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fig1 shows a moving coil type magnetic actuating device . 30 is a cylindrical permanent magnet magnetized in the axial direction thereof and fixedly secured at one end thereof to a pole piece 31 and at the other end thereof to a yoke 32 . the pole piece 31 is constructed in the cylindrical form , and made of soft magnetic material , and is fixedly secured to the above - described hollow yoke 32 at the central portion thereof in coaxial relation to each other along with the above - described permanent magnet 30 . 33 is a coil bobbin . on its hollow cylindrical opening end portion is convoluted a coil 34 . in the opposite end portion of the bobbin 33 there is bored a central hole 35 through which a guide shaft 36 extends from the central point of the pole piece 31 , so that the coil bobbin structure is movable along this guide shaft 36 in either direction indicated by arrows . a pair of outlet lead wires of the coil 34 are indicated 34 &# 39 ;. in operating the device of fig1 when a current is allowed to flow through the coil 34 , the coil bobbin 33 is driven to move in either direction perpendicular to the magnetic flux formed between the yoke and pole piece by the permanent magnet , depending upon the direction of current flow , while being guided by the guide shaft 36 . since the incorporation of the electromagnetic actuating device of fig1 in the lens mount barrel of the camera results in a lack of space availability and a limitation of electrical capacitance , in order to allow for high - speed movement of the bobbin without casing variation of the electrical capacitance , it is required either to increase the magnetic flux density in the gap between the pole piece and the yoke , or to increase the range of variation of the magnetic flux by the coil . these requirements can be fulfilled by making use of a larger permanent magnet for stronger magnetic flux , or by increasing the number of turns of the coil , with sacrificing the minimization of the bulk and size of the device to achieve . it is , therefore , more difficult to incorporate the device in the limited space within the lens mount barrel . another disadvantage is that , since the body of the device is substantially cylindrical in shape , while the space which is to be occupied by the device is round , the size of the lens mount must be increased which is incompatible with the demand for compactness of the camera . to eliminate this disadvantage , an improvement has been proposed by altering the linear movement of the coil to a circular one as shown in fig2 . fig2 shows an example of a conventional electromagnetically controlled shutter which provides an improvement for the above - described problem . in order that the electromagnetic actuating device fits in a ring - like space within the lens barrel , the permanent magnet 30 , yoke 32 and bobbin 33 are made arcuate to a certain curvature . with the device of the figure , when the moving part of the coil 34 and bobbin 33 moves as rotating about the axis of the tubular lens mount barrel , the sector ring 38 fixedly secured to the bobbin 33 rotates , causing the shutter blades 39 to be opened or closed in a manner known in the art . it is to be understood that the configuration of the moving part to the space available within the lens mount barrel facilitates the incorporation of the device therein . since the axis of the coil - carried bobbin in the device of the structure shown in fig2 is not linear , it is , therefore , difficult not only to increase the number of turns of the coil around the bobbin , but also to manufacture hollow yokes economically while maintaining the dimensions within the specified tolerance . the present invention is to provide a novel electromagnetic actuating device which has eliminated the above - described drawbacks of the conventional device . by using a bobbin - and - coil arrangement capable of linear movement , and by simplifying the structure , the device can be manufactured with ease , and therefore it is possible to reduce the production cost to a large extent . fig3 and 4 show one embodiment of an electromagnetically controlled shutter according to the present invention . fig3 ( a ) is an elevational view , fig3 ( b ) is a sectional view along a -- a line of fig3 ( a ), and fig4 is a sectional view along b -- b line of fig3 ( a ), showing the electromagnet actuating device . in fig3 is a shutter casing which also serves as the lens mount barrel for a photo - taking lens ( not shown ). at the central portion of said casing 12 there is an inner tube 13 fixedly mounted through a support wall 11 . 5 is a sector drive ring supported by the inner barrel 13 and rotatable about the axis of the photo - taking lens . 4 , 4 &# 39 ; are shutter blades which serve as diaphragm blades positioned in a space within the photo - taking lens as is known in the art . of a plurality of blades there are shown only two in the figure . the shutter blade 4 has pins 8 and 9 affixed thereto as is known in the art , one pin 8 being fitted in a hole of the above - described inner barrel 13 , and the other pin 9 engaging in a slot 14 of the sector drive ring 5 , so that upon rotation of the ring 5 , the blade 4 is pivoted about the pin 8 with variation of the size of the opening defined by all the blades . 4 &# 39 ; is the only one of the blades which is different from the others in shape , having an extended portion with an opening 18 provided through the wall thereof and arranged to cover and uncover a light - sensitive element 17 positioned in the casing 12 . as the size of opening of the diaphragm aperture varies , the amount of light incident upon the photo - sensitive element 17 is controlled in proportion to the diaphragm aperture size . 6 is a spring urging the sector ring 5 to move in the clockwise direction . 7 is a pin planted on the upper surface of the ring 5 and engaging in an elongated slot of a bobbin cap 16 affixed to a bobbin coil 3 to be described later , so that as the coil 3 moves , the ring 5 is rotated . 19 is a pin fixedly mounted on the ring 5 ; 20 is a stopper arranged upon engagement with the pin 19 to limit the maximum possible amount of rotation of the ring 5 , and moveably supported on the casing . by operating a knob 21 , the stopper 20 is moved to a desired position and clamped in the position . outside of the sector ring 5 there is an electromagnetic actuating device composed of a permanent magnet , coil and yoke and adjusted in position as attached to the support wall 11 . as shown in fig4 an outer yoke 1a is positioned in contact with the support wall 11 . said yoke 1a is constructed in the form of a flat plate having arcuate end portions configured to the inner diameter of the lens barrel 12 and a central portion of linear extension . on the arcuate portions of the yoke 1a are overlaid respective plate - like permanent magnets 2a and 2c of likewise arcuate shape with their s poles contacting with the yoke 1a . overlaid on the permanent magnets 2a and 2c is an inner yoke 1b of the same shape as that of the yoke 1a , and then thereon are permanent magnets 2b and 2d of the same shape as those of the permanent magnets 2a and 2c respectively with their n poles contacting with the upper surface of the yoke 1b , and then further thereon is an outer yoke 1c of the same shape as that of the above - described ones 1a , 1b . the permanent magnets and the yokes are piled up in sandwiching manner as has been described above , and the linear portion of the inner yoke 1b along with those of the outer yokes 1a and 1c forms spaces in which a coil 3 is arranged to linearly move along the yoke 1b . as shown in fig3 ( b ) and fig4 the coil 3 is convoluted to a narrow long hollow frame of rectangular cross - section with its upper and lower flat coil portions 3a and 3b lie in the above - described respective spaces , while the linear portion of yoke 1b is fitted in the interior of the coil frame . the above - described individual permanent magnet shells generate the magnetic lines of force flowing in the magnetic paths formed by the yokes as shown by dot - and - dash lines in fig4 . the coil 3 is subjected to this magnetic field with its flat portions 3a and 3b opposite to each other being acted on by the magnetic fluxes of opposite direction to each other with respect to the center line e -- e . therefore , the coil 3 is moved to either of the right and left depending upon the direction of flow of the current in the coil . it is noted here that when a rare earth magnet is selected for employment as the permanent magnet , the gaps between the yokes 1a and 1b and between the yokes 1c and 1b may be increased to some extent without causing an unduly large variation of the magnetic flux density . therefore , the number of turns of the coil can be increased to provide a strong drive power with a smaller electrical energy consumption . the operation of the electromagnetically controlled shutter of fig3 and 4 is as follows : when a shutter release is actuated , current flows through the bobbin coil 3 , thereby the bobbin coil 3 is moved to the left as viewed in fig3 . then , the sector ring 5 starts to rotate in the counterclockwise direction against the force of the spring 6 . this rotation may continue until the stopper pin 19 abuts against the maximum rotation limiting member 20 . as the shutter blades are opened , the auxiliary diaphragm aperture 18 is also opened permitting light to be incident upon the photosensitive element 17 . when the amount of light received by the photosensitive element 17 has reached a predetermined level , a reverse signal for the bobbin coil 3 is produced , so that the current flows at this time in the reversed direction through the coil 3 . the coil 3 is driven to move to the left while simultaneously turning the sector ring 5 in the clockwise direction to close the shutter blades . it is noted here that during the opening operation of the shutter blades , the effective drive force is equal to that obtained by subtracting the force of the spring 6 from the electromagnetic force on the bobbin coil , while during the closing operation , the force of the spring is combined with the electromagnetic force on the coil 3 . as a result , an ideal operating characteristic of the semi - open shutter , wherein the size of opening of the shutter is gradually increased , and then rapidly reduced to zero in response to the closing signal , can be easily realized . further , there is no need to provide a motion transmitting mechanism of complicated structure between the bobbin coil 3 and the sector ring 5 . therefore , the motion of the coil 3 is translated to control the opening and closing operation of the shutter with high efficiency . another advantage deriving from the very light weight of the coil is that the accuracy and reliability of the exposure time control can be improved by speeding up the opening and closing movement of the shutter . in the above - described embodiment , those of the permanent magnet elements on the opposite side of the inner yoke 1b are oriented so that their n poles face each other with the inner yoke 1b therebetween . this may be modified so that their s poles face each other . in effect , it is required that the magnetic line of force is directed either from the inner yoke 1b to the outer yokes 1a and 1c , or from the outer to the inner yoke . fig5 shows the circuitry of the electromagnetically controlled shutter . in the figure , 100 is an electrical power source or battery ; 101 is a main switch of normally open type arranged to be closed when a release button is depressed to a first stroke . 102 is a normally closed release switch arranged to be opened when the release button is further depressed to the second stroke , or when a focusing completion signal is produced from an automatic focusing apparatus in the camera . a resistor 103 and a condenser 104 constitute a timing circuit . 105 is a timer circuit for preventing chattering at the time of release actuation . 110 is a constant voltage circuit , 111 is a photosensitive element for light measurement , in this instance , use is made of a s . p . c . ( silicon photocell ) the s . p . c . is connected across two inputs of an operational amplifier 112 . 133 is a switching transitor for short - circuiting a condenser 119 with its collector connected to a non - inverting input terminal of a comparator 121 . connected to an inverting input terminal of said comparator 121 is a variable voltage source 121 for producing a signal representative of asa sensitivity of the used film . 123 is an inverter , and 126 , 127 , 128 and 129 are transistors for controlling the direction of current flowing through the coil 3 . the circuit of fig5 operates as follows : the operator will first turn on the main switch 101 . since the release switch 102 is closed , the output of the timer circuit 105 is of low level , and the transistor 108 is left open . therefore , the transistor 133 then is turned on so that an almost zero voltage appears at the non - inverting input terminal of the comparator 121 with production of an output which is of low level , which causes the coil control transistors 127 and 128 to be turned off . since the above - identified transistor 108 is also off , the switching transistor 132 is then turned on , causing the coil control transistor 129 to be turned off . though the coil control transistor 126 is in a conducting state , the coil 3 is not yet energized because the other coil control transistors 127 , 128 and 129 are in the non - conducting state . when a release of the shutter is actuated , the release switch 102 is opened . in a predetermined time interval dependent upon the resistance 103 and the capacitance 104 , the timer circuit 105 changes its output from the low to the high level , causing the transistor 108 to be turned on , and , therefore , causing the transistors 132 and 133 to be turned off . up to this stage , the output of the comparator 121 remains at the low level , and , therefore , the transistor 131 is in a non - conducting state . thus , the coil control transistor 129 is turned on . since the coil control transistors 127 and 128 remains turned off , and the coil control transistor 126 is turned on , the coil 3 is energized by a current flowing in a direction indicated by arrow a , so that the shutter starts to open . at the same time , light passes through the auxiliary diaphragm aperture to impinge upon the above - described s . p . c . 111 . therefore , the condenser 119 is charged to a voltage proportional to the amount of light received by the photosensitive element 111 . when the voltage on the condenser 119 has reached the level preset in conformity with the asa sensitivity of the used film , the output of the comparator 121 changes from the low level to the high level , thereby the coil control transistors 127 and 128 are turned on , while the coil control transistor 126 associated with the inverter is simultaneously turned off . as the switching transistor 131 is also turned on , the coil control transistor 129 is also turned off . thus , a current is allowed to flow through the coil 3 at this time in the reverse direction indicated by arrow b , so that a closing movement of the shutter starts . in the above - described embodiment , the photosensitive element 17 is shown as positioned within the lens mount barrel to cooperate with the auxiliary diaphragm means 18 that is provided in unison with the shutter blade 4 &# 39 ;. such arrangement of the photosensitive element may be changed as receiving the reflected light from the film surface in the camera housing . in this case , it is , of course , unnecessary to provide the auxiliary diaphragm 18 on the shutter blade . fig6 and 7 show a second embodiment of the present invention . fig6 ( a ) is an elevational view , fig6 ( b ) is a sectional view taken along c -- c line of fig6 ( a ), and fig7 is a sectional view taken along d -- d line of fig6 ( a ) showing an electromagnetic actuating device . even in this embodiment , the shutter control circuit of fig5 may apply . in fig7 the same reference characters have been employed to denote the similar parts to those shown in fig4 . 41a , 41b and 41c are yokes , and 42a , 42b , 42c and 42d are permanent magnets . on either side of the inner yoke 41b , there are two pairs of permanent magnets with their opposite polarities facing each other . the permanent magnets 42a and 42b and yokes 41a and 41b constitute one closed magnetic path . in symmetry with respect to said yoke 41b , the permanent magnets 42c and 42d and yokes 41b and 41c constitute another closed magnetic path . as the coil 3 traverses the magnetic fluxes formed in the gaps between the permanent magnets 42a and 42b and between the permanent magnets 42c and 42d in rectangular directions , therefore , when a current is allowed to flow through the coil 3 , the bobbin 3 is linearly moved to either of the left and right depending upon the direction of current flow . it is noted here that in arranging the two pairs of permanent magnets on the opposite side of the inner yoke 41b , besides the feature that the two magnets in each pair are oriented so that their opposite polarities face each other and are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance , there is another feature that those of the polarities of the permanent magnets 42b and 42c which contact with the lower and upper surfaces of the inner yoke 41b must be the same so as not to form a closed magnetic path between the magnets 42b and 42c . in the embodiment of fig7 attached to the upper and lower surfaces of the yoke 41b are both the n poles of the respective permanent magnets . this may be changed so that the s poles do . in this case , the polarity of each of the permanent magnets 42a and 42d facing the respective partner magnets 42b and 42c must be reversed . in fig4 and 7 , the bobbin coil is only one in number , but may be two as arranged in symmetry with respect to the axis of the lens barrel so as to remove the influence due to the attitude deviation when the barrel is turned . as has been explained above in detail , according to the present invention , each of the permanent magnets and yokes is constructed in the arcuate or thin plate - like form , and both of these elements constitute a sandwich structure , so that it is possible to incorporate the device in the space within the lens mount barrel of the camera with ease . another advantage deriving from the simple construction of the bobbin coil due to the allowance for the linear movement thereof is that the low cost production technique can be applied to manufacture bobbin coils . still another advantage is that , since the bobbin coil of very light weight is used in directly driving the sector ring , a good efficiency of transmission of motion can be assured , and that even when the gap in which the magnetic flux is produced is widened to some extent , the rate of reduction of the magnetic flux density is small , allowing for an increase in the number of turns of the coil , thereby it being made possible to speed up the opening and closing operation of the shutter , as a larger drive power can be obtained with a smaller electrical energy consumption . further , when the device is provided with a spring as arranged to urge the shutter for closure , the opening speed of the shutter can be slowed down , while the closing speed can be conversely increased . the use of the spring gives another advantage in that vibrations of the shutter blades at the time of closure can be effectively prevented . | 6 |
as required , detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein ; however , it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in various and alternative forms . the figures are not necessarily to scale ; some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components . therefore , specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting , but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention . fig1 illustrates system architecture of an illustrative onboard communication system usable for delivery of directions to an automobile . a vehicle enabled with a vehicle - based computing system may contain a visual front end interface 4 located in the vehicle . the user may also be able to interact with the interface if it is provided , for example , with a touch sensitive screen . in another illustrative embodiment , the interaction occurs through , button presses , audible speech and speech synthesis . in the illustrative embodiment 1 shown in fig1 , a processor 3 controls at least some portion of the operation of the vehicle - based computing system . provided within the vehicle , the processor allows onboard processing of commands and routines . further , the processor is connected to both non - persistent 5 and persistent storage 7 . in this illustrative embodiment , the non - persistent storage is random access memory ( ram ) and the persistent storage is a hard disk drive ( hdd ) or flash memory . the processor is also provided with a number of different inputs allowing the user to interface with the processor . in this illustrative embodiment , a microphone 29 , an auxiliary input 25 ( for input 33 ), a usb input 23 , a gps input 24 and a bluetooth input 15 are all provided . an input selector 51 is also provided , to allow a user to swap between various inputs . input to both the microphone and the auxiliary connector is converted from analog to digital by a converter 27 before being passed to the processor . outputs to the system can include , but are not limited to , a visual display 4 and a speaker 13 or stereo system output . the speaker is connected to an amplifier 11 and receives its signal from the processor 3 through a digital - to - analog converter 9 . output can also be made to a remote bluetooth device such as pnd 54 or a usb device such as vehicle navigation device 60 along the bi - directional data streams shown at 19 and 21 respectively . in one illustrative embodiment , the system 1 uses the bluetooth transceiver 15 to communicate 17 with a user &# 39 ; s nomadic device 53 ( e . g ., cell phone , smart phone , pda , etc .). the nomadic device can then be used to communicate 59 with a network 61 outside the vehicle 31 through , for example , communication 55 with a cellular tower 57 . pairing a nomadic device 53 and the bluetooth transceiver 15 can be instructed through a button 52 or similar input , telling the cpu that the onboard bluetooth transceiver will be paired with a bluetooth transceiver in a nomadic device . data may be communicated between cpu 3 and network 61 utilizing , for example , a data - plan , data over voice , or dtmf tones associated with nomadic device 53 . alternatively , it may be desirable to include an onboard modem 63 in order to transfer data between cpu 3 and network 61 over the voice band . in one illustrative embodiment , the processor is provided with an operating system including an api to communicate with modem application software . the modem application software may access an embedded module or firmware on the bluetooth transceiver to complete wireless communication with a remote bluetooth transceiver ( such as that found in a nomadic device ). in another embodiment , nomadic device 53 includes a modem for voice band or broadband data communication . in the data - over - voice embodiment , a technique known as frequency division multiplexing may be implemented when the owner of the nomadic device can talk over the device while data is being transferred . at other times , when the owner is not using the device , the data transfer can use the whole bandwidth ( 300 hz to 3 . 4 khz in one example ). if the user has a data - plan associated with the nomadic device , it is possible that the data - plan allows for broad - band transmission and the system could use a much wider bandwidth ( speeding up data transfer ). in still another embodiment , nomadic device 53 is replaced with a cellular communication device ( not shown ) that is affixed to vehicle 31 . in one embodiment , incoming data can be passed through the nomadic device via a data - over - voice or data - plan , through the onboard bluetooth transceiver and into the vehicle &# 39 ; s internal processor 3 . in the case of certain temporary data , for example , the data can be stored on the hdd or other storage media 7 until such time as the data is no longer needed . additional sources that may interface with the vehicle include a personal navigation device 54 , having , for example , a usb connection 56 and / or an antenna 58 ; or a vehicle navigation device 60 , having a usb 62 or other connection , an onboard gps device 24 , or remote navigation system ( not shown ) having connectivity to network 61 . further , the cpu could be in communication with a variety of other auxiliary devices 65 . these devices can be connected through a wireless 67 or wired 69 connection . also , or alternatively , the cpu could be connected to a vehicle based wireless router 73 , using for example a wifi 71 transceiver . this could allow the cpu to connect to remote networks in range of the local router 73 . fig2 shows illustrative exemplary communication between a vehicle sensor and a driver and a remote network . in this illustrative embodiment , a first vehicle communication device 203 is in communication with a vehicle sensor . there could be a plurality of sensors in the vehicle , and they could communicate with a single communication device or a plurality of communication devices . in this illustrative embodiment , the first communication device sends a signal to a vehicle - based computing system 31 . this signal can be relayed to the driver in the form of output through , for example , an onboard display , the car audio system , a dashboard display , or any other suitable output device . the signal could also be relayed from the vehicle - based computing system to a remote network 61 . or , the signal may be relayed from the communication device 203 to the remote network 61 . fig3 shows an illustrative exemplary process for vehicle statistic game play and reporting . in this illustrative process , a first statistic to be used for game play is calculated 301 . often , this calculation may be as simple as reading a vehicle sensor . although the examples presented herein are often in terms of mpg , other vehicle based statistics could also be used to play games . in one illustrative example , the game being played is a comparison game . for example , imagine that a driver &# 39 ; s vehicle is presently averaging 27 . 9 mpg . the vehicle could constantly or periodically check the present mpg of the vehicle and the overall average mpg of the vehicle , and inform the driver if the driver &# 39 ; s present mpg is improving or declining , as well as informing the driver if the overall average mpg of the vehicle is improving ( due to , for example , more efficient driving by the driver ). the game could further measure mpg over certain trips , over days , weeks etc . all of this information could be reported to the driver on request , along with previous mpg information , so the driver could “ compete ” against him or herself . alternatively or additionally , the information could be uploaded to a database , where the driver could compete against other drivers in area - wide ( e . g ., city , state , country , world ) challenges . there could be challenges to have the best average mpg , the best daily mpg , etc . this may help encourage drivers to be more conscious of their fuel efficiency , thus helping them conserve fuel . in addition to mpg , other vehicle statistics could be used in games . for example , low tire pressure may lead to reduced mpg , increased blowouts , etc . so a tire pressure sensor could track how many days , for example , a driver &# 39 ; s tires were within a recommended pressure range . a game such as this could help remind a driver to , for example , fill up tires when the weather turns cold , improving the overall safety of the driving experience . similar games could be played with oil changes , regular maintenance , and any other factors that can be tracked by vehicle sensors . once the statistic ( s ) to be used has been calculated , the system proceeds to checking a stored statistic 303 . this is the basis for a comparison . for example , if the average mpg of a vehicle was 29 . 3 , then 29 . 3 may be the stored statistic . if the driver is presently averaging 29 . 7 mpg , then 29 . 7 may be the calculated statistic . the exemplary system then compares the two statistics , looking for a difference 305 . in this illustrative embodiment , any change is sufficient , but in other illustrative embodiments the change may need to be of a certain magnitude to warrant continuing . if there is no difference between any of the statistics , then the system continues to calculate statistics and compare them to the stored statistics until a change registers . once there is a difference between the statistics , the system advises the driver 307 that a change has occurred . this can be done on a positive or negative change , or may not be done at all , if a developer thinks such an advisory would be too distracting . after the driver is advised of the change , the stored statistic is updated 309 if needed . for example , if the average is 29 . 3 and the present rate is 29 . 7 , this may be sufficient to trigger a report to the driver , but the average mpg overall may not yet have changed . in instances such as this , updating would be skipped or result in the previously stored number being re - stored . in addition to updating the stored statistic , a network stored statistic is also updated 311 . in this illustrative implementation , a network based game is available to be played against other drivers , and updating the network allows for comparison of results . additionally or alternatively , updating the network with the statistics can aid in overall tracking of a driver &# 39 ; s performance over time and an archive for later retrieval of stored statistics . fig4 shows an exemplary illustrative process for several illustrative non - limiting statistic games . in this illustrative embodiment , a user selects a game type 401 . in this embodiment , there are choices of a trip game 403 , a peak game 405 , a daily game 407 and a default game 301 . in this illustrative embodiment , the default game uses a lifetime average as the bar against which statistics are compared . if a trip game is selected , the system calculates the average mpg since the start of the trip 409 and then checks to see if the trip has ended 417 . this process is repeated throughout the trip , continuously or periodically . another option would be to store the mileage at the start of the trip , compare it to the mileage at the end of the trip , and based on fuel usage , perform a calculation at the end of the trip . in this illustrative embodiment , the trip ends when the vehicle is put in park , or when the vehicle is powered down , etc . various measures could be used to gauge what constitutes a “ trip ” as appropriate . once the trip has ended , statistics are reported 431 . this can be a report to the driver , a report to a network , both , or other appropriate reporting . if a peak game is selected , the system waits for a period of time 411 before performing a calculation . this is because the game eventually reports peak efficiency over the length of the trip . for example , 5 minutes into a trip , the average efficiency could be 22 mpg , 8 minutes in it could be 28 mpg and 15 minutes in it could be 25 mpg . but efficiency could vary wildly over a very brief period at the start , and the averages could be severely skewed . hence the wait in this embodiment , although such a wait could be foregone . after waiting , the system sets a base peak variable for comparison 419 . the system then proceeds to calculate an average mpg since the start of the trip 433 and compare it to the base peak variable 435 . if the efficiency is now greater , the peak variable is updated 437 , and the system checks to see if the trip has ended 439 . a similar check is made if the efficiency is not greater . as long as the trip has not ended , the system continues to check an average efficiency against the peak variable . once the trip has ended , statistics are reported 441 . this can be a report to the driver , a report to a network , both , or other appropriate reporting . if a daily game is selected , the system checks to see if a new day has started since the last time a daily game has been selected . such a check can be made using an internal clock and a date stored with a daily game set of variables . if it is the same day , then the daily variables are retrieved 415 , otherwise new daily variables are set 421 . an average is calculated singe the start of the day 423 , and a check is made to see if a trip has ended 425 . if the trip has not ended , the calculation of the average continues , otherwise the daily variables are updated ( for future use if needed ) 427 and the statistics are reported 429 . this can be a report to the driver , a report to a network , both , or other appropriate reporting . in the daily example , a driver may wish to know , for example , the total fuel efficiency of a drive to and from work . selecting the option may cause an initial mileage value to be recorded . fuel usage can be tracked while the vehicle is in motion , and at the driver &# 39 ; s arrival at work , fuel efficiency for the trip can be reported . then , on the drive home in the evening , the initial mileage can be used again in combination with the old fuel usage and new fuel usage , and an aggregate daily average can be computed . this is just one example of how daily fuel economy could be calculated . fig5 shows a second illustrative exemplary process for vehicle statistic game play and reporting . in this illustrative embodiment , a statistic is stored more than once . in this embodiment , it is desired to keep a more precise track of statistics on a network , providing greater differentiation in a game , but at the same time it is recognized that constantly updating the driver with every minor change may become distracting and / or irritating . accordingly , a first statistic is stored with which a driver update comparison will be made , and a second statistic is stored with which a network update comparison will be made . in this manner , it is possible to update the network more frequently than the driver , if so desired . as with the illustrative embodiment shown in fig3 , a statistic to be used for the game is calculated 301 . this calculation is compared against the first stored statistic 503 . in this embodiment , it is desired to keep a more accurate rate of change on a network as compared to the accuracy with which changes are reported to the driver . in one non - limiting example , it may be desirable to tell the driver every time fuel efficiency changes by more than 0 . 25 mpg , but it may be desirable to update the network every time fuel efficiency changes by more than 0 . 01 mpg ( thus providing greater variation between online scores and more accurate mpg reporting ). accordingly , in this illustrative embodiment , x is set to 0 . 25 , and y is set to 0 . 01 . the system first checks against a first stored statistic to see if the change is greater than x 505 ( 0 . 25 in this case ). for example , if the game were an mpg game , and the current average mpg for the life of the vehicle were 26 . 2 , then the first stored statistic might be 26 . 2 . if the lifetime average of the vehicle changed to 26 . 3 , then the difference would only be 0 . 1 and the driver would not be informed of the change . the system would also make a second check against a second stored statistic . this may be a more precise version of the first statistic , and may be , for example , 26 . 23 in the above case . if the lifetime average changes to 26 . 29 , then the difference would be 0 . 06 , which would be greater than the exemplary y ( 0 . 01 in this example ). thus , a change of more than y 509 would be detected . if the change of more than y is detected , then the second stored statistic is updated 513 and the network is updated 517 as well . in this particular implementation , the first statistic is not updated , even though the new mpg is closer to 26 . 3 than 26 . 2 ( the old stored first statistic ). this allows the driver to still achieve an in car notification , which may encourage the driver . for example , if the mpg improved by 0 . 06 every time an update was processed , then there would never be an increase of 0 . 25 at one time and the driver may never know how much better the efficiency is becoming . accordingly , in this illustrative implementation , the first stored statistic is not updated until a change of x is detected . of course , it is also possible to update both statistics in either event if that is desired . once the updating is done , the system returns to calculating statistics for another comparison . if a change of more than x had been detected ( for example , if lifetime mpg had risen to 26 . 5 ), then the first stored statistic would be updated 511 . the second stored statistic would also be updated 515 , since this is intended to be the more precise statistic in this illustrative embodiment ( and thus the updating of it is processed along with the updating of the first statistic , since x & gt ; y in this illustrative example ). in this embodiment , the network is updated 519 and a network ranking is also retrieved 520 , to help inform the driver how that driver is faring against potential “ competitors .” in this case , the driver has achieved a new level of mpg , so the driver is also informed of the change in statistics 521 . this can help the driver to realize the gains being made ( or lost ) in fuel efficiency and encourage efficient driving ( or behavior relevant to whatever statistic is being compared ). the network ranking could also be reported at this point and the system returns to calculating statistics . while exemplary embodiments are described above , it is not intended that these embodiments describe all possible forms of the invention . rather , the words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation , and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . additionally , the features of various implementing embodiments may be combined to form further embodiments of the invention . | 7 |
fig1 is a top view of a radio frequency filter constructed according to an embodiment of the invention ; and fig2 is a left side view of the radio frequency filter of fig1 . in particular , fig1 and 2 present a top view and a left side view , respectively , of a radio frequency ( rf ) filter 200 according to an embodiment of the invention . filter 200 may include , inter alia , an input port 202 , an output port 204 and several tuning probe ports disposed along one side of the filter 200 . in this embodiment , six tuning probes 100 are installed along a first side of filter 200 , and a locking device 10 secures each tuning probe 100 to filter 200 at the desired depth . of course any number of tuning probes , different installation depths , different probe diameters , etc . are also contemplated by the invention . additionally , the tuning probe configuration and arrangement may vary greatly within the principles of the invention . filter 200 may also include several couplers 210 , disposed in respective coupler ports along a second side . it should be noted , that the coupler ports are not necessary for the invention , the invention could be practiced without such . additionally , if the coupler ports are included in the filter 200 , they may be positioned differently and configured differently than is shown in the figures . additionally , if couplers 210 are implemented in the filter 200 , the couplers 210 may also be implemented with probes having a construction similar to probe 100 in that the depth can be varied in order to adjust the field and a locking device 10 may be used to lock the probe 100 in a desired position . fig3 is isometric view of a tuning probe constructed according to an embodiment of the invention ; fig4 is a side view of the tuning probe constructed according to an embodiment of the invention ; and fig5 is an exploded view of the tuning probe constructed according to an embodiment of the invention . more specifically , fig3 , 4 and 5 present an isometric view , a side view and an exploded view , respectively , of a tuning probe 100 according to an embodiment of the invention . tuning probe 100 may include a hollow cylindrical body 110 with openings at either end . however other geometric configurations are contemplated as well . the tuning probe 100 may further include an inner end cap 120 disposed within the lower end of body 110 , a centering sleeve 122 disposed between the inner end cap 120 and the body 110 , and an outer end cap 140 enclosing the upper end of body 110 . the tuning probe 100 may further include a mechanism to connect all the tuning probe 100 components together . in one aspect , a threaded rod 130 may be attached to the inner end cap 120 at one end and extend through a threaded opening of the outer end cap 140 at the other end . however , other types of configurations may be implemented to connect all the components . the tuning probe 100 may also include one or more mechanical fasteners 150 , such as one or more nuts , wing nuts , etc ., to secure the components of tuning probe 100 together . however , any type of structure that fastens the components of tuning probe 100 together is also contemplated by the invention including adhesives , welding , unitary construction , and the like . generally , body 110 , inner end cap 120 and outer end cap 140 may be made from an electrically conductive material such as copper , which is used in a preferred embodiment . the sleeve 122 can be made from polytetrafluoroethylene ( ptfe ) also known as teflon ®. the threaded rod 130 can be made from a metal or metal alloy having a low coefficient of thermal expansion , such as a nickel steel alloy , and the like . the outer end cap 140 may be attached to the upper end of the body 110 by soldering , etc ., and the mechanical fastener 150 may be tightened against the outer end cap 140 , which secures the threaded rod 130 in place . additionally , in some implementations sleeve 122 may not be utilized . furthermore , the end cap 120 may be modified for use in such an implementation . implementations operating without the sleeve 122 may be based on different designs , different powers , and the like . locking device 10 is slidingly disposed on the outside of body 110 below the outer end cap 140 , and , as noted above , secures tuning probe 100 to filter 200 at a desired penetration depth . fig6 is an isometric view of a locking device constructed according to an embodiment of the invention ; fig7 is another isometric view of the locking device constructed according to an embodiment of the invention ; fig8 is a side view of the locking device constructed according to an embodiment of the invention ; and fig9 is a bottom view the locking device constructed according to an embodiment of the invention . in particular , fig6 , 7 , 8 and 9 present two isometric views , a side view and a bottom view , respectively , of a locking device 10 according to an embodiment of the invention . the locking device 10 is configured to lock the tuning probe 100 with respect to the filter 200 . it is contemplated that the locking device 10 can take any known form to limit movement of the tuning probe 100 . in a particular aspect , the locking device may include a lock ring 20 and a lock body 30 that has an inner surface 22 whose diameter may be substantially the same as the outer diameter of tuning probe body 110 . in one embodiment , lock body 30 is formed from a short length of hollow copper tubing . the outer diameter of lock body 30 may include threads 32 that mate with matching threads in the filter tuning probe port . in one embodiment , lock ring 20 is a hexagonal nut with six faces 24 , and is attached to the upper end of body 30 to provide mechanical purchase during installation of the tuning probe 100 into the filter tuning probe port . the filter tuning probe ports also may include corresponding threads that cooperate with the threads 32 . in a particular implementation , the threads 32 may be configured as tapered threads . when utilized , the lock body 30 as it is rotated will cooperate with the threads 32 of the filter tuning probe port and will gradually move into the filter tuning probe port . as the lock body 30 moves into the filter tuning probe port , the inner diameter of the lock body 30 will gradually decrease due to the tapered nature of the threads 32 and accordingly lock the tuning probe 100 with respect to the filter tuning probe port , lock body 30 , and the filter 200 . other lock ring 20 configurations are also contemplated , e . g ., different numbers of faces , wing nut - type extensions , a circular circumference with a knurled edge , etc . a slot 12 may extend along lock body 30 and lock ring 20 to allow locking device 10 to expand when assembled to tuning probe 100 . a slot 14 may extend along lock body 30 , but not lock ring 20 , to provide additional symmetrical compression of tuning probe 100 when the assembly is tightened into the filter tuning probe port . in a preferred embodiment , slot 14 is located about 180 ° from slot 12 . however the angle between slot 14 and slot 12 can be any angle including 90 °. additionally , there may be multiple slots 12 and no slots 14 ; multiple slots 14 and no slots 12 ; a single slot 12 ; or a single slot 14 . other configurations are also contemplated . locking device 10 advantageously provides both mechanical stability and electrical contact between tuning probe 100 and the cavity wall of the filter tuning probe port . to adjust the penetration of tuning probe 100 into filter 200 , locking device 10 is loosened until tuning probe 100 moves freely , the tuning probe can then be positioned at a desired position , and then locking device 10 is re - tightened to secure tuning probe 100 in a new position . fig1 is a similar radio frequency filter that has six tuning probes installed along one side constructed according to the invention ; fig1 is a close - up view of two tuning probes constructed according to the invention ; and fig1 is a close - up view of the tuning probe locking device constructed according to the invention . in particular , fig1 , 11 and 12 show a similar rf filter that has six tuning probes installed along one side , a close - up of two tuning probes and a close - up view of a tuning probe locking device , respectively . more specifically , fig1 shows the locking device 10 arranged in the filter 200 holding the tuning probe 100 securely locked within the port of the filter 200 . additionally , fig1 shows close - up details of the tuning probe 100 arranged in a port of the filter 200 and being locked in place by the locking device 10 . additionally , it should be noted that the tuning probe 100 and the locking device 10 may be implemented in a number of different devices . the reference above to a radio frequency filter is merely exemplary . the tuning probe 100 and locking device 10 of the invention can be used in any type of rf device to modify the internal radio frequency fields . implementations include coaxial lines , waveguides , variable rf transformers , devices having resonators , and any device needing to have adjustment of the field based on the depth of a component . the many features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the detailed specification , and , thus , it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and variations will readily occur to those skilled in the art , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation illustrated and described , and , accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to that fall within the scope of the invention . | 7 |
paper and cardboard products are one example of materials that can be reprocessed in used to make new products . this can be done , according to this invention , with a minimum of specialized equipment . in one embodiment , cardboard waste from a paper or cardboard plant may be employed . this waste is called “ press cake ” in the industry , and is gathered after the processing of used cardboard boxes that have been brought to the mill for recycling . this press cake is typically loaded onto a waste transport vehicle and hauled to a landfill and buried . cardboard not rejected , and thus not forming press cake , is typically used again in manufacturing cardboard boxes . the reject material or press case contains a large percentage of paper elements , but also includes other elements , such as plastic , tape glue , strands , etc . the press cake is thus typically a mixed waste , though consisting primarily of paper and paper products . the press cake may be employed in this invention , providing that the materials other than paper and paper products do not interfere with subsequent processing and manufacturing steps . press cake if received from a paper or cardboard mill is typically saturated with water from processing . the actual cake is typically approximately 1 to 2 inches wide by 2 to 3 or 4 inches long by ¼ to 1 inch thick . however , the size will vary , and sometimes is in the general size and shape of a wood type “ chip ” used in landscaping , and sometimes is a much larger “ patty ”. utilizing the methods of this invention , the press cake is processed further by soaking it in water and mixing with various chemicals . in one embodiment , the water - soaked press cake is mixed with a variety of reagents , including borax or boric acid , which serves as a flame retardant , with bentonite clay , which serves in part as a bonding agent , and with calcium chloride , which adds strength to the mixture . the specific chemicals used and the amounts or quantities can vary depending on the composition of the press cake or other waste paper source , the desired reaction or reactions , and the specific uses to which the resulting building material will be put . while this invention may be employed with material that is convenient and readily available , such as press cake obtained from a paper mill , the processes and methods can also be employed with recycled paper or cardboard obtained from any source . once the mixture of cardboard and reagents is at the desired consistency , the resulting slurry can then be poured into a mold forming either a “ block ”, tip - up wall section , or any other of a number of shapes and sizes required or requested . after initial setting , the resulting product may optionally be removed from its mold to facilitate drying . utilizing this method , either no pressure or very low pressure is used to compress or form the block . in one embodiment , the form has a wire screen on one side , which supports the block and allows air circulation thereunder to facilitate drying . the wire screen may also be employed as a permanent component , to increase adhesion of subsequent plaster coats . in yet another embodiment , the form itself may be composed of a wire screen or other air and water permeable material . a “ slab ” or wall section intended for use as a wall product , depending on the desired application , may optionally include a frame as a permanent part of the slab , to aid in installation or provide additional strength . the frame may be built of wood , metal , plastic or any other material with the required structural strength . beside use in the building trades , the resulting material can be shaped into any of a wide variety of forms for other uses , such as for example shaping into forms for use as a protective shipping cover for products , or to restrain and cushion fragile items in shipping containers or cartons . in one embodiment , larger size blocks in various sizes and shapes are made , thereby reducing both the amount required for a project and the need for handling , and thus resulting in lower costs of labor . the blocks may be designed in different ways depending on the application ; in some applications an interlocking system is employed , wherein the blocks interlock one with another . in another application blocks with a continuous cavity or cells are provided , for use as a permanent formwork for concrete or other structural materials . the blocks may also be solid . the blocks may form a part of a formwork , for forming a permanent insulated concrete form , which may employ metal or other retaining or strengthening members , such as polysteel ® forms . in such forms the paper - based material of this invention is used instead of styrofoam or other expanded plastics or foams . the blocks are structural and load - bearing , with or without concrete inside the blocks , and whether installed inside a building or on the exterior . wall units may be created using slab , with the slurry mixed and then poured into various size forms to accommodate its individual application . once dried , the wall unit can then be removed from its form , and optionally cut to fit as necessary . using the method and processes of this invention , it is possible to produce wall units of various thicknesses , shapes and sizes . in one embodiment , the form employed as a mold forms a integral and permanent part of the resulting product , and may be optionally installed utilizing clips or other fasteners designed specifically for the wall unit ( preferably an interior tip - up wall ). the resulting products will advantageously be insulating , having a high r - value , thereby resulting in lower overall energy bills , increased warmth in winter and enhanced cooling in summer ). in certain embodiments , the material further has a u - value , and retains and transfers heat energy as a function of time . the resulting products will similarly be lightweight , and thus easy to handle , capable of being produced in larger sizes , and easily used in building projects . the resulting products will similarly be inexpensive . the material will result in decreased costs of building , since the insulation is integral to the product . no sheet rock or other wall covering is required on internal surfaces , since the resulting surface can be directly plastered , or alternatively may be painted , using a primer as appropriate . on external walls , stucco or other typical exterior wall covering material can be applied directly to the material , thus eliminating otherwise necessary steps and additional labor . the products can be cut with ordinary tools , such as saws , known to the construction trade . the product can also be shaped , grooved to allow for other installation needs , and otherwise formed as required . in one example , press cake was added to water in a five - gallon container . between 1½ and 2½ gallons of water was utilized , with the balance being cardboard waste , such as press cake , to a total volume of about four gallons . to this was added up to two quart of 94 % anhydrous calcium chloride , as a free flowing powder . up to two quarts of bentonite , sold under the trade name aquagel by baroid drilling fluids , was added . optionally a fire retardant , such as borax or boric acid , can be added , and flammability tests have been very positive . an insect repellant may also be added . the resulting contents are mixed , thereby forming a slurry , and poured into a form . fig1 - 10 illustrate embodiments of the invention , including methods and mechanisms for using products made by the described methods of the invention . fig1 is a schematic diagram of components according to the invention used to make a shed 10 . the shed is preferably about 5 ′× 8 ′× 8 ′ high , and comprises panels 12 , 14 , 16 , 18 . stucco finish outer walls 13 are employed , with plaster preferably to be applied for interior wall finish . floor joists 15 are preferably 2 ′× 10 ′ with ¾ ″ plywood flooring . walls are preferably molded using 2 ′× 4 ′ s 17 as a frame with rebar and / or wire mesh for wall reinforcement . roofing 19 is preferably rafter type with asphalt shingles . fig2 is a schematic diagram of components according to the invention used to make a wall 20 , with cutaway view 22 . the wall comprises rebar 24 in frame 28 . the frame is preferably 2 ′× 4 ′ or 2 ′× 6 ′ used as a mold when pouring slurry for the walls at the building site , thereby forming processed materials 26 according to the invention . wood baseplate 30 is preferably redwood . window 32 in window frame 34 can be employed . panels 36 are nailed and / or bolted ( e . g ., via bolt holes 38 ) in place before the final wall cover is applied . a metal purlin or wood truss 40 is employed . if and where needed , tie brackets 42 can be employed for strength , on top , bottom , and / or sides . fig3 ( a ) to ( e ) are side , top , end , perspective , and assembled views of components 50 according to the invention attached via clips 56 ( with cutaway views 54 of walls ( preferably interior tip - up walls ). clip attachment points 52 are for straight wall clips on top or bottom with attachment points shown . clips 56 are but one of many possible ways by which panels can be attached to each other and / or other components , such as steel braces , concrete flooring , and concrete walls . each panel , whether in its mold frame or removed from its mold frame , will accept such clips . other attachment means , such as nails , bolts , staples , etc ., can be employed . fig4 is a schematic diagram of filler material 62 according to the invention used in conjunction with rebar 64 , and optionally in frame 66 , to form panel 60 . fig5 ( a ) to ( c ) are schematic diagrams of use of “ blown in ” insulation with walls 70 made according to the invention . as illustrated , a slurry mix or shredded material can be placed in molds of any shape , size , or material to be included as part of the resulting product or , once poured in a form , left to dry by any method , and then taken from the mold to be handled from that point to its next step in its processing for its final form . insulation can be made after the material is dried and then put in a machine to create the cellulose type product of the invention . filler material 76 is preferably dried and stamped with a pattern . wood frame 72 and rebar 74 are preferably employed , with blown - in insulation 78 , wood or steel trusses 80 , and dry wall or drop - in ceiling 82 . fig6 ( a ) and ( b ) are top perspective views of molds 90 , 100 useful with the invention . fig7 is a flow diagram of uses of waste cardboard according to the invention . fig8 ( a ) to ( c ) are views of a corner wall clip 110 according to the invention , useful either on tops or bottoms during installation . fig9 ( a ) and ( b ) illustrate panel and block embodiments of walls 120 , 130 according to the invention , with wood headers 122 , wall panels 124 , and molded blocks 132 . fig1 ( a ) to ( c ) are further examples of walls 140 , 150 , 160 made according to the invention , including headers 152 ( wood or material of the invention ), wall sections 142 , and garage door 162 . note that in the specification and claims , “ about ” or “ approximately ” means within twenty percent ( 20 %) of the numerical amount cited . note further that plastic waste ( or other , preferably non - hazardous , waste , preferably shredded ) can be incorporated as a strand reinforcement for structural components of the invention . although the invention has been described in detail with particular reference to these preferred embodiments , other embodiments can achieve the same results . variations and modifications of the present invention will be obvious to those skilled in the art and it is intended to cover in the appended claims all such modifications and equivalents . the entire disclosures of all references , applications , patents , and publications cited above are hereby incorporated by reference . | 8 |
the following detailed description is of the best modes of carrying out the invention . the description is not to be taken in a limiting sense , but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention , since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims . the present invention generally provides a high efficiency electronic hid ballast which operates at a fixed frequency with ppm to prevent aar . the ppm can be two phase ppm or multiple phase ppm with a maximum number of contiguous pulses having a same phase of less than or equal ten pulse periods . with reference to fig1 , a high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit generally designated 30 is operable to energize an hid lamp 11 . the ballast circuit 30 includes a ppm pulse source 1 , a pulse deduction circuit 21 , a switch driver 2 , a switch current amplitude feedback circuit 3 , a switch current width feedback circuit 4 , a switch 5 , a current sampling resistor 6 , a diode 7 , an inductor 8 , a capacitor 9 , an inductor 10 , a sidac 12 , a capacitor 13 , and a resistor 14 . a coupling circuit generally designated 35 includes capacitor 9 coupled in parallel to the series combination of inductor 10 and hid lamp 11 . the coupling circuit 35 may be operable to improve the power coupling between the power switching circuit generally designated 40 and the hid lamp 11 and to provide a phase modulated signal to hid lamp 11 . the parallel lrc connection of capacitor 9 and inductor 10 may boost the equivalent load resistance of the hid lamp 11 to the power switching circuit 40 , especially during an ignition period during which time the hid lamp 11 stays at a low resistance . a higher load resistance normally results in better switching efficiency . the parameters of capacitor 9 , inductor 10 , and inductor 8 may be optimized based on hid lamp 11 characteristic resistance and a switching frequency to make switch 5 work at a zero current switching mode under a full load condition . power switching circuit 40 includes switch 5 , current sampling resistor 6 , diode 7 , and inductor 8 . the power switching circuit 40 may be used to energize hid lamp 11 through the coupling circuit 35 . switch 5 may be a mosfet , an igbt , or a bjt . a ppm pulse source 1 may operate as a pulse source for power switch driver 2 . the ppm pulse source 1 , switch driver 2 , switch current amplitude feedback circuit 3 , and the power switching circuit 40 may operate as a power switching source with constant power output to energize hid lamp 11 . the output of coupling circuit 35 may be a phase modulated signal . a dc starter circuit generally designated 45 may include inductor 10 , sidac 12 , capacitor 13 , and resistor 14 . sidac 12 preferably has a breakdown voltage less that v + but larger than hid lamp 11 working voltage and may be connected to a tap of inductor 10 with a tapping ratio greater than or equal to 15 : 1 . before lamp 11 is ignited , the voltage over capacitor 13 may eventually reach a sidac 12 breakdown voltage . a high voltage pulse over hid lamp 11 triggered by the sidac 12 breakdown ignites the hid lamp 11 . after hid lamp 11 is ignited , a voltage over capacitor 13 may be limited by the hid lamp 11 working voltage and put the dc starter circuit 45 in a standby mode . resistor 14 may control a charging current over capacitor 13 and may be used to adjust a hid lamp 11 ignition frequency . ideally the dc starter circuit 45 should have an ignition frequency of a few pulses per second for open circuit protection of the dc starter circuit 45 itself . the ppm method is widely used in digital communication systems . the ppm method can also be used in the high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit 30 to prevent aar . to prevent aar , the ppm source 1 must change phase before aar occurs . a pulse sequence having ppm advantageously eliminates aar in hid lamp 11 . a maximum number of contiguous pulses having a same phase in a ppm sequence can be used to measure the worst case of two adjacent phase shifts . test results show that the ppm pulse source 1 output should have a maximum number of contiguous pulses having a same phase less than or equal to 10 to effectively prevent aar in the high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit 30 . advantageously utilizing ppm provides for no acoustic noise and lower levels of electromagnetic noise , easy optimization of coupling circuit 35 for a fixed ppm pulse source 1 frequency , and elimination of aar related feedback circuits used in the prior art . the ppm pulse source 1 may work at a ppm mode with a fixed frequency . the fixed pulse frequency can be from a few khz to a few hundred khz and the ppm pulse source 1 can utilize two or multiple phases . it has been found that to avoid low frequency aar , the period of a ppm sequence may preferably be greater than or equal to 5 ms . for three or more phased modulation , the ppm sequence can have a fixed number of contiguous pulses having a same phase n , with the output pulses repeated n pulse periods for each phase in the ppm sequence . fig5 shows a three phased ppm sequence with n = 2 and 0 , 1 , and 2 representing three phases . for two phased modulation , a 2 n − 1 binary pseudo - random sequence can be used with 0 and 1 representing two phases and the maximum number of contiguous pulses having a same phase less than or equal to n . fig4 shows a two phased ppm sequence with n = 5 . overload protection is important for electronic ballast safety , especially for hid ballasts driving high power hid lamps . a pulse deduction method may be used to protect the high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit 30 from overload during the hid lamp 11 ignition period . an overload protection circuit generally designated 50 includes pulse deduction circuit 21 and pulse current width feedback circuit 4 . an overload condition can be detected by monitoring switch current width through pulse current width feedback circuit 4 . at a normal working condition , inductor 8 and switch 5 work at zero current switching mode . the overload will cause current resonance among inductor 8 , capacitor 9 and inductor 10 through diode 7 that results in a smaller current pulse width on switch 5 because of the non zero current switching for switch 5 and inductor 8 . whenever an overload condition is detected , the pulse deduction circuit 21 will suspend a next pulse output to reduce power transferred to hid lamp 11 . in a worst case , the pulse deduction method can cut power output by half . fig6 shows how the pulse deduction method works when overload causes non - zero current switching . the pulses with shown in dotted lines a re suspended pulses because of previous smaller current pulse widths . open load protection is achieved by hid lamp 11 and switch 5 in a dc series connection . whenever hid lamp 11 is disconnected , the current through switch 5 will be cut to a weak dc starter current . in high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit 30 shown in fig1 , there &# 39 ; s a dc bias voltage over hid lamp 11 . for large power lamps with long lamp tubes , this dc bias may cause uneven lighting over the lamp tube . a lower pulse frequency can help overcome the uneven light , but will result in a larger switch current and inductor size . in another aspect of the invention , a high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit generally designated 60 shown in fig2 may include slave switch 15 , diode 16 , capacitor 17 , bleeder resistor 18 , and capacitor 19 . these components may remove dc bias after hid lamp 11 is ignited . before hid lamp 11 is ignited , slave switch 15 is off . the voltage on capacitor 19 is v + because of bleeder resistor 18 . the high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit 60 works the same way as high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit 30 to ignite hid lamp 11 . when a current over switch 5 is detected , slave switch 15 may be turned on at the same on time as switch 5 after a delay of a half pulse period , as shown in fig7 . after hid lamp 11 is ignited , switch 5 and slave switch 15 work in a push and pull mode to energize hid lamp 11 with ac current . a weak current over bleeder resistor 18 can be ignored , and the voltage over capacitor 19 is determined by the ratio of the values of capacitor 17 and capacitor 19 . fig3 shows an implementation based on high efficiency electronic hid ballast circuit 30 . component parameters given in fig3 are for a 75 w hid lamp 11 . mpu chip pic16c508 may be programmed as ppm pulse source 1 and pulse deduction circuit 21 . a lmc555 may be used as switch driver 2 . r 60 and r 61 may be used as the switch current width feedback circuit 4 . r 42 and t 40 may be used as the switch current amplitude feedback circuit 3 . thermistor r 201 with a negative temperature coefficient may be used for t 40 v be thermal compensation . d 20 may be used for diode 7 , mosfet m 1 for switch 5 , r 20 and r 201 for resistor 6 , l 20 for inductor 8 , l 21 for inductor 10 , c 20 for capacitor 9 , c 21 for capacitor 13 , and r 21 for resistor 14 . a small inductor l 22 is added into the dc starter circuit to boost the ignition pulse voltage . r 40 , r 41 , c 40 , c 41 and lmc555 form a standard 555 monostable circuit that outputs a positive pulse at lmc555 pin 3 for each negative input pulse at lmc555 pin 2 . the output pulse width can be adjust by r 40 and is set to 12 us at open load mode . lmc555 is also a pulse voltage converter that takes 5v mpu pulse input and outputs 13v pulse to drive m 1 . z 50 , r 50 , t 50 and r 51 combined may be used as a under voltage protection circuit for + 13v power source to prevent mosfet from overheat damage caused by unsaturated conduction . whenever + 13v power source voltage drops below 12v , the corresponding voltage drop on r 51 will reset mpu to stop pulse output . the mpu output pulses on pic16c508 pin 3 may have a fixed period of 58 us with 3 phase ppm , and the output pulse may be a 1 us negative pulse . the three phases may be − 2 us , 0 us and 2 us . the output pulse sequence may have a fixed number of contiguous pulses having a same phase of 7 . the ppm sequence may have a period of approximately 7 ms . at normal working conditions , the m 1 current width may be approximately 8 us . the output pulse deduction is triggered whenever the m 1 current width is less than 6 us . fig8 illustrates how the pulse deduction works . suspended pulses are marked with dotted lines and are trigged by a narrow current pulse . fig9 illustrates a program flowchart of mpu chip pic16c508 . the three phase random sequence table stored in memory is the same sequence as shown in fig4 with the number of contiguous pulses having a same phase equal to 7 . a timer with period = 58 us is used as a ppm output clock . an address counter driven by the timer is used as address decoder to read proper value from the sequence table sequentially driven . the address counter has the same period as the sequence table size . it should be understood , of course , that the foregoing relates to preferred embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims . | 8 |
fig1 is a perspective view of a binocular night vision goggle 10 . the binocular night vision goggle 10 may use a pair of monocular night vision scopes ( optical elements ) 12 that may be mounted and associated with one another in such a way as to provide the user of the device 10 with binocular vision . the night vision monoculars 12 may be suspended in front of a user &# 39 ; s eyes by an elongated housing ( shelf ) 14 . housing 14 may have a generally rectangular shape . depending from the housing 14 may be a pair of spaced apart mounts 16 ( fig2 ) for mounting the monoculars 12 . the interpupillary distance ( ipd ) is defined as the distance between the user &# 39 ; s pupils . to adjust the horizontal spacing between the monoculars 12 to match the ipd of a user , an ipd adjustment mechanism may move the monoculars 12 toward each other and away from each other . part of the ipd mechanism may be located on the outside of housing 14 and part of it may be located between the walls of housing 14 . referring to fig4 and 5 , the bottom of housing 14 may be divided into three sections 34 , 36 , 38 by four walls 18 , 20 , 22 , and 24 . a circular aperture may be located inside each of the walls 18 , 20 , 22 , 24 . aperture 18 a may be located in wall 18 , aperture 20 a may be located in wall 20 , aperture 22 a may be located in wall 22 , and aperture 24 a may be located in wall 24 . flanges 18 b , 20 b , 22 b , and 24 b of an eccentric shaft 26 may be rotatably received in the apertures 18 a , 20 a , 22 a , 24 a . eccentric shaft 26 may be a thin elongate blade member . inside each of the flanges 18 b , 20 b , 22 b , 24 b may be off - center apertures 18 c , 20 c , 22 c , and 24 c . a pivot lever 28 of the eccentric shaft 26 may be part of flange 18 b and may extend outwardly of one end of the housing 14 . rotatably received in apertures 18 c and 20 c may be an ipd threaded shaft 30 . a monocular 12 ( fig1 and 2 ) may be mounted onto ipd threaded shaft 30 . one end of ipd threaded shaft 30 may extend through aperture 18 c in flange 18 b , which may be in aperture 18 a of wall 18 . consequently , this end of ipd threaded shaft 30 may extend from the space in section 36 at the underside of housing 14 to the outside of wall 18 . the other end of ipd threaded shaft 30 may extend through aperture 20 c in flange 20 b , which may be in aperture 20 a of wall 20 . consequently , this end of ipd threaded shaft 30 may extend from space 36 at the underside of housing 14 into the space in section 38 at the underside of housing 14 . rotatably received in apertures 22 c and 24 c may be an ipd threaded shaft 32 . another monocular 12 ( fig1 and 2 ) may be mounted onto ipd threaded shaft 32 . one end of ipd threaded shaft 32 may extend through aperture 24 c in flange 24 b , which may be in aperture 24 a of wall 24 . consequently , this end of ipd threaded shaft 32 may extend from the space in section 34 at the underside of housing 14 to the outside of wall 24 . the other end of ipd threaded shaft 32 may extend through aperture 22 c in flange 22 b , which may be in aperture 22 a of wall 22 . consequently , this end of ipd shaft 32 may extend from space 34 at the underside of housing 14 into the space in section 38 at the underside of housing 14 . the end of ipd threaded shaft 32 that may extend into space 38 from space 34 may be threaded and may carry a washer member 40 which may be secured axially on the ipd threaded shaft 32 by a threaded nut 42 . consequently , ipd threaded shaft 32 may not move out of aperture 22 c in flange 22 b . the end of ipd threaded shaft 30 that may extend into space 38 from space 36 may be threaded and may carry a washer member ( not shown ) which may be secured axially on the ipd threaded shaft 30 by a threaded nut ( not shown ). consequently , ipd threaded shaft 30 may not move out of aperture 20 c in flange 20 b . the end of ipd threaded shaft 32 that may extend from space 34 to the outside of wall 24 may be attached to a control knob 44 . the end of ipd threaded shaft 30 that may extend from space 36 to the outside of wall 18 may be attached to a control knob 45 . each of the monoculars 12 may be respectively coupled to the ipd shafts 30 and 32 . control knobs 44 and 45 may be rotated independently of each other . when control knobs 44 and 45 are rotated , they may respectively cause ipd shafts 30 and 32 to rotate thereby moving the monoculars 12 toward and away from each other to adjust for varying eye separations . as explained above , lever 28 may be part of flange 18 b . each of the flanges 18 b , 20 b , 22 b , 24 b may be connected together by the eccentric shaft 26 . each of the flanges 18 b , 20 b , 22 b , 24 b may have an off - center aperture . off - center apertures 18 c and 20 c may receive ipd threaded shaft 30 and off - center apertures 22 c and 24 c may receive ipd threaded shaft 32 . rotation of lever 28 may rotate eccentric shaft 26 and flanges 18 b , 20 b , 22 b , 24 b , shaft 30 and shaft 32 relative to housing 14 . because the monoculars 12 may be coupled to shafts 30 and 32 , rotation of lever 28 may tilt each of the monoculars 12 relative to housing 14 and relative to a user &# 39 ; s eyes . thus , the eccentric shaft 26 and its associated flanges provide a means of tilting the line - of - sight ( longitudinal axis ) of the two monoculars 12 simultaneously . the lever 28 may be used to adjust the tilt of the monoculars 12 to align with the user &# 39 ; s line - of - sight . that is , the lever 28 may be used to rotate the monoculars 12 about an axis that is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis through the monoculars 12 . as shown in fig5 , the eccentric shaft 26 may use an o - ring 46 to provide rotational friction between the eccentric shaft 26 and the housing 14 . the o - ring 46 may be placed in a groove 18 d of flange 18 b , near adjustment lever 28 . after the eccentric shaft 26 is assembled to the housing assembly , the o - ring 46 may provide frictional resistance against the housing 14 . the rotational friction force may occur between o - ring 46 and aperture 18 a of wall 18 when flange 18 b is inserted into aperture 18 a . thus , the o - ring 46 may act as a frictional resistor between the eccentric shaft 26 and the housing 14 . the frictional interface between o - ring 46 and aperture 18 a may be controlled by tight tolerances between flange 18 b of the eccentric shaft 26 , the housing 14 , and the o - ring 46 . the o - ring 46 may provide some rotational friction for shaft 26 . further rotational friction and a tilt adjustment lock may be provided by a plunger and detent mechanism . fig6 is an enlarged , side view of flange 22 b shown in fig5 . flange 22 b may include a plurality of detents 48 formed on its circumference . detents 48 may be in the form of , for example , dimples , grooves , etc . as shown in fig6 , detents 48 may comprise substantially v - shaped grooves that extend transversely across the width of the flange 22 b . the sides of the v - shaped grooves may form about a 45 degree angle . each detent 48 may correspond to a locked position of the device 10 . the number of detents 48 may vary depending on the number of locked positions desired . the circumferential extent and spacing of the detents 48 may vary depending on the range and precision of tilt adjustment desired . in one embodiment , six detents 48 are circumferentially spaced about 10 degrees apart to produce six locked settings over a sixty degree range of tilt . fig7 is an exemplary enlarged , side view of a plunger 50 shown in fig3 - 5 . plunger 50 may include a first element comprising a tip 52 for engaging the detents 48 . tip 52 may be spherical . tip 52 is outwardly biased by an internal spring ( not shown ) in plunger 50 . plunger 50 may include threads 54 for threading into housing 14 . the thickness of housing 14 in the vicinity of plunger 50 may be increased by mounting an exterior plate 56 ( fig3 - 5 ) to housing 14 using , for example , fasteners 58 , plastic welding , adhesives , etc . plunger 50 may be mounted to housing 14 such that the tip 52 abuts a detent 48 in flange 22 b . as shown in fig5 , the tip 52 may be located at wall 22 . as lever 28 ( fig4 and 5 ) is rotated , shaft 26 with flange 22 b rotates . as flange 22 b rotates , the tip 52 of plunger 50 moves in and out of the detents 48 due to the spring in the plunger 50 . when the desired tilt position is reached , the tip 52 seats in the chosen detent 48 and locks the device 10 in position . the force required to rotate lever 28 to change tilt positions may be altered by , for example , changing the spring force in the plunger 50 . in one embodiment , the plunger 50 is a 4 millimeter diameter plunger with a spring force in the range of about 2 . 5 newtons minimum ( uncompressed ) to about 12 . 5 newtons maximum ( fully compressed ). of course , other spring forces may be used . the spring force may be small enough to allow one - handed adjustment by the user , yet large enough to prevent movement of the optical elements caused by , for example , vibration . another way to adjust the spring force is to move the entire plunger 50 toward or away from the detents 48 . if the plunger 50 is threaded into the housing 14 , the plunger may be adjusted by threading it into or out of the housing 14 . of course , the tip and internal spring must have sufficient travel to bear against the detents 48 and also be retracted into the plunger 50 as the shaft 26 rotates . the tilt adjustment and lock mechanism has been described with reference to a night vision goggle . however , the inventive mechanism may be incorporated into a variety of optical devices and may be used for adjustments other than tilt . while the invention has been described with reference to certain preferred embodiments , numerous changes , alterations and modifications to the described embodiments are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims , and equivalents thereof . | 5 |
reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the invention , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . whenever possible , the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts . one embodiment of the electrical device of the present invention is shown in fig1 and is designated generally throughout by the reference numeral 10 . the electrical device 10 includes a wall plate 12 and an electrical wiring device 14 . the wall plate includes a single rectangular 16 opening configured to receive any one electrical wiring device 14 from a plurality of differently configured electrical wiring devices . in an alternative embodiment , the opening 16 in the wall plate 12 is sized to accommodate a plurality of electrical wiring devices 14 installed in a single wall box in an abutting relationship to one another . each of the electrical wiring devices 14 includes a ground strap 15 . the ground strap 15 is made from an electrically conductive metal and is configured for mounting the electrical device 10 into a conventional wall box ( not shown ). the strap 15 is further configured to receive the housing 17 of the electrical wiring device 14 . the housing 17 includes a body 19 , and a frame 21 that work in cooperation to provide mounting places for the components of the electrical device 10 , such as terminals and electrical switch components . it will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that , in view of the teachings disclosed herein , modifications to the described embodiment may be made to incorporate a variety of electrical wiring devices without departing from the scope of the present disclosure . both the body 19 and frame 21 are made from a non - electrically conductive material , such as , for example plastic and may be made for example , by a molding process , such as , for example an injection molding process . the body 19 is configured to receive a plurality of terminals 23 . the terminals 23 fit into openings in the sides of the body 19 . the openings are configured to securely hold the terminals 23 in predetermined positions that electrically isolate the terminals 23 from one another . each of the terminals 23 is configured for the coupling of an electrically conductive wire thereto . turning to fig2 , one possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical device 10 of the present invention is shown . the electrical wiring device 14 includes two switches 18 , 20 and two modular blanks 22 . the two switches 18 , 20 may be either single pole or three - way switches . thus , the electrical wiring device 14 may include two single pole switches , two three - way switches or a single pole and a three - way switch . the blanks 22 are removably engageable members that aid in alignment of the electrical wiring device 14 within the opening 16 of the wall plate 12 of the modular electrical device 10 . fig1 shows a detail of the installation of a single blank 22 . as shown in fig1 , the blank 22 may include identifying symbols 31 . in an alternative embodiment the blanks 22 do not include any identifying markings . turning to fig3 , another possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical device 10 of the present invention is shown . the electrical wiring device 14 shown in fig3 includes three switches 18 , 24 , 26 and two blanks 22 . the switches 18 , 24 , 26 may be either single pole or three - way switches . thus , the electrical wiring device may be configured to include three single pole switches , two single pole switches and one three - way switch , one single pole switch and two three - way switches or three three - way switches . the blanks 22 are removably engageable members that aid in alignment of the electrical wiring device 14 within the opening 14 of the wall plate 12 of the modular electrical device 10 . turning to fig4 , another possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical device 10 of the present invention is shown . the electrical wiring device 14 shown in fig4 includes four switches 18 , 24 , 26 , 28 and two blanks 22 . the four switches 18 , 24 , 26 , 28 may be either single pole or three - way switches . thus , the electrical wiring device may be configured to include four single pole switches , three single pole switches and one three - way switch , two single pole switch and two three - way switches , one single pole and three three - way switches or four three - way switches . the blanks 22 are removably engageable members that aid in alignment of the electrical wiring device 14 within the opening 16 of the wall plate 12 of the modular electrical device 10 . turning to fig5 , another possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical deice 10 of the present invention is shown . the electrical wiring device 14 includes a switch 18 , a placard holder 29 , and a single blank 22 . this electrical wiring device is similar to ones described in co - pending u . s . patent application ser . no . 10 / 726 , 137 , entitled electrical switch with placard and remote use indicator , which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety . the switch 18 may be either a single pole switch or a three - way switch . the placard holder is configured to display a removable media that may include text , tactile indicia , images , or combinations thereof . the single blank 232 is used to align the electrical device 14 within the opening 16 of wall plate 12 . turning to fig6 , another possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical device 10 of the present invention is shown . the embodiment of the electrical wiring device 14 shown in fig6 includes a switch 18 , a receptacle 30 and a single blank 22 . the switch 18 may be either a single pole or a three - way switch . the receptacle may be configured to include ground fault interruption protection . the single blank 22 is used to align the electrical device 14 within the opening 16 of the wall plate 12 . turning to fig7 , another possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical device 10 of the present invention is shown . the embodiment of the electrical wiring device 14 shown in fig7 includes two switches 18 , 20 mounted in a side - by - side configuration , a receptacle 30 and a single blank 22 . the two switches 18 , 20 may be either single pole or three - way switches . thus , the electrical wiring device 14 shown in fig7 may be configured to include two single pole switches , a single pole switch and a three - way switch or two three - way switches . the receptacle may be configured to include a ground fault circuit interruption ( gfci ) protection . the single blank 22 is used to align the electrical device 14 within the opening 16 of the wall plate 12 . turning to fig8 , another possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical device 10 of the present invention is shown . the embodiment of the electrical wiring device shown in fig8 includes a hallway light 32 and a receptacle 30 . the hallway light 32 is configured to provide a predetermined quantity of illumination when electrical power is supplied . the receptacle may be configured to include ground fault circuit interruption ( gfci ) or arc fault circuit interrupter ( afci ) protection . turning to fig9 , another possible electrical wiring device 14 for use in the modular electrical terminal 10 of the present invention is shown . the embodiment of the electrical wiring device 14 shown in fig9 includes a hallway light that is sized to substantially fill the opening 16 of the wall plate 12 . the hallway light 32 is configured to provide a predetermined quantity of illumination when electrical power is supplied . fig1 is an exploded view of the electrical wiring device 14 shown in fig2 . the two switches 18 a and 20 b are single pole switches . fig1 is an exploded view of the electrical device 14 depicted in fig2 . in that embodiment , switch 18 b is configured as a single pole switch and the other switch 20 b is configured as a three - way switch . reference is also made to u . s . patent application ser . no . 10 / 729 , 566 which is incorporated herein by reference as though fully set forth in its entirety , for a more detailed explanation of these embodiments . comparing the body 19 a of fig1 with the body 19 b of fig1 it is evident that body 19 a is configured to receive four terminals 23 and body 19 b is configured to receive five terminals 23 . both body 19 a and body 19 b are configured to engage the ground strap 15 in an identical manner . both body 19 a and body 19 b are examples of the different types of frames that may be selected to provide an electrical wiring device 14 with a desired functionality . both body 19 a and body 19 b exhibit the common trait to all of the bodies used in the present invention , namely that they posses a substantially common form factor that allows a them and a complementary frame 21 to engage a specific sized opening in a wall plate 12 . the complimentary frame 21 is also selected depending upon the desired functionality of the electrical wiring device 14 . fig1 and fig1 illustrate a removable lamp module 50 which has a form factor configured to replace blank 22 . lamp module 50 is configured to take the place of blank 22 in the various embodiments of the invention as described herein . lamp module 50 is electrically coupled to terminals 23 . lamp module 50 may operate as a remote use indicator that emits light when power is applied to the load . alternatively , lamp module 50 may operate as a locator for device 10 by emitting light even when power is not provided to the load . a locator directs users to the location of the electrical wiring device in a darkened room . lamp module may also act as a power indicator that emits light when device 10 is electrically energized . lamp module 50 may include a circuit that provides a continuous emission of light , or a circuit that generates a blinking light . the lamp indicator and module is similar to that described in co - pending u . s . patent application ser . no . 10 / 726 , 173 which is incorporated herein by reference as though fully set forth in its entirety . whereas the switch in the various embodiments have been characterized as single pole or three way switches , a switch can be in any number of configurations , for example , two single pole switches . thus , different combinations of frame 21 and body 19 pairs may be assembled to form an almost limitless array of electrical wiring devices to provide a desired functionality . as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art , the choice of functionality of the electrical wiring device 14 determines which frame 21 and body 19 are selected . the overriding consideration is that no matter which frame 21 and body 19 are chosen , that when they are combined to form a housing the 17 , the housing exhibits a consistent form factor allowing the housing to be engage the wall plate 12 regardless of the functional design of the electrical wiring device 14 . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . thus , it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents . | 7 |
in carrying out the process over which the present invention is an improvement , 2 - hydroxynaphthalene and a potassium base are mixed in amounts sufficient to provide a ratio of about 0 . 8 to 1 . 45 moles of 2 - hydroxy - naphthalene per equivalent of potassium base , and the reaction mixture is dehydrated by distillation , or by passing it through a dehydration apparatus . suitable useful potassium bases include potassium hydroxide , potassium carbonate , potassium hydride , potassium amide , and the like , as well as mixtures thereof . the preferred potassium base is potassium hydroxide alone or in admixture with potassium carbonate . preferably , the potassium base and 2 - hydroxynaphthalene are mixed in the presence of a non - polar organic flux to form the potassium 2 - naphthoxide and the reaction mixture is dehydrated by distillation under nitrogen until essentially all of the water is removed . preferably , in forming the reaction mixture about 1 . 0 to 1 . 1 moles of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene , and most preferably , about 1 . 02 to 1 . 04 moles , are used per mole of potassium base . a large excess of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene , for example , above about 1 . 5 moles per mole of potassium hydroxide , has been found to produce a large decrease in the yield of the final product . as used herein , the term &# 34 ; flux &# 34 ; is defined as any non - polar organic material which is not a solvent for the reactants and which is a liquid under the reaction conditions employed . suitable materials which may be used as a flux include the following : the preferred flux is a mixture of 1 -, and 2 - isopropylnaphthalene . preferably , the dehydrated mixture contains about one part by weight of potassium 2 - naphthoxide per part by weight of the mixed isopropylnaphthalenes . in accordance with the first feature of the novel improvements of the process according to the instant invention , 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is introduced into either the stage of the process herein the potassium base and the 2 - hydroxy - naphthalene are admixed or into the dehydration stage . when the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is introduced into the mixing stage , no more than about a 50 / 50 molar ratio with the 2 - hydroxnaphthalene should be used . preferably , from about 5 - 30 parts of 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid per 100 parts of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene have been found effective . when the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is added to the dehydration stage it must first be contacted with potassium base in order to convert substantially all the hydroxy and carboxy groups to potassium salts . the amount of hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid added to the dehydration stage is , however , still within the concentration discussed above with respect to the mixing stage . once the mixture is dehydrated , it is then charged to a pressure reactor , preferably with additional flux and purged with carbon dioxide . the reactor is then sealed and heated , according to the second feature of the present improvement , at a temperature ranging from about 270 ° c . to 280 ° c ., under a carbon dioxide pressure of ranging from about 68 - 74 psi , while stirring the reaction mixture vigorously . the reaction is continued until analysis of an aliquot of the reaction mixture shows a ratio of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid to the mixture of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid and 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid of at least about 0 . 4 , preferably from about 0 . 6 - 0 . 9 , and , most preferably , from about 0 . 7 - 0 . 8 . the agitation must be sufficient to ensure the uniform mixing of the carbon dioxide into the reaction mixture , otherwise the carboxylation reaction stops . when the ratio set forth above is reached , the reactor is vented to the atmosphere and the reaction mixture is cooled under a nitrogen atmosphere to about 120 ° c . the reaction mixture is then either diluted with water and / or discharged into water containing enough sulfuric acid to bring the ph of the resulting mixture to 7 , or above , preferably about 7 . 1 ± 0 . 2 . the aqueous phase of the resulting two - phase liquid mixture is split off from the organic phase at a temperature of about 85 °- 98 ° c ., preferably about 95 ° c ., and is back - extracted twice with an equal volume of an organic flux ( even if the flux was not present during the reaction ) at the same temperature as the aqueous phase . a buffer , preferably about 0 . 1 gram of acetic acid per gram of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid expected , is added to the extracted aqueous phase , and then enough dilute sulfuric acid to adjust the ph to about 4 . 8 to 5 . 2 to precipitate the 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid . the precipitate may then be recovered by conventional means and dried to obtain the desired 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid in a yield of about 40 - 60 % of theoretical . in accordance with a further feature of the present invention , the mother liquor obtained on recovery of the 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is treated to recover a stream rich in 3 - hydrox - 2 - naphthoic acid which is generally a mixture of 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid ; 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid and 2 - naphthol dicarboxylic acid . this treatment is effected by adjusting the ph of the mother liquor to about 2 . 5 such as with dilute sulfuric acid , filtering the resultant material and washing to recover the desired mixture as a wet cake . optionally , the cake may be dried if desired . the recovered mixture , rich in 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid , is then recycled to the initial steps of the process as the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid component discussed above . that is to say , according to an improvement of the present invention , the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid rich mixture is either ( 1 ) recycled directly to the stage of the process where the 2 - hydroxynaphthalene is contacted with the potassium base or ( 2 ) recycled directly to the dehydration stage after contact with potassium base . sufficient potassium base is employed in this latter instance so as to form the potassium salts of the hydroxy and carboxy groups of the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid rich mixture . the reaction is then continued as described above . alternatively , the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic rich mixture can be admixed with a portion of extraneously produced 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid , and then added either to the mixing stage or the dehydration stage . that is to say , the improvement of the present invention includes ( 1 ) the use of pure 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid produced extraneously added to the process , ( 2 ) the use of the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid - rich recycle stream or ( 3 ) mixtures of the extraneous stream and the recycle stream . in the examples which follow , all parts are by weight unless otherwise indicated . all yields are based on potassium base charged . a theoretical yield is defined as one mole of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid produced for every 2 moles of potassium 2 - naphthoxide . a mixture of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene ( 84 grams ; 0 . 58 mole ), 45 % potassium hydroxide ( 70 . 5 grams ; 0 . 56 mole ), and 100 mls of a mixture of 1 -, and 2 - isopropylnaphthalenes is stirred and heated under a nitrogen atmosphere until 100 mls total of water and isopropylnaphthalene are distilled off . at that point , 100 mls of isopropylnaphthalene is added and the mixture is further heated to distill off an additional 50 mls of isopropylnaphthalene , and obtain a dehydrated mixture . the dehydrated reaction mixture is cooled to 65 ° c ., charged to a pressure reactor , and purged with carbon dioxide . the reactor is then sealed and pressurized with carbon dioxide to 70 psi while stirring slowly . the rate of stirring is then increased to 1500 rpm and the mixture is stirred at 275 ° c . under 70 psi of carbon dioxide for 4 hours . the reaction mixture is then cooled to 240 ° c ., vented to atmospheric pressure , and cooled under a nitrogen atmosphere to 120 ° c . water is then added to dilute the reaction mixture . the diluted reaction mixture is discharged into a flask containing 7 . 5 grams of sulfuric acid in 100 mls of water . the ph of the resulting mixture is then adjusted to 7 . 0 ± 1 with sulfuric acid , and the two - phase liquid mixture is heated to 95 ° c . while stirring . the mixture is allowed to settle , the layers are split apart , and the aqueous phase is washed twice with 100 - ml portions of isopropylnaphthalene . the isopropylnaphthalene - washed aqueous phase is then stirred at 65 °- 75 ° c . and 20 grams of a 15 % by weight solution of acetic acid in water is added thereto . sulfuric acid ( 15 grams of sulfuric acid per 100 mls of solution ) is then added over a period of 15 to 30 minutes until the ph of the resulting slurry is 4 . 8 to 5 . 2 . the slurry is then cooled to 25 °- 35 ° c . and filtered . the resulting filter cake is then washed with water and dried to obtain 21 . 7 grams of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthic acid . the aqueous mother liquor is adjusted to ph 2 . 5 with dilute sulfuric acid and the resulting precipitate is collected by filtration , washed , and dried to afford a 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid - rich stream containing 2 - naphthol dicarboxylic acid ; 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid and 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid , wt . 6 . 6 g . the combined organic phases contain 53 . 9 grams of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene , which can be recovered and recycled . this result is equivalent to a 42 . 9 % yield based on koh and 55 . 2 % yield on 2 - naphthol . a mixture of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene ( 84 grams ; 0 . 58 mole ), 45 % potassium hydroxide ( 78 . 4 grams ; 0 . 62 mole ), the 6 . 6 g of 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid - rich mixture produced in example 1 , above , and 100 mls of a mixture of 1 -, and 2 - isopropylnaphthalenes is stirred and heated under a nitrogen atmposphere until 100 mls total of water and isopropylnaphthalene are distilled off . at that point , 100 mls of isopropylnaphthalene is added and the mixture is further heated to distill off an additional 50 mls of isopropylnaphthalene , and obtain a dehydrated mixture . the dehydrated reaction mixture is cooled to 265 ° c ., charged to a pressure reactor , and purged with carbon dioxide . the reactor is then sealed and pressurized with carbon dioxide to 70 psi while stirring slowly . the rate of stirring is then increased to 1500 rpm and the mixture is stirred at 275 ° c . under 70 psi of carbon dioxide for 4 hours , until the ratio of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid to the mixture of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid and 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is about 0 . 8 . the reaction mixture is then cooled to 240 ° c . vented to atmospheric pressure , and cooled under a nitrogen atmosphere to 120 ° c . water is then added to dilute the reaction mixture . the diluted reaction mixture is discharged into a flask containing 7 . 5 grams of sulfuric acid in 100 mls of water . the ph of the resulting mixture is then adjusted to 7 . 0 ± 1 with sulfuric acid , and the two - phase liquid mixture is heated to 95 ° c . while stirring . the mixture is allowed to settle , the layers are split apart , and the aqueous phase is washed twice with 100 - ml portions of isopropylnaphthalene . the isopropylnaphthalene - washed aqueous phase is then stirred at 65 °- 75 ° c . and 20 grams of a 15 % by weight solution of acetic acid in water is added thereto . sulfuric acid ( 15 grams of sulfuric acid per 100 mls of solution ) is then added over a period of 15 to 20 minutes until the ph of the resulting slurry is 4 . 8 to 5 . 2 . the slurry is then cooled to 25 °- 35 ° c . and filtered . the resulting filter cake is then washed with water and dried to obtain 21 . 3 grams of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid . the aqueous mother liquor is adjusted to ph 2 . 5 with dilute sulfuric acid and the resulting precipitate is collected by filtration , washed , and dried to afford a recycleable stream rich in 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid containing 2 - naphthol dicarboxylic acid , 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid and 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid , wt 5 . 5 g . the combined organic phases contain 63 . 9 grams of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene , which can be recovered and recycled . this represents a yield of 37 . 8 %, based on koh , and a yield of 81 . 2 %, based on 2 - naphthol . a . a mixture of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene ( 84 grams ; 0 . 58 mole ), 45 % potassium hydroxide ( 70 . 5 grams ; 0 . 56 mole ), and 100 mls of a mixture of 1 -, and 2 - isopropylnaphthalenes is stirred and heated under a nitrogen atmosphere until 100 mls total of water and isopropylnaphthalene are distilled off . at that point , 100 mls of isopropylnaphthalene is added and the mixture is further heated to distill off an additional 50 mls of isopropylnaphthalene , and obtain a dehydrated mixture . the dehydrated reaction mixture is cooled to 265 ° c ., charged to a pressure reactor , and purged with carbon dioxide . the reactor is then sealed and pressurized with carbon dioxide to 40 psi while stirring slowly . the rate of stirring is then increased to 1500 rpm and the mixture is stirred at 265 ° c . under 40 psi of carbon dioxide for 16 hours . the reaction mixture is then cooled to 260 ° c . vented to atmospheric pressure , and cooled under a nitrogen atmosphere to 120 ° c . water is then added to dilute the reaction mixture . the diluted reaction mixture is discharged into a flask containing 7 . 5 grams of sulfuric acid in 100 mls of water . the ph of the resulting mixture is then adjusted to 7 . 0 ± 1 with sulfuric acid , and the two - phase liquid mixture is heated to 95 ° c . while stirring . the mixture is allowed to settle , the layers are split apart , and the aqueous phase is washed twice with 100 - ml portions of isopropylnaphthalene . the isopropylnaphthalene - washed aqueous phase is then stirred at 65 °- 75 ° c . and 20 grams of a 15 % by weight solution of acetic acid in water is added thereto . sulfuric acid ( 15 grams of sulfuric acid per 100 mls of solution ) is then added over a period of 15 to 30 minutes until the ph of the resulting slurry is 4 . 8 to 5 . 2 . the slurry is then cooled to 25 °- 35 ° c . and filtered . the resulting filter cake is then washed with water and dried to obtain 27 . 4 grams of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid . the aqueous mother liquor is adjusted to ph 2 . 5 with dilute sulfuric acid and the resulting precipitate is collected by filtration , washed , and dried to afford a mixture containing 1 . 6 grams of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid , 2 . 9 grams of 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid and a small amount of 2 - naphthol decarboxylic acid . the combined organic phases contain 0 . 2 grams of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene , which can be recovered and recycled . this represents a yield of 54 % based on koh and 62 . 1 %, based on 2 - naphthol , utilizing the most optimum conditions for a non - recycle process . b . when the reaction of example 3a is run in the same manner except that the temperature is 275 ° c ., the pressure is 70 psig and the time is 8 hours , the yield on koh is 51 . 4 % and based on 2 - naphthol is 65 . 4 . thus it can be seen that the invention as described in example 2 represents a significant increase in yield and productivity . the procedure of example 1 is again followed except that a 50 / 50 molar mixture of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene and pure 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is used in lieu of the 2 - hydroxynaphthalene alone . the presence of the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid reduces the reaction time from 4 hours to 3 hours . the procedure of example 4 is again followed except that the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is first treated with sufficient potassium hydroxide to convert all hydroxy and carboxy groups to salts and the salts are then introduced into the dehydration step . excellent results are achieved . the procedure of example 2 is again followed except that the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid - rich mixture is contacted with potassium hydroxide and the resultant salts are then charged to the dehydration stage . equivalent results accrue . the procedure of example 2 is again followed except that the mixture rich in 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is replaced by the corresponding mixture from example 3a . again , increased production of 6 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid based on 2 - hydroxynaphthalene is realized . the procedure of example 2 is again followed except that pure 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is added to the 2 - hydroxy - naphthalene - rich mixture in an amount such that the molar ratio of 2 - hydroxynaphthalene to 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is about 1 to 1 . excellent results are observed . the procedure of example 8 is again followed except that the admixture of the 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid rich stream and the pure 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoc acid is treated with potassium hydroxide and the resultant salts are charged to the dehydration stage of the process . again , the results achieved are superior to those when no 3 - hydroxy - 2 - naphthoic acid is employed . example 2 is again followed except that the flux is omitted during the carbon dioxide reaction . the results are only slightly reduced regarding product yield . example 2 is again followed except that a mixture of potassium hydroxide and potassium carbonate ( 3 / 1 ) is employed . again , excellent results are obtained . | 2 |
in the following description , specific details of various embodiments are provided . however , some embodiments may be practiced with less than all of these specific details . in other instances , certain methods , procedures , components , structures , and / or functions are described in no more detail than to enable the various embodiments of the invention , for the sake of brevity and clarity . it will be readily understood that the components of the embodiments as generally described herein and illustrated could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations . thus , the following description of various embodiments , and as represented in the figures , is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure , but is merely representative of various embodiments . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics . the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive . all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the description and claims are to be embraced within their scope . reference throughout to features , advantages , or similar language does not imply that all of the features and advantages that may be realized with the present invention should be or are in any single embodiment of the invention . rather , language referring to the features and advantages is understood to mean that a specific feature , advantage , or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention . thus , discussions of the features and advantages , and similar language , throughout this specification may , but do not necessarily , refer to the same embodiment . furthermore , the described features , advantages , and characteristics of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments . one skilled in the relevant art will recognize , in light of the description herein , that the invention can be practiced without one or more of the specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment . in other instances , additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the invention . reference to “ one embodiment ,” “ an embodiment ,” or similar language means that a particular feature , structure , or characteristic described in connection with the indicated embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention . thus , the phrases “ in one embodiment ,” “ in an embodiment ,” and similar language throughout this specification may , but do not necessarily , all refer to the same embodiment . fig1 a depicts a perspective view of a water ski 100 showing the direction of a torsional flex 102 - 104 on the water ski 100 . a water ski is subject to many forces during use . those forces may cause the water ski 100 to flex . the shape of water skis allow for flexing torsionally ( directionally shown in fig1 a ) and longitudinally ( directionally shown in fig1 b ). depicted in fig1 a is a torsional flex in which the rotation of the tip portion of the ski is directed opposite to the rotation on the tail portion of the ski . this is depicted as torsional flex 102 , in which the tip portion rotates counter clockwise , opposite the rotational direction from the tail portion of the ski which rotates clockwise . torsional flex 104 depicts a torsional flex in the opposite directions of torsional flex 102 . the water ski 100 depicts a board 106 , a fin 108 , and a fin box 122 . fig1 b depicts a side view of the water ski of fig1 a showing the direction of a longitudinal flex 110 on the water ski 100 . this longitudinal flex typically occurs as the tip and tail portions of the water ski 100 flex up while the middle portion is forced down from the weight of a user . fig1 c depicts a top view of the water ski of fig1 a . water skis are not designed to flex laterally . the direction of a left lateral flex 112 and a right lateral flex 114 are depicted by the arrows shown in fig1 a . a lateral flex occurs , for example , when the tip and tail portions of the water ski flex opposite of the middle section . water skis are rigid in the lateral direction , and do not flex in the directions shown in fig1 c . such rigidity occurs naturally because of the shape of the sports board . such lateral rigidity is also the case for snowboards , snow skis , surfboards , wakeboards , and other similarly shaped sports boards . fig1 d depicts a cross - sectional view of a cut - away of the board 106 of fig1 c . the board 106 may include fiber layers 118 ( for example , carbon fiber materials ) wrapped around a core 120 ( multiple fiber layers 118 are not depicted ). the board 106 may include a coating layer 124 . the fiber layers 118 may be arrayed in various configurations to achieve optimum longitudinal flex while maintaining an acceptable amount of torsional stiffness . the cross - sectional shape of the board 106 restricts lateral flex as the board 106 with corresponding core 120 is typically much wider ( the horizontal dimension ) than it is thick ( the vertical dimension ). while many embodiments are described herein , at least some of the described embodiments allow for a lateral flex in a sports board . embodiments allow for improved performance in sports with an increased ability to turn with less energy loss . the decrease in lost energy allows for more kinetic energy or speed on turns . embodiments allow for manufacturing boards to achieve optimal lateral flex in the board , while maintaining torsional strength and longitudinal strength . for the sake of brevity the majority of embodiments and discussion surrounds water skis . however , the described features , advantages , and characteristics of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments and may be used on various sports boards including but not limited to snow skis , snowboards , wakeboards , surfboards , and other similar sports boards . one skilled in the relevant art will recognize , in light of the description herein , that the invention can be practiced on more than the specific water ski embodiments described herein . some embodiments are limited to water sports boards which include water skis , surfboards , and wakeboards . continuing the example of a water ski , water skis typically include a fixed fin at the rear of the water ski . the fins are fixed and do not move relative to the board . fins ( and wings on the fins ) are adjusted to meet the needs of individual skiers , taking into account an individual &# 39 ; s skiing style and weight , as well as boat speed . adjustments of even a few thousands of an inch may make large differences in performance . as the fins are fixed , when a water skier attempts to turn the board of a water ski , the fin will move with the board . as the skier turns the board , the angle at which the fin contacts water below the board , shearing the water and creating a spray as the fin displaces the water . the angle at which the fin contacts the water is dependent upon how much the skier turns the board because the fin is fixed to the board and typical water skis will not flex laterally . however , embodiments described herein allow for the board to flex laterally and change the angle at which the fin contacts the water on a turn . with a lateral flex sports board , as a skier turns in the water the forces from the water acting on the fin will resist the turn of the board by the skier . as the lateral flex sports board flexes laterally , the angle at which the fin contacts the water will decrease and thus decrease the amount of shearing of the water and the amount of spray . such reduction in lost energy results in a skier performing a turn at a higher speed while still maintaining control . the reduction in energy transferred to the spraying water is conserved and available for kinetic energy , allowing skiers to increase the speed of turns . fig2 a - 2c depict embodiments of a lateral flex sports board 200 . fig2 a depicts an embodiment of a side view of a lateral flex sports board 200 . the lateral flex sports board 200 includes an elongated load supporting board 202 along with a fin 204 and a fin box 206 . the illustrated embodiment shows the thickness of the elongated load supporting board 202 . the thickness of the elongated load supporting board 202 is a vertical dimension from the top major surface 208 which supports a user to the bottom major surface 210 . the thickness of the load supporting board 202 may vary along the length of the load supporting board 202 . the thickness of the load supporting board 202 may also vary along the width of the load supporting board 202 . that is , the thickness of the load supporting board may be greater near the sides of the board as opposed to the center of the load supporting board 202 . fig2 b depicts an embodiment of a top view of a sports board 200 showing the direction of a left lateral flex 212 and a right lateral flex 214 . the general natural shape of a sports board is shown . while the width of the elongated load supporting board 202 may vary along the length of the board ( as shown ), the elongated load supporting board 202 has a width greater than the thickness . this is necessary so that a user may balance on the board . this shape naturally resists lateral movement in favor or longitudinal movement . as depicted the axis of the fin box 206 ( and corresponding fin , not visible ) aligns with the axis of the elongated load supporting board 202 . fig2 c depicts an embodiment of a top view of the lateral flex sports board 200 of fig2 b , showing the board in the laterally flexed position of a right lateral flex 214 . in some embodiments , the lateral flex occurs at a localized point on the load supporting board 202 . in some embodiments , the lateral flex occurs along a length of the load supporting board 202 . in some embodiments , the lateral flex occurs along the length of load supporting board 202 in between a tail portion 216 ( including the fin and fin box 206 ) of the board 200 and a foothold support portion 218 of the board 200 . the length upon which the lateral flex occurs is the flexing portion 220 of the board 200 . as the board flexes laterally , the axis ( shown by dotted line 222 ) of the fin box 206 ( and corresponding fin , not visible ) is no longer aligned with the axis ( shown by dotted line 224 ) of the foothold portion . this means that when a skier is performing a turn , the skier will exert a force upon the load supporting board 202 at the foothold support portion 218 and the water will exert a force upon the fin , but the opposing force of the water on the fin will cause the board to flex laterally and the fin will more closely follow the turn of the board . in some embodiments , the flexing portion 220 of the board 200 may overlap into the foothold portion 218 of the board 200 . the amount of lateral flex may vary . in some embodiments , during a lateral flex , the angle between the fin box axis 222 of the fin box and the foothold axis 224 is 0 . 1 degrees . in some embodiments , during a lateral flex , the angle between the fin box axis 222 of the fin box and the foothold axis 224 is greater than 0 . 1 degrees . in some embodiments , during a lateral flex , the angle between the fin box axis 222 of the fin box and the foothold axis 224 is greater than 0 . 2 degrees . in some embodiments , during a lateral flex , the angle between the fin box axis 222 of the fin box and the foothold axis 224 is greater than 0 . 5 degrees . in some embodiments , during a lateral flex , the angle between the fin box axis 222 of the fin box and the foothold axis 224 flexes from 0 to 1 degrees . fig3 a - 3e depict embodiments of a lateral flex sports board 300 . fig3 a depicts a cut - away top view of one embodiment of a sports board 300 that allows for a lateral flex . within the sports board 300 , the elongated load supporting board 302 includes a backbone 304 ( an elongated structure that is typically a centrally located and internal structure ). the backbone 304 is shaped to allow for a lateral flex . as is shown in fig3 b - 3c , the backbone 304 comprises a lateral flex portion 306 and a tail portion 308 . the flex portion 306 allows for lateral flex . the tail portion 308 , which is not necessary , may allow for the securing of a fin , a component of a finished water ski . as depicted the tail portion 308 may include a void 310 that allows for a fin and fin box to be secured . fig3 b depicts a top view of an embodiment of the backbone 304 outside of the load supporting board 302 . fig3 c depicts a side view of an embodiment of the backbone 304 of fig3 b outside of the load supporting board 302 . fig3 d shows a cut - away cross - sectional view of the elongated load supporting board 302 including the backbone 304 . the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 may be constructed or formed into various shapes to allow for lateral flex of the backbone 304 and thus the load supporting board 302 . in the illustrated embodiment , the backbone 304 comprises a backbone core 310 surrounded by fiber layers 312 a - 312 c . the thickness of the fiber layers 312 a - 312 c are shown exaggerated for clarity . the number , thickness , orientation , and material of the fiber layers 312 a - 312 c may vary . the fiber layers 312 a - 312 c are depicted as wrapped around the backbone core 310 . however , embodiments may include a different number of layers on the top , bottom , or sides of the backbone core 310 , respectively . the cross - section of the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 depicts a cross - section for the backbone 304 that allows a lateral flex in contrast to the cross section of the board 106 shown in fig1 d . the core of the board 106 shown in fig1 d will not allow a lateral flex as the width ( the horizontal dimension ) of the core is greater than the thickness ( the vertical dimension ) of the core . in the illustrated embodiments of fig3 a - 3e , the width ( the horizontal dimension ) of the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 is depicted to be approximately equal to the thickness ( the vertical dimension ) of the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 . in some embodiments , the width of the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 is greater than the thickness of the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 . in some embodiments , the width of the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 is less than the thickness of the flex portion 306 of the backbone 304 . in fig3 d , the backbone 304 is depicted within the board overlapping layer 316 . also depicted is the board core 314 . in some embodiments , the board core 314 may be a flexible material that allows for an overall lateral flex of the sports board . in some embodiments , the board core 314 is a rigid material with voids or slots ( shown and described in more detail in other embodiments ). the board overlapping layer 316 may provide a seal to protect the board core 314 and the backbone 304 from exposure to water or other potentially damaging substances . the board overlapping layer 316 may include multiple layers including fiber layers similar to fiber layers 312 a - 312 c and a sealing layer . in some embodiments , the overlapping layer 316 may only include a sealing layer . the number , thickness , orientation , and material of any overlapping fiber layers and sealing layer may vary . fig3 e depicts a cut - away cross - sectional view of just the backbone 304 with a backbone core 310 surrounded by the fiber layers 312 a - 312 c . the depicted cross section of the backbone core 308 is rectangular with rounded corners but may be elliptical , square , or another shape that allows for flexing laterally . the shape depicted allows for longitudinal flex as well as lateral flex . fig4 a - 4c depict a top view of a sports board 400 with slots 402 in the sports board 400 . some embodiments include slots 402 on the elongated load supporting board 414 . the slots 402 allow for the localization of the lateral flex on a specific portion of the sports board 400 . as the natural shape of a sports board restricts a lateral flex , fig4 a - 4c depict how the implementation of slots 402 or kerfs or voids etc . allow the sports board to flex laterally . fig4 b depicts an enlarged view of the rear of the sports board 400 and slots 402 . fig4 b also depicts a tail portion 404 and a foothold support portion 408 with a flexing portion 406 located between the tail portion 404 and the foothold support portion 408 . the flexing portion 406 includes the slots 402 and a lateral flexing spine 410 which connects the foothold support portion 408 with the tail portion 404 . fig4 c depicts the sports board 400 in a lateral flex position with tail portion 404 of the sports board 400 laterally flexed in relation to the foothold support portion 408 of the sports board 400 . shown in exaggerated form , the axis ( depicted by dashed line 416 ) of the tail portion 404 is no longer aligned with the axis ( depicted by dashed line 418 ) of the foothold support portion 408 . the narrowness of the spine 410 allows for the sports board 400 to flex laterally in the flexing portion 406 . the slots 402 a on one side of the sports board 400 are depicted as expanded . that is , the distance between the ribs 412 has increased . the slots 402 b on the opposite side of the sports board 400 are depicted as compressed . that is , the distance between the ribs 412 has decreased . the slots 402 allow for the sports board to flex laterally in the flexing portion 406 of the sports board 400 as the cross section of the spine 410 allows the lateral flex . the slots 402 also allow for the remainder of the board core to be made of a rigid material . the slots 402 depicted in fig4 a - 4c are voids extending from the top major surface ( visible in the top view ) of the sports board 400 to the bottom major surface ( not visible ) of the sports board 400 . the slots 402 are depicted as extending from the spine 410 to the side edges of the sports board 400 . in some embodiments , the slots 402 do not extend all the way from the top major surface to the bottom major surface but only extend a portion . in some embodiments , the slots 402 are internal to the sports board 400 . for example , the slots 402 may be slots only in a board core . the slots may then be covered by fiber layers or overall overlapping layer such as is depicted in fig3 d . in some embodiments , instead of a void between ribs 412 , a flexible material may occupy the space between the ribs 412 . the flexible material may allow for the compression and expansion that is shown in slots of fig4 c . in the depicted embodiment , the slots 402 are shaped as parallelograms but may be of different shapes such as a wedge , rectangle , trapezoid , or thin parallel kerfs . while the depicted embodiment includes three slots on each side of the spine 410 , the number of slots may vary . the slots 402 depicted are angled towards the rear of the sports board 400 but in some embodiments may be angled away from the rear or may be perpendicular to the spine 410 . the size , shape , number , and angle of the slots 402 may vary . in some embodiments , the slots 402 are approximately 0 . 050 inches thick when cut . in some embodiment , the slots are approximately between 0 . 005 inches thick and 0 . 500 inches thick . the number and thickness of the slots affect the amount of lateral flex of the sports board 400 . for example , three slots approximately 0 . 050 inches thick will allow more lateral flex than one slot approximately 0 . 010 inches thick . in embodiments with a rigid board core , the board would only flex laterally enough to close the gaps of the slots 402 . therefore , the amount of lateral flex could be controlled for each individual board depending on the number and thickness of the slots 402 manufactured . in some embodiments , the slots are cut through fiber layers and a board core . in some embodiments , the board core is exposed after the slots are cut . in some embodiments , the slots 402 are located directly in front of the fin and / or fin box . in some embodiments , the slots 402 are located between the foothold portion 408 of the board 400 and the fin box . in some embodiments , the slots 402 are located between two separate foothold positions . for example , with water skis , a user would have one foot in front of the other on the board . the slots 402 may be located between where the two feet would be positioned on the water ski . in some embodiments , the slots 402 may be located in more than one position . for example , slots 402 may be located between the foothold portion 408 and the tail portion 404 where the fin box and fin are located as well as between where the two feed of a user would be positioned on the board 400 . fig5 depicts a top view of a cut - away of an embodiment of a lateral flex sports board 500 with a short backbone 502 . the backbone 502 includes a flexing portion 504 and a tail portion 506 . the backbone 502 , while shown , is internal to the sports board 500 . the length of a backbone 502 may vary in embodiments and does not need to extend the length of the sports board . in some embodiments , the backbone 502 extends the length of the sports board 500 from the front to the rear of the sports board 500 . in the illustrated embodiment , the backbone 502 only extends a portion of the length of the sports board 500 . in some embodiments , the backbone 502 may extend from a foothold support portion 508 of the sports board to the rear of the sports board 500 . fig6 depicts a top view of a cut - away of an embodiment of a lateral flex sports board 600 including a short backbone 602 along with slots 608 . while the backbone 602 , including the flexing portion 604 and the tail portion 606 , is shown , the backbone 602 is internal to the lateral flex sports board 600 and may be covered by an outer layer such as an acrylic coating . the slots 608 may be similar to the slots described in conjunction with fig4 a - 4c . in the illustrated embodiment , the slots 608 may extend from the backbone 602 to the sides of the lateral flex sports board 600 and may extend from the top major surface to the bottom major surface of the sports board 600 . in some embodiments , the slots may be internal to an outer layer or coating . in some embodiments , the slots are filled with a flexible material able to compress and expand during a lateral flex movement of the sports board . fig7 depicts an embodiment of a lateral flex sports board 700 including a full length backbone 702 along with forward angled slots 708 . while the backbone 702 , including the flexing portion 704 and the tail portion 706 , is shown , the backbone 702 is internal to the lateral flex sports board 700 and may be covered by an outer layer such as an acrylic coating . the slots may be similar to the slots described in conjunction with fig4 a - 4c . in the illustrated embodiment , the slots 708 may extend from the backbone 702 to the sides of the lateral flex sports board 700 and may extend from the top major surface to the bottom major surface of the sports board 700 . in some embodiments , the slots may be internal to an outer layer or coating . in such embodiments , the slots extend from the backbone 702 to the outer layer or coating and from the outer layer or coating on the top major surface and the outer layer or coating on the bottom major surface . the outer layer or coating may include fiber layers as well as a sealed coating layer . in some embodiments , the slots 708 are filled with a flexible material able to compress and expand during a lateral flex movement of the sports board . fig8 depicts an embodiment of a lateral flex sports board 800 including a short backbone 802 along with slots 808 . while the backbone 802 is shown , the backbone 802 is internal to the lateral flex sports board 800 and may be covered by an outer layer such as an acrylic coating . the backbone 802 only includes a flexing portion 804 without a tail portion . the slots 808 may be similar to the slots described in conjunction with fig4 a - 4c . in the illustrated embodiment , the slots 808 may extend from the backbone 802 to the sides of the lateral flex sports board 800 and may extend from the top major surface to the bottom major surface of the sports board 800 . in some embodiments , the slots may be internal to an outer layer or coating . in some embodiments , the slots are filled with a flexible material able to compress and expand during a lateral flex movement of the sports board . some embodiments described herein include slots on a portion of a sports board . such slots which may extend all the way through the sports board or a portion of the sports board may result in a structural weak spot on a spine or backbone between the slots . such a spine or backbone may be subject to forces that would result in breaking the sports board . for example , the sports board may be subject to forces that cause a longitudinal flex ( as described above ) which could potentially result in a fracture or other failure at the spine . fig9 a - 9b depict an embodiment of a sports board 900 including a vertical knob 902 . the vertical knob 902 extends vertically from the sports board 900 at a location of the spine of the sports board . the slots or kerfs 904 extend from spine to the sides of the sports board 900 . the raised knob 902 extends the profile of the spine in the vertical direction . the increased profile strengthens the flexing portion of sports board and will resist forces that cause a longitudinal flex . fig9 b shows a side view of the embodiment depicted in fig9 a . as depicted , the raised knob 902 extends vertically from the primarily flat top major surface of the sports board . the shape and height of the raised knob 902 may vary . fig1 a depicts a top view of one embodiment of a board core 1000 . in some embodiments , the board core 1000 is manufactured of a rigid material . the board core 1000 is manufactured to the essential shape of a finished board . in some embodiments , a cavity 1002 is removed from the board core 1000 . the cavity 1002 is the approximate size of a backbone . in the illustrated embodiment the cavity 1002 is the approximate size of a short backbone ( shown in fig8 ). in some embodiments the cavity 1002 runs the length of the board core . the cavity 1002 may be of varying size . in some embodiments , the board core 1000 is manufactured with the cavity 1002 . in some embodiments the cavity 1002 is made by removing material after manufacturing the cavity 1002 . fig1 b depicts a cut - away cross - sectional view of the board core at the cavity 1002 . fig1 c depicts a cut - away cross - sectional view of the board core 1000 with a backbone 1004 inserted into the cavity 1002 . the backbone 1004 may include a core 1010 with fiber layers 1012 a - 1012 c . in some embodiments , the fiber layers 1012 a - 1012 c are cured when the backbone 1004 is placed into the cavity . in some embodiment , the fiber layers 1012 a - 1012 c are cured along with the overlapping layer ( shown in fig1 d ). fig1 d depicts a cut - away cross - sectional view of the board core 1000 with a backbone 1004 inserted into the cavity 1002 and an overlapping layer 1016 ( which may comprise a varying number , size , orientation of fiber layers ) that covers the board core 1000 and the backbone 1004 . in some embodiments , the overlapping layer ( s ) 1016 are cured with the fiber layers 1012 of the backbone . the thickness of the fiber layers 1012 a - 1012 c are shown exaggerated for clarity . the number , thickness , orientation , and material of the fiber layers 1012 a - 1012 c may vary . the fiber layers 1012 a - 1012 c are depicted as wrapped around the backbone core 1010 . however , embodiments may include a different number of layers on the top , bottom , or sides of the backbone core 1010 , respectively . in some embodiments , after the fiber layers 1012 and overlapping layer 1016 are cured , slot ( s ) ( described and depicted in other embodiments herein ) are cut into the board . in some embodiments , slot ( s ) are cut all the way through the board core 1000 . in some embodiments , the slot ( s ) are cut through the overlapping layer ( s ) 1016 and board core 1000 all the way to the backbone 1004 . in some embodiments , the slots are cut on each side of the backbone 1004 . in some embodiments , the slots are cut from the side of the board only a portion of the way to the backbone , leaving a portion of the backbone 1000 uncut . some embodiments do not include a cavity 1002 or backbone 1004 . in such embodiments , slots are cut in the board core 1000 on each side of a board . the portion of the board core 1000 between the slots would be a spine ( shown and described somewhat in conjunction with fig4 a - 4c . such a spine would function like the backbone of the illustrated embodiment of fig1 d . in some embodiments , the spine of the sports board is a separate backbone . in some embodiments , the spine is part of the board core 1000 . fig1 depicts a cut - away cross - sectional view of the board core 1100 with a backbone 1104 inserted into the cavity 1002 and an overlapping layer 1116 . the illustrated embodiment is similar the embodiment depicted in fig1 d , however , the backbone extends above the board core 1000 . in the illustrated embodiment , the extended backbone 1104 will create a vertical knob 1018 similar to what is described in conjunction with fig9 . in the illustrated embodiment , the backbone and vertical knob are from the same core 1110 and fiber layers 1112 a - 1112 c . the thickness of the fiber layers 1112 a - 1112 c are shown exaggerated for clarity . the number , thickness , orientation , and material of the fiber layers 1112 a - 1112 c may vary . the fiber layers 1112 a - 1112 c are depicted as wrapped around the backbone core 1110 . however , embodiments may include a different number of layers on the top , bottom , or sides of the backbone core 1110 , respectively . the cross - section of the backbone 1104 allows a lateral flex in contrast to the cross section of the board 106 shown in fig1 d . the core of the board 106 shown in fig1 d will not allow a lateral flex as the width ( the horizontal dimension ) of the core is greater than the thickness ( the vertical dimension ) of the core . in the illustrated embodiment , the width ( the horizontal dimension ) of the backbone 1104 is depicted to be less than the thickness of the backbone 1104 . in some embodiments , the width of the backbone 1104 is approximately equal to the thickness ( the vertical dimension ) of the backbone 1104 . in some embodiments , the width of the backbone 1104 is greater than the thickness of the backbone 1104 . in some embodiments , the board core 1100 may be a flexible material that allows for an overall lateral flex of the sports board . in some embodiments , the board core 1100 is a rigid material with voids or slots ( shown and described in more detail in other embodiments ). the board overlapping layer 1116 may provide a seal to protect the board core 1000 and the backbone 1104 from exposure to water or other potentially damaging substances . in some embodiments , the backbone 1104 and board core 1000 are exposed when slot ( s ) are cut . fig1 depicts a cut - away cross - sectional view of the board core 1200 with a backbone 1204 inserted into a cavity and an overlapping layer 1216 . the illustrated embodiment is similar the embodiment depicted in fig1 , however , the backbone 1204 and the vertical knob 1224 are separate . the backbone 1204 is similar to what is shown and described in conjunction with fig1 d . the vertical knob 1224 includes a separate core 1220 and separate fiber layers 1222 a - 1222 c . the thickness of the fiber layers 1212 a - 1212 c and 1222 a - 1222 c are shown exaggerated for clarity . the number , thickness , orientation , and material of the fiber layers 1112 a - 1112 c and 1222 a - 1222 c may vary . the fiber layers 1212 a - 1212 c are depicted as wrapped around the backbone core 1210 . however , embodiments may include a different number of layers on the top , bottom , or sides of the backbone core 1210 , respectively . in some embodiments the vertical knob core 1220 is not wrapped in fiber layers 1222 a - 1222 c . in such embodiments , the vertical knob core 1220 is merely wrapped in the overlapping layer 1216 similar to the board core 1200 . in some embodiments , the vertical knob 1224 is attached to the backbone 1204 . in some embodiments , the vertical knob 1224 is not attached to the backbone 1204 . in some embodiments , the vertical knob 1224 only extends a portion of the length of the backbone 1204 . for example , the backbone 1204 may run along the length of the board and the vertical knob 1224 will only run along a small portion of the backbone 1204 . some embodiments may not include a separate backbone 1204 . in such embodiments the board core 1200 would not have a cavity but be one solid piece ( similar to what is shown and described in conjunction with fig4 a - 4c ). in such embodiments , the vertical knob 1224 may be attached or placed on the board core 1200 and an overlapping layer 1216 would cover the board core and the vertical knob 1224 . such embodiments may or may not include the fiber layers 1222 a - 1222 c . in such embodiments , slots would be cut in the board core 1200 . in some embodiments , the slots would extend to the vertical knob ( as can be seen in fig9 a ). in some embodiments , the resulting cross section of the board core 1200 at the slots would be shaped similar to the cross section of the backbone 1204 shown in fig1 . the cross section of the board core 1200 at the slots would function as a spine of the board core 1200 and be shaped to allow for lateral flex of the sports board . in the above description , specific details of various embodiments are provided . however , some embodiments may be practiced with less than all of these specific details . in other instances , certain methods , procedures , components , structures , and / or functions are described in no more detail than to enable the various embodiments of the invention , for the sake of brevity and clarity . although specific embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated , the invention is not to be limited to the specific forms or arrangements of parts so described and illustrated . the scope of the invention is to be defined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents . although various embodiments have been shown and described , the present disclosure is not so limited and will be understood to include all such modifications and variations are would be apparent to one skilled in the art . | 1 |
a new fabrication method is proposed for increasing the yield and quality of superconducting junctions and more particularly josephson junctions and josephson - based digital and analog circuits in superconducting electronics . the method is based on using a double - layer mask for partial anodization of the junction side - walls and base - electrode around the junction . the top layer of this mask is a photoresist or electron - beam resist , and the bottom layer is a dielectric ( e . g ., sio 2 ) that is insoluble in either aqueous or organic solvents . a more detailed description will now be given . the existing fabrication scheme for making nb - based josephson tunnel junctions for superconducting electronics is comprised of the following fabrication steps : 1 . as shown in fig1 , a nb / al / alo x / nb trilayer is deposited in - situ on a wafer that includes or will include several other patterned layers of metal and dielectric . a tunnel barrier is formed by in - situ thermal oxidation of the al layer in oxygen or an oxygen / argon mixture at a defined pressure , to form a thin (˜ 1 - 2 nm ) layer of alo x . both the oxidation time and the pressure determine the properties of the tunnel barrier such as the josephson critical current density j c . the bottom nb layer is called the base electrode , and the top nb layer is called the counter - electrode of the tunnel josephson junctions . 2 . fig2 shows a step that differs from prior art fabrication techniques and will be discussed in more detail hereinafter . 3 . the wafer is coated with either positive or negative resist ( fig3 ), and the resist etch mask is formed by optical or e - beam lithography ( fig4 ). the counter - electrode area is then defined by etching ( fig5 ), using e . g . plasma etching , reactive - ion etching , or high - density plasma etching . the alo x / al layer acts as an etch stop . ( note — the prior art method does not include the thin sio 2 layer shown in fig3 and 5 .) 4 . after etching and without removing the resist , the wafer is immersed in an anodization solution , and all the surfaces that are not protected by the resist mask formed in step 5 are anodized . that is , the same resist etch mask is also used as an anodization mask . anodization creates a bilayer of anodized al ( alo x ) and anodized nb ( nbo x ) on the surface of the base electrode ( fig6 ). a layer of anodized nb is also formed on all sidewalls of the junction &# 39 ; s counter - electrode . this anodization step is very important because it encapsulates the junction &# 39 ; s tunnel barrier with an anodized nbo x layer , and this , protects it from reacting with water , oxygen , and other processing chemicals during all further wafer processing steps . this step also allows for opening a contact hole to the counter - electrode that is larger in size than the junction itself . the thickness of the anodized layer is controlled by the anodization voltage , usually in the range of 15 - 50 v . the initial anodization current density is in the range from 0 . 5 - 5 ma / cm 2 . 5 . after anodization , the resist is stripped ( fig7 ), and the wafer proceeds to the next fabrication steps that are intended to pattern the base electrode of the junction by lithography and etching . this may also require removing the anodization layer in some parts of the circuit . it remains around the junction ( the anodization ring of fig8 - 10 ). 6 . after base electrode patterning , the josephson junction is completely formed . all other fabrication steps are necessary in order to interconnect junctions in the circuits ( such as the sio 2 insulating layer in fig1 - 14 ), and to create resistors for biasing and shunting the junctions . these steps may vary depending on the details the fabrication process . one of the main sources of defects and loss of yield in this fabrication scheme is poor adhesion of the resist mask in step 3 . although this fact has not been recognized in the prior art . this may be due in part to the volume expansion of nb and al layers during anodization , which places significant local stresses on the photoresist mask . as a result , some parts of the resist mask may peel off during anodization , or anodization solutions may leach under the resist mask . this is especially a problem with many negative resists such as uvn ®- 30 ( shipley company , marlborough mass .). some photoresists may also be incompatible with ( partially soluble in ) the common anodization solutions . in these cases , some junctions may be degraded , or the counter - electrode of some junctions may be partially anodized , thus preventing a good ( superconducting ) electrical contact to be made to the junctions during the following fabrication steps . one improvement of the invention is to use a double - layer anodization mask with the lower layer being an inorganic dielectric layer ( such as sio 2 ) that is insoluble in water , solvents , and components of the anodization solution , and the upper layer is the photoresist ( or e - beam resist ) layer . sio 2 is especially suitable since it has already been optimized as an insulating layer in the prior - art nb integrated circuit process , and is also fully compatible with standard si - based resist processing . this double - layer mask is formed in the following simple way : a . after the josephson junction trilayer ( nb / al / alo x / nb ) is formed as in step 1 above , a pinhole - free layer of sio 2 is deposited by any appropriate method ( e . g ., rf magnetron sputtering , or plasma - enhanced chemical vapor deposition — pecvd ) on top of the trilayer ( see fig2 ). the layer thickness may be anywhere from 5 to 300 nm , and is not critical , as long as it is free from pinholes . thicker layers require long etch times , making them impractical . b . a resist mask is formed in the same way as in step 4 above . c . then etching is done , using reactive ion etching ( rie ) or inductively coupled plasma ( icp ) with fluorine - based chemistry ( e . g ., sf 6 , nf 3 , or cf 4 + o 2 ) such that both the sio 2 overlayer and the nb counter - electrode are etched in the same process . this may be a one - step process when the same etch parameters are used for both layers , or a two - step process when different etch recipes are used for etching first the sio 2 and then the nb counter - electrode . after completing the etch down to the alo x / al layer in the trilayer structure ( fig5 ), the top of the josephson junction will have a double - layer structure ( sio 2 + resist ) that serves as the double - layer anodization mask . d . etching is immediately followed by the anodization step 3 , without removing the resist mask ( fig6 ). now there is a layer of sio 2 under the resist mask for extra protection . the advantages of the proposed method are as follows . the sio 2 layer improves the adhesion of the resist , and does not allow the anodization solution to leach underneath . since the adhesion of sputtered or pecvd - deposited sio 2 to nb has already been optimized , and is stronger than the adhesion of the resist to nb , the double - layer also protects the junction counter - electrode from being anodized even in the unlikely event that a part of the resist mask pops off , or if the anodization solution does leach under the resist . in the rare case that the sio 2 layer has a pinhole or other defect , the presence of the resist on top still provides protection during the anodization . the probability that both layers of the double - layer anodization mask fail in the same location is much smaller than the probability of a failure of a single - layer resist mask . as a result , a dramatic increase in the yield and junction quality is achieved . another improvement over the prior art is described in reference to fig8 and 9 , in defining the anodization ring around the josephson junction . in the prior art , the alo x layer was first removed by a wet etch process , followed by reactive ion etching ( rie ) for removing the nbo x layer . however , a wet etch process can cause problems , that should preferably be avoided in high - reliability vlsi processing , particularly if sub - micron resolution is required . in the process of the present invention , this wet etch step is discarded , and two new approaches have been successfully demonstrated . in approach a , ion - milling with a neutral beam of argon ( ar ) atoms is used to remove both the alo x and the nbo x layers . in approach b , plasma etching ( rie or icp ) is used in a two - step process . first , a chlorine - based plasma is used to remove alo x , and then a fluorine - based plasma is used to remove the nbo x . either approach provides for increased yield and uniformity . while various embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated herein in detail , it should be apparent that modifications and adaptations to those embodiments may occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention as set forth in the following claims . | 7 |
referring first to fig1 a scanning apparatus 2 , as described in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 692 , 511 and 6 , 100 , 520 , supports a prone patient 4 on an essentially flat top surface 6 . the patient &# 39 ; s breast 8 is pendent within a scanning chamber 10 , around which orbits a planar detector array 12 . the planar detector array 12 orbits typically 360 ° around the vertical axis of the scanning chamber 10 and increments vertically between orbits to image successive slice planes . this is repeated until all the slice planes of the breast have been scanned . since the surface 6 is a single level , flat surface , the patient &# 39 ; s head and shoulder tend to contact the table surface , causing discomfort and lifting the breast somewhat out of the scanning chamber . [ 0035 ] fig2 shows a top view of the planar detector array 12 from fig1 . a laser source 14 generates a laser beams that impinges on the scanned object ( breast ) 8 at a point 16 . a plurality of detectors 18 defines an arc surrounding the scanned object . a collimator 20 defines each detector &# 39 ; s field of view to a small area on the surface of the scanned object . light enters the scanned object at point 16 and exits at every point on its circumference . three exit points 22 , 24 and 26 are shown , corresponding to three detectors . the entire mechanism rotates around the center - of orbit rotation 28 , as indicated by the curved double - headed arrow 30 . in the preferred implementation , every detector in the array is collimated , aiming at the center of orbit rotation 28 . the laser source also points toward the center of rotation . the detectors are spaced at equal angular increments around the center of rotation . the orbit rotation is preferably alternately 360 ° clockwise for one ( horizontal ) slice plane , and 360 ° counterclockwise for the next slice plane . [ 0037 ] fig3 shows a vertical cross - section through the planar detector array 12 of fig2 . the planar detector array 12 is shown as simultaneously imaging two adjacent slices 32 and 34 , though any number of slices can be imaged simultaneously , as disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 100 , 520 . the patient &# 39 ; s breast 8 is pendent within the scanning chamber 10 . the patient is supported by the scanning apparatus &# 39 ; tabletop surface 6 . the laser 14 projects a coherent light beam 36 which impinges on the patient &# 39 ; s breast at point 38 . two photodetectors 40 , one each from the two slice planes 32 and 34 , are shown imaging points 42 and 44 on the breast for the upper and lower slices , respectively . the opaque collimator 20 is shown as a single physical entity with two collimating channels 46 . the collimating channels 46 can be round , square , hexagonal , triangular or any other cross - sectional shape . the collimator 20 advantageously restricts the field of view of each detector assembly to a small , defined area on the surface of the scanned object . at the rear of each collimating channel is a lens 48 , which focuses the light propagating down the collimating channel onto the photodetector 40 . the lenses are shown as plano - convex , but can be biconvex or can be eliminated if the photodetector &# 39 ; s active area were larger than the collimating channel &# 39 ; s - cross - sectional area . the photodetectors are connected to a signal processing system 50 for amplification and analog - to - digital conversion . the laser 14 can be a semiconductor diode laser , a solid - state laser or any other near - infrared light source . the photodetectors 40 can be photodiodes , avalanche photodiodes , phototransistors , photomultiplier tubes , microchannel plates or any other photosensitive device that converts incoming light photons to an electrical signal . the photodetectors provide the means for detecting the laser beam after passing through the breast . [ 0040 ] fig4 shows a schematic side elevational view of a scanning apparatus 52 with a tabletop surface 54 shaped so as to allow vertical relief for the patient &# 39 ; s shoulder , arms , head and opposite breast . a prone patient 4 is positioned for an optical tomographic study , with one breast 8 pendent within a scanning chamber 56 . a folded - optics detector array 58 , shown schematically , orbits typically 360 ° around the vertical orbital axis of the scanning chamber 56 and increments vertically downward between orbits to image successive slice planes . this is repeated until all the slice planes of the object have been scanned . the tabletop surface 54 has a lower level surface 60 and a higher level surface 62 . the lower level surface 60 advantageously provides relief and support for the patient &# 39 ; s shoulder , arms , head and opposite breast . the higher level surface 62 advantageously provides support for the patient &# 39 ; s lower body and legs . [ 0042 ] fig5 a shows the scanning apparatus tabletop 54 in perspective . the patient &# 39 ; s breast 8 would be pendent in the scanning chamber 56 . the patient &# 39 ; s torso and legs are supported by the surface 62 , which is advantageously at the same level as the opening 64 of the scanning chamber 56 . the surface 60 supports the patient &# 39 ; s head , advantageously allowing the head to be positioned below the top of the scanning chamber for comfort . assuming the patient &# 39 ; s left breast is positioned in the scanning chamber 56 , surface 66 advantageously provides relief for the patient &# 39 ; s right breast and surface 68 provides relief for the patient &# 39 ; s left shoulder and a resting place for the patient &# 39 ; s left arm . the roles of the surfaces 66 and 68 are reversed for scanning the right breast . the tabletop 54 is preferably symmetrical in plan - view , as shown in fig5 b . surfaces 60 , 66 and 68 are at the same level in the preferred embodiment , approximately 7 centimeters below the rim of the scanning chamber 56 . however , it should be understood that these surfaces can be at different levels . a transition surface 70 between the higher level surface 62 and the lower level surfaces 60 , 66 and 68 is preferably slanted or ramped to provide room underneath for the detector array 58 . the surface 62 preferably tapers toward the opening 64 . the transition surface 70 also provides support for parts of the patient &# 39 ; s body immediately adjacent the breast being scanned . a horizontal flange or lip 71 around the opening 64 provides further comfortable support to the peripheral base area of the breast being scanned . the preferred embodiment has the patient lying prone with the breast pendent in the scanning chamber . although the tabletop is shown horizontal for a patient in prone position , it should be understood that the tabletop can be in any position . [ 0045 ] fig6 shows the signal processing system 50 . a plurality of photodetectors 40 are connected to a plurality of amplifiers 72 . in the preferred embodiment , the photodetectors are photodiodes and the amplifiers are integrators . the amplifiers are connected to a multiplexer ( mux ) 74 which presents one of “ n ” amplifier outputs to an analog - to - digital converter ( adc ) 76 . the digital output of the adc is connected to an image processor 78 , typically a general - purpose computer . the image processor performs the reconstruction computations to create cross - sectional images from the projection data collected by the scanning apparatus . multiple muxes and adcs can be employed in order to decrease the data acquisition time . [ 0046 ] fig7 shows a detailed vertical cross - sectional view along line 7 - 7 of fig5 of the folded - optics detector array 58 shown schematically in fig4 . the folded - optics detector array is shown as simultaneously imaging two adjacent slices , the preferred embodiment , though any number of slices can be imaged simultaneously , such as five slices shown in fig8 . the patient &# 39 ; s breast 8 is pendent within the scanning chamber 56 . the patient is supported by the scanning apparatus &# 39 ; tabletop 54 . the lower surfaces 66 and 68 are shown supporting the patient &# 39 ; s left shoulder and the right breast ( the left breast is shown within the scanning chamber ). the laser 14 projects a coherent light beam 36 which impinges on the patient &# 39 ; s breast at point 80 after reflecting from a planar turning mirror 82 and a conical mirror 84 . the planar turning mirror 82 is commonly used . the conical mirror 84 is a ring around the scanning chamber 56 and is a segment , a frustum of a hollow cone with the inside 45 ° conical surface 85 being reflective . the same conical mirror 84 reflects light emitted from the breast at points 88 and 90 into “ n ” number of two - detector assemblies 92 , which detect light coming from the upper and lower slices , respectively . the detector assemblies 92 are arranged in a circle or arc , with their longitudinal axes through the vertical channels all pointing upwards toward the conical mirror 84 . the slanting surface 70 advantageously provides room for the conical mirror 84 and the collimators 94 . the conical mirror 84 , in the preferred embodiment , is a diamond - turned aluminum mirror with a high - reflectivity gold plating on the inside conical surface 85 . alternatively , it can be polished glass or plastic with a reflective coating , or any other reflective material capable of being formed into a conical shape . the laser turning mirror 82 can be eliminated with the laser 14 projecting vertically onto the conical mirror 84 . the detector assemblies 92 consist of an opaque collimator 94 , shown as a single physical entity with two collimating channels 96 and 98 . the collimating channels are folded 90 ° at 99 by the conical mirror 84 and actually intersect each other , forming horizontal and vertical channels . the intersecting collimating channels , which allow the light to intersect , are not of concern , since light at these power levels , in air , does not interact with itself . there is no interference between the light from areas 88 and 90 although their paths cross . the collimating channels can be round , square , hexagonal , triangular or an other cross - sectional shape . the collimator restricts the fields of view of each detector assembly to a small , defined area on the surface of the breast 8 , the scanned object . at the rear or bottom of each vertical collimating channel is a lens 100 , which focuses the light propagating down the collimating channel onto the photodetector 102 located below the exit ends of the vertical channels . the lenses are shown as plano - convex , but can be biconvex or can be eliminated if the photodetector &# 39 ; s active area were larger than the collimating channel &# 39 ; s cross - sectional area . the photodetectors 102 are connected to the signal processing system 50 , providing amplification and analog - to - digital conversion , as shown in fig6 . the laser 14 and photodetectors 102 are the same as described for the planar detector configuration . [ 0051 ] fig8 shows a five - detector assembly 106 , using the conical mirror 84 of fig7 . the laser 14 projects a coherent light beam 36 which impinges on the patient &# 39 ; s breast 8 after reflecting from the planar turning mirror 82 and the conical mirror 84 . the same conical mirror 84 reflects light emitted from the breast at points 108 , 110 , 112 , 114 and 116 into “ n ” number of the five - detector assemblies 106 , advantageously allowing the simultaneous imaging of five consecutive slices . the detector assemblies 106 are arranged in a circle or arc around the scanning chamber 56 . it should be understood that the horizontal channels form a series of arcs around the opening of the scanning chamber , each arc being disposed vertically below the topmost arc . it should also be understood that the vertical channels similarly form a series of arcs around the opening , where each arc is larger than an adjacent arc nearer to the opening . [ 0052 ] fig9 shows an alternative to the conical mirror 84 for folding the optical path of both the laser beam 36 and the detectors 102 . the laser 14 projects a coherent light beam 36 which impinges on the patient &# 39 ; s breast 8 at 118 after reflecting from the planar turning mirror 82 and a conical prism 120 . the conical prism 120 is a ring around the scanning chamber 56 and is a right triangle swept into a circle . its outside surface 121 is preferably conical ; its inside surface 123 is preferably cylindrical . its cross - section is the classic 45 ° prism , which reflects light 90 ° by total internal reflection . the same conical prism 120 reflects light emitted from the breast at points 124 and 126 into “ n ” number of two - detector assemblies 92 imaging the upper and lower slices , respectively . the detector assemblies are arranged in a circle or arc , with the longitudinal axes of the vertical collimator channels all pointing upwards toward the conical prism 120 . the prism 120 may be made of optical glass , sapphire , quartz , various plastics or any other material with a high transmission of near - infrared light . [ 0053 ] fig1 shows an alternative to the conical mirror 84 or the prism 120 for folding the optical path of both the laser and the detectors . the laser 14 projects a coherent light beam 36 which is coupled by lens 128 into an optical source fiber 130 . lens 132 collimates the light from the source fiber 130 and projects a parallel beam 134 which impinges on the breast at point 136 . light emitted from the breast at points 138 and 140 is focused into optical detector fibers 142 by lenses 144 . the detector fibers 142 receive the light at their entry ends and conduct the light to detectors 146 located near their exit ends . additional lenses may be interposed between the detector fibers 142 and the detectors 146 , depending on the relative size of the optical fiber and detector . lens 128 may be eliminated depending on the relative size of the optical fiber 130 and the beam diameter from the laser 14 . lenses 132 and / or 144 may be eliminated , depending on the size and numerical aperture of the optical fibers and their proximity to the breast . it should be understood that the entry ends of the optic fibers 142 form a series of arcs around the opening , where each arc is disposed below the topmost arc . a number of planar mirrors can be employed alternatively to the conical mirror 84 , with the mirrors all at 45 ° and butted end - to - end forming an “ n ”- sided polygon . the more mirrors are used , the closer the approximation would be to the single - piece conical mirror . similarly , a number of 45 ° prisms , butted end - to - end to form a polygonal ring , can be used in place of the single conical prism . the mirror or the prism alters the light paths from the breast from the horizontal scan plane to the vertical longitudinal axes of the detector assemblies . the “ folding angle ” is disclosed as 90 °, but it should be understood that other folding angles can be employed . further , the scan plane need not be horizontal and the orbital axis vertical . in an optical scanner used for head imaging , for example , the scan plane can be vertical , or nearly so , with an essentially horizontal orbital axis . it should also be understood that the mirrors , prism or the optic fibers provide the means for folding and directing the laser beam across the opening from a location below the scan plane . the various collimators disclosed provide the means for restricting the field - of - view of each photodetector to a small area on the surface of the breast . while this invention has been described as having a preferred design , it is understood that it is capable of further modification , uses and / or adaptations of the invention following in general the principle of the invention and including such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which the invention pertains , and as may be applied to the essential features set forth , and fall within the scope of the invention or the limits of the appended claims . | 6 |
disclosed herein is a hydrophobic and oleophobic low adhesion surface coating for an ink jet printhead front face . when the coating is disposed on an ink jet printhead front face surface , jetted drops of inks , including ultra - violet ( uv ) gel ink ( also referred to herein as “ uv ink ”) and solid ink , exhibit low adhesion towards the surface coating . the adhesion of an ink drop toward a surface can be determined by measuring the sliding angle of the ink drop ( i . e ., the angle at which a surface is inclined relative to a horizontal position when the ink drop begins to slide over the surface without leaving residue or stain behind ). the lower the sliding angle , the lower the adhesion between the ink drop and the surface . as used herein , the term “ low adhesion ” means a low sliding angle of in one embodiment at least about 1 °, and in one embodiment no more than about 30 °, in another embodiment no more than about 25 °, and in yet another embodiment no more than about 20 °, although the sliding angles can be outside of these ranges . the term “ hydrophobic ” as used herein means that water forms a contact angle with the surface of the coating of at least about 80 °, and in many embodiments greater angles of 90 ° or more . the term “ oleophobic ” as used herein means that hexadecane forms a contact angle with the surface of the coating of at least about 50 °, and in many embodiments greater angles of 60 ° or more . the coating disclosed herein comprise a siloxane - etherimide copolymer . more specifically , the polymer is a copolymer of a siloxane , an ether , and an imide , or of a siloxane and an ether imide , including block , alternating , and / or random copolymers , such as those of the formulae ( i ) r 1 and r 6 each , independently of the others , is ( a ) an alkylene group , including linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , cyclic , substituted , and unsubstituted alkylene groups , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the alkylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 1 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with at least about 2 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with at least about 3 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 18 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 16 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 12 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges ; ( b ) an arylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylene groups , wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the arylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 5 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as phenylene or the like , ( c ) an arylalkylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylalkylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as benzylene or the like ; or ( d ) an alkylarylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted alkylarylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylarylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylarylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as tolylene or the like ; ( ii ) r 2 , r 3 , and r 4 , and r 5 each , independently of the others , is ( a ) a hydrogen atom ; ( b ) an alkyl group , including linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , cyclic , substituted , and unsubstituted alkyl groups , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the alkyl group , in one embodiment with at least about 1 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with at least about 2 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with at least about 3 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 18 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 16 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 12 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges ; ( c ) an aryl group , including substituted and unsubstituted aryl groups , wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the aryl group , in one embodiment with at least about 5 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as phenyl or the like , ( d ) an arylalkyl group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylalkyl groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkyl can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkyl group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as benzyl or the like ; or ( e ) an alkylaryl group , including substituted and unsubstituted alkylaryl groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylaryl can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylaryl group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as tolylene or the like ; ( iii ) r 7 and r 7 ′ each , independently of the other , is : ( a ) an arylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylene groups , wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the arylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 5 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as phenylene or the like , ( b ) an arylalkylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylalkylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as benzylene or the like ; or ( c ) an alkylarylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted alkylarylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylarylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylarylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as tolylene or the like ; ( iv ) r 8 and r 9 each , independently of the other , is : ( a ) an alkylene group , including linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , cyclic , substituted , and unsubstituted alkylene groups , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the alkylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 1 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with at least about 2 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with at least about 3 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 18 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 16 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 12 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges ; ( b ) an arylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylene groups , wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the arylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 5 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as phenylene or the like , ( c ) an arylalkylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylalkylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as benzylene or the like ; or ( d ) an alkylarylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted alkylarylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylarylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylarylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as tolylene or the like ; ( v ) x is — o — or a group of the formula — o — r 10 — o —, wherein r 10 is : ( a ) an arylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylene groups , wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in the arylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 5 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as phenyl or the like , ( b ) an arylalkylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted arylalkylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the arylalkylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the arylalkylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as benzyl or the like ; or ( c ) an alkylarylene group , including substituted and unsubstituted alkylarylene groups , wherein the alkyl portion of the alkylarylene can be linear , branched , saturated , unsaturated , and / or cyclic , and wherein hetero atoms , such as oxygen , nitrogen , sulfur , silicon , phosphorus , boron , or the like either may or may not be present in either or both of the alkyl portion and the aryl portion of the alkylarylene group , in one embodiment with at least about 6 carbon atoms , and in another embodiment with at least about 7 carbon atoms , and in one embodiment with no more than about 36 carbon atoms , in another embodiment with no more than about 28 carbon atoms , and in yet another embodiment with no more than about 24 carbon atoms , although the number of carbon atoms can be outside of these ranges , such as tolyl or the like ; ( vi ) x is an integer representing the number of repeat siloxane units , and is in one embodiment at least about 1 , in another embodiment at least about 2 , and in yet another embodiment at least about 4 , and in one embodiment no more than about 100 , 000 , in another embodiment no more than about 80 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 50 , 000 , although the value can be outside of these ranges ; ( vii ) y is an integer representing the number of repeat imide units , and is in one embodiment at least about 5 , in another embodiment at least about 10 , and in yet another embodiment at least about 15 , and in one embodiment no more than about 100 , 000 , in another embodiment no more than about 80 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 50 , 000 , although the value can be outside of these ranges ; ( viii ) z is an integer representing the number of repeat ether units , and is in one embodiment at least about 5 , in another embodiment at least about 10 , and in yet another embodiment at least about 15 , and in one embodiment no more than about 100 , 000 , in another embodiment no more than about 80 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 50 , 000 , although the value can be outside of these ranges ; ( ix ) w is an integer representing the number of repeat etherimide units , and is in one embodiment at least about 5 , in another embodiment at least about 10 , and in yet another embodiment at least about 15 , and in one embodiment no more than about 100 , 000 , in another embodiment no more than about 80 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 50 , 000 , although the value can be outside of these ranges ; ( x ) n is an integer representing the number of — o — si — repeat units , and is in one embodiment at least about 1 , and in one embodiment no more than about 30 , although the value of n can be outside of these ranges ; wherein examples of the substituents on the substituted alkyl , alkylene , aryl , arylene , arylalkyl , arylalkylene , alkylaryl , and alkylarylene groups can be hydroxy groups , halogen atoms , amine groups , imine groups , ammonium groups , cyano groups , pyridine groups , pyridinium groups , ether groups , aldehyde groups , ketone groups , ester groups , amide groups , carbonyl groups , thiocarbonyl groups , sulfate groups , sulfonate groups , sulfonic acid groups , sulfide groups , sulfoxide groups , phosphine groups , phosphonium groups , phosphate groups , nitrile groups , mercapto groups , nitro groups , nitroso groups , sulfone groups , acyl groups , acid anhydride groups , azide groups , azo groups , cyanato groups , isocyanato groups , thiocyanato groups , isothiocyanato groups , carboxylate groups , carboxylic acid groups , urethane groups , urea groups , silyl groups , siloxyl groups , silane groups , mixtures thereof , or the like , wherein two or more substituents can be joined together to form a ring . the copolymers can be any kind of copolymer , including random , alternating , block , graft , or the like . any desired or effective ratio of polysiloxane monomer to etherimide monomer can be used , in one embodiment about 0 . 1 : 0 . 9 , in another embodiment 0 . 2 : 0 . 8 , in yet another embodiment about 0 . 3 : 0 . 7 , and in yet another embodiment about 0 . 5 : 0 . 5 , although the ratio can be outside of these ranges . in one specific embodiment , the siloxane content of the copolymer is at least about 20 weight percent , and in one specific embodiment , the siloxane content of the copolymer is no more than about 40 weight percent , although the siloxane content can be outside of these ranges . in one specific embodiment , the siloxane content of the copolymer is about 30 weight percent . in one specific embodiment , r 2 , r 3 , r 4 , and r 5 are all methyl groups . in one specific embodiment , r 1 and r 6 are n - propylene groups . other specific examples of — r 10 — include , but are not limited to , wherein q is a divalent moiety , such as ( but not limited to ) — o —, — s —, — c (═ o )—, — so —, — so 2 —, or c a h 2a wherein a is an integer of from 1 to about 20 , and the like , as well as halogenated derivatives thereof . suitable siloxane - etherimide copolymers include siltem ® 1600 resin , available from sabic , and like commercially available products . the synthesis of these copolymers and their intermediate precursors is known in the art , and is described in , for example , u . s . patent publications 2009 / 0234060 and 2010 / 0147548 and u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 185 , 719 , 4 , 808 , 686 , 3 , 972 , 902 , 4 , 455 , 410 , 3 , 847 , 867 , 3 , 850 , 885 , 3 , 852 , 242 , 3 , 855 , 178 , 3 , 983 , 093 , and 4 , 443 , 591 , the disclosures of each of which are totally incorporated herein by reference . the copolymers have weight average molecular weights of in one embodiment at least about 2 , 000 , in another embodiment at least about 4 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment at least about 5 , 000 , and in one embodiment no more than about 1 , 000 , 000 , in another embodiment no more than about 800 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 500 , 000 , although mw can be outside of these ranges . the copolymers have number average molecular weights of in one embodiment at least about 2 , 000 , in another embodiment at least about 4 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment at least about 5 , 000 , and in one embodiment no more than about 1 , 000 , 000 , in another embodiment no more than about 800 , 000 , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 500 , 000 , although mw can be outside of these ranges . the copolymers exhibit glass transition temperatures of in one embodiment at least about 100 ° c ., in another embodiment at least about 120 ° c ., and in yet another embodiment at least about 140 ° c ., and in one embodiment no more than about 450 ° c ., in another embodiment no more than about 425 ° c ., and in yet another embodiment no more than about 400 ° c ., although the temperature can be outside of these ranges . the copolymers exhibit shore d hardness values of in one embodiment at least about 25 , in another embodiment at least about 45 , and in yet another embodiment at least about 60 , although the hardness values can be outside of these ranges . the copolymers exhibit yield tensile strength values of in one embodiment at least about 15 mpa , in another embodiment at least about 20 mpa , and in yet another embodiment at least about 30 mpa , although the hardness values can be outside of these ranges . the copolymers exhibit yield elongation values of in one embodiment at least about 1 %, in another embodiment at least about 3 %, and in yet another embodiment at least about 5 %, and in one embodiment no more than about 300 %, in another embodiment no more than about 200 %, and in yet another embodiment no more than about 100 %, although the values can be outside of these ranges . the coatings also comprise a fluorinated nonionic surfactant to reduce surface tension . examples of suitable surfactants include perfluoroalkyl sulfonates , perfluoroalkyl carboxylates , perfluoroalkyl phosphoric acid esters , perfluoroalkyl ethylene oxide adducts , perfluoroalkyl betaine , perfluoroalkyl polyoxyethylene ethanols , fluorinated alkyl esters , perfluoroalkylamine oxides , fluorinated organosiloxanes , or the like , as well as mixtures thereof . examples of suitable commercially available fluorinated nonionic surfactants include those in the fluorad series from 3m , such as fc - 4432 , fc - 4434 , and fc - 4430 . the fluorinated nonionic surfactant is present in the coating in any desired or effective amount , in one embodiment at least about 0 . 0001 percent by weight of the coating , in another embodiment at least about 0 . 001 percent by weight of the coating , and in yet another embodiment at least about 0 . 01 percent by weight of the coating , and one embodiment no more than about 20 percent by weight of the coating , in another embodiment no more than about 10 percent by weight of the coating , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 5 percent by weight of the coating , although the amount can be outside of these ranges . the coatings disclosed herein can be employed as a printhead front face coating for an inkjet printhead configured to eject any suitable ink , including aqueous inks , solvent inks , uv - curable inks , dye sublimation inks , solid phase change inks , or the like . an exemplary ink jet printhead suitable for use with the oleophobic low adhesion coating disclosed herein is described in fig1 . referring to fig1 , an ink jet printhead 20 according to one embodiment includes a support brace 22 , a nozzle plate 24 bonded to the support brace 22 , and an oleophobic low adhesion coating , such as oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 . the support brace 22 is formed of any suitable material , such as stainless steel or the like , and include apertures 22 a defined therein . the apertures 22 a communicate with an ink source ( not shown ). the nozzle plate 24 is formed of any suitable material , such as polyimide or the like , and includes nozzles 24 a defined therein . the nozzles 24 a communicate with the ink source via the apertures 22 a such that ink from the ink source is jettable from the printhead 20 onto a recording substrate through a nozzle 24 a . in the illustrated embodiment , the nozzle plate 24 is bonded to the support brace by an intervening adhesive material 28 . the adhesive material 28 can be provided as a thermoplastic adhesive that can be melted during a bonding process to bond the nozzle plate 24 to the support brace 22 . the nozzle plate 24 and the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 can also be heated during the bonding process . depending on the material from which the thermoplastic adhesive is formed , the bonding temperature can be in a range of from about 180 ° c . to about 325 ° c ., although the temperature can be outside of these ranges . conventional oleophobic low adhesion coatings tend to degrade when exposed to temperatures encountered during typical bonding processes or other high - temperature , high - pressure processes encountered during fabrication of ink jet printheads . the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 disclosed herein , however , exhibits a sufficiently low adhesion ( indicated by low sliding angles ) and high contact angle with respect to an ink after it has been heated to the bonding temperature that it can provide a self - cleaning , contamination - free ink jet printhead 20 with high drool pressure . the ability of the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 to resist substantial degradation in desirable surface properties , including low sliding angle and high contact angle , upon exposure to elevated temperatures , enables ink jet printheads having self - cleaning abilities while maintaining high drool pressure to be fabricated using high - temperature and high - pressure processes . an exemplary process of forming an ink jet printhead is described with respect to fig1 to 4 . referring to fig2 , an ink jet printhead , such as printhead 20 , can be formed by forming an oleophobic low adhesion coating such coating 26 on a substrate 32 . the substrate 32 can be formed of any suitable material , such as polyimide or the like . in one embodiment , the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 may be formed on the substrate 32 by initially applying the reactant mixture that , as described above , includes the mixture of monomers , such as siltem 1600 , the fluorinated nonionic surfactant , and a suitable solvent , such as n - methylpyrrolidinone , n , n - dimethylformamide , tetrahydrofuran , or the like , as well as mixtures thereof . after the reactant mixture is applied to the substrate 32 , the reactants are reacted together to form the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 . the reactants can be reacted together by , for example , curing the reactant mixture . the reactant mixture is first cured at a temperature of in one embodiment at least about 25 ° c ., in another embodiment at least about 50 ° c ., and in yet another embodiment at least about 75 ° c ., and in one embodiment no more than about 400 ° c ., in another embodiment no more than about 300 ° c ., and in yet another embodiment no more than about 200 ° c ., although the temperature can be outside of these ranges , for a period of in one embodiment at least about 1 minute , in another embodiment at least about 5 minutes , and yet another embodiment at least about 10 minutes , although the period of time can be outside of these ranges , followed by a high temperature post - cure at in one embodiment in one embodiment at least about 100 ° c ., in another embodiment at least about 120 ° c ., and in yet another embodiment at least about 150 ° c ., and in one embodiment no more than about 500 ° c ., in another embodiment no more than about 450 ° c ., and in yet another embodiment no more than about 400 ° c ., although the temperature can be outside of these ranges , for a period of in one embodiment at least about 1 minute , in another embodiment at least about 5 minutes , and yet another embodiment at least about 10 minutes , and in one embodiment no more than about 24 hours , in another embodiment no more than about 12 hours , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 10 hours , although the period of time can be outside of these ranges . the reactant mixture can be applied to the substrate 32 using any suitable method , such as die extrusion coating , dip coating , spray coating , spin coating , flow coating , stamp printing , blade techniques , or the like . an air atomization device such as an air brush or an automated air / liquid spray can be used to spray the reactant mixture . the air atomization device can be mounted on an automated reciprocator that moves in a uniform pattern to cover the surface of the substrate 32 with a uniform ( or substantially uniform ) amount of the reactant mixture . the use of a doctor blade is another technique that can be employed to apply the reactant mixture . in flow coating , a programmable dispenser is used to apply the reactant mixture . in yet another embodiment , oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 can be first cured into a sheet and then applied and bonded to substrate 32 with any desirable or suitable adhesive material . further details on this method are disclosed in , for example , u . s . patent publications 2011 / 0157278 and 2011 / 0228005 , the disclosures of each of which are totally incorporated herein by reference . referring to fig3 , the substrate 32 is bonded to the aperture brace 22 via adhesive material 28 , resulting in the structure shown in fig5 . in one embodiment , the adhesive material 28 is bonded to the aperture brace 22 before being bonded to the substrate 32 . in another embodiment , the adhesive material 28 is bonded to the substrate 32 before being bonded to the aperture brace 22 . in yet another embodiment , the adhesive material 28 is bonded to the substrate 32 and the aperture brace 22 simultaneously . in embodiments where the adhesive material 28 is provided as a thermoplastic adhesive , the adhesive material 28 is bonded to the substrate 32 and the aperture brace 22 by melting the thermoplastic adhesive at , and subjecting the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 to , a bonding temperature and a bonding pressure . the bonding temperature is in one embodiment at least about 180 ° c ., and in one embodiment no more than about 325 ° c ., and in another embodiment no more than about 290 ° c ., although the temperatures can be outside of these ranges . the bonding pressure is in one embodiment at least about 100 psi , and in one embodiment no more than about 400 psi , and in another embodiment no more than about 300 psi , although the pressures can be outside of these ranges . after bonding the substrate 32 to the aperture brace 22 , the aperture brace 22 can be used as a mask during one or more patterning processes to extend the apertures 22 a into the adhesive material 28 , as shown in fig1 . the aperture brace 22 can also be used as a mask during one or more patterning processes to form nozzles 24 a in the substrate 32 , thereby forming the nozzle plate 24 shown in fig1 . the one or more patterning processes used to form nozzles 24 a can also be applied to form nozzle openings 26 a within the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 , wherein the nozzle openings 26 a communicate with the nozzles 24 a . in one embodiment , the apertures 22 a can be extended into the adhesive material 28 by a laser ablation patterning process or the like . in one embodiment , the nozzles 24 a and nozzle openings 26 a can be formed in the substrate 32 and the oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 , respectively , by a laser ablation patterning process or the like . the front face coatings disclosed herein are thermally stable under printhead fabrication conditions and printer operating conditions . the front face coatings exhibit oleophobic characteristics after being subjected to temperatures of in one embodiment at least about 180 ° c ., and in one embodiment no more than about 325 ° c ., and in another embodiment no more than about 290 ° c ., although the temperatures can be outside of these ranges , and pressures of in one embodiment at least about 100 psi , and in one embodiment no more than about 400 psi , and in another embodiment no more than about 300 psi , although the pressures can be outside of these ranges , for periods of time of in one embodiment at least about 10 minutes , and in another embodiment at least about 30 minutes , and in one embodiment no longer than about 2 hours , although the period of time can be outside of these ranges . the surface coating can be bonded to a stainless steel aperture brace at high temperature and high pressure without any degradation , and the resulting printhead can prevent ink contamination because ink droplets can roll off the printhead front face , leaving behind no residue . the oleophobic low adhesion surface coating includes an oleophobic low adhesion polymeric material configured such that jetted drops of ultra - violet gel ink or jetted drops of solid ink exhibit a contact angle of in one embodiment at least about 45 °, in another embodiment at least about 55 °, and in yet another embodiment at least about 65 °, and in one embodiment no more than about 150 °, although the contact angle can be outside of these ranges . when ink is filled into the printhead , it is desired to maintain the ink within the nozzle until it is time to eject the ink . generally , the greater the ink contact angle the better ( higher ) the drool pressure . drool pressure relates to the ability of the aperture plate to avoid ink weeping out of the nozzle opening when the pressure of the ink tank ( reservoir ) increases . in some embodiments , the oleophobic low adhesion surface coatings described herein provide , in combination , low adhesion and high contact angle for ultra - violet curable gel ink and solid ink , which further provides the benefit of improved drool pressure or reduced or eliminated weeping of ink out of the nozzle . the coatings disclosed herein have a surface energy of in one embodiment at least about 0 . 1 dyne per centimeter , in another embodiment at least about 0 . 5 dyne per centimeter , and in yet another embodiment at least about 1 dyne per centimeter , and in one embodiment no more than about 100 dynes per centimeter , in another embodiment no more than about 80 dynes per centimeter , and in yet another embodiment no more than about 60 dynes per centimeter , although the surface energy can be outside of these ranges . the coatings disclosed herein exhibit water contact angles of in one embodiment at least about 60 °, in another embodiment at least about 80 °, and in yet another embodiment at least about 90 °, although the value can be outside of these ranges . specific embodiments will now be described in detail . these examples are intended to be illustrative , and the claims are not limited to the materials , conditions , or process parameters set forth in these embodiments . all parts and percentages are by weight unless otherwise indicated . a siloxane - etherimide copolymer resin ( siltem ® 1600 , 28 g , obtained from sabic , pittsfield , mass ., was dissolved in n - methylpyrrolidinone solvent ( 260 g ). after a clear amber solution was obtained , a nonionic fluorosurfactant ( fluorad fc - 4432 , obtained from 3m , st . paul , minn ., 0 . 056 g ) was added to the solution . the solution thus obtained was applied on upilex polyimide film by a 0 . 25 - mil bird bar . the coating was dried first at 110 ° c . for 30 minutes , second at 190 ° c . for 45 minutes , and finally at 250 ° c . for 30 minutes . the cured film had a very smooth surface . the water contact angle of the cured film was 108 . 4 °, the formamide contact angle was 95 . 6 °, and the surface energy was 12 . 3 dyne / cm . it is believed that applying this film to a printhead nozzle plate as illustrated in fig1 to 4 as oleophobic low adhesion coating 26 will result in a printhead exhibiting , in some embodiments , advantages such as reduced or eliminates wetting , drooling , flooding , or contamination of ink over the printhead front face , ink phobicity and robustness to withstand maintenance procedures such as wiping of the printhead front face , ease of cleaning or , in some instances , self - cleaning properties , thereby reducing or eliminating hardware complexity , such as the need for a maintenance unit , reducing run cost and improving system reliability , sufficient robustness to survive both the temperature and pressure conditions encountered during printhead fabrication and the temperature conditions encountered during printer operation without degradation , improved anti - scratch properties , and improved chemical resistance to varied chemical environments . amine - terminated poly ( dimethylsiloxane ) ( gp - 965 , available from genesee polymers corporation , burton , mich .) 25 g and 4 , 4 ′- oxydianiline 10 g are dissolved in 450 ml n - methylpyrrolidinone solvent . with mechanical stirring and under flowing nitrogen gas , pyromellitic dianhydride 21 . 8 g is added slowly . the mixture is mixed at room temperature for 30 minutes , then slowly heated to 80 ° c . over 2 h , and thereafter maintained at this temperature for 1 . 5 h . after subsequent cooling to room temperature , a viscous brownish solution is obtained . the process of example i is then repeated except that the siltem ® 1600 is replaced with an equal amount of the solution thus obtained . it is believed that similar results will be obtained . amine - terminated poly ( dimethylsiloxane ) ( gp - 468 , available from genesee polymers corporation ) 67 g and 4 , 4 ′- oxydianiline 10 g are dissolved in 600 ml n - methylpyrrolidinone solvent . with mechanical stirring and under flowing nitrogen gas , benzophenone - 3 , 3 ′, 4 , 4 ′- tetracarboxylic dianhydride 32 . 2 g is added slowly . the mixture is mixed at room temperature for 30 minutes , then slowly heated to 80 ° c . over 2 h , and thereafter maintained at this temperature for 1 . 5 h . after subsequent cooling to room temperature , a viscous brownish solution is obtained . the process of example i is then repeated except that the siltem ® 1600 is replaced with an equal amount of the solution thus obtained . it is believed that similar results will be obtained . amine - terminated poly ( dimethylsiloxane ) ( gp - 965 , available from genesee polymers corporation ) 12 . 5 g , gp - 468 amine - terminated poly ( dimethylsiloxane ) 33 . 5 g , and 4 , 4 ′- oxydianiline 10 g , are dissolved in 500 ml n - methylpyrrolidinone solvent . with mechanical stirring and under flowing nitrogen gas , pyromellitic dianhydride 21 . 8 g is added slowly . the mixture is mixed at room temperature for 30 minutes , then slowly heated to 80 ° c . over 2 h , and thereafter maintained at this temperature for 1 . 5 h . after subsequent cooling to room temperature , a viscous brownish solution is obtained . the process of example i is then repeated except that the siltem ® 1600 is replaced with an equal amount of the solution thus obtained . it is believed that similar results will be obtained . 4 , 4 ′-[ oxybis ( dimethylsilylene )] bis ( 1 , 2 - benzenedicarboxylic acid ) dianhydride 42 . 6 g is dissolved in 400 ml n - methylpyrrolidinone solvent . with mechanical stirring and under flowing nitrogen gas , 4 , 4 ′- oxydianline 20 g is added slowly . the mixture is mixed at room temperature for 30 minutes , then slowly heated to 80 ° c . over 2 h , and thereafter maintained at this temperature for 1 . 5 h . after subsequent cooling to room temperature , a viscous brownish solution is obtained . the process of example i is then repeated except that the siltem ® 1600 is replaced with an equal amount of the solution thus obtained . it is believed that similar results will be obtained . 3 , 3 ′, 4 , 4 ′- biphenyltetracarboxylic acid dianhydride 14 . 7 g and 4 , 4 ′-[ oxybis ( dimethylsilylene )] bis ( 1 , 2 - benzenedicarboxylic acid ) dianhydride 21 . 3 g are dissolved in 400 ml n - methylpyrrolidinone solvent . with mechanical stirring and under flowing nitrogen gas , 4 , 4 ′- oxydianline 20 g is added slowly . the mixture is mixed at room temperature for 30 minutes , then slowly heated to 80 ° c . over 2 h , and thereafter maintained at this temperature for 1 . 5 h . after subsequent cooling to room temperature , a viscous brownish solution is obtained . the process of example i is then repeated except that the siltem ® 1600 is replaced with an equal amount of the solution thus obtained . it is believed that similar results will be obtained . amine - terminated poly ( dimethylsiloxane ) ( gp - 468 , available from genesee polymers corporation ) 133 . 3 g is dissolved in 1 , 000 ml n - methylpyrrolidinone solvent . with mechanical stirring and under flowing nitrogen gas , 2 , 2 ′- bis [ 4 -( 3 , 4 - dicarboxyphenoxy ) phenyl ] propane dianhydride 52 g is added slowly . the mixture is mixed at room temperature for 30 minutes , then slowly heated to 80 ° c . over 2 h , and thereafter maintained at this temperature for 1 . 5 h . after subsequent cooling to room temperature , a viscous brownish solution is obtained . the process of example i is then repeated except that the siltem ® 1600 is replaced with an equal amount of the solution thus obtained . it is believed that similar results will be obtained . other embodiments and modifications of the present invention may occur to those of ordinary skill in the art subsequent to a review of the information presented herein ; these embodiments and modifications , as well as equivalents thereof , are also included within the scope of this invention . the recited order of processing elements or sequences , or the use of numbers , letters , or other designations therefor , is not intended to limit a claimed process to any order except as specified in the claim itself . | 1 |
during drilling , completion , and work - over operations of an oil and gas well , various treatment agents are introduced into the wellbore . a well treatment is disclosed herein that includes a wellbore treatment agent encapsulated , entrapped , or embedded in a polysaccharide to form a treatment complex . the well treatment may be introduced into a wellbore for sustained or delayed release of the treatment agent . the wellbore treatment agent may be any agent used in the drilling , completion , or work over operations of an oil and gas wellbore through a subterranean formation . the treatment agent may be in the form of a liquid , a solid , an emulsion , a gel , a powder , crystals , flakes , or a combination thereof . the wellbore treatment agent may include a corrosion inhibitor , a scale inhibitor , a paraffin inhibitor , an asphaltene inhibitor , or a hydrate inhibitor . suitable corrosion inhibitors may include , but are not limited to , quaternary amines such as pyridine and quinolone quats . an example of a suitable scale inhibitor may be triethanolamine phosphate ester or other polymeric phosphate or pho sphonate . suitable paraffin inhibitors may include , but are not limited to , paraffin crystal modifiers and dispersants . suitable paraffin crystal modifiers include , but are not limited to , ethylene vinyl acetate polymer , fatty alcohol esters of olefin maleic anhydride copolymers , and acrylate polymers of fatty alcohol esters . suitable dispersants include , but are not limited to , dodecyl benzene sulfonate , oxyalkylated alkylphenols , and oxyalkylated alkylphenolic resins . suitable asphaltene inhibitors may include , but are not limited to , sorbitan monooleate or polyisobutylene succinic anhydride . suitable hydrate inhibitors may include , but are not limited to , trihydroxyethyltriazine and polyethoxy polyamine . other examples of wellbore treatment agents that may be encapsulated , entrapped , or embedded within the polysaccharide to form the treatment complex may include , but are not limited to , breakers , ph controlling agents , trapping agents , clay control agents , fluid - loss agents , surface modifiers , acidizing agents , fines migration agents , flow - back additives , cross - linkers , emulsifiers , initiators for polymerization , water control agents , and tracer molecules , and h 2 s scavengers . the polysaccharide may be naturally occurring , linear or crosslinked , and / or heat - resistant . the polysaccharide may be completely water soluble or water soluble at a certain temperature or a certain ph . suitable polysaccharides include , but are not limited to , starches , starch derivatives , modified starches , cellulose derivatives , naturally occurring gums , and biopolymers . examples of suitable starch derivatives and modified starches may include , but are not limited to , pregelatinized starches , crosslinked starches , dextrinized starches , oxidized starches , degraded starches , starch ethers , and starch esters . an example of a suitable degraded starch may be , but is not limited to , maltodextrin . examples of suitable starch ethers may include , but are not limited to , carboxymethyl starch , hydroxyethyl starch , hydroxypropyl starch , and a cationic starch . an example of a suitable starch ester may be , but is not limited to , starch acetate . suitable cellulose derivatives may include , but are not limited to carboxymethyl cellulose , hydroxyethyl cellulose , hydroxypropyl cellulose , carboxymethyl hydroxyethyl , methyl cellulose , and a cationic cellulose . suitable gums may include , but are not limited to , guar gum , hydroxypropyl guar , carboxymethyl hydroxypropyl guar , locust bean gum , ghatti gum , karaya gum , tamarind gum , carrageenan , and alginate . examples of suitable biopolymers may include , but are not limited to xanthan gum , welan gum , or gellan gum . further examples of suitable polysaccharides include , but are not limited to , agar and chitosan . a crosslinking agent may be added to the polysaccharide to form a crosslinked polysaccharide . the crosslinking agent may include a cation or an anion . an example of a suitable cation may be , but is not limited to , ca 2 + . an example of a suitable anion may be , but is not limited to , cl − . examples of suitable crosslinking agents may include , but are not limited to , apchlorohydrane , glutaraldehyde , and divinyl sulfone . in one embodiment , the polysaccharide and the treatment agent may both be water soluble , but the treatment complex may be made water insoluble or slowly dissolvable up to a certain temperature by the addition of a crosslinking agent in the polysaccharide . for example , the polysaccharide may be calcium alginate cross - linked polymer , which dissolves in water at a temperature of 250 ° f . or greater . a well treatment may include a treatment agent encapsulated , entrapped , or embedded ( such as by adsorption ) in a polysaccharide to form a treatment complex . the treatment complex may be in the form of a powder , a slurry , a gel , gel strips , films , beads , agglomerates , capsules , or any other form capable of being deployed into a wellbore in a well treatment . methods of encapsulating , entrapping , and embedding are well known in the art . in one embodiment , the treatment complex may include beads formed by a treatment agent encapsulated in a polysaccharide coating . the beads may have polysaccharide coatings with varying thicknesses for sustained release of the treatment agent over a release time period . the thickness of the polysaccharide coatings of the beads may vary as necessary up to 80 %. the beads may also have varying mesh sizes . the mesh sizes of the beads may vary from 200 μm to 800 μm . in another embodiment , the treatment complex may be coated with a polycationic polymer to delay a beginning time of the release time period for a delay time period . examples of suitable polycationic polymers for the additional coating on the treatment complex include , but are not limited to , chitosan , poly ( dimethyl diallylammonium chloride ), quaternarized derivatives of poly ( dimethyl aminoethyl methylacrylate ) peptide . the well treatment may be introduced into a wellbore through a subterranean formation , and the treatment complex may be allowed to release the treatment agent over a release time period . polysaccharides are known to degrade or melt at higher temperatures such as the temperatures within the wellbore . the treatment agent may be released from the treatment complex as the polysaccharide begins to degrade or melt at higher temperatures in the wellbore . the treatment agent may be retained in the treatment complex for a delay time period before the treatment agent is released . the treatment agent may be released over a release time period from the end of the delay time period until the polysaccharide is completely broken down or dissolved in the reservoir fluid . alternatively , the treatment agent may be released through diffusion . the rate of diffusion of the treatment agent from the treatment complex may increase with temperature increases . in this way , the well treatment provides a mechanism for employing a treatment agent in a wellbore with the ability to manipulate the time period for release of the treatment agent . delayed and / or sustained release of the treatment agent from the treatment complex may be achieved . the delay time period may depend on when certain reservoir fluids contact the treatment complex and on the wellbore temperature . the delay time period may range from 1 hour to 24 hours . the release time period may range from 1 day to 10 years . the well treatment introduced into the wellbore may include the treatment complex in a brine solution . suitable brine solutions include , but are not limited to , calcium chloride , potassium chloride , sodium chloride , calcium bromide , potassium bromide , sodium bromide , zinc chloride , zinc bromide , potassium formate , cesium formate , sodium formate , calcium formate , or any combination of these brines . alternatively , the well treatment introduced into the wellbore may include the treatment complex in a stimulation fluid , such as fracturing , acidizing , or gravel packing fluids . generally , the amount of treatment complex in the well treatment may be an amount of treatment complex that includes a sufficient amount of treatment agent to accomplish the goal of the treatment agent in the wellbore . this amount will be determinable by one of ordinary skill in the art with the benefit of this disclosure . in some embodiments , the amount of the treatment complex may be in the range of about 2 % to about 10 % by weight of a proppant with which the well treatment is introduced into the wellbore . in another embodiment , the well treatment may be placed within a carrier , a downhole tool , a sliding sleeve , a screen , a passive or active inflow control device , or in a proppant pack , which is then employed downhole for the introduction of the treatment complex into the wellbore . in one embodiment , the well treatment may be used for proppant flow - back prevention . after all or substantially all of the treatment agent is released from the treatment complex in the wellbore which may be at the end of the release time period , a second treatment agent may be introduced into the wellbore to form a second treatment complex with the polysaccharide in the wellbore . the second treatment agent may be introduced into the wellbore in a liquid form . the second treatment agent may be the same as or different from the treatment agent included in the treatment complex that was initially introduced into the wellbore . the second treatment complex may be formed by adsorption or diffusion of the second treatment agent onto or into the polysaccharide in the wellbore . the second treatment complex may be allowed to release the second treatment agent over a second release time period . in one embodiment , a well treatment may include treatment complexes having differing treatment agents and / or differing polysaccharides . for example , a well treatment may include a first treatment complex formed of a first treatment agent encapsulated , entrapped , or embedded in a first polysaccharide , and a second treatment complex formed of a second treatment agent encapsulated , entrapped , or embedded in a second polysaccharide . the first treatment agent may be a different wellbore treatment agent than the second treatment agent , but the first treatment complex and the second treatment complex may be included in a single well treatment that is deployed in a wellbore . the first treatment agent and the second treatment agent may be any of the above - described treatment agents . the first polysaccharide and the second polysaccharide may be any of the above - described polysaccharides . the encapsulating , entrapping , or embedding polysaccharides may be recovered from the wellbore after the treatment agent is released by dissolving the polysaccharide in water or a suitable brine solution , or at a suitable ph or temperature . a treatment complex was formed by encapsulating a solid treatment agent in a polysaccharide matrix . specifically , the treatment agent was a solid scale inhibitor and the polysaccharide was agar . a photomicrograph taken at 20 × magnification showed that the crystalline particles of the solid scale inhibitor were visible through the agar matrix layer . the solid scale inhibitor may be released from the agar matrix through diffusion . the solid scale inhibitor may also be released when the agar begins to dissolve in water at elevated temperatures ( e . g ., 185 ° f . or greater ). a treatment complex was formed by encapsulating a liquid treatment agent in a polysaccharide matrix . specifically , the treatment agent was a liquid scale inhibitor and the polysaccharide was agar . a photomicrograph taken at 50 × magnification showed agar beads containing the liquid scale inhibitor . the liquid scale inhibitor may be released from the agar beads through diffusion . the liquid scale inhibitor may also be released when the agar begins to dissolve in water at elevated temperatures ( e . g ., 185 ° f . or greater ). a treatment complex was formed by entrapping a treatment agent in a cross - linked polysaccharide matrix . specifically , the treatment agent was a solid scale inhibitor and the polysaccharide was alginate . a photomicrograph taken at 50 × magnification showed alginate beads containing the solid scale inhibitor . the solid scale inhibitor may be released from the alginate beads through diffusion . the solid scale inhibitor may also be released when the alginate begins to dissolve in water at elevated temperatures ( e . g ., 250 ° f . or greater ). the solid scale inhibitor may also be released in an aqueous medium containing at least one type of mono - positive ions , such as sodium ( na + ) or potassium ( k + ) ions , as de - crosslinking occurs . however , when a brine with a purely divalent ion , such as ca 2 + or zn 2 + , is present in the aqueous medium , the release of the solid scale inhibitor may be significantly slower . a first sample of the alginate beads were placed in deionized water and a second sample of the alginate beads were placed in a 1 % sodium sulfate brine . after 72 hours at 150 ° f ., the alginate beads in the brine solution ( second sample ) began swelling and releasing the solid scale inhibitor faster than the alginate beads in the deionized water ( first sample ). the solid scale inhibitor may be released in response to a ph trigger . at an acidic ph ( e . g ., ≦ 1 ), the polysaccharide coating slowly breaks down to release the encapsulated treatment agent . at ph values of about 3 to about 4 , the treatment agent slowly releases the treatment agent . the third set of alginate beads containing the entrapped solid scale inhibitor was placed in a solution having a ph value of 3 also for 72 hours at 150 ° f . the alginate beads in the acidic solution ( third sample ) showed more rapid break - down of the alginate coating than the alginate beads in deionized water ( first sample ). a proppant flow test was conducted using an acrylic column fitted with pressure transducers and temperature controllers at both ends . the acrylic column used had a length of two feet and a diameter of one inch . the column was packed with a mixture of 30 - 50 mesh econoprop proppant and 1 to 5 % by weight of a treatment complex formed of polysaccharide beads encapsulating solid or liquid scale inhibitors ( i . e ., the treatment agent ). deionized water at a temperature of 150 ° f . was flowed through the column and the effluent was collected initially and at a certain pore volume interval . the collected samples were analyzed for the presence of the scale inhibitor by determining the phosphate concentrations in the samples . significant amount of the scale inhibitor was detected up to several thousand pore volumes . corresponding scale tests with the effluents showed no significant scale formation when compared with a blank test where no scale inhibitor was added . the embodiments described above are exemplary of numerous embodiments that may be made within the scope of the appended claims . it is contemplated that numerous other configurations may be used , and the material of each component may be selected from numerous materials other than those specifically disclosed . in short , it is the applicant &# 39 ; s intention that the scope of the patent issuing herefrom will be limited only by the scope of the appended claims . | 2 |
reference numeral 8 in fig1 is an adhesive layer used with an insulating sheet of the present invention , and is attached in advance to a resin film 23 . this adhesive layer 8 is formed of a resin that is not adhesive at normal ambient temperature , but exhibits adhesiveness when heated , and even if an exposed surface of the adhesive layer 8 comes into contact with the resin film 23 , there will not be adherence at normal ambient temperature . for this reason , the two - layer structure film 18 can be directly rolled up without the use of a release liner so as to be stored or transported in the form of a roll 19 , as shown in fig2 . the two - layer structure film 18 is unwound from this roll 19 , such that the surface of the adhesive layer 8 is brought into contact with the buffer layer 21 and pressed while heating . the heating temperature is such that the adhesive layer 8 exhibits adhesiveness without deterioration of the buffer layer 21 . as shown in fig3 , if the resin film 23 is attached to the buffer layer 21 , the insulating sheet 13 of the present invention is obtained . reference numeral 10 in fig4 is a hdd using the insulating sheet 13 of the present invention . a buffer layer 21 side of the insulating sheet 13 is brought into contact with the printed wiring board 12 . a resin film 23 side of the insulating sheet 13 is brought into contact with the case 11 , and the printed wiring board 12 is screw fastened to the case 11 . the printed wiring board 12 and an electrical circuit inside the case 11 are electrically connected to a lower part 17 of an actuator using a flexible wiring board 14 . further , the buffer layer 21 is formed of a hard foam such as polyurethane and is elastic . after vibration and heat occurring in a motor inside the case 11 have been absorbed by the buffer layer 21 , the buffer layer 21 is applied to the printed wiring board 12 . insulating sheets of the first to third embodiments of the present invention are shown in table 1 below . pet is an abbreviation for polyethylene terephthalate . tg of the adhesive layer in table 1 is a glass transition point . a method of measuring tg is to use a viscoelasticity measuring device to measure a maximum point of tan δ of 35 hz , to give tg . when the adhesive layer 8 of the first to third embodiments are attached to the buffer layer 21 , the adhesive layer 8 is heated to 80 ° c . the item ‘ edge tack after die - cutting ’ in the table is a determination as to whether or not adjacent insulating sheets 13 attach together after die - cutting . a sample for this item uses an insulating sheet 13 , after being made by attaching to each other the buffer layer 21 and the resin film 23 using the adhesive layer 8 . the insulating sheet 13 is die - cut in the shape of the case 11 of the hdd 10 and the printed wiring board 12 . in this state , the adhesive layer 8 is exposed at the edge of the insulating sheet 13 , and if the edge of the insulating sheet 13 is adhesive , adjacent insulating sheets will attach together when brought into contact with each other and operability is therefore reduced . the symbol ∘ in table 1 represents the fact that there is absolutely no attachment . the item ‘ silicone amount ’ in the table represents a calculated result for amount of silicone content , in a state of the two - layer structure film 18 before attaching to the buffer layer 21 , washing exposed surface of the adhesive layer 8 using n - hexane , enriching the obtained n - hexane and then evaluating the enriched n - hexane by ftir ( fourier transform infrared spectroscopy ). the symbol ∘ represents the fact that silicone was not detected . for the sake of comparison , characteristics of insulating sheets of the prior art are shown in table 2 below as comparative examples 1 - 3 . the item ‘ release force of release liner ’ in table 2 represents less than 0 . 5n / 5 cm as ∘, from 0 . 5 to 1n / 5 cm as δ , and in excess of 1n / 5 cm as x . the symbol ∘ for edge tack after die - cutting represents the fact that there was slight attachment of adjacent insulating sheet edges , but they detach under their own weight . in the evaluation for silicone amount , a large amount of silicone contained in the n - hexane is represented by the symbol x , and less than x is represented by the symbol δ . as will be understood from table 1 and table 2 , in comparative examples 1 - 3 , a silicone component of a release liner attaches to an adhesive layer , whereas in the insulating sheets 13 of the first to third embodiments of the present invention , silicone is not attached to the adhesive layer 8 . also , in comparative examples 1 - 3 , adjacent edges become attached together , whereas in the insulating sheets 13 of the first to third embodiments of the present invention , there is no attachment of adjacent edges and operability is high . with the insulating sheet 13 of the present invention , there is a possibility of flame resistant additives being contained in the adhesive layer 8 , and it is possible to broaden the material properties and compositional selection for the buffer layer 21 . it is possible to manufacture an insulating sheet without using a release liner . | 1 |
with reference next to the drawings , there is shown an apparatus 10 having a housing 11 . the apparatus has an upper working unit 12 for syringe needle destruction operations that extends from a lower , storage unit 13 in which residual syringe barrels may be collected and stored . the apparatus 10 has a pivotable side door 37 with a power switch 27 mounted thereon and a viewing window 45 therethrough . the storage unit 13 has a pivotable syringe disposal door 14 and a removable bin 29 located therein . the working unit 12 has a removable , incinerator unit 16 having a conically shaped needle receiving orifice guide 17 mounted about a central orifice 18 . with reference next to fig2 the incinerator unit 16 has guide means in the form of a pair of guide rods 19 mounted therein above the orifice guide 17 . a spring biased carriage 20 is movably supported for travel upon the guide rods 19 . the carriage 20 bears an electrode 22 with a face that faces and is aligned with the needle orifice 18 . the incinerator unit 16 has measuring means in the form of an array of juxtaposed teeth 21 mounted therein between the guide rods 19 and a front photoelectric eye 23 and a rear photoelectric eye 24 mounted to the carriage 20 . eyes 23 and 24 are aligned so as to sense light passing between any two adjacent teeth 21 . coil springs 25 are mounted upon the guide rods with one of their ends abutting stop wall 42 and their opposite ends abutting the carriage so as to bias the carriage towards the needle orifice 18 . flexible conductors 26 connect the carriage electrode 23 to a transformer 28 through a quick disconnect coupler 35 with the carriage located in any position along the guide rods . a needle crimping means 30 is mounted in incinerator unit 16 closely adjacent the needle orifice . the crimping means comprises an upper crimping plate 31 pivotably mounted on a pivot pin 34 above the orifice 18 and a stationary lower crimping plate 32 rigidly mounted below the needle orifice 18 . the lower plate 32 also functions as an electrode and a conductor 33 electrically couples it with the transformer 28 through a quick disconnect coupler 47 . the apparatus also has means for severing needles that includes a pivotable cutting blade or shearing plate 36 pivotable mounted on a pivot pin 34 in sliding contact with the rear side of the upper crimping plate 31 . both the upper crimping plate 31 and the blade 36 extend through aligned openings in the wall of the incinerator unit 16 so that one of their end portions extends from the incinerator unit . an electric motor 40 , mounted in the working unit 12 , has its power output drive shaft coupled with both a crimping cam 38 and a cutting cam 39 . the motor is electrically coupled to a controller 41 , which is of conventional construction that preferably employs a microprocessor such as a 20 pin motorola hc 6805 made by motorola inc . of austin , texas . an ultraviolet light 43 mounted in the incinerator unit 16 is also coupled with the controller 41 by a pair of conductors 44 . a system ready led type indicator lamp 48 , a trouble / burn process led type indicator lamp 49 , and a full status led type indicator lamp 50 are all mounted to the front of the working unit 12 . additionally , an unshown error code lamp is mounted within the lower unit 13 that is viewable through viewing window 45 . each of these lamps is electrically connected to the controller 41 , while photoelectric eyes 23 and 24 are connected to the controller by conductors 52 . the transformer 28 itself is coupled to the controller 41 . an unshown high temperature sensor is mounted on the transformer 28 which is coupled with the controller . an electromagnetic burn done switch 55 is mounted within the incinerator unit 16 so that the carriage 20 closes an electric circuit when it is positioned closely adjacent the orifice 18 . an unshown motor home or cycle complete sensor is mounted adjacent the motor 40 to indicate that the cams have completed a full cycle and have returned to their initial , apparatus - ready positions prior to apparatus activation . operation of the apparatus may best by understood by reference to fig3 a - 3f and fig4 . with the power switch 27 positioned on , a conventional syringe s having a barrel b , a plastic needle hub h , and a metallic needle n is guided by an operator , such as a nurse , nurse &# 39 ; s aid , or hospital attendant , into the needle receiving orifice 18 , as shown in fig3 a . the conical shape of the orifice guide 17 serves to guide the needle tip into and through the orifice 18 . as the needle n is pushed into the incinerator unit 16 it passes between the crimping plates 31 and 32 bringing its tip into contact with the carriage electrode 22 . as the needle is pushed further into the unit it drives the carriage 20 away from the orifice 18 along guide rods 19 , against the bias provided by spring 25 , as shown in fig3 b . the carriage is moved in this manner until either the syringe hub h abuts the conical orifice guide 17 , as shown in fig3 c , or until the carriage has traveled the maximum distance allowed by the guide rods 19 by engaging carriage stop wall 42 . carriage movement is limited to insure that an operator does not attempt to incinerate the entire length of an extraordinarily long needle in a single operations and thereby exceed power capacity limits . such long needles are instead incinerated in a succession of operations as such operations are herein described . as the carriage is driven away from the orifice 18 the front photoelectric eye 23 senses the light passing between the first and second tooth 21 , the rear photoelectric eye 24 quickly thereafter also senses this light . this sensing sequencing of the sensors indicates to the controller that the carriage is moving forward , meaning away from orifice 18 , and a reversing of this sensing sequence indicates a backwards movement of the carriage . the controller determines the length of the needle from the distance the carriage has moved from the orifice . this is done by calculating the number of teeth the eyes have traveled past in the forward direction . an increase in the determined length of the needle results in the controller increasing the power setting of the transformer , i . e . the magnitude of the electric current , to insure that needles of all lengths are provided with a current which properly burns them . for example , as a needle moves the carriage between its initial position adjacent orifice 18 and a distance 1 / 4 inch therefrom , the controller sets the current at 25 % of the maximum current of the transformer . as the carriage is driven further along the guide rails to a distance of between 1 / 2 to 1 inch from its initial position the power level is set at 50 %. from 1 to 11 / 2 inches from its initial position the power level is set to 75 %, and from 11 / 2 inch to a maximum carriage distance of approximately 3 inches from its initial position the power level is set at 100 %. the preferred transformer here is rated for 7 volts a . c . and for a maximum current of 40 amps as high current could cause sparking and welding of the needle to the electrodes . once the syringe needle n is fully inserted into the incinerator unit 16 , as shown in fig3 c , a sensed momentary pause in carriage motion for a preselected time period is detected by the photoelectric eyes 23 and 24 which causes the controller to energize the motor 40 and the trouble / burn process lamp 49 , and de - energize the system ready lamp 48 . the motor then commences to rotate the crimping cam 38 and the cutting cam 39 . the crimping cam 38 engages and pivots the upper crimping plate 31 about pivot pin 34 thereby crimping needle n between the upper crimping plate 31 and the lower crimping plate 32 , as shown in fig3 c . the crimping of the needle serves the dual function of sealing the syringe needle residual stub and providing an electric contact with the needle at the crimp site since the lower plate 32 also functions as an electrode . with the needle crimp still held firmly by the plates 31 and 32 , the controller next energizes the electrodes 23 and 32 by coupling them with the transformer 28 causing the selected current based on the length of the needle to flow through it causing the needle portion to burn and char . during the brief period of incineration , the spring 25 continuously urges electrode 22 towards electrode 32 . this serves to maintain them in good contact with the needle and also to create a compaction force on the needle char to lengthen the time that the charring needle provides a conductive path between the electrodes . as incineration progresses and the needle weakens it becomes unable to hold the electrodes apart . as a result , the carriage and electrode 23 then advance towards the crimping means , as shown in fig3 d . this causes the needle to fold and twist which usually forms it into a compact , single extension needle residue char of a coil - like shape that usually remains attached to the unburned portion of the needle at its crimp . as the needle weakens and the carriage is advanced toward the crimping means the controller reduces the current passing through the needle in similar fashion to that previously described with reference to the position of the carriage with respect to the selected current level . the reduction of the current extends the useful life of the electrode , decreases power consumption , decreases the chances of sparking and welding of the needle to the electrodes , and decreases the chances of exploding the needle due to passing too large a current through the needle . as the returning carriage nears its initial position adjacent the crimping means 30 , the carriage closes the electromagnetic burn done switch thus indicating to the controller that the burn process is complete . the controller then de - energizes the electrodes just prior to the carriage returning to its initial position . this prevents an arcing between the electrodes and a welding of the needle to the electrodes . if the burn done switch has not been interrupted after expiration of a preselected time period , such as two seconds from the time of burn initiation , the controller de - energizing the motor 40 to allow the needle to burn for an additional 2 second time period and then re - energizes the motor and de - energizes the electrodes . the cutting cam 39 is now rotated to a position forcing the cutting blade 36 downward through the needle char closely adjacent the crimp . the cutting blade severs the residue char n &# 39 ; whereupon it free falls , as shown in fig3 e , to the bottom of the incinerator . finally , as shown in fig3 f , with the crimping plates once again separated the needle crimp is released enabling the operator to remove the syringe and its short , sealed , needle stub from the incinerator unit 16 and place it in the lower storage unit 13 . should the electromagnetic switch 55 indicate that the carriage has not returned to its initial position after a burn cycle , the controller will attempt to clear the fault by energizing motor 40 to initiate 3 cycles of the crimping plate and cutting blade 36 . if the carriage has still not returned the controller causes the display of an error code on the error code lamp and prevents the initiating of another burn cycle . once the cams have fully returned to their initial positions the motor home sensor inputs a signal to the controller 41 which de - energizes the motor 40 , re - energizes the system ready lamp 48 , and de - energizes the trouble / burn process 49 to indicate that the apparatus is reset and ready to incinerate another needle . though most pathogens within the needle are killed by their incineration , some heat resistant ones may not be . also , some pathogens may be expelled during insertion and operation of the needle into the apparatus . for these reasons the incinerator is also provided with a germicidal ultraviolet light 43 which is energized by the controller for a short time following needle severance to kill such remaining pathogens . finally , the controller also counts the number of burn cycles completed so that after a preselected number of cycles the controller will flash the full status lamp 50 for a 72 hour grace period . if the incinerator unit 16 is not replaced within this grace period the full status lamp is continuously illuminated and the controller will not initiate another burn cycle . from the foregoing , it is seen that a method and apparatus for destroying syringe needles is now provided which overcomes problems associated with those of the prior art . it should however be understood that the just described embodiment merely illustrates principles of the invention in a preferred form . many modifications , additions and deletions may , of course , be made thereto without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims . | 0 |
fig1 and 2 ( prior art ) have been discussed above in the background section . with respect to subsequent figures , a first embodiment of the present invention is disclosed in fig3 - 23 a , b . a second embodiment of the present invention is disclosed in fig3 - 17 , and 24 - 29 a , b . fig3 - 32 apply to both first and second embodiments , as do fig3 - 17 . details of the embodiments are best described via a sequential process of construction . fig3 a is a partial plan view 300 of a substrate subsequent to the deposition of a blanket etch stop layer 302 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . fig3 b is a cross section view 301 through section a - a of fig3 a . support layer 304 is typically a spacer layer comprising a dielectric material similar to layer 112 of fig2 ( prior art ). fig4 is a cross section view 400 of fig3 b subsequent to the deposition of a blanket layer 402 of oxide 1 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . a photo resist layer is then deposited over oxide 1 layer 402 ( not shown ), imaged , and developed in accordance with processes well known to those skilled in the art . portions of oxide 1 layer 402 are then etched to stop layer 302 , the resultant structure is shown in fig5 a , b . fig5 a is a plan view 500 of fig4 subsequent to the etching of oxide 1 layer 402 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . fig5 b is cross section view through section b - b of fig5 a . the remaining “ island ” of oxide 1 layer 402 takes the shape of the wrap around shield , having a preliminary location of the air bearing surface ( abs ) shown as abs ( ref ). this is a provisional location , as the actual abs location will be finalized by a lapping process . dimension 502 represents a preliminary throat height , or the thickness of the subsequently constructed shield structure ( at the write pole ), as measured from the abs . in the next step , a blanket layer of second oxide , denoted oxide 2 , is deposited over the structure shown in fig5 b . fig6 is a cross section view 600 of fig5 b subsequent to the blanket deposition of oxide 2 layer 602 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . oxide 1 and oxide 2 are chosen to have unique selectivities when undergoing a reactive ion etch ( rie ) processing . that is , when oxide 1 is being etched , oxide 2 is minimally affected . likewise , when oxide 2 is being etched , oxide 1 is minimally affected . some examples of oxide 1 / oxide 2 pairs include , but are not limited to : i . oxide 1 : sio 2 ; oxide 2 : si 3 n 4 ii . oxide 1 : sio 2 ; oxide 2 : al 2 o 3 for pair i , sio2 etching is performed with carbon rich fluorocarbon gases such as c 3 f 8 and c 4 f 8 . si 3 n 4 etching is performed with mixtures of cf 4 / o 2 / n 2 , or sf 6 / ch 4 / n 2 / o 2 . when etching sio 2 in the presence of si 3 n 4 , selectivities range from 4 : 1 up to 30 : 1 . when etching si 3 n 4 in the presence of sio 2 , selectivity is about 6 : 1 . for pair ii , sio 2 etching is performed with mixtures of chf 3 / cf 4 with a sio 2 / al 2 o 3 selectivity of about 10 : 1 . al 2 o 3 etching is performed in bcl 3 with a al 2 o 3 / sio 2 selectivity of about 10 : 1 . etch stop layer 302 is preferably a metal layer , comprising ru , rh , or cr . in an alternate embodiment of the present invention , pair i can be oxide 1 : sio 2 ; oxide 2 : si 3 n 4 . pair 2 can be oxide 1 : sio 2 ; oxide 2 : al 2 o 3 . the foregoing limitations on the etch chemistries and selectivities apply . after oxide 2 layer 602 is deposited , the structure is planarized , the steps of which are well known to those skilled in the art . this is done to remove the portions of oxide 2 layer 602 covering oxide 1 layer 402 . for planarization by cmp , some of these steps ( not shown ) include the deposition of a cmp stop layer , planarization , and removal of the stop layer by ion milling or rie . fig7 a is a plan view 700 of fig6 subsequent to the planarization of oxide 2 layer 602 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . fig7 b is a cross section view 701 through section c - c of fig7 a . following planarization , a blanket etch mask layer is deposited on the planarized surface . fig8 is a cross section view 800 of fig7 b subsequent to the blanket deposition of an etch mask layer 802 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . layer 802 is preferably a metal , resistant to the etch conditions used to etch oxide 2 layer 602 . layer 802 may be chosen from ( but is not limited to ) ru , rh , and cr . a photo resist layer is then deposited on layer 802 in order to pattern the layer . fig9 a is a cross section view 900 of fig8 subsequent to the blanket deposition of a photo resist layer 902 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . fig9 b is a plan view 901 of fig9 a subsequent to the patterning of mask layer 802 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . mask layer 802 is patterned to expose the underlying oxide layers 602 and 402 in the shape of write pole ( main pole ). following this step , oxide 2 layer 602 will be selectively etched . fig1 is a plan view 1000 of fig9 b subsequent to the selective etching of oxide 2 layer 602 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . in the regions where oxide 2 layer 602 was etched , etch stop layer 302 is exposed . due to the selective nature of the rie process to etch oxide 2 layer 602 , the exposed portion of oxide layer 402 is minimally etched . fig1 is a cross section view 1100 through section d - d of fig1 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . etch conditions are chosen to create undercutting of oxide 2 layer 602 in the vicinity of open portions of mask layer 802 . this creates an actual etched trench width of nominally tw ′ ( ref 1102 )+ 2 d ( ref 1104 ). typically , distance d is about 50 % of mask opening tw ′, but can be as large as 100 % of tw ′. fig1 is a cross section view 1200 through section e - e of fig1 . since this a cross section through oxide 1 layer 402 , no etching occurs even though mask layer 802 has an opening of tw ′ ( ref 1102 ). fig1 is a cross section view 1300 of fig1 subsequent to the etching of oxide 1 layer 402 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . etch conditions are chosen to minimize any undercutting of oxide 1 layer 402 . fig1 a is a plan view 1400 of fig1 subsequent to removal of mask layer 802 . fig1 b is a cross section view 1401 through section g - g of fig1 a . plan view 1400 shows two different trench widths in the “ neck ” portion of the funnel . in the region bordered by oxide 1 layer 402 , the trench has a nominal width of tw ′. in the regions bordered by oxide 2 layer 602 , the width of the trench is tw ′+ 2 d . this creates a notch 1106 at the interface between oxide 1 and oxide 2 . the location of this notch is determined by the original location of the oxide 1 “ island ” as shown in fig5 a , and is the result of the undercut while etching oxide 2 layer 602 , relative to the etching characteristics of oxide 1 layer 402 . fig1 is a cross section view 1500 of fig1 b subsequent to the blanket deposition of a plating seed layer 1502 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention . fig1 is a cross section view 1600 of fig1 subsequent to electroplating of magnetic pole material 1602 . fig1 is a cross section view 1700 of fig1 subsequent to the planarization of the pole material 1602 . intermediate steps ( such as the deposition and removal of a cmp stop layer ) have been omitted for simplicity , and are well known to those skilled in the art . subsequent to pole material deposition , a nominal track width of tw ( ref 1702 ) is obtained . tw is approximately the etched trench dimension tw ′ ( ref 1102 ) minus two time the thickness of the plating seed layer 1502 . after deposition and planarization of the pole material , the remainder of oxide 1 layer 402 is removed by rie . fig1 is a plan view 1800 of fig1 subsequent to the removal of oxide 1 layer 402 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention . fig1 is a cross section view 1900 through section h - h of fig1 . due to the removal of oxide 1 , the notched interface of pole material 1602 ( covered by plating seed layer 1502 ) is visible . the next step in the process is the blanket deposition of the gap layer . fig2 is a cross section view 2000 of fig1 subsequent to the blanket deposition of gap layer 2002 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention . gap layer 2002 is preferably a non - magnetic precious metal , typically ru or ru , but may also be a layer material comprising a under - layer of an insulator such as alumina , and an upper layer of ru or rh or other precious metal . gap layer 2002 must not only serve as the magnetic gap between the pole and the shield , but also the plating seed layer for the deposition of the shield . after deposition of the gap layer 2002 , a photo resist layer is deposited . following exposure and development , the patterned photo resist layer will act as the mask for shield plating . fig2 a is a plan view 2100 of fig2 subsequent to the deposition , imaging and development of photo resist layer 2102 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention . fig2 b is a cross section view through section h - h of fig2 a . fig2 c is a cross section view through section j - j of fig2 a . photo resist layer 2102 is patterned to produce an opening recessed back from the cavities in oxide layer 602 by distance s 1 ( ref 2106 ). the width of the cavity subsequent the deposition of the gap layer is dimension 2104 , which is approximately equal to dimension 502 minus 2 times the thickness of gap layer 2002 . the cavity bounded by layers 602 / 2002 , 1602 / 2002 , and photo resist layer 2102 is then filled with magnetic alloy material by electroplating , utilizing gap layer 2002 as a seed layer . the resulting deposit of magnetic material forms the wrap around shield structure . subsequent to shield plating , photo resist layer 2102 is removed , a blanket oxide layer deposited , and the entire structure planarized . details of these processes have been omitted for clarity , but are well known to those skilled in the art . fig2 a , b are cross section views 2200 , 2201 of fig2 b , c , respectively , subsequent to shield 2204 deposition in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention . photo resist layer 2102 has been removed and replaced with filler oxide layer 2202 , typically al2o3 . subsequent to shield formation , the structure is lapped to form the precise location of the abs , which then determines the throat height of the shield . fig2 a , b are cross section views 2300 , 2301 of fig2 a , b , respectively , subsequent to lapping in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention . following the lapping process , the location of the abs is finalized . note that the shield 2204 has a stepped structure in regions on either side of the pole 1602 . these regions are referred to as the side shield . above the pole layer 1602 , the shield has a depth ( as measured from the abs ) of w 1 and a thickness hal equal approximately to the thickness of filler oxide layer 2202 . in the side shield regions , the lower portion of the shield adjacent to the pole has a depth equal to the throat height th 1 ( ref 2302 ), and a depth above the pole layer 1602 equal to th 1 plus dimension s 1 ( ref 2106 ). the stepped structure aids in balancing the performance characteristics of the wrap around shield , such as improving saturation without reducing write pole signal strength . returning to the process at fig1 , fig2 is a cross section view 2400 of fig1 subsequent to blanket deposition of a second oxide 1 layer 2402 , etch mask layer 2404 and photo resist layer 2406 in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention . fig2 a is a plan view of fig2 subsequent to the patterning of mask layer 2404 and removal of a portion of oxide 1 layer 2402 , and the remaining sections of oxide 1 layer 402 , by rie . the intermediate steps of imaging , developing , and removing photo resist layer 2406 have been omitted for clarity , but are self evident to those skilled in the art . the opening in patterned mask layer 2404 is recessed back from the cavities that contained oxide layer 402 by a dimension 2502 , exposing an underlying portion of oxide 2 layer 602 . fig2 b is a cross section view 2501 through section k - k of fig2 a in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention . fig2 c is a cross section view 2503 through section l - l of fig2 a . fig2 a , b are cross section views 2600 , 2601 of fig2 b , c , respectively , subsequent to the removal of mask layer 2404 and deposition of gap layer 2602 in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention . gap layer 2602 is preferably a non - magnetic precious metal , typically ru or ru , but may also be a layer material comprising a under - layer of an insulator such as alumina , and an upper layer of ru or rh or other precious metal . gap layer 2602 must not only serve as the magnetic gap between the pole and the shield , but also the plating seed layer for the deposition of the shield . after deposition of the gap layer 2602 , a photo resist layer is deposited . following exposure and development , the patterned photo resist layer will act as the mask for shield plating . fig2 a , b are cross section views 2700 , 2701 of fig2 a , b , respectively , subsequent to the deposition , imaging , and development of photo resist layer 2704 in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention . dimension s 3 ( ref 2702 ) is equal to dimension 2502 plus the thickness of gap layer 2602 . fig2 a , b are cross section views 2800 , 2801 of fig2 a , b , respectively , subsequent to the deposition of shield layer 2802 and deposition of filler oxide 2804 in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention . steps involving the planarization of filler oxide layer 2804 have been omitted for clarity , but are well known to those skilled in the art . fig2 a , b are cross section views 2900 , 2901 of fig2 a , b , respectively , subsequent to lapping in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention . in this embodiment of the present invention , the addition of another oxide 1 layer 2402 creates an additional “ step ” in the wrap around shield structure . thus , a stepped shield is created directly over the pole layer 1602 ( fig2 a ) having a lower depth of w 1 2 ( ref 2908 ) and an upper depth of w 2 2 ( ref 2902 ), as measured from the abs . in the side shield regions shown in fig2 b , a dual stepped structure is created , wherein the lower portion has a depth equal to the throat height th 2 ( ref 2910 ), a middle portion having a depth of w 1 2 ( ref 2908 ), and an upper portion having a depth of w 2 2 , all measured from the abs . dimension s 2 ( ref 2906 ) is equal to w 1 2 minus throat height th 2 . the addition of another “ step ” in the structure of the wrap around shield , further improves saturation characteristics and write pole performance over that of the first embodiment of the present invention . fig3 is a plan view 3000 of the finished structure of fig2 a , b and 23 a , b in accordance with the first and second embodiments of the present invention . filler oxide layer 3004 is equivalent to oxide layer 2202 of the first embodiment and 2804 in the second embodiment . dimension w ( ref 3002 ) is equivalent to w 1 ( ref 2306 ) of the first embodiment and w 2 2 ( ref 2902 ) of the second embodiment . fig3 is a cross section view 3100 through section m - m of fig3 in accordance with the first and second embodiments of the present invention . this also the view looking into the structure from the abs . gap layer 3106 is equivalent to gap layer 2002 of the first embodiment and 2602 of the second embodiment . wrap around shield 3006 corresponds to shield layers 2204 and 2802 of the first and second embodiments , respectively . fig3 is a plan view 3200 through section n - n of fig3 in accordance with the first and second embodiments of the present invention . throat height th ( ref 3202 ) is equivalent to th 1 ( ref 2302 ) of the first embodiment and th 2 ( ref 2910 ) of the second embodiment . the structure shows some unique advantages of the present invention . firstly , there are two “ flare points ”, one located at a distance fp 1 ( ref 3204 ) from the abs , and another located at a distance fp 2 ( ref 3206 ) from the abs . the flare point located at fp 1 has the dominant impact on the magnetic properties of the write head . fp 2 has a secondary impact on the properties . the flare point at fp 1 is accurately located with respect to the abs and the throat height th of the shield due to the self aligned process used in fabrication . the structure also allows control of tw ( ref 1702 ) independent of the location of the flare point at fp 1 . the tw is primarily determined by lithography and the rei etch performance of oxide 1 , whereas the location of the flare point at fp 1 is primarily determined by the interface between oxide 1 and oxide 2 ( see fig7 a , b ), and the thickness of plating seed layer 1502 ( fig1 ). the present invention is not limited by the previous embodiments heretofore described . rather , the scope of the present invention is to be defined by these descriptions taken together with the attached claims and their equivalents . | 6 |
referring to fig1 - 3 , the micromagnetic light modulator 10 for modulating an incident beam of light according to the principles of the invention is illustrated . broadly defined , the method of making a magnetically driven light modulator 10 includes the step of providing a first plurality of equally spaced deformable elements 12 arranged in a substrate 14 . substrate 14 has a cavity 32 defined by base 30 and surrounding side walls 44 . deformable elements 12 are supported at both ends above the cavity 32 with both ends integrally formed in the side walls 44 . each one of the first plurality of deformable elements 12 comprises a base layer 16 , preferably silicon nitride or silicon dioxide , having a recess 34 , a layer of hard magnetic material 18 is deposited in the recess 34 , and a first light reflection layer 20 is deposited on the top of the layer of hard magnetic material 18 , as shown . the first light reflection layer 20 is preferably selected from the group consisting of : ( a ) aluminum , ( b ) copper , ( c ) gold , ( d ) silver , and , ( e ) alloys thereof . the layer of hard magnetic material 18 is preferably made from cobalt - platinum ( co -- pt ) which is deposited for in plane polarization at room temperature using dc or rf magnetron sputtering as described in the publication entitled &# 34 ; structure and micromagnetic predictions for hysteretic phenomena in a novel co -- pt permanent magnetic thin film ,&# 34 ; by r . h . victora , et al . in journal of magnetism and magnetic materials , vol . 97 , 1991 , pp . 343 - 352 . the layer of hard magnetic material 18 is polarized along its length ( see fig4 ). referring again to fig1 and 2 , conductive elements 22 and 24 are arranged in the side walls 44 on substrate 14 in proximity to the plurality of deformable elements 12 , as shown . conductive elements 22 and 24 are connected to power sources 26 and 28 , respectively . modulator 10 further comprises a second plurality of equally spaced apart fixed elements 50 . each one of the plurality of fixed elements 50 comprise a support member 52 which is fixedly attached to the base 30 of the cavity 32 , and a second light reflection layer 36 which is deposited on top of the support member 52 as shown . according to fig2 a single one of the plurality of fixed elements 50 is arranged between adjacent spaced apart deformable elements 12 such that the first light reflection layers 20 and the second light reflection layers 36 form a substantially planar light reflection surface 48 . second light reflection layer 36 is preferably selected from the group consisting of : ( a ) aluminum , ( b ) copper , ( c ) gold , ( d ) silver , and ( e ) alloys thereof . first light reflection layers 20 on the first plurality of deformable elements 12 and the second light reflection layers 36 on the second plurality of fixed elements 50 form a substantially plane surface as shown . in fig2 the modulator 10 is shown in a sectional view taken along line ii -- ii of fig1 . modulator 10 is illustrated with the power sources 26 and 28 off so that there is no current flowing through conductive elements 22 and 24 . when no current flows through conductive elements 22 and 24 , the first plurality of deformable elements 12 are flat ( i . e ., in an up position ) due to the inherent residual tensile stress therein . modulator 10 is designed so that when a light wave 40 of wavelength λ impinges perpendicularly to the surface of the modulator 10 , the light reflected from the first light reflection layer 20 on the first plurality of deformable elements 12 is in phase with the light reflected from the plurality of second light reflection layers 36 on second plurality of fixed elements 50 . consequently , modulator 10 reflects light as a flat mirror as indicated by arrow 38 . in fig3 modulator 10 is shown in a sectional view taken along line ii -- ii of fig1 . the power sources 26 and 28 are turned on thereby causing currents to flow in conductive elements 22 and 24 as will be described . the applied currents gives rise to magnetic fields that impart a lorentz force to the magnetic poles in the layer of hard magnetic material 18 in the first plurality of deformable elements 12 . the lorentz force is sufficient to bend the first plurality of deformable elements 12 downward until the mid - portion of the first plurality of deformable elements 12 deflects a distance λ / 4 downward ( see fig5 ). thus , when a light wave 40 of wavelength λ impinges perpendicularly to the surface of the modulator 10 , the light reflected from the first light reflection layer 20 on the first plurality of deformable elements 12 is out of phase with the light reflected from the second light reflection layers 36 on the second plurality of fixed elements . consequently , modulator 10 diffracts the incident light in directions indicated by arrows 42 . skilled artisans will appreciate that optical systems can be designed to intercept the diffracted light with output occurring only when the first plurality of deformable elements 12 are activated . for display applications , a group of deformable elements 12 can be simultaneously activated to form a pixel , and arrays of such pixels can be fabricated for displaying an image . referring to fig4 a perspective view is shown of a polarized layer 18 of hard magnetic material in isolation . as shown in fig1 magnetic layer 18 comprising this hard magnetic material is disposed in recess 34 of each one of the deformable elements 12 . referring to fig5 a sectional view is shown of the modulator 10 taken along line v -- v of fig1 wherein the first plurality of deformable elements 12 are in an unactivated up position ( i . e ., power sources 26 and 28 are off ). referring to fig6 a sectional view is provided of modulator 10 taken along line v -- v of fig1 . as shown , first plurality of deformable elements 12 are in an activated down position , i . e ., power sources 26 and 28 are turned on . specifically , to activate the first plurality of deformable elements 12 , the power sources 26 and 28 cause currents to flow through conductive elements 22 and 24 , in a direction out of the paper as indicated by current arrow tips 100 as is well known . the current flowing through the conductive element 22 gives rise to a magnetic field indicated by field line 110 which imparts a downward lorentz force to the south pole of the layer of hard magnetic material 18 . the current flowing through the conductive element 24 gives rise to a magnetic field indicated by field line 120 which imparts a downward lorentz force to the north pole of the layer of hard magnetic material 18 . the currents in conductive elements 22 and 24 are of sufficient magnitude to deflect the mid - portion of the first plurality of deformable elements 12 downward a distance λ / 4 as shown . it is instructive to note that the first plurality of deformable elements 12 can be held stationary at this deflected distance as long as the currents in conductive elements 22 and 24 remain constant . it is important to note that the activated first plurality of deformable elements 12 obtain λ / 4 the desired deflection over a limited portion of their midsection due to the fact that the first plurality of deformable elements 12 are rigidly supported at both ends . thus , when a light wave 40 of wavelength λ impinges perpendicularly to the surface of the modulator 10 , and the deformable elements 12 are activated in this fashion , the light reflected from the first light reflection layer 20 on the mid - portion of the first plurality of deformable elements 12 that is deflected downward a distance λ / 4 is in out of phase with the light reflected from the second light reflection layers 36 on the second plurality of fixed elements 50 . consequently , modulator 10 diffracts the incident light as described above . the invention has been described in detail with particular reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof , but it will be understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of the invention . ______________________________________parts list : ______________________________________10 light modulator12 first plurality of deformable elements14 substrate16 base layer18 layer of hard magnetic material20 first light reflection layer22 conductive element24 conductive element26 power source28 power source30 base of cavity32 cavity34 recess36 second light reflection layer38 light direction arrow40 light wave42 light direction arrow44 side walls48 light reflection surface50 second plurality of fixed elements52 support member100 tip of current arrow110 magnetic field line120 magnetic field line______________________________________ | 6 |
a temporary signal system according to a first embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to fig1 to 6 . a signal stand 1 comprises a cross - shaped base or stand 2 , a leg 3 protruding vertically from the center of the leg base 2 , and a body 4 housing an electronic circuit and the like . the body 4 has a red light 5 and a green ( or blue ) light 6 provided at upper and lower portions of one side thereof and covers 7 and 8 for covering the red and green lights 5 and 6 . the red and green lights employed in the present invention are different from those employed in the ordinary traffic lights . that is , the former flashes while the latter lights steady . the body 4 also has an operation board or panel 10 having an indication portion 9 at the side thereof . a power source cable 11 is extended from the body 4 for connecting the body 4 to a commercial power source , a battery or the like . the temporary signal system according to the present invention has at least two signal stands . in fig2 the operation board 10 comprises the indication portion 9 and an operation portion 12 . the indication portion 9 has an indication panel 13 for indicating actual time at the upper portion thereof and a setting panel 14 for indicating a setting value at the lower portion thereof . the operation portion 12 comprises push buttons 15 to 20 and mode selection switches 21 and 22 . the push buttons 15 to 20 function to set or operate as follows , as described in connection with fig4 . the push button 15 sets a present time and the push button 16 sets a flashing ( i . e . energizing ) time t 1 of the green light 6 of a first signal stand 1 serving as a parent stand , the push button 17 sets a flashing ( i . e . energizing ) time t 2 of the green light 6 of a second signal stand serving as a child stand , and the push button 18 sets an overlap time t 3 of energizing the red lights of both the parent and child stands . the push ( or start ) button 19 sets a start of the flashing operation while the push button 20 sets a completion of the flashing operation . the mode selection switch 21 selects an operating mode or a setting mode , while the mode selection switch 22 selects a normal operating mode or a red light flashing operation mode . fig3 is a circuit diagram of the signal stand 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention . the control portion 25 comprises a controller 26 composed of , e . g . an 8 bit microcomputer , a timer 27 controlled by the controller 26 for supplying the present time to the controller 26 , a time correction circuit 31 composed of an amplitude modulation ( am ) receiver 28 , a band path filter ( bpf ) 29 for extracting a time tone received by the am receiver 28 and an interface circuit 30 for rectifying a wave of the thus extracted signal and producing a time correction signal which is supplied to the controller 26 , and a signal forming circuit 32 for producing a triggering signal upon reception of a flashing control signal supplied by the controller 26 . the controller 26 is connected to the indication portion 9 and operation portion 12 of the operation board 10 while the signal forming circuit 32 is connected to switching elements 33 and 34 respectively composed of , e . g solid - state relays ( ssrs ) and the like . the switching elements 33 and 34 flash the red and green lights 5 and 6 respectively connected to the commercial power source upon reception of the triggering signal from the signal forming circuit 32 . lighting driving means comprises the signal forming circuit 32 and the switching elements 33 and 34 . denoted at 36 is a direct current power source for rectifying the power voltage and supplying the direct current power for driving each circuit . an operation of the temporary signal system having an arrangement set forth above will be described with reference to fig4 to 6 . it is necessary to initialize the flashing condition for determining the operations of the signal stands 1a and 1b having the same arrangement . the two signal stands 1a and 1b are positioned at one spot so as to be close to each other whereby a flashing condition for the red and green lights 5 and 6 is set to an appropriate value . this is done by operations of the mode selection switches 21 and the push buttons 16 to 18 of both stands . that is , the mode selection switch 21 selects the setting mode while the bush buttons 16 to 18 set the flashing or energized time t 1 of the green light 6 of the parent stand 1a , the flashing or energized time t 2 of the green light 6 of the child stand 1b , and an overlap time t 3 of both red lights 5 of the parent and child signal stands 1a and 1b . likewise , the push buttons 15 are operated to set the present ( i . e . actual ) time on both the parent and child stands 1a and 1b . the flashing times t 1 to t 3 are set to an optimum or desired value judging from the road condition such as traffic restriction , restricting distance , and travel volume at day and night . the signal stands are installed in the area where the traffic restriction exists after completion of the initialization . for example , the parent signal stand 1a is installed at one end 42a of the paving construction interval 41 while the child signal stand 1b is installed at the other end 42a thereof . the power source cables 11 of the signal stands 1a and 1b are inserted into appropriate power supplies . after completion of the installation of the signal stands , both signal stands 1a and 1b are operated . at the time of starting of operation , operators standing at both signal stands simultaneously push the start buttons 19 after confirming signals between both operators such as by calling each other or signalling by hand flags or the like . in such manner , both signal stands 1a and 1b are operated in accordance with the predetermined initial values . the parent signal stand 1a operates in accordance with the flow chart illustrated in fig6 ( a ) while the child signal stand 1b operates in accordance with the flow chart illustrated in fig6 ( b ). that is , the parent signal stand 1a operates as follows and as illustrated in fig6 ( a ). the controller 26 watches as to whether the start button 19 is pressed ( step 100 ). if the start button 19 is pressed , the controller 26 operates the signal forming circuit 32 , thereby switching the switching element 34 so that the green light 6 flashes ( step 101 ) and waits until the time t 1 lapses ( step 102 ). when the time t 1 lapses , the controller 26 operates the signal forming circuit 32 , thereby switching the switching element 33 so that the red light 5 flashes ( step 103 ) and waits until the time t 2 + 2t 3 lapses ( step 104 ). when the time t 2 + 2t 3 lapses ( step 104 ), the process returns to the step 101 and is repeated . on the contrary , the child signal stand 1b operates as follows and as illustrated in fig6 ( b ). the controller 26 watches as to whether the start button 19 is pressed ( step 200 ). if the start button 19 is pressed , the controller 26 immediately operates the signal forming circuit 32 , thereby switching the switching element 33 so that the red light 5 flashes ( step 201 ) and waits until the time t 1 + 2t 3 ( at first time , the time t 1 + t 3 ) lapses ( step 202 ). if the time t 1 + 2t 3 ( at first time , the time t 2 + t 3 ) lapses , the controller 26 operates the signal forming circuit 32 , thereby switching the switching element 34 so that the green light 6 flashes ( step 203 ) and waits until the time t 2 lapses ( step 204 ). when the time t 2 lapses ( step 204 ), the process returns to the step 201 and is repeated . inasmuch as the flashing times t 1 to t 3 are determined on the basis of the actual time supplied by the timer 27 , there occurs a slight delay . however , inasmuch as the time correction circuit 31 supplies a correction signal to the controller 26 every hour to correct the time , there does not occur the case where the red and green lights 5 and 6 of the parent signal stand 1a flash in a non - synchronized way from those of the child signal stand 1b . at the time of starting the operation of the parent and child signal stands , although the start buttons 19 are pressed after the parent and child signal stands 1a and 1b are placed at the remote positions , the start buttons 19 may be pressed in the following way . after the completion of the setting operation of the times t 1 to t 3 , one operator brings the parent signal stand 1a to the child signal stand 1b or vice versa and pushes the two start buttons 19 at the same time to synchronize the flashing operations of the red and green lights in both the signal stands 1a and 1b . thereafter , the parent signal stand 1a is carried to one end 42a of the construction zone 41 while the child stand 1b is carried to the other end 42b of the construction zone 41 . in this case , the controller 26 is alone standby for operation and the power source cable 11 is connected to the commercial power source at the installation locations 42a and 42b , thereby controlling flashing of the red and green lights 5 and 6 . according to the present invention , since the starting operation of the signal stands 1a and 1b is effected manually and the synchronization of flashing between the red and green lights 5 and 6 is based on the actual timer 27 and the time correction circuit 31 for correcting the time supplied by the timer 27 , a signal cable for connecting both the parent and child signal stands together to synchronize the operation thereof is unnecessary , which is thus very convenient . a temporary signal system according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to fig7 ( a ) and 7 ( b ) in which fig7 ( a ) shows a circuit diagram of the parent signal stand 1a and fig7 ( b ) shows a circuit diagram of the child signal stand 1b . in the embodiment illustrated in fig7 ( a ) and 7 ( b ), the parent and child signal stands 1a and 1b employ a wireless arrangement as operation starting means . that is , the parent signal stand 1a has a transmitter 50 for transmitting a radio wave of specific frequency by way of an antenna 52 when the start button 19 is pressed as illustrated in fig7 ( a ). the child signal stand 1b has a receiver 51 for receiving the radio wave transmitted by the transmitter 50 by way of an antenna 53 for operating the respective controller 26 . the arrangement of the temporary signal system of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment excepting the transmitter 50 and the receiver 51 . an operation of the temporary signal system according to the second embodiment will be described hereinafter . the parent and child signal stands 1a and 1b are installed at opposite ends 42a and 42b of the construction site 41 in the same way as illustrated in fig5 . if the start button 19 in the parent signal stand 1a is pressed by the operator , the controller 26 starts its operation to drive the transmitter 50 so that the transmitter 50 transmits the radio wave for a given time period . whereupon the receiver 51 in the child stand 1b receives the radio wave signal , thereby operating the controller 26 of stand 1b . consequently , both the parent and child signal stands 1a and 1b are synchronized with each other . inasmuch as the child signal stand 1b starts its operation upon reception of the radio wave signal transmitted by the parent signal stand 1a , the child signal stand 1b can be operated without any deviation in its synchronization with the parent signal stand 1a . the other advantages and functions of the temporary signal system according to the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment . a temporary signal system according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to fig8 ( a ) and 8 ( b ) in which fig8 ( a ) shows a circuit diagram of the parent signal stand 1c and fig8 ( b ) shows a circuit diagram of the child signal stand 1d . in the third embodiment as illustrated in fig8 ( a ) and 8 ( b ), the parent and child signal stands 1c and 1d employ a light signal such as a laser light or the like . as operation starting means . that is , the parent signal stand 1c has a light emitting means 54 capable of emitting an infrared laser beam when the start button 19 is pressed as illustrated in fig8 ( a ). the light emitting means 54 comprises a light emitter 56 including an infrared laser beam emitting device 55 for emitting the infrared laser beam and a drive circuit 57 for turning the infrared laser beam emitting device 55 on or off . the light emitter 56 includes a reflector 58 provided at one end of the beam emitting device 55 and a lens 59 for focusing the laser beam provided at the other end of the light emitting device 55 . the child signal stand 1d has a light receiving means 60 for receiving the infrared laser beam and converting the infrared laser beam to an electric signal for operating the controller 26 . the light receiving means 60 comprising an infrared ray filter 61 at the front thereof , an optical system 64 inside thereof composed of a light receiving device 62 and a reflector 63 for focusing the infrared laser beam on the light receiving device 62 , and a wave forming circuit 65 for forming a signal to drive the controller 26 of stand 1d . the arrangement of the temporary signal system of the third embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment excepting the light emitting means 54 and the light receiving means 60 . an operation of the temporary signal system according to the third embodiment will be described hereinafter . the parent and child signal stands 1c and 1d are installed at opposite ends 42a and 42b of the construction site 41 in the same way as illustrated in fig5 . in the parent signal stand 1c , if the start button 19 is pressed by the operator , the controller 26 starts its operation to drive the light emitting means 54 so that the light emitter 56 emits a laser beam signal for a given period . whereupon the light receiving means 60 in the child stand 1b receives the laser beam signal . the thus received laser beam signal is detected by the light receiving element 62 and rectified by the wave rectifier 65 which is supplied to the controller 26 . as a result , the controller 26 of the child signal stand 1d starts its operation . both the parent and child signal stands 1c and 1d operate in the processes as illustrated in the flow charts of fig6 ( a ) and 6 ( b ). inasmuch as the child signal stand 1d starts its operation upon reception of the laser beam emitted by the parent signal stand 1c , there occurs deviation of the synchronization of flashing operations of the red and green lights between the parent and child signal stands 1c and 1d . although the laser beam has been employed in the third embodiment , an ordinary light signal can be employed . a temporary signal system according to a fourth embodiment will be described with reference to fig9 ( a ) and 9 ( b ) in which fig9 ( a ) shows a circuit diagram of the parent signal stand 1e and fig9 ( b ) shows a circuit diagram of the child signal stand 1f . in the fourth embodiment as illustrated in fig9 ( a ) and 9 ( b ), the parent and child signal stands 1e and 1f employ a sound signal such as an ultrasonic wave or the like as operation starting means . that is , the parent signal stand 1e has an ultrasonic wave transmitter 70 for transmitting an ultrasonic wave signal when the start button 19 of parent 1e is pressed as shown in fig9 ( a ). the ultrasonic wave transmitter 70 has an oscillating element 71 for generating an ultrasonic wave , a reflex horn 72 for effectively transmitting the ultrasonic wave in a desired direction and a drive circuit 73 for giving a given drive signal to the oscillating element 71 . when the start button 19 of stand 1e is pressed , the controller 26 starts its operation to thereby drive the drive circuit 73 . the child signal stand 1f has an ultrasonic wave receiver 75 for receiving the given ultrasonic wave signal and converting the ultrasonic wave into an electric signal for operating the controller 26 of stand 1f as shown in fig9 ( b ). the ultrasonic wave receiver 75 has a parabolic reflector 76 , an oscillating element 77 for converting the ultrasonic wave focused by the parabolic reflector 76 into an electric signal and a drive circuit 78 for receiving the electric signal from the oscillating element 77 to thereby operate the controller 26 of stand 1f . the arrangement of the temporary signal system of the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the second embodiment excepting the ultrasonic wave transmitter 70 and the ultrasonic wave receiver 75 . an operation of the temporary signal system according to the fourth embodiment will be described hereinafter . the parent and child signal stands 1e and 1f are installed at opposite ends 42a and 42b of the construction site 41 in the same way as illustrated in fig5 . in the parent signal stand 1e , if the start button 19 is pressed by the operator , the controller 26 starts its operation to drive the ultrasonic wave transmitter 70 so that the reflex horn 72 emits an ultrasonic wave to the child stand 1f for a given period . whereupon the parabolic reflector 76 of the ultrasonic wave receiver 75 of the child signal stand 1f focuses the ultrasonic wave which is supplied to the oscillating element 77 . the oscillating element 77 generates an electric signal which is supplied to the drive circuit 78 . the drive circuit 78 starts to operate the controller 26 of stand 1f upon reception of the electric signal . consequently , the controller 26 of the child signal stand 1f starts its operation while maintaining synchronization in the flashing operation of the red and green lights of both signal stands 1e and 1f . if a memory is provided at the child signal stand 1f and the interval between both the parent and child signal stand is stored in the memory of the child stand 1f as a correction value , then accurate synchronization can be made between the red and green lights of both the parent and child signal stands 1e and 1f . both the parent and child signal stands 1e and 1f operate according to the processes illustrated in the flow charts of fig6 ( a ) and 6 ( b ). inasmuch as the signal stand 1f starts its operation upon reception of the ultrasonic wave emitted by the signal stand 1e , there occurs scarcely any deviation in the synchronization of the flashing operations of the red and green lights of the parent and child signal stands 1e and 1f . although an ultrasonic wave has been employed by the fourth embodiment , an ordinary sound wave signal can also be employed . the operation starting means set forth in the first to fourth embodiments are not limited to those set forth above but can be modified . a temporary signal system according to a fifth embodiment will be described with reference to fig1 , 11 ( a ) and 11 ( b ). the parent temporary signal system of the fifth embodiment has a parent signal stand 1g provided with an antenna 81 to transmit the initialized data such as flashing time , flashing interval , periodic variation value at day and night time and the like . the parent signal stand 1g can operate based on the initialized values and cooperate with a child signal stand 1h provided with an antenna 82 for receiving radio wave signals from antenna 81 so that the parent signal stand 1g can control the child signal stand 1h . accordingly , the child signal stand 1h is completely under the control of the parent signal stand 1g . the flashing operations of both the red and green lights of the child signal stand 1h are synchronized with each other by the radio wave emitted by the parent signal stand 1g , details of which are described with reference to fig1 ( a ) and ( b ). if the push button 19 of stand 1g is pressed , another control signal , which is synchronous with a flashing control signal supplied from the controller 26 to the signal forming circuit 32 , is supplied to the transmitter 80 . the transmitter 80 supplies a given radio wave in response to the other control signal to the antenna 81 . the radio wave is thus emitted in the air from the antenna 81 . in the child signal stand 1h , the antenna 82 receives the radio wave signal emitted by the antenna 81 of the parent signal stand 1g and supplies the received radio wave to the receiver 83 which forms a control signal corresponding to the received radio wave . the control signal is supplied to the control portion 85 . the control portion 85 comprises a controller 86 for permitting both the red light 5h and the green light 6h to flash in response to the control signal and a signal forming circuit 32 having the same arrangement as the first embodiment . the controller 86 is connected to an operation board 87 provided with switches for tuning on or off the power supply or testing the operation . the signal forming circuit 32 is connected to the switching elements 33 and 34 the same as the first embodiment . the switching elements 33 and 34 receive a triggering signal from the signal forming circuit 32 and permit the red light 5h and the green light 6h to flash . a direct current power supply is supplied to each component of the parent and child signal stands 1g and 1h . according to the fifth embodiment , both the parent and child signal stands 1g and 1h are installed at opposite ends 42a and 42b of the construction site 41 . thereafter , the operation condition of the parent signal stand 1g is initialized ( i . e . programmed into the controller 26 ) and the start button 19 of the parent signal stand 1g is then pressed by the operator . as a result , the controller 26 starts its operation and supplies a flashing control signal to its signal forming circuit 32 and also supplies the other control signal which is synchronous with the flashing control signal to the transmitter 80 . the transmitter 80 emits a radio wave signal from the antenna 81 . the emitted radio wave was subjected to an amplitude modulation or frequency modulation by the other control signal . in the child signal stand 1h , the receiver 83 receives the radio wave signal from the parent stand by way of the antenna 82 and produces a control signal and supplies this control signal to the controller 86 . the controller 86 thus operates upon reception of the control signal under the control of the parent signal stand 1g so as to appropriately energize the red and green lights of the child stand in dependence on the control signals received from the parent stand . inasmuch as the child signal stand 1h is operated by the control signals supplied from the parent signal stand 1g , synchronization in the flashing operations of the red and green lights in the parent and child stands can be achieved . a temporary signal system according to a sixth embodiment will be described with reference to fig1 ( a ) and 12 ( b ) in which fig1 ( a ) shows a circuit diagram of the parent signal stand 1j and fig1 ( b ) shows a circuit diagram of the child signal stand 1k . the temporary signal system of the sixth embodiment has a parent signal stand 1j and a child signal stand 1k which is operated under the control of the parent signal stand 1j wherein the red and green lights of the child signal stand 1k are synchronous with each other by a laser beam or the like emitted by the parent signal stand 1j . the parent signal stand 1j has a light transmitting means 90 for transmitting a light signal , e . g . an infrared laser beam signal , when the start button 19 is pressed as illustrated in fig1 ( a ). the light emitting means 90 comprises a light emitting device 92 incorporating therein an infrared laser beam emitting element 91 for emitting the infrared laser beam and a drive circuit 93 for turning on or off the infrared laser beam emitting element 91 . the detailed arrangement of the light emitting means 90 is substantially the same as that of the third embodiment ( refer to fig8 ( a )). the child signal stand 1k has a light receiving device 95 for receiving the infrared laser beam and converting the thus received laser beam signal into an electric signal , thereby operating a controller 86 of a control portion 85 . the light receiving device 95 has the same arrangement as the third embodiment ( refer to fig8 ( b )) and comprises a light receiving element 96 , an optical system 97 for effectively focusing the infrared laser beam into the light receiving element 96 and a wave rectifier 98 for forming a control signal to drive the controller 86 upon reception of an electric signal from the light receiving element 96 of the optical system 97 . the arrangement of the sixth embodiment is the same as the fifth embodiment ( refer to fig1 ( b )) excepting the components set forth just above . according to the sixth embodiment , both the parent and child signal stands 1j and 1k are respectively installed at opposite ends 42a and 42b of the construction site 41 in the same way as illustrated in fig5 . thereafter , the operating condition of the parent stand 1j is initialized ( i . e . programmed into controller 26 ) and the start button 19 of the parent signal stand 1j is then pressed so that the controller 26 starts its operation . the controller 26 drives the light emitting means 90 so that the light emitting device 92 can emit a laser beam signal in response to the other control signal . accordingly , in the child signal stand 1k , the light receiving device 95 receives the laser beam signal which is detected by the light receiving element 96 and rectified by the wave rectifier 97 where the control signal is produced for driving the controller 86 . consequently , the controller 86 of the child signal stand 1k operates in accordance with the control signals under the control of the parent signal stand 1j . in this case , inasmuch as the child signal stand 1k operates upon reception of the laser beam signals from the parent signal stand 1j , synchronization of the flashing operations between the red and green lights of both the parent and child signal stands 1j and 1k occurs . although a laser beam has been used according to the sixth embodiment , an ordinary infrared light signal or the like can be used . inasmuch as the operations of both the parent and child signal stands can be started by the operation starting means and the flashing operations of the signal lights can be synchronized with each other , a signal transmitting cable for connecting the parent and child stands is not necessary . therefore , the temporary signal system can be handled with ease while the signal lights flash . a temporary signal system according to a seventh embodiment will be described with reference to fig1 to 19 . the parent signal stand 111 can set initial values for flashing time , flashing interval or periodic variation for day and night and the like . the initial values set by the parent signal stand 111 can be transmitted to the child signal stand 131 by way of a temporary or removable cable 150 having plugs 151 and 152 at opposite ends thereof . the electrical circuits incorporated in both the parent and child signal stands can be electrically connected by inserting the plugs 151 and 152 into connectors 122 and 142 , respectively . as a result , the child signal stand 131 stores the initial values for synchronization of flashing operations of the red and green lights of the parent signal stand 111 and matches the operation starting time with that of the parent signal stand 111 . after completion of the initialization , the cable 150 is disconnected from the connectors 122 and 142 . thereafter , both the parent and child signal stands 111 and 131 are installed in the positions where the traffic needs to be controlled . in fig1 ( a ), the operation board 120 has an indication portion 119 and an operation portion 123 . the operation portion 119 has an indication panel 124 for indicating the actual time at its upper portion and an indication panel 125 for indicating the setting value at its lower portion . the operation portion 123 comprises bush buttons pb1 to pb7 and mode selection switches 126 and 127 . the push button pb1 can set the present time . the push button pb2 can set the flashing time t 1 for permitting the green light 116 of the parent signal stand 111 to flash , while the push button pb3 can set the flashing time t 2 for permitting the green light 136 of the child signal stand 131 to flash . the push button pb4 can set the overlap time t 3 of both the red lights 115 and 135 of parent and child signal stands 111 and 131 . the push button pb5 sets the start of flashing operation , while the push button pb6 sets the completion of the flashing operation . the mode selection switch 126 selects an operation mode or a setting mode , while the mode selection switch 127 selects a normal operation mode or a red light flashing operation mode . the operation board 140 as illustrated in fig1 ( b ) functions to turn on or off the power source or operate in the minimum requirements . in fig1 , the control portion 155 comprises a controller 156 composed of , e . g . an 8 bit microcomputer provided with a ram and rom as memory means , a 24 - hour working timer 157 which is controlled by the controller 156 and supplies the present time to the controller 156 , a time correction circuit 161 composed of an amplitude modulation ( am ) receiver 158 , a band path filter ( bpf ) 159 for extracting a time tone received by the am receiver 158 and an interface circuit 160 for rectifying a wave of the thus extracted signal and producing a time correction signal which is supplied to the controller 156 , a signal forming circuit 162 for producing a triggering signal upon reception of the flashing control signal supplied by the controller 156 , and a connector 122 for transmitting data set by the controller 156 and a synchronous signal to an exterior device . denoted at ps is a direct current power source . the controller 156 is connected to the indication portion 119 and operation portion 123 of the operation board 120 while the signal forming circuit 162 is connected to switching elements 163 and 164 respectively composed of , e . g . solid - state relays ( ssrs ) or the like . the switching elements 163 and 164 permit the red and green lights 115 and 116 respectively connected to the commercial power source to flash upon reception of the triggering signal from the signal forming circuit 162 . lighting driving means comprises the signal forming circuit 162 and the switching elements 163 and 164 . the setting data and the synchronous signal stored in the controller 156 can be transmitted to the child signal stand 131 by way of the connectors 122 , 151 , the cable 150 and the plugs 152 , 142 . in fig1 , showing a circuit diagram of the child signal stand 131 , the control portion 165 comprises a controller 166 composed of , e . g . an 8 bit microcomputer provided with a ram and a rom as memory means , a 24 - hour working timer 167 which is controlled by the controller 166 and supplies the present time to the controller 166 , a time correction circuit 171 composed of an amplitude modulation ( am ) receiver 168 , a band path filter ( bpf ) 169 for extracting a time tone received by the am receiver 168 and an interface circuit 170 for rectifying a wave of the thus extracted signal and producing a time correction signal which is supplied to the controller 166 , a signal forming circuit 172 for producing a triggering signal upon reception of the flashing control signal supplied by the controller 166 , and a connector 142 for transmitting data set by the controller 166 and a synchronous signal to an exterior device . denoted at ps is a direct current power source . the controller 166 is connected to the operation board 140 while the signal forming circuit 172 is connected to switching elements 173 and 174 respectively composed of , e . g . solid - state relays ( ssrs ) or the like . the switching elements 173 and 174 permit the red and green lights 135 and 136 respectively connected to the commercial power source to flash upon reception of the triggering signal from the signal forming circuit 172 . lighting driving means comprises the signal forming circuit 172 and the switching elements 173 and 174 . the setting data and the synchronous signal stored in the controller 156 can be transmitted to the child signal stand 131 by way of the connectors 122 , 151 , the cable 150 and the plugs 152 , 142 . an operation of the temporary signal system having an arrangement set forth above will be described with reference to fig1 to 19 . it is necessary to initialize for determining the operations of the signal stands 111 and 131 having the same arrangement . the two signal stands 111 and 131 are positioned at one spot so as to be close to each other so that a flashing condition for the red lights 115 , 135 and green lights 116 , 136 is set to an appropriate value . this is done by the operations of the mode selection switch 126 and the push buttons pb2 to pb4 . that is , the mode selection switch 126 selects the setting mode while the push buttons pb2 to pb4 set the data for operating the red and green lights during the specific period , a flashing time t 1 of the green light 116 of the parent stand 111 , the flashing time t 2 of the green light 136 of the child stand 131 and an overlap time t 3 of both the red lights 115 and 135 of the parent and child signal stands 111 and 131 . if need be , the push button pb1 is pressed to thereby set the present time which is supplied to the parent signal stand 111 . the times t 1 to t 3 are set to an optimum value depending on the shape of the road , length of the construction site , the period of time at day and night , etc . the operation portion 123 of the operation board 120 can be operated for setting the other requisite conditional value . after completion of the initialization , the parent signal stand 111 is connected to the child signal stand 131 by the cable 150 . then , when the push button pb7 of the operation board 120 is pressed , the operation time data , the setting data for the duration of the flashing times t 1 to t 3 , the present time data and the synchronous data stored in the controller 156 of the parent signal stand 111 are supplied to the controller 166 of the child signal stand 131 by way of the connector 122 , the plug 151 , the cable 150 , the connector 152 and the plug 142 . consequently , the child signal stand 131 stores each data into the ram of the controller 156 and operates the timer 167 at the same time as that of the parent signal stand 111 based on the data stored in the ram and starts to form the flashing control signal based on the setting data during the flashing times t 1 to t 3 . the flashing operations of both the red light 135 and the green light 136 are not effected by the operation of the operation board 140 . after completion of the initialization , the cable 150 is removed from the parent and the child signal stands which are then installed at the locations where the traffic is controlled . during the interval when the parent and child signal stands 111 and 131 are carried to the installing area , i . e . the one end 182 and the other end 183 of the construction site 181 , both controllers 156 and 166 and timers 157 and 167 are operated by power supplied from the batteries in order to keep the data stored in the ram . the construction site 181 may be partitioned by pylons 184 , the gates 185 or the like . after completion of the installation , both the parent and child signal stands 111 and 131 are operated . since the initial value and the actual time are already stored in both the parent and child signal stands 111 and 131 , they start operation immediately when the power is supplied to them by way of the cables 121 and 141 . both the parent and child signal stands 111 and 131 respectively start operations based on the initial setting value in accordance with the flow charts illustrated in fig1 ( a ) and 19 ( b ). in the parent signal stand 111 , when the start button pb5 is pressed ( step 100 ), the controller 156 reads the actual time t 0 of the timer 157 and stores it into the ram ( step 101 ), and at the same time produces and supplies the flashing control signal for permitting the green light 116 to flash and the red light 115 not to flash ( step 102 ). consequently , the controller 156 adds the flashing time , i . e . setting value t 1 to the actual time t 0 and stores the resultant value into a buffer α ( step 103 ). thereafter , the controller 156 reads the actual time t in the timer 157 ( step 104 ) and compares it with the value stored in the buffer α ( step 105 ) and produces and supplies a flashing control signal and repeats the procedure if the actual time t does not coincide with the value stored in the buffer α and lighting out the green light 116 not to flash and permitting the red light 115 to flash if the actual time t coincides with the value stored in the buffer ( step 106 ). subsequently the controller 156 adds the time t 2 + 2t 3 to the present value and stores the resultant value in the buffer α ( step 107 ). then the controller 156 reads the actual time t of the timer 157 ( step 108 ), compares it with the value stored in the buffer α ( step 109 ) and produces and supplies flashing control signal and repeats the procedures if the actual time t does not coincide with the value stored in the buffer α and permits the green light 116 to flash and the red light 115 not to flash if the actual time t coincides with the value stored in the buffer ( step 110 ). thereafter the controller 156 adds the setting value t 1 to the value of the present buffer α and stores the resultant value in the buffer α ( step 111 ). the procedure is then jumped to the step 104 and is repeated during the operation setting period . the time t 0 stored in the ram of the controller 156 is supplied as the synchronous signal from the parent signal stand 111 to the child signal stand 131 by way of the cable 150 at the time of initialization . the controller 166 in the child signal stand 131 stores the data and the synchronous signal transmitted by the parent signal stand 111 into the ram , then sets the timer 167 based on the stored data ( step 200 ). thereafter the controller 166 reads the present time t from the timer 167 ( step 201 ). the controller 166 calculates the time for permitting the green light 136 of the child signal stand 131 based on the present time t and the resultant calculated time into a buffer β ( step 202 ). then the controller 166 produces and supplies a flashing control signal for permitting the green light 136 to flash first then the red light 135 not to flash ( step 203 ). the controller 166 reads the actual time t of the timer 167 ( step 204 ), compares it with the value stored in the buffer β ( step 205 ) and produces and supplies a flashing control signal and repeats the procedure if the actual time t does not coincide with the value stored in the buffer β and permits the green light 136 not to flash and the red light 135 to flash if the actual time t coincides with the value stored in the buffer β ( step 206 ). thereafter the controller 166 adds t 1 + 2t 3 to the present value of the buffer β and stores the resultant value into the buffer ( step 207 ). the controller 166 reads the actual time t of the timer 167 ( step 208 ), compares it with the value in the buffer ( step 209 ) and produces and supplies a flashing control signal and repeats the procedures if the actual time t does not coincide with the value stored in the buffer β and permits the green light 136 to flash and the red light 135 not to flash if the actual time t coincides with the value stored in the buffer ( step 210 ). successively , the controller 166 adds the setting value t 2 to the value of the buffer β and stores the resultant value in the buffer β ( step 211 ). thereafter , the procedure jumps to step 204 and steps 204 to 211 are repeated during the operation setting period . although the flashing times t 1 1 to t 3 are decided based on the actual time of the timers 157 and 167 , theses times are subject to delay to some extent . however , inasmuch as the time correction signal is supplied every hour from the time correction circuit 161 to the controller 166 to correct the time , there does not occur the case where the red lights 115 and 135 and green lights 116 and 136 flash in a different way . as mentioned above , inasmuch as the starting operations of both the parent and child signal stands are effected based on the starting time t 0 , the synchronization of the flashing operations between the red lights 115 and 135 and the green lights 116 and 136 is effected by the timers 157 and 167 for supplying the actual times and the time correction circuits 161 and 171 for correcting the timers 157 and 167 , and thus a synchronous cable for connecting both the parent and child signal stands is unnecessary , thereby facilitating the handling of the system . a temporary signal system according to an eighth embodiment will be described with reference to fig2 , 21 ( a ) and 21 ( b ). according to the eighth embodiment , the setting data set in the parent signal stand 111a is stored in an integrated circuit ( ic ) card ( signal transmission means ) 190 which is connected to the child signal stand 131a for supplying the data stored therein to the child signal stand 131a . that is , the temporary signal system of the eighth embodiment comprises the parent signal stand 111a , the child signal stand 131a , the setting data set in the parent signal stand 111a and the ic card 190 for supplying the synchronous signal to the child signal stand 131a . the parent signal stand 111a has an ic card socket 189 at the side surface of the operation board 120 to which socket 189 the ic card 190 can be detachably attached . the child signal stand 131a also has an ic card socket 149 at the side surface of the operation board 140 to which socket the ic card 190 can be detachably attached . as illustrated in fig2 ( a ), the ic card socket 189 is connected to the controller 156 . if the push button pb7 of the operation portion 123 is pressed , both the setting data and the synchronous signal can be supplied to the ic card 190 connected to the socket 189 . likewise , in fig2 ( b ), the controller 166 in the child signal stand 131 receives the setting data and the synchronous signal from the ic card 190 connected to the socket 149 and stores the setting data and the synchronous signal into the ram . the setting data to be stored in the ic card 190 comprises operation data for operating the child signal stand 131a according to the specific time interval , a flashing time t 1 of the green light 116 of the parent signal stand 111a , a flashing time t 2 of the green light 136 of the child signal stand 131a and an overlap time t 3 of both the red lights 115 and 135 of both the parent and child signal stands 111a and 131a . the first time t 0 based on which the parent signal stand 111a is operated is used as the synchronous signal to be stored in the ic card 190 . the arrangement of the eighth embodiment is substantially the same as the seventh embodiment excepting the components set forth above . both the parent and child signal stands 111a and 131a are respectively installed at the exit and entrance 182 , 183 of the construction site 181 in the same manner as the seventh embodiment . then , the operation condition of the parent signal stand 111a is initialized and the initialized data is stored in the ram and the start button pb5 is pressed . as a result , the controller 156 starts its operation . thereafter , the ic card 190 is connected to the ic card socket 189 of the parent signal stand 111a and the push button pb5 of the operation board 120 is pressed , whereby the setting data set in the ram of the controller 156 and the synchronous signal are stored in the ic card 190 . the ic card is carried to the child signal stand 131a and plugged into the socket 149 of the child signal stand 131a so that the setting data and the synchronous signal are transferred in the ram of the controller 166 . thereafter , the controller 166 of the child signal stand 131a starts its operation , thereby setting the timer 167 based on the setting data stored in the ram of the controller 166 and providing synchronization with the parent signal stand 111a on the basis of the actual time from the timer 167 and the synchronous signal . since the time of the timer 167 is corrected every hour based on the correction signal issued by the time correction circuit 171 , the child signal stand 131a is always synchronous with the parent signal stand 111a . according to the eighth embodiment , since the setting data of the operation condition and the synchronous signal are stored in the ic card 190 and supplied from the parent signal stand 111a to the child signal stand 131a , both the parent and child signal stands can be synchronized with each other even if they are remotely located form each other . furthermore , it is possible to vary the setting data freely since the operation condition need not be set at the same place . the other functions and advantages are the same as the seventh embodiments . according to the seventh and eighth embodiments , the flashing operations between the red lights and the green lights can be synchronous with each other since the setting data of the operation condition can be supplied from the parent signal stand to the child signal stand or vice versa . although the setting data of the operation condition can be transmitted between both signal stands by the short cable 150 or the ic card 190 or the like , they can be transmitted , e . g . by a recording media such as a tape , a floppy disk or the like . as mentioned above , since the setting data and the synchronous data can be supplied from one signal stand to the other signal stand by means of the signal transmission means , it is possible to coincide the actual time of one signal stand with that of the other signal stand and synchronize the flashing operations of the signal lights by the actual time , the setting data and the synchronous data . as a result , a permanent cable for connecting both signal stands can be eliminated and there is no worry about breakage of the cable . still furthermore , the synchronous cable is not required which facilitates handling of the temporary signal system . although the invention has been described in its preferred form with a certain degree of particularity , it is to be understood that many variations and changes are possible in the invention without departing from the scope thereof . | 6 |
as illustrated in fig1 and 3 , the clad frame system 1 of the present invention includes first and second upright frame members 4 , 7 that are spaced and parallel to each other . the frame system also includes a header frame member 10 extending between topmost portions 11 , 12 of the upright frame members 4 , 7 . it may be noted that each of the frame members 4 , 7 , 10 is elongate . together , the upright frame members 4 , 7 and header frame member 10 define a door opening 13 . with reference to axes x , y and z , the door opening 13 separates an exterior side 16 ( in foreground ) of opening 13 from an interior side 19 ( background ) of opening 13 . preferably , the frame system 1 is used for framing a door on the exterior of a building . thus , exterior side 16 is disposed outside the building . consequently , interior side 19 is disposed inside the building . as best illustrated in fig2 and 3 , each of the frame members 4 , 7 , 10 preferably includes at least two subcomponents : a jamb and a brickmold . thus , the first upright frame member 4 includes a left side jamb 28 and a left brickmold 31 extending therealong . the second upright frame member 7 correspondingly includes a right side jamb 34 and a right brickmold 37 extending therealong . right side jamb 34 is adjacent a masonry wall 38 and a portion of right side jamb 34 projects inward ( toward the interior of the door opening 13 ) from wall 38 and extends to a back surface 39 . similar to the left and right side jambs 28 , 34 and left and right brickmolds 31 , 37 , an upper brickmold 43 extends along a header jamb 40 . together , upper brickmold 43 and header jamb 40 comprise the header frame member 10 . in each case , brickmolds 31 , 37 , 43 extend along a surface of the jambs 28 , 34 , and 40 that faces exterior side 16 . preferably , the brickmolds 31 , 37 , 43 cover most of an area of this surface . the term “ most ” as used herein is defined as 50 % or greater . as shown in fig2 brickmolds 31 and 43 meet at a 45 ° mitered joint 22 , whereas brickmolds 37 and 43 meet at a 45 ° mitered joint 25 . it is understood that other angles for the mitered joint 25 may be used . as best illustrated in fig1 and 3 , the frame system 1 also includes first , second and third cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 at least partially covering each of frame members 4 , 7 , 10 , respectively . similar to frame members 4 , 7 , 10 , cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 are elongate and meet at 45 ° mitered joints 22 , 25 . although not essential to the invention , the frame system 1 may also include a threshold 55 extending between bottom most portions 58 , 61 of first and second frame members 4 , 7 . fig3 illustrates a cross - section of the second upright frame member 7 ( including right side jamb 34 and right brickmold 37 ) and second cladding strip 49 . while similar cross - sections of the first upright frame member 4 and upper frame member 10 are not depicted , it is understood that they ( and the corresponding jambs 28 , 40 and brickmolds 31 , 43 ) have the same configuration in cross - section . as seen in fig3 second cladding strip 49 frictionally engages second upright frame member 7 . second cladding strip 49 includes an inner flange 60 and an outer flange 80 , each of which is generally u - shaped in cross - section . while inner flange 60 extends along and at least partially overlies some of right side jamb 34 , outer flange 80 extends along and at least partially overlies some of right brickmold 37 . inner flange 60 has first and second legs 62 , 64 that are spaced apart from each other . preferably , first and second legs 62 , 64 are generally parallel to one another . inner flange 60 also has a body portion 66 that connects to , and extends between , legs 62 , 64 at edges 63 , 65 , respectively . preferably , body portion 66 is oriented about 90 ° relative to legs 62 , 64 . first leg 62 extends along right side jamb 34 adjacent the portion of a surface 68 that faces toward exterior side 16 but which is not covered by right brickmold 37 . body portion 66 extends along right side jamb 34 adjacent the portion of a surface 72 that faces the door opening 13 . second leg 64 extends along right side jamb 34 adjacent doorstop jamb surface 70 . although not essential to the invention , weather stripping may be used to provide a barrier to the elements in between the door on one hand and the doorstop jamb surface 70 and second leg 64 on the other hand . if so , the weather stripping should be disposed at least partially within kerf 74 and project inwardly towards interior side 19 . the weather stripping should also project along doorstop jamb surface 70 towards door opening 13 up to second leg 64 . that way , the doorstop jamb surface 70 is substantially protected from exposure to the elements . preferably , second leg 64 extends along most of doorstop jamb surface 70 . that way , a relatively wide variety of configurations of weather stripping may be utilized . on the other hand , if second leg 64 did not extend along most of door stop jamb surface 70 , the weather stripping would need to be especially configured to project toward door opening 13 along door stop jamb surface 70 up to second leg 64 . otherwise , doorstop jamb surface 70 would remain unprotected from the elements . when the length of second leg 64 is selected such that it extends along most of doorstop jamb surface 70 , the weather stripping need not be especially configured to have such a projection . a second leg 64 that extends along most of doorstop jamb surface 70 provides an additional advantage . such a longer second leg 64 grips second upright frame member 7 with greater frictional engagement than compared to a shorter second leg 64 . outer flange 80 has first and second legs 82 , 84 that are spaced apart from each other . preferably , first and second legs 82 , 84 are generally parallel one another . outer flange 80 also has a decorative portion 86 that connects to , and extends between , legs 82 , 84 at edges 83 , 85 , respectively . preferably , decorative portion 86 is generally oriented about 90 ° relative to legs 82 , 84 . first leg 82 extends along right side brickmold 37 adjacent the portion of a surface 88 that faces the door opening 13 but which is not covered by right brickmold 37 . second leg 84 extends along right brickmold 37 adjacent the portion of a surface 90 that faces away from the door opening 13 . preferably , second leg 84 completely covers surface 90 . while fig3 depicts an end 91 of second leg 84 as abutting masonry wall 38 , it is understood that other lengths of second leg 84 may be selected that may not abut wall 38 . similarly , it is understood that clad frame system 1 may be used with thicker or thinner walls 38 . decorative portion 86 extends along right brickmold 37 adjacent the surface 92 that faces toward exterior side 16 . while decorative portion 86 is illustrated as having two stepped segments 87 , it is understood that any other configuration may be utilized . for example , decorative portion 86 may be configured to simulate decoratively carved brickmolds used with door frames . preferably a decorative pattern , such as a wood grain pattern , is rolled into the decorative portion 86 . the lengths of first and second legs 82 , 84 and decorative portion 86 may be widely varied to provide whatever appearance is desired and / or to suit the particular dimensions of right side jamb 34 and right brickmold 37 . for example , while first and second legs 82 , 84 of outer flange 80 are depicted as extending forwardly beyond edges 94 , 96 , leaving a gap 98 , the lengths of first and second legs 82 , 84 may be shortened to allow a snug engagement between decorative portion 86 and surface 92 . similarly , the lengths of legs 82 , 84 may be modified to allow any other size gap 98 or to allow another decorative pattern instead of stepped segments 87 . preferably , a support 99 is secured to brickmold 37 , as best shown in fig3 . support 99 is positioned at the edge of brickmold 37 along edge 96 and extends the length thereof . support 99 may be formed of wood or a wood composite and may be adhesively secured to brickmold 37 , such as with polyvinyl acetate . alternatively , support 99 may be formed integral with brickmold 37 . the support 99 fills the gap 98 , and thereby resists crushing or deformation of decorative portion 86 . it is understood that the configurations of the first , second and third cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 are identical , except for their lengths ( third cladding strip 52 is shorter than the first and second cladding strips 46 , 49 in a typical doorway that is taller than it is wide ). consequently , cross - sections of the left side jamb 28 , left brickmold 31 , header jamb 40 , upper brickmold 43 , and first and third cladding strips 46 , 52 are identical to those of the right side jamb 31 , right brickmold 34 and second cladding strip 49 , respectively . the inventor has also discovered that the wood rot problem may be avoided if the proper material is selected for the cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 . for example , when the cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 are made of a relatively rigid material , the cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 provide the strength sufficient to hold the inventive frame system up even if wood rot degrades the structural integrity of frame members 4 , 7 , 10 when they are made of wood . preferably , the material for the cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 is steel , more preferably hot dip galvanized steel , even more preferably hot dip galvanized 26 ga sheet steel . preferably , the cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 are also at least somewhat elastically deformable such that they may be snapped into place on the frame members 4 , 7 , 10 for frictional engagement therewith . the cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 may also be provided with a protective layer on exteriorly disposed surfaces , i . e ., those that are exposed to the elements . such a protective layer includes paint . the cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 are preferably roll formed , i . e ., one piece of cladding stock material is rolled between rollers to achieve the desired configuration of cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 . when such a method is employed , a one - piece cladding is thus produced from a one - piece stock material , i . e ., so - called unitarily forming . roll forming may be contrasted with other methods of producing cladding , such as joining two or more components to achieve the final configuration of the cladding . such other methods do not result in a unitarily formed one - piece cladding . the jambs 28 , 34 , 40 and brickmolds 31 , 37 , 43 may be made of wood . because a cladding conceals portions of the jambs 28 , 34 , 40 and brickmolds 31 , 37 , 43 , a relatively inferior grade of wood is preferred from a cost standpoint . the threshold 55 may be made of any material known in the art for such a use . the clad frame system 1 may be assembled as follows . one end of each of the right and left brickmolds 31 , 37 and first and second cladding strips 46 , 49 are cut at a 45 ° angle for later forming of mitered joints 22 , 25 with the upper brickmold 43 and third cladding strip 52 , respectively . thus , each of the ends of the upper brickmold 43 and third cladding strip 52 is also cut at a 45 ° angle , thus completing the configuration necessary for the mitered joints 22 , 25 . next , the side jambs 28 , 34 are parallel spaced and the header jamb 40 is laid at a right angle extending between the jambs 28 , 34 and one end thereof . the threshold , if desired , is similarly laid between the opposite ends of the side jambs 28 , 34 . the jambs 28 , 34 , 40 and threshold 55 are then nailed together at each of the four corners . the right , left and upper brickmolds 31 , 37 , 43 are then placed along surface 68 at a 90 ° angle relative the surface of the jambs 28 , 34 , 40 facing the exterior side 16 and placed against one another such that the cut corners form mitered joints 22 , 25 . thus placed , brickmolds 31 , 37 , 43 are then nailed or otherwise secured to the jambs 28 , 34 , and 40 with brad nails . the second cladding strip is then put in place as follows . the end 91 of the second leg 84 is placed rearward of edge 104 of right brickmold 37 . the cladding strip 49 is then pivoted around the right brickmold 37 and right side jamb 34 so that end 107 of the inner flange 60 is snapped into place over edge 110 of the right side jamb 34 and second leg 64 extends along door stop jamb surface 70 for frictional engagement therewith . thus , cladding strip 49 is frictionally retained upon second frame member 7 . this method of installing the cladding is repeated for the first and third cladding strips 46 , 52 along the first and third frame members 4 , 7 , respectively , so that the first and third , and the second and third , cladding strips 46 , 49 , 52 meet at mitered joints 22 , 25 , respectively . as best shown in fig4 a steel entry door d is supported by interior hinges ( not shown ) in well - known manner . doorknob 200 or similar access member is provided to permit door d to be opened . preferably , threshold 55 is disposed below door d . the door d and cladding strips are preferably manufactured from identical gauge galvanized steel . because the cladding strips 46 , 49 , and 52 are manufactured from the same material as is used to manufacture the door d , then paint color and texture differences are eliminated . the door d and the cladding strips 46 , 49 , and 52 thus possess identical texture and gloss , presenting a more aesthetically pleasing appearance to the consumer . in the past , because the door was made from steel and the frame from wood , then those members would exhibit differences in both paint texture and gloss , sometimes to a marked extent . having thus described the invention , it will be realized that although the foregoing description of the inventor &# 39 ; s preferred embodiment includes specific quantities , materials , dimensions and procedures , modifications and variations thereof might be employed without departing from the inventive concept herein . | 4 |
the technical solution of the present invention is described in detail as below , but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments . as shown in fig1 , the process corner detection circuit based on a self - timing oscillation ring of the present invention comprises a reset circuit , a self - timing oscillation ring , and a counting module . the self - timing oscillation ring comprises at least three stages of miller units and inverters , and the counting module comprises at least three flip - flops . in different process corners , the numbers of the oscillations of the self - timing oscillation ring within the same period are different , and the number of the flip - flops in the counting module should be larger than the largest number of the oscillations of the self - timing oscillation ring during an oscillation period . when the stage of the miller unit and the inverter included in the self - timing oscillation ring is 9 , and the stage of the flip - flop included in the counting module is 32 , a detailed implementation is as follows : as shown in fig1 . the reset circuit is constituted by two flip - flops dr 1 and dr 2 , a two - input or gate or 1 , a two - input nor gate nor 1 and a two - input nand gate nand 1 ; a data input port d of the flip - flop dr 1 is connected to a divide - by - eight frequency signal clk 8 of a system clock , a clock port is connected to the system clock clk , an output signal of a data output port q is clk 8 _ 1 which is connected to a data input port d of the flip - flop dr 2 , and an output signal of an inverted data output port q of the flip - flop dr 1 is clk 8 _ 1 n ; a clock port of the flip - flop dr 2 is connected to the system clock clk , and an output signal of a data output port q is clk 8 _ 2 which is connected to an input port of the two - input or gate or 1 ; the other input port of the two - input or gate or 1 is connected to the divide - by - eight frequency signal clk 8 of the system clock ; an output signal of the two - input or gate or 1 is a reset signal rstn of the counting module ; the two input ports of the two - input nor gate nor 1 respectively are connected to clk 8 _ 1 and the ground , and an output signal thereof is set 1 ; and the two input ports of the two - input nand gate nand 1 respectively are connected to a power supply vdd and clk 8 _ 1 n , and the output signal thereof is set 0 . as shown in fig4 , the self - timing oscillation ring is constituted by 9 two - input miller units and inverters , and a two - input and gate and 1 ; the self - timing oscillation ring has 9 stages , each stage consisting of a miller unit and an inverter ; the output of the inverter in each stage is connected to an input port of the miller unit in this stage , the input port of the inverter is connected to the output port of the miller unit in next stage , and the input port of the inverter in the ninth stage is connected to the output port of the miller unit in the first stage ; an input port of the miller unit in the first stage is connected to the output port of the two - input and gate and 1 , the other input port of the miller unit in each of the other stages is connected to the output port of the miller unit in a previous stage , an input port of the two - input and gate and 1 is connected to the output port of the miller unit in the ninth stage , and the other input port is connected to the output port q of the flip - flop dr 1 ; and the output signal of the miller unit in the first stage serves as the output signal osc_out of the self - timing oscillation ring . the counting module is constituted by 32 flip - flops that have reset ports and are connected in series ; the counting module constituted has 32 stages , each stage being a flip - flop ; the clock ends of all flip - flops are connected to an oscillation output signal osc_out of the self - timing oscillation ring , and the reset ports all are connected to the reset signal rstn output by the reset circuit ; and the data input port of the flip - flop in the first stage is connected to a high level ( the power supply vdd ), and the data input port of the flip - flop in each stage thereafter is connected to the data output port of the flip - flop in a previous stage . the miller unit in each stage of the self - timing oscillation ring has a reset port ‘ reset ’ and a set port ‘ set ’, as shown in fig2 , wherein the reset port ‘ reset ’ clears an output value of the miller unit , and the set port ‘ set ’ sets the output value of the miller unit so as to set an initial state of the self - timing oscillation ring . the miller unit having the reset port ‘ reset ’ and the set port ‘ set ’ is constituted by three pmos transistors mp 1 , mp 2 and mp 3 , three nmos transistors mn 1 , mn 2 and mn 3 and two inverters inv 1 and inv 2 , which has two input ports a and b , and an output port z , as shown in fig3 ; the source of mp 1 is connected to the power supply vdd , the gate is connected to an input signal a , and the drain is connected to the source of mp 2 ; the gate of mp 2 is connected to an input signal b , and the drain is connected to the drain of mn 1 ; the gate of mn 1 is connected to the input signal a , and the source is connected to the drain of mn 2 ; the gate of mn 2 is connected to the input signal b , and the source is connected to the ground gnd ; the source of mp 3 is connected to the power supply vdd , and the gate is connected to a set signal ‘ set ’, and the drain is connected to a node zn connecting the drain of mp 2 and the drain of mn 1 ; the drain of mn 3 also is connected to zn , the gate is connected to the reset signal ‘ reset ’, and the source is connected to the ground gnd ; the input port of the inverter inv 1 to zn , and the output port thereof is the output port z of the miller unit ; at the same time , z is connected to the input port of the inverter inv 2 , and the output port of the inverter inv 2 also is connected to zn ; and the aspect ratios of mp 1 , mp 2 and mp 3 are the same as the aspect ratio of the nmos in the inverter inv 1 , and the aspect ratios of mn 1 , mn 2 and mn 3 are the same as the aspect ratio of the pmos in the inverter inv 1 , but the aspect ratios of the pmos and the nmos transistors in the inverter inv 2 are respectively at least less than half of the aspect ratios of the pmos and the nmos transistors in the inverter inv 1 . the initial output states of the miller units of the first eight stages in the self - timing oscillation ring before an oscillation are set to be 0 , and the initial output state of the miller unit of the ninth stage before an oscillation is set to be 1 ; the set ports ‘ set ’ of the miller units of the first 8 stages are all connected to an output signal set 0 of nand 1 , and the reset ports ‘ reset ’ are all connected to the ground ; and the set port ‘ set ’ of the miller unit of the ninth level is connected to the power supply vdd , and the reset port ‘ reset ’ is connected to the output signal set 1 of nor 1 . the number of 1s in the data output by the flip - flops in 32 stages in the counting module represents the number of the oscillations of the self - timing oscillation ring ; and the counting result of the counting module reflects the condition of the process corner of the chip . after finishing the design of the process corner detection circuit based on the self - timing oscillation ring , the hspise tool is used to perform simulation . the hspice simulation result of the process corner detection module is shown in fig5 . the process adopted by the circuit is smic 0 . 18 μm cmos process , and the corresponding pvt conditions are an ss process corner , 1 . 8 v and 125 ° c . clk in fig5 is the system clock , osc_out is the output of the self - timing oscillation ring , rstn_osc is the reset signal of the counting module , and counter [ 31 : 0 ] is the output of the flip - flops in 32 stages in the counting module . it can be seen from the figure that , during the period that the enabling signal clk 8 _ 1 of the self - timing oscillation ring is at a high level , the oscillation ring outputs oscillations , while when clk 8 _ 1 is at a low level , there is no oscillation ; the reset signal rstn_osc is a value after performing or operation on clk 8 and clk 8 _ 2 , which is exactly valid during two central clock periods when clk 8 _ 1 is at a low level ; and during the period that clk 8 _ 1 is at a high level , the oscillation ring oscillates for 15 times totally , and the output value counter [ 31 : 0 ] of the counting module is 7fff , containing fifteen 1 , which is the same as the number of the oscillations of the oscillation ring . the process corner detection module is simulated with different process corners and at different temperatures , and the obtained counting result of the ring oscillator is as shown in table 1 . it can be seen from table 1 that when the chip is in an ss process corner , the number of oscillations of the ring oscillator ranges from 15 to 17 ; when the chip is in a tt process corner , the number of oscillations of the ring oscillator ranges from 19 to 21 ; and when the chip is in an ff process corner , the number of oscillations of the ring oscillator ranges from 24 to 27 . in different process corners , there is no overlaps in the counting result when temperature changes . in table 1 , 125 ° c . corresponds to a very extreme situation , whereas the process corner detection is performed after powering up the chip and before starting work , and at this time , the temperature of the chip may be regarded to be the same as the environment temperature , and does not reach the extreme situation . therefore , when the process corner is determined according to the counting result of the oscillation ring , it is possible to take into account only the counting result within a normal variation range of environment temperature , i . e ., situations between − 25 ° c . and 50 ° c . specific determination values are as shown in table 2 . it can be seen from table 2 that when the counting result is 16 or 17 , it can be determined that the chip is in an ss process corner ; when the counting result is 18 or 19 , it can be determined that the chip is in a process corner between ss and tt ; when the counting result is from 20 to 21 , it can be determined that the chip is in a tt process corner ; when the counting result is from 22 to 24 , it can be determined that the chip is in a process corner between tt and ff ; and when the counting result is from 25 to 27 , it can be determined that the chip is in an ff process corner . as stated above , although the present invention has been shown and illustrated with reference to specific preferred embodiments , it should not be interpreted as limiting of the present invention itself . various changes in form and detail may be made on the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof as defined by the appended claims . | 6 |
the basic heterodyne interferometer used in this embodiment of the invention is shown in fig1 . in fig1 oi is an optical isolator , aom is an acousto - optic modulator , bs is a beam splitter , pd is a photodiode detector , bpf is a band pass filter , and vco is a voltage controlled oscillator . light from a single frequency laser , a he - ne laser for example , is split into two paths by an acousto - optic modulator . the deflected beam suffers a 40 mhz or other appropriate frequency shift and is used as the local oscillator of the interferometer . after the beam splitter ( bs ) the other beam , i . e . the probe beam , is focused onto the surface under test by a 10x microscope objective ( n . a . 0 . 25 ). the surface is laterally vibrated by an x - y piezotransducer ( pzt ) driven stage and can optionally have a z driven pzt stage such that better position control can result by oscillating the sample perpendicularly to the incident beam of laser light . the amplitude of the displacement is approximately 5 nm . the probe beam is phase modulated by this sinusoidal lateral vibration of the surface . since the focused beam has a finite size , the modulation depth is determined by the geometrical average of the pathlength ( gapl ) over the focused region . the gapl difference caused by the small amplitude vibration of the surface is a measure of the local slope . the lateral spatial resolution is thereby limited by the focusing optics , because surface roughness smaller than the focal spot is averaged . the reflected scattered beam from the surface is collected by the focusing lens and sent back to the bs . the local oscillator and probe beams are combined in the bs and mixed at the photodiode ( pd ). the phase modulation on the probe beam is then carried by the rf intermediate frequency . the signal current i s from the photodiode is : where δω is the rf intermediate frequency and δφ is the phase difference between the probe and local oscillator beams . the phase term can be rewritten as : where φ m is the sinusoidally modulated phase term and φ s represents other environmentally induced phase changes caused by thermal drifts of the optical paths and acoustic vibrations of optical components . if the surface is displaced in the x - direction with a small displacement δx = δ o sin ω m t , the resulting optical path length change is : where δ o and ω m are the amplitude and frequency of the displacement , and α = δz / δx = tanθ , is the local slope of the surface . the above equation is a good approximation for small displacements because the path length change caused by the reflection angle difference is negligible . the modulated phase term is then given by : this sinusoidally modulated phase term can be detected by using either a phase locked loop or discriminator . after a high pass filter , the rf signal from the photodiode is mixed with a rf local oscillator derived from a voltage controlled oscillator ( vco ). the intermediate frequency output from the mixer passes through a loop filter and is used as an error signal to drive the vco . the vco is frequency locked to the rf input signal and the time variation of the phase term can be measured from the vco driving signal . since this scheme is not sensitive to a quasi - static phase change , it does not require feedback control of the optical path length of the interferometer . moreover , since the signal from the phase locked loop is synchronously detected by a lock - in amplifier , any unsynchronized background disturbance of the interferometer is filtered out . the sensitivity of a heterodyne interferometer is well known . if a temporally and spatially coherent source is used , then the minimum detectable phase difference between the two interferometer arms is : where p / hη , δf , and η represent the number of photons , detection bandwidth , and quantum efficiency of the photodiode , respectively . the sensitivity calculation has been performed by assuming : i ) 50 % conversion efficiency of the acousto - optic modulator , ii ) half of the probe beam is lost at the bs , and iii ) there is a 3 db loss in signal at the rf mixing stage . for a 1 mw he - ne laser and silicon photodiode ( η ˜ 0 . 8 ), the minimum detectable phase difference is δφ min ˜ 5 × 10 - 7 rad √{ hz }, or equivalently δ1 min = 2 . 5 × 10 - 14 m √ hz . the equivalent noise bandwidth has been determined by the integration time constant of the lock - in amplifier . for a 10 millisecond time constant , δf = 1 /( 8τ )= 12 . 5 hz . with these parameters , the theoretical limit of the average differential depth resolution is δ1 min = 8 . 8 × 10 - 14 m . a complete map of the local slope of a test sample can be determined by scanning the probe over the surface , and the surface structure can be regenerated from this map . the test sample can be mounted on a pzt driven stage that in turn can be mounted on a motor driven x - y stage . the x - y stage and the lock - in amplifier can be interfaced with a personal computer ( pc ) as shown in fig1 . while scanning the sample over the region of interest , the local slope at each data point is obtained by a standard numerical integration method , see fig2 for illustration of this technique . fig3 shows a scan of an aluminum mirror surface on which a cross - shaped scratch and a series of point indentations were deliberately made . a high resolution scsm image of the cross is shown in fig4 . although in its present form scsm cannot compete with sem in lateral resolution , its average depth resolution is much better and depth profiles viewed at different angles are obtained directly . moreover , the scsm is non - destructive since it does not require a conducting surface , and the sample does not need to be sliced to quantify the depth of the image . it should be noted that the scsm results shown in fig3 and 4 are 2 - d maps of 1 - d slope data . although these maps show qualitative features of the surface , in order to obtain quantitative images the slope data need to be converted to a depth profile . in fig3 and 4 the slope data was obtained unidirectionally and the data was not calibrated for scattering loss of the probe beam on the scratch . such scattering loss on the scratch can be compensated by adding an automatic rf gain control stage , and a two dimensional slope vector can be obtained by adding another pzt translation stage that provides lateral vibration in an orthogonal direction . this invention also uses a heterodyne interferometer for surface diagnostics . the interferometer has been designed to measure the local slope of a surface . using this technique we have been able to image the 3 - d surface structure of various optical components such as lenses and mirrors . scsm has the following desirable features : i ) the microscope is non - destructive ; ii ) the microscope can produce diffraction - limited 3d images of a surface with an average differential depth resolution 2 . 5 × 10 - 14 m . with longer scanning times a high resolution image of an entire surface can be obtained . these images can be viewed at different angles with different magnifications using computer graphics so both macroscopic and microscopic diagnostics can be performed on the same data set . the scanning speed of the current arrangement was determined by the motor driven x - y stage . with these stages 110 × 100 data points were obtained in approximately 5 minutes . the scanning time can be significantly reduced by using a long travel pzt driven stage . the scanning speed is then determined by the integration time constant of a lock - in amplifier . a high resolution scsm image of a cross - shaped scratch mark on an aluminum coated mirror . fig3 shows the 1 - d variation of the local slope of a uv grade lens ( f = 25 cm ) obtained in this way . the probe beam was focused on the front surface of the lens , and the slope map of the surface was obtained over a 1 × 1 mm 2 area of the surface . the spacing between data points was approximately 1 μm . the surface profile image was produced from the slope data by integrating the x - directional scan data . since the surface is vibrated in one direction only , the reconstructed lens surface looks cylindrical . a complete spherical surface image can be obtained from the 2 - d slope data at each starting point of the x - directional scan . the 2 - d slope vector can easily be obtained by using a computer - interfaced , pzt driven x - y stage . since the vector slope is needed only at the starting point of the scan , no significant delay in scanning speed occurs . as shown in the fig3 both the spatial map of the curved surface and its local roughness are clearly evident . in other techniques , macroscopic and microscopic profiles cannot be determined at the same time without replacing the probe . for example , the radius of curvature of a curved surface can be determined by talbot interferometry . however , this technique is not appropriate for quantifying local defects of the surface with diffraction limited spatial resolution . scsm image of a uv grade lens ( f = 25 cm ). this is a map of the one dimensional slope . coherent hybrid fiber - optic probe for mapping induced birefringence in gaas structures as another embodiment of the invention , a very sensitive fiber interferometric sensor for remote mapping of electro - optically induced birefringence in gaas as well as other materials is provided below . this interferometer can be used to analyze and characterize gaas structures without the need for elaborate testing equipment and procedures . the achieved spatial resolution is on the order of 0 . 5 μm . it is well known that gaas has a large electro - optic ( eo ) coefficient . therefore , gaas integrated circuits and devices can be probed optically through the electro - optically induced birefringence produced by steady or transient voltages in the circuit . for example , non - invasive electro - optic sampling of microwave circuits is useful for measuring electrical waveforms propagating on a gaas substrate . previously , gaas circuits had been tested by using a transmission line formed on an electro - optic substrate . eo crystals placed close to the device under test can be sampled with a beam that probed the crystal to measure the fringing fields of the transmission line . unfortunately , this technique has limitations since the transmission line and crystal disturb the fields in the device under test . techniques for non - perturbing , in - situ measurements are more desirable since an external crystal is not required . the invention extends the sensitivity and flexibility of electro - optic probing of gaas structures through the use of a single - mode fiber probe that allows high resolution , remote mapping of induced birefringence in electro - optically active materials . these techniques allow one to map the local electric field in gaas circuits . the electric field induced birefringence patterns mapped by the probe can be used to spatially monitor other parameters such as doping density , carrier concentration , etc . also , this probe can be used to uncover processing defects that would otherwise not be evident in conventional scanning electron microscope ( sem ) imagery . induced birefringence can be monitored with high sensitivity by the use of coherent interferometry . typically in such techniques , double beam interferometers such as the mach - zehnder are used in which two separate beams are derived from a single coherent source . the relative phase difference between these two beams can be detected by recombining them at a beam splitter and detecting concomitant intensity changes . the detection sensitivity of such arrangements is limited only by photon noise if a sufficiently coherent light source is used . practical , convenient interferometers can be built with fiber optic components , although better sensitivity can be obtained in a free space interferometer because an optical fiber is more susceptible to environmental noise . if two independent fiber arms are used in the interferometer , then local environmental disturbances will effect both fibers independently leading to increased background noise . in an optical fiber interferometer complete signal fading can also occur because of polarization state drift in the fiber . optical fibers tend are usually birefringent and small mechanical stresses , bending , and twisting of a fiber can induce linear and circular birefringence . the state of polarization ( sop ) of a laser beam in such a fiber is subject to the induced birefringence . when the interferometer arms involve two independent fibers , the sop &# 39 ; s of returning beams may not be the same and complete signal fading can occur . however , an optical fiber interferometer does have several advantages : i ) compact arrangements are possible , ii ) it does not require tedious alignment between measurements , and iii ) the probe light can be easily routed to the sample under test , i . e . remote sensing ability . such versatility is essential for real time diagnostics . linear birefringence caused by the electro - optic effect can be measured coherently with a conventional interferometer . however , in order to minimize phase and polarization drifts that occur when independent signal and reference arms are used , combining two orthogonally polarized beams into a single fiber to minimize common - mode effects is performed . the birefringence of a gaas sample will induce a phase shift between these orthogonally polarized beams where each polarization component can be regarded as belonging to an arm of a conventional interferometer . a polarization sensitive beam splitter can be used to demodulate the phase retardation on the beams . since any fiber perturbation will affect both beams in the fiber , the system is relatively invulnerable to environmental effects , and common mode signals can be suppressed in the detection electronics . in addition , to avoid operating point drift that plagues synchronous detection schemes , one can use a true heterodyne scheme in which the two orthogonally polarized beams are at different frequencies . illustration of the fiber sensor is shown in fig5 where iso is an optical isolator , aom is an acousto - optic modulator , psbs is a polarization sensitive beam splitter , smf is a single node fiber , vco is a voltage controlled oscillator . a 35 mw 1 . 3 μm nd : yag laser is used as the signal source . a monolithic ring laser ( lightwave technology model 120 - 03 ) can be used since it is recognized as an ideal light source for an interferometric sensor because of its narrow line width and small amplitude noise . gaas is also transparent at the laser output wavelength of 1 . 3 μm . the beam is optically isolated and passes through a 40 mhz acousto - optic modulator ( aom ) that produces two beams , one of which is shifted in frequency by 40 mhz from the fundamental . the plane of polarization of one of the beams is rotated 90 ° with respect to the other before entering polarizing beam splitter psbs1 . the two beams are combined in psbs1 to yield two copropogating , orthogonally polarized beams . these beams are injected into a single mode fiber and pass through a 3 db coupler . one of the coupler output beams is dumped into index matching fluid , while the other output beam continues to the sensing end . a 0 . 29 pitch graded index ( grin ) lens is epoxied to the end of the fiber with a focal point 5 mm . from the grin lens . the grin is positioned above the gaas sample at a height that gives maximum collection of the reflected beam . a computer controls an xyz positioner that scans the grin above the gaas device . the local electric field in the gaas modulates the birefringence of the substrate and induces a phase shift between the orthogonal components of the probe beam . the beam is reflected back into the fiber and returns through the 3 db coupler , a half wavelength waveplate , and polarizing beamsplitter psbs2 before reaching the detection photodiodes . the phase shift induced by the gaas is detected by placing the output beam splitter ( psbs2 ) at 45 ° to the principal linear polarization directions , so that the two orthogonal components of the beam mix . final detection occurs at balanced mixer using two wideband photodiodes . common mode amplitude noise is suppressed by differentially amplifying the signals from these two photodiodes . the diode output currents in fig5 are : i . sub . 1 , 2 ≈{| e . sub . ω &# 39 ; |. sup . 2 +| e . sub . ω . sup . 2 ± 2 | e . sub . ω || e . sub . ω &# 39 ; | cos ( δωt + δφ . sub . s - φ . sub . 1 )} ( 6 ) the signals are combined in an rf differential amplifier to minimize amplitude noise , yielding : where δω = ω - ω &# 39 ; is the aom excitation frequency , φ m is the induced phase shift , and δφ s is the static phase term . thus , the phase modulation on the optical carrier has been down converted to an rf frequency . the induced phase φ m can be detected by using standard rf demodulation techniques . typically , in rf homodyne detection , a portion of the aom drive is mixed with the detector output to beat the rf signal down to base band . for optimum detection , this method requires active rf phase control to maintain quadrature δφ s =( 2n + 1 ) π / 2 between the interferometer output and the aom drive . conversely , in rf heterodyne detection the sinusoidal signal modulation in φ m is directly detected in the phase locked loop ( pll ) stage . the δφ s term above represents a static phase shift due to differing path lengths , thermal expansion and contraction of the optical components , and other slowly varying effects . heterodyne detection is immune to these pseudo - static phase perturbations since the pll automatically tracks the static phase , unlike a homodyne detection schemes which can also be used in this embodiment . furthermore , direct pll detection does not require a stable source since the voltage controlled oscillator is locked to the carrier . although other schemes exist for heterodyne detection , they often require complicated techniques and are usually not as sensitive as true heterodyne methods . a discriminator can be used in this embodiment of the invention . the simplicity of the detection electronics using the direct pll method is evident from fig5 . the phase modulation is detected in a discrete 40 mhz pll employing an automatic gain control ( agc ) stage , doubly balanced mixer , 40 mhz vco , and an active loop filter . phase demodulation is achieved by mixing the differential amplifier output with the vco output . the mixer output is filtered and is used to derive the vco control voltage that keeps the vco frequency and phase locked to the incoming rf carrier . the vco control voltage also contains the demodulated phase signal , which is further amplified before the output signal is displayed on an oscilloscope or dynamic signal analyzer . this detection scheme is elegant and does not require any specialized or expensive components , making the sensor desirable for commercial applications . gaas belongs to symmetry group 43m its linear electro - optic tensor is : ## equ1 ## in a principal axis system the indicatrix is : which has new principal axes y &# 39 ; and z &# 39 ; at 45 degrees with respect to the original y and z . the corresponding indices are : therefore , only the x component of the electric field contributes to the birefringence . the resultant phase retardation for light after reflecting off the back surface of a gaas sample is : where v is the applied voltage . the sensitivity can be calculated using equ . ( 12 ). for example , when 5 volts is applied to a wafer with a thickness of 500 μm , the output signal is 45 dbv 2 /√ hz above the noise floor in the spectrum analyzer trace . the unity snr sensitivity calculated from these values after the spectrum analyzer bandwidth is taken into account is approximately 20 microradians /√ hz . sensitivities in this range are obtainable using a similar interferometric arrangement with a he - ne laser . several gaas devices can effectively be used with this probe for detecting features that would otherwise not be evident . with this orientation the probe beam travels in the vertical plane , which gives maximum sensitivity to the electro - optic effect . for example , with the test structure that is shown in fig6 the birefringence scan results on the right show that the gold features of the structure are exactly reproduced . the signal drops to zero on the gold features of the structure since the beam is reflected , and the maximum signal is observed adjacent to the gold features since the fringing field component in the z direction is maximum . also , circuit features that could be overlooked in the sem image standout in the probe results . for example , there is a small gold stripe above and to the right of the alignment (+) mark . this can be clearly seen in the probe scan results and is barely discernible in the sem image . to show the probe &# 39 ; s usefulness as a diagnostic tool , a coplanar strip line was scanned for illustration . a side view of the gaas structure in fig7 shows the optical arrangement and gaas crystal orientation by [ 100 ] and [ 001 ] as shown . the structure has a mirrored gold coating on the back and gold circuit traces on the top surface . the birefringence of the underlying gaas varies with distance from the surface traces due to the fringing fields that terminate on the ground plane underneath . the scan results are shown in fig8 ( a ) and 8 ( b ), a blow - up of the dashed circle as shown in fig8 ( b ). there is a great deal of reproducible fine detail in the scan . this fine detail is the real variation in the degree of local birefringence anisotropy of the surface . to demonstrate the reproducible nature of the fine structure in fig8 ( a ) and 8 ( b ), a high resolution scan of the circled region is shown in fig8 ( b ). fine variation of the birefringence anisotropy can result from inhomogeneities in doping density , crystal defects , failure to completely remove metal overlays during processing , or other processing defects . fine variation in scans does not result from variation in the substrate thickness , since the signal from the probe depends on voltage acting across the substrate , not the local electric field . this shows that the probe can be used to obtain images showing general features followed by high resolution scans of the most interesting regions . another structure tested with the probe is shown in fig9 . in this illustration , the fringing electric field near gold features did not decay as expected , and there is a periodic structure evident in the results . this can be explained if there is any conducting pattern left on the substrate after processing . on further investigation we also noticed that the rf carrier level moved in anti - correlation to the detected phase shift . these observations can be explained if any of the p + epi - layer remains after the processing steps . the carrier level would drop due to increased surface reflection in the epi - layer . however , the detected signal level increases when probing an epi - layer since the beam that penetrates sees a strong x - directed electric field . the presence of residual epi material would also explain why the electric field is maintained all the way to the edge of the substrate . an sem image of the structure shows no observable features outside the gold stripes . such birefringence imagery can be useful in identifying potential problems in device processing and identifying subtle defects that affect device performance . spatial resolution is approximately 0 . 5 μm . this slightly better than diffraction limited resolution results from the effective confocal nature of the light delivery and re - collection by the single mode fiber . coherent fiber probe for monitoring the electrical activity of biological cells the tapered tip probe described above in examining the qualities of gaas structures can similarly be used to examine the membrane of electrically active biological cells since cells also exhibit birefringent qualities . the probe as shown in fig5 can have in place of the gaas sample a living biological cellular sample which would be near the end of the fiber . a grin lens focuses light near the cellular sample &# 39 ; s membrane whose natural birefringence affects the reflected signal allowing monitoring of electrical activity . electrodes from a signal generator as shown in fig7 can be attached to the cellular sample such that stimulated electrical excitation can occur . medical applications of the basic apparatus include electrocardiograms ( ecg ), monitoring neural activity in the human body such as in the brain or neural fibers . the inherent advantages using the instant invention in biological applications includes allowance for real - time monitoring applications without the use of dyes in a non - contact and non - invasive way . the laser beam in a coherent vibrating surface profiler can be directed in free space at the object under examination , sent along fibers with integral focusing at their far ends , or directed down fibers that have a sub - optical wavelength tip , tapered fiber to provide sub - optical - difraction - limited resolution . the probe can be use either heterodyne or homodyne demodulation schemes . alternate interferometric schemes can be used for the coherent detection of the laser beam doppler shifted at the vibrating object : michelson , mach - zehnder or jamin . the phase - locked loop electronic demodulation circuitry in the birefringence detection apparatus as shown in fig5 can be replaced with homodyne based demodulation circuitry to provide high sensitivity measurements . although the description above contains many specificities , these should not be construed as limiting the scope of this invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments of this invention . | 6 |
the following disclosure presents a fiberoptic - based technology suitable for use in permanent downhole monitoring environment to track an approaching fluid front and enable actions to optimize hydrocarbon recovery from a reservoir . one illustrative formation monitoring system has an array of electromagnetic field sensors positioned in an annular space around a well casing , the sensors being coupled to a surface interface via a fiberoptic cable . each electromagnetic field sensor is a device that produces signals that are a function of external electric or magnetic fields . illustrative sensors provide signals that are directly or inversely proportional to electric or magnetic field strength , the temporal or spatial derivative of the electric or magnetic fields , or the temporal or spatial integral of the fields . other illustrative sensors have reception characteristics that measure both electric and magnetic fields . the sensor measurements in response to an injected current or another electromagnetic field source can be used to determine a resistivity distribution around the well , which in turn enables tracking of the flood front . ( although the term “ flood front ” is generally used herein to refer to the interface between reservoir fluid and injected fluid zones , the teachings of the present disclosure will apply to the interface between any two fluids having different bulk resistivities .) turning now to the drawings , fig1 shows an illustrative permanent downhole monitoring environment . a borehole 102 contains a casing string 104 with a fiber optic cable 106 secured to it by bands 108 . casing 104 is a tubular pipe , usually made of steel , that preserves the integrity of the borehole wall and borehole . where the cable 106 passes over a casing joint 110 , it may be protected from damage by a cable protector 112 . electromagnetic ( em ) field sensors 114 are integrated into the cable 106 to obtain em field measurements and communicate those measurements to a surface interface 116 via fiberoptic cable 106 . the remaining annular space may be filled with cement 118 to secure the casing 104 in place and prevent fluid flows in the annular space . fluid enters the uncemented portion of the well ( or alternatively , fluid may enter through perforated portions of the well casing ) and reaches the surface through the interior of the casing . note that this well configuration is merely illustrative and not limiting on the scope of the disclosure . many production wells are provided with multiple production zones that can be individually controlled . similarly , many injection wells are provided with multiple injection zones that can be individually controlled . surface interface 116 includes an optical port for coupling the optical fiber ( s ) in cable 106 to a light source and a detector . the light source transmits pulses of light along the fiber optic cable , including any sensors 114 . the sensors 114 modify the light pulses to provide measurements of field strength , field gradient , or time derivative for electrical fields and / or magnetic fields . the modifications may affect amplitude , phase , or frequency content of the light pulses , enabling the detector to responsively produce an electrical output signal indicative of the sensor measurements . some systems may employ multiple fibers , in which case an additional light source and detector can be employed for each fiber , or the existing source and detector may be switched periodically between the fibers . some system embodiments may alternatively employ continuous wave ( cw ) light rather than light pulses . fig1 further shows a power source 120 coupled between the casing 104 and a remote earth electrode 122 . because the casing 104 is an electrically conductive material ( e . g ., steel ), it acts as a source electrode for current flow into the formations surrounding the borehole 102 . the magnitude and distribution of the current flow will vary in accordance with the source voltage and the formation &# 39 ; s resistivity profile . the em field measurements by sensors 114 will thus be representative of the resistivity profile . this resistivity profile in turn is indicative of the fluids in the formation pores , enabling the flood front to be located and tracked over time . the surface interface 116 may be coupled to a computer that acts as a data acquisition system and possibly as a data processing system that analyzes the measurements to derive subsurface parameters and track the location of a fluid front . in some contemplated system embodiments , the computer may further control production parameters to reduce risk of breakthrough or to otherwise optimize production based on the information derived from the measurements . production parameters may include the flow rate / pressure permitted from selected production zones , flow rate / pressure in selected injection zones , and the composition of the injection fluid , each of which can be controlled via computer controlled valves and pumps . generally , any such computer would be equipped with a user interface that enables a user to interact with the software via input devices such as keyboards , pointer devices , and touchscreens , and via output devices such as printers , monitors , and touchscreens . the software can reside in computer memory and on nontransient information storage media . the computer may be implemented in different forms including , e . g ., an embedded computer permanently installed as part of the surface interface 116 , a portable computer that is plugged into the surface interface 116 as desired to collect data , a remote desktop computer coupled to the surface interface 116 via a wireless link and / or a wired computer network , a mobile phone / pda , or indeed any electronic device having a programmable processor and an interface for i / o . fig2 a is a schematic representation of the system configuration in fig1 . it shows a borehole 102 having a casing 104 and a fiberoptic cable 106 ( with an integrated sensor array ) in the annular space . an injected current 202 flows along casing 104 and disperses into the surrounding formations as indicated by the arrows . two formations are shown , labeled with their respective resistivities r1 and r2 . the heavier arrows in the lower formation represent a larger current flow , indicating that resistivity r2 is lower than resistivity r1 . due to divergence pattern of the currents away from the casing , depth of investigation is typically around 5 - 15 feet . fig2 b shows an alternative system configuration , in which the fiberoptic cable 106 is replaced by an alternative fiberoptic cable 206 having a conductor or a conductive layer to transport an injected current 212 along the cable . the conductor may be a protective metal tube within which the fiberoptic cable is placed . alternatively , the conductor may be a wire ( e . g ., a strength member ) embedded in the fiberoptic cable . as another alternative , a metal coating may be manufactured on the cable to serve as the current carrier . parts of the cable may be covered with an insulator 205 to focus the current dispersal in areas of interest . the optical fiber in cable 212 may act as a distributed sensor or , as in previous embodiments , localized sensors may be integrated into the cable . because conductive layers can significantly attenuate certain types of electromagnetic fields , the sensors are designed to be operable despite the presence of the conductive layer , e . g ., magnetic field sensors , and / or apertures are formed in the conductive layer to permit the em fields to reach the sensors . fig2 c shows another alternative system configuration . a conductor or conductive layer of fiberoptic cable 206 is electrically coupled to casing 104 to share the same electrical potential and contribute to the dispersal of current into the formation . parts of the cable 206 and / or casing 104 may be covered with an insulator 205 to focus the current dispersal in areas of interest . fig2 d shows yet another alternative system configuration . rather than providing an injected current 202 from the surface as in fig2 a , the configuration of fig2 d provides an injected current 222 from an intermediate point along the casing 104 . such a current may be generated with an insulated electrical cable passing through the interior of casing 104 from a power source 120 ( fig1 ) to a tool that makes electrical contact at the intermediate point , e . g ., via extendible arms . ( an alternative approach employs a toroid around casing 104 at the intermediate point to induce current flow along the casing . the toroid provides an electric dipole radiation pattern rather than the illustrated monopole radiation pattern .) fig2 e shows still another alternative system configuration having a first borehole 102 and second borehole 102 ′. casing 104 in the first borehole 102 carries an injected current from the surface or an intermediate point and disperses it into the surrounding formations . the second borehole 102 ′ has a casing 104 ′ for producing hydrocarbons and further includes a fiberoptic cable 106 ′ with an integrated em sensor array in the annular space around casing 104 ′. the em sensors provide measurements of the fields resulting from the currents dispersed in the formations . the sensor array may employ multiple fiberoptic cables 106 as indicated in fig3 a . with cables 106 positioned in parallel or at least in an overlapping axial range , the azimuthal arrangement of sensors 114 enables a multi - dimensional mapping of the electromagnetic fields . in some embodiments , the sensors are mounted to the casing 104 or suspended on fins or spacers to space them away from the body of casing 104 . if actual contact with the formation is desired , the sensors 114 may be mounted on swellable packers 302 as indicated in fig3 b . such packers 302 expand when exposed to downhole conditions , pressing the sensors 114 into contact with the borehole wall . fig3 c shows the use of bow - spring centralizers 304 which also operate to press the sensors 114 into contact with the borehole walls . to minimize insertion difficulties , a restraining mechanism may hold the spring arms 304 against the casing 104 until the casing has been inserted in the borehole . thereafter , exposure to downhole conditions or a circulated fluid ( e . g ., an acid ) degrades the restraining mechanism and enables the spring arms to extend the sensors against the borehole wall . if made of conductive material , the spring arms may further serve as current injection electrodes , concentrating the measurable fields in the vicinity of the sensors . to further concentrate the fields , the spring arms outside the zone of interest may be insulated . other extension mechanisms are known in the oilfield and may be suitable for placing the sensors 114 in contact with the borehole wall or into some other desired arrangements such as those illustrated in fig3 d and 3e . in fig3 d , the sensors are positioned near the radial midpoint of the annular region . in fig3 e , the sensors are placed in a spatial distribution having axial , azimuthal , and radial variation . balloons , hydraulic arms , and projectiles are other contemplated mechanisms for positioning the sensors . fig4 shows an illustrative fixed positioning mechanism for sensors 114 . the cage 402 includes two clamps 403 a , 403 b joined by six ribs 404 . the fiberoptic cable ( s ) 106 can be run along the ribs or , as shown in fig4 , they can be wound helically around the cage . in either case , the ribs provide each fiberoptic cable 106 some radial spacing from the casing 104 . cable ties 406 can be used to hold the cable in place until cementing has been completed . the ribs can be made of insulating material to avoid distortion of the electromagnetic fields around the sensors . in addition to providing support and communications for sensors 114 , the fiberoptic cable 106 may support electrodes or antennas for generating electromagnetic fields in the absence of current injection via casing 104 . fig5 a shows two electrodes 502 on cable 106 . a voltage is generated between the two electrodes 502 to create an electric dipole radiation pattern . the response of the electromagnetic sensors 114 can then be used to derive formation parameters . similarly , fig5 b shows a solenoid antenna 504 on cable 106 . a current is supplied to the solenoid coil to create a magnetic dipole radiation pattern . the response of the electromagnetic sensors 114 can then be used to derive formation parameters . in both cases the sensors are shown to one side of the source , but this is not a requirement . the source may be positioned between sensors 114 and / or one or more of the sensors may be positioned between multiple sources . the sensors 114 may even be positioned between the electrodes of a electric dipole source . moreover , it is possible to tilt the sources and / or the sensors to provide improved directional sensitivity . fig6 provides a function block representation of an illustrative fiberoptic - based permanent monitoring system . the sensors 114 include electrodes , antennas , or other transducers 602 that convert a property of the surrounding electromagnetic field into a signal that can be sensed via an optical fiber . ( specific examples are provided further below .) an energy source 606 may be provided in the form of a pair of conductors conveying power from the surface or in the form of a powerful downhole battery that contains enough energy to make the device operate for the full life span . it is possible to use an energy saving scheme to turn on or off the device periodically . it is also possible to adjust the power level based on inputs from the fiber optic cable , or based on the sensor inputs . a controller 604 provides power to the transducers 602 and controls the data acquisition and communication operations and may contain a microprocessor and a random access memory . transmission and reception can be time activated , or may be based on a signal provided through the optic cable or casing . a single sensor module may contain multiple antennas / electrodes that can be activated sequentially or in parallel . after the controller 604 obtains the signal data , it communicates the signal to the fiberoptic interface 608 . the interface 608 is an element that produces new optical signals in fiberoptic cable 610 or modifies existing optical signals in the cable 610 . for example , optical signal generation can be achieved by the use of leds or any other type of optical source . as another example , optical signals that are generated at the surface can be modified by thermal or strain effects on the optical fiber in cable 610 . thermal effects can be produced by a heat source or sink , whereas strain effects can be achieved by a piezoelectric device or a downhole electrical motor . modification can occur via extrinsic effects ( i . e ., outside the fiber ) or intrinsic effects ( i . e ., inside the fiber ). an example of the former technique is a fabry perot sensor , while an example of the latter technique is a fiber bragg grating . for optimum communication performance , the signal in the optical transmission phase may be modulated , converted to digital form , or digitally encoded . the cable is coupled to a receiver or transceiver 612 that converts the received light signals into digital data . stacking of sequential measurements may be used to improve signal to noise ratio . the system can be based on either narrowband ( frequency type ) sensing or ultra wideband ( transient pulse ) sensing . narrowband sensing often enables the use of reduced - complexity receivers , whereas wideband sensing may provide more information due to the presence of a wider frequency band . optionally , a power source 614 transmits power via an electrical conductor 616 to a downhole source controller 618 . the source controller 618 operates an em field source 620 such as an electric or magnetic dipole . multiple such sources may be provided and operated in sequence or in parallel at such times and frequencies as may be determined by controller 618 . multiple sensors 114 may be positioned along a given optical fiber . time and / or frequency multiplexing is used to separate the measurements associated with each sensor . in fig7 a , a light source 702 emits light in a continuous beam . a circulator 704 directs the light along fiberoptic cable 106 . the light travels along the cable 106 , interacting with a series of sensors 114 , before reflecting off the end of the cable and returning to circulator 704 via sensors 114 . the circulator directs the reflected light to a light detector 708 . the light detector 708 includes electronics that separate the measurements associated with different sensors 114 via frequency multiplexing . that is , each sensor 114 affects only a narrow frequency band of the light beam , and each sensor is designed to affect a different frequency band . in fig7 b , light source 702 emits light in short pulses . each sensor 114 is coupled to the main optical fiber via a splitter 706 . the splitters direct a small fraction of the light from the optical fiber to the sensor , e . g ., 1 % to 4 %. the sensor 114 interacts with the light and reflects it back to the detector 708 via the splitter , the main fiber , and the circulator . due to the different travel distances , each pulse of light from source 702 results in a sequence of return pulses , with the first pulse arriving from the nearest sensor 114 , the second pulse arriving from the second nearest sensor , etc . this arrangement enables the detector to separate the sensor measurements on a time multiplexed basis . the arrangements of fig7 a and 7b are both reflective arrangements in which the light reflects from a fiber termination point . they can each be converted to a transmissive arrangement in which the termination point is replaced by a return fiber that communicates the light back to the surface . fig7 c shows an example of such an arrangement for the configuration of fig7 b . a return fiber is coupled to each of the sensors via a splitter to collect the light from the sensors 114 and direct it to a light detector 708 . other arrangement variations also exist . for example , multiple sensors may be coupled in series on each branch of the fig7 b , 7 c arrangements . a combination of time division , wavelength - division and / or frequency division multiplexing could be used to separate the individual sensor measurements . thus each production well may be equipped with a permanent array of sensors distributed along axial , azimuthal and radial directions outside the casing . the sensors may be positioned inside the cement or at the boundary between cement and the formation . each sensor is either on or in the vicinity of a fiber optic cable that serves as the communication link with the surface . sensor transducers can directly interact with the fiber optic cables or , in some contemplated embodiments , may produce electrical signals that in turn induce thermal , mechanical ( strain ), acoustic or electromagnetic effects on the fiber . each fiber optic cable may be associated with multiple em sensors , while each sensor may produce a signal in multiple fiber optic or fiber optic cables . even though the figures show uniformly - spaced arrays , the sensor positioning can be optimized based on geology or made randomly . in any configuration , the sensor positions can often be precisely located by monitoring the light signal travel times in the fiber . cement composition may be designed to enhance the sensing capability of the system . for example , configurations employing the casing as a current source electrode can employ a cement having a resistivity equal to or smaller than the formation resistivity . the sensors 114 referenced above preferably employ fully optical means to measure em fields and em field gradients and transfer the measurement information through optical fibers to the surface for processing to extract the measurement information . the sensors will preferably operate passively , though in many cases sensors with minimal power requirements can be powered from small batteries . the minimization of electronics or downhole power sources provides a big reliability advantage . because multiple sensors can share a single fiber , the use of multiple wires with associated connectors and / or multiplexers can also be avoided , further enhancing reliability while also reducing costs . several illustrative fiberoptic sensor configurations are shown in fig8 a - 8c . fig8 a shows an atomic magnetometer configuration in which light from an input fiber 802 passes through a depolarizer 804 ( to remove any polarization biases imposed by the fiber ) and a polarizing filter 806 to produce polarized light . a gradient index ( grin ) lens 808 collimates the polarized light before it passes through an alkali vapor cell 812 . a quarter - wave plate 810 enhances optical coupling into the cell . a second grin lens 814 directs light exiting the cell into an output fiber 816 . the light passing through the cell consists of a pump pulse to polarize the alkali atoms , followed by a probe pulse to measure the spin relaxation rate . the attenuation of the probe pulse is directly related to the magnetic field strength . fig8 b shows a sensor having a support structure 820 separating two electrodes 822 , 824 . a center electrode 826 is supported on a flexible arm 828 . the center electrode 826 is provided with a set charge that experiences a force in the presence of an electrical field between electrodes 822 , 824 . the force causes displacement of the center electrode 826 until a restoring force of the compliant arm 828 balances the force from the electrical field . electrodes 824 and 826 are at least partially transparent , creating a resonant cavity 830 in the space between . the wavelengths of light that are transmitted and suppressed by the cavity 830 will vary based on displacement of center electrode 826 . thus the resonant cavity shapes the spectrum of light from input electrode 802 , which effect can be seen in the light exiting from output fiber 816 . the electrodes 822 , 824 may be electrically coupled to a pair of spaced - apart electrodes ( for electric field sensing ) or to the terminals of a magnetic dipole antenna ( for magnetic field sensing ). fig8 c shows a sensor having a support structure 840 with a flexible arm 842 that supports a mirror 846 above a window 844 to define a cavity 848 . the arm further includes a magnet 850 or other magnetically responsive material that experiences a displacing force in response to a magnetic field from a coil 852 . the coil &# 39 ; s terminals 854 are coupled to spaced - apart electrodes ( for electric field sensing ) or another coil ( for magnetic field sensing ). light entering the cavity 848 from fiber 840 reflects from mirror 846 and returns along fiber 840 to the surface . displacement of the arm 842 alters the travel time and phase of the light passing along fiber 840 . the foregoing sensors are merely illustrative examples and not limiting on the sensors that can be employed in the disclosed systems and methods . an interrogation light pulse is sent from the surface through the fiber and , when the pulse reaches a sensor , it passes through the sensor and the light is modified by the sensor in accordance with the measured electromagnetic field characteristic . the measurement information is encoded in the output light and travels through the fiber to a processing unit located at the surface . in the processing unit the measurement information is extracted . fig9 provides an overview of illustrative formation monitoring methods . a controlled electromagnetic field source generates a subsurface electromagnetic field . while it is possible for this field to be a fixed ( dc ) field , it is expected that better measurements will be achievable with an alternating current ( ac ) field having a frequency in the range of 1 - 1000 hz . ( in applications where shallow detection is desired , higher frequencies such as 1 khz to 1 ghz can be used .) in block 902 , each of the sensors convert the selected characteristic of the electromagnetic field into a sensed voltage where i is the sensor number . for energy efficiency , sensors can be activated and measurements can be taken periodically . this enables long - term monitoring applications ( such as water - flood movements ), as well as applications where only small number of measurements are required ( fracturing ). for further efficiency , different sets of sensors may be activated in different periods . in block 904 , the voltage ( or electric field or magnetic field or electric / magnetic field gradient ) is applied to modify some characteristic of light passing through an optical fiber , e . g ., travel time , frequency , phase , amplitude . in block 906 , the surface receiver extracts the represented voltage measurements and associates them with a sensor position d i . the measurements are repeated and collected as a function of time in block 908 . in addition , measurements at different times can be subtracted from each other to obtain time - lapse measurements . multiple time - lapse measurements with different lapse durations can be made to achieve different time resolutions for time - lapse measurements . in block 910 , a data processing system filters and processes the measurements to calibrate them and improve signal to noise ratio . suitable operations include filtering in time to reduce noise ; averaging multiple sensor data to reduce noise ; taking the difference or the ratio of multiple voltages to remove unwanted effects such as a common voltage drift due to temperature ; other temperature correction schemes such as a temperature correction table ; calibration to known / expected resistivity values from an existing well log ; and array processing ( software focusing ) of the data to achieve different depth of detection or vertical resolution . in block 912 , the processed signals are stored for use as inputs to a numerical inversion process in block 914 . other inputs to the inversion process are existing logs ( block 916 ) such as formation resistivity logs , porosity logs , etc ., and a library of calculated signals 918 or a forward model 920 of the system that generates predicted signals in response to model parameters , e . g ., a two - or three - dimensional distribution of resistivity . all resistivity , electric permittivity ( dielectric constant ) or magnetic permeability properties of the formation can be measured and modeled as a function of time and frequency . the parameterized model can involve isotropic or anisotropic electrical ( resistivity , dielectric , permeability ) properties . they can also include layered formation models where each layer is homogeneous in resistivity . resistivity variations in one or more dimensions can be included . more complex models can be employed so long as sufficient numbers of sensor types , positions , orientations , and frequencies are employed . the inversion process searches a model parameter space to find the best match between measured signals 912 and generated signals . in block 922 the parameters are stored and used as a starting point for iterations at subsequent times . effects due to presence of tubing , casing , mud and cement can be corrected by using a - priori information on these parameters , or by solving for some or all of them during the inversion process . since all of these effects are mainly additive and they remain the same in time , a time - lapse measurement can remove them . multiplicative ( scaling ) portion of the effects can be removed in the process of calibration to an existing log . all additive , multiplicative and any other non - linear effect can be solved for by including them in the inversion process as a parameter . the fluid front position can be derived from the parameters and it is used as the basis for modifying the flood and / or production profile in block 924 . production from a well is a dynamic process and each production zone &# 39 ; s characteristics may change over time . for example , in the case of water flood injection from a second well , water front may reach some of the perforations and replace the existing oil production . since flow of water in formations is not very predictable , stopping the flow before such a breakthrough event requires frequent monitoring of the formations . profile parameters such as flow rate / pressure in selected production zones , flow rate / pressure in selected injection zones , and the composition of the injection fluid , can each be varied . for example , injection from a secondary well can be stopped or slowed down when an approaching water flood is detected near the production well . in the production well , production from a set of perforations that produce water or that are predicted to produce water in relatively short time can be stopped or slowed down . we note here that the time lapse signal derived from the receiver signals is expected to be proportional to the contrast between formation parameters . hence , it is possible to enhance the signal created by an approaching flood front by enhancing the electromagnetic contrast of the flood fluid relative to the connate fluid . for example , a high magnetic permeability , or electrical permittivity or conductivity fluid can be used in the injection process in the place of or in conjunction with water . it is also possible to achieve a similar effect by injecting a contrast fluid from the wellbore in which monitoring is taking place , but this time changing the initial condition of the formation . the disclosed systems and methods may offer a number of advantages . they may enable continuous time - lapse monitoring of formations including a water flood volume . they may further enable optimization of hydrocarbon production by enabling the operator to track flows associated with each perforation and selectively block water influxes . precise localization of the sensors is not required during placement since that information can be derived afterwards via the fiber optic cable . casing source embodiments do not require separate downhole em sources , significantly decreasing the system cost and increasing reliability . numerous other variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated . for example , this sensing system can be used for cross well tomography with em transmitters are placed in one well and em fields being measured in surrounding wells which can be drilled at an optimized distance with respect to each other and cover the volume of the reservoir from multiple sides for optimal imaging . it is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such variations and modifications where applicable . | 6 |
fig4 is a block diagram of the driving device of a plasma display panel according to one embodiment of the present invention . the driving device comprises a control circuit 40 , an address driver 46 , a sustaining driver 44 and a scan driver 42 . the control circuit 40 receives video signals , the transmission clock clock , the vertical synchronous signal vsync and the horizontal synchronous signal hsync , and transmits the display data and control signals to the drivers . the address driver 46 drives the data electrodes d 1 ˜ dm during the address period to write the display data in the display cells 48 located at the intersection of corresponding data electrode , scan electrode and sustaining electrode . the scan driver 42 drives the scan electrodes y 1 ˜ yn . the sustaining driver 44 drives the sustaining electrode x . as shown in fig2 , a slow - rising priming pulse pp with slope smaller than 20v / us and voltage v w higher than the gas firing voltage is applied to the sustaining electrodes 7 x 1 ˜ x n to perform a priming process which produce space charges in the gas discharge space of each cell . the priming process will benefit reducing operation voltage and improving gas discharge uniformity of the panel . after priming pulse p p , a slow - rising reset pulse ep with slope smaller than 20v / us and voltage ver higher than sustain voltage v s of the sustain pulse but lower than the gas firing voltage is applied to scan electrodes y 1 ˜ y n to remove residual wall charges from the last sub - field and priming pulse . in some applications , because the priming effect can maintain for several milliseconds , the priming pulse only exists in one or two of the reset periods in a frame and other reset periods only comprise reset pulses . in addition , the control circuit 40 comprises a load calculating circuit 41 and a pulse width calculating circuit 43 . the load calculating circuit 41 counts the load on the plasma display panel . here , the load on the plasma display panel is determined according to the number of cells discharging in the sustaining period of last sub - field . after obtaining the load on the plasma display panel , the pulse width calculating circuit 43 generates the widths of priming pulse and reset pulse . here , the pulse width of the reset pulse is determined according to the load on the plasma display panel . the pulse width t can be determined by the following expressions : where t min denotes the pulse width with least load on the plasma display panel , such as full black image ; t max denotes the pulse width with largest load on the plasma display panel , such as full white image ; and x denotes the percentage of the load , ranging from 0 %, such as full black image , to 100 %, such as full white image . fig5 shows the waveform of the ramp - type slow - rising pulse with adjustable pulse width . the pulse width of the reset pulse according to one embodiment of the present invention is set between the pulse width t min and t max by correlating the pulse width with the load on the panel linearly . alternately , the pulse width of the slow - rising pulse can also be determined by measuring the real time - requirement with different loads , so the pulse width distribution may be non - linear . for example , the pulse width of the slow - rising pulse corresponds to time required for the reset pulse to reach a predetermined voltage level , capable of performing the required operation , such as priming operation and erasing operation in the reset period . moreover , the method according to the present invention is suitable for ramp - type slow - rising pulse or rc - type slow - rising pulse . in addition , in some application , slow - falling pulse is adopted to perform the priming operation or erasing operation , and the slope of the slow - falling pulse also changes with the load on the panel . the width of the slow - falling pulse also can be determined according to the invention . furthermore , since the pulse width of the reset pulse is adjusted according to the load on the plasma display panel , the pulse widths of the sustaining pulse and the scan pulse are also adjusted with the change in the display load to obtain more stable display quality with reduced flicker . the driving method according to the present invention comprises the sequential steps of , in a reset period , counting the number of cells discharging in the sustaining period of last sub - field , obtaining pulse widths of slow - rising pulses according to the number of the display cells discharging in the sustaining period of last sub - field , applying the slow - rising pulses to the first electrode and the second electrode , correspondingly . thus , the pulse width of the slow - rising pulse is decreased when the load on the plasma display panel is low . in addition , the sustain period is able to extend to obtain more sustain pulses and increase the peak luminance of the plasma display panel . the foregoing description of the preferred embodiments of this invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description . obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teaching . the embodiments were chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of this invention and its practical application to thereby enable those skilled in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated . all such modifications and variations are within the scope of the present invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly , legally , and equitably entitled . | 6 |
embodiments of the present invention providing a device for detecting an object using electro - optically modulated surface plasmon resonance ( spr ) based on phase detection includes the kretschmann configuration of an attenuated - total - reflection ( atr ) structure 2 shown in fig2 , and an optical waveguide structure 3 shown in fig3 . fig2 shows a spr device used in an atr structure of an electro - optically modulated spr based on phase detection . the atr structure 2 includes a light incidence medium 21 , a first medium 22 ( electro - optic crystal ) arranged under the light incidence medium 21 , and a second medium 25 ( layer for producing surface plasma wave ) arranged under the first medium 22 . an index matching liquid is covered on the interface between the light incidence medium 21 and the first medium 22 to reduce the reflection on the interface . a pair of electrodes 23 are arranged on the first medium 22 opposite to an interface between the first medium 22 and the light incidence medium 21 , and the pair of electrodes 23 are taken as a portion for applying a voltage . to prevent short circuit , an insulation layer 24 is covered on the electrodes 23 , and the insulation layer 24 can be made of silicon oxide or other insulation material . the center of the insulation layer 24 is a detection area , and the second medium 25 is arranged on the detection area and taken as a layer for producing surface plasma wave . the layer for producing the surface plasma wave can be a film of gold , silver or other metal capable of exciting the surface plasma wave , or metal nanoparticles . a film of a human serum albumin manufactured by the self - assembly technology is taken as a biochemical sensing layer is arranged on the surface of the layer for producing surface plasma wave to detect the concentration of a beta - blocker solution . when a voltage is applied on the electrodes 23 , the electric field is produced to modulate refractive index of the first medium 22 , and further to change the wave vector of incidence optical wave , and then to modulate the phase of output optical wave . when using the atr structure 2 to detect an under - testing object ( not labeled ), the under - testing object is arranged under the second medium 25 , and is taken as the third medium . using the operation principle of the spr device of kretschmann configuration of the atr structure shown in fig1 can detect the material property of the under - testing object . fig3 is a schematic view of a spr element used in an optical waveguide structure of the electro - optically modulated spr based on phase detection . fig4 is a schematic , cross - sectional view of the detection area of the spr element of the optical waveguide structure capable of using an electro - optically modulated spr technology based on phase detection . the spr element is formed on a first medium 32 ( an electro - optic substrate , such as , lithium niobate ). the spr element includes a waveguide 31 ( titanium diffused waveguide or other types of waveguides by introducing other ions ), a second medium 35 ( a layer for producing surface plasma wave ), a pair of electrodes 33 , and an insulation layer 36 ( silicon oxide ). the second medium 35 is a layer for producing surface plasma wave , which can be a film of gold , silver , or other metal capable of exciting the surface plasma , or metal nanoparticles . the waveguide 31 has a port for an incidence light entrance , and a detection area 34 . the second medium 35 is formed on the detection area 34 . the electrodes 33 are arranged on the two sides of the detection area 34 . the second medium 35 connects with one of the electrodes 33 for using the largest electro - optical coefficient r 33 of the lithium niobate electro - optic crystal . in order to limit the influence of the under - testing liquid on the optical field transmitting in the detecting area 34 , the insulation layer 36 is arranged on the first medium 32 , and the insulation layer 36 has an opening corresponding to the detection area 34 . a cross - sectional view of the detection area 34 when applying a voltage thereto is shown in fig4 . when a voltage is applied on the electrodes in the detection area 34 , the spr element will produce the electric field in the waveguide 31 . refractive index of the waveguide 31 will change with the voltage by electro - optic effect , and further , the wave vector of incidence optical wave will be changed , so that the object of modulating the phase of spr is obtained . the insulation layer 36 are arranged on the electrodes 33 to insulate the electrodes 33 and the under - testing liquid , in order that the under - testing liquid will not result in the short circuit of the electrodes 33 when the voltage is applied . in order to excite the surface plasma wave , the second medium 35 is arranged on the detection area 34 , and accordingly , optical wave transmitting in the waveguide 31 can produce the surface plasma wave in the second medium 35 to perform the detection . when using the spr element to detect an under - testing object ( not labeled ), the under - testing object is arranged on the second medium 25 , and is taken as the third medium . using the same operation principle of the spr device of kretschmann configuration of the atr structure shown in fig1 can detect the material property of the under - testing object . fig5 shows an experimental arrangement of measuring phase of the spr element of the optical waveguide structure for the electro - optically modulated spr . the experimental arrangement uses a heterodyne laser light , which is acousto - optically modulated , or is electro - optically modulated . the following will illustrate the experimental arrangement . firstly , the light from a frequency - stabilized he — ne laser 51 passes through a half - wave plate 52 and a first polarization splitter 53 to output two light beams with different polarizations . and then , the two vertical polarizing light beams input an acousto - optic modulator 54 and an acousto - optical modulator 68 respectively , and thereby , the two vertical polarizing light beams have the frequency difference . then after , the two vertical polarizing light beams are reflected by a mirror 55 and a mirror 72 respectively to a second polarization splitter 56 to be combined with each other , so that , the heterodyne laser light is obtained . when measuring , a beam splitter 57 split two partial light beams , and one of the partial light beams passes through a polarizer 59 arranged at an angle of 45 ° to produce interference , and then is received by an optical detector 67 to produce a reference electrical signal . the other portion of the heterodyne laser light is reflected by a mirror 58 , and are focused by a microscope objective 61 to input into the sensing element 62 . the sensing element 62 is the structure disclosed in fig2 or fig3 . light beam output from the sensing element 62 is focused by a microscope objective 71 , and then to pass through a polarizer 69 and a pinhole 63 , then after , is received by an optical detector 64 to produce a measuring electrical signal . in the waveguide structure of the sensing element , if the elements are coupled with fibers at input and output ports , the microscope objective can be canceled . the reference electrical signal and the measuring electrical signal are input into a lock - in - amplifier 65 to measure the phase shift between them . during measuring the phase shift , firstly changing the applied voltage , and then reading the phase shift value using a computer 66 , and then after measuring the phase relation between the reference electrical signal and the measuring electrical signal , the computer automatically compute the slope of a regression straight line of the relations . fig6 is a flow chart of a method for detecting an object using electro - optically modulated spr based on phase detection . the method uses inputting optical wave to a detecting device to produce the spr , and detect according to the relation between the phase of output optical wave and the applied voltage . the method includes the following steps : ( 1 ) inputting optical wave to an electro - optically modulated spr sensing device ; ( 2 ) applying a voltage to the electrodes of the electro - optically modulated spr sensing device to produce the electrical field in an electro - optic crystal of the electro - optically modulated spr sensing device ; ( 3 ) measuring the relation between the phase of output optical wave , from the electro - optically modulated spr sensing device , and the applied voltage ; ( 4 ) using the linearity regression analysis to compute the slope of a regression straight line of the relation between the phase of output optical wave and the voltage in the step ( 3 ); ( 5 ) using calibration data of relation between the slope of the regression straight line and the concentration ( or a material property ) of a standard solution ( or a standard material ) to compute the concentration ( or the material property ) corresponding to the measured slope of the regression straight line , wherein the concentration ( or the material property ) of the object is determined by the concentration ( or the material property ) corresponding to the measured slope of the regression straight line . fig7 shows the dependence of phase shift of output optical wave on the applied voltage for various beta - blocker solutions . when the applied voltage is increased , the phase shift will be increased , and the phase shift and the applied voltage have a linear relation . fig8 shows the dependence of the slope of the regression straight line of the relation between the phase shift and the applied voltage on the concentration of the beta - blocker solution according to spr sensing devices with various waveguide widths , such as 4 μm , 8 μm , 12 μm , 16 μm , 20 μm . as shown in fig8 , when the concentration of the beta - blocker is higher , the slope of the regression straight line is smaller . therefore , the concentration of the beta - blocker is detected by measuring the slope of the regression straight line of the relation between the phase shift and the applied voltage . the above description is given by way of example , and not limitation . given the above disclosure , one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein , including configurations ways of the recessed portions and materials and / or designs of the attaching structures . further , the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone , or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein . thus , the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments . | 6 |
the particulars shown herein are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the embodiments of the present invention . the description taken with the drawings make it apparent to those skilled in the art how the present invention may be embodied in practice . further , arrangements may be shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the invention , and also in view of the fact that specifics with respect to implementation of such block diagram arrangements is highly dependent upon the platform within which the present invention is to be implemented , i . e ., specifics should be well within purview of one skilled in the art . where specific details ( e . g ., circuits , flowcharts ) are set forth in order to describe example embodiments of the invention , it should be apparent to one skilled in the art that the invention can be practiced without these specific details . finally , it should be apparent that any combination of hard - wired circuitry and software instructions can be used to implement embodiments of the present invention , i . e ., the present invention is not limited to any specific combination of hardware circuitry and software instructions . although example embodiments of the present invention may be described using an example system block diagram in an example host unit environment , practice of the invention is not limited thereto , i . e ., the invention may be able to be practiced with other types of systems , and in other types of environments ( e . g ., servers ). reference in the specification to “ one embodiment ” or “ an embodiment ” means that a particular feature , structure , or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention . the appearances of the phrase “ in one embodiment ” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment . the present invention relates to methods and devices for lan emulation over infiniband ( ib ) fabrics . according to the present invention , infiniband connection - oriented fabrics may be presented to a protocol stack &# 39 ; s networking layer as in 802 . 3 ethernet network . therefore , a connectionless lan ( 802 . 3 ethernet ) is emulated over a connection - oriented fabric ( infiniband fabric ). the present invention uses a name service to identify all infiniband lan emulation ( iblan ) nodes on the fabric . the present invention includes a software service that allows broadcast and multicast frames to be distributed to all nodes . according to the present invention , an infiniband lid address is embedded in a standard ethernet mac header . this allows legacy network support on a local iba subnet by tunneling standard 802 . 3 ethernet frames across the subnet using infiniband architecture transport services . infiniband architectures provide many transport mechanisms ( e . g ., reliable and unreliable connections , reliable and unreliable datagrams , raw datagrams , and multicast services ), for transferring data . in devices and methods according to the present invention , interoperability with all infiniband architectures is assured by providing mechanisms that consider the least common denominator of all infiniband architecture features . this includes , at a minimum 256 byte packet size , unreliable datagram , unreliable connection , and reliable connection . however , packet sizes of 512 , 1024 , 2048 , and 4096 , as well as multicasting and reliable and raw datagram service may also be incorporated according to the present invention . lan emulation according to the present invention includes broadcasting and multicasting , ethernet to infiniband architecture address mapping , and infiniband host node discovery . address mapping may be achieved by using the 16 bit base local identifier ( lid ) assigned to each port on each node of an infiniband fabric . the host node may use this base lid address as the basis for its 48 bit ethernet mac address and treat each port as a separate network interface card ( nic ). this address may be used by protocol drivers to update their local address resolution protocol ( arp ) table and may be used as the reply to standard arp requests . node discovery may be accomplished by using the subnet management administration interface to query for a complete list of nodes on the fabric . the result of the query , a host node list , may be used an iblan node to simulate ethernet and direct all broadcast and multicast frames . unicast frames may be directed to specific iblan nodes using the embedded lid . fig1 shows a diagram of an example system for lan emulation according to an example embodiment of the present invention . infiniband architecture fabric 10 has a number of hosts or nodes attached to it . these include nodes 12 - 18 . nodes 12 - 18 may all include an iblan driver , therefore , allowing the transfer of ethernet messages among nodes 12 - 18 . although only four nodes are shown in this system diagram , there may be many more nodes that exist on the fabric and still be within the spirit and scope of the present invention . further , one or more of nodes 12 - 18 connected to the infiniband architecture fabric 10 may be a subnet manager node . the subnet manager manages the subnet and performs initialization processes whereby the subnet manager identifies all nodes on fabric 10 . the subnet manager assigns a local identifier ( lid ) to each port of a host or node and activates the port . a node may have one or more ports , each with a unique lid . the subnet manager stores this fabric topology information whereby it may be accessed by other nodes on the fabric . moreover , one or more of nodes 12 - 18 that reside on iba fabric 10 may be a bridge to another subnet or a different network all together . for example , node 16 may not only connect to infiniband fabric 10 , but may also have a port that is connected to a standard ethernet network . in this situation , node 16 serves as a bridge between infiniband fabric 10 and an ethernet network . fig2 shows a diagram of an example format of an 802 . 3 mac address with embedded infiniband lid according to an example embodiment of the present invention . the 48 bit address includes a base infiniband lid address of 16 bits , a reserved portion that includes 8 bits , and a vendor id portion of 24 bits . the base infiniband lid address is an address associated with a port of a node connected to an infiniband fabric . the 8 bit reserve section may be used as needed by a particular application or function . the vendor id is for plug and play and indicates a manufacturer , specific model , and / or version of a device . the vendor id helps plug and play configure the node with appropriate drivers to run a particular device of the manufacturer . fig3 shows a table of an example mapping in an address resolution protocol according to an example embodiment of the present invention . an address resolution protocol ( arp ) that resides at each node on the infiniband fabric 10 that includes an iblan driver , maps network layer addresses , e . g ., ip addresses , to ethernet 48 bit mac physical addresses . this mapping may be stored as an address resolution protocol table and is updated based on changes to nodes on the infiniband fabric . the ethernet address on the right side of the table shown in fig3 corresponds to the format of the address shown in fig2 . to illustrate , node 12 on infiniband fabric 10 may desire to send data to node 14 on infiniband fabric 10 . an application or device at node 12 may generate a network layer address based on a network protocol used at node 12 . the address resolution protocol maps the network layer address to a physical ethernet address . initially , a broadcast ethernet address is sent across the infiniband fabric to all nodes , e . g ., 14 , 16 , 18 , etc ., that reside on infiniband fabric 10 and include an iblan driver . the ethernet broadcast address may contain all ones in the 48 bit destination address , whereas the 48 bit source address contains the lid of each node on the infiniband fabric . all nodes receive the broadcast message and whichever node has the network layer address may respond by sending a unicast message containing the lid of the destination node back to node 12 . node 12 uses this lid and directs a unicast message to the destination node using a known channel . all nodes on the infiniband fabric , i . e ., all nics , are capable of receiving a destination address of all ones ( e . g ., broadcast message ), a destination address with the most significant bit set to “ 1 ” but the rest not all ones ( e . g ., multicast message ), or their unique infiniband lid address ( e . g ., unicast message ). the network protocol header , e . g ., ip header , that resides after the ethernet header may be used by upper level software at a destination node to determine if this broadcast message is for this particular node . if the message is not for this particular node , the multicast or broadcast message may simply be discarded . fig4 shows a diagram of an example software stack that resides in an iblan emulating node according to an example embodiment of the present invention . the stack consists of a network protocol layer 30 , one or more infiniband lan ( iblan ) driver ( s ) 34 , 36 , a transport services library layer 44 , along with an iba name services and subnet manager interface 54 and iba bus driver 56 , a host channel adaptor ( hca ) driver 58 , and a host channel adapter 60 . the stack may also include an intermediate driver 32 for load balancing and failover . intermediate driver 32 driver may reside between network protocol layer 30 and the iblan driver ( s ) 34 , 36 . network protocol stack 30 may include any protocol , for example , tcp / ip , netware , open systems interconnections ( osi ), decnet , appletalk , etc . intermediate drivers 32 may be layered between the protocol stacks and multiple iblan drivers . intermediate drivers 32 may consolidate multiple instances of iblan drivers into one and may manage the load balances and failover across two or more ports ( e . g ., two in fig4 ). each iblan driver 34 , 36 may include packet data transfer services 38 for unicast , multicast and broadcast transfers across an infiniband fabric 10 , host to host connection services 40 that discovers and resolves connection paths between hosts ( by communicating with subnet manager on fabric ), and driver initialization function 42 used to initialize an iblan driver . each iblan driver implementation 34 , 36 establishes policy for managing connections between nodes based on the destination mac address . if infiniband channels are relatively cheap based on hardware and memory requirements , then drivers may wish to establish node to node connections during address resolution protocol processing and keep the channels active indefinitely instead of aging ( giving the channels back after use ) them . if connection aging is performed at the driver level , it may be desirable to sink up the iblan driver with the address resolution protocol aging table process to insure that subsequent address resolution protocol processing is provided to initiate new connections . the infiniband architecture currently defines multicasting within the fabric as an optional feature . since multicasting is optional , an iblan driver according to the present invention provides multicasting and broadcasting in software to ensure interoperability with all and any hardware , including hardware without multicasting ( e . g ., first generation hardware ). transport services library 44 provides infiniband transport services which include connection management , work queue management , memory management , and message pool management . the iblan driver 34 , 36 uses the service layer to establish connections and send data to any peer iblan driver on the fabric . transport services library 44 includes : channel services datagram and connections section 46 which includes message and dma channels 48 ; a resource manager that manages the message pools ; and a connection manager 52 . channel services 46 performs segmentation and reassembly of datagrams so that the maximum transfer unit ( mtu ) for iblan drivers may exceed the 256 byte limit of minimum size infiniband architecture packets . further , an iblan driver is allowed to report one mtu to the protocol drivers that may be used for both messages on unreliable connections ( unicast ) and messages on unreliable datagrams ( multicast , broadcast , etc .). connection manager 52 discovers the remote node &# 39 ; s datagram work queue pair . the name service 54 , tsl connection manager 52 , and the tsl channel services 46 may be used to support multicasting and broadcasting by the iblan driver . infiniband architecture name services and subnet manager interface 54 may be used by iblan driver 34 , 36 to get a list of active nodes on the fabric and locate the appropriate port and lid for each remote iblan interface . this interface also supports periodic queries or event notification which indicates nodes coming and going . the infiniband architecture defines subnet administration that manages a subnet . subnet administration via a subnet management database ( smdb ) provides persistent storage of subnet topology , and events and configuration information . infiniband architecture name services and subnet management interface 54 provides class drivers with an application programming interface ( api ) and interface to query the smdb and schedule events . this interface may be used to locate all active remote iblan nodes on the fabric . path information to remote iblan nodes on the fabric may be provided via this mechanism so that an iblan driver may maintain primary and secondary paths for redundancy . an iblan driver according to the present invention may periodically query the smdb for link and node activity . the following are example api calls from an iblan driver to a subnet manager to query and get lid &# 39 ; s back : “ ibansgetplatformguidlistbydevicetype ( )”, “ ibansgetportguidlistbyplatformguid ( )”, and “ ibansgetlidlistbyportguid ( )”. infiniband architecture bus driver 56 loads and iblan driver when a local port is initialized with a lid and is set to the active state . infiniband architecture bus driver 56 also may provide an interface to the iblan driver which returns the lid and the lid mask of this new activated port . in this example embodiment , bus driver 56 loads two instances of the iblan driver and gives the first one the lid assigned to port one and the second the lid assigned to port two . the infiniband architecture defines a configuration manager ( cfm ) that acts as the agency to manage ownership and sharing of i / o controllers ( ioc ) by hosts . the cfm provides data maintained in the configuration management database ( cmdb ). access to the cmdb may be provided by configuration management class mads . each host loads an infiniband architecture bus driver that discovers iocs , generates plug and play objects , and provides drivers with the appropriate infiniband architecture information for connectivity . in addition to the remote iocs , the bus driver may also discover all local host channel adapters ( hcas ) and ports for iblan driver initialization . a vendor id and device id may be used to locate and load the appropriate iblan driver at a node . an instance of an iblan driver may be expected to be loaded for each active port . each port is treated like a network interface card ( nic ) so that load balancing ( multiplexing data between two or more channels which increases performance ) and failover ( switching between paths or ports ) may be done with intermediate network device interface ( ndis ) drivers , similar to existing pci nics . intermediate driver 32 may only bundle nics that are on the same infiniband architecture subnet . hardware channel adaptor driver 58 drives host channel adaptor 60 . in this example embodiment , host channel adaptor 60 contains two ports 62 and 64 . as noted previously , an iblan driver 34 , 36 may be associated with each port 62 , 64 respectively . host channel adaptor driver 58 controls the low level hardware interface . host channel adaptor driver 58 provides a verbs ( defined in the infiniband architecture specification ) api for upper level layers needing infiniband transport services . fig5 shows a block diagram of an example initialization sequence of an iblan driver according to an example embodiment of the present invention . bus driver 56 provides iblan driver 34 with adaptor or local port information ( example api call —“ ibabdgetlocalendpointinfobypdo ”). name service 54 provides destination and path information to iblan driver 34 ( example api calls noted previously ). subnet driver 90 provides path information to iblan driver 34 ( example api call —“ ibasngetpathbyportlids ”, once each for getting primary and secondary paths ). tsl 44 provides connection and data transfer services to iblan driver 34 . fig6 shows a system diagram of an example bridge node between an infiniband fabric and ethernet network according to an example embodiment of the present invention . as shown in fig6 , an infiniband fabric 10 includes node devices 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 . however , node device 16 also has another port that connects to an ethernet network 80 . ethernet network 80 also contains additional node devices 82 , 84 and 86 . node devices 12 - 16 contain iblan drivers according to the present invention , therefore , a network protocol in node 12 may send an ethernet data transfer across ib fabric 10 to node device 16 which then may transfer the ethernet data transfer onto ethernet network 80 to one or more of node devices 82 - 86 . this is advantageous in that a network protocol residing at node device 12 need not know that the ethernet traffic that is being sent to a node on an ethernet network , e . g ., 80 , has transferred across an infiniband fabric to get there . the present invention is advantageous in that it is the first implementation of an 802 . 3 lan emulation for an infiniband architecture . further , according to the present invention no specialized name servers and address resolution protocol are required . moreover , the present invention is not restricted to a tcp / ip protocol only , but imbeds an infiniband link level local identifier ( lid ) address in an 802 . 3 ethernet mac address so that any protocol may run on top of infiniband ( ib ) fabrics . also , regarding broadcasting , the present invention avoids the buffer copy by posting the same buffer to each separate infiniband channel . the present invention also provides a mechanism to support multicast traffic over infiniband fabrics . in addition , the present invention provides a mechanism to fail - over to secondary paths via the same port . moreover , a load balance and fail - over driver may be stacked on top of ib lan drivers to provide redundancy across multiple ports and / or channel - adaptors . the present invention may use a combination of channel and datagram services to provide scalability even with channel adaptors that have limited channel work queue resources . it is noted that the foregoing examples have been provided merely for the purpose of explanation and are in no way to be construed as limiting of the present invention . while the present invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment , it is understood that the words which have been used herein are words of description and illustration , rather than words of limitation . changes may be made within the purview of the appended claims , as presently stated and as amended , without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention in its aspects . although the present invention has been described herein with reference to particular methods , materials , and embodiments , the present invention is not intended to be limited to the particulars disclosed herein , rather , the present invention extends to all functionally equivalent structures , methods and uses , such as are within the scope of the appended claims . | 7 |
referring to the drawings and first to fig1 this shows a pair of articulated mechanisms 10 and 10 a holding a workpiece 12 held in a vise 14 . in this example , the workpiece is a disk of sheet metal shown in the process of having a series of teardrop shaped apertures 16 sawn therethrough with a saw 18 . however the shape of the workpiece and the tool being employed are merely examples of myriads of other uses for these mechanisms . the mechanism 10 a is the same as the mechanism 10 although it is shown in a different position . thus only mechanism 10 is described in detail below . both mechanisms are shown mounted on a base 20 . referring to fig1 a , the mechanism includes three joints 24 , 26 and 28 and three shafts 30 , 32 and 33 . shaft 30 extends between joints 24 and 26 and is straight in this embodiment . shaft 32 extends between joints 26 and 28 and has a 90 ° bend 36 . shaft 33 is straight and extends between joint 28 and a clamp 40 which includes a pair of jaws 42 and 44 and an adjustment knob 46 for moving the jaws . it should be understood that the invention is applicable to many other configurations of articulated mechanisms using more or fewer shafts , shafts of different lengths , appearances and shapes and may be used for other tools and objects besides the vise 40 . also the shaft may be straight or bent as illustrated or angled in varying amounts . also more or fewer joints me be employed . joint 24 is shown in better detail in fig2 and 3 . the joint includes a hollow housing 50 which is somewhat capsule - shaped in this example , having a semi - spherical first end 52 , a flat end 56 and a hollow interior 58 . there is a semi - spherical recess 60 within the housing adjacent the first end 52 . this is covered with a high - friction material 62 . this is vulcanized rubber in this example but other high - friction materials can be substituted . a rotatable member , in this example , a spherical member 64 , is located within the housing such that the friction member 62 is between the housing and the rotatable member . shaft 30 fits tightly in a socket 66 in the spherical member and is thus connected thereto . it can be connected in alternative ways such as by threads , adhesive or soldering , depending upon the materials . there is also a biasing member , in this case a coil spring 68 , within the housing and which normally biases the friction member 62 against the rotatable member 64 as seen in the position of fig2 . this inhibits movement of the rotatable member and thereby shaft 30 . the spring is operatively biased against a ferromagnetic member , in this example plunger 70 , which is located within the housing on a side of the spherical member 64 opposite the semi - spherical recess 60 . the plunger includes a piston - like portion 72 which slidably engages inside walls 74 of the housing . there is a projection 76 extending towards the spherical member which has a partially spherical surface 78 pressing against the rotatable member 64 . there is a shaft 80 , of a non - ferromagnetic material in this example , extending rotatably through circular aperture 82 at end 56 of the housing . the shaft is rigidly connected to shaft - like projection 84 of plunger 70 by means of narrower projection 86 of the shaft fitting within cylindrical recess 88 of the extension . a series of pins 90 secure the two members together . other means could be used for connecting them together such a adhesives , screws or other known types of connectors . a series of screws 92 extend threadedly through corresponding threaded apertures 94 in end 56 of the housing . a ring 96 is positioned between the screws and the coil spring 68 . thus the screws can be used to adjust the position of the ring 96 further from or closer to end 56 of the housing and thus increase or decrease the force exerted by the spring 68 on the spherical member 64 . there is a rotary bearing , in this example , a roller bearing race 100 positioned between the coil spring 68 and plunger 70 . this allows for rotation of the housing 50 and shaft 30 about rod 80 when the spherical member 64 is unlocked as shown fig2 . a solenoid 110 is positioned within the housing between the plunger 70 and end 56 . the solenoid in this example is fitted within the interior of coil spring 68 and extends about rod 80 . there is a ferrous alloy ring 112 in this example at the end of the solenoid adjacent to the plunger 70 . fig2 shows the joint 24 in the position where the solenoid is not energized . in this case the coil spring 68 bears against the bearing 100 and plunger 70 to press the rotatable member 64 between plunger 70 , the housing and friction member 62 . this in turn pushes the plunger against the friction member 62 to lock the joint . alternatively , looking at the joint from another point of view , it may be also said that the spring pushes against the ring 96 and consequently the housing and thereby pushes the friction member against the rotatable member to lock the joint . fig3 shows the joint in the position when solenoid 110 is energized . this draws the plunger 70 , which is of a ferromagnetic material , together with rotatable member 64 , away from the housing 50 , thereby creating a gap 130 between the rotatable member and the friction member 62 . this permits the shafts 30 to be moved to a different position as shown in fig3 . as seen in fig1 a , the shaft 30 is rotatable in a arc about slot 122 in the housing . the rod 80 is not shown in fig1 but can be used to mount the joint on base 20 . this allows rotation of the joint about the base . alternatively , the rod 80 could comprise an additional arm connecting the joint to a tool , another object , or a further joint . referring to fig4 and 5 , these show joint 26 in more detail . many of the internal components of the joint are generally similar to those of the previous joint and therefore are given the same number with the additional designation “. 1 ”. in this example housing 26 is in three parts 131 , 132 and 133 . in this example , the friction member 62 . 1 is mounted on partially spherical surface 78 . 1 of ferromagnetic member 70 . 1 instead of on semi - spherical surface 60 . 1 of the housing . coil spring 68 . 1 is compressed between shoulder 134 near end 56 . 1 of the housing and shoulder 136 of the ferromagnetic member . end 56 . 1 of the housing is covered by a plate 140 . the spring normally biases the ferromagnetic member 70 . 1 towards the rotatable member 64 . 1 such that the friction member 62 . 1 engages the rotatable member to inhibit rotation thereof . this effectively locks shafts 30 and 32 in the positions shown . there is an adjustment screw 144 , plastic in this example , extending threadedly through end 52 . 1 of the housing and contacting rotatable member 64 . 1 . this allows adjustment of the resistance to movement of the rotatable member 64 . 1 inside the housing so that , when solenoid 110 . 1 is actuated , its looseness can be set or adjusted to the user &# 39 ; s preference . when the solenoid 110 . 1 is actuated , as shown in fig5 it draws ferromagnetic member 70 . 1 away from rotatable member 64 . 1 against the force of the spring 68 . 1 and thereby creates a gap 130 . 1 between the rotatable member and the friction member 62 . 1 . this allows rotation of arm 32 about gap 150 in the housing between its two portions 131 and 132 of the housing . brackets 160 and 162 connect shaft 30 to portions 131 , 132 and 133 of the housing respectively and thereby interconnect the portions of the housing . the type of articulation permitted by joint 26 is different from that of joint 24 . it may be seen that joint 24 allows for axial pivoting of the housing about rod 80 and yaw - like pivoting of shaft 30 relative to the housing . joint 26 on the other hand permits rotation of member 64 . 1 axially with respect to the housing and yaw - like pivoting of arm 32 in the gap or plane between the housing components 131 , 132 and 133 . fig6 and 8 shows the third joint 28 which permits hinge - like movement of the shafts 32 and 34 about the axis of the housing . in this embodiment like parts have like numbers as in the previous joints with the additional designation of “. 2 ”. in this example the housing 28 is in two portions 131 . 2 and 132 . 2 similar to the embodiment of fig4 and 5 . end 52 . 1 of the housing is formed by a disk - like member 170 on the end of arm 32 . the rotatable member is not spherical in this embodiment as in the previous embodiments but rather is a disk - like member 172 formed on the end of arm 33 . friction member 62 . 2 is positioned between ferromagnetic member 70 . 2 and rotatable member 172 . disk - like member 170 has a hollow rod 178 which extends towards hollow ferromagnetic core 180 inside solenoid 110 . 2 . a locking tab 182 locks the core 180 and the rod 178 together to prevent relative rotation . the two portions of the housing are held together by a screw 190 extending through the hollow core and the hollow rod 178 . the screw is fitted with a nut 192 and washer 194 . there is a c - clip 196 extending about the hollow rod 178 which keeps member 172 and arm 33 in place when the member 172 is released by the solenoid 110 . 2 . in this embodiment , the spring 68 . 2 normally biases the ferromagnetic member 70 . 2 and the friction member 62 . 2 against the member 172 and thereby inhibits rotation of the member and arm 33 relative to the housing and shaft 32 . when the solenoid 110 . 2 is energized , it draws ferromagnetic member 70 . 2 together with friction member 62 . 2 away from member 172 , thereby releasing the shaft and forming a gap 130 . 2 as shown in fig7 . this permits relative rotation of the shafts . fig1 shows a series of switches 200 , 202 and 204 which are used to energize the solenoids in joints 24 , 26 and 28 respectively . it will be understood by someone skilled in the art that many of the details provided above are by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention which is to be interpreted with reference to the following claims . | 5 |
reference will hereinafter be made to the drawings in order to facilitate an understanding of the present invention . fig1 through 5 show a cassette tape recorder as a cassette - type recording and / or reproducing apparatus to which the present invention is applicable . the cassette tape recorder is an automatically - reversing type of a dual capstan system using a compact cassette . as shown in fig1 a magnetic tape 3 wound on a pair of reel hubs 1 , 2 is housed in a cassette , designated generally by the reference numeral 4 . the cassette 4 is horizontally mounted for recording and playback on an upper part of a chassis 6 cooperating with recording and reproducing components ( not shown ) as a part of an overall apparatus . the chassis 6 is structurally adapted to cooperate with a drive mechanism for rotating the reel hubs for the respective tape reels in the cassette in a forward or in a reverse direction , at various speeds , to record and play back information on the tape 3 . the upper part or top surface of the chassis 6 contains a pair of left and right capstans 7 , 8 , pinch rollers 9 , 10 , reel beds 11 , 12 , and a magnetic head 13 . the pair of left and right reel hubs 1 , 2 are respectively engaged with the corresponding reel beds 11 , 12 . the magnetic tape 3 is extended through the capstans 7 , 8 and the magnetic head 13 . a plurality of operating buttons 14 for a play back or record mode , a fast forward mode , a rewind mode , a stop mode , and so on are attached to a side surface of the chassis 6 to control the mode of operation of the cassette 4 . an actuation device 16 for actuating the pair of capstans 7 , 8 to rotate in mutually reverse directions and for selectively actuating the pair of reel beds 11 , 12 is installed on a lower part or bottom surface of the chassis 6 . a change in the direction of rotation of the pair of reel beds 11 , 12 is accomplished by a gear change mechanism 17 installed at an intermediate space between the reel beds 11 , 12 and on the upper part of the chassis 6 . the gear change mechanism 17 comprises a plurality of gears 27 , 28 , 29 , and 30 . when the playback button , included among the buttons 14 , is depressed with the cassette 4 mounted on the chassis 6 , the pinch roller 9 is pressed into contact with the capstan 7 and the left reel bed 11 is actuated to rotate in a counterclockwise direction . with the magnetic tape 3 running normally to wind on the left reel hub 1 , a normal playback , or normal recording is caused on the tape 3 by the magnetic head 13 . when the end of the tape 3 is reached during the normal run , the pinch roller 9 is separated from the capstan 7 . after actuation of the reel bed 11 has ceased , the other pinch roller 10 is pressed into contact with the other capstan 8 . at this time , the right reel bed 12 is actuated to rotate in a clockwise direction and the magnetic tape 3 runs in a reverse direction to wind on the other or right reel hub 2 . consequently , a reverse playback or a reverse recording is caused on the tape 3 by the magnetic head 13 . when a fast forward or a rewind button among the operation buttons 14 is depressed , a fast forward or rewind of the magnetic tape 3 is caused with the reel beds 11 , 12 selectively actuated to rotate at a high speed , i . e . at a speed higher than used for normal or reverse recording or playback . the rotation actuation device 16 , as shown in fig1 comprises a drive pulley 18 actuated by means of a motor , to be described later , a pair of capstan pulleys 19 , 20 attached to a lower end of the capstans 7 , 8 , and a belt 23 wound about an intermediate pulley 21 and a direction change pulley 22 . a fast forward and rewind ( fr ) drive gear 24 is integrally and coaxially mounted on an upper part of the intermediate pulley 21 . furthermore , a normal and reverse ( nr ) drive gear 25 actuated via a torque limiter ( not shown ) is also coaxially mounted on an upper portion of the fr drive gear 24 . the gear change mechanism 17 is provided with the normal and reverse ( nr ) gears 27 , 28 and fast forward and rewind ( fr ) gears 29 , 30 . a pair of reel axles 31 , 32 are respectively installed on the upper portions of centers of the reel beds 11 , 12 , respectively . a pair of reel bed gears 33 , 34 are respectively installed on the peripheries of the reel beds 11 , 12 . the structure of the chassis 6 and the mounting states of the reel beds 11 , 12 and gears 27 through 30 will be described with reference to fig2 through fig5 . a shown in fig2 the chassis 6 is made of a metallic plate . an upper surface 6a of the chassis 6 has a recess 36 substantially in the form of an ellipse ( as best seen in fig3 ) at substantially a center portion of the upper surface 6d and another recess 37 substantially in the form of a trapezoid at a rear portion of the upper surface 6a with respect to the side surface on which the plurality of operating buttons 14 are mounted . these recesses are formed by a pressing or drawing process . it should be noted that the recesses 36 , 37 act to reinforce the chassis 6 so that the chassis 6 becomes extremely rigid through the pressing of the recesses 36 , 37 . the reel beds 11 , 12 and gears 27 through 30 are mounted on the upper portion of the chassis 6 and within the recess 36 so as to be positioned on left and right sides and at a center position within the recess 36 . the upper surfaces 11a , 12a of the reel beds 11 , 12 and the upper surfaces 27a through 30a of the gears 27 through 30 are located at substantially the same level as , or lower than , the upper surface 6a of the chassis 6 , as can be seen in fig2 , and 5 . in addition , a cover plate 38 ( as best seen in fig1 , and 3 ), substantially in a double concave shape , is screwed substantially on the same plane as the upper surface 6a of the chassis 6 at an upper portion of a center portion of the recess 36 , as seen in fig5 . the cover plate 38 is used to cover the above - described gears 27 through 30 . the pair of capstans 7 , 8 is mounted within the rearward , generally - trapezoidal recess 37 . as shown in fig4 the reel bed 11 is rotatably mounted on an outer periphery of a supporting pole 40 which is installed on the upper portion of the recess 36 in the chassis 6 . at this time , the reel bed 11 is inserted into the recess 36 with its center opening penetrated by the supporting pole 40 . the other reel bed 12 is rotatably mounted on an outer periphery of a supporting pole 44 which is installed on the upper portion of a casing 43 of the motor 42 attached from a lower side of the chassis at an opening 41 installed in the recess of the chassis 6 . at this time , the other reel bed 12 is inserted into the recess 36 with its center hole penetrated by the supporting pole 44 . a suitable structure for the motor 42 is exemplified in the u . s . pat . no . 4 , 630 , 149 by the same applicants . as shown in fig3 and 5 , a supporting lever 47 is mounted on a supporting pole 46 mounted coaxially on an outer periphery of the nr drive gear 25 placed below the chassis 6 so as to enable the lever 47 to swing on the supporting pole 46 . a supporting pin 48 installed on an upper portion of a tip of the supporting lever 47 projects toward an upper portion of the recess 36 from the opening 49 of the recess 36 of the chassis 6 . the nr gear 27 is rotatably supported on the outer periphery of the supporting pin 48 . at this time , the one nr gear 27 is inserted into the recess 36 from the upper direction of the chassis 6 during assembly . the other nr gear 28 is rotatably supported on the outer periphery of the supporting pin 50 fixed on the upper portion of the recess 36 of the chassis 6 , as seen in fig2 and 3 . at this time , the other nr gear 28 is inserted onto the supporting pin 50 thereinto from the upper part of the chassis 6 . the other nr gear 28 is always engaged with the reel bed gear 33 of the one reel bed 11 . the one nr gear 27 can be engaged with or disengaged from the other nr gear 28 and reel bed gear 34 of the other reel bed 12 , while the one nr gear 27 is always engaged with the nr drive gear 25 . in addition , the fr gears 29 , 30 are rotatably mounted on mounting pins 53 , 54 mounted on the lower part of a tip of a supporting lever 52 arranged within the recess 36 of the chassis 6 . the supporting lever 52 is inserted onto a supporting pin 55 fixed on the upper part of the recess 36 of the chassis 6 via an elongated hole 56 during the assembly , is free to swing around the supporting pin 55 and is movable in the elongated direction of the elongated hole 56 . the fr gear 29 comprises a wide gear projected from the opening 57 of the recess 36 of the chassis 6 toward a lower direction of the recess 36 and is detachably engaged with the reel bed gear 34 of the reel bed 12 and the fr drive gear 24 . in addition , the other fr gear 30 is always meshed with the fr gear 29 so as to engage detachably with the reel bed gear 33 of the one reel bed 11 . as shown in fig2 and 5 , the cover plate 38 has three holes 59 each located substantially at a vertex of an isoceles triangle formed by the cover plate 38 . on the other hand , on the upper part of the recess 36 , two supporting pins 50 , 55 extend vertically from the nr gear 28 and the elongated hole 56 , respectively , while another supporting pin 58 extends vertically from the upper surface of the recess 36 . in addition , three female threaded holes 60 are provided on upper central portions of the three supporting pins 50 , 55 , 58 , respectively . when the screws 61 are fitted into the corresponding female threaded holes 60 via the corresponding holes 59 in the cover plate 38 , the cover plate 38 is positioned horizontally with respect to the recess 36 and detachably screwed to the chassis 6 . as shown in fig4 and 5 , the cassette 4 denoted by a dot - and - dash line is mounted horizontally on the chassis 6 . when the reel hubs 1 , 2 are engaged with the reel axles 31 , 32 of the reel beds 11 , 12 and the magnetic tape 3 is set so as to pass about the capstans 7 , 8 and in contact with the magnetic head 13 , the cassette 4 can be brought in close contact with the upper surface 6a of the chassis 6 . consequently , the entire tape recorder can be remarkably compacted especially for its height . at this time , as shown in fig5 an extended portion 4a , which is trapezoidally - shaped and located at the rear surface of the cassette , is fitted to the recess 37 of the chassis 6 . since , in the above - described construction , the reel beds 11 , 12 and the plurality of gears 27 through 30 can be assembled on the upper portion of the chassis 6 within the recess 36 from a single direction , i . e . from above the upper part of the chassis 6 , the reel beds 11 , 2 and gears 27 through 30 can be assembled extremely simply . in addition , since a single cover plate 38 can serve to prevent the nr gears 27 , 28 inserted from the upper direction and attached to the supporting pins 48 , 50 from drawing out toward the upper direction as well as to prevent the fr gears 29 , 30 inserted from the upper direction and attached to the supporting pin 55 via the supporting lever 52 from drawing out toward the upper direction , it is not necessary to attach washers for preventing the gears from drawing out toward the upper direction to the individual upper ends of the supporting pins 48 , 50 , 55 . hence , the number of parts to be used for assembly and the labor time required therefor can be reduced remarkably . in addition , a mere removal of the single cover plate 38 screwed to the upper surface of the chassis can facilitate the replacement of the gears 27 through 30 and achieve better service . the change of rotation in the direction of the reel beds 11 , 12 by means of the gear change mechanism 17 will be described below with reference to fig3 . when the magnetic tape 3 is in the normal playback or record mode , the nr gear 27 is meshed with the nr gear 28 as denoted by a solid line and the nr drive gear 25 actuates the reel bed 11 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction as viewed from fig3 via the nr gears 27 , 28 and the reel bed gear 33 . on the other hand , when the magnetic tape 3 is in a reverse playback or record mode , the nr gear 27 is meshed with the reel bed gear 34 as denoted by a dot - and - dash line and the nr drive gear 25 actuates the other reel bed 12 to rotate in a clockwise direction via the nr gear 27 and the reel bed gear 34 . when the magnetic tape 3 is in the fast forward mode , the fr gears 29 , 30 are respectively meshed with the fr drive gear 24 and reel bed gear 33 as denoted by solid lines , and the fr drive gear 24 actuates the one reel bed 11 to rotate in the counterclockwise direction via these gears 29 , 30 , 33 at a high speed . when the magnetic tape 3 is in the rewind mode , the fr gear 29 is meshed with the fr drive gear 24 and the reel bed gear 34 as denoted by the dot - and - dash line , so as to actuate the other reel bed 12 to rotate at a high speed via these gears 29 , 34 . since according to the present invention recesses are formed on the upper surface of the chassis and the pair of left and right reel beds and associated gears to actuate these reel beds are attached on the upper surface of the one recess in a direction from above the chassis , the cassette can be mounted on the upper surface of the chassis with the entire surface of the cassette brought in close contact with the upper surface of the chassis . consequently , the entire cassette tape recorder of cassette - type recording and / or reproducing apparatus can remarkably be compacted . in addition , since the reel beds and gears can be assembled only on the upper side of the chassis from a direction from above the chassis , the assembly of the reel beds and gears can be carried out in a very simple manner as compared with the conventional structure in which the reel beds and gears are assembled separately on the upper and lower surfaces of the chassis . therefore , an easy assembly operation can be achieved . the recesses formed on the upper surface of the chassis also provide a reinforcement structure for the chassis . therefore , the chassis becomes very rigid . as described in the above embodiment , the single cover plate 38 serves to prevent draw out of the plurality of gears 27 through 30 so that the number of parts to be used for the assembly of the cassette type recording and / or reproducing apparatus and labor time required to assembly can remarkably be achieved . the present invention is applicable to the other types of cassette type recording and / or reproducing apparata such as cassette - type video tape recorders ( vtr &# 39 ; s ) as well as to the cassette tape recorder . it will clearly be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the foregoing description is made in terms of the preferred embodiment and various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is to be defined by the appended claims . | 6 |
fig2 illustrates one embodiment of an electrode array 10 according to the present invention . the electrode array comprises three measurement electrodes 1 to 3 of which the first and second electrodes are for measuring the eeg signal and the third and second electrodes for measuring the eog signal . the first electrode 1 is positioned onto the hairless front - lateral area of the frontal lobe of the patient , preferably as far as possible from the eye . the measurement electrode 2 is positioned similarly as the first measurement electrode , but on the opposite cortical hemisphere of the patient . furthermore , the first and second electrodes are positioned substantially horizontally ( i . e . in the same horizontal line ) and at substantially equal distances from the vertical center axis 12 of the face , i . e . the second measurement electrode is positioned onto the spot which is the mirror image of the spot of the first measurement electrode , and vice versa , the vertical center axis being the mirror axis . the eeg signal is measured from the measurement electrodes 1 and 2 . due to the symmetrical positions of the electrodes , the potential changes caused by vertical eye movements are substantially the same at both electrodes ( assuming that the eyes move similarly to each other , as is the case normally ). in other words , the potential changes caused by vertical eye movements tend to cancel in the eeg signal representing the voltage difference of the electrodes . the same applies to artifacts caused by blinks of the eyelids . thus , the eeg channel is in this case resistant to artifact caused by vertical eye movements , but remains sensitive to artifacts caused by horizontal eye movements . in the embodiment of fig2 , the third measurement electrode 3 and one of the first and second measurement electrodes is used for measuring the eog signal . for this purpose , the third measurement electrode is positioned so that the eog voltage measured between this electrode and one of the first and second electrodes is as high as possible in case of horizontal movement of the eyes . in the example of fig2 , the said one electrode is measurement electrode 2 , i . e . the eog voltage is measured between electrodes 3 and 2 . therefore , the third measurement electrode is positioned on the temple of the patient , on the hemisphere opposite to that of measurement electrode 2 . the temple here refers to the area between an eye and the ear on the same hemisphere as the eye . as to their internal structure , the electrodes may be similar to each other . fig3 shows an example of the eeg and eog signals measured by the electrode configuration of fig2 . the upper signal is the eeg signal measured between electrodes 1 and 2 and the lower signal is the eog signal measured between electrodes 3 and 2 . as can be seen from the figure , the eeg channel is sensitive to horizontal eye movement , but resistant to vertical eye movement , while the amplitude of the eog signal is high for the horizontal movement , allowing efficient detection of the artifact caused by horizontal eye movement in the eeg signal . fig4 illustrates one embodiment of a method for detecting eye movement artifact in connection with the electrode array of fig2 . as noted above , the eeg signal is measured between electrodes 1 and 2 , whereas the eog signal is measured between electrodes 3 and 2 . first , the eeg and eog channel signals are divided into successive epochs ( step 41 ). it is assumed in this example that the length of each epoch is one second and that each epoch contains 200 samples , i . e . the sampling frequency is 200 hz . for each epoch , the process then compares the two signals for example by determining the difference of the absolute values of simultaneous signal values . this may be done for each sample in an epoch . assuming that the said signal values are s eeg ( t i ) and s eog ( t i ), the process thus determines the difference | s eog ( t i )|−| s eeg ( t i )| for each sample t i within an epoch . the process then examines whether any of the differences fulfills a predetermined criterion indicative of the presence of eye movement ( step 44 ). in this example , the process examines whether any of the differences exceeds a predetermined threshold value , such as 30 μv . if this is the case , the epoch is flagged to indicate that it is contaminated by eye movement artifact ( step 45 ). various other techniques may also be used to test whether at least a predetermined number of the samples of an epoch fulfill the criterion indicative of the presence of artifact . above , the eeg electrode pair is thus positioned so that the eye movement in the vertical direction causes a substantially zero overall potential difference between the eeg electrodes 1 and 2 . additionally , electrode 3 is positioned so that eye movement in the horizontal direction causes a high potential difference between electrodes 3 and 2 , which act as the eog electrodes . however , as discussed below , the electrode array may also be configured so that the roles of the horizontal and vertical directions are reversed . furthermore , a fourth electrode may be provided for measuring the eog channel , and the electrode array may be provided with a ground electrode . the electrode array of the invention comprises at least three electrodes . two electrodes , i . e . the eeg electrodes , are positioned so that that eye movement in one of the vertical or horizontal directions causes a negligible ( i . e . a substantially zero ) overall voltage change in the eeg signal measured between the said electrodes , while the third electrode , i . e . the eog electrode , is positioned so that eye movement in the other of said horizontal and vertical directions causes a maximally high voltage ( potential difference ) between the third electrode and an auxiliary electrode , which is either one of the eeg electrodes or a fourth electrode positioned near the eye of the patient . fig5 illustrates one embodiment of the invention , in which the roles of the principal directions are reversed from those of the embodiment of fig2 . in the embodiment of fig5 , the first electrode 1 is positioned symmetrically with respect to the eyes onto the forehead of the patient , preferably as far as possible from the eyes . the first electrode thus lies on the vertical center axis 12 of the face . the second measurement electrode 2 is positioned on the mastoid behind the ear of the patient , whereas the third electrode 3 is positioned directly above the eyebrow . in this example , the third electrode is positioned on the same hemisphere as the second electrode and in line with the vertical axis 11 of the eye . however , the third electrode may also be positioned on the opposite hemisphere with respect to the second electrode 2 . as the second electrode is behind the ear on the mastoid , it is denoted with a dashed line in the figure . in this case the potential changes caused by horizontal movement of the right and left eye balls tend to cancel each other due to the symmetric location of the electrode . in other words , due to the location of the electrode , the potential change caused by the horizontal movement of one eye at electrode 1 is opposite to the respective potential change caused by the other eye ( assuming that the eye balls move similarly ). furthermore , horizontal eye movement does not cause any substantial potential change at the second electrode located on the mastoid , and therefore the horizontal eye movements tend to get cancelled in the eeg signal representing the voltage between electrodes 1 and 2 . the voltage measured between the third electrode and electrode 2 is in this embodiment maximally high for vertical eye movements and blinks , thus allowing effective detection of the respective artifact in the eeg signal . a method according to fig4 may be used for detecting the artifact caused by eye movements . as discussed above , one of the eog electrodes may be a combined eeg / eog electrode . however , the electrode array may also comprise a dedicated eog electrode pair . fig6 illustrates a four - electrode configuration comprising an additional eog electrode 4 as compared to the embodiment of fig2 . the fourth electrode is positioned directly above the eyebrow on the same hemisphere as electrode 3 and preferentially on the opposite side of the vertical axis of the eye with respect to electrode 3 . in this embodiment , the eeg signal is measured between electrodes 1 and 2 as in the embodiment of fig2 , but the eog signal is now measured between electrodes 3 and 4 . as in the embodiment of fig2 , the eog voltage is high for horizontal eye movements , while the eeg channel is resistant to vertical eye movements and remains sensitive to horizontal eye movements . fig7 illustrates a four - electrode configuration comprising an additional eog electrode 4 as compared to the embodiment of fig5 . the fourth electrode is positioned directly below the same eye above which the third electrode is , so that the electrodes are substantially in line with the vertical axis 12 of the eye . as in the embodiment of fig5 , the eeg signal is measured between electrodes 1 and 2 , whereas the eog signal is now measured between electrodes 3 and 4 . the eog voltage is maximally high in case of vertical eye movements , and the eeg channel is resistant to horizontal eye movements . additionally , a ground electrode ( gnd ) providing a common ground potential ( 0v ) for the channels may be positioned to any location . fig8 illustrates the electrode array of fig2 provided with a ground electrode 5 positioned between the eeg electrodes 1 and 2 . as obvious from the above , the electrode array may comprise distinct electrodes or two or more of the electrodes may be mounted on a thin and flexible substrate made of plastic material , for example . fig2 and 8 show three and respectively four electrodes integrated onto the surface of a strip - like substrate 100 comprising two portions ; a first portion between electrode 3 and electrode 1 and a second portion between electrode 1 and electrode 2 . the first portion may be slightly shorter than or substantially as long as the second portion to enable the electrodes to be positioned in the above - described manner . for example , the length of the first portion may be about 8 cm and that of the second portion about 10 cm . the first portion may be set to an angle relative to the second portion , as is shown in fig2 and 8 . the angle may be , for example , about 130 degrees . furthermore , the second portion may be provided with a mark indicating the center line between electrodes 1 and 2 , whereby the nursing staff may align the said mark with the vertical center line of the face . alternatively , the ground electrode may indicate the center line between electrodes 1 and 2 , as is shown in the embodiment of fig8 . in this case the electrode array may be attached to the patient by first attaching the ground electrode onto the vertical center line of the face . each electrode of the array is further provided with a respective connector connecting the electrode to a terminal ( not shown ) normally manufactured to the free end of the strip - like substrate . the terminal may be connected with a mating terminal at the end of a measurement cable ( not shown ) connected to the amplifier state of the measuring apparatus . the connectors may be printed on the substrate . although the invention was described above with reference to the examples shown in the appended drawings , it is obvious that the invention is not limited to these , but may be modified by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention . | 0 |
referring now to the drawings , an air conditioning compressor shaft is generally indicated in fig1 . the shaft includes a stub portion 3 , on which a ( hub , not shown ) of a magnetic clutch ( also not shown ) may be mounted . the stub portion 3 is rotatably mounted in a housing inflate 5 by a bearing 7 . more specifically , bearing 7 includes an inner race 9 secured to the shaft and outer race 11 secured to the housing input 5 and the plurality of bearings 13 caged between the inner and outer races 9 and 11 . the inner race is mounted on an enlarged shoulder portion 15 of stub 3 extending outwardly from shoulder 15 as an elongated cylindrical portion 17 . this extends through an opening 19 in the end plate 5 . the seal of this invention is indicated generally at 21 . it includes a cup - shaped retainer 23 having an opening 25 in the bottom portion 27 thereof . opening 25 has two flats as indicated at 29 and 31 fitting over mating flat portions on the stub 3 for drivingly connecting the retainer with the stub shaft 3 . the bottom portion 27 of retainer 23 has a dimple or hump 33 adjacent the cylindrical wall portion 35 of the retainer against which one end of a driving coil spring 37 abuts . the other end of coil spring 37 abuts a dimple or hump 39 in a radially extending angular ledge or flange portion of a carbon retainer 43 . retainer 43 further includes an annular axially extending portion 45 at the end opposite ledge 41 of which is an inwardly and radially extending ledge or retaining portion 47 . ledge 47 engages a resilient hose member 49 which is annular in shape and engages the stub shaft 3 . the outer face of bellows 49 engages an annular carbon ring 51 having an opening 53 therein through which the shaft 3 passes and having a bearing face 55 which engages the face 57 of a stationary member 59 . member 59 has an 0 - ring 61 in an angular recess 63 formed therein . the 0 - ring 61 frictionally engages the end wall 5 and inhibits rotation of the stationary member 59 . end member 59 includes an angular groove 65 and a lip 67 located on the compressor side of the groove . the diameter of the lip 67 is greater than the internal diameter of an interned radially extending lip 69 on retainer 23 . the lip 69 is formed during the assembly of the seal after the components are placed in association with one another as illustrated in fig1 . thus , a unitized shield is achieved . this seal includes the retainer 23 , the spring 37 , the retainer 54 , the bellows 49 , the carbon ring 51 and the stationary member 59 , including 0 - ring 69 . the stub shaft 3 has a central passage plan ( not shown ) through which lubricating oil passes to a generally radially extending passage 71 . thus , oil can be supplied to the seal 21 from the compressor sump . during operation of the compressor , oil from the crank shaft oil hole 71 is thrown radially against the bottom portion 27 of the retainer 23 and against the sides 35 of such retainer . the lip 69 of the retainer 23 provides a dam and retains an angular ring or film of oil in contact with the spring 37 and the ledge 41 of the retainer 43 , as well as the other peripheral edge of the lip 67 of the stationary member 59 . the contact of the lip 67 , with the oil provides a direct path through the stationary member for the removal of heat from the seal faces 55 and 57 . since the oil also directly contacts the spring in the retainer 43 , the heat may be readily removed therefrom . the oil spills over the inward edge of lip 69 . the retainer 23 is positively driven by the flats 29 and 31 in contact with the stub shaft 3 and drives the spring 37 which in turn drivingly engages the retainer 43 . a mating projection and dimple 44 drivingly connect the carbon 51 and retainer 43 . as the oil flows over the inner edge of the lip 69 centrifugal force causes the latter to flow outwardly around the retainer 23 and back toward the bearing 11 . it flows through the bearing 11 back to the oil sump of the compressor . the second embodiment of this invention is illustrated in fig2 . it is similar in many respects to the embodiment shown in fig1 . however , the retainer 43 &# 39 ; has a slightly longer axial portion 45 &# 39 ; than the retainer 43 . in addition , the stationary member is identified as at 59 and extends axially toward the compressor sump radially and inwardly of the axially portion 45 &# 39 ; to a point which is closer to such sump and the lip 41 &# 39 ;. the lip 69 &# 39 ; is located closer to the end wall 5 &# 39 ; than the lip 69 in the fig1 embodiment . the operation of the fig2 embodiment is substantially identical to the operation of the fig1 embodiment and oil is allowed to flow from a centrally located oil hole 71 &# 39 ; to and through the seal before passing outwardly of the seal back to the sump to the bearings 7 &# 39 ;. in the fig3 embodiment a bellows 49 is shown to include an annular metallic ring 73 on which is seated the ledge 75 of a retainer 77 . retainer 77 has a radially extending central portion 79 at the outer edge of which is an axially extending cylindrical portion 81 . cylindrical portion 81 is drivingly connected to the carbon member 51 so as to be driven by the latter . the retainer 23 &# 34 ; and stationary member 59 &# 34 ; are generally similar to the retainer and stationary member shown in fig1 and 2 and perform the same function . the fig4 embodiment is generally similar to the fig1 embodiment , but the stationary member 59 &# 39 ;&# 34 ; is different in that the 0 - ring 61 &# 39 ;&# 34 ; is adapted to engage the cylindrical wall of opening 19 &# 39 ;&# 34 ; and a snap ring 79 is provided to prevent the inadvertent removal of the seal assembly . the fig4 embodiment operates in the same manner as the embodiment shown in fig1 - 3 , i . e ., oil is adapted to flow from a radially extending hole in the shaft outwardly to the oil seal and through the oil seal back to the bearing 7 . it will be noted that in all the embodiments the oil is adapted to be in direct contact with the carbon retainer and the stationary member , thus providing for the removal of heat from these two relatively rotatable members . this direct contact is adapted to reduce the seal temperature during operation of the compressor and also facilitates the removal of contaminants from the seal area . these contaminants are permitted to flow with the oil back to the sump . in view of the foregoing it will be seen that the several objects and advantages of this invention are achieved . although only one embodiment of the invention has been disclosed and described , it is apparent that other embodiments and modifications of the invention are possible . | 5 |
fig1 is a diagram illustrating a communication system 10 that includes a plurality of base stations and / or access points 12 , 16 , a plurality of wireless communication devices 18 - 32 and a network hardware component 34 . note that the network hardware 34 , which may be a router , switch , bridge , modem , system controller , et cetera provides a wide area network connection 42 for the communication system 10 . further note that the wireless communication devices 18 - 32 may be laptop host computers 18 and 26 , personal digital assistant hosts 20 and 30 , personal computer hosts 24 and 32 and / or cellular telephone hosts 22 and 28 . the details of the wireless communication devices will be described in greater detail with reference to fig2 . wireless communication devices 22 , 23 , and 24 are located within an independent basic service set ( ibss ) area and communicate directly ( i . e ., point to point ). in this configuration , these devices 22 , 23 , and 24 may only communicate with each other . to communicate with other wireless communication devices within the system 10 or to communicate outside of the system 10 , the devices 22 , 23 , and / or 24 need to affiliate with one of the base stations or access points 12 or 16 . the base stations or access points 12 , 16 are located within basic service set ( bss ) areas 11 and 13 , respectively , and are operably coupled to the network hardware 34 via local area network connections 36 , 38 . such a connection provides the base station or access point 12 16 with connectivity to other devices within the system 10 and provides connectivity to other networks via the wan connection 42 . to communicate with the wireless communication devices within its bss 11 or 13 , each of the base stations or access points 12 - 16 has an associated antenna or antenna array . for instance , base station or access point 12 wirelessly communicates with wireless communication devices 18 and 20 while base station or access point 16 wirelessly communicates with wireless communication devices 26 - 32 . typically , the wireless communication devices register with a particular base station or access point 12 , 16 to receive services from the communication system 10 . typically , base stations are used for cellular telephone systems and like - type systems , while access points are used for in - home or in - building wireless networks ( e . g ., ieee 802 . 11 and versions thereof , bluetooth , and / or any other type of radio frequency based network protocol ). regardless of the particular type of communication system , each wireless communication device includes a built - in radio and / or is coupled to a radio . fig2 is a diagram illustrating a wireless communication device 200 that includes the host device 18 - 32 and an associated radio 60 . for cellular telephone hosts , the radio 60 is a built - in component . for personal digital assistants hosts , laptop hosts , and / or personal computer hosts , the radio 60 may be built - in or an externally coupled component . as illustrated , the host device 18 - 32 includes a processing module 50 , memory 52 , a radio interface 54 , an input interface 58 , and an output interface 56 . the processing module 50 and memory 52 execute the corresponding instructions that are typically done by the host device . for example , for a cellular telephone host device , the processing module 50 performs the corresponding communication functions in accordance with a particular cellular telephone standard . the radio interface 54 allows data to be received from and sent to the radio 60 . for data received from the radio 60 ( e . g ., inbound data ), the radio interface 54 provides the data to the processing module 50 for further processing and / or routing to the output interface 56 . the output interface 56 provides connectivity to an output display device such as a display , monitor , speakers , et cetera such that the received data may be displayed . the radio interface 54 also provides data from the processing module 50 to the radio 60 . the processing module 50 may receive the outbound data from an input device such as a keyboard , keypad , microphone , et cetera via the input interface 58 or generate the data itself . for data received via the input interface 58 , the processing module 50 may perform a corresponding host function on the data and / or route it to the radio 60 via the radio interface 54 . radio 60 includes a host interface 62 , digital receiver processing module 64 , an analog - to - digital converter 66 , a high pass and low pass filter module 68 , an if mixing down conversion stage 70 , a receiver filter 71 , a low noise amplifier 72 , a transmitter / receiver switch 73 , a local oscillation module 74 , memory 75 , a digital transmitter processing module 76 , a digital - to - analog converter 78 , a filtering / gain module 80 , an if mixing up conversion stage 82 , a power amplifier 84 , a transmitter filter module 85 , a channel bandwidth adjust module 87 , and an antenna 86 . it is noted that one or both of the high pass and low pass filter module 68 and the low noise amplifier 72 can operate to perform any desired gain and / or attenuation of the inbound rf signal 88 ( i . e ., using the low noise amplifier 72 ) or the down - converted version thereof ( i . e ., using the high pass and low pass filter module 68 ), as indicated by the reference numeral 99 . a packet gain signal can be provided from one or both of the high pass and low pass filter module 68 and the low noise amplifier 72 to indicate that the gain has settled ( i . e ., undergone any change , passed through any transient period , and settled to a new steady state operating level for the packet ). the antenna 86 may be a single antenna that is shared by the transmit and receive paths as regulated by the tx / rx switch 73 , or may include separate antennas for the transmit path and receive path . the antenna implementation will depend on the particular standard to which the wireless communication device 200 is compliant . the digital receiver processing module 64 and the digital transmitter processing module 76 , in combination with operational instructions stored in memory 75 , execute digital receiver functions and digital transmitter functions , respectively . the digital receiver functions include , but are not limited to , digital intermediate frequency to baseband conversion , demodulation , constellation demapping , decoding , and / or descrambling . the digital transmitter functions include , but are not limited to , scrambling , encoding , constellation mapping , modulation , and / or digital baseband to if conversion . the digital receiver and transmitter processing modules 64 and 76 may be implemented using a shared processing device , individual processing devices , or a plurality of processing devices . such a processing device may be a microprocessor , micro - controller , digital signal processor , microcomputer , central processing unit , field programmable gate array , programmable logic device , state machine , logic circuitry , analog circuitry , digital circuitry , and / or any device that manipulates signals ( analog and / or digital ) based on operational instructions . the memory 75 may be a single memory device or a plurality of memory devices . such a memory device may be a read - only memory , random access memory , volatile memory , non - volatile memory , static memory , dynamic memory , flash memory , and / or any device that stores digital information . note that when the processing module 64 and / or 76 implements one or more of its functions via a state machine , analog circuitry , digital circuitry , and / or logic circuitry , the memory storing the corresponding operational instructions is embedded with the circuitry comprising the state machine , analog circuitry , digital circuitry , and / or logic circuitry . in operation , the radio 60 receives outbound data 94 from the host device via the host interface 62 . the host interface 62 routes the outbound data 94 to the digital transmitter processing module 76 , which processes the outbound data 94 in accordance with a particular wireless communication standard ( e . g ., ieee 802 . 11 , bluetooth , et cetera ) to produce outbound baseband signals 96 . the outbound baseband signals 96 will be digital base - band signals ( e . g ., have a zero if ) or a digital low if signals , where the low if typically will be in the frequency range of one hundred khz ( kilo - hertz ) to a few mhz ( mega - hertz ). the digital - to - analog converter 78 converts the outbound baseband signals 96 from the digital domain to the analog domain . the filtering / gain module 80 filters and / or adjusts the gain of the analog signals prior to providing it to the if mixing stage 82 . the if mixing stage 82 converts the analog baseband or low if signals into rf signals based on a transmitter local oscillation 83 provided by local oscillation module 74 . the power amplifier 84 amplifies the rf signals to produce outbound rf signals 98 , which are filtered by the transmitter filter module 85 . the antenna 86 transmits the outbound rf signals 98 to a targeted device such as a base station , an access point and / or another wireless communication device 200 . the radio 60 also receives inbound rf signals 88 via the antenna 86 , which were transmitted by a base station , an access point , or another wireless communication device . the antenna 86 provides the inbound rf signals 88 to the receiver filter module 71 via the tx / rx switch 73 , where the rx filter 71 bandpass filters the inbound rf signals 88 . the rx filter 71 provides the filtered rf signals to low noise amplifier 72 , which amplifies the signals 88 to produce an amplified inbound rf signals . the low noise amplifier 72 provides the amplified inbound rf signals to the if mixing module 70 , which directly converts the amplified inbound rf signals into an inbound low if signals or baseband signals based on a receiver local oscillation 81 provided by local oscillation module 74 . the down conversion module 70 provides the inbound low if signals or baseband signals to the filtering / gain module 68 . the high pass and low pass filter module 68 filters , based on settings provided by the channel bandwidth adjust module 87 , the inbound low if signals or the inbound baseband signals to produce filtered inbound signals . the analog - to - digital converter 66 converts the filtered inbound signals from the analog domain to the digital domain to produce inbound baseband signals 90 , where the inbound baseband signals 90 will be digital base - band signals or digital low if signals , where the low if typically will be in the frequency range of one hundred khz to a few mhz . the digital receiver processing module 64 , based on settings provided by the channel bandwidth adjust module 87 , decodes , descrambles , demaps , and / or demodulates the inbound baseband signals 90 to recapture inbound data 92 in accordance with the particular wireless communication standard being implemented by radio 60 . the host interface 62 provides the recaptured inbound data 92 to the host device 18 - 32 via the radio interface 54 . as one of average skill in the art will appreciate , the wireless communication device 200 of fig2 may be implemented using one or more integrated circuits . for example , the host device may be implemented on one integrated circuit , the digital receiver processing module 64 , the digital transmitter processing module 76 and memory 75 may be implemented on a second integrated circuit , and the remaining components of the radio 60 , less the antenna 86 , may be implemented on a third integrated circuit . as an alternate example , the radio 60 may be implemented on a single integrated circuit . as yet another example , the processing module 50 of the host device and the digital receiver and transmitter processing modules 64 and 76 may be a common processing device implemented on a single integrated circuit . further , the memory 52 and memory 75 may be implemented on a single integrated circuit and / or on the same integrated circuit as the common processing modules of processing module 50 and the digital receiver and transmitter processing module 64 and 76 . fig3 is a diagram illustrating a wireless communication device 300 that includes the host device 18 - 32 and an associated radio 60 . for cellular telephone hosts , the radio 60 is a built - in component . for personal digital assistants hosts , laptop hosts , and / or personal computer hosts , the radio 60 may be built - in or an externally coupled component . as illustrated , the host device 18 - 32 includes a processing module 50 , memory 52 , radio interface 54 , input interface 58 and output interface 56 . the processing module 50 and memory 52 execute the corresponding instructions that are typically done by the host device . for example , for a cellular telephone host device , the processing module 50 performs the corresponding communication functions in accordance with a particular cellular telephone standard . the radio interface 54 allows data to be received from and sent to the radio 60 . for data received from the radio 60 ( e . g ., inbound data ), the radio interface 54 provides the data to the processing module 50 for further processing and / or routing to the output interface 56 . the output interface 56 provides connectivity to an output display device such as a display , monitor , speakers , et cetera such that the received data may be displayed . the radio interface 54 also provides data from the processing module 50 to the radio 60 . the processing module 50 may receive the outbound data from an input device such as a keyboard , keypad , microphone , et cetera via the input interface 58 or generate the data itself . for data received via the input interface 58 , the processing module 50 may perform a corresponding host function on the data and / or route it to the radio 60 via the radio interface 54 . radio 60 includes a host interface 62 , a baseband processing module 100 , memory 65 , a plurality of radio frequency ( rf ) transmitters 106 - 110 , a transmit / receive ( t / r ) module 114 , a plurality of antennas 81 - 85 , a plurality of rf receivers 118 - 120 , a channel bandwidth adjust module 87 , and a local oscillation module 74 . the baseband processing module 100 , in combination with operational instructions stored in memory 65 , executes digital receiver functions and digital transmitter functions , respectively . the digital receiver functions include , but are not limited to , digital intermediate frequency to baseband conversion , demodulation , constellation de - mapping , decoding , de - interleaving , fast fourier transform ( fft ), cyclic prefix removal , space and time decoding , and / or descrambling . the digital transmitter functions include , but are not limited to , scrambling , encoding , interleaving , constellation mapping , modulation , inverse fast fourier transform ( ifft ), cyclic prefix addition , space and time encoding , and digital baseband to if conversion . the baseband processing modules 100 may be implemented using one or more processing devices . such a processing device may be a microprocessor , micro - controller , digital signal processor , microcomputer , central processing unit , field programmable gate array , programmable logic device , state machine , logic circuitry , analog circuitry , digital circuitry , and / or any device that manipulates signals ( analog and / or digital ) based on operational instructions . the memory 65 may be a single memory device or a plurality of memory devices . such a memory device may be a read - only memory , random access memory , volatile memory , non - volatile memory , static memory , dynamic memory , flash memory , and / or any device that stores digital information . note that when the processing module 100 implements one or more of its functions via a state machine , analog circuitry , digital circuitry , and / or logic circuitry , the memory storing the corresponding operational instructions is embedded with the circuitry comprising the state machine , analog circuitry , digital circuitry , and / or logic circuitry . in operation , the radio 60 receives outbound data 94 from the host device via the host interface 62 . the baseband processing module 64 receives the outbound data 88 and , based on a mode selection signal 102 , produces one or more outbound symbol streams 90 . the mode selection signal 102 will indicate a particular mode of operation that is compliant with one or more specific modes of the various ieee 802 . 11 standards . for example , the mode selection signal 102 may indicate a frequency band of 2 . 4 ghz , a channel bandwidth of 20 or 22 mhz and a maximum bit rate of 54 megabits - per - second . in this general category , the mode selection signal will further indicate a particular rate ranging from 1 megabit - per - second to 54 megabits - per - second . in addition , the mode selection signal will indicate a particular type of modulation , which includes , but is not limited to , barker code modulation , bpsk , qpsk , cck , 16 qam and / or 64 qam . the mode select signal 102 may also include a code rate , a number of coded bits per subcarrier ( nbpsc ), coded bits per ofdm symbol ( ncbps ), and / or data bits per ofdm symbol ( ndbps ). the mode selection signal 102 may also indicate a particular channelization for the corresponding mode that provides a channel number and corresponding center frequency . the mode select signal 102 may further indicate a power spectral density mask value and a number of antennas to be initially used for a mimo communication . the baseband processing module 100 , based on the mode selection signal 102 produces one or more outbound symbol streams 104 from the outbound data 94 . for example , if the mode selection signal 102 indicates that a single transmit antenna is being utilized for the particular mode that has been selected , the baseband processing module 100 will produce a single outbound symbol stream 104 . alternatively , if the mode select signal 102 indicates 2 , 3 or 4 antennas , the baseband processing module 100 will produce 2 , 3 or 4 outbound symbol streams 104 from the outbound data 94 . depending on the number of outbound streams 104 produced by the baseband module 10 , a corresponding number of the rf transmitters 106 - 110 will be enabled to convert the outbound symbol streams 104 into outbound rf signals 112 . in general , each of the rf transmitters 106 - 110 includes a digital filter and upsampling module , a digital to analog conversion module , an analog filter module , a frequency up conversion module , a power amplifier , and a radio frequency bandpass filter . the rf transmitters 106 - 110 provide the outbound rf signals 112 to the transmit / receive module 114 , which provides each outbound rf signal to a corresponding antenna 81 - 85 . when the radio 60 is in the receive mode , the transmit / receive module 114 receives one or more inbound rf signals 116 via the antennas 81 - 85 and provides them to one or more rf receivers 118 - 122 . the rf receiver 118 - 122 , based on settings provided by the channel bandwidth adjust module 87 , converts the inbound rf signals 116 into a corresponding number of inbound symbol streams 124 . the number of inbound symbol streams 124 will correspond to the particular mode in which the data was received . the baseband processing module 100 converts the inbound symbol streams 124 into inbound data 92 , which is provided to the host device 18 - 32 via the host interface 62 . as one of average skill in the art will appreciate , the wireless communication device 300 of fig3 may be implemented using one or more integrated circuits . for example , the host device may be implemented on one integrated circuit , the baseband processing module 100 and memory 65 may be implemented on a second integrated circuit , and the remaining components of the radio 60 , less the antennas 81 - 85 , may be implemented on a third integrated circuit . as an alternate example , the radio 60 may be implemented on a single integrated circuit . as yet another example , the processing module 50 of the host device and the baseband processing module 100 may be a common processing device implemented on a single integrated circuit . further , the memory 52 and memory 65 may be implemented on a single integrated circuit and / or on the same integrated circuit as the common processing modules of processing module 50 and the baseband processing module 100 . fig4 is a diagram of feedback control 400 within a communication device . initially , a plurality of signals , indicated by reference numeral 410 , is received after undergoing receive filtering and down sampling . such initial processing as receive filtering and down sampling may be viewed as being performed within an afe ( analog front end ) of a communication device . in some embodiments , the feedback control 400 may be viewed may be viewed as being performed in a baseband processing module as depicted in some other of the embodiments disclosed herein . within this feedback control 400 , a carrier detection module 469 is operable to perform carrier detection in accordance with any one of the various embodiments or equivalents described herein . also , within this feedback control 400 , a coarse / fine frequency estimation module 440 is operable to perform initially coarse frequency estimation and then subsequently fine frequency estimation as governed by phy ( physical layer ) control , as indicated by physm control input 420 . also within this feedback control 400 , cyclic prefix ( cp ) removal of this incoming signal streams may be performed as shown by the cp removal modules 421 - 422 ; the operation of these cp modules 421 - 422 is also governed by phy control , as indicated by physm control input 420 . the cp removal functionality is based on an advance / retard signal 445 provided from a compute sfo ( sampling frequency offset ) correction module 444 that operates using inputs received from a carrier pll ( phase locked loop ) 446 and the coarse / fine frequency estimation module 440 . thereafter , predictive time - domain ( td ) pll correction is computed using a plurality of td correction modules 423 - 424 ( based on signals received from the carrier pll 446 that correspond to a previous plurality of received symbols ( e . g ., previous n - 1 st symbol in one embodiment )). these outputs from the td correction modules 423 - 424 are then passed to a plurality of fft ( fast fourier transform ) modules 425 - 426 . these fft modules 425 - 426 operate to transform the signal processing from the time domain ( t - dom ) to the frequency domain ( f - dom ). an equalize module 430 is operable to perform equalization on the signals received from the fft modules 425 - 426 . the equalize module 430 may be viewed as performing essentially a channel inversion operation on the signals received from the fft modules 425 - 426 in an effort to compensate for , at least in part , the imperfections and deleterious characteristics of the communication channel over which a signal has been transmitted and from which the signal has been received . during a first instance , this equalize module 430 may be viewed as performed a 1 st pass of equalization , in that , the equalize processing may be viewed as being an iterative type process that compensates for any channel induced errors . after this , these equalized signal streams are passed to a plurality of cpe_sfo correction modules 431 - 432 that is operable to apply predictive sfo correction that has been computed using a previous plurality of symbols ( e . g ., previous n - 1 st symbol in one embodiment ) while also considering common phase error ( cpe ) correction values . the cpe_sfo correction modules 431 - 432 receive input signals from both the compute sfo correction module 444 as well as the carrier pll 446 . in an initial pass through the , the cpe correction value may be set to a phase of 0 ( zero ). the streams output from the cpe_sfo correction modules 431 - 432 are then provide to a plurality of symbol demap modules 433 - 434 that is operable to perform the appropriate symbol demapping of each of the symbols of these sequences of discrete values modulation symbols according to the appropriate modulation types ( i . e ., each modulation type includes a constellation shape and a corresponding mapping ). a compute metrics module 450 is operable to compute the cpe correction values . these cpe correction values are then filtered by the carrier pll 446 before being provided to the cpe_sfo correction modules 431 - 432 . a compute td correction module 442 then computes the td pll correction from the current symbol ( e . g ., the n th symbol ) for use with respect to the next symbol ( e . g ., n + 1 st symbol ). the compute sfo correction module 444 then computes the sfo correction from the current symbol ( e . g ., the nth symbol ) for use with respect to the next symbol ( e . g ., n + 1 st symbol ). the equalize module 430 is then also adjusted using the sfo correction values that have been calculated using the compute metrics module 450 . the same sfo correction values computed and applied for the predictive sfo correction employed above as applied in conjunction with the cpe correction values from the current symbol ( e . g ., the n th symbol ). in this pass of the feedback control processing , the cpe correction has the current symbol phase estimate that has been calculated as described above . the plurality of symbol demap modules 433 - 434 is then operable to perform the appropriate symbol demapping of each of the symbols again . after this step , an lms channel update module 452 is then operable to compute the lms ( least means square ) channel update error terms for use by the next symbol ( e . g ., n + 1 st symbol ). the lms channel update module 452 then is operable to provide updated channel information to a channel estimate module 454 for processing the next symbol ( e . g ., n + 1 st symbol ). the compute metrics module 450 is operable to perform a variety of functions . the compute metrics module 450 is operable to compute the angular phase error , θ ( est ) or { circumflex over ( θ )}, between the outputs of the equalize module 430 and the expected constellation points of the expected modulation ( having the expected constellation shape and corresponding mapping ). this is employed by the carrier pll 446 for cfo / sfo tracking by each of the corresponding appropriate modules . the compute metrics module 450 is also operable to compute the error , δh k , between a received vector and an expected vector based on an expected constellation point . this is employed by the lms channel update module 452 . the compute metrics module 450 is also operable to determine a signal type ( shown by sig_type ) that indicates the modulation type of the sig field as is known within an ofdm packet employed in accordance with ieee 802 . 11n . the compute metrics module also receives the appropriate 1 or more coefficients are received as shown by reference numeral 449 that are employed to calculate the location of the expected modulation ( constellation and mapping ) to which the received signal is symbol demapped . these may be provided via the signal , indicated by reference numeral 449 , that operates by receiving coefficients from a demod_coefcalc module . it is noted that the feedback control 400 within a communication device may be viewed as being implemented within a communication system operating using ofdm ( orthogonal frequency division multiplexing ) signaling . several of the following embodiments are directed towards performing carrier detection when processing an ofdm packet that is processed from a signal that has been received from a communication channel . the carrier detection functionality and methods presented herein are applicable to any of a variety of communication systems including those having more than one receive stream . generally speaking , these carrier detection functionality and methods may be applied to any received signal . fig5 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of an ofdm ( orthogonal frequency division multiplexing ) packet 500 that may be processed . the ofdm packet 500 may be viewed as including a preamble portion 502 and a data portion 504 . the leftmost portion of the ofdm packet 500 is the demarcation of the start of packet ( sop ) and the rightmost portion of the ofdm packet 500 is the demarcation of the end - of - packet ( eop ). the preamble portion 502 of the ofdm packet 500 is relatively short in time compared to the overall packet length of the ofdm packet 500 , and corrections and calculations for other system impairments such as carrier frequency detect , carrier recovery , timing recovery , cfo ( carrier frequency offset ), and others may also need to be calculated during this portion of the transmission . thus , the amount of time needed to determine such parameters for a received ofdm packet 500 needs to be kept small . the preamble portion 502 may be divided into several training sequences . for example , first a short training sequence ( sts ) may be received . this is followed by a long training sequence ( lts ), signal field ( sig ), and an additional short training sequence ( mimo sts ). the sig portion of the preamble may describe the content of data with information provided in a predetermined format . it is also noted here that the preamble portion 502 may include a wide variety of combinations of stss , ltss , and sigs . in addition , the order of each of these various types of training sequences ( stss , ltss , and sigs ) may be in any desired order within the preamble portion 502 . the particular arrangement of the preamble portion 502 within this diagram is illustrative of just one possible embodiment . clearly , variations thereof may be implemented without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention . in the context of carrier detect functionality and method implemented to perform carrier detection , the operation and processing may be performed on the sts . each of the portions of the ofdm packet 500 may be viewed as including more than 1 ofdm symbol . for example , the sts of the preamble portion 502 of the ofdm packet 500 may include a plurality of ofdm symbols , shown as s 1 , s 2 , s 3 , . . . , s m . clearly , the sts could possibly include as few as 2 ofdm symbols in some embodiments . each of the ofdm symbols includes a plurality of samples . for example , the ofdm symbol s 2 includes sample 511 , sample 512 , and . . . , sample 519 . clearly , this relationship may also be applicable for other of the ofdm symbols as well , in that , each ofdm symbol includes a corresponding plurality of samples . fig6 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of functionality 600 operable to perform carrier detection . this embodiment shows a very generic embodiment by which a carrier detect module 610 may be implemented . in some desired embodiments , the carrier detect module 610 may be implemented within a baseband processing module 601 . this baseband processing module 601 may be the baseband processing module 100 shown above within other embodiments , or the baseband processing module 601 may include different functionality and capabilities as the baseband processing module 100 shown above . the carrier detect module 610 is operable to receive samples of at least two symbols of an sts of an ofdm packet , as indicated by the reference numeral 605 . the carrier detect module 610 includes an auto - correlation detection module 620 and a match filter detection module 630 . in some instances , the match filter detection module 630 also includes an auto - correlation detection module 635 that is distinct from the auto - correlation detection module 620 , in that , the auto - correlation detection module 635 operates using a relaxed set of parameters when compared to the parameters employed by the an auto - correlation detection module 620 . operating cooperatively , the auto - correlation detection module 620 and the match filter detection module 630 operate on the samples of at least two symbols of an ofdm packet to generate a carrier detect signal 615 . this carrier detect signal 615 then indicates carrier detect or not ( i . e ., a carrier signal has been sensed and detected or no carrier signal has been sensed and detected ). fig7 is a diagram illustrating another embodiment of functionality 700 operable to perform carrier detection . it is noted that this diagram corresponds to an embodiment for use in performing carrier detection within a single received signal stream . this embodiment 700 could also be replicated and employed to perform carrier detection among a number of received signal streams as well . in such a multiple received signal stream embodiment , if the embodiment 700 were replicated ( one for each received signal stream ), then each embodiment 700 would provide a carrier detect signal for that particular received signal stream , and the results of all of the embodiments 700 ( i . e ., one for each received signal stream ) could be combined for overall carrier detection . for example , in such a multiple received signal stream embodiment , a combining module can be employed to perform the combining functionality according to a desired manner for a given application . at least one such possible embodiment is described below . in some desired embodiments , a carrier detect module 710 may be implemented within a baseband processing module 701 . this baseband processing module 701 may be the baseband processing module 100 shown above within other embodiments , or the baseband processing module 701 may include different functionality and capabilities as the baseband processing module 100 shown above . similar to the embodiment described just above , the carrier detect module 710 is operable to receive samples of at least two symbols of an sts of an ofdm packet , as indicated by the reference numeral 705 . in this embodiment , the carrier detect module 710 includes a 1 st auto - correlation detection module 720 , a match filter detection module 730 , and a 2 nd auto - correlation detection module 740 . the 1 st auto - correlation detection module 720 is operable to process the samples of at least 2 symbols of an ofdm packet to generate a first carrier detect signal , and the 2 nd auto - correlation detection module 740 is operable to process the samples of at least 2 symbols of an ofdm packet to generate a second carrier detect signal . the match filter detection module 730 is operable to process samples of at least 1 symbol of an ofdm packet as compared to a predetermined symbol as determined using match filter parameters corresponding thereto ; the match filter detection module 730 is operable to generate a match filter detection signal . the carrier detect module 710 also includes at least one embodiment of some logic circuitry and / or logic functional blocks that are operable to process each of the first carrier detect signal , the match filter detection signal , and the second carrier detect signal . for example , in one possible embodiment , the match filter detection signal and the second carrier detect signal are provided to a first logical and gate 711 . in some alternative embodiments , the first logical and gate 711 may be replaced by a logical or gate . the output of this first logical and gate 711 is provided to a second logical and gate 712 that also receives the first carrier detect signal . the output of this second logical and gate 712 is a carrier detect signal 715 that indicates carrier detect or not ( i . e ., a carrier signal has been sensed and detected or no carrier signal has been sensed and detected ). in another possible embodiment , the match filter detection signal and the second carrier detect signal are provided to the first logical and gate 711 . the output of this first logical and gate 711 is provided to a logical or gate 713 that also receives the first carrier detect signal . the output of this logical or gate 713 is a carrier detect signal 716 that indicates carrier detect or not ( i . e ., a carrier signal has been sensed and detected or no carrier signal has been sensed and detected ). in this embodiment , either the signal output from the first logical and gate 711 or the first carrier detect signal output from the 1 st auto - correlation detection module 720 is sufficient to direct the carrier detect signal 716 to indicate carrier detect or not . a designer is given great latitude by which to combine each of the first carrier detect signal , the match filter detection signal , and the second carrier detect signal . each of these two possible embodiments of logic circuitry may be implemented within a single carrier detect module in some embodiments , and selection may be made regarding which of the two possible embodiments to employ . more detail is provided below showing greater detail by which each of these various embodiments of these auto - correlation detection modules and match filter detection modules may be implemented . fig8 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of functionality 800 operable to support auto - correlation detection processing . modified correlation function calculation 820 is performed when operating on the samples of two moving windows of an ofdm packet ( e . g ., as indicated by samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , respectively ) that are processed and received after undergoing receive filtering and down sampling , as indicated by reference numeral 810 . such initial processing as receive filtering and down sampling may be viewed as being performed within an afe ( analog front end ) of a communication device . this modified correlation function calculation 820 differs from straight - forward auto - correlation function calculation , in that , the term is normalized with respect to the power of each of the moving windows of each of the samples of window 1 801 and the samples of window 2 802 . a strict auto - correlation function calculation , ρ corr of using the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , would be performed as follows : ρ corr = e [ s 1 , s 2 * ] p s 1 · p s 2 - m s 1 · m s 2 , e [ s 1 , s 2 * ] is the expected value when considering the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 ; m s 1 is the mean value of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 ; m s 2 is the mean value of the samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 ; p s 1 the power of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 ; and p s 2 is the power of the samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 . it is noted that e [ s 1 , s 2 * ] is calculated as a function of each of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and the samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 . for example , assuming the samples of s 1 includes n samples as x 1 , x 2 , . . . , x n , and the samples of s 2 includes n samples as y 1 , y 2 , . . . , y n then the term , e [ s 1 , s 2 * ], is calculated as follows : e [ s 1 , s 2 * ] = x 1 y 1 * + x 2 y 2 * + ⋯ x n y n * n . for comparison , the covariance function calculation , ρ cov , of using the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and the samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , would be performed as follows : σ s 1 is the standard deviation of the noise of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 ; and σ s 2 is the standard deviation of the noise of the samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 . however , the modified correlation function calculation 820 ( which is performed for every sample of each of the moving windows as depicted using , s 1 and s 2 ) is instead calculated as follows : ρ mod_corr = e [ s 1 , s 2 * ] - m s 1 · m s 2 p s 1 · p s 2 , ρ mod_corr 2 = ( e [ s 1 , s 2 * ] - m s 1 · m s 2 ) 2 p s 1 · p s 2 . as can be seen , the modified correlation function calculation 820 is normalized with respect to the power of each of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 . this generally results in a smaller value than would either of the strict auto - correlation function calculation , ρ corr or the covariance function calculation , ρ corr , thereby providing for less susceptibility to false carrier detects . by generating a smaller number , a carrier signal is a bit more difficult to detect , but this will provide for a more robust approach that reduces false carrier detects while also providing a very accurate carrier detect signal indicating that a carried signal is in fact detected ( or sensed ). generally speaking , as the power of each of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , decreases , then the values of the modified correlation function increases . the modified correlation function is monitored over a predetermined number of samples , and the modified correlation function is compared to a modified correlation function threshold as shown in a block 850 . typically , when the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , are correlated , then the modified correlation function climbs to reach a peak and then decreases over a region before climbing again to a subsequent peak . a designer is given great flexibility in how to implement these the criterion or criteria required to be met before declaring that carrier detect has been performed . for example , any of the thresholds employed herein can be modified . in some instances , the thresholds can be lowered when accompanied with requiring more consecutive peaks be detected within the modified correlation function threshold . also , this embodiments shows how the power of each of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 and samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , undergoes power comparison . specifically , the power of the samples of moving window ( s 1 ) 801 , is compared to a 1 st power threshold as shown in a block 830 ; this comparison of the power of the symbol , s 1 , is with respect to a 1 st power threshold . the power of the samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , is compared to a 2 nd power threshold as shown in a block 840 ; this comparison of the power of samples of moving window ( s 2 ) 802 , is with respect to a 2 nd power threshold . the outputs of each of these blocks 850 , 830 , and 840 are provided to a combining module 860 . the combining module 860 may be viewed as performing the processing of each of the comparisons being performed in the blocks 850 , 830 , and 840 to determine whether or not a carrier detect signal 816 indicates that a carrier signal has in fact been detected or not . in one possible embodiment , the carrier detect signal 816 indicates carrier detect of a signal being monitored when : ( 1 ) the modified correlation function exceeds the modified correlation function threshold , ( 2 ) the first power corresponding to the first symbol exceeds the first power threshold , and ( 3 ) the second power corresponding to the second symbol exceeds the second power threshold . when all three of these conditions are not met , then the carrier detect signal 816 does in fact indicate carrier detect , and when at least one of these conditions is not met , then the carrier detect signal 816 does not indicate carrier detect . fig9 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of functionality 900 operable to support match filter detection processing . initially , a plurality of signals , indicated by reference numeral 910 , is received after undergoing receive filtering and down sampling . analogous to other embodiments , such initial processing as receive filtering and down sampling may be viewed as being performed within an afe ( analog front end ) of a communication device . match filter function calculation 920 is performed when operating on the samples of successive different symbols of an ofdm packet ( e . g ., s 1 and s 2 , as indicated by reference numerals 901 and 902 , respectively ). the match filter function calculation 920 is performed using the samples of each of the symbols , s 1 and s 2 , as compared to samples of a predetermined symbol . each of these samples undergoes match filter processing performed with respect to the samples of the predetermined symbol thereby generating a match filter output signal , mf_out . generally speaking , the n th sample of each of the symbols , s 1 and s 2 , is processed within the corresponding sample , s known * (− n ), of the predetermined / known symbol . the received symbol , s 1 , is then correlated with a predetermined / known sequence ( e . g ., the predetermined / known symbol , s known ) thereby generating a match filter function , ρ mf . this match filter function calculation 920 to generate the match filter function , ρ mf is performed using the match filter output signal , mf_out , and some of the various characteristics and measures of the predetermined / known symbol . for example , the match filter function , ρ mf , may be calculated as follows : ρ mf = mf_out - m s 1 · m s known p s 1 · p s known , where : mf_out is the match filter output signal generated using one of the received symbols ( e . g ., s 1 ) and the predetermined / known symbol , s known ; m s 1 is the mean value of the symbol , s 1 ; m s known is the mean value of the predetermined / known symbol , s known ; p s 1 is the power of the symbol , s 1 ; and p s known is the power of the predetermined / known symbol , s known . however , by the very design and definition of the predetermined / known symbol , s known , and the design of the sts of an ofdm packet as described herein , the value of m s known is zero ( i . e ., m s known = 0 ). therefore , the match filter function , ρ mf , may be calculated as follows : ρ mf = mf_out p s 1 · p s known , ρ mf 2 = ( mf_out ) 2 p s 1 · p s known . once the match filter function has been ( and continues to be ) calculated for the samples of the various symbols of the sts of an ofdm packet , match filter function analysis is performed , as shown in a block 950 . for example , as shown in a block 951 , the match filter function analysis 950 is operable to perform 1 st peak identification within the match filter function as shown in a block 951 . this is performed using a 1 st match filter function threshold ( e . g ., th mf1 ). analogously , the match filter function analysis 950 is operable to perform 2 nd peak identification within the match filter function as shown in a block 952 . this may be performed using a 2 nd match filter function threshold ( e . g ., th mf2 ). also , as shown in a block 953 , the match filter function analysis 950 is operable to determine the relative difference of magnitude between the 1 st peak of the match filter function and the match filter function at an expected location of a 2 nd peak ( e . g ., δ p1 + δt − p1 ). this may be performed to determine whether the 1 st peak and the 2 nd peak are of approximately similar magnitude . this is also determined as a function of the periodicity between the 1 st peak and the 2 nd peak . for example , this may be calculated as a function of a difference threshold ( which may be represented as th diff ) that may be selected by a designer . δ p1 + δt − p1 =| ρ mf 2 ( n p1 { tilde over (+)} δt )− ρ mf 2 ( n p1 )|& lt ; th diff , ρ mf 2 ( n p1 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n p1 , that corresponds to the 1 st peak ; ρ mf 2 ( n p1 { tilde over (+)} δt ) is the match filter function corresponding being a predetermined period of time away from the sample , n p1 , associated with the 1 st peak ; this generally will correspond to the location of the that corresponds to the 2 nd peak that is spaced an approximate period of time ( e . g ., δt ) from the 1 st peak ( this term δt may be predetermined in some embodiments , e . g ., a particular period of time such as 0 . 8 μsec ); and th diff is the designer selected threshold employed to compare this function &# 39 ; s difference . alternatively , an actual difference , δ p1 − p2 , between the 1 st peak and the actual 2 nd peak can be calculated directly as follows : δ p1 − p2 =| ρ mf 2 ( n p2 )− ρ mf 2 ( n p1 )|& lt ; th diff , ρ mf 2 ( n p1 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n p1 , that corresponds to the 1 st peak ; ρ mf 2 ( n p2 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , np p2 , that corresponds to the 2 nd peak ; and th diff is the designer selected threshold employed to compare this function &# 39 ; s difference . also , as shown in a block 954 , the match filter function analysis 950 is operable to determine whether match filter function falls below 3 rd match filter function threshold between 1 st and 2 nd peak of the match filter function . this 3 rd match filter function threshold may be represented as th fall , and this operation in the block 954 may be expressed mathematically as follows : ρ mf 2 ( n p1 )− ρ mf 2 ( n v )& gt ; th fall , ρ mf 2 ( n p1 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n p1 , that corresponds to the 1 st peak ; ρ mf 2 ( n v 1 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n v 1 , that corresponds to a particular distance ( e . g . in terms of samples ) along the match filter function from the 1 st peak ( this sample , n v 1 , and its distance from the sample , n p1 , may be predetermined and / or selected by a designer ); and th fall is the designer selected threshold employed to compare this difference . then , as shown in a block 955 , the match filter function analysis 950 is operable to identify a predetermined number of peaks of match filter function after 1 st peak and 2 nd peak . the number of peaks to be identified may be selected by a designer ( e . g ., n peaks ). this is to ensure that the match filter function is in fact periodic over a reasonable amount of time . also , this embodiments shows how the power of each of the symbols , s 1 and s 2 , undergoes power comparison . specifically , the power of the symbol , s 1 , is compared to a 1 st power threshold as shown in a block 930 ; this comparison of the power of the symbol , s 1 , is with respect to a 1 st power threshold . the power of the symbol , s 2 , is compared to a 2 nd power threshold as shown in a block 940 ; this comparison of the power of the symbol , s 2 , is with respect to a 2 nd power threshold . the outputs of each of these blocks 950 , 930 , and 940 are provided to a combining module 960 . the combining module 960 may be viewed as performing the processing of each of the comparisons being performed in the blocks 950 , 930 , and 940 to determine whether or not the symbols , s 1 and s 2 , in fact comport sufficiently with the predetermined / known symbol as indicated by a match filter detection signal 916 . the match filter detection signal 916 indicates whether each of the symbols , s 1 and s 2 , sufficiently corresponds to the predetermined / known symbol . in one possible embodiment , the match filter detection signal 916 indicates sufficient match filter correlation between a received symbol and a predetermined / known symbol when : ( 1 ) the first peak of the match filter function exceeds the first match filter function threshold , ( 2 ) the second peak of the match filter function exceeds the second match filter function threshold , ( 3 ) the difference in magnitude between the first peak and the second peak is less than a difference threshold , ( 4 ) the match filter function falls below a third match filter function threshold between the first peak and the second peak , ( 5 ) the first power corresponding to the first symbol exceeds a corresponding first power threshold , ( 6 ) and the second power corresponding to the second symbol exceeds a corresponding second power threshold . also , as indicated by the dotted lines , this functionality 900 may be implemented to process only one symbol ( shown as s 1 ) at a time . if desired , to provide for some efficiency between the functionality 800 and the functionality 900 , the samples of each of the symbols , s 1 and s 2 , may be provided simultaneously to borrow on certain of the parallel type processing . for example , each of the functionality 800 and the functionality 900 perform power threshold comparison . it is also noted that unique and different power thresholds may be employed for each of these corresponding threshold comparisons being performed in each of the embodiments of the functionality 800 of the fig8 and the functionality 900 of the fig9 . a designer is provided significant freedom and latitude to select the particular thresholds employed herein . it is also noted that any embodiment that employs multiple auto - correlation modules ( e . g ., the functionality 700 of the fig7 ), different sets of parameters may be employed for each of those auto - correlation modules . for example , a 1 st auto - correlation module may employ a 1 st plurality of parameters such that its decision - making criteria is more stringent than a 2 nd auto - correlation module that employs a 2 nd plurality of parameters . the use and selection of certain thresholds employed by each of these auto - correlation modules ensures that they operate differently and may provide carrier detect signals indicating carrier detect under slightly different conditions . fig1 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of functionality 1000 operable to combining carrier detect signals from multiple streams into a single carrier detect signal 1010 ( e . g ., a final carrier detect signal ). as can be seen , multiple carrier detect signals are provided to a combining module 1060 . each of these carrier detect signals can be viewed as corresponding to a stream . for example , a carrier detect signal 1001 corresponds to a stream 1 , a carrier detect signal 1002 corresponds to a stream 2 , and a carrier detect signal 1003 corresponds to a stream 3 . generally speaking , carrier detect signals corresponding to n streams can be received by the combining module 1060 , as shown by a carrier detect signal 1009 corresponds to a stream n . any number of streams ( i . e ., as few as 2 streams ) can be employed . each of these carrier detect signals may be generated using any of the embodiments described herein for a single stream . for example , each carrier detect signal may be generated using functionality of fig6 , fig7 , and / or fig8 . the combining module 1060 can employ any desired means of performing combining of the multiple carrier detect signals into a carrier detect signal 1010 . in some embodiments , logic circuitry ( which can include and and or gates , as desired in the implementation ) can be employed to make a final decision of carrier detection based on the success / failure of each of the streams . fig1 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment 1100 of a match filter function as a function of samples . this embodiment 1100 may assist the reader in identifying the various portions of the match filter function with respect to the functionality 900 of the fig9 that supports match filter detection processing . when processing the samples of successive symbols ( e . g ., s 1 and s 2 ) within the sts of an ofdm packet as compared to the samples of a predetermined / known symbol , s known , the match filter function , ρ mf 2 ( n ), typically rises to peaks and falls to valleys over the samples ( e . g ., which may be depicted by n ) of the successive symbols ( e . g ., s 1 and s 2 ) as a function of the correlation ( as determined by the match filter detection processing ). many of the variables employed with respect to the description of the previous diagram are shown in this diagram , and these are referenced again for the assistance of reader as follows : ρ mf 2 ( n p1 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n p1 , that corresponds to the 1 st peak ; ρ mf 2 ( n p2 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n p2 , that corresponds to the 2 nd peak ; ρ mf 2 ( n v 1 ) is the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n v 1 , that corresponds to a particular distance ( e . g . in terms of samples ) along the match filter function from the 1 st peak ( this sample , n v 1 , and its distance from the sample , n p1 , may be predetermined and / or selected by a designer ); δ p1 − p2 is the actual difference between the 1 st peak and the 2 nd peak ; δ p1 + δt − p2 is the difference between the 1 st peak and the match filter function at an expected location of a 2 nd peak ; and δt is the time period difference between the 1 st peak and an expected location of the 2 nd peak ( this may easily be expressed as a function of samples as well ). also , certain degrees of robustness may be designed into the functionality of any such of the processing that is performed . as one example , when performing match filter function calculation across a plurality of samples , certain criteria may be designed in to allow for a certain amount of failure of correlation while nevertheless providing a match filter detection signal indicating correlation between a received symbol and a predetermined / known symbol . as one embodiment , say n correlations are determined in m collects and corresponding match filter function calculations , then this may be deemed as being sufficient to provide a match filter detection signal indicating correlation between a received symbol and a predetermined / known symbol . however , when less than n correlations are determined in m collects and corresponding match filter function calculations , then this may be deemed as not being sufficient to provide a match filter detection signal indicating correlation between a received symbol and a predetermined / known symbol . certain degrees of robustness , in allowing for a certain degree of imperfectness , in the processing of each of the various calculations and analyses performed herein are certainly within the scope and spirit of the invention . it is noted that the carrier detect functionality and methods presented herein are applicable to any of a wide variety of communication systems including those particularly depicted and described below . generally speaking , any signal received from a communication channel may be processing using carrier detect functionality and methods presented herein . fig1 is a diagram illustrating another embodiment 1200 of a match filter function as a function of samples . this embodiment is somewhat analogous to the embodiment 11 of the fig1 , with a difference being that the embodiment 1200 depicts m peaks and m - 1 valleys of a match filter function as a function of samples . the embodiment 11 of the fig1 shows two consecutive peaks , and the embodiment 12 of the fig1 generally shows how a match filter function as a function of samples can have m peaks and m - 1 valleys . if desired , a designer could select any number of peaks to be detected and processed . each of these peaks could have its own particular thresholds to meet to satisfy as being a “ peak ” in the detection process . if desired , analogous parameters ( as discussed within the fig1 above ) could be employed such as : ( 1 ) ρ mf 2 ( n pm ), the match filter function corresponding to the sample , n pm , that corresponds to the m th peak ; ( 2 ) the actual difference between the 1 st peak ( 2 nd peak , and / or ( m - 1 ) th peak ) and the m th peak ; ( 3 ) the difference between the 1 st peak ( 2 nd peak , and / or ( m - 1 ) th peak ) and the match filter function at an expected location of a m th peak ; and ( 4 ) the time period difference between the 1 st peak ( 2 nd peak , and / or ( m - 1 ) th peak ) and an expected location of the m th peak ( this may easily be expressed as a function of samples as well ). other parameters could be employed as well when employing an embodiment that operates using more than merely 2 detected peaks . for example , this could include the detection of the total number of peaks and / or valleys of the match filter function . if desired , some additional function of the peak and / or valley totals could be employed ( e . g ., a certain number of peaks needs to be identified , a certain number of valleys needs to be identified , etc .). a designer is provide a wide latitude of how to implement the detection processing using the match filter function . for example , in one instance , if more time is available and / or allowed in a preamble to perform carrier detection , then an absolute peak detection threshold ( i . e ., the criterion used to affirm an actually detected peak in the match filter function ) can be lowered when combined with some other functionality such as requiring 3 or more peaks to be detected besides only 2 . for example , the total number of peaks that must be detected can be modified as desired ( i . e ., requiring 3 or generally , x , versus only 2 ). fig1 a is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of a single - input - single - output ( siso ) communication system 1301 . a transmitter ( tx 1311 ) having a single transmit antenna communicates with a receiver ( rx 1321 ) having a single receive antenna . fig1 b is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of a multiple - input - multiple - output ( mimo ) communication system 1302 . a transmitter ( tx 1312 ) having multiple transmit antennae communicates with a receiver ( rx 1322 ) having multiple receive antennae . looking only at 2 of the plurality of antennae at either end of the communication channel , a first antenna transmits a and a second antenna transmits b . at the rx 1322 , a first antenna receives a ′+ b ′ and a second antenna receives a ″+ b ″. the rx 1322 includes the appropriate functionality to perform the extraction and generation of a signal that is a best estimate of the transmitted signal a + b . fig1 c is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of a multiple - input - single - output ( miso ) communication system 1303 . a transmitter ( tx 1313 ) having multiple transmit antennae communicates with a receiver ( rx 1323 ) having a single receive antenna . fig1 d is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of a single - input - multiple - output ( simo ) communication system 1304 . a transmitter ( tx 1314 ) having a single transmit antenna communicates with a receiver ( rx 1324 ) having multiple receive antennae . a simo communication system may be viewed as being the opposite of a miso embodiment . within communication devices that receive and process multiple signals ( e . g ., simo and mimo ), the carrier detection functionality and methods described herein may be performed for each of the receive paths within such a communication device . these carrier detect signals may then be provided to a combination block that is operable to generate a final carrier detect signal that considers each of the carrier detect signals provided from each of the receive paths . such a combination block may certainly also receive other inputs that assist in and govern the processing to generate the final carrier detect signal . in view of the above detailed description of the invention and associated drawings , other modifications and variations will now become apparent . it should also be apparent that such other modifications and variations may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . | 7 |
later , the description will be oriented to the embodiments of the present invention with reference to fig1 to 19 . [ 0027 ] fig1 shows a flow of a software program according to an embodiment of the present invention . the software program shown in fig1 flows through the process of selecting a classification containing data to be played back or handled ( 101 ) and reaches the process of playing back the data ( 103 ) or flows to a function selecting items ( 105 ) in which a temporary discard ( 106 ), a complete abandon ( 107 ), a state display ( 112 ) of a storage unit , setting of protection from erasion ( 111 ), change of a display list ( 109 ), or change of a record date and hour ( 110 ) is selected . moreover , when selecting a classification ( 101 ), the flow goes to the function selecting items ( 105 ) in which a temporary discard ( 106 ), a complete abandon ( 107 ), a state display of a storage unit ( 112 ), or automatic playback is selected . in the playback ( 103 ), a move to next data ( 115 ), a move to previous data ( 116 ), a fast playback ( 117 ), a rewind playback ( 118 ), or a temporary stop ( 121 ) is selected . in the temporary stop ( 121 ), a forward frame advance ( 119 ) or reverse frame advance ( 120 ) is selected . [ 0029 ] fig2 shows an example of an outer appearance of a portable digital camcorder 200 in which the software program shown in fig1 is executed . this camcorder 200 provides a capability of recording and reproducing an ntsc or pal tv system signal . [ 0030 ] fig3 is an expanded view showing an operating switch portion of the portable digital camcorder shown in fig2 . in the portable digital camcorder 200 shown in fig2 with the operating switches , a digital moving signal obtained from the camera system is compressed to one mpeg ( moving picture expert group ) format and then is recorded on a harddisk storage medium sized to a memory card . in the playback , with the operating switches , the mpeg 1 format signal recorded in a memory card is expanded and then displayed on a display unit 201 built in the camcorder itself . the display unit may be connected to the outside of the camcorder 201 . the portable digital camcorder 200 shown in fig2 may recorded the mpeg moving image data as well as the jpeg data for the still images and the mpeg speech format for the speech data . [ 0031 ] fig4 schematically shows a circuit arrangement of the portable digital comcorder 200 . at first , the description will be oriented to the procedure of recording the moving image through the portable digital camcorder 200 . when a user presses a recording switch 301 , an image of an object obtained through a lens 401 is converted into the corresponding electric signal through the effect of a ccd sensor 402 . the signal read out of a sensor is electrically processed through a cds ( correlated double sampling ) circuit for suppressing the low - frequency noises of the signal and a circuit 403 integrated with a agc circuit for controlling an automatic gain of the signal for stabilizing the signal level . then , the processed signal is converted into a digital signal through an adc 404 and then is applied to a camera signal processing circuit 405 . a camera signal processing circuit ( camera dsp ) 405 is configured of a function of converting a digital pixel signal from the sensor into a luminance signal y and color difference signals u and v , a function of adding a synchronous signal , a function of controlling relation between an iris and a shutter speed , a function of adjusting a white balance , and a function of digitally zooming in or out the signal . though not illustrated in detail in fig4 the camera dsp 405 is operated to feed a horizontal and a vertical driving signal pulses to the ccd sensor 402 and read the signal from the ccd sensor 402 as adjusting the timing between the synchronous signal and the pulses . moreover , a camera control microcomputer 406 is operated to feed operating parameters for the dsp 405 to the camera dsp 405 in order to control the overall camera system . on the other hand , the digital luminance signal y and the digital color difference signals u and v obtained by the camera dsp 405 are sent to an mpeg 1 encoder 409 through a digital bus line . the mpeg 1 is a standard compression format for the digital signal for a moving image . the encoder 409 operates to compress the data according to the mpeg 1 format and then convert it into the digital data . a numeral 410 denotes a working memory used in encoding the data according to the mpeg 1 format . the data converted into the mpeg 1 format is sent to a microcomputer 411 for controlling a transmission rate of the digital output data . the mpeg 1 encoder 409 , the working memory 410 and the microcomputer 411 compose the overall system for compressing the moving image . the microcomputer 411 for controlling the transmission rate stores a constant amount of mpeg 1 - formatted data in a buffer memory 412 . the formatted data is passed through an interface circuit 413 and a card connector 414 and reaches a harddisk drive 415 . the card connector 414 is configured on the pcmcia standards and thus contains 68 pins . the harddisk drive 415 is sized to a memory card and subject to the pc card standards defined by the pcmcia ( personal computer memory card international association ). the foregoing description has concerned with the method for recording the moving image . in case the still image recording mode is selected by the user , the mpeg encoder 409 is switched to a jpeg compressing circuit . then , a still image data is generated at the encoder 409 and then transferred to the microcomputer 411 for doing the same operation as described above . the mpeg compression data process and the jpeg compression data process have the same common points , so that the use of both the data formats may effectively save the circuit scale . this is a well - known method for saving the circuitry . further , the speech signal is converted into an analog electric signal through a microphone 418 . the analog electric signal is sent to a speech adc 419 for converting the analog electric signal into the corresponding digital data . the digital speech data is applied into the data bus through the effect of the mpeg encoder 409 . then , the microcomputer 411 performs the mpeg - format - based compression through the program run therein so that the digital speech data is added to the moving image data or the still image data in precise time sequences . according to this embodiment , the portable digital camcorder 200 is arranged to record the mpeg 1 - formatted data , the jpeg - formatted data , and the mpeg 1 - formatted speed data . in recording the data , the microcomputer 411 also enables to record a data , a time , and a symbol for representing any one of the mpeg 1 - formatted data , the jpeg - formatted data , and the mpeg 1 - formatted data on a time when the recording switch 301 is pressed . at a time , the microcomputer 411 enables to record a symbol for representing a classification for retrieving the recorded data and a symbol for representing whether or not the operation of erasing the recorded data is prohibited . in recording the data , the classification symbol is recorded as “ not classified ” and the deletion symbol is recorded as “ erasable ”. in the general disk operating system , the symbol for indicating the imaging mode is discriminated using a code for a data type . the symbol for representing the classification and the symbol for representing if the data is erased are recorded in the corresponding files . on the other hand , when recording the data , a digital signal applied to the camera dsp 405 as a monitoring signal is converted into an analog tv signal through the effect of an ntsc or pal encoder built in the circuit 405 and then is fed at an output terminal 416 and the built - in display unit 201 . the foregoing description has concerned with the mpeg 1 - formatted moving image data with the speech . in actual , the jpeg - formatted data or the mpeg 1 - formatted speech data may be solely processed in the similar manner to the above operation . when the system stays at the playback mode , the signal flows in an opposite manner to the flow at the recording mode . fig1 is a flowchart showing the reproduction of the signal . text data indicating information of data is read from the harddisk drive 415 ( step 1601 ). next , the user retrieves data from a list of data displayed on the built - in display unit 201 and specifies the data to be played back with the operating switch 408 ( step 1604 ). the list of the recorded data displayed on the display unit 201 is a feature of the invention . with the specification , a file system is started ( step 1605 ) so that the data is read out of the harddisk drive 415 and then sent to the microcomputer 411 ( step 1606 ). then , the data type is discriminated ( steps 1607 and 1608 ). if the recorded data is the moving image , the mpeg - formatted moving image data and the mpeg - formatted speech data are both decoded ( step 1609 ). if the recorded data is the still image , the jpeg - formatted still image data is decoded ( step 1610 ). if the recorded data is the still image with the speech , the jpeg - formatted still image data and the mpeg - formatted speech data are both decoded ( step 1611 ). then , the decoded image and the decoded speech if any are displayed on the screen ( step 1612 ). an indication signal issued by the operating switch 408 is read by a sub - microcomputer 407 and then is sent to the microcomputer 411 through a camera - controlling microcomputer 406 . the software program according to this embodiment is read out of a rom 417 ( read - only memory ) for storing a program and then is executed . in this embodiment , the program is stored in the rom 417 . in place of the rom 417 , another storage unit such as a flash ram or a harddisk drive may be used for the purpose . next , the data is transferred to the buffer memory 412 through the pcmcia connector 414 and the interface circuit 413 . the timing of the data stored in the buffer memory 412 is controlled by the microcomputer 411 . then , the data whose timing is adjusted is sent to the mpeg 1 decoder 409 . the decoder 409 switches the mpeg 1 coding to the mpeg 1 decoding or vice versa . the data decoded by the mpeg 1 decoder 409 is sent to the camera dsp circuit 405 through the digital path line . the decoded data is converted into an analog video signal through the effect of an ntsc or pal encoder and a dac built in the circuit 405 and then is led at an output terminal 416 and from the built - in display unit 201 to the outside of the apparatus . the foregoing description has concerned with the mpeg 1 - formatted moving picture data with the speech . the jpeg - formatted still image data or the mpeg 1 - formatted speech data may be solely processed in the same manner as described above . the portable comcorder of this embodiment is arranged to use a harddisk unit of 260 mb for the harddisk drive 415 . in case that only the jpeg - formatted still image data is recorded , about 3000 still images may be recorded . in actual , the portable comcorder of this invention enables to retrieve 3000 items of data quickly and easily using the classifying function . [ 0047 ] fig4 shows a circuit arrangement about the moving image . the corresponding circuit arrangement to that of fig4 is required for the still images and the speech . that is , the portable camcorder of this embodiment is arranged to have a general - purpose means for imaging a moving object / a still object , a microphone , means for digitally converting a moving image / a still image , means for digitally converting speech , and means for digitally recording a moving image , a still image , and a speech signal . [ 0048 ] fig5 shows the screen of the built - in display unit 201 used in the embodiment of the invention , in which the diagonal length is 1 . 8 inch ( 45 . 7 mm ), the horizontal length is 36 . 6 mm , and the vertical length is 27 mm . the illustrated screen arrangement uses a liquid crystal consisting of 352 pixels and 240 pixels . in order to reduce the power consumption and the size of the portable digital camcorder 200 , the 1 . 8 - inch liquid crystal is used for the built - in display unit 201 . this built - in display unit 201 shows an imaging screen formed by a monitoring signal when recording the signal , a retrieval screen formed by the program when retrieving the data , and a playback screen formed by the decoded data when playing back the data . in recording the data , the moving image recording mode ( mpeg compression recording mode ) or the still image recording mode ( jpeg compression recording mode ) may be switched each time the mode selecting button is pressed . as the user can select the recording mode with this button , as shown in fig1 and 18 , the mark for each mode located in the upper left portion of the imaging screen is switched each time the mode is switched . [ 0050 ] fig1 shows the imaging screen appearing when the still image recording mode is selected when recording data . in fig1 , a numeral 1701 denotes a mark representing a still image mode . fig1 shows the imaging screen appearing when the moving image recording mode is selected when recording data . in fig1 , a numeral 1801 denotes a mark representing the moving image mode . the mark for each mode appears on the screen so that the user can visually recognize the current imaging mode as he or she is pushing the mode selecting button . this mark allows the user to handle the camcorder without having to keep his eyes out of the imaging screen . it means that the digital comcorder offers convenient operativity to the user . the mark for each mode is displayed on the retrieving screen through the effect of the program sent from a data containing unit . the retrieving screen will be discussed in detail together with the display of the mode mark . fig1 shows the concrete mark for each mode . in actual , however , the marks are not limited to the illustrative ones . any mark may be used if it can distinguish the modes from each other . in fig5 the display screen 500 consists of 20 × 9 characters at maximum , each character consisting of 16 and 24 pixels . the character size consisting of 16 × 24 pixels keeps the maximum recognizable size compatible with efficient digitizing of the character data . the blanks of a left side 501 , a right side 502 , an upper side 503 , and a lower side 504 of the screen are secured because the display unit or the built - in display unit 201 connected to an output terminal 416 disables to display the overall area of the main screen . a numeral 505 denotes an operating state display area where the operating state of the program of this embodiment is displayed . a numeral 506 denotes an area where the information of the recorded data and the functions to be operated for specifying the data details of the data by pressing a function switch 304 are displayed as individual items in partitioned sub - screens . a numeral 507 denotes an area where an operating procedure suggests the operating method to the user . [ 0054 ] fig6 shows a display screen 600 appearing when a program starting switch 303 is pressed by the user for starting the program of this embodiment . the display screen 600 corresponds to a classifying selection 101 of fig1 for indicating the state transition of the operation . as mentioned earlier , the data recorded by the user is unconditionally recorded “ unclassified ” when recording the data . the figure ( number of files ) displayed on the “ unclassified ” row stands for the number of mpeg 1 - formatted moving image data items with the speech 602 , the number of jpeg - formatted still image data pieces 603 , and the number of mpeg 1 - formatted speech 604 . likewise , the figure displayed on each row of a mark 605 for indicating the first classification , a mark 606 for indicating the second classification , and a mark 607 for indicating the third classification indicate the numbers of data items arbitrarily classified by the user , respectively . a mark 608 for indicating all data items at a batch indicates the total number of the data items on the “ unclassified ” row 601 , the “ first classified ” row 605 , the “ second classified ” row 606 , and the “ third classified ” row 607 . a mark 609 for indicating the “ temporary discard ” means a classification for temporarily discarding the data items so that the user cannot erroneously erase the data items . with the mark 609 , the user can temporarily move the “ unclassified ”, “ first classified ”, “ second classified ”, and “ third classified ” data items to the “ temporary discard ” row . the figure represented on the row of the mark 609 does not contain a figure represented on the row of the mark 608 for indicating all data items at a batch . in fig6 the row of the mark 601 for indicating the unclassification is reversed to the rows of the other marks . it indicates that the mark 601 for indicating the unclassification is the selected item . in place of the reversing , another kind of way may be used such as change of a color . the software program is executed by the user so that the recorded data items whose classifying destinations are not changed are contained in the row of the mark 601 for indicating the unclassification . when the upper arrow switch 305 a of fig3 is pressed by the user , the selected item is shifted upward by one row , while the lower arrow switch 305 c is pressed , the selected item is shifted downward by one row . in case that the selected item is an item on the first row of the display area 506 , that is , on the mark 601 for indicating the unclassification , when the user presses the upper arrow switch 305 a , the selected item is shifted to the item on the sixth row of the display area 506 , that is , on the mark 609 for indicating the temporary discard . in case that the selected item is an item on the sixth row of the display area 506 , that is , on the mark 609 for indicating the temporary discard , when the user presses the lower arrow arrow 503 c , the selected item is shifted to the item on the first row of the display area 506 , that is , on the mark 601 for indicating the unclassification . when the user presses the right arrow switch 305 b , the display screen is shifted into the screen on which the content of the classification of the selected row is represented . moreover , the guide indication 610 for the operating procedure is displayed so as to remind the user of the operation . as an example , fig7 shows a display screen 700 on which the mark 605 for indicating the first classification is selected so that the data items on the row of the mark 605 appear as ones to be selected if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed by the user . this function corresponds to the data selection 102 shown in fig1 . the display screen 700 is a screen on which a data item is to be retrieved from a data list and played back . the data list is a feature of the present invention . on the screen 700 , the data items recorded by the portable digital camcorder 200 may be listed using a mark 703 for representing a sort of data content of a recording start time 702 , a moving image , a still image , and a speech , a classifying mark 704 , and a mark 705 for protecting data from being erased by the erroneous operation . the data items displayed on the screen 700 are ranged from the top to the down in the sequence of the recording year / month / day 701 and the recording start time 702 . hence , the latest recorded data is listed on the topmost row , so that the user can effectively retrieve the data . the number of the pages of the displayed lists is checked , so that the lists are displayed as pages as indicated by a numeral 707 . in the page display 707 , a denominator indicates all the list pages , while a numerator indicates the current one of the list pages . the imaging status of the user such as the recording date and time and the data type are automatically recorded as the aforementioned information , so that the user can manually record these pieces of information . since the user may optionally change the classifying destination according to his or her purpose , the user &# 39 ; s retrieval work for the destination data is made simpler and more efficient . these pieces of information are all composed of a list represented in characters . this does not need a time consumed in expanding the compressed image data recorded on the media . further , if the user selects a data item using the operating button , the screen can be rewound quickly , so that the quick retrieval is made possible . this list retrieving operation may offer comfortable operativity without having to impose stress on the user who wants to quickly select the recorded image . the selecting classification 706 indicates a classification selected by a display screen 600 . this embodiment has concerned with the user &# 39 ; s selection of the first classification 605 on the display screen 600 . the display list of the data items on the display screens 700 and 800 is arranged in the sequence of recording the data on the harddisk drive 415 , that is , in the sequence that the latest data item comes to the topmost row . since the user may change the sequence of recording the data items on the harddisk driver 415 , he or she may change the display sequence . the data immediately after imaging is recorded on the topmost row ( 701 of fig7 and 8 ) of the display area 506 on the unclassified data selecting screen . if the user makes sure of the just imaged data , he or she only reproduces the data and makes sure of the topmost row of the display area 506 on the unclassified data selecting screen . like the display screen 600 , when the user presses the upper arrow switch 305 a , the selected data item is shifted upward by one row . when the user presses the lower arrow switch 305 c , the selected data item is shifted downward by one row . in this embodiment , the six rows of the data items are displayed on one screen . in case the user selects the sixth data item , if the lower arrow switch 305 c is pressed , the seventh data item is displayed on the first row of the display area 506 . it means that the seventh data item is the selected item . the eighth , the ninth and the following data items are displayed on the second , the third , and the following rows , respectively . on the other hand , for example , in case the seventh data item is selected , if the upper arrow switch 305 a is pressed , the seventh data item is displayed on the first row of the display area 506 . the second , the third , the fourth , the fifth , and the sixth data items are respectively displayed on the rows after the first one , so the selected data item is changed to the sixth data item . that is , the n - th data item is displayed on a remainder - th row on the display area 506 , in which the remainder is obtained by dividing n by 6 . in case the head data item or the tail one is selected , if the upper arrow switch 305 a or the lower arrow switch 305 c is pressed , like the display screen 600 , the data items containing the head and the tail items are displayed as a list so that the head or the tail data item is selected . though fig6 shows the one - page screen on which the number of folders is fixed , fig7 and 8 show the screen on which the pages are increased or decreased in number according to the number of data items . if the user selects the upper arrow switch 305 a and the lower arrow switch 305 c shown in fig3 and depresses the right arrow switch 305 , the selected data is fed out of the output terminal 416 and is played back on the built - in display unit 201 . while the data is being played back , the upper arrow switch 305 a , the lower arrow with 305 c , and the left arrow switch 30 , as shown in fig3 are served as fast feed , rewind , and stop , respectively . while the data is being played back , if the left arrow switch 305 d served as a stop switch is pressed by the user , the playback is stopped , and the display screen 700 is displayed again . the state transition during the data playback is denoted by a numeral 103 of fig1 . next , the description will be oriented to the display content on which reduced images are added to the recording date and time so that the content of the data may be easily recognized . in the state of the display screen 700 , if the user presses the reduced image display switch 302 , a reduced image 801 of the first frame of the data listed on the subject row is displayed on the display screen 800 shown in fig8 . this makes it possible to surprisingly enhance the retrieval of the data . the state transition in the reduced image display function is denoted by a numeral 104 of fig1 . for example , in case that the viewable area of the 1 . 8 - inch built - in lcd display unit 201 consists of 379 dots in horizontal and 220 dots in vertical , the reduced image 801 is adjusted to consist of 64 dots in horizontal and 48 dots in vertical . ( if the lcd panel consists of 352 and 240 dots , the reduced image 801 consists of 240 / 48 = 5 dots in vertical and 352 / 5 = 70 . 4 in horizontal . from a vertical viewpoint , the reduced image is one - fifth and from a horizontal viewpoint , the reduced image is one - fifth with a slight margin .) in this reduction , three reduced images , the recording starting year month day 701 , the recording starting time 702 , the mark 703 representing the content type of the data indicating the moving image , the still image , and the speech , the classification mark 704 , and the mark 705 for protecting the data from being erroneously erased can be all displayed on one screen . this screen arrangement makes it possible to secure more visible reduced images on the display . like the display screen 700 , on this display screen 800 , the data may be played back by pressing the operating button 305 and the like . in this state , if the reduced image display switch 302 is pressed again , the display screen is returned to the display screen 600 for displaying the data classification . the reduced image is depicted in the ram 410 shown in the circuit block of fig4 through the effect of the control microcomputer 411 and the mpeg encoder 409 . in turn , the description will be oriented to a function selecting display screen 900 for easily changing the display state from the data selecting display screen 700 . the function selecting display screen 900 includes the reduced number of operation switches and function items displayed thereon so that the ease of use in operation may be improved as viewing the screen . the operating switches 304 , 305 a , 305 b , 305 c , and 305 d shown in fig3 implement the operating system for selectively operating the function . the state transition on the display screen 900 is denoted by a numeral 105 of fig1 . on the reduced image display screen 800 , the function selecting display screen 900 is displayed by the same procedure . on the display screen 600 , the display screen having the necessary functions such as “ empty a garbage ”, “ move to a garbage ”, “ display a state ”, and “ auto play ” shown in fig1 is displayed by the same procedure . in this case , the function items on the display screen 900 are not required to be identical with the function items on the data classifying display screen 600 . the flow of operation on the display screen 900 is shown in fig1 . the display screen 900 is displayed when the user pressed the function switch 304 on the display screen 700 ( step 1001 ). the selective movement of each item is indicated by the upper arrow switch 305 a and the switch lower arrow switch 305 c . if the user pressed the upper arrow switch 305 a , the selected data item is moved upward by one row . if the lower arrow switch 305 c is pressed , the selected data item is moved downward by one row ( step 1002 ). if the user presses the right arrow switch 305 b ( step 1003 ), the function of the selected data item is executed ( step 1004 ). if the left arrow function switch 305 d is pressed , the display screen 900 is returned to the data selecting display screen 700 ( step 1005 ). as mentioned earlier , in this embodiment , the erasion of the data is realized by moving the data to the temporary discard location and then erase the data contained in the temporary discard location . the state transition of this function is denoted by a numeral 106 of fig1 . if the data is erased , the data is moved to the temporary discard location . in this case , the procedure for selectively executing “ move the data to a garbage ” will be described with reference to fig9 . at first , on the display screen 700 , the user selects the data item to be temporarily discarded with the upper arrow switch 305 a and the lower arrow operating switch 305 c and then depresses the function switch 304 . then , the display screen 700 is changed to the display screen 900 . the user selects the “ move data to a garbage ” 901 with the upper arrow operation switch 305 a and the lower arrow function switch 305 c and then depresses the right arrow switch 305 b . then , the selected data item is moved to the garbage that is the temporary discard location . if the user presses the switch 306 , the similarly selected data is moved to the garbage . when the user selects the “ empty a garbage ” 902 on the display screen 900 , all the data items left in the garbage are erased . the state transition of this function is denoted by a numeral 107 of fig1 . in the operating system , the user is required to do two operations for erasing the data . the two operations protect the data from the user &# 39 ; s erroneous erasion . as mentioned earlier , when recording the data , the classifying symbol to be allocated to each data item is an unclassified one . when playing back the data , the classification may be changed by the user &# 39 ; s operation . this classifying function is used for classifying the data item . hence , since the user classifies the data item for each destination , the ease of use of the retrieval may be surprisingly enhanced . the state transition of this function is denoted by a numeral 108 of fig1 . later , the description will be oriented to the procedure for changing the data classification . on the display screen 700 , the user selects the data item whose classification is to be changed with the upper arrow switch 305 a or the lower arrow operation switch 305 c and then presses the function switch 304 . then , the display screen is changed to the display screen 900 . the user selects the “ change a group ” 905 that is a function of changing the classification with the upper arrow operation switch 305 a and the lower arrow operation switch 305 c and then presses the right arrow switch 305 b . then , a display screen 1100 is displayed on which the classification of the selected data shown in fig1 is changed . if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed on the display screen 1100 , the classification is cyclically changed from “ unclassification ” to 1 to 2 to 3 to “ unclassification ”. in this embodiment , the update of the symbol for the classification according to the display screen is executed by the control microcomputer 411 at a time when the user presses the left arrow switch 305 d and the display screen 600 appears . this is intended for enhancing the processing speed and retrying the user &# 39 ; s operation . as described earlier , unless the user does the following operation , the list indicated on the display screen 700 is arranged in the recording sequence of the recorded data . when playing back the data , the sequence may be changed so as to implement a simple editing function . the state transition of this function is denoted by a numeral 109 of fig1 . the procedure of changing the data displaying sequence will be described below . at first , on the display screen 700 , the user selects the data item whose displaying sequence is to be changed with the upper arrow switch 305 a and the lower arrow switch 305 c . then , if the function switch 304 is pressed , the display screen 900 is displayed . the user selects the “ change a data display sequence ” 906 that is a function of changing the display sequence with the lower arrow switch 305 c and depresses the right arrow switch 305 b . then , the display screen 1200 shown in fig1 is displayed , so that the display sequence of the selected data item may be changed . next , the user specifies the location where the selected data is to be inserted with the upper arrow switch 305 a and the lower arrow switch 305 c . then , if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed , the selected data item is inserted to the specified location . in this case , the sequence of the data item located after the specified location is shifted lower by one . the portable digital camcorder 200 of this embodiment incorporates an internal clock for displaying on the display screen 700 the date and the time when the data is recorded . however , if failure such as run - down of a battery takes place while imaging an object , the recorded data and time may not be correctly displayed on the display screen 700 . in this embodiment , the user may operate to optionally change the date and time when the data is recorded . the state transition of this function is denoted by a numeral 110 of fig1 . later , the description will be oriented to the procedure for changing the date and time . the user selects the data whose recording date and time are to be changed using the upper arrow switch 305 a and the lower arrow switch 305 c . then , if the function switch 304 is pressed , the display screen 900 is displayed . the user selects the “ change a recording date and time ” 907 that is a function of changing the displaying sequence with the upper arrow switch 305 a and the lower arrow switch 305 c . next , if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed , the display screen 1300 shown in fig1 is displayed where the recording date and time of the selected data are to be changed . in this state , when the user pressed the upper arrow switch 305 a , the year fig1 is increased by 1 , while the lower arrow switch 305 c is pressed , the year fig1 is decreased by 1 . when the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed , the year fig1 is determined as a numeric value represented at the time point . next , the user may specify the increment or decrement of the numeric value of a month fig1 . likewise , if the upper arrow switch 305 a is pressed , the month fig1 is increased by 1 , while if the lower arrow switch 305 c is pressed , the month figure 1302 is decreased by 1 . if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed , the month fig1 is determined as a numerical value displayed at the time point . next , the user may specify the increment or decrement of a numerical value of a day fig1 . further , when the left arrow switch 305 d is pressed , the year fig1 may be retried . the similar operation may be executed to set the day fig1 , an a . m or p . m . indication 1304 , a time fig1 , and a minute fig1 . after adjusting a value of the minute fig1 , if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed , the change of the recording date and time is terminated and the date and time of the data is changed to a new numeric value . in the case of specifying an numeric value that does not exist in the calendar such as february 30 , the numeric value is changed to the nearest date ( that is , march 1 ) to the value . in this embodiment , though the user can freely erase the data , the user may provide the data with an attribute of prohibiting the erasion for preventing the data from being erased . the state transition of this function is denoted by a numeral 111 of fig1 . later , the description will be oriented to the procedure for adding the attribute of protecting the data from the erasion to the data . at first , on the display screen 700 , the user selects the data whose erasing attribute is to be changed with the upper arrow switch 305 a or the lower arrow switch 305 c . then , the function switch 304 is pressed , so that the display screen 700 is changed to the display screen 900 . the user selects the “ change a lock ” 904 that is a function of changing the erasing attribute with the upper arrow switch 305 a or the lower arrow switch 305 c . then , if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed , the display screen 1400 is displayed where the erasing attribute of the selected data shown in fig1 is changed . when the user pressed the right arrow switch 305 b , the erasing attribute is cyclically changed from “ disabled ” to “ enabled ” to “ disabled ”. the protecting mark 705 is displayed or not displayed according to the erasing attribute . in this embodiment , the user can know the remaining volume of the harddisk drive 415 . the state transition of this function is denoted by a numeral 112 of fig1 . hereafter , the description will be oriented to the procedure for checking the remaining volume of the harddisk drive 415 . on the display screen 700 , if the user presses the function switch 304 , the display screen 700 is changed to the display screen 900 . the user selects the “ display a state ” 903 that is a function of changing the displaying sequence with the upper arrow switch 305 a or the lower arrow switch 305 c . then , if the right arrow switch 305 b is pressed , the display screen 1500 is displayed where the remaining volume of the harddisk drive 415 shown in fig1 is shown . on the display screen 1500 , a remaining time 1501 left if only the mpeg 1 - formatted moving image data with the speech is recorded on the harddisk drive 415 , a remaining pages left if only the jpeg - formatted still image data is recorded , a remaining time 1503 left if only the mpeg 1 - formatted speech data is recorded , and a remaining volume 1504 represented in bytes are all displayed as a list . since the remaining volume of the harddisk drive is listed with respect to each recordable data type , the user can more easily grasp the remaining volume of the harddisk drive 415 . in this embodiment , when playing back the data , the user needs to use only the switches 305 a , 305 d , 305 c and 305 d for playing back the data . it is epoch - making that the minimum number of operating switches are just required for playing back the data . another epoch - making point is the increase of the functions without increasing the operating buttons by using the functional selecting screen 900 . in this embodiment , as shown in fig6 the classified number of data items is four including “ unclassified ”. the classified number of data may take any value . on the data selecting display screen 700 , the data items may be displayed as a list independently of the types of the moving image , the still image , and the speech . this embodiment may apply to the function of automatically classifying the data according to the data type with the user &# 39 ; s specification . moreover , the control microcomputer 411 is operated to automatically select the data according to the imaging modes such as the moving image and the still image . for example , the user can select only the imaging mode for the still image , pick up only the image type of the still image , and reproduce it . the foregoing description has been concerned with the specific embodiments of the invention . the present invention may apply to the following arrangement . for example , the present invention may be achieved by an image recording apparatus which includes converting means for converting a video signal into a digital signal , a codec unit for selectively performing a mpeg system or a jpeg system compression about the digital signal , for generating the compressed data , a recording unit for recording the compressed data , and a selective indicating means for a compression mode , for selectively indicating the mpeg system compression or the jpeg system compression . this image recording apparatus may be applicably arranged to switch the compressing system of the codec unit according to the indication given by the selective indicating means . further , the image recording apparatus may be applicably arranged to add a code for indicating the compression system to the compressed data according to the indication given by the selective indicating means . further , the image recording apparatus may be applicably arranged so that the codec unit may be a circuit for performing the mpeg system and the jpeg system processing at one process . moreover , the image recording apparatus may be applicably arranged so that the video signal is obtained from an imaging element and the recording unit is a harddisk drive . the present invention may be also achieved by the image reproducing apparatus which includes a recording unit for receiving compressed data generated according to the mpeg system or the jpeg system and recording the compressed data , specifying means for specifying a data item to be reproduced of the compressed data recorded in the recording unit , readout means for retrieving and reading out the compressed data specified by the specifying means from the recording unit , a codec unit for selectively performing the mpeg system or the jpeg system expansion about the compressed data and generating the digital signal , and converting means for converting the digital signal generated by the codec unit into a video signal . moreover , the image reproducing apparatus may be applicably arranged so that the expanding system of the codec unit may be switched according to the compressed data read out of the readout means . further , the image reproducing apparatus may be applicably arranged so that the compressed data of the recording unit pre - contains the code indicating the compressing system and the expanding system of the codec unit may be switched according to the code for indicating the compressing system added to the compressed data read out of the readout means . further , the image reproducing apparatus may be applicably arranged so that the codec unit may be a circuit for performing the mpeg system and the jpeg system expansion at one process , the video signal is output to the built - in display unit , and the recording unit may be a harddisk drive . the present invention may be achieved by the image recording and reproducing apparatus for converting a video signal into a digital signal , recording the digital signal , converting the digital signal into the video signal , and reproducing the video signal , which includes a codec unit for selectively performing the mpeg system or the jpeg system compression about the digital signal for generating the compressed data in recording the data and selectively performing the mpeg system or the jpeg system expansion about the compressed data for generating the digital signal in reproducing the data , a recording unit for recording the compressed data , selective indicating means for the compressing mode for selectively indicating the mpeg system compression or the jpeg system compression , specifying means for specifying the data to be reproduced of the compressed data recorded in the recording unit , and readout means for retrieving and reading the compressed data specified by the specifying means from the recording unit . moreover , the image recording and reproducing apparatus may be applicably arranged so that the codec unit may switch the compressing system according to the indication given by the selective indicating means in recording the data or the expanding system according to the compressed data read out of the readout means in reproducing the data . further , the image recording and reproducing apparatus may be applicably arranged so that in recording the data , the recording unit adds the code for indicating the compressing system to the compressed data according to the indication given by the selective indicating means and records the compressed data and in reproducing the data , the codec unit switches the expanding system according to the code for indicating the compressing system added to the compressed data read out of the readout means . moreover , the image recording and reproducing apparatus may be applicably arranged so that the codec unit may be a circuit for performing the mpeg system and the jpeg system processing at one process , the video signal to be recorded is obtained from an imaging element , the video signal to be reproduced is output to the built - in display unit , and the recording unit is a harddisk drive . as described above , as keeping the capacity of the recording medium larger and advancing the compressing technology , the data items to be recorded on one recording medium are increased in number . this embodiment , however , makes it possible to do the recording and the reproducing operations with quite few keys . hence , this embodiment offers the below - indicated effects , so that it may improve the operativity even if it is applied to the small - sized apparatus with a limited space prepared for the operation buttons or switches . this embodiment may display the recording date and time information and the marks for modes such as the moving image , the still image , and the still image with the speech as a list . hence , the user can efficiently and quickly retrieve the data as grasping the content of the data . in recording the data , the marks are switchably displayed on the imaging screen each time the mode is switched so that the user can grasp the current imaging mode . hence , the user can focus his or her attention onto the imaging screen at any mode when recording the data . the display list is composed of a date and a time . the apparatus of this embodiment may automatically create the overall list and at once output the reduced images , so that the user can more easily grasp the content of the data . the imaged data may be classified to the predetermined locations . hence , the imaged data may be classified on the mode information and the date and time information according to the imaging statue and the object . this classification makes it easier for the user to retrieve the data . further , the displaying sequence of the list and the generating sequence of the data are allowed to be replaced depending on the mode information and the date and time information . hence , the optimal reproducing effect can be obtained without having to depend on the recording sequence . then , the classification of “ temporary discard ” is provided for preventing the erasion of the data resulting from the user &# 39 ; s erroneous operation and reusing the unnecessary data if it is made necessary after being deleted . as described above , if the operation on the relatively simple graphic screen is executed to record a great deal of data , the function of this embodiment enables to offer quicker retrieval than the conventional function of reproducing the data as expanding all image screens . | 7 |
a preferred embodiment of the present invention is described hereunder with reference to the drawings . fig1 shows a signal scrambled by compressing the video signal in the horizontal blanking interval ( hbi ) and the vertical blanking interval ( vbi ) with a television signal scrambling method according to the present invention . with respect to the signal shown in fig1 an if signal of the video signal in fig2 ( a ) and 3 ( a ), respectively , showing the front portions of fields 1 and 2 , is compressed based on a compression signal as shown in fig2 ( c ) and 3 ( c ). a color burst signal and a picture portion are removed during several horizontal ( h ) scanning periods ( for example , 3 h ) just before a vertical synchronizing signal portion of 9 h in the video signal . a color burst signal is removed during several horizontal scanning periods just after the vertical synchronizing signal portion . as shown in fig2 ( a ), 2 ( b ) and 3 ( a ), 3 ( b ), a pseudo - key signal is inserted into an interval of an audio signal corresponding to the vbi of the video signal with the same frequency as that of a key signal in other intervals . position data as in - band data for expressing the position of the vbi is added to the key signal . the aforementioned key signal and pseudo - key signal are superimposed on an audio signal in synchronism with the horizontal synchronizing signal through amplitude modulation in the same manner as the conventional key signal . the correspondence between in - band data and the video synchronizing signal is shown in fig4 in which , for convenience of description , numbers 1 through 525 are given to video synchronizing signals in the order numbered from the vbi of the previous frames . numbers d0 through d261 are given to in - band data corresponding to the video synchronizing signals 23 through 284 . numbers d &# 39 ; 0 through d &# 39 ; 262 are given to in - band data corresponding to the video synchronizing signals 285 through 22 . the in - band data , d152 through d167 and d &# 39 ; 153 through d &# 39 ; 168 , express start frames superimposed on an audio signal and are transmitted together with the audio signal . the in - band data , d168 through d175 and d &# 39 ; 169 through d &# 39 ; 176 , express vbi start data superimposed on an audio signal and transmitted together with the audio signal . the in - band data , d176 through d183 and d &# 39 ; 177 through d &# 39 ; 184 , express compression data superimposed on an audio signal and transmitted together with the audio signal . other in - band data , such as timing mode data ( expressing time from the key of a key signal to a horizontal synchronizing signal , being selected from 0 , 4 , 8 , 12 and 16 μsec for every field and informing the designated time to a terminal side ), multi - mode data ( expressing the mode of compression level ), tag data , ippv ( impulse pay per view ) event data , and the like , are superimposed on an audio signal and transmitted together with the audio signal . the video signal scrambled through compression based on the compression signal as shown in fig2 ( c ) and 3 ( c ) is received by a terminal unit . to perform descrambling , expansion signals as shown in fig2 ( d )-( f ) and 3 ( d )-( f ) are generated in the terminal based on the vbi start data and compression data in the in - band data . an example of the configuration of a center - side apparatus for realizing the television signal scrambling method according to the present invention is described with reference to fig5 through 7 . in fig5 the reference numeral 1 designates a video - audio source such as a video tape recorder , a video disc player , or the like . the video signal from the video - audio source 1 is supplied to the video input video - in of an encoder 3 for performing scrambling through a video signal processing circuit 2 . a part of the video signal is passed through the encoder 3 and supplied from the video output video - out thereof to the video input video - in of a modulator 4 . the video signal processing circuit 2 serves to remove both a color burst signal and a picture portion in several h periods , for example , 3 h , before a v synchronizing signal portion of 9 h and also serves to remove a color burst signal ( just before a vits signal ( verical interval test signal ) in a predetermined position ) in several h periods after the v synchronizing signal portion of 9 h . the modulator 4 converts the video signal supplied to the video input video - in and the audio signal supplied to the audio input audio - in into if signals , respectively . the video if signal fv and audio if signal fa thus modulated in the modulator 4 are returned to the encoder 3 . in the encoder 3 , the video if signal fv in the horizontal blanking interval ( hbi ) and vertical blanking interval ( vbi ) are compressed at predetermined compression ratios based on the compression signal as shown in fig2 ( c ) and 3 ( c ). further , a key signal and a pseudo - key signal are superimposed on the audio if signal fa in the hbi and vbi in synchronism with the video synchronizing signal of the video signal . the video if signal fv compressed in the hbi and vbi and the audio if signal fa carrying the key and pseudo - key signals superimposed thereon as described above are supplied from the encoder 3 to the modulator 4 . after the video if signal fv and the audio if signal fa are mixed in the modulator 4 , the mixed signal is supplied to an up - converter 5 . in the up - converter 5 , the mixed signal is converted into a signal having a predetermined frequency and then sent out through a transmission line such as a coaxial cable . for example , a circuit having such a configuration as shown in fig6 is used as the video signal processing circuit 2 . the video signal from the video - audio source 1 is supplied to a synchronizing signal separation circuit 2a in which a horizontal ( h ) synchronizing signal and a vertical ( v ) synchronizing signal are sampled and sent out . the h synchronizing signal is supplied to an odd field v synchronizing signal detection circuit 2b , a burst position detection circuit 2c and a picture position detection circuit 2d . the v synchronizing signal is supplied to an odd field v synchronizing signal detection circuit 2b . the burst position detection circuit 2c supplies an and gate 2e with a detection signal , continued for a time corresponding to the duration of the color burst , a predetermined time after the input of the h synchronizing signal based on the predetermined positional relation between the h synchronizing signal and the color burst . the picture position detection circuit 2d supplies an and gate 2f with a detection signal , continued for a time corresponding to the duration of the picture signal , a predetermined time after the input of the h synchronizing signal based on the predetermined positional relation between the h synchronizing signal and the picture portion . the odd field v synchronizing signal detection circuit 2b detects the odd - field v synchronizing signal by clocking the time , based on the h synchronizing signal , after the input of the v synchronizing signal based on the fact that the vbi time of the odd field is different from that of the even field . the detection signal from the odd field v synchronizing signal detection circuit 2b is applied to the reset input of a 525h counter 2g . the 525h counter 2g is initialized by the resetting and applies the count to an nh generator 2h . in the case of fig1 the nh generator 2h generates a gate signal at the output i thereof to be supplied to the and gate 2e , and also generates a gate signal at the output ii thereof to be supplied to the and gate 2f , based on the count of the 525h counter 2g . the level of the gate signal generated at the output i is high for every field for a period from 3h before the v synchronizing signal portion of 9h to starting of the vits signal ( 10h from the end of the v synchronizing signal portion in the case of field 1 ). the level of the gate signal generated at the output ii is high for a period from 3h before the v synchronizing signal portion of 9h to starting of the v synchronizing signal portion . the lengths of the gate signals generated by the nh generator 2h can be changed at random using random data generated by a random generator . in short , the and gate 2e outputs a high level signal during every color burst period in the period from 3h before the v synchronizing signal portion to starting of the vits signal , in response to the detection of the h synchronizing signals . the and gate 2f outputs a signal turned to a high level during every picture period in the period from 3h before the v synchronizing signal portion to starting of the v synchronizing signal portion , in response to the detection of the h synchronizing signals . the signals output from the and gates 2e and 2f are supplied to pedestal level insertion circuits 2i and 2j , respectively . when the high - level signal is received from the and gate 2e , the pedestal level insertion circuit 2i gives a pedestal level to the video signal received at the other input and removes color bursts . when the high - level signal is received from the and gate 2f , the other pedestal level insertion circuit 2j turns the color - burst - eliminated video signal received at the other input from the pedestal level insertion circuit 2i , to &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; ire . in short , the video signal in which the color burst and the picture portion have been removed from the portions before and after the v synchronizing signal portion as shown in fig1 is produced at the output of the pedestal level insertion circuit 2j . for example , a circuit having such a configuration as shown in fig7 is used as the encoder 3 . in fig7 the video signal received at the input video - in from the video signal processing circuit 2 is supplied to a synchronizing signal separation circuit 3a , in which an h synchronizing signal and a v synchronizing signal are separated and extracted from the video signal . the video if signal fv received from the modulator 4 is supplied back to the modulator 4 via a 10 db rf switch 3b , a buffer amplifier 3c and a 6 db rf switch 3d . the audio if signal fa received from the modulator 4 is supplied back to the modulator via a 5 . 5 db rf switch 3e . the 10 db rf switch 3b and the 6 db rf switch 3d are turned on and off based on an fv pulse generated by an fv pulse generator 3g which operates under control by a cpu 3f . when the switches are turned on , the video if signal is compressed by 10 db and 6 db in the hbi and vbi , respectively . on the other hand , the 5 . 5 db rf switch 3e is turned on and off based on an fa pulse generated by an fa pulse generator 3h which operates under control by the cpu 3f . when the switch 3e is turned on , the audio if signal , fa , is compressed by 5 . 5 db in the period other than the periods of insertion of key and pseudo - key signals . the cpu 3f operates according to a predetermined program to produce in - band data arranged as shown in fig4 corresponding to the v synchronizing signal received from the synchronizing separation circuit 3a to thereby supply the in - band data to the fa pulse generator 3h . the fa pulse generator 3h having the in - band data supplied thereto generates , based on the v synchronizing signal and h synchronizing signal from the synchronizing separation circuit 3a , fa pulses corresponding to the key signal synchronized with the h synchronizing signal and the in - band data that have the relationship as shown in fig4 with the h synchronizing signal . the fa pulses are supplied to the 5 . 5 db rf switch 3e to thereby turn on and off the switch . consequently , the key and pseudo - key signals including the in - band data are superimposed , through amplitude modulation , on the audio if signal fa passing through the 5 . 5 db rf switch 3e . further , the cpu 3f counts the v synchronizing signal received from the synchronizing separation circuit 3a to establish the ratio of compression in the hbi and vbi to 10 db , 6 db or 0 db corresponding to the input of a predetermined number of v synchronizing signals , uses data relative to the set ratio of compression when generating the in - band data , and supplies the data to the fv pulse generator 3g . the fv pulse generator 3g supplied with the h synchronizing signal and v synchronizing signal from the synchronizing signal separation circuit 3a generates fv pulses to turn on the 10 db rf switch 3b or 6 db rf switch 3d in the hbi and vbi of the video if signal fv based on these signals and the data concerning the compression ratio given from the cpu 3f . accordingly , the video if signal fv passing through the 10 db rf switch 3b and 6 db rf switch 3d is compressed in the hbi and vbi in a predetermined compression ratio . an example of the configuration of a catv home terminal unit in which a signal scrambled in the catv center side as described above with reference to fig5 through 7 and transmitted through a transmission line is descrambled will be described hereunder with reference to fig8 . in fig8 the signal transmitted through a transmission line is received in a converter 11 through an input terminal in . the signal is branched by a branching device 11a at the inlet portion of the converter 11 , so that a part of the signal is supplied to an fsk receiver which serves to extract out - band data . the converter 11 selects a specific channel and performs frequency conversion on a signal in the selected channel to form an if signal as an output signal . the if signal obtained at the output of the converter 11 is supplied to a filter circuit 13 composed of a hpf and a lpf . in the filter circuit , the if signal is separated into a high - band video if signal fv and a low - band audio if signal fa . the video if signal fv separated by the filter 13 is supplied to an expansion circuit 14 in which the signal is descrambled . on the other hand , the audio if signal is branched by a branching device 15 , so that a part of the signal is supplied to a key signal detector 16 in which the key signal superimposed on the audio if signal is extracted by use of envelope detecting means . the key signal extracted by the key signal detector 16 is supplied to an in - band data detection circuit 17 in which in - band data contained in the key signal is detected . a part of the in - band data thus detected is used for generation of 6 db and 10 db expansion pulses . the other part of the in - band data is supplied , together with the out - band data from the fsk receiver 12 , to a cpu 18 which operates according to a predetermined program , so that the other part of the in - band data is processed by the cpu 18 . the cpu 18 supplied with the in - band data and out - band data generates a variety of control data . upon reception of the key signal from the key signal detector 16 , the in - band data detection circuit 17 generates 6 db or 10 db expansion pulses in synchronism with the key signal to feed these pulse signals to the expansion circuit 14 . the expansion circuit 14 expands the compressed video if signal in the horizontal and vertical blanking interval based on the expansion pulse having an amplitude corresponding to the expansion ratio , so that the signal is descrambled to be returned to the video if signal before scrambling . the video if signal thus descrambled and the audio if signal passed through the branching device 15 are mixed by a mixing circuit 19 , and the mixed signal is output from the output terminal out . fig9 shows a specific example of the configuration of the in - band data detection circuit 17 . in fig9 the reference numeral 17a designates an in - band data edge detection circuit which operates based on a clock signal generated from a clock generator 17b . the circuit 17a serves to detect the rising edge of the key signal composed of a key and data and given from the key signal detector 16 through an and gate 17c . the function of the circuit 17a is interrupted by a vbi mask signal which is given to an inverted input of the and gate 17c . the reference numeral 17d designates a vbi mask - terminated edge detection circuit for detecting the end of the vbi masking period . the circuit 17d generates a reset signal for resetting a timing signal generator 17e ( which will be described later ) on the basis of the in - band data edge detected by the in - band data edge detection circuit 17a and the vbi mask - terminated edge detected by the circuit 17d . the reference numeral 17e designates a timing signal generator which operates based on the timing generation clock obtained from the clock generator 17b . the timing signal generator 17e is reset based on the reset signal generated by the vbi mask - terminated edge detection circuit 17d and received through an or gate 17f and an and gate 17g , so that the generator 17e is initialized . the circuit 17e provides signals to respective portions of the in - band detection circuit 17 , such as a data edge mask signal for preventing the edge resetting by data , a data latch clock signal , a data window signal and a data clock signal for taking in data , an expansion pulse generation clock signal , and the like . the reference numeral 17h designates a key / data discriminator for discriminating between key and data contained in the key signal . the discriminator recognizes the coming key signal based on the fact that the transmission time of the key is different from the transmission time of the data , for example , by 19 μsec . that is to say , the discriminator recognizes the coming key signal when 32 μsec has passed after the resetting of the timing signal generator 17e by the in - band data edge , because the period of one horizontal synchronizing interval ( 1h ) is 63 . 5 μsec . accordingly , the relation ( 63 . 5 - 19 )& gt ; 63 . 5 / 2 ≈ 32 μsec is established . when the key signal is recognized as described above , the discriminator generates a discrimination signal to thereby control an and gate 17i . the discriminating operation of the discriminator 17h is carried out once whenever the taking - in of data in a field is started . the reference numeral 17j designates a data taking - in circuit which operates based on the data take - in clock generated from the clock generator 17b . the circuit 17j serves to take in data every 1 h through an and gate 17k opened based on the data window signal generated by the timing signal generator 17e based on the discrimination signal from the key / data discriminator 17h . the reference numeral 171 designates a data shift register which operates based on the data clock generated by the timing signal generator 17e . the shift register serves to shift data taken in every 1h by the data taking - in circuit 17j and is capable of being accessed every 8 bits . the reference numeral 17m designates a vbi start frame detection circuit which monitors data obtained from the data shift register 171 and detects as a start frame the point in time when at least 16 pieces of data have been all &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; continuously and the next piece of data is &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. a start frame detection signal generated by the circuit is latched for the period of about 1v until the circuit is reset based on a 1v signal generated by a iv timer 17p ( which will be described later ). the reference numeral 17n designates a vbi start position detection circuit which operates based on the data clock obtained from the timing signal generator 17e . the circuit latches a vbi start data as one of the in - band data obtained from the data shift register 171 , in response to the input of the start frame detection signal from the vbi start frame detection circuit 17m , detects a vbi start position according to the data based on the data clock and generates a vbi mask start signal to be supplied to a vbi mask signal generator 17o ( which will be described later ). the reference numeral 17o designates a vbi mask signal generator which operates based on the vbi mask generation clock obtained from the block generator 17b . the circuit 17o generates a vbi mask signal having a predetermined time length corresponding to the input of the vbi mask start signal from the vbi start position detection circuit 17n . the reference numeral 17p designates a 1v timer which operates based on the vbi mask generation clock obtained from the clock generator 17b . the timer starts its operation corresponding to the input of the start frame detection signal from the vbi start frame detection circuit 17m . timer length is established to be shorter ( for example , 196h ) than the time required for obtaining the data &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; for the next start frame . the reference numeral 17q designates a timing mode data decoder and 17r an expansion level data decoder . these decoders respectively perform sampling of timing mode data and expansion level data from corresponding portions of the in - band data stored in the data shift register 171 , on the basis of the timing mode latch clock obtained from the timing signal generator 17e , and decode the data to feed the decoded data to an expansion pulse generator 17s ( which will be described later ). the reference numeral 17s designates an expansion pulse generator which operates 6 db and 10 db expansion pulses based on the expansion pulse generation clock and vbi start signal obtained from the timing signal generator 17e , the timing mode signal obtained from the timing mode data decoder 17q and the expansion level signal obtained from the expansion level decoder 17r . the operation of the in - band data detection circuit 17 constituted as described above will be described hereunder with reference to the timing charts of fig1 and 11 . the timing signal generator 17e , the data shift register 171 , the key / data discriminator 17h and the vbi start frame detection circuit 17m are reset in an initial condition . in such a condition , the and gate 17c is open because the vbi mask signal is absent . the in - band data ( the signal as shown in fig2 ( b ) and 3 ( b )) is supplied to the in - band data edge detection circuit 17a through the and gate 17c , so that the rising edge of key or data in the key signal as shown in fig1 ( a ) is detected . the in - band data edge detection circuit 17a generates an edge signal , as shown in fig1 ( b ), at the output thereof corresponding to the edge detection . in the case of fig1 , the edge signal received first is of a key in the key signal . the edge signal is supplied to the and gate 17g through the or gate 17f . because the key / data discriminator 17h is in a reset state , the discrimination signal is absent , so that the output level of the and gate 17i is low . accordingly , the and gate 17g is opened , so that the edge signal is supplied to the timing signal generator 17e through the and gate 17g . the edge signal supplied to the timing signal generator 17e serves to reset the timing signal generator 17e and also serves to generate the timing mode latch clock , the expansion mode latch clock , the vbi expansion start signal , and the like , based on its internal count . by the aforementioned resetting , the timing signal generator 17e generates a data edge mask signal as shown in fig1 ( c ) after the passage of a predetermined time ( for example , 16 μsec ). at this time , the discrimination signal from the key / data discriminator 17h is at a low level as shown in fig1 ( d ) and the and gate 17g is opened . accordingly , an edge signal based on the next data is also supplied to the timing generator 17e through the and gate 17g . however , the timing signal generator 17e generates a 32 μsec passage signal 32 μsec after the input of the first edge signal , and , accordingly , the key / data discriminator 17h generates a discrimination signal as shown in fig1 ( d ). as a result , the and gate 17g is closed whenever a data edge mask signal is generated , so that the edge signal based on data is not supplied to the timing signal generator any more . the level of the discrimination signal is kept low until the key / data discriminator 17h is reset based on the vbi mask signal generated by the vbi mask signal generator 17o . the timing signal generator 17e , to which edge signals corresponding to keys are successively supplied , generates a data window signal and a data clock in predetermined timing whenever an edge signal is received in the timing generator 17e . the data window signal is supplied to the and gate 17k as an open signal for the and gate 17k and the data clock is supplied to the data shift register 171 and the vbi start position detection circuit 17n . when the and gate 17h is opened based on the data window signal , a data following the key is taken in the data taking - in circuit 17j via the and gate 17h . the data taken in the data taking - in circuit 17j is soon supplied to the data shift register 171 . the data shift register 171 receives data supplied to the input thereof based on the input of the data clock and shifts the data successively . the data shift register 171 , which serves to keep the newest 8 - bit data while aborting old data , always supplies the kept data to the vbi start frame detection circuit 17m , the vbi start position detection circuit 17n , the timing mode data decoder 17q and the expansion level data decoder 17r . the vbi start frame detection circuit 17m always monitors the data obtained from the data shift register 171 , so that when a vbi start frame is detected based on the fact that a bit of &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; appears after continuous 16 bits of &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, the circuit 17m generates a start frame detection signal . the start frame detection signal serves to reset both the vbi start position detection circuit 17n and the 1v timer 17p . the vbi start position detection circuit 17n thus reset takes in vbi start data following the vbi start frame successively from the data shift register 171 based on the data clock and generates a vbi mask start signal after the passage of the time of n × 8h synchronizing periods based on the number n of the taken - in vbi start data . the vbi mask start signal is supplied to the vbi mask signal generator 17o , so that the vbi mask signal generator 17o generates a vbi mask signal . the vbi mask signal is supplied to the and gate 17c to close it , thereby masking the pseudo - key signal inserted in the vbi . at the same time , the vbi mask signal is supplied to the key / data discriminator 17h to reset it and is also supplied to the vbi mask - terminated edge detection circuit 17d to detect the trailing edge thereof . by the closing of the and gate 17c , the in - band data is prevented from being supplied to the in - band data edge detection circuit 17a and and gate 17k while the vbi mask signal exists . because no edge signal is given to the timing signal generator 17e during the period of the vbi mask signal , the timing signal generator 17e knows that the current period is a vbi mask period . when the vbi mask signal then falls with the passage of time , the vbi mask - terminated detection circuit 17d detects the edge of the vbi masking and generates an edge signal . the edge signal is supplied to the and gate 17g through the or gate 17f . at this time , the and gate 17g is opened because the key / data discriminator 17h is in a reset state , and , accordingly , the discrimination signal is absent . as a result , the edge signal generated from the vbi mask - terminated detection circuit 17d is supplied to the timing signal generator 17e to thereby reset the timing signal generator 17e . the operation after the resetting of the timing signal generator 17e is carried out in the same manner as described above with reference to the timing chart of fig1 . however , the operation thereafter is carried out based on the end of the vbi mask signal . accordingly , the expansion pulse generation clock , the vbi expansion start signal , the expansion mode latch clock and the timing mode latch clock generated in predetermined timing by the timing signal generator 17e are issued at normal positions , respectively , so that predetermined data latching and predetermined expansion pulse generating operations can be made . as described above , a television signal scrambled at the center side can be descrambled by using the in - band data detection circuit 17 as shown in fig9 regardless of insertion of the pseudo - key signal in the vbi . as described above , according to the scrambling method of the present invention , a pseudo - key signal is superimposed on an audio signal in a vertical blanking interval . color bursts inserted in a predetermined number of horizontal scanning periods before and after the vertical synchronizing signal portion in the vertical blanking interval are removed . a video signal in a predetermined number of horizontal scanning periods before the vertical synchronizing signal portion is fixed to a constant level . accordingly , the vbi cannot be detected through detection of the audio signal , and further the invention is useful in preventing unauthorized access using a method of detecting the v synchronizing signal through detection of the picture signal and detection of the presence or absence of the 3 . 58 mhz burst signal . in short , by removing the burst signals in several h periods before the v synchronizing signal portion and by fixing the picture signal portion to 0 [ ire ], the interval detected by the presence or absence of the burst signal is enlarged by the interval corresponding to the removal of the burst signals compared with the original v synchronizing signal portion . if the video signal is expanded based on a signal made by elongating the above signal in the time axis by , for example , a one - shot multivibrator so as to have a width several h periods longer than the vbi , the picture portions in several h periods before the vbi are expanded to be mistaken as the v synchronizing signal portion to thereby erroneously operate a tv receiver . by removing the burst signals in several h periods after the v synchronizing signal portion and just before the vits signal , the interval detected by the presence or absence of the burst signal cannot be horizontally synchronized because the vits signal contains a 3 . 58 mhz component . therefore , it becomes impossible to produce h - synchronized expansion pulses except in the vbi based on the fact that the burst signal is synchronized with the h synchronizing signal . further , the prevention of unauthorized access is strengthened by a combination of the two . according to the invention , information concerning the position of the vertical blanking interval is contained in the key signal when scrambling is made . accordingly , the television signal can be descrambled in the home terminal unit side through the steps of : detecting the vertical blanking interval according to the information concerning the position of the vertical blanking interval contained in the key signal ; extracting information concerning the compression contained in the key signal based on the detected vertical blanking interval ; generating an expansion signal for expanding the video signal in the horizontal blanking interval and vertical blanking interval according to the extracted information concerning the compression ; and expanding the television signal in the horizontal blanking interval and vertical blanking interval based on the expansion signal . | 7 |
referring to the drawings , the preferred embodiment of the gross filter of the present invention is illustrated and generally indicated as 10 in fig1 . as shown in fig1 gross filter 10 includes a filter body 19 that comprises a back panel 12 , first and second side panels 14 and 16 , bottom panel 18 , and open front and top portions 15 and 17 . gross filter 10 is disposed inside a chest drainage unit 11 ( cdu ) ( fig7 ) for filtering incoming fluid drained from a patient . preferably , cdu 11 is a drainage device as disclosed in u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 810 , 056 entitled “ chest drainage unit with controlled automatic excess negativity relief feature ”, assigned to the assignee , and is incorporated by reference in its entirety . referring to fig2 a plan view of the panels 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 showing the interior side 31 of gross filter 10 is shown . each panel 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 comprises a filter matrix 34 having a porosity sufficient for filtering fluid , for example blood , of blood clots and other gross contaminates as fluid passes through filter body 19 . preferably , filter matrix 34 includes , but is not limited to , a continuous pattern of rectangular or square - shaped designs , although any pattern , such as triangles , diamonds , circles , or crosses , which are suitable for filtering fluid of gross contaminates is felt to fall within the scope of the present invention . gross filter 10 comprises a generally rectangular - shaped planar back panel 12 defined by angled head edge 47 , base edge 49 , and generally angled opposing inner edges 51 and 53 . a guide 24 is provided along the interior surface 31 for channeling incoming fluid to a specific portion of gross filter 10 in order to prevent total blockage of the filter body 19 by channeling any blood clots that are entrained in incoming fluid toward one portion of body 19 . preferably , both inner edges 51 and 53 extend away from base edge 49 at approximately 100 degree angle , although the angle may range between 90 and 120 degrees . head edge 47 extends away from inner edge 51 at approximately a 90 degree angle where edge 47 terminates in a notch 35 . inner edge 51 may be integrally formed with or attached to inner edge 48 of first side panel 14 . first side panel 14 is located adjacent to back panel 12 and is defined by head edge 42 , angled base edge 44 , free edge 46 and angled inner edge 48 . base edge 44 extends away from inner edge 48 at approximately a 100 degree angle . although the angle formed between base edge 44 and inner edge 48 is preferably 100 degree angle , the angle may range between 90 and 120 degrees . inner edge 53 of back panel 12 may be integrally formed with or attached to inner edge 56 of second side panel 16 . opposed to first side panel 14 with respect to back panel 12 is second side panel 16 which is defined by free edge 41 , left free edge 43 , head edge 50 , angled base edge 52 and right free edge 54 . head edge 50 extends away from inner edge 56 at an 85 degree angle , although the angle may range between 90 degrees and 75 degrees . preferably , base edge 52 extends away from inner edge 56 at a 100 degree angle , although the set angle may range between 90 and 120 degrees . base edge 49 may be integrally formed with or attached to head edge 55 of bottom panel 18 . bottom panel 18 is located adjacent to back panel 12 and is defined by head edge 49 , opposed right and left free edges 57 and 59 , and base edge 63 . an opening 38 is formed through the bottom panel 18 for receiving therethrough a conduit for the egress of fluid from collection chamber 13 . as illustrated back in fig1 first and second side panels 14 and 16 may include a reinforcing bar 36 that extends the entire length of each panel 14 and 16 from the back panel 12 to free edges 46 and 54 , respectively , and provides structural reinforcement to filter body 19 . each side panel 14 and 16 further includes a side spacer 22 that is spaced slightly inward from free edges 46 and 54 and extends in perpendicular relationship to the exterior surface 33 of each respective side panel 14 and 16 . second side panel 16 comprises an overflow portion 20 that extends from the main body of panel 16 and is adapted to filter any fluid that may overflow from gross filter 10 . overflow portion 20 includes a filter matrix 34 that extends in perpendicular relation from overflow portion 20 and borders the entire periphery of portion 20 . overflow filter 32 provides additional filtering for initially filtered fluid that flows from between the filter body 19 and the wall of the collection chamber , as shall be explained in greater detail later . first side panel 14 further comprises a first retaining ledge 26 along head edge 42 ( fig3 ) that includes a flange 40 that extends in perpendicular relationship with respect to ledge 26 . as shall be explained in greater detail below , first retaining ledge 26 provides a connection site for securely retaining gross filter 10 inside cdu 11 . similarly , second side panel 16 includes a second retaining ledge 28 along head edge 50 ( fig4 ) that runs along the upper portion of panel 16 until ledge 28 meets overflow portion 20 . second retaining ledge 28 also forms a flange 40 that is in perpendicular relationship to ledge 28 and is adapted to securely retain gross filter 10 inside cdu 11 . as shall be illustrated later , bottom panel 18 slants downward from back panel 12 to base edge 63 of bottom panel 18 so as to channel fluid flow through specific portions of filter body 19 and inhibit free flow therethrough . the channeling of incoming fluid prevents total blockage of back panel 12 by forcing blood clots toward the front end of bottom panel 18 near base edge 63 so more accurate graduations of accumulated blood clots can be made by the user while leaving the remaining portion of panel 12 unblocked for filtering of incoming fluid . the upper portion of back panel 18 includes a gutter ledge 30 which is set at an angle that runs from first side panel 14 to notch 35 ( fig2 ) so that incoming fluid that is captured by ledge 30 gravity flows toward the first side panel 14 end of ledge 30 and then flows down between guide 24 and first side panel 14 . gutter ledge 30 effectively forms a conduit adapted for capturing incoming fluid along the back portion of filter body 19 and channeling it towards one end of body 19 . referring to fig3 and 4 , opposite side views of gross filter 10 are shown illustrating the angled orientations of back panel 12 and bottom panel 18 . inner edges 48 and 56 of first and second side panels 14 and 16 , respectively , are both set at the same angle in relation to free edge 46 and right free edge 54 . as such , back panel 12 has a set angle that exposes the interior surface area of panel 12 to filtering of incoming fluid as it enters cdu 11 and passes through filter body 19 . as further illustrated in fig3 and 4 , base edges 44 and 52 of first and second side panels 14 and 16 , respectively , are set at the same angle such that bottom panel 18 forms a flat surface angled toward the open front portion 15 ( fig1 ). this angled orientation of bottom panel 18 forces blood clots and other gross contaminants towards the open front portion 15 of filter body 19 , thereby leaving the back end portion of panel 18 unblocked . this sloped orientation of bottom panel 18 exposes a larger area of panel 18 to filtering of incoming fluid so that sufficient area of panel 18 is provided for filtering when other areas of panel 18 become clogged by blood clots and other large particulate matter retained inside filter body 19 . as illustrated in fig7 first and second side panels 14 and 16 are preferably set at an angled orientation to one another so that the bottom portions of both panels 14 and 16 are angled slightly toward each other . however , other angled orientations such as having the top portion of first and second side panels 14 and 16 angled toward each other or having just one side panel 14 or 16 angled either toward or away from the other panel 14 or 16 , which remains straight , is felt to fall within the scope of the present invention . the angled orientation of the first and second side panels 14 and 16 provide alternative filtration sites to incoming fluid flow . referring to fig8 bottom panel 18 will be discussed in greater detail . an opening 38 is formed through bottom panel 18 and is adapted for receiving a conduit ( not shown ) therethrough for the transport of filtered fluid from collection chamber 13 . in order properly orientate gross filter 10 inside collection chamber 13 during insertion of the filter into cdu 11 during manufacturing , a pair of side and back spacers 22 and 23 , respectively , are provided along the bottom portion of first and second side panels 14 and 16 . side spacers 22 are integrally formed with or attached to the front portion of bottom edges 44 and 52 , respectively , using a suitable adhesive , and extend therefrom in a perpendicular relation to each panel 14 and 16 , so that lateral movement against the walls of the collection chamber 13 is prevented . back spacers 23 are also integrally formed with or attached to the back portion of bottom edges 44 and 52 , respectively , and are at a set angle in relation to back panel 12 , so as to prevent backward and forward motion of filter body 19 inside cdu 11 . preferably , the angle set for back spacers 23 is 110 degrees in relation to back panel 12 , although any angle between 50 - 120 degrees is felt to fall within the scope of the present invention . referring to fig5 and 6 , the interior portions of cdu 11 which house gross filter 10 will be discussed in greater detail . cdu 11 comprises a collection chamber 13 that includes first subchamber 68 in fluid flow communication with a second subchamber 70 through an overflow panel 72 formed therebetween . first subchamber 68 comprises opposing first and second side walls 62 and 64 , back wall 60 , front wall 61 ( fig9 ), top wall 67 and bottom wall 66 . an inlet port 58 adapted for permitting fluid flow into first subchamber 68 is formed through top wall 67 . gross filter 10 is housed and securely retained inside first subchamber 68 through an arrangement of grooves formed on the interior surfaces of first and second side walls 62 and 64 of first subchamber 68 . a first upper groove 74 in combination with a first lower groove 76 are provided on the first side wall 62 and are adapted to engage first retaining ledge 26 of first side panel 14 . similarly , a second upper groove 80 in combination with a second lower groove 82 are provided on second side wall 64 and are adapted to engage second retaining ledge 28 of second side panel 16 . a third groove 84 is provided above the third upper and lower grooves 80 and 82 and is adapted to retain overflow portion 20 of second side panel 16 when gross filter 10 is housed inside first subchamber 68 . during manufacturing gross filter 10 is inserted into first subchamber 68 before the front wall 61 is attached to cdu 11 . to engage and retain gross filter 10 inside first subchamber 68 , retaining ledges 26 and 28 of gross filter 10 are inserted through and engaged to grooves 74 , 76 and 80 , 82 , respectively , formed on the first and second sidewalls 62 and 64 of first subchamber 68 . as shown in fig7 flanges 40 of first and second retaining ledges 26 and 28 are inserted through the respective slots formed between the upper and lower grooves 74 and 76 and upper and lower grooves 80 and 82 . concurrently , overflow panel 32 is inserted through the slot formed by third upper groove 84 so that gross filter 10 is securely retained inside first subchamber 68 and flush against the front portion of cdu 11 . a support member 78 ( fig5 and 8 ) forming a straight lateral ledge extending from back wall 60 is provided for supporting bottom panel 18 of filter body 19 inside first subchamber 68 once body 19 has been inserted therein . once gross filter 10 has been inserted and retained inside cdu 11 , the front wall 61 is attached to the front portion of cdu 11 using an adhesive bond or other suitable means of attachment including , but not limited to , ultrasonic welding or riveting . referring to fig7 the fluid flow pathway of incoming fluid into first subchamber 68 and through gross filter 10 is illustrated . flow pathway a 1 demonstrates the path of incoming fluid directly into collection chamber 13 as incoming fluid is channeled downward by splash guard 86 through the open top portion of filter body 19 . as discussed above , once incoming fluid enters filter body 19 , gutter 30 diverts any incoming fluid that may contact the back portion of filter body 19 toward one end of gross filter 19 , as illustrated by flow pathway a 2 . guide 24 is provided for further channeling incoming fluid toward one end of bottom panel 18 so as to inhibit the total blockage of panel 18 by continually wetting a portion of filter body 18 which prevents drying and caking of fluid over filter matrix 34 . as incoming fluid is channeled through filter body 19 it may follow basically one of two flow pathways as incoming fluid is filtered . flow pathways a 3 and a 6 show filtration of incoming fluid through first and second side panels 14 and 16 , respectively , when total blockage of bottom panel 18 occurs , while flow pathway a 4 illustrates the filtration of incoming fluid through the back panel 12 under similarly blocked circumstances . finally , flow pathway a 5 illustrates the pathway of incoming fluid through bottom panel 18 . although most of the incoming fluid is filtered through bottom panel 18 due to the channeling effect of the guide 24 and splash guard 86 , the angled orientations of first and second side panels 14 and 16 and back panel 12 provide secondary filtration areas when the bottom panel 18 becomes clogged with large particulate matter which are retained inside the filter body 19 , thereby preventing fluid flow therethrough for filtering incoming fluid . in such instances , the above - identified secondary filtration areas provide unimpeded filtration of incoming fluid when the bottom panel 18 becomes blocked . flow pathways a 3 , a 4 and a 6 illustrate the potential alternate pathways that incoming fluid may follow when flow pathway a 5 is interrupted due to blockages that may occur at bottom panel 18 . referring to fig9 measuring indicia 88 used to visually ascertain the volume of large particulate matter retained inside gross filter 10 is illustrated . the measuring indicia 88 is provided on the front wall 61 of cdu 11 adjacent to a window 90 which shows the interior portion of gross filter 10 so that a nurse or other medical personnel may visually ascertain the volume of large particulate matter retained inside filter body 19 . preferably , measuring indicia 88 is a combination of numerical indicators with respective markers that highlight specific volume levels , although numerical indicators or markers alone may be used . during manufacturing indicia 88 may be silk screened directly on the front wall 61 , as in the preferred embodiment , or in the alternative , a label may be applied to the front wall 61 using a suitable adhesive . fig1 and 11 illustrate alternative shapes of filter body 19 according to the present invention . as shown in fig1 , filter body 119 has a triangular shape that channels incoming fluid flow in order to prevent total blockage of body 119 while permitting a clear view of the volume of gross particular matter retained therein . filter body 119 comprises a generally rectangular - shaped first side panel 121 defined by angled base edge 131 , head edge 141 , free edge 129 and inner edge 145 . preferably , base edge 131 is set a 10 degree angle with respect to edge 141 , although the angle may range from 1 degree to 15 degrees . base edge 131 may be integrally formed with or attached to first side edge 133 of bottom panel 125 . bottom panel 125 has a generally triangular shape and is defined by first side edge 133 , second side edge 135 and free edge 147 . similar to filter body 19 , bottom panel 125 of filter body 119 is set at an angle so that the entire panel 125 slants slightly downward from the point where first and second side edges 131 and 135 meet to free edge 147 . this downward slant of bottom panel 125 ensures that blood clots and other gross particular matter gravity flows toward , and accumulates at , the front portion of filter body 119 . second side edge 135 is integrally formed with or attached to base edge 137 of second side panel 123 . second side panel 123 has a generally rectangular shape and is defined by angled base edge 135 , inner edge 139 , head edge 143 and free edge 147 . preferably , base edge 135 is set at the same 10 degree angle as base edge 131 of first side panel 121 , although the angle may range from 1 degree to 15 degrees . inner edge 139 may be integrally formed with or attached to inner edge 145 of first side panel 121 . both head edges 141 and 143 of first and second side panels 121 and 123 , respectively , include a retaining ledge 127 which may be integrally formed with or attached thereto . retaining ledge 127 provides a means for retaining filter body 119 inside the collection chamber 13 by engaging ledge 127 to a support member ( not shown ) provided along the wall of first subchamber 68 . referring to fig1 , filter body 219 has a semi - circular / conical shape with the conical configuration of body 219 slightly tapered inward . filter body 219 comprises a semi - circular panel 221 that is defined by free edge 225 which forms a generally rectangular shape with an open top portion . semi - circular panel 221 is defined by head edge 229 , free edge 225 and base edge 331 . head edge 229 forms a semi - circular shape with a similarly shaped retaining ledge 227 integrally formed with or attached to edge 229 . retaining ledge 227 also provides a means for retaining filter body 219 inside collection chamber 13 by engaging ledge 227 to a support member ( not shown ) provided along the wall of first subchamber 68 . base edge 331 may be integrally formed with or attached to a generally semi - circular shaped head edge 333 of bottom panel 223 . bottom panel 223 has a generally semi - circular shape defined by head edge 333 and free edge 225 . similar to filter body 119 , bottom panel 223 of filter body 219 is set at an angle so that the entire panel 223 slants slightly downward toward free edge 225 . this downward slant of bottom panel 223 ensures that blood clots and other gross particular matter gravity flows toward , and accumulates at , the front portion of filter body 219 . it should be understood from the foregoing that , while particular embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described , various modifications can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . therefore , it is not intended that the invention be limited by the specification ; instead , the scope of the present invention is intended to be limited only by the appended claims . | 0 |
referring now to fig1 there is shown a prior art bidirectional long haul optical transmission system such as is described in reference 1 previously referred to . in this system a transmitter / receiver terminal 10 is coupled to an outbound fibre 12 for transmission signals and an inbound fibre 14 for receiving signals . the terminal 10 has the capability of providing a specific wavelength signal for otdr purposes on the outbound fibre . the outbound and inbound fibres are routed via optical amplifiers / repeaters 16 , 18 , 20 , 22 , 24 , 26 three of which are shown in each line . an optical directional coupler 28 is provided following amplifier / repeater 18 of the outbound line and is arranged to tap a proportion of the optical signal from the line , the coupler is coupled via a fibre 30 to the inbound line at the input to amplifier / repeater 24 via a second directional coupler 32 . a break in the outbound line is shown at 34 . in use , to detect the break , a test signal is sent from terminal 10 and the outbound fibre 12 is reflected or backscattered by the break coupled via the coupler 28 , fibre 30 and coupler 32 to the inbound line back to the terminal 10 where the break location is determined by otdr . there are however some fundamental limitations imposed by such a coupler arrangement . in order to maintain a low loss path / repeaters for the main traffic signal at the outputs and / or inputs of the amplifiers / repeaters low coupling ratios for the backscattered light must be used which reduces the backscattered signal , and hence the performance of the fiber - break detection system . furthermore , extra loss may have to be inserted in the backscatter path via an attenuator 36 to reduce the penalty to the inbound return line traffic signal caused by the backscattered outbound line signal . this further limits break detection capability . the invention has been arrived at from consideration of the requirements for otdr in such systems . the method of transferring the backscattered otdr probe signal from the outbound to the inbound fibre may be viewed in two parts : extracting the backscattered signal from the outbound fibre , and adding it to the inbound fiber . furthermore this should be done with minimal effect on the magnitude of the traffic signals . the invention and its various other preferred features will now be described by reference to the further diagrams which illustrate modifications of the arrangement illustrated in fig1 with only the modified portion being illustrated . the same reference numerals are employed to identify the same parts of fig1 . in fig2 instead of employing an optical coupler at the output of the amplifier there is provided an optical circulator 38 and a reflection filter 40 which is designed to reflect the otdr wavelength . as will be seen the output of the amplifier is connected to a first port of the circulator , the second port of the circulator is coupled to the output line and on to the amplifier 20 , the third port is coupled to the reflection filter 40 and the fourth port is coupled to the cross connection fibre 38 . in use , a traffic and / or test signal sent along the outbound fibre 12 enters the circulator 38 at the first port and passes out through the second port for onward routing to the amplifier 20 . as a result of a break at 34 backscattered light which comprises traffic and / or test signals is routed back to the second port of the circulator 38 out through the third port to the reflection filter 40 where the traffic signal is absorbed and the test signal reflected back to the third port of the circulator and out from the fourth port onto the fibre 30 for cross coupling to the inbound line at the input to the amplifier / repeater 24 . the line traffic signal and otdr probe signals are required to be of different wavelengths , so that the filter reflects only the required otdr test wavelength . the filter may be of any suitable reflection type e . g . a fiber bragg grating . fig3 illustrates an alternative arrangement employing a transmission filter 42 designed to pass the otdr test signal wavelength but not the traffic wavelength . in this arrangement a three port optical circulator 44 is employed . the output of the amplifier 18 is coupled to the first port of the optical circulator , the second port is coupled to the output line and on to the amplifier 20 and the third port is coupled via the cross connection fibre 30 to the filter 42 . in use a traffic and / or test signal is sent along the outbound fibre 20 enters the circulator 44 at the first port and passes out through the second port for onward routing to the amplifier 20 . as a result of a break at 34 backscattered light which comprises traffic and / or test signals is routed back to the second port of the circulator and out through the third port onto the fibre 30 to the filter 42 which permits passage of the test signal wavelength but which prevents passage of the traffic signal wavelength which is then coupled to the inbound line at the input to the amplifier / repeater 24 . in the arrangement of fig3 instead of employing a three port circulator an optical coupler such as shown as 28 in fig1 may be employed although this is less advantageous because the coupling factor employed is a trade off between permitting transfer of the returning test signal whilst permitting adequate transmission of the traffic signal . the coupling of the returning backscattered signal on the line 30 after filtering can be effected by a simple optical coupler 32 in the manner illustrated in fig1 . however , even if this is a relatively high ratio tap coupler there will be attenuation of the test signal . a preferred arrangement is to employ a three port circulator such as 46 shown in fig4 . here the line 30 is coupled to the first port of the circulator , the return line from the amplifier 22 is coupled via a reflection filter to the second port , which reflection filter is arranged to pass the signal wavelength but reflect the test wavelength , and the third port is coupled to the input of the amplifier 24 . in use , a backscattered test signal arriving on the line 30 enters the first port of the circulator , exits the second port but is reflected back to the circulator by the filter 48 , exits the third port for onward transmission back to the transmit / receiver terminal 16 via the amplifier 24 . a traffic signal arriving on the inbound fibre from the amplifier 22 passes through the reflection filter 48 into the second port or the circulator 46 , out through the third port and onward to the transmit / receive terminal 16 via the amplifier / repeater 24 . with the arrangement of fig4 employed with the arrangement of fig3 the transmission filter 42 may be dispensed with as the reflection filter 48 will not permit reflection of the backscattered traffic signal . the loss of the backscatter path is reduced by the use of a circulator rather than a high ratio tap coupler . this considerably increases the span length that can be measured by the otdr system . the line transmission penalty on the inbound fiber is minimised by the use of a filter to ensure that only the narrow band around the otdr probe wavelength is coupled back to the return fiber . the circulator acts as an output isolator for the amplifier , which is required anyway , so the number of extra components required to implement the otdr function is minimised . whilst any suitable reflection filter can be used for the components 40 , 48 a bragg grating is particularly suitable . any suitable transmission filter can be employed for the filter 42 for example a multi layer dielectric filter or a fabre perot filter . although the embodiments illustrated and described employ cross coupling between the output of an amplifier / repeater in one path and the input of an amplifier / repeater in the other path , which is the preferred arrangement , the coupling may be effected between the output of the amplifier / repeater in one path and the output of an amplifier / repeater in the other path . for ease of description coupling of a signal from the outgoing fibre to the incoming path is described . it will be appreciated that similar coupling arrangements can be provided between the incoming fibre and the outgoing fibre for otdr interrogation from the terminal at the opposite end of the system . such a coupling is schematically illustrated in fig1 between the output of the amplifier 24 and the input 18 and similar couplings to those described in connection with fig2 to 4 can be employed without departing from the scope of the present invention . whilst for simplicity of description cross coupling just between the amplifier / repeaters 18 and 24 are illustrated and described . however , it will be appreciated that similar cross couplings can be provided between other amplifiers / repeaters or all of the amplifiers / repeaters such as 16 , 26 & amp ; 20 , 22 can be employed . such arrangements are considered to fall within the scope of this invention . | 7 |
referring now to fig1 there is shown a vehicle 10 , the right - hand rearward portion thereof containing a lamp assembly 12 which serves the function of providing stop , turn and reverse signals for vehicle 10 . the lamp assembly 12 is intended to typify a wide range of assemblies which contain components terminated to the wire harnesses in order to provide power and signal functions , such as home electrical appliances , automobile harness assemblies , and the like . with reference to a specific embodiment as shown in fig2 the assembly 12 includes a series of three lens structures 14 , 16 and 18 , beneath which structures are provided incandescent lamps powered to achieve the foregoing mentioned functions . the assembly includes a series of fasteners shown as 20 which lock the assembly together and to the vehicle body frame . fig2 shows a part of the assembly heretobefore mentioned with the lens structures removed to reveal a frame 30 including apertures 32 intended to be engaged with the fastening means 20 . to the left of the frame 30 as shown is a first aperture 34 which in this illustrative embodiment , is intended to accommodate the insertion of a wire organizer or retainer 38 which fits within such aperture . as can be seen in fig2 a number of lamp assemblies 120 are mounted to frame 30 , with each of the lamp assemblies 120 containing a plug - in lamp 122 . a number of grooves 37 are provided in the upper surface of 30 extending from the aperture 34 across the face of 30 in a pattern to position conductor wires 100 so as to interconnect the various components . the assemblies 120 would include terminals similar to those to be described as elements 60 hereafter to follow . fig3 shows the components for 120 and lamps 122 removed to reveal apertures 35 in the frame element 30 , with the wires 100 extending appropriately to permit termination to terminals of the components . fig4 shows the wire retainer 38 with terminals 60 removed and with the wires 100 positioned therein preparatory for wire layment . as can be discerned , the assembly represented in fig4 is comprised simply of insulated wires 100 and a wire retainer 38 . the wire retainer can be seen in additional detail in fig5 and 6 to be comprised of a body element or housing 39 containing at the ends thereof small projections 40 which , in conjunction with the shape of 39 , serve to polarize or orient the retainer relative to mounting in the aperture 34 of the frame 30 . the housing 39 includes additionally a series of apertures shown as 42 which may be considered to extend through the body 39 of the retainer . adjacent each end of the apertures 42 are grooves shown as 44 which receive conductor wires positioned therein in the manner depicted in fig4 . each of the grooves has a beveled wire entry surface shown as 48 and toward the center of the groove , projections shown as 50 and are better revealed in fig6 . these projections operate to capture and retain the wires inserted within the grooves in the manner indicated in fig5 and 6 . in addition , included at each end of the housing 39 are projections shown as 52 which serve the function of orienting and locking terminal protecting housings 80 onto the retainers 39 , to be described more fully herein . in fig6 the terminal much enlarged from actual size is shown as 60 to include a pair of contact springs 62 suitable formed to provide a funnel entry 63 adapted to receive contact tabs from a mating connector not shown . the terminal 60 includes a boxlike structure having at each end a slot 66 dimensioned to function in the well - known idc manner to terminate wires such as 100 by stripping the outer sheath of insulation thereof and engaging the strands with sufficient resilient spring pressure to maintain a gas - tight termination over the life of the terminal . the slots 66 open into a beveled portion shown as 68 which tend to center the wire to aid in positioning and engagement with the slots . terminals 60 include one or more lances shown as 74 , dimensioned and positioned to engage the interior surfaces of the aperture walls 42 to lock the terminals to the housings 39 of wire retainer 38 . fig7 shows the wire retainer 38 loaded with terminals 60 to terminate the wires 100 carried therewithin . fig8 shows the loaded wire retainer having additionally a protective insulating housing positioned over the terminals , such housing being shown as 80 which is particularized for the several terminals with the spacing shown as 82 therebetween . additionally , there is included a flange element shown as 84 , apertured as at 85 to fit over the plastic post element 52 which is in a preferred embodiment , heat - staked as shown in fig8 to lock the housing to the wire retainer . power or signal wires connected to terminals not shown would be plugged into the various terminals 60 to provide inputs and outputs to the circuit . in conjunction with the invention method and article , it is contemplated that the wire retainer 38 may be incorporated into a frame with the terminals 60 added thereafter . alternatively , it is contemplated that the wire retainer may be utilized on wire handling equipment with the wires 100 cut and terminated and loaded into the wire retainer as shown in fig4 with the terminals then added with or without a housing 80 which may be added following terminal insertion or at a later time . in this event , the wire retainer , as terminated , may be loaded into the aperture 34 of frame 30 . as can be observed from fig2 or 3 , the grooves in the wire retainer shown as 44 are aligned with the grooves 37 in the frame . by insertion of the wire retainer containing wire segments into the frame , the wire segments may be considered started to allow wire implantation into the grooves 37 by a number of means in accordance with the prior art . in the event that the terminals have been pre - applied to the wire retainer 38 , it will be necessary to manually or through the use of a robotic assist insert a further segment of the wire just adjacent the wire retainer in the beginning segment of grooves 37 with the roller then applied to the surface of the frame adjacent such wire retainer . it is fully contemplated that the wire retainer may be used alone without terminals , as a wire organizer , and as a means to facilitate processing of subassemblies or with the terminals applied following wire insertion . referring now to fig9 the frame 30 can be seen to be positioned upon a jig shown as 104 having a series of projections 106 which fit into the apertures 35 of the frame . these projections include in their upper surfaces , grooves 37 &# 39 ; which match the grooves 37 in the frame 30 . as shown in fig9 a wire retaining element 38 is positioned above the frame 30 having the wires 100 captured therein . with regard to the showing in fig9 the jig 104 may be considered to be fixed against displacement . in fig1 , the wire retainer 38 is shown inserted within the aperture 34 with portions of the wires 100 made to come up out of the grooves 44 , with each wire aligned with an appropriate groove 37 . there is provided in fig1 a roller assembly shown as 110 . the roller assembly 110 includes a pair of brackets 112 carrying therebetween a roller shown as 114 and a wire bail assembly shown as 116 . it is to be understood that the bail 116 is readily opened to accommodate the insertion of the wires 100 in the manner shown in fig1 . it is to be further understood that the roller 114 is sufficiently elastic to deform to depress the wires well within the grooves 37 . reference may be had to our copending case for these details . with the roller assembly 110 positioned as shown in fig1 and bearing down upon the top of the wire retainer 38 , it is then driven to the right as shown in fig1 to force the wires 100 within the grooves 37 , such wires tracking within the grooves 37 &# 39 ; of the jig fixtures 106 as the roller moves over the apertures 35 . following the movement shown in fig1 , the wires are now positioned in their patterns and in accordance with the invention , terminals 60 may be applied to terminate the wires in the manner shown in fig1 . also at this particular point , component housings containing suitable idc terminals may be applied such as lamp housings 120 , also as shown in fig1 . thereafter , as shown in fig1 , housings 80 may be secured to the wire retainer means as heretofore described and the bulbs or lamps 122 may be inserted in the lamp housings 120 using terminals not shown but similar to terminals 60 . as thus shown in fig1 , the assembly is as was described relative to fig2 and ready for application to the vehicle and the lamp assembly 12 . alternatively the unit could accept at this point switches , relays , timers , integrated circuit packages , and the like , depending upon the application of the frame . at this point in time , a suitable connector not shown will be plugged into the terminal 60 to make the unit functional . alternatively , the unit shown in fig1 may be tested for continuity and stacked or handled for loading during assembly of the vehicle on a production line . fig1 refers to an alternative method wherein the jig 104 is mounted for displacement while the roller assembly is relatively fixed against movement in an x and y sense , there being a suitable mechanism to move roller assembly 110 vertically as indicated to bring it to bear against the top of the frame 30 and / or the wire retainer 38 . as heretofore described relative to fig9 the wire retainer containing wires 100 is first loaded into the top of the frame as positioned upon the jig 104 . next , in accordance with the invention , a drive not shown which could be manually effected is made to force the jig 104 to the left to a position as shown in fig1 , the roller traversing the upper surface of the frame 30 effecting wire layment into the grooves thereof . it is contemplated that the wire rolling assembly 110 may be provided with a rotary drive by suitable means not shown , which in turn will track against the upper surface of frame 30 , moving the frame and the jig 104 as the roller implants the wires 100 in such frame . as can be appreciated , this concept vastly simplifies the mechanism employed to utilize the rolling concept . various jigs of appropriate height having appropriate means to lock frames thereupon may thus be employed with a roller or sets of rollers without the need for extensive closely toleranced spans of wire laying tracks and guides as heretofore required . fig1 shows an embodiment of the invention , article and concept wherein the wires 100 are loaded into the wire retainer 138 intermediate the ends of the wires rather than at the ends as heretofore described . in accordance with the concept of fig1 , a frame shown as 130 in fig1 would be made to have an aperture 134 located intermediate the ends of the frame 130 , with the retainer being first plugged in and the different ends of the wires 100 fed through an appropriate bail 116 on each side of the roller , with the roller of assembly 110 then being brought down to bear against the upper surface of 38 and either the jig 104 displaced or the roller actuated to effect the first wire layment in one direction followed by a wire layment in a second direction . this concept is particularly useful wherein the wires 100 are of different lengths and begin or end in a non - even location in a given frame member . fig1 shows an alternative embodiment of the invention wherein a frame shown as 130 &# 39 ; is made to include a pair of recesses 131 &# 39 ; at an end thereof . a wire retainer shown as 138 &# 39 ; is made to include projections 140 &# 39 ; which engage the apertures 131 &# 39 ; and align the wire retainer 138 &# 39 ; with the frame . the wire retainer 138 &# 39 ; is otherwise similar to the wire retainer 138 heretofore discussed and works in a similar fashion except working from the end of the frame 130 &# 39 ;. fig2 shows a roller brought to bear against the upper surface of 138 &# 39 ; preparatory to wire layment . with respect to the fig1 - 20 and as heretofore mentioned , the wire retainer element may serve as a wire organizer without terminals or may serve as a connector having terminals . the invention contemplates both possibilities as well as the addition of terminals to the wire retainer element both before and after wire layment . it is also contemplated that more or less standard idc connectors may be employed in conjunction with the invention , the frame being designed to accommodate such standard connectors fitted into apertures therein or plugged into end surfaces . reference may be had to u . s . pat . no . 4 , 159 , 158 and u . s . pat . no . 4 , 435 , 035 wherein connectors suitable for such use are depicted . in the disclosure heretofore given , the illustrative examples have included essentially a single wire retainer or wire retainer / connector in conjunction with a single structural member . it is contemplated that multiple wire retainers may be used with an individual structural member to achieve different wwiring patterns including on occasion , wiring patterns which have crossovers as is taught in our copending application 13905 . it is also contemplated that multiple structural elements may be placed adjacent each other with multiple wiring retainers / connector attached thereto or plugged therein with wire rolling and layment taking place over the several individual elements . having now described the invention relative to drawings , we now set forth a definition of method and article in the appended claims . | 8 |
the preferred embodiments are described hereafter in order to further elucidate the techniques of the invention : the method disclosed in the announced taiwan patent tw - i270375 was used to prepare a platelet dry powder . 1 . 0 g of platelet dry powder was obtained and added to saline to make up 5 . 0 ml of solution , then the pdgf titer of the solution was analyzed by using a spectrophotometer ( u . s . bio - tek instruments , inc ., model μ - quant ) immediately after preparation ( 0 hour ), after 1 week ( 168 hours ), after 2 weeks ( 336 hours ), after 3 weeks ( 504 hours ), and after 4 weeks ( 672 hours ). the method disclosed in the announced patent tw - i270375 was used to prepare an autologous platelet dry powder from autologous blood in advance . the platelet dry powder was added to water obtained by reverse osmosis ( ro ) to prepare a solution having 5000 platelets / ml therein , then the solution was held in a spray bottle . the number of platelets in the solution was measured by using a hematology analyzer ( manufacturer : sysmex , model : kx - 21 ). a patient was allowed to undergo a treatment for skincare stimulation once a week , which involved firstly disinfecting a body area awaiting the skincare stimulation , and then carrying out laser treatment on the disinfected body area , followed by evenly spraying the skincare stimulant ( solution ) on the disinfected body area . in addition , between every two treatments , the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation was evenly sprayed with the skincare stimulant after washing face everyday . the fig1 a and 1 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 4 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness ; the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , the fig2 a and 2 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 7 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results indicated : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness ; the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 10000 . the fig3 a and 3 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 2 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness , and the pores became smaller while the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 5000 . the fig4 a and 4 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 4 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness , and the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 5000 . the fig5 a and 5 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 4 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent ; scars thereon became lighter ( please refer to the picture between fig5 a and 5 b ); showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness ; the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 5000 . the fig6 a and 6 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 7 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness , and the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 5000 . the fig7 a and 7 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 7 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness , and the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 3000 . the fig8 a and 8 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 24 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness , and the pores became smaller while the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 3000 . the fig9 a and 9 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 21 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness , and the pores became smaller while the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a heterologous platelet dry powder prepared from bovine blood , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 5000 . the fig1 a and 10 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 3 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness , and the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a heterologous platelet dry powder prepared from bovine blood , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 3000 . the fig1 a and 11 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 8 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right are the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness ; the pores became smaller and the skin became whiter and clearer . similar to embodiment 1 , but the platelet dry powder was a homologous platelet dry powder prepared from the blood in a blood bank , and the concentration of the skincare stimulant ( platelet number / ml of solution ) was 1000 . the fig1 a and 12 b show the conditions of the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation before the treatments and 19 weeks after the treatments , wherein the photographs on the right re the partially magnified pictures of the photographs on the left . the results showed : the body area awaiting the skincare stimulation had wrinkles that either vanished or became less apparent , and spots thereon became lighter in color ; showed significantly increased skin elasticity and firmness ; the pores became smaller , and the skin became whiter and clearer . the results from the embodiments indicate that : with respect to the effects of the treatments , the heterologous plt appeared to outperform the homologous plt and the autologous plt . however , considering the patients &# 39 ; possible concerns , it is preferable to use homologous plt or autologous plt , and is more preferable to use autologous plt . | 0 |
a fibor implements in a manner known per se the continuous film boiling of a liquid . it is known in particular for water that heating the water volume starting from its boundary surfaces proceeds differently as a function of the temperature difference δt between the water volume and the heating surface . for δt & lt ; 5 k , the heat transport takes place mainly convectively , steam bubbles forming sporadically now and then on the heated wall , possibly detaching themselves and rising in the water volume and being dissolved again in the process ( compare fig1 a ). if δt is increased further to values up to 30 k , increased bubble formation takes place little by little , these being formed over a large area , they detach themselves in a rapid sequence and rise to the surface of the water ( compare fig1 b ). it can be gathered from fig2 , that the heat amount dissipated into the water volume increases particularly strongly from the start of the increased bubble formation , until δt = 30 k is reached . conventional household stoves are indeed for this reason designed such that the cooktops reach absolute temperatures around 130 ° c . fig2 likewise shows the finding that the heat transfer into the water volume decreases again for still higher values of δt and reaches a minimum at approximately δt = 200 k . the reason is to be found in the increased evaporation in the immediate vicinity of the heated wall . thus the steam can no longer be absorbed fast enough by the water volume and carried away , so that an insulating steam cushion forms between the water and the wall across ever larger surfaces . herein lies the analogy to the known leidenfrost effect . the minimum heat transfer obviously occurs when the entire heating surface is covered by a steam film , thus largely blocking the convective heat transport . this state marks the onset of film boiling ( compare fig1 c ). a fibor has the task of initiating the film boiling and of maintaining it through suitable closed - loop control — for example of the heating temperature . the precise implementation of the fibor lies within the framework of the expert action . however , it should be stressed that a fibor that is advantageously designed for the purpose of the invention should allow free access to the surface of the water volume to carry out the inventive immersion coating of substrates with nanoparticles . in this respect a fibor , that is designed as an open trough with a heating device that acts from the bottom side , is particularly suitable for realizing the invention . 1 . the inventive method does not require any defined atmospheric conditions , and in particular no excess pressure is required . it can be carried out in every laboratory at indoor air . 2 . only energy ( heat ) and an aqueous solution of metal salts , that can be prepared fast and at short notice , have to be supplied to the fibor . catalysts are not necessarily requisite , and in principle no dangerous by - products are produced . 3 . the production of the nanoparticles from the aqueous solution , the floating of the nanoparticles to the water surface and coating a substrate by immersion in the solution only require a total of a few minutes . the method is thus many times faster than other wet - chemical methods where particle growth takes place . the most simple implementation of a suitable fibor that can be realized at any time is a simple beaker on a hot plate . without further measures , such a “ beaker reactor ” will not be able to sustain a continuous production of nanoparticles . as mentioned above , it is assumed , that these additional measures can be realized by a person skilled in the art . fig3 a and 3b show electron microscope pictures of a film , manufactured according to the invention , from zinc oxide nanoparticles on a silicon substrate in two amplifications . to prepare the film , at first a laboratory hot plate was preheated to 250 - 270 ° c . a 100 ml beaker with an aqueous zinc acetate solution was placed on the preheated plate . measurements confirm that the temperature of the glass underside corresponded to that of the hot plate after 1 - 2 minutes . after approximately 10 - 15 minutes , a film that floated on the water surface developed , and a silicon substrate was dipped slowly and steadily into the solution over the time interval of approximately one minute and pulled out again . during the dipping movement , the film material that previously floated then adhered to the substrate . the pictures in fig3 a and 3b prove that they were relatively uniformly distributed nanoparticles of approximately identical size . their composition was confirmed by means of energy - dispersive x - ray analysis ( edx ) and x - ray diffractometry ( x - ray diffraction , xrd ) as being zno particles . if the dipping process is repeated with a second silicon substrate after a few minutes , a film of nanoparticles is formed whose particle size distribution is scattered further than that of the film on the first substrate , the reason for this being on the one hand the agglomeration of the nanoparticles already present and on the other hand the addition of further ions to these particles from the solution , that is , the particle growth proceeds over time . this fact has to be taken into account when implementing the method in a continuously operating fibor . since the substrate is coated with the particle film by dipping in water at atmospheric pressure , in practice the temperature to which the substrate is exposed is limited upwards to approximately 100 ° c . for this reason , both pre - structured and also many organic substrates can be provided for coating , only with the proviso that the particles produced adhere to them . of particular interest in this context are substrates of commercially common , chemically inert polymers such as polymethyl methacrylate ( pmma ) or any other fluoropolymer ( for example teflon ®). in this case , the adhesion of the nanoparticles may well be promoted by a controlled , temperature - dependent softening of the polymers . here , the example zinc oxide in analogy to de 10 2005 060 407 a1 is not to be understood in a limiting sense . in this area , research is still at the beginning , but it is clear even today that other particles , too , in particular metal - oxide particles , may be produced in the same way . titanium oxide is of particular commercial interest ( for example as uv absorber ). it is possible here that the oxygen for the formation of the oxide particles is being provided by thermal dissociation of water molecules . it can , however , also be imagined ( and it has not been clarified so far ), that the oxygen dissolved in the solution plays a role for the reaction . if this should be confirmed , monitoring and possibly the closed - loop control of the concentration of the dissolved oxygen would have to be envisaged when setting up a continuous fibor . this can be implemented by a simple gas pump that for example draws in the indoor air and conducts it via a tube into the reactor vessel as far as possible into the proximity of the reactive phase limit water / steam . as an alternative , pure oxygen from cylinders can also be introduced . it shall finally be pointed out that film boiling is per se a fixed technical term that is associated with the minimum of heat transfer into the fluid as a starting point . in the case of the present invention , the term film boiling shall also refer to the case of a steam film that is possibly not ( yet ) continuous ( conventionally termed as “ transition boiling ”), to the extent that it is already able to produce nanoparticles . in view of de 10 2005 060 407 a1 , which is incorporated herein by reference , it is to be assumed that the nanoparticles can be produced already starting at a wall temperature above 200 ° c ., where the classical film boiling does not necessarily have to have started . in view of this , film boiling in the inventive sense is to be understood in a broader meaning . | 2 |
referring now to fig1 , the semiconductor device according to the embodiment of the present invention is a dram ( dynamic random access memory ) that performs a prefetch operation and includes a memory cell array 10 having a plurality of memory cells and a peripheral circuit unit 20 that controls an operation of the memory cell array 10 . although not particularly limited thereto , the number of bits to be prefetched is two in the case of a ddr ( double date rate ) type , four in the case of a ddr2 type , and eight in the case of a ddr3 type . because the ddr to ddr3 drams perform input / output of data synchronously with both of a rise edge and a fall edge of a clock signal , a part of the peripheral circuit unit 20 needs to operate at a frequency twice as high as that of the memory cell array 10 in the case of the ddr2 type and at a frequency four times higher than that of the memory cell array 10 in the case of the ddr3 type . the memory cell array 10 and the peripheral circuit unit 20 operate synchronously with internal clock signals iclk 0 and iclk 1 supplied from a clock generator 32 , respectively . the clock generator 32 generates the internal clock signals iclk 0 and iclk 1 based on an external clock signal ck supplied from outside via a clock terminal 30 and an input first - stage circuit 31 . the frequency of the internal clock signal iclk 1 is set to be the same frequency as that of the internal clock signal iclk 0 in the case of the ddr type , twice as high as that of the internal clock signal iclk 0 in the case of the ddr2 type , and four times higher than that of the internal clock signal iclk 0 in the case of the ddr3 type . an address signal add and a command signal cmd supplied via an address terminal 41 and a command terminal 42 , respectively , are supplied to the peripheral circuit unit 20 via an input first - stage circuit 43 . accordingly , when the command signal cmd indicates a read operation , the peripheral circuit unit 20 performs a read operation for the memory cell array 10 , so that read data is read from a memory cell indicated by the address signal add . read data dq read from the memory cell array 10 is output to outside via a data input / output circuit 51 and a data input / output terminal 50 . when the command signal cmd indicates a write operation , the peripheral circuit unit 20 performs a write operation for the memory cell array 10 , so that write data dq supplied from outside via the data input / output terminal 50 and the data input / output circuit 51 is written in a memory cell indicated by the address signal add . a low - speed test and a high - speed test are performed for the semiconductor device of this embodiment before shipment . the low - speed test is performed for detecting defective memory cells included in the memory cell array 10 and replacing the detected defective memory cells with auxiliary memory cells . because the low - speed test is performed for many semiconductor devices in parallel in a wafer state , a tester that enables a high - speed operation is impractical and thus a low - speed tester is used . therefore , an external clock signal ck with a low frequency is used at the time of the low - speed test . after the defective memory cells are replaced with the auxiliary memory cells in the low - speed test , the wafer is diced to singulate semiconductor chips , the semiconductor chips are packaged , and then the high - speed test is performed . the high - speed test is an operation test using a high - speed external clock signal ck as at the time of a practical operation and is mainly performed to check whether the peripheral circuit unit 20 correctly operates at a high speed . the high - speed test needs to use an expensive tester that can operate at a high speed , which is a factor of an increase in the manufacturing cost of a semiconductor device . to solve this problem , in the semiconductor device according to the present embodiment , the high - speed test can be also performed at the time of the low - speed test by using a multiplier oscillator 100 and a test - signal generation circuit 200 . the multiplier oscillator 100 generates the internal clock signal iclk 1 with a higher frequency than that of the external clock signal ck by multiplying the external clock signal ck supplied via the input first - stage circuit 31 at the time of the low - speed test . the test - signal generation circuit 200 is a circuit that internally generates the address signal add , the command signal cmd , and the write data dq and supplies the address signal add , the command signal cmd , and the write data dq to the peripheral circuit unit 20 at the time of the low - speed test . by including the multiplier oscillator 100 and the test - signal generation circuit 200 , the semiconductor device according to the present embodiment enables the peripheral circuit unit 20 to operate at a high speed synchronously with the high - speed internal clock signal iclk 1 also at the time of the low - speed test . accordingly , a part of or the entirety of the high - speed test performed using an expensive tester can be omitted . when the low - speed test is first performed , the multiplier oscillator 100 and the test - signal generation circuit 200 are deactivated , the external clock signal ck , the address signal add , the command signal cmd , and the write data dq are supplied to the terminals 30 , 41 , 42 , and 50 , respectively , and a test on the memory cell array 10 is performed . the frequency of the external clock signal ck is sufficiently lower than that to be used at the time of the practical operation and the address signal add , the command signal cmd , and the write data dq are also supplied synchronously with the external clock signal ck . the result of the test is compressed by a test - result confirmation circuit 210 and is supplied to the tester via the data input / output terminal 50 . meanwhile , when the high - speed test is performed , the multiplier oscillator 100 and the test - signal generation circuit 200 are activated and a low - speed external clock signal ck is supplied to the clock terminal 30 . the address signal add , the command signal cmd , and the write data dq are not supplied . the multiplier oscillator 100 receives the low - speed external clock signal ck and generates the high - speed internal clock signal iclk 1 by multiplying the external clock signal ck . the test - signal generation circuit 200 internally generates the address signal add , the command signal cmd , and the write data dq synchronously with the internal clock signal iclk 1 and supplies the address signal add , the command signal cmd , and the write data dq to the peripheral circuit unit 20 . accordingly , the peripheral circuit unit 20 can operate at the same speed as at the time of the practical operation . the internal clock signal iclk 0 having the same frequency as that of the low - speed external clock signal ck is supplied to the memory cell array 10 . the result of the test is slowed down by a test - result slowing circuit 220 and supplied to the tester via the test - result confirmation circuit 210 and the data input / output terminal 50 . slowing down by the test - result slowing circuit 220 can be achieved , for example , by conversion of read data serially output from the peripheral circuit unit 20 into parallel read data , and the parallel read data can be compressed by the test - result confirmation circuit 210 . at the time of a normal operation , the multiplier oscillator 100 and the test - signal generation circuit 200 are deactivated . a conventional high - speed test can be also performed in the same operation condition as at the time of the normal operation . a specific circuit configuration of the multiplier oscillator 100 and an operation thereof are explained below in detail . turning to fig2 , the multiplier oscillator 100 includes a variable delay circuit 110 that receives an input clock signal clk 0 and generates a phase determination signal pd and clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 with different phases . the multiplier oscillator 100 further includes a regulator circuit 120 that generates an operating voltage vdly of the variable delay circuit 110 based on the phase determination signal pd , and a waveform synthesis circuit 130 that generates the internal clock signal iclk 1 by synthesizing the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 . turning to fig3 , the variable delay circuit 110 includes eight delay circuits 111 to 118 that are cascade - connected and a phase discrimination circuit ( or a phase comparator ) 119 that compares phases of the clock signals clk 0 and clk 8 with each other . the delay circuits 111 to 118 receive the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 and delay the received clock signals to output clock signals clk 1 to clk 8 , respectively . the delay circuits 111 to 118 have the same circuit configuration as one another and all operate with the same operating voltage vdly . turning to fig4 , each of the delay circuits 111 to 118 includes two inverter circuits inv 1 and inv 2 that are cascade - connected . the operating voltage vdly is supplied to a source of a p - channel mos transistor included in each of the inverter circuits inv 1 and inv 2 , and a ground potential vss is supplied to a source of an n - channel mos transistor included in each of the inverter circuits inv 1 and inv 2 . with this configuration , a delay amount of one delay circuit can be controlled by the level of the operating voltage vdly . specifically , the delay amount of one delay circuit becomes smaller when the operating voltage vdly has a higher level , and the delay amount of one delay circuit becomes larger when the operating voltage vdly has a lower level . the circuit configuration of the delay circuits 111 to 118 is not limited to that shown in fig4 and , for example , a circuit including four inverter circuits cascade - connected can be used . an operation of the variable delay circuit 110 and the regulator circuit 120 will be explained with reference to fig5 a to 5d . fig5 a shows a waveform of the clock signal clk 0 and fig5 b , 5 c and 5 d show waveforms of the clock signal clk 8 . first , when the clock signal clk 8 has a phase shown in fig5 b , that is , when the phase of the clock signal ckl 8 is delayed with respect to that of the clock signal clk 0 , the phase discrimination circuit 119 shown in fig3 sets the phase determination signal pd to a high level . this determination is performed based on a fact that the clock signal clk 8 has a low level at a timing when the clock signal clk 0 changes from a low level to a high level . when the phase determination signal pd has a high level , the regulator circuit 120 increases the level of the operating voltage vdly . as a result , the delay amount of one delay circuit is decreased and thus the phase of the clock signal clk 8 is advanced . on the contrary , when the clock signal clk 8 has a phase shown in fig5 c , that is , the phase of the clock signal clk 8 is advanced with respect to that of the clock signal clk 0 , the phase discrimination circuit 119 sets the phase determination signal pd to a low level . this determination is performed based on a fact that the clock signal clk 8 has a high level at a timing when the clock signal clk 0 changes from a low level to a high level . when the phase determination signal pd has a low level , the regulator circuit 120 decreases the level of the operating voltage vdly . as a result , the delay amount of one delay circuit is increased and thus the phase of the clock signal clk 8 is delayed . by repeating this operation , the phase of the clock signal clk 8 is controlled to match with the phase of the clock signal clk 0 as shown in fig5 d . a state where the phases of the clock signal clk 0 and the clock signal clk 8 match , that is , a state where the phases are locked means that a delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is equal to an integral multiple of a cycle of the clock signal clk 0 . when the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is equal to one cycle of the clock signal clk 0 in this case , the phases of the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 output from the variable delay circuit 110 are shifted from one another by ⅛ clock cycle . while the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 are extracted from the variable delay circuit 110 in the present embodiment , the clock signals clk 1 to clk 8 may be extracted instead of the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 . turning to fig6 , the waveform synthesis circuit 130 includes one - shot - pulse generation circuits op 0 to op 7 to which the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 are supplied , respectively . each of the one - shot - pulse generation circuits op 0 to op 7 generates a low - level one - shot pulse synchronously with a rise edge of corresponding one of the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 . output signals of the one - shot - pulse generation circuits op 0 , op 2 , op 4 , and op 6 are supplied to an nand gate circuit 131 . an output signal of the nand gate circuit 131 is supplied to a gate electrode of a p - channel mos transistor 134 via an inverter circuit 132 and a timing adjustment circuit 133 . a power supply potential vperi is supplied to a source of the transistor 134 and accordingly the transistor 134 functions as a driver circuit that drives the internal clock signal iclk 1 to a high level . similarly , output signals of the one - shot - pulse generation circuits op 1 , op 3 , op 5 , and op 7 are supplied to a nand gate circuit 135 . an output signal of the nand gate circuit 135 is supplied to a gate electrode of an n - channel mos transistor 138 via inverter circuits 136 and 137 . a ground potential vss is supplied to a source of the transistor 138 and accordingly the transistor 138 functions as a driver circuit that drives the internal clock signal iclk 1 to a low level . the timing adjustment circuit 133 includes transistors p 1 and n 1 having the same sizes as those of transistors p 2 and n 2 , respectively , included in the inverter circuit 137 . an output signal of the inverter circuit 132 is supplied to sources of the transistors p 1 and n 1 . because the ground potential vss is supplied to agate electrode of the transistor p 1 and the power supply potential vperi is supplied to a gate electrode of the transistor n 1 , the transistors p 1 and n 1 are always in an on - state . therefore , when the output signal from the inverter circuit 132 has a high level , the output signal from the inverter circuit 132 is supplied to the gate electrode of the transistor 134 via the transistor p 1 . this flow of the output signal has the same condition as that of a signal flowing to the gate electrode of the transistor 138 via the transistor p 2 when an output signal of the inverter circuit 136 changes to a low level . similarly , when the output signal from the inverter circuit 132 has a low level , the output signal from the inverter circuit 132 is supplied to the gate electrode of the transistor 134 via the transistor n 1 . this flow of the output signal has the same condition as that of a signal flowing to the gate electrode of the transistor 138 via the transistor n 2 when the output signal of the inverter circuit 136 changes to a high level . in this way , operation timings of the transistors 134 and 138 are matched with each other . in an example shown in fig7 , the clock signal clk 8 is delayed with respect to the clock signal clk 0 by one cycle . that is , the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 shown in fig3 corresponds to one cycle of the clock signal clk 0 . in this case , the phases of the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 are shifted from one another by ⅛ clock cycle as shown in fig7 . this means that rise edges of the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 appear every ⅛ clock cycle . as mentioned above , when the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 rise , a one - shot pulse is generated by the corresponding one - shot - pulse generation circuits op 0 to op 7 , respectively . specifically , when one of the clock signals clk 0 , clk 2 , clk 4 , and clk 6 changes from a low level to a high level , a low - level one - shot pulse is output from corresponding one of the one - shot - pulse generation circuits op 0 , op 2 , op 4 , and op 6 and thus the transistor 134 is turned on in response thereto . accordingly , the internal clock signal iclk 1 rises to a high level . on the other hand , when one of the clock signals clk 1 , clk 3 , clk 5 , and clk 7 changes from a low level to a high level , a low - level one - shot pulse is output from corresponding one of the one - shot - pulse generation circuits op 1 , op 3 , op 5 , and op 7 and thus the transistor 138 is turned on in response thereto . accordingly , the internal clock signal iclk 1 falls to a low level . therefore , when the clock signals clk 0 to clk 7 rise in this order as shown in fig7 , the logic level of the internal clock signal iclk 1 changes synchronously therewith . that is , the logic level of the internal clock signal iclk 1 changes every ⅛ clock cycle , so that the internal clock signal iclk 1 having four times faster than the clock signal clk 0 is generated . if the clock cycle of the internal clock signal iclk 1 becomes slightly longer than the fourfold cycle of the clock signal clk 0 , the phase of the clock signal clk 8 is delayed with respect to that of the clock signal clk 0 and accordingly the operating voltage vdly is increased by the regulator circuit 120 shown in fig2 , which decreases the delay amount of one delay circuit . in this way , the clock cycle of the internal clock signal iclk 1 is controlled to be reduced . on the contrary , if the cycle of the internal clock signal cilk 1 becomes slightly shorter than the fourfold cycle of the clock signal clk 0 , the phase of the clock signal clk 8 is advanced with respect to that of the clock signal clk 0 and accordingly the operating voltage vdly is decreased by the regulator circuit 120 , which increases the delay amount of one delay circuit . in this way , the clock cycle of the internal clock signal iclk 1 is controlled to be increased . by repeating this operation , the cycle of the internal clock signal iclk 1 is correctly controlled to be four times faster than that of the clock signal clk 0 and the phase of the internal clock signal iclk 1 exactly matches with that of the clock signal clk 0 . turning to fig8 a to 8d , fig8 a shows a waveform of the clock signal clk 0 having a cycle of 2500 ps ( picoseconds ), for example . ideally , in this case , the cycle of the internal clock signal iclk 1 is expected to be 625 ps as shown in fig8 b . however , if the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is slightly longer than one cycle of the clock signal clk 0 and 2525 ps , for example , as shown in fig8 c , the cycle of the internal clock signal iclk 1 actually obtained is 631 . 25 ps . in this case , a difference between an edge of the ideal internal clock signal iclk 1 and an edge of the internal clock signal iclk 1 actually obtained increases with passage of the time from appearance of a rise edge of the clock signal clk 0 and reaches 21 . 875 ps at the last edge e 0 as shown in fig8 d . however , this phase difference is reset at the next rise edge of the clock signal clk 0 . therefore , a phenomenon in which a phase difference is accumulated little by little as in the pll circuit using the ring oscillator does not occur . while the case where the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is equal to one cycle of the clock signal clk 0 has been explained above , the variable delay circuit 110 shown in fig3 locks the phases if the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is an integral multiple of the cycle of the clock signal clk 0 . the lock means a state where a control is executed to keep a state where a rise edge of the clock signal clk 0 and a rise edge of the clock signal clk 8 match with each other . for example , when the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is 3 . 25 cycles of the clock signal clk 0 as shown in fig9 a , the variable delay circuit 110 adversely executes a control to match the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 with three cycles ( 3t ) of the clock signal clk 0 . a waveform shown in fig9 a indicates the clock signal clk 0 and waveforms shown in fig9 b and 9c indicate the clock signal clk 8 before and after the control , respectively . that is , fig9 c shows a state where the clock signal clk 8 is locked with the clock signal clk 0 shown in fig9 a in a delay of three cycles with respect thereto . in this case , the waveform of the obtained internal clock signal iclk 1 is as shown in fig9 d and is quite different from an intended frequency ( four times that of the clock signal clk 0 ). to obtain the intended frequency , the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 needs to be controlled in such a manner that the clock signal clk 8 is delayed with respect to the clock signal clk 0 by one clock cycle ( 1t ) as shown in fig9 e . fig9 f shows the internal clock signal iclk 1 locked at the intended frequency . to avoid the problem explained with reference to fig9 a to 9d , that is , the problem that the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is locked at n clock cycles ( n is an integer equal to or larger than two ) of the clock signal clk 0 , the multiplier oscillator 100 according to the present embodiment includes a reference - edge detection circuit 140 . turning to fig1 , the reference - edge detection circuit 140 includes eight latch circuits ff 1 to ff 8 that are cascade - connected . among these circuits , each of the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 receives input data from a latch circuit at the previous stage synchronously with a rise edge of corresponding one of the clock signals clk 1 to clk 7 . input data d 0 supplied to the latch circuit ff 1 at the first stage is fixed to a high level . the latch circuit ff 8 at the last stage receives input data d 7 from the latch circuit ff 7 at the previous stage synchronously with a rise edge of the clock signal clk 0 . a determination signal s output from the latch circuit ff 8 at the last stage is supplied to the regulator circuit 120 shown in fig2 . each of the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 8 has a reset node . when the reset node is activated , the latch data is reset to a low level . as shown in fig1 , the output signal of the one - shot - pulse generation circuit op that generates a one - shot pulse synchronously with a rise edge of the clock signal clk 0 is supplied to the reset nodes of the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 . accordingly , the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 are reset each time the clock signal clk 0 changes to a high level . a reset signal rb activated at the time of an initialization operation is supplied to the reset node of the latch circuit ff 8 . fig1 a shows a waveform of the clock signal clk 0 and fig1 b and 11c show waveforms of the internal clock signal iclk 1 generated in cases where the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is three clock cycles and one clock cycle of the clock signal clk 0 , respectively . first , in the case where the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is three clock cycles of the clock signal clk 0 , output signals d 1 to d 7 of the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 are excepted to change to a high level at timings shown in fig1 b , respectively , assuming that the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 are not reset . however , all of the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 are actually reset each time the clock signal clk 0 rises and thus a high - level output signal d 7 never reaches the latch circuit ff 8 at the last stage . that is , after being reset at the initialization operation , the latch circuit ff 8 at the last stage keeps the initial state and accordingly the determination signal s is kept at a low level . when the determination signal s is kept at the low level , the regulator circuit 120 shown in fig2 increases the operating voltage vdly regardless of the phase determination signal pd . this is because the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is far beyond one clock cycle of the clock signal clk 0 and thus the delay amount needs to be forcibly reduced to prevent erroneous locking at n clock cycles ( n is an integer equal to or larger than two ) of the clock signal clk 0 . when the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 is forcibly reduced in this way , the delay amount is shortened to near one clock cycle of the clock signal clk 0 . in this case , before the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 are reset , the output signals d 1 to d 7 of the latch circuits ff 1 to ff 7 change to a high level at timings shown in fig1 c , respectively , and thus a high - level output signal d 7 reaches the latch circuit ff 8 at the last stage . as a result , the determination signal s changes to a high level . when the determination signal s changes to the high level , the regulator circuit 120 starts the operation based on the phase determination signal pd . the operation of the regulator circuit 120 based on the phase determination signal pd is as explained above and the operating voltage vdly is controlled to match the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 with one clock cycle of the clock signal clk 0 . with this operation , the multiplier oscillator 100 according to the present embodiment controls the delay amount obtained by the delay circuits 111 to 118 to delay the phase of the clock signal clk 8 with respect to that of the clock signal clk 0 exactly by one clock cycle , so that the phenomenon in which locking is performed at an unintended frequency can be prevented . as described above , with the multiplier oscillator 100 according to the present embodiment , the internal clock signal iclk 1 being a signal obtained by correctly multiplying the input clock signal clk 0 can be generated . furthermore , a correct internal clock signal can be generated with lower power consumption than in an oscillation circuit using a ring oscillator . while the internal clock signal iclk 1 having a frequency four times higher than that of the clock signal clk 0 is generated using the eight delay circuits 111 to 118 in the present embodiment , the frequency of an internal clock signal to be generated can be arbitrarily set according to the number of delay circuits to be used . specifically , when n delay circuits are used , an internal clock signal having n / 2 times the frequency ( 2 / n times the clock cycle ) of the clock signal clk 0 can be generated . the multiplier oscillator 100 according to the present embodiment can be applied also to a dll ( delay - locked loop ) circuit . turning to fig1 , the dll circuit 300 according to the first example includes a frequency division circuit 310 that generates a frequency - divided clock signal dclk by frequency - dividing the external clock signal ck and a delay line 320 that delays the frequency - divided clock signal dclk . the delay line 320 generates an input clock signal clk 0 that is phase - controlled . the input clock signal clk 0 is supplied to the multiplier oscillator 100 . the input clock signal clk 0 is supplied also to a replica buffer circuit 330 . a replica clock signal rclk , which is an output signal from the replica buffer circuit 330 , is fed back to a delay adjustment circuit 340 . the delay adjustment circuit 340 performs a phase comparison operation between the replica clock signal rclk and the frequency - divided clock signal dclk to control a delay amount of the delay line 320 based on the result of the phase comparison operation . the delay line 320 has a configuration including a plurality of inverter circuits that are cascade - connected as shown in fig1 and the clock signal clk 0 is extracted from any one of the inverter circuits selected by the delay adjustment circuit 340 . specifically , when the phase of the replica clock signal rclk is delayed with respect to that of the frequency - divided clock signal dclk , the clock signal clk 0 is extracted from an inverter circuit at a more previous stage because the delay amount needs to be smaller . one the contrary , when the phase of the replica clock signal rclk is advanced with respect to that of the frequency - divided clock signal dclk , the clock signal clk 0 is extracted from an inverter circuit at a more subsequent stage because the delay amount needs to be larger . by repeating this operation , the phase of the replica clock signal rclk is matched with that of the frequency - divided clock signal dclk . in this case , a problem occurs that , when a clock signal to be supplied to the delay line 320 has a higher frequency , signal quality is greatly deteriorated if a delay amount of each stage of the inverter circuits included in the delay line 320 is not set smaller . that is , as shown in fig1 a , the inverter circuits have a threshold voltage and , each time the level of the input signal shown in fig1 a exceeds the threshold voltage , an output signal shown in fig1 b is inverted . however , a change in the input signal or the output signal requires a certain time . in the waveform shown in fig1 a , tr denotes a time required for arise of the input signal and tf denotes a time required for a fall of the input signal . if lengths of the rise time tr and the fall time tf are sufficiently shorter than the clock cycle of the clock signal passing through the delay line 320 , no problem occurs . however , when the clock signal passing through the delay line 320 is faster , the clock cycle thereof is shorter and thus influences of the rise time tr and the fall time tf become negligible . it is found that a clock signal having a cycle shorter than 800 ps cannot be correctly transmitted when the rise time tr and the fall time tf are both 400 ps , for example , as shown in fig1 . this problem can be solve by arranging the frequency division circuit 310 at the previous stage of the delay line 320 as in the dll circuit 300 shown in fig1 . that is , when the frequency division circuit 310 is arranged at the previous stage of the delay line 320 , a clock signal passing through the delay line 320 has a frequency reduced to one - fourth or one - eighth , for example , and thus the problem mentioned above does not occur . the frequency reduced by the frequency division circuit 310 can be then regenerated by multiplying the clock signal clk 0 output from the delay line 320 with the multiplier oscillator 100 . when the multiplier oscillator 100 according to the present embodiment is applied to the dll circuit in this way , the phase control can be correctly executed even when the external clock signal ck has a high frequency . turning to fig1 , the dll circuit 350 according to the second example is different from the dll circuit 300 shown in fig1 in that the frequency division circuit 310 is omitted . because other elements are the same as those in the dll circuit 300 shown in fig1 , like elements are denoted by like reference characters and redundant explanations will be omitted . according to the dll circuit 350 shown in fig1 , the internal clock signal iclk 1 having a higher frequency than that of the external clock signal ck can be correctly phase - controlled . furthermore , because the multiplier oscillator 100 is arranged at the subsequent stage of the delay line 320 , not at the previous stage thereof , the frequency of a clock signal passing through the delay line 320 never become higher than that of the external clock signal ck . it is apparent that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments , but may be modified and changed without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention . | 7 |
referring now to fig1 a mobile machine is designated generally therein by the reference numeral 10 . the machine 10 includes an earthworking implement comprising a central main frame 12 and two oppositely extending wing frames 14 . in an agricultural machine , the main frame 12 and wing frames 14 would typically carry earthworking tools , such as those associated with planters , seed drills , chisel plows , etc . ( not illustrated ). to accommodate road transport of the machine 10 , the wing frames 14 are typically raised to an inactive position as illustrated in fig1 . in operation , the wing frames 14 are lowered to a ground engaging position as illustrated in fig6 for the right - hand wing frame 14 . the machine 10 typically has a plurality of wheels 16 , as well as wheels 18 associated with the main frame 12 and wheels 20 associated with the wing frames 14 . each wing frame 14 is pivotally connected to an end of the main frame 12 about a pin 22 . each wing frame 14 is movable between the raised , inactive position and the lowered ground engaging position by an actuating means 26 which is operative to move the wing frame 14 relative to the main frame 12 . the actuating means 26 may include any suitable conventional or non - conventional mechanism for effecting movement of the wing frame 14 about the pivot pin 22 . in the preferred embodiment illustrated , each actuating means 26 is a dual acting hydraulic cylinder - piston actuator . at one end , the actuating means 26 is pivotally connected to a portion of the main frame 12 , as at connection pin 28 . at the other end , the actuating means 26 is connected to the wing frame 14 through a float bar 30 . the float bar 30 includes two spaced - apart links 32 ( fig7 and fig8 ). the float bar 30 , as defined by the two links 32 , has a first end pivotally connected to a pin 36 ( fig5 and 7 ) which is carried between two spaced - apart , parallel wing plates 38 that are mounted to , and form part of , the wing frame 14 . the other , or second , end of the float bar 30 is pivotally connected to the actuating means 26 about a pin 42 . a latch means 50 is pivotally mounted to the main frame 12 about a pin 52 which is carried between two spaced - apart plates 54 that are mounted to , and form part of , the main frame 12 . as best illustrated in fig9 the latch means 50 includes a hook portion defining a concave latch surface 56 and an upper exterior cam follower surface 58 . the latch means 50 is urged by a biasing means 60 in the clockwise direction as viewed in fig9 . the biasing means 60 , in the preferred embodiment illustrated , is a torsion spring disposed around the pivot pin 52 . the torsion spring biasing means 60 has an upper portion 62 engaging the back of the latch means 50 and a lower portion 64 engaging a retainer pin 66 which is carried between the main frame plates 54 . the latch means 50 is adapted to engage the wing frame 14 and hold the wing frame 14 in the raised position . to this end , a striker pin is provided in the form of a bushing 68 mounted concentrically on the pin 36 between the wing frame plates 38 . the latch means 50 is adapted to be received between the float bar links 32 so that the concave latch surface 56 can engage the striker pin or bushing 68 to latch it , and thereby retain the wing frame 14 in the raised position as best illustrated in fig2 , and 8 . in operation , when the actuating means 26 is operated to raise the wing frame 14 as illustrated in fig5 the striker pin 68 approaches the top of the latch means 50 , engages the cam follower surface 58 on the top of the latch means 50 , and pivots the latch means 50 in the counterclockwise direction until the striker pin 68 becomes aligned with the concave latch surface 56 . then the latch means 50 is urged in the clockwise direction by the biasing means 60 into full engagement with the striker pin 68 ( fig2 ). a unique structure is provided for limiting the pivoting movement of the wing frame 14 to the upright , raised position illustrated in fig2 . specifically , each plate 54 ( to which the latch means 50 is mounted ) functions as an engaging member with a sloping engaging surface 70 ( fig2 - 5 ) for engaging a mating surface of the corresponding wing frame plate 38 . the mating surfaces of the wing frame plates 38 and the main frame plates 54 are preferably configured so that the wing frame 14 is in a substantially vertical orientation as illustrated in fig2 when the mating surfaces are engaged . with continued reference to fig2 it is seen that , when the wing frame 14 is in the raised position , the second end of the float bar 30 ( which is pivotally connected about pin 42 to the actuating means 26 ) lies to one side ( above ) a straight line defined by the float bar first end pivot connection 36 and the pivot connection 28 of the actuating means to the main frame 12 . this orientation is maintained by an engaging member 24 mounted on the plates 54 on the main frame 12 . this structure permits operation of the actuating means 26 so to lower the wing frame 14 ( by extending the actuating means 26 ) while preventing rotation of the float bar 30 about pin 36 in the counterclockwise direction as viewed in fig2 . any rotation of the float bar 30 about pin 36 from the position illustrated in fig2 must necessarily occur in the clockwise direction . when it is desired to lower the wing frame 14 , the actuating means 26 is operated to move the float bar 30 outwardly ( to the right as viewed in fig2 and 3 ). this causes the wing frame 14 to pivot about the pivot pin 22 ( in the clockwise direction as viewed in fig2 ). however , the latch means 50 must first be released to accommodate the pivoting movement of the wing frame 14 . to this end , an engaging lug or member 74 is mounted between and to the lower portions of the first ends of each link 32 of the float bar 30 . as best illustrated in fig3 as the actuating means 26 moves the float bar 30 outwardly ( in the direction of arrow 75 in fig3 ), the float bar 30 also pivots about pins 36 and 42 and swings upwardly ( in the direction of the arrow 77 in fig3 ). this causes the side of the engaging member 74 to pivot the latch means 50 ( counterclockwise as viewed in fig3 ) to release the striker pin 68 . the weight of the wing frame 14 will act to help force the unlatched wing frame 14 to the lowered position . however , since the float bar 30 is pivoted on both ends ( at pin 42 and at pin 36 ), the float bar 30 will tend to pivot as illustrated in fig3 while undergoing only a relatively small outward movement ( toward the right as viewed in fig3 ). in case the wing frame 14 does not pivot sufficiently to be forced to the lowered position by the weight of the wing frame 14 , means are provided for engaging another part of the wing frame 14 with the float bar 30 . to this end , each wing frame plate 38 is provided with an engaging member 76 ( fig2 - 5 ). each engaging member 76 is located on the wing frame 14 so that it is spaced from the float bar 30 when the actuating means 26 has been operated to fully raise the wing frame 14 . however , each engaging member 76 is also located such that it is engaged by the float bar 30 when the wing frame 14 is in the raised position but the actuating means 26 is being operated to move the float bar 30 to disengage the latch means 50 . at that point , the float bar 30 contacts the engaging members 76 and pivots the wing frame 14 to the lowered position as illustrated in fig3 . when the wing frame 14 is in the lowered position as illustrated in fig4 and 6 , the wing frame 14 is free to pivot or &# 34 ; float &# 34 ; relative to the terrain encountered by the machine 10 . this capability results from the frame pivot connection 22 and from the float bar 30 which is pivoted on each end at pins 36 and 42 . however , in order to accomodate the desired float action , the pivot pin 42 of the float bar 30 must remain on one side of ( above ) the straight line defined by the float bar pivot connection 36 and the pivot connection of the actuating means 26 to the main frame 12 when the wing frame 14 is in the lowered position . to this end , each wing frame plate 38 includes an engaging member 82 . as best illustrated in fig4 and 6 , the engaging member 82 on each wing frame plate 38 engages the corresponding float bar link 32 to limit the rotation of the float bar 30 in the counterclockwise direction about pin 36 . the pivot pin 42 thus remains above the straight line of action between the pivot pin 36 and the pivot connection 28 of the actuating means 26 to the main frame 12 when the wing frame 14 is in the lowered position . it will be readily observed from the foregoing detailed description of the invention and from the illustrated embodiment thereof that numerous variations and modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts or principles of this invention . | 0 |
[ 0010 ] fig1 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the invention . [ 0011 ] fig2 is a pictorial view of an embodiment of a tracking label . the flow diagram for the shipper entry process according to an embodiment of the invention is shown in fig3 . using a web - based asp process , the shipper will enter pertinent information to create an airline mawb . an embodiment of a waybill is shown in fig4 . upon submission to the database , the mawb detail will be available to the security facility . the fields as shown in table 1 may be used for the mawb entry . the information in the brackets of table 1 , in one embodiment , may be subject to default entry from a data table accessed through the same web interface . additionally , in one embodiment , a template may be available to the users allowing them to automatically perform the entry for the entire mawb . the output , in one embodiment , may be a tracking label , per piece , which may include a bar code for scanning and may be placed on the pieces . fig2 illustrates an embodiment of a tracking label . in one embodiment , a paper copy of the mawb may also be produced for the airline . this information , in one embodiment , may be made available on the web so that the forwarder and carrier can have access at any time . [ 0028 ] fig5 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of the cargo screening process . using a standard handheld barcode scanner , the tracking number will be scanned and entered into the data table thereby denoting acceptance of the shipment . if the label is not readable or if the shipper has not used the web entry system , then go to “ enter mawb detail ” else , go to “ weight and measure scan ”. open web entry system on terminal browser and perform entry as detailed in “ shipper entry ”. freight will be placed on the conveyor system by a forklift and is systematically placed into a laser dimensioning system followed by an electronic scale . the data collected by these systems will be relayed to the mawb database and compared with the previously entered data . if the comparison indicates a change in weight or dimensions then go to “ correct weights and measures in mawb record ”, else go to “ security scan ”. overwrite the data produced by the laser dimensioning to the chargeable weight field of the mawb data table and system and overwrite the data produced by the electronic scale to the data field labeled gross weight . [ 0045 ] fig5 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of a cargo screening process . in one embodiment , this may be a two - stage process including both gas chromatograph and x - ray scanning technologies . the scan for explosives residue will be performed with the use of a briefcase - sized gas chromatograph it takes samples from the air to detect the presence of chemicals such as those used in bombs , explosives , and chemical weapons . this process will take between 10 and 90 seconds . if the results are acceptable then go to x - ray else go to “ heightened security measures ” the scan for visible explosives will be performed with the use of an in - line , conveyor driven x - ray system , which will scan cargo and save images of the scan . this process will take approximately 60 seconds . in the embodiment of an enhanced security process shown in the flow diagram of fig6 . a pallet of packages will be completely dismantled and all packages may be opened . if the results are acceptable then go to “ airline processing ”, else go to “ evacuation procedure ” press button on nearest emergency alarm system and completely evacuate the building , a flow chart for the carrier , which in one embodiment may be an airline , is shown in fig7 . if the cargo is palletized then go to “ load cargo ”, else go to “ sort cargo by airline ”. remove cargo from end of conveyor belt with lift truck and place in staging area with automated sorters . sorters will read barcode and determine which airline is to receive the shipment . the shipments will be palletized , then go to “ load cargo ”. scan label with barcode scanner to indicate that cargo is loaded onto delivery truck . mawb will be electronically submitted to airlines through various value added networks , which service the electronic communications needs of the airlines . all publications , patents , and patent documents are incorporated by reference herein , as though individually incorporated by reference . the invention has been described with reference to various specific and preferred embodiments and techniques . however , it should be understood that many variations and modifications may be made while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention . | 6 |
the method of this invention utilizes a product control matrix ( i ) to monitor day - to - day product development , i . e ., product tracking , ( ii ) to provide a means for detailed product documentation , which can be used for gaining customer acceptance of the product , and ( iii ) to provide controlled predictable manufacturing throughout the product production life . the product control matrix is a control center , preferrably maintained in a computer system but also maintainable in other ways , such as in a file system , for : denoting the stages in product development / production and the requirements within each stage ; providing a uniform set of requirements for the development / production of all products ; and generating detailed documentation describing the development , testing , functionality , reliability , features and capabilities of each product . product control matrix 100 of this invention ( fig1 ) has a multiplicity of stages , shown to be four stages 101 - 1 through 101 - 4 in fig1 . of course , additional stages can be used if desired . each stage is subdivided into requirements 104 . in fig1 an identifier ( such as number 11 or 15 as shown in stage 1 ) is provided for each requirement . requirements 104 in each stages 101 - 1 through 101 - 4 define the minimum requirements set of engineering functions that must be successfully accomplished to ensure rapid introduction and controlled predictable manufacturing of a reliable high quality product . for ease of illustration , each of stages 101 - 1 through 101 - 4 ( fig1 ) includes the same number of requirements 104 . however , in practice , the number of requirements in each stage may be different . after the list of requirements 104 in each stage 101 is a gate 106 . gate 106 is a control mechanism for assuring that all requirements 104 in the corresponding stage 101 are complete prior to assigning a status , described more completely below , of that product in the company &# 39 ; s manufacturing systems . in gate 106 , the data and the documentation for each requirement in the stage are reviewed . if the data and the documentation satisfy the requirements of that stage , gate 106 is marked open . following each gate 106 in product control matrix 100 is a corresponding status information 107 . typically , status information 107 includes several subcategories such as manufacturing status , product marking , product revenue status and product warranty status . the status information is the fundamental reference for the company &# 39 ; s production management system . product control matrix 100 operates in conjunction with a data and result documentation database 110 ( illustrated schematically in fig2 ) and a requirement description database 120 . product control matrix 100 and databases 110 , 120 are maintained in computer system 520 . as requirements 104 ( fig1 ) in a stage 100 are completed , the results and the data supporting those results are entered in database 110 . requirement description database 120 ( fig2 ) contains a detailed description of each requirement 104 in product control matrix 100 . any person desiring to know the status of the product development and / or the product production simply accesses product control matrix 100 . examination of product control matrix 100 immediately informs the person of the requirements that have been completed and the requirements remaining to be performed prior to introduction of the product to market . the person can quickly ascertain any bottlenecks or problems by accessing the description of any incomplete requirement and subsequently contacting the group or groups responsible for the completion of that requirement . in addition , as described more completely below , the person can also access simply and easily the data and results for each of the completed requirements . this permits the person to review and understand the information that is available to the groups that are experiencing bottlenecks and / or problems . accordingly , product control matrix 100 provides a means for active management and review of product development rather than the relatively uncoordinated and inaccessible operations of the prior art . requirements 104 in each stage 101 of product control matrix 100 ( fig2 ) require the planning input and participation of every group involved in the product development cycle well before the time that each group physically performs their specific product development requirements . the integration provided by product control matrix 100 assures that any potential problem or delay in the manufacturing process is identified at the earliest possible time so that the problem can be addressed and remedied without affecting the quality , reliability , timeliness , predictability and profitability of the product introduction to the market . data and results database 110 ( fig2 ) may be used in reviewing the status of the product development or alternatively may be printed out in a selected form and used to support customer evaluation and acceptance of the new product . since database 110 provides a complete detailed history of the product development , database 110 provides a valuable reference tool for addressing any problems that may be encountered later in the product &# 39 ; s lifetime . product control matrix 100 ( fig1 ) is displayed , in one embodiment , on a video display screen 200 of computer system 520 . each requirement 104 is provided with a short identifier and with a means for indicating completion of the requirement . as shown in fig1 the completion indicating means , in this embodiment , is a column 103 - 1 , for example , with the title &# 34 ; done &# 34 ;. the requirement is completed when a &# 34 ; y &# 34 ;, for example , is entered in the column corresponding to the completed requirement . for each requirement in product control matrix 100 ( fig1 and 2 ), the description of that requirement is maintained in database 120 ( fig2 ) in computer system 520 with product control matrix 100 . to access the description of a particular requirement , the video display screen cursor is positioned over the requirement and the keyboard key indicated on video display screen 200 is pressed . product control matrix 100 is replaced on video display screen 200 with a description of the selected requirement . in addition to the description of each requirement , the data generated in completing each requirement is also maintained in database 110 in computer system 520 . to review the data for a particular requirement in product control matrix 100 , the video display screen cursor is again placed over the requirement and the keyboard key indicated on video display screen 200 is pressed . the product control matrix 100 is replaced on video display screen 200 with the data in database 110 for the selected requirement . all or part of the results and data in database 110 may also be printed with ease at any time for internal use , marketing or any other desired function . in particular , in one embodiment , database 110 for all the requirements in control matrix 100 is printed . this printed document is the product passport . the term &# 34 ; product passport &# 34 ; is used because the document is the means used to gain customer acceptance of the new product by evidencing the detailed engineering process at every development stage . thus , product control matrix 100 is a means for monitoring the status of product development . the product control matrix 100 indicates the stages of product development which have completed and within the active stage , the requirements that remain to be completed . upon completion of all the stages , the data is printed and used to demonstrate the scope and results of the product development . product control matrix 100 is a means for controlling product development and production so all company groups associated with the product assist in the development and production at a time frame that insures development at the earliest possible date of a fully functional reliable product . the generation of product control matrix 100 is illustrated in fig3 . initially , the manufacturing process for a new product is segmented into stages in segmentation 300 . for example , for a new semiconductor product , the manufacturing process is segmented , in one embodiment , into six stages as shown in fig4 . the six stages are design 401 - 1 , engineering samples 401 - 2 , development 401 - 3 , standard product 401 - 4 , military product 401 - 5 , and alert control 401 - 6 . in view of this disclosure , those skilled in the art may segment the manufacturing process into either more than six stages or less than six stages . the important aspect in segmentation 300 is that stages 401 are selected so that stages 401 are performed sequentially . also , each stage is typically selected so that the stage corresponds to one complete phase of the product development and / or production status . within each stage , as explained more completely below , the requirements set includes not only the minimum engineering functions necessary for successful completion of the subsequent stages but also the sequencing of the engineering functions that ensure the earliest possible time to market of the product . the sequence of engineering functions is also selected so that all of the company resources are used in the most effective and economical way . thus , while stages 401 are performed sequentially , stages 401 are not independent . stages 401 are coupled through the interaction of the requirements in one stage with related requirements in subsequent stages . also , while stages 401 are performed in sequential order , requirements in different stages 401 may be performed in parallel . upon completion of segmentation 300 , the process passes through stage remaining test 301 to definition 302 . in definition 302 , each of the requirements within the stage being processed is defined . the requirements are explained more completely below . briefly , the requirements within a stage are the product development functions that are required to be completed so as to assure prompt , expeditious , and error free completion of the subsequent stages and consequently the earliest possible introduction of the product to the market . the exact requirements in a stage depend upon the status of the different elements of product development , for example , in the semiconductor industry , the status of fabrication technology , the design technology , and the packaging technology . a product that requires a new design , new fabrication technology , and a new package will have a different requirements set than a product that has a new design , but uses proven fabrication and packaging methods . after the definition of the requirements , requirements remaining check 303 passes processing to requirement detail generation 304 if all of the requirements have not been processed . in requirement detail generation 304 , a specification , i . e ., the information in requirement database 120 , is generated for ascertaining the scope of the requirement . the important aspect is that the specification provide a guideline for ascertaining all functions that must be performed to complete the requirement . when requirement detail generation 304 for the requirement is complete , processing returns to requirements remaining 303 which either returns processing to requirement detail generation 304 if a requirement remains for specification processing , or transfers processing to stage remaining test 301 . upon processing transferring to stage remaining test 301 , the process passes through definition 302 , requirement remaining 303 and requirement detail generation 304 , as described above , if any stages remain . when all of the stages have been processed , stage remaining 301 passes control to generate product control matrix 305 . upon entry to generate product control matrix 305 , the manufacturing process has been subdivided into a multiplicity of stages 401 - 1 through 401 - 6 ( fig4 and 5 ) and each stage has been subdivided into requirements 404 - n , where n equals 1 , 2 , . . . , 6 ( fig5 ) the specification for each requirement has been completed . thus , sufficient information is available to complete product control matrix 400 ( fig7 a , 7b and 7c ). generation of product control matrix 400 depends upon the computer system and location of the facilities of the company . in one embodiment , product control matrix 305 is in a digital computer system having a vax operating system and a world wide - area network . the important aspect in generation of product control matrix 400 is that each person responsible for , or related to any portion of the product development have access to product control matrix 400 and the related databases . generation of the windows containing product control matrix 400 on the video display screen as well as text entry , access and manipulation associated with any procedures , data , or documentation are well - known to those skilled in the art and are not an essential feature of the invention . the important aspect is the operation and use of product control matrix 400 as a control center to assure that a fully operational quality product is shipped at the earliest possible date . historically , as described above , in the development of a new semiconductor product for example , a group , typically called a design group , worked in conjunction with marketing personnel to develop a design for the product . when the design was completed , the product development was transferred to an engineering group which fabricated samples and tested the product to validate the design . after the engineering tests were completed , the product was then transferred to manufacturing facilities which in combination generated the standard version of the product . at every stage of the manufacturing process there was the potential for inadequate interaction among various groups or agencies . in contrast , according to the method of the present invention , all groups within a company that are responsible for any portion of the development of a product from the initial conception to the shipment of the standard versions of the product are involved throughout the product development cycle via the requirements defined by the product control matrix 400 ( fig7 a , 7b and 7c ). ( herein , product control matrix 400 is one embodiment of the more general product control matrix 100 ( fig1 )). as illustrated in fig6 the groups involved in new semiconductor product development may include , for example , product marketing 500 , corporate marketing 501 , product planning 502 , applications 503 , design 504 , computer - aided - design ( cad ) 505 , test engineering 506 , test mark pack operations 507 , technology development 508 , wafer fabrication 509 , package development 510 , product engineering 511 , manufacturing services division ( msd ) 512 , and quality assurance ( qa ) 513 . the designation of the names of a particular group in the product development are illustrative only and are not intended to limit the invention to the specific groups described . in any manufacturing process , there are a number of groups within a company that are responsible for some aspect of the product development . according to the principles of this invention , each such group is integrated into the development process through product control matrix 400t , where t equals a , b , c , . . . , n . the first step , in one embodiment , of product development is to prepare a product development plan ( pdp ). the product development plan describes the new product and the anticipated total market demand for the product over the estimated market lifetime of the product , e . g ., the number of units of the product that will be sold by the entire industry each year until there is no longer a market for the product . using the requirements sets of product control matrix 400 , a time line is generated for each stage of product control matrix 400 and consequently , a reliable date for introduction of the new product to the market is forecast that comprehends the total engineering development of the product . also , estimated are the number of units of the product that will be produced by the company after introduction and during the remaining market lifetime , sometimes referred to as the market window of the product . this estimated production and the total market demand is used to generate a profit estimate for the product over its market lifetime . the product development plan also usually includes performance requirements for the new product . if the cost , time , market window and profitability projections of the product plan development comprehending the requirements of product control matrix 400 are approved by company management , work on the requirements sets of product control matrix 400 are initiated for the new product . periodic review of the completed requirements in product control matrix 400 coupled with comparison of updated market projections and time estimates allows management to easily ascertain whether continued product development is economical or whether the product should be abandoned . however , in contrast to the prior art methods of product development , after approval of the product development plan each of the various groups involved in bringing the new product to market have visibility on the total development requirements of product control matrix 400 and consequently there is informed interaction among the groups in the completion of the requirements . therefore the requirements are completed expeditiously . the interactions are described more completely below . product control matrix 400 specifically defines the operations , and a stage of product development is not formally entered until all the operations in the previous stage are successfully completed and documented . product control matrix 400 assures that when the subsequent stage is entered , all the information needed to proceed with the product development is available to each of the groups involved . moreover , the information available either conforms with the standard operations or has previously been reviewed and approved by the appropriate groups . product control matrix 400 assures not only a smooth development process but also uniformity of development approach among all product lines . as used in the embodiment below , a product refers to a semiconductor device which includes one or more circuits , and which is typically contained in a single semiconductor package . one embodiment of product control matrix 400 for the six stages illustrated in fig4 is presented in fig7 a , 7b and 7c . this embodiment is the most complex because both a new product design , a new fabrication technology , and a new package design are all under development . product control matrix 400 provides a novel means for expeditiously integrating all operations and functions associated with this complex development . in this embodiment , design stage 401 - 1 is divided into ten requirements , which are : requirements 404 - 1 in design stage 401 - 1 not only completely document the requirements of the product design stage 401 - 1 but also assure initiation of all operations necessary for a smooth transition from design stage 401 - 1 through alert control stage 401 - 6 . each of requirements 404 - 1 in design stage 401 - 1 is explained more completely below . the requirements are described as they appear in product control matrix 400 . however , the requirements are not listed in either sequential or chronological order within control matrix 400 . to the extent possible , the requirements are performed in parallel , but obviously , as described below , some requirements within a stage must be completed before initiation of other requirements within this stage . one important aspect of requirements 404 - 1 is that upon successful completion of requirements 404 - 1 , all the basic work has been completed for initiation of requirements 404 - 2 in engineering samples stage 401 - 2 . the first requirement in design stage 401 - 1 is process qualification i requirement 1 . process qualification i requirement 1 is the initial requirement that addresses the manufacturability and intrinsic reliability of the wafer fabrication technology that is used in the new product . to complete process qualification i requirement 1 , the process technology development plan ( tdp ) is approved , and conceptual planning , preliminary topographical design rules ( tdrs ), and electrical design rules ( edrs ) ( including circuit simulation models ) for the new process are completed according to the requirements described more completely below . the final function in process qualification i requirement 1 is to complete a semiconductor test chip to assure that the fabrication process meets specific requirements which are tailored to evaluate the intrinsic manufacturabilty and reliability of the process . in one embodiment , test structures monitoring at least the following process characteristics are provided : the final function includes generation of updated tdrs and edrs based upon the test chip performance . preliminary reliability studies of the test chip are also performed and must be successful for satisfactory completion of the process qualification i requirement 1 . device design review requirement 2 is the initial review of the new product design . device design review requirement 2 , in this embodiment , includes nine separate elements . while the nine elements are described more completely below , those skilled in the art , in view of this disclosure , can perform a device design review with any number of elements . the important aspect is that the initial design review cover the complete scope of elements required for a comprehensive definition of the design process . these elements are , in this embodiment : the functional ( objective ) specification gives the functional parameters such as speed , switching times , voltages , and so forth , as well as the overall characteristics of the product . the functional ( objective ) specification is generated by the product planning / product marketing group . the functional specification is reviewed to insure that the specification is clear and understandable . further , the specification is checked to assure that the product defined by the specification is , in fact , the product that the company intends to build . after review , the marketing manager , product planning manager , design engineering manager and product line manager approve the functional specification . in product design methodology , the methodology and tools used to design the product are documented . the design path may consist of top level design , functional blocks , logic cells , as well as device / transistor level design . the design engineering manager and the product line manager review and approve the product design methodology . in simulations , the operation and performance of the new product are simulated using available simulation tools , which are typically computerized . the simulations include the range of top level logic simulations through specific device level simulations . the latest version of the electrical design rules are used in the simulations . further , the design engineering group optimizes the chip layout for chip / package interactions , such as pin capacitance , ground plane , and pad / bond wire interactions , using simulations , and documents the results of such simulations . the product design review requirement is completed by running final simulations to check the behavior of the product at extreme conditions , and variances and margins are comprehended . the final product design simulation includes all ac / dc and functional parameters as given in the functional ( objective ) specification . the final design simulation is thoroughly documented and includes the revision level of all the simulation programs and tools used . the final design simulation is completed prior to mask generation . the design engineering manager , the product engineering manager and the product line manager review and approve the simulations and the documentation and data generated by the simulations . in the topographical design rules check , the product layout is checked against the topographical design rules to insure conformance with the rules . all violations / deviations of the topographical design rules are documented and approved by the technology , fabrication , and product line groups . changes / updates in the topographical design rules may result from the topographical design rule check . all such changes are implemented in the topographical design rules and appear as a new revision of those rules . the technology groups are responsible for generating and updating the topographical design rules . if &# 34 ; correct by design &# 34 ; tools ( standard cells , previously qualified cells ) are used for the layout , all supporting information is documented and approved by the technology , fabrication , and product line groups . the results of the topological design rule check are documented and retained in database 110 associated with product control matrix 400 . the managers of design engineering , product engineering , the technology group , fabrication engineering , and the product line review the topological design rule documentation and approve the topological design rule check . to establish maximum current density locations , the design engineering group identifies the appropriate locations and calculates the maximum current densities under worse case process / operating conditions . the technology group approves the maximum current densities before mask generation . the design engineering manager , product engineering manager , product line manager and technology manager review and approve the documentation that defines the locations with the maximum current densities under worse case process / operating conditions . to optimize esd protection , the design engineering group uses the most robust esd structure for the process technology / product combination to insure compliance with prevailing esd requirements . the esd structure behavior is either simulated to prove the structure &# 39 ; s effectiveness or a correct by design justification is provided for the esd structure . in test vector generation , design engineering generates at least a minimum set of test vectors for the final simulation , described above in simulations , relevant to the functional ( objective ) product specification , also described above . those test vectors are documented so that the test vectors are subsequently useful ( i ) in generation of test programs by the test engineering group , and ( ii ) in failure analysis of actual semiconductor chips later in subsequent stages of the product development . the managers of design engineering , product engineering , test engineering and product line each review and approve the test vector generation . in fault grading / fault coverage , the design engineering group implements testability features in the product design . using the test vector set defined in test vector generation , and the testability features defined by design engineering , a written estimate of the functional fault coverage for the new product is made . the goal of the fault grading / fault coverage element is to optimize test coverage of electrical performance . the managers of design engineering , product engineering , product line and test engineering must each approve the design of the testability features and the fault coverage . the final element in device design review requirement 2 is failure analysis tools . this element is designed to expedite failure analysis on complex products . for example , if an electron beam microprober is to be used in the failure analysis such as the ids - 5000 e - beam microprober available from schlumberger of san jose , ca , the design engineering group generates a net list in a format acceptable to the microprober . the design engineering manager and the product line manager approve the input generated for the microprober . upon completion and approval of the nine elements in device design review requirement 2 , device design review requirement 2 is marked as completed in product control matrix 400 . the marking of this requirement complete means not only that the elements are completed , but also that the data supporting the elements are available for review , printing , or any other use supported by the computer system . upon completion of each of the requirements in product control matrix 400 and approval of the data and results of the requirement by the designated group or groups , the requirement is marked complete . therefore , this action is incorporated by reference in each of the requirements described below and so is not included within the description of those requirements . an important aspect of any product development is the operations that establish the functional quality and reliability characteristics of the product . in particular , the sensitivity of the functional , quality , and reliability characteristics of the new product to cumulative process variations in making the product must be understood . characterization of the cumulative process variation is represented by characterization in the product control matrix and characterization requirements are included within each of the first five stages of product control matrix 400 . the characterization requirements are paramount in establishing the manufacturability and profitability of the product . by definition , the scope of the characterization requirement determines the scope of the acceptable process variation window . if the characterization requirement is performed using only nominal processing , the subsequent manufacturing will be similarly restricted . thus , every effort is made in the characterization requirement to establish that the maximum variation range that will allow acceptable functional , parametric , quality and reliability performance . in stage one , characterization i requirement 3 creates a plan for performing product characterization during the subsequent stages in the product development . this plan includes each of the process modules that are used to manufacture the product and that have been identified as affecting either the functional , quality , or the reliability characteristics of the product . for each such process module , the plan includes strategy to determine the maximum variation range of the process and the result of any interactions between process variations that in turn affects the functional quality and / or the reliability characteristics of the product . in test plan requirement 4 , the requirements are defined for a test strategy that is subsequently executed during later states . in this embodiment , test plan requirement 4 includes fault grading or fault coverage evaluation , test strategy and guard - banding scheme , external software and hardware support , test flow description , stress testing conditions , tester correlation , and manufacturing support for testing . stress testing , as described more completely below , is addressed to insure shipment of a reliable product when the device / process technology requires such stress testing . stress testing includes , but is not limited to burn in , high temperature operating life ( htol ) and voltage stress tests . the fault grading or fault coverage evaluation of the test plan requirement is consistent with that described above in design review requirement 2 and as such is documented as a part of design review requirement 2 . the test strategy and guard - banding scheme of test plan requirement 4 encompasses the overall test philosophy of the product including any stress testing . in this function , a description of the test strategy is completed . this description includes : 1 ) tester - type , and model no . or other specific identifying method for the tester , projected test times to allow for manufacturing to plan capacity requirements ; 2 ) test coverage at all test steps ( including , but not limited to , sort , class , post burn in , quality assurance ,) and stress tests at all steps including , but not limited to , over - voltage , data retention bakes , and burn - in ; 3 ) a description of the guard - banding philosophy used at all steps and plans to put the guard - bands in as early in the test flow as possible , and methods used for guard - banding ac and dc parameters , voltage , tester tolerance , shall be included ; 4 ) a description of vector coverage for each of the functional areas of a device is provided ; 5 ) a description of how the tests within the test strategy relate to the targeted quality and reliability levels ; and in the external software and hardware support of test plan requirement 4 , introduction of any software and / or hardware needs associated with the product are documented . in the case of programmable products for example , programming algorithms and hardware needs are defined as well as a plan for vendor support of the programmable product , if required . in test plan requirement 4 , the test flow description describes the sequencing of the various tests within the test plan and allows evaluation against preferred standardized flows . in the stress testing conditions of test plan requirement 4 , stress test methods and conditions are selected that comprehend the dominant failure mode or modes consistent with the fabrication process technology selected for the product design . the reliability manager and the technology group manager , in one embodiment , approve the stress methodology . if any form of stress testing is required to pass product qualification requirements 25 , ( fig7 a ) 40 , ( fig7 b ) 51 , ( fig7 b ) 63 , ( fig7 c , see also stage 2 to stage 5 below ) test the plan must include the burn - in circuit diagrams and board / driver / oven needs to support the stress test in the case of burn - in . similar requirements apply to other stresses the appropriate burn - in circuit and conditions and / or other stresses are selected on the basis of ability to detect the predominant failure modes within the device / process technology . in the tester correlation , the test program is correlated with the bench setup to insure that the test program / tester / setup is adequate to assure proper testing . any additional tester types or setups used in the manufacturing process are also correlated against the bench setup or a previously correlated tester / setup . the final element of test plan requirement 4 is the manufacturing support for testing . a plan detailing manufacturing test support is generated and updated as required . the plan includes : 1 . tester type and loading based on projected test times , number of insertions , setup time and similar information ; 2 . burn - in and board requirements based on stress times needed to achieve the reliability goals and volume of product projected ; and 3 . transfer intentions which include the intended final test site , the intended transfer date and the expected volume of product at that time . the seven elements within the test plan requirement 4 are interrelated and require information and interaction of several groups . thus , the product / test engineering manager , design manager and msd engineering manager review and approve the data generated to support test plan requirement 4 prior to marking the test plan requirement complete in product control matrix 400 . in die package submission requirement 5 , the product group requests the approval of a package by submitting a package qualification request . to obtain approval for a specific package , the product engineer submits a package request ( device ) package qualification request . in this embodiment , the die package approval is based on previous history of a specific package in relationship to die size and die geometry . the die package should conform with any design rules for the package and die . if the die / package combination is not covered by the package and die design rules , the die / package requires formal qualification . the package approval request must have a bill of materials for producing the package with the product . each of the items on the bill of materials must have passed a quality test . if any item does not have a completed qualification test , final approval for the die / package submission is given only after review of the qualification data for the items which were not previously qualified . once the package request is approved by the packaging engineer , the packaging engineer is responsible for submitting a request to the mark , pack and test engineering director for package / handling equipment and materials . the packing materials used for shipping the product from one location to another location are designed in the packing and orientation requirement 6 . the packing material is selected so that the material prevents damage to the product during transit either within the company or from the company to the company &# 39 ; s customer . product control team requirement 7 formally establishes the cross - functional team approach to product realization . the team is selected to insure effective communication between the appropriate functions that are required to successfully complete the requirement and to provide control or traceability through the product life cycle . in this requirement , the key personnel are identified and committed to the product by signature . in one embodiment , the team includes the following responsibilities within the company : ______________________________________product marketing design product engineeringcorporate marketing cad division qualityproduct planning test engineering package developmentapplications test mark - pack technology operators development wafer fab engineer msd engineer______________________________________ statistical process management i requirement 8 is used as a key tool in establishing the manufacturability , predictability , reliability , quality and cost of the product . in stage 1 , statistical process management i requirement 8 requires a preliminary listing of ( i ) all process modules and ( ii ) the associated equipment for all stages of the product manufacturing cycle from the incoming material assessment through the final quality assurance testing . product performance plan i requirement 9 identifies all key manufacturing indices of the product and the anticipated value of each of these indices as the product progresses through the stages in the product control matrix . the anticipated values of the key manufacturing indices are selected so that the indices are available for comparison with the product development plan estimates that were made initially . the minimum operational indices include wafer yield , die yield , bin yield , assembly yield quality indices such as visual / mechanical ( v / m ), hermeticity , electrical , quality and reliability indices ( early failure rate / extended life ( efr / el )). if a burn - in screening requirement is incorporated in any part of the product development or production cycle , this requirement must be indicated on the performance plan together with the anticipated post - burn - in yield . the final requirement in stage 1 is assembly and package qualification 10 . the purpose of assembly and package qualification requirement 10 is to assure the manufacturability and intrinsic reliability of the assembly and packaging process . therefore , this requirement produces a formal plan to establish the intrinsic reliability of the assembly / packaging process through stress testing of test die / package combinations , where the test die have been specifically designed to evaluate the thermal , mechanical and hermetic robustness of the die / package combination . upon completion of the ten requirements in design stage 401 - 1 , gating function 406 - 1 , which is performed by the qa manager and the product manager , requires evaluation of all results and documentation for design stage 401 - 1 . if the documentation and results as represented in database 110 associated with product control matrix 400 are satisfactory , the gate is opened . in evaluating the results , a rigid requirement for exact compliance with every requirement is not used . rather , the results are analyzed to ascertain whether the intent of the requirement has been met and whether any deviations from the specified requirement are documented and an appropriate explanation provided so that any effect on quality or reliability of the product may be ascertained . opening the gate means that the product is clearly identified with a coding of &# 34 ; ds &# 34 ; ( design stage ) in the company &# 39 ; s manufacturing management systems . typically , after completion of a stage , the product is marked externally with a symbol appropriate to that stage , and the revenue and warranty associated with products so marked are specified . since after stage 1 the product is still in internal development , there are no revenue , warranty , or mark associated with the product . however , as shown in product control matrix 400 , these are cumulatively indicated as first mask set meaning that upon successful completion of design stage 401 - 1 , the funding and authorization to proceed with a first mask set for the new product is available . if there are any unacceptable inconsistencies , errors , incomplete analysis / results , or other problems in the first stage , gate 406 - 1 is not opened . any problems , which are encountered , must be corrected and / or clarified prior to opening of the gate and generation of the first mask set . the second stage in product control matrix 400 is engineering sample stage 401 - 2 . in the engineering sample stage 401 - 2 , the initial mask set and engineering samples of the product are made and evaluated . this stage includes eighteen requirements which are : in the first stage the complete process flow , including all process flow modules , was identified . in process qualification ii requirement 11 , the manufacturability and intrinsic reliability of the wafer fabrication is further developed . the factor c p is a standard known means for characterizing process modules . c p for all critical process modules is determined using fully diagnostic test chip or a representative product vehicle , referred to as a technology product vehicle . here as previously described , a critical process module is a module in which the process variations affect the manufacturability , reliability and / or quality of the product . the mask index template generated by the technology group is approved by the fabrication group and the fabrication group approves limited production startup of the engineering samples . in mask index issued requirement 12 , the requirements for the product mask set are specified and documented . the product / design manager is typically responsible for generation of the mask index and upon completion of the requirement , the design engineering manager and the product line manager approve the mask index . mask set fab acceptance requirement 13 is coupled with mask index issued requirement 12 . the mask set referenced in mask index issued requirement 12 is approved by the wafer fab engineering manager for use in engineering samples production runs and an approved mask index specification is issued for fabrication use . the product manager typically issues the mask index specification and the mask index fabrication is approved by the fabrication management . in design verification requirement 14 of this stage , the previously verified test vectors are run on the engineering sample device with the specified timing , voltage and current levels to verify the functionality of the engineering sample device . alternatively , if approved by design management , an alternative bench test may be used . a table of results is generated which lists the parameters and the measurements of that parameter , timing , etc ., alongside either the goals from the product development plan or information from the advanced data sheet , which is described more completely below . in design resimulation requirement 15 , design engineering reviews the data from design verification requirement 14 in comparison with the design objectives of requirement 2 . if the actual performance of the engineering sample product is inconsistent with the simulation results from requirement 2 , resimulations using updated models based upon the observed performance of the engineering sample products are made . if warranted , the simulation models / tools are updated to represent a more realistic performance model . if a decision is made not to perform design resimulation requirement 15 , a technical justification is provided for the decision . the design engineer and product line managers review the resimulation results and / or technical justification for not performing a design resimulation . in characterization ii requirement 16 , the first mask set performance is evaluated using an engineering sample product . the scope of the mask set performance evaluation includes both a nominal process and statistically designed experiment ( sde ) matrix process runs . the advance data sheet , described more completely below , is used as a performance reference for this evaluation . diagnostic device analysis is also completed in this requirement . the results of the first mask set performance evaluation and the device analyses are documented in a report . subject to the results , a mask improvement plan is also provided . in design stage 401 - 1 , test plan requirement 4 generated a test flow description . in this stage , test flow specification requirement 17 results in the generation of the test flow specification for the test flow description generated in first stage 401 - 1 . generation of the test flow specification , in one embodiment , consists of selecting one test flow that includes the features in the test flow description from a document containing a compilation of acceptable standard test flows . burn - in and test conditions are provided in the compilation of acceptable test flows . with the selected test flow , the product line specification writer may generate either an automated process specification using a computer based means for generating the test flow specification or alternatively any other means which converts the burn in and test conditions into a test flow specification . nonstandard flows , i . e . flows which are not provided in the compilation , for assembly and / or test , mark and pack are separately approved by a vice president of the manufacturing service division . the nonstandard flow is documented in a specification in the same manner as the standard flow . in assembly process specification requirement 18 , the assembly process steps are added , as required , to the corporate listing of approved assembly flows and a detail flow chart generated to document the specific package type . all critical assembly processes and inspection / tests are listed in the baseline policy . in this embodiment , the assembly process includes any process step after wafer sort electrical test through to final assembly visual inspection , prior to electrical class test . the outline drawing with all the dimensions needed by the customer to assemble the product in boards using automated equipment is generated in catalog package outlines and dimensions requirement 19 . the packaging engineer ensures complete documentation of all piece parts needed for the package . in manufacturing logistics plan requirement 20 , a manufacturing logistics plan is generated that identifies the wafer fabrication location , assembly plant / subcontractor location , test location , test equipment and mark / pack location . the manufacturing logistics plan also includes a preliminary bill of materials needed for each of the various locations , and an estimated quantity of product to manufactured on a monthly basis during the engineering , development and standard product stages . the manufacturing logistics plan estimates the fabrication , test , and assembly production volumes required to be consistent with the pdp targeted ramp up for the product . in records plan requirement 21 , all detailed materials relevant to the product development history are maintained in a secure location and made readily accessible . the product group provides a record plan that lists all key records , material , and indicates , for each item , the intended retention method . the records plan is specific enough and comprehensive enough to allow ready access to all the key engineering information so that product reliability can be maintained even in the absence of any or all of the product control team . these records include engineering detail , for example , a complete design data base , and for some of the requirements these records are significantly more detailed and voluminous than summaries supplied to meet the requirements . statistical process management ii requirement 22 requires an updated ( requirement 8 ) listing of the process modules and specific equipment used in producing engineering samples . spc ( statistical process control ) parameters , sampling plans , and charting methods are identified for each process module . statistical equipment control ( sec ) parameters , sampling plans and spc methods are identified for process equipment and metrology equipment . statistical capabilities studies are established for each piece of process equipment and each piece of metrology equipment . in product performance ii requirement 23 , a formal report of operational indices on the latest production units and a tabulation against the anticipated results projected in product performance requirement 9 and the pdp is generated . deviations from the projections are highlighted together with a corrective action plan or other engineering / management rationale . in this stage , an updated listing of the predicted indices for each of the subsequent stages is also generated . in assembly and package qualification ii requirement 24 , the manufacturability and intrinsic early failure rate (&# 34 ; efr &# 34 ;) reliability of the assembly and packaging for the new product are further demonstrated using test die / package combinations in accordance with requirement 10 . in one embodiment , this demonstration requires that the assembly and packaging be shown to be cost effective , standardized , feasible of volume manufacturing , and that the intrinsic efr reliability meets or exceeds the standard requirements associated with assembly and packaging in the industry . a formal plan to assess the reliability of the actual product is prepared in product qualification i requirement 25 . in this requirement , a formal plan is generated to establish the reliability of the product , including the range and duration of stress tests , sample size , and acceptance / rejection criteria for the product . a formal plan to monitor product reliability is prepared in reliability monitoring i requirement 26 . in this requirement , assignment of the product to a representative grouping for reliability test purposes , including possibly the creation of a new grouping is done . the planned range of tests and frequencies , logistics to support reliability monitoring requirements in the subsequent stages and an anticipated start date for the reliability monitoring requirements in the subsequent stages are also established in this requirement . in request for build requirement 27 , the initial request for the assembly of engineering samples is completed this request includes a system for tracking the request for build engineering lots through the manufacturing and testing system . in addition , specifications are provided that define product line responsibility as well as msd engineering . the purpose of the request for build (&# 34 ; rfb &# 34 ;) system is to provide highly expedited and possibly non - standard assembly / test of the engineering sample product . advance data sheet requirement 28 , a partial , targetted , functional and parametric performance for the eventual standard ( military and / or commercial ) versions of the product , comprehending the data arising from product produced to date is defined . the advance data sheet provides an initial marketing device allowing customer consideration of the targetted specification . after the requirements in engineering sample stage 401 - 2 are completed and documented , the gate manager 406 - 2 reviews the results and the documentation . if the results and documentation are satisfactory , gate 406 - 2 is marked open and the designation for the products made after this time is &# 34 ; es &# 34 ; and the product is shipped and marked with the same designation . since the samples are still in this early development stage , no revenue is received and consequently no warranty is extended for the engineering samples , unless there is a written customer contract , acknowledging the product status and agreeing to specific payment and / or warranty conditions . if either the documentation or results are unsatisfactory , they are reworked as necessary . again the important aspect is that the requirements in this stage must be successfully completed to assure an expeditious and successful early introduction of the standard product to market . upon completion of engineering sample stage 401 - 2 , the third stage , development stage 401 - 3 , is formally entered . in this embodiment , development stage 401 - 3 , has fifteen requirements , which are : as in the previous process qualification requirements , process qualification iii requirement 29 further documents the manufacturability and intrinsic reliability of the wafer fabrication technology . in this requirement , the test chip or technology product vehicle demonstrates the intrinsic reliability of the process technology to both the prevailing efr and extended life requirements . additionally , the process technology is approved by the fabrication group for a full production release . if process qualification iii requirement 29 is only met by burn - in or other stress screening , the required stress screening is defined in detail . where stress screening is required , the process technology is only released subject to formal approval of the vice presidents of technology , wafer fabrication and quality . in characterization iii requirement 30 , the intended dv mask set performance is evaluated . the scope of the evaluations includes both a nominal process run and sde matrix process runs . the performance reference for the evaluation is the preliminary data sheet and diagnostic device analysis is again completed . a characterization report is issued with a mask improvement plan if needed . in test program release requirement 31 , electrical test programs consistent with the preliminary data sheet for the product are defined and released to manufacture . the test programs may be released via the corporate document control system , and must conform to the corporate test program control policy . in quality assurance testing requirement 32 , the divisional quality group verifies that the tests for visual , mechanical and electrical have started for the product . sample sizes and the acceptance criteria will be consistent with the corporate quality assurance policy . the quality monitoring program results are recorded continuously in a quality data base and provide verification that the quality monitoring program has started and is on - going . in build sheet release requirement 33 , the build sheet , which is a bonding diagram that explains to the operator the correct die placement in the package and the interconnecting lead wire placement between the die and the package , is released . this document also defines the types of materials used to assemble the product . the build sheet is released only when the configuration has been assigned in the corporate manufacturing management system and the bill of materials for the assembly and packaging is complete . the packing and orientation standard final release requirement 34 assures that devices packed in the manner defined in the specification have undergone national transit type of testing and that these devices have passed electrical , visual / mechanical and hermeticity testing . for surface mount devices , which are susceptible to moisture degradation , the devices are subjected to the environmental life test conditions of the reliability monitor program (&# 34 ; rmp &# 34 ;) ( requirement 52 below ) as well as destructive analysis . in requirement 35 , a document is generated that defines the workmanship standards for the visual and mechanical characteristics of each package and the lead finish . prior to the release of the new package , the document is updated so that the criteria satisfy not only the company standards but also all customer requirements . the quality standard for marking of devices is defined in requirement 36 . based on the marking code convention used and the package outline , the mark orientation is defined in the specification . also , the marking , as defined , conforms to any standards for type - size , based on package outline . statistical process management iii requirement 37 requires a specific list of the process modules and associated equipment used in producing the latest development sample product . process and equipment capabilities are established by statistical means . spc and sde are established on a per process module basis . a formal regular spc report system is established . a written plan to optimize each process module , e . g ., center mean values of the process and reduce the variation , is also completed . in product performance iii requirement 38 , a formal report of the latest operational indices is generated . the indices for the development product are compared with the predicted results from the second stage , or the pdp , and an updated prediction for the next stage is made . deviations are highlighted together with a corrective action plan or other engineering / management rationale for the deviation . in package qualification iii requirement 39 , manufacturability and intrinsic reliability of assembly and packaging are fully proven using representative test die / package combinations . in product qualification ii requirement 40 , the reliability of the specific die / package combination is proven to meet or exceed the prevailing early failure rate ( efr ) requirements . in reliability monitor ii requirement 41 , the efr of each lot of dv product is monitored either by 100 % burn in or a statistically meaningful sample plan approved by the quality group . only products which are consistent with the efr standards are shipped . additionally , the extended life performance of the dv product is regularly monitored in a program which meets or exceeds the requirements of the corporate reliability monitor program ( requirement 52 below ) in processing specification requirement 42 , the manufacturing floor is provided with the flow for all test , mark , and pack operations and the specific specifications that apply to each step in the flow . on completion of the requirements for this stage , the part is marked with the standard mark , plus the letters &# 34 ; dv &# 34 ; and when the products have successfully completed the requirements for the next stage , the processing specification must be changed to eliminate the &# 34 ; dv &# 34 ; letters . in preliminary data sheet requirement 43 , the targeted functional and parametric performance of the standard versions of the product comprehending the total data from product produced to date , is defined . the preliminary data sheet is specific and comprehensive , but clearly indicates that the targeted , functional , and parametric performance is still subject to change at this time . on completion of the fifteen requirements of development product stage 401 - 3 , the gating operation 406 - 3 for that stage evaluates the results and documentation . again , if the documentation and results , as represented in database 110 associated with the product control matrix 400 , are satisfactory , gate 406 - 3 is opened . opening the gate means that the product is classified &# 34 ; dv &# 34 ; to indicate that the product has completed the development product stage 401 - 3 and may be shipped to a customer . the products made after this time are also marked &# 34 ; dv &# 34 ; and revenue is accepted for the parts and a standard warranty is given . at this point in the product development , the first three stages have been completed and so final actions to establish standard production of the new product are ready to begin . unlike prior art methods where at this point in time the manufacturing facility would potentially be contacted for the first time to start the production runs , product control matrix 400 has assured that all the groups involved in the manufacture of the new product have been integrated into the product development process and the requirements for the standard production have been defined and built into the product development . in one embodiment , standard production may consist of either a commercial product which is produced through the standard commercial product stage 401 - 4 or alternatively a military product which is developed through military product stage 401 - 5 . these stages are similar except that the military product typically has additional and different operating condition requirements , and these requirements require additional testing and / or verification . standard commercial product stage 401 - 4 includes eleven requirements . the requirements are : upon completion of the requirements in standard commercial product stage 401 - 4 , the new product is ready for volume introduction to the standard product market . in test programs class 11 requirement 44 , all test programs , including wafer sort are documented in accordance with corporate policy which requires definition of actual parametric values used in testing data sheet listed parameters . in characterization iv requirement 45 , the intended &# 34 ; pr &# 34 ; mask set performance is evaluated . the scope of the evaluation includes a statistically defined number of both nominal process and sde matrix process runs . the performance reference for the evaluation is the intended final data sheet . again , device analysis is completed and a characterization report is issued demonstrating acceptable yield and parametric stability or a minor mask improvement plan , based upon assignable causes identified by device analysis and yield analysis . in test program revision control requirement 46 , all test programs , as previously defined , are placed under revision control via the corporate manufacturing management system . in engineering change notice ( ecn ) requirement 47 , an engineering change notice procedure is established that applies to the product baseline defined by the combination of statistical process management ( spm ) iv requirement 49 , product performance iv requirement 50 , and product passport requirement 48 , described below , for those lots submitted for product qualification iii requirement 51 . with reference to the spm iv requirement 49 and product performance iv requirement 50 , the definition of change applicable to c p &# 39 ; s , variable distributions , yield , etc . is that statistical definition given in spm 4 ( requirement 49 below ). in passport and specification audit requirement 48 , all of the data demonstrating compliance with the requirements of product control matrix 400 are compiled from the computer system in a hard copy document by product line and supplied to the divisional quality group . engineering change notices apply to product passport information as defined in ecn requirement 47 above . the product group has the responsibility to ensure that the product passport is continually maintained to represent current processing . all of the product passport data or a subset thereof may be supplied to customers at the product group &# 39 ; s discretion subject to prevailing company rules governing proprietary or confidential information . prior to final approval of the product passport , the product line ensures consistency between all referenced specifications and revisions . in statistical process management iv requirement 49 , the specific process modules and associated equipment used in manufacturing the latest &# 34 ; dv &# 34 ; lots prior to the &# 34 ; pr &# 34 ; transition are listed . the results of sde are applied to provide improved process control . current c p &# 39 ; s are listed for each process module . target c p &# 39 ; s of 2 apply to each module . c p &# 39 ; s less than 1 . 3 require a specific c p improvement plan . in product performance iv requirement 50 , a formal report on the operational indices for the latest production product sample are generated . this report is a comparison with the anticipated results that were projected in the third stage and in particular , a comparison with the predictions of the pdp . significant deviations from the pdp target are highlighted together with corrective action plans or other engineering / management rationale for the deviations . release of the product to standard production status is contingent on the joint quality / product manager approval of any required planning to improve operational indices . in product qualification iii requirement 51 , the reliability of the specific die / package , combination is proven to meet or exceed the efr and the extended life requirement of the prevailing corporate reliability qualification policy . if the process technology has been qualified as intrinsically capable of meeting the standard without burn - in or stress screening , the product is not released to standard production with burn - in or other stress screening unless a viable corrective action plan for the product based upon assignable cause specifically identified by failure analysis is provided . the plan will be specific on maximum duration of production requiring burn - in or other stress screening and is jointly approved by division quality and the product manager . if the process technology has been released for production subject to burn - in or stress screening , the product may be released to production if the required screening to achieve the efr / extended life standards is less than or equal to that specified for the process technology . in reliability monitor iii requirement 52 , a program is put in place to monitor the total reliability of the standard production in accordance with the prevailing corporate reliability monitor program . in processing specification requirement 53 , all test mark and pack operations for the product are defined in the form of a standard computer generated flow document which requires the product to be marked with a standard mark . in final data sheet requirement 54 , the warranted functional and parametric performance of the standard versions of the product , comprehending the total data available to date , is produced . the final data sheet is specific and comprehensive and defines the contractual definition of product performance . after the eleven requirements in standard commercial product stage 401 - 4 are completed , the results and documentation for the stage are reviewed at the gating operation 406 - 4 . if the documentation and results are approved , gate 406 - 4 is opened and the designation for the standard product is &# 34 ; pr &# 34 ;. the product is marked with the standard mark , with no additional marks , to indicate that the product is a standard product and revenue is received and a standard warranty is given . if any problems are detected in the results and / or documentation the approval to ship as standard is withheld until such time as the requirements are satisfied so that a quality product may be shipped to the customers . in test programs class 11 ( mil ) requirement 55 , all test programs for military product versions are documented as described above for test programs class 11 requirement 44 . in characterization v requirement 56 , the standard / military mask set performance is evaluated . where the product development plan was predicated on military production from the standard mask set , the standard mask set performance is evaluated to military data sheet performance limits . otherwise , a separate military mask set performance is evaluated . characterization v requirement 56 performs the same functions as described above in characterization iv requirement 45 for the military product &# 39 ; s temperature range . test programs revision control ( mil ) requirement 57 , passport and specification audit ( mil ) requirement 60 , statistical process management v requirement 61 , product performance v requirement 62 , and reliability monitor iv requirement 64 are equivalent to the corresponding requirements in the fourth stage 401 - 4 , except the standard product is replaced with the military product in the requirements for this stage . apl / cpl approval requirement 58 , designates the level of compliance of the product to the prevailing national standards . the evaluation of compliance is made by reviewing the 11 . xxxx series documents ( requirement 44 above ), and additional document 10 . xxxx which describes aspects of the product relevant to military requirements . the evaluation is conducted by a specialist department of the corporation , the military program office . the product is listed on either the approved product list ( apl ) or the controlled product list ( cpl ) as required . in engineering change notice ( mil ) requirement 59 the military versions are subject to the engineering change notice requirements of requirement 47 above . in product qualification iv requirement 63 , the product qualification iii requirement 51 is performed for all military versions with the exception that the product may be released to product qualification iv if the required military screening results in shippable product meeting or exceeding the prevailing corporate reliability qualification standards . in processing specification ( mil ) requirement 65 , the specific requirements for test , mark and pack of the military version of the product are defined . specifically the specification generated in this requirement provides the manufacturing floor with specific specifications that apply to each step in the flow . this specification is equivalent to that described previously for the standard commercial product except that the processing spec provides for military temperature testing and military marking . in final data sheet ( mil ) requirement 66 , the warranted functional and parametric performance of the military versions of the product , comprehending the total data available to date on military versions is produced . the first five stages in product control matrix are used to provide an integrated management center for achieving the earliest date to market of a reliable , functional , and fully qualified new product . however , this does not complete the life cycle of the product . as indicated in the product development plan , discussed above , the product will continue to be produced for some time after the introduction to the market . accordingly , stage six 401 - 6 of product control matrix 400 is designed to monitor any problems that may arise with product performance , predictability of manufacture , reliability , and quality , during the product lifetime . in stage six , four requirements are monitored ; they are : these requirements are designed to provide an immediate response to any data which indicates the company or customer is having problems in terms of continued manufacturability , quality , or reliability . within the company , appropriate changes in control level 401 - 6 are separately highlighted in the engineering change notice system and require immediate notification of the product and quality managers . externally generated data triggering the alert system 401 - 6 are field failures of the product . on receipt of any alert notice issued under stage six , product management and quality groups jointly define a situation management plan which may include an immediate stop of production , a stop of shipment , or simply customer notification . in addition to the alert control the passport set may also be used as a basis for a product change control system . control of predictable manufacturing , quality and cost throughout the production life of the product is provided by a combination of the statistical process management iv requirement 49 , statistical product management requirement v , military 61 , product performance plans iv and v , 50 , 62 and the engineering change notice system , 47 , 59 . when a change in the level of statistical process management or other performance measure is provided to product management or division quality , a joint decision is made on which aspects of the product control requirements , if any , must be repeated to maintain the status of a product . when applicable , the requirements set of the product control matrix or a subset of the requirements set may be used . the detail of the requirements set from the product control matrix or the subset for each engineering change notice is at the discretion of the division quality manager and the product manager acting in concert . the above description to the requirements in product control matrix 400 are illustrative of one embodiment and are not intended to limit the invention to the specific requirement disclosed . the important aspect of the invention is that product control matrix 400 and the two databases 110 , 120 associated with product control matrix 400 are used to provide an integrated means within a company to produce in a predictable fashion a quality , reliable and fully functional product at the earliest possible date and to maintain those characteristics throughout the product lifetime . the above product control matrix defines the worst case set of requirements where every aspect of the new product is unproven , i . e . a new fabrication process , a new package and a new product design . however , frequently one or more of these aspects are known . therefore , other requirements sets , which are subsets of the case described above , are used in such situations . each of the cases are described below and the modified product control matrix used for each case is shown in fig8 a through 15c . the requirement set described above for a new technology , new package and new product assumes that the new technology is being developed concurrent with the new product . this is a the high risk case where the pdp assumptions and the progress of the new technology must be continuously reviewed in parallel with engineering work on the new product . the requirements for technology development are defined in the three stages , as discussed above , coincident with the first three stages of product release . in common with all other requirements , the technology development stages must be satisfactorily completed before the product status can change . when the technology progress is lagging , the associated product development may proceed , subject to a review and sign off by division quality , technology , wafer fabrication and the product line . thus , the nine cases which use product control matrix 400 are : case 8 ( fig1 a - 14c )-- qualified technology , qualified package , qualified die , new combinations of the technology , package , and die . case 9 ( fig1 a - 15c )-- qualified technology , qualified package , new die ( die design is a variant on a subset of standard cells already fully qualified in the technology package combination .) the product control matrix for each of the above cases is identical to that described above except the requirements for the qualified elements are eliminated from the matrix . in fig8 a through 15c , the fields following the requirement numbers which have been eliminated are blank . | 6 |
fig1 - 5 illustrate a hospital bed employing the present invention . the bed 10 includes a bed support frame 12 connected to a base 14 by means of first and second mechanical drives 16 and 18 which are connected to actuators 20 and 22 , respectively . the mechanical drives 16 and 18 are pivotally connected to the bed support frame 12 at pivot points 23 and 25 . one end of each of the mechanical drives 16 and 18 is connected to the base 14 and the other end of each of the mechanical drives 16 and 18 is connected to actuators 20 and 22 , respectively . the actuators 20 and 22 may be selectively operated to move the ends of the bed support frame 12 relative to the base 14 in the same vertical direction thereby changing the height of the bed support frame relative to the base . consequently , the bed support frame typically in a horizontal position may be raised as shown in fig1 or lowered as shown in fig2 . further , if the bed support frame is at an inclined position , operating the actuators in unison will raise or lower the bed support frame without substantially changing its inclination . alternatively , selectively operating the actuators to move one end of the bed support frame vertically relative to its other end will incline the bed support frame , thereby selectively moving the bed support frame to either the reverse trendelenburg position shown in fig3 or the trendelenburg position shown in fig4 . referring to fig5 the mechanical drives 16 and 18 are comprised of lift arm links 24 and 26 and drive mechanisms 28 and 30 . the lift arm links 24 and 26 are substantially identical in construction . the lift arm links 24 and 26 are pivotally connected to the base 14 by support links 36 and 38 , respectively . the support links are pivotally connected to first ends of the lift arm links 24 and 26 at pivot points 44 and 46 , and support links 36 and 38 are pivotally connected to the base at pivot points 48 and 50 . the lift arm links 24 and 26 are connected to the drive mechanisms 28 and 30 by drive links 40 and 42 , respectively . drive links 40 and 42 are pivotally connected to second ends of the lift arm links 24 and 26 at pivot points 52 and 54 ; and drive links 40 and 42 ar pivotally connected to the drive mechanisms 28 and 3 at pivot points 56 and 58 . as shown in fig6 each of the links and pivot points shown in fig5 located on one side of the drive mechanism are replicated on an opposite side of the drive mechanism thereby providing a balanced application of forces . each lift arm link 24 , 26 is rigidly connected to a respective torque shaft 62 rotatably mounted through a pair of flanges 64a , 64a and 64b , 64b , respectively connected to the bed support frame 12 ( fig6 ). each lift arm link 24 , 26 comprises a pair of first arms 66 , 66 rigidly connected to the ends of each shaft 62 at one end and pivotally connected to the pair of pivot links 36 , 36 and 38 , 38 at their other end . a pair of second arms 68 , 68 are rigidly connected to each shaft 62 at one end and are pivotally connected to the pair of drive links 40 , 40 and 42 , 42 at their other end . the included angle between the first and second arms is approximately 90 °. the drive mechanisms 28 and 30 illustrated in detail in fig5 - 9 convert rotary motion of an actuator output shaft and drive screw into translation of a nut threadedly connected to the drive screw . the drive mechanisms 28 and 30 are comprised of drive screws 70 and 72 connected to output shafts 74 and 76 of actuators 20 and 22 , respectively . lift nuts 78 and 80 are rotatably mounted to their respective screws 70 and 72 and , in addition , are slidably mounted on rails 82 and 84 , respectively . the rails 82 and 84 are effective to linearly guide the translating lift nuts and prevent deflection of the drive screws by providing a support transverse to the longitudinal axis of the drive screws . slidably mounted on the nuts 78 and 80 are output blocks 86 and 88 which are connected to the drive links 40 , 40 and 42 , 42 , respectively . the lift nuts 78 and 80 contain splines 90 and 92 , respectively , which , as shown in fig9 mesh and engage with corresponding splines inside the output block such as shown at 94 . the lift arm links are arranged such that a gravitational force exerted on the bed support frame 12 is effective to bias the output blocks 86 and 88 tightly against the lift nuts 78 and 80 . when the bed support frame is being raised , the lift nuts 78 and 80 are moving in a direction so as to push the output blocks 87 and 88 along the drive screws 70 and 72 , respectively . when the bed support frame is being lowered , the lift nuts are moving in the opposite direction along the drive screws . the gravitational force of the bed support frame and any patient support thereby , which is applied through the drive links 40 , 40 and 42 , 42 , is effective to hold the output blocks 86 and 88 in contact with the lift nuts 78 and 80 , as shown in fig8 a . as the bed support frame is moving downward , and if it encounters an obstacle which provides a reactive force in opposition to the gravitational force , the gravitational force is removed from the drive links 40 , 40 ; and the continuing translation of the lift nut 78 results in the lift nut 78 separating from the output block 86 as shown in fig8 b . the relative motion of the lift nut to the output block is detected by a limit switch 100 connected to the drive link 40 or other element fixed with regard to the output block . the limit switch has a trigger arm 102 which is activated by shoulder 78a of the lift nut 78 in response to its separation from the output block 86 . the electrical contacts within the switch 100 are connected in the power circuit to the actuator 20 in a manner well known to those who are skilled in the art . actuation of the trigger arm 102 opens the electrical contacts within the switch 100 thereby interrupting power to the actuator 20 and terminating its operation , the rotation of the drive screw 70 and the translation of the lift nut 78 . therefore , the motion of the bed support frame in a downward direction is stopped in response to that end of the bed frame encountering the obstacle . while the invention has been illustrated in some detail according to the preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings , and while the preferred embodiments have been described in some detail , there is no intention to thus limit the invention to such detail . on the contrary , it is intended to cover all modifications , alterations and equivalents following within the spirit and scope of the appended claims . | 8 |
the embodiments that follow relate to an approach for identifying fingerprints that does not rely on conventional minutiae - based methods . the minutiae - based methods rely on a certain quantity of point features observable within a fingerprint . the methods herein discussed use graphs to capture much more of the information presented by fingerprint physiology taking into consideration both the topology and geometry of ridges and other features . by capturing much of the information that fingerprints offer , the systems and methods described herein permit fingerprint - based identification to take place with considerably less information than conventional methods . that is , partial latent prints that currently present too little information for conventional methods to accurately perform matching , can now be matched using the systems and methods described herein . accordingly , the various embodiments described herein and those that can be gleaned therefrom can allow the following : 1 . match and align latent prints with exemplar results provided by an afis search ; 2 . locate partial latent prints within a database of print exemplars ; and 3 . use graphs as a framework for evaluating level 3 information such as pores and ridge detail . the related u . s . pat . no . 7 , 362 , 901 patent (“ the &# 39 ; 901 patent ”) incorporated above is directed to using graph - based pattern matching in such a way as to allow handwriting to act as a biometric identifier . at a macro level , fingerprints present a pattern that is quite similar to handwriting in that graphs can be built directly from fingerprint images . at the finer level of detail , the fingerprint ridges themselves exhibit patterns , such as shape , pores and breaks , that properly processed can be captured using graphs in a format supportive of analysis currently unavailable . the methods herein described provide the means for improving conventional fingerprint identification by providing : ( 1 ) a method for extracting more biometric content from level 1 ( ridges ) and level 2 ( minutiae ) features , and ( 2 ) creating a platform for the introduction of level 3 ( pores and ridge features ) into automated fingerprint identification . this is accomplished using graphs to quantify physical features within fingerprints . the graphs can , e . g ., either be obtained from scanned images of inked prints or captured directly from a fingerprint scanner . regardless of the scanning method , the fingerprint is rendered into an image and once rendered into an image , it is automatically converted into graphs . such a graph can comprise a two - part data structure . this structure can contain relational information expressed by graphs and physical characteristics represented by physical data . some of the characteristics of this data structure include : 1 . a measure of a graph &# 39 ; s topology expressed as a numeric encoding 2 . knowledge of the graph &# 39 ; s internal structure to enable point - to - point comparisons with graphs having the same ( isomorphic ) topology ; 3 . representation of the complete sub - graph structure of the graph including all embedded graphs ; and 4 . physical features in the form of distance , angular and other measurements of components that comprise the object being expressed as a graph . an example of how this information works in language - based recognition of chinese characters yields a good foundation for how it can be applied to fingerprints . similar to the ridges of a fingerprint , e . g ., chinese words are line - based structures that can be turned into graphs . since the full graphs of handwritten words are virtually never quite identical , the sub - graph structure can then be used to identify the chinese word . that is , in the case of the chinese word , the “ whole ” ( word ) can be recognized as the sum of some set of “ parts ”. these parts are embedded graphs . fig1 illustrates the relationship between a handwritten chinese word 100 and the most common embedded graphs 101 - 104 . attendant to each embedded 101 - 104 is a generic description of the “ class ” of graph 105 - 108 based on its topology . using the topology encoding method herein described , each of these topologies will have a unique description , code , or both that will be consistent for all topologies that are isomorphic . the chinese word illustration is directly relevant to fingerprint identification with the pen “ strokes ” of the writing corresponding to the physical “ ridges ” that comprise fingerprints . a more detailed discussion of systems and methods for language based recognition are included below . it will be understood based on the below descriptions that these systems and methods can readily be modified for use in fingerprint recognition . fig2 of co - pending u . s . patent application ser . no . 10 / 791 , 375 (“ the &# 39 ; 375 application ”), which is recreated in the accompanying figures as fig2 , discloses an example method for source language pattern matching in which , e . g ., words or sentences can be detected and matched using a library of know words and sentences . in the example method , a data compilation step 201 takes place in which a target language library is created . this is a library of what can be referred to as template graphs . in the embodiments described herein , this can be a library of known finger prints or partial finger prints . next , in step 203 , image graphs are obtained . in step 205 , the image graphs can then be compared to the templates in the target library . in step 207 , analysis of flagged documents , or in this case fingerprints can then take place . fig5 of the &# 39 ; 375 application , which is recreated here as fig3 , illustrates an example process for generation of image graphs in accordance with one embodiment . referring to step 515 , it can be seen that one step in the process is the generation of keys and references that can be used to search and compare graphs . in the example of the &# 39 ; 375 application , isomorphic keys , based on an isomorphic array are used , and the same type of key can be used in the case of fingerprints . the established connectivity keys and connectivity array can be items contained in a header and used for quick screening of stored images prior to the searching process . the screening and searching processes can be directly related to the manner and format by which information is stored . specifically , the storage formats can permit screening and retrieval of information in two ways : 1 ) by connectivity key , and 2 ) by connectivity array . the numeric connectivity array is an attribute of each image created to facilitate the screening and searching processes . unlike the connectivity key , which is used for matching , the connectivity array is used to screen image comparisons to determine if a match is even possible between images in a document and the search term image graphs . whereas the connectivity key works by “ inclusion ”, the connectivity array works by “ exclusion ”. the connectivity array consists of an array of integers , each of which represents a total number of nodes with a certain number of links . connectivity arrays can be tabulated for individual nodes as well as entire images . in summary , in the example of the &# 39 ; 375 application , the image reduction stage can result in a graph image library having skeletal representations for each character contained in the source language library . in the examples described herein , these skeletal representations can represent fingerprints , portions of fingerprints , or both . as noted , the connectivity keys are used for inclusionary screening . the connectivity key can be generated and unique for a given number of nodes connected in a specific manner . in short , the connectivity key is a string of characters that distinguishes images from each other . the purpose of the key is to identify images with very similar characteristics for a more detailed analysis . the connectivity key captures the essence of the link / node relationships contained in the stored image data by storing this information in such a form that it can be referenced very quickly using conventional key referencing techniques . connectivity key generation can be viewed as a technique for generating a unique numeric value for each possible graph isomorphism . that is , two graphs sharing the same topology , e . g ., having edges and vertices connected in the same way , should generate the same key , regardless how the edges and vertices are geometrically arranged . for example , fig8 , recreated here as fig4 , shows two isomorphic graph fig8 and 804 . although these figures appear to be different , their underlying graphs are structured identically , i . e ., they are isomorphic . the systems and methods described herein can be configured to use a method for detecting isomorphism by rearranging graph adjacency matrices . a graph &# 39 ; s adjacency matrix can be defined as a two - dimensional table that shows the connections among vertices . in a typical adjacency matrix , vertices are shown along the ( x ) and ( y ) axes and the cells within the table have a value of “ 0 ” if there is not edge connecting the vertices and a value of “ 1 ” if the vertices are connected . the arrangement of “ 0 &# 39 ; s ” and “ 1 &# 39 ; s ” within the matrix is a function of the arrangement of vertices . two graphs are isomorphic if their adjacency matrices align . that is , if the pattern of “ o &# 39 ; s ” and “ 1 &# 39 ; s ” is exactly the same , the two graphs must be identical . theoretically , it is possible to consider all possible vertex arrangements to determine isomorphism . however , for a graph of order “ n ”, there are “ n !” possible arrangements . the potential magnitude of this value , particularly if multiple graphs are to be compared , negates any benefit of brute force solutions to this problem . in the systems and methods described herein , isomorphism is solved by applying an organized reordering to the matrix based on vertex connectivity . under this approach , a matrix is reordered into a final state of “ equilibrium ” based on balancing a vertex &# 39 ; s “ upward connectivity ” with its “ downward connectivity ”. upward connectivity is defined as the collective weight of all vertices of greater order to which a particular vertex is connected . downward connectivity is described as the weight of all vertices of lesser order to which a vertex is connected . order is defined as the number of edges emanating from a particular , vertex . upward and downward connectivity can be stored as an array of integers . fig9 , recreated here as fig5 illustrates how these two types of connectivity can be established according to one embodiment . using the concept of connectivity , it is possible to arrange the vertices into a consistent final state reflecting a balance between upward and downward connectivity . for isomorphic graphs , this state will take the form of an adjacency matrix with a certain final order for vertices , regardless of their original position in the matrix . all isomorphic graphs will transform into the same final state . the following steps describe the process by which an adjacency matrix can be reordered using connectivity . these steps utilize some of the methods described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 276 , 332 (“ the &# 39 ; 332 patent ”) and incorporated herein by reference as if set forth in full . specifically , the concept of the connectivity array follows the methodology described for the cumulative reference series in the &# 39 ; 332 patent . however , additional processes are applied for using information contained in the connectivity array that are not necessarily discussed in the &# 39 ; 332 patent . the connectivity array can , therefore , be built in the following manner . first , the connectivity for each vertex can be established through an array of integers . for example , the connectivity can be established by conducting a breadth first search from each vertex moving into all connected vertices and extending until a vertex of equal or greater order is encountered . this information is recorded in an array of integers where each value in the array maintains the count of vertices of a particular order encountered and the subscript reflects the actual order . fig5 herein presents a sample graph along with the connectivity arrays established for every vertex within the graph . once the connectivity array has been established , the vertices are sorted by this array . sorting can be performed by comparing the counts for similar order counts with the greatest weight given to the higher order counts . that is , the array elements corresponding to the “ higher order ” vertices , i . e ., vertices with more edges , take higher precedence for sorting . for example , a “ degree 4 ” vertices take precedence over a “ degree 3 ” vertices , and so on . depending on the embodiment , once the sort is complete , connectivity can be balanced by two additional steps : 1 ) pull , or upward connectivity , 2 ) push , or downward connectivity . the pull step can begin with the highest ranked vertex and working down the list of vertices , each vertex &# 39 ; s lower ranked “ neighbors ”, i . e . directly connected vertices , are examined . a “ neighbor ” vertex can then be “ pulled ” up the list if the preceding node meets the following criteria : a ) the preceding vertex in the list has the same connectivity array ( ca ); b ) the preceding vertex has not already been “ visited ” during this iteration ; and c ) the preceding vertex has an equivalent “ visited by ” list to the current node . logic underlying this process can be outlined in the following exemplary “ pseudo code ” description , generated according the requirements of one example implementation . this logic presumes construction of a vertex list from the sorting process with the highest ranked vertex at the top of the list and the lowest at the bottom . ranking is performed by sorting using the connectivity array . 1 . get all “ neighbors ” ( vertices connected to this vertex ) in the order in which they appear in the list and prepare a separate the push , or downward connectivity step can begin with the lowest ranked vertex and working up the list of vertices , adjacent pairs of vertices in the list are examined , comparing the ranks of their “ upstream ” and “ downstream ” connections , i . e ., directly connected vertex that are ranked above the vertex in the list arid below the vertex in the list , respectively . a vertex can be “ pushed ” down the list if the following criteria are met : a ) the subsequent vertex in the list has the same connectivity array , and one of the following is true : i ) the subsequent vertex has stronger “ upstream ” connections , or ii ) the “ upstream ” connections are equal and the vertex has stronger “ downstream ” connections . determining “ stronger ” connections entails a pair - wise comparison of the sorted ranks of each vertex &# 39 ; s connections , and the first unequal comparison establishes the stronger set . the push process can be articulated in the following example pseudo code generated in accordance with one example implementation : at the conclusion of the initial sort , the push process and the pull process , vertices are arranged in an order reflective of their balance between upward and down . at this point the adjacency matrix can be reordered to reflect this balance . once the adjacency matrix has been reordered , the “ o &# 39 ; s ” and “ 1 &# 39 ; s ” within the matrix can become the basis for a numeric key that becomes a unique identifier for the matrix and a unique identifier for the isomorphism shown in the matrix . the graph in fig5 herein can be used to illustrate the key generation process . fig5 presents a symmetrical graph 902 that requires the benefit of both pull and push techniques . it should be noted that the push step may not be necessary for graphs that are not symmetric . within fig5 , a table is provided that illustrates the connectivity arrays for each vertex . the connectivity array is computed by counting the number of vertices of particular order connected to each individual vertex . because , the highest order in the graph is 3 — the most vertices emanating from a single edge is 3 — the connectivity array includes orders up to and including 3 . because vertices b , c ; e and f have equal connectivity indices , they can be sorted into a number of orders with each one likely to be in the first sort position . for purposes of this illustration , it is assumed that sorting the vertices based on the connectivity array produced the following order : ( 1 ) c , ( 2 ) b , ( 3 ) e , ( 4 ) f , ( 5 ) a , ( 6 ) d once this order has been established , the pull step can be applied for upward connectivity . in this case , vertex c can pull vertex d ahead of vertex a . this pull occurs because vertex d is directly connected to vertex c , which is in the first position . vertex a is connected to vertices b and f , neither of which is in a position higher than c . once this rearrangement of order has been performed , there are no more changes to be made by the pull process and the order is now shown as follows . ( 1 ) c , ( 2 ) b , ( 3 ) e , ( 4 ) f , ( 5 ) d , ( 6 ) a next , the push process is applied . the push process moves vertices up - to the left in this example - based upon downward connectivity . in this case , vertex e has stronger downward connectivity than vertex b because vertex e is connected to vertex d , rank position 5 , and vertex b is connected to vertex a , rank position 6 . the result is vertex d can push vertex b ahead of vertex e . this push reorders the series as follows . ( 1 ) c , ( 2 ) e , ( 3 ) b , ( 4 ) f , ( 5 ) d , ( 6 ) a upon this change , the arrangement of vertices becomes stable and no additional pushing is possible . the result is a unique ordering that will always occur for this particular graph topology regardless the original ordering of the vertices . the final step in this process involves taking the resultant adjacency matrix and converting it into a key . fig1 shows the “ before ” and “ after ” versions of a graph adjacency matrix for graph 902 in fig5 . since the matrix is by nature in a binary format , there are numerous ways to build it into a numeric key . one method is to assign sequential ranks to each cell in the matrix and multiply the integer 2 ″, where n is the rank of the cell , by the value in the cell . another method is to map the adjacency matrix into an integer with sufficient size to accommodate all the cells in the matrix . either of these methods can , for example , yield an integer key that uniquely represents the graph &# 39 ; s isomorphism . similar to handwriting , fingerprints can be directly converted into graphs taking the form of mathematical structures consisting of edges ( links ) and vertices ( nodes ). through this conversion , the minutiae of the fingerprint — the bifurcations , terminations , etc ., can be treated as vertices ( nodes ) while the connecting ridges become edges ( links ). in the graph context , a latent print can be treated as a part of the sub - graph structure of the exemplar print even though both are actually captured at different times under different circumstances . the embodiments described herein include a matching routine that maps similar embedded sub - graph structures between latent prints and corresponding exemplars . such a methodology can be used to address the vital problem of exploiting partial prints found at crime scenes . there is considerable information in level 1 and level 2 features that are untapped by conventional methods . the graph - based techniques herein discussed can capture much of this information . furthermore , since fingerprint experts rely on level 3 , i . e ., pores within the ridges , features for identification , the graph - based methods described herein also offer a framework for quantifying level 3 features by incorporating them in the information associated with the appropriate graph edge that matches the fingerprint ridge where the level 3 features are located . level 3 features expand the discriminating power that graphs bring to fingerprints . the embodiments described herein provide two distinct strategies for exploiting the biometric power of fingerprints . the first involves capturing the topology and geometry of the ridges in the form of a graph and the second expands the features associated with the graph to include the fine details available within the ridges . the inherently graphical structure of fingerprints presents a wealth of topological and geometric information . graph - based recognition , as described herein , is particularly well suited for mining the identity - related information embedded in fingerprints . this effort entails extracting mathematical graphs from fingerprint information and drawing upon key properties of these graphs such as topology and geometric features to extract data . ridges are transformed into edges and minutiae become vertices in graph - based fingerprint representations . the systems and methods described herein derive power from the ability to discriminate and to match fingerprints using “ conditionally embedded ” sub - graphs . fig6 a is an image that shows a fingerprint with two samples of embedded sub - graphs 601 and 602 . fig6 b is a close up of the sub - graphs 601 and 602 . the sub - graphs are the equivalent of the sub - graphs illustrated in fig1 for chinese words . once a fingerprint has been rendered into a graph , fingerprint images can be parsed into sets of conditionally embedded sub - graphs . conditionally embedded sub - graphs are embedded graphs that can be referenced both as a part of the larger graph and as an individual entity with its own topology and geometric features . the graph - based methods described above and in the related patents and applications permit complex graphs to be viewed from multiple perspectives . one perspective may be the complete form such as the full chinese word or the full image of a fingerprint . concurrently , the various graphs embedded in these full forms can also be viewed and treated as if they were physically extricated from the full graph . this ability to view a whole object as a collection of embedded “ parts ” has been the key to success with handwriting recognition and it offers enormous potential for matching fingerprints . the fact that these graphs can be referenced as necessary leads to their label : conditionally embedded graphs . the distortions affecting any fingerprint suggest that latent and exemplar images might not contain exactly the same number and type of sub - graphs . this problem is very similar to issues related to recognizing handwritten words . conditionally embedded sub - graphs enable isolation and identification of the similar elements between two graph - based forms while localizing the differences . the first step toward applying graph - based analysis to fingerprints entails locating graphs . as shown in fig6 a and b , graphs can be anchored to measurable features within the print such as terminal points or bifurcations . the graphs may transcend minutiae , or they may originate at a minutiae point and extend for a prescribed distance . they key is to establish a graph building process that will generate comparable structures from different images — full or partial — of the same fingerprint . there are two critical decisions that will define graph building from fingerprints : ( 1 ) detection of points for anchoring the graphs and ( 2 ) developing rules for extending the graphs from these anchor points regarding the first item ( anchor point detection ) the current minutiae offer a rich source of features that can be reliably detected . ridge bifurcations and ridge endings represent two features within fingerprints that can be reliably detected . in order to extract the minutiae , the gray - scale image can first be converted into a bi - tonal version , and then the bi - tonal image can be skeletonized . the naïve , conventional method of applying a global threshold to the image will discard a large amount of useful information , and it will also introduce phantom features as a side - effect . moreover , the conventional skeletonization algorithms create numerous spurs , which further degrade the result . using advanced image processing techniques such as morphological reconstruction and background illumination correction , it is possible to compensate for the brightness and unevenness caused by pressure variations . and , ridge detection and related algorithms , as described herein , can extract ridges reliably from the brightness - adjusted images , as shown below in fig7 a and b , which illustrate an original fingerprint and ridge lines extracted therefrom . variations in ridge thickness caused by moderate amounts of smearing are easily handled by a ridge line extraction process . conventional mage processing techniques , however , cannot cope with spurious features introduced by skin elasticity . the methods described herein tackle this problem using a robust graph matching algorithm . such a graph matching algorithm can locate the minutiae and compute various kinds of statistics on them . surely , spurious minutiae caused by skin elasticity will also be counted by such a matching algorithm . however , it is likely that these spurious features will be drowned out by the large number of true features , thereby allowing such a statistical graph matching algorithm to function properly . fig8 shows samples of ridge bifurcations 801 and endings 802 . both of these features provide definitive locations for anchoring graphs embedded within a fingerprint image . given the establishment of anchor points , two strategies are immediately apparent for “ growing ” graphs from these points : 1 . extending from the anchor point along ridges for a prescribed distance , and 2 . extending from the anchor point along ridges until another anchor point is encountered . implementing a strategy for growing graphs involves addressing possible breaks in ridges that are related to image quality as opposed to true ridge features . fig9 shows samples of definite 901 and possible 902 ridge breaks . whether ridge breaks do or do not occur in an image will determine the connectivity of ridge features . fig1 a - c shows how ridges can extend as the image becomes increasingly blurred and the number of breaks in the ridge becomes reduced . ridge connectivity is a concern even outside the usage of graphs since too many connections can lead to both missed and false minutiae . graphs offer a solution for dealing with potential ridge breaks . this solution takes the form of routinely closing the gaps and establishing “ soft vertices ” at these points . in this context , two types of soft vertices will be generated : 1 . degree 3 soft vertices that connect potential bifurcations ; and 2 . degree 2 soft vertices that connect end points at ridge breaks . soft vertices become placeholders for potential breaks in connectivity . as such , they can be used to reduce variability in graph building related to image distortions . fig1 a and 11b show how the insertion of soft vertices 1101 can be used to connect ridges and preserve potential features . the discussion presented herein is intended to illustrate some general approaches for converting fingerprints to graphs constructing conditionally embedded sub - graphs . fig1 shows the location of a particular graph type with a single central vertex and three edges . these graphs 1202 can be extracted in groups to create larger more complex graphs . each of the larger composite graphs can be categorized by its topology and geometry . graph - based data representation (“ gdr ”) is a method developed for structuring physical data and relational information associated with that data in a compact computable structure . gdr employs principles of graph theory to produce a data structure in which individual pieces of data are organized within the framework of mathematical graphs . thus , the data structure consists of two elements : ( 1 ) the underlying graph and ( 2 ) the data . bundling relational information and data within the same “ packet ” creates a structure highly tailored to certain types of problems . gdr is possible because of an algorithm that assigns a unique code that represents the topology of any graph . that is , if two graphs are structured in the same way — that is , they are isomorphic — the gdr algorithm will always assign them the same code . an added advantage of gdr is when two graphs produce the same code , the “ alignment ” of their topologies is known and one - to - one comparisons can be made between corresponding data based on this alignment . in the handwriting problem , written forms are converted into gdr data structures and recorded as reference material . when a new written form is encountered , it too is converted into a gdr structure and very efficiently compared to the known forms . this efficiency is possible because the data records can be referenced using the graph codes as keys . as further evidence of the power of gdr , key codes can be generated for graphs embedded in larger graphs so it is possible to recognize characters and words even if they overlap or connect or are encumbered in a very noisy background . because of their graph - like structure consisting of ridges and minutiae , fingerprints are amenable to graph - based analysis as well when using the systems and methods described herein . other applications , such as photographic imagery , require more complex methods for graph generation . once fingerprints have been parsed into a meaningful set of graphs , the next step is to convert the graphs into a data structure . the gdr data structure captures both topological relationships and concomitant feature data . every graph - base record has three components : 1 . the graph topology code which is a numeric descriptor that is the same for all isomorphic topologies . that is , any two graphs with the same number of edges and vertices connected in exactly the same manner will generate the same code — even if their shapes may vary . this code addresses only topology . 2 . the graph alignment map which captures the point - to - point correspondence between the graph and all other graphs found to be isomorphic to it . this component enables detailed comparisons among graphs since they can be compared on specific corresponding details . 3 . the feature data which in this case will take the form of physical measurements extracted from the fingerprint . features include physical distances , angles and other descriptors . one example of another descriptor is the bezier point feature which describes complex curves as a compact set of points . fingerprints can be converted into a database consisting of records containing the above cited components . the information will be accessible through the conditionally embedded sub - graphs . fig1 shows how a fingerprint could be divided into embedded sub - graphs . what distinguishes conditionally embedded sub - graphs from other sub - graphing schemes is that the actual creation of the sub - graphs remains fluid . that is , the conditionally embedded graphs encompass the graphs illustrated in fig1 , plus other possible graphs that can be produced within the fingerprint image . rather than pre - defined embedded forms , conditionally embedded graphs exist as a table of indices to multiple , often overlapping , embedded forms within a complex graph . fig1 shows two examples 1401 and 1402 of conditionally embedded sub - graphs within the chinese word shown in fig1 . the examples shown are just two of multiple combinations of embedded sub - graphs that can be conditionally referenced through a graph indexing method . similar methods can be applied to fingerprints to permit the comparisons of various embedded sub - graphs . fingerprint matching using graph - based methods can be accomplished through a two - stage process : stage 1 : enrollment of the exemplar images : and stage 2 : matching of latent print images against the exemplars . in the first stage , exemplar images — such as the “ short list ” that results from afis — can be converted into graph - based data representations and stored in a database . ridge detection would be the means for graph generation with soft vertices inserted into places where edge breaks might potentially occur . the full exemplar image along with its sub - graph structure would be stored in a database that includes both the topology for the full and sub - graphs and the actual physical measurements extracted from the image . the index to this database would be through the conditionally embedded sub - graphs . similarly , latent images would also be converted into graph - based data representations and then compared to the exemplar records . matching occurs at two levels : 1 . the first level of matching occurs at the graph isomorphism level . that is , latent print graphs are compared with exemplar print graphs having isomorphic topologies . only graphs possessing the exact same topology will generate the same code . and , 2 . for those graphs having identical topologies , detailed feature matching will be performed . it should be noted that feature matching can be performed both at the “ coarse ” and “ fine ” detail levels . an example of a coarse feature would be a “ shape code ” based on directional relationships among graph components such as directions among graph vertices ( minutiae ). when two graphs possess the same topology codes and shape codes , they will be identical in structure and very similar in appearance . a fine detail feature can include curve comparisons accomplished by comparing bezier representations of curves . matching can take place both for connected sub - graphs as well as multi - graphs consisting of multiple unconnected sub - graphs . the actual method used for matching can actually be one of several methods , including but not limited to linear discriminant analysis , regression tree classification , and others . fig1 and 19 in the &# 39 ; 375 application illustrate example systems and methods for locating specified search terms in scanned documents . these figures are recreated and fig1 and 16 and the accompanying description follows . it will be understood that the system and method of fig1 and 16 herein can be modified for fingerprints . some of these modifications are noted below , but others will be apparent from the description herein . as can be seen , the process of fig1 can comprise two sub - processes : preparation and processing . the actual process of image detection , however , includes the following stages and corresponding steps : stage 08 : word , or in this case print , matching ( step 1834 ). the 8 stages identified can , for example , be performed by 4 functional modules as illustrated by the example pictographic recognition system 1900 of fig1 . system 1900 comprises the following modules : module 1 : pre - processor 1902 ; module 2 : flexible window 1904 ; module 3 : recognition 1906 ; and module 4 : word matching 1908 and dynamic programming . these modules can be included in a computer system . for examples , these modules can be included in code configured to run on a processor or microprocessor based system . module 1 : pre - processor 1902 can be configured to perform stage 01 : image reduction and stage 02 : graph generation , while module 2 : the flexible window 1904 can be configured to perform stage 03 : preliminary segmentation which can include , preliminary segmentation as described below , stage 04 : connectivity key generation , stage 05 : connectivity key matching , and stage 06 : feature comparison . module 3 : recognition 1906 can be configured to perform stage 07 : results matrix generation and module 4 : word matching 1908 can be configured to perform stage 08 : word , or print matching , which can comprise search term tuple matching as described below . it should be noted that the modules 1 - 4 depicted in fig1 can comprise the hardware and / or software systems and processes required to implement the tasks described herein . thus , different implementations can implement modules 1 - 4 in unique manners as dictated by the needs of the particular implementation . it should be noted that module 2 and 3 can be configured to work hand in hand throughout the recognition process by constantly cycling through stages 04 , 05 , and 06 . in this way , segmentation and classification become a unified cohesive process . as image graphs are isolated , they are compared to the image graphs relevant to the search term . if an isomorphic match is found , the matched unknown image graphs must bear some resemblance to reference characters in the search term and are suitable for classification . the classification process assigns a confidence value to this resemblance . pre - processor 1902 can be configured to translate binary images into graph forms . in this context , a graph is a mathematical structure consisting of line segments ( edges ) and their intersections ( vertices ). the actual graph forms generated by pre - processor 1902 can be viewed as single line representations of their original images . the graphs , as stored in computer memory , contain all information required to regenerate these single line representations . an image graph constructor configured in accordance with the systems and methods described herein can be configured to convert binary images into graphs through 2 steps : image reduction and graph generation . image reduction can consist of identifying points in the original image , that correspond to vertices in the related graph , which is a single line re - creation of the image . once the vertices have been established , the edges become those portions of the image that connect between vertices . there are alternative techniques for accomplishing the image reduction . as described above , one approach is to use a skeletonization technique to “ thin ” the image into a single line form , and then to identify vertices based upon prescribed pixel patterns . the skeletonizaton method is well documented through numerous alternative approaches . another technique would be to identify “ nodal zones ” as the intersection of major pathways through the image . this can be done by calculating the tangents of the contours of an image and comparing the length of these tangent lines to an average stroke width for the entire image . the tangents become quite long near nodal areas . in either case , the desired output should remain consistently as follows : a ) a list of connected components ; b ) for each line : pointers to the corresponding nodes , pointers to the line &# 39 ; s contours , pointers to the contour end points , and the estimated direction of the line at each end ; c ) for each node : an ordered list of node - line connections . the order in the list corresponds to the attachment of the line ends to the node when traveling clockwise around the node ; and d ) for each node - line connection : a pointer to the line , and the identification of which end connects to the node . in addition , a pointer to the portion of the node &# 39 ; s contour that follows the connection clockwise . upon receiving the above data , pre - processor 1902 can be configured to commence the graph generation . this stage can entail creating a single - line structure comprised of edges and vertices . this stage can be used to establish the proper edges , and designate their intersections as vertices . skeleton data can be used directly . if contour data is provided , the contours are first converted into single - line data representing the “ mid - line ” of parallel contours . once the contours have been converted to edges and the nodes to vertices , the end points for each edge are associated with the proper vertices . at this point the “ rough ” form of the graph has been created . the next step entails graph refinement . first , the degree 2 vertices are created . there are two types of degree 2 vertices : a ) corners , and b ) zero crossings . corners represent points at which relatively straight line segments change direction . zero crossings are points at the juxtaposition of opposing curves . the peak at the top of an upper case “ a ” is a good example of a corner and the center point of the character “ s ” illustrates the concept of a zero crossing . once the degree 2 vertices have been added , further refinements are preformed . these include : a ) removal of insignificant features ; b ) closure of gaps ; and c ) merger of features in close proximity . integral to the image graph is the actual method by which it is stored . rather than drawing upon the common practice of storing information in the form of data elements , graph information can be stored as a series of relationships . that is , rather than storing information as a linear data record , graph information is stored as a series of memory locations with each location containing both data an “ pointers ” to other locations . pointers are variables , which contain addresses of memory locations ; each pointer exactly replicates the vector nature of the vertices and edges of the graphs they represent . equating this concept to the edge / vertex structure of a graph , each memory location represents a vertex and each pointer to another location represents an edge . the concept as described so far provides a good descriptor of the structural relationships that comprise a graph ; however , they do not address the issue of features , which is critical to the visual representation of both graphs and characters . aside from the pointers stored at the vertex memory locations additional data is also stored to describe the features of the various edges , that intersect at a particular vertex . these data include all salient information captured during the image reduction process including directional information , distance measurements , curvature descriptors and the like . a moving window that travels across a word 1904 can be configured to analyze processed word graphs using a flexible window concept . this concept represents an application of graph theory . in operation the flexible window isolates connected sections within a cursive word form that conform to items in the reference library of character forms . the flexible window 1904 effectively uses a “ virtual window ” of variable size corresponding to the grouping of edges and vertices extracted at any given time . thus , it performs both segmentation and recognition in a single step . fundamental to the operations of the flexible window 1904 is the use of isomorphic graph keys , which are the actual tools , used to identify portions of a cursive word , which match items in the reference library . isomorphic graph keys are rooted in the premise that any two graphs which are structurally identical , e . g ., the same number of edges and the vertices connected in the same manner , can be described by the same unique key . the key under discussion is actually derived for the adjacency matrix for the graphs and thus , the concept of key matching is equivalent to comparing the adjacency matrices for two graphs . if the adjacency matrices of two graphs match , they are isomorphic or structurally identical . the process of connectivity key generation is a straightforward process herein described . the best way to illustrate the function of the flexible window 1904 is to describe its activities on a step - by - step basis . first , the flexible window 1904 can be configured to use the concept of the baseline path . for illustrative purposes , fig2 of the &# 39 ; 375 application shows examples of how a baseline path can be generated according to one embodiment of the systems and methods described herein . item a in fig2 shows a sample word image . processing is done to “ skeletonize ” the image into a graph object with vertices ( nodes ) and edges ( fig2 , item b ). in this example , the regular dots represent points on an edge and the box dots represent vertices . the process for creating the baseline path starts by identifying the left - most and rightmost lowest edges ( shaded darker ) in the graph object model ( fig2 , item c ). in the illustrative example , this would be the “ c ” and the trailing edge of the letter “ r ” respectively . the next step involves constructing a series of connected edges from this graph object model that starts at the left - most lowest edge and ends at the right - most lowest edge . this , in essence , creates a “ path ” through the graph of an imaged word . since handwriting is usually connected on the bottom of a word , this process will create a “ baseline ” path ( fig2 , item d ). for disconnected handwriting , all of the above processes are repeated on each individual connected sub - graphs . for example take the word “ charles ” ( fig2 , item a ). this word becomes the graph with baseline path shown in light gray ( fig2 , item b ). as shown in the illustration , the above process outlined is repeated on the two sub - graphs . with the construction of the baseline path , it is now possible to segment automatically cursive words or streams of connected characters into individual letters . for illustrative purposes , the word “ center ”, in fig2 , can be used as an example . fig2 , item d shows the word center processed into a set of connected edges along the base of the word . the segmentation routine works on all edges except for the last one and is accomplished by “ walking ” along the baseline path . since , trailing edges are usually connected to a letter they should not be processed . also , the walking direction of an edge is determined by the general direction of walking from the starting edge to the trailing edge . to illustrate , directional arrows are shown on the center example in fig2 , item e . “ walking ” along an edge , follows a path that consists of states from using 3 consecutive pixels . the 3 pixels give rise to 5 states ( flat , increasing , decreasing , minimum , and maximum ). these are illustrated in fig2 , item a . these states are assuming a walking direction from left to right except where ambiguous ; the ambiguity is resolved by indicating a direction with an arrow . the following rules apply to the segmentation process : rule # 1 — before beginning segmenting , find a decreasing state before any segmentation is allowed . once this state has been noted , a “ break ” will be made at the first increasing point after this decreasing state has been detected . subsequent breaks along the same edge must follow this pattern as well . for very short edges , minimums are also considered for breaking points . this is the first set of heuristics , which the segmentation algorithm follows ; rule # 2 — the second set of rules involves analysis of an edge being a “ connector ”. a connector is defined to be an edge that separates the graph into 2 distinct pieces , i . e ., the sub - graph to the left of the starting vertex and the sub - graph to the right of the ending vertex of an edge share nothing in common . the sub - graph to the left must contain the starting edge . and the sub - graph to the right must contain the ending ( trailing ) edge . all edges that may have breakpoints must follow this rule ; and rule # 3 — when an edge follows the above two rules , breakpoints are computed . if no breakpoints can be found , then the last rule is used . if the states were mostly increasing , it was most likely to be an ascending connector . one break is made on the midpoint of an edge like this . the first two rules can be shown through the following example . fig2 , item b shows the skeleton of the cursive lowercase ‘ s ’ with baseline edges in light gray and breakpoints in box dots . the first two rules must be followed for there to be a break . therefore , the breaks would occur at the box dots . fig2 , item c , provides an example of the second and last rule using lowercase t . on the edge with the second breakpoint , rules # i and # 2 were never encountered . but rule # 2 and # 3 were encountered and a breakpoint was made in the “ middle ” of the edge . it should be noted that the strictly descending edge in the middle of the ‘ j ’ does not follow rule # 1 or # 3 . in the selected example , the word “ center ” has breakpoints ( fig2 , item f .) at the following locations indicated with arrows . once these breakpoints are found , the process of creating letters can &# 39 ; begin . each breakpoint gives rise to 2 edges . each distinct grouping of edges between breakpoints forms a subgraph that we dub a letter . fig2 , item g , shows the output of the word center using this definition . the technique illustrated is intended for cursive script english and other “ naturally ” cursive languages such as arabic . this technique is usually not necessary for hand or machine printed words , since printed characters are typically segmented by the nature of writing . when handwriting an “ i ” or a “ j ”, diacritics are typically used such as a dot floating above them . for purposes of segmentation , this case is handled by treating the dot as a subgraph and spatially putting it as close between two letters as possible . the flexible window 1904 can be configured to move in an “ inchworm ” fashion from one segmented zone to another . typically this process moves from left to right , but this order is not mandatory . for languages such as arabic , the flexible window would move from right to left following the natural written order of the language . thus , the process creates a “ virtual window ” of variable size , which encompasses all items in a segmented zone at a given time . this is illustrated in fig2 . it should be noted , however , that rather than using a fixed size the variable window is a product of the size and position of extracted edges that is contains . as previously discussed , a table 1912 of all possible graph forms is available to support the recognition process . table 1912 can be created on a one - time basis only and serves as an ongoing resource to the recognition process . for instance , if the isomorphic database is configured to include all graphs up to order 11 ( 11 vertices ), the total number of vertices in the segmented zones should not exceed eleven . using the connectivity key generated from an order 8 or less graph extracted from unknown image graphs , the flexible window 1904 can be configured to locate the matching record in isomorphic key database 1910 . since all possible graph forms are in the database , a record will always be found through this lookup process . this record contains a series of masks , which serve as the bridge between all sub graphs within the unknown graph and items in the reference library . the size of the mask will correspond to the size of the graph being processed . for instance , a graph with eight edges , will have ail 8 - bit mask and a graph with twelve edges will have a 12 - bit mask . thus , considering a graph with eight edges as an example , the actual process for matching against reference library graphs is driven by information extracted from the database in the form of a string of 8 - bit masks in which the bits set to “ 1 ” designate the edges in the graph which should be considered . through the use of masks a series of sub - graphs can be generated from within the order 8 or less graph extracted from the unknown image . the flexible window 1904 guarantees that each item in this series is structurally identical to at least 1 item in the reference library . at this point , matching has been made only in terms of structure with no consideration given to features . thus , while the flexible window 1904 guarantees a topological match , most of the graphs isolated by flexible window 1904 are not necessarily valid characters . however , the probability is very high that the correct characters are within the set of graphs isolated by the flexible window 1904 . such a determination , however , can only be made while giving consideration to geometry . thus , this is the point at which the flexible window 1904 passes information to the recognizer 1906 . the recognizer 1906 can be configured to make the actual determination whether a graph isolated by flexible window 1904 conforms to an item in the reference collection . this determination is made on the basis of feature comparisons . following is a listing of sample features used for this purpose , each with an attendant narrative description : absolute distance , which can be the physical distance among graph edges and vertices ; centroid direction , which can be the direction from graph edges and vertices to the center of mass of the graph ; centroid distance , which can be the physical distance from individual graph edges and vertices to the center of mass of the graph ; edge area moments , which can be the second moment of individual graph edges ; edge aspect ratio , which can be the ratio of height to width for individual edges ; exit direction , which can be the direction an edge exits a vertex ; expected distance , which can be the position of an edge or vertex in one graph based on the position of a corresponding edge or vertex in another graph ; and graph direction , which can be the direction from one graph component ( edges and vertices ) to another . the above mentioned features are provided for illustrative purposes only and do not represent a comprehensive listing of all features that can be used to compare isomorphic graphs to determine whether they represent the same character . since the graphs extracted from the unknown image and their corresponding graphs from reference library 1914 are guaranteed by isomorphic database 1910 to be structurally isomorphic , by definition they must have the same number of edges and vertices connected in the same manner . in addition to guaranteeing this correspondence , isomorphic database 1910 also guarantees alignment . that is , the features from graphs extracted from an unknown image are mapped to the corresponding features of the known reference graphs . this — is a one - to - one correspondence , which establishes which features must match for a valid comparison to occur . the align is achieved by rearranging the vertices as per the translation code from isomorphic database 1910 . the concept of alignment was previously discussed in terms of vertex translation and the “ translation table ”. thus , since the alignment is known , the task of recognizer 1906 is to assign a level of confidence to the comparison between the known and unknown graph forms . the basis for determining this confidence is rooted in distance measurement . in practice , it has been found that unknown characters which receive the lowest distances scores usually resemble the known character to which they have been matched . as the distances rise , the topological structure still holds but the visual similarity disappears . as recognizer 1906 classifies characters , it can be configured to record the results with scores above a prescribed threshold . the recognizer 1906 also can have a feedback mechanism , which eliminates from consideration simple embedded forms , which are likely to occur in more complex forms . for instance , a single stroke character such as “ 1 ” occurs in almost every complex character . thus , if a complex character is identified , it is not necessary to evaluate every simple form , which may be embedded inside it . once the recognizer 1906 has completed its work , it places its results in results matrix 1916 . the results matrix 1916 can be a tool for identifying characters embedded within a cursive word with their actual physical locations . the result matrix 1916 can contain the following information : a ) character name , e . g ., from reference library 1914 ; b ) physical coordinates in image ( x1 , y1 )-( x2 , y2 ); and c ) distance score : how far the features from the unknown word matched the features of the known characters . the contents of the results matrix 1916 are passed directly to the word matcher 1908 , which can be attempts to match the search term with characters in results matrix 1916 . underlying the word matcher 1909 is the concept of tuples : 3 letter combinations of letters , which are sequential but not necessarily contiguous . a word is matched by mapping tuples generated from individual words in the unknown image against the prescribed search term . once the scores have been established , they can be ranked with the highest one selected as the most likely choice . to facilitate the matching process , a full set of tuples is generated for the search term . this listing is used to map the tuples from the unknown word against the search term in a very efficient manner . when placed within the recognition environment , system 1900 will continually be confronted with new listings of words or names . thus , system 1900 can continually regenerate master sets ortuples . also underlying the word matcher is the concept of dynamic programming which compares two character patterns and determines the largest pattern common to both . the word matcher 1908 allows for some fuzziness when mapping tuple against words . fuzziness relates to the position in which a character occurs . an exact tuple match would mean that every character extracted from the results matrix matched the exact character positions in the search term . the introduction of fuzziness means that the character location can be “ plus or minus ” a certain prescribed distance from the actual position of the search term characters they match . this “ prescribed value ” can be a variable , that can be adjusted . however , if a tuple maps against a word with variation greater than the prescribed fuzziness , it should not be scored as a valid match . the quantity of tuples from the matrix matched against the search term determines whether a document should be flagged for further investigation . dynamic programming is a well documented method for comparing patterns in character strings . for present purposes , the contents of the results matrix can be considered to be one string and the search term can be considered to be the other string . in the case of the present invention , however , the results matrix offers alternative choices for particular character string positions . this represents an extension over traditional dynamic programming approaches . it will be understood that word matcher 1908 can be a print matcher in the embodiments described herein . while certain embodiments have been described above , it will be understood that the embodiments described are by way of example only . accordingly , the systems and methods described herein should not be limited based on the described embodiments . rather , the systems and methods described herein should only be limited in light of the claims that follow when taken in conjunction with the above description and accompanying drawings . | 6 |
the present invention describes a crystalline form of remifentanil hydrochloride and methods of making crystalline forms of remifentanil hydrochloride . commercially available remifentanil hydrochloride was found to be amorphous as demonstrated by pxrd . using the following processes , crystalline forms of remifentanil hydrochloride were obtained . the crystalline character of the remifentanil hydrochloride was demonstrated by pxrd . crystalline forms of remifentanil hydrochloride may be prepared in accordance with the following general procedure . methyl 3 -( 4 - anilino - 4 - carbomethoxy - piperidino ) propionate is dissolved in a solvent . any solvent can be used including acetic acid , acetone , acetonitrile , benzene , 1 - butanol , 2 - butanol , 2 - butanone , t - butyl alcohol , carbon tetrachloride , chlorobenzene , chloroform , cyclohexane , 1 , 2 - dichloroethane , diethyl ether , diethylene glycol , diglyme , dimethylether , dmf , dmso , dioxane , ethanol , ethyl acetate , ethylene glycol , glycerine , glyme , heptane , hmpa , hmpt , hexane , methanol , mtbe , nitromethane , pentane , petroleum ether , 1 - propanol 2 - propanol , pyridine , thf , water , o - xylene , m - xylene , and p - xylene . preferably acetonitrile and chloroform are used as the solvent . once the methyl 3 -( 4 - anilino - 4 - carbomethoxy - piperidino ) propionate is dissolved in the solvent , an acyl donor is added . preferably , acyl chlorides such as propionyl chloride is used as the acyl donor . the solution is stirred and heated . the temperature to which the solution is heated may depend on the solvent used and can range from about − 25 ° c . to about 250 ° c . preferably the solution is heated to a temperature of from about 40 ° c . to 80 ° c ., more preferably from about 50 ° c . to about 70 ° c ., most preferably about 60 ° c . the resulting solution is cooled and the remifentanil hydrochloride is allowed to crystallize out . the crystals are separated and analyzed . if necessary the crystals can be recrystallized . the recrystallization solvent may be the same as or different from the first crystallization solvent . specific non - limiting examples of processes are shown next merely for illustrative purposes . propionyl chloride ( 0 . 03 ml ) was added to a stirring solution of methyl 3 -( 4 - anilino - 4 - carbomethoxy - piperidino ) propionate ( 1 . 5 g ) in acetonitrile ( 10 ml ). the solution was stirred at room temperature for 1 hour . additional propionyl chloride ( 0 . 47 ml ) was added and the solution was allowed to stir for another hour . the solution was heated to 60 ° c . for 2 hours then stirred at room temperature for approximately 48 hours . precipitation occurred and the solvent was filtered off and the solid was washed with ethanol . this precipitate was determined to be remifentanil hydrochloride . crystallization occurred in the mother liquor which contained acetonitrile and ethanol . the solvent was filtered off and the solid was washed with ethanol . this solid was found to be crystalline remifentanil hydrochloride . this solid was re - crystallized from isopropanol to obtain 99 . 19 % pure remifentanil hydrochloride . the crystal was characterized by pxrd . remifentanil hydrochloride recovered from the mother liquor was neutralized with aqueous sodium bicarbonate solution and extracted into ethylacetate . the ethylacetate solution was dried over magnesium sulfate then concentrated in vacuo to obtain yellow oil . the oil was dissolved in acetonitrile ( 10 ml ) to which propionyl chloride ( 0 . 3 ml ) was added . the solution was heated to 60 ° c . overnight , cooled to room temperature , and then filtered to obtain a white powder , which was washed with acetonitrile . the mother liquor was concentrated under vacuum to obtain a second oil . the second oil was dissolved in isopropanol ( 10 ml ) to which concentrated hydrochloric acid ( 1 ml ) was added . the resulting solution was dried under vacuum to obtain a light brown solid . sufficient isopropanol was added to disperse the solid then filtered to obtain a white solid . the white solid was also found to be remifentanil hydrochloride and its crystal structure was characterized by pxrd . for the slow evaporation experiments , each solvent / solvent system was saturated / near saturated with remifentanil hydrochloride in a small vial , and set aside at room temperature in a nitrogen purged desiccator . following crystal growth , the solid material was , in some cases , filtered from the residual solvent using a fritted disc funnel . rapid evaporation experiments were performed by saturating / near saturating a particular solvent with remifentanil hydrochloride , and then evaporating off the solvent under a generous nitrogen purge . experiments described as “ hot ” were completed as follows . an aliquot of each solvent was saturated / near saturated with remifentanil hydrochloride at an elevated temperature . the solutions were then typically cooled in an ice bath . following crystal growth , the solid material was filtered from the residual solvent using a fritted disc funnel . experiments in which two solvents were employed were accomplished using either a mixture of the two solvents , or by dissolving / suspending remifentanil hydrochloride in one solvent , and then adding the other solvent until the remifentanil hydrochloride was observed to completely dissolve . solid material was at times filtered from the residual solvent using a fritted disc funnel . in a small vial ( 10 ml ), remifentanil hydrochloride ( 48 mg ) was slurried in isopropyl alcohol ( 0 . 5 ml ) using a magnetic stir bar / plate . the slurry was analyzed by pxrd periodically to determine if any change in crystalline form had occurred . a portion of remifentanil hydrorchloride ( 20 mg ) was dissolved in mq water ( 2 . 0 ml ) in a vial ( 10 ml ). the solution was then filtered into a 24 / 40 concentrator flask , and frozen using a dry - ice / acetone slush bath . the prepared sample was then lyophilized using a savant — freeze dryer w / speedvac system — ss22 . remifentanil hydrochloride was crystallized from several different solvent systems , slurried for 23 days in isopropyl alcohol , and lyophilized . the solid material isolated from these crystallization experiments was characterized by at least one analytical technique . a ta instruments q100 — differential scanning calorimeter was used . the samples were weighed into a hermetic , aluminum pan and sealed with a pinhole lid . the samples were heated from 25 ° c . to 225 ° c . at a rate of 5 ° c . per minute ( unless otherwise noted ). the dsc trace for crystalline remifentanil hydrochloride samples exhibited a large endothermic transition at approximately 200 ° c .— as shown in fig4 . a siemens d500 x - ray diffractometer was used . each sample was uniformly crushed with a spatula edge , and placed on a quartz , zero - background holder . the following instrument parameters were utilized : scan range — 2 . 0 to 40 . 0 deg . 2θ , step size — 0 . 02 deg . 2θ , scan time per step — 1 . 0 seconds ( 2 . 0 seconds for the ultiva ® sample ), radiation source — copper ka ( 1 . 5406 å ), x - ray tube power — 40 kv / 30 ma ( 45 kv / 40 ma for the ultiva ® sample ). the two samples of remifentanil hydrochloride were used to obtain two single crystal x - ray diffraction structures for remifentanil hydrochloride . powder x - ray diffraction patterns were simulated from these single crystal structures and compared to experimental patterns using the materials data software packages j - powd & amp ; jade . two single crystal x - ray structure were solved as part of this study . patterns simulated from these structures correspond to a single crystalline form of remifentanil hydrochloride , designated remifentanil hydrochloride form i ( see fig1 ). the following table identifies peak values of form i : crystalline remifentanil hydrochloride forms having at least five of the preceding peaks that are indicated by an asterix (+/− 0 . 2 deg 2θ ) are preferred embodiments of the invention . more preferable are forms having at least eight of the preceding peaks that are indicated by an asterix (+/− 0 . 2 deg 2θ ). even more preferable are forms having at least twelve of the preceding peaks that are indicated by an asterix (+ 1 - 0 . 2 deg 2θ ). most preferably , the forms have all of the preceding peaks that are indicated by an asterix (+ 1 - 0 . 2 deg 2θ ). all of the remifentanil hydrochloride samples provided similar experimental pxrd patterns . all of these experimental patterns are reasonably similar to the simulated patterns obtained from the single crystal x - ray structures . in other words , all of the samples characterized are comprised of predominately one crystalline form , i . e ., remifentanil hydrochloride form i ( see fig1 ). the ultiva ® sample ( before grinding / heating ) exhibited a pxrd pattern containing peaks / reflections consistent with the presence of crystalline glycine ( possibly multiple phases ) and diglycine hydrochloride ( see fig2 ). after the ultiva ® sample was lightly ground and / or heated on the pxrd plate , additional peaks / reflections were observed . many of these newly observed reflections appear to be related to the presence of remifentanil hydrochloride form i ( see fig3 ). fig3 shows that the patterns for the ground / heat exposed ultiva ® and crystalline remifentanil hydrochloride share several common peaks ( identified with dotted lines ), which are not present in the original ultiva ® pattern . the remifentanil hydrochloride ( amorphous preparation ) prepared via lyophilization exhibited a pxrd pattern consistent with that of amorphous material ( no sharp peaks reflections ). the remifentanil hydrochloride slurried in isopropyl alcohol exhibited the same pxrd pattern for form i during the 23 - day period , and thus the crystalline form of the sample remained unchanged . a vti sga - 100 water vapor sorption balance was used . a portion of the second remifentanil hydrochloride sample was weighed into a platinum pan , and enclosed in the sample chamber . the three consecutive adsorption / desorption isotherms were acquired under isothermal conditions , 25 ° c . a portion of the second remifentanil hydrochloride sample was subjected to several consecutive adsorption / desorption cycles ( 10 - 98 % rh ). the sample did not adsorb a significant amount of water (& lt ; 0 . 1 % by mass ) during any of the adsorption cycles . in addition , the pxrd pattern of the second remifentanil hydrochloride sample following the wvs experiment remained unchanged — see fig5 . an olympus bx61 microscope equipped with an instec stc200 hot - stage was utilized for the described analyses . the sample was viewed using a sony 3ccd color video camera . a small amount of each sample was dispersed onto a glass slide , and placed into the hot - stage . samples were heated from room temperature to 225 ° c . at a rate of 5 ° c . per minute , while being observed under the microscope at a magnification of 200 ×. the first remifentanil hydrochloride sample , comprised of small block - like / tablet - like chunks of crystalline ( birefringent ) material , exhibited no drastic changes prior to melting at temperatures above 190 ° c . | 2 |
reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiment of the present invention , example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings . fig2 a is a plan view of a unit pixel according to a first embodiment of the present invention . fig2 b is a sectional view according to line ii - ii ′ of fig2 a . as shown in the drawings , in a unit pixel region of lcd according to the first embodiment of the present invention , two gate bus lines 101 , 101 ′ and two data bus line 102 , 102 ′ are perpendicularly arranged in a matrix form on a transparent first substrate 110 thereby defining the unit pixel region . actually , lcds have a plurality of pixel regions ( n × m ) including a large number of gate bus line ( n ) and data bus line ( m ). a gate insulator 112 is formed on the gate bus lines 101 , 101 ′. the gate insulator 112 made of any suitable non - conductive materials , such as sinx and siox , is formed on the gate electrode preferably by chemical vapor deposition ( cvd ) method . a semiconductor layer 115 as channel layer is formed on the gate insulator 112 by depositing and etching an a - si . an ohmic contact layer 116 made of a n + a - si is formed on the semiconductor layer 115 . the data bus lines 102 , 102 ′, a source electrode 106 , and a data electrode 108 are formed above the ohmic contact layer 116 and the gate insulator 112 . then the data electrode 108 is formed by etching a metal thin film preferably made of al , cr , ti , or al alloy after they are deposited on the gate insulator 112 by a sputtering method . alternatively , after depositing and patterning the gate bus line made of al , the gate electrode made of cr is patterned . after that , on the substrate which the gate bus line is patterned , the gate insulator , the semiconductor layer and the ohmic contact layer are formed in sequence . the data electrode and the source / drain electrode are formed by depositing and patterning cr after pad opening . the passivation layer 120 is formed on the tft , the data bus lines 102 , 102 ′, the data electrode 108 , and the gate insulator 112 by depositing an inorganic material , such as sinx or siox , or an organic material such as benzocyclobutene ( bcb ). further , after pad opening , a common electrode 109 and common bus line 103 are formed by etching a thin metal film preferably made of al , mo , ta , cr , al , or indium tin oxide ( ito ) alloy after they are deposited on the substrate 110 by a sputtering method , then a first alignment layer 123 a is formed thereon . the common electrode 109 which is substantially parallel to the data electrode 108 is formed on the gate bus lines 101 , 101 ′. a circular mark 125 represents a group of electrodes which are overlapped to form a storage capacitor . in the present invention , the storage capacitor is formed by the common electrode 109 which is substantially parallel to the data electrode 108 and covers the gate bus lines of n th and ( n + 1 ) th , or n th and ( n − 1 ) th and the common line which is on a same plane of the common electrode and covers the gate bus lines of n th and ( n + 1 ) th , or n th and ( n − 1 ) th . on a second substrate 111 , a black matrix 128 is formed to , prevent a light leakage generating around the tft , the gate bus lines 101 , 101 ′ and the data bus lines 102 , 102 ′ by etching a thin layer made of cr , crox , or black resin which are deposited by sputtering method . a color filter layer 129 , an over - coat layer ( not shown ), and a second alignment layer 123 b are formed on the black matrix 128 in sequence , as shown in fig2 b . finally , a liquid crystal layer 130 is formed between the first and second alignment layers 123 a , 123 b . preferably , each of alignment directions of the first and second alignment layers 123 a , 123 b is determined by a rubbing method using polyamide , polyimide , sio 2 , polyvinylalcohol ( pva ) or polyamic acid , or by photo - alignment method using photosensitive material such as polyvinylcinnamate ( pvcn ), polysiloxanecinnamate ( pscn ) or cellulosecinnamate ( celcn ). fig3 a is a plan view of a unit pixel according to a second embodiment of the present invention . fig3 b is a sectional view according to line iii - iii ′ of fig3 a . regarding fig3 a and fig3 b , the common electrode 119 and the common line 103 cover some part of the data electrode 108 but do not cover the gate bus lines 101 , 101 ′. fig3 c is a sectional view of a third embodiment of the present invention . in fig3 c and similar to fig3 b , the common electrode 119 overlaps the data electrode 108 . however , the common electrode 119 and the data electrode 108 do not overlap any portion of the gate bus line 101 . the overlapping of the common electrode 119 and the data electrode 108 in effect creates a capacitor between the two layers . fig3 d is a sectional view of a fourth embodiment of the present invention . as illustrated , the common electrode 119 does not overlap the data electrode 108 , but overlaps the gate bus line 101 . in addition , certain portions of the data electrode 108 overlaps the gate bus line 101 . the above conductive lines and electrodes in effect creates a capacitor between two overlapping conductive layers . moreover , certain capacitance is formed even between non - overlapping conductive layers which are in near vicinity of each other . in accordance with the present invention , it is possible to achieve the high aperture ratio by using sog mode storage capacitor only , or both sog mode storage capacitor and soc mode storage capacitor . further , it is possible to prevent the apparatus from a short which may be generated between the gate bus line , the electrode , and the common electrode in the prior art . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variation can be made in the in - plane switching mode lcd of the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention . thus , it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents . | 6 |
now , embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings . here , the same components between embodiments are assigned the same reference numerals and overlapping descriptions will be omitted . fig2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of base station 100 according to embodiment 1 of the present invention . in fig2 , base station 100 has control section 101 , pdcch generating section 102 , padding section 103 , modulation sections 104 and 105 , sch / bch generating section 106 , multiplexing section 107 , ifft section 108 , cp ( cyclic prefix ) adding section 109 , rf transmission section 110 , rf receiving section 111 , cp removing section 112 , fft section 113 , extracting section 114 , idft section 115 and data receiving section 116 . base station 100 is configured to be able to perform communication using an uplink component band and a plurality of downlink component bands associated with the uplink component band . control section 101 generates uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information for terminal 200 described later , outputs uplink resource allocation information to pdcch generating section 102 and extracting section 114 and outputs downlink resource allocation information to pdcch generating section 102 and multiplexing section 107 . control section 101 allocates downlink resource allocation information to all of a plurality of downlink component bands , and allocates uplink resource allocation information to only part of the plurality of downlink component bands . here , among a plurality of downlink component bands associated with one uplink component band , uplink resource allocation information is allocated to , particularly , the downlink component band having the bandwidth which is the most similar to the bandwidth of the uplink component band . hereinafter , a target downlink component band to which uplink resource allocation information is allocated , may also be referred to as “ basic component band .” control section 101 outputs uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information to pdcch generating section 102 , and also outputs information about an basic component band ( hereinafter may also be referred to as “ basic component band information ”) to pdcch generating section 102 . here , sch / bch generating section 106 may include this basic component band information in a bch . in addition , control section 101 delivers bandwidth comparison information indicating size comparison between the bandwidth of an basic component band and the bandwidth of an uplink component band , to padding section 103 via pdcch generating section 102 . pdcch generating section 102 generates a pdcch signal to be transmitted in each downlink component band . in this case , pdcch generating section 102 includes uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information in the pdcch signal assigned to the downlink component band indicated by basic component band information , and includes only downlink resource allocation information in the pdcch signal assigned to the other downlink component band . after that , the pdcch signals are outputted to padding section 103 . padding section 103 adds zero information to either downlink resource allocation information or uplink resource allocation information having the smaller size until the downlink resource allocation information and the uplink resource allocation information have the same size in the inputted pdcch signals . to which of downlink resource allocation information or uplink resource allocation information is added zero information , is determined based on bandwidth comparison information . in addition , padding section 103 adds crc bits to a pdcch signal after padding processing and masks the crc bits with the terminal id . then , padding section 103 outputs a pdcch signal after masking , to modulation section 104 . modulation section 104 modulates the pdcch signal inputted from pdcch generating section 102 , and outputs a pdcch signal after modulation to multiplexing section 107 . modulation section 105 modulates inputted transmission data ( downlink data ) and outputs a transmission data signal after modulation to multiplexing section 107 . sch / bch section 106 generates an sch and a bch , and outputs the generated sch and bch to multiplexing section 107 . multiplexing section 107 multiplexes the pdcch signal inputted from modulation section 104 , the data signal ( i . e . pdsch signal ) inputted from modulation section 105 , and the sch and bch inputted from sch / bch generating section 106 . here , multiplexing section 107 maps a data signal ( pdsch signal ) to downlink component bands , based on downlink resource allocation information inputted from control section 101 . ifft section 108 transforms a multiplexed signal to time waveform , and cp adding section 109 adds a cp to this time waveform to generate an ofdm signal . rf transmission section 110 applies transmission radio processing ( up - conversion , digital - to - analog ( d / a ) conversion and so forth ) to the ofdm signal inputted from cp adding section 109 , and transmits the result via an antenna . by this means , an ofdm signal containing resource allocation information is transmitted . rf receiving section 111 applies reception radio processing ( down - conversion , analog - to - digital ( a / d ) conversion and so forth ), to a received radio signal received in a receiving band via an antenna , and outputs a resultant received signal to cp removing section 112 . cp removing section 112 removes the cp from the received signal , and fft section 113 transforms a received signal without a cp to a frequency domain signal . extracting section 114 extracts uplink data from the frequency domain signal inputted from fft section 113 , based on uplink resource allocation information inputted from control section 101 . idft ( inverse discrete fourier transform ) section 115 transforms an extracted signal to a time domain signal and outputs the time domain signal to data receiving section 116 . data receiving section 116 decodes the time domain signal inputted from idft section 115 . then , data receiving section 116 outputs uplink data after decoding as received data . fig3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of terminal 200 according to embodiment 1 of the present invention . in fig3 , terminal 200 has rf receiving section 201 , cp removing section 202 , fft section 203 , frame synchronization section 204 , demultiplexing section 205 , broadcast signal receiving section 206 , pdcch receiving section 207 , format determination section 208 , pdsch receiving section 209 , modulation section 210 , dft section 211 , frequency mapping section 212 , ifft section 213 , cp adding section 214 and rf transmission section 215 . rf receiving section 201 applies reception radio processing ( down - conversion , analog - to - digital ( a / d ) conversion and so forth ) to a received radio signal ( here , ofdm signal ) received in a receiving band via an antenna , and outputs a resultant received signal to cp removing section 202 . cp removing section 202 removes the cp from the received signal , and fft ( fast fourier transform ) section 203 transforms a received signal without an cp to a frequency domain signal . this frequency domain signal is outputted to frame synchronization section 204 . frame synchronization section 204 searches for an sch contained in the signal inputted from fft section 203 and synchronizes with base station 100 ( frame synchronization ). in addition , frame synchronization section 204 obtains the cell id associated with an sch sequence . that is , frame synchronization section 204 performs the same processing as usual cell search . then , frame synchronization section 204 outputs frame synchronization timing information indicating the frame synchronization timing and the signal inputted from fft section 203 , to demultiplexing section 205 . demultiplexing section 205 demultiplexes the signal inputted from frame synchronization section 204 into a broadcast signal ( i . e . bch ), a control signal ( i . e . pdcch signal ) and a data signal ( i . e . pdcch signal ), based on the frame synchronization timing information inputted from frame synchronization section 204 . demultiplexing section 205 receives information about downlink component bands from broadcast signal receiving section 206 , and extracts a pdcch signal for each of downlink component bands , based on this information . broadcast signal receiving section 206 reads the content of the bch inputted from demultiplexing section 205 , and obtains information about the band ( uplink and downlink bands ) configuration of base station 100 . broadcast signal receiving section 206 obtains , for example , the number of uplink component bands , the number of downlink component bands , the identification number and bandwidth of each component band , information about association between uplink and downlink component bands , basic component band information and so forth . here , although it is possible to calculate an basic component band from the bandwidth of an uplink component band and the bandwidth of an downlink component band , base station 100 includes identification information about an basic component band in a bch . broadcast signal receiving section 206 outputs the obtained bch information to format determination section 208 and pdcch receiving section 207 . pdcch receiving section 207 performs blind detection on a pdcch signal in each downlink component band , using the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of each downlink component band , the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of the uplink component band , and the terminal id of terminal 200 . that is , pdcch receiving section 207 first determines a basic information size used to process each pdcch signal , and specifies a part corresponding to crc bits contained in each pdcch signal , according to the determined basic information size . at this time , in base station 100 , the size of information may be adjusted using zero padding , as described above . therefore , pdcch receiving section 207 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in a pdcch signal in an basic component band , using the size of basic information ( payload size ) determined based on either the bandwidth of the basic component band or the bandwidth of the uplink component band corresponding to the basic component band , whichever is wider . on the other hand , the downlink component band other than the basic component band includes only downlink resource allocation information . therefore , pdcch receiving section 207 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in the downlink component band other than the basic component band , using the basic information size matching the bandwidth of the downlink component band . next , pdcch receiving section 207 demasks the specified part corresponding to crc bits with the terminal 1 d of terminal 200 , and , if the result of crc calculation for the entire pdcch signal is ok , determines that this pdcch signal is directed to terminal 200 . in this way , the pdcch signal determined as a signal directed to terminal 200 is outputted to format determination section 208 . format determination section 208 determines whether the format of the pdcch signal received from pdcch receiving section 207 , is format 0 or format 1 a , based on the type information about the resource allocation information included in this pdcch signal . when determining that the format is format 0 , format determination section 208 outputs the uplink resource allocation information contained in the pdcch signal to frequency mapping section 212 . in addition , when determining that the format is format 1 a , format determination section 208 outputs the downlink resource allocation information contained in the pdcch signal to pdsch receiving section 209 . pdsch receiving section 209 extracts received data from the pdsch signal inputted from demultiplexing section 205 , based on the downlink resource allocation information inputted from format determination section 208 . modulation section 210 modulates transmission data , and outputs a resultant modulated signal to dft ( discrete fourier transform ) section 211 . dft section 211 transforms the modulated signal inputted from modulation section 210 , and outputs a plurality of resultant frequency components to mapping section 212 . frequency mapping section 212 maps the plurality of frequency components inputted from dft section 211 to a pusch assigned to the uplink component band . ifft section 213 transforms the plurality of mapped frequency components to a time domain waveform , and cp adding section 214 adds a cp to the time domain waveform . rf transmission section 215 applies transmission radio processing ( up - conversion , digital - to - analog ( d / a ) conversion and so forth ) to a signal with the cp , and transmits the result via an antenna . next , operation of base station 100 and terminal 200 having the above - described configurations will be explained . fig4 explains operation of base station 100 and terminal 200 . in fig4 , one uplink component band ub 1 is associated with three downlink component bands dbs 1 to 3 . here , size comparison between the bandwidths of respective component bands as follows . respective bandwidths of downlink component bands dbs 1 and 3 are wider than the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 1 . the bandwidth of downlink component band db 2 is narrower than the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 1 . the bandwidth of downlink component band db 1 is wider than the bandwidth of downlink component band db 3 . the bandwidth of downlink component band db 1 is similar to the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 3 more than the downlink component band db 2 . that is , here , downlink component band db 3 is the basic component band . base station 100 allocates uplink component band ub 1 to terminal 200 as an uplink resource , and allocates downlink component bands dbs 1 to 3 as downlink resources . then , base station 100 includes uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information in pdcch signals and transmits the result to terminal 200 . here , base station 100 does not include uplink resource allocation information in all pdcch signals , but includes uplink resource allocation information in only pdcch signals assigned to part of downlink component bands . on the other hand , downlink resource allocation information is included in all pdcch signals . particularly , with the present embodiment , the basic component band is a downlink component band having the bandwidth which is the most similar to the bandwidth of the uplink component band . therefore , in fig4 , uplink resource allocation information is transmitted in only downlink component band db 3 , which is the basic component band . here , in fig4 , arrows from a pdcch to uplink data ( ul data ) mean that uplink resource allocation information is transmitted using the pdcch . in addition , arrows from each pdcch to downlink data ( dl data ) or a d - bch mean that downlink resource allocation information is transmitted using that pdcch . in addition , crc bits are added to a pdcch signal in padding section 103 . these crc bits have been masked with the terminal id assigned to terminal 200 . in addition , adjustment of the size of information is performed on pdcch signals if necessary . this adjustment of the size of information is performed on a pdcch signal containing both uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information ( that is , a pdcch signal in the basic component band ) in padding section 103 . to be more specific , padding section 103 adds zero information to either downlink resource allocation information or uplink resource allocation information having the smaller size until the downlink resource allocation information and the uplink resource allocation information have the same size . here , in fig4 , the thickness of each arrow represents the size of the corresponding resource allocation information , where uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information have the same size in the basic component band . meanwhile , in terminal 200 that receives pdcch signals , pdcch receiving section 207 performs blind detection on pdcch signals in respective downlink component bands , using the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of each downlink component band , the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of the uplink component band and the terminal id of terminal 200 . that is , pdcch receiving section 207 first determines a basic information size used for processing each pdcch , and specifies a part corresponding to crc bits contained in a pdcch signal according to the determined basic information size . to be more specific , in a pdcch signal in downlink component band db 3 , which is the basic component band , the a part corresponding to crc bits specified using a basic information size ( payload size ) determined based on the wider one of the bandwidth of downlink component band db 3 and the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 1 corresponding to downlink component band db 3 ( that is , the bandwidth of downlink component band db 3 ). meanwhile , pdcch receiving section 207 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in each of the downlink component bands other than the basic component band , using the basic information size according to the bandwidth of each downlink component band . in this way , blind detection processing is switched between the basic component band and the downlink component bands other than the basic component band . next , pdcch receiving section 207 demasks the specified part corresponding to crc bits with the terminal id of terminal 200 , and , if the result of crc calculation for the entire pdcch signal is ok , determines that this pdcch signal is directed to terminal 200 . then , format determination section 208 determines whether the format of the pdcch signal received from pdcch receiving section 207 , is format 0 or format 1 a , based on the type information about the resource allocation information included in this pdcch signal . as described above , according to the present embodiment , pdcch signals containing uplink resource allocation information are limited to the pdcch signal assigned to part of downlink component bands , and therefore it is possible to reduce the rate of performing zero padding on downlink resource allocation information having a high degree of importance . particularly , with the present embodiment , the basic component band is a downlink component band having the bandwidth which is the most similar to the bandwidth of the uplink component band , and therefore it is possible to limit a downlink component band in which zero padding is performed on downlink resource allocation information , to at most one band , that is , the basic component band . in addition , only downlink resource allocation information is included in pdcch signals in the downlink component bands other than the basic component band , so that the above - described adjustment of information size is not required . therefore , it is possible to reduce the rate in which zero padding is performed on downlink resource allocation information . likewise , it is possible to minimize the number of times of padding and the frequency to perform padding on uplink resource allocation information . that is , it is possible to minimize the frequency of performing zero padding processing on both uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information , so that it is possible to improve the quality of both uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information and also improve system performance . moreover , according to the present embodiment , adjustment of the size of information is performed to make downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information have the same size in a pdcch signal in the basic component band . by this means , it is possible to match the position of a part corresponding to crc bits in a pdcch signal between downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information . therefore , in the receiving side , it is possible to specify a part corresponding to crc bits without distinguishing between downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information , based on the information size ( payload size ) determined based on the wider one of the bandwidth of the basic component band and the bandwidth of the uplink component band corresponding to the basic component band , or the information size determined based on the wider one of downlink resource allocation information determined by the bandwidth of the basic component band or uplink resource allocation information determined by the bandwidth of the uplink component band . that is , it is possible to apply the same blind detection processing to downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information , and therefore it is possible to prevent increase in the number of times of blind detections . even if an uplink component band and a downlink component band have the same bandwidth , a case is possible in which downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information have different sizes , and the present embodiment differs from embodiment 1 only in that the case is focused . that is , with embodiment 1 , a case has been explained in which downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information in a downlink component band as the basic component band , have the same size as long as an uplink component band and a downlink component band have the same bandwidth . by contrast with this , with the present embodiment , even if an uplink component band and a downlink component band have the same bandwidth , downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information have approximately the same size , but do not have exactly the same size . it is because , when an uplink component band and a downlink component band have the same size , the amount of information required to indicate resource positions is the same , but the amount of information required to report information about other controls differs between downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information . in addition , when a difference in the bandwidth between an uplink component band and a downlink component band is greater , a difference in the size between downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information increases . therefore , with the present embodiment , in order to make downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information have the same size , when downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information have different sizes , zero information is added to resource allocation information allocated to pdcchs in part of downlink component bands ( zero padding ). now , the present embodiment will be described in detail . here , the basic configurations of a base station and a terminal according to the present embodiment are the same as the configurations of a base station and a terminal described in embodiment 1 . therefore , a base station and a terminal according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to fig2 and fig3 . control section 101 in base station 100 ( fig2 ) according to the present embodiment delivers information size comparison information indicating size comparison between the size of downlink resource allocation information determined by the bandwidth of an basic component band and the size of uplink resource allocation information determined by the bandwidth of an uplink component band , to padding section 103 via pdcch generating section 102 . padding section 103 adds zero information to either downlink resource allocation information or uplink resource allocation information having a smaller size until the downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information have the same size . to which of downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information is added zero information is determined based on information size comparison information . meanwhile , pdcch receiving section 207 in terminal 200 ( fig3 ) performs blind detection on a pdcch signal in each downlink component band , using the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of each downlink component band , the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of an uplink component hand , and the terminal id of terminal 200 . that is , pdcch receiving section 207 first determines a basic information size used for processing each pdcch , and specifies a part corresponding to crc bits contained in a pdcch signal according to the determined basic information size . at this time , in base station 100 , adjustment of the size of information may be performed using zero padding as described above . therefore , pdcch receiving section 207 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in a pdcch signal in a basic component band , using the greater one of the size of downlink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of the basic component band and the size of uplink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of the uplink component band corresponding to the basic component band , as a basic information size ( payload size ). on the other hand , the downlink component bands other than the basic component band contain only downlink resource allocation information . therefore , pdcch receiving section 207 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in each downlink component band other than the basic component band , using the basic information size determined based on the bandwidth of the downlink component band . next , operation of base station 100 and terminal 200 having the above described configurations will be described with reference to fig4 like in embodiment 1 . in fig4 , one uplink component band ub 1 is associated with three downlink component bands dbs 1 to 3 like in embodiment 1 . here , in fig4 , size comparison between respective bandwidths of component bands is as follows . respective bandwidths of downlink component bands dbs 1 and 3 are wider than the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 1 . the bandwidth of downlink component band db 2 is narrower than the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 1 . the bandwidth of downlink component band db 1 is wider than the bandwidth of downlink component band db 3 . the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 1 is similar to the bandwidth of the bandwidth of downlink component band db 3 more than the bandwidth of downlink component band db 2 . that is , here , downlink component band db 3 is the basic component band . base station 100 allocates uplink component band ub 1 to terminal 200 as an uplink resource and allocates downlink component bands dbs 1 to 3 to terminal 200 as downlink resources . then , base station 100 includes uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information in . pdcch signals and transmits these signals to terminal 200 . here , base station 100 does not include uplink resource allocation information in all pdcch signals , but includes uplink resource allocation information in only pdcch signals assigned to part of downlink component bands . on the other hand , downlink resource allocation information is included in all pdcch signals . particularly , with the present embodiment , the basic component band is a downlink component band having the bandwidth which is the most similar to the bandwidth of the uplink component band . therefore , in fig4 , uplink resource allocation information is transmitted in only downlink component band db 3 , which is the basic component band . here , in fig4 , arrows from a pdcch to uplink data ( ul data ) mean that uplink resource allocation information is transmitted using the pdcch . in addition , arrows from each pdcch to downlink data ( dl data ) or a d - bch mean that downlink resource allocation information is transmitted using the pdcch . in addition , crc bits are added to each pdcch signal in padding section 103 . these crc bits are masked with the terminal id assigned to terminal 200 . in addition , adjustment of the size of information is performed on pdcch signals if necessary . this adjustment of the size of information is performed on a pdcch signal containing both uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information ( that is , a pdcch signal in the basic component band ) in padding section 103 . to be more specific , padding section 103 adds zero information to either downlink resource allocation information or uplink resource allocation information having a smaller size until the downlink resource allocation information and the uplink resource allocation information have the same size . here , in fig4 , the thickness of each arrow represents the size of the corresponding resource allocation information , where uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information have the same size in the basic component band . meanwhile , in terminal 200 that receives pdcch signals , pdcch receiving section 207 performs blind detection on pdcch signals in respective downlink component bands , using the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of each downlink component band , the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of the uplink component band and the terminal id of terminal 200 . that is , pdcch receiving section 207 first determines a basic information size used for processing each pdcch , and specifies a part corresponding to crc bits contained in a pdcch signal according to the determined basic information size . to be more specific , in a pdcch signal in downlink component band db 3 , which is the basic component band , a part corresponding to crc bits , using the greater one of the size of downlink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of downlink component band db 3 and the size of uplink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of uplink component band ub 1 corresponding to downlink component band db 3 , as a basic information size ( payload size ). meanwhile , pdcch receiving section 207 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in each of the downlink component bands other than the basic component band , using the basic information size determined based on the bandwidth of each downlink component band . in this way , blind detection processing is switched between the basic component band and the downlink component bands other than the basic component band . next , pdcch receiving section 207 demasks the specified part corresponding to crc bits with the terminal id of terminal 200 , and , if the result of crc calculation for the entire pdcch signal is ok , determines that this pdcch signal is directed to terminal 200 . then , format determination section 208 determines whether the format of the pdcch signal received from pdcch receiving section 207 , is format 0 or format 1 a , based on the type information about the resource allocation information included in this pdcch signal . as described above , according to the present embodiment , pdcch signals containing uplink resource allocation information are limited to the pdcch signal assigned to part of downlink component bands like in embodiment 1 , and therefore it is possible to reduce the rate of performing zero padding on downlink resource allocation information having a high degree of importance . particularly , with the present embodiment , the basic component band is a downlink component band having the bandwidth which is the most similar to the bandwidth of the uplink component band , and therefore it is possible to limit a downlink component band in which zero padding is performed on downlink resource allocation information , to at most one band , that is , the basic component band . in addition , only downlink resource allocation information is included in pdcch signals in the downlink component bands other than the basic component band , so that the above - described adjustment of information size is not required . therefore , it is possible to reduce the rate of performing zero padding on downlink resource allocation information . likewise , it is possible to minimize the number of times of performing padding and the frequency of performing padding on uplink resource allocation information . that is , it is possible to minimize the frequency of performing zero padding processing on both uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information , so that it is possible to improve the quality of both uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information and also improve system performance . the present embodiment differs from embodiments 1 and 2 in that a base station variably sets a base component band for each terminal . that is , in embodiment 3 , at the time a base station starts high - speed communication with a certain terminal using carrier aggregation , the basic component band is set according to the same criterion as in embodiment 1 or 2 . however , with embodiment 3 , a base station can command terminals to add and change the basic component band at any time . now , each component and the operation in base station 300 and terminal 400 according to embodiment 3 of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to fig5 to fig9 . fig5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of base station 300 according to embodiment 3 of the present invention . as compared to base station 100 shown in fig2 , base station 300 shown in fig5 has control section 301 instead of control section 101 , padding section 302 instead of padding section 103 and modulation section 305 instead of modulation section 105 . here , in fig5 , the same components as in fig2 are assigned the same reference numerals and descriptions will be omitted . control section 301 in base station 300 according to the present embodiment holds basic component band information , which is set by base station 300 , for each terminal 400 . here , a plurality of basic component bands may be set for one terminal 400 . in addition , control section 301 delivers basic component band setting information set for each terminal 400 , and “ information size comparison information ” which represents size comparison between the size of downlink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of each basic component band and the size of uplink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of the uplink component band , to padding section 303 via pdcch generating section 102 . moreover , when changing the basic component band setting information set for terminal 400 , in order to transmit the thing as data for terminal 400 , control section 301 outputs new “ basic component band setting information ” to modulation section 305 . padding section 303 adds zero information to either downlink resource allocation information or uplink resource allocation information having the smaller size until the downlink resource allocation information and the uplink resource allocation information have the same size . to which of downlink resource allocation information and uplink resource allocation information is added zero information is determined based on information size comparison information . resource allocation information to which zero information is added is outputted to modulation section 104 if necessary . when receiving the basic component band setting information for terminal 300 , modulation section 305 modulates that information as part of transmission data to terminal 300 and outputs the result to multiplexing section 107 . fig6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of terminal 400 according to embodiment 3 of the present invention . as compared to terminal 200 according to embodiment 1 shown in fig3 , terminal 400 shown in fig6 has pdcch receiving section 407 instead of pdcch receiving section 207 and has pdsch receiving section 409 instead of pdsch receiving section 209 . here , in fig6 , the same components as in fig3 are assigned the same reference numerals and descriptions will be omitted . pdcch receiving section 407 in terminal 400 according to the present embodiment performs blind detection on pdcch signals in respective downlink component bands , using the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of each downlink component band , the size of resource allocation information corresponding to the bandwidth of the uplink component band and the terminal id of terminal 400 . that is , pdcch receiving section 407 first determines a basic information size used to process each pdcch , and specifies a part corresponding to crc bits contained in a pdcch signal according to the determined basic information size . at this time , in base station 300 , adjustment of the size of information may be performed using zero padding as described above . therefore , pdcch receiving section 407 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in a pdcch signal in each basic component band , using the greater one of the size of downlink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of each basic component band and the size of uplink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of the uplink component band corresponding to the basic component band , as a basic information size ( payload size ). on the other hand , the downlink component bands other than the basic component band contain only downlink resource allocation information . therefore , pdcch receiving section 407 specifies a part corresponding to crc bits in each downlink component band other than the basic component band , using the basic information size determined based on the bandwidth of the downlink component band . in addition , pdcch receiving section 407 determines a plurality of basic component bands described above , according to basic component band setting information inputted from pdsch receiving section 409 . pdsch receiving section 409 extracts received data from a pdsch signal inputted from demultiplexing section 205 , based on downlink resource allocation information inputted from format determination section 208 . here , when the received data contains information reporting change in the basic component band setting , pdsch receiving section 409 outputs that information to pdcch receiving section 407 as new basic component band setting information . next , operation of base station 300 and terminal 400 having the above - described configurations will be described using fig7 to fig9 as support . fig7 shows a sequence when base station 300 and terminal 400 start carrier aggregation communication . as shown in fig7 , base station 300 periodically transmits uplink component band information using a certain downlink component band ( downlink component band 1 in fig7 ) ( step 1 ). when successfully receiving the uplink component band information from base station 300 , terminal 400 requests to start communication with base station 300 using that uplink component band , and therefore starts communication with base station 300 ( step 2 ). in this case , only one downlink component band and one uplink component band are set for terminal 400 , and therefore , this downlink component band ( downlink component band 1 in fig7 ) is set for base station 300 and terminal 400 as the basic component band . after communication between base station 300 and terminal 400 is established , when base station 300 sets aggregation communication with terminal 400 , depending on the situation of communication traffic , base station 300 reports that downlink component band 2 is used in communication with terminal 400 , to terminal 400 individually , so that carrier aggregation communication is set between base station 300 and terminal 400 ( step 3 ). this individual report ( dedicated signaling ) to terminal 400 includes , for example , plurality of information elements including the frequency position and frequency bandwidth of a component band newly added ( i . e . downlink component band 2 ), information indicating whether or not the component band newly added is set as the basic component band , and so forth . here , at this time , only one uplink component band is set , and therefore two component bands used in carrier aggregation are both associated with that uplink component band . next , fig8 is a conceptual diagram showing operation in the above - described downlink component band newly added . in fig8 , the bandwidth of downlink component band 1 originally used in communication is 15 mhz , and the bandwidth of downlink component band 2 newly added is 10 mhz , where both bandwidths are smaller than the bandwidth ( 20 mhz ) of uplink component band 1 . as shown in fig7 , in the initial state in which terminal 400 starts communication with base station 300 ( that is , before charier aggregation communication is set : step 2 ), only one downlink component band is set for terminal 400 , so that downlink component band 1 is the basic component band for terminal 400 regardless size comparison with the bandwidth of the uplink component band . by contrast with this , when carrier aggregation communication is started between base station 300 and terminal 400 ( step 3 in fig8 ), whether or not a downlink component band newly added is set as the basic component band is determined based on whether or not information elements contained in dedicated signaling from base station 300 include basic component band setting information . that is , a flow of adding a downlink component band is different from a flow of determining an added downlink component band as the basic component band . to be more specific , if there is an information element containing basic component band setting information in dedicated signaling transmitted from base station 300 to terminal 400 at the time of starting carrier aggregation , a downlink component band newly added is set as the basic component band without any conditions . on the other hand , if there is no information element containing basic element band setting information in the above - described dedicated signaling , whether or not a downlink component band newly added is the basic component band is determined in the terminal 400 side , based on “ specified default configuration ”). that is , in order to determine whether or not a component band newly added is set as the basic component band , terminal 400 compares between the size of downlink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of the component band newly added ( i . e . downlink component band 2 ) and the size of uplink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of uplink component band 1 . then , as the result of the comparison , when the size of the downlink resource allocation information is equal to or greater than the size of the uplink resource allocation information , terminal 400 sets the downlink component band newly added is the basic component band , and , on the other hand , when the size of the uplink resource allocation information is greater than the size of the downlink resource allocation information , does not set the downlink component band newly added , as the basic component band . in fig8 , the size of the uplink resource allocation information is greater , and therefore the downlink component band newly added is not set as the basic component band . that is , base station 300 determines whether or not to transmit format 0 from the newly downlink band to terminal 400 as default setting , based on the above - described comparison result . in addition , pdcch receiving section 407 in terminal 400 determines the size of downlink resource allocation information , based on the above - described comparison result . here , even if the basic component band is set in the initial state in which carrier aggregation is started between base station 300 and terminal 400 as described above , after that , base station 300 reports an information element containing basic component band setting information to terminal 400 individually , depending on situations , and therefore can change whether or not downlink component band 2 is the basic component band for terminal 400 . then , when downlink component band 2 is set as the basic component band , base station 300 matches the size of format 1 a with the size of format 0 in downlink component band 2 , by means of padding . moreover , when receiving a report that downlink component band 2 is the basic component band , from base station 300 , pdcch receiving section 407 in terminal 400 determines the size of downlink resource allocation information assume that the size of format 1 a is the same as the size of format 0 in downlink component band 2 by padding . as described above , according to the present embodiment , default setting of whether or not a downlink component band newly added at the time of starting carrier aggregation is set as the basic component band , is specified based on comparison between the size of downlink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of the downlink component band newly added and the size of uplink resource allocation information determined based on the bandwidth of the uplink component band . accordingly , it is possible to realize preferable operation for the performance of format 1 a . moreover , base station 300 optionally changes setting of the basic component band for each terminal 400 , depending on information of communication traffic . that is , as default operation , only when the information size determined based on the bandwidth of a downlink component band newly added at the time of starting carrier aggregation is equal to or greater than the information size determined based on the bandwidth of the uplink component band associated with that downlink component band , control section 301 in base station 300 determines that downlink component band as the basic component band . in other words , when a communication component band is added to the initial communication component band , control section 301 sets , as default operation , only a downlink component band having a size greater than the information size determined based on the bandwidth of the uplink component band associated with that downlink component band , as the basic component band . by this means , it is possible to prevent padding on downlink resource allocation information in a downlink component band newly added , without signaling to the terminal . ( 1 ) with embodiments 1 and 2 , downlink component bands satisfying the following conditions may be selected as the basic component band . that is , first , a downlink component band having a bandwidth equal to or greater than the bandwidth of the uplink component band may be selected as the basic component band . by this means , it is possible to eliminate zero padding due to the size comparison between the bandwidths with respect to downlink resource allocation information . in addition , secondly , a downlink component band having a bandwidth , which is equal to or more than the bandwidth of the uplink component band and which is the most similar to the bandwidth of the uplink component band , may be selected as the basic component band . by this means , also it is possible to eliminate zero padding due to the size comparison between the bandwidths . ( 2 ) in addition , an lte - a base station needs to support both lte terminals and lte - a terminals . as described above , however , an lte terminal can perform communication in only one component band at a time . when communicating with base station 100 , an lte terminal needs uplink resource allocation information and downlink resource allocation information , naturally . therefore , an lte terminal cannot be allocated to downlink component bands other than the basic component band , to which only downlink resource allocation information are transmitted , but can be allocated to only the basic component band . therefore , when base station 100 according to embodiments 1 and 2 is an lte - a base station , the basic component band may be a band in which an lte - a terminal and an lte terminal can exist together . an sch and a p - bch for at least an lte terminal are transmitted in a band in which an lte - a terminal and an lte terminal can exist together in an lte - a system , as shown in fig1 . these sch and p - bch for an lte terminal are used by an lte - a terminal . therefore , in an lte - a system , terminal 200 according to embodiments 1 and 2 can determine whether or not a certain downlink component band is the basic component band , based on whether or not the downlink component band can receive an sch and a p - bch for an lte terminal as a criterion for determination . based on the result of the determination , terminal 200 can switch blind detection processing between the basic component band and the other downlink component bands as described above . in addition , in embodiments 1 and 2 , when information about a coexisting band is reported to terminals by broadcast information such as a bch , the basic component band may be specified based on the information about the coexisting band . moreover , information about a coexisting band is not limited to broadcast information , and may be reported to each terminal using a dedicated channel . ( 3 ) also , although cases have been described with the above embodiment as examples where the present invention is configured by hardware , the present invention can also be realized by software . each function block employed in the description of each of the aforementioned embodiments may typically be implemented as an lsi constituted by an integrated circuit . these may be individual chips or partially or totally contained on a single chip . “ lsi ” is adopted here but this may also be referred to as “ ic ,” “ system lsi ,” “ super lsi ,” or “ ultra lsi ” depending on differing extents of integration . further , the method of circuit integration is not limited to lsi &# 39 ; s and implementation using dedicated circuitry or general purpose processors is also possible . after lsi manufacture , utilization of a programmable fpga ( field programmable gate array ) or a reconfigurable processor where connections and settings of circuit cells within an lsi can be reconfigured is also possible . further , if integrated circuit technology comes out to replace lsi &# 39 ; s as a result of the advancement of semiconductor technology or a derivative other technology , it is naturally also possible to carry out function block integration using this technology . application of biotechnology is also possible . the disclosures of japanese patent application no . 2008 - 281388 filed on oct . 31 , 2008 and japanese patent application no . 2009 - 083043 filed on mar . 30 , 2009 , including the specifications , drawings and abstracts , are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety . the radio terminal apparatus , the radio base station apparatus and the channel signal forming method according to the present invention are useful to prevent deterioration of the quality in downlink resource allocation information by reducing the frequency of processing including adding zero information to downlink resource allocation information when an uplink component band and a plurality of downlink component bands associated with the uplink component band . | 7 |
the matters defined in the description such as a detailed construction and elements are provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of the exemplary embodiments of the invention and are merely exemplary . accordingly , those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the exemplary embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention . also , descriptions of well - known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness . as shown in fig1 and 2 , a portable terminal 100 having a hinge device ( 200 of fig5 ) according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a first housing 101 and a second housing 102 . the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 rotate with respect to each other along a rotation axis a that is provided at a side of the first housing 101 and extends along the longitudinal direction of the first housing 101 . thus , the second housing 102 rotates so that its front face and back face are reversed with respect to the first housing 101 . as will be described in more detail in connection with the hinge device 200 , the rotation range of the second housing 102 may be restricted to prevent the complete reversal of the front and back faces of the second housing 102 . the first housing 101 includes a first display device 111 , a first keypad 113 , and a receiving unit ( or earpiece ) 115 a in its front face . a camera lens 117 may be installed in a side of an upper portion of the front face of the first housing 101 . a speaker device 115 b and a second display device 119 are installed in the back face of the first housing 101 . the first display device 111 is installed in the same face as the first keypad 113 to display information input to or output from the portable terminal 100 when a user desires to use a communication function of the portable terminal 100 . the second display device 119 provides a larger screen than the first display device 111 . thus , when users desire to view video , such as dmb video , using the portable terminal 100 , they may use the second display device 119 . the second housing 102 includes a second keypad 121 and a transmitting unit 123 ( or mouthpiece ) in its front face and a channel selection key 125 in its back face . the first keypad 111 is used to input numbers and characters and the second keypad 121 is used to call / select a menu and search for information . the channel selection key 125 can include a scroll function using a wheel key and can be used to adjust a channel and a volume in a broadcast viewing mode . as seen in fig1 and 2 , the first and second housings 101 , 102 may be aligned with each other in a first position . referring to fig3 and 4 , the first and second housings 101 , 102 may be rotated about the rotation axis a so that the first and second housings 101 , 102 are placed in a second position where they are at an angle with respect to each other . in the second position , if the second housing 102 is placed on a flat surface , the first housing 101 , in particular , the second display device 119 , is inclined with respect to the flat surface . thus , in this second position , the first housing 101 is fixed at an angle with respect to the ground , and a user can comfortably view video , such as dmb video , on the second display device 119 . further , the channel selection key 125 is exposed to the outside so that a user can set a channel to be viewed or adjust a volume by adjusting the channel selection key 125 . referring to fig5 through 7 , the hinge device 200 connecting the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 with each other includes a first hinge base 201 and a second hinge base 202 which rotate with respect to each other . the first hinge base 201 includes a first rotation cylinder 211 that extends from a face of the first hinge base 201 along the rotation axis a and a first engaging part 217 that extends perpendicularly to the rotation axis a . the first rotation cylinder has a first end adjacent the first hinge base and a second end opposite to the first end . a through - hole 213 extends along the rotation axis a through the first rotation cylinder 211 . a locking protrusion 215 is formed on the outer circumferential face of the first rotation cylinder 211 . the second hinge device 202 includes a second rotation cylinder 225 that extends from a face of the second hinge device 202 along the rotation axis a and a second engaging part 229 that extends perpendicular to the rotation axis a . the second rotation cylinder has a first end adjacent the second hinge base and a second end opposite to the first end . a rotation groove 221 is formed in a face of the second hinge base 202 to surround the first end of the second rotation cylinder 225 . at this time , at least one flange 223 is formed in the inner wall of the rotation groove 221 . a circumferential engaging groove 227 is formed on the outer circumferential surface of the second end of the second rotation cylinder 225 . the first hinge base 201 and the second hinge base 202 are combined with each other and rotate with respect to each other along the rotation axis a . the second rotation cylinder 225 penetrates the first rotation cylinder 211 through the through - hole 213 and rotates within the first rotation cylinder 211 . at this time , the second end of the first rotation cylinder 211 slidably touches the bottom of the rotation groove 221 . when the first rotation cylinder 211 and the second rotation cylinder 221 rotate with respect to each other , the locking protrusion 215 interferes with the flanges 223 . thus , rotation of the first rotation cylinder 211 and the second rotation cylinder 225 is stopped at a predetermined position . in other words , the rotation range of the first rotation cylinder 211 and the second rotation cylinder 225 with respect to each other is restricted by the locking protrusion 215 and the flanges 223 . thus , the rotation range of the first hinge base 201 with respect to the second hinge base 202 and the rotation range of the first housing 101 with respect to the second housing 102 are restricted . the second end of the second rotation cylinder 225 protrudes outside the first end of the first rotation cylinder 211 . an elastic member 203 is installed on the outer circumferential face of the second rotation cylinder 225 . a fastener , such as an e - ring 249 engaged in the engaging groove 227 , supports one end of the elastic member 203 . the elastic member 203 is a helical compression spring with a first end and a second end . the first end is supported by the e - ring 249 and the second end is supported by the first hinge base 201 . more specifically , the first end of the elastic member 203 is supported along the edge of the through - hole 213 . thus , the elastic member 203 provides an elastic force to urge the first hinge base 201 and the second hinge base 202 towards each other . to alleviate friction between the elastic member 203 and the e - ring 249 and between the elastic member 203 and the first hinge base 201 , washers 204 may be provided at both ends of the elastic member 203 . in other words , a washer 204 may be placed between the elastic member 203 and the e - ring 249 and a washer 204 may be placed between the elastic member 203 and the first hinge base 201 . the first hinge base 201 is mounted in the inside of a side of a first end of the first housing 101 and the second hinge base 202 and the second hinge base 202 is installed in the inside of a side of a first end of the second housing 201 . the second rotation cylinder 225 protrudes outside the second housing 202 and is combined with the first rotation cylinder 225 . although not shown in figures , a flexible printed circuit to connect circuit devices installed inside the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 may be provided . to provide a path for the flexible printed circuit , the hinge device 200 may include a wiring hole that extends through the second rotation cylinder 225 along the rotation axis a . a first magnetic substance 251 is provided in the inside of the opposite side of the first end of the first housing 101 where the first hinge base 201 is mounted , and a second magnetic substance 253 is provided in the inside of the opposite side of the first end of the second housing 102 where the second hinge base 202 is mounted . an attractive force between the first magnetic substance 251 and the second magnetic substance 253 is generated when the first magnetic substance 251 and the second magnetic substance 253 face each other . thus , when the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 are positioned adjacent to each other ( instead of being twisted with respect to each other ), the first magnetic substance 251 and the second magnetic substance 253 face each other and generate an attractive force . the attractive force between the first and second magnetic substances 251 , 253 keeps the first and second housings 101 , 102 positioned parallel with each other . referring back to fig3 and 4 , when the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 rotate in a direction that the front face and back face of the second housing 102 are reversed with respect to the first housing 101 , the second hinge device 200 generates a frictional force . in other words , a frictional force is generated between the second end of the first rotation cylinder 211 and the rotation groove 221 by the elastic force of the elastic member 203 . the generated frictional force suppresses rotation of the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 with respect to each other . the static frictional force is greater than the dynamic frictional force during rotation . thus , when the second housing 102 is placed on a flat surface and the first housing 101 is inclined with respect to the flat surface , the static frictional force provided by the hinge device 200 suppresses rotation of the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 with respect to each other . thus , even when the first housing is inclined , the weight of the portable terminal 100 does not cause the housings to rotate , and a user can comfortably view video by positioning the first housing 101 at an angle . fig8 is an exploded side view illustrating a hinge device 300 according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention , fig9 is an exploded perspective view of the hinge device 300 shown in fig8 , and fig1 is an assembled perspective view of the hinge device 300 shown in fig8 . the portable terminal using the hinge device 300 is similar to the portable terminal 100 described above in connection with the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention . thus , a description of the portable terminal will not be repeated . as shown in fig8 through 10 , the hinge device 300 includes a first hinge base 301 , a second hinge base 302 , and a third hinge base 303 . the first hinge base 301 and the second hinge base 302 rotate with respect to each other . the third hinge base 303 is fixed to a face of the second hinge base 302 . the first hinge base 301 includes a first rotation cylinder 311 that extends from a face of the first hinge base 301 along a rotation axis b and a first engaging part 319 that extends perpendicularly to the rotation axis b . a through - hole 317 extends along the rotation axis b and penetrates the first rotation cylinder 311 . a rotation groove 313 that extends along the circumference of the through - hole 317 is formed in a face of the first hinge base 301 . at least one flanges 313 a are formed in an end portion of the rotation groove 313 . a first locking recess 315 is formed adjacent to the through - hole 317 and a second locking recess 315 is formed on the opposite side of the first locking recess 315 . the second hinge base 302 includes a second rotation cylinder 321 that extends from a face of the second hinge base 302 along the rotation axis b and a second engaging part 329 that extends perpendicularly to the rotation axis b . the second rotation cylinder 321 has a first end which is adjacent to the second hinge base 302 and a second end disposed opposite to the first end . a locking protrusion 325 is formed on the outer circumferential face of one end of the second rotation cylinder 321 and a cylinder engaging groove 323 is formed along the outer circumference of the other end of the second rotation cylinder 321 . a ball bearing hole 327 a for receiving a ball bearing 304 is formed in a face of the second rotation cylinder 321 opposite to the locking recess 315 . a pair of engaging holes 327 b are formed adjacent to both sides of the ball bearing hole 327 a . the third hinge base 303 includes an elastic member cylinder 331 that extends from a face of the third hinge base 303 along the rotation axis b and cylinder engaging grooves 333 that are disposed adjacent both sides of the elastic member cylinder 331 . one end of the elastic member cylinder 331 is open and the other end is closed . an elastic member 305 is disposed in the elastic member cylinder 331 . one end of the elastic member 305 is supported by the ball bearing 304 and the other end of the elastic member 305 is supported by the other end of the elastic member cylinder 331 . the first hinge base 301 and the second hinge base 302 are combined with each other and rotate with respect to each other along the rotation axis b . the second rotation cylinder 321 penetrates the first rotation cylinder 311 through the through - hole 317 and rotates within the first rotation cylinder 311 . at this time , the locking protrusion 325 of the second rotation cylinder 321 slidably touches the rotation groove 313 of the first rotation cylinder 331 . when the first rotation cylinder 311 and the second rotation cylinder 321 rotate with respect to each other , the locking protrusion 325 engages the flanges 313 a . thus , rotation of the first rotation cylinder 311 and the second rotation cylinder 321 is stopped at a predetermined position . in other words , the rotation ranges and the directions of the first rotation cylinder 311 and the second rotation cylinder 321 are restricted by the locking protrusion 325 and the flanges 313 a . thus , the rotation ranges and directions of the first hinge base 301 and the second hinge base 302 are also restricted . the third hinge base 303 receives the elastic member 305 and is combined with the second hinge base 302 . when the second hinge base 302 and the third hinge base 303 are combined with each other , the elastic member cylinder 331 faces the ball bearing hole 327 a and the cylinder engaging grooves 333 face the engaging holes 327 b . although not shown in figures , a separate engaging means penetrates the engaging holes 327 b and is combined with the cylinder engaging grooves 333 to fix the third hinge base 303 to the second hinge base 302 . at this time , the elastic member cylinder 331 and the ball bearing hole 327 a are interconnected , the elastic member 305 is received in the elastic member cylinder 331 and the ball bearing 304 is received in the ball bearing hole 327 a . one end of the ball bearing 304 is supported by one end of the elastic member 305 and the other end of the ball bearing 304 is supported by a face of the first rotation cylinder 311 . in this state , the elastic member 305 produces an elastic force for moving the ball bearing 304 towards the first rotation cylinder 311 . if the first rotation cylinder 311 rotates and the ball bearing hole 327 a faces the locking hole 315 , a portion of the ball bearing 304 is pushed out from the ball bearing hole 327 a by the elastic force of the elastic member 305 and engages the locking recess 315 . when the first hinge base 301 and the second hinge base 302 are folded together and the first hinge base 301 rotates approximately 180 ° from the folded state , the locking recess 315 faces the ball bearing hole 327 a . thus , as the ball bearing 304 engages the locking recess 315 , the first rotation cylinder 311 maintains a stable position . as the first rotation cylinder 311 rotates , the ball bearing 304 slides along a path from the first locking recess 315 to the second locking recess 315 . a separate locking recess may be formed between the first locking recess 315 and the second locking recess 315 to fix the first rotation cylinder 311 at another predetermined angle . thus , a user can position the first housing 101 at a desired angle when watching a video using the portable terminal . as the first rotation cylinder 311 and the second rotation cylinder 321 are combined with each other , the second end of the second rotation cylinder 321 protrudes outside the first rotation cylinder 311 . the engaging groove 323 of the second rotation cylinder also protrudes outside the first rotation cylinder . an e - ring 306 engages the engaging groove 323 to hold the first and second hinge bases 301 , 302 together . although not shown in figures , a flexible printed circuit to connect circuit devices installed inside the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 may be provided . to provide a path for the flexible circuit , the hinge device 300 may include a wiring hole 328 that extends through the second rotation cylinder 321 along the rotation axis b . fig1 is an exploded perspective view of a hinge device 400 according to a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention , fig1 is an assembled perspective view of the hinge device 400 shown in fig1 , and fig1 is a side view of the hinge device 400 shown in fig1 . the portable terminal using the hinge device 400 is similar to the portable terminal 100 described above in connection with the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention . thus , a description of the portable terminal will not be repeated . as shown in fig1 through 13 , the hinge device 400 includes a first hinge base 401 and a second hinge base 402 that rotate with respect to each other . the first hinge base 401 includes a first rotation cylinder 411 that extends from a face of the first hinge base 401 along a rotation axis c and a first engaging part 415 that extends perpendicularly to the rotation axis c . a through - hole 413 extends along the rotation axis c through the first rotation cylinder 411 . the second hinge base 402 includes a second rotation cylinder 421 that extends from a face of the second hinge base 402 along the rotation axis c and a second engaging part 427 that extends perpendicularly to the rotation axis c . the second rotation cylinder has a first end adjacent to the second hinge base 402 and a second end disposed opposite to the first end . an engaging groove 423 extends along the circumference of the second end of the second rotation cylinder 421 . the first hinge base 401 and the second hinge base 402 are combined and rotate with respect to each other along the rotation axis c . the second rotation cylinder 421 penetrates the first rotation cylinder 411 through the through - hole 425 and rotates within the first rotation cylinder 411 . one end of the first rotation cylinder 411 slides along one face of the second hinge base 402 . the second end of the second rotation cylinder 421 protrudes through the first rotation cylinder 411 and an elastic member 403 and a washer 404 are sequentially included on the outer circumferential face of the second rotation cylinder 421 . an e - ring 405 is engaged in the engaging groove 423 and the elastic member 403 and the washer 404 are bound by the outer circumferential face of the second rotation cylinder 421 . a first end of the elastic member 403 is supported by the washer 404 and a second end of the elastic member 403 is supported by the first hinge base 401 . more specifically , the second end of the elastic member 403 is supported along the edge of the through - hole 413 . thus , the elastic member 403 is a wave type washer and provides an elastic force that urges the first and second hinge bases 401 , 402 toward each other . the elastic force of the elastic member 403 increases the static frictional force between the first hinge base 401 and the second hinge base 402 , thereby holding the first housing 101 inclined at an angle when a user watches video , such as dmb video , using the portable terminal . the first hinge base 401 is mounted in the inside of a side of an end portion of the first housing 101 and the second hinge base 402 is mounted in the inside of a side of an end portion of the second housing 102 . the second rotation cylinder 421 protrudes outside of the second housing 102 to be combined with the first rotation cylinder 411 . although not shown in figures , a flexible printed circuit to connect circuit devices installed inside the first housing 101 and the second housing 102 may be provided . to provide a path for the flexible circuit , the hinge device 400 may include a wiring hole 425 that extends through the second rotation cylinder 421 along the rotation axis b . the rotation ranges of the first hinge base 401 and the second hinge base 402 according to the current exemplary embodiment of the present invention can be restricted by the locking protrusion , the rotation groove , and the flange according to the foregoing exemplary embodiments of the present invention . as described above , according to the exemplary embodiments of the present invention , when a pair of housings of a portable terminal are combined , their rotation axis is positioned at one side of the housings and the housings rotate in a direction that front and back faces of one of the housings are reversed , thereby allowing a user to conveniently use the portable terminal to view video . moreover , during a communication mode , the portable terminal is configured as a bar - type terminal , and , during a broadcast viewing mode , the portable terminal is configured so that one housing is supported by a flat surface and the other housing having a display device is inclined with respect to the flat surface , thereby contributing to the diversification of the design of the portable terminal . while the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain embodiments thereof , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents . | 7 |
the method of the present invention is applicable to forming printed circuit patterns on a wide variety of dielectric substrates including thermoplastic and thermosetting resins , glass and ceramics . typical thermosetting polymeric materials include epoxy , phenolic base materials , and polyimides . the dielectric substrate may be molded from the polymers and may contain fillers and / or reinforcing agents . presently preferred substrates include glass reinforced epoxy resin materials . suitable thermoplastic polymeric materials include polyolefins such as polypropylene , polysulfones , polycarbonates , and other suitable materials . the first general step as illustrated in fig1 is to apply a layer 12 of metallic seed particles onto the substrate 10 . preferably , the seed particles are collodial particles of palladium and tin which are applied in the manner disclosed in the aforementioned u . s . pat . no . 4 , 448 , 804 to amelio et al which is hereby incorporated by reference . briefly , a copper sheet is laminated to the substrate surface and the copper later etched away . the etched surface of the substrate is conditioned by bringing it into contact with an acidic solution containing a multi - functional cationic group containing at least two available cationic moities . the surface of the substrate is activated or seeded by bringing it into contact with at least one solution containing stannous and / or palladium chloride . the substrate is then rinsed with distilled water , with the activated surface being then brought into contact with an aqueous solution of hcl . the hcl treated surface is then rinsed with the de - ionized water . although seed particles of palladium and tin are presently preferred , it is expected that seed particles selected from the periodic group of viii , and iva may also be used in accordance with the method of this invention . it should also be understood that a wide variety of different methods for seeding the substrate surface may also be used as should be apparent to the skilled practioner . the next general step ( see fig2 ) is to apply a layer 14 of maskant , such as photoresist , onto the seeded substrate . the maskant layer 14 can be applied by a variety of methods such as by spin coating . preferably , however , the maskant layer takes the form of a negative photoresist film which is laminated onto the substrate surface . as shown in fig3 the next step is to selectively expose areas of the seeded substrate which are desired for conductor formation . these areas are schematically shown bearing reference numerals 16 and 18 . this is conveniently accomplished by exposing the photoresist layer 14 through an appropriate mask . through subsequent developing in a known manner , the negative of the desired pattern is produced in the photoresist layer 14 . in the areas 16 , 18 where the photoresist layer has been removed , the seeded or catalyzed regions of the substrate are exposed . the exposed seeded areas 16 , 18 are next plated using conventional electroless plating techniques such as those disclosed in the aforementioned u . s . pat . no . 4 , 448 , 804 . the plated copper is illustrated in fig4 as conductor lines 20 and 22 . electroless copper plating techniques are well known in the art and may be used in accordance with this invention . preferably , the plating is done in two steps differing in the composition baths used and in the duration of the steps as more fully disclosed in the referenced u . s . pat . no . 4 , 448 , 804 . as illustrated in fig5 the next step is to remove the photoresist layer 14 . this is conventionally done by stripping the photoresist preferably with methylene chloride or a similar solvent which is selectively reactive with the developed photoresist . as can be seen in fig5 there unfortunately remains some seed particles in the areas 24 , 26 and 28 of the substrate which are located between the conductors 20 , 22 . while the thickness of the seeded layer 12 has been exaggerated in the drawings , it has been discovered that a sufficient number of the seed particles can remain on the surface of the substrate that can result in creating electrical shorts between the conductors 20 , 22 . according to the present invention , the seed particles are removed by subjecting the substrate to a gas plasma discharge designed to react with the particles . the plasma discharge step is shown schematically in fig6 . preferably , the plasma discharge treatment is carried out in a batch process wherein a plurality of similarly processed substrates are placed in a holder in a reactor chamber . the reactor chamber includes an inlet for introducing gas into the chamber for producing the plasma therefrom . a source of radio frequency ( rf ) power provides the exciting energy to electrodes located in the reaction chamber . typically , the rf power employed is between 0 . 02 and 0 . 1 ( watt per square centimeter of electrode area ) continuous radiation at a frequency in the megahertz range . by way of a non - limiting example , the reactor and related equipment is commercially available from branson international plasma corporation of hayward , calif . the gas introduced into the reaction chamber ( from which a plasma is produced from the rf energy ), is preferably a mixture of oxygen and a halocarbon . where the seed particles are palladium and tin , suitable halocarbons include tetrafluoromethane ( cf 4 ) and chlorotrifluoromethane ( cclf 3 ) and related chlorofluoromethanes . the presently preferred plasma gas is a mixture of o 2 and cf 4 in the ratio of 60 to 90 percent oxygen to halocarbon by volume . by way of a specific example , a flow of a mixture of 70 percent by volume oxygen and 30 percent by volume cf 4 is established through the reactor chamber at a rate of about 1 . 0 to 4 . 0 standard liters per minute . the other end of the vacuum chamber is connected to a vacuum pump which maintains the pressure within the chamber at about 300 millitorr . an rf frequency of about 13 . 5 megahertz is established to create a &# 34 ; cold &# 34 ; plasma therein . the substrates remain in the chamber for about 8 to 20 minutes , with 12 minutes being presently preferred . then , the substrates are removed from the chamber . the exact processing parameters may be suitably varied in a manner which will be apparent to the skilled practioner having the benefit of the teachings of this patent . however , it is believed that the percent by volume of oxygen should be no more than 90 percent because of loss of conversion of atomic state . on the other hand , it should be no less than 60 percent because of reduced reaction rates . the pressure in the reactor should be between 100 and 400 millitorr because of current reactor design limitations . the temperature in the reactor should be between 25 degrees c . and preferably no higher than 140 degrees c . because thermal degradation of polymeric substrates can occur at higher temperatures . the time that the substrate is exposed to the plasma should be 8 to 20 minutes to provide sufficient time for conversion from the metallic state to the ionic state and minimize material degradation . it is believed that the fluorine and oxygen containing radicals in the plasma will react with the palladium and tin seed particles to thereby form the salts thereof ; namely : palladium fluoride and stannous fluoride and their oxides , respectively . the converted regions of the substrate is shown schematically in fig6 in the areas bearing reference numerals 30 , 32 and 34 . some of the palladium and tin particles may be volatized and removed in the main gas stream to the vacuum pump . the final step as represented in fig7 is to wash the substrate in a solvent . it has been discovered that by washing the substrate in suitable alkaline or acidic solutions that the metallic seed particles are removed from the areas 30 , 32 and 34 between the conductors 20 , 22 . suitable alkaline solvents include solutions of caustic soda , potassium hydroxide , and sodium silicate . acidic solutions such as hydrochloric and nitric or sulfuric acids in proper strengths can be used . however , alkaline solvents are preferred because they will not attack the copper conductors 20 , 22 but will selectively dissolve the salts of palladium and tin which were created during the plasma discharge step . without the plasma discharge step , it is extremely difficult to remove the palladium and tin seed particles since they are in their free metal state and not readily soluable in solvents that will not adversely affect the conductor pattern on the substrate . by way of a particular example , the substrates can be washed by rinsing them in a bath containing a 5 - 50 % by volume solution of caustic soda for about 3 minutes . in view of the foregoing , those skilled in the art can appreciate that the present invention provides significant advantages in removing seed particles from the surfaces of circuit board substrates . while this invention has been described in connection with a particular example thereof , various other modifications will become apparent to the skilled practioner upon a study of the specification , drawings and following claims . | 7 |
the mice were 6 to 8 week old balb / c and dba / 2 females . the antigens were klh and ovalbumin ( ova ) marketed by sigma chemical ( st louis , usa ). the trinitrophenylated hemocyanin ( tnp4 - klh ) was prepared as previously described ( shutze et al ., j . immunol . ( 1989 ) 142 : 2635 ). poly ( acrolein ) microparticles with diameter between 0 . 25 and 1 . 5 μm , marketed by polysciences inc . ( washington pa .) were coupled to ovalbumin or klh as previously described ( rembaum et al ., immunol . ( 1982 ) 52 : 341 ; ziegler et al ., eur . j . immunol . ( 1987 ) 17 : 1287 ). 1 ml of these microparticles was washed twice in pbs and resuspended in 1 ml of klh or ovalbumin ( 5 mg / ml in pbs ). after 3 hours &# 39 ; incubation at ambient temperature , the microparticles were washed twice in pbs and resuspended in 2 ml of pbs containing 15 of bovine serum albumin ( bsa ) and antibiotics . the microparticles thus obtained were stored at 4 ° c . until used . the microparticles carrying the tnp - ova or tnp - klh antigens were prepared by incubation of microparticles carrying ova or klh with tnbs ( trinitrobenzene sulfonate ). 2 ml of the microparticles which had been coupled to klh or ovalbumin were washed twice in pbs and resuspended in 2 ml of cacodylate buffer containing 10 mg / ml of tnbs . the microparticles were incubated for 30 minutes in darkness at ambient temperature and washed three times in pbs . they were resuspended in 2 ml of pbs containing 1 % bsa and antibiotics and stored at 4 ° c . 50 μl of microparticles were washed twice in pbs containing 1 % of bsa and incubated for 40 minutes at 4 ° c . with mouse anti - klh or anti - tnp serum . after two washes the microparticles were incubated with goat antibody coupled to fitc ( fluoroisothiocyanate ) directed against mouse immunoglobulins ( biosys , compiegne , france ) for 40 minutes at 4 ° c . after four washes the microparticles were resuspended in 1 ml of pbs containing 1 % of bsa . the fluorescence intensity was measured by use of a facsan flow cytometer ( becton dickinson , mountain view , calif .). the lymphocytes were cultured in rpmi 1640 ( seromed , munich , frg ) complemented with 2 mm l - glutamine , 10 % of fcs ( fetal calf serum ) inactivated by heat , 50 μm of 2 - me and antibiotics . this cell line was established and maintained according to the method described by taylor et al . ( irl press , new york ) and galelli et al . ( j . immunol . ( 1990 ) 145 : 2397 ). inguinal ganglion cells ( 4 10 6 / ml ) from dba / 2 mice which 8 days before removal of the cells had received an injection at the base of the tail of 100 μg of klh in emulsion in complete freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant were cultured for 4 days in the culture medium in the presence of klh ( 100 μg / ml ). the cultures were incubated in a humid atmosphere under 7 . 5 % of co 2 at 37 ° c . a cell line was established from this initial culture by serial passage of t cells purified on ficoll ( 2 . 10 5 / ml ) in the presence of dba / 2 mouse spleen cells which had been irradiated ( 3000 rads ) for 6 to 8 days ( rest period ) or with irradiated spleen cells plus klh ( 100 μg / ml ) for 4 days ( stimulation period ). the t cells used in these experiments were collected 8 to 10 days after their last contact with klh . cultures in triplicate containing 5 . 10 4 t cells purified on ficoll , and 5 . 10 4 purified and irradiated ( 900 rad ) tnp - specific memory b cells , or 5 . 10 5 irradiated ( 3000 rad ) entire spleen cells , or 10 5 irradiated ( 3300 rad ) adherent spleen cells , or 10 5 irradiated ( 3300 rad ) a20 b cell lymphoma cells positive for class ii mhc ( kim et al ., j . immunol . ( 1979 ) 122 : 549 ), or 10 5 tnp - specific virgin b cells activated by lps as source of the cells presenting the antigens , and different concentrations of antigen were incubated in flat - bottomed microculture plates ( corning , cambridge , mass .) under a total volume of 0 . 2 ml / well of complete medium . the t cell proliferation was estimated by incorporation of tritiated thymidine during the final eight hours of 3 days &# 39 ; culture . the results are expressed as the geometric mean of three cultures , after elimination of background noise . the standard deviation was less than 15 % of the mean . the tnp - specific b cells from normal mice were purified by adsorption and elution on tnp8 - gelatin according to the method described by haas and layton j . e ., j . exp . med . ( 1975 ) 141 : 1004 . this method was modified in order to obtain populations enriched in tnp - specific memory b cells from spleens from previously immunized mice , as described previously ( galelli et al ., j . immunol . ( 1990 ) 145 : 2397 )). the tnp - specific memory b cells were selected on the gelatin carrying a hapten ( tnp2 - gelatin ), by testing the affinity of tnp receptors by comparison with virgin b cells , and the capacity to secrete large quantities of anti - tnp immunoglobulin g in the presence of low antigen concentrations . 10 8 spleen cells containing neither erythrocytes nor dead cells were suspended in 3 ml of hepes ( 50 mm ) buffered with dmem ( seromed , munich , germany ) and incubated in plastic petri dishes covered with tnp2 - gelatin . the dishes were gently agitated for 15 minutes at 4 ° c ., then washed 10 times with dmem at ice temperature . the adherent cells were eluted by the addition of 5 ml of dmem reheated to 37 ° c . and the bonded tnp - gelatin was eliminated by digestion with collagenase ( clsiii collagenase from worthington biochemicals , freehold , n . j ., 100 u / ml ) for 15 minutes at 37 ° c . this method gives an overall yield , expressed as a percentage of the original number of spleen cells , of 0 . 3 to 0 . 6 % of cells bonding to tnp from the immunized mouse spleen . the cells were cultured overnight , before the addition of other cells and reagents , in order to enable the reexpression of surface immunoglobulins modified by the treatment with the collagenase . the presence of free tnp receptors on the cells was evaluated from their capacity to bind erythrocytes carrying tnp on their surface . 55 to 76 % of the cells obtained from the immunized mice formed rosettes with the mouse spleen b cells modified by the tnp . these cells did not proliferate in response to concanavalin a but were 20 times enriched , for the cells which secreted anti - tnp immunoglobulin g after stimulation by tnp - lh , by comparison with non - fractionated spleen cells . tnp - specific virgin b cells from non - immunized mice were purified by adsorption and elution on tnp8 gelatine as described previously . these cells were cultured to a density of 2 . 10 6 per ml in a medium containing 50 μg / ml of lps ( salmonella enteriditis , difco laboratories , detroit , mich .) for 3 days . the non - adherent lymphoblasts were purified by use of ficolle - hypaque ( pharmacia , piscataway , n . j . ), then washed and used as secondary cells . the macrophages were obtained from non - immunized spleen cells by adhesion for 4 hours at 37 ° c . followed by washing of the cells in order to eliminate the non - adherent cells as previously described ( kakiochi et al ., j . immunol . ( 1983 ) 131 : 109 ). the klh was covalently bonded to polyacrolein microparticles with diameter between 0 . 25 and 1 . 5 μm . the coupling of the klh to the microparticles was checked by flow cytofluorimetric analysis using anti - klh mouse serum . the results obtained with 1 . 5 μm microparticles are shown in fig1 . the 1 . 5 μm microparticles were coupled to ovalbumin ( b ova ) or klh ( b - klh ). the tnp - ova or tnp - klh microparticles ( designated respectively b ( tnp - ova ) and b ( tnp - klh )) were prepared by incubation of microparticles carrying ova or klh with tnbs . the cytofluorimetric analysis was carried out on microparticles incubated in the presence of pbs or anti - klh or anti - tnp mouse serum . after washing , the microparticles were incubated with goat antibodies bonded to fitc directed against mouse immunoglobulins and were analyzed by flow cytometry . control microparticles coupled to ovalbumin were not recognized by the anti - klh serum . 2 . 2 comparison of the ability of different splenocyte populations to present soluble or particulate antigens . the ability of non - fractionated splenocytes , macrophages , and tnp - specific virgin b cells was compared for presentation of soluble or particulate klh and tnp - klh to klh - specific t cells . in these experiments the splenocyte populations were prepared from non - immunized mice . after purification , the tnp - specific b cells were activated for three days by lps ; it is known that the lymphoblasts induced by lps are extremely efficient for antigen presentation ( kakiochi et al ., j . immunol . ( 1983 ) 131 : 109 ). the results are illustrated in fig2 for which 5 . 10 8 irradiated splenocytes , 10 5 adherent cells or 10 5 tnp - specific virgin b cells activated by lps were cultured with 5 . 10 4 klh - specific t cells in the presence of different quantities of soluble klh ( a ), soluble tnp - klh ( b ), or fixed on microparticles ( b klh ) ( c ), or ( b tnp - klh ) ( d ). the t cell proliferation was estimated on day 3 . as shown in fig2 ( 2a and 2b ) the macrophages and the b cells activated by lps efficiently stimulated the t cells when they were incubated with soluble klh or tnp - lh . in contrast to these results , only the macrophages , and not the lps - activated tnp - specific b cells , were able to stimulate the klh - specific t cells ( fig2 c and d ) when the microparticles carrying klh or tnp - klh were used . these results show that the macrophages are responsible for the activity of spleen cell antigen presentation when particulate antigens are used . the inability of the tnp - specific b cells to present the particulate antigen has thus been demonstrated . induction of a lysozyme specific cd4 + t - proliferative response in vivo and in vitro by lysozyme - coupled microparticles . the lysozyme ( lyso ) and the limulus hemocyanin ( lh ) were from sigma laboratories . the soluble antigen was made particulate by coupling to microparticles ( polysciences ) of between 0 . 2 and 1 μm diameter . two coupling methods were used : the polyacrolein beads or microparticles possess aldehyde groups capable of spontaneous reaction with the amine functions of the proteins . 1 ml of beads were washed 4 times in pbs and then taken up in 1 ml of antigen at 5 mg / ml concentration . after 3 hours &# 39 ; incubation at ambient temperature , the beads were washed 3 times in pbs and incubated for 30 minutes in 1 ml of pbs - 1 % human albumin in order to saturate the free reactive groups on the beads . after washing , the particles were then taken up in 2 ml of pbs - 1 % human albumin - 1 % antibiotic and stored at + 4 ° c . the antigen was coupled to polystyrene beads by glutaraldehyde , which was capable of forming a schiff &# 39 ; s base with the protein amine groups . 0 . 5 ml of beads were washed 3 times in pbs and taken up in 0 . 5 ml of 8 % glutaraldehyde . after 6 hours &# 39 ; incubation at ambient temperature , the beads were washed twice and then taken up in 1 ml of antigen at concentration 400 μg / ml . after incubation overnight at ambient temperature , the beads were washed and incubated with 1 ml of 0 . 2m ethanolamlne for 30 minutes in order to block the free aldehyde functions of the glutaraldehyde . after a final washing , the particles were taken up in 1 ml of pbs - 1 % human albumin - 1 % antibiotic then stored at + 4 ° c . this coupling method enabled the quantity of proteins coupled to the microparticles to be determined by spectrophotometry . the absorbances of the 400 μg / ml protein solution and the supernatant obtained after incubation of the beads with this protein solution were measured at 280 nm . given the number of beads used for the coupling , the difference between the quantity of protein before coupling and the residual quantity after coupling could be used to estimate the quantity of lysozyme coupled per particle . balb / c females , haplotype h - 2 d , aged 6 to 9 weeks ( reared in the institut pasteur ) were used . immunization by intra - peritoneal route : 100 μg of lysozyme with 1 mg of alum were injected , or different quantities of antigen coupled to beads without adjuvant , immunization by subcutaneous route : 100 μg of lysozyme in emulsion with complete freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant were injected at the base of the tail , or different quantities of antigen coupled to beads . the serum of each mouse was sampled 7 to 14 days after injection . the antibody strength of the serum was measured by the elisa assay . the cell proliferative response was measured on inguinal ganglions and / or on the spleen , sampled 7 and / or 14 days after each injection . the antigen ( lysozyme ) was incubated at a concentration of 5 μg / ml in 50 mm ph 9 . 6 carbonate buffer in the microplates ( nunc ) for one night at 4 ° c . after washing with a 0 . 01 % pbs - tween 20 buffer , the different serum dilutions to be tested , in 1 % bsa buffer , were incubated for 1 hour at 37 ° c . after washing , 100 μl of a mouse anti - ig conjugate ( complete anti - ig supplied by diagnostics pasteur and specific anti - ig by sigma ) were placed in each well , marked with goat peroxidase ; this was incubated for 1 hour at 37 ° c . after washing , a substrate solution was added freshly prepared as follows : 0 . 5 mg / ml of orthophenylenediamine ( sigma ) in a 0 . 1m citric acid - 0 . 2m disodium phosphate buffer , ph 5 , to which was added h 2 o 2 to 1 / 2500 . a yellow coloration revealed the presence of specific antibodies ; the enzyme reaction was stopped 8 minutes later by the addition of 50 μl of 11 . 5 % h 2 so 4 . the absorbance of each well was measured at 492 nm by an optical density reader ( dynatech ). the negative control was made with 1 : 100 serum from non - immunized balb / c mice . the results are expressed either in od × 1000 from measured absorbance , corrected for the absorbance in absence of serum , or by the antibody titer calculated from the linear regression based on the absorbance obtained with the serum from the non - immunized balb / c mice . when the antigen was in particulate form , the elisa assay was carried out in tubes . the serum dilutions to be tested were incubated directly with the antigen coupled to the beads ( 8 . 10 8 particles / ml ). washings were made by centrifuging in 0 . 1 % pbs - tween 20 buffer . when the enzyme reaction had finished , 200 μl from each tube was transferred onto a microplate and the absorbance then measured . the elisa assay measured the fixation of specific antibodies present in the serum of the immunized balb / c mice by the lysozyme . this fixation was reduced if the serum was preincubated ( before the elisa assay ) with the antigen : soluble lysozyme or lysozyme coupled to beads , which then behaved as an inhibitor . the anti - lysozyme serum was preincubated with soluble lysozyme or lysozyme coupled to beads for 1 hour at 37 ° c ., then for 1 night at 4 ° c . ; the reaction was carried out in the tubes . the fixation of antibodies not bonded to the inhibitor was evaluated by the elisa assay ( triplicates ) on microplates , in which the wells were covered with 5 μg / ml of lysozyme . the absorbance of each well was measured at 492 nm , and corrected for the absorbance in the absence of serum . the negative control was carried out with 1 : 100 serum from non - immunized balb / c mice . the absorbance without inhibitor during the preincubation of the serum corresponded to the maximum anti - lysozyme antibody fixation . results are expressed as a percentage of the inhibition of the antibody fixation and calculated according to the ratio : ## equ1 ## the graphical representation of the soluble lysozyme concentration necessary for 50 % inhibition , together with the number of beads coupled to lysozyme , enabled estimation of the quantity of lysozyme fixed per particle . a t hybridoma was produced by immunization of balb / c mice with lysozyme . it specifically recognized peptide 108 - 116 of lysozyme , in combination with molecules of the class ii i - e d major histocompatibility complex . 10 5 t hybridoma cells were stimulated by increasing antigen concentrations : lysozyme or coupled beads , in the presence of different cells presenting the antigen : 5 . 10 5 irradiated splenocytes ( 3000 rad ) of balb / c mice or 10 5 cells of b lymphoma a20 , restricted by class ii mhc molecules . the cells were cultured ( in triplicate ) in a complete rpmi medium ( seromed ) supplemented with 10 % decomplemented fetal calf serum , 50 μm β - mercaptoethanol , 2 mm glutamine , 100 ui / ml penicillin and 100 μg / ml streptomycin , on flat - bottomed microplates ( corning 25860 ). the positive control was performed by stimulation of the hybridoma by the t lymphocyte mitogen : concanavalin a at 5 μg / ml . the supernatant was removed after 24 h culture at 37 ° c . ( 7 . 5 % co 2 ), then frozen to - 20 ° c . for a minimum of 16 h . the stimulation of the hybridoma was measured by the il2 concentration of the supernatant in a ctl - l cell proliferation test . standard deviations have not been given as the error was lower than 10 % of the mean of the triplicates . the ctl - l line is dependent on interleukin 2 and interleukin 4 ; it was maintained in culture in complete medium enriched with 20 % of rat splenocyte supernatant , incubated 36 h with 2 . 5 μg / ml of concanavalin a . after thawing , the culture supernatants ( tested 1 / 2 ) were incubated in the presence of 2 . 25 . 10 4 ctl - l cells , previously washed three times in rpmi 1640 medium , for 3 days at 37 ° c . ( 7 . 5 % co 2 ). the cell proliferation was measured by the addition of tritiated thymidine with specific activity 1 ci / mmole , at a level of 2 μci / ml of culture , for the last 16 hours of culture . the cell dna was recovered after cell lysis and filtration using a &# 34 ; skatron &# 34 ;. radioactivity incorporation was counted by scintillation using a beta counter . the results are expressed in cpm based on the mean of the triplicates , corrected for the radioactivity incorporated in the absence of antigen . the spleen and / or the inguinal ganglions were removed under sterile conditions 7 or 14 days after immunization of the mice ( see immunization protocol ). 8 . 10 5 cells were incubated in the presence of different concentrations of antigen , soluble or coupled to beads . the cells were cultured ( in triplicate ) in rpmi 1640 medium ( seromed ) supplemented with 1 . 5 % decomplemented fetal calf serum , 0 . 5 % normal mouse serum , 50 μm β - mercaptoethanol , 2 mm glutamine , 100 ui / ml penicillin and 100 μg / ml streptomycin , on microplates ( corning 25860 ) for 4 days at 37 ° c . ( 7 . 5 % co 2 ). the cell proliferation was measured by the incorporation of tritiated thymidine with specific activity 25 ci / mmole , at a level of 2 μci / ml of culture , for the last 16 hours of culture . the cell dna was recovered after cell lysis and filtration using a skatron . radioactivity incorporation was counted by scintillation using a beta counter . the results are expressed in cpm based on the mean of the triplicates , corrected for the radioactivity incorporated in the absence of antigen . 2 . 1 . stimulation of ganglion cells from mice immunized with lysozyme by lysozyme coupled to microparticles . in the tests illustrated by fig3 a and 3b , balb / c mice were immunized by subcutaneous injection at the base of the tail of soluble lysozyme complemented with freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant ( cfa ). after 14 days , the inguinal ganglions were removed , and the proliferative response of these cells was tested in vitro against different concentrations of lysozyme or against different concentrations of microparticles coupled to lysozyme . the results are expressed in cpm corrected for the value obtained without antigen . soluble lysozyme induced substantial proliferation of cells from mice immunized by this antigen in freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant ( 3a ). the in vitro stimulation of these cells by lysozyme - microparticles revealed that the latter are able to induce a very strong cell proliferation ( fig3 b ). the microparticles with very large diameter , 0 . 81 and 0 . 96 μm ( spontaneous coupling ), were very effective . fig4 a and 4b correspond to the results for stimulation of lysozyme - specific t hybridoma by soluble lysozyme ( 4a ) or lysozyme coupled to microparticles ( 4b ). the degree of stimulation of the hybridoma was measured by the level of il - 2 / il - 4 produced . in the presence of irradiated splenocytes , the t hybridoma was strongly stimulated by soluble lysozyme ( fig4 a ). in the presence of these cells , the large lysozyme - microparticles ( 0 . 81 and 0 . 96 μm ) also caused substantial production of il - 2 / il - 4 ( fig4 b ), in contrast to the 0 . 5 and 0 . 25 μm microparticles which were not able to stimulate the specific t hybridoma . 2 . 3 . inability of b lymphoma a20 cells to present lysozyme coupled to beads to lysozyme - specific t hybridoma . it is known that b cell tumors carrying ia receptors can be used as antigen - presenting cells for antigens which do not react with the ig receptor but which are fixed by b cell tumors by nonspecific mechanisms ( walker et al ., j . immunol . ( 1982 ) 128 : 2164 ; glimcher et al . j . exp . med ( 1981 ) 155 : 445 ; mackean et al . j . exp . med . ( 1981 ) 154 : 1419 ). the capacity of one of these b cell tumors , the a20 line , to present lysozyme in soluble or particulate form was thus tested . the presentation of soluble or particulate lysozyme was compared using two sources of antigen - presenting cells : either a heterogenous source , irradiated entire splenocytes , or b cells from the a20 lymphoma . when the antigen was in soluble form ( fig5 a ), it could stimulate the t hybridoma equally well in the presence of splenocytes as of a20 b cells . however , particulate lysozyme was presented only by splenocytes and not by a20 b cells ( fig5 b ). these results confirm that splenocytes can present an antigen to t cells , either in soluble or particulate form . however , b lymphocytes were not able to present an antigen rendered particulate by coupling to a bead of a size of the order of a micron . 2 . 4 induction of t proliferative responses by injection of lysozyme coupled to microparticles to mice . the in vivo immunogenicity of the antigen coupled to microparticles was analyzed by immunizing balb / c mice with lysozyme in complete freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant or with this antigen coupled to polyacrolein beads . after 14 days , cells from draining ganglions of these animals were stimulated in vitro by different concentrations of soluble lysozyme . in the presence of soluble lysozyme , the ganglion cells proliferated strongly , whether originating from mice immunized with soluble lysozyme or lysozyme - microparticles ( fig6 a ). this shows that in both cases lysozyme - specific t cells were sensitized in vivo . after injection of lh - microparticles to mice , representing the specificity control , the ganglion cells of these animals were not able to proliferate in response to stimulation by soluble lysozyme in vitro ( fig6 b ). the cellular response in vivo is thus specific to the protein antigen coupled to microparticles , used during immunization of the mice . the proliferative response of the cells sensitized by 10 9 lysozyme - microparticles ( corresponding to 1 μg of lysozyme ), in the absence of adjuvant , was as high as that of cells from animals immunized with 100 μg of lysozyme in freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant ( cfa ) ( fig6 a ). in order to confirm and clarify this result , proliferative responses of ganglion cells from animals having received different doses of lysozyme in cfa or different concentrations of coupled microparticles were compared , after in vitro stimulation by soluble lysozyme . in the case of fig7 a and 7b , the mice had been immunized by subcutaneous injection at the base of the tail of soluble lysozyme and complete freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant ( cfa ) ( fig7 a ) or beads coupled to antigen without adjuvant ( fig7 b ). after 14 days , the inguinal ganglions were removed , and the proliferative response of these cells was tested in vitro against different lysozyme concentrations . the results are expressed in cpm corrected for the value obtained without antigen . in fig7 b , it should be noted that the designations 10 9 , 10 8 , 10 7 and 10 6 b - lyso correspond respectively to weights of 1 ; 0 . 1 ; 0 . 01 and 0 . 001 μg of lysozyme . these results show that the ganglion cells from animals immunized with lysozyme - carrying microparticles proliferate in vitro after contact with lysozyme , thus demonstrating sensitization of the t cells specific for this antigen . comparison of the concentration effects ( fig7 ) shows that 1 μg of lysozyme coupled to beads gives a response quasi - equivalent to that of 1 μg of antigen injected in cfa . fig8 represents the proliferative response of cells from mice immunized with lysozyme in complete freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant ( cfa ) or in pbs with microparticles coupled to lh . the addition of lh beads to lysozyme did not lead to induction of high proliferative responses , which shows that the lysozyme must be covalently coupled to the microparticles to induce t - proliferative responses . 2 . 5 -- induction of t - proliferative responses by injection of mice with hemoglobin or ovalbumin coupled to microparticles mice were immunized with hemoglobin or ovalbumin in complete freund &# 39 ; s adjuvant , or with these proteins covalently coupled to the same type of particles as in the previous examples ( polystyrene , 1 μm diameter ). the ganglion cells from these animals were restimulated in vitro by the soluble proteins and the cell proliferation was measured . the results obtained for hemoglobin ( hb ) are shown in fig9 while fig1 shows the results obtained for ovalbumin ( ova ). these results overall show that these proteins coupled to microparticles are able to sensitize cd4 + t lymphocytes specific to these proteins in vivo , in the absence of adjuvant . 2 . 6 . 1 -- t epitope from region c3 of the vp1 protein the t epitope of the c3 region ( c3 : t , 103 - 115 ) of the poliovirus protein was synthesized and covalently coupled to 1 μm beads . these beads were injected into balb / c mice . the results in fig1 clearly show that the t epitope coupled to the beads ( b - c3 : t ) induced a strong t - proliferative response for quantities of the order of 10 9 beads injected per mouse . the pre - s : t peptide ( 120 - 132 ) of the hbs antigen was synthesized and covalently coupled by glutaraldehyde to beads of 1 μm diameter . fig1 shows that the injection of 10 9 beads to dba / 1 mice induced a strong t - proliferative response , stronger than that obtained with the peptide in cfa . the injection of beads not containing the b epitope did not induce a proliferative response , showing the specificity of the response . the materials and methods were similar to those of example 2 . for fig1 a and 13b , balb / c mice were immunized by intra - peritoneal injection with 100 μg of soluble lysozyme in adjuvant ( alum ) or with beads coupled to antigen : lysozyme or limulus hemocyanin ( lh ), without adjuvant . the injections were carried out at d0 , d21 , d42 , the serums were taken at d20 , d31 , d40 and d52 and assayed by elisa for their antibody content . the results are expressed in log10 of the titer of anti - lysozyme antibody ( fig1 a ) and anti - klh antibody ( fig1 b ). three antigen injections were performed i . p . at days 0 , 21 and 42 . the lysozyme - microparticles gave very good antibody responses while no antibody response was induced by the lh microparticles . these microparticles moreover very efficiently stimulated t responses . one of the differences between lh and lysozyme is their molecular weights ( 14500 for lysozyme and 71000 for lh ). at equal concentrations of coupled antigen , the density of lh molecules on the beads is thus about 5 times lower . this could explain the absence of stimulation of antibody responses if these are due to t - independent direct stimulation by the antigen present at high density on the microparticles . mice were immunized with soluble antigen in alum adjuvant or with the same antigen in particulate form , in the absence of adjuvant . antibody appearance was then monitored over several weeks . in the case of hemoglobin ( hb ), the mice were immunized with 100 μg of protein or 10 9 beads coupled with the protein at different densities ( 2 . 10 4 and 2 . 10 5 molecules / μm 2 ). the beads carrying ovalbumin ( ova ) were tested at two densities , 7 . 10 3 and 7 . 10 4 molecules / μm 2 . an initial injection was carried out , followed by two more injections on the 21st and 40th days . serums were taken at the 20th day , the 31st day , the 41st day and the 52nd day , then assayed by elisa for their igg antibody levels . the results are expressed in log of the antibody titer . the results in fig1 show that hemoglobin coupled to beads did not induce an antibody response . for ovalbumin ( fig1 ) antibodies were detectable after several injections if the antigen was coupled at high density , but these responses were weak . these results show that proteins of high molecular weight such as hemoglobin are not able to induce an antibody response , even if they are coupled at a high density on the beads . these results , similar to those obtained with lysozyme and limulus hemocyanin , confirm that beads carrying high - molecular - weight proteins induce t - proliferative responses in the absence of any antibody production . likewise , proteins of low or medium molecular weight ( less than 50 000 ) can induce the appearance of antibodies if they are coupled to the beads at high densities . the peptides pre - s : tb ( 120 - 145 ) and pre - s : b corresponding to the portions of the hbs antigen containing respectively a t epitope and a b epitope or only the b epitope were covalently coupled to 1 μm beads with glutaraldehyde ( b - pre - s : tb and b - pre - s : b ). the antibody response induced by these beads was compared with that induced by 10 μg of soluble pre - s : tb peptide in alum adjuvant . the results in fig1 show that the beads coupled to the tb peptide , containing a t epitope and a b epitope , induced strong antibody responses , which confirms that antigens of low molecular weight coupled to beads are able to induce an antibody reaction in the absence of adjuvant . it may be noted that these responses are as good as those obtained with the free peptide in the presence of alum adjuvant . the materials and methods used were similar to those for example 2 . the immunogenicity of beads coupled to lysozyme with different numbers of molecules on their surface was tested in experiments illustrated in fig1 and 18 . for fig1 a , balb / c mice were immunized by subcutaneous injection of 100 μg of lysozyme in cfa . after 14 days , the inguinal ganglions were removed and the cells tested in vitro against beads carrying different densities of lysozyme ( from 1100 to 950 000 molecules of lysozyme on 1 μm diameter beads ). the results are expressed in cpm corrected for the value obtained without antigen . for fig1 b , balb / c mice were immunized by subcutaneous injection at the base of the tail with soluble lysozyme with adjuvant ( cfa ) or 10 9 beads carrying different densities of lysozyme without adjuvant . after 14 days , the inguinal ganglions were removed and the proliferative response of these cells was tested in vitro against different concentrations of lysozyme or beads . the results are expressed in cpm corrected for the value obtained without antigen . the proliferation of ganglion cells originating from animals immunized by soluble lysozyme in cfa was tested in vitro after stimulation by different lysozyme - microparticles . the proliferative response of these cells increased as the density of lysozyme on the microparticle surface increased . no proliferation of the ganglion cells was obtained after stimulation by microparticles with a density of 1100 lysozyme molecules per microparticle ( fig1 a ). in the experiment shown in fig1 b , the immunogenicity of these microparticles was tested in vivo . balb / c mice were immunized by the different microparticles , without adjuvant , and the ganglion cells of these animals were stimulated in vitro by different concentrations of soluble lysozyme . the proliferation of ganglion cells originating from animals immunized by microparticles coupled to lysozyme at high density ( 950 000 and 210 000 ) was high , and comparable to the response of cells sensitized by 100 μg of lysozyme in cfa . after immunization by microparticles carrying a medium density of lysozyme ( 45 000 ), the cells proliferated in response to lysozyme in vitro at concentrations from 10 - 1 μg / ml . lower - density microparticles did not sensitize t cells in vivo , since no proliferation was observed in the presence of lysozyme , even at high concentration ( fig1 b ). it should be noted that 10 9 microparticles coupled to lysozyme at high density correspond to 23 μg ( 1 - 950 000 - g ) and 5 μg ( 1 - 210 000 - g ) of coupled lysozyme , nevertheless the cell proliferation was as high as that after injection with 100 μg of lysozyme in cfa . for fig1 , balb / c mice were immunized by subcutaneous injection of lysozyme with adjuvant ( cfa ) or of 10 9 microparticles carrying different densities of lysozyme ( 950 000 ; 210 000 , 45 000 and 1100 molecules respectively on a 1 μm diameter microparticle ). after 14 days , serums were taken and assayed by elisa for their level of anti - lysozyme antibody . the results are expressed in log10 of the antibody titer . the humoral response of the mice immunized by these microparticles with different lysozyme densities were studied . injection of 100 μg of lysozyme in cfa induced a high level of anti - lysozyme antibody ( fig1 ). fourteen days after immunization , the beads coupled to the highest density of lysozyme ( 950 000 ) had induced significant antibody production , while beads of lower density had not stimulated the induction of a significant anti - lysozyme antibody response . in particular it should be noted that the beads with density 210 000 , which had induced an excellent specific proliferation of the ganglion cells , did not stimulate antibody production . these results show that t cell proliferation is induced with lysozyme densities of between 45 000 and 950 000 molecules per microparticle , while antibody production requires a high density of protein coupled to the microparticles . within the meaning of the present description , the expression &# 34 ; microparticles &# 34 ; refers to particles which may have various geometric and spatial configurations . in practice , they are preferentially microspheres or beads , such as are obtained by conventional polymer manufacturing techniques . __________________________________________________________________________sequence listing ( 1 ) general information :( iii ) number of sequences : 5 ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 1 :( i ) sequence characteristics :( a ) length : 13 ( b ) type : amino acid ( c ) strandedness : unknown ( d ) topology : unknown ( ii ) molecule type : peptide ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 1 : metglntrpasnserthrthrphehisglnthrleu510gln ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 2 :( i ) sequence characteristics :( a ) length : 14 ( b ) type : amino acid ( c ) strandedness : unknown ( d ) topology : unknown ( ii ) molecule type : peptide ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 2 : glnaspproargvalargglyleutyrpheproala510glygly ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 3 :( i ) sequence characteristics :( a ) length : 13 ( b ) type : amino acid ( c ) strandedness : unknown ( d ) topology : unknown ( ii ) molecule type : peptide ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 3 : lysleuphealavaltrplysilethrtyrlysasp510thr ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 4 :( i ) sequence characteristics :( a ) length : 11 ( b ) type : amino acid ( c ) strandedness : unknown ( d ) topology : unknown ( ii ) molecule type : peptide ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 4 : aspasnproalaserthrthrasnlysasplys510 ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 5 :( i ) sequence characteristics :( a ) length : 40 ( b ) type : amino acid ( c ) strandedness : unknown ( d ) topology : unknown ( ii ) molecule type : peptide ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 5 : ileasncysthrargproasnasnasnthrarg510lysserileargileglnargglyproglyarg1520alaphevalthrileglylysileglyasnmet2530argglnalahiscysasnile3540__________________________________________________________________________ | 0 |
the following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out various embodiments of the invention . the description is not to be taken in a limiting sense , but is made for at least the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention , since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims . fig1 through 3 illustrate an embodiment of the present invention for capturing and removing hair from a sink . the hair capturing device 10 includes trap elements 28 that are positioned at a predetermined acute angle as to prevent hair from becoming lodged into some remote and inaccessible location in a drain pipe . the hair capturing device 10 is also positioned within the drain pipe having a downwardly extending central longitudinal shaft member 26 . the upper end of the central longitudinal shaft member 26 is secured to a top member means 25 which is configured to engage a portion of a sink plate at the opening thereof so that water drains from the sink or the like and is then carried away in the building plumbing system , attached to and extending from the central longitudinal shaft member 26 are a plurality of slender rod - like bristles 28 of hair catching members . the bristle rod - like members 28 are spaced apart from each other a distance so as to effectively impede and entrap hair contained in water passing between them . each of the bristle members 28 are slender rod - like elements , whether round , square or otherwise in a cross - sectional configuration . in the preferred embodiment of the invention , the outer ends of the bristle rod - like members 28 consist of barrier - like knobs 30 for effectively preventing captured hair from sliding up and then off said bristle rod - like members 28 as water containing hair passes along said bristle rod - like members 28 . the outer ends of the bristle rod - like members 28 containing barrier - like knobs will further prevent hair and other debris from flowing freely along the sidewalls of a drain pipe as water containing hair passes through the drain pipe . as shown in fig1 through 3 , the preferred embodiment of the bristle rod - like members 28 are positioned on the longitudinal shaft member 26 in vertical columns extending from said shaft member 26 . the bristle rod - like members can also be positioned on the longitudinal shaft member in alternative configurations other than in vertical columns so long as the alternative configurations are effective for capturing hair from a drain . in all embodiments , hair will be captured by the angled bristle rod - like members 28 as water passes downwardly in a . vertical path along the angled bristle members 28 . in the preferred embodiment , the bristle rod - like members 28 extend from the exterior of the longitudinal shaft member 26 at a predetermined acute angle relative to the central radius point of the longitudinal shaft member 26 , but said bristle rod - like members do not always have to pass through or be angled toward the central radius point of the longitudinal shaft member 26 so long as the alternative configurations are effective for capturing hair from a drain . the predetermined acute angle of said bristle rod - like members 28 causes the captured hair to slide or fall towards the longitudinal shaft member 26 preventing hair from being dislodged into the drain pipe . fig4 shows that the bottom end of the central longitudinal shaft member 26 is secured to an integral guide 27 that can be bolted down by a fastener . a stopper actuator rod engages the integral guide that allows a user to raise or lower the hair capturing device to either entrap water within the lavatory , or permit it to drain out . fig5 shows the preferred embodiment of the hair capturing device 10 where the bottom end of the longitudinal shaft member 26 is secured to a u - shaped integral integral guide 29 that does not have to be bolted down to a fastener . as in fig4 , a stopper actuator rod engages the integral guide 29 that also allows a user to raise or lower the hair capturing device to either entrap water within the lavatory , or permit it to drain out . in alternative embodiments , different integral guide designs can be used for raising or lowering the hair capturing device when the integral guide is engaged by a stopper actuator rod . with the arrangement of fig1 through 5 hair capturing device 10 can be easily removed by pulling upwardly on the top member 25 . hair capturing device 10 may then be cleaned by cutting the trapped hair from the bristle members 28 with a v - shaped blade device 20 which includes a handle 32 . if the hair capturing device is inexpensively made , ( it can be formed of molded plastic ) it can be conveniently discarded and replaced . this maintenance procedure if conducted routinely will serve to capture hair and other debris which might ultimately collect and clog a plumbing system in some remote and inaccessible area . fig6 and 7 show another embodiment of the invention . in this embodiment , the longitudinal shaft member 26 of the hair capturing device 17 includes relatively thin blade - like plates 37 with a width that is less than the diameter of the drain pipe in which it is to be positioned . within the thin plates 37 of the preferred embodiment are bristle rod - like members 28 extending from the exterior of the longitudinal shaft member 26 at a predetermined , acute angle relative to the central radius point of the longitudinal shaft member 26 , but said bristle rod - like members do not always have to pass through or be angled toward the central radius point of the longitudinal shaft member 26 so long as the alternative configurations are effective for capturing hair from a drain . as in the other embodiments , hair is captured by the bristle rod - like members 28 as water passes downwardly in a vertical path along the angled bristle members 28 . the predetermined acute angle of said bristle members 28 causes the captured hair to slide or fall towards the longitudinal shaft member 26 preventing hair from being dislodged into the drain pipe . fig8 shows that the bottom end of the central longitudinal shaft member 26 is secured to an integral guide 27 that is secured to a fastener . alternatively , fig9 shows that the bottom end of the central longitudinal shaft member 26 can be secured to a u - shaped integral guide 29 that does not have to be bolted down by a fastener . as in the other embodiments , a stopper actuator rod engages the integral guide that allows a user to raise or lower the hair capturing device to either entrap water within the lavatory , or permit it to drain out . in alternative embodiments , integral guides of various designs can be used for raising or lowering the hair capturing device when the integral guide is engaged by a stopper actuator rod . with the arrangement of fig6 through 9 hair capturing device 17 can be easily cleaned by pulling upwardly on the top member 25 . hair capturing device 17 may then be cleaned by cutting the trapped hair from the bristle members 28 with a v - shaped blade device 20 . if the hair capturing device is inexpensively made , ( it can be formed of molded plastic ) it can be conveniently discarded and replaced . this maintenance procedure if conducted routinely will serve to capture hair and other debris which might ultimately collect and clog a plumbing system in some remote and inaccessible area . fig1 shows the preferred embodiment of the hair capturing device 19 that can be used in a shower to capture and remove hair from a drain . as shown in fig1 , the preferred embodiment of the invention includes bristle rod - like members 28 extending from the exterior of the longitudinal shaft member 26 at a predetermined acute angle relative to the central radius point of the longitudinal shaft member 26 , but said bristle rod - like members do not always have to pass through or be angled toward the central radius point of the longitudinal shaft member 26 so long as the alternative configurations are effective for capturing hair from a drain . the predetermined acute angle of said bristle rod - like members 28 causes the captured hair to slide or fall towards the longitudinal shaft member 26 preventing hair from being dislodged into the drain pipe . the upper end of the central longitudinal shaft member 26 is secured to a top end such as a drain plate 31 by means of a screw that fastens the drain plate to the upper end of the central longitudinal shaft member which is configured to engage a portion of a floor plate at the opening of a shower so that water drains from the shower or the like ( such as a bathtub ) and is carried away in the building plumbing system . the hair capturing device 19 is also positioned within the drain pipe having a downwardly extending central longitudinal shaft member 26 . the bristle rod - like members 28 are spaced apart from each other a distance so as to effectively impede and entrap hair contained in water passing between them . each of the bristle members 28 are slender rod - like elements , whether round , square or otherwise in a cross - sectional configuration . the outer ends of the bristle rod - like members 28 consist of barrier - like knobs 30 for effectively preventing captured hair from sliding up and then off said bristle rod - like members 28 as water containing hair passes along the bristle members 28 . the outer ends of the bristle rod - like members 28 containing barrier - like knobs further prevents hair from flowing freely along the sidewalls of a drain pipe as water containing hair passes through the drain pipe . with the arrangements of fig1 through 12 hair capturing device 19 can be easily removed by pulling upwardly on the drain plate 31 . hair capturing device 19 may then be cleaned by cutting the trapped hair from the bristle members 28 with a v - shaped blade device 20 . if the hair capturing device is inexpensively made , ( it can be formed of molded plastic ) it can be conveniently discarded and replaced . this maintenance procedure if conducted routinely will serve to capture hair and other debris which might ultimately collect and clog a plumbing system in some remote and inaccessible area . fig1 through 16 and the following discussion provide a brief , general description of a suitable hair capturing device and a v - shaped blade device 20 in which a system can be implemented for effectively removing hair and debris from the hair capturing device . fig1 shows that the v - shaped blade device 20 will consist of a longitudinal - extended handle 32 that is coupled to a syncline - shaped hook 33 that extends from an arm 34 . within the syncline - shaped hook 33 is a v - shaped opening 35 that will include a blade 36 extending from the inner tip to the bottom portion thereof fig1 through 16 also provide a perspective view showing that the hair capturing device can be easily cleaned after it has been removed from the drain pipe by positioning the outer tip of the v - shaped blade device 20 at the top of the longitudinal shaft member 26 . after the v - shaped blade device 20 has been positioned , the preferred method for removing hair from the hair capturing device is to slowly slide the v - blade device 20 in a downward motion between the vertical columns of the hair catchers having slender rod - like bristles . after hair and debris has been removed from one of the vertical columns of the hair capturing device , the hair and debris can then be easily discarded into the trash and then the user of the v - blade device 20 can continue cleaning each remaining vertical column of the hair capturing device . once all hair and debris has been removed from the hair capturing device , it can be easily placed back into the drain pipe for capturing and removing hair again from the drain pipe system . it should be understood that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . it should also be understood that the present invention is not limited to the designs mentioned in this application and the equivalent designs in this description , but it is also intended . to cover other equivalents now known to those skilled in the art , or those equivalents which may become known to those skilled in the art in the future . the invention pertains to an apparatus for capturing and removing hair from a sink drain , which may be of value or importance to various industries such as , but not limited to , the plumbing and / or bathroom industry . | 0 |
fig1 through 4b show a swivel rocker chair connector assembly in accordance with the present invention . as shown in fig1 and 2 , the swivel rocker chair connector assembly 10 connects a chair seat portion 12 to a chair base 14 . the chair seat portion 12 can be , for example , a lower stabilizing member such as u - bar member 16 which extends downwardly from the horizontal seat surface ( not shown ). the chair base assembly 14 can be provided with a base portion 15 that rests on the ground surface , legs 18 and a shaft 20 maintained in a cylindrical sleeve 22 so as to allow for rotation about a chair base axis , indicated at a . legs 18 and cylindrical sleeve 22 can be secured to platform 23 by commonly known means , for example . a t - bar member 24 and a pair of substantially flat rocker spring members 26 can be provided as part of chair base assembly 14 . connector assemblies 21 such as washer plates 28 , bolts 29 and nuts can be provided for securing the rocker spring members at a first end 30 to the t - bar member 24 . connector assemblies 21 are also provided to secure the other end 32 of the rocker spring members 26 to the chair seat portion 12 . as shown in fig2 and 3 , the connector assembly of the present invention can comprise dual washer member ( s ) 34 and one or more nut 36 and bolt 38 combinations . the connector assembly may also optionally include the t - bar member 24 and rocker spring members 26 . in one embodiment , the connection of the rocker spring members 26 to the chair seat portion 12 can be accomplished by connecting means such as clamps , glue , or spot welds , for example , as opposed to washer members 34 , nuts 36 and bolts 38 . the t - bar member 24 is generally comprised of a stem portion 25 and a top cross portion 27 . the stem portion 25 of the t - bar member 24 is secured to the chair base shaft , which is rotatably maintained within the chair base by any of various means known in the art . as shown in fig2 , the stem portion 25 is secured in a first substantially horizontal plane b when secured to the chair base 14 . the top cross portion 27 is secured to the stem portion 25 and extends in a second substantially horizontal plane c that is adjacent to the horizontal plane b of the stem portion 25 , as shown in fig2 . the top cross portion 27 and stem portion 25 are secured such that they are substantially perpendicular to one another . as further shown in fig1 and 2 , t - bar member 24 has an upper surface 40 which can cooperatively engage lower surfaces of respective rocker spring members 26 . it will be appreciated that t - bar member can be part of a chair base assembly or part of the connector assembly of the present invention . as shown in fig1 through 3 , each rocker spring member 26 is provided with a first end 30 , a second end 32 , a top face 42 , and a bottom face 44 . the rocker spring members 26 are secured on opposite sides of the chair base axis a and lie in substantially the same horizontal plane when at rest . this arrangement assists in the overall stability of the chair . the rocker spring members 26 can be substantially flat as shown in fig1 and 2 . the rocker spring members 26 further have holes at each end 30 and 32 that cooperate with appropriate washer plate bolts and washer plates . the first end 30 of the rocker spring member 26 is positioned above the t - bar member top cross portion 27 such that the bottom face of the rocker spring member cooperatively engages the t - bar member top cross portion upper face 40 , with the second end 32 being positioned such that the rocker spring member 26 top face rests underneath and cooperatively engages the bottom surface 45 of the chair seat portion 12 . it will be appreciated that , in an alternative embodiment , the present invention can operate with a single rocker spring member 26 secured in substantially the middle of the t - bar member 24 and in a plane above the chair base shaft , wherein such plane is substantially perpendicular to the chair base axis in the resting position . rocker spring members 26 can be secured to t - bar member 24 by bolts , nuts and washer plates in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . in one embodiment , rocker spring members 26 are secured to t - bar member 24 prior to shipment of the swivel chair parts to be assembled by the end user . in one embodiment of the invention , rocker spring members 26 can be formed of a fiberglass reinforced plastic . as shown in fig3 , 4 a and 4 b , at least one washer plate member 34 is provided having a pair of side walls 52 extending in substantially parallel relation , wherein each of the side walls 52 has an outer edge 54 , an inner 56 and an outer 58 surface and at least two openings 60 therein . the space between the two opposing and parallel side walls is provided so as to cooperate with the combined thickness of the u - bar and rocker spring , as shown in fig3 . the washer plate member 34 further includes a bridge portion 62 integrally formed with and connecting the side walls 52 , wherein the bridge portion 62 has leg members 64 which extend laterally from the wall outer edges 54 and a joint portion 68 extending substantially perpendicularly from and connecting the leg members 64 . the washer plate members 34 , which can be substantially u - shaped in cross section , for example , help secure the second ends 32 of respective rocker spring members 26 to u - bar member 16 or other seat portion stabilizing member . this dual washer plate 34 , as shown in fig3 , engages on one end the interior surface 19 of the substantially flat portion of u - bar member 16 . as further shown in fig3 , the washer plate members 34 engage , on the other end , the bottom surface 44 of the rocker spring members 26 such that a washer plate bolt 38 passes sequentially through the first wall of the washer plate member 34 , the u - bar member 16 of the seat assembly , the rocker spring member 26 , the second wall of the washer plate member 34 , a lock washer 35 ( optional ), and a nut 36 . it will be appreciated that u - bar member 16 and / or other seat assembly member is provided with openings that mate with the openings in washer plate member 34 to allow bolt 38 to pass through . in one embodiment of the invention , the washer plate bolt 38 can be provided such that only the end portion of the bolt is threaded . in one embodiment , the threaded portion of the bolt represents approximately 25 % of the entire length of the shaft of the bolt . the present invention further provides means for securing the rocker spring members 26 to the washer plate members 34 such that the inner surface of one of the washer plate member walls 52 cooperatively engages the seat chair portion 12 in mating relationship therewith , and further such that the inner surface of the second washer plate member walls cooperatively engages and is in mating relationship with the rocker spring member 26 bottom face near the second end of the rocker spring member 26 . the connection or securing means can include a pair of bolts 38 extending through the openings of the washer plate member walls 52 . in one embodiment of the invention , each of the bolts includes a shaft which is partially threaded . in one embodiment of the invention , the chair seat portion 12 lies in a plane which is between the bridge portion of the washer plate member 34 and the t - bar member top cross portion 27 . the present invention makes it nearly impossible to omit or to mis - position the washer plate members 34 during installation . the partial threading of the washer plate bolt 38 makes it impossible to attach the u - bar member 16 directly to the rocker spring member 26 without the dual washer plate . other embodiments may be employed to achieve this result . one such alternative embodiment includes pre - assembling the u - bar member 16 , washer plate members 34 , rocker spring member 26 , t - bar member 24 and swivel shaft , thereby eliminating the need for user assembly . another embodiment is to bond the washer plate members 34 to the u - bar member 16 by welding or glue , for example . another embodiment involves bonding the washer plate member 34 to the rocker spring member 26 . yet another embodiment involves bonding all washer plate members 34 into proper position . the embodiment shown in the drawings is preferred and optimizes cost of production , ease of assembly and bulk shipping . a method of installing a swivel rocker chair can be accomplished as follows . first , a base assembly can be provided with a connected t - bar member substantially as described above . then , a seat assembly having a lower stabilizing member can be provided . next , one or more rocker spring members can be provided , wherein the rocker spring members have a first end and a second end , with the first end cooperatively engaging the t - bar member and the second end cooperatively engaging the seat assembly lower stabilizing element . next , a dual washer plate member can be provided , wherein the plate has a pair of walls each having an interior surface , such that a first interior surface cooperatively engages an upper surface of the seat assembly lower stabilizing member , and such that a second interior surface cooperatively engages a lower surface of each of the one or more rocker spring members . next , a bolt member can be passed sequentially through the washer plate , lower stabilizing member , rocker spring member , and again through the washer plate , and the bolt member can be secured in the passed - through position by a nut or other similar object . the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof . the present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive , the scope of the invention being indicated by the claims of the application rather than by the foregoing description , and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein . | 0 |
1 . the signal occupies a bandwidth much greater than necessary to send the information . 2 . the bandwidth is spread by means of a code that is independent of the data . the independence of the code distinguishes this from standard modulation schemes in which the data modulation will always spread the spectrum somewhat . 3 . the receiver synchronizes to the code to recover the data . the use of an independent code and synchronous reception allows multiple users to access the same frequency band at the same time . in order to protect the signal , the code used is pseudo - random . the code , called “ direct sequence spread spectrum ” appears to be random , but is actually deterministic , so the receiver can reconstruct the code for synchronous detection . the receiver knows how to generate the same code , and correlates the received signal with that code to extract the data . fig1 shows a simplified direct sequence spread spectrum system 1000 employing an orthogonal filter bank to generate pulse - shaping codes ; for clarity , the figure shows one channel operating in one direction only . signal transmission consists of the following steps : 3 . a pseudo - random code is generated 1130 ; the code different for each channel and each successive connection over a given channel . 4 . obtain the name of the wavelet filter bank and the number of filter taps 1135 . 5 . the filter - bank generates a set of orthogonal filters 1140 . 6 . the channel and source encoded data modulates the pseudo - random code 1150 ( the data are “ spread ”). and the spread signal is used to modulate the filter generated by the filter - bank ( using pulse - amplitude modulation , for example ). 7 . the data - modulated filter , in turn , 1160 modulates a carrier . 8 . the modulated carrier is amplified and broadcast over a wideband transmission channel . 2 . obtain the type of wavelet filter and the number of filter taps used 1535 . 3 . the filter bank in the receiver generates matching filters , which are applied to carrier 1540 . 4 . the receiver demodulator and matched filters recovers the spread digital signal 1550 . 5 . a pseudo - random code is generated 1530 , matching the anticipated signal . 6 . the receiver acquires the received code and phase locks its own code to it 1550 . 7 . the received signal is correlated with the generated code , extracting the channel - encoded data 1550 . 1 . it must be deterministic . the subscriber station must be able to independently generate the code that matches the base station code . 2 . it must appear random to a listener without prior knowledge of the code ( i . e . it has the statistical properties of sampled white noise ). 4 . the code must have a long period ( i . e . a long time before the code repeats itself ). 2 . it equals 0 of the two codes have nothing in common intermediate values indicate how much the codes have in common . the more they have in common , the harder it is for the receiver to extract the appropriate signal . the receiver uses cross - correlation to separate the appropriate signal from signals meant for other receivers , and auto - correlation to reject multi - path interference . the ( forward error - corrected coded ) fec data modulates the pseudo - random code , as shown in fig1 . some terminology related to the pseudo - random code : 1 . chipping frequency ( f c ): the bit rate of the pn code . 2 . information rate ( f i ): the bit rate of the digital data . 4 . epoch : the length of time before the code starts repeating itself ( the period of the code ). the epoch must be longer than the round trip propagation delay ( typically , the epoch is on the order of several seconds ). fig2 shows the process of frequency spreading . in general , the bandwidth of a digital signal is twice its bit rate . the bandwidths of the information data ( f i ) and the pn code are shown together . the bandwidth of the combination of the two , for f c & gt ; f i , can be approximated by the bandwidth of the pn code . an important concept relating to the bandwidth is the processing gain ( g p )— theoretical system gain that reflects the relative advantage that frequency spreading provides . the processing gain is equal to the ratio of the chipping frequency to the data frequency : 1 . interference rejection : the ability of the system to reject interference is directly proportional to g p . 2 . system capacity : the capacity of the system is directly proportional to g p — the higher the pn code bit rate ( the wider the cdma bandwidth ), the better the system performance . to spread the data the system performs multiplication between the pn components of the spreading sequence 2200 and the data signal information bits 2100 yielding spread spectrum signal 2300 as shown in fig2 . a system and method is disclosed for encoding a binary spread spectrum data stream , transmitting the stream in the base band or the encoded signal is transmitted by using the encoded stream to modulate a plurality of single carriers , which is de - modulated and decoded at the receiver . fig5 illustrates a generalized example of a suitable computing environment 5000 in which an exemplary embodiment of the invention may be implemented . the computing environment shown in fig5 is not intended to suggest any limitation as to scope of use or functionality of the invention , as the present invention may be implemented in diverse general - purpose or special - purpose computing environments . with reference to fig5 , the computing environment 5000 of the apparatus and method of the invention includes at least one processing unit 5200 and memory 5300 . it will be understood that the computing environment may be implemented within a communications system to control a transmitter and receiver , and is implemented in any one of several forms : ( a ) discrete hardware and software systems ; ( b ) asics ( application specific integrated circuits , and ( c ) fpga ( field - programmable gate array . in fig5 , this most basic configuration 5000 is included within 5100 a dashed line . the processing unit 5200 executes computer - executable instructions and may be a real or a virtual processor . in a multi - processing system , multiple processing units execute computer - executable instructions to increase processing power . the memory 5300 may be volatile memory ( e . g ., registers , cache , ram ), non - volatile memory ( e . g ., rom , eeprom , flash memory , etc . ), or some combination of the two . the memory 5300 stores executable software — instructions and data 5250 — written and operative to execute and implement the software applications required to support the interactive environment of the invention . the computing environment may have additional features . for example , the computing environment 5000 includes storage 5400 , one or more input devices 5550 , one or more output devices 5560 , and one or more communication connections or interfaces 5570 . an interconnection mechanism ( not shown ) such as a bus , controller , or network interconnects the components of the computing environment . typically , operating system software ( not shown ) provides an operating environment for other software executing in the computing environment , and coordinates activities of the components of the computing environment . the storage 5400 may be removable or non - removable , and includes magnetic disks , magnetic tapes or cassettes , cd - roms , dvds , or any other medium which can be used to store information and which can be accessed within the computing environment . the storage 5400 also stores instructions for the software 5250 , and is configured to store data collected and generated during at least one interactive session . the input device ( s ) 5550 may be a touch input device such as a keyboard , mouse , pen , or trackball , a voice input device , a scanning device , or another device that provides input to the computing environment . for audio or video , the input device ( s ) may be a sound card , video card , tv tuner card , or similar device that accepts audio or video input in analog or digital form . the output device ( s ) 5560 may be a display , printer , speaker , or another device that provides output from the computing environment . the communication interface 5570 enable the apparatus and software means to control communication over a communication medium 5600 with another similar system , for example , the system implements a transmitter that exchange messages with a similarly configured receiver . the communication medium conveys information such as voice signals , video , and data in a modulated data signal . a modulated data signal is a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal . by way of example , and not limitation , the communication media include wired or wireless techniques implemented with an electrical , optical , rf , infrared , acoustic , or other carrier . a method of encoding and decoding a signal by filters for modulation and demodulation an exemplary signal encoding process using the invention is described with respect to fig3 and also with reference to matlab programming statements shown in table 1 - 5 , below . with reference table 1 , the spread spectrum binary data stream is converted to gray code by calling the function “ bi2grey ” with the binary data assembled as a binary vector and passed as an argument . a gray code is a special coding system designed to reduce undetected errors resulting from random perturbations of transmitted binary data . the function “ bi2grey ” returns a binary vector with the data passed as an argument returned as a gray coded binary vector . while a gray coding has been used in the exemplary embodiment , the exemplary embodiment does not require gray coding ; other coding schemes to reduce transmission errors can be used . with reference to table 2 , the function “ wfactors ” is called to return factors used in the processes of encoding and decoding a signal using wavelet filter banks . “ wfactors ” returns ( a ) “ delay ”, the beginning index used to down - sample an input signal that is encoded using wavelet filters and ( b ) the system delay in samples ; wherein the input signal is encoded and decoded according to the name of the wavelet , “ wname ”, passed as an argument to “ wfactors .” table 2 shows delay factors used in an exemplary embodiment of the invention for the wavelet filters : ( a ) discrete meyer ; ( b ) symlet 16 ; ( c ) symlet 2 ; ( d ) symlet 3 ; ( e ) symlet 4 ; ( f ) symlet 5 ; ( g ) coiflet 2 ; and ( h ) coiflet 3 . see fig3 , 3000 , a flow diagram of the transmitter encoding process , and table 3 , which contains exemplary matlab programming statements implementing the process used by the transmitter . the matlab function “ wpconstruct ” is called to construct a signal using wavelet filters ; “ wpconstruct ” is passed arguments related to the number of samples , or filter taps , related to filters used (“ nmaster ”), and the name of the wavelet filter (“ wname ”) to use in encoding a binary signal . in fig3 , 3100 , the name of the wavelet filter bank used for signal encoding and the number of filter taps are obtained . in table 3 , in lines 13 and 14 , the matlab function “ wfilters ” is called to return the low - pass and the high - pass filter corresponding to “ wname .” in fig3 , 3200 , the low - pass and high - pass filters corresponding to “ wname ” are generated . in fig3 , 3300 and table 3 lines 16 - 20 a working array is set up to encode a signal . with reference to fig3 , 3400 , the source signal is obtained . in lines table 3 , lines 23 - 28 , a random source is created for the purpose of test and illustration ; in table 3 , the source signal is gray encoded by calling the matlab function “ bi2grey ” shown in table 1 . in fig3 , 3500 , corresponding to table 3 , lines 27 - 30 , the gray encoded binary data is aggregated into symbols , and the symbols are zero padded . with reference to fig3 , 3600 - 3700 and table 3 , lines 38 - 57 , symbols are first ( a ) up sampled ; ( b ) encoded using the low - pass and the high - pass filters given by “ wname ”; and ( c ) every other filter is switched to maintain natural frequency ordering in the filter - encoded symbols . with reference to fig3 , 3800 , the encoded symbols are recursively encoded according the principles of filter - bank encoding , for example given n symbols , log 2 n encoding steps are executed . with reference to fig3 , 3900 , the encoded symbols are returned by “ wpconstruct .” the encoded symbols are then transmitted in the base band of a transmission system or the encoded symbols are employed to modulate a plurality of carriers , using available modulation techniques . with reference to fig4 , the receiver employs a corresponding exemplary process to decode received symbols . the exemplary process is further shown by a coding example using matlab in table 4 that follows . table 4 illustrates coding used to decompose the symbols of the received signal and to convert the symbols back into the original binary stream processed by the transmitter . with reference to fig4 , a flow diagram 4000 of the receiver decoding process is shown . with reference to the matlab programming statements in table 4 , the receiver decoding logic “ wpdecompose ” is called when the receiver acquires a signal . with reference to table 4 , line 1 , “ wpdecompose ” is called by passing arguments : ( 1 ) the signal acquired ; ( 2 ) the number of filter taps used for encoding filters ; and ( 3 ) type of wavelet filter used to encode the signal . with reference to fig4 , 4100 - 4200 and table 3 , lines 14 - 15 , decoding or reconstruction filters are derived or obtained — the decoding filters generated according to the requirements of quadrature mirror filter perfect reconstruction . with reference to fig4 , 4400 - 4500 and table 3 , lines 30 - 45 , the encoded symbols are decoded using the reconstruction filters . at each iteration of the reconstruction , filter coefficients that were swapped in order to achieve natural frequency ordering are swapped again so that the coefficients will be in proper order for reconstruction of the signal encoded by the transmitter . zeroes inserted by the transmitter up - sampling are removed by down - sampling the signal during each iteration of the decoding . with reference to fig4 , 4300 , the reconstruction is recursively executed until the original encoded symbols are decoded . the reconstructed or decoded signal is returned from the receiver 4600 . with reference to table 5 a matlab script is shown that uses the matlab functions shown in previous tables . the script calls the matlab functions used by the transmitter and the receiver to encode , and decode a signal . the script simulates modulation and signal corruption . an exemplary implementation has been disclosed . other implementations are possible , with variations including : ( 1 ) employment of wavelet filters other than those described ; ( 2 ) employment of special wavelet filters derived from the process of wavelet lifting , whereby filters that are most suited to the signal are derived , wherein suitability is measured by the number of vanishing moments of the wavelet filters used ; ( 3 ) utilization of signal compression obtained from efficiencies of wavelet filter encoding ; ( 4 ) special modulation schemes using the encoded symbols to modulate a carrier , and ( 5 ) other known methods for frequency - spreading a data signal . | 7 |
referring now to the drawings and first to fig1 and 2 , an offshore oil production or drilling platform is illustrated at 10 which incorporates a plurality of support legs 12 that extend from a platform base structure 14 to the sea bed 16 so as to support the base and other superstructure components of the platform above the level 18 of the ocean or other body of water as shown in fig2 . a plurality of brackets 20 are fixed to the respective legs 12 of the platform and are provided with appropriate apertures for receiving respective connector swivel pins 22 . a tubular flotation device 24 is shown in fig2 as lying on the ocean floor 16 and is shown in fig1 as being of circular configuration . it should be born in mind that the flotation device 24 may be of any desirable configuration such as rectangular , octagonal , etc . within the spirit and scope of the present invention so that it completely encompasses the platform or desired components of the platform . for example , the flotation device of fig4 is shown to be of square configuration . it is necessary to achieve stationing of the tubular flotation device about the platform structure and to permit the device to have movement between an operative position where it is floating at the surface of the water and an inoperative position where it is submerged below the surface of the water . to accomplish this purpose a plurality of brackets 26 are fixed to the upper internal portion of the flotation device 24 as shown in fig2 and are respectively provided with apertures for receiving swivel connector pins 28 . a plurality of connecting telescoping arms 30 are respectively connected to the brackets 20 and 26 by means of the swivel connection pins 22 and 28 . a plurality of weights 32 are positioned on the ocean floor 16 at a location inwardly of the respective platform legs 12 . an oil containment skirt 34 has its inner periphery connected to the weights 32 while its external periphery is disposed in sealed connection with the inner periphery of the tubular flotation device 24 . the oil spill containment is deployed by controlling the buoyancy of the tubular flotation device . for this purpose an air line 36 is disposed in communication with the internal chamber of the flotation device 24 and has its upper end supported at the water level by means of a flotation ball 38 . the upper end of the air line 36 is provided with an escape port 40 through which air is permitted to escape from the internal chamber 25 of the flotation device . on the base structure 14 of the platform 10 is provided a first pump 42 having its inlet or suction line 44 extending below the platform and into the water . the pump includes a discharge line 46 which is disposed in communication with the internal chamber 25 of the flotation device . the connection of discharge line 46 to the flotation device 24 is located at the upper portion of the flotation device . a second pump 48 is also supported by the base structure 14 of the offshore platform 10 and is provided with a drain pipe 50 having its drain opening 52 located above the water level 18 . the pump 48 is provided with a drain line or hose 52 having its lower end in communication with the internal chamber 25 of the flotation device 24 . the drain hose 53 is connected to the lower internal surface portion of the flotation device 24 . in operation , the internal chamber 25 of the rigid tubular flotation device 24 is filled with water by means of pump 42 which receives water from the ocean via the inlet pipe 44 and discharges the water through conduit 46 into the internal chamber 25 of the flotation device 24 . during filling of the chamber 25 with water , air within the chamber will be vented via air line 36 and escape port 40 at the upper portion of the flotation ball 38 . after sufficient air has been displaced from the chamber 25 by the water pumped therein , the rigid flotation device 24 will lose its buoyancy and will sink to the ocean floor level 16 as shown in fig2 . with reference now to fig3 for containment of spilled oil to the immediate vicinity of the offshore platform the flotation device 24 is shown to be raised by air to an operative position the surface level 18 of the ocean thereby allowing the circular oil containment skirt 34 to be vertically suspended from the flotation device 24 and to be stabilized by the weights 32 . in this condition , the flotation device 24 and the circular skirt 34 present an effective containment device which protects the environment . in the event an oil leak occurs in the platform area and the oil could otherwise disperse in the water to the shoreline . to contain the spilled oil the flotation device 24 and its circular skirt 34 will be activated from the inoperative fig2 position to the operative fig3 position . to control the oil spill situation and raise the submerged tubular flotation device 24 , the pump 16 is energized which will drain water from the tubular device 24 upwardly through suction drain hose 53 and drain pipe 50 by pumping water from chamber 25 upwardly through the suction drain hose and deischarging the pumped water through drawn pipe 50 and outlet opening 52 into the ocean . the water inside the tubular flotation device 24 is replaced by air through air escape port 40 and through air line 36 . the tubular flotation device 24 will become buoyant and will rise from the ocean floor 16 to its operative position where it will float on the water surface 18 . the attached oil containment skirt 34 will hang in a substantially vertical position held down and stabilized by weights 21 thus forming a continuous circular oil containment system about the platform . the circular floatation device 24 is positioned about the offshore platform 10 by limited telescoping arms 30 that are attached to the respective brackets 20 and 26 with pivoting thereof being permitted by the pivot pins 22 and 28 which secure the telescoping arms to the platform legs and to the flotation device . fig4 is a plan view illustrating an offshore platform 10 that may be of similar construction as shown in fig1 - 3 and which is provided with a tubular flotation device 54 which is of square configuration . the tubular flotation device 54 may be of any suitable configuration so lone as it completely encompasses the offshore platform 10 so as to provide for effective containment of any oil that is spilled in the immediate vicinity of the platform . the tubular flotation device 54 will include a skirt similar to that shown at 34 in fig3 and which is weighted in the same manner so as to depend vertically and provide a substantial oil spill containment system . with reference to fig5 the partial side view illustrates an offshore platform 10 having a tubular flotation device 24 that may be of the form shown in fig2 or fig4 . the flotation device 24 is provided with a depending skirt 56 having weights 58 at the lower end thereof to maintain the skirt vertically oriented in the water . the weights in operative position will be located immediately above the ocean floor 16 and the flotation device 24 will be located at the surface 18 of the body of water . a plurality of cables 60 will be connected to the flotation device 24 and will be secured to the ocean floor at the lower ends thereof by means of a plurality of pins 62 that are inserted into the ocean floor 16 to a suitable depth for adequate retention . the cables 60 will maintain the tubular flotation device 24 at a properly stationary location about the offshore platform 10 , thereby defining a large oil containment volume within the confines of the containment skirt 56 . with reference now to fig6 a sectional side view of an offshore platform system is shown which is provided with an oil spill containment system utilizing a gravity drain and fill method . in this case , the offshore oil platform structure and the flotation devices together with its pivotal stationing supports will conveniently take the form shown generally in fig1 - 3 . accordingly , like components will be referred to by like reference numerals . to submerge the unit as shown , a valve 75 is opened to the ocean water by switch 64 which controls the valve 75 through electrical line 66 . water will flow through opened valve 75 into the internal chamber 25 of the tubular flotation device 24 , thus causing the flotation device to lose its buoyancy and sink until it is stopped intermediate the water surface 18 and the sea bed 16 by means of a plurality of flotation balls 69 which are attached to the flotation device by means of cables . the flotation balls 69 are attached to the tubular flotation device 2 by air line 78 . as water fills the flotation device 24 the air escapes through the air line 78 and the air is vented at the escape port 72 . to raise the tubular flotation device to the surface of the water to thereby contain any oil spill that might have occurred , as shown in fig7 the electrical switch 64 is activated in the opposite direction to thereby close the electrically operated valve 75 to the ocean water and open the valve 75 to the drain hose 74 . the water inside the tubular flotation device 24 will drain through valve 75 , through drain hose 74 and into tank 76 , aided by air line 78 . the pump 48 will empty the holding tank 76 through drain line 80 and drain pipe 50 thus permitting air to be drawn into the flotation chamber 25 as the water is pumped out . the air being drawn into the flotation chamber enters through air escape port 72 , flotation ball 69 and air line 70 . with reference to fig8 a sectional side view of an offshore platform is shown , the platform being provided with an oil spill containment system utilizing a compressed air method for its operation . here again , like parts will be referred to by like numerals . the construction of fig7 differs from that of fig6 in the provision of a vacuum pump 72 which is mounted on the platform base 14 and which are connected by vacuum lines 76 and 78 to the rigid flotation device 24 which , in this alternative embodiment , includes a continuous tubular collapsible flotation unit 80 . to submerge the unit as shown , the vacuum pump 70 is energized thereby displacing air through the vacuum line 76 to thereby deflate the collapsible continuous circular tubular flotation device 80 . a tubular support ring 82 is attached to the telescoping arm 30 and will support and position the collapsible tubular flotation unit 80 . although the flotation device 80 is shown to be of circular form , it should be born in mind that it may be of any configuration suitable to the needs of the platform about which it is to be disposed . to raise the flotation unit to the surface of the ocean and thereby provide for containment of an oil spil as shown in fig9 an air compressor 84 is activated and forces air through supply line 78 to the collapsible tubular flotation unit 80 which will then be inflated with air . as the flotation device is inflated and displaces sufficient air to become buoyant , it will rise to the surface 18 of the ocean as shown in fig9 . in this position the flotation device will support the continuous platform encompassing skirt 34 which will be then suspended in substantially vertical manner from the flotation device 24 . the weights 32 will apply a downwardly directed force to the skirt 34 , causing it to assume a substantially vertical orientation so that it defines therein a significant volume within which to contain leaked oil . by means of the weights 32 . further alternative embodiments of this invention are illustrated in fig1 - 17 . with reference now to fig1 a sectional front view of an oil platform 10 which is essentially of the construction set forth in fig1 - 9 , wherein the ocean floor , is shown at 16 and the ocean surface is shown at 18 . an oil containment skirt 105 is shown to be wrapped around a drum 14 and is shown in the upward position , being drawn up by motor 100 operating through drive sprocket 101 , drive sprocket 103 and drive chain 102 . a weight 106 is attached to the lower edge of the skirt 105 and is restrained from downward movement by the drive chain 102 . to contain an oil spill to the platform area in the manner shown in fig1 , the motor 100 is reversed in such manner as to turn sprocket 101 and sprocket 103 together with drive chain 102 and drum 104 in a direction to lower the oil containment skirt 105 and weight 106 . containment is completed when the weight 106 reaches the ocean floor 16 as shown in fig1 . this system is provided on all four sides of the platform and forms an encompassing protective barrier to completely contain and hold an oil spill to the platform area until such time as the oil may be recovered by appropriate platform service vessels . fig1 is a front elevational view of an offshore oil platform 10 having an oil containment barrier defined by solid constructed sides 120 that are attached to platform 10 forming a continuous barrier on all four sides or completely around the platform to secure any spilled oil to the platform area . the barrier 120 extends from a level above the surface 18 of the water to the ocean floor 16 . as shown in fig1 a front elevational view of an offshore oil platform illustrates an internal platform oil containment device 120 attached to the platform 10 by supports 131 and the device extending from the ocean floor 16 or the base 14 of the platform 10 to a level above the water surface 18 . the oil containment barrier device 130 is of such shape as to form a continuous barrier . it may be of circular or square configuration to form an all encompassing barrier about the legs of the platform to hold in the oil spill to the platform area so that the oil may be recovered by vessels provided for that purpose . fig1 is a sectional front view of an offshore oil platform 10 illustrating hinged side covers 143 and 143a operated by winch 140 , winch drum 141 and winch operating cable 142 . a side cover 143 is shown in the open position lying on the ocean floor 16 with cable 142 extended . in operation , the side cover 143 is raised to the side cover position 143a with winch 140 , drum 141 and cable 142a retracted . the side covers 143 are provided on all sides of the platform 10 and above the water surface 18 so as to form a continuous oil spill containment barrier to secure the oil spill to the immediate platform area . fig1 is a front elevational view of an offshore oil platform 10 showning an internal oil containment device in operation . the containment device descends downwardly by gravity to the ocean floor 16 . the oil containment device is made up with skirt 150 attached to weight 151 and to platform 10 . the device may also be positioned externally of the platform 10 as shown by weight 151a and skirt 150a . the device is of such a shape so as to form a continuous barrier , such as round or square , to form an all encompassing barrier to hold in the oil spilled to the immediate vicinity of the platform . fig1 is a sectional front view of an offshore oil platform 10 showing an internal oil containment device in operation and which is raised by which 160 and drum 161 . cable 162 is connected to the upper circular weight 165 . the circular oil containment skirt 164 is attached to the upper circular weight 163 and is also attached to the lower circular weight 165 forming an all - encompassing barrier to hold in an oil spill to the immediate vicinity of the platform . circular weight 165 is shwn on the ocean floor 16 . the upper circular weight is shown in the raised position on the water surface 18 . in the lowered position , the circular weight 163 would rest closed to circular weight 165 . the device may also be located externally from the platform as shown by weight 165a and skirt 164a . fig1 is a top view of an offshore oil platform 10 showing an attached external encompassing pollution containment device 170 fully surrounding the platform and shaped to reduce the force against the platform 10 that may be caused by wave action and ocean currents . encompassing oil barrier device 170 is attached to the platform 10 with attachments 171 and extends from the ocean floor 16 or the base of the platform 10 to a level above the ocean surface 18 . this method forms an all encompassing barrier to hold in the oil spill to the platform area . also shown in an internal encompassing oil spill containment device 175 with attachments 176 to platform 10 and shaped to reduce the force against the platform 10 caused by waves and currents . this device extends from the ocean floor 16 to level above the ocean surface 18 . the devices 170 and 175 can be free standing , not attached to the platform 10 if desired , to thus reduce ocean induced stress to the platform 10 . in view of the foregoing , it is evident that the present invention is one well adapted to attain all of the objects and features hereinabove set forth , together , with other objects and features which are inherent in the apparatus disclosed herein . as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art , the present invention may be produced in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics . the present embodiment , is therefore , to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive , the scope of the invention being indicated by the claims rather than the foregoing description , and all changes which come within the meaning and range of the equivalence of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein . | 4 |
to facilitate understanding the invention , brief reference will be made to a conventinal automotive internal combustion engine , depicted in fig1 to 3 . referring to fig1 and 2 , the engine includes a cylinder block 1 whose top and bottom are provided respectively with a cylinder head 2 and an oil pan 3 . the cylinder block 1 is formed at its upper part with a plurality of cylinder barrels 4 and at its lower part with a so - called skirt section 5 which defines thereinside an upper part of a crankcase inner chamber ( no numeral ). a plurality of main bearing bulkheads 6 are disposed inside of the skirt section 5 and are located at certain intervals so as to divide the crankcase inner chamber upper part into a plurality of sections . the bearing bulkheads 6 are integral with the wall of the skirt section 5 . a bearing beam structure 7 is secured to the bottom section of the cylinder block 1 and includes a plurality of main bearing cap sections 9 which are located at certain intervals , and a straight elongated beam section 10 which connects the main bearing cap sections 9 with each other , as best shown in fig3 . each main bearing cap section 9 is secured to each bearing bulkhead 6 , respectively , so as to constitute a main bearing 11 by which a crankshaft 12 is rotatably supported . pistons ( not shown ), slidably disposed within respective cylinder barrels 4 , are connected to this crankshaft 12 , so that when each piston makes its reciprocal movement within the cylinder barrel 4 upon receiving a combustion impact load , the crankshaft 12 converts the piston reciprocal movement into the rotational movement thereof . however , with the thus arranged conventional engine , the bearing beam structure 7 is constituted by the of main bearing cap sections 9 and an elongated beam section 10 , and therefore the main bearing cap sections 9 cause their torsional vibration upon transmission of the combustion impact load to the main bearings 11 , thus increasing noise from the cylinder block 1 during operation of the engine . also , since the shape of the bearing beam structure 7 is considerably complicated , the percentage of defective products resulting during production is higher . futhermore , if the bearing beam structure 7 is stored together with other parts within the same container for the purpose of assemblying an engine , it gets entangled with the other parts . and the bearing beam structure may deform , particularly bend , when carelessly treated . in view of the above description of the structure of the conventional automotive internal combustion engine , reference is now made to fig4 and 6 , wherein a preferred embodiment of an internal combustion engine according to the present invention is illustrated by the reference numeral 20 . the engine 20 in this instance is for an automotive vehicle and comprises a cylinder block 22 which is formed with a plurality of cylinder barrels 24 , each of which defines therein a cylinder bore ( no numeral ). the cylinder block 22 includes a so - called skirt section 26 which is bulged outwardly and extends downwardly to define thereinside the upper part of a crankcase inner chamber ( no numeral ). the skirt section 26 is integrally connected through a lower block deck 28 with the cylinder barrels 24 . a plurality of main bearing bulkheads 30 are disposed parallel to each other inside of the skirt section 26 . each bearing bulkhead 30 is located below and connected to a portion between two neighbouring cylinder barrels 24 . the bearing bulkhead 30 is integrally connected at its top part with the lower block deck 28 and at its side parts with the inner wall of the skirt section 26 . each bearing bulkhead 30 is provided at its bottom central portion with a bearing section 32 for receiving the journal of a crankshaft 34 . the reference numeral 36 designates a cylinder head which is secured onto an upper block deck 38 of the cylinder block 22 . in this connection , the cylinder barrels 24 are integrally connected through the upper and lower block decks 38 , 28 with a cylinder block outer wall 40 , thereby defining therebetween a water jacket 42 through which engine coolant circulates . the reference numeral 44 designates an oil pan securely connected to the bottom flange section ( no numeral ) of the skirt section 26 . a plurality of main bearing cap sections 46 are disposed so as to be secured respectively to the bearing bulkhead 30 . each bearing cap section 46 associates with the bearing section 32 of the bearing bulkhead 30 , thereby forming a main bearing 48 by which the journal of the crankshaft 34 is rotatably supported . a bearing beam structure 50 is secured to the main bearing cap sections 46 , but detachable relative to the main bearings 46 and the cylinder block 22 . as best shown in fig6 the bearing beam structure 50 includes two spaced and parallel beam sections 52 , 54 which extend parallel with the axis of the crankshaft 34 or the axis of the cylinder block 22 . the two beam sections 52 , 54 are connected with each other by a plurality of connecting sections 56 . in this instance , the connecting sections 56 are integral with the beam sections 52 , 54 and so located as to be perpendicular to the beam sections 52 , 54 . the connecting sections 56 are located in the positions corresponding to the bearing cap sections 46 ( or bearing bulkheads 30 ), respectively . each connecting section 56 is formed with two bolt holes 56a , 56b whose locations correspond respectively to those of the bolt holes 46a , 46b , of the bearing cap section 46 . accordingly , a bolt 58 is disposed to pass through the bolt holes 56a , 46a of the connecting section 56 and the bearing cap section 46 , and another bolt 60 is disposed to pass through the bolt holes 56b , 46b of the connecting section 56 and the bearing cap section 46 , so that the bearing beam structure 50 is secured to the cylinder block 22 together with the bearing cap sections 46 . in this instance , the length of each connecting section 56 and the distance between the two beam sections 52 , 54 are so selected that the extensions of the opposite side surfaces s 1 , s 2 of the bearing cap section 46 lie between the two beam sections 52 , 54 . the bearing beam structure 50 is formed , for example , of casting of aluminum or aluminum alloy , or iron . in the thus arranged engine , since the bearing beam structure 50 is independent and detachable from the bearing cap sections 46 , both the bearing beam structure 50 and the bearing cap sections 46 are simple in shape , thereby noticeably reducing the defect percentage or the rate of rejects during production . also , even if the bearing beam structure 50 and the bearing cap sections 46 are stored together with other parts in the same container , there is no fear that they get entangled with the other parts . the manner of operation of the thus arranged engine will be discussed hereinafter . during the operation of the engine , combustion impact load generated within the cylinder barrels 24 is transmitted through the piston and the crankshaft 34 to the main bearing cap section 46 . as a result , the bearing cap section 46 seems to be twisted in the direction of arrows a shown in fig6 ; however , such twisting of the bearing beam section 46 is , in fact , effectively prevented because each bearing cap section 46 is fixed at its opposite side portions onto the connecting section 56 , and additionally the connecting section 56 is further fixed at its opposite end portions to the beam sections 52 , 54 . furthermore , the height of the bearing cap section 46 , in fact , increases by the amount corresponding to the height of the connecting section 56 , and accordingly the bearing cap section 46 is prevented from readily bending in the downward direction . moreover , since a plurality of bearing cap sections 46 are securely connected with each other by the bearing beam structure 50 , each bearing cap section 46 is greatly restricted in the vibration in the fore - and - aft direction of the cylinder block , which vibration so acts on the each bearing cap section in the direction to cause it to come down . additionally , since the bearing beam structure beam sections 52 , 54 are located outside of the bearing cap sections 46 , the cylinder block 22 is improved in its torsional rigidity . this effectively suppresses vibration of the cylinder block 22 , thereby decreasing noise due to such vibration . it is preferable that the cylinder block 22 and the main bearing cap sections 46 are made of the same material , for example , cast iron or aluminum - light alloy in order to facilitate the simultaneous machining of the bolt holes of the bearing cap sections 46 and the bearing bulkheads 30 . it is more preferable that the cylinder block 22 and the bearing cap sections 46 are made of aluminum - light alloy , because aluminum - light alloy is higher in the value of young &# 39 ; s modulus / density than cast iron , thereby greatly contributing to noise suppression . as appreciated from the above , according to the present invention , the main bearing cap sections are rigidly connected with each other by means of the bearing beam structure which is constituted by a plurality of beam sections and the connecting sections , thereby decreasing engine noise emission . besides , since the bearing beam structure is detachable relative to the bearing cap sections , the percentage of defective products is decreased while providing an advantage in that the bearing beam structure does not get entangled even if it is stored together with other parts in the same container . | 5 |
in the preferred embodiment , the footwear 10 , which is illustrated as an air cast , has an upper or calf support portion 12 and foot support portion 14 . the back 16 of the calf support portion 12 and the sole dr base 18 of the foot support portion 14 are illustrated as an integrally formed unit to rigidly hold the leg with respect to the foot . a leg retention plate 20 can be secured to the front of the leg by straps 22 and a foot retention portion 24 can be strapped to the foot by straps 26 . by tightening the straps , the user &# 39 ; s leg and foot can be restrained within the air cast and the foot held rigid with respect to the leg . by inflating the bladders of the air cast through air tubes 21 , the boot can be adjusted to fit different sizes and facilitate foot retention . a mounting plate 30 shown in fig1 - 3 and 6 is mounted to the inside of the sole or base of the foot support portion 14 . fasteners 29 , preferably cap screws with washers , are threaded through the base 18 of foot support portion 14 through openings 31 in the mounting plate 30 . as shown in fig1 the mounting plate 30 is on the inside of the boot . in the preferred embodiment , a foam pad is placed over the plate 30 . the plate 30 is mounted to the inside of the boot to direct the individual &# 39 ; s weight directly to the prosthetic 34 and not to the boot 10 . the illustrated mounting plate 30 is a preferred design , but it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that other designs are available and would work for the intended purpose of mounting the prosthetic foot to the air cast . with reference to fig3 the top of the mounting plate 30 is flat and is intended to form a surface on which foam padding is placed to comfortably support the user &# 39 ; s foot . preferably , bolt holes 31 are formed in the adapter plate to receive bolts , preferably cap screws 37 that are inserted through the base 14 of the air cast 10 . it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other methods of attaching the mounting plate 30 to the bottom of the foot portion 14 of the air cast are available and will provide adequate mounting means for mounting the plate to the air cast . with reference to fig2 the bottom of the mounting plate 30 is illustrated . the bottom has cut - outs 33 for weight reduction purposes . in the preferred embodiment , the mounting plate 30 is formed from an aluminum plate . the cut - outs 33 help to reduce the weight of the plate . it should be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that materials other than aluminum can be used , such as for example plastic , steel , wood , etc . the material selected only needs to be sturdy enough to withstand the user &# 39 ; s weight and to withstand the stress associated with walking on the attached prosthesis . an adapter 32 is mounted to the mounting plate 30 for attaching the foot prosthesis 34 to the mounting plate 30 and the air cast . in the preferred embodiment , the adapter 32 is an otlo bock 4r51 titanium rotatable adapter . the adapter 32 is shown bolted by bolts 35 to the mounting plate through bolt holes 39 . adapter 32 has a central recess at 36 which is configured to receive a pyramid 38 mounted to the top of the prosthesis 34 . this can be seen in fig4 . as those of ordinary skill in the art will understand , pyramid 38 can be inserted into the recess 36 and then fixed by set screws that are threaded into openings 37 . the bolts not only fix the pyramid , but also allow for adjustment . the adapter and pyramid allow adjustments for toe in and out , plantar flexion , dorsi flexion , inversion and eversion relative to the boot . the attached prosthesis is illustrated in fig5 . in fig5 the prosthesis has a foot shaped cover over it . to assemble the testing apparatus , an opening 41 is formed in the bottom of the boot 10 . see fig6 . the mounting plate 30 is then inserted into the boot shell and cap screws 37 are threaded through the boot bottom and into threaded openings 31 in the plate 30 . the adapter 32 is fixed to the plate 30 and is adjacent the opening 41 . as shown in fig2 there are two locations for the adapter , either left or right of the longitudinal centerline of the plate 30 . the plate 30 is designed for left or right use and if left , the adapter must be left of center and if right , right of center to provide better balance . once the plate 30 is installed , the prosthesis pyramid 38 is inserted into adapter 32 and the set screws are installed to properly adjust the prosthesis with respect to the boot . once the foot is attached to the air cast and the user &# 39 ; s leg and foot are secured within the air cast , the user can walk upon the foot prosthesis to experience the feel of the foot prosthesis through all walking phases including heel strike , mid - stance , and toe off . in the preferred embodiment , the user would wear an air cast with a prosthesis attached on each foot . if desired , the prosthesis could be different so that comparative testing can be done . other advantages and meritorious features of the present invention will become more fully understood from the following description of the preferred embodiments , the appended claims and the drawings , a brief description of which follows . | 8 |
referring now to the figures , fig1 illustrates a conventional power clamp circuit 6 . power clamp circuit 6 includes an rc - delay or triggering element 22 having a resistor 30 connected in series with a capacitor 32 . rc - delay element 22 is connected in series with a plurality of serialized inverters 24 connected in series with a power clamp element 28 . power for circuit 6 is typically supplied by a voltage supply referred to as vdd with ground represented by gnd . during all esd events , inverters 24 trigger on power clamp element 28 to conduct current . power clamp circuit 6 is generally designed for positive mode esd events . however , power clamp circuit 6 conducts poorly during negative mode esd events . fig2 illustrates one embodiment of the disclosure showing a floating - body nfet - based power clamp circuit 20 for detecting and controlling both negative and positive modes of electrostatic discharge ( esd ) stress . circuit 20 protects against all types of esd stress events in accordance with a human - body model ( hbm ), machine model ( mm ), and charged - device model ( cdm ), as well known in the art . power clamp circuit 20 includes an rc - delay or triggering element 22 having a resistor 30 connected in series with a capacitor 32 at node 38 . rc - delay element 22 is connected in series with a plurality of serialized inverters 24 . it should be noted , that any commercial or conventional rc - delay circuit and inverter could be utilized without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure . inverters 24 are connected in series with an esd - triggered keeper device 26 and a power clamp element 28 . power for circuit 20 is typically supplied by a voltage supply referred to as vdd , which has a voltage level dependent on the process used , with ground represented by gnd . in the embodiment illustrated in fig2 , plurality of serialized inverters 24 includes a first inverter 24 ′ connected in series with a second inverter 24 ″ connected in series with a third inverter 24 ′″. the number of inverters utilized in plurality of inverters 24 is variable according to the application requirements . it should be noted that less or more inverters may be utilized without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure . plurality of inverters 24 may be implemented using cmos inverters , as illustrated in fig2 . cmos inverters 24 ′- 24 ′″ each include a floating - body pfet element 34 chained to a floating - body nfet element 36 . the gate terminals of pfet 34 and nfet 36 of first inverter 24 ′ are connected to rc - delay element 22 at node 38 . the drain terminals of pfet 34 and nfet 36 of third inverter 24 ′″ are connected to a source terminal of esd - triggered keeper device 26 and a gate terminal of power clamp element 28 . esd - triggered keeper device 26 , also referred to as an esd - triggered pull up device , may include a floating - body pfet element . power clamp element 28 , also referred to as the main conducting device or big fet , may include a large floating - body nfet element . during normal operation and positive mode esd events , esd - triggered pull up device 26 is turned off and has no effect on circuit 20 . positive mode esd events generally occur where a fast rise voltage / current pulse is applied onto vdd causing the voltage across capacitor 32 to remain at zero . the voltage at node 38 is at a relatively low voltage level , “ low .” “ high ” and “ low ” voltage levels are relative to the voltage level to switch inverter 24 . “ high ” would be in the range of vdd to vdd minus vt , and low would be in the range of 0 to vt , where vt is the threshold voltage of the mosfet . the gate terminal of power clamp element 28 is at voltage level “ high .” inverters 24 trigger on power clamp element 28 to conduct current . after the delay provided by rc - delay element 22 ends , which generally lasts as long as the esd event , capacitor 32 is charged to higher than a threshold voltage of inverters 24 , which are at voltage level “ high .” inverters 24 then switch and trigger the gate terminal of power clamp element 28 to voltage level “ low .” power clamp element 28 then turns off . when a fast rise voltage / current pulse is applied onto gnd , a negative mode esd event occurs in floating - body power clamp circuit 20 . the voltage across capacitor 32 remains at zero . the voltage at node 38 is at voltage level “ high .” the output of inverter 24 ′ is at voltage level “ high - vt ,” where vt is a threshold voltage of the nfet of the inverter . the outputs of inverters 24 ″ and 24 ′″ are at voltage levels “ high - 2vt ” and “ high - 3vt ,” respectively . because the output of inverter 24 ′″ is connected to the gate terminal of power clamp element 28 , as discussed above , power clamp element 28 turns on weakly and conducts current poorly during negative mode esd events if a keep device 26 is absent . however , since the gate terminal of power clamp element 28 is also connected to the source terminal of keeper device 26 , and the keeper device ( pmosfet ) is turned on given its gate at “ low ” and its drain at “ high ”, it acts as a pull - up device to pull the gate terminal of 28 to “ high ”, and strongly turns on power clamp element 28 . after the delay provided by rc - delay element 22 ends , capacitor 32 is charged so that the voltage at node 38 is at voltage level “ low .” inverters 24 then switch and trigger the gate terminal of power clamp element 28 to voltage level “ low .” the negative mode esd event triggers keeper device 26 to turn on . keeper device 26 assists power clamp element 28 to pull up and strongly conduct current . esd - triggered keeper device 26 boosts the performance of circuit 20 by clamping the circuit to lowest voltage during negative mode esd stress events . conventional circuits generally require the addition of a parasitic diode for protection during negative mode esd events . keeper device 26 relaxes the requirement for adding a parasitic diode or additional esd diode for negative mode esd stress protection . such diodes occupy valuable space on a chip . moreover , a parasitic diode is often not optimized for negative mode esd stress and floating - body devices generally do not utilize parasitic diodes . in another embodiment , a floating - body pfet - based power clamp circuit 100 is illustrated in fig3 . circuit 100 includes an rc - delay or triggering element 122 having a resistor 130 connected in series to a capacitor 132 at a node 138 . as previously stated , any conventional or commercial rc - delay circuit can be employed while keeping with the scope and spirit of the disclosure . in addition , circuit 100 includes a plurality of serialized inverters 124 connected in series with rc - delay element 122 , an esd - triggered keeper device 126 and a power clamp element 128 . a power supply for circuit 100 is typically supplied by a voltage supply referred to as vdd . in this embodiment , power clamp element 128 includes a floating - body pfet element for conducting current during normal operation and positive mode esd events . esd - triggered keeper device 126 includes a floating - body nfet element for helping power clamp element 128 strongly conduct current during negative mode esd stress events . each inverter 124 ′ and 124 ″ includes a floating - body pfet element 134 chained to a floating - body nfet element 136 . during a negative mode esd stress event , circuit 100 performs in a similar manner to the example described above for floating - body nfet - based circuit 20 , as well known to one of ordinary skill in the art . however , keeper device 126 is configured with a floating - body nfet element with the gate terminal at gnd and the drain terminal at vdd to complement the floating - body pfet element of power clamp element 128 , such that keeper device 126 pulls up during negative mode esd stress to assist power clamp element 128 . in yet another embodiment , a tied - body nfet - based power clamp circuit 200 is illustrated in fig4 . circuit 200 includes an rc - delay or triggering element 222 having a resistor 230 connected in series to a capacitor 232 at a node 238 . rc - delay element 222 is connected in series to a plurality of serialized inverters 224 , which is connected in series an esd - triggered keeper device 226 and a power clamp element 228 . a power supply for circuit 200 is typically supplied by a voltage supply referred to as vdd . in the embodiment illustrated in fig4 , power clamp element 228 includes a tied - body nfet - based element with the body tied to the source terminal for conducting current during normal operation and positive mode esd events in a similar manner to the example described above for power clamp circuit 20 as well known in the art . keeper device 226 assists power clamp element 228 to pull up and strongly conduct current during negative mode esd stress events . each inverter 224 ′, 224 ″ and 224 ′″ includes a tied - body pfet element 234 chained to a tied - body nfet element 236 . when a fast rise voltage / current pulse is applied onto gnd , a negative mode esd event occurs in tied - body nfet - based power clamp circuit 200 . the voltage across capacitor 232 of rc - delay element 222 remains at zero . the voltage at node 238 , between resistor 230 and capacitor 232 , is at voltage level “ high .” the output of first inverter 224 ′ is at voltage level “ high - vt ,” where vt is the threshold voltage of nfet of the inverter . the output of second inverter 224 ″ is at voltage level “ high - 2vt .” the output of third inverter 224 ′″ is voltage level “ high - 3vt .” the output of third inverter 224 ′″ is connected to the source terminal of keeper device 226 and the gate terminal of power clamp element 228 . keeper device 226 turns on and assists power clamp element 228 to pull up and strongly conduct current during the negative mode esd event . in still another embodiment , a tied - body pfet - based power clamp circuit 300 is illustrated in fig5 . circuit 300 includes an rc - delay or triggering element 322 having a resistor 330 connected in series to a capacitor 332 at a node 338 . rc - delay element is connected in series with a plurality of serialized inverters 324 , which are connected in series with an esd - triggered keeper device 326 and a power clamp element 328 . a power supply for circuit 300 is typically supplied by a voltage supply referred to as vdd . in this embodiment , power clamp element 328 includes a tied - body pfet - based element with the body tied to the source terminal for conducting current during normal operation and positive mode esd events . esd - triggered keeper device 326 includes a tied - body nfet - based element with the body tied to the drain terminal for conducting current during negative esd stress events . each inverter 324 includes a tied - body pfet element 334 chained to a tied - body nfet element 336 . during positive and negative mode esd stress events , circuit 300 performs in a similar manner to the example described above for tied - body nfet - based power clamp circuit 200 , as is well known to one of ordinary skill in the art . keeper device 326 is configured with a tied - body nfet element with the gate terminal at gnd to complement the tied - body pfet - based element of power clamp element 328 such that the keeper device pulls up for negative mode esd stress events to assist the power clamp element . exemplary embodiments have been disclosed above and illustrated in the accompanying drawings . it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes , omissions and additions may be made to that which is specifically disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention . | 7 |
fig1 is a diagram of an installation ( 1 ) for treating a material in divided solid form , in particular a biomass , with energy densification of the material in order to obtain pyrolytic oils for energy purposes . the material in question is generally a biomass , where this term covers the biodegradable fractions of materials , wastes , and residues coming from agriculture , forestry , and related industries , and in particular biomasses of vegetable origin or solid fractions of sludge from waste water treatment , and biodegradable fractions of industrial and municipal waste . nevertheless , the invention may be applied to treating other industrial waste that does not come within the above definition of biomass , for example polymer waste ( plastics materials , rubbers , . . . ). in general , the materials in question are divided solids that are capable of producing pyrolytic oils when they are raised to temperatures in the range 300 ° c . to 800 ° c . in the absence of oxygen , said oils having energy or chemical content suitable for being recycled . the material for treatment is referenced ( p ) and it is initially introduced into a preconditioning device ( 10 ) for heating and drying to prescribed values for temperature and relative humidity . the preconditioning device ( 10 ) comprises a double - walled auger ( 11 ) having a hot fluid passing therethrough , with the associated fluid flow circuit having an inlet ( 18 ) and an outlet ( 19 ). a transfer screw ( 12 ) is mounted to rotate inside the double - walled auger ( 11 ), being driven by an associated external motor ( 13 ). the double - walled auger ( 11 ) has an inlet ( 14 ) connected to a feed hopper ( 15 ). the material ( p ) is loaded into and stored in the hopper ( 15 ), which hopper may be fitted with ( high and low ) level sensors and with a mechanical bridge - breaking system so as to avoid bridging phenomena and banking that would prevent the material from being removed . it is important for the stored material ( p ) to present small grain size , lying in the range 10 μm to 1 mm , and preferably in the range 100 μm to 300 μm , and relative humidity that is likewise low , lying in the range 1 % to 12 %, and preferably in the range 5 % to 10 %. selecting these grain size and humidity criteria guarantees that the material is ideally conditioned for being pyrolyzed as quickly as possible . the metering screw ( 12 ) of the preconditioning device ( 10 ) of the double - walled type with a hot fluid passing therethrough serves simultaneously to convey the material at a constant and regulated speed into the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) that is connected downstream from said preconditioning device , with this being made possible by variable - frequency drive , and also to dry and heat the material by passing a heat transfer fluid through the double wall . by means of the preconditioning device , the material is raised to a temperature close to 100 ° c ., with relative humidity that does not exceed about 10 %, thereby enabling already - hot material to penetrate into the pyrolysis reactor , thus greatly enhancing the temperature rise of said material . it should be recalled that fast temperature rise is essential during the pyrolysis reaction in order to increase the oil content that is produced , with this temperature rise being enhanced with increasing temperature and dryness of the material , it being possible to reach rates of several hundreds of degrees celsius per second . the double - walled auger ( 11 ) is also fitted , in a high portion , with an outlet ( 17 ) for removing vapor , this outlet possibly being fitted with a fan type extractor ( not shown ). nevertheless , care must be taken to ensure that the temperature of the material in the double - walled auger ( 11 ) does not become too high , so as to avoid prematurely starting the reaction for transforming the material in this zone of the installation , before it has penetrated into the pyrolysis reactor . the material penetrating into the pyrolysis reactor is thus at a temperature of about 100 ° c ., and at relative humidity no greater than about 100 , and preferably lying in the range 5 % to 7 %. the material as heated and dried in this way in the preconditioning device ( 10 ) leaves said device via an outlet ( 16 ) in order to penetrate into a pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) having its inlet ( 22 ) connected in leaktight manner to the outlet from the preconditioning device ( 10 ). specifically , sealing is provided by a rotary feeder valve ( 23 ). the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) is fitted with at least one transfer screw ( 22 ) that is heated by the joule effect , said screw serving both to transfer and to heat the material traveling through said reactor . the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) comprises a closed enclosure ( 21 ) having walls that are preferably made of refractory material . in this example , the single transfer screw ( 22 ) that is heated by the joule effect thus serves to drive the material from upstream to downstream with pyrolysis conditions being set both to a temperature level lying in the range 300 ° c . to 850 ° c . and to a transit time through the reactor that is a function of the material , and that lies in particular between a few seconds and a few tens of minutes . it is known that fast pyrolysis , by degrading the lignin contained in the biomass , enhances the formation of high molecular weight phenol groups ( weighing at least 300 daltons ( da )) that also correspond to molecules having a higher net calorific value as looked for in this application . conversely , a slow temperature rise , at a few degrees celsius per second , and thus a relatively long transit time for the material through the pyrolysis reactor can enhance the formation of acetic acid , which can contribute to modifying the degradation of lignin into phenol groups of smaller molecular weight ( less than 300 da ), of lower net calorific value but of aromatic power that is more advantageous , which explains why operating conditions of this type are selected when producing smoke flavorings ( liquid smokes ) by slow pyrolysis of sawdust , as mentioned above . thus , in the context of this pyrolysis , the material is heated progressively up to a temperature in the range 300 ° c . to 850 ° c ., with a transit time through the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) lying for example between a few seconds and a few tens of minutes . both ends ( 27 ) of the heating screw ( 22 ) project out from the closed enclosure ( 21 ) of refractory material , and these ends are cooled before being connected to associated electrical power supply means at blocks ( 28 ) that are shown diagrammatically . both ends of the shaft of the spiral that pass through the refractory walls are thus cooled before being connected to respective means for connection to the terminals for feeding electric current . the temperature of the shaft needs to be brought down to below 100 ° c . so it is preferable to use a series of air cooling fins fastened on the shaft , or cooling means that use a liquid . both ends of the shaft of the core - less spiral are connected to a set of brushes and brush - carriers serving to make connections to the two polarities of an alternating or rectified electrical power supply at low voltage and high current . the power conveyed by the spiral turns is regulated by a thyristor electronic dimmer as a function of the desired and programmed temperature for the spiral turns . one of the ends of the shaft of the heating screw ( 22 ) is thus connected to a motor and gearbox unit represented diagrammatically at ( 26 ), controlled by a variable - frequency drive so as to adjust the speed of rotation of the screw as a function of the desired and programmed transit time for the material . in accordance with a characteristic of the method of the invention , the electrical power that serves to provide heating by the joule effect is regulated as a function of the material in order to maintain the desired temperature level throughout the transit time of the material through the reactor ( 20 ), and also in order to reach a threshold for a reaction that is self - sustaining . such electrical regulation is very simple to implement using temperature sensors , and it serves to minimize energy consumption significantly since it suffices to maintain the temperature level during the treatment . thus , an electrical power unit , represented here by a cabinet ( 100 ), is connected to various control members and to various sensors and serves to control the assembly . two connections are represented diagrammatically herein by chain - dotted lines referenced 101 and 102 . temperature sensors are arranged along the enclosure ( 21 ) of refractory material so as to measure the temperature that exists inside said enclosure all along its length . two such sensors ( 25 ) are shown herein for measuring the temperature of the top of the enclosure . the closed enclosure ( 21 ) of refractory material also includes in this example , in its upper portion , a pipe ( 29 ) enabling a reaction gas to be injected , or an inert gas such as nitrogen in the event of a predetermined value being exceeded , the gas - injection safety device being connected to receive the temperature as measured in the top of the oven . in general , a device is also provided to measure the temperature of the material as it progresses along the oven , in order to record temperature profiles during the pyrolysis reaction , together with a device for measuring the temperature of the spiral turns , since that is the temperature that is regulated by the electrical power supply , so the spiral turns are heated as a function of a predetermined and parameterized value . the closed enclosure ( 21 ) which , together with its cover , is made of a refractory material ( e . g . refractory cement or refractory ceramic ), serves to optimize the heating of the material by the heating screw ( 22 ) up to a temperature such that the effect of return heating from the ceramic on the material due to convection and to radiation contributes to the particles of biomass being heated immediately , quickly , and intensely , in addition to the direct heating of the material as performed by the screw itself . the installation is preferably started without preheating the oven so as to avoid any risk of the already - hot divided biomass catching fire on being inserted into the oven . the oven becomes heated while the material begins to travel therealong , thereby depleting the oxygen content of the ambient air inside the oven as the biomass is subjected to the effect of temperature and begins its thermal decomposition . since the atmospheric in the oven becomes depleted in oxygen , down to a residual level of about 5 %, it is possible to obtain conditions for pyrolysis of the biomass that are completely safe . these conditions also enhance preponderant formation of pyrolytic oils of high net calorific value . in accordance with another characteristic of the method of the invention , provision is made to extract pyrolysis gas from the upper portion of the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) in order to condense it quickly in a vertical condenser ( 30 ). the term “ pyrolysis gas ” is naturally used herein in conventional manner to designate a mixture of oils , water , and incondensable gases . a vertical condenser ( 30 ) is thus provided having its inlet connected to an outlet tapping ( 31 ) of the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ), the vertical condenser serving to condense the condensable fractions of a portion of the pyrolysis gas , said condenser presenting a low outlet ( 35 ) for recovering the resulting pyrolysis oils . the outlet tapping ( 31 ) of the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) is preferably positioned on its side , in the last portion of the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ). it is also advantageous for pyrolysis gas extraction to be performed while maintaining the temperature of the gas until it reaches the vertical condenser ( 30 ). keeping the pyrolysis gas at a temperature that is at least equivalent to that which exists in the upper portion of the oven serves to avoid any risk of premature condensation of oils . the distance between the gas outlet of the oven and the inlet to the vertical condenser should also be as short as possible , in order to avoid dust stagnating in this zone , since that could lead to deposits forming and to the diameter of the tapping outlet ( 31 ) narrowing . the connection between the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) and the vertical condenser ( 30 ) is provided specifically by an associated pipe ( 32 ) fitted along its entire length with electrical or fluid flow means ( 33 ) for maintaining its temperature . these means ( 33 ) may be an electrical track or a fluid flow installation serving to maintain the desired temperature . this serves to prevent premature condensation of oils which might otherwise lead to tars . this portion of the pyrolysis gas is cooled quickly on entering into the vertical condenser ( 30 ) by said gas passing between tubes ( 34 ) having a refrigerant fluid flowing therein , e . g . at a temperature of about 0 ° c . the inlet of the refrigerant fluid circuit is referenced ( 34 . 2 ) and its outlet is referenced ( 34 . 1 ). preferably , the portion in question of the pyrolysis gas enters the vertical condenser ( 30 ) directly in a low side portion thereof . it is then particularly advantageous for the vertical condenser ( 30 ) to be fitted with a bundle of vertical tubes ( 34 ) so that the trickling condensates serve to clean said tubes . cooling the smoke fast is most important in order to perform condensation fast . in this context , the vertical arrangement of the condenser is advantageous since it enables the tubes to be cleaned by the condensate trickling down them , given that the low - viscosity liquid fractions condense at lower temperature and thus in the upper portion of the tubes , thereby cleaning and dissolving heavier molecules of greater viscosity that have condensed further down the tubes . at the bottom of the vertical condenser ( 30 ), there are to be found the heavy fractions that condense rapidly at high temperature . it can be understood that fast condensation of this portion of the pyrolysis gas is important , in order to avoid recombination . in parallel with condensable fractions of the pyrolysis gas condensing in order to recover the resulting pyrolytic oils , provision is made to remove the non - condensable fractions ( constituted by gas and possibly also drops of oil ) via a high outlet ( 37 ) of the vertical condenser ( 30 ). this outlet ( 37 ) is connected by an associated pipe ( 38 ) to a burner ( 36 ). the pipe ( 38 ) advantageously leaves the condenser ( 30 ) sideways from a high portion thereof , thus serving to remove non - condensable fractions of the smoke , which fractions may represent 5 % to 15 % by weight of the total amount of treated biomass . the pipes ( 38 ) leading to the burner ( 36 ) includes an extractor fan ( 38 . 1 ) operating by suction and adjusted to maintain the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ) at low pressure . this serves to achieve forced extraction of the non - condensable fractions of the smoke . provision may possibly be made upstream from the extractor fan ( 38 . 1 ) for a droplet remover ( 39 ) serving to trap oil droplets that have not condensed . this droplet - remover ( 39 ) thus serves to eliminate and collect as many as possible of the droplets of oil that might still be present . the droplet - remover ( 39 ) is provided for this purpose with an outlet ( 39 . 1 ) for collecting the droplets of oil . at the outlet from the extractor fan ( 38 . 1 ) the gas is sent to the burner ( 36 ) where combustion is sustained by gas , oil , or biomass - fueled burners ( 36 . 1 ) ensuring complete combustion of the gas from the process . combustion flue gases are exhausted upwards via an exhaust chimney ( 36 . 2 ) from the burner . the conditions to be applied for ensuring complete combustion of the gas and complete deodorization thereof are , in combination , a treatment temperature of about 850 ° c . and a transit time in the burner of about 2 seconds . in the bottom portion of the vertical condenser ( 30 ), it is possible to install a sleeve fitted with a valve ( not shown ) leading to a vessel for recovering pyrolytic oils , as represented specifically by a circuit ( 35 . 1 ). advantageously , the low portion of the vertical condenser ( 30 ) has a dead volume serving to retain oils during a loading time , with loading taking place after the isolation valve of the vessel has been closed . the temperature of the oils as recovered in this way and stored in drums ( b ) lies in the range 40 ° c . to 80 ° c . in practice , before final packaging of the oils in drums ( b ), the oils are filtered via a filter ( not shown ) of about 5 μm . the vertical condenser ( 30 ) may be fitted with a spray system ( not shown ) for using a liquid fluid to clean the tubes . the cleaning fluid may be water with added soda for a cleaning cycle that is distinct from a production stage . in another mode of operation , it is possible to opt for direct spraying of a portion of the condensed and cooled oils . such an operation can be performed continuously during a production stage . an outlet is also provided for the products that result from pyrolysis , and that remain in solid form , generally in the form of residual coke . specifically , an outlet ( 24 ) is provided from the pyrolysis reactor ( 20 ), which outlet is connected via a rotary feeder valve ( 42 ) to the inlet ( 41 ) of a sealed cooler ( 40 ). the sealed cooler ( 40 ) is fitted internally with a double - walled screw ( 45 ) fitted on the outside with transfer fins ( 45 . 1 ), this double - walled screw being rotated by an external motor ( 46 ), while passing a fluid ( water or oil under pressure ) for cooling the coke quickly ( in a few minutes ). the associated cooling fluid circuit is shown diagrammatically as having inlets ( 48 ) and ( 48 . 1 ) and an outlet ( 49 ). the exhaust gas leaves via a downstream outlet ( 47 ). the inlets ( 48 ) and ( 48 . 1 ) are preferably directly connected to the outlet ( 34 . 1 ) of the vertical condenser ( 30 ), and the outlet ( 47 ) is preferably connected via a cooling unit ( not shown in fig1 ) to the inlet ( 34 . 2 ) of the vertical condenser ( 30 ). this serves to cool the residual coke in the absence of oxygen down to a temperature of no more than 50 ° c ., thus enabling the coke to be discharged to the outside in complete safety . discharge takes place via a low outlet ( 43 ) of the sealed cooler ( 40 ) via a rotary feeder valve ( 44 ) in order to produce a recyclable residual heap ( 50 ) of biochar or the like . as an indication , the proportion of coke constitutes about 1 % to 25 % of the weight of the treated biomass . the sealing between the gas contained in the process and outside air is thus guaranteed by the rotary feeder valves ( 42 and 44 ), thereby guaranteeing the sealing that is needed for safety reasons , by preventing any presence of oxygen that might run the risk of causing an explosion . fig2 shows a variant of the fig1 installation in which the preconditioning device ( 60 ) includes a hot air dryer ( 61 ) fitted with an endless belt ( 62 ) through which hot air passes . the outlet ( 16 ) from the feed auger ( 11 ) now leads to the inlet of the hot air dryer ( 61 ) which has an endless conveyor belt ( 62 ) of length that is a function of the treatment capacity of the method . the belt ( 62 ), here arranged in two superposed layers , presents an open mesh ( e . g . a mesh size of 2 mm to 5 mm , so as to pass the hot air that is used for heating and drying the material for treating . the hot air taken from a blower unit ( 63 ) is at a temperature of about 140 ° c . and it then passes in succession through the two stages of the belt , thus picking up the moisture contained in the material . a high outlet ( 64 ) from the dryer enclosure ( 61 ) serves to exhaust this moisture - laden hot air to a cyclone ( 65 ), with extraction being performed by an extractor fan ( 66 ). at the outlet from the hot air dryer ( 61 ), the material passes onto a conveyor belt so as to reach a hopper ( 67 ) having its outlet ( 68 ) feeding the inlet of the rotary feeder valve ( 23 ) of the fig1 installation . there can also be seen recycling of the incondensable gas that leaves the vertical condenser ( 30 ) via the circuit ( 38 ) and the droplet - remover ( 39 ) and the extractor fan ( 38 . 1 ), which gas is recycled directly to the inlet of the lower unit ( 63 ): this incondensable gas is thus recycled by being used as fuel associated with the burner of the hot air blower unit , which burner is already fed with fuel ( gas or oil ) and with air from associated sources ( 70 , 71 ). fig2 also shows more clearly the fluid and gas circuit associated with the vertical condenser ( 30 ) and the sealed cooler ( 40 ), together with its refrigerator unit ( 80 ). a method and an installation are thus provided for energy densification of biomass or other waste in order to obtain pyrolytic oils for energy use , making it possible simultaneously to implement pyrolysis conditions that are very fast and to have a high yield for obtaining pyrolytic oils , in particular a yield that commonly reaches 65 % to 75 % of oil , with a high net calorific value ( in the range 4000 kcal / kg to 7000 kcal / kg ), and in spite of a small volume , being competitive and presenting a production cost that is very reasonable ( because of the electrical regulation ). it is thus possible to treat about one metric ton of material per hour . in addition , the general installation is of relatively simple structure insofar as its components are known in isolation as to their general structure , and while avoiding the above - mentioned drawbacks of certain prior art pyrolysis techniques that make use of streams of air and hot fans . the biomasses in question are selected in practice as a function of the pyrolytic oils that it is desired to obtain , with the specific features of these oils determining their subsequent applications , for heating , for fueling engines , for green chemistry , or for fractionating , etc . the method and the installation of the invention thus make it possible to open up developments with an outlook that is most advantageous in the context of renewable energy and biofuels . the invention is not limited to the above - described embodiment , but on the contrary covers any variant using equivalent means to reproduce the above - specified characteristics . thus , for example , it is possible to make provision for feeding the heater screw with electricity via a generator unit that is itself powered by the biomass , or indeed by solar panels ( independent power supply that is advantageous for sites that are isolated or located in a desert ). it is also possible to replace the heater screw by a vibrating tube that is itself heated by the joule effect , with the material then being transferred within a helical tube having a vertical axis ( variants not shown herein ). | 8 |
a connector assembly 2 , fig3 in accordance with the invention serves to connect wires 4 to terminal posts 6 arranged in a row on a circuit board or other panel member 8 . the connector assembly 2 comprises a housing 12 and a contact terminal 16 , fig1 and a housing cover 14 , fig2 . both the housing and cover are molded from insulating material such as nylon . the housing 12 has a wire receiving face 18 and a mating face 20 . the wire receiving face 18 has a row of cavities 22 extending inwardly to the mating face 20 and parallel to the longitudinal axis of the connector . each housing 12 has a row of wire admitting openings 24 extending from the wire receiving face 18 along one external sidewall 26 of the housing , one wire admitting opening 24 communicating with each cavity 22 . the cavities 22 each have a pair of opposed internal endwalls 28 , 28 &# 39 ; which are mirror images of each other and extend normally of external sidewall 26 . endwalls 28 , 28 &# 39 ; each have a groove 30 , 30 &# 39 ; extending inwardly from the wire receiving face 18 , each groove defining a shoulder 32 , 32 &# 39 ; thereon which is in a plane generally parallel to the plane of sidewall 26 . the wire admitting openings 24 extend only to barrier wall 25 , where the external sidewall 26 is stepped down between the barrier wall 25 and the mating face 20 . the section of external sidewall 26 between the barrier wall and the mating face has openings 34 therein , one opening 34 communicating with a receptacle portion 36 of each cavity . the individual terminals 16 are designed for reception in the cavities via the wire receiving face 18 of the housing as shown in fig1 . the terminal 16 comprises an elongate piece of sheet metal which is folded to form parallel first and second plate - like members 38 , 39 having first and second outer ends 42 , 43 respectively . the plate - like members 38 , 39 have first and second wire receiving slots 40 , 41 therein respectively which extend inwardly from outer ends 42 , 43 respectively . the outer ends 42 , 43 are connected by spaced apart strap members 44 , 44 &# 39 ; which define an opening 46 therebetween which runs between slot 40 and slot 41 . the strap members 44 , 44 &# 39 ; have a pair of opposed flanges 48 , 48 &# 39 ; respectively thereon which extend laterally outwardly therefrom in the plane of the strap members , which is normal to the plane of the plate - like members . other salient features of the terminal include a retention lance 52 which protrudes from the surface of the elongate strip and a contact portion 50 at one end of the strip formed to mate with a terminal post 6 . in practice , a terminal 16 is inserted in a housing 12 by aligning it as shown in fig1 and moving the terminal into a cavity 22 through the wire receiving face 18 of the housing . during insertion flanges 48 , 48 &# 39 ; ride on shoulders 32 , 32 &# 39 ; respectively while the contact portion 50 is received in the receptacle portion 36 of the cavity . when insertion is complete , the retention lance 52 snaps into opening 34 in the housing to lock the terminal in place . wire insertion is accomplished by aligning the components as shown perspectively in fig2 . the wire is moved laterally of its axis through the wire admitting openings 24 in the housing 12 and into the wire receiving slots 40 , 41 in the plate - like members , passing through opening 46 between strap members 44 , 44 &# 39 ;. the movement of the wires into the terminals imposes substantial loads on the terminals and these loads give rise to relatively high stresses in the terminal . since the terminals are made of thin stock metal , for example , stock metal having a thickness of about 0 . 012 inches , such stresses can damage the terminal unless they are properly controlled . in accordance with the principles of the instant invention , however , the downwardly directed forces imposed on the terminal as the wire moves into the slots 40 , 41 produce only isolated tensile stresses in the plate - like members 38 , 39 and the spaced apart strap members 44 , 44 &# 39 ;. during insertion , a wire will impose a downwardly directed force on each of the plate - like members , but since the flanges 48 , 48 &# 39 ; are supported by shoulders 32 , 32 &# 39 ; respectively only tensile loading will result and the terminal will be protected from deformation which could result from compressive forces . after the wire is fully inserted , these tensional stresses are relieved . in addition to downwardly directed forces discussed above the insertion of a wire also causes lateral forces on the edges of the wire receiving slots 40 , 41 as insulation is displaced and electrical contact is made with the conductive core of the wire . these forces help prevent the flanges 48 , 48 &# 39 ; from slipping off shoulders 32 , 32 &# 39 ; and assure more positive overlap as the portions of the plate - like members on opposite sides of the slots flex outwardly to meet the internal endwalls 28 , 28 &# 39 ; of the cavity . the endwalls assist in providing opposition necessary to prevent too much lateral distention of the terminal during insertion . once the wire is fully inserted , these lateral stresses remain , and must be maintained to assure good electrical contact . once the wire is inserted , the housing cover 14 is placed over the housing 12 until the lips 56 on opposing sides of the cover snap onto bosses 54 on the housing . the connector assembly 2 , shown cross - sectionally in fig5 is now ready for mating with terminal posts 2 on a panel member 8 as shown in fig3 . it will be apparent that a wide variety of connectors can be made in accordance with the principles of the invention and that in all cases , manufacturing costs can be maintained at a minimum level because of the relative simplicity in both the housing and the terminal . | 7 |
with reference to fig4 a communication system 10 incorporating the principles of the invention includes a transmitter 12 and a receiver 14 separated by a communication channel , represented in fig4 by a noise source 15 . in a communication system 10 according to the invention , the transmitter 12 forms and transmits a phase - modulated wave having a phaseform in which are encoded a sequence of symbols . at successive instants of time separated by a clock period having a duration of δt seconds , the transmitter begins sending a new information symbol . each symbol requires g clock periods for transmission . hence g is referred to as the “ modulation latency ,” or simply the “ latency ” of the system . at any instant , the phaseform can represent as many symbols as the modulation latency of the system . the receiver 14 then demodulates the phase - modulated wave and recovers the symbols encoded in the phaseform . to facilitate exposition and understanding of the structure and operation of the communication system 10 , the structure and operation of the transmitter 12 and receiver 14 are discussed with reference to separate sets of figures . the structure and operation of the transmitter 16 is discussed with reference to fig5 - 7 . the structure and operation of the receiver 14 is discussed with reference to fig8 - 10 . referring to fig5 the transmitter 12 incorporating the subject matter of the invention includes a plurality of transmitting shift - biorthogonal function generators 14 a - g and a plurality of transmitting mixers 16 a - g . the number of such transmitting shift - biorthogonal function generators 14 a - g and the number of such transmitting mixers 16 a - g is at least equal to the modulation latency , g . an input binary digital information stream is transformed into a stream of numerical information symbols τ 0 , τ 1 , τ 2 , . . . τ l . these numerical values are transmitted by the transmitter 12 , and will be recovered by a receiver , to be described below in connection with fig8 . a post - processing operation reconverts the numerical symbols into a binary digital information stream . the input symbol stream τ 0 , τ 1 , τ 2 , . . . τ l is demultiplexed into a plurality of demultiplexed streams 18 a - g , each of which is directed to a corresponding transmitting mixer 16 a - g . the first symbol , τ 0 from the first demultiplexed stream 18 a is presented to the first mixer 16 a . the resulting output 20 a from the first mixer 14 a is τ 0 l 0 . one symbol start period δt later , the second symbol τ 1 , from the second demultiplexed stream 18 b , is presented to the second mixer 16 b . this procedure continues until the g th symbol , τ g − 1 is presented to the g th transmitting mixer 16 g . the process repeats with the ( g + 1 ) th symbol , τ g from the first demultiplexed stream 18 a being presented to the input of the first mixer 16 a . the resultant mixer outputs 20 a - g of these transmitting mixers 16 a - g are g signals that are representative of a filtered symbol . the transmitting - mixer outputs 20 a - g are connected to a corresponding number of inputs 21 a - j of a transmitting accumulator 22 . the transmitting accumulator 22 has a transmitting - accumulator output 24 on which it provides a signal representative of the sum of the overlapping filtered symbols . a phase modulator 26 then encodes the signal present on the transmitting - accumulator output 24 onto the phase of a carrier wave . this carrier wave , with its phase now modulated by the signal present on the accumulator output 24 , then enters the communication channel 15 . fig6 shows the signals present on the various inputs and outputs of the transmitter 12 of fig5 after m clock periods have elapsed . the g symbols τ k for k = m , m + 1 , . . . , m + g − 1 , which are a known numerical function of the information bits in the message to be transmitted , being transmitted in clock period m + 1 , namely symbols τ m , τ m + 1 , . . . , τ m + g − 1 , are presented at the symbol inputs 19 a - g of the transmitting mixers 16 a - g . the transmitting - filter generators 14 a - g then generate corresponding transmitting - filter functions l m ( x ), l m + 1 ( x ), . . . , l m + g − 1 ( x ). these transmitting - filter functions are presented at the filter inputs 18 a - g of the corresponding transmitting mixers 16 a - g . these transmitting - filter functions , representative examples of which are shown in fig7 are preferably chosen to be temporally - shifted shift - biorthogonal wavelet basis functions having compact support . each mixer 16 a - g mixes a transmitting - filter function with a corresponding symbol . the output of each transmitting mixer 16 a - g is thus a shift - biorthogonal wavelet function having an amplitude weighted by a corresponding symbol being transmitted : τ i l i ( x ). those skilled in the art will recognize that the transmitting - filter generators 14 a - g and the transmitting mixers can be implemented directly in hardware or by suitable software instructions provided to a computer system . for simplicity of notation , hereinafter let x = t / δt . in fig7 each transmitting - filter function l i ( x ) is preferably shifted in time ( x ) so that it is non - zero only during clock periods during which its corresponding symbol τ i is being transmitted . since it takes g clock periods to transmit a given symbol , each transmitting - filter function is non - zero for only g clock periods . for the filter functions shown in fig7 the modulation latency is three . hence , l m ( x ) is non - zero only during clock periods between t = mδt and t =( m + 3 ) δt . similarly , l m + 1 ( x ) is non - zero only during those clock periods between t =( m + 1 ) δt and t =( m + 4 ) δt . as shown in fig6 the transmitting - accumulator 22 provides , at the transmitting - accumulator output 24 , a phaseform representative of a weighted sum of shifted wavelet basis functions : φ ( t , m ) = ∑ i = m m + g - 1 τ i l i ( t / δ t ) the phase modulator 26 then encodes the signal from the transmitting - accumulator output 24 onto a carrier exp ( iωx ). the signal present at the output 32 of the phase modulator 26 is thus a wave having a time - varying phase modulated by a sum of weighted and temporally - shifted wavelet basis functions corresponding to those symbols that are currently being transmitted : consideration of fig5 - 7 reveals that a transmitter 12 operating according to the principles of the invention begins transmitting a new symbol with each clock interval . since the transmission of each symbol requires several clock intervals , during any clock interval , there can be several symbols being transmitted , each at a different stage of transmission . the transmitter 12 weights each symbol by mixing it with a transmitting - filter function which is non - zero only during those clock periods in which the symbol is being transmitted . the transmitter 12 then evaluates a sum over the clock periods during which the transmitting - filter functions are non - zero . this sum , or integral , is then used to modulate the phase of a carrier wave . referring now to fig8 the receiver 14 incorporating the principles of the invention includes a phase demodulator 32 for recovering the phaseform φ ( x , m ) = ∑ i = m m + g - 1 τ i l i ( x ) from the phase - modulated signal . the process of recovering the phaseform can include conventional signal processing techniques for noise - suppression . these functions are accomplished by known subsystems within the phase demodulator 32 . the phase demodulator 32 is connected to phaseform inputs 33 a - g of each of a plurality of symbol decoders 34 a - g . the phaseform provided to each symbol decoder 34 a - g is thus a finite sum of phase terms , each of which is a temporally - shifted wavelet basis function weighted by one of the symbols being transmitted . the purpose of each symbol decoder 34 a - g is to separate one of these constituent phase terms from the phaseform . the output of each symbol decoder 34 a - g is thus the symbol associated with one of the constituent phase terms in the above phaseform . since the number of phase terms , and hence the number of symbols , present in the phaseform at any instant is no greater than the modulation latency , the number of symbol decoders 34 a - g need be no greater than the modulation latency . the observant reader will note that in fig8 only the first symbol decoder 34 a is shown as having an output . this is meant to suggest that not all the symbol decoders have their outputs ready at the same time . the reason this is so is that each symbol takes several clock intervals to transmit . thus , if the receiver were to begin transmitting symbol τ i before beginning the transmitting symbol τ i + 1 , one would expect that the symbol decoder charged with extracting symbol τ i would complete its extraction process before the symbol decoder charged with extracting symbol τ i + 1 could complete its extraction process . because the symbol decoders 34 a - g all operate in fundamentally the same manner , it is instructive to consider in detail the operation of a first symbol decoder 34 a , shown in detail in fig9 . those skilled in the art will recognize that the illustrated demodulator 32 and symbol decoders 34 a - g can be implemented directly in hardware or by suitable software instructions provided to a computer system . referring now to fig9 the first symbol decoder 34 a includes a receiving mixer 35 a and a receiving - filter generator 36 a . the receiving mixer 35 a has a phaseform terminal 33 a connected to the phase demodulator 32 , a receiving - filter input terminal 38 a connected to the receiving - filter generator 36 a , and a receiving - mixer output terminal 40 a . in operation , the receiving - filter generator 36 a generates and places a receiving - filter function r m ( x ) at the receiving - filter input terminal 38 a of the receiving mixer 35 a . the signal leaving the receiving mixer 35 a is thus r m ( x ) ∑ i = m m + g - 1 τ i l i ( x ) = τ m r m ( x ) l m ( x ) + τ m + 1 r m ( x ) l m + 1 ( x ) + ⋯ + τ m + g - 1 r m ( x ) l m + g - 1 ( x ) where x = t / δt is as described in connection with the discussion of the transmitter . the receiving - filter function r m ( x ) is selected such that the integral of the product r m ( x ) l n ( x ) is non - zero only when n = m . consequently , in order to extract the symbol τ m from the signal present at the receiving - filter input terminal 33 a , one need only integrate over an appropriate time interval . since each of the l i ( x ) have compact support , it follows that each term in the above sum , and hence the sum itself , is non - zero over a finite interval . it is this finite interval that is the appropriate time interval for integration . filter pairs having the foregoing property can be shift bi - orthogonal filter pairs for which ∫ r ( x ) l ( x - n ) x = { 0 if n ≠ 0 c , c ≠ 0 if n = 0 or shift - orthonormal filters for which ∫ r ( x ) l ( x - n ) x = { 0 if n ≠ 0 1 if n = 0 alternatively , filter pairs suitable for use in the method and system of the invention can be bi - orthogonal filters which are defined as having the additional properties : ∫ r ( x ) x = 1 and ∫ l ( x ) x = 1 in the case in which r ( x )= l ( x ), the transmitter and receiver filters are matched filters . the signal present leaving the receiving mixer 35 a is made available to a signal input terminal of a receiving accumulator 44 a . in addition to a signal input terminal , the receiving accumulator 44 a includes : a receiving - accumulator output terminal 46 a on which is placed an accumulated quantity ; and an associated controller 48 a for providing control signals to the receiving accumulator 44 a . these control signals specify when to begin accumulation , how long accumulation is to occur , and when to place the accumulated quantity on the receiving - accumulator output terminal 46 a . the receiving accumulator 44 a can act as a summer or integrator , depending on whether the communication system 10 is an analog or digital communication system . the associated controller 48 a selects the appropriate time interval for integrating or summing the signal present at the signal input terminal . the receiving accumulator 44 a and its associated controller 48 a thus cooperate to place on the a receiving accumulator output terminal 46 a a signal representative of a sum or integral over a finite and selected time interval . in order to recover a particular symbol , the receiving accumulator 44 a begins the integration process when the phase term corresponding to that symbol first becomes one of the constituents of the phaseform . the integration process carried out by the receiving accumulator 44 a continues throughout the interval during which the phase term corresponding to that symbol remains one of the constituents of the phaseform . once the phaseform no longer has , as one of its constituents , the phase term corresponding to the particular symbol , the integration process ceases and the phase term corresponding that symbol is made available at the receiving accumulator output terminal 46 a . depending on the choice of receiving filter function and transmitting - filter function , the signal at the receiving - accumulator output terminal 46 a may need to be scaled . this is readily accomplished by feeding that signal into a multiplier 47 a and scaling it by a suitable constant available in a scaling register 49 a . the value stored in the scaling register 49 a can be pre - selected or can be obtained from a look - up table . with the exception of differences in the filter functions generated by the receiving - filter generator 36 a and in the start and stop times for accumulation as provided by the receiving accumulator controller 48 a , the remaining symbol decoders 34 b - g operate in the same manner as the first symbol decoder 34 a . as shown in fig1 , the second symbol decoder 34 b , like the first symbol decoder 34 a , includes a receiving mixer 35 b and a receiving - filter generator 36 b . the receiving mixer 35 b has a phaseform terminal 33 b connected to the phase demodulator 32 , a receiving - filter input terminal 38 b connected to the receiving - filter generator 36 b , and a receiving - mixer output terminal 40 b . in operation , the receiving - filter generator 36 b places a different receiving - filter function r m + 1 ( x ) at the receiving - filter input terminal 38 b of the receiving mixer 34 b . the signal present at the output terminal is thus r m + 1 ( x ) ∑ i = m + 1 m + g τ i l i ( x ) = τ m + 1 r m + 1 ( x ) l m + 1 ( x ) + τ m + 2 r m + 1 ( x ) l m + 2 + ⋯ + τ m + g + 1 r m + 1 ( x ) l m + g ( x ) the receiving - filter function r m + 1 ( x ) for the second symbol decoder 34 b is likewise selected such that the integral of the product r m + 1 ( x ) l n ( x ) is non - zero only when n = m + 1 . the receiving - filter function can be a time shifted version of r m ( x ), however any function satisfying the foregoing condition is suitable . consequently , in order to extract the symbol τ m + 1 from the signal present at the receiving - filter input terminal 33 b , one need only integrate over an appropriate time interval . since each of the l i ( x ) have compact support , it follows that each term in the above sum , and hence the sum itself , is non - zero over a finite interval . it is again this finite time interval that is the appropriate interval for integration . however , the start time and stop time for this finite time interval are different from those used in the first symbol decoder 34 a . as was the case in the first symbol decoder 34 a , the signal leaving the receiving mixer 35 b is made available to a signal input terminal of a receiving accumulator 44 b . in addition to a signal input terminal , the receiving accumulator 44 b includes : a receiving - accumulator output terminal 46 b on which is placed an accumulated quantity ; and an associated controller 48 b for providing control signals to the receiving accumulator 44 b . these control signals specify when to begin accumulation , how long accumulation is to occur and when to place the accumulated quantity on the receiving - accumulator output terminal 46 b . the receiving accumulator 44 b can act as a summer or integrator , depending on whether the communication system 10 is an analog or digital communication system . the associated controller 48 b selects the appropriate time interval for integrating or summing the signal present at the signal input terminal . this time interval is typically delayed by one time interval relative to the time interval used in the first symbol decoder 34 a . the receiving accumulator 44 b and its associated controller 48 b thus cooperate to place on the receiving accumulator output terminal 46 b a signal representative of a sum or integral over a finite and selected time interval . in order to recover the symbol τ m + 1 , the receiving accumulator 44 b begins the integration process when the phase term corresponding to τ m + 1 first becomes one of the constituents of the phaseform . the integration process carried out by the receiving accumulator 44 b continues throughout the interval during which the phase term corresponding to τ m + 1 remains one of the constituents of the phaseform . once the phase - form no longer has , as one of its constituents , the phase term corresponding to τ m + 1 , the integration process ceases and the phase term corresponding τ m + 1 is made available at the receiving - accumulator output terminal 46 b . it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that the operation of the invention relies upon the judicious choice of filter functions and not on whether the underlying communication system is digital or analog communication system . hence , it is intended that the scope of the following claims cover both digital and analog communication systems . | 7 |
referring now in detail to the drawings where like reference numerals identify similar or like components throughout the several views , fig3 and 4 illustrate a first embodiment of the thrombectomy wire of the present invention . the thrombectomy wire , designated generally by reference numeral 10 , includes a core 20 , a bifilar wire ( coil ) 30 , and shrink wrap 50 . the bifilar wire 30 is formed by two stainless steel wires 32 , 34 , wound together . as shown they are wound side by side so the cross - sectional area or diameter “ a ” of the wire fills the space between adjacent turns of the other wire . for example , turns 32 a and 32 b are filled by respective turns 34 a , 34 b as shown . preferably the bifilar wire 30 has a length of about 30 inches and a diameter of about 0 . 030 inches to about 0 . 040 inches and more preferably about 0 . 035 inches . when used in deeper native vessels , e . g . deep veins of the legs or pulmonary circuit , the wire 30 can have a length of about 52 inches . other dimensions are also contemplated . the distal region 16 of the bifilar wire 30 is formed into a sinuous or s - shape to contact the vessel wall as the wire rotates . although in the preferred illustrated and described embodiments , the outer wire is a multifilar wire in the form of a bifilar wire ( two wires ), a different number of wires could be wound to form the outer wire component of the thrombectomy wire of the present invention . in yet another embodiment the outer wire can comprise a single wound wire . the bifilar wire 30 is preferably cold formed into an over - formed s - shape . the bifilar wire is heated , for example at about 670 degrees fahrenheit , which removes residual stresses and changes the shape of the “ s ” so it warps back to its desired shape . this stress relief process makes the wire more dimensionally stable . a tip 80 , preferably composed of rubber , pebax , or other elastomeric materials , is mounted at the distalmost tip of the wire 10 to provide the wire 10 with an atraumatic distal tip to prevent damage to the vessel wall during manipulation and rotation of the wire . a metal lip 60 is attached by laser welding or other methods to the distal end of the bifilar wire 30 . the metal tip 60 has an enlarged dumbbell shaped head 62 to facilitate attachment to tip 80 . the flexible tip 80 is attached by injection molding over the machined tip . other attachment methods are also contemplated . with continued reference to fig4 , a core 20 is positioned within the bifilar wire 30 and preferably has an outer diameter e substantially equal to the inner diameter d of the coil . the core at a distal portion has a sinuous shaped portion within the sinuous shaped portion of the outer wire 30 , corresponding to and formed by the sinuous shape of outer wire 30 . in one embodiment , the core extends the entire length of the bifilar wire 30 and this is shown in the schematic drawing of fig3 . the core 20 can alternatively have a length of about 4 - 5 inches so it extends through the distal linear portion and sinuous portion of the wire 30 . that is , in such embodiment , the core extends through the portion of the wire that is exposed from the sheath and used to macerate thrombus . it is also contemplated that the core can extend within a shorter or longer length of the bifilar wire . the core 20 is composed of a flexible material which will limit the compressibility of the wire 30 during use . the core in the embodiment of fig3 is composed of nylon , and preferably a drawn nylon monofilament . other possible materials include , for example , teflon , polypropylene , pet , and fluorocarbon . the nylon provides a non - compressible material to limit the compressibility of the wire 30 during use . that is , as noted above , the nylon core preferably has a diameter e to fill the inside of the coil 30 , e . g . a diameter of about 0 . 008 inches to about 0 . 013 inches , and preferably about 0 . 012 inches . ( other dimensions are also contemplated .) this enables the coil ( bifilar wire ) 30 to compress only to that diameter . by limiting compressibility it strengthens the wire as it reduces its degree of elongation if it is under torque . it also prevents bending or knotting of the wire which could otherwise occur in native vessels . it increases the torsional strength of the wire and also strengthens the wire to accommodate spasms occurring in the vessel . an enlarged distal head , such as ball tip ( not shown ), can be provided on the core 20 to fit in a recess of machined tip 60 . as an alternative , core 20 can be attached by adhesive at the tip , welded , crimped , soldered or can alternatively be free floating . the shrink wrap material 50 covers a portion of the bifilar wire 30 proximal of the flexible tip 80 to block the interstices of the coil and provide a less abrasive surface . as shown in fig4 , the distal end of the shrink wrap abuts the proximal end of the tip 60 . the shrink wrap can be made of pet , teflon , pebax , polyurethane or other polymeric materials . the material extends over the exposed portion of the wire 30 ( preferably for about 3 inches to about 4 inches ) and helps to prevent the native vessel from being caught in the coil and reduces vessel spasms . alternatively , instead of shrink wrap , a coating can be applied to the coil formed by the bifilar wire to cover the interstices fig5 and 6 illustrate an alternate embodiment of the thrombectomy wire of the present invention , designated generally by reference numeral 100 . wire 100 is identical to wire 10 of fig1 , except for the inner core 120 . it is identical in that it has a bifilar wire 130 , a shrink wrap 170 , an clastomeric tip 180 and metal , e . g . stainless steel , tip 160 . in this embodiment , the core 120 is composed of a shape memory material , preferably nitinol ( a nickel titanium alloy ), which has a memorized configuration of a sinuous or s - shape substantially corresponding to the s - shape of the bifilar wire 130 . in the softer martensitic state within the sheath , core 120 is in a substantially linear configuration . this state is used for delivering the wire to the surgical site . when the wire is exposed to warmer body temperature , the core 120 transforms to its austenitic state , assuming the s - shaped memorized configuration . cold saline is delivered through the catheter during delivery to maintain the core 120 in this martensitic state ; the warming occurs by exposure to body temperature to transform the core 120 to the memorized state . such memorized s - shape helps maintain the s - shape of the bifilar wire 130 during use . cold saline can also be delivered to the core 120 at the end of the procedure to facilitate withdrawal . the nitinol core 120 , like the nylon core 20 , is not compressible so it will also limit the compressibility of the bifilar wire 130 . the nitinol core 120 also will increase the stiffness of the wire 100 , thereby reducing the chance of knotting and kinking and increase the strength of the wire to accommodate any spasms in the vessel . its shape memory helps hold the amplitude of the bifilar wire 130 during use to maintain its force against the clot for maceration upon rotation . it preferably extends about 4 - 5 inches so it extends through the distal linear portion and sinuous portion of the wire 130 , terminating at end 122 . alternately it can extend a shorter or longer length within the wire 130 , or even the entire length as shown in the schematic view of fig5 . it preferably has an outer diameter of about 0 . 008 inches to about 0 . 013 inches , and more preferably about 0 . 012 inches , corresponding to the inner diameter of the coil . other dimensions are also contemplated . in another embodiment , a stainless steel braid , cable , or strand of wires twisted together provides the inner core member to limit compressibility of the coil ( bifilar wire ) and provide increased stiffness , strength and other advantages of the core enumerated above . this is shown in the embodiment of fig7 and 8 where wire 200 has inner core 220 of seven twisted stainless steel wires . a different number of twisted wires is also contemplated . the other elements of the wire 200 , e . g ., outer bifilar wire 230 , metal tip 260 , tip 280 shrink wrap 250 , etc ., are the same as in wires 10 and 100 described herein . the rotational thrombectomy wires 10 , 100 and 200 of the present invention can be used with various thrombectomy catheters to macerate thrombus within the vessel . the rotational thrombectomy wire 10 ( or wire 100 or 200 ) is contained within a flexible sheath or sleeve c of a catheter as shown in fig1 . relative movement of the wire and sheath c will enable the wire 10 to be exposed to assume the curved ( sinuous ) configuration described below to enable removal of obstructions , such as blood clots , from the lumen of the vessel . a motor powered by a battery is contained within a housing to macerate and liquefy the thrombus into small particles within the vessel lumen . this is shown schematically in fig2 . wire 10 ( or 100 or 200 ) is operatively connected to the motor . operative connection encompasses direct connection or connection via interposing components to enable rotation when the motor is actuated . the curved regions of the wire 10 or ( 100 or 200 ) are compressed so the wire ( including the distal region 16 , 116 or 216 , respectively ) is in a substantially straight or linear non - deployed configuration when in the sheath c . this covering of the wire 10 ( or 100 or 200 ) by sheath c facilitates insertion through an introducer sheath and manipulation within the vessel when the flexible sheath c is retracted , the wire is exposed to enable the wire to return to its non - linear substantially sinuous configuration for rotation about its longitudinal axis within the lumen of the vessel . fluids , such as imaging dye can be injected through the port d into the lumen of the sheath c in the space between wire 10 ( or 100 or 200 ) and the inner wall of the sheath c , and exiting the distal opening to flow into the vessel . this imaging dye provides an indication that fluid flow has resumed in the vessel . the lumen of the sheath can also receive cold saline to cool the nitinol core 120 as described above . the rotational thrombectomy wires 10 , 100 and 200 of the present invention can also be used with the thrombectomy catheters having one or more balloons such as the balloon described in the &# 39 ; 812 publication . the wires 10 , 100 and 200 can further be used with other thrombectomy catheters . while the above description contains many specifics , those specifics should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the disclosure , but merely as exemplifications of preferred embodiments thereof . those skilled in the art will envision many other possible variations that are within the scope and spirit of the disclosure as defined by the claims appended hereto . | 0 |
the support of the invention comprises inorganic oxide nanoparticles coated with magnesium chloride . by “ nanoparticles ,” we mean particles having a mean particle diameter less than 5 microns . the inorganic oxide nanoparticles preferably have a mean particle diameter of less than 1 micron , and more preferably less than 0 . 1 micron . the size of the inorganic oxide is a more critical parameter than the exact choice of inorganic oxide . suitable inorganic oxides include , for example , oxides of aluminum , silicon , antimony , cerium , copper , indium , iron , titanium , tin , yttrium , and zinc . mixtures of inorganic oxides may be used . the inorganic oxide should be insoluble in the solvent used to crystallize the magnesium chloride . suitable inorganic oxides are commercially available from a variety of companies . magnesium chloride can initially be of any size or shape . preferably , the magnesium chloride has a water content less than 10 % by weight , more preferably , less than 0 . 5 %. one preferred method of coating the inorganic oxide with magnesium chloride is to slurry the inorganic oxide in a solution of magnesium chloride dissolved in ethanol and then crystallize the magnesium chloride by cooling or concentrating the solvent . preferably , the slurry is stirred during crystallization . alcohols , especially ethanol , are preferred solvents . preferably , the solvent has a water content less than 5 % by weight . after crystallization , the solid particles are separated from excess solvent by any of several techniques . one preferred technique is to filter and then vacuum - dry the solid . optionally , drying is not exhaustive and a small amount of the solvent remains with the solid . when ethanol is used as a solvent , the drying is preferably done until from 1 - 6 moles of ethanol per mole magnesium chloride remain . the weight ratio of magnesium chloride to inorganic oxide nanoparticles is preferably from about 100 : 1 to about 100 , 000 : 1 , more preferably , from about 1 , 000 : 1 to about 10 , 000 : 1 . if the weight ratio is too high , the particle size of the crystals can be variable and too large . if the weight ratio is too low , it can add to the cost unnecessarily . the inorganic oxide nanoparticles coated with magnesium chloride can be used as a support material for an olefin polymerization catalyst . preferably , the olefin polymerization catalyst is a metallocene , non - metallocene single - site , or ziegler - natta catalyst comprising a group 4 - 10 transition metal compound . metallocene catalysts include those containing substituted and unsubstituted cyclopentadienyl , fluorenyl , or indenyl ligands , or the like , such as those described in u . s . pat . nos . 4 , 791 , 180 and 4 , 752 , 597 , the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference . non - metallocene single - site catalysts include the so - called “ constrained geometry ” catalysts ( see , e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 064 , 802 ) and catalysts containing one or more heteroatomic ring ligands such as boraaryl , pyrrolyl , indolyl , indenoindolyl , quinolinyl , pyridinyl , and azaborolinyl as described in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 554 , 775 , 5 , 539 , 124 , 5 , 637 , 660 , 5 , 902 , 866 , and 6 , 232 , 260 , the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference . more preferably , the olefin polymerization catalyst is a ziegler - natta catalyst . they include titanium halides , titanium alkoxides , vanadium halides , and mixtures thereof , especially , ticl 3 , ticl 4 , mixtures of vocl 3 with ticl 4 , and mixtures of vcl 4 with ticl 4 . other suitable ziegler - natta catalysts appear in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 483 , 938 , the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference , and in eur . pat . no . 222 , 504 . most preferably the olefin polymerization catalyst is ticl 4 . optionally , a lewis base is also added to the supported transition metal compound . preferred lewis bases are c 3 - c 24 esters such as butyl acetate , diethyl phthalate , trimethyl trimellitate , and diethyl adipate and c 4 - c 16 ethers such as dibutyl ether , glyme , and diglyme . more preferred lewis bases are c 9 - c 24 esters such as diethyl phthalate , dioctyl isophthalate , and 1 , 6 - hexanediol bisbenzoate . the supported transition metal compounds are useful as olefin polymerization catalysts . the polymerization is conducted in the presence of the supported transition metal compound and an aluminum compound such as methylalumoxane , diethyl aluminum chloride , triethyl aluminum , and triisobutyl aluminum . preferably , the transition metal compound is a ziegler - natta catalyst and the aluminum compound is a dialkyl aluminum halide or a trialkyl aluminum compound . preferably , the olefin is an alpha - olefin . more preferably , the olefin is selected from the group consisting of ethylene , propylene , 1 - butene , 1 - hexene , 1 - octene , and mixtures thereof . most preferably , the olefin is ethylene or ethylene with a second olefin . the following examples merely illustrate the invention . those skilled in the art will recognize many variations that are within the spirit of the invention and scope of the claims . magnesium chloride powder , ( 100 g ; water content & lt ; 5 %; available from aldrich chemical company ) is dissolved under nitrogen in 1 . 5 l of anhydrous ethanol at 70 ° c . with stirring . aluminum oxide ( 0 . 01 g ) with an average particle size of 47 nm ( 0 . 047 microns ) ( available from nanophase technologies corporation ) is added with continued stirring . the slurry is concentrated with slight vacuum while maintaining the temperature at 70 ° c . to a volume of 500 ml to begin crystallization . the mixture is cooled to room temperature to obtain more crystals . the magnesium chloride coated on aluminum oxide is filtered and dried for 1 hour at 40 ° c . under vacuum . the particles are expected to be uniform and to have a large surface area . the magnesium chloride coated on inorganic oxide prepared in example 1 ( 1 g ) is placed in a glass tube and exposed to a stream of titanium tetrachloride in nitrogen for 2 hours to support the titanium tetrachloride . a 2 - l stainless steel polymerization reactor is pressure purged with dry nitrogen three times at 70 ° c . after completely venting the reactor , hydrogen is added as a 1 . 7 mpa pressure drop from a 7 - ml vessel . a solution of 1 - hexene ( 100 ml ) and triisobutyl aluminum ( 1 mmol ) in isobutane ( 1 l ) is added to the reactor followed by the supported titanium tetrachloride . ethylene is added to give a total reactor pressure of 2 . 4 mpa . temperature is maintained at 70 ° c . and ethylene pressure is fed on demand to maintain 2 . 4 mpa for 30 minutes . after 30 minutes of polymerization , the reactor is vented to remove the volatiles . a copolymer of ethylene with hexene is the expected reaction product . the preceding examples are meant only as illustrations . the following claims define the invention . | 2 |
in the description that follows , like parts are marked throughout the specification and drawings with the same reference numerals , respectively . the drawing figures might not be to scale , and certain components can be shown in generalized or schematic form and identified by commercial designations in the interest of clarity and conciseness . fig1 is a diagram an inspection station 100 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . inspection station 100 allows the top dimension of fasteners to be inspected , with compensation for variations in surface finish . inspection station 100 includes base 101 having on it a rotating turntable 102 . singulating feed mechanism 106 provides fasteners 104 to rotating turntable 102 , and the fasteners 104 are fed into fastener retaining slots 103 by centrifugal force , where they can be inspected by inspection system 700 ( not explicitly shown ) using image data generated by horizontal vision system 200 , vertical vision system 300 , and other suitable systems . inspection system 700 generates rejection data , which causes rejection mechanism 400 to actuate and to eject fasteners 104 that do not meet inspection criteria . if rejection data is not generated , the fasteners 104 are accepted at an acceptance position that includes stationary wiper 115 , which removes the acceptable fasteners 104 that remain after the rejected fasteners 104 have been removed . rotating turntable 102 has fastener retaining slots 103 around the periphery . fasteners 104 are fed into the fastener retaining slots 103 from feed chute 105 by singulating feed mechanism 106 , which biases a fastener 104 against the turntable so that it locates in one of fastener retaining slots 103 . rotating turntable 102 rotates continuously as fasteners 104 feed into it . view aa of fig1 is shown in greater detail in fig2 . view bb of fig1 is shown in greater detail in fig3 . view cc of fig1 is shown in greater detail in fig4 . fig2 is a diagram of inspection station 100 showing horizontal vision system 200 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . after the fasteners 104 are fed onto rotating turntable 102 , it turns to present the fasteners 104 first to horizontal inspection camera 107 of the horizontal vision system 200 , which views the fastener 104 through optics 108 , as illuminated by transmitted light from light source 109 and collimator 110 . in this manner , silhouette or shadowgraph data can be generated , the data can be compared against a library of acceptable parameters both to categorize the fastener 104 , for the presence of a screw thread of the correct type and pitch , and for the correct dimensions for the fastener type . the light source 109 can have adjustable luminance , and can be adjusted to provide an optimum level of illumination where the contrast of the lighting is approximately the same as the maximum grey scale range of horizontal inspection camera 107 . it is not necessary that rotating turntable 102 remain stationary while the fastener 104 is imaged and categorized since capture of the image can be near instantaneous and once the image is captured the categorization and labeling for rejection will occur while the rotating turntable 102 is indexing onwards . fig3 is a diagram of inspection station 100 showing vertical vision system 300 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . further rotation of rotating turntable 102 presents the fastener 104 to vertical vision system camera 111 , which can include adjustable lighting head 112 to illuminate fastener 104 using reflected light . adjustable lighting head 112 provides illumination from a range of directions at variable levels in each direction , so as to illuminate each fastener 104 to provide optimum contrast regardless of the finish on the fastener head . in this manner , vertical vision system camera 111 can be used to determine the delineation of depressions on the fastener head , the outline of the exterior of the head , or other fastener dimensions that may be required to allow the fastener to fit a fastener driving tool . detection of the optimum contrast is by detection of the best differentiation of edges in the viewed image , and requires a pre - programmed illumination routine to vary the illumination from adjustable lighting head 112 so as to narrow the range of choices of illumination . in one exemplary embodiment , the luminance of adjustable lighting head 112 can be varied rapidly by inspection system 700 or other suitable systems until a level of illumination that provides the greatest contrast is achieved in image data corresponding to the edges found in the fastener 104 . the fastener 104 , which was initially inspected at the horizontal vision system , can now be further inspected as necessary in terms of external drive profile , internal drive profile , overall diameter , or other suitable data . in another exemplary embodiment , rejection data can be associated with the fastener 104 by inspection system 700 or other suitable systems if the dimensions of the fastener 104 fail to fall within a valid category , for instance because the internal drive socket does not meet specifications . fig4 is a diagram of inspection station 100 showing rejection mechanism 400 , in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . motor 118 can be a servomotor , a stepping motor , or other suitable motors . rotating turntable 102 is turned by motor 118 and is mounted on base 101 . motor 118 allows the position of the fastener retaining slots 103 as shown in fig1 to be tracked with accuracy so that the fastener retaining slots 103 can be indexed . as rotating turntable 102 progresses , a fastener 104 that has been determined to be faulty rotates to a position opposite reject solenoid 113 , which is controlled so as to operate and eject the fastener 104 down reject chute 114 . the remaining fasteners 104 are directed by stationary wiper 115 as shown in fig1 to accept chute 116 . likewise , other suitable processes can be used , such as the use of an accept solenoid in conjunction with controls over singulating feed mechanism 106 of fig1 to allow a fastener 104 to be inspected multiple times , such as when image data of the fastener was not adequately obtained and where additional inspection time is required . while one accept chute 116 is shown ( and can be disposed within element 117 , as shown ), two or more accept chutes 116 can be used , where suitable . inspection station 100 can thus act as a sorter using mechanisms similar to the reject mechanism 400 , as inspection station 100 can be used to classify the fasteners 104 it inspects as opposed to only determining pass / fail criteria . in one exemplary embodiment , reject mechanism 400 can include a solenoid 113 . fig5 is an overhead view of the fastener locating mechanism on the rotating turntable 102 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . fasteners 104 are located in fastener retaining slots 103 , which are formed by locating fingers 120 of outer turntable ring 122 and locating fingers 119 of inner turntable ring 121 . locating fingers 119 of inner turntable ring 121 are configured so as to guide the fasteners 104 into fastener retaining slots 103 . in one exemplary embodiment , inner turntable ring 121 and outer turntable ring 122 can be controllably adjusted so as to increase or decrease the size of fastener retaining slots 103 . fig6 is a breakaway view of the fastener locating mechanism on rotating turntable 102 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . the fastener locating mechanism on rotating turntable 102 can include an outer turntable ring 122 and an inner turntable ring 121 . the outer turntable ring 122 has locating fingers 120 , while the inner turntable ring 121 has locating fingers 119 . rotation of the inner turntable ring 121 relative to the outer turntable ring 122 allows control of fastener retaining slots 103 within which the fasteners 104 are located . rotating turntable 102 can thus be adjusted for fasteners 104 of differing diameter . block 123 locates on dowels 124 on the inner turntable ring 121 and outer turntable ring 122 to positively locate the rings relative to each other . replacement of block 123 with another of different length allows quick changing of the dimensions of fastener retaining slots 103 . in one exemplary embodiment , a conical block 123 with increasing diameter or other suitable mechanisms can be used to allow the dimension of fastener retaining slots 103 to be altered on - the - fly . in one exemplary embodiment , there may be other vision systems present to inspect the thread form in side view by reflected light to determine if the thread is intact . for example , one can be used around the whole fastener 104 , and another can be used to inspect the lower tip of a fastener 104 . in this exemplary embodiment , the presence of a chisel point in self - drilling fasteners 104 can be detected . the present invention can be used in conjunction with the inspection of any suitable item that has a substantially regular form in two axes , and can be adapted to the inspection of objects of irregular form with limited re - entrant portions . use in this latter application requires orienting the object on two axes for inspection , rather than the single axis orientation described for the current invention . such orientation techniques are known . use of both reflected light and transmitted light to provide sufficient detail of a single axis can also or alternatively be used . in addition to a rotating turntable 102 , other suitable conveying systems can also or alternatively be used , such as ones that are capable of orienting and retaining the object to be recognized . it is to be understood that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the various embodiments of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description , together with details of the structure and functioning of various embodiments of the invention , this disclosure is illustrative only , and changes may be made in detail so long as the functioning of the invention is not adversely affected . for example the particular elements of the conveyor or rotating turntable 102 may vary dependent on the particular application for which it is used without variation in the spirit and scope of the present invention . fig7 is a diagram of inspection system 700 , in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . inspection system 700 can be implemented in hardware , software , or a suitable combination of hardware and software , and can be one or more software systems operating on a general - purpose processing platform . inspection system 700 is coupled to horizontal vision system 200 and vertical vision system 300 and can use suitable image processing techniques to inspect image data of the fasteners 104 that is generated by horizontal vision system 200 and vertical vision system 300 . as used herein , a software system can include one or more objects , agents , threads , lines of code , subroutines , separate software applications , two or more lines of code or other suitable software structures operating in two or more software applications or on two or more processors , or other suitable software structures . in one exemplary embodiment , a software system can include one or more lines of code or other suitable software structures operating in a general purpose software application , such as an operating system , and one or more lines of code or other suitable software structures operating in a specific purpose software application . inspection system 700 includes fastener image processing system 702 , illumination variation system 704 , and reject control system 706 . in one exemplary embodiment , fastener image processing system 702 includes a library of expected fastener parameters with associated tolerances for the length , diameter , head profile , presence of washer , profile of fastener tip , thread profile and pitch , and other suitable data . fastener image processing system 702 allows rapid categorization of the currently illuminated fastener 104 and analysis of the dimensional data of the currently illuminated fastener 104 , based on tolerance data . if fastener image processing system 702 determines that the currently illuminated fastener 104 does not meet predetermined tolerance criteria , it generates fastener rejection data . in addition , fastener image processing system 702 can generate illumination variation data if the image data of the currently illuminated fastener does not generate predetermined match data , such as if a match is not found , if one or more critical dimensions can not be determined , or in response to other suitable conditions . illumination variation system 704 receives illumination variation data and generates control data of one or more lighting devices to controllably vary the luminance generated by the lighting devices . in one exemplary embodiment , illumination variation system 704 can use one or more predetermined settings or functions to vary the luminance of the lighting devices , such as to continuously increase or decrease the luminance , increase or decrease the luminance by a predetermined step , or other suitable settings or functions . reject control system 706 receives fastener rejection data and generates fastener rejection control data . in one exemplary embodiment , reject control system 706 can receive turntable dimension data , turntable rotation data , inspection position data , reject slot position data , and other suitable data and can generate reject control timing data to allow the rejected fastener 104 to be ejected by a suitable mechanism when it reaches a predetermined position . likewise , control timing data can be stored , can be associated with an interchangeable turntable , or other suitable processes can be used . although exemplary embodiments of a system and method of the present invention have been described in detail herein , those skilled in the art will also recognize that various substitutions and modifications can be made to the systems and methods without departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims . | 8 |
reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention , examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings . wherever possible , the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts . [ 0040 ] fig7 shows an excimer laser apparatus including an excimer laser generator 110 and a beam homogenizer 120 . a medium for the excimer laser generator 110 may include hcl , ne or / and a mixture thereof , for example . a laser control system ( not shown ) may include the excimer laser generator 110 to control energy discharged from excited electrons and to generate a laser beam 112 with an energy density . the laser generator 110 emits the laser beam 112 through the beam homogenizer 120 . furthermore , the beam homogenizer 120 transforms the laser beam 112 into a laser beam 118 having a stepped energy density distribution profile across a spatial extent of the beam . a filter 300 disposed between the excimer laser generator 110 and the beam homogenizer 120 . in fig8 a and 8b , the filter 300 may include first and second beam stops 310 a and 310 b that may be formed of metal lines , for example . a material for forming the first and second beam stops 310 a and 310 b may include at least a refractory metal , such as nickel ( ni ) or / and molybdenum ( mo ), for example . the energy density of the laser beam 112 has a normal gaussian distribution profile 114 prior to passing through the filter 300 and has a relative maximum energy density located at a central portion of the laser beam , thereby resembling an isosceles triangle . however , after the laser beam 112 passes through the filter 300 , it is transformed to a laser beam having a modified gaussian energy density distribution profile 116 . specifically , since the laser beam 112 is divided into seven segments “ s ” as shown in fig8 b , the total energy density profile of the laser beam is not continuous after it passes through the filter 300 . third and fourth segments of the laser beam are changed by the corresponding first and second beam stops 310 a and 310 b of the filter 300 . the energy density distribution profile is disrupted due to the first and second beam stops 310 a and 310 b of the filter 300 . further in the beam homogenizer 120 , the laser beam 112 is transformed into the laser beam 118 having the stepped energy density distribution profile 122 of fig1 . moreover , each segment of the laser beam 116 is crossed with each other in the segment of the beam homogenizer 120 as shown in fig9 . thus , the laser beam 112 is transformed into the laser beam 118 with a beam profile of the stepped energy density distribution profile 122 in fig1 . the laser beam 118 is directed onto the amorphous silicon layer disposed on the substrate 150 . when irradiating the laser beam 118 onto the amorphous silicon layer on the substrate 150 , the laser beam irradiation overlaps at a ratio of about 85 to 90 %, and it takes about 20 to 25 seconds to crystallize the amorphous silicon ( 20 - 25 sec . per one substrate ) at a rate of about 360 mm scan / 300 hz . further , since the laser beam is irradiated only upon one portion of the amorphous silicon layer at a time , the laser beam irradiation will overlap by way of moving the substrate in one direction , thereby forming the grains by repeatedly melting and crystallizing the amorphous silicon . [ 0043 ] fig1 a and 11b are cross - sectional views of an amorphous silicon layer disposed on a substrate being irradiated by an exemplary laser beam according to the present invention , and fig1 is an exemplary energy density diagram of a laser beam according to the present invention . although fig1 shows an exemplary energy density diagram having relatively constant , or flat energy density profile portions “ e m ” and “ e s ,” these energy density profile portions may be relatively inclined . likewise , the inclined energy density profile portions “ a ,” “ b ,” and “ c ” may have relatively different slopes . in fig1 a , an insulation layer 100 may be disposed on a transparent substrate 1 , and an amorphous silicon layer 200 may be disposed on the insulation layer 100 . further , seeds 130 may be formed in a bottom portion of the amorphous silicon layer 200 adjacent to an interface between the insulation layer 100 and the amorphous silicon layer 200 . the seeds 15 may be formed by hydrogen ( h 2 ) gas during a pecvd ( plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition ) process that sequentially deposits the insulation layer 100 and amorphous silicon layer 200 on the substrate 1 . in fig1 a and 12 , when a first energy density “ e m ” is irradiated onto the amorphous silicon layer 200 , the amorphous silicon is melted to a first depth from a surface of the amorphous silicon layer to an interface between the insulation layer 100 and the amorphous silicon layer 200 . accordingly , the seeds 130 disposed in the bottom portion of the amorphous silicon layer 200 are melted by the first laser beam energy “ e m .” then , during a first crystallization step “ b ” of fig1 , the seeds 130 are distributed throughout the amorphous silicon layer . in fig1 b and 12 , a laser beam having a second energy density “ e s ” is applied to the amorphous silicon layer 200 that has been crystallized via the first crystallization step “ b .” accordingly , a portion of the seeds 130 are removed through a second melting step except for seeds 140 that are disposed adjacent to the interface between the insulation layer 100 and the amorphous silicon layer 200 . then , the amorphous silicon layer 200 and the seeds 140 disposed in the bottom portion of the amorphous silicon layer 200 are again crystallized during a second crystallization step “ c .” a width of the laser beam in the second crystallization step “ c ” is larger than the related art , thereby causing the seeds 140 adjacent to the interface to grow into large uniform grains . namely , nuclei are generated inside the amorphous silicon layer 200 , and the grains grow laterally during the second crystallization step “ c ,” thereby uniformly forming large grains . in fig1 , a width “ w 1 ” of a melting step “ a ” ranges from about 0 to 100 micrometers ( μm ) at about 10 % of the first energy density “ e m ,” and a width “ w 2 ” of the second crystallization step “ c ” ranges from about 100 to 300 micrometers ( μm ) at about 10 % of the first energy density “ e m .” an arrow 180 disposed below the graph represents a direction in which the excimer laser beam is irradiated . further , an energy density difference between the first energy density “ e m ” and the second energy density “ e s ” is about 10 to 15 mj / cm 2 — equal to the value for uniformly forming large crystals . accordingly , the amorphous silicon layer is crystallized into a uniform polycrystalline silicon layer through several melting and crystallization steps by applying the laser beam having the stepped distribution profile shown in fig1 . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the method of crystallizing the amorphous silicon without departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions . thus , it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents . | 2 |
understanding of the invention will be further enhanced by referring to the following illustrative but nonlimiting example . jet : a jet has an input opening larger than that of the output opening thereby creating additional force in the outgoing fluid , air , or the like , passing there - through . fig1 shows a water gun , for descriptive purposes , a scale model a - 10 &# 34 ; warthog &# 34 ; jet fighter is shown although other shooting toys could be adapted for use with the pulsator 10 of this invention . reservoir 24 receives fluid through loading port 14 and stores a fluid , ex . water , for use with pulsator 10 . pulsator 10 , shown in detail at fig3 a - 3c , has expansible tubing 34 mounted adjacent reservoir 24 . retained within expansible tubing 34 , is obturator 36 , which , while in its first position illustrated at fig3 a , temporarily blocks fluid flow out of the expansible tubing 34 by forming a fluid seal with the expansible tubing 34 . when obturator 36 is biased to a second position , illustrated at fig3 b , obturator 36 blocks both the expansible tubing 34 and the first end of housing 43 are blocked preventing fluid flow through outlet port , nozzle 38 . fig . 3c illustrates obturator 36 in a third position , where neither expansible tubing 34 nor first end of housing 43 are blocked allowing fluid to flow out of the expansible tubing 34 and into and through the outlet port , nozzle 38 . fluid flows out of the pulsator 10 through nozzle 38 in response to manual actuation of a trigger or button 28 by the user . continued depressing of actuation button 28 by user results in the fluid flowing through outlet , nozzle 38 , in consecutive pulses . additionally , nozzle 38 , supported by nose end 11 of toy housing 12 , imparts directional flow to the fluid flow as it exits the toy . shown at fig1 & amp ; 2 , pulsator 10 is located generally in the nose end 11 of the jet fighter toy 12 . loading port 14 is shown at the tail end 16 of the jet fighter 12 . fluid enters the apparatus at loading port 14 having a generally tubular rigid housing . a check valve 18 prevents back - flow of the fluid out loading port 14 . check valve 18 has positioned internally thereof compression spring 20 which biases barrier 22 against loading port 14 preventing back - flow . compression spring 20 is overcome during loading of fluid into loading port 14 by fluid pressure compression of spring 20 . connecting conduit 23 , elongated in shape and of flexible materials , allows fluid flow communication between loading port 14 and reservoir 24 allowing passage of fluid into reservoir 24 when spring 20 is overcome . in actual use conditions , latex tubing has been used as connecting conduit 23 , although other flexible materials could be used . connecting conduit 26 , generally tubular in shape and of flexible materials , allows fluid flow communication between reservoir 24 and expansible tubing 34 , a hollow chamber , in actual use conditions of latex rubber although other elastomeric materials could be used , for receiving fluid flow from reservoir 24 . manually depressing by the user of actuation button 28 releases pressure valve 30 permitting fluid flow through connecting conduit 26 into expansible tubing 34 . in its normal resting position , actuation button 28 , positioned within housing surrounding pressure valve 30 , is biased outwardly , by means of pressure spring 32 also positioned within pressure valve 30 with pressure valve 30 blocking fluid flow communication between reservoir 24 and expansible tubing 34 . activation of actuation button 28 overcomes spring biasing means of pressure spring 32 and urges pressure valve 30 to open , unblocked position permitting fluid flow communication between reservoir 24 and expansible tubing 34 . fluid held in expansible tubing 34 ultimately flows through outlet tubing , nozzle 38 . held internally of expansible tubing 34 is sphere - shaped obturator 36 , in actual use conditions of stainless steel materials although other resilient materials such as other metals , plastic , ceramic could be used . obturator 36 , shown in detail in fig3 a - 3d , provides means , while in its first position , fig3 a , for temporarily blocking a first end of expansible tubing 40 preventing fluid flow through pulsator 10 . biasing obturator 36 to a second position , fig3 b , temporarily blocks both expansible tubing 34 and a first end of housing 43 blocking fluid flow through pulsator 10 . fig3 c illustrates obturator 3e biased to a third position where neither expansible tubing 34 nor first end of housing 43 are blocked permitting fluid flow through pulsator 10 and out outlet , nozzle 38 . continued activation of actuation button 28 results in obturator 36 being urged to first , second and third positions a number of times , alternatingly blocking and unblocking the fluid flow passage through nozzle 38 , providing the pulsating action of the fluid flow . continued activation of actuation button results in obturator 36 continuing to alternate between first , second and third positions , providing the pulsating action of the fluid flow , until reservoir 24 is emptied . obturator 36 is at rest in a first position , fig . retained within expansible tubing 34 and in contact with an inner edge 33 of expansible tubing 34 , blocking expansible tubing fluid flow into expansible tubing 34 , in response to actuation of activation button 28 , permits fluid flow into expansible tubing 34 from reservoir 24 , the more fluid flowing into expansible tubing 43 , the higher the fluid pressure . this fluid pressure exerts force on obturator 36 biasing obturator 36 to a second position , fig3 b blocking both expansible tubing 34 and a first end of housing 43 . compression spring 42 , retained within housing 44 in the first embodiment , is mounted adjacent first end of expansible tubing 40 . fluid pressure within expansible tubing 34 urges obturator 36 from a normal first position fig3 a to a second position , fig3 b blocking both expansible tubing 34 and first end of housing 43 . as fluid pressure within expansible tubing increases , in response to additional fluid flowing into expansible tubing 34 , obturator 36 is biased to the second position compressing compression spring 42 , fig3 b . further increase of fluid pressure within expansible tubing expands expansible tubing 34 , once the pressure reaches a predetermined level , allowing fluid flow to bypass obturator 34 , indicated by arrows at fig3 b &# 39 ;, and act in conjunction with compression spring 42 to urge obturator 34 to a third position , fig3 c unblocking both expansible tubing 34 and first end of housing 43 permitting fluid to flow through pulsator 10 and exit outlet , nozzle 38 . housing 44 , in actual use conditions , is of hard plastic although other resilient materials such as ceramic or metal could be used , at a first end 43 houses compression spring 42 . second end of housing 45 forms nozzle 38 . housing 44 is received by the first end of expansible tubing 40 and forms a seal with obturator 36 at first end of housing 43 when obturator 36 is in its second position fig3 b . expansible tubing 34 receives housing 44 by being manually stretched over first end of housing 43 . barbs 61 are formed in the first end of housing 43 to aid retention of housing 44 by expansible tubing 34 . expansible tubing 34 , of elastomeric material , adapts to receive barbs 61 and resists release of barbs 61 and therefore secures housing 44 to expansible tubing 34 . illustrated at fig3 a , the obturator 36 is shown in a first position with compression spring 42 expanded . a fluid seal is formed between expansible tubing 34 and obturator 36 restricting fluid flow through nozzle 38 . as fluid flows into expansible tubing 34 , fig3 b , the fluid pressure in expansible tubing 34 increases , and obturator 36 is urged forward in expansible tubing forming a seal between obturator 36 and first end of housing 43 and compressing compression spring 42 . compression spring 42 is shown in fig3 b fully compressed . as additional fluid flows into expansible tubing 34 in response to activation of actuation button 28 , further expansion of expansible tubing 34 results in fluid bypassing obturator 36 , fig3 b &# 39 ;, breaking the fluid seal between obturator 36 and expansible tubing 34 . however , a seal remains between obturator 36 and first end of housing 43 . fluid pressure , shown by arrows in the figures , in front of obturator 36 equilibrates with fluid pressure behind obturator 36 resulting in reduction in the net forward force exerted on the obturator 36 . once the magnitude of this forward force drops below the force exerted on the obturator 36 by compression spring 42 , obturator 36 is pushed to a third position , fig3 c , breaking the seal formed between obturator 36 and first end of housing 43 , and fluid is jetted out through nozzle 38 . as fluid escapes through nozzle fluid pressure within expansible tubing 34 decreases and expansible tubing 34 contracts and a new seal is formed around obturator and obturator 36 is returned to its first position , fig3 a . this cycle repeats so long as pressurized fluid enters into pulsator 10 . as is described above , two forces act on obturator 36 ; namely , fluid pressure and compression spring 42 . when the fluid has not bypassed the obturator , 36 , the fluid exerts a force on obturator 36 in the forward direction while the spring exerts a force in the reverse direction . the force exerted on obturator 36 by fluid , can be defined mathematically as : where ff is the fluid force , pf is the pressure of the fluid and effective area in this case is the cross sectional area of the obturator 36 . since obturator 36 is a sphere , its cross sectional area is a circle or πr 2 ( r = radius of the obturator ). the force exerted by compression spring 42 ( fs ) on obturator 36 in the reverse direction is : where k is the compression spring constant and d is the distance the spring is compressed . the net force ( fn ) exerted on the ball in the forward direction is : as long as ff is larger than fs , the obturator 36 is pushed forward and seal is formed between obturator 36 and expansible tubing and as fluid pressure increases , a seal is formed between obturator 36 and first end of housing 43 . once the fluid bypasses obturator 36 , the net force exerted on obturator 36 by the fluid in the forward direction drops because the fluid that has encircled or bypassed the obturator exerts a pressure on obturator 36 in the reverse direction and cancels out some of the force exerted by the fluid behind obturator 36 in the forward direction . the net force exerted by the fluid in the forward direction drops to : where effective area ∘ is now equal to cross sectional area of the first end of housing 43 . the cross sectional area of the first end of housing 43 is equal to πr1 2 where r1 is the inner radius of the first end of housing 43 . therefore , the net force exerted on obturator 36 becomes : since the cross sectional area of the first end of housing 43 is smaller than that of obturator 36 , r1 is smaller than r . ff becomes smaller than fs , and fn becomes negative resulting in obturator 36 being forced back unblocking first end of housing 43 . because the fluid force exerted changes rapidly and repeatedly , the fluid flow out nozzle 38 is intermittent . this pulsating fluid flow stream is a main object of the invention . when used in conjunction with a toy , as illustrated in fig1 & amp ; 2 , pulsator 10 produces a machine gun - like burst of fluid flow . an additional advantage is that , because it is fluid force pressure , resulting from increasing amount of fluid within expansible tubing 34 , that drives the pulsating stream , inversion of the pulsator - containing - toy does not inhibit operation of the pulsator to produce the pulsating stream . a further advantage of the pulsator of the present invention is the simplicity of construction using relatively few parts , none of which require precise machining . an additional advantage is the ease of filling the reservoir in actual use conditions , a plastic squirt bottle , not shown , with a flexible tip end has been used with success , although any method of introducing fluid into a reservoir may be utilized . in a second embodiment of pulsator 10 &# 39 ;, the obturator moves between a first , second and third position , similarly to the first embodiment , the third position shown at fig3 d . the second embodiment 10 &# 39 ; provides nozzle 38 &# 39 ; having a tension spring mounted outside of nozzle 38 &# 39 ;. nozzle 38 &# 39 ; moves within housing 44 &# 39 ; in response to obturator 36 &# 39 ; moving between first , second and third positions . increased fluid flow pressure within expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; biases obturator 36 &# 39 ; to a second position forming a seal between obturator 36 &# 39 ; and a first end of outlet 40 &# 39 ;. biasing obturator 36 &# 39 ; to a second position extending tension spring 42 &# 39 ;. once the fluid pressure within expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; reaches a predetermined level and fluid bypasses obturator 36 &# 39 ;, lowering the net forward force , tension spring 43 &# 39 ; contracts and biases obturator 36 &# 39 ; to a third position unblocking first end of outlet 40 &# 39 ; permitting fluid to flow out pulsator 10 &# 39 ; through nozzle pulsator 10 , shown in a position of use in a toy , at fig1 & amp ; 2 , consists of loading port 14 , reservoir 24 for receiving and storing the fluid , fluid inlet 14 for providing fluid flow communication between expansible elastomeric tubing . in actual use conditions , natural rubber or latex tubing has been used although other materials having the needed properties of flexibility and elasticity could be used . fluid enters pulsator 10 from reservoir 24 by connecting conduit 26 . actuation of pulsator 10 by manually depressing button 28 releases pressure valve 30 by compressing spring 32 there associated allowing fluid to flow from reservoir 24 into pulsator 10 through connecting conduit 26 into expansible tubing 34 . within expansible tubing 34 is obturator 36 which , in a first position , shown at fig3 a , blocks passage of fluid from expansible tubing 34 to nozzle 38 . fluid flow , indicated by arrows in fig3 a - 3d , pushes obturator 3e against valve seat blocking fluid flow from escaping through nozzle 38 . spring 42 is retained within housing 44 . the fluid pulsator 10 of this application works even when inverted because as long as a necessary volume is maintained in the reservoir 24 , fluid fills the expansible tubing 34 , the result being that the toy will fire from any position . the fluid pulsator 10 of this application works on water pressure created by addition of fluid , and not by air pressure , as some previous designs have shown . fig3 d illustrates a second embodiment of the pulsator 10 &# 39 ; which operates in every way similarly to the first embodiment except that tension spring 42 &# 39 ; surrounds nozzle 38 &# 39 ; to add stability to the nozzle 38 &# 39 ;. tension spring 42 &# 39 ; abuts housing 44 &# 39 ; and a first end thereof is retained in position by housing 44 &# 39 ;. additionally , apertures 50 &# 39 ; are formed into the sides of nozzle allowing fluid to enter nozzle 38 &# 39 ; when the obturator 36 &# 39 ; is moved to its third position , similarly to that illustrated at fig3 c , by expansion of expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; in response to increased fluid pressure . increased fluid pressure is achieved by forcing fluid within reservoir 24 , similarly to that illustrated at fig1 and 2 for the first embodiment , into the expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; by manually actuating the actuation button 28 . as a result , more fluid enters expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; expanding such tubing resulting in fluid flowing around obturator 36 &# 39 ; positioned therein . when fluid travels cut nozzle 38 &# 39 ; it decreases the fluid pressure within expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; allowing obturator 36 &# 39 ; to return to its first position , forming a seal between obturator 36 &# 39 ; and expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ;, blocking the fluid passage through the nozzle this temporary blockage and unblocking of nozzle 38 &# 39 ; provides the pulsating action to the fluid stream leaving the nozzle 38 &# 39 ;. in the second embodiment , spring 42 &# 39 ; is retained in place by anchor 48 &# 39 ; at a point where spring 42 &# 39 ; abuts nozzle . in this embodiment , nozzle 38 &# 39 ; moves in and out of housing 44 &# 39 ;, recoiling after each &# 34 ; firing &# 34 ; of the toy gun . in both embodiments , loading port 14 is connected to a pressurized fluid source such as a water faucet , garden hose , squirt bottle or other sources of fluid , with a nozzle adapted to fit into loading port 14 . pressurized fluid flows through the check valve 18 , which prevents back - flow of fluid out the loading port 14 , into reservoir 24 , of natural rubber tubing or other expansible materials . reservoir 24 expands and stores the fluid under pressure . reservoir 24 is protected from over - filling by safety valve 46 , shown at fig2 . to shoot the water gun , pressure valve 30 is opened by pressing button 28 . with pressure valve 30 open , fluid flows into connecting tubing 26 and through pressure valve 30 into expansible tubing 34 , 34 &# 39 ; as reservoir 24 retracts . the second embodiment of pulsator 10 &# 39 ; follows the sequence of the first embodiment illustrated in fig3 a , 3b , 3b &# 39 ;, then 3d rather than 3c of the first embodiment ; namely , obturator 36 &# 39 ; in a normal first position , fig3 a , blocking fluid flow by obturator 36 &# 39 ; forming a seal with expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ;; obturator 36 &# 39 ; is urged , in response to additional fluid entering expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ;, to a second blocking position fig3 b , blocking both expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; and first end of housing 40 &# 39 ; forming a seal with both , urging nozzle 38 &# 39 ; to a position blocking fluid outlet and expanding tension spring 42 &# 39 ;; obturator 36 &# 39 ;, in response to additional fluid entering expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ;, is then urged to an interim position blocking only first end of housing 40 &# 39 ;; then obturator 36 &# 39 ;, in response to additional fluid flow into expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ;, expanding such tubing around obturator 36 &# 39 ; reducing the generally forward pressure forcing obturator 36 &# 39 ; against first end of outlet tubing 40 &# 39 ; allowing obturator 36 &# 39 ; to be biased by nozzle 38 &# 39 ; in response to contraction of tension spring 42 &# 39 ;, to an unblocking third position , fig3 d . the water or other fluid is ejected out through nozzle 38 &# 39 ;, lowering fluid pressure allowing expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; to contract and obturator 36 &# 39 ; to return to a normal first position . contraction of expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; around obturator 36 &# 39 ; re - establishes a water seal between obturator 36 &# 39 ; and expansible tubing 34 &# 39 ; and the cycle is repeated . housing 44 with attached nozzle 38 , of one piece construction , receives spring 42 . first end of expansible tubing 35 is manually fitted over housing 44 and is retained in position by barbs 61 . obturator 36 is received by a second end of expansible tubing 37 and retained within expansible tubing second end of expansible tubing 37 is received by and manually fitted over connecting conduit 26 . first end of expansible tubing 43 is retained on connecting conduit 26 by means of fastener such as a clamp or ring . although the present invention has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain preferred versions thereof , other versions are possible for example a disc - shaped obturator rather than a sphere - shaped obturator could be used . also , a balloon - type reservoir , having only one opening , could be used . therefore , the spirit and scope of the appended claims should not be limited to the description of the preferred versions contained herein . | 8 |
the present application is generally related to a process for fabricating a stimulation lead comprising multiple segmented electrodes . in one preferred embodiment , the lead is adapted for deep brain stimulation ( dbs ). in other embodiments , the lead may be employed for any suitable therapy including spinal cord stimulation ( scs ), peripheral nerve stimulation , peripheral nerve field stimulation , dorsal root or dorsal root ganglion stimulation , cortical stimulation , cardiac therapies , ablation therapies , etc . in some representative embodiments , multiple components are fabricated and assembled to form a stimulation lead including segmented electrodes . referring to fig1 a and 1b , stimulation end component 100 is shown in respective views . in one embodiment , stimulation end component 100 is fabricated by molding the respective components using a suitable biocompatible polymer to form an integrated assembly . in one embodiment , injection molding is the process selected for fabrication of stimulation end component 100 , although any suitable molding technique may be employed . the various components include a plurality of electrodes and hypotubes . the electrodes are connected to a plurality of hypotubes . the stimulation end component 100 may also include a radio - opaque marker to permit the orientation of the lead to be determined post - implant using suitable medical imaging . stimulation end component 100 preferably includes a plurality of segmented electrodes . in one embodiment , a distal ring electrode , two rows of three segmented electrodes , and a proximal ring electrode are provided , although any suitable electrode configuration may be selected . one other possible electrode configuration includes two rows of four segmented electrodes . another possible electrode configuration includes four rows of two segmented electrodes . fig2 a and 2b depict terminal end 200 according to respective views . terminal end component 200 may be fabricated in a substantially similar manner to stimulation end component 100 using suitable molding techniques . terminal end component 200 may preferably comprise ring contacts for placement within the header of an implantable pulse generator ( ipg ). terminal end component 200 may also comprise a non - active contact ring for use with a set screw and / or contact with an initial seal element within the header of the ipg . terminal end component 200 preferably comprises a stylet guide and central lumen for the stylet . fig3 a and 36 depict lead body component 300 . in one embodiment , a multi - lumen component of insulative material is initially molded or otherwise suitably fabricated . conductors are placed within the various lumens as shown in fig3 a and 36 . the conductors may extend from the distal and proximal ends of the body of insulative material . a central lumen is also provided in lead body component 300 for use of the finished stimulation lead with a stylet . in some embodiments , after placement of the conductor wires , lead body component 300 is twisted one or more times and subjected to heating ( as shown in fig3 c ). by heat setting a twist configuration to the lead body component 300 , transfer of bending at one end of lead body component 300 to the other end of lead body component 300 is prevented . preventing bend and other deformation transfers from occurring may be helpful during handling of the finished lead during an implant procedure . fig4 a - 4d depict components of stimulation end component 100 according to some embodiments . in fig4 d , ring component 450 is shown . ring component 450 is a substantially annular structure of suitable conductive material . ring component 450 includes one or more step - down regions 451 where the outer diameter is reduced . the step - down regions may permit ring component 450 to be more securely integrated within the body of the stimulation end component 100 in the molding process . that is , the step - down regions 451 may be disposed below the outer surface of the insulative material after molding occurs . also , step - down regions 450 may be bead blasted to increase the roughness of the surface of the electrodes to improve bonding or adhesion to the insulative material , also , the inner diameter ( not shown ) of ring component 450 may be similar processed . other techniques for application of abrasive materials to roughen the respective surfaces may be alternatively applied . the increase in surface roughness may further secure the integration of the metal components with the insulative material provided during the molding process . additionally , ring component 450 may comprise longitudinal grooves or cuts ( shown in fig4 f ) along the inner diameter of component 450 to facilitate separation of the component 450 into multiple segmented electrodes by a grinding process or other suitable processing . the reduced wall thickness along such grooves permits separation during grinding operations as detailed in u . s . patent ser . no . 12 / 873 , 838 , filed sep . 1 , 2010 ( published as u . s . patent pub . no . 2011 / 0047795 ) which is incorporated herein by reference . fig4 a depicts component 410 which includes the ring components 450 ( before grinding operations ), ring electrodes , and the hypotubes integrated using molded insulative material . component 410 is subjected to suitable grinding operations to provide stimulation tip component 420 in which the grinding produces the segmented electrodes from ring components 450 . pre - molded frame 425 ( shown individually in fig4 c ) is placed over a portion of the hypotubes as shown in fig4 e to form stimulation end component 100 . frame 425 may provide stability to hypotubes within the interior of the finished stimulation lead and prevent hypotubes from migrating to the outer surface of the stimulation lead . also , frame 425 may ensure that hypotubes are maintained in a regular angular pattern to facilitate connection with other portions of the stimulation lead . a portion of hypotubes may preferably remain exposed to facilitate subsequent lead fabrication operations . also , the lengths of the hypotubes may be preferably staggered as shown in fig4 e . the difference in length of the respective hypotubes permits ready identification of the connection of a specific hypotube to a corresponding electrode to facilitate further integration operations for fabrication of the stimulation lead . fig5 depicts an additional view of terminal end component 500 . as discussed previously , terminal end component 500 may be fabricated in substantially the same manner as stimulation end component 100 . terminal end component 500 may include a hypotube configuration ( i . e ., varied lengths of hypotubes ) that mirrors the arrangement of hypotubes on stimulation end component 100 to facilitate the lead fabrication process . terminal end component 500 may include a suitable frame component surrounding the hypotubes . further , terminal end component 500 may include an additional contact which is not connected to a hypotube . the additional contact may be employed for use with a set - screw in the header of an extension and / or ipg . fig6 depicts integration of stimulation end component 100 with lead body component 300 . lead body component 300 is placed next to “ gear ” component 650 . gear component 650 may be fabricated from suitable biocompatible material such as peek or etfe . gear component 500 comprises a plurality of grooves or channels for the conductors of lead body component 300 and the hypotubes of stimulation end component 100 . the conductors of lead body component 300 are placed within the hypotubes and suitable welding operations are performed ( e . g ., laser welding ). clamshell component 610 is preferably placed over the exposed connection region of conductors and hypotubes . clamshell component 610 is preferably fabricated from a reflowable ( e . g ., a biocompatible polyurethane or thermoplastic polycarbonate urethane ) insulative material . the material of component 610 is selected to possess a lower flow temperature than of gear component 650 . when reflow operations occur , gear component 650 retains the hypotubes and / or conductors in place and prevents mutual contact between such conductive material . thereby , shorting between such components is prevented . similar operations may occur to connect the other end of lead body component 300 to terminal end component 200 to form the stimulation lead . fig7 depicts a finished stimulation lead within a neurostimulation or other active medical device system according to some embodiments . neurostimulation system 700 includes pulse generator 720 and one or more stimulation leads 701 . examples of commercially available pulse generator include the eon ™, eon mini ™, libra ™, and brio ™ pulse generators available from st . jude medical , inc . other active medical devices could be employed such as pacemakers , implantable cardioverter defibrillator , gastric stimulators , functional motor stimulators , etc . pulse generator 720 is typically implemented using a metallic housing that encloses circuitry for generating the electrical pulses for application to neural tissue of the patient . control circuitry , communication circuitry , and a rechargeable battery ( not shown ) are also typically included within pulse generator 720 . pulse generator 720 is usually implanted within a subcutaneous pocket created under the skin by a physician . as fabricated according to techniques described herein , lead 701 is electrically coupled to the circuitry within pulse generator 720 using header 710 . lead 701 includes terminals ( not shown ) that are adapted to electrically connect with electrical connectors ( e . g ., “ bal - seal ” connectors which are commercially available and widely known ) disposed within header 710 . the terminals are electrically coupled to conductors ( not shown ) within the lead body of lead 701 . the conductors conduct pulses from the proximal end to the distal end of lead 701 . the conductors are also electrically coupled to electrodes 705 to apply the pulses to tissue of the patient . lead 701 can be utilized for any suitable stimulation therapy . for example , the distal end of lead 701 may be implanted within a deep brain location or a cortical location for stimulation of brain tissue . the distal end of lead 701 may be implanted in a subcutaneous location for stimulation of a peripheral nerve or peripheral nerve fibers . alternatively , the distal end of lead 701 positioned within the epidural space of a patient . although some embodiments are adapted for stimulation of neural tissue of the patient , other embodiments may stimulate any suitable tissue of a patient ( such as cardiac tissue ). an “ extension ” lead ( not shown ) may be utilized as an intermediate connector if deemed appropriate by the physician . electrodes 705 include multiple segmented electrodes . the use of segmented electrodes permits the clinician to more precisely control the electrical field generated by the stimulation pulses and , hence , to more precisely control the stimulation effect in surrounding tissue . electrodes 705 may also include one or more ring electrodes and / or a tip electrode . any of the electrode assemblies and segmented electrodes discussed herein can be used for the fabrication of electrodes 705 . electrodes 705 may be utilized to electrically stimulate any suitable tissue within the body including , but not limited to , brain tissue , tissue of the spinal cord , peripheral nerves or peripheral nerve fibers , digestive tissue , cardiac tissue , etc . electrodes 705 may also be additionally or alternatively utilized to sense electrical potentials in any suitable tissue within a patient &# 39 ; s body . pulse generator 720 preferably wirelessly communicates with programmer device 750 . programmer device 750 enables a clinician to control the pulse generating operations of pulse generator 720 . the clinician can select electrode combinations , pulse amplitude , pulse width , frequency parameters , and / or the like using the user interface of programmer device 760 . the parameters can be defined in terms of “ stim sets ,” “ stimulation programs ,” ( which are known in the art ) or any other suitable format . programmer device 750 responds by communicating the parameters to pulse generator 720 and pulse generator 720 modifies its operations to generate stimulation pulses according to the communicated parameters . fig8 depicts a flowchart of operations for fabrication of a stimulation end component according to one representative embodiment . in 801 , pre - cut hypotubes are welded to electrodes that include singulation ( e . g ., grooves ) and retention features ( step - down regions ). in some embodiments , the hypotubes are coated with insulative material before being welded to the electrodes . in one embodiment , a suitable thin coat ( e . g ., approximately 12 μm ) of parylene is provided over each hypotube and the coated hypotubes are welded to the electrodes . the thin coating of parylene permits electrical isolation to be maintained between the various conductive components . the thin coating of parylene prevents shorting between respective hypotubes and other electrically conductive components . further , it is has been determined by the present inventors that the thin coating of parylene does not affect the integrity of the subsequently created weld points between the hypotubes and other conductive components . in certain embodiments , the rings / electrode components may be additionally or alternatively coated with a thin layer of insulative material ( e . g ., parylene ). in some embodiments , multiple weld operations are provided for each hypotube . in one embodiment , a first weld is provided for each hypotube at the proximal end of its ring component and a second weld is provided for each hypotube at the distal end of its ring component . the first and second welds may improve the integrity of the connection between the hypotubes and the ring components . pushing and pulling of the hypotubes may occur by the injection of insulative material during the molding process . this arrangement may cause the forces applied by the injection process to be placed on the first weld while maintaining the mechanical and electrical integrity of the second weld . in 802 , operations to load and shrink insulation onto hypotubes are performed . in 803 , hypotubes are loaded into pre - molded frame component . the frame component may comprise an annular structure with multiple lumens to accommodate each hypotube . in 804 , the subassembly and marker are loaded into a suitable mold and injection molding operations are performed to provide bionate ™ or other suitable insulative material under the electrodes . after molding , the assembly is subjected to grinding to obtain the intended outer diameter size ( 805 ). in 806 , annealing occurs . the terminal end component may be fabricated in a substantially similar manner . fig9 depicts a flowchart for operations for joining a stimulation end component to a lead body component according to one representative embodiment . in 901 , conductor cable ends are ablated to expose conductive material from insulative sheaths about the conductors . in one embodiment , one or more of the conductors are coated with a suitable dye material or other colorant to facilitate identification of a specific channel in the finished stimulation tip component ). in 902 , the cables are strung through lumens of a lead body . in 903 , a peek or other extrusion or molded component ( see e . g ., component 650 in fig6 ) is inserted between the hypotubes to hold the hypotubes in place . in 904 , cables are inserted into the hypotubes and laser welded , in 905 , a “ clamshell ” of bionate ™ ( thermoplastic polycarbonate urethane ) material or other reflowable insulative material is loaded over the joint between the components and reflow operations are performed . the reflow operations may include providing a fep shrink wrap and applying sufficient heat as is known in the art of lead fabrication . the terminal end component may be joined to the lead body component in a substantially similar manner . fig1 depicts a plurality of different marker designs that permit the orientation of a stimulation lead with segmented electrodes to be determined post - implant . one marker may be provided at a distal or tip of the stimulation lead . additionally or alternatively , another marker may be provided proximal to the electrodes of the stimulation lead about the outer surface of the lead body . fig1 depicts the orientation of a lead with segmented electrodes and an orientation marker according to one representative embodiment matched against corresponding images of the lead . fig1 depicts further images of segmented leads with markers according to some representative embodiments . although certain embodiments of this disclosure have been described above with a certain degree of particularity , those skilled in the art could make numerous alterations to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of this disclosure . all directional references ( e . g ., upper , lower , upward , downward , left , right , leftward , rightward , top , bottom , above , below , vertical , horizontal , clockwise , and counterclockwise ) are only used for identification purposes to aid the reader &# 39 ; s understanding of the present disclosure , and do not create limitations , particularly as to the position , orientation , or use of the disclosure . joinder references ( e . g ., attached , coupled , connected , and the like ) are to be construed broadly and may include intermediate members between a connection of elements and relative movement between elements . as such , joinder references do not necessarily infer that two elements are directly connected and in fixed relation to each other . it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not limiting . changes in detail or structure may be made without departing from the spirit of the disclosure as defined in the appended claims . when introducing elements of the present disclosure or the preferred embodiment ( s ) thereof , the articles “ a ”, “ an ”, “ the ”, and “ said ” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements . the terms “ comprising ”, “ including ”, and “ having ” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements . as various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the disclosure , it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense . | 1 |
as shown in the figures , in which like numerals are used to identify like elements , there is shown an embodiment of the present invention . in fig1 , there is shown a derivative instrument management platform 100 for implementing blended compressions or compactions of derivative instruments . the derivative management platform 100 ( hereafter “ dm platform ”) may utilize multiple functional modules , to address different aspects of the process associated with providing the derivative instrument management platform . while these are described in terms of modules , nothing requires modular construction of the system and method in accordance with the present invention , modules are simply used for the added clarity they allow to the below discussion . the dm platform may function as a central repository of the trade positions of multiple portfolio managers across central clearing parties ( ccp &# 39 ; s ). the dm platform may allow the portfolio managers to hold their positions either en masse , or within portfolio manager defined subsets , such as may be used to associate specific positions with specific clients or concerns . the dm platform may be used to automatically identify positions within either a portfolio or a subset of a portfolio to identify positions which may be beneficially compressed for the portfolio manager . alternately , a portfolio manager may identify particular positions which the portfolio manager desires to be compressed . under such manual selection , the portfolio manager may select such positions by reviewing a list of positions held , and selecting particular positions by checking a field associated with the position . the dm platform may automatically identify positions to propose compression on based on similarities between the positions . for example , the dm platform may sweep a portfolio or subset of a portfolio to identify positions within the portfolio or subset having settlement dates within a specific range . the dm platform may utilize an algorithm to analyze a portfolio or subset to identify positions having settlement dates within a thirty day window , such that the positions may be aggregated , with fixed and variable leg interest rates netted to allow compression of the positions . the dm platform analytics may additionally include margin impacts to capture margin impact against the house account end of day margin and variation margin . the dm platform analytics may consider proposed compressions using blending methodologies based on the types of positions within the portfolio or subset or on the desired characteristics of the resultant compressed position or positions , as discussed further below . the process may seek to generate proposed replacement packages through an iterative bilateral or multilateral process that nets down cleared trades , terminates non - cleared trades , and seeks to replace exact near risk with a smaller set of positions . the compression of non - uniform positions necessarily results in one or more of the characteristics of the positions being “ blended ” to allow the reduction in positions . the goal of the blending may typically be to result in an identical net present value . such blending may be either simple or complex . simple one - sided blending can be executed unilaterally at a clearinghouse . there are six types of simple blending . each ccp may have an agreed on approach and unique blending identifiers for unilateral blending , replacing trades that match all attributes of the swap . variable attributes may include the notional amount and the interest rates involved . the direction of the swap may be pay or receive . it is also important to note that past details of the trade are not relevant and only the future details are typically considered . each position may be calculated looking to the future attributes only and the net present value ( npv ) may be assessed from the day of blending to the swap termination date . when the dms analyzes the potential results of a blending method , the other side of the swap may be a suspense account , where the total npv of each individual trade matches exactly to the cent the sum of the replacement trade ( s ). if implemented , the ccp may terminate the offsets and original trades such that only the new trades remain . simple one - sided blending eligibility is easily validated during the package proposal process and at the ccp in the overnight processing physically terminating the trades with matching blending keys . simple blending may be of one of 6 types ; flat packages , zero notional packages , out of bounds rate packages , dual packages , single packages , and daily averaging of standard instruments packages . flat packages have a zero net notional , i . e ., the notional of the resultant package is the same as the aggregate notional of the original positions , and the net cash flow of the resultant package is also zero . flat packages may not require replacement trades and may be submitted for netting . an example of a flat package the values associated with a notional compression is shown in fig2 . zero notional packages have a zero net notional , but may have net cash flows that are more or less than zero . zero notional packages may be replaced by two offsetting trades that have different cash flows with the two replacement trades being calculated to preserve the notional and match the cash flow as closely as possible . an example of the values associated with a zero notional compression is shown in fig3 . out of bound rate packages may utilize a blended rate for the resultant package based on the minimum rate in the group of positions to be compressed , or a blended rate for the resultant package based on the maximum rate in the group of positions to be compressed . the group of positions to be compressed may be replaced by two trades in opposite directions with rates close to the minimum and maximum rates from the group of positions to be compressed . two reasonable and observable market rates , appropriate to that securities tenor and original term structure , are used to replace the package set of trades . the use of market rates based on the characteristics of the group of positions to be compressed may avoid incurring additional regulatory requirements . an example of the values associated with an out of bound package is shown in fig4 . dual packages utilize a blended rate that has more than a maximum number of designated decimal places ( as typically set by a ccp ) for the value of the blended rate . the group of positions to be compressed may be replaced by two trades having the same direction , with a weighted rate that falls within the within the range of the interest rates of the group of positions to be compressed , and is adjusted by an up or down factor dependent on the maximum decimal places imposed by the ccp . the notional value of the two replacement positions may be determined by a notional factor . an example of the values associated with a dual package is shown in fig5 . single packages may utilize a blended rate that has the maximum designated number of decimal places , or a blended rate having less than the maximum designated number of decimal places . the group of positions to be compressed may be replaced with a single position . an example of the values associated with a single package is shown in fig6 . daily averaging of standard instrument packages may address market agreed coupon ( mac ) positions with the same attributes . mac trades are market agreed coupons that should promote liquidity and are more fungible to manage blending and netting of these trades types . securities industry and financial markets association ( sifma ) publishes a standard rate for each quarterly imm date with a cusip . if the markets are volatile and move too far off - market , sifma may publish a second series for the same contract period . mac like trades are set by the participant and can change by their own volition if the market moves too far away from the published sifma rate for that contract term . simple netting of this package type will result in a single trade for each subset of positions having the same attributes . the resultant position may have a rate having less than the maximum designated number of decimal places , or a rate having the maximum number of designated decimal places . alternately , the resultant package may have two positions , with one position being executed as an election by the portfolio manager when the portfolio manager sets up their preference . an example of the values associated with a daily averaging of standard instruments package is shown in fig7 . fig8 illustrates a process implementing automated simple blending , implemented using four phases : delivery of trade position data ; pre - processing of amendable positions ; grouping and calculation of potential replacement trades ; evaluation and approval of suggested compressions by the portfolio manager ; and execution of approved suggested compressions . in the figure , the phases of the process are indicated by the circled numbers . the process may be started by the portfolio manager / participant &# 39 ; s trade position files being received 802 from a ccp . the portfolio manager may also provide 804 portfolio information , such as from an oms . the trade position files and portfolio information may then be pre - processed 806 to standardize the date in a format compatible with the dm platform analytics . positions may then be grouped 808 , either manually by the portfolio manager , or automatically by the dm platform , into groups suitable for consideration and evaluation for potential compression transactions . the attributes of the groups may then be calculated 810 , including but not limited to npv values , maximum and minimum rates for the group , and total notional values . from this information , potential compression transactions may be generated 812 . because of restrictions on the number of decimal places for interest rates that some ccp &# 39 ; s may impose , the number of decimal places for the generated potential compression transactions may be tested 814 to determine if the calculated rate complies within an allowable range using the maximum number of decimal places allowed . if the calculated rate is within range within the allowable number of decimal places , a single transaction may be created 816 for the potential compression package . if the calculated rate is not within range within the allowable number of decimal places , two offsetting transactions may be created 818 , to allow the interest rates to be blended to both meet the decimal place requirement , as well as be within an allowable range of the calculated rate . the package may then be evaluated 820 with respect to the parameters that would be achieved through the potential compression . if it is determined 822 that the trades do not net perfectly , the generation process may be restarted . if it is determined 822 that the trades net perfectly , the potential package may be evaluated 824 to determine whether ccp economic indicators match the potential transaction . if the economic indicators do not match , the process may be restarted . if the economic indicators match , the potential compression package may be displayed 826 to the portfolio manager , who can select 828 any potential compression packages that the portfolio manager desires to implement . selected compression packages can then be implemented 830 , such as by being submitted to a ccp for execution . for complex blending , access to each participant &# 39 ; s full bilateral and cleared portfolios , along with ccp margin calculators , will allow the dms system analytics to determine the population of trades for complex blending that benefits both buy - side and sell - side participants . the analytics may be participant agnostic . the goal of the process may be to reduce the credit value adjustment (“ cva ”) through reduction of the notional for better capital efficiency with a lower ccp margin . complex blending may be configured in several ways to address an individual portfolio manager &# 39 ; s needs . in a capital efficiency configuration , participants may choose between three preferences regarding compression analysis depending on their primary requirement : leverage ratio relief ; notional reduction ; and line item reduction . in a leverage ratio relief configuration , the compression analysis will prioritize packages factoring for potential future cash flow , which takes into account credit conversion factor by tenors ; generally referred to as potential future exposure ( pfe ). the configuration may utilize one or more recognized capital model , such as current exposure method ( cem ), to calculate the replacement package , and factor in mark - to - market ( npv ), gross and net notional with potential future cash flow , and also take into account credit conversion factor by tenors in order to generate a proposed replacement package . in a notional reduction configuration , the compression analysis will focus on proposing packages that reduce the gross notional as the highest priority . in a line item reduction , the compression analysis will focus on proposing packages that reduce the number of swap positions even if gross notional cannot be significantly reduced . as shown in fig9 , five phases are involved in pre - processing a complex blended compression analytic involving multiple participants . these phases are receiving the trade position data , receiving the ccp , im , and tenor sensitivity reports which are published by the end of the day ; receiving middleware or order management systems ( oms ) information ; pre - processing the data to standardize the data for the compression analytics ; and generating proposed packages . in the figure , the phases of the process are indicated by the circled numbers . at the outset , the information of multiple potential participants may be obtained 902 . position information from ccp &# 39 ; s and oms &# 39 ; s may also be obtained 904 , 906 . this information may be pre - processed 908 to standardize the information , to allow the attributes of the portfolios of the multiple participants to be evaluated . the dm platform analytics may then pre - sort 910 the positions into an optimized order for consideration for inclusion in potential compression packages . cleared trades may be subjected to a first process , comprising first determining 912 whether a cleared position was within the responsible portfolio manager &# 39 ; s risk profile . if a trade was not within the responsible portfolio manager &# 39 ; s risk profile , the cleared trade would not be considered for inclusion within a potential compression package . termination parameters could then be calculated 914 for all future matched trades , and termination parameters could also be calculated 916 for all future unmatched trades to identify potential step in parties within a dv01 maximum allowable risk . the responsible portfolio manager , and potential step in parties , could the review 918 the potential compression transaction package , and either accept or reject the package . if the package were rejected 920 , the process could restart with evaluation of additional positions within he portfolio manager &# 39 ; s portfolio , or could move on to a different portfolio manager &# 39 ; s portfolio if all of the positions within the first portfolio manager &# 39 ; s portfolio had been considered . if the package were accepted 922 , the package could be executed , such as through a ccp . for un - cleared bilateral trades , an iterative process could be performed , iterating through each of the un - cleared bilateral positions within a portfolio until all had been considered 924 , at which time all positions which had been determined amenable for inclusion in a potential compression package could be back loaded 926 into the potential package . for each position , the potential margin resultant from compressing the position with alternate ccp &# 39 ; s , such as lch and cme , could be calculated 928 , 930 , such that the optimal margin could be selected 932 . if the optimal margin identified was within 934 the margin tolerance of the portfolio manager responsible for the position , the optimal margin could then be tested 936 against the margin tolerance of a potential step in party . if the optimal margin identified was outside of the margin tolerance of either the portfolio manager or the potential step in party , the position could be rejected 938 as not being amenable for inclusion in a potential compression package . if the optimal margin was within the margin tolerance of both the portfolio manager and the potential step in party , the position could be added 940 to back load list for inclusion in the potential compression package . fig1 illustrates a complex blending process involving two participants . as can be seen from the figure , the pre - processing steps for participants a and b are implemented in steps 1002 a and 1002 b . the dms may then analyze the portfolio and trade data to generate 1004 alternative compression proposals , which can then be communicated to the participants to allow the participants to review 1006 a and 1006 b the compression proposals . each participant may then select compression proposals to execute 1008 a and 1008 b , which may be communicated to the dm platform . the dm platform may then match 1010 agreed compression proposals and execute those agreed compression proposals , clearing the trades 1012 as necessary , and reporting the trades parameters to the respective order management systems 1014 a and 1014 b . once the bilateral compression has been implemented , additional processing can occur to assist the respective participants in managing their portfolios . this processing may the trade data being reported 1016 a and 1016 b to the participants , from the respective ccp &# 39 ; s , such that the participants can reconcile 1018 the transactions through the dm platform , and the dm platform can issue 1020 a and 1020 b consolidated reports for the participants reflecting the implemented compression transactions , and the participants can allocate 1022 the results of the transaction to their own internal books . finally , the results of the transaction , and any additional processing , can be reported 1024 a and 1024 b by the dm platform to the participants &# 39 ; outside management systems . fig1 illustrates a multilateral compression involving multiple participants . the pre - processing discussed above is implemented , such that the positions and ccp data from each participant is received , and stored in a pre - processing database , preferably in standardized form . the dm platform may then perform the analysis to identify potential compression packages for the participants , with the same process illustrated in fig1 above being implemented with respect to the multi - party participants . fig1 illustrates a notional detailed trade risk replacement proposal for participant a for the process shown in fig1 above . the detailed proposal identifies the parameters of the positions both prior to the proposed compression , as well as after the proposed compression , including any cash settlement involved in the compression . fig1 illustrates a notional summary report at the portfolio level for a first participant involved in a multi - party transaction , such as shown in fig1 , identifying the counterparties for the first participant for proposed compression packages , as well as the potential results from the proposed compression . in addition to being utilizable for cleared positions , the present process may be utilized for non - cleared positions as well . for example , options are currently traded over the counter , and are not necessarily cleared though a ccp . such positions may be blended in accordance with the process described above for simple blending , however the proposed package would be bilateral , such that implementation of a proposed package would need concurrence from the option counterparty . fig1 illustrates a proposed compression for a set of swaption positions held by a participant , including the resultant net notional and net cash flow characteristics of the proposed compression . communication of the proposed compression to the counterparty or counterparties could be accomplished either directly through the dms , or through external communications . the data for the pre - processing for analyzing potential compression transactions may include trade position files , such as those shown in fig1 , which identifies data to be received from particular ccp &# 39 ; s , such as lch ( london clearing house ) and cme ( chicago mercantile exchange ). returning to fig1 , the above process for proposing and implementing blended compressions of a portfolio manager &# 39 ; s positions may be implemented in a dm platform 100 by providing the platform 100 with functionality to allow it to implement the above described process . the dm platform may include a network interface 102 to allow communications between the dm platform and external resources , such as third party valuators 104 a , 104 b , . . . central clearing parties , and outside management services 106 a , 106 b , 106 c , . . . , to enable the dm platform 100 to acquire information necessary for implementing a compression process . the dm platform 100 may additionally have data storage 108 to allow information regarding positions held by platform users ( also referred to as portfolio managers or participants .) the data storage may preferably be in the form of a database 110 , allowing more efficient correlation of the data involved . the memory storage may additionally provide storage 112 for instructions which allow the computer to perform the compression process . the dm platform 100 may additionally be provided with a functional module 114 which allows the dm platform to acquire necessary data from external sources to determine characteristics and parameters of positions held by a portfolio manager . the data acquisition capability can be further used to acquire information identifying positions held by a portfolio manager . the pre - processing functional module 116 may allow the dm platform to standardize received and / or stored date to allow the dm platform to analyze the information to identify potential compression packages , based on positions held within a portfolio . a position analytics functional 118 module allows the dm platform to analyze positions held within portfolios to identify potential subsets for compressions , to analyze the effect of such potential compressions on the portfolio , and to select potential compressions for presentation to a portfolio manager . a package generation functional module 120 may be provided to generate proposed packages for presentation to portfolio managers , identifying potential compressions selected by the position analytics module . a user communications functional module 122 may be provided to implement communications between a portfolio manager and the dm platform , including selection by a portfolio manager of desired settings with respect to the compression functionality , presentation and review of proposed compression packages , and communication between the dm platform and the portfolio manager regarding the results of implementation of a compression package . finally , a package implementation functional module 124 may be provided to implement accepted compression packages , including communicating the parameters of a package to ccp &# 39 ; s 126 a , 126 b , . . . , and oms &# 39 ; s , as well as the involved portfolio manager or managers 128 a , 128 b , . . . . the compression review process may be initiated by a portfolio manager requesting review of a portfolio or a subset of a portfolio to identify potential compression packages , of it may be implemented as an automatic function , such that the dm platform 100 performs a review each day after the close of business . the frequency of review may be set at different periods , such as weekly , monthly , or other , at the discretion of the portfolio manager . whether the review is started manually or automatically may be selected by a portfolio manager through queries from the dm platform 100 . configuration information for the review process may additionally be provided to the dm platform by the portfolio manager . because of the necessity of using net present value , as well as other estimations regarding parameters and characteristics of positions and potential compression packages with respect to analyzing potential portfolio compressions , the dm platform 100 may be provided with internal capabilities to determine valuations 130 of positions for consideration within potential compression packages , as well as access to third party valuators , to allow the dm platform 100 to implement the above described process . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes of the invention . accordingly , reference should be made to the appended claims , rather than the foregoing specification , as indicating the scope of the invention . | 6 |
the invention provides novel nanocrystalline ferroelectric films having super - pyroelectricity properties and process for their preparation . super - pyroelectricity is observed when the pyroelectric coefficient of such films is two orders of magnitude larger than that observed in single crystals under similar conditions . this super - pyroelectricity has its origin in the self - organization of nano - sized ferroelectric grains into macroscopic elastic domains . this phenomenon observed in buckled self - supported batio 3 films is disclosed in a publication , v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , and a . l . roytburd , adv . mater . 2005 , 17 , 1957 , which is incorporated herein by reference . the process of production of self - supported batio 3 films is disclosed in a publication i ebralidze , v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , j . mater . chem . 2005 15 : 4258 - 4261 , which is also incorporated herein by reference . reference is now made to fig1 a , which is a simplified schematic diagram of a self - supported film 110 , in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention . the film is deposited onto a support 101 , such as a silicon substrate , having at least two supporting regions 102 , 104 for supporting film 110 . the film may be formed in accordance with the process described hereinbelow . film 110 is exemplified , but not limited to , barium titanate , though the present invention may utilize other ceramic oxides , such as titanium containing oxides . lead titanate and other ceramic materials may be used to form film 110 . in some embodiments , film 110 is sputtered onto substrate 101 , though other alternative material deposition methods known in the art may be employed . for example , amorphous layers of batio 3 are deposited at room temperature by rf oxygen / argon ( 80 / 20 v / v , 4 × 10 − 3 mbar ) plasma sputtering from a stoichiometric target on ( 100 )- oriented n - type si substrates ( 280 ± 20 μm thick , 1 - 10 ωcm ). the substrate is etched to form at least one hole or window therein employing one or more etchants that do not etch film 110 . film 110 has at least one buckled region 108 , and has at least two substantially planar regions 106 ( along the film plane ) supported by the supporting regions 102 , 104 of the substrate . the buckled region has an excess length , ∈ 1 , defined as ( l − w )/ w , wherein w is the length of the buckled region and l is the actual length of the buckled region . thereafter , a lower contact layer 120 and a higher contact layer 130 are deposited / formed onto the film 110 . in some embodiments the lower and higher contact layers cover the entire buckled region 108 . the excess length of film 110 may vary from 0 to 8 %. in the present example , continuous bottom contacts ( i . e . 100 nm ag ) and lithographically defined top contacts ( i . e . 300 nm ag ) were deposited by sputtering . the thickness of film 110 may be up to 1500 nm . the length of the film may be varied from 50 to 2000 μm . fig1 b shows a top view of a barium titanate ( batio 3 ) film having a thickness of 750 nm with contacts and bonded wires . the pyroelectric effect was measured in the nanocrystalline ( 30 - 80 nm ) self - supported buckled films of batio3 with 750 ± 100 nm thickness and 200 - 250 μm lateral dimensions . reference is now made to fig2 a , showing a pyroelectric time response curve of a self - supported nanocrystalline film of ( batio 3 ) to a step - like temperature change fitted to an exponential decay equation . fig2 b is a graph showing the temperature dependence of the apparent pyroelectric coefficient of a ) a self - supported nanocrystalline film of ( batio 3 ) ( filled circles ) and b ) an ideal single barium titanate ( batio 3 ) crystal ( dashed line ). the time dependence of the response to step - like heating or cooling followed an exponential decay law ( fig2 a ), from which the pyroelectric coefficient α was calculated . the pyroelectric coefficient of films with excess length ∈ 1 & gt ; 5 % is α = 0 . 2 − 1 μc /( cm 2 · k ) which is up two orders of magnitude higher than that of a single crystal of batio3 at room temperature ( 2 × 10 − 2 μc /( cm 2 · k )). the pyroelectric coefficient of these films measured as a function of temperature has a clear maximum within the range of 20 - 50 ° c ., above which the magnitude decays exponentially ( fig2 b ). this maximum is not related to the ferroelectric to paraelectric phase transition because the films remain in ferroelectric phase until ≈ 120 ° c . [ v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , and a . l . roytburd , adv . mater . 2005 , 17 , 1957 ]. the pyroelectric coefficient shows another maximum at 120 - 140 ° c ., and then vanishes completely . films with excess length ∈ 1 & lt ; 2 % showed a significantly lower pyroelectric coefficient ( 0 . 2 − 1 )× 10 − 2 μc /( cm 2 · k )( 10 - 50 % of the bulk value ) and , similar to that of bulk batio3 , it has a maximum at 110 - 130 ° c ., in the vicinity of the phase transition . the experimental data described above are in sharp contrast with the well - known properties of nanocrystalline batio3 [ 7 - 9 ]. this suggests that the generation of pyroelectric current in self - supported ferroelectric films has a fundamentally different origin from ordinary pyroelectricity . fig3 a is a simplified schematic illustration of polycrystalline macro - domains organized into linear and wedge - ordered regions in a buckled nanocrystalline ferroelectric film of batio 3 . as indicated above , the macro - domains self - assemble into linear ( no curvature ) and wedge - ordered ( arc - shaped ) regions . the equilibrium distribution of the linear and the wedge - ordered regions in a rectangular film tethered at all four edges is complex . however , qualitative understanding of the rearrangement of the macro - domains can be gained using a model for buckling . in this case , the film that has only two opposite edges tethe red and the other two are free . fig3 b is a simplified schematic illustration of the grain exchange between in - plane and out - of - plane macro - domains in response to a temperature change . the fraction of in - plane and out - of - plane macro - domains is such as to minimize elastic stress and , therefore , depend on mechanical constraints imposed on the films . out - of - plane and in - plane macro - domains undergo further self - organization into linear ( no curvature ) and wedge - ordered arc - shaped regions with maximum curvature . the linear regions contain only out - of - plane macro - domains , whereas the wedge - ordered regions include alternating triangular - shaped in - plane and out - of - plane macro - domains . it should be noted that the wedge - domains were theoretically predicted and experimentally confirmed in single - crystalline bent films . the radius of curvature of the wedge - ordered regions , r , is fixed by the crystallographic parameters a , c at a given temperature and the film thickness d , as r = d /( c / a − 1 ) ( fig3 a ). in polycrystals , the effective curvature radius is larger , because the mutual misalignment of the grains decreases the “ effective ” c / a ratio by a factor of 0 . 405 . in a polycrystalline macro - domain with maximum possible alignment of the grains , each of which has a self - strain t = a / c − 1 the “ apparent ” spontaneous strain is smaller by a factor of ≈ 0 . 543 . there is a unique combination of linear and the wedge - ordered regions that minimizes bending stress . fig3 c is a graph showing the relation between the fraction of linear regions , f , and the pyroelectric coefficient enhancement factor , h , calculated for a 750 nm thick and 220 μm long bent self - supported film of batio 3 with a ) excess length ∈ 1 = 0 . 5 % ( dashed line ) and b ) excess length ∈ 1 = 5 % ( continuous line ). an electrical bias of 3 v applied across the film polarizes the grains in the out - of - plane macro - domains ( up or down ) but does not perturb the in - plane macro - domains . in response to temperature variations , the magnitude of polarization in each grain and the crystallographic parameters c and a change . as a result , the radius of the wedge - ordered regions is altered and the equilibrium combination of the linear and wedge - ordered regions changes as well . to implement this change , some of the grains at the boundaries between the linear and the wedge - ordered regions must reversibly switch from an out - of - plane to an in - plane domain and vice versa (“ 90 ° polarization switching ”) as illustrated in fig3 b . therefore , temperature variation changes both the magnitude of the polarization in all grains and the fraction of linear and wedge - ordered regions . both processes may contribute to the generation of the pyroelectric current . the pyroelectric current collected by the contacts placed on the top and bottom of the film is produced only by the out - of - plane macro - domains . in the wedge - ordered regions , the pyroelectric current is strongly attenuated by the “ in - plane ” macro - domains , that can be viewed as a capacitor connected in series . therefore , most of the pyroelectric current is collected from the surfaces of the linear regions and can be expressed as : where f = 2 l / l ( inset fig3 a ) is the fraction of linear regions . the first term describes the current generated due to the changing polarization of grains that do not undergo 90 ° polarization switching ( ordinary pyroelectric effect ). the second term is due to the stress - induced 90 ° polarization switching in the grains at the boundaries between the linear and the wedge - ordered regions ( super - pyroelectric effect ). polarization responds to the temperature variation within a few ns [ 10 ], therefore the first term can be written as the contribution of the second term may be significant only if the changes in the macro - domains closely follow the temperature variation , being at equilibrium at each temperature . for the case under consideration , the observed pyroelectric effect is much larger than that regularly observed in batio3 crystals . this implies that changes at the macro - domain boundaries occur at least with the same rate as heating and cooling of the film (& lt ; 100 μsec , fig2 a ). then , the “ apparent ” pyroelectric coefficient of a buckled film with macro - domains is : the film geometry ( fig3 a , inset ) defines the fraction of the linear regions , f , as follows : it should be noted that if l is the length of one linear region , then the fraction of the linear regions is f = 2 l / l = l /( l + 2 · r · b ) ( eq . a1 ); from the definition of the excess length e 1 =( l − w )/ w =( 2 · l + 4 · r · b − w )/ w ( eq . a2 ) is obtained ; from ( a1 ) and ( a2 ) b = w ·( 1 − f )·( 1 + e 1 )/( 4 · r ) and l = f · w ·( 1 + e 1 )/ 2 ( eq . a3 ) is obtained . considering horizontal projections of all parts of the films 2 · l · cos ( b )+ 4 · r · sin ( b )= w ( eq . a4 ) is obtained . substituting ( a3 ) in ( a4 ) and introducing z = r / w eq . 4 is obtained . the temperature dependence of the crystallographic parameters a , c , the polarization p ( t ) and the pyroelectric coefficient α of batio3 are well known [ 10 ]. therefore , the fraction of the linear regions , f , and the enhancement factor , h , can be calculated numerically ( fig3 c ). for a 720 nm thick 220 μm long film with ∈ 1 = 0 - 10 % a number of observations can be made as follows : 1 . films with excess length below 1 % contain predominantly linear regions at all temperatures at which the ferroelectric phase exists . these films do not show the super pyroelectric effect ( fig3 c dotted line ). 2 . in films with excess length above 3 % the fraction of linear regions decreases with increasing temperature and drops to zero at a certain temperature , t 1 , which may be viewed as a geometrical transition temperature between two types of macro - domain structures . films with ∈ 1 = 5 - 8 % have t 1 close to room temperature ( fig3 c solid line ). below the linear and the wedge - ordered regions can coexist , above only wedge - ordered regions remain . and therefore the enhancement factor become large . upon cooling below , the enhancement factor decreases first rapidly and then gradually , so that the super - pyroelectric effect exists within a range of a few tens of degrees ( fig3 c , solid line ). 4 . above t 1 , the pyroelectric current must be close to zero because no linear regions remain . the existence of some small pyroelectric current above t 1 can be caused by the fact that a real film has areas that are not bent , for instance at the center and in the corners . fig4 a - 4c show optical images of a self - supported film of batio 3 of 750 nm thickness , 350 × 260 μm lateral dimensions and ∈ 1 ≈ 5 % excess length . fig4 a shows a top view in reflected light at room temperature . fig4 b and 4c show views with transmitted cross - polarized light at room temperature ( fig4 b ) and at 90 ° c . ( fig4 c ). because for batio 3 , there is more than 7 % difference in refractive index ( at a wavelength of 700 nm ) parallel and perpendicular to the c - axis , the wedge - ordered regions have a different refractive index in the direction along the curvature axis and normal to it , i . e ., they have strong birefringence . the linear regions have a uniform refractive index within the film plane and therefore have no birefringence . therefore , if viewed in cross polarized light , the wedge - ordered regions appear light and the linear regions appear dark . as indicated above , the birefringent ( light ) areas are the wedge - ordered regions . the wedge - ordered regions exhibit strong birefringence if viewed in transmitted cross - polarized light , whereas the linear regions do not show birefringence under the same conditions . therefore , the wedge - ordered regions can be directly monitored with an optical microscope . indeed , at room temperature , the wedge - ordered regions occupy a small fraction of the 750 nm thick , 170 μm long film ( fig4 a , 4 b ); whereas at 90 ° c . all parts of this film are birefringent ( fig4 c ), indicating that the linear ( non - birefringent ) regions have vanished and the film contains only wedge - ordered regions . cooling restores the film to its original state ( fig4 c ). thus , the macro - domains rearrange in response to temperature variation and at above temperature tl only wedge - ordered regions exist . as shown above , rapid rearrangement of the polycrystalline macro - domains can provide a straightforward explanation of the super - pyroelectric effect , the origin of which is fundamentally different from regular pyroelectricity . the latter is due to changes in the absolute value of the polarization . the former is due to reversible 90 ° polarization switching at the grains at the boundary between the linear and the wedge - oriented regions . the stress arising due to a change in temperature is concentrated at the boundary between the linear and the wedge - oriented regions and facilitates 90 ° polarization switching . such switching results in changes in the total polarization in the out - of - plane direction which are much larger than those observed for either primary or secondary pyroelectricity . similar phenomenon can be observed in a polydomain single crystal , where mechanical stress in response to temperature variation may also move 90 ° domain walls in constrained single crystalline ferroelectric films . however , displacement of domain boundaries in polycrystalline macro - domains would be expected to occur much more rapidly than in single crystals , because the thickness of the domain walls between them are of the order of magnitude of a few grains , rather than one unit cell as in crystals . in buckled films , the super - pyroelectric current is generated in a small fraction of the film volume but its contribution to the total effect is large . one may anticipate existence of film configurations with a large density of macro - domain boundaries and , therefore , yet larger super - pyroelectric effect . one has to emphasize that the super - pyroelectric effect appears only if the macro - domains can follow temperature change . remarkably , in our case , the macro - domains rearrange within a few μsec . this indicates that they can rapidly reach an equilibrium state , which is consistent with the observed periodicity of the wedge - ordered regions . the most important practical consequence of the rapid and reversible rearrangement of the macro - domains is that it gives the films the ability to adapt to external mechanical constraints . the films with macro - domains do not accumulate mechanical stress in response to small deformations . therefore , systems with polycrystalline macro - domains open a wide range of new opportunities for creating materials with exceptional mechanical stability . the process for forming a super - pyroelectric effect in polycrystalline macro - domains organized into linear and wedge - ordered regions in a buckled nanocrystalline ferroelectric film is as follows : in a forming step a buckled film , such as film 110 , is formed . the buckled films spontaneously form macro - domains . thereafter in a contact forming step , contacts are formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the buckled region , typically by sputtering . to induce a super - piezoelectric effect , a heat or energy source can be used to heat the film . alternatively , sound wave pressure energy is applied to the film . it should be noted that this invention is also directed to devices comprising one or more buckled film , exhibiting super - pyroelectricity . devices employing the super - pyroelectric effect include , but are not limited to , motion sensors and uncooled radiation detectors and arrays made of them . fig5 a is a simplified schematic illustration of a prior art process 550 for forming a self - supported film . an amorphous film 553 is first deposited on a substrate 552 . thereafter , a crystallized film 555 is formed on substrate 552 . the substrate is then etched to form at least one window or hole in the substrate 552 to form at least two spaced - apart substrate portions 556 , 558 . fig5 b is a simplified schematic illustration of a process 560 for forming a self - supported film , in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention . an amorphous film 553 is first deposited on a substrate 552 as in the prior art process . thereafter , at least one window or hole is etched in the substrate 552 to form at least two spaced - apart substrate portions 564 , 565 upon which an amorphous self - supported film 566 resides . in a subsequent crystallization process , a self - supported crystalline film 569 is formed . an amorphous layers of , for example , batio 3 were deposited at room temperature by rf oxygen / argon ( 80 / 20 v / v , 4 × 10 − 3 mbar ) plasma sputtering from a stoichiometric target on ( 100 )- oriented n - type si substrates ( 280 ± 20 μm thick , 1 - 10 ωcm ). the chemical composition of the amorphous batio 3 was verified by energy dispersive x - ray fluorescence spectroscopy ( eds , oxford , approximate measurements ) and x - ray photoelectron spectroscopy ( xps , kratos , precise measurements ). calibration for both techniques was performed with respect to stoichiometric batio 3 ( semiconductor materials , 99 . 95 %). only the films for which the deviation from stoichiometry was smaller than 0 . 2 % were used for the experiments . anisotropic local etching of si substrates with an aqueous solution containing 50 % ( nh 2 ) 2 and 2 % koh ( w / w ) at 90 ° c . was performed for 5 hrs . this etching step produced , in some cases , 150 - 250 μm square windows with self - supported films . the etching solution does not attack either amorphous batio 3 or si . according to xps , the etching processes do not contaminate either the front or back surfaces of the film and complete removal of the silicon was achieved . the self - supported amorphous film is then crystallized . this step was performed , for example , by heating the tethered films at 600 ° c ., as is described in the recent publication v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , and a . l . roytburd , adv . mater . 2005 , 17 , 1957 , which is incorporated herein by reference . the heating of the self - supported films was performed in air in a horizontal oven under isothermal conditions maintained with a spatial uniformity better than 0 . 01 ° c ./ mm . following each stage of heating treatment , the preservation of the chemical composition of the films was monitored by xps . no deviation from stoichiometry as a result of heat treatment was found . the surface morphology of the films was analyzed with atomic force microscopy ( afm , topometrics ). the crystallinity of the self - supported films was characterized by transmission wide angle x - ray diffraction ( waxd , 90 ° incidence angle , 2 θ - detection limits = 20 - 50 °, by electron diffraction ( ed in tem ) and by high resolution transmission electron microscopy ( hrtem , phillips cm - 120 ). the spectral dependence of the optical absorption of each film was measured with a varian cary 50 probe uv - vis spectrophotometer before and after each step of the heating process . the optical band gaps were estimated by linear fitting of 1 n ( r ) 2 − e for a direct band gap and of in ( τ ) 1 / 2 − e for an indirect band gap , where τ is the optical absorption of a film and e is the photon energy . according to the methods disclosed in the above - indicated publications , v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , and a . l . roytburd , adv . mater . 2005 , 17 , 1957 , and i . ebralidze , v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , j . mater . chem . 2005 15 : 4258 - 4261 , for forming buckled films , the crystallization step precedes the etching step such that the crystallization step is performed to the amorphous film prior to the removal of windows to form a self - supported crystalline film . this technique might not provide the same degrees of freedom ( due to a lack of freedom to move / migrate above / below the plane in regions where windows have been removed ) to the crystalline film . the inventors have found that the formation of the super - pyroelectric effect can be achieved by first forming the window ( hole ) in the substrate and then applying a crystallization step . the crystallization of the self - supported amorphous film allows the nano - crystalline grains to spontaneously form polycrystalline macro - domains , mimicking the elastic domains of single crystals ( see v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , and a . l . roytburd , adv . mater . 2005 , 17 , 1957 ). minimization of the stress arising between the grains undergoing transformation from the cubic ( para -) to the tetragonal ( ferro - electric ) phase causes the grains to form regions ( polycrystalline macro - domains ) in which the directions of the crystallographic axes of the grains are correlated . these macro - domains may form extended periodic structures with a multilevel hierarchy requiring self - organization of tens of millions of individual grains [ v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , and a . l . roytburd , adv . mater . 2005 , 17 , 1957 ]. the films were poled by application of ≈ 3 v electrical bias for 10 - 15 hrs . the polarization hysteresis loop could not be observed because fast switching of the polarization causes mechanical disintegration of the films . a step - like periodic irradiation of the films with a semiconductor laser ( λ − 1380 nm , 3 mw / mm 2 , absorption coefficient of the contacts 15 ± 5 %) generates electrical current that only flows in response to switching the laser on and off ( fig2 a inset ). this behavior persists unchanged for & gt ; 7 days ( 10 11 cycles ). the phase of the pyroelectric current with respect to the heating / cooling cycle can be inverted by reversing the poling bias . these facts uniquely identify the pyroelectric origin of the current and prove that the films were in the ferroelectric phase [ v . lyahovitskaya , y . feldman , i . zon , e . wachtel , i . lubomirsky , and a . l . roytburd , adv . mater . 2005 , 17 , 1957 ]. moreover , it should be noted that polycrystalline macro - domains in self - supported buckled films of nanocrystalline are able to undergo rapid and reversible rearrangement , in which the constituent grains exhibit a spontaneous preferential alignment of their crystallographic axes . the rearrangements are driven by stress minimization and represent mutual transformation of regions in which the average alignment of c - axes are either parallel or perpendicular to the plane of the film . depending on the difference between the linear dimensions of the film and that of the window to which it is tethered , the film may exhibit three distinctive types of macro - domain rearrangement . films for which the difference in linear dimensions is approximately 3 % exhibit a strongly enhanced pyroelectric coefficient ( 1 μcl /( cm 2 · k )), which is attributed to the contribution of 90 ° polarization switching in grains located at the macro - domain boundaries . the characteristic time for macro - domain rearrangement was found to be & lt ; 0 . 1 ms . due to the mobility of macro - domain boundaries , the self - supported films do not accumulate mechanical stress in response to small deformation . instead , they reversibly adapt to external mechanical constraints . therefore , systems with polycrystalline macro - domains may open a wide range of new opportunities for creating materials with exceptional mechanical stability . the fact that heating and cooling produce reversible changes in the relative amounts of linear and wedge - ordered regions indicates that they undergo reversible rearrangement . rearrangement of macro - domains may only occur if the linear and wedge - ordered regions transform into one other . the driving force for this transformation is that , in response to temperature variations , the crystallographic parameters c and a change . as a result , the curvature radius of the wedge - ordered regions is altered and the relative amounts of the linear and wedge - ordered regions corresponding to the minimum elastic energy change as well . to implement this change , some of the grains at the boundaries between these regions must reversibly switch from an out - of - plane to an in - plane macro - domain and vice versa (“ 90 ° switching ”). thus “ grain exchange ” between macro - domains takes place and it is this mechanism that permits the films to change their lateral dimensions , that is , to “ adapt ” to the mechanical constraints imposed by the window in response to temperature variation . since no dependence of the rate of macro - domain rearrangement on the heating rate was observed one has to conclude that the process is sufficiently rapid that the macro - domains are in quasi - equilibrium at any temperature . in general , the ability of the macro - domains to exchange grains is , most probably , due to the fact that the number of possible variants ( orientations ) for polycrystalline macro - domains is unlimited . since each grain contacts its neighbors across a grain boundary that does not require continuity of the crystal lattice , the transformation of a grain from one variant to another can be easily induced by external mechanical stress . therefore , boundaries between polycrystalline macro - domains are not “ domain walls ” in the usual sense , but rather highly mobile transition regions . these “ transition regions ” between polycrystalline macro - domains are in especially sharp contrast to elastic domains in single crystals , where due to the small number of possible variants and continuity of the crystal lattice , the thickness of the domain walls is of the order of one unit cell . the enhanced pyroelectric effect is basically different from regular ( primary and secondary ) pyroelectricity . the “ regular ” pyroelectricity is due to changes in the absolute value of the polarization . the enhanced pyroelectricity described here arises due to reversible 90 ° polarization switching of the grains at the boundary between the linear and the wedge - oriented regions . another point to be noted is that in self - supported buckled films , the enhanced pyroelectric current is generated in a small fraction of the area of the film but its contribution to the total effect is large . | 7 |
reference is now made in detail to exemplary embodiments of the present invention , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings , wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout . in this regard , the present exemplary embodiments may have different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the descriptions set forth herein . accordingly , the exemplary embodiments are merely described below , by referring to the figures , to explain aspects of the present invention . in the drawings , the relative sizes of elements , layers , and regions may be exaggerated for clarity . as used herein , the singular forms “ a ,” “ an ” and “ the ” are intended to include the plural forms as well , unless the singular forms are not specifically mentioned in the paragraph . it will be further understood that the terms “ comprises ,” “ comprising ,” “ includes ” and / or “ including ” used herein specify the presence of stated components , steps , operations and / or elements but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other components , steps , operations and / or elements . it will be understood that although the terms “ first ”, “ second ”, etc . may be used herein to describe various components , these components should not be limited by these terms . these components are only used to distinguish one component from another . as used herein , the term “ and / or ” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items . expressions such as “ at least one of ,” when preceding a list of elements , modify the entire list of elements and do not modify the individual elements of the list . spatially relative terms , such as “ beneath ,” “ below ,” “ lower ,” “ under ,” “ above ,” “ upper ,” and the like , may be used herein for ease of explanation to describe one element or feature &# 39 ; s relationship to another element ( s ) or feature ( s ) as illustrated in the figures . it will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or in operation , in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures . for example , if the device in the figures is turned over , elements described as “ below ” or “ beneath ” or “ under ” other elements or features would then be oriented “ above ” the other elements or features . thus , the example terms “ below ” and “ under ” can encompass both an orientation of above and below . the device may be otherwise oriented ( e . g ., rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations ) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein should be interpreted accordingly . it will be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being “ on ,” “ connected to ,” or “ coupled to ” another element or layer , it can be directly on , connected to , or coupled to the other element or layer , or one or more intervening elements or layers may be present . in addition , it will also be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being “ between ” two elements or layers , it can be the only element or layer between the two elements or layers , or one or more intervening elements or layers may also be present . as used herein , the term “ substantially ,” “ about ,” and similar terms are used as terms of approximation and not as terms of degree , and are intended to account for the inherent deviations in measured or calculated values that would be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art . further , the use of “ may ” when describing embodiments of the present invention refers to “ one or more embodiments of the present invention .” as used herein , the terms “ use ,” “ using ,” and “ used ” may be considered synonymous with the terms “ utilize ,” “ utilizing ,” and “ utilized ,” respectively . also , the term “ exemplary ” is intended to refer to an example or illustration . the electronic or electric devices and / or any other relevant devices or components according to embodiments of the present invention described herein may be implemented utilizing any suitable hardware , firmware ( e . g . an application - specific integrated circuit ), software , or a combination of software , firmware , and hardware . for example , the various components of these devices may be formed on one integrated circuit ( ic ) chip or on separate ic chips . further , the various components of these devices may be implemented on a flexible printed circuit film , a tape carrier package ( tcp ), a printed circuit board ( pcb ), or formed on one substrate . further , the various components of these devices may be a process or thread , running on one or more processors , in one or more computing devices , executing computer program instructions and interacting with other system components for performing the various functionalities described herein . the computer program instructions are stored in a memory which may be implemented in a computing device using a standard memory device , such as , for example , a random access memory ( ram ). the computer program instructions may also be stored in other non - transitory computer readable media such as , for example , a cd - rom , flash drive , or the like . also , a person of skill in the art should recognize that the functionality of various computing devices may be combined or integrated into a single computing device , or the functionality of a particular computing device may be distributed across one or more other computing devices without departing from the spirit and scope of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention . unless otherwise defined , all terms ( including technical and scientific terms ) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs . it will be further understood that terms , such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries , should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and / or the present specification , and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense , unless expressly so defined herein . fig1 is an exploded perspective view of a battery pack according to one or more exemplary embodiments of the present invention . fig2 is a perspective view of a bare cell of fig1 . fig3 is an enlarged view of the portion a of fig2 . fig4 is a cross - sectional view taken along the line iv - iv of fig3 . referring to fig1 through 4 , a battery pack 100 according to one or more embodiments of the present invention may include a bare cell 110 , a protective circuit module 120 , a first lead plate 130 , a second lead plate 140 , a cover holder 150 , a first cover 160 , a second cover 170 , a first tape 181 , a second tape 182 , and a label 190 . the bare cell 110 may include a can 111 , an electrode assembly , a cap plate 112 , and a bead protrusion prevention part 113 . a space may be formed in the can 111 , and the electrode assembly may be disposed in the can 111 to be combined with an electrolyte . the electrode assembly may include a negative electrode plate onto which a negative electrode active material is coated , a positive electrode plate onto which a positive electrode active material is coated , and a separator interposed therebetween . in one or more embodiments , the positive electrode plate , the negative electrode plate , and the separator may be wound in a jelly roll shape and may form the electrode assembly . the cap plate 112 may be installed in an opened portion ( or side ) of the can 111 and may be fixed to the can 111 . in one or more embodiments , the cap plate 112 may be fixed to the can 111 using welding . hereinafter , for convenience of explanation , the case where the cap plate 112 is fixed to the can 111 using laser welding is described . the cap plate 112 may be formed of a metal material , and an opening ( e . g ., a hole ) may be formed so that the electrolyte may be injected into the can 111 through the opening . in one or more embodiments , the opening may be sealed ( e . g ., by a stopper or a separate stopper ). also , the cap plate 112 may include a terminal 111 a that is formed to protrude outward ( e . g ., away from the can 111 ) and contacts the first lead plate 130 . for example , the terminal 111 a may be disposed at or near the center of the cap plate 112 with respect to a lengthwise direction of the cap plate 112 . also , a gasket 111 b may be disposed between the terminal 111 a and the cap plate 112 and may insulate the terminal 111 a and the cap plate 112 from each other . the bead protrusion prevention part 113 may be formed in the cap plate 112 . in one or more embodiments , the bead protrusion prevention part 113 may be formed in at least one end of the cap plate 112 ( e . g ., may be formed at one or both distal ends of the cap plate 112 ( e . g ., an end that is distal to the center of the cap plate 112 )). the bead protrusion prevention part 113 may be a bead accommodation groove 113 a that is formed to be recessed from a top surface of the cap plate 112 . for example , the bead protrusion prevention part 113 may be formed to have a shape that is the same as or similar to a lateral shape of the can 111 ( e . g ., the bead protrusion prevention part 113 may be formed to have a shape that is the same as or similar to a side portion of the can 111 ). the bead protrusion prevention part 113 may be disposed to be spaced apart from an edge of the cap plate 112 ( e . g ., spaced apart from an edge of the cap plate 112 by a predetermined distance ). the protective circuit module 120 may be electrically connected to the bare cell 110 . in one or more embodiments , the protective circuit module 120 may be connected to the first lead plate 130 and the second lead plate 140 and may protect the bare cell 110 from overcharging , overdischarging , and / or high temperature . in one or more embodiments , the protective circuit module 120 may be manufactured to be slim , with a relatively small width and a relatively large length , and may be disposed in an area that has bilateral symmetry with respect to the center of the bare cell 110 . as such , a size of the protective circuit module 120 is reduced or minimized so that spatial utility of the battery pack 100 may be increased . for example , reducing the size of the protective circuit module 120 and reducing or minimizing the space required to accommodate the protective circuit module 120 may provide for an increase of the capacity of the bare cell 110 . the protective circuit module 120 may be disposed to be spaced apart from the top surface of the cap plate 112 and may include at least one of a safety element and a protective element that are separately installed on a circuit board 121 . for example , the protective element may include a switch ( e . g ., a switching part ) and a controller that are electrically connected to wire patterns formed in the circuit board 121 and form a charging / discharging current path . for example , the protective element may be formed as one chip or circuitry and may be mounted on the circuit board 121 . the safety element , which is a secondary element , may perform a function of regulating a charging or discharging current and / or cutting off the charging or discharging current following a malfunction , such as overheating or overcurrent . for example , the safety element may include a positive temperature coefficient ( ptc ), a fuse , a current cutoff element , or a via metal . the protective circuit module 120 may include an external terminal 122 formed on the circuit board 121 . the external terminal 122 may be electrically connected to an external electronic device . the protective circuit module 120 may be formed to have a length that is less than or equal to half of a length of the cap plate 112 . for example , the protective circuit module 120 may be formed to have a length that is less than a distance from one of the ends of the terminal 111 a to the corresponding end of the cap plate 112 ( e . g ., the protective circuit module 120 may be formed to have a length that is less than a distance from a distal end of the terminal 111 a to a corresponding distal end of the cap plate 112 , in other words , an end close to the edge of the cap plate 112 ). in this case , the circuit board 121 may be disposed to be offset from the terminal 111 a . that is , the circuit board 121 may be disposed between one of the distal ends of the cap plate 112 and the terminal 111 a . also , the circuit board 121 may be disposed to be farther away from the terminal 111 a than the first lead plate 130 . the first lead plate 130 and the second lead plate 140 may be connected to the protective circuit module 120 . for example , the first lead plate 130 and the second lead plate 140 may each be formed to be bent ( e . g ., to include a bent portion ) so that one surface of the protective circuit module 120 may be spaced apart from the cap plate 112 . also , the first lead plate 130 and the second lead plate 140 may be disposed such that the respective bent portions face each other so that each of one end of the first lead plate 130 and one end of the second lead plate 140 may be inserted into and fixed to the circuit board 121 ( e . g ., the bent portions of the first lead plate 130 and the second lead plate 140 may be inserted into and fixed to the circuit board 121 ). the first lead plate 130 may connect the protective circuit module 120 and the terminal 111 a . also , the second lead plate 140 may connect the cap plate 112 and the protective circuit module 120 . in one or more embodiments , the cover holder 150 may be disposed between the protective circuit module 120 and the cap plate 112 . for example , the cover holder 150 may insulate the protective circuit module 120 and the cap plate 112 from each other . the cover holder 150 may be manufactured of an insulating , injection - molded material . the terminal 111 a may be inserted into the cover holder 150 ( e . g ., the terminal 111 a may be inserted into an opening or a hole in the cover holder 150 ). the first lead plate 130 may be inserted into the opening in the cover holder 150 . as such , the terminal 111 a may be exposed through the hole and may be connected to the first lead plate 130 that is inserted into the hole . in one or more embodiments , the first cover 160 may be disposed on the cap plate 112 and the protective circuit module 120 . for example , the first cover 160 may include a first cover body part 161 ( e . g ., a first cover body portion ) and a first protrusion part 162 ( e . g ., a first protrusion portion ). the first cover body part 161 may be formed in a plate shape and may be disposed on the cap plate 112 in areas corresponding to areas of the cap plate 112 on which the protective circuit module 120 is not disposed . in this case , the first cover body part 161 may have the same or substantially the same area as that of the cap plate 112 . for example , the perimeter of the first cover body part 161 may be substantially the same as the perimeter of the cap plate 112 . the first protrusion part 162 may be connected to the first cover body part 161 and may be formed to protrude from the first cover body part 161 in a direction opposite to a direction of the bare cell 110 ( e . g ., the first protrusion part 162 may protrude away from the bare cell 110 in the first direction ). a space may be formed in the first protrusion part 162 so that the protective circuit module 120 may be inserted or accommodated in the space . also , an exposure opening ( or exposure hole ) 162 a through which the external terminal 122 may be exposed to the outside may be formed in the first protrusion part 162 . in one or more exemplary embodiments , a separate terminal to be connected to the external terminal 122 may also be formed in the first protrusion part 162 . hereinafter , for convenience of explanation , the case where the exposure opening 162 a is formed in the first protrusion part 162 , is described . the first protrusion part 162 may be formed to be eccentric ( e . g ., offset or skewed or to one side ) from the center of the first cover body part 161 with respect to a lengthwise direction of the first cover body part 161 ( e . g ., the second direction ). for example , the first protrusion part 162 may be formed in a position corresponding to the protective circuit module 120 . thus , the first protrusion part 162 may be formed between the terminal 111 a and one of the ends of the cap plate 112 . the first tape 181 may be disposed between the cover holder 150 and the cap plate 112 and between the first cover 160 and the cap plate 112 . for example , the first tape 181 may be formed of an adhesive material to attach the cover holder 150 onto the cap plate 112 and to attach the first cover 160 onto the cap plate 112 . one of the cover holder 150 and the first cover 160 may include a coupling part ( or coupling portion ) 151 , and the other one of the cover holder 150 and the first cover 160 may include a fixed part ( or fixed portion ) 161 a . for example , the coupling part 151 may be formed as a protrusion or a hook , and the fixed part 161 a may be formed as a hole or opening or groove into which the coupling part 151 is inserted . hereinafter , for convenience of explanation , the case where the coupling part 151 is disposed in the cover holder 150 and the fixed part 161 a is disposed in the first cover 160 is described . the second cover 170 may be installed on a bottom surface ( or lower surface ) of the can 111 . in one or more embodiments , the second tape 182 may be formed of an adhesive material to attach the second cover 170 to the can 111 and to fix the second cover to the can 111 . the label 190 may be installed to surround a part of the first cover 160 and a part of the bare cell 110 and the second cover 170 . in this case , the label 190 may include a first label 191 installed to surround a part of the first cover body part 161 and a part of the bare cell 110 and the second cover 170 and a second label 192 installed to surround a part of the first protrusion part 162 . in one or more embodiments , the first label 191 and the second label 192 may be integrally formed . for example , the second label 192 may be formed to protrude from the first label 191 toward the first protrusion part 162 . as such , the second label 192 may be attached to sides of the first protrusion part 162 . according to a method of manufacturing the battery pack 100 according to one or more embodiments of the present invention , first , the bare cell 110 may be manufactured or obtained . in detail , after the can 111 , the electrode assembly and the cap plate 112 are respectively manufactured ( or obtained ), the electrode assembly may be inserted into the can 111 , and the cap plate 112 and the can 111 may be welded and fixed to the electrode assembly . in this case , a top side of the can 111 on which the cap plate 112 is seated may be formed to be stepped so that the cap plate 112 may be seated at the top side of the can 111 . when welding is performed , as described above , edges of the cap plate 112 may be welded . in this case , when welding is performed , one or more beads ( e . g ., welding beads ) b caused by welding may be generated on both ends of the cap plate 112 . these beads b may be formed on a top surface of the cap plate 112 . because a general battery pack has a top surface of a cap plate that is flat or substantially flat , when the beads b are formed , the second lead plate 140 and the cap plate 112 may not smoothly contact each other . in detail , when the protective circuit module 120 is disposed to be eccentric toward one side of the cap plate 112 , as described above , the second lead plate 140 may be adjacent to one of the ends of the cap plate 112 and may contact the cap plate 112 . in this case , when the beads generated by welding are formed on the top surface of the cap plate 112 , the top surface of the cap plate 112 that the second lead plate 140 contacts may be bent or uneven . however , in the battery cell 100 according to one or more exemplary embodiments of the present invention , the bead accommodation groove 113 a may be formed in the cap plate 112 so that the beads b may be prevented from being formed at a portion of the cap plate 112 that has the second lead plate 140 installed thereon . in addition , the bead accommodation groove 113 a may be prevent or substantially prevent the beads b from protruding from the cap plate , for example , during or after welding the cap plate 112 and the can 111 . in detail , the bead accommodation groove 113 a may be formed in at least one end of the cap plate 112 , as described above . in this case , the bead accommodation groove 113 a may be formed when the top surface of the cap plate 112 is recessed by rolling . as such , a bottom surface of the cap plate 112 corresponding to the portion of the cap plate 112 having the bead accommodation groove 113 a may be formed so that only the top surface of the cap plate 112 may be recessed . as described above , when the cap plate 112 includes the bead accommodation groove 113 a , the beads b generated by welding may be accommodated ( or inserted into and housed or stored ) in the bead accommodation groove 113 a . in particular , the bead accommodation groove 113 a may be formed to surround a portion of the cap plate 112 that the second lead plate 140 contacts , thereby preventing the beads b from invading ( or being formed at ) the portion of the cap plate 112 that the second lead plate 140 contacts . thus , the bead accommodation groove 113 a may prevent the beads b from invading the portion of the cap plate 112 in which the second lead plate 140 is installed , so that the second lead plate 140 and the cap plate 112 may be in close contact ( e . g ., completely in close contact ) with each other . when welding of the can 111 and the cap plate 112 is finished , as described above , the first tape 181 may be attached to the cap plate 112 . in this case , a length of the first tape 181 may be formed to have a length that is different from a length of the cap plate 112 . for example , the length of the first tape 181 may be less than the length of the cap plate 112 . for example , the portion of the cap plate 112 that the second lead plate 140 contacts may omit the first tape 181 , so that a space in which the second lead plate 140 is fixed to the cap plate 112 , may be secured ( or substantially secured ). the cover holder 150 may be installed on the first tape 181 . in this case , the cover holder 150 may be attached to the second tape 182 . the protective circuit module 120 may be installed on the cover holder 150 . in this case , the protective circuit module 120 may be in a state in which the first lead plate 130 and the second lead plate 140 are installed . the first lead plate 130 may be coupled to the terminal 111 a by welding . also , the second lead plate 140 may be coupled to the cap plate 112 by welding . in this case , an outer edge of one end of the second lead plate 140 may be surrounded by the bead accommodation groove 113 a , as described above . the first cover 160 may be installed on the protective circuit module 120 . in this case , the first cover 160 may also be installed to shield ( e . g ., completely shield ) a top surface of the protective circuit module 120 and the top surface of the cap plate 112 . a part of the first cover 160 may be fixed to the cover holder 150 , and the other part of the first cover 160 ( e . g ., the first cover body part 161 ) may be attached to and fixed to the first tape 181 . in particular , the fixed part 161 a formed in the first protrusion part 162 of the first cover 160 may be coupled to the coupling part 151 of the cover holder 150 . when the first cover 160 is installed , as described above , the first cover body part 161 of the first cover 160 ( e . g ., the portion excluding the first protrusion part 162 ) may be formed relatively flat . in this case , a height difference between the first protrusion part 162 and the first cover body part 161 of the first cover 160 occurs so that a space may be formed in the part of the first cover 160 excluding the first protrusion part 162 . in particular , when the battery pack 100 is installed in an external device , a space is formed between the first cover body part 161 and the external device so that other components or parts required or used in the external device may be installed in the space . while ( or after or before ) the first cover 160 is assembled , the second tape 182 may be installed at a lower portion of the bare cell 110 and then , the second cover 170 may be installed . also , the label 190 may be installed on an outer surface of the bare cell 110 . in this case , the first label 191 may be installed to surround a part of the first cover body part 161 and a part of the bare cell 110 and the second cover 170 , respectively . also , the second label 192 may be attached to a part of sides of the first protrusion part 162 . thus , the battery pack 100 may prevent or substantially prevent the beads b that are generated during welding from invading the top surface of the cap plate 112 , thereby preventing a defective contact between the second lead plate 140 and the cap plate 112 . in the battery pack 100 , the protective circuit module 120 is installed to be eccentric from the center of the bare cell 110 to prevent or minimize the likelihood of a short circuit that may occur when the protective circuit module 120 contacts the terminal 111 a of the bare cell 110 by an external shock . also , in the battery pack 100 , a space between the first cover 160 excluding the first protrusion part 162 and the external device is formed to secure a space in which other components of the external device may be disposed , when the external device is designed . as described above , according to one or more of the embodiments of the present invention , a capacity of a battery may be increased or maximized , and a contact between a lead plate and a cap plate may be prevented from being disturbed by beads generated when welding is performed . it should be understood that exemplary embodiments described herein should be considered in a descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation . descriptions of features or aspects within each exemplary embodiment should typically be considered as available for other similar features or aspects in other exemplary embodiments . while one or more exemplary embodiments have been described with reference to the figures , it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope as defined by the following claims , and their equivalents . | 7 |
fig1 is a block diagram of a system 10 that is suitable for practicing the teaching of the present invention . a bus 12 is comprised of a plurality of signal lines for conveying addresses , data and controls between a central processing unit ( cpu ) 14 and a number of other system bus units . a random access memory ( ram ) 16 is coupled to the system bus 12 and provides program instruction storage and working memory for the cpu 14 . a signature extraction module and a scan / filter module 15 , the methods of which are described hereinbelow , can run on cpu 14 or , alternatively , on separate cpus . a terminal control subsystem 18 is coupled to the system bus 14 and provides outputs to a display device 20 , typically a crt or lcd monitor , and receives inputs from a manual input device 22 , such as a keyboard or pointing device . a hard disk control subsystem 24 bidirectionally couples a rotating fixed disk , or hard disk 26 , to the system bus 12 . the control 24 and hard disk 26 provide mass storage for cpu instructions and data . a floppy disk control subsystem 28 which , along with a floppy disk drive 30 , is useful as an input means in the transfer of computer files from a floppy diskette 30 a to system memory , bidirectionally couples the floppy drive 30 to the system bus 12 . finally , a communication subsystem 32 is coupled to the system bus 14 and provides a link to networks such as the internet . the components illustrated in fig1 may be embodied within a personal computer , a portable computer , a workstation , a minicomputer or a supercomputer . as such , the details of the physical embodiment of the data processing system 10 , such as the structure of the bus 12 or the number of cpus 14 that are coupled to the bus , is not crucial to the operation of the present invention , and is not described in further detail hereinbelow . in broad terms , the method of the present invention comprises two phases . first , in a signature extraction phase , an undesirable ( or confidential ) message that is currently unrecognized as such by the system is labeled as undesirable ( or confidential ) by a first alert user , perhaps assisted by an automated procedure , and certain signature data are automatically extracted from that message and placed in one or more databases distributed to the user population . second , in a signature scanning phase , at least one user &# 39 ; s set of messages ( possibly including the first alert user &# 39 ; s set ) is scanned using the extracted signature data in an effort to find instances of the substantially similar messages , and an appropriate action is taken whenever such messages are encountered . fig2 shows a computer system environment in which one embodiment of the present invention that specifically addresses spam is applied . a spammer 200 transmits spam 202 to company a 204 and company b 206 . in practice , the spam 202 would be sent to many different companies . assuming that company a 204 utilizes the present invention , the spam 202 could be received at the mail server 208 in which one or more users maintain accounts . assuming that user a 210 accesses his / her mail , the spam 202 is found in his / her list of incoming mail . in response to user a 210 identifying the spam 202 as such , the identified spam 212 is labeled as such and the signature extraction phase of the present invention is commenced . in the signature extraction phase of the present invention , the identified spam 212 could be forwarded by the mail server 208 to a signature extraction engine 214 . once extracted by the signature extraction engine 214 , the signature of the identified spam 212 is returned to the mail server 208 and stored in a signature database 216 . in the signature scanning phase of the present invention , the incoming ( or outgoing ) messages of user b 218 and user c 220 are scanned using the extraction signature data in the signature database 216 . here , instances of substantially similar messages 222 are flagged for the users , eliminated from their inboxes or prevented from being transmitted . the two phases may operate simultaneously and asynchronously across a user population . for example , user a could have his messages scanned for known undesirable messages 1 and 2 while she reads message 3 and labels it undesirable . minutes later , user b &# 39 ; s messages may be scanned for the presence of undesirable messages 1 , 2 and 3 . half an hour later , user c may discover a fourth undesirable message 4 , and an hour later user a &# 39 ; s messages may be scanned again , this time for the presence of 1 , 2 , 3 and 4 . the present invention provides for the scanning of outbound messages as well as inbound messages . this is particularly advantageous for types of messages that are likely to be forwarded from one user to several other users , such as hoaxes , chain letters , and confidential messages . catching an undesirable outbound message before it can be forwarded is considerably more efficient than dealing with the message after it has been sent to what could be a multitude of recipients . a preferred data structure for representing signature data that are extracted from a message in the first phase of the present invention and then used later , in the second phase of the present invention , to recognize a duplicate or similar message is illustrated in fig3 . one skilled in the art will appreciate that more or less elaborate data structures may be used in the present invention . undesirable messages are clustered into sets of substantially similar messages . within a cluster , there may be one or more variants , referred to as archetypes . in many cases , each cluster will contain just a single archetype . however , under some circumstances ( particularly for hoaxes , which may come in several related variants ) it may be useful to regard slight variants of a message as belonging to the same cluster . allowing for more than one archetype within a cluster enables the same signatures to be used to detect several different variants . this results in more efficient storage and somewhat faster scanning , and it also makes it more likely that new variants will be recognized as such . furthermore , the sophisticated nature of the signature extraction data of the present invention provides for flexibility in tuning the system so that a trade - off is made between detecting variants and reducing false - positives . a signature database of one embodiment of the present invention consists of a set of archetype clusters , each distinguished by a unique clusterid identifier . each cluster 300 has two basic components . the first component is siglist 302 . siglist 302 is a list of sigdata elements 304 , each of which contains information pertaining to specific character sequences found in members of the archetype cluster 300 . three sigdata elements , sigdata 1 , sigdata 2 and sigdata 3 , are shown . each sigdata element 304 in the siglist 302 contains two parts . for illustration , only sigdata 2 is expanded . the first part of sigdata 2 304 , sig 2 306 , is a relatively short textual pattern that will be searched for by the message scanner . the second part , regionlist 2 308 , is a list of regiondata elements 310 associated with sig 2 306 , each of which contains information about a longer character sequence contained in all archetypes in the cluster . each regiondata element 310 contains three elements : 1 ) beginoffset 312 , an offset in bytes of the beginning of the character sequence from the beginning of the signature ; 2 ) regionlength 314 , the number of characters in the character sequence ; and 3 ) crc 316 , a checksum of the character sequence . the second component of each cluster 300 is archetypelist 318 . archetypelist 318 is a list of archetypedata elements 320 , each of which contains data pertaining to a particular archetype . in particular , each archetypedata element 320 may contain : 1 ) archetypeptr 322 , which is a pointer to a stored copy of an archetype message so that its full text can be retrieved as needed ; 2 ) hashblock 324 , which is a block of data computed from the body of the archetype , and used to measure overall similarity to other messages ; and 3 ) caselist 326 , which is a list of casedata elements 328 , each of which contains data pertaining to specific instances where a copy of the archetype was / received and reported as undesirable by a user . in particular , each casedata element 328 may contain : 1 ) sendid 330 , which is the identity of the sender of the copy ; 2 ) recvid 332 , the identity of the recipient who reported the copy ; and 3 ) recvtime 334 , the time at which the copy was originally received . a preferred embodiment of the signature extraction phase of the present invention , during which a method for detecting a specific , previously unknown undesired ( or confidential ) message is derived and disseminated to a network of users , is described with reference to fig4 . the present invention can be used in an environment with one or more mail users . as the number of mail users increases , the advantages of the present invention increase . in step 400 , a first ( alert ) user receives a message m 1 . the user reads the received message m 1 and , if he believes it to be “ undesirable ” in the sense that it is likely to be widely circulated and widely held to be unwelcome ( or that it is confidential ), that user indicates to the system that the message m 1 is to be flagged as undesirable ( or confidential ), e . g ., by clicking a special button in the user interface . optionally , a generic detection method may be used to help the user identify the message as undesirable in the first place . in any case , if the user has indicated to the system that the message should be flagged as “ undesirable ” at step 402 , a copy of the message m 1 is sent and / or input to an automatic signature extraction procedure in step 404 . optionally , in step 403 , identification of the message as undesirable can be confirmed in a number of ways . the confirmation could be provided by an authorized human user . it could be given only after a threshold number of users have all labeled that message as undesirable . finally , it could be provided by a separate automated process ( e . g ., one that uses a generic technique to detect spam ). if confirmation that the message is undesirable is provided , the method would continue at step 404 . by permitting the mail system users themselves to identify the undesirable or confidential messages , dependence upon experts at a centralized operations center is avoided . at step 404 , the message m 1 is scanned for the presence of any signatures contained in a master signature database d 1 . if , at step 405 , the message m 1 is found to contain at least one of the signatures in the master signature database d 1 , then at step 406 , the message is compared with each archetype associated with each cluster that contains a matching signature in one of its sig components to determine if a match with any archetype in d 1 exists . a preferred method of comparison is to compute a hashblock for the message and to compare this hashblock with the hashblock for each candidate archetype . if an exact archetype match is found ( e . g ., if the hashblock distance is computed to be zero ), then the matching candidate &# 39 ; s archetypeptr 322 is used to retrieve its full text . finally , if the full texts of the archetype and the message are deemed sufficiently similar to regard the message as an instance of the archetype , then at step 408 , the relevant casedata information 328 is extracted from the message and added to the caselist 326 in d 1 for that archetype . control then passes to step 418 . however , if at step 406 , an exact archetype match is not found or the full text of the message is determined to be insufficiently similar to the full text of the archetype , then at step 410 , a determination is made as to whether the new archetype is sufficiently similar to an existing cluster of archetypes and , if so , which cluster . preferably , for each cluster that contains a matching signature in one of its sig components , each regiondata element 310 in the regionlist 308 associated with that sig 306 is compared with the message m 1 by computing the checksum of the region indicated by beginoffset 312 and regionlength 314 , and a match is declared if the checksum of that region within the message is equal to the value stored in crc 316 . the matching region with the longest regionlength 314 is determined for each cluster . if the longest regionlength 314 among all clusters is at least equal to a specified threshold length , then the cluster with the longest regionlength 314 is identified as the archetype cluster to which the new archetype should be added . thus , at step 412 , the archetype data are computed and added , as a new archetypedata element ( with all substructures filled with the required information ), to this cluster &# 39 ; s archetypelist . optionally , at step 414 , the cluster &# 39 ; s siglist 302 may be recomputed to reflect the addition of a new archetype to the cluster . a matching algorithm ( such as a suffix array routine ) can be used to identify one or more sequences of characters found among all of the archetypes , and the derivation of the siglist data detailed hereinbelow with reference to fig5 can be applied only to the set of commonly occurring character sequences , rather than to the entire message body . the method continues in step 418 . if , at step 405 , the message m 1 is found to contain none of the signatures in the master signature database d 1 or if no archetype cluster is found to be sufficiently close to the new archetype in step 410 , then the method continues in step 416 . at step 416 , a new archetype cluster is created for the message m 1 , a single archetypedata element containing the required information is created and placed in the archetypelist , and a set of signatures and associated data is computed and placed in siglist . finally , the archetype cluster is assigned its unique clusterid and added to the master signature database d 1 . the signatures in siglist are computed automatically by an automatic signature extraction procedure that selects character sequences that are unlikely to be found in other messages . further detail on a preferred method for this procedure is provided hereinbelow with reference to fig5 . a signature may consist of a sequence of characters , or mote generally a pattern of characters , found in the message itself or in a preprocessed - version of the message . it may be accompanied by additional information such as checksums of the entire message and / or portions of it , checksums or other compressed data strings derived from one or more transformations of the message . this additional information may be stored in the regionlist 308 associated with each signature as illustrated in fig3 . finally , in step 418 , local signature databases serving one or more individual user nodes are updated to reflect the updates that have been applied to the master signature database d 1 at steps 408 , 414 or 416 . this can be achieved by using standard database updating or replication techniques to ensure that the local databases are exact replicas of the master signature database , or by selectively sending or selectively receiving and incorporating signatures and associated auxiliary data according to a set of criteria that may vary across different local signature databases . a preferred embodiment of the procedure for extracting or computing the siglist data for a given archetypal message , employed in steps 414 and 416 , is now described with reference to fig5 . first , at step 500 , the number of occurrences of all byte sequences less than or equal to a chosen threshold length within a corpus of mail messages is tallied . in a preferred embodiment , the threshold length is three , i . e . the number of occurrences of all 1 -, 2 -, and 3 - byte sequences ( referred to as 1 - grams , 2 - grams and 3 - grams , respectively ) is tallied . in step 501 , the number of occurrences tallied is then stored in compressed form in an n - gram frequency database . the n - gram frequency database requires no more than a few megabytes of storage . the database may be computed for each user individually from a corpus consisting of archived messages received by that user , or a universal database could be computed from a standard corpus of generic messages culled from several users . this universal database could then be distributed throughout the user population . the database could be updated periodically . details of where , the database is originally produced and how frequently it is updated have no bearing on the remaining steps of the signature extraction procedure . at step 502 , the body of the message m 2 from which the signature is to be extracted is isolated . at step 504 , the extracted body is transformed into an “ invariant ” form by removing all non - alphanumeric characters and replacing all uppercase letters with their lowercase versions ( see fig6 ). next , at step 506 , one or more sequences of characters that are highly unlikely to be found in a typical message are identified . the one or more sequences constitute the signature or signatures . the identification of unlikely character sequences can be carried out by the method described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 452 , 442 ( 442 patent ) entitled “ methods and apparatus for evaluating and extracting signatures of computer viruses and other undesirable software entities ,” issued sep . 19 , 1995 , which is hereby incorporated by reference . this method was originally applied to the automatic extraction of computer virus signatures : several candidate signatures taken from the message are selected , and for each the n - gram statistics from the n - gram frequency database , they are combined using formulas found in the 442 patent to estimate the likelihood for each candidate signature to appear in a random ordinary mail message . the candidate signature or signatures with the least likelihood of appearing in an ordinary mail message are selected . taken together , steps 502 , 504 and 506 describe the derivation of the text string element labeled sig 306 in fig3 . optionally , the false positive rate may be reduced further by computing a list of regiondata 310 associated with sig 306 . this may be achieved at step 508 by the following procedure for each derived signature . a series of “ regions ,” each consisting of a character sequence that contains the signature , is chosen . in a preferred embodiment , the series consists of a first region that is roughly centered on the signature and approximately twice the length of the signature , a second region that contains the first region and is roughly twice the size of the first , and so on until the final region in the series consists of the entire transformed message body . for each region , the offset of its first character from the first character of the signature ( typically a negative integer ) is recorded , along with the length of the region and a checksum of the region &# 39 ; s character sequence . these three elements constitute the regiondata 310 for that region . the checksum may employ any convenient method , such as a cyclical redundancy check , and preferably should be at least 32 bits . a preferred embodiment of the method for computing the hashblock data for a given message , as required in steps 412 and 416 , is now described . first , the message body is transformed . the transformation may be the same as or different from the transformation applied to the message body prior to signature extraction ( step 504 ). for example , the transformations could be identical , except that blank spaces would be retained in the transformed message body for purposes of computing the hashblock . then , the transformed message body is divided into small individual units that may or may not overlap . for example , the individual units may be all consecutive 5 - character sequences ( which overlap ), or they may be non - overlapping “ words ” ( individual units delimited by blank spaces ). non - overlapping units are preferable . for each individual unit , a hash function maps that unit to a small integer hash value ( say in the range 0 - 255 ). an array of hash value counts is kept , and each time a particular hash value is computed , the count for that value is incremented by 1 . if the number of counts is capped at 15 or , alternatively , if it is computed modulo 16 ( that is , the recorded number is the remainder of the actual number when divided by 16 ) then only 4 bits are required for each count , and an array of 256 hash values can be expressed as a hashblock of just 128 bytes . note that this hashblock will be relatively insensitive to additions , deletions and rearrangements of words , provided that the number of changes is not too great . in order to prevent unlimited growth of the master and local signature databases , they may be pruned periodically to remove cluster data for which there have been no recent reported instances . preferably , at periodic intervals ( daily , for example ), each cluster in the master signature database is examined . all recvtime elements 334 in the cluster structure are compared with the current time , and if none are more recent than some specified date and time , then the entire cluster is removed from the master signature database . the removal of this cluster is communicated to all local signature databases , and any that include this cluster can eliminate it as well . during the signature scanning phase of the inventions , one or more users &# 39 ; messages are scanned for the possible presence of specific messages that have been labeled as undesirable ( or as confidential ). although hundreds , thousands or even millions of users may be protected by the present invention , it is most convenient to focus on an individual “ second user .” the scanning procedure employs a local signature database that is continually updated as new undesirable messages are discovered by other users , and may be specific to a particular user or shared by several users . the scan may take place periodically , or in response to a request by the user or some other event ( such as a notification that the local signature database has been updated since the last scan ). furthermore , the scan may take place at different times and under different circumstances for different users . in the typical case in which the messages are electronic mail , the scan is applied preferably only to those items that are in the user &# 39 ; s inbox , although it may be applied to other specified folders as well if the user so desires . a preferred embodiment of the scanning procedure is described with reference to fig6 . at step 602 , the body of the message m 2 to be scanned is extracted . then , at step 604 , the message body is transformed into the same invariant form as was applied at step 504 . at step 606 , the invariant form of the message body is scanned for exact or near matches to any of the signatures included in a local signature database d 2 , which has been constructed from all or a portion of the cluster data structures in one or more master signature databases . if no signatures are found , the message is not deemed undesirable ( or confidential ), and the process terminates . however , if one or more signatures are found at step 606 , then at step 608 , the auxiliary information contained in the associated regiondata elements 310 is used to assess the degree of match to one or more known undesirable messages . specifically , for each signature sig 306 appearing in the message , all clusters in which sig 306 appears are considered in turn . for each such cluster 300 , the regionlist 308 associated with sig 306 is considered . first , the regiondata element 310 with the largest regionlength 314 is checked by computing the checksum of the corresponding region within the scanned message . if the checksum matches the crc 316 for this regiondata element 310 , this regiondata element 310 and the associated clusterid are added to a list bestregiondataelements , and the next cluster is then considered . if the checksum does not match , the regiondata element 310 with the next longest regionlength 314 is compared in the same way , and so on until a matching checksum is found . if there is no matching checksum among the regiondata elements 310 , then the signature itself and the associated clusterid are added to the bestregiondataelements list , and the next cluster is considered . at step 610 , a locality - preserving hash function is used to compute a hashblock for the scanned message . the hashblock of the scanned message is compared with the hashblocks of each cluster that contains one of the matching signatures found at step 606 , and a similarity computed for each such cluster . the similarity computation may employ any reasonable metric . a preferred similarity metric for two hashblocks ( h 1 and h 2 ) treats each as a 256 - element array , each element being represented as 4 bits , and sums the absolute values of the differences between the array elements , i . e . the similarity s is given by s = ∑ j = 0 255 h 1 j - h 2 j ( 1 ) if the array elements are capped at 16 , and alternatively by s = ∑ j = 0 255 ( ( h ij - h 2 j + 16 ) mod 16 ) ( 2 ) the clusterid and the similarity s are added to a list hashblocksimilarity , and then the next cluster is considered until there are no more clusters that contain one of the matching signatures found at step 606 . at step 612 , the bestregiondataelements list derived from step 608 , the hashblock - similarity list derived from step 610 and a set of user preferences are combined to determine a degree or level of match . the user preferences may consist of one or more thresholds for hashblock similarity , one or more thresholds for regionlength 314 , and conditions on various aspects of the msgdata component of the cluster referred to in the bestregiondataelements and hashblocksimilarity lists . in a typical application , the user preferences may be set at some default settings which may be overridden by advanced users , if they choose . as an explicit example , suppose that there are four discrete levels of match : perfect , high , medium and low . then a reasonable set of user preferences might be as follows . for a match level to be regarded as perfect , there must exist a cluster for which the hashblock similarity distance is zero , and for which at least two users in the msglist for that cluster have a recvid 332 within the same e - mail domain as the user . otherwise , for a match level to be regarded as high , there must exist a cluster for which the hashblock similarity distance is less than 5 or the longest region length in bestregiondataelements is at least 500 characters , and for which at least two users in the msglist for that cluster have a recvid 332 within the same e - mail domain as the user . otherwise , for a match level to be regarded as medium , there must exist a cluster for which the longest region length is at least 100 characters , and for which there are least two distinct users in the msglist , with no restrictions on domain or other characteristics . otherwise , the match level is to be regarded as low . at step 614 , another set of rules within the user &# 39 ; s set of preferences is applied to the level of match determined at step 612 to determine and carry out the appropriate response . appropriate responses may include automatically deleting the message , altering its appearance in the user &# 39 ; s inbox ( for example by annotating or colorizing it ), storing it in a special folder , etc . for example , if the match level is perfect , the user may indicate that the mail should be automatically deleted ; if the match level is high , the mail should be placed in a special “ probable spam ” folder ; if the match level is medium , the mail summary appearing in the inbox should be colored green , and the message body should be prefixed with a brief explanation of why the message is believed to be closely related to a known instance of undesirable mail . the user &# 39 ; s preferences may also specify particular messages that , regardless of their level of match , are not to be regarded as undesirable ( such as ones sent by their manager or their company &# 39 ; s chief executive officer ). optionally , if an undesirable message has been discovered , then at step 616 the master signature database may be updated with information about the new instance of the undesirable message . the update may occur upon discovery , or alternatively may occur only after the user has confirmed that the message is undesirable . for example , in the case of a perfect match , the information may consist of casedata 328 for the undesirable message ( i . e . the identity of the sender and receiver and the time of receipt ). this information could be extracted locally and then sent to the location of the master signature database , where it would be incorporated . in the case of a high or even a medium level of match , the entire message might be sent to the location of the master signature database , and it would enter the signature extraction phase at step 404 , where an attempt would be made to create a new archetype and place it in an appropriate archetype cluster . now that the invention has been described by way of a preferred embodiment , various modifications and improvements will occur to those of skill in the art . thus , it should be understood that the preferred embodiment is provided as an example and not as a limitation . the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims . | 7 |
fig1 shows a portion of a circuit chip 10 constructed of a plurality of layers 12 ( only two of which are shown for simplicity ) which may include electrically conductive material , and semiconductor material as is employed in the construction of semiconductor circuit chips . assuming , by way of example , that the chip 10 is part of a computer , the chip 10 would include an interconnection of logic circuits such as a cascode current switch circuit 14 providing an output signal via a driver circuit 16 to fan out to a plurality of further logic circuits 18 via a set of electrically conductive metallic strips , or leads 20 , connecting the driver circuit 16 to the logic circuits 18 . the logic circuits 18 and the leads 20 , including capacitance between the leads 20 and metallic material in the layers 12 constitutes a load 22 to be driven by the driver circuit 16 . the capacitive portion of the load 22 requires sufficient power from the driver during both positive and negative transitions of logic signals outputted by the cascode circuit 14 to charge the capacitive portion of the load 22 to enable rapid transmission of logic signals from the driver circuit 16 to the logic circuits 18 . in accordance with the invention , the driver circuit 16 provides for the rapid transmission of logic signals from the cascode circuit 14 to the load 22 while reducing the average power dissipation in the driver circuit 16 . the driver circuit 16 operates with a pair of complementary input logic signals provided by the cascode circuit 14 via lines 24 and 26 , the pair of complementary input logic signals enabling the driver circuit 16 to provide a push - pull function for driving the load 22 with current during both positive and negative transitions in a logic signal . this will be explained in further detail in fig2 . fig2 shows connection of the cascode circuit 14 to the load 22 via the driver circuit 16 , and includes details in the construction of both the cascode circuit 14 and the driver circuit 16 . the cascode circuit 14 is provided as example of a logic circuit providing a pair of complementary output signals suitable for operation of the driver circuit 16 . the cascode circuit 14 is constructed in the manner of a tree with a plurality of branches which fan into a common current source provided by a bipolar transistor 28 having an emitter terminal 30 connected by a resistor 32 to ground 34 . a well - known bias voltage circuit 36 provides dc bias to a base terminal 38 of the transistor 28 for activating the transistor to drive current through the cascode circuit 14 . the collector terminal 40 of the transistor 28 is connected to two branches of the cascode circuit 14 , the two branches being represented by bipolar transistors 42 and 44 . the branch of the transistor 42 divides into a left branch and a right branch , the left branch comprising bipolar transistors 46 and 48 and resistors 50 and 52 . the right branch comprises bipolar transistors 54 and 56 and resistors 58 and 60 . further construction of the branch with the transistor 44 has the same form as the branch with the transistor 42 , and is indicated diagrammatically via dashed line 46 . two input terminals 62 and 64 are provided for the branch of the cascode circuit 14 represented by the transistor 42 , the input terminal 62 being connected to the base terminal of the transistor 42 and the input terminal 64 being connected to the base terminal of the transistor 46 . in operation , the transistors 28 , 42 , 44 , 46 , 54 , 48 and 56 are type npn . the resistors 50 and 52 are connected serially between a source 68 of positive voltage vcc and a junction 70 between the emitter terminal of the transistor 48 and the collector terminal of the transistor 46 . the resistors 50 and 52 form a voltage divider bias circuit with the junction of the resistors 50 and 52 being connected to the base terminal of the transistor 48 to feed base current to the transistor 48 for establishing the quiescent operating current in the transistor 48 during conduction of that branch of the cascode circuit 14 . similarly , the resistors 58 and 60 are connected serially between the source 68 and a junction 72 between the emitter terminal of the transistor 56 and the collector terminal of the transistor 54 . the resistors 58 and 60 form a voltage divider bias circuit with the junction of the resistors 58 and 60 being connected to the base terminal of the transistor 56 to feed base current to the transistor 56 for establishing the quiescent operating current in the transistor 56 during conduction of that branch of the cascode circuit 14 . upon activation of the transistor 28 to pass current through the cascode circuit 14 , the current flows either through the branch of the transistor 42 or the branch of the transistor 44 depending on the presence of gating , or logic , signals to the respective branches . assuming that the voltage applied to the input terminal 62 is high , and that the base terminal of the transistor 44 is supplied with a nominal value of voltage from a bias circuit ( not shown ), all of the current from the transistor 28 flows through the transistor 42 . assuming further that the voltage applied to the input terminal 64 is low , and that the base terminal of the transistor 54 is supplied with a nominal value of voltage from a bias circuit ( not shown ), all of the current from the transistor 28 flows through the transistor 54 and the transistor 56 . output lines 24 and 26 of the cascode circuit 14 connect respectively with the junctions 70 and 72 . a low voltage at terminal 64 , representing a logic - 0 signal , produces a high voltage on line 24 and a low voltage on line 26 . a high voltage at terminal 64 , representing a logic - 1 signal , produces a low voltage on line 24 and a high voltage on line 26 . in accordance with the invention , a preferred embodiment of the driver circuit 16 comprises five npn bipolar transistors 74 , 76 , 78 , 80 and 82 , and three resistors 84 , 86 and 88 . a base terminal of the transistor 74 is connected to line 24 and a base terminal of the transistor 82 is connected to the line 26 for receiving output signals of the cascode circuit 14 . the transistors 74 and 76 are connected serially between the source 68 and a second source 66 of positive voltage vt , with the emitter terminal of the transistor 74 connected via a junction 90 to the collector terminal of the transistor 76 . the voltage vt at source 66 is less than the voltage vcc of source 68 . the collector terminal of the transistor 74 connects with the source 68 , and the emitter terminal of the transistor 76 connects with source 66 . the junction 90 serves as output terminal of the driver circuit 16 and connects with the load 22 . the transistor 76 acts as a load for the transistor 74 . the voltage drop between junction 90 and ground 34 serves as the output voltage of the driver circuit 16 . the transistor 82 and the resistor 88 are connected serially between the source 68 and the source 66 , the collector terminal of the transistor being connected to the source 68 , and the resistor 88 connecting between the emitter terminal of the transistor 82 and the source 66 . the transistor 78 connects at a junction 92 between the transistors 82 and 76 , the collector terminal of the transistor 78 connecting with the emitter terminal of the transistor 82 at the junction 92 , the emitter and base terminals of the transistor 78 connecting with the base terminal of the transistor 76 at a junction 94 . the transistor 80 connects between the base terminal and the collector terminal of the transistor 76 , the collector terminal of the transistor 80 connecting with the base terminal of the transistor 76 at the junction 94 , and the emitter terminal of the transistor 80 connecting with the collector terminal of the transistor 76 at the junction 90 . upon activation of the transistor 74 to induce current flow therein by application of a high voltage to the base terminal thereof , the transistor 82 is deactivated to terminate current therein by application of a low voltage to the base terminal thereof , due to the complementary relationship of the logic signals on lines 24 and 26 . activation of the transistor 82 produces current flow in the resistor 88 with a relatively high voltage drop across the resistor 88 . deactivation of the transistor 82 terminates current flow in the transistor 82 and produces a relatively low voltage across the resistor 88 . the resistors 84 and 86 are connected serially between the source 68 and the junction 94 between the emitter terminal of the transistor 78 and the base terminal of the transistor 76 . this produces a series circuit of the three resistors 84 , 86 and 88 and the transistor 78 between the source 68 and source 66 . this series circuit back biases the transistor 78 during a state of deactivation of the transistor 82 , and also provides a bias voltage , at a junction 96 between the resistors 84 and 86 , for applying base current to the base terminal of the transistor 80 . during a state of deactivation of the transistor 82 , the voltage at the junction 96 back biases the transistor 80 so as to impede forward current flow in the transistor 80 . during a state of activation of the transistor 82 , the falling voltage at the junction 90 biases the transistor 80 in the forward direction so as to induce forward current flow in the transistor 80 . the back - biasing of the transistor 78 induces a relatively high capacitance , as compared to the capacitance during a forward biasing , across the base - collector junction of the transistor 78 . the capacitance induced by the back - biasing of the transistor 78 is represented by capacitor 98 , shown in phantom . in operation , and with reference also to fig3 a and 3b , the three graphs a , b and c show waveforms of the input port 64 , the line 24 and the line 26 , respectively h load capacitance of a picofarads is assumed in the preparation of the graphs of fig3 a and 3b . the reference numerals of fig2 are appended to the waveforms of the respective graphs to facilitate correspondence of a waveform with its location in the circuit of fig2 . upon a negative transition at time t1 in the waveform of graph a of fig3 a , there is a positive transition in the waveform of graph b and a negative transition in the waveform of graph c . if desired , a positive transition in the waveform of line 24 or of line 26 , may be regarded as a leading edge of a pulse of the waveform , and a negative transition in the waveform may be regarded as a trailing edge . shortly after these transitions , at time t2 , the following voltage states are observed . the transistor 82 is deenergized and the junction 92 shows a low voltage ( graph e ) with deactivation of the transistor 76 . the exponential decay of the voltage at the junction 92 results from stray capacitance associated with elements connected to the junction 92 , the decay in voltage arising upon termination of current flow in the transistor 82 . the junction 96 ( graph g ) and the junction 90 ( graph d ) show nearly the same voltage for deactivation of the transistor 80 . the transistor 74 has been activated to urge current through the transistor 76 , the pull - up stage , resulting in a decreased voltage drop across the transistor 74 and an increased voltage drop across the transistor 76 as is evidenced by the high voltage at the junction 90 ( graph d ). it is noticed also that the difference in voltages between the junctions 92 and , 94 is the voltage drop across the capacitor 98 . at this point in the cycle , resistors 84 , 86 , and 88 , and transistors 78 form a current mirror that controls the current in transistor 76 . it can be seen in fig2 that the base - emitter voltage of transistor 76 is equal to the base - collector voltage of transistor 78 plus the negligible voltage drop across resistor 88 . the current in the current mirror is controlled by design to maintain just enough current in transistor 76 to keep it on the verge of activation without wasting power . this feature provides a significant speed advantage in turning on transistor 76 at the next pull - down signal . at time t3 , in fig3 b , the transitions in voltages at the lines 24 and 26 deactivate the transistor 74 and activate the transistor 82 . this increases the voltage drop across the transistor 74 and decreases the voltage drop across the transistor 82 . the sudden increase in voltage at the junction 92 is communicated by the capacitor 98 to the base terminal of the transistor 76 resulting in a surge of base current which activates the transistor 76 to pull down the voltage rapidly at the junction 90 and the load 22 , this being the pull - down stage . the base current provided by the capacitor 98 is in the nature of a short surge , the surge extending only until the capacitor 98 discharges . however , in accordance with a feature of the invention , the duration of the current surge is sufficient to pull down the voltage at the load 22 , and to power the transistor sufficiently to draw current from the capacitive elements of the load 22 to enable a rapid communication of the signal from the input terminal 64 to the load 22 . in order to insure rapid responses of the transistor 76 during successive transitions of the voltages on lines 24 and 26 , it is important to prevent the transistor 76 from going into deep saturation from the application of the base current surge to the transistor 76 . in accordance with a feature of the invention , during the base current surge provided by the capacitor 98 , the falling voltage at junction 90 activates the transistor 80 to conduct excess current from the junction 94 to the junction 90 , and thereby prevent saturation of the transistor 76 . the anti - saturation feature operates as follows . after time t3 , transistor 76 is activated , lowering the voltage at junction 90 . when that voltage drops sufficiently below the voltage at junction 96 , the base - emitter junction of transistor 80 becomes forward biased and transistor 80 begins to conduct . in order to prevent transistor 76 from becoming saturated , its base - collector voltage must not become sufficiently forward biased to turn on . it can be seen in fig3 b that when the voltage at junction 90 is low , the voltage from the base to the collector of transistor 76 equals the forward voltage of the base - emitter junction of transistor 80 minus the voltage drop across resistor 86 . thus , transistor 76 can be kept out of saturation by selecting the appropriate resistance value for resistor 86 . the anti - saturation clamp is self limiting in that any further lowering of the voltage at junction 90 will tend to turn on transistor 80 harder , thereby removing some of the base drive current from transistor 76 at junction 94 and restoring the voltage at junction 90 to its equilibrium value . thereby , the invention has accomplished the objective of communicating a logic signal to a load by use of a push - pull operation while protecting the pull - down transistor 76 from saturation . furthermore , the pull - down transistor 76 is essentially dormant during virtually the complete cycle of the input logic signal at the input terminal 64 so as to minimize power dissipation in the driver circuit 16 , the transistor 76 becoming active with high current and high power only during the momentary current surge of the capacitor 98 , which surge occurs only once per cycle of the input logic signal . also , due to the relatively high impedance presented by the pull - down transistor 76 during its quiescent state , there is relatively little average current flow and power dissipation in the pull - up transistor 74 , high power occurring in the transistor 74 only at the leading edge of the pull - up portion of the outputted waveform at the junction 90 . it is to be understood that the above described embodiment of the invention is illustrative only , and that modifications thereof may occur to those skilled in the art . accordingly , this invention is not to be regarded as limited to the embodiment disclosed herein , but is to be limited only as defined by the appended claims . | 7 |
an embodiment of the invention is described with reference to the figures using reference designations as shown in the figures . referring to fig1 , buried patterned films can be released from bulk silicon . a buried patterned film of silicon dioxide ( sio 2 ) is implanted in bulk silicon . the pattern buried film can be created using convention photomasks disposed on the bulk silicon or by an o + focused ion beam . laser assisted chemical etching about the buried film &# 39 ; starts with first applying a focused laser beam to a volume to be heated about the buried film . referring to fig2 , a laser beam is used to locally heat volumes of bulk silicon about the buried patterned film , and when exposed to an etchant , such as chlorine gas ( cl 2 ), the bulk silicon is etched away forming a cavity about the patterned buried film , and released to expose the buried film and cavity for further processing . referring to fig3 , a laser beam is used to chemically deposit a metal film , such as a platinum ( pt ) layer over the bulk silicon or in a cavity in the preferred form , the laser beam can pass through the silicon dioxide buried film in order to deposit pt in the cavity and below exposed portions of the buried film . as such , the method is used to create a patterned buried film that can then be released with the deposit of metal films about the patterned released film . referring to fig4 , a mask is deposited or placed over bulk silicon . the masks provide apertures through which an o + focused ion beam penetrates for depositing 0 + ions within a predetermined buried volume . the o + ions then combine with the bulk silicon to form the buried patterned layer of sio 2 . referring to fig5 , a scanning focused beam provides energy for localized nucleation of oxygen in the buried films . referring to fig6 , the bulk material is annealed to form an etchable volume . referring to fig7 , a chemical etch can be used to etch the etchable volumes . surviving anneal buried patterns of sio2 remain . the method is a process that utilizes the transmission of the laser light through the layer being released to heat the surface below . this enables the light to enhance the etching of the layer beneath in a fashion that is controlled in all axes and does not cause stiction or damage to the device . the chlorine etch is nonreactive with silicon at room temperatures but readily reacts with a surface that has been laser heated . therefore , the bulk silicon material removed is the heated silicon leaving behind the patterned silicon dioxide and unheated areas of the silicon . the method can be applied to mems / nems by showing that the silicon dioxide transmits the laser light and removes silicon from beneath the oxide mems device . by simultaneously manipulating the chemistry of various vapor phase etches and the laser wavelength , a device can be released from a silicon wafer . this release process relies on the device being transparent , such as sio 2 , to the laser and non - reactive to the gas while the surrounding area is absorptive and readily etches in the gas at elevated temperatures . as such , voids can be written in the silicon wafer around the device , or buried patterned layer . additionally , the method can remove silicon or polysilicon that is buried under the transparent layers , such as sio 2 patterned buried layers . the depth of the material removed depends on the laser power and number of laser passes , so that the process is controllable in three dimensions . by adjusting the laser wavelength to a wavelength that is transmitted by the device material , and the chemistry to an appropriate etch for the release material , the method can be applied to mems / nems materials . the scale of the device released is unaffected by the release process so that nanoscale and microscale devices and can be fabricated and released . the same method of using laser light transmitted through the patterned film can be used to deposit a metal film in the cavity . implant structures can be defined using a focused beam to direct write the embedded oxide or by standard lithographic techniques using thick patterned masks to define areas open to a broad beam implant . the implant depth and thickness is defined by the beam energy and dose respectively . the implant is then annealed to form stoichiometric films imbedded in the wafer . if the implant is not annealed , then the silicon above the imbedded structure is disordered . by manipulating the chemistry of various etches , including but not limited to laser assisted direct write etches , new amorphous alloy or crystalline species can be released from the bulk wafer or open voids in the wafer in the case of disordered areas . this is accomplished by utilizing the different etch rates associated with different materials and different stoichiometries . multiple imbedded layers can be constructed by varying the implant energy to create complex three - dimensional structures . this invention in a first aspect is directed to the creation of buried pattern films using an ion beam , and in a second aspect is directed to laser assisted chemical etching to precisely etch around a buried pattern film , having application to mems and semiconductor fabrication processes . a method is suitable to mass production of mems / nems and semiconductor devices . three - dimensional structures composed of new materials can be made allowing for new chemical species that cannot easily be grown or deposited . due to precise laser assisted chemical etching , the method can be used to fabricate microscale and nanoscale devices limited by the size of the implanted regions . the method can extend the materials used to make mems , to insulators and to conductors , while maintaining the ability to integrate mems devices with standard on - chip microelectronics . the type of bulk substrate used may be expanded to other materials . the method can also be applied to experimentation with materials that have better tribological properties and different electrical and mechanical properties . the process can be performed after packaging to enhance yields and reliability . further , the method can be used to trim silicon masses in resonators and oscillators to provide fine - tuning of parameters such as the operating frequency . different materials can be selected for differing devices . those skilled in the art can make enhancements , improvements , and modifications to the invention , and these enhancements , improvements , and modifications may nonetheless fall within the spirit and scope of the following claims . | 1 |
in one embodiment , the present invention provides methods of improving the aesthetics of a personal care composition which contains a hydrophobic active , comprising combining the hydrophobic active with a surfactant and a first interfacially polymerizable component to form an oil phase , and then reacting the first interfacially polymerizable component with a complementary interfacially polymerizable component , thereby encapsulating the hydrophobic active in a polymer shell . preferred interfacially polymerizable components include diamine and diacid chloride ( to form polyamide ), diamine and di / polysulfonyl chlorides ( to form polysulfonamide ), di / polyol and polyacid chlorides or dicarboxylic acid ( to form polyester ), di / polyol and polychloroformates or phosgene ( to form polycarbonate ), isocyanate and diol ( to form polyurethane ), or diamine and isocyanate ( to form polyurea ). particularly preferred interfacially polymerizable components include diamine and isocyanate . thus , in one embodiment , the present invention provides methods of improving the aesthetics of a personal care composition which contains a hydrophobic active , comprising combining the hydrophobic active with a surfactant and an isocyanate to form an oil phase , and then reacting the isocyanate with an amine , thereby encapsulating the hydrophobic active in a polyurea shell . “ aesthetics ” refers to sensory perceptions , such as appearance , scent , and tactile properties . in one embodiment , the personal care compositions produced by the methods of the present invention demonstrate improved ease of spread and adsorption onto skin . in one embodiment , the personal care compositions produced by the methods of the present invention demonstrate reduced tackiness and greasiness . in one embodiment , the personal care compositions produced by the methods of the present invention demonstrate improved ease of spread , improved adsorption onto skin , reduced tackiness , and reduced greasiness . “ personal care ” relates to compositions to be topically applied to a person ( including mouth , ear , and nasal cavities , but not ingested ). examples of personal care compositions include skin care products ( e . g ., facial cream , moisturizers , leave on and rinse off lotions , sunscreens , foundation , mascara , eye - liner , lipstick , and the like ), oral care products ( such as toothpastes and rinses ), nail care products ( such as polish and conditioners ), and hair care products ( including leave on and rinse off conditioners , styling gels and hairsprays ). “ hydrophobic ,” for purposes of this disclosure , refers to a component that is more soluble in dodecane than in water . such components generally have a log octanol / water partition coefficient greater than 1 . examples may be found in the crc handbook of chemistry & amp ; physics , edited by d . r . linde , crc press , florida , 74th ed . ( 1993 - 94 ), sec . 16 , page 24 et seq . for purposes of this specification , “ actives ” for personal care refers to any component that imparts a primary personal care benefit to a user , as opposed to solely facilitating creation of the formulation itself . thus , for example , water is not an active . examples of personal care actives include typical actives for skin care products ( e . g ., facial cream , moisturizers , leave on and rinse off lotions , sunscreens , foundation , mascara , eye - liner , lipstick , and the like ), oral care products ( such as toothpastes and rinses ), nail care products ( such as polish and conditioners ), and hair care products ( including leave on and rinse off conditioners , styling gels and hairsprays ). the actives should be cosmetically acceptable . “ cosmetically acceptable ” refers to ingredients typically used in personal care compositions , and is intended to underscore that materials that are toxic when present in the amounts typically found in personal care compositions are not contemplated as part of the present invention . in one embodiment , the hydrophobic active is a moisturizer , emollient , sunscreen , conditioner , vitamin , dye , flavor , or fragrance . in a preferred embodiment , the hydrophobic active is a sunscreen . examples of sunscreens include paraminobenzoic acid , avobenzone , cinoxate , dioxybenzone , homosalate , menthyl anthranilate , octocrylene , octyl methoxycinnamate , octyl salicylate , oxybenzone , padimate o , phenylbenzimidazole sulfonic acid , sulisobenzone , trolamine salicylate , titanium dioxide and zinc oxide , diethanolamine methoxycinnamate , digalloy trioleate , ethyl dihydroxypropyl paba , glyceryl aminobenzoate , lawsone with dihydroxy acetone , and red petrolatum . preferably , the hydrophobic active is octyl methoxycinnamate . other examples of actives include antibacterial compounds ( e . g . triclosan ) in toothpaste , polyphenols , flavinoids and isoflavinoids , coenzyme q10 and derivatives thereof , carotene and derivatives thereof , salicylic acid and derivatives thereof , dehydroepiandrosterone ( dhea ), hydrophobic polysaccharides , proteins , including enzymes and peptides , and botanicals . vitamins include vitamin a and esters thereof , vitamin d and derivatives thereof , vitamins b3 and b5 and derivatives thereof , vitamin e and esters thereof , vitamin f and derivatives thereof , and vitamin k . dyes include liposoluble dyes , such as sudan red , dc red 17 , dc green 6 , β - carotene , soybean oil , sudan brown , dc yellow 11 , dc violet 2 , dc orange 5 , and quinoline yellow . flavors include flavor oils , such as peppermint , wintergreen , citrus , fruit , vanilla , and cinnamon . most flavors are hydrophobic , and thus contemplated . fragrances include any component which provides a pleasant scent . examples include scents that are floral , ambery , woody , leather , chypre , fougère , musk , vanilla , fruit , and / or citrus . fragrances are often oils obtained by extraction of natural substances or synthetically produced . in one embodiment , the fragrance is one of the essential oils . in one embodiment , the isocyanate is at least one of diphenylmethane diisocyanate ( mdi ), polymeric mdi , polymethylene polyphenyl isocyanate ( papi ), toluene diisocyanate ( tdi ), isophorone diisocyanate ( ipdi ), 1 , 4 - phenylene diisocyanate , or hexamethylene diisocyanate ( hdi ). in a preferred embodiment , the isocyanate is papi 27 polymethylene polyphenyl isocyanate that contains mdi , available from the dow chemical company . in one embodiment , the surfactant is an anionic , nonionic , or cationic surfactant , provided that it does not react with isocyanate . in one embodiment , the surfactant is a mixture of surfactants . in one embodiment , the surfactant is a nonionic surfactant , preferably polyoxyethylene lauryl ether . in one embodiment , the method further comprises emulsifying the oil phase . in one embodiment , the method further comprises emulsifying the oil phase with water . in one embodiment , the method further comprises emulsifying the oil phase with water and a preservative . the oil phase is emulsified under shear . it should be understood that in embodiments where water is present , the amine can result from conversion of some isocyanate to amine upon contact with water . alternatively , in a preferred embodiment , the amine is a separately added component . in one embodiment , the amine is first combined with water . thus , in one embodiment , the step of reacting the isocyanate with an amine includes first combining an amine with water and then adding this mixture to the emulsion incrementally with mixing . in one embodiment , the amine is a multifunctional amine . preferably , the amine is ethylene diamine . the amount of isocyanate depends upon the desired encapsulated particle size and shell thickness , which can be determined from the following formulae : v s is the volume attributable to the shell ( volume of isocyanate plus a stoichiometric amount of amine ( if the amine is a separately added component )); v c is the core volume attributable to the oil phase ; d mean is volume average particle size ( measured by light scattering ); and preferably , for particles less than 4 μm , a shell thickness of greater than 10 nm is required . preferably , for particles greater than 10 μm , a shell thickness of greater than 100 nm is required . in another embodiment , the present invention provides methods of improving the aesthetics of a personal care composition which contains a hydrophobic active , comprising combining the hydrophobic active with a surfactant and an isocyanate to form an oil phase , emulsifying the oil phase with water , combining a multifunctional amine with water , and reacting the isocyanate with the amine , thereby encapsulating the hydrophobic active in a polyurea shell . in yet another embodiment , the present invention provides methods of improving ease of spread , improving adsorption onto skin , reducing tackiness , and reducing greasiness of a personal care composition which contains a hydrophobic active , comprising combining the hydrophobic active with a surfactant and an isocyanate to form an oil phase , emulsifying the oil phase with water , combining a multifunctional amine with water , and reacting the isocyanate with the amine by adding the amine and water mixture to the emulsion incrementally with mixing , thereby encapsulating the hydrophobic active in a polyurea shell . other optional ingredients for personal care compositions of the present invention include cosmetically acceptable emollients , sunscreens , surfactants , emulsifiers , preservatives , rheology modifiers , colorants , preservatives , ph adjustors , propellants , reducing agents , fragrances , foaming agents , tanning agents , depilatory agents , flavors , astringents , antiseptics , deodorants , antiperspirants , insect repellants , bleaches , lighteners , anti - dandruff agents , adhesives , polishes , strengtheners , fillers , barrier materials , or biocides . the moisturizers include 2 - pyrrolidone - 5 - carboxylic acid and its salts and esters , alkyl glucose alkoxylates or their esters , fatty alcohols , fatty esters , glycols and , in particular , methyl glucose ethoxylates or propoxylates and their stearate esters , isopropyl myristate , lanolin or cetyl alcohols , aloe , silicones , propylene glycol , glycerol and sorbitol . conditioners include stearalkonium chloride , dicetyldimonium chloride , lauryl methyl gluceth - 10 hydroxypropyldimonium chloride , and conditioning polymers such as polyquaternium - 10 , polyquaternium - 24 and chitosan and derivatives thereof . examples of oils include hydrocarbon - based oils of animal origin , such as squalene , hydrocarbon - based oils of plant origin , such as liquid triglycerides of fatty acids comprising from 4 to 10 carbon atoms , for instance heptanoic or octanoic acid triglycerides , or alternatively , oils of plant origin , for example sunflower oil , corn oil , soybean oil , marrow oil , grapeseed oil , sesame seed oil , hazelnut oil , apricot oil , macadamia oil , arara oil , coriander oil , castor oil , avocado oil , jojoba oil , shea butter oil , or caprylic / capric acid triglycerides , miglyol 810 , 812 and 818 ( from dynamit nobel ), synthetic esters and ethers , especially of fatty acids , for instance the oils of formulae r 1 coor 2 and r 1 or 2 in which r 1 represents a fatty acid residue comprising from 8 to 29 carbon atoms and r 2 represents a branched or unbranched hydrocarbon - based chain comprising from 3 to 30 carbon atoms , for instance purcellin oil , isononyl isononanoate , isopropyl myristate , 2 - ethylhexyl palmitate , 2 - octyldodecyl stearate , 2 - octyldodecyl erucate or isostearyl isostearate , hydroxylated esters , for instance isostearyl lactate , octyl hydroxystearate , octyldodecyl hydroxystearate , diisostearyl malate , triisocetyl citrate and fatty alcohol heptanoates , octanoates and decanoates , polyol esters , for instance propylene glycol dioctanoate , neopentyl glycol diheptanoate and diethylene glycol diisononanoate , pentaerythritol esters , for instance pentaerythrityl tetraisostearate , lipophilic derivatives of amino acids , such as isopropyl lauroyl sarcosinate , such as is sold under the name eldew sl 205 ( from ajinomoto ), linear or branched hydrocarbons of mineral or synthetic origin , such as mineral oils ( mixtures of petroleum - derived hydrocarbon - based oils ), volatile or non - volatile liquid paraffins , and derivatives thereof , petroleum jelly , polydecenes , isohexadecane , isododecane , hydrogenated isoparaffin ( or polyisobutene ), silicone oils , for instance volatile or non - volatile polymethylsiloxanes ( pdms ) comprising a linear or cyclic silicone chain , which are liquid or pasty at room temperature , especially cyclopolydimethylsiloxanes ( cyclomethicones ) such as cyclopentasiloxane and cyclohexadimethylsiloxane , polydimethylsiloxanes comprising alkyl , alkoxy or phenyl groups , which are pendent or at the end of a silicone chain , these groups comprising from 2 to 24 carbon atoms , phenyl silicones , for instance phenyl trimethicones , phenyl dimethicones , phenyltrimethylsiloxydiphenylsiloxanes , diphenyl dimethicones , diphenylmethyldiphenyltrisiloxanes 2 - phenylethyltrimethyl siloxysilicates and polymethylphenylsiloxanes , fluoro oils such as partially hydrocarbon - based and / or partially silicone - based fluoro oils , ethers such as dicaprylyl ether ( ctfa name : dicaprylyl ether ), and c 12 - c 15 fatty alcohol benzoates ( finsolv tn from finetex ), mixtures thereof . oils include mineral oil , lanolin oil , coconut oil and derivatives thereof , cocoa butter , olive oil , almond oil , macadamia nut oil , aloe extracts such as aloe vera lipoquinone , jojoba oils , safflower oil , corn oil , liquid lanolin , cottonseed oil , peanut oil , hydrogenated vegetable oil , squalane , castor oil , polybutene , sweet almond oil , avocado oil , calophyllum oil , ricin oil , vitamin e acetate , olive oil , silicone oils such as dimethylopolysiloxane and cyclomethicone , linolenic alcohol , oleyl alcohol , and the oil of cereal germs . other suitable emollients include dicaprylyl ether , c 12 - 15 alkyl benzoate , dc 200 fluid 350 silicone fluid ( from dow corning corp . ), isopropyl palmitate , octyl palmitate , isopropyl myristate , hexadecyl stearate , butyl stearate , decyl oleate , acetyl glycerides , the octanoates and benzoates of c 12 - 15 alcohols , the octanoates and decanoates of alcohols and polyalcohols such as those of glycol and glyceryl , ricinoleates esters such as isopropyl adipate , hexyl laurate and octyl dodecanoate , dicaprylyl maleate , phenyltrimethicone , and aloe vera extract . solid or semi - solid cosmetic emollients include glyceryl dilaurate , hydrogenated lanolin , hydroxylated lanolin , acetylated lanolin , petrolatum , isopropyl lanolate , butyl myristate , cetyl myristate , myristyl myristate , myristyl lactate , cetyl alcohol , isostearyl alcohol and isocetyl lanolate . in some embodiments , the personal care composition further comprises an optional rheology modifier as a thickener . examples of thickeners include polymers , for example , modified or unmodified carboxyvinyl polymers , such as the products sold under the names carbopol and pemulen ( inci name : acrylates / c 10 - 30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer ; available from noveon ), polyacrylates and polymethacrylates , such as the products sold under the names lubrajel and norgel ( from guardian ) or hispagel ( from hispano chimica ), polyacrylamides , 2 - acrylamido - 2 - methylpropanesulfonic acid polymers and polymers , which are optionally crosslinked and / or neutralized , for instance the poly ( 2 - acrylamido - 2 - methylpropane - sulfonic acid ) sold by clariant ( inci name : ammonium polyacryldimethyltauramide ), emulsified crosslinked anionic polymers of acrylamide and amps , such as those sold under the name sepigel 305 ( inci name : polyacrylamide / c13 - 14 isoparaffin / laureth - 7 ; from seppic ) and under the name simulgel 600 ( inci name : acrylamide / sodium acryloyldimethyltaurate polymer / isohexadecane / polysorbate 80 ; from seppic ), polysaccharide biopolymers , for instance xanthan gum , guar gum , carob gum , acacia gum , scleroglucans , chitin and chitosan derivatives , carrageenans , gellans , alginates , celluloses such as microcrystalline cellulose , carboxymethylcellulose , hydroxymethylcellulose and hydroxypropylcellulose , associative polymers , for instance associative polyurethanes , polymers comprising at least two hydrocarbon - based lipophilic chains comprising from 6 to 30 carbon atoms , separated with a hydrophilic sequence , such as the polyurethanes sold under the names serad fx1010 , serad fx1100 and serad fx1035 ( from hüls america ), rheolate 255 , rheolate 278 and rheolate 244 ( inci name : polyether - urea - polyurethane ; from rheox ), dw 1206f , dw 1206j , dw 1206b , dw 1206g , and acrysol rm 2020 ( from röhm & amp ; haas ). colorants include pigments , which are used especially in make - up , including metal oxide pigments , titanium dioxide , optionally surface - treated , zirconium oxide or cerium oxide , zinc oxide , iron oxide ( black , yellow or red ), chromium oxide , manganese violet , ultramarine blue , chromium hydrate and ferric blue , carbon black , pigments of barium , strontium , calcium or aluminum ( for example d & amp ; c or fd & amp ; c ), cochineal carmine , mica coated with titanium or with bismuth oxychloride , titanium mica with iron oxides , titanium mica with , especially , ferric blue or chromium oxide , titanium mica with an organic pigment , nacreous pigments based on bismuth oxychloride , goniochromatic pigments , for example pigments with a multilayer interference structure , reflective pigments , for example particles with a silver - coated glass substrate , glass substrate coated with nickel / chromium / molybdenum alloy , glass substrate coated with brown iron oxide , particles comprising a stack of at least two polymer layers , for instance mirror glitter ( from 3m ). dyes include water - soluble dyes such as copper sulfate , iron sulfate , water - soluble sulfopolyesters , rhodamines , natural dyes , for instance carotene and beetroot juice , methylene blue , caramel , the disodium salt of tartrazine and the disodium salt of fuschin , and mixtures thereof . liposoluble dyes from the list above may also optionally be used . preservatives include alcohols , aldehydes , methylchloroisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone , p - hydroxybenzoates , and in particular methylparaben , propylparaben , glutaraldehyde and ethyl alcohol . the ph adjustors , include inorganic and organic acids and bases and in particular aqueous ammonia , citric acid , phosphoric acid , acetic acid , and sodium hydroxide . fragrances may be aldehydes , ketones , or oils obtained by extraction of natural substances or synthetically produced as described above . often , fragrances are accompanied by auxiliary materials , such as fixatives , extenders , stabilizers and solvents . biocides include antimicrobials , bactericides , fungicides , algaecides , mildicides , disinfectants , antiseptics , and insecticides . the amount of optional ingredients effective for achieving the desired property provided by such ingredients can be readily determined by one skilled in the art . the following examples are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . all percentages are by weight unless otherwise specified . exemplary encapsulated hydrophobic actives of the present invention contain the components recited in table 1 . the a components are mixed . the b component is emulsified , for example , using a silverson model l4rta with a 2¼ inch high shear emulsification head . a is slowly added to b while mixing , for example , at 1000 - 1500 rpm . the mixing speed is then increased until the droplet size is about 0 . 5 microns less than desired final particle size , this speed hereinafter referred to as “ the desired - droplet - rate .” then , c is added dropwise at a mixing speed 1000 - 2000 rpm below the desired - droplet - rate (“ the c - mixing - rate ”). the mixing speed is then lowered again to a relatively slow speed , and the mixture is stirred for 3 - 4 minutes , after which the mixing speed is increased back to the c - mixing - rate , and d , e , and f are added . afterwards , the mixture is stirred for 3 - 4 minutes , this composition comprising omc particles encapsulated with an interfacially polymerized shell . an exemplary sunscreen base contains the components recited in table 2 . a is combined and placed in an oven at about 80 ° c . until the solid ingredients have dissolved . then , a is removed from the oven and cooled to below about 40 ° c . b is combined , and then a and b are combined , preferably homogenized , such as by using an ika mixer . formulations made substantially according to the protocols described above in examples 1 and 2 were made and combined as recited in table 3 , along with a comparative component , to afford sunscreen compositions : ten panelists applied 0 . 05 g of each sample to a designated area on their right or left forearms . initially , each sample was evaluated for ease of spread , adsorption onto skin , slip , tackiness , greasiness , moist feel , and overall skin feel , and then again after one hour for moist feel , greasiness , skin smoothness , and skin softness , and overall skin feel . the evaluation scale was 0 - 10 , with 10 being the best . for these criteria , the sample according to the present invention ( batch 4 ) performed as well or better than the comparative sample ( batch 3 ) with the exception of initial moist feel , as shown in table 4 . in addition , when asked to rank the samples as better , worse , or the same , instead of using numbers , the panelists collectively found that the sample according to the present invention ( batch 4 ) performed as well or better than the comparative sample ( batch 3 , hereinafter , control ) in all categories , as shown in table 5 ( numbers indicate number of panelists ranking the sample in the category ). it is understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments specifically disclosed and exemplified herein . various modifications of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art . such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims . moreover , each recited range includes all combinations and subcombinations of ranges , as well as specific numerals contained therein . additionally , the disclosures of each patent , patent application , and publication cited or described in this document are hereby incorporated herein by reference , in their entireties . | 0 |
the invention provides an improved method and apparatus for bottom pouring ingots of different heights from a common sprue . a gate placed in a location on one or more conduits between the sprue mold prevents continual flow of molten metal to an ingot mold . the gate operates by pushing a plug laterally into a conduit to effectively block flow of molten metal . referring to the figure , sprue 10 is used to bottom fill short ingot mold 12 with molten metal by directing molten metal through conduit 14 and openings 16 and 18 . gate 20 is provided for stopping flow of molten metal through conduit 14 . conduit 14 is advantageously constructed of castable ceramic preforms that are supported by steel plate 22 . initially , during bottom pouring of ingots , metal flows uninterrupted from common sprue 10 through conduit 14 into openings 16 and 18 of ingot mold 12 . gate 20 provides the ability to stop flow to short ingot mold 12 when short ingot 12 is full while simultaneously continuing to fill a taller ingot mold . gate 20 operates by depressing lever arm 24 which pushes vertical shaft 26 into plug 28 and seal 30 . advantageously , lever arm 24 has a length of at least 1 m to facilitate application of force on plug 28 . plug 28 is depressed laterally or orthoganally into conduit 14 to stop flow of molten metal in a location between sprue 10 and ingot 12 . most advantageously , plug 28 is depressed vertically into conduit 14 to provide an effective force against molten metal that is supported by the ground or floor structure . seal 30 is advantageously constructed of a moldable ceramic material which completely lines the inner wall of conduit 14 . most advantageously , seal 30 is shaped to the internal dimensions of conduit 14 to prevent obstruction of flowing metal . as lever arm 24 is depressed , seal 30 is broken and plug 28 moves laterally in conduit 14 to block flow of metal . conduit 14 is most advantageously modified by adding an upwardly projecting extension of ceramic support section 32 supported by steel cylinder 34 . support section 32 acts as a sleeve to guide plug 28 into conduit 14 . the spacing between support section 32 and plug 28 must be small enough to provide a seal upon eventual freezing of metal . the selection of material for plug 28 is critical to the successful operation of gate 20 . when a steel plug was used , the plug over - chilled the molten metal freezing the plug prior to blocking flow of molten metal . over - chilling caused a film of metal between plug 28 and support section 32 to freeze with sufficient strength to prevent plug 28 from being forced into the channel of conducit 14 . it has been discovered that when plug 28 is constructed of a nonmetallic material , over - chilling is not a problem . advantageously , plug 28 is selected from the group consisting of carbon , graphite and ceramic . most advantageously , a reusable graphite plug is used that may be chipped away from mold metal after cooling . advantageously , plug 28 is constructed of a circular cross - section and a flat bottom . most advantageously , conduit 14 is specifically shaped to receive a cylindrically shaped plug . furthermore , clearance between the plug and the conduit is advantageously less than 1 mm to prevent bypassing of molten metal . the seal material also aids in stopping the flow of metal . optionally , metal shot ( not illustrated in fig1 ) may be placed above section 32 to provide a safety mechanism to freeze leaks between plug 28 and section 32 . in test operations , it has been found that steel shot is not required . advantageously , support base 36 is used to support lever arm 24 . support base 36 is preferably constructed out of a u - shaped steel beam . alternatively , any support structure may be used to support shaft 26 . most advantageously , guide 38 is used to position shaft 26 in a vertical position . guide 38 may extend the entire length of shaft 26 to provide additional stiffening . if additional structural support is required , a steel beam may be connected between steel cylinder 34 and support base 36 . advantageously , driver disk 40 is used to ensure alignment between plug 28 and shaft 26 . pin 42 is optionally used to prevent premature fracture of seal 30 . pin 42 is preferably positioned high on shaft 26 to facilitate access from a walkway above ingots . advantageously , a rope or wire may be connected to pin 42 for removing pin 42 from a remote location . an adjustable pivot base 44 , mounted on support base 36 , provides a pivotable connection for lever arm 24 . lever arm 24 rotates around pivot bolt 46 . pivot bolt 46 may be placed through various adjustment holes 48 to ensure that driver structure 50 aligns properly with receiving surface 52 . most advantageously , cylindrical extension 54 is used to provide additional downward force . most advantageously , extension 54 extends to a walkway position above the height of the lowest ingot to be poured to allow an operator to visually determine when the lowest ingot is full . for example , extension 54 may extend about 3 meters upwardly so that flow of metal to ingots may be visually monitored and controlled from a walkway above all ingots . for systems having multiple ingots of varied heights a gate may be placed on each runner conduit that leads to an ingot . furthermore , one gate may be used to stop flow to two or more ingots connected by a single runner conduit . alternatively , a shaft may be divided with a horizontal splitter to simultaneously operate two gates by depressing two plugs simultaneously into a conduit . a horizontal splitter arrangement is especially effective for simultaneously blocking flow of metal through two radially extending conduits . in summary , the gate design of the invention provides several advantages for bottom pouring operations . the design of the invention provides a single gate that may be used with ingots having multiple inlets . the gate provides a quick , flexible and reusable device for simplified bottom pouring open top ingot molds having different heights . the plug of the gate travels a relatively short distance prior to blocking flow of molten metal . furthermore , the distance a plug is depressed to prevent flow remains constant and is directly proportional to the diameter of conduit used and is not related to the size , shape or type of ingot mold used . finally , the apparatus of the invention provides a gate less prone to damage from run - outs and overhead crane operators . while in accordance with the provisions of the statute , there is illustrated and described herein specific embodiments of the invention . those skilled in the art will understand that changes may be made in the form of the invention covered by the claims and the certain features of the invention may sometimes be used to advantage without a corresponding use of the other features . | 1 |
referring to fig1 , a dispenser 10 is shown and has a housing 12 on which are mounted one or more , in this instance two , but could be as many as twelve or more dispensing devices 14 and 18 . these devices may dispense one or more different products , be it drink , beverage , beer , or frozen products , by way of example and not limitation . the dispensing devices 14 and 18 are , of course , connected to one or more sources of product and say , for example , additional flavorings , and could include a drink dispenser nozzle ( such as 64 of fig2 ) and a flavor mixing device ( such as 100 of fig2 ). these components 64 and 100 could be separate or integrated and also separate and / or integral with the consumer interface as will be later described with reference to fig4 a to 4 d and 5 . the dispenser 10 may have other functions , which will be further discussed with respect to fig2 . the housing 12 as shown has a drip tray 19 on its front below the dispensing devices 14 and 18 . the dispenser 10 , in this instance has a customer interface or controller 20 . in this instance , the controller 20 is in the form of a joystick , having a base 26 and at least one movable lever or joystick 28 . of course , additional control buttons such as a “ gun ” button 29 on the top and / or on sides of the joystick 28 could be provided . it should be understood that this controller 20 could be provided with additional functions buttons such as triggers , as is known for game controllers . while the controller could be mounted directly on to the dispenser housing 12 , in this instance , it is cable connected , as is illustrated by cable 30 . the cable 30 connects to a control unit or box 34 which could be of any type , including analog , digital or microprocessor type . the dispensing devices , in this instance 14 and 18 , and particularly the valves thereof are connected by wiring 40 and 42 to the control box 34 so that manipulation of the controllers , via the control box 34 , controls the operation of the dispensing devices 14 and 18 . referring now to fig2 , the dispenser 10 , may have multiple functions which can be controlled by the controller 20 . for example if the dispenser 10 , were for frozen carbonated beverage , it would have a co 2 source 50 , a syrup source or sources 54 , and a water source 58 . these three ingredients would be directly or indirectly sent to a freezer chamber , such as a barrel , 60 and hence on demand and under operator control , via the controller 20 , to a dispense nozzle 64 . if desired , additional flavoring may be provided . in fig2 by way of example , three additional flavors 70 , 72 and 74 are shown . of course it should be understood that there could be additional products ; there could also be additional flavors . the flavors are dispensed by , in this instance , a pump or plurality of pumps 76 , 78 and 80 , through proportional solenoids 82 , 84 and 86 . these solenoids prevent dripping and assure consistent metering of the flavors . the flavors then flow via lines 90 , 92 , and 94 , to a mixing device , flavor injector , or diametric valve 100 to join the main product flow from the dispensing nozzle 64 . this construction is similar to either dispensing device 14 or 18 , and the product and flavor selected are dispensed into a cup or container 116 . the cup can rest upon a platform or turntable 118 which can rotate , say fast , slow or anywhere in between , and can be raised or lowered as indicated by the arrow 119 off of a surface 121 . one or more or all of the above operations can be controlled via the control box 34 and the operator controller 20 . further , the control box 34 may be fitted with and / or used to control a card , such as debit or credit , coin or money ( bills ) operated or vending control 120 . see fig8 to 11 . additionally various game type video displays and / or audio 124 could be provided , with one or more functions thereof controlled by the controller 20 . for example , the dispenser 10 could be fitted with a video monitor 125 ( see fig1 ) on which beverage dispensing functions and / or video games and audio could be played and / or displayed . referring to fig3 , various type controllers 20 are shown for use with the dispenser described . for example instead of the joystick with multiple buttons shown at 20 a ( or similar to fig4 c ), a touch screen or pad 20 b , or a “ game pad ” 20 c , or steering wheel 20 d , or other type controller could be used . the control box 34 and controller 20 can control the flavor addition or injection through , say relays 130 , 132 , 134 and 136 , in this instance there being four flavors source capable of being added . the controller 20 can control or operate the game displays on the monitor 125 , and game audio 140 , the coin or card operated vend 144 , the up - down , rotate either direction , turn table mechanism 148 and / or the dispense device , such as 14 , 18 or and valve 64 . as to the vend unit 144 , it could also feature a card slot 144 a opening accessible from the exterior of the dispenser ( see fig8 to 11 ) to receive ( indicated by the dashed line ) a vend / credit / debit type card 144 b to cause the dispenser to be put into operation to dispense . the hardware / software to accomplish this task while not generally known in this type dispenser art , would be known to a person skilled in the vending machine art . note each product dispensed in the dispenser shown in fig8 and 9 has its own card slot . alternative , slots 144 a could receive coins or dollars , or all these , coins , dollars or various cards . for example , the card could be a premium card given away free or at a discount to encourage usage or visitation to the established housing the dispenser . the dispenser in fig1 and 11 show a single slot 144 a which would operate both or all products , and could , if desired , accommodate one or more of coins , bills and cards , such as card 144 b . additional type controllers are shown in fig4 a to 4 h . they are 4 a , 4 b , 4 e and 4 g multiple button , 4 c , 4 f and 4 h joystick and 4 d lever or tiller . the fig4 a design 160 features multiple flavor buttons 170 , 172 , 174 and 176 and electronic activation of flavors . the flavor selection buttons can be illuminated . the flow of dispensed product can be activated by pushing or pulling of the pivotable handle 178 . a single housing can be used for both this customer interface and flavor injector 100 . variable flow rates can be achieved with either the position of the handle 178 or the pressing of one of the buttons . the fig4 b design 162 has multiple flavors selection by flavor buttons 180 , 182 , 184 , 186 and 188 , the flavor being selected with the rotary style selection device 190 . there is electronic activation of flavors . the flavor selection button can be illuminated . product dispense is activated by push of “ go ” button 191 . again , a single housing 189 can be provided for interface and flavor injector . the fig4 c design 164 has multiple flavors selection when the joystick is pressed toward a flavor selection button . flavor flow rate can be joystick 210 variable . if a flavor button 192 , 194 , 194 , 196 , 198 , 200 , 202 , 204 , or 206 is selected before flavors are , then joystick 210 direction would add flavors and change flow rate based on position from the resting point to the outer location . a flavor is selected when the joystick is pushed to the flavor location and electronic identification is made . there is electronic activation of flavors . again , flavor selection can be illuminated . product can be electronically dispensed or activated by push of joystick button 212 . again , a single housing for interface and flavor injector can be provided . variable flow rates can be achieved with either the position of the joystick or the use of one of the buttons . the fig4 d design 166 features multiple flavor that can be selected via flavor buttons 220 , 222 , 224 , 226 and 228 . flavors can stay illuminated when multiple flavors are selected . flavors are being selected by pivoting a flavor control lever 231 on the fixed wheel rim 232 . again there is electronic activation of flavors . the active flavor is magnified by lens in flavor selection magnifier 236 . the product dispensed can be activated by pushing a “ go ” button 240 . again , a single housing for interface and flavor injector can be provided . variable product flow rates can be achieved with either the position of the joystick or the deflection of a button . controllers 260 and 280 shown in fig4 e and 4g , respectively , are similar , with the former being connected to its associated dispenser by a cable 261 and with the latter mounted on the dispenser 263 d . with these controllers the buttons can be used either to dispense a beverage , be it drink , beer , frozen carbonated beverage or other type or to operate one or more video games and / or video displays . for example , one of the buttons , say button 262 or 282 can be used to select the dispense / video , game , audio options . for example , buttons 263 and 283 can be used to control any one or more of eight different flavor selections . for example , the various flavors could also be selected by using buttons 265 or 285 , 266 or 286 , 267 or 287 , 268 or 288 , or the small joystick button 269 or 289 . once a flavor is selected , the beverage and selected flavor is dispensed by pushing one of the buttons 270 or 290 . thus , in one mode of button 262 or 282 the other of these buttons are used to dispense a flavored beverage , and in another mode of button 262 or 282 the other buttons can be used to play a game , say a video game . further , alternatively , joystick type buttons 269 a and 269 b or 289 a and 289 b could be each used to dispense a first set of four flavors ( 269 a or 289 a ) and a second set of four flavors ( 269 b or 289 b ). controllers 300 and 320 shown in fig4 f and 4h , respectively , are similar with the former being connected to its associated dispenser by a cable 301 and with the latter mounted on its associated dispenser , partially shown in fig4 h as 301 d . in these controllers the buttons can be used either to dispense a beverage , be it drink , beer , frozen carbonated beverage or other type beverage or to operate one or more video games and / or audio displays . for example , one of the buttons , say button 302 or 322 can be used to select the dispense / game / audio options . for example , buttons 305 and 325 and 308 and 328 can be used to control any one or more of different flavor selections . for example , the various flavors could also be selected by using buttons 306 or 326 , 307 or 327 , 308 or 328 , or the joystick 312 or 332 or button 309 or 329 . once a flavor is selected , the drink beverage and selected flavor is dispensed by pushing one of the two triggers or buttons 310 or 330 . thus , in one mode of button and device 302 to 312 ( fig4 f ) or 322 to 332 ( fig4 h ), the other of these buttons are used to dispense a flavored beverage and in another mode the other buttons can be used to play a game , say a video game , or audio output . optionally , these devices could connect with a video monitor . all the devices in fig4 a to 4 h could , if desired , have similar or other functions . fig5 shows a dispenser 10 ′ similar to dispenser 10 , except instead of having the separate joystick controller 20 of fig1 , it has two of the interfaces 164 , using joysticks like that shown in fig4 c . of course , any of the interfaces or controllers shown herein , such as like 160 , 162 , 164 or 166 shown in fig4 a , 4b , 4 d , 4 g or 4 h could be directly mounted onto the dispenser 10 ′, and preferably over a respective dispensing devices 14 and 18 , each including a dispenser nozzle ( like 64 ) and flavor mixer ( like 100 ). as is shown , the nozzles 64 are connected to the control box 34 by wires 40 and 42 , while the interfaces in controller 164 are connected by wiring or cables 30 and 30 ′ ( in this instance cables 30 and 30 ′ would be when installed interior of the dispenser housing ). again , a video monitor 125 for displaying games , audio output and / or dispenser operation may be optionally fitted , either as a built in for a new dispenser unit or retrofitted to an existing dispenser . other features could be controlled , such as selecting a carbonated or non - carbonated drink and / or the levels of carbonation by the controller 20 or one of the interfaces or controllers of fig4 a to 4 h , fig6 and 7 . referring to fig6 , another style controller 400 is disclosed which could be connected by cable ( not shown ) or built into the dispenser ( not shown ). in this dispenser 400 , one of the buttons 404 could be used to dispense one or more , of say four flavors , the button 408 could be used to dispense the beverage product . a button 410 could be used to cancel initial selections . referring to fig7 , yet another joystick style controller 460 is disclosed which could be connected by a cable ( not shown ) or built into the dispenser ( not shown ). in this controller 460 , for example , moving the joystick 464 could select one of several , say eight or more flavors , while squeezing the trigger 468 could cancel a previous selection , and squeezing the handle 470 , could dispense the flavored product . while various button / trigger assignments were made above with respect to the disclosed controllers , their functions could of course be switched or swapped from the disclosed buttons / triggers to others . for example , the function of button 404 or 408 could be swapped . referring to fig8 , an existing dispenser 500 is shown retrofitted with two controllers 504 and 508 similar to that shown in fig4 g or fig6 . a video monitor ( not shown ) could , if desired , be also retrofitted . referring to fig9 , a dispenser 520 is shown retrofitted with two controllers 524 and 528 similar to that shown in fig7 . again a video monitor ( not shown ), optionally , could , if desired , also be retrofitted . referring to fig1 , a dispenser 540 is shown , fitted with two controllers 544 and 548 along with a video monitor 552 flat screen or cathode ray , built into the dispenser housing 556 . referring to fig1 , another dispenser 560 is shown fitted with one of two controllers 564 , the other not yet having been installed or plugged in yet into the controller receiving socket 566 . as noted , the controllers and dispenser could be of a modular construction permitting easy changeout for repair or even change of controller style . again , a video monitor 568 is built into the dispenser housing 570 . as shown in fig8 - 11 , the dispensers can be provided with a slot 144 a , which could accommodate ( insertion being indicated by the dashed line ) a coin or dollar bill or debit / credit or other card 144 b to initial operation of the unit . if coin or money in bill form is provided , a coin return / refund system and slot ( not shown ), could be provided . it should also be understood that the game type controller be it of the separate cable attached type or type mounted on the dispenser , could be incorporated into new dispensers and / or retrofitted to existing dispensers . also the nozzle and flavor mix valve ( such as 64 and 100 ) could be separate parts or integrated together , and in the latter case also integrated with a direct mount type interface , such as is shown , for example , in any of fig4 a and / or 4 d , or other figures of the drawings . | 1 |
as used herein , the term “ cleaning composition ” includes , unless otherwise indicated , granular or powder - form all - purpose or “ heavy - duty ” washing agents , especially laundry detergents ; liquid , gel or paste - form all - purpose washing agents , especially the so - called heavy - duty liquid types ; liquid fine - fabric detergents ; hand dishwashing agents or light duty dishwashing agents , especially those of the high - foaming type ; machine dishwashing agents , including the various tablet , granular , liquid and rinse - aid types for household and institutional use ; liquid cleaning and disinfecting agents , including antibacterial hand - wash types , laundry bars , mouthwashes , denture cleaners , car or carpet shampoos , bathroom cleaners ; hair shampoos and hair - rinses ; shower gels and foam baths and metal cleaners ; as well as cleaning auxiliaries such as bleach additives and “ stain - stick ” or pre - treat types . as used herein , the phrase “ is independently selected from the group consisting of . . . ” means that moieties or elements that are selected from the referenced markush group can be the same , can be different or any mixture of elements as indicated in the following example : a molecule having 3 r groups wherein each r group is independently selected from the group consisting of a , b and c . here the three r groups may be : aaa , bbb , ccc , aab , aac , bba , bbc , cca , ccb , abc . as used herein , “ substituted ” means that the organic composition or radical to which the term is applied is : ( a ) made unsaturated by the elimination of elements or radical ; or ( b ) at least one hydrogen in the compound or radical is replaced with a moiety containing one or more ( i ) carbon , ( ii ) oxygen , ( iii ) sulfur , ( iv ) nitrogen or ( v ) halogen atoms ; or ( c ) both ( a ) and ( b ). moieties which may replace hydrogen as described in ( b ) immediately above , that contain only carbon and hydrogen atoms are hydrocarbon moieties including , but not limited to , alkyl , alkenyl , alkynyl , alkyldienyl , cycloalkyl , phenyl , alkyl phenyl , naphthyl , anthryl , phenanthryl , fluoryl , steroid groups , and combinations of these groups with each other and with polyvalent hydrocarbon groups such as alkylene , alkylidene and alkylidyne groups . moieties containing oxygen atoms that may replace hydrogen as described in ( b ) immediately above include , but are not limited to , hydroxy , acyl or keto , ether , epoxy , carboxy , and ester containing groups . moieties containing sulfur atoms that may replace hydrogen as described in ( b ) immediately above include , but are not limited to , the sulfur - containing acids and acid ester groups , thioether groups , mercapto groups and thioketo groups . moieties containing nitrogen atoms that may replace hydrogen as described in ( b ) immediately above include , but are not limited to , amino groups , the nitro group , azo groups , ammonium groups , amide groups , azido groups , isocyanate groups , cyano groups and nitrile groups . moieties containing halogen atoms that may replace hydrogen as described in ( b ) immediately above include chloro , bromo , fluoro , iodo groups and any of the moieties previously described where a hydrogen or a pendant alkyl group is substituted by a halo group to form a stable substituted moiety . it is understood that any of the above moieties ( b )( i ) through ( b )( v ) can be substituted into each other in either a monovalent substitution or by loss of hydrogen in a polyvalent substitution to form another monovalent moiety that can replace hydrogen in the organic compound or radical . bleach activators such as 1 - cyano - n , n , n - trimethylmethanaminium chloride impart offensive odors to wash liquors , and are hygroscopic which results in product instability , handling drawbacks and efficiency drawbacks . while not being bound by theory , applicants believe that such malodor may arise as a result of the release of an amine compound due to hydroperoxyl anion induced cleavage of the single bond between the quaternary nitrogen and the carbon atom attached to the nitrile ( cn ) group . in addition to demonstrating improved stability , handling and efficiency characteristics , embodiments of the instant invention address the malodor issue as they do not release appreciable amounts of odiferous amine compounds . in one aspect of applicants &# 39 ; invention , applicants &# 39 ; activator has the general formula : a .) r 4 and r 5 are independently hydrogen , or substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms ; b .) at least one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is a hydroxyalkyl moiety comprising at least 2 carbon atoms ; c .) any remaining r 1 , r 2 or r 3 moieties are independently substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms ; and d .) x , when present , is a charge - equalizing anion . suitable anions include , but are not limited to , chloride , bromide , sulfate , methyl sulfate , dodecyl sulfate , sulfonate , p - toluenesulfonate , fluorosulfate , trifluoromethylsulfate , acetate , and decanoate . certain embodiments of the aforementioned compound have all of the r 1 , r 2 or r 3 moieties &# 39 ; hydroxyl groups separated from said compound &# 39 ; s quaternary nitrogen by at least 2 carbon atoms . certain embodiments of the aforementioned compound have all of the r 1 , r 2 or r 3 moieties &# 39 ; hydroxyl groups separated from said compound &# 39 ; s quaternary nitrogen by at least 3 carbon atoms . in certain embodiments of the aforementioned compound , at least one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is a linear hydroxyalkyl moiety comprising from 2 to 12 carbons . in other embodiments of the aforementioned compound , at least one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is a linear hydroxyalkyl moiety comprising from 3 to 12 carbons and all of said linear hydroxyalkyl moieties &# 39 ; hydroxyl groups are separated from said compound &# 39 ; s quaternary nitrogen by at least 2 carbon atoms . in another aspect of applicants &# 39 ; invention , applicants &# 39 ; activator has the general formula : a .) r 4 and r 5 are independently hydrogen , or substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms ; b .) at least one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is a moiety selected from the group consisting of r 6 oso 2 − , r 6 oso 3 − , r 6 opo 2 − , r 6 oco 2 − , r 6 so 2 − , r 6 so 3 − , and r 6 co 2 − ; wherein r 6 is independently a c 1 to c 20 substituted or unsubstituted alkyl ; provided that when one or more of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is r 6 co 2 − ; the co 2 − group of any r 6 co 2 − moiety is separated from said compound &# 39 ; s quaternary nitrogen by at least 2 carbon atoms ; and c .) any remaining r 1 , r 2 or r 3 moieties are independently substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms . d .) m , when present , is a charge balancing cation . suitable cations include , but are not limited to , group ia and group iia elements such as lithium , sodium , potassium , magnesium and calcium . in certain embodiments of the aforementioned activator , only one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is a moiety selected from the group consisting of r 6 oso 2 − , r 6 oso 3 − , r 6 opo 2 − , r 6 oco 2 − , r 6 so 2 − , r 6 so 3 − , and r 6 co 2 − . in another aspect of applicants &# 39 ; invention , applicants &# 39 ; activator has the general formula : a .) r 1 , r 2 , and r 3 , are independently selected from the group consisting of substituted or unsubstituted c 1 to c 20 alkyl moieties ; b .) r 4 and r 5 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen , or substituted or unsubstituted c 1 to c 20 alkyl moieties , provided that r 4 and r 5 are not both hydrogen ; c .) at least one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is joined with at least one of r 4 and r 5 to form a ring comprising at least 5 atoms , one of said atoms being the quaternary nitrogen of said compound ; and d .) x , when present , is a charge - equalizing anion . suitable anions include , but are not limited to , chloride , bromide , sulfate , methyl sulfate , dodecyl sulfate , sulfonate , p - toluenesulfonate , fluorosulfate , trifluoromethylsulfate , acetate , and decanoate . in certain embodiments of the aforementioned activator , only one of r 1 , r 2 , or r 3 is joined with only one of r 4 or r 5 to form a ring comprising at least 5 atoms , one of said atoms being the quaternary nitrogen of said compound . suitable routes for preparing applicants &# 39 ; organic activators include , but are not limited to , a process of making a bleach activator having the formula : wherein r 4 and r 5 are independently hydrogen , or substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms ; at least one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is a hydroxyalkyl moiety comprising at least 2 carbon atoms ; any remaining r 1 , r 2 or r 3 moieties are independently substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms ; and x is a charge - equalizing anion said process comprising the steps of : reacting an amine having the formula wherein r 1 , r 2 and r 3 are as defined above , with an acetonitrile derivative having the formula : wherein r 4 and r 5 are as defined above and y is moiety that upon displacement by the amine becomes x as defined above ; or wherein r 1 , r 3 , r 4 and r 5 are as defined above , with a compound having the formula wherein r 2 is as defined above and y is moiety that upon displacement by the amine becomes x as defined above . a process of making a zwitterionic bleach activator said activator comprising only one anionic moiety and only one quaternary nitrogen , said activator having the formula : wherein r 4 and r 5 are independently hydrogen , or substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms ; only one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is a moiety selected from the group consisting of r 6 oso 2 − , r 6 oso 3 − , r 6 opo 2 − , r 6 oco 2 − , r 6 so 2 − , r 6 so 3 − , and r 6 co 2 − ; wherein r 6 is independently a c 1 to c 20 substituted or unsubstituted alkyl ; provided that when r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is r 6 co 2 − ; the co 2 group of the r 6 co 2 − moiety is separated from said compound &# 39 ; s quaternary nitrogen by at least 2 carbon atoms ; and the remaining r 1 , r 2 or r 3 moieties are independently substituted or unsubstituted alkyl , alkenyl or aryl groups containing from 1 to 18 carbon atoms , said process comprising the steps of reacting an amine having the formula : wherein r 1 , r 3 , r 4 and r 5 are as defined above , with a compound having the formula : wherein r 2 is a moiety selected from the group consisting of r 6 oso 2 − m , r 6 oso 3 − m , r 6 opo 2 − m , r 6 oco 2 − m , r 6 so 2 − m , r 6 so 3 − m , and r 6 co 2 − m wherein m is a charge neutralizing cation and y is moiety that upon displacement by the amine becomes a charge neutralizing anion which when combined with m forms an acid or a salt ; or wherein r 6 is c 1 to c 20 substituted or unsubstituted alkylene and g is selected from the group consisting of oso 2 , oso 3 , opo 2 , oco 2 , s ( o ) o , so 3 and co 2 . wherein r 1 , r 2 and r 3 are independently selected from the group consisting of substituted or unsubstituted c 1 to c 20 alkyl moieties ; r 4 and r 5 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen , or substituted or unsubstituted c 1 to c 20 alkyl moieties , provided that r 4 and r 5 are not both hydrogen ; at least one of r 1 , r 2 or r 3 is joined with at least one of r 4 and r 5 to form a ring comprising at least 5 atoms , one of said atoms being the quaternary nitrogen of said compound ; and x , when present , is a charge - equalizing anion , said process comprising the steps of reacting an amine having the formula : wherein r 8 , r 9 , r 10 and r 11 are independently selected from the group consisting of substituted or unsubstituted c 1 to c 20 alkyl moieties ; and at least one of r 8 or r 10 is joined with at least one of r 9 or r 11 to form a ring comprising at least 5 atoms , one of said atoms being the nitrogen of said amine ; with a compound selected from the group consisting of : wherein r 2 is as defined above and y is moiety that upon displacement by the amine becomes x as defined above ; or wherein r 6 is c 1 to c 20 substituted or unsubstituted alkylene and g is selected from the group consisting of oso 2 , oso 3 , opo 2 , oco 2 , so 2 , so 3 and co 2 . suitable raw materials used in the aforementioned processes include amines such as 6 -( dimethylamino )- 1 - hexanol ; 3 -( dimethylamino )- 1 - propanol ; 2 -( dimethylamino )- ethanol ; dimethylaminoacetonitrile ; 3 -( dimethylamino )- 1 - propanesulfonic acid ; 1 - methyl - 2 - piperidinecarbonitrile ; 1 - methyl - 2 - pyrrolidinecarbonitrile ; and 6 -( dimethylamino ) hexanoic acid ; acetonitrile derivatives such as chloroacetonitrile ; bromoacetonitrile ; [[( 4 - methylphenyl ) sulfonyl ] oxy ] acetonitrile ; [( phenylsulfonyl ) oxy ] acetonitrile ; [( methylsulfonyl ) oxy ] acetonitrile ; trifluoromethane sulfonic acid , cyanomethyl ester ; 1 - octanesulfonic acid , cyanomethyl ester ; and benzenemethanesulfonic acid , cyanomethyl ester ; suitable compounds having the formula : such as 2 - chloroethanol ; 3 - chloro - 1 - propanol ; 6 - chloro - 1 - hexanol ; 4 - methylbenzenesulfonic acid 6 - hydroxyhexyl ester ; 6 - chlorohexanoic acid ; and methyl 4 - methylbenzenesulfonate ; and compounds having the formula : the aforementioned processes may be conducted in any suitable organic solvent , including anhydrous polar , aprotic solvents such as diethyl ether , tetrahydrofuran , dioxane , and acetonitrile under conditions suitable to accomplish formation of the quaternary nitrogen . this may in some cases be accomplished with prolonged stirring at room temperature or may require heating at temperatures up to reflux , which will vary depending on the solvent or solvent system used . commercial quantities of applicants &# 39 ; organic activator can be produced using a variety of reaction vessels and processes including batch , semi - batch , and continuous processes . as appreciated by the skilled artisan , reaction conditions vary depending on batch size and vessel type . however , when in possession of the teachings contained herein , such conditions are easily determined . the cleaning composition of the present invention may be advantageously employed for example , in laundry applications , hard surface cleaning , automatic dishwashing applications , as well as cosmetic applications such as dentures , teeth , hair and skin . however , due to the unique advantages of both increased effectiveness in lower temperature solutions and the superior color - safety profile , the organic activators of the present invention are ideally suited for laundry applications such as the bleaching of fabrics through the use of bleach containing detergents or laundry bleach additives . furthermore , the organic activators of the present invention may be employed in both granular and liquid compositions for use in aqueous cleaning applications as well as cleaning compositions that comprise nonaqueous lipophilic solvents such as dry cleaning compositions . a preferred group of nonaqueous lipophilic fluids include low - volatility nonfluorinated organics , silicones , especially those other than amino functional silicones , and mixtures thereof . suitable silicones for use as a major component , e . g ., more than 50 %, of the composition include cyclopentasiloxanes , sometimes termed “ d5 ”, and / or linear analogs having approximately similar volatility , optionally complemented by other compatible silicones . suitable silicones are well known in the literature , see , for example , kirk othmer &# 39 ; s encyclopedia of chemical technology , and are available from a number of commercial sources , including general electric , toshiba silicone , bayer , and dow corning . other suitable lipophilic fluids are commercially available from procter & amp ; gamble or from dow chemical and other suppliers . for example , one suitable silicone is sf - 1528 available from ge silicone fluids . the organic activators of the present invention may also be employed in a cleaning additive product . a cleaning additive product including the organic activators of the present invention is ideally suited for inclusion in a wash process when additional bleaching effectiveness is desired . such instances may include , but are not limited to , low temperature solution cleaning applications . the additive product may be , in its simplest form , applicants &# 39 ; organic activator . preferably , the additive could be packaged in dosage form for addition to a cleaning process where a source of peroxygen is employed and increased bleaching effectiveness is desired . such single dosage form may comprise a pill , tablet , gelcap or other single dosage unit such as pre - measured powders or liquids . a filler or carrier material may be included to increase the volume of such composition . suitable filler or carrier materials include , but are not limited to , various salts of sulfate , carbonate and silicate as well as talc , clay and the like . filler or carrier materials for liquid compositions may be water or low molecular weight primary and secondary alcohols including polyols and diols . examples of such alcohols include , but are not limited to , methanol , ethanol , propanol and isopropanol . monohydric alcohols may also be employed . the compositions may contain from about 5 % to about 90 % of such materials . acidic fillers can be used to reduce ph . alternatively , the cleaning additive may include an activated peroxygen source defined below or the adjunct ingredients as fully defined below . applicants , cleaning compositions and cleaning additives require an effective amount of applicants &# 39 ; organic activator . the required level of such activator may be achieved by the addition of one or more embodiments of applicants &# 39 ; organic activator . as a practical matter , and not by way of limitation , the compositions and cleaning processes herein can be adjusted to provide on the order of at least 1 ppm of applicants &# 39 ; organic activator in the washing medium , and will preferably provide from about 1 ppm to about 1500 ppm , more preferably from about 5 ppm to about 1000 ppm , and most preferably from about 10 ppm to about 500 ppm of the organic activator in the wash liquor . in order to obtain such levels of applicants &# 39 ; organic activator in the wash liquor , typical compositions herein will comprise at least 0 . 1 %, preferably from about 0 . 5 % to about 60 %, more preferably from about 0 . 5 % to about 40 % by weight of the bleaching composition . in addition to applicants &# 39 ; organic activators , cleaning compositions must comprise a peroxygen source . suitable ratios of moles of applicants &# 39 ; organic activator to moles of peroxygen source include but are not limited to from about 1 : 1 to about 1 : 100 . suitable peroxygen sources include , but are not limited to , preformed peracids , a hydrogen peroxide source in combination with another bleach activator , or a mixture thereof . suitable preformed peracids include , but are not limited to , compounds selected from the group consisting of percarboxylic acids and salts , percarbonic acids and salts , perimidic acids and salts , peroxymonosulfuric acids and salts , and mixtures thereof . suitable sources of hydrogen peroxide include , but are not limited to , compounds selected from the group consisting of perborate compounds , percarbonate compounds , perphosphate compounds and mixtures thereof . suitable bleach activators that may be used in conjunction with applicants &# 39 ; organic activator include , but are not limited to , tetraacetyl ethylene diamine ( taed ), benzoylcaprolactam ( bzcl ), 4 - nitrobenzoylcaprolactam , 3 - chlorobenzoylcaprolactam , benzoyloxybenzenesulphonate ( bobs ), nonanoyloxybenzenesulphonate ( nobs ), phenyl benzoate ( phbz ), decanoyloxybenzenesulphonate ( c 10 - obs ), benzoylvalerolactam ( bzvl ), octanoyloxybenzenesulphonate ( c 8 - obs ), perhydrolyzable esters , perhydrolyzable carbonates , perhydrolyzable imides and mixtures thereof . when present , hydrogen peroxide sources will typically be at levels of from about 1 %, preferably from about 5 % to about 30 %, preferably to about 20 % by weight of the cleaning composition . if present , peracids or bleach activators will typically comprise from about 0 . 1 %, preferably from about 0 . 5 % to about 60 %, more preferably from about 0 . 5 % to about 40 % by weight of the cleaning composition . in addition to the disclosure above , suitable types and levels of peroxygen and activated peroxygen sources are found in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 576 , 282 , 6 , 306 , 812 b1 and 6 , 326 , 348 b1 that are incorporated by reference . the cleaning compositions herein will preferably be formulated such that , during use in aqueous cleaning operations , the wash water will have a ph of between about 6 . 5 and about 11 , preferably between about 7 . 5 and about 10 . 5 . liquid dishwashing product formulations preferably have a ph between about 6 . 8 and about 9 . 0 . laundry product formulations typically have a ph of from about 9 to about 11 . techniques for controlling ph at recommended usage levels include the use of buffers , alkalis , acids , etc ., and are well known to those skilled in the art . while not essential for the purposes of the present invention , the non - limiting list of adjuncts illustrated hereinafter are suitable for use in the instant cleaning compositions and may be desirably incorporated in preferred embodiments of the invention , for example to assist or enhance cleaning performance , for treatment of the substrate to be cleaned , or to modify the aesthetics of the cleaning composition as is the case with perfumes , colorants , dyes or the like . the precise nature of these additional components , and levels of incorporation thereof , will depend on the physical form of the composition and the nature of the cleaning operation for which it is to be used . suitable adjunct materials include , but are not limited to , surfactants , builders , chelating agents , dye transfer inhibiting agents , dispersants , enzymes , and enzyme stabilizers , catalytic metal complexes , polymeric dispersing agents , clay and soil removal / anti - redeposition agents , brighteners , suds suppressors , dyes , perfumes , structure elasticizing agents , fabric softeners , carriers , hydrotropes , processing aids and / or pigments . in addition to the disclosure below , suitable examples of such other adjuncts and levels of use are found in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 576 , 282 , 6 , 306 , 812 b1 and 6 , 326 , 348 b1 . surfactants — preferably , the cleaning compositions of the present invention comprise a surfactant or surfactant system wherein the surfactant can be selected from nonionic and / or anionic and / or cationic surfactants and / or ampholytic and / or zwitterionic and / or semi - polar nonionic surfactants . the surfactant or surfactant system is typically present at a level of from about 0 . 1 %, preferably from about 1 %, more preferably from about 5 % by weight of the cleaning compositions to about 99 . 9 %, preferably about 80 %, more preferably about 35 %, most preferably about 30 % by weight of the cleaning composition . builders — the cleaning compositions of the present invention preferably comprise one or more detergent builders or builder systems . when present , the compositions will typically comprise at least about 1 % builder , preferably at least about 5 %, more preferably from about 10 % to about 80 %, preferably to about 50 %, more preferably to about 30 % by weight of the cleaning composition . builders include , but are not limited to , the alkali metal , ammonium and alkanolammonium salts of polyphosphates , alkali metal silicates , alkaline earth and alkali metal carbonates , aluminosilicate builders polycarboxylate compounds . ether hydroxypolycarboxylates , copolymers of maleic anhydride with ethylene or vinyl methyl ether , 1 , 3 , 5 - trihydroxy benzene - 2 , 4 , 6 - trisulphonic acid , and carboxymethyloxysuccinic acid , the various alkali metal , ammonium and substituted ammonium salts of polyacetic acids such as ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid and nitrilotriacetic acid , as well as polycarboxylates such as mellitic acid , succinic acid , oxydisuccinic acid , polymaleic acid , benzene 1 , 3 , 5 - tricarboxylic acid , carboxymethyloxysuccinic acid , and soluble salts thereof . chelating agents — the cleaning compositions of the present invention may also optionally contain one or more copper , iron and / or manganese chelating agents . if utilized , chelating agents will generally comprise from about 0 . 1 %, more preferably from about 3 . 0 % to about 15 % by weight of the cleaning composition . dye transfer inhibiting agents — the cleaning compositions of the present invention may also include one or more dye transfer inhibiting agents . suitable polymeric dye transfer inhibiting agents include , but are not limited to , polyvinylpyrrolidone polymers , polyamine n - oxide polymers , copolymers of n - vinylpyrrolidone and n - vinylimidazole , polyvinyloxazolidones and polyvinylimidazoles or mixtures thereof . when present in the cleaning compositions of the present invention , the dye transfer inhibiting agents are present at levels from about 0 . 0001 %, more preferably from about 0 . 01 %, most preferably from about 0 . 05 % by weight of the cleaning compositions to about 10 %, more preferably about 2 %, most preferably about 1 % by weight of the cleaning composition . dispersants — the cleaning compositions of the present invention can also contain dispersants . suitable water - soluble organic salts are the homo - or co - polymeric acids or their salts , in which the polycarboxylic acid comprises at least two carboxyl radicals separated from each other by not more than two carbon atoms . enzymes — the cleaning compositions can comprise one or more enzymes which provide cleaning performance and / or fabric care benefits . examples of suitable enzymes include , but are not limited to , hemicellulases , peroxidases , proteases , cellulases , xylanases , lipases , phospholipases , esterases , cutinases , pectinases , keratanases , reductases , oxidases , phenoloxidases , lipoxygenases , ligninases , pullulanases , tannases , pentosanases , malanases , β - glucanases , arabinosidases , hyaluronidase , chondroitinase , laccase , and known amylases , or mixtures thereof . a preferred combination is a cleaning composition having a cocktail of conventional applicable enzymes like protease , lipase , cutinase and / or cellulase in conjunction with the amylase of the present invention . enzyme stabilizers — enzymes for use in detergents can be stabilized by various techniques including the use of water - soluble sources of calcium and / or magnesium ions in the finished cleaning compositions . catalytic metal complexes — applicants &# 39 ; cleaning compositions may include catalytic metal complexes . one type of metal - containing bleach catalyst is a catalyst system comprising a transition metal cation of defined bleach catalytic activity , such as copper , iron , titanium , ruthenium , tungsten , molybdenum , or manganese cations , an auxiliary metal cation having little or no bleach catalytic activity , such as zinc or aluminum cations , and a sequestrate having defined stability constants for the catalytic and auxiliary metal cations , particularly ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid , ethylenediaminetetra ( methylenephosphonic acid ) and water - soluble salts thereof . such catalysts are disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 430 , 243 bragg , issued feb . 2 , 1982 . if desired , the compositions herein can be catalyzed by means of a manganese compound . such compounds and levels of use are well known in the art and include , for example , the manganese - based catalysts disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 576 , 282 miracle et al . cobalt bleach catalysts useful herein are known , and are described , for example , in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 597 , 936 perkins et al ., issued jan . 28 , 1997 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 595 , 967 miracle et al ., jan . 21 , 1997 . the most preferred cobalt catalyst useful herein are cobalt pentaamine acetate salts having the formula [ co ( nh 3 ) 5 oac ] t y , wherein “ oac ” represents an acetate moiety and “ t y ” is an anion , and especially cobalt pentaamine acetate chloride , [ co ( nh 3 ) 5 oac ] cl 2 . such cobalt catalysts are readily prepared by known procedures , such as taught for example in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 597 , 936 , and u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 595 , 967 . compositions herein may also include a transition metal complex of a macropolycyclic rigid ligand — abreviated as “ mrl ”. as a practical matter , and not by way of limitation , the compositions and cleaning processes herein can be adjusted to provide on the order of at least one part per hundred million of the active mrl species in the aqueous washing medium , and will preferably provide from about 0 . 005 ppm to about 25 ppm , more preferably from about 0 . 05 ppm to about 10 ppm , and most preferably from about 0 . 1 ppm to about 5 ppm , of the mrl in the wash liquor . suitable metals in the mrls include mn ( ii ), mn ( iii ), mn ( iv ), mn ( v ), fe ( ii ), fe ( iii ), fe ( iv ), co ( i ), co ( ii ), co ( iii ), ni ( i ), ni ( ii ), ni ( iii ), cu ( i ), cu ( ii ), cu ( iii ), cr ( ii ), cr ( iii ), cr ( iv ), cr ( v ), cr ( vi ), v ( iii ), v ( iv ), v ( v ), mo ( iv ), mo ( v ), mo ( vi ), w ( iv ), w ( v ), w ( vi ), pd ( ii ), ru ( ii ), ru ( iii ), and ru ( iv ). preferred transition - metals in the instant transition - metal bleach catalyst include manganese , iron and chromium . ( a ) at least one macrocycle main ring comprising four or more heteroatoms ; and ( b ) a covalently connected non - metal superstructure capable of increasing the rigidity of the macrocycle , preferably selected from ( i ) a bridging superstructure , such as a linking moiety ; ( ii ) a cross - bridging superstructure , such as a cross - bridging linking moiety ; and ( iii ) combinations thereof . suitable transition metal mrls are readily prepared by known procedures , such as taught for example in wo 00 / 32601 , and u . s . pat . no . 6 , 225 , 464 . the cleaning compositions of the present invention can be formulated into any suitable form and prepared by any process chosen by the formulator , non - limiting examples of which are described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 879 , 584 bianchetti et al ., issued mar . 9 , 1999 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 691 , 297 nassano et al ., issued nov . 11 , 1997 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 574 , 005 welch et al ., issued nov . 12 , 1996 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 569 , 645 dinniwell et al ., issued oct . 29 , 1996 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 565 , 422 del greco et al ., issued oct . 15 , 1996 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 516 , 448 capeci et al ., issued may 14 , 1996 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 489 , 392 capeci et al ., issued feb . 6 , 1996 ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 486 , 303 capeci et al ., issued jan . 23 , 1996 . the present invention includes a method for cleaning a situs inter alia a surface or fabric . such method includes the steps of contacting at least a portion of a surface or fabric with an embodiment of applicants &# 39 ; cleaning composition , in neat form or diluted in a wash liquor , and optionally rinsing such surface or fabric . preferably the surface or fabric is subjected to a washing step prior to the aforementioned rinsing step . for purposes of the present invention , washing includes but is not limited to , scrubbing , and mechanical agitation . as will be appreciated by one skilled in the art , the cleaning compositions of the present invention are ideally suited for use in laundry applications . accordingly , the present invention includes a method for laundering a fabric . the method comprises the steps of contacting a fabric to be laundered with a laundry solution comprising at least one embodiment of applicants cleaning composition , cleaning additive or mixture thereof . the fabric may comprise most any fabric capable of being laundered . such laundry solution may have a ph of from about 8 to about 10 . the cleaning compositions are preferably employed at concentrations of from about 500 ppm to about 10 , 000 ppm in solution . the water temperatures preferably range from about 5 ° c . to about 60 ° c . the water to fabric ratio is preferably from about 1 : 1 to about 30 : 1 . preparation of 1 - cyano - n , n - dimethyl - n -( 2 - hydroxyethyl ) methanaminium chloride ( 3a , n = 2 ). in a 250 ml round bottomed flask equipped with a magnetic stir bar and pressure - equalizing addition funnel , 10 mmol of 2 -( dimethylamino ) ethanol ( 1a , n = 2 , available from pfaltz & amp ; bauer , inc ., waterbury , conn ., 06708 ) is dissolved in 50 ml anhydrous tetrahydrofuran . the mixture is cooled with an ice bath and 10 mmol chloroacetonitrile ( 2 , available from fisher scientific usa , pittsburgh , pa ., 15275 - 1126 ) is added slowly with stirring under an argon atmosphere . once the addition is complete , the ice bath is removed and the reaction is warmed to room temperature and stirred for 16 hours . the solvent is removed under reduced pressure to obtain 3a . preparation of 1 - cyano - n , n - dimethyl - n -( 3 - hydroxypropyl ) methanaminium chloride ( 3b , n = 3 ). the compound 3b is prepared according to the procedure of example i , substituting 3 -( dimethylamino )- 1 - propanol ( 1b , n = 3 , available from pfaltz & amp ; bauer , inc ., waterbury , conn ., 06708 ) in place of 1a . preparation of 1 - cyano - n , n - dimethyl - n -( 6 - hydroxyhexyl ) methanaminium chloride ( 3c , n = 6 ). the compound 3c is prepared according to the procedure of example i , substituting 6 -( dimethylamino )- 1 - hexanol ( 1c , n = 6 , available from pfaltz & amp ; bauer , inc ., waterbury , conn ., 06708 ) in place of 1a . preparation of 1 - cyano - n , n - dimethyl - n -( 6 - hydroxyhexyl ) methanaminium 4 - methylbenzenesulfonate ( 6 ). in a 250 ml round bottomed flask equipped with a magnetic stir bar and pressure - equalizing addition funnel , 10 mmol of dimethylaminoacetonitrile ( 4 ; available from alfa aesar , ward hill , mass ., 01835 - 8099 ) is dissolved in 100 ml tetrahydrofuran . the mixture is cooled with an ice bath and 10 mmol 1 , 6 - hexanediol , mono ( 4 - methylbenzenesulfonate ) ( 5 , available from aldrich chemical company , inc ., milwaukee , wis ., 53233 ) is added slowly with stirring under an argon atmosphere . once the addition is complete , the ice bath is removed and the reaction is warmed to room temperature and stirred for 16 hours . the solvent is then removed under reduced pressure to obtain 6 . preparation of 5 - carboxy - n , n - dimethyl - n -( cyanomethyl )- 1 - pentanaminium , inner salt ( 8 ). the compound is prepared according to example i , substituting 6 -( dimethylamino ) hexanoic acid ( 7 , prepared as described in haeggberg , et al . u . s . pat . no . 5 , 599 , 781 ) in place of 1a . preparation of 2 - carboxy - n , n - dimethyl - n -( cyanomethyl )- 1 - ethanaminium , inner salt ( 10 ). in a 1 l round bottomed flask cooled with an ice bath and equipped with a magnetic stir bar and pressure equalizing addition funnel 0 . 2 mole of dimethylaminoacetonitrile ( 4 ; available from alfa aesar , ward hill , mass ., 01835 - 8099 ) is dissolved in a solution of 250 ml diethyl ether and 75 ml acetonitrile . next , 0 . 2 mole 2 - oxetanone ( 9 , available from alfa aesar , ward hill , mass ., 01835 - 8099 ) is added slowly under an argon atmosphere to the solution in said 1 l flask . once the addition is complete , the ice bath is removed and the reaction is warmed to room temperature and stirred for 16 hours . the solvent is then removed under reduced pressure to obtain 10 . preparation of n , n - dimethyl - n -( cyanomethyl )- 4 - sulfo - 1 - butanaminium , inner salt ( 12 ). in a 250 ml round bottomed flask equipped with a magnetic stir bar , reflux condenser , and pressure - equalizing addition funnel , 10 mmol of dimethylaminoacetonitrile ( 4 ; available from alfa aesar , ward hill , mass ., 01835 - 8099 ) is dissolved in 50 ml acetonitrile . the mixture is cooled with an ice bath and 10 mmol 1 , 2 - oxathiolane - 2 , 2 - dioxide ( 11 , available from raschig corporation , richmond , vir ., 23231 ) is added slowly with stirring under an argon atmosphere . once the addition is complete , the ice bath is removed and the reaction is warmed to reflux , and stirred for 16 hours , then cooled to room temperature . the solvent is removed under reduced pressure to obtain 12 . preparation of n , n - dimethyl - n -( cyanomethyl )- 2 -( sulfooxy )- 1 - decanaminium , inner salt ( 14 , r = n - c 8 h 17 ). the title compound is prepared according to example vii , substituting 4 - octyl - 1 , 3 , 2 - dioxathiolane - 2 , 2 - dioxide ( 13 , r = n - c 8 h 7 , prepared according to miracle , et . al ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 817 , 614 ) for 11 . preparation of 2 - cyano - 1 , 1 - dimethylpyrrolidinium p - toluenesulfonate ( 17 ). in a 250 ml round bottomed flask equipped with a magnetic stir bar , reflux condenser , and pressure - equalizing addition funnel , 10 mmol of 1 - methyl - 2 - pyrrolidinecarbonitrile ( 16 , prepared according to chiba , et . al ., j . org . chem . 1977 , vol . 42 , no . 18 , pp . 2973 - 7 ) is dissolved in 50 ml acetonitrile . the mixture is cooled with an ice bath and 10 mmol methyl p - toluenesulfonate ( 15 , available from aldrich chemical company , inc ., milwaukee , wis ., 53233 ) is added slowly with stirring under an argon atmosphere . once the addition is complete , the ice bath is removed and the reaction is warmed to reflux , stirred 16 h , then cooled to room temperature . the solvent is then removed under reduced pressure to obtain 17 . bleaching detergent compositions having the form of granular laundry detergents are exemplified by the following formulations . a b c d e f linear alkylbenzenesulfonate 20 22 20 15 20 20 c 12 dimethylhydroxyethyl 0 . 7 1 1 0 . 6 0 . 0 0 . 7 ammonium chloride ae3s 0 . 9 0 . 0 0 . 9 0 . 0 0 . 0 0 . 9 ae7 0 . 0 0 . 5 0 . 0 1 3 1 sodium tripolyphosphate 23 30 23 17 12 23 zeolite a 0 . 0 0 . 0 0 . 0 0 . 0 10 0 . 0 1 . 6r silicate 7 7 7 7 7 7 sodium carbonate 15 14 15 18 15 15 polyacrylate mw 4500 1 0 . 0 1 1 1 . 5 1 carboxy methyl cellulose 1 1 1 1 1 1 savinase 32 . 89 mg / g 0 . 1 0 . 07 0 . 1 0 . 1 0 . 1 0 . 1 natalase 8 . 65 mg / g 0 . 1 0 . 1 0 . 1 0 . 0 0 . 1 0 . 1 brightener 15 0 . 06 0 . 0 0 . 06 0 . 18 0 . 06 0 . 06 brightener 49 0 . 1 0 . 06 0 . 1 0 . 0 0 . 1 0 . 1 diethylenetriamine 0 . 6 0 . 3 0 . 6 0 . 25 0 . 6 0 . 6 pentacetic acid mgso 4 1 1 1 0 . 5 1 1 sodium percarbonate 0 . 0 5 . 2 0 . 0 0 . 0 0 . 0 0 . 0 photobleach 0 . 0030 0 . 0015 0 . 0015 0 . 0020 0 . 0045 0 . 0010 sodium perborate monohydrate 4 . 4 0 . 0 3 . 85 2 . 09 0 . 78 3 . 63 nobs 1 . 9 1 . 9 1 . 66 1 . 77 0 0 taed 0 . 38 0 0 . 2 0 . 0 0 0 . 28 organic activator * 0 . 2 0 . 58 0 . 15 0 . 5 0 . 3 0 . 3 sulfate / moisture balance to balance to balance to balance to balance to balance to 100 % 100 % 100 % 100 % 100 % 100 % * organic activator prepared according to any one of examples 1 to 9 . any of the above compositions is used to launder fabrics at a concentration of 1000 ppm to 2500 ppm in water , 20 - 40 ° c ., and a 15 : 1 to 20 : 1 water : cloth ratio . the typical ph is about 9 . 5 to 10 but can be can be adjusted by altering the proportion of acid to na - salt form of alkylbenzenesulfonate . a laundry bar suitable for hand - washing soiled fabrics is prepared by a standard extrusion process and comprises the following : component weight % organic activator * 0 . 7 taed 1 . 0 nobs 0 . 2 sodium perborate tetrahydrate 12 c 12 linear alkyl benzene sulfonate 30 phosphate ( as sodium tripolyphosphate ) 10 sodium carbonate 5 sodium pyrophosphate 7 coconut monoethanolamide 2 zeolite a ( 0 . 1 - 10 micron ) 5 carboxymethylcellulose 0 . 2 polyacrylate ( m . w . 1400 ) 0 . 2 brightener , perfume 0 . 2 protease 0 . 3 caso 4 1 mgso 4 1 water 4 filler ** balance to 100 % * organic activator prepared according to any one of examples 1 to 9 . ** can be selected from convenient materials such as caco 3 , talc , clay , silicates , and the like . while particular embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described , it would be obvious to those skilled in the art that various other changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . it is therefore intended to cover in the appended claims all such changes and modifications that are within the scope of this invention . | 2 |
the disclosure provides novel method of achieving better separation of source data by using setup field data and gfe unique to each vibratory source as the preliminary input , and adjusting the inversion to minimize the crosstalk and / or leakage from other vibratory sources . the invention includes one or more of the following embodiments , in any combinations thereof : a method of separating seismic sources is provided , which comprises the steps of : ( a ) providing at least two vibratory sources and two or more receivers , wherein said vibratory sources are each capable of generating a sweep of vibrations into the ground ; ( b ) performing a sweep of vibrations into the ground by said vibratory sources and concurrently recording a setup field data from each of said vibratory sources using each of said receivers , wherein an initial ground force estimate ( gfe ) specific to each of said vibratory sources is obtained ; ( c ) performing iterative inversion for the setup field data from each of said vibratory sources using said initial gfe as preliminary input to obtain inverted setup field data ; ( d ) separating said inverted setup field data to obtain a shot record for each of said receivers from each of said vibratory sources , wherein for each said vibratory source the number of said shot records is the same as the number of said receivers ; ( e ) comparing and differentiating said shot records of the same vibratory source to yield a crosstalk modifier ; ( f ) modifying the initial gfes using said crosstalk modifier to obtain a derived gfe ; and ( g ) repeating the data collection and analysis using the derived gfe data to minimize cross talk from the shot records of said vibratory sources . an improved method for separating seismic sources is provided , where at least two vibratory sources and two or more receivers are provided and said vibratory sources are each capable of generating a sweep of vibrations into the ground , and a sweep of vibrations is emitted into the ground by said vibratory sources and concurrently a setup field data from each of said vibratory sources is recorded using each of said receivers , wherein an initial ground force estimate ( gfe ) specific to each of said vibratory sources is obtained , the improvement comprising : ( a ) performing iterative inversion for the setup field data from each of said vibratory sources using said initial gfe as preliminary input to obtain inverted setup field data ; ( b ) separating said inverted setup field data to obtain a shot record for each of said receivers from each of said vibratory sources , wherein for each said vibratory source the number of said shot records is the same as the number of said receivers ; ( c ) comparing and differencing said shot records of the same vibratory source to yield a crosstalk modifier ; and ( d ) modifying the initial gfes using said crosstalk modifier to obtain a derived gfe , and ( e ) using the derived gfe in analyzing the remaining data . an improved method for separating seismic field result where at least two vibratory sources and two or more receivers are provided and said vibratory sources are each capable of generating a sweep of vibrations into the ground , and a sweep of vibrations is emitted into the ground by said vibratory sources and concurrently a setup field data from each of said vibratory sources is recorded using each of said receivers , wherein a initial ground force estimate ( gfe ) specific to each of said vibratory sources is obtained , the improvement comprising comparing and differentiating said shot records of the same vibratory source to yield a crosstalk modifier ; modifying the initial gfe using said crosstalk modifier to obtain a derived gfe ; and analyzing all remaining field data using said derived gfe in place of said initial gfe to obtain a final seismic record . a method of wherein said initial gfe is obtained from a baseplate and reaction masses of said vibratory sources . a method wherein said crosstalk modifier is subtracted from said initial gfe to obtain said derived gfe . a method wherein said sweep of vibration is between 0 to 200 hz . a method wherein said vibratory sources are selected from the group consisting of a zenseis ®, vibroseis , seismic vibrator , high fidelity vibratory seismic ( hfvs ), cascaded hfvs , combined hfvs , and combinations thereof a method wherein said receivers are selected from group consisting of a geophone , hydrophone , accelerometer , electrodynamic receiver , and combinations thereof a method wherein each said vibratory source emit a distinct seismic energy source signature . a method wherein said receivers are aligned in a receiving line , and at least one of said vibratory sources is not in said receiving line . to better understand this invention , it is important to illustrate the typical way of conducting seismic survey and how the data is recorded . fig1 - 3 show a conventional seismic sweep operation . as noted above , it has been difficult to acquire suitable high frequency data when using sweep - type vibratory seismic sources and investigations pursuant to the present invention have turned toward a better approach to separate the data from different sources in hopes of increasing the presence of high frequency data in the returning wavefield . the analysis begins with a seismic vibrator that one might typically use in a seismic survey . for explaining the invention , a conventional sweep - type vibratory seismic source is illustrated in fig1 and is now explained . a simplified version of the operable portion of a conventional seismic vibrator is generally indicated by the arrow 10 . the primary operative element is baseplate 20 that is lowered to the ground 55 and held down typically using the weight of the vehicle that carries vibrator 10 . typically , vibrator 10 is carried along under the belly of the vehicle and lowered to the ground once located at a shot point or source point . while the weight of the vehicle is used to hold the baseplate to the ground , it is typically isolated from the intense vibration by pneumatic dampeners that are not shown . the second operative element of the vibrator is reaction mass 30 that is positioned to slide up and down along guide rods 21 . the reaction mass 30 is a heavy and substantial sized block of metal . the reaction mass 30 is intended to be moved up and down to create impulses that are passed into the ground 55 through baseplate 20 . the reaction mass 30 is driven up and down along guide rods 21 by a hydraulic system , schematically indicated by box 40 , where hydraulic fluid is delivered through a valving system 41 and into and through channels 46 and 48 . upper and lower cylinders 36 and 38 are rapidly filled and drained of hydraulic fluid to drive the reaction mass 30 relative to piston 35 . vibe controller 42 controls the valving system 41 , thereby controlling the speed and direction of the reaction mass and ultimately the frequency and force at which the reaction mass moves . the hydraulic system 40 typically includes a diesel powered hydraulic pump . as noted above , this is the basic arrangement of a conventional sweep - type vibrator . a baseplate accelerometer 60 measures the acceleration of the baseplate 20 while a reaction mass accelerometer 65 is mounted on the reaction mass 30 to record the acceleration of the reaction mass 30 . continuing with the discussion of the analysis of the seismic source , the vibrator 10 is operated to generate seismic energy by using one or more load sensors between the baseplate 20 and the ground . as shown in fig1 , an array of load sensors 75 can optionally be placed under the baseplate 20 to more accurately measure the true ground force produced at each frequency to determine the actual ground force ( f g ) applied to the earth over a range of frequencies . load sensors 75 are not needed , however , with the method of the invention , as explained next . although it is known that vibes provide a ground source estimate that is used for inversion and subsequent data processing , it turns out that current vibrators do not provide accurate information about the ground force actually delivered to the ground . the load sensors provide more accurate data and this has been confirmed by experiments using seismic receivers installed in boreholes deep in the ground , however , they take up space and contribute to costs . it should be emphasized that experiments have confirmed two important observations . first , the vibrators do not actually impart the ground force to the earth they report based on the ground force data computed by the vibrator controller based on the sallas estimation , especially at higher frequencies . and secondly , the load sensors provide a relatively accurate ground force measurements across the frequency spectrum . the information provided by the vibrator controller is sufficiently accurate at lower frequencies , but inaccuracy begins at about 35 hz ( depending on the vibrator model and ground conditions ) and continues to deviate as the frequency being delivered gets higher . the inaccuracy becomes unacceptable under most conventional ground conditions at frequencies of about 40 to 50 hz in the sweep for most terrains using industry standard 60 , 000 + lbs vibrators . specifically , most large industry standard seismic vibrators begin to reduce the actual ground force at about 35 hz ( as compared to what the vibrator actually reports via the vibe controller and the sallas approximation ), and the ground force is quite variable above about 40 to 50 hz . much above 60 hz and the forces in the sweeps are highly unstable and do not reflect the signal that is desired to be imparted to the ground and as reported by either the load cell data nor the data from the receivers in the well bore . the seismic vibrator controller electronics 42 is supplied a pilot sweep that represents the desired source signature . the pilot sweep is a sinusoidal function that varies in frequency with time . it is used by the valving system 41 as a representation for the desired motion of the baseplate 20 and reaction mass 30 . the motion of the baseplate 20 is then translated into ground force through impulses with the earth . ground force is actually weight that varies in time in a similar manner to the way the pilot sweep &# 39 ; s sinusoidal shape varies in time . the ground force measured by the array of load sensors and the pilot sweep are then directly related and are also directly related to the desired true ground force . referring to fig2 , the vehicle is indicated by the arrow 100 with the vibrator 10 located in the middle of the chassis ( not numbered ). the baseplate 20 is carried along by the vehicle 100 at its belly with the baseplate lifted off the ground for transport . when the baseplate 20 is over a shot point or source point for the survey the lift mechanism then lowers the vibrator 10 to the ground 55 so that the baseplate is in firm contact with it . the lift mechanism is conventional and includes a conventional pneumatic dampening system to insulate the vehicle 100 from the energy and vibrations of the vibrators when delivering a sweep into the ground 55 . with this setting in mind , we now turn to the iterative inversion process of this disclosure . during a normal setup for zenseis ® typically there are three or four vibes that are sweeping concurrently and this number may vary dynamically . each vibe is sweeping a phase encoded sweep that then must be separated during the inversion process . imperfect separation at the higher frequencies has been observed and eventually was attributed to the poor gfe signal that is used in the inversion . see seg : 2009 - 0011 . the basic premise of the hfvs or zenseis ® or similar encoded inversions is that the gfe is the signature that the vibe puts out . this assumption has been shown to be flawed unless some independent method of measurement of the gfe is provided , such as from the load sensors 75 . if one could create a derived gfe that was accurate , then the bandwidth of the inverted data would improve and be more accurate , and obviate the need for load sensors which has been shown in field trials . the disclosure is based on the recognition that an iterative inversion of the setup data for a “ derived ” gfe that would minimize the cross talk between the vibes in the setup would be a more accurate way of maximizing the separation of the data . the gfe from the vibes would be the preliminary input to the inversion along with the setup field data and the optimization program would then minimize the cross - talk or leakage of the other vibes source signature onto the separated source records iteratively until some user defined limit is reached . the gfe &# 39 ; s derived by the inversion approach would then be used to create the final seismic shot record data . in other words , this disclosure addresses the problem of imperfect separation by minimizing the cross - talk between different sources , and does not require re - engineering the vibes to eliminate the problem in the first place . it can also be used retroactively to improve the separation of prior datasets where the actual data was recorded “ raw ” or in an uncorrelated or uninverted form . iterative inversion considers the fact that the seismic data is imperfect . random noise , unwanted signals , missing data , and evanescent waves that cannot be back - propagated make a real deterministic inversion impossible . the goal of iterative inversion is to minimize the difference between the registered data vector y and the synthetic data computed as the product of the propagator matrix a and the earth model x step by step in a gaussian sense . to stabilize the computation , a small term ε 2 x 2 has to be added : in the setup of vibratory sources and receivers , preferably the receivers are aligned in a straight receiving line , and at least one vibratory source is in line with the receiving line , whereas at least one vibratory source is offset from the receiving line , so as to cross - reference the signals emitted and recorded in an attempt to find out and eliminate any crosstalk between the vibratory sources or receivers or both . fig4 shows the flow chart of the inventive method . in step 402 , a full setup is performed from each vibrator and recorded through each receiver . in this exemplary setup there are multiple receivers and three vibrators . the receivers are spaced apart but aligned in line , while one vibrator is in line with the receivers , the other one perpendicularly offset from the receivers . through this configuration for each vibrator there will be three different records , the differences between the records can therefore be compared and used to minimize crosstalk . because ground force estimate ( gfe ) is pivotal in seismic inversion , minimizing or eliminating crosstalk or other errors in gfe is therefore desirable . in step 404 , the full setup record obtained from the three receivers are inverted and separated by using known methodology and software algorithms , and shot records for each vibrator are obtained . the physical configuration of the vibrators and the receivers allows meaningful separation of the shot records . in step 406 , the separated shot records are compared and differenced for each vibrator , thereby obtaining the magnitude and shape of the crosstalk . this crosstalk can then be used to modify and optimize the gfe . in step 408 , the gfe is modified and optimized by subtracting the crosstalk obtained in step 406 , and gives a “ derived gfe ” to be used in completing the seismic data . in step 410 , the seismic data is optimized using the derived gfe . because the crosstalk has been significantly reduced in the derived gfe , the completed results are more accurate and reliable as compared to those inverted using normal gfe . as the seismic survey relocated to another location , the full setup will be carried out again to correct the crosstalk for each vibratory source . 1 . j . j . sallas , seismic vibrator control and the downgoing p - wave , geophysics 49 ( 6 ) 732 - 40 ( 1984 ). 2 . seg - 2009 - 001 : shaw s . a ., et al ., vibroseis source signature uncertainty and its impact on simultaneous sourcing ( 2009 ). 3 . shan s ., et al ., load cell system test experience : measuring the vibrator ground force on land seismic acquisition , seg expanded abstracts , 0016 - 0020 ( october 2009 ). 1 . u . s . pat . no . 8 , 371 , 416 2 . us20110013482 | 6 |
the embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawing . fig1 shows the overall arrangement of a traffic density monitoring system according to the first embodiment of the present invention . this traffic density monitoring system comprises monitor camera sections 1 , a monitoring center 2 , and a terminal section 3 . each monitor camera section 1 is installed in a monitor region ( road whose traffic density should be monitored ) to encode a video image obtained by sensing the monitor region and transmit the video encoded data to the monitoring center 2 through a cable or radio public channel or a radio channel . the monitoring center 2 decodes and analyzes video encoded data of images sensed by the monitor camera sections 1 in the respective regions , generates necessary traffic information in consideration of position information and request information from the terminal sections 3 , and transmits the traffic information to the terminal sections 3 . each terminal section 3 is installed in a car that travels on the road to transmit position information or request information to the monitoring center 2 and receive necessary traffic information and video information . fig2 shows the arrangement of the monitor camera section 1 of this embodiment . a video signal output from a video camera 11 is compress - encoded by a video encoder section 12 , and the thus obtained video encoded data is transmitted to the monitoring center 2 through a cable or radio public channel or a dedicated line . fig3 shows the arrangement of the monitoring center 2 of this embodiment . video encoded data transmitted from the plurality of ( n ) monitor camera sections 1 through a cable or radio dedicated line or public channel are received by receiver sections 21 - 1 to 21 - n , respectively , and sent to video decoder / analyzer sections 22 - 1 to 22 - n and multiplexer section 27 . the video decoder / analyzer sections 22 - 1 to 22 - n ( to be described later in detail ) decode video encoded data , display video images obtained by decoding , i . e ., images obtained by the monitor camera sections 1 on display sections 23 - 1 to 23 - n , respectively , and simultaneously analyze the traffic density . the analysis results from the video decoder / analyzer sections 22 - 1 to 22 - n are collected by a situation analyzing section 24 . position information or request information of each car from the terminal section 3 is received by a transceiver section 28 and input to the situation analyzing section 24 . the situation analyzing section 24 systematically analyzes the analysis results obtained by analyzing the images from the monitor camera sections 1 by the video decoder / analyzer sections 22 - 1 to 22 - n and the position information and request information from the terminal sections 3 . a video selector section 25 selects a necessary image from the analysis result from the situation analyzing section 24 . an additional information generator section 26 generates message or voice information , as needed , on the basis of the operation of an operator who checks the analysis result from the situation analyzing section 24 or the displays on the display sections 23 - 1 to 23 - n which are displaying the images from the monitor camera sections 1 , and sends the information to the multiplexer section 27 . fig4 shows the arrangement of a video decoding / analyzing apparatus using a video decoding processing apparatus based on the present invention as the arrangement of each of the video decoder / analyzer sections 22 - 1 to 22 - n of the first embodiment . this video decoding / analyzing apparatus is formed from two sections : a video decoder section 100 and a traffic density analyzer section 200 . in the video decoder section 100 , video encoded data input through a transmission channel or storage medium is temporarily stored in an input buffer 101 . the video encoded data read out from the input buffer 101 is demultiplexed by a demultiplexer section 102 on the basis of syntax in units of frames and output to a variable - length decoder section 103 . the variable - length decoder section 103 decodes the variable - length code of information of each syntax and outputs decoded information , and mode information and motion vector information of each macro block . in the variable - length decoder section 103 , if the mode of a macro block is intra , a mode change - over switch 109 is turned off . hence , quantized dct coefficient information decoded by the variable - length decoder section 103 is inverse - quantized by a dequantizer section 104 and then subjected to inverse discrete cosine transformation by an idct section 105 . as a result , a reconstructed video signal is generated . this reconstructed video signal is stored in a frame memory 107 as a reference video signal through an adder 106 and also output as a decoded video signal 112 . in the variable - length decoder section 103 , if the mode of a macro block is inter and not — coded , the mode change - over switch 109 is turned on . hence , the quantized dct coefficient information decoded by the variable - length decoder section 103 is inverse - quantized by the dequantizer section 104 and then subjected to inverse discrete cosine transformation processing by the idct section 105 . the output signal from the idct section 105 is added , by the adder 106 , to the reference video signal which is motion - compensated by a motion compensation section 108 on the basis of the motion vector information decoded by the variable - length decoder section 103 , thereby generating a decoded video signal 112 . this decoded video signal 112 is stored in the frame memory 107 as a reference video signal and also extracted as a final output . on the other hand , in the traffic density analyzer section 200 , a moving object determination section 201 for determining a moving object in units of macro blocks determines whether a macro block is a moving object on the basis of encoding information output from the variable - length decoder section 103 , the decoded video signal of the current frame output from the adder 106 , and the decoded video signal ( reference video signal ) of the previous frame output from the frame memory 107 . the encoding information is information contained in video encoded data and variable - length - decoded by the variable - length decoder section 103 . more specifically , encoding information is mode information or motion vector information . for example , if the mode of a macro block of interest is intra or inter — coded on the basis of mode information , the moving object determination section 201 temporarily determines that the macro block is highly probably a moving object , and determines a moving object by comparing the decoded video signal of the current frame with that of the previous frame only for this macro block . alternatively , the moving object determination section 201 may temporarily determine on the basis of , e . g ., motion vector information that a macro block where large motion vectors concentrate is highly probably a moving object , and determine a moving object by comparing the decoded video signal of the current frame with that of the previous frame only for the macro block . the determination result from the moving object determination section 201 is sent to a macro - block analyzer section 202 , where image analysis of the macro block determined as a moving object is done . the image analysis result for this macro block is sent to a specific vehicle estimator section 203 and traffic density estimator section 204 . the specific vehicle estimator section 203 estimates a specific vehicle from a color and shape in the image analysis result for the macro block and outputs an estimation result 211 . fig5 shows an example in which a specific vehicle is estimated from specific color and shape . to determine the color of a vehicle , first , color correction is performed in accordance with the environment to set a color space . the color of vehicle is determined in this color space . the shape of vehicle is determined by pattern matching . the velocity of vehicle is measured by marking a specific vehicle determined in this way . the traffic density estimator section 204 sets a specific region on the screen from the image analysis result for the macro block , estimates the traffic density from the average velocity and number of moving objects that pass through the specific region , and outputs an estimation result 212 . fig6 shows an example in which measurement regions 1 and 2 are set in units of lanes as specific regions ( this example shows two lanes ), and the traffic density is estimated by calculation on the basis of the average velocity and number of moving objects that pass through measurement regions 1 and 2 . fig7 shows the arrangement of the terminal section 3 of this embodiment . a receiver section 31 receives information sent from the monitoring center 2 . a demultiplexer section 32 demultiplexes video encoded information and additional information . the video encoded information is decoded by a video decoder section 33 , so a decoded image and additional information are displayed on a display section 34 . on the other hand , request information for an information request section 35 serving as an information input section for inputting information requested by the user and position information from a position detection section 36 for detecting the position of the terminal are transmitted to the monitoring center 2 through a transmission section 37 . fig8 is a block diagram of a video encoding / analyzing apparatus which combines a video traffic density analysis apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention with a video encoding apparatus . referring to fig8 , an input video signal 321 is segmented into a plurality of macro blocks ( each block has 16 × 16 pixels ) by a block section 301 . the input video signal segmented into macro blocks is input to a subtracter 302 . the difference from a predicted video signal is calculated to generate a prediction residual error signal . one of the prediction residual error signal and the input video signal from the block section 301 is selected by a mode selection switch 303 and subjected to discrete cosine transformation by a dct ( discrete cosine transformation ) section 304 . the dct coefficient data obtained by the dct section 304 is quantized by a quantizer section 305 . the signal quantized by the quantizer section 305 is branched to two signals . one signal is variable - length - encoded by a variable - length encoder section 315 . the other signal is sequentially subjected to processing operations by a dequantizer section 306 and idct ( inverse discrete cosine transformation processing ) section 307 , which are opposite to those by the quantizer section 305 and dct section 304 , and then added , by an adder 308 , to the predicted video signal input through a switch 311 , whereby a local decoded signal is generated . this local decoded signal is stored in a frame memory 309 and input to a motion compensation section 310 . the motion compensation section 310 generates a predictive picture signal and sends necessary information to a mode selector section 312 . the mode selector section 312 selects , one of a macro block for which inter - frame encoding is to be performed and a macro block for which intra - frame encoding is to be performed , on the basis of prediction information p from the motion compensation section 310 in units of macro blocks . more specifically , for intra - frame encoding ( intra encoding ), mode selection switch information m is set to a , and switch information s is set to a . for inter - frame encoding ( inter encoding ), the mode selection switch information m is set to b , and the switch information s is set to b . the mode selection switch 303 is switched on the basis of the mode selection switch information m , while the switch 311 is switched on the basis of the switch information s . modes include the intra mode ( intra ), inter mode ( inter ), and non coding mode ( non — coded ). one of these modes is made to correspond to each macro block . more specifically , an intra macro block is an image region for intra - frame encoding , an inter macro block is an image region for inter - frame encoding , and a not — coded macro block is an image region that requires no encoding . in a traffic density analyzer section 400 , encoded information output from a variable - length encoder section 314 , the local decoded signal output from the adder 308 and the local decoded signal of the previous frame output from the frame memory 309 are input to a macro - block moving object determination section 401 . the macro - block moving object determination section 401 determines whether the macro block is a moving object that moves in the screen , as in the first embodiment , and inputs the determination result to a macro - block analyzer section 402 . the macro - block analyzer section 402 performs image analysis for the pixels of the macro block which is determined by the macro - block moving object determination section 401 as a moving object , as in the first embodiment , and sends the analysis result to a specific vehicle estimator section 403 and traffic density estimator section 404 . the specific vehicle estimator section 403 estimates a specific vehicle from a color and shape in the image analysis result for the macro block , as in the first embodiment . the traffic density estimator section 404 also sets a specific region on the screen on the basis of the image analysis result for the macro block , and estimates the traffic density from the velocities and areas of moving objects that pass through the specific region in the image analysis result , as in the first embodiment . the estimation results from the specific vehicle estimator section 403 and traffic density estimator section 404 are input to a specific object synthesis / display section ( not shown ) and also input to a multiplexer section 315 of a video encoder section 300 . an encode controller section 313 controls an encoder section 317 on the basis of encoding information for the encoder section 317 and the buffer amount of an output buffer 316 . the video encoded data encoded by the variable - length encoder section 314 is multiplexed with the specific vehicle determination result from the specific vehicle estimator section 403 by the multiplexer section 315 and sent to the transmission system or storage medium as encoded data after the transmission rate is smoothed by the output buffer 316 . referring to fig8 , the traffic density analyzer section 400 uses the local decoded signal and that of the previous frame from the frame memory 309 . however , the same effect as described above can be obtained even using the input video signal and that of the previous frame . when the video encoding / analyzing apparatus shown in fig8 is built in the traffic density monitoring system shown in fig1 , the video encoding / analyzing apparatus is applied to the monitor camera section 1 . as has been described above , according to the present invention , a traffic density analysis apparatus based on an encoded video , which can stably analyze the traffic density at a high speed , can be provided . additional advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art . therefore , the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described herein . accordingly , various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents . | 6 |
throughout this application , the terms “ preferable ”, “ preferred ”, “ more preferable ”, “ in particular ” shall solely mean “ exemplary ” and shall therefore signify embodiments or examples only , i . e . are to be understood as optional only . the term “ characterized in ” is no admission of prior art . fig1 shows the breakdown voltage or electric breakdown field strength e_bd in kv / cm of an insulation medium essentially consisting of pentafluoro - ethyl - methyl ether , here briefly called hfe1 , over a given pressure range . as is apparent from fig1 , the breakdown voltage is higher than the one determined for pure air ( shown in circles ) at the respective pressure . by admixing dodecafluoro - 2 - methylpentan - 3 - one as an admixture gas having a partial pressure of 0 . 14 bar to pentafluoro - ethyl - methyl ether having a partial pressure of 0 . 84 bar , an insulation medium is obtained which has a breakdown voltage ( shown by the square ) that is even superior to the breakdown voltage obtained with sf 6 ( shown in triangles ) at the respective pressure of 0 . 98 bar . in order to adapt the pressure and / or the composition and / or the temperature of the insulating medium in the system , the electrical apparatus can comprise a control unit ( or “ fluid management system ”), as mentioned above . this is of particular relevance for low temperature applications down to − 30 ° c . or even − 40 ° c . as an example , a high voltage switchgear comprising a temperature control unit is shown in fig2 . the switchgear 2 comprises a housing 4 defining an insulating space 6 and an electrically active part 8 arranged in the insulating space 6 . the switchgear 2 further comprises a temperature control unit 10 a for setting the housing 4 , or at least a part of the housing 4 , of the switchgear and thus the insulation medium comprised in the insulating space 6 to a desired temperature . as well , any other part in contact with the insulation medium can be heated in order to bring the insulation medium or at least parts of it to the desired temperature . thus , the vapour pressure of the hydrofluoro monoether — and consequently its molar ratio in the insulation gas — as well as the absolute pressure of the insulation gas can be adapted accordingly . as also shown in fig2 , the hydrofluoro monoether is in this embodiment not homogenously distributed throughout the insulating space due to the temperature gradient given in the insulation space . an alternative control unit or fluid management system is schematically shown in fig3 in which a fluid handling unit 10 b is attributed to the gas - insulated switchgear as the control unit . according to this control unit , the composition of the dielectric insulation medium , and in particular the concentration of the hydrofluoro monoether , is adjusted in a dosing unit ( not separately shown ) comprised in the fluid handling unit 10 b , and the resulting insulation medium is injected or introduced , in particular sprayed , into the insulating space 6 . in the embodiment shown in fig3 , the insulation medium is sprayed into the insulating space in the form of an aerosol 14 in which small droplets of liquid hydrofluoro monoether are dispersed in the respective carrier gas . the aerosol 14 is sprayed into the insulating space 6 by means of nozzles 16 and the hydrofluoro monoether is readily evaporated , thus resulting in an insulating space 6 with an inhomogeneous concentration of hydrofluoro monoether , specifically a relatively high concentration in close proximity of the housing wall 4 ′ comprising the nozzles 16 . alternatively , the insulation medium , in particular a concentration , pressure and / or temperature of the insulation medium or of at least one of its components , in particular the hydrofluoro monoether , can be controlled in the fluid handling unit 10 b before being injected into the insulation space . in order to ensure circulation of the gas , further openings 18 are provided in the upper wall of the housing 4 , said openings leading to a channel 20 in the housing 4 and allowing the insulating medium to be removed from the insulating space 6 . the switchgear 2 with fluid handling unit 10 b , as shown in fig3 , can be combined with the temperature control unit 10 a described in connection with fig2 . if no temperature control unit is provided , condensation of the hydrofluoro monoether can occur in a low temperature environment . the condensed hydrofluoro monoether can be collected and reintroduced into the circulation of the insulation medium . furthermore , the apparatus 2 can have a reserve volume of hydrofluoro monoether and / or of an admixture gas , such as a fluoroketone containing from 4 to 12 carbon atoms and , in particular , from 5 to 6 carbon atoms , and / or means for limiting a maximal permissible operating temperature of the desired insulation medium such that the absolute filling pressure is maintained below a given pressure limit of the apparatus 2 . in the context of the switchgears exemplarily shown in fig2 and fig3 it is noted that nominal current load generally facilitates the vaporization of the hydrofluoro monoether by the ohmic heating of current carrying conductors . in embodiments , the apparatus 2 has a dielectric insulation medium , in which the hydrofluoro monoether is present in an amount such that a condensation temperature of the hydrofluoro monoether is below + 5 ° c ., preferably below − 5 ° c ., more preferably below − 20 ° c ., even more preferably below − 30 ° c ., most preferably below − 40 ° c . in further embodiments , the apparatus 2 has a dielectric insulation medium , which comprises gaseous components in molar volumes such that a condensation temperature of the mixture of the gaseous components is below + 5 ° c ., preferably below − 5 ° c ., more preferably below − 20 ° c ., even more preferably below − 30 ° c ., most preferably below − 40 ° c . for sake of clarity : boiling point or boiling point temperature relates to the vapour pressure curve of a component of the insulation medium as a function of temperature , and in particular to the boiling point ( temperature ) at atmospheric pressure , i . e . at about 1 bar . this is a property of the component as such and describes its vaporization and liquefaction behaviour in particular under atmospheric surrounding pressure conditions . in contrast , condensation temperature relates to a specific apparatus providing a volume for receiving the dielectric insulation medium , its filling with a specific dielectric insulation medium , in particular the type and amount of the component or components of the dielectric insulation medium , at a given temperature , e . g . the operating temperature or the minimal rated operating temperature , and to the corresponding total pressure of the dielectric insulation medium and the partial pressures of its components . in such a specific apparatus environment filled with a specific choice of dielectric insulation medium , condensation temperature defines the temperature at which a gaseous part or phase of the dielectric insulation medium , in particular a group of components in gaseous phase of the dielectric insulation medium , start to condense into droplets that sit down on inner surfaces of the apparatus and form a liquid “ sea ” thereon . such condensation may occur at a common condensation temperature , briefly called condensation temperature , of components of the dielectric insulation medium , even if the boiling points of such components in their pure form may differ by e . g . several 10 k or even by some 50 k . as a result of different boiling points and common condensation temperature , the molar fractions of the components in the gaseous phase and in the liquid phase may vary when condensation starts . therefore , the term “ condensation temperature ” is an integral parameter describing the specific apparatus having a specific filling with the dielectric insulation medium and under specific operating conditions . in other words , the condensation temperature is determined solely by the nature and number density or molar volume ( m 3 / mol ) of the dielectric insulation gas component or components under consideration . the number density or molar volume corresponds to the partial pressures present in the apparatus at a given temperature . thus , the parameters “ type of dielectric gas component or gas components ” and “ number density or molar volumes ” determine at what temperature a gas or group of gas components will condense . in embodiments , it is intended to avoid condensation by the choice of the dielectric insulation medium , in particular choice of its types and amounts of components , and by the choice of pressures , i . e . partial pressures of the components and the total pressure , possibly by additional filling of a carrier gas or bulk gas , and by the choice of operating conditions , such as temperature . the avoidance of condensation is expressed by the fact that the condensation temperature shall be lower than a minimal operating temperature or a rated operating temperature of the apparatus , e . g . lower than + 5 ° c ., or − 5 ° c ., or − 20 ° c ., or − 30 ° c ., or − 40 ° c ., as stated above . the term carrier gas or bulk gas or buffer gas , which may be or may be comprised in the above mentioned gas component a ) or gas component elements a1 ), a2 ), . . . an ) different from the hydrofluoro monoether , shall signify a gaseous part of the dielectric insulation medium that contributes to the dielectric strength , but typically has a dielectric strength weaker than the ( dielectrically more active or stronger ) gas components , such as hydrofluoro monoether ( s ) and / or fluoroketone ( s ) and / or other “ dielectrically strong ” gas component species . such carrier gas , e . g . air , typically has a condensation temperature well below the condensation temperature of the above mentioned dielectrically stronger gas components , such as hydrofluoro monoether ( s ) and / or fluoroketone ( s ). in embodiments , the dielectric insulation medium is a dielectric insulation gas under over - pressure of less than 8 bar , preferably less than 7 . 5 bar , more preferably less than 7 bar , in particular equal or less than 6 . 5 bar ; or the dielectric insulation medium is a dielectric insulation gas under over - pressure of less than 2 . 5 bar , preferably less than 2 . 0 bar , more preferably less than 1 . 5 bar , in particular equal to or less than 1 . 2 bar . throughout this application , the constituents of the dielectric insulation medium , such as e . g . various kinds of hydrofluoro monoethers , fluoroketones and carrier gases , are herewith explicitly disclosed to be possible or to be present in any combinations , may it be pair - wise combinations , triplet - wise combinations , quadruplet - wise combinations , or the like . therefore , any listings of all such combinations are herewith made part of the disclosure . furthermore , throughout this application , any disclosure of and claim on the dielectric insulation medium comprising a hydrofluoro monoether according to the present invention and any of its embodiments is also a disclosure of the use of such a hydrofluoro monoether in or as a dielectric insulation medium , and this use is explicitly disclosed herewith and may be claimed as a use claim , in particular by replacing the term “ dielectric insulation medium comprising a hydrofluoro monoether ” with the term “ use of a hydrofluoro monoether in or as a dielectric insulation medium ”. | 7 |
referring to fig1 a pre - processing storage circuit block 1 provides for the storage of requests for slots from the various stations before they are processed . pre - processing storage circuit 1 has a ram memories 3 where all incoming signals 5 are stored and an identification code circuit 2 where data belonging to a reference station is marked . the identification code circuit 2 is provided , through a signal 4 , with the identification code of the reference station . a control logic signal 6 enables the storage into ram memory 3 for controlling data to be loaded with respect to data which are not to be stored . pre - processing storage circuit block 1 is connected to processing circuit block 8 comprising a multiplexer 9 which receives stored data via line 3a from ram memory 3 as well as an identification signal via line 7 from section the identification code circuit 2 consisting of a mark bit of the station . such signals are then filtered by a filter 10 and stored in a memory 11 of the type fifo ( first - in - first - out ), which in turn generates memory status identification signals 12 which are used only for indicating memory empty or devoid of requests to be satisfied . instead , a processing request read out by of fifo memory 11 , which is deprived of a mark bit , is sent to a decrement circuit 13 , through a signal via line 11b ; which the decrement circuit 13 in turn generates a loop signal via line 13a used to loop the request back to the multiplexer 9 . the mark bit of the processing request , via line 11a , also proceeds to a positioning memory 18 , which is used for registering the processing request . the mark bit is also added to the request passed through the decrement circuit 13 . a control unit 14 is used to define priority criteria by means of a priority criteria circuit 15 , loading , i . e . storing criteria by means of storage criteria circuit 16 and of memory scanning criteria through a memory scanning criteria circuit 17 . signal 11a enable the effective request for slots by the abovementioned station with respect to the scheduling unit 18 which finally generates a signal via line 19 which allows the definitive assignment of slots to the abovementioned station . having outlined the hardware embodying the present invention , its operation follows in detail . first , it is important to note that requirements of the algorithm for processing slot requests from stations , have to involve an implementation that shall not be too onerous i . e . a very simple circuitry , and a velocity such as to allow a real time handling . moreover , it is necessary that logic implementing this algorithm is easily embodied in a vlsi circuit and that the velocity of this logic , i . e . its clock , is compatible with the characteristics of a gate array cmos structure which from an industrial manufacturing point of view , is a less expensive circuit embodiment . starting from the lowest request , slots are reserved , one for each station , until a number of slots equal to the number of requested cells is assigned to each station or until all the data slots of the frame are engaged . only after having assigned all slots having a similar priority , the assignment of next priority slots will be started . each station is not requested to know what station is engaging each slot but it merely must know what are the slots it has to engage ; this to simplify very much the processing algorithm . the results of such request processing are stored in a buffer also of type fifo and represented by scheduling unit 18 , in which every bit is associated with a determined data slot of the transmission frame . if such bit has value 1 , that means the corresponding data slot shall belong to the station , otherwise it will belong to any other of the remaining stations . processing circuit block 18 is handled by a plurality of circuits represented by sections 9 , 10 , 11 , 15 , 16 , 17 and hence those related to block 8 as a whole . in processing circuit block 8 most of the functions associated with the processing algorithm are implemented . the requests for slots are not processed at the same moment in which they are received by the single station , because of speed parameter , but they are preliminarily stored in storage block 1 which allows the storage of requests and the successive re - reading out by processing block 8 according to an order which is different from the arrival order of the requests . inside pre - storage circuit block 1 is a storage device of type ram ( random access memory ) represented by section 3 , a data loading - unloading control logic signal , via line 6 in the fig1 . an identification code circuit 2 marks the unloading of data relative to all stations , those which belong to the station in question . at the beginning , the procedure for starting the processing logic is commenced ; then there is started a loading cycle in which all requests are read out from the corresponding page of ram memory 3 in such a way as they are re - written in the fifo memory 11 after having passed through multiplexer 9 and filter 10 . as mentioned , the requests before being written , pass through filter 10 whose function is to verify that their content is not null and only in this instance it enables the writing in the fifo memory 11 . it is evident that the action of filter 10 is used to prevent waste of precious time in processing . after loading fifo memory 11 , each is marked by a dedicated bit called address mark which is used only to identify the requests of the station in question . in a scanning phase , the requests loaded in the fifo memory 11 are extracted one at a time to be processed through output signals vialines 11b and 11a . the request , vialine 11b , is read out and decremented by decrement circuit block 13 and transferred , vialine 13a , via multiplexer 9 , again to filter 10 ; the filter 10 checks the value of the request and if this results to be different from zero , the filter writes it again in the fifo memory 11 . the decrement action exerted on request does not concern anyway the mark bit 11a , which remains unchanged . the filter 10 prevents the waste of precious processing time in handling requests which are already fully satisfied . when a request is read out , the corresponding mark bit 11a fills a memory location in the memory cell of the fifo - type block 18 . the reason of this operation lies in that , being the request certainly not null , a slot must be assigned anyway and therefore a further bit has to be engaged . if the request belongs to the station itself , i . e . if the identification bit vialine 11a has value 1 , the further bit is set to 1 and the corresponding slot is assigned to the station , otherwise the further bit is set to 0 and therefore the station in question shall consider the slot as not belonging to it . this step ends when all requests , after having been repeatedly decremented , reach the null value . then this situation is recognized the read out request results null after the decrement and that the fifo memory 11 remains empty , which is indicated by the null , i . e . unloaded , empty memory signal 12 . in the scanning of various requests performed by memory scanning criteria block circuit 17 , the counting of all slots which are gradually assigned is carried out . where the number of such slot has reached the value of four hundred twenty six ( 426 ), the processing of requests is stopped . the number 426 is the number of slots contained in a transmission frame of a ucol network . once all the control information and all the sixty four stations of a ucol network are available in the pre - processing storage block 1 , about 200 microseconds are available for elaborating the requests and storing the pertinent results into transmission memory which then assigns slots to the various stations . since the processing times vary according to the requests , it is necessary to calculate these times in a rather tolerant fashion . in order to calculate such tolerant time it should be noted that the total processing time depends on the total data loading time from block 1 into the fifo memory 11 and on total scanning execution time among the various stations . more precisely , the total loading time from pre - processing storage circuit block 1 to fifo memory 11 is nine times the time spent on a single loading cycle and such single loading cycle depends essentially on the access time from ram memory of section 3 in storage block 1 to fifo memory 11 . moreover the total scanning execution times of the various stations is simply four hundred twenty six times the time necessary for the read out of a word from fifo memory and its decrement and for its eventual writing . considering these two parameters , the total sum is less than one hundred forty by three microseconds and therefore the processing algorithm meets the requirements defined at the outset to satisfy the processing velocity in a ucol network . the circuitry as described above can be critical only for processing times . in fact the overall circuit must operate in real time , i . e . it must process the requests for slots from the stations and be ready to provide the map of slots engaged by the stations in the next frame . considering that this time interval between transmission and reception is calculated for a well pre - established value , during such time interval the circuit must process a plurality of priority values starting from the first one to the last one and assigning to each station the relative slots . by means of block 17 and decrement circuit block 13 the recycle of data on the same memory fifo 11 , with a decrement at each passage and writing if the data is different from zero , is realized . this operation is very important since it optimizes the processing time . in fact , the entire operation , as said before , is performed in a time which is much less than the 200 microseconds mentioned at the outset and therefore it allows to wed a simple circuit embodiment with a linear and not onerous implementation of the algorithm . obviously further structural and functional embodiments are also possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention . | 7 |
in the preferred embodiment , a paddle is formed with a “ poker ” device attached in a central portion thereof such that , during movement of the paddle , the poker device pokes any unwanted foreign body or material which should congregate around the nozzle , out of the nozzle . the poker can be formed during fabrication of the ink ejection nozzle arrangement by means of a chemical mechanical planarization step with , preferably , the formation being a byproduct of the normal formation steps for forming the ink ejection nozzle on arrangement on a semi - conductor wafer utilizing standard mems processing techniques . additionally , in order to restrict the amount of wicking and the opportunities for wicking , an actuator slot guard is provided , formed on the bend actuator itself , closely adjacent to the actuator slot so as to restrict the opportunities for flow of fluid out of the nozzle chamber due to surface tension effects . turning now to fig1 to fig3 there will now be explained the operational principles of the preferred embodiment . in fig1 there is illustrated a nozzle arrangement 1 which is formed on the substrate 2 which can comprise a semi - conductor substrate or the like . the arrangement 1 includes a nozzle chamber 3 which is normally filled with ink so as to form a meniscus 4 which surrounds a nozzle rim 5 . a thermal bend actuator device 6 is attached to post 7 and includes a conductive heater portion 9 which is normally balanced with a corresponding layer 10 in thermal equilibrium . the actuator 6 passes through a slot in the wall 12 of the nozzle chamber and inside forms a nozzle ejection paddle 13 . on the paddle 13 is formed a “ poker ” 15 which is formed when forming the walls of the nozzle chamber 3 . also formed on the actuator 6 is a actuator slot protection shield 16 . an ink supply channel 17 is also formed through the surface of the substrate 2 utilizing highly anisotropic etching of the substrate 2 . during operation , ink flows out of the nozzle chamber 3 so as to form a layer 19 between the slot in the wall 12 and the actuator slot protection barrier 16 . the protection shield is profiled to substantially mate with the slot but to be slightly spaced apart therefrom so that any meniscus eg . 19 is of small dimensions . next , as illustrated in fig2 when it is desired to eject a drop from the nozzle chamber 3 , the bottom conductive thermal actuator 9 is heated electrically so as to undergo a rapid expansion which in turn results in the rapid upward movement of the paddle 13 . the rapid upward movement of the paddle 13 results in ink flow out of the nozzle so as to form bulging ink meniscus 4 . importantly , the movement of the actuator 6 results in the poker 15 moving up through the plane of the nozzle rim so as to assist in the ejection of any debris which may be in the vicinity of the nozzle rim 5 . further , the movement of the actuator 6 results in a slight movement of the actuator slot protection barrier 16 which maintains substantially the small dimensioned meniscus 19 thereby reducing the opportunity for ink wicking along surfaces . subsequently , the conductive heater 9 is turned off and the actuator 6 begins to rapidly return to its original position . the forward momentum of the ink around meniscus 4 in addition to the backflow due to return movement of the actuator 6 results in a general necking and breaking of the meniscus 4 so as to form a drop . the situation a short time later is as illustrated in fig3 where a drop 20 proceeds to the print media and the meniscus collapses around poker 15 so as to form menisci 22 , 23 . the formation of the menisci 22 , 23 result in a high surface tension pressure being exerted in the nozzle chamber 3 which results in ink being drawn into the nozzle chamber 3 via ink supply channel 17 so as to rapidly refill the nozzle chamber 3 . the utilization of the poker 15 increases the speed of refill in addition to ensuring that no air bubble forms within the nozzle chamber 3 by means of the meniscus attaching to the surface of the nozzle paddle 13 and remaining there . the poker 15 ensures that the meniscus eg . 22 , 23 will run along the poker 15 so as to refill in the nozzle chamber . additionally , the area around the actuator slot barrier 16 remains substantially stable minimizing the opportunities for wicking therefrom . turning now to fig4 there is illustrated a side perspective view of a single nozzle arrangement 1 shown in sections . fig5 illustrates a side perspective view of a single nozzle including a protective shroud 30 . the central poker 15 and protection shield 16 are as previously discussed . the construction of the arrangement of fig4 and 5 can be as a result of the simple modification of deep mask steps utilized in the construction of the nozzle arrangement in australian provisional patent application pp6534 ( the contents of which are specifically incorporated by cross - reference ) so as to include the poker 15 and shield 16 . the poker and guard are constructed primarily by means of a chemical mechanical planarization step which is illustrated schematically in fig6 to fig8 . the poker 15 and shield 16 are constructed by depositing a surface layer 32 on a sacrificial layer 31 which includes a series of etched vias eg . 33 . subsequently , as illustrated in fig7 the top layer is chemically and mechanically planarized off so as to leave the underlying structure 35 which is attached to lower structural layers 36 . subsequently , as illustrated in fig8 the sacrificial layer 31 is etched away leaving the resulting structure as required . it would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that numerous variations and / or modifications may be made to the present invention as shown in the specific embodiment without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described . the present embodiment is , therefore , to be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive . | 1 |
increased use of the internet has led to more options in education through online learning . online learning provides an alternative for in - classroom learning , which is not always suited to different learning styles and levels . fig1 is a functional block diagram showing an online learning environment . a registered student can access online learning material 18 and enter user preferences 17 through a computer 11 that is connected to a server 14 via an internetwork 16 , such as the internet . the online learning material 18 and user preferences 17 are stored in a database 15 that is coupled to the server 14 . the online learning material 18 can include homework assignments , lesson content and plans , online tests , progress reports , and other material . a teacher , often remotely located from the student , is able to post lesson plans , track students &# 39 ; progress , and obtain posted material via a computer 12 that is also connected to the server 14 via the internetwork 16 . the teachers and students can communicate with a service center 13 for an online education provider that provides technical support and manages the online curriculum . the service center 13 is remotely connected to the internetwork 16 . conventional online learning environments do not require the student and the teacher to be logged on to their respective computers at the same time . instead , communication can occur through email , discussion boards , or instant messaging . since students can access the online learning environment at any time , the online teacher is often unavailable for immediate questions , unlike a traditional classroom where a student can raise his hand or speak directly to the teacher . in addition , other people having an interest in a student &# 39 ; s progress , such as parents , tutors , coaches , and counselors , often do not have access to the student &# 39 ; s status or grades . thus , these individuals often rely on the students for updates on progress . the lack of direct one - to - one communication , as well as absence of face - to - face interactions between teachers , students , and other individuals , can hinder student progress and decrease overall effectiveness of online education as an alternative for traditional teaching methods . an online learning environment differs from a traditional classroom in which a class of students receive in - person instruction from a live teacher , who provides educational lessons , testing , grading , feedback , and in - classroom activities . the teacher is generally available for discussion with or to answer questions from the students when class is in session , before or after class , or during office hours . further , interested individuals , such as parents or guardians , can monitor student progress and communicate with the teacher through report cards , parent - teacher conferences , and telephone calls . the ease of initiating communication in a traditional classroom setting can also be provided by the online learning environment through education - related alerts and education support groups . the alerts and groups help to increase the effectiveness of the online learning environment by providing surrogate channels of communication . fig2 is a functional block diagram 20 showing an online learning environment with an education support group . in the online learning environment , individuals 21 , 24 , 25 - 27 , 28 can be associated with the online learning environment directly or through another individual , such as a particular student enrolled . the individuals can include a teacher 21 , counselor 24 , student 25 - 27 , parent 28 , coach 31 , or members of the online learning staff ( not shown ). other types of individuals are possible . the education support group includes automatic groupings or participant - selected groups of the individuals . near - simultaneous communication of an event occurrence in the online learning environment is provided to the individuals in the education support group . in the online learning environment , online teachers 21 are often remotely located from their students 25 - 27 . the students 25 - 27 can be remotely located from one another or can be located in the same room , such as a traditional classroom . each student 25 - 27 enrolled in the online learning environment participates in an online curriculum provided through an internet accessible computer 32 - 34 . the online curriculum includes online courses offered by the online learning environment and the material associated with the online courses . once logged on , a student 25 - 27 can request particular learning material 35 for an online course , such as a lesson , assignment , or test for display on the computer 32 - 34 . the requested learning material 35 is stored on a database 23 , which is coupled to a server 22 . the server 22 obtains the requested learning material 35 from the database 23 for serving to the student &# 39 ; s computer 32 - 34 . the online learning material 35 is part of the education - related information 31 maintained by the online environment . the database 23 stores the education - related information 31 , which can be served to the student &# 39 ; s computer 32 - 34 via the server 22 . the education - related information 31 can include all information in the online learning environment that is related to online educational activities , including the planning , offering , and processing of the online curriculum , as well as a functioning of a system that provides the online learning environment . more specifically , the education - related information 31 can include performance , homework , communication , enrollment , system , and scoring data . however , other types of education - related information are possible . education - related information is discussed below with further reference to fig4 . an online education provider , including an online learning staff , supervises the online learning environment and maintains the education - related information in the database by generating rules for providing an effective online curriculum . the rules can include processes for assigning passwords , offering courses , selecting coursework , identifying cheating , measuring student progress against established objectives and benchmarks , establishing alternative educational paths through the curriculum , offering additional educationally relevant material to support student learning , administering tests and other coursework , and providing status reports . other types of rules are possible . the online learning staff can access the education - related information associated with individuals , including all parties having a relationship to the online learning environment , such as the teacher , student , parents , mentors , counselors , administrators , and members of the online learning staff . the members of the online learning staff can observe behaviors exhibited by the individuals , as well as patterns of performance based on the education - related information . reports and statistics can be generated to show the behaviors , performance , and results of the individuals in the online learning environment , which are then provided with an alert . the education - related information can also be used to identify events . an event is related to online educational activities , such as performing an action by an individual in the online learning environment , determining an individual &# 39 ; s accessibility to use the online learning environment , and determining an online learning status for an individual . other types of online educational activities are possible . the event can be identified by a change to the education - related information 31 , a request for an event , satisfaction of a threshold , change with respect to a baseline or determined by an expert system . a change includes an addition , deletion , or modification of the education - related information . for example , a change to the performance data could be an addition of a student score to an electronic grade book . the student received a score of 74 percent on a test , which is added to the electronic grade book by the online learning environment or assigned by a teacher . the event is the entry of the score the student received on the test , which is related to a student action of taking the exam and the online learning environment or teacher action of grading the exam . in a separate example , a credit recovery organization has preregistered for a particular number of students , which represents an enrollment threshold . once the enrollment threshold is satisfied , an event is identified and an alert is sent . the event is the satisfaction of the enrollment threshold by the credit recovery organization . during event identification , a benchmark is determined . a benchmark includes information related to the event , such as a score , report , notification , status , message , or quantity . the benchmark information can be determined based on the education - related information that was changed , collected from , or determined during the occurrence of the event . other types of benchmark information are possible . the benchmark represents a starting point for interpretation of the event by a recipient of the alert . event identification is described below with further reference to fig6 . after identification of an event , an alert is generated and transmitted for providing real time notification . an alert includes a template having filled or tillable text for information regarding the event , such as the benchmark . recipient information and response action elements can also be included in the alert . returning to the previous threshold example , once the enrollment threshold has been satisfied , an event is detected and an alert is transmitted . additional information can be included in the alert such as charts , graphs , statistics , and previous benchmark information that is related to the event . as described above , the online learning staff or online learning environment can generate the additional information . alternatively , an individual can prepare the additional information ; however , the individual &# 39 ; s access to the education - related information can be restricted . alert generation is discussed below with further reference to fig7 . recipients of an alert can include an individual or an education support group , which includes multiple individuals with interest in the education - related information or in a particular student enrolled in the online learning environment . the individuals in a an education support group can include a teacher 21 , student 25 - 27 , parent 28 , administrator ( not shown ), coach 31 , counselor 24 , paraprofessional ( not shown ), tutor ( not shown ), or a member of an online learning staff ( not shown ). other types of interested individuals are possible . for example , an education support group including a parent , coach , and counselor is generated for a particular student . the parent and counselor are concerned with the student &# 39 ; s past scores and would like to closely monitor new scores received . in addition , the student is involved in basketball ; however , he is not allowed to play if his grades fall below a predetermined threshold . the coach receives alerts with the new scores to ensure that the student is eligible to participate in basketball games . alert delivery is discussed below with reference to fig8 . upon receipt , each recipient can analyze the alert to determine a significance of the event . alert interpretation is discussed below with further reference to fig9 . the online learning environment can be modeled after a traditional classroom . for instance , the online learning environment can include a teacher and class that meet virtually through the online learning system , as described in fig1 . the online learning environment can be implemented in a variety of organizations , including a traditional classroom or school , an after school program , a credit recovery program , an honors program , a seminar , and for individual students . additionally , the online learning environment can be modified to include multiple teachers or no teachers . other types of online learning environments and modifications are possible . the alerts increase the effectiveness of an online learning environment by prompting and facilitating communication between teachers , parents , students , administrators , and members of the online learning staff , as well as others . fig3 is a functional block diagram showing a system 40 for providing an education - related alert in the online learning environment 41 of fig1 . the online learning environment manages and tracks education - related information to identify interesting events , which are transmitted to one or more recipients via alerts . the alerts provide a near real time communication between teachers , students , parents , administrators , and members of the online learning staff . the alerts can cover a broad range of topics that are important to providing a successful online learning environment . a watcher 42 monitors the online learning environment 41 by tracking education - related information . the watcher 42 is a standalone program that passively receives data from the online learning environment 41 , such as the education - related information , including performance , homework , communication , enrollment , system , and scoring data . other types of education - related information are also possible , including data related to a specific online learning environment , which is further discussed below with reference to fig4 . the watcher 42 identifies events based on changes in the education - related information , a request for an event , satisfaction of a threshold , a change with respect to a baseline , and as determined by an expert system . identifying an event is discussed below with further reference to fig6 . a benchmark is then determined for the event . once identified , events are sent to a queue 43 , which is a passive module that holds the events until obtained by an alert processor 44 . the events can be ordered in the queue 43 by date or time of receipt , by importance , or by subject matter of the event . other methods for organizing and holding events in the queue 43 are possible . periodically or on demand , the alert processor 44 selects an event from the queue 43 and generates an alert . to generate the alert , the alert processor 44 can select a template based on a type of the event , the benchmark , the subject matter of the event , or other factors . next , the alert processor 44 determines to whom the alert will be sent . selecting recipients for an alert is discussed below with further reference to fig7 . the alert processor 44 also determines a delivery mechanism for the alert , which can include a website 47 , email 45 , sms text messaging 46 , and instant messenger ( im ) ( not shown ). delivery of the alert is discussed below with further reference to fig8 . a wide range of information is generated during operation of the online learning environment and various pieces of the information may be of interest to the individuals . fig4 is a data flow diagram 50 showing categories of education - related information 51 . these categories broadly define topics of possible interest to the individuals , including teachers , students , parents , guardians , mentors , administrators , and members of the online learning staff , as well as other individuals . the education - related information 51 can include performance 52 , homework 53 , communication 54 , enrollment 55 , system 56 , and scoring data 57 . however , other types of data are possible , including data that is specific to a particular online learning environment . each category will now be discussed in detail . the performance data 52 can include grade book information for a student , such as test scores , absences , and student identification numbers . homework data 53 can include whether a student turned in a particular assignment and how well the student performed on the assignment . performance 52 and homework 53 data is tracked to allow individuals , including students , parents , teachers , and administrators with an up - to - date status of student progress . each alert can include a report of student activity or inactivity . for example , a student skips school and the teacher enters an unexcused absence into an electronic grade book . the entry of the absence is identified as an event and an alert is generated . the alert is sent to the parents to provide notification that the student was not present in class on that day . other types of homework and performance data are possible . communication data 54 involves initiating a communication session with a teacher , student , parent , administrator , an online learning staff member , or other interested individual or member of an education support group . for instance , communication data 54 can include a question posted on a discussion board or selecting a help button on a web page associated with the online learning environment . the action of entering the posted question or selecting the help button is identified as an event for which an alert is generated . scoring data 57 can include information that indicates cheating , which is determined based on a number of factors , such as time , score , and student identity . for example , a change in the scoring data can indicate suspected cheating when a student takes an exam and receives a low score , and within a short time period , re - takes the exam and receives a high score . an alert for the suspected cheating event can be sent to the teacher or administrator to provide notification that an unusual event has occurred that may require action on behalf of the teacher or administrator . other types of communication and scoring data are possible . enrollment data 55 can include information showing enrollment of a new student , withdraw of a registered student , or a hold status assigned to a registered student . alerts regarding the enrollment data 55 can be provided to an administrator and a member of the online learning staff when enrollment status changes to determine whether additional subscriptions to the online learning environment should be obtained . system data 56 can include notification of inoperability or inaccessibility of the online learning environment , such as rebooting the online learning system or experiencing a power outage . alerts regarding the system data 56 can be provided to the teachers , administrators , students , parents , and online learning staff to provide notification that the online learning environment may be inaccessible for use . other types of enrollment and system data are possible . education - related information specific to an online learning environment 58 can include mastery based learning , where each teaching segment or section cumulatively builds on earlier learning . consequently , mastery of prior material is key and a student who fails one section is generally held back until that section has been successfully mastered . a mastery based learning program requires a student to pass an end - of - section test prior to moving on to the next section of educational material . if a student repeatedly fails to pass the section test , the student is blocked from accessing further materials and must contact a teacher or administrator , who may then unblock student access or recommend further study or tutoring . the alert notifies the teacher or administrator that the student access has been blocked . the student can explain why he failed to pass within a predetermined number of times or can ask for help to successfully pass the section . upon identification of an event , an alert is sent to one or more recipients . the alert provides notification of the event occurrence in near real time . fig5 is a process flow diagram 60 showing a method for providing education - related alerts in the online learning environment of fig1 . a watcher monitors education - related information 61 on a periodic or continuous basis . if the watcher is set on a periodic basis , a member of the online learning staff can select predetermined times intervals for monitoring the education - related information . the watcher can also monitor all of the education - related information or particular categories of the education - relation information . a member of the online learning staff can generate categories based on a type of the education - related information , such as performance , homework , communication , enrollment , system , and scoring data . other types of education - related information and categories are possible . the watcher identifies an event 62 based on a change in the education - related information , a request for an event , a satisfaction of a threshold , a change in relation to a baseline , or as determined by an expert system . a benchmark is determined during the event identification , which is discussed below with further reference to fig6 . after an event has been identified 62 , the watcher determines whether the event necessitates an alert 63 . alerts provide near real time communication in an online learning environment . currently , the individuals in a conventional online learning environment experience difficulty in initiating communication based on the responsibility of each individual to proactively check and respond to emails and postings to message boards . if one of the individuals fails to check the email messages or postings on a message board , communication between a receiving individual and a requesting individual cannot occur . the alerts provide near real time notification of an event occurrence . if an alert is not necessary , the watcher continues to monitor the education - related information 61 . however , if the event requires an alert , an alert is generated 64 . alert generation is discussed below with further reference to fig7 . once generated , the alert is delivered to one or more recipients 65 through one or more delivery mechanisms , including a website , email , text messaging , or instant messaging . delivery of the alert is further discussed below with reference to fig8 . upon receipt of the alert , processing can optionally occur . the processing can include recipient interpretation 66 of the alert based on the benchmark for the event . the interpretation allows the recipients to form an opinion and come to a conclusion on their own regarding a particular event and corresponding benchmark . recipient interpretation is described below with further reference to fig9 . optionally , the alert can be associated with an expiration date . once the expiration date is reached , the alert expires and is automatically removed 67 from an email inbox , text messaging menu , instant messenger , or website . the expiration date can include a time period , which begins once the alert is received or once the alert has been viewed by the recipient . other types of expiration dates and time periods are possible . a variety of methods can be used to identify a particular event . fig6 is a process flow diagram showing processes for identifying an event . the event 71 can be identified by event rules , such as a change in the education - related information , a request for an event , a satisfaction of a threshold , a change in relation to a baseline , or as determined by an expert system . the change in the education - related information , which can include an addition 72 , deletion 74 , or modification 78 of the education - related information . for instance , an addition of education - related information can include the addition of a student score , the return of completed homework , enrollment of a new student , or a new discussion board posting . in contrast , a deletion of education - related information can include removal of an incorrect score or a student withdraw . modification events can include changing a student score or student status . other types of addition , deletion , and modification events are possible . in addition , an event can be detected based on satisfaction of a pre - determined threshold 73 by the event - related information . for example , each student must maintain a course grade of 75 percent ; otherwise , the student is not allowed to participate in extracurricular activities . once a student falls below the 75 percent threshold , an event is identified and an alert is sent to interested individuals , such as a parent and coach . other types of pre - determined thresholds are possible . an event can also be identified based on a change in relation to a baseline . for example , a student receives a score of six out of ten answers correct on an exam . previously , the student received an average of nine out of ten answers correct . the new test score is analyzed against the previous scores to determine whether the change is significant to warrant the sending of an alert . alternatively , the change may not be significant and is thus , an indication that the student had a bad day . other types of baseline changes are possible . further , an event can be determined by an expert system 75 or provided by an individual 76 . an expert system can monitor the education - related information and detect an event based on one or more factors . for instance , cheating can be detected by considering multiple factors , such as time , score , and student identity . a process is performed by the expert system 75 to identify the cheating event . in addition , an individual can request an event 76 by selecting a contact button or entering a notification into the online learning environment . for example , a parent may request communication with a teacher or the online learning staff may enter a notification that the online learning system will reboot within one hour . other types of expert system determinations and individual provided events are possible . a single event occurrence may trigger additional event occurrences to generate a cascade of events 78 . for example , upon enrollment of a new student , an event is identified and an alert is delivered to one or more recipients . if the addition of the new student exceeds a number of subscriptions purchased , another alert is also generated . the new student alert and exceed subscription alert can be delivered individually or combined to form a single alert . other methods for sending single or multiple alerts are possible . during event identification , a benchmark is determined for inclusion in the alert . in a first example , a teacher performs an online educational activity by assigning homework to the students in an online course . the watcher identifies the addition of the homework to the online learning environment and the education - related information as an event . the homework assignment is identified as the benchmark . even though the alert was received , the student may not be required to complete the homework if the student has already mastered the material or has obtained the points required for the online class . thus , the student can determine whether he must complete the homework . in a second example , a site coordinator , such as an administrator , is responsible for the number of students enrolled in the online learning environment for a particular organization . the organization can include a school , home , after school group , and credit recovery organization . the organization is registered for a particular number of student enrollments , which is tracked by the watcher . the organization performs an online educational activity by registering a student in the online learning environment . once the number of students enrolled reaches or exceeds the number of registrations , an event is identified and the number of students enrolled is the benchmark for the event . alternatively , the benchmark could include a number of students above the number of registrations , the names of the students , or a cost for the additional students . the credit recovery organization can interpret the benchmark to determine whether they want to pay for the additional students or withdraw the students from registration . benchmarks provide a starting point for recipient interpretation of an event provided in an alert . once an event is identified , a watcher determines whether the event requires an alert to be sent . if required , an alert is generated . otherwise , the watcher continues to monitor the education - related information . communication can be initiated between individuals associated with an online learning environment using an alert to provide near real time notification of an event . fig7 is a process flow diagram showing a process 80 for generating an alert 81 . an alert processor retrieves an event with a corresponding benchmark from a queue 82 and selects a template 83 based on factors , such as a type of the event , the benchmark , the subject matter of the event , or other factors . a template is a predetermined format for an alert . a standard template can be used for all alerts or generated for a specific type of alert . alternatively , the template can be customizable . each template can include text , fillable fields , or blank text boxes that are filled by the alert processor . also , an individual , such as a teacher , student , or parent can manually fill the template . other types of templates are possible . the alert processor then determines recipients of the alert 84 . the recipients can be selected from the individuals of an online learning environment , including teachers , students , parents , administrators , mentors , members of the online learning staff , or others , such as counselors , paraprofessionals , and coaches . alternatively , the recipients can include one or more members of an education support group . education support groups help individuals to learn together . the education support groups are formed from the individuals , which can be automatically selected based on factors , including a type of event , a subject of the event , or based on a relationship with one or more of the individuals , or as a combination of automatic and individual initiated groupings . for example , when a student is enrolled in the online learning environment , an education support group , including a teacher and a parent is automatically generated . however , the student may also work closely with a counselor or mentor , who can also be added to the education support group . other methods of grouping and selecting recipients are possible . after determining the recipients 84 , the alert processor can determine one or more delivery mechanisms for the alert 85 . the delivery mechanisms can include email , instant messaging , text messaging , and display on a website . selecting a delivery mechanism is described below with further reference to fig1 . optionally , response action elements 86 , such as action buttons , text recommendations , hyperlinks , and images can also be included in the alert . the response action elements can include interactive elements that allow recipients of an alert to perform a response action , such as obtaining or providing additional information , initiating a communication , sending an additional alert , and restricting or allowing access to the online curriculum . the response action elements can be selected by an individual , included with an alert template , or automatically selected based on a type of the event . other types of response action elements and methods for selecting the response action elements are possible . the response actions and response action elements are discussed below with further reference to fig1 . once determined , the benchmark 82 , template 83 , recipients 84 , delivery mechanisms 85 , and response action elements 86 are compiled 87 to form the alert . each recipient of an alert can enter user preferences for receiving particular types of alerts or for receiving the alerts through a particular delivery mechanism . other types of user preferences are possible . upon alert generation and determination of the user preferences , the alert is delivered . each recipient can select to receive alerts via one or more delivery methods . fig8 is a process flow diagram 90 showing a process for delivering an alert . an alert processor can access user preferences to determine delivery mechanisms for sending the alert . alternatively , the delivery mechanisms can be automatically selected based on delivery factors , including a type of alert , designated recipients , or subject matter of the event . however , other types of delivery mechanisms , user preferences , and delivery factors are possible . the alert processor determines whether an alert should be sent to a website 91 based on the user preferences or delivery factors . if not , the alert processor then determines whether the alert should be sent via email 94 . however , if so , the alert is delivered 92 and displayed . after delivery , the alert processor determines whether an additional delivery mechanism 93 is selected . if no other delivery mechanism has been selected , the delivery alert process ends . otherwise , if another delivery mechanism is selected , the alert processor determines whether the alert should be sent via email 94 based on the user preferences and delivery factors . if email 94 has not been selected as a method of delivery , the alert processor then determines whether an alert should be sent via text messaging 97 . but , if selected , the alert is delivered via email 95 . once delivered , the alert processor determines whether another delivery method has been selected 96 . if not , the delivery alert process terminates . however , if another delivery mechanism has been selected , the alert processor determines whether text messaging 97 has been selected as a delivery mechanism based on the user preferences and delivery factors . if not selected , the alert processor determines whether another delivery mechanism 100 has been selected , whereas the alert is delivered 98 when text messaging has been selected . after delivery , the alert processor determines whether another delivery mechanism 99 has been selected . if not , the delivery alert process ends . however , if another delivery mechanism 99 has been selected , the alert processor determines the type of delivery mechanism 100 , and the alert is delivered using that delivery mechanism 101 . the process ends after the alert has been delivered via all selected delivery mechanisms . upon receipt of the alert , each recipient can interpret a significance of the event using a benchmark . the benchmark is determined from a change in the online learning environment , including a change in education - related information , from the information provided by an individual to initiate an event , from threshold conclusions , from changes related to a baseline , or from conclusions by an expert system . a benchmark provides a starting point for a receiving individual to determine a significance of an event . fig9 is a process flow diagram 110 showing a process for interpreting a benchmark 111 . an individual receives an alert 112 with a benchmark for a particular event . the receiving individual can analyze the benchmark 113 by comparing interpretation data , such as graphs , previous student information , thresholds , and averages with the benchmark . the interpretation data can be included in the alert or accessed by the individual through the online learning environment . after analyzing the benchmark , the receiving individual can determine a significance of the event 114 provided by the alert . the determination of significance can prompt the individual to optionally perform a response action 115 , including obtaining or providing additional information , initiating a communication , sending an additional alert , initiating a change to the education - related information , and restricting or allowing access to the online curriculum and education - related information . the response alert can include information directly entered by an individual or can be generated based on a change in the education - related information . response actions are discussed below with further reference to fig1 . an example of benchmark interpretation involves a student who is taking a math test online . once the student has completed the exam , an alert is sent to the teacher to notify her that the exam has been completed . upon receipt of the alert , the teacher can then select to grade the exam at anytime . after grading the exam , the teacher enters the test score for the student into the online learning environment . an alert is generated with a benchmark for the event , such as the score and delivered to the student . the alert notifies the student that he has received six out of ten answers correct . for this particular student , the score is significant since on a previous math exam , the student received two out of ten answers correct . thus , the student has improved considerably since the previous math exam . however , another student who receives a score of six out of ten answers correct may not conclude that the score is significant , such as a student who consistently receives the same scores . in a further example , a member from the online learning staff requests an alert having a benchmark that provides notification of a system reboot to be sent to all administrators . the alert may be significant to one administrator who is generating reports via the online learning environment . however , the alert may be insignificant to another administrator who is on vacation . as described , different conclusions of significance can be formed from the same benchmark . the alerts provide a near real time method of notifying recipients that an event has occurred . the recipients are provided with a benchmark transmitted in the alert to determine a significance of the event and whether a response action should be taken . each recipient can customize the types of alerts received and the delivery mechanisms for receiving the alerts . once a recipient has determined a significance of the alert , response actions can be performed . the response actions can be performed independently by the recipient or based on suggested response actions provided by the alert . the suggested response actions can be displayed to a user by response action elements , such as action buttons , text recommendations , hyperlinks , and images , which are displayed in the alert message received . the text can provide a process or series of steps to perform in regards to a particular event , whereas , the action buttons can perform a particular action when selected by the recipient . the suggested response actions can be provided based on an expert system , related curriculum , and a related event . other determinations and provisions of the suggested response actions are possible . the expert system can generate the suggested responses using expert knowledge to determine one or more appropriate response actions for a particular event . the expert knowledge is derived from a collective expertise of education professionals familiar with the functioning of the online learning environment . the response actions allow the recipients to obtain or provide additional information , initiate a communication , send an additional alert , initiate a change to the education - related information , and restrict or allow access to the online curriculum by selecting a response action element . the response actions and response action elements are discussed below with further reference to fig1 . the recipient can select one or more suggested response actions based on an interpretation of the benchmark for an event . for example , an event , such as cheating or suspected cheating by a student can be detected using knowledge from the expert system . upon detection , an alert is sent to an online teacher as notification of the cheating or suspected cheating event . the alert includes two response buttons and response text . if selected , the first button allows the teacher to restrict the student &# 39 ; s access to the online curriculum and the second button allows the teacher to immediately notify the student . the text recommendation includes information from the expert system , which describes how the cheating event was determined . for instance , in this example , the student received a perfect score . however , the student took the same exam yesterday and received a score of 20 percent . in addition , the student only took one minute to complete the exam for which he received a perfect score . the text also includes recommended steps for the teacher to follow with regards to the cheating event . for instance , a first step recommends that the teacher suspend the student &# 39 ; s access to the curriculum . a second step suggests that the teacher review all the student &# 39 ; s scores prior to initiating communication . a third step suggests discussing the event with the student over the phone , instead of through email . based on the results of the third step , additional and alternative steps are also provided . alternatively , the response actions can be performed automatically on behalf of a user based on an event occurrence . for example ; a student is enrolled in an online credit recovery program with the online learning environment . the student completes a chapter exam and receives a score of three out of ten . upon identification of the student &# 39 ; s low score , a study plan is generated by the expert system and transmitted to the student . the study plan is provided as an additional learning tool and can include a guide to mastering the material by outlining important subject matter , by providing a timeline for studying particular parts of the subject matter , and by providing additional information regarding the subject matter . when performed automatically , a notification of the response action is provided to one or more individuals , including for instance , one or more members of an education support group or the student himself . the notification can include a message describing the reasons for performing the automatic response action and the automatic response itself . returning to our previous example , a parent of the student may receive a notification identifying that their student received a low score and in - turn , was provided with a study guide . alternatively , the parent may also be provided with a notification having a copy of the study guide . in addition , the student can also receive a notification of the automated response action , such as when a hardcopy of the study guide is mailed . the notification informs the student that he will be receiving a study guide . other types of notifications are possible . recipients can enter user preferences for customizing the type of alerts received and the delivery methods used . fig1 is a screen shot 120 showing , by way of example , a website 121 for entering user preferences . the website includes a tab 122 , which displays a title regarding the subject matter for the web page . a tool box 123 is displayed on the left side of the website , underneath the tab 122 . the tool box 123 lists education actions that can be performed by the individual , including maintaining a grade book , generating reports , setting up announcements , setting up an online classroom , sending a class roster , preparing student correlations , changing personal information , preparing a course orientation , and running a system checkup . a user preference box 124 is located below the tab , on the right side of the website 121 . in the user preference box 124 , an individual is able to select his preferences for types of alerts received and alert delivery methods . other types of user preferences and displays for entering the user preferences are possible . the individual can select to receive alerts from any of the categories of education - related information , described above with reference to fig4 , by clicking on a checkbox , selecting a category from a drop down menu , or by typing in a particular category . the individual can also select delivery mechanisms for receiving the alert . the delivery mechanisms include a display on a website , an email , or text message . other types of delivery mechanisms are possible , such as instant messaging . the individual may be required to provide additional information to ensure delivery via a selected method . for example , to receive alerts on a cellular telephone , the individual can enter his telephone number 127 and service provider 128 . after entering the user preferences , the individual can select a submit button 129 to store the preferences . other methods for entering and selecting user preferences are possible . an alert is sent once the user preferences are set and an event is identified . fig1 is a screen shot 130 showing , by way of example , an alert 132 displayed on a website 131 . receipt of a new alert 132 can be displayed on the website 131 as a pop up message , an icon , a highlighted menu option , or by an alert button 135 . the individual can click on the pop up message , icon , highlighted menu option , or alert button 135 to view the alert . alternatively , the alert 132 itself can be displayed as a pop up message 132 when the individual is logged in to the online learning environment . each alert 132 can include a title 133 for a category of education - related information and a benchmark 134 for the event that triggered the alert . other methods for displaying an alert on a website and notifying an individual that an alert has been received are possible . the alert can also be received through email . fig1 is a screen shot 140 showing , by way of example , an alert 142 received via email 141 . an individual can access his email inbox 145 to determine whether an alert 142 has been received . the alert 142 can be identified by a title 146 of the event . the title 146 can also be used as a heading for the subject matter 143 of the email 141 . the individual can select the email 141 to display a benchmark 144 for an event , which is located in a text box 142 . other methods for displaying an alert by email are possible . the alert can also be received through a text message . fig1 is a block diagram 150 showing , by way of example , an alert 151 received via a text message 152 . the alert 151 is displayed on a cellular telephone to notify the individual that an event has occurred . a benchmark 153 is also displayed . other displays and delivery methods for an alert are possible . each type of alert can include response action elements for allowing recipients of the alert to perform actions in response to an event . fig1 is a screen shot 160 showing , by way of example , an alert 161 with response action elements . the response action elements can include action buttons 166 , text recommendations 163 , hyperlinks 164 , and images 165 . the alert is displayed in an email 162 and notifies a recipient that a particular student has earned a perfect score on activity 1 . 1 . 3 in a precalculus class . the text recommendations 163 can provide a process , list of recommended steps , detailed information of the event , historical information , subscription numbers and cost , or contact information to the recipient . the hyperlinks allow the recipient to quickly and easily access a web page for performing a response action . in addition to the hyperlinks , the response action buttons 166 can also allow the recipient to initiate a response action . the response action buttons 166 can include response actions , such as forwarding a message , initiating a communication , recording an event , and purchasing additional subscriptions . images , such as an award medal , copy of a grade book , and videos can also be displayed in the alert . other types of response action elements and response actions are possible . the recipient of an alert may be part of an education support group created for an individual of the online education environment , such as the student . the education support group includes multiple individuals with an interest in education - related information or in the particular student enrolled in the online learning environment . alerts can be transmitted to one or more of the individuals based on a type of the alert . further , the response actions provided by the response action elements can be selected based on a type of the individual . for example , when a student receives a perfect score , an alert is sent to an education support group associated with the student . the education support group may include a teacher , parent , and mentor , as well as other individuals with an interest in the student &# 39 ; s educational progress . the alert received by the teacher may include response action elements for response actions , such as sending a congratulations message to the student and a hyperlink to a grade book for ensuring the perfect score is recorded . since the parent and mentor are unable to access the grade book , their alerts contain only the response action element for sending the congratulations message . in a further embodiment , the alerts can be customized by the online learning staff , teachers , students , parents , or administrators . the customization can include layout , text , hyperlinks , animation , color , and sound . other types of customization are possible . in a further embodiment , the education - related information can be used to generate comparisons within , between , and among different grouping &# 39 ; s of individuals and organizations associated with the online learning environment . the individuals can include administrators , teachers , students , and others . the comparisons can be based on a comparison factor , such as location , age , social economic class , dropout rate , organization size , ethnic background , student behavior , or the groupings . in addition , the comparisons can be used to evaluate the progress of one or more individuals or organizations . for instance , a first teacher teaches a geometry class for a group of students located in the city of seattle , wash . upon termination of the course , cumulative scores for each student are combined to generate an evaluation indicator for the geometry class . the evaluation indicator can then be used for comparing with another evaluation indicator for a geometry class taught by a second teacher under the same conditions . the same conditions can be evaluated using the comparison factors . thus , the second teacher may teach a geometry class in the city of portland , oreg ., which is fairly comparable to seattle in size , population , and ethnic background . the comparison of the indicators can be used to evaluate the teachers &# 39 ; performance , as well as the students &# 39 ; performance . in a further embodiment , an event occurrence may have an effect on the occurrence of an additional event . for example , a student has been caught cheating . the process and rules for determining cheating is changed to a lower standard for that student to identify further instances of suspected cheating . in yet a further embodiment , an individual can override a particular alert by selecting an override button or by entering a particular subject matter of the alert . the override prevents individuals from receiving alerts they would ordinarily receive , such as during a meeting or online class seminar . while the invention has been particularly shown and described as referenced to the embodiments thereof , those skilled in the art will understand that the foregoing and other changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . | 6 |
please refer to fig3 and 4 . the present invention provides an electrical information storage device , which includes a first casing 1 , a rotating means 2 , a pushing element 3 , an outer gear 4 , an electrical connecting portion 5 , and a protective casing 6 . the first casing 1 is formed by assembling a top cover 1 with a base 12 . the pushing element 3 , the outer gear 4 , and the electrical connecting portion 5 are accommodated between the top cover 11 and the base 12 . an inner wall of the first casing 1 is provided with a first toothed portion 13 . one end of the first casing 1 has an opening 14 . the electrical connecting portion 5 movably penetrates through the opening 14 . when the electrical connecting portion 5 is inserted into a connecting port of a computer , information can be transmitted between the computer and the storage device . the protective cover 6 is formed by assembling another top cover 61 and a bottom cover 62 . the protective casing 6 covers the exterior of the first casing 1 . the surface of the protective casing 6 is provided with oblique stripes 63 corresponding to the surface of the first casing 1 , so that the first casing 1 and the protective casing 6 can be assembled quickly and easily by recognizing the stripes on the surface of the first casing 1 and the oblique stripes 63 . the rotating means 2 is connected to the exterior of the first casing 1 . the rotating means 2 comprises a gripping portion 21 and a connecting portion 22 . the connecting portion 22 comprises a first ring 221 and a second ring 222 . the first ring 221 is connected to the gripping portion 21 . the outer diameter of the first ring 221 is smaller than that of the second ring 222 . the first ring 221 is connected between the gripping portion 21 and the second ring 222 . the first casing 1 is provided with an accommodating portion 15 . the first ring 221 and the second ring 222 are received in the accommodating portion 15 . the inner wall of the gripping portion 21 is provided with internal threads . two opposing sides outside the rotating means 2 are connected to a pivotal piece 24 respectively . the pair of pivotal pieces 24 is pivotally connected with a hanging ring 7 that allows the user to carry it about easily . the pushing element 3 is coupled to the rotating means 2 . specifically , the pushing element 3 comprises a seat 31 and a screw rod 32 . one side of the seat 31 is fixed to one end of the screw rod 32 . the other side of the seat 31 is provided with a protruding block 311 . the screw rod 32 penetrates the gripping portion 21 , the first ring 221 and the second ring 222 . the screw rod 32 is connected with the inner threads of the gripping portion 21 . the outer gear 4 is coupled to the pushing element 3 . more specifically , the center of the outer gear 4 has an open hole 41 , so that the outer gear 4 is pivotally connected to the protruding block 311 through the open hole 41 and thus the protruding block is coupled to the outer gear . one end of the outer gear 4 is engaged with the first toothed portion 13 . the electrical connecting portion 5 comprises a circuit board mounting means 51 and a circuit board 52 having memories , a memory controlling circuit and electrical connectors . the circuit board mounting means 51 is coupled to the circuit board 52 . more specifically , the circuit board mounting means 51 is recessed to form a mounting trough 511 , so that the circuit board 52 can be disposed in the mounting trough 511 and connected with the circuit board mounting means 51 firmly . the bottom surface of the circuit board mounting means 51 is provided with a second toothed portion 53 . the other end of the outer gear 4 is coupled to the second toothed portion 53 , so that the outer gear 4 is located between the first toothed portion 13 and the second toothed portion 53 . as shown in fig5 , when the storage device is in use , the user rotates the rotating means 2 , so that the screw rod 32 received in the rotating means 2 moves with respect to the first casing 1 . at this time , the seat 31 moves together with the screw rod 32 , thus driving the outer gear 4 . since the outer gear 4 is engaged with the first toothed portion 13 , the outer gear 4 can rotate and move with respect to the first casing 1 , which drives the electrical connecting portion 5 engaged with the outer gear 4 via the second toothed portion 53 so as to move with respect to the first casing 1 . more specifically , with the cooperation of the outer gear 4 with the first toothed portion 13 and the second toothed portion 53 , since the outer gear 4 is pivotally connected to the pushing element 3 via the central open hole 41 having an inner radius r 1 , when the pushing element 3 moves a distance of d 1 ( e . g . 6 mm ), the outer gear 4 also moves a distance of d 1 . in the case that the outer radius of the outer gear 4 is r 2 , since the first casing 1 is stationary to act like a fulcrum , the rotation of the outer gear 4 relative to the first casing 1 causes the electrical connecting portion 5 engaged with the outer gear 4 to move a distance of d 2 , wherein d 2 = d 1 ×( r 2 / r 1 ). if the ratio of the outer radius to the inner radius of the outer gear 4 ( r 2 / r 1 ) is 2 , the electrical connecting portion 5 can move a distance of 12 mm ( 6 × 2 = 12 mm ). when the storage device is not in use , the user only has to rotate the rotating means 2 to retract the previously - protruding electrical connecting portion 5 into the first casing 1 . in this way , the electrical connecting portion can be protected . further , the moving distance of the electrical connecting portion 5 is multiplied by the ratio of the outer radius to the inner radius of the outer gear 4 , which improving the convenience of the storage device in use . please refer to fig6 and 7 , which show another embodiment of the electrical information storage device of the present invention including a first casing 1 ′, a rotating means 2 ′, a pushing element 3 ′, and a circuit board 4 ′ having memories , a memory controlling circuit and electrical connectors . one end of the first casing 1 ′ has an opening 11 ′, and one side thereof is provided with a positioning pillar 12 ′. the rotating means 2 is coupled to the first casing 1 ′. the rotating means 2 ′ has an upper cover 21 ′, a first toothed portion 22 ′ and a lower cover 23 ′. the first toothed portion 22 ′ is circumferentially provided on the periphery of the rotating means 2 ′. the first toothed portion 22 ′ is arranged between the upper cover 21 ′ and the lower cover 23 ′. the upper cover 21 ′, the first toothed portion 22 ′ and the lower cover 23 ′ are pivotally connected to the positioning pillar 12 ′. the side wall of the pushing element 3 ′ is provided with a trough 31 ′. the pushing element 3 ′ is provided with a second toothed portion 32 ′ on the inner wall of the trough 31 ′. the rotating means 2 ′ is located in the trough 31 ′. the first toothed portion 22 ′ is engaged with the second toothed portion 32 ′. the circuit board 4 ′ is coupled to an end surface outside the pushing element 3 ′. the circuit board 4 ′ movably penetrates the opening 11 ′. please refer to fig8 . when the storage device is in use , the user can rotate the rotating means 2 ′ to drive the pushing element 3 ′ to move in the first casing 1 ′ via the engagement between the first toothed portion 22 ′ and the second toothed portion 32 ′. then , the circuit board 4 ′ coupled to the pushing element 3 ′ moves together with the pushing element 3 ′, and finally protrudes from the opening 11 ′. when the storage device is not in use , the user rotates the rotating means 2 ′ to return its original position , thus retracting the previously - protruding circuit board 4 ′ into the first casing 1 ′. in this way , the circuit board 4 ′ can be protected , and the convenience of the storage device in use can be improved . while the invention has been described in terms of what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that the invention needs not be limited to the disclosed embodiment . on the contrary , it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims which are to be accorded with the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar structures . | 7 |
a sewage treatment plant 10 provides effluent 5 , for use in a geothermal steam field such as the geysers steam field 20 , located at site 30 . also located at site 30 are the following components as shown in fig1 a steam turbine - generator 50 , a heat exchanger system 52 , a holding pond 46 , an inlet to a penstock 44 , and a piping system for carrying condensate 62 , effluent 5 , steam 60 and cooked water 64 as described below the effluent 5 is piped through a plurality of pumps 15 to site 30 where it is routed in one of several directions the effluent 5 may be injected directly into the geothermal strata 40 , located deep below the surface of the site 30 , or into the heat exchanger system 52 , for use as a cooling medium . after use as a cooling medium in heat exchanger system 52 , the effluent 5 is injected into the geothermal strata 40 from the geothermal strata 40 , geothermal steam 60 is extracted through its own distribution to the steam turbine - generator 50 , where it is expanded and condensed to produce electricity . from the steam turbine - generator 50 , the condensate 62 is piped either to a holding pond 46 , or to the geothermal strata 40 where it is re - injected . any fraction of the condensate may be re - injected into the geothermal strata 40 , or directed to the holding pond 46 . the holding pond 46 stores condensate 62 , for further use . cooked water 64 , also extracted from the geothermal strata 40 , is also piped to the holding pond 46 . the condensate 62 and cooked water 64 provide sterilized water that is void of all live bacteria , virus , and / or vegetation . the condensate 62 and / or cooked water 64 is introduced into the holding pond 46 sufficiently below its surface to avoid any contamination of the air due to vapors effected by contact with the geothermal strata 40 the holding pond 46 provides the needed volume and pressure to be useful when directed down penstock 44 to the inlet of the hydroelectric turbine - generator 70 , where the potential energy is extracted in the form of electricity after flowing through the hydroelectric turbine - generator 70 , the condensate 62 and cooked water 64 are processed in water treatment system 80 , consisting of filtration and chemical treatment to remove sulfur , arsenic , iron and dissolved solids . no organic contamination will exist after injection and recapture as steam or cooked water . in another embodiment of the present invention , treatment of the fractions of cooked water 64 and / or condensate 62 to be directed to the holding pond 46 may first be treated to produce potable water , thereby eliminating potential problems stemming from a contaminated holding pond the potable water may then either be held and distributed for public consumption or directed down penstock 44 to extract the potential energy in the hydroelectric turbine - generator 70 for example , condensate 62 and / or cooked water 64 can be piped to a distillation plant 90 . also , in the event of interruption of re - injection of the condensate 62 from the heat exchanger system 52 , the flow can be maintained via a bypass 53 of the re - injection well to flow condensate to the distillation plant 90 . the distillation plant 90 is preferably located on the steam - field side of the site 30 and is provided with water that is already near the flash point temperature . the temperature of the condensate 62 and cooked water 64 is such that only an incremental amount of heat , if any , is needed to convert liquid phase water to vapor , that is , any liquid can be economically heated to a vaporous state the water vapor can then be condensed as distilled water the distilled water is then collected or directed down the penstock 44 , to the inlet of the hydroelectric turbine - generator 70 , and , thence , to the water treatment system 80 , for removal of any contaminants dissolved or suspended in the distilled water en route to the water treatment system also , in the event that the return line to the penstock 44 ceases to vacate , causing a stoppage of the flow from the distillation plant 90 , the plant flow may be temporarily diverted to the holding pond 46 steam turbine - generators employ cooling water for a variety of reasons , but a chief application is in the condensing heat exchanger system 52 , which is flexibly connected to the exhaust of the steam turbine - generator 50 , as shown in fig2 and which usually receives its cooling water from a cooling tower . it is possible that traditional cooling towers may be reduced in size or even eliminated by using the large volume of available effluent for cooling the condensing heat exchanger 52 creates a relative vacuum in the low - pressure stages of the steam turbine - generator 50 , helping the expansion of the steam 60 through the system one embodiment of the present invention enables pipe / cable / conduit ( pcc ) to be laid within inundated or across unstable areas without the need of prior excavation , trenching or other ground preparation and without bedding , while still providing stability and protection to the pcc against damage . the technology of this invention permits the use of an unlimited selection of kinds and types of primary and secondary pipes / conduits 11 and 12 in the form of rigid , supple , sectioned or spooled with coupled , screwed or mechanically jointed ends along with cable conduits 14 , 16 and 17 and collectively referred to hereinafter as multiple pipe / cable / conduit ( mpcc ) 19 for the transport of fluids , particulate matter , electric current and / or communication signals , and these types and kinds may be interchangeable as the particular need may arise , and none of which would be subject to damage subsequent to their being laid due to their being secured by an engineered supporting cable or rod 21 and protected by a sleeved sheathing 41 the assembly will now be described in more detail the mpcc 19 is to be sleeved by a larger diametered housing as a sheathing 41 , and one or more rods and / or cables 21 installed between the mpcc 19 and the sheathing 41 for semi - or intervaled suspension and / or restraint of the ensemble from flexing action , and is also accompanied by a pull wire 31 strung between the n 4 pcc and the sheathing to provide a mechanism for pulling the supporting cable or rod 21 through , or for its replacement , subsequent to the time of assembly and installation / placement the assembly also comprises couplings / ties . the couplings or ties at the ends of the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 are preferably wrapped to prevent them from becoming snagged on the ends of the lengths of the mpcc 19 whenever any of the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 would be withdrawn for repair or replacement . protection of the mpcc 19 is provided by the sheathing 41 , and its specifications would vary to adequately suit the anticipated conditions to which the mpcc would become subjected the mpcc 19 is to be protected in its entirety from damage by being encased by a sleeve sheathing 41 and it being the intent that the sheathing 41 shield the mpcc 19 from the river current , any impacts from traveling debris carried by any river current or from any blows caused by man , or the like the sleeve sheathing 41 can be constructed of whatever durable material to suit and which is available under each installation circumstance the sleeve sheathing 41 may be sealed at the ends or left open to suit the nature of the mpcc 19 and whatever is to be transported . preferably , the material should be capable of being readily uncoupled if its sections are to be jointed the inside diameter or opening should be such to be permitted adequate clearance from the mpcc 19 to permit the installation of the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 and the pull wire 3 i and subsequently to be readily withdrawn when required tension rod or cables 21 and 22 are to be installed to provide support for the mpcc 19 and restraint from tensile separation or compression shifting and / or flexing stresses of the mpcc as a result of fluctuations in the river current or from ground movements . the cables 21 and 22 can be standard metal wire cable or any durable waterproof multiple - strand , non - metallic material capable of sustaining high , continuous tensile loading without elongation and / or failure . the diameter of the cable or rod 21 should be that which would be required to include a safety factor , as normally would be determined by the mpcc 19 designer / engineer , and the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 would be attached to anchors in , ashore and / or submerged within the body or area being traversed the clearance between the mpcc 19 and the sleeve sheathing 41 may not be void of water ; therefore , the ends of the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 should be allowed to protrude through / from the sheathing 41 to be fastened to the anchors the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 can be tensioned to suit , by whatever mechanical or hydraulic means from the various anchor sites / points along the mpcc 19 alignment if more than one cable or rod 21 is utilized , all could be at reduced tension to that of the primary cable or rod 21 , to act only as a safety for example , the cable 22 could be provided in the event of damage to the primary cable or rod 21 the ends of the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 located within the sleeve sheathing 41 should be coupled by connectors and should be wrapped to provide their unobstructed passage over / past any end joint of the mpcc 19 the pull wire 31 is preferably a metallic or multiple - strand , non - metallic cord with high tensile strength installed along side the primary support rod or cable 21 at the time of assembly to be used to pull through any replacement supporting rod or cable 21 in the event of damage to the primary rod or cable 21 . the pull wire 31 need not be left under tension . in an alternative embodiment , when protective sheathing 41 for the mpcc 19 is not being utilized , regularly spaced supporting rings 51 around the mpcc 19 , as shown in fig5 are installed for the rod and / or cables 21 and 22 to support the mpcc 19 . the rings or bands 51 may be of metal or non - metallic material and can be one - piece fabrication ; however , those of two or more pieces or open ended may be joined by cold forged rivets 54 or otherwise united into an assembly without the application of heat , as shown in fig5 and pre - drilled to accommodate being threaded by a ring separator wire 32 the supporting rings / bands 51 should be allowed to slide longitudinally along the mpcc 19 , but then become stopped at regular intervals by supporting ring / band separator stops 33 on the supporting ring / band separator wire 32 threaded through pre - drilled holes through the rings 51 , utilizing crimped clips or sleeves with set screws 33 to the wire after the stops have been placed against each of the faces of the separating rings / bands 51 , as illustrated in fig6 the ends of the supporting rod ( s ) or cable ( s ) 21 and 22 are to be fastened to anchors installed at regular intervals , or wherever the physical circumstances require to accommodate the mpcc 19 alignment . the anchors can be pre - cast or constructed in place using poured concrete , concrete block , stone or brick masonry , be screwed or driven into the ground and / or using marine dolphins or piling to secure the mpcc 19 ensemble . the system also provides bridging between anchors . the mpcc 19 can be installed utilizing marine dolphins , floats , pontoons , and / or buoys as anchors , where the bottom of the body or area being traversed is unknown , not readily accessible , and / or is too unstable to permit any bedded type of anchor construction . the system provides accessibility and the ability to raise the mpcc 19 . the anchor ends of the mpcc 19 can be made readily accessible at any of the anchor sites / points and can then be made readily capable of being uncoupled and raised for inspection , change , and / or repair , and then re - laid to rest without difficulty it is preferable that the ensemble be laid longitudinally versus laterally to any river current or flow to minimize externally produced tension upon the mpcc 19 caused by the current , to avoid cavitation under the sleeve sheathing 41 , and to avoid flank impacts by current transported objects . additional pipeline shielding is preferably provided to address the need to shield the mpcc 19 when it lies laterally to the current of the river or stream , as would normally be found at the points of ingress to , or egress from , the stream and in areas which would be significantly away from eddy areas along the shorelines the additional shielding is provided by deflectors . as shown in fig7 a and 7b , the shielding is meant to protect the full profile of the mpcc 19 by installing deflectors , constructed of sheet piling 61 driven into the undisturbed riverbed , or of a pre - constructed fabrication of panels 63 , such as of steel reinforced concrete retained in place by “ h ” cross - section steel piling 65 driven into the riverbed without excavation or other disturbance of the riverbed , installed along the upstream side of the mpcc 19 , and battered by a factor of alpha from the plumb in an amount to be computed and made directly proportional to the magnitude of the maximum anticipated current velocity of the river or stream during flood and with the top edge of the panel being high enough above the top of the mpcc 19 to cause a vertical deflection of the flow up - and - over the top of the mpcc 19 , and thereby preventing cavitation under the mpcc 19 and / or deflector 61 or 63 in addition to providing the mpcc 19 complete protection from debris and the continuous lateral hydraulic pressure loading of the stream flow , which could adversely deflect the mpcc 19 , as well as exert potentially excessive tensile , or compressive , stress to the mpcc 19 and to its supporting rod or cable 21 such preventative measures should be taken wherever alignments of the mpcc 19 lateral to the current flow would not be sheltered by eddy currents normally found along shorelines the deflectors 61 or 63 aid the preservation of the mpcc 19 within the hostile environment normally expected for the implementation of the invention the deflectors 61 or 63 render that environment compatible to the utility and long lasting potential to its installation . laying / placement of the mpcc 19 is adaptable the technology of the present invention permits the ensemble of the mpcc 19 with sheathing 41 , rod and / or cables 21 and 22 and pull wire 31 to be laid to rest on the undisturbed bottom of any body of water , across any area of quick soil , swamp , bog , or to be suspended between any two or more points , and / or laid interchangeably above and below the aqueous surface of any of these traversed areas without ground or bedding preparation being required the mpcc 19 support method can be readily alternated from rod and / or cable support with sleeve shielding to rod and / or cable with rings / bands support , then readily reverted thereafter , particularly when in proximity to an anchor , without difficulty or limitations . the deflectors 61 or 63 are provided to protect the mpcc 19 installation when needed in another embodiment , the present invention provides for the conveyance of water such as wastewater or other pumpable fluids , as well as utilities such as electricity , through a mountainous terrain , or other sites not readily accessible for pipeline construction , by way of a tunnel housing any number of utility lines / pipes / conduits and referred to as a utili - tunnel . the purpose of the utili - tunnel is to make it possible to lay conduits traversing areas not readily compatible to such construction , particularly in seismically active locations preferably , a “ pipe breach flow - check ” incorporated into the structure of the utili - tunnel provides protection against damage resulting from flooding in the event of a pipe breach as shown in fig9 the utili - tunnel has a crown ( ceiling ) 114 , for example , twelve feet high , and an eight - foot width , for optimum utility . construction would initiate typically by excavating the crown 114 , followed by excavating ( lowering ) the invert ( floor ) 112 to provide the head clearance desired . depending upon the type of soil being excavated , a concrete or grout liner may , or may not , be needed . if provided , the liner is preferably put in place as the tunnel excavation advances . preferably , a pipe breach flow - check 130 is provided , as shown in fig8 . if the utili - tunnel is inclined and a pipe breach occurs , the flow out of the tunnel portal ( entry ) 110 could become catastrophic to the adjoining landscape . this condition can be averted by designing and constructing what is termed a “ pipe breach flow - check ” 130 in the utili - tunnel . the pipe breach flow - check 130 comprises a lateral tunnel 131 commencing near the portal having the lowest tunnel elevation . the lateral 131 would be of the same configuration as the main tunnel and would daylight ( exit ) to the surface terrain the main tunnel 110 between the portal and this lateral would then be plugged 119 , as shown in fig8 . the utility of this uniquely configured pipe breach flow - check 130 is that the hydraulic hammer associated with the burst and downward flow of water following a breach travelling down the utili - tunnel to exit the tunnel would slam against the plug 119 subsequent to that impact , the water would then flow through the lateral 131 , without causing impact damage . this feature is of particular importance when constructed in areas subject to strong seismic activity . one or more pipes can be routed through the utili - tunnel as shown in fig9 the pipe ( s ) should be positioned close to the wall of the tunnel and supported by cradles 120 , spaced evenly at intervals so as to minimize sag in the pipe . strapping the pipe to the cradles is optional . conduits and electric or communication cables can also be fastened / mounted to racks 122 fastened to the upper walls of the utili - tunnel , as shown in fig9 . lighting can also be provided tunnel illumination can be achieved by mounting a lifeline 126 of caged lights to the center of the crown of the utili - tunnel additionally , ventilation can be provided for the interior of the utili - tunnel ventilation within the utili - tunnel can be achieved by wall and / or crown mounting of a duct 124 , commencing from the portals and / or from vertical shafts to the surface . fans can then be positioned within the ducts to control air movement . in anticipation of seepage into the utili - tunnel , a paved gutter 116 can additionally be constructed in the center of the tunnel invert ( floor ) 112 . one or more pump stations are provided in conjunction with the utili - tunnel in one embodiment , pump stations 150 can be constructed inside the tunnel for example , most strategically would be to place one pump at the portal containing the pipe breach flow - check lateral 131 , as shown in fig8 other pumps can be installed either straddling or alongside of the pipe by excavating alcoves to suit . electrical power to the pumps can be racked and / or dropped via shafts from the surface construction of the utili - tunnel has various advantages utili - tunnel construction can be very practical and economical when traversing mountainous terrains and / or when extreme climactic conditions and the risk of vandalism exists . various other and more specific advantages are as follows : ( a ) inspection of the pipes , conduits and cables can be conducted at all hours , without concern for adverse weather conditions ; ( b ) no excavations are needed to expose any of the utility lines in order to conduct inspections or repairs ; ( c ) clearance 118 along the pipe ( s ) 120 can be such to permit the use of a golf cart to travel the entire length of the utili - tunnel , ( d ) repairs can be conducted at all hours without hindrance , ( e ) the utility lines would not encroach on private lands and / or facilities on the surface , ( f ) public access could be avoided ; ( g ) the interior of the utili - tunnel would not be subject to freezing and / or snow , and ( h ) when constructed with a pipe breach flow - check , the utilitunnel can be constructed and utilized in areas of potentially high or intense seismic activity the technology associated with the mpcc 19 and / or utili - tunnel of this invention consists of mechanical assemblies constructed from common existing and readily available materials , and requiring no sophisticated workmanship to assemble or skill to lay or install , other than what is common knowledge to any experienced pipeline , pile driving , excavating and concrete workers . the technology provides the means of selecting the shortest possible pipeline route / alignment for the laying of the mpcc 19 and / or utili - tunnel and which could not otherwise be accessible , available or traversable , while making the pipeline less susceptible to damage after having been laid and potentially at a lower construction and / or maintenance cost while the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered the most practical and preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but , on the contrary , is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the scope of the appended claims . | 8 |
the following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention . the description is not to be taken in a limiting sense , but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention , since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims . various inventive features are described below that can each be used independently of one another or in combination with other features . however , any single inventive feature may not address any of the problems discussed above or may only address one of the problems discussed above . further , one or more of the problems discussed above may not be fully addressed by any of the features described below . broadly , an embodiment of the present invention generally provides an electronic voting system . embodiments include a voter database identification system , a voter identification verification system , a voter election system , and an election verification system . embodiments may be called “ voter id election verification system ” or “ videvs .” an embodiment of the present invention is an end to end computerized electronic voting system including a central computerized voter registration database , a wide area network ( wan ) data communications network and electronic voting terminals housed in compact lightweight cases that also function as convenient stands for the voting terminals . an embodiment is an improvement to existing computerized electronic or paper based voting systems in use today . an embodiment addresses the present systems &# 39 ; deficiencies in a way that allows for a voter verified paper trail , multiple same ballot re - voting , a paper audit trail , ‘ same way ’ legal re - counts , secure internet absentee voting and help america vote act ( hava ) compliant voting . this can be without the need for paper ballots , optical scanners , terminal printers , mailed absentee ballots and voter photo id &# 39 ; s , while maintaining the integrity of the secret ballot . an embodiment of the present invention is a voting system with four main functions : a voter registration database / id system , a voter id verification system , a voter election system , and an election verification system . a centrally located secure mainframe computer . this may be located at the local county supervisor of elections ( soe ) office . on this mainframe or other computer is stored , in a machine readable format , the complete voter registration database of voter information . this mainframe computer is also used during elections to store and distribute all the various web based ballot pages for the voters to vote on . this mainframe computer also stores the complete voting record of every vote and ballot cast using this videvs system . it is also used to store and tally votes and vote totals for election results . the computer is referenced herein as a “ mainframe ” in that it is a sufficiently powerful computer platform to perform these operations . a computerized voter registration database . this database is also on the mainframe computer in a machine readable format . this is a database of all registered voters and voter specific information ( vsi ) such as names , addresses , party , age , race , etc ., and other demographic information as mandated by law and the soe office . also stored in this database is a voting record of votes cast or left blank , using this videvs voting system , by every voter . two live real time copies of this database are directly connected to the mainframe computer and a third and forth off line duplicate copies serve as backups one on site , one off site for security reasons . a county wide area network ( wan ) data communications network . this may be a county network system of hardwired landlines , fiber optic cables and or wireless backbones or any combination of these as used by the county to communicate with and conduct county related day to day business with all public access county buildings and locations throughout the county . this may include buildings such as schools , libraries , courthouses , county government offices , parks and recreation centers , police and fire stations , etc . voting terminals . these voting terminals are located throughout the county at wan connected public access locations , voting centers , etc . as depicted in fig1 , 2 , 3 and 4 , embodiments of a voting terminal 10 may include the following . a storage / carrying case 12 . as seen in fig1 , the cases 12 have an inter - locking design which makes them stackable . each inter - locking design stackable case is of suitable size to house all the internal components . it can be larger or smaller as needed but in a preferred embodiment , each case may be approximately 24 ″× 24 ″× 3 ″ ( l × w × h ) when closed up as depicted in fig1 . it may be made of a durable lightweight high strength plastic material . any number of materials can be used for this but a preferred material may be injection molded high density nylon or hdpe plastic . four integrated telescoping aluminum , or similar strength lightweight material , legs 14 of one basic design . the four legs 14 fold up inside the bottom of the case such that the two front legs become convenient side carrying handles . each case , when opened for voting , can also sit flat on a table to allow easy access for voting by handicapped or wheelchair voters . an integrated ac / dc power supply provides a convenient ac outlet for another voting terminal , as depicted in fig3 . an embodiment includes a power supply to power all internal electric components plus two power “ good ” indicator lights : an amber “ ac good ” light 24 for alternating current and a green “ dc good ” light 26 for direct current . a flat panel lcd display screen 16 . three folding privacy screens that fold up to help cover and protect the lcd display screen when not in use , as depicted in fig4 . a microprocessor controlled electronic system board 28 similar in form and function to those found in laptop style computers , as depicted in fig5 , with the following integrated parts : four usb ports 29 ; a high speed ethernet communications port 32 used for data communications with the mainframe computer 34 ; a bootable solid state ( usb ) storage device 30 with a preloaded machine readable microcode program for the initial system startup , operating system , display system , biometric finger scanner , and data communications with the mainframe computer . in an embodiment , no votes , vote totals , or voter information need be stored in the voting terminal , so that no direct recording electronic ( dre ) is required . electrical interconnection cables for data , signal and power , between the system board 28 , the display device 16 , the finger scanner 18 and the voter controlled input device . a network data communications cable . in an embodiment , ethernet is the preferred communications medium between the voting terminal and the mainframe computer . a voter controlled input selection device . this can be combined with the display to produce a touch screen display 16 . other embodiments use a tethered stylus , a tethered mouse , a wireless mouse , a wireless stylus , a touch pad or any number of alternative input selection devices that can be controlled by the voter . an ac power cord 20 . a biometric identification ( id ) input device 18 . as depicted in fig3 , the preferred method used is a finger scanning input device 18 that can be integrated into the voting terminal or located external to it but still inside the carrying case and hardwired into the terminal . an embodiment of a voting terminal 10 may weigh approximately 8 lbs . when fully assembled with case 12 , telescoping folding legs 14 , a power supply , an ac electric cable 20 , an ethernet data communications cable or port 32 , a biometric input device 18 and a touchscreen 16 or other voter controlled input selection device ( not shown ). it should be further noted that any suitable combination of similar form and function components can be substituted and or used in place of the preferred ones listed herein as long as they provide for the same basic operation and function as those listed here . many such similar components would come to mind of anyone skilled in the art and would be suitable substitutes for those described herein . in an embodiment , basic operation of the present invention is as follows . the terminals are setup as depicted in fig2 and 4 in county government public access buildings , libraries , schools , parks , courthouses , etc ., and other county network wan connected public access buildings , voting centers and or precincts . each terminal 10 is network connected through the county network / backbone back to a central computer 34 at the supervisor of elections ( soe ) voting center . in an embodiment , each terminal &# 39 ; s internal hardware mac address is pre - loaded into the network operating system ( os ) that runs on the mainframe computer . each machine mac address becomes a valid user id . only these preloaded valid user id &# 39 ; s are allowed to login into the voting network . at power up each voting terminal runs a pre loaded machine readable microcode program that is stored on the internal usb boot device 30 . this initiates all internal devices , the display system 16 ; the voter controlled input selection device , and the biometric id device 18 . it also initiates the network login and data communications to the mainframe computer . the terminal 10 then automatically logs into the network utilizing its internal hardware mac address as a valid user id . after the terminal establishes communications with the supervisor of elections mainframe computer it is now ready for voters to vote on it . as depicted in the flowchart of fig6 , to vote on an embodiment of the system , a voter walks up to any open terminal and initiates a voting session by touching the screen 16 . this is the preferred method when the terminals are configured with a touch screen 16 as the voter controlled input device . alternate embodiments may have an additional attached input device , such as a keyboard ( not shown ). the voter then receives a visual prompt on the display screen , from the mainframe computer , to place their index finger on the biometric finger scanning input device 18 . the finger scan is sent back to the supervisor of elections ( soe ) mainframe which then searches its database records for a match comparing it to all the other finger scans on record . while searching for a match , the mainframe computer sends the voter an electronic image of an on - screen keyboard . the voter is asked by the mainframe to use the onscreen keyboard to enter their correct name and address . the soe mainframe system verifies the name and address with those found on record from the finger scan match . it then presents the voter with a copy of the correct web page ballot ( s ) for that voters &# 39 ; party affiliation , language , precinct , district , city , etc ., that the voter resides in , for them to vote on . ballot layout and designs may or may not be determined by local or state laws , and or the county soe office . in an embodiment , the voter makes selections on the touch screen for each issue . write - in selections may be done via an on screen keyboard . selections are transmitted in real time back to the soe mainframe . no votes are kept in or stored in any of the voting terminals . if any items on a ballot page are left blank the voter receives a pop up message window on the display screen . in this pop up window the voter must confirm that it is their intention to leave some items blank before they are allowed to go on to the next page . after the voter has been presented with all appropriate ballot pages and has indicated his or her selections , they are then presented with a final summary screen ( s ) that shows all selections , blanks , etc ., for all issues . before casting a ballot the voter receives a final option to change / correct or leave it blank . after making final selections the voter receives a final pop up warning about any blank items still left on the ballot at which time the voter must indicate , in this pop up window , that it is their intention to leave them blank . to cast their ballot the voter receives a second prompt ( not shown ) to place their finger on the biometric finger scanning input device . the second scan is sent back to the mainframe which compares it with the voters first finger scan . the two scans must match to successfully cast a ballot . the mainframe then saves the voters selections in that voters personal database record and then sends back a “ thank you for voting , your vote has been counted ,” or a similar type acknowledgement message to the voter ( not shown ). any interruption in this voting process such as a power outage or data communications error , prior to the mainframe recording the voters &# 39 ; ballot , results in no change in the voters &# 39 ; voting record . it is as if they haven &# 39 ; t yet voted and are free to do so at any time . this feature of the system protects the voter and their right to vote in the event that there is any kind of interruption in the electronic voting process before it can be completed . in an embodiment , the internal electrical components can be housed in any number of different case / terminal designs based on size , function , use , and portability . it can incorporate different internal components for different options and various screen sizes for different functions / results . such flexibility of design will allow anyone skilled in the art to maximize functionality and usability for their specific device . however it is built and configured , whatever components are used its underlying basic function is to allow a biometric personally secure identification method whereby an individual can use this method , as a unique key , to lock and unlock access to only his or her own individual confidential personal database record information via the same biometric id access method . any agency or business with a large or ever growing database of individual confidential personal information and records such as doctors , lawyers , hospitals , law enforcement agencies , insurance companies , state , local and federal government agencies , and more , could utilize a system such as this to allow only each individual to lock or unlock any such access to their confidential database record of personal information . embodiments will focus primarily on the use of this system as a computerized electronic voting system . embodiments provide an electronic voting system . the invention is not limited in scope to only this use . the uses mentioned herein are provided to illustrate a very few specific uses and are not intended to convey only these few uses . they are meant to convey the broad range and scope of the many possibilities of use to those skilled in the art . indeed many different uses , besides those few mentioned herein , may come to mind to anyone skilled in the art . many different forms of design and functional use will come to mind of anyone skilled in the art . indeed many other possible variations and modifications of physical size and functional use should not be limited to only those listed herein . many such alternative forms of physical design and functional use will pertain to this invention and are intended to be covered by this disclosure , the illustrative drawings and the numerous claims mentioned herein . in an embodiment , each voter registers with a unique voter specific biometric key used to lock and unlock access to only their record . the preferred biometric key for this invention is a finger scan . when the voter registers and presents a finger scan the mainframe computer searches its database record of all other finger scans comparing each voter &# 39 ; s finger scan to all others in the system . soe personnel then process each voter accordingly . due to the design of the database , any soe database searches by soe personnel will only display a voters name , address and precinct number . the database is structured this way in order to protect the integrity of the secret ballot and to keep confidential all voter specific information ( vsi ) and all individual voting records . each voter must unlock his / her record to allow any such soe access in order to view , print or change any vsi information . in an embodiment , voting records cannot be viewed by soe personnel or changed by anyone after an election is closed . each voter presents their biometric key , in this case a finger scan , to vote on any active voting terminal . because of the database structure and the centralized location of the mainframe computer , voting can be done on any voting terminal anywhere . voters are no longer restricted to having to vote in a specific assigned location or precinct . an embodiment of the system is also help america vote act ( hava ) compliant with an audio ballot feature . this can be accomplished any number of ways . the preferred method is with the voter listening on headphones attached to an audio voting station . voting is conducted by each voter listening to prerecorded mp3 or other suitable audio wave files of the entire ballot with suitable pauses and audio prompts with the voter indicating their selections by touching the screen anywhere using the touch screen like a giant yes / no button to make their selections known to the system . voter selections are transmitted to the mainframe , recorded and an acknowledgement is then transmitted back to the voter via an audio response system that the voter hears in the headphones . each total election record , of all votes cast , becomes a permanent read only record of votes locked into the mainframe database record once the polls close and all eligible voters have voted with the mainframe storing a complete record of the election in all copies of the database . once a voting record is locked by the soe it can only be read and never changed or modified in any way . the county can also generate revenue by charging and collecting fees for database searches of demographic and voting records . the collecting of any such fees would generate a revenue stream for the county . due to the design of the database structure all demographic and voting record information is not specifically connected to each individual voter and as such is not vsi information . therefore the integrity of the secret ballot is maintained . an embodiment of an electronic voting system addresses existing short comings in the following ways . first of all the database design of voter registration , demographic and voting record information allows the system to function as described herein . any such database of individual personal information records can be structured this way . this allows only the individual presenting their biometric ‘ key ’ to lock and unlock access to only their record of information . this is the preferred method of storing and accessing personal database information for the electronic voting system . in an embodiment , each individual voter &# 39 ; s record is structured like a pyramid . the top most level is the voters &# 39 ; name , address and city , which determines their corresponding voting precinct number . the next level down is that voter &# 39 ; s biometric id key . it can be a finger print , a finger scan , a retinal scan , a voice print , a series of security questions and voter supplied answers or any combination of these and or others . the preferred method used for this invention is a finger scan with further security hashing steps implemented by the mainframe . it is as unique an id method to the individual as a finger print . however it is not a finger print and the finger scan cannot be reverse engineered to produce the finger print that generated it . this is a secure database id system for the voting system . this finger scan id key locks and unlocks the individuals name and address information to the pyramid of database records below it . the next level down in an embodiment of the pyramid record is voter specific information ( vsi ). this is personal information about that voter listed above it . information such as but not limited to the following : age , date of birth , race , national origin , nationality , party affiliation , voting handicaps , language , citizenship status , convicted felon , etc . this is personal information required by the soe office in order for that person to be legally registered to vote . below this level of personal information are multiple separate layers of voting records , one for each election , for every past election conducted using an embodiment . one layer for each election held that the voter voted in or not . the pyramid database of information grows from the bottom downward . for every subsequent election a new layer is added to the bottom of the previous layers . when the individual voter presents their biometric ‘ key ’ their demographic and voting records become directly connected to the voters &# 39 ; name . this makes all such information voter specific information ( vsi ) and as such viewable by only the voter to verify their votes as cast or soe personnel to assist with changes to only the demographic portion of that information . this may allow each voter the opportunity to see and verify their votes as cast while at the same time it also protects the confidentiality and integrity of the secret ballot system . in an embodiment of a voting system there are no internal ballots to load or program into each and every terminal or to activate at the time of voting for each and every voter . ballots are web based like internet web pages . the content and format must follow soe , state and local guidelines for layout and content . they are programmed and loaded into the mainframe computer at the soe central location . an embodiment of the voting system allows for last minute changes of any ballot page right up to whenever voting actually starts and the local laws allow for . any ballot changes are made to a master web page ballot on the soe mainframe computer . with an embodiment of a voting system there need not be any more dead candidates on the ballot because it was too late to change the wording . with an embodiment of a voting system there need not be any more withdrawn candidates on the ballot . with an embodiment of a voting system there need not be any more votes mistakenly cast . with an embodiment of a voting system there need not be any more “ yes ” to vote no or “ no ” to vote yes confusion because it is too late to change the wording of ballot issues . an embodiment of a voting system is multi - language capable . foreign language web pages can be designed as necessary for each and every foreign language as required . because ballots are controlled and transmitted from the central mainframe computer , with an embodiment only one ballot design is necessary for each language allowed for any national , state , county , district / precinct , or city / municipality elections . an embodiment of a voting system is hava compliant with special audio feature terminals . with an embodiment of the database design the correct precinct specific ballot , in the appropriate voters &# 39 ; language , is transmitted to each individual voter to vote on . because of this capability voters are no longer restricted to voting in a specific location or precinct . this helps prevent voting in the wrong precinct , sending voters to a different precinct to vote , and last minute voters turned away because they came to the wrong precinct to vote . any voter can vote anywhere on any terminal . embodiments of voting terminals can go anywhere . they are no longer precinct specific . with an embodiment of a voting system no internal votes are stored in the terminals . voting and vote recording is done in real time on the mainframe computer . because of this there are no internal votes or vote totals in each terminal to download or copy to another device and transmit or transport to the central soe office . with an embodiment of a voting system there is no need for any more voting terminal security seals . special tracking numbers are no longer necessary . with an embodiment of a voting system there are no internal printers in each terminal to jam or malfunction . there are no recurring costs for ink , ribbons , paper or other internal printers , printer supplies or printer parts . with an embodiment of a voting system multiple voting by a voter is not possible . the database design associates each individual voter to their own individual electronic ballot : “ one person - one ballot - one vote .” with an embodiment of a voting system it is possible for each and every voter to revote and change their vote , as local election laws allow for , again and again until the polls close . each individual &# 39 ; s ballot is tied to one and only one voter . with an embodiment of a voting system this ballot to voter relationship allows the soe the capability to trace each and every vote back to the individual voter that cast it with complete integrity of the secret ballot system . this capability allows each voter to check and verify only their own individual vote . with an embodiment of a voting system the individual voting record is locked by the voter with their unique biometric key . a voting location , date , time stamp , and terminal number are also locked in each time a vote is cast . with an embodiment of a voting system the complete voting record is locked permanently by the soe when the polls close and the last voter has voted . there is no longer the need for printing hundreds of thousands of paper , absentee , provisional or optical scan ballots . there are no more printing errors on any ballots because there are no more printed ballots for either regular or absentee voting . consequently there are no more incorrectly worded ballots mailed out . there are no more mis - mailed blank or incorrect ballots . there are no more postage , handling or print costs associated with paper or absentee ballots . there are no more last minute rush mass mailings . there are no more handling , sorting , processing , validating , hand counting , double counting etc . or storing of absentee ballots . there are no more lost or misplaced absentee ballots . there are no more uncounted absentee ballots . an embodiment of a voting system allows for secure absentee voting via the internet . this capability enables overseas and military voting . there are many possible ways for absentee voters to vote . with an embodiment of the electronic voting system the preferred method for absentee voters to vote is as follows . voters are mailed an authorization card with a security number generated from their unique biometric finger scan in order to login and vote . absentee voter &# 39 ; s login into a secure website . the voter must then enter their name and address and any additional security information required to verify their id or answer a predetermined number of security questions . absentee voters vote on the same web page ballots as the polling place voters do . they click a mouse on their selections and cast their ballot with a final security question . in an embodiment , because of the biometric database design there is no more waiting in line at precincts or polling places to check voters picture id &# 39 ; s or signatures . id verification is done in the mainframe computer real - time before each voter votes . an embodiment of a voting system also has a paper trail feature . even though there are no printers in any terminals or any sort of paper ballots whatsoever . this is accomplished in the following way . after a voter casts their ballot they can go to the soe clerks on site in each voting center and request a printed copy . the clerk asks the voter to step up to a voting terminal and unlock their record with a biometric finger scan just like they did to vote . when the voter unlocks their voting record it is disconnected from the database and connected to their name . it now becomes voter specific information ( vsi ) directly connected to the voter &# 39 ; s name . this direct connection to the voters &# 39 ; name allows only the voter to see their voting record . the soe clerk cannot see the voting record . thus the database design and biometric key access insure the integrity of the secret ballot and protects all voters voting records whenever the record is unlocked by the voter . the voter can verify their votes on the screen and select a “ print ” option for a printed copy if they want a printed paper record to take with them . finally a “ done ” or “ exit ” option locks their voting record back into the database and clears the terminal screen . a timeout feature automatically clears the screen and locks the record if the voter forgets to do so . this allows the voter to check and verify their vote and also allows the soe to generate a paper vote trail for manual recounts or audit purposes . in an embodiment , a paper trail audit and or full paper based recount is possible . the soe office prints out the complete record of all votes cast in an election by precinct , city , district or county . each and every individual vote , as cast , gets printed from the demographic database voting record for a particular election or candidate . it is not necessary for each voter to unlock their record to do this . because each vote is not vsi connected to a unique voters &# 39 ; name the confidentiality of the secret ballot is maintained . the votes can then be hand counted or counted by machine or with optical scanners or as dictated by law , whichever method the soe decides to use . with an embodiment of a voting system there is no longer a need to cancel any electronic ballots . if the voter makes a mistake and casts a ballot in error all they need to do is initiate another voting session and correct or change their ballot . with an embodiment of a voting system write in votes are possible using an on screen touch screen keyboard . an embodiment of a voting system also captures voters &# 39 ; intent even if they want to cast a partial or fully blank ballot . this may help prevent under votes and guessing at the voters &# 39 ; intent . with an embodiment of a voting system election recounts , either court ordered , automatic or those mandated by law , can be conducted in the exact same way as the original count was taken . with an embodiment of a voting system you can audit terminal usage by each unique machine mac address . an embodiment of the database system allows you to automatically track heavily used terminals . this allows the soe to rotate terminals to more evenly distribute their use . problem terminals can be locked out at the mainframe . the two front legs 14 when collapsed and folded up inside the bottom of the case become two integrated carrying handles . the compact storage cases have an interlocking feature when stacked one on top of another to eliminate sliding and tipping when stacked for shipping or storage . the new database design will allow the county soe office to correct and clear up erroneous voter information presently stored in their voter registration data base . this will lead to more accurate and timely voter records . an embodiment of a voting system can restore voter trust in the voting system . voters will be able to see for themselves that their votes have been accurately recorded and counted and that only they , and no one else , can verify the accuracy and content of their own voting record . last minute voter initiated changes to their vsi information are possible . each voter can initiate corrections and or changes to their vsi record before or during an election . with the aid of soe personnel a voter can unlock access to their vsi information to allow soe personnel to make changes and or corrections such as a change of address . because of the database design and each voter &# 39 ; s biometric key , picture id &# 39 ; s , presented at the polling places in order to vote , are no longer necessary . with an embodiment you no longer have to mail out a voter registration card to each voter . fig1 shows the invention closed up inside the carrying case and stacked atop a second case . note the recessed lip around the perimeter of the top which fits into a matching recessed area on the bottom of another case . fig2 shows the invention with its telescoping legs deployed . the two rear legs are angled out to the side for greater stability while the front legs , which form the two side carrying handles when folded up , are straight up and down . the ac power cord comes out the back and the lid is shown partially opened from the front and hinged at the back . fig3 is looking down inside the case with the lid fully removed for clarity sake . this figure shows the internal devices located inside the case . the case itself 12 , the touch screen voting terminal 16 , ac outlet and power switch 18 , biometric finger scanner 22 , ac 24 and dc 26 power good indicator lights and the ac power cord 20 . the relative positions are for illustrative purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the final engineering production positions of these devices . fig4 shows the voting terminal as it would look from the right side deployed for voting . the telescoping legs 14 support the carrying case 12 . the touch screen voting terminal 16 can be set at two different viewing angles as illustrated here with the two privacy screens opened one to the left and one to the right . a third glare screen opens upward towards the top . the inside of the lid has positional stops that lock into the back of the touch screen terminal to securely hold it in place . the relative positions are for illustrative purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the final engineering production positions of these devices . fig5 is a block pictorial representation of the voting terminal , connected to the mainframe computer . it shows that the internal microprocessor controlled system board 28 connected to the touch screen display 16 , the biometric finger scanner 18 , and bootable operating system os device 30 are connected to two of the available usb ports 29 . the communications port 32 through which all data communications are sent back and forth to the mainframe computer 34 located at the soe office . the names and relative positions are for illustrative purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the final engineering production names and positions of these devices . fig6 is a simple block diagram of the basic overall voting process and does not necessarily reflect all possible combinations of steps that could be covered in the complete voting process . they are for illustrative purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the final voting process . it should be understood , of course , that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims . | 6 |
in order to achieve the above objectives , the present invention is described , along with the accompanying detailed drawings . referring to fig1 to 7 , an overall block diagram of the supersonic skin care device ( fig1 ), a detail of a circuit of a power source and a switch unit ( fig2 ), a detail of a circuit of the output unit ( fig3 ), a detail of a circuit of the heat - detecting unit ( fig4 ), and a detail of a circuit of the supersonic vibrating unit ( fig5 ) are presented . it further illustrates a pulse wave being generated by the supersonic vibrating unit ( fig6 ) and an application of the pulse wave for controlling the skin care device ( fig7 ). as shown in fig1 , an improved skin care device comprises a dc - dc converting unit ( 20 ) adopting a software control means for gradually escalating the voltages from the charged battery power source to activate the cpu ( 2 ), a supersonic vibrating unit ( 50 ) for operating the vibrating element to produce a multi - stage pulse width , a skin contact detecting device ( 60 ) for detecting contact of the vibrating element with a user &# 39 ; s skin , a heat - detecting device ( 70 ) to detect whether the element is overheated , a switch unit ( 30 ) with a main power switch and individual operation switch units , a displayer ( 40 ) for indicating the operating mode , a warning unit ( 80 ) to alert when the device is in abnormal operation , an auxiliary circuit ( 90 ), and a battery voltage - measuring unit ( 10 ) for supplying stable power . referring to fig2 , each element of the dc - dc converting unit ( 20 ), a switch unit ( 30 ) consisting of a first switch unit ( 31 ) and a second switch unit ( 32 ), and a power source unit consisting of a basic voltage generating unit ( 91 ), a reset unit ( 92 ) and an auxiliary circuit unit ( 90 ) are explained in detail . an input terminal of the first switch unit ( 31 ) is connected in parallel to a pair of charge terminals ( j 1 , j 2 ) of the outer power source and the battery terminal ( j 3 ). another battery terminal ( j 4 ) is an extra terminal for changing polarity . when the main power switch ( sw 1 ) is turned on , a switch in the signal ( sw_in ) is transmitted to an analogue input terminal ( an 5 ) of cpu ( 2 ) through a second switch unit ( 32 ) for activating the cpu . sequentially , the cpu activates the first switch unit ( 31 ) through an analogue output terminal ( an 7 ) and the photo - coupler ( iso 1 ) through resistance ( r 16 ) for switching the fet ( d 4 ). at this point , battery voltage is measured by the battery voltage - measuring unit ( 10 ), which consists of split resistance ( r 1 , r 35 ), and is transmitted to the analogue input terminal ( an 1 ). on the other hand , because portable skin care devices commonly use a unique power source , such as a battery ( for example , 3 . 6v ), a voltage - escalating process is essential to obtain high voltage ( for example , a supersonic device 1 ˜ 15v or an ion inductor 20 ˜ 30v ). instead of using an expensive microchip as in the conventional dc - dc converter , a switching element ( d 3 ), a cpu and a pwm control program are used for adjusting the frequency duty rate and the output power voltage . when a switching signal is issued from the pwm control terminal ( 10 ) of the cpu , the pulse width can be controlled by turning on and off the switching element ( d 3 ), and eventually the output voltage and power are controlled . when a user turns on the main switch of the skin care device and brings it into contact with the skin , the skin contact - sensing device ( 60 ) detects the skin touch and transmits a signal to the cpu . then , the pwm signal prolongs the switch - on activating time to gradually increase the voltage until it reaches the operating voltage at the step - up stage , as seen in fig7 ( a ). thus , this method , including feedback control , solves the problems borne in the conventional device due to a sudden increase of voltage . as seen in fig7 ( b ), when the device is turned off , the operating voltage is gradually decreased by shortening the pulse width during the switch - off time at the step - down stage . therefore , it is possible to maintain stable and controlled power for operating the device . the vdd , which is the actual output voltage of the dc - dc converting unit , is 12 - 15v for normal operation and 10v for standby operation to save energy . split resistance ( r 2 , r 3 ) is matched with the output voltage of the cpu ( for example , 3 . 3v ) by sensing the output voltage and transmitting to the analogue input terminal ( an 2 ). as seen in fig1 , an output signal of the first switch unit ( 31 ) transmitted from the output terminal ( an 7 ) of the cpu does not necessarily pass through the photo - coupler ( iso 1 ) when the main switch ( sw 1 ) is turned on , because the result is the same as when the fet ( d 4 ) is directly connected through resistance ( r 29 in fig1 ). referring to fig8 , a flowchart of a power maintenance program is presented for supplying stable power and controlling the cpu . a method for maintaining and supplying stable power comprises the following steps : after setting a certain pulse width , starting a pulse width - checking program ( pwm_check ) to check the operating pulse width ( s 1 ) and determine whether the pulse width is properly operated within the set pulse width ( s 2 ). if the checked pulse is operated in the setting pulse width (‘ pwm ok flag ’= 1 ), the process is returned to step s 9 to continue the operation . if the checked pulse width is not in the setting pulse width , the actual pulse width (‘ pwm_puf ) is compared with the setting pulse width (‘ pwm_target ) ( s 3 ). if the compared pulse width has no difference with the actual and the setting pulse widths ( pwm_puf − pwm_target = 0 ), then the process is returned to s 9 to continue operation . otherwise , a subsequent step s 4 or step s 8 is initiated for adjusting the pwm . next , the duty ratio of the pulse width determines whether the actual operating duty ratio is larger or smaller than that of the setting width ( s 4 ). if the detected duty ratio of pulse width is smaller than that of the setting width , a step up ( s 7 ) is initiated to increase the setting duty ratio by the amount of the difference in the pwm value between the detected duty ratio and the setting duty ratio ( c 3 ). if the detected duty ratio of the pulse width is larger than that of the setting width , a step - down ( s 8 ) is initiated to decrease the setting duty ratio by the amount of the difference in the pwm value between the detected duty ratio and the setting duty ratio . then , the process is returned to s 2 to continue the operation . through the above pulse width - checking program , it is possible to adjust the strength of output by operating an analogue input switch ( sw 3 ) of the skin care device . when a user intends to adjust the strength from weak to strong , the duty ratio is increased by accessing a pwm pulse width signal from the pwm control terminal ( pin number 10 ) to an analogue input terminal ( an 5 ). for example , when a delicate area of the human body , such as the face , is being stimulated , the output of the vibrating device must be gentle . but when a muscle area of the human body , such as a hip or a leg , is being stimulated , the output of the vibrating device must be strong . the second switch ( sw 2 ) in the second switch unit ( 32 ) is a mode switch for adjusting the levels of the skin care device . as seen in fig6 , each step signal having a proper frequency is issued from each step . each output pulse signal of the analogue output terminal ( r 40 ) of the supersonic generator ( 50 ) is transformed to be of proper frequency . for example , the present supersonic skin care device has four step modes , each with a transformed frequency , and two level of high / low adjustment for strength . on the other hand , such configuration of the second switch ( sw 2 ) is possible to apply the various voltages with one input port , which is comprised of a basic voltage generator ( 91 ), a reset unit ( 92 ), reactor ( l 1 ), a condenser ( c 1 , c 2 ), and an anti - inverse diode ( d 1 , d 2 ). referring to fig5 , a core invention of the present supersonic vibration - generating unit ( 50 ) is described in detail . when a control signal with a proper frequency is issued to the voltage amplifier ( 51 ) of the supersonic vibration - generating unit ( 50 ) through the output terminal ( ra 0 ) of the cpu , the signal is amplified through voltage amplifiers ( r 15 , q 4 , q 5 . r 8 , r 9 , d 10 ), and transmitted to the supersonic vibrator ( ultra 1 ) as a pressing element of the vibrating unit ( 52 ) through the resonance unit ( 53 ). when a pulse is added to the vibrator , free vibration occurs . a transistor ( q 2 ) called a resonance tank achieves self - resonance when pulse is added to it . the trans ( t 1 ) is amplified to dislocate from the 0 to + direction for generating a vibration by the switching element ( q 3 , q 6 ) of the vibration - generating unit ( 54 ). again , pulse is added to the supersonic vibrator ( ultra 1 ) through the trans ( t 2 ) of the vibrating unit ( 52 ) for achieving resonance . for example , when a vibrator operated with 1 mhz frequency is brought into contact with the user &# 39 ; s skin , the vibrating element is depressed to interrupt its operation . the interrupted vibration disturbs the electric current in the circuit , and is detected by split resistance ( r 18 , r 20 ) of the electric current sensing unit ( 61 ). the sensed faint signal is amplified through the amplifier ( 62 ) and input to the analogue input terminal ( an 6 ) for transforming the digital signal . thus , the dc - dc converting unit ( 20 ) of the cpu increases the duty ratio of the output signal to step up the voltage from low to high through the pwm output terminal ( pin no . 10 ). through this process , the skin care device can be operated with a consistent vibrating strength , even when the vibrating element is depressed . when the skin care device is in idling mode , without stimulating the patient , the supersonic vibrator is automatically set to the lowest level of standby status to save energy . referring to fig3 , the display unit ( 40 ) and the sound alert unit ( 80 ) of the present invention are described in detail . those systems comprise a first pair of photodiodes ( d 6 , d 7 ) connected in parallel to two ports ( rb 2 , rb 3 ) for displaying the strength of vibration , a second pair of photodiodes ( d 8 , d 9 ) connected in parallel to two ports ( rb 3 , rc 0 ) for displaying the mode controls of the first mode and the second mode , a third pair of photodiodes ( d 11 , d 13 ) connected in parallel to two ports ( rc 0 , rc 1 ) for displaying the mode controls of the third mode and the fourth mode , and a final photodiode ( d 14 ) connected in parallel to two ports ( rb 2 , rc 1 ) for displaying the operating status . it is possible to activate multiple diodes with a minimum number of port pins for displaying all of the necessary information . therefore , the present system can save energy . an alert sound - generating unit ( 80 , r 5 , q 1 , buz 1 ) comprises an operation circuit of a buzzer ( buz 1 ) for generating an alert sound when the device is in abnormal operating situation . a table 1 illustrates the determination of the led diodes for turning the lighting on and off . for example , when the output of the input - output terminal rb 2 ( a ) is “ 0 ” and the output of the input - output terminal rb 3 ( b ) is “ 1 ”, the led ( d 7 ) is lit on to represent a status of “ high mode .” if the output of the input - output terminal rb 3 ( b ) is “ 0 ” and the output of the input - output terminal rc 0 ( c ) is “ 1 ”, the led ( d 8 ) is lit on to represent a status of “ level 1 mode .” if the output of the input - output terminal rc 0 ( c ) is “ 0 ” and the output of the input - output terminal rc 1 ( d ) is “ 1 ”, the led ( d 13 ) is lit on to represent a status of “ level 4 mode .” if the output of the input - output terminal rb 2 ( a ) is “ 1 ” and the output of the input - output terminal rc 1 ( d ) is “ 0 ”, the led ( d 14 ) is lit on to represent a status of “ contacted on the skin mode .” referring to fig4 , the heat - sensing unit ( 70 ) comprises a first heat sensor ( 71 ) and a second heat sensor ( 72 ). the first heat sensor ( 71 ) consists of a thermo - starter ( rt 1 ), and a split resistor ( r 19 ) detects the surface temperature of the vibrating plate and transmits the detected signal to the cpu through an analogue input terminal ( an 3 ). due to the high frequency of vibration , the supersonic vibrator is easily overheated to a temperature that would harm human skin ( for example 45 ° c .). therefore , it is necessary to control the duty ratio of the pulse wave ( pwm ) for preventing overheating . the second heat sensor ( 72 ) consists of a second thermo - starter ( rt 2 ), and a second split resistor ( r 36 ) detects the temperature of transistors ( q 3 , q 6 ) in a vibration - generating unit ( 54 ) and transmits the detected faint signal to an analogue input terminal ( an 4 ) through amplifiers ( r 37 , r 38 , u 2 a ). through the sensing unit , the vibration - generating unit ( 54 ) can be prevented from overheating by controlling the duty ratio of the pulse wave ( pwm ). referring to fig9 to 15 , a set of drawings illustrates an overall block diagram of the supersonic ionizing skin care device of the second embodiment ( fig9 ), a detail of a circuit of a power source and a switch unit ( fig1 ), a detail of a circuit of a displaying unit ( fig1 ), a detail of a circuit of the supersonic vibrating unit and the infrared unit ( fig1 ), a detail of a circuit of the galvanic operating unit ( fig1 ), a detail of a circuit and an auxiliary circuit of the heat - detecting device ( fig1 ), and a pulse wave applied to the galvanic operating unit of the supersonic ionizing skin care device ( fig1 ). according to the supersonic ionizing skin care device of the second embodiment , the battery voltage ( for example , 3 . 6v ) is escalated to 12 ˜ 15v by the first dc - dc converter ( 20 ), in the same way as in the first embodiment . however , it is escalated to 30v by the second dc - dc converter ( 120 ′) to help the galvanic ion penetrate into the skin . when the main switch is turned on , the dc - dc converter ( 120 ) is activated through a first switch ( 131 ) in the same was as in the first embodiment , but the difference in the first switch ( 131 ) of the second embodiment is that the main switch ( sw 1 ) delivers basic voltage ( vcc ). as shown in fig1 , the second dc - dc converter ( 120 ′) can be used a dc - dc converter chip ( u 1 ). a signal from the sixth analogue output terminal ( an 6 ) of the micro - controller ( 102 ) activates the dc - dc converter chip ( u 1 ) by the switching transistor ( q 2 ) through the resistor ( r 15 ). the circuit also includes the elements ( resistor : r 1 , r 3 , r 6 , r 11 , r 12 , capacity : c 1 , c 4 , c 6 , inductor : l 1 , diode : d 1 ). referring to fig1 , the displaying unit ( 140 ) of the second embodiment is described in detail . the input - output terminals ( rd 0 , rd 1 , rd 2 ) of the micro - controller ( 102 ), along with the input - output terminal of rb 2 , have a function of input terminals for checking the input of the second to fourth switches ( sw 2 , sw 3 , sw 4 ). it also has a function of an output terminal for activating each displaying led ( d 5 - d 7 ; d 11 , d 13 , d 17 - d 19 ; d 20 , d 21 ) along with the switching transistors ( q 6 , q 7 , q 8 ). referring to fig1 , a supersonic operating unit ( 150 ) and a far infrared operating unit ( 152 ) of the second embodiment are described in detail . the supersonic operating unit ( 150 ) activates a resonance transistor ( q 3 ) and a supersonic vibrator ( ultra 1 ) by accessing a control signal from an output terminal ( ra 0 ) of the micro - controller ( 102 ) to a switching transistor ( q 4 ) through a diode ( d 16 ) and resistance ( r 22 ). the circuit of the units consist of elements r 16 , r 18 - r 20 , r 23 , l 3 - l 5 , c 7 - c 11 , d 9 and transistors ( q 3 . q 4 ). the far infrared operating unit ( 152 ) activates the far infrared led ( d 6 , d 10 , d 12 , d 14 ) connected to the basic voltage ( vcc ) through the resistor ( r 17 ) by accessing a control signal from an output terminal ( rb 3 ) of a micro - controller ( 102 ) to a switching transistor ( q 5 ) through a resistance ( r 21 ). referring to fig1 , a galvanic operating unit ( 151 ) of the second embodiment is described in detail , as follows . the galvanic operating unit ( 151 ) controls a face - contact electrode ( j 4 ) and a hand - contact electrode ( j 5 , j 6 ) through each resistor ( r 31 , r 38 ) to access the dc voltage being converted by the pulse wave control signal from an output terminal ( pwm 1 ) of a micro - controller ( 102 ) through a comparison circuit ( u 3 a , r 24 , r 28 , r 29 , r 36 , c 13 ). at this point , a pwm control signal from an input - output terminal ( rb 6 , rb 7 ) of a micro - controller ( 102 ) transmits to the pwm controlling transistor ( q 9 , q 10 ) through each resistance ( r 41 , r 43 ). each port of the pwm controlling transistor ( q 9 , q 10 ) is connected to each face - and hand - contact electrode to output pulse depending on the pwm control signal . when a signal of the port rb 7 is set to “ high ”, the transistor ( q 10 ) is in the “ on ” status and connected to a hand signal contact electrode to output between t 0 and t 1 , as seen in fig1 . to the contrary , when a signal of the port rb 6 is set to “ high ”, the transistor ( q 9 ) is in the “ on ” status and connected to a face signal contact electrode to output between t 1 and t 2 , as seen in fig1 . therefore , the current flows to hand - or face - contact electrodes , alternatively , to help the galvanic active material penetrate into the skin . it is also equipped with a skin contact sensing unit ( 160 ) for sensing skin contact with the vibrator . the sensed signal is transmitted for amplification through amplifying circuits ( u 3 b , u 3 c , r 30 , r 32 , r 37 , r 39 , c 12 , c 14 ) and input to the micro - controller ( 102 ) through an analogue input port ( an 4 , an 5 ), as seen in fig1 . as seen in fig1 , a heat - sensing unit ( 170 ) comprises a first heat sensor with a thermo - starter ( rt 1 ) and a split resistor ( r 46 ) to detect the surface temperature of the supersonic vibrating plate . it also comprises a sound alert unit ( 180 ), a basic voltage generating unit ( 191 ), and a reset ( 192 ). as discussed above , the skin care device of the present invention provides an apparatus and a method for maintaining and supplying stable power and smoothly escalating voltages to save energy . it also provides a main switch system to avoid energy waste due to the rapid voltage increase of conventional devices . it also provides various operating modes and strengths to effectively stimulate the skin , depending on the user &# 39 ; s requirement . it is also equipped with a skin contact sensing unit and a heat - sensing unit to protect the skin from possible burning due to accidental overheating . the present invention is also equipped with an led display device with a minimum number of connecting pins . while this invention has been described as having a preferred design , the present invention can be further modified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure . this application is therefore intended to cover any variations , uses , or adaptations of the invention using its general principles . further , this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this invention pertains and which fall within the limits of the appended claims . | 0 |
the following terms are used throughout this description with the meanings defined below . the term vector means a plasmid , phage or other such dna molecule , as is well - known in the art , which may or may not be capable of being integrated in the chromosome of a host organism , and which is capable of being maintained in the host organism . the term organism comprises any organism , prokaryotic or eucaryotic , single cell or multicellular , animal or vegetable , capable of maintaining and expressing said vector . the term directed or adaptive mutation means the specific mutation of dna relating to the stress factor . the term stress factor refers to any chemical or physical factor , such as growth - inhibiting compounds and extreme temperature , as well as the absence of a suitable or essential substrate , which causes an organism to grow less well than without the stress factor . the term xenobiotic refers to any compound which is not a compound naturally encountered by the organism , and which compound is desired to be degraded into compounds considered less harmful or harmless to man or the environment , or to be converted into a useful compound . the term disabled in &# 34 ; gene is disabled &# 34 ; relates to a method as a result of which either the gene is no longer expressed , or , in the case the gene is expressed , the resulting protein product is not functionally active as a mutation - inducing non - dna polymerase protein . as is known in the art , a gene can be disabled in many ways , for example by deleting it completely or partially , or by substituting at least one nucleotide by at least one other nucleotide or nucleotide sequence . for many biotechnology applications , it is desired to have organisms with more desirable traits . for example , it is desirable to have organisms capable of degrading toxic substances . even if such an organism is available , it may not be effective under all conceivable circumstances . for example , in land farming relatively low temperatures or the presence of heavy metals or other toxic compounds may render the organism ineffective . other biotechnology applications involve the production of antibiotics , ( recombinant ) proteins and amino acids . it is often desirable to increase the production of these products . the present invention is applicable to these and other areas , as will be evident to one of ordinary skill in the art , allowing production of desirable compounds in higher yields as well as allowing the development of organisms capable of degrading xenobiotics even under unfavorable conditions . the actinomycete amycolatopsis methanolica contains a 13 . 3 kb plasmid pmea300 ( vrijbloed et al ., 1994 ). fig2 details the restriction map of pmea300 . this plasmid is capable of site - specific integration into the genome of the organism . as a result of the investigation of a . methanolica , it was surprisingly found that a gene which is carried by this plasmid is capable of introducing adaptive mutations into the dna of an organism while it is under stress . this gene is referred to as the mut gene . under conditions of stress , the mutation frequency increases over 100 - fold in cells that contain pmea300 . it is expected that other such genes exist in other organisms , such as the closely related amycolatopsis mediterranei ( genus nocardia ) and saccharopolyspora erythraea , as well as in more distantly related and unrelated organisms . such genes may be found by using assays for activity , or hybridization techniques using part of the dna sequence of the gene identified within pmea300 as a probe , or a complementary strand thereof , because of the genetic resemblance with the gene of pmea300 . alternatively , pmea300 derivatives may be used . therefore , a method is provided which allows for the directed mutation of dna using said mutation - introducing genes . the invention eliminates the use of hazardous mutagenic compounds , though it is recognized that xenobiotic compounds , which are to be broken down and are added as stress factors , may be mutagenic themselves . this elimination of mutagenic compounds increases the safety of the technician and obviates the disposal of the toxic waste resulting from an experiment with mutagenic compounds . it is hypothesized that a stress factor results in an increased level of the mutation - inducing non - dna polymerase protein . the dna present in the organism is mutated randomly . if a mutation occurs that relieves the stress due to the stress factor , the expression of the mutation - inducing non - dna polymerase protein is reduced to its ordinary level . thus , in contrast to chemical mutagenesis or mutations due to a defective dna polymerase , the dna of the organism is not mutated more than necessary , i . e ., after the desired mutation has been brought about . consequently , the average number of mutations per organism for every desired mutant is lower , hence directed mutation . from the above it will be clear that the method according to the invention is very versatile . a deliberate choice of stress factor will result in an organism with the desired trait . for example , adding a stress factor inhibiting the synthesis of a certain amino acid will result in a mutated organism capable of expressing the amino acid in sufficient quantities in the presence of the stress factor . if the stress factor is removed the organism may well overproduce the amino acid . in a similar way it is possible to increase the yield of proteins , antibiotics and other such compounds produced in the organism . for example , if an organism is not or only barely capable of growing on a certain carbon source and that is the only carbon source available , mutant organisms may be selected for their increased ability to grow on that particular carbon source . the method according to the invention greatly increases the naturally occurring ( i . e . spontaneous ) mutation frequency . the method according to the invention may also be used to obtain an organism capable of overproducing recombinant proteins . when an organism is induced to produce a recombinant protein , its resources are partly used to accomplish this task . if a gene encoding a mutation - inducing protein is introduced and expressed in the organism , the organism may end up better capable of dealing with the stress it is under while producing recombinant protein . although a large proportion of the mutations may involve the elimination of the activity producing the recombinant protein , other mutations may involve beneficial mutations . the presence of the gene encoding a mutation - inducing protein may offset the benefit of the elimination of the use of mutagens should the mutated organisms be accidentally released into the environment . as it is generally considered undesirable that organisms containing dna that has been tampered with are released into the environment , the organisms chosen for use are usually incapable of maintaining themselves when released . if they had the ability of rapidly adapting to stress conditions , the released organism could overcome this situation . therefore it is desirable to separate the gene and the mutated dna . according to one embodiment , the gene resides in a vector , the organism carrying the dna to be mutated is transformed with said vector , a desired mutant organism is selected and cured from said vector . this provides a simple method of obtaining the desired mutant organism . according to another embodiment the dna to be mutated resides in a vector , an organism carrying the gene is transformed with said vector , a desired mutant organism is selected and the mutated vector is used to transform a second organism . thus , a second organism can be chosen which does not contain any undesired mutated dna and which is optimal for the particular purpose . the second organism is not necessarily different from the original organism which was used to modify the dna . on the other hand , the second organism may be entirely different , as long as the vector can be replicated and the gene expressed in the second organism . the invention also relates to a dna sequence encoding a mutation - inducing non - dna polymerase protein , said dna sequence having the complementary sequence of nucleotides 1917 to 1339 as shown in fig1 . fig4 likewise shows the complementary dna sequence ( nucleotides 1 to 579 ) ( seq id no . 3 ) and the protein sequence of the invention . in addition , the invention encompasses dna sequences encoding proteins with activity similar to those encoded by the dna sequences of fig4 . the dna sequence shown in fig4 is from the open reading frame 179 ( orf179 ) which region is responsible for the increased mutation frequency . in fig2 orf179 corresponds to the region identified as the mutation frequency ( mut ) gene . in addition the invention relates to a dna sequence hybridizing to the dna sequence having the sequence of nucleotides 1 to 579 ( seq id no . 3 ) as shown in fig4 said dna sequence coding for a non - dna polymerase protein having mutation - inducing activity . the above dna sequences may be used to develop probes capable of detecting and of isolating genes in organisms different from amycolatolsis methanolica , said genes encoding a protein with an activity similar to that encoded by the sequence of nucleotides 1 to 579 ( seq id no . 3 ) shown in fig4 . thus , the invention relates to the use of a nucleic acid probe comprising a nucleic acid sequence capable of hybridizing with the dna sequence of nucleotides 1 to 579 ( seq id no . 3 ) shown in fig4 or the complementary strand thereof for the detection and / or isolation of a gene encoding a mutation - inducing non - dna polymerase protein . the development of probes and their use for detection and / or isolation of genes is well known to one of ordinary skill in the art . furthermore , the invention relates to an organism comprising dna modified by the method according to the invention . the invention also relates to a method of improving the genetical stability of an organism , wherein the organism comprises a gene encoding a mutation - inducing non - dna polymerase protein and said gene is disabled by methods known per se . it is well known that actinomycetes strains are often instable during large scale fermentations . spontaneous occurring mutations result in reduced product yields at great cost . the method of stabilizing an organism according to the present invention allows for , for example , stabilizing organisms such as actinomycetes species and bacteria used for the production of , for example , metabolites such as amino acids and antibiotics . circumstantial evidence that the presence of mut genes are widespread in actinomycetes is that in natural , polluted environments they are among the first to evolve in the pollution degrading organisms . thus according to a preferred embodiment the method of improving the genetical stability of an organism is characterized in that the organism is an actinomycetes species , the actinomycetes species comprising a gene encoding a mutation - inducing non - dna polymerase protein and said gene is disabled by methods known per se . for organisms harboring pmea300 or derivatives of pmea300 the gene disabled by methods known per se comprises a functional nucleotide sequence chosen from pmea300 or derivatives of pmea300 . to increase the viability of the organism it may be advantageous to disable the stf gene as well . amycolatopsis methanolica carrying the plasmid pmea300 ( wild type , wt ) is available from the national collection of industrial bacteria as ncib11946 ( torry research station , aberdeen , scotland ). amycolatopsis methanolica strain wv1 is derived from ncib11946 and differs from ncib11946 in that the plasmid pmea300 is not present . amycolatopsis methanolica wv1 can be obtained by curing the plasmid from ncib11946 using methods well known in the art . ncib11946 was cured from pmea300 by protoplast formation and regeneration ( moretti et al . 1985 ) and subsequently screening by southern hybridization ( sambrook et al . 1989 ) for derivative strains of ncib11946 that had lost pmea300 . the nucleic acid sequence of pmea300 is available from the genbank database accession no . l36679 . the mutation - inducing protein has a molecular weight of 21 , 721 and comprises 192 amino acids plus the &# 34 ; stp &# 34 ; codon ( seq id no . 4 ). a restriction map of pmea300 showing the location of the gene ( mut ) encoding this protein is shown in fig2 . the stimulating transformation frequency ( stf ) protein has a molecular weight of 40 , 233 and comprises 373 amino acids ( seq id no . 2 ). a . methanolica grows as chains of several cells , thus in the examples below the term colony forming unit is used ( 1 colony forming unit corresponding to about 10 cells ). shikimate as a xenobiotic . amycolatopsis methanolica ( wild type ; ncib11946 ) and amycolatopsis methanolica wv1 are not capable of growing on shikimate . the xenobiotic shikimate is neither available as a carbon source nor as an energy source ( euverink et al . 1992 ). 1 - 5 × 10 8 colony forming units of amycolatopsis methanolica ncib11946 and wv1 respectively were incubated on agar plates ( de boer et al ., 1988 ) and incubated at 37 ° c . in the presence of shikimate without any other carbon source present . after 10 days shikimate - utilizing mutants of the wild type appeared at a frequency of 5 . 0 × 10 - 7 . mutants of wv1 appeared at a 10 times lower frequency . 1 - 5 × 10 8 colony forming units of a . methanolica ncib11946 and wv1 respectively were grown on glucose minimal medium agar plates ( de boer et al . 1988 ) in the presence of 1 mg / ml para - fluorophenylalanine ( pfphe ) at 37 ° c . pfphe is a growth inhibiting analogue of phenylalanine . after prolonged incubation , pfphe - resistant mutants of the wild - type gradually appeared , reaching a final frequency of 5 . 7 × 10 - 4 after 6 - 8 days . strain wv1 showed a markedly lower frequency ( 2 . 0 × 10 - 6 ), this latter frequency corresponding to the upper limit of the frequency of spontaneous mutation normally observed for other organisms . transformation of wv1 with pmea300 resulted in a transformant exhibiting a similar frequency ( 5 . 5 × 10 - 4 ) as the wild - type . using the method described by euverink et al . ( 1995 ), it was shown that the activity of the prephenate dehydratase and chorismate mutase enzymes was markedly increased . the enzymes were no longer sensitive for inhibition by phenylalanine . however , as wild - type a . methanolica possesses the enzymes to degrade any excess phenylalanine , the wild - type mutants obtained according to this example do not overproduce phenylalanine in the absence of pfphe . deletion derivatives of pmea300 were tested for the ability to restore in strain wv1 the high frequency of spontaneous resistance against pfphe . deletion derivatives pwv129 , pwv136 , pwv113 and pwv375 lack , respectively , the int and xis genes , the genes indicated by black arrows in fig2 as a result of which conjugation is no longer possible , the stf and mut genes , and the stf gene . the table below shows the frequency of spontaneous resistance of the various strains . orf179 was shown to be responsible for the increased mutation frequency . ______________________________________strain frequency rel . mutation freq . plasmid char . ______________________________________wt 5 . 9 × 10 . sup .- 4 143 wt wv1 4 . 1 × 10 . sup .- 6 1 plasmid - free wv1 / pmea300 5 . 6 × 10 . sup .- 4 136 wt wv1 / pwv129 13 . 0 × 10 . sup .- 4 317 nointegration wv1 / pwv136 4 . 3 × 10 . sup .- 4 104 noconjugation wv1 / pwv113 1 . 3 × 10 . sup .- 6 0 . 3 no stf & amp ; orf179 wv1 / pwv375 6 . 0 × 10 . sup .- 4 146 no stf______________________________________ as can be seen , absence of integration of the gene in the chromosome results in higher mutation frequencies . it is thought that if there is no integration a higher number of plasmid copies is present and thus a higher level of expression of the mutation - inducing protein . accordingly , a preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that the vector comprises at least one gene for integrating the vector into the genome of the hostcell and that at least one of the genes for integrating into the genome is disabled . thus for pmea300 preferably at least one of the genes chosen from the group consisting of int , xis and att is disabled . __________________________________________________________________________ # sequence listing - - - - ( 1 ) general information : - - ( iii ) number of sequences : 4 - - - - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 1 : - - ( i ) sequence characteristics : ( a ) length : 1950 base - # pairs ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single - # stranded ( d ) topology : linear - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : l . de b - # oer , w . harder , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : phenylalanine - # and tyrosine metabolism in the facultative - # methylotroph nocardia sp . 239 ( c ) journal : arch . micr - # obiol . ( d ) volume : 149 ( f ) pages : 459 - 465 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . cairns , - # j . overbaugh , s . miller ( b ) title : ( c ) journal : nature ( d ) volume : 335 ( f ) pages : 142 - 145 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , g . i . hessels , j . w . vrijbloed , - # j . r . coggins , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : purification - # and characterization of a dual function - # 3 - hydroquinate dehydratase from amycolatopsis methanolica ( c ) journal : j . gen . - # microbiology ( d ) volume : 138 ( f ) pages : 2449 - 2457 ( g ) date : 1992 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , d . j . wolters , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : prephenate d - # ehydratase of the actinomycete amycolatopsi - # s methanolica : purification and characteriza - # tion of the wild - type and deregulatedmutant enzymes ( c ) journal : biochem . j - #. ( d ) volume : 308 ( f ) pages : 313 - 320 ( g ) date : 1995 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : p . moretti - #, g . hintermann , r . h tter ( b ) title : isolation an - # d characterization of an extrachromos - # omal element from nocardia mediterranei ( c ) journal : plasmid ( d ) volume : 14 ( f ) pages : 126 - 133 ( g ) date : 1985 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . sambroo - # k , e . f . frisch , t . maniatis ( b ) title : molecular cl - # oning : a laboratory manual ( c ) journal : cold sprin - # g harbor laboratory press ( g ) date : 1989 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . w . vrijb - # loed , j . madon , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : a plasmid - # from the methylotrophic actinomycete - # amycolatopsis methanolica capable ofsite - specific - # integration ( c ) journal : j . bacteri - # ol . ( d ) volume : 176 ( f ) pages : 7087 - 7090 ( g ) date : 1994 - - ( xi ) sequence description : - # seq id no : 1 : - - ggcgcccagc accttcggca gtagcccgct cccaccagtc gggaccggaa tc -# atgttgcc 60 - - cttcttgccc atggctacct cccaggttct gcggctcggc ggtttccgtt gc -# catgcctc 120 - - aagattcgtc tggttccggc ttcttgggga gatgagtccc tggtgagtcg tt -# ggtgattc 180 - - gctcgactca ccaggggctg accaggcaca atgcccgcaa gggaggtgac c - # gtgggg gac 240 - # - # - # metgly asp - # - # - # 1 - - agc ggg gca acc gag agc aag ctt cgc cgt gc - # t cgc ctt gcc gcc ggg288 ser gly ala thr glu ser lys leu arg arg al - # a arg leu ala ala gly5 - # 10 - # 15 - - atg acg caa ggc gag gtc cgg gcc aag ctc ac - # g cag gct cgc cgt cgc336 met thr gln gly glu val arg ala lys leu th - # r gln ala arg arg arg 20 - # 25 - # 30 - # 35 - - cgg ggc aag atg ccc ccg aag gaa gcc agc tt - # g aag cgg atg tac acg384 arg gly lys met pro pro lys glu ala ser le - # u lys arg met tyr thr 40 - # 45 - # 50 - - tcg tgg gag acc ggc gcg gtg atc ccg acg ga - # c tgg cgg gac gaa ctg432 ser trp glu thr gly ala val ile pro thr as - # p trp arg asp glu leu 55 - # 60 - # 65 - - tgc gag gta ttc gag ctt cca ccg gcc gcg ct - # c ggg ttg gtc gag acc480 cys glu val phe glu leu pro pro ala ala le - # u gly leu val glu thr 70 - # 75 - # 80 - - aca ccg cca cct gcg ctc gac ctc ccg agc ac - # a ttc gag gtg gtc cgg528 thr pro pro pro ala leu asp leu pro ser th - # r phe glu val val arg85 - # 90 - # 95 - - ctc gat cca gcg gtg att tcg ctg cta gac ca - # g cag acg aac ttc tac576 leu asp pro ala val ile ser leu leu asp gl - # n gln thr asn phe tyr 100 1 - # 05 1 - # 10 1 -# 15 - - cgg ctg cag gac cgg ctg ctg ggg gcg gcg at - # c att ccg cag accgaa 624 arg leu gln asp arg leu leu gly ala ala il - # e ile pro gln thr glu 120 - # 125 - # 130 - - gcc cac gtc cgc aac ctt gag cag atg ctg cg - # a aat gcg ctg ccg agc672 ala his val arg asn leu glu gln met leu ar - # g asn ala leu pro ser 135 - # 140 - # 145 - - ggc cac ctt ccg aca gcg gcg gtg acc ctc gc - # t gag gcg gct gcg ctc720 gly his leu pro thr ala ala val thr leu al - # a glu ala ala ala leu 150 - # 155 - # 160 - - gcc ggt tgg caa gcg ctc gat gcg ggt gat ct - # c cgg aaa gcg tgg gac768 ala gly trp gln ala leu asp ala gly asp le - # u arg lys ala trp asp165 - # 170 - # 175 - - ctg cac gac atc gcg aag tcc gca gca cgg ca - # g ggg gag aac cca gcc816 leu his asp ile ala lys ser ala ala arg gl - # n gly glu asn pro ala 180 1 - # 85 1 - # 90 1 -# 95 - - gtg ctc gcg cac gtc acg gcg cag cag gct ta - # c gtt ctg ctc gatgcc 864 val leu ala his val thr ala gln gln ala ty - # r val leu leu asp ala 200 - # 205 - # 210 - - ggc cgg gcc gcc gat gcg gtg gag ctg gtc ga - # g tat gca agc gaa ccc912 gly arg ala ala asp ala val glu leu val gl - # u tyr ala ser glu pro 215 - # 220 - # 225 - - agg ctg ctc gga cag gtc ccc gca cgc ctt cg - # g tcg tgg ttg gcc gcg960 arg leu leu gly gln val pro ala arg leu ar - # g ser trp leu ala ala 230 - # 235 - # 240 - - gcg cac gcc gag ttc ctg gcc gcg gcg ggg ga - # c cga tcc ggc gcg atg 1008 ala his ala glu phe leu ala ala ala gly as - # p arg ser gly ala met245 - # 250 - # 255 - - cgg cgg ctc gat caa gcg gcc gac gtg ctg cc - # a gct ggc gac aac gac 1056 arg arg leu asp gln ala ala asp val leu pr - # o ala gly asp asn asp 260 2 - # 65 2 - # 70 2 -# 75 - - cct gag ttg ccg tac ctg atg ctg aac ggc gc - # g cac ctc gcc cggtgg 1104 pro glu leu pro tyr leu met leu asn gly al - # a his leu ala arg trp 280 - # 285 - # 290 - - cgg ggc aac tgc ttg gcg cga ctc ggc gaa ga - # c cag gcg atc gag gac 1152 arg gly asn cys leu ala arg leu gly glu as - # p gln ala ile glu asp 295 - # 300 - # 305 - - ctg aca gcg gcg ctc gat ggg ctc acc acg ct - # c acc tca cgg cga gca 1200 leu thr ala ala leu asp gly leu thr thr le - # u thr ser arg arg ala 310 - # 315 - # 320 - - gag gcg ggg ctt cgt gta gac ctc gcg ctt gc - # c ctg cgg aag cgc ggc 1248 glu ala gly leu arg val asp leu ala leu al - # a leu arg lys arg gly325 - # 330 - # 335 - - gac ctg gac gag tcg cgc gtg cag gcc cga ca - # a gcc gcc gag ctg gcc 1296 asp leu asp glu ser arg val gln ala arg gl - # n ala ala glu leu ala 340 3 - # 45 3 - # 50 3 -# 55 - - ggc aca aca ggc tca gcc cgg cag cga gcc cg - # g atc gcg gag ctactt 1344 gly thr thr gly ser ala arg gln arg ala ar - # g ile ala glu leu leu 360 - # 365 - # 370 - - gcc gcc tag cgcgagaacg tgcagcagcc cgatcagagc gcctgagtt - # cccgacctggc 1403 ala ala - - ctgctcggat gaggtcggga acgtcgcgga agggcatcca ctggaaggtg cc -# ttcgttct 1463 - - gctcggtcgg gtcggcgact tgctcgacgc ctcggacgac aaagaggtgg tt -# cgggttgc 1523 - - gcagcatgcc caccgcgggc tcgaacgtga tcagcggctc gatcgagcgc gg -# ccggtagc 1583 - - cggtctcttc ctcgatctcg cggacgacgg tctcctcagg ggactcgtcg cc -# gtcgatga 1643 - - tgccgccggg tacttcccag ctccagatgt ttggtgcgaa cctgtgtcgc ca -# agccatga 1703 - - gaacgtgatc cgcagtgtcg ttgaagacga tcgccatggc gacgggcgga aa -# ccacacgg 1763 - - tgtgatgctc gaagcgctcg cccgatggct gcgagatgtc ggctaagccg ac -# tttgaccc 1823 - - actcggtctc gtagacggga cgctcgccgt ggacgatcca tcggtccttg tc -# catgggga 1883 - - tagggtctcc cgctctagcg ctgtgtgggg tcacgccgat gaacctcccg tg -# ggtcgtct 1943 - - cgcatgt - # - #- # 1950 - - - - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 2 : - - ( i ) sequence characteristics : ( a ) length : 373 amino - # acids ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : modified - # amino acid , formylmethionine ( b ) location : the first - # amino acid in the sequence , described - # as methionine , is actually known as formylmethio - # nine (&# 34 ; fmet &# 34 ;). polypeptide chains in bacteria - # often start with formylmethionine . - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : l . de b - # oer , w . harder , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : phenylalanine - # and tyrosine metabolism in the facultative - # methylotroph nocardia sp . 239 ( c ) journal : arch . micr - # obiol . ( d ) volume : 149 ( f ) pages : 459 - 465 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . cairns , - # j . overbaugh , s . miller ( b ) title : ( c ) journal : nature ( d ) volume : 335 ( f ) pages : 142 - 145 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , g . i . hessels , j . w . vrijbloed , - # j . r . coggins , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : purification - # and characterization of a dual function - # 3 - hydroquinate dehydratase from amycolatopsis methanolica ( c ) journal : j . gen . - # microbiology ( d ) volume : 138 ( f ) pages : 2449 - 2457 ( g ) date : 1992 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , d . j . wolters , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : prephenate d - # ehydratase of the actinomycete amycolatopsi - # s methanolica : purification and characteriza - # tion of the wild - type and deregulatedmutant enzymes ( c ) journal : biochem . j - #. ( d ) volume : 308 ( f ) pages : 313 - 320 ( g ) date : 1995 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : p . moretti - #, g . hintermann , r . h tter ( b ) title : isolation an - # d characterization of an extrachromos - # omal element from nocardia mediterranei ( c ) journal : plasmid ( d ) volume : 14 ( f ) pages : 126 - 133 ( g ) date : 1985 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . sambroo - # k , e . f . frisch , t . maniatis ( b ) title : molecular cl - # oning : a laboratory manual ( c ) journal : cold sprin - # g harbor laboratory press ( g ) date : 1989 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . w . vrijb - # loed , j . madon , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : a plasmid - # from the methylotrophic actinomycete - # amycolatopsis methanolica capable ofsite - specific - # integration ( c ) journal : j . bacteri - # ol . ( d ) volume : 176 ( f ) pages : 7087 - 7090 ( g ) date : 1994 - - ( xi ) sequence description : - # seq id no : 2 : - - met gly asp ser gly ala thr glu ser lys le - # u arg arg ala argleu 1 5 - # 10 - # 15 - - ala ala gly met thr gln gly glu val arg al - # a lys leu thr gln ala 20 - # 25 - # 30 - - arg arg arg arg gly lys met pro pro lys gl - # u ala ser leu lys arg 35 - # 40 - # 45 - - met tyr thr ser trp glu thr gly ala val il - # e pro thr asp trp arg50 - # 55 - # 60 - - asp glu leu cys glu val phe glu leu pro pr - # o ala ala leu gly leu 65 - # 70 - # 75 - # 80 - - val glu thr thr pro pro pro ala leu asp le - # u pro ser thr phe glu 85 - # 90 - # 95 - - val val arg leu asp pro ala val ile ser le - # u leu asp gln gln thr 100 - # 105 - # 110 - - asn phe tyr arg leu gln asp arg leu leu gl - # y ala ala ile ile pro 115 - # 120 - # 125 - - gln thr glu ala his val arg asn leu glu gl - # n met leu arg asn ala130 - # 135 - # 140 - - leu pro ser gly his leu pro thr ala ala va - # l thr leu ala glu ala 145 1 - # 50 1 - # 55 1 -# 60 - - ala ala leu ala gly trp gln ala leu asp al - # a gly asp leu arglys 165 - # 170 - # 175 - - ala trp asp leu his asp ile ala lys ser al - # a ala arg gln gly glu 180 - # 185 - # 190 - - asn pro ala val leu ala his val thr ala gl - # n gln ala tyr val leu 195 - # 200 - # 205 - - leu asp ala gly arg ala ala asp ala val gl - # u leu val glu tyr ala210 - # 215 - # 220 - - ser glu pro arg leu leu gly gln val pro al - # a arg leu arg ser trp 225 2 - # 30 2 - # 35 2 -# 40 - - leu ala ala ala his ala glu phe leu ala al - # a ala gly asp argser 245 - # 250 - # 255 - - gly ala met arg arg leu asp gln ala ala as - # p val leu pro ala gly 260 - # 265 - # 270 - - asp asn asp pro glu leu pro tyr leu met le - # u asn gly ala his leu 275 - # 280 - # 285 - - ala arg trp arg gly asn cys leu ala arg le - # u gly glu asp gln ala290 - # 295 - # 300 - - ile glu asp leu thr ala ala leu asp gly le - # u thr thr leu thr ser 305 3 - # 10 3 - # 15 3 -# 20 - - arg arg ala glu ala gly leu arg val asp le - # u ala leu ala leuarg 325 - # 330 - # 335 - - lys arg gly asp leu asp glu ser arg val gl - # n ala arg gln ala ala 340 - # 345 - # 350 - - glu leu ala gly thr thr gly ser ala arg gl - # n arg ala arg ile ala 355 - # 360 - # 365 - - glu leu leu ala ala370 - - - - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 3 : - - ( i ) sequence characteristics : ( a ) length : 612 base - # pairs ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single - # stranded ( d ) topology : linear - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : l . de b - # oer , w . harder , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : phenylalanine - # and tyrosine metabolism in the facultative - # methylotroph nocardia sp . 239 ( c ) journal : arch . micr - # obiol . ( d ) volume : 149 ( f ) pages : 459 - 465 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . cairns , - # j . overbaugh , s . miller ( b ) title : ( c ) journal : nature ( d ) volume : 335 ( f ) pages : 142 - 145 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , g . i . hessels , j . w . vrijbloed , - # j . r . coggins , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : purification - # and characterization of a dual function - # 3 - hydroquinate dehydratase from amycolatopsis methanolica ( c ) journal : j . gen . - # microbiology ( d ) volume : 138 ( f ) pages : 2449 - 2457 ( g ) date : 1992 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , d . j . wolters , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : prephenate d - # ehydratase of the actinomycete amycolatopsi - # s methanolica : purification and characteriza - # tion of the wild - type and deregulatedmutant enzymes ( c ) journal : biochem . j - #. ( d ) volume : 308 ( f ) pages : 313 - 320 ( g ) date : 1995 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : p . moretti - #, g . hintermann , r . h tter ( b ) title : isolation an - # d characterization of an extrachromos - # omal element from nocardia mediterranei ( c ) journal : plasmid ( d ) volume : 14 ( f ) pages : 126 - 133 ( g ) date : 1985 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . sambroo - # k , e . f . frisch , t . maniatis ( b ) title : molecular cl - # oning : a laboratory manual ( c ) journal : cold sprin - # g harbor laboratory press ( g ) date : 1989 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . w . vrijb - # loed , j . madon , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : a plasmid - # from the methylotrophic actinomycete - # amycolatopsis methanolica capable ofsite - specific - # integration ( c ) journal : j . bacteri - # ol . ( d ) volume : 176 ( f ) pages : 7087 - 7090 ( g ) date : 1994 - - ( xi ) sequence description : - # seq id no : 3 : - - acatgcgaga cgacccacgg gaggttcatc ggc gtg acc cca ca - # c agc gctaga 54 - # - # met thr pro his ser ala arg - # - # 1 5 - - gcg gga gac cct atc ccc atg gac aag gac cg - # a tgg atc gtc cac ggc102 ala gly asp pro ile pro met asp lys asp ar - # g trp ile val his gly 10 - # 15 - # 20 - - gag cgt ccc gtc tac gag acc gag tgg gtc aa - # a gtc ggc tta gcc gac150 glu arg pro val tyr glu thr glu trp val ly - # s val gly leu ala asp25 - # 30 - # 35 - - atc tcg cag cca tcg ggc gag cgc ttc gag ca - # t cac acc gtg tgg ttt198 ile ser gln pro ser gly glu arg phe glu hi - # s his thr val trp phe 40 - # 45 - # 50 - # 55 - - ccg ccc gtc gcc atg gcg atc gtc ttc aac ga - # c act gcg gat cac gtt246 pro pro val ala met ala ile val phe asn as - # p thr ala asp his val 60 - # 65 - # 70 - - ctc atg gct tgg cga cac agg ttc gca cca aa - # c atc tgg agc tgg gaa294 leu met ala trp arg his arg phe ala pro as - # n ile trp ser trp glu 75 - # 80 - # 85 - - gta ccc ggc ggc atc atc gac ggc gac gag tc - # c cct gag gag acc gtc342 val pro gly gly ile ile asp gly asp glu se - # r pro glu glu thr val 90 - # 95 - # 100 - - gtc cgc gag atc gag gaa gag acc ggc tac cg - # g ccg cgc tcg atc gag390 val arg glu ile glu glu glu thr gly tyr ar - # g pro arg ser ile glu105 - # 110 - # 115 - - ccg ctg atc acg ttc gag ccc gcg gtg ggc at - # g ctg cgc aac ccg aac438 pro leu ile thr phe glu pro ala val gly me - # t leu arg asn pro asn 120 1 - # 25 1 - # 30 1 -# 35 - - cac ctc ttt gtc gtc cga ggc gtc gag caa gt - # c gcc gac ccg accgag 486 his leu phe val val arg gly val glu gln va - # l ala asp pro thr glu 140 - # 145 - # 150 - - cag aac gaa ggc acc ttc cag tgg atg ccc tt - # c cgc gac gtt ccc gac534 gln asn glu gly thr phe gln trp met pro ph - # e arg asp val pro asp 155 - # 160 - # 165 - - ctc atc cga gca ggc cag gtc ggg aac tca gg - # c gct ctg atc ggg ctg582 leu ile arg ala gly gln val gly asn ser gl - # y ala leu ile gly leu 170 - # 175 - # 180 - - ctg cac gtt ctc gcg cta ggc ggc aag tag - # - # 612 leu his val leu ala leu gly gly lys185 - # 190 - - - - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 4 : - - ( i ) sequence characteristics : ( a ) length : 192 amino - # acids ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : modified - # amino acid , formylmethionine ( b ) location : the first - # amino acid in the sequence , described - # as methionine , is actually known as formylmethio - # nine (&# 34 ; fmet &# 34 ;). polypeptide chains in bacteria - # often start with formylmethionine . - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : l . de b - # oer , w . harder , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : phenylalanine - # and tyrosine metabolism in the facultative - # methylotroph nocardia sp . 239 ( c ) journal : arch . micr - # obiol . ( d ) volume : 149 ( f ) pages : 459 - 465 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . cairns , - # j . overbaugh , s . miller ( b ) title : ( c ) journal : nature ( d ) volume : 335 ( f ) pages : 142 - 145 ( g ) date : 1988 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , g . i . hessels , j . w . vrijbloed , - # j . r . coggins , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : purification - # and characterization of a dual function - # 3 - hydroquinate dehydratase from amycolatopsis methanolica ( c ) journal : j . gen . - # microbiology ( d ) volume : 138 ( f ) pages : 2449 - 2457 ( g ) date : 1992 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : g . j . w . euv - # erink , d . j . wolters , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : prephenate d - # ehydratase of the actinomycete amycolatopsi - # s methanolica : purification and characteriza - # tion of the wild - type and deregulatedmutant enzymes ( c ) journal : biochem . j - #. ( d ) volume : 308 ( f ) pages : 313 - 320 ( g ) date : 1995 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : p . moretti - #, g . hintermann , r . h tter ( b ) title : isolation an - # d characterization of an extrachromos - # omal element from nocardia mediterranei ( c ) journal : plasmid ( d ) volume : 14 ( f ) pages : 126 - 133 ( g ) date : 1985 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . sambroo - # k , e . f . frisch , t . maniatis ( b ) title : molecular cl - # oning : a laboratory manual ( c ) journal : cold sprin - # g harbor laboratory press ( g ) date : 1989 - - ( x ) publication information : ( a ) authors : j . w . vrijb - # loed , j . madon , l . dijkhuizen ( b ) title : a plasmid - # from the methylotrophic actinomycete - # amycolatopsis methanolica capable ofsite - specific - # integration ( c ) journal : j . bacteri - # ol . ( d ) volume : 176 ( f ) pages : 7087 - 7090 ( g ) date : 1994 - - ( xi ) sequence description : - # seq id no : 4 : - - met thr pro his ser ala arg ala gly asp pr - # o ile pro met asplys 1 5 - # 10 - # 15 - - asp arg trp ile val his gly glu arg pro va - # l tyr glu thr glu trp 20 - # 25 - # 30 - - val lys val gly leu ala asp ile ser gln pr - # o ser gly glu arg phe 35 - # 40 - # 45 - - glu his his thr val trp phe pro pro val al - # a met ala ile val phe50 - # 55 - # 60 - - asn asp thr ala asp his val leu met ala tr - # p arg his arg phe ala 65 - # 70 - # 75 - # 80 - - pro asn ile trp ser trp glu val pro gly gl - # y ile ile asp gly asp 85 - # 90 - # 95 - - glu ser pro glu glu thr val val arg glu il - # e glu glu glu thr gly 100 - # 105 - # 110 - - tyr arg pro arg ser ile glu pro leu ile th - # r phe glu pro ala val 115 - # 120 - # 125 - - gly met leu arg asn pro asn his leu phe va - # l val arg gly val glu130 - # 135 - # 140 - - gln val ala asp pro thr glu gln asn glu gl - # y thr phe gln trp met 145 1 - # 50 1 - # 55 1 -# 60 - - pro phe arg asp val pro asp leu ile arg al - # a gly gln val glyasn 165 - # 170 - # 175 - - ser gly ala leu ile gly leu leu his val le - # u ala leu gly gly lys 180 - # 185 - # 190__________________________________________________________________________ | 2 |
the present invention will now be described by way of embodiments applied to a rear - wheel drive wheel vehicle with reference to the accompanying drawings . referring first to fig1 when an excessive slip occurs at the drive wheels of a rear - wheel drive vehicle , i . e ., left and right rear wheels w lr and w rr , braking means b lr and b rr respectively attached to the rear wheels w lr and w rr operate to brake the rear wheels to avoid the excessive slipping . the circuit arrangement for controlling the braking means b lr attached to the left rear wheel w lr is fundamentally the same as that for controlling the braking means b rr attached to the right rear wheel w rr , and only the circuit arrangement for controlling the braking means b lr attached to the left rear wheel w lr will be described in detail . speed sensors s lf and s rf are respectively attached to left and right front wheels w lf and w rf as driven wheels , and driven wheel speeds v wlf and v wrp respectively produced from the speed sensors s lf and s rf are input to a vehicle speed detector 1 . vehicle speed detector 1 averages both the driven wheel speeds v wlf and v wrf to produce a vehicle speed v v . vehicle speed v v detected by the vehicle speed detector 1 is input to first reference wheel speed setting means 2 and second reference wheel speed setting means 3 . the first reference wheel speed setting means 2 and the second reference wheel speed setting means 3 respectively determine a first reference wheel speed v r1 and a second reference wheel speed v r2 in response to the vehicle speed v v , as shown in fig2 and then output the respective reference wheel speed v r1 and v r2 . here , the first reference wheel speed v r1 is determined in response to an allowable slip ratio , and the second reference wheel speed v r2 is set to a value larger than the first reference wheel speed v r1 and represents the state in which an excessive slip occurs . the reference wheel speeds v r1 and v r2 , respectively , output from the first and second reference wheel speed setting means 2 and 3 are then input to the slipping state judging means 4 . on the other hand , the speed sensor s lr is attached to the left rear wheel w lr , and the left driving wheel speed v wlr produced from the speed sensor s lr is input to the slipping state judging means 4 . the slipping state judging means 4 produces a determined value ts of the slipping state by the following equation . this determined value ts is input to control signal generating means 5 . the control signal generating means 5 outputs a control signal based upon the determined value ts , i . e ., an increasing speed p b of the braking pressure in the braking means b lr . here , in case of ts & gt ; 0 , the increasing p b of the braking pressure may be set arbitrarily as shown by a , b , and c in fig3 but in case of ts ≦ 0 , i . e ., when the drive wheels are not slipping , it is set to a negative predetermined value as shown by d in fig3 . the slipping state judging means 4 forcibly outputs the determined value ts as being &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; ( ts = 0 ) when the output of a flip - flop 6 is a high level . the increasing speed p b generated from the control signal generating means 5 also becomes &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; at this time . a manually operable switch 7 connects by the set input terminal of the flip - flop 6 to a high - level power source by the switching operation of the driver of the vehicle , and the flip - flop 6 is set such that its output signal is a high level in response to the manual operation ( or closing ) of the switch 7 . a switch 8 which is opened and closed in response to the starting operation , such as the depression of an accelerator pedal by the driver , is connected to the reset input terminal of the flip - flop 6 . flip - flop 6 is thus reset in response to the closing of the switch 8 . further , a comparator 9 is connected to flip - flop 6 , and when the output of the comparator 9 is at a low level , the setting of flip - flop 6 is inhibited . a signal voltage corresponding to a vehicle speed v v is input from the vehicle speed detector 1 to the non - inverting input terminal of comparator 9 , and a reference voltage corresponding to a reference vehicle speed v 0 , such as 4 kph is input from a reference power supply 10 to the inverting input terminal of comparator 9 . thus , the comparator 9 outputs a low level when the vehicle speed v v is in a low speed state lower than the reference vehicle speed v 0 . the flip - flop 6 is thus prevented from being set in this state . the output terminal of the flip - flop 6 is connected to initial braking control signal generating means 11 together with the slipping state judging means 4 . the initial braking control signal generating means 11 outputs a signal for setting a braking pressure p b in the braking means b lr to a predetermined braking pressure p bo as an initial braking control signal in response to the high level of the output of the flip - flop 6 . the outputs of the control signal generating means 5 and the initial braking control signal generating means 11 are both input to calculator 12 . calculator 12 calculates the value p b , for example , according to the following equation , and outputs the control signal p b at each time of a tdc signal for controlling the braking means b lr : the value p b in the right - hand side of the above equation is obtained from the previous calculation , and a new p b is produced by adding the p b to the previous p b . the operation of the embodiment will be described with reference to fig4 . when the driver determines that the frictional coefficient of the road surface is extremely low and it would be difficult to start the vehicle , the driver manually operates ( closes ) switch 7 as shown in fig4 ( a ). then , the output of the flip - flop 6 becomes a high level as shown in fig4 ( c ), and the determined value ts of the slipping state judging means 4 becomes &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; in response to the high level of the output of the flip - flop 6 as shown in fig4 ( d ), and the output of the calculator 12 becomes p 80 , a constant as shown in fig4 ( e ) by the input from the initial braking control signal generating means 11 . therefore , the braking means b lr applies a predetermined braking force , thereby suppressing the drive torque of the drive wheel w lr . when the driver starts the vehicle in such a state , the switch 8 is conducted as shown in fig4 ( b ), and the flip - flop 6 is reset in response to the closing of switch 8 . thus , the value p b produced by newly adding the increasing speed p b from the slipping state judging means 4 to the initial braking pressure p 80 is output from the calculator 12 as the control signal of the braking means b lr . since ts = 0 is satisfied in this state , the increasing speed p b is negative , and the output of the calculator 12 is gradually reduced as shown in fig4 ( e ). thus , the drive wheel speed v wlr is gradually increased as shown in fig4 ( f ), thereby smoothly starting the vehicle . if an excessive slip occurs during the starting operation , the excessive slip is controlled in accordance with the determined value ts . in the embodiment described above , the starting operation of the vehicle is detected by the depression of the accelerator pedal . however , the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiment described above . for example , the starting operation of the vehicle can be also detected by the connecting state or the connection starting state of a starting clutch when the gear train of a transmission is established , or an increase in a vehicle speed from 0 km / hr . may be detected as the starting state . according to the present invention as described above , the predetermined braking force is performed by the braking means in response to the manual operation before the vehicle is started , and the braking force of the braking means is gradually reduced in response to the starting operation of the vehicle before the slip of the drive wheels is detected . therefore , when the frictional coefficient of a road surface is extremely low and the starting of the vehicle is predicted to be very difficult , a predetermined braking force is applied to the drive wheels in response to the driver &# 39 ; s manual operation in order to suppress the occurrence of the excessive slip , and the braking force is gradually decreased in response to the starting operation to effectively suppress the occurrence of the excessive slip , thereby smoothly starting the vehicle . | 1 |
a simplified view of a currently - preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in fig1 . the apparatus is a hand - held unit [ 1 ] whose only user control is the power - activation button [ 4 ]. using standard telephone patch wires [ 5 ], the operator of the apparatus connects the circuit under test [ 7 ] to either of two telephony interface ports [ 3 ], [ 3 a ]. if interposing the instrument of the invention between a telephone circuit [ 7 ] and a telephony instrument ( telephone , fax , modem , etc .) [ 6 ], as illustrated , the operator connects the circuit [ 7 ] to one of the two telephony ports [ 3 ] and the device [ 6 ] to the other port [ 3 a ]. when the operator presses button [ 4 ], the device automatically carries out a series of tests discussed in detail below , calaculates the vn from the results of the tests , and displays the measured vn on display [ 2 ]. typically the operator will record the vn manually , for future comparison , but it is within the scope of the invention to provide a memory device in the unit for doing so . referring now to the circuit block diagram of fig2 showing the circuit of an instrument for transmitting pulse - width modulated ( pwm ) energy ( hereinafter sometimes “ pulses ”), depressing the power activation button [ 4 ] activates a power conditioning circuit [ 57 ] that delays actual startup of the microprocessor [ 50 ] until the power available to the microprocessor has reached a certain threshold and is stable . the microprocessor [ 50 ] first performs some basic self - checks , including using one of the two a / d converters [ 58 , 61 ] to sample the battery &# 39 ; s [ 9 ] voltage to determine if enough voltage exists to run a test and get accurate readings . if insufficient voltage is detected , the operator is flashed a low - battery warning on the led display [ 2 ] and tests are not performed . below a critical threshold , far below the low - battery warning threshold , the unit will not even power - up to be able to flash a warning . a preferred microprocessor is the model no . 16f876 from microchip , which includes an onboard pulse wave modulator [ 60 ]. the microprocessor [ 50 ] controls the onboard pulse wave modulator [ 60 ] to generate a series of modulated pulse waves ( an on - off series of pulses of energy at a given frequency , where the relative length of the on and off periods is the “ duty cycle ”; a “ square wave ” results when they are equal , at a 50 % duty cycle ) at predetermined frequencies and duty cycles . these are then used to control the transmit amplifier [ 59 ] to transmit the pulse wave modulated carrier for 50 ms bursts at 32 different frequencies into the telephony interface [ 3 ] and thence to the devices that are attached thereto . each burst of pwm energy , at each frequency , is transmitted for a specific period of time established empirically as the optimal stabilization time for both the transmit pulse waves as well as receive amplifier [ 62 ] stabilization . as above , each pulse wave is defined by two components , both of which are stored in the electrically - erasable - programmable - read - only - memory ( eeprom ) [ 55 ] of the unit . the first of these numbers is the factor that will generate the pulse waves at a specific frequency . frequency of pulse waves is defined as the number of times in a time interval that the pulse wave goes from a ‘ 0 ’ ( fully off ) state to a ‘ 1 ’ ( fully on ) state . the second factor is duty cycle , or the length of time that the pulse wave will remain at the ‘ 1 ’ ( fully on ) state . at a duty cycle of 50 %, the pulse wave and a true square wave are indistinguishable . the frequency and duty cycle tables are stored in eeprom [ 55 ] during calibration . other memory usage includes reference data that is stored in rom [ 53 ] along with the program &# 39 ; s code in pgm memory [ 56 ]. ram [ 54 ] or random - access memory is used during the program &# 39 ; s test run to store working data during analysis and for final led readout . during transmission of the pulses , as above , the receiver amplifier [ 62 ] is continually sensing the intensity of the attenuated resultant signal from the telephony interface [ 3 ] and presents this information to the second a / d converter [ 61 ]. the total energy output of the amplifier is calibrated to remain below the overflow threshold of the adc , so that the receive amplifier can remain on during transmission . at the end of each frequency period , the second a / d converter [ 61 ] is activated and permitted to stabilize before sampling and converting the amplifier &# 39 ; s output to a 10 - bit digital representation . when readings for all frequencies have been performed , the microprocessor then converts and normalizes all the readings into the single 3 - digit vn for display to the operator via the led display [ 2 ]. as above , calculation of the vn is straightforward . the unit sums all the raw readings that are taken during a test and factors them with calibrated values for maximum high and minimum low values , then scales the number to fit into the 3 - digit display . where 999 is the scaling factor to fit the number into the 3 - digit display , rad [ 1 ], rad [ 2 ] . . . rad [ 32 ] are the individual raw readings , calibration_highval is the maximum number that was established during calibration to determine the maximum raw value that could be attained and calibration_lowval is the minimum number that was also determined during calibration by short - circuiting the telephony input ports and taking another set of readings . [ 0086 ] fig3 shows a similar block diagram of the circuitry for transmitting a series of sine waves at fixed amplitude and fixed duration , but at varying and higher frequencies than the current apparatus . these will be transmitted into the telephony interface at a relatively low but constant fixed energy level (− 20 db to − 30 db .) a set of precision bandpass filters are employed to isolate the stimulating frequencies and thus determine the attenuation effects of that and only that frequency on the circuit under test . tests have already demonstrated the efficacy of this approach , especially in sensing very - high impedance junctions that are characteristic of wiretaps . tests indicate the technique could produce vn variations as high as 100 points in response to certain wiretaps , and the technique allows for long - term attachment to the telephone network . fcc certification is being sought . it is anticipated that the duration of each frequency burst will be approximately 50 milliseconds , which gives the receiver amplifier enough time to acquire a stable return signal and in turn present a stable return to the microprocessor &# 39 ; s adc port . the apparatus will be activated by a control lead from an external interface bus [ 37 ]. in this embodiment , the unit does not have manual control capability and is designed to run as a daughter board in a system that provides the display and manual control capability , but it could readily be converted to a_stand - alone , independent unit . the telephony interface [ 38 ] will also not be directly accessed by the operator , but will access telephony devices using the external interface bus [ 37 ]. closing the activation relay [ 26 ] sends a signal to the power stabilization circuit [ 25 ] that delays actual startup of the microprocessor [ 20 ] until the power available to the microprocessor has reached a certain threshold and is stable , generally as discussed above . the microprocessor [ 20 ] first performs some basic self - checks , including using one of the two a / d converters [ 29 ] to sample the dc voltage source [ 27 ] to determine if enough voltage exists to run a test and get accurate readings . if insufficient voltage is detected , a message is sent across the external interface bus [ 37 ] to the controlling system indicating the condition . the processor will then enter s low - power sleep state without performing any tests . the microprocessor [ 20 ] communicates with an intelligent frequency controller [ 30 ], and instructs it to generate a specific frequency for a specific time period . the frequency controller activates one of two controllable active / standby bandpass filters [ 33 ] or [ 34 ], whichever is not active , and instructs it to switch its high - pass and low - pass filter sections to the frequency range corresponding to the frequency that will be transmitted . since it takes up to 100 ms to stabilize a programmable bandpass filter , the use of the active / standby filters [ 33 ],[ 34 ] is essential . the frequency controller [ 30 ] then instructs a voltage - controlled oscillator ( vco )[ 32 ] to send sine waves at the desired frequency and amplitude to the transmit impedance - matching transformer [ 36 ] which energizes devices and circuits on the telephony interface bus [ 38 ]. as soon as the vco [ 32 ] begins to generate signal to the telephony bus via the transmit impedance matching transformer [ 36 ], the receive impedance - matching transformer begins to receive signal from the telephony bus [ 38 ]. output from the receive impedance - matching transformer [ 35 ] energizes the input section of the dual - input amplifier [ 31 ] such that the amplifier generates and presents to the adc a stabilized dc representation of the ac voltage reading . when the burst of sine wave energy of proper length has been transmitted , the microprocessor sends a message to the adc [ 28 ] to perform a reading . the adc [ 28 ] generates a 10 - bit digital number representing the strength of the input sensed by the receive amplifier [ 31 ], which is a representation of the original transmit signal less attenuation . attenuation measurements are performed at a variety of frequencies , as in the pulse wave apparatus . when the series of measurements at the various frequencies has been exhausted , the microprocessor [ 20 ] calculates the vn as above , and again communicates with the motherboard via the external interface bus [ 37 ] to send its set of readings . following that last step , the processor enters a low - power sleep mode until all dc power [ 27 ] is removed from the board . there are no special manufacturing considerations for board assembly in either embodiment , but those of skill in the art will recognize that there are thermal sensitivities in the pulse wave apparatus . assuming linearity of the thermal curve , or correction factors determined during calibration , thermal compensation can be applied when calculating the vn . since each transmit and receive amplifier in the pulse wave apparatus will have slight variations in the quality of components used , the same test conditions may result in different vns for different units . each unit must be subjected to an extensive set of calibration routines which set optimal values for transmission parameters and for calculating the final vn in order that the vns determined by each unit are directly comparable . in an ultimately preferred embodiment , the apparatus as described above may become part of an overall system . in this embodiment , the hand - held unit of fig1 might be docked into a main system housing another type of vn generator using impedance - matching transformers and pure sine generators to produce an even wider range of stimulus frequencies . the docked system approach provides for either the pulse wave or sine wave unit be undocked and replaced if necessary , or for the sine wave unit to be left permanently attached to the target telephone line for continuous monitoring . the sine wave apparatus uses a sine - wave oscillator to generate much higher frequencies than is possible with pulse wave technology , since sine waves will propagate through impedance - matching transformers , whereas pulse waves will collapse and become ineffective . frequencies of up to 250 khz , and possibly higher , appear to be very useful in the practice of the invention . the sine wave unit is an evolution and enhancement of the pulse wave apparatus . the additional components and precision circuitry that will be required will also make the unit more costly . some of the characteristics of the sine wave apparatus will make it ideal for testing modes that are not suitable for the pulse wave apparatus . first , the sine wave unit only measures the attenuation of its own sine waves , and not the background noise of the telephone system or other factors . this is accomplished through the employment of high - quality bandpass filters that will send only the attenuated waveforms of the originally transmitted sine waves into the amplifier . the decibel ( db ) range of the affected waves typically falls into a narrow band while the attenuation caused by junctions like those of wiretaps will typically be very significant statistically ( 10 % or more ). in generating the vn , this represents a vn difference of 100 on a 999 scale whereas the pulse wave apparatus typically exhibits only 15 points difference with respect to the same circuits . the sine wave unit is also more stable than the pulse wave unit . the pulse wave unit must measure the entire telephone line and its noise and other dynamics such as dialtone , conversation , and ringer current . the presence of these aberrations produces a different vn than the reading of a simple wet line with no other activity , so the technician has to be trained to recognize the condition that the line was in when the reading was taken . on the other hand , the sine wave unit measures its own returned signal and because of the bandpass filter , ignores all other noise . the measured readings of the returned signal are very stable , with long - term monitoring stability a bonus . accordingly , those of skill in the art will recognize that there are a number of options with respect to the preferred embodiment of the invention from which selection may be made depending on the precise circuit to be monitored . similarly , there are further improvements and modifications to the device and its method of use which will be apparent to those of skill in the art . therefore , the invention should not be limited by the above exemplary disclosure , but only by the following claims . | 7 |
one specification embodiment of the present invention is described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings , as follows . fig1 a is a cross sectional view of the ink jet head shown in this embodiment and fig1 b is a cross sectional view showing the construction of a piezovibrator . in the drawings , a glass tube 1 has an elongated point and a piezovibrator 2 coming into contact with the peripheral of the glass tube 1 . a reference numeral 3 denotes a tubular piezodevice and reference numerals 4 and 5 indicate electrodes , respectively . a pulse - like voltage is applied between the electrodes 4 and 5 , thereby performing contraction and recovery of the tube in the direction of the inside diameter . at this time , by supplying ink from the direction indicated by an arrow b , it is possible to discharge an ink droplet from the elongated point ( orifice portion ) of the glass tube 1 . the size of the discharged ink droplet can be changed in dependence upon the magnitude of the voltage to be applied to this piezodevice . according to our experiments , it was possible to change with respect to the width of about three times larger as the print dot diameter . however , the change in diameter of about three times larger results in about nine times the area ratio , and this is unsatisfactory to represent the density gradient as a picture printer . therefore , as shown in fig2 an ink jet head unit 10 is constructed which uses two heads 6 and 7 and which is provided with ink tanks 8 and 9 in which inks with different densities ( also referred to as &# 34 ; concentrations &# 34 ;) are contained , respectively . fig3 is a constructional drawing of the mechanical section of a printer in which the head unit 10 shown in fig2 was installed . in the drawing , a reference numeral 11 denotes a platen ; 12 indicates a pulse motor to feed a recording medium , such as paper forms ; 13 represents a motor to scan a head carriage 14 on which the head unit 10 was mounted by means of a guide 15 and a screw 16 . an example in the case where a picture was produced using the printer shown in fig2 and 3 is now described hereinbelow . an average reflection density od of a pixel in the following description is defined as follows by assuming that the amount of light incidence to be irradiated onto a predetermined area formed by the dots with 5 pel pitch is i i and that the amount of reflected light for the amount of light incidence i i is i o : ## equ1 ## in the following embodiment , direct blue 86 ( color index ) was used as ink . printing characteristics as shown in fig4 can be obtained when the printer of fig3 is used . in fig4 vertical axis indicates reflection densities and the horizontal axis indicates the voltages applied to the first and second head . in this graph , a curve ( a ) indicates the optical reflection density characteristic of a high density concentrated ink and a curve ( b ) represents the optical reflection density characteristic of a low density rarefied ink . in this experiment , the orifice diameters of glass tubes of both heads are 65 μm . the applied pulse width is 10 μs . with regard to the ink density , the density of dyes supplied to the first head is 0 . 15 %, the density of dyes supplied to the second head 2 . 0 %. further , the dot space is 5 dots per mm . under the above conditions , the reflection density was observed . satisfactory color reproduction could not be performed with varying the density of the same ink . then , in order to maintain the continuity of the color reproduction for two kinds of ink with a low density and high density they are harmonized in color tone with dyes of eosin and tartrazine and the like , respectively . in this manner , the satisfactory continuous density gradient as shown in fig4 could be achieved . fig5 shows a block diagram of a control circuit used when the printer as shown in fig3 is applied to a video printer for printing out color video signals . with reference to the drawings , the operation would be described as follows . the picture signals from r , g and b are first respectively applied to sample and hold circuits shr , shg and shb . on the other hand , a sync . signal sy is applied to a system controller sc . the sampling and holding are performed in accordance with the timing signals from this system controller sc , so that each color video signal is respectively stored in line memories mr , mg and mb through a signal change - over switch sw and an analog - digital converter adc . then a matrix circuit mtx carries out the masking and under color elimination processing on the basis of the information in the line memories mr , mg and mb to produce a cyanic signal c , magenta signal m , yellow signal y , and black signal bl . these output signals are applied to da converters dac , dam , day , dabl at the time of printing operation to control one selected from ink jet heads h1 - h8 through the head drivers amp1 - amp8 . further , the head feeding and paper feeding are achieved by controlling head motor hm and paper feeding motor lm through drivers dr1 and dr2 in response to a signal from system controller sc . while , the output from the matrix circuit mtx is also applied to head selection circuits selc , selm , sely and selpl . before the recording operation , the density region where the density data of the recording picture resides is detected . referring to fig4 the density region is separated into four which are a region above na , a region from na to nb , a region from nb to nc , and a region below nc . in this case , the data of the density higher than na can be reproduced only through high density ink . further , the data of the density from nb to nc can be reproduced only through low density ink . whether or not the density data reside in the above mentioned two regions is examined over the whole of a picture to be recorded . one among a first mode for recording a picture with high density ink only , second mode with low density ink only , and third mode with both high and low density inks is selected . this mode selection signal is applied to da converters dac , dam , day , dabl . thus , the kind ( high or low density ) of ink and the voltage to be applied to the head are uniquely determined in accordance with the density data which is another input data of da converter . the details of the head selection circuit will be described with reference to fig6 . the head selection circuit as shown in fig6 is provided for each color of cyan , magenta , yellow and black . fig6 shows an embodiment of head selection circuit for cyan . although the illustrated circuit has a specific wired - logic configuration , it is possible to realize the alternative by using a micro - processor loaded by a particular software . as an initial step , output signal reset from system controller sc is applied to clear terminals of flip - flops ff1 and ff2 to produce &# 34 ; l &# 34 ; ( logical low level signal ) at their outputs q . output c from matrix circuit mtx is applied to comparators cpa , cpb and cpc to be compared with reference voltages rna , rnb and rnc respectively corresponding densities na , nb and nc of fig4 . when the density is higher than na , the output of comparator cpa becomes &# 34 ; h &# 34 ; ( logical high level signal ); when higher than nb , the output of comparator cpb &# 34 ; l &# 34 ;; and when higher than nc , the output of comparator cpc &# 34 ; h &# 34 ;. accordingly , a density level which ranges within nb through nc causes comparators cpb and cpc to produce outputs of &# 34 ; h &# 34 ; so that output q of flip - flop ff2 is set to &# 34 ; h &# 34 ; through the output of and gate and4 . similarly , a density level higher than na sets flip - flop ff1 so that output q of ff1 is set to &# 34 ; h &# 34 ;. flip - flops ff1 and ff2 are not reset until the check for one picture of image data has been completed . as the whole of one picture has been checked , the mode selection is conducted . when the q output of ff1 is &# 34 ; h &# 34 ; and the q output is &# 34 ; l &# 34 ;, since there is no density data capable of being reproduced only through the low density ink , the output of and1 becomes &# 34 ; h &# 34 ; so that the first mode is selected . similarly , when both outputs of ff1 and ff2 are &# 34 ; h &# 34 ;, since there are density data capable of being reproduced only through the high density ink and also density data capable of being reproduced only through the low density ink , the output of and2 becomes &# 34 ; h &# 34 ; so that the third mode is selected . when the q output of ff1 is &# 34 ; l &# 34 ;, since there is no density data capable of being reproduced only through the high density ink , the second mode is selected . accordingly , even where density data resides within the overlapping region only , which can be reproduced through the low density ink and still through the high density ink , the low density ink is selected . the ink selection for the overlapping region in the third mode is predetermined . although the foregoing description is directed only to the head selection circuit for cyan ink , the control circuits for magenta , yellow and black can be constructed in a similar configuration . although , in this embodiment , the example using two kinds of higher density and lower density dots has been explained , it will be easily understood that dots having three or more kinds of different densities can be applicable to the present invention . though the example of the ink jet printer has been described in this specification , the present invention is not limited to this but can be applied to all dot printer which can reproduce the various densities even in an electrophotographical printer , electrostatic printer , thermal printer , etc . it is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to a recording method and an apparatus therefore which are set forth in , for example , the specification of u . s . pat . no . 3 , 946 , 398 , de laid - open official gazette no . 2843064 , de laid - open official gazette no . 2944005 , etc . although circular dots have been used to explain one preferred embodiment , the dot shape is not limited to this and the present invention can be applied to any dots having various shapes . as described in the foregoing , the picture producing apparatus comprises a plurality of dot forming means , each of them forming micro - dots with a different density from others , means for detecting density data in a picture to be recorded and means in response to the output from the detection means for selecting ones among the plurality of dot forming means for use in a picture production . with the above mentioned apparatus , a plurality of dot forming means are used for a recording picture wherein the density data extends over a wide range from low density to high density so that a high gradient picture may be reproducted . and also , where the density data is one - sided toward high density or low density , the picture reproduction can be performed through dots with a predetermined density only so that the problem of discontinuity in a reproduced picture due to the changeover between high density dots and low density dots may be resolved . although the present invention has been shown and described with respect to a particular embodiment , various changes and modifications which will occur to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains also lie within the spirit and scope of the invention . | 7 |
in the following , we first explain the basic transistor circuit for the sum - product generation , then specific embodiments , combinations and applications of this circuit are discussed . by a “ discrete probability distribution ” we mean , here and in the sequel , an n - tuple (“ vector ”) of nonnegative real numbers that add up to one . as will be detailed in sections “ factor graphs and the sum - product algorithm ” and “ applications ”, many signal processing algorithms can be decomposed into elementary computations of the following kind : a discrete probability distribution [ p ( z 1 ), . . . , p ( z k )], k ≧ 2 , is computed from the discrete probability distributions [ p ( x 1 ), . . . , p ( x m )], m ≧ 2 , and [ p ( y 1 ), . . . , p ( y n )], n ≧ 2 , according to the formula p ( z h )= γσ i = 1 . . . m σ j = 1 . . . n p ( x i ) p ( y j ) f ( x i , y j , z h ), h = 1 . . . k , ( 1 ) where f ( x , y , z ) is a { 0 , 1 }- valued function and where γ is a suitable scaling factor . a key element of the technology is the simultaneous computation of the products p ( x i ) p ( y j ) in ( 1 ) by the circuit of fig1 . for the following description of that circuit , the transistors in fig1 are assumed to be voltage - controlled current sources , whose drain current ( in saturation ) depends from the gate - source voltage according to this holds , in particular , for mos transistors in the subthreshold mode , but also ( with emitter , base , and collector instead of source , gate , and drain ) for bipolar transistors . the inputs to the circuit in fig1 are the currents i x , i , i = 1 . . . m and i y , j , j = 1 . . . n , which are assumed to be determined by external circuitry ( not shown ). the outputs of the circuit are the currents i i , j , i = 1 . . . m , j = 1 . . . n . we have i i , j / i tot =( i x , i / i x )·( i y , j / i y ) ( 4 ) with i x = i x , 1 + i x , 2 +. . . + i x , m , i y = i y , 1 + i y , 2 . . . + i y , n and i tot = i 1 , 1 + i 1 , 2 +. . . + i m , n = i x . for the derivation of ( 3 ), let v x , i i = 1 . . . m , and v y , j , j = 1 . . . n , be the potentials at the corresponding input terminals . on the one hand , we have i i , j / i x , i = i i , j / ( i i , 1 + i i , 2 + … + i i , n ) ( 5 ) = i 0 · e κ ( vy , j - vx , i ) / i 0 · e κ ( vy , 1 - vx , i ) + … + ( 6 ) i 0 · e κ ( vy , n - vx , i ) = e κ vy , j / ( e κ vy , 1 + … + e κ vy , n ) ( 7 ) and on the other hand , we have i y , j / i y = i y , j / ( i y , 1 + i y , 2 + … + i y , n ) ( 8 ) = i 0 · e κ ( vy , j - vref ) / i 0 · e κ ( vy , 1 - vref ) + … + ( 9 ) i 0 · e κ ( vy , n - vref ) = e κ vy , j / ( e κ vy , 1 + … + e κ vy , n ) . ( 10 ) for the computation of ( 1 ), all inputs and outputs are thus represented as current vectors . the circuit of fig1 simultaneously provides all the products p ( x i ) p ( y j ) as the currents i i , j . the summation of the required terms in ( 1 ) is then easily accomplished by adding the respective currents . if some particular term p ( x i ) p ( y j ) is used more than once , the corresponding current i i , j is first copied a corresponding number of times ( see , e . g ., fig6 ). the scaling factor γ in ( 1 ) can , in principle , be ignored since any two current vectors that differ only by a scale factor represent the same probability distribution . however , for proper operation of the circuits , current vectors sometimes need to be scaled to some prescribed level , which can be done by the circuit of fig2 . as a special case , with m = 1 , of the circuit of fig1 its function is given by i out , i = i ref · i in , i /( i in , 1 +. . . + i in , n )· ( 11 ) for the discussion of particular circuit modules as described above , the corresponding binary function f ( x , y , z ) is conveniently represented by a trellis diagram . such a trellis diagram for a { 0 , 1 }- valued function is a bipartite graph with labeled edges defined as follows : for every combination x , y , z with f ( x , y , z )= 1 , there is an edge from node x to node z that is labeled with y . note that the trellis diagram completely determines f ( x , y , z ). e . g ., let x and y be binary variables , let z be a ternary variable , and let f ( x , y , z ) be defined by the trellis diagram of fig3 . for this example , fig4 shows a circuit for the computation of ( 1 ) as described above . according to ( 3 ), the output currents are i z p ( z = 0 )= i x p ( x = 0 ) p ( y = 0 ) ( 12 ) i z p ( z = 1 )= i x p ( p ( x = 0 ) p ( y = 1 )+ p ( x = 1 ) p ( y = 0 )) ( 13 ) i z p ( z = 2 )= i x p ( x = 1 ) p ( y = 1 ) ( 14 ) with i z = i x . as an extension to the circuit of fig1 all input currents and all output currents are reflected by current mirrors , which makes the circuit freely cascadable with similar circuit modules . the structure of the trellis diagram is obvious in the topology of the circuit . for another example , let x , y , and z be binary variables and let f ( x , y , z )= 1 if x = y · z and f ( x , y , z )= 0 in all other cases . fig5 shows the corresponding trellis diagram and fig6 shows the corresponding circuit for the computation of ( 1 ). an important special case is the trellis diagram of fig7 . ( the corresponding function f ( x , y , z ) is given by f ( x , y , z )= 1 if and only if x = y = z .) the corresponding circuit is shown in fig8 . a network of such modules is a versatile signal processing engine . if necessary , vector scaling circuits ( fig2 ) can either be inserted between such modules or be integrated into such modules ( e . g ., as in fig9 ). the connection between the modules may also comprise controlled switches or delay elements . if the supply voltage is sufficiently high , such modules can also be stacked upon each other . further variations of the circuit arise from using also “ upside - down ” modules , where the n - channel transistors ( or npn - transistors ) in fig1 are replaced by p - channel transistors ( or pnp - transistors , respectively ). some of the transistors may also be realized as “ super transistors ” such as , e . g ., darlington transistors or cascodes . consider the error correcting code that consists of the following four codewords : [ 0 , 0 , 0 , 0 , 0 ], [ 0 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 ], [ 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 0 ], [ 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 ]. the first and the third bit ( bold face ) are “ free ” information bits , the other bits are check bits . fig1 shows a trellis diagram for that code . the trellis diagram consists of five sections , each of which ( in this example ) corresponds to one code bit . every path from the start node ( leftmost node ) to the terminal node ( rightmost node ) corresponds to one codeword . the job of the decoder is to convert a received “ noisy ” word y =[ y 1 , y 2 , . . . , y 5 ] back into a clean codeword ( or at least to recover the information bits ). let the noise be modeled as a “ discrete memory - less channel ”: p ( y 1 , y 2 , . . . , y 5 | x 1 , x 2 , . . . , x 5 )= p ( y 1 | x 1 ) p ( y 2 | x 2 ) p ( y 3 | x 3 ) p ( y 4 | x 4 ) p ( y 5 | x 5 ). ( 15 ) the transition probabilities p ( y i | x i = 0 ) and p ( y i | x i = 1 ), i = 1 . . . 5 , are assumed to be known . the a priori probabilities for all four codewords are assumed to be equal ( i . e ., ¼ ). in the sequel , the short - hand notation λ i ( b )= p ( y i | x i = b ) will be used . for any fixed given noisy word y , both λ i ( 0 ) and λ i ( 1 ) are thus known numbers . p ( x 1 = 0 , x 3 =/ 0 y )= γλ 1 ( 0 ) λ 2 ( 0 ) λ 3 ( 0 ) λ 4 ( 0 ) λ 5 ( 0 ) ( 16 ) p ( x 1 = 0 , x 3 = 1 | y )= γλ 1 ( 0 ) λ 2 ( 0 ) λ 3 ( 1 ) λ 4 ( 1 ) λ 5 ( 1 ) ( 17 ) p ( x 1 = 1 , x 3 = 0 | y )= γλ 1 ( 1 ) λ 2 ( 1 ) λ 3 ( 1 ) λ 4 ( 0 ) λ 5 ( 0 ) ( 18 ) p ( x 1 = 1 , x 3 = 1 | y )= γλ 1 ( 1 ) λ 2 ( 1 ) λ 3 ( 0 ) λ 4 ( 1 ) λ 5 ( 1 ) ( 19 ) where the scaling factor γ is determined by the condition that the sum of these four probabilities equals one . the a posteriori probabilities of the two information bits x 1 and x 3 are then given by p ( x 1 = 0 | y )= p ( x 1 = 0 , x 3 = 0 | y )+ p ( x 1 = 0 , x 3 = 1 | y ) ( 20 ) p ( x 1 = 1 | y )= p ( x 1 = 1 , x 3 = 0 | y )+ p ( x 1 = 1 , x 3 = 1 | y ) ( 21 ) p ( x 3 = 0 | y )= p ( x 1 = 0 , x 3 = 0 | y )+ p ( x 1 = 1 , x 3 = 0 | y ) ( 22 ) p ( x 3 = 1 | y )= p ( x 1 = 0 , x 3 = 1 | y )+ p ( x 1 = 1 , x 3 = 1 | y ). ( 23 ) a preferred circuit for the computation of these probabilities is shown in fig1 with the modules a . . . d as in fig1 . . . 15 . the block circuit diagram of fig1 is an immediate application of the forward - backward algorithm [ bahl et al ., “ optimal decoding of linear codes for minimizing symbol error rate ,” ieee trans . information theory , vol . 20 , pp . 284 - 287 , 1974 ], which is a general algorithm for the computation of a posteriori probabilities in a trellis . the dashed parts in fig1 indicate parts of the general forward - backward algorithm that are not needed in this example . the following detailed description of the circuit of fig1 begins with the middle row ( the “ backward ” part ). the module a 2 produces a scaled version of the vector [ λ 5 ( 0 ), λ 5 ( 1 )]. the module b 4 computes the vector [ λ 4 ( 0 ) λ 5 ( 0 ), λ 4 ( 1 ) λ 5 ( 1 )] ( or a scaled version thereof ). the module c computes , on the one hand , the vector [ λ 3 ( 0 ) λ 4 ( 0 ) λ 5 ( 0 ), λ 3 ( 1 ) λ 4 ( 0 ) λ 5 ( 0 ), λ 3 ( 0 ) λ 4 ( 1 ) λ 5 ( 1 ), λ 3 ( 1 ) λ 4 ( 1 ) λ 5 ( 1 )], and from it , on the other hand , the vector which is a scaled version of [ p ( x 1 = 0 | y ), p ( x 1 = 1 | y )]. in the top row (“ forward ” part ), module a 1 produces a scaled version of the vector [ λ 1 ( 0 ) , λ 1 ( 1 )] and module b 1 computes [ λ 1 ( 0 ) λ 2 ( 0 ) λ 1 ( 1 ) λ 2 ( 1 )]. in the bottom row ( combination part ), module c computes ( a scaled version of ) which is a scaled version of [ p ( x 3 = 0 | y ), p ( x 3 = 1 | y )]. for proper functioning , additional vector scaling circuits ( fig2 ) may be needed between , or integrated into , the modules shown in fig1 . the circuit of fig1 does not contain any feedback loops . this need not be so . as will be made clear in the next section , circuits with many feedback loops are actually particularly powerful . factor graphs and the sum - product algorithm are mathematical abstractions , by which a large number of signal processing algorithms can be described in a unified manner . a few keywords to this topic will be given below ; for an in - depth treatment , see [ b . j . frey , f . r . kschischang , h . - a . loeliger , and n . wiberg , “ factor graphs and algorithms ,” proc . 35th allerton conference on communication , control , and computing , ( allerton house , monticello , ill . ), sept . 29 - oct . 1 , 1997 ]. a factor graph is a bipartite graph that represents the factorization of a “ global ” function of several variables into a product of “ local ” functions . of particular interest are factor graphs for binary functions ( whose only possible values are 0 and 1 ) and for probability distributions . factor graphs for binary functions ( also called “ tanner graphs ” or “ twl graphs ”) may be viewed as generalized trellises ( in coding theory ) or as state realizations ( system theory ). factor graphs for probability distributions may be viewed as generalization of both markov random fields and bayesian networks ; they arise , in particular , in decoding and state - estimation problems , often as trivial extensions of a factor graph for a code or for an a priori probability distribution . the sum - product algorithm is a generic algorithm for the ( exact or approximate ) computation of “ marginal functions ” on a factor graph . a number of algorithms in artificial intelligence and digital communications can be viewed as instances of the sum - product algorithm . examples include the forward - backward algorithm for hidden - markov models , pearl &# 39 ; s belief propagation algorithm for bayesian networks , and iterative decoding of turbo codes and similar codes . a part of a factor graph is shown in fig1 . the circles represent variables ( x , y , z , . . .) and the squares represent local functions ( f , g , h , . . .). the node for some function f is connected by an edge to the node for some variable x if and only if x is an argument of f . e . g ., node f in fig1 represents a function f ( x , y , z ). in its basic form , the sum - product algorithm computes , for every edge of the factor graph , two vector signals , one for each direction , according to the following rules : μ f → z ( z ):= σ x , y f ( x , y , z ) μ x → f ( x ) μ y → f ( y ) ( 24 ) for clarification , these rules are re - written below for the special case that all variables are binary . rule ( 24 ) then becomes : μ f -& gt ; z ( 0 ) = f ( 0 , 0 , 0 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 0 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 0 ) + f ( 0 , 1 , 0 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 0 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 1 ) + f ( 1 , 0 , 0 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 1 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 0 ) + f ( 1 , 1 , 0 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 1 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 1 ) ( 26 ) μ f -& gt ; z ( 1 ) = f ( 0 , 0 , 1 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 0 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 0 ) + f ( 0 , 1 , 1 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 0 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 1 ) + f ( 1 , 0 , 1 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 1 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 0 ) + f ( 1 , 1 , 1 ) μ x -& gt ; f ( 1 ) μ y -& gt ; f ( 1 ) ( 27 ) in general , a function f may have an arbitrary number of arguments and a variable x may be an argument of an arbitrary number of functions . the nodes in a factor graph are thus , in general , connected to an arbitrary number of neighbor nodes . the rules ( 24 ) and ( 25 ) have to be adapted accordingly : for a vector signal out of a node with ( totally ) n neighbors , the rules ( 24 ) and ( 25 ) are modified to contain n − 1 factors μ (. . . ) and the sum in ( 24 ) is modified to run over n − 1 variables . the vector signals μ (. . .) of the sum - product algorithm are often ( scaled versions of ) probability distributions in the sense of section “ transistor circuit for elementary sum - product computation ”. if the factor graph satisfies the following conditions , the rules ( 24 ) and ( 25 ) have the form ( 1 ): function nodes for binary functions ( i . e ., functions taking only the values 0 and 1 ) have at most three neighbor nodes ( arguments ). all other functions nodes have only one neighbor node ( one argument ). the variable nodes have at most three neighbor nodes ( as in fig1 ). in many applications , these conditions are met or can be met by a suitable construction of the factor graph . the rules ( 24 ) and ( 25 ) can then be computed by circuit modules as in section “ examples of specific modules ”. in fact , the last of these three rules is not really necessary : the generalization of ( 25 ) to variable nodes with an arbitrary number of neighbors can still be computed by circuits as in fig8 ( in general , with n = m = k & gt ;= 2 ). the sum - product algorithm is usually carried out in discrete steps , in some applications ( graphs with loops , especially for decoding turbo codes and similar codes ) with many iterations . however , already the work by wiberg et al . [ n . wiberg , h . - a . loeliger , and r . koetter , “ codes and iterative decoding on general graphs ,” european trans . on telecommunications , vol . 6 , pp . 513 - 525 , sep ./ oct . 1995 ] ( see also [ n . wiberg , “ approaches to neural - network decoding of error - correcting codes ,” linkoeping studies in science and technology , thesis no . 425 , 1994 ]) was motivated by the vision of an analog decoder for error correcting codes in “ neuromorphic ” vlsi ( in the sense of mead [ c . mead , “ analog vlsi and neural systems ,” addison wesley , 1989 ]). that vision included , in particular , that the discrete iteration steps would be replaced by the continuous - time operation of the circuit . this idea was also pursued by hagenauer [ j . hagenauer , “ decoding of binary codes with analog networks ,” ieee int . workshop on information theory , san diego calif ., feb . 8 - 11 , 1998 ]. the present invention goes far beyond that earlier work by the discovery of the correspondence between the rules ( 24 ) and ( 25 ) on the one hand and the circuit of fig1 on the other hand . the claimed circuit technology is suitable for most applications of the sum - product algorithm that have been described in the literature . this applies , in particular , to the decoding of error correcting codes and coded modulation , but also to belief propagation in bayesian networks ( in artificial intelligence ) and to the forward - backward algorithm of hidden - markov models ( which is a standard algorithm in speech processing ). for that latter application , a generic factor graph that meets the conditions mentioned in section “ factor graphs and the sum - product algorithm ” is shown in fig1 . the squares in the top row represent { 0 , 1 }- valued functions . the squares in the bottom row represent the a priori probabilities as well as the likelihoods of the observed variables . another application is source coding ; in particular , the transformation of discrete - time analog signals into a compressed digital representation . a standard approach in that field is based on trellis codes [ marcellin and fischer , “ trellis coded quantization of memoryless and gauss - markov sources ,” ieee trans . communications , vol . 38 , pp . 82 - 93 , 1990 ] and can be implemented with circuits of the type described in section “ a decoder circuit for a trellis code ”. it appears likely that , in the future , more general factor graphs will be used also in this field . another important application is the separation of superimposed digital signals , in particular , the separation of users in multi - access communication systems [ moher , “ iterative multi - user decoder for bit - synchronous communications ,” ieee trans . communications , to be published ; see also proc . ieee int . symp . on inform . theory , jun . 29 - jul . 4 , 1997 , ulm / germany , p . 195 ], [ tarköy , “ iterative multi - user decoding for asynchronous users ,” proc . ieee int . symp . on inform . theory , jun . 29 - jul . 4 , 1997 , ulm / germany , p . 30 ]. yet another application is the equalization ( or deconvolution ) of digital data . e . g ., the distorted signals can be represented by a trellis and treated similarly as in section “ a decoder circuit for a trellis code ”. by combinations of the mentioned applications , the possibility arises of constructing a complete receiver ( e . g ., as a combination of equalization , multi - user separation , and decoding , perhaps with feedback loops between these function blocks ) in the same circuit technology . in many of these applications , the required precision in the computation of ( 1 ) is modest . in consequence , the transistors need not be very accurate . in fact , networks of circuit modules as described above can be powerful signal processing engines even if the transistors do not behave according to ( 2 ) at all , e . g ., transistors where the drain current depends quadratically on the voltage between gate and source . crude approximations often suffice , in particular , if the sum - product computation ( 1 ) is replaced by a maximum - product computation [ b . j . frey , f . r . kschischang , h . - a . loeliger , and n . wiberg , “ factor graphs and algorithms ,” proc . 35th allerton conference on communication , control , and computing , ( allerton house , monticello , ill . ), sep . 29 - oct . 1 , 1997 ]. such computations arise also in applications of fuzzy logic . while there are shown and described presently preferred embodiments of the invention , it is to be distinctly understood that the invention is not limited thereto but may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scope of the following claims . | 6 |
fig1 shows a perspective view of camera box 10 , the preferred embodiment of the present invention . the camera boxes are used to optically inspect the cylindrical surface of articles during manufacturing , one such article typically being cigarette 1 . camera box 10 comprises two main components , lens arrangement housing 12 and camera housing 14 . housing 12 contains a lens and mirror arrangement which is shown is greater detail in fig3 . camera housing 14 is movably mounted to housing 12 through the use of aperture 17 within brackets 16 and locking screws 18 , the purpose of which is described more fully below . brackets 16 can be fixedly mounted to housing 14 or they can be directly formed as part of housing 14 . camera housing 14 also includes electrical connector 24 through which electrical power is supplied to the camera and image signals are passed on for further processing . fig2 shows lens arrangement housing 12 in greater detail . housing 12 is comprised of top shell 26 , which includes aperture 22 to provide access for adjusting the camera lens , bottom shell 28 ( and similar adjustment aperture 30 ), mounts 34 and 36 , frame 32 , and front window 20 . mounts 34 and 36 are used to install the lens and mirror arrangement of fig3 within housing 12 . frame 32 includes camera lens aperture 38 and four apertures 40 through which fiber optic cables pass ( as described below ). shells 26 and 28 , and mounts 34 and 36 are attached to frame 32 by any conventional means , such as screws or bolts ( not shown ) going through openings 42 . during normal operation , all of the apertures are sealed to prevent contamination of the lens and mirror arrangement . as an additional preventative measure , positive air pressure can be applied from compressor 13 ( or other conventional means ) to housing 12 through hose 15 ( see fig1 ) to further prohibit the introduction of contaminants to the lens arrangement . also to prohibit contamination , front window 20 is preferably coated with a conductive substance , which is electrically grounded , to prevent window 20 from becoming charged by the high speed air flow as cigarettes 1 pass in front of window 20 . therefore , particles are prevented from adhering to the window . fig3 shows elements of a lens and mirror arrangement according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention . as previously stated , mounts 34 and 36 are attached to frame 32 , all of which contain slots to hold support members 56 and 58 ( as shown in fig3 ). camera box 10 more fully illuminates cigarette 1 by employing two additional fiber optic illuminators 44 ( 2 ) and 44 ( 3 ) in addition to fiber optic illuminators 44 ( 1 ) and 44 ( 4 ). all of the fiber optic illuminators are constructed in essentially the same manner as the light sources described in u . s . patent application 07 / 884 , 746 . the present application utilizes the additional illuminators through the use of illuminator windows 50 ( which are shown in more detail in fig4 - 6 , and described below ). fiber optic illuminators 44 ( 2 ) and 44 ( 3 ) are mounted to the longitudinal edge of each illuminator window 50 such that illuminator window 50 acts as a light pipe . both surfaces of window 50 are coated to provide total internal reflection within the light pipe . additionally , all of the side edges of window 50 are polished . in this manner , light can be transmitted through the edges of window 50 in a first direction to further illuminate cigarette 1 . the reflected image can pass through the coated surfaces of window 50 in a second , perpendicular , direction , without a significant loss of resolution in the image . the use of illuminator windows 50 enables the present invention to supply additional and more even illumination to cigarette 1 . the upper illuminators ( 44 ( 1 ) and 44 ( 2 )) cause a first subimage of cigarette 1 to be created , while the lower illuminators ( 44 ( 3 ) and 44 ( 4 )) cause a second , distinct , subimage to be created . some overlap of illumination may also occur . the illuminated subimages are first received by the corresponding upper and lower mirrors 48 of camera box 10 . the mirrors reflect the subimages though the appropriate illuminator window 50 . the subimages pass through the appropriate upper and lower windows 50 to prism 46 which provides additional reflection of the separate subimages . from prism 46 , both the upper and lower subimages are reflected to folding mirror 52 . folding mirror 52 reflects the subimages into aperture 38 , which is occupied by camera lens 68 ( as shown in fig1 and 11 ). the arrangement of mirrors , windows and prism is maintained by mounts 34 and 36 which contain holding slots in the same manner as frame 32 . upper and lower mirrors 48 , upper and lower illuminator windows 50 , and prism 46 are all held in place in the slots of mounts 34 and 36 , as shown in fig3 . folding mirror 52 is mounted within slots 54 in upper support member 56 and lower support member 58 . this arrangement of illuminators and mirrors enables the present invention to more fully illuminate the object under inspection . additionally , by separating the lens and mirror housing from the camera , housing 12 can be implemented in a much more compact manner , thereby permitting easier and more flexible installations within the overall inspection system . fig4 - 6 show illuminator window 50 and its operation . fig4 and 5 show suggested dimensions of the illuminator window of the preferred embodiment , but are not meant to limit the scope of the invention . fiber optic cable 60 is formed from a plurality of subcables ( as shown in fig4 ). each subcable is comprised of a plurality of optical fibers which transmit light . the fibers may be terminated in fiber optic illuminator 44 as described in u . s . patent application 07 / 884 , 746 . illuminator 44 is mounted to illumination window 50 such that a minimum , if any , loss of light occurs at the transfer point . the illumination light is transmitted along fibers 62 into illuminator 44 and through window 50 , at which point they exit window 50 as shown by light rays 64 . the light rays provide a more even illumination of the surface of cigarette 1 . as previously described , the subimages of cigarette 1 are captured by mirrors and reflected through windows 50 in the form of light ray 66 ( shown most clearly in fig5 and 7 ). fig7 shows illuminating rays 64 leaving window 50 and being directed to cigarette 1 . the reflected image , in the form of light rays 66 , is captured by mirrors 48 and reflected through window 50 to prism 36 . prism 36 takes each of the subimages and directs it to a central focal point . this focal point may occur at folding mirror 52 or it may occur directly in the camera lens . fig8 and 9 show the mounting between lens arrangement housing 12 and camera housing 14 . fig8 shows an additional mounting bracket 33 which is fixedly attached to the back of housing 12 by conventional means . bracket 33 is designed so that it may hold micrometer 35 . if micrometer 35 is installed in bracket 33 , it will be in contact with bracket 16 of camera housing 14 . in the preferred embodiment of the present invention , aperture 17 permits housing 14 to move approximately one quarter inch relative to housing 12 during installation . this movement is accomplished by adjusting micrometer 35 up or down , as necessary . after screws 18 have been used to secure housing 14 to housing 12 , micrometer 35 may be removed . the movable mounting design permits a single camera / housing unit to be used for both camera boxes in the overall inspection system of u . s . patent application 07 / 884 , 746 . additionally , the mounting design of the present invention enables the user to physically direct the position of the received image on the video camera . this eliminates the processing that may be required to place the images received by each camera in the overall inspection system . more simply , by physically adjusting where the focal point of the image enters the video lens of each camera , the image from the first camera can be positioned to occur above the location where the received image of the second camera occurs . this enables the inspection system to merge the two images without any further processing to form the complete inspection image . a sample implementation of this concept is shown in fig1 and described below . fig1 and 11 show alternate embodiments of the present invention , with fig1 showing the preferred embodiment of a right angle camera installation and fig1 showing an alternative embodiment of an in - line installation . fig1 shows the folding of light rays 66 that occurs from the use of the mirrors and prism to form the final image . fig1 shows alternate housing 70 containing an in - line installation , where a folding mirror is not utilized , which includes light baffle 72 to eliminate unwanted reflections . both fig1 and 11 show camera lens 68 being inserted through its aperture , into the lens and mirror housing , as it would be during normal use . fig1 - 14 show some of the different installation configurations that are possible using camera box 10 . to achieve some of those configurations , it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that an alternative , in - line , camera housing 114 may be used instead of camera housing 14 . where housing . 14 provides a right angle between lens 68 and a conventional video camera ( not shown ), housing 114 provides a straight in - line configuration . by combining the different configurations ( in - line and right angle ) of lens arrangement housings and camera housings to form camera box 10 , camera box 10 gives the user greatly increased flexibility for installation . fig1 shows a configuration using right angle lens arrangement housing 12 and in - line camera housing 114 . fig1 shows an installation where both in - line housings 112 and 114 are used . fig1 shows another installation using in - line housing 112 , but with right angle camera housing 14 instead of camera housing 114 . fig1 shows a schematic view of fiber optic cable 60 of the present invention . in the preferred embodiment , fiber optic cable 60 is formed from four subcables , one for each illuminator 44 . fiber optic cable 60 is constructed to accommodate the installation within housing 12 . as previously described , the subcables enter housing 12 through apertures 40 , which are arranged in pairs . the upper two apertures 40 receive the subcables for illuminators 44 ( 1 ) and 44 ( 2 ), while the lower apertures receive the subcables for illuminators 44 ( 3 ) and 44 ( 4 ). therefore subcable 60 ( 1 ) overlies subcable 60 ( 3 ) and subcable 60 ( 2 ) overlies subcable 60 ( 4 ). fig1 is a cross - sectional view of cable 60 showing all four subcables . fig1 shows an embodiment of the present invention where two instances of camera box 10 are utilized in a complete inspection system . the first camera box 10 ( 1 ) is used to capture a first pair of subimages which collectively correspond to at least 180 ° of a first side of cigarette 1 . a second camera box 10 ( 2 ) is utilized to capture a second pair of subimages which collectively corresponding to at least 180 ° of the other side of cigarette 1 . a complete description of a system to support and rotate the cigarettes during inspection is provided in u . s . patent application 07 / 884 , 746 . the first and second pairs of subimages are then merged by image merger 65 into final image 70 of cigarette 1 . image merger 65 may be a conventional multiplexer or other means . this embodiment emphasizes the advantages of the adjustable mounting between housing 12 and housing 14 of the camera box . the adjustable mounting enables two identical camera boxes to be used to capture two pairs of subimages at different positions in the final image without requiring any additional image processing . for example , the first camera box 10 ( 1 ) is manually adjusted using micrometer 35 to position the first pair of subimages in the top portion of the photosensitive area of the video camera . the second camera box 10 ( 2 ) is also manually adjusted using micrometer 35 , but the position of the second pair of subimages is in the lower portion of the photosensitive area of the video camera . in this manner , image merger 65 can simply combine the two pairs of subimages into a final image and no image processing to reposition the pairs of subimages is required . it will be understood that the foregoing is merely illustrative of the principles of this invention , and that various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention . for example , by utilizing additional illuminator windows , larger sized objects can be fully illuminated for inspection without interfering with the capturing of the necessary reflections of the images . alternatively , more than two cameras might be utilized to optically inspect more complex objects . | 1 |
fig1 shows a system 100 suitable for implementing an embodiment of the invention . system 100 includes a buffer 110 that receives payload data from input packets 130 . input packets 130 may be received from one or more computer systems and associated with one or more applications . system 100 concatenates the data from input packets 130 into the buffer 110 . a controller 150 observes the data being received and present in the buffer 110 and decides when the buffered data should be flushed . controller 150 flushes buffer 110 and makes the buffered data available to encoder 120 . encoder 120 processes the flushed data to produce one or more output packets 140 . there are numerous additional forms of buffers , queues , stacks , and similar data structures well known to those practiced in the arts , including circular buffers and shared memory ; the application of the disclosed techniques to these other well - known variants is straightforward . for the purpose of explanation , the buffer 110 receives packet payloads until a flush occurs , at which point the encoder 120 produces one or more output packets . further embodiments of system 100 may use parallel processing , pipelining , speculative execution , streamed processing , or otherwise perform its functions in an interleaved or parallel manner . all of these types of systems may utilize embodiments of the invention to determine the framing of data , that is , when to wait to buffer additional input data versus when to process and output data . fig2 and 3 illustrate the operation of controller 150 according to an embodiments of the invention . fig2 shows a method for selecting a framing heuristic according to an embodiment of the invention , and fig3 shows a method of framing network traffic and updating framing heuristics according to an embodiment of the invention . controller 150 evaluates network traffic with respect to multiple alternative framing heuristics . each framing heuristic specifies a different set of rules used to frame network traffic . when the rules of a framing heuristic are satisfied , the framing heuristic produces a signal or “ fires ,” indicating that the buffer should be flushed of data and packets should be output . as discussed in detail below , the controller 150 speculatively applies multiple framing heuristics to the current network traffic to evaluate the performances of the framing heuristics . the results of the framing heuristics as applied to the current network traffic are collected and assigned scores or ranks . the framing heuristic with the best score is then selected by the controller 150 to be used for actually framing the current and subsequent network traffic . as additional network traffic is processed , controller 150 may continue to speculatively execute and score one or more alternative framing heuristics in addition to the selected framing heuristic . if an alternative framing heuristic scores better than the selected framing heuristic , for example due to changes in the characteristics of the network traffic , then the controller 150 may switch its selection to the alternative framing heuristic for framing network traffic . fig2 shows a method 200 for selecting a framing heuristic according to an embodiment of the invention . the controller 150 is configured with a number of different alternative framing heuristics that it may apply to the network traffic . in an embodiment , in its initial state the controller 150 uses a nagle algorithm as a default framing behavior until a specialized framing heuristic is selected . method 200 processes network traffic , evaluates alternative framing heuristics , and may select one of the alternative framing heuristics to process network traffic . step 210 receives a data from a network packet . data from network packets may be stored in a buffer or other type of hardware or software data memory , as described in system 100 . upon the receipt of data from a network packet , step 215 evaluates one or more framing heuristics with respect to the data received in step 210 as well as any other network packet data previously stored in the buffer from prior iterations of step 210 . step 215 may evaluate the framing heuristics sequentially , in parallel , or in pipelined or interleaved manner using one or more processors or other information processing devices . in evaluating each framing heuristic , step 215 determines whether the rule or rules specified by the framing heuristic are satisfied by the network packet data received in step 210 and / or stored in the buffer . if a framing heuristic &# 39 ; s rules are satisfied , the framing heuristic is said to have been triggered or “ fired .” for a framing heuristic that has “ fired ,” an embodiment of step 215 records the size of the buffer at the time the heuristic fires . in further embodiments , step 215 records other attributes associated with the framing heuristic , such as the number of times the framing heuristic has fired since the last scoring update , all or a portion of the data most recently received prior to the framing heuristic firing , either for a fixed amount of data or for the data following other data having a predetermined pattern . step 235 determines whether a buffer flush should occur due to the default framing behavior , such as a nagle algorithm . in an embodiment , step 235 compares the size of the buffer with a predetermined size limit and compares the time elapsed from the receipt of the first data in the buffer with a predetermined time limit . if the buffer size exceeds the size limit or the elapsed time exceeds the time limit , then method 200 proceeds from step 235 to step 260 to perform a buffer flush . otherwise , method 200 returns to step 210 to wait for additional network packet data . in a further embodiment , a timer expiring in step 290 may cause method 200 to skip steps 210 and 215 and proceed directly to step 235 , rather than continue to wait for additional network packet data . step 260 flushes the buffer of network packet data . the flushed data is then sent to an encoder , as described above , and eventually output as one or more output packets . step 260 also resets the timer used to track the elapsed time from the receipt of the first data in the buffer and a counter used to track the amount of data stored in the buffer . once reset , the timer will be paused until additional packet data is received in the next iteration of step 210 . step 270 updates the scores of each framing heuristic based on whether the framing heuristic fired in the most recent iterations of steps 210 , 215 , and 235 , and if so , the size of the buffer at the time the framing heuristic fired . for example , each framing heuristic is initialized with a score of 0 points . each time step 235 determines that a buffer flush under the default behavior should occur , step 270 gives the fired framing heuristic with the largest accumulated buffer length 4 additional points , the fired framing heuristic with the second largest buffer 3 additional points , and so forth . any framing heuristic that has not fired during the most recent iterations of steps 210 , 215 , and 235 is not given any additional points . these points are added to each framing heuristic &# 39 ; s point totals accumulated from previous iterations of step 270 . this scoring scheme is provided as an example and more complicated scoring schemes that take into account buffer size , packet latency , and other factors may be used . in embodiments of step 270 , any framing heuristic that fires may receive at least some additional points . in other embodiments of step 270 , only a limited number of top - ranked framing heuristics receive additional points for firing . other framing heuristics that fire but have lower ranks , for example due to the small size of the buffered data at the time of firing , may not receive any additional points . step 270 may use other arrangements to score framing heuristics . for example , if step 215 records the number of times the framing heuristic has fired since the last scoring update , then step 270 may update scores based on the heuristics that fired the least or most . if step 215 records all or a portion of the data most recently received prior to the framing heuristic firing , then step 270 may score framing heuristics based data most similar to or most different from a specified data pattern . step 275 examines the total scores of the framing heuristics to determine if there is a winning framing heuristic . for example , after a number iterations of step 260 , such as five buffer flushes or another configurable value , the step 275 selects the framing heuristic with the highest total score as the winning framing heuristic . if no winner emerges , method 200 returns to step 210 to await additional network packet data and further evaluate the framing heuristics . if step 275 identifies a winning framing heuristic , step 280 selects the winning framing heuristic to control framing of subsequent network traffic . an embodiment of the operation of the controller 150 using a selected framing heuristic is illustrated by method 300 of fig3 . fig3 shows a method 300 of framing network traffic and updating framing heuristics according to an embodiment of the invention . method 300 of fig3 is similar to method 200 of fig2 , except that the selected framing heuristic is allowed to trigger buffer flushes in addition to the default framing behavior . method 300 initially has one selected framing heuristic controlling buffer flushes and a number of alternative framing heuristics that are speculatively evaluated against the network traffic , but which do not control framing of the network traffic . step 310 receives data from a network packet . like step 210 , the data from a network packet is stored in a buffer or other data storage mechanism along with any data from previously received network packets that has yet to be flushed and converted to output packets . upon receiving data from a network packet , step 315 evaluates one or more framing heuristics with respect to the data received in step 310 as well as any other network packet data previously stored in the buffer from prior iterations of step 310 . step 315 may evaluate the framing heuristics sequentially , in parallel , or in pipelined or interleaved manner using one or more processors or other information processing devices . like step 215 , step 315 determines whether the rule or rules specified by the framing heuristic are satisfied by the network packet data received in step 310 and / or stored in the buffer . for a framing heuristic that has “ fired ,” an embodiment of step 315 records the size of the buffer at the time the framing heuristic fires . step 320 similarly evaluates the selected framing heuristic with respect to the data received in step 310 as well as any other network packet data previously stored in the buffer from prior iterations of step 310 . in an embodiment , the selected framing heuristic may be determined from a previous iteration of method 200 , as discussed above . step 335 determines whether the selected framing heuristic has fired . if so , method 300 proceeds to step 350 to flush the buffer and produce one or more output packets from the buffer data . conversely , if the selected framing heuristic has not fired , method 300 proceeds to step 345 . step 345 , like step 235 , determines whether a buffer flush should occur due to the default framing behavior , such as a nagle algorithm . in an embodiment , step 345 compares the size of the buffer with a predetermined size limit and compares the time elapsed from the receipt of the first data in the buffer with a predetermined time limit . if the buffer size exceeds the size limit or the elapsed time exceeds the time limit , then method 300 proceeds from step 345 to step 350 to perform a buffer flush . otherwise , method 300 returns to step 310 to wait for additional network packet data . in a further embodiment , a timer expiring in step 390 may cause method 300 to skip steps 310 , 315 , 320 , and 335 and proceed directly to step 345 , rather than continue to wait for additional network packet data . step 350 , similar to step 260 , flushes the buffer of network packet data . the flushed data is then sent to an encoder , as described above , and eventually output as one or more output packets . step 350 also resets the timer used to track the elapsed time from the receipt of the first data in the buffer and a counter used to track the amount of data stored in the buffer . once reset , the timer will be paused until additional packet data is received in the next iteration of step 310 . following , or concurrent with , the buffer flush in step 350 , step 360 updates the scores of the framing heuristics based on whether each of the framing heuristics fired in the most recent iterations of steps 310 , 315 , 320 , and 335 , and if so , the size of the buffer at the time the framing heuristic fired . for example , each framing heuristic , including the selected framing heuristic , is initialized with a score of 0 points . if the buffer flush of step 350 was triggered by the default framing behavior specified in step 345 , step 360 subtracts 4 points from the score of the selected framing heuristic . for any other framing heuristics that fired before the buffer flush , step 360 gives an additional 4 points to the framing heuristic with the largest buffer size at the time of firing , an additional 3 points to the framing heuristic with the next largest buffer size , and so forth . continuing with this example scoring , if the buffer flush of step 350 was triggered by the selected framing heuristic specified in step 335 , then step 360 gives the selected framing heuristic an additional 4 points . step 360 then gives additional points to any other framing heuristics that also fired during the previous iterations of steps 310 , 315 , 320 , and 335 . in this example , step 360 gives an additional 3 points to the non - selected framing heuristic with the largest buffer size at the time of firing , an additional 2 points to the non - selected framing heuristic with the next largest buffer size , and so forth . continuing with this example scoring , if no non - selected framing heuristics fired during the previous iterations of steps 310 , 315 , 320 , and 335 , step 360 records a timestamp and inhibits the selected framing heuristic from firing in response to the next packet data received . when the next network packet data is received in a subsequent iteration of step 310 , if less than 2 ms or any other a configurable time threshold has elapsed from the timestamp , then the selected framing heuristic gets 4 points for previously firing . if the time difference is shorter than the threshold and none of the other framing heuristics fired , it still gets 4 points . otherwise , if the time difference between the time the next packet data is received and the timestamp is less than 2 ms or any other time threshold value and if one or more non - selected framing heuristics fire in response to the next packet data , then step 360 gives 4 additional points non - selected framing heuristic with the longest buffer , 3 additional points to the framing heuristic with the next largest buffer length , and so on . this allows framing heuristics that produce larger packet sizes than the selected framing heuristic to receive higher scores , which may eventually be used to select a different framing heuristic to control the framing of the network traffic . this scoring scheme is provided as an example and more complicated scoring schemes that take into account buffer size , packet latency , and other factors may be used . following the update of framing heuristic scores in step 360 , step 365 evaluates the scores of the selected framing heuristic and the non - selected framing heuristics to determine whether a different framing heuristic should be selected to control the framing of network traffic . in an example embodiment , if the selected framing heuristic no longer has the highest score or has a score of zero , method 300 will proceed to step 375 to select a different framing heuristic . in step 375 , if none of the framing heuristics have a score above a threshold value , then the system will revert to the default framing behavior in step 380 . in an embodiment , step 380 performs in a manner similar to method 200 discussed above . alternatively , if one or more of the framing heuristics has a score above a threshold value , method 300 will proceed from step 375 to step 370 to select the framing heuristic with the highest score . this newly selected framing heuristic will be used in subsequent iterations of steps 320 and 335 as the selected framing heuristic . following step 370 , method 300 returns to step 310 to await the receipt of additional network packet data . the above - described methods make use of framing heuristics to evaluate and potentially control the framing of network traffic . in general , a framing heuristic includes one or more rules or conditions that may be satisfied by attributes of a single network packet or by collective attributes of multiple network packets . an example embodiment of a framing heuristic is whether the newly - received packet data has the tcp push flag set , which indicates that the received data should be delivered to the receiving application and is a hint of as to the logical boundary in the data stream . an embodiment of a system can implement this example framing heuristic by keeping a resettable flag in the tcp stack . anytime the system detects the push flag in the tcp stream , it sets the flag . then , a portion of the network acceleration system reads if the flag is set or not . if so , the flag is reset and another flag or indicator is set to indicate that this example framing heuristic has fired . another example embodiment of a framing heuristic determines if the received packet was a full mtu . if the packet was not a full mtu , then the framing heuristic is fired . this example framing heuristic is useful for tcp stacks that don &# 39 ; t set the push flag . a third example embodiment of a framing heuristic determines if the end of the buffer is a cr / lf pair . if the buffer ends with a cr / lf pair , then the framing heuristic is fired . this framing heuristic is useful for command - line based communications protocols . a fourth example embodiment of a framing heuristic determines if the end of the buffer is a null . if the buffer ends with a null , then the framing heuristic is fired . this framing heuristic is useful for some binary protocols that use null - termination . other example framing heuristics may detect specific characteristics associated with particular types of network traffic , communication protocols , or applications . an example framing heuristic can identify network traffic associated with one or more related sql transactions and apply a different buffer flush scheme for this type of network traffic . another example framing heuristic fires based on other byte sequences , different from cr / lf or null , which may be used delimiters of transaction boundaries for particular kinds of network traffic . in an embodiment , the network acceleration system may treat each direction of a tcp or other similar connection independently and evaluate the framing heuristics for one direction independent of the reverse direction . thus , methods 200 and 300 may be applied separately to each connection ( and each direction within a connection ). the network acceleration system may also cache the results of the selection process outlined in fig2 based on the traffic &# 39 ; s destination port number , source address , destination address , dscp marking , vlan number , or any of a number of other well - known ways of identifying similarities in network traffic , singly or in combination . in addition to techniques that identify traffic by examining header fields , the caching may also be based on similarities of content , either from well - known deep - packet inspection techniques or from similarities to traffic patterns known through previous network acceleration processing . in an embodiment , the network acceleration system may implement methods 200 and 300 within multiple execution layers of a system architecture . for example , a system or kernel layer may handle low - level network interactions and a high - level application layer provides network acceleration functions . in this embodiment , the finctionality of framing heuristics is divided between these two layers . for example , a networking module in the kernel layer can apply framing heuristics to the network traffic , setting flags or other indicators when framing heuristics fire . the application layer can perform a buffer flush in response to default or selected framing heuristics , update framing heuristic scores , and select alternative framing heuristics when necessary , as described above . in further embodiments , the operation of the controller may configured or altered manually : for some or all network traffic , the user may choose to disable the use of framing heuristics to control framing . even when disabled , a user may choose to enable the speculative evaluation of framing heuristics to determine whether they should be applied to control the framing of network traffic . a user may further choose to disable the computation and application of framing heuristics entirely , so that the network acceleration system uses only the default framing behavior , such as nagle - based framing . although the invention has been discussed with respect to specific embodiments thereof , these embodiments are merely illustrative , and not restrictive , of the invention . furthermore , the system architecture discussed above is for the purposes of illustration . the invention can be implemented in numerous different forms including as a stand - alone application or as a module integrated with other applications . thus , the scope of the invention is to be determined solely by the claims . | 7 |
for use herein , the term &# 34 ; starch &# 34 ; is meant to include any cereal or root starch or flour . examples of suitable materials include maize , rice , barley , wheat , sorghum , tapioca , potato , the waxy versions thereof as well as their corresponding flours . converted , i . e ., acid treated starches or chemically modified starches may also be used as the starting materials . for reasons of liquid product stability , waxy starch ( i . e ., containing more than 95 % amylopectin ) is preferred . in order to obtain the desired properties , it is necessary that the starch be steam cooked , i . e ., &# 34 ; jet cooked &# 34 ;, by which is meant that it is slurried and heated to temperatures of about 120 ° to 170 ° c ., in order to completely gelatinize the starch . the steam cooking is generally carried out in a slurry at a solids level of about 10 to 40 %, preferably 20 to 25 %, a ph of 4 to 7 , preferably 4 . 5 to 5 . 5 , with a pressure greater than 60 psi in the cooking chamber . the resultant fully gelatinized starch is then enzymatically hydrolyzed with the amylase using techniques known in the art and described , for example , in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 525 , 672 to wurzburg et al . and u . s . pat . no . 4 , 977 , 252 to chiu . alpha - amylase , beta - amylase or glucoamylase may be used . generally the enzyme treatment is carried out at a starch concentration level of about 10 to 30 %, preferably 18 to 24 %, depending upon the base starch being treated . the enzyme reaction is continued until the starch is sufficiently degraded to provide a viscosity of 7 to 80 , preferably 16 to 60 , seconds measured at 19 % w / w solid concentration at room temperature using a standard funnel as described below . the starch dispersion is adjusted to 19 % ( w / w ) measured by refractometer . the temperature of the dispersion is controlled at 22 ° c . a total of 100 ml of the starch dispersion is measured into a graduated cylinder . it is then poured into a calibrated funnel while using a finger to close the orifice . a small amount is allowed to flow into the graduate to remove any trapped air , and the balance is poured back into the funnel . the graduated cylinder is then inverted over the funnel so that the contents draw ( flow ) into the funnel while the sample is running . using a timer , the time required for the 100 ml sample to flow through the apex of the funnel is recorded . the glass portion of the funnel is a standard 58 °, thick - wall , resistance glass funnel whose top diameter is about 9 to 10 cm with the inside diameter of the stem being about 0 . 381 cm . the glass stem of the funnel is cut to an approximate length of 2 . 86 cm from the apex , carefully firepolished , and refitted with a long stainless steel tip which is 5 . 08 cm long with an outside diameter of 0 . 9525 cm . the interior diameter of the steel tip is 0 . 5951 cm at the upper end where it is attached to the glass stem ; it is 0 . 4445 cm at the outflow end , with the restriction in the width occurring at about 2 . 54 cm from the ends . the steel tip is attached to the glass funnel by means of a teflon tube . the funnel is calibrated so as to allow 100 ml of water to go through in 6 seconds using the above procedure . ordinarily the enzyme conversion will be carried out for periods ranging from half an hour to 24 hours or more depending on the temperature , the type and concentration of enzyme , starch concentration , and viscosity . the enzyme reaction is terminated by raising the temperature to about 85 ° c . and maintaining at that temperature for about 10 minutes to fully deactivate the enzyme . acid deactivation , as known in the art , can also be employed to deactivate the enzyme . while it is preferred that the starch be steam cooked and subsequently acid hydrolyzed , it is also possible to obtain enzyme hydrolyzed starch for use herein by treating the granular starch with the amylase and then stream cooking . the resultant product is characterized by a dextrose equivalent ( de ) of 2 to 40 . dextrose equivalent is defined as the reducing power of the hydrolyzate . each starch molecule has one reducing end , therefore de is inversely related to molecular weight . the de of anhydrous d - glucose is defined as 100 and the de of unhydrolyzed starch is virtually zero . if waxy starch is employed as the base material , the final product can be used directly in liquid form wherein it will remain stable if stored under sterilized conditions . alternatively , and in the case of non - waxy starches , it can be recovered in powder form by conventional spray drying or drum drying techniques . it is characterized by its low viscosity , high degree of tackiness when wet so it can hold seasonings or particulates to the food during the drying process . it is also quick drying , providing a strong adhesive bond when dried thus ensuring that the seasonings or particulates will not fall off during later processing , packaging , transportation and storage . in order to use the resulting starch as a food binder , according to this invention , it is ordinarily dissolved in water or hot water ; the solution is prepared so that the solution concentration of the binder is 5 to 50 %, preferably above 20 %, most preferably above about 30 %. the binder solution is then applied to the surfaces of foodstuffs such as cereal pieces , cookies , biscuits , etc ., and seasonings , flavorants and colorants such as spices , fruit pieces , powdered cheese , granulated sugar , coconut , seeds , peanut grits , coloring agents , etc ., are adhered to them using conventional processes such as the spray method , sponge roller method , brush application method , or immersion method . using the following procedure a beta - amylase treated starch was prepared . the resultant starch was then formulated into various food products as described in the examples which follow . slurry 25 kg ( anhydrous weight ) of amioca in 100 l of water . adjust ph to 5 . 3 to 5 . 7 with 10 % hydrochloric acid . steam cook the slurry to produce a starch dispersion of 20 to 24 % solid with about 80 to 150 seconds of funnel viscosity measured at 10 % solid ( 100 ml ) and 22 ° c . with a standardized funnel . cool down the starch to 50 ° c . in a reaction tank . add 50 g of beta - amylase solution ( 1600 u / g ) to starch amylolytic digestion . once the desired viscosity specification ( 16 to 60 seconds as measured at 19 % solids and room temperature with 100 ml using a standard funnel ) is reached , stop the reaction by rapidly heating the dispersion to 85 ° c . and hold for about 10 minutes . spray - dry the dispersion to obtain a powdered product . the resultant food starch was then used to make a corn flake / apple bits cereal , using the following composition and procedure : ______________________________________ingredient quantity ( 9 / batch ) ______________________________________corn flakes 250 . 0sugar 14 . 8 , in 7 . 0 g of water . molasses 1 . 1apple granules 25 . 0starch of ex . 1 5 . 6 , dispersed in 13 . 1 g of water . ______________________________________ 1 ) make the sugar solution , add molasses , mix and heat to 120 ° f . 2 ) pour corn flakes and apple granules into bench - top panning reel , tumble for 30 seconds . 4 ) spread sugar / molasses syrup onto flakes and tumble for 60 seconds . 6 ) dry in a convention oven for 15 minutes at 250 ° f . the tackiness and adhesive strength or the starch of example 1 was compared with other commercial products and tested using the following procedures : 3 . drop apple bits onto the wet glaze , shake off excess and weigh 5 . when cool , gently brush off any loose apple bits and weigh bits it is important to have sufficient pick - up of the glaze without having it soak into the cracker ; sufficient pick - up of apple bits and minimal loss after drying . subjective test done by placing a drop of the solution between the fingers and observing the stickiness . the formation of thin strands of material between the fingers as it dries is considered an advantage . ______________________________________sample tackiness adhesion______________________________________starch of example 1 excellent very goodacid converted amioca ( tapon 85 ) good very goodtapioca pyrodextrin none good10 de maltodextrin none fair24 de corn syrup none fair42 de corn syrup none fairgum ( kelco ex7421 ) none fair______________________________________ the tackiness was measured by finger tests of the liquid samples . the tackiness reflects the ability of the samples to adhere the apple granules to the cracker during the drying process . the adhesion strength is measured by the percentage amount of apple granules finally adhered to the crackers at the end of the process . it reflects the adhesion effectiveness the samples in the tests . similar results were achieved coating flavorants onto tortilla chips using the following ingredients and procedures : ______________________________________ingredients grams percentage______________________________________tortilla chips 150flavor powder 9 - 30 6 %- 20 % 30 % starch solution 75 - 15 5 %- 10 % ______________________________________ 1 . pour tortilla chips and flavor powder into bencktop pan coater . 4 . spread coated chips onto tray and dry for 5 minutes at 250 ° f . in despatch oven . in the following example waxy maize starch was enzyme converted as described in example 1 but using alpha - amylase as the enzyme . the conversion was carried out to achieve three different viscosity levels , 60 , 45 and 13 seconds . the testing procedure described in examples 2 and 3 was repeated using the liquid samples without subsequent drying . the results are shown in the table below . in the table , the test results are presented in quantitative form indicating the percentage of apple granules retained on the final product . tapioca was also enzyme converted and used in accordance with the present invention . since tapioca is not a waxy starch , it is necessary to spray dry the enzyme treated starch prior to redispersion and application . two samples of tapioca were acid converted as described in example 1 . one sample was treated with alpha - amylase , the second with beta - amylase . both samples , when tested as food binders , provided very good adhesion and tackiness . | 0 |
fig1 shows a frequency demodulator 1 which is surrounded by a broken line , and a delay circuit 2 , a signal combining circuit 3 and also a low - pass filter 4 . from an input 5 a frequency - modulated amplitude - limited input signal is applied to the delay circuit 2 , which forms therefrom a signal delayed by a preset time delay and supplies it from its output 6 . the signal combining circuit 3 which , for example , is constituted by an exclusive - or gate or a multiplier receives the undelayed signal at a first input 7 and the delayed signal at a second input 8 . at the output 9 of the signal combining circuit 3 a demodulated signal occurs which has a high voltage level in the time intervals in which the voltage levels of the undelayed and delayed signal deviate from each other , and a low voltage level when they are in agreement , for the case in which the signal combining circuit 3 is an exclusive - or gate . if instead thereof a multiplier is used , then there appears at the output 9 a combined signal which is at a higher voltage level in the time intervals in which the voltage levels of the undelayed and the delayed signal are in agreement , and otherwise a lower voltage level . consequently , the combined signal recovered at the output 9 in one case is the inverse of that recovered in the other case . in the subsequent low - pass filter the higher frequency components of the combined signal received from the output 9 are eliminated , so that a demodulated signal without harmonics is supplied from the output 10 of the low - pass filter 4 . this demodulated signal corresponds to the d . c . component , and consequently to the mean value , of the combined signal at the output of the signal combining circuit 3 . thus , the frequency demodulator 1 derives an analog voltage from the frequency - modulated signal applied via its input 5 . the value of this analog voltage is proportional to the frequency of the frequency - modulated input signal . the proportionality factor , that is to say the slope of the demodulation characteristic between the frequency at the input and the voltage at the output 10 depends on the time delay produced by the delay circuit 2 . the slope of the demodulation characteristic increases with an increasing time delay . by way of example , fig4 shows such linear demodulation characteristic in a diagram in which the d . c . voltage u at the output 10 is plotted versus the frequency f of the fm signal at the input 5 . for a given value of the time delay produced by the delay circuit 2 , this demodulation characteristic is as denoted by t1 . in a desired condition , the fm input signal has a frequency swing range which is bounded by frequency swing boundaries f1 and f2 . in such frequency swing range the frequency f of the fm signal varies , for example , in accordance with a schematically shown modulating signal denoted by s1 . the time axis for this schematically shown signal s1 is assumed to extend perpendicularly downwardly in fig4 . the modulating signal s1 represents , for example , a video signal in the baseband . when demodulation is effected in accordance with the demodulation characteristic t1 , the frequency demodulator 1 of fig1 supplies from the output 10 a signal u having a voltage variation as denoted by d1 in fig4 . the voltage of signal u then varies , in a correlated manner with the frequency f , between voltage swing boundaries u1 and u2 . consequently a preset frequency swing range corresponds to a given voltage swing range . if the frequency swing range shifts from its desired position between the frequency swing boundaries f1 and f2 , for example when there is a delay in the motion of a record carrier from which the first signal is read , to a lower frequency having a smaller swing range between frequency swing boundaries f3 and f4 ( actual position ), a signal u having a voltage variation designated by d2 is then obtained by the demodulation characteristic t1 from the input fm signal which now varies in accordance with the frequency variation of a modulating signal s2 . the voltage variation d2 has a voltage swing range bounded by voltage swing boundaries u3 and u4 . it will be obvious that the voltage values and also the voltage swing range are lower in this actual position between the voltage swing boundaries u3 and u4 as compared with the target position . so as to produce without change a voltage variation d1 even though the fm signal deviates from the target frequency swing , for example varying in accordance with a variation s2 , rather than s1 the invention adjusts the slope of the demodulation characteristic . to that end , the arrangement shown in fig1 includes a detector 11 for detecting a datum level in the demodulated signal , that is to say in the voltage of the signal u at the output 10 , and for that purpose output 10 is connected to an input 12 of the detector 11 . in the voltage variation d1 or d2 the detector 11 detects , for example , the lowest value thereof in correspondence with the voltage swing boundaries u1 or u3 , respectively ; different datum levels may however alternatively occur and be detected -- depending on the frequency variation of the fm input signal -- in the demodulated signal . the detector 11 supplies at its output 13 a control signal which corresponds to the selected datum level or is formed in correspondence therewith . this control signal is applied to the frequency demodulator 1 . in the frequency demodulator 1 in fig1 the delay circuit 2 includes a circuit for setting the slope of the demodulation characteristic so as to control the amplitude of the demodulated signal . this setting circuit effects a corresponding change in the time delay of the delay circuit 2 . setting circuits of this type are disclosed in the german offenlegungsschriften 3702854 and 3706319 . for the frequency demodulator 1 , in the demodulation characteristic shown in fig4 increasing the time delay produces a demodulation characteristic having a variation t2 which is distinguished by a steeper slope . the demodulated signal u , that is to say a voltage in accordance with the variation d1 , is then recovered from the fm signal via the demodulation characteristic t2 . the voltage swing range consequently will not change even though the frequency swing range is reduced . the amplitude of the signal u at the output 10 is therefore independent of shifts in the frequency of the fm signal . fig2 shows an extension of the circuit arrangement of fig1 in which the components already described in the foregoing are again given the same reference numerals . in addition , the arrangement shown in fig2 includes a frequency swing detector 20 for detecting the frequency swing or variation of the frequency of the fm signal at the input 5 . at an output 21 , the frequency swing detector 20 supplies an error indication signal when the actual frequency of the fm signal exceeds predetermined limit values . thus , it is possible to determine , for example , signal drop - outs in the fm signal . to prevent the frequency swing detector 20 from detecting a shift of the frequency of the fm signal from the target position above the limit values as a disappearance of the fm signal , although it is still completely available , the control signal from the setting output 13 of the datum level detector 11 is also applied to the frequency swing detector 20 . as such control signal is a direct measure of the actual frequency of the fm signal , limit values can be directly adjusted therewith which are in given frequency intervals below or above the frequency swing range . fig3 shows a particularly advantageous particular form of the circuit shown in fig2 in which components corresponding to those of fig2 are again given the same reference numerals . therein , the frequency swing detector 20 receives the fm signal via a first input 22 and the delayed signal via a second input 23 from the input and output , respectively , of the delay circuit 2 . the frequency swing detector 20 may be a circuit as described in the german offenlegungsschriften 3702856 . the first input 22 then corresponds to the control input 10 of that patent , and the second input 23 to the data input 11 . in this implementation of the circuit arrangement the delay circuit 2 is not only employed twice , namely both for the frequency demodulator 1 and for the frequency swing detector 20 , but by setting the time delay of the delay means 2 an appropriate shift of the limit values of the frequency swing detector 20 is simultaneously effected . the frequency swing detector 20 therefore does not require a separate setting circuit for shifting the limit values . consequently , the circuit configuration of detector 20 becomes very simple and reliable . fig3 shows in addition a somewhat detailed example for the implementation of the datum level detector 11 . this detector includes a comparator stage 30 in which the voltage u received from the output 10 -- via the comparator datum level input 12 -- is compared with a reference voltage -- preferably a constant voltage level -- applied via a reference signal input 14 . if the voltage u falls short of the value of the reference voltage at the input 14 , the comparator stage 30 adjusts a switch 32 to the conductive state via a connection 31 and consequently applies a discharging current produced by a current source 34 to a capacitor 33 . the capacitor 33 is only discharged by the current source 34 during the negative peaks of the voltage u , but is continuously charged with a small charging current from a further current source 35 . when the current rating of the current sources 34 , 35 and the capacitance of capacitor 33 are coordinated with each other , the capacitor will always be charged during operation to the voltage u up to the instant at which the negative voltage peak of the demodulated signal occurs at the output 10 . in fig4 this is the voltage swing boundary u1 of the voltage variation d1 . this voltage u1 is applied via the setting output 13 to the delay circuit 2 for setting the time delay . if the carrier frequency f of the fm signal decreases , the demodulated signal voltage u first decreases in response thereto and consequently also the value of the lowest voltage peaks thereof . as a result , the time intervals in which the switch 32 is conductive is extended , so that the voltage to which the capacitor 33 is charged decreases . correspondingly , via the control signal produced at setting output 13 , the time delay and consequently the slope of the frequency demodulator 1 is readjusted from the demodulator characteristic t1 to the demodulator characteristic t2 , in response to which also the voltage swing of the signal u is readjusted . the described circuit arrangements are preferably used for the processing of a frequency - modulated signal from a record carrier , more specifically an optically written disc . these circuit arrangements also achieve that when the number of revolutions of the disc is changed , more specifically on start - up or at run out , a demodulated signal which is clamped at a given voltage level and whose amplitude is controlled at the same time is always available in a simple way for further signal processing . | 7 |
embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig3 is a view showing a sideband transmission system of a dvor apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention . in fig3 , the same parts as those shown in fig1 are represented with the same reference numerals and the detailed explanations thereof are omitted . the dvor apparatus according to the embodiment of fig3 arranges a carrier antenna a and forty - eight sideband antennas b 1 to b 48 in the same manner as that shown in fig5 . fig3 shows only the sideband transmission system of the dvor apparatus , and a carrier transmission system of the dvor apparatus is not shown therein . in fig3 , a sideband transmitter 1 has a signal generator ( sg ) 12 , a power amplifier ( amp ) 13 , a phase corrector 4 , a phase correction controller 5 , and a phase correction table 6 . in particular , a half - sine wave signal as a sideband signal is generated by the signal generator 12 , amplified by the power amplifier 13 , and supplied to the phase corrector 4 . the switching of a distributor 3 is controlled by a switching control signal s 1 outputted from the signal generator 12 so that the amplified half - sine wave signal is sequentially supplied to odd - numbered sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 . the signal generator 12 outputs a synchronization signal s 2 to a phase correction controller 5 so that phase correction is carried out by the phase corrector 4 in synchronization with the switching of the distributor 3 . based on an output from the phase correction controller 5 to be explained later , the phase corrector 4 corrects a phase of the half - sine wave signal generated by the signal generator 12 and amplified by the power amplifier 13 and outputs the phase - corrected half - sine wave signal to the distributor 3 . in response to a switching control signal from the signal generator 12 , the distributor 3 switches the sideband antennas from one to another so that the phase - corrected half - sine wave signal from the phase corrector 4 is supplied to a proper one of the sideband antennas . in response to a synchronization signal s 2 from the signal generator 12 , the phase correction controller 5 refers to a phase correction table 6 and provides the phase corrector 4 with a phase correction control signal together with a phase correction value retrieved from the phase correction table 6 . the phase correction table 6 stores a phase correction value for each of the odd - numbered sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 , the phase correction values being necessary to secure consecutiveness of radio waveforms emitted from these odd - numbered sideband antennas . the phase correction values are calculated by measuring electrical lengths of signal paths ( antenna cables c 1 , c 3 , . . . , and c 47 ) from the signal generator 12 to the odd - numbered sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 with the use of , for example , a network analyzer and by finding differences among the measured electrical lengths . to cope with the aging of the antenna cables c 1 , c 3 , . . . , and c 47 , the phase correction values may be updated by periodically measuring the electrical lengths of the signal paths . the odd - numbered sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 are connected through the antenna cables c 1 , c 3 , . . . , and c 47 , respectively , to the distributor 3 and sequentially emit radio waves based on the half - sine wave signal generated by the signal generator 12 and amplified by the power amplifier 13 . in the dvor apparatus of fig3 , a sideband transmitter 2 has a signal generator ( sg ) 15 , a power amplifier ( amp ) 16 , a phase corrector 7 , a phase correction controller 8 , and a phase correction table 9 . a half - cosine wave signal is generated by the signal generator 15 , amplified by the power amplifier 16 , and supplied to the phase corrector 7 . the signal generator 15 controls the switching of the distributor 3 so that the half - cosine wave signal is sequentially supplied to even - numbered sideband antennas b 2 , b 4 , . . . , and b 48 . the signal generator 15 outputs a synchronization signal s 4 to a phase correction controller 8 so that phase correction is carried out by the phase corrector 7 in synchronization with the switching of the distributor 3 . the phase corrector 7 corrects a phase of the half - cosine wave signal generated by the signal generator 15 and amplified by the power amplifier 16 and sends the phase - corrected half - cosine wave signal to the distributor 3 . in response to a switching control signal s 3 from the signal generator 15 , the distributor 3 switches the sideband antennas from one to another so that the phase - corrected half - cosine wave signal from the phase corrector 7 is supplied to a proper one of the sideband antennas . in response to a synchronization signal s 4 from the signal generator 15 , the phase correction controller 8 refers to a phase correction table 9 and provides the phase corrector 7 with a phase correction control signal together with a phase correction value retrieved from the phase correction table 9 . the phase correction table 9 stores a phase correction value for each of the even - numbered sideband antennas b 2 , b 4 , . . . , and b 48 , the phase correction values being necessary to secure consecutiveness of radio waveforms emitted from these even - numbered sideband antennas . the phase correction values are calculated by measuring electrical lengths of signal paths ( antenna cables c 2 , c 4 , . . . , and c 48 ) from the signal generator 15 to the even - numbered sideband antennas b 2 , b 4 , . . . , and b 48 and by finding differences among the measured electrical lengths . to cope with the aging of the antenna cables c 2 , c 4 , . . . , and c 48 , the phase correction values may be updated by periodically measuring the electrical lengths of the signal paths . the even - numbered sideband antennas b 2 , b 4 , . . . , and b 48 are connected through the antenna cables c 2 , c 4 , . . . , and c 48 , respectively , to the distributor 3 and sequentially emit radio waves based on the half - cosine wave signal generated by the signal generator 15 and amplified by the power amplifier 16 . operation of the dvor apparatus shown in fig3 will be explained . although the following explanation relates to the sideband transmitter 1 supplying a half - sine wave signal to the odd - numbered sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 , the explanation is similarly applicable to the sideband transmitter 2 supplying a half - cosine wave signal to the even - numbered sideband antennas b 2 , b 4 , . . . , and b 48 . the sideband transmitter 1 controls the distributor 3 so that the sideband antennas are switched from one to another every 1 / 720 seconds to receive a half - sine wave signal from the signal generator 12 . supplying a half - sine wave signal generated by the signal generator 12 to the sideband antenna b 1 will be explained . the signal generator 12 sends the generated half - sine wave signal to the phase corrector 4 through the power amplifier 13 . also , the signal generator 12 provides the distributor 3 with a switching control signal s 1 so that the distributor 3 may supply the half - sine wave signal to the sideband antenna b 1 . at the same time , the signal generator 12 provides the phase correction controller 5 with a synchronization signal s 2 . in response to the synchronization signal s 2 from the signal generator 12 , the phase correction controller 5 refers to the phase correction table 6 , retrieves a phase correction value corresponding to the sideband antenna b 1 from the phase correction table 6 , and provides the phase corrector 4 with a phase correction control signal together with the stored phase correction value . the phase corrector 4 uses the phase correction value corresponding to the sideband antenna b 1 supplied from the phase correction controller 5 , to correct the half - sine wave signal provided by the signal generator 12 and amplified by the power amplifier 13 and supplies the phase - corrected half - sine wave signal to the distributor 3 . the distributor 3 supplies the phase - corrected half - sine wave signal from the phase corrector 4 to the sideband antenna b 1 through the antenna cable c 1 . thereafter , the signal generator 12 provides the distributor 3 with a switching control signal so that the half - sine wave signal is supplied to the next sideband antenna b 3 and the other sideband antennas . the signal generator 12 provides a phase correction controller 5 with a synchronization signal s 2 so that the phase correction of the selected sideband antenna is conducted in synchronization with the switching of the distributor 3 . in this way , the odd - numbered sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 sequentially receive the half - sine wave signal whose phase is corrected with the use of phase correction values corresponding to the odd - numbered sideband antennas , respectively . fig4 is a view showing the switching timing (( a )-( d )) of sideband antennas carried out by the distributor 3 , and waveforms (( e )-( h )) of a half - sine wave signal at input end ( a 0 in fig3 ) of the phase corrector 4 , input ends of the distributor ( a 1 in fig3 ) and sideband antennas ( b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 ). waveforms of the half - sine wave signal at the input ends ( b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 ) of the sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 are deformed as shown in ( f ) of fig4 with respect to that at the input end ( a 0 ) of the phase corrector as shown in ( e ) of fig4 due to variations in the electrical lengths of the antenna cables c 1 , c 3 , . . . , and c 47 if no phase correction is conducted by the phase corrector 4 . thus , radio waveforms to be emitted from the sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . and b 47 will be discontinuous . on the contrary , in a case where phase correction is conducted by the phase corrector 4 , waveforms of the half - sine wave signal at the input end ( a 1 ) of the distributor are corrected as shown in ( g ) of fig4 . therefore , waveforms of the half - sine wave signal at the input end ( b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 ) are as shown in ( h ) of fig4 , and thereby , the continuity of the radio waveforms radiated from the sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 can be maintained . in other words , the phase correction is performed so that the phase of the output waveform and the switching timing of the distributor 3 are synchronized with each other and thereby the continuity of radiated waveforms can be maintained . in this way , according to the present embodiment , the electrical lengths of signal paths from the sideband transmitter 1 to the sideband antennas b 1 , b 3 , . . . , and b 47 are measured , phase correction values for the sideband antennas are calculated , respectively , according to the measured electrical lengths , and the phase of a half - sine wave signal supplied from the sideband transmitter 1 to each sideband antenna is corrected according to the phase correction value for the sideband antenna . consequently , without precisely equalizing the lengths of the antenna cables c 1 , c 3 , . . . , and c 47 , the consecutiveness of radio waveforms emitted from the sideband antennas can be secured according to the present embodiment . furthermore , the continuity of output waveforms of radiation can be maintained even if all of the electrical lengths between each of input end a 1 of the distributor 3 associated with each corresponding sideband antenna and the corresponding terminals p 1 , p 3 , . . . , and p 47 . the electrical lengths of the signal paths may periodically be measured to update the phase correction values in the phase correction table 6 accordingly . this technique can easily handle , without hardware readjustment , phase shifts that may occur due to the aging of the antenna cables c 1 , c 3 , . . . , and c 47 . two signal generators 12 and 15 of the first embodiment may be integrally constituted . according to a second embodiment , as shown in fig6 , the half - sine wave signal outputted from the power amplifier 13 is divided at a dividing point d 1 , phase shifted by 90 degrees through the phase shifter 18 , and inputted to the power amplifier 16 as the half - cosine wave signal . according to the second embodiment of the dvor apparatus , two sideband transmitters are realized using only one signal generator 12 . as shown in fig3 , the power amplifier ( amp ) 13 of the dvor apparatus of the first embodiment is connected to the output side of the signal generator 12 . the power amplifier ( amp ) can be also connected between the output end of the phase corrector 4 and the input end of the distributor 3 , and therefore , a sideband transmitter 1 ′ can be implemented as shown in fig7 . in a similar manner , with regard to the dvor apparatus of the second embodiment , the power amplifier ( amp ) 13 ( 16 ) can be also connected between the output end of the phase corrector 4 ( 7 ) and the input end of the distributor 3 , and therefore , a sideband transmitter 21 ′ ( 22 ′) can be implemented as shown in fig8 . as to the dvor apparatus of the first embodiment , the signal generator 12 ( 15 ), the phase corrector 4 ( 7 ), the phase correction controller 5 ( 8 ), and the phase correction table 6 ( 9 ) can be integrated into one integration circuit as the signal generation part 30 shown in fig7 . that is , the phase correctors 4 , 7 and the phase correction tables 6 , 9 can be realized as inner functions of the signal generation part 30 . in a similar manner , with regard to the dvor apparatus of the second embodiment , a signal generation part including the signal generator 12 , the phase corrector 4 , the phase correction controller 5 , and the phase correction table 6 , the signal generator 12 , the phase shifter 18 , the phase corrector 7 , the phase correction controller 8 , and the phase correction table 9 can be integrated into one integration circuit 31 as shown in fig8 . the present invention is applicable to radar signal processors of radar systems . this application claims benefit of priority under 35 u . s . c . 119 to japanese patent application no . 2006 - 163355 filed on jun . 13 , 2006 , the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference herein . although the present invention has been described above by reference to certain embodiments of the present invention , the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above . modifications and variations of the embodiments described above will occur to those skilled in the art in light of the teachings . the scope of the present invention is defined with reference to the appended claims . | 6 |
fig1 is a side view of a stereotactic frame 18 according to the invention attached to a gantry 14 of a conventional radiation apparatus , such as a linear accelerator . the preferred embodiment of the invention is shown and described herein in conjunction with a linear accelerator . the method and apparatus of the present invention can be equally well implemented with several brain mapping techniques for localizing and defining targets such as angiography , ct scanning , mri ( magnetic resonance imaging ) and pet ( positron emission tomography ). the linear accelerator in fig1 is used for stereotactic radiosurgery and fractionated radiation therapy on intracranial lesions inside a skull 12 . a collimator 17 is attached by a support arm 16 to the gantry 14 . the gantry 14 carries the radiation - emitting collimator 17 in an arc around the skull 12 . the frame 18 ( ring ) has a circular outside surface that mounts inside a circular bracket 24 . in the present embodiment of the invention , ring 18 is commercially available . bracket 24 is attached to a floor - stand ( not shown ). arms 20 and 22 attach the ring 18 to the skull 12 . stereotactic radiosurgery procedures for identifying and destroying inner cranial lesions , are well known to those skilled in the art and , therefore , will not be described in detail . a specific procedure and apparatus for performing stereotactic radiosurgery is described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 027 , 818 to bova and is hereby incorporated by reference . the first step in the stereotactic radiosurgery process is localization of the lesion ( e . g ., tumor ). one method of localization is ct and involves fitting the skull 12 inside a stereotactic frame 18 as illustrated in fig1 . a stereotactic localizing device is then attached to the frame . the subsequent brain mapping and target definition produces precise , x , y , z , coordinates of the target ( to an accuracy of less than 1 / 2 millimeter ) relative to the stereotactic frame . the patient is aligned in tire gantry 14 and contiguous slices , beginning at the level of the ring 18 and advancing superiorly past the top of the patient &# 39 ; s skull 12 , are obtained . if the target volume is identified in the computerized tomography image , the x , y , z , coordinates of the target volume are again recalculated to provide a double check of the x , y , z , coordinates previously derived relative to the stereotactic ring 18 . the ct scan provides three dimensional anatomical information of the patient that allows a solid patient model to be constructed . the data from the ct scan , anglographic films and / or mri is then transferred to a commercially available dosimetry computer system ( not shown ). for high single fractions of radiation to be delivered to the target volume , the radiation source emitted from collimator 17 is mixed through multiple arcs around the skull 12 . for the radiotherapist and neurosurgeon to be able to examine the consequence of each portion of the arc prior to radiating ; the patient , the dosimetry system displays each are segment on a computer screen . if any particular arc results in an extensive dose of radiation to a critical structure inside the brain , the therapist alters the are parameters to avoid the anatomical area of concern . once the acceptable radiation treatment scheme has been derived , the coordinates of the isocenter ( focal point of the radiation beam ), the collimator coordinates , and the arc parameters are transferred to the radiation apparatus 14 and the radiation administered to the patient . as explained above , the target coordinates are generated relative to the frame 18 . therefore , moving the ring 18 in relation to the skull 12 would cause the radiation beam focal point to be misaligned with the target location . to prevent focal point misalignment , conventional stereotactic rings are kept on during the entire localization process . in addition , due to the extensive time requirements required for all of the localization procedures described above , fractionated stereotactic radiation therapy is not extensively performed . in the present invention , however , the arms 20 and 22 can be detached from the skull 12 and reattached to the skull 12 at the same reference location . this repeatable positioning of ring 18 at the same x , y , z coordinates in relation to the skull allow the radiation apparatus 14 to use the same coordinates for each radiation therapy session . the ring 18 can also be removed between various localization procedures , for example , while the physician computes and optimizes radiation doses . to explain further , fig2 shows a front view of the stereotactic ring 18 shown in fig1 . the ring 18 is seated inside the bracket 24 and has four arms 20 , 22 , 26 , and 28 extending along a longitudinal axis substantially parallel with the center axis of the ring 18 . each arm is attached to the skull 12 by an attachment assembly 30 . the attachment assembly sits in a receptor 32 residing in the skull 12 . the arms are positioned so that the attachment assembly 30 contacts with skull 12 in a direction substantially perpendicular with the tangential plane passing through the skull contact point . for example , front arms 20 and 26 are angled toward each other slightly more than rear arms 22 and 28 to account for the inclined surfaces on the front of skull 12 . the rear arms 22 and 28 are less angled to provide perpendicular contact with the substantially round surface at the back of skull 12 . the perpendicular contact of each attachment assembly 30 allows a maximum amount of skull bone to surround each receptor 32 . by maximizing the amount of skull bone surrounding each receptor , the stability in which the receptor 32 is seated in the skull is increased . as will later be more fully described , the arms are detachable from ring 18 . this feature permits attachment of the two types of arms , arms 20 , 26 , on the one hand , and arms 28 , 30 , to different locations on the ring to accommodate differently shaped skulls . similarly , different numbers of each type of arm may be used up to and including all of the arms being of one type or the other . the receptors provide a stable mounting foundation for each attachment assembly 30 and allow the ring 18 to be attached and detached from the skull at a reproducible reference location . for example , the attachment assembly 30 is removable from the frame arm to allow the ring 18 to be removed from the skull 12 . however , keeping the receptors 32 in the skull allow each attachment assembly 30 to be reseated in an associated receptor 32 at the previously defined reference location . thus , the ring 18 can be repeatably repositioned in the same location in relation to the skull 12 . a series of skull processing procedures are performed on skull 12 before inserting receptors 32 and are described in detail below . fig3 is a side view of the front arm 20 and fig4 is a side view of the rear arm 22 shown in fig1 . both the front and rear arms have a shaft 40 with oppositely inclining sides 34 . the front arm 20 has a rotated assembly section 44 that is skewed in relation to the shaft 40 . in fig4 the assembly section 45 is aligned with shaft 40 . both the front and back arms have equal diameter bushing holes 36 and equal diameter lock screw holes 38 . the shaft 40 of rear arm 22 is shown inserted into the ring 18 . fig5 is a front view of the rear arm 22 shown in fig4 . the shaft of each front and back arm has a set of female conical bores 46 for receiving a screw 48 through a hole in ring 18 . fig6 is a cross - section of the ring 18 and arm 22 shown in fig5 . a dovetail slot in ring 18 receives the shaft 40 of arm 22 . the appropriate conical bore 46 ( fig5 ) is aligned with the ring hole 50 according to the size of the patient &# 39 ; s skull and lesion location . ring hole 50 has internal threads that interlock with the threads of screw 48 . thus , rotating screw 48 into hole 50 forces the conical tip of screw 48 against the conical bore 46 . the tip of screw 48 forces shaft 40 against the back face of the dovetail slot holding arm 22 securely in the ring 18 . fig7 is a side view of a clamp assembly 52 and fig8 is a view taken along line 8 -- 8 in fig7 . a clamp bushing 54 is insertable inside hole 36 ( see fig5 ). the bushing 54 has an internal threaded hole that receives and interlocks with the threads of clamp shaft 56 . the front end of clamp shaft 56 is coupled to a swiveled clamping mount 58 and the rear end of clamp shaft 56 is attached to a crank 60 . the bushing 54 is locked to the arm 22 by a lock screw 62 . the threads of lock screw 62 engage with the internal threads of hole 38 ( see fig5 ) and hold a flange 66 on bushing 54 against the rear face of arm 22 . lock screw 62 allows quick insertion and extraction of various bushings from hole 36 , however , alternative attachment mechanisms could also be used to attach various apparatus to arm 22 . the clamp assembly 52 is used to initially attach the ring 18 and arms 20 , 22 , 26 , and 28 to the skull 12 and is installed by inserting bushing 54 into hole 36 . a slot 64 in bushing 54 ( fig8 ) is positioned to pass around lock screw 62 . bushing 54 is then rotated so that flange 66 slides underneath lock screw 62 . lock screw 62 is then screwed further into hole 38 pressing against the flange 66 and holding the bushing 54 firmly against arm 22 . rotating crank 60 moves crank rod 56 forward pushing mount 58 against skin 67 of skull 12 . the mount 58 swivels slightly as it presses against the skull 12 so that the front face of mount 58 lies flat against the skull . each of the four attachment assemblies ( i . e ., one for each arm ) are tightened until the frame is securely fastened to the skull 12 . the clamp assembly 52 is removed from arm 22 by unscrewing lock screw 62 and rotating flange 66 out from under lock screw 62 . notch 64 is then centered about lock screw 62 and bushing 54 removed from hole 36 . the clamp assembly 52 shown in fig7 is identical for each frame arm and provides support for the frame during the subsequent drilling and attachment processes described below . fig9 is a side view of a drill assembly 68 . the drill assembly includes a drill bushing 74 insertable into hole 36 of arm 22 , a drill 70 , and a drill bit 72 . the drill bushing 74 is attached to arm 22 by lock screw 62 in the same manner as clamp assembly 52 in fig7 . the drill assembly 68 is used for boring holes into skull 12 . the skull holes are drilled one at a time by first removing one of tile clamp assemblies 52 as described above in fig7 . a drill bushing 74 is then inserted and locked into hole 36 and drill 70 enabled so that drill bit 72 begins boring a hole 76 into skull 12 . after boring hole 76 , drill bit 72 is removed from the skull 12 and the drill assembly 68 removed from arm 22 . the drill assembly is also removed from arm 22 in the same manner as clamp assembly 52 ( see fig7 ). various drill bits cart be utilized to create different skull holes . different diameter drill bits require different bushings having different - sized bores therein for receiving the bit . preferably , the clearance between the bit and the bushing hole is approximately 0 . 01 min . the type of holes drilled in skull 12 depend on the type of receptors inserted into the skull . fig1 is a side view of a tap assembly 78 which includes a tap bushing 80 insertable into hole 36 of arm 22 . the tap bushing 80 receives a tap bit 82 that is attachable to a tap chuck 83 . the tap assembly 78 is attached and detached from arm 22 in the same manner as the clamp and drill assemblies 52 and 68 , respectively , as previously described above . the tap assembly is used to tap threads in the hole 76 previously drilled by drill bit 72 ( fig9 ). however , if a non - threaded receptor or a self - threading receptor is used , tap assembly 78 is not necessary . fig1 is a side view of an insertion assembly 84 which includes a shaft 88 coupled at the front end to a wrench fitting 92 and is coupled at the rear end to a crank 90 . the shaft 88 is held by the same bushing 80 used in tap assembly 78 ( fig1 ). the wrench fitting 92 is insertable into an internal socket in receptor 32 . after the tap bit 82 is removed from bushing 80 , shaft 88 is inserted into bushing 80 and receptor 32 attached to the wrench fitting 92 . crank 90 is then rotated causing external threads on receptor 32 to interlock with the internal threads in skull hole 76 . the receptor 32 is screwed tightly into hole 76 so the receptor can support frame 18 . fig1 is a side view of the attachment assembly 30 shown in fig2 and fig1 is a view taken along line 13 -- 13 in fig1 . the attachment assembly includes a screw pin 95 insertable into a screw pin bushing 102 . the screw pin 95 has a lockable head 96 at the rear end with a notch 97 , a threaded midsection 98 that interlocks with the internal threads of the screw pin bushing 102 , and a tapered tip 100 at the front end . the rear face of screw pin bushing 102 has four screw holes 104 ( fig1 ) used in coordination with a lock washer as will be described in further detail below in fig1 and 16 . the attachment assembly 30 is again inserted and extracted from arm hole 36 in the same manner as the clamp , drill , and tap assemblies . after the insertion assembly 84 ( fig1 ) is removed from arm 22 , screw pin bushing 102 is inserted and locked into hole 36 . screw pin 95 is then rotated with a screw driver ( not shown ) into bushing 102 . bushing 102 has a close tolerance bearing bore on each end to guide the screw pin 95 repeatably regardless of the insertion distance into bushing 102 . the bore on the left receives the shaft of pin 95 while the bore on the right receives head 96 . between the beating bores in bushing 102 is a threaded section which engages with external thread 98 on screw pin 95 thus allowing screw pin 95 to be driven forward . as screw pin 95 moves forward in the bushing 102 , tapered tip 100 is forced into the socket of receptor 32 . screw pin 95 is sufficiently tightened against receptor 32 so that the frame 18 ( fig1 ) can not be inadvertently dismounted from the receptors or moved in relation to skull 12 . fig1 is a cross - section of the receptor 32 shown in fig1 . the socket inside receptor 32 comprises a wrench receiving section 106 and a screw pin receiving section 108 . section 106 is used for receiving the wrench fitting 92 of insertion assembly 84 ( fig1 ) and section 108 receives the tapered tip 100 of screw pin 95 ( fig1 ). while inserting receptor 32 in the skull ( see fig1 ), the wrench fitting 92 interlocks inside section 106 , allowing the receptor to be screwed into the skull hole 76 . after the receptor is securely fastened into the skull , the screw pin 95 is inserted into the receptor 32 pressing the tapered tip 100 of screw pin 95 against the interior walls of section 108 . fig1 is a side view of screw pin 95 locked to the screw pin bushing 102 by a lock washer 112 . the lock washer 112 is held to bushing 102 by a screw 110 . fig1 is a front view of the lock washer 112 shown in fig1 . the lock washer 112 has a finger 116 that rides inside the notch 118 ( in fig1 ) in screw pin 95 . screw 110 is insertable through lock washer slot 114 into any one of the screw pin bushing holes 104 . after the screw pin 95 has been inserted sufficiently into the receptor 32 ( fig1 ), lock washer 112 is slid over the head 96 of screw pin 95 as the lock washer finger 116 tides inside screw pin notch 118 . when the lock washer 112 lies flat against the rear face of bushing 102 , screw 110 is inserted into the hole 104 that happens to be accessible through lock washer slot 114 . if necessary , lock washer 112 can be slid off of pin 95 and turned over to place slot 114 in a location relative to one of holes 104 to permit installation of screw 110 as shown in fig1 . screw 110 is then tightened clamping lock washer 112 against the rear face of bushing 102 . the lock washer 112 , when tightened to bushing 102 by screw 110 , prevents screw pin 95 from rotating inside bushing 102 . thus , the lateral position of the arm 22 is locked at its present location which constitutes the frame reference position . fig1 is a side view of the attachment assembly 30 shown in fig1 removed from the frame arm 22 . to remove the frame from the patients skull , the attachment assembly 30 must be removed from arm 22 . however , it is necessary that the same lateral screw pin position be used when the frame is reattached to the skull 12 . therefore , the entire locked attachment assembly 30 is removed from arm 22 so that the screw pin position is maintained . for example , to remove the frame 18 from skull 12 , the screw pin bushing 102 is first removed from arm 22 . bushing 102 is removed by unscrewing lock screw 62 from arm 22 then rotating bushing 102 counter - clockwise until flange 66 no longer resides under lock screw 62 . notch 64 in bushing 102 ( fig8 ) is then centered around lock screw 62 and the bushing 102 extracted from arm hole 36 . the attachment assemblies for the remaining three arms 20 , 26 , and 30 are removed in the same fashion . the frame is then lifted up over the skull 12 . it is important to note that the attachment assembly 30 remains in the locked position shown in fig1 throughout the stereotactic radiosurgery process . thus , the lateral position of frame 18 in relation to skull 12 remains intact . in addition , the longitudinal and latitudinal positions of the frame in relation to the skull are preserved by the receptors 32 that remain attached in the skull in between radiation sessions . thus , the same frame position in relation to the skull 12 can be repeatably obtained by reinsetting the locked attachment assemblies 30 back into the associated arms and reclamping the screw pin bushing 102 with the lock screw 62 . as long as the attachment assembly remains in the locked position shown in fig1 , the frame can be removed and reattached to the skull as many times as dictated by the stereotactic radiation therapy . after completion of the radiation therapy , the lock washer 112 is detached from bushing 102 and the attachment assembly 30 used for another patient . a frame ring 18 and a set of frame arms can be allocated for a single patient over the duration of the radiation treatment or , alternatively , the same ring and arms can be used by multiple patients by readjusting the arms for each patients skull dimensions ( see fig5 ). it is important to identify each arm and record the mounting location for each arm on ring 18 as well as the bore , like bores 46 in fig5 used to mount the arm on the ring . this ensures that the entire frame is accurately reassembled when additional fractionated radiosurgery is to be performed . if multiple patients share the same frame , a set of individual attachment assemblies 30 are maintained for each patient . it is important to note that all clamping , drilling , tapping , insertion , and attachment assemblies reside along a single longitudinal axis . maintaining a single longitudinal axis ensure that the screw pins attach symmetrically inside the receptor socket and increase frame stability . fig1 is a side view of the attachment assembly 30 shown in fig1 inserted directly into a skull hole 120 . in another embodiment of the invention , the frame can be attached directly into skull hole 120 . the process for attaching the frame to the skull is identical to the process described above except that the drilling procedure ( fig9 ) is performed such that the skull hole 120 is tapered to receive the conical tip 100 of screw pin 95 . the tapping and receptor insertion procedures are then no longer required . the lateral coordinates of the frame are preserved by the locked attachment assembly 102 , and the longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates of the frame are preserved by the locations of the drilled skull holes 120 that remain in the patient for the entire stereotactic radiation treatment . the embodiment shown in fig1 leaves a visually less obvious frame receptor in the patient &# 39 ; s skull . the direct frame attachment process also requires fewer steps to install the frame and requires fewer assemblies to initially attach the frame to the skull . various skull hole , drill bit , and screw pin designs can be utilized to perform the steps described above . alternate assemblies can also be incorporated into the arm holes for other stereotactic radiosurgery procedures . all assembly components are preferably titanium for mri and ct compatibility except for the arms which are aluminum or plastic . receptors imbedded in the skull art : superior to bore cavities bored into the bone surface . repeated frame / pin attachment requires a relatively hard surface . the overall process for using the stereotactic frame according to the invention is now described . the frame arms 20 , 22 , 26 , and 28 ( fig2 ) are first adjusted in ring 18 according to the size of the patients skull . the clamp assemblies 52 ( fig7 ) are locked into the arm holes 36 and the clamps attached to the patients skull . after the clamps are tightened to the patients skull , one of the clamp assemblies 52 is removed and replaced with the drill assembly 68 ( fig9 ). a hole is then drilled in the skull along the same axis as previously defined by the clamp assembly 52 . after the hole is drilled in the skull , the drill assembly is removed , and if necessary , the tap assembly 78 ( fig1 ) is inserted into the arm hole 36 . after the skull hole is tapped , the tap assembly 78 is removed from the arm , and if required , the insertion assembly 84 ( fig1 ) is inserted into the arm . the insertion assembly is used to insert a receptor 32 into the tapped skull hole and then removed from the frame arm . the attachment assembly 30 ( fig1 ) is then installed in the arm and the attachment assembly screw pin 95 inserted into the receptor 32 . the above process is performed for the remaining three arms so that each arm has an associated attachment assembly installed in a receptor ( see fig2 ). each attachment assembly screw pin 95 is then locked to the associated screw pin bushing 102 with a lock washer 112 and screw 110 as shown in fig1 . at this point , the frame 18 is securely attached to the skull and the localization process begins . after the initial localization process and after the first radiation treatment , the frame may be removed from the patient by unscrewing the lock screws 62 and removing each attachment assembly 30 from its arm ( fig1 ). the locked attachment assemblies 30 are labeled and preserved for further treatments on the patient . the patient carries the receptors 32 in his skull throughout the stereotactic radiation therapy . at each subsequent radiation therapy session , the frame 18 is positioned around the patients head and the locked attachment assemblies 30 reinserted into the associated arm holes 36 . the attachment assemblies are then forced into the receptors 32 by lock screw 62 . the radiation therapy is then carried out without having to relocalize the target . after completion of the therapy session , the frame 18 is again removed and the attachment assemblies stored for the next radiosurgical session . thus , fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery may be performed at a reasonable cost . during the tinges between therapy sessions , receptors 32 remain fixed in the patients skull and extend just above the surface of the skin as shown in fig1 . at the conclusion of the fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery according to the present invention , receptors 32 are unscrewed using assembly 84 as shown in fig1 . the skin around the former location of the receptor is then closed and treated as necessary to ensure satisfactory healing . turning now to fig1 , illustrated therein is another embodiment of a receptor 130 which performs a similar function to receptor 32 in fig1 . in the embodiment of fig1 a drill assembly ( not shown ) similar to drill assembly 68 in fig9 is used to create a bore 132 in skull 12 . the drill assembly is connected to frame 18 in the manner previously described and a drill bit ( also not shown ) which is smaller than drill bit 72 in fig9 is used to create bore 132 . receptor 130 includes a lug 134 which is received in bore 132 . receptor 130 further includes a conical opening 136 which receives the lower portion of tapered tip 100 as shown in fig1 . the perimeter of receptor 130 includes a circular flange 138 having a pair of countersunk holes 140 , 142 therethrough . in use , a bore , like bore 132 , is drilled as described above opposite each of the arms in frame 18 . next , a spot of glue is placed on lug 134 and / or in bore 132 . when the lug is pressed into the bore , receptor 130 is firmly secured to skull 12 without requiring a larger bore to be drilled in the skull , as described in connection with the embodiment of fig1 . in the event the glue is not sufficient to properly secure receptor 130 , additional small pilot holes can be drilled in skull 12 through holes 140 , 142 in the receptor to permit screws , like screws 144 , 146 to be installed to secure the receptor to the skull . after installation , pin 95 is installed with its associated bushing ( in fig1 ) so that tip 100 is received in the receptor as shown in fig1 . | 0 |
the present invention will be discussed with reference to preferred embodiments of train control systems . specific details , such as regulations , distances and times , are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention . the preferred embodiments and specific details discussed herein should not be understood to limit the invention . referring now to the drawings , wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views , fig1 is a logical block diagram of a train control system 100 according to the present invention . the system 100 includes a control unit 110 , which typically , but not necessarily , includes a microprocessor . the control unit 110 is connected to a positioning system such as a gps receiver 120 . the gps receiver 120 can be of any type , including a differential gps receiver . other types of positioning systems , such as inertial navigation systems ( inss ) can also be used . the gps receiver 120 provides position and speed information to the control unit 110 . a database 130 , which contains the locations of all grade crossings in the system ( or in the area in which the train is to operate ) is also connected to the control unit 110 . in some embodiments , the database 130 can be updated through wireless communication ( via wireless transceiver 140 ) or other means to accept changes in grade crossing information . the - control unit 110 uses the position information from the gps receiver 130 as an index into the database 130 to determine the nearest grade crossing being approached by the train . the control unit 110 is also connected to an electrically activated horn 140 . although a horn 140 is used in the embodiment of fig1 it should be understood that any type of warning device , or combination of warning devices , including visual and audio warning devices , could be used . referring now to fig2 a flowchart 200 illustrates operation of an automatic warning device activation method according to one embodiment of the present invention . the control unit 110 determines the next grade crossing based on the location of the train as reported by the gps receiver 120 by indexing the database 130 at step 210 . if the next grade crossing is subject to state regulations at step 220 , the warning device ( e . g ., horn ) is activated in accordance with state regulations at step 230 and the process starts over at step 210 . the next grade crossing is not subject to state regulations , then the system treats the grade crossing as subject to the aforementioned fra regulation , 49 c . f . r . § 222 . the control unit 110 then determines whether the train is within ¼ mile of the grade crossing at step 240 . if not , step 240 is repeated . when the train is within ¼ mile of the grade crossing at step 240 , the control unit 110 next calculates the estimated time of arrival of the train at the grade crossing , based on the position and speed of the train as reported by the gps receiver 120 , at step 250 . if the estimated time of arrival is less than 24 , seconds , step 250 is repeated using updated speed and position information at step 250 . if the estimated time of arrival is less than 24 seconds at step 260 , the warning device is activated at step 270 . in some embodiments in which the warning device includes a horn , the horn is sounded in a two long , one short , one long sequence . if the control unit determines that the train has not cleared the grade crossing at step 280 , step 270 is repeated . if the grade crossing has been cleared , the process is repeated starting at step 210 . it will be readily understood by those of skill in the art that the aforementioned invention can be practiced as a stand - alone system or may be practiced as part of an automated train control system . the database 130 may be programmed via wireless communications from a dispatcher or central authority , or may be periodically updated by reading data from a tape or flash memory in a manner well known in the art . the embodiment described above has been discussed with reference to grade crossings . it will be readily understood by those of skill in the art that the invention can be used in connection with any location , temporary or permanent , at which it is required or desirable to activate a warning device . one example of such temporary location is an area of track being worked on by maintenance personnel . obviously , numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings . it is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims , the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein . | 1 |
referring to the drawings , wherein like characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the views , fig1 illustrates schematically a typical digital computer system 2 suitable for incorporating the present invention . the computer system 2 includes a central processing unit ( cpu ) 4 , a memory system 6 , an error correcting system ( ecs ) 8 and a buffer 10 . system data is transmitted between the cpu 4 and the buffer 10 via a computer data bus 12 . address information is sent from the cpu 4 to the buffer 10 via an address bus 14 . likewise , address information is sent from the cpu 4 to the memory system 6 via an address bus 16 . communication between the buffer 10 and the memory system 6 is provided by a communication data bus 18 . likewise , communication between the buffer 10 and the error correcting system ( ecs ) 8 is provided by a communication data bus 20 . each of the above are well known components which may be interconnected in a variety of well known configurations and are shown in block form for purposes of representation only , since they do not in themselves constitute part of the present invention . the memory system 6 may , for example , store 40 bit wide data words which include 32 data bit positions . the buffer 10 may , for example , be a multiple data word buffer including a plurality of 40 bit addressable word buffers . data is transferred from the cpu 4 to the buffer 10 and then to the memory 6 . likewise , data read from the memory 6 is transferred to the buffer 10 and then to the cpu 4 . when provisions are made for 40 bit data words each having 32 data bit positions , 8 bits are available for the error detection and correction process . the 8 bits may be employed in the ecs 8 to automatically correct a single - bit error in any one of the data bit positions of each word read from the memory system 6 . the ecs 8 may use any , or all , of the available bit positions for the error detection and correction process to allocate check bits for error correction purposes , the check bits being generated with the data of each data word according to any of the well known ecc codes . the check bits so allocated may then be employed to generate an ecc syndrome for error detection and correction using methods well known in the art . however , multiple errors detected in the data word during the ecc detection process , or data received from the cpu 4 for modifying the data word in which a parity error is discovered , cannot be corrected , and the data word must be designated as bad data when it is rewritten in the memory system 6 . when data words are read from the memory system 6 as part of a read - modify - write process in response to command information from the cpu 4 , the implementation of a bad data algorithm according to the present invention follows the flow chart shown in fig2 . after the data word is read from the memory system 6 and new data is received with command information from the cpu 4 via the buffer 10 , the data word from the memory system 6 and the new data from the cpu 4 are checked for errors . if no error is found in the data word from the memory 6 or in the new data from the cpu 4 , then the read data is modified by the new data in accord with the command information from cpu 4 , a new set of 7 check bits according to the ecc code used is generated and the mark bit is set to the &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; state . the mark bit position is used to designate the status of the data , the mark bit being set to a &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; state for bad data , and a &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; state for good data . the entire 40 bit data word including the 32 data bits modified with new data according to the command information from the cpu 4 the new 7 check bits and the &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; state mark bit is rewritten into the memory system 6 . if error is found , but it is correctable , such as is the case if a single bit error is found in the read data word from the memory 6 , the process continues the same as if no error was detected as described above , the modified data word being rewritten with 7 new check bits and a &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; state mark bit . if error is found which is uncorrectable , the data word from the memory 6 is not modified by the new data from the cpu 4 in accord with the command information , but seven new check bits are generated just as described above for data with no detected error , the check bits are then inverted , and the mark bit is set to the &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; state . the 40 bit data word including the unmodified 32 data bits , the inverted check bits and a &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; state mark bit is then rewritten into the memory system 6 . the data portion of data words designated bad data with the mark bit set in the &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; state are rewritten as read , in non - inverted form , because the detected error in such bad data may have been caused by a faulty dynamic random access memory ( dram ) chip in the memory system 6 that will always produce the same state . by writing back the same state to that faulty dram , rereading of the data as written is ensured . otherwise , an additional single bit error might be read during the rereading process , which could cause the ecs 8 to erroneously identify the data word as having a correctable error when the data word has actually already been identified as bad data . the method or process for detecting the bad data algorithm according to the present invention to correctly identify rewritten data detected and designated as bad follows the flow chart shown in fig3 . the data word read form the memory system 6 is stored in the ecs 8 and 7 new check bits are generated from the stored data according to the ecc code . the new check bits are then compared to the inverted check bits which form part of the stored data word in an exclusive or relationship . the inverted stored check bits produce an ecc syndrome which is a compliment of the syndrome that would normally be generated by a single bit error . the complimentary syndrome generated with the inverted stored check bits indicates uncorrectable multiple bit error more accurately than the normally generated syndrome . the complimentary syndrome will not accurately identify data words with uncorrectable multibit error in one situation . therefore , reliance cannot be placed only on the complimentary syndrome to determine that a read data word contains uncorrectable errors and the mark bit must be used . the one situation referred to in the preceding paragraph occurs when the initial bad data detected in the read data word from the memory system 6 contains one error in a data bit position and another in a check bit position and this bad data is rewritten into the memory system 6 with inverted check bits and the mark bit set to the &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; state as described above and then when this data is read an additional single bit error occurs in one of the bad data bit positions . this exception occurs because such bad data when reread can generate an ecc syndrome of 3 , 4 or 5 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s . a syndrome of 3 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s indicates a single bit error . a single bit error is normally correctable . however , the correlation of the mark bit with the generated ecc syndrome in the decoding logic allows the reread data word to be correctly determined to have bad , uncorrectable data , since the mark bit is set to the &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; state for bad data and the &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; state for good data . the table indicates all possibilities of error detected in read and reread data words initially read as having bad data . table__________________________________________________________________________0 ==& gt ; no error u ==& gt ; &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; 1 ==& gt ; 1 error2 ==& gt ; 2 errors mbe ==& gt ; multiple bit errorprevious errors new error read reportedmark data cb mark data cb syndrome mark error__________________________________________________________________________0 2 0 0 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 2 0 0 1 0 4 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 2 0 0 0 1 6 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 2 0 1 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; mbe0 0 2 0 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 0 2 0 1 0 4 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 0 2 0 0 1 6 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 0 2 1 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; mbe0 1 1 0 0 0 6 , 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 1 1 0 1 0 3 , 4 , 5 , &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe ( 1 ) 0 1 1 0 0 1 5 , 6 , 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; mbe0 1 1 1 0 0 6 , 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; mbe1 2 0 0 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 2 0 0 1 0 4 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 2 0 0 0 1 6 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 2 0 1 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 0 2 0 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 0 2 0 1 0 4 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 0 2 0 0 1 6 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 0 2 1 0 0 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 1 1 0 0 0 6 , 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 1 1 0 1 0 3 , 4 , 5 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u sbe / mbe ( 2 ) 1 1 1 0 0 1 5 , 6 , 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe1 1 1 1 0 0 6 , 7 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s u mbe__________________________________________________________________________ ( 1 ) 3 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s normally detected as a sbe but the mark bit distinguishes it as a mbe . ( 2 ) if the syndrome is 3 &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s and the mark bit is 0 this will be reporte incorrectly as a sbe . thus , there has been described herein a bad data identification algorithm uniquely suited for read - modify - write memory storage systems in digital computers which can identify all single bit errors that occur on data marked bad and report them as uncorrectable multiple bit errors , while distinguishing single bit errors on good data . it will be understood that various changes in the details , arrangements and configurations of the parts and assemblies which have been described and illustrated above in order to explain the nature of the present invention may be made by those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of the present invention as expressed in the appended claims . | 6 |
description will first be made as regards the principles of this invention with reference to fig1 to 3 prior to the description of specific examples embodying this invention . referring to fig1 the mechanism is shown through which corrosion occurs to a contact for a connector . the contact which comprises a substrate 23 of nickel or copper , and a gold film 19 formed thereon from gold or a gold alloy by plating . corrosive gases 11 , 13 and 15 and water molecules 17 are adsorbed to the surface of the gold film 19 and form an electrolyte thereon . the electrolyte enters a pinhole 21 in the gold film 19 and forms a corrosion cell between the gold film 19 and the substrate 23 . the base metal forming the substrate 23 is dissolved as nickel ions 25 ( or copper ions ) and forms a salt on the surface of the gold layer 19 . such corrosion through pinholes can be prevented by sealing the pinholes 21 as taught by prior art 1 . description will be made as regards the source causing a failure of contact in a gold plated connector contact according to related art 1 . gold ( au ) is a metal having a catalytic action , though its action is not as high as that of platinum ( pt ). when sulfurous anhydride ( so 2 ) 11 , nitrogen dioxide ( no 2 ) 13 and water molecules ( h 2 o ) 17 are present in the vicinity of a gold film 19 , the gold in the gold film 19 acts as a catalyst for the reaction of those corrosive substances to form ammonium sulfate [( nh 4 ) 2 so 4 ] 27 on the surface of the gold film 19 . this reaction product appears as a spot of discoloration and brings about an elevation of contact resistance and , thereby , a failure of contact . the formation of ammonium sulfate 27 cannot be prevented even if the pinholes in the gold film 19 may be sealed as taught by prior art 1 . according to this invention , however , the formation of ammonium sulfate , as well as corrosion through pinholes , can be prevented by forming a protective film for preventing the adsorption of corrosive gases ( so 2 , no 2 and cl 2 ) 11 , 13 and 15 and water 17 on the whole surface of the gold film 19 and in the pinholes 21 . next , description will be made in regards to a surface of gold - plated material for connector contact and a mechanism of anticorrosion thereof according to the present invention with reference to fig3 . referring to fig3 an anticorrosive film 29 is formed on a gold film 19 on a metal substrate 23 . the film 29 preferably has a water - repelling surface . the film 29 is required to have a thickness not exceeding 10 nm to produce a tunnel effect to stabilize the contact resistance of the connector contact . the film 29 can effectively be formed from a substance having a strong force for combining with the gold in the gold layer 19 and the nickel or copper in the substrate 23 exposed through the pinholes 21 . after considering these factors , we , the inventors of this invention , have found it possible to form such a film by electrolyzing an aqueous solution containing mercaptobenzo - thiazole or a derivative thereof at a concentration of 6 × 10 − 3 to 3 × 10 − 2 mol / l by passing a direct current through it , while a gold plated product serves as the anode . while prior art 1 employs a solution containing one or more mercaptobenzothiazole derivatives at a concentration of 10 to 1 , 000 ppm , this invention preferably employs a solution containing mercaptobenzothiazole or a derivative thereof at a concentration not lower than 6 × 10 − 3 mol / l to form a dense film on the whole surface of a gold film , and not higher than 3 × 10 − 2 mol / l to ensure the stability of the solution . for example , a sodium salt of mercaptobenzo - thiazole may be contained in a solution at a concentration of 1 , 135 to 5 , 677 ppm . the solution preferably has a ph of 9 . 0 to 11 . 0 to ensure the rapid formation of a proper film . its ph of at least 9 . 0 ensures the conversion of mercaptobenzothiazole or its derivative to a thiol type compound . its ph not exceeding 11 . 0 ensures that no hydroxyl ion be adsorbed to the surface of the gold film and hinder mercaptobenzothiazole or its derivative from combining with gold . the electrolysis is preferably carried out by applying a voltage of 0 to 1v between the electrodes , while using the gold film as the anode , so that mercaptobenzothiazole or its derivative may effectively combine with gold . the application of any voltage higher than 1v is undesirable , since an undesirable variation in contact resistance is likely to result from the deposition of dissolved nickel or copper on the surface of the gold film , or its combination with mercaptobenzothiazole or its derivative to form a salt protruding from any pinhole . moreover , the film 29 covering the whole surface of the gold film 19 prevents any so 2 and no 2 from contacting it and reacting to produce on it any ammonium sulfate that would bring about an elevation in contact resistance . the invention will now be described in further detail based on specific examples embodying it . phosphor bronze for springs ( c5210 - h ) is pressed in the form of a coupon having a thickness of 0 . 3 mm and wound in a reel . the coupon was plated in a reel - to - reel continuous electroplating line . after degreasing and pickling , it was plated with a nickel layer having a thickness of about 2 μm in a sulfamic acid bath , and a gold - cobalt alloy layer formed thereon and having a thickness of about 0 . 1 μm . its treatment for protection against corrosion was thereafter given in the same line . then , the coupon was cut to form contact samples . each sample was tested for its contact resistance and for its corrosion resistance . its contact resistance was determined by pressing a gold plated probe of a pt - ir alloy under a load of 50 g at an open - circuit voltage of 20 mv at 10 ma . its corrosion resistance was determined by conducting a sulfurous anhydride test ( so 2 ) in an acidic gas containing 10 ± 3 ppm at 40 ± 2 ° c . and a high humidity for 240 hours in accordance with jeida - 39 , and a salt spray test with a 5 % nacl solution at 350 ° c . for 48 hours in accordance with mil - std - 202 , method 101 , condition b . the results are shown in table 1 . table 1 also shows the results of comparative samples nos . 4 to 6 . sample no . 4 had a chromic acid film formed by electrolysis from a commercially available discoloration preventing agent containing chromic acid . samples nos . 5 and 6 were coated with a commercially available diester oil and a commercially available poly - α - olefin oil , respectively , by direct spraying . the initial contact resistance was measured of each sample at 10 points , and compared with the results of a sample to which no treatment had been given . in table 1 , the results are shown by the symbol “∘” meaning a difference not greater than 2 mω , “ δ ,” meaning a difference not greater than 4 mω , and “×” meaning a difference greater than 4 mω . the results of the sulfurous anhydride and salt spray tests were obtained by examining the appearance of the sample through an optical microscope of 10 magnifications . in table 1 , the results are shown by the symbol “∘” meaning the absence of any corrosion product , “ δ ” meaning the presence of a small amount of a corrosion product , and “×” meaning the presence of a large amount of a corrosion product . as is obvious from table 1 , samples nos . 1 to 3 embodying this invention were superior to the comparative samples in the results of the intial resistance and sulfurous anhydride tests , and comparable to them in the results of the salt spray tests . | 2 |
hereafter , description will be given to embodiments of the invention with reference to the drawings . in the following description of embodiments , the following cases will be taken as an example : cases where of two elements that construct an antenna , the internal element disposed inside the spirally extended external element at a distance between them is in such a shape that it is spirally extended in the direction of the axis of the external element . fig1 a and 1b are drawings illustrating a schematic configuration of an antenna held by an antenna holder in this embodiment . fig1 a is a perspective view , and fig1 b is a side view . fig1 a and 1b show the antenna as is not held by an antenna holder in the present embodiment and is mounted on a circuit board . with such a construction that radio waves in ranges , such as uhf and vhf bands , of relatively long wavelengths ( several tens of centimeters to several meters ) are used as in radio equipment ( e . g . keyless receivers ) used in vehicles , dwelling , or the like , the physical size of the radio equipment is governed by the size of antennas . an antenna 100 shown in fig1 a and 1b is so constructed that using two elements , one as a signal wire and the other as a ground wire , an internal element 120 is disposed inside the spirally extended external element 110 at a distance between them . the internal element 120 is formed in such a shape that it is spirally extended in the direction of the axis of an external element 110 . by forming the internal element 120 in a spiral shape as mentioned above , the band can be narrowed and the gain of the antenna can be enhanced . with substantially the same antenna gain , therefore , the antenna can be reduced in physical size more than the antenna 100 having a liner internal element 120 . in this manner , the physical size of radio equipment can be reduced . refer to japanese patent application no . jp - 2005 - 188513 for technical detail of the size reduction . in an antenna 100 of so - called dipole structure in which an internal element 120 is disposed inside a spirally extended external element 110 at a distance between them as illustrated in fig1 a and 1b , the positional relation between the two elements 110 , 120 is indispensable to the performance ( resonance characteristic ) of the antenna 100 . for example , when a distance d 3 between the opposite areas of the two elements 110 , 120 is varied , the capacitance of a capacitor formed between the opposite areas of the two elements 110 , 120 is varied . therefore , the resonance frequency is varied , and the radiation characteristic is influenced . further , a component in the direction perpendicular to a circuit board 10 contributes to the radiation characteristic . therefore , when the inclination of an element 110 , 120 in the direction perpendicular to the circuit board 10 is varied , the distance between the opposite areas of the elements 110 , 120 ( in the direction of height ) is varied . ( that is , when heights l 1 , l 2 of an element 110 , 120 from the board surface is varied , the distance between the opposite areas of the elements 110 , 120 ( in the direction of height ) is varied .) as a result , the radiation characteristic is influenced . in cases where an antenna 100 is directly mounted on the circuit board 10 provided with an amplifier circuit or the like , the measures illustrated in fig1 a and 1b , for example , are taken . that is , ends of the two elements 110 , 120 on one side are inserted into through holes formed in the circuit board 10 , and electrically connected with wirings ( lands ), not shown , provided on the back surface opposite the surface of the circuit board 10 where the antenna is disposed through solder . therefore , the two elements 110 , 120 must be individually mounted on the circuit board 10 , and it is difficult to bring the two elements 110 , 120 into desired positional relation when they are mounted . ( that is , it is difficult to set the distance d 3 to a predetermined value and to ensure the perpendicularity of ( the central axis of ) each of the elements 110 , 120 to the circuit board 10 .) especially , since the two elements 110 , 120 are both spiral , it is difficult to bring them into desired positional relation . in fig1 b , numeral 130 denotes a feeding point , or contact with wiring , at an end of the internal element 120 , and numeral 131 denotes a ground point , or contact with wiring , at an end of the external element 110 . actually , the feeding point 130 and the ground point 131 are periodically switched by a high - frequency current passed through both the elements 110 , 120 . the drawings show the numerals as are fixed for the sake of convenience . each element 110 , 120 is fixed on the circuit board 10 only at one end thereof ( feeding point 130 , ground point 131 ). therefore , even if desired positional relation is obtained when they are mounted , the elements 110 , 120 are prone to have runout because of vibration produced in a use environment ( e . g . in a vehicle - mounted environment ). that is , it is difficult to hold the two elements 110 , 120 in desired positional relation in a use environment . since the two elements 110 , 120 must be individually mounted on the circuit board 10 , a number of man - hours required for mounting is increased . meanwhile , an antenna holder in this embodiment brings the following advantage when an antenna 100 so constructed that an internal element 120 is disposed inside a spirally extended external element 110 at a distance between them is mounted on a circuit board 10 : the performance of the antenna 100 is maintained , and the easiness of mounting it on the circuit board 10 is enhanced . fig2 is a perspective view illustrating the schematic configuration of an antenna holder in this embodiment . fig3 a and 3a are drawings illustrating a structure in which an antenna 100 is mounted on a circuit board 10 . fig3 a is a side view , and fig3 b is a sectional view . the antenna 100 held by the antenna holder in this embodiment is an antenna 100 so constructed as illustrated in fig1 a and 1b . more specific description will be given . an external element 110 and an internal element 120 are both constructed using a wire 1 . 2 mm in diameter . with the height from the board surface set to a predetermined value l 1 (= l 2 ), the external element and the internal element are wound as follows . the external element 10 is plurally wound ( e . g . six turns ) with a predetermined inside diameter d 1 ( e . g . 14 mm ) and a predetermined pitch p 1 ( e . g . 3 mm ) so that an electrical length ( half wavelength ) for resonance at a predetermined frequency is ensured . the internal element 120 is also plurally wound ( e . g . nine turns ) with a predetermined inside diameter d 2 ( e . g ., 1 . 5 mm ) smaller than d 1 and a predetermined pitch p 2 ( e . g ., 1 . 3 mm ). as illustrated in fig2 and fig3 a and 3b , an antenna holder 200 includes at least the following : a distance maintaining section 210 that keeps the opposition distance d 3 between the external element 110 and the internal element 120 at a predetermined value ; and an external inclination suppressing section 220 that suppresses the inclination of the central axis of the external element 110 in the direction orthogonal to the surface of the circuit board 10 . any material can be adopted as the material for constructing the antenna holder 200 as long as it is an electrical insulation material . a material whose relative dielectric constant is as small as possible ( the resulting wavelength shortening effect is small ) and whose dielectric dissipation factor , which has influence on the antenna performance , is small is more desirable . in this embodiment , the antenna holder is integrally molded using a synthetic resin whose relative dielectric constant is 3 or so . the distance maintaining section 210 is constructed of an external fitting portion 211 and an internal fitting portion 212 disposed on one surface of a flat ( disk shape in this embodiment ) base portion 201 at a predetermined distance between them . the external fitting portion 211 is fit to part of the spiral of the external element 110 , and the internal fitting portion 212 is fit to part of the spiral of the internal element 120 . for example , the external fitting portion 211 is formed by providing a protruded portion 211 a formed on the base portion 201 with a groove portion 211 b in line with the spiral of the corresponding external element 110 . the groove portion 211 b is so formed that the width ( corresponding to the diameter of the external element 110 ) of the opening ( upper part ) for inserting the external element 110 is slightly smaller than the diameter of the external element 110 as illustrated in fig2 and fig3 b . at the same time , the groove portion is so formed that the size of its lower part communicating with the insertion opening is substantially equal to or slightly larger than the diameter of the external element 110 . the groove portion 211 b is provided at a predetermined height from the board surface according to the position in which the external element 110 should be held . for example , by applying a little stress to the external element 110 , the external element 110 is fit into the groove portion 211 b , and thus the external element 110 can be positioned at a predetermined height from the board surface . the internal fitting portion 212 is different only in element 120 to be fit in it , and has the same construction as the external fitting portion 212 . the opposition distance between the external fitting portion 211 and the internal fitting portion 212 is set to a predetermined value at which the antenna can offer a desired antenna characteristic ( resonance characteristic ). therefore , when elements 110 , 120 are fit to the corresponding fitting portions 211 , 212 , the distance d 3 between the opposite areas of the external element 110 and the internal element 120 can be set to a predetermined value . also , after the elements are fit , the distance d 3 can be maintained by the fitting portions 211 , 212 . in this embodiment , three external fitting portions 211 and one internal fitting portion 212 are provided . provision of multiple fitting portions makes it possible to hold the corresponding element 110 ( 120 ) in different positions in the direction of height from the circuit board 10 . this also contributes to the maintenance of perpendicularity to the circuit board 10 , and the perpendicularity can also be maintained depending on disposition ( the distance maintaining section 210 also functions as , for example , the external inclination suppressing section 220 ). however , there is no special limitation on the number of fitting portions 211 , 212 . with respect to each kind of fitting portion , one or more fitting portions only have to be provided . also , the configuration of each fitting portion 211 , 212 is not limited to the foregoing . the external inclination suppressing section 220 is so constructed that the following is implemented : it is protruded from the distance maintaining section formation surface of the base portion 201 ; and it is in contact with the spiral inner circumferential portion or spiral outer circumferential portion of the external element 110 throughout a predetermined range in the direction orthogonal to the circuit board ( the direction of height from the surface of the circuit board ). in this embodiment , the external inclination suppressing section 220 is so constructed that it includes the following : an annular portion 221 that has a predetermined height from the base portion 201 and the outer circumferential surface of which is in contact with the spiral inner circumferential portion of the external element 110 ( that is , the diameter of the outer circumferential surface of which is equal to the inside diameter d 1 of the external element 110 ); and a connecting groove 222 that is provided in the annular portion 221 and connects an inner radius area in which the internal element 120 is disposed and an outer radius area in which the external element 110 is disposed . however , the external inclination suppressing section 220 may be constructed without the connecting groove 222 ( with only the annular portion 221 provided ). the larger the range ( contact length ) of contact with the external element 110 in the direction of height is , the more the external inclination suppressing section 220 can suppress the inclination ( runout ) of the central axis of the external element 110 due to vibration or the like . as mentioned above , however , the relative dielectric constant of a material that constructs the antenna holder 200 has influence on the antenna performance . specifically , depending on relative dielectric constant , the wavelength of a high - frequency current passed through the external element 110 is shortened and the resonance frequency is shifted to a low value . to return the shifted resonance frequency to a high value , it is required to cut the external element 110 to shorten its overall length . in this case , the electrical length ( component perpendicular to the circuit board 10 ) is shortened , and this results in a degraded radiation characteristic . therefore , it is desirable that the height of the external inclination suppressing section 220 from the base portion 201 should be ⅓ or so of the height l 1 of the external element 110 from the board surface from both the viewpoints of vibration suppression and antenna performance . in this embodiment , the height of the external inclination suppressing section 220 from the base portion 201 is set to ⅓ or so of the height l 1 . in addition to the above - mentioned distance maintaining section 210 and external inclination suppressing section 220 , the antenna holder 200 in this embodiment includes the following : an internal inclination suppressing section 230 that suppresses the inclination of the central axis of the internal element 120 in the direction orthogonal to the surface of the circuit board 10 ; and a connecting position defining section 240 that defines the positional relation between the ends ( feeding point 130 and ground point 131 ) of the two elements 110 , 120 to be connected with the wirings . the internal inclination suppressing section 230 is so formed that the following is implemented : it is protruded from the external inclination suppressing section formation surface of the base portion 201 ; and it is in contact with the internal element 120 throughout a predetermined range in the direction orthogonal to the circuit board 10 ( the direction of height from the surface of the circuit board ). in this embodiment , the internal inclination suppressing section 230 is formed in a columnar shape so that the following is implemented : it has a predetermined height from the base portion 201 ; and its outer circumferential surface is in contact with the spiral inner circumferential portion of the internal element 120 ( that is , the diameter of its outer circumferential surface is substantially equal to the inside diameter d 2 of the internal element 120 ). further , the internal inclination suppressing section 230 is so formed that the center of the column that constructs it agrees with the center of the above - mentioned annular portion 221 that constructs the external inclination suppressing section 220 in the direction of the plane of the circuit board 10 . that is , when the elements 110 , 120 are assembled to the antenna holder 200 , the central axis of the external element 110 agrees with the central axis of the internal element 120 . the internal element 120 is disposed inside the spirally extended external element 110 at a predetermined distance between them . for this reason , the internal element 120 is less prone to have an inclination ( runout ) in the direction orthogonal to the surface of the circuit board due to vibration or the like as compared with the external element 110 . therefore , the internal inclination suppressing section 230 is not an element indispensable to the antenna holder 200 . however , provision of the internal inclination suppressing section 230 makes it possible to suppress the inclination of the internal element 120 without fail because it is in contact with the circuit board 10 only at one end ( e . g ., feeding point 130 ). in cases where the shape of the internal element 120 is spiral , an inclination ( runout ) is especially prone to occur as compared with linear internal elements , as described above in relation to this embodiment . therefore , it is desirable that the antenna holder should be so constructed that it also includes the internal inclination suppressing section 230 . also , with respect to the internal inclination suppressing section 230 , the larger the range ( contact length ) of contact with the internal element 120 in the direction of height is , the more it can suppress the inclination ( runout ) of the central axis of the internal element 120 due to vibration or the like . from both the viewpoints of vibration suppression and antenna performance , however , it is desirable that the following measure should be taken as with the external inclination suppressing section 220 : the height of the internal inclination suppressing section 230 from the base portion 201 is set to ⅓ or so of the height l 2 of the internal element 120 from the board surface . in this embodiment , the height of the internal inclination suppressing section 230 from the base portion 201 is set to ⅓ or so of the height l 2 . the connecting position defining section 240 is a section that defines the positions of one ends of the two elements 110 , 120 ( feeding point 130 and ground point 131 ) so that they are respectively connected with the corresponding wirings . in this embodiment , an external through hole 241 and an internal through hole 242 are formed in the base portion 201 , and these through holes 241 , 242 are taken as the connecting position defining section 240 . the following is an example of the procedure for mounting an antenna 100 on a circuit board 10 using an antenna holder 200 constructed as mentioned above . each of the elements 110 , 120 is so constructed that its predetermined area extended from the end on the side where it is mounted on the circuit board 10 is linear and the remaining area is spiral . the antenna 100 is assembled to the antenna holder 200 in advance . first , the spiral inner circumferential portion of the internal element 120 is guided along the outer circumferential surface of the internal inclination suppressing section 230 . while this is being done , the end of the internal element 120 to be connected with the wiring of the circuit board 10 as an insertion end is inserted into the internal through hole 242 formed in the base portion 201 . the internal element 120 is inserted until its spiral portion is brought into contact with the surface ( external inclination suppressing section formation surface ) of the base portion 201 . the length of the linear portion of the internal element 120 , the thickness of the circuit board 10 , and the thickness of the base portion 201 are preset so that the following is implemented : when the antenna is assembled to the circuit board 10 as described later with the spiral portion of the internal element in contact with the surface of the base portion 201 , the end of the internal element 120 is exposed in the back surface of the circuit board 10 . thus , the end of the internal element can be connected with the wiring by solder . part of the spiral portion of the internal element 120 is fit to the internal fitting portion 212 by pressure arising from this inserting operation . this completes the assembling of the internal element 120 to the antenna holder 200 . in this state , the spiral inner circumferential portion of the internal element 120 is in contact with the outer circumferential surface of the internal inclination suppressing section 230 . further , ( the central axis of ) the internal element 120 is held substantially perpendicular to the surface of the base portion 201 . next , the spiral inner circumferential portion of the external element 110 is guided along the outer circumferential surface of the external inclination suppressing section 220 . while this is being done , the end of the external element 110 to be connected with the wiring of the circuit board 10 as an insertion end is inserted into the external through hole 241 formed in the base portion 201 . the external element 110 is inserted until its spiral portion is brought into contact with the surface ( external inclination suppressing section formation surface ) of the base portion 201 . the length of the linear portion of the external element 110 , the thickness of the circuit board 10 , and the thickness of the base portion 201 are preset so that the following is implemented : when the antenna is assembled to the circuit board 10 as described later with the spiral portion of the external element in contact with the surface of the base portion 201 , the end of the external element 110 is exposed in the back surface of the circuit board 10 . thus , the end of the external element can be connected with the wiring by solder . part of the spiral portion of the external element 110 is fit to the external fitting portion 211 by pressure arising from this inserting operation . this completes the assembling of the external element 110 to the antenna holder 200 , that is , the assembling of the antenna 100 to the antenna holder 200 . in this state , the spiral inner circumferential portion of the external element 110 is in contact with the outer circumferential surface of the external inclination suppressing section 220 . further , ( the central axis of ) the external element 110 is held substantially perpendicular to the surface of the base portion 201 . the external element 110 is fit to the external fitting portion 211 and the internal element 120 is fit to the internal fitting portion 212 , and the distance d 3 between the opposite areas of the two elements 110 , 120 is kept at a predetermined value . the antenna 100 constructed of the two elements 110 , 120 assembled into one by the antenna holder 200 is mounted on the circuit board 10 in whole . specifically , the ends exposed from the base portion 201 are inserted into the corresponding through holes in the circuit board 10 until the back surface of the base portion 210 is brought into contact with the surface of the circuit board 10 . when the back surface of the base portion 201 is in contact with the surface of the circuit board 10 , the ends ( feeding point 130 , ground point 131 ) of the individual elements 110 , 120 are exposed in the back surface of the circuit board 10 opposite the antenna holder mounting surface . the exposed ends and the wirings ( lands ) provided on the surface of the circuit board around the through holes are joined with each other by solder . this completes the mounting of the antenna 100 on the circuit board 10 . in this mounting state , the central axes of the spirals of the two elements 110 , 120 are held substantially perpendicular to the surface of the circuit board 10 by the external inclination suppressing section 220 and the internal inclination suppressing section 230 . further , the distance d 3 between the opposite areas of the two elements 110 , 120 is kept at a predetermined value by the external fitting portion 211 and the internal fitting portion 212 . according to the invention , as mentioned above , the following is implemented : the antenna 100 can be mounted on the circuit board 10 with the distance d 3 between the two elements 110 , 120 kept at a predetermined value by the external fitting portion 211 and internal fitting portion 212 that construct the distance maintaining section 210 ; and also after the antenna is mounted , the distance d 3 can be kept at a predetermined value . further , the antenna 100 can be mounted on the circuit board 10 so that the central axis of the external element 110 is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the circuit board , by the external inclination suppressing section 220 . also after the antenna is mounted , the perpendicularity can be maintained . therefore , with the antenna 100 mounted on the circuit board 10 , the two elements 110 , 120 can be held in desired positional relation . in other words , the certain performance of the antenna can be maintained . further , it is possible to assemble the antenna 100 constructed of the two elements 110 , 120 into one by the antenna holder 200 , and to mount the assembly on the circuit board 10 in whole . in other words , the easiness of mounting the antenna 100 on the circuit board 10 can be enhanced . in this embodiment , further , it is possible to mount the antenna 100 on the circuit board 10 so that the central axis of the internal element 120 is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the circuit board , by the internal inclination suppressing section 230 . also after the antenna is mounted , the perpendicularity can be maintained . therefore , the certain performance of the antenna can be more reliably maintained . in this embodiment , the positional relation between the ends to be connected with the wirings of the circuit board 10 can be reliably defined by the external through hole 241 and internal through hole 242 that construct the connecting position defining section 240 . therefore , the easiness of mounting the antenna 100 on the circuit board 10 can be further enhanced . in the description of this embodiment , a case where the antenna holder 200 is disposed in proximity to the ends of the two elements 110 , 120 to be electrically connected with the wirings of the circuit board 10 has been taken as an example . in an area closer to the joints ( feeding point 130 , ground point 131 ) between the ends of the two elements 110 , 120 and the wirings provided on the circuit board 10 , a more intensive current is passed through the elements 110 , 120 . such an area is low in impedance and is electrically stable . that is , though the antenna holder 200 is so constructed that the inclination suppressing sections 220 , 230 are in contact with the corresponding elements 110 , 120 throughout a predetermined range in the direction orthogonal to the circuit board 10 , the relative dielectric constant of the holder 200 has less influence on the resonance frequency . with an identical resonance frequency , therefore , the electrical length ( e . g ., the number of turns of the external element 110 ) of the elements 110 , 120 can be accordingly earned , and an inductance component that contributes to radiation can be ensured . in the description of this embodiment , a case where the base portion 201 is disposed on the circuit board 10 has been taken as an example . therefore , when the antenna is mounted , the inclination of the elements 110 , 120 can be more reliably suppressed than in such a mounting structure that the antenna holder 200 is lifted from the circuit board 10 . in addition to disposing the base portion 201 on the surface of the circuit board 10 in contact , it may be secured using , for example , adhesive . thus , it is possible to reduce the stress that acts on the joints ( feeding point 130 , ground point 131 ) between the ends of the elements 110 , 120 and the wirings . that is , the reliability of connection can be enhanced . in the description of this embodiment , a case where the inclination suppressing sections 220 , 230 are so constructed that the central axis of the internal element 120 agrees with the central axis of the external element 110 has been taken as an example . when the antenna is mounted , in this case , the opposite area of the internal element 120 and that of the external element 110 are equal to each other in height in the axial direction when the internal element 120 is positioned in the center ; therefore , the antenna gain can be increased . instead , the external element 110 and the internal element 120 may be disposed with the central axis of the internal element 120 misaligned from the central axis of the external element 110 to the extent that the antenna gain is not significantly reduced . even to this construction , the antenna holder 200 described in this embodiment can be applied . in the description of this embodiment , a case where the internal element 120 is assembled to the antenna holder 200 before the external element 110 is assembled has been taken as an example . instead , the internal element 120 may be assembled after the external element 110 is assembled , or they may be simultaneously assembled . description will be given to a second embodiment of the invention with reference to fig4 a and 4b . fig4 a and 4b are drawings illustrating a structure in which an antenna 100 in a second embodiment of the invention is mounted on a circuit board 10 . fig4 a is a side view , and fig4 b is a sectional view . there are many commonalities between an antenna holder 200 in the second embodiment and the antenna holder 200 described in relation to the first embodiment . therefore , the detailed description of the commonalities will be omitted below , and description will be given mainly to differences . in this embodiment , as illustrated in fig4 a and 4b , the antenna holder 200 described in relation to the first embodiment is so disposed that it holds the ends of the two elements 110 , 120 on the side where they are not connected with the wirings of the circuit board 10 . that is , the antenna holder in this embodiment holds the antenna 100 in such a state that the antenna is lifted from the circuit board 10 . unlike the two elements 110 , 120 described in relation to the first embodiment , the two elements 110 , 120 in this embodiment are so constructed that the following is implemented : not only their predetermined areas extended from the ends on the side where they are connected with the wirings of the circuit board 10 are linear . but also their predetermined areas extended from the ends on the side where they are not connected with the wirings are constructed as linear portions 111 , 121 as illustrated in fig4 b . the remaining areas are constructed as spiral portions 112 , 122 as illustrated in the same drawing . the assembling of the antenna 100 to the antenna holder 20 is different from that in the first embodiment in the following : the end of each element on the side where it is not connected with the corresponding wiring is inserted as an insertion end into an external through hole 241 ( internal through hole 242 ) formed in a base portion 201 . the end of each element is inserted until its spiral portion is brought into contact with the surface ( external inclination suppressing section formation surface ) of the base portion 201 . then , the antenna 100 constructed of the two elements 110 , 120 assembled into one by the antenna holder 200 is mounted on the circuit board 10 in whole . specifically , the ends that are not held by the antenna holder 200 , on the side where the elements are connected with the wirings are respectively inserted into corresponding through holes formed in the circuit board 10 . the antenna holder is so constructed that when the spiral portions 112 , 122 are inserted and brought into contact with the surface of the circuit board 10 , the individual ends are exposed in the back surface of the circuit board 10 . the spiral portions 112 , 122 of the two elements 110 , 120 are substantially perpendicular to the linear portions 111 , 121 at their portions bent from the linear portions 111 , 121 inserted into the through holes in the circuit board 10 . therefore , by bringing the spiral portions 112 , 122 into contact with the surface of the circuit board 10 , the perpendicularity of the antenna 100 to the circuit board 10 can be ensured . with the perpendicularity ensured , the ends exposed in the back surface of the circuit board 10 and the wirings ( lands ) provided on the surface of the circuit board around the through holes are joined with each other by solder . also , with the construction in this embodiment , as mentioned above , the same or similar effect as with the construction described in relation to the first embodiment can be expected . in the description of this embodiment , a case where the two elements 110 , 120 are held by the antenna holder 200 in proximity to their ends that are not connected with the wirings of the circuit board 10 has been taken as an example . instead , the antenna holder 200 may be so constructed that the two elements 110 , 120 are held in their intermediate areas . although the present invention has been fully described in connection with the preferred embodiment thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings , it is to be noted that various changes and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art . for example , the internal element 120 may be in a linear shape or other shape instead of the spiral shape . the distance maintaining section 210 ( the internal fitting portion 212 ) and the internal inclination suppressing section 230 may accordingly be formed . that is , the internal element 120 having the linear shape may be supported at its external surface by a part that serves as the internal inclination suppressing section 230 , and the same part may serve as the external inclination suppressing section 210 by supporting the spiral inner circumferential portion of the external element 110 with its external surface . further , the internal inclination suppressing section 230 may be in contact with the spiral external circumferential portion of the internal element 120 instead of the spiral internal circumferential portion thereof for suppressing the runout of the internal element 120 . furthermore , the external inclination suppressing section 220 may be in contact with the spiral external circumferential portion of the external element 110 instead of the spiral internal circumferential portion thereof for suppressing the runout of the external element 110 . furthermore , the total electrical length of the external element 110 and the internal element 120 may be different from the half wavelength of the radio wave in use . that is , the total electrical length may be a length that can resonate with the radio wave in use . furthermore , the external element 110 and the internal element 120 may have different height as opposed to the case shown in the above embodiment . furthermore , the antenna 100 may be applied to a different apparatus such as a transmitter or the like beside being applicable to the keyless receiver . such changes and modifications are to be understood as being within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims . | 7 |
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