabrication process development are analyzed with regard to procedures and interfaces
used in order to develop an appropriate CAD support either in terms of existing tools or by specifying individual
tools to be implemented. The manufacturing process development is part of this holistic approach and is
supported by a CAD environment for the management and the design of thin-film MEMS fabrication processes.
This environment has been developed by the authors and became recently commercially available.
Thin film fabrication processes for MEMS are characterized by a variety of different process technologies and
materials. Unlike in microelectronics the MEMS fabrication process is in most cases application specific and
therefore integral part of the application design. Discovering the correct combination of process steps, materials
and process parameters usually requires many expensive and time consuming experiments. This paper presents a
new software system that supports the MEMS device and process designers in managing their process knowledge
and in verifying their fabrication processes in virtual fabrication environment, thus reducing the number of real
world experiments to a minimum.
Fabrication processes for MEMS are characterized by a variety of different process technologies and materials.
Unlike in microelectronics the fabrication process is relevant to all design stages within the design flow. Discovering
the correct combination of process steps, materials and process parameters usually requires a large number
of experiments. This paper presents a new software system that supports the MEMS designers in managing their
process knowledge and in performing virtual experiments using SILVACO TCAD tools.
In MEMS design many different fabrication techniques and materials are involved and the strong dependency between microstructure and fabrication process leads to application specific fabrication processes. A comprehensive management of process knowledge is required to take into account the various interdependencies and constraints occurring within a MEMS fabrication process. This paper presents an environment for the management of process knowledge and provides support for the design and verification of application specific fabrication processes.
A MEMS process design, development and tracking system is presented. It allows the specification of processes for specific applications and the tracking of the development procedures. The system consists of several components. Based on a comprehensive database that is able to store and manage all process related design constraint data as well as development related data linked to the fabrication process itself. A design model representing the relations between application specific fabrication processes and the structural design flow will be presented. Subsequently the software environment, called PROMENADE, will be introduced meeting the requirements of this process approach.
A design model representing the relations between application specific fabrication processes and the structural design flow will be presented. Subsequently a MEMS process design, simulation and tracking system, called PROMENADE, is introduced. It allows the specification of processes for specific applications, the simulation and the tracking of the development procedures.
MEMS fabrication processes are characterized by a numerous useable process steps, materials and effects to fabricate the intended microstructure. Up to now CAD support in this domain concentrates mainly on the structural design (e.g. simulation programs on FEM basis). These tools often assume fixed interfaces to fabrication process like material parameters or design rules. Taking into account that MEMS design requires concurrently structural design (defining the lateral 2-dim shapes) as well as process design (responsible for the third dimension) it turns out that technology interfaces consisting only of sets of static data are no longer sufficient. For successful design flows in these areas it is necessary to incorporate a higher degree of process related data. A broader interface between process configuration on the one side and the application design on the other side seems to be needed. This paper proposes a novel approach. A process management system is introduced. It allows the specification of processes for specific applications. The system is based on a dedicated database environment that is able to store and manage all process related design constraints linked to the fabrication process data itself. The interdependencies between application specific processes and all stages of the design flow will be discussed and the complete software system PRINCE will be introduced meeting the requirements of this new approach.
Based on a concurrent design methodology presented in the beginning of this paper, a system is presented that supports application specific process design. The paper will highlight the incorporated tools and the present status of the software system. A complete configuration of an Si-thin film process example will demonstrate the usage of PRINCE.
A process management and development system for MEMS design is introduced. It allows the specification of processes for specific applications and the tracking of the development procedures. The system is based on a dedicated database environment that is able to store and manage all process related design constraints and development related data linked to the fabrication process data itself. The interdependencies between application specific processes and all stages of the design flow will be discussed and a software system will be introduced meeting the requirements of this new approach. Although initially dedicated to microsystem processes this environment may also support nanoelectronic fabrication technologies.
New microfabrication technologies in the MEMS domain require novel approaches in computer aided design. Process issues in these technologies affecting the design are becoming increasingly important and Process information held in static design rule sets will be no longer sufficient. This paper describes the methodology and the implementation of a process management system that supports the designer in configuring application specific process flows with predictable properties.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.