Brooks-PRI Receives Third US Patent on Its Market-Leading 300mm Technology
CHELMSFORD, Mass., May 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Brooks-PRI Automation, Inc. (Nasdaq: BRKS - News), a leading supplier of tool and factory hardware and software automation solutions for the semiconductor and related industries, today announced that it has received a third U.S. Patent, U.S. Patent 6,375,403, for its 300mm loadport technology. The new patent covers key features relating to the mechanics and automation associated with opening, closing and accessing substrates from front opening unified pods (FOUPs). This Brooks-PRI' owned technology has become the standard for 300mm wafer processing tools and is a critical element in all 300mm wafer factories. This patent, related to U.S. Patents 6,071,089 and 5,772,386, is issued from a previously pending application obtained by Brooks-PRI from the Jenoptik Group -- see Brooks-PRI' news releases dated June 15, 2000 and October 27, 1999. Brooks-PRI is offering a license for the patent on a commercially reasonable non-discriminatory basis.
"Brooks-PRI has a strong leadership position in 300mm factory interface hardware," said Robert Therrien, president and CEO of Brooks-PRI Automation. "By providing OEMs with the option to buy 300mm loadports from Brooks-PRI or to license this technology, we support their compliance with the 300mm standards, which is required by their customers. Brooks-PRI' loadport technology will make the integration of automation solutions easier and less costly for our OEM customers and their users. It's another way to help all Brooks-PRI customers -- OEMs and semiconductor manufacturers -- get to market faster and drive costs down."
About Brooks-PRI Automation, Inc.
Brooks-PRI (Nasdaq: BRKS - News) delivers total automation to the semiconductor and related industries. The company's hardware, software and services can manage every wafer, reticle and data movement in the fab, helping semiconductor manufacturers accelerate time-to-market while reducing their risk and increasing their operational efficiency. Brooks-PRI products can be found in virtually every fab in the world. For information, visit brooks-pri.com.
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: The foregoing discussion contains forward-looking statements relating to the expected benefits of the Company's Front Opening Unified Pod (FOUP) technology. These statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties including, without limitation, risks relating to the Company's dependence on the cyclical semiconductor industry, the Company's dependence on relatively few customers for a significant portion of its revenues, the Company's reliance on sales to OEM customers and the lengthy sales cycles of those customers, the ability of the Company to continue to successfully develop and market new products and product enhancements on a timely basis, the highly competitive nature and rapid technological change that characterize the industries in which the Company competes, and other risks and uncertainties described in the Company's reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. As a result, there can be no assurance that the Company's future results will not be materially different than those projected. The forward-looking statements contained herein speak only of the Company's expectations as of the date of this press release. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statement to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. |
