US Patent 7589422 - Dual thickness MEMS package

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7589422.html

This patent from Samsung focuses on reducing the package size for MEMS or imaging arrays by including a thinned region around the peripheral surrounding region to accommodate solder connections to a PCB. Claim 1 reads:

1. A micro-element package comprising:

a substrate comprising a micro-element on a top surface of the substrate and a surrounding portion provided around the micro-element, wherein the surrounding portion is thinner than a portion of the substrate on which the micro-element is disposed; and

a circuit board that is electrically connected to the micro-element by utilizing the surrounding portion as a medium.