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in petroleum asphalt produced by refining crude oil , the crude oil is passed through fractionators ( e . g . vacuum distillation tower ) which produce a variety of products including gasoline , diesel oil , fuel oils , etc . the asphalt bottoms or residue from the vacuum distillation is passed through at least one heat exchanger and discharged to storage and maintained in a heated condition ( above 170 ° c .) to permit handling . a certain amount of h 2 s is generally present in the bottoms because of thermal cracking of the feed crude . the h 2 s generated is a function of temperature , the higher the bottom temperature , the more h 2 s generated . some feed crudes produce more h 2 s than others , even at the same temperature . in some operations , the vacuum distillation tower is operated at a lower temperature by recycling a portion of the cooled residue to the tower . this reduces the amount of h 2 s produced from thermal cracking . however , as discussed above , it is more efficient to operate at higher residue temperatures -- more energy is available for heating incoming crude in the heat exchanger and higher asphalt throughput is possible . in accordance with the present invention , it has been discovered that by injecting certain oil soluble metal organic salts into the hot asphalt residue from the distillation unit prior to the asphalt residue reaching storage , the h 2 s dissolved in the asphalt is converted to stable sulfides . the salts of alkylarylcarboxylic acids or alkyl carboxylic acids having from 6 to 24 , preferably 6 to 12 carbon atoms , may be used . the preferred organic salts are naphthenates carboxylates having from 6 to 12 carbon atoms . the preferred metals are zinc , iron , copper , zirconium , cobalt , nickel , and sodium , with zinc and iron being most preferred . the compounds that have exhibited good performance in laboratory experiments are copper , iron , zinc , and zirconium naphthanates and zinc octoate . in order to disperse the metal organic salt in the asphalt , it is necessary to employ a diluent or solvent . the solvent should have a flash point above the temperature of use of the organic salt . a refined oil such as esso petroleum &# 39 ; s stanco 90 or stanco 600 has proven satisfactory . the concentration of the metal salt in the solvent may vary within a wide range . concentrations in the range of 1 to 20 %, preferably 1 to 10 %, should be satisfactory for most operations . in preferred operations , the metal organic salt is introduced in the residue effluent line of the refining operation prior to the asphalt reaching storage . the residue leaves the tower at above 300 °, and is pumped through at least one heat exchanger ( crude heater ) and cooled to a temperature of 200 ° to 250 ° c . the pumping pressures is at about 2 to 6 bars . in a preferred operations , a second heat exchanger ( water box cooler ) in series with the first heat exchanger , further cools the asphalt to 180 °- 210 ° c . range . upstream of the box cooler and downstream of the crude heater , a quench loop line interconnects the asphalt line to the distillation tower to permit recycling a portion of the cooled asphalt residue stream . at the point of organic salt introduction , the h 2 s should be dissolved in the asphalt ( e . g . prior to gas evolution ) and the temperature should be above 180 ° c ., preferably above 190 ° c ., and most preferably above 200 c . it is preferred that the metal organic salt be introduced at a location upstream of the last heat exchanger ( box cooler ). this pressure at this point will ensure no h 2 s evolution , and allow sufficient agitation and time for the salt to disperse in the hot asphalt . the temperature at this location will normally be between about 200 ° and 250 ° c . in operation , the metal organic salt in a suitable solvent will be introduced into the asphalt in a concentration wherein the presence of the metal ion is as follows : broadly 0 . 0005 to 1 wt . %, preferred range 0 . 005 to 0 . 5 wt .%, most preferred range 0 . 05 to 0 . 5 wt . % based on the weight of the asphalt composition including the organic salt . generally , from 1 to 3 ppm of metal ion for each 3 ppm of h 2 s in the asphalt is sufficient . the treatment should be sufficient to reduce the residue h 2 s in the asphalt to between 2 and 50 ppm . it is well known that hot asphalt evolves hydrogen sulfide and that as a result precautions have to be taken when large volumes of hot asphalt are being handled . there is , however , very little published information available on the effects of time and temperature on h 2 s evolution or on the comparative behavior of asphalt from various crude sources ; nor is there a laboratory test that can be used to predict h 2 s levels that may be encountered during normal asphalt operations . to fill this gap a simple laboratory test for measuring h 2 s evolution has been devised and the h 2 s evolution characteristics of several types of asphalt have been measured . test method : the test entails heating a specified weight of asphalt in a sealed conical flask at the required test temperature for the required time , and then after cooling , the h 2 s concentration in the vapour space is measured by means of a drager tube . full details of the test method are described below . effect of temperature : to determine the effect of temperatures on h 2 s evolution tests have been carried out on penetration grade asphalt from five different crude sources . the asphalt samples were tested after 2 hours storage at temperatures ranging from 130 ° c . - 190 ° c . the results obtained ( in ppm h 2 s ) are given in table i below : table i______________________________________crude sourcetesttemp ° c . a b c d e______________________________________130 0 -- 5 -- 5145 0 5 10 -- 10160 0 10 15 15 45175 25 20 30 40 90190 70 70 70 70 250______________________________________ from these results it can be seen that with one exception ( crude e ) asphalt from the crude sources under examination show very similar temperature / h 2 s characteristics . the increase in h 2 s with increased temperature is believed to be due in part to thermal cracking of the asphalt . effect of time : samples a and b were tested to determine the effect of time at a constant temperature ( 175 ° c .) on h 2 s evolution . the results are presented in table ii . these tests demonstrate that weathering asphalts can produce unsafe levels in the storage vapor space because of the accumulation of h 2 s . table ii______________________________________effect of time on h . sub . 2 s evolution at 175 ° c . ( ppm h . sub . 2 s ). time ( hrs ) crude a crude b______________________________________1 10 552 25 -- 3 30 606 40 40______________________________________ experiments were carried out to determine the effects of adding an organic salt in accordance with the present invention on the evolution of h 2 s from hot asphalt . the test procedure was as follows : ( a ) a given amount of an organic salt is added to a 100 gram sample of asphalt contained in a 500 ml flask ; insert drechsel head in flask and place in an oven maintained at 190 ° c ; ( b ) after 2 hours , remove flask from oven and allow to cool to below 60 ° c . ; ( d ) attach a separating funnel with known volume of mineral oil to drechsel head ; ( e ) displace vapor in flask with 200 ml mineral oil ; vapor flows in drager tube ; ( g ) calculate h 2 s in ppm : 100 × drager tube reading × 50 the constants &# 34 ; 100 &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; 50 &# 34 ; are functions of the particular tube calibration range . other h 2 s measurement methods are possible . the following organic salts and solvents were used in the experiments . ______________________________________organic salt solvent______________________________________cn copper naphthanate x toluenein iron naphthanate y aromatic solvent . sup . 1zn zinc naphthanate commercial gradezo zinc octoate z heavy base . sup . 2zrn zirconium naphthanate refined oil______________________________________ . sup . 1 marketed by exxon chemical company as solvesso 150 ( flash point 65 . 6 ° c .) . sup . 2 marketed by exxon chemical company as stanco 90 ( flash point 24 ° c .) or stanco 600 ( flash point 264 ° c .) experiments on h 2 s evolution using various asphalt samples were run with and without the metal organic salts . the test method was in accordance with the procedure described above . table iii presents the results . table iii______________________________________additive : wt % organic wt % additive h . sup . 2 s ( ppm ) test salt / metal in in no withno . solvent additive asphalt treatment treatment______________________________________1 cn / y 2 0 . 5 1300 402 in / y 2 0 . 5 1300 153 zn / x 9 0 . 5 1300 04 in / z 2 0 . 5 1300 225 in / z 2 0 . 1 1300 7506 zn / x 9 0 . 1 1300 07 zo / z 8 0 . 1 2000 4208 zo / z 8 0 . 05 2000 11509 zo / z 8 0 . 01 2000 175010 in / z 8 0 . 10 1650 3511 in / z 8 0 . 05 1650 19012 in / z 8 0 . 01 1650 125013 zrn / z 2 0 . 5 1300 870______________________________________ based on the data of table iii , the preferred organic salts are iron and zinc naphthanates and octoates . these salts are oil soluble , readily available , and effective for purposes of this invention .	2
[ 0024 ] fig1 illustrates a method for forming a dielectric layer according to one embodiment of the present invention . a silicon - containing layer or precursor layer is deposited over a substrate at block 101 . the silicon - containing layer includes material from a silazane or silane source such as , but not limited to hexamethyldisilazane ( hmds ). a dielectric layer is formed by processing the silicon - containing layer in a reactive ambient 102 . the reactive ambient can be comprised of , but not limited to , nh 3 , n 2 , o 2 , o 3 , n 2 o and no . the reactive ambient causes silicon atoms from the silicon - containing layer to react with oxygen atom , nitrogen atoms or both . the dielectric layer is primarily nitride , primarily oxide or oxynitride depending on whether the reactive ambient is nitridizing , oxidizing or nitridizing and oxidizing . generally , conventional dielectric layers are processed using temperature ranges of 700 ° c . to 1050 ° c ., processing time of 10 seconds to 60 minutes , and processing pressure of 760 torr . whereas , the dielectric layer of the present invention is typically processed using temperature ranges of 500 ° c . to 900 ° c ., processing time of 30 seconds to 5 minutes , and processing pressure of 450 torr . however , with silicon sources such as hmds , the time is not critical because they are self limiting sources . it is contemplated that variations to these ranges may also result in suitable dielectric layer formation . [ 0026 ] fig2 illustrates a method of fabricating a silicon - nitride dielectric layer . a wafer is cleaned using hydrofluoric acid ( hf ) or any other suitable cleaning technique 201 . a silicon - containing material , is vapor deposited over the wafer 202 from a silicon source such as hmds . the silicon - containing material can be deposited using a vapor priming ( vp ) step . conventionally , vapor priming is one method that has been used , for example , to minimize the amount of photoresist needed during a patterning process . the vapor prime helps “ pre - wet ” the semiconductor wafer and allows photoresist to flow out more smoothly , and thus more homogeneously . a dielectric layer is fabricated by rapid thermal nitridization ( rtn ) of the deposited material in an ammonia nitrogen ( nh 3 ) ambient 203 . the resulting dielectric layer is primarily nitride . table 3a split wafers vp rtn dielectric thickness 301 2 — 850 ° c . nitride 45 å 302 4 , 16 — — nitride 45 å 303 6 , 18 — — nitride 55 å 306 14 1 850 ° c . nitride 35 å 307 1 , 15 2 850 ° c . nitride 35 å 308 3 , 17 2 850 ° c . nitride 45 å 309 5 , 19 2 950 ° c . nitride 35 å table 3a , shown above , shows experimental results for dielectric layers fabricated utilizing the method of fig2 a versus conventional dielectric layers . here , each split represents a set of dielectric layers fabricated according to the same or similar parameters . splits 302 and 303 are dielectric layers fabricated according to conventional means with a thickness of 45 å and 55 å , respectively . splits 301 and 306 - 309 are dielectric layers formed according to the present invention . split 301 is a dielectric layer fabricated using rtn . split 306 utilizes a single vapor priming ( vp ) step and a processing temperature of 850 ° c . to fabricate a dielectric layer at a thickness of 35 å . vapor priming or vp is used to deposit a layer of silicon - containing material . splits 307 - 309 perform vapor priming twice to deposit two layers of silicon - containing material . splits 307 and 308 are processed at a temperature of 850 ° c . to form dielectric layers of 35 å and 45 å , respectively . split 309 is processes at a temperature of 950 ° c . to form a dielectric layer having a thickness of 35 å . [ 0028 ] fig3 b shows capacitance versus leakage for the dielectric layers of table 3a . the leakage is shown on a logarithmic scale . split 302 demonstrates larger leakage than the other splits . the other splits are well grouped and have less than 7 fa / cell leakage . thus , the present invention decreases leakage compared to conventional dielectric layers of comparable thickness . [ 0029 ] fig3 c shows capacitance versus bv ( breakdown voltage to induce 1 ua ) for the dielectric layers of table 3a . this figure shows the bv of the 302 split at around 3 . 0v . this behavior in leakage and bv is indicative of 45 å nitride . the remaining splits demonstrate higher bv . it is worth noting that the less thick splits , 306 , 307 and 309 even demonstrate a higher bv . a higher bv indicates a large increase in dielectric strength . thus , it can be seen that the present invention increases dielectric strength . [ 0030 ] fig3 d shows the cumulative probability of leakage for the dielectric layers of table 3a . the leakage probability of split 302 is unacceptable and all other splits are comparable to split 303 , the 55 å thick control dielectric layer which is thicker than the other splits . thus , it can be seen that the present invention lowers leakage probability of dielectric layers of comparable thickness . fig3 e shows the cumulative probability versus capacitance . a 2 . 5 ff / cell gap is seen between split 303 and the best remaining splits . thus , it can be seen that the present invention demonstrates an increase in capacitance over conventional dielectrics . similarly , fig3 f shows the cumulative probability versus bv and a significant gap between split 302 and the other splits . this shows that the dielectric layers of the present invention demonstrate improved back voltage characteristics over conventional dielectrics of comparable thickness . [ 0031 ] fig3 g shows a performance index c / i ( capacitance over current ) versus low level voltages for the dielectric layers of table 3a . the data for the graph was gathered using keithley cv and iv sweeps . the bias voltage was swept from + 1v to − 1v while measuring capacitance . the iv sweep swept bias voltage from 0 to − 1v and measured 20k array current . the performance of the 302 split significantly degrades over a range of approximately 0 . 6v . this performance degradation is a result of leakage increases . the best performance of the splits is shown by split 307 which uses 2vp , a processing temperature of 850 ° c . and a 35 å thickness . fig3 h shows the performance index c / i for the various dielectric layers of table 3a . the vertical axis is the performance index c / i and the horizontal axis shows the various splits . the circles on the right hand side of the graph show the differences between the various dielectric layers . if the circles do not intersect , the difference between splits is significant . splits 307 , 308 and 309 are significantly better in performance than control splits 302 and 303 . table 3a and fig3 b , 3c , 3 d , 3 e , 3 f , 3 g and 3 h show exemplary experimental results of actual implementations . it can be seen from those figures that thinner dielectric layers fabricated according to the present invention are able to perform as well or better that thicker conventional dielectric layers . other actual implementations may vary and embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the implementations shown in table 3a and fig3 b , 3c , 3 d , 3 e , 3 f , 3 g and 3 h . [ 0033 ] fig4 illustrates a transistor semiconductor device utilizing a dielectric layer 402 according to another embodiment of the present invention . a source 405 is formed in a substrate 401 . a drain 406 is formed in the substrate 401 . a gate oxide layer 404 is formed over the substrate 401 from the source 405 to the drain 406 . an electrode or gate electrode 403 is formed over the gate oxide layer 404 . a dielectric layer 402 is formed over the electrode 403 . the dielectric layer 402 is fabricated by vapor depositing a selected material or precursor and subsequently processing those materials . the selected material can be deposited by using vapor priming ( vp ). the selected material is a silicon containing material such as silazane or silane type materials . an example of a typical silicon - containing material is hexamethyldisilazane ( hmds ). other materials or precursors which may be used are tetramethyldisilazane , octamethylcyclotetrasilazine , hexamethylcyclotrisilazine , diethylaminotrimethylsilane or dimethylaminotrimethylsilane . the selected material can be deposited a single time or the depositing can be repeated any number of times . the selected material is processed in a reactive ambient to create a final desirable silicon - containing dielectric layer . the reactive ambient can be materials such as nh 3 , n 2 , o 2 , o 3 , n 2 , no and the like and cause silicon atoms of the selected material to react with oxygen atoms , nitrogen atoms or both . the resulting silicon - containing dielectric layer is the dielectric layer 402 and can result in a layer that is primarily nitride , primarily oxide or an oxynitride . [ 0035 ] fig5 illustrates use of a silicon - containing dielectric layer 502 in a capacitor according to another embodiment of the present invention . the silicon - containing dielectric layer 502 is formed over an electrode 501 . the silicon - containing dielectric layer 502 is created by depositing a silicon - containing precursor material from a silazane or silane source . the layer is then processed in a reactive ambient . the reactive ambient causes silicon atoms in the precursor layer to react with oxygen atoms , nitrogen atoms or both to form the silicon - containing dielectric layer . a second dielectric layer 503 is formed over the silicon - containing dielectric layer 502 . the second dielectric layer 503 may be of a material susceptible to oxygen migration such as ta 2 o 5 and may be formed using conventional methods . the electrode 501 may be composed of a material such as p — si , sige or metal . the remaining capacitor structure is formed according to conventional methodology . [ 0036 ] fig6 is an illustration of a computer system 612 that can use and be used with embodiments of the present invention . as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art , the computer system 612 would include rom 614 , mass memory 616 , peripheral devices 618 , and i / o devices 620 in communication with a microprocessor 622 via a data bus 624 or another suitable data communication path . the rom 614 and mass memory 616 can be fabricated using silicon - containing dielectric layers according to the various embodiments of the present invention . for the purposes of describing and defining the present invention , formation of a material “ on ” a substrate or layer refers to formation in contact with a surface of the substrate or layer . formation “ over ” a substrate or layer refers to formation above or in contact with a surface of the substrate . a “ substrate ” may comprise one or more semiconductor layers or semiconductor structures which may define portions of a semiconductor device . dielectric layers fabricated using the present invention can be used for a variety of purposes . some examples follow , but embodiments of the present invention are not limited to these . a dielectric layer can be used as a covering on a semiconductor device . a dielectric layer according to the present invention can be used in a gate structure of a transistor or in an anti - fuse application . a dielectric layer according to the present invention can be formed on top of metals to prevent oxidation of metals . a dielectric layer according to the present invention can be used in post gate stack and pre oxidation steps to prevent oxygen in - diffusion into active areas of the transistor . a dielectric layer according to the present invention can be used to prevent oxidation of gate electrodes with subsequent processing steps when using materials such as polysilicon , si — ge , w or other transistion metals . a dielectric layer according to the present invention can be used in anti - fuse components of a semiconductor device . additionally , multiple dielectric layers formed according to the various embodiments of the present invention can be used in a single device and can be stacked or intermixed with other types of dielectric layers . semiconductor devices fabricated utilizing the present invention can be improved compared to other semiconductor devices because the dielectric of this invention can provide an increased dielectric constant and reduced leakage . this may also permit reductions in the size of semiconductor devices . having described the present invention in detail and by reference to preferred embodiments thereof , it will be apparent that modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention defined in the appended claims .	7
microwave vessels employed in chemical reactions , such as sample preparation , synthesis , derivatization and extraction generally are of relatively moderate size and may have an interior volume of about 1 ml to 500 ml and preferably in the range of about 1 ml to 125 ml . the vessels may have any desired configuration , but are frequently generally cylindrical in shape . they may be made of teflon ( tetrafluoroethylene , pfa or tfm or ptfe ) or other fluorinated carbon plastics with a removable lid adapted to seal in place as by threaded or pressure fitted securement to maintain the desired amount of pressure , which for this type vessel , might be in the order of up to about 10 atmospheres . another type of vessel would have a plastic casing for rigidness and pressure stability with a teflon , plastic or quartz liner for chemical inertness and be adapted to withstand pressures of about 5 to 20 atmospheres . in this latter category , the vessel may be designed so as to withstand pressures of 40 to 100 atmospheres . closed vessel digestion will generally achieve higher temperatures because the boiling point of the reagent is raised by the pressure produced within the vessel . the higher temperature in the closed vessel will , however , greatly reduce the time required for reaction . the closed vessel also resists evaporation and there is , therefore , no need to add reagent to maintain the desired volume . the vessels are effectively transparent to microwave energy so as to permit them to be introduced into a microwave oven and the reagents and samples contained in them to be heated to the desired temperature . as the liquid reagent containing one or more materials is heated , a gas phase is formed through the vaporization of the solvent and / or the chemical materials . the sample or samples will generally be mixed with a liquid reagent which may , for example , be nitric acid employed in microwave - heated digestions . in order to maintain pressure levels within the desired ranges of safety and contribute to durability of the vessels , as well as achieving the desired temperature which is most beneficial for the chemical reaction contemplated , the present invention provides positive cooling to the gas phase contained within the vessel while resisting effecting meaningful cooling of the liquid reagent . for a given liquid reagent , the absorption of microwave energy can be calculated at a specific frequency employing equation 1 . ## equ1 ## wherein : p = is the apparent power absorbed by the sample in watts ( w ), ( w = joules / sec ); k = is the conversion factor for thermochemical calories / sec to w , which is 4 . 184 ; c p = is the heat capacity , thermal capacity , or specific heat ( cal ./ g .. increment . c ); . increment . t = is t f , the final temperature minus t i , the initial temperature (. increment . c ); and in the event that no energy is permitted to escape from the vessel , the final temperature can be determined by equation 2 . as shown in equation 3 , a lower temperature is achieved if energy is permitted to escape . this escape can be primarily from the gas phase as it has the greatest area of cool vessel wall to contact . in the present invention , active cooling of the gas phase serves to reduce the gas phase pressure . if desired , the microwave energy applied to the liquid phase sample may be increased to compensate for the thermal energy losses to the gas phase . referring now more specifically to fig1 wherein there is shown a closed microwave reaction vessel which may be adapted for use with automation or a robot as distinguished from individual human handling , if desired . there is shown a vessel consisting of a liner 2 which may be composed of a suitable fluorinated carbon plastic , such as tetrafluoroethylene which is sold under the trade designation &# 34 ; teflon &# 34 ; or other material having suitable strength , microwave transparency , and chemical inertness . the vessel liner 2 has a threaded closure 4 intimately secured in sealing relationship to the liner 2 . the closure 4 , in the form shown , has a pair of upwardly projecting , threadedly secured port defining members 5 , 6 to which apertured closures 7 , 8 , respectively , are secured . while these port closures 7 , 8 may be closed off if desired , in the illustrated embodiment temperature probes 10 , 12 , respectively , extend into the vessel 2 to different depths . these probes 10 , 12 may be of any conventional type and are sealingly secured to the port closure 5 , 7 , 8 . positioned in surrounding relationship with respect to liner 2 is an outer wall or casement 20 which is in intimate surface - to - surface contact with the exterior of the vessel 2 and closure 4 . the casement 20 may be provided in multiple pieces ( not shown ) assembled around the vessel by any desired means known to those skilled in the art . the vessel 2 , closure 4 , and outer wall 20 are preferably of generally cylindrical configuration . the outer wall or casing 20 has an inwardly open continuous helical groove 22 which cooperates with exterior of the vessel liner 2 and closure 4 to create a continuous coolant flow passageway . the passageway is spaced ( measured along the vessel longitudinal axis ) from the sample liquid reagent received portion 30 of the vessel . a coolant entry channel 24 is defined within casement 20 and is in communication with passageway 22 . coolant is discharged through exit channel 26 . the coolant will preferably be captured as it emerges from channel 26 and subjected to a heat exchanging temperature reduction after which it may be reintroduced into coolant entry channel for another cycle of operation . the coolant may be microwave non - absorbing , moderately absorbing , or strongly absorbing material that may be in a gas or a liquid phase . if desired , the coolant passageways may be provided in other ways . for example , such as by a single ring , which is inwardly open to provide an annular passageway in cooperation with or adjacent to the exterior of the vessel . also , an axially elongated single ring or a plurality of such rings either interconnected or individually supplied with coolant may be employed . referring now to fig2 in greater detail there is shown a microwavable vessel 40 having threadedly and sealingly secured thereto a closure 42 which has a pair of externally threaded ports 44 , 46 to which are secured threaded sealing closures 48 , 50 respectively . the liquid reagent mixture or sample 54 is contained within the lower portion of the vessel interior and the gas phase 56 appears thereabove . a coolant coil 60 is received within the interior vessel 40 and has an entry end 62 and a discharge end 64 . in effecting cooling of the gas phase 56 without effecting substantial cooling of the liquid reagent mixture 54 , coolant is permitted to flow into entry 62 , assume a heat exchanging interaction with the gas phase and then emerge at an elevated temperature at discharge end 64 . the coolant coming out of end 64 is subsequently subjected to a heat exchanging process wherein the temperature of the coolant is reduced after which the coolant is reintroduced through entry 62 . it will be appreciated that , in this manner , continuous cooling of the gas phase will be effected to thereby reduce the pressure within the gas phase 56 . if desired , coils of additional length or multiple coils having separate entries may be employed . if desired , radiator structures may be employed in the vessel interior in lieu of the coil or coils . it will be appreciated that the embodiment shown in fig1 and 2 are not mutually exclusive and that the coil or coils employed in connection with the embodiment of fig2 may be employed in addition to the passageway containing outer wall 24 of fig1 in order to achieve the desired degree of temperature reduction of the gas phase and corresponding reduction of pressure in the vessel interior . the partial traditional equilibrium pressures and the partial pressures of the reagents and sample and reaction byproducts do not hold in this system as equilibrium of temperature between liquid and gas phases is never reached . condensation of several components may occur reducing the partial pressure of one or more thus reducing the total pressure in the vessel . a dynamic nonequilibrium condition is established that is unique to microwave reagent closed vessel systems such as these and is a new relationship that is being employed to produce these new reaction conditions . referring now to fig3 there is shown schematically a block diagram of a continuous or semi - continuous flow system of the present invention . the gas phase portion of vessel 80 receives coolant through pipe 82 by means of pump 84 . after the coolant absorbs heat from the gas phase contained within vessel 80 , the elevated temperature coolant emerges through pipe 90 and enters heat exchanger 92 wherein heat is withdrawn and the coolant is reduced to a temperature desired for introduction into the gas portion of vessel 80 . the reduced temperature coolant emerges from the heat exchanger 92 and is carried by pipe 94 to pump 84 for reintroduction into vessel 80 . referring to fig4 there is shown a plot of temperature in degrees centigrade and pressure in atmospheres as related to time . it compares a thermally insulated vessel with a thermally uninsulated vessel , i . e ., a teflon vessel . the difference in pressure inside the vessels is due to the loss of thermal energy in the gas phase . for example , the pressure of 6 * 10 ml of concentrated nitric acid irradiated at 574 watts for 10 minutes at 180 ° c . is about 40 psi in the insulated vessel and is only about 8 psi in the uninsulated vessel . the absorption of microwave energy which can be calculated from equation 1 is the same for a given liquid . in order to enhance the understanding of the invention , an example will be provided . a closed microwave vessel having an interior volume of 120 ml is provided with 20 ml of nitric acid mixed with a 0 . 5 gram liver tissue ( material ) in a closed vessel acid digestion process . the vessel was exposed to 500 watts of microwave energy for a period of 10 minutes to establish a liquid temperature of 190 ° c . and a liquid partial pressure inside the vessel of 620 psi without cooling . when a similar situation is constructed with cooling of the gas phase , there was established a pressure with the acid and digestion products of 120 psi inside the vessel . this demonstrates positive cooling by a method of the present invention employing a method of air coolant to produce after 10 minutes a gas phase temperature of 130 ° c . and a gas phase partial pressure of 120 psi without effecting a substantial reduction in the liquid phase temperature . a 650 watt power was applied in the second example to maintain the liquid temperature at 190 ° c . as a result , the acid digestion was effected while reducing the vessel pressure by 500 psi . the coolant may be a gas or liquid with or without entrained solids , and is preferably transparent to microwave energy . among the preferred coolant , materials are one or more materials selected from the group consisting of air , co 2 , freon , gaseous n 2 and liquid n 2 . the system of the present invention builds upon and enhances certain scientific principles as applied to solve a particular problem . the unique nature of microwave interaction and two distinct heat transfer mechanisms permits the cooling of the gas phase while continuing to heat the liquid phase . heating a liquid in a microwave field is commonly referred to as dielectric loss . the two primary mechanisms are dipole rotation and ionic conduction . see , generally , kingston , h . m . and jassle , l . b ., eds ., &# 34 ; introduction to microwave sample preparation : theory and practice ,&# 34 ; acs professional reference book , american chemical society , washington , d . c ., 1988 , pp . 9 - 15 . ionic conduction is the conductive migration of dissolved ions in the applied electromagnetic field . dipole rotation is the alignment , due to the electric field , of molecules that have permanent or induced dipole moments . when a molecule vaporizes and is converted to the gas phase , from the liquid phase , charged ions are left in the liquid phase , thereby eliminating this heating mechanism . in addition , rotation of the molecule in the gas phase does not efficiently transfer heat , as rotation without collision , does not add heat to the gas phase . gas molecules frequently collide with the surfaces of the vessel . these surfaces are not heated by microwave energy and are actively cooled , thereby cooling the gas phase . the vessel is generally made of a material which is usually essentially microwave transparent . the gas phase is not efficiently heated by the microwave field even though the gas phase and liquid phase both exist in the same microwave field . these heating conditions are unique to the microwave environment . the present invention employs the ability to cool the gas phase while continuing to heat the liquid phase in this environment . the present invention involves intentionally cooling the gas phase while heating the liquid phase to effect the reduction of the internal vessel pressure while maintaining a relatively high liquid temperature in which various chemical reactions are conducted . it will be appreciated , therefore , that the present invention provides a method and apparatus for pressure control and reduction in microwave - assisted chemical reaction systems . this is accomplished through positive cooling of the gas phase which is in contact with the liquid phase in the chemical reaction vessels without effecting significant reduction in temperature of the liquid phase . the positive cooling of the gas phase facilitates corresponding pressure control of the gas phase in order to achieve the desired chemical or physical parameters during and following the reaction period . the reactions in the liquid phase can , therefore , be carried out without undesired interference as a result of the positive cooling of the gas phase . the practice of the present invention will generally reduce the pressure in the gas phase about 50 to 95 percent and preferably about 60 to 90 percent . if desired , positive cooling action may be terminated or regulated when the desired gas phase pressure has been attained . it will be appreciated that the present invention permits efficient thermally activated chemical reactions to occur at the desired temperature , while facilitating a reduction in pressure within the vessel at that temperature . this facilitates improved process efficiency , safety and durability . improvement of the durability of the vessel is achieved through maintaining the integrity by resisting overheating of the casing in double walled vessels . also , in the embodiment of fig1 the coolant may serve to carry away sample or reaction products that might become trapped between the outer wall 20 and the vessel liner 2 . also , if desired , the vessel might be formed with partially hollow outwardly projecting fins or ribs to facilitate radiation loss of heat from the gas phase . in the alternative , multi - walled vent openings may be provided in the outer wall to enhance cooling of the gas phase . a plurality of circumferentially spaced , axially oriented ribs may be provided within the gas phase region of the vessel , but not in the liquid phase portion . such a construction will be deemed positive cooling within the context of the present invention . in addition to the foregoing the turntable onto which the vessel is placed may be cooled . the hollow turntable top might have a recess which receives an upper portion of the vessel in intimate contact therewith . coolant may be circulated within the hollow turntable top . while not the preferred practice of the invention , if desired , gas may be withdrawn from the gas phase of the vessel , cooled and subsequently returned to the gas phase of the vessel . the vessel may be a container that holds volumes from about 50 ml to 500 ml or may be an elongated tube which is closed to the atmosphere and in which the sample flows through the microwave field . an elongated tube may have the sample and gas phase moving by the microwave source and cooling means so as to permit both heating of the sample and cooling of the gas phase which would be present in the sealed tube . as this embodiment would involve commingling of the liquid sample and gas phase , it is not the preferred embodiment . it will be appreciated that the present invention may be employed advantageously with a wide variety of materials and end uses . the following examples will illustrate some advantageous uses . among the specific end uses for which the sample preparation , method and apparatus of the present invention may be employed are microwave assisted decomposition , synthesis , derivatization and / or extraction or leaching . the invention may be employed to perform mineral acid decompositions while cooling the acid vapor to reduce the temperature and responsively the pressure of the decomposition system . also , organic extraction with organic solvents may be performed while cooling the gas phase to reduce the pressure of the overall reaction . the invention may be employed to perform organic or inorganic synthesis with solvents while cooling the gas phase to reduce the pressure during synthesis . the invention may also be employed to perform hydrolysis on a protein with a solvent mixture including hydrochloric acid and cooling the gas phase to effect a reduction in pressure during hydrolysis . another use is drying to condense components of the vapor phase . in some instances , the gas phase may be cooled to resist temperature damage to the material out of which the inner liner or outer casings are made , such as polyetherimide , for example . the invention may also be employed with azeatropes , as well as aqueous materials . uses in environmental , biological , medical and industrial fields will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art . the invention may be employed with all types of microwave systems including , for example , cavity - type microwave systems , focused microwave systems , flow and stop flow microwave systems , and antenna transmitted microwave cavities . with respect to the liquid temperature , if desired one may operate at a higher liquid temperature with no increase in vessel internal pressure or at similar liquid temperatures with a decrease in pressure . the invention further facilitates resisting undesired escape of the volatile elements , molecules , and compound losses when opening vessels to the atmosphere and condensing of these from the gas phase . whereas particular embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purpose of illustration , it will be evident to those skilled in the art that numerous variations of the details may be made without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims .	6
fig1 illustrates a block diagram with various computer system components for use with an exemplary implementation of a clinical decision system , in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . as shown in fig1 , the controller of the present invention may be implemented using hardware , software or a combination thereof and may be implemented in one or more computer systems or other processing systems . in one embodiment , the invention is directed toward one or more computer systems capable of carrying out the functionality described herein . fig1 shows a computer system 1 that includes one or more processors , such as processor 4 . the processor 4 is connected to a communication infrastructure 6 ( e . g ., a communications bus , cross - over bar , or network ). various software embodiments are described in terms of this exemplary computer system . after reading this description , it will become apparent to a person skilled in the relevant art ( s ) how to implement the invention using other computer systems and / or architectures . computer system 1 can include a display interface 2 that forwards graphics , text , and other data from the communication infrastructure 6 ( or from a frame buffer not shown ) for display on the display unit 30 . computer system 1 also includes a main memory 8 , preferably random access memory ( ram ), and may also include a secondary memory 10 . the secondary memory 10 may include , for example , a hard disk drive 12 and / or a removable storage drive 14 , representing a floppy disk drive , a magnetic tape drive , an optical disk drive , etc . the removable storage drive 14 reads from and / or writes to a removable storage unit 18 in a well known manner . removable storage unit 18 , represents a floppy disk , magnetic tape , optical disk , etc ., which is read by and written to removable storage drive 14 . as will be appreciated , the removable storage unit 18 includes a computer usable storage medium having stored therein computer software and / or data . in alternative embodiments , secondary memory 10 may include other similar devices for allowing computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into computer system 1 . such devices may include , for example , a removable storage unit 22 and an interface 20 . examples of such may include a program cartridge and cartridge interface ( such as that found in video game devices ), a removable memory chip ( such as an erasable programmable read only memory ( eprom ), or programmable read only memory ( prom )) and associated socket , and other removable storage units 22 and interfaces 20 , which allow software and data to be transferred from the removable storage unit 22 to computer system 1 . computer system 1 may also include a communications interface 24 . communications interface 24 allows software and data to be transferred between computer system 1 and external devices . examples of communications interface 24 may include a modem , a network interface ( such as an ethernet card ), a communications port , a personal computer memory card international association ( pcmcia ) slot and card , etc . software and data transferred via communications interface 24 are in the form of signals 28 , which may be electronic , electromagnetic , optical or other signals capable of being received by communications interface 24 . these signals 28 are provided to communications interface 24 via a communications path ( e . g ., channel ) 26 . this path 26 carries signals 28 and may be implemented using wire or cable , fiber optics , a telephone line , a cellular link , a radio frequency ( rf ) link and / or other communications channels . in this document , the terms “ computer program medium ” and “ computer usable medium ” are used to refer generally to media such as a removable storage drive 14 , a hard disk installed in hard disk drive 12 , and signals 28 . these computer program products provide software to the computer system 1 . the invention is directed to such computer program products . computer programs ( also referred to as computer control logic ) are stored in main memory 8 and / or secondary memory 10 . computer programs may also be received via communications interface 24 . such computer programs , when executed , enable the computer system 1 to perform the features of the present invention , as discussed herein . in particular , the computer programs , when executed , enable the processor 4 to perform the features of the present invention . accordingly , such computer programs represent controllers of the computer system 1 . in an embodiment where the invention is implemented using software , the software may be stored in a computer program product and loaded into computer system 1 using removable storage drive 14 , hard drive 12 , or communications interface 24 . the control logic ( software ), when executed by the processor 4 , causes the processor 4 to perform the functions of the invention as described herein . in another embodiment , the invention is implemented primarily in hardware using , for example , hardware components , such as application specific integrated circuits ( asics ). implementation of the hardware state machine so as to perform the functions described herein will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art ( s ). in yet another embodiment , the invention is implemented using a combination of both hardware and software . fig2 shows a communication system 30 of the present invention for use with the computer system 1 of fig1 . the communication system 30 includes an accessor 31 ( also referred to interchangeably herein as a “ user ”) and a terminal 32 . in one embodiment , data for use in the computer system 1 is , for example , input and / or accessed by the accessor 31 via the terminal 32 , such as a personal computer ( pc ), minicomputer , mainframe computer , microcomputer , telephonic device , or wireless device , such as a hand - held wireless device coupled to a server 143 , such as a pc , minicomputer , mainframe computer , microcomputer , or other device having a processor and a repository for data and / or connection to a processor and / or repository for data , via , for example , a network 34 , such as the internet or an intranet , and couplings 35 , 36 . the couplings 35 , 36 include , for example , wired , wireless , or fiberoptic links . in another embodiment , the method and system of the present invention operate in a stand - alone environment , such as on a single terminal . fig3 illustrates one exemplary variation of an overview graphic user - interface screen 40 for use with the computer system 1 of the present invention . the graphic user - interface screen 40 includes a patient risk factors section 41 , a health changes section 42 , a graphical predictive indicator section 43 , and an information / reference bar 44 . the patient risk factors section 41 includes a plurality of parameters related to a patient , such as the patient &# 39 ; s age , gender , height , and weight . furthermore , the patient risk factors section 41 includes the parameters of whether the patient has diabetes or is a smoker , and information on the patient &# 39 ; s blood pressure , total cholesterol , and high density lipoproteins ( hdl ) cholesterol . additionally , the graphic user - interface screen 40 includes a health changes section 42 that also has a plurality of parameters associated with any health changes and / or predictive health changes . for example , the parameters in this section can show the type of medication the patient is currently taking , changes in the smoking habits of the patient , and changes in the blood pressure and weight of the patient . the plurality of parameters listed above are provided as examples of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention . it is understood to one skilled in the art that additional parameters may be included within the patient risk factors section 41 , as well as the health changes section 42 . the graphical predictive indicator section 43 includes a graphical image showing the relationship between risk and benefit to the patient , based on the information entered for the plurality of parameters . the graphical predictive indicator section 43 can illustrate information concerning the patient &# 39 ; s health , in comparison with the predictive “ risk ” information of the likelihood of a patient having a particular medical condition based on the information provided . for example , framingham data ( more than 50 years &# 39 ; worth of data from the framingham heart study , which has involved three generations of framingham residents and was started by bethesda , md .- based national heart , lung , and blood institute ) can be used to show graphically the relationship between risk and benefit of an exemplary patient , referred to on this example as jonathan smith . however , the present invention can incorporate any clinical and / or statistical data to show the relationship between risk and benefit of a patient , in order to facilitate clinical decisions . upon first entering the information in the plurality of parameters of the patient risk factors section 41 , the present example presents a plurality of circular indicators , interchangeably referred to herein as “ bubbles ,” having different colors and different sizes . as shown in the indicator bar 44 , the size of the bubbles can indicate the contribution level of the risk factor , and the color of the bubbles can indicate various risk levels . in this example , the patient jonathan smith is a 55 years old male with no diabetes , who is a non - smoker weighing 235 pounds . mr . smith has a blood pressure of 140 , a total cholesterol of 500 , and hdl cholesterol of 65 . using these data , the computer system 1 can display a graphical image within the graphical predictive indicator section 43 showing , for example , an average size blue bubble representing mr . smith &# 39 ; s hdl cholesterol , which is low at 65 , and a red bubble representing mr . smith &# 39 ; s total cholesterol , which is high at 500 . further , in this example , the graphical predictive indicator section 43 provides information concerning the “ risk ” of mr . smith having a particular medical or health condition . for instance , the example shows that mr . smith has a 7 . 1 % chance of having a stroke , a 12 % chance of having cancer , and 14 . 2 % chance of having myocardial infraction , based on the data entered into the patient risk factors section 41 . the present invention also shows changes in the graphical predictive indicator section 43 , when data is entered for the parameters of the health changes section 42 . fig4 shows an example of the graphic user - interface screen 40 of fig3 , based on the example data for mr . smith . fig4 also presents the results of the entry of some health changes data 42 , such as if mr . smith takes a cholesterol lowering medication med 2 , which would drop the total cholesterol down to 250 , but at the same time would increase the hdl cholesterol to 97 . 5 . upon entering such information , the present invention can show an updated graphical predictive indicator section 45 , with changes made to the information concerning the patient &# 39 ; s health shown in comparison with the predictive “ risk ” information of the likelihood of a patient having a particular medical condition , based on the additional information provided . for example , as is apparent in fig4 , the size of certain bubbles has decreased ( e . g ., previous size shown as outline only ), and the colors of some bubbles have changed , reflecting changes in risk . in essence , the graphical predictive indicator section can thus graphically provide information that can show the relationship between risk and benefit with taking certain drugs or the patient taking other action . graphically , for example , the concept can be illustrated that if the patient stops smoking , the patient &# 39 ; s cholesterol level is reduced by 20 % and the risk of dying drops 10 %. similarly , a bubble may appear on the risk side that represents the additional risk conferred by the treatment itself ( e . g ., side effect of a drug ). furthermore , one embodiment of the present invention can provide addition medical or health information to the user . for example , the graphical predictive indicator section 43 , as shown in fig3 , can be configured to link the user to information regarding any of the displayed health categories , such as hdl cholesterol , diabetes , stroke , cancer or myocardial infraction , by positioning the cursor to that particular category . for instance , if a user were to position the cursor to the category of “ stroke ” and initiate access ( e . g ., clicking the mouse button ), then information related to the category of “ stroke ” would be available to the user . the information may be displayed on the display screen in text , still images , voice , or video , for example . additionally , in one embodiment of the present invention , the computer system 1 can also be configured to connect to and communicate with another specialist , such as a physician , via the network , as further described with reference to fig8 . in one embodiment of the invention , as shown in fig6 , after such a step as displaying the first output data and second output data on a display 630 , a list of specialists may be generated from a known database 802 , as shown in fig8 . the known database could be locally stored and retrieved , or the database could be retrieved across a network , for example . next , a specialist is selected 806 , either through user selection or selection by the system . the system or user then initiates communication with that specialist 808 . in one embodiment , the system initiates communication via the internet to contact the specialist 810 . in another embodiment , the system initiates communication by providing the specialist &# 39 ; s contact information 820 , retrieved from the database 804 . in yet another embodiment , rather than connecting and communicating with another specialist , the present invention directs the user to an additional source of information , such as an internet site or an article in a magazine or medical journal . fig5 illustrates the method and steps of one embodiment of the present invention 500 . in step 505 , a first set of input data is received . for example , the first set of input data received can be a plurality of parameters entered into the patient risk factors section 41 , as shown in fig3 . the first set of input data can include data such as age , gender , height , presence of diabetes , whether the patient is a smoker , blood pressure , total cholesterol , hdl cholesterol and weight . other personal and clinical based information may also be included in the first set of input data . once the first set of input data is entered and received in the system , in step 510 , the first set of input data is compared with at least a predetermined set of reference data , such as the framingham data . for instance , the present invention can store a set of reference data , such as the framingham data , in a storage medium , and upon receiving the first set of input data , the present invention compares the first set of input data with the stored framingham data . thereafter , in step 520 of the present invention , a first output data is determined . for example , in step 520 , the output data can be determined , including the graphical predictive indicator section to be displayed with a graphical image showing the relationship between risk and benefit of the patient , based on the information entered into the plurality of parameters . in addition , the first output data can include information concerning the patient &# 39 ; s health , in comparison with the predictive “ risk ” information of the likelihood of a patient having a particular medical condition based on the information provided . once the first output data is determined , in step 530 , the first output data is displayed on a display or otherwise presented . for example , the present example shows a plurality of different circular indicators , interchangeably referred to herein as “ bubbles ,” having different colors and different sizes . the circular indicators are part of the display showing the “ risk ” of a particular case / patient having a particular medical or health condition . for instance , the example of fig3 shows that mr . smith has a 7 . 1 % chance of having a stroke , a 12 % chance of having cancer , and 14 . 2 % chance of having myocardial infraction , based on the data entered into the patient risk factors section 41 . fig6 illustrates the method and steps of another embodiment of the present invention 600 . in step 605 , a second set of input data are received . for example , the second set of input data received can include a plurality of parameters entered into the health changes section 42 of fig3 . the second set of input data can include data such as cholesterol lowering medications , smoking changes , blood pressure changes , and weight changes . other personal and clinical based information may also be included in the second set of input data . once the second set of input data is entered and received in the system , in step 610 the second set of input data are compared with the first set of output data , and with at least a predetermined set of reference data , such as the framingham data . for instance , upon receiving the second set of input data , the present invention compares the second set of input data with the age , gender , height , diabetes status , smoking status , blood pressure , total cholesterol , hdl cholesterol and weight of the individual patient , and with the stored framingham data . thereafter , in step 620 of the present invention , a second output data is determined . for example , in step 620 , the second output data can be determined including changes in the graphical predictive indicator section 43 , as shown in fig3 , when data is entered in the parameters of the health changes section 42 of fig3 . fig4 shows an example of the second output data , based on the example patient of mr . smith . fig4 also presents an example of the second output data results for the entry of some health changes data , such as if mr . smith takes a cholesterol lowering medication med 2 , which would drop the total cholesterol down to 250 , but at the same time increase the hdl cholesterol to 97 . 5 . once the second output data is determined , in step 630 , the second output data are presented , along with the first output data . for example , in fig4 , the present example shows a plurality of different circular indicators , interchangeably referred to herein as “ bubbles ,” having different colors and different sizes . in particular , as shown in fig4 , the present invention can display an updated graphical predictive indicator section 45 , with changes made to the information concerning the patient &# 39 ; s health shown in comparison with the predictive “ risk ” information of the likelihood of a patient having a particular medical condition , based on the additional information provided . one embodiment of the present invention graphically displays benefit / harm ratios , as shown in fig7 . fig7 represents a graphical display of the potential benefits and risks of a course of therapy . the x - axis represents the “ nnt ”, or “ number needed to treat ,” increasing from low to high . the nnt value represents the number of patients that must be treated with a specific course of therapy in order to prevent one adverse outcome . generally , a lower nnt value corresponds to a higher benefit associated with the course of therapy . the y - axis represents the “ nnh ”, or the “ number needed to harm ,” increasing from low to high . similarly to the nnt , the nnh number represents the number of patients that must be treated with a specific course of therapy in order to cause one harmful outcome . generally , a higher nnh value corresponds to a less harmful course of therapy . for example , the point 710 is located on the graph in an area corresponding to a high nnh and a low nnt . the course of therapy represented by point 710 on the graph will thus have a high likelihood of benefit , and a low likelihood of harm . as a further example , the point 720 is located on the graph in an area corresponding to a low nnh and a high nnt . thus , the course of therapy represented by point 720 on the graph will have a low likelihood of benefit , and a high likelihood of pain . in one embodiment of the present invention , multiple courses of therapy may be displayed on a single graph , creating a graphical indicator of the relative risks and benefits associated with each course of therapy . in another embodiment of the present invention , the computer system of the present invention combines information provided from the plurality of parameters in the patient risk factors , with previously stored information about known risk factors that increase the likelihood of a particular affliction . for example , parameters such as whether the patient is a smoker , or a diabetic , the patient &# 39 ; s cholesterol levels , and the patient &# 39 ; s family history , are combined with the known risk factors of existing valvular disease , viral infection , alcohol use , thiamine deficiencies , and myopathies , to calculate and illustrate the increasing risk of such symptoms as elevated blood pressure , which can in turn lead to coronary arthrosclerosis , stroke , renal failure , myocardial infarction and congestive heart failure . in another embodiment of the present invention , the presence of one medical condition affects the calculation of the risk of other related medical conditions . an exemplary patient , referred to here as jane jones , has the preexisting medical condition of diabetes . due to the presence of this condition , the graphical predictive indicator will display predictive “ risk ” information of related medical conditions , such as depressive disorder , chronic heart disease , osteoarthrosis , metabolic disorders , retinal disorders , renal failure , anemias , cataracts and hypertension , based on the presence of jane jones &# 39 ; s diabetes . in an embodiment where the invention is implemented using software , the software may be stored in a computer program product and loaded into computer system using removable storage drive , hard drive , servers , wireless transmitters and receivers , mobile communication devices and / or communications interface . the control logic ( software ), when executed by the processor , causes the processor to perform the functions of the invention as described herein . in another embodiment , the invention is implemented primarily in hardware using , for example , hardware components , such as application specific integrated circuits ( asics ). implementation of the hardware state machine so as to perform the functions described herein will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art ( s ). in yet another embodiment , the invention is implemented using a combination of both hardware and software . example embodiments of the present invention have now been described in accordance with the above advantages . it will be appreciated that these examples are merely illustrative of the invention . many variations and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art , such as wireless communications using a mobile phone or a pda .	6
it has now been discovered that canine herpesvirus passaged in a canine herpesvirus growth supporting tissue culture at suboptimal temperatures process a small plaque variant which lacks pathogenicity yet imparts resistance to virulent chv , when employed as a vaccine in bitches or new born pups . analysis of the plaque characteristics of 14 chv strains isolated at various times and from different geographical areas reveals an overall mean plaque size of 1 . 50 ± 0 . 09 mm at 35 ° c . plaques produced by the different field strains did not differ significantly in size ( p & lt ; 0 . 01 ). table 1 . __________________________________________________________________________history and mean plaque size of different chv strains in dkc monolayercultures after 5 days of growth at 30 ° and 35 ° under a 1 % methylcelluloseoverlay medium plaque size ( mm ) strain geographical source ( yr ) tissue source . sup . a dkc cultures 30 ° c . 35 ° c . __________________________________________________________________________f - 205 new york (&# 39 ; 61 ) lung 2 0 . 6 ± 0 . 05 1 . 50 ± 0 . 12f - 205 - mp new york (&# 39 ; 61 ) lung 312 0 . 6 ± 0 . 09 1 . 50 ± 0 . 15f - 205 - mp new york (&# 39 ; 61 ) lung --. sup . b 0 . 65 ± 0 . 03 0 . 75 ± 0 . 04g 4 / 66 georgia (&# 39 ; 66 ) spleen 3 0 . 57 ± 0 . 07 1 . 56 ± 0 . 05m 4 / 66 maryland (&# 39 ; 66 ) kidney 2 0 . 62 ± 0 . 05 1 . 48 ± 0 . 04o 3 / 66 ontario (&# 39 ; 66 ) urine ? 0 . 58 ± 0 . 07 1 . 50 ± 0 . 08s 4 / 63 washington , d . c . (&# 39 ; 63 ) tc ? 0 . 60 ± 0 . 10 1 . 52 ± 0 . 22k 9 / 67 kentucky (&# 39 ; 67 ) kidney 3 nd . sup . c 1 . 46 ± 0 . 07n . j . 2 / 68 new jersey (&# 39 ; 68 ) kidney 2 nd 1 . 52 ± 0 . 10n . y . 6 / 69 new york (&# 39 ; 69 ) vagina 4 0 . 48 ± 0 . 12 1 . 50 ± 0 . 06sl / 18 maryland (&# 39 ; 65 ) spleen 2 nd 1 . 49 ± 0 . 10m 9 / 68 maine (&# 39 ; 68 ) kidney 2 nd 1 . 54 ± 0 . 08f 8 / 73 new yori (&# 39 ; 73 ) lung 2 0 . 56 ± 0 . 07 1 . 45 ± 0 . 12b 10 / 73 massachusetts (&# 39 ; 73 ) kidney 3 0 . 62 ± 0 . 03 1 . 46 ± 0 . 10n . j . 2 / 74 new jersey (&# 39 ; 74 ) kidney 3 nd 1 . 52 ± 0 . 10pr / 1 missouri (&# 39 ; 67 ) tc 4 nd 1 . 49 ± 0 . 22__________________________________________________________________________ . sup . a samples were neonatal pup tissues received for diagnosis or infected dkc cultures . the exceptions were strains 0 3 / 66 and n . y . 6 / 69 , which were isolated from mature female dogs . tc indicates canine kidney cell cultures . . sup . b see text for natural history of mp variant of strain f205 . . sup . c nd , not done . when the wild ( mp ) strains of canine herpesvirus are tissue culture passaged at optimal temperatures neither a reduction in virulence for newborn pups nor the emergence of plaque variants is observed . however , when the mp strains are tissue culture passaged in a canine herpesvirus growth supporting medium at suboptimal growth sustaining temperatures , i . e . & lt ; 33 ° c ., preferably between about 28 ° c . and about 33 ° c ., there appears in a very few passages , i . e . usually less than ten and frequently 2 or 3 , a substantial number of small plaques which contain a canine herpevirus small plaque ( mp ) variant which lacks pathogenicity for newborn pups , but which serves as a vaccine to impart resistance to dogs against virulent mp canine herpesvirus strains . the small plaque ( mp ) variant can be cloned and is temperature and tissue culture passage stable . the mp variant has a plaque size at 35 ° c . less than about 0 . 7 times the diameter of the mp strain from which it is derived . for example , in contrast to the wild type mp virus , ( table 1 supra ) the mp variant ( e . g . strain f - 205 ) produced plaques at 35 ° c . that were approximately one - half the size of the wild - type ( mp ) virus plaques ( fig1 ). similar consistency in plaque size and character was observed at the 30 ° c . growth temperature . at the lower temperature , however , plaques produced by the mp virus were approximately 60 % the diameter observed at 35 ° c . plaques formed by the mp virus at 30 ° c . were 86 % the size produced at 35 ° c . plaques formed under a methylcellulose medium did not differ significantly from those produced when agarose was used in the overlay medium . the above observations are based upon the following examples with the f - 205 strain of chv , found fully virulent for newborn pups after 312 passages in dkc cultures incubated at 35 ° c . gave rise to plaques of the mp type . this type was characteristic of 12 additional chv field strains that had been passaged fewer than four times in dkc cultures . however , after fewer than 20 additional passages at low temperature ( 30 ° c . ), a stable mp variant of strain f - 205 was the principal viral type . since cloned mp virus retained the small plaque characteristic after more than 60 passages at 30 ° c ., the mp marker appears to represent a stable biological property inherent to the genome of the variant virus . the characteristics of chv ( strain f - 205 ) and methods for its cultivation and assay have been previously described ; carmichael et al , am . j . vet . res ., 26 : 802 - 814 ( 1965 ); carmichael et al , proc . soc . biol . med ., 120 : 644 - 650 ( 1966 ). additional isolates ( see table 1 , supra ) were recovered from tissue specimens submitted to the james a . baker institute for animal health , new york state college of veterinary medicine , cornell university , ithaca , new york , for viral culture or , in some instances , were obtained from other investigators . standard plaque medium for cloning was double - strength eagle minimal essential medium ( mem ; bbl ), supplemented with 10 % fetal bovine serum ( fbs ) and 0 . 5 % lactalbumin hydrolysate ( lah ) mixed with an equal volume of 2 % agarose ( sea plaque ). for plaque size determinations and viral assays , monolayer dkc cultures in 60 - mm plastic plates were inoculated with 0 . 2 ml amounts of serial 10 - fold dilutions of virus and absorbed for 1 . 5 h . at room temperature . after the absorption period , 5 - ml amounts of mem , supplemented with 5 % fbs and 0 . 5 % lah that contained 1 % methylcellulose ( hotchin , nature ( london ), 175 : 352 ( 1955 )) were added to each plate , and cultures then were incubated in a humidified 5 % co 2 atmosphere at 30 ° or 35 ° c . after 5 days of incubation , the viscous medium was decanted , and plates were fixed for 10 min . with 10 % neutral formalin , rinsed in tap water , and then stained with 1 % aqueous crystal violet solution . plaque size was measured with a calibrated ocular micrometer . at least 100 plaques were measured for each strain studied . cultures of canine spleen cells were prepared by rapidly stirring , at room temperature , minced tissue in mem without added trypsin . after 2 h ., the suspensions were filtered through six layers of sterile gauze and diluted in growth medium ( mem supplemented with 10 % fbs and lah ) to contain approximately 10 6 cells / ml . cultures were prepared in 25 - cm 2 plastic flasks , using 5 - ml amounts per flask . after 24 h ., cultures were shaken , and the adherent cells , which were more than 90 % mononuclear , were used for viral growth studies . in an attempt to select strains of reduced virulence , chv ( strain f - 205 ) was rapidly transferred ( 2 - day intervals ), for a total of 312 passages , using terminal dilutions at approximately each 10th passage . each 10th dkc passage was harvested and stored frozen at - 70 ° c . in a stabilizing menstruum for later tests of pathogenicity in newborn pups and for the study of certain biological properties , as noted later . after 312 passages at 35 ° c ., neither a reduction in virulence for newborn pups nor the emergence of plaque variants was observed . the 312th dkc passage virus , which caused fatal infections and was uniform with regard to plaque characterstics under a 1 % methylcellulose overlay , was then rapidly transferred at 30 ° c . after approximately 20 passages at 30 ° c ., subtle changes in the cytopathic effects ( cpe ) were observed in tube cultures , and the principal plaque type measured approximately one - half the diameter ( 0 . 75 mm ) of the parental strain . after plaque purification , using an agarose overlay medium , a typical mp clone was selected for further passage and study . it was designated chv - mp to distinguish it from the macroplaque ( mp ) parental virus . the mp variant has retained its unique plaque characteristics after 66 passages in dkc cultures incubated at 30 ° c . freshly harvested 24 - h . cultures of the mp and mp strains were rapidly frozen and thawed three times . cell debris was removed by centrifugation at 600 × g for 10 min . at 4 ° c ., and clarified virus in mem containing 10 % fbs was placed in a water bath at 38 ° c . aliquots were removed at intervals for infectivity titrations . virus survival was plotted versus time . antigens for immunodiffusion tests were prepared from mp and mp virus grown in 75 - cm 2 plastic flasks . when cultures had evidence of extensive cpe , the adherent cells were scraped off the flask with a rubber policeman . after centrifugation at 600 × g , the fluid portions were discarded and the cell portions were taken up in one - tenth the original volume in distilled water , frozen and thawed three times , and then clarified by low - speed centrifugation . the supernatant portions then were placed in cellophane dialysis tubing and dialyzed for 24 h . at ph 10 . 3 ( glycine - naoh buffer ) to dissociate viral subunits . after overnight dialysis against 0 . 15 m phosphate - buffered saline , ph 7 . 2 , the antigen preparation was stored frozen at - 70 ° c . tests were performed on 2 . 5 - by 7 . 5 - cm plastic immunodiffusion slides , using 0 . 6 % agarose in phosphate - buffered saline . an eight - well pattern was used to compare all permutations of mp or mp antigens with the respective hyperimmune antisera that had been prepared in specific - pathogen - free beagles . a total of 21 specific - pathogen - free beagle pups ( four litters ) from the institute &# 39 ; s disease - free colony were used . all animals were obtained from bitches without detectable chv - neutralizing antibody . serum neutralization methods have been described previously ; carmichael , j . am . vet . med . assoc ., 156 : 1714 - 1721 ( 1970 . thirteen neonatal pups ( two litters ) were given intraperitoneal or oral - nasal inoculations within the first 48 h . of birth , since pups rapidly develop resistance to generalized , usually fatal , infections after that time ; carmichael et al , j . infect . dis ., 120 : 669 - 678 ( 1970 ). to examine effects of immunosuppression on the pathogenicity of the mp variant , eight 2 - week - old pups were divided into four groups , each consisting of two pups . in one group , each pup was inoculated with 0 . 5 ml of goat anti - dog thymoctye serum ( ats ) at the time of infection with mp virus and again on post - inoculation days 2 and 4 . another group of two pups was given mp virus but no ats . the thid group was inoculated with chv - mp , and the fourth received chv - mp plus ats . viral doses were 10 5 . 2 50 % tissue culture infective doses ( tcld 50 ) ( chv - mp ) or 10 4 . 8 tcid 50 ( chv - mp ). the ats , prepared in our laboratory , had a canine lymphocyte cytotoxicity titer of 1 . 320 . after two injections ( 0 . 5 ml / kg ), there was a marked (& gt ; 80 %) diminution in the normal responses of canine peripheral blood lymphocytes to phytohemagglutinin , severe thymic atrophy , and profound alteration in the course of chv infection in normally resistant 2 - week - old pups . while primary dog kidney cell ( dicc ) cultures are the cultures of choice , the growth supporting medium employed as the tissue culture for virus passage is not unduly critical . any tissue culture medium can be employed which supports canine herpesvirus growth . a number of such media are known in the art . based upon the above and similar experimental work the following observations are made : growth characteristics of the mp and mp strains in dkc cultures incubated at 30 ° and 35 ° c . growth of the mp strain in dkc cultures at 35 ° c . was not restricted ( fig2 ). when viral inputs were approximately equal , the titers of inputs were approximately equal , the titers of chv - mp , after 24 h . of growth , were at least 0 . 8 log 10 greater than those of the mp strain . cpe of the two strains were similar , but not identical . cells infected with the mp variant generally were more swollen and refractile than those infected with mp virus , and they tended to clump around the edges of a plaque . cells infected with the mp strain were uniformly rounded , and they detached readily from the growth surface . syncytia were not observed with either virus . a consistent feature of the mp variant was the late appearance of cpe in relation to the production of infectious virus . both strains grew more slowly at 30 ° c . ; however , growth of the mp virus was somewhat more restricted at this temperature . an additional difference between the mp virus and the mp variant was the amount of infectious virus released ( table 2 ). the mp virus was significantly more cell associated throughout the growth period than was the mp variant . table 2 . ______________________________________cell - associated virus released mp and mp canineherpesvirus grown at 35 ° c . virus titer . sup . a virus releaseincubation chv - mp . sup . b chv - mp (%) time ( h ) cells fluid cells fluid mp mp______________________________________12 4 . 8 1 . 8 3 . 2 1 . 5 0 . 1 1 . 918 5 . 5 2 . 5 4 . 8 3 . 0 0 . 1 1 . 624 5 . 5 2 . 8 5 . 2 3 . 5 0 . 2 1 . 9______________________________________ . sup . a log . sub . 10 tcid . sub . 50 / 0 . 2ml . . sup . b viral inputs were 10 . sup . 6 . 3 ( mp ) and 10 . sup . 5 . 8 ( mp ) per flask culture . results ( fig3 ) suggested that the mp strain is somewhat more heat labile than the mp virus ; however , the differences were slight . antisera raised in dogs against the mp field strain ( f - 205 ) neutralized the homologous virus and the mp variant to the same extent in plaque reduction and kinetic neutralization tests . immunodiffusion analysis also failed to reveal antigenic differences , for two precipitin lines of identify were observed between the mp and mp viral antigens and the respective antisera . growth and mp and mp strains in splenic macrophage cultures at 30 ° and 37 ° c . splenic macrophage cultures maintained at 30 ° c . continued to release small amounts of infectious virus (˜ 10 plaque - forming units / 0 . 2 ml ) throughout the 70 - h . incubation period ; however , there was scant growth of either virus ( fig4 ). growth of the mp virus was restricted to a greater extent than that of the mp strain in macrophage cultures incubated at 37 ° c . at 37 ° c . the mp virus persisted intracellularly without decrease in titer for 24 h ., but infectious virus then declined . extracellular virus was not detected . by 60 h . postinfection , the mp virus no longer could be detected ; however , cell - associated mp virus still was present ( 3 × 10 3 plaque - forming units / 0 . 2 ml ) after 70 h . of incubation . at this time , cell cultures were & lt ; 90 % viable as judged by trypan blue exclusion tests . the response of pups to inoculations with mp and mp virus are summarized in table 3 . the mp strain produced generalized and fatal infections in all pups , regardless of the route of inoculation . high viral titers were found in all tissues examined . in contrast , the mp variant was markedly reduced in virulence , for none of the pups had signs of illness . nevertheless , mp virus was recovered from the nasopharynx of all pups for 4 to 6 days after inoculation . although small amounts of virus were recovered from kidney , spleen , and lung tissues of one pup ( i - 660 ) euthanized 6 days after intraperitoneal inoculation and from the liver of an additional pup ( i - 661 ), there were no macroscopic lesions . virus was not recovered from the other three pups that were infected with mp virus and then euthanized 6 or 8 days later . pups that were allowed to survive did not have signs of illness , and they all developed chv - neutralizing antibody by post - inoculation week 3 . table 3 . __________________________________________________________________________tests for virulence of mp and mp variant chv in newborn pups viral isolation ( log . sub . 10 tcid . sub . 50 / 0 . 2 g of tissue ) macro - naso - plaque viral dose inoculation survival scopic le - pharynx cerebel - pup no . type ( tcid . sub . 50 ) route . sup . a or death . sup . b sions . sup . c ( days ) kidney spleen liver lum lung__________________________________________________________________________i - 658mp 10 . sup . 4 . 8 i . p . d ( 5 ) severe +( 2 - 5 ) 4 . 5 3 . 5 4 . 5 2 . 5 3 . 5i - 659mp 10 . sup . 4 . 8 o / n d ( 6 ) severe +( 2 - 6 ) 4 . 5 3 . 0 4 . 0 2 . 5 3 . 5i - 660mp 10 . sup . 5 . 2 i . p . e ( 6 ) none +( 3 - 5 ) 1 . 0 2 . 5 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 2 . 5i - 661mp 10 . sup . 5 . 2 o / n e ( 6 ) none +( 2 - 6 ) & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 1 . 0 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1i - 662mp 10 . sup . 5 . 2 i . p . e ( 6 ) none +( 3 - 5 ) & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1ii - 644mp 10 . sup . 4 . 5 i . p . d ( 6 ) severe +( 2 - 6 ) 5 . 0 3 . 5 3 . 5 2 . 5 4 . 5ii - 645mp 10 . sup . 4 . 5 o / n d ( 8 ) severe +( 2 - 6 ) 5 . 5 4 . 5 4 . 0 3 . 0 5 . 0ii - 646mp 10 . sup . 5 . 0 i . p . e ( 6 ) none +( 2 - 6 ) & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1ii - 647mp 10 . sup . 5 . 0 i . p . s . sup . d --. sup . e +( 2 - 4 ) -- -- -- -- -- ii - 648mp 10 . sup . 5 . 0 i . p . s -- +( 2 - 5 ) -- -- -- -- -- ii - 649mp 10 . sup . 5 . 0 o / n e ( 8 ) none +( 2 - 4 ) & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1ii - 650mp 10 . sup . 5 . 0 o / n s -- +( 2 - 5 ) -- -- -- -- -- ii - 651mp 10 . sup . 5 . 0 o / n s -- +( 2 - 4 ) -- -- -- -- -- __________________________________________________________________________ chv growth was greatly restricted in the 2 - week - old pups given the mp or mp virus ( groups 1 and 2 ; table 4 ); however , the pups that received ats at the time of inoculation with mp virus ( group 4 ) dies by the 6th post - inoculation day . pups that were inoculated with mp virus and then treated with ats did not have signs of illness ; however , at necropsy , their thymus glands were approximately one - third the weight of the thymuses from the non - treated animals . none of the pups that received mp virus had prominent macroscopic lesions , although occasional small areas of focal necrosis , but no hemorrhages , were observed microscopically in the lung and liver of one pup ( no . 4 ). the lesions were similar to those seen in 2 - week - old pups that were given mp virus but not ats . in contrast , the pups ( no . 7 and 8 ) given mp virus and ats had high viral titers in several organs . remarkably high titers were found in the brain . microscopic lesions in the inoculated 2 - week - old pups that were given the mp virus but no ats were disseminated small foci of interstitial pneumonitis , necrosis of occasional hepatocytes , and minute areas of renal hemorrhage and focal interstitial necrosis , with minimal inflammatory changes . contrasting with these modest lesions were the prominent changes observed in the mp - inoculated pups treated with ats ( group 4 ). they consisted of interstitial pneumonitis , with alveolar necrosis and hemorrhages , necrotic foci throughout the liver , and multiple foci of necrosis and hemorrhages in the renal cortices , with both tubular and glomerular destruction . central nervous system changes consisted of disseminated focal enephalitis , necrosis of neuronal and astroglial cells with mononuclear cell infiltrations , and segmental leptomeningitis . other lesions typical of chv infection of neonatal puppies also were observed in these animals ; carmichael , j . am . vet . med . assoc ., 156 : 1714 - 1721 ( 1970 ); carmichael et al ., am . j . vet . res ., 26 : 802 - 814 ( 1965 ); pryde , supra . table 4 . __________________________________________________________________________response of 2 - week - old pups to chv ( mp or mp ) and effects of ats macro - viral isolation ( log . sub . 10 tcid . sub . 50 / 0 . 2g ) plaque type in - scopic le - nasol - oculated ( pup sions at ne - thymus wt pharynx cerebel - group no .) illness cropsy . sup . a ( g ) ( days ) kidney spleen liver lung lum__________________________________________________________________________1 chv - mp ( 1 ) none none 1 . 8 +( 2 - 7 ) & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 ( 2 ) none none 2 . 0 +( 2 - 5 ) & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 1 . 2 & lt ; 12 chv - mp ( 3 ) none none 0 . 7 +( 2 - 8 ) & lt ; 1 1 . 0 & lt ; 1 1 . 0 & lt ; 1 + ats ( 4 ) none none 0 . 5 +( 2 - 8 ) & lt ; 1 0 . 8 1 . 0 1 . 5 & lt ; 13 chv - mp ( 5 ) none mild 1 . 9 +( 2 - 8 ) 1 . 0 & lt ; 1 1 . 0 2 . 5 & lt ; 1 ( 6 ) none mild 1 . 8 +( 2 - 8 ) 0 . 8 & lt ; 1 & lt ; 1 2 . 0 & lt ; 14 chv - mp ( 7 ) died . sup . b severe 0 . 5 +( 2 - 4 ) 3 . 5 & lt ; 1 2 . 5 4 . 5 3 . 5 + ats ( 8 ) died severe 0 . 6 +( 2 - 6 ) 4 . 0 3 . 5 2 . 0 5 . 5 2 . 5__________________________________________________________________________ . sup . a see text for lesion descriptions . sup . b pups no . 7 and 8 dies on postinfection days 4 and 6 , respectively . surviving pups were euthanized at day 8 . the above studies demonstrate that the mp virus had additional biological properties that distinguished it from the parental mp virus . notwithstanding the subtle , but nevertheless distinct , differences between the mp and mp strains in the character of cytopathology , the times of onset of cpe , the rates and amounts of virus produced at 30 ° and 35 ° c ., viral persistence in canine spleen monocyte cultures , and , of lesser significance , the rates of inactivation at 38 ° c ., there were distinct differences in their virulence for pups . the mp ( wild - type ) virus was highly virulent for newborn pups and for 2 - week - old animals that had received ats at the time of infection . the mp variant , however , was clearly an attenuated strain . although the mp variant persisted for several ( 4 to 6 ) days in the nasopharynx , it rarely was recovered from other tissue sites favored by the mp virus , and then only in small amounts . association between small plaque size and reduced virulence has been reported for plaque variants or mutants of other herpesviruses [ darlington r . w . et al . &# 34 ; replication - biological aspects &# 34 ;, in the herpesvirues ( kaplan ed .) academic press inc ., new york ( 1973 ), pp 93 - 132 ; rapp , f ., et al ., proc . soc . exp . biol . med ., 116 : 361 - 365 ( 1964 )], the most noteworthy being mdhv [ biggs et al ., &# 34 ; biological properties of a number of marek &# 39 ; s disease virus isolates &# 34 ;, in oncogenesis and herpesviruses ( biggs et al ., ed .) who international agency for research on cancer , lyon ( 1972 ) pp 88 - 94 ; cho , avian dis ., 20 : 324 - 331 ( 1976 ); darlington et al . supra ]. the mp - chv , however , did not behave as an attenuated host range , temperature - sensitive mutant , as described for the large - and small - plaque mutants of hvh - 2 ; darlington et al , supra ; korment et al , supra . it did not regularly engender the formation of syncytia , as described for the chv - br strain , poste , supra , or occur as a naturally attenuated plaque variant , as described for field isolates of mdhv , but it originated after less than 20 passages in dkc cultures incubated at 30 ° c . after prolonged culture ( 312 passages ) at 35 ° c . unfortunately , the precise passage at which the mp variant emerged could not be determined , but it was the dominant type after 20 passages at 30 ° c . unlike the antigenic change ( loss of the &# 34 ; a antigen &# 34 ;) that has been associated with the attenuation of mdhv after prolonged passage in chicken renal cell cultures , purchase et al ., infect . immun ., 3 : 295 - 303 ( 1971 ), antigenic markers specific for the attenuated chv - mp strain were not detected . the following three examples demonstrate the efficacy of the mp canine herpesvirus strain in imparting resistance to wild - type virulent canine herpesvirus . because signs of illness are absent in dogs older than one week of age , ( carmichael et al , j . am . vet . med . assoc . 156 : 1714 - 1721 ( 1970 ) vaccine trials were designed so as to demonstrate efficacy based upon relative duration of viral shed ( equivalent to viral growth in host ) following challenge inoculation with virulent ( mp ) virus . littermate spf beagle dogs each were inoculated intramuscularly ( 1 m ) or oral / nasally ( o / n ) with 10 5 . 2 - 5 . 8 tissue culture infective doses ( tcd 50 ) of mp chv . blood samples were taken prior to vaccination and before challenge - inoculation with virulent ( mp , macroplaque ) chv ( strain f - 205 ), and thereafter at intervals . nasal - pharyngeal swab samples were collected for a period of 2 weeks after both vaccination and challenge - inoculation for viral isolations . results ( serologic responses , signs of illness , virus shedding ) were recorded for vaccinated and unvaccinated ( control ) animals that received challenge inoculations at the same time as the vaccinates . the first of three groups of pups was vaccinated at four months of age and challenge - inoculated three months later ( d800 through 802 ). control animals were d803 - 804 . see table 5 . vaccine virus given im did not spread to unit - contact controls over a period of three months . neither vaccinated animals nor controls had signs of illness post - vaccination or post - challenge . this was considered to be a normal response since immunity to this virus must be based on the relative restriction of viral shedding of vaccinates and controls . table 5 . ______________________________________intramuscular vaccination at 4 months of age ( chv mp ) post - vac . pre - chall . post - chall . virus shed sn antibody virus sheddog ( days ) ( 3 mo . p . v .) ( days ) conclusion______________________________________vaccinatesd800 0 1 : 16 2 ( mp ) immuned801 0 1 : 4 0 immuned802 0 1 : 4 0 immunecontrols notd803 -- & lt ; 1 : 2 8 ( mp ) immune notd804 -- & lt ; 1 : 2 11 ( mp ) immune______________________________________ the second group was vaccinated oral / nasally at three days of age and challenge - inoculated one month later , with appropriate controls ( d612 - 617 vaccinated ; d618 - 619 controls ). see table 6 . the mp ( attenuated ) virus was shed from 1 - 7 days after o / n inoculation , in contrast to the mp virus that is commonly shed in copious amounts for approximately 14 days ( 8 - 17 days in more than 30 dogs studied ). low antibody titers were generated that did not completely exclude the mp challenge virus . however , there was evidence of an anamnestic response ( results of 8 - day serology ) in vaccinated dogs , with accelerated rejection of the challenge mp virus , as compared with controls . an immune response with reduction in viral shed is clearly evident . no signs of illness were observed in vaccinated or control dogs . although not an object of this trial , it may be concluded further ( confirming published reports from this laboratory , infection and immunity 20 : 108 - 114 , april 1978 ) that mp is avirulent for neonatal pups . table 6 . __________________________________________________________________________oral - nasal vaccination at 3 days of age ( spf beagles ) post - vacc . pre - chall . post - chall . antibodydog virus shed antibody ( sn ) virus shed ( days ) 8 day post - chall . conclusion__________________________________________________________________________vaccinatesd612 1 - 5 ( days ) mp * 1 : 8 1 - 7 ( mp ) 1 : 32 immuned614 1 - 7 mp 1 : 4 2 - 7 ( mp ) 1 : 16 immuned615 1 - 7 mp 1 : 4 2 - 8 ( mp ) 1 : 12 immuned616 1 - 4 mp 1 : 8 2 - 3 ( mp ) 1 : 16 immuned617 1 - 4 mp 1 : 8 2 - 5 ( mp ) 1 : 16 immunecontrols ( non - contact ) d618 -- & lt ; 1 : 2 1 - 12 1 : 4 not immuned619 -- & lt ; 1 : 2 1 - 16 1 : 8 not immune__________________________________________________________________________ * mp = attenuated virus mp = virulent virus the third group ( d54 - 57 ) was vaccinated intramuscularly at 2 months of age . animals were challenge - inoculated one month later . 2 - months later all dogs received corticosteroid ( dexamethasone , 1 mg / day for 5 days ), a drug shown to cause recrudescence of persistent chv . swab samples were collected during and following steroid treatment for a total period of 12 days . virus recovered following steroid treatment was analyzed for plaque type ( mp = virulent , mp = vaccine strain ). see table 7 . viral shed did not occur following initial vaccination ( im route ), and there was no spread of virus to in - unit contacts . following challenge viral shed was again reduced . relative amounts of virus recovered ( generally less than 10 tcd 50 ) was significantly less in vaccinates than controls ( 100 to 10 , 000 tcd 50 ). all vaccinates developed low sn antibody titers . within 8 days following challenge , titers did not change , indicating minimal immune response to challenge virus , i . e . limited viral growth . following corticosteroid drug treatment ( dexamethasone ), there was no recrudescence of the vaccine virus . mp virus ( virulent ) was recovered , however , from the control dogs that had received challenge inoculums 2 months previous to drug treatment , and which had been negative to viral isolation attempts ( 3 × weekly ) during the period following initial viral shedding and steroid treatment . table 7 . __________________________________________________________________________host - response to mp and persistence of virus as revealed byviral recrudescence following steroid treatment post - vacc . pre - chall . post - chall . viral re - excretion virus shed sn anti - virus shed following steroiddog ( days ) body titer ( days ) immune treatment ( 2 mo . post - chall . ) __________________________________________________________________________vaccinates54 0 1 : 16 1 - 5 yes neg . 55 0 1 : 8 1 - 4 yes neg . 56 0 1 : 8 2 - 7 yes neg . 57 0 1 : 6 2 - 4 yes neg . controls58 -- & lt ; 1 : 2 1 - 16 no pos . ( 3 - 9 day ; mp virus ) 59 -- & lt ; 1 : 2 1 - 14 no pos . ( 5 - 10 day ; mp virus ) __________________________________________________________________________ the microplaque ( mp ) variant of chv ( strain f - 205 ) is available from the james a . baker institute for animal health , new york state college of veterinary medicine , cornell university , ithaca , new york 14853 , upon request .	0
reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments of the invention , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . wherever possible , the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts . fig2 shows a main portion of a printer to which an embodiment of the safety device according to the present invention is applied . the printer 21 is provided with a photosensitive drum 22 . an electrically charging corotron 23 is provided above the photosensitive drum 22 and arranged to apply charges onto a surface of the drum which is arranged to rotate in the direction indicated by an arrow in the drawing . the charged surface of the drum is irradiated with a laser beam 25 so as to form an electrostatic latent image and then is developed by a developing device 24 used both as a toner storing vessel and a developer . a toner image formed through the development by the developing device 24 is transferred onto recording paper 28 conveyed from a supply tray 26 along a conveying path 27 . the transfer of the toner image is carried out by the operation of a transfer corotron 29 acting as a transfer device . the recording paper onto which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed by a conveying belt 31 to a fixing device 32 so as to be fixed . the fixing device 32 is constituted by a heat roll 5 incorporating a heater 3 and a pressure roll 33 for pressing the recording paper against the heat roll 5 . a heat exhausting device 13 is provided above the heat roll 5 so as to discharge air in the printer 21 to the outside of the printer when necessary . after transferring the toner image onto the recording paper , the photosensitive drum 22 is cleaned by a cleaning device 35 , and then electrically charged again by the charge corotron 23 so as to prepare for the succeeding exposure operation . a thermistor module 6 is disposed to lightly touch a surface of the heat roll 5 as described with respect to fig6 and a thermostat 4 is provided at a position separated a little from the heat roll 5 . fig1 shows a circuit arrangement of the main portion of such a printer . in the printer , a 100 v commercial power source 1 is connected to a first series circuit constituted by the heater 3 , the thermostat 4 , and a solid state relay 2 . a second series circuit is constituted by the heat exhausting device 13 and a relay 41 for driving the heat exhausting device . the thermistor module 6 having a thermistor disposed on a surface thereof as a temperature detecting element is provided in the vicinity of the heater 3 so as to touch the surface of the heat roll 5 . surface temperature information 8 obtained from the thermistor module 6 is applied to an analog input port i - 1 of a central processor unit ( cpu ) 42 . the surface temperature information 8 in the form of an analog signal applied to the analog input port i - 1 is analog - to - ditigal converted by an a / d converter provided in the cpu 42 and subjected to signal processing . the cpu 42 is connected to a peripheral circuit 43 such as a clock generator , input and output ports , and the like , through a bus 44 and arranged to output a temperature control signal 45 from a first output port o - 1 as a result of processing of the surface temperature information 8 so as to control the temperature of the heater 3 to a fixed value . the temperature control signal 45 is supplied to a driver 46 as a control input for performing the on / off control of the solid state relay 2 . the cpu 42 further outputs an emergency control signal 47 from a second output port o - 2 as a result of other processing of the surface temperature information 8 . the emergency control signal 47 is produced in the state where the surface temperature of the heater 3 is abnormally raised as described later . the emergency control signal 47 is supplied to a driver 48 as a control input for turning on / off the operation of the relay 41 for driving the heat exhausting device . in the circuit shown in fig1 the cpu 42 , the peripheral circuit 43 , and the two drivers 46 and 48 preferably are provided on one and the same substrate and act as a control device 49 mainly for controlling a fixer . fig3 shows the state in which the surface temperature of the heat roll in the printer is controlled . when a power source for the printer is turned on at a point in time t1 , the temperature control signal 45 is output from the first output port o - 1 . a current is caused to flow in the heater 3 continuously until a point in time t2 at which the temperature of the heat roll 5 becomes 190 ° c . then , the solid state relay 2 is turned on , causing a current to flow from the commercial power source 1 to the heater 3 in every period from a point in time at which the surface temperature of the heat roll 5 has been lowered to 180 ° c . to another point in time at which the surface temperature of the heat roll 5 has been raised to 190 ° c . thus , in the embodiment , the surface temperature of the heat roll 5 is maintained in a temperature range from about 180 ° c . to about 190 ° c . when any abnormality occurs in the control device 49 , causing current to flow continuously in the heater 3 , the surface temperature of the heat roll 5 will reach 220 ° c . at a point in time t3 in fig3 . at that point in time , the cpu 42 produces the emergency control signal 47 so that the relay 41 for driving the heat exhausting device stops causing a current to flow in the heat exhausting device 13 . the thermostat 4 disposed so as to be separated slightly from the surface of the heat roll 5 can then monitor the temperature of the heat roll 5 without being influenced by the heat exhausting device 13 . that is , when the airflow is stopped , the thermostat 4 more rapidly detects the temperature of the heat roll 5 and opens its contact at a point in time before occurrence of a fault in the heat roll 5 . accordingly , the current is stopped from flowing from the commercial power source 1 to the heater 3 . fig4 shows the operation of the cpu for performing the control described above . the cpu 42 performs the following control in accordance with a procedure for temperature control written in a not - shown memory . first , the cpu 42 determines whether the temperature t is lower than a first temperature value t1 for the fixing operation ( 180 ° c . in the present embodiment ) on the basis of the surface temperature information 8 ( step 1 ). if the temperature t is lower than the first temperature value t1 , the heater is turned on ( step 2 ). in any other cases , determination is made as to whether the temperature t is higher than a second temperature value t2 for fixing operation ( 190 ° c . in the embodiment ) ( step 3 ). if the temperature t is higher than the second temperature value , the heater 3 is turned off ( step 4 ). in the case where the temperature t is not higher than 190 ° c ., the current is caused to flow continuously . on the other hand , if the temperature t is higher than the second temperature t2 in the step 3 , there is a possibility that the temperature t has reached an abnormal temperature value . in that case , it is determined whether the temperature t is higher than a temperature value t3 ( 220 ° c . in the present embodiment ) which is an abnormal temperature value ( step 5 ). if the temperature t is higher than the abnormal temperature value , the heat exhausting device 13 is stopped ( step 6 ). at the same time , the emergency control signal 47 is produced . in the present embodiment , at a point in time at which the surface temperature of the heat roll 5 was raised to 240 ° c . by stopping the heat exhausting device 13 , the thermostat 4 was actuated to operate so that a current flow was stopped in the heater 3 . in the same printer , when the heat exhausting device 13 was operated , the thermostat 4 was actuated to operate at a point in time at which the surface temperature of the heat roll 5 was raised to 280 ° c . that is , the operational point of the thermostat 4 was lowered by about 40 ° c . by stopping the heat exhausting device 13 even momentarily upon occurrence of abnormality , so that it became possible that a secondary obstacle applied to a fixing device was effectively prevented . fig5 shows a second preferred embodiment of the present invention . in fig5 the same parts as those in fig1 are correspondingly referenced , and the description of them will be suitably omitted . in the first preferred embodiment described above , the cpu 42 ( see fig1 ) was arranged to detect abnormal heat . accordingly , if the cpu 42 itself is out of order , measures cannot be taken to cope with the abnormal heating . in the modification shown in fig5 the surface temperature information 8 of the heat roll 5 produced from the thermistor module 6 is supplied not only to the cpu 42 but to a control portion 51 separately provided for controlling the heat exhausting device . the heat exhausting device control portion 51 is provided with a comparator 52 for comparing the surface temperature information 8 with a reference voltage . if an abnormal temperature occurs , an emergency control signal 54 is produced from a driver 53 . the emergency control signal 54 is used as a control input for making on / off the operation of the relay 41 for driving the heat exhausting device . thus , in the modification , a circuit for detecting the abnormal heating is provided separately from ordinary temperature control means , so that the heat exhausting device 13 is stopped even if the cpu 42 is out of order . accordingly , the secondary damage of the apparatus can be reduced . in the embodiment and the modification described above , a thermostat is used as a safety device , but a thermo fuse or any other similar element or circuit may be used . although a cpu having an analog input port is used as a control device in both described embodiments , an ordinary digital processing cpu may be used or a circuit having the same function may be constituted by a comparator . thus , according to the present invention , the heat exhausting device is arranged to stop operating when the thermal fixer exceeds a normal temperature control range . not only is the operation of the safety device such as the thermostat or the like made certain , but the reliability of the safety device itself can be improved . other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention as disclosed herein . it is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only , with the true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the following claims .	6
referring to the drawings , wherein like numerals indicate like elements , a pressure vessel 10 is shown in fig1 . pressure vessel 10 includes a housing 12 , an end cap 14 , and a clamp 16 . housing 12 comprises an overmolded section 18 having a flange 20 , and an extruded tube 24 . pressure vessel 10 ( i . e . housing 12 and preferably cap 14 ) is made from a polyolefin material . clamp 16 may be made of a metal or plastic material . overmolded section 18 is welded to extruded tube 24 along a weld line 22 . welding of the overmolded section 18 to extruded tube 24 is accomplished by an overmolding process ( described herein below ). pressure vessel , as used herein , refers to an enclosure capable of withstanding pressures up to 120 psi gauge . these pressure vessels may be used in hollow fiber membrane contactors disclosed in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 264 , 171 and 5 , 352 , 361 , which are incorporated herein by reference . polyolefin , as used herein , refers to a class or group name for thermoplastic polymers derived from simple olefins ; these polyolefins specifically exclude elastomers . the polyolefins will be discussed in greater detail below . referring to fig2 the housing 12 is shown . housing 12 is formed , in part , from an extruded tube 24 . each end of extruded tube 24 has a machined section 26 . machined section 26 is formed with a surface that facilitates a weld line formation between machined section 26 and overmolded section 18 . machined section 26 is preferably formed by cutting , as on a lathe , but could be molded instead . the extruded tube 24 is made from an unfilled , ( or neat ) polyolefin material . unfilled , as used herein , refers to the lack of or the substantial lack of a material that acts as a mold release agent or a polymer flow agent or an internal polymer lubricant . the polyolefin material may be either an extrusion grade or injection moldable grade polymer , but preferably is extrusion grade polymer . the polyolefin material should have a melt flow index ( astm d1238 ) of less than 5 and a specific gravity ( astm d792a - 2 ) of about 0 . 8 or greater ( the specific gravity being indicative of the materials strength ). preferably , the polyolefin material has a melt - flow index of less than 1 and a specific gravity of about 0 . 9 or greater . the polyolefin material may be any thermoplastic polymer , e . g . polypropylene , and maybe either a homopolymer or a copolymer . suitable polyolefin materials include pro - fax 6523 or 7823 polypropylene resins available from montell usa of wilmington , del . referring to fig3 overmolded section 18 is illustrated . overmolded section 18 comprises a flange 20 , a neck section 28 , and a female mating section 30 . female mating section 30 is adapted for hermatically sealing engagement ( e . g . welding ) with machined section 26 of extruded tube 24 via weld line 22 . overmolded section 18 is formed in a mold during the overmolding process . the mold is discussed in greater detail below . overmolded section 18 is made from an unfilled ( or neat ) polyolefin material . unfilled , as used herein , refers to the lack of or the substantial lack of a material that acts as a mold release agent or a polymer flow agent or an internal polymer lubricant . the polyolefin material may be either an extrusion grade or injection moldable grade polymer , but preferably is an extrusion grade polymer . the polyolefin material should have a melt flow index ( astm d1238 ) of less than 5 and a specific gravity ( astm d792a - 2 ) of about 0 . 8 or greater ( the specific gravity being indicative of the materials strength ). preferably , the polyolefin material has a melt flow index of less than 1 and a specific gravity of about 0 . 9 or greater . the polyolefin material may be any thermoplastic polymer , e . g . polypropylene , and maybe either a homopolymer or a copolymer . suitable polyolefin materials include pro - fax 6523 or 7823 polypropylene resins available from montell usa of wilmington , del . referring to fig4 overmolded section 18 is shown in engagement with extruded tube 24 via weld line 22 . in manufacture , extruded tube 24 is , preferably , machined to form machined sections 26 . the machined extruded tube 24 is inserted into a mold . the mold ( not shown ) is adapted to receive the machined section 26 of the extruded tube 24 and support the internal surface thereof . the mold is also adapted to form the overmolded section 18 via an injection technique . the fabrication of this multi - parted mold is within the skill of the art . with the multi - parted mold in place , a polyolefin material is injected , at the resin &# 39 ; s suggested use temperature , into the mold , and the overmolded section 18 is formed thereby . at the same time , the overmolded section 18 is welded to the machined section 26 of the extruded tube 24 . thereafter , the housing 12 ( i . e . tube 24 with integrally form overmolded section 18 ) is released from the mold . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof and , accordingly , reference should be made to the appended claims , rather than to the foregoing specification , as indicating the scope of their invention .	1
as described herein , a goal of a multiple domain smartphone is to provide different levels of security and stability in different domains depending on the usage context and to provide an efficient and convenient way to switch between the domains without sacrificing security and stability . a further goal is to provide this capability using a commercial off - the - shelf ( cots ) smartphone with only software modifications . the software modifications are intended to provide “ secure ” software , by which is meant that the quality and integrity of the of the software and its execution environment may provide a basis for trusting its behavior . a multiple domain smartphone according to embodiments described herein provides many benefits . it should be understood that a viable system need not include all of the features described herein and is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms . one embodiment of the invention is described with reference to fig1 , which shows a simplified diagram of a secure smartphone in a government application . in fig1 , a mobile phone 100 may be operated in a secure domain 102 or an unsecure domain 104 . the mobile phone 100 may be , for example , an android ™ smartphone or any suitable commercially available smartphone . in secure domain 102 , communications 106 between mobile phone 100 and cellular or wireless network 110 may be encrypted . in unsecure domain 104 , communications 108 between mobile phone 100 and cellular or wireless network 110 may be open . cellular or wireless network 10 may then communicate to either a secure server 116 over a secure backhaul 112 or to an unsecure server 118 over an open backhaul 114 . secure server 116 may provide services including virtual private network ( vpn ), secure voice over ip ( voip ), secure email , secure video and secure situational awareness and inventory . unsecure server 118 may provide services including web / internet access , voip , email , video and situational awareness and inventory . fig2 illustrates a real world application of the secure smartphone as it may be used on a battlefield . smartphone equipped soldiers 200 may communicate in a secure domain to a manned or unmanned aircraft equipped with a picocell base station 202 which may then relay the communication to a ka - band or ku - band satellite communications unit 204 through an enerlinks ™ ground transceiver 212 . the satellite communications unit 204 then relays the communications to a global information grid ( gig ) 206 . alternatively , the enerlinks ™ ground transceiver 212 could relay the communication to cellular / wireless equipment 214 which may then relay the communication to a cellular or wireless network 210 . the smartphone equipped soldiers 200 may also switch to an unsecure domain to communicate through a cellular or wireless network 208 operated by a commercial carrier in a nearby town . use of a smartphone in this manner may provide greater network throughput at a fraction of the cost of traditional tactical radios . an alternative embodiment of the invention is described with reference to fig3 , which shows a simplified diagram of a multi - domain smartphone in a commercial application . in fig3 , a mobile phone 300 may be operated in a business domain 302 or a personal domain 304 . in business domain 302 , communications 306 between mobile phone 300 and cellular or wireless network 310 may optionally be encoded . in personal domain 304 , communications 308 between mobile phone 300 and cellular or wireless network 310 may be open . cellular or wireless network 310 may then communicate to either a business enterprise server 316 associated with the business domain over a vpn backhaul 312 or to a public network 318 over an open backhaul 314 . fig1 illustrates a basic block diagram of the smartphone in accordance with an embodiment of the invention which will be discussed in greater detail later in the detailed description . as an introduction for the discussion that follow , the device comprises multiple isolated domains 1100 , 1102 , 1104 1106 and hardware 1116 which may further comprise a processing module to run operating systems 1110 and application software 1108 . each operating system 1110 may be dedicated to an operating domain such as the high domain 1100 , the low domain 1102 , or any number of intermediate level domains 1120 . the high domain 1100 may run secure or business applications while the low domain 1102 may run unsecure or personal applications . the device also comprises a communication control module 1114 to enforce communication restrictions between each of the operating systems 1110 , device drivers 1106 , trusted applications 1104 and device hardware 1116 . fig1 presents an overview of the system and the interconnected components , each of which will be described in fuller detail below . before any security measures may be effective , a newly purchased commercial phone is wiped clean and re - imaged with a secure software image . a smartphone may be provisioned by obtaining a commercially available off - the - shelf phone and performing a sequence of steps to be described . a goal of the provisioning process is to ensure that the phone is cleared of any pre - existing data and software prior to installing new applications . first , the phone may be isolated by shielding it from open wifi access to prevent unauthorized wireless access or interference . next , the external flash card and sim card , which contain cellular data network information as illustrated in fig4 at 402 , may be removed . an unsigned application may then be download , installed and run on the phone to overwrite and replace the boot area of the ram memory 404 . at this point flash memory is corrupted and normal phone operations will no longer work . this may be verified later . the phone may now be rebooted with new boot code . a series of non - compressible random numbers may be downloaded over a usb port to fill all memory , such as ram and flash , as illustrated in fig5 . a hash calculation , based on a seed value , of all the random data written to memory may then be performed . if the resulting hash value matches an expected value then the phone has been verified to be clear of any previous data or software . a secure flash image may then be downloaded and the phone rebooted , at which point the secure image takes control of the phone . if the hash value did not match , then something prevented the replacement boot software from executing and the unit can not be secured . it may be useful to ensure that the phone has not been subject to unauthorized modification during the course of its operation or between times of usage . although some commercial phones have varying levels of protection against this , there is no phone that cannot have its software image at least partially modified . while it may not be possible to prevent unauthorized modification without the use of custom hardware or mechanical housing , it is possible to make the process difficult and detectable . techniques for detection of unauthorized modification may be combined with an appropriate physical possession policy to minimize the possibility of unauthorized modification . any unauthorized modification to the contents of memory are cause for concern . fig6 illustrates an example embodiment of a memory layout for the smartphone which may be useful for the discussions that follow . ram 600 may contain communication control module 601 , a device driver region 602 , a trusted software region 604 , a high domain o / s region 606 , a low domain o / s region 608 and application region 609 . flash 610 , which is non - volatile memory , may contain high domain 612 data , applications and operating system ( such as an android ™ os ). flash 610 may also contain low domain 614 data , applications and operating system ( such as an android ™ os ). flash 610 may also contain trusted domains 616 , device drivers 618 and a communication control boot 620 . in one embodiment of the invention , detection of unauthorized modification may be achieved through an on - demand random challenge involving only the phone after the phone has been put into a known state via the provisioning process . in this technique , a first text - based key phrase may be entered and used as a hash seed value . the phone then performs a hash calculation over the flash memory including the boot , trusted domains , device drivers and all operating systems . a second text - based key phrase may then be entered and split against the hash result . the split is stored in flash memory while the second key phrase is erased from memory . whenever the integrity of the phone needs to be verified , the first key phrase may be entered and in response , the phone calculates and displays the second key phrase based on the contents of the flash memory . if the displayed second key phrase is the expected value then the flash memory is unlikely to have been modified . in another embodiment of the invention , detection of unauthorized modification may be achieved through an on - demand random challenge involving the phone and a laptop or other computer that has a copy of the original flash image in the phone . in this technique , the laptop may request a copy of the data portion of the flash memory for temporary safekeeping and replace those portions with random values from the laptop . the laptop may then provide a seed and request an on - demand random challenge as described in the previous technique . the laptop may then verify the results of this challenge , which the phone computes based on the random data that was just downloaded , to ensure that the challenge process has not been corrupted . if the expected hash value is produced from the challenge then there is some assurance that the phone software has not been corrupted and the laptop may then restore the data portions of flash with the original contents that were saved . in another embodiment of the invention , detection of unauthorized modification may be achieved through the installation of a host based integrity verification application on the phone . there may be separate integrity verification applications for each domain . the integrity verification application may be downloaded and installed through the wireless network ( i . e ., “ over the air ”) or through a usb port . the integrity verification application may be signed to indicate that it comes from a trusted source or has otherwise been evaluated and approved . thus , the integrity verification is done by means of trusted processing . the integrity verification application contains a database of expected signatures for key binary executables that may be run on the phone , as well as other specific data , and verifies the signature of each binary executable against the appropriate entry in the list of expected signatures . the list of expected signatures is itself also protected from external modification and subject to integrity checks . the integrity verification application may be run to produce an overall pass or fail indication , wherein the failure to match any signature against the corresponding expected signature would result in an overall fail indication . in another embodiment of the invention , detection of unauthorized modification may be achieved through an on - demand certificate challenge to cryptographically detect changes in persistent memory involving only the phone and two key phrases for verification . this technique may consist of an initialization phase and a verification phase . the initialization phase is illustrated in fig7 and 8 . after the phone has been provisioned and is in a known state , private 716 and public 718 certificates may be obtained which are unique to the phone . a first text - based key phrase 714 is entered and a hash function 708 is calculated . the public certificate 718 is then aes encrypted 712 using the hash of the first key phrase 710 . this encrypted public certificate is then stored in persistent memory 706 . moving now to fig8 , using the first key phrase 816 as a seed , a hash function is calculated 808 over the software image 804 in flash memory 800 . the software image 804 includes the boot , trusted domains , device drivers and operating systems but excludes user data and applications . a second text - based key phrase 818 is entered and split against the flash hash word at 810 to create a flash hash key 812 . the flash hash key 812 is then encrypted at 814 using the private certificate 820 and stored in persistent memory 806 . the private certificate 820 and the second key phrase 818 are then cleared from the phone . the verification phase is illustrated in figures fig9 and 10 . the user may initiate a certificate challenge by entering the first key phrase 914 . a hash of the first key phrase 910 is then used as an aes key to unwrap , at 912 , the encrypted public certificate stored in persistent memory 906 , to reproduce the public certificate 916 . moving now to fig1 , the public certificate 1020 is used to decrypt , at 1014 , the flash hash key 1012 . the first key phrase 1016 is also used as a hash seed to calculate a hash 1008 over the software image 1004 in flash memory 1000 . the hash value is combined with the flash hash key at 1010 to recover the second key phrase 1018 . if the recovered second key phrase 1018 matches the expected value then the integrity of the software image 1004 has been verified . prior to being used for secure operations , the health of the platform may be determined and all elements of the system placed into a known state . at power up , health tests may be performed for both the hardware and the flash memory , including software and persistent data . power up health tests focus on establishing that the hardware environment is sound , including cpu , ram and flash memory , and that the software and data contents of the flash memory are valid and authenticated . the tests may involve the cpu instruction set ; cpu registers ; mmu ; ram storage , address and data lines ; and flash address and data lines . in addition to power up health tests , operational health tests may monitor the health of the hardware environment while the device is operational . these may be periodically performed in the background with minimal impact to the user functionality . these tests may involve the cpu instruction set ; cpu registers ; mmu ; ram storage and data lines ; and before - use flash program cyclic redundancy check ( crc ). additionally , the identity of the user may be authenticated through a password challenge at power up , prior to entering into the operational environment . after authentication the system may be initialized by loading the communication control module , the operating system environments and trusted software . four isolated domains , or regions of memory , may be provided as illustrated in fig1 . a system high domain 1100 may provide applications 1108 and an operating system 1110 , such as the android ™ or linux ™ operating system . a system low domain 1102 may provide applications 1108 and an operating system 1110 , such as the android ™ or linux ™ operating system . the system low domain may be used for unclassified processing . although only one high domain 1100 and one low domain 1102 are illustrated for simplicity , and number of each type of domain may be provided . any number of additional intermediate level domains 1120 may also be provided . trusted domains 1104 may be used for secure transforms , cryptographic control , security configuration , access control and secure switching and other security related software . domains 1106 may be used for device drivers . each domain operates as an independent virtual machine ( vm ). separation is enforced between domains by a memory management unit ( mmu ), which is part of the phone hardware 1116 , and a communication control module 1114 which configures the mmu . the communication control module is similar to an operating system kernel except that it may only perform the tasks necessary for configuring memory separation , and inter - domain communications . this may include an application scheduler and moving data between address spaces ( isolated domains or memory regions ). this allows device drivers and operating systems to exist entirely in their own address space . the separation of all tasks across all operating systems present on the same processor is maintained by the communication control module . the system high 1100 and system low 1102 domains may be complete and isolated operating systems with their own set of applications and storage . although only one of each is shown in fig1 for simplicity , there may be as many as required . similarly , although two trusted domains 1104 are shown , there may be as many as required including redundant trusted domains . each domain in fig1 exists as a separate cell under the communication control module . a cell consists of resources isolated and protected from other cells , including an address space in memory enforced by the mmu , as well as execution time on the cpu enforced by time - slicing . the protection of all cells is managed by the communication control module . the communication control module configures the mmu each time it switches focus to a new domain , allowing it access to its own resources and only those resources . the communication control module also replaces the portions of the os in each domain , such that their schedulers may now rely on the communication control module for configuring the mmu for their sub - tasks . a goal of some embodiments of the invention is to allow the device drivers to be portable . existing device driver binaries may be used in unmodified form . this is possible because they are wrapped with functional translation between the os and the communication control module and because they are isolated in their own domain . some device drivers may be wrapped with trusted software to enable switching or transformations . this may offer the advantage of allowing for rapid migration as new releases are made available . device drivers may change implementation significantly with hardware , but the fundamental device driver interface changes infrequently . there may be four classes of device drivers as illustrated in the table of fig1 . these class are switched , shared , assigned low and assigned high . specific example of actual device drivers are provided within each class . as illustrated in fig1 , physical devices assigned exclusively to the system high domain 1306 may be available only to the system high domain 1300 . the data that passes through these devices may not undergo an encryption transformation . the gps device provides precise location information about the user . in some situations it may be preferable to keep this information secret and not shared over clear channels which is why the gps device driver may be assigned to the high domain . device drivers in the assigned high domain may be fixed in the software image . in alternate embodiments , the assignment may be configurable by an authorized entity . such assignment reconfiguration may require a reboot of the phone . as illustrated in fig1 , physical devices assigned exclusively to the system low domain 1406 may be available only to the system low domain 1400 . the data that passes through these devices typically need not undergo an encryption transformation , although in some embodiments they may undergo such a transformation if required . devices such as the usb bus and bluetooth need to be compatible with their existing protocol specification which may make it impractical to transform or share their data passing through the bus . device drivers in the assigned low domain may be fixed in the software image . in alternate embodiments , the assignment may be configurable by an authorized entity . such assignment reconfiguration may require a reboot of the phone . as illustrated in fig1 , shared devices 1506 may always be available to both high and low domains 1500 and 1504 . the data that passes through these devices is encrypted data compatible with the system low domain . the cellular data network and wifi network are packet - switched ip networks . packets exiting from the system high - side are first subject to an internet protocol security ( ipsec ) transformation in a trusted domain before reaching the device driver . packets entering and exiting the system low - side are unchanged . by sharing the device data services each domain can access the network when needed , allowing for background syncing and avoiding connection loss from network timeouts regardless of which domain is currently selected by the user . this may also allow the domain with which the user is not interacting to enter an idle , low power state , increasing battery life . this may also avoid additional latency that would otherwise be created by routing data from the system high - domain to the trusted domain to the system low - domain and then to the device driver . the flash storage device may be partitioned between the high domain and the low domain , allowing each access only to their own data . data transfer from either side goes through an encryption transformation in a trusted space with each domain using a different symmetric encryption key . as illustrated in fig1 , switched devices 1606 change exclusive assignment between high and low domain 1600 and 1604 while assigned . the data that passes through these devices may not usually be encrypted . there may be an effective sanitization strategy for output devices before each switch 1620 . input devices may not need sanitization . the display and speaker are two examples of switched output devices . the sanitization consists of flushing and clearing the buffer that feeds each device driver . since each device is write - only , the sanitization is simply to flush and clear the buffers to avoid remnant data from being mixed with new data from the other domain . the touchscreen , microphone and keypad are examples of switched input devices which do not need sanitization . the touchscreen , display and keypad are logically grouped together since they may all need to be switched simultaneously and immediately when the user initiates a domain switch . the microphone and speaker are logically grouped together and they may not need to immediately switch when the user initiates a domain switch . this is to avoid a secure voice conversation from switching over to the low domain should the user initiate a transition to the low domain during a secure voice call . all data , when not actively in use , whether in non - volatile flash memory or volatile ram may require some degree of protection . all data stored in flash memory , whether internal or external to the phone , may be encrypted immediately prior to storage to prevent unauthorized access . if the system high domain is in a locked state , whether through timeout or overt action by the user , the ram associated with the high domain may be sanitized for additional protection and may need to be reinstated before the high domain can resume processing . the system low domain may also be locked , but the ram may remain untouched . keys may be stored persistently . one method may use suite b algorithms and pki key material . stored key material may be aes key wrapped using a key encryption key ( kek ) that is split with a user password and a random value . the split kek may then be stored in internal flash memory ( unencrypted persistent storage ). this allows for a more dynamic kek value , but is only as strong as the user password . keys may also be stored temporarily in internal ram . in the event of power loss the device needs to be externally rekeyed . locking the device may allow the keys to remain present in ram . the phone may have security parameters that can be configured , as well as trusted controls necessary to interact with the phone in a secure manner . in one embodiment of the invention , access control to the device may be provided . the access control may be a single - factor password based mechanism . mutual authentication may be required . the procedure may be initiated by a hard - key press which is intercepted at the device driver and unseen by the os environments . a popup dialog may be presented to the user requesting a device passphrase to authenticate the device and gain access to protected functions including setting some security options and switching to the system high domain . the passphrase may also be used to cryptographically recover stored key material . the display may appear as illustrated in fig1 . the popup dialog may be used to switch domains and change security parameters . fig1 illustrates an example state diagram showing access control , domain switching and security parameter configuration according to some embodiments . both os domains may be live and active simultaneously although isolated in ram and flash memory . this provides support for background synchronization . a hard - key press may be used to switch between domains . the hard key press may be captured by an input only device and processed by a trusted element at the device driver level and not forwarded to either os . it may be undesirable to rely on an application in the high or low domain to initiate the switch since this may increase the chance of a security breach . physical keys are preferable to virtual keys because physical key presses are discrete events that can be filtered out at the device driver level and never forwarded to the high or low domain software that may have current control over the display and keypad . once the user initiates a domain switch using a physical key press , the trusted device driver element notifies a trusted security element to take control of the keypad and display , which may then present the user with a two - way authentication prompt . identity management relies on a mutual authentication scheme . the trusted element displays a device passphrase on the screen , which the user may recognize as having been previously entered , and then presents the user with a short menu of options . the display may be trusted because ( 1 ) the key press was intercepted at a low level device driver before entering either domain and ( 2 ) the display presented a shared secret device passphrase to the user which is not accessible by any software outside of the trusted domain . some actions may require the user to enter their password to perform the action . the action may be trusted to have been performed because the phone first authenticated itself as the trusted portion . some actions may also be limited to only certain users who have the authentication credentials . once authenticated , the user can switch between domains or perform security actions more quickly without entering credentials repeatedly , until either a timeout or overt lock occurs . some rare and important security actions may require a password every time . there may also be an additional menu option for certain users to gain access to more advanced settings to which other users do not have access . some switched device drivers may lag or not switch . for example , it may be undesirable for the speaker and microphone to switch domains during a call in progress . field updates and maintenance may include software updates . trusted portions of software may be updated under restriction controls including the requirement that the updates be signed . the system high side may benefit from signed software which has been evaluated . the system low side may benefit from compatibility with existing commercial standards such as , for example , the android ™ or google ™ marketplace . the device may be disposed of when no longer needed or repurposed . all information in the phone can be sanitized by following the provisioning process described previously . the phone may then either be returned to the original default android ™ image , for example , or to a new secure image . in the event of accidental loss or theft , a remote sanitization capability may be provided in some embodiments . fig1 illustrates a procedure for modifying an existing mobile communication device to operate in multiple domains in accordance with some embodiments . operation 1900 comprises installing an operating system for each operating domain in isolated regions of memory . at least one of the domains may be a business domain and at least one of the domains may be a personal domain . the business and personal domains may be targeted for commercial applications . in some embodiments existing software may be cleared from the device prior to installing the operating systems . operation 1910 comprises installing device drivers in isolated regions of memory . operation 1920 comprises implementing a communication control module to enforce communication restrictions between operating systems , device drivers and device hardware . the communication control module may be used to prevent corruption or unauthorized modification of software or data between domains as well as to prevent access of business data by a personal domain application . each domain operates as an independent virtual machine and separation is enforced between domains by a memory management unit which is part of the device hardware and is configured by the communication control module . operation 1930 comprises implementing an authentication procedure to switch from personal domain to business domain . the procedure may establish an expected response phrase to be supplied in response to an authentication challenge . the procedure may confirm authentication when an encoded version of the expected response phrase matches a similarly encoded version of the trial response phrase that is entered in response to an authentication challenge . operation 1940 comprises providing a trusted indicator that the device is operating in a business domain . this trusted indicator may be under the exclusive control of software that operates in the business domain . in some embodiments the mobile communication device may provide communication transmission between the mobile communication device and a business entity associated with the business domain , through a virtual private network ( vpn ), while the mobile communication device is operating in the business domain . in some embodiments the mobile communication device may provide a device erasure capability , wherein one or more of the isolated regions of memory are erased . the device erasure may be initiated by a button or key press on the device or by the reception of a communication transmission from a business entity associated with the business domain . a trusted indicator may be provided to indicate that the erasure has been accomplished . in some embodiments the erasure may be limited to areas of memory associated with the business domain . the device erasure may be accomplished by trusted software operating in the business domain . in some embodiments restrictions may be placed on software downloads to the device for use in the business domain . the software downloads may be subject to a validation procedure which may include a requirement for a trusted signature accompanying the software to be downloaded . the validation may be provided by the business entity associated with the business domain . software downloads may require the approval of an enterprise authority rather than being allowed at the user &# 39 ; s option . fig2 illustrates a functional block diagram of a mobile communication device configured to operate in multiple domains in accordance with some embodiments . the term module may comprise hardware , software or a combination of both . the device comprises multiple isolated regions of memory 2000 and a processing module 2018 to run operating systems 2006 . each operating system 2006 may be dedicated to an operating domain such as business operating domain 2008 and personal operating domain 2010 . the device also comprises a processing module instantiated communication control module 2014 to enforce communication restrictions between each of the operating systems 2006 , device drivers 2012 and device hardware 2002 . the communication control module may be used to prevent corruption or unauthorized modification of software or data between domains as well as to prevent access of business data by a personal domain application . each domain operates as an independent virtual machine and separation is enforced between domains by a memory management unit which is part of the device hardware and is configured by the communication control module . authentication module 2016 , which is also instantiated by the processing module , may enable domain switching from personal domain to business domain based on an authentication technique . authentication module 2016 may further comprise an input module , an encoding module and a confirmation module . the input module may receive an expected response phrase in response to an authentication challenge , and a trial response phrase in response to the authentication challenge . the encoding module may encode the expected and trial response phrases . the confirmation module may confirm authentication based on a match between the encoded expected response phrase and the encoded trial response phrase . trusted indicator 2004 may provide irrefutable evidence that the device is operating in a business domain and the indicator may be under the exclusive control of software that operates in business domain . trusted indicator 2004 may be an led on the device . in some embodiments the mobile communication device may provide a transceiver to optionally encode communication transmission between the device and a business entity associated with the business domain while the device is operating in the business domain . in some embodiments the encoded communication may be through a vpn .	6
fig1 shows a centrifugal jig of the general type according to the applicant &# 39 ; s wo90 / 00090 but employing a pulsion mechanism according to the present invention . the general construction and operation of the jig are described in detail in that patent , the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference , and shall now be described here only briefly . the centrifugal jig of fig1 has a frame 10 supporting a jig drive motor 12 , a crank drive motor 13 , a fixed launder arrangement 14 and cover 16 and a jig main shaft 18 which is supported in bearings 20 to rotate about a rotational axis 22 . the main shaft 18 is driven by the jig drive motor 12 through jig drive pulley 24 and jig drive belt 26 . mounted on the main shaft is a screen housing 28 supporting a screen 30 defining an inner chamber 32 and a number of hutch chambers 34 circumferentially spaced about the screen . mounted inside the jig main shaft for independent rotation in bearings 35 is a crankshaft 36 with crank 38 for reciprocating a respective pushrod 40 for each hutch chamber . ragging material 41 ( shown in fig2 ), such as run - of - mill garnet , aluminium alloy or lead glass balls , is provided on the inner surface of the screen 30 . the ragging is held against the surface of the screen due to the rotation of the jig . the feed slurry entering the inner chamber 32 through the feed tube 42 migrates to the inner surface of the ragging . hutch water is supplied to tube 43 , passing through bores ( not shown ) in the screen housing 30 , into each of the hutch chambers 34 circumferentially spaced about the screen . the crank 38 sequentially reciprocates a series of radially extending pushrods 40 , with each pushrod in turn reciprocating a respective hutch chamber 34 , as will be described below with reference to fig2 . the reciprocation of the hutches causes pulsation of the water in the respective hutches . the ragging is repetitively dilated by the pulsation of the hutch water . this dilation allows the higher specific gravity material in the feed slurry to pass through the ragging and the screen and enter the hutch chambers . the concentrate material then travels along the convergent walls 45 of the hutch to the radially outermost part of the hutch chamber and passes through concentrate outlet spigot 44 , which is aligned with a gap in the inner wall of a concentrate launder 46 . the lower specific gravity material in the feed slurry does not pass through the ragging , but passes upwardly and escapes past the open top 48 of the inner chamber and then to a tailings launder 50 . the jig of fig1 is mounted for rotation on an inclined axis 22 so that the ragging and feed material in the jig will fall to the lower side of the jig when the jig is stopped or is rotated only slowly . the inclined axis also requires the use of only one outlet from each of the tailings and concentrate launders . screen cleaning apparatus 54 is mounted on the stationary jig cover 16 and extends into the high side of the jig , pivoting and retracting between a cleaning position ( shown in fig1 ) for cleaning the screen and a withdrawn position ( shown in ghost ) radially inwards of the jig feed material , during normal operation of the jig . the cleaning apparatus includes a high pressure water spray 56 and a series of scraper wheels 58 depending from cantilevered cleaner head 59 and acting against the inner surface of the screen , which will typically have a large number of circumferentially elongate slots extending therethrough . the wheels have a series of projecting blades 60 disposed diagonally on their circumference for forcing particles accumulated on the screen to be sheared off at the screen surface and then forced through the screen by the water spray . the wheels are resiliently mounted so as not to cause damage to the screen when an unusually resistant particle is encountered . in an unillustrated modification , the screen cleaner can include a plurality of spring - mounted buttons on the end face of an enlarged cantilevered cleaner head 59 instead of using scraper wheels 58 . the buttons may be moved up and down across the screen surface to shear off lodged particles for removal by the water spray 56 . the screen cleaning arrangement is applicable to centrifugal jigs and other equipment employing rotating screens . fig2 illustrates the new pulsing hutch assembly in more detail . with reference to fig2 the inner surfaces of the hutch chamber walls are convergent in the direction of travel of a particle — i . e . radially outwards for a centrifugal jig as illustrated , or downwards for a non - rotary jig ( not shown )— for example conical or rectangular pyramidal , with the concentrate outlet spigot 44 at its apex . the radially inwards portion 62 of the hutch is part of the casting of the jig screen housing 28 , while the radially outwards part surrounding and attached to the outlet spigot 44 is formed by a diaphragm 64 backed by a support block 66 . each support block is attached to the upper end of the lever 68 pivoting about a fulcrum member 70 attached to the screen housing 28 . the lower end of each lever is attached to a respective pushrod 40 . when each pushrod 40 is forced radially outwards by the crank 38 , the respective lever 68 forces radially inwards movement of the hutch diaphragm 64 , with the resultant pulsation of the hutch water in the hutch chamber causing dilation of the ragging . the concentrate material passes through the ragging and exits the hutch chamber via outlet spigot 44 as discussed above in relation to fig1 . the heavy block 66 behind the diaphragm causes the hutch to be strongly biased toward the radially outwards ( non - pulsating ) position under influence of the centrifugal motion of the jig . this causes the hutch to quickly and positively return to this position after actuation of the pushrod by the crank , holding the pushrods 40 against the crank 38 with little or no “ bounce ”. this is an advance over the prior art , in which the pulse water pressure was used to force the diaphragm return , and gives protection against damage to the machine in the event of the hutch water supply being interrupted . a spring actuated lever return 72 may also be provided to hold the hutch in the non - pulsed position when the jig is stationary or is being rotated at very low speeds for routine maintenance . by providing the pulsators directly and centrally opposite the respective portions of the screen , in accordance with the first form of the invention , the depth of water through which each pulse is transferred from the pulsator to the ragging is decreased . this allows higher pulsation rates with greater coupling between the pulsator and the ragging , resulting in less water hammer and smoother operation of the jig . other advantages of preferred forms of the invention are increased energy efficiency and smoother operation caused by a reduction in the volume of the hutch chamber , and thus the volume of water pulsated , as it is no longer necessary to extend the hutch chamber below the level of the screen . the volume of the hutch may be further reduced as the rapid pulsation of the hutch wall portion containing the convergent walls and concentrate outlet assists discharge of the concentrate from the hutch . higher density concentrate slurries can pass through the hutch and the wall angle of the hutch can be reduced without accumulation of the concentrate on the hutch wall , thus allowing the use of a flatter , more compact hutch . the reduction in hutch volume gives scope for production of higher capacity jigs than capable with the prior art pulsion mechanisms . a yet further advantage is more even dilation of the bed of ragging , allowing more efficient use of the screen area and therefore increasing the throughput capacity of the jig , due to the pulsator . while particular embodiments of this invention have been described , it will be evident to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the essential characteristics thereof . the present embodiments and examples are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive , the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than 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 .	1
as indicated supra , the present invention relates to an elastomeric homopolymer or copolymer which has been chemically treated to incorporate a conjugated diolefin linkage therein . in general , any of the elastomeric homopolymers or copolymers known in the prior art may be chemically treated to incorporate a conjugated diolefin linkage in accordance with the present invention . useful elastomeric polymers , then , include those prepared in bulk , suspension , solution and emulsion processes . as is well known , polymerization of monomers to produce an elastomer may be accomplished with free - radical , cationic and anionic initiators or polymerization catalyst . as indicated more fully hereinafter , however , it is important , in the process of this invention , that the elastomeric polymer comprise at least one active group containing an alkali metal atom when it is treated to incorporate the conjugated diolefin linkage . as a result , elastomeric polymers prepared with free - radical or cationic initiators , as well as those prepared with an anionic initiator and then deactivated , must be metallated to incorporate at least one active site comprising an alkali metal atom prior to treatment thereof to incorporate the conjugated diolefin linkage by the method of this invention . metallization may , of course , be accomplished using techniques well known in the prior art such as the method taught in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 145 , 298 , the disclosure of which patent is herein incorporated by reference . notwithstanding that any elastomeric polymer may be modified by the method of the present invention , the process of this invention is simplified when the treated polymer is prepared via anionic initiation using an organo alkali metal compound initiator and then treated in accordance with the method of this invention prior to deactivation of the alkali metal active site . the invention will , then , be described in greater detail by reference to the treatment of such polymers . any elastomic polymer metallated to incorporate at least one active site containing an alkali metal atom could , however , be substituted for the preferred elastomers referred to in the description . the method of the present invention is , then , particularly effective with diene homopolymers and copolymers which are prepared via anionic polymerization with an organo metallic catalyst , wherein said metal is an alkali metal , particularly lithium , since the active groups comprising the alkali metal atom may be readily treated to incorporate a conjugated diolefin linkage . diene homopolymers and copolymers prepared via other techniques , as well as other elastomers , may , however , be metallated so as to comprise at least one active site containing an alkali metal atom , using methods well known in the prior art , and then treated to incorporate a conjugated diolefin linkage in accordance with the present invention . diene homopolymers and copolymers comprising at least one terminal active group containing an alkali metal atom and prepared via anionic polymerization techniques , which polymers are particularly useful in the present invention , may be prepared in accordance with techniques well known in the prior art . in general , such polymers are prepared by contacting the monomer or monomers to be polymerized with an organo alkali metal compound in a suitable solvent at a temperature within the range from about - 150 ° c . to about 300 ° c . particularly effective polymerization initiators are organo lithium compounds having the general formula rli n wherein r is an aliphatic , cycloaliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon radical having from 1 to 20 carbon atoms and n is an integer of 1 to 4 . in general , the polydienes useful in the present invention will have a molecular weight within the range of from about 2 , 000 to about 200 , 000 and when the polydiene is a copolymer of 1 or more diolefins and 1 or more other monomers , the polydiene will comprise from about 20 to about 99 wt % monomeric diolefin units . in general , the polydiene useful in this invention may be a polymer of one or more dienes , containing from 4 to about 12 carbon atoms such as 1 , 3 - butadiene , isoprene , piperylene , methylpentyl diene , phenylbutadiene , 3 , 4 - dimethyl - 1 , 3 - hexadiene , 4 , 5 - diethyl - 1 , 3 - octadiene and the like , preferrable conjugated dienes containing 4 to 8 carbon atoms . moreover , one or more of the hydrogen atoms in these diolefins may be substituted with a halogen . the polydiene may also be a copolymer of one or more of the aforementioned diolefins and one or more other monomers . other monomers which may be used include vinylaryl compounds such as styrene , various alkyl styrenes , paramethoxystyrene , vinyl naphthalene , vinyl toluene and the like , heterocyclic nitrogen - containing monomers such as pyridine and quinoline derivatives containing at least one vinyl or α - methyl vinyl group such as 2 - vinylpyridine , 3 - vinylpyridine , 4 - vinylpyridine and the like . still other useful comonomers include acrylic and methylacrylic acid esters , vinyl halides , vinylidene halides , various vinyl esters and the like . the diene homopolymers and copolymers useful in the present invention include those terminally reactive homopolymers and copolymers described in u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 135 , 716 ; 3 , 150 , 209 ; 3 , 496 , 154 ; 3 , 498 , 960 ; 4 , 145 , 298 and 4 , 238 , 202 , the disclosure of which patents are herein incorporated by reference . those diene homopolymers and copolymers having only one terminal lithium atom , and described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 150 , 209 ; 3496 , 154 ; 3 , 498 , 960 ; 4 , 145 , 298 and 4 , 238 , 202 , are particularly useful in the present invention . diene copolymers useful in the present invention also include the block copolymers prepared in accordance with the methods described in u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 231 , 635 ; 3 , 265 , 765 and 3 , 322 , 856 , the disclosure of which patents are incorporated herein by reference . particularly useful block copolymers are those block copolymers having the general formulae b x --( a -- b ) y and a x --( b -- a ) y wherein a and b are as defined in the aforementioned u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 231 , 635 ; 3 , 265 , 765 and 3 , 322 , 856 , x is a number equal to 0 or 1 and y is a whole number from 1 to about 15 . as indicated supra , it is , at least , desirable in the present invention that the diene homopolymer or copolymer treated comprise at least one active site containing an alkali metal atom , preferably a lithium atom . in the event that the diene homopolymer or copolymer to be treated in the present invention does not contain such an active group , the polymer may first be treated to incorporate such a group . as well known in the prior art , at least one active site containing an alkali metal atom , particularly a lithium atom , may be incorporated into a polymer by contacting said polymer with an organo alkali metal compound in a suitable solvent or diluent at a temperature within the range from about 0 to about 200 ° c . in general , any of the organo alkali metal compounds known in the prior art to be useful as polymerization initiators may be used in the reaction to create an active site containing an alkali metal atom . as also well know in the prior art , the metallization reaction may be promoted with various amines and alkoxide salts . to produce an elastomeric homopolymer or copolymer comprising at least one conjugated diolefin linkage in accordance with the present invention , one will start with an elastomeric homopolymer or copolymer containing at least one alkali metal atom . for convenience , an elastomeric polymer comprising at least one active group containing an alkali metal atom is frequently referred to hereinafter as either an active or living polymer . to incorporate the conjugated diolefin linkage , then , an active or living polymer is treated by reacting the same first with a 2 , 3 - ethylenically unsaturated aldehyde ( 1 ) or ketone ( 2 ) having , respectively , the following general formula : ## str1 ## wherein r 1 is h or an aliphatic , cyclic , alicyclic , aryl or aliaryl hydrocarbon radical having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms ; and ## str2 ## wherein r 1 is as defined above and r 2 is an aliphatic , cyclic , alicyclic , aryl or aliaryl hydrocarbon radical having 1 to 10 carbon atoms ; and thereafter converting the resulting lithium salt to the corresponding alcohol and then dehydrating the alcohol . as is well known in the prior art , the latter two steps may be accomplished , in effect , simultaneously when an excess of acid is used to convert the lithium salt to the corresponding alcohol at an elevated temperature . in general , reaction of the 2 , 3 - ethylenically unsaturated aldehyde or ketone with the active or living polymer will be accomplished in a suitable solvent at a temperature within the range from about 10 ° c . to about 200 ° c . nominal holding times at reaction conditions will , generally , range from about 1 to about 120 minutes . suitable solvents include any of the solvents known in the prior art to be effective for use during preparation of the diene homopolymer or copolymer . these include hydrocarbons such as paraffins , cycloparaffins , alkyl - substituted cycloparaffins , aromatics and alkyl - substituted aromatics containing from about 4 to about 10 carbon atoms per molecule . suitable solvents include benzene , toluene , cyclohexane , methylcylohexane , n - butane , n - hexane , n - heptane and the like . in general , the reaction between the living polymer and the 2 , 3 - ethylenically unsaturated aldehyde or ketone proceeds stoichiometrically . it will , then , generally , be sufficient to combine 1 mole of 2 , 3 - ethylenically unsaturated aldehyde or ketone for each mole of active sites to be converted . in this regard , it should be noted that if the living polymer contained , on average , two active groups containing alkali metal atoms per polymer segment , it would take 2 moles of ethylenically unsaturated aldehyde or ketone per mole of polymer to convert all of the active sites to the corresponding alkali metal salt . similarly , if the living polymer contained only , on average , one active site containing an alkali metal atom per polymer segment , it would take only 1 mole of unsaturated aldehyde or ketone per mole of polymer to convert all of the active sites to the corresponding lithium salt . the alkali metal salt produced by reacting the living polymer with a 2 , 3 - ethylenically unsaturated aldehyde or ketone is next converted to the corresponding alcohol . any of the methods known in the prior art to be effective for such conversions may be used in the present invention . one such method is to simply react the alkali metal salt with an acid . in general , any acid , organic or inorganic , may be used . suitable acids , then , include the series of aliphatic carboxylic acids starting with formic acid , the series of aromatic carboxylic acids starting with benzoic acid and the various mineral acids such as hydrochloric acid , nitric acid , sulfuric acid and the like . after the corresponding alcohol has been produced , the same will be dehydrated to yield the desired conjugated diolefin structure . generally , this may be accomplished simply by heating the alcohol . more expediently , however , this may accomplished by effecting the acid treatment with an excess of acid at an elevated temperature . in a preferred embodiment of the present invention , then , the acid treatment will be accomplished at a temperature within the range from about 40 ° c . to about 200 ° c . generally , nominal holding times within the range from about 1 to about 120 minutes will be sufficient to permit both conversion of the alkali metal salt to the corresponding alcohol and dehydration of the alcohol . again , conversion of the alkali metal salt to the alcohol will occur stoichiometrically . notwithstanding , an excess amount of acid will generally be used during the conversion of the alkali metal salt to the corresponding alcohol since the excess of acid will catalyze the dehydration . the elastomeric homopolymer or copolymer thus produced and containing at least one conjugated diolefin structure may be recovered from solution using conventional technology well known in the prior art or used directly in the preparation of a modified polyester as described and claimed in copending u . s . patent application ser no . 948 , 374 , filed on 12 / 31 / 86 , now u . s . pat . no . 4 , 775 , 718 , the disclosure of which copending application is incorporated herein by reference . as indicated supra , the modified elastomeric polymer of this invention may be used in various unsaturated polyester resins for the purpose of improving impact resistance in structures molded therewith . the modified elastomer may be added directly to such thermosetting compositions or the same may first be , in effect , grafted on to the backbone of a polyester used in such compositions as described in the aformentioned copending application . in a preferred embodiment of the present invention , a polydiene block copolymer will be treated so a to incorporate a conjugated diolefin group into said block copolymer . the block copolymer will be prepared using the method described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 231 , 635 and will comprise a single alkenyl - substituted aromatic hydrocarbon block and a single diolefin block . the block copolymer used in the preferred embodiment may be represented by the general formula a - b wherein a and b are , respectively , polymer blocks of an alkenyl - substituted aromatic hydrocarbon and a diolefin . in the preferred embodiment , the alkenyl - substituted aromatic hydrocarbon block will have a weight average molecular weight within the range of from about 1 , 000 to about 100 , 000 and the diolefin block will have a weight average molecular weight within the range of from about 1 , 000 to about 150 , 000 . in a most preferred embodiment , the alkenyl - substituted aromatic hydrocarbon will be styrene and the diolefin will be a conjugated diolefin ; viz ., either butadiene or isoprene . in the preferred embodiment , the block copolymer will be treated in accordance with this invention before the active site formed during polymerization has been converted or deactivated . in the preferred embodiment , the block copolymer will contain , on average , approximately one active site containing a lithium atom per polymer segment , which active site will be on the diolefin block . in the preferred embodiment , the living block copolymer will first be reacted with acrolein to produce the corresponding lithium salt and then with about a 10 wt . % excess of a sulfuric acid at an elevated temperature to , in effect , simultaneously form the corresponding alcohol and to dehydrate said alcohol . in the preferred embodiment , treatment of the active polymer will be accomplished in the same solvent as was used for polymerization . the reaction between the living polymer and acrolein will be accomplished at a temperature within the range rom about 25 ° c . to about 150 ° c . at a nominal holding time within the range from about 1 to about 120 minutes . the resulting lithium salt will then be reacted with a monocarboxylic acid at a temperature within the range from about 40 ° c . to about 200 ° c . at a nominal holding time within the range from about 1 to about 120 minutes . in a most preferred embodiment of the present invention , the acid will be sulfuric acid . the preferred modified polymers of this invention , which modified polymers are prepared by using the preferred operating conditions , may then be recovered . having thus broadly described the present invention and a preferred and most preferred embodiment thereof , it is believed that the same will become even more apparent by reference to the following examples . it will be appreciated , however , that the examples are presented solely for purposes of illustration and should not be construed as limiting the invention . in this example , a styrene - butadiene block copolymer was prepared as a control or base line sample . the block copolymer was prepared under anhydrous and anaerobic conditions in a closed , glass reaction vessel . initially , 13 . 1 g of styrene dissolved in 170 g of cyclohexane was charged to the reaction vessel along with 100 μl of n - butoxy , t - butoxy ethane and 3ml of a 0 . 25n solution of s - butyl lithium . the reaction vessel was heated to 50 ° c . and when the polymerization of styrene was substantially complete 24 . 1 g of polymerization grade butadiene monomer was added to the vessel . polymerization of the diene monomer was allowed to proceed substantially to completion and the resulting styrene - butadiene living block copolymer was quenched by the addition of an excess of methyl alcohol . the nonfunctionalized styrene - butadiene block copolymer was then recovered as crumb by coagulation with and excess of methyl alcohol . analysis of the recovered product indicated that the block copolymer contained a single block of styrene having a weight average molecular weight of 13 , 400 and a single butadiene block having a weight average molecular weight of 29 , 400 . in this example , 3 styrene - butadiene block copolymers containing a single acrolein end group were prepared . for convenience , these polymer samples have been identified as a thru c . each sample was prepared by repeating the polymerization steps summarized in example 1 but before deactivating the lithium atom with methyl alcohol the living diblock copolymer was titrated with acrolein until the pale yellow color of the living anionic polymer had disappeared . the end - capped block copolymer was then contacted with an aliquot of ammonium chloride in methyl alcohol to deactivate the lithium atom . each of the three samples were recovered by coagulating with an excess of methyl alcohol . after recovery , each sample was analyzed to determine the weight average molecular weight of each block and the amount of coupled products in each sample . these results are shown in the following table : ______________________________________acrolein capped block copolymers a b c______________________________________mol . wt . of styrene block (× 10 . sup .- 3 ) 14 . 4 13 . 3 13 . 3mol . wt . of butadiene block (× 10 . sup .- 3 ) 29 . 1 29 . 1 29 . 5coupled product ( wt %) 4 5 5______________________________________ in this example , the acrolein capped polymers identified as a and b in example 2 were combined and dissolved in 600 ml cyclohexane . the solution was then divided into two equal sized aliquots and each aliquot treated with an excess of maleic anhydride to produce an elastomer having a cyclic anhydride moiety chemically bonded thereto through a 6 - carbon atom cyclic structure containing one c , c double bond and to dehydrate the alcohol which was produced in example 2 . the treatment was accomplished by adding 0 . 25 g of maleic anhydride to each aliquot and then heating both to reflux and holding each at this temperature for four hours . the resulting reaction products were then recovered as a crumb by coagulating in excess methyl alcohol . the elastomer thus produced could be substituted for a portion of the unsaturated dicarboxylic acid or anhydride monomer in any of the polyester resin operations hereinbefore discussed . in this example , the acrolein capped polymer identified as c in example 2 was dissolved in 215 ml xylene and combined with 10 g of a maleate / propylene glyclol unsaturated polyester resins ( koppers 3702 - 5 unsaturated polyester resin ). three drops of concentrated h 2 so 4 were then added to this solution and the solution heated to reflux temperature and held for four hours . the h 2 so 4 , inter alia , acted as a catalyst for the diels alder reaction . as a result of this treatment , the alcohol produced in example 2 was dehydrated and the conjugated diolefin group produced then reacted with the maleate / propylene glyclol unsaturated polyester resin . the product was contacted with an excess of methyl alcohol , a good solvent for the polyester resin . as a result of the contacting with methanol , the reaction product of the end - capped elastomer and the polyester and any unreacted end - capped elastomer were precipitated while any unreacted polyester remained in solution . after separation , the coagulated product was subjected to ir analysis to confirm the presence of grafted polyester therein . this was confirmed by a peak occurring at 1640 cm - 1 . signals in the ir spectrum at 690 cm -- 1 and 920 cm 1 also indicated that the coagulated product contained styrene - butadiene block copolymer . the relative intensities of the ir signals indicated that the modified polyester contained significant amounts of both of the polymeric reactants . in this example , a portion of the block copolymer produced in examples 1 and a portion of the acrolein modified block copolymer produced in example 2 and identified as c were dissolved in styrene monomer at a concentration of 30wt % polymer in said solution . a 50g aliquot of each solution was then treated with 3 drops of sulfuric acid and blended with an equal weight of solution ( about 70wt % unsaturated polyester ) containing koppers 3702 - 5 unsaturated polyester , the same polyester which was modified in example 4 , in styrene . the blending was accomplished at 500 rpm for 3 minutes using a 1 &# 34 ; jiffy blade positioned in an 8 oz jar . each of the blends were then set aside and observed to determine whether gross phase separation would occur . the observation are summarized in the following table : ______________________________________ phaseblend separation______________________________________with polymer of example 1 complete after 2 dayswith polymer of example 2 no separation after 7 days______________________________________ in this example , blends were prepared with the polymers described in examples 1 and 4 and koppers 3702 - 5 polyester . these resin blend were then used in the preparation of sheet molding compound pastes . each of the pastes were prepared according to the following recipe : ______________________________________100 g block copolymer in styrene monomer ( 30 wt % polymer ) 100 g koppers 3702 - 5 unsaturated polyester resin ( 70 wt % in styrene ) 300 g calcium carbonate6 g zinc stearate0 . 5 g black pigment2 . 6 g t - butyl perbenzoate0 . 5 g pep - 100 cure promoter7 . 8 g marinco h thickening agent______________________________________ each paste was blended in an 800 ml plastic beaker using a 1 &# 34 ; jiffy mixer blade at 500 rpm . the fully blended pastes were then transferred to 16 oz jars , sealed and set aside to age . after 18 days , the paste were inspected to access the homogeneity of the blend . the paste samples were evaluated for ( 1 ) the lack of exudate formation , ( 2 ) the absence of chalkiness and ( 3 ) smoothness . each criteria was rated on a scale from 1 ( worst ) to 5 ( best ) so that a superior plate would get a combined score of 15 , and the worst possible score would be 3 . the results of each of the paste are summarized in the following table : ______________________________________ numericalpaste rating______________________________________with polymer of example 1 3with polymer of example 4 9______________________________________ while the present invention has been described and illustrated by reference to particular embodiments thereof , it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the same lends itself to variations not necessarily illustrated herein . for this reason , then , reference should be made solely to the appended claims for purposes of determining the true scope of the present invention .	2
in a data generator ( fig1 ), a memory device 10 has address inputs 11 and a set of data outputs ( d0 - d4 ). the data inputs are connected to the outputs of a counter 12 whose clock input is clocked by a base clock 14 . the memory 10 is thus addressed incrementally on the basis of the clock period starting from a predetermined value which may be loaded into the counter , e . g . from zero when the counter 12 is reset to zero . the reset input of the counter 12 is driven by the output d0 of the memory 10 such that each time the data loaded into bit d0 of the memory 10 at the address defined by the counter 12 is in the high state , then the counter 12 is reset and incremental addressing of the memory 10 recommences from zero . the bit d0 of the memory 10 provides a control signal representative of frame length or of multiframe length , and the memory 10 is programmed to contain a high value at the address whose value represents the total number of base clock cycles required by the desired frame ( or multiframe ) structure . for example , for a multiframe structure occupying 16 bits , d0 is programmed to have a high state at address 15 ( the sixteenth position ) so as to reset the counter to zero once every 16 clock periods . within this cyclic regime , other data bits of the memory 10 are programmed so as to represent other control signals as required by the frame structure . except for bit d0 , the data bits are latched in a set of latches 100 by the clock 14 . bit d1 provides a multiframe synchronization pulse signal cmfe , while bit d2 provides a frame synchronization frame signal cfe . data for multiframe and frame synchronization is provided in bit d3 . bit d4 provides a signal cse which takes up the high state to enable a sequence generator 17 , and each pulse received by the sequence generator provides one bit of a word in the sequence , when a clock pulse is received . the sequence generator 17 is designed to receive clock pulses via an and gate 18 , thereby producing the sequence data signal csd whenever enabled by the signal cse . finally , the data signals are combined by an or gate 19 in order to produce a transmission signal tx in compliance with the required transmission standard . the operation of the embodiment of fig1 and the programming of its memory is now considered in greater detail . by way of example , consider a transmission standard which is specified by an 8 - bit frame in which the first bit is a frame synchronization bit , the following 6 bits are reserved for receiving a sequence , and the last bit is provided for multiframe synchronization , where a multiframe contains two frames . for frame synchronization , the synchronization bits are always at the low level , whereas for multiframe synchronization , the first frame of the multiframe has a high level synchronization bit and the second frame has a low level bit . in order to provide data in compliance with the above norm , the memory 10 is programmed as follows : ______________________________________ cmfe cfe cfd cseaddress d0 d1 d2 d3 d4______________________________________0 0 0 1 0 01 0 0 0 0 12 0 0 0 0 13 0 0 0 0 14 0 0 0 0 15 0 0 0 0 16 0 0 0 0 17 0 1 0 0 08 0 0 1 0 09 0 0 0 0 110 0 0 0 0 111 0 0 0 0 112 0 0 0 0 113 0 0 0 0 114 0 0 0 0 115 1 1 0 1 0______________________________________ fig2 is a timing diagram relating to the operation of the fig1 embodiment with its memory programmed in the manner shown above . the timing diagram shows that bit 1 of the resulting signal tx contains the frame synchronization bit ( 0 ), bits 2 to 7 contain an inserted sequence word , and bit 8 contains a multiframe sychronization bit ( 0 ). bit 9 contains the frame sychronization bit ( 0 ) for the second frame , bits 10 to 15 contain a sequence word , and bit 16 contains a multiframe sychronization bit ( 1 ). when the counter reaches 15 , the high value of d0 causes a reset to zero pulse to appear , thereby causing addressing to recommence so that bit 16 is followed cyclically by bit 1 , and so on . a data signal is thus obtained in compliance with the specified transmission standard . if it is necessary to obtain a data signal produced in compliance with a different transmission standard , then the memory can be reprogrammed . for example , if the frame sychronization bits should be high level bits , then the memory can be programmed with high level bits in d3 at addresses 0 and 8 . for more complex multiframe structures , a sychronization code is specified rather than the single bits of the simple example above . this may be achieved directly by programming the appropriate sychronization pulse ( cmfe or cfe ) so that it is at the high level over the entire length of the code and by programming the code itself in appropriate data positions ( cfd ). in the above example , if frame sychronization were to be extended from one bit to three bits , bit d2 in positions 0 , 1 , and 2 would be programmed to high level , and bit d3 would be programmed with the code in the same positions . the manner in which the other positions would need to be reprogrammed and the shifting of the high level in d0 from address 15 to address 19 are apparent to the person skilled in the art . other codes , e . g . multiframe header codes , may be inserted in the signal cfd . the signals cfe , cmfe , cse , and any other enabling signals are provided as output signals to enable an interface to be made with other equipment , e . g . a disturbance generator . these signals constitute clock signals of controlling an equipment capable of responding directly to sychronization pulses and to sequence enable signals . in an additional embodiment of the invention ( fig3 ), a memory device 30 is addressed incrementally by a counter 31 driven by a clock 32 . the counter is reset to zero by data bit zero of the memory 30 in order to obtain cyclic incremental addressing . output bits d1 to d9 are applied to a set of latches 34 with the clock input thereto being driven by the output from the base clock 32 . the set of latches 34 is designed to load on a positive going edge of clock 32 so that the output signals from the set of latches are stable throughout each clock period . the output bits from the memory device 30 represent control signals which are data signals or enable signals . in a manner analogous to that described with reference to the embodiment of fig1 the signal cse controls the application of clock pulses to a sequence generator 324 via an and gate 325 . the output signal csd from the sequence generator is combined with the programmed frame sychronization data signal cfd so as to obtain the desired binary pattern signal cseq . in the above - described embodiment , the data bit output signals which constitute the control signals are designated as follows : ______________________________________d0 reset counterd1 multiframe sychronization enable cmfed2 frame sychronization enable cfed3 frame sychronization data cfdd4 sequence generator enable csed5 parity generator enable cpe1d6 parity generator stop cpe2d7 alarm generator enable cae1d8 alarm generator control cae2d9 alarm generator control cae3______________________________________ it may be observed that with this structure is it possible to produce signals in compliance with any telecommunications standard , including forcing start , stop , and parity bits to certain values , if so desired . it may be observed that the embodiment of the invention described above is programmable to comply with any standard which exists and with virtually any standard that might be devised . in particular , this embodiment directly provides signals controlling an alarm generator 320 , a disturbance generator 321 , and a parity generator 322 . the alarm generator 320 may be controlled by the three control / enable signals cae1 , cae2 , and cae3 which are produced therefor . in accordance with common practice , the control signals comprise a timing signal ( cae1 ), i . e . a signal which marks the place in the sequence where data is to be inserted , and set high and set low signals ( cae2 and cae3 respectively ) which produce a pulse whenever data is to be high or low , respectively . in addition , the alarm generator 320 responds to an external input signal ext which specifies whether the bits are to be inserted or not . it may be observed that the alarm generator can be used to insert bits at any point in the binary pattern , as may be required . inserted bits or alarms are typically used for triggering events in the receiving or monitoring equipment . alarms may consist in a single bit ( at high level or at low level ) at a designated position in the frame , in a repetitive pattern within the frame , or in a pattern which is set bit by bit in designated positions over a plurality of frames . for example , in an 8 - bit frame in which bit zero is reserved for alarm purposes , an alarm could be defined by the sequence 1010 . in order to insert such an alarm , bit d7 ( cae1 ) would be programmed to produce the signal shown in fig4 . the alarm generator produces an output signal high ( set high bit ) and an output signal low ( set low bit ) which are combined with the binary pattern signal cseq by an or gate 327 and an and gate 326 so as to produce the desired binary pattern signal ( cseq &# 39 ;). typically , an alarm may be a predetermined sequence inserted one bit at a time over 15 multiframes . the other bits , d8 , cae2 , and d9 , cae3 are used for producing other alarms . the disturbance generator 321 which may be configured as known in the art , is used to inject errors into the signal which is produced by inverting the state of a bit or by maintaining a bit in the low state ( in order to simulate signal loss ). such a generator is typically capable of producing &# 34 ; n &# 34 ; consecutive errors every &# 34 ; m &# 34 ; bits , with 1 ≦ n ≦ 250 and n ≦ m ≦ 1 × 10 7 . in addition to receiving the data signal cseq , the generator receives the multiframe , the frame , and the sequence sychronization signals cmfe , cfe , and cse , thereby making it possible to produce errors solely in the frame bits , or in the multiframe bits , if so desired . it has an output which controls one of the inputs of an exclusive - or gate 328 whose other input receives the non - disturbed binary sequence as generated cseq &# 39 ;, with the gate 328 thus providing the disturbed sequence signal cseq &# 34 ;. the parity generator 322 serves to produce a four - bit checksum ( for example ) during each half multiframe , and then to insert these four bits in appropriate predetermined positions in the following half multiframe . in a telecommunications link , a similar generator would be present at the receiving end and the checksums would be compared after extracting the appropriate bits . in order to control this known form of parity generator , the memory 30 is programmed on bits d5 and d6 so as to produce control signals cpe1 and cpe2 indicating the bit positions at the end of respective ones of the half multiframes . for example , for a multiframe of length m ( fig5 ) as marked by a reset pulse 40 provided by memory data bit d0 , the positions of the corresponding checksum bits could be p1 , p2 , p3 , and p4 . bit d5 ( cpe1 ) is then programmed so as to produce a pulse at each of these bit positions , while bit d6 ( cpe2 ) is programmed to mark the beginning of each sequence of bit positions . in addition , the generator 321 receives the non - disturbed binary sequence signal cseq so as to be able to form the checksum . the parity generator 321 delivers a pulse on its low output each time that a parity bit is to be inserted at low level , and it provides a pulse on its high output each time a parity bit is to be inserted at high level . the signals from the high and low outputs are combined with the binary pattern signal ( cseq &# 39 ;) by or gate 330 and and gate 329 in order to provide the desired binary pattern signal tx ( cseq &# 34 ;&# 39 ;). it may be observed in addition that the embodiment may easily be programmed on the basis of the length of any arbitrary component of the data stream and its content . to enable control of an external sequence generator , the signals cmf ( multiframe synchronization ), cf ( frame synchronization ), ct ( start code ), cp ( stop code ), p ( parity code ), mf ( multiframe header ), h ( frame header ), and cseq ( sequence generator clock ) are applied to respective corresponding outputs . although the system may be programmed by fixing data in a read only memory ( rom ) constituting the device 30 , and the system may be reprogrammed by exchanging roms , the stability of the data means that the memory address bus 308 and the data bus 309 are free during the clock period . it is therefore possible to use a read / write memory ( ram ) for the memory device 30 and it may be programmed and reprogrammed during the clock periods . to this end , a controller is used for taking charge of the data buses 308 and 309 each time a reprogramming operation is to be performed . controller operation is synchronized on the base clock by line 311 . in order to reprogram , data defining the new standard to be followed is initially assembled in a memory of the controller in the form of a table of data as a function of address , i . e . in a form analogous to the data table described above by way of example . when the data at a given address is different from the data presently at that address in the ram 30 , the data bus outputs 312 of the controller are set to values corresponding to the address to be changed . this address is latched in a set of address latches 313 under the effect of a clock signal ( address write ) which the controller 310 applies to the clock input of the set of address latches . the data bus outputs 312 of the controller are then set to values corresponding to the data required in the ram 30 at the address which has just been latched in the set of address latches 313 . the data is latched in similar manner in a set of data latches 314 by a &# 34 ; write data &# 34 ; signal . once the data has been latched , the controller 310 applies a write ram signal to input we ( write enable ) 315 of the ram 30 . under the effect of this signal , the data present in the set of data latches 314 is loaded into the ram 30 at the address latched in the set of address latches 313 . it may be observed that any other address containing data that does not match the newly - required standard may be changed in similar manner in order to reprogram the ram 30 to comply with the new standard . to complete the description of the present embodiment , it may be observed that during normal operation , the write ram signal holds the clock output data in the active state on the address bus 308 via its enable input 317 , and similarly inhibits data in the set of address latches 313 via an inverter 316 . the outputs of the set of data latches 314 are isolated in similar manner from the data bus 309 to enable the ram 30 to control the bus . conversely , during reprogramming , the memory 30 is inhibited by the signal present on its input we . the controller 310 receives the clock signal 311 to ensure that reprogramming does not take place during a clock transition instant . if so desired , reprogramming may be synchronized on multiframe reset by taking account of the signal at controller input 318 . the controller 310 may include a user interface itself programmed to collect user instructions and to provide the required control signals as described above . the controller may be constituted by a microcomputer system and the person skilled in the art will readily be able to perform the programming and interface functions required by the system . naturally the generator described and shown may be modified in numerous ways without going beyond the scope of the invention .	7
referring to fig1 is shown a block diagram showing a portion of an electrical power circuit within a hybrid powered vehicle . the hybrid powered vehicle may any hybrid powered vehicle which includes a high voltage charge storage device such as ( hv ) battery 12 a . the hv battery 12 a may be used for powering an electric drive motor ( traction motor ) in the hybrid vehicle and may be used for providing power to start an engine , such as an internal combustion or diesel engine . for example , the high voltage ( hv ) battery 12 a may operate in a range of form about 200 to about 400 volts dc . it will be appreciated that other charge storage devices including capacitors and ultra - capacitors , as are known in the art , may be used in place of a high voltage ( hv ) battery or low - voltage ( lv ) battery according to the present invention . the hybrid vehicle includes solar collection means 14 , which may be solar panels attached and positioned on the vehicle in any convenient manner or may be solar collection means incorporated into the exterior facing portions of the vehicle such as the vehicle body or windshields . for example , collection means ( solar panels ) 14 collect electrical charge upon exposure to solar energy which is then transferred by conventional wiring means to a power transfer electronic circuit including a power / voltage converter 16 a which may be connected to ( e . g ., wired connection 21 d ) or have incorporated therein a programmable charge controller 16 b . the power / voltage converter 16 a accepts an input voltage from the solar panels , for example , through inputs 18 a , 18 b ( positive and negative terminals ). the power / voltage converter 16 a is further in communication with the charge controller ( 16 b ). the power / voltage converter 16 a outputs the voltage , for example through outputs 20 a , 208 according to a predetermined programmed voltage , where one of the terminals ( e . g ., 20 a ) of the voltage output ( e . g ., positive voltage ) is connected to a selected input ( e . g ., a , b , c , d , e ) including auxiliary power circuits ( e . g ., c , d , e ) or an hv battery ( a ) wired in parallel with respect to the power / voltage converter . an electrical circuit switching means 22 , included in the power transfer electronic circuit , is in communication with charge controller 16 b ( e . g ., wired connection 21 c ) and may be used to selectively connect a voltage output ( e . g ., 20 a ) to one of the inputs ( e . g ., a , b , c , d , e ). the circuit switching means 22 may be a conventional relay switching device capable of multiplexed switching controlled by charge controller 168 . for example the switching means 22 is capable of connecting an output of the voltage converter ( e . g ., 20 a ) to an input of the lv battery 12 b ( terminal b ) where the voltage source to the power / voltage converter is the solar collection means 14 . in addition , the switching means may operate terminal b as an output of the lv battery 12 b which is then also connected to an input of the power / voltage converter 16 a ( e . g ., 20 c ) by connection of terminal f with terminal b and where the switching means 22 additionally connects the output of the power / voltage converter 20 a to the input terminal of the hv battery 12 a , or to one of the input terminals of the auxiliary power systems 12 c , 12 d , 12 e ( i . e ., terminals c , d , e ). it will be appreciated that the power / voltage converter 16 a may operate to control the output voltage of the lv battery 12 a to match a determined voltage input of the hv battery 12 a or an input of one of the auxiliary power systems . the other terminal of the voltage output ( e . g ., 20 b ) as well as the hv battery , lv battery and auxiliary power circuits associated with the hybrid vehicle electrical system are connected to ground potential 24 . by selecting one of the inputs ( a , c , d , e ) to connect the output voltage ( e . g ., 20 a ) by switching means 22 , one of multiple auxiliary power circuits e . g ., 12 c , 12 d , 12 e , or the hv battery 12 a , the lv battery 128 may be used to provide power at a selected voltage through the power / voltage converter 16 a . in addition , the lv battery 128 or the hv battery 12 a may be powered by voltage from the power / voltage converter 16 a where the voltage source for the power / voltage converter 16 a is the solar panels 14 or other plug - in power source ( not shown ). in a preferred embodiment , when the circuit switching means 22 is connected to one of multiple auxiliary power circuits e . g ., 12 c , 12 d , 12 e , ( terminals c , d , e ) or the hv battery 12 a ( terminal a ), the power from the power / voltage converter 16 a is provided at a selected operating voltage from the lv battery 12 b ( by connecting terminal b to terminal f ). when the output of the power / voltage converter 20 a is connected to the input to the lv battery ( through terminal b ; terminal f open ), the power source for the power / voltage converter 16 a is the solar collection means , e . g ., solar panels 14 , where the solar charge is transferred to and accumulated by the lv battery 123 . the power / voltage converter 16 a may be a conventional , bidirectional device that is capable of converting the power supplied by a power source ( e . g ., lv battery or solar charge collectors ) into a voltage that is compatible with the requirements of the system loads , e . g . hv battery , cooling devices , resistive heating devices , and auxiliary power requirements . specifically , the power / voltage converter 16 a converts the voltage and current supplied by the power source ( e . g ., output of lv battery or solar charge collector ) to levels that match the voltage to the system load requirements . in addition , power / voltage converter converts the charge collected by the solar collection means into an output voltage compatible for charging the lv battery when the output of the voltage / power converter is connected to the input of the lv battery . for example , the hv battery 12 a preferably is equipped with a conventional state - of - charge ( soc ) sensor 22 a which in turn is in communication with the charge controller 16 b ( e . g ., wired connection 21 a ) to provide a soc value of the hv battery to the charge controller 16 b . the relative amount of power stored in a battery is often referred to as its “ state - of - charge ” ( soc ), i . e . the amount of stored energy expressed as a percentage of the battery pack &# 39 ; s total ampere - hour capacity . in order to efficiently charge and discharge , the battery ( or other charge storage device ) may be maintained within a charge range known as an soc window that is adequate to meet the power requirements of the power system in which the battery is utilized . if the charge controller determines that the hv battery 12 a is at less than full charge ( e . g ., 55 to 60 %) or less than a preprogrammed charge level ( below an soc window ), the charge controller 16 a may be pre - programmed to recharge the hv battery from power provided by the lv battery e . g ., by selecting input terminal a according to circuit switching means 22 which connects voltage output 20 a to hv battery input a and sets the output voltage to an appropriate charge voltage corresponding to the voltage of the hv battery , e . g ., from about 200 to 400 volts dc . when there is no demand for power from the hv battery ( the soc is at full charge or greater than a pre - programmed charge level ) and no demand for power from the auxiliary power circuits e . g ., cooling circuit ( e . g ., fan ) 12 c , heating circuit 12 d , or auxiliary charging circuit 12 e , the circuit switching means 22 remains in a position where power / voltage converter output voltage 20 a is connected through terminal b , to the lv battery 12 b and where the power source is the solar collection means , e . g ., solar panels 14 , where the lv battery 12 b collects solar charge to a useable voltage level , for example sufficient to recharge the hv battery 12 a by connecting lv battery 12 b to hv battery 12 a through power / voltage converter 16 a including using circuit switching means 22 to select terminal a ( input for hv battery ). it will be appreciated that either or both the lv battery or hv battery may be recharged by separate plug - in voltage sources and that the charge controller 16 b may control the power / voltage converter 16 a output 20 a to supply solar charge to the hv battery from the solar collection means 14 rather than from the lv battery 12 b . the lv battery 12 b is also preferably equipped with a soc sensor 22 b which is in communication ( e . g ., wired connection 21 b ) with charge controller 16 b . the charge controller 16 b may be preprogrammed to determine whether there is a sufficient charge in the lv battery to accomplish a charging function of the hv battery . if there is insufficient charge in the lv battery to charge the hv battery , the charge controller 16 b may be pre - programmed to engage switching means 22 to allow the lv battery 12 b to be recharged by solar collection means 14 or a plug - in charge source to a pre - programmed charge level to the exclusion of other power demands . alternatively , the lv battery may power the auxiliary power circuits under special circumstances ( e . g ., the vehicle is being operated or manual override by vehicle operator / occupant ). it will be appreciated that the charge controller 16 b in cooperation with the power / voltage converter 16 a and lv battery 12 b may provide power to the hv battery 12 a through either pre - programmed instructions or in combination with a specialized electrical circuit ( e . g ., boost circuit ) to enable control of a voltage output ( e . g ., from lv battery through power / voltage converter ) to the hv battery to accomplish the charging function quickly and safely . for example , the charge controller 16 b together with the power / voltage converter 16 a and lv battery 12 b may begin to charge the hv battery at a selected output voltage level depending on the soc of the hv battery and then follow a pre - programmed voltage output level depending on the subsequent soc of the hv battery during charging . in addition , it will be appreciated that the boost circuit and / or charge controller may be operated by manual override by operator / occupant interaction , for example , when the soc of the hv battery is too low to start the engine , manual override by activating the boost circuit and / or charge controller may be immediately effectuated by the operator / occupant ( e . g ., from within the vehicle ) to provide an emergency boost ( charge ) from the lv battery to the hv battery ( e . g ., emergency charge and startup ). it will be appreciated that normally , recharging the hv battery by the charge controller 16 b together with the power / voltage converter 16 a and lv battery 12 b is automatically effected according to the pre - programmed charge controller when the hv battery falls below a predetermined charge level , including when the vehicle is not being operated . the lv charge storage device such as lv battery 12 b may be what is nominally referred to in the art as a 12 volt battery . it will be appreciated that the lv battery may have a range of output voltages depending on the soc , e . g ., including from 9 up to about 15 volts . for example , the charge controller 16 b may be pre - programmed to provide a selected output voltage from the power / voltage converter where the charge source is the solar panels 14 and / or where the lv battery is connected ( through the power / voltage converter ) to the auxiliary power circuits at a predetermined voltage level . in addition , the charge controller 16 b may be pre - programmed to control the power / voltage converter 16 a to produce an output voltage from solar collection means at a selected voltage level for the most efficient charging of the lv battery , depending on the soc of the lv battery as determined by soc sensor 22 b . for example , a voltage of 13 . 7 dc volts may be output from the power / voltage converter 16 a to lv battery 12 b where the power source is the solar panels to accumulate solar charge in the lv battery or from the lv battery to power the auxiliary power circuits . it will be appreciated that the charge controller 16 b may be pre - programmed to selectively provide charge from the solar collection means to the lv battery or hv battery to accumulate solar charge , or provide power ( charge ) from the lv battery to the hv battery or auxiliary power circuits according to a variety of priority based decision logic trees including overriding manual operation ( e . g ., from operator control panels ) by a vehicle operator . for example , the decision logic tree may be constructed to give priority to charging the hv battery ( assuming a sufficient charge exists in the lv battery ) to the exclusion of all other power demands . alternatively , or in addition , manual interaction by a vehicle operator from a control panel may override such pre - programmed instructions . for example , in the case the lv battery charge level falls below a pre - programmed lower charge value , the charge controller may be programmed to exclude ( ignore ) power demands from the lv battery until the lv battery is recharged to a predetermined lower charge level by the solar collection means and / or plug - in charging sources . when the lv battery charge level is above the programmed lower charge level , there may be an intermediate range of charge level values where auxiliary power circuits or hv battery power demands may be met under special circumstances , e . g ., the vehicle is being operated and / or a manual override interaction ( e . g ., emergency hv charge to start vehicle ) is effected by a vehicle operator / occupant . when the lv battery charge level is above the intermediate range of charge level values , priority may be given to charging the hv battery , if required , as well as secondarily operating auxiliary power demands in the absence of a manual override interaction ( e . g ., emergency hv charge to start vehicle ) by a vehicle operator / occupant . for example , referring to fig2 is shown an exemplary pre - programmed decision logic for operating the charge controller 16 a to control output voltage from the power / voltage converter 16 b . if the hv battery is at less than full charge then : thus , in the exemplary decision logic tree shown in fig2 , charging the hv battery has the highest priority , recharging the lv battery has the next highest priority , and operation of auxiliary power systems ( e . g ., heating or cooling the vehicle ) has the next highest priority based on a sensed vehicle condition . it will be appreciated that other decision trees may be provided as discussed above . thus , a hybrid vehicle charging / auxiliary power system and method has been presented that provides solar charging of an auxiliary charge storage device such as an lv battery which can then be used to ensure that a second charge storage device such as an hv traction battery is fully charged prior to or at the start of operation of a hybrid vehicle , thus ensuring enough power is always available to start the hybrid vehicle . an additional advantage provided by the present invention , is that the auxiliary lv battery may be used to power auxiliary systems without the consequential concern that the lv battery will be discharged to the detriment of starting and driving the hybrid vehicle . while the embodiments illustrated in the figures and described above are presently preferred , it should be understood that these embodiments are offered by way of example only . the invention is not limited to a particular embodiment , but extends to various modifications , combinations , and permutations as will occur to the ordinarily skilled artisan that nevertheless fall within the scope of the appended claims .	8
referring to the drawings , it is possible to observe the major elements and general operation of the present invention . left and right references are used as a matter of convenience and are determined by standing at the rear of the forage harvester and facing the forward end in the normal direction of travel . likewise , forward and rearward are determined by normal direction of travel of the tractor or round baler . upward or downward orientations are relative to the ground or operating surface . horizontal or vertical planes are also relative to ground . in fig1 is shown the feeder device ( 1 ) of a forage harvester with a chopping device ( 2 ) arranged on it in a perspective view from the front and the right , on which the spring system in accordance with the invention is implemented . fig2 conveys a direct side view of its left side without the chopping device ( 2 ). the feeder device ( 1 ) has two upper feeder rollers , which according to the direction of flow of the crop are designated as the prepressing roller ( 3 ) and pressing roller ( 4 ). these are arranged opposite the front lower feeder roller ( 6 ), which is in bearing points at a fixed position in the casing ( 5 ) of the feeder device ( 1 ), and the rear lower feeder roller ( 7 ) in such a way that their distance from these can be varied . for this the pressing roller ( 4 ) with its bearing points ( 8 ) is held in the front ends of oscillating cranks ( 9 ), which with their rear ends carried in bearings on pivot bolts ( 10 ) fixed in the casing ( 5 ) of the feeder device ( 1 ) so that they can pivot . on both sides on the shaft ( 11 ) of the pressing roller ( 4 ) a connecting rod ( 12 ) engages with its rear end in bearings , in the front ends of which there are bearing points ( 13 ) located for the prepressing roller ( 3 ). a short formed part ( 14 ) attached to the oscillating crank ( 9 ) engages with a longer recess ( 15 ) incorporated into the connecting rod ( 12 ), which is depicted in the sectional view of fig7 as a detail . fig3 shows , how the prepressing roller ( 3 ) is raised up maximally by the crop and how through the location of the formed part ( 14 ) on one side of the recess ( 15 ) the pressing roller ( 4 ) is raised a bit without the influence of the crop . on the right side viewed in the direction of travel the connecting rod ( 12 ) is formed as a spur gear box ( 16 ), the central spur wheel of which is connected with a cardan shaft ( 17 ) so that it can be driven . the spring system for the upper feeder rollers is so constructed that on the bearing points ( 13 ) of the prepressing roller ( 3 ) a compression spring ( 18 ) formed as an external spring engages , into which a second compression spring ( 19 ) formed as an internal spring projects . both compression springs ( 18 ; 19 ) have an opposite direction of coiling and abut with their lower ends on a spring base ( 20 ), which is arranged so that it can swivel about a bolt ( 22 ) attached to the connecting rod ( 12 ) by means of a holding bracket ( 21 ). to the spring base ( 20 ) a guide rod ( 23 ) pointing essentially in a vertical direction is rigidly joined , on which the compression springs ( 18 ; 19 ) are located in a concentric arrangement . at the same time the longitudinal axis of the guide rod ( 23 ) lies very close to the central axis of the shaft ( 24 ) of the prepressing roller ( 3 ) or runs directly through it . the lengths of the external springs and of the internal springs are so chosen that the external spring in the lowest position of the prepressing roller ( 3 ) already abuts with its upper end on the upper edge of the casing ( 5 ) of the feeder device ( 1 ), whereas the upper end of the internal spring until then has still some free space . in order to explain the upper abutment refer to fig5 and 6 . here can be seen that first the external spring in fig5 and later also the internal spring as in fig6 abuts from below on a centering disc ( 25 ), which is welded onto the upper edge of the casing ( 5 ) and is surrounded by a sleeve ( 26 ) open below . the centering disc ( 25 ) has a central drilled hole , into which the upper end of the guide rod ( 23 ) is slid . the spring system applying the rolling force to the pressing roller ( 4 ) is in principle constructed the same as that for the prepressing roller ( 3 ), only with the difference that around the guide rod ( 27 ) there is only one single compression spring ( 28 ) analogous to the compression spring ( 18 ) functioning as an external spring for the prepressing roller ( 3 ), the rolling force of which in comparison with the spring package on the prepressing roller ( 3 ) amounts to only 15 to 35 percent . the lower stops for the position of the prepressing roller ( 3 ) and of the pressing roller ( 4 ) in their lowest position are formed from stop plates ( 29 ) fixed to the guide rods ( 23 ; 27 ), which fit closely with the interposition of rubber buffers ( 30 ) from above on the upper edge of the casing ( 5 ) of the feeder device ( 1 ). their position can be adjusted by changing the lower positions of the upper feeder rollers by means of lock nuts ( 31 ). the stop shoulders ( 32 ) fixed to the guide rods ( 23 ; 27 ) serve as upper stops for limiting the lift path of the prepressing roller ( 3 ) and of the pressing roller ( 4 ) in their uppermost position and fit closely from below on the centering disc ( 25 ) under the upper edge of the casing ( 5 ) of the feeder device ( 1 ). the development of the compression spring as an external spring which is already under a certain prestress in the lowest position of the prepressing roller , it is ensured that the second compression spring sticking into it lies protected from dirt and that as a result it also requires no additional space . the opposite direction of the coiling of the outer spring to that of the inner spring it is ensured that they cannot get hooked up in each other in any position . the placing of the lower support of the outer spring and the inner spring as close as possible to the central axis of the shaft of the prepressing roller , in that through it the common roll force presses directly and exclusively on the prepressing roller . through the shorter inner spring it is in addition to be noted , that with smaller layer thicknesses also only a small roll force is exerted only by the outer spring on the crop , which is completely sufficient and as a result the crop is not damaged in any way . with higher layer thicknesses on the other hand , then very high common roll forces are available , which are urgently needed in this region of the lifting path . the lower stops for limiting the position of the prepressing roller and of the pressing roller are located in their lower positions above the upper edge the casing of the feeder device , as a result of which both rollers hang on their guide rods and the lower stops themselves lie in a relatively dirt - free space . rubber buffers cushion any possible impacts from a rapid upward motion of the upper feeder rollers . the invention has proved itself to implement the upper stops for limiting the position of the prepressing roller and the pressing roller in their uppermost positions through the guide rods themselves , in that each one is equipped with stop collar , which bears from below upon centering discs beneath the upper edge of the casing of the feeder device . it is seen in that for a pressing roller with its bearing point points in oscillating cranks and on it connecting rods connected forwards for the bearings of the prepressing roller a facility is installed , which restricts somewhat the freely movable angular area between the oscillating crank and the connecting rod for the avoidance of blockages . in this way it is ensured that the pressing roller cannot remain in its lowest position , if the prepressing roller is in its uppermost position and vice versa . for this a short - formed part is attached which engages in a longer recess in the connecting rod , which forms an upper and a lower stop . it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention and the invention is not to be considered limited to what is illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification .	0
reference will now be made in detail to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention , an example which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings . it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional changes may be made without departing from the respective scope of the present invention . the hardware requirements of the preferred embodiment of this system are depicted in fig1 and 2 . a time code reader 10 , which in this embodiment is an optical time code reader , is capable of reading time codes from a show device 12 such as a film projector , show control computer or another media source . the media source may include analog and / or digital content and could be audio , video , and other information ( e . g ., force feedback parameters for tactile sensing ). a central processing unit ( cpu ) 14 receives the time code signal from the reader 10 and synchronizes the content with the film and / or presentation , which may be a movie screen 15 . examples of content are text captioning , language translation , games and / or other related applications . the central processing unit 14 has the capability to access and interpret the content . the content can reside in the internal memory of the central processing unit 14 and / or as a removable memory media . the cpu 14 will deliver the synchronized data to the infrared ( ir ) emitters 16 , which are capable of delivering ir messages or control data to a portable device 18 , which may be operated either in an indoor or outdoor environment . alternatively , a low - powered licensed and / or non - licensed radio frequency ( rf ) system can also be used to deliver the synchronized data to the portable device via an rf signal . fig2 depicts an rf receiver 24 and rf transmitter 22 , which interact with a portable rf capable device 18 to achieve the same results as the ir system previously described . the portable display device 18 has sufficient memory to allow storage of all data to be presented . all required data may be transmitted to the device 18 in one session for display at predetermined times after receipt of a start signal , or the data may be transmitted in a plurality of sessions for display in real time . the stored data may be displayed in its entirety , or a portion of the data may be displayed . the device 18 includes infrared ports capable of receiving and / or emitting infrared messages . messages emitted from the portable display device 18 are read by one or more ir detectors 19 . in an alternative embodiment , the device 18 could also contain rf receiver and / or transmitter ports capable of receiving and transmitting rf messages . the portable device 18 will receive the ir or rf signal and convert the signal to information that can be stored and / or displayed in sync with the presentation . the device 18 may also contain the capability to receive and play audio such as for assistive listening and / or audio language translations , or program material specific to the presentation . the system could also recognize show / presentation start and / or end signals . the system could then transmit random and / or synchronized information to the patrons possessing a device . this will allow the patrons to interact with the device while waiting for the show / presentation to start or after the show / presentation has ended . one possible application of the invention is depicted in fig3 . in this application , time code information is read by the cpu 14 , which then accesses on board content , and delivers the synchronized data to the infrared emitters 16 , which are in turn capable of delivering ir messages . a portable device 24 receives the ir messages and converts the ir messages to presentable data . in this instance , the ir receiver 19 is a modification to an existing device such as a pda ( for example , a palm type device ) and / or a pocket pc ( for example , a compaq ipaq ) that can store and / or immediately display the data . the ir receiver takes the ir signal from the emitter and translates it to an electronic signal for the serial port 22 of the pda and / or pocket pc . a terminal software program converts the electronic signal into data that is presented as text on the display screen 26 . this invention may be adapted for uses such as text captioning and language translation in movie or live theaters , consumer products which can provide an interactive experience , and to provide a wireless link for control signals to equipment , devices or products which are used in public presentations . another application of the invention is depicted in fig4 . in this application , a combination of rf transmitter 30 and ir emitters 31 broadcast data to portable devices 33 . the portable devices have both rf and ir receivers . the rf data stream contains encrypted caption text , digitized audio , and control data for one theater 34 or multiple venues . each theater or venue has one or more ir emitters that send small amounts of data to synchronize the portable device playback to user position or the theater presentation . an emitter mounted outside one theater &# 39 ; s entrance may send an identifying code that the portable device uses to identify that theater . the device then extracts data from the rf stream for that theater &# 39 ; s content , and loads the content into the device &# 39 ; s memory . content may include theater name , show times , show synopses , as well as the text and audio for an upcoming show . when the user enters the theater , the device receives ir synchronizing codes for the current show , and the device displays caption text , or play audio , or otherwise synchronize device functions during the show . the ir synchronizing codes are derived from the show media as described earlier . [ 0029 ] fig5 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the basic structure of the data packet stream sent by the high - speed transmitters . the figure shows a possible broadcast packet stream of theater show content for three theaters , along with data packets of ancillary information such as theater show schedules and current date and time . the broadcast packet stream contains small groups of data ( packets ) that contain a small amount of content that will be received by the user devices and , if needed , will be loaded into the user devices local memory . the logical state of each user device determines which packets are loaded into a particular user device . for example , user devices that are in theater a would receive and store content for theater a , but ignore content for theaters b and c . all user devices would receive the current time packet , and use the time data to reset the user device clock . any user device in front of theater a , b , or c would receive and store the theaters &# 39 ; schedule data . the example packets in the figure show content broken into one - second fragments . so a captioning device in theater a would receive the caption text packet for the 1st second of the show , caption text packet for the 2nd second , etc . each second of content would be loaded into device memory for access during the show . a large number of individual packet types are possible , each containing different data such as caption text , audio content , video content , graphics , images , time , schedules , menus , geographical information , game content , survey questions , advertising , warnings , alerts , etc . each data packet ( refer to examples caption text , audio content , current time packets in fig5 ) always starts with a unique header value that signifies the start of a new data packet . the data packet also contains a count value that is used to indicate the amount of following data in the packet . the count is used to validate the packet and calculate a checksum . the encryption data represents key and authentication information . this , and the checksum , enables the user device to verify that following data in the packet is intended for the device and that the data has not been corrupted . corresponding key and authentication information are loaded into the user device . the message type value defines the content data in the packet . based on the message type , the user device will determine how to decode the packet data , where to store the data , how and when to use the data . for example , warning text may be immediately displayed ; show caption text may be buffered in device memory until an ir synchronizing code triggers that caption text display . menu or schedule information may be buffered in device memory until the user requests it . the address value designates an identifier for a receiving device . this may be a unique address , so the packet is intended for only one user device . or , the address may specify a block of user devices , such as all captioning devices , or all game devices . or , the address may denote the packet as a generic broadcast sent to all devices . the optional start time value acts as a packet sequence number , but may also be used by the receiving user device to define when the packet content is used . as packets are received , the user device will buffer content into its memory in sequence based on start time . as the user device receives synchronizing codes , it will pull content from the sequential memory or search memory for the content with appropriate start time . additional information such as caption text data with formatting codes , digitized audio content , and current time and frame information are included in the data packet stream . there is a checksum information that uses a combination of all the preceding data to verify that the packet has arrived at its location in its entirety . [ 0040 ] fig6 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a portable user device in accordance with the present invention . all portable devices have the common elements of an ir receiver 50 , rf receiver 60 , ir transmitter 51 , rf transmitter 61 , processor 52 , memory 54 , and power source 56 . other elements of the devices vary depending on intended applications . in this exemplary embodiment , the portable device has both a display 53 for displaying text and / or graphics , in addition to an audio amplifier 57 for playing sounds , which may be in the form of speech or musical tones . memory 54 is where the data is stored on the device . the ir receiver 50 receives a code from the wireless transmitter , and processor 52 analyzes the code . the processor 52 interprets the code to determine how to handle it . if the code is intended for that device , the device searches its memory 54 for content corresponding to the code . the content is then displayed on display 53 and / or plays sound through the audio amplifier 57 . the portable device shown in fig5 also shows user inputs 55 , such as pushbuttons , which may be used for interactive applications . the high - speed rf transceiver system could be used to transfer content to the portable device , while the ir tranceiver system may be used to precisely aim location synchronizing codes to the portable device . [ 0041 ] fig7 is a flowchart that shows how received data packets are handled by the user device . after the device is powered on , it is capable of receiving data packets from both ir and rf receivers . the device also monitors user inputs that may come from pushbuttons , touch screen , speech input , assistive devices , etc . the device also periodically reads its clock , and searches its event database memory for preloaded events set to trigger at the current time . either receiver may recognize an incoming packet . any packet that contains timing errors , corrupted data , cannot be authenticated , etc . will be ignored . a packet that has correct bit timing , correct header , can be authenticated , can be decrypted , and has a correct checksum will be marked as valid . a valid packet will be compared with the user device configuration , so that only appropriate packets will be used . for example , a user device that displays caption text , but has no audio capability , may be configured for text only . that device would ignore packets containing audio content . the packet message type determines how the device will use the packet data . the packet may contain content such as caption text , audio , or video that is buffered in the user device content database memory for future use . other data , such as an urgent text alert message , may be sent to the device display immediately . data such as location and time synchronizing codes may cause the device to search its content database memory , extract the content , and present the content . current time data may cause the device to reset its internal clock . event time data will be placed in the device &# 39 ; s content database memory , and will be acted on when the internal clock matches the event time . special effect data may cause the user device to buzz , ring , animate , etc . the user device may have some number of user inputs available . these may take the form of pushbuttons , touch - screen soft buttons , touch - screen menus , speech input , assistive device such as a breath - operated puff switch , etc . the user may set preferences , such as points of interest , types of movies , age , educational level , etc . the device may use these manually entered preferences , along with learned preferences , to alter the presentation of content . for example , a child &# 39 ; s device may be set to display captions using a small english vocabulary . as the child carries the device from location to location in a museum , the device may also “ learn ”, or infer , the child &# 39 ; s preference for a certain type of display . the device may also learn a user &# 39 ; s direction of travel , and therefore predict or suggest future destinations . for example , after walking down a hallway towards north , the device may alert the user that the hallway will end , and a turn to the east or west is necessary . furthermore , the learned direction , along with any learned and manually entered user preferences , may cause the device to deduce a preference for an exhibit that is to the east of the hallway end . the portable device may automatically infer user preferences from use of the device based on the current location of the user device , the time elapsed at a location , path history ( i . e . geographic walking history ) of locations visited , and the time elapsed between locations ( i . e . walking speed ). user inputs may also be assigned to device hardware functions . for example , an input pushbutton may cause an ir transmitter to send a code to an adjacent device . such code may identify the user to another user , or identify the user to an automated device , network , etc . one code may cause a door to open , for example , or allow interaction with a game system , etc . the user device may present content based on internal logic and its internal clock , without receiving data packets . for example , text captions may appear at a predefined time of day to remind a user of venue show times , closing time , or remind the user of medication needed , etc . further , such time events may be logically constrained by the learned and manually entered user preferences . for example , a restaurant closing time may not be displayed because the user has walked away from the restaurant . in closing it is to be understood that the embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are illustrative of the principals of the invention . other modifications may be employed which are within the scope of the invention . accordingly , the present invention is not limited to that precisely as is shown and described in the present specification .	7
the invention provides a fully testable , small scale , on - chip rom ( read only memory ) implementation in combination with a digital video decoder in a functional environment where lssd shift register loading is not practical . in stuck fault testing ( which occurs after a chip has been fabricated ) predefined data pattern sequences are driven into physically accessible probe points and the outputs are repeatedly measured and compared against a predicted output . the presence of a pull up or pull down resistor prevents stuck fault testing of the data path in which the resistors are located . this is a problem which our invention solves . the invention is described with respect to an 8 × 1 bit rom implementation that is part of an mpeg - 2 compliant digital video decoder , although it is , of course , to be understood that other and larger implementations are contemplated . the rom memory elements are implemented using an 8 bit register , with both positive and negative register outputs available for each bit . in the case of an 8 × 1 bit rom , a 3 bit address is required to select the appropriate bit to propagate to the rom output line . the rom address decoder and the selector multiplexor are conventional . the rom is built up of shift register latches . exemplary shift register latches are master - slave flip flops , for example , d flip flops . in the case of a master - slave d flip flop , l1 can be clocked and l2 can be slaved , to thereby capture the data . the rom register data inputs for each bit are fed by a standalone shift register , latch . the subsequent data port is fed by a single pull up resistor . the purpose of the single shift register latch is to buffer the multiple rom register data ports from the stuck fault error introduced by the pullup resistor . by feeding the pull up resistor to a single latch , instead of directly to the rom register , a reduction in untested stuck - faults from the number of rom bits to 1 is achieved . the actual rom pattern is programmed , e . g ., hardwired , into the circuit by feeding either the positive or negative register output of each rom register into the selector and multiplexor . after chip power on , the rom data will be valid following two complete system clock cycles . this is because it takes two clock cycles for the shift register latch to load &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;&# 39 ; s into the data in ports of the 8 bit register . the 8 bit rom register is accessed by sending an address and obtaining the rom data from the selector . a service processor is not necessary to perform a scan to load data into the shift registers . if the two cycle lag from chip power on to when rom data is valid is not acceptable , the single shift register latch can be eliminated , and the pull - up resistor feeding the rom register data inputs moved to the next package level . the result will be a single clock cycle time lag before the data is valid . additionally , one remaining untestable stuck at fault will be eliminated . since the pullup resistors are on a different package level , the chip , prior to final assembly , can be checked without the pull - up resistors being present . if the implementation requires a zero lag before valid rom data , the further modification of connecting the rom register system clock and shift - b clock to the next package level pull - up resistors can be made . fig1 shows the overall circuitry of the rom portion 11 of the integrated circuit chip , 1 , with an eight bit register , 23 , a selector , 25 , a rom address decoder , 27 , and a rom output , 29 . an off - chip pullup resistor , 13 , is also shown . fig2 shows the rom circuitry , 11 , configured in test mode . the tester , 41 , can control the single bit shift register latch , 21 , to load either a logical zero or a logical one into the data latches , 23a to 23h , of the eight bit register , 23 . the tester , 41 , also has control of loading the eight bit register , 23 , with any combination of logical zeroes and ones to fully test the selector , 25 , that the register , 23 , feeds . it should be noted that in a true rom implementation neither the tester , 41 , nor the rom hardware would be able to do this . the true rom would only be capable of putting the specific combinations of logical zeroes and ones on its outputs that it contains . this would limit the ability to fully test the circuit that it feeds . since the tester , 41 , has the control to do this in the lssd implementation shown in fig2 it allows all of the circuitry contained in and around the rom , 11 , to be fully tested . fig3 shows the rom , 11 , in the functional mode . in the functional mode the single bit shift register , 21 , with its input latch tied to a voltage source , 51 , through the pull up resistor , 13 , is used to load the data bits of the eight bit register , 23 . by using either the non - inverting or the inverting outputs of the shift register latches of the eight bit register , 23 , the rom data that is needed can be created . according to the invention there is provided a one hundred percent stuck at fault testable implementation , with valid rom data available within two clock cycles after chip power on . the shift register latch rom of the invention is useful as an on - chip look - up table for an inverse discrete cosine transform ( idct ) mpeg - 2 compliant encoder or decoder , as shown in fig4 and 5 . fig4 shows the general internal data flow of the system to support the mpeg - 2 standard . specifically , the compressed , encoded data input 131 goes to a demultiplexer 141 where it is demultiplexed into two streams 151 and 161 . stream 161 goes to a variable length code ( vlc ) huffman decoder 171b for decoding , and to an inverse quantizer 181 for dequantizing . the dequantized code then goes to an inverse discrete cosine transform ( idct ) process 191 , where the dequantized code is transformed into a pixel mapping using the rom 11 of the invention as a look - up table for constants , divisors , multipliers , and coefficients . the second data stream 151 also goes through a variable length code ( vlc ) huffman decoder 171a where it is decoded into error functions 101 which go to a motion compensator 231 . the huffman decoders 171a and 171b are shown as logically separate and distinct , although they may structurally and electronically be the same element . the motion compensator 231 also receives a data stream derived from the first data stream 161 and the motion compensated data stream , summed in summer 241 . the output 251 of the summer 241 goes to the pixel bus ( not shown ) and to storage , i . e ., future frame storage 211 and past frame storage 221 . the contents of the future frame storage 211 and past frame storage 221 are , as appropriate , inputs to the motion compensator 231 . the decode unit 301 , shown with detail in fig5 consists of functional units that operate under the control of the decoder controller 401 and its associated instruction storage unit 402 . these decode functional units include the variable length code huffman decoder 311 , the inverse quantizer or dequantizer , 321 , the inverse discrete cosine transform unit , 331 , including associated rom , 11 , and rom controller , 12 , and the motion compensation unit , 341 . the decoder controller 401 is the central point of control for the decoder . the decoder controller 401 microcode is stored in an instruction storage unit 402 . the decoder controller 401 interacts with the host system through an external processor through the host or system bus for high level commands and status . the decoder controller 401 is responsible for the control and command of the other functional elements , as well as providing global synchronization of these units . the decoder controller 401 is coupled to the variable length code huffman decoder 311 . this enables parsing of the code stream . parsing of the code streams and processing of header information is done by the decoder controller 401 interacting with the vlc huffman decoder 311 . the variable length code huffman decoder 311 ( vlc ) contains tables for decoding the data stream and a local state machine that controls the decoding of run / level data for macroblocks . the vlc 311 is controlled by the decoder controller 401 as header information and block run / level symbols are passed from the compressed bit stream . a local state machine decodes the run / level symbols and interacts with the inverse quantizer 321 to process the decoded signals . to be noted is that variable length coding , e . g ., huffman coding , is a statistical coding technique that assigns codewords to symbols . symbols with a high probability of occurrence are assigned short codewords , while symbols with a low probability of occurrence are assigned longer codewords . the inverse quantizer 321 receives run / level ( run / amplitude ) coded symbols from the vlc unit 311 and outputs a block of 64 coefficients that are sent to the inverse discrete cosine transform unit 331 . the inverse quantizer 321 converts the run / level coded symbols to zeros and symbols , unzigs the data , handles differential pulse code modulation ( dpcm ) decoding for the discrete cosine coefficients , and dequantizes the data . the inverse discrete cosine transform unit 331 is a compute intensive element that uses certain coefficients , divisors , and multipliers repetitively in generating the inverse discrete cosine transform . these coefficients , divisors , and multipliers can be supplied by microcode or by the rom 11 . according to our invention they are supplied by the rom 11 . the rom is logically connected to the inverse discrete cosine transform unit through a memory controller 12 and the decoder controller 401 . while the invention has been described with respect to certain preferred embodiments and exemplifications , it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention thereby , but solely by the claims appended hereto .	6
fig1 shows a cross section of a typical stator bar 10 for a large ac dynamoelectric machine . bar 10 is composed of a large number of insulated conductors such as 12 which are insulated from each other by the strand insulation 14 . the conductors 12 are formed into a group after having strand insulation 14 applied thereto to provide the necessary isolation . the top and bottom surfaces of the conductor group are filled with an insulating material 13 generally referred to as a transposition filler . the group of insulated conductors 12 are next wrapped with a groundwall insulation material 16 . the number of layers of insulating tape making up insulation may be from 7 to 16 layers of a mica tape insulation wound in half lap or wrapped fashion , depending on the level of operating voltage to which the conductors 12 are being subjected . for high voltage applications , that is for voltages above 4000 volts and , preferably 13 . 8 kv , the preferred groundwall insulation 16 would be layers of a composite mica tape comprising a corona discharge resistant polyimide bonded to a mica type paper tape . this tape provides a good layer of insulation , and because of its corona resistant properties , provides long service life because of the resistance to corona discharge . the mica paper composites and tapes used in these hybrid systems contain a high percentage of a semi - cured resin ( resin rich ) which may or may not contain a corona resistant material . the wrapped bar is heated and compressed , in an autoclave or press , to allow the resin to temporarily liquefy so as to evacuate any entrapped air and eliminate any voids . heat and pressure are maintained on the bar undergoing treatment so that the resin contained in the insulation is driven to gelation , bonding the insulation system together . the surface of the cured bar may next be coated with suitable materials to assure that the entire exposed surface of the bar will form an equipotential surface during machine operation . the cured bar manufactured with the tape types as described above will function acceptably well within the design parameters of the machine for a predetermined period of time . fig2 shows the cross section for a typical coil 10 b . in this instance , strands 12 b of copper ( six shown ) are grouped together so that although strands 12 are separated from each other by the presence of strand insulation 14 b , the six strands grouped into the turn , must be insulated from the other turns of the coil 10 b by means of turn insulation 15 b . the turn package is ultimately covered with groundwall insulation 16 b . fig3 a shows the cross section of a stator bar insulated in accordance with the teachings of this invention . here the conductor bundle is composed of individual conductors 22 separated by strand insulation 24 similar to that as previously shown in fig1 a . the conductor bundle is then wound with several layers of composite tape . each layer of composite tape will comprise a first inner layer 26 of insulation tape and a second insulation layer 28 of tape . these layers 26 , 28 of tape each have a predetermined thickness and different permittivities . in particular the permittivity of the first inner layer is greater then that of the permittivity of the outer most layer . it should also be understood that additional third or fourth layers of tape with reduced permittivity may be employed in the present invention . it should be understood that these inner and outer insulation layers may comprise layers of half lapped tape composed of a composite such as mica paper backed on a glass tape backing to form layer 28 . a suitable resin impregnant is present in the mica paper . this standard tape has an excellent voltage withstand capability . the groundwall insulation comprising layers 26 and 28 may be subjected to press curing or an autoclaving curing process to eliminate any voids in the insulation layers 26 and 28 and to subsequently drive the resin impregnant to gelation . suitable surface coatings may be applied to the external surface of insulation layer 28 before or after cure . fig3 b shows the composite groundwall insulation as it applies to coil 20 composed of three turns . in this instance , the copper conductors 22 b are surrounded by strand insulation 24 b . the turn insulation 25 b is applied to each turn and the initial layer of groundwall insulation 26 b containing the same constituents as layer 26 in fig3 a is applied . finally , the layer of outer groundwall insulation 28 b is applied . with the exception of the presence of the turn insulation 25 b , the insulation systems of fig3 a and 3b are very similar . referring now to fig4 there is shown a simplified drawing of the conductor 25 have including the inner insulation groundwall layer 26 and the second more outer insulation groundwall layer 28 also referred to as the first and second layers 26 , 28 . the first layer 26 has a permittivity which is chosen to be greater than that of the second layer 28 . in testing that has been done , an inner layer of tape insulation 26 was utilized having a permittivity of 6 . 5 . the permittivity of the second more outer insulating layer 28 was chosen to be 4 . 2 . the predetermined thickness of the layers was 0 . 096 inches or slightly less then 2 . 5 mm . the electric field profiles were determined at the corner shown in 40 and the flat at 42 . the result in measurement for fig4 is shown in graph number for fig6 . however , before discussing the graph for fig6 reference may be made to the graph for fig5 which relates to the insulation shown in fig1 . in fig5 it is shown that the profile for the electrical field at the corner 40 diminishes in a curved slope fashion given by curve 55 starting at approximately 4200 volts per mm and this gradually decreases to the 3 mm in thickness for this conductor insulation material . on the flat , the potential electric field is stable at approximately 2600 volts per mm . this is shown by curve 50 . accordingly , the insulation shown in fig1 has its weakest portion at the corner adjacent to the conductor where the electric field is the greatest and hence the insulation has its weakest portion . referring to fig6 the graph is shown for the conductor as shown in fig3 a and is compared with the graph of fig5 which is also provided on fig6 . the thickness of the two insulation systems 26 and 28 is shown . in graph 65 the maximum magnitude of the electric field is 4000 volts per mm as compared to about 4200 volts per mm in fig5 . however , the electric field profile decreases gradually along a curve until sharp step 68 where the second layer of insulation is formed at this juncture between layers 26 and 28 . thereafter the electric field diminishes again in a curved slopping manner . with respect to the electrical field profile across the flat 42 , distribution layer , this is shown at 60 and can be compared to profile 50 . hence the distribution of the electric field adjacent the conductor is less for both the flat and curved portions 42 and 40 and has a sharp graded step increase at 68 and then is greater then that for curves 50 and 55 respectively . the present invention however does provide for a reduction in the maximum magnitude of the electric field that the groundwall insulation must withstand . it should be understood that the electric field profile as shown in fig6 is for a winding of stator bars and that this electric field profile would be present with a step type function across the juncture of the first and second layer of insulation for stator coils and this pattern can repeat with the addition of subsequent or successive layers of insulation having lower permittivities in each succeeding layer . further , it should be noted that the thickness of the insulation system used in fig6 has been reduced significantly over that used in the prior art of fig5 . hence this reduction in insulation results in material cost savings . referring again to fig3 a and 3b , successive layers of insulation 80 and 82 are shown in ghost lines applied in succession over layer 28 in fig3 a and layer 28 b in fig3 b . these successive layers 80 , 82 if used , have declining permittivities for each layer applied further from the turn insulation 24 or groundwall insulation layers 26 , 28 . it is further envisaged that the inner and outer layers of insulation utilized in the present invention may comprise two tapes made from different types of mica having differing permittivities dependent upon and inherent in the choice of mica for the mica paper tape . the mica papers chosen for these tapes would be such that the difference in permittivities inherent to the mica itself would contribute to an overall resultant permittivity of each tape . in this manner , multiple tapes of differing permittivities can be utilized based on a singe basic tape construction and chemisty . the most common form of mica is muscovite that has a dielectric constant in the 6 to 8 range . another form of mica is phlogopite that has a dielectric constant in the 5 to 6 range . there are many different types of mica pairings from which to select the advantageous pairing of materials . the mica may be chosen from the following : anandite , annite , biotite , bityte , boromuscovite , celadonite , chemikhite , clintonite , ephesite , ferriannite glauconite , hendricksite , kinoshitalite , lepidolite , masutomilite , muscovite , nanpingite , paragonite , phlogopite , polylithionite , preiswerkite , roscoelite , siderophillite , sodiumphlogopite , taeniolite , vermiculate , wonesite , and zinnwaldite . it should be understood that alternative embodiments of the present invention may be readily apparent to a man skilled in the art in view of the above description for the preferred embodiments of this invention . for example , while the preferred embodiment relates to groundwall insulation , it is within the realm of the present invention that the turn insulation 24 of fig3 a surrounding conductor 22 may comprise the first inner layer of insulation and the second more outer layer may comprise the groundwall insulation layer 26 so long as the second layer 26 has a lower permittivity than the layer 24 . accordingly , the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the teachings of the preferred embodiments and should be limited to the scope of the claims that follow .	7
by way of the physical - chemical properties of the initial materials ( tio 2 - anatase , stabilizers from the series b 1 , activators from the series b ), and through the selection of further additives and processing in the kneader according to the invention one can , in a given kneading mass , by means of empirical variation of the moisture content of the same during the kneading process , control the pore volume and the pore radii distribution . the pore radii distribution can be varied within wide limits in the meso - pore and macro - pore ranges , whereby mono -, bi -, and trimodal pore radii distributions as well as transition forms between them can be adjusted in a target - oriented manner . the correct selection of these parameters lead to a considerable increase in catalytic activity . pore distribution and the pore volume however also decisively influence the poisoning resistance and thus directly the catalyst life times . in this connection , the pk value of the solid surface assumes special weight . the pk value can change quite considerably in the catalyst according to the invention by virtue of the selection of the stabilizers or activators . here we must especially mention the use of heteropoly acids as activators and / or stabilizers . interestingly enough , it was found that especially catalysts , which are made from these materials , when used in the particularly problematical flue gases from bituminous coal slag tap furnaces , for example , compared to catalysts according to german patent 24 58 888 , reveal a definitely lesser tendency toward the enrichment of arsenic and other disturbing substances ( catalyst poisons ). this can be traced back to the increased poisoning resistance as a result of reduced heavy metal adsorption along the surface of the catalyst . as a result , the use of catalysts is facilitated in &# 34 ; high - dust operation &# 34 ; of bituminous coal slag tap furnaces with technically meaningful life times . the known comparison catalysts on the other hand are subject to rapid deactivation which is caused primarily by heavy metals present in the flue gas . the invention will be explained below in greater detail with regard to the illustrative examples . catalysts were tested both in dust - free model waste gases in a laboratory test installation and in the waste gas of an oil furnace system . besides , long term tests were performed in the flue gas from a bituminous coal dry furnace . the catalyst tests were performed in the temperature range from 200 ° to 500 ° c . the space velocities here were between 10 , 000 and 40 , 000 h - 1 . in each case we used the molar ratio , which was found to be favorable , between the reduction agent ammonia and the nitrous oxide amounting to 0 . 6 - 1 . 6 , preferably 0 . 8 - 1 . 2 . 35 kg of an intimate mixture of the oxides tio 2 and wo 3 , made according to german patent 24 58 888 , in a weight ratio of 9 : 1 are mixed with 20 liters of desalinated water , 6 kg 15 % by weight of aqueous nh solution , 1 . 8 kg monoethanolamine , and with a solution of ammonium metavanadate corresponding to 350 g v 2 o 5 . the mixture is kneaded intensively at varying moisture content and temperatures between 70 ° and 90 ° c . then , in succession , we add 620 g sio 2 . 1 . 4 kg alkali - free clay , and 3 . 5 kg glass fibers ( length 1 - 8 mm ). the mixture is kneaded into a homogeneous kneaded mass for 6 - 8 hours , whereby , for the purpose of adjusting the plasticity necessary for subsequent shaping , we add an additional 410 g polyethylene oxide , 410 g of carboxymethylcellulose , 230 g lactic acid and 11 . 5 kg of fully - desalinated water . with the help of an extruder , the catalyst mass is then extruded into monolithic honeycomb bodies with channels having a quadratic cross - section ( cell division : 3 . 4 mm or 7 . 4 mm ). the molded bodies are dried in an environmental drying chamber at rising temperature in the range from 20 ° to 60 ° c . and they are then calcined after step - by - step raising of the temperature for 24 hours at 620 ° c . the composition of the catalyst is indicated in each case in table 1 . basically the procedure as follows was used to compare the catalysts : 35 kg of the tio 2 - anatase mentioned in claim 1 , with a bet surface of 98 m 2 / g are mixed with 4 . 4 kg ammonium paratungstenate ( apw ), 22 liters of desalinated water , 7 . 5 kg of 15 % by weight aqueous nh3 solution , 1 . 8 kg monoethanolamine , and a solution of ammonium metavanadate , corresponding to 390 g v 2 o 5 . amid intensive kneading in the temperature range from 60 ° to 90 ° c ., there is added , in succession , 670 g sio 2 , 2 . 5 kg glass fibers ( length 1 - 8 mm ), and 1 . 5 kg of alkali - free clay . the mixture is kneaded into a homogeneous kneaded mass for 5 - 7 hours ( werner & amp ; pfleiderer kneader luk 2 . 5 ); to adjust the plasticity , an additional 450 g polyethylene oxide , 450 g carboxymethylcellulose , 250 g lactic acid , and 12 . 3 liters of desalinated water were put in to the mixture . for the fine adjustment of the moisture content and the plasticity of the kneaded mass , it was necessary to add more ammonia water prior to the end of the kneading operation . using an extruder , the catalyst mass was pressed into monolithic honeycomb bodies with channels having a quadratic cross - section ( cell division : 3 . 4 mm ). after drying amid temperature rising from 20 ° to 60 ° c . in an environmental drying chamber , the molded bodies are calcined for 24 hours at 620 ° c . after gradual raising of the temperature . in examples 6 - 9 , there was added , instead of tio 2 , anatase or ammonium paratungstenate ( apw ) or ammonium metavanadate ( amv )-- flame - hydrolytically produced tio 2 - p - 25 ( degussa ) or tungsten oxide , boron oxide , or nb 2 o 5 , the latter inserted as nioboxalate , dissolved in water . table 1______________________________________ share of weight b . sub . 2 in oxide ratio , in g / 100com - com - a - oxide / g a - b . sub . 1ponent ponent b . sub . 1 - component mixingex . a b . sub . 1 oxide b . sub . 2 oxide______________________________________1 anatase apw 9 : 1 amv 1 . 02 anatase apw 9 . 5 : 0 . 5 amv 1 . 03 anatase apw 9 . 9 : 0 . 1 amv 1 . 04 anatase apw 9 : 1 amv 0 . 55 anatase apw 9 : 1 amv 3 . 06 anatase wo . sub . 3 9 : 1 amv 1 . 07 p - 25 wo . sub . 3 9 : 1 amv 1 . 08 anatase b . sub . 2 o . sub . 3 9 . 7 : 0 . 3 amv 1 . 09 anatase apw 9 : 1 nb . sub . 2 ( c . sub . 2 o . sub . 4 ) 5 2 . 5______________________________________ 35 kg of tio 2 - anatase , mentioned in claim 1 , with a bet surface of 75 m 2 / g , are mixed , in the running kneader , with 4 . 4 kg ammonium paratungstenate ( apw ) and 10 kg of 15 % by weight aqueous nh 3 solution . the suspension thus obtained is kneaded at 80 ° c . for 3 hours until it is dry ( residual moisture 5 - 10 % by weight ). then the mixture thus obtained is mixed with 22 liters of desalinated water , 7 . 5 kg of 15 % by weight aqueous nh 3 solution , 1 . 8 kg monoethanolamine , and with a solution of ammonium metavanadate ( amv ) corresponding to 390 g v 2 o 5 . this mass is further processed as described in examples 1 - 9 and is extruded to form the same honeycomb bodies . the monoliths are dried and calcined likewise in a manner similar to the method described in examples 1 - 9 . in example 11 , according to table 2 , the ammonium metavanadate was replaced with ammonium molybdate ( am ); in examples 12 and 13 , the ammonium paratungstenate was replaced with bao or sio 2 . table 2______________________________________ share of weight b . sub . 2 oxide ratio , in g / 100com - com - a - oxide / g a - b . sub . 1ponent ponent b . sub . 1 - component mixingex . a b . sub . 1 oxide b . sub . 2 oxide______________________________________10 anatase apw 9 : 1 amv 1 . 011 anatase apw 9 : 1 am 3 . 012 anatase bao 9 . 5 : 0 . 5 amv 1 . 013 anatase sio . sub . 2 9 : 1 amv 1 . 0______________________________________ 35 kg of tio 2 - anatase , mentioned in claim 1 , with a bet surface of 40 m 2 / g , are mixed with 4 . 0 kg aluminum oxide and 12 kg 15 % by weight aqueous nh solution . the paste is kneaded at 80 ° c . for 2 - 3 hours up to a residual moisture of between 5 and 10 % by weight . then the powder is precalcined for 2 hours at 400 ° c . the precalcined oxide mixture is mixed in the kneader with 22 liters of desalinated water , 7 . 5 kg of 15 % by weight aqueous nh 3 solution , 2 . 0 kg of monoethanolamine , 210 g of pulp ( coarse - fibered cellulose ) and only then is it mixed with a solution of ammonium metavanadate corresponding to 390 g v 2 o 5 . amid intensive kneading at 60 °- 90 ° c ., an additional 2 . 3 g of alkali - free clay , 2 . 2 kg of glass fibers ( length 1 - 8 mm ), 200 g polyethylene oxide , 200 g carboxymethylcellulose , and 250 g lactic acid is added . the mixture is kneaded into a homogeneous kneaded mass for 5 - 7 hours whereby , to adjust the plasticity , more ammonia water was added . using an extruder , the catalyst mass is finally pressed into honeycomb bodies with quadratically configured channels ( cell subdivision : 7 . 4 mm ). after drying with rising temperatures ( 20 °- 60 ° c .) in an environmental drying chamber , the molded bodies are calcined for 24 hours at 700 ° c . after gradual raising of the temperature . in examples 15 - 17 , we added , instead of aluminum oxide according to table 3 , ammonium paratungstenate or lanthanum oxide and , in example 16 , instead of ammonium metavanadate , copper ( ii ) acetate , dissolved in water was added . table 3______________________________________ share of b . sub . 2 oxide in g / 100com - com - weight ratio , g a - b . sub . 1ponent ponent a - oxide / b . sub . 1 - component mixingex . a b . sub . 1 oxide b . sub . 2 oxide______________________________________14 anatase al . sub . 2 o . sub . 3 9 : 1 amv 1 . 015 anatase apw 9 : 1 amv 1 . 016 anatase apw 9 . 5 : 0 . 5 cu ( ch . sub . 3 coo ). sub . 2 1 . 517 anatase la . sub . 2 o . sub . 3 9 . 5 : 0 . 5 amv 1 . 0______________________________________ 35 kg of tio 2 - anatase , mentioned in claim 1 , with a bet surface of 280 m 2 / g , are mixed with 4 . 0 kg of zirconium oxide , 390 g v 2 o 5 , and 15 kg of 15 % by weight aqueous nh solution . the thin - flowing paste is kneaded at 80 ° c . for 2 - 4 hours up to a residual moisture of 5 - 10 % by weight . the dry powder is then precalcined for 2 hours at 700 ° c . the precalcined mixture is mixed with 25 kg of fully desalinated water , 7 . 5 g of 15 % by weight nh 3 solution , and 2 . 0 g of monoethanolamine and it is then further processed similar to examples 1 - 9 . the finished catalyst mass is extruded to form honeycomb bodies as in examples 14 - 17 . in examples 19 - 21 , according to table 4 , zirconium dioxide was replaced by ammonium paratungstenate or phosphorus pentoxide and in example 20 , v 2 o 5 was replaced by iron ( iii ) table 4______________________________________ share of b . sub . 2 oxide in g / 100com - com - weight ratio , g a - b . sub . 1ponent ponent a - oxide / b . sub . 1 - component mixingex . a b . sub . 1 oxide b . sub . 2 oxide______________________________________18 anatase zro . sub . 2 9 : 1 v . sub . 2 o . sub . 5 1 . 019 anatase apw 9 : 1 v . sub . 2 o . sub . 5 1 . 020 anatase apw 9 : 1 fe . sub . 2 o . sub . 3 1 . 021 anatase p . sub . 2 o . sub . 5 9 . 5 : 0 . 5 v . sub . 2 o . sub . 5 1 . 0______________________________________ 35 kg of tio 2 - anatase , mentioned in claim 1 , with a bet surface of 98 m 2 / g , are mixed with 422 g of ammonium - 2 - hydrogen - 12 - vanadophosphate and with 28 liters of desalinated water . the mass is kneaded intensively at a temperature of 40 °- 70 ° c ., and an additional 670 g sio 2 , 2 . 5 kg glass fibers ( length 1 - 8 mm ), and 6 . 0 kg of alkali - free clay was put in . to adjust the plasticity , there was added 450 g polyethylene oxide , 900 g carboxymethylcellulose , 250 kg lactic acid , and 15 liters of desalinated water . the mixture is kneaded into a homogeneous kneading mass for 5 - 7 hours and is processed into honeycomb bodies according to examples 1 - 9 . according to table 5 , in examples 23 - 26 , ammonium - 2 - hydrogen - 12 - vanadophosphate was replaced by the following heteropoly acids : table 5______________________________________componentex . a components b . sub . 1 + b . sub . 2 a - oxide / b . sub . 2 - oxide______________________________________22 anatase ( nh . sub . 4 ). sub . 5 h . sub . 2 [ p ( v . sub . 12 o . sub . 36 )] 9 . 99 : 0 . 0123 anatase ( nh . sub . 4 ). sub . 8 [ v . sub . 6 w . sub . 6 o . sub . 37 ] 9 . 9 : 0 . 124 anatase h . sub . 4 [ p ( mo . sub . 11 vo . sub . 40 )] 9 . 9 : 0 . 0125 anatase h . sub . 6 [ p ( mo . sub . 9 v . sub . 3 o . sub . 40 )] 9 . 99 : 0 . 0126 anatase ( nh . sub . 4 ). sub . 6 h [ p ( mo . sub . 11 cuo . sub . 40 )] 9 . 99 : 0 . 01______________________________________ 35 kg of tio 2 - anatase , mentioned in claim 1 , with a bet surface of 98 m 2 / g , are mixed with 4 . 3 kg of ammonium paratungstenate , 22 liters of desalinated water , 7 . 5 kg of 15 % by weight aqueous nh 3 solution , and 1 . 8 kg of monoethanolamine . the mass is provided with additives ( plastifier , stabilizing media , etc .) in accordance with examples 1 - 9 ; it is kneaded intensively ( 2 - 7 hours at 60 °- 90 ° c .) and it is extruded into honeycomb bodies which here are considered as preliminary catalyst step . these bodies are then dried and calcined in a manner similar to examples 1 - 9 ; after cooling ( according to claim 7 ), with 1 . 0 g vanadiumpentoxide per 100 g of titanium dioxide / tungstic oxide mixture , they are then brought up in a volume of water corresponding to the water receiving capacity of the honeycomb body and this is done by means of impregnation with a solution of ammonium - 2 - hydrogen - 12 - vanadophosphate . drying is accomplished in an air flow at 150 ° c . and subsequent tempering is done for 2 hours at 400 ° c . in examples 28 - 31 , there was used -- in place of ammonium paratungstenate or ammonium - 2 - hydrogen - 12 - vanadophosphate , according to the quantity ratios given in table 6 -- ammonium metatungstenate , yttriumoxide , zircon dioxide , or silicon dioxide or v 2 o 5 ( as aqueous solutions of vanadiumoxalate ), ammonium - 6 - tungstenate - 6 - vanadate or 11 - molybdo - 1 - vanadophosphoric acid . table 6__________________________________________________________________________ share of b . sub . 2 oxide in g / 100 weight ratio , g a - b . sub . 1 component component a - oxide / b . sub . 1 - component mixingex . a b . sub . 1 oxide b . sub . 2 oxide__________________________________________________________________________27 anatase apw 9 : 1 ( nh . sub . 4 ). sub . 5 h . sub . 2 [ p ( v . sub . 12 o . sub . 36 )] 1 . 028 anatase amw 9 : 1 v . sub . 2 ( c . sub . 2 o . sub . 4 ). sub . 5 1 . 029 anatase y . sub . 2 o . sub . 3 9 . 8 : 0 . 2 v . sub . 2 ( c . sub . 2 o . sub . 4 ). sub . 5 1 . 030 anatase zro . sub . 2 9 : 1 ( nh . sub . 4 ). sub . 8 [ v . sub . 6 w . sub . 6 o . sub . 37 ] 1 . 031 anatase sio . sub . 2 9 : 1 h . sub . 4 [ p ( mo . sub . 11 vo . sub . 40 )] 1 . 0__________________________________________________________________________ the catalysts prepared according to examples 1 - 31 , were tested in the exhaust gas from an oil furnace which was adjusted according to the test conditions given below by means of the additional dosing of additional noxious - substance components ( no x and so 2 ) and of ammonia required for nitrous oxide reduction . ______________________________________test conditions : ______________________________________waste gas composition : no . sub . x 800 ppm nh . sub . 3 800 ppm so . sub . 2 500 ppm o . sub . 2 5 . 0 % by vol . h . sub . 2 o 11 . 0 % by vol . co . sub . 2 12 . 0 % by vol . n . sub . 2 residue______________________________________ the catalyst tests were performed in the temperature range of 250 °- 500 ° c . and at a space velocity of 20 , 000 h - 1 . selected results of the measurements as well as long - term tests in bituminous coal dry furnaces , under the conditions mentioned earlier , are illustrated in the graphs in fig1 , and 3 . the measurement values that constitute the foundation are compiled in tables 7 and 8 . table 7 * __________________________________________________________________________ comparisont / ex . no . 1 6 10 13 14 18 23 27 sample__________________________________________________________________________250 46 . 0 43 . 8 39 . 5 40 . 5 45 . 2 44 . 2 42 . 5 45 . 8 34 . 5290 63 . 1 60 . 1 57 . 5 58 . 5 62 . 7 60 . 5 67 . 6 62 . 7 52 . 0320 75 . 7 72 . 2 69 . 4 71 . 1 73 . 5 72 . 5 70 . 7 74 . 9 63 . 9360 86 . 0 84 . 1 81 . 3 82 . 6 84 . 0 83 . 0 81 . 1 85 . 4 74 . 7400 93 . 4 90 . 6 87 . 0 88 . 2 91 . 5 89 . 9 87 . 5 92 . 7 81 . 8450 94 . 3 92 . 3 87 . 8 89 . 0 92 . 4 91 . 1 88 . 4 94 . 0 83 . 1500 90 . 4 86 . 6 80 . 8 81 . 5 87 . 5 86 . 6 83 . 3 88 . 5 76 . 0__________________________________________________________________________ * the values given are no . sub . x conversions ( η nox ) in percent related to the no . sub . x initial concentration . table 8 * ______________________________________sk - tf ( t = 450 ° c .) examples comparison samplet [ h ] 1 6 13 [ test ] ______________________________________zero measurement 95 92 89 83 500 91 . 5 86 84 . 5 75 . 51000 89 . 5 85 84 73 . 52000 88 85 83 . 5 733000 88 84 . 5 83 . 5 72 . 54000 87 . 5 84 . 5 83 . 5 71 . 5______________________________________ * the values given are no . sub . x conversions ( η no . sub . x ) in percent , related to the initial no . sub . x concentration . further variations of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art and are intended to be encompassed by the appended claims . german priority document p 37 06 136 . 1 is relied on and incorporated herein .	1
turning to fig1 , a surgical instrument 20 is shown that includes a flexible shaft 21 with a proximal end 22 and a distal end 23 . the proximal end 22 of the shaft 21 may be coupled to a connector for connecting the shaft 21 to surgical drilling instrument , such as the drill 24 of fig1 . alternatively , the proximal end 22 of the shaft 21 may be coupled to a handle or other suitable device for assisting or allowing a surgeon to rotate the instrument 20 . any of these components can also be made as an integral part of the instrument . the distal end 23 the shaft 21 may be coupled directly or indirectly to an expandable cutting device 25 which , as shown in fig1 - 3 , includes four flexible cutting arms 26 . the number of cutting arms 26 may vary but two or more cutting arms 26 are preferred . the cutting arms 26 may be coupled directly or indirectly to a distal nose section 27 . for example , a distal shaft or collar section 28 may be disposed between the cutting arms 26 and the distal nose section 27 . the distal nose section 27 comprises a drill tip with a brad point tip . exemplary details of a suitable drill tip 27 for use with the instrument 20 are illustrated in fig4 - 6 . a variety of designs for the drill tip 27 may be employed as will be apparent to those skilled in the art . the design specifics of the drill tip 27 are not essential to an understanding of this disclosure . the drill tip 27 may be used to drill an entry port 41 ( fig1 - 19 ) through cortical bone which allows the expandable cutting device 25 to enter the im canal . while the drill tip 27 is primarily used to drill an entry port 41 , the drill tip 27 may also be used to remove initial amounts of cancellous bone and marrow prior to forming a cavity by rotating the instrument 20 and flexible cutting arms 26 . in some implementations , the distal nose can include a trocar , spade drill , diamond point spade drill , or a half round drill . in fig7 , the shaft 21 a is coupled to a collar 31 at its distal end 23 a . the cutting arms 26 a couple the collar 31 to a distal collar 32 , which , in turn , couples the expandable cutting device 25 a to the distal nose section or drill tip 27 . thus , in the device 20 a illustrated in fig7 , the shaft 21 a and cutting device 25 a may be fabricated or formed separately and coupled together during assembly . fig1 - 16 illustrate a surgical instrument 20 b that has a cutting device 25 b with helical arms 26 b . fig2 illustrates a shaft 21 c that passes through the cutting arms 26 c and collars 31 c and 32 c . regardless of the shaft construction and the cutting device construction , the surgical instruments 20 - 20 c include flexible shafts 21 - 21 c that are coupled to an expandable cutting device 25 - 25 c at distal ends 23 - 23 c of the shafts 21 - 21 c and a drill attachment connector or handle is coupled to the proximal ends 22 of the shafts 21 - 21 c . the shafts 21 - 21 c , cutting arms 26 - 26 c , optional collars 31 , 32 , 31 c , 32 c , optional distal shaft section 28 and optional drill tip 27 may be fabricated from a single piece of flexible material , such as a shape memory material . for example , the shaft 21 and cutting arms 26 are fabricated from a single piece of nitinol ( nickel - titanium shape memory alloy ( sma )). other suitable shape memory materials include , but are not limited to , alloys of titanium - palladium - nickel , nickel - titanium - copper , gold - cadmium , iron - zinc - copper - aluminum , titanium - niobium - aluminum , uranium - niobium , hafnium - titanium - nickel , iron - manganese - silicon , nickel - titanium , nickel - iron - zinc - aluminum , copper - aluminum - iron , titanium - niobium , zirconium - copper - zinc , and nickel - zirconium - titanium . the shape memory alloys may be suitable for the fabrication of surgical instruments for cutting cancellous bone without cutting cortical bone . other suitable shape memory materials other than metallic alloys and polymers are possible as will be apparent to those skilled in the art . furthermore , in some implementations with different requirements , such as where substantial radial collapse of the cutting device 25 - 25 c and cutting arms 26 - 26 c is not required , the arms 26 - 26 c could be made from other metals or plastics . the flexibility of the shafts 21 - 21 c , is provided by a small shaft diameter and by selecting a material having a modulus of elasticity falling within a desired range . in addition to fabricating the shafts 21 - 21 c from a shape memory alloy as described above , the shafts 21 - 21 c may also be fabricated from a high - strength biocompatible polymer , such as polyetheretherketone ( peek ), polyethereketone ( pek ), high density polyethylene ( hdpe ), or a polyamide such as nylon . as will be apparent to those skilled in the art , other suitable polymers are available . the expandable cutting device 25 illustrated in fig1 - 3 and 7 comprises two or more expandable elongated cutting arms 26 . referring to fig1 - 2 , the cutting arms 26 are disposed between the distal end 23 of the shaft 21 and the optional distal shaft section 28 or the distal nose section or drill tip 27 . as shown in fig7 , the cutting arms 26 may be disposed between a pair of collars 31 , 32 . alternatively , the cutting arms 26 can be coupled to a pair of collars 31 a , 32 a that are slidably received over the distal end 23 a of a continuous shaft 21 b , as illustrated in fig2 . in the device 20 c of fig2 , one or more pins or other attachment mechanisms may hold the collars 31 c , 32 c in place on the shaft 21 c . the cutting arms 26 - 26 c may form a cage - like structure . for some applications , the shape memory material or alloy used to fabricate the arms 26 - 26 c should exhibit elastic properties . the designs illustrated in fig1 - 3 , 7 , 12 - 16 , and 21 exploit the elastic properties of shape memory alloys to allow the cutting arms 26 - 26 c expand outward upon entry in the im canal to their original shape . the cutting arms 26 - 26 c are also designed to be sufficiently flexible so that harder cortical bone will cause the arms to deflect in a radially - inward direction and to not cut cortical bone . in contrast , the arms 26 - 26 c are sufficiently resilient to cut cancellous bone and other weaker materials disposed within the cortical wall . the cutting arms 26 - 26 c can be machined using traditional techniques such as chemical etching , laser cutting , or milling , among other techniques . the cage structure of the expandable cutting devices 25 - 25 c can be formed by placing a cutting device into a fixture that compresses the cutting arms 26 - 26 c axially and causes the cutting arms 26 - 26 c to expand radially outward to the desired relaxed profile or relaxed diameter ( compare fig8 and 9 ). the fixture and cutting devices 25 - 25 c may then be placed in an oven at a temperature of about 842 ° f . ( 450 ° c .) for about 15 minutes , followed by water quenching shortly after removal from the oven . this process causes the cutting arms or elements 26 - 26 c to be shaped into a desired profile . the cutting arms 26 - 26 c may be sharpened on at least one lateral surface 33 ( fig3 ), 33 b ( fig1 ) to enable cutting of cancellous bone material . the benefit of the sharpening the cutting arms 26 - 26 c is to provide a smoother cutting operation by reducing chatter or vibration when cutting , and by requiring a lower cutting torque . to selectively cut cancellous bone material and not cut cortical bone material , the cutting arms must have the appropriate combination of resilience , or strength , and elasticity . generally , the flexible cutting arms 26 should have a ratio of width ( w ) to thickness ( t ) ranging from about 5 : 1 to about 2 : 1 and ratio of length ( l ) to width ( w ) ranging from about 20 : 1 to about 6 : 1 . in one example , the material of the cutting arms 26 is nitinol and the elements have a cross - sectional thickness ( t ) of about 0 . 014 in ( 0 . 356 mm ), a width ( w ) of about 0 . 056 in ( 1 . 42 mm ) and a length ( l ) of about 0 . 75 in ( 19 . 05 mm ) ( see also fig8 ). these dimensions are an example that allow the cutting arms 26 - 26 c to be strong enough to cut cancellous material as the cutting device 25 rotates while being flexible enough to compress radially when the arms 26 - 26 c engage cortical bone . the dimensions will vary depending upon the anatomy or size of im canal in which a cavity is to be formed . additional methodologies for calculating other appropriate dimensions of the cutting arms 26 - 26 c include consideration of moment of inertia ( i ), expansion force ( p ) and the deflection ( δ ) of the cutting arms 26 - 26 c . specifically , the behavior of the cutting arms 26 - 26 c of the expandable cutting device 25 - 25 c can be predicted by treating the arms 26 - 26 c as a leaf spring 35 , illustrated in fig1 and 11 . the body of leaf spring 35 has a length ( l ), a width ( w ), and a thickness ( t ). using a traditional beam deflection calculation , the amount of deflection ( δ ) can be expressed as equation 1 . in equation 1 , ( i ) is the moment of inertia and ( e ) is the modulus of elasticity . for nitinol , e can range from about 5 . 8 × 10 6 psi ( 40 . 0 gpa ) to about 10 . 9 × 10 6 psi ( 75 . 2 gpa ). referring to fig1 , the moment of inertia ( i ) can be calculated from equation 2 . to allow for ease of insertion of the instruments 20 - 20 c into an im canal , the expansion force ( p ) of the arms 26 - 26 c should not be excessive . however , to expand adequately in the im canal , the expansion force ( p ) must be above a minimum value . therefore , the design of the arms 26 - 26 c should provide an optimal expansion force ( p ). through laboratory experimentation , the expansion force can range from about 1 . 0 lbf to about 8 . 0 lbf ( from about 4 . 45 n to about 35 . 59 n ). by substituting equation 2 into equation 1 and solving for p , the expansion force ( p ) can be expressed as equation 3 . δ = pl 3 / 4 ewt 3 , and therefore p = 4δ ewt 3 / l 3 ( 3 ) as another example , if l = 0 . 65 in ( 15 . 61 mm ), w = 0 . 060 in ( 1 . 52 mm ), t = 0 . 018 in ( 0 . 457 mm ), and δ = 0 . 085 in ( 2 . 16 mm ), then an expansion force of p = 2 . 51 lbf is provided by equation 3 , which falls within the range of from about 1 . 0 lbf to about 8 . 0 lbf ( from about 4 . 45 n to about 35 . 59 n ). as δ and p are proportional when w , t , and l , are fixed , the deflection δ can be increased by about 300 % by changing the size of the fixture used during the heat treatment process before p approaches the 8 . 0 lbf upper limit for the dimensions recited immediately above . the value of deflection δ desired in a give implementation will be dependent upon the particular bone being treated and the size of the im canal . in other implementations , the dimensions and parameters discussed above can vary greatly , as will be apparent to those skilled in the art . fig1 - 16 illustrate another surgical instrument 20 b with a flexible shaft 21 b having a proximal end 22 and a distal end 22 . the distal end 23 b of the shaft 21 b is coupled to an expandable cutting device 25 b with helical cutting arms 26 b . the helical cutting arms 26 b also include opposing sides or cutting edges 33 b . the helical cutting arms 26 b reduce tensile and shear stresses at the bases 29 ( fig1 ) of the cutting arm 26 b so as to reduce the possibility of device failure . the helix formed by the helical cutting arms 26 b can be designed to optimize the ease of cutting . the helix can be left - hand helical or right - hand helical and can be formed at an angle from about negative 60 degree to about 60 degrees from a longitudinal axis of the surgical instrument . for example , left - hand helical cutting arms in a right - hand cut may be used . the optional brad drill tip 27 can have a diameter that is slightly larger than a diameter of the shaft 21 - 21 c or that is larger than a diameter of the cutting arms 26 - 26 c when the cutting arms 26 - 26 c are compressed . a slightly larger diameter of the drill tip 27 enables the drill tip 27 to create an entry portal 41 in cortical bone 42 to allow for passage of the remainder of the instrument 20 - 20 c into the im canal 46 , as illustrated in fig1 and 19 . the drill tip 27 will also prove useful in reaming an im canal 46 that is smaller than expected or has an endosteal surface profile that is smaller than expected . incorporating a drill tip 27 on the device allows for the user to create the non - axial pilot / entry hole 41 in the cortical wall 42 to gain an access portal to the im canal 46 and fracture site 47 . thus , a separate drilling tool may not be needed to create the entry portal 41 as the proximal end 22 of the shaft 21 - 21 c may be coupled to a surgical drill 24 as shown in fig1 , 19 , and 20 . the tip 27 also allows for cutting a pathway in the im canal where a minimum diameter in desired . for example , to accommodate a specific sized implant , such as a nail , the tip 27 can be used to drill a hole in the im canal for receiving the nail . the shafts 21 - 21 c may include a lumen 43 ( fig1 - 20 ) to allow for suction and debris removal or , alternatively , for the delivery of irrigation fluid . as shown in fig2 , the shaft 21 may be disposed within an outer lumen 51 that can be used for suction or for the delivery of irrigation fluid . in the embodiment illustrated in fig2 , the shaft 21 may also accommodate an inner lumen 43 and be disposed axially within an outer lumen 51 . the outer lumen 51 and the inner lumen 43 may each be connected to a reservoir of irrigation fluid or a suction pump shown schematically at 52 , 53 respectively . the bi - directional arrows 54 , 55 are intended to indicate that the outer lumen 51 and inner lumen 43 can be used for either suction or irrigation or both if only a single lumen 43 , 51 is utilized . a surgical drill 24 is also shown schematically in fig2 that is coupled to the proximal end 22 of the shaft 21 . the components of the instruments 20 - 20 c can be coupled to one another by a variety of means such as welding , pinning , adhesive bonds , mechanical locks ( retaining ring ), etc . the cutting arms 26 - 26 c , in addition to having at least one sharpened edge 33 , 33 c may include serrations , relief angles , and dual sharpened edges . further , a series of the expandable cutting devices 25 - 25 c may be disposed along the length of the shaft 21 - 21 c . as noted above , the cage structure of the expandable cutting device 25 - 25 c and / or the drill tip 27 can be an integral with the shaft 21 - 21 c . the arms 26 - 26 c of the disclosed cutting devices 25 - 25 c are designed to have a high moment of inertia i in the direction of rotation and a lower moment of inertia i in the transverse radially inward direction . the disclosed designs for the arms 26 - 26 c permit the arms 26 - 26 c to be strong enough to cut cancellous bone in an im canal 46 when rotating , but elastic enough in a radial direction such that when the arms 26 - 26 c encounter a hard tissue such as cortical bone , the arms 26 - 26 c will be deflected in a radially inward direction thereby causing no or minimal trauma to the cortical bone 42 . as a result , cancellous bone in the non - symmetrical non - circular cross - sectional im canal 46 is cut without substantial trauma or removal of cortical bone 42 . fig1 illustrates the flexibility of the shaft 21 connected to the drill 24 . the use of flexible but adequately stiff shafts 21 - 21 c allows for advancement of the devices 20 - 20 c through an im canal 46 towards a fracture site 47 and the creation of non - traditional ( i . e ., non - axial ) entry ports such as the one shown at 41 in fig1 - 19 . using a material such as reinforced peek or other biocompatible polymer for the shafts 21 - 21 c , or other structures such as steel cable or twisted wire , offers an inexpensive solution as compared to other flexible shafts fabricated from nitinol , other shape memory alloys or laser cut metal shafts . while only certain embodiments have been set forth , alternatives and modifications will be apparent from the above description to those skilled in the art . these and other alternatives are considered equivalents and within the spirit and scope of this disclosure and the appended claims .	0
next , referring to fig1 - 4 , the process cartridges and electrophotographic image forming apparatuses in this preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described . fig1 is a schematic sectional view of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus 100 ( which hereafter will be referred to simply as apparatus main assembly ), in which multiple ( four ) process cartridges 50 y , 50 m , 50 c , and 50 k ( which hereafter may be referred to simply as cartridges 50 ) which have been removably mounted . the multiple ( four ) cartridges 50 store yellow , magenta , cyan , and black toners ( developers ), one for one . fig2 is a schematic sectional view of the cartridge itself . fig3 and 4 are schematic sectional drawings of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus in this embodiment , which are for showing how the cartridge or cartridges 50 are removed from the main assembly of the image forming apparatus . the electrophotographic image forming apparatus in this embodiment is structured to carry out the following image forming operation . referring to fig1 , first , the uniformly charged area of the peripheral surface of each of the electrophotographic photosensitive drums ( which hereafter will be referred to as photosensitive drums ) 30 y , 30 m , 30 c , and 30 k is scanned by a beam of laser light 11 projected by a laser scanner 10 , with which the apparatus main assembly 100 is provided , while being modulated with pictorial signals . as a result , an electrostatic latent image is effected on the peripheral surface of each photosensitive drum 30 . this electrostatic latent image is developed by a development roller 42 , into a visible image ; an image is formed of toner ( developer ) on the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 30 . in other words , yellow , magenta , cyan , and black toner images are formed on the photosensitive drums 30 y , 30 m , 30 c , and 30 k , respectively . then , these toner images are sequentially transferred by the voltages applied to transfer rollers 18 y , 18 m , 18 c , and 18 k , onto a transfer belt 19 supported and stretched by rollers 20 - 22 . thereafter , the toner images on the transfer belt 19 are transferred by a transfer roller 3 , onto a sheet of a recording medium p delivered by a recording medium conveyance roller 1 as a recording medium conveying means . then , the recording medium p is conveyed to a fixation unit 6 made up of a driver roller , and a fixation roller having an internal heater . in the fixation unit 6 , heat and pressure are applied to the recording medium p and the toner images thereon . as a result , the toner images on the recording medium p are fixed to the recording medium p . then , the recording medium p is discharged onto a delivery tray 9 by a pair of discharge rollers 7 . next , referring to fig1 , 2 and 10 , the cartridges 50 in this embodiment will be described . the multiple ( four ) cartridges 50 in this embodiment are the same in structure although they are different in the color of the toner t they store . thus , the structure of the cartridges 50 will be described with reference to the cartridge 50 y . the cartridge 50 y is provided with a photosensitive drum 30 , and processing means which perform processes on the photosensitive drum 30 . the processing means in this embodiment are a charge roller 32 which is the charging means for charging the photosensitive drum 30 , a development roller 42 which is the developing means for developing a latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 30 , a blade 33 which is the cleaning means for removing the residual toner remaining on the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 30 , etc . the cartridge 50 y is made up of a drum unit 31 and a development unit 41 . referring to fig2 , 10 ( a ) and 10 ( b ), the drum unit 31 includes the abovementioned photosensitive drum 30 , the charge roller 32 , and the blade 33 . it also includes a waste toner storing portion 35 , a drum unit main frame 34 , and lateral covers 36 and 37 ( each of which hereafter will be referred to simply as a cover ). referring to fig9 , one of the lengthwise end portions of the photosensitive drum 30 is rotatably supported by the supporting portion 36 b of the cover 36 , whereas the other lengthwise end of the photosensitive drum 30 is rotatably supported by the supporting portion 37 b of the cover 37 as shown in fig1 ( a ) and 10 ( b ). the covers 36 and 37 are attached to the lengthwise ends of the drum unit main frame 34 . next , referring to fig1 ( b ), the lengthwise end portion of the photosensitive drum 30 , which is supported by the cover 36 , is provided with a coupling member 30 a for transmitting driving force to the photosensitive drum 30 . the coupling member 30 a engages with a first coupling member 105 y of the apparatus main assembly 100 , shown in fig4 , as the cartridge 50 y is mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 . thus , as a driving force is transmitted from a motor ( unshown ) with which the apparatus main assembly 100 is provided , to the coupling member 30 a , the photosensitive drum 30 rotates in the direction indicated by an arrow mark u in fig2 . the charge roller 32 is supported by the drum unit main frame 34 so that it is rotated in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 by the rotation of the photosensitive drum 30 . the blade 33 is supported also by the drum unit main frame 34 so that it remains in contact with the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 30 with the presence of a preset amount of pressure between the blade 33 and the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 30 . the covers 36 and 37 are provided with holes 36 a ( fig9 ) and 37 a ( fig1 ( b )) for supporting the development unit 40 in such a manner that the development unit 40 is rotationally movable relative to the drum unit 31 . referring to fig2 and 9 , the development unit 41 has the abovementioned development roller 42 . it also has a development blade 43 , a development unit main frame 48 , a bearing unit 45 , and a pair of lateral covers 46 . the development unit main frame 48 has a toner storage portion 49 in which the toner to be supplied to the development roller 42 is stored . it supports the development blade 43 which regulates the thickness to which toner is coated on the peripheral surface of the development roller 42 . referring to fig9 , the bearing unit 45 is firmly attached to one of the lengthwise end portions of the development unit main frame 48 . it rotatably supports the development roller 42 , one of the lengthwise end portions of which has a development roller gear 69 . further , the bearing unit 45 is provided with an idler gear 68 , which transmits a driving force from a coupling member 67 to the development roller gear 69 . the cover 46 is securely attached to the outward side of the bearing unit 45 , in terms of the lengthwise direction of the bearing unit 45 , in a manner to cover the coupling member 67 and the idler gear 68 . further , the cover 46 is provided with a cylindrical portion 46 b , which protrudes outward from the outward surface of the cover 46 . the coupling member 67 is exposed through the hollow of the cylindrical portion 46 b . the apparatus main assembly 100 and process cartridge 50 y are structured so that as the process cartridge 50 y is mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 , the coupling member 67 engages with the second coupling 106 of the apparatus main assembly 100 , which is shown in fig1 , transmitting thereby a driving force from the motor ( unshown ) with which the apparatus main assembly 100 is provided , to the process cartridge 50 y . referring to fig9 - 11 , the development unit 41 and the drum unit 31 are connected in the following manner : first , at one end of the process cartridge 50 y , the cylindrical portion 46 b is fitted into the supporting hole 36 a . at the other end , a projection 48 b which projects from the development unit main frame 48 is fitted into the supporting hole 37 a . as a result , the development unit 41 is connected to the drum unit 31 in such a manner that the development unit 41 is rotationally movable relative to the drum unit 31 . next , referring to fig2 , the development unit 41 is kept pressured by a pair of compression springs 95 , which are elastic members , in the direction to be rotated about the axial line of the cylindrical portion 46 b so that the development roller 42 is kept in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 . that is , the development unit 41 is kept pressed by the resiliency of the compression springs 95 in the direction indicated by a narrow mark g , generating a moment h which acts in the direction to rotate the development unit 41 about the cylindrical portion 46 b and projection 48 b . thus , the development roller 42 is kept in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 with the presence of the preset amount of contact pressure between the development roller 42 and photosensitive drum 30 . the position in which the development unit 41 is when it is kept in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 is referred to as the “ contact position ”. referring to fig1 ( a ), the compression spring 95 in this embodiment is located on the opposite side from one of the lengthwise end portions , where the coupling member 30 a of the photosensitive drum 30 , and the coupling member 67 which transmits the driving force to the development roller gear 69 , are located . referring to fig2 , the cartridge 50 y is provided with a force receiving apparatus 90 for placing the development roller 42 and the photosensitive drum 30 in contact with each other , or separating them from each other , in the apparatus main assembly 100 . referring to fig6 and 8 , which are schematic side views of the cartridge 50 y , the cover 36 of which has been removed , as seen from the side from which the cartridge 50 y is driven , the force receiving apparatus 90 is made up of a force receiving first member 71 and a force receiving second member 70 . until the cartridge 50 y begins to be positioned relative to the apparatus main assembly 100 in a preset manner , the force receiving second member 70 remains in its standby position , that is , the position in which the force receiving second member 70 does not project beyond the external contour of the cartridge 50 y , as shown in fig1 ( a ). as the cartridge 50 y is advanced into the apparatus main assembly 100 in the direction indicated by an arrow mark z 2 ( shown in fig1 ) by a cartridge tray 13 ( which will be described later ), the cartridge 50 y is positioned in the apparatus main assembly 100 by a cartridge positioning portion 101 a of the apparatus main assembly 100 . as the cartridge 50 y is pressed against the cartridge positioning portion 101 a , the force receiving first member 71 is pressed upward by a projection 180 ( force receiving first member pressing member ) of the apparatus main assembly 100 , which will be described later . that is , the force receiving first member 71 receives a first external force from the projection 180 . as a result , the force receiving portion 70 is moved out of its standby position , projecting outward of the cartridge 50 y beyond the external contour of the cartridge 50 y , as shown in fig1 . next , referring to fig6 , 7 , and 9 , while the cartridge 50 y is kept in its accurate position ( image forming position ) in the apparatus main assembly 100 by the positioning portion 101 a , the force receiving first member 71 is below the force receiving second member 70 . the force receiving first and second members 71 and 70 are connected with each other . more specifically , the force receiving second member 70 is rotatably supported by its rotational axle 70 b , and is provided with an elongated hole 70 a . the top end portion ( in drawings ) of the force receiving first portion 71 is provided with a projection ( connective pin ), which is fitted in the elongated hole of the force receiving second member 70 . thus , as force is applied to the force receiving second member 70 by the force receiving first member 71 , more specifically , the projection ( connective pin ) of the force receiving first member 71 , which is in the elongated hole 70 a of the force receiving second member 70 , the force receiving second member 70 is rotationally moved about its rotational axle 70 b . referring to fig7 , since the elongated hole 70 a is located between the rotational axle 70 b and the force catching surface 70 c , a distance h 2 by which the force receiving second member 70 moves can be made greater than a distance h 1 ( fig7 ) by which the force receiving first member 71 moves , by properly setting the leverage ratio of the force receiving second member 70 . here , the distances by which the force receiving first and second members 71 and 70 move are the distances measured in terms of the vertical direction , that is , the direction parallel to the direction in which the force receiving member 71 is moved toward the force applying member 60 ( which will be described later ). that is , with the employment of the above described structural arrangement , the distance h 2 by which the force receiving second member 70 moves can be increased without increasing the projection 180 in the distance by which it projects , making it thereby possible to reduce in size the apparatus main assembly 100 shown in fig1 . incidentally , the force receiving apparatus is movably supported by the cover 46 . next , the cartridge tray 13 , which is in the form of a drawer , will be described . referring to fig4 , the cartridge tray 13 is attached to the apparatus main assembly 100 in such a manner that , in practical terms , it can be horizontally and linearly moved relative to the apparatus main assembly 100 . that is , the cartridge tray 13 can be pushed into , or pulled out of , the apparatus main assembly 100 in the direction indicated by an arrow mark z 2 or z 1 , respectively . the apparatus main assembly 100 is structured so that the cartridge tray 13 can be locked in the innermost position ( image forming position , shown in fig1 , in the apparatus main assembly 100 ), and the outermost position ( cartridge replacement position : cartridge mounting or removing position ), shown in fig4 , which is the farthest position to which the cartridge tray 13 can be pulled out ). the cartridge 50 is mounted into the cartridge tray 13 by an operator in the direction indicated by an arrow mark c , which is virtually parallel to the direction of gravity , as shown in fig3 . the cartridge tray 13 is structured so that as the cartridges 50 are mounted into the cartridge tray 13 , the cartridges 50 become arranged in tandem , in the direction parallel to the direction in which the cartridge tray 13 is movable , with their lengthwise direction ( which is parallel to axial lines of photosensitive drum 30 and the development roller 42 ) being perpendicular to the moving direction of the cartridge tray 13 . as the cartridge 13 is pushed into the apparatus main assembly 100 , the cartridges 50 in the cartridge tray 13 enter the apparatus main assembly 100 , with the presence of a preset amount of gap f 2 ( fig5 ) between the photosensitive drum 30 in each cartridge 50 , and an intermediary transfer belt 19 located below the cartridge path . then , as the cartridge tray 13 is moved into its innermost position in the apparatus main assembly 100 , each cartridge 50 is positioned in the apparatus main assembly 100 by the cartridge positioning portion 101 a provided in the apparatus main assembly 100 ( fig5 and 7 ). the cartridge positioning operation will be described later in detail . a user is to close a door 12 after pushing the cartridge tray 13 all the way into the apparatus main assembly 100 . closing the door 12 ensures that each cartridge 50 is properly mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 . therefore , in terms of operability , this structural arrangement for the apparatus main assembly 100 and cartridges 50 is superior to the structural arrangement of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus in accordance with the prior art , which requires the cartridges 50 to be individually mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 by a user . next , referring to fig1 , 3 , 4 , and 17 , the operation of the cartridge tray 13 will be described . fig1 does not show the cartridges 50 , in order to make it easier to understand the operation of the cartridge tray 13 . the cartridge tray 13 is supported by a pair of tray supporting members 14 in such a manner that the cartridge tray 13 can be pulled out of the apparatus main assembly 100 while remaining supported by the tray supporting members 14 . the tray supporting members 14 are moved by the movement of the door 12 , which can be opened or closed by an operator ( user ). the door 12 is attached to the apparatus main assembly 100 so that it can be rotationally moved about its rotational axis 12 a . the door 12 is rotationally movable between a position ( shut position ) in which it completely covers an opening 80 , as shown in fig1 , and a position ( open position ) in which it fully exposes the opening 80 as shown in fig3 . when it is necessary to take out any cartridge or cartridge 50 in the apparatus main assembly 100 , the door 12 is to be rotationally moved from the shut position to the open position . as the door 12 is rotationally moved , a pair of projections 15 ( connective pins ) with which the door 12 is provided moves in the clockwise direction about the rotational axis 12 a , while moving in a pair of elongated holes 14 c , one for one , with which the tray supporting member 14 is provided , from the bottom end of the elongated hole 14 c toward the top end of the elongated hole 14 c , as shown in fig3 . as a result , the tray supporting members 14 are moved by the projections 15 in the direction indicated by the arrow mark z 1 . as the tray supporting members 14 are moved in the abovementioned direction , the projections 14 d 1 and 14 d 2 , which project from each of the tray supporting members 14 are guided by the guiding holes 107 with which the apparatus main assembly 100 is provided , as shown in fig4 . referring to fig1 , each guiding hole 107 has three sections , that is , two horizontal sections 107 a 1 and 107 a 3 , and one diagonal section 107 a 2 . the diagonal section 107 a 2 extends diagonally upward from the horizontal section 107 a 1 to the horizontal section 17 a 3 . therefore , as the door 12 is moved from the shut position , shown in fig1 , to the open position , shown in fig3 , the projections 14 d 1 and 14 d 2 are guided by the guiding hole 107 , sequentially through the horizontal portion 107 a 1 , diagonal portion 107 a 2 , and horizontal portion 107 a 3 . thus , the tray supporting members 14 are first moved in the direction indicated by the arrow mark z 1 , and then , are moved in the direction indicated by an arrow mark y 1 , that is , the direction to move away from the transfer belt 19 . with the tray supporting members 14 moved all the way in the direction indicated by the arrow mark y 1 , the cartridge tray 13 can be pulled out of the apparatus main assembly 100 through the opening 80 in the direction indicated by the arrow mark z 1 , as shown in fig4 . fig1 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the image forming apparatus after the cartridge tray 13 has been pulled out of the apparatus main assembly 100 to its outermost position . next , the case in which any cartridge or cartridges 50 are mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 will be described . referring to fig4 , the cartridge tray 13 is to be pushed into the apparatus main assembly 100 in the direction of the arrow mark z 2 through the opening 80 , with the door 12 kept in the open position . thereafter , the door 12 is to be moved into the shut position as shown in fig2 . as the door 12 is moved , each of the projection 15 of the door 12 moves in the counterclockwise direction about the rotational axis 12 a , while moving in the corresponding elongated hole 14 c of the tray supporting member 14 , toward the bottom end 14 c 2 of the elongated hole 14 c , as shown in fig1 . thus , the tray supporting member 14 is moved in the direction of the arrow mark z 2 by the pair of projections 15 . therefore , as the door 12 is moved into the shut position as shown in fig1 , the projections 14 d 1 and 14 d 2 ( fig4 ) are guided by the horizontal portion 107 a 1 , the diagonal portion 107 a 2 , and the horizontal portion 107 a 3 , in the listed order , as shown in fig1 . therefore , the tray supporting members 14 move , first , in the direction of the arrow mark z 2 , and then , in the direction of the arrow mark y 2 , that is , the direction to move closer to the transfer belt 19 , as shown in fig1 . { positioning of process cartridge relative to electrophotographic image forming apparatus main assembly } next , referring to fig5 and 17 , and the positioning of the cartridge 50 in the apparatus main assembly 100 will be described . referring to fig1 , the apparatus main assembly 100 is provided with multiple pairs ( four pairs in this embodiment ) of cartridge positioning portions 101 a for positioning a cartridge 50 relative to the apparatus main assembly 100 . that is , each cartridge compartment of the cartridge tray 13 is provided with a pair of cartridge positioning portions 101 a , which are located at the lengthwise ends of the corresponding compartment , one for one , in terms of the direction parallel to the lengthwise direction of the cartridge 50 , in a manner to sandwich the transfer belt 19 . referring to fig1 ( a ) and 18 ( b ), there are pressing members 61 ( 61 y , 61 m , 61 c , and 61 k ) above each of the tray supporting members 14 . each pressing member 61 is provided with a hole 61 d , through which a pressing member supporting shaft 55 , with which the apparatus main assembly 100 is provided , is put to rotatably support the pressing member 61 . referring again to fig1 ( a ) and 18 ( b ), as the door 12 is moved from the open position to the shut position ( in x direction ), the pressing member 61 is moved in the direction indicated by an arrow mark z , pressing thereby on the top surface of the drum unit main frame 34 as shown in fig2 . therefore , the cartridge 50 y is pressed in the direction indicated by an arrow mark p in fig7 , causing the cartridge positioning portion 31 b , with which the drum unit 31 y is provided , to come into contact with the cartridge positioning portion 101 a of the apparatus main assembly 100 . as a result , the cartridge 50 y is properly positioned in the apparatus main assembly 100 . similarly , the cartridges 50 m , 50 c , and 50 k are properly positioned in the apparatus main assembly 100 . further , as the cartridge 50 is made to descend toward the positioning portion 101 a by the movement of the door 12 , the projection 180 of the apparatus main assembly 100 comes into contact with the force receiving portion 71 c of the force receiving first member 71 , which is in the bottom portion of the cartridge 50 . that is , the force receiving member 71 receives force from the projection 180 , from the bottom side of the cartridge 50 . in comparison , when the door 12 is moved from the shut position to the open position ( y direction ), the pressing member 61 moves in the direction indicated by an arrow mark j . as a result , the pressing member 61 separates from the top surface of the drum unit main frame 34 as shown in fig5 . { development roller separating mechanism of electrophotographic image forming apparatus main assembly } next , the operation of the force applying first portion 60 will be described . referring to fig1 , 3 and 19 , in terms of the vertical direction of the apparatus main assembly 100 , the force applying member 60 is positioned so that after the proper positioning of the cartridge 50 , the force applying member 60 is above the cartridge 50 . in terms of the axial line of the photosensitive drum 30 , the force applying member 60 is positioned so that it is enabled to come into contact with the force receiving second member 70 which is at the corresponding lengthwise ends of the cartridge 50 . a driving force is transmitted from a motor 110 ( mechanical power source ) with which the apparatus main assembly 100 is provided , to a gear 112 through a gear 111 . as the driving force is transmitted to the gear 112 , the gear 112 rotates in the direction indicated by an arrow mark l , rotating thereby the cam portion 112 a , which is integral with the gear 112 , in the arrow l direction . the cam portion 112 a is in contact with the moving force receiving portion 60 b , with which the force applying member 60 is provided . therefore , as the cam portion 112 a rotates , the moving force receiving member 60 is moved in the direction indicated by an arrow mark e or b . referring to fig1 ( a ), as the force applying member 60 moves in the direction indicated by the arrow mark e , a rib 60 y of the force applying member 60 separates from the force receiving second member 70 , as shown in fig7 , allowing thereby the development roller 42 to come into contact with the photosensitive drum 30 . this position of the development unit 41 , which allows the development roller 42 to remain in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 , will be referred to as the contact position . referring to fig1 ( b ), as the force applying member 60 is moved in the direction indicated by the arrow mark b , the rib 60 y comes into contact with the force receiving second member 70 , subjecting the force receiving second member 70 to external force ( second external force ) through the rib 60 y . therefore , the development unit 41 is rotated ( rotationally moved ) about the cylindrical portion 46 b ( rotational axle ), separating thereby the development roller 42 from the photosensitive drum 30 . this position of the development unit 41 , which keeps the development roller 42 separated from the photosensitive drum 30 , will be referred to as the separation position . similarly , the force applying member 60 is positioned above the path of the cartridge 50 , through which the cartridge 50 is moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 by the cartridge tray 13 . the force receiving second member 70 is attached to the cartridge 50 in such a manner that until the cartridge 50 is moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 , the force receiving second member 70 remains in its standby position ( fig5 ). therefore , the force applying member 60 can be positioned significantly closer to the cartridge path , without allowing the force applying member 60 and the cartridge 50 to interfere with each other during the mounting of the cartridge 50 , compared to the force applying member of an image forming apparatus in accordance with the prior art , making it possible to minimize wasted space , making it thereby possible to significantly reduce the cartridge 50 y in terms of its dimension in terms of its lengthwise direction ( axial direction of photosensitive drum 30 ) as well as the vertical direction of the apparatus main assembly 100 . the detailed description of the force applying member 60 will be given later . { description of mounting of process cartridge into electrophotographic image forming apparatus main assembly , and operation of force receiving apparatus } next , the operational sequence from the beginning of the mounting of the cartridge 50 into the apparatus main assembly 100 , to the separation of the development roller 42 from the photosensitive drum 30 , will be described . referring to fig4 , after the cartridge tray 13 is pulled out of the apparatus main assembly 100 to its outermost position , each cartridge 50 can be mounted into , or removed from , the cartridge tray 13 in the vertical direction , which is indicated by the arrow mark c . after the mounting of the cartridge ( s ) 50 into the cartridge tray 13 , the cartridge tray 13 is to be moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 in the direction indicated by the arrow z 2 , through the opening 80 . that is , in this embodiment , each cartridge 50 is horizontally moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 , from the direction which intersects ( roughly perpendicular ) to the axial line of the photosensitive drum 30 . referring to fig3 , the cartridge 50 y is mounted in the downstream end of the cartridge tray 13 in terms of the direction in which the cartridge tray 13 is moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 . that is , the cartridge 50 y moves below the ribs 60 k 60 c , and 60 m of the force applying member 60 from upstream to downstream . if the apparatus main assembly 100 and cartridge 50 y are structured so that the force receiving second member 70 remains projecting when the cartridge 50 y is moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 , the pressing member 61 and the force applying member 60 must be positioned significantly higher than they are positioned in this embodiment . in this embodiment , however , the apparatus main assembly 100 and the cartridge 50 y are structured so that the force receiving second member 70 remains in the above described standby position when the cartridge 50 y is moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 . therefore , the pressing member 61 and the force applying member 60 can be positioned as closely as possible , without taking into consideration the distance by which the force receiving second member 70 projects beyond the external contour of the cartridge 50 y . in other words , the pressing member 61 and the force applying member 60 can be positioned significantly closer to the path of the cartridge 50 y , making it possible to reduce the dimension of the cartridge 50 y in the direction parallel to the vertical direction of the apparatus main assembly 100 , compared to the counterparts of a process cartridge in accordance with the prior art . further , referring to fig2 , in terms of the direction parallel to the axial line of the drum 30 , the force receiving apparatus 90 , the pressing member 61 , and the force applying member 60 overlap , making it possible to reduce thereby the dimension of the cartridge 50 y in the lengthwise direction of the cartridge 50 y . next , referring to fig5 , the image forming apparatus in this embodiment is structured to ensure that when the cartridge tray 13 is moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 , there remains a gap f 1 between the force applying member 60 and the force receiving second member 70 , and a gap f 2 between photosensitive drum 30 and the transfer belt 19 . therefore , the cartridge 50 and the apparatus main assembly 100 do not interfere with each other when the cartridge 50 is moved into the apparatus main assembly 100 . after the cartridge tray 13 is pushed all the way into the apparatus main assembly 100 , the door 12 is to be moved into the shut position as shown in fig1 and 18 ( b ). as the door 12 is moved into the shut position , the tray supporting members 14 are moved toward the transfer belt 19 ( the direction indicated by arrow mark y 2 ). hereafter , the vertical component of this movement of the tray supporting members 14 in the direction indicated by the arrow mark y 2 will be referred to as a distance f 2 . as the tray supporting members 14 are moved in the direction indicated by the arrow mark y 2 , the cartridges 50 are moved toward the transfer belt 19 by the movement of the tray supporting members 14 , causing thereby the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 30 in each cartridge 50 to come into contact with the surface of the transfer belt 19 . by the time the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 30 comes into contact with the surface of the transfer belt 19 , the gap f 1 between the force receiving apparatus 90 and the force applying member 60 widens to the sum of the gaps f 1 and f 2 , as shown in fig5 . further , as the door 12 is moved into the shut position , the pressing member 61 is moved by the movement of the door 12 , pressing thereby on the top surface of the drum unit main frame 34 . therefore , the cartridge positioning portion 31 b of each cartridge 50 is placed in contact with the cartridge positioning portion 101 a of the apparatus main assembly 100 . consequently , each cartridge 50 is properly positioned relative to the apparatus main assembly 100 , as shown in fig7 . further , a shaft 36 d , shown in fig1 , with which the cover 36 of each cartridge 50 is provided , engages with the cartridge rotation stopping portion 13 a ( fig1 ), with which the cartridge tray 13 is provided . therefore , the cartridge 50 is prevented from moving further in the direction indicated by an arrow mark a in fig1 , in the apparatus main assembly 100 . next , referring to fig6 , the home position of the force applying member 60 in this embodiment is made to be where the force applying member 60 keeps the development roller 42 separated from the photosensitive drum 30 . this is for the following reason . that is , while the image forming apparatus is not used for image formation after the mounting of the cartridges 50 , each cartridge 50 remains in the state shown in fig8 . that is , the force applying member 60 has moved in the direction indicated by the arrow mark b , and the force receiving second member 70 has been moved by the rib 60 y as far as it can be moved . while the cartridge 50 is in this state , the photosensitive drum 30 and the development roller 42 remain separated from each other . it is in this state , shown in fig8 , in which the photosensitive drum 30 and development roller 42 remain separated from each other , that the cartridge 50 is removed from the apparatus main assembly 100 . thus , when the cartridge 50 is mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 next time , the force applying member 60 is in the position shown in fig8 . therefore , as the cartridge 50 is mounted , the force receiving second member 70 comes into contact with the rib 60 y , because the force receiving second member 70 is out of its standby position , as shown in fig6 . thus , the force receiving first portion 71 is provided with an elastic portion 71 b , which is formed as an integral part of the force receiving first portion 71 , as shown in fig6 . therefore , as the contact between the force receiving second member 70 and the rib 60 y begins to interfere with the inward movement of the cartridge 50 , the elastic portion 71 b gives in ( is compressed ), preventing thereby the force receiving apparatus 90 from being damaged . as the force applying member 60 , which is in the state shown in fig6 , is moved in the direction indicated by an arrow mark e as shown in fig7 , the force receiving second member 70 projects outward farther from the cartridge 50 y , entering thereby the path of the rib 60 y . this position of the force receiving second member 70 , that is , the position in which the force receiving second member 70 is in the path of the rib 60 y , will be referred to as the outermost position ( active position ). that is , when the force receiving second member 70 is in its outermost position , the distance of the projection of the force receiving second member 70 is greater than that when the force receiving second member 70 is in the abovementioned standby position , which is obvious . in order for the force receiving second member 70 to engage with the force applying member 60 , the distance of the projection of the force receiving second member 70 at the outermost position must be greater than the sum of the gaps f 1 and f 2 . further , the action of the force applying member 60 is triggered in a period between the completion of the mounting of the cartridges 50 into the apparatus main assembly 100 and the starting of an image forming operation . next , referring to fig8 , as the force applying member 60 is moved in the direction indicated by the arrow mark b , the lateral surface 70 c , which is the force catching surface of the force receiving second member 70 , receives an external force ( second external force ) through the rib 60 y 3 , since the force receiving second member 70 ( lateral surface 70 c ) is in the path of the force applying member 60 . therefore , the development unit 41 is rotationally moved about its rotational axis 46 b ( shaft ), causing thereby the development roller 42 to separate by a gap a from the photosensitive drum 30 . it is in its outermost position that the force receiving second member 70 receives the external force ( second external force ) from the force applying member 60 . therefore , this structural arrangement is greater in the distance between the force applying member 60 and the rotational axis 46 b of the development unit 41 than a structural arrangement which moves the force applying member toward the process cartridge to separate the development roller from the photosensitive drum . therefore , the employment of this structural arrangement makes it possible to reduce the amount of torque necessary to separate the development roller 42 from the photosensitive drum 30 . in this embodiment , the elastic portion 71 b is an integral part of the force receiving first member 71 . however , as long as it is enabled to absorb the force applied to the force receiving first member 70 by the abovementioned change in the position of the cartridge 50 , it may be formed as a part of another component , or as an independent component . for example , the force applied to the force receiving first member 71 by the change in the position of the cartridge 50 may be absorbed by placing an absorbing member independent from the force receiving second and first members 70 and 71 , between the force receiving second and first members 70 and 71 , or by forming the force receiving second member of an elastic material so that the above described force can be absorbed by the deformation of the force receiving second member 71 itself . before the starting of an image forming operation , the force applying member 60 is moved in the direction indicated by the arrow mark e to place the development roller 42 in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 . as the force applying member 60 is moved in the abovementioned direction , the force receiving second member 70 stops receiving force from the rib 60 y , as shown in fig7 . therefore , the development roller 42 is placed in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 by the resiliency of the compression springs 95 provided between the development unit 41 and drum unit 31 , readying thereby the process cartridge 50 for image formation . it is before the development roller 42 comes into contact with the photosensitive drum 30 that the photosensitive drum 30 begins to be rotated , and the development roller 42 begins to be rotated , by the driving force which the cartridge 50 receives from the apparatus main assembly 100 through the coupling portion 67 . this is for the following reason . that is , referring to fig1 ( a ), the coupling portion 67 is made coaxial with the cylindrical portion 46 b so that even when the development unit 41 moves about the cylindrical portion 46 b , the coupling portion 67 does not change in position . that is , in this embodiment , it is before the development roller 42 is placed in contact with the photosensitive drum 30 that the development roller 42 and the photosensitive drum 30 begin to be rotated . this arrangement makes it possible to minimize the difference in peripheral velocity between the photosensitive drum 30 and the development roller 42 when the development roller 42 comes into contact with the photosensitive drum 30 . therefore , it can minimize the amount of the wear that occurs to the photosensitive drum 30 and the development roller 42 when the two come into contact with each other . after the completion of the image forming operation , the development roller 42 is separated from the photosensitive drum 30 by moving the force applying member 60 in the direction indicated by the arrow mark b as described above . it is after the separation of the development roller 42 from the photosensitive drum 30 that the development roller 42 and photosensitive drum 30 are stopped . thus , this arrangement minimizes the difference in the peripheral velocity between the development roller 42 and the photosensitive drum 30 , which occurs when the two become separated . therefore , it minimizes the amount by which the development roller 42 and the photosensitive drum 30 wear when they are separated from each other . consequently , this arrangement improves an image forming apparatus in image quality . next , the operation for removing the cartridge 50 from the apparatus main assembly 100 will be described . first , the door 12 is to be moved from its shut position to the open position . as the door 12 is moved , the tray supporting members 14 are raised in the direction to separate from the transfer belt 19 as shown in fig3 and 4 . therefore , the cartridges 50 are moved upward , causing the photosensitive drum 30 in each cartridge 50 to separate from the transfer belt 19 . further , the pressing member 61 is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow mark j in fig5 , being separated from the drum unit 31 , as described above . thus , the force receiving first member 71 separates from the projection 180 , being thereby deprived of the force to keep the force receiving second member 70 projecting beyond the external contour of the development unit 41 . as for the force receiving second member 70 , its slant surface 70 y 2 comes into contact with the slant surface 60 y 2 of the force applying 60 , as shown in fig2 . thus , the force receiving second member 70 is rotationally moved about its rotational axis 70 a , back into its standby position ( inaction position ), by the component of the force to which the slant surface 70 y 2 is subjected as the cartridge 50 ( cartridge tray 13 ) is pulled out . incidentally , a spring may be employed , as in another embodiment of the present invention , as the means for generating the force for returning the force receiving second member into its standby position . that is , the first embodiment , in which the abovementioned spring is not employed , was presented as the embodiment which is smallest in the components count . as described above , in this embodiment , the apparatus main assembly 100 and the cartridge 50 are structured so that as the door 12 is moved into its shut position after the cartridge 50 is mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 , the force receiving second member 70 for moving the development unit 41 projects beyond the outward surface of the development unit 41 . therefore , the cartridge 50 in this embodiment is significantly smaller in height than a cartridge ( 50 ) in accordance with the prior art . further , the force receiving second member 70 remains in its standby position while the cartridge 50 is mounted . therefore , the space necessary , in the apparatus main assembly 100 in this embodiment , for the movement of the cartridge ( s ) 50 does not need to be as large as that in the main assembly of an image forming apparatus in accordance with the prior art . that is , the present invention makes it possible to reduce the opening 80 in size , and also , makes it possible to place the force applying member 60 significantly closer to the path of the cartridge 50 than the prior art , making it thereby possible to reduce the apparatus main assembly 100 in vertical dimension . further , the force receiving apparatus 90 , the pressing member 61 , and the force applying member 60 are positioned so that they overlap in terms of the direction parallel to the axial line of the drum , as shown in fig2 , making it possible to reduce the cartridge in its lengthwise dimension . further , when the cartridge 50 is handled by a user , or is transported alone , the force receiving second member 70 remains in its standby position , being therefore unlikely to be damaged . in this embodiment , the apparatus main assembly 100 is structured so that its projection 180 is below the path of the cartridge 50 . however , as long as the projection 180 comes into contact with the force receiving first member 71 while the cartridge 50 is mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 , it does not matter where the projection 180 is positioned . moreover , the shape of the projection 180 is optional , as long as the projection 180 is enabled to move the force receiving portion 71 c by coming into contact with the force receiving portion 71 c . in other words , the force receiving portion 71 c may be a stationary projection which projects from the cover 46 . however , if the force receiving portion 71 c is made stationary , the force receiving portion 71 c must be adjusted in height to prevent the force receiving portion 71 c from coming into contact with the apparatus main assembly 100 while the cartridge 50 y is mounted into the apparatus main assembly 100 . next , referring to fig1 and 13 , another preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described . in this embodiment , the cartridge 50 is provided with a first lever 471 , a second lever 470 , and a gear 472 . the first lever 471 has a force receiving first portion 471 c . the second lever 470 has a force receiving second portion 470 c , and meshes with the gear 472 . this structural arrangement can move the second lever 470 by a greater distance than the distance by which the first lever 471 is moved . the gear 472 is a step gear made up of a portion ( first portion ) which engages with the first lever 471 and is n 1 in tooth count , and a portion ( second portion ) which engages with the second lever 470 and is n 2 in tooth count . thus , it is possible to amplify the distance by which the first level 471 is moved by making the tooth count n 2 of the second portion of the gear 472 greater than the tooth count n 1 of the first portion of the gear 472 ( n 2 & gt ; n 1 ). to concretely described the operation of the force receiving apparatus in this embodiment , referring to fig1 ( a ), while the cartridge 50 is inserted into the apparatus main assembly 100 , the second lever 470 remains within the cartridge 50 . then , when the cartridge 50 is properly positioned relative to the apparatus main assembly 100 by the cartridge positioning portion 101 a , the force receiving first portion 471 c begins to receive external force ( first external force ) from the projection 180 , being thereby moved upward as indicated by an arrow mark f 2 . as the force receiving first portion 471 c moves upward as indicated by the arrow mark f 2 , the gear 472 is rotated , and this rotation of the gear 472 causes the second lever 470 to move upward . thus , immediately after the cartridge 50 is properly positioned by the cartridge positioning portion 101 a , the second lever 470 is in its outermost position as shown in fig1 ( b ). when the second lever 470 is in its outermost position , the force receiving portion 470 c of the lever 470 receives the external force ( second external force ) from the rib 60 y 3 in the same manner as the force receiving second portion 70 c of the force receiving second member 70 receives external force from the rib 60 y 3 in the first embodiment . further , in this structural arrangement , a coil spring 473 is provided to ensure that the second lever 470 always returns to its standby position . the reason therefor is as follows : it is assumed that from the standpoint of apparatus design , it is difficult to ensure that the component of the force which the slant surface 60 y 1 receives is large enough to return the force receiving portion 470 c to its original position ( for example , if the amount of the force necessary to pull cartridges ( cartridge tray ) increases ). in other words , the provision of the coil spring 473 is not mandatory , as it is not in the first embodiment . this embodiment , however , will be described with reference to a case where the coil spring 473 is provided . in this case , unless the resiliency of the coil spring 473 is smaller than the resilience of the elastic portion 471 b , which is an integral part of the lever 471 , the force receiving first member 470 is not allowed to move . therefore , all that is necessary is to set the relationship between a force f 1 which is generated by the coil spring 473 , and a force f 2 which is generated by the elastic member 471 b , to be f 1 & lt ; f 2 . in this embodiment , the cartridge 450 is designed to be assembled in the following manner : first , the gear 472 is rotatably supported by the cover 446 , which is firmly attached to the bearing unit 445 , and then , the second lever 470 and first lever 471 are attached so that the two levers mesh with the corresponding portions of the gear 472 . the shape of the apparatus main assembly in this embodiment is the same as that of the apparatus main assembly in the first embodiment . therefore , the force receiving portion which is necessary to place the development roller in contact with the photosensitive drum , or separate the development roller from the photosensitive drum , is the tip 470 c of the second lever 470 . otherwise , this embodiment is the same as the first embodiment . as described above , the force receiving apparatus in this embodiment is the same in effectiveness as that in the first embodiment . in this embodiment , however , the distance by which the second lever is moved can be easily changed by changing the gear ratio between the first and second portions of the gear 472 . also in this embodiment , when the cartridge tray is pulled out , the force receiving member 470 comes into contact with the slant surface 60 y 2 . then , as the cartridge tray is pulled out further , the force receiving second member 470 is pushed back into the development unit , and stored therein , by being moved in the direction indicated by an arrow mark f 2 by the slanted surface 60 y 2 . therefore , the provision of the return spring 473 is not mandatory . next , referring to fig1 and 15 , the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to a case where the force receiving first member belongs to a drum unit 531 . first , the method for assembling the cartridge in this embodiment will be described . the cartridge in this embodiment is designed so that a force receiving first member 571 belongs to a drum unit 531 . a force receiving second member 570 and a connective rod 574 are attached to a cover 546 . then , the cover 536 is joined with a bearing member 545 . lastly , the development unit 541 and drum unit 531 are connected by the cover 536 to complete the cartridge 550 . to describe in more detail the cartridge 550 in this embodiment with reference to fig1 and 15 , first , referring to fig1 , a projection 5180 of the apparatus main assembly is located so that it opposes the drum unit . thus , the force receiving first member 571 is placed in the drum unit 531 . the drum unit is provided with the force receiving first member 571 , which has a force receiving first portion 571 c and is movable . further , the drum unit is provided with a rod in the form of the force receiving first portion 571 and a connective rod 574 . the connective rod 574 is rotationally movable about the rotational axis 574 a while remaining in contact with the rod 571 . the development unit is provided with a force receiving second member 570 , which has an elongated hole 570 b and is rotationally movable about a rotational axis 570 a . further , the opposite lengthwise end of the connective rod 574 from the rod 571 is provided with a projection ( connective pin ) which fits in the elongated hole of the force receiving second member 570 . when the cartridge 550 is properly positioned relative to the apparatus main assembly 101 by the cartridge positioning portion 101 a , the force receiving first portion 571 c begins to receive external force ( first external force ) from the projection 5180 . therefore , the force receiving first member 571 begins to be moved in the direction indicated by an arrow mark positioned inside member 571 as shown in fig1 ( b ), causing the connective rod 574 to rotationally move in the direction ( clockwise direction ) indicated by an arrow mark m . thus , the force receiving second member 570 is rotationally moved about the rotational axis 570 a in the direction to move the opposite end portion of the force receiving second member 570 from the elongated hole 570 b , arcuately upward , as indicated by an arrow mark n . since the curvature of the elongated hole 570 b is such that while the development roller is not in contact with the photosensitive drum , the center of the curvature of the elongated hole 570 b coincides with the rotational axis of the development unit 541 . therefore , while the development unit 541 is separated from the drum unit 531 , the connective rod 574 is subjected to no load . also in this embodiment , a return spring ( 573 ) is provided . however , the return spring 573 may be eliminated by a design change . also in this embodiment , the distance by which the force receiving second member is moved can be made greater than the distance by which the force receiving first member is moved , by properly selecting the leverage ratio of the connective rod . further , in this embodiment , when the cartridge tray is pulled out , the force receiving second member 570 comes into contact with the slant surface 60 y 2 as does the force receiving first member 70 in the first embodiment . then , as the cartridge tray is pulled out further , the force receiving second member 570 is pushed back into the development unit 541 to be stored therein , by being moved in the direction opposite from the direction indicated by the arrow mark n . therefore , the provision of the return spring 573 is not mandatory . according to the present invention , it is possible to reduce in size a process cartridge , the electrophotographic photosensitive drum , and the development roller , which can be placed in contact with , or separated from , the electrophotographic photosensitive drum . it is also possible to reduce in size an electrophotographic image forming apparatus which employs the abovementioned process cartridge . further , it is possible to structure an electrophotographic image forming apparatus so that its force receiving apparatus for separating the development roller from the electrophotographic photosensitive drum is unlikely to be damaged while the abovementioned process is handled by a user , or is transported alone . while the invention has been described with reference to the structures disclosed herein , it is not confined to the details set forth , and this application is intended to cover such modifications or changes as may come within the purposes of the improvements or the scope of the following claims . this application claims priority from japanese patent applications nos . 172742 / 2007 and 162311 / 2008 filed jun . 29 , 2007 and jun . 20 , 2008 , respectively , which are hereby incorporated by reference .	6
referring now to the drawings a minefield clearing apparatus 1 is shown in fig . l attached to the front of a tank 2 . the apparatus 1 has : an interface assembly 3 which is rigidly fixed to the front of the tank 2 ; a singular plow face 4 which extends traversely of the path of forward travel of tank 2 being the same as the longitudinal axis 5 of the tank 2 ; and frame g reinforcing the plow face 4 and being joined by pins 7 to interface assembly 3 . it will be seen in fig2 that the plow face 4 is attached to frame 6 having a shape , when viewed from above , similar to that of a right triangle . plow face 4 extends laterally and inwardly from its distal end 8 to its inner end 9 being closer to tank 2 . during minefield clearing operations as the plow face 4 is moved through the ground surface , mines 10 , unexploded ordinance , or other objects unearthed by plow face 4 will move along the front of plow face 4 and will he deposited as part of an earthen berm 11 adjacent to end 9 and outside of the path of the tank 2 . the plow face 4 is provided with a row of teeth 12 and 13 alternatingly positioned along its length and is best seen in fig3 and 4 . teeth 12 have a forward facing projection 14 assisting in lifting objects buried beneath the ground surface . each of teeth 13 has a substantially vertical leading edge without a forward facing projection . teeth 13 provide the plow face 4 with added ground cutting ability and strength . teeth 12 and 13 are joined by horizontal stiffening members 15 . stiffening members 15 are vertically separated from one another , span the length of the plow face 4 and join adjacent teeth 12 and 13 . during minefield clearing operations , teeth 12 and 13 and stiffening members 15 form a lattice or grid permitting objects of small size to pass therebetween while simultaneously retaining objects of larger dimensions such as mines . the grid additionally reduces drag upon the plow face 4 while in use since a significant quantity of earthen material which would otherwise be retained against the plow face 4 and plowed into berm 11 will return to the ground surface with little movement . the teeth 12 and 13 are mounted to rails 16 comprising the leading edge of frame 6 , and extend outwardly therefrom . rails 16 reinforce the plow face 4 and are supported above and below by push beam assemblies 17 . additional support for the rails 16 is provided by intermediate push bars 18 which are joined to brackets 19 by pins 20 . attached to the forward ends of push beam assemblies 17 are skid shoe bearing arms 21 and supporting shoes 22 best seen in fig3 . it is contemplated that each skid shoe bearing arm 21 will be of identical configuration and interchangeable . damage caused in the field by an exploding mine 10a can be efficiently repaired by replacement of arm 21 or attached shoe 22 which may be joined , to each other and to push beam assemblies 17 , by removable pins 50 or other fastening devices . the ground engaging skid shoe 22 is adjustable in height . altering the depth at which the teeth 12 and 13 penetrate the ground surface is accomplished by manual adjustment of telescoping legs or supports 23 which , in turn , raise or lower the attached skid shoe 22 . brace support bar 51 of appropriate length may be fastened to the telescoping legs 23 providing additional support thereto . the interface assembly 3 joins the minefield clearing apparatus 1 to a vehicle such as tank 2 and is best seen in fig5 , and 7 . the interface assembly 3 has a mounting hood 24 which may be manufactured with various cross sectional configurations in order to closely fit the vehicle to which it is to be attached . nonetheless , the configuration disclosed in the preferred embodiment has a v - shaped cross section . the hood 24 is joined by pins 25 fitted through mount locks 26 integrally joined to the tank 2 . the mount locks 26 pass through holes 27 placed in the hood 24 . extending horizontally forward from the mounting hood 24 is a hinge bar 28 to which frame 6 may he joined . joining is accomplished by inserting pins 29 through aligned holes in hinge bar brackets 52 and transverse push beam 30 . a second embodiment of a minefield clearing apparatus shown in fig8 and 9 . this particular embodiment of the apparatus provides conveyor belts 31 and 32 for transporting the contents of the earth raised by the plow face 4 to the rear of the vehicle along a line substantially parallel to the direction of travel of the vehicle . conveyor belts 31 and 32 are mounted within a mine collecting chute 33 and mine collecting ramp 34 respectively . the chute 33 forms a continuous channel from the front to the rear of the vehicle permitting movement of contents of the earth uncovered by the plow face 4 therein . the chute 33 has a first continuous belt track 35 for support above the ground surface and first side walls 36 mounted perpendicularly to each other above track 35 for retaining materials . track 35 is capable of being rotated when the tank 2 is driven over the ground surface and may be frictionally engaged by roller 53 with conveyor belt 31 which forms the floor of the chute 33 . when engaged , the motion of tank 2 over the ground surface will cause belt 31 to turn . the ramp 34 , on the other hand funnels and lifts the contents of the earth uncovered by plow face 4 to a height above the ground surface and deposits such within chute 33 . the ramp 34 has a second continuous belt track 37 for support and a belt 32 forming a portion of the ramp floor 38 . track 37 is capable of being rotated when the tank 2 is driven over the ground surface and in a manner similar to that described for belt 31 , motion may be imparted to conveyor bet 32 . as conveyor belts 31 and 32 are directly driven by continuous belt tracks 35 and 37 , their speed of rotation is dependent upon the speed of the vehicle over the ground surface . while the vehicle is moving slowly over the ground surface , belts 31 and 32 will rotate slowly . as the vehicle accelerates , belts 31 and 32 will accelerate and an increased flow of materials may be transported over them . when the vehicle comes to rest belts 31 and 32 will stop . funneling objects buried beneath the ground surface uncovered by plow face 4 to ramp 34 is a rake extension member 60 , having teeth 12 and 13 mounted thereon in a fashion similar to plow face 4 , angularly joined to frame 6 . member 60 extends from inner end 9 of the plow face 4 forward and away from tank 2 . this &# 34 ; funnel &# 34 ; prevents mines and unexploded ordinance from bypassing the ramp 34 increasing confidence that the area plowed by the instant minefield clearing apparatus is free of mines . a third embodiment of a minefield clearing apparatus is shown in fig1 and 11 . whereas each of the previously discussed embodiments were equipped with a single plow face 4 extending traversely of the path of forward travel of tank 2 , it is desirable to divide the plow face into pivotable segments 38 and 39 . pivoting segments 38 and 39 permit a more consistent plowing depth across the length of the plow face by the apparatus moving across uneven terrain . pivotal movement about pins 40 is accomplished as skid shoes 22 attached to the ends of segments 38 and 39 , not shown in fig1 and 11 , ride over uneven terrain raising or lowering segments 38 and 39 relative to central push beam assembly 17 . additional support for the pivot mechanism is provided by pivot bars 41 joined at on end to push beam assembly 17 and at the other to guide rods 42 extending from pivot plate 43 joining rails 16 . when the apparatus 1 is no longer required for a particular mine clearing operation , the plow face 4 and frame 6 can be disconnected from the interface assembly 3 mounted upon tank 2 by removal of pins 7 . by means of a small winch ( not shown ) mounted upon the tank 2 or a third vehicle , the plow face and frame assembly 4 and 6 may be placed upon a small trailer ( not shown ) and transported to a desired location . it is to be understood that the present minefield clearing apparatus is not limited to the embodiments described above but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims .	5
in order to provide a mattress or bed base or combination , which can be considered as a ‘ whole body support structure ’ in one embodiment , it is necessary to calculate the requirements it needs to fulfill in order to minimize distortion of the body being supported . there are three predefined areas — a first corresponding with the waist and lumbar , a second corresponding with the hip , and a third corresponding with the shoulders . the relative positions and distortions required for natural or neutral position can be designated as follows : i ) the depression of the mattress at the waist / lumbar ( or the correction needed at this zone ) as dw , the weight of a unit area at that part of the body as pw , ii ) the depression of the mattress at the shoulders ( or the correction needed at this zone ) as ds , the weight of a unit area at that part of the body as ps , iii ) the depression of the mattress at the hips ( or the correction needed at this zone ) dh , the weight of a unit area at that part of the body as ph , iv ) the width differential ( extra to the waist ) or the lumbar curve depth as l and the extra width of the shoulders to that as s v ) the stiffness / supportive ability of the mattress of a unit area at that part of the body as ks ( shoulder ), kw ( waist / lumbar ), and kh hips ). calculations have been carried out for such range of values as : vi ) l or lumbar curve = 20 , 35 , 50 , 65 ) vii ) pw the weight / unit area at the waist as being double the weight that at the shoulders and =( 2 * ps ), and the weight per unit area at the hips ph as 2 . 5 times that at the shoulders =( 2 . 5 * ps ) p 1 viii ) the depression on the bed at the waist / lumbar : dw as 1 to 30 mm , ( calculate for dw = to 1 , 5 , 10 , 20 , 30 ) ix ) the shoulders to be wider than the hips by s which can be from 0 to 100 mm ( calculate for s = to 0 , 25 , 50 , 75 , 100 ) x ) it should be noted that for stomach sleepers , l refers to the vertical difference between the compressed stomach and upper thighs , ans s as the vertical difference between the compressed stomach and the outer part of the body ( usually the chest ). since the depression dn of the bed at a point ‘ n ’ is given by the equation ( where pn is the weight supported by the bed at point ‘ n ’ and kn is the effective firmness of the bed at point ‘ n ’) then the equation for firmness of the mattress at each of the 3 areas is : ks kh = ps ( dw + l + s ) × ( dw + l ) ph kw kh = pw dw × ( dw + l ) ph ks = kh × ( dw + l ) ( dw + l + s ) × ps ph & amp ; ⁢ kw = kh × ( dw + l ) dw ⁢ pw ph tabulating values for these different combinations gives a picture of the values and inter - relationship between these factors . see tables 1a and 1b of fig6 - 7 , respectively . weight at hips and upper thighs approx .= to weight at stomach so pw = 2 * ps , ph = pw = 2 * ps a lumbar curve or hips wider than waist 35 mm of say : and shoulders wider than hips 75 mm total varation 110 mm weight at hips and upper thighs approx . 15 % extra to weight at stomach so pw = 2 * ps , ph = 1 . 15 * pw = 2 . 3 * ps a lumbar curve or hips wider than waist 65 mm of say : and shoulders wider than hips − 15 mm total varation 50 mm here are 3 examples of how to shape the bed for each ( male and female ) on their own or on each respective side of the bed if they were a couple : the mattress for each is made with a hybrid of varying firmnesses along the bed such that the depression at the 3 key points are appropriate for each . i ) for the male , for a mattress on which the dw ( depression at waist )= 20 mm , ii ) for the female , for a mattress on which the dw ( depression at waist )= 20 mm , ks = kh ×( 20 + 65 )/( 20 + 65 − 15 )× 1 / 2 . 3 = 0 . 53 * kh kw = kh ×( 20 + 65 )/( 20 )× 1 / 1 . 15 = 3 . 70 * kh the mattress is manufactured with the 3 important zones at these calculated values and the areas in between are blended to smoothen the curves produced at the shoulders to waist to hips . the mattress is entirely of uniform firmness for both the male and the female . i ) the male compresses the mattress by 40 mm at the waist and therefore only 40 / 2 = 20 mm at the shoulders ( ps = ½ pw ) which are now 20 mm above the waist instead of 110 mm below , and compresses the mattress also 40 mm at the hips ( ph = pw ) which should be 35 mm below the waist ,— so the base system ( using blocks or some other means ) or ‘ hump and through system ’ under the bottom surface of the mattress has to correct the vertical displacement the mattress top surface by a ) − ve 10 mm at the hips , ( now − 40 − 10 =− 50 mm ) b ) + ve 25 mm at waist , ( now − 40 + 25 =− 15 mm ) net compression at waist , and ( 25 + 10 = 35 mm above hips which is correct ) c ) − ve 105 mm at the shoulders so they are (− 20 − 105 −(− 40 )+ 25 =− 110 mm below waist ) ii ) the female also happens to compresses the mattress at the waist by 40 mm but ( because of her weight ) only 40 / 2 = 20 mm at the shoulders , and 40 * 1 . 15 = 46 mm at the hips .— so the base system ( using blocks or some other means ) or ‘ hump and through system ’ under the bottom surface of the mattress has to correct the vertical displacement the mattress top surface by a ) + ve 24 mm at the waist ( this is now a nett − 40 + 24 =− 16 mm depression at the waist ) b ) − ve 35 mm at the hips ( this is now 6 + 24 + 35 = 65 mm below the waist ) c ) − ve 46 mm at the shoulders ( this is now − 20 + 16 −(− 40 )+ 24 =− 50 mm below the waist ) corrective shaping is affected fully by a hybrid of means : from i ) within the mattress , ii ) underneath the bottom surface of the mattress but above the top surface of the base , and iii ) by shaping of the top surface of the base means under the mattress the user can use a full combination of zoning ( shaping ) within the mattress and applying the net applicable corrections by the mattress supportive system . using a zoned mattress with voids and other predetermined compressible support means such that its properties from table 3 are — as follows : dw = 20 mm , l = 35 , ks = 0 . 2 , kw = 2 . 2 , s = 25 mm . ( for pw = 2ps and ph = 2 . 5ps ) i ) the male compresses the mattresses at the waist by 20 mm , l = 35 ( 2 / 2 . 5 )= 28 mm , so hips are 28 mm below the waist and s 25 mm so the shoulders are 25 mm below the waist so the — base system ( using blocks or some other means ) or ‘ hump and through system ’ under the bottom surface of the mattress is able to correct the vertical displacement the mattress top surface as follows : a ) place a + ve 25 mm shape ( flat in this case ) from below the shoulder area to the feet , this means that the shoulders are now − 25 − 25 =− 50 mm below the waist b ) − ve 7 mm vertical displacement of the hips ( 28 − 7 =− 35 mm ) which aligns the hips correctly with the waist . c ) − ve 60 mm vertical displacement at the shoulder area so shoulders are aligned , ii ) the female compresses the mattresses at the waist by 20 mm , l = 35 ( 1 . 15 * 2 / 2 . 5 )= 32 mm , so hips are 32 mm below the waist and s 25 mm so the shoulders are 25 mm below the waist so the — base system ( using blocks or some other means ) or ‘ hump and through system ’ under the bottom surface of the mattress has to correct the vertical displacement the mattress top surface by a ) place a + ve 25 mm shape ( flat in this case ) from below the shoulder area to the feet , this means that the shoulders are now − 25 − 25 =− 50 mm below the waist which is correct , b )— depress the hip area only by the base supportive surface by − ve 33 mm this now makes the hips (− 33 − 32 =)− 65 mm below the waist — which is correct referring to fig3 to 5 there is shown three forms of structure that allow for selection of voids , solid shapes or resilient inserts to alter locally when in use the compression and the profile of the at least two longitudinally related sections according to a predetermined requirement of the user to allow for natural or neutral sleeping position of the user . in fig3 there is a mattress and a base . the stiffness / supportive ability of the mattress of a unit area at that part of the body as ks ( shoulder ), kw ( waist / lumbar ), and kh hips ) is provided by a combination of base and mattress . in the base there can be located voids to allow the mattress to sink into the base . further there can be calibrated blocks to allow upward distortion of the mattress . further in the mattress are linear top - level voids in the top layer of the mattress and overlying deep voids or low - density material sections . the combination at the hips in a longitudinal direction of the top layer void , deep internal void or low density void of the mattress and the void in the base allow the sufficient variation of depression with required compression relative to other sections to accommodate the persons differing weight along the length of the bed . the section though is particularly shaped due to the variation at each section such as shaping or full void alongside low - density material . at the shoulder area are a range of differing sized , shaped and variable high density material in the mattress overlying shaped calibrated blocks in the base to provide differing shaped support of the shoulders compared to the waist and hips . in fig4 there is a bedding with differeing top layers and in each section multiple central sections . the stiffness / supportive ability of the bedding at each part of the body defined as ks ( shoulder ), kw ( waist / lumbar ), and kh hips ) is provided by sm support comprising light supportive materials in shoulder area with a series of shaped voids and softer padding layers to decrease firmness and allow more compression thus making way for shoulder to fit in deeper into supportive shaped . at the waist to provide kw there is wm comprising firmest supportive material plus thicker and firmer padding layers to cause more firmness and less depression at the waist . at the hip there is hm to provide kh comprising medium firmness support , materials and padding layers with / without use of voids in order to allow the hips to depress into the mattress b the desired amount . in fig5 there is a latex or core bedding which is able to have varying voids v alongside each other and above each other in one section with the voids able to receive various density foam or other material inserted therein to change the compression and depression of that section of he bedding . at another section can be chambers for receiving dumbbell shaped firmer density materials with varying heights placed within the core or latex bedding . the dumbbell shape controls the variation of compression while altering the depression in a shaped manner . it should be understood that the above description is of preferred embodiments and included as illustration only . it is not limiting of the invention . clearly variations of the method of forming a bed system would be understood by a person skilled in the art without any inventiveness and such variations are included within the scope of this invention as defined in the following claims .	8
aspects of the present invention provide an acoustic vector sensor that comprises at least one accelerometer to measure at least one component of acoustic particle acceleration . the at least one accelerometer has a resonant frequency within a measurement band of the acoustic vector sensor . one of the most important attributes of any underwater acoustic sensor is to exhibit an electronic noise floor that is well below the lowest acoustic signal of interest . this is usually accommodated with a marriage of an optimal sensor design with an optimal preamplifier design given other design constraints . experience dictates that this approach is very straightforward for piezoelectric sensors that measure the acoustic pressure , but very difficult for piezoelectric sensors that measure the acoustic pressure - gradient , particularly at frequencies below 1 khz . this latter issue is exacerbated when the sensing platform mandates small geometrical form factors for its internal components . moreover , the usual design practice for miniature vector sensors is to employ transducers having a fundamental resonance well above the frequency range of interest and to use high performance single crystal - based piezoelectric accelerometers , see , k . k . deng , “ underwater acoustic vector sensor using transverse - response free , shear mode pmn - pt crystal ,” u . s . pat . no . 7 , 066 , 026 b2 , dated jun . 27 , 2006 , and l . zou and k . k . deng , “ high sensitivity low noise piezoelectric flexural sensing structure using & lt ; 011 & gt ; poled relaxor - based piezoelectric single crystals ,” u . s . pat . no . 7 , 104 , 140 b2 , dated sep . 12 , 2006 , each incorporated by reference herein . while this approach may be novel , it translates into high costs because the single crystal material is very expensive , relative to conventional ceramic transduction materials , and does not lend itself nicely to standardized assembly techniques . by way of example , in the not too distant past , a lot of size thirty ( 30 ) shear mode pmn - pt single crystal plates having dimensions of 5 mm ( l )× 5 mm ( w )× 1 mm ( h ), a & lt ; 111 & gt ; crystallographic orientation , and a xzt - 22 . 5 cut can cost approximately $ 10 , 000 . 00 , whereas the same number of navy type ii ceramic plates can cost below approximately $ 1 , 000 . 00 . the cost differential can be approximately a factor of 10 . additionally , the accepted practice of soldering electrical leads to piezoelectric transduction elements can not be used for single crystal material because the temperature of most solders exceeds the curie temperature ( i . e , the temperature that will substantially degrade or completely depolarize a piezoelectric material ). to illustrate this point further , the curie temperature for pmn - pt single crystal is t c ˜ 170 ° c ., whereas for navy type ii ceramic t c ˜ 370 ° c . see , e . g ., c . h . sherman and j . l . butler , “ transducers and arrays for underwater sound ,” 552 - 553 ( springer , new york , 2007 ). most solders need to be heated to over 250 ° c . to work properly . for the case of single crystal transducers , special low temperature solder , conductive epoxy , or novel electroding techniques are required to resolve this issue . these steps increase fabrication costs and reduce reliability for miniature vector sensors . as an alternative to using high performance accelerometers containing single crystal transduction elements and an out - of - band resonance , accelerometers containing conventional ceramic transduction elements and an in - band resonance are well suited for vector sensors that require miniature form factors and low electronic noise floors . the use of an in - band resonance provides greater sensitivity relative to the case of a similar unit with an out - of - band resonance . this is borne out of the converse problem of designing sound projectors having an in - band resonance to deliver greater sound levels than projectors without an in - band resonance . moreover , when this concept is used in conjunction with conventional ceramic , the electronic noise floor of the accelerometer will rival that of a single crystal - based unit , but at a lower cost . to illustrate this concept , fig1 presents the results of measuring the sensitivity 100 and resonance frequency 150 of a cantilever beam piezoelectric accelerometer as a function of the end mass . fig1 shows that the sensitivity 100 below the fundamental resonance frequency is proportional to the end - mass and the resonance frequency 150 is inversely proportional to the end - mass . as such , the end - mass can be used to tune the sensitivity 100 and resonance frequency 150 for a particular frequency band so that the desired electronic noise floor can be achieved . though not shown in the figure , the sensitivity has a maximum at the resonance frequency . the accelerometer 200 used in the evaluation of fig1 is shown in fig2 , which presents a schematic showing two elevational views . fig2 includes a first elevation view 250 where the width of a beam 220 is in the plane of the page and a second elevation view 260 where the thickness of the beam 220 is in the plane of the page . in fig2 , the accelerometer 200 contains two series - connected thickness - poled navy type ii ceramic plates 210 - 1 and 210 - 2 that are bonded to an aluminum beam 220 that is fixed at one end to a rigid base 205 and contains a discrete mass ( not shown ) at the other end . the value for the end - mass was varied by fabricating identical units from materials having significantly different densities . in one of the test cases , no end - mass was used . the sensitivity 100 was measured using the comparison technique involving a moving coil shaker and reference accelerometer . the resonance frequency 150 was inferred from an electrical admittance measurement . for a more detailed discussion of these results , see , e . g ., j . a . mcconnell and s . c . jensen , “ development of a miniature uniaxial pressure - acceleration probe for bio - acoustic applications ( a ), j . acoust . soc . am ., 119 , 3446 ( 2006 ), incorporated by reference herein . one disadvantage of using the discrete end - mass approach delineated above concerns the result of creating a resonant system that exhibits an unreasonably high mechanical quality factor , or q , owing itself to the low mechanical losses in the system . the accelerometers 200 shown in fig2 all had high - q resonances with quality factors reaching as high as approximately 200 . this is an undesirable attribute because it leads to ringing and electromechanical cross - talk which can limit the dynamic range of the measurement system and degrade the sensor &# 39 ; s directivity pattern . it is the object of the present invention to circumvent these issues . it is noted that the in - band resonance technique is not required for the pressure sensor , since existing designs , which consider conventional ceramic transducers having an out - of - band resonance , already meet electronic noise floor specifications for most measurement scenarios . the accelerometers 200 shown in fig2 can be fabricated with various end - masses , including tungsten , bronze , titanium and aluminum , as would be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art . as previously indicated , an aspect of the present invention provides an acoustic vector sensor that comprises at least one accelerometer to measure at least one component of acoustic particle acceleration . the at least one accelerometer has a resonant frequency within a measurement band of the acoustic vector sensor . fig3 presents a cut - away schematic of an embodiment of acoustic vector sensor 300 incorporating features of the present invention . as shown in fig3 , the acoustic vector sensor 300 is a cylindrical body that contains an air - backed piezoelectric ceramic cylinder to measure the acoustic pressure and a biaxial accelerometer to measure two orthogonal components of the acoustic particle acceleration . the acoustic vector sensor 300 includes accelerometers 350 that are oriented such that their principle axes of sensitivity are orthogonal to the axis of the cylindrical body . in this way , when the vector sensor 300 is installed inside a line array , it can resolve the so - called left - right ambiguity that is problematic of existing arrays that employ pressure sensors . other features shown in fig3 include the means to incorporate a stack of printed circuit boards 330 that contain transducer preamplifiers and related electronics . the pressure sensor 370 is capped at both ends with caps 315 and 360 to form a pressure vessel that can withstand typical operational pressures . the pressure sensor 370 consists of an air - backed ceramic cylinder having caps 315 and 360 at both ends . the caps 315 and 360 also serve as the means to ensure that the acoustic pressure acts on the external surface of the ceramic cylinder . in this embodiment , the open - circuit voltage sensitivity can be predicted with the formulae contained in r . a . langevin , “ the electro - acoustic sensitivity of cylindrical ceramic tubes ,” j . acoust . soc . am ., 26 , 421 - 427 ( 1953 ). the in - water resonance frequency can be predicted using the approach taken in j . a . mcconnell ( 2004 ), incorporated by reference herein . in the present invention , the resonance frequency of the pressure sensor is designed to be well above the frequency range of interest . the cap 315 serves as the means to route the electrical signals from the circuit board to the measurement hardware via a multi - conductor shielded cable 320 and as an anchoring point for one end of the pressure sensor . the cap 360 provides a rigid termination for the accelerometers , which conform to the design of a tri - laminar piezoelectric cantilever beam containing a viscoelastic coating . as shown in fig3 , the cantilever beam accelerometers 350 ( only one of four is shown in fig3 ) contain conventional ceramic elements and an in - band mode . here , the coating serves as a distributed mass and damper to facilitate an in - band mode having a low mechanical quality factor . the cavity where the accelerometers 350 are housed is sealed by a cylindrical tube 325 having a tapered end - cap . the dimensions of the tube 325 are sized so that it can withstand deep submergence . a by product of this attribute is that the tube &# 39 ; s fundamental resonance frequency is well above the frequency range of interest . as shown in fig3 , the acoustic vector sensor 300 includes a slotted plastic cylindrical shell 335 that serves as a means to hold the printed circuit boards 330 . in one embodiment , the acoustic vector sensor 300 may include polyurethane potting 340 to seal the sensor and provide a good impedance match to the acoustic medium . in addition , the polyurethane potting 340 can provide strain relief for the signal cable where it exits the sensor body . fig3 also illustrates the top of cap 360 serving as a rigid base of the acoustic vector sensor 300 that serves as an anchoring point for the accelerometers and one end of the pressure sensor . the piezoelectric plates may be implemented using , for example , pzt ( lead zirconate titanate ), pmn - pt ( lead magnesium niobate - lead titanate ) or pzn - pt ( lead zirconium niobate - lead titanate ). fig4 shows the assembly details of the accelerometers 350 of fig3 . as shown in fig4 , each accelerometer 350 - 1 through 350 - 4 contains two tri - laminar piezoelectric cantilever beams , such as beams 410 - 1 and 410 - 2 , that are anchored in a slot 420 machined in the face of the base 425 . the cantilever beams are electrically connected in series or parallel to produce the desired sensitivity and electronic noise floor . this symmetrical arrangement also makes the sensor insensitive to rotational motion about the z - axis and consequently polarizes the response of the accelerometers to rectilinear motion , which is their intended purpose . rotational motion about the x - and y - axis can be counteracted by a locating orthogonal pairs of accelerometers on the backside of the base and would constitute a different embodiment to the design shown fig3 and 4 . the aforementioned slot is filled with a high strength epoxy to fasten the cantilever beams to the base . the epoxy also serves as a means to damp the resonance associated with the accelerometer . the base is preferably made from a high strength ceramic material such as alumina , beryllia , or macor so that it is sufficiently stiff and electrically inert in order to mechanically and electrically isolate one set of cantilever beams from the other set . this feature is critical to preserving the dipole null depth associated with the accelerometer &# 39 ; s directivity pattern . the base 425 also contains a network of holes , such as hole 430 ( only one of four is labeled in fig4 ) that provide the means to route electrical leads 480 from the accelerometers 350 to the preamplifier . fig4 also contains a detailed drawing of one exemplary accelerometer 350 - 1 and shows that it contains a tri - laminar structure consisting of a metal beam 450 - flanked by two thickness - poled piezoelectric ceramic plates 460 - 1 and 460 - 2 . the ceramic plates 460 - 1 and 460 - 2 do not span the entire length of the beam and are located near the portion of the beam 450 that is anchored to the base 425 . this design methodology is chosen because the strain energy associated with a cantilever beam undergoing transverse bending has a maxima at the fixed end and a minima at the free end . moreover , it follows from this rationale that the stress imparted to the ceramic plates 460 - 1 and 460 - 2 will be greatest when the plates 460 - 1 and 460 - 2 are located near the fixed end and will therefore facilitate high sensitivity . as stated previously , the cantilever beam contains a viscoelastic coating 470 that serves as a distributed mass and damper to facilitate an in - band mode having a low mechanical quality factor . this feature resolves the issue cited earlier with regard to using a discrete mass at the end of the beam 450 to increase the sensitivity of the accelerometer 350 . this concept would also work for single crystal - based accelerometers , if so desired . nevertheless , appropriate selection of the cantilever beam &# 39 ; s dimensions and material properties along with the corresponding dimensions and material properties of the viscoelastic material facilitate the development of a high sensitivity / low noise accelerometer that is well suited for a miniature vector sensor having operational bandwidths below 1 khz . the functional relationship between the electromechanical properties of accelerometers that employ the transverse bending mode of a piezoelectric material can be modeled with lumped parameters to determine their sensitivity , as explained in j . a . mcconnell ( 2004 ). in that regard , the formula that predicts the intrinsic open - circuit voltage sensitivity is defined as : ⅇ a = k 2 · m m n · [ 1 + j q ⁢ ω ω 0 - ω 2 ω 0 2 ] - 1 , ( 1 ) where k 2 = c m n 2 /( c m n 2 + c eb ) is the electromechanical coupling factor , m m is the mechanical mass associated with the composite beam , n is the electro - mechanical turns ratio , ω is the radian frequency , ω 0 =( m m c eqv ) − 1 / 2 and q = m m ω 0 / r m are the resonance frequency and quality factor , j =√− 1 , c m is the mechanical compliance of the composite beam , c eb is the blocked electrical capacitance of the piezoelectric plates , r m is the mechanical resistance of the composite beam , and c eqv = c m c eb /( c m n 2 + c eb ) is the effective mechanical compliance of the composite beam . the in - water acoustic sensitivity of the accelerometer is simply the product of eq . ( 1 ) and the buoyancy factor β defined earlier . moreover , eq . ( 1 ) shows the relationship between the sensitivity , resonance frequency , and quality factor as a function of the mass m m and damping r m in the system . these parameters are critical in determining the performance of this class of accelerometer . finite element modeling can also be used to determine the sensitivity and is also helpful to ascertain the dynamic response of the entire sensor . an example of this is shown in fig5 and 6 , which present the results of modeling a slightly different embodiment of the accelerometer shown in fig3 and 4 . fig5 presents a mechanical drawing 500 and a finite element model 550 which show that the accelerometer consists of two cantilever beams 510 - 1 and 510 - 2 that are located on opposite sides of a macor base 520 . each beam contains 510 - 1 and 510 - 2 two thickness - poled navy type ii ceramic plates 530 that are electrically connected in series . additionally , the first set of plates are electrically connected in series with the second set of plates and each plate has dimensions in an exemplary embodiment of 12 . 7 mm ( l )× 6 . 35 mm ( w )× 0 . 51 mm ( h ). the metal beam element is made of brass and has dimensions of 38 . 1 mm ( l )× 6 . 35 mm ( w )× 0 . 51 mm ( h ). the viscoelastic coating is made of polyurethane having a density , modulus of elasticity , and damping loss factor of 1 . 1 g / cm 3 , 103 mpa , and 20 %, respectively . the coating has the same overall length as the beam and has seven times the overall thickness of the beam in an exemplary embodiment . the coating is spaced away from the macor base 520 by a nominal distance equal to roughly one - beam thickness . fig6 shows that the resulting sensitivity of the accelerometer is 1200 mv / g and has a fundamental resonance and quality factor of ˜ 450 hz and & lt ; 10 , respectively . experience with vector sensors developed for low frequency applications indicates that the sensitivity of nominally 1 v / g ( as is shown in fig6 ) will be ample to meet the so - called sea state zero noise specification , see , r . j . urick , “ principles of underwater sound ,” ( peninsula publishing , los altos , calif ., 1983 ), 3 rd ed ., p . 210 . fig7 presents a mechanical drawing of a prototype sensor 700 . the prototype 700 comprises a housing 710 , base 720 , pressure hydrophone 730 and hydrophone end cap 740 . as shown in fig7 , the sensor 700 is similar to that shown in fig3 . the overall length ( excluding the cable ) and diameter of the prototype is less than 90 mm ( 3 . 5 in ) and 38 mm ( 1 . 5 in ), respectively and is suitable for miniature form factor applications . fig8 illustrates how the accelerometer 800 associated with the sensor shown in fig7 is assembled and arranged on a base . the accelerometer 800 comprises a polyurethane coating 810 , brass beam 820 , pzt element 830 , macor base 840 and epoxy joints 850 . it is clearly shown in fig8 that the accelerometer design is similar to that shown in fig4 with one notable , but minor difference . that is , the viscoelastic coating in fig4 has a rectangular cross - section , whereas the coating in fig8 has a cylindrical cross - section . the cylindrical coating was done for simplicity of manufacture , but translates into lower mass - per - unit - length . moreover , the design of the tri - laminar beam and associated electrical connections shown in fig8 are virtually identical to those discussed earlier with regard to the finite element model shown in fig5 . fig9 presents the result of measuring the intrinsic voltage sensitivity of the prototype accelerometer over the frequency range from 10 hz to 1 khz . the data was obtained using the comparison technique involving an electro - dynamic shaker and reference accelerometer . the data indicates that both the x - and y - axis accelerometers exhibit a sensitivity below resonance that is nearly 1 v / g and have a low - q resonance occurring at approximately 700 hz . the differences between the measured results and the finite element model are simply due to the lower mass associated with the viscoelastic coating having a cylindrical cross - section . note that the dip in the measured data at approximately 180 hz is due to a structural resonance associated with attachment of the accelerometer to the shaker and is not indicative of anomalous performance . it is to be understood that the embodiments and variations shown and described herein are merely illustrative of the principles of this invention and that various modifications may be implemented by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention .	6
the present invention provides a unique background noise or ambient noise cancellation feature for a communications device such as a mobile ( or cellular ) telephone or even a conventional wire line telephone . while the present invention has applicability to at least these types of communications devices , the principles of the present invention are particularly applicable to all types of communications devices . for simplicity , the following description employs the term “ mobile telephone ” as an umbrella term to describe the embodiments of the present invention , but those skilled in the art will appreciate that the use of such term is not to be considered limiting to the scope of the invention , which is set forth by the claims appearing at the end of this description . fig1 illustrates an exemplary mobile telephone 10 that comprises a microphone 11 , a speaker 12 , a display screen 13 , a keypad 14 and an antenna 15 . optionally , a second microphone 16 for sampling ambient noise level and an ambient noise compensation enable / disable button 17 may also be provided . these latter two elements will be described more fully below . those skilled in the art will appreciate that speaker 12 could be replaced by an ear piece ( not shown ) that is worn by the mobile telephone user in the conventional manner . speaker 12 is used herein to mean the device by which sound is transferred from the mobile telephone to the user . also , display screen 13 could be a touch screen display , which might incorporate keypad 14 as well as enable / disable button 17 . fig2 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the present invention including microphone 11 , ambient noise compensation signal generator 20 , a mixer 22 , transmitter 24 and antenna 15 . in accordance with the present invention , ambient noise or background noise is cancelled before being the combined with the intended voice communication picked up at microphone 11 and sent to transmitter 24 and antenna 15 . more specifically , in a first embodiment , microphone 11 picks up both ambient noise as well as the intended voice communication ( together , the “ combined signal ”). as is well known in the art of noise cancellation , it is possible ( e . g ., via filtering and digital signal processing ( dsp ) techniques ) to attenuate or even cancel - out pre - selected portions of an audio signal or pre - selected bands of a frequency spectrum . as shown in fig2 , ambient noise compensation signal generator 20 is connected to microphone 11 and monitors the combined signal . then , ambient noise cancellation generator , in accordance with well - known techniques , generates compensation signals that are operable to attenuate or altogether cancel background noise that is not intended or desirable to be transmitted to another party . these compensation signals are fed into mixer 22 where these signals are mixed with the combined signal coming directly from microphone 11 . the result is that the ambient noise or background noise is eliminated , or at least substantially reduced , before the combined signal ( ambient noise plus voice signal ) is passed to transmitter 24 ( which , e . g ., includes a radio frequency modulator , etc .) and ultimately to antenna 15 . optionally , a buffer 28 is provided to slow the progress of the combined signal emanating from microphone 11 so that when the combined signal reaches mixer 22 the arrival time of the combined signal and the compensation signals generated by ambient noise cancellation generator is synchronized . in another embodiment , as shown in fig3 , a second microphone 16 is provided for the principal purpose of sampling ambient noise . that is , microphone 16 is dedicated substantially to picking up ambient noise rather than a voice signal . a second microphone , especially one that is located away from mobile telephone user &# 39 ; s mouth would be less affected by the user &# 39 ; s own voice when taking the ambient noise level measurement and , thus , might be more desirable in certain implementations of the present invention . more specifically , it is often the case that microphone 11 , which is used primarily for receiving voice signals from a user , is arranged to have directional characteristics , wherein the microphone is more sensitive to sound coming from predetermined directions . in contrast , second microphone 16 is preferably omni - directional such that the microphone is equally sensitive to sound emanating from any direction . a more accurate detection of ambient noise level can be obtained using such an omni - directional microphone . also , although not shown expressly in the drawings , microphone 16 could be arranged spatially distant from mobile telephone 10 . for example , second microphone 16 could be arranged to hang from a wire that is connected to mobile telephone 10 , whereby there would be even less chance for the mobile telephone user &# 39 ; s voice to interfere with noise cancellation signal generation . optionally , in the dual microphone embodiment , microphone 11 is also in communication with ambient noise cancellation signal generator 20 to provide additional signal information to generator 20 to aid in distinguishing more easily between ambient noise and voice signals . further in accordance with the present invention there is provided an enable / disable switch 17 ( fig1 ) that is preferably operable to enable / disable ambient noise compensation signal generator 20 . for example , depending on the nature of the ambient noise in a particular environment , known noise cancellation techniques might also inadvertently attenuate the voice signal that is intended to be transmitted . in such a case , it is preferable that the noise cancellation features of the present invention be disabled , at least for a limited period , until the ambient noise is such that it can be more effectively distinguished from the voice signal and attenuated independently . for example , a mobile telephone user may want to call a friend from a noisy public event ( e . g ., a concert or sporting event ) for the main purpose of letting the friend hear the background noise . in such a case , the switch 17 is preferably manipulated to disable the noise cancellation features of the present invention . the foregoing disclosure of the preferred embodiments of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description . it is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed . many variations and modifications of the embodiments described herein will be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art in light of the above disclosure . the scope of the invention is to be defined only by the claims appended hereto , and by their equivalents . further , in describing representative embodiments of the present invention , the specification may have presented the method and / or process of the present invention as a particular sequence of steps . however , to the extent that the method or process does not rely on the particular order of steps set forth herein , the method or process should not be limited to the particular sequence of steps described . as one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate , other sequences of steps may be possible . therefore , the particular order of the steps set forth in the specification should not be construed as limitations on the claims . in addition , the claims directed to the method and / or process of the present invention should not be limited to the performance of their steps in the order written , and one skilled in the art can readily appreciate that the sequences may be varied and still remain within the spirit and scope of the present invention .	6
a typical mug 12 having a handle 14 and a generally cylindrical outer surface is shown in fig2 . the mug is of size to be used with the image press of the present invention illustrated in fig1 at 16 . the mug 12 has an outer surface 18 that is coated with a suitable polymeric or other coating for receiving a subliminally transferred image from a substrate 20 bearing such image . the substrate could be a sheet having a photo image on one side , which would be transferred onto the mug surface 18 . the photo image will be made so that it will subliminally transfer to the mug , and will be received on the coating on the surface 18 . present color printers using the dye - sublimation color process , such as those made by fargo electronics , inc . of 7901 flying cloud drive , eden prairie , minn . also will provide color prints of photos , or digital images on a sheet of paper that is capable of being used with the present press for transferring images onto a mug or other cylindrical object . the transfer press is shown generally at 16 , and includes an outer thin jacket or band 24 of metal or other thermally conductive material which is formed into a generally cylindrical shape and sized to permit clamping onto the cylindrical surface 18 of the mug 12 . preferably the band 24 is made of 301 , 302 or 304 stainless steel . the band 24 is lined with an inner foam layer indicated generally at 26 . the foam is a suitable silicone foam that has desired compressibility characteristics . the foam is preferably about 1 / 8 of an inch in thickness , and lines the entire inner surface of the band 24 . the band 24 is selected to have some spring qualities , and in other words it will spring outwardly from a clamped position when a clamp 38 is released . the band 24 has unattached end edges 31 and 32 that define a gap 28 when surrounding a mug . a first clamp support tab 30 is integral with the band 24 and extends from end edge 31 into the gap 28 toward the opposite end edge 33 of the band 24 . a latch tongue 36 is integral with the band 24 and extends from the edge 33 across the gap 28 , and is aligned with the support tab 30 . the gap 28 is of sufficient size so that it will permit the handle 14 of mug 12 to extend through the gap , with the support tab 30 and the latch tab 36 having the ability to pass into the opening defined by the handle 14 so that the band can be clamped around the mug 12 . an over center type clamp indicated generally at 38 is supported on the support tab 30 , and is operable to tighten the band around a mug . a specific embodiment of a clamp is shown , but many different types of clamps can be used , including adjustable clamps , various spring loaded clamps , threaded hose type clamps and the like . however , the clamp has to be capable of exerting enough annular force so that the inward radial loading against a mug exterior surface from the interior surface of the foam layer 26 will be adequate to intimately press the substrate 20 against the surface 18 of a mug or other object in the press . in the form shown , the clamp 38 has a clamp support 40 that is fixed to the tab 30 , and which has a pair of support ears 40a and 40b that are supported on a base 40c and define a space in which a clamp lever 42 is pivotally mounted . the clamp lever 42 is pivotally mounted on a pin 44 that extends through the ears 40a and 40b , and the clamp lever in turn carries a spring latch dog 46 that is positioned between legs 42a and 42b of the clamp lever and is pivotally mounted on a latch dog pin 48 . the pin 48 extends between the legs 42a and 42b . the lever has a thumb tab 43 for increased leverage in operation . as shown , the spring latch dog 46 has a bend 50 forming latch dog legs 46 and 46b that form a shallow &# 34 ; v &# 34 ;. the leg 48b has a latch flange 52 formed at its outer end . the length of the latch dog leg 46b between the bend 50 and the latch flange 52 is selected so that it spans the gap 28 when the press is in an open position . the latch flange 52 is of size to fit within one of a series of slots 54 defined in the latch tongue 36 . when the press 16 is to be used , the mug 12 is positioned in place by pivoting the spring latch dog 46 out of the way and passing the latch tongue 36 under the handle 14 , while the substrate or sheet 20 carrying the image to be transferred is held against the surface of the mug and is positioned between the inner surface of the foam layer 26 and the mug . as shown in fig3 schematically , the substrate 20 is relatively thin . the substrate is shown in an exaggerated thickness in fig3 for illustration , and is placed against the outer surface 18 of the mug 12 so that the inner surface of the foam layer 26 on the interior of the band 24 compresses to conform around the substrate 20 and urge the substrate 20 tightly against the surface 18 . latch flange 52 is positioned in one of the series of slots 54 , with the clamp open , as shown in fig4 and after the mug has been placed into the interior of the open press , the clamp lever 42 is pivoted as shown by the arrow 56 in fig4 to pull the latch tongue 26 toward the latch support 30 and apply an annular tensile load on tongue 36 tending to pull the edges 31 and 33 together to in turn pull the band 24 tightly down against the outer surface 18 of the mug 12 . as can be seen in fig3 the handle 14 will protrude from the press , and when the latch 39 is in its latched position the pivots of the spring latch dog 46 and the clamp lever 42 go &# 34 ; over center &# 34 ; so that the spring latch dog 46 is retained in place . the bend 50 tends to straighten out as the legs 46a and 46b tend to extend , to create a spring load on the tongue 36 to tightly urge the band 24 around and against the mug . the amount of surface pressure that is exerted on the substrate by the clamp 38 can be controlled to some extent by the density of the foam or sponge that is used in the layer 26 . the foam layer is compressible and as the foam compresses there is an increase in surface pressure urging the substrate 20 against the surface of the mug . intermediate adjustments can be made by placing the latch dog flange 52 in a different slot 54 . the surface pressure on the substrate is made sufficient to insure intimate contact with the coating on surface 18 . when the mug is installed , with the substrate 20 tightly held against the surface 18 , the press and mug , as assembled , can be placed into a home oven 60 , and by setting the oven control 62 to the desired temperature , the image transfer takes place as the press and mug are heated and retained at the desired temperature for the desired length of time . a temperature of 375 ° f . in the oven and heating the substrate for 15 minutes has been found satisfactory . the band 24 ( preferably of metal ) has good thermal conductivity , and the silicone foam is thin so it does not act as a substantial insulator . the foam has needed compressibility properties . additionally , the heat generated in the oven will heat the interior of the mug and cause the entire unit to be rapidly heated for the transfer reaction to take place . the press is light weight and its dimensions are not larger than those of the mug , including the handle . in other words , the clamp assembly 38 fits within the circle generated by the radius extending to the outer edge of the handle 14 . the clamp fits quite closely to the outer peripheral surface 18 of the mug . it can be seen in fig3 that the substrate or sheet 20 can be placed directly opposite the handle 14 , with the present press , and the substrate can extend around a substantial portion of the surface 18 of the mug 12 . the substrate 20 can also be placed any place within the lateral foam boundaries for transfer . the latch assembly is relatively simple , and does not require a large number of linkages or separate power for actuation . the foam 26 lines the interior of support tab 30 and the tongue 36 . the press is easily installed on a mug , and placed into an existing oven for the transfer operation . the foam or sponge layer , as stated is preferably about 1 / 8 inch thick , but can be up to about 3 / 16 inch thick . thinner layers can be used , but conformability is reduced , so the possibility of non uniform pressure on the substrate is increased . thicker layers of foam start to provide undesired heat insulation . although the present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments , workers skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	1
please refer to fig3 a through fig3 c . fig3 a is a functional block diagram illustrating a positioning system 4 according to a preferred embodiment of the invention . fig3 b is a functional block diagram illustrating a positioning system 4 ′ according to another preferred embodiment of the invention . fig3 c is a functional block diagram illustrating a positioning system 4 ″ according to another preferred embodiment of the invention . the positioning system of the invention can be three modes as follows : ( 1 ) a first wireless communication module 40 and a second wireless communication module 42 are coupled to an identical hardware system 44 , as shown in fig3 a ; ( 2 ) a first wireless communication module 40 and a second wireless communication module 42 are respectively coupled to two different hardware systems 44 a and 44 b , and communicated with each other through a network 46 , as shown in fig3 b ; and ( 3 ) a first wireless communication module 40 and a second wireless communication module 42 are respectively coupled to two different hardware systems 44 a and 44 b , and communicated with each other through a network 46 and a server 48 , as shown in fig3 c . it has to be noticed both the first wireless communication module 40 and the second wireless communication module 42 are fixed wireless communication modules . in this invention , the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 have the same wireless communication standard . ( since if the same wireless communication module is used , positioning accuracy will be higher .) in positioning , the hardware system should needs to control the antennas of the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 to transmit the same radio power . the distance between the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 is l , and the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 respectively comprise a first antenna 400 , a second antenna 420 , rf circuits 402 and 422 , baseband circuits 404 and 424 . it should be noticed that , in fig3 a through fig3 c , a dotted line shows that multiple antennas are feasible to be disposed . the hardware systems 44 , 44 a or 44 b can comprise processing modules 440 , 440 a or 440 b , storage modules 442 , 442 a or 442 b and any other required hardware for different applications . please refer to fig4 . fig4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a first wireless communication module 40 cooperates with the second wireless communication module 42 to determine the position p 1 and the position p 2 corresponding to a mobile device ( not shown ). the distance between the mobile device and the first wireless communication modules 40 is d 1 , the distance between the mobile device and the second wireless communication modules 42 is d 2 , and the distance between the first wireless communication modules 40 and the second wireless communication modules 42 is l . in this embodiment , the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 utilize wireless positioning algorithms , such as toa or rss , to respectively obtain d 1 and d 2 , and the distance l between the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 is known , then an angle θ 1 can be obtained from d 1 , d 2 and l by utilizing cosine theorem . a coordinate ( x 1 , y 1 ) of the position p 1 can be obtained by transforming d 1 and θ 1 or d 2 and θ 2 . if the first wireless communication module 40 is set as a reference origin of coordinates , then x 1 = d 1 cos θ 1 and y 1 = d 1 sin θ 1 . similarly , a coordinate ( x 2 , y 2 ) of the position p 2 also can be obtained by this process . please refer to fig5 . fig5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an antenna gain table . each antenna has a corresponding antenna gain table . as shown in fig5 , m indicates a m - th antenna ; n can be set as 360 or adjusted by designers according to practical applications , and g indicates an antenna gain . the invention shows the relation between the antenna gain g and the angle θ by utilizing antenna gain tables . as for the techniques and other efficacy adopted by the invention presented , the following several embodiments are provided for further explanation : the first embodiment utilizes a positioning system 4 shown in fig3 a to illustrate how to judge that a mobile device is located at the position p 1 or the position p 2 shown in fig4 . in this embodiment , the first wireless communication module 40 comprises m first antennas , and the second wireless communication module 42 comprises n second antennas , wherein m and n is an integer larger than or equal to 1 , and n is different from m . a storage module 442 is used for storing m first antenna gain tables corresponding to the m first antennas and n second antenna gain tables corresponding to the n second antennas . the first antenna gain tables and the second antenna gain tables are shown in fig5 . at the beginning of positioning , the first and second wireless communication module 40 and 42 utilize toa for positioning a mobile device to obtain d 1 , d 2 , θ 1 , θ 2 , θ 3 and θ 4 , wherein θ 1 , θ 2 , θ 3 and θ 4 can be obtained by the above mentioned method . furthermore , the mobile device transmits a receive signal strength ( rss ) to the processing module 440 , wherein the mobile device transmits a first receive signal strength ( rss 1 ) to the i - th first antenna and transmits a second receive signal strength ( rss 2 ) to the j - th second antenna , wherein i is an integer between 1 and m , and j is an integer between 1 and n . the processing module 440 utilizes d and θ to calculate . let the processing module 440 obtains k 1 , k 2 , k 3 and k 4 , wherein g 1 , g 2 , g 3 and g 4 can be obtained from the antenna gain table corresponding to θ . without taking the effects of environment and other interference into consideration , in free space , is proportional to power received by a receiving terminal , wherein g is a gain of a transmitting antenna , and d is the distance between a transmitting terminal and a receiving terminal . before judging whether the position p 1 or p 2 is the real positioning location , it is necessary to confirm the problems of interference to increase the reliability of estimation of ( 1 ) consider the successful demodulation rate obtained by baseband circuits 404 and 424 at the receiving terminals ( i . e . the first and second wireless communication module 40 and 42 ). namely , the successful demodulation rate refers to the percentage of all information received by the usable target information receiving terminals . accordingly , a successful demodulation rate value can be set as a criterion ( e . g . 80 %). then , if the rate is above the criterion , it can be assumed that the environmental interference is not serious . ( 2 ) estimate the environmental interference effect by the number of times for retransmission . since there is a counter in the transmitting terminal or the receiving terminal , the counter has a duty cycle for calculating the number of times for retransmission during the duty cycle . therefore , when the number of times for retransmission is less than a third predetermined value , the processing module will make a judgment that the environmental inference factor can be ignorable . for instance , the third predetermined value can be set as n , and n can be set by a designer according to different wireless communication standards . moreover , n also can be determined by the demodulation rate . for example , if the denotation rate is 80 %, the counter n record by the counter at that time will be the correspondent . ( 3 ) when one of the following inequalities is satisfied , the processing module 440 will judge that the environmental inference factor can be ignorable . in this embodiment , the first predetermined value can be set by a designer according to practical applications , such as 20 %˜ 30 %. when the environmental inference factor is ignorable and both of the following inequalities are satisfied , the processing module 440 will judge that the mobile device is located at the first position p 1 shown in fig4 . on the other hand , when the environmental inference factor is ignorable and both of the following inequalities are satisfied , the processing module 440 will judge that the mobile device is located at the second position p 2 shown in fig4 . in this embodiment , the second predetermined value is defined as a difference percentage of the positions p 1 and p 2 and can be set by a designer according to practical applications , such as 50 %. is smaller than the standard set by the designer ( such as 50 %), the real positioning location will be hard to be confirmed . the reasons might be from the antenna patterns of the first wireless communication modules 40 , second wireless communication modules 42 and the mobile device . in conclusion , it will be finished if the real positioning location can be judged . however , when the environmental inference factor is significant , or the i - th first antenna and the j - th second antenna are unable to position the mobile device , the processing module 440 will selectively switch the i - th first antenna to one of the remainder m − 1 first antennas . then , the mobile device transmits a third receive signal strength ( rss 3 ) to the switched first antenna . therefore , the processing module 440 obtains a fifth gain ( g 5 ) corresponding to the first angle ( θ 1 ) and a sixth gain ( g 6 ) corresponding to the second angle ( θ 2 ) based on the first antenna gain table corresponding to the switched first antenna . when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the first position p 1 shown in fig4 . g 5 & gt ; g 1 , rss 3 & gt ; rss 1 and g 6 ≦ g 2 . condition 1 : g 5 & lt ; g 1 , rss 3 & lt ; rss 1 and g 6 ≧ g 2 . condition 2 ; on the other hand , when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the second position p 2 shown in fig4 . g 6 & gt ; g 2 , rss 3 & gt ; rss 1 and g 5 ≦ g 1 . condition 3 : g 6 & lt ; g 2 , rss 3 & lt ; rss 1 and g 5 ≧ g 1 . condition 4 : please refer to fig6 . fig6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an antenna pattern before switching and after switching . a solid line 6 indicates an antenna pattern of the original i - th first antenna , and a dotted line 7 indicates an antenna pattern of the switched first antenna . as shown in fig6 , g 5 & lt ; g 1 and g 6 ≧ g 2 , as rss 3 & lt ; rss 1 , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the first position p 1 shown in fig4 based on condition 2 described as above . similarly , when the environmental inference factor is significant , or the i - th first antenna and j - th second antenna are unable to position the mobile device , the processing module 440 also can selectively switch the j - th second antenna to one of the remainder n − 1 second antennas . then , the mobile device transmits a fourth receive signal strength ( rss 4 ) to the switched second antenna . therefore , the processing module 440 obtains a seventh gain ( g 7 ) corresponding to the third angle θ 3 and an eighth gain ( g 8 ) corresponding to the fourth angle θ 4 based on the second antenna gain table corresponding to the switched second antenna . when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the first position p 1 shown in fig4 . g 7 & gt ; g 3 , rss 4 & gt ; rss 2 and g 8 ≦ g 4 . condition 5 : g 7 & lt ; g 3 , rss 4 & lt ; rss 2 and g 8 ≧ g 4 . condition 6 : on the other hand , when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the second position p 2 shown in fig4 . g 8 & gt ; g 4 , rss 4 & gt ; rss 2 and g 7 ≦ g 3 . condition 7 : g 8 & lt ; g 4 , rss 4 & lt ; rss 2 and g 7 ≧ g 3 . condition 8 : it should be noticed that if the first and second wireless communication module 40 and 42 utilize rss algorithm to position the mobile device , after the antenna is switched , the mobile device has to be re - positioned to obtain a new distance d and angle θ . and , if the new θ is different to the old θ , the new θ is being substituted for the old θ . besides , the invention also can utilize the positioning system 4 ′ shown in fig3 b or the positioning system 4 ″ shown in fig3 c to judge that the mobile device is located at the position p 1 or the position p 2 shown in fig4 . the hardware system 44 can be substituted by the hardware system 44 a or 44 b , the processing module 440 can be substituted by the processing module 440 a or 440 b , and the storage module 442 can be substituted by the storage module 442 a or 442 b ; it all depends on practical applications . the second embodiment utilizes a positioning system 4 shown in fig3 a to describe how to judge that the mobile device is located at the position p 1 or the position p 2 . in this embodiment , a first wireless communication module 40 comprises m first antennas , and a second wireless communication module 42 also comprises m second antennas , wherein m is an integer larger than or equal to 1 , and each of the second antennas respectively corresponds to one of the m first antennas . a storage module 442 stores m first antenna gain tables corresponding to the m first antennas and m second antenna gain tables corresponding to the m second antennas . the first antenna gain tables or the second antenna gain tables are shown as fig5 . at the beginning of positioning , the first and second wireless communication module 40 and 42 utilize toa for positioning a mobile device to obtain d 1 , d 2 , θ 1 , θ 2 , θ 3 and θ 4 , wherein θ 1 , θ 2 , θ 3 and θ 4 can be obtained by the above mentioned method . furthermore , the mobile device transmits a receive signal strength ( rss ) to a processing module 440 , wherein the mobile device transmits a first receive signal strength ( rss 1 ) to the i - th first antenna and transmits a second receive signal strength ( rss 2 ) to the i - th second antenna , wherein i is an integer between 1 and m . the processing module 440 utilizes d and θ to calculate . the processing module 440 obtains k 1 , k 2 , k 3 and k 4 , wherein g 1 , g 2 , g 3 and g 4 can be obtained from the antenna gain table corresponding to θ . before judging whether the position p 1 or p 2 is the real positioning location , the problems of interference have to be confirmed to increase the reliability of the estimation of g / d 2 . concerning how to determine the interference , please refer to relations described in the first embodiment , which is not mentioned herein . when the environment inference factor is ignorable and both of the following inequalities are satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the first position p 1 shown in fig4 . on the other hand , when the environment inference factor is ignorable and both of the following inequalities are satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the second position p 2 shown in fig4 . in this embodiment , the second predetermined value is defined as a difference percentage of the positions p 1 and p 2 and set by a designer according to practical applications , such as 50 %. if is smaller than the standard set by the designer ( such as 50 %), the real positioning location will be hard to be confirmed . the reason might be the antenna patterns of the first wireless communication modules 40 , the second wireless communication modules 42 and the mobile device . in conclusion , it will be ended if the real positioning location can be determined . when the environment inference factor is ignorable , and the i - th first antenna and the i - th second antenna are unable to position the mobile device , the processing module switches antennas by the following method . when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 calculates a first difference between the fifth gain ( g 5 ) corresponding to a first angle ( θ 1 ) and the seventh gain ( g 7 ) corresponding to a three angle ( θ 3 ) and a second difference between the sixth gain ( g 6 ) corresponding to a second angle ( θ 2 ) and the eighth gain ( g 8 ) corresponding to ( θ 4 ) for each of the remainder first antennas and each of the m − 1 corresponding second antennas . g 5 & gt ; g 7 and g 6 & lt ; g 8 . condition 1 : g 5 & lt ; g 7 and g 6 & gt ; g 8 . condition 2 : when one of the first differences and one of the second differences are the maximum as compared with others , the processing module 440 switches the i - th first antenna to the corresponding first antenna and switches the i - th second antenna to the corresponding second antenna . afterward , the mobile device transmits a third receive signal strength ( rss 3 ) to the switched first antenna and transmits a fourth receive signal strength ( rss 4 ) to the switched second antenna . the processing module 440 obtains a fifth gain ( g 5 ) corresponding to the first angle ( θ 1 ) and a sixth gain ( g 6 ) corresponding to the second angle ( θ 2 ) based on the first antenna gain table corresponding to the switched first antenna . in the meanwhile , the processing module 440 obtains a seventh gain ( g 7 ) corresponding to the third angle ( θ 3 ) and an eighth gain ( θ 8 ) corresponding to the fourth angle ( θ 4 ) based on the second antenna gain table corresponding to the switched second antenna . when one of the following inequalities is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the first position p 1 shown in fig4 . on the other hand , when both of the following inequalities are satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the second position p 2 shown in fig4 . when the environment inference factor is significant , or the i - th first antenna and the i - th second antenna are unable to position the mobile device , antennas are switched b y the following method . when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 calculates a third difference between the ninth gain ( g 9 ) corresponding to the first angle ( θ 1 ) and the original first gain ( g 1 ), and calculates a fourth difference between the tenth gain ( g 10 ) corresponding to the second angle ( θ 2 ) and the original second gain ( g 2 ) for each of the remainder first antennas . g 9 & gt ; g 1 and g 10 & lt ; g 2 . condition 11 : g 9 & lt ; g 1 and g 10 & gt ; g 2 . condition 12 : when one of the third differences and one of the fourth differences are the maximum as compared with others , the processing module 440 then switches the i - th first antenna to the corresponding first antenna . furthermore , when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 calculates a fifth difference between the eleventh gain ( g 11 ) corresponding to the third angle ( θ 3 ) and the original third gain ( g 3 ) and a sixth difference between the twelfth gain ( g 12 ) corresponding to the fourth angle ( θ 4 ) and the original fourth gain ( g 4 ) for each of the remainder second antennas . g 11 & gt ; g 3 and g 12 & lt ; g 4 . condition 13 : g 11 & lt ; g 3 and g 12 & gt ; g 4 . condition 14 : when one of the fifth differences and one of the sixth differences are the maximum as compared with others , the processing module 440 switches the i - th first antenna to the corresponding second antenna . afterward , the mobile device transmits a fifth receive signal strength ( rss 5 ) to the switched first antenna and transmits a sixth receive signal strength ( rss 6 ) to the switched second antenna . the processing module 440 obtains a ninth gain ( g 9 ) corresponding to the first angle ( θ 1 ) and a tenth gain ( g 10 ) corresponding to the second angle ( θ 2 ) based on the first antenna gain table corresponding to the switched first antenna , and obtains an eleventh gain ( g 11 ) corresponding to the third angle ( θ 3 ) and a twelfth gain ( g 12 ) corresponding to the fourth angle ( θ 4 ) based on the second antenna gain table corresponding to the switched second antenna . when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the first position pi shown in fig4 . g 9 & gt ; g 1 , rss 5 & gt ; rss 1 and g 10 ≦ g 2 . condition 3 : g 9 & lt ; g 1 , rss 5 & lt ; rss 1 and g 10 ≧ g 2 . condition 4 : on the other hand , when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the second position p 2 shown in fig4 . g 10 & gt ; g 2 , rss 5 & gt ; rss 1 and g 9 ≦ g 1 . condition 5 : g 10 & lt ; g 2 , rss 5 & lt ; rss 1 and g 9 ≧ g 1 . condition 6 : when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the first position p 1 shown in fig4 : g 11 & gt ; g 3 , rss 6 & gt ; rss 2 and g 12 ≦ g 4 . condition 7 : g 11 & lt ; g 3 , rss 6 & lt ; rss 2 and g 12 ≧ g 4 . condition 8 : on the other hand , when one of the following conditions is satisfied , the processing module 440 judges that the mobile device is located at the second position p 2 shown in fig4 . g 12 & gt ; g 4 , rss 6 & gt ; rss 2 and g 11 ≦ g 3 . condition 9 : g 12 & lt ; g 4 , rss 6 & lt ; rss 2 and g 11 ≧ g 3 . condition 10 : according to the second embodiment described as above , the positioning system of this invention can find the most suitable antenna for positioning the mobile device before switching antennas , so as to avoid meaningless calculations . it should be noticed that if the first and second wireless communication module 40 and 42 utilize rss algorithm to position the mobile device after the antenna is switched , the mobile device has to be re - positioned to obtain a new distance d and angle θ . and , if the new angle θ is different to the old angle θ , the new angle θ is being substituted for the old angle θ . besides , the invention also can utilize the positioning system 4 ′ shown in fig3 b or the positioning system 4 ″ shown in fig3 c to judge that the mobile device is located at the position p 1 or the position p 2 shown in fig4 . the hardware system 44 can be substituted by the hardware system 44 a or 44 b ; the processing module 440 can be substituted by the processing module 440 a or 440 b , and the storage module 442 can be substituted by the storage module 442 a or 442 b , which all depends on practical applications . please refer to fig7 a and fig7 b . fig7 a is a schematic diagram illustrating a directional antenna pattern . fig7 b is a schematic diagram illustrating an omni - directional antenna pattern . the patterns adopted by the invention can be a directional antenna pattern ( shown as fig7 a ) cooperating with an omni - directional antenna pattern ( shown as fig7 b ) to recover weak communication signal in certain directions in the directional antenna pattern . in the practice of the invention presented , it is certainly better to have more antennas with the directional antenna pattern and to decrease the areas which are hard to make a judgment upon positioning . besides , it also can utilize a switch between the directional antenna pattern and the omni - directional antenna pattern to assist in judging the position . the φ shown in fig7 a indicates an angle occupied by a principle half - power beamwidths of a directional antenna . please refer to fig8 a and fig1 b . fig8 a is a schematic diagram illustrating six directional antennas and one omni - directional antenna . fig8 b is a schematic diagram illustrating geometrical shape of an antenna pattern shown in fig8 a . fig9 a is a schematic diagram illustrating four directional antennas and one omni - directional antenna . fig9 b is a schematic diagram illustrating geometrical shape of an antenna pattern shown in fig9 a . fig1 a is a schematic diagram illustrating three directional antennas and one omni - directional antenna . fig1 b is a schematic diagram illustrating geometrical shape of an antenna pattern shown in fig1 a . in order to decrease the areas which are hard to make a judgment upon positioning , the invention provides three kinds of antenna switching modes shown in fig8 a , fig9 a and fig1 a . the main difference among the three modes is the range and accuracy in positioning . fig8 a is the best , and fig9 a is the second . geometrical shape of positioning ranges in the three modes are shown as fig8 b , fig9 b and fig1 b . in order to have better effect on judging , the invention can further set following rules : ( 1 ) the gain of directional antenna at principle half - power beamwidths is 3 db larger than that of omni - directional antenna ; ( 2 ) if the number of directional antenna in use is larger than six , gain of directional antenna at principle half - power beamwidths can be at least 6 db larger than that of omni - directional antenna ; ( 3 ) if the number of directional antenna in use is six , and the φ can be between 30 degrees and 60 degrees ; ( 4 ) if the number of directional antenna in use is five , and the φ can be between 30 degrees and 72 degrees ; ( 5 ) if the number of directional antenna in use is four , and the φ can be between 45 degrees and 90 degrees . ( 6 ) if the number of directional antenna in use is three , and the φ can be between 60 degrees and 120 degrees . accordingly , if they are unable to position the mobile device , the invention still can assist in positioning by utilizing following methods : ( 1 ) according to rss database corresponding to positioned location in the past , compared with the points which are hard to be judged . because d obtained from the original method and the positions of p 1 and p 2 are well - defined , it is only required to confirm the directions now . therefore , the method is to compare rss corresponding to the possible position p 1 and p 2 with the database of rss data corresponding to the point position which is formed in a two - dimension x - y plan . it can be judged by checking the approximation degree of rss corresponding to the possible position p 1 and p 2 and database . if the database is lack of rss data at the point position , obtain it by the least - square method . ( 2 ) if there are some devices with a function of positioning ( toa or rss ) nearby , they can assist in antennas positioning of the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 . it has to be noticed that the positioning system of the invention is applicable not only to that both the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 are fixed but also to that the first and second wireless communication modules 40 and 42 are mobile ; while applying to mobile wireless communication modules , directional sensor , for example gyro , has to be provided thereon . with the example and explanations above , the features and spirits of the invention will be hopefully well described . those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device may be made while retaining the teaching of the invention . accordingly , the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims .	6
when data is read from a memory system , such as an array of memory cells , it may contain errors for a variety of reasons . these errors can be corrected by applying , for example , error correction codes ( eccs ). the efficiency of an error correction code can be enhanced by generating indications about the quality of the data , and applying the error correction code in combination with the indications about the data quality . also , the memory system can be operated based on the quality indication even without the ecc indicating the presence of errors . the invention can be practiced in any kind of memory or storage system , such as , for example , random access memories , non - volatile or flash memories , magnetic or optical discs . the memory systems can represent data with two or multi - level schemes . as an example , first an array of memory cells will be described , and then different methods for improving the efficiency of the error correction codes will be discussed . [ 0028 ] fig1 shows a block diagram of a memory system including an array of memory elements . a large number of individually addressable memory cells are arranged in a regular array 11 of rows and columns . individual memory cells can be controlled by bit lines , select gates arranged in word lines , and steering gates . bit lines are designated herein to extend along columns of array 11 , and word lines are designated to extend along the rows of array 11 . bit line unit 13 may include a bit line decoder , storage elements , driver circuits and sense amplifiers . bit line unit 13 can be coupled to cell array ii by line 15 , and to controller 27 by bit - control line 29 and by read line 41 . word line unit 19 may include a select gate decoder and driver circuits . word line unit 19 can be coupled to cell array 11 by line 17 , and to controller 27 by word - control line 31 . steering line unit 21 may include a steering gate decoder and driver circuits . steering unit 21 can be coupled to cell array 11 by line 23 , to controller 27 by steering - control line 33 , and to bit line unit 13 by line 22 . bit line unit 13 , word line unit 19 and steering unit 21 can be coupled to bus 25 , which in turn is coupled to controller 27 . controller 27 can be coupled to the host by line 35 . when a preselected memory cell is to be programmed , voltages can be applied to the bit lines , word line and steering gates , corresponding to the preselected memory cell , at predetermined levels sufficient for the programming of the preselected cell . controller 27 sends the address of the preselected memory cell through bus 25 to the respective decoders in bit line unit 13 , word line unit 19 , and steering gate unit 21 through lines 26 a , 26 b , and 26 c , respectively . status and control commands between bit line unit 13 , word line unit 19 , steering gate unit 21 and controller 27 are communicated through bit - control line 29 , word - control line 31 and steering control line 33 . when a preselected memory cell is to be read , voltages can be applied to the corresponding bit lines , word line and steering gates , corresponding to the preselected memory cell , at predetermined levels , sufficient to enable the reading of the preselected memory cell . controller 27 is capable of applying the voltages of the bit lines through bit - control line 29 , applying the voltages of the word lines through word - control line 31 and applying the voltages of steering gates through steering control line 33 . a current can be generated through the preselected memory cell by these voltages . the current is indicative of whether the preselected memory cell was programmed or not . the value of the current can be amplified and compared against references by sense amplifiers in bit line unit 13 , the result of which can be temporarily stored in latches or registers . the resultant data , read out from the preselected memory cell , can be sent to controller 27 through read line 41 . fig2 a - c illustrate an embodiment of the invention . during the operation of the memory system , data storage values 102 can be read from an array of memory cells . the data storage values 102 can be read as values of a signal . possible signals include , for example , voltage or current levels . in some embodiments the data storage values 102 are transferred to controller 27 , where an error correction code can be applied to the data storage values . in order to increase the data storage density , some memory systems apply multi level storage schemes , where individual memory cells can store data not only associated with binary “ 0 ” s and “ 1 ” s , but in several states . the number of these states can be chosen to be a power of 2 , including 4 , 8 , or 16 . the values of the signal corresponding to data storage values 102 can lie within an overall signal storage value interval 100 . in some embodiments overall signal storage value interval 100 can be divided into individual storage value intervals 104 - i to capture the multi - level aspect of data storage values 102 in terms of digital data values . here i denotes positive integers . the read data storage value 102 then falls into one of the storage value intervals 104 - i . the storage value intervals 104 - i can correspond to the levels of the multi - level data storage values . accordingly , i can take the corresponding values between 1 and 4 , 8 , or 16 . storage value intervals 104 - i can be adjacent , and substantially equal in magnitude . in order to convert from analog data storage values to digital data values , digital data values 106 - i can be associated with storage value intervals 104 - i . as an example , if a multi - level memory system stores 4 bits of data in 2 4 = 16 levels , then the overall signal storage value interval 100 can be correspondingly divided into 16 storage value intervals 104 - i , and the 16 digital data values 106 - i can be correspondingly associated with the 16 storage value intervals 104 - i in order to capture the 16 possible data storage values . accordingly , i can take on values between 1 and 16 . a possible assignment of the digital data values 106 - 1 through 106 - 16 can be the integers from 0 through 15 , or 1 through 16 . within storage value intervals 104 - i , central preferred ranges 108 - i and peripheral adjacent ranges 112 - i can be defined . a central preferred range 08 - i can be a range of signal values contained within a storage value interval 104 - i , for example , spanning the middle portion of storage value interval 104 - i . the peripheral adjacent ranges 112 - i can be ranges of signal values within storage value intervals 104 - i , on one or both sides of the central preferred range 108 - i . as mentioned before , voltage levels may shift from their designed values . to accommodate such shifts , a low margin 114 - 1 and a high margin 114 - 2 is allocated at the ends of the overall storage value interval 100 . as illustrated in fig2 a , in some embodiments central preferred ranges 108 - i and peripheral adjacent ranges 112 - i can be defined in terms of analog signal values . in this specific example , the read data storage value 102 lies in the peripheral adjacent range 112 - 1 - 1 of storage value interval 104 - 1 , thus it has the associated digital data value 106 - 1 , which is “ 1 .” as illustrated in fig2 b , in other embodiments storage value intervals 104 - i can be further divided into sub - intervals 116 - i - j , where j is a positive integer . for example , an individual storage value interval 104 - i can be divided into 7 sub - intervals 116 - i - j , where correspondingly j can take on values between 1 and 7 . in this case , in a multi level memory system with , for example , 2 4 = 16 levels , the overall signal storage value interval 100 can be divided into 128 sub - intervals . out of this 128 sub - interval 16 × 7 = 112 sub - intervals are used to accommodate the 16 storage value intervals 104 - i with 7 sub - interval in each storage value interval 104 - i , and 8 and 8 sub - intervals are used to accommodate the low and high margins 114 - 1 and 114 - 2 , respectively . the sub - intervals can be substantially equal in magnitude . in this specific example , the read data storage value 102 lies in sub - interval 116 - 1 - 2 , therefore it lies within peripheral adjacent range 112 - 1 - 1 and thus has the associated digital data value 106 - 1 , which is “ 1 .” in some embodiments the data storage value 102 can be first converted into digital data with a high precision according to the sub - intervals , and then central preferred ranges 108 - i and peripheral adjacent ranges 112 - i can be defined in terms of these high - precision digital data . in the specific example above , the data storage value 102 can be converted into a seven - bit digital data according to which sub - interval 116 - i - j it lies in , wherein j can assume values from 1 to 7 . the seven - bit digital data value range 116 - i - 1 through 116 - i - 7 can be represented by the four - bit digital data value 106 - i as an “ i .” for example , the seven - bit digital data value range 116 - 1 - 1 through 116 - 1 - 7 can be associated with the four - bit digital data value 106 - 1 as a “ 1 ,” the seven - bit digital data value range 116 - 2 - 1 through 116 - 2 - 7 can be associated with the four - bit digital data value 106 - 2 as a “ 2 ,” and so on . the central preferred range 108 - 1 can be the seven - bit digital data value range 116 - 1 - 3 through 116 - 1 - 5 , and the peripheral adjacent ranges 112 - 1 - 1 and 112 - 1 - 2 can be the seven - bit digital data ranges 116 - 1 - 1 through 116 - 1 - 2 and 116 - 1 - 7 through 116 - 1 - 8 , respectively . storage value intervals 104 - 1 and 104 - 2 can be separated by separation point 127 - 1 . if the sub - intervals 116 - i - j are indexed with an overall number from 1 to 128 , then the above assignments can be restated as follows . the low margin 114 - 1 is associated with sub - intervals 1 - 8 , the digital data value “ 1 ” is associated with sub - intervals 9 - 15 , the digital data value “ 2 ” is associated with sub - intervals 16 - 22 , and so on . within sub - intervals 9 - 15 the central preferred range is sub - intervals 11 - 13 , and the peripheral adjacent ranges are 9 - 10 and 14 - 15 , and so on . when a data storage value 102 is read from the memory system , an individual storage value interval 104 - i is identified within which the read data storage value 102 lies . also identified is whether data storage value 102 lies within the central preferred range 108 - i , or in a peripheral adjacent range 112 - i - 1 or 112 - i - 2 within the storage value interval 104 - i . the digital data value 106 - i , which is associated with the data storage value &# 39 ; s storage value interval 104 - i , can be chosen as the digital representation of the data storage value 102 . this digital representation of the data storage value 102 will be supplemented with indication concerning the quality of the data storage value 102 . this quality indication can reflect where the data storage value 102 falls within storage value interval 104 - i . if the data storage value 102 falls within the central preferred range 108 - i , a “ good quality ” indication can be generated . if the data storage value 102 falls outside the central preferred range 108 - i , and within a peripheral adjacent range 112 - i - 1 or 112 - i - 2 , a “ poor quality ” indication can be generated . in some embodiments this indication can be associated with the digital data value 106 - i , representing data storage value 102 . for example , a binary digit can be attached to the digital data value 106 - i , where a binary “ 1 ” can represent “ good quality ”, and a binary “ 0 ” can represent “ poor quality ”. in some embodiments the opposite convention can be utilized . if a data storage value 102 has a “ poor quality ” indication , then a further indication can be generated about its quality by identifying the peripheral adjacent range 112 - i - j within which the data storage value 102 lies . if data storage value 102 lies in peripheral adjacent range 112 - i - 1 with a value lower than the lowest value of the corresponding preferred central range 108 - i , then a “ low anomaly ” indication can be generated . if data storage value 102 lies in peripheral adjacent range 112 - i - 2 with a value higher than the highest value of the corresponding preferred central range 108 - i , then a “ high anomaly ” indication can be generated . in some embodiments this indication can be associated with the digital data value 106 - i , representing data storage value 102 . for example , an additional binary digit can be attached to the digital data value 106 - i , where a binary “ 1 ” can represent “ high anomaly ”, and a binary “ 0 ” can represent “ low anomaly ”. in some embodiments the opposite convention can be utilized . [ 0040 ] fig2 c illustrates a corresponding embodiment of the invention , where a data storage value 102 has specifically 16 levels , thus the associated digital data value 106 - i has four bits . quality indication 132 - i is associated with this digital data value by attaching a fifth bit , representing “ good quality ” or “ poor quality ”, and an anomaly indication 134 - i is associated as a sixth bit , representing “ high anomaly ” or “ low anomaly .” the digital data 106 - i can be read into controller 27 for processing with using an error correction code , while the associated quality indication can be stored temporarily , for example , in a buffer . the quality indication can be read in later , if the error correction code requires further indication . the quality indication can be associated with the digital data values already within the memory . in the above embodiment , the data storage values are read with seven - bit precision . then the four - bit digital data value 106 - i and the quality indications 132 - i and 134 - i are associated with the data storage value 102 within the memory and subsequently shifted out to the controller . in other embodiments the seven - bit representation of the data storage values can be shifted out to the controller , and the controller extracts the representative four - bit digital data value and the associated quality indications . in further embodiments a “ look - up ” table is generated , with 2 7 = 128 entries , within the above example . the entries &# 39 ; addresses in the look - up table correspond to the 128 sub - intervals , within which the data storage values can lie . the entries at the addresses can contain six bits , four representing the digital data values and the remaining two the quality indications . the quality indications can indicate , for example , “ good quality ” or “ poor quality ,” and “ high anomaly ” or “ low anomaly .” such look - up tables can be hosted , for example , in random access memories . when the data storage value is read , the sub - interval is determined within which the data storage value lies . next , the look - up table &# 39 ; s six - bit entry , corresponding to the determined sub - interval , is shifted out to the controller for further processing . for a variety of reasons digital data values 106 - i can be corrupted . some of the reasons can be the leakage of the charges from memory cells , a problem exacerbated by the ever - diminishing size of memory cells in high - density memory systems . these high densities are also achieved by decreasing the inter - cell separation . this aspect of modern memory array design leads to an enhanced chance for interference between memory cells in close proximity . for example , charges of one memory cell can create an electric field , a fraction of which impinges on and modifies the read - out current of another memory cell . finally , data can also be corrupted depending on the history experienced by the cell . data storage values in memory cells , which are written and read excessively , may be more likely to develop errors by shifting from the preferred central ranges . because of the possibility of corruption , the digital data values should not be transferred to a user without some form of testing and correcting . in many memory systems these functions are carried out by applying an error correction code ( ecc ) to digital data values 106 - i . typically , an ecc is applied to the data when writing the data into the memory and the result stored , for example , in additional bits alongside the data . an example is the ( 7 , 4 ) hamming code , which associates three additional bits with every four - bit word to achieve a minimum hamming distance of three between any two of the 16 possible four - bit data . the ecc is recomputed when reading the same data and its associated ecc bits , and the results of the recomputation of the ecc can be compared with the mathematically expected result . if the recomputed and the expected results are the same , then the data were probably not corrupted , whereas , if the recomputed and expected results do not agree , then the data have been corrupted . it is noteworthy that the ecc can be applied to data groups of different sizes . furthermore , in flash memory systems the ecc can be computed for its associated data sector , while the data is read essentially simultaneously . once the number of items of data that are corrupted exceeds a threshold defined by the particular ecc in use , the probability of properly reconstructing the data drops off precipitously . for example , if in a sector of 512 bytes of data one or two items of data are corrupted , the appropriate ecc can reconstruct the corrupted data with 100 % certainty . however , if the number of corrupted data is higher than a critical number , for example , between three and ten , for some eccs about five , then the ecc has a prohibitively low probability of reconstructing the data correctly , and potentially a prohibitively high probability of reconstructing the data incorrectly . many eccs use additional bits for data recovery . a general relation concerning the ecc &# 39 ; s ability to reconstruct data was first given by hamming . if a memory system uses binary words of length m , capable of coding n = 2 m different data , then t corrupted data can be corrected reliably , if the memory system uses at least p additional bits , where a lower bound on the value of p is given by the “ lower hamming limit ”: p ≥ ∑ i = 0 t   ( n i ) equivalently , this relation can be read to state that if a memory system uses p additional bits then an ecc is capable of reconstructing words reliably with at most t corrupted bits . in many systems p is chosen such that the reconstruction of a data sector with one or two errors can be carried out with high reliability . to address this issue , eccs not only generate the most likely reconstruction of the data , but they can also evaluate the reliability of the reconstructed data . in the above example , if the ecc detects the presence of about one or two corrupted data , then the ecc can indicate that the reconstructed data are very likely correct . in this case the reconstructed data can be transferred from controller 27 to a user . if the ecc finds about three to five corrupted data , then the ecc can indicate that the probability of having reconstructed the corrupted data correctly is reduced . depending on the subsequent usage of the data , controller 27 can then decide whether to accept or reject the reconstructed data and transfer it to a user . finally , if the ecc finds more than about five corrupted data , then the ecc can indicate that the probability of having reconstructed the corrupted data correctly is very low or that it is unable to reconstruct the data . the actual numerical values may differ from the quoted ones in different implementations of eccs . there is also the chance of false data reconstruction . since the ecc is using only summary indication about a data sector , it may also find by coincidence that replacing the corrupted “ 8 ” with a “ 3 ” seemingly lowers the error count , and therefore accepts the “ 3 .” such false data reconstruction can rapidly aggravate the data recovery , making it unreliable . in these and other cases of reduced reliability , the controller 27 may employ auxiliary corrective methods to increase the reliability of the ecc . some embodiments of the invention increase the reliability of the ecc by providing additional indication about the data . this can be achieved , for example , by controller 27 reading in the stored quality indications associated with digital data values 106 - i . one cause for the limitations of the ecc &# 39 ; s ability to reconstruct the data is that the ecc is unable to determine the locations of the corrupted bits within the data sector , and thus is unable to correct the corrupted data . this problem can be remedied by some embodiments of the invention , since “ poor quality ” data are likely candidates for being corrupted data , and since when the quality of an item of data is determined , its location is also known . therefore the location of “ poor quality ” data can also be provided to the ecc . consequently , the ecc &# 39 ; s ability to reconstruct the data reliably within the time frame available for error correction can be increased by suggesting to the error correcting process bits likely to be in error , based on their identified “ poor quality .” [ 0054 ] fig3 illustrates another advantage of some embodiments : they can provide suggestions for the ecc about how to reconstruct a corrupted item of data . if , for example , computing the ecc indicates the presence of corrupted data in a data sector , then the four - bit digital data value 106 - i that has the quality indicator 132 - i indicating a “ poor quality ,” is a likely candidate for being the corrupted data . if , in particular , the four - bit digital data value 106 - i has a “ low anomaly ” indication , then it is likely that before the corruption the corresponding storage data value 102 was represented by a digital data value lower by one , 106 -( i − 1 ). for example , if the digital data value of a “ poor quality ” data storage value was an “ 8 ” with a “ low anomaly ” indication , then it is likely that before the corruption the storage data value corresponded to the digital data value “ 7 ,” and shifted upward from there . the embodiment can then suggest the ecc to try correcting the corrupted “ 8 ” specifically to a “ 7 .” this suggestion can increase the reliability of the reconstructed data and thus the effectiveness of the ecc , since in the absence of such indication the ecc has to try all possible numbers in its effort to correct the corrupt “ 8 ,” lowering its chances to reconstruct the corrupted data correctly within the typically short time frames available for data correction . it is possible that upon reading a sector more than one digital data value will be characterized as “ poor quality .” if the number of “ poor quality ” digital data values is n , then there are 2 n − 1 possible ways of correcting the corrupted data according to the quality indications , since each of the n digital data values can be individually changed . with a high probability the reconstructed data can be found among these 2 n − 1 possible corrections . thus by suggesting to the ecc to start the data reconstruction by trying these 2 n − 1 combinations first , the digital data values can potentially be reconstructed faster . it is worth noting that no additional time consuming read operations are needed , all the indication for the data reconstruction already being available to the ecc and controller . the quality indications can be utilized in yet another way . when a sector of data is read from a memory system , the quality indications can also be collected to generate and track the statistical distribution of the data storage values of the sector and its quality . an advantage of doing so is that data corruption may be systematic within some sectors . reasons for this may have their origin in external circumstances , such as a change of temperature , modifying the operating parameters of the sector . or the reason can be connected to the history of the sector . for example , since erase operations , based on fowler - nordheim tunneling , can bias the source - substrate junction of certain flash memory cells close to the breakdown voltage , frequent erase operations may cause the deterioration of the physical structure of the memory cell , potentially leading to charge loss . also , it is possible that during the manufacturing process the characteristics of a particular sector deviate from the preferred values because of manufacturing or material irregularities . such systematic data corruption can be acted upon using the statistics of quality indications . fig4 a - c illustrate possible statistical distributions of data storage values in two neighboring storage value intervals 104 - i and 104 -( i + 1 ). as shown in fig4 a , in typical cases data storage values will exhibit distributions of the type 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ) around the corresponding preferred central ranges 108 - i and 108 -( i + 1 ). in this case distributions 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ) are well separated in the sense that most or all data storage values lie close to the corresponding preferred central ranges 108 - i and 108 -( i + 1 ) and very few or none are in the vicinity of separation point 127 - i . this fact can be re - expressed by introducing the concept of a separation gap 129 - i between distributions 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ). the separation gap 129 - i denotes a range where very few or no data storage values lie , and it is located around separation point 127 - i . data storage values which lie between separation points 127 - i and 127 -( i + 1 ) will be associated with digital data value 106 - i , and so on . [ 0058 ] fig4 a shows an embodiment , in which storage value intervals 104 - i and 104 -( i + 1 ) are divided into sub - intervals 116 - i - j and 116 -( i + 1 )- j , respectively , where j can take on values between 1 and 7 . in this embodiment distributions are well separated , if most or all of data storage values lie within sub - intervals with j values between 2 and 6 , the majority of which lie in the central preferred ranges with j between 3 and 5 . in case of such well - separated distributions , data storage values 102 can be related to digital data values 106 - i with high reliability . [ 0059 ] fig4 b shows a possible situation , when neighboring distributions 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ) are corrupted in a systematic manner . such systematic corruption can be caused by , for example , a variation of temperature . in this case distributions 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ) are shifted upwards in the sense that the number of “ high anomaly ” data is larger than the number of “ low anomaly ” data . in cases of such a systematic shift , distributions 122 - i , 122 -( i + 1 ), and 122 -( i + 2 ) still remain well separated . [ 0060 ] fig4 b again illustrates an embodiment in which storage value intervals 104 - i are further divided into sub - intervals 116 - i - j . the systematic shift is seen by the distributions 122 - i , 122 -( i + 1 ), and 122 -( i + 2 ) having some data storage values within sub - intervals j = 1 , essentially no data storage values in j = 2 , 3 , and 4 , and the bulk of the data storage values in the sub - intervals j = 5 , 6 , and 7 . in this case , before getting shifted , the data storage values in sub interval 116 -( i + 1 )- 1 most likely corresponded to the storage value interval 104 - i and thus were associated with digital data value 106 - i , and not with 106 -( i + 1 ), which would be associated with them in an unmodified procedure . if the statistics of the data storage values of a sector is found to exhibit a systematic shift , and the distributions remain well separated by a shifted separation gap 129 - i ′, in some embodiments the controller 27 may employ some corrective action after a sufficient statistics has been collected about the data sector . for each pair of neighboring distributions 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ) the controller 27 may identify the corresponding systematic shift of these distributions , and then shift the separation point 127 - i by the identified systematic shift to 127 - i ′. in the example of fig4 b , distributions 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ), and in particular their separation gap 129 - i , have been shifted up by two sub - intervals . consequently the controller 27 may counteract this systematic shift by shifting separation point 127 - i up by two sub - intervals to 127 - i ′. this means that in subsequent read operations , data storage values lying in interval 116 -( i + 1 )- 1 , visibly belonging to distribution 122 - i , will be assigned the correct digital data value of 106 - i , and not 106 -( i + 1 ). these shifts need not be uniform across overall storage value interval 100 , in that the above - mentioned external or internal causes of systematic shifts might affect the different storage value intervals 104 - i within overall storage value interval 100 differently . [ 0063 ] fig4 c illustrates another possibility , where the neighboring distributions 122 - i and 122 -( i + 1 ) do not exhibit a systematic shift , but rather a broadening . such a broadening can lead to the overlapping of the tails of the distributions , as shown in fig4 c . when a data storage value lies in the overlap region , and computing the ecc with the assigned digital data value indicates an error , the assignment of digital data values can be individually modified . similarly to the embodiment of fig3 if the data storage value lies in the overlap region , for example , in sub - interval 116 - i - 7 , then the digital data value 106 - i will be associated with it , as well as a “ poor quality ” indication and a “ high anomaly ” indication . consequently , if the ecc detects the presence of errors within the data sector , then , based on the quality indications , some embodiments will suggest to the ecc to correct the assignment of this data storage value from digital data value 106 - i to digital data value 106 -( i + 1 ). according to another aspect of the invention additional corrective actions can be executed based on the statistics of a sector &# 39 ; s “ poor quality ” data . these corrective actions can be executed by a controller external to the memory system , or , in other embodiments , by some logic internal to the memory system . hereafter , the unit , which executes the corrective action , will be referred to as “ the controller .” the total number of “ poor quality ” data can be counted in any data sector of a memory system . this counting can be executed , for example , during some or all readings of the data of the sector , or during specific “ house keeping ” operations , aimed only at determining the quality of the data of the sector . in this embodiment it is not even necessary that the application of an fcc indicate the presence of errors in the data sector . even if the ecc indicates that the data sector is error free , an increase in number of “ poor quality ” data can indicate that the quality of data in the sector is degrading . driven by this indication proactive corrective actions can be performed in a timely manner , thus preventing the appearance of actual errors . [ 0065 ] fig5 illustrates a flow chart of operating a memory system in relation to the count of “ poor quality ” data . a ) if c , the count of “ poor quality ” data of a sector is zero , or smaller than a first predetermined value n 1 , c & lt ; n 1 , this indicates that the quality of the sector &# 39 ; s data did not degrade , or only to a low , tolerable degree . therefore , no corrective actions are required . b ) if c , the count of “ poor quality ” data of a sector is between a first and a second predetermined value , n 1 ≦ c & lt ; n 2 , this indicates that the quality of the sector &# 39 ; s data degraded to some degree . therefore , the data of the sector should be refreshed , rewritten , or transcribed to another sector at some time . however , the degree of degrading is such that the probability of actual errors developing is low . therefore , the above corrective actions need not be executed immediately , but can be delayed until a suitable later time . for example , these corrective actions can be executed at a time , when the memory system has finished executing the read commands , and is also not performing any other higher priority jobs . c ) if c , the count of “ poor quality ” data of a sector is between a second and a third predetermined value , n 2 ≦ c & lt ; n 3 , this indicates that the quality of the sector &# 39 ; s data degraded to a considerable degree , which requires that the data of the sector be refreshed , rewritten , or transcribed immediately , or within a short , predetermined delay . d ) if c , the count of “ poor quality ” data of a sector is higher than a third predetermined value , n 3 ≦ c , this indicates that the quality of the sector &# 39 ; s data degraded to an intolerable degree . causes of the degrading may be internal to the sector , such as an extensive wear caused by an excessive number of read and write operations , or some material or manufacturing irregularity . in either case , it is likely that the quality of data written into the sector in the future will degrade as well . this foreseeable degrading can be prevented by immediately , or with high priority , transcribing the data from this low quality sector to another sector of the memory system . the low quality sector can then be retired so that in the future no data will be written into it . some further embodiments utilize tracking cells positioned among the regular memory cells of the memory system . tracking cells and their operation are described , for example , in u . s . pat . nos . 6 , 222 , 762 b1 and 6 , 275 , 419 b1 , both granted to d . guterman et al . tracking cells experience the same external and internal influences as the regular memory cells , thus the statistics of the tracking cells can be representative of the statistics of the whole array of memory cells . therefore , a memory system can be operated according to the steps of fig5 in relation to the count of “ poor quality ” data among the tracking cells only . another embodiment compiles the number of errors , detected by the ecc , when reading the data of a sector . as illustrated by the flow chart in fig6 different types of corrective actions can be executed in relation to the number of errors . a ) if e , the number of errors in a sector is zero or less than a first predetermined value m 1 , e & lt ; m 1 , this indicates that the data of the sector were not corrupted , or only to a low , tolerable degree , thus they can be reconstructed reliably by the ecc , possibly in combination with the quality indications . b ) if e , the number of errors in a sector is between a first and a second predetermined value , m 1 ≦ e & lt ; m 2 , this indicates that the data of the sector have been corrupted to some degree . therefore , first the sector &# 39 ; s data has to be reconstructed by the ecc , possibly in combination with the quality indications , and then the sector &# 39 ; s data should be refreshed , rewritten , or transcribed to another sector at some time . however , the degree of corruption is such that the data can still be reconstructed with high reliability by the ecc , possibly in combination with the quality indications . moreover , these corrective actions need not be executed immediately , but can be delayed until a suitable later time . for example , these corrective actions can be executed at a time , when the memory system has finished executing the read commands , and is also not performing any other higher priority jobs . c ) if e , the number of errors in a sector is between a second and a third predetermined value , m 2 ≦ e & lt ; m 3 , this indicates that the data of the sector have been corrupted to a considerable degree . therefore , first the sector &# 39 ; s data has to be reconstructed by the ecc , possibly in combination with the quality indications , and then the sector &# 39 ; s data should be refreshed , rewritten , or transcribed to another new sector immediately , or within a short , predetermined delay . d ) if e , the number of errors in a sector is higher than a third predetermined value , m 3 ≦ e , this indicates that the data of the sector have been corrupted to an intolerable degree . causes of the corruption may be internal to the sector , such as an extensive wear caused by an excessive number of read and write operations , or some material or manufacturing irregularity . in either case , it is likely that data written into the sector in the future will get corrupted again . therefore , first the sector &# 39 ; s data has to be reconstructed by the ecc , possibly in combination with the quality indications . second , future corruption of the data can be prevented by immediately , or with high priority , transcribing the data from the corrupted sector to another new sector of the memory system . afterwards , the corrupted sector can be retired so that in the future no data will be written into it . as mentioned earlier , error correction codes cannot recover more than a number k of corrupted data with high probability . in the earlier example k took the value 5 . sometimes it is said that the ecc is “ swamped ,” if more than k data are corrupted in a sector . in the above flow chart m 3 can be equal to or different from k . in particular , the memory system can be operated such that even though the ecc can reconstruct the data with high probability , i . e . e & lt ; k , the data is to be transcribed and the sector is to be retired , i . e . m 3 & lt ; e & lt ; k . in some embodiments , the errors can be counted by counters of limited capacity . an example can be a four - value counter for each sector , if the ecc can reconstruct data reliably with four corrupted data per sector , i . e . k = 4 . if the number of errors , indicated by the ecc , exceeds 4 , e & gt ; 4 , then the error counter may provide an “ overflow ” signal . in this case the ecc may try again reconstructing the corrupted data , but now by utilizing the quality indication as well . if the results are satisfactory , they can be accepted for a subsequent transfer to a user . although the various aspects of the present invention have been described with respect to certain preferred embodiments , it is understood that the invention is entitled to protection within the full scope of the appended claims .	6
the present invention relates to utilization of a mobile management device to increase the efficiency of manager interactions with pos devices in a consumer transaction system . the following description is presented to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention and is provided in the context of a patent application and its requirements . various modifications to the preferred embodiment will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein may be applied to other embodiments . thus , the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiment shown but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described herein . fig1 illustrates a block diagram of a system for improving manager interaction in a consumer transaction system . for illustrative purposes , a grocery store and bank are two examples of customer - oriented environments which utilize computerized systems that are referred to herein as consumer transaction systems . as shown in fig1 , the system includes a plurality of pos systems 10 , such as a set of registers in a grocery store . the pos systems 10 are coupled to a central controller system 12 in a local area network ( lan ) configuration . an ibm 4690 store controller , ibm as400 system , or a regular personal computer such as a pentium based system are examples of systems suitable for use as the central controller system 12 . in accordance with the present invention , the system further includes a mobile manager system 14 , such as a pen - based , personal digital assistant device , e . g ., a palmpilot device from 3com corporation of santa clara , calif ., equipped for remote use via a wireless modem . the mobile manager system 14 provides an interface to the consumer transaction system by a person working as a manager of the system for remotely accessing and monitoring the transaction system . a method for utilizing the mobile manager system 14 to provide efficient management of the consumer transaction system during an override in accordance with the present invention is illustrated in the block flow diagram of fig2 . the method initiates with identification of an override condition in a pos system 10 ( step 20 ), such as through the display of a prompt on a display screen of the pos system . substantially simultaneously , the data relevant to the override condition is then sent to the central controller 12 ( step 22 ). the central controller 12 signals the occurrence of the override condition to the mobile manager 14 and transfers the override condition data to the mobile manager 14 ( step 24 ). by way of example , the override condition data may include the name or number of the pos system having the problem , the name of the person working at that pos system , and the specifics of the override condition , e . g ., the transaction amount that exceeds a limit . the mobile manager 14 then is used to provide the appropriate action , such as through selection of an override release command by the manager , which is signaled to the central controller 12 ( step 26 ). the central controller 12 relays the override release signal from the mobile manager 14 to the pos system 10 ( step 28 ), and thus , the override condition is handled in less time than that normally associated with direct , physical interaction by a manager with the pos device 10 . in addition to remotely handling an override situation , in accordance with another aspect of the present invention , the mobile manager 14 is utilized to monitor the status of the pos systems 10 remotely , as described with reference to the block flow diagram of fig3 . the monitoring initiates with the occurrence of a status determination for a pos system 10 by the mobile manager 14 ( step 30 ). for example , the manager accesses the mobile manager system 14 and selects a pos system to monitor . monitoring of the status includes receiving information about the pos system , such as whether the pos system was opened / closed , who is signed - on to the pos system , whether a cash drawer for the pos system requires a tender pick - up , etc . in addition to these types of status data , operator statistics may also be remotely monitored , including scan rate and transaction rate . when the status is found to be satisfactory , as determined via step 32 , the process continues with a determination of whether another pos system is to be checked , via step 34 . if another pos system is to be checked , the process continues with a status determination for that pos system , i . e ., returns to step 30 . if no other pos system is to be checked , the process is completed . when the status is determined to be unsatisfactory , i . e ., step 32 is negative , the status of the pos system is adjusted ( step 36 ). when possible , the necessary status adjustments are achieved remotely via the mobile manager system 14 . for example , in the case of an unlocked system that requires locking , preferably the mobile manager system 14 sends a lock command signal that identifies the pos system to be locked to the central controller 12 . the central controller 12 then proceeds to perform and confirm the locking of that pos system . other adjustments may require direct human intervention , such as when a tender pick - up is necessary , in which case the status is adjusted by removing the excessive money from the pos system . the mobile manager 14 could also be used to remotely provide price information to a pos system 10 in a price check situation . through the present invention , a straightforward approach to improving a consumer transaction system is provided . the ability to remotely access a pos system through the aspects of the present invention reduces delay normally associated with manager interactions with a pos system . in addition , better monitoring of pos system status is also achieved , which further improves the efficiency of system operation . although the present invention has been described in accordance with the embodiments shown , one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that there could be variations to the embodiments and those variations would be within the spirit and scope of the present invention . accordingly , many modifications may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims .	6
according to the invention , the demolding agent used in the compositions of the invention is calcium montanate . the term &# 34 ; calcium montanate &# 34 ; used herein denotes the calcium salt of a commercial fatty acid which is predominantly montanic acid of formula c 27 h 55 cooh and containing minor amounts of c 24 , c 26 , c 30 and c 32 acids . this salt is manufactured from a natural product , montan wax , which is extracted from lignites . this salt is manufactured by oxidizing montan wax with the aid , for example , of a hot sulfuric - chromic mixture , the oxidation products obtained ( fatty acids ) are then neutralized with calcium compounds such as calcium carbonate or calcium hydroxide . it can be shown by analysis that the commercial product sold under the name of calcium montanate contains approximately 5 % of calcium and up to about 3 % by weight of free acids . the present inventors have found that the use of the demolding agent according to the invention now makes it possible to virtually eliminate the disadvantageous condensation phenomenon which has been observed with the demolding agents known hitherto . the elimination of these disadvantages is particularly useful since reflectors having superior non - shrinking , shape - retention and non - condensing characteristics can now be produced . the demolding agent according to the invention is used in an amount of about 1 to 8 % by weight relative to the weight of the unsaturated polyester resin / styrene mixture . according to a preferred embodiment of the invention , the antishrinkage agent used in the compositions of the invention is a methyl methacrylate polymer ( pmma ) which has a number average molecular weight of more than 100 , 000 and preferably close to 130 , 000 . it was found that the use of this pmma with calcium montanate in the compositions according to the invention made it possible to obtain the best results insofar as the loss in weight of the lamp reflectors is concerned . in a known manner , the antishrinkage agent is used in a quantity of between about 10 and 20 % by weight relative to the weight of the polyester resin / styrene mixture . in a known manner , lamp reflectors according to the invention are obtained by employing moldable unsaturated polyester resin compositions . these compositions , called &# 34 ; bulk molding compounds &# 34 ; ( bmc ), consist of unsaturated polyester resins in admixture with styrene , with the addition of an organic peroxide as polymerization catalyst , fillers such as calcium carbonate , from about 10 to 30 % by weight of glass fibers , the calcium montanate demolding agent according to the invention and the antishrinkage agent . after the mixture has been produced , the moldable composition is introduced into a mold of an appropriated shape ; the mold is then closed and heated to polymerize the composition . the molding can be carried out by using any of the techniques known in this technology : compression , transfer , injection / compression and injection molding . during the molding the mold is kept at a temperature of about 130 ° to 180 ° c . and at a pressure of about 30 to 100 bars for 2 minutes at most . after demolding , the reflector is then subjected to an aluminizing treatment to produce headlamps . this aluminizing treatment is preferably carried out by precoating the reflector with a polyester , epoxy or acrylic resins varnish . the following examples illustrate the present invention . the quantities are expressed in parts by weight . a &# 34 ; control &# 34 ; composition is prepared from the following ingredients : the unsaturated polyester resin ( having the following characteristics : density : 1 . 11 g / cm 3 , viscosity at 25 ° c . : 20 dpa . s , solids content : 67 % is sold by cray valley sa under the trademark norsodyne . ______________________________________ parts by weight______________________________________unsaturated polyester resin in 60solution in styreneantishrinkage agent consisting 20of polyurethane ( mw approximately8000 , solids content 65 %) in solution in styrenethermoplastic rubber in solution 20in styrene , solids content : 30 % tertiary butyl peroctoate 2para - benzoquinone 0 . 02calcium carbonate 240organic black colorant 10glass fibers ( length : 6 mm ) 60calcium stearate 6______________________________________ ______________________________________unsaturated polyester resin 60in solution in styrene ofexample 1pmma as a 40 % solution ( sold 40by altulor under the trade - mark altulite p2779tertiary butyl peroctoate 2para - benzoquinone 0 . 02calcium carbonate 240 &# 34 ; calcium montanate &# 34 ;, calcium 4contents : 5 . 1 %, free fattyacids ; 3 %, moisture at 105 ° c . 2 % this product is sold bymt - chimie under the trademarkstavinororganic black colorant 10glass fibers ( 6 mm in length ) 60______________________________________ the compositions of examples 1 and 2 are injection molded at 150 ° c . in molds for manufacturing lamp reflectors . table 1 summarizes the results of the measurements performed on the finished products . table 1______________________________________ example 2characteristics example 1 example 2 without colorant______________________________________shrinkage + 0 . 12 % + 0 . 04 + 0 . 04 ( swelling ) losses in weight : 1 / 2 h at 200 ° c . 0 . 46 % 0 . 21 % 0 . 21 % 24 h at 200 ° c . 1 . 23 % 0 . 49 % 0 . 57 % ______________________________________ example 2 is repeated , but &# 34 ; calcium montanate &# 34 ; is replaced with calcium stearate . example 3 is repeated , but 20 parts by weight of pmma instead of 40 and 20 parts of polyvinyl alcohol are used . table 2 which follows , summarizes the results obtained on headlamp parabolas obtained by molding . table 2______________________________________characteristics example 3 example 4______________________________________losses in weight : 1 / 2 h - 200 ° c . 0 . 38 % 0 . 40 % 24 h - 200 ° c . 0 . 90 % 1 . 10 % ______________________________________ example 1 is repeated , but calcium stearate is replaced with an equal weight of various other conventional demolding agents or calcium montanate . table 3 summarizes the results obtained on headlamp parabolas manufactured by molding . table 3______________________________________ loss in weighttests demolding agent 1 / 2 h - 220 ° c . 24 h - 200 ° c . ______________________________________5 lithium stearate 0 . 24 % 0 . 77 % 6 magnesium stearate 0 . 26 % 0 . 7 % 7 calcium montanate 0 . 17 % 0 . 60 % ______________________________________ it is apparent from the examples that use of calcium montanate produces lamp reflectors with improved properties , and that further improvement is obtained when calcium montanate is used together with the preferred pmma antishrinkage agent . the foregoing description and examples have been set forth merely to illustrate the invention and are not intended to be limiting . since modifications of the described embodiments incorporating the spirit and substance of the invention may occur to a person skilled in the art , the scope of the invention should be construed to include all variations falling within the ambit of the appended claims and equivalents thereof .	5
the description and drawings illustrate the principles of the invention . it will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements that , although not explicitly described or shown herein , embody the principles of the invention and are included within its scope . furthermore , all examples recited herein are principally intended expressly to be for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the invention and the concepts contributed by the inventor ( s ) to furthering the art , and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions . additionally , the term , “ or ,” as used herein , refers to a non - exclusive or ( i . e ., and / or ), unless otherwise indicated ( e . g ., “ or else ” or “ or in the alternative ”). also , the various embodiments described herein are not necessarily mutually exclusive , as some embodiments can be combined with one or more other embodiments to form new embodiments . communication standards , e . g ., universal serial bus ( usb ) power delivery ( pd ), require a transceiver to be capable of identifying signal from noise . traditionally , such task is performed by a squelch detector that includes a peak detector and a comparator . this traditional squelch detector monitors the amplitude of an ac coupled input . however , duty cycle distortion , voltage asymmetry of the signal , and a leaky discharge path significantly degrade the accuracy of the detection . for example , existing squelch detectors for high frequency sinusoidal signals are not effective for arbitrary signals , which have duty cycle distortion , varying frequency , varying common mode , etc . further , squelch detection methods for differential signals are only suitable for differential input signals with a high accuracy . for such squelch detection methods to work with single ended signal , a differential - to - single - ended conversion is needed , which will degrade the accuracy significantly . in addition , the differential - to - single - ended conversion will be flawed when the common mode varies . embodiments of a squelch detector will be described that detect the swing of an input signal . this squelch detector may include a peak detector , a valley detector , and a differential comparator . the input of the squelch detector may be input to the peak and valley detectors with or without a level shifter . the outputs of the peak and valley detectors are then applied to the differential comparator , where the voltage difference of the peak and valley detectors are compared to a reference voltage difference . in order to achieve accurate detection , there is no constant discharge path in either the peak or valley detector . the signal swing is updated using a refresh mechanism , which discharges the sampling capacitors of the peak and valley detectors periodically . one example of where the embodiments described herein may be applied is to usb pd communication using a biphase mark code ( bmc ) on the configuration channel ( cc ) lines . these embodiments further may be applied to any other data communication requiring a squelch detector that monitors the ac swing of its input . using both a peak detector and a valley detector to sample the input signal results in a measurement of the swing that is not sensitive to the duty cycle distortion and asymmetry of the signal . further , the input may be dc coupled to the squelch detector instead of ac coupled . in addition , the proposed refresh mechanism eliminates a trade - off between accuracy and working frequency . also , the input swing is sampled and refreshed periodically to avoid the inaccuracy due to a constant discharge path connected to the sampling capacitor . fig1 illustrates an embodiment of a squelch detector . the squelch detector 100 may include a level shifter 110 , a swing detector 115 , and a differential comparator 130 . the swing detector 115 may include a peak detector 120 , a valley detector 125 , and a refresh input 150 . the squelch detector 100 receives an input signal 105 at the level shifter 110 . the level shifter may shift the level of the input signal 105 . as will be further described below the level shifter 100 is optional . the input signal 105 ( whether level shifted or not ) is input to the swing detector 115 . the swing detector 115 inputs the input signal 105 to both the peak detector 120 and the valley detector 125 . the peak detector 120 outputs the maximum value of the input signal . the valley detector 125 outputs the minimum value of the input signal . in order to keep the maximum and minimum input values current , a refresh signal may be received at the refresh input 150 to reset the maximum and minimum values of the input signal . the swing detector 115 outputs the maximum input value from the peak detector 120 and the minimum input value from the valley detector to a differential comparator 130 . the differential comparator 130 may also receive reference values refh and refl at a reference high input 140 and a reference low input 145 respectively . the differential comparator 130 may then compare the difference between the outputs from the peak detector 120 and the valley detector 125 to the difference between the refh and refl values , and the differential comparator 130 produces an output or indicator that indicates whether the difference between the outputs from the peak detector 120 and the valley detector 125 , i . e ., the swing , is greater than or less than the difference between the refh and refl values . when the swing is less than the difference between the refh and refl values , then squelch may be applied . it is noted that the differential comparator may alternatively include only a single reference input that receives a reference value that is compared to the swing . as described above , use of a level shifter 110 is optional . the level shifter may be used if : 1 ) the inaccuracy resulting from the circuit non - idealities , e . g ., negative - bias temperature instability ( nbti ) effects of the p - channel metal - oxide - semiconductor field - effect transistor ( pmos ) differential pairs in the detectors and the comparator is greater than inaccuracy due to the level shifter , because the peak detector 120 , valley detector 125 , and differential comparator 130 may adopt n - channel metal - oxide - semiconductor field - effect transistor ( nmos ) differential pairs rather than the pmos pairs ; or 2 ) the input pin has a stringent leakage requirement , as in usb type - c and pd specifications . fig2 illustrates an input signal , a refresh signal , and the timing of the output signal . the input signal 205 is shown as a pulsed signal , but could be any type of input signal . the refresh signal 210 has a refresh period . when a refresh signal 210 is received the peak detector 120 and valley detector 125 are refreshed by resetting the minimum and maximum measured values of the input signal 205 . the output signal may have a data ready time ( as indicated by the plot 215 ) during which the output signal does not have a valid value as the outputs of the swing detector 115 have to settle after the refresh occurs . the refresh period has a minimum value based upon the data ready time . the maximum refresh period would be driven by the specific input communication signal 205 received by the squelch detector 100 . further , the output of the squelch detector 100 may maintain its output value at a refresh and during the data ready time until the output value of the swing detector 115 has settled . fig3 illustrates an embodiment of a peak detector . the peak detector 120 may include an input 305 , a peak switch 310 , a peak comparator 315 , a resistor 320 , a peak sampling capacitor 325 , a discharge switch 330 , and a peak output 335 . the peak detector 120 receives the input signal at its input 305 which is then fed to the positive input of the peak comparator 315 and the peak switch 310 . the peak switch 310 connects the input 305 to the resistor 320 and is controlled by the output signal of the peak comparator 315 . the resistor 320 further connects to the peak sampling capacitor 325 . as shown , the resistor 320 and the peak sampling capacitor 325 are also connected to the negative input of the peak comparator 315 . the discharge switch 330 is connected to the peak sampling capacitor 325 . the peak detector 120 operates as follows . the input signal is applied to the peak comparator 315 . the peak comparator 315 compares the input voltage to a voltage on the peak sampling capacitor 325 . when the input voltage is greater than the voltage on the peak sampling capacitor 325 , the peak comparator 315 outputs a signal to the peak switch 310 that causes the peak switch 310 to close . when the peak switch 310 closes the input voltage is then charged onto the peak sampling capacitor 325 . once the input signal voltage becomes less than the voltage on the peak sampling capacitor 325 , the peak comparator 315 outputs a signal that opens the peak switch 310 . as a result , the voltage on the peak sampling capacitor 325 indicates the maximum voltage from the input signal . as the peak detector 120 operates , when a new peak input voltage is received , it will be larger than the voltage on the peak sampling capacitor 325 so that the peak comparator 315 closes the peak switch 310 so that the input voltage can be applied to the peak sampling capacitor 325 . as a result the peak sampling capacitor 325 now indicates the new maximum value of the input voltage . when a refresh signal is received , the refresh switch 330 closes to discharge the peak sampling capacitor 325 to a reference level which may also be the ground level or the dc level of the input signal . accordingly , the discharge path of the peak sampling capacitor 325 is controlled by the refresh signal . fig4 illustrates an embodiment of a valley detector . the valley detector 125 may include an input 405 , a valley switch 410 , a valley comparator 415 , a resistor 420 , a valley sampling capacitor 425 , a discharge switch 430 , and a valley output 435 . the valley detector 125 receives the input signal at its input 405 which is then fed to the negative input of the valley comparator 415 and the valley switch 410 . the valley switch 410 connects the input 405 to the resistor 420 and is controlled by the output signal of the valley comparator 415 . the resistor 420 further connects to the valley sampling capacitor 425 . as shown , the resistor 420 and the valley sampling capacitor 425 are also connected to the positive input of the valley comparator 415 . the discharge switch 430 is connected to the valley sampling capacitor 425 . the valley detector 125 operates as follows . the input signal is applied to the valley comparator 415 . the valley comparator 415 compares the input voltage to a voltage on the valley sampling capacitor 425 . when the input voltage is less than the voltage on the valley sampling capacitor 435 , the valley comparator 415 outputs a signal to the valley switch 410 that causes the valley switch 410 to close . when the valley switch 410 closes the input voltage is then charged onto the valley sampling capacitor 425 . once the input signal voltage becomes greater than the voltage on the valley sampling capacitor 425 , the valley comparator 415 outputs a signal that opens the valley switch 410 . as a result , the voltage on the valley sampling capacitor 425 indicates the minimum voltage from the input signal . as the valley detector 125 operates , when a new minimum input voltage is received , it will be smaller than the voltage on the valley sampling capacitor 425 so that the valley comparator 415 closes the valley switch 410 so that the input voltage can be applied to the valley sampling capacitor 425 . as a result the valley sampling capacitor 425 now indicates the new minimum value of the input voltage . when a refresh signal is received , the refresh switch 430 closes to discharge the valley sampling capacitor 425 to a reference level which may also be the ground level or the dc level or the input signal . accordingly , the discharge path of the valley sampling capacitor 425 is controlled by the refresh signal . other peak and valley detectors that may be refreshed may be used in the swing detector 115 as well . although the various exemplary embodiments have been described in detail with particular reference to certain exemplary aspects thereof , it should be understood that the invention is capable of other embodiments and its details are capable of modifications in various obvious respects . as is readily apparent to those skilled in the art , variations and modifications can be effected while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention . accordingly , the foregoing disclosure , description , and figures are for illustrative purposes only and do not in any way limit the invention , which is defined only by the claims .	6
referring now to the drawings and particularly to fig1 - 5 , there is illustrated generally at 10 the soldering - desoldering device of the present invention . the device 10 comprises broadly a housing member 12 and a heater assembly 14 slidable in the housing member shown positioned over a leadless semiconductor module or chip carrier 16 mounted on a printed wiring board 18 . the chip carrier 16 typically has a plurality of spaced apart metal contact pads 17 adjacent the periphery thereof . when the chip carrier 16 is in position on the printed wiring board 18 , the pads 17 are above corresponding tin - lead pads 19 on the wiring board which in turn are connected by leads 19a to other circuitry in a well - known manner . the housing member 12 is preferably made out of ceramic material well - known for its insulative properties and has a longitudinally extending , open ended , bore 20 . the bore 20 has a wall 22 with a configuration that is substantially that of the perimeter of the chip carrier 16 only larger . the housing member also has a plurality of passageways 24 which extend between the outer wall 26 and the wall 22 of the bore 20 to permit air under pressure from a source ( not shown ) to be introduced thereto through a pipe 28 for purposes that will be more fully discussed later . the heater assembly 14 also made of ceramic material has an outer configuration defined by surface 30 to be substantially that of the housing wall 22 . the heater assembly 14 has a longitudinally extending passageway 32 leading from an opening onto the face 34 thereof to the end 36 . the passageway 32 is connected to a source of vacuum ( not shown ) by means of a pipe 38 . the heater assembly 14 is slidably mounted within the bore 20 by means of a connector plate 40 secured thereto at end 36 by means of a set screw 42 . the connector plate 40 in turn has a plurality of holes 44 adjacent the periphery thereof which are positioned on studs 46 threaded at one end 48 for securing them in housing member 12 . compression springs 50 are positioned over the studs 46 between the connector plate 40 and housing member 12 to bias the heater assembly 14 and the face 34 thereof a distance spaced from the chip carrier 16 when at rest . this distance is controlled by means of nuts 52 which are threaded onto the other ends 54 of studs 46 . the heater assembly 14 , in the embodiment shown , has a longitudinally extending rectangular shaped channel 56 formed in each side of outer surface 30 . a heater element 58 of etched nichrome is cemented into each of the channels 56 and electrically connected in series with each other and a controllable source of electric current ( not shown ). as will be noted , the traversing heater segments 60 are closer together at the end of the heater assembly 14 adjacent the face 34 to radiate a greater amount of more concentrated heat than are the traversing heater segments 62 adjacent end 36 for the purpose to be hereinafter described with respect to the operation of the device . referring now to fig6 a - 6c , when it is desired to remove a chip carrier 16 from a printed wiring board 18 , the housing member 12 is positioned over the chip carrier 16 as shown in fig6 a wherein the passageway 24 surrounds the chip carrier 16 . air under pressure ( see arrows ) from a source ( not shown ) is introduced into bore 20 between wall 22 and channel 56 of heater assembly 14 via pipes 28 . the air is heated on its downward travel over heater elements 58 . because of the closeness of the traversing heater segments 60 as aforementioned , the watts density is greater at the bottom than it is at the top thus the temperature at the bottom is greater there than at the top . the purpose of this design is so that the incoming air flow at the top is preheated before it is subjected to the gradual temperature rise of the remaining length of the heater elements 58 . this assures a gradual , uniform temperature rise and eliminates the possibility of subjecting the heater assembly 14 to thermal shock . at the same time that the air enters the bore 20 and is heated as aforementioned , vacuum ( see arrows ) is being applied at passageway 32 via pipe 38 from a source of vacuum ( not shown ). the heated air flows around the sides of the chip carrier 16 and causes melting of the solder 64 . the still warm air is then removed through passageway 32 by the presence of the vacuum thus eliminating the possibility of building up pressure inside the bore 20 and forcing the heated air out through the bottom of the housing member 12 adjacent the printed wiring board 18 causing possible damage to the board and damage to adjacent chip carriers located thereon . thus , the unique combination of incoming air under pressure and the exhaust vacuum insures that the heated air travels directly to the soldered area 64 on each side of the chip carrier 16 where it melts the solder and is then exhausted away so that it causes no damage to the printed wiring board 18 or adjacent chip carriers . also by so controlling the air flow and vacuum , there is assurance that a temperature rise occurs only at the soldered area 64 of the chip carrier 16 and the thickness of the substrate or addition of heat sinks to the bottom of the substrate has little effect on the time it takes to reach the solder melt temperature of the chip carrier connection . this feature enhances the device &# 39 ; s ability to handle a wide variety of substrate types and thicknesses without having to make any modifications to the device &# 39 ; s duty cycle . after the heated air has reached a certain temperature and the solder melted , the heater assembly 14 is pushed down in bore 20 so that the end 34 sits on top of the chip carrier 16 as shown in fig6 b . at this time an additional amount of vacuum may be applied in passageway 32 to hold the chip carrier 16 thereto as it is gently lifted off of the printed wiring board 18 as the heater assembly 14 is returned to its at rest position by springs 50 as shown in fig6 c . this method of chip carrier removal is superior to any mechanical gripping device because the vacuum applies just enough force to lift the chip carrier and break the surface tension between the carrier and the molten solder . if for some reason the solder is not completely molten and the carrier is still attached to the printed wiring board , the applied vacuum force is not sufficient to lift the carrier and will leave it in its place . this eliminates the possibility of pulling up a printed wiring board pad with the carrier which could be done very easily with a mechanical gripping device . the procedure for installing a leadless chip carrier on a printed wiring board is similar to that aforedescribed with regard to its removal . referring to fig7 a - 7c , the pads 17 of a chip carrier 16 are placed on the presoldered pads 19 on the printed wiring board 18 . the air flowing into the housing member 12 is allowed to be heated by heater assembly 14 for a period of time sufficient to raise the temperature of the air enough to melt solder . the housing member 12 is then placed over the chip carrier 16 as shown in fig7 b such that the end of the housing member 12 does not set on the top of the printed wiring board 18 . the heated air is then directed to the solder 64 until it melts thus securing the pads 17 , 19 together as shown in fig7 c . the air is then exhausted through the area between the housing member 12 and the printed wiring board 18 to atmosphere . all of the parameters , namely , temperature , air flow , vacuum flow and time can be established prior to usage thereby ensuring successful operation . if modifications need be made , however , they can be done easily by adjusting the current to the electric heater elements or air - vacuum flow to obtain the desired combination . although a four sided heater assembly having four heating elements is disclosed for efficient melting of the solder on four sided leadless chip carriers , it is to be understood that the heater assembly can take any shape as can the wall of the bore in the housing member to correspond to the shape of the leadless chip carrier . if the leadless chip carrier is circular , the heater assembly can , for example , be circular and in this instance , the heater element may be wound in a circle with increasing density down the length thereof . these and many different embodiments of this invention may be made without departing from the scope and spirit thereof . therefore , it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific embodiment shown and described herein , except as defined in the appended claims .	1
now , preferred embodiments of the digital image providing system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to accompanying drawings . fig1 is a block diagram illustrating an embodiment of a digital image providing system according to the present invention where the system is provided at a photo - studio / a studio . this system mainly includes a digital camera 10 , image processing devices 20 , 30 , a photo - printer 40 , an encrypting / decrypting device 50 and a customer information database 60 . the digital camera 10 sends out original image data to the image processing device 20 over interface such as ieee 1394 each time it takes digital picture of a customer at a studio . the image processing device 20 includes a personal computer ( pc ) with software corresponding to various types of image - processing and processing of printing order or the like . the image processing device 20 stores image data of an original image captured from the digital camera 10 in its built - in or external storage 22 . the image data of the original image is unprocessed raw data outputted from an image pickup device such as a ccd or a cmos in the digital camera 10 or image data which is developed at the digital camera 10 and to be subjected to image - processing by the image processing device 20 . if the image is taken by film camera , the image data of the original image is image data which is read by scanner as a negative image and digitized . an operator inputs processing information for performing image processing ( picture creation ) including color correction , grey level correction , trimming and layout combine ( template combine ) on the original image , which a customer orders to print , in the image processing device 20 as required . the processing information inputted for the original image is saved at a temporally storing device in association with the original image . when the customer orders to print the image , details of printing order indicating a print size and the number of copies are confirmed and indication is inputted at the image processing device 20 . the ordering data indicating the details of the printing order is saved at the temporally storing device in association with the original image as the processing information is stored . the image processing information 20 has a function of creating a view image indicating a processing outcome according to the processing information inputted for the original image and displaying the view image on a display device as sub - function for inputting various types of processing information . when an indication to print an image is inputted from the image processing device 20 , the original image which is indicated to be printed and processing information and ordering data on the original image are outputted to the image processing device 30 . the image processing device 30 creates an image for printing by performing image processing on the original image based on the original image to input and the processing information and the ordering data on the original image , and sends the processed image for printing and the ordering data including a print size and the number of copies to the photo - printer 40 . here , the image processing device 20 and image processing device 30 can be the same . the photo - printer 40 prints an image by scanning and exposing the image on a sheet of silver halide color paper with r , g and b lasers based on the processed image for printing inputted from the image processing device 30 . the photo - print 70 that is created in the abovementioned manner is provided for a customer 72 . next , an example of providing a digital image for a customer will be described . the encrypting / decrypting device 50 is for encrypting processing information with an encryption key or decrypting the encrypted processing information with a decryption key . the encrypting / decrypting device 50 embeds the encrypted processing information in the original image and records it together with the original image on a recording medium 52 such as a cd - rom to be provided for the customer . the decryption key for decrypting the encrypted processing information embedded in the original image is managed for each customer by the customer information database 60 that manages customer information such as street address , name , telephone number and the like . either a private key scheme or a public key scheme may be adopted as an encryption scheme . that is to say , the same key can be used as an encryption key and a decryption key and the key is kept in secret ( private key scheme ) or an encryption key is released with a decryption key still kept in secret ( public key scheme ). a photo - studio provides ( sells ) the customer 72 the photo - print 70 together with the recording medium 52 that stores the original image . this enables the customer 72 to freely use the original image ( digital image ) recorded on the recording medium 52 . next , an example of reprinting an image will be described with reference to fig2 . the same parts in fig2 and in fig1 are designated with the same reference numerals . as shown in fig2 , the customer 72 brings the recording medium 52 that stores the original image to the photo - studio where the recording medium 52 is created and orders to reprint the image . the encrypting / decrypting device 50 that accepted the reprinting order retrieves the decryption key associated with the customer information from the customer information database 60 , extracts encrypted processing information embedded in the original image on the recording medium 52 , and decrypts the encrypted processing information with the retrieved decryption key . then , the encrypting / decrypting device 50 outputs the decrypted processing information along with image data of the original image read out from the recording medium 52 to the image processing device 30 . subsequently , a photo - print 70 is created via the image processing device 30 and the photo - printer 40 in the same manner as that described in printing with reference to fig1 and provided to the customer 72 . in this case , as the same processing information as used at the previous printing is used , the reprinted photo - print 70 has the same finish as that of the previous one . fig3 illustrates an example that the customer 72 brings the recording medium 52 to a photo - studio different from that created the recording medium 52 . as the photo - studio different from that created the recording medium 52 has neither the encrypting / decrypting device 50 nor a decryption key associated with customer information on the customer 72 , it cannot extract processing information from the recording medium 52 and decrypt the information . therefore , the image processing device 30 creates an image for printing based on image data of the original image read out from the recording medium 52 , or image data of the original image and processing information on picture creation performed anew at the photo - studio and sends the image for printing to the photo - printer 40 , which in turn creates a photo - print based on the image for printing inputted from the image processing device 30 . in this case , as the original image has not been subjected to image processing or has been subjected to image processing according to different information , the customer 72 cannot obtain a photo - print with the same finish as that of the previous one . fig4 is a block diagram illustrating another embodiment of a digital image providing system according to the present invention where the system is provided at a photo - studio / a studio . the same parts in fig4 as those in the system shown in fig1 are designated with the same reference numerals and the description in detail thereof will be omitted . different from the system shown in fig1 , the system shown in fig4 has a encrypting / decrypting device 50 ′ whose function is different from that of the system shown in fig1 and has processing information database 80 in addition . in fig4 , processing information inputted for an original image according to picture creation by the image processing device 20 is stored in the processing information database 80 on a network in association with the original image . the encrypting / decrypting device 50 ′ is for encrypting storage address of processing information stored in the processing information database 80 or decrypting the encrypted storage address with a decryption key . the encrypting / decrypting device 50 ′ embeds the encrypted storage address in the original image and records the encrypted storage address together with the original image on a recording medium 52 to be provided for the customer such as a cd - rom . the decryption key for decrypting an encrypted storage address embedded in the original image is managed by the customer information database 60 for each customer . the photo - studio provides ( sells ) the customer 72 a photo - print 70 created by the photo - printer 40 together with the recording medium 52 that stores the original image . this enables the customer 72 to freely use the original image ( digital image ) recorded on the recording medium 52 . next , an example of reprinting an image will be described with reference to fig5 . the same parts in fig4 and fig1 are designated with the same reference numerals . as shown in fig5 , the customer 72 brings the recording medium 52 that stores the original image to the photo - studio where the recording medium 52 is created and orders to reprint the image . the encrypting / decrypting device 50 ′ that accepted the reprinting order retrieves the decryption key associated with the customer information from the customer information database 60 , extracts encrypted storage address embedded in the original image on the recording medium 52 , and decrypts the encrypted storage address with the retrieved decryption key . the encrypting / decrypting device 50 ′ captures the processing information stored at the storage address from the processing information database 80 on a network based on the decrypted storage address and outputs the processing information to the image processing device 30 , and also outputs the image data of the original image read out from the recording medium 52 to the image processing device 30 . subsequently , a photo - print 70 is created via the image processing device 30 and the photo - printer 40 in the same manner as that described in printing with reference to fig4 and provided to the customer 72 . in this case , as the same processing information as used at the previous printing is used , the reprinted photo - print 70 has the same finish as that of the previous one . fig6 illustrates an example that the customer 72 brings the recording medium 52 to a photo - studio different from that created the recording medium 52 . as the photo - studio different from that created the recording medium 52 has neither the encrypting / decrypting device 50 ′ nor a decryption key associated with customer information on the customer 72 , it cannot extract storage address from the recording medium 52 and decrypt the information nor capture the processing information corresponding to the original image from the processing information database 80 on a network . therefore , the image processing device 30 creates an image for printing based on image data of the original image read out from the recording medium 52 or image data on the original image and processing information on picture creation performed anew at 30 the photo - studio and sends the image for printing to the photo - printer 40 , which in turn creates a photo - print based on the image for printing inputted from the image processing device 30 . in this case , as the original image has not been subjected to image processing or has been subjected to image processing according to different information , the customer 72 cannot obtain a photo - print with the same finish as that of the previous one . although this embodiment is described to manage a decryption key different for each customer , the present invention is not limited to this example and each photo - studio may have one decryption key ( private key ) and commonly use the decryption key for the decryption of encrypted information . although this embodiment is described that encrypted processing information or storage address is embedded in an original image in the form of a digital watermark , the present invention is not limited to this example and they may be recorded on the header of an image file that stores each original image . moreover , although the original image ( digital image ) is described to be provided to a customer on a recording medium , the present invention is not limited to this example and the original image and the like may be uploaded to a network server and the customer may be informed of the password and customer id to view or download his original image . further , although the processing information database 80 shown in fig4 is provided on a network , the database 80 can be processing information database dedicated to a photo - studio and provided at the photo - studio . multiple types of processing information indicating various types of image processing to be performed on an original image or a storage address where multiple types of processing information is stored may be encrypted with different encryption keys respectively , and multiple decryption keys for decrypting the various types of encrypted information respectively may be managed in database in association with customer information or the original image of the customer . this enables copyright on image processing to be divided ( for example , copyright only on color correction , only on color correction and sharpness processing , or only on trimming ).	6
the present invention relates to an improvement in peripheral digital filters . the following description is presented to enable one of the ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention and is provided in the context of a patent application and its requirements . various modifications to the preferred embodiment will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein may be applied to other embodiments . thus , the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiment shown but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described . fig1 illustrates a block diagram of an infinite impulse response ( iir ) low pass digital filter 10 . the transfer function of the filter is shown in equation 1 . ## equ1 ## where c is a constant that determines the 3db point in the frequency response as shown in fig4 and 5 . fig4 is the amplitude response and fig5 is the phase response . the low pass digital filter 10 of fig1 can be accomplished using standard digital hardware . the summer 14 can be implemented using full adders and a d - flip / flop can be used to produce a one clock delay 16 . the subtraction can be done using 2 &# 39 ; s complement arithmetic , which inverts all bits and then adds 1 . fig2 shows the hardware configuration 100 of the low pass filter 10 of fig1 . the constant c is 2 - 7 . input to port b 114 is the realization of the subtraction term , an inverted output of bit ( k + 7 ). the 2 &# 39 ; s complement subtraction can be completed by connecting ci1 106 to high ( equivalent of adding 1 ). the clock 108 is operated at a fixed sampling frequency , fs . in one conventional filter 100 , fs is 125 khz . the input is sampled once per sampling period . equation 1 is a low pass filter with unity gain in the pass band . for a step input , the output value approaches the input in the exponential manner . the time constant determining the approach depends on constant c . thus enough time must be allowed for the filter to settle to the desired output . for example , with c = 2 - 7 , equation 1 needs 1024 cycles to reach 99 . 96 % ( 11 bits accuracy ) of its final value . consequently , when the sampling frequency is 125 khz , the conversion time is 819 . 2 us . the speed of the adc is thus limited by the digital filter . for higher resolution in an adc using conventional filter 100 , c needs to be smaller or a higher order filter must be used to suppress more noise . however , either option increases the conversion time , slowing the filter . for the filter of equation 1 , the output settles to its final value exponentially . a filter in accordance with the method and system utilizes more than one clock frequency . during the initial portion of the conversion period , the input samples is frequently enough to bring the output quickly to the final value with lower resolution . at the second portion of the conversion period , the output settles slowly to its final value with the required resolution . the method and system divides the conversion period into two portions : the coarse sampling period ( csp ) and the fine sampling period ( fsp ). during csp , the filter is operated at a higher rate than normal sampling frequency . the input is thus sampled more than once per normal sampling period . this brings the output to its final value much more quickly than conventional filters . during the fine sampling period , the input is sampled at the normal mode of once per sampling period . using computer simulation , the coarse and fine sampling periods can be defined so that the signal - to - noise ratio is maintained . the conversion time is shortened due to the multiple sampling of the input during the coarse sampling period . implementing the method and system in a filter having the transfer characteristics shown in equation 1 will result in a faster settling time . to illustrate more particularly the method and system in accordance with the present invention , refer to fig3 which displays one embodiment of a filter 200 in accordance with the method and system . according to the method and system , in the filter 200 , the sampling frequency of clock during csp is 250 khz , which is twice the normal rate . consequently , the input is sampled twice per normal sampling frequency during the csp . in one embodiment , the duration of csp is 256 cycles . during fsp , the sampling frequency of clock 232 is 125 khz . thus , in one embodiment of filter 200 , the sampling frequency during fsp is the same as that of a conventional filter having the same application . in one embodiment , the duration of the fsp is 512 cycles . since the input is sampled twice per sampling period for 256 cycles during the csp , followed by 512 cycles in fsp , the effective total number of input samples are 1024 . this total number of samples is the number required for an 11 bit resolution settling . however , only 768 conventional sampling periods have elapsed . thus , an improvement of 256 cycles is achieved . this is a 25 % improvement in conversion time over conventional methods . in order to achieve better performance , the noise rejection criteria must be satisfied , despite the division of the conversion period into csp and fsp . computer simulation may be conducted during the design phase so that the filter performance is not compromised . the following is a mathematical proof that the method and system results in a faster settling time has minimal effect in the overall performance . fig4 shows the frequency response of a conventional filter 10 , whose transfer function is shown in equation 1 , having fs = 125 khz and c = 2 - 7 . fig5 shows the phase response of such a conventional filter 10 . referring back to fig3 a , the transfer function must be calculated separately for each period because different sampling rates during csp and fasp are utilized by filter 200 . in one embodiment , the transfer function is evaluated at fs = 250 khz during csp , and fs = 125 khz during fsp . for csp , the input sampling is twice of the conventional sampling period . since the duration is 256 cycles , the effective total sampling is 512 input samples . the transfer function during the csp can be approximated by the series expansion of equation 1 up to 512 cycles , and taking into account that the input is the same for two cycles . the transfer function of filter 200 is shown in equation 2 : ## equ2 ## where a =( 1 - c )=( 1 - 2 - 7 ). the transfer function during fsp can be approximated as in equation 3 . ## equ3 ## the total response of the filter is a combination of hcsp ( z ) and hfsp ( z ). the total response is given by equation 4 . as mentioned above , hcsp ( z ) is evaluated with fs = 250 khz , and hfsp ( z ) is evaluated with 125 khz . in order to compare with the transfer function equation 1 , the difference of h ( z ) and htotal ( z ) is calculated . thus , the difference is given by equation 5 . this difference between a conventional filter and one embodiment of a filter in accordance with the method and system is plotted in fig6 and 7 . fig6 shows the magnitude difference and fig7 shows the phase difference between a conventional filter 10 and a filter 200 in accordance with the method and system . both plots show that in the pass band , the error is very small . in addition , in the stop band , the magnitude error is within 1 db and the phase error is within plus or minus five degrees . the method and system can be extended to dividing the csp into subdivisions with different sampling frequency for each period . the method and system can also be implemented for cascaded structure for higher order filtering . finally , the method and system can be extended to the analog rc filter . fig8 shows the schematic of an analog filter 300 . the output 360 of the filter 300 settles to its final value exponentially according to equation 6 . where τ is the time constant proportional to the value r of resistor 320 or 340 and the value c of capacitor 350 . during csp , resistor 320 is shorted by the switch 330 so that the output approaches its final value much more quickly with a smaller time constant . then during fsp , the switch 330 is open and appropriate filtering is done by the rc filter 300 . although the present invention has been described in accordance with the embodiments shown , one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that there could be variations to the embodiments and those variations would be within the spirit and scope of the present invention . accordingly , many modifications may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims . one such method is to modify the value of the constant &# 34 ; c &# 34 ; for the first phase to speed up the response time and later use the correct value of &# 34 ; c &# 34 ;.	7
referring to the drawings , wherein like reference numbers refer to like components , in fig1 a side view of a torque - transmitting device 10 is shown , in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention . torque - transmitting device 10 is commonly referred to in automotive applications as a clutch or brake . torque - transmitting device 10 has a first plate or friction plate 12 and a second plate or reaction plate 16 . friction plate 12 is separated from the reaction plate 16 by a layer of lubrication fluid 14 . the lubrication fluid 14 is disposed between the friction plate 12 and the reaction plate 16 , and is used to provide a lubrication barrier between the plates 12 and 16 . the torque - transmitting device 10 is connected between a drive shaft 18 and a driven shaft 20 . more particularly , the friction plate 12 is coupled to the drive shaft 18 and the reaction plate 16 is coupled to the driven shaft 20 . the drive shaft 18 is typically connected to a torque - producing device such as an internal combustion engine ( not shown ). the driven shaft 20 may be connected to a planetary gearset ( not shown ) for transmitting a driving torque from the engine to the planetary gearset to drive the wheels of a vehicle . however , either plate 12 , 16 of the torque transmitting device 10 may also be connected to a rotating member or to a non - rotating member . both the friction plate 12 and the reaction plate 16 are made of steel or a similar material . however , it should be appreciated by one skilled in the art that the present invention may be applied to plates made of different materials , such as metal alloys , composites or the like . referring now to fig2 , a partial cutaway view of the torque - transmitting device 10 of fig1 is shown , in accordance with the exemplary embodiment of the present invention . portions of reaction plate 16 have been removed to reveal the lubrication layer 14 and a friction material layer 22 . the friction material layer 22 is attached to a surface 23 of the friction plate 12 . the friction material layer 22 may be one of a variety of friction materials commonly used in torque - transmitting mechanisms today . however , the present invention contemplates that the friction material layer 22 shall be made of cellulose , kevlar , and resin or any combination of these materials in varying percentages by weight that may or may not be in use in present clutch applications . the friction material layer 22 is a compressible resilient material that will return to its initial height and shape prior to being compressed by reaction plate 16 , provided the friction material layer 22 is not compressed beyond its elastic limit . in the preferred embodiment of the present invention , the friction material layer 22 includes a plurality of raised dimples or raised indentations 26 formed on a top surface 24 of the friction material layer 22 . the dimples 26 are arranged within a predefined pattern and equally spaced apart over the top surface 24 of the friction material layer 22 . as shown , the dimples 26 are radially aligned . it should be appreciated that the dimples 26 may be arranged in a multitude of patterns including a random pattern . the density of dimples 26 over the top surface 24 may also be varied depending on the particular application or desired performance criteria . referring now to fig3 a and 3 b , a partial cross - sectional view of the torque - transmitting device 10 through a plurality of dimples 26 is shown in fig3 a . furthermore , a magnified view of a dimple 26 is shown in fig3 b . each dimple 26 includes a substantially circular rim or annular flange 28 . the rim 28 has a predefined height relative to the top surface 24 of the friction material layer 22 . each dimple 26 further includes a cavity 30 defined by the rim 28 . each cavity 30 has a substantially rounded bottom surface . however , it should be appreciated that the bottom surface of the cavity 30 may be formed with a different shape . each dimple 26 is formed such that the cavity 30 is deep enough to retain the lubrication fluid 14 during the clutch activation taking into consideration the elasto - plastic deformation and wear of the friction material layer 22 . however , the predefined depth of each cavity 30 allows the lubrication fluid 14 to bleed over the rim 28 . during clutch engagement 10 , the lubrication fluid 14 is squeezed or forced out of the cavity 30 and flows over the rim 28 onto the top surface 24 of the friction material layer 22 to create a thin film of lubrication fluid between layer 22 and plate 16 . each rim 28 operates to penetrate the thin film of lubrication fluid 14 , which increases the area of contact between the friction material layer 22 and the reaction plate 16 . as shown in fig3 a , the torque - transmitting device 10 is in a non - engaged state . during the non - engaged state the reaction plate 16 does not contact the friction material layer 22 , and therefore no load is transferred . as shown , the friction material layer 22 is uncompressed . during the non - engaged state the friction material layer 22 has a thickness of t uc . more particularly , when force is applied to the torque - transmitting device 10 , the dimples 26 and the friction material layer 22 are compressed . the rim 28 of each dimple 26 has a predefined height relative to the top surface of the friction material layer 22 . the height of each rim 28 prevents the friction material layer 22 from being compressed beyond a predefined elastic zone . referring now to fig3 c , a partial cross - sectional view of the torque transmitting device 10 of fig3 a is shown , in accordance with the exemplary embodiment of the present invention . as shown , the torque transmitting device 10 is in an engaged state . during the engaged state the reaction plate 16 and the friction plate 12 are moved towards each other . more particularly , the reaction plate 16 contacts the dimples 26 and compresses the friction material layer 22 . as a result of the compression , the lubrication fluid 14 will be forced out of the cavity 30 . moreover , each rim 28 of each dimple 26 penetrates the lubrication fluid 14 forced out of the cavity 30 , which results in the load being distributed evenly over the entire top surface 24 of the friction material layer 22 . in conclusion , the present invention has many advantages and benefits over the prior art . the teachings of the present invention may be employed to overcome many problems found in prior art torque - transmitting devices 10 . for example , the dimples 26 break through the film during the initial state of engagement , which increases the area of contact between the reaction plate 16 and the friction material layer 22 , and decreases the contact pressure between the reaction plate 16 and the friction plate 12 . the dimples 26 also distribute the load evenly over the entire portion of the top surface 24 of the friction material layer 22 . the dimples 26 also prolong the soft - ehl state by retaining the lubrication fluid 14 within the cavities 30 and distributing the necessary amount over the friction material layer 22 . additionally , the dimples 26 prevent the frictional material layer 22 from overheating , because the lubrication fluid 14 is collected within the cavities 30 and evenly dispersed over the friction material layer 22 on an as needed basis during compression of the friction material layer 22 . the dimples 26 minimize the amount of fluid necessary for the torque - transmitting device 10 to operate optimally , which decreases the required oil pump capacity during operation of the torque - transmitting device 10 . the dimples 26 also prolong the slip time without shudder , and increase the torque - transmitting device 10 power density without shudder . the description of the invention is merely exemplary in nature and variations that do not depart from the gist of the invention are intended to be within the scope of the invention . such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention .	5
describing now in further detail these exemplary embodiments with reference to the figures as described above , a regenerative power capture system 20 is for use in connection with endless track escalators and moving walkways . the system 20 comprises a plurality of steps , each step 22 having a tread 24 extending generally horizontally from a front edge 26 to an opposite rear edge 28 . the step 22 extends between opposite right 30 and left 32 ends . in the case of an escalator , the step 22 has a riser 34 extending upward from a lower edge 36 to an opposite upper edge 38 . the riser 34 extends between opposite right 35 and left 37 ends . the tread rear 28 is adjacent the riser upper edge 38 . the step 22 is adapted for orbital mounting on the track ( not shown ). in the case of a moving walkway , the step has no riser but is structurally similar , and is mounted for orbital motion on a track . a plurality of rollers 40 is rotatably attached to the plurality of steps 22 and mounted for rolling movement on the track . the rollers 40 are for supporting the step 22 on the track . specifically , a right leading roller 42 and a left leading roller 44 are mounted for rotation adjacent the tread front edge right end 30 and left end 32 , respectively . similarly , a right trailing roller 46 and a left trailing roller 48 are mounted for rotation adjacent the riser lower edge right end 35 and left end 37 , respectively . each roller 40 has typically two bearings for mounting the roller rotatably to the step . the bearings are not shown because they are internally mounted , a configuration known to those of ordinary skill in the art . a step control 50 is disposed on at least one of the plurality of steps 22 for processing data . the step control 50 is inside the housing 50 . details of the circuitry for the step control 50 are not shown , but are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art . the step control 50 includes a central processor unit 50 a and a memory 50 b inside the housing 50 . details of the circuitry for the central processor unit 50 a and memory 50 b are not shown , but are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art . a step communicator 52 inside the housing 50 is operatively electrically connected to the step control 50 for data transfer . details of the circuitry for the step communicator 52 are not shown , but are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art . the step communicator 52 is wireless , and typically is an rf transceiver . an antenna 53 is provided for the step communicator 52 . alternate means for communicating data can be employed , such as for example infrared or microwave . a power supply 54 is mounted on at least one of the plurality of steps 22 for supplying electrical power . the power supply 54 has at least one electrical generator 56 operatively connected to at least one of the rollers 40 . the generator 56 generates electrical power as the step 22 orbits the track . the generator 56 is typically integral with the roller 40 . preferably , a first generator 56 a is integral with a first roller , for example left leading roller 44 , and a second generator 56 b is integral with a second roller , for example right leading roller 42 . alternatively , the generator 56 can be external to the roller 40 and connected by shaft , belt , gears , or other means ( not shown ). another configuration would be to connect two collinear rollers to one generator . yet another configuration would be to mount a fifth roller rotatably attached to the step 22 and mounted for rolling movement on the track . the fifth roller ( not shown ) would be dedicated to the generator . still another configuration would be to connect several steps together with flexible wiring . only one step need be equipped with a generator to power all the connected steps . the generator 56 has a connection 56 c shown in fig2 . wiring is not shown in the drawing figures , but is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art . the power supply 54 has a power converter 54 b operatively electrically connected to the generator 56 for regulating power . the power supply 54 has a rechargeable battery 54 a operatively electrically connected to the power converter 54 b . the battery 54 a is for backup power in the event of power failure , such as a generator malfunction . in this application , “ operatively electrically connected ,” means either hard - wired or wireless . alternatively , the power supply 54 can include a generator 56 but no battery . a central control 58 is located remotely from the step 22 , as for example in a room distant from the escalator . the central control 58 is for programming data to be transferred to and received from the step control 50 . the central control 58 includes a central processor unit 60 , a memory 62 , an interface 64 which is typically a keyboard and a mouse and a monitor , and a data input unit 66 . the data input unit 66 can be an optical drive for reading a dvd , or it can be a live feed from a television camera . the data input unit 66 can be any device capable of conveying data to the central control 58 . a central communicator 68 is operatively electrically connected to the central control 58 and is used for data transfer with the step communicator 52 . the central communicator 68 is wireless , and typically is an rf transceiver . a visual display 70 is provided , and includes a plurality of leds 72 disposed in an led array on the step 22 and connected to the step control 50 . the leds 72 are typically for displaying data and for safety . the leds 72 can also be used for purely aesthetic display , with no particular message . the data can include text spelled out , or other images , in a pattern of led lamps . the text can convey messages regarding sales events , advertising , store location , public presentations , or other information . safety uses include emergency instructions in the event of building power failure , or fire , and can inform observers of exit locations . safety uses can also include illuminating the boundary of the escalator and the edges of the step tread , so that riders are less likely to trip . in the case of an escalator , a visual display 70 can also include a digital video screen 74 mounted on the step 22 and juxtaposed with the riser 34 behind a transparent and rugged protective cover 76 . the digital video screen 74 is connected to the step control 50 for displaying of data . digital video data can include advertising with either static displays or dynamic motion picture commercials . video data can also include messages or aesthetic presentations . video data can be presented from a recorded source such as a dvd or tape recording fed into the central control data input unit 66 . the recorded presentation can be programmed to repeat , or to switch to another recording . video data can be from a live feed , such as a television camera ( not shown ) covering a live demonstration of cooking , fashion , sports , news , and the like . observers who are not riding the escalator , but are standing or walking on the floor near the lower landing will be able to observe the visual display 70 . the same message can be displayed on every step . alternatively , a different message can be displayed on every step . another alternative is to spread a single message over several steps , for example three steps . in this embodiment , in a first mode , the message can move with the steps . in a second mode , the message can continuously transfer to the next upper or lower step as the steps move , so that the message appears to be generally stationary as the steps move downward or upward , respectively . in the case of a moving walkway , a visual display 70 can also include a digital video screen mounted on the step 22 and juxtaposed with the tread 24 behind a transparent and rugged protective cover ( not shown ). as described above , the digital video screen is connected to the step control 50 for displaying of data . the visual display in this case would most likely not be used for advertising , but for safety illumination or for aesthetic displays . the housing 50 , which contains the step control 50 and step communicator 52 , is attached to the front of mounting plate 55 . the digital video screen 74 is attached to the rear of mounting plate 55 , facing the riser 34 . performance parameters can be fed back to the central control 58 to be monitored . parameters of the step control can include cpu activity and memory use . the visual display 70 can be monitored for color , contrast , pixel failure , and many other graphic parameters . the power converter 54 b , the battery 54 a , and the generator 56 can be monitored for voltage , current , battery charge , and failure of any components . all performance parameters are constantly monitored . any problem detected is telemetered back to the central control 58 and displayed . the rollers 40 typically have two bearings ( not shown ) mounted internally . the function of the bearings for the rollers can also be monitored . vibration sensors 78 mounted on the step 22 adjacent each bearing , as shown in fig2 , can detect abnormal vibrations that presage a bearing failure . such a failure can result in a shutdown and expensive repair , and possibly can have safety implications for the riders . one possible mode would be to monitor each bearing for a predetermined time period , for example , 15 seconds . each roller would then be checked once per minute . each step would telemeter data on a separate channel . the bearings will exhibit a characteristic “ signature ” vibration of frequency , amplitude , and other parameters of normal operation . the monitored readings will be compared to normal values , and any deviation will suggest an impending failure . corrective maintenance can then be carried out with little or no disruption of service . escalators typically utilize a comb ( not shown ) at the entrance and exit platforms . the comb is a serrated strip having projecting fingers that engage the grooves in the step . the step 22 of the invention includes a comb sensor 80 operatively electrically connected to the step control 50 . the comb sensor 80 will detect operating conditions of a comb , such as for example , a shoelace caught in the fingers . the comb sensor 80 will detect malfunction of a comb , such as for example a broken finger or debris stuck between fingers . the comb sensor 80 typically will utilize a linear array of photo sensitive detectors 80 disposed between grooves underneath the front edge of each step . the detectors 80 respond to ambient light directed downward . the detector circuitry is timed to sense the light or absence of light as the detector array is juxtaposed with each comb . the combs are constantly monitored . any problem detected is telemetered back to the central control and displayed . the comb sensor 80 can employ alternative sensors , for example , proximity sensors . a vibrating transducer 82 can be attached to the underside of the step 22 . the transducer is adapted for generating an acoustic signal . in one mode , the transducer 82 will vibrate the step 22 when approaching a landing platform to warn of the approaching landing . the vibration will travel through the rider &# 39 ; s feet . this safety feature will warn riders to anticipate stepping off . in another mode , the transducer 82 will reproduce sound to accompany the video display . typically , the sound from a particular step will be directed upward to be heard by the rider on that step . a method is disclosed for regeneratively capturing power for endless track escalators and moving walkways . a plurality of steps 22 is mounted for orbital motion on the track . each step 22 has a tread 24 and a plurality of rollers 40 . the method comprises disposing a step control 50 on at least one of the plurality of steps , for processing data . electrical power is supplied operatively electrically to the step control with a power supply 54 . a step communicator 52 is operatively electrically connected to the step control 50 . a central control 58 is located remotely from the step 22 , and is used to program data . a central communicator 68 is operatively electrically connected to the central control 58 . data is transferred between the central communicator 68 and the step communicator 52 . the method further comprises connecting an electrical generator 56 operatively to at least one of the rollers 40 . electrical power is generated with the generator 56 as the step orbits the track . a power converter 54 b is operatively electrically connected to the generator 56 and the step control 50 . power is regulated with the power converter 54 b . a battery 54 a is operatively electrically connected to the power converter 54 b for backing up power in the event of power failure . the generator 56 is integrated with the roller 40 . the step control 50 is provided with a central processor unit 50 a and a memory 50 b . the central control 58 is provided with a central processor unit 60 , a memory 62 , an interface 64 , and a data input unit 66 . data is transferred wirelessly between the central communicator 68 and the step communicator 52 . the central communicator 68 uses an rf signal for transmitting and receiving . the step communicator 52 also uses an rf signal for transmitting and receiving . parameters of the step control 50 ; the power converter 54 b ; the battery 54 a ; and the generator 56 are monitored with the central control 58 . the method further comprises extending a riser 34 upward from a lower edge 36 of the step to an opposite upper edge 38 . a visual display 70 including a digital video screen 74 is juxtaposed with the riser 34 . the visual display 70 is operatively electrically connected to the step control 50 for displaying data . another aspect of the visual display 70 includes arraying a plurality of leds 72 on the step in an led array . the led array is operatively electrically connected to the step control . the led array is for displaying data and safety lighting . a comb sensor 80 is connected operatively electrically to the step control 50 . the comb sensor 80 is used for detecting malfunction of a comb . the method further comprises encoding the data so as to preclude hacking into the step control 50 and the central control 58 . a plurality of bearings is provided for mounting the rollers to the step . vibration sensors 78 are provided adjacent each bearing . the vibration sensors 78 are connected to the step control 50 . bearing vibrations are detected with the vibration sensors . vibration data is communicated to the central control , so as to predict a bearing failure . a transducer 82 is mounted to the step 22 . the transducer 82 is adapted for generating an acoustic signal . the transducer 82 vibrates the step 22 when approaching a landing , so as to warn riders of the approaching landing . the transducer 82 can also be used to reproduce sound to accompany the video display . it will be appreciated that variants of the above - disclosed and other features and functions , or alternatives thereof , may be desirably combined into many other different systems or applications . various presently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives , modifications , variations , or improvements therein may be subsequently made by those skilled in the art which are also intended to be encompassed by the following claims . t ,?	1
fig1 shows the configuration of a liquid ejection apparatus 10 . the liquid ejection apparatus 10 is medical equipment used in medical institutions , and has a function of incising or resecting the lesion by ejecting liquid to the lesion . the liquid ejection apparatus 10 includes a liquid ejection mechanism 20 , a liquid supply mechanism 50 , a suction device 60 , a control device 70 , and a liquid container 80 . the liquid supply mechanism 50 and the liquid container 80 are connected to each other through a connection tube 51 . the liquid supply mechanism 50 and the liquid ejection mechanism 20 are connected to each other through a liquid supply passage 52 . the connection tube 51 and the liquid supply passage 52 are formed of resin . the connection tube 51 and the liquid supply passage 52 may be formed of materials ( for example , metal ) other than resin . the liquid container 80 contains a saline solution . instead of the saline solution , pure water or a chemical solution maybe used . the liquid supply mechanism 50 supplies liquid , which is suctioned from the liquid container 80 through the connection tube 51 , to the liquid ejection mechanism 20 through the liquid supply passage 52 by the driving of a built - in pump . the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is a device that the user of the liquid ejection apparatus 10 operates while holding it in his or her hand . the user incises or resects the lesion by applying the liquid , which is intermittently ejected from the liquid ejection mechanism 20 , to the lesion . the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is a disposable product , and is replaced with a new product for each operation . in the present embodiment , the liquid ejection mechanism 20 ( high power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 ) in which the excision capacity is set to be high and the liquid ejection mechanism 20 ( low power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 ) in which the excision capacity is set to be low are prepared as new liquid ejection mechanisms 20 . the user selects and prepares any of the liquid ejection mechanisms 20 according to an excision part or the like before the operation . the liquid ejection mechanism 20 includes a storage unit 40 . the storage unit 40 stores a liquid ejection mechanism id ( hereinafter , abbreviated as an “ id ”). a unique id is assigned to each liquid ejection mechanism 20 . the id includes information by which the high power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 or the low power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 can be determined . the suction device 60 is used for suction of liquid or a resected part around an ejection port 58 . the suction device 60 and the liquid ejection mechanism 20 are connected to each other through a suction passage 62 . the suction device 60 suctions the inside of the suction passage 62 consistently while a switch for operating the suction device 60 is on . the suction passage 62 passes through the inside of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 and is open in the vicinity of the tip of an ejection tube 55 . the suction passage 62 is covered by the ejection tube 55 extending from the tip of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 . therefore , as shown in a diagram viewed from the arrow a of fig1 , the wall of the ejection tube 55 and the wall of the suction passage 62 form approximately concentric cylinders . between the outer wall of the ejection tube 55 and the inner wall of the suction passage 62 , a passage through which a suctioned material , which is suctioned from a suction port 64 that is a tip of the suction passage 62 , flows is formed . the suctioned material is suctioned into the suction device 60 through the suction passage 62 . the liquid supply passage 52 , the suction passage 62 , and a signal cable 72 ( hereinafter , these three are referred to collectively as “ cables ”) are fixed to the liquid ejection mechanism 20 , and are replaced together with the liquid ejection mechanism 20 . when using the new liquid ejection mechanism 20 , the liquid ejection mechanism 20 to which cables are connected is prepared , and the cables are connected to respective connection destinations . when the user turns on a foot switch 75 in a state where cables are connected , the control device 70 transmits a driving signal to a pulsation generating unit 30 , which is built into the liquid ejection mechanism 20 , through the signal cable 72 . when the driving signal is input , the pulsation generating unit 30 generates a pulsation for the pressure of the supplied liquid . by this pulsation , intermittent ejection of the liquid described above is performed . the pulsation generating unit 30 generates the pulsation using the expansion and contraction of an actuator built therein . the actuator is configured by a piezoelectric element . the driving signal is for expanding and contracting the piezoelectric element . here , the ejection of liquid when the foot switch 75 is turned on as described above occurs while the control device 70 is set to a permission mode . the control device 70 sets itself to either the permission mode or a non - permission mode . in the non - permission mode , even if the foot switch 75 is turned on , the control device 70 does not drive the pulsation generating unit 30 and the liquid supply mechanism 50 . accordingly , in the non - permission mode , no liquid is ejected . the default mode of the control device 70 is a non - permission mode . switching to the permission mode is performed when a test process ( which will be described later with reference to fig3 and 4 ) is performed after the connection of the signal cable 72 and the test is passed . the permission mode is maintained until the signal cable 72 is removed after the switching to the permission mode . fig2 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the control device 70 , and shows a state in which the control device 70 and the liquid ejection mechanism 20 are connected to each other through the signal cable 72 . the control device 70 includes a control unit 90 , a monitoring unit 91 , a signal output unit 92 , a relay 93 , a first and circuit 98 , and a second and circuit 99 . the relay 93 is an electromagnetic relay , and includes a contact point 96 and an actuating coil 97 . the control unit 90 is formed by a microcomputer , and includes a nonvolatile memory ( for example , an feram ). the control unit 90 instructs the signal output unit 92 to output a driving signal . the signal output unit 92 outputs the driving signal when the instruction is received . the driving signal output from the signal output unit 92 is input to the monitoring unit 91 and the relay 93 . in a state where the contact point 96 is closed ( hereinafter , referred to as “ when the relay 93 is on ”), the driving signal passes through the relay 93 and is then input to the pulsation generating unit 30 through the signal cable 72 . the monitoring unit 91 monitors the driving signal before being input to the relay 93 . the monitoring unit 91 measures the voltage value and the current value of the driving signal , and inputs the measurement result to the control unit 90 . the monitoring unit 91 outputs a value h , which indicates that each of the voltage value and the current value is equal to or greater than a set threshold value , and a value l , which indicates that each of the voltage value and the current value is less than the set threshold value . in fig2 , for convenience of illustration , digital signals for the voltage value and the current value are collectively shown as a “ monitoring signal ”. the threshold value described above is a variable value set by the control unit 90 . the digital signal output from the monitoring unit 91 is input to the control unit 90 , and is input to the first and circuit 98 and the second and circuit 99 after being inverted . this inversion is performed by an inverter element . the control unit 90 performs switching between on and off ( state in which the contact point 96 is open ) of the relay 93 by inputting a switching signal to the actuating coil 97 of the relay 93 through the second and circuit 99 . the contact point 96 is a normally open contact point . accordingly , the relay 93 is on when the switching signal is input , and is off when the switching signal is not input . the switching signal is input to the actuating coil 97 when the value l is input to the second and circuit 99 as a monitoring signal for both the voltage value and the current value . that is , when a value equal to or greater than the threshold value , for at least one of the voltage value and the current value of the driving signal , is detected by the monitoring unit 91 , the relay 93 is turned off to stop the driving signal . the control unit 90 inputs a permission signal to the signal output unit 92 through the first and circuit 98 when an output instruction is given to the signal output unit 92 . even if the output instruction is given , the signal output unit 92 does not output a signal unless a permission signal is input . the permission signal is input to the signal output unit 92 when the value l is output as a monitoring signal for both the voltage value and the current value . that is , when a value equal to or greater than the threshold value , for at least one of the voltage value and the current value of the driving signal , is detected by the monitoring unit 91 , no driving signal is output . when at least one of the voltage value and the current value input from the monitoring unit 91 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value , the control unit 90 stops the output of an output instruction , a permission signal , and a switching signal . if these outputs are stopped , no driving signal is input to the pulsation generating unit 30 . by the monitoring function of the control unit 90 and the monitoring unit 91 described above , a driving signal due to excessive voltage or current is not input to the pulsation generating unit 30 . it is preferable to check as often as possible whether or not the monitoring function works normally . in the present embodiment , this checking is performed as a test process , which will be described later , whenever the new liquid ejection mechanism 20 is used . fig3 and 4 are flowcharts showing the test process . the test process is performed by the control unit 90 when the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is connected to the control device 70 through the signal cable 72 . the control device 70 detects a connection to the liquid ejection mechanism 20 based on a change in the electric potential of the connection line of the signal cable 72 connected to the storage unit 40 . the change in the electric potential is caused by a pull - up resistor and a pull - down resistor . as will be described later , when the test in this process is passed , the control device 70 proceeds to the permission mode from the non - permission mode . first , an id is acquired from the storage unit 40 ( step s 310 ). then , it is determined whether or not the acquired id is a new id ( step s 320 ). specifically , when the acquired id does not match any id stored in the control unit 90 , it is determined that the acquired id is a new id . when the acquired id matches one of the ids stored in the control unit 90 , it is determined that the acquired id is not a new id . the storage of the id is performed in step s 330 to be described later . when the acquired id is not a new id ( step s 320 ; no ), it is reported that the liquid ejection mechanism 20 that has been connected to the control unit 90 before is connected ( step s 490 ), and the test process is ended . here , the reporting of abnormalities is performed by outputting a message , such as “ please replace the liquid ejection mechanism with a new one ”. the output of the message is performed by display or voice . the output of the display or voice is performed by using a display or a speaker provided in the control device 70 . such a reporting using a message is performed because the acquired id is not a new id , and accordingly , it is estimated that the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is a used one . in this case , since a non - permission mode is maintained , the ejection of liquid by the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is not performed . on the other hand , when the acquired id is a new id ( step s 320 ; yes ), the acquired id is stored in a storage medium ( step s 330 ). then , a voltage test is performed ( step s 340 ). the voltage test is to test whether or not a voltage is generated from the signal output unit 92 according to the output instruction from the control unit 90 in a state where off of the relay 93 is maintained . whether or not a voltage is generated according to the output instruction is determined by comparing the output instruction given to the signal output unit 92 with a voltage value input from the monitoring unit 91 . when the voltage test is not passed ( step s 350 ; no ), the above - described step s 490 is performed . in this case , failure of the voltage , necessity of repair , or the like is reported . even if an excessive voltage is generated , the application of the voltage to the pulsation generating unit 30 is avoided since the relay 93 is set to off . on the other hand , when the voltage test is passed ( step s 350 ; yes ), the control unit 90 waits until a setup button is pressed ( step s 360 ). the setup button is an input interface provided in the control device 70 , and the user is requested to press the setup button after connecting the liquid ejection mechanism 20 . since a subsequent test is performed by turning on the relay 93 , a voltage is applied to the pulsation generating unit 30 . therefore , in order to call a user &# 39 ; s attention , pressing of the setup button is requested . in addition , since the liquid supply mechanism 50 is not driven in the test process , no liquid is ejected from the liquid ejection mechanism 20 . after the setup button is pressed , a short circuit test is performed ( step s 370 ). the short circuit test is a test for checking whether or not a short circuit has occurred in the connected liquid ejection mechanism 20 . fig5 a to 5e are graphs showing various waveforms in the short circuit test . fig5 a shows a temporal change of the voltage of a short circuit test signal . fig5 b shows a temporal change of the current in the normal state . the normal state referred to herein means that no short circuit occurs in the signal cable 72 and the like . fig5 c shows a monitoring signal as a current monitoring result in the normal state . fig5 d shows a temporal change of the current when a short circuit occurs . fig5 e shows a monitoring signal as a current monitoring result when a short circuit occurs . as shown in fig5 a , the waveform of the short circuit test signal is a trapezoidal shape . that is , the voltage of the short circuit test signal rises linearly up to a voltage v 1 , and the voltage v 1 is maintained for a predetermined amount of time . after the predetermined amount of time has passed , the voltage of the short circuit test signal drops linearly until the voltage becomes 0 . the voltage v 1 is set to a voltage much lower than the maximum voltage of the driving signal ( for example , 1 / 10 or less of the maximum voltage of the driving signal ) in consideration of a possibility of a short circuit . by setting the voltage v 1 to a voltage much lower than the maximum voltage of the driving signal , it is possible to suppress the damage to the electrical circuit or the malfunction of the electrical circuit even if a short circuit occurs . the short circuit test signal is input to the piezoelectric element . as shown in fig5 b , a positive current flows during a period for which the voltage rises linearly , no current flows during a period for which the voltage is maintained at the voltage v 1 , and a negative current flows during a period for which the voltage drops linearly . being maintained at the voltage v 1 means falling within the range of a predetermined voltage value . in the short circuit test , a threshold value th 1 is set for the current value . the monitoring unit 91 outputs the value l when the current value is maintained at a value less than the threshold value th 1 , and outputs the value h when the current value reaches the threshold value th 1 . as shown in fig5 b , the threshold value th 1 corresponds to a value of current that does not flow at the voltage v 1 in the normal state . therefore , in the normal state , the monitoring signal is maintained at the value l . when the monitoring signal is maintained at the value l , the control unit 90 determines that the state is normal since a short circuit has not occurred . on the other hand , when a short circuit occurs , as shown in fig5 d , the current value reaches the threshold value th 1 immediately after the input of the short circuit test signal . when the current value reaches the threshold value th 1 , a protection function of the control unit 90 and the monitoring unit 91 operates as described above . therefore , as shown in fig5 d , the current value becomes 0 after reaching the threshold value th 1 . the control unit 90 determines that a short circuit has occurred when the monitoring signal reaches the value h . the threshold value for the voltage value is set to a value larger than the maximum voltage so as not to interfere with the determination based on the current value . this is also the same for all subsequent tests . the short circuit test is performed as described above , and the above - described step s 490 is performed when the test is not passed ( step s 380 ; no ). in this case , a message , such as “ abnormality has been detected in the liquid ejection mechanism . please replace it ”, is output . when the short circuit test is passed ( step s 380 ; yes ), a disconnection test is performed ( step s 410 ). the disconnection test is a test for checking whether or not disconnection has occurred in the signal cable 72 or the like . fig6 a to 6c are graphs showing various waveforms in the disconnection test . fig6 a shows a temporal change of the voltage of a disconnection test signal . fig6 b shows a temporal change of the current in the normal state . the normal state referred to herein means that no disconnection occurs in the signal cable 72 and the like . fig6 c shows a temporal change of the current when disconnection occurs . as shown in fig6 a , the waveform of the disconnection test signal is a trapezoidal shape in the same manner as the short circuit test signal , and the maximum voltage is a voltage v 2 . the voltage v 2 is higher than the voltage v 1 that is the maximum voltage of the short circuit test signal , and is lower than the maximum voltage of the driving signal . as shown in fig6 b , the waveform of the current value in the normal state is stepwise as in the case of the short circuit test . when the current value is equal to or greater than the threshold value th 2 , the control unit 90 determines that the state is normal since disconnection has not occurred . the threshold value th 2 corresponds to a current value lower than a value of current that flows at the voltage v 2 if disconnection does not occur . the threshold value th 2 is not a threshold value set in the monitoring unit 91 but is a value that the control unit 90 adopts as criteria . this is because , if the threshold value th 2 is set in the monitoring unit 91 , the current value becomes 0 immediately after the start of a test , and accordingly , it is difficult to determine whether or not the state is normal . the threshold value set in the monitoring unit 91 in the disconnection test is set to a larger value than the current value generated in the disconnection test . on the other hand , the current value when disconnection occurs is maintained at 0 , as shown in fig6 c . thus , when the current value does not reach the threshold value th 2 , the control unit 90 determines that disconnection has occurred . when the disconnection test is not passed ( step s 420 ; no ), the above - described step s 490 is performed . also in this case , failure of the wiring system , necessity of repair , or the like is reported . when the disconnection test is passed ( step s 420 ; yes ), the test conditions of an overcurrent test are determined based on the acquired id ( step s 430 ), and the overcurrent test is performed ( step s 440 ). the overcurrent test is a test for checking whether or not the protection function described above operates normally when a current equal to or higher than the set threshold value is generated . the overcurrent test and the test conditions will be described with reference to fig7 a to 7c . fig7 a to 7c are graphs showing various waveforms in the overcurrent test . fig7 a shows a temporal change of the voltage in an overcurrent test signal . fig7 b shows a temporal change of the current in the overcurrent test signal . fig7 c shows a temporal change of the monitoring signal in the overcurrent test . a solid line j in fig7 a and 7b indicates a case of the low power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 , and a broken line b indicates a case of the high power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 . in the case of the low power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 , a current equal to or higher than a threshold value th 3 shown in fig7 b is regarded as an overcurrent , and the threshold value th 3 is set in the monitoring unit 91 . then , as shown in fig7 a , a driving signal having a voltage v 3 as a maximum voltage is output as the overcurrent test signal for a predetermined amount of time . the voltage v 3 is five times or more than the voltage v 1 . the driving signal is a driving signal output in the use mode , and does not generate a current equal to or greater than the threshold value th 3 as shown in fig7 b . the predetermined amount of time is an arbitrary time , and is illustrated as three periods of the driving signal in fig7 a . preferably , the voltage v 3 is 10 times or more than the voltage v 1 . when the voltage v 3 is 10 times or more than the voltage v 1 , the test can be performed more accurately . a driving signal having the voltage v 3 as a maximum voltage is output for a predetermined amount of time , and then a driving signal having a voltage v 4 as a maximum voltage is output . the voltage v 4 is a voltage value for generating a current equal to or greater than the threshold value th 3 . when the current equal to or greater than the set threshold value is generated , the value h is output as a monitoring signal , as shown in fig7 c . as described previously in the short circuit test , when the value h is output , the protection function of the control unit 90 and the monitoring unit 91 operates , and the current value becomes 0 as shown in fig7 b . the control unit 90 determines that the overcurrent test has been passed when the current becomes 0 as described above , and determines that the overcurrent test has not been passed when the current does not become 0 . the test conditions in the case of the low power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 include the threshold value th 3 , the voltage v 3 , and the voltage v 4 described above . in the case of the high power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 , as shown in fig7 a and 7b , a threshold value th 4 (& gt ; threshold value th 3 ), a voltage v 5 (& gt ; voltage v 3 ), and a voltage v 6 (& gt ; voltage v 4 ) are adopted instead of the threshold value th 3 , the voltage v 3 , and the voltage v 4 . the reason why the conditions are changed as described above is that , in the case of the high power type liquid ejection mechanism 20 , the maximum voltage of the driving signal is high , and accordingly , the current value regarded as the overcurrent is large . in addition , when the protection function operates as described above , the overcurrent test signal is interrupted and the voltage becomes 0 . in fig7 a , however , for convenience of explanation and description , the overcurrent test signal is output even after the protection function operates . when the overcurrent test is not passed ( step s 450 ; no ), the above - described step s 490 is performed . in this case , since a possibility of the failure of the control device 70 is high , failure of the control device , the necessity of repair , or the like is reported . when the overcurrent test is passed ( step s 450 ; yes ), an insulation test is performed ( step s 460 ). the insulation test is a test for checking whether or not the current is held at 0 when a voltage applied to the pulsation generating unit 30 is fixed , that is , when there is no ac component in the voltage . fig8 a to 8c are graphs showing various waveforms in the insulation test . fig8 a shows a temporal change of the voltage of an insulation test signal . fig8 b shows a temporal change of the current in the normal state . the normal state referred to herein means that insulation is successfully made . fig8 c shows a temporal change of the current when there is no insulation . as shown in fig8 a , the waveform of the insulation test signal is a trapezoidal shape in the same manner as the short circuit test signal and the disconnection test signal , and the maximum voltage is a voltage v 7 . the voltage v 7 is set to a value higher than the voltages v 1 to v 6 in order to test insulation . if the insulation is successfully made , no current flows while the voltage is held at the voltage v 7 , as shown in fig8 b . on the other hand , if there is no insulation , a current flows while the voltage is held at the voltage v 7 , as shown in fig8 c . when the current value equal to or greater than a threshold value th 5 is not detected , the control unit determines that the insulation is successfully made . similar to the threshold value th 2 in the disconnection test , the threshold value th 5 is a value adopted as criteria in the control unit 90 . when the insulation test is not passed ( step s 470 ; no ), the above - described step s 490 is performed . in this case , since the failure of the piezoelectric element is estimated as a cause of poor insulation , a message , such as “ abnormality has been detected in the liquid ejection mechanism . please replace it ”, is output . when the insulation test is passed ( step s 470 ; yes ), switching to the permission mode is performed ( step s 480 ), and the test process is ended . after the switching to the permission mode , liquid is ejected from the liquid ejection mechanism 20 by turning on the foot switch 75 . according to the present embodiment , various tests of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 and the control device 70 can be performed before the operation . by the tests , it is possible to prevent the used liquid ejection mechanism 20 from being reused or to prevent the operation from being performed in a state where there is an abnormality . when an abnormality is detected , it is possible to prompt the user to perform replacement or repair . in addition , in the overcurrent test , it is possible to perform a test according to the output type of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 . the short circuit test in the embodiment corresponds to a first test step in the aspects of the invention . the overcurrent test in the embodiment corresponds to a second test step in the aspects of the invention . the voltage v 1 corresponds to a first voltage , and the voltages v 5 and v 6 correspond to a second voltage . in the present embodiment , whenever the liquid ejection mechanism 20 that has never been used is connected to the control device 70 , anyone of the voltage test , the short circuit test , the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test may be performed . thus , safe and reliable medical equipment can be provided for each operation . in addition , the control device 70 may perform the voltage test when a predetermined amount of time has passed , and any one of the voltage test , the short circuit test , the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test may be performed whenever the liquid ejection mechanism 20 that has never been used is connected to the control device 70 . for example , the control device 70 includes a timer , and performs a voltage test when the liquid ejection mechanism 20 that has never been used is connected to the control device 70 after 24 hours since the use . in this case , even if a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms 20 are connected to the control device 70 within 24 hours , the liquid ejection apparatus can be used earlier since the voltage test can be omitted . the invention is not limited to the embodiments , examples , or modification examples of this specification , and various configurations can be implemented without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . for example , in order to solve some or all of the problems described above or to achieve some or all of the effects described in this specification , technical features in the embodiments , examples , and modification examples corresponding to the technical features described in the aspects of the invention may be appropriately replaced or combined . the technical features can be appropriately deleted if the technical features are not described as essential ones . for example , the following may be mentioned . although the id is acquired from the storage unit 40 and it is determined whether or not the acquired id is a new id ( step s 320 ), the invention is not limited thereto . specifically , an id allowing the connection to the control unit is stored in advance , and the control unit 90 stores connection history when the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is connected to the control unit 90 . then , when the liquid ejection mechanism 20 that has been connected before is connected again , the test process may be ended , and a test of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 that has never been connected may be performed . instead of the connection history , a period for which the control unit 90 uses the liquid ejection mechanism 20 or a period for which the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is connected to the control unit 90 may be stored , or one or more of the connection history , the use period , and the connection period may be stored . specifically , when the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is connected to the control unit 90 , the control unit 90 stores one or more of the connection history , the use period , and the connection period . then , one or more items regarding whether or not there is connection history , whether or not a predetermined use period has expired , and whether or not a predetermined connection period has expired may be checked . when the liquid ejection mechanism . 20 corresponding to one or more of the items is connected again , the test process may be ended , and the liquid ejection mechanism 20 that does not correspond to one or more of the items may be tested . by storing the use period or the connection period of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 , the voltage test , the short circuit test , the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test can be performed even if the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is attached and detached multiple times in one operation . by performing the voltage test , the short circuit test , the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test whenever the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is connected or at predetermined time intervals , it is possible to provide safe and reliable medical equipment . as a test of the electrical system of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 , a current test maybe performed in addition to the voltage test , the short circuit test , the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test . the current test may also be performed instead of the voltage test . at least two of the voltage test , the short circuit test , the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test , for example , the disconnection test and the insulation test may be performed using the same test signal . it is preferable to perform the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test after performing the voltage test and the short circuit test . in this case , the voltage test and the short circuit test may be performed in any order , and the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test may be performed in any order . some of the voltage test , the short circuit test , the disconnection test , the overcurrent test , and the insulation test may not be performed . when the short circuit test is not performed , the disconnection test may be performed as a first test step . the insulation test maybe performed as a second test step . in this case , the voltage used in the insulation test may be changed according to the type of the liquid ejection mechanism . a test corresponding to the second test step may be performed under the same conditions regardless of an id . id acquisition may be performed at any time before the test corresponding to the second test step . for example , the id acquisition may be performed after the short circuit test or may be performed after the disconnection test . the magnitude relationship of the voltages in the test signals shown in the embodiment is just an example , and may be changed . the waveform of the signal used in each test may be changed . for example , the waveform of the signal used in each test may be changed to a triangular wave . the success / failure determination in each test is not limited to that illustrated in the embodiment , but various determinations may be considered . for example , in the overcurrent test , success or failure may be determined based on the fact that the control unit can detect the overcurrent successfully even if the current is not actually interrupted . the liquid ejection mechanism and the cables may not be fixed . for example , the cables may be fixed to the control device , the liquid supply mechanism , and the suction device . there maybe three or more output types of the liquid ejection mechanism . an identifier may be used to identify the liquid ejection mechanism described in the embodiment and other liquid ejection mechanisms . as other liquid ejection mechanisms , it is possible to use a liquid ejection mechanism that is used for an endoscope , such as a laparoscope , and is inserted into the body and is operated . the liquid ejection apparatus may be used for apparatuses other than the medical equipment . for example , the liquid ejection apparatus may be used for a cleaning apparatus that removes dirt with the ejected liquid . the liquid ejection apparatus may be used for a drawing apparatus that draws a line or the like with the ejected liquid . as a liquid ejection method , laser light may be used . as an ejection method using the laser light , for example , it is possible to apply a method using a pressure variation due to the evaporation of the liquid caused when emitting the laser light intermittently to the liquid .	0
the centralized credit processing system 100 comprises one or more store locations 300 , a credit operations center 200 , a credit bureau processing center 400 and one or more banks 500 , interconnected by one or more wired and / or wireless links 5 and networks 10 . the one or more exemplary store locations 300 comprise an interview room 310 , a settlement room 320 , a scanner 330 , an audio / video surveillance system 340 , and one or more electronic credit application systems 600 . the exemplary interview room 310 comprises a display 312 , a scanner 314 , speakers and microphone 316 and a camera 318 . the exemplary settlement room 320 includes a signature capture system 322 and a printer 324 . the exemplary credit operations center 200 comprises an interview room 210 , which itself comprises a display 212 , speakers and microphone 216 , printer 214 and camera 218 . the exemplary credit operations center 200 further includes one or more printers 260 , one or more control centers 270 and 280 , one or more loan information data centers 290 , one or more monitors 295 , a router 220 , a call configuration bridge 230 , a controller 240 , and an inventory management system 250 , which includes a database . the exemplary credit operations center 200 is connected via links 5 to one or more credit bureau processing centers 400 and banks 500 via the one or more networks 10 . the exemplary systems and methods of this invention will be described in relation to a centralized credit processing system . however , to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the present invention , the following description omits well - known structures , procedures and devices . for the purposes of explanation , numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention . it should be appreciated , however , that the present invention may be practiced in a variety of ways beyond these specific details . for example , while the components of the various systems are shown collocated , the components can be rearranged in any fashion and / or distributed over a distributed network . furthermore , the specific number of devices illustrated is for illustrative purposes only and can obviously be scaled as appropriate . in operation , a customer fills out a credit application either in the traditional manner , which is then scanned ( and optionally processed with optical character recognition ) via scanner 330 and forwarded to the credit operations center 200 , or via the electronic credit application system 600 . the electronic credit operation system 600 records the customer &# 39 ; s input and , via wired or wireless communication and optionally in cooperation with the wireless access point ( wap ) 375 , forwards the information to the credit operations center 200 . in additional to credit information , the customer could also be asked for any other type of information that could be used for such items as marketing , customer feedback , demographic tracking , or in general , any type of information . upon receipt of the credit application , the credit operations center 200 initiates the running of a credit bureau by the credit bureau processing center 400 . the credit bureau is then forwarded electronically to one or more of the control centers 270 and / or to the printer 260 . the printer 260 can be equipped with , for example , a plurality of different colored papers and / or custom headers that allows quick and easy identification of , for example , one or more of the store location from which the credit application originated , applicant name , salesperson information , store name , credit score , product or service to be purchased , or the like . with the completed credit bureau , one or more credit officers located at the one or more control centers 270 and 280 review the credit bureau to determine if the loan applicant has sufficient credit for the desired merchandise and / or service . if there are no credit problems , and assuming acceptable terms and goods / services can be agreed on , the purchase can be completed . an exemplary aspect of this invention also allows , in conjunction with the signature capture system 322 and printer 324 , the ability to electronically capture information , such as a signature or any other relevant information to , for example , finalize a purchase agreement that could also be electronically and securely stored in a comparable fashion to that discussed in relation to the electronic credit application system 600 . additionally , finalized contracts and , if appropriate , related documentation , can be printed from the credit operations center 200 at the printer 324 for signature by the loan applicant . if there appears to be credit issues , the credit officers can determine the amount the loan applicant qualifies for , if any , and can , for example , run an inventory cross - check to determine what products are currently available to the customer based on the prequalification amount . this information can , for example , be transmitted to sales staff located at the store location 300 and , for example , shown to the loan applicant . this inventory cross - check is not limited to those with credit issues , but can be available to any purchaser at any stage of the process . in making the determination regarding what a loan applicant qualifies for , it may be determined that additional clarification of information in the credit application and / or an interview with the loan applicant are needed . if an interview is needed , an interview is initiated and the loan applicant is invited into the interview room 310 . in the interview room 310 , the loan applicant , with the assistance of display 312 , speakers and microphone 316 and camera 318 , enters into a video conference with one or more credit officers located in the interview room 210 . similar to the interview room 310 , the interview room 210 has a display 212 , microphone and speakers 216 and camera 218 that are in communication with the interview room 310 . the two interview rooms thus provide a secure and confidential means for allowing the loan applicant to speak directly to and exchange information with the credit officer . during the interview , the loan applicant can be requested to supply additional documentation or explanation regarding the credit application and , if appropriate , supporting documentation scanned in via the scanner 314 which can then be stored , forwarded electronically and / or printed on printer 214 . the interview room 210 can also include a computer which may or may not also include a portion of the functionality of the control center 270 but could also allow the credit office to interact with any of the data and / or functionality of the centralized credit processing system . once all the necessary information is acquired from the loan applicant by the credit officer , the credit officer again makes the determination as to whether there is sufficient information to process and complete a loan application . assuming acceptable terms and goods and / or services can be found , the process is then completed as discussed above . to facilitate the real - time exchange of information that occurs between the two interview rooms , the router 220 and call configuration bridge 230 , in conjunction with a controller 240 are used to establish real - time video conferences between the interview rooms . assuming the loan applicant has found suitable goods , and has been approved to receive credit , the finalized credit application , terms of sale and related loan information are entered into the loan information data center 290 and forwarded to one or more banks 500 for funding . additionally , the financing agreement is forwarded from the credit operations center 200 to the settlement room 320 and presented to the loan applicant who either provides an electronic signature via the signature capture system 322 or a signature on a financing agreement that was printed on the printer 324 , thereby completing the purchase . in addition to the above functionality , the control centers 270 are capable of displaying on the one or more monitors 295 audio and / or video information from the one or more store locations that is captured by the a / v surveillance system ( s ) 340 and / or the interview room cameras . for example , the a / v surveillance systems can be one or more video cameras mounted at a store location , in a parking lot ( s ), or in general at any location ( s ) at which surveillance is desired — thereby allowing the credit operations center 200 to monitor activity at any one or more of the store locations 300 , interview rooms and optionally the settlement room . the control centers also have control over the a / v surveillance system ( s ) 340 including but not limited to : turning on and off , resetting , pan , zoom , volume , recording , focus , brightness , contrast , data rate , and the like . similar control can be extended to the camera 318 in the interview room 210 / 310 thereby allowing the credit officer / interviewer to make adjustments to the camera as necessary . the monitors 295 , in cooperation with the call configuration bridge 230 and controller 240 , are capable of being customized such that one or more a / v feeds from one or more surveillance systems 340 and interview rooms can be displayed . for example , the video feeds from the surveillance systems 340 can be tiled on one or more of the monitors 295 to allow for remote monitoring of a plurality of different surveillance system locations . fig2 illustrates in greater detail the electronic credit application system 600 . in particular , the electronic credit application system 600 comprises a controller 610 , optionally a keyboard 620 , a memory 630 , an i / o interface 640 , communications device 650 , an optional stylus writing area 660 and associated stylus 670 and a user interface window 680 . the user interface window 680 comprises various electronic information as well as one or more selectable buttons such as an “ accept ” button 682 “ decline ” button 684 and “ submit ” button 686 . it should be appreciated however that the content of these buttons can be altered as appropriate depending on , for example , the type of credit application , the goods and / or services , or the like . the electronic credit application system 600 can be configured in a manner similar to a personal digital assistant and / or point of sale electronic interface , which is capable of displaying various information to a loan applicant . furthermore , the electronic credit application system 600 is capable of capturing information such as the name , address , signature , or any other information entered by the loan applicant . this information can be entered via , for example , one or more of the keyboard 620 , the stylus 670 and stylus writing area 660 , voice recognition ( not shown ), or the like . the captured information can then be forwarded , with the cooperation of the i / o interface 640 and communication device 650 , to the credit operations center 200 . it should be readily appreciated that the electronic credit application system 600 need not necessarily communicate directly with the credit operations center 200 but could communicate via one or more networks ( not shown ) and / or via additional hardware such as routers , bridges , switches , repeaters , and the like , that thereby allow the information received by the electronic credit application system 600 to be forwarded to the credit operations center 200 . furthermore , it should be appreciated that any information entered into the electronic credit application system 600 can be encrypted or otherwise protected to allow for secure communication to the credit operations center 200 . the electronic credit application system 600 is further capable of displaying specific information , such as disclosures , product or service information , product options , advertisements , or in general any information to the loan applicant . the loan applicant must then accept or decline the disclosures by selecting the appropriate button , the selection thereof being recorded and optionally acknowledged . upon completion of data entry into the electronic credit application system 600 by the loan applicant , and acceptance of all disclosures ( if any ) the loan applicant can select the submit button 686 at which time the information is forwarded to the credit operations center 200 . the electronic credit application entered via the electronic credit application system 600 can be stored in the credit operation centers 200 in a database and / or , for example , in a database at the loan information data center 290 . this information can be secured via , for example , well known encryption techniques and / or password protected . fig3 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the overall flow of the centralized credit processing system . in particular , control begins as step s 100 and continues to step s 110 . in step s 110 , the customer fills out a credit application . next , in step s 120 , a credit bureau is run . then , in step s 130 a credit bureau is forwarded to the credit operations center and can , for example , be printed . control then continues to step s 140 . in step s 140 , a determination is made whether the credit application is sufficient for the extension of credit . if so , control continues to step s 150 where a determination is made whether acceptable terms and goods and / or services have been found . if acceptable terms , goods , and / or services have been found , control continues to step s 160 . otherwise , control jumps to step s 230 where the control sequence ends . in step s 160 the transaction is finalized and control continues to step s 240 where the control sequence ends . in step s 170 , it is determined what goods / services the loan applicant is qualifies to purchase . the available goods / services based on a prequalification amount can then , for example , be displayed to the loan applicant . more specifically , next , in step s 180 , an optional inventory cross - check can be performed and communicated to , for example , the sales person such that the sales person and the loan applicant can be aware of what products and / or services are available based on the qualification amount . then , in step s 190 , a determination is made whether an interview is needed . if an interview is not needed , control jumps back to step 150 . otherwise , control continues to step s 200 where the interview is initiated . next , in step s 210 , the real - time video conference is initiated and any necessary information is exchanged between the loan applicant and the interviewer with the cooperation of one or more of the scanner , camera , speakers and microphone , and display device . upon obtaining any appropriate information , the interview is exited at step s 220 . in step s 230 , a determination is made whether credit will be extended . if credit is to be extended control jumps to step s 150 . otherwise control continues to step s 240 where the control sequence ends . fig4 outlines in greater detail the credit application step s 110 of fig3 . in particular , control begins in step s 400 and continues to step s 410 . in step s 410 a determination is made whether a credit application will be filled out on paper or electronically . if the credit application is to be filled out on paper , control continues to step s 420 where the customer fills out and signs the credit application and any related documentation which is then electronically captured in step s 430 and forwarded to the credit operations center . control then continues to step s 440 where the control sequence returns to step s 120 . alternatively , if the credit application is to be filled out electronically , control jumps to step s 450 where a sales person can optionally check - out an electronic credit application system . for example , upon the sales person checking - out the electronic credit application system , the credit operation &# 39 ; s center can monitor which sales person has checked out the electronic credit application system and associate that information with a loan applicant &# 39 ; s credit application . next , in step 460 , the customer enters the credit application information . then , in step s 470 , the electronic credit application system can check and validate the entered information and prompt the customer for corrections and / or additional information as necessary . then , in step s 480 , information such as disclosures can be displayed and the loan applicant provided with interfaces indicating whether these disclosures are accepted or declined . control then continues to step s 490 . in step s 490 , the loan applicant is asked to sign the completed credit application , which is then forwarded , in step s 495 , to the credit operations center . control then continues to step s 440 where the control sequence ends . fig5 illustrates an exemplary method for controlling surveillance from the credit operations center . in particular , control begins in step s 500 and continues to step s 510 . in step s 510 , features , such as zoom , pan , focus , audio volume , brightness , contrast , and the like , can be controlled by the credit operations center and , in particular the control center , at any one or more of the a / v surveillance systems . furthermore , and in cooperation with a call configuration bridge and router , one or more of the feeds from these video surveillance systems can be initiated and displayed on one or more of the monitors in the credit operations center and , as indicated in step s 520 , recorded in the credit operations center in a storage device . then , in step s 530 , any feed ( s ) from any location can be configured , formatted and routed to any destination . control then continues to step s 540 where the control sequence ends . fig6 - 12 represent exemplary user interfaces that are used in conjunction with a customer profile . the customer profile can store any information related to a customer including , but not limited to , name , address , credit information , status information , bank statement information , financial information , identification information , comments , and documentation , or in general any information related to a centralized credit processing system . to gain access to a customer profile , a user logs in , for example , via the login interface illustrated in fig6 . upon being granted access to the system , a summary of the information can be provided to a user such as that illustrated in fig7 . more specifically , a list of customer profiles 710 can be provided and ranked ( or sorted ), for example , based on there current status in the system , application date , salesperson , product or service type , or in general any criteria . from the list of customer profiles 710 , or based on a search as discussed hereinafter , a specific customer profile can be selected as illustrated in fig8 . the customer profile 810 includes various information such as , but not limited to , name , address , date of birth and social security number . the customer information within the customer profile , as with the remainder of the information associated with the customer profile can be fully searchable . fig9 illustrates the documents portion of the customer profile . in the documents portion 910 , information such as customer forms and supporting documentation associated with the customer profile can be accessed . exemplary forms include the credit application , the credit report , and supporting documentation can include w - 2 forms , bank statements , a copy of a driver &# 39 ; s license , paycheck stub ( s ), utility bills , or in general any information associated with the credit application process . fig1 grants users access to the comments portion of the customer profile . in this comments portion anyone associated with the transaction can include comments and have them associated with the customer profile . also included in this interface is an add - new comments box 1020 that allows new comments to be added to and associated with the profile . fig1 allows a user to attach documents and have them associated with a customer profile . documents can be from a scanner , received electronically , or in general any document can be associated with the customer profile . to attach a file , the user is presented with a select file interface 1120 . upon selection of a document from the select file interface 1120 , a user can ( optionally ) select a document type to be associated with the selected file , and then attach the file by selecting the attach button 1140 . the attached file is then shown as being associated with the customer profile in interface 1150 . in addition to traditional paper - based documentation , audio and video files can also be associated with and attached to a customer profile . for example , it may be advantageous to record and attach a copy of the interview between the loan applicant and an interviewer . similarly , biometric information such as a fingerprint , or in general any biometric information can also be input into the system and associated with a customer profile . fig1 is a customized query interface that allows a user to search for a customer based on , for example , store location , name , or in general any field or any information associated with the customer profile . for example , a user enters one or more search criteria in the search fields 1210 and , upon selection of the search button 1220 the system queries the database and displays all relevant customer profiles . furthermore , various types of reports can be run and generated , the reports summarizing any aspect of the centralized loan application and processing system . while the above described methodology has been discussed in relation to a particular sequence of events , it should be appreciated that changes to this sequence can occur without materially effecting the operation of the invention . the above - described systems and methods can be implemented on a computer server , personal computer , in a distributed processing environment , or the like , or on a separate programmed general purpose computer having database management , video conferencing and user interface capabilities . additionally , the systems and methods of this invention can be implemented on a special purpose computer ( s ), a programmed microprocessor or microcontroller and peripheral integrated circuit element ( s ), an asic or other integrated circuit , a digital signal processor , a hard - wired electronic or logic circuit such as discrete element circuit , a programmable logic device such as pld , pla , fpga , pal , or the like , or a neural network and / or through the use of fuzzy logic . in general , any device capable of implementing a state machine that is in turn capable of implementing the flowcharts illustrated herein can be used to implement the invention . furthermore , the disclosed methods may be readily implemented in software using object or object - oriented software development environments that provide portable source code that can be used on a variety of computer or workstation platforms . alternatively , the disclosed system may be implemented partially or fully in hardware using standard logic circuits or a vlsi design . whether software or hardware is used to implement the systems in accordance with this invention is dependent on the speed and / or efficiency requirements of the system , the particular function , and the particular software or hardware systems or microprocessor or microcomputer systems being utilized . the systems and methods illustrated herein however can be readily implemented in hardware and / or software using any known or later developed systems or structures , devices and / or software by those of ordinary skill in the applicable art from the functional description provided herein and with a general basic knowledge of the computer and data processing arts . moreover , the disclosed methods may be readily implemented in software executed on programmed general purpose computer , a special purpose computer , a microprocessor , or the like . thus , the systems and methods of this invention can be implemented as program embedded on personal computer such as java ® or cgi script , as a resource residing on a server or graphics workstation , as a routine embedded in a dedicated credit application and processing system , or the like . the system can also be implemented by physically incorporating the system and method into a software and / or hardware system , such as the hardware and software systems of a credit and purchase management suite . it is , therefore , apparent that there has been provided , in accordance with the present invention , systems and methods for centralized credit intake , processing and management . while this invention has been described in conjunction with a number of embodiments , it is evident that many alternatives , modifications and variations would be or are apparent to those of ordinary skill in the applicable arts . accordingly , it is intended to embrace all such alternatives , modifications , equivalents and variations that are within the spirit and scope of this invention .	6
in accordance with the present invention there is provided a single - row and multi - row stretch blow molding method and apparatus , wherein a robot with a universal gripper assembly picks up molten preforms from a preform - molding unit during the mold - opening stroke and guides them through the steps of conditioning , stretch - blow molding , oriented discharging , and then returns to a waiting position at the preform - molding unit . the freely programmable time and stroke intervals of the robot with the universal gripper assembly to complete the stretch blow molding process are substantially faster than the preform molding process and thus allows the pick - up of additional preforms from a reheat unit and the introduction of components to the external and internal walls of the hollow articles without increasing the overall cycle . a modular stack - blow - mold assembly provides the opportunity for increased production in the same blow molding apparatus . a further set of robots with universal gripper assemblies and blow mold units provide the opportunity to treat the preforms in multi - stages before being released as hollow articles into an oriented discharge unit . with reference now more particularly to the drawings , fig1 is a side view of a stretch - blow molding method and apparatus , showing from right to left a plasticizer 10 , a preform - molding unit 12 with a preform - mold - cavity assembly 26 in a closed position mounted on a base frame 20 , wherein the neck splits 18 remain in sliding connection 87 with the preform - mold - cavity assembly 26 upon raising the frame - type platen 16 holding the ejector bar 88 by the vertical clamp cylinders 14 and 15 . tie bars 19 connect the base platen 20 with the upper clamp platen 13 . a movable intermediary clamp - platen housing 21 is connected to the frame - type clamp platen 16 . a central clamp cylinder 22 is mounted onto the intermediary clamp - platen housing 21 which moves the injection core - holding platen 23 with the injection - core - mounting bar 24 and injection cores 25 . during the opening movement of the frame - type clamp platen 16 , a universal gripper assembly 27 , mounted onto a robot 28 , starts entering the opening clamp area and follows its upward movement . as the central clamp cylinder 22 moves the injection cores 25 upwards beyond the ejector bar 88 , the universal gripper assembly 27 grasps the freeing molded preforms 89 and transfers them to a conditioning unit 31 and from there into a stretch - blow - molding unit 40 to form the hollow articles 86 which are subsequently released in an oriented discharge unit 58 , and returns to a waiting position 81 . a following transfer component device assembly 90 , which has picked up external components 92 from front and back component dispensing cartridges 91 during a previous stretch - blow molding phase , places the same external components 92 into the open blow molds 41 in its component release position 94 during the waiting phase of the universal gripper assembly 27 . fig2 shows a front view of a stretch blow molding unit 40 , wherein the upper portion 60 with the upper moving - means platen 51 on which are mounted the vertical stretch - blow moving means 50 and 75 that drive the blow cores 47 which are mounted on a frame - type platen 49 with blow - core holding bars 48 and intermediary stretch - rod clamp - platen housing 52 having central stretch - rod moving means 57 mounted onto the frame - type blow - core clamp platen 49 holding the stretch rods 56 , which are mounted on a stretch - rod holding platen 54 with stretch - rod holding bars 55 which ride on linear bearings 59 enabling the upper portion to slide out of its operating position to facilitate the mold change - over procedure . a track rail 30 guides a traversing beam 61 , which is monitored by a drive 62 . traversing beam 61 carries robot 28 with the vertical gripper moving means 29 and the gripper opening and closing means 63 of the universal gripper assembly 27 . a stretch - blow mold assembly 41 is located beneath the upper portion 60 of the stretch blow unit 40 mounted between blow mold clamp platens 67 attached to tie bars 66 . pivoting spacing platens 44 monitored by rotating means 45 and drive gears 64 are mounted in between the blow mold - cavity assembly 41 , onto a support frame 65 and upper center cross bars 70 . bottom - plug rows 42 are monitored by moving means 43 mounted onto a support frame 65 . fig3 is a back view of a stretch - blow mold unit 40 as described in fig2 . a frame assembly 93 in front of the stretch blow unit 40 holds the front and back component dispensing cartridges 91 . a following transfer component device assembly 90 , mounted on a traversing beam 61 , is in its component pick - up position 95 while the universal gripper assembly 27 , the blow cores 47 , and stretch rods 56 are in a stretch - blow molding position 97 . fig4 to 11 show a schematic sequence of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 followed by a transfer component device assembly 90 in conjunction with a stretch - blow molding sequence . fig4 shows a schematic side view of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 picking up a molded preform 89 and a transfer component device assembly 90 in a stand - by position 98 . fig5 is a schematic top view of a stretch blow molding sequence showing from right to left a plasticizer 10 , a preform molding unit 12 , a conditioning unit 31 , a stretch - blow molding unit 40 , a gripper assembly ( not shown ), wherein external components 92 are being applied in the closed stretch - blow - mold assembly 83 onto finished hollow articles 86 and a finished hollow article discharge unit 58 . fig6 shows a schematic side view of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 in a hollow article stretch blow molding position 97 and a finished hollow article 86 with external components 92 applied as well as a transfer component device assembly 90 in an external component pick - up position 95 . fig7 shows a schematic side view of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 in a finished hollow article discharge position 80 and a transfer component device assembly 90 in a stand - by position 98 holding external components 92 on the front and back side . fig8 is a schematic top view of a stretch blow molding sequence showing from right to left a plasticizer 10 , a preform molding unit 12 , a conditioning unit 31 , a stretch blow molding unit 40 , wherein in an open stretch blow mold assembly 83 external components 92 are going to be placed by a transfer component device assembly 90 in a component release position 94 and a universal gripper assembly 27 mounted on a robot 28 in a gripper waiting position 81 and a finished hollow article discharge unit 58 . fig9 shows a schematic side view of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 in a waiting position 81 and a transfer component device assembly 90 holding on the front and back side external components 92 in a component release position 94 . fig1 is a schematic top view of a stretch blow molding sequence showing from right to left a plasticizer 10 , a preform molding unit 12 , a conditioning unit 31 , a stretch - blow molding unit 40 , wherein in the open stretch - blow mold assembly 83 external components 92 had been placed during the gripper - waiting phase , and a universal gripper assembly 27 mounted on a robot 28 holds molded preforms 89 placed between the closing stretch blow mold assembly 83 in a stretch blow molding position 97 while a transfer component device assembly 90 located above the oriented discharge unit 58 picks up external components 92 from the front and back component dispensing cartridges 91 in its component pick - up position 95 . fig1 shows a schematic side view of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 ready to pick up preforms ( not shown ) from a preform molding unit ( not shown ) and a component transfer device assembly 90 in a component stand - by position 98 holding front and back components 92 . fig1 is a top view of a single - row stretch - blow mold apparatus showing from right to left : a plasticizer 10 , a preform mold cavity assembly 26 , in a preform molding unit 12 , a set of heat pots 36 in a conditioning unit 31 , a single - row blow - mold assembly 83 with pivoting spacing platens 44 and a stack blow - mold clamp assembly 46 in a stretch - blow molding unit 40 , positioned in line to a traversing robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 mounted onto a traversing beam 61 and its vertical upper moving means 29 also attached to a traversing beam 61 releasing finished hollow articles onto a lateral oriented discharge unit 58 . a multitude of cut - outs in the gripper arms 99 at a multitude of mold cavity center distances allow transfer of preforms and hollow articles with different neck finish sizes and center distances . fig1 is a top view of a single - row stretch - blow mold apparatus as shown in fig1 in which the plasticizer 10 , the preform mold unit 12 with a preform - mold - cavity assembly 26 , the conditioning unit 31 with a set of heat pots 36 , the stretch blow molding unit 40 with a single - row blow mold assembly 83 with pivoting spacing platens 44 , and blow mold clamp assembly 46 have been turned perpendicular to a traversing robot 28 with a single - row universal gripper assembly 27 and vertical moving means 29 , located on the traversing beam 61 , releasing finished hollow articles onto an in - line oriented discharge unit . fig1 shows a schematic movement of a traversing robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 for a stretch - blow molding method and apparatus , starting from right to left at a molded - preform take - out position 77 , traversing to a preform - conditioning position 78 , descending onto a preform - stretch - blow molding position 79 where the preforms are stretch - blown into hollow articles , retracting to a finished hollow article oriented discharge position 80 , returning to a gripper - waiting position 81 , and ascending back towards a preform - pick - up position 82 . fig1 is a top view of a single - row stretch blow molding apparatus as described in fig1 except between the preform mold unit 12 with its preform mold cavity assembly 26 and the conditioning unit 31 is installed a preform reheat unit 100 . the universal gripper assembly 27 has been pivoted into a preform take - out position 77 by gripper rotating means 101 , connected to the robot 28 to pick up reheated preforms 89 to be transferred through the conditioning unit 31 , the stretch - blow mold unit 40 where they are transformed into hollow articles and released into the oriented discharge unit 58 . fig1 shows a schematic sequence from right to left of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 pivoted by the gripper rotating means 101 into a preform take - out position 77 , then being returned by same gripper rotating means 101 into a basic traversing mode to enter a preform conditioning position 78 descending onto a preform stretch blow molding position 79 , where the preforms are being stretch - blown into hollow articles , retracting to a finished hollow article oriented discharge position 80 , returning to a universal gripper preform pick - up position 82 . fig1 is a side view of a single - row stretch blow molding apparatus as described in fig1 with a plasticizer 10 and a preform molding unit 12 . a robot 28 with gripper moving means 29 is equipped with gripper rotating means 101 that pivot a universal gripper assembly 27 into a preform take - out position 77 to pick up preforms 89 from a lateral preform reheat unit 100 and returns to its basic position to guide the preforms through a conditioning unit 31 and a stretch blow unit 40 to be stretch - blown into hollow articles 86 which are released in an oriented discharge unit 58 . fig1 is a top view of a single - row stretch - blow molding apparatus as shown in fig1 , wherein a robot 84 indexes sideways together with a universal gripper assembly 27 along a lateral guide rail 85 to pick up molded preforms from an opening preform - mold - cavity assembly 26 in the preform - molding unit 12 , indexes the same into a conditioning unit 31 , descends into a single - row blow mold cavity assembly 83 in a stretch - blow molding unit 40 , where preforms are stretch - blown into hollow articles , and retracts into an oriented discharge unit 58 to release finished hollow articles 86 . fig1 is a top view of a multi - row stretch - blow molding apparatus as shown in fig1 , wherein a robot 84 indexes sideways together with a universal gripper assembly 27 along a lateral guide rail 85 to pick up molded preforms from an opening preform mold cavity assembly 26 in a preform molding unit 12 , indexes the same into a conditioning unit 31 , descends into a multi - row stack - blow mold cavity assembly 41 in a stretch - blow molding unit 40 , wherein the preforms are stretch - blown into hollow articles , and retracts into an oriented discharge unit 58 to release the finished hollow articles 86 . fig2 shows a back view of a schematic movement of a laterally indexing robot 84 indexing sideways with a universal gripper assembly 27 starting from right to left , at a preform - take - out position 77 , indexing to a preform - conditioning position 78 , descending onto a preform - stretch - blow - molding position 79 , where the preforms are stretch - blown into hollow articles , retracting to a finished - hollow - article - discharge position 80 , returning to a gripper - waiting position 81 , and ascending back towards a preform - pick - up position 82 . fig2 is a side view of a multi - row stretch - blow molding method and apparatus showing from right to left a plasticizer 10 , a preform - molding unit 12 consisting of an upper clamp platen 13 with vertical clamp cylinders 14 and 15 connected to a frame - type clamp platen 16 holding the neck split mounting bars 17 and neck splits 18 . the frame - type clamp platen 16 slides up and down on tie bars 19 which are connected to the base platen 20 and the upper clamp platen 13 . an intermediary clamp platen housing 21 is connected to the frame - type clamp platen 16 . a central clamp cylinder 22 is mounted onto the intermediary clamp platen housing 21 which moves the injection core holding platen 23 with the injection core mounting bars 24 and injection cores 25 . a preform mold cavity assembly 26 is mounted onto the base frame 20 . the preform - molding cycle starts when the frame - type clamp platen 16 with the neck - split mounting bars 17 and neck splits 18 have been lowered onto the mold cavity assembly 26 by the vertical clamp cylinders 14 and 15 , and the injection cores 25 have entered the preform mold cavity assembly 26 . upon completion of the preform molding phase , both the frame - type platen 16 and the intermediary clamp platen housing 21 are raised together by the vertical clamp cylinders 14 and 15 . a universal gripper assembly 27 , mounted onto a robot 28 with a vertical moving means 29 , slides on track rails 30 to enter between the opening preform - molding area of the fixed preform mold cavity assembly 26 and neck splits 18 , and follows their upward movement . the central clamp cylinder 22 lifts the injection cores 25 out of the molded preforms ( not shown ). the moment neck splits 18 have been opened by a spreading device ( not shown ), the universal gripper assembly 27 picks up the preforms ( not shown ) and guides them to the conditioning unit 31 . the preform - mold cavity assembly 26 is closed again to mold a new set of preforms . the conditioning rods 32 held by individual mounting bars 9 and mounted upon the base plate 33 , connected to a central conditioning rod clamp cylinder 34 and guide rods 35 , descend into the preforms ( not shown ). a set of heat pots 36 are raised around the preforms ( not shown ) by central raising means 37 and aligned by guide rods 38 mounted on a base unit 39 . upon completion of the conditioning phase , the conditioning rods 32 and the heat pots 36 retract . the universal gripper assembly 27 indexes the preforms into the stretch - blow - molding unit 40 and lowers them into stretch - blow molds 41 with the gripper moving means 29 . bottom plugs 42 are raised by bottom plug moving means 43 . rotating means 45 pivot spacing platens 44 to close the blow - mold halves 41 . the blow - mold clamp assembly 46 with synchronizer ( not shown ) generates the final clamp closing pressure . simultaneously , blow cores 47 held by blow core holding bars 48 , mounted onto a frame - type blow - core clamp platen 49 , are lowered onto the preforms ( not shown ), held in the closed blow - mold cavities 41 by vertical moving means 50 and 75 , mounted onto the upper moving means platen 51 . an intermediary stretch - rod clamp - platen housing 52 , mounted onto the frame - type blow - core clamp platen 49 follows the blow - core movement . central stretch - rod moving means 57 , mounted onto the intermediary stretch - rod clamp - platen housing 52 , connected to the stretch - rod holding platen 54 , with the stretch - rod mounting bars 55 holding stretch rods 56 and moves stretch rods 56 into the preforms ( not shown ). upon completion of the stretch - blow phase , vertical stretch - blow moving means 50 and 75 as well as stretch - rod moving means 57 retract to their upper positions , the universal gripper assembly 27 is raised by the gripper moving means 29 and retracts the finished hollow articles 86 to an oriented discharge unit 58 . fig2 shows a top view of a stretch - blow molding method and apparatus consisting of plasticizer 10 , preform molding unit 12 , conditioning unit 31 , stretch - blow molding unit 40 , all equipped with upper moving - means platens 13 , 8 , and 51 holding vertical clamping means 14 , 15 , 34 , 50 , and 75 , respectively . beneath are located the intermediary clamp platen housings 21 and 52 holding central clamp cylinders 22 and 57 . central clamp cylinders 22 , 34 , and 57 are connected to holding platens 23 , 33 , and 54 , respectively , under which are held in place on individual mounting bars 24 , 9 , and 55 the injection cores 25 , the conditioning rods 32 , and the stretch rods 56 , respectively . beneath the holding platens 23 and 54 are located the individual mounting bars 17 and 48 to hold the neck splits 18 , and blow cores 48 onto frame - type clamp platens 16 and 49 , respectively , with elongated mounting holes 74 which permit variations in the center row distances according to the preform mold cavity center distances . mounting bars 9 for the conditioning rods are bolted in elongated slots 74 onto the holding platen 33 . the top view further shows a universal gripper assembly 27 with opening and closing means 63 mounted onto a robot 28 monitored by a drive 62 and gripper moving means 29 and an oriented discharge unit 58 beneath . a multitude of cut - outs in the gripper arms 99 at a multitude of mold cavity center distances allows to transfer preforms and finished hollow articles with different neck finish sizes and center distances . fig2 is a top view of a multi - row stack - blow mold cavity assembly 41 in a closed position with pivoting spacing platens 44 in an extended position driven by rotating means 45 , wherein the stretch - blow mold mounting platens 68 are directly attached and extended by a hinge mechanism 69 . center - cross bars 70 , attached to blow - mold tie bars 66 , serve as a fixed center pivot point for the center axis 71 of the pivoting spacing platens 44 . synchronized blow - mold clamp platens 67 generate the necessary clamp closing force . fig2 shows a multi - row stack - blow mold cavity assembly 41 in an open position with pivoting spacing platens 44 and hinge mechanism 69 in a retracted position . bottom plug rows 72 and bottom - plug - moving means 43 are shown between the open multi - row stack blow mold halves 41 . blow mold clamp cylinder 46 , monitored by a clamp platen synchronizer assembly 73 , opens outer blow - mold clamp platens 67 attached to blow - mold tie bars 66 . fig2 shows a top view of a multi - row stretch - blow molding apparatus with , from right to left : plasticizers 10 and 11 , a multitude of preform - mold - cavity assemblies 26 and 76 in preform molding unit 12 , a set of heat pots 36 in conditioning unit 31 , multi - row stack blow mold 41 in a stretch - blow unit 40 with pivoting spacing platens 44 and blow - mold clamp assembly 46 turned perpendicular two the traversing robot movement , a universal gripper assembly 27 mounted onto a robot 28 with gripper - assembly moving means 29 located on a traversing beam 61 and an oriented discharge unit 58 beneath . fig2 shows a schematic movement of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 , starting from right to left at a molded - preform take - out position 77 , traversing to a preform conditioning position 78 , descending onto a preform - stretch - blow molding position 79 , where the preforms are stretch - blown into hollow articles , retracting to a finished hollow article oriented discharge position 80 , returning to a gripper waiting position 81 , and ascending back towards a preform pick - up position 82 . fig2 is a sequential side view from right to left of a molded preform 89 with a neck section 108 at an elevated temperature to receive an internal component before the shrinkage phase has been completed . an internal component pick - up and inserting device 109 having positioned an internal component 103 in the neck section 108 of a molded preform 89 while still at an elevated temperature . an internal component 103 is shrunk into the neck section 108 of a stretch - blown hollow article 86 during the conditioning , the stretch - blow and the cooling phase . fig2 a is the same sequential view shown in fig2 with the exception that an internal component 103 with inner liner 114 has been placed in a molded preform 89 while still at an elevated temperature . the molded preform 89 is being stretch - blown into a multi - layer hollow article 86 with an internal component 103 and inner liner 114 in intimate contact with the neck 108 and body portion of the hollow article 86 . fig2 is a side view of a multi - row stretch - blow molding apparatus as described in detail in connection with fig2 showing from right to left a plasticizer 10 , preform molding unit 12 , with an internal component sorting unit 102 and an indexing sorting conveyor 104 which brings internal components 103 beneath a multitude of internal component pick - up and inserting devices 109 . the component pick - up and inserting devices 109 are lowered towards the internal components 103 or internal components with inner liners 114 ( not shown ) in position on the indexing sorting conveyor 104 by moving means 112 and pick up the internal components 103 through monitoring motions of the central moving means 113 . internal components 103 are held in a waiting position ( not shown ) until the universal gripper assembly 27 transfers the molded preforms with internal component preparation 108 ( not shown ) at elevated temperature in position and then places the internal components 103 ( not shown ) or internal components with inner liners ( not shown ) into the molded preforms ( not shown ) prior to the completion of the shrinkage phase of the molded preforms . the reinforced molded preforms ( not shown ) are then transferred to a conditioning unit 31 , lowered into a stretch blow molding unit 40 and transformed into hollow articles 86 with reinforcing internal components 103 ( not shown ) or internal components with liners 114 ( not shown ) are stretch - blown into multi - layer hollow articles ( not shown ) which are retracted onto an oriented discharge unit 58 . fig2 is a schematic top view of a multi - row stretch - blow - molding apparatus as described in detail in connection with fig2 showing from right to left the plasticizers 10 and 11 , respectively , the preform molding unit 12 , with sorting unit 102 to line up internal components 103 or internal components with inner liners 114 ( not shown ) onto an indexing sorting conveyor 104 , a conditioning unit 31 , a stretch blow unit 40 , robot 28 , with a universal gripper assembly 27 mounted on a traversing beam 61 , as well as a secondary stretch blow molding unit 105 , an oriented discharge unit 58 beneath a secondary robot 111 with a universal secondary gripper assembly 106 mounted onto a secondary traversing beam 107 . fig3 shows a schematic side view sequence basically described in connection with fig2 of a robot 28 with a universal gripper assembly 27 from right to left starting at a molded preform take - out position 77 , indexing to an internal component inserting position 110 , traversing to a preform conditioning position 78 , descending onto a preform stretch blow molding position 79 , leaving the pretreated molded preforms in a blow - mold assembly 41 ( not shown ), returning to a gripper - waiting position 81 , and ascending back towards a preform pick - up position 82 . simultaneously , a secondary robot 111 with a universal gripper assembly 106 picks up the pretreated molded preforms 89 ( not shown ) from the position 79 and transfers the same into a secondary or a multitude of subsequent stretch blow molding positions 97 prior to releasing the finished hollow articles in an oriented discharge position 80 . it will be understood by those skilled in the art that each of the elements described above , or two or more together , may also be used in alternate methods of producing molded articles therein and in other methods and apparatuses for the preparation of molded articles . while the invention has been described in detail in the foregoing specification and drawings as embodied in the context of a single - row and a multi - row stretch blow molding method and apparatus for the preparation of molded articles , it will be appreciated that the description is not intended to be limited to the details shown and various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	1
an original supply device for a copying apparatus in accordance with the present invention has a shaft 2 which is supported in a frame 1 of the apparatus . when the apparatus is turned on , the shaft 2 is continuously driven by a not shown drive motor . a transport cylinder 3 is supported on the shaft 2 . the transport cylinder 3 can be coupled with a magnetic coupling 4 with the shaft 2 . a stack - supporting surface 5 for an original stack 6 is arranged above the transport cylinder 3 . the supporting surface 5 is limited by lateral walls 5a and a front stack abutment 5b . the supporting surface 5 extends at its cylinder - side end substantially tangentially to the outer surface of the transport cylinder 3 . it has in this region an opening 5c which extends to the front stack abutment 5b . at this location the not supported stack somewhat bends , so that the lowest sheet is supported on the outer surface of the transport cylinder 3 . a turnable suction nozzle member 8 is arranged in an opening 3a in the periphery of the transport cylinder 3 on a shaft 7 . a row of suction nozzles 8a is arranged on the upper side of the member 8 . the suction nozzles 8a are connected via passages 8b with a central opening of the shaft 7 , which in turn is connected via a passage 3b of the transport cylinder 3 with an annular groove of the shaft 2 . the annular groove communicates with an opening provided at a suitable location with a central opening of the shaft 2 . the central opening extends in a known manner to the shaft end when its opens in a not shown conventional central coupling for a vacuum conduit 63 shown in fig4 . the vacuum conduit 63 connects the suction nozzles with a vacuum pump or a respective supply container . for turning the suction nozzle member 8 , it carries an arm 8c . a pulling rod 9 of a pulling magnet 11 supported on a pin 10 of the transport cylinder 3 is pivotally connected with the arm 8c . a transparent supporting plate 12 is arranged under the transport cylinder 3 . originals pulled from the stack 6 are placed on the transparent supporting plate 12 during its illumination . for supplying the originals over the transparent supporting plate 12 , a supply roller 13 is provided which is driven in a known manner . the supply roller 13 slides on the supporting plate 12 as long as no originals to be supplied are located on the supporting plate 12 . a pressing and supplying roller 14 lies on the periphery of the transport cylinder 3 . it engages the originals pulled from the stack 6 before they leave the transport cylinder 3 and are supplied to the transparent supporting plate 12 . for reliable guidance of the originals in this region , guiding sheets 15 and 16 are provided here . finally , a turnable holding - down member 17 is arranged above the cylinder - side end of the stack . the member 17 carries a pressing roller 18 which can be pressed on the front end of the stack so as to press the originals in suitable moment on the suction nozzle member 8 and to compensate for eventual unevenness of the originals , which can affect their unobjectionable placement on the suction nozzles 8a . turning of the member 17 is performed by a turning lever 19 supported on its end , and a pulling magnet 22 turnably supported on a pin 21 and having a pulling rod 20 pivotally connected with the turning lever 19 . the return of the member 17 is performed by a return spring 101 which is also pivotally connected with the turning lever 19 . the operation of the above described arrangement is performed in the following manner : in the initial position of the transport cylinder 3 the suction nozzle member 8 is located in the position shown in fig1 under the opening 5c of the stack - supporting surface 5 . in the beginning of the feeding or transporting step , it is turned as shown in fig1 with the aid of the pulling magnet 11 to the lowest sheet of the stack 6 , the suction nozzles 8a are actuated , and the pressing roller 18 is turned by actuation of the pulling magnet 22 onto the stack . the actuation of the suction nozzles 8a is performed by actuation of a valve 23 which is shown in fig4 . after this , the pulling magnets 11 and 22 are turned off , whereby the suction nozzle member 8 is turned back under the action of the pulling spring 25 , and the holding - down member 17 , 18 is turned back under the action of the pulling spring 101 from the stack . the frontmost edge of the original to be separated is bent off from the stack 6 , whereby a very reliable separation of the original from the remainder of the stack is attained . now the transport cylinder 3 is driven in rotation in the direction of the arrow a , whereby the separated original is pulled from the stack by the suction nozzle member and supplied to the feed roller 14 . as soon as the transport cylinder 3 assumes its position shown in fig3 the suction air is turned off . the front end of the original engaged by the suction nozzle member 8 springs back from the transport cylinder and lies on the outer guide 15 , so that during further rotation of the transport cylinder 3 in direction of the arrow b it runs under the guide 16 and can arrive under the further feed roller 13 . from the feed roller 13 , the original is transported in a known manner first over the transparent supporting plate 12 and is fixed there for illumination by an illuminating arrangement which is not shown in the drawing but is located under the transparent supporting plate 12 . after this , the original is expelled from the copying apparatus or placed again from above onto the stack 6 for a repeated illumination . the control of the above described separating and transporting steps is performed with a control device shown in fig4 . cam disks 26 and 27 are drivingly connected with the shaft of the transport cylinder 3 and rotate in direction of the arrow c . the cam disk 27 has a cam 27a which cooperates with a pusher 28 . the pusher 28 actuates a switch 31 which is located in a supply conduit 29 of a drive motor 30 . the drive motor 30 drives further cam disks 24 and 25 in direction of the arrow d . in the shown position of the cam disk 27 or the switch 31 , the drive motor 30 is switched on , as long as a relay contained in a control unit 103 is operative . the supply conduit 29 of the drive motor 30 is connected then via a supply conduit 105 of the control unit 103 with a network conductor 32 . the connection of a further network conductor 33 with the control unit and with the drive motor 30 is performed via conductors 104 and 131 . the relay provided in the control unit 103 is so connected that its holding circuit is located in a current circuit of the motor 30 , so that after each switching off of the motor 30 it deenergizes and must be again switched on by pressing a starting button 106 acting upon a starting switch 107 . during further rotation of the cam disks 26 and 27 , or 34 and 35 , the cam 26a of the cam disk 26 reaches first a pusher 37 which cooperates with this cam and controls a switch 38 . the switch 38 lies in a holding circuit 39 - 41 of a relay 42 which is closed in this operational phase via a holding contact 43 of the relay 42 . a working contact 44 of the relay 42 connects via conductors 131 and 45 the magnetic coupling 4 with the network conductors 32 and 33 , whereby the transport cylinder 3 is coupled with the shaft 2 . the return flow of the current from the relay 42 to the network conductor 32 is performed via a conductor 46 . as soon as the cam 26a lifts the pusher 37 , the holding circuit of the relay 42 is interrupted via the switch 38 . the relay 42 is deenergized , whereby the coupling 4 is switched off , and the transport cylinder 3 as well as the drivingly connected therewith cam disks 26 and 26 comes to a stop in the position corresponding to the position shown in fig1 . the cam 27a of the cam disk 27 is arranged so that in this position the cam disk 27 retains the pusher 28 lifted , so that the motor 30 or the cam disks 34 and 35 run further . during a further rotation of the cam disks 34 and 35 in the direction of the arrow d , the cam 35a of the cam disk 35 lifts the pusher 36 . it actuates a switch 47 which lies in a conductor 48 located within the network conductor 43 . the conductor 48 , and also a further conductor 49 , is connected via sliding contacts with the magnets 11 arranged in the interior of the transport cylinder 3 . the return flow of the current to the network conductor 32 is performed via a conductor 50 . with the closed switch 47 , the pulling magnet 11 is energized and the suction nozzle member 8 is turned to the position shown in fig2 towards the lower side of the stack 6 . simultaneously , the pulling magnet 22 , which turns the holding - down member 17 , 18 to the stack , is switched on via conductors 51 and 52 . naturally , the first mentioned pulling magnet 22 if necessary can be controlled via its own cam disk or via its own switch in a switching time deviating from the switching time of the pulling magnet 11 . shortly after lifting the pusher 36 by the cam 35a of the cam disk 35 , the cam 34a of the cam disk 34 reaches a pusher 56 cooperating therewith . it switches on via a switch 56 lying in a conductor 55 a relay 57 . the relay 57 actuates a working contact 58 and a holding contact 59 . the relay 57 is connected when the switch 56 is closed via the conductors 55 and 59 , on the one hand , and via conductor 60 , on the other hand , with the network conductors 32 and 33 . the working contact 59 connects via conductors 61 and 62 as well as the conductor 50 a pulling manget 62 with the network conductors 32 and 33 , whereby the valve 23 opens a suction conduit 63 and this suction conduit is connected with a not shown suction air stream of the copying apparatus . the suction conduit 63 is connected in a known manner via a central coupling in the shaft 2 of the transport cylinder 3 , with the suction nozzle member 8 . the switch 58 actuated by the relay 57 and lying in the holding circuit 59 , 60 , 64 and 65 of the relay 57 prevents the relay 57 from deenergizing , so that the suction nozzle member 8 remains connected with the suction air until an interrupting switch 66 located in this holding circuit is opened . shortly after actuation of the pusher 54 acting for switching on of the suction nozzle member 8 under the action of the cam 34a , the cam 34a reaches a pusher 67 which is connected with a switch 68 lying in the conductor 53 of the relay 54 . thereby the relay 54 is switched on , and the transport cylinder 3 is again coupled with the continuously rotating shaft 2 . thereby the cam disks 27 and 28 start running again in direction of the arrow c . the cam 27a , which stands by this time point under the pusher 28 and thereby holds the motor 30 in running condition , rotates away under the pusher 28 so that the motor 30 comes to a stop . this must be first attained when the cam 34a of the cam disk 34 releases the pusher 67 or the switch contact 68 connected therewith , inasmuch as otherwise the transport cylinder 3 during the next revolution cannot be brought to a stop by the cam 26a of the cam disk 26 or the interrupting switch 38 . the transport cylinder 3 continues now its rotation in direction of the arrow a so long as the relay 42 is prevented from deenergizing by its holding circuit . the transport cylinder 3 arrives at the position shown in fig3 in which it takes along a front edge of the original separated from the stack 6 , the front edge being sucked by the suction nozzle member 8 . in this position the cam 27a of the cam disk 27 reaches a pusher 69 which opens the switch 66 lying in the holding circuit of the relay 67 . the relay 57 deenergizes and the suction air valve 23 is closed . thereby the transported original leaves in the above described manner the transport cylinder 3 and is transferred to the transporting rollers 13 and 14 . the transport cylinder 3 continues its rotation in the direction of the arrow a until it arrives at the initial position shown in fig1 and 4 . as can be seen from fig5 a transparent plate 109 is arranged under the transport cylinder 3 so that the original pulled from the stack 6 can be transported over this plate during its illumination . the transparent plate 109 lies in an image field of a screen copying device 110 which is illuminated by two light pipes 112 arranged in a reflector 111 . the screen copying device projects the image of the displacing original through the image window formed in the transparent plate 109 onto a not shown carrier which moves with a corresponding speed . for improving the imprint of the illuminated original , pressing rollers 113 and 114 abut against the periphery of the transport cylinder 3 . moreover , a further row of suction nozzles 3d is arranged on the periphery of the transport cylinder 3 , as can be seen from fig6 . the further suction nozzles 3d engage the rear end of the original pulled from the stack 6 and fix the same on the transport cylinder 3 . the suction nozzles 3d are connected by passages 3c with the central opening 2a of the shaft 2 . driven transport roller pairs 115 and 116 , 117 and 118 , 119 and 120 are arranged at both sides of the transparent plate 109 . they can transport by hand the copied original in direction of the arrow c . after its copying , the original is withdrawn in the direction of the arrow d from the apparatus . further , the transport cylinder 3 is connected with guide sheets 121 - 125 and driven transport roller pairs 126 - 131 . they engage an original after its release from the transport cylinder 3 from its outer surface and transport the original back to the stack 6 , wherein the original is placed on the stack in direction of the arrow e . the operation of the later described arrangement corresponds to the operation of the arrangement shown in fig1 - 4 with the difference that the originals separated from the suction nozzle member or pulled from the stack are illuminated with the aid of the copying system 110 when it moves with the transport cylinder rotating in direction of the arrow e over the illuminating window 109 formed in the transparent plate 109 . as soon as the transport cylinder assumes its position shown in fig6 the suction air is turned off . the front end of the original engaged by the suction nozzle member 8 springs back from the transport cylinder 3 and abuts against the guiding sheet 121 , so that during further rotation of the transport cylinder 3 in direction of the arrow b it runs between the guide sheets 122 and 123 and can be engaged by the transporting rollers 126 and 127 . a multiple illumination of the originals fixed on the transport cylinder is possible , if needed , in which case the original is transferred to the transporting rollers 126 and 127 only after producing the required number of copies . the controlling of the above described separating , transporting and copying steps is performed with the control means shown in fig4 with the difference that , as shown in fig7 the control unit 103 is replaced by a control unit 132 . a relay provided in the control unit 132 is so arranged , in correspondence with the relay contained in the control unit 103 , that its holding circuit lies in the circuit of the motor 30 . thereby after each switching off of the motor 30 it deenergizes and must be again switched on by pressing of the start button 106 acting upon the start switch 107 . additional relays are provided for holding closed the holding circuit for the magnetic coupling 4 and the valve 23 for a certain number of revolutions , in dependence upon a desired number of copies . for the case when several illuminations of the original arranged on the transport cylinder 3 are desired , the desired number of copies is adjusted on an adjusting button 133 of the control unit 132 . it operates in such a manner that , being released from switching pulse of a switch 134 which is connected with the pusher 154 and lies in a conductor 135 leading to the control unit 132 , the holding circuit of the relay 42 and 45 remain closed via connecting conductors 136 and 137 leading to the control unit 132 . thereby both closing of the valve 23 and releasing the magnetic coupling 4 are prevented for a time period lasting unit the switching mechanism of the adjusting button 133 , which is contained in the control unit 132 and controlled by pulses of the switch 134 in dependence upon the number of already made copies , comes back to its initial position . the original located on the transport cylinder 3 rotates so long with the transport cylinder 3 until the desired number of copies is produced . only then is it transferred in the above discussed manner to the transport rollers 126 and 127 . it will be understood that each of the elements described above , or two or more together , may also find a useful application in other types of constructions differing from the types described above . while the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in an arrangement for supplying originals in a copying apparatus , it is not intended to be limited to the details shown , since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention . without further analysis , the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can , by applying current knowledge , readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that , from the standpoint of prior art , fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention . what is claimed as new and desired to be protected by letters patent is set forth in the appended claims .	6
the method described herein is for treating pulmonary arterial hypertension in patients that have defect in bmpr2 ( bone morphogenetic protein receptor 2 ) signaling . pulmonary arterial hypertension ( pah ) is a progressive lung disorder which , untreated , often leads to death on average within a few years after being diagnosed . an increasing constriction of the pulmonary circulation leads to increased stress on the right heart , which can develop into right heart failure . by definition , the mean pulmonary arterial pressure ( mpap ) in a case of chronic pulmonary hypertension is & gt ; 25 mmhg at rest or & gt ; 30 mmhg during exertion , where the normal values are & lt ; 20 mmhg . the pathophysiology of pulmonary arterial hypertension is characterized by vasoconstriction and remodeling of the pulmonary vessels . in chronic pah there is neomuscularization of initially unmuscularized pulmonary vessels , and the vascular muscles of the already muscularized vessels increase in circumference . this increasing obliteration of the pulmonary circulation results in progressive stress on the right heart , which leads to a reduced output from the right heart and eventually ends in right heart failure ( humbert et al ., j . am . coll . cardiol . 2004 , 43 , 13s - 24s ). defects in bmpr2 signaling may , for example , be caused by a mutation in bmpr2 ( see accession no . 600799 in ncbi &# 39 ; s omim database ), a mutation in alk1 ( the activin a receptor ; see accession no . 601284 in ncbi &# 39 ; s omim database ) or a mutation in endoglin ( see accession no . 131195 in ncbi &# 39 ; s omim database ). a defect in bmpr2 signaling can be detected , for example , by measuring the expression of id1 ( inhibitor of differentiation 1 ) mrna or protein , which is a well - known downstream read - out for bmpr2 signaling . decreased bmpr2 signaling decreases the amount of id1 in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells . in particular cases , the pulmonary arterial hypertension may be hereditary pulmonary arterial hypertension . in particular embodiments , a subject may be pre - screened to identify whether they have a mutation that effects bmpr2 signaling , or they may be assayed to determine if they have abnormal expression of id1 . fk - 506 ( also known tacrolimus or fujimycin ) is an immunosuppressive drug that is mainly used after allogeneic organ transplant to reduce the activity of the patient &# 39 ; s immune system and so lower the risk of organ rejection . it is also used for the treatment of severe atopic dermatitis ( eczema ), severe refractory uveitis after bone marrow transplants , and the skin condition vitiligo . fk - 506 is a 23 - membered macrolide lactone discovered in 1984 . in t - cells , activation of the t - cell receptor normally increases intracellular calcium , which acts via calmodulin to activate calcineurin . calcineurin then dephosphorylates the transcription factor nf - at ( nuclear factor of activated t - cells ), which moves to the nucleus of the t - cell and increases the activity of genes coding for il - 2 and related cytokines . fk - 506 prevents the dephosphorylation of nf - at . specifically , fk - 506 reduces peptidyl - prolyl isomerase activity by binding to the immunophilin fkbp12 ( fk506 binding protein ) creating a new complex . this fkbp12 - fk506 complex interacts with and inhibits calcineurin thus inhibiting both t - lymphocyte signal transduction and il - 2 transcription . in some embodiments , the fk506 is administered at a dose and regimen that provides an fk506 serum concentration that is much lower than the fk506 serum concentration commonly used in immunosuppressive applications ( which is typically 5 - 15 ng / ml ). for example , in certain embodiments of the instant method , the fk506 is administered at a dose and regimen that provides an fk506 serum concentration of as 0 . 05 ng / ml to 1 ng / ml , e . g ., 0 . 1 ng / ml to 0 . 5 ng / ml , 0 . 15 ng / ml to 0 . 3 ng / ml or e . g . 0 . 1 - 0 . 2 ng / ml . in part because fk - 506 is metabolized by the cytochrome p450 system , the exact dosing may vary between patients . the fk506 may be administered once a day or more , e . g ., twice per day . in immunosuppressive applications , fk506 is normally given twice daily with the goal to reach fk - 506 serum levels of 5 - 15 ng / ml . the treatment is started at 0 . 5 mg twice daily and then up - titrated according to the measured fk506 serum level . in some cases a dosing of 0 . 075 mg / kg / day is recommended to reach a serum levels of 5 - 10 ng / ml . in some embodiments of the instant method , the goal is to reach a serum level of about 0 . 2 ng / ml , which is about 1 / 20 of the immunosuppressive serum level . in this case , an initial dose of 0 . 001 mg / kg day to 0 . 01 mg / kg day ( e . g ., 0 . 002 mg kg / day to 0 . 05 mg / kg / day may be sufficient , and the does can be up - titrated according to the measured fk506 serum level . the subject may be any mammal , e . g ., a human , rat , or mouse , for example . in particular cases , the fk506 may reach a serum concentration as low as 0 . 1 - 0 . 2 ng / ml ( e . g ., 0 . 10 to 0 . 12 , 0 . 12 to 0 . 14 , 0 . 14 to 0 . 16 , 0 . 16 to 0 . 18 or 0 . 18 to 0 . 20 , however serum a concentration in the range of 0 . 2 to 2 ng / ml , e . g ., 0 . 2 , 0 . 5 , 1 and 2 ng / ml may be acceptable . in particular cases , the fk506 may reach a serum concentration of & lt ; 1 . 0 , 1 . 5 - 2 . 5 , or 3 - 5 ng / ml . the fk506 may be administered alone or in combination with other active compounds that treat or prevent pah . the other active compound may be administered at a different time or at the same time as the fk506 and in certain embodiments the fk506 and the other active compound may be present in the same formulation , or as separate formulations in the same kit . exemplary other active compounds that treat pah include , e . g ., prostacyclin analogues , endothelin receptor antagonists , phosphodiesterase - 5 inhibitors , high - dose calcium channel blockers , anticoagulants , diuretics or antiproliferative agents . in particular cases , the other active compound may be , for example , isordil ( isosorbide dinitrate ), revatio ( sildenafil ), tracleer ( bosentan ), letairis ( ambrisentan ), flolan ( epoprostenol ), adcirca ( tadalafil ), remodulin ( treprostinil ) ventavis ( iloprost ), tyvaso ( treprostinil ), dilatrate - sr ( isosorbide dinitrate ), isordil titradose ( isosorbide dinitrate ), isoditrate ( isosorbide dinitrate ) or isochron ( isosorbide dinitrate ). administration of fk506 to a subject may decrease pulmonary arterial pressure by about at least 1 mm hg , e . g ., at least 2 mm hg , at least 3 mm hg , at least 4 mm hg , at least 5 mm hg or at least 10 mm hg or more , thereby returning the pulmonary arterial pressure to a level that may be considered normal for the subject . in general terms , the fk506 may be administered to the subject in the instant method in a similar way to how fk506 is administered in immunosuppressive applications . for example , the fk506 may be present in a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient , and it may be administered intravenously . alternatively , it may be administered orally . because the fk506 is being administered at a lower dose , its usual side effects may be decreased . typical side effects include infection , cardiac damage , hypertension , blurred vision , liver and kidney problems ( tacrolimus nephrotoxicity ), hyperkalemia , hypomagnesemia , hyperglycemia , diabetes mellitus , itching , lung damage ( sirolimus also causes lung damage ), and various neuropsychiatric problems such as loss of appetite , insomnia , posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome , confusion , weakness , depression , cramps , neuropathy , seizures , tremors , and catatonia . a pharmaceutical composition comprising a subject compound may be administered to a patient alone , or in combination with other supplementary active agents . the pharmaceutical compositions may be manufactured using any of a variety of processes , including , without limitation , conventional mixing , dissolving , granulating , dragee - making , levigating , emulsifying , encapsulating , entrapping , and lyophilizing . the pharmaceutical composition can take any of a variety of forms including , without limitation , a sterile solution , suspension , emulsion , lyophilisate , tablet , pill , pellet , capsule , powder , syrup , elixir or any other dosage form suitable for administration . a subject compound may be administered to the host using any convenient means capable of resulting in the desired reduction in disease condition or symptom . thus , a subject compound can be incorporated into a variety of formulations for therapeutic administration . more particularly , a subject compound can be formulated into pharmaceutical compositions by combination with appropriate pharmaceutically acceptable carriers or diluents , and may be formulated into preparations in solid , semi - solid , liquid or gaseous forms , such as tablets , capsules , powders , granules , ointments , solutions , suppositories , injections , inhalants and aerosols . formulations for pharmaceutical compositions are well known in the art . for example , remington &# 39 ; s pharmaceutical sciences , by e . w . martin , mack publishing co ., easton , pa ., 19th edition , 1995 , describes exemplary formulations ( and components thereof ) suitable for pharmaceutical delivery of disclosed compounds . pharmaceutical compositions comprising at least one of the subject compounds can be formulated for use in human or veterinary medicine . particular formulations of a disclosed pharmaceutical composition may depend , for example , on the mode of administration and / or on the location of the infection to be treated . in some embodiments , formulations include a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier in addition to at least one active ingredient , such as a subject compound . in other embodiments , other medicinal or pharmaceutical agents , for example , with similar , related or complementary effects on the affliction being treated can also be included as active ingredients in a pharmaceutical composition . pharmaceutically acceptable carriers useful for the disclosed methods and compositions are conventional in the art . the nature of a pharmaceutical carrier will depend on the particular mode of administration being employed . for example , parenteral formulations usually comprise injectable fluids that include pharmaceutically and physiologically acceptable fluids such as water , physiological saline , balanced salt solutions , aqueous dextrose , glycerol or the like as a vehicle . for solid compositions ( e . g ., powder , pill , tablet , or capsule forms ), conventional non - toxic solid carriers can include , for example , pharmaceutical grades of mannitol , lactose , starch , or magnesium stearate . in addition to biologically neutral carriers , pharmaceutical compositions to be administered can optionally contain minor amounts of non - toxic auxiliary substances ( e . g ., excipients ), such as wetting or emulsifying agents , preservatives , and ph buffering agents and the like ; for example , sodium acetate or sorbitan monolaurate . other non - limiting excipients include , nonionic solubilizers , such as cremophor , or proteins , such as human serum albumin or plasma preparations . some examples of materials which can serve as pharmaceutically - acceptable carriers include : ( 1 ) sugars , such as lactose , glucose and sucrose ; ( 2 ) starches , such as corn starch and potato starch ; ( 3 ) cellulose , and its derivatives , such as sodium carboxymethyl cellulose , ethyl cellulose and cellulose acetate ; ( 4 ) powdered tragacanth ; ( 5 ) malt ; ( 6 ) gelatin ; ( 7 ) talc ; ( 8 ) excipients , such as cocoa butter and suppository waxes ; ( 9 ) oils , such as peanut oil , cottonseed oil , safflower oil , sesame oil , olive oil , corn oil and soybean oil ; ( 10 ) glycols , such as propylene glycol ; ( 11 ) polyols , such as glycerin , sorbitol , mannitol , and polyethylene glycol ; ( 12 ) esters , such as ethyl oleate and ethyl laurate ; ( 13 ) agar ; ( 14 ) buffering agents , such as magnesium hydroxide and aluminum hydroxide ; ( 15 ) alginic acid ; ( 16 ) pyrogen - free water ; ( 17 ) isotonic saline ; ( 18 ) ringer &# 39 ; s solution ; ( 19 ) ethyl alcohol ; ( 20 ) ph buffered solutions ; ( 21 ) polyesters , polycarbonates and / or polyanhydrides ; and ( 22 ) other non - toxic compatible substances employed in pharmaceutical formulations . the disclosed pharmaceutical compositions may be formulated as a pharmaceutically acceptable salt of a disclosed compound . pharmaceutically acceptable salts are non - toxic salts of a free base form of a compound that possesses the desired pharmacological activity of the free base . these salts may be derived from inorganic or organic acids . non - limiting examples of suitable inorganic acids are hydrochloric acid , nitric acid , hydrobromic acid , sulfuric acid , hydroiodic acid , and phosphoric acid . non - limiting examples of suitable organic acids are acetic acid , propionic acid , glycolic acid , lactic acid , pyruvic acid , malonic acid , succinic acid , malic acid , maleic acid , fumaric acid , tartaric acid , citric acid , benzoic acid , cinnamic acid , mandelic acid , methanesulfonic acid , ethanesulfonic acid , p - toluenesulfonic acid , methyl sulfonic acid , salicylic acid , formic acid , trichloroacetic acid , trifluoroacetic acid , gluconic acid , asparagic acid , aspartic acid , benzenesulfonic acid , p - toluenesulfonic acid , naphthalenesulfonic acid , and the like . lists of other suitable pharmaceutically acceptable salts are found in remington &# 39 ; s pharmaceutical sciences , 17th edition , mack publishing company , easton , pa ., 1985 . a pharmaceutically acceptable salt may also serve to adjust the osmotic pressure of the composition . a subject compound can be used alone or in combination with appropriate additives to make tablets , powders , granules or capsules , for example , with conventional additives , such as lactose , mannitol , corn starch or potato starch ; with binders , such as crystalline cellulose , cellulose derivatives , acacia , corn starch or gelatins ; with disintegrators , such as corn starch , potato starch or sodium carboxymethylcellulose ; with lubricants , such as talc or magnesium stearate ; and if desired , with diluents , buffering agents , moistening agents , preservatives and flavoring agents . such preparations can be used for oral administration . a subject compound can be formulated into preparations for injection by dissolving , suspending or emulsifying them in an aqueous or nonaqueous solvent , such as vegetable or other similar oils , synthetic aliphatic acid glycerides , esters of higher aliphatic acids or propylene glycol ; and if desired , with conventional additives such as solubilizers , isotonic agents , suspending agents , emulsifying agents , stabilizers and preservatives . the preparation may also be emulsified or the active ingredient encapsulated in liposome vehicles . formulations suitable for injection can be administered by an intravitreal , intraocular , intramuscular , subcutaneous , sublingual , or other route of administration , e . g ., injection into the gum tissue or other oral tissue . such formulations are also suitable for topical administration . in some embodiments , a subject compound can be delivered by a continuous delivery system . the term “ continuous delivery system ” is used interchangeably herein with “ controlled delivery system ” and encompasses continuous ( e . g ., controlled ) delivery devices ( e . g ., pumps ) in combination with catheters , injection devices , and the like , a wide variety of which are known in the art . a subject compound can be utilized in aerosol formulation to be administered via inhalation . a subject compound can be formulated into pressurized acceptable propellants such as dichlorodifluoromethane , propane , nitrogen and the like . furthermore , a subject compound can be made into suppositories by mixing with a variety of bases such as emulsifying bases or water - soluble bases . a subject compound can be administered rectally via a suppository . the suppository can include vehicles such as cocoa butter , carbowaxes and polyethylene glycols , which melt at body temperature , yet are solidified at room temperature . the term “ unit dosage form ,” as used herein , refers to physically discrete units suitable as unitary dosages for human and animal subjects , each unit containing a predetermined quantity of a subject compound calculated in an amount sufficient to produce the desired effect in association with a pharmaceutically acceptable diluent , carrier or vehicle . the specifications for a subject compound depend on the particular compound employed and the effect to be achieved , and the pharmacodynamics associated with each compound in the host . the dosage form of a disclosed pharmaceutical composition will be determined by the mode of administration chosen . for example , in addition to injectable fluids , topical or oral dosage forms may be employed . topical preparations may include eye drops , ointments , sprays and the like . oral formulations may be liquid ( e . g ., syrups , solutions or suspensions ), or solid ( e . g ., powders , pills , tablets , or capsules ). methods of preparing such dosage forms are known , or will be apparent , to those skilled in the art . certain embodiments of the pharmaceutical compositions comprising a subject compound may be formulated in unit dosage form suitable for individual administration of precise dosages . the amount of active ingredient administered will depend on the subject being treated , the severity of the affliction , and the manner of administration , and is known to those skilled in the art . within these bounds , the formulation to be administered will contain a quantity of the extracts or compounds disclosed herein in an amount effective to achieve the desired effect in the subject being treated . each therapeutic compound can independently be in any dosage form , such as those described herein , and can also be administered in various ways , as described herein . for example , the compounds may be formulated together , in a single dosage unit ( that is , combined together in one form such as capsule , tablet , powder , or liquid , etc .) as a combination product . alternatively , when not formulated together in a single dosage unit , an individual subject compound may be administered at the same time as another therapeutic compound or sequentially , in any order thereof . the route of administration may be selected according to a variety of factors including , but not necessarily limited to , the condition to be treated , the formulation and / or device used , the patient to be treated , and the like . routes of administration useful in the disclosed methods include but are not limited to oral and parenteral routes , such as intravenous ( iv ), intraperitoneal ( ip ), rectal , topical , ophthalmic , nasal , and transdermal . formulations for these dosage forms are described herein . an effective amount of a subject compound will depend , at least , on the particular method of use , the subject being treated , the severity of the affliction , and the manner of administration of the therapeutic composition . a “ therapeutically effective amount ” of a composition is a quantity of a specified compound sufficient to achieve a desired effect in a subject ( host ) being treated . therapeutically effective doses ( or growth inhibitory amounts ) of a subject compound or pharmaceutical composition can be determined by one of skill in the art , with a goal of achieving local ( e . g ., tissue ) concentrations that are at least as high as the ic50 of an applicable compound disclosed herein . the specific dose level and frequency of dosage for any particular subject may be varied and will depend upon a variety of factors , including the activity of the subject compound , the metabolic stability and length of action of that compound , the age , body weight , general health , sex and diet of the subject , mode and time of administration , rate of excretion , drug combination , and severity of the condition of the host undergoing therapy . in order to further illustrate the present invention , the following specific examples are given with the understanding that they are being offered to illustrate the present invention and should not be construed in any way as limiting its scope . a loss of function mutation in bone morphogenetic protein ( bmp ) receptor ii ( bmprii ) is present in & gt ; 80 % of familial and ˜ 20 % of sporadic idiopathic ( i ) pah ( machado et al . hum mutat 2006 , 27 : 121 - 32 ). even patients with ipah without a bmprii mutation or with other causes of pah have reduced expression of bmprii , reinforcing the importance of bmprii signaling in the pathogenesis of pah ( humbert m et al . eur respir j 2002 , 20 : 518 - 23 ). furthermore bmpr2 receptor gene therapy attenuates experimental hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in rats ( reynolds et al . am j physiol lung cell mol physiol 2007 ). therefore increasing bmprii signaling in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension might prevent or reverse disease . 3600 fda approved drugs and bioactive compounds were screened for their ability to activate bmp signaling , using a c2c12 mouse myoblast cell line stably transfected with a reporter plasmid expressing a bmp response element ( bre ) from the id1 promoter fused to the luciferase - gene ( bre - luc ). whether the best qhts - bmprii activator can induce smad phosphorylation ( phospho ), id1 expression and promote paec survival and tube formation was determined using bmp4 as a positive control . whether the qhts - bmprii - activator would prevent pah in mice with a conditional deletion in bmprii in ecs ( bmprii - scl - creert ) that develop exaggerated pah after 3 weeks of hypoxia ( 10 % o 2 ) was determined . in order to assess whether the bmprii activator could also reverse pah , we used 2 models of severe experimental ph in rats : 1 . monocrotaline induced pulmonary hypertension with development of severe medial hypertrophy of the pulmonary arteries 3 weeks after injection . 2 . sugen ( vegf - receptor blocker ) and 3 - week chronic hypoxia induced pulmonary hypertension with development of neointima formation in pulmonary arteries 8 weeks after initiation of the stimulus . both groups were treated with fk - 506 for 3 weeks via sc osmotic pump ( 0 . 05 mg / kg / d ) after pah and remodeling of the pulmonary arteries was established . the serum level of fk - 506 in mice and rats was aimed to be 0 . 2 ng / ml . fk - 506 , an agent that can induce bmpria phosphorylation , was the main activator of id1 expression . fk - 506 , at a dose of 15 ng / ml , the therapeutic serum level used to induce immunosuppression , and at a much lower dose of 0 . 2 ng / ml increased id1 protein expression 1 h following stimulation , in a manner comparable to bmp4 ( 10 ng / ml ) ( n = 3 , p & lt ; 0 . 06 ). this was preceded by phospho - smad 1 / 5 / 8 at 15 min , similar to bmp4 ( n = 3 , p & lt ; 0 . 001 ). fk - 506 induced p - smad 1 / 5 / 8 and id1 expression in paecs harvested from six different ipah patients at the time of transplant , including 3 / 6 patients that did not respond to bmp4 . both bmp4 and fk - 506 improved survival of paecs ( n = 5 , p & lt ; 0 . 001 ) and induced tube formation in an angiogenesis assay ( n = 3 , p & lt ; 0 . 01 ). a 3 - week preventive treatment with fk - 506 ( 0 . 05 mg / kg / d ) ( serum levels 0 . 2 ng / ml ) in mice with a conditional deletion in bmprii in ecs exposed to 3 weeks of hypoxia prevented the development of pah and right ventricular hypertrophy ( rvh ); rv systolic pressure : 32 ± 0 . 9 vs 21 ± 2 . 3 mmhg , p & lt ; 0 . 001 ; rvh : 36 . 2 ± 2 . 5 vs 26 . 9 ± 4 . 5 , p & lt ; 0 . 01 , both n = 5 . to test whether fk - 506 could also reverse pah , we induced pah in rats with monocrotaline ( 60 mg once s . c ) and began treatment with fk - 506 3 weeks after injection , a time when pah was established ( rvsp 50 . 8 ± 2 . 7 mmhg , n = 7 ). the survival after a 3 - week treatment with fk - 506 did not differ in the fk - 506 ( 57 %) compared to the vehicle group ( 66 %), yet of those that that survived the pah was significantly reduced after treatment with fk - 506 compared to vehicle treated animals ( rvsp 39 . 5 ± 4 . 7 vs 68 . 6 ± 4 . 2 mmhg , n = 14 ). it was determined that the combined stimulus of sugen ( 20 mg / kg s . c ) and 3 - weeks of chronic hypoxia induced pah in rats when rats were returned to ra and left for another 5 weeks ( rvsp 55 . 1 ± 10 . 7 vs control 25 . 1 ± 0 . 5 mmhg , rvh 0 . 24 ± 0 . 005 vs 0 . 44 ± 0 . 07 , n = 4 , p & lt ; 0 . 05 ) but that a 3 - week sc treatment of fk - 506 at the time of established pah could prevent progression and induce regression of pah in fk - 506 treated vs vehicle treated animals ( rvsp 66 . 5 ± 4 . 1 mmhg vs 39 . 5 ± 0 . 6 mmhg , rvh 0 . 49 ± 0 . 07 vs 0 . 34 ± 0 . 02 , n = 4 , p & lt ; 0 . 05 ). neointima formation in small pulmonary arteries ( alveolar wall and alveolar duct vessels ) per total vessel number decreased from 61 . 2 ± 6 . 1 % to 16 . 2 ± 5 . 8 % ( n = 4 , p & lt ; 0 . 01 ). at the low dose of fk - 506 of 0 . 2 ng / ml no effect on total or differential wbc count was observed , nor was an immunosuppressive effect of decreased nuclear nfatc2 measured . fk - 506 ( tacrolimus ) was identified in a quantitative high throughput screen ( qhts ) of fda approved drugs and bioactive compounds as a drug that activates bmprii signaling , restores normal function of pulmonary artery endothelial cells ( paecs ), prevents and reverses experimental pah in mice and rats . patients are invited to participate in this study because they have pulmonary hypertension ( ph ) and are currently treated with one or multiple drugs for ph such as pde - 5 inhibitors ( sildenafil , tadalafil ), prostacyclins ( flolan , remodulin , iloprost ) and / or the endothelin antagonist ambrisentan . while all these drugs are effective as vasodilators , new medications are sought that could reverse the pathological remodeling of the pulmonary arteries . whether subjects have a familial form of pulmonary hypertension or not , it is known that a certain pathway ( bmpr2 ) is impaired in ph . studies have shown that the immunosuppressive drug fk - 506 ( tacrolimus ) activates the bmpr2 pathway and prevents and reverses pulmonary hypertension in experimental pulmonary hypertension . this study is open to male or female subjects , 18 - 70 years of age , with ph . if a patient agrees to participate in this study , the patient will be one of 40 subjects participating in the study . if a patient agrees to participate and the patent qualifies , the patient will be allocated to the study drug through a process called randomization . randomization means that the study drug that the patient will receive is selected by chance ( like the flip of a coin ). the study drug options for this study are placebo , and 3 different doses of fk - 506 ( blood level & lt ; 1 . 0 , 1 . 5 - 2 . 5 , and 3 - 5 ng / ml ; as a reference : the immunosuppressive dose is 5 - 15 ng / ml ). the study drug will be added to the patient &# 39 ; s baseline ph therapy . the randomization for this study is 1 : 3 which means patients have a chance of 75 % of receiving treatment with fk - 506 . the purpose of this study is to confirm that adding fk - 506 to a ph treatment at a dose below the normal dose that is used for immunosuppression is safe and whether it will improve pulmonary hypertension . heart function will be assessed by echo , 6 - min walk and the biomarker nt - probnp . fk - 506 ( tacrolimus ) is an fda approved immunosuppressive drug used in organ transplantation as well as in autoimmune diseases . as the metabolism of fk - 506 differs in patients quite widely , therapy is directed by measuring drug levels in whole blood . the blood will be drawn shipped to a testing lab to measure fk - 506 levels . the goal immunosuppressive doses are 5 - 15 ng / ml . in this study we aim for much lower doses ( see above ). patients will receive the study drug for the duration of study . the drug will be delivered in a prepared bottle , which allows monitoring of drug intake . this device is called a medication event monitoring system ( mems ) and for it to monitor drug intake properly . patients should always take out one tablet at a time from the bottle . participation in the study lasts for approximately 16 weeks . during this time , patients will be required to visit the clinic approximately 4 - 5 times . if a patient agrees to take part in this study , they will first sign this consent form . after the patients have signed , dated and received a copy of this consent form , they will have the study screening visit to ensure the patient is eligible to take part in this study . previous test results ( echocardiogram , physical examination , pulmonary function tests , right heart catheterization ( rhc ) may also be used to determine patient eligibility .	6
the properties of ionic liquids are of great interest as potential electrolytes for electrochemical applications because certain classes have melting points near or below ambient temperature , and they are also non - volatile . hence , much research is pouring into improving ionic liquids as ionic conductors . this work investigates compositions that improve the diffusivity of ions in several organic ionic liquids . bistriflimide , systematically known as bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide and colloquially as tfsi , is an organic anion with the chemical formula [( cf 3 so 2 ) 2 n ] − . the tfsi anion can form salts with various organic cations . the tfsi anion is widely used in ionic liquids which can have powerful solvating properties , since it is more stable than more “ traditional ” counterions such as tetrafluoroborate . this anion is of importance in lithium - ion and lithium metal batteries because of its conductivity . however , efforts to enhance tfsi - type ionic liquids with lithium salts results in slow diffusion of lithium cations because the metal cation is complexed by an aggregate of tfsi anions ( fig1 ). fast lithium ion mobility is very important for lithium batteries . regardless of being the smallest species in an ionic liquid ( il )/ lithium salt mixture , the lithium cation typically exhibits the slowest diffusion rate compared to either the anion or the cation of the il ( e . g ., diffusivity of large cations & gt ; anions & gt ; lithium cations ). it has been reported that each individual lithium ion is coordinated with multiple anions , resulting in poor migration of lithium cations in the electrolyte . glymes are known to coordinate with lithium cations . addition of glyme can competitively inhibit and break the interaction between the lithium cation and the tfsi anion . the lithium cation solvated by the glyme can have significantly better mobility than in the mixture without glyme , which we have demonstrated in our experiments ( fig1 ). in our earlier work with other collaborators ( sharma et al ., chem . eng . sci ., 2017 , 159 , 43 - 57 ), we have shown that adding glyme to an ionic liquid such as , 1 - n - hexyl - 3 - methylimidazolium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ c 6 mim ][ tfsi ]), will have an effect on lowering the viscosity of the ionic liquid that is more than would be expected by predictive models . however , improvements in ionic conductivity by lowering its viscosity with increasing amounts of glyme reaches a maximum benefit . the effect of adding the organometallic salt , lithium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide , to an organic ionic liquid such as n , n - diethyl - n - methyl - n -( 2 - methoxyethyl ) ammonium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ deme ][ tfsi ]), results in the lithium cation being sequestered by the anion as discussed above ( fig1 ). this effect can be demonstrated by observing changes to the — cf 3 band of the raman spectrum as the concentration of lithium cation is increased in the ionic liquid ( fig2 ). the — cf 3 vibration mode of free tfsi anions show up around 742 cm − 1 . upon addition of li [ tfsi ] salt , the interaction between the lithium cation and tfsi anion causes an additional vibration mode to appear near 748 cm − 1 . the size of the bump forming at 748 cm − 1 increases with increasing concentration of li [ tfsi ] salt ( larger extent of li - tfsi interaction with increasing concentration ). deconvolution of changes to the — cf 3 vibrations at various concentrations of added lithium salt are shown in fig3 which highlights the ratio of free versus coordinated tfsi anions . the interaction of lithium cations and tfsi anions is also demonstrated by nmr . upon addition of li [ tfsi ] salt , the carbon and fluorine peaks , that resonate from — cf 3 of the anion , shift to higher field ( lower ppm ), indicative of less chemical shielding exerted by the oxygen atoms toward the neighboring carbon atoms . this is also due to strong interactions between the lithium cation and oxygen atoms ( sharing electrons with li + ) of the tfsi anion . mixtures of oligoethers ( with the chemical formula of ch 3 o ( ch 2 ch 2 o ) n ch 3 ( n = 4 or 5 , e . g ., tri -, or tetra - glymes ) with lithium salts have been reported to coordinate ( or solvate ) lithium cations to a greater extent than tfsi anions , thereby forming a complex of lithium - glyme ions . such solvation would disrupt the aforementioned interaction between lithium cation and tfsi anion , and result in faster lithium cation mobility . another problem occurs when li [ tfsi ] is added to an ionic liquid as shown in fig5 and 6 . the addition of li [ tfsi ] to the il increases the viscosity in two ionic liquids we tested , [ pp13 ][ tfsi ] and [ deme ][ tfsi ], which have high electrochemical stability and relatively low viscosity . fortunately , adding tetraglyme decreases the viscosity of the composition owing to the lower viscosity of tetraglyme . surprisingly , addition of 1 mole of tetraglyme per mole of li [ tfsi ] brings the viscosity back to the original viscosity value at all the tested temperatures . addition of glyme in greater proportions further lowers viscosity , but this introduces uncomplexed glyme which is volatile in the composition ( see discussion of results below ). one way of testing whether tetraglyme is fully solvating the lithium cation or not is to examine the relative diffusivity of lithium cation and tetraglyme . if one expects full solvation ( one lithium cation solvated by one tetraglyme molecule ), the two species would behave as one complex cation , resulting in equal diffusivity . the diffusivities , as measured by pfg - se nmr , are shown in fig7 . the diffusivity of lithium cation is less than either the cation or the anion when there is no tetraglyme . however , when 1 mole of tetraglyme is added per mole of lithium cation ( or per mole li [ tfsi ]), the diffusivities of the cation , the anion , the lithium cation and the tetraglyme are all virtually the same . when there is excess tetraglyme ( greater than 1 : 1 ratio as in the example for [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]), free tetraglyme molecules that are not solvating lithium cation causes the diffusivity of tetraglyme to increase ( d li & lt ; d tg ). these trends are similar for both ionic liquids of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ] and [ deme ][ tfsi ]. fig8 compares the diffusivity , as calculated from the stokes - einstein relation ( eq . 1 ), of each individual species in the il - salt or il - salt - tg mixtures at the given viscosities . from the graph , it is clear that diffusivities of cation (+) and anion (−) are faster than that of li + ( δ ) when there is no tg added . when tg (◯) is added in 1 : 1 ratio , the diffusivity of li + is equivalent to that of tg , and both are comparable to the diffusivity of il , confirming increased mobility of li + ( plus tg complex ). addition of excess tg generates free tg molecules , resulting in faster mobility of tg than any other species in the mixture . the effect of tetraglyme &# 39 ; s association with metal ions can be observed in chemical shifts in the 7 li nmr spectrum ( fig9 ). addition of tg decreases the chemical shift of the 7 li signal to lower field due to deshielding effects of stronger li - tg interactions compared to li - anion interactions . the vapor pressure of tetraglyme becomes negligible at lower temperatures ( about less than 200 ° c .) when it solvates a metal cation because its molecular characteristics change . without solvation , tetraglyme is more volatile than an ionic liquid or a lithium salt . thus , tetraglyme would evaporate at lower temperatures faster during thermo gravimetric analysis ( tga ), which is an experiment that measures changes in mass due to evaporation as temperature is gradually raised . when the stoichiometric affords full solvation between a lithium cation and tetraglyme , the tetraglyme becomes a part of the complex cation , and is less prone to evaporation compared to free tetraglyme . the mass change of the complex during a tga experiment at higher temperatures may result from decomplexation , thereby releasing the volatile form of tetraglyme . the results of a tga experiments is shown in fig1 for mixtures comprising of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ], li [ tfsi ], and tetraglyme . the data confirms that the tetraglyme is much less volatile when it is solvating the lithium cation . when only tetraglyme is present , it evaporates in the range between 150 ° c . and 200 ° c . in a mixture of just il and tetraglyme , tetraglyme evaporates at a similar temperature range . however , when there is a 1 : 1 ratio of lithium to tetraglyme , there is very little mass loss until over 400 ° c . this is because the lithium and the tetraglyme form an essentially nonvolatile complex . when extra tetraglyme is present ( the 1 : 2 ratio ), the ‘ free ’ tetraglyme evaporates at lower temperatures ( around 175 ° c .). this means that the glyme additive , if it is not present in excess , would not be volatile and would not pose the same flammability problems experienced with normal organic solvents . examination of the raman spectrum of ionic liquid compositions comprising lithium salt and varying amounts of tetraglyme shows the effect of the organic solvate on the raman − cf 3 shift ( fig1 ). without tetraglyme , we observe the small bump at 728 cm − 1 due to the formed lithium - tfsi complex . addition of a small amount of tetraglyme ( 0 . 5 mol tg per mole li ) starts to reduce the hump since only about half of the lithium cations are coordinated with tetraglyme . addition of 1 : 1 ratio of tg to li causes the hump to disappear , confirming the presence of free tfsi anions ( li - tfsi complex broken up by preferred formation of li - tg complex ). further addition of excess tetraglyme does not affect the spectrum ( all tfsi anions are freed with just 1 : 1 ratio of tg to li ). triglyme ( g3 ) is also capable of solvating lithium cations . we observed that addition of g3 to a il - lithium salt mixture can enhance the lithium cation mobility by complete solvation ( fig1 ). similar trends in diffusivity are observed with triglyme as were observed with tetraglyme , described above . diffusivity of all ions decrease when 0 . 35m li [ tfsi ] is added to [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]. when triglyme is added to this mixture in a 1 : 1 ratio with lithium cation the diffusivity of all ions is on par with the diffusivity of triglyme , as seen similarly with tetraglyme . raman spectra evidence of triglyme &# 39 ; s ability to solvate lithium cation is shown in fig1 . as observed with tetraglyme , we see the hump on the — cf 3 peak due to the lithium cation and tfsi complex diminish to the raman signal of free tfsi upon addition of g3 in a 1 : 1 ratio with li [ tfsi ]. thus , tri - or tetraglyme is capable of solvating lithium ion when added in equimolar ratio ( 1 mol of glyme per mol of lithium salt ), resulting in a ‘ solvate il ’ ( that is , without an organic ionic liquid being used as the main electrolyte ). to perturb the lithium - anion coordination in a binary il - lithium salt mixture , just enough tetraglyme was added to the binary il - lithium salt mixture ( 1 mole tetraglyme per mol lithium salt ) to solvate the lithium cation and to increase the lithium cation diffusivity . for example , we prepared a mixture of diethylmethyl ( 2 - methoxyethyl ) ammonium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ deme ][ tfsi ]) containing 0 . 35m lithium bis ( trifluoromethanesulfonyl ) imide ( li [ tfsi ]), then added tetraglyme , ( in 1 : 1 molar ratio with the lithium salt ) for diffusivity measurements , which produced surprising results in our experiments . the overall composition had less glyme than the corresponding solvate il , yet the viscosity of the binary salt composition was less and the diffusivity of ions in the composition increased relative to the mixture without tetraglyme . a general method of preparing ionic liquid compositions with improved mobility or transport of lithium cations by glyme complexation is shown in the flow diagram , fig1 . for example , 0 . 35 moles of li [ tfsi ] ( represented by [ m + ][ x − ]) is added in step 1 to an ionic liquid of a calculated weight to produce 1 kg of the mixture , wherein [ cation ] + [ anion ] − are two organic ionic moieties forming the salt . after stirring in step 2 , a homogeneous binary salt mixture containing 0 . 35 m li [ tfsi ] is prepared . to this mixture , 0 . 35 moles of a desired glyme is added in step 3 . finally , the electrolyte composition is ready after stirring in step 4 . fig1 shows examples of some cations and anions that can form ionic liquids , and shown are other examples of specific organic ionic salts . some representative organic cations include , but are not limited to imidazolium , pyridinium , piperidinium , ammonium , phosphonium , and sulfonium . the choice of the anion is more critical . donor properties of anions that are less - basic are less likely to interact strongly with the lithium cation , and therefore preferred . if the anion is too basic , addition of glyme may be less effective in breaking the metal - anion interaction that is necessary to solvate the metal cation . therefore , examples of anions that would work well with glymes include , but are not limited to , tfsi and clo 4 + . use of glymes to solvate metal cations other than lithium cation is possible . for example , cations of sodium or potassium ( which are larger in size than li + ) could be solvated by longer oligoethers , such as ch 3 o ( ch 2 ch 2 o ) n ch 3 when n = 5 for na + or n = 6 for k + . crown ethers , sized with the appropriate number of oxygens would also solvate metal ions that correspond in size . in addition to safety , another advantage of the present disclosure over solvate ionic liquids is our compositions are “ tunable ”. in other words , our il + li salt + glyme system makes it possible to tune physical properties , such as viscosity , diffusivity , conductivity , electrochemical window , etc ., by varying the components making up the composition of the electrolyte . for instance , in the spectrum of diffusivity of lithium ion , using the diffusivity of the published g4 - li [ tfsi ] solvate ionic liquid as a point of reference ( which has the highest diffusivity ( 1 . 31 × 10 7 cm 2 / s ) among all solvate ils ), the [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]+ li salt + glyme system can be tuned to a diffusivity at the lower end of the spectrum . on the opposite end of the diffusivity spectrum , the diffusivity of [ deme ][ tfsi ]+ li salt + g4 can be tuned at the higher end of diffusivity . a similar comparison can be made using the viscosity of the solvate il as a reference value ( cp = 81 ). the following definitions are included to provide a clear and consistent understanding of the specification and claims . as used herein , the recited terms have the following meanings . all other terms and phrases used in this specification have their ordinary meanings as one of skill in the art would understand . such ordinary meanings may be obtained by reference to technical dictionaries , such as hawley &# 39 ; s condensed chemical dictionary 14 th edition , by r . j . lewis , john wiley & amp ; sons , new york , n . y ., 2001 . references in the specification to “ one embodiment ”, “ an embodiment ”, etc ., indicate that the embodiment described may include a particular aspect , feature , structure , moiety , or characteristic , but not every embodiment necessarily includes that aspect , feature , structure , moiety , or characteristic . moreover , such phrases may , but do not necessarily , refer to the same embodiment referred to in other portions of the specification . further , when a particular aspect , feature , structure , moiety , or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment , it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to affect or connect such aspect , feature , structure , moiety , or characteristic with other embodiments , whether or not explicitly described . the singular forms “ a ,” “ an ,” and “ the ” include plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise . thus , for example , a reference to “ a compound ” includes a plurality of such compounds , so that a compound x includes a plurality of compounds x . it is further noted that the claims may be drafted to exclude any optional element . as such , this statement is intended to serve as antecedent basis for the use of exclusive terminology , such as “ solely ,” “ only ,” and the like , in connection with any element described herein , and / or the recitation of claim elements or use of “ negative ” limitations . the term “ and / or ” means any one of the items , any combination of the items , or all of the items with which this term is associated . the phrases “ one or more ” and “ at least one ” are readily understood by one of skill in the art , particularly when read in context of its usage . for example , the phrase can mean one , two , three , four , five , six , ten , 100 , or any upper limit approximately 10 , 100 , or 1000 times higher than a recited lower limit . for example , one or more substituents on a phenyl ring refers to one to five , or one to four , for example if the phenyl ring is di - substituted . as will be understood by the skilled artisan , all numbers , including those expressing quantities of ingredients , properties such as molecular weight , reaction conditions , and so forth , are approximations and are understood as being optionally modified in all instances by the term “ about .” these values can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by those skilled in the art utilizing the teachings of the descriptions herein . it is also understood that such values inherently contain variability necessarily resulting from the standard deviations found in their respective testing measurements . when values are expressed as approximations , by use of the antecedent “ about ,” it will be understood that the particular value without the modifier “ about ” also forms a further aspect . the terms “ about ” and “ approximately ” are used interchangeably . both terms can refer to a variation of ± 5 %, ± 10 %, ± 200 /%, or ± 25 % of the value specified . for example , “ about 50 ” percent can in some embodiments carry a variation from 45 to 55 percent , or as otherwise defined by a particular claim . for integer ranges , the term “ about ” can include one or two integers greater than and / or less than a recited integer at each end of the range . unless indicated otherwise herein , the terms “ about ” and “ approximately ” are intended to include values , e . g ., weight percentages , proximate to the recited range that are equivalent in terms of the functionality of the individual ingredient , composition , or embodiment . the terms “ about ” and “ approximately ” can also modify the end - points of a recited range as discussed above in this paragraph . as will be understood by one skilled in the art , for any and all purposes , particularly in terms of providing a written description , all ranges recited herein also encompass any and all possible sub - ranges and combinations of sub - ranges thereof , as well as the individual values making up the range , particularly integer values . it is therefore understood that each unit between two particular units are also disclosed . for example , if 10 to 15 is disclosed , then 11 , 12 , 13 , and 14 are also disclosed , individually , and as part of a range . a recited range ( e . g ., weight percentages or carbon groups ) includes each specific value , integer , decimal , or identity within the range . any listed range can be easily recognized as sufficiently describing and enabling the same range being broken down into at least equal halves , thirds , quarters , fifths , or tenths . as a non - limiting example , each range discussed herein can be readily broken down into a lower third , middle third and upper third , etc . as will also be understood by one skilled in the art , all language such as “ up to ”, “ at least ”, “ greater than ”, “ less than ”, “ more than ”, “ or more ”, and the like , include the number recited and such terms refer to ranges that can be subsequently broken down into sub - ranges as discussed above . in the same manner , all ratios recited herein also include all sub - ratios falling within the broader ratio . accordingly , specific values recited for radicals , substituents , and ranges , are for illustration only ; they do not exclude other defined values or other values within defined ranges for radicals and substituents . it will be further understood that the endpoints of each of the ranges are significant both in relation to the other endpoint , and independently of the other endpoint . one skilled in the art will also readily recognize that where members are grouped together in a common manner , such as in a markush group , the invention encompasses not only the entire group listed as a whole , but each member of the group individually and all possible subgroups of the main group . additionally , for all purposes , the invention encompasses not only the main group , but also the main group absent one or more of the group members . the invention therefore envisages the explicit exclusion of any one or more of members of a recited group . accordingly , provisos may apply to any of the disclosed categories or embodiments whereby any one or more of the recited elements , species , or embodiments , may be excluded from such categories or embodiments , for example , for use in an explicit negative limitation . the term “ contacting ” refers to the act of touching , making contact , or of bringing to immediate or close proximity , including at the cellular or molecular level , for example , to bring about a physiological reaction , a chemical reaction , or a physical change , e . g ., in a solution , in a reaction mixture , in vitro , or in vivo . an “ effective amount ” refers to an amount effective to bring about a recited effect , such as an amount necessary to form products in a reaction mixture . determination of an effective amount is typically within the capacity of persons skilled in the art , especially in light of the detailed disclosure provided herein . the term “ effective amount ” is intended to include an amount of a compound or reagent described herein , or an amount of a combination of compounds or reagents described herein , e . g ., that is effective to form products in a reaction mixture . thus , an “ effective amount ” generally means an amount that provides the desired effect . the term “ substantially ” as used herein , is a broad term and is used in its ordinary sense , including , without limitation , being largely but not necessarily wholly that which is specified . the term “ ionic liquid ” ( or “ molten salt ”) refers to a salt in the liquid ( or molten state ). in some contexts , the term refers to salts whose melting point is below 100 ° c ., is near or below room temperature , or is near or below ambient temperature . a salt is a molecule having a cation and an anion forming an ionic bond , which is usually stronger than the van der waals forces between the molecules of ordinary liquids . examples include compounds based on the 1 - ethyl - 3 - methylimidazolium ( emim ) cation . while ordinary liquids such as water are predominantly made of electrically neutral molecules , ionic liquids are largely made of ions . these substances are variously called liquid electrolytes , ionic melts , ionic fluids , fused salts , liquid salts , or ionic glasses . ionic liquids are described as having many potential applications at near room temperature and low temperatures . they can be used in catalysis , gas handling , pharmaceuticals , cellulose processing , nuclear fuel reprocessing , solar thermal energy , waste recycling , carbon , capture , and electric batteries . however , ionic liquids are often moderate to poor conductors of electricity , non - ionizing , highly viscous , and frequently exhibit low vapor pressure . room temperature ionic liquids consist of bulky and asymmetric organic cations such as , but not limited to , 1 - alkyl - 3 - methylimidazolium , 1 - alkylpyridinium , n - methyl - n - alkylpyrrolidinium and ammonium ions , and also phosphonium cations . a wide range of anions are employed , ranging from , but not limited to , simple halides , which generally suffer high melting points , to inorganic anions such as tetrafluoroborate and hexafluorophosphate , and to large organic anions like bistriflimide ( synonymously referred to as , bis ( trifluromethylsulfonyl ) imide , or tfsi ), triflate or tosylate . there are also many potential uses of ionic liquids with simple non - halogenated organic anions such as formate , alkylsulfate , alkylphosphate or glycolate . an electric battery is a device consisting of one or more electrochemical cells with external connections provided to power electrical devices such as flashlights , smartphones , and electric cars . the term “ battery ” is a common term to describe an electrochemical storage system . a “ cell ” is a basic electrochemical unit that contains the basic components , such as electrodes , separator , and electrolyte . a “ battery ” or “ battery pack ” is a collection of cells or cell assemblies which are ready for use , as it contains an appropriate housing , electrical interconnections , and possibly electronics to control and protect the cells from failure . in this regard , the simplest “ battery ” is a single cell with perhaps a small electronic circuit for protection . a lithium - ion battery or li - ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery in which lithium ions move from the negative electrode to the positive electrode during discharge and back when charging . li - ion batteries use an intercalated lithium compound as one electrode material , compared to the metallic lithium used in a non - rechargeable lithium battery . the electrolyte , which allows for ionic movement , and the two electrodes are the constituent components of a lithium - ion battery cell . the term “ organic solvate ”, in this disclosure , refers to an organic oligomer that is a liquid at room temperature or near room temperature . the organic molecule can comprise an alkyl chain of hydrocarbon atoms having moieties of heteroatoms , such as oxygen or nitrogen , spaced in - between one or more of the hydrocarbon atoms , for example , an oligoether such as a glyme . the organic solvate can also be cyclic , like a heterocycle such as a crown ether which can be of various ring sizes . in this disclosure , the organic solvate coordinatively binds to , complexes , or chelates cations , such as metal ions , for example , but not limited to , lithium cations . the complex which is formed by the organic solvate and the metal ion can be represented as , for example , a [ metal ion ][ glyme ] complex . the term “ binary - salt ”, in this disclosure , refers to the combination or mixture of two or more salts . for example , an ionic liquid ( il ), consisting of the salt formed from an organic cation ([ organic ] + ) and an organic anion ([ organic ] − ), in a mixture with an organometallic salt , the organometallic salt consisting of a metal cation ([ m +]) and an organic anion ([ organic ] + ). in a first embodiment , an ionic composition comprises an organic salt having ionic liquid properties below 100 ° c ., and an organometallic salt , wherein a binary - salt mixture of the organic salt and the organometallic salt has ionic conductivity ; and an organic solvate ( s ) having properties to a ) chelate a metal cation ( m ), b ) increase the diffusivity of ions in the binary - salt mixture , and c ) lower the viscosity of the binary - salt mixture , wherein the organic solvate binds to the metal cations of the organometallic salt by coordination bonds to weaken the electrostatic interaction of the metal cations with the anions of the mixture , thereby solvating the metal cations from the anions and increasing the ionic conductivity of the binary - salt mixture ; wherein the stoichiometric ratio of the organic solvate ( s ) and the metal cation ( m ) in the ionic composition ranges from about 10 ( s ): 90 ( m ) to about 70 ( s ): 30 ( m ), the vapor pressure of the ionic composition is negligible , and the ionic composition has lower viscosity than a corresponding binary - salt mixture of the organic salt and the organometallic salt that lacks the organic solvate . in some embodiments , the binary - salt mixture or the ionic composition has ionic conductivity at 30 ° c . in the range of about 0 . 1 ms / cm to about 15 ms / cm , about 0 . 5 ms / cm to about 10 ms / cm , about 0 . 1 ms / cm to about 5 ms / cm , or about 1 ms / cm to about 5 ms / cm . in other embodiments , the viscosity of the ionic composition ranges from about 10 cp to about 1000 cp , about 10 cp to about 500 cp , about 10 cp to about 250 cp , about 20 cp to about 150 cp . in yet other embodiments , a negligible vapor pressure of the ionic composition is about 10 − 10 pa , or 10 − 10 pa within 3 orders of magnitude , within 2 orders of magnitude , or within 1 order of magnitude . in various embodiments , the anion of the organic salt , the organometallic salt , or a combination thereof is bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ tfsi ]), bis ( pentafluoroethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ beti ]), tetrafluoroborate , hexafluorophosphate , or perchlorate . in other embodiments , the organic solvate comprises ethylene glycol moieties . embodiments also include the metal cation of the organometallic salt which can be a cation of lithium , sodium , magnesium , potassium , or calcium . in other embodiments , the organic cation of bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ tfsi ]), bis ( pentafluoroethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ beti ]), tetrafluoroborate , hexafluorophosphate , or perchlorate is n , n - diethyl - n - methyl ( 2 - methoxyethyl ) ammonium ([ deme ]), n - methyl - n - propylpiperidinium ([ pp13 ]), 1 - n - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium ([ c 4 mim ]), triethylsulfonium , trihexyltetradecylphosphonium , or a combination thereof . in additional embodiments , the concentration of the organometallic salt ranges from about 0 . 1 molal to about 2 molal , about 0 . 1 molal to about 1 molal , or about 0 . 1 molal to about 0 . 5 molal , in a binary - salt mixture of the organometallic salt and the organic salt . in other embodiments , the organic solvate is diglyme , triglyme , tetraglyme , dimethoxyethane , or diethoxyethane . in various embodiments , the stoichiometric ratio of the organic solvate ( s ) and the metal cation ( m ) in the ionic composition is about 50 ( s ): 50 ( m ), or is about 2 ( s ): 1 ( m ). in additional embodiments , the organic solvate is tetraglyme , and the organometallic salt is lithium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ( li [ tfsi ]). in further embodiments , the composition comprises an organic salt of [ deme ][ tfsi ], an organic salt of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ], or a combination thereof . in yet other various embodiments , the composition comprises a mixture of [ deme ][ tfsi ] containing about 0 . 3 molal li [ tfsi ] to about 0 . 4 molal li [ tfsi ], a mixture of [ deme ][ tfsi ] containing about 0 . 35 molal li [ tfsi ], a mixture of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ] containing about 0 . 3 molal li [ tfsi ] to about 0 . 4 molal li [ tfsi ], or a mixture of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ] containing about 0 . 35 molal li [ tfsi ]. in additional embodiments , the self - diffusion coefficient of the lithium cation at least doubles , or at least triples relative to a corresponding composition that lacks the organic solvate . the self - diffusion coefficient of the lithium cation can increase by about 25 %, about 50 %, about 100 %, about 150 %, about 200 %, about 300 %, or about 500 %. the self - diffusion coefficient of the lithium cation can also increase by a multiplication factor of about 2 to about 1000 , 2 to about 500 , 2 to about 100 , or 2 to about 10 . in other embodiments , the self - diffusion coefficient of each ion in the composition is about the same as the self - diffusion coefficient of the organic solvate . in yet other embodiments , the diffusivity of each ion individually ranges from about 0 . 1 × 10 11 m 2 / s to about 5 × 10 11 m 2 / s , about 0 . 1 × 10 11 m 2 / s to about 3 × 10 11 m 2 / s , about 0 . 5 × 10 11 m 2 / s to about 2 . 5 × 10 11 m 2 / s , or about 1 × 10 11 m 2 / s to about 2 . 5 × 10 11 m 2 / s . other embodiments include a battery , or an electrochemical cell containing an electrolyte comprising the composition or the properties of all the various embodiments of this disclosure . in a second embodiment , an ionic composition comprises a ) an organic salt comprising n , n - diethyl - n - methyl - n -( 2 - methoxyethyl ) ammonium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ deme ][ tfsi ]), n - methyl - n - propylpiperidinyl bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ pp13 ][ tfsi ]), or a combination thereof , c ) a glyme ( g ) selected from diglyme , triglyme , tetraglyme , or a combination thereof , wherein the stoichiometric ratio of the glyme ( g ) and the lithium cation ( m ) of the organometallic salt is about 50 ( g ): 50 ( m ), and concentration of li [ tfsi ] is in the range of about 0 . 3 molal to about 0 . 4 molal in a mixture of li [ tfsi ] and [ deme ][ tfsi ], in a mixture of li [ tfsi ] and [ pp13 ][ tfsi ], or in a mixture of li [ tfsi ], [ deme ][ tfsi ], and [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]. one of the embodiments includes a battery , or an electrochemical cell containing an electrolyte comprising this composition , or the composition of other embodiments . a third embodiment includes a method to increase the self - diffusion coefficient of ions in a composition . the method comprises adding an organic solvate to a binary - salt mixture of an organic salt having ionic liquid properties below 100 ° c ., and an organometallic salt to form an ion conducting composition , wherein the stoichiometric ratio of the organic solvate ( s ) and the metal cation ( m ) of the organometallic salt ranges from about 60 ( s ): 40 ( m ) to about 40 ( s ): 60 ( m ), and the concentration of the organometallic salt ranges from about 0 . 1 molal to about 1 molal in said mixture ; wherein , relative to the binary - salt mixture of the organic salt and the organometallic salt , the ion conducting composition has a ) an increased self - diffusion coefficient , b ) a higher conductivity , and c ) a lower viscosity , and the vapor pressure of the ion conducting composition is negligible . in various embodiments , the organic solvate is tetraglyme , the organic salt is n , n - diethyl - n - methyl - n -( 2 - methoxyethyl ) ammonium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ deme ][ tfsi ]), or the organic salt is n - methyl - n - propylpiperidine ([ pp13 ][ tfsi ]), and the organometallic salt is lithium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ( li [ tfsi ]). in additional embodiments , the stoichiometric ratio of tetraglyme ( s ) and the lithium cation ( m ) in the composition is about 50 ( s ): 50 ( m ), and the concentration of li [ tfsi ] is in the range of about 0 . 3 molal to about 0 . 4 molal in the mixture of li [ tfsi ] and [ deme ][ tfsi ], or the concentration of li [ tfsi ] is in the range of about 0 . 3 molal to about 0 . 4 molal in the mixture of li [ tfsi ] and [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]. in other embodiments , relative to the mixture of li [ tfsi ] and [ deme ][ tfsi ], or relative to the mixture of li [ tfsi ] and [ pp13 ][ tfsi ], or relative to other organic ionic liquids , the self - diffusion coefficient of lithium increases in the composition . this disclosure describes lithium salts in an organic ionic liquid which have increased mobility when the lithium salt is combined with an organic solvate such as a glyme , wherein only a fraction of the amount of glyme in the total composition is used compared to a solvate ionic liquid , and that fraction being non - volatile because it is complexed with a metal ion . the advantages of using and ionic liquid with above said improvements when compared to molecular solvents are several - fold : 1 ) little to no vapor pressure below 100 ° c ., 2 ) can be formulated with many possible combinations of ionic liquids , 3 ) non - flammable behavior , 4 ) improved conductivity , and 5 ) high solubility of metal salts . in particular , the non - flammability , high conductivity , and dissolution of metal salts make these liquids an intriguing option for electrolytes in lithium batteries , which would enable lithium batteries of the future to be more safe than they are today . these advantages have led to acknowledgement of the potential for ionic liquids to provide a valuable alternative solvent option . many molecular solvents have high vapor pressures , leading to release of volatile organic compounds ( vocs ) which are harmful to the environment . voc emissions currently hinder large scale syntheses in industry , so ionic liquids are ‘ greener ’ solvents due to their low vapor pressures . ionic liquids are highly tunable ; both changing the ratio of cation to anion and using a different cation or anion can drastically change its properties . therefore , the properties of potentially any ionic liquid can benefit from a composition which includes the [ metal ion ][ glyme ] complex described in this disclosure . preferably , the ionic liquid has a melting point of no more than about 100 degrees celsius , a decomposition temperature of at least about 200 degrees celsius , a viscosity of less than about 1000 centipoise ( cp ), an ionic conductivity of at least about 0 . 01 ms / cm , and an electrochemical window of at least about 4 volts . the vapor pressure of an ionic liquid is preferably about of the order of 10 − 10 pa at 25 ° c . a negligible vapor pressure would be about 10 − 10 pa at 25 ° c . within 3 orders of magnitude , 2 orders or magnitude , or 1 order of magnitude . the ionic liquid can be any suitable electrochemically and thermally stable ionic liquid having a relatively low melting point , preferably less than about 100 ° c . and more preferably from about − 5 to about − 125 ° c . preferably , the ionic liquid has a relatively high thermo - decomposition temperature ( e . g ., remain substantially thermally stable at temperatures of about 400 ° c . or less ), a suitable hydrophobic to hydrophilic ratio such that it has the ability to substantially dissolve one or more lithium - ion containing salts , a low viscosity of preferably less than about 200 cp and even more preferably ranging from about 10 to about 150 cp , a relatively high ionic conductivity at about 25 ° c . of at least about 0 . 01 ms / cm , or from about 0 . 05 ms / cm to about 20 ms / cm , and wide electrochemical window of preferably at least about 2 volts , more preferably at least about 4 volts , and even more preferably at least about 5 to about 20 volts . the ionic liquid is a composition having at least one cation selected from the group consisting essentially of ammonium , imidazolium , pyrrolidinium , pyridinium , phosphonium , and sulfonium , and at least one anion selected from the group consisting essentially of alkylsulfate , tosylate , methanesulfonate , bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ tfsi ]), bis ( pentafluoroethylsulfonyl ) imide ([ beti ]), hexafluorophosphate , tetrafluoroborate , perchlorate , and halide . preferred cations are n - methyl - n - propylpiperidinium , n , n - dimethyl - n - ethyl ( 2 - methoxyethyl ) ammonium , and n , n - diethyl - n - methyl ( 2 - methoxyethyl ) ammonium . preferred anions are bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide , bis ( pentafluoroethylsulfonyl ) imide , and perchlorate . ionic liquids include ethyldimethylpropylammonium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide , n , n - diethyl - n - methyl ( 2 - methoxyethylammonium bis ( trifluormethylsulfonyl ) imide , n , n - dimethyl - n - ethyl ( 2 - methoxyethylammonium bis ( trifluormethylsulfonyl ) imide , 1 - butyl - 1 - methylpyrrolidinium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide , tributylmethylammonium methyl sulfate , trihexyltetradecylphosphonium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) amide , 1 - n - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide , 1 , 2 , 3 - trimethylimidazolium methyl sulfate , triethylsulfonium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide , and 1 - butyl - 1 - methylpyrrolidinium dicyanamide . the lithium salt can be any lithium salt that can be solvated by glyme . lithium salts having substantial thermal stability and solubility in the ionic liquid are preferred . non - limiting examples of preferred lithium salts comprise ; lithium hexafluorophosphate , lithium chloride , lithium bromide , lithium hexafluoroarsenate , lithium perchlorate , lithium tetrafluoroborate , lithium bis ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) imide , lithium tris ( trifluoromethylsulfonyl ) methide , and lithium bis ( oxalato ) borate . the lithium salt concentration ranges from about 0 . 05m to about 5 m ( based on the molar concentration of the lithium salt ), or lithium salt concentrations ranges from about 0 . 1 m to about 2 . 5 m . ionic liquids ( ils ) have properties that make them useful in devices such as batteries and solar cells , and in applications such as catalysis , chemical separations , and solvents for synthesis and electrochemistry . ls can have a low melting point ( e . g ., less than 22 ° c . or less than 0 ° c .) and negligible vapor pressure . they also have excellent thermal and electrochemical stability . however , ils are typically more viscous than conventional solvents used in various synthetic and apparatus applications . the higher viscosity can pose problems for such methods and devices . certain combinations of cations and anions have reduced viscosity and increased diffusivity and various “ design rules ” are used to discover and evaluate ils with low viscosity . the design rules include that larger ions often lead to higher viscosity . several exceptions to the rules are discussed by sharma et al ., chem . eng . sci ., 2017 , 159 , 43 - 57 , at 43 - 44 . for example , when the cation 1 - n - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium ([ c 4 mim ]) is paired with the “ planar ” pyrrolide ([ pyl ]) anion , the dynamics are significantly higher than when the [ c 4 mim ] cation is paired with the [ tfsi ] anion , despite [ pyl ] being “ larger ” than [ tfsi ]. this situation may be the result of differences in the liquid phase packing structure of the two different ils . another possibility is that dynamics increase and viscosity decreases when interactions between the cation and anion are reduced . however , a reverse trend can also be observed with 1 - n - butyl - 2 , 3 - dimethylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([ c 4 mmim ][ pf 6 ]), which has a higher viscosity than 1 - n - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([ c 4 mim ][ pf 6 ]). this situation may be a result of the entropy of the liquid phase . transport properties of ils become even more complex in chemical reactions . the dynamics of ils can be modulated by combining different cations and anions , or by mixing various different pairs of cations and anions . however , a more efficient method to obtain a lower viscosity can be to mix an il with a low viscosity additive , e . g ., an organic solvent . the addition of a low viscosity solvent , even in a small amount , can have a significant effect on the viscosity of the il / solvent mixture . the viscosity decrease is , however , unpredictable . a solvent with a lower viscosity does not always decrease the viscosity more than a solvent with higher viscosity . relevant factors affecting the resulting viscosity include the nature of both the solvent and the ions of the il . when combining a molecular solvent with an il , the finite vapor pressure of the diluent can compromise the extremely low volatility of the il . in some instances , this disadvantage can be overcome by mixing an il with a molecular solvent that has a very low volatility itself , such as a glyme . glymes are an oligoethers class of compounds of the general formula ch 3 o —( ch 2 ch 2 o ) n — ch 3 where n is 1 to about 10 , typically 2 - 5 , although larger for peg polymers . glymes have low volatility and are effective at dissociating salts because of the electron donating nature of their ether oxygen groups . glymes typically have high thermal and electrochemical stability . several groups have investigated mixing glymes with alkali metal salts for use as electrolytes in batteries . the alkali metal cation can coordinate with the oxygen atoms of the glyme , thereby lowering the melting point of the salt . these systems have improved transport properties but retain the useful properties of pure ils . these systems are referred to a new class of ils termed “ solvate ils ”. tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether ( tetraglyme , tg4 , or g4 ) is a useful example of one glyme that readily dissolves many salts and has a vapor pressure of only 0 . 132 kpa at 100 ° c . we are unaware of any studies that have investigated the properties of conventional imidazolium - based ils mixed with glymes . in one study of a model system with our collaborators ( sharma et al ., chem . eng . sci ., 2017 , 159 , 43 - 57 ), the density , viscosity and conductivity of [ c 6 mim ][ tfsi ] and its mixtures with tetraglyme were measured at different temperatures and concentrations . certain points that are raised in the sharma et al . reference are noteworthy in light of this disclosure . first , a decreases in the viscosity of [ c 6 mim ][ tfsi ] upon addition of tetraglyme does not follow an ideal mixing model . without experimentation , it is not possible to predict the extent of changes in viscosity when an ionic liquid is mixed with a glyme . furthermore , the solvation chemistry between a metal salt , an ionic liquid and a glyme in our composition adds to the complexity of the dynamics of mixing . as we observed , the viscosity of our binary - salt ionic liquid compositions either increased or decreased depending on the ratios of each component in the composition . the diffusivity of the ions in the composition are dependent on the viscosity of the composition ( fig1 ). our experiments showed that it is possible to formulate ( fig1 ) a binary - salt ionic liquid composition within a certain range of concentrations of the [ lithium - salt ][ glyme ] complex in an ionic liquid that has better diffusivity of ions ( fig7 and 12 ) than the ionic liquid alone , while maintaining low volatility ( fig1 ) even at temperatures exceeding that which are considered normal operating temperatures for many electrochemical devices . ionic liquids have drawn the attention of researchers due to their promising potential in various application areas , including electrolytes for energy storage . unfortunately , their relatively high viscosity compared to many molecular solvents has been a draw back . mixing ils with low viscosity molecular solvents is a potential solution to this problem and has been the focus of many studies in recent years . understanding how molecular solvents lower mixture viscosity and by how much is therefore an important issue . the following examples are intended to illustrate the above invention and should not be construed as to narrow its scope . one skilled in the art will readily recognize that the examples suggest many other ways in which the invention could be practiced . it should be understood that numerous variations and modifications may be made while remaining within the scope of the invention . preparation of 0 . 35 molal solution of lithium salt in an ionic liquid of [ tfsi ] containing 1 mole equivalent of glyme a . the weight of an organometallic salt corresponding 0 . 35 moles was added to a sufficient weight of an ionic liquid to make a binary - salt mixture with a total weight of 1 kilogram . the mixture was stirred to make a uniform mixture , then 1 mole equivalent of an organic solvate ( based on the moles of organometallic salt ) was added to the mixture with additional stirring , such that the ratio of the organometallic salt and the organic solvate is 1 : 1 , to form the electrolyte composition ( fig1 ). b . the weight of li [ tfsi ] corresponding 0 . 35 moles was added to a sufficient weight of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ] to make a binary - salt mixture with a total weight of 1 kilogram . the mixture was stirred to make a uniform mixture then , 0 . 35 mole of tetraglyme was added to the mixture with additional stirring to form the binary - salt ionic liquid composition . c . a mixture of 1 gram of 0 . 35 molal li [ tfsi ] ( mw = 287 . 08 ) in [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]( mw = 422 . 40 ) was prepared by adding 100 . 5 milligrams of li [ tfsi ] to 899 . 5 milligrams of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]. the mixture was stirred vigorously for about 24 hours at room temperature . then , 77 . 8 milligrams of tetraglyme ( 0 . 35 millimoles , 222 . 3 g / mol ) was added to the stirring mixture to form the binary - salt ionic liquid electrolyte composition ( having about 14 mole percent of the lithium - glyme complex ) of formula i . d . a mixture of 1 gram of 0 . 35 molal li [ tfsi ] ( mw = 287 . 08 ) in [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]( mw = 422 . 40 ) was prepared by adding 100 . 5 milligrams of li [ tfsi ] to 899 . 5 milligrams of [ pp13 ][ tfsi ]. the mixture was stirred vigorously for about 24 hours at room temperature . then , 62 . 4 milligrams of triglyme ( 0 . 35 millimoles , mw = 178 . 2 g / mol ) was added to the stirring mixture to form the binary - salt ionic liquid electrolyte composition ( having about 14 mole percent of the lithium - glyme complex ) of formula ii . e . a 0 . 35 molar solution of li [ tfsi ] in [ deme ][ tfsi ] was prepared by adding 0 . 35 moles of li [ tfsi ] in a volume of [ deme ][ tfsi ] sufficient to make 1 liter in total volume of the mixture . subsequently , 0 . 35 moles of tetraglyme was added to the mixture with stirring to form a homogeneous composition , as shown in scheme 1 . f . any one of procedures a , or b , or c , or d , or e can be used to prepare binary - salt ionic liquid compositions that start from various concentrations of organolithium salts in an ionic liquid , wherein the concentration can range from 0 . 01 molar to 2 . 5 molar organolithium , or the concentration can range from 0 . 01 molal to 2 . 5 molal organolithium . the final composition would be prepared to include 1 mole equivalent of a glyme . the properties of the described compositions and solvate ils are shown in table 1 . the above teachings demonstrate that an organic ionic liquid comprising a low fraction of glyme is sufficient to reduce viscosity of the organic ionic liquid . when the ionic liquid comprises both an organometallic salt and glyme in stoichiometric equivalent amounts , improved metal ion mobility ( and thereby better conductivity ) results due to solvation effects . the composition has the added benefit of reducing or eliminating glyme &# 39 ; s volatility . however , addition too much glyme can lead to unsafe high vapor pressures and may be averse to the electrolyte &# 39 ; s conductivity . while specific embodiments have been described above with reference to the disclosed embodiments and examples , such embodiments are only illustrative and do not limit the scope of the invention . changes and modifications can be made in accordance with ordinary skill in the art without departing from the invention in its broader aspects as defined in the following claims . all publications , patents , and patent documents are incorporated by reference herein , as though individually incorporated by reference . no limitations inconsistent with this disclosure are to be understood therefrom . 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 .	7
the adjustable air inlet for clothing may be installed in various areas of various articles of clothing , including footwear , to enable the wearer of the clothing to adjust the airflow therethrough as desired . while the adjustable air inlet for clothing may be installed in practically any type of clothing as desired , it is particularly well suited for installation in heavy protective clothing worn when the wearer is exposed to a significant wind or airflow velocity , as in the case of a motorcyclist or the like . fig1 is an illustration of a motorcyclist wearing protective clothing c with a number of adjustable air inlets installed therein . the various adjustable air inlets comprise a shoulder inlet 100 , a forearm inlet 200 , a glove inlet 300 , a thigh inlet 400 , and a foot or boot inlet 500 . each of the inlets 100 through 500 is formed and constructed in much the same manner , but their relative sizes may be adjusted as desired to suit the location of the installation . other adjustable air inlets , not shown , may be installed in other areas of the clothing in addition to or in lieu of one or more of those inlets 100 through 500 illustrated in fig1 . fig2 provides an exploded perspective view of an exemplary adjustable air inlet 10 . the structure of the air inlet 10 may be used to form any of the air inlets 100 through 500 shown in fig1 or others similar thereto , the scale being adjusted according to the area of installation on the clothing c . the air inlet 10 comprises an inner flange 12 and an outer flange 14 that secure respectively to the inner and outer surfaces of an article of clothing c . a broken away portion of the clothing is shown in fig2 . the clothing c ( e . g ., jacket , pants , glove , boot or shoe , etc .) is modified by forming an air passage a therethrough . the inner and outer flanges 12 and 14 have respective air passages 16 and 18 formed therethrough that are substantially aligned with the air passage a through the article of clothing c to which the flanges 12 and 14 are attached . an air scoop 20 is installed across the air passage a of the clothing c . the scoop 20 is captured between the inner and outer flanges 12 and 14 . the scoop 20 has a tab 22 that is sewn or otherwise secured between the corresponding rearward ends 24 and 26 of the two flanges 12 and 14 , i . e ., the ends that are oriented downwind during normal use of the clothing c with its adjustable air inlet ( s ). the remaining periphery of the scoop 20 is loosely captured between the two flanges 12 and 14 and the periphery of the air passage a through the article of clothing c in order to allow the scoop 20 to flex for opening and closure , as described further below . the scoop 20 is preferably formed of a flexible and resilient , but not flaccid , sheet of material , such as a moderately thin sheet of plastic or the like . the material should have a flexibility on the order of that found in a conventional plastic lid typically provided for the closure of coffee cans and the like , i . e ., sufficiently rigid to hold its free shape , but sufficiently flexible as to allow flexure when moderate force is applied thereto to deform and retain the scoop 20 in other than an open position . the inner flange 12 includes a relief 28 formed along each lateral edge thereof to allow for lateral spreading of the scoop 20 when it is closed . the width of the air inlet passage a through the clothing c is formed to allow clearance for the spreading of the scoop 20 . the forward or leading edge or end 30 of the scoop 20 is normally arched or bowed upwardly , generally as shown in fig2 and as shown in broken lines in fig3 . the normally upwardly arched leading edge 30 and the forward or leading edge or end portion 32 of the outer flange 14 define an air inlet 34 therebetween , as shown in fig3 through 5 . as the forward end or edge 30 of the scoop 20 is pushed downward , i . e ., toward the forward portion 32 of the outer flange 14 , the two lateral edges of the scoop 20 spread laterally into the reliefs 28 of the inner flange 12 . the air passage a through the clothing c may be made sufficiently wide as to provide further clearance for the lateral spreading of the scoop 20 , the outer flange 14 retaining the lateral edges of the scoop 20 , whether spread or raised . the scoop 20 further includes laterally opposed forward extensions 36 that reside within forward extensions of the lateral reliefs 28 of the inner flange 12 . these forward extensions of the scoop 20 are free to move laterally in the two forward relief extensions formed in the forward portion 38 of the inner flange 12 . the forward portion 32 of the outer flange 14 is disposed over the forward extensions 36 of the scoop 20 to prevent the forward end or edge 30 of the scoop 20 from escaping its capture between the two flanges 12 and 14 . a latch mechanism is provided to hold the leading edge 30 of the scoop 20 closed as desired . the latch is shown particularly in fig3 . the latch 40 may comprise a flexible tab attached atop the forward portion 32 of the outer flange 14 , as shown in fig2 , or may merely comprise a rearward extension formed homogeneously with the forward portion 32 of the flexible ( e . g ., plastic , etc .) outer flange 14 . in any case , the latch includes a rearward extension 42 that extends slightly over or into the forwardmost portion of the air passage 18 of the outer flange 14 . this extension 42 is configured to interfere with the leading edge 30 of the air scoop 20 when the scoop 20 is flexed past the latch extension 42 , generally as shown in fig3 . the scoop 20 is normally open and its leading edge 30 is raised , generally as shown in broken lines in fig3 . the leading edge 30 of the scoop 20 is captured and secured by the latch extension 42 by pushing downward on the leading edge of the scoop , causing it to push past the latch extension 42 to be secured in its closed position as shown in solid lines in fig3 . the forward portions 32 and 38 of the two flexible flanges 12 and 14 , along with the portion of the clothing c captured therebetween , may be flexed forward and downward to cause the latch extension 42 to flex upward , thereby releasing the forward or leading edge 30 of the scoop 20 to its open position , as shown in broken lines in fig3 . this latch configuration provides for very rapid and easy opening and closing of the air scoop 20 using only one or two fingers on one hand . this rapid and easy manipulation of the latch and scoop are useful when riding a motorcycle or engaged in many other activities where wearing a suit equipped with the present adjustable air inlets may be required . fig4 provides a side elevation view in section illustrating an additional component that may be used with the adjustable air inlet 10 . a cooling insert 44 , also shown in fig2 , may be removably installed within the open scoop 20 . the cooling insert 44 comprises a block of material having a shape that closely approximates the interior volume of the open scoop 20 in order to maximize the volume of the insert 44 . the cooling insert 44 is preferably formed of a material having a relatively high specific heat in order that it may be chilled to absorb heat from the air passing therethrough . alternatively , the cooling insert 44 may be hollow , and may be filled with water ( or other freezable material ) and frozen prior to use to provide the desired cooling effect . the cooling insert includes several air channels or passages 46 therethrough to allow air to flow through the channels and contact a fair amount of surface area of the insert 44 to cool the air . the cooling insert 44 may be removably retained within the open scoop 20 by an upward lip 48 extending from the forward portion of the insert 44 . the lip 48 engages a cooperating channel 50 formed within the forward or leading edge 30 of the flexible scoop 20 , generally as shown in fig4 . fig5 illustrates an exemplary means for channeling the airflow from the adjustable air inlet 10 to other portions of the clothing c . fig5 illustrates a closed sleeve , leg , etc ., of an article of clothing c . a portion of the sleeve is broken away to show the interior of the sleeve . in the example of fig5 , a pair of elongate resilient members 52 , e . g ., foam , soft plastic , etc ., is installed along the inner surface of the clothing c from the rearward or trailing end of the air scoop 20 to extend to an area where cooling airflow is most desired , e . g ., the underarm , groin , etc . the two elongate members 52 are laterally spaced from one another to define an air duct 54 therebetween . the air duct 54 extends to the location of the distal ends of the two members 52 . returning to fig1 , a plurality of such air ducts 54 are shown in broken lines extending from their respective air inlets 100 through 500 to deliver cooling airflow to the underarm ( from the inlets 100 and 200 ), palm of the hand ( from the glove mounted inlet 300 ), crotch or groin ( from the thigh mounted inlet 400 ), and sole of the foot ( from the boot mounted inlet 500 ). it will be seen that other means of forming the air duct 54 may be provided in lieu of the two resilient members 52 , e . g ., gathering the inner liner material of the clothing c to form elongate ridges , etc . the adjustable air inlet 10 in its various embodiments may be provided as a separate kit of one or more inlets for the owner of the clothing c to install in various locations within the clothing c as desired , or may be installed at the time of manufacture of the clothing c for a consumer to purchase with the inlets already installed , as is done in the case of ventilated helmets and the like . it will be seen that the adjustable air inlets in their various embodiments may be provided with separate articles of clothing , e . g ., jackets , pants , gloves , etc ., or may be provided with one piece jumpsuit - like articles wherein the upper and lower portions of the clothing are assembled as a complete and inseparable assembly . in either case , the adjustable air inlets will provide a much appreciated means of delivering cooling airflow to various areas of the body for a person clothed in such protective clothing c . it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above , but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims .	0
the following describes some preferred embodiments for methods of recovery to be applied in the ims after having detected a restart condition in a hss 1 . a first method to be preferably applied as receiving a registration from a given subscriber or an invitation to communicate with a given subscriber from another subscriber , and a second method to be preferably applied as receiving a service request from a given subscriber at a s - cscf 2 previously assigned for serving the given subscriber in the ims . in addition , the following also describes preferred embodiments of a hss 1 and a s - cscf 2 respectively adapted for carrying out the above first or second methods . moreover , since said first and second methods can be simultaneously combined to achieve the expected result as soon as possible , and depending on which of the following actions occurs first : the registration from a given subscriber , or the invitation to communicate with a given subscriber from another subscriber , or the reception of the service request from a given subscriber at the s - cscf previously assigned , the hss 1 and the s - cscf 2 may be thus arranged to include all structural elements for carrying out both first and second methods . in accordance with a first aspect of the present invention , fig4 and fig6 illustrate respective first and second embodiments of the first method of recovery to be applied in the ims after having detected a restart condition in a hss 1 holding subscriber data for subscribers of the ims , and as receiving a registration from a given subscriber or an invitation to communicate with a given subscriber from another subscriber . in particular , fig4 illustrates a first embodiment of this method exemplary applied as receiving an invitation to communicate with a given subscriber from another subscriber , though this first embodiment may also be applied as receiving a registration from a given subscriber . also in particular , fig6 illustrates a second embodiment of this method exemplary applied as receiving a registration from a given subscriber , though this second embodiment may also be applied as receiving an invitation to communicate with a given subscriber from another subscriber . this first method assumes that a first s - cscf 2 , hereinafter s - cscf - 1 , had previously been assigned in steps s - 001 or s - 050 , respectively shown in fig1 in fig2 , for serving a given subscriber ; and the method starts with preliminary first and second steps not shown in fig4 and fig6 for the sake of simplicity , namely with a first step of detecting a restart condition in the hss 1 , as illustrated by steps s - 005 in fig1 and s - 055 in fig2 , and with a second step of marking in the hss 1 all registered subscribers as ‘ suffering a restart ’, as illustrated by step s - 120 in fig3 . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the hss 1 includes a memory module 13 for accessing subscriber data stored for each subscriber of the ims and a processor 10 arranged for detecting a restart condition in the hss and for marking in the memory module all registered subscribers as ‘ suffering restart ’. in particular , as already commented above and as illustrated in fig7 , the memory module 13 of the hss 1 may include a memory handler 130 for accessing subscriber data stored in an external database 131 for each subscriber of the ims . alternatively and as illustrated in fig9 , the memory module 13 may include an internal database 132 for storing subscriber data for each subscriber of the ims . also to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the s - cscf 2 previously assigned for serving the given subscriber includes a memory module 22 for storing subscriber data for subscribers currently served in the s - cscf . the subscriber data received from the hss 1 when previously assigning said s - cscf for serving the given subscriber . under the first embodiment illustrated in fig4 , an invitation to communicate with a given subscriber is received during a step s - 140 at an i - cscf 4 in accordance with currently existing ims procedures , and the i - cscf 4 queries the hss during a step s - 145 about a selectable s - cscf for serving the given subscriber . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the hss 1 includes a receiver 12 arranged for receiving a query about a selectable s - cscf for serving a given subscriber . the hss 1 receiving such query determines during a step s - 150 that the given subscriber is still marked as ‘ suffering restart ’ and assumes that this is the first action for the given subscriber where the recovery can be attempted . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the processor 10 of the hss 1 is arranged for determining whether a given subscriber is marked in the hss as ‘ suffering restart ’. under this embodiment , the hss 1 triggers a query towards relevant ims entities 2 , 3 , 5 for finding the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber . in those implementations where the previously assigned s - cscf - 1 is not lost but is not trusted , the hss may only query during a step s - 155 the s - cscf - 1 still marked as assigned for serving the given subscriber after detecting the restart condition . however , in implementations where the previously assigned s - cscf - 1 is lost , the hss queries every s - cscf 2 , 3 known to the hss during exemplary steps s - 155 and s - 160 . in a nowadays preferred embodiment , only the previously assigned s - cscf - 1 returns a positive response during a step s - 165 indicating to be currently serving the given subscriber . in other embodiments , all the other ims entities 3 , 5 , rather than ignoring the query , return a negative response during a step s - 185 to indicate they are not serving the given subscriber . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the sender 11 of the hss may be further arranged for querying relevant entities of the ims for finding the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber . in particular , this sender may be arranged to only submit this query towards a s - cscf still marked as assigned for serving the given subscriber after detecting the restart condition . alternatively , the sender may be arranged to submit the query towards every s - cscf known to the hss . also to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the s - cscf 2 includes a receiver 21 arranged for receiving a query on whether the s - cscf is currently serving a given subscriber ; a processor 20 arranged for determining whether a given subscriber is currently served by the s - cscf ; and a sender 23 arranged for answering the query with a positive response where the processor 20 determines that the given subscriber is currently served by the s - cscf . in particular , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf may be arranged for receiving the query on whether the s - cscf is currently serving a given subscriber from the hss where the given subscriber belongs to . the hss 1 receiving the positive response from the s - cscf - 1 currently serving the given subscriber , assigns such s - cscf - 1 as presently serving the given subscriber during a step s - 175 , and clears the mark ‘ suffering restart ’ for the given subscriber during a step s - 180 . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the receiver 12 of the hss 1 is arranged for receiving a confirmation from the s - cscf currently serving a given subscriber , and the processor 10 of the hss 1 is arranged for clearing the mark ‘ suffering restart ’ for a given subscriber and for assigning a s - cscf 2 for serving a given subscriber in the memory module 13 upon confirmation from said s - cscf . then , the hss 1 responds the original query from the i - cscf 4 with the presently assigned s - cscf - 1 for serving the given subscriber during a step s - 190 , and the i - cscf 4 selects such s - cscf - 1 for serving the given subscriber and forwards the invitation to communicate with the given subscriber during a step s - 195 . then , traditional ims procedures may go on for the given subscriber . in cases where no positive response is received in the hss , no assignable s - cscf is known to the hss and the original query from the i - cscf is answered with capabilities required for selecting a new s - cscf in accordance with conventional procedures . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the hss 1 includes a sender 11 arranged for submitting , as a response to the query , an identifier of the s - cscf 2 currently serving the given subscriber , or capabilities required for selecting a s - cscf . under the second embodiment illustrated in fig6 , a registration from a given subscriber is received during a step s - 240 at an i - cscf 4 in accordance with currently existing ims procedures , and the i - cscf 4 queries the hss 1 during a step s - 245 about a selectable s - cscf 2 for serving the given subscriber . as for the first embodiment , and as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the hss 1 includes a receiver 12 arranged for receiving a query about a selectable s - cscf for serving a given subscriber . as for the first embodiment , the hss 1 receiving such query determines during a step s - 250 that the given subscriber is still marked as ‘ suffering restart ’ and assumes that this is the first action for the given subscriber where the recovery can be attempted . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the processor 10 of the hss 1 is arranged for determining whether a given subscriber is marked in the hss as ‘ suffering restart ’. under this second embodiment , however , the hss 1 responds the query from the i - cscf 4 with an indication of ‘ suffering restart ’ during a step s - 255 towards the i - cscf 4 , implicitly indicating that the previously assigned s - cscf - 1 for serving the given subscriber is lost or not trustable . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the hss 1 includes a sender 11 arranged for submitting , as a response to the query , an indication that the given subscriber is marked as ‘ suffering restart ’ along with an identifier of the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber , or with capabilities required for selecting a s - cscf for serving the given subscriber . then , under this second embodiment illustrated in fig6 for the first method , the i - cscf 4 triggers a query towards relevant ims entities 2 , 3 , 5 for finding the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber . in those implementations where the previously assigned s - cscf - 1 is not lost in the hss 1 but is not trusted , the hss may return an identifier of the s - cscf - 1 along with the indication of ‘ suffering restart ’, so that the i - cscf 4 may only query during a step s - 260 the s - cscf - 1 still marked as assigned for serving the given subscriber and found to be not trustable . however , in implementations where the previously assigned s - cscf - 1 is lost in the hss and is thus not included in the response along with the indication of ‘ suffering restart ’, the i - cscf 4 queries every s - cscf 2 , 3 known to the i - cscf during exemplary steps s - 260 and s - 265 . in a nowadays preferred embodiment , only the previously assigned s - cscf - 1 returns a positive response during a step s - 275 indicating to be currently serving the given subscriber , whereas other s - cscf 3 simply ignore the query in step s - 270 . in other embodiments as the above first embodiment , other ims entities 3 , 5 , rather than ignoring the query , may return a negative response to indicate they are not serving the given subscriber . to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the s - cscf 2 includes a receiver 21 arranged for receiving a query on whether the s - cscf is currently serving a given subscriber ; a processor 20 arranged for determining whether a given subscriber is currently served by the s - cscf ; and a sender 23 arranged for answering the query with a positive response where the processor 20 determines that the given subscriber is currently served by the s - cscf . in particular , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf may be arranged for receiving the query on whether the s - cscf is currently serving a given subscriber from the i - cscf 4 responsible for routing a registration from the given subscriber or an invitation to communicate with the given subscriber . in embodiments where the i - cscf 4 is the entity triggering the query towards relevant ims entities 2 , 3 , 5 for finding the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber , this first method may include a step s - 280 of registering the given subscriber towards the hss 1 from the s - cscf - 1 . alternatively and not shown in any drawing , the i - cscf 4 may confirm the selection of s - cscf - 1 for currently serving the given subscriber . to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the sender 23 of the s - cscf 2 is further arranged for submitting a confirmation towards the hss 1 indicating that the s - cscf is currently serving the given subscriber . the hss 1 receiving the registration , namely a confirmation , from the s - cscf - 1 during a step s - 280 , or from the i - cscf 4 , clears the mark ‘ suffering restart ’ for the given subscriber during a step s - 290 , and assigns such s - cscf - 1 as presently serving the given subscriber during a step s - 295 . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the receiver 12 of the hss 1 is arranged for receiving a confirmation from the s - cscf 2 currently serving a given subscriber , or from an i - cscf 4 , and the processor 10 of the hss 1 is arranged for clearing the mark ‘ suffering restart ’ for a given subscriber and for assigning a s - cscf 2 for serving a given subscriber in the memory module 13 upon confirmation from said s - cscf . then , the hss 1 acknowledges the s - cscf - 1 being assigned for serving the given subscriber during a step s - 300 , and traditional ims procedures may go on for the given subscriber . where the above first method is applied in combination with the second method detailed in the following , this first method may comprise steps s - 100 , s - 105 , s - 100 bis , s - 105 bis , s - 100 ter , s - 105 ter of alerting about the restart condition from the hss 1 towards relevant entities of the ims 2 , 3 , 5 known to the hss ; and steps s - 125 , s - 130 of marking all subscribers belonging to said hss 1 in each relevant entity receiving the alert as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’, as illustrated in fig3 . in this case , the first and second embodiments of this first method , as respectively illustrated in fig4 and fig6 , include respective steps s - 170 and s - 285 of clearing the mark “ not confirmed in hss ” in the s - cscf 2 submitting the confirmation of being currently serving the given subscriber in steps s - 165 and s - 280 . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the sender 11 in cooperation with the processor 10 of the hss 1 may be arranged for submitting a reset message to alert about the restart condition detected in the hss towards relevant entities 2 , 3 , 5 of the ims known to the hss . also to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 may be arranged for receiving the reset message from the hss 1 alerting about the restart condition detected in the hss ; and the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for marking in the memory module 22 all subscribers belonging to said hss as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’, and for determining whether a given subscriber is marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ upon a query from any other ims entity 3 . moreover , the processor 20 of the s - cscf may be arranged for clearing the mark ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ for the given subscriber when the sender 23 of the s - cscf 2 answers the query with a positive response . in accordance with a second aspect of the present invention , fig3 and fig5 illustrate an embodiment of the second method of recovery to be applied in the ims after having detected a restart condition in a hss 1 holding subscriber data for subscribers of the ims , and as receiving a service request from a given subscriber at a s - cscf 2 previously assigned for serving the given subscriber in the ims . this second method assumes that a first s - cscf 2 , hereinafter s - cscf - 1 , had previously been assigned in steps s - 001 or s - 050 , respectively shown in fig1 in fig2 , for serving a given subscriber ; and the method starts with a preliminary first step not shown in fig3 or fig5 for the sake of simplicity , namely with a first step of detecting a restart condition in the hss 1 , as illustrated by steps s - 005 in fig1 and s - 055 in fig2 . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the hss 1 includes a memory module 13 for accessing subscriber data stored for each subscriber of the ims and a processor 10 arranged for detecting a restart condition in the hss . in particular , as already commented above and as illustrated in fig7 , the memory module 13 of the hss 1 may include a memory handler 130 for accessing subscriber data stored in an external database 131 for each subscriber of the ims . alternatively and as illustrated in fig9 , the memory module 13 may include an internal database 132 for storing subscriber data for each subscriber of the ims . also to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the s - cscf 2 previously assigned for serving the given subscriber includes a memory module 22 for storing subscriber data received from the hss 1 for subscribers currently served in the s - cscf 2 . after having detected the restart condition in hss , and as illustrated in fig3 , the hss alerts during steps s - 100 , s - 100 bis , s - 100 ter , s - 105 , s - 105 bis , s - 105 ter in this second method towards relevant ims entities 2 , 3 , 5 about the hss restart . in particular , this step of alerting relevant ims entities may be carried out with a reset message submitted from the hss . each ims entity receiving such reset marks all subscribers belonging to said hss as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ to indicate that the hss might have lost some subscriber data during the restart or , at least , might not completely trust some dynamic data for its subscribers . to this end , the processor 10 of the hss 1 is arranged for determining relevant ims entities to be alerted about the restart condition in hss , and the hss 1 includes a sender 11 arranged for submitting a reset message , alerting about the restart condition detected in the hss , towards those relevant ims entities as determined in the hss . also to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the s - cscf 2 includes a receiver 21 arranged for receiving the reset message from the hss alerting about the restart condition detected in the hss , and a processor 20 arranged for marking in the memory module 22 all subscribers belonging to said hss as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’. this second method continues , as illustrated in fig5 , when a message related to a given subscriber , who was already registered in the ims , is received at a s - cscf - 1 previously assigned for serving the given subscriber during a step s - 205 . the s - cscf - 1 determines during a step s - 210 that the given subscriber is marked in the s - cscf - 1 as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ and initiates a registration of the given subscriber towards the hss during a step s - 215 in order to confirm that the s - cscf - 1 is presently serving the given subscriber . to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 is arranged for receiving the message related to the given subscriber previously served by the s - cscf 2 , the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 is arranged for determining whether the given subscriber is marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’, and the s - cscf - 2 includes a sender 23 arranged for registering the given subscriber towards the hss where the processor 20 determines that the given subscriber is marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’. in particular , where a session initiation protocol ( hereinafter sip ) is used for communication with the s - cscf , the above message related to a given subscriber might be a sip message , such as “ invite ”, “ update ”, “ subscribe ”, bye , etc , other than the one used for registration , namely “ register ”, or might be a sip response of a type such as 2xx , 3xx , 4xx , 5xx , etc . the hss receiving such registration , or confirmation , re - assigns the s - cscf - 1 as presently serving the given subscriber during a step s - 220 , and the s - cscf - 1 clears the mark ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ for the given subscriber during a step s - 235 . to this end , as illustrated in fig7 and fig9 , the receiver 12 of the hss 1 is arranged for receiving a registration , or confirmation , from the s - cscf 2 presently serving the given subscriber registered in the ims , and the processor 10 of the hss 1 is arranged for assigning the s - cscf 2 in the memory module 13 as presently serving the given subscriber when the receiver receives the registration from the s - cscf 2 . also to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 is arranged for clearing such mark ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ for a given subscriber . in particular , said message related to the given subscriber may be submitted during a step s - 200 towards the s - cscf - 1 from a p - cscf 6 where the given subscriber accesses the ims through , as illustrated in fig5 ; or may be originated from an originating subscriber addressing the given subscriber , and submitted from another s - cscf 3 , namely s - cscf - 2 , serving said originating subscriber , which is not shown in any drawing . to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 is arranged for receiving the message related to the given subscriber , previously served by the s - cscf and marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’, from a p - cscf 6 where the given subscriber accesses the ims through . alternatively , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 is arranged for receiving the message related to the given subscriber , previously served by the s - cscf and marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’, from a second s - cscf 3 serving an originating subscriber other than the given subscriber . where this second method is applied in combination with the above first method , the hss may mark all registered subscribers as ‘ suffering restart ’, during a step s - 120 as illustrated in fig3 , and after having detected the restart condition in the hss . in this case , such mark ‘ suffering restart ’ may be cleared in the hss for the given subscriber during a step s - 225 , as receiving a confirmation from the s - cscf - 1 in step s - 215 and marking said s - cscf - 1 as presently serving the given subscriber in step s - 220 . to this end , the processor 10 of the hss , illustrated in fig7 and 9 , may be arranged for marking in the memory module 13 all registered subscribers as ‘ suffering restart ’, and for clearing such mark for a given subscriber when the receiver 21 receives the registration from the s - cscf 2 presently serving the given subscriber . moreover , where this second method is applied in combination with the above first method , any step s - 140 or s - 240 in the first method of receiving at an i - cscf a registration from a given subscriber or an invitation to communicate with a given subscriber , might occur sooner than the step s - 205 in the second method of receiving a message related to a given subscriber at a s - cscf previously assigned for serving the given subscriber registered in the ims . in such a situation , this second method may further comprise a step of querying relevant entities of the ims for finding the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber ; a step of receiving a positive response from the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber ; a step of assigning said s - cscf in the hss for serving the given subscriber ; a step of clearing the mark ‘ suffering restart ’ for the given subscriber in the hss ; and a step of selecting said s - cscf in the i - cscf for serving the given subscriber . in particular , the step of querying relevant entities of the ims for finding the s - cscf currently serving the given subscriber may be carried out from the hss upon receiving a query from the i - cscf about a selectable s - cscf for serving the given subscriber , or from the i - cscf upon receiving a response from the hss indicating a restart condition and , likely , an indication of not trusting , or having lost , data related to a previously assigned s - cscf . to this end , as illustrate in fig7 and fig9 , and in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the receiver 12 of the hss 1 may be arranged for receiving a query from an i - cscf 4 asking for the s - cscf 2 presently assigned for serving the given subscriber ; the processor 10 of the hss 1 may be arranged for determining a corresponding query from the hss 1 towards relevant ims entities 2 , 3 , 5 ; and the sender 11 of the hss 1 may be arranged for broadcasting the query towards every relevant ims entity known to the hss . moreover , the receiver 12 of the hss 1 may be further arranged for receiving a positive response from the s - cscf 2 presently assigned for serving the given subscriber ; the processor 10 of the hss 1 may be further arranged for assigning the s - cscf 2 as presently serving said given subscriber ; and the sender 11 of the hss 1 may be further arranged for submitting a response towards the i - cscf 4 indicating the s - cscf 2 presently serving said given subscriber . alternatively , and in accordance with another embodiment of the invention , the receiver 12 of the hss 1 may be arranged for receiving a query from an i - cscf 4 asking for the s - cscf 2 presently assigned for serving the given subscriber ; the processor 10 of the hss 1 may be arranged for determining a further query from the i - cscf 4 towards relevant ims entities 2 , 3 , 5 ; and the sender 11 of the hss 1 may be arranged for returning towards the i - cscf 4 an indication of broadcasting the query towards every s - cscf 2 , 3 known to the i - cscf 4 . also to this end , as illustrated in fig8 , and in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 may be arranged for receiving a query from an i - cscf 4 asking for the s - cscf 2 presently assigned for serving a given subscriber ; the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 may be arranged for determining that the given subscriber is marked ‘ not confirmed in hss ’; and the sender 23 of the s - cscf 2 may be arranged for submitting a response indicating the s - cscf 2 is presently assigned for serving the given subscriber . moreover , the sender 23 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for submitting a confirmation towards the hss 1 indicating that the s - cscf 2 is presently assigned for serving the given subscriber , and the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for clearing the mark ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ for the given subscriber . given that this query may be submitted towards the s - cscf 2 from the i - cscf 4 after said s - cscf 2 has already confirmed towards the hss 1 to be presently serving the given subscriber , such query may be received at a s - cscf 2 after having cleared the mark ‘ not confirmed in hss ’; to this end , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for receiving a query from an i - cscf 4 asking for the s - cscf 2 presently assigned for serving a given subscriber ; the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for determining that the given subscriber is not marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’; and the sender 23 may be further arranged for ignoring the query or for submitting a negative response . alternatively , and in accordance with another embodiment of the invention , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 may be arranged for receiving a query from the hss 1 asking for the s - cscf presently assigned for serving a given subscriber ; the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 may be arranged for determining that the given subscriber is marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’, and for clearing such mark for the given subscriber ; and the sender 23 of the s - cscf 2 may be arranged for submitting a response towards the hss 1 indicating that the s - cscf 2 is presently assigned for serving the given subscriber . as for previous embodiment , and given that this query may be submitted towards the s - cscf 2 from the hss 1 after said s - cscf 2 has already confirmed towards the hss 1 to be presently serving the given subscriber , such query may be received after having cleared the mark ‘ not confirmed in hss ’ at a s - cscf 2 ; to this end , the receiver 21 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for receiving a query from the hss 1 asking for the s - cscf 2 presently assigned for serving a given subscriber ; the processor 20 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for determining that the given subscriber is not marked as ‘ not confirmed in hss ’; and the sender 23 of the s - cscf 2 may be further arranged for ignoring the query or for submitting a negative response . the invention also provides for a computer program , loadable into an internal memory of a computer with input and output units as well as with a processing unit , the computer program comprising executable software adapted to carry out method steps as described above for both first and second methods , alone or in combination , when running in the computer , and wherein the executable software may be recorded in a carrier readable in a computer . the invention is described above in respect of several embodiments in an illustrative and non - restrictive manner . obviously , variations , and combinations of these embodiments are possible in light of the above teachings , and any modification of the embodiments that fall within the scope of the claims is intended to be included therein .	7
details are shown in fig1 a , 1b , 2 , and 3 . this invention is to provide a tool that can be combined with a reinforced concrete structure as shown to permit a small tree , shrub and climbing plants to be planted in the reinforced concrete structure . the tool ( 22 ) includes a cylinder ( 1 ) formed by a plastic hollow shell arranged to be filled with soil and to retain water , nutrition and air for use in the plant &# 39 ; s growth . there is a groove ( 5 ) on the internal wall of cylinder ( 1 ) ( fig2 ) which serves to provide a capillary function for soil water inside the cylinder to enhance the growth of a plant &# 39 ; s root . a high - density sponge ( 9 ) is placed inside the t - shape base mount ( 2 ) to retain water and prevent lost soil . stored permeating water provides water for the plant to grow for a long time . at the top of the t - shape base mount is a regulating hole ( 13 ) at a suitable position which connects the l - shape water level adjustment tube ( 8 ) to adjust the water level of the high density sponge inside the t - shape base mount . the cylinder ( 1 ) has a regulating hole for permeating water ( 131 ) at a suitable position , which connects the t - shape connecting tube ( 18 ). the top of connecting tube ( 18 ) is joined to the snake - shape tube ( 7 ) to conduct the air and permeating water and also condense the water evaporated from soil . the bottom of the t - shape connecting tube ( 18 ) joins an l - shape sand - releasing opening ( 171 ). the snake - shape tube ( 7 ) joins a funnel to increase the permeating surface to collect more permeating water . the air pipe regulating hole ( 132 ) is linked to an l - shape air pipe ( 16 ), which is especially for conducting air to increase the air capacity of soil . the cover plate ( 3 ) reduces the evaporation of soil water . there is a planting opening on the cover plate to plant a green plant . the l - shape planting curb tube ( 15 ) is especially for the use of a climbing plant during wall planting , while the cover ( 3 ) can change the direction of a planting opening ( 4 ) so the planting opening and wall will face downward . the fixed frame ( 10 ) in this invention is fixed around the cylinder ( 1 ) with an iron ring . it also increases the area and strengthens the combining integrity of the reinforced concrete structure . a u - shape iron is welded with the top of two fixed frames ( 10 ) to form an anchor ( 11 ). these two horizontally welded anchor ( 11 ) and the handle ( 12 ) can be carried and fixed easily on the steel rods inside the reinforced concrete structure , so the cylinder ( 1 ) will not float or be moved by buoyancy during the pouring of concrete . moreover , it increases the strength of the whole reinforced concrete structure . referring to fig4 a , 4b , and 4c for details , the invention is based on the need for reinforced concrete structure greening and planting , taking into account the characteristics of plant growth . therefore , it can bring the function of plant advantage fully into play under different conditions . fig4 a illustrates the technique of planting greenery on a wall in this invention . the technique of wall planting and greening is to have 5 - 10 tools joined to an l - shape planting tube as a group and placed at an angle of between 10 °- 15 °, inside the structural steel rods , along a horizontal line with # 32 iron wire so that it can be connected horizontally . the horizontal line on the vertical steel rods of the reinforced concrete structure are marked with a black chalk line , and the structural steel rod is surrounded with the hollow plastic tube , and then the tool and t - shape base mount , along with the horizontal line , are connected . afterwards , the hollow plastic tube is secured inside the structural steel rods at certain points with a # 32 iron wire to the t - shape base mount . tube wrapper ( 19 ) seals both ends of the hollow plastic tube . then , the cylinder ( 1 ) is settled on the fixed frame ( 10 ), and the anchor ( 11 ) and handle ( 12 ) tied firmly at certain points on the structural steel rods with # 32 iron wire . the module is braced in the planting direction to form a board ( in the same way as an electric switch is installed on a house wall ). funnel ( 6 ) is connected to the snake - shape tube and extended to the pinnacle . the opening of funnel ( 61 ) is at the same level with the structural pinnacle , and is blocked up by a stopper . the funnel tube is tied to the structural steel rods with # 32 iron wire . the l - shape sand - releasing tube ( 17 ), l - shape water level regulating hole ( 13 ), and air pipe regulating hole ( 132 ) are connected correspondingly to the l - shape water level adjusting tube ( 8 ) and l - shape air pipe ( 16 ), and are tied firmly on the structural steel rods with # 32 iron wire , and then the opening of water adjustment ( 81 ) is joined to the plastic tube to the air pipe opening ( 161 ). the sand - releasing opening ( 171 ) is blocked with a stopper and the planting opening is also blocked in the same direction with a screw stopper . the module board is braced until the reinforced concrete structure is formed to shape and after finishing . all miscellaneous objects surrounding the planting opening are cleaned and the stopper around the planting opening is removed so that water can be poured into two - thirds of the cylinder . the soil is mixed with 20 % limestone ( the porosity of synthesized rocks is generally higher than that of common natural rocks ), and 15 % organic fertilizers are added to form guest soil . then , water is added and mixed well until sticky to prevent limestone and organic fertilizers from floating in the water , or distributing unevenly , and to increase the soil aperture . the well - mixed guest soil from the l - shape planing opening is filled until it is 15 cm in height , and 3 - 5 enhanced chemical - based fertilizers ( such as tree - like fertilizers ) are added . fill in guest soil continuously . the filled guest soil will become abundant and well stacked by gravity force . therefore , the soil water capacity inside the cylinder can be saturated and provide enough nutrition for long time growth of plants . afterwards , the pinnacle at the opening of funnel ( 61 ) and the water level adjustment ( 81 ) at the bottom are opened , and the stopper at the opening ( 161 ) of air pipe ( 16 ) is removed . under atmospheric pressure , air enters the planting cylinder and drains the gravitational water which is not suitable for plant growth from the opening of the water adjustment , and the useful capillary water remains . soil air inside the cylinder can be increased , and soil water capacity inside the cylinder can be saturated . the high - density sponge ( 9 ) inside the t - shape base mount is at this point full of water , as are the hollow horizontally and mutually trough plastic tubes . the tube inside forms an underground water supplied system , which provides water and nutrition for the plant to grow inside the reinforced concrete structure for a long time . then , climbing plants are transplanted to the planting openings ( 4 ). climbing plants include plants with air roots such as parthenocissus tricuspidata , ficus pumila var pumila , and ficus pumila var awkeotsang , or jelly bean seeds , which can grow climbing aerial roots to adhere to the wall because of the growth characteristic of climbing stem and adhering roots , and which can also absorb water and nutrition from air . its root grows with an angle of 10 °- 15 ° downward . by coordinating with this invention , it takes the actual effectiveness of wall planting and greening into full play . fig4 b shows the technique of stand greening and planting in this invention , and fig4 c applies the stand greening and planting in this invention as follows . take the 5 - 10 tools as a group . put it into the structural steel rod vertically according to the designed points . then , mark a horizontal line on the vertical steel rod of the reinforced concrete structure with a black chalk line , and surround the structural steel rod with the hollow plastic tube , and then join the tool , t - shape base mount , along the horizontal line . afterwards , tie the hollow plastic tube inside the structural steel rods at certain points along the horizontal line with # 32 iron wire so that it can be mutually secured to the t - shape base mount . then , position cylinder ( 1 ) on the fixed frame ( 10 ), and tie the anchor ( 11 ) and handle ( 12 ) firmly at certain points on structural steel rods with # 32 iron wire . planting opening ( 4 ) is blocked by a stopper so that it will be at the same level with the pinnacle of the reinforced concrete structure . the snake - shape tube ( 7 ), which is connected to funnel ( 6 ), is pulled and extended toward a point that is 30 cm apart from both sides of one planting opening . funnel ( 61 ) is at the same level with planting opening ( 4 ). block the planting opening ( 4 ) and opening of funnel ( 61 ) and tie firmly around the structural steel rods with # 32 iron wire . l - shape sand - releasing tube ( 17 ) and regulating hold of l - shape water level adjustment ( 13 ), and the regulating hole of air pip ( 132 ), are connected to l - shape water level adjustment tube ( 8 ) and l - shape air pipe ( 16 ) correspondingly , and tied with # 32 iron wire firmly on the structural steel rods . then join the opening of water adjustment ( 81 ) on the plastic tube to the air pipe opening ( 161 ). block the sand - releasing opening ( 171 ) with a screw stopper . brace the module board until the reinforced concrete structure is formed to shape and after finishing . clean all miscellaneous objects surrounding the planting opening . remove the stopper on the planting opening and pour in water to two - thirds the height of the cylinder . mix soil with 20 % limestone ( the porosity of synthesized rocks is generally higher than that of common natural rocks ) and 15 % organic fertilizers to form guest soil . add water and mix well until sticky , to prevent limestone and organic fertilizers from floating in the water , or distributing unevenly , and to increase the soil aperture . fill the well - mixed guest soil from the planting curb opening until 15 cm in height , then add 3 - 5 enhanced chemical - based fertilizers ( such as tree - like fertilizers ). the filled guest soil will become abundant and well - stacked by gravity force . therefore , the soil water capacity inside the cylinder can be saturated and provide enough nutrition for long time growth of the plant . afterwards , open the pinnacle at the opening of funnel ( 61 ) and opening of water level adjustment ( 81 ) at the bottom and remove the stopper at the opening ( 161 ) of air pipe ( 16 ). under atmospheric pressure , air enters the planting cylinder and drains the gravitational water which is not suitable for plant growth from the opening of the water adjustment , and the useful capillary water remains . air in soil inside the cylinder can be increased , and soil water capacity inside the cylinder can reach saturation . the high density sponge ( 9 ) inside the t - shape base mount ( 2 ) is full of water , as are the hollow horizontal plastic tubes . the tube inside forms an underground water supplied system to provide water and nutrition for the plant to grow inside the reinforced concrete structure for a long time . then the small trees and shrubs are transplanted to planting opening ( 4 ). fig5 a and 5b , and tables 1 and 2 , show details of the result of change of soil water capacity inside the tool after long time testing of this invention . fig5 a shows the change in soil water during the stand greening and planting . fig5 b shows the change in soil water capacity during wall greening and planting . tables 1 and 2 show the actual testing figures for soil water capacity inside this invention tool corresponding to fig5 a and 5b with the percentage as basis . the method is as follows : for original soil weight -- take the soil weight after drying ( 100 °- 105 ° c . constant temperature for 25 hours ), and measure the weight of water lost . then , weight of water lost ÷ weight of dry soil × 100 . from apr . 1 , 1995 to apr . 1 , 1996 , a hole was opened at 15 , 30 , and 60 cm on the tool with a teaspoon to get about 50 grams of soil as a sample for 15 days . the soil water was measured at intervals . l1 shows the testing results of sample soil at 15 cm height . l2 shows the testing results of sample soil at 30 cm height . l3 shows the testing results of sample soil at 60 cm height . although a preferred technique of wall greening and planting , and a preferred tool and technique of stand greening and planting , have been described in detail , the application and scope of the invention is not to be limited thereby . many changes and modifications in the above - described embodiment of the invention can , of course , be carried out without departing from the scope thereof . accordingly , to promote the progress in science and the useful arts , the invention is disclosed and is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims . table 1______________________________________l1 l2 l3______________________________________43 . 2 44 45 . 539 . 3 43 . 2 45 . 542 . 8 43 . 6 45 . 540 43 45 . 543 . 2 44 . 1 45 . 544 . 5 46 . 3 48 . 545 . 2 47 . 2 49 . 543 . 1 44 . 5 4641 . 2 43 . 5 45 . 541 43 . 5 45 . 544 . 5 46 . 1 48 . 339 . 8 43 . 6 45 . 536 . 2 42 . 3 45 . 236 . 5 43 45 . 244 . 5 46 48 . 536 42 . 3 45 . 532 . 4 41 . 5 4533 . 5 42 . 1 4530 . 2 41 . i 4533 . 4 42 4529 . 2 38 . 5 44 . 543 44 . 5 45 . 541 . 3 44 . 5 45 . 544 . 7 46 . 5 48 . 344 45 . 1 47 . 5______________________________________ table 2______________________________________l1 l2 l3______________________________________43 . 5 44 . 1 46 . 239 . 6 43 . 5 46 . 242 . 8 43 . 6 46 . 340 . 3 43 . 5 46 . 243 . 5 44 . 2 46 . 244 . 8 46 . 5 48 . 545 . 2 47 49 . 643 . 3 44 . 7 4741 . 5 44 46 . 241 . 1 43 . 7 46 . 244 . 7 46 . 5 48 . 540 43 . 6 46 . 237 42 . 8 46 . 237 . 2 42 . 8 46 . 244 . 5 46 . 2 48 . 536 . 5 43 46 . 233 . 1 42 . 5 46 . 133 . 5 42 . 5 46 . 231 . 1 42 . 3 4633 42 . 5 4629 . 7 39 . 4 45 . 343 . 5 44 . 2 46 . 241 . 7 44 . 5 46 . 244 . 7 46 . 6 48 . 544 . 2 46 . 6 48 . 4______________________________________	0
before explaining the disclosed embodiments of the present invention in detail it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its applications to the details of the particular arrangements shown since the invention is capable of other embodiments . also , the terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation . 1 . bath fan and heater with light cover having adjustable louvers and / or depressible engageable fasteners and depressible release 10 . light cover / grill lens ( light cover / lid / door )( opaque allows light to pass through ) 20 . grill 25 . fixed vents 300 . grill lens connecting block chip ( depressible engageable and releasable fastener ) 40 . shutter ( 5 )( adjustable louvers ) 50 . bulb ( 60 watt candelabra bulb ) 60 . light box ( aluminum ) 65 . socket 70 . shutter adjust bracket 80 . heat element housing side plate ( 2 ) ( galvanized steel ) 90 . heat element housing front plate ( galvanized steel ) 92 . top with vents 94 . angled bottom 96 . attachment tabs 100 . ceramic heating element 110 . heat element housing rear plate ( galvanized steel ) 120 . iron impeller ( galvanized steel ) 130 . iron impeller housing side plate 140 . motor for heating element 150 . iron impeller housing 152 . motor side of housing 160 . bath fan motor 170 . motor seat 180 . blower / impeller 190 . blower / impeller housing 192 . exhaust air output channel 194 . side air inlet opening 196 . footer ( s ) 200 . main housing 210 . wiring box cover 220 . wiring box 230 . outlet 240 . damper 250 . suspension brackets 260 . suspension brackets 300 . grill lens connecting block chip ( depressible engageable and releasable fastener ) 310 . inside part with bendable prong arms 312 . bendable prong arms 313 . side slot 314 . side walls 316 . bottom 317 . indentation in bottom 318 . riding tab stop 320 . outside box 322 . top end with enlarged edges 324 . side walls 326 . hook of outside box 327 . spring fixture 328 . longitudinal slot 330 . pothook ( l shape ) 332 . side extending protrusions on vertical leg 334 . horizontal leg 340 . internal spring 400 . male prong with enlarged head 410 . shaft 420 . enlarged head 500 . bath fan grill cover with opposite fixed vents 510 . inside cavity for light source 550 . hinge attachment for lens cover 600 . lens cover 650 . hinge attachment for grill cover 700 . bath fan grill cover with four fixed vents 710 . inside cavity for light fixture 750 . hinge attachment for lens cover 800 . lens cover fig1 is a lower side perspective view of the assembled ventilation and heater fan 1 with light cover 10 having adjustable louvers 40 and depressible engageable fasteners and depressible release . fig2 is another lower side perspective of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of fig1 . fig3 is a side partial cross - sectional view of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of fig2 . fig4 is a top view of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of fig1 . fig5 is a lower view of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of fig1 with light cover 10 removed . fig6 is a lower perspective view of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of fig5 with grill cover 20 and light cover 10 having been removed . fig7 is an exploded view of the housing 200 , grill cover 20 , light cover 10 and separated blower 180 and motor 160 and separate heater components 100 - 150 of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of fig1 . fig8 is another exploded view of the housing 200 and grill cover 20 with the assembled blower 180 and motor 160 and heater components 100 - 150 of fig7 . referring to fig1 - 8 , the main housing 200 of the bath fan and heater invention 1 , can be a generally box shape having closed sides , closed bottom , and open top ( which is covered by the grill cover 200 ). the invention 1 can include both heater components 80 - 150 and air blower components 160 - 190 . the heater components 80 - 150 ( fig3 , 6 - 8 ) can include two opposite facing heating element side plates 80 ( one is shown for clarity ), and a front plate 90 with upper bent top having vents 92 and angled bottom 94 and side attachment tabs 86 having through - holes for allowing the front plate 90 to be attached to side flanges of heat element rear plate 110 , by fasteners , such as screws , bolts , rivets , and the like . both the front plate 90 and the rear plate 110 can be formed from metal , such as but not limited to galvanized steel and the like . inside the front plate 90 and rear plate 110 can be a heating element 100 such as a ceramic heating element . a metal heater blower / impeller 120 , such as an iron impeller , can have a blower wheel configuration with circumferential side blades . an electrical motor 140 , such as a capacitor motor which can be completely enclosed to prevent moisture from entering into the motor , and effectively allowing the motor to last longer over time . motor 140 can have a rotational axis that attaches to a mid portion of the blower wheel 120 , to rotate the blower wheel 120 . the blower 120 can be held in place by the motor 140 to be held within a blower housing 150 , such as an iron housing , having a generally cylindrical shape with a side exhaust opening for moving air therefrom . an impeller side plate 130 having an opening therethrough which along with the motor 140 function as end plates for the open sides of blower housing 150 . side plate 130 can have a footer 132 , with together with the bottom of housing 150 can be attached to the floor of housing 200 by fasteners , such as screws , bolts , rivets , and the like . side flanges on the motor 140 can attach to edges around an opening in sidewall 152 ( which can function as a motor seat ) of the blower housing 150 , by fasteners , such as screws , bolts , rivets , and the like . the ceramic heating element 100 and bath fan can each have their separate motors 140 , 160 and blower wheels 120 , 180 . they are even separated from each other inside the bath fan housing 200 so that air can be exhausted outside by the bath fan through outlet 230 with adjustable damper 240 , while the heater side blows the warmer air into the room through angle adjustable shutters 40 . the adjustable louvers 40 should be adjusted away from the bath fan side to prevent the warmer air being exhausted out . referring to fig3 , and 6 - 8 , the air blower components 160 - 190 , can include an electrical bath fan motor 160 , such as a capacitor motor which can be completely enclosed to prevent moisture from entering into the motor , and effectively allowing the motor to last longer over time . fan motor 160 can have side flanges that are attached by fasteners ( such as those previously described ) to edges along a through - hole in a motor seat plate 170 . a rotatable axle on motor 160 can attach to a central portion of the blower wheel 180 to rotate the blower wheel 180 . motor seat 170 can have side flanges that can attach to edges along an open side of the blower housing 190 by fasteners ( such as those previously described ). air can be pulled into the blower housing 190 by open side 194 , and is blown out exhaust opening 192 . footers 196 on the bottom of blower housing 190 can attach the blower housing to the floor of the main housing 200 by fasteners ( such as those previously described ). components labeled 190 are plastic enclosures that completely surround the blower wheel 180 . the enclosures helps guide the air in a controlled path to prevent excess noise and provide maximum performance to exhaust or heat the air . air is trapped once it enters the blower wheel 180 and guided to the outlet 192 of the blower housing and outlet 230 of the housing 200 without any corners for the air to be stuck . power for the motors 140 , 160 and light 50 can be wired to wire box 220 by a line , such as a white plastic bi - pin molex cable from each of the motors 140 , 160 and light compartment 60 that plugs into the wiring box 220 with wiring box cover . referring to fig1 - 3 and 5 - 8 , external household electrical power can be supplied to the bath fan and heater housing embodiment 1 through a side opening 222 in a side wall of the wiring box 220 . the top opening and front opening of the wiring box 220 can be covered with an l - shaped wiring box cover 210 having tabs which connect the cover 210 to sidewalls of the wiring box by fasteners ( such as those previously described ). conventional wires can be inside the junction box 210 and can be wired to a house power supply . standard positive / negative wires for each light , heater , each motor is inside and can be wired to the house . male plugs , such as bi - pin molex can plug into the receptacles which is behind the junction box 220 . the wires inside the junction box 220 can be connected to these receptacles and can be wired to the house . the invention can use electrical connections used in other bath fan inventions , by the assignee including , but not limited to those shown and described in copending u . s . patent application ser . no . 13 / 219 , 236 filed aug . 26 , 2011 , and copending u . s . patent application ser . no . 13 / 168 , 112 filed jun . 24 , 2011 , both of which are incorporated by reference . referring to fig7 - 8 , the housing 200 is mounted by extension brackets 250 , 260 that are fixably attached directly to the outer side of the housing . each extension bracket is two pieces , with one fixed to an outside wall of the housing , and the second part has an l shaped end , where the second part telescopes in and out relative to the fixed part of the bracket . the l shaped end can attach to joists and other structural supports in a ceiling in which the housing 200 is mounted . alternatively , other types of mount brackets can be used , such as bent flap ears . the invention can use telescoping brackets and ear type bent flange brackets similar to those in other inventions by the assignee including , but not limited to those shown and described in copending u . s . patent application ser . no . 13 / 219 , 236 filed aug . 26 , 2011 , and copending u . s . patent application ser . no . 13 / 168 , 112 filed jun . 24 , 2011 , both of which are incorporated by reference . fig9 a , 9b , 9c , 9d , 9e and 9f are enlarged cross - sectional views of the novel depressibly engageable and depressibly releasable fasteners used for the light cover 10 of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of the preceding figures . referring to fig1 , 5 , 7 , 8 and 9a - 9f , when the light cover / door / lid 10 is to be closed , a user presses down so that male prongs from the underside of the cover / door / lid 10 is inserted into female sockets along a rim edge in the opening of the grill 20 . inside of the sockets are springs . once inserted the male prong becomes locked and hooked in place so that the cover / door / lid 10 is closed over the opening in the grill 20 . to open the cover / door / lid 1 , a user can press again against the cover / door / lid 10 pushing the male prong deeper into the female sockets which then causes the male prongs to be become ejected by springs inside the bases of the female sockets , and allowing the cover / door / lid 10 to become open . once open , the bulb 5 is reachable to be changed when needed , such as when the bulb has become burned out . the exhaust ventilator fan 180 pulls air through the adjustable louvers into the housing 200 and exhausts the air through the side outlet 230 of the housing 200 . the heater uses the same grill inlet to pull air into the housing 200 , where the air from the room ( space underneath the mounted bath fan ) is pulled in and heated . the heated air is pushed back into the space through a different set of adjustable louvers 40 . the adjustable louvers 40 on the grill 20 for the heater outlet are pointed away from the grill louvers 25 on the air intake in order to make the system more proficient . although the vents / louvers 25 on the air intake side are earlier described as fixed , the invention can use also use adjustable louvers on the air intake side as well . referring to fig3 - 8 , the ventilation fan and heater 1 is mounted to a ceiling , c , so that the grill cover 20 is generally flush against the ceiling with the housing 200 behind the ceiling . incoming air , i can be pulled into fixed vents 24 in the grill cover by the blower 180 , where some air is exhausted out , e , through outlet 230 , controlled by damper 240 . other incoming air is pulled in the direction of heater components by blower 120 , where it is heated by the heating components , and blown back into the space below the ventilation fan and heater 1 , by adjustable louvers 40 . referring to fig3 - 5 and 7 , a generally v shaped aluminum type light box 60 can be mounted in a middle compartment of the grill cover 20 , and can have a socket 65 mounted to one end , and a light source 60 such as a 60 watt candelabra bulb , mounted therein . the light source can be powered by electrical lines running into the wiring box 220 . the invention can use electrical connections used in other bath fan inventions , by the assignee including , but not limited to those shown and described in copending u . s . patent application ser . no . 13 / 219 , 236 filed aug . 26 , 2011 , and copending u . s . patent application ser . no . 13 / 168 , 112 filed jun . 24 , 2011 , both of which are incorporated by reference . into one side edge of the rim of the light box 60 can be a depressibly engageable and depressibly releaseable fastener . a downwardly protruding prong 400 allows the light cover 10 to be easily attachable and fully removable from covering the light source 50 in the light box 60 , the operation of which is described in greater detail in reference to fig9 a - 9d and 10a - 10f . fig9 a is an exploded front view of the depressibly engageable and depressibly releasable receptacle fastener 300 used for the light cover 10 of the ventilation and heater fan 1 of the preceding figures . fig9 b is an exploded back view of the depressibly engageable and depressibly releasable receptacle fastener 300 of fig9 a . fig9 c is an exploded side view of the depressibly engageable and depressibly releasable receptacle fastener 300 of fig9 a . fig9 d is a top assembled view of the of the depressibly engageable and depressibly releasable receptacle fastener 300 of fig9 a . referring to fig9 a - 9d , the receptacle fastener 300 can include an inside part inside part 310 with bendable prong arms 312 . the inside part 310 can have side walls 314 , bottom 316 with an indentation 317 . protruding out of a side wall 314 of the internal part 310 can be a protrusion 318 . the side walls 314 of the inside part 310 can fit into an open top end 322 of an outside box 320 . along one side wall ( s ) 324 of the outside box 320 can be a longitudinal slot 328 which restricts the inner part 310 to an upper position , and to a lower position relative to the box 320 . a hook 326 is located on the outside of the box 320 , and a spring fixture 327 is on a lower corner of the box 320 . a spring 340 can have an upper end into the indentation 317 on the bottom of the inside part 310 . an l shaped pot hook 330 can have protrusions 332 on a vertical leg , and a horizontal leg 334 that can fit into a slot opening 313 in the side of the inner part 310 , where the inner part 310 can ride up and down in the outside box 320 by the protrusions 332 moving up and down in longitudinal slot 328 . to attach the light cover 10 , to the grill cover 20 , the unhinged end of the outside of the light cover 10 is first pushed toward the grill cover 20 , so that the prong ( s ) 400 are first pushed ( or depressed ) into the bendable arms 312 . this causes the bendable arms 312 to catch the enlarged prong head 420 while the arms 312 are being pushed into the upper end 322 of the box 320 which partially compresses spring 340 . once the inner part 310 is inside the box 320 , the inner part 310 is latched in place . to release the light cover 10 , the opposite side of the light cover 10 is pushed toward the housing 100 , this causes the inner part 310 to push down again on spring 340 , which then releases the latching of the inner part 310 . the expanding spring 340 causes the inner part 310 to be pushed to a raised position , with the bendable arms 312 outside the upper end 322 of the box 320 , where the arms 312 expand from one another releasing the enlarged prong head ( s ) 420 , and the light cover 10 is then free to pivot open ( relative to a hinged end ) to allow access to change out the light sources inside of the grill cover 20 . fig1 a - 10d show the steps to lock the prong 400 to the receptacle fastener 300 . fig1 a shows a prong 400 used under the lens cover 20 about to be attached to the assembled receptacle fastener 300 of fig9 d . the prong 400 can have a shaft 410 and an enlarged head 420 . the bendable arms 312 can have lower ends attached to top edges of the inner part 310 and have upper inwardly protruding hook ends fig1 b shows the prong 400 being inserted into the receptacle fastener 300 of fig1 a , where the enlarged head 420 starts to expand the upper hook ends of bendable prongs 312 until the upper hook ends hook about the enlarged head 420 of the prong 400 . fig1 c shows the prong 400 locking into the receptacle fastener 300 of fig1 b , where the hooked prong head 420 is continued to be pushed into the box 320 so that the spring 340 under the inner part 320 starts to compress inside of the box 320 . fig1 d shows the prong 400 locked into the receptacle fastener 300 of fig1 c . here , the prong arms 312 are wrapped about the head 420 so that the entire head 420 and substantially most of the arms 312 are inside the upper open end of the box 320 . at this point the light cover 10 is fully attached to grill cover 20 . fig1 e - 10f show the steps to release a light cover 10 from the grill cover 20 fig1 e shows the prong 400 being pushed down again to start the release of the prong 400 . by pushing down the prong 400 , the inner spring 340 compresses again . fig1 f shows the prong 400 being pushed out of the receptacle 300 of fig1 e by the spring 340 pushing up against the bottom of inside part 310 . fig1 is a top view of another grill cover 500 having a lens cover 600 using the depressible engageable fasteners and depressible releases 300 , 400 of the preceding figures . fig1 is a perspective view of the lens cover 600 separated from the grill cover 500 . fig1 is a side view of the lens cover 600 separated from the grill cover 500 of fig1 . fig1 is another side view of the lens cover 600 separated from the grill cover 500 of fig1 . fig1 is a top view of the grill cover 500 of fig1 without the lens cover 600 . fig1 is a cross - sectional view of the lens cover 600 attached to the grill cover 500 of fig1 . fig1 is a cross - sectional view of the lens cover 600 of fig1 . referring to fig1 - 17 , the lens cover 600 can be attached to the grill cover 500 using the prongs 400 underneath the lens cover 600 which are depressibly engaged with the receptacle fasteners 300 inside the light cavity 510 of the grill cover 500 . one end of the lens cover 600 can have a pair of downwardly protruding prongs 400 , which the opposite end can have hinge components 650 which allow the lens cover to be pivotally attached to mateable hinge components 550 inside the light cavity 510 of the grill cover . the prongs 400 with depressibly engageable and depressibly releaseable fasteners 300 function similar to those described in the previous figures . the prongs 400 with depressibly engageable and depressibly releaseable fasteners 300 , allow for users to easily change out light bulbs when the bath fan has been mounted in a ceiling , without having to unscrew fasteners , such as screws , bolts , and the like , which are popular with prior art held lens covers . fig1 shows the top view of another bath fan grill cover 700 without the lens cover 800 . fig1 is a cross - sectional view of the grill cover 700 of fig1 with attached lens cover 800 . fig2 . is a cross - sectional view of the grill cover 700 of fig1 . fig2 is an end view of the lens cover 800 of fig1 . referring to fig1 - 21 , the grill cover 700 can include a light cavity 71 — for supporting bulbs and the like , therein . the cavity 710 can have a pair of depressibly engageable and depressibly releaseable fasteners 300 on one end , and hinge component ( s ) 750 on an opposite end . the lens cover 800 can attach to and cover the cavity 710 by using a pair of downwardly protruding prongs 400 on one lower end , and hinge components on an opposite lower end which operate and function similarly to the previously described embodiments . the exhaust ventilation fan and the heater can be run separately from one another , by having one turned on and the other turned off . additionally , the light can be turned on separately from the ventilation fan and the heater . additionally , both the exhaust ventilation fan and heater can be run together as desired so that air is continuously circulated out of a space and the rest of the air being heated and recirculated back into the space . the bath fan can be hardwired to the house and activated by one or two switches on a wall inside of the space underneath the bath fan . although the preferred embodiment covers 70 cfm applications , the invention can be used with other levels , such as but not limited to less than or equal to 50 cfm , 60 cfm , 80 cfm , 90 cfm or greater . while the invention has been described , disclosed , illustrated and shown in various terms of certain embodiments or modifications which it has presumed in practice , the scope of the invention is not intended to be , nor should it be deemed to be , limited thereby and such other modifications or embodiments as may be suggested by the teachings herein are particularly reserved especially as they fall within the breadth and scope of the claims here appended .	5
referring now more particularly to the drawing , like numerals indicate like parts of structural features in the various figures . portion 10 of an optical disk shows a track having a track centerline 15 with recorded optically - sensible spots 11 , 12 , 13 and 14 . the spots 11 - 14 can be either magnetooptically sensed on a magnetooptic medium , intensity - modulation sensed , such as in an ablative medium , or in a phase - changed medium , for example . the recorded spots 11 - 14 are on a planar surface of portion 10 ; i . e ., no grooves are shown in this particular embodiment , it being understood that either planar or grooved optical medium may be employed . further , the principles involved may also be used with magnetic recording of some types . the recording signal 16 is used to record the spots 11 - 14 representing the transition data 17 , wherein the binary one represents a transition in a transition position , while a binary zero represents the absence of a transition in a transition position along track 15 . it is to be understood that the information recorded in marks 11 - 14 is derived from the durations of the pulses in the recording signal 16 ; i . e , the space between successive transitions to provide a pulse - width modulated signal . the principle to the present invention can also be applied to pulse - position modulation , wherein each of the positive peak positions presented by the data 17 indicate unique information , as known , for pulse - position modulation . the sensing of the recorded information on portion 10 results in a read signal 18 . because of the imbalance in the recorded waveform ; i . e ., the two successive long one - half wavelengths , represented by spots 11 and 12 , shifts the readback signal dc baseline 19 . according to the present invention , the shifting of the dc baseline 19 is accommodated at each of the transition positions represented by binary one in data 17 . fig2 illustrates a prior art technique for amplitude - detecting a readback signal 18 , even with a shifted dc baseline 19 . it is to be understood that noise is introduced into the readback channel and the possibility of missing data or getting erroneous data is relatively high . generally , these systems are designed for low density recording respectively . noise caused by high frequency boost can introduce errors in the data detection process . this shifting is often referred to as jitter such as represented by brackets 33 which indicate ranges of unintended transition position changes caused by noise represented by hash marks 34 on signal 30 . in accordance with one aspect of the prior art , the read signal , r , is differentiated ( dr / dt ) to reproduce a differentiated signal 25 having a constant baseline 26 . the differentiated signal 25 is again differentiated to obtain signal 30 ( dr &# 39 ;/ dt ) having a baseline 31 . the zero axis crossings of signal 30 are used to time the detection of the peaks in signal 25 for producing a shape - detected data output signal 32 . the false zero crossings of signal 30 have to be eliminated , such as by sensing the low - amplitude portion of signal 25 . fig3 shows a set of signal waveforms illustrating a principle of deriving a detection - tracking amplitude threshold from amplitude samples , such as , peak amplitudes of the readback signal 18 . effectively , the detection process produces a positive signal envelope 40 and a negative signal envelope 41 , each envelope is related to the respective positive and negative peak amplitude values of readback signal 18 . detection threshold 42 tracks the dc imbalance shifting of baseline 19 by averaging the values of envelope signals 40 and 41 , which shift with the dc baseline . additionally , read signal 18 is differentiated to produce differentiated signal 25 . the zero axis or baseline crossing of read signal 18 are timed coincident with the peak amplitudes differentiated signal 25 . when the peak amplitudes of differentiated signal 25 , which is a positive - peak exceeding threshold 45 , and a negative - peak exceeding threshold 46 , output pulses 43 and 44 are generated . these pulses gate current sources 67 and 83 during positive and negative pulse durations of the differentiated signal 25 for discharging the storage capacitors 69 and 84 , respectively . these capacitors respectively store the positive and negative signal peak values received from detectors 65 and 80 , respectively . each capacitor discharge occurs immediately before the next ensuing peak is to be detected . this discharge enables tracking lower peak values ( more faithfully indicate amplitudes of small amplitude signal peaks ); otherwise the storage capacitors 69 and 84 could continue to store a prior higher amplitude peak value . the detected nrzi signal 32 is generated by detecting signal 18 crossing baseline 42 . the value of the dc baseline or detection - tracking baseline 42 is held between the zero axis crossings of read signal 18 . at each zero axis crossing of read signal 18 , the baseline is again measured and the detection threshold adjusted . this amplitude derived dc baseline 42 , therefore , rapidly tracks read signal 18 baseline shifting since there is a full adjustment at each of the zero axis crossings of read signal 18 . this adjustment occurs twice for each full cycle of read signal 18 . for example , in fig3 the first baseline adjustment curves at 42a of the comparison at the peak amplitudes of read signals 41b and 40b . the second adjustment , at 42b , shows an upward shift , as viewed in fig3 of the detection - threshold tracking level 42 . this adjustment is caused by measuring the amplitude difference between peaks 40b and 41b . the adjustment at 42a - 1 , which is minor , is achieved by positive peak detector 65 acquiring positive peak 40b . this adjustment procedure is repeated throughout the signal processing of readback signal 18 . negative peaks 41a , 41b and 41c are tracked in this manner by the negative peak detector 80 . in accordance with the invention , zero axis crossings of read signal 18 , and a detection threshold which tracks the baseline 42 , can be generated by averaging the peaks 40 and 41 . averaging circuit consists of positive envelope buffer 68 , resistor 72 , negative envelope buffer 81 , resistor 85 and averaging capacitor 73 . in a first embodiment , the transition immediately following the baseline measurement is used . in a second embodiment , the transition intermediate to adjacent peak amplitudes used to generate a corrected baseline - detection threshold is used . it should be noted that the detection of the data and the adjustment of the baseline is highly dynamic , such that the detection threshold 42 , or adjusted baseline , quickly follows the shifts and amplitude values of the readback signal . fig4 shows a set of signal waveforms usable to describe fig6 wherein the tracking threshold follows the shifting baseline based upon transition sampling . this system is just as dynamic as that described for fig3 and currently is a preferred embodiment of the invention . in this system , readback signal 18 is analyzed to produce a tracking threshold 50 , which shifts with baseline shifting . a set of amplitude thresholds 52 and 53 provide for peak detection of differentiated signal 25 to identify the zero axis crossings of read signal 18 . these values are adjusted at each zero axis crossing of readback signal 18 . numerals 54 and 55 , respectively , represent samples of falling and rising transitions in signal 18 which are sampled and averaged to derive the detection threshold . after sampling and averaging the respective denture , it is stored by a sample and hold circuit , later described , which holds the level of the derived tracking threshold 50 . signal 57 is a unipolar set of signals corresponding to the sampling aperture of positive and negative transitions of differentiated signal 25 . the nrzi readback data signal 32 is generated by detecting signal 18 crossing the threshold 50 . fig6 and 7 illustrate a detection circuit which uses the fig4 technique of data detection which has dynamic baseline shift accommodation . referring next to fig5 an optical disk 60 , which portion 10 is a part of , is sensed in the usual manner using a laser ( not shown ) with focusable and movable lens 61 and optics 62 . relative focusing and positioning of optic lens 61 with respect to optical disk 60 is well known and not described for that reason . optics 62 can either be those optics used for magnetooptic signal detection , phase - change signal detection , and the like . a read signal detector 63 suitable for all the recording systems detects the recorded data and supplies signal 18 to read amplifier 64 which supplies an amplified version to the illustrated detection circuits . the positive envelope signal 40 is generated by the circuits including the positive peak detector 65 , which supplies its positive - peak detected signal to operational amplifier 68 . capacitor 69 holds the detected peak value until the next transition is detected . when the next transition is detected , differentiator 66 generates signal 25 from readback signal 18 , and supplies it to gated current source 67 . when the signal 25 exceeds the positive threshold 45 , gated current source 67 responds to the positive peak of differentiated signal 25 to rapidly discharge capacitor 69 . after the storage capacitor 69 is partially discharged , the positive peak detector 65 charges capacitor 69 rapidly to the new peak value , such as at 40b of fig3 . that sensed value is then held until the next positive zero axis crossing occurs . operational amplifier 68 supplies the sampled and held values stored in capacitor 69 to a resistive averaging circuit , including resistors 72 and 85 , and smoothing capacitor 73 . the value held by smoothing capacitor 73 is the average value representing the detection tracking signal 42 . the negative peak envelope 41 is generated by the circuits , including negative peak detector 80 , which supplies its value to operational amplifier 81 and storage capacitor 84 . capacitor 84 holds the value of the negative peak to the input of operational amplifier 81 in same manner as described for the positive peaks , but until the next negative transition of read signal 18 is detected . that is , the signal is held until signal 25 has a negative peak amplitude lower than the amplitude threshold 46 . again , differentiator 82 differentiates signal 18 and supplies the differentiated signal to gated current source 83 . gated current source 83 responds to the signal 25 exceeding the negative threshold 46 to rapidly discharge the capacitor 84 . after the storage capacitor 84 is partially discharged , negative peak detector 80 quickly charges capacitor 84 for reestablishing the negative envelope value 41 at the just - detected negative peak value of read signal 18 . operational amplifier 81 supplies the signal 41 through resistor 85 to capacitor 73 . resistors 72 and 85 have an equal impedance and , therefore , find a median value between the two successively - detected positive and negative peaks for generating signal 42 . the data detection is achieved by three elements of fig5 . compare circuit receives signal 18 over line 75 for comparison with signal 42 . the nrzi signal from this comparison is supplied to analog circuit and 86 , which is actuated to produce a train of pulses on line 88 , representing the nrzi data output , which is shown in fig3 as signal 32 . gaps gate 87 enables and 86 only when data signals are being sensed , to pass digital signal 32 from comparator 74 to line 88 . positive and negative peaks of the signal 25 , respectively , exceeding the positive and negative thresholds 45 and 46 generate the pulses 43 and 44 . pulses 43 and 44 are used to develop a gap gating function 87 . gaps gate 87 responds to the signal 25 supplied by differentiator 82 to indicate when a true data signal is being received . many recordings have gaps or areas of no signal between recorded blocks of signals . gap gate 87 detects such gaps and signal blocks in a known manner , such as by envelope detection , by integration , and the like . gap gate 87 gates detected signal 32 out of comparator through and gate 86 . fig6 illustrates a circuit for implementing the transition - position detection aspect of the invention . operational amplifier 64 supplies the amplified readback signal 18 over line 91 to compare circuit 90 . readback signal 18 is also supplied to sample and hold circuit s & amp ; h 92 , which is triggered to sample the signal as described for fig4 . in this regard , differentiator 94 creates signal 25 , which is compared with the amplitude thresholds 52 and 53 to activate sample gate 95 for both the positive and negative amplitude excursions of signal 25 beyond the thresholds 52 and 53 . two successive integrations of the sample and held amplitudes 54 and 55 are supplied into integration capacitor 93 to supply the signal 50 to compare circuit 90 . note that the signal integration , in capacitor 93 , is a time - amplitude integration to provide an indication of the transitions . capacitor 93 is sufficiently large that detection threshold 50 shifts less dynamically than threshold 42 . results of the comparison 90 , between the read signal 18 and the threshold 50 , results in nrzi pulses 32 . fig7 shows a circuit which detects zero axis crossings of signal 18 . line 75 carries the operational amplifier 64 signal to differentiator 100 which generates signal 25 ( fig4 ). signal 25 goes to a pair of peak - amplitude comparison detectors 101 and 102 . comparator 101 has a reference value supplied by potentiometer 103 and generates a voltage threshold 52 . comparator 101 , supplying a constant amplitude signal to or gate 105 to be sampled , held and averaged in circuit 110 . similarly , for the negative excursion of differentiated signal 25 , potentiometer 104 supplies voltage threshold 53 , which is supplied to the reference input of switching comparator 102 . whenever signal 25 exceeds threshold 53 , a gate signal is supplied to or circuit 105 to be passed to sample average and hold circuit 110 . it should be noted that these gating pulses are of the same duration and same amplitude ; therefore , these signals are representative of the readback transition positions , as opposed to the peak amplitudes used with the fig5 - illustrated embodiment . fig8 illustrates a preferred construction of the sample average and hold circuit , a known arrangement . the line 113 signal is supplied as one input to the switching amplifier 120 . the peak indicating signal on line 106 , supplied by 0r circuit 105 , turns on charge pump 120 on to sample the amplitude of the signal 18 and compare it with the current value of the detection - threshold signal 50 on line 112 . the amplitude difference detected by circuit 120 between the input value and the current reference value adjusts the stored voltage in capacitor 121 during the duration of the peak indicating pulses ( 57 ). stored values continue to be supplied to operational amplifier 122 , which supplies the tracking detection threshold signal 50 on line 112 . the fig8 illustrated circuits may replace s & amp ; h 92 and capacitor 93 of fig6 . while the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred 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 .	6
a more detailed description of the device of the invention will now be provided with reference to the accompanying drawing figures . referring first to fig1 the intravenous catheter and tubing stabilization device of the invention , generally indicated by reference numeral 10 , is used to anchor and stabilize a catheter 12 , with catheter hub assembly 14 and tubing coupler 16 , and to retain tubing 18 associated therewith . tubing 18 may be connected to a source of infusion fluid ( not shown ), or may be connected to a fluid receiver ( not shown ) for use when fluid is being withdrawn from a patient . alternatively , device 10 may be used to anchor and protect a catheter 12 without tubing 18 attached thereto , a configuration sometimes used to provide an entry site for intravenous infusion of medication or other fluids . with further reference to the drawing figures , catheter and tubing stabilization device 10 includes a base 20 depicted in fig2 and 3 , and a cover 22 , depicted in fig4 and 5 . base 20 comprises an elongate plate of generally spade - like configuration , having a wide portion 24 and a narrow elongate portion 26 integrally interconnected at one end to one edge of portion 24 with a smoothly curving intersection , and with the longitudinal axis of portion 26 in alignment with the longitudinal axis of portion 24 . the side and rear edges of portion 24 define a smooth convex curvature to eliminate sharp corners which might cause injury to the skin of a patient with whom device 10 is to be used . base 20 further includes a first u - shaped wall 28 disposed on portion 24 in perpendicular relation thereto , and a second u - shaped wall 30 similarly disposed on portion 24 of base 20 in such relation to wall 28 to define arcuate slot 32 between said walls to receive tubing 18 therein . the curvature of walls 28 and 30 substantially matches the curvature of the edges of portion 24 . the distance between wall 28 and wall 30 through slot 32 should be substantially equal to the cross - sectional diameter of tubing 18 so that tubing 18 will be frictionally retained in slot 32 without constricting the flow of fluid through such tubing . wall 28 is of greater length than wall 30 and , in the preferred embodiment depicted in the drawing figures , extends to the edge of portion 24 of base 20 . wall 28 preferably includes opposed notches 34 extending into its inner surface near the edge of portion 24 , to receive tubing coupler 16 therein for anchoring the catheter assembly in relation to the limb of the patient . the parts of wall 28 extending beyond the ends of wall 30 toward the edge of portion 24 are not connected to portion 24 of base 20 , and wall 28 should be constructed of a slightly flexible but shape retentive material to allow those parts of wall 28 to be deformed from their rest position with imposition of force thereon , but return to such rest position upon removal of such force . base 20 additionally includes locking ears 36 interconnected to the outer surface of wall 28 in perpendicular relation thereto , in opposed relationship across the longitudinal axis of base 20 . locking ears 36 are of the same height as wall 28 and extend outwardly therefrom beyond the respective edges of portion 24 a short distance , and each is disposed on the outer surface of wall 28 between its respective end and the position of each of notches 34 in the inner surface of wall 28 . locking tabs 38 are disposed between locking ears 36 and the ends of wall 28 , in the corners formed at the intersection of ears 36 and wall 28 , and are interconnected between ears 36 and wall 28 . locking tabs 38 are of essentially cubical configuration with an edge dimension approximately equal to or slightly greater than the thickness of side wall 48 of cover 22 . base 20 still further includes connector block 40 disposed on the end of the narrow rectangular portion 26 of base 20 opposite its interconnection to portion 24 and interconnected thereto such that connector block 40 extends from the surface of base 20 in the same direction as walls 28 and 30 . connector block 40 comprises a solid block of generally rectangular cross - section having a tab 42 extending outwardly therefrom toward the end of portion 26 of base 20 opposite the interconnection of portion 26 and portion 24 . base 20 also includes patient attachment means 44 which , in the preferred embodiment , comprises a pair of wide adhesive strips interconnected to base 20 at opposite ends thereof with the longitudinal axes of such strips mutually perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of base 20 . the one of patient attachment means 44 disposed at the end of portion 26 of base 20 is of sufficient width to overlie the entry site of catheter 12 during use of device 10 to aid in anchoring catheter 12 and protecting its entry site against contamination . base 20 is preferably molded as a one piece construction from a hard , smooth surfaced plastic material capable of being suitably sterilized for medical use . portion 26 of base 20 is preferably slightly flexible perpendicular to the plane of base 20 , to facilitate positioning of base 20 on a limb of a patient adjacent to a catheter inserted therein , and the parts of wall 28 free from interconnection to portion 24 of base 20 must be sufficiently flexible to allow bending away from their rest positions while sufficiently shape retentive to return to their rest positions upon removal of the bending force . cover 22 of device 10 , depicted in fig4 and fig5 is of substantially the same length as base 20 and of substantially the same width as wide rectangular portion 24 of base 20 . cover 22 comprises an elongate top 46 with a side wall 48 extending continuously around both sides and one end of top 46 and interconnected thereto in perpendicular relationship . the other end of top 46 , and thus of cover 22 , is open to allow passage of tubing 18 to the interior of device 10 . side wall 48 is preferably integrally interconnected to top 46 with a smoothly rounded intersection between side wall 48 and top 46 to prevent snagging of tubing 18 and injury to the patient to which the device is attached . the end of top 46 interconnected to side wall 48 is of convex curvature matching the curvature of wall 28 of base 20 . top 46 of cover 22 includes elongate depression 50 formed therein with its longitudinal axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of cover 22 , and further includes dome 52 formed therein with its longitudinal axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of cover 22 . depression 50 is disposed in cover 22 such that depression 50 is centered over portion 26 of base 20 with cover 22 placed on base 20 . dome 52 is positioned in cover 22 adjacent to one end of depression 50 such that dome 52 will overlie that part of portion 26 of base 20 immediately adjacent to the interconnection of portions 24 and 26 of base 20 . dome 52 is slightly longer along its longitudinal axis than the width of top 46 and extends outward beyond the line of the edge of top 46 on both sides thereof in the preferred embodiment . side wall 48 includes bulges 54 under the extension of dome 52 beyond the edges of top 46 . depression 50 , dome 52 , and bulges 54 are provided for the purpose of accomodating and retaining catheter hub assembly 14 . base 20 and cover 22 of device 10 are symmetrical about the longitudinal axis of device 10 to allow device 10 to be used with catheter 12 on either side of the device . cover 22 further includes connector means for forming a releaseable interconnection between cover 22 and base 20 . such connector means comprise connector plate 56 interconnected to the edge of top 46 at the open end of cover 22 , centered between the ends of wall 48 and extending from top 46 in the same direction as wall 48 , and locking slots 58 disposed in side wall 48 between bulges 54 and the curved end of cover 22 in opposed relationship across the longitudinal axis of cover 22 . connector plate 56 includes aperture 60 extending from the inner face of plate 56 into the interior thereof toward the open end of cover 22 , to receive tab 42 of base 20 . each of locking slots 58 comprises an l - shaped aperture extending through side wall 48 , disposed therein such that the first leg of the l extends upward from the bottom edge of side wall 48 toward top 46 and the second leg of the l extends perpendicular to the first leg toward the open end of cover 22 . locking slots 58 are disposed in cover 22 so as to overlie locking ears 36 and locking tabs 38 when cover 22 is placed over base 20 . cover 22 is preferably formed as a one piece molded construction of a rigid , smooth surfaced plastic material capable of being suitably sterilized for medical use . all external contours of cover 22 should be smooth and rounded to prevent snagging of tubing 18 and to prevent patient injury . in the preferred embodiment , cover 22 is transparent to allow inspection of the catheter components and tubing and of the catheter entry site without the necessity of removing cover 22 from base 20 , but cover 22 and base 20 may be translucent or colored if desired without departing from the scope of the invention . device 10 is designed to be provided to users as an individually packaged sterile , disposable unit . in use of device 10 to stabilize and retain an intravenous catheter and its tubing in conjunction with the intravenous infusion of fluid to or removal of fluid from a patient , a needle bearing catheter , such as illustrated by reference numeral 12 , is inserted through the skin of the patient and into an underlying vein , the needle is withdrawn and catheter hub assembly 14 and intravenous tubing 18 are connected to catheter 12 . base 20 of device 10 is placed on the skin of the patient adjacent to catheter 12 , with portion 26 of base 20 alongside catheter 12 and with tubing coupler 14 resting upon portion 24 of base 20 and received in one of notches 34 of wall 28 . base 20 is then attached to the patient by , in the preferred embodiment , adhering adhesive strips 44 to the skin of the patient with one of said strips lying over the entry site of catheter 12 through the skin of the patient . tubing 18 is inserted into slot 32 between walls 28 and 30 of base 20 and is drawn toward the opposite end of base 20 along the edge of portion 26 opposite catheter 12 . cover 22 is then interconnected to base 20 by first placing aperture 60 of connector plate 56 over tab 42 of connector block 40 and pressing cover 22 onto base 20 such that locking ears 36 are received in locking slots 58 . as cover 22 is pressed onto base 20 the pressure of the bottom edge of side wall 48 against locking tabs 38 forces the ends of wall 28 to bend toward the interior of device 10 , allowing cover 22 to be brought into full contact with base 20 , whereupon locking tabs 38 slide into locking slot 58 as the ends of wall 28 return to their rest position , firmly locking cover 22 in place upon base 20 . in addition , as cover 22 is pressed onto base 20 , the inner surface of side wall 48 along its curvature is brought into contact with the outer surface of a portion of wall 28 of base 20 , aiding the frictional retention of cover 22 upon base 20 . as cover 22 is brought into full interconnection with base 20 , dome 52 and one of bulges 54 in side wall 48 enclose and gently retain catheter hub assembly 14 relative to device 10 , thus retaining catheter 12 in proper alignment with its entry site . the placement of tubing coupler 16 within notch 34 in wall 28 restrains longitudinal movement of catheter hub assembly 14 and thus of catheter 12 connected thereto . visual inspection of catheter 12 , hub assembly 14 , and tubing 18 , as well as visual inspection of the catheter entry site , can be readily performed without removal of the transparent cover 22 and without any discomfort to the patient . direct access to catheter 12 , hub assembly 14 , and tubing 18 is achieved by pressing inward on the ends of locking ears 36 which extend outwardly beyond side wall 48 of cover 22 to release locking tabs 38 from slots 58 , and lifting cover 22 away from base 20 , eliminating the painful and time consuming process of removing and replacing strips of adhesive tape . the foregoing detailed description of a specific embodiment of the device of the invention is illustrative and not for purposes of limitation , and it will be understood that various modifications and adaptations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	8
referring now to the figures of the drawing in detail and first , particularly , to fig1 and 2 thereof , there is shown a spacer 1 of a fuel assembly of a boiling water reactor that is composed of inner webs 2 which are plugged into one another in crosswise fashion , and outer webs 3 surrounding the inner webs 2 in the form of a frame . the inner and outer webs 2 , 3 enclose cells 4 of which at least some are penetrated in the mounted state by a fuel rod 5 in each case . projecting from an inner side 6 of the outer webs 3 are clamping springs 7 that are loaded by the fuel rods 5 approximately in a radial direction . slots 8 are present in the outer webs 3 . extending into the slots are the inner webs 2 , which do so with fixing sections 2 a projecting from their lateral end edges , and are welded to the outer web 3 from the outer side thereof . swirl vanes 9 are disposed at the outer edge of the outer web 3 , and deflector vanes 10 are disposed at the lower edge . the first serve the purpose chiefly of turbulently mixing the coolant flowing through a fuel element from bottom to top , and of guiding it to a surface of the fuel rods , while the latter serve as a threading aid when introducing a fuel element bundle into a fuel assembly channel 21 . there is the risk in the region of the two - phase flow of a boiling water fuel element that parts of the surface of the fuel rods are not adequately supplied with water so that so - called “ film boiling ” occurs there . in this case , a cooling water film is evaporated from the surface without local formation of steam bubbles . the consequence is that the heat produced by the fuel rods is not dissipated or is dissipated unsatisfactorily . in order to counteract this effect , a number of guide devices 11 are present on the outer webs 3 . the devices 11 respectively contain a flow opening 12 and guide element 13 that is assigned to the latter and projects from the inner side of the outer web 3 and cooperates with the flow opening in the manner of a venturi tube . the guide element 13 disposed on the inner side 6 of the outer web 3 effects a constriction of the flow cross section of a flow channel 14 formed by the surface of the fuel rod 5 , the inner web 2 and the outer web 3 . a subatmospheric pressure is produced in the region of the constriction by comparison with the coolant flowing outside the outer web 3 , specifically in the flow channel 15 enclosed by and the fuel assembly channel 21 and the outer webs 3 . consequently , coolant is sucked out of the flow channel 15 into the flow channel 14 via the flow opening 12 ( see arrow 29 in fig3 b ). the cooling potential of this coolant fraction can then be used to cool the fuel rods 5 . the guide elements 13 are flow vanes that are integrally formed on the inner side 6 of the outer webs 3 and enclose with the flat plane of the outer web 3 an acute angle α ( fig3 b ) opening in a longitudinal direction of a fuel rod or in the flow direction 16 . in the exemplary embodiments illustrated in fig1 to 7 , the guide element 13 is a flow vane that is formed by a deep - drawn wall region 18 of the outer web 3 adjoining a lower edge 17 of the flow opening . the flow openings 12 are configured in the form of elongated holes , their lower edge 17 and their upper edge 19 extending upwards parallel to one another . their side edges 20 extend approximately in the flow direction 16 . furthermore , the flow openings 12 are wider than the guide elements 13 such that they project laterally over the latter with an overhang 22 . each cell 4 adjoining an outer web 3 is assigned a guide device 11 , the latter being positioned in each case in a region of the outer web 3 that extends between the clamping spring 7 and the inner web 2 . the guide devices 11 , 11 a of two cells 4 , 4 a separated from one another by an inner web 2 are positioned at the regions 23 , 23 a extending away on both sides from the inner web 2 . the flow openings 12 can extend , for example , in a fashion transverse to the flow direction 16 . however , they are openings aligned obliquely in the case of the exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawing . the oblique position of two flow openings 12 , 12 a assigned to neighboring cells 4 , 4 a is in opposite senses , the openings enclosing an acute angle β ( fig1 ) opening against the flow direction 16 . the oblique position imposes a swirl corresponding , for example , to the flow arrows 24 in fig2 from the coolant flow penetrating the flow openings 12 , 12 a . the coolant entering via the flow opening 12 , 12 a is therefore guided around the fuel rods 5 in a circumferential direction . in the exemplary embodiment illustrated in fig4 to 7 , the upper edge 19 of the flow opening 12 ′, 12 ′ a , and the wall region 25 , 25 a , subsequent thereto , of the outer webs 3 are pre - cambered convexly outward . the pre - cambered wall regions 25 configured in the manner of blades or scoops , project into the flow channel 15 running between the outer web 3 and fuel assembly channel 21 , and guide coolant on to the inner side 6 of the outer webs 3 or into the flow channel 14 . the refinement adds yet a further coolant fraction to the coolant fraction stemming from the venturi effect described above . the opposite pre - cambering of the upper edge 19 and the lower edge 17 of the flow openings 12 ′, 12 ′ a increases the passage cross section 26 ( fig6 a , 6 b ) by comparison with openings whose edges run in the flat plane of the outer web 3 , and thereby facilitates the flowing in of coolant . a pair of guide devices 11 ′, 11 ′ a assigned to neighboring cells 4 , 4 a , is shown in fig7 . disposed between the wall regions 25 , 25 a is a wall section 27 that is situated deeper and is penetrated by a slot 8 a running in the flow direction 16 . adjoining the wall section 27 is a further , obliquely running wall section 28 that separates the two flow openings 12 ′, 12 ′ a from one another . in the case of the embodiment under discussion , the lateral edge of an inner web 2 is shaped in such a way that it extends into the pre - cambering formed by the wall sections 27 and 28 . as already described , in the case of the slots 8 , the slot 8 a is penetrated by a fixing section 2 a of the inner web 2 . owing to the configuration of the wall section 27 which is offset inward or deepened , the fixing section 2 a can be fixed in the region of the slot 8 a from the outside with the aid of welding , without the weld seam projecting beyond the wall regions 25 , 25 a . in addition to the flow openings 12 , 12 ′ described , it is also possible for flow openings 12 ″ to be present , in the case of which only the upper edge 19 and a wall region 25 ′ subsequent thereto are pre - cambered outward , the lower edge 17 running in the flat plane of the outer web 3 that is to say no inwardly projecting guide element 13 is present ( see fig4 ). in the exemplary embodiment illustrated in fig8 to 10b , the guide device 11 ″ has a guide element 13 ′ that is likewise an obliquely inwardly projecting wall region 18 ′. however , the latter is formed in cutouts 30 that run approximately in the flow direction 16 and open into the lower edge 17 of the flow opening 12 ′.	6
referring to fig1 there is shown a block diagram of an apparatus 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . an operator 15 , who is typically , but not necessarily , an animator of some artistic ability , works at a console which includes the devices illustrated within the dashed enclosure 20 . in the present embodiment , the console includes two input devices whereby the animator can input information to the apparatus 10 , viz . a data tablet 21 and a keyboard 22 , and three monitors on which information is displayed , viz . monochrome displays 23 and 24 and color display 25 . the data tablet 21 may , for example , be of the type made and sold by summagraphics corp . of fairfield , conn . which comes equipped with a data pen and operates to generate digital signals that correspond to the instantaneous position of the data pen as it is moved by the operator . the monochrome and color displays may be of the standard cathode ray tube type . the devices in the console 20 are coupled via a bus 30a to control circuitry 30 . in the present embodiment the functions of control circuitry 30 are implemented by an appropriately programmed general purpose digital computer , for example the model pdp - 11 manufactured by digital equipment corp . of maynard , massachusetts . however , it will be understood that alternate means , such as a special purpose computer or other suitable circuitry having logic and storage capabilities could be utilized to achieve the desired functions . in conjunction with the general purpose digital computer 30 there is provided a data base 50 which includes bulk storage such as magnetic tape memory 51 , fast access storage such as disk memory 52 , and random access storage such as ram 53 . typically , at least a portion of the random access memory will be included within the general purpose computer 30 , and it will be understood that the amount of each storage medium can be selected by one skilled in the art in accordance with considerations of desired processing times and cost . a frame storage means 60 is provided and is coupled to the control circuitry 30 and also , via a d / a converter 62 , to the color monitor 25 . in the present embodiment , the frame storage means is of the digital type , for example the type known as a &# 34 ; frame buffer &# 34 ; manufactured and sold by evans and sutherland company of salt lake city , utah . essentially , the frame buffer 60 is an addressable memory which stores a frame of video information . each elemental area ( also referred to herein as a point or &# 34 ; pixel &# 34 ;) in the video frame has a stored value ( referred to as a &# 34 ; pixel value &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; video content value &# 34 ;) associated with it , the stored pixel value being an eight bit &# 34 ; word &# 34 ; which has a magnitude representative of the video content of the particular point . given eight bits , there are 256 possible pixel values associated with each pixel in the frame , and this is sufficient to represent a wide range of color and brightness values , collectively referred to herein as &# 34 ; video content &# 34 ;. in the present embodiment , the eight bit binary word &# 34 ; 00000000 &# 34 ;, i . e . 0 in decimal notation , represents black level . the eight bit binary word &# 34 ; 11111111 &# 34 ;, i . e . the number 255 in decimal notation , represents white level . in a monochrome system , the intermediate 254 pixel value possibilities could represent shadings or gradations of gray level , whereas in a color system these remaining levels represent various color possibilities . any suitable encoding technique can be employed , a typical technique utilizing three of the bits to represent the contribution from one primary component , three of the bits to represent the contribution of another primary component , and the remaining two bits to represent the contribution of a third primary color component , the primary components being , for example , the commonly employed r , b and g color television representations of red , blue and green , respectively . the frame buffer 60 is coupled to the color monitor 25 via a d / a converter 62 which converts each digital pixel value to the appropriate r , b and g analog values for presentation on the color monitor 25 . as noted , the frame buffer 60 is coupled to the control circuitry 30 via the bus 30a so that the control circuitry 30a can be utilized to address any desired pixel in the frame buffer , for example to interrogate or read the pixel value contained therein or to write in a new eight bit pixel value at any point . a video tape recording machine 55 is coupled to each of the control circuitry 30 , the frame buffer 60 ( via a / d converter 61 ), and the color monitor 25 . a color television camera 65 , which views a scene 66 ( typically , but not necessarily , a frame of animation prepared off line ), is coupled to the frame buffer 60 via a / d converter 61 and is under control of the circuitry 30 . it will be understood that with this arrangement a frame of video information can be read into the frame buffer 60 from the video tape machine 55 or the color camera 65 , and the contents of the frame buffer can be displayed on the color monitor 25 or read onto the video tape machine 55 for storage therein . for example , if it is desired to display the contents of the frame buffer 60 on the color monitor 25 , the control circuitry 30 is caused to interrogate the frame buffer 60 in a raster scan pattern and the information therein is read out in a sequence which effects display on the color monitor 25 in a manner of conventional color television display . the same is true for transferring a frame of video information from the frame buffer to the video tape machine 55 . a new frame of video information can similarly be read into the frame buffer 60 , from either the video tape machine 55 or the color camera 65 . a remaining important further possibility , to be described hereinbelow , is where operator - selected pixel values are read into ( or out of ) the frame buffer 60 directly by the control circuitry 30 . for the time being , it suffices to understand that this operation is performed by interrogating a desired pixel in the frame buffer and either reading out the pixel value contained at such pixel or reading a new pixel value into the pixel . the operator 15 controls operation of the circuitry 30 via the data tablet 21 and the keyboard 22 . as noted , the data tablet is conventionally provided with a data pen . this data pen includes a switch in its tip , the switch being activated when the tip is depressed , such as during writing on the tablet . when the switch is on , the coordinates at which the pen tip is located are input to the control circuitry 30 . the data pen can also be utilized to input commands to the control circuitry 30 by utilizing the data pen and tablet in conjunction with the monitor 23 . in particular , when a decision is to be made by the operator / animator 15 , a &# 34 ; menu &# 34 ; of possible command decisions will appear on the control monitor 23 . the control monitor 23 is also adapted to display a cursor dot whose position depends on the instantaneous position of the data pen on the tablet . accordingly , when a menu is presented on the display screen 23 , the operator can select a desired command word from the menu by positioning the data pen such that the cursor dot moves to a position over the desired word , and then activating the switch of the pen by depressing the pen point . it will be understood , however , that alternate means of inputting operator commands into the control circuitry 30 , for example by using a light pen or other conventional means , can be utilized , or commands can be input strictly from the keyboard , if desired . the described techniques for inputting commands to a computer are all well known in the art and commercially available , and the description as set forth is intended to facilitate understanding for those not familiar with available data tablet control systems . referring to fig2 there is shown a flow diagram which , when taken in conjunction with the flow diagrams of figs . which depend therefrom , is suitable for implementing a general purpose computer to perform the functions of the control circuitry 30 as defined by the invention . in accordance with the present embodiment of the invention , a sequence of animated frames are generated and automatically colored , the colored frames being ultimately stored on video tape . in the present embodiment , an initial frame of a sequence , which shows the beginning extreme of some action , is drawn by the animator 15 on the data tablet 21 , although it will be understood that this and other frames could be entered by alternate means , if desired . the animator will later draw and enter a subsequent frame which defines an end extreme of the action , and socalled in - between frames will be generated to fill the action between the extreme frames , referred to as &# 34 ; key &# 34 ; frames . the index j is utilized to specify frame number in the sequence . the animator selects the number of the key frame f ( j ) to be drawn , as represented by block 100 of fig2 . for convenience of explanation it will be assumed that the first frame of a sequence of frames f ( j ) to be generated has j = 1 , so it is designated as f ( 1 ). as the characters of the frame are drawn , the points traversed by the data pen , designated p ( n ), of the drawn lines , designated l ( k ), are stored in the data base under control of the control circuitry 30 and the characters drawn are displayed on the line drawing display monitor 24 . ( as used herein , the term &# 34 ; characters &# 34 ; is intended to include any configuration of lines and / or points .) these functions are represented by the block 400 of fig2 and will be described in further detail hereinbelow in conjunction with fig4 . in the present embodiment , a line is defined by a stroke of the data pen without lifting the data pen . as will become clear , the sequence of lines in successive key frames is useful in obtaining the interpolated in - between frames , and characters to be interpolated should preferably have the same number of lines in successive key frames . fig3 a illustrates a character drawn by the animator 15 in key frame f ( 1 ). for ease of explanation , a simplified character drawn using three lines ( as defined ) is shown . the character is a square whose outline is drawn as a single line designated line f ( 1 ) l ( 1 ), and has diagonals drawn as lines designated line f ( 1 ) l ( 2 ) and line f ( 1 ) l ( 3 ). referring again to fig2 after a frame f ( j ) has been drawn , the block 491 is entered and the animator is automatically requested to select seed points , designated sd ( m ) for the m areas of the key frame f ( j ). the seed points designate the distinct enclosed areas to be colored and , as will become understood , provide a position reference from which color filling is initiated in the key frames as well as the in - between frames interpolated therefrom . in the example of fig3 a , there are four distinct enclosed areas to be colored , these areas being designated as area 1 , area 2 , area 3 and area 4 , and having seed points inserted therein which are designated as f ( 1 ) sd ( 1 ), f ( 1 ) sd ( 2 ), f ( 1 ) sd ( 3 ), and f ( 1 ) sd ( 4 ), respectively . the seeds can be inserted by the operator anywhere within the enclosed area . in conjunction with each seed point sd ( m ), the animator selects a video content value , hereinafter referred to as a color and designated as c ( m ) ( block 492 ). c ( m ) is the pixel value which is to be assigned to every pixel within the enclosed area m . accordingly , the color , c ( m ) for a given area m will be represented by an eight bit binary word which represents one of 256 possible color values . the color may be selected from an off - line chart and its value entered via the keyboard 22 . a more convenient mode of operation , however , is to display a palette including a sample of all 256 possible colors , using the bottom portion of the color monitor 25 . this is readily achieved by storing a small sample of all 256 possible eight bit word values in a number of adjacent points of the frame buffer ( preferably in the portion thereof corresponding to the bottom lines of the display ), and then calling up the palette for display on the color monitor 25 when necessary . the animator can select a particular color c ( m ) by moving the data pen until a cursor dot is positioned at the desired color sample of the palette and then depressing the pen tip to enter the selected color c ( m ) in the manner previously described with reference to the entering of commands . to reiterate , the animator enters a seed , for example seed f ( 1 ) sd ( 1 ) for area 1 of frame 1 by positioning the pen anyplace within area 1 and depressing the data pen . he then enters the color f ( 1 ) c ( 1 ) for area 1 of frame 1 by using the data pen to position the cursor dot at the selected color on the palette whereupon the data pen is again depressed . when seed points and associated colors have been entered for each area , inquiry is made as to whether the last key frame of this sequence has been entered , as represented by diamond 493 . if not , block 100 is reentered and the index number of the next key frame , f ( j ), to be drawn is entered . the frame is then drawn in accordance with the block 400 and the points p ( n ) of the lines l ( k ) of the present frame f ( j ) are stored and the line drawing presented on the line drawing display 24 , as previously described . ( it will be understood that , if desired , subsequent frames can be generated before any seed points are inserted or any colors selected , depending on the choice of the animator . in such case , earlier drawn key frames would be recalled later for insertion of seeds .) fig3 b shows an example of a character drawn for the end extreme key frame which , for the present illustrative example , is designated as being frame number f ( 4 ). accordingly , for this example , the animator selected the value j = 4 before the key frame was drawn . in the case of key frame f ( 4 ), the line f ( 4 ) l ( 1 ) is a circle and the lines f ( 4 ) l ( 2 ) and f ( 4 ) l ( 3 ) are perpendicularly intersecting diameters . again , there are four areas designated by the reference numerals 1 through 4 . the blocks 491 and 492 are then entered and the seeds for the areas of f ( 4 ) ( designated f ( 4 ) sd ( 1 ), f ( 4 ) sd ( 2 ) . . . etc .) as well as their associated colors ( designated f ( 4 ) c ( 1 ), f ( 4 ) c ( 2 ) . . . etc .) are entered by the animator , preferably in the sequence previously described . having generated the frame f ( 4 ), inquiry is again made as to whether the last key frame has been entered ( diamond 493 ), and since the answer is &# 34 ; no &# 34 ;, the block 500 is entered . block 500 represents the generation of in - between frames and the interpolation of the seed points sd ( m ). these functions are described in detail in conjunction with fig5 . however , to understand the overall operation , reference is made to fig3 c which illustrates the action sequence resulting from a superposition of the two key frames f ( 1 ) and f ( 4 ) as well as in - between frames designated f ( 2 ) and f ( 3 ) which were generated in accordance with functions of the block 500 . as will be described further hereinbelow , the in - between frames are obtained by interpolating from the key frames in accordance with parameters selected by the animator . in accordance with the principles of the invention , the seed points sd ( m ) for each enclosed area are interpolated and , as a result , each seed point remains within its associated enclosed area for the in - between frames . in fig3 c , the in - between frames f ( 2 ) and f ( 3 ) each has four enclosed areas with corresponding seed points designated sd ( 1 ) through sd ( 4 ). after the in - betweens and interpolated seed points have been generated , a &# 34 ; review &# 34 ; display of the action frame sequence is presented on the line drawing display 24 ( in monochrome ), this function being represented by the block 600 . if the action sequence , including the in - between frames , is deemed satisfactory , coloration of the enclosed areas is initiated by setting the index j to the number of the first frame to be colored ( block 690 of fig2 ), for example frame f ( 1 ) for the illustrated example . the selected frame f ( j ) is then automatically colored , as represented by the block 700 , and described in detail in conjunction with fig7 . briefly , coloration of each enclosed area is implemented by starting at a seed point and scanning each point within the boundary of the enclosed area . as this scan is performed , the color value c ( m ) associated with the particular enclosed area is assigned to each point within the area , the assigned value being entered in the frame buffer 60 . the described technique is performed for each enclosed area of the frame being colored . when all enclosed areas have been colored , the frame is stored on video tape by transferring the contents of the frame buffer 60 to the video tape machine 55 , in the manner previously described , and as is represented by the block 800 . inquiry is next made as to whether the frame just colored was the last frame to be colored in the action sequence . if not , the index j is incremented ( block 855 ) and the next frame ( frame f ( 2 ) in the illustrated example ) is automatically colored and stored on video tape as represented by the blocks 700 and 800 . when all the frames of the action sequence have been colored , the frames now stored on video tape can be reviewed by the animator , as indicated by the block 900 . referring to fig4 there is shown a flow diagram which details the functions previously described in conjunction with the block 400 of fig2 . in accordance with this routine , and as previously described in general terms , the coordinate points input by the animator via the data tablet 21 are stored and displayed . as noted , a series of points drawn continuously on the tablet with the data pen &# 34 ; down &# 34 ; are considered as a line , and lines as well as points are kept track of , the lines being useful in implementing subsequently described operations . the points of each line for a given frame are described by the notation f ( j ) l ( k ) p ( n ), where j is the frame number of frame f ( j ), k is the line number of line l ( k ) and n is the point number of the point p ( n ). each so - defined point has a memory location associated with it in the data base 50 , and the ( x , y ) coordinate of the point is stored at the particular memory location . the index number j of the frame being drawn was selected in accordance with block 100 of fig2 ( shown also in dashed line in fig4 ). the index k is initially set to zero before the first line is drawn , as indicated by the block 402 . inquiry is made as to whether or not the data pen is &# 34 ; down &# 34 ; ( diamond 403 ). if not , inquiry is again made after a given cycle time , as indicated by the loop back to the input of diamond 403 . if the data pen is down , inquiry is made as to whether the data pen was down during the last look ; i . e . the last cycle . the time period of the cycle depends on the basic cycle time of the particular control circuitry or computer being utilized . if the data pen was not drawn during the previous look , it means that a new line is being drawn and the index k is incremented ( block 405 ). also , since it is the first time that the pen has been sensed as being down , the first point of a new line is indicated , so the index n is set equal to 1 , as represented by the block 406 . the ( x , y ) coordinates of the data pen tip are stored at the memory location designated f ( j ) l ( k ) p ( n ), as represented by the block 409 . the newly stored coordinate point is also displayed on the line drawing display monitor 24 , as represented by the block 410 . the decision diamond 403 is then reentered for the next cycle . if the answer to the inquiry of diamond 404 has been &# 34 ; yes &# 34 ; ( i . e ., the pen was down at the previous look ), then inquiry is made as to whether the pen has changed position since the last look ( diamond 407 ). in other words , it is determined whether the pen has moved sufficiently since the last cycle to be considered , within the resolution of the data tablet coordinate system , to be at a new ( x , y ) coordinate . if not , diamond 403 is reentered for the next cycle . if a new coordinate point is sensed , however , the index n is incremented , indicating a new point , and blocks 409 and 410 are successively entered for storage and display , respectively , of the new point . the routine continues until terminated by the animator indicating that the current frame is completed . referring to fig5 there is shown a flow diagram which details a routine suitable for implementing the functions of the block 500 of fig2 . examples of in - between frames are the frames f ( 2 ) and f ( 3 ) shown in the illustrative example of fig3 . in the present embodiment , in - betweening is generally performed by interpolating between points on corresponding lines of two key frames , such as the frames f ( 1 ) and f ( 4 ) of fig3 . the number of in - between frames is determined by the selected index numbers of the key frames so that , for example , by selecting the key frames as being frames f ( 1 ) and f ( 4 ), the operator is indicating that there will be two in - between frames . corresponding lines of successive key frames are determined by the order in which they are drawn . in the present embodiment , the operator has flexibility to determine the &# 34 ; rate &# 34 ; at which the character ( or characters ) of the first key frame changes to the character of the last key frame . this is done by apportioning the interpolation position as between corresponding points ( on corresponding lines ) of the two key frames . for example , in the case of a linear interpolation , the interpolated in - between frames will have their lines at equally spaced positions between the corresponding lines of the key frames . this is the case in the illustration of fig3 where it is seen that the in - between frames are evenly spaced between the two key frames and the nature of the in - betweens varies at a uniform rate as between the characters of the key frames . it may be desired , however , in some cases to have the in - betweens change at a non - uniform rate and retain the nature of a character of one of the key frames for a relatively longer period before it changes to the corresponding character of the later key frame . this is achieved by varying the interpolation in accordance with operator - selected input parameters . in fig8 a there is shown a graph of character position versus frame number . the dashed straight line is representative of a linear interpolation , whereas the solid line represents an operator - specified interpolation instruction which directs that the character retain the nature of the first key frame for a relatively longer time . full scale on the vertical ( ordinate ) axis is considered to have the value unity . reference positions representative of the intermediate frame positions are located at equal distances along the horizontal axis . for example , if two in - between frames are to be generated , their reference positions on the graph of fig8 a will be one - third and two - thirds of the way , respectively , between the reference positions of the first and last frames . the relative height at these reference positions , generally denoted e ( j ) and represented by the line segments e ( 2 ) and e ( 3 ) in the fig ., determines the fractional position for the lines of the in - between frames as between the two key frames . thus , for example , the solid line curve of fig8 a dictates that the first in - between frame be approximately one - eighth of the total distance as between the two key frames ( e ( 2 )= 0 . 125 ) and the relative position of the second in - between frame is about one - third the distance between the two key frames ( e ( 3 )= 0 . 33 ). these numbers can be compared against the relative fractional distances of one - third and two - thirds , respectively , which would be the case for a linear interpolation . the dashed curved line represents the opposite situation where e ( 2 )= 0 . 66 and e ( 3 )= 0 . 875 and the character takes on the nature of the last key frame at a faster rate . the manner in which the interpolation is achieved will be described further , but it should be understood at the outset that the operator can select the rate of change of the in - betweens either by appropriate specification using a curve ( which may be input , for example , using the data pen ), by inputting the fractional specifications e ( j ) using the keyboard or by any other suitable technique . for understanding the routine itself , it is also helpful to initially recognize that it is generally necessary to interpolate as between lines having different numbers of points . as will become clear , this is done in the present embodiment by calculating the position of &# 34 ; secondary &# 34 ; points on the shorter of the two lines and using these points to implement the interpolation . with reference to fig5 the numbers of the key frames to be in - betweened , designated j o and j e , for the first and last frames respectively , are entered ( block 501 ). the frame number index , j , is incremented ( block 502 ) to yield , in the first instance , the frame number of the first in - between frame ; viz . j o + 1 . the line number index is initially set to 1 , as represented by the block 503 . the first lines in each of these key frames is next examined , by examining the number of points in each of the lines , and determination is made as to which line is longer , as represented by the block 504 . refer to fig8 b for illustration wherein an example is shown with the first line of a first key frame , designated f ( j o ) l ( k ), being longer than the first line of a last key frame , this line being designated by f ( j e ) l ( k ). the point index , n , is initially set to unity , as is a secondary point index , designated n i , these functions being represented by the blocks 505 and 506 , respectively . the number of points in the longer line is designated n l , and the number of points in the shorter line is designated n s . accordingly , to obtain a point on the shorter line which corresponds to a point n on the longer line , the calculated position of the point on the shorter line is a position corresponding to n ( n s / n l ). the line between the point n of the longer line and the point at the position n ( n s / n l ) of the shorter line is computed , this line being the dashed line 801 of fig8 b . the length of this line is called d , this length being calculated from the coordinates of its end points using the pythagorean theorem ( block 508 ). the location of the first point of the first in - between can then be obtained by calculating the position of the point which is a distance ( d ) e ( j ) from the point on line f ( j o ) l ( k ). in other words , the fractional distance along the line d is the operator - selected distance for the location of the first in - between frame , as determined , for example , from the value e ( 2 ) of the operator - drawn curve of fig8 a . the location of the point , designated as f ( j ) l ( k ) p ( n ) ( see fig8 b ) is calculated , using the following algebraic relationship : where ( x n , y n ) are the coordinates of the point being calculated , ( x o , y o ) are the coordinates of the point in frame f ( j o ) and ( x e , y e ) are the coordinates of the point in frame f ( j e ). the new point of the in - between frame is then examined to see if it corresponds to an already existing point on the particular line of the in - between being generated . ( this check is made since , within the resolution of the coordinate system being utilized , the particular line of the in - between being generated may have many less points than n l , and when two points are found within the same elemental area , only one of them is stored .) accordingly , if the newly calculated point is found to be at a unique location , it is stored as the point f ( j ) l ( k ) p ( n ), as represented by the block 511 of fig5 . the index n is then tested ( diamond 512 ) to determine if it equals n l , the last point on the longer line . if not , the index n is incremented ( block 513 ) and the loop 530 is reentered for calculation of and storage of the remaining points on the first line of the first in - between frame , represented in fig8 b as the line f ( j o + 1 ) l ( k ). when the index n is found to equal n l , the decision diamond 514 is entered and the line number , k , is tested to see whether it equals the maximum number of lines in the key frames , designated k . if not , the index k is incremented ( block 515 ) and the block 504 is reentered for processing of the next line of the in - between . if k does equal k , the in - between frame ( i . e ., a line drawing thereof ) has been completed and block 550 is entered for interpolation of the seed points , described in conjunction with fig5 b . when this is complete , the frame can be transferred into bulk storage , as represented by the block 520 , shown in dashed line . the index j is then tested ( diamond 516 ) to determine whether it equals j e - 1 ( diamond 516 ); i . e ., the last in - between frame to be generated . if so , the routine is over . if not , the index j is incremented ( block 517 ) and the block 503 is reentered to begin generation of the next in - between frame . referring to fig5 b , there is shown a flow diagram for implementing the functions set forth in the block 550 of fig5 ; i . e . interpolation of the seed points for the various enclosed areas of the in - between frames . the enclosed area index , m , is initially set to unity , as represented by block 551 . the line between the points f ( j o ) sd ( m ) and the point f ( j e ) sd ( m ) is then computed ( block 552 ), and the distance d between these points is also computed ( block 553 ). next , the location of the interpolated seed point for the enclosed area m is obtained by calculating the position of the point which is a distance ( d ) e ( j ) from the seed point of the area m of the first key frame , f ( j o ) sd ( m ) ( block 554 ). the coordinates of the calculated point are stored as the interpolated seed point m of the frame j ; viz ., f ( j ) sd ( m ), as represented by the block 555 . it is seen that this interpolation of seed points utilizes the same technique as was used to interpolate the line drawings , as represented by the blocks 504 - 513 of fig5 and as shown diagrammatically in fig8 b . the index m is tested ( diamond 556 ) to determine whether it equals the number of the last enclosed area , m . if not , the index m is incremented ( block 557 ), and the interpolated seed point for the next enclosed area of the particular in - between frame j is generated . when m is found to equal m , the block 520 of fig5 is entered . referring to fig7 there is shown a flow diagram for implementing the functions shown generally in the block 700 of fig2 . in accordance with the flow diagram of fig7 the control circuitry 35 ( fig1 ) causes the coloration or shading of each frame in the sequence by starting at the seed points for each enclosed area m thereof and &# 34 ; filling &# 34 ; the enclosed area . this is done by inserting the appropriate operator - selected color , c ( m ) at all points of the enclosed area . in scanning the enclosed area during the filling operation , it is desirable that all possible configurations of enclosed areas , including those with &# 34 ; lobes &# 34 ; ( to be described ) be automatically filled . in the present embodiment , this is achieved by starting at the original seed point , sd ( m ), for a given area and filling the corresponding points in the frame buffer along a horizontal scanline containing the original seed point . the lines above and below the line just filled , designated the &# 34 ; main line &# 34 ;, are then examined for the presence of a specified boundary condition ( to be described ). when the condition is met , a &# 34 ; working seed &# 34 ; is indicated as being present at the particular boundary . the horizontal line which contains each working seed is then filled , in a manner to be described , and subsequent working seeds are generated by examining the horizontal scanlines above and below the main line just filled . to facilitate description of the technique , a working example is shown in fig6 which shall be referred to in conjunction with the flow diagram of fig7 . in fig6 an enclosed area to be filled , designated 601 , has a number of lobes referred to by reference numerals 611 , 612 , 613 and 614 . for ease of illustration , and to better understand the boundary conditions , the enclosed area is shown as having a periphery consisting of straight lines , although it will become understood that the described routine causes the filling of any enclosed area regardless of shape . assume that the original seed point for a given enclosed area m of a given frame j , and designated f ( j ) sd ( m ), is at the location as shown in fig6 a ; viz ., near the top of the lobe 611 . with reference to fig7 the index number of the first frame to be filled , j , is entered , as represented by the block 701 , and the line drawing of the frame is entered into the frame buffer under control of the control circuitry 35 . as previously noted , black level in the frame buffer is denoted by the value &# 34 ; 00000000 &# 34 ; for the eight bit word which defines a pixel value , and white level is denoted by the eight bit word &# 34 ; 11111111 &# 34 ;. when the line drawing is entered into the frame buffer , the coordinate points thereof are set at white level , so if the contents of the frame buffer were displayed , at this time , a white line drawing would appear on a black background . the index m is set to 1 , designating the first enclosed area to be filled , as represented by the block 730 . the seed point f ( j ) sd ( m ) is placed on a list of &# 34 ; working seeds &# 34 ;, a concept that will be better understood shortly . at this time , the seed f ( j ) sd ( m ) is the only seed on the list . inquiry is made as to whether the list of working seeds is exhausted , as represented by diamond 704 . if not , the block 705 is entered and the working seed at the end of the list is used as a start point for filling a horizontal scanline in the frame buffer with the operator - selected color c ( m ). filling is done left and right on the horizontal scanline until a boundary is reached , a boundary being considered any point which has a pixel value other than &# 34 ; 00000000 &# 34 ; ( black level ). accordingly , it will be understood , that any point of a line of the line drawing or any point which has already been filled is considered &# 34 ; out - of - bounds &# 34 ;, and all other points are considered as being &# 34 ; in - bounds &# 34 ;. in fig6 a , the line 620 represents the horizontal line which was filled , left and right to the boundaries , with the color c ( m ), this line being considered the &# 34 ; main line &# 34 ;. the points ( or pixels ) above and below the main line are next examined as follows : an &# 34 ; above / below &# 34 ; index is first set to &# 34 ; above &# 34 ;, as represented by the block 706 . examination begins at the left end of the main line , as represented by the block 707 . the pixel directly above ( since the above / below index is set to &# 34 ; above &# 34 ;) the current pixel of the main line ( the current pixel of the main line presently being the leftmost pixel thereof -- block 707 ) is examined , as represented by the block 708 . inquiry is made as to whether the pixel is in bounds , as represented by the diamond 709 . if so , the block 710 is entered which indicates the advance to the right on the main line of the current pixel and the subsequent examination of the pixel above the current pixel ( block 711 ). inquiry is again made as to whether the pixel being examined is in - bounds , as represented by diamond 712 . if so , the block 710 is reentered and the procedure continues via the loop 715 until a boundary is hit . in terms of the example of fig6 a , this continued examination would bring one from left to right along the dotted line above the main line 620 . when a boundary is reached , the answer to the inquiry of diamond 712 is &# 34 ; no &# 34 ; and the block 716 is entered , this block directing that the previous &# 34 ; above &# 34 ; pixel be put on the end of the list of working seeds . in other words , the last in - bounds pixel , represented by the asterisk 602 in fig6 a , is put on the end of the list of working seeds . note that it is presently the only working seed on the list since the original seed point is already being processed . inquiry is next made ( diamond 718 ) as to whether the current point on the main line has extended beyond the right end of the main line . if not , the block 708 is reentered . in the situation of fig6 a , the answer to the inquiry of diamond 718 would be &# 34 ; yes &# 34 ;. ( the situation where the current point on the main line has not passed the right end of the main line will be treated hereinbelow .) if the answer to the inquiry of the diamond 718 is &# 34 ; yes &# 34 ;, the diamond 721 is entered and inquiry is made as to whether the above / below index ( which is initially set to &# 34 ; above &# 34 ; by block 706 ) is at &# 34 ; below &# 34 ;. if not , the above / below index is set to &# 34 ; below &# 34 ;, as represented by the block 722 . the block 707 is then reentered and the same processing described before is repeated , except that the pixels below ( instead of above ) the main line are examined in sequence . this results in examination of the pixels depicted by the dotted line directly below the main line 620 in fig6 a and also results in a seed designated by asterisk 603 in the fig6 a . after the described processing , when the diamond 721 is now entered , the answer thereto will be &# 34 ; yes &# 34 ; and the diamond 704 will then be reentered . the list of working seeds now has the seeds 602 and 603 thereon , so the block 705 is entered and the last seed on the list ( 603 ) is considered and filled left and right to the boundary with the color c ( m ), this filled line being the new &# 34 ; main line &# 34 ; and being shown in the fig6 b as line 621 . the working seed being considered ( 603 in this case ) is circled in this fig ., as it is in the other portions of fig6 . the examination of the lines above and below the new main line 621 will now proceed as before . it will be recognized that when the above / below index is next set to &# 34 ; above &# 34 ;, no pixels above the new main line 621 will be found to be in bounds , since the line above line 621 , i . e . line 620 , has already been filled and is considered as being out - of - bounds . accordingly , during the &# 34 ; above &# 34 ; processing , the answer to the inquiry of diamond 709 will always be &# 34 ; no &# 34 ; and no working seed will result from the examination of pixels above the main line 621 ( since block 716 will not be entered ). however , when the above / below index is eventually changed to &# 34 ; below &# 34 ;, the examination of the pixels below the main line 621 will eventually result in the generation of a new working seed designated by reference numeral 604 , as shown in fig6 b . the remainder of the lobe 611 will be filled with the color c ( m ) in this manner , and when the bottom line of the lobe is filled , no further working seeds will be generated thereunder since no more in - bounds pixels will be found . thus , when the block 705 is eventually reentered , the working seed 602 will be the only seed on the list . this will result in the filling of a line labeled 622 , as shown in fig6 c and , subsequently , in the generation of a new working seed labeled 605 . the filling of lines upward will then proceed in the manner described until the line labeled 632 ( fig6 d ) becomes the main line . this will result in the generation of the working seed labeled 616 ( fig6 d ) which will , in turn , result in the filling of the line 633 and the generation of the working seeds 617 and 618 above and below the main line 633 ( as shown in fig6 e ). now , we have a situation similar to that of fig6 a , and this will result in the lobe 612 being filled in the manner previously described . after filling of the lobe 612 , filling above the line 633 will proceed in the manner described in conjunction with fig6 c , until the line 639 becomes the main line ( fig6 f ). when examining the pixels above the line 639 , it is seen how operation of the diamond 718 of fig7 comes into play . the working seed 625 will be generated during the left to right examination of pixels above the line 639 . however , in this case , when inquiry is made as to whether the current pixel on the main line has extended beyond the right of the main line ( diamond 718 ), the answer will be &# 34 ; no &# 34 ; since the current point on the main line has not yet reached the rightmost edge of the line 639 . accordingly , the block 708 will be reentered and the looping will continue until the working seed 626 is eventually generated , as shown in fig6 f . subsequently , the lobes 613 and 614 will be filled , in a manner similar to that previously described , and as illustrated in part in fig6 g . after the filling is complete , inquiry of diamond 704 will yield a &# 34 ; no &# 34 ; answer and the diamond 735 will be entered to determine if any areas m remain to be filled , or if m has reached the last area , designated m . if not , the index m will be incremented , as represented by the block 736 and the block 703 will be reentered for filling of the next area . when the index m reaches m , the frame will have been completely filled with the operator - selected video content values or colors c ( m ). the invention has been described with reference to a particular preferred embodiment , but variations within the spirit and scope of the invention will occur to those skilled in the art . for example , while the outlines to be colored have been shown as being entered from a data tablet , it will be understood that they could be entered by other suitable means , such as via the camera 65 . coloration or shading with a single color or shading level has been shown for purposes of illustration , but it will be understood that a preselected pattern could be readily employed in substitution for a single color or shading . further , it will be understood that coloration or shading of a background ( i . e . outside one or more enclosed areas ) is achieved by inserting an operator - selected seed in the background area in conjunction with a desired video content value . further , it will be understood that alternate techniques for storing the coordinates of lines defining a closed area could be employed , for example by storing end points of straight line segments and approximating curved lines with short straight line segments . it should also be noted that while the described order of generating in - betweens and then effecting the desired coloration or shading is preferred , an operator can readily perform the operations in any desired order , such as by commanding coloration as soon as an outline drawing is entered . finally , it will be recognized that the &# 34 ; frames &# 34 ; generated in accordance with the present description can be combined or superimposed to form higher level frames , and the use of the term &# 34 ; frame &# 34 ; is intended in a non - limiting sense to mean any frame or field of video information or unit portion of an image .	6
fig1 schematically depicts mandrel 10 of this invention . mandrel 10 is made from four contoured quarter sections 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 which form the surface of mandrel 10 . quarter sections 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 are made of composite comprising carbon fiber or other high strength filaments in a thermoset matrix but the sections could also be machined metal or monolithic graphite . ( the matrix of quarter sections 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 has been cured at room temperature after prepreg lay - up but such sections may be made using filament winding or lay - up of prepregs that incorporate resins that cure at higher temperatures , e . g . 250 ° f . the use of matrix resins which cure at room temperature , however , permits the female splashes used in fabricating the quarter sections to be made from more easily worked materials .) quarter sections made of these materials provide the surfaces of mandrel 10 with a coefficient of thermal expansion approximating the coefficient of thermal expansion of the part being fabricated on mandrel 10 more closely than metal . mandrel 10 further comprises steel shaft 20 , bulkhead 22 and t - stiffener 24 . t - stiffeners 24 shown in fig1 rigidly mount to bulkhead 22 through clamps ( not shown ) respectively fastening to bulkhead 22 . bulkhead 22 rigidly mounts around shaft 20 for rotation of quarter sections 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 of mandrel 10 . fig2 shows in cross - section t - stiffener 24 fastened to quarter sections 16 , 18 of mandrel 10 . t - stiffener 24 extends continuously along the length of putty filled seam 35 between quarter sections 16 , 18 ; and it comprises leg 26 that is integral with spans 32 , 34 and projects inwardly into mandrel 10 . spans 32 , 34 respectively bolt to quarter sections 16 , 18 by fasteners 28 , 29 and have grooves 36 , 38 . rubber o - rings 40 , 42 fit into respective grooves 36 , 38 of t - stiffener 24 . rubber o - rings 40 , 42 seal the surface 43 inside of mandrel 10 ( where t - stiffener 24 resides ) from outer surface 44 of mandrel 10 . the o - rings are shown generally cylinderical bodies in the rectilinear cross - section of grooves 36 , 38 but may have any geometry suitable for sealing the mandrel sections and t - stiffener . filler putty 46 also acts to smooth seam 35 between quarter sections 16 , 18 . the t - stiffeners used in constructing mandrel 10 are layed up on female master splashes . in laying up the t - stiffeners , silicone rubber strips are placed on the female tools for molding grooves 36 , 38 in t - stiffener 24 ( see fig2 ). rectangular lengths of prepreg are layed upon each other in making the t - stiffener . additional prepreg tow that is long and narrow is used in filling corners . the t - stiffener is cured , removed from its master splash as an integral composite body and machined to final dimensions . fabrication of t - stiffeners is described more fully in connection with fig7 a and 7b . sections 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 of mandrel 10 are made starting with a female master splash made from the master model ( see fig7 a ) of the part being fabricated . fig3 shows female master splash 100 which has been fabricated using this master model 107 . female master splash 100 breaks into four quarter sections . splash supports 102 hold the splash shape and enable each of quarter sections forming splash 100 to stand on the floor or other surface while a mandrel quarter section ( such as shown in fig4 ) is fabricated . the quarter sections are preferably fabricated individually in their respective female splashes . for example , carbon fiber containing prepreg cut to desired lengths and widths is layed into the female splash and cured . when room temperature curing matrix resins are employed , the quarter section carried in the splash may be cured on the shop floor . fig4 depicts schematically mandrel quarter section 18 within a quarter section of female splash section 702 . gussets 104 , added to female quarter section 18 after lay - up and initial cure thereof , assist stabilizing the shape of quarter section 18 during cure . previously fabricated t - stiffeners ( not shown ) are positioned along edges 106 of section 18 for shaping the contour of these edge to the t - stiffener surface . quarter section 18 , after being cured in female splash 702 , is trimmed to length and the edges 106 machined to their defined configurations for joining with quarter sections 12 and 16 made in similar fashion . fig5 shows the procedure by which the bulkheads ( such as 22 , fig1 ) and gussets , by analogy , if desired , are fabricated . prepregs made of carbon fiber or the like are first layed - up as shown in fig5 ( a ), compacted under vacuum as shown in fig5 ( b ) and cured and then machined to final dimensions as shown in fig5 ( c ). alternatively , prepregs 500 may be precut to desired dimensions before curing . fig6 illustrates a cured aircraft structure , air duct 602 and disassembled mandrel components of this invention . fig6 shows cured aircraft duct 602 from which composite mandrel quarter section 604 ( other quarter sections not shown ), rabbit race 606 , t - stiffener 608 ( other three t - stiffeners not shown ), shaft 610 and bulkheads 614 and 616 have been disassembled and withdrawn . ( as seen in fig6 t - stiffener 608 has been fabricated to extend the length of the mandrel .) fig7 a and 7b diagramatically illustrate in developed views and , fig8 a and 8b illustrate also as developed views , procedures and techniques involved in making the t - stiffeners of this invention . fig7 a shows master model 700 in idealized cross section cut perpendicularly through its central longitudinal axis along with its associated female splashes 702 , 704 , 706 and 708 . these splashes ( a ) have respective surfaces 703 , 705 , 707 and 709 contoured to those on the master model 700 and respective splash supports 702 &# 39 ;, 704 &# 39 ;, 706 &# 39 ; and 708 &# 39 ; ( splashes 702 , 704 , 706 and 708 are used in fabricating mandrel quarter sections 12 , 14 , 16 and 18 , e . g ., splash 702 may be seen in fig4 ). fig7 b shows in diagramatic cross section splash 706 standing on splash support 706 &# 39 ;. splash 706 has extension 710 used in lay - up of t - stiffener 712 . as seen in fig8 a , t - stiffeners 712 and 714 may be fabricated using but one splash 706 with the aid of extensions 710 and 716 added to splash 706 . ( in alternate embodiments shown in fig8 c , the t - stiffeners are fabricated within a mandrel quarter section , rather than , as shown in fig8 a , within a splash used in fabricating a quarter section ). in these alternative embodiments , either mandrel extensions 720 and 721 can be used or two mandrel sections are fitted together and temporarily joined together , to provide a surface for forming the t - stiffener . if extensions 720 and 721 are used , they are cut from the mandrel quarter section 18 after the t - stiffeners 712 and 714 have been layed up and cured . in all embodiments , the edges of the mandrel quarter section 18 under the t - stiffeners are made thicker as shown in fig8 c . the thicker edges allow for bolts having greater purchase to be inserted through the respective spans of the t - stiffeners . fig8 b illustrates prepreg lay - up of t - stiffener 712 . t - stiffener as is seen in fig8 b has precured , vertical composite 800 which is a thin cured graphite sheet acting as to support uncured prepreg strips 802 , 804 layed up against both of its surfaces . similarly , spans 806 , 808 comprise uncured prepreg strips which are layed on the respective surfaces of extension 710 and splash 706 . prior to laying these latter strips , however , double back teflon tape sections 810 , 812 are placed parallel along , but spaced from , seam 809 between extension 710 and splash 706 . upon the respective adhesive surfaces of double sections 810 , 812 are then layed along silicone rubber strips 814 , 816 built to form , after their removal , grooves such as 36 , 38 of the t - stiffener shown in fig2 . after strips 814 , 816 are layed along and parallel to seam 809 the length of the splash and extension , uncured prepreg strips , butt jointed , are layed over the splash and extension surfaces as well as over built up rubber strips 814 , 816 . as shown in fig8 b , lay - up of uncured prepreg 818 , 820 forming spans 806 , 808 preferably precedes lay - up of the prepreg 802 , 804 of t - stiffener leg 801 . as is also seen in fig8 b , a portion of uncured prepreg is layed across both spans 806 , 808 to form a base for precured sheet 800 . twisted prepreg tows 822 are used to fill gaps around the corners around built - up rubber strips 814 , 816 . after the lay - up of the prepreg in t - stiffener 712 is complete , span 706 and extension 710 carrying the layed up stiffener is cured under heat and pressure . extension 710 is then separated and rubber strips 814 , 816 then removed to open the respective grooves in the t - stiffener 712 . fig9 shows uncured air duct 900 comprising skin 902 and staged stiffeners 904 . skin 902 has been made by fiber placement on mandrel quarter sections 906 , 908 , 910 , 912 which are mounted around mandrel shaft 914 . bulkheads such as 916 ( others not shown ) mount to shaft 914 and four t - shaped stiffeners 918 which in turn are respectively bolted ( not shown ) to edges of adjacent quarter sections at 906 , 908 , 910 , 912 . t - stiffeners extend the entire length of the quarter sections in aligning , sealing and fastening together the adjacent quarter sections . rubber o - rings in grooves ( neither shown ) of the t - stiffener surfaces prevent leakage from within the mandrel to the outside thereof and through the fiber placement skin ( i . e . continuous filaments of carbon fiber or other material in the form of tows ( comprising a multitude of such filaments banded together as a tape or web ). staged stiffeners 904 are prepared separately in uncured form from prepreg ( tows , comprising a multitude of filaments , which are combined with thermosetting resin into a sheet prior to lay - up ) or more preferably by fiber placement using tows impregnated with thermosetting resin and combined with other tows during preferred fiber placement . staged stiffeners 904 are then aligned on skin 902 . clamshell halves 920 , 922 molded to fit around duct 900 fasten together in sealed relation for curing duct 900 in an autoclave . clamshell halves 920 , 922 have a vacuum port connected to one or both of halves 920 , 922 so as to allow evacuation and removal of volatiles during cure of duct 900 . halves 920 , 922 are fabricated from composite with a skin thickness thin enough to allow reduction of pressure in clamshells 920 , 922 to cause molding of the clamshell skin to the outer surface of duct 902 . an open - ended cylindrical shaped bag ( not shown ) can surround duct 900 with its ends taped down within the quarter sections for sealing off the outer surfaces of skin 902 and stiffeners 904 . curing in the autoclave is at pressures up to 200 psi but more commonly at pressures up to 100 psi . curing is preferably in stages using epoxy , maleimide or the like resins well known in the art . curing temperatures range up to 400 ° c . but may be higher or lower without distracting from this invention . having described this invention in its preferred embodiments , it will be recognized by persons skilled in this art that many variations in design and practice are feasible and that the scope of this invention is only limited by the claims appended hereto .	1
a motion estimation apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings . referring to fig3 a motion estimation apparatus 100 includes an input portion 110 , an absolute difference sum computing element 111 connected to an output of motion estimation apparatus 100 , an output portion 112 connected to an output of absolute difference sum computing element 111 , and a control portion 113 controlling input portion 110 , absolute difference sum computing element 111 , and output portion 112 . referring to fig4 a and 4b , input portion 110 receives image data of a current frame ( a reference frame ) 161 and image data of a preceding frame ( an image frame to be searched ) 162 for sequentially outputting values of ( ixj ) samples x ( i , j ) within a reference block x and for sequentially outputting values of ( ixj ) samples y ( i + m , j + n )(= y ( k , l )) within one of blocks to be searched y ( m , n ) corresponding to each of ( 2m × 2n ) vectors v =( m , n ) in a search range 163 . search range 163 has its center corresponding to an upper left corner of reference block x . in addition , one of blocks to be searched in the same position as reference block x is set as y ( 0 , 0 ). it is noted that each position within search range 163 corresponds to a position at the upper left corner of one of blocks to be searched y ( m , n ). absolute difference sum computing element 111 sequentially outputs values of samples x ( i , j ) and y ( k , l ) output from input portion 110 , calculates an absolute difference sum d between reference block x and each of ( 2m × 2n ) blocks to be searched y ( m , n ), and outputs a value of a vector minv =( minm , minn ), which is a vector v =( m , n ) where the absolute difference sum d is minimum . output portion 112 receives minimum absolute difference sum d and vector v =( m , n ) for outputting values thereof at a suitable timing . referring to fig5 absolute difference sum computing element 111 includes : a plurality of registers 165 a to 165 d each for holding a value of sample y ( k , l ) which is necessary for calculating the absolute difference sum ; a plurality of processing elements ( pe ) 166 a to 166 d arranged in an array and each receiving a clock signal , the value of sample x ( i , j ) and values held in registers 165 a to 165 d for calculating the absolute difference sum between reference block x and one of blocks to be searched y ( m , n ); a minimum absolute difference sum holding circuit 167 connected to outputs of the plurality of pes 166 a to 166 d for holding the minimum value of the absolute difference sum ; and the minimum vector holding circuit ( not shown ) holding a value of vector v =( m , n ) where the absolute difference sum is minimum . each of the plurality of registers 165 a to 165 d is connected to adjacent registers and writes a value held in the adjacent one of registers 165 b to 165 d to itself at a prescribed timing . referring to fig6 each of the plurality of pes 166 a to 166 d ( which are collectively called pe 166 in fig6 ) includes : a gate 168 passing the value of sample y ( k , l ) at the rise ( or fall ) of the clock signal ; a gate 169 passing the value of sample x ( i , j ) at the rise ( or fall ) of the same clock signal ; a difference computing element 23 connected to outputs of gates 168 and 169 for calculating an absolute difference between values of samples x ( i , j ) and y ( k , 1 ); a latch 24 holding an output from difference computing element 23 ; an adder 25 receiving values held in latch 24 and a latch 26 which will later be described ; and a latch 26 holding an output from adder 25 , that is , an accumulated value of absolute differences between samples x ( i , j ) and y ( k , l ) in a certain search position . latches 24 and 26 receive clock signals for latching and outputting data at a prescribed timing . samples x ( i , j ) and y ( k , l ) are hereinafter simply called as x and y . referring to fig7 difference computing element 23 includes : an input processing portion 30 receiving and performing prescribed process for samples x and y for outputting sample values xx and yy and a value cp ( later described ) which is output when the prescribed process is performed ; a subtracter 40 connected to input processing portion 30 for calculating difference values of sample values xx and yy ; and an output processing portion 50 connected to input processing portion 30 and subtracter 40 for calculating an absolute difference of the above mentioned difference value and outputting an absolute difference of samples x and y . now , the above mentioned prescribed process performed in input processing portion 30 will be described . here , assume that samples x and y are data with ( h + 1 ) bits . each of samples x and y includes a target bit ( p th bit , p = 0 ˜ h ). if values of bit strings of samples x and y which are in a positions upper than or equal to the target bit position are the same , bit values of the bit strings of sample values xx and yy are set to 0 , and bit value 0 is output as cp . the process is repeated for every bit . assume , for example , values of samples x and y are respectively 011101 and 011001 . in this case , sample values xx and yy are the same in the upper 3 bits . thus , sample values xx and yy respectively turn to 000101 and 000001 , which are obtained by replacing the upper 3 bits with 0 . referring to fig8 a circuit forming input processing portion 30 will be described . input processing portion 30 includes ( h + 1 ) circuits shown in fig8 . it is noted that the circuit calculates p th bit values of sample values xx and yy as well as a value of cp . the circuit includes ( h − p + 1 ) circuits 170 a to 170 c . each of circuits 170 a to 170 c outputs a negation value mi of exclusive or between i th bit values of samples x and y ( which are hereinafter referred to as xi and yi , respectively ). the circuit further includes : a circuit 171 connected to circuits 170 a to 170 c for outputting 0 as value cp when values mp to mh are all 1 , and otherwise outputting 1 as value cp ; a selector 172 connected to circuit 171 for outputting 0 as p th bit value of sample value xx ( hereinafter referred to as xxp ) when value cp is 0 , and outputting a value xp as a value xxp when value cp is 1 ; and a selector 173 connected to circuit 171 for outputting 0 as p th bit value of sample value yy ( hereinafter referred to as yyp ) when value cp is 0 , and outputting a value yp when value cp is 1 . referring to fig9 circuit 171 may include a well - known manchester type carry propagation circuit 45 . in this case , the above described operation is achieved if a carry - in of the manchester type carry propagation circuit 45 is connected to a ground . it is noted that manchester type carry propagation circuit 45 is described in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 802 , 112 , which is incorporated herein by reference . referring to fig1 , a circuit for calculating the p th bit difference value and forming subtracter 40 will now be described . the circuit is provided for every bit , and subtracter 40 includes ( h + 1 ) of such circuits . the circuit includes : an inverter 41 receiving value yyp ; a full adder 42 connected to inverter 41 and receiving a negation value of yyp , a value xxp and a carry - in value cinp (═ cout ( p − 1 )) which is obtained through calculation of an addition of xx ( p − 1 ) and a negation value of yy ( p − 1 ); and a selector 43 connected to full adder 42 for outputting a ( p − 1 ) th bit difference value s ( p − 1 ) when value cp is 0 and outputting an addition result from full adder 42 when value cp is 1 . a carry - out value coutp from full adder 42 is applied to full adder 42 of a circuit for calculating a ( p + 1 ) th bit difference value . selector 43 outputs a ( p − 1 ) th bit difference value when cp = 0 because a sum obtained by calculation of bits when cp = 1 is transmitted to the most significant bit for a bit when cp = 0 . it is noted that 1 is forcefully set as a carry - in value cino applied to full adder 42 as a sign of value yy is inverted in the case of the least significant bit . referring to fig1 , a circuit outputting a p th bit absolute value forming output processing portion 50 will be described . it is noted that the circuit is provided for every bit , and output processing portion 50 includes ( h + 1 ) of such circuits . the circuit includes : a gate passing a p th bit difference value sp when cp = 1 ; an inverter 53 receiving an output from gate 52 ; an adder 54 receiving an output from inverter 53 and a carry - out value ( co ( p − 1 )) of the ( p − 1 ) th bit adder 54 ; a gate 51 passing a difference value s ( msb ) when cp = 1 ; a selector 55 directly outputting an output from gate 52 , that is , difference value sp when s ( msb )= 1 , and outputting a calculation result of adder 54 when s ( msb )= 0 ; and a selector 56 forcefully outputting 0 when cp = 0 and outputting an output from selector 55 when cp = 1 . in motion estimation apparatus 100 , one of blocks to be searched is extracted from a search range for which it is predicted that the difference value with respect to the reference block would be small , and the difference value between the reference block and one of blocks to be searched is calculated . thus , difference values for a large number of samples are rendered small . this means that values of upper bits match ( that is , cp = 0 ). fig1 shows the number of signal changes when a difference between two binary data x = 00000101 and y = 00000001 are calculated without detecting a match between the upper bits . the number of signal changes is 18 . on the other hand , fig1 shows the number of signal changes when the difference between two data is calculated using difference computing element 23 according to the present embodiment . in this case , the number of signal changes is 8 . the difference is calculated regardless of match / mismatch of upper bits in a usual method . in difference computing element 23 , however , calculation for upper 5 bits is not performed as cp = 0 for those bits . as described above , difference computing element 23 allows difference calculation with the smaller number of signal changes and high accuracy . in motion estimation apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment in which difference computing element 23 is used , reduction in the number of signal changes enables calculation with reduced amount of power consumption and high accuracy . it is noted that , in input processing portion 30 , when values of bits which are upper in position than a target bit are the same for samples x and y , the values of those bits are replaced by 0 . similarly , when values of bits which are lower in position than the target bit are the same for samples x and y , the values of those bits may be replaced with 0 . subtracter 40 may be configured such that the calculation for those bits is not performed . a motion estimation apparatus according to the present embodiment has a structure which is similar to motion estimation apparatus 100 described in the first embodiment . therefore , description of different parts of the structure is only given , and that of all the other parts will not be repeated . referring to fig1 , a difference computing element 23 according to the present embodiment includes : an input processing portion 130 receiving values of samples x and y for outputting sample values xx and yy which are the same as those output from input processing portion 30 of the first embodiment and applying control signals to shifters 141 , 142 and 143 which will later be described ; shifter 141 for left shifting sample value xx by a prescribed number of bits in accordance with the above mentioned control signal ; shifter 142 for left shifting sample value yy by a prescribed number of bits in accordance with the control signal ; a subtracter 140 receiving data with widths from the most significant bits to prescribed bits of sample values xx and yy from shifters 141 and 142 ; a shifter 143 for right shifting a subtraction result from subtracter 140 by a prescribed number of bits in accordance with the control signal ; and an output processing portion 150 for obtaining an absolute value of an output from shifter 143 and outputting an absolute difference value between values of samples x and y . a bit width of data input to subtracter 140 is smaller than those of samples x and y . the prescribed number of bits by which shifters 141 , 142 and 143 shift data is the same as the number of bits where cp = 0 . in other words , the prescribed number of bits is a bit width of a bit string where bit values of samples x and y match . when a bit width of input data is larger than that of subtracter 140 , a lower bit of the input data is rounded and applied to subtracter 140 . this resulted in decrease in calculation accuracy . in difference computing element 23 according to the present embodiment , however , calculation is performed by subtracter 140 except for an upper bit which would not affect a calculation result of a difference value . therefore , calculation accuracy would not always decrease . in addition , as the bit width of data input to subtracter 140 can be smaller than those of samples x and y , power consumption is reduced . similarly , reduction in power consumption can be achieved also in a motion estimation apparatus employing a number of subtracters 140 . although the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail , it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation , the spirit and scope of the present invention being limited only by the terms of the appended claims .	7
as utilized herein , terms “ component ,” “ system ,” “ interface ,” and the like are intended to refer to a computer - related entity , either hardware , software ( e . g ., in execution ), and / or firmware . for example , a component can be a process running on a processor , a processor , an object , an executable , a program , and / or a computer . by way of illustration , both an application running on a server and the server can be a component . one or more components can reside within a process and a component can be localized on one computer and / or distributed between two or more computers . a component may also be intended to refer to a communications - related entity , either hardware , software ( e . g ., in execution ), and / or firmware and may further comprise sufficient wired or wireless hardware to affect communications . throughout the following description , specific details are set forth in order to provide a more thorough understanding to persons skilled in the art . however , well known elements may not have been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the disclosure . accordingly , the description and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative , rather than a restrictive , sense . in the field of projector and other display systems , it is desirable to improve both image rendering performance and system efficiency . several embodiments of the present application describe systems , method and techniques to affect these improvements by employing light field modeling for dual , or multi - modulation display systems . in one embodiment , light source models are developed and used to advantageous effect . camera pictures of displayed images of known input images may be evaluated to improve light models . in some embodiments , an iterative process may accumulate improvements . in some embodiments , these techniques may be used on moving images to make live adjustments to improve image rendering performance dual modulation projector and display systems have been described in commonly - owned patents and patent applications , including : ( 1 ) u . s . pat . no . 8 , 125 , 702 to ward et al ., issued on feb . 28 , 2012 and entitled “ serial modulation display having binary light modulation stage ”; ( 2 ) united states patent application 20130148037 to whitehead et al ., published on jun . 13 , 2013 and entitled “ projection displays ”; ( 3 ) united states patent application 20110227900 to wallener , published on sep . 22 , 2011 and entitled “ custom psfs using clustered light sources ”; ( 4 ) united states patent application 20130106923 to shields et al ., published on may 2 , 2013 and entitled “ systems and methods for accurately representing high contrast imagery on high dynamic range display systems ”; ( 5 ) united states patent application 20110279749 to erinjippurath et al ., published on nov . 17 , 2011 and entitled “ high dynamic range displays using filterless lcd ( s ) for increasing contrast and resolution ” and ( 6 ) united states patent application 20120133689 to kwong , published on may 31 , 2012 and entitled “ reflectors with spatially varying reflectance / absorption gradients for color and luminance compensation ”. all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety . fig1 shows one possible embodiment of a suitable image projector display system . in this embodiment , the projector display system is constructed as a dual / multi - modulator projector display system 100 that may suffice for the purposes of the present application . projector system 100 employs a light source 102 that supplies the projector system with a desired illumination such that a final projected image will be sufficiently bright for the intended viewers of the projected image . light source 102 may comprise any suitable light source possible — including , but not limited to : xenon lamp , laser ( s ), coherent light source , partially coherent light sources . as the light source is a major draw of power and / or energy for the entire projector system , it may be desirable to advantageously use and / or re - use the light , so as to conserve the power and / or energy during the course of its operation . light 104 may illuminate a first modulator 106 that may , in turn , illuminate a second modulator 110 , via a set of optional optical components 108 . light from second modulator 110 may be projected by a projection lens 112 ( or other suitable optical components ) to form a final projected image upon a screen 114 . first and second modulators may be controlled by a controller 116 — which may receive input image and / or video data . controller 116 may perform certain image processing algorithms , gamut mapping algorithms or other such suitable processing upon the input image / video data and output control / data signals to first and second modulators in order to achieve a desired final projected image 114 . in addition , in some projector systems , it may be possible , depending on the light source , to modulate light source 102 ( control line not shown ) in order to achieve additional control of the image quality of the final projected image . light recycling module 103 is depicted in fig1 as a dotted box that may be placed in the light path from the light source 102 to the first modulator 106 , as will be discussed below . while the present discussion will be given in the context of this positioning , it will be appreciated that light recycling may be inserted into the projector system at various points in the projector system . for example , light recycling may be placed between the first and second modulators . in addition , light recycling may be placed at more than one point in the optical path of the display system . while such embodiments may be more expensive due to an increase in the number of components , that increase may be balanced off against the energy cost savings as a result of multiple points of light recycling . while the embodiment of fig1 is presented in the context of a dual , multi - modulation projection system , it should be appreciated that the techniques and methods of the present application will find application in single modulation , or other dual , multi - modulation display systems . for example , a dual modulation display system comprising a backlight , a first modulator ( e . g ., lcd or the like ), and a second modulator ( e . g ., lcd or the like ) may employ suitable blurring optical components and image processing methods and techniques to affect the performance and efficiencies discussed herein in the context of the projection systems . it should also be appreciated that — even though fig1 depicts a two - stage or dual modulator display system — the methods and techniques of the present application may also find application in a display system with only one modulator or a display system with three or more modulator ( multi - modulator ) display systems . the scope of the present application encompasses these various alternative embodiments . fig2 depicts one embodiment of a projector system , as may be suitable for the purposes of the present application . a light conduit subsystem / module ( e . g ., comprising one or more components from 201 to 216 ) may be placed in the projector system primarily between the light source 102 and a first modulator 221 . light from light source 102 may be input to the optical path via an integrating rod / tube / box 202 . in one embodiment , integrating rod / tube / box 202 may comprise a substantially reflected surface in its interior , so that light that is incident on its surface may be reflected ( e . g ., possibly multiple times ) until the light exits its extreme right end 203 . once the light exits the integrating rod / tube / box , the light may be placed into an optical path that is defined by a set of optical elements — e . g ., lens 204 , 214 and 216 and a set of filters and / or polarizers 206 , 208 , 210 and 212 . this embodiment may also be constructed to perform light recycling , if desired for the design of this projector system . first modulator 221 may comprise a number of prisms 218 a , 218 b and a reflector 220 . reflector 220 may comprise a digital micromirror device ( dmd ) array of reflectors , or a micro - electro - mechanical system ( mems ) array — or any other suitable set of reflectors possible that may reflect light in at least two or more paths . one such path is depicted in fig2 . as may be seen , reflectors 220 direct the light onto the interface of prisms 218 a and 218 b , such that the light may be thereby reflected into lens assembly 222 and thereafter to second modulator 229 ( e . g ., comprising lens assembly 224 , prisms 226 and 230 and reflector 228 ). this light may be employed to form the finally projected image to be viewed by an audience . however , at certain time during the rendering of the final projected image , the full power / energy of the light source 102 may not be needed . if it is not possible to modulate the power of light source 102 , then it may be desired to recycle the light from light source 102 . additionally , it may be desired to increase the brightness of “ highlights ” in an image — and light recycled in the projector system may provide additional power . in such a case , and as may be seen in fig2 , it may be possible to align reflector 220 from its current position as shown ( i . e ., where the light is directed to travel the path down to the second modulator — to position instead where the light would be substantially reflected back to the integrating rod / tube / box 202 , along substantially the same path as described as traveling from right - to - left direction . in another embodiment , a third optional path ( not shown ) allows the reflectors to direct light from the light source to a light “ dump ”— i . e ., a portion of the projector system where the light is absorbed . in this case , the light is wasted as heat to be dissipated from the projector system . thus , the projector system may have multiple degrees of freedom when it comes to directing the light as desired . fig3 is yet another embodiment of a portion of a projector system 300 — which may serve to transmit light from at least one laser and / or partially coherent colored light source and ports ( e . g ., through fiber launch 302 , collimator 304 , diffuser 306 ). light from such a source may transmit through a first optical subsystem / diffuser relay 308 to condition the light to be input into integrating rod 312 — which may comprise the reflecting proximal end 310 ( e . g ., recycling mirror ). a second optical subsystem / recycling relay 314 may further condition the light as desired prior to input into a first modulator 316 . as with fig2 above , this first leg of the system 300 may affect a light recycling mode , as discussed . after first modulation , light may be transmitted through a third optical subsystem / point spread function ( psf ) relay 318 prior to input into a second modulator 320 — which modulates the light for transmission through a projector optical subsystem 322 to project a final image for viewing . in continued reference to fig3 , there is shown a relay optical system 318 that is placed in between a first modulator 316 ( e . g ., a pre - modulator ) and a second modulator 320 ( e . g ., a primary modulator / nine piece prism ). such a relay optical system may be desirable to both reduce the amount of artifacts in the image processing — as well as increasing the contrast of the projected image . as discussed herein in the context of one embodiment , it may be desirable for the first modulator / pre - modulator to produce a blurred and / or de - focused image based upon image data values , e . g ., such as a halftone image . in many embodiments , it may be desirable to have a relay optical system that tends to produce a uniformly blurred / de - focused image from the pre - modulator to the primary modulator . in addition , it may be desirable to have a desired , defocused spot shape for this embodiment . in many embodiments , the relay optical system may comprise lenses or other optical elements that effectively moves the focal plane , corrects for any coma , and adjusts the spread ( e . g ., by creating defocus / blur and adding spherical aberration to some desired amount ). as discussed above , it may be desirable to improve the efficiency of these projector systems , both in terms of energy efficiency and / or in terms of cost efficiency . one such area for improvement may be made in the area of the input prism assembly , e . g ., as employed in conjunction with a spatial light modulator ( slm )— such as a dmd and / or mems array as described herein . fig4 a through 4c depict a conventional prism assembly in front view , top view and side view , respectively . in operation , fig5 a through 5d depict how the prism assembly may interact with an input light beam , reflect the light beam off the dmd in on state , off state and flat state orientations of the dmd reflectors , respectively . as may be seen in fig4 a through 4c and fig5 a through 5d , an input light beam 502 may be transmitted through first prism 408 and totally internally reflected ( tir ) at the interface with second prism 406 , transmitted through optical glasses 404 and 400 — which is disposed proximal to dmd array 500 ( depicted as light beam 504 ). as depicted in fig5 b , when the dmd reflector is set to on state , reflected light beam 506 may be transmitted back through optical elements 400 , 404 , 408 and 406 — to provide light for further modulation and / or projection . fig5 c depicts the light beam 508 , as may be reflected when the dmd reflector is set to the off state — e . g ., whereby light beam 508 may be directed to a light dump ( not shown ), to be absorbed and / or disposed of , so as not to affect the dynamic range of the display . fig5 d depicts light beam 510 when the dmd reflectors are in a flat state orientation . as with light reflected from the dmd in the off state , light reflected during the flat state should similarly be directed away from an operative downstream light path which might include further modulation and / or projection . when the light source is high powered , such as high powered white light ( e . g . xenon lamp or the like ) or high powered colored laser light , then heat may present undesired thermal effects that may manifest themselves in either undesirable imaging effects and / or mechanical element degradation . undesirable effects may include change in psf shape and / or size and positional drift of image from pre - mod to primary modulator over time and heat cycling . fig6 a through 6d show one embodiment of a prism assembly as made in accordance with the principles of the present application — given a front view , top view , side view and bottom view , respectively . as may be seen , the present prism assembly comprises optical elements 600 , 602 , 604 , 606 , 608 , 610 , 612 , 614 and 616 . in this embodiment , optical elements may be employed to operate on one or more color channels — making separate color channel prism paths for each separate color light that is received by the prism assembly . for example , in the green channel as one of the separate color channel prism paths , optical element 602 is a green dump wedge , optical element 612 is a green wedge and optical element 600 is a green input wedge . in the blue channel , optical element 608 is a blue input wedge , optical element 610 is a blue dump wedge and optical element 616 is a blue wedge . in the red channel , optical element 606 is a red dump wedge , optical element 614 is a red wedge and optical element 604 is a red input wedge . it should be noted that each color channel has a number of optical elements deployed for the processing of the colored light input . it should be appreciated that while one embodiment may take in separate colored light input ( e . g ., from lasers , leds , partially coherent light sources or the like ), other embodiments may take in white light input ( e . g ., from xenon lamp or the like ). in such embodiments , it may be possible to separate the various color components from the white light prior to prism assembly ( e . g ., with another , initial , prism assembly or the like ) and then process the separate color components with the prism assembly as made in accordance with the principles of the present application . in operation , fig7 a through 7d depict the manner in which input light beams would be processed by the prism assembly of the present application . fig7 a depicts the situation where a beam of green light ( e . g ., from white light , green laser light and / or partially coherent green light ) is input into the system ( as beam 702 ). beam 702 reflects off the surface of wedge 600 as shown and transmitted to the dmd reflector 700 ( as beam 704 ). fig7 b depicts the reflected beam 708 when the dmd reflector is set in the on state . beam 708 is transmitted through the green wedge 612 for further modulation and / or projection . fig7 c depicts the reflected beam 708 when the dmd reflector is set in the off state . beam 708 is transmitted through the green dump wedge 602 — to prevent further modulation and / or projection . fig7 d depicts the reflected beam 708 when the dmd reflector is set in the flat state . beam 708 is again transmitted through the green dump wedge 602 — to again prevent further modulation and / or projection . as mentioned above , today &# 39 ; s projector systems are illuminated with higher power light sources . such light sources may include xenon white lamps , high powered colored lasers , and / or high powered partially coherent light sources . the performance of such prior art prism designs may not be desirable for many reasons in high powered image projector display system . for merely one example , fig8 depicts the thermal load of the conventional prism ( e . g ., same or similar prism as shown as fig4 a through 4c ). as may be seen , the thermal loads in the legend proceed from lowest to highest as : 1 × ( 802 ), 2 × ( 804 ), 3 × ( 806 ), 4 × ( 808 ) and 6 × ( 810 ). as may be seen the prior art prism — under full illumination — purports to have many regions of high thermal load as noted . by contrast , fig9 depicts the thermal loading of the 9 - piece prism arrangement of fig6 a through 6d , and other embodiments as made in accordance with the principles of the present application . in this embodiment , as the prism assembly may input separate , discrete color channels of illumination , it may be seen that the thermal loading of this prism assembly is better distributed . ( 1 ) significantly simplified dichroic coatings ( 2 ) single pass at single nominal angle unlike current 3 - chip prisms . ( for example , it may not go through the color prism on entry at a different angle through the wedges / coatings .) ( 3 ) f / 4 . 5 has significantly smaller angular spread ( 4 ) 2 - 3 × thermal absorption margin on every element ( 5 ) natively higher contrast due to reduced scatter ( 6 ) reduction / elimination of back scatter from illumination path ( for example , due to one less pass through the dichroics and some of the ar coatings .) ( 7 ) reduction / elimination of forward scatter from off state light path in color prism . ( for example , due to one less pass through the dichroics and some of the ar coatings .) ( 8 ) shorter color prism to reduce cost ( 9 ) removes color combine / separation losses for laser source on current dual 6 piece prism design ( 10 ) discrete light dump for each color for higher power and / or improved thermal management in many embodiments , the following ranges of f /# may suffice : f / 2 to f / 3 for non - laser illumination and f / 4 to f / 8 for laser illumination . for some preferred embodiments , the range can be f / 2 . 4 to f / 3 for non - laser illumination and f / 4 to f / 5 for laser illumination . specific examples may include f / 2 . 4 for typical xenon and f / 4 . 5 for typical laser . coating optimization may be done to anti - reflective ( ar ) coatings and dichroic coatings that combine the light . the ar coatings on the input legs can be optimized per color ( e . g ., since each leg may see a single color ) and angle ( assuming higher f /# psf relay is used ). this optimization can result in better transmission (˜ 0 . 2 % per surface , with 7 surfaces in each discrete path ). in some cases , the angle is in reference to ‘ angle of incidence ’— where , in some cases for lower angles , it may be easier to get better coating transmissions . the dichroic coatings can be optimized for narrowband light ( assuming non - lamp source ) which can have improved reflectance and transmission compared to broader band coatings , and also optimized for narrower angles ( will vary depending on narrow band wavelength choices ). in some embodiments , coatings may be applied at various interfaces in the prism assembly . for example , in fig6 d , a red reflect / green transmit dichroic coating may be applied at the interface between 612 and 614 . a blue reflect / green and red transmit dichroic coating may be applied at the interface between 614 and 616 . as input light does not go through the coatings in its entirety , it tends to avoid the opportunity to scatter or partially reflect . improvements in the dichroic coatings can also be useful to contrast ratio since light control may be desirable there and any unintended reflections may reduce contrast . in other embodiments , this design may also be applied to single - chip dlp projector with monochromatic or color sequential operation . a detailed description of one or more embodiments of the invention , read along with accompanying figures , that illustrate the principles of the invention has now been given . it is to be appreciated that the invention is described in connection with such embodiments , but the invention is not limited to any embodiment . the scope of the invention is limited only by the claims and the invention encompasses numerous alternatives , modifications and equivalents . numerous specific details have been set forth in this description in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention . these details are provided for the purpose of example and the invention may be practiced according to the claims without some or all of these specific details . for the purpose of clarity , technical material that is known in the technical fields related to the invention has not been described in detail so that the invention is not unnecessarily obscured .	6
turning now to the drawings , fig1 depicts a typical , electrical generating system of the prior art using high caloric value fuel in combustion - gas turbines (&# 34 ; cgt &# 34 ;). two cgts 1 , 2 , each have a compressor 3 paired with an expander 4 . air enters the paired compressors 3 at air inlet ports 5 . some of the compressed air is mixed with gaseous fuel in at least one combustor 6 , where the air / fuel mixture is burned to produce hot flue gas . the hot flue gas enters the paired expanders 4 at hot flue gas inlet ports 7 . the fuel line supplying the fuel is not shown . the exhaust from each paired expander 4 is fed via an exit duct 8 to a heat - recovery steam generator (&# 34 ; hrsg &# 34 ;) 9 , which in turn generates steam to drive a common steam turbine generator 10 . the system depicted is known as a &# 34 ; combined cycle &# 34 ; system , and is well known in the art . a combined cycle system is about 50 % thermally efficient when the hot flue gas entering the paired expanders 4 is at about 2 , 300 f . cgt and hrsg units can be employed singly or in combination depending upon the power requirements of the system . with current technology , a given compressor is almost always paired with a given expander to burn fuels having a particular range of caloric values . compressors used in conjunction with high caloric value fuels are designed to produce sufficient compressed air to burn the fuel , and also to produce &# 34 ; excess &# 34 ; compressed air to reduce the temperature of the flue gas and sometimes to cool the expander . compressors used in conjunction with low caloric value fuels are designed to produce only sufficient compressed air to burn the fuel . one of the problems arising from use of a low calorie fuel in a turbine designed to burn a high calorie fuel is that the compressor will continue to produce excess compressed air , but the excess is no longer needed to cool the turbine . unless the excess air is extracted from the compressor , it will enter the expander and may result in stalling or inefficient burning of the fuel , or overloading of the expansion turbine . one solution known to the art is extraction of the excess air for miscellaneous mechanical and / or process uses . in a typical configuration depicted in fig2 which has been employed previously , the paired compressor / expander of a combined cycle generating system have been modified for use with low caloric value fuel by transferring some of the compressed air produced by the compressors 3 via a transfer line 15 to miscellaneous other process or mechanical users ( not shown ). the solution depicted in fig2 suffers from several drawbacks . for example , the amount of excess air extracted from the compressors 3 may vary greatly since it depends on the extent to which low caloric value fuel is being burned . the process or mechanical users would therefore have an unreliable source of compressed air . also , it may be inefficient and / or impractical to transfer the excess air to process or mechanical users which may be situated at a relatively great distance from the turbines . fig3 depicts a preferred embodiment of the present invention which resolves the problems associated with the excess compressed air in a new manner . in fig3 a transfer line 15 carries excess air from two paired compressors 3 to the combustor 17 of a non - paired expander 16 . the excess air is first combined with fuel and burned in combustor 17 , and the resulting hot flue gas enters the non - paired expander 16 at an inlet port 18 . although this embodiment uses two paired compressors to produce excess air for a single , non - paired expander , one could utilize a greater or lesser number of paired compressors and a greater or lesser number of non - paired expanders . several examples have been calculated which show the increased efficiency arising from employment of the present invention . the examples are summarized in the chart below . of course , these examples are for illustrative purposes only , and are not meant to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter . __________________________________________________________________________chartexample no . 1 2 3 4 5cgt identification no . v84 . 3 v84 . 2 v84 . 2 w501d5 w501d__________________________________________________________________________base case ( fig2 ) kw 422 , 000 342 , 000 342 , 000 400 , 000 400 , 000excess air available , 1 , 608 , 130 1 , 215 , 720 1 , 215 , 720 632 , 880 632 , 880when firing bfg to thepaired machines , lbs / hrthe invention ( fig3 ) extra fuel employedmmbtu / hr 562 458 577 224 310natural gas , lbs / hr 26 , 928 21 , 951 7 , 647 10 , 725 0bfg , lbs / hr 0 0 352 , 608 0 261 , 605hot gas flow to non - 1 , 635 , 000 1 , 238 , 000 1 , 576 , 000 634 , 600 895 , 000paired expander , lbs / hradditional power 127 , 000 96 , 000 116 , 000 50 , 000 65 , 000generated in non - pairedexpander , kwheat avail for hrsg 315 . 83 239 . 73 302 . 41 124 . 38 170 . 55mmbtu / hradditional power 34 , 000 26 , 000 33 , 000 13 , 500 18 , 500generated in steamturbine , kwincrease in power 161 , 000 122 , 000 149 , 000 63 , 500 83 , 500produced , kwtotal power 583 , 000 464 , 000 491 , 000 463 , 500 483 , 500produced , kwthe improvement attributable to the invention is shown by the bturequired per kwh : the invention 7 , 192 7 , 716 7 , 534 7 , 689 7 , 550basc case 8 , 605 9 , 130 9 , 130 8 , 350 8 , 350__________________________________________________________________________ the first example , depicted in the column marked &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; in the chart , relates to the use of a v84 . 3 combustion gas turbine manufactured by siemens . utilizing the configuration of fig2 the cgt would produce 422 , 000 kilo watts ( kw ) and 1 , 608 , 130 lbs / hr of excess air . the average efficiency , as defined by expenditure of heat to produce a kilowatt of power , is 8 , 605 btu / kw . utilizing the configuration of fig3 and employing natural gas as the additional fuel , the corresponding efficiency is calculated to be 7 , 192 btu / kw , an improvement of approximately 16 . 4 %. the second and third examples , depicted in the columns marked &# 34 ; 2 &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; 3 &# 34 ; respectively , use the v84 . 2 combustion gas turbine manufactured by siemens . the base case , again using the configuration of fig2 produces power with an efficiency of 9 , 130 btu / kw . the second example , employing natural gas as the additional fuel in the configuration of fig3 results in a corresponding efficiency of 7 , 716 btu / kw . the third example , employing a combination of natural gas and blast furnace gas as the additional fuel in the configuration of fig3 results in a corresponding efficiency of 7 , 534 btu / kw . this corresponds to a calculated improvement in efficiency of 15 . 5 % and 17 . 5 % respectively . the fourth example , depicted in the column marked &# 34 ; 4 &# 34 ; uses the w501d5 combustion gas turbine manufactured by westinghouse . the base case , using the configuration of fig2 produces power with an efficiency of 8 , 350 btu / kw . utilizing the configuration of fig3 and employing natural gas as the additional fuel , the corresponding efficiency is raised to 7 , 689 btu / kw , a calculated improvement of approximately 7 . 9 %. the fifth example , depicted in the column marked &# 34 ; 5 &# 34 ;, also uses the w501d combustion gas turbine manufactured by westinghouse . the base case , using the configuration of fig2 produces power with an efficiency of 8 , 350 btu / kw . utilizing the configuration of fig3 and employing blast furnace gas as the additional fuel , the corresponding efficiency is raised to 7 , 550 btu / kw , a calculated improvement of approximately 8 . 4 %. various other and further embodiments of the present invention may be practiced without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure . for example , with respect to fig3 the transfer line 15 could incorporate a bleed valve for bleeding the excess air to the atmosphere or a transfer valve for transferring it to miscellaneous mechanical and process users . as used in the claims , transferred air refers to excess air that is transferred to a non - paired expander . as another example , an automatic fuel control mechanism 19 could be used to adjust the amount of fuel being mixed with the transferred air to the amount of excess air being extracted from the paired compressors 3 .	8
an embodiment of the present invention will hereinafter be described by reference to the drawings . referring to fig1 which is a plan view of a dot matrix printer which is an embodiment of the present invention , reference numeral 1 designates a platen holding printing paper 4 by its outer periphery . designated by 2 is a carriage supported by a guide shaft 7 and a guide rail 8 parallel to the platen and movable parallel to the platen 1 . the carriage 2 is provided with a printing head 5 and an ink ribbon guide roller 6 . denoted by 3 is an ink ribbon . ink ribbon reels 3 - 1 and 3 - 2 on which the ink ribbon 3 is wound may be set on the carriage 2 with the ink ribbon guide rollers 6 interposed therebetween . the carriage 2 is engaged with a carriage driving belt 9 passed over a drive pulley 10 and an idle pulley 11 , and is adapted to effect printing while being moved in the direction of arrow ( a ) parallel to the platen 1 by a carriage driving motor ( stepping motor ) 12 through the driving belt 9 . in the present embodiment , a printing head 5 is a thermal head provided with vertically arranged seven heating resistor elements 14 as shown in fig3 and the ink ribbon 3 is a thermal transfer ink ribbon in which heat - meltable ink coated on the polyester base of the ink ribbon 3 is transferred onto the printing paper in a desired pattern by heating of the thermal head thereby effecting printing . fig2 is a side cross - sectional view of the dot matrix printer shown in fig1 . description will now be made of the printing operation of the dot matrix printer constructed as described above . first , printing data is applied as input to a printer driving control device ( not shown ) and , when the preparation for printing is completed , the printing operation is started . the carriage driving motor 12 is first driven and , when the carriage 2 is moved to a position whereat it is desired to effect printing of the printing paper 4 , the guide rail 8 is pivotally moved in the direction of arrow ( b ) indicated in fig2 by a solenoid , not shown , and the printing head 5 is urged against the printing paper 4 on the platen 1 with the ink ribbon 3 interposed therebetween . thereupon , power is supplied to a resistor element 14 of the thermal head 5 which corresponds to a desired character pattern , and the ink on the ink ribbon 3 is transferred to the printing paper 4 . then , the carriage driving motor 12 is driven by a predetermined number of steps and the carriage 2 is moved by one dot pitch , whereby printing of the next dot line is effected . during the movement of the carriage , the ink ribbon 3 is held between the ink ribbon guide rollers 6 and the platen 1 and therefore is fed by an amount corresponding to the amount of movement of the carriage 2 . as shown in fig2 an ink ribbon take - up motor 15 is coupled to the lower portion of the ink ribbon reels through a friction clutch 16 so that the portion of the ink ribbon fed by the ink ribbon guide rollers 6 and left over on the ink ribbon reel 3 - 1 side is taken up onto the ink ribbon reel 3 - 2 . fig4 shows the character pattern of numeral &# 34 ; 8 &# 34 ;, fig4 ( a ) shows a 10 point size character pattern and fig4 ( b ) showing a 12 point size character pattern . in the printing of 10 point &# 34 ; 8 &# 34 ;, the carriage 2 is moved in the direction of arrow ( c ) and when the dot line of the heating resistor elements 14 of the thermal head 5 has come to position a , the carriage driving motor 12 is stopped and power is supplied to the elements 14 - 2 , 14 - 3 , 14 - 5 and 14 - 6 of the resistor elements 14 , whereby printing is effected . when the printing at the position a which is the first dot line is completed , the carriage driving motor 12 is driven by five pulses , so that the carriage 2 is moved to position b through the drive pulley 10 and the belt 9 and stopped thereat . at the position b , power is supplied to the elements 14 - 1 , 14 - 4 and 14 - 7 of the heating resistor elements 14 of the thermal head 5 , whereby printing is effected . likewise , printing proceeds to c → d → e . where the printing as described above is to be effected at 12 point , after the printing at position a &# 39 ; has been completed , the carriage driving motor 12 is driven by six pulses , whereby the printing at position b &# 39 ; is effected . thereafter , the carriage is likewise moved at one dot pitch by six pulses until the printing at position e &# 39 ; is completed , whereupon printing of &# 34 ; 8 &# 34 ; is terminated . as described above , one pulse drive amount of the carriage driving motor 12 is set to an integer ratio of 5 : 6 between 10 point and 12 point , that is , so that the motor is driven by 5 pulses for 10 point and by 6 pulses for 12 point . likewise , in the present embodiment , dot pitch 7 pulses results in printing at 14 point and 4 pulses results in printing at 8 point . in the present embodiment , the driving of the carriage driving motor 12 is effected at double 1 - 2 phase excitation of a four - phase stepping motor . fig5 is a block diagram of a circuit for driving the dot matrix printer shown in fig1 - 3 , and the construction and operation thereof will hereinafter be described . designated by 101 is an oscillator ( osc ) which puts out the basic pulse p as shown in fig6 . the basic pulse p put out from the oscillator ( osc ) 101 is delivered to and circuits 103 , 104 while , at the same time , it is put out to a stepping motor driving circuit 107 which rotates the carriage driving motor 12 which in turn drives the carriage 2 . a switch signal s for setting the character size to one of 10 point and 12 point is applied as input to the and circuit 103 , while a signal s passed through an inverter 102 is applied as input to the and circuit 104 . when the switch signal s is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; ( the character size is set to 10 point ), the basic pulse p put out from the oscillator ( osc ) 101 is put out to a quinary counter 105 through the and circuit 103 , and when the switch signal s is &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; ( the character size is set to 12 point ), that is , when the signal s passed through the inverter 102 is s = 1 , the basic pulse p is put out to a hexanary counter 106 through the and circuit 104 . the quinary counter 105 , when the basic pulse p is applied as input thereto , step - advances its content one by one and when its content reaches 5 , it puts out a signal tp 1 , shown in the timing chart of fig6 and when the basic pulse p is applied as input to the hexanary counter 106 , it step - advances its content one by one and when its content reaches 6 , it puts out a signal tp 2 shown in the timing chart . the signal tp 1 or tp 2 put out from the quinary counter 105 or the hexanary counter 106 as described above is supplied to a dot counter 109 through an or gate 108 . this dot counter 109 counts the position of the carriage 2 from its start of operation in the dot number of 10 point or 12 point , and a comparator 111 compares the printing information stored in a print buffer 110 with the content of the dot counter and delivers printing information of each line to operate a thermal head driving circuit 112 . simultaneously therewith , the signal tp 1 put out from the quinary counter 105 or the signal tp 2 put out from the hexanary counter 106 is delivered to a one - shot circuit 113 which sets the time range of power supply to the thermal head 5 , and the one - shot circuit 113 puts out a signal os 1 or os 2 , shown in the timing chart of fig6 to a head power source on - off circuit 114 , which starts the power supply to the heating resistor elements 14 of the thermal head 5 driven by the thermal head driving circuit 112 , whereby printing is effected on the printing paper 4 . the timing chart of fig6 covers the case where the character size is 10 point and the case where the character size is 12 point . in the foregoing , the case where the character size is 10 point and the case where the character size is 12 point have been described , but if a quaternary counter is additionally provided , printing at 8 point character size will of course be possible , and if a septenary counter is additionally provided , printing at 14 point character size will of course be possible . in the present embodiment , an example using the thermal transfer printing system has been shown , but the present invention is applicable to ordinary dot matrix printers such as thermal printers , wire dot printers , etc .	1
referring now to the drawings , there is shown several embodiments of the invention . in the accompanying drawings , common elements are commonly numbered in the respective views . for the alternative embodiment , common elements are consistently numbered though in the next hundred series . with reference to fig1 through 4 , there is shown a realty sign 5 extending from modular signpost , generally 10 , according to one preferred embodiment . any and all relative dimensions of component parts are merely representative . this invention may also be sized and / or shaped differently . for instance , when using a vertical post as a mailbox support or one of many vinyl fence posts , it will surely be shorter than the realty posts depicted in the drawings . and when used as other than permanent realty signs ( i . e ., for temporary “ for sale ” purposes ), vinyl or pvc posts weigh substantially less than their wooden counterparts . depending on which wood materials are used and / or whether such woods are pressure treated , signpost 10 may weigh as little as 10 to 25 % of its current wooden “ equivalent ”. in one embodiment , the first ( vertical ) sign section 12 of signpost 10 would generally measure about 68 to 80 inches in total length with 72 ″ long standard posts being preferred . it is understood , however , that for some applications ( such as for visibility above / over hedges and / or higher yard fencing , still longer vertical post constructions would also be made by this invention . for most realty sign applications , the horizontal component 14 should extend about 40 to 50 inches with a 48 ″ long standard post arm being preferred . after cutting that bevel and forming its outer tips 16 , 18 , that horizontal arm measures about 46¾ inches overall . unlike prior art posts that have to be partially buried ; all of the foregoing is useable above ground . fitting at least partially into an aperture 20 cut or preformed into first vertical section 12 is that second ( horizontal ) section 14 . on a preferred basis , vertical post 12 measures about 4 inches across , from outer wall to the opposing outer wall . the horizontal post 14 measures about 3 . 5 inches across . when at least the vertical post has a hollow interior ( if not both vertical and horizontal sections ), the invention anticipates horizontal section 14 storing mostly inside vertical section 12 when not assembled for realty advertising purposes . preferably , second sign section 14 extends perpendicular to first section 12 , i . e . at a 90 ° angle relative to each other . in some instances , however , it may be aesthetically distinctive to make the two main sections extend at other than a right angle to one another . mounted on either the first section , second section of both sections is an optional flyer box ( not shown ). a realtor ( realty company ) sign 5 hangs from the underside 22 to the second ( horizontal ) sign section with a plurality of clip / bracket combinations , generally 24 . as seen in fig4 , a top end 26 to each clip has multiple “ bends ” for easily fitting into pre - drilled clip holes h in the underside 22 to second section 14 . ideally , these clip / brackets 24 and clip holes h are commonly spaced apart , preferably about 10 to 12 inches from one another ( and not necessarily from the center of the cross arm per se ), more preferably 11 inches apart , for a more universal application of this invention and use by multiple realty companies in multiple regions of the country . it has been determined that a set of two clip / brackets 24 towards opposite ends of the realty sign will not suffice to protect sign 5 from unduly bending in a strong wind . optimally , a sign fastened with at least three ( preferably commonly spaced ) clip brackets 24 will provide better attachment and better protection against potential wind damage . in an alternate embodiment ( not shown ), there are four clip / bracket combinations per yard sign / signpost . there are two ways to install a typical realty sign 5 onto signpost 10 : ( 1 ) all three bracket ends 28 are first joined with bolts b ( or otherwise attached ) through apertures a in the top of sign 5 before all three clip / brackets 24 are wiggled into their corresponding holes h in the underside 22 to horizontal ( second ) sign section 14 . alternately , ( 2 ) all three clip / brackets 24 ( alone ) are first inserted into their respective holes h in horizontal sign section 14 after which main sign 5 gets connected , via bolts b , to the pre - installed clips . because typical realty signs are made from rigid sheet metal ( most often , aluminum ), it may not be possible to install an inflexible sign into a horizontal bar one clip / bracket at a time . the aforementioned clip / bracket combination should also work , with modification , for hanging signs from an existing wooden crossbeam . fig5 and 6 show one such modification scheme . particularly clip / brackets 124 therein would be inserted into holes h cut or drilled into the underside of a wooden crossbeam w after which cover brackets 130 would be installed with bolts or screws ( not shown ). one can always hang additional / supplemental signs , via s - hooks , for example , beneath main realty sign 5 according to this invention . these s - hooks may be crimped to permanently attach an agent &# 39 ; s name , website and / or phone info below the main signage , such crimping intended to prevent the secondary sign from blowing off in the wind . into the top surface of second ( horizontal ) section 14 , one may also position another informational banner ( not shown ). one preferred means for mounting vertical member 12 , i . e . the dart / stake or anchor 32 , is also shown ( silhouetted in fig1 and focused on in fig3 . that representative dart 32 measures about 30 inches in total length with its fins 34 extending about 16 inches or slightly more than halfway . in most applications , at least about 3 to 4 inches of fins 34 get countersunk when dart / anchor 32 is first driven into the ground . with that arrangement , there is little to no chance that vertical post 12 and signage mounted onto said anchor will lean at an odd angle ( i . e . other than 90 degrees or perpendicular to the ground ) or otherwise be susceptible to rocking back and forth . it is understood that fins 34 to dart / anchor 32 would rest against the four corners of a post having a generally rectangular , preferably square , interior cross - section . in other variations , dart / anchor 32 may have oval , circular , star , triangular or polygonal shapes for fitting snugly against the sides of a vertical post 12 whose innermost cavity i would be correspondingly shaped . it is preferred that dart / anchor component be manufactured from steel or aluminum . while other materials such as sturdy plastics or composites may be substituted therefor , the driving installation of such post anchors makes metal darts preferable . these darts may be coated or painted to be more rust resistant . they can also be sprayed with lubricant before positioning at or near the ground for easier driving to the desired depth . fig7 through 10 depict some of the preferred method steps for making a representative horizontal member 14 according to this invention . it is part of the whole assembly as shown in fig7 . fig8 shows a section of vinyl tubing t having a hollow interior i , and generally square - shaped in cross - section . a first end of that tubing t is cut , preferably into 4 wedge - shaped tips angled at about 45 degrees for forming a crimped end c . in fig9 , that crimped end c is placed on a platen or other heating means to sufficiently warm the material so as to be folded onto itself whereupon adjacent edges e will come near one another or possibly even contact with each other to form a tip ( either 16 or 18 ). those steps are sequentially shown in the two views at accompanying fig1 . after sufficient cooling , holes h for the clip / brackets ( 24 ) are cut into the underside 22 of post 14 as best seen in accompanying fig1 . fig1 is a focused view of the one preferred embodiment of dart / anchor 32 ( and its plurality of fins 34 onto which vertical post 12 is ultimately positioned . fig1 through 15 focus on the clip / bracket and its mounting of a swinging realty sign 5 . fig1 shows yet another embodiment using 2 or more vertical posts 214 for hanging commercial realty sign panels ( plural ). as depicted , there are 3 such posts installed to form a corner display , with two panels angled at least about 90 degrees apart from each other . fig1 a shows a first alternate tip end 316 with only one , single slanted face / surface ( rather than beveling inwardly from all four corners ). in the left side view , that slanted angle face f has been cut and readied for attachment to the remainder of the end piece ( usually with the application of at least some edging heat ). fig1 b shows a second alternative tip end 416 , this one having no bevel / slant whatsoever . in its left view , a panel p is prepared before folding and heating onto itself resulting in a substantially flat outermost tip end that runs perpendicular to the overall length ( or height ) of its horizontal ( or vertical ) post member 414 . 1 — clamp upright with top end of upright lined up with “ front cutout ” mark and rout 3½ ″ square in upright using template 2 — spin upright over and clamp with top end lined up with “ back cutout ” mark and rout 3½ ″ square in upright using template 1 — clamp top end of upright in saw cradle with top end against stop . lower saw blade and cut though post until saw hits lower stop 2 — spin post 90 ° and repeat step 1 3 — repeat steps 2 and 1 on remaining sides 1 — place top end of upright on table and slide toward heat platens until end hits stop 2 — pull up lever and bring heat platens in contact with sides of upright 3 — heat sides of upright for about 1 . 5 min . 4 — move heaters away from sides and bend leaves inward and line leave points together — hold until cool — about 30 sec . 5 — spin upright 90 ° and repeat steps 1 - 4 for other 2 leaves 1 — lay story pole on x - arm and mark the center lines for the hanger clio cutouts and the locator cutout 2 — clamp x - arm in router lining up one of the hanger clip cutout centerlines with the centerline on table and rout out the x - arm using hanger clip cutout template 3 — repeat step 2 for remaining two hanger clip centerlines 4 — repeat step 2 for locator cutout center - line using locator cuout template 1 — place wire in tooling and press form hanger 2 — cut to length with wire cutters 1 — bend strap in half around center of hanger 2 — place unit in assembly tooling and press strap around hanger 3 — turn hanger clip over and repeat step 2 1 — place hanger clip in spot welder tongs ⅛ ″ from edge of strap and near crimp at hanger wire and spot weld 2 — repeat step 1 ⅛ ′ from edge on other edge of strap 1 — place hanger clip in vice set - up and drill 5 / 16 ″ hole through center of strapping while certain illustrative embodiments have been shown in the photographs and described above in considerable detail , it should be understood that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specific forms disclosed .	6
embodiments of the present invention provide production and playback of multi - media information as streaming video clips for interactive real - time media applications . fig1 is a block diagram of a distributed client - server computer system 1000 supporting interactive real - time multimedia applications according to one embodiment of the present invention . computer system 1000 includes one or more server computers 101 and one or more user devices 103 configured by a computer program product 131 . computer program product 131 may be provided in a transitory or non - transitory computer readable medium ; however , in a particular embodiment , it is provided in a non - transitory computer readable medium , e . g ., persistent ( i . e ., non - volatile ) storage , volatile memory ( e . g ., random access memory ), or various other well - known non - transitory computer readable mediums . user device 103 includes central processing unit ( cpu ) 120 , memory 122 and storage 121 . user device 103 also includes an input and output ( i / o ) subsystem ( not separately shown in the drawing ) ( including e . g ., a display or a touch enabled display , keyboard , d - pad , a trackball , touchpad , joystick , microphone , and / or other user interface devices and associated controller circuitry and / or software ). user device 103 may include any type of electronic device capable of providing media content . some examples include desktop computers and portable electronic devices such as mobile phones , smartphones , multi - media players , e - readers , tablet / touchpad , notebook , or laptop pcs , smart televisions , smart watches , head mounted displays , and other communication devices . server computer 101 includes central processing unit cpu 110 , storage 111 and memory 112 ( and may include an i / o subsystem not separately shown ). server computer 101 may be any computing device capable of hosting computer product 131 for communicating with one or more client computers such as , for example , user device 103 , over a network such as , for example , network 102 ( e . g ., the internet ). server computer 101 communicates with one or more client computers via the internet and may employ protocols such as the internet protocol suite ( tcp / ip ), hypertext transfer protocol ( http ) or https , instant - messaging protocols , or other protocols . memory 112 and 122 may include any known computer memory device . storage 111 and 121 may include any known computer storage device . although not illustrated , memory 112 and 122 and / or storage 111 and 121 may also include any data storage equipment accessible by the server computer 101 and user device 103 , respectively , such as any memory that is removable or portable , ( e . g ., flash memory or external hard disk drives ), or any data storage hosted by a third party ( e . g ., cloud storage ), and is not limited thereto . user device ( s ) 103 and server computer ( s ) 101 access and communicate via the network 102 . network 102 includes a wired or wireless connection , including wide area networks ( wans ) and cellular networks or any other type of computer network used for communication between devices . in the illustrated embodiment , computer program product 131 in fact represents computer program products or computer program product portions configured for execution on , respectively , server 101 and user device 103 . a portion of computer program product 131 that is loaded into memory 112 configures server 101 to record and play back interactive streaming video clips in conformance with the inventive requirements further described herein . the streaming video clips are played back to , for example , user device 103 , which supports receiving streaming video , such as via a browser with html5 capabilities . fig2 illustrates an example of the video streaming infrastructure 2000 , being utilized by some embodiments of the present invention to distribute video clips . as shown , video streaming infrastructure 2000 comprises content delivery network ( cdn ) 200 and internet data centers ( idcs ) 210 - 260 . media files 201 are initially stored in file storage 202 . media files 201 are then distributed via cdn 200 to idcs 210 - 260 . after a file is distributed , each respective idc has a local copy of the distributed media file . the respective local copies are then stored as media file copies 211 - 261 . each idc 210 - 260 then serves streaming media , such as video , to users in the geographic vicinity of the respective idc , in response to user requests . media file copies 211 - 261 may be periodically updated . in some embodiments of the present invention , video streaming infrastructure 2000 is used to distribute the video clips produced by the inventive process disclosed herein . that is , for example , the inventive video clips are stored as media files 201 in file storage 202 , and then distributed via cdn 200 to idcs 210 - 260 , where they are available for playback to users as streaming video . in other embodiments , the inventive video clips are distributed directly from , for example , a server or servers , such as cloud - based servers , without making use of video streaming infrastructure 2000 . fig3 is a high - level block diagram of a system 3000 for producing and storing interactive video clips tagged with metadata , and for delivering interactive video to a user device , according to embodiments of the present invention . system 3000 may be realized as hardware modules , or software modules , or a combination of hardware and software modules . in some embodiments , at least part of system 3000 comprises software running on a server , such as server 101 . in the illustrated embodiment , in addition to producing and storing interactive video clips tagged with metadata , system 3000 performs additional related functions . for example , in this embodiment system 3000 is also capable of playing back prestored video clips and is additionally capable of streaming video to a user in response to user interactions without first storing the video as a video clip . in alternative embodiments , one or more of these functions can be provided by a separate system or systems . in fig3 , computer program 310 can be , for example , an interactive multimedia application program . for example , computer program 310 can be a gaming application program . computer program 310 produces program output 320 in response to program input 330 . in some embodiments , program output 320 comprises raw video and sound outputs . in some embodiments , program output 320 comprises a video rendering result . in some embodiments , program input 330 comprises control messages based on indications of user input interactions , such as a user pushing a button , selecting an item on a list , or typing a command . such user input interactions can originate from input peripherals 350 , which can be peripherals associated with a user device , such as user device 103 . specific user device - associated peripherals can include a joystick , a mouse , a touch - sensitive screen , etc . in some embodiments , input peripherals 350 can be collocated with a remote user device 103 and communicate with other elements of the system via a network . although labeled as “ peripherals ,” those skilled in the art will understand that input devices / elements such as peripherals 350 may , in particular embodiments , include input elements that are built into , i . e ., part of , user device 103 ( e . g ., a touchscreen , a button , etc .) rather than being separate from and plugged into , user device 103 . in some embodiments , input peripherals 350 are “ robot ” entities that produce sequences of inputs that simulate the actions of a real user . such robot entities can be used to “ exercise ” the system and cause it to produce many ( or even all ) possible instances of program output 320 . the purpose of “ exercising ” system 3000 in this manner may be to , for example , cause it to produce and store at least one copy of each video clip associated with program output 320 . application interaction container 340 provides a runtime environment to run computer program 310 . in embodiments of the present invention , application interaction container 340 detects and intercepts user inputs generated by input peripherals 350 and delivers the intercepted user inputs to computer program 310 in the form of program input 330 . application interaction container 340 also intercepts raw video and sound generated as program output 320 and , utilizing the services of computer program video processing platform , 360 , converts the raw video and sound to a streaming video format , and then stores the converted video and sound as one or more video segments or clips 370 in database 390 . each clip represents the audio and video program output produced in response to particular trigger conditions ( or playback events ), where the set of possible trigger conditions comprise , for example , particular items of program input 330 . in some embodiments , the raw video and sound are converted into a multi - media container format . in some embodiments , the raw video and sound are converted into the format known as mpeg2 - transport stream ( mpeg2 - ts ). as the video clips 370 are generated , they are also tagged with a set of attributes 380 ( also referred to herein as “ metadata ”), comprising , for example , a clip id , a playback event , and a length . the attributes in metadata 380 are stored in association with corresponding video clips 370 in database 390 . the stored clips 370 can then be used for future playback . the stored , tagged video clips 370 can be re - used by the same user or a different user . potentially , a given clip 370 can be reused by thousands of users interacting with computer program 310 on a shared server or set of servers . for example , the next time a given playback event arises ( based , for example , on the detection of a particular user input , either from the same user or a different user ), the stored video clip 370 tagged with that event can be played , thus avoiding the need to regenerate the corresponding raw video and sound . for some applications , this can result in a substantial savings of computer processing power . see description of playback process below for further details . as noted above , in the illustrated embodiment , system 3000 can also play back prestored video clips . for example , based on a user interaction via input peripherals 350 resulting in program input 330 , computer program 310 may determine that a certain prestored clip 370 with metadata 380 corresponding to the user interaction is available and is the appropriate response to the user interaction . the matching clip 370 can then be retrieved from storage and streamed , for example according to a multi - media container format , such as mpeg2 - ts , to user device 103 . as further noted above , in the illustrated embodiment , system 3000 can also stream video to a user in response to user interactions even if the video is not currently stored as a streaming video clip 370 . for example , based on a user interaction via input peripherals 350 resulting in program input 330 , computer program 310 may determine that a certain video output is the appropriate response to the user interaction , but that no corresponding clip 370 is available . the required video can then be generated by computer program 310 as raw video output 320 . application interaction container 340 then intercepts the program output 320 and , utilizing the services of computer program video processing platform 360 , converts the raw video to a streaming format , according to , for example , a multi - media container format , such as mpeg2 - ts , and sends the streaming video to user device 103 . advantageously , the streaming video can simultaneously be recorded , encapsulated as a video clip 370 , and stored for future use along with appropriate metadata 380 . fig4 . illustrates a process 4000 for producing , storing , and playing interactive video clips and related metadata , according to embodiments of the present invention . in some embodiments , process 4000 can also support other related functions , such as , for example , streaming video to a user without first storing the video as a video clip . at step 410 , a computer program launches in a server , such as server 101 . the server can be , for example , a cloud - based server . the server can be , for example , a game server . the computer program can be , for example , an interactive multimedia application program , such as , for example , a game application . at step 420 , the process monitors for user input . at decision box 430 , if no user input is detected , the process returns to step 420 and continues to monitor for user input . if user input is detected , control passes to decision box 440 . at decision box 440 , if a prestored video clip with matching metadata ( i . e ., metadata corresponding to the user input ) exists , control passes to step 450 , where the prestored video clip is streamed to the user . control then returns to step 420 and the process continues monitoring for user input . if , at decision box 440 , no prestored clip with matching metadata is found , control passes to step 460 . at step 460 , a video segment from the program output responsive to the user input is streamed to the user . simultaneously , the video segment is recorded in preparation for the creation of a corresponding video clip . at step 470 , the recorded video is encapsulated into a video clip in a streaming format . for example , the streaming format can be a multi - media container format such as mpeg2 - ts . at step 480 , metadata associated with the video clip ( e . g . clip id , playback event or trigger , length ) is generated . at step 490 , the video clip and its associated metadata are stored for future use . for example , the video clip can be used in the future by a playback process when a trigger corresponding to the stored metadata for the clip is encountered . by using the stored video clip , the playback process can then avoid the need for the computer program to regenerate the video segment corresponding to the stored video clip . video segments can continue to be recorded , encapsulated into clips in a streaming format , and stored with associated metadata until , for example , the game ends . note that , in the case where process 4000 is running on a server , for example a cloud - based server , it may actually be handling multiple users , possibly many users , simultaneously . in such a case , it is entirely possible that a given video segment has already been recorded , encapsulated and stored as a video clip 370 , with corresponding metadata 380 in the course of a previous user &# 39 ; s interaction with process 4000 . in such a case , it should not be necessary to record the corresponding segment again . rather , the video clip can be retrieved from the set of previously stored clips , based on the metadata , which can include a unique id . fig5 displays an example graph - structured set 5000 of video clips and associated metadata , used in a playback process according to embodiments of the present invention . these clips may be , for example , video clips 370 and associated metadata 380 produced by the system 3000 of fig3 and / or by the process 4000 of fig4 . in a playback process , video clips 370 are streamed from a server , such as server computer 101 or a server associated with an internet data center , such as idc 210 . video clips 370 are received and viewed at a user device , such as user device 103 , which is equipped with suitable capabilities , such as a browser supporting html5 . each interactive multimedia application or portion of an application may have associated with it a playback video clip set of a form similar to video clip set 5000 , also referred to as a “ metadata playlist .” for example , each level of a multilevel game can have its own metadata playlist . as described above , the metadata associated with each video clip 370 is learned as the application executes in response to real or “ robot ” user input . therefore , at the same time , the metadata playlist 5000 is also learned . this is because the metadata playlist is the collection of video clips 370 , linked according to metadata 380 , for the particular application or portion of an application . in the example of fig5 , the video clips are represented by circles , each having an id . for example , video clip 510 is labeled with id = a . arrows represent “ playback events ” or trigger conditions that cause the playback process 5000 to progress in the direction of the arrow . for example , if video clip 520 is playing and button x is pushed , the playing of video clip 520 stops and video clip 530 starts . if , on the other hand , the user selects “ item 2 ” while video clip 520 is playing , the process transitions instead to video clip 540 . if video clip 530 is playing and button y is pressed , the process transitions to and plays video clip 550 . also , if video clip 540 is playing and button y is pressed , the process transitions to and plays video clip 550 . if video clip 540 is playing and the user swipes to “ target z ,” then the process transitions to and begins playing video clip 560 . if either of video clip 560 or 550 is playing and the audio command “ submit ” is received from the microphone (“ mic ”), the process transitions to and begins playing video clip 570 . illustrating a somewhat different kind of trigger , when video clip 510 is finished playing , the process automatically progresses to the video clip labeled a ′, namely video clip 520 . optionally , a caching mechanism can be employed to help smooth playback of the video clips . in some embodiments of the present invention , the video delivered from a server to a user device is a mix of pre - calculated video ( stored and re - played video clips ) and real - time generated video streams ( for video that has not yet been stored as video clips with metadata ). in the above description , reference is made to streaming multi - media container formats , such as mpeg2 - ts . it should be understood that embodiments of the present invention are not limited to mpeg2 - ts , but rather can employ any of a wide variety of streaming container formats , including but not limited to 3gp , asf , avi , dvr - ms , flash video ( flv , f4v ), iff , matroska ( mkv ), mj2 , quicktime file format , mpeg program stream , mp4 , ogg , and rm ( realmedia container ). embodiments that operate without a standardized container format are also contemplated . although a few exemplary embodiments have been described above , one skilled in the art will understand that many modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention . accordingly , all such modifications and variations are intended to be included within the scope of the claimed invention .	7
hereinafter , embodiment modes according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings . however , the present invention can be carried out in many different modes , and it is easily understood by those who are skilled in the art that embodiments and details herein disclosed can be modified in various ways without departing from the purpose and the scope of the present invention . therefore , it should be noted that the description of the embodiment modes to be given below should not be interpreted as being limited to the present invention . further , in all of views for describing the embodiment modes , the similar portion or the portion which have the similar function is marked with the same reference number , and a repeated explanation thereof will be omitted . in this embodiment mode , a method for manufacturing an organic tft is described as an organic semiconductor element of bottom contact type . fig1 shows a cross - sectional view of an organic tft of bottom contact type . the organic tft of bottom contact type has an element structure in which an organic semiconductor film is formed after a source electrode and a drain electrode are formed . first , a conductive film ( hereinafter , a gate electrode ) 101 which serves as a gate electrode is formed over a substrate 100 having an insulating surface . note that a method for manufacturing an organic tft in this embodiment mode is illustrated with an example in which a quartz substrate is used for the substrate 100 having an insulating surface , tungsten ( w ) is used as the conductive film 101 over the quartz substrate , and the gate electrode is formed by a sputtering method , but the present invention is not limited to this . as a substrate having an insulating surface , a glass substrate such as a barium borosilicate glass and an alumino borosilicate glass , or a stainless steel substrate or the like can be used . moreover , it is preferable to use a substrate formed by synthetic resin such as a plastic or an acryl typified by polyethylene terephthalate ( pet ), polyethylene naphthalate ( pen ), polyethersulfone ( pes ). a substrate formed by such synthetic resin is flexible and lightweight . moreover , a substrate is preferably used after polishing the surface by a chemical or mechanical polishing method , so called cmp ( chemical - mechanical polishing ), to enhance planarity of the substrate . as a polishing agent ( slurry ) of cmp , a polishing agent in which fumed silica particles obtained by pyrolyzing a chloride silicon gas are dispersed into a koh solution can be used . if necessary , a base film may be formed over the substrate . the base film serves as to prevent an alkaline metal such as na or an alkaline earth metal included in the substrate from dispersing into a semiconductor film ; therefore , adverse effect on the characteristic of a semiconductor element is prevented . therefore , the base film can be formed by using an insulating film such as silicon oxide , silicon nitride , silicon nitride oxide , titanium oxide , and titanium nitride which can prevent an alkaline metal or an alkaline earth metal from dispersing into the semiconductor film . the gate electrode may be formed by an element selected from the group consisting of ta , ti , mo , al , and cu ; or an alloy material or a compound material in which at least one of the elements is used as a main component , in addition to tungsten . moreover , the gate electrode can have a single layer structure or a laminated structure . furthermore , the gate electrode may be formed by using a screen printing method , a roll coating method , a droplet discharge method , a spin coating method , a vapor deposition method , or the like . as a material for the electrode , a conductive high molecular weight compound or the like may be used , in addition to a metal and a metal compound . a droplet discharge method is a method which can form a pattern selectively , and a method for forming a conductive film by selectively discharging ( jetting ) a droplet ( also referred to as a dot ) of a composition mixed with a material for a conductive film , an insulating film or the like . a droplet discharge method is also referred to as an ink - jetting method , depending on the system . in the case where the conductive film is formed by using a droplet discharge method , a conductive material mixed with a solvent described hereinafter can be used : an element selected from the group consisting of gold ( au ), silver ( ag ), copper ( cu ), platinum ( pt ), palladium ( pd ), tungsten ( w ), nickel ( ni ), tantalum ( ta ), bismuth ( bi ), lead ( pb ), indium ( in ), tin ( sn ), zinc ( zn ), titanium ( ti ), or aluminum ( al ), an alloy or a dispersion nanoparticle including at least one of the elements , or a fine particle of silver halide . moreover , in the case where the conductive film is formed by using a screen printing method or the like , a conductive paste in used . as the conductive paste , a conductive carbon paste , a conductive silver paste , a conductive copper paste , a conductive nickel , or the like can be used . after forming the conductive film in a predetermined pattern by the conductive paste , leveling and drying are carried out , and may be cured at temperatures of from 100 to 200 ° c . after forming the gate electrode 101 , an insulating film 102 ( hereinafter , a gate insulating film ) which serves as a gate insulating film is formed . note that a tft in this embodiment mode is described using an example in which the gate insulating film 102 is formed by depositing sion by using a cvd method ; however , the gate insulating film 102 may be formed by using a sputtering method , a spin coating method , a vapor deposition method or the like , in addition to a cvd method . as a material for the gate insulating film 102 , an organic or inorganic material such as silicon nitride oxide ( sion ), silicon oxide ( sio 2 ), silicon nitride ( sin ), siloxane , polysilazane , and polyvinyl alcohol , may be used . siloxane is a material which has a skeleton constructed from the bond of silicon ( si ) and oxygen ( o ), and is formed by using a polymer material as a starting material , which has a substituent including at least hydrogen or which has at least one selected from the group consisting of substituent including fluorine , alkyl group , and aromatic hydrocarbon group as a starting material . polysilazane is formed by using a liquid material which includes a polymer material having the bond of silicon ( si ) and nitride ( ni ), a so - called polysilazane , as a starting material . in addition , an insulating film obtained by anodizing the gate electrode may be used for an insulating film which is used as the gate insulating film 102 . next , a conductive film 103 ( hereinafter , a source electrode and a drain electrode ) which serves as a source electrode and a drain electrode of a tft is formed over the gate insulating film 102 . note that a tft in this embodiment mode is described using an example in which tungsten is formed as the source electrode and the drain electrode 103 by using a sputtering method ; however , the source electrode and the drain electrode 103 may be formed by using an ink jetting method , a spin coating method , a vapor deposition method or the like , in addition to a sputtering method . as a material for the source electrode and the drain electrode 103 , a conductive high molecular weight material or the like may be used , in addition to a metal and a metal compound . in other words , the source electrode and the drain electrode 103 can be formed with reference to the material or the manufacturing method of the gate electrode 101 . however , the source electrode and the drain electrode 103 need to form an ohmic contact with an organic semiconductor film . therefore , in the case where an organic semiconductor material is p - type , it is preferably to use a material having a higher work function than an ionization potential of an organic semiconductor material , and in the case where an organic semiconductor material is n - type , it is preferably to use a material having a lower work function than an ionization potential of an organic semiconductor material . in this embodiment mode , pentacene which is a p - type organic semiconductor material is used , so tungsten having comparatively a high work function is used . next , an organic semiconductor film 104 is formed over the insulating film 102 , source electrode 103 , and drain electrode 103 . note that in this embodiment mode , an example in which pentacene is used as an organic semiconductor material is described , but as the organic semiconductor material , an organic molecular crystal or an organic high molecular weight compound may be used . as a specific organic molecular crystal , a polycyclic aromatic compound , a conjugated double bond system compound , carotene , a macrocyclic compound and a complex thereof , phthalocyanine , diphenyl - pycrylhydrazyl , a charge transfer type complex ( a ct complex ), a dye , a protein or the like can be given . for example , anthracene , tetracene , pentacene , 6t ( hexathiophene ), tcnq ( tetracyanoquinodimethane ), a perylenetetracarboxylic derivative such as ptcda , a naphthalene tetracarboxylic derivative such as ntcda , or the like can be given . on the other hand , as a specific organic high molecular weight compound material , a p - conjugated polymer , a carbon nanotube , polyvinilpyridine , a phthalocyanine metal complex , a phthalocyanine metal complex , iodide complex or the like can be given . specially , it is preferable to use a p - conjugated polymer having a skeleton constituted by a conjugated double bond such as polyacetyrene , polyaniline , polypyrrole , polythienylene , polythiophene derivatives , poly ( 3 - alkylthiophene ), polyparaphenylene derivatives , or polyparaphenylene vinylene derivatives . as a method for forming a film , a method which can form a film having an even film thickness may be employed . as a specific method , a vapor deposition method , a spin coating method , a bar - code method , a solution cast method , a dipping method , or the like may be employed . as pretreatment for forming an organic semiconductor film , plasma treatment may be performed to a surface to be formed , or a film , for example a self - assembled monolayer ( sam ) and an alignment film , may be formed to enhance adhesion strength or the condition of the interface . note that in this embodiment mode , pentacene which is an organic material is scattered by a vacuum vapor deposition method to form the organic semiconductor film 104 over the gate insulating film 102 and the source and drain electrodes 103 . next , the element substrate 110 is baked after forming the organic semiconductor film 104 . at this time , the temperature is set to be less than the temperature in which the organic semiconductor film 104 is evaporated or decomposed . a temperature as high as possible within the range is effective for improving organic tft characteristic . in addition , the temperature at this time is desirably the melting point of the organic semiconductor film 104 or less . as one of the causes of improving the tft characteristic by performing baking , it is speculated that carrier transportability is improved since the adhesion strength between the organic semiconductor film 104 , and the source electrode and drain electrode 103 and the insulating film 102 is enhanced by baking ; and therefore , an injection barrier becomes decreased . moreover , it is speculated that a high temperature is effective for improving tft characteristic to enhance the adhesion strength between the organic semiconductor film 104 , and the source electrode and drain electrode 103 and the insulating film 102 . furthermore , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved compared with before baking since moisture in the organic semiconductor film 104 is decreased by performing baking ; and therefore , the deterioration of the organic semiconductor film 104 can be suppressed . with reference to a result of before and after baking using pentacene as an organic semiconductor material as shown in embodiment 6 , the temperature during baking is preferably set at a temperature in which grain boundary ( grain ) of pentacene does not grow before and after baking . with reference to a result of baking under atmospheric pressure using pentacene as an organic semiconductor material as shown in embodiment 1 , the shift of a threshold value becomes smaller as a temperature becomes gradually high to 120 ° c ., 150 ° c . and 200 ° c . in other words , it is understood that a high temperature is effective for improving the organic tft characteristic . moreover , according to embodiment 1 , in the case where pentacene is used as the organic semiconductor material , it is understood that a temperature of approximately 250 ° c . is the temperature of being evaporated or decomposed . therefore , heating temperature is preferably less than 250 ° c . it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved since carrier transportability is improved by enhancing the adhesion strength between the organic semiconductor film 104 and the source electrode and the drain electrode 103 and the insulating film 102 by performing baking ; and therefore , an injection barrier becomes small . moreover , it is speculated that a higher temperature is furthermore effective for improving the tft characteristic , since the adhesion strength between the organic semiconductor film 104 and the source electrode and the drain electrode 103 and the insulating film 102 is enhanced . it is also speculated that the tft characteristic is improved compared with before baking since moisture in the organic semiconductor film 104 is decreased by performing baking ; and therefore , the deterioration of the organic semiconductor film 104 can be suppressed . as for the atmosphere during baking , inert gas atmosphere such as nitrogen or argon may be employed in consideration of deterioration of the organic semiconductor film due to oxygen or moisture , even though an effect can be also expected in atmospheric air . moreover , the baking may be also carried out under reduced pressure ( for example , from 1 . 3 * 10 − 3 pa to 6 . 7 * 10 4 pa ) to suppress a deterioration of the organic semiconductor film and make baking temperature low . with reference to a result of baking under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) using pentacene as an organic semiconductor material as shown in embodiment 3 , the baking performed under reduced pressure may be more effective compared with the baking under atmospheric pressure , in the case where the baking is carried out at same temperature ( 120 ° c . and 150 ° c .). moreover , it is understood that the effect of the baking can be obtained at a lower temperature by carrying out the baking under reduced pressure . it is speculated that a tft characteristic is improved by performing baking under reduced pressure , since deterioration such as oxidation of the organic semiconductor film due to oxygen in atmospheric air is suppressed . in addition , the baking may be carried out under atmospheric pressure or under reduced pressure after being left under atmospheric pressure after deposition . in addition , reduced pressure may be kept after deposition to carry out the baking . in other words , the organic semiconductor film may be heated in a processing chamber in which the organic semiconductor film is formed . embodiment 4 shows a result of baking which is carried out under reduced pressure after once being left under atmospheric pressure is shown , and embodiment 5 shows a result of baking which is carried out under reduced pressure after deposition . it is understood that an effect of the baking is obtained in the both cases . furthermore , it is understood according to embodiment 4 that an organic tft characteristic is recovered by performing baking after once being left under atmospheric pressure . as described above , according to the present invention , it is understood that an organic tft characteristic is improved by performing baking after an organic semiconductor film is formed . it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved since moisture in the organic semiconductor film is reduced by performing baking ; and therefore , a deterioration of the organic semiconductor film is suppressed . it is also speculated that the adhesion strength between the electrode and the insulating film , and the organic semiconductor film is enhanced by baking , and the crystallinity of the organic semiconductor film and carrier transportability are improved ; therefore , the tft characteristics are improved compared with before baking . as for the baking under reduced pressure , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved since a deterioration of the organic semiconductor film due to oxygen in atmospheric air is suppressed . the organic tft described above can be utilized as a switching element of a liquid crystal display device . for example , a liquid crystal display device can be manufactured by forming a pixel electrode ( ito or a metal film ) over either a source electrode or a drain electrode and by providing with a liquid crystal layer . moreover , an organic tft according to the present invention may be utilized for such as a switching element of a display device having a light emitting element or the like . in this embodiment mode , an organic tft of top contact type in which a source electrode and a drain electrode are formed after forming an organic semiconductor film , which is different from embodiment mode 1 , is described with reference to fig2 . first , as in embodiment mode 1 , an element substrate 210 in which a gate electrode 201 is formed over a substrate 200 and a gate insulating film 202 provided to cover the gate electrode is formed is prepared . a material of the gate electrode and the gate insulating film or a method for manufacturing thereof can be referred to embodiment mode 1 . next , an organic semiconductor film 203 is formed over the element substrate 210 . as the organic semiconductor material , an organic molecular crystal or an organic high molecular weight compound may be used . as a specific organic molecular crystal , a polycyclic aromatic compound , a conjugated double bond system compound , carotene , a macrocyclic compound and a complex thereof , phthalocyanine , diphenyl - pycrylhydrazyl , a charge transfer type complex ( a ct complex ), a dye , a protein or the like can be given . for example , anthracene , tetracene , pentacene , 6t ( hexathiophene ), tcnq ( tetracyanoquinodimethane ), a perylenetetracarboxylic derivative such as ptcda , a naphthalene tetracarboxylic derivative such as ntcda , or the like can be given . on the other hand , as a specific organic high molecular weight compound material , a p - conjugated polymer , a carbon nanotube , polyvinilpyridine , a phthalocyanine metal complex , a phthalocyanine metal complex , iodide complex or the like can be given . specially , it is preferable to use a p - conjugated polymer having a skeleton constituted by a conjugated double bond such as polyacetyrene , polyaniline , polypyrrole , polythienylene , polythiophene derivatives , poly ( 3 - alkylthiophene ), polyparaphenylene derivatives , or polyparaphenylene vinylene derivatives . moreover , as a method for forming a film , a method in which a film having an even film thickness can be formed over the element substrate 210 may be employed . as a specific method , a vapor deposition method , a spin coating method , a bar - code method , a solution cast method , a dipping method , or the like may be employed . as pretreatment for forming an organic semiconductor film 203 , plasma treatment may be performed to a surface to be formed , or a film to enhance adhesion strength or condition of the interface for example a self - assembled monolayer ( sam ) and an alignment film may be formed . subsequently , an electrode that serves as a source electrode 204 and a drain electrode 204 of the tft are formed . a material of the source electrode 204 and the drain electrode 204 may refer to embodiment mode 1 . the source electrode 204 and the drain electrode 204 need to form ohmic contact to with an organic semiconductor film 203 . therefore , in the case where an organic semiconductor material is p - type , it is preferable to use a material having a higher work function than ionization potential of an organic semiconductor material , and in the case where an organic semiconductor material is n - type , it is preferable to use a material having a lower work function than ionization potential of an organic semiconductor material . in addition , as a method for forming a film , a method which can form a film having an even film thickness over the element substrate 210 may be employed . a specific method may refer to embodiment mode 1 . next , the element substrate 210 is baked after forming the source electrode 204 and the drain electrode 204 . at this time , a temperature is set to be less than the temperature in which the organic semiconductor film is evaporated or decomposed . moreover , a temperature which is as high as possible within the range of the melting point or less is effective for improving the organic tft characteristic . moreover , baking may be performed before forming the source electrode 204 and the drain electrode 204 and after forming the organic semiconductor film 203 . as for the atmosphere during the baking , inert gas atmosphere such as nitrogen or argon may be employed in consideration of deterioration of the organic semiconductor film due to oxygen or moisture , even though an effect can be also expected when baking is performed under atmospheric pressure . moreover , the baking may be carried out under reduced pressure ( for example , from 1 . 3 * 10 − 3 pa to 6 . 7 * 10 4 pa ) to suppress a deterioration of the organic semiconductor film and make baking temperature lower , as described above . the organic 1141 described above can be utilized as a switching element of a liquid crystal display device . for example , a liquid crystal display device can be manufactured by forming a pixel electrode ( ito or a metal film ) on either a source electrode or a drain electrode and by providing with a liquid crystal layer . moreover , an organic tft according to the invention may be utilized for such a switching element of a display device having a light emitting element and the like . in this embodiment , a result which is temperature dependence of electric properties of the organic th manufactured by performing baking under atmospheric pressure according to the above - mentioned embodiment mode 1 is shown . note that the organic tft used as a test sample has a structure in which a gate electrode 301 formed by tungsten is provided over a quartz substrate , a gate insulating film is provided over the gate electrode 301 , a source electrode 302 and a drain electrode 303 formed by tungsten are provided over the gate insulating film , and an organic semiconductor film is provided between the source electrode 302 and the drain electrode 303 , in atmospheric air as shown fig3 . moreover , the source electrode 302 , the drain electrode 303 and the gate electrode 301 is each provided with a measuring pad ( a pad 304 for the source electrode , a pad 305 for the drain electrode , a pad 306 for the gate electrode ) to apply measurement voltage or to detect current . in addition , a channel length of the organic tft corresponds to the length between the source electrode and the drain electrode ( referred to as l in fig3 ), and the value of l is 5 μm . on the other hand , a channel width of the organic tft corresponds to the length of the region where the source electrode and the drain electrode are overlapped with each other ( referred to as w in fig3 ), and the value of w is 8000 μm . pentacene was used as a material for the organic semiconductor , and the organic semiconductor was formed to be 50 nm thick . as a film formation method , a vapor deposition method was used . ( 2 ) baked for 10 minutes at a temperature of 120 ° c . under atmospheric pressure ( 3 ) baked for 10 minutes at a temperature of 150 ° c . under atmospheric pressure ( 4 ) baked for 10 minutes at a temperature of 200 ° c . under atmospheric pressure ( 5 ) baked for 10 minutes at a temperature of 250 ° c . under atmospheric pressure fig4 shows a result of vg - id characteristic in which the current of the drain electrode and a gate voltage are detected when voltage of − 10v is applied as vd in the baking condition ( 1 ) through ( 5 ). fig4 shows that a threshold value of on - off approaches 0v by performing baking after deposition . under atmospheric pressure , a threshold value in the case where baking is carried out for 10 minutes at a temperature of 150 ° c . ( 3 ) shifts significantly than a threshold value in the case where baking is carried out for 10 minutes at a temperature of 120 ° c . ( 2 ). on the other hand , the case of 150 ° c . ( 3 ) and 200 ° c . ( 4 ) has few differences . fig4 also shows that leakage current at off is decreased by performing baking after deposition . it is also understood that the case of 10 minutes at 150 ° c . ( 3 ) shifts more compared with the case of 10 minutes at 120 ° c . ( 2 ), and the case of 10 minutes at 200 ° c . ( 4 ) shifts more compared with the case of 10 minutes at 150 ° c . ( 3 ). accordingly , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved compared with before baking since moisture in the organic semiconductor film is decreased by performing baking ; and therefore , the deterioration of the organic semiconductor film can be suppressed . it is also speculated that the adhesion strength between the electrode and the insulating film , and the organic semiconductor film is enhanced by baking , and the crystallinity of the organic semiconductor film and carrier transportability are improved ; therefore , the tft characteristic is improved compared with before performing baking . furthermore , it is speculated that high temperature is effective for improving the tft characteristic to enhance the adhesion strength between the organic material and both the source and drain electrodes 304 and the insulating film . as described above , it can be understood that baking after deposition is effective to improve the organic tft characteristic . in addition , it seems that there is no improvement of the organic tft characteristic in the case where baking is carried out at a temperature of 250 ° c . for 10 minutes ( 5 ). it can be considered that the organic tft characteristic is disappeared due to thermal decomposition or oxidization of pentacene at a temperature of approximately 250 ° c . therefore , it is understood that heat temperature is preferably set to be less than 250 ° c . in the case where pentacene is used as a material for the organic semiconductor material . in this embodiment , a result which is time dependence of electric properties of the organic tft manufactured by performing baking under atmospheric pressure according to the above - mentioned embodiment mode 1 is shown . note that a manufacturing condition of the organic tft , other than the baking condition after deposition , used as a test sample is the same as in embodiment 1 . ( 2 ) baking ( 1 ) at a temperature of 120 ° c . for 10 minutes under atmospheric pressure ( 3 ) baking ( 2 ) at a temperature of 120 ° c . for 30 minutes under atmospheric pressure fig5 shows a result of vg - id characteristic in which the current of the drain electrode and gate voltage are detected when voltage of − 10v is applied as vd in the baking condition ( 1 ) through ( 3 ). fig5 shows that a threshold value of on - off approaches 0v by performing baking after deposition , and shifts significantly when the baking time is long . accordingly , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved compared with before baking since moisture in the organic semiconductor film is decreased by performing baking ; and therefore , the deterioration of the organic semiconductor film can be suppressed . it is also speculated that the adhesion strength between the electrode and the insulating film , and the organic semiconductor film is enhanced by baking , and the crystallinity of the organic semiconductor film and carrier transportability are improved ; therefore , the tft characteristic is improved compared with before performing baking . furthermore , it is speculated that reducing of moisture in the organic semiconductor film and enhancing the adhesion strength between the organic semiconductor film and both of the source and drain electrodes and the insulating film are promoted by performing baking for a long time , and thus it is effective for improving characteristic of the organic semiconductor . accordingly , it is understood that baking after deposition is effective to improve the organic tft characteristic . in this embodiment , a result which is temperature dependence of electric properties of the organic tft manufactured by performing baking under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) after once being left under atmospheric pressure after deposition according to the above - mentioned embodiment mode 1 is shown . note that a manufacturing condition of the organic tft used as a test sample is the same as in embodiment 1 , other than the baking condition after deposition . ( 1 ) baked for 10 minutes at a temperature of 120 ° c . under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) ( 2 ) baked for 10 minutes at a temperature of 150 ° c . under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) ( 3 ) baked for 10 minutes at a temperature of 200 ° c . under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) fig6 shows a result of vg - id characteristic in which the current of the drain electrode and gate voltage are detected when voltage of − 10v is applied as vd in the baking condition ( 1 ) through ( 3 ). fig6 shows that a threshold value of on - off approaches 0v by performing baking after deposition . under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ), a threshold value in the case where baking is carried out for 10 minutes at a temperature of 150 ° c . ( 2 ) shifts significantly than a threshold value in the case where baking is carried out for 10 minutes at a temperature of 120 ° c . ( 1 ). fig6 also shows that leakage current at off is decreased by performing baking after deposition . from seeing the decrease , it is also shown that the case of 10 minutes and 150 ° c . ( 2 ) shifts more than the case of 10 minutes and 120 ° c . ( 1 ). furthermore , it can be understood that a preferable s value ( subthreshold value ) is obtained , since the beginning of a slope is steeper than the case where baking is carried out under atmospheric pressure according to the embodiment 1 . accordingly , as well as in embodiment 1 , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved compared with before baking since moisture in the organic semiconductor film is decreased by performing baking ; and therefore , the deterioration of the organic semiconductor film can be suppressed . it is also speculated that the adhesion strength between the source and drain electrodes and the insulating film , and the organic semiconductor film is enhanced by baking , and the crystallinity of the organic semiconductor film and carrier transportability are improved ; therefore , the tft characteristic is improved compared with before performing baking . furthermore , it is speculated that a higher temperature is more effective to improve the characteristic since the adhesion strength between the organic material and both the source and drain electrodes and the insulating film is improved . in addition , it is speculated that high temperature gives high effect for improving the tft characteristic to enhance the adhesion strength between the organic material and both the electrodes and the insulating film . moreover , in this embodiment , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved by performing baking under reduced pressure since the deterioration such as oxidation of the organic semiconductor film due to oxygen in atmospheric air is suppressed , compared with the baking under atmospheric pressure . accordingly , it can be understood that baking after deposition is effective to improve the organic tft characteristic . further , when baking is performed under reduced pressure , baking temperature can be made lower . according to the above - mentioned embodiment mode 1 , a change over time in electric properties due to being left under atmospheric pressure of an organic ft , which is manufactured by performing baking under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) after once being left under atmospheric air after deposition was evaluated in this embodiment . the effect of subsequent baking under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) is also evaluated in this embodiment mode . hereinafter , the results are shown . note that a manufacturing condition of the organic tft used as a test sample , other than the baking condition after deposition , is the same as in embodiment 1 . ( 1 ) baking for 30 minutes at a temperature of 150 ° c . under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) ( 3 ) baking ( 2 ) for 30 minutes at a temperature of 150 ° c . under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) fig7 shows a result of the vg - id characteristic in which the current of the drain electrode and a gate voltage are detected when voltage of − 10v is applied as vd in the baking condition ( 1 ) through ( 3 ). fig7 shows that a threshold value of on - off approaches 0v by performing baking after deposition ( 1 ), and the on current is decreased by being left for 48 hours under atmospheric air ( 2 ); and thus the characteristic is deteriorated . fig7 also shows that the on current is increased by performing baking again thereafter ( 3 ); and thus the organic tft characteristic is improved . as well as in embodiment 4 , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved since moisture in the organic semiconductor film is reduced by performing baking ; and therefore , the deterioration of the organic semiconductor film is suppressed . it is also speculated that the adhesion strength between the source and drain electrodes and the insulating film , and the organic semiconductor film is enhanced by baking , and the crystallinity of the organic semiconductor film and carrier transportability are improved ; therefore , the tft characteristic is improved compared with before performing baking . furthermore , it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved since the deterioration such as oxidation of the organic semiconductor film due to oxygen in atmospheric air is suppressed by performing baking under reduced pressure . accordingly , it can be understood that baking after deposition is effective to recover the deterioration of the organic characteristic by being left under atmospheric pressure . in this embodiment , a result which is electric properties of an organic tft manufactured by performing baking in a deposition chamber immediately after deposition according to the above - mentioned embodiment mode 1 is shown . note that a manufacturing condition of the organic tft used as a test sample , other than the baking condition after deposition , is the same as in embodiment 1 . as for the baking condition after deposition , baking was carried out under reduced pressure ( 1 . 3 * 10 − 3 pa ) that is the same at the time of depositing , since the baking is carried out in the deposition chamber . the baking condition is as follows : ( 2 ) baked at a temperature of 120 ° c . for 10 minutes fig8 shows a result in which the vg - id characteristic in which the current of the drain electrode and the gate voltage are detected when a voltage of − 10v is applied as vd in the baking condition ( 1 ) and ( 2 ). fig8 shows that a threshold value of on - off approaches 0v by performing baking after deposition in the deposition chamber ; and thus the tft characteristic is improved . it is speculated that the tft characteristic is improved compared with before baking since moisture in the organic semiconductor film is decreased by performing baking ; and therefore , the deterioration of the organic semiconductor film can be suppressed . it is also speculated that the adhesion strength between the source and drain electrodes and the insulating film , and the organic semiconductor film is enhanced by baking , and the crystallinity of the organic semiconductor film and carrier transportability are improved ; therefore , the tft characteristic is improved compared with before performing baking . accordingly , it can be understood that baking after deposition in the deposition chamber is effective to improve the organic tft characteristic . in this embodiment , a result in which a change of the grain boundary ( gain ) of pentacene and film thickness of an organic layer by performing baking after deposition are detected with afm is shown . note that as for a test sample , pentacene was deposited to have a film thickness of 50 nm over a substrate that is the same as in embodiment 1 . as for a film formation method , a vapor deposition method was employed . ( 2 ) baked at a temperature of 150 ° c . for 10 minutes under reduced pressure ( 1 . 2 * 10 4 pa ) after deposition fig9 shows a measurement result with afm according to the condition ( 1 ), and fig1 shows a measurement result with afm according to the condition ( 2 ). fig9 and 10 show that the grain boundary ( grain ) size of pentacene does not change whether baking is carried out after deposition or not . in addition , the film thickness of the organic film does not change at this time . according to the above - mentioned results , it is understood that a preferable heating temperature after the organic semiconductor film is formed is a temperature in which crystal growth does not happen in the organic semiconductor , preferably , a temperature in which average value of the growth of grain boundary ( grain ) size of the organic semiconductor film is not 10 % or more . a mode of a liquid crystal device including the semiconductor device according to the present invention is described with reference to fig1 . note that a structure of the liquid crystal device is not limited in particular , and for example , a liquid crystal device in which a drive circuit is provided for an element substrate may be preferable , in addition to the mode shown in this embodiment mode . moreover , this embodiment is not limited to the liquid crystal , and an organic semiconductor device according to the invention may be employed for a switching element and the like of a display device having a light emitting element . fig1 is a top view for schematically showing a liquid crystal device . the liquid crystal device according to this embodiment has a structure in which an element substrate 1101 is attached to an opposing substrate 1102 so as to face each other . the liquid crystal device according to this embodiment includes a pixel portion 1103 . a terminal portion 1104 provided along one edge of the pixel portion 1103 is provided with a flexible printed circuit ( fpc ) 1105 , and a signal is inputted from a drive circuit to the pixel portion 1103 via the flexible printed circuit 1105 . note that the drive circuit and the flexible printed circuit may be provided separately , or may be provided in complex with each other such as tcp in which an ic chip is mounted over the fpc in which a wiring pattern is formed . as for the pixel portion 1103 , there is no limitation in particular . for example , the pixel portion 1103 includes a liquid crystal element and a transistor for driving the liquid crystal element , as shown in a cross - sectional view of fig1 a or fig1 b . fig1 a and fig1 b each show a mode of a cross - sectional structure of the liquid crystal device , and each of them has a different transistor structure . the liquid crystal device shown in a cross - sectional view of fig1 a includes an element substrate 521 provided with a transistor 527 having electrodes 525 and 526 which serves as a source electrode or a drain electrode over an organic semiconductor film 524 . moreover , a liquid crystal layer 534 is sandwiched between a pixel electrode 529 and an opposing electrode 532 . as a material for the pixel electrode 529 and the opposing electrode 532 , a light transparent material such as indium tin oxide ( ito ) or indium tin oxide including silicon oxide may be used . furthermore , orientation films 530 and 533 are provided for the surface sides of the pixel electrode 529 and the opposing electrode 532 , which are to be in contact with the liquid crystal layer 534 . a spacer 535 is dispersed in the liquid crystal layer to keep a cell gap . a transistor 527 is covered with an insulating layer 528 in which a contact hole is provided , and the electrode 526 is electrically connected to the pixel electrode 529 . the insulating layer 528 may be formed by sputtering or chemical vapor deposition ( cvd ) using teflon . moreover , thermal cvd using silicon nitride , silicon oxide silicon nitride oxide or the like may be performed to suppress a deterioration of the organic semiconductor film 524 . the opposing electrode 532 is supported by an opposing substrate 531 . the organic semiconductor film 524 is overlapped with a gate electrode 522 with a gate insulating layer 523 therebetween . in addition , a liquid crystal device shown in a cross - sectional view of fig1 b includes an element substrate 551 provided with a transistor 557 having a structure in which at least a portion of electrodes 555 and 554 which serves as a source electrode or a drain electrode is covered with an organic semiconductor film 556 . moreover , a liquid crystal layer 564 is sandwiched between a pixel electrode 559 and an opposing electrode 562 . orientation films 560 and 563 are provided for the surface sides of the pixel electrode 559 and the opposing electrode 562 , which are to be in contact with the liquid crystal layer 564 . a spacer 565 is dispersed in the liquid crystal layer to keep a cell gap . a transistor 557 is covered with insulating layers 558 a and 558 b in which a contact hole is provided , and the electrode 554 is electrically connected to the pixel electrode 559 . note that an insulating layer which covers the transistor 557 may be a laminated layer formed by the insulating layer 558 a and the insulating layer 558 b as shown in fig1 b , or may be a single layer formed by the insulating layer 528 as shown in fig1 a . in addition , an insulating layer which covers the transistor 557 may be a layer having a planarized surface like the insulating layer 558 b . the insulating layer 558 a may be formed as same as the insulating film 528 described above . the insulating film 528 b may be formed by spin carting using an organic compound such as acryl , polyimide , or polyimideamide . in addition , a positive type or negative type photosensitive material may be used . the opposing electrode 561 is supported by an opposing substrate 562 . moreover , the organic semiconductor film 556 is overlapped with a gate electrode 552 with a gate insulating layer 553 therebetween . the display device as described above can be used as a display device mounted to a cellular phone , a tv receiver and the like as shown in fig1 a to 13c . moreover , the display device may be mounted to a card , for example an id card , which serves to manage personal information . fig1 a shows a view of a cellular phone , which includes a main body 1302 includes a display portion 1301 , an audio output portion 1304 , an audio input portion 1305 , operation keys 1306 and 1307 , an antenna 1303 , and the like . the cellular phone has high operating characteristic and high reliability . such a cellular phone can be completed by incorporating the organic semiconductor device of the present invention into the display portion 1301 . fig1 b shows a tv receiver manufactured by applying the present invention , which includes a display portion 1311 , a casing 1312 , speakers 1313 , and the like . the tv receiver has high operating characteristic and high reliability . such a tv receiver can be completed by incorporating the organic semiconductor device of the invention into the display portion 1311 . fig1 c shows an id card manufactured by applying the invention , which includes a support 1321 , a display portion 1322 , an integrated circuit chip 1323 incorporated in the support 1321 , and the like . note that integrated circuits 1324 and 1325 which drive the display portion 1322 are also incorporated in the support 1321 . the id card has high reliability . moreover , for example in the display portion 1322 , the id card can display information inputted and outputted in the integrated circuit chip 1323 ; and thus , what kind of information is inputted and outputted can be confirmed . such an id card can be completed by incorporating the organic semiconductor device according to the invention in the display portion 1322 . this application is based on japanese patent application serial no . 2003 - 434620 field in japan patent office on dec . 26 , 2003 , the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference .	6
[ 0037 ] fig1 is an illustration showing an exemplary appearance of an agent display apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention . the agent display apparatus includes : a computer 100 ; a display apparatus 111 ; an fd ( floppy disk ) drive 104 mounted with an fd 116 ; a cd - rom ( compact disc - read only memory ) drive 106 mounted with a cd - rom 117 ; a keyboard 112 ; and a mouse 113 . the agent display program is supplied by a storage medium such as fd 116 or cd - rom 117 . the agent display program is executed by computer 100 for controlling display of the agent , for example . alternatively , the agent display program may be supplied to computer 100 over a communication line from another computer . [ 0038 ] fig2 is a block diagram showing an exemplary structure of the agent display apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention . computer 100 shown in fig1 includes : a cpu ( central processing unit ) 101 ; a memory 102 ; a hard disk 103 ; fd drive 104 ; a network card 105 ; cd - rom drive 106 ; a tv tuner board 107 ; a sound mixer 108 ; a microphone 109 ; and a speaker 110 . cpu 101 performs a process while inputting / outputting data with respect to memory 102 or the like over bus 114 . the agent display program stored in fd 116 or cd - rom 117 is temporarily stored in hard disk 103 through fd drive 104 or cd - rom drive 106 by cpu 101 . cpu 101 for example controls display of the agent by loading the agent display program as necessary from hard disk 103 to memory 102 for execution . network card 105 is connected to communication line 115 for controlling data communication through the internet or the like . further , sound mixer 108 outputs a voice of a television program received by tv tuner board 107 , a voice produced by voice synthesis , which will later be described , from speaker 110 , and inputs a voice through microphone 109 for voice recognition which will later be described . [ 0040 ] fig3 is a block diagram showing a structure of the agent display apparatus according to the present embodiment . the agent display apparatus includes : an agent interface 1 controlling display of the agent and controlling input / output of the voice ; an application program interface ( apif ) 2 controlling a general application program or a cap ; an action script executing engine 3 executing an action script ; an action script db ( database ) 5 ; a search engine 4 searching an action script db 5 in accordance with a search request from agent interface 1 ; and a dictionary 6 that search engine 4 refers in searching . the action script refers to a procedure manual describing a procedure for implementing a function under the instruction from the user by cooperative operation of agent interface 1 and apif 2 . for example , action script db 5 has action scripts that describe , according to functions , “ turn up volume of television ” and “ reserve video recording .” agent interface 1 includes : an agent display controlling portion 11 displaying a personified agent onto display apparatus 111 for operation ; a voice outputting portion 12 outputting the agent displayed on display 111 with a voice from speaker 110 ; and a voice inputting portion 13 recognizing the voice of the user input from microphone 109 . voice outputting portion 12 may reproduce the voice by voice synthesis or may directly reproduce the previously recorded voice . apif 2 controls various application programs , or caps of a television and video which are not shown but preliminary installed in computer 100 . action script executing engine 3 executes an action script by controlling agent interface 1 and apif 2 while interpreting the procedure described in the action script . search engine 4 searches for an optimum action script from action script db 5 in accordance with a search request from a user that has been input from voice inputting portion 13 and outputs it to action script executing engine 3 . for example , the search request from the user may contain a natural language such as “ want to watch television ” that has been input through voice inputting portion 13 by the user . search engine 4 searches action script db 5 with reference to dictionary 6 upon receipt of the search request from the user , and selects an action script which is considered optimum for the request from the user , e . g ., an action script “ turn on tv ” and outputs it to action script executing engine 3 . [ 0045 ] fig4 is a flow chart shown in conjunction with a process of the agent display apparatus according to the present embodiment . when the agent display program is executed by cpu 101 , voice inputting portion 13 is brought into a state of waiting for a request input of voice from the user . if the user inputs voice , voice inputting portion 13 recognizes the voice of the user and converts it to a character code for storage in a buffer which is not shown . then , a determination is made as to if an input has been made by the user by checking if the character code is stored in the buffer ( s 1 ). if there is no input of voice from the user ( s 2 , no ), the process returns to step s 1 and repeats the process after an appropriate period of time . if there is an input from the user ( s 2 , yes ), search engine 4 uses the character code as a keyword and searches for an action script which is the closest in meaning to the request from the user with reference to dictionary 6 ( s 3 ). if an appropriate action script is not found ( s 4 , no ), the process returns to step s 1 for repeating the following process . if an appropriate action script is found ( s 4 , yes ), action script executing engine 3 executes the searched action script ( s 5 ). when action script executing engine 3 completes execution of the action script , it returns to step s 1 for repeating the following process . [ 0048 ] fig5 is a flow chart used for describing in greater detail the process of step s 5 in fig4 . fig5 shows a procedure of “ setting television channel to 1 ” as an exemplary action script . as shown in fig6 if a request of “ want to watch channel 1 ” is made to the personified agent displayed on display apparatus 111 by the user , search engine 4 searches action script db 5 for an action script “ display television channel 1 .” then , that action script is output to action script executing engine 3 . upon receipt of the action script “ display television channel 1 ” from search engine 4 , action script executing engine 3 asks apif 2 if the television ap has been started . if the television ap has been started ( s 11 , yes ), the process proceeds to step s 13 . if the television ap has not been started ( s 11 , no ), a request for starting the television ap is made to apif 2 ( s 12 ), and then the process proceeds to step s 13 . in step s 13 , action script executing engine 3 asks apif 2 if the power of the television is on . if the power of the television is on ( s 13 , yes ), the process proceeds to step s 15 . if the power of the television is not on ( s 13 , no ), a request for turning on the television is made to apif 2 ( s 14 ), and the process proceeds to step s 15 . in step s 15 , action script executing engine 3 asks apif 2 if the television channel is 1 . if the television channel is 1 ( s 15 , yes ), the process proceeds to step s 17 . if the television channel is not 1 ( s 15 , no ), a request for setting the channel to 1 is made to apif 2 ( s 16 ), and the process proceeds to step s 17 . in step s 17 , the agent displayed on display apparatus 111 is made to give an utterance “ displaying channel 1 ” and the process ends . fig7 shows that the television channel is set to 1 and agent gives the utterance “ displaying channel 1 .” [ 0053 ] fig8 is a flow chart used for explaining another exemplary process of step s 5 in fig4 . a procedure of “ displaying television channel 1 ” is shown as an exemplary action script . as shown in fig6 if a request “ want to watch channel 1 ” is made to the personified agent displayed on display apparatus 111 by the user , search engine 4 searches action script 5 for an action script “ display television channel 1 .” the action script is output to action script executing engine 3 . upon receipt of the action script “ display television channel 1 ” from search engine 4 , action script executing engine 3 asks apif 2 if the television ap has been started . if the television ap has been started ( s 21 , yes ), the process proceeds to step s 24 . if the television ap has not been started ( s 21 , no ), voice outputting portion 12 makes the agent displayed on the screen give an utterance “ starting television ap ” ( s 22 ). action script executing engine 3 requests apif 2 to start the television ap ( s 23 ), makes display apparatus 111 display an image of a tv remote controller and proceeds to step s 24 . fig9 shows the image of the tv remote controller is displayed and the agent makes an utterance “ starting television ap .” in step s 24 , action script executing engine 3 asks apif 2 if the power of the television is on . if the power of the television is on ( s 24 , yes ), the process proceeds to step s 28 . if the power of the television is not on ( s 24 , no ), the power button of the remote controller displayed on display apparatus 111 is pointed ( s 25 ). the button may be pointed by moving a mouse cursor to the position of the power button , by using the agent to point that position , or by flashing on and off the button per se . then , voice outputting portion 12 makes the agent displayed on the screen give an utterance “ pressing power button ” ( s 26 ). action script executing engine 3 makes a request for turning on the television to apif 2 ( s 27 ), and proceeds to step s 28 . fig1 shows that the power button of the remote controller is pointed and the agent makes an utterance “ pressing power button .” in step s 28 , action script executing engine 3 asks apif 2 if the television channel is 1 . if the television channel is 1 ( s 28 , yes ), the process proceeds to step s 32 . if the television channel is not 1 ( s 28 , no ), the position of the button corresponding to “ 1 ” of the remote controller displayed on display apparatus 111 is pointed ( s 29 ). then , action script executing engine 3 controls voice outputting portion 12 to make the agent give an utterance “ pressing button 1 ” ( s 30 ). action script executing engine 3 makes a request for turning the channel to 1 to apif 2 ( s 31 ), and proceeds to step s 32 . fig1 shows that the button of “ 1 ” of the remote controller is pointed and the agent is made to give the utterance “ pressing button 1 .” in step s 32 , the agent displayed on display apparatus 111 is made to give an utterance “ displaying channel 1 ,” and the process ends . fig7 shows that the television channel is set to 1 and the agent is made to give the utterance “ displaying channel 1 .” [ 0060 ] fig1 is a flow chart shown in conjunction with another process of the agent display apparatus according to the present embodiment . the above - described action script includes an execution condition attribute . the execution condition attribute refers to a condition for executing the action script , including e . g ., an appropriate combination of date when that action script is to be executed , a status of apif 2 , an activity history of the personal computer , execution frequency or the like . the execution condition attribute may be described in any manner , and a timing condition for causing the agent to act independently without external triggering needs only be described . first of all , action script executing engine 3 periodically searches for an action script stored in action script db 5 and checks the execution condition attribute ( s 41 ). if there is no action script that satisfies the execution condition ( s 42 , no ), action script executing engine 3 returns to step s 41 and repeats the following process . if there is an action script that satisfies the execution condition ( s 42 , yes ), action script executing engine 3 executes the action script satisfying that condition ( s 43 ) and returns to step s 41 for repeating the following process . fig1 shows an agent displayed when executing the process . as described above , the agent display apparatus of the present embodiment allows various application programs to be operated by interactively communicating with the personified agent and also allows unification of interfaces . further , since the application program is executed while making the agent follow the operation procedure of the apif , the user can perform a desired operation while learning the operation procedure of the apif . [ 0064 ] fig1 is a block diagram showing a structure of an agent display apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention . comparing with the agent display apparatus according to the first embodiment shown in fig3 the agent display apparatus of the second embodiment additionally includes : a broadcast program list accessing portion 7 making an access to an electronic television program list ; an information offering engine 8 acquiring information that is likely to interest the user and offering it to action script executing engine 3 ; and a preference db 9 storing a program that has been viewed by the user and obtained by making reference to the television program list accessed by broadcast program list accessing portion 7 . therefore , description of the overlapping portion of the structure and function will not be given . broadcast program list accessing portion 7 makes an access to the internet through network card 105 for acquiring information from a homepage that shows a television program list . alternatively , tv tuner board 107 may acquire the television program list through digital broadcasting . information offering engine 8 acquires information including a channel that the user is currently viewing from the television ap through apif 2 , and stores the program that the user has watched in preference db 9 referring to the television program list accessed by broadcast program list accessing portion 7 . information offering engine 8 refers to the television program list obtained by broadcast program list accessing portion 7 and outputs information on the program that is likely to interest the user , if any , to action script executing engine 3 based on a history of viewed programs of the user . in searching for the program that would interest the user , the television program list may be searched by search engine 4 . [ 0066 ] fig1 is a flow chart shown in conjunction with a process of the agent display apparatus according to the present embodiment . first of all , information offering engine 8 periodically checks the status of the television ap through apif 2 ( s 51 ). if the television is not viewed ( s 52 , no ), the process proceeds to step s 55 . if the television is viewed ( s 52 , yes ), the television program that the user is viewing is identified with reference to the television program list ( s 53 ), and the information on that television program is registered in preference db 9 ( s 54 ). in step s 55 , a determination is made as to if there is a request for a program recommendation . the request for the program recommendation is made , for example by displaying the region indicating the program recommendation request on the display screen of display apparatus 111 , which region is then clicked by the user with mouse 113 , for example . if there is no request for program recommendation ( s 56 , no ), the process returns to step s 51 and the following process is repeated . if there is a request for program recommendation ( s 56 , yes ), information offering engine 8 refers to the history of viewed programs stored in preference db 9 and extracts a keyword common to the programs that the user particularly prefers ( s 57 ). in the process , the information stored in preference db 9 may be searched by search engine 4 . then , information offering engine 8 refers to the television program list and searches for a program which is the closest in meaning to the keyword extracted by step s 57 , from programs to be on the air ( s 58 ). information offering engine 8 outputs the searched program information to action script executing engine 3 ( s 59 ) and returns to step s 51 for repeating the following process . action script executing engine 3 controls voice outputting portion 12 for outputting the searched program information by voice , so as to offer a recommended program to the user . action script executing engine 3 may televise the recommended program by outputting a request for channel change to the television ap through apif 2 . fig1 shows that the program recommended by the agent is output by voice . as described above , the agent display apparatus of the present embodiment allows information offering engine 8 to extract a keyword that is common to the programs with the highest frequency from program information stored in preference db 9 , based on which a television program is selected . thus , a television program which is likely to interest the user can be recommended and offered by the agent . thus , the user does not miss a program that interests him or her . although the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail , it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation , the spirit and scope of the present invention being limited only by the terms of the appended claims .	6
fig1 is a view from below of a section 10 ridge vent according to the present invention . the ridge vent section includes a central axis 12 , a first end 14 , a second end 16 and sides 18 and 20 . a plurality of partitions 24 which are generally parallel , extend between the sides 16 and 18 . at the first and second ends , the partitions 24 form end walls to the ridge vent . the partitions are evenly spaced and help support the web of the ridge vent above the plane of the roof . in this manner , air may pass underneath the ridge vent from the inside of a building to the outside . this is explained in more detail below . also shown in fig1 are material saving openings 28 which reduce the total amount of molded plastic required . these openings also minimize bulging or building due to thermal expansion . extra web support is provided in the shape of waved columns 30 extend along two rows 32 and 34 on either side of the material saving openings 28 . these rows are positioned laterally to permit shingles , over mounted on the section 10 of the vent , to be nailed through the vent into the underlying roof . these rows of columns therefore define nailing strips or rows . although wave - shaped columns are shown , other shapes of columns could also be used without departing from the scope of the present invention . all that is required is that enough support be provided so that the portion of the ridge vent extending across the opening is supported above the roof to permit air to pass up through the ridge opening , under the ridge vent section past the columns and then out to the outside . nailing points 36 are also preferred which provide a specific support to a nail passing through the ridge vent and into the underlying roof at specific locations . most preferably the nailing supports are in the form of a cylinder through which the nail passes . the roof vent may include surface markings to show the installer where to place the nails as shown at 37 . lateral vents 40 are also shown . the lateral vents 40 are most preferably in the form of overlapped slats which form a moulded in grill . preferably the grill slats are spaced sufficiently close to prevent pests and the like from passing through the grill , and angled in a way to direct precipitation away from the opening in the roof peak when the vent is placed in position over a roof peak . as can be seen , a v - shaped angled baffle 44 is provided on the underside of the vent , adjacent to the sides 16 , 18 in each partition section of the roof vent 10 . the angled baffle 44 is associated with a drainage opening 46 in each partition section . the angled baffle 44 prevents precipitation , driven up through drainage opening 46 by wind or the like from passing further up the roof towards the ridge opening . turning now to fig2 , an end view of the roof vent 10 is shown . it can now be appreciated that each partition 24 is formed with at least one , and most preferably two notches 50 . the notches 50 define a pair of opposed partition walls 52 and 54 separated by a central tab 56 . the ends of the partition walls 52 , 54 include slightly displaced portions 58 and 60 . the displaced portions 58 and 60 are displaced laterally by the thickness of the central tab 56 , to permit the partition walls to overlap the central tab without interference , but closely spaced when the sides 16 and 18 are bent towards one another as the section 10 is secured on a roof ridge or peak . in this manner the vent is made easily bendable over a ridge because the partition walls do not interfere with the tabs . as can be seen in fig2 , the two notches 50 define two bending axes 51 about which the roof vent maybe bent . this permits the roof vent to easily confirm a variety of angles of roof peak , even relatively steep angles such as 14 / 12 . two bending lines are formed , at the intersection points of the central tab and the two partition walls , i . e . at the bottom of the notches 50 . to help the bending at this point , the present invention comprehends adding score lines or lines of weakness formed into the plastic , which act as a living hinge along the axis . the roof vent section forms a truncated pyramid when bent , which facilitates placing the roof vent in position on a roof ridge over an opening . the central tab has a base of a predetermined length , preferably between about ½ inch to 1½ inches , most preferably about 1 inch . this dimension has been found to produce good bending results in bending the roof vent over the roof peak . also shown are end attachment knobs 70 which fit into recesses 72 ( shown in fig1 and 3 ) to connect ridge vent sections together . due to the rectangular nature of the vent sections , assuming that the first vent is set square on the ridge , the remaining vent sections extending along the ridge will also be set simply by being mounted into the attachment knobs of the previous section . thus , the attachment knobs and mating openings also function as an alignment means according to the present invention . a further feature of the attachment knobs and slots of the present invention is that they may be connected together whether the male portion or the female portion is already nailed to the roof this ability arises because the male and female positions of the attachment means are sized and shaped to permit this increased functionality . in particular , the female portion is a slot having an open top and bottom , permitting the male portion to be inserted from above or below . detents are formed in the slot to hold the male portion vertically in position . the detents act on the narrower shaft behind the head portion . the female portion is a t - shaped slot with the larger head of the male portion being axially secured in the top of the t . in this way , the male portion is secured axially , and vertically , and with two male / female attachments on each end of any given vent section 10 , the attachment means also acts as an alignment means to align adjacent sections along the ridge peak . further , because the female portion is open at both the top and the bottom faces , the male part may be placed in the female part even if the latter is already secured to a roof peak or the female part may be placed over a male part if the latter is already secured to a roof peak . in this way the vent sections of the present invention are easy to install as it is not necessary to start in any particular direction to secure adjacent sections to ones already installed . an advantage of the present invention can now be more clearly understood . ridge openings come in various lengths according to the length of the roof peaks in which they are formed . therefore , there is a need for a ridge vent which is easily adapted to suit the particular length of ridge opening to be covered . the present invention is preferably formed from moulded plastic , and while durable and resistant to degradation by the elements , the plastic is sufficiently soft that it can be easily cut with a sharp utility knife or saw . to size the present invention to a ridge opening of a particular length , all that is required is to place the ridge vent sections end to end until the end of the last ridge vent section extends beyond the end of the ridge opening . then , a utility knife or saw can be used to trim the over hanging ridge vent section to the closest partition wall 24 to suit the ridge opening . according to the present invention the overlapping portions of the partition walls are sized and shaped to close the notches 50 when the vent is bent over the minimum roof peak angle for which the vent is sized . in this way the partition wall forms an essentially continuous end wall , when bent over a peak . if the peak is on a roof having a larger slope than the minimum design slope the partition wall simply overlaps the central tab by reason of the offset discussed previously . thus , the plurality of parallel partition walls permits the present invention to be easily sized to accommodate ridge openings of different lengths and provides a closed end wall close to where it is needed . a spacing of about 2½ inches or about 6 cm between partition walls has been found to give adequate results , although other spacings could also be used . what is required is a spacing which is close enough to be practical to trim to fit . the closer the spacing the better the fit that can be made . also , the vent can be provided in either standard metric unit sizes or imperial unit sizes to facilitate use on a building made to either metric or imperial standards . further other configurations of partition walls and notches can be used , provided that a continuous end wall is provided over the design range of bending angles corresponding the peak angles onto which the vent is to be placed and the continuous wall so formed does not prevent the vent from being easily bent over the peak . turning now to fig3 , a cross section of the ridge vent is shown . as can be seen , the top side 80 of the ridge vent includes a number of distinct features . the first distinct feature is a lower central portion 81 which is generally flat . ideally , the width of the lower central portion 81 is sufficient to permit a standard roofing shingle to be laid therein to form a ridge cap when the vent is installed in position over a roof peak . in this way , the material saving openings 28 can be covered by shingles in the form of a conventional ridge cap as shown in the drawings and rain , precipitation and the like is prevented therefore from entering into the ridge opening building though these openings in the vent section 10 . most preferably , the width of the recessed central portion 81 is 11½ inches to accommodate a standard imperial shingle . this width can also be about 33 cm . to accommodate a standard metric shingle . it will be further appreciated that the width of the recessed central portion is made slightly shorter than the actual width of the cap shingle section . as can now be understood , when the section of the present invention are installed over a peak , the roof vent will be generally v - shaped . the cap shingle sections , nailed into the central recessed portion , will be rounded , and thus will seem shorter when bent . thus , the present invention provides for a slightly smaller width , when flat , of central recessed portion 81 than the flat width of the shingle . the smaller width of the central recessed portion is preferably less than 5 % of the total width of the cap shingle section and most preferably less than about 2 %. in this way , the cap shingle sections can extend to the edge over a range of angles of roof peaks , without coming up short , at the sides of the central recessed portion . also shown are air foil sections 82 and 84 on either lateral edge of the vent 10 . the air foil sections 82 and 84 include grills 86 , 88 having a plurality of slats 90 . as previously indicated , the slats 90 are oriented at an angle to deflect precipitation downwardly onto the roof below these sections and away from the ridge opening but at the same time to permit air to circulate out through the grills from within the building enclosure . precipitation which enters the slats is urged , by gravity , past the angled baffle 44 and out the drainage opening 46 . it will now be appreciated that in the installed position , the air foil sections 82 and 84 will extend past the side edges of the ridge opening and will overlie roof sections which are otherwise shingled to protect the underlying structure against water damage ( see fig4 ). thus , precipitation passing into the vent at these air - foil sections will land on a shingled roof surface to be removed by gravity down towards the eves of the roof . a further feature of the present invention is grill openings 100 which are provided in the vertical side walls of the air foil sections 82 and 84 . these grilled openings permit precipitation landing on the shingles to drain out of the lower central portion 80 , into the air foil sections , then underneath the air foil sections on the underlying shingled roof , out through the drain drainage opening and down to the eves . in this manner , precipitation is controlled to prevent it from entering the ridge opening , and from building up in the lower central portion . the grilled openings also promote air removal , as explained below . fig4 shows the ridge vent in an installed position . it will be noted that shingles 110 have been lain in the central region and the roof vent section 10 has been bent over a roof peak and secured in place by means of nails through nailing supports described above . another advantage of the present invention can now be understood from fig5 . it will be appreciated that the rounded air foil sections of the present invention will create a wing like effect in the event of a wind 200 passing over the air foil sections . as the wind passes over the rounded section 202 , it will tend to accelerate in a laminar flow manner , causing a low pressure to facilitate drawing air 204 out of the attic or building enclosure according to bernoulli &# 39 ; s law . this air foil effect assists the operation of the passive roof vent in turning over air in the building enclosure . by having the central portion lower , the air foil sections stand proud of the features of the roof , enhancing the air removal efficiency . in particular , the end walls having built in grill portions are exposed to passing air , and permit the air to inflow through the vertical wall , and then out the grill sections . this air is useful to drag other air out of the building enclosure , and increases the efficiency of the air change over . thus , not only does the present invention provide a low pressure on the unused side , it permits the air stream to divide into two , one over the air foil section and another through the air foil section to set up good circulation . the method of installing the present invention can now be described . first the roof will be shingled in a conventional manner up to the edge of the opening in the roof peak . then a first section of the roof vent is carefully positioned at one edge of the roof peak opening and the installer checks to ensure that the vent can bend over the opening and on top of the shingled roof on either side . it is important to ensure that the vent extends down the peak enough , or that the underlying shingles extend up the peak enough that the vent overlaps the shingled surface on both faces of the roof peak . once it is carefully aligned , then it is nailed to the roof through the tubular nailing supports which both bends it over the peak and holds the vent section in place . it will be noted that the vent securing nails are positioned in the central recessed portion 81 in a position where the ridge cap shingles will cover the nail heads to prevent leaks at those locations . the next step is to install the net adjacent section which can be placed in to the male female attachment means , as previously described , pressed down on the roof and also nailed into place . this sequence is repeated until the last section overlaps the end of the ridge opening and then the last section is trimmed to an appropriate length . the next step is to place the ridge cap in the recessed portion 81 by starting at one end and laying in the shingles in an overlapping manner as is usually done . the shingle nails will be underneath the next overlapping shingles to prevent leaks as is conventional for such shingles . in this case the shingle nails will be driven through the vent sections in the nailing row , where the extra support columns are provided . the cap row of shingles is then extended fully along the ridge , and the installation is then finished . although the present invention has been described with respect to the above - noted preferred embodiments , various alterations and modifications are comprehended within the scope of the appendant claims . some of these have been discussed above , and others will be apparent to those skilled in the art .	4
the basic system 100 for providing analysis of foot traffic in a retail store is shown schematically in fig1 . the system includes a series of cameras 110 located at various locations in a number of stores 105 . the cameras correspond generally to rois and are typically cameras used for surveillance in a retail store 105 . although depicted as comprising several stores 105 , one skilled in the art can appreciate that system 100 can be used in connection with a single store 105 . the raw video data from cameras 105 is sent to a video management unit 115 . one function of the video management unit 115 is to store raw video data , preferably in a compressed form . the video management system 115 further includes a video analytics engine that processes the recorded video from each one of the surveillance cameras 110 in the store and generates data that contains the location and time of every person in the store throughout the entire day . this analytics engine , also know as a metadata conversion module , may for example include software on one or more computers . the analytics engine converts the stored video data into video metadata that is data about the video . the data can include data about objects appearing in the video including , e . g ., position , time and velocity of the object , as well as height or any other characteristic that can be ascertained by video analytic techniques . alternatively , the analytics engine can operate on a real time stream of video data rather than operating on stored video data , thus generating the metadata “ on - the - fly .” the processed object data , or metadata is then stored in database 120 . the database 120 , also know as a video storage unit , is shown in fig1 as being a single unit but may in fact consist of a number of storage units distributed and accessible on a network . the above process of generating video metadata can be run continuously every day for unlimited amount of time . as a result of this processing activity the system of the present invention has the information of time and place of every person in the store . from this information it is now easy to answer queries and draw graphs of number of people in certain places in the store in a requested time frame . this processing of user queries and generation of reports is accomplished by the retail traffic analytics system ( rta ) 125 which is coupled to and acts on the video metadata stored in database 120 . the rta 125 contains a processing engine sometimes known as an object movement analytics engine since it analyzes the movement of objects in the prescribed physical area , identifying the moving objects that satisfy the user &# 39 ; s criteria specified in her query . as further described in detail below , a user of the system of the present invention can thus compare the number of people between different places or between numbers of people in a specified location in different times . the user can also know if people dwelled and for how long , to what direction people were moving and many extract many other pieced of information . explanation of the operation of the rta 125 of the present invention is best achieved though a discussion of the graphical user interfaces ( guis ) of the system . fig2 illustrates an exemplary initial window 200 that a user encounters once the traffic analyzer is running . the application window 200 is divided into two main sections , the queries pane 205 and the reports viewer 210 . the queries pane 205 is located on the left side of the application window 200 and enables the user to select a predefined query or create his / her own query for a specific report type and generate a report for the query . the reports viewer 210 is located on the right side of the application window 200 and enables the user to view various geographical maps , store floor plans ( including camera locations ) and the various reports generated by the system the queries pane 205 and reports viewer 210 will next be discussed in detail . the queries pane 205 , located on the left side of the application window in fig2 , enables the user to select , define ( and store )) queries that are used to generate reports . the queries pane 205 includes the following sections : type 215 ; saved query 220 ; regions 225 ; report options 235 ; time span 235 ; recurrence 240 ; and control buttons 245 - 248 . the type area 215 includes a drop down menu that enables the user to select the type of report the user wants to generate . as will be more fully described below , the preferred embodiment of the system of the present invention performs at least four different types of analysis which generates different reports for the user . from the drop down menu of the type area 215 the user can preferably select from the following report types : shoppers in region analysis ; dwell time analysis ; directional analysis ; and shoppers entering area analysis . the shoppers in region analysis analyzes the previously described video metadata , identifies and counts the moving objects in the video and generates reports and graphical displays that describe and illustrate the number of shoppers present in a specific roi or in multiple rois for a specified time frame . the selection of the roi and time frame will be described below with respect to areas 225 and 235 of the application window 200 . dwell time analysis analyzes the metadata and generates reports and graphical displays that describe and illustrate the number of shoppers that “ dwell ” in a particular area over a defined time period . for example , the number of shoppers who remained in the roi in the area for more than 20 seconds but less than 40 seconds . this time period is configurable by the user prior to running the dwell time analysis . in one embodiment of the present invention , only single cameras can be selected for this query type , but in a single camera it is possible to compare several rois . directional analysis analyzes the metadata and generates reports and graphical displays that describe and illustrate the flow of shoppers within the store and the direction they take . in one embodiment of the present invention , only single cameras can be selected for this query type , but in a single camera it is possible to compare several rois and several directions for each roi . shoppers entering area analysis analyzes the metadata and generates reports and graphical displays that describe and illustrate the number of shoppers who enter a specific store area or department from more than one location by crossing a virtual line . if the user wants to compare the number of shoppers present in more than one area , multiple cameras / virtual lines can be selected for analysis by this module . the saved query drop down menu 220 enables the user to select predefined queries , that the user has previously saved , and either run the selected query as is , or modify the query according to specific requirements . modifications to these queries are not saved unless the user saves the query under a new name using the save new query button 246 or saves the modified query using the save over query button 247 . using saved queries makes it easier for the user to obtain predefined and familiar reports from the system without having to define each of the specific parameters for the desired analysis again . the regions area 225 displays a tree hierarchy of all the stores and the cameras in each store including the default roi for each camera as well as any other rois , directional lines or tripwires that the user has defined . the user can define additional rois , directional lines or tripwires directly from the tree . rois , directional lines and tripwires that are used in saved queries cannot be modified or deleted . the report options area 230 enables the user to select a variety of additional options relevant to the type of query selected . all report types enable the user to select either a bar chart or a line graph . bar charts display the number of shoppers counted in the camera / roi over a specific time range . line graphs display the results over a selected continuous time span , with an hourly / daily resolution depending on the time span selected . the “ cumulative / average ” option in section 320 is available only if the bar chart option is selected and more than one day is selected for the time span . a cumulative report will show the cumulative number of shoppers who stayed in the roi for the full time range . for example , 300 shoppers stayed in the roi for over 60 seconds for the full three days . an average report will show the average results . for example , if 300 shoppers were in the roi for over 60 seconds over the full three day period , then on average , 100 shoppers stayed in the area for over 60 seconds across the three days . the time span area 235 enables the user to select the date and time period to be analyzed . the time period can be daily or continuous and may be for a full day ( 24 hours ) or for a specified time during the day . a single day can be selected by clicking on the day required , for example , sunday , july 1st . a consecutive range of days can be selected by selecting the first day in the range and then , while pressing the & lt ; shift & gt ; button clicking the last day in the range . for example , sunday , july 1st - tuesday , july 3rd . similarly , several non - consecutive days by clicking the first day and then pressing & lt ; ctrl & gt ; while clicking on each additional day . for example , sunday , july 1st , wednesday , july 4th and saturday , july 7th . thus , multiple days , spanning multiple months can be selected . the time of day option is only available if report has been selected to be a bar chart . a user can select a full day or select a start and end time for the analysis . if an end time is chosen , the value in the duration drop - down list is calculated according to the selected start and end times . alternately a start time and a duration can be selected and the end time is then automatically calculated . the recurrence control 240 enables the user to define the number of weekly recurrences the user wants to run the query for the same defined time span . for example , if the user selects june 16 as the time span and set the weekly recurrence to 4 , the resulting graph has 4 lines ( or 4 bars in a chart ) with each line / bar representing the selected time span over 4 recurring saturdays , starting from saturday , june 16 . if the user selected the time spans june 14 , 15 and 16 between the hours of 10 : 00 - 12 : 00 and again chose a weekly recurrence of 4 , the resulting graph would have 12 lines / bars ( 3 lines / bars ( days / hours ) for each of 4 weeks ). the queries pane 205 preferably includes four different control buttons : generate report 245 ; save new query 246 ; save over query 247 ; and saved query list 248 . the generate report control button 245 enables a user to generate a report for the query the user has defined / selected . in a preferred embodiment , the user can , immediately after clicking the generate report button 245 , select and generate a new query while the reports for the former query are still being generated . when the user clicks the generate report button 245 a new tab for the report is created in the reports viewer area 210 and thumbnails for each element of the report appears in that tab as the report progresses . as further described below , the user can view each thumbnail as it appears and does not have to wait for the entire report to complete before viewing any individual aspect of the report . the save new query control button 246 enables a user to save queries that the user has defined for future use . when the user clicks save new query button 246 a dialog box appears enabling the user to give the query a title and enter a narrative description of the query . the save over query button 247 enables a user to save the query that the user has defined or modified over an existing query . when the user clicks save over query button 248 , a saved query list dialog box appears and the user can then select the query the user wants to overwrite . the saved query list button 248 enables a user to manage saved queries . when the user clicks saved query list control button 248 , the saved query list dialog box appears . this dialog box enables the user to select queries for editing and also enables the user to change the order in which saved queries are displayed in the saved query drop - down list . the reports viewer 210 , located on the right half of the application window 200 as illustrated in fig2 has three main tabs : stores 250 ; maps 255 and reports 260 . the stores tab 250 displays a geographical map 265 of the region where the stores are located . a tool - tip bubble 270 indicates the location of each store on the map . the background color of the tool - tip 270 indicates if the store is currently visible in the regions 225 tree . [ question to inventors — does the fact that a store is not in the regions tree 225 indicate that there is no metadata in the system from that store ?]. in a preferred embodiment , color coding the tool tip 270 with the color green indicates that the store is visible in the regions tree 225 and white indicates that it is not visible in the regions tree 225 . if the user clicks on a green tool - tip 270 , the relevant store is highlighted in the regions 225 tree . right - clicking on a tool - tip 270 changes the visibility state of the store in the regions 225 tree . as illustrated in fig3 a , the maps tab 255 is capable of displaying a store map 300 in reports viewer area 210 . the map 300 illustrated in fig3 is a map of an entire store and maps of each of the departments in the store . all the installed cameras 305 are shown on these maps together with a description and a number that can be traced back to the tree in the regions section 225 of the queries pane 205 . when the user clicks on a camera 305 in the map , the selected camera 305 is highlighted in the regions 225 tree . as shown in fig3 b , if the user moves the mouse over any camera position 305 , he / she is shown a thumbnail 310 of the camera view for that camera . the icon for a camera 305 preferably also includes the direction that the camera faces as further shown in fig3 b , the maps tab 255 is preferably divided into two sections , an upper section that shows the map 300 of the selected store ( in the regions 225 tree ) and a lower section that shows thumbnail maps 315 of all the stores currently appearing in the stores tab 250 . the upper section also has department tabs 320 for each department in the store . clicking on a tab 320 causes the system to display a map of the selected department in the upper section . the user can select a store map by either clicking on the store in the regions 225 tree , clicking on the thumbnail map 315 of the store in the maps tab 255 or by clicking on the store &# 39 ; s tool - tip bubble 270 in the stores tab 250 ( see fig2 ). in the example shown in fig3 , the store # 2 is selected in both the regions tree 225 and in the lower section of the maps tab 255 . as shown in fig4 , the reports tab 260 is the area in graphical user interface in which the system displays results of the different analyses performed on the video metadata . all the images that comprise a report are shown as thumbnails 400 in a film strip at the bottom of the tab . when the user clicks on a thumbnail 400 the full image is displayed in the main viewing area of reports viewing area 210 . the user can preferably export any of the reports generated . when this feature is used , the raw data is preferably exported to an excel file while the images are preferably exported to . jpg format . reports remain in the tab 260 as long as the application is running . closing the application removes the reports from the viewer . before the viewer is closed a warning message is displayed if there are any reports that have not been exported . the user can then choose to export these reports before the viewer closes . as shown in fig4 , the user can hide the queries pane 205 area ( see fig3 a ) and consequently expand the viewer area 210 in the report tab 260 , stored tab 250 or maps tab 255 by clicking on the vertical bar between the queries pane 205 and the viewer area 210 . if the user clicks on the vertical bar again , the queries pane 205 area is shown . fig4 is an example of the report viewer area 210 of the reports tab 260 for a shopper in region analysis after the queries pane 205 has been hidden . the reports tab 260 has a slider 405 on the right side of the graph area that enables the user to change the size of the graph area and consequently change the size of or remove the legend from the visible area . as previously described , the queries pane 205 contains a regions tree 225 ( see fig2 and 3a ). the regions tree 225 lists the stores illustrated in the stores tab 250 and within each store shows hierarchical structure of the store in terms of the departments in the specific stores and the deployment of cameras in each department . each camera in the tree has a default roi defined . the tree structure 225 also shows additional rois , “ directions ” and “ tripwires ” that may be defined . each of these elements is described below . fig5 is an example of the regions tree 225 listing the hierarchical structure of the departments 500 , cameras 305 ( see fig3 ), regions of interest 505 , and directions installed in the store # 1 . as previously described , a roi is a defined area in the cameras view . the default roi forms the basis of all of the analysis by the system on the metadata from a camera and all new rois that the user defines must fall within the default roi to be included in this analysis . the label area 510 at the bottom of the regions tree 225 area 225 displays the name of the currently selected branch in the regions tree 225 . in the above example , store # 1 is selected in the regions tree 225 and is also displayed in the label area . detailed maps of each department can also be accessed from the respective department sub - tab in the maps tab 255 ( see fig3 ). departments comprise the second level in the regions tree 225 . as shown in fig5 , by selecting a particular camera in the regions tree 225 , the user can obtain a camera view 515 for any of the cameras in the regions tree 225 . camera view 515 illustrated in fig5 shows the view of the camera in the dental section of the cosmetics department in store # 1 . the default roi 520 for this camera is aisle floor in the camera image 515 . the names of the cameras 305 installed in the store are shown as the third level in the regions tree 225 hierarchy 225 . cameras 305 are also preferably predefined with the system . the camera 305 name in the regions tree 225 matches the camera 305 name shown on a map in the maps tab 255 ( for example , store map 300 in fig3 ). when the user clicks on a camera in a map ( store or department ), the relevant camera in the regions tree 225 255 is highlighted . an roi 505 , which is the fourth level in the regions tree 225 hierarchy , is a defined area within the camera &# 39 ; s field of vision . the default roi 520 for each camera view forms the basis for all analysis on this camera 305 . the system enables the user to define additional rois for each camera if a particular type of analysis is required . in a preferred embodiment , the default roi 520 is the largest area of the camera &# 39 ; s field of view that would have foot traffic , and thus video metadata that can be analyzed . the present invention preferably has default rois 520 defined for each camera . it should be noted that rois are only activated in the regions tree 225 if the report type selected is either a shoppers in region analysis report or a dwell time analysis report . a default roi for each camera is preferable exists and forms the basis for all analysis on this camera . if a roi that the user wants to use does not exist , it must be created . the user can define additional rois for each camera . any additional roi is preferably derivative of the default roi and as should be drawn inside the default roi . if the user defines a new roi that is completely outside the default roi , it is preferably ignored for analysis purposes . if the new roi falls partially outside the default roi , it is “ cut ” and only that portion of the roi that falls within the default roi is analyzed . the roi can be in any polygon shape that must have at least three sides . after drawing a new roi it can be repositioned by dragging it to a new location in the default roi . the user can also change the shape of the new roi by dragging any of the corner points to new positions . the position and size of any roi other than the default roi can be changed . if the roi that is desired to be changed is used in a saved query , a confirmation dialog box appears listing the saved queries using the selected roi and the user is asked to his / her action before proceeding . rois can be edited from the regions tree 225 , by right - clicking on the roi to be edited and select edit region from the right - click menu that appears . a camera view window appears showing the selected roi as it is positioned inside its default roi . the roi can be dragged to a new position using a polygon drawing tool . the edited roi can be saved by clicking “ save .” any roi other than the default roi can be deleted . if the roi to be deleted is used in a saved query , a confirmation dialog box appears listing the saved queries using the selected roi and the user is asked to confirm his / her action before proceeding . any roi other than the default roi can be renamed . returning to fig5 , directions 525 are the fifth level in the regions tree 225 . by selecting a direction for the roi 520 the user can , depending on the report type selected , obtain an analysis of the shopper traffic moving in that direction through the roi 520 . in the example illustrated in fig5 , a directional arrow 530 is set to indicate that an analysis may be required of shopper traffic moving in both directions this dental aisle in the cosmetics department . in a preferred embodiment , the directional arrow 530 is defaulted to being one - sided , meaning that shopper traffic is analyzed in one direction . the user can however change the arrow 530 to be two - sided , if required , as illustrated in fig5 . no matter where the user draws the directional arrow 530 , the system preferably places it in the center of the roi 520 in which it is drawn . directions allow for the analysis of shopper movement that passes through an roi in a particular direction . the user can place directional arrows 530 ( both single and double - sided ) in an roi , which are then used by the application to analyze shopper movement in the indicated direction to produce the directional analysis report . directions are only activated in the regions tree 225 when this report is selected . the user can define a new direction in the regions tree 225 . the directional arrow 530 ( indicating the direction ) can be one or two - sided . if the directional arrow 530 is one - sided then the application tracks shopper movement in the direction of the arrow . if the directional arrow 530 is two - sided , the application tracks shopper movement in both directions . a new direction is defined by the user by right - clicking the roi for which a new direction is to be defined and select new direction from the right - click menu that appears . a camera view window appears showing the selected roi . the new direction is drawn on the roi by clicking and dragging the mouse in the desired direction . the user can change the direction of the arrow 530 , as well as delete and rename directions . tripwires are virtual lines that can be drawn in an roi for a camera and are used to analyze shopper traffic crossing the line in a particular direction . fig6 is an example of a tripwire 600 in the regions tree 225 and the camera view showing the location and direction of the tripwire 605 . in the hierarchy , tripwires 600 have the same level as rois . if the tripwire does not fall within the roi , the traffic crossing the tripwire 605 line will not be analyzed . to define a new tripwire , in the regions tree 225 right - click the camera for which a new tripwire is to be defined and select new tripwire from the right - click menu that appears . a define new tripwire window appears showing the default roi . in the default roi , the new tripwire is drawn by clicking and dragging the mouse to draw a line for the new tripwire . it is most important to position the tripwire in precisely at the right place . the tripwire should also be drawn to the correct length so as to “ catch ” all the shoppers entering the region . unlike a directional arrow 530 as described above in regard to fig5 , a tripwire remains in the position in which it is drawn and is not automatically centered in an roi . a user can change the direction or position of the tripwire . if the tripwire that is to be changed is used in a saved query , a confirmation dialog box appears listing the saved queries using the selected tripwire and the user is asked to confirm his / her action before proceeding . a with directions discussed above , tripwires can be deleted and renamed . thus far , the basic structure of the gui of the system of the present invention has been described . next , the method of running queries on video metadata using the system will be explained . the method and system of the present invention enables the user to execute and obtain an analysis of shopper patterns by applying a combination of parameters for different report types . new queries can be created and saved and the user can also modify a saved query and save it either as a new query or by overwriting the saved query . the following describes each report type and how to run , and if required , modify a saved query . in addition the following describes how to manage the list of saved queries and , if required , change the order in which the saved queries are shown in the queries pane 205 . the regions tree 225 displays the stores currently selected in the stores tab 250 . however , when loading a saved query or restoring a query , the regions tree 225 is automatically updated to present the list of stores that were visible when the query was saved or executed . this mechanism can also be used for defining interesting groups of stores and saving a group as an empty query for future use . the reports generated for any query are viewed in the reports viewer area 210 ( see fig4 ). each new report generated includes the name or names of the stores included in that report . the report appears in a new tab in the reports viewer 210 and remains there until the application window is closed . if the user wants to retain the information displayed in a report the user preferably exports the report as described in the viewing / exporting reports discussed below . if the user attempts to close the application window when there are unsaved reports , a warning message is displayed giving the user the opportunity to save the unsaved reports or continue with the close procedure . the system and method of the present invention enables the user to select stores for which the user wants to generate reports . the user can select as many stores as required . in a preferred embodiment , a query can process up to forty two data sets per report . to select stores a user selects the stores tab 250 as shown in fig2 and right - clicks on the name of the store ( e . g . 270 ) to be selected in the stores map 265 . the tooltip bubble 270 changes to green and the store name appears in the regions tree 225 in the query pane 205 . the user can repeat this process for all the stores to be included in the regions tree 225 . to remove a store from the regions tree 225 , right - click on the store &# 39 ; s tooltip bubble 270 in the stores map 265 . the store is removed from the regions tree 225 and the tooltip bubble 270 changes to a white background . once the stores have been selected for the analysis desired by the user , the user then selects the specific type of analysis and report he / she wants to run . the system and method of the present invention enables the user to select and run queries for the following report types as described above . “ shoppers in region analysis ”: enables the user to locate trends in the number of shoppers over time in any specific region . the report can help the user analyze changes in shopper numbers per hour of the day , day of the week or during holidays or promotion campaign days . full flexibility is provided in selecting a roi from a specific endcap or shelf to full camera view or even complete departments . by drawing a customized roi on specific shelf or stand the user can pinpoint the analysis to selected shelf or even a product . a quick query feature available for this report enables the user to generate queries that compare cameras in the stores or compare departments in the stores selected in the stores tab 250 as described above . an example of a bar graph output for a shoppers in region analysis is shown in fig4 . fig7 illustrates the dataflow conducted during the calculation of a query for each of the preferred methods of the present invention : shoppers in region analysis ; dwell time analysis ; directional analysis ; and shoppers entering area analysis . as previously described , the system and method of the present invention analyzes data derived from video streams from video cameras to generate reports on the movement of objects , people , within a defined space . the system processes video clips and outputs trajectories of people moving in each of the cameras . information of these trajectories is stored in a tracking database 714 which enables both relatively low disk - space and high seeks speed for fast queries . in general , each detected object has a unique id , followed by a timestamp of its first appearance and coordinates of its movements . each coordinate also includes a delta time - span from the timestamp of the first appearance of the object . the tracking database 714 is constantly added with new trajectories information from each of the cameras as time passing by . the reporter gui 700 previously described with respect to fig2 - 4 enables the user to define queries to run against the retail traffic analysis ( rta ) query engine 710 . each query 705 which the user defines using the reporter gui 700 is first translated to an extendible markup language ( xml ) query , which is then sent to the query engine 710 for calculation . once the query engine has completed it &# 39 ; s processing of the user &# 39 ; s query , operating on the data in the tracking database 715 , and the result is ready , the result is presented to the user in a new report which is opened in a separate tab such as illustrated in fig4 . this process enables the user to browse multiple reports simultaneously . upon receiving a xml which defines a query 705 the user has defined , the rta query engine 710 starts a calculation procedure . in order to increase the speed of report generation , each camera that is queried is calculated in a separate thread in the rta query engine 710 . when the result is ready , it is sent back to the user for presentation 725 . the rta query engine 710 queries the tracking database 715 for trajectories information according to the query 705 requested . the tracking database 715 is indexed in such a way that makes the retrieval of data optimal for most common queries 705 . the shoppers in region analysis provides an object count that represents the number of objects per unit area in a specific time interval . in a preferred embodiment , the objects are people , preferably in a retail store . using this tool , one can distinguish between regions by their object ( people ) occupancy . object count can answer question like how many objects visited a region during a period and what is the pattern of object occupancy on a certain area during a certain time period . as described above , the user of the present system has the ability to define several rois within a particular camera view and can thus compare the relative number of shoppers in these respective areas . this shoppers in region analysis tool has many applications . for example the tool can be used for traffic jam analysis . the system can be set with a certain threshold of number of objects ( cars , people . . . ) per unit area per time for traffic jam analysis and monitor areas for capacity overload . the tool can be used plan remodels / resets in a retail environment . object , people , count qualitative / quantitative observations can be used for examination of different store models ( layout / services / management / locations etc ) and can serve as infrastructure for store model optimization . the observations of the system of the present invention are unbiased by any human interpretation factors and can be continuously monitored to determine trends and facts . the tool can be used for shelf / aisle / end - cap pricing , to evaluate promotions and provide comparisons between time periods when the promotions were running and when they weren &# 39 ; t , and comparisons of foot traffic when shelf / aisle / end - caps are stocked with different products . if one would like to examine regions for occupancy purposes ( in a store environments ) the number of people passing by a certain area is a good parameter for estimation area popularity and therefore likelihood for product to be sold . therefore this information can be served to negotiate pricing of different areas in the store . questions like popularity comparison between regions ( end - caps / aisles ) or comparison between periods ( sales / holidays / weekend / weekday ) or what are the peak hours can be answered on an empirical basis without any bias . in a warehouse environment , the present tool can be used for optimization of product provision by examining object count patterns , where the monitored objects can be workers in the warehouse or forklifts that are used in the warehouse . further , since the system of the present invention is able uniquely identify objects , the system is able to track the person as they travel from area to area ( between camera views ) throughout the store . this feature of the present invention has particular applicability to security ( e . g ., tracking a shoplifting suspect ) but can also be used to detect consumer preferences , preferred store configuration and various other operational aspects of how a store is configured and operated . “ dwell time analysis ”: displays the number of shoppers that “ dwell ” in a particular area over a defined time period . for example , the number of shoppers who remained in the roi in the area for more than 20 seconds but less than 40 seconds . only single cameras can be selected for this query type , but in a single camera it is possible to compare several rois . as shown in fig8 , a bar graph 800 can be used to show the results of the dwell time analysis in the report viewer 210 ( see fig2 ). in addition to bar chart that is produced by the dwell time analysis report a line chart ( not illustrated ) can be used to display the dwell time analysis . further , the user can also select to have a path map or “ heat ” map produced for the same time period . as shown in fig9 , the path map 900 is a superimposed over a still image of the roi and shows the paths 905 of the objects that were in the roi for the selected time frame and dwell time . if the time period selected by the user is too long , the image in the report may be saturated with the path lines 905 . thus , it is preferred to use shorter time periods for each query and repeat the query several times to find the preferred time resolution . mike the dwell time analysis can also generate a heat map 1000 as illustrated in fig1 . as illustrated in fig1 , the heat map provides “ heat ” indications superimposed over a still picture of the roi and shows the density of objects in the roi for the selected time frame and dwell time . as used herein , “ heat ” indicates the amount of time an object ( a person ), remains ( dwells ) in a particular location . the dwell time analysis report thus enables the user to understand shopper &# 39 ; s activity in a specific roi . a strong correlation exists between the dwelling time of a shopper in a certain roi and the shopper &# 39 ; s activity ( e . g ., making a purchase ). in the preferred embodiment , the heat map 1000 shows the number of shoppers that spent the selected amount of time in the physical area . areas that experienced the same number of shoppers during the selected time frame are connected by contour lines , similar to a topographic or isobaric map . fig1 shows an example of a 10 - 20 seconds dwell time heat map 1000 of aisle 1025 . note , this map only shows shoppers that spent more than 10 seconds and less than 20 seconds in the roi of aisle 1025 . if the shopper spent less than 10 seconds in this roi — their activity is not illustrated in this heat map 1000 . similarly , if the shopper spent more than 20 seconds in the roi , they are not represented in this heat map . again , the heat maps 1000 of the preferred embodiment show the number of shoppers for a selected range of dwell times , the heat maps do not map the actual dwell times of the shoppers themselves . a short dwell time usually indicates that shopper is walking . for example , 5 - 10 seconds in a short aisle or 10 - 20 seconds in a long action alley . the user can easily see that the area with the most traffic 1005 is the walking passage , as expected . most people who remained in this roi for less than 20 seconds were just passing through . more specifically , part 1010 of the heat map 1000 is the area in which most of the people who spent 10 - 20 seconds in this roi spent their time . fewer shoppers spent less than 20 seconds in area 1015 . it is noted that this area 1010 is across from aisle 1020 . one conclusion that can be drawn from the particular dwell time analysis shown in fig1 is that aisle 1020 is one of the main aisles in the store by which customers travel to get to aisle 1025 . this conclusion could be confirmed by performing a shoppers in region analysis as describe herein . long dwell time of shoppers near produce table or shelves usually refers to a buying activity or at least high interest in a product . for example , 20 - 40 seconds in a short aisle or more than 40 seconds in a long alley . fig1 shows an example of a & gt ; 40 seconds heat map 1100 of the same aisle 1025 as illustrated in fig1 . it can be seen that most of the people that remained in this roi more than 40 seconds were busy with a buying activity near the refrigerators 1105 . the darkest locations 1110 denote the hottest ones — meaning that more shoppers spent more than 40 seconds at these particular locations in aisle 925 . the dwell time analysis tool of the present invention can answer question like how many object which visited a region during a period stayed in this region for a certain amount of time . this type of query gives insights on the object count query because it tells how many objects which were counted stayed in the region certain amount of time . this type of information is very useful for visualize the hot - spots in a store and it could also be presented over the floor - plan of the store to identify hot - spots over the entire store at once . further , one can easily spot traffic jams using this type of query ( long and narrow areas that are highly occupied — red ). dwell time analysis provides insights about object temporal behavior patterns . therefore a user of the present invention can plan resets and remodels by analyzing behavior patterns in different stores and in different times ( hours , days , etc .). the dwell time information is essential when trying to estimate effectiveness of different areas of the store ( shelves , aisles and end - caps ), to evaluate the attractiveness of certain products over the others or to evaluate how effective promotions are by comparing same spot over different times of a campaign . the directional analysis method of the present invention generates an analysis of the flow of shoppers within the store and more specifically , the directions in which the shoppers move with the areas of the store . in a preferred embodiment , only single cameras are selected for this type of analysis , but in a single camera it is possible to compare several directions for each roi . fig1 illustrates a line graph 1200 showing the results of a directional analysis . when continuous is selected in the time span area ( see 235 , fig2 ), a legend 1205 is displayed below the line graph 1200 showing the breaks between dates selected for the report ( as shown in fig1 ). if this option is selected with the recurrence feature ( see 240 , fig2 ), the legend only shows the separation of days and not dates . a path map similar to that shown for the dwell time analysis report discussed above can also be created for this report , if required . using the user - defined directions as previously described , a user can generate queries that filter the data according to specific direction at a specific area of interest . combining several directions can produce a comparison which encapsulates highly innovative information . this directional analysis tool of the present invention can be used to gather information regarding common paths , patterns of movements , design of floor plan , etc . for instance , a comparison between shoppers moving up or down the aisle can be generated . in more complex situations , a directional analysis query can be defined to investigate a specific junction at the store — counting the number of shoppers turned to every direction . the result is presented to the user in different kind of charts according to what was defined in the query . the directional analysis represents the number of object per unit area on a specific time interval that moved to a certain direction . therefore by this observation one can distinguish between regions by their object movement . directional analysis can answer question like how many objects , people , which visited a region during a period moved to certain direction and what is the pattern of object motion in a certain area during a certain period . this directional analysis query gives insights on the object count query because it tells how many objects which were counted moved to a chosen direction . the directional analysis tool can also be used for traffic jam analysis . one interested in traffic jam can use this query to provide information about potential traffic jams due to certain directional movement patterns . the directional analysis tool can also be used to plan resets / remodels given that it provides insights about traffic patterns . therefore store models can be investigated by its traffic measurement . further the directional analysis tool can be used for shelves pricing and promotions . traffic flow patterns can be compared and provide reasons for difference between object count measurement and hence for popularity of store spaces . in the retail environment the directional analysis tool can answer questions like path popularity . in the warehouse environment , the directional analysis tool can be used for optimization of product provision by examining product path and flow in the warehouse . the shoppers entering area analysis components of the system and the method of the present invention generates and displays an analysis of the number of shoppers who enter a specific store area or department by crossing a virtual line . fig1 illustrates a line graph 1300 showing the results of a shoppers entering area analysis . if the user wants to compare the number of shoppers present in more than one area , multiple cameras / virtual lines can be selected . when continuous is selected in the time span area ( see 235 , fig2 ), a legend 1305 is displayed below the line graph 1300 showing the breaks between dates selected for the report . in the above example of fig1 , the recurrence feature ( see 240 , fig2 ) is also selected and the legend 1305 shows the separation of days in the graph . the shoppers entering area analysis query shows only shoppers that were observed crossing a virtual line ( tripwire ) on the ground floor . a graphical interface allows a user of the present invention to define a tripwire under each of the available cameras and select these tripwires to be queried . as described above , a tripwire is simply a virtual line with a direction indicator which defines the requested crossing direction . only shoppers crossing this line in the specified direction will be counted in this type of query . employing these user - defined tripwires , a user of the present invention can generate queries which will filter the data according to specific crossing directions . combining several tripwires can produce an accurate counting of shoppers entering / exiting a specific area or department . the shoppers entering area analysis tool can be used to count the number of shoppers entered into the store or even to a specific department inside the store , if all entrances to the department are covered with cameras . as with the other queries , the result is presented to the user in different kind of charts according to what was defined in the query . shoppers entering area analysis can answer question like how many object moved from one area to another area via certain place ( line ). this query gives information on traffic flow like directional analysis but different from directional analysis in that it looks for object crossing line and not all the objects in a certain region that are moving in a general direction . this query also provides information on traffic flow and therefore the same issues for directional analysis are valid for this query . in operation , the system and the method of the present invention is driven by a user &# 39 ; s query of the data stored in the database . the following describes how to define new queries or modify a saved query . a query is comprised of four parameters . the following sections describe how to define and use each of these parameters when defining queries . defining regions tree options ; defining report options ; defining time span options ; and defining recurrence options . the values that can be selected for any of the above parameters differ according to report type . for example , the options available for a dwell time analysis report are not necessarily also available for a shoppers in region analysis report . in a preferred embodiment fields on the user &# 39 ; s interface are grayed out ( not available ) in any of the parameter areas , if that field is not available for that report type . a query can include cameras from different stores however in a preferred embodiment a query can only have up to 42 data series per report . a message is displayed if the user exceeds this preferred number , notifying the user that the report cannot be generated . the first step in defining a query is to select the store ( s ) that are to be included in the query . the following procedures describe how to define new parameters for a new query in the preferred embodiment . the same procedures are followed to modify any of the parameters in a saved query . to define a query : 1 ) select the store ( s ) for the query ; 2 ) select a report type ; 3 ) define the regions parameters ; 4 ) define the report options parameters ; 5 ) define the time span parameters ; and 6 ) define the recurrence parameters . the following are some preferred guidelines for defining or modifying queries and allow the user to obtain more accurate results for any analysis performed by the system and method of the present invention . these guidelines relate to the following : ( 1 ) margins ; ( 2 ) perspective ; ( 3 ) shopper count ; ( 4 ) dwell time ; and ( 5 ) directional analysis in regard to margins , shoppers ( objects ) that are close to the margins of the default roi can be “ cut ” out of the processing area . for better accuracy it is preferred that the user define rois and tripwires away from the margins and as close to the center of the default roi as possible . when the user defines rois and tripwires , the perspective in relation to the camera must also be considered . a new roi should be drawn inside the default roi . any part of an roi that is outside the default roi is not considered when performing an analysis of the roi . with respect to perspective , when the user defines an roi or a tripwire the user should be aware of perspective distortion . items that are far away in the camera view ( towards the horizon ) are smaller and tend to be less visible to the camera . for better accuracy it is preferred that the user defines rois and tripwires as close to the camera as possible , but not too close to the margins of the default roi . in regard to shopper count , when a query is performed on an entire department or on a group of cameras , there could be a certain amount of overlapping with some of the shoppers appearing in more than one camera . for example , if the user defines a query and selects five cameras in the cosmetics department but only one camera in the grocery department , the results may show more shoppers in the cosmetics department . this doesn &# 39 ; t necessarily mean that there were actually more people in the cosmetics department in that time frame . in addition , the report may show more shoppers in the cosmetics department in that time frame than were actually present , due to the overlapping of the cameras . with respect to dwell time , a heat map can be produced as part of a dwell time analysis report . the heat map shows where most of the activity occurs and is comprised of two images : the original view of the camera ; and the density of the shoppers ( objects ) in view . the image showing the density of the shoppers is placed over the original view of the camera to produce the heat map . each point in the second image ( the density map ) is a count of the number of shoppers ( objects ) multiplied by the time ( in seconds ) that these shoppers remained in this particular location for the specified time . by generating a heat map on the default roi , the user is able to recognize the hot spots in the camera view . the data displayed in the heat map ( density map ) is relative to the entire roi . in a preferred embodiment a user sets a specific , small , roi to answer specific questions . for example , if the user wants to know how many people were dwelling in front of an end - cap , the region should be set just in front of that end - cap . when defining a query to produce a direction analysis report , in the preferred embodiment , only shoppers that perform a substantial movement in the desired direction are counted . for the purposes of this report in the preferred embodiment , substantial movement is any movement that is more than 10 % of the image size . a further aspect of the present invention is the connectivity and integration of the rta system , described in detail above , and the video data on which the rta operates . as described above , the rta tool creates reports based on meta - data that was generated from raw video data that was recorded in retails stores 105 ( see fig1 ). according to the further aspect of the present invention , a user , when viewing a report generated by the rta tool , can click on the relevant portion of the report and retrieve and launch the raw video from the camera that generated the date reflected in the report . for example , fig1 a illustrates a path map report similar to the one illustrated in fig9 . if the user clicks on the path , she is able to launch the video , as illustrated in fig1 b , depicting the movement of the actual person traversing the same path that is described by the path map . naturally , only a single frame of the video is illustrated in fig1 b , but one can appreciate that this video is presented to the user as full motion video for the time span selected by the user for the path map report . the video launching can be done by clicking the trajectory itself in the thumbnail image ( right click -& gt ; launch video ) or by selecting it from a list of all trajectories in the relevant report . the same ability to view the full video applies to the other reports described herein as well . when a user detects a long dwell time in a certain place ( red spot in the dwell image ), the user can instruct the system to connect to the video management system ( element 115 in fig1 ) as described above and the system extracts the video clips that describe the people standing in that specified location . the present invention also provides for the launching of the raw video from a graphical report . while viewing a bar - chart of a certain time , or a line graph , the user can click a data spot in the graph to launch the relevant video clip from the graph . for example if a user clicked the line chart of fig9 on a portion of the chart that described 20 people going to the right at a certain location , the system would present the user with 20 different video clips depicting the 20 people in the roi for that camera moving in that direction . the connectivity to the video management system ( vms ) 115 from the retail traffic analyzer 125 ( see fig1 ) is done by using an api ( application program interface ) that is provided by the vms 115 itself . the vms 115 allows the system to retrieve a stream of video from a specified camera in a certain time range . knowing where the user clicked on a particular report / map , the system knows what camera to ask and what time range is desired by the user and the system simply asks the vms 115 for the video clips corresponding to the specified camera for the specified time frame . once the rta 125 receives this video data , it opens a video viewer window that lets the user view and control the video she requested . this feature enhances the rta 125 , making the experience more intuitive and the reports more powerful . a power user or an analyst can now benefit much more from the reporting system due to the fact that every piece of information can be investigated quickly to understand what was going on and why . for example , if a user sees strange activity in the middle of the night ( many people in one place ) the user can just click the report and watch the video describing irregular movement of shopper or employees in that spot . it also makes the vms 115 system more powerful , allowing the user to find what she are looking for using the rta 125 without having to browse through hours of raw video . if the user is looking for some activity near the meat refrigerator between 10 - 11 am , the user can simply generate a report for that camera during that time range and get all clips describing only people in a certain location in the video without having to watch an entire hour of video . although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof , many other variations and other uses will be apparent to those skilled in the art . it is preferred , therefore , that the present invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein , but only by the gist and scope of the disclosure .	6
the present invention is particularly suited for coating eyewear such as the pc visor 10 of fig1 a and 1b . fig2 shows a magnified cross - section of the absorption filter as applied to visor 10 . a layer of the narrow band absorption filter 12 is deposited on the pc 14 . a hard overcoat 16 can be used to enhance durability . molecules of the absorbing dye 18 are dispersed substantially randomly throughout layer 12 . the distribution of dye molecules need not be strictly uniform , some may even be clumped together . layer 12 is a thin film having a thickness between 5 and 25 microns . layer 12 is comprised of an evaporable dye 18 in a transparent matrix 19 . by diluting the dyes in a suitable background material to form a solid solution as described above , dye inter - molecular interactions are reduced so that ( unlike prior thin films of organic dyes prepared by thermal evaporation ) a very narrow spectral absorptance line width is achieved . &# 34 ; evaporable &# 34 ; as used herein means depositable in thin film form molecularly intact by means of a physical vapor deposition technique . one such technique is thermal evaporation . for a thermal evaporation deposition process occurring at a temperature t p , the materials used to form the filter coating in the present invention must meet the criterion that t d & gt ; t p , where t d for each material is the characteristic temperature of thermodynamic stability at or above which the material becomes irreversibly molecularly disrupted . selection of suitable dye materials as well as a suitable matrix are controlled by spectral considerations as well as the above indicated thermodynamic considerations . pvd was determined to be an affective way to disperse the dye molecules within a solid matrix . more specifically the following classes of dyes were identified as suitable for pvd : the porphyrins ; metallo - phthalocyanines or rare - earth diphthalocyanines ; cyanines or carbocyanines ; merocyanines ; squaryliums ; and tetracenes . spectrally , the dye must be a narrow band dye which absorbs strongly only at or very near the wavelength of interest , and the matrix is preferably transparent ( or nearly so over a range of wavelengths that includes the wavelengths of interest ) at wavelengths other than the wavelength of interest ( i . e , out of band wavelengths ). in general this led to examining dyes with larger molecular chain structures for the near infra - red dyes and porphyrins or cyanine dyes in the visible spectrum . since molecular oscillator strengths and absorption bandwidths are generally inversely related , the higher the extinction ratio at the wavelengths of interest , the more likely it is that a dye will be a good candidate spectrally . evaporable transparent , inert organic polymers or inorganic compounds meet the spectral and thermal criteria for a matrix . acceptable evaporable organic polymers are polyesters and polypropylenes . hundreds of evaporable inorganic compounds are transparent in the visible region , but organic polymers are preferable as the matrix material because of their better physical properties and compatibility in coating applications on pc . purity of the dye is important for a good quality filter , but the necessary purity is highly application dependent . purity of one part per hundred may be suitable for some applications whereas purity of one part per ten thousand or even one part per million is desirable . sublimation ( i . e ., distillation relining ) is a good method to obtain ultra - pure dye crystals . however , not all porphyrins can be sublimated . sublimation has been used extensively with phthalocyanines . of particular interest is an absorption filter which absorbs at both 530 nm and 694 nm . two metallo - phthalocyanines ( aluminum dichloro - phthalocyanine , alcl 2 pc , and vanadyl phthalocyanine , vopc ) and a porphyrin ( platinum octaethylporphine , ptoep ) were chosen as the dyes for a filter because their absorption peaks are at 678 nm , 698 nm and 534 . 5 nm , respectively , and each have high extinction coefficients of 10 5 . the preferable matrix dilutant is a polyester . in particular , a polyester made by dupont ( mylar , type d ). this polyester had an index of refraction of 1 . 6 and was visably clear . mylar is a polyester made from polyethylene terephthalate by a condensation reaction of ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid . an effective pvd process for the dye and polyester matrix is as follows : 1 ) stabilize and set dye deposition rate , 2 ) cover dye source while keeping the dye source at a set temperature , 3 ) stabilize and set polyester deposition rate , 4 ) uncover dye source and start co - evaporation , 5 ) monitor only the polyester deposition rate during co - evaporation ( holding the dye at a constant temperature ), 6 ) adjust the power to the dye source in the manner that maintained a constant dye deposition rate during calibration runs . fig3 shows a schematic of the pvd setup employing the above process . the pvd mechanism 20 includes an evacuated chamber 22 , pump means 24 , control valve 26 between the pump means 24 and the chamber 22 , a dye source crucible 28 and a polyester source crucible 30 . wires 32 and 34 provide the power and heat to the sources . substrate holder 36 holds the visor or other substrate in a position so that the dye and polyester will evaporate onto the substrate . the dye monitor 38 and mylar monitor 40 can be used to check deposition rates . a shutter 42 is rotated to cover the substrate while deposition rates are set . fig4 summarizes the steps of the pvd process . during deposition of the dye and polyester , deposition of polyester on the quartz crystal used to monitor the dye deposition was unavoidable . since the rate of polyester deposition was much larger than that of the dye , this made it impossible to monitor the rate of deposition of the dye . to fix the dye deposition rate , the temperature of the dye source was held constant during deposition of the filter . to avoid a cloudiness that tended to appear in the deposited films due to crystallization of the polyester , it was found that an aluminum screen inserted in the polyester source crucible increased thermal equilibrium in the polyester source during evaporation . this in turn was believed to reduce the tendency of the deposited polyester to crystallize and in fact did eliminate the cloudiness . fig5 shows the marked improvement in transparency of polyester coatings ( eight microns thick ) with the aluminum screen being inserted in the polyester source . the reason for this improvement could be a relatively narrow temperature region in which the polyester sublimes without molecular disintegration . by promoting uniform temperature in the polyester source one can operate in this narrow temperature region for most of the material load in the crucible . this process temperature range is estimated to be 320 °- 340 ° c . ( i . e . t p ) for mylar . normal deposition time was between twenty and fifty minutes . this was sufficient to grow films of about 10 microns thick . deposition rates were typically 30 å / sec . dye concentration ( defined as the ratio of the thickness of the dye in the film if deposited separately , to the total thickness of the deposited film ) was settled at 0 . 8 % for vopc and 9 % to 10 % for ptoep . as a first feasibility demonstration of the dye - matrix absorption filter , several substrates were coated with different concentrations of two metallo - phthalocyanines . variations in absorption versus wavelength as a function of alcl 2 pc concentration for three substrates coated with the dye - polyester film are shown in fig6 . fig7 shows variations in absorptance versus wavelength as a function of vopc concentration for three substrates . the lowest concentration in both cases approximated a liquid solution of the dye in chloronapthalene . thus the thesis of isolating the dye molecules in a solid matrix to reproduce the narrow absorption band characteristics of a dye in a solution was confirmed . fig8 and 9 correspond to the first row of data of tables 1 and 2 , respectively . fig8 shows the spectral transmittance of a vopc - polyester thin films and fig9 shows the spectral transmittance of a ptoep - polyester thin film . tables 1 and 2 include data for films other than these shown in fig8 and 9 , but which demonstrated very similar spectral transmission characteristics to that of fig8 and 9 . dye source temperatures ( t p ) were 350 °- 400 ° c . for the alcl 2 pc dye ; 340 °- 360 ° c . for the vopc dye and 340 °- 350 ° c . for the ptoep dye . table 1______________________________________list of visors and lenses coated withvopc ( mylar ) absorption filters absorp - tion total peaks thicknessrun visor / λ1 . sup . ( nm ) bandwidth ( μm ) % dyenumber lens λ2 . sup . ( nm ) od fwhm ( nm ) vopc______________________________________84205 visor 700 2 . 5 113 10 694 2 . 0 0 . 7884206 visor 700 2 . 7 116 10 694 2 . 5 0 . 8684311 visor 700 2 . 7 116 10 694 2 . 6 0 . 8284315 lenses 700 2 . 4 105 10 694 2 . 0 0 . 78______________________________________ table 2______________________________________list of visors and lenses coated withptoep polyester ( mylar ) absorption filters absorp - tion total peaks thicknessrun visor / λ1 . sup . ( nm ) bandwidth ( μm ) % dyenumber lens λ2 . sup . ( nm ) od fwhm ( nm ) pt - oep______________________________________84328 - 1 visor 537 . 5 2 . 8 72 10 532 1 . 7 9 . 384328 - 2 visor 537 . 5 2 . 8 70 10 532 1 . 7 9 . 384329 - 1 visor 537 . 5 2 . 3 60 10 532 1 . 3 9 . 784334 lenses 537 . 5 2 . 7 62 10 532 1 . 6 10 . 5______________________________________ fig1 shows spectral transmission of a dual layer thin film filter . each layer is about 10 microns thick with an optical density of 1 - 3 for the ptoep layer and optical density of 2 - 3 for the vopc layer . in the dual layer embodiment , cloudiness appeared in later deposition runs . this was found to be related to the rtv silicone mold substrate holder . this problem was solved after the holder was switched to a metal holder . to provide an abrasion - resistant overcoat ( such as 16 in fig1 ), it is preferred to first coat the absorption layer with a thin ( approximately 1000å ) plasma - polymerized hexamethyldisiloxane ( hmds ) to provide a barrier coat . then apply approximately 5 microns of a ultraviolet - cured silicone polymer ( such as 3m brand photogard ). the overcoat also increases adhesion of the filter coating to the visor . the above invention has been described with regard to specific dyes and one or two layers of thin film . of course , numerous layers with a different dye in each layer can be employed with the dye selected to absorb at a particular wavelength . thereby , a plurality of wavelengths can be filtered by a plurality of layers . further , the particular dyes described above are given merely by way of example and other evaporable dyes in the classes listed may be employed . further , the pc substrate is given merely by way of example and other substrate materials can be utilized . the invention is particularly useful for coating curved and contoured surfaces . the best mode of the invention incorporates silicon dioxide ( sio 2 ) as the inorganic compound for diluting and holding dye in solid form . the organic dye is dispersed throughout the inorganic compound . the dye molecule is vanadyl phthalocyanine . alternatively , magnesium fluoride ( mgf 2 ) maybe utilized as an inorganic compound for diluting and holding the dye in solid form . both materials are formed into thin films ( i . e ., a thin film having a thickness less than 25 microns ) by the physical vapor deposition ( pvd ) method of electron beam deposition . note , while there are many other thin film inorganic material which could be used , such as titanium dioxide ( tio 2 ), having a higher refractive index ( approximately 2 . 4 ) and higher melting point / process deposition temperature than either sio 2 ( approximately 1 . 5 ) or mgf 2 ( approximately 1 . 38 ), that sublime at relatively low temperatures and thus become much less useful for forming a narrow band selective absorption thin film filter on a temperature sensitive polymeric substrate . a relatively low refractive index is desirable for an optical transmitting device such as a narrow band selective filter , in order to minimize out - of - band surface reflectance losses . the narrow band selective absorption filter in the form of a thin film coating which can be applied to an arbitrarily shaped substrate such as a compound - curved pilot &# 39 ; s visor , consisting of an intimate dispersion of an organic dye molecule in an inorganic matrix , is fabricated by a pvd technique of the vacuum co - evaporation using a thermal source for the chromophore / dye molecules and an e - beam gun source for the inorganic material . instead of vanadyl phthalocyanine , the organic dye may be another suitable chromophore from the porphyrins , metallo - phthalocyanines , rare - earth diphthalocyanines , cyanines , carbocyanines , merocyanines , squaryliums , and tetracenes . fig1 and 12 depict a suitable e - beam / thermal source co - deposition vacuum process chamber and a process flow diagram , respectively , for the fabrication of such a narrow band selective absorption filter . the pvd process of the dye and inorganic matrix utilizes the following steps : 1 ) stabilize and set the dye deposition rate ; 2 ) set the dye source shutter closed while maintaining the dye source temperature ; 3 ) stabilize and set the inorganic dielectric ( e . g ., sio 2 ) e - beam source deposition rate ; 4 ) open dye source shutter and start co - deposition ; 5 ) monitor the sio 2 deposition rate during co - deposition ( holding the dye source at a constant temperature ); and 6 ) adjust the power to the dye source to maintain constant deposition rate throughout the run .	6
the present invention is described in relation to a microfluidic printing apparatus which can print computer generated digital images . referring to fig1 a schematic diagram is shown of a microfluidic printing apparatus 8 in accordance with the present invention . reservoirs 10 , 20 , 30 , and 40 are respectively provided for storing black , cyan , magenta , and yellow solutions . the microfluidic printing apparatus can comprise fewer or more than four colorant reservoirs to include other colors such as red , green and blue , and / or the same colorant at different concentrations . a colorless fluid can also be mixed with the colorants to generate a continuous tone in the final printed and displayed image . microchannel capillaries 50 respectively connected to each of the reservoirs conduct colorant or solutions from the corresponding reservoir to an array of colorant delivery chambers 60 . the colorants are delivered to the colorant delivery chambers 60 by microfluidic pumps . the example of the microfluidic pump used in the present invention is the electrokinetic pumps 70 , also known as an electroosmotic pumps , which is shown in detail in fig3 . the present invention is also compatible with other types of microfluidic pumps such as piezoelectric micropumps , peristaltic micropumps , piston pumps , and gas pressurized pumps . details about these microfluidic pumps are described , for example , in &# 34 ; electroosmosis : a reliable fluid propulsion system for flow injection analyses &# 34 ;, anal . chem . 66 , pp . 1792 - 1798 ( 1994 ). in fig1 electrokinetic pumps 70 are shown only for the black colorant channel . similar pumps are used for the other colorant channels , but are omitted in fig1 for clarity . the amount of each colorant being delivered is controlled by microcomputer 90 according to the digital image 100 . the digital image can be reproduced on the receiver 80 in black or colors , or can be viewed directly as a display . for generating a printed image , the microfluidic printing apparatus 8 is transported by a transport mechanism 95 in the direction as indicated by the double arrow in fig1 to come in contact with the receiver 80 . in the present invention , the colorant delivery chambers 60 deliver the colorant directly to a receiver 80 as shown in fig1 ; however , other types of colorant delivery arrangements can be used such as microfluidic channels , and so when the word chamber is described , it will be understood to include those arrangements . details about microfluidic printing including microchannels , fluid delivery chambers , and microfluidic pumps are described in the above referenced , commonly assigned u . s . patent applications , which can also be used in the present invention . the receiver 80 in the present invention can be both reflective or transparent . the receiver 80 can be common paper having sufficient fibers to provide a capillary force to draw the ink from the mixing chambers into the paper . synthetic papers may also be used . the receiver 80 can have a coated layer of polymer which has a strong affinity , or mordanting effect on the ink . for example , if a water based ink is used , a layer of gelatin will provide an absorbing layer for the ink . in one example of an embodiment of the present invention , the receiver 80 is disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 605 , 750 , by romano , bugner , and ferrar , hereby incorporated by reference . the receiver 80 also includes physical articles such as self - adhesive stickers , books , files , and passports , card stock , packaging boxes , envelopes , boxes , packages , and so on . the outside surface of a film carton is shown as receiver 80 in fig1 for illustration . finally , colorants are transferred to a receiver 80 to reproduce input digital image 100 on the receiver 80 . the colorants used in this invention can be dispersions of dyes or pigments in aqueous solutions or solvents . examples of such inks are found is u . s . pat . no . 5 , 611 , 847 by gustina , santilli , and bugner . inks are also be found in the following commonly assigned u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 699 , 955 , filed aug . 20 , 1996 entitled &# 34 ; cyan and magenta pigment set &# 34 ;; u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 699 , 962 , filed aug . 20 , 1996 entitled &# 34 ; magenta ink jet pigment set &# 34 ;; u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 699 , 963 , filed aug . 20 , 1996 entitled &# 34 ; cyan ink jet pigment set &# 34 ;, all by mcinerney , oldfield , bugner , bermel , and santilli ; and in u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 790 , 131 , filed jan . 29 , 1997 entitled &# 34 ; heat transferring inkjet ink images &# 34 ; by bishop , simons , and brick ; and u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 764 , 379 , filed dec . 13 , 1996 entitled &# 34 ; pigmented inkjet inks containing phosphated ester derivatives &# 34 ; by martin , the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein . colorants such as the ciba geigy unisperse rubine 4ba - pa , unisperse yellow rt - pa , and unisperse blue gt - pa are also preferred embodiments of the invention . fig2 depicts a top view of the arrangement of colorant delivery chambers 60 , as shown in fig1 located within a front plate 120 of the microfluidic printing apparatus . each colorant delivery chamber 60 is capable of receiving a single colorant such as black , yellow , magenta , or cyan , or producing a mixture of colorants having any color saturation , hue and lightness within the color gamut provided by the set of colorant solutions used in the apparatus . the colorant delivery chambers 60 are laid out in rows and columns . the rows are labeled as r1 , r2 , r3 . . . and so on . the columns are labeled as c1 , c2 , c3 . . . and so on . each colorant delivery chamber is located by its row and column numbers . the front plate 120 comprises a total of m rows and n columns . fig3 shows a cross - sectional view of a colorant delivery chamber 60 in the present invention . a microchannel 50 , a colorant delivery chamber 60 and an electrokinetic pump 70 are fabricated in a substrate 130 , which can be made of silicon , for example . the colorant 140 is pumped to the colorant delivery chamber 60 by the electrokinetic pump 70 that comprises a top electrode 150 and a lower electrode 160 . the flow of the colorant to the colorant delivery chamber 60 can be regulated by different regulation means as disclosed in the above referenced u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 868 , 102 , filed jun . 3 , 1997 entitled &# 34 ; microfluidic printing with ink volume control &# 34 ;, u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 868 , 477 , filed jun . 3 , 1997 entitled &# 34 ; microfluidic printing with ink flow regulation &# 34 ;. in fig3 a microvalve 180 is shown that is controlled by two electrodes 185 and 190 . details and types of microvalves are also disclosed in the above u . s . patent applications . an electric driver 200 is shown to be connected to the electrokinetic pump 70 . but the same driving and addressing approaches as described below are also applicable to the microvalve 180 . the electric driver 200 in fig3 is exemplified by an metal - oxide semiconductor field - effect transistor ( mosfet ) as a preferred embodiment in the present invention . specifically , the mosfet in fig3 is a n - channel enhanced mode mosfet . it should be noted that other devices such as bipolar junction transistors ( bjt &# 39 ; s ) can also be used in the present invention . in fig1 the source , gate , and drain of the mosfet are labeled as &# 34 ; s &# 34 ;, &# 34 ; g &# 34 ;, and &# 34 ; d &# 34 ;, respectively . the source &# 34 ; s &# 34 ; of the mosfet electric driver is connected to ground 170 . the mosfet can be fabricated in a silicon based substrate 130 using complementary metal - oxide semiconductor ( cmos ) technology . a preferred cmos technology for fabricating the mosfet in the present invention is double - diffused mos or dmos field - effect transistor . the dmosfet configuration can provide wider operating voltage range at the drain &# 34 ; d &# 34 ; of the electric driver 200 in fig3 which provides wider range of electric - field strength between the top electrode 150 and the lower electrode 160 . the top electrode of the electrokinetic pump is connected to an electrode that is controlled as described below . the lower electrode 160 of the electrokinetic pump 70 is connected to the drain &# 34 ; d &# 34 ; of the mosfet . the electric potential at the gate &# 34 ; g &# 34 ; of the mosfet can be separately controlled . the voltages at 150 and the &# 34 ; g &# 34 ; controls the electric field strength and thus the pump rate between the top electrode 150 and the lower electrode 160 in the electrokinetic pump 70 . for clarity in fig3 only one microchannel 50 and one electrokinetic pump 70 are shown to be connected to the colorant delivery chamber 60 . it is understood that several colorants can be delivered by respective electrokinetic pumps 70 to a colorant delivery chamber 60 to form a colorant mixture . the electric driving circuit shown in fig3 can be easily adapted to the such a configuration . it is also understood that an electric driving circuit can also be easily adapted to drive colorant flow regulation means such as microvalves in a microfluidic printing apparatus . the colorant regulation means are disclosed in above referenced commonly assigned u . s . patent applications ser . no . 08 / 868 , 102 , filed jun . 3 , 1997 entitled &# 34 ; microfluidic printing with ink volume control &# 34 ; and ser . no . 08 / 868 , 477 , filed jun . 3 , 1997 entitled &# 34 ; microfluidic printing with ink flow regulation &# 34 ;. fig4 illustrates the equivalent electric circuit of the electric driving circuit for the electrokinetic pump 70 in fig3 . the equivalent impedance 210 of an electrokinetic pump 70 comprises a parallel circuit of a capacitor 220 and a resistor 230 . the capacitor 220 represents the dielectric nature of the colorant 140 . the resistor 230 indicates the leakage current due to the ionic flux in the colorant fluid under an electric field , which is a form of energy dissipation in the electrokinetic pump 70 . the voltage applied to the equivalent impedance 210 corresponds to the electric field across the top and the bottom electrodes 150 , 160 in an electrokinetic pump 70 , which determines the pump rate of the electrokinetic pump 70 . the amount of colorant delivered by the electrokinetic pump 70 increases with the increased temporal duration of the applied electric field . fig5 illustrates the voltage waveforms at the top electrode 150 , the gate &# 34 ; g &# 34 ; of the mosfet electric driver 200 , and across the impedance 210 . the gate voltage &# 34 ; v g &# 34 ; is raised by an electric pulse which switches on the mosfet driver . within the time of the above electric pulse , an electric pulse of width &# 34 ; w &# 34 ; and voltage amplitude &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; is applied to the top electrode 150 . the resulted voltage waveform across the impedance 210 is also shown . the characteristic rise time for the pulse is the capacitance of the capacitor 220 multiplied by the on - resistance in the mosfet 200 . the decay time trailing the pulse is determined by the product of the capacitance of the capacitor 220 and the resistance of the resistor 230 . the peak value in the voltage waveform across impedance 210 is the amplitude &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; at the top electrode 150 minus the voltage drop across the mosfet in the on - state . thus &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; is the primary means to determine the pump rate of the electrokinetic pump 70 . the amount of colorant pumped increases with the increased width of the pulse &# 34 ; w &# 34 ;. although digital waveforms are shown for controlling the electrokinetic pumps , the addressing circuit in the present invention is also compatible with analog or pulsed dc waveforms . the amount of the colorant fluids pumped directly corresponds to the pixel values at the respective pixels in the digital image 100 . the microfluidic printing apparatus 8 in the present invention can include a plurality of colorant delivery chambers 60 with respective electric drivers 200 . these electric drivers can be addressed in different configurations . in the first embodiment of the present invention , a common ground electrode is connected to the sources &# 34 ; s &# 34 ; of the mosfet electric drivers . the positive voltage to the top electrodes 150 and the voltage at the gate &# 34 ; g &# 34 ; of each mosfet electric driver 200 are separately controlled for each individual electrokinetic pump 70 . in this embodiment , there are total of ( m × n ) electric drivers ( assuming one electrokinetic pump per colorant delivery chamber 60 ). the total number of conducting wires is two multiplied by the total number of colorant delivery chambers ( m × n ), plus the two common electrodes . in this and the following embodiments , it is understood that when there are more than one electrokinetic pumps connected with each colorant delivery chamber , the number of drivers and conducting wires will be increased by a factor of the number of pumps per chamber . one advantage of this embodiment is that any number or all the electric drivers 200 can be activated at the same time for rapid colorant delivery . the second embodiment of the addressing circuit for electrokinetic pumps in the present invention is illustrated in fig6 . common row electrodes 240 are connected to the gate terminals of p - channel mosfets 260 that have their source connected to the top electrodes of the electrokinetic pumps 70 in each row . the common column electrodes 250 are connected to the gate terminals of the n - channel mosfets in each column . the electrokinetic pumps in the two dimensional array of colorant delivery chambers are activated sequentially or in parallel . in the sequential approach , the electric pump at row ( i ) and column ( j ) is activated by controlling only the ( ith ) p - channel mosfet and the ( jth ) n - channel mosfet to low impedance states . the control voltages for the remaining rows and columns maintain the corresponding mosfet drivers in a high impedance state . since the electrokinetic pump is activated only when both row and column mosfets are activated , only the electrokinetic pump at ( ith ) row and the ( jth ) column is activated . the electric waveforms ( shown in fig5 ) for driving each n - channel mosfet of an electrokinetic pump is controlled to deliver the correct amount of colorant fluid to the corresponding colorant delivery chamber according to the input digital image 100 . the electrokinetic pumps 70 can also be activated a row ( or a column ) at a time . for example , when the drivers 260 at row r1 are activated , drivers 200 at different columns can be activated for different lengths of time as illustrated in fig5 so that the amount of colorant delivered at each pump corresponds to the input digital image 100 . since the gate input impedance on mosfet drivers are very high , the drive currents required for the row electrodes 240 and the column electrodes 250 are essentially independent of the number of electric drivers 200 , 260 that are activated . the parasitic effects are minimized . in this embodiments , there are total of ( 2 × m × n ) electric drivers and ( m + n + 2 ) conducting wires for addressing the electrokinetic pumps 70 ( assuming one electrokinetic pump per colorant delivery chamber 60 ). the third embodiment of the addressing circuit in the present invention is illustrated in fig7 . like the second embodiment of the present invention , the electrokinetic pumps are also addressed by rows and columns , but the electric drivers 200 and 260 are shared by columns and rows respectively . in this embodiment , there are total of ( m + n ) electric drivers . the advantage of the embodiment is the reduced number of drivers , thus reducing the complexity in fabrication . the fourth embodiment of the addressing circuit in the present invention is illustrated in fig8 . this embodiment is a hybrid design of the second and the third embodiments . whereas the control for electrokinetic pumps in each row share the same electric drivers 260 , individual electric drivers are provided for electric drivers 200 in each column . assuming one electrokinetic pump per colorant delivery chamber , the total number of electric drivers is ( m + m × n ) and the total number of the conducting wires is ( m + n + 2 ). also , by analogy , the columns can be controlled by common drivers , and each individual driver can be controlled by an individual driver connected to the row signal 240 . it is understood that above embodiments in address circuits can be used for driving for the colorant flow regulators such as microvalves 180 in a microfluidic printing apparatus . the addressing and driving circuit for the colorant flow regulators can be provided in addition to the addressing and driving circuit for the electrokinetic pumps . 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 .	1
in accordance with a presently preferred embodiment , a fast frame recorder is provided that records scene information at a fast frame rate and plays back such information at a slower frame rate , thereby allowing slow motion analysis of a moving object . the camera whole - frame rate used for recording scene information is variable between 60 and 2 , 000 frames per second . for those applications requiring even faster frame rates , a partial - frame mode of operation is provided that enables scene information to be recorded at a partial - frame rate equal to two , three or six times the whole - frame rate . played back scene information is displayed on a video monitor operating at 60 times per second . accordingly , the apparent speed at which an object moves when viewed upon playback will be reduced by a factor equal to the ratio of the recording ( whole or partial -) frame rate to the playback frame rate . thus , the maximum whole - frame speed reduction is about 33 ( 2 , 000 divided by 60 ) while the maximum partial - frame speed reduction is 200 ( 12 , 000 divided by 60 ). at the maximum partial - frame speed reduction , the exposure time for each frame is 1 / 12 , 000th of a second , which is short enough to provide extremely high resolution images ( almost no image smear ) of even rapidly moving objects . fig1 is a functional block schematic diagram showing a fast frame recorder in accordance with a presently preferred embodiment of the invention . initially , the operator selects the desired whole - frame speed reduction by means of a speed reduction select circuit 48 . based upon the selected reduction , a camera timing control circuit 54 generates the various clocking signals required to read out a sensor 52 in a camera 50 at a frame rate in accordance with table i : table i______________________________________ frame ratespeed reduction ( frames per second ) ______________________________________33 2 , 00017 1 , 0008 5003 2001 60______________________________________ the sensor 52 is a &# 34 ; block &# 34 ; readable area image sensor . the basic concept of block readout of a solid state area image sensor is disclosed in u . s . patent application ser . no . 112 , 483 , filed jan . 16 , 1980 in the name of james a . bixby , which is hereby incorporated by reference . specific types of block readable sensors are disclosed in u . s . patent application ser . no . 112 , 482 , filed jan . 16 , 1980 in the names of t . h . lee and r . p . khosla , and u . s . patent application ser . no . 116 , 686 , filed jan . 30 , 1980 in the names of c . n . anagnostopoulos et al , both of which are hereby incorporated by reference . although the referenced patent applications include detailed information , the basic concept of block readout is illustrated in fig2 and 3 . fig2 shows a block readable sensor 10 that is comprised of an array of photosites ( not shown individually ) arranged in 192 rows and 248 columns . for purposes of readout , the sensor 10 is formatted into six blocks of 32 photosite rows each . ( there need not be any physical demarcation on the sensor itself between such blocks ). each photosite is readable upon the application thereto of an enablement signal and an address signal . the sensor 10 is readable in whole or partial frames . to begin whole - frame readout , a driver 14 produces a block start signal that causes a programmable block enable address generator 16 to produce an enablement signal that enables , via block enable line b 1 , all photosite rows within block 1 , i . e , rows 1 - 32 . in response to a column start signal , column address electronics in the form of a shift register 22 sequentially addresses the 248 photosite columns of the entire area image sensor 10 . because the photosite rows within blocks 2 - 6 ( rows 33 - 192 ) are not enabled , only photosite rows 1 - 32 ( block 1 ) are read out at this time , the remaining photosites in the not - enabled blocks continuing to integrate charge in response to incident radiation . after all columns have been addressed , an end of column signal sequences the block enable address generator 16 to enable , via block enable line b 2 , the block 2 photosite rows , i . e ., rows 33 - 64 . column - wise readout then proceeds as described above for the block 1 photosite rows . this process is repeated until all 6 blocks of photosite rows are read out , at which time an end of frame signal from the block enable address generator 16 resets the driver 14 for readout of the next frame . output select gates 18 and an interconnect matrix 20 of conductive bus lines perform the function of a block mulitplexer that causes only signals from the 32 photosite rows within the block that is being read out to appear as an output signal . the reader is referred to u . s . patent application ser . no . 112 , 482 , referenced above , for a more detailed discussion of the output select gates 18 and the interconnect matrix 20 . as a result of such readout , block information is produced in series , with each block of information containing 32 row signals arranged in parallel . a result of such a readout technique is the reduction of the time required for sensor readout by a factor of 32 ( i . e ., the number of photosite rows in a block ). attendantly , a sensor that can be read out at a maximum whole - frame rate of , say , 60 frames per second using conventional serial line readout can be read out at a whole - frame rate of 1920 frames per second when operation is as described above . fig3 illustrates , graphically , how frame information , formatted in blocks as described above , may be recombined to form a video display . a camera 30 images a scene onto the photosensitive surface of a block readable area image sensor 32 . by reading out the sensor in blocks , the scene is &# 34 ; sampled &# 34 ;, in effect , by &# 34 ; block sample pulses &# 34 ;. the frame information ( labelled format ) corresponding to each block is shown in &# 34 ; pictorial form &# 34 ; above its respective block sample pulse . the block format frame information is converted to a standard ntsc television signal ( or other suitable format ) and applied to a video monitor 40 . the scene can then be displayed on the video monitor 40 . partial - frame readout is controlled by a partial - frame select circuit 17 ( see fig2 ) which may be set to a two bit address , whereby four partial - frame modes of operation are provided , referred to hereinafter as 1 ×, 2 ×, 3 × and 6 ×. the 1 × mode corresponds to whole - frame operation as described above . in the 2 × mode , the programmable block enable address generator 16 enables each of the blocks 3 , 4 and 5 twice per frame . in the 3 × mode , blocks 3 and 4 are each enabled three times per frame ; and in the 6 × mode , block 3 is enabled six times per frame . such block enablement produces partial - frame rates of 2 , 3 or 6 times the selected whole - frame rate . fig4 shows an electrical schematic diagram of the programmable block enable address generator 16 . a decoder 27 produces a block enable signal for the block number that corresponds to the count of a 3 - bit counter 29 . the count of the counter 29 is controlled by a prom 31 and a comparator 33 . the output data from the prom 31 is determined by the selected partial - frame mode of operation : table ii______________________________________partial - frame prom data outputsmode o . sub . 0 o . sub . 1 o . sub . 2 o . sub . 3 o . sub . 4 o . sub . 5______________________________________1x 0 0 1 0 1 12x 0 1 1 1 0 13x 0 1 1 0 1 06x 0 1 1 1 1 0______________________________________ in terms of numerical equivalents , selection of the 1 × partial - frame mode causes a &# 34 ; one &# 34 ; to be applied to the load inputs of the counter 29 and a &# 34 ; six &# 34 ; to be applied to the comparator 33 . selection of the 2 ×, 3 ×, and 6 × partial - frame modes causes a &# 34 ; three &# 34 ; to be applied to the load inputs of the counter 29 and a &# 34 ; five &# 34 ;, &# 34 ; four &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; three &# 34 ;, respectively , to be applied to the comparator 33 . the counter 29 , therefore , repeatedly increments from the count applied to its load inputs to the count applied to the comparator 33 . the resultant block enable signals for each of the selectable partial - frame modes are shown in fig5 . it is apparent from inspection of fig5 that the 1 × partial - frame mode is equivalent to whole - frame operation , while the 6 × partial - frame mode results in readout of block three six times for each frame , thereby resulting in a partial - frame rate that is six times greater than the whole - frame rate . the corresponding formats of the signals produced by the camera 30 for the 2 ×, 3 × and 6 × partial - frame modes are shown in fig6 a , 6b and 6c , respectively . the end of frame signal is produced by a comparator 35 that produces an output signal each time a counter 37 counts six end of column signals . referring again to fig1 each of the 32 line signals that constitute the analog video signal from the camera is frequency modulated , in an fm modulator circuit 56 , on a carrier having a center frequency of 5 mhz . it will be assumed , for purposes of illustration , that the frequency deviation is ± 1 . 6 mhz . a timing signal containing sync information is also frequency modulated on a 5 mhz carrier . the output of the fm modulator circuit 56 is , therefore , comprised of 33 separate , frequency modulated signals . all 33 frequency modulated signals undergo a divide - by - n process in a divide - by - n circuit 58 , described in detail with reference to fig9 . the value of &# 34 ; n &# 34 ; is equal ( to the nearest integer ) to the maximum selectable speed reduction divided by the selected speed reduction . the relationship between &# 34 ; n &# 34 ; and various values of the speed reduction is given in table iii : it will be noted that the selected speed reduction has been used to determine both the frame rate at which the sensor 52 is read out ( see table i ) and the value of &# 34 ; n &# 34 ; in the divide - by - n circuit 58 ( see table iii ). while it may not be apparent how these two parameters ( frame rate and &# 34 ; n &# 34 ;) relate to slow motion replay , the discussion which follows will show that the selection of these two parameters as described above , in conjunction with the proper selection of a third parameter ( recording tape speed ), will produce the desired speed reduction of scene information upon playback and greatly simplify the associated signal processing circuitry . the output signals of the divide - by - n circuit 58 are applied to a recording head driver circuit 60 that drives a multi - channel longitudinal recorder that includes a 33 channel magnetic recording head 62 . the 33 signals are recorded along 33 separate tracks on a magnetic tape 63 . the magnetic tape 63 is advanced by a capstan drive that is controlled by a motor drive circuit 65 , described in detail with reference to fig1 and 11 . the speed at which the magnetic tape 63 is advanced during recording is selected , in accordance with the invention , to be proportional to the selected speed reduction . one set of the recording tape speeds for the selectable speed reductions is given in table iv : table iv______________________________________ recording tape speedspeed reduction ( inches per second ) ______________________________________33 20017 1008 503 201 6______________________________________ having recorded information on the magnetic tape 63 that corresponds to the moving object ( scene information ) under study , a slow motion video display of such object is produced by playing back the recorded information at a constant tape speed of 6 inches per second , irrespective of the originally selected speed reduction . as a result , the ratio of the recording tape speed to the playback tape speed yields a tape speed reduction ratio that equals the selected speed reduction . further , all reproduced signals have the same center frequency ( f c ) and frequency deviation ( δf ), thereby enabling a fixed frequency demodulator to be used irrespective of the selected whole - frame speed reduction . to understand why the above - described selection of recording frame rate , the factor &# 34 ; n &# 34 ;, recording tape speed and playback tape speed results in the desired speed reduction and signal form upon playback , reference is made to fig7 a through 7c . for convenience , the various speed reductions and the parameters whose values are determined thereby are summarized in fig7 a . it is apparent from inspection of fig7 a that &# 34 ; n &# 34 ; is equal to the maximum selected camera frame rate divided by the selected camera frame rate ( which is determined by the speed reduction , as discussed above ). the effect of the divide - by - n circuit 58 is to reduce both the center frequency and the frequency deviation by a factor of &# 34 ; n &# 34 ;, as summarized in fig7 b . but because the ratio of record tape speed to playback tape speed varies in inverse proportion to &# 34 ; n &# 34 ;, all signals produced upon playback have the same center frequency ( f c = 0 . 15 mhz ) and frequency deviation ( δf = 0 . 05 mhz ); see fig7 c . further , because the playback tape speed is always 6 inches per second , all video information is reproduced at a frame rate of 60 frames per second , thereby resulting in the desired whole - frame speed reduction . as a specific example , assume that a whole - frame speed reduction of 8 is selected . ( for this example , reference is made to fig1 and 7a through 7c . ) selecting a whole - frame speed reduction of 8 will cause the camera sensor 52 to be read out at a whole - frame rate equal to 500 frames per second ( fig7 a ). the fm modulator 56 frequency modulates the video signal into a 5 mhz carrier to produce a frequency modulated video signal having a center frequency equal to 5 mhz and a frequency deviation equal to 1 . 6 mhz . the divide - by - n circuit 58 , with n = 4 , reduces the frequency content of the video signal information by a factor of 4 , thereby resulting in a frequency modulated signal having a center frequency equal to 1 . 25 mhz and a frequency deviation of 0 . 4 mhz ( fig7 b ). this signal is recorded at a tape speed of 50 inches per second . playing back this signal at a tape speed of 6 inches per second results in a recovered signal that has a center frequency equal to 0 . 15 mhz , a frequency deviation equal to 0 . 05 mhz , and a frame rate of 60 frames per second ( fig7 c ). the desired whole - frame speed reduction of 8 ( more precisely , 8 . 25 ) has thus been achieved . a partial - frame speed reduction may be produced that is two , three or six times the whole - frame speed reduction , depending upon whether the 2 ×, 3 × or 6 × partial - frame mode is selected , respectively . fig8 shows a comparison of video displays for whole - frame , 2 ×, 3 × and 6 × modes of operation . in the case of whole - frame operation ( 1 × partial frame mode ), blocks 1 through 6 are read out once per frame to produce a single image per frame of an object of interest . in the 2 ×, 3 × and 6 × partial - frame modes , certain blocks are read out more than once per frame , thereby producing multiple images per frame of the object of interest . for example , in the 3 × partial - frame mode , blocks 3 and 4 are each read out three times per frame with the result that the object of interest is displayed in three locations each corresponding to three different times . the maximum speed reduction is obtained by selecting a whole - frame speed reduction of 33 and the 6 × partial - frame mode of operation . in this case , block 3 will be read out six times per frame , thereby producing six corresponding images of the object of interest . the partial - frame modes of operation are most suited to those applications wherein the object of interest occupies less than a complete frame . even in those applications , however , wherein the object of interest occupies the entire frame , the partial - frame mode is still useful to examine a portion of the object of interest at a higher speed reduction than the maximum selectable whole - frame speed reduction . referring again to fig1 the signal produced by the playback head 64 undergoes signal processing in a preamplifier and equalization circuit 66 . the processed signal is then demodulated in an fm demodulator circuit 68 . as a result of selecting the various operating parameters as described above , all reproduced signals have the same center frequency and frequency deviation . this condition greatly simplifies circuit design of the fm demodulator 68 since it , like the fm modulator 56 , need only operate at a fixed frequency ( 0 . 15 mhz ). after demodulation , the video signal , which is still in a block format , is converted to a line sequential video signal by a block to serial converter circuit 70 ( described in detail in connection with fig1 ). the demodulated timing signal , on the other hand , is diverted to a timing track reader circuit 72 that extracts the sync information . the extracted sync information is used to control a sync generator circuit 74 that produces a standard sync signal at its output . a sync insert circuit 76 inserts the sync signal into the line sequential video signal from the converter 70 to produce a standard ntsc format video signal , which is displayed on a video monitor 78 . the displayed scene information will , as described above , consist of a slow motion replay of the originally recorded scene in accordance with the selected whole - frame speed reduction and partial - frame mode of operation . the divide - by - n circuit 58 discussed in connection with fig1 is shown in more detail in fig9 which shows the circuit for only a single video channel since all 33 signals ( 32 video signals and one timing signal ) are treated identically . further , while in the above description it has been assumed that the whole - frame speed reduction will be selected from one of five values ( 33 , 17 , 8 , 3 and 1 ), the circuit shown in fig9 is designed to handle up to 256 separate speed reductions . the selected speed reduction is inputted into a prom ( programmable read - only - memory ) 88 which produces on its output line the 8 - bit binary equivalent of 256 minus &# 34 ; n &# 34 ;. the four least significant bits are applied to the load inputs ( l 1 , l 2 , l 4 and l 8 ) of a 4 - bit binary counter 92 . the four most significant bits are applied to the load inputs ( l 1 , l 2 , l 4 and l 8 ) of a 4 - bit binary counter 94 . the speed reduction select circuit 48 , after a time sufficient to allow the data to settle on the load inputs , produces a load signal that causes each of the counters 92 and 94 to be preset to the count appearing on its respective load inputs . for example , if a speed reduction of 33 was selected ( n equals 1 , see fig7 a ), the output of the prom 88 would be the binary equivalent of 256 - 1 , which is 11111111 . the binary counter 92 would thus be preset to 15 ( binary 1111 ), as would the binary counter 94 . the frequency modulated video signal , after conversion to digital form in a frequency to pulse width modulator 90 , clocks the binary counters 92 and 94 . initially , the counter 94 is disabled because of the low state of the carry of counter 92 . the digital video signal applied to the clock input of the counter 92 , however , causes the counter 92 to start counting from its preset ( as preset by the prom 88 ) value up to 15 , at which time the carry goes high thereby enabling the counter 94 . on the next positive edge transition of the digital video signal , the counter 94 increments one count from the preset count ( as preset by the prom 88 ), and the carry output of counter 92 returns to its low state , thereby disabling counter 94 . this process repeats until the counter 94 counts from its preset value to 15 , at which time its carry output goes high on the next clock pulse , and the counters are reloaded to the preset binary count ( 256 - n ) appearing on the load inputs . the carry output of the counter 94 toggles a flip flop 97 between high and low states once each nth cycle of the original digital video signal . after conversion back to fm form in a pulse width to frequency converter 98 , an fm video signal results which has been reduced in frequency by factor of n relative to the original input video signal . the divide - by - n circuit shown in fig9 therefore , frequency reduces an input signal by a factor of n , wherein n can be any integer value between 1 and 256 . selection of the whole - frame speed reduction , as described above , also controls the tape speed at which information is recorded . fig1 shows the motor drive circuit 65 in detail . an 8 - bit binary number representing 256 minus &# 34 ; n &# 34 ; ( which may be obtained , for example , from the prom 88 shown in fig9 ) is applied to a pair of 4 - bit counters 100 and 102 . operation of the counters 100 and 102 is identical to that described in connection with the counters 92 and 94 shown in fig9 . the only difference is that each of the counters 100 and 102 is driven by a high frequency clock 104 , instead of the digital video signal . the output signal appearing at point a 1 , therefore , consists of a pulse train having a frequency which is less than the clock frequency by a factor of &# 34 ; n &# 34 ;. this pulse train is used to control the speed of a capstan motor 110 . connected to the shaft of the capstan motor 110 is a tachometer 112 that produces a signal which varies in amplitude proportionately with motor speed . the signal from the tachometer 112 passes through a gain control circuit 114 and to an inverting input of a summing circuit 120 . also connected to the shaft of the capstan motor 110 is an incremental encoder 116 that produces a pulse train having a repetition rate which varies in proportion to motor speed . a phase - frequency detector 124 ( such as an mc4044 ) compares the phases of the signals appearing at points a 1 and a 2 and produces an output signal at point b which is applied to the summing circuit 120 . the output signal from the phase - frequency detector 124 is integrated by an integrator 125 , the output of which is also applied to the summing circuit 120 . the output of the summing circuit 120 is amplified by an amplifier 126 and is used to control a motor driver 128 . referring to fig1 , typical waveforms are shown that are representative for two conditions : ( 1 ) the motor is running too slow , and ( 2 ) the motor is running too fast . in the case where the motor is running too slow , it will be assumed that the signal at a 2 lags the signal at a 1 . the output of the phase - frequency detector 124 at point b is a positive going pulse . this pulse is integrated to produce the waveform shown for point c . the waveform appearing at point d will be a steady state signal until the motor starts to increase in speed . at this point the signal level of the tachometer 112 starts to rise , producing a corresponding increase in the signal at point d . the signal at point e is the result of combining the signals at points b , c and d in the summing circuit 120 . the resultant signal causes the motor driver 128 to increase the speed of the capstan motor 110 . in the case where the motor is running too fast , the signal at point a 2 leads the signal at point a 1 . in this case , the phase - frequency detector 124 produces a negative going output pulse at point b . integration of this pulse produces the waveform shown at point c . the signal appearing at point d is a steady state signal until the motor 110 starts to slow , at which time the tachometer output decreases to produce a corresponding decrease in the signal at point d . the signal at point e is the result of combining the signals at points b , c and d in the summing circuit 120 . the resultant signal causes the motor driver 128 to decrease the speed of the capstan motor 110 . as discussed above , the signal produced upon playback is formatted in blocks , wherein each block contains 32 video line signals . because conventional video monitors are not compatible with such a block format signal , a block to serial converter circuit 70 ( fig1 ) is used to convert the block format signal to a line sequential signal that is compatible with a standard video monitor ( set up to accept a 192 line signal ). the block to serial converter circuit 70 is shown in fig1 . the block format signal is applied to the input data lines d 1 through d 32 of a 1 of 32 data selector 140 . operation of the data selector 140 is controlled by a bit rate clock 142 that increments its count 32 times as fast as the pixel rate . assume initially , therefore , that the pixel information corresponding to column 1 of lines 1 through 32 appears on the input data lines d 1 through d 32 , respectively . the data selector 140 sequentially routes the signal appearing on each input data line ( d 1 through d 32 ) to the output data line q at a rate ( determined by the bit rate clock 142 ) which is 32 times faster than the pixel rate of video information . the data selector 140 thus samples all 32 input data lines before the pixel information corresponding to column 2 of lines 1 through 32 appears on the input data lines . the output signal from the data selector 140 is comprised of a series of analog information bits each of which corresponds to a different pixel of video information . in terms of the corresponding video information , the order of such information bits is as follows : column 1 of lines 1 through 32 , column 2 of lines 1 through 32 , and so on , to column 248 of lines 1 through 32 . the analog information bits are converted to their 8 - bit binary equivalent by an analog to digital converter 144 . the resulting stream of binary data is applied to the input data busses of a pair of rams ( random access memories ) 146 and 148 , each of which is capable of storing the binary data corresponding to one block of video signal . ( because each block contains 248 × 32 = 7 , 936 pixels , 8k × 8 - bit rams are used .) a write address generator 152 generates the address used to write data into the rams 146 and 148 . basically , the write address generator 152 is a counter which increments one count for each increment of the bit rate clock 142 , and counts to 7 , 936 ( which is the number of storage locations that are actually used ). the write address generator 152 counts sequentially so that input data is stored in sequential storage locations . a pair of tri - state buffers 156 and 158 determine which of the rams 146 and 148 receive the write address . in a similar manner , a read address generator 154 generates a read address used to read data from the rams 146 and 148 . again , a pair of tri - state buffers 166 and 168 determine which of the rams 146 and 148 receive the read address . there is an important difference between the write address generator 152 and the read address generator 154 : while the write address generator 152 counts sequentially , the read address generator 154 counts in such a manner that the signal read from each ram is in a line - sequential format . this result is accomplished by designing the read address generator 154 so that it repeatedly counts from 1 to 7 , 936 by 32 &# 39 ; s until all numbers have been counted . by so counting , block one data , for example , is read from the ram in the following order : line 1 , columns 1 through 248 ; line 2 , columns 1 through 248 ; ; l and so on , to line 32 , columns 1 through 248 . this is precisely the order of data that correspoonds to a line sequential signal . operation of the tri - state buffers 156 , 158 , 166 and 168 is controlled by a block clock 150 that causes a block of information to be written into the ram 146 while a block of information is read from the ram 148 . the next block of information is read from the ram 146 while the previously written block is written into the ram 148 . as information is read from either of the rams 146 or 148 , it is converted back to analog form by a digital to analog converter 170 to produce an analog line sequential output signal . this signal , after insertion of sync information , is suitable for video display . 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 .	7
referring initially to fig1 , a digital picture frame 10 includes a hollow frame 12 that may be rectilinear as shown , defining left and right edges 14 , 16 . the frame 12 may assume other shapes , e . g ., ovular with left and right ends . the digital picture frame 10 is sized as a picture frame so that it is substantially flat and can be grasped by a user &# 39 ; s left and right hands 18 , 20 as shown along the left and right edges 14 , 16 , with the user &# 39 ; s fingers in back and the thumbs in front as shown . in the example embodiment shown in fig1 , the digital picture frame 10 can hold a processor 22 that receives time input from a clock 24 , as well as still or moving image data input from various sources such as but not limited to a universal serial bus ( usb ) interface 26 and / or a computer readable storage medium 28 such as but not limited to solid state storage or disk - based storage . in some embodiments the medium 28 may be removable , e . g ., the medium 28 may be implemented by a memory card . in any case , photos from a digital camera , for example , may be conveyed to the medium 28 directly by engaging the medium 28 with the camera and loading photos onto the medium 28 , then disengaging the medium 28 from the camera and sliding it into a receptacle of the digital picture frame 10 . or , the photos may be transferred from a camera or other source of photos through the usb interface 26 onto the medium 28 in the digital picture frame 10 . also , the processor 22 may receive input from a wireless or wired network interface 30 such as but not limited to a wifi interface . images received from the network interface 30 may also be displayed in addition to images from cameras as set forth further below . a touch screen 32 is bounded by the frame 12 as shown . the touch screen 32 is controlled by the processor 22 to present images from the medium 28 and / or usb interface 26 and / or network interface 30 or other source communicating with the processor 22 . also , user input signals are generated by the touch screen 32 when a user tactiley manipulates the below - described user interfaces ( ui ), and these signals are sent to the processor 22 , which may execute logic stored on the medium 28 to undertake the ui activities and respond to ui commands as discussed below . with more specificity , the processor 22 can cause the touch screen 32 to present a ui that may include at least first and second partially arcuate rings 34 , 36 . the rings may be circular as shown . in the embodiment shown , the rings 34 , 36 are visible ; in other embodiments , only the arcuately - arranged selector elements may be visible . thus , each ring bears plural discreet selector elements 38 , 40 , and each selector element 38 , 40 is manipulable by a person to input a respective selection represented by the selector element . in the embodiment shown in fig1 and 2 , a respective menu navigation arrow 42 is juxtaposed with each of the rings and is manipulable by a person to navigate through a menu of selections selectable using respective selector elements . for example , touching the left arrow 42 can cause the below - described tree - like menu to traverse up the tree , while touching the right arrow 42 can cause a downward traversal . in some embodiments , each selector element 38 on the first ring represents a root selection and each selector element 40 on the second ring represents a branch of a selected root from the first ring . thus and now referring to fig2 , if genre # 2 is selected by manipulating the “ 2 ” element on the left ring , then the selector elements 40 on the right ring represent elements in that genre that are available for display ( and , thus , the selector elements 40 in fig2 are labeled “ 2 a ”, “ 2 b ”, and so on for clarity of disclosure ). as an example , assume that the arrows 42 have been manipulated to traverse to the root of the tree . this may be regarded as a “ list of genres ” root . further manipulation of the arrows 42 may cause selector elements 38 in the left ring to respectively represent “ albums ”, “ wi - fi ”, and “ clock ”. assume “ albums ” is selected . selector elements 38 in the left ring may then represent each album available with photos for presentation , e . g ., “ album 1 ”, “ album 2 ”, and so on . if “ album 1 ” is selected then the selector elements 40 of the right ring may indicate respective photos in that album , and a user may manipulate the selector element 40 corresponding to a photo from the selected album desired to be presented on the touch screen 32 . in such a case , a preview of the photo may be superimposed on the ui , or the ui may be superimposed on the selected photo . when the ui times out or upon user command , the ui can disappear until such time as , e . g ., the user again touches the screen 32 to indicate a desire to invoke the ui . if the user navigates to “ wifi ”, selector elements 40 in the right ring can be correlated to respective wifi channel numbers . then again , if the user navigates to “ clock ”, selector elements in the right ring can correspond to “ set hour ”, “ set minute ”, “ set second ” for digital picture frames having a digital clock also displayed , and then the arrow elements 42 can be manipulated to appropriately set the time . while four selector elements per ring are shown , each ring may virtually include more selector elements than are displayed . under these circumstances , to display hidden selector elements , a ring ( or equivalently the associated arc of selector elements ) can be caused to appear to rotate when a user moves a finger along the ring to expose selector elements previously not presented on the touch screen . as shown in fig1 and 2 , each ring 34 , 36 defines a respective straight boundary 44 , 46 in addition to the arcuate selector element segment , which extends from end to end on the straight boundary . in the embodiment shown in fig1 and 2 , the boundaries 44 , 46 are respectively juxtaposed with and parallel to the left and right edges 14 , 16 of the frame . indeed , the boundaries 44 , 46 lie along the left and right edges of the touch screen 32 as shown . with this ui a person can conveniently manipulate the selector elements using only respective thumbs of the person . in another implementation of the ui and now referring to fig3 and 4 , a first ring 50 of selector elements 52 defines a straight boundary 54 and a first arcuate selector element segment 56 extending from end to end of the boundary . in this implementation , the second ring 58 defines a second arcuate selector element segment 60 that is positioned against the first selector element segment 56 , parallel thereto . the straight boundary 54 is juxtaposed with and parallel to the left edge of a digital picture frame 62 ( fig3 ) or to the right edge of the frame ( fig4 ). with this arrangement , a person can conveniently manipulate the selector elements using only a left or right thumb of the person . fig5 and 6 show that the ui may be distanced from the left and right edges of the frame and be disposed in the middle of the touch screen for single finger manipulation if desired . with more specificity , starting with fig5 each of two rings 70 , 72 that function as described above can define a straight boundary 74 and an arcuate selector element segment extending from a first end of the respective boundary to a second end of the respective boundary , and the boundaries of the first and second rings are displayed on a centerline of the digital picture frame that is midway between the left and right edges 76 , 78 . in other words , the each semi - circular ring faces the other to establish a complete circle , with selector elements in the right semicircle functioning as the selector elements 40 in fig1 and 2 and selector elements in the left semicircle functioning as the selector elements 38 . or , as shown in fig6 the arcuate segments can be reversed , i . e ., midpoints 80 , 82 of the selector element segments can be substantially tangential to each other at a centerline of the digital picture frame that is midway between the left and right edges of the frame . if desired , in the setup mode the user may be given “ ui configuration ” options which allows the user to select which one of the above - described uis to select . it may now be appreciated that present principles provide an unobtrusive ui that can be presented simultaneously with a photo for preview , and in some embodiments is well suited for two thumb - only ui interaction . present principles provide an easy way to browse options in a clean and elegant ui design . while the particular user interface for digital photo frame is herein shown and described in detail , it is to be understood that the subject matter which is encompassed by the present invention is limited only by the claims .	6
in the text below , the phrase “ direct polyphase interpolation ” generally means that successive levels ( e . g ., half - pel , quarter - pel , eighth - pel , etc .) in order from a lowest level ( e . g ., half - pel ) to a highest level ( e . g ., eighth - pel ) of interpolated pixel values may be derived directly from full - pel data without using lower level data that derived from full - pel data ( that may potentially have been clipped prior to being so used ). in contrast the phrase “ hierarchical interpolation ” is generally taken to mean that successive levels are use derived lower level ( and potentially clipped ) interpolated values as input . the present invention generally concerns direct motion compensation structures and / or methods using direct polyphase interpolation . in particular , multiphase ( e . g ., 8 - tap ) filters ( or interpolators ) may implement direct interpolation of all subpel positions from original ( e . g ., integer ) pixel positions using different tap values for the different subpel positions . the resulting technique is generally cheaper for realtime codecs than conventional multilayer hierarchy approaches where bus bandwidth is a major cost . direct interpolation may produce sharp filters , fetch a least possible worst - case number of pixels , and may reduce a total amount of math performed to generate the interpolated values in a worst case . when filter taps are programmable , direct polyphase interpolation ( e . g ., use multiple taps and change the tap values for the various the subpel positions ) for all of the subpel positions is generally economical to implement . for large volume consumer electronics implementations ( whether very large scale integration ( vlsi ), digital signal processing ( dsp ) or similar technologies ), a conventional multilayer hierarchical approach may be more expensive than a comparably performing direct interpolation scheme of the present invention . the hierarchical approach generally involves a higher worst - case bus bandwidth to fetch extra pixels for conventional cascaded filters absent from the present invention . referring to fig2 and 3 , block diagrams of example direct polyphase interpolations 100 and 101 are shown in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention . the interpolation 100 generally comprises an initial block ( or image ) 102 , a first interpolated block ( or image ) 104 , a second interpolated block ( or image ) 106 and a third interpolated block ( or image ) 108 a . the interpolation 101 generally comprises the initial block 102 , the first interpolated block 104 , the second interpolated block 106 and a third interpolated block ( or image ) 108 b . a first interpolation operation 110 may generate the first interpolated block 104 directly from the initial block 102 . a second interpolation operation 112 may generate the second interpolated block 104 directly from the initial block 102 . a third interpolation operation 114 may generate the third interpolated block 108 a directly from the initial block 102 . a fourth interpolation operation 116 may generate the third interpolated block 108 b directly from the second interpolated block 106 . the initial block 102 may be referred to as an integer - pel block . the integer - pel block 102 generally comprises a matrix of luminance data or chrominance data . the data in the integer - pel block 102 may be aligned on an integer - pel grid having a unit separation between positions . the inter - pel grid may define a 2 × 2 4 × 4 , 4 × 8 , 8 × 4 , 8 × 8 , 8 × 16 , 16 × 8 or a 16 × 16 grid . other grid arrangements may be implemented to meet the criteria of a particular application . the first interpolated block 104 may be referred to as a half - pel block . the half - pel block 104 may have the same shape and size as the integer - pel block 102 . the data in the half - pel block 104 may be generated directly from the data in the integer - pel block 102 . the data in the half - pel block 104 may be aligned on a half - pel grid spatially offset from the integer - pel grid by a one - half unit horizontally and / or vertically . the second interpolated block 106 may be referred to as a quarter - pel block . the quarter - pel block 106 may have the same shape and size as the integer - pel block 102 . the data in the quarter - pel block 106 may be generated directly from the data in the integer - pel block 102 . the data in the quarter - pel block 106 may be aligned on a quarter - pel grid spatially offset from the integer - pel grid by one or more one - quarter units horizontally and / or vertically . each of the third interpolated blocks 108 a and 108 b may be referred to as an eighth - pel block . the eighth - pel blocks 108 a and 108 b may have the same shape and size as the integer - pel block 102 . the data in the eighth - pel block 108 a may be generated directly from the data in the integer - pel block 102 . the data in the eighth - pel block 108 b may be generated directly from the data in the quarter - pel block 106 . the data in the eighth - pel blocks 108 a and 108 b may be aligned on an eight - pel grid spatially offset from the integer - pel grid by one or more one - eight units horizontally and / or vertically . each of the interpolation operations 110 - 114 may use a direct multi - tap ( e . g ., 8 - tap ) interpolation ( or filtering ). the interpolation operation 116 may use a fixed bilinear ( e . g ., 2 - tap ) interpolation . changing the tap values used by the multi - tap filtering to get the proper subpel estimates , rather than conventionally deriving the quarter - pel values from the half - pel values , may achieve the same coding gain as the conventional techniques . the half - pel tap values , quarter - pel tap values and / or eighth - pel tap values used by the interpolations 110 - 114 may be derived from a reduced transmitted and / or stored set of common parameters for the various interpolated levels . for example , the common parameter set may be a set of half - pel tap values . in one embodiment , both the half - pel and the quarter - pel tap values may be derived using the same set of specified / transmitted / derived tap values . in another embodiment , the quarter - pel tap values may match the half - pel tap values . other methods of generating the tap values may be implemented to meet the criteria of a particular application . generating the higher level interpolated blocks 106 and 108 a directly from the integer - pel block 102 generally provides saving in bus bandwidth consumption compared with conventional approaches . for example , in the proposed h . 265 hierarchical approach ( 8 programmable half - pel taps , 6 fixed quarter - pel taps and bilinear eighth - pel taps ), motion compensation of a 4 × 4 block fetches a 13 × 13 block of data samples in a worst - case bus bandwidth utilization . in particular , a half - pel interpolated block is conventionally generated from ( 4 + 7 )×( 4 + 7 )= 11 × 11 = 121 data samples . however , a quarter - pel block is conventionally generated from ( 4 + 7 + 2 )×( 4 + 7 + 2 )= 13 × 13 = 169 data samples . conventional generation of an eighth - pel block is performed from the quarter - pel block and thus 13 × 13 = 169 data samples are fetched across the bus . in the present invention , all of the 4 × 4 quarter - pel values may be derived directly from 11 × 11 = 121 integer - pel data samples fetched via the bus . fetching 121 samples instead of 169 samples generally saves the bus bandwidth by approximately 30 percent without suffering any interpolation performance ( e . g ., 8 programmable taps may be available for the quarter - pel estimates ). the programmability of the filter generally allows adjustments to the sharpness of the interpolated blocks 104 , 106 , 108 a and 108 b . programmability of the integer samples to be filtered may provide flexibility in how the interpolations are created . furthermore , deriving all of the interpolated sub - pel values , including eighth - pel samples , directly from the integer pixels may lower a complexity for calculating a worst - case motion compensated position ( e . g ., an eighth - pel position ). several different embodiments may be implemented for the present invention . for example , a first embodiment may apply the direct polyphase interpolation with programmable filter taps . a second embodiment may incorporate the direct polyphase interpolation , the programmable filter taps and derive the polyphase tap values from a ( reduced ) set of common parameters ( e . g ., the quarter - pel tap values may be dependent of the half - pel tap values ). in a third embodiment , a hybrid of direct polyphase interpolation for at least one lower level and fixed hierarchical interpolation for at least one upper level may be implemented . in a fourth embodiment may use the hybrid of direct polyphase interpolation for at least one lower level and fixed hierarchical interpolation for at least one upper level plus the programmable filter taps . a fifth embodiment may combine all of the hybrid of direct polyphase interpolation for at least one lower level and fixed hierarchical interpolation for at least one upper level , the programmable filter taps and derive the polyphase tap values from a ( reduced ) set of common parameters . in still other embodiments , the hybrid approaches may include direct polyphase interpolation for more than a single lower interpolation level . referring to fig4 , a diagram of an example narrow region 120 of data samples to the eighth - pel interpolation level is shown . the narrow region 120 generally defines an 8 × 8 matrix ( or grid ) with an integer - pel data sample ( e . g ., luminance or chrominance ) in an upper left - hand corner . each of the positions in the 8 × 8 matrix is generally identified by a label number 1 - 64 reading left - to - right and top - to - bottom . neighboring integer - pel data samples ( e . g ., l , t and u ) one unit from the data sample k are also illustrated . the half - pel positions may be offset from integer - pel positions by a one - half unit distance horizontally and / or vertically . the quarter - pel positions may be offset from the integer - pel positions by n one - quarter units both horizontally and / or vertically ( where n = 1 , 2 and 3 ). the eighth - pel positions may be offset from the integer - pel positions by m one - eighth units both horizontally and / or vertically ( where m = 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 and 7 ). referring to fig5 , a diagram of an example wide region 122 of select data samples around the narrow region 120 is shown . the select data samples in the wide region 122 generally comprise integer - pel data samples in - line with the data sample k both vertically ( e . g ., a , b , d , k , t , d , e and f ) and horizontally ( e . g ., g , h , j , k , l , m , n and p ). the wide region 122 may also illustrate the integer - pel data samples in - line with the data sample u both horizontally ( e . g ., q , r , s , t , u , v , w and x ) and vertically ( e . g ., y , z , aa , l , u , bb , cc and dd ). the present invention may use some or all of the 28 integer - pel data samples identified above as inputs to an 8 - tap filter to directly derive all of the half - pel data samples , the quarter - pel data samples and / or the eighth - pel data samples illustrated in fig4 . derivation of the integer - pel sample k may be a simple filtering where all of the tap values may be set to zero except the tap value associated with the data sample k , which may be set to one or unity . referring to fig6 , an example table i is shown indicating which integer - pel data samples a - dd may be used to derive the data samples in the 64 positions show in fig4 . an “ x ” in the table generally indicates that the fig5 integer - pel data sample at the top of the respective column may be input into the 8 - tap filter to generate a data sample at the fig4 position indicated at the left side of the respective row . other arrangements of the table i may be implemented to meet the criteria of a particular application . in applications where the integer - pel sample locations may be determined dynamically and / or by the author of the video content , the integer - pel locations actually used may be transmitted / stored along with the corresponding blocks . generation of the tap values used to scale ( multiply ) the respective selected data samples may be permanently stored ( e . g ., a lookup table ) and / or generated on - the - fly based on one or more parameters common to some or all of the interpolation levels . for example , row 1 of table i generally indicates that eight of the integer - pel data samples ( e . g ., g , h , j , k , l , m , n and p ) may be used to generate the integer - pel data sample k . therefore , tap values of g = 0 , h = 0 , j = 0 , k = 1 ( unity ), l = 0 , m = 0 , n = 0 and p = 0 may be permanently stored in or accessible to a motion compensation circuit to allow the integer - pel data sample to pass through the 8 - tap filter unaltered . eight integer - pel data samples may be used to generate the half - pel samples , the quarter - pel samples and the eighth - pel samples in the other rows of table i . referring to fig7 , an example table ii generally illustrates several possible tap values for the fig4 positions 1 - 8 . normal weights for the tap values may range from − 256 to 255 . a weight of 256 may signal a bypass ( or feed - through ) of the 8 - tap filter . similar tap values may be implemented for the positions 9 - 64 . furthermore , the various tap values for the higher interpolation levels may be derived from the tap values used for the lower interpolation levels . in applications where the tap values may be fixed for each position , the tap values may be stored locally to the motion compensation circuit . in applications where the tap values may change dynamically and / or adjusted by the author of the video content , the full set , or at least a reduced set of the actual tap values used may be transmitted / stored with the corresponding blocks . the relative integer - pel positions and associated tap values used to generate a single interpolated data sample may be used repeatedly for each of the interpolated data samples in a block ( e . g ., a 4 × 4 block ) of data samples . referring to fig8 , a block diagram of an example implementation of an encoder system ( or circuit ) 140 is shown . the encoder system 140 generally comprises an external memory circuit ( or module ) 142 , a bus ( or module ) 144 , a motion compensation circuit ( or module ) 146 , a subtractor circuit ( or module ) 148 , a transform / quantization circuit ( or module ) 150 , an entropy encoder circuit ( or module ) 152 , an inverse quantization / transform circuit ( or module ) 154 , an adder circuit ( or module ) 156 , a block filter circuit ( or module ) 158 and a reconstructed memory circuit ( or module ) 160 . the motion compensation circuit 146 generally comprises a buffer memory circuit ( or module ) 162 and an interpolator circuit ( or module ) 164 . the interpolator circuit 164 generally comprises a programmable filter circuit ( or module ) 166 , an optional fixed filter circuit ( or module ) 168 , a tap circuit ( or module ) 170 and an optional parameter memory circuit ( or module ) 172 . the encoder system 140 may be operational to generate an output bitstream ( e . g ., s ) by compressing blocks of video data samples based on reference frames buffered in the external memory circuit 142 . the reference frames generally comprise integer - pel level pixel data . a block of the reference frame data samples ( e . g ., an 11 × 11 block of luminance samples ) may be transferred from the external memory circuit 142 to the motion compensation circuit 146 via the bus 144 in a signal ( e . g ., rr ). the reference block may be temporarily stored in the buffer circuit 162 . the interpolator circuit 164 may be operational to read several ( e . g ., eight ) of the integer - pel data samples of the reference block in a signal ( e . g ., ib ) from the buffer circuit 162 based on a motion vector value received in a signal ( e . g ., mv ). the motion vector value may have a subpel resolution and point to any one of the 64 positions in fig4 . the interpolator circuit 164 may generate an interpolated ( filtered ) block of data samples ( e . g ., a 4 × 4 block ) in a signal ( e . g ., fb ). the interpolated block may be based on the interpolation level , integer - pel positions and tap values used in the interpolation process . the interpolator circuit 164 may also be operational to generate a signal ( e . g ., par ) conveying the parameters used to identify the integer - pel locations and tap values used in generating the interpolated block . the subtractor circuit 148 may be operational to subtract the interpolated block in the signal fb from a current block ( input block ) of video samples received in a signal ( e . g ., cb ) to present a residual block in a signal ( e . g ., rb ). the transform / quantization circuit 150 may be operational to perform a discrete cosine transform and quantization on the residual block to generate a transformed block in a signal ( e . g ., tb ). the entropy encoder circuit 152 may be operational to reorder and entropy encode the transformed block to generate an encoded block . the entropy circuit 152 may also be operational to present the encoded block and the parameters from the signal par in the bitstream s . the transformed block may also be presented to the inverse quantization / transform block 154 . the inverse quantization / transform block 154 may be operational to inverse quantize and perform an inverse discrete cosine transform on the transformed block to present a reconstructed residual block in a signal ( e . g ., rb ′). the adder circuit 156 may be operational to add the reconstructed residual block to the interpolated block to generate a reconstructed current block ( output block ) in a signal ( e . g ., cb ′). the block filter circuit 158 may be operational to perform a block filtering of the reconstructed current block to generate a filtered reconstructed block in a signal ( e . g ., frb ). the reconstructed memory circuit 160 may buffer the filtered reconstructed block awaiting possible transfer back to the external memory circuit 142 as part of a new reference frame . the programmable filter circuit 166 may be operational to either ( i ) interpolate the reference block received in the signal ib to ( a ) a base interpolation level ( e . g ., no interpolation ) or ( b ) one or more higher interpolation levels or ( ii ) pass the reference block through ( e . g ., no interpolation ) into the signal fb . the programmable filter circuit 166 may be implemented as an 8 - tap filter circuit having programmable taps . other numbers of programmable taps may be implemented to meet the criteria of a particular application . selection of the particular integer - pel positions to be applied to the taps may be received via a signal ( e . g ., sel ). the tap values may be received via a signal ( e . g ., tv ) the optional fixed filter circuit 168 may be operational to interpolate an intermediate block generated by the programmable filter circuit 166 up to a higher ( finer ) interpolation level . the fixed filter circuit 168 may be implemented as a bilinear ( e . g ., 2 - tap ) filter circuit . in one embodiment , the programmable filter circuit 166 may be operational to perform the programmable 8 - tap filtering in a first pass and the bilinear filtering in a second pass , with the intermediate results from the first pass stored in the buffer circuit 162 . the tap circuit 170 may be operational in one of two different modes , depending on the system 140 or 180 ( fig9 ). in the encoder system 140 , the tap circuit 170 may be configured to ( i ) determine the parameters used in the interpolation based on information stored in the parameter memory circuit 172 , ( ii ) generate the signal sel based on the motion vector values and the parameters to identify the integer - pel positions being used from the reference block , ( iii ) generate the tap values in the signal tv based on the motion vector values , the parameters and the identified integer - pel positions and ( iv ) optionally present the parameters in the signal par . in a decoder system 180 , the tap circuit 170 may be configured to ( i ) determine the parameters based on information read from the parameter memory circuit 172 and / or possibly information received in the signal par , ( ii ) generate the signal sel based on the motion vector values and the parameters , ( iii ) generate the tap values based on the motion vector values , the parameters and the integer - pel positions and ( iv ) optionally write the generated parameters back into the parameter memory circuit 172 . the parameter memory circuit 172 may be used to store full or partial sets of parameters for use by the tap circuit 170 . storage of the parameters may be in the form of a lookup table . the parameter memory circuit 172 may also be used to store information regarding which integer - pel positions should be used for which interpolation operations . storage of the integer - pel position data may be in the form of another lookup table . in an application where the parameters and / or position information should be permanent , the parameter memory circuit 172 may be implemented as a nonvolatile memory . referring to fig9 , a block diagram of an example implementation of a decoder system ( or circuit ) 180 is shown . the decoder system 180 is similar to the motion compensation and feedback path of the encoder system 140 . similar functioning elements in both the encoder system 140 and the decoder system 180 may have the same reference numbers . the decoder system 180 generally comprises the external memory circuit 142 , the bus 144 , the motion compensation circuit 146 , the inverse quantization / transform circuit 154 , the adder circuit 156 , the block filter circuit 158 , the reconstructed memory circuit 160 and an entropy decoder circuit ( or module ) 182 . the entropy decoder circuit 182 may be operational to perform an entropy decode and reorder on the encoded block in the bitstream s to present the reconstructed transform block in the signal tb . the entropy decoder circuit 182 may also be operational to extract the parameters and motion vectors from the bitstream s . the parameters may be presented from the entropy decoder circuit 182 to the motion compensation circuit 146 via the signal par . the motion vector values may be presented from the entropy decoder circuit 182 to the motion compensation circuit 148 via the signal mv . the motion compensation circuit 146 may receive a reference block from the external memory circuit 142 via the bus 144 in the signal rr . the motion compensation circuit 146 may be operational to generate the interpolated block in the signal fb by interpolating the reference block based on the parameters and the motion vector value . the inverse quantization / transform circuit 154 may be operational to inverse quantize and inverse transform the reconstructed transformed block to present the reconstructed residual block in the signal rb ′. the adder circuit 156 may add the interpolated block to the reconstructed residual block to present the reconstructed current block in the signal cb ′. the block filter circuit 158 may be operational to block filter the reconstructed current block to present the filtered reconstructed block in the signal frb . the reconstructed memory circuit 160 may buffer the filtered reconstructed block awaiting ( i ) output for display via a signal ( e . g ., out ) and ( ii ) possible transfer back to the external memory circuit 142 as part of a new reference frame . the function performed by the tables of fig6 and 7 and the modules of fig8 and 9 may be implemented using a conventional general purpose digital computer programmed according to the teachings of the present specification , as will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art ( s ). appropriate software coding can readily be prepared by skilled programmers based on the teachings of the present disclosure , as will also be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art ( s ). the present invention may also be implemented by the preparation of asics , fpgas , or by interconnecting an appropriate network of conventional component circuits , as is described herein , modifications of which will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art ( s ). the present invention thus may also include a computer product which may be a storage medium including instructions which can be used to program a computer to perform a process in accordance with the present invention . the storage medium can include , but is not limited to , any type of disk including floppy disk , optical disk , cd - rom , magneto - optical disks , roms , rams , eproms , eeproms , flash memory , magnetic or optical cards , or any type of media suitable for storing electronic instructions . while the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	7
referring now to fig1 - 8 , the present invention features a directed force turbine device 100 . the directed force turbine device 100 of the present invention comprises a rotor 110 that spins about an axis , a deflector shield 220 , funnel assembly 210 , and external flow director 230 that together can direct wind or water current flow into the rotor 110 . the directed force turbine device 100 further comprises a stator assembly 310 , a flow separator 360 , and an exhaust port 350 . without wishing to limit the present invention to any theory or mechanism , it is believed that the device 100 of the present invention is advantageous because the vanes / wheel part of the device is the only part that rotates ; the stator assembly 310 and fixed shaft remain stationary , for example . the rotor 110 may be constructed in a variety of shapes and sizes , for example as shown in fig1 the rotor is generally cylindrical having a first side panel 111 ( e . g ., circular ) and a second side panel 112 ( e . g ., circular ). the side panels 111 , 112 are connected by the vanes 120 . the rotor 110 rotates about the fixed axle shaft 118 on bearings . spanning the first side panel 111 and the second side panel 112 is a plurality of vanes 120 ( e . g ., curved vanes ), for example the first ends of the vanes 120 are attached to the first side panel 111 and the second ends of the vanes 120 are attached to the second side panel 112 . the vanes 120 are generally parallel to the fixed axle shaft 118 . the vanes 120 surround the fixed axle shaft 118 and form an inner cavity . the sides of the vanes 120 are completely enclosed ; flow cannot leave from sides of the vanes 120 . as shown in fig1 and fig2 , wind or water current flow can be directed to the rotor 110 via a funnel assembly 210 ( e . g ., which functions as a funnel ). in some embodiments , a deflector shield 220 is disposed in the funnel assembly 210 , which can function to help direct wind or water current flow through the funnel assembly 210 . for example , the deflector shield 220 may function to shape a portion of the funnel assembly 210 in a desired manner for optimal intake of the wind or water current flow . in some embodiments , the deflector shield 220 is a tapered ( e . g ., inversely ) sloping surface . in some embodiments , the deflector shield 220 may redirect the wind or water current flow that is below the horizontal centerline of the rotor to a point above this line ( e . g ., see fig2 , wherein wind or water current flow at the lower half of the rotor 110 is deflected upwardly into the funnel assembly 210 via the deflector shield 220 ). in some embodiments , the deflector shield 220 blocks the oncoming flow of wind or water from striking the forward moving vanes 120 on the bottom half of the rotor 110 . in some embodiments , the deflector shield 220 helps to force the flow of wind or water current in an upward and inward direction . in some embodiments , the funneling function of the funnel assembly 210 harnesses the flow that would be outside of the rotor assembly intake area and directs it into the rotor assembly 110 . this may help increase the speed of the flow , which improves efficiency . from the funnel assembly 210 and deflector shield 220 , wind or water current flow travels to the rotor 110 , in some embodiments through an external flow director 230 . the external flow director 230 , with its side panels 233 , can function as a duct so as to prevent the wind or water current flow from escaping , thus , the flow continues to the rotor 110 . in some embodiments , the external flow director 230 is the same width as the rotor 110 assembly . in some embodiments , the external flow director 230 is positioned above the rotor 110 and fluidly connects the funnel assembly 210 ( and deflector shield 220 ) to the rotor 110 . in some embodiments , the external flow director 230 is positioned so that the front ( intake ) end is located above and forward of the rotor 110 at a distance about equal to the radial length of the rotor 110 . the external flow director 230 has a front ( intake ) end 231 fluidly connected to the funnel assembly 210 ( and deflector shield 220 ) and a rear ( discharge ) end 232 that may curve downwardly to the rotor 110 . the rear ( discharge ) end 232 of the external flow director 230 may terminate just at a point above the rotor 110 . the side panels 233 of the external flow director 230 extend from the top surface of the external flow director 230 downwardly to but not touching the circular side panels of the rotor 110 . these side panels 233 also extend rearward from the funnel assembly 210 to the rear ( discharge ) end 232 of the external flow director 230 . the external flow director 230 may compress and / or direct the flow of the wind or water current that is above the rotor 110 ( see fig2 ) into and in some cases past the vanes 120 to the inner cavity of the rotor 110 assembly . in this way , the external flow director 230 can help capture a portion of the deflected flow and force it back to the rotor 110 ( e . g ., for accelerating the speed of the flow ). as the wind or water flow is directed to the rotor 110 , the vanes 120 ( e . g ., vanes with curvatures ) capture the wind or water current flow and the rotor 110 is forced to rotate about the fixed axle shaft 118 . in some embodiments , the wind or water flow can pass the vanes 120 and enter into the inner cavity of the rotor 110 assembly . disposed in the inner cavity of the rotor 110 is a stator assembly 310 . the stator assembly 310 does not rotate with the rotor 110 , but in actuality constitutes the entire axle itself ( fixed axle shaft 118 ). wind or water current flow that passes the vanes 120 enters into the stator assembly 310 , which directs the flow in a way that actually reverses its direction . this reversed flow can now be applied to the forward moving vanes 120 at the bottom half of the rotor 110 to produce additional rotational force . in some embodiments , the stator assembly 310 allows force to be applied to all of the vanes 120 of the rotor 110 at the same time . without wishing to limit the present invention to any theory or mechanism , it is believed that the stator assembly 310 is advantageous because it can help increase the efficiency of the turbine device 100 . in some embodiments , the stator assembly 310 ( see fig6 , fig7 , and fig8 ) is the entire axle for the rotor assembly 110 . the stator assembly 310 comprises support panels 315 , axle shaft segments 118 , a jackshaft ( if applicable ), an outer flow director 330 , an inner flow director 320 , and flow director vanes 340 ( e . g ., a first flow director vane , a second flow director vane ). the inner flow director 320 is teardrop - shaped . in some embodiments , the inner flow director 320 has a leading tapered edge , which may be positioned at a height equal to or just below the upper edge of the deflector shield 220 ( see fig2 ). the outer flow director 330 is generally curved with the outer curved portion being irregularly shaped . in some embodiments , the forward one third ( ⅓ ) of the outer surface of the outer flow director 330 generally follows the arc created by the inside edges of the rotor vanes 120 , but does not touch the passing vanes 120 . the remaining two thirds ( ⅔ ) of the outer surface of the outer flow director 330 , has the curvature of a much larger diameter circle and terminates at the trailing point of termination of the inside surface of the outer flow director 330 . this creates a cavity between the rotor vanes 120 and the stator assembly 310 . in some embodiments , the inside surface arc of the outer flow director 330 is of a constant radius . at the front opening of the stator assembly 310 , wind or water current that passes through the vanes 120 is funneled between the inner flow director 320 and the outer flow director 330 , which directs the wind or water flow to reverse its direction ( see fig6 a ). in some embodiments , the flow director vanes 340 function to help direct the now reversed wind or water current flow against the passing vanes 120 . this reversal now permits the force to be applied against the forward moving vanes 120 at the bottom half of the rotor 110 ( see fig2 ). in some embodiments , the components of the stator assembly 310 mount to the support panels 315 . these support panels 315 have solidly attached fixed axle shafts 118 ( see fig3 , fig7 , and fig8 ) protruding out one side of each panel that are then clamped into the main support structure 117 . these shaft segments 118 make up the axle portion that the rotor assembly 110 mounts to and rotates about ( see fig1 a and fig3 ) and the flow separator 360 mounts to and rotates about as well when used for rotor 110 speed control ( see fig4 , fig4 a , and fig5 ). wind or water flow is eventually pushed out of the vanes 120 and into an exhaust port 350 . this exhaust port 350 functions to once again reverse the direction of the wind or water flow via a curved duct which channels the wind or water flow out of the rear , the sides , or a combination of both of the directed force turbine device 100 . in some embodiments , during normal operation , a flow separator 360 is positioned below the rotor 110 , which helps to direct the wind or water flow into the exhaust port 350 . the flow separator 360 can help prevent the wind or water flow from escaping the vanes 120 prior to reaching the exhaust port 350 . the flow separator 360 also prevents the exhausted flow from coming into contact with the forward moving vanes 120 at the bottom of the rotor 110 . in some embodiments , the flow separator 360 is permanently attached to the support structure 117 . in some embodiments , the flow separator 360 is not permanently attached to the support structure 117 but is instead suspended beneath the rotor 110 via counter weighted support arms 370 . these support arms 370 are connected to the fixed axle shaft segments 118 between the support structure 117 and the rotor assembly 110 ( see fig5 ). the flow separator 360 and counter weighted support arms 370 are free to rotate about the fixed axle shaft segments 118 allowing the flow separator 360 to be rotated forward and up ( see fig4 and fig4 a ) to close off the main intake opening by blocking the wind from striking the rotor 110 assembly of the directed force turbine device 100 in the event of high wind conditions . the ability to do this with the flow separator 360 allows for speed regulation of the rotor 110 in adverse weather conditions ( e . g ., the flow separator 360 is an “ rpm regulator ”). in some embodiments , the flow separator 360 covers about ¼ of the circumference of the rotor 110 . in some embodiments , an exhaust port 350 is disposed between the flow separator 360 in its normal ( down ) position and the deflector shield 220 . the exhaust port 350 may connect to a duct that either passes beneath the flow separator 360 or out the sides of the directed force turbine device 100 or a combination of both . referring now to fig3 , in some embodiments , the power produced by the rotor 110 is operatively connected to a generator , pump , or other device requiring a power source . in some embodiments , gears , sprockets , and / or pulleys are disposed on the rotor 110 ( e . g ., surrounding the bearings ). for example , each side of the rotor 110 is operatively connected to its own drive gear 410 . in some embodiments , these drive gears 410 are operatively connected to a jackshaft 430 . in some embodiments , the jackshaft 430 is operatively connected to drive gears 410 on both sides of the rotor assembly 110 to prevent a twisting motion of the vanes 120 . in some embodiments , the jackshaft 430 is operatively connected to the power output shaft 119 . in some embodiments , the power output shaft 119 is operatively connected to a generator or other device requiring a source of power . in some embodiments , the jackshaft itself becomes the power output shaft ( e . g ., when mounted external of the rotor assembly 110 ). the disclosures of the following u . s . patents are incorporated in their entirety by reference herein : u . s . pat . no . 6 , 740 , 989 ; u . s . pat . application no . 2004 / 0100103 ; u . s . pat . no . 7 , 329 , 965 ; u . s . pat . no . 6 , 309 , 172 ; u . s . pat . no . 6 , 870 , 280 . various modifications of the invention , in addition to those described herein , will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description . such modifications are also intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims . each reference cited in the present application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety . although there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of the present invention , it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications may be made thereto which do not exceed the scope of the appended claims . therefore , the scope of the invention is only to be limited by the following claims .	5
referring to fig1 , and 2 , a wafer carrier according to the invention is illustrated and is principally comprised of an enclosure portion 20 for holding wafers 22 and a door 24 . the enclosure portion has a top 28 with a robotic lifting flange 29 , a bottom 30 with a machine interface piece 32 , a pair of sides 34 , 36 , side handles 40 , a door frame 44 , an open front 46 , and a open interior 48 . the door has an outside surface 56 , and inside surface 58 , wafer restraints 60 , latch compartments 64 , 66 , and key slots 68 , 70 . robotic arms 69 with keys for engaging the door are illustrated with dashed lines . the wafer restraints when mounted on the door may be passive , that is , fixed on the door , or active , as illustrated in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 711 , 427 , which is incorporated herein by reference . as illustrated in fig3 , 4 , and 5 , a path - to - ground from the wafers may be effectuated through the door latching mechanism 71 and wafer restraints . when used herein , “ conductive and static dissipative polymers ” mean polymers with surface resistivity of less than about square and preferably less than 10 8 ohms per square . the specific surface resistivity appropriate may vary depending on the component and path to ground circuit . conductive plastic pieces 74 , 76 may be insert molded into the door housing 77 to provide a conductive path from the mechanism to the mounting receptacles 84 for the wafer restraints . the wafer restraints are formed of conductive material , preferably a carbon filled polymer such as peek . the insert molding of the conductive plastic pieces 74 , 76 may be accomplished by insert molding of rigid pieces such as illustrated in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 317 , 989 , filed may 25 , 1999 , and owned by the owner of this invention . said application is hereby incorporated by reference . also insert molded plastic conductive film may be utilized on components of the door to create the path to ground 80 illustrated by the dashed lines . see u . s . provisional patent application 60 / 333 , 686 , filed nov . 27 , 2001 , and entitled polymer film insert molding for providing electrostatic dissipation , owned by the owner of this invention and incorporated herein by reference . the door latching mechanism 71 has a cammed hub 91 and a pair of link arms 93 , 95 that have latching portions 98 , 99 that extend out apertures 100 in the door housing . the caromed hub will typically be molded of plastic with carbon filler to provide static dissipative characteristics and has a pair of cam surfaces 104 that are engaged by a cam followers 107 on the cammed hub . the cammed hub 91 also has a key hole 110 for receiving the key 112 which would , pursuant to this embodiment of the invention , be grounded and part of a robotic operating arm . thus , in this embodiment , the grounded key 112 is inserted into the key hole 110 and makes contact with the conductive cammed hub . the cammed hub rotates on and contacts protrusion 113 as part of the conductive piece of the door housing . the conductive wafer retainers either may directly contact the conductive piece of the door housing or a conductive mounting receptacle 84 . when the door is placed on the enclosure portion by the robotic arm , the latching mechanism is grounded by the key and when the wafer restraints contact the wafers they a path - to - ground is provided . in an alternative embodiment the door housing may be made of conductive plastic eliminating the conductive piece . referring to fig6 , an alternative means of providing a path - to - ground effectuated by the door is illustrated . in this embodiment , the machine interface piece 32 , is formed of conductive plastic and has three slots , not shown in this embodiment , forming a kinematic coupling in said piece . a conductive door contacting piece 190 , configured as an arm , extends from the interface piece and is appropriately positioned to contact the door when the door is closed onto the enclosure portion . in a preferred embodiment , the arm may directly contact the wafer restraint , which will also be formed of conductive plastic . in a related embodiment a conductive plastic arm may extend from the door , be conductively connected to wafer restraints , and contact the grounded machine interface piece as the door is closing . the arm in these embodiments may be angled and have a thinned elongate portion to facilitate bending during and after engagement with the respective components . other embodiments may have curved compressible spring sections . thus , in this embodiment , the path - to - ground conductive circuit is effectuated from the machine interface which is grounded on the equipment or fixture upon which the container is placed . the path - to - ground circuit extends from the machine interface to the door through a container - door bridging component configured as an arm , and then to the wafer restraints . preferably the container - door bridging component makes the connection between the door and the enclosure portion before the wafer restraints contact the wafers . referring to fig7 and 8 , an alternative embodiment of the invention is illustrated . in this embodiment the enclosure portion has a movable wafer restraint mechanism pivotally attached to the enclosure portion and configured as a pivotal elongate wafer contacting member 194 . the wafer contacting member or wafer restraint pivots to bring a wafer engaging portion 96 into restraining and conductive contact with the wafers as illustrated in fig8 . the pivoting action of the wafer restraint is effected by an actuation member 198 extending from the door and the conductive elongate wafer contacting member rotates about a conductive pin 201 engaged in apertures 202 on appropriate grounded support portions on the bottom of the wafer enclosure portion . a similar pin receiving aperture may be on the top of the wafer enclosure . depending on the configuration of the wafer restraint , the actuation member can be passive , to actuate the wafer restraint by simply closing the door , or can be active to operate by actuation of the latching mechanism 199 . when the door is moved into the closure position , the door actuation member 198 engages with the actuation member to move same into an contact and restraining position with the stack of wafers . in this embodiment , the further door wafer restraints 204 may or may not be utilized . if utilized , the door wafer restraints may be grounded by way of actuation member engaging the grounded elongate wafer contacting member . thus the invention functions as follows : when the enclosure portion has a wafer stack or wafer positioned therein , the door is moved into place , either manually or by robotic means . in the preferred embodiment , the wafer restraints are grounded by completion of a path to ground before the wafer restraints come into contact with the wafers . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof , and it is , therefore , desired that the present embodiment be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive	7
fig1 shows an outline of a system to which this invention is applied . in fig1 is a map data base center . the map data base center 1 manages a www site providing map data . the www is a service which performs multimedia data retrieval via a network based on hypertext linking character information , image information and audio information . to use the www , an application program referred to as a browser is used . in the www , using hypertext , links to other www sites , gopher servers and ftp servers can easily be made . the meaning of www in the context of this invention is used in the wide sense of a general entity comprising all data structures , such as http / gopher / ftp . the map data base center 1 is provided with a server 11 connected to the internet 10 . the server 11 stores map data corresponding to position data such as latitude and longitude . in other words , 0th dimension information . the map data stored in the server 11 is constantly updated to correspond with constantly changing map data . desired map data may be obtained by accessing the www site of the map data in this map data base center 1 . for example , assume that a user who has a user terminal 15 which can be connected to the internet 10 , wishes to acquire map data . for this purpose , he opens the www site managed by the map data base center 1 . when the map data base site is opened , a map data search page is sent to the user terminal 15 from the server 11 of the map data base center 1 , as shown in fig2 a . the user enters parameters of the desired map data , e . g . latitude , longitude and scale reduction , in this search page . when the parameters are input , the desired map data is searched from the map data stored in the server 11 . this map data is sent to the user terminal 15 from the server 11 of the map data base center 1 , and the desired map is displayed on the screen of the user terminal 15 as shown in fig2 b . the amount of data required for map display is enormous . consequently when map data is sent from the server 11 of the map data base center 1 , and all the data required for the map display is sent , transfer time is long and the network load is high . therefore , drawing information comprising numbers and character strings for drawing a shape on the map is sent as described hereafter . numeral 2 in fig1 is a position data base center . the position data base center 2 manages a www site for searching the position of a shop or event venue . the position data base 2 has a server 12 . this server 12 stores a data base for searching , for example , latitude / longitude data corresponding to addresses , main building names and shop names , and latitude / longitude data for event venues . the data in the server 12 of the center 2 also comprises information such as shop opening hours , types of business conducted and goods handled . when the www site of the center 2 is accessed , and for example addresses are input , latitude / longitude data can be retrieved . again , when main building names , shop names and event venues are input , latitude / longitude data can be retrieved . conversely , when latitude / longitude data is input , addresses , main building names or shop names can be searched . moreover , shops , etc ., which meet given conditions such as types of business or opening hours , can be retrieved . searches wherein maps are directly displayed may also be performed by linking the www site of the position data base center 2 and the www site of the map data base center 1 . for example , assume the user wishes to know the location of a shop which meets predetermined conditions . in this case , the user opens the www site managed by the position data base center 2 using the browser of the terminal 15 . when the site of the center 2 is opened , data is sent from the site of the center 2 to the terminal 15 , and the position search www page is displayed on the screen of the terminal 15 , as shown in fig3 a . the user enters the required items on the search page . when the required items are entered , latitude / longitude data for the positions of shops which meet the conditions is searched based on the items entered by the server 12 of the center 2 . retrieved latitude / longitude data is sent to the map data base center 1 . when latitude / longitude data is sent to the center 1 , map data corresponding to this position is searched from map data stored in the server 11 . this map data is linked to the position search www page , and a map of the input shop is thereby displayed on the screen of the terminal 15 as shown in fig3 b . conversely , assume that the user wishes to know the address or telephone number of a location shown on the map . in this case , the www site managed by the position data base center 2 and the www site of the map data base center 1 are linked , and the screen shown in fig4 a is displayed on the terminal 15 . herein , when a point pmk on the map is specified , the position of this point ( latitude / longitude ) is sent from the server 11 of the center 1 to the server 12 of the center 2 . information concerning the place corresponding to this position is then searched by the server 12 of the center 2 , and is displayed as shown in fig4 b . numeral 3 is a guide data base center . this center 3 manages a www site which provides guide data . the center 3 has a server 13 connected to the internet 10 . the server 13 stores information about events and shopping , etc . when the user wishes to acquire information about events or shopping , he opens a www site managed by the center 3 using a browser in the terminal 15 . when the site of the center 3 is opened , data is sent from the server 13 of the center 3 to the terminal 15 , and the guide data www page is displayed on the screen of the terminal 15 . using this guide data www page , event or shopping data can be obtained . it is sometimes desired to display shops and event venues on a map in the guide data www page . conventionally , when map data was displayed , the map data was prepared by the center 3 , and this had to be pasted on the www page . in the system to which this invention , is applied , however , this is unnecessary because map data stored in the server 11 of the center 1 can be used as the map data displayed in the guide data . specifically , a map is displayed in a part indicated by map in the guide data www page shown in fig5 . the map map is map data extracted from the server 11 of the center 1 . in other words , the guide data read from the server 13 of the center 3 and map data read from the server 11 of the center 1 are combined , and the guide data page comprising the map map is displayed as shown in fig5 . it should be understood that when maps from the center 1 are combined in the guide data www page , maps in the www page may be combined using the browser of the terminal 15 . map data may also be prepared and supplementary data superposed by the map data base center 1 . in other words , when the guide data base center 3 is opened by the browser of the terminal 15 , a guide data search page is sent as shown in fig6 a . when a map button in this page is pressed , corresponding map data is retrieved by the center 1 , and combined by the center 2 . this map is then displayed on the screen of the terminal 15 as shown in fig6 b . hence , systems to which this invention is applied comprise a data base center 1 which provides map data via the www . when this center 1 which provides map data is accessed , map data comprising a position is extracted from position data such as latitude or longitude . in addition the center 1 , by linking up to the center 2 or the www page of the center 3 , provides a service whereby a position of a shop or event is searched from the shop or event name so as to display it on a map , and the map data is simply embedded in the guide data . a description will now be given of the processing performed when the www of the center 1 and the www of the center 2 are linked , a position is searched from the name of a shop or event and displayed on a map , and information about the shop at that location is displayed from the map position . fig7 is a flow chart showing the processing performed at this time . a search page is sent to the user terminal 15 from the server 12 of the position search data base center 2 ( step s 1 ). this search page is displayed on the screen of the user terminal 15 ( step s 2 ). a search condition is input from the keyboard or mouse , and sent from the user terminal 15 to the server 12 of the center 2 ( step s 3 ). places conforming to this condition are searched by the server 12 of the center 2 ( step s 4 ), and the search result is sent to the user terminal 15 ( step s 5 ). also , position data ( latitude , longitude ) for the searched location is sent to the server 11 of the map data base 1 from the server 12 of the center 2 ( step s 6 ). map data corresponding to this position data is searched by the server 11 of the map data base 1 ( step s 7 ). a drawing command for this map data is then sent to the user terminal 15 from the server 11 of the map data base 1 ( step s 8 ). the search result from the center 2 and the map data from the center 1 are sent to the user terminal 15 . the search data and map data sent to the user terminal are then linked by a browser , and displayed on the screen ( step s 9 ). fig8 is a flowchart showing the processing performed when a map is displayed on the search screen , a position on the map is entered , and data corresponding to this position is searched . the search screen from the server 12 of the data base 2 is sent to the user terminal 15 ( step s 11 ), the map drawing data from the server 11 of the map data base center 1 is sent to the user terminal 15 ( step s 12 ), the search screen and map drawing data are linked by the application software of the browser , and a search screen and map are displayed on the screen ( step s 13 ). when a search position is specified on this map , the search position is sent to the server 11 of the center 1 ( step s 14 ). position data corresponding to the search position on the map is searched by the server 11 of the center 1 ( step 15 ). this position data is then sent to the server 12 of the position search data base 2 ( step s 16 ). data for a location corresponding to this position information is searched by the server 12 of the data base 2 ( step s 17 ). the data for the searched location is sent to the terminal 15 from the server 12 of the center 2 ( step s 18 ). the map data and data for the searched location are then linked by the browser , and displayed on the screen ( step s 19 ). fig9 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing performed when map data is embedded in guide information . in fig9 a search screen is sent to the user terminal 15 from the server 13 of the center 3 ( step s 21 ). this search screen is displayed on the screen of the user terminal 15 ( step s 22 ). when search data is input to the user terminal 15 via a user keyboard or mouse , this search data is sent to the center 3 ( step s 23 ). guide data corresponding to the search data is searched by the server 13 of the center 3 ( step s 24 ). this guide data is sent from the server 13 of the center 3 to the user terminal 15 ( step s 25 ). in the user terminal 15 , the guide data is decoded ( step s 26 ). a command for displaying a map using the map data base and map position data ( specifically , latitude and longitude , etc .) is embedded in this guide information . map data is requested from the center 1 according to this command and map position data ( step s 27 ). the server 11 of the map data base 1 searches the desired map according to the map position data received ( step s 28 ). drawing data for this map is then sent from the server 11 of the center 1 to the user terminal 15 ( step s 29 ). hence , guide data from the center 3 and map drawing data from the center 1 are sent to the user terminal 15 . the search data in the guide data sent to the user terminal 15 and map drawing data from the center 1 are linked by a browser , and displayed on the screen ( step s 30 ). fig1 shows another example of processing where map data from the map data base center 1 is added to a page of the center 3 . according to this example , map data was prepared and supplementary data superposed in the center 3 . in fig1 , a search screen is sent from the server 13 of the center 3 to the user terminal 15 ( step s 41 ). this search screen is displayed on the screen of the user terminal 15 ( step s 42 ). when search data is input by the user terminal 15 via a user keyboard or mouse , this search data is sent to the center 3 ( step s 43 ). guide data corresponding to the search data is searched by the server 13 of the center 3 ( step s 44 ). the searched guide data is sent to the user terminal 15 from the server 13 of the center 3 ( step s 45 ). in the user terminal 15 , the searched guide data is decoded ( step s 46 ). this guide data comprises a button to display map data . when this button is pressed ( step s 47 ), a map image display request is sent from the user terminal to the server 11 of the center 1 ( step s 48 ). the server 11 of the center 1 searches the requested map according to received map position data ( step s 49 ). supplementary data is drawn on the map image ( step s 50 ). hence , supplementary data is superposed , and drawing data is sent from the server 11 of the map data base 1 to the user terminal 15 ( step s 51 ). the received image is displayed by the user terminal 15 ( step s 52 ). according to this example , map data and supplementary data are combined in the center 1 , and then sent to the user terminal 15 , so there is no need for the browser to have a special command to link the map data . by providing a map data base center 1 as described , a www page with map data can easily be made even when map data is not prepared by the guide data base center 3 . however , there is a risk that if map data can be easily accessed , it might be impossible to protect copyrights of maps prepared by the map data base center 1 . this problem might be resolved by the processing shown in fig1 . in fig1 , when search data is input at user terminal 15 and transmitted to the center 3 from the user terminal 15 ( step s 61 ), a search is conducted by the server 13 of the center 3 ( step s 62 ). an order number is transmitted to the user terminal 15 from the server 13 of the center 3 ( step s 63 ). a similar order number is then sent to the server 11 of the center 1 from the server 13 of the center 3 ( step s 64 ), and this order number is accepted by the center 1 ( step s 65 ). this order number comprises a code a issued by the center 1 , and an order serial number generated by the center 3 , and the two codes are also encoded . the code a is updated by the center 1 at regular intervals ( e . g . every hour ), and is sent to a data base center which has a contract with the center 1 . after this code is issued , order numbers containing codes other than the code a are not accepted . the user terminal 15 displays the search result sent from the center 3 ( step s 66 ), and a map request corresponding to search data and the order number from the center 3 are sent to the center 1 ( step s 67 ). in the map data base center 1 , order numbers are accepted via two routes , i . e . from the center 3 and the user terminal 15 . in the map data base center 1 , the order number from the center 3 and the order number from the terminal 15 are compared ( step s 68 ). as the same order number is sent to the user terminal 15 and the center 1 from the center 3 , the order numbers should be identical in the case of legitimate use . it is determined whether or not the order numbers coincide ( step s 69 ), and when it is determined that they are identical , map data is searched ( step s 70 ), and this map data is sent to the user terminal 15 ( step s 71 ). this map data and supplementary data are displayed on the user terminal 15 ( step s 72 ). when the order numbers do not coincide , a reject code is sent to the user terminal 15 from the server 11 of the center 1 ( step s 73 ). it is determined whether or not this reject code was accepted ( step s 74 ), and if the reject code was accepted , display of map data is refused ( step s 74 ). in the above examples , the data base center has been described as being connected to the internet , however data base centers may be connected in other ways . this is shown in fig1 - 1 . in fig1 - 1 , a user terminal is connected to a data base server via the internet , and the server is connected to a computer in a data base center . the computer has a map search engine , position search engine and guide information service engine which are firmware , and they each have their respective functions . in this case , the only hardware is the computer , each engine exists only as software , and it is unnecessary to clearly specify the positions of all the commands in the program for each engine . therefore , the same effect as that of fig1 may be obtained if objects that start each engine function according to the state transition diagrams in fig7 - fig1 even when each engine is not distinguished physically or in the program arrangement . it will be understood that the intermediate states of fig1 and fig1 - 1 , i . e . the map search engine and position search engine , may be located in the same computer , and only the guide information service engine being located in another data base center . it will further be understood that apart from the internet , this invention may be applied also to general computer communications services and leased circuit connections . as described hereinabove , map drawing data is sent to increase transfer rates and reduce the load on the network when map data is sent from the map data base center 1 . this drawing data will now be described in more detail . northern latitude and eastern longitude are expressed as positive , southern latitude and western longitude are expressed as negative . this value is used effectively up to the uppermost bit of the 4 bytes . the number of bytes is a square , and as they are the same as the integer processing units of a computer , it is suited for use with a computer . making the above value correspond with the circumference of the equator ( 6378167 m ), we obtain : at this resolution , when the map is displayed on the screen of a personal computer having 640 dots × 480 dots ( 1 dot = 1 pel ), the length of the display in the horizontal direction is : to represent latitude and longitude , coded numbers and character strings may be used with other methods , and error correction codes may also be applied in the coding . most drawing commands have a property number specifying argument . commands are either pure commands or commands associated with an argument . the commands in each group are described below . shows the actual distance on the earth per 100 dots in a horizontal direction on the map display as a longitude interval . when the map display application has the scale reduction data which was actually specified , it follows this data . when it does not have this data , it either displays data having an approximate scale reduction close to this value or converts this approximate data to data having the specified scale reduction . as shown in fig1 , the map display application prepares and displays map data such that the display center position xc , yc is in the center in the directions of latitude and longitude . the display frame size xw , yh ( fig1 ) is expressed as a number of dots . when the map display application displays a map in a window of another application , it shows the size of the display area ( fig1 ). specifies the start point of the next drawing command ( pointer , location mark , straight line , circle , polygon ). for a circle , it specifies the center position . draws a pointer mark to indicate a place in which the user is presently interested . when the image to be drawn at the point display position is not specified , it is a black circle () of 16 dots × 16 dots . only one pointer can be displayed at one time by the map display application . when a pointer drawing command is issued , the map display application cancels the mark which was drawn by the immediately preceding command . for example , to show the location of a shop , the latitude / longitude may be given to indicate the center of the premises or the center of the part facing the road in front of the shop . when the image drawn in the mark display position is not specified , it is a black circle () of 16 dots × 16 dots . draws a straight line from a location in which a graphic drawing point is to be moved , or an end point of a linear part of a drawing , to a specified latitude / longitude position . expresses the size of a circle in the longitude direction on the screen as a number of dots . draws a circle of the given radius around a location to which a graphic drawing point is to be moved . draws a polygon linking each point . the start point and end point specified by the argument are treated as separate points , and the start point and end point are linked without closing the polygon when the drawing is made . character displays in map data may be superposed on the polygon by the map display application , and the characters may be made unerasable by shading in the polygon . displays the character string . as shown in fig1 , the coordinate ps specified by displacement of the graphic drawing point is situated at the lower left corner . all supplementary data drawn on the map so far is erased except for the pointer display . the drawing contents of the supplementary data are stored internally , and even when scroll is performed or the magnification is changed , the supplementary data is again drawn in the corresponding position on the map . when a command is received to erase the drawing contents , the supplementary data contents are erased from the display , and the drawing data for re - drawing stored internally is also erased . this prevents losing the map when various supplementary data is displayed in succession . erases the pointer display . the drawing contents apart from the pointer do not change . display color / foreground : rgb . each is a 1 byte integer without code display color / background : rgb . each is a 1 byte integer without code specifies the color of the pointer display as levels of red , green and blue . blink interval : 1 byte without code ( specified in units of { fraction ( 1 / 10 )} second ) when the blink interval is not an integer / size 0 , a point mark is displayed or erased . when it is erased , the display is returned to the state before drawing the point . the following alternate colors are valid when the flag is “ 1 ”. they are invalid when the flag is “ 0 ”. alternate colors / foreground : red ( r ), green ( g ) and blue ( b ). each is a 1 byte integer without code . alternate , colors / background : r , g , b . each is a 1 byte integer without code . expresses 16 × 16 dot symbols . the data sequence is as shown in fig1 . a “ 1 ” bit draws dots in the foreground , and a “ 0 ” bit draws dots in the background . only dots for which the following mask bit pattern is “ 1 ” are drawn ( fig1 ). expresses 16 × 16 dot patterns . the data sequence is as shown in fig1 . only positions denoted by “ 1 ” bits are drawn according to the aforesaid symbol bit pattern ( fig1 ). nothing is drawn in “ 0 ” bit positions , and they therefore appear to be transparent as shown in fig1 c . the correspondence between values of the point indication ( 0 8 ) and positions on symbols is shown in fig1 . the color of the point display can be varied between “ display color ” and “ alternate colors ”. when the time indicated by “ blink interval ” elapses starting from when display begins in either the “ display color ” or “ alternate color ”, there is a change - over to the other color , and this operation is successively repeated . however display color and alternate colors are used when a plurality of points are displayed , and only for the point which is finally drawn . expresses 16 × 16 dot symbols . the data sequence is as shown in fig1 . a “ 1 ” bit draws a dot in the foreground , and a “ 0 ” bit draws a dot in the background . only pels for which the mask bit pattern is “ 1 ” are drawn ( fig1 ). expresses 16 × 16 dot patterns . the data sequence is as shown in fig1 . only positions denoted by “ 1 ” bits are drawn according to the symbol bit pattern ( fig1 ). nothing is drawn in “ 0 ” bit positions , and they therefore appear to be transparent as shown in fig1 c . selects the part of a symbol indicated by the latitude and longitude position denoted by the location mark . the correspondence between the value of the point indication and the position on the symbol is shown in fig1 . colors : red ( r ), green ( g ), blue ( b ). each is a 1 byte integer without code . specifies colors as levels of red , green and blue . only positions denoted by “ 1 ” bits are drawn . nothing is drawn in positions corresponding to “ 0 ” bits , and they therefore appear to be transparent . the bit sequence and pattern for dotted lines are shown in fig1 . specifies the width , color and pattern of straight lines , circles or polygons . draws a solid line when the drawing is not specified . bit sequences and patterns for parallel slanting lines are shown in fig1 . display color / foreground : r , g , b , each 1 byte integers without code display color / background : r , g , b , each 1 byte integers without code display color / foreground specifies the color of positions corresponding to “ 1 ” bits in the shaded pattern . display color / background specifies the color of positions corresponding to “ 0 ” bits in the shaded pattern . the height of a rectangle containing the character is expressed as a no . of dots . the map display application selects and displays the font size closest to this specification . display color / foreground : r , g , b , each 1 byte integers without code display color / background : r , g , b , each 1 byte integers without code specifies colors of character backgrounds as levels of red , green and blue . issued when a map is specified in the map drawing application using a pointing device . when a plurality of display elements are superposed , the elements drawn by the latest command will be on top , and elements already drawn will be hidden . for example when a shaded polygon is superposed on a character display , the characters will no longer be visible , so the sender of additional drawing information must control which of the two appears on top . however pointers are always on top and are never hidden by other drawing elements . the map display application must store received drawing group commands so that additional drawing information can be redrawn when the user performs scrolling or zoom - in . there is however generally no need to store drawing group commands before receiving drawing content erasure commands . to facilitate creation of applications , up to 32 types of display properties may be used on one occasion . next , the registration of additional information in the map information system according to this invention will be described with reference to fig1 and fig2 . first , describing the general registration procedure , the home page designer accesses a map information data base 23 via the internet 25 as shown in fig1 , and acquires an additional drawing / editing application for registration . this uses applets which distribute applications via networks that are already commercialized such as java and active x . alternatively , the home page designer may start an application already in the home page designer &# 39 ; s terminal . next , as shown in fig2 , the display position is moved using a map shift button 38 , and a desired map is displayed by operating an enlargement button 36 or reduction button 37 . additional elements are drawn on this map using the additional drawing tools 28 to 35 and 39 to 41 . after editing of the additional drawing elements is complete , the elements are registered in the additional information data base . the details of the method of editing this additional information will be described with reference to fig2 a - 21h . fig2 a - 21h describe the registration application operating screen . first , in fig2 a , an area specifying tool 28 is selected . the selection of tools is made by clicking a button corresponding to the tool with the mouse . when the tools 28 to 35 are selected , the selection is shown by a change in the display such as the background color . when a cursor 43 is brought over an additional drawing element which has already been written on the map , in this case the character string “ abc shop ”, and the mouse button is clicked , the character string is selected . four small squares are displayed at the four corners of the character string to show the selection . when the mouse is moved while the mouse button is depressed , the character string is dragged with the cursor 43 , and when the mouse button is released , the character string is moved to the new position . when an erase button 39 is pressed , the character string is erased . in fig2 b , the line tool 30 is described . when the line tool is selected , a cursor 44 becomes a cross as shown in the diagram . when the mouse button is pressed at a point a and moved to a point b while it is still depressed , a line is drawn from the point a to the point b as shown in the figure . when the mouse button is released , this line is registered as one dimensional information . in fig2 c , the square tool 32 is described . when the square tool is selected , a cursor 45 becomes a cross as shown in the diagram . when the mouse button is pressed at a point c and moved to a point d while it is still depressed , a square is drawn having a diagonal between the points c and d as shown in the figure . when the mouse button is released , this line is registered as two dimensional information . in fig2 d , the shift tool 34 is described . when the shift tool is selected , a cursor 46 assumes the shape of a hand . when the mouse button is pressed at a point e and moved to a point f while it is still depressed , the map display is scrolled by an amount corresponding to a vector ep . in fig2 e , the character input tool 29 is described . when the character input tool is selected , a cursor 47 becomes the shape of a letter i . when characters are then input from the keyboard , the input characters are drawn on the map . in fig2 f , a circle tool 31 is described . when the circle tool is selected , a cursor 48 becomes a cross . when the mouse button is pressed at a point g and moved to a point h while it is still depressed , a circle is drawn inside a square having a diagonal from the point g to the point h , as shown in the figure . when the mouse button is released , this circle is registered . in fig2 g and 21h , a polygon tool 33 is described . when the polygon tool is selected , a cursor 49 becomes a cross . when the mouse button is pressed at a point i , released , then pressed at a point j , released , and the same procedure is repeated at points k , l , lines ij , jk and kl are drawn as shown in fig2 g . when the mouse button is quickly pressed twice , a polygon is drawn having apices i , j , k , l as shown in fig2 h , and this polygon is registered . in fig2 , a color specifying method is described . when a color specifying button 35 is pressed , a window as shown in fig2 is displayed . small color specifying squares are arranged in rows in the window , and when the mouse is clicked on one of the squares , the color of that square is selected and the window closes . characters , lines , circles , polygons and squares which are specified subsequently are drawn in the specified color . in fig2 a and fig2 b , a method of selecting line types is described . when the cursor is brought over the broken line selection button 40 , and the mouse button is pressed , a pop - up menu is displayed as shown in fig2 a , and the line corresponding to the broken line type selected , is displayed with black and white reversed . in this example , the uppermost solid line is selected . next , the cursor is brought over a line type different from the type which was first inverted with the mouse button still depressed . only the line beneath the cursor is then displayed with black and white reversed , as shown in fig2 b . when the mouse button is released , the line type with which the cursor was aligned is selected , and all lines drawn subsequently are drawn with this line type . in fig2 a and 24b , a method of selecting line thickness is described . when the cursor is brought over a line thickness selecting button 41 , a pop - up menu is displayed as shown in fig2 a , and the line type corresponding to the selected line thickness is displayed with black and white reversed . this line thickness is then selected by the same procedure as in the pop - up menus of fig2 a and 23b . when all the elements have been drawn , they are then registered in the additional information center . the registration procedure is performed for example using a pull - down menu 50 from a menu bar 51 , as shown in fig2 . when registration is selected from the pulldown menu , the following details are registered in the additional information data base 24 from the home page designer terminal 26 shown in fig1 . when registration in the additional information data base is complete , a window as shown in fig2 is displayed , and a registration number for the information is automatically assigned by the additional information data base and is displayed . when the home page designer presses a button linking to a map , this number is used to call the map information data base center . an example in html ( hypertext markup language ) is shown below . when this example is displayed on a home page , it appears as shown in fig2 . the above is a description using the additional information data base . fig2 shows an example where the additional information data base is not used . in this case , the details superposed on the map are stored by the home page server , and are written in a text file using the html which describes the home page . a function is therefore provided to display the editing results as a character string instead of the registration function in the additional drawing editing application . this will be described with reference to fig2 and fig3 . the pull - down menu 50 is displayed from the menu bar 51 , and display data is selected . this causes a window 53 shown in fig3 to be displayed , and the editing results are displayed as a character string in a text display 52 . to represent the editing results as a character string , they are joined to a statement having a unique function . an example of the statement format will be described . scale level : shows the map scale level , e . g . 0 is the widest level and 10 is the most detailed latitude , longitude : shows the latitude and longitude of map center ( 0 . 1 degree units ) width , height : shows width and height of map image in pixel units colors are specified in terms of red , green and blue components . all drawing specification statements written subsequently are drawn in the colors specified here . specifies the line type . line types in line drawing statements written after this statement , follow the specified line type . n : 0 = solid line , 1 = fine dotted line , 2 = dot - dash line , 3 = rough dotted line specifies the line width . line widths of line drawing statements written after this statement , and line widths of outlines drawn by rectangle , ellipse and polygon drawing statements , follow the line width specified here . x 1 : latitude of line start point ( 0 . 1 degree units ) y 1 : longitude of line start point ( 0 . 1 degree units ) x 2 : latitude of line end point ( 0 . 1 degree units ) y 2 : longitude of line end point ( 0 . 1 degree units ) specifies an ellipse drawing . draws an ellipse touching the sides of a rectangle of which one diagonal is a line connecting a position coordinate 1 represented by ( x 1 , y 1 ) and a position coordinate 2 represented by ( x 2 , y 2 ). x 1 : latitude of position coordinate 1 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) y 1 : longitude of position coordinate 1 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) x 2 : latitude of position coordinate 2 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) y 2 : longitude of position coordinate 2 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) specifies a rectangle drawing . draws a rectangle of which one diagonal is a line connecting a position coordinate 1 represented by ( x 1 , y 1 ) and a position coordinate 2 represented by ( x 2 , y 2 ). x 1 : latitude of position coordinate 1 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) y 1 : longitude of position coordinate 1 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) x 2 : latitude of position coordinate 2 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) y 2 : longitude of position coordinate 2 ( 0 . 1 degree units ) ( 7 ) poly : x 1 , y 1 , dx 2 , dy 2 , dx 3 , dy 3 . . . specifies a polygon drawing . a position coordinate represented by ( x 1 , y 1 ) is the start point , and the following dx 2 , dy 2 , dx 3 , dy 3 . . . form pairs which represent the coordinates of the apices of the polygon . it should be noted that these pairs do not correspond to latitude and longitude , but to differences from the coordinates represented by the immediately preceding pair . for example , dx 2 , dy 2 represents the preceding start point , and the difference in latitude and longitude from the following apices of the polygon . expressed as an equation , when the coordinates of the polygon apices ( latitude , longitude ) are for example , writing a map link in the html format using the editing results shown in fig3 : value =“ map : 7 , 135020459 , 3404301 , 400 , 300 ; poly : 135023493 , 34 05320 , 233 , 0 , 3 - 30 ,- 43 , 3 ;”& gt ; the information displayed by the web browser according to this statement is the same as that of fig2 . when the button shown in fig3 is pressed , information to the effect that the parameter having the name “ map : 7 , 135020459 , 3404301 , 400 , 300 ; poly : 135023493 , 3405320 , 233 , 0 , 3 - 30 ,- 43 , 3 ;” is sent to the map information data base using the format “ form ”. in accordance with the value of the parameter received , a map is drawn with additional information superposed , and map image data is sent to the user &# 39 ; s web browser .	8
turning now to fig1 and 4 of the drawings . a dump truck , generally indicated at 10 , has a wheel mounted chassis 11 and a tipping cargo carrying body 12 pivotally mounted in conventional fashion on the rear of the chassis 11 . a multistage telescoping hydraulic ram is generally indicated at 15 and is mounted at its bottom , or inner , end 16 to the truck chassis 11 and at its outer end 18 to a cover 17 which is , in turn , connected to a pivot point 19 adjacent the bottom of the front wall 20 of the cargo carrying body 12 of the dump truck . the attachments at the chassis point and the body point 19 may be in any suitable form and preferably , though not at all necessarily , the connection at 16 may be via a reservoir box 21 pivotally mounted at pivots 22 on the chassis 11 , as is known in the art . turning now to fig2 and 5 . a telescoping hydraulic ram 15a has a first cylinder 25 which is pivotally connected to the truck chassis , or to whatever other element is desired , in conventional fashion at its lower end 26 . a ram 27 is reciprocally mounted in the cylinder 25 . hydraulic pressure to the cylinder 25 and exhaust to tank therefrom , is provided in conventional fashion , here schematically illustrated by the bore hole 28 . a cup - like bore seal 30 is provided at the inner end 32 of the ram 27 . the seal is attached in conventional fashion to the ram 27 . the seal 30 provides the advantage of a large active area by which force may be exerted on the ram 27 . screwed into the top of cylinder 25 is an outer end cap 35 forming part of cylinder 25 and carrying an annular seal 37 circumferentially engaging the ram 27 and aggressively sealing the cylinder 25 with the ram 27 . this aggressive sealing permits little or no leakage past the seal 37 when the ram 27 reciprocates in the cylinder 25 . the seal 37 provides , with the cup - like bore seal 30 , a longitudinally extending circumferential space 40 between the inner wall 29 of cylinder 25 and the outside surface 34 of the ram 27 . since the cup - like bore seal 30 non - aggressively seals the ram 27 in the cylinder 25 , that is to say it permits a certain amount of leakage or seepage from cylinder 25 into space 40 , oil will be trapped in the space 40 when the ram 27 is extended . to permit egress of the trapped oil from the space 40 a port , schematically shown at 45 , operatively communicates the space 40 to the outside of the cylinder 25 . the port 45 is inboard of the seal 37 and is continuous through a tab flange 48 on the cap 35 and is in fluid communication with a conduit 50 which returns the oil to reservoir , or tank , 51 . preferably this tank is the same tank which provides the oil for actuation of the hydraulic ram . the ram 27 , in its turn , provides therewithin , a cylinder 55 which is a duplicate , of smaller diameter , of the cylinder 25 . a second cup - like bore seal 57 similar to the seal 30 but of smaller diameter is attached to the lower end 58 of ram 60 which is reciprocally mounted in cylinder 55 , in a fashion which duplicates the manner of the ram 27 in the cylinder 25 . again operating fluid is provided to cylinder 55 , and evacuated therefrom , in conventional fashion and is here schematically shown by means of an aperture 62 through the bottom of ram 27 and seal 30 . at the outer end of ram 27 ( which forms cylinder 55 ), a screw - threaded end cap 65 is provided . in its turn , a second annular seal 67 is provided at the outer end of the cylinder 55 in the end cap 65 and circumferentially engages the outer surface 68 of the ram 60 . a second longitudinally extending circumferential space 70 is provided by aggressive seal 67 and non - aggressive seal 57 , between the cylinder 55 and the second ram 60 . again , because seal 57 non - aggressively seals with the walls of cylinder 27 , oil is leaked into the space 70 when the ram 60 is extended and this oil is trapped in space 70 . a second port 75 is positioned adjacent to and inboard of the second aggressive annular seal 67 and permits egress of the trapped oil from the space 70 . as before , the port 75 extends within an extended tab flange 78 on the member 65 and it terminates in a second conduit 80 which is telescopically arranged within conduit 50 in a fashion which will be described more fully hereinafter . thus , as pressure is admitted through the aperture 28 to extend the telescoping ram 27 in the cylinder 25 , the space 40 is vented and leaked oil is returned to tank 51 . in its turn , as activating oil is admitted through aperture 62 into cylinder 55 to extend the ram 60 , the space 70 is vented by means of port 75 and conduit 80 , back to tank . since the conduit 50 ends above the level of the oil in the reservoir , when the hydraulic rams are collapsed , or retracted , clean air is returned from the reservoir via conduit 50 and port 45 to space 40 and via conduit 80 and port 75 to space 70 . thus the device combines major advantages of the bore sealing cylinder type of ram with major advantages of the displacement sealing type of ram . a support arm 61 depends from a lateral projection 63 from the ram 60 . the support arm extends through tab flange 78 and into conduit 80 . an outside oil scrapper seal 69 prevents arm 61 from drawing oil out of the conduit . with this arrangement , the support arm assists in stabilising rams 27 and 60 . although only two cylinders , rams and telescoping conduits have been illustrated in fig2 it will be understood that three or four , or as many as desired , sections of cylinder , ram and telescoping conduits may be provided . in this regard , it is noted that fig1 and 4 show a telescoping hydraulic ram with three cylinders , rams and telescoping conduits . in fig1 like parts to telescoping hydraulic ram 15a of fig2 have been given like reference numerals , with the additional ram ( cylinder ) of fig1 illustrated at 23 . it will also be understood that the longitudinal scale of the cylinder and ram in fig2 has been foreshortened . turning now to fig3 this shows the encircled area in fig2 in more detail , although it will be understood that the fig3 is still schematic . as will be seen , the first conduit 50 is locked into the tab flange 48 of the member 35 by means of a lock screw 90 . the conduit 50 is sealed in the tab flange 48 by means of passive seals 91 , shown here as an o - ring , and the second conduit 80 is moveable within the tab flange 48 so that it can telescope freely into the first conduit 50 . the conduit 80 is sealed within the tab flange 48 by means of active seals 92 , here again shown as o - rings . the clearance between the second conduit 80 and the first conduit 50 is such that the passage of the conduit 80 within the conduit 50 does not obscure egress of oil to the reservoir 51 via the port 45 . obviously the flange tab 78 could receive and reciprocally seal a third conduit in the same fashion as shown in fig3 and so on . in the embodiment shown in fig4 the hollow rectangular cross - section ram cover 17 is attached at its top to the top 18 of the ram 60 by suitable means such as threaded shaft 18a of ram 60 and nut 18b . the cover 17 has sufficient space at its corners to accommodate the conduits so that when the ram is collapsed the conduits and ram will be protected by the cover 17 . although the invention has been described in an application to a dump truck , it will be understood that it will have other applications , for example to a dumping trailer , or indeed farther afield as will be understood by those skilled in this art . furthermore , although the preferred connection of ram through cover 17 to pivot points 19 on wall 20 has been shown , it will be understood that a simple eye to eye connection could be provided between ram and cargo body 12 .	5
the particulars shown herein are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the embodiments of the present invention only and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of the present invention . in this regard , no attempt is made to show structural details of the present invention in more detail than is necessary for the fundamental understanding of the present invention , the description taken with the drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how the several forms of the present invention may be embodied in practice . fig1 illustrates a front gun body 1 of a conventional plasma spray gun that includes a conventional plasma nozzle 2 , a cathode 3 and a water cooling system 4 . the conventional plasma spray gun can be , e . g ., an f4 mb - xl or 9 mb plasma gun manufactured by sulzer metco , an sg100 plasma gun manufactured by progressive technologies , or any typical conventional plasma gun exemplified by having a single cathode and a non - cascading anode / plasma arc channel . plasma nozzle 2 can be made of a material with high heat transfer characteristics , e . g ., from copper only or a copper nozzle can include a lining , e . g . a tungsten lining , a molybdenum lining , and high tungsten alloy lining , a silver lining or an iridium lining , to improve performance . a plasma is formed in plasma nozzle 2 by passing a current through a gas , typically , e . g ., ar , n 2 , he , or h 2 and mixtures thereof , creating a plasma arc 7 . to create the current , cathode 3 is connected to the negative side of a dc power source and nozzle 2 , acting as an anode , is connected to the positive side . plasma nozzle 2 includes a conical bore 5 in which cathode 3 is accommodated and a cylindrical bore 6 in which plasma arc 7 preferably attaches . in initial operation , plasma arc 7 may travel some distance down cylindrical bore 6 before attaching to the nozzle wall , which produces the highest plasma voltage . by way of non - limiting example , the initial attachment point for plasma arc 7 can be between the first one - third and one - half of cylindrical bore 6 downstream of conical bore 5 , and the plasma voltage at the wall is preferably greater than 70v at a given operating parameter . other parameters will result in different voltages depending upon gasses , hardware geometry , current , etc . as the surface of nozzle wall 2 wears and deteriorates , plasma arc 7 becomes attracted further upstream until plasma arc 7 eventually attaches to the wall of conical bore 5 , at which time the voltage drop is large enough to require nozzle 2 to be replaced . the wall within conical bore 5 is an undesired area of plasma arc attachment , where the plasma voltage is less than 70v at a given operating parameter . again , other parameters will result in different voltages depending upon gasses , hardware geometry , current , etc . to cool the nozzle , radially extending from an outer peripheral surface of nozzle 2 is a plurality of fins 12 . fins 12 also extend in a longitudinal direction of nozzle 2 to surround a point at which conical bore 5 and cylindrical bore 6 meet , as well as portions of conical bore 5 , e . g ., to surround about one - half of a length of conical bore 5 , and cylindrical portion 6 , e . g ., to surround the arc attachment region . when a tungsten lining is provided , fins 12 can be arranged to extend , e . g ., from a beginning of the lining forming a portion of the wall in conical bore 5 to an end of predetermined arc attachment region surrounding cylindrical bore 6 . as extremely high temperatures result from operating the plasma gun , e . g ., a peak average wall temperatures of 700 - 800 ° k in the nozzle bore , water cooling system 4 is arranged to cool nozzle 2 with circulating water . water cooling system 4 includes a water cooling path 8 that enters from a rear of the gun body , is directed around the outer perimeter of nozzle 2 and through cooling fins 12 before exiting . in particular , water cooling system 8 has at least one water inlet port 9 to supply cooling water from a supply to the outer periphery of nozzle 2 and has at least one water outlet port 10 through which the water cooling the outer periphery of nozzle 2 exits and is returned to the supply . water inlet port 9 supplies cooling water to contact an outer peripheral surface 11 of nozzle 2 surrounding a part of conical bore 5 . the cooling water is then guided through fins 12 to contact and cool the periphery in which fins 12 are located and then into an area to contact and cool the peripheral surface 13 surrounding a part of cylindrical bore 6 . the cooling water is generally supplied at a temperature of between 10 ° c . and 22 ° c ., and preferably between 16 ° c . and 18 ° c ., in order to effect a 25 - 35 ° k temperature rise . with normal operation of the plasma gun depicted in fig1 , the plasma voltage will decay as the nozzle wall surface becomes worn and pitted providing anodic attachments via charge concentration . over time , these attractive forces will disadvantageously drive the arc into the conical section , resulting in a voltage decay indicative of the end of the useful life of the nozzle . embodiments of the invention seek to prolong the life of the nozzle by controlling the plasma arc attachment region through thermal dynamic affects . the embodiments utilize the above - described behavior to manipulate the plasma arc by controlling the wall temperature of the nozzle . in particular , the embodiments are based in part on the finding that hotter surfaces provide conducive locations for plasma arc attachment while cooler surfaces tend to be less attractive to the plasma arc . based on knowledge gained from operating computational fluid dynamics ( cfd ) models of plasma guns , the inventor has found that for most plasma guns the average wall temperatures in the region of plasma arc attachment , i . e ., the forward half of the conical bore and the rear half of the cylindrical bore , are relatively uniform , e . g ., about a 50 ° c . difference or less . as conventional plasma nozzles are primarily constructed of copper , which has a good thermal conductivity , this finding was not surprising . however , the inventor found that , according to embodiments of the invention , advantages can be attained through cooling of the nozzle in a manner to generate thermal differences in average temperature along the bore , i . e ., from the bore wall in the rear section of the conical bore to the bore wall in the front section of the cylindrical bore , that are , e . g ., greater than 50 ° c ., greater than about 75 ° c ., at least about 100 ° c ., and even greater than about 200 ° c ., and / or within a range of between 75 ° c . and 225 ° c ., and preferably between 100 ° c . and 200 ° c . an embodiment of a nozzle 2 ′ constructed according to the inventor &# 39 ; s implementation of thermal management is depicted in fig2 . while nozzle 2 ′ is structurally distinct from nozzle 2 , the use of nozzle 2 ′ in place of nozzle 2 in the conventional plasma gun does not change the operational characteristics of the plasma gun , except to the extent that the nozzle life is increased with nozzle 2 ′ as compared to nozzle 2 . in the illustrated embodiment , nozzle 2 ′ is constructed in a manner to keep the conical bore 5 cooler in relation to cylindrical bore 6 . according to this exemplary embodiment , the plasma arc 7 , as in the conventional nozzle design , preferably attaches in the back end of cylindrical bore 6 , e . g ., the back one - third to one - half of the bore , and remains there for as long as possible . nozzle 2 ′ was constructed to build up the copper material surrounding conical bore 5 so that the added high thermal mass of copper surrounds conical bore 5 to draw off and conduct heat away from the wall of conical bore 5 . moreover , as the amount of copper surrounding conical bore 5 increases , the outer peripheral surface 11 ′ surrounding conical bore 5 can structured to be coaxial with cylindrical bore 6 so that the cross - sectional area of the water path or channel around conical bore 5 is correspondingly reduced . this reduced path or channel results in increased velocity of the water flowing through the path or channels surrounding conical bore 5 , thereby achieving optimal cooling of the walls of conical bore 5 . in the area of the knee or point at which conical bore 5 meets cylindrical section 6 , nozzle 2 ′ is constructed so that a further change in the cooling setup occurs . as compared to the conventional nozzle 2 , an area 14 with fins 12 ′ merely extends in the longitudinal direction from the increased copper portion ( or from the beginning of the tungsten lining ) surrounding part of conical bore 5 to a point , depending upon thermal dynamics of nozzle 2 ′ and the plasma arc , at , just before , or just beyond the point at which conical bore 5 and cylindrical bore 6 meet . however , rather than radially extending from the outer peripheral surface of cylindrical bore 6 , as in nozzle 2 , copper material is also built up in area 14 to form a peripheral surface 15 to at least meet and preferably exceed the radial build up of peripheral surface 11 ′. as further illustrated in fig2 , fins 12 ′ can be arranged to radially extend from peripheral surface 15 of the copper build up , so that the water guided into the reduced channel surrounding conical bore 5 is guided between , and preferably guided up to peripheral surface 15 and then between , fins 12 ′. further , while fins 12 ′ can radially extend to the surface of the bore in the plasma gun to receive nozzle 2 ′, it may be advantageous to construct fins 12 ′ to be radially shorter than the fins 12 in nozzle 2 so that , as the cooling water entering through water inlet 8 increases its velocity in the channels surrounding conical bore 5 , the cooling water can flow between and over fins 12 ′ and into a wide water outlet groove 16 in the remaining area surrounding cylindrical bore 6 . as the velocity of the cooling water slows as the cooling water enters the larger geometry of wide water outlet groove 16 , this area can become somewhat of a stagnant water zone . further , as water is actually a good insulator , the amount of copper in the nozzle wall and / or around the tungsten lining , should be sufficient to allow heat to travel laterally through the copper and away from the “ instantaneous ” plasma arc 7 attachment point in order to prevent melting of the copper and / or tungsten . however , because of water &# 39 ; s insulative effect and as the cooling water becomes somewhat stagnant over cylindrical bore 6 , the heat reduction on the wall surface at the area of the plasma arc attachment due to the cooling water can be further reduced , if desired , by further reducing the wall thickness of the nozzle portion including cylindrical bore 6 , i . e ., by reducing the amount of copper surrounding cylindrical bore 6 . in this way , the temperature differential between the conical bore wall and the cylindrical bore wall can be increased . by way of non - limiting example , the reduced wall thickness of the combined copper wall and tungsten lining can be on the order of 2 - 3 mm , while the wall thickness for wall of copper alone is at least 3 mm the only limiting factor is the potential for the water to boil depending upon factors such as the water pressure and temperature as it contacts the copper wall surface of the nozzle in the water outlet groove 16 . according to embodiments , in operation , an average temperature differential between the wall surface of conical bore 5 and the wall surface of cylindrical bore 6 can be greater than 50 ° c ., greater than about 75 ° c ., at least about 100 ° c ., and even greater than about 200 ° c ., and the average temperature differential can be within a range of between 75 ° c . and 225 ° c ., and preferably between 100 ° c . and 200 ° c . in the exemplary embodiment of fig2 , nozzle 2 ′ in operation can achieve an average temperature differential between the wall surface of conical bore 5 and the wall surface of cylindrical bore 6 of at least about 100 ° c . thus , the combination of the increased heat dissipation through the copper build up over conical bore 5 and the increased velocity of cooling water through the reduced geometry of the cooling channels surrounding conical bore 5 result in increased cooling in the area of conical bore 5 . as the cooling water is then guided into wide water outlet groove to act as an insulator around cylindrical bore 6 , the heat dissipation is intentionally not commensurate with the cooling in the area of conical bore 5 , thereby creating the desired temperature differential between conical bore 5 and cylindrical bore 6 . moreover , if the copper wall thickness surrounding cylindrical bore 6 is reduced , the heat dissipation through the copper wall is reduced to increase the temperature in cylindrical bore 6 and increase the temperature differential . in operating a plasma gun with nozzle 2 ′, an average 50 % increase in hardware life can be yielded in terms of voltage decay as compared to the same gun using conventional nozzle 2 . it has also been found that the voltage instability ( peak to peak ) was essentially unchanged . this result is graphically illustrated in fig3 and 4 , which respectively show , after two hours of operation , the plasma voltage over time for conventional nozzle 2 and the plasma voltage over time for nozzle 2 ′. fig3 shows a standard deviation of +/− 0 . 22 and fig4 shows a standard deviation of +/− 0 . 23 . a review of these graphical results for several examples reveals that the standard deviation remains constant for a longer period of time for nozzle 2 ′ as compared to nozzle 2 . thus , it is apparent that nozzle 2 ′ in a conventional plasma gun does not affect overall operational behavior of the plasma gun , but does extend the amount of time that the plasma arc will stay within the cylindrical bore , thereby increasing the usable life of the nozzle . in another embodiment , a nozzle 2 ″, as illustrated in fig5 , is structured to maximize the thermal state difference between conical bore 5 and cylindrical bore 6 . while nozzle 2 ″ is structurally distinct from nozzle 2 , the use of nozzle 2 ″ in place of nozzle 2 in the conventional plasma gun does not change the operational characteristics of the plasma gun , except to the extent that the nozzle life is increased with nozzle 2 ″ as compared to nozzle 2 . nozzle 2 ″ includes a build up of copper material 20 so that the added high thermal mass of copper surrounds conical bore 5 to draw off and conduct heat away from the wall of conical bore 5 . in particular , the copper build up is provided to radially surround conical bore 5 to such an extent that the outer , and preferably cylindrical , peripheral surfaces 22 and 23 generally correspond with the geometry of the gun bore into which nozzle 2 ″ is to be received . moreover , cooling channels 24 are formed in the built up amount of copper surrounding conical bore 5 to communicate with one or more radial cooling channels 25 . cooling channels 24 are diagonally oriented to extend from water inlet 8 to a position just radially above the tungsten lining at the point at which conical bore 5 meets cylindrical bore 6 . nozzle 2 ″ additional includes a circular wall 26 radially extending from outer peripheral surface 13 of cylindrical bore 6 to a cylindrical section 27 , which is structured to define a cooling channel 28 between a radial outer surface of cylindrical section 27 and the gun bore of the plasma gun . further , circular wall 26 partially defines the one or more radial cooling channels 25 , which are arranged to communicate with and extend radially outwardly from the end of cooling channels 24 located just radially above the tungsten lining at the point at which conical bore 5 meets cylindrical bore 6 . cooling channel 24 can be dimensioned so as to increase the velocity of the cooling water at the water inlet port ( not shown in fig5 ), which is conventionally within a range of less than 1 - 2 m / sec ., to within a range of about 10 - 15 m / sec . further , radial channels 25 can be dimensioned to be somewhat larger than cooling channels 24 to begin reducing the cooling water velocity as the water is guided through cooling channel 28 and over cylinder surface 27 . the cooling water guided over cylinder 27 is collected in a wide water outlet groove 16 , which can be understood as a stagnant water zone surrounding peripheral wall 13 of cylinder bore 6 . further , due to a higher pressure drop for the high cooling water velocities achieved , it may be advantageous to insert at least one sealing element , e . g ., an o - ring , at peripheral surface 23 of the built up copper to prevent the cooling water from bypassing cooling channels 24 . the increased velocity of cooling water through cooling channels 24 and 25 in combination with the build up of copper , increases the cooling effect in conical bore 5 , whereas the insulative effect of the water collecting in the stagnant water zone of wide water outlet groove 16 , does not achieve the same cooling effect , so that the beneficial effects of the desired temperature differential between the conical bore 5 and cylindrical bore 6 are achieved . in a further embodiment illustrated in fig6 , nozzle 2 ″&# 39 ; is generally similar to the conventional nozzle , except that a continuous water jacket has been added to increase the cooling water velocity in the region surrounding conical bore 5 . moreover , while nozzle 2 ″&# 39 ; is structurally distinct from nozzle 2 , the use of nozzle 2 ″&# 39 ; in place of nozzle 2 in the conventional plasma gun does not change the operational characteristics of the plasma gun , except to the extent that the nozzle life is increased with nozzle 2 ″&# 39 ; as compared to nozzle 2 . as with nozzle 2 , nozzle 2 ″′ has a plurality of radially extending fins 12 ″. fins 12 ″ also extend in a longitudinal direction of nozzle 2 to surround a point at which conical bore 5 and cylindrical bore 6 meet , as well as portions of conical bore 5 and cylindrical portion 6 , so that the arc attachment region is surrounded by fins 12 ″. when a tungsten lining is provided , fins 12 can be arranged to extend from a beginning of the lining forming a portion of the wall in conical bore 5 to an end of predetermined arc attachment region surrounding cylindrical bore 6 . however , in contrast to fins 12 of nozzle 2 , a longitudinally rear and radially outer section , e . g ., a rectangular section , is removed from the fins 12 ″. a continuous water jacket 30 of , e . g ., copper , brass , steel , other suitable metal or ceramic , can be arranged in the removed section of fins 12 ″ to surround at least the point at which conical bore 5 and cylindrical bore 6 meet and at least a portion of conical bore 5 . when a tungsten lining is provided , water jacket 30 may be arranged to extend from a beginning of the lining forming a portion of the wall in conical bore 5 to a point longitudinally beyond the point where conical bore 5 meets cylindrical bore 6 . according to this structure , the generally v - shaped channels between fins 12 ″ are reduced in the radial direction to form reduced geometry generally v - shaped water cooling channels 31 below water jacket 30 . as a result , cooling channels 31 can be dimensioned so as to increase the velocity of the cooling water at water inlet 8 , which is conventionally within a range of less than 1 - 2 m / sec ., to within a range of about 5 m / sec . moreover , as the cooling channels 31 radially open up after the cooling water passes water jacket 30 , the cooling water velocity is reduced and then further reduced as the cooling water is guided into wide water outlet groove 16 ′ surrounding the portion of cylindrical bore 6 downstream of the plasma arc attachment region . further , it may be advantageous to insert at least one sealing element , e . g ., an o - ring , at an outer peripheral surface of water jacket 30 to prevent the cooling water from bypassing cooling channels 31 . thus , according to this embodiment , nozzle 2 ″′ concentrates the water flow in a rear section of the nozzle to increase the cooling in the region surrounding conical bore 5 relative to the front section surrounding cylindrical bore 6 . still further , in operating a typical plasma gun with nozzle 2 ″′, an almost identical result of increased the hardware life was yielded in terms of voltage decay as compared to the same gun using nozzle 2 ′. in the disclosed embodiments , the composition of the tungsten liner can include any doped tungsten material including but not limited to thoriated , lanthanated , ceriated , etc . other liner material compositions can include high tungsten alloys such as cmw 3970 , molybdenum , silver , and iridium . both molybdenum and cmw 3970 have been used with some success , while silver and iridium , which are currently somewhat cost prohibitive , can also be considered suitable materials for embodiments of the invention . since tungsten lining materials have in the past been known to crack or fracture ( and thus reduce hardware life ), other materials may offer some improvement in this regard . such materials should preferably have the following properties . they should be more ductile and fracture tolerant than tungsten especially under high thermal loading and high temperature gradients . they should also have a high melting point similar or close to that of tungsten . and when lower , they should have a high enough thermal conductivity to compensate for having a lower melting point than tungsten . potential materials include pure metals such as silver , iridium and molybdenum as they have many of the above - noted desired properties . although , as noted above , silver and iridium are arguably currently too expensive for practical use , molybdenum is affordable . other options include tungsten alloyed with small amounts of iron or nickel as they have acceptable properties . preferably , such materials include at least 90 % of the primary metal , i . e ., tungsten in the case of a tungsten alloy . to select the material , one can graph the differential temperature versus thermal conductivity and determine which it is likely to withstand direct contact with the plasma arc . this differential temperature is preferably the difference between the melting point and average plasma temperature ( about 9000 k ) and at least an inverse of the melting temperature . when this is performed for the materials discussed above , i . e ., molybdenum , iridium , tungsten , copper and silver come closest to having many of the desired properties even while possessing significant differences in regards to ductility , being susceptible to thermal shock and cracking . preferred materials include tungsten and molybdenum and their alloys such as tungsten containing about 2 . 1 % nickel and about 0 . 9 % iron . other tungsten alloys include those with higher amounts of nickel and copper , but with lower melting points and thermal conductivity , but higher ductility as well as those with lower amounts of nickel and copper , but with higher melting points and thermal conductivity , but lower ductility . other materials that can be alloyed with tungsten include osmium , rhodium , cobalt and chromium . these metals possess a high - enough melting point and high thermal conductivity such that they can be alloyed with tungsten and utilized in a nozzle liner material . commercial grade molybdenum and a tungsten alloy having 2 . 1 % nickel and 0 . 9 % iron have both been tested and used in nozzle liners by inventors , and have been compared to a copper only nozzle . it is understood that , while different conventional plasma spray guns may utilize nozzles having dimensions differing from those described in the pending disclosure , it is understood that , without departing from the spirit and scope of the described embodiments for creating or generating the desired surface temperature differential between the conical bore in a rear section of the nozzle and the cylindrical bore in a front section of the nozzle of the invention , the dimensions of the nozzles can be changed or modified from those identified in the above disclosure . moreover , in addition to the foregoing embodiments , which describe particular nozzle structures and arrangements to create or generate a surface temperature differential between the conical bore in a rear section of the nozzle and the cylindrical bore in a front section of the nozzle , it is contemplated that this surface temperature differential can be created or generated in other manners without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments of the invention . by way of non - limiting example , an embodiment of a nozzle can use alternative materials or layers serving as thermal barriers . in this regard , the thermal barriers can be arranged to control thermal conductivity , so that the rear section has a lower thermal conductivity then the front section . in other embodiments , reducing the thickness of the tungsten lining in the rear section and making the rear section wall thinner to allow for more heat transfer to copper . it is further understood that , for each of the described embodiments , additional improvement may be obtained by reducing the nozzle wall temperature near the nozzle exit , which would correspondingly limit the arc motion , specifically for high gas flow conditions where the plasma arc tends to travel further downstream in the bore and could attach to the front of the nozzle . 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 an exemplary 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 sprit of the present invention in its aspects . although the present invention has been described herein with reference to particular means , 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
fig1 and fig2 show a preferred embodiment of the present invention . the apparatus for moving containers comprises two base cars 1 constructed and arranged antimerically opposite to each other . they comprise base structures 3 provided with wheels 2 and transverse beams 4 in their middle sections in a lowered position . these transverse beams 4 are overreaching the base structures 3 and have supports 5 on both sides . there are carriages 6 rolling on the beams 4 and the carriages 6 are provided with container moving units comprising lifting frames 8 driven by lifting means 7 . there are also container supports 9 carried by rollers on the base structures 3 . the supports 9 can be simple beams or can have upper parts constructed as roller plates to enable the containers to move thereon . on the other side of the lifting means 7 there are counterweights 10 , a hydraulic supply unit 11 and an electric control unit 12 . fig3 shows the front view of the apparatus according to the invention . it can be seen how the beams 4 are overreaching the base structure 3 and that supports 5 are hydraulically operated legs resting on support rails 13 . wheels rolling on the rails 13 can also be applied instead of the legs . lifting frame 8 is provided with container grips 14 on both sides for fitting in the standard iso elements of the containers for lifting . several grips ( e . g . the lower ones ) can be replaced by abutments , in certain cases . on the right side of fig3 a container 15 is held by container grips 14 and lowered to supports 9 . on the left side of fig3 another container 15 is moved by the lower lifting beam 16 carried on the lifting frame 8 . the beam can be pushed below the container , in order to lift it . lifting frame 8 can have an upper lifting beam 17 too as shown in fig4 . this upper lifting beam is carried by expansion brackets 18 which can slightly be moved in vertical direction . at the end of the upper beams , there are foldable arms 19 to prevent tilting of the container during loading by the lower grips 14 only . the lower lifting beams 16 ( see fig5 ) are of similar construction : expansion brackets 18 are on the lower part of the lifting frame 8 for bearing the beams . these beams , however , do not comprise foldable arms , but have a narrowing end section which makes it easier to push the beam below the container . the grips are fixed to the expansion brackets . the upper lifting beams 17 are generally used for the moving of soft top ( swap ) containers which can not be clamped at the top and , therefore , they are not necessarily part of the apparatus . if they are applied , however , it is easy to modify the construction in a way that lifting of any kind of containers can be carried out by the upper lifting beams 17 . moreover , it may be advantageous to construct the apparatus as a system of building blocks , which means that the basic module does not contain all of the lifting elements ( upper or lower beams , folded arm , grips , extensions etc ), but only the ones necessary for a given purpose . the same is valid for the other accessories as e . g . the support legs , wheels or rails . a simple lifting column may also be applied instead of the lifting frame . the base cars are preferably controlled by an electronic system synchronized by radio connection between the cars . a mechanical system can , of course , also be applied . the apparatus may be used as shown in fig6 to 26 wherein fig6 a to 26 a show front views and fig6 b to 26 b show top views . referring to fig6 to 12 there is shown the process of loading without lifting beams , only with iso grips fixed to the lifting frames . the starting position at loading is shown in fig6 a and 6 b wherein fig6 a shows a front view and fig6 b a top view . when truck a with containers b achieves its loading position opposite to the railway car c , base car d ( according to the invention ) moves to its first position wherein the container grips are in line with the iso elements on the containers . preferably , sensor elements are provided for adjusting to the correct position . as a second step , the overreaching beams are backed by the supports and the carriages approach the container . following a vertical adjustment the carriages travel to the container and the grips are activated ( pushed forward and turned ) to clamp the container ( fig7 ). the container is then lifted and moved to a central position on the base cars , as shown in fig8 . after the container has been lowered to the container supports , the carriages are retracted and the base cars move off from each other until they have room enough to take a central position ( fig9 ). in this position , the beam supports are released and the cars travel with the container to the ( opposite ) loading position , wherein the carriages roll to the other side and the base cars approach to each other ( fig1 ). being in the correct position and the beam supports being active , the grips are pushed forward and turned on to clamp the container , which is then lifted and moved to the other side ( fig1 ). the container is then loaded to the railway car and the base cars of the apparatus return into start position ( fig1 ). in most cases , the standard containers provided with iso connections can be moved by clamping with the upper grips only . at the lower section of the container , it is generally sufficient to apply abutments . lately , however , soft top ( swap ) containers have appeared , as referred to above , which cannot be clamped on the upper part . in such cases , the lower grips are used for clamping the container and the folded arms on the upper lifting beams support the container to prevent tilting as shown in fig1 . the container clamped in this way may be moved as already shown in fig6 to 12 . fig1 to 20 show the use of the lower lifting beams . in fig1 both the base cars are in starting position , the lifting elements are lowered and the beams are in central position . first , the base cars take a position corresponding to the length of the container to be moved , then the carriages move to the right position . horizontally adjusted , the carriages approach the container and the upper extension brackets push the upper part of the container to tilt it . in this tilted position , the lower beams are pushed below the container and the extension brackets are retracted to allow the container to rest fully on the lower beams . the container is then lifted ( fig1 ) and moved to a central position on the base cars , as shown in fig1 . after the container has been lowered to the container supports , the carriages are retracted and the base cars move off from each other until they have room enough to take a central position ( fig1 ). in this position , the cars travel with the container to the ( opposite ) loading position , wherein the carriages roll to the other side and the base cars approach each other . being in the correct position , the beams are pushed forward and the container is then lifted ( fig1 ), moved to the other side and lowered there ( fig1 ). the base cars of the apparatus return to start position ( fig2 ). another preferred embodiment may be seen in fig2 . here , the lifting frames 8 have , on the upper ends , horizontal consoles 20 and the upper lifting beams 17 are guided at the end of these consoles . the iso grips 14 and lifting arms 19 are fixed to slides 21 mounted for transverse movement on the beams 17 . the base cars 1 do not comprise container support beams , the containers are supported — if necessary — by the lower part of the lifting means 7 themselves . fig2 shows the step when the container is just lifted by the foldable lifting arms 19 . the same step can be seen in fig2 , wherein the apparatus is shown in front view . the next steps are shown in fig2 and fig2 . lifting means 7 travels to central position ( fig2 ) and the container is laid on to the lower part of the lifting means 7 by arms 19 and the grips on that part clamp the container ( fig2 ). then the base cars 1 travel with the container to the required place and the container is lifted and moved to the other side to be loaded on the other railway car . it is to be noted that the container is not necessarily lowered and clamped in the middle position in the case when only transverse movement of the container is necessary . a further embodiment of the invention is shown in fig2 ( side view ) and fig2 ( front view ). this embodiment is a preferred form if the whole area of passage can be used and the containers should be loaded onto the ground or onto the top of each other . in the apparatus illustrated in these figures , lifting frames 8 are similar to those shown in the previous figures but lifting means 7 are mounted directly on the beams 4 instead of moving on carriages . accordingly , transverse movement is carried out exclusively by the upper lifting beams 17 and slides 21 that move along and carry lifting arms 19 as well as grips 14 . the embodiments shown by the way of example illustrate that the apparatus according to the invention can be used for loading , unloading and transferring any kind of containers or other standard loads easily and effectively , without the danger of touching overhead wires . loading is faster and easier than in the conventional way , and operating the system is also easier than before . the apparatus can be installed without considerable additional costs and , last but not least , use of the apparatus according to the present invention does not contribute to air pollution . while several preferred embodiments of the apparatus according to the invention have been described in some detail , it will be obvious to one skilled in the art that various modifications may be made without departing from the invention as hereinafter claimed .	1
a preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described more in detail with reference to the diagrammatic drawings . the apparatus comprises an underframe 1 and a column 2 , which is rigidly connected to the rear of the underframe 1 at the center of its length . the underframe 1 carries a backing wall 3 , which consists of two plates and is rearwardly inclined from the vertical by a few degrees and has a forward backing surface that defines a bending plane 5 of the apparatus . a holder 4 is provided at and extends along the horizontal bottom edge of the backing wall 3 and forms a bearing surface 6 , which extends at right angles to the bending plane 5 . the holder 4 serves to support tubular bars 7 , which are to be bent to form spacer frames . the holder 4 presents the tubular bars to two bending tools 8 and 9 , which are disposed near the horizontal bottom edge of the backing wall 3 and are displaceable along said bottom edge . for that purpose the bending tools 8 and 9 comprise respective carriages 10 . the nature and design of the bending tools are no subject matter of the present invention and are known in the art and for this reason are not shown in detail . for instance , bending tools as described in german patent specification no . 32 23 881 may be used . in the illustrative embodiment shown on the drawings each of the bending tools 8 and 9 comprises a bending shoe 11 , which is pivoted on an axis 12 that is at right angles to the bending plane 5 . each of the bending shoes 11 is pivotally movable upwardly about the associated axis 12 from a horizontal initial position through somewhat more than 90 ° so as to bend a tubular bar 7 , which lies on the holder 4 . to prevent a shifting of the tubular bar in its longitudinal direction during the bending operation the tubular bar 7 may also be clamped between the bending tools 8 and 9 , e . g ., by a gripping jaw which is not shown in the drawing and urges the tubular bar 7 against the holder 4 from above . the bending shoes 11 are pivotally moved through somewhat more than 90 ° so that the tubular bars 7 are over - bent to allow for a springback . the two plates of the backing wall 3 are spaced apart so that the backing wall 3 is formed with an aperture or gap 13 extending from the bottom edge to the top edge of the backing wall . in that aperture 13 , two parallel track rails 14 are disposed , which extend behind the bending plane and parallel to the latter from bottom to top . a frame - closing tool 15 is movable up and down on said track rails 14 . before or during the bending of a tubular bar 7 , the frame - closing tool 15 is moved to such a frame - closing position that the final bending operation will impart to the end portions 17 and 18 of the tubular bar 7 a pivotal movement so that their free ends 19 and 20 enter the frame - closing tool 15 . for that purpose the two bending tools 8 and 9 are disposed on opposite sides of the aperture or gap 13 which receives the frame - closing tool 15 . in a preferred arrangement , the bending tools 8 , 9 are arranged and designed like mirror images on opposite sides of the vertical center plane 21 of the frame - closing tool 15 . in that case the bends will be symmetrical to the length center of the tubular bar 7 and the two end portions 17 and 18 which are pivotally moved into the frame - closing tool 15 will be equal in length . the two bending tools 8 and 9 are suitably operated at the same time as has been explained in the general part of this description . the frame - closing tool 15 comprises tools for locating , gripping and joining the two end portions 17 and 18 of the tubular bar and also comprises the associated actuating means and a housing 22 , which accommodates said tools and actuating means and has a forward bracket 23 ( fig4 ). above the bracket 23 , the planar front wall 24 of the housing 22 is formed with apertures 25 and 26 , which permit various elements of the tool to be extended from and retracted into the housing 22 . the bracket 23 carries two stops 27 and 27a , which are spaced apart along the bottom edge of the backing wall and each of which has a stop face that is at right angles to the bending plane 5 and parallel to the bearing surface 6 of the holder 4 . the stop faces of the two stops 27 and 27a are aligned with each other . a depressing guide member 28 is provided above the stop 27 and has a planar sliding surface 29 , which faces the bending plane 5 and includes an upwardly open acute angle α with that bending plane so that the distance between the depressing guide member 28 and the bending plane 5 increases from bottom to top . a deflecting guide member 31 is provided above the stop 27a and has also a planar guiding surface 32 , which faces opposite to the sliding surface 29 of the depressing guide member 28 , i . e ., away from the bending plane 5 . in its operative position shown in fig4 the sliding surface 29 includes an acute angle β with the bending plane 5 . different from the angle α , the angle β is open downwardly . as is shown in fig4 the planar sliding surface 32 includes with the bending plane 5 also an acute angle γ , which is measured in a plane that intersects the bending plane 5 at right angles thereto in a horizontal line . the acute angle γ is open toward the depressing guide member 28 . the oblique sliding surface 32 intersects the bending plane 5 . from its operative position shown in fig4 and 5 , the deflecting guide member 31 can be pivotally retracted into the housing 22 by means of a pneumatic cylinder 33 accommodated in the housing 22 . a vertical stop face 34 which extends at right angles to the bending plane 5 is formed in that end of the depressing guide member 28 which faces the deflecting guide member 31 . another stop 35 is closely spaced in that end face of the deflecting guide member 31 which faces the depressing guide member 28 . the stop 35 has a stop face that is parallel to the stop face 34 . the stop 35 is apparent from fig5 and is concealed in fig4 . a freely rotatable roller 36 is mounted close to the deflecting guide member 31 and is pivotally movable by means of a pneumatic cylinder 37 about a horizontal axis 38 out of the housing 22 through the aperture 25 from a retracted position in the housing 22 . the roller 36 constitutes a holding - down member for forcing the end portion of the tubular bar against the stop 27a while permitting a longitudinal displacement of the end portion 18 because the roller 36 is freely rotatably . another holding - down roller 39 is disposed close to the depressing guide member 28 and is also movable by a pneumatic cylinder 40 about a horizontal axis 41 out of the housing from retracted position in the housing 22 . the holding - down roller 39 serves to force the other end portion 17 of the tubular bar against the stop 27 . the two stops 27 and 27a are carried by respective gripper carriages 42 and 43 , which are horizontally displaceable in the housing 22 by pneumatic cylinders 85 and 86 , respectively , to change the distance between the carriages 42 and 43 . that portion of the gripper carriage 42 which protrudes into the hollow bracket 23 and constitutes the stop 27 carries a gripping jaw 44 , which is disposed under the depressing guide member 28 . by means of a pneumatic cylinder 46 , which is moved in unison with the gripper carriage 42 by the pneumatic cylinder 85 , the gripper carriage 42 carrying the gripping jaw 44 can be moved toward and away from the front wall 24 of the housing 22 to displace the gripping jaw 44 at right angles to the bending plane 5 and cooperates with an opposite stationary gripping jaw 47 , which is fixed in the housing 22 . the gripper carriage 42 has a slot 48 , which contains a guide rod 49 , which extends at right angles to the bending plane 5 through a sliding surface bearing in the stationary jaw 47 and holds the moving gripping jaw 44 in an orientation which is parallel to the stationary gripping jaw 47 . when the frame - closing tool 15 is in its operating position , the gripping surface of the stationary gripping jaw 47 is flush with or disposed slightly behind the bending plane 5 . the front housing wall 24 of the frame - closing tool 15 is also flush with the bending plane 5 or disposed slightly behind the same . that portion of the gripper carriage 43 which protrudes from the housing 22 and carries the stop 27a is formed with a gripping jaw 50 . by means of a pneumatic cylinder 52 , which is movable by the pneumatic cylinder 86 in unison with the gripper carriage 43 , the gripping jaw 50 and the gripper carriage 43 are movable at right angles to the bending plane 5 toward and away from the housing front wall 24 . the gripping jaw 50 cooperates with a stationary gripping jaw 53 , which is disposed near the housing front wall 24 behind the deflecting guide member 31 and has a gripping surface that always extends in the bending plane 5 . the stationary gripping jaw 53 will be accessible when the deflecting guide member 31 has been pivotally retracted into the housing 22 by the associated pneumatic cylinder 33 . the carriage 43 is also formed with a slot 54 and a guide rod 55 extends in said slot 54 at right angles the bending plane 5 through a sliding surface bearing formed in the stationary gripping jaw 54 . an oblique surface 57 is provided above the gripping surface 56 , which is formed on the displaceable gripping jaw 50 and is parallel to the bending plane 5 . like the sliding surface 29 of the depressing guide member 28 the oblique surface 57 faces the bending plane 5 and serves also as a depressing guide but is steeper than the sliding surface 29 . an indenting tool 60 is provided between the two gripping carriages 42 and 43 and is not shown in fig5 and 7 for the sake of clearness and is shown only as a detail in fig8 . the indenting tool 60 is disposed at one end of a swivel arm 61 , which at its other end is connected by a pivot 62 to an end portion of a guide rod 63 , which extends at right angles to the bending plane 5 and is guided in a guide block 64 . by means which are not shown the guide rod 63 is connected to the gripper carriage 42 so that the guide rod 63 is displaced together with the movable gripping jaw 44 to an extent which is one - half of the extent of the displacement of the movable gripping jaw 44 . this arrangement will ensure each tubular bar 7 and will be indented by the indenting tool at the center of the width of the tubular bar 7 regardless of its width . the swivel arm 61 is pivotally moved by a pneumatic cylinder 65 through the intermediary of another guide rod 66 , which is guided in the same guide block 64 and is connected by a link 67 to the swivel arm 61 . an overhead conveyor 69 for removing the completed spacer frames 16 extends along the top edge of the backing wall 3 and comprises a horizontal frame 70 , which extends along the top end of the backing wall 3 and bears on said top edge and on the central column 2 and protrudes beyond the outer end of one of the plates of the backing wall 3 . the frame 70 is provided with a track rail 71 , which supports an endless roller chain 72 , which is trained around and tensioned by chain sprockets 77 to 82 having vertical axes of rotation . one of said chain sprockets , e . g ., the chain sprocket 82 is driven . the chain 72 comprises regularly spaced apart swivel pins , which protrude above the top link plates of the chain and are fit into bearing blocks 73 which preferably consist of plastic . a swivel hook 75 depends from each of said bearing blocks 73 and is pivoted thereto on a horizontal pivot 74 , which extends in the direction of travel of the chain 72 . the hooks 75 are mounted in such an orientation that the free ends 76 of those hooks which are carried by the forward course of the chain are in sliding contact with the backing wall 3 . the apparatus operates as follows : a tubular bar 7 is placed on and preferably fixed to the holder 4 provided at the bottom edge of the backing wall 3 . the two bending tools 8 and 9 are operated to form two 90 ° bends in the tubular bar 7 so that the bar 7 has the shape of a u . the two bending tools 8 and 9 are then displaced toward each other . thereafter the tubular bar 7 is bent through slightly more than 90 ° at two additional locations disposed between the previously formed bends . said two bends are preferably formed at the same time by a final bending operation , which causes the end portions 17 and 18 of the tubular bar 7 to perform a pivotal movement and their free ends 19 and 20 move into the range of action of the frame - closing tool 15 , when the latter has previously been moved to the required frame - closing position . in that operation the depressing guide member 28 moves the bar end portion 17 to the bending plane 5 , which coincides with the planar front surface of the backing wall 3 , unless that end portion 17 is already in contact with the backing wall 3 . throughout the bending operations the housing front wall 24 of the frame - closing tool is flush with or disposed slightly behind the bending plane 5 . the other end portion 18 of the tubular bar 7 slides in contact with the deflecting guide member 31 and is thus disengaged from the forward surface of the backing wall 3 toward the end of the final bending operation . this will ensure that the free ends 19 and 20 of the tubular bar 7 will not strike against each other at the end of the final bending operation even when a plug connector 58 has previously been inserted into one of said free ends , such as the end 19 . fig5 shows a typical arrangement of the free ends 19 and 20 at the end of the final bending operation . the two end portions 17 and 18 are forced against the stops 27a and 27 , respectively , by the holding - down rollers 36 and 39 . the angle between the end positions 17 and 18 is exaggerated in fig5 . the gripper carriage 42 is subsequently moved toward the gripper carriage 43 and the latter is moved toward the gripper carriage 42 at the same time . during that operation the stop face of the depressing guide member 28 acts on the free end 20 and the stop 33 which is provided on the gripper carriage 43 and initially disposed adjacent to the deflecting guide member 31 acts on the free end of the plug connector 58 so that the spacer frame 16 formed by the bent tubular bar 7 is expanded until its free end 20 and the plug connector 58 no longer overlap . the resulting position is shown in fig6 . the pneumatic cylinder 33 is operated at the same time or thereafter to pivotally retract the deflecting guide member 31 into the housing 22 to clear a path on which the end portion 18 of the tubular bar 7 can be moved into axial alignment with the other end portion 17 . for that purpose the pneumatic cylinder 52 is operated to close the gripper which is constituted by the gripping jaws 50 and 53 . the pneumatic cylinder 46 is operated at the same time to close the gripper which consists of the gripping jaws 44 and 47 so that they grip the end portion 17 . now the two end portions 17 and 18 are axially aligned . the two gripping carriages 42 and 43 can now be approached more closely to each other so that the protruding end portion of the plug connector 58 is inserted into the one free end 20 of the tubular bar 7 to close the spacer frame 16 . on principle , it does not matter whether one or both of the gripper carriages 42 and 43 are moved . it is preferred to move only one gripping carriage , e . g ., the gripping carriage 43 , and to displace said gripper carriage 43 over a distance which is slightly in excess of the length in which the plug connector 58 is inserted . in that case the plug connector will reliably be inserted as far as to the stop which is usually provided at the length center of the connector . the displacement of the gripper carriage 43 in excess of the inserted length will result in a slip , which is suitably taken up in that the gripping surfaces of the gripping jaws 50 and 53 have a sufficiently high surface finish . no slip is desired on the other two gripping jaws 44 and 47 and is suitably avoided in that their gripping surfaces are corrugated or fluted . when the two end portions 17 and 18 have been plugged together , the spacer frame 16 is in the position shown in fig7 . the pneumatic cylinder 65 is then operated to pivotally move the indenting tool 60 against the top surface of the spacer frame to indent the same on both sides of the joint 59 defined by the free ends 19 and 20 . this indenting is permitted in that the plug connector 58 is formed with a corresponding recess or aperture at those points . as soon as the spacer frame 16 which has been formed but has not yet been closed has been released by the bending tools 8 and 9 and the holding - down rollers 36 and 39 force the end portions 17 and 18 against the stops 27 and 27a , respectively , the entire frame - closing tool 15 may begin its upward movement along the track rails 14 . at least part of the operations by which the end portions of the tubular bar are located and joined may be performed during that movement . shortly before the frame - closing tool 15 has reached its intended top end position the top surface of the spacer frame 16 strikes against the oblique surfaces 76a of the hooks 75 of the overhead conveyor 69 and the hooks 75 will automatically yield to the rising spacer frame 16 and when the rising spacer frame 16 has risen past the free ends 76 of the hooks the latter will swing back against the backing wall 3 . the holding - down rollers 36 and 38 may now be disengaged from the closed spacer frame 16 and may be pivotally retracted into the housing 22 . at the same time , the grippers consisting of the gripping jaws 44 , 47 and 50 , 53 , respectively , may be opened to release the spacer frame 16 . to permit the spacer frame 16 to be taken over by the overhead conveyor 69 the frame - closing tool 15 is lowered to some extent so that the hooks 75 of the moving overhead conveyor 69 carry the spacer frame 16 out of the range of action of the frame - closing tool . a fluid - operable cylinder 83 acting on the upper portion of the track rails 14 is now operated to impart to the two track rails 14 a rearward pivotal movement about a lower horizontal axis 84 until the bracket 23 of the closing tool 15 has been entirely retracted behind the bending plane 5 . the overhead conveyor 69 can now carry the spacer frame 16 along in a direction which is parallel to the bending plane 5 without an obstruction by the frame - closing tool 15 . as soon as the spacer frame 16 has been moved out of the range of action of the frame - closing tool , the latter can be pivotally moved forwardly to its operative position and can be lowered to the elevation required for the next spacer frame which is to be made .	1
the tape lay - up facility 10 of fig1 although only schematic , is typical of one type of tape lay - up facility being operated by applicant &# 39 ; s assignee , which employes the tape applicator head of the invention . the tape lay - up facility 10 includes the tape applicator head assembly 12 mounted to a partial gantry 14 . the gantry 14 includes adjacent posts 16 between which the tape applicator head assembly 12 is mounted for displacement along parallel tracts 18 in the direction a . the drive for effecting displacement of the applicator head assembly 12 relative to the gantry 14 is not shown , nor is the drive for effecting displacement of the gantry 14 in the directions ( x -- x ) and ( y -- y ) since these drives do not form part of the invention . as an alternative , it is also possible to move the work surface relative to the applicator head . again , the drive for effecting this movement is not shown since it does not form a part of the invention . completing the tape lay - up facility 10 is a work surface in the form of a tape mandrel 20 fastened to a mandrel stand 22 . the tape applicator head assembly 12 is shown in a horizontal orientation applying tape t to the mandrel 20 . although oriented horizontally , the tape applicator head 12 can be oriented at any angle between the extreme horizontal ( y -- y ) and the extreme vertical ( z -- z ) positions . the exact position depends on the surface contour of the mandrel 20 , which in turn varies in accordance with the structure to be fabricated . the elongated rectangular mandrel 20 shown is used to lay - up the spar of the helicopter rotor blade . the portion of the tape lay - up facility 10 which embodies the present invention is the tape applicator head assembly 12 shown in greater detail in fig2 - 6 . the tape applicator head assembly 12 includes a mounting cylinder 24 which forms part of the carriage , not otherwise shown , which includes means engageable with the tracts 18 . mounted slidably within the cylinder 24 is a guide tube 26 . the guide tube 26 is biased in the direction of the mandrel 20 by an actuator 28 . the actuator 28 has a housing 30 mounted to the cylinder 24 in a manner not shown . extending from the housing 30 is a reciprocating rod 32 which is threadedly engaged within a socket 34 within a socket plate 36 . the socket plate 36 also includes an annular groove 38 which receives the guide tube 26 and retains it in assembly by conventional means , such as welding . a rotation rack assembly 40 is mounted to the socket plate 36 . preferably , the rotation rack assembly 40 is bolted to the socket plate 36 . at the opposite end of the guide tube 26 there is provided a clamp assembly 42 . the rotation rack assembly 40 includes a mounting plate 44 , a swivel plate 46 , on which a pair of dispensing and compacting blocks 48a and 48b are rigidly mounted , and a transmission including a gear 50 and a rack 52 . the rack 52 is embodied as an extension of a reciprocating rod 54 of an actuator 56 . the rod 54 is slidable within a slot 56 formed in the mounting plate 44 ( fig6 ). the gear 50 is mounted to the swivel plate 46 and includes a pin 58 . the pin 58 is received in and travels along an arcuate slot 60 , formed in the mounting plate 44 . the swivel plate 46 also includes a pin 62 which is received in and travels along a slot 64 , formed in the mounting plate 44 . the swivel plate 46 has an arcuate surface 66 with tabs 68a and 68b at each end . the tabs engage slots ( not shown ) formed in the vertical portion of the mounting plate 44 ( fig2 ). the tabs 68 ( a and 68b serve two purposes : they serve as a stop during shifting of the swivel plate 46 at each terminal end of a tape laying pass ; and they serve to lend stability to the swivel plate , and hence the dispensing and compacting blocks 48a and 48b during dispensing and compacting of the tape t . the dispensing and compacting blocks 48a and 48b are constructed as shown in fig5 . each block includes side plates 70 and 72 between which rollers 74 and 76 are mounted . a belt 78 ( fig2 ) extends about the two rollers 74 and 76 . the clamp assembly 42 includes arms 80 and 82 each pinned to the mounting cylinder 24 by pins 84 and 86 . at their opposite end each arm includes an extension which together form a clevis 88 . the clevis 88 has one end of a reciprocating rod of an actuator 90 fastened thereto . the actuator 90 provides the necessary operating force for clamping the arms 80 and 82 about the guide tube 26 . each of the arms 80 and 82 have a rubber liner 92 which actually engages the guide tube 26 . in dispensing tape utilizing the applicator head assembly 12 , a supply spool 94 and a backing strip s take - up spool 96 are mounted to the carriage in a manner not shown . both spools are shown schematically in fig2 . the backing strip s is removed from the tape t before the tape enters the guide tube 26 . the tape t proceeds through the guide tube 26 to the rotation rack assembly 40 . just prior to leaving the guide tube 26 , the tape t passes along a roller 98 , which is mounted to a tab 100 of the socket plate 36 ( fig3 ). the tape engagement regions b and c serve to stabilize the tape t along that critical portion from the guide tube 26 to the surface of the mandrel 20 . the tape engagement region b is effective for both positions of the dispensing and compacting blocks , although in the position where block 48b is active ( not shown ) the engagement force in region b is less than when block 48a is active ( fig2 ). the guide tube 26 has an access slot 102 for access to the socket 34 and the roller 98 . in operation the backing strip s is separated from the tape t and threaded to the spool 96 . the tape t is then passed through the guide tube 26 and between the dispensing and compacting blocks 48a and 48b . a sufficient length of tape is withdrawn so that the tape extends beyond the dispensing and compacting blocks for initiation of a laying pass . assuming that the applicator head 12 is properly positioned along the x -- x and y -- y axis ( gantry control ), a tape laying pass is commenced . the actuators 28 and 56 are actuated substantially simultaneously . with this actuation , the tape applicator head assembly 12 is poised for dispensing and compacting . the actuator 28 through its rod 32 biases the guide tube 26 and the rotation rack assembly 40 toward the mandrel 20 , while the actuator 56 produces the shifted position , shown for example , in fig2 . in this shifted position , the regions b and c are engaged by the tape t . in addition the tape t engages a tape engaging surface portion d of the belt 78 of the dispensing and compacting block 48a . this compound movement in the tape applicator head assembly 12 produces a tension in the tape t . with this tension , the tape t is dispensed onto the mandrel 20 as the tape applicator head assembly 12 is moved with the gantry 14 in the x -- x direction . the tape t is also compacted during the tape dispensing pass because the minimum clearance between the active block ( 48a in fig2 ) is less than the thickness of the tape , i . e ., the distance from the point e to the mandrel surface , or the preceding tape layer , is less than the thickness of the tape . this relationship is maintained for whatever size ( thickness ) layup is desired by the gantry control for the y -- y direction . to reach the position shown in fig2 the rack 52 moves to the right producing counterclockwise rotation of the gear 50 and swivel plate 46 ( fig6 ). movement of the rack 52 in the opposition direction produces clockwise rotation of the gear 50 and the swivel plate 46 bringing the block 48b into its active position . the shifting sequence of the dispensing and compacting blocks at each terminal end of a tape laying pass is shown in fig7 b - 7i . fig7 a shows dispensing and compacting operation in the (+ x ) direction ( fig1 ) with block 48a active . beginning with fig7 b , one terminal end of the tape laying pass has been reached . the gantry 14 and consequently the tape applicator head assembly 12 are stopped , the actuator 28 de - activated so that the rod 32 will be retracted , the rack 52 moved to the left ( fig6 ), and the actuator 90 actuated to clamp the guide tube 26 . to pivot the blocks so that block 48b becomes active requires first that the rotation rack assembly 40 move in the (- y ) direction ( fig1 ) i . e ., away from the mandrel 20 . since the rotation rack assembly 40 is mounted to the guide tube 26 , this end is achieved by permitting the guide tube 26 to move in the desired direction . the guide tube 26 moves in the direction (- y ) under the influence of the tension in the tape t . this movement produces the retraction of the rod 32 . to insure that this retraction does not proceed too far , i . e ., to such an extent the engagement of the gear 50 and the rack 52 are adversely affected , the clamp assembly 42 is provided . activation of the clamp assembly 42 stops the sliding of the guide tube 26 in the (- y ) direction so that the pivotal shifting of the blocks occurs with the least resistance . relying on the tension in the tape t to assist in moving the guide tube 26 in the (- y ) direction , will relax some of the tension in the tape t . it should be noted , however , that the tension in the tape t is relaxed from the point e upward toward the spools 94 and 96 . the tape downstream of the point e is not affected since it has already been compressed . in fact , because of the compressed state of the tape , the point e serves as a pivot point . both the tension relaxation and the pivot point e are desirable toward the formation of the loop 104 shown in fig7 b - 7i . at the position shown in fig7 h , the actuator 28 is again activated and the actuator 90 de - activated to release the clamping pressure on the guide tube 26 . then at the position shown in fig7 i , a reverse pass is ready to begin ( in the - x direction ). the transition shown in fig7 b - 7i produces the loop 104 which i have found produces a smooth and distortion free layup of the tape . the invention , although embodied preferably as discussed above , can be practiced by a different construction . for example , the guide tube 26 could be eliminated and the actuator 28 connected directly to the rotation rack assembly 40 . also , the means for shifting the blocks 48a and 48b could rely on structure different than the gear 50 and rack 52 . what the structure must do is produce the loops 104 at each terminal end of the tape laying pass .	1
in fig1 is shown a tonneau cover generally indicated at 10 which includes a first panel 11 and a second panel 12 which can be placed over a truck box so that the panel 12 is on the drivers side and forms the left hand panel when viewed from the rear and the panel 11 is on the passenger side and forms the right hand panel when viewed from the rear . the view as shown in fig1 has the panels inverted to show the underside . the truck box is of course not shown since this is well known to any person skilled in this art so that the truck box includes a front wall and two side walls together with a rear tail gate which is hinged at the bottom so that it can be folded downwardly to allow access into the truck box . the side walls of the truck box have a horizontal top surface which separates an inner wall of the truck box from the outer wall of the vehicle . similarly the truck box has a front wall with a top surface with a front depending flange so that the top surface connects to the inside wall of the truck box at the front . the panels are of a general arrangement which is known from the above prior art and each panel includes a side rail 13 which attaches to the top surface of the side wall of the truck box . the side rail is connected to the respective panel by a hinge 14 . each panel has a rail 15 which is pivotally mounted at one end 16 to the respective panel . thus the rail 15 of the drivers side panel 11 is attached at its end 16 adjacent the rear of the panel . thus the rail 15 of the passenger side panel 12 is attached at its end 16 adjacent the forward end of the panel . each rail has its opposite end , in a retracted position of the rail , latched as indicated at 17 to the underside of the panel . each panel can be moved from a closed position lying across the top of the truck box where the inner side edges 18 of the panels are slightly overlapping . in the raised position of the panels obtained by pivoting the panels about the hinge 14 , the panels stand generally upwardly from the respective side wall of the truck box and the rails 15 are moved to an extended position pivotal about the end 16 so that the end 17 is moved into engagement with the opposite panel at a receptacle 19 . thus in the raised position of the panels each rail extends across between the panels with the rail of the passenger side panel 12 at the front and the rail of the driver side panel 11 at the rear . each of the panels includes a bracket 20 for receiving one end of an air cylinder ( not shown ) which extends from the bracket 20 to a corresponding bracket attached to the front wall of the truck box as described hereinafter . the panel 11 also includes a locking system generally indicated at 21 in the form of a handle 22 which operates a rod 23 for actuating locking elements 24 at spaced positions along the panel . locking elements engage with cooperating members on the opposite panel . turning now to fig4 , there is shown in more detail the arrangement of the outside portion of the panel 12 including the rail 13 and the hinge 14 . the panels 11 and 12 as shown in the cross section of fig4 are formed from a top or outer sheet 25 and an inner or bottom sheet 26 . each of these sheets is moulded or vacuum formed from an abs plastics material . the sheets are shaped to a required arrangement and then adhesively fastened together to provide the necessary structural strength . at the outer edge of the panel at the hinge 14 , the inner sheet 26 is bent downwardly to form a depending channel portion 27 with a bottom wall 28 and an upstanding outermost wall or lip 29 . in order to cooperate with this , the outer sheet 25 has a depending lip 30 . an outer surface of the lip 29 is adhesively attached to an inner surface of the lip 30 at a junction line 31 . the height of the two lips is such that the lip 29 is contained underneath the bottom surface of the outer sheet 25 . the bottom edge 32 of the lip 30 terminates at a position coterminous with the bottom wall 28 . the lip 30 thus forms a wall surface with an outer surface 33 which is generally at right angles to the horizontal top surface 34 of the outer sheet 25 . the rail 13 is also formed from an outer sheet 35 and an inner sheet 36 . the outer sheet 35 is shaped to form an outer depending wall 37 which extends downwardly and outwardly to form a flange covering an outer flange 38 of the truck box indicated at 39 . at an inner edge , the rail 13 includes a depending wall 40 . the spacing between the walls 37 and 40 is such that the top portion 41 of the rail covers a top surface 42 of the side wall of the truck box with the depending inside wall 40 along the inside surface 42 of the side wall and the flange 38 being covered by the outside wall portion 37 . at spaced positions along the length of the rail , the outer sheet is shaped to form a circular depression 44 to receive a bolt head 45 of a fastening bolt 46 . as shown in fig1 there is a limited number of such depressions 44 and in the embodiment shown there are four such depressions at spaced positions along the length of the rail 13 . the inner sheet 36 is shaped so that a center portion 36 a contacts the underside of the sheet 35 and two side portions 36 b and 36 c depend downwardly to form channels with a bottom surface arranged to sit on the top surface 43 of the truck box side wall . these two channels of the inner sheet 36 thus support the center portion 41 of the outer sheet at a position spaced upwardly from the surface 43 of the side wall . within the channel 36 c is provided a series of holes 36 d at spaced positions along the length thereof each having a captive bolt 36 e contained therein for engaging through a hole in the top surface 43 . thus there is provided a row of the bolts 36 e which are arranged adjacent the inside surface 42 of the side wall of the truck box . thus there is a second row of bolts 46 adjacent the outer flange 38 . the arrangement of the bolts 46 and the captive bolts 36 e is such that they match the design of the truck box of a particular manufacturer . the bolt fasteners 46 are arranged to co - operate with four stake holes of the truck box . the bolts 36 e are arranged in a row at spacing to co - operate with a row of attachment holes for the truck box side walls . these fastening arrangements are designed for example with a truck such as a ford f150 to match the fastening holes already in place in the truck box side wall where those fastening holes are conventionally used to fasten a top rail over the truck box side wall supplied by the manufacturer ford . when it is intended therefore to apply the tonneau cover of the present arrangement , therefore , the side rail which is already in place is removed exposing the holes in the top rail of the side wall which are then used without additional drilling or any other modification to fasten the rail 13 to the side wall . the fastening is effected by utilizing the bolt fasteners 46 which are of the butterfly - type and include spreading wings 46 a which pass through the hole in the side wall and then are spread by further tightening of the bolt 46 by actuation on the head 45 so as to pull the wings 46 a back up underneath the opening in the side wall to pull the head 45 down onto the side walls to clamp the rail in place . the head 45 includes a washer 45 a and an enclosing cap 45 b which engages around the head and includes a cover 45 c . it will be appreciated that the head 45 is accessible from the exterior of the truck box so that the first fastening can be effected by actuation of the bolt 46 to hold the bolts in place . the bolts 36 e simply pass through holes in the truck box side wall so that the end of the bolt is accessible from the inside of the truck box . the heads 36 f of the bolts 36 e are contained between the outer sheet 35 and the inner sheet 36 so as to be inaccessible from the exterior of the truck box . the installer can then apply a nut 36 g onto the bolt 36 e from the inside of the truck box . when installed , therefore , it will be appreciated that the bolts 36 e are inaccessible from the exterior of the truck box so they cannot be removed from the exterior . when the cover is therefore closed and locked , the bolts are completely inaccessible thus preventing an unauthorized person from unbolting the cover and removing it from the truck box . the two rows of fasteners provide a stable attachment of the rail to the truck box side wall since one wall is adjacent the inside and the other row is adjacent the outside thus preventing tilting of the rail on the side wall when forces are applied from the pivotal movement of the panel at the hinge 14 . the butterfly fasteners can be replaced by clips which are attached to the panel and simply pop into the hole in the side wall without the necessity for screw fastening , bearing in mind that the main fastening is effected by the bolts 36 e . this allows the installation to be simplified by pop fastening the rail onto the side wall so that it is held in place by the pop or snap fasteners and then can be fastened more vigorously by the bolts 36 e . the use of the pop fasteners also overcomes the difficulty that the area where these fasteners are located is inaccessible from the exterior or interior of the truck box . the hinge 14 comprises an inner piece 14 a which is attached to the surface 33 of the lip 30 and an outer piece 14 b which is attached to the depending wall 40 of the rail 13 . the hinge 14 is generally symmetrical and includes the inner piece 14 a and the outer piece outer piece 14 b together with a flexible interconnecting bridging member 14 c . the inner piece , the outer piece and the bridging piece are all continuous along the full length of the hinge and the hinge is continuous along the full length of the rail and the panel . the inner and outer piece each include a top lip portion 14 d and a depending flange portion 14 e which are adhesively attached to the respective end lip . the bridging piece 14 c is molded from a different plastics material so that it provides flexibility whereas the inner and outer pieces are formed of a material which is more rigid to provide effective attachment of those inner and outer pieces to the respective lip . the bridging piece 14 c is sufficiently flexible so that it can bend through 90 ° allowing the panel to move from the horizontal position shown in fig4 to a raised vertical position ( not shown ) standing vertically upwardly at right angles to the position as shown . the hinge thus provides a continuous closure between the panel and the rail so that there is no possibility for the penetration of the moisture therebetween . there is continuous attachment of each of the inner and outer pieces of the hinge to the respective portion of the rail and the panel and the bridging piece 14 c is continuous . the facing surfaces of the inner piece 14 a and the outer piece 14 b include co - operating flange members 14 f . thus the outer surface of the inner piece 14 a has a pair of flanges projecting outwardly and the inner surface of the outer piece 14 b includes a pair of flanges projecting inwardly . the flanges on the piece 14 a are spaced slightly further apart than the flanges on the piece 14 b so that when the panel is in the closed position as shown in fig4 the flanges prevent upward and downward flexing movement of the hinge which would allow the outer edge of the panel to move upwardly and downwardly relative the rail . thus if the panel moves upwardly , the flanges at the bottom abut and if the panel moves downwardly the panels at the top abut . turning now to fig5 , there is shown more detail of the end 16 of the rail 15 . thus a portion of the panel is indicated at 12 and includes the outer sheet 25 and the inner sheet 26 . the rail 15 carries a sleeve 15 a at the end 16 which attaches to a bracket 15 b by a bearing 15 c . the bracket 15 b includes a pair of legs 15 d and 15 e which are welded to a best plate 15 f . the base plate 15 f is mounted between the two sheets 25 and 26 so that it is received in a slightly recessed portion 26 a of the sheet 26 leaving the outside surface of the outer sheet 25 smooth . this provides therefore an effective technique for rigidly mounting the bracket 15 b and the bearing 15 c to the panel on the underside of the panel . the rail 15 is shown in fig5 in the extended position projecting outwardly from the pane 12 . it will be noted however that the rail 15 is not at right angles to the panel 12 but instead the panel 12 is inclined upwardly and slightly inwardly when the rail 15 is horizontal as shown . in this way it will be appreciated that the panels in their erected position when the rails are erected are inclined upwardly and inwardly from the hinge 14 to the top edge which is spaced therefore slightly inwardly from the side wall of the truck box . turning now to fig7 , there is shown the receptacle 19 on the opposite panel 11 for attachment to the opposite end 17 of the rail 15 of fig5 . at the end 17 is mounted a pin 17 a and this is arranged for co - operation with a gate latch 19 a on the opposite panel 11 . the opposite panel 11 is also formed from the outer sheet 25 and the inner sheet 26 . these are shaped similarly to the corresponding sheets of the panel 12 but it will be appreciated that there are slight differences in view of the position and location of the rail and the latch 19 a . in fig7 it will be noted that sheet 25 is also smooth and extends continuous out to the edge 18 of the panel . at the edge 18 of the panel 11 is provided a lip 18 a which extends generally at right angles to the main body of the panel as defined by the outer surface 25 . the inner sheet 26 includes portions 26 b which are attached directly to the inside surface of the outer sheet 25 and recessed portions 26 c which form ribs 26 d which are spaced from the inside surface of the outer sheet 25 and thus provide structural ribs providing increased strength . between the two ribs 26 d is provided the receptacle 19 for the latch 19 a . embedded between the sheets 25 and 26 is provided a base - plate 19 b which is fastened to the inside surface of the outer sheet 25 and provides a support for the gate latch 19 a . it will be noted again that with the gate latch 19 a arranged at right angles to the length of the rail 15 for engagement onto the pin 17 a , there is an angle between the gate latch 19 a and the panel which is symmetrical to the angle between the end 16 of the rail and the panel 12 so that symmetrically the panels . 11 and 12 are inclined upwardly and inwardly with the rail 15 horizontal . turning now to fig6 and 8 , the structure of each of the panels is shown in more detail . thus each of the panels includes the outer layer 25 and the inner sheet 26 . as shown in fig8 the outer sheet 25 has a smooth outer surface 50 and the inner sheet 26 is bonded to an inner surface 51 of the outer sheet at portions 52 . in between those two bonded sections recessed portions 53 which define a series of ribs 54 across the width of the panel . as shown in fig1 the ribs 54 extend from a position closely adjacent the hinge 14 at the outer edge inwardly through to the inner edge 18 . there is in addition a transverse rib 56 at a position spaced just outwardly of the rails 15 . also at the rails the ribs 54 are recessed as indicated at 57 to define a recessed surface 58 against which the rails 15 rest in their retracted or stored position . in this position the rails are retracted below the rib 56 . the rib 56 acts as a stiffening member in the longitudinal direction of the panel . as best shown in fig6 at the edges 18 of the panels , the panel 11 includes the down - turned lip 18 a which terminates at an edge 18 b . the inner sheet 26 is bonded to the inner surface of the sheet 25 at the inner surface 51 and also into the inner surface of the lip 18 a . thus the lip is defined by the thickness of both the inner and outer sheets to provide strengthening effect to that lip . the panel 12 is similarly formed from the outer sheet 25 and the inner sheet 26 and these sheets are molded to form a channel 60 into which the lip 18 a project . the channel 60 thus includes a depending wall 61 , a horizontal bottom wall 62 and an upstanding wall 63 . the upstanding wall 63 together with the bottom wall 62 and the depending wall 61 are all formed both from the inner and outer sheets to provide structural strength for the channel 60 . the outer sheet at the top of the outer wall 63 extends beyond the inner sheet to form a depending leg 64 and a smooth curved upper surface 65 which provides an attractive appearance to the edge of the channel 60 . in the closed position shown in fig6 the lip 18 a projects over the smooth upper surface 65 along side the depending leg 64 . the underside of the sheet 26 sits on the smooth surface 65 to provide a closure between the panels . the lip 18 a projects downwardly into the channel so as to provide in effect a labyrinth seal to prevent moisture from penetrating between the panels . any moisture entering the channel 60 collects within the channel and is preventing from engaging over the upstanding wall 63 of the channel into the area between the panels . the channel has a discharge at the rear end over the tailgate so that any moisture collecting therein can run along the vehicle to the tailgate for discharge over the tailgate to prevent it entering into the truck box between the panels . the panels are locked together by a plurality of toggle locks 24 as previously described . the toggle locks 24 comprise a body 24 a and a toggle locking member 24 b which moves into engagement with a plate 24 c on the underside of the bottom wall 62 of the channel . the toggle locking member 24 b moves in a direction controlled by a slot 24 d so that slides forwardly and moves downwardly underneath the plate 24 c . movement of the toggle locking member 24 b is effected by rotation of the hexagonal shaft 23 which rotates a drive member in the body 24 a . toggle locking members of this type are readily available and the details of operation of the movement of the toggle locking member are thus known to a person skilled in the art . the body 24 a is mounted on a plate 24 e clamped between the sheets 25 and 26 immediately adjacent the lip 18 a . turning now to fig1 there is shown the mounting of the handle 22 between the outer sheet 25 and the inner sheet 26 in an area between two lips 66 and 67 of those sheets . thus the handle 22 is presented on the outside of a depending outside lip 66 of the panel 11 . the handle 22 attaches to a support and bearing 67 which allows the handle to rotate in the panel . at the end of the support 67 is provided a coupling 68 which attaches to the shaft 23 . the shaft 23 emerges through a hole 69 in a sheet 26 so that it extends underneath the panel to the toggle locking member 24 . turning now to fig9 , 11 and 12 , there is shown the co - operation of the sheets 25 and 26 at the position adjacent the front and rear sides of the panel . thus it will be noted in each case the outer sheet 25 at each position where the cross sections are taken includes a depending lip 70 . this co - operates with a portion of the sheet 26 which is spaced from the underside 51 of the sheet 25 but includes an upstanding lip 71 which is bonded to the lip 70 and extends upwardly toward the underside 51 of the sheet 25 . this arrangement in effect provides a box section along the front edge and along the rear edge of each of the panels to provide structural strength therefore . by comparing the cross sections 11 and 12 at the rear of the panel , it will be noted that the sheet 26 in fig1 which is closer to the side wall of the truck provides a distance d 1 between the top surface 72 of the sheet 25 and the bottom surface 73 of the sheet 26 at the lip 71 where the distance d 1 is smaller than the distance d 2 of fig1 . in this way it will be appreciated that the surface 73 of the inner sheet 26 sits on the top edge of the tailgate so that the surface 72 of the outer or top sheet of the panel increases in height relative to the top surface of the tailgate from the outside wall of the truck box towards the center of the truck box . this provides a slight pitch to the panels acting to assist in shedding water to the sides of the truck box . similarly at the front of the truck box where the cross sections of fig9 and 10 are taken , the distance d 3 is smaller than the distance d 4 so that again the panels are supported at a slight pitch angle relative to the front wall of the truck box . also it will be note din fig1 that the surface 73 of the inner or lower sheet 26 has step 74 which is arranged at a position immediately adjacent the inside surface of the front wall of the truck box to define a further channel portion 75 which extends slightly into the truck box to assist in locating the panels and to increase structural strength adjacent the front edge of the panels . while the cross sections of the panel are taken in relation to the panel 11 in fig2 , it will be appreciated that the shape of the panel 12 of fig3 is symmetrical in respect to these particular elements and in relation to the shaping of the inner and outer sheets , the only differences being in relation to the locking arrangement and the connection along the center line and in other respects the panels are substantially symmetrical . also shown in fig9 is the bracket 20 which attaches one end of the air assist cylinder ( not shown ). the bracket 20 includes a pin 20 a which attaches to a suitable coupling at the end of the cylinder . the pin 20 a is mounted on a flange 20 b of the bracket 20 . the flange 20 b is attached to a plate 20 c which is screw fastened to the surface 73 of the sheet 26 adjacent the lip 71 . the plate 20 c is thus flat against the surface 23 and the flange 20 b projects outwardly at right angles thereto so as to lie along the inside surface of the front wall of the truck box and supporting the pin 20 a so that it projects from the front wall of the truck box longitudinally of the truck box at a position spaced inwardly from the side wall . the pin 20 a thus supports the end of the cylinder which is attached to the panel so that the cylinder can apply force to the panel as it opens and closes . turning now to fig1 and 17 , there is shown a bracket 80 for supporting a pin 81 from the wall of the truck box for receiving the other end of the cylinder attached to the pin 28 a . the bracket 80 includes a first bracket portion 82 which is attached on the outside of the front wall 83 of the truck box . the bracket further includes a plate portion 84 which clamps to the first portion 82 and supports the pin 81 inside the truck box at a position below the top edge of the truck box at the front wall of the truck box . thus the truck box includes the upstanding front wall 83 together with an outwardly or forwardly extending top flange 85 and a deep ending flange 86 from the front of the top portion 85 . the first bracket portion 82 is shaped to define a slot 87 which matches the flange 86 so that the slot can slide onto the flange 86 so that the leg 88 defining a rear side of the slot slides upwardly until it butt underneath the top plate 85 of the front wall of the truck box . a further leg 89 extends rearwardly from the slot into engagement with a front surface of the wall 83 of the truck box . this leg 89 together with the slot locate the first bracket portion 82 on the outside of the truck box wall at the front and present a receptacle 90 in front of the flange 86 for clamping to the plate portion 84 . the plate portion 84 includes a vertical plate 91 and a horizontal plate 92 which connect together at a corner which engages over the top edge of the wall 83 onto the top plate 85 of the truck box . the horizontal plate 92 is clamped to the receptacle 90 by a threaded fastener 94 . this arrangement provides a simple mounting of the bracket to the front wall of the truck box without the necessity for drilling the truck box or forming other shapes or changes in the truck box itself . ( it simply can be clamped onto the front wall of the truck box by sliding the slot portion or first portion underneath the flange 86 and then by screwing the plate 92 down onto the receptacle 90 to hang the plate 91 downwardly on the inside of the truck box to present the pin 81 rearwardly of the truck box for engaging the end of the air cylinder . turning now to fig1 and 15 there are shown two different techniques for mounting the end of the rail 15 at the receptacle for the end 17 on the underside of the panel . in the arrangement shown in fig1 , the attachment of the end 17 to the panel 11 is provided by way of a spring pin 96 which projects into a hole 97 in the end of the rail 15 . the spring pin 96 includes a handle 98 and an operating button 99 which allows the spring pin 96 to slide through a bracket 100 attached to the panel 11 . the bracket 100 includes a base plate 101 clamped between the outer wall 25 and the inner wall 26 . depression of the button 99 releases the pin 96 by retracting locking elements 102 allowing the pin to be withdrawn from the end of the hole in the rail 15 . this arrangement of a pin which extends longitudinally along the rail can accommodate significant changes in temperature which occur in certain climates which can differentially expand the panel itself relative to the metal rail thus changing the distance between the bracket 100 and the end of the rail . such changes in distance are accommodated by a change in the location of the pin 96 within the hole 97 in the end of the rail . in fig1 is shown an alternative arrangement for use where temperature changes are less dramatic which uses a simple gate latch 105 which receives and traps the pin 17 a shown in fig5 . the arrangement in fig1 is therefore preferred as a simple latching of the end of the rail 15 when it is moved to the retracted position since it can be simply held in place by engagement into the gate latch and can be readily released when required by the operator pressing on the gate latch . the gate latches can be operated by a suitable linkage pulled from one end . as best shown in fig2 there are two toggle latches which are operated by the handle 22 and which engage under plates on the panel 12 . this number can be increased to provide a more aggressive locking action . in addition the toggle latches can be located closer to the ends so as to hold the ends more effectively attached to the ends of the truck box . in some cases this locking action may be insufficient to provide maximum security since it may still be possible for a user to apply a crowbar between the top edge of the truck box and the underside of the panels . in this case an additional locking element may be provided directly between the panel 11 and a loop fastened to the tailgate . this may be provided by a pin which moves longitudinally of the panel into the loop providing a hole at right angles to the tailgate so that the pin when engaged in the loop prevents the panel from being lifted away from the tailgate . in fig1 is shown an alternative arrangement of the side rail 13 in which the mounting is simplified by use of a row of spring clip fasteners 46 b which snap fasten into holes 39 a in the truck rail 39 . thus the rail can be snap fastened in place by the row of spring clips 46 b and then clamped down by the second row of fasteners 36 e as previously described . the spring clips are thus attached to the rail from the underside in a slot 46 c using a captive head 46 d . this avoids forming a hole in the wall of the rail to the top surface , as in the embodiment of fig4 , to provide a more attractive appearance and to avoid the fasteners 46 of fig4 being exposed for possible tampering . since various modifications can be made in my invention as herein above described , and many apparently widely different embodiments of same made within the spirit and scope of the claims without department from such spirit and scope , it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying specification shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense .	1
the ceiling system of fig1 is formed of hanger runners 1 which are suspended by suspension rods 2 , cross - runners 3 hooking into slots in the hanger runners 1 , and shorter cross - runners 4 hooking into slots in the cross - runners 3 . the runners 1 , 3 and 4 are elongate channel members of u - shaped cross - section with the bases of the u &# 39 ; s at the bottom , and can be cold - formed from aluminium or other sheet material and are therefore relatively lightweight . as can be seen , the runners 1 , 3 , 4 form a square grid with a number of cells or squares 5 . some of these squares can serve to accommodate larger light fittings , or runners may be omitted to accommodate even larger light fitting such as the fitting 38 indicated in fig1 . however , the majority of the squares 5 are provided with inner squares 6 formed by four lightweight inner blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ;. each blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; has a first end meeting the next blade 7 &# 39 ;, 7 substantially at its mid - point and thereby forming a t - shape . the other end of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; meets a side of the outer square 5 between its ends . in this way , the inner square 6 is surrounded by four intermediate rectangles 8 whose length is approximately double the side length of the inner square 6 and whose width is approximately equal to the width of the inner square 6 . the shape formed by the four blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ; is termed a &# 34 ; windmill section &# 34 ; herein . the blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ; have the same cross - sectional shape and construction as the runners 1 , 3 and 4 . in detail , the windmill sections can be inserted after the main grid has been assembled , and said second end of each blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ;, like the cross - runners 3 and shorter cross - runners 4 , has hooks for hooking in slots in the outer runners 1 , 3 or 4 . this enables the windmill section to be secured in place without difficulty . the construction of the inner blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ; is such that the windmill sections are pre - assembled in collapsed form with all four blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ; substantially parallel to each other . as shown in fig2 two opposite blades 7 &# 39 ; are aligned and the other two opposite blades 7 are on either side of the aligned blades 7 &# 39 ; and overlapping each of them . the connections 9 between the blades 7 are hinged connections so that the inner square 6 is opened up by pivoting the blades 7 relative to one another about the hinged connections 9 . fig3 shows the windmill section partly open ; opposite blades 7 , 7 and 7 &# 39 ;, 7 &# 39 ; are identical , but adjacent blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ; are mirror images . as shown in fig4 each hinged connection 9 is formed by a projecting hinge tab 10 on the first end of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ;. intermediate its top and bottom and on its outer side , the hinge tab 10 has a bent - out sprag 11 , directed generally towards the outer end of the inner elongate member . the tab 10 is engaged in a slot 12 in the next blade 7 &# 39 ;, 7 . the top and bottom end portions of the slot 12 are tooled so as to be close to the respective sides of the tab 10 , but the middle portion of the slot 12 is formed by rolling back a long lip 13 . it will be seen that the sprag 11 engages behind the side of the slot opposite the lip 13 . in the lie - flat configuration of the windmill section ( fig2 ), the tabs 10 or the associated part of the adjacent blade will be slightly distorted and not strictly coplanar with the remainder of the respective side of the u , but the inherent flexibility of the material permits such distortion . as the windmill sections are retained in position by hooking the second ends of the blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ; into the slots in the cross - runners 3 and shorter runners 4 , it is not necessary to provide any other means such as detents for maintaining the windmill sections in their proper configuration . however , some such detents make assembly easier . as shown , while one side of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; makes the hinged connection 9 , the other side of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; has a projecting locking tab 14 which enters a slot 15 in the side of the next blade 7 &# 39 ;, 7 forming a detent for retaining the blades 7 , 7 &# 39 ; in their open position . in order to ensure that the tip of the tab 14 does not foul the sides of the slot 15 , the slot 15 is much wider than the thickness of the material of the tab 14 ; in addition , the tab 14 is inclined inwards towards the other side of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ;, for instance at 35 °. the tab 14 has a detent projection in the form of a bent - out sprag 16 , the sprag 16 facing generally towards the other end of the elongate member 7 , 7 &# 39 ;. in order to thrust the tab 14 against the side of the slot remote from the hinged connection 9 or hinged tab 10 , there are two camming tabs 17 , at the top and bottom of the locking tab 14 . each camming tab is of triangular shape and the arrangement is such that , due to inclining the locking tab 14 inwards , the apex or rear end of each camming tab 17 is nearer the other end of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; than the root of the locking tab 14 . this , as indicated in fig5 prevents the next blade 7 ( or 7 &# 39 ;) from riding over the ends of the camming tabs 17 . in fig6 each hinged connection 9 is formed by two projecting hinge tabs 20 ( one tab 20 would be sufficient ) on the first end of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ;, each tab 20 having a slot 21 in one edge to form a hook . the tab 20 is engaged in and hooked over the edge of a slot 22 in the next blade 7 &# 39 ;, 7 . the upper slot 22 has one end effectively closed by a tab 23 formed in the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; and generally in the plane of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ;. prior to hooking the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; into place , the tab 23 was bent out of the plane of the side of the other blade 7 &# 39 ;, 7 to allow the tab 20 to be hooked into position ; the tab 23 was then bent back to retain the hinged connection and to stop the first blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; lifting up out of position . in the lie - flat configuration of the windmill section ( fig2 ), the tabs 20 will be slightly distorted and not strictly coplanar with the remainder of the respective side of the u . the other side of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; has a projecting locking tab 24 which enters a slot 25 in the side of the next blade 7 &# 39 ;, 7 . the terminal part 26 of the tab 24 is bent at about 30 ° out of the plane of the side of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; and is inclined inwards towards the other side of the blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ;. the two opposite edges of the tab 24 are slit at 27 and parts of the tab 24 remote from the end of the tab 24 are bent outwards to form generally triangular detent projections 28 . the ends of the detent projections 28 are substantially aligned with the terminal part 26 , as can be seen in fig7 . as the tab 24 is inserted through the slot 25 , the detent projections ride against the side of the slot 25 and are elastically deformed without causing any permanent damage . when the tab 24 is fully home , the detent projections 28 spring back and retain the windmill section in its proper configuration . fig1 shows a light fitting 31 carried on a bar 32 by suspension rods 2 . this light fitting 31 is for association with one of the intermediate rectangles 8 with the axis of the light at a substantial angle to the vertical . fig1 also illustrates an alternative or additional arrangement . in this case , the light fitting 33 is inclined , like the light fitting 31 , but includes a box having four sides 34 , 34 &# 39 ; forming a rectangular shape ( see fig5 ). there is a notch 35 at each corner of the rectangle , and at least each of the end sides 34 , 34 &# 39 ; engages over the respective side of e . g . a blade 7 , 7 &# 39 ; forming the respective intermediate rectangle 8 . thus the light fitting 33 fits over just those sides of the u - section which are nearer the centre of the rectangle 8 . this greatly reduces any leakage of light . the dimensions and shape of the box are arranged so that the box can be pushed up from below while it is inclined so that the sloping side 34 &# 39 ; is roughly vertical ; the box is then lowered so that the end sides hook over the blades 7 . the long sides can flex in slightly and then spring out to give a flush fit against the respective blade or runner . the box is preferably formed of aluminium . fig1 also illustrates a vertical light fitting 36 in an inner square 6 , as an alternative or addition . in a preferred construction , the inner squares 6 are 100 × 100 mm , the intermediate rectangles 8 are 100 × 211 mm and the module is 330 mm . the actual proportions of the inner square 6 and intermediate rectangles 8 have been chosen for the aesthetic effect ; the inner squares 6 could be larger and the rectangles 8 narrower and longer , or vice versa . in the appended claims the word &# 34 ; rectangle &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; rectangular &# 34 ; is intended to have its usual meaning , that is , a parallelogram having four right angles . thus , a square is a rectangle .	4
fig1 shows a first embodiment of the invention having a body generally indicated at 11 with covers 12 and 13 on opposite sides thereof . one side of body 11 is provided with a pressure inlet port 14 , a pair of working ports 15 and 16 on opposite sides of port 14 , and a pair of exhaust ports 17 and 18 outside ports 15 and 16 . port 14 is adapted to be connected to a source 19 of fluid pressure . the other side of body 11 is provided with four pilot ports 21 , 22 , 23 and 24 . four main valve piston chambers 25 , 26 , 27 and 28 are formed in body 11 and connected to ports 21 through 24 respectively . a central inlet chamber 29 is formed in body 11 and connected to inlet port 14 . a pair of working chambers 31 and 32 are formed on either side of chamber 29 and connected to ports 15 and 16 respectively . a pair of exhaust chambers 33 and 34 are formed outwardly of chambers 31 and 32 respectively and are connected to exhaust ports 17 and 18 . a double sided valve port 35 is formed between chambers 31 and 33 , having one seat facing port 33 and the other facing chamber 31 . this seat is aligned with chamber 25 , a seal 37 of being formed between chambers 25 and 33 . similarly , double sided valve ports 36 , 37 and 38 are formed in line with chambers 26 , 27 and 28 respectively . port 36 is disposed between chambers 29 and 31 , port 37 between chambers 29 and 32 and port 38 between chambers 32 and 34 . two types of poppet valves are used in fig1 a normally open valve 39 and a normally closed valve 41 . valve 39 has a valve portion slidable in seal 37 and engageable with the downstream seat or port 35 , and a piston portion 42 in the piston chamber . two valves 39a and 39b are shown in chambers 25 and 28 respectively . these valves are urged to their open position by helical coil compression springs 43 engageable at one end with cover 13 and at the other end with the valve , passing through the valve port . when the piston chamber of a valve 39 is depressurized the valve will be opened , connecting the working chamber 31 or 32 to the corresponding exhaust chamber . when the piston chamber is pressurized the valve will be closed . each valve 41 comprises a valve portion 44 engageable with the upstream side of a valve port 36 or 37 and connected by a stem 45 to a guide portion slidable in seal 37 . although the normally closed valves are schematically shown they will be so constructed as to be installable in the body . a piston portion 46 surmounts guide portion 41 . two such valves 41a and 41b are disposed in piston chambers 26 and 27 respectively . when the piston chamber of a valve 41 is depressurized the valve will be in the closed position , closing the connection between pressure chamber 29 and the respective working chamber 31 or 32 . a spring 47 urges each valve 41 to its closed position and pressurization of the piston chamber will shift the valve to its open position against the action of the spring . valves 39a and 41a may be controlled by a three - way normally closed pilot valve 48 . the working port of this pilot valve is connected to pilot ports 21 and 22 . the pilot valve is spring urged to an exhaust position as shown in fig1 in which ports 21 and 22 are connected to exhaust and may be shifted either by a hand actuated member 49 , an electrically actuated member 51 , or both , to an open position in which ports 21 and 22 are pressurized . a similar three - way normally open pilot valve 52 is provided for ports 23 and 24 . each working port 15 and 16 may be connected to a single acting fluid motor 53 which is spring urged to one position and pressure urged to the opposite position . each of these two motors may thus be controlled independently by its respective pilot valve 48 or 52 . in operation of the embodiment of fig1 when both pilot valves 48 and 52 are de - energized fluid motors . 53 will be in their raised positions . to operate both fluid motors to their shifted positions , both valves 48 and 52 will be energized . this will open valves 41a and 41b and close valves 39a and 39b , pressurizing the piston chambers 54 of motors 53 . de - energization of both valves 48 and 52 will cause the parts to move back to their raised positions . instead of the pilot valves shown , the main valve assembly could be controlled by another pilot valve arrangement . for example , two three - way normally open pilots could be used in which case the action described above would be reversed . that is , with the pilot valves de - energized the fluid motors would be shifted to their pressurized positions . of course , with either of these pilot valve arrangements , the two pilot valves could be independently operated rather than operated in unison . another possible arrangement would be to have four separate three - way normally open pilot valves controlling the four pilot ports 21 throught 24 . still another possibility would be to use the unit as double acting parallel three - way safety valves , with the outlet ports 15 and 16 being connected to a single reciprocable fluid motor used to operate a press brake and clutch . u . s . pat . no . 2 , 906 , 246 shows double acting parallel three - way valves used for safety purposes in connection with the control of a pneunatically actuated clutch and brake for a press or similar machine , so that in case of failure of one of the valves the danger of injury to the operator or damage to the machine will be minimized . the present invention could be adapted for a similar purpose . in this case , valves 39a and 41a would constitute one of the parallel double valves and valves 39b and 41b would constitute the other valve . with such an arrangement shrouds shown in dot - dash lines at 55 would be placed on stems 45 of valves 41a and 41b in order to insure that a supply valve stuck in its open position will not supply fluid at as fast a rate as it can be exhausted . fig2 shows another arrangement having a body 101 but in this case a normally open poppet valve 102a and a normally closed poppet valve 103a controlling the two ports 104 and 105 respectively between pressure chamber 106 and the two working chambers 107 and 108 . a second normally closed valve 103b controls the port 109 between chambers 107 and adjacent exhaust chamber 111 , and a normally open valve 102b controls the port 112 between chamber 108 and exhaust chamber 113 . body 101 is constructed exactly like body 11 , it being noted that the normally open and normally closed main valves may also be of standard construction such as those shown in fig1 but simply placed in different positions within the body . in this case the working ports 114 and 115 of body 101 control opposite sides of a double acting fluid motor 116 . the pilot ports 116 through 119 are controlled by a single normally closed three - way pilot valve 121 . in operation of the embodiment of fig2 when valve 121 is in its de - energized position as shown in that figure , motor 116 will be in its lower position in view of the fact that port 114 is pressurized and port 115 exhausted . when valve 121 is energized all valves 102a , 102b , 103a and 103b will be reversed and motor 116 will be lifted . thus , the valve assembly acts as a standard four - way poppet valve controlling a double acting fluid motor . it should be noted that the positions of the normally open and normally closed valves in fig2 could be reversed ; this would have the effect of reversing the action of fluid motor 116 . fig3 shows still another arrangement in which body 201 is provided with two normally open valves 202a and 202b controlling ports 203 and 204 which connect inlet chamber 205 with working chambers 206 and 207 respectively . normally closed valves 208a and 208b are provided between chambers 206 and 207 and the respective exhaust chambers 209 and 211 . the two pilot valve ports 213 and 214 for valves 208a and 202a respectively are controlled by a three - way normally open pilot valve 215 which is shown in fig3 in its energized or closed position . a similar pilot valve 216 is provided for controlling pilot ports 217 and 218 for valves 202b and 208b respectively . a single acting fluid motor 219 is controlled by working port 221 and a similar motor 222 by working port 223 . in operation of the embodiment of fig3 when valves 215 and 216 are de - energized , all four valves 208a , 202a , 202b and 208b will be pressurized . thus , both fluid motors 219 and 222 will be depressurized and in their upper positions . when , as shown , both pilot valves 215 and 216 are energized , the main valves will be shifted and the fluid motors shifted to their lower positions . as indicated above with respect to fig1 valves 215 and 216 could be independently controlled . fig4 shows an arrangement 301 in which all four valves 302a , 302b , 302c and 302d are normally closed main valves . each individual pilot port 304a , 304b , 304c and 304d is controlled by a separate valve 303 , 305 , 306 and 307 . working ports 308 and 309 are connected to opposite sides of a double acting fluid motor 311 . in operation of embodiment of fig4 fluid motor 311 will be controlled similarly to fluid motor 116 in fig2 except for the fact that the presence of four individual three - way normally closed pilot valves enhances the flexibility of operation . more particularly , the four pilot valves could be energized or de - energized in such a fashion that both valves 302b and 302c are open and both of valves 302a and 302d are closed . this would create a neutral condition in which both sides of chambers 312 and 313 of fluid motor 311 are pressurized . similarly , the arrangement could be such that both chambers 312 and 313 are exhausted by virtue of valves 302a and 302d being open and valves 302b and 302c closed . thus , one would have the equivalent of a pilot operated four - way three position control valve which in its neutral position connects both sides of a fluid motor to exhaust or to pressure . if all four valves 302a , 302b , 302c and 302d are closed at the same time the neutral position of the valve assembly would be such that both sides of the fluid motor are closed . one of the uses of such an arrangement is to achieve the equivalent , with poppet valves , of a closed center crossover spool valve . almost all conventional four - way poppet valves have open crossovers in which the supply of fluid could leak during actuation resulting in a significant and costly fluid loss over a time period . the above - described arrangement could be used to obviate this disadvantage in four - way poppet valves . fig5 shows still another embodiment of the invention indicated at 401 which is similar to fig2 but shows the use of metering washers and shrouds to control the rate of fluid flow in the various valves . the two normally open valves 402a and 402b are arranged so that valve 402a is disposed between inlet chamber 403 and working chamber 404 whereas valve 402b is placed between working chamber 405 and exhaust chamber 406 . normally closed valve 407a is between chamber 404 and exhaust chamber 408 whereas normally closed valve 407b is placed between chambers 403 and 405 . a three - way normally closed pilot valve 409 controls all four pilot ports and a double acting fluid motor 411 is controlled by the working ports . to control the rate of fluid inflow , a shroud 412 is carried by normally open valve 402a and a shroud 413 by normally closed valve 407b . shroud 412 is in the form of a plug or extension secured to the central portion of valve 402a and extending through its port 414 to restrict the flow therethrough . shroud 413 is in the form of a sleeve surrounding stem 415 and therefore restricting the flow through port 416 . metering washers 417 are disposed in recesses 418 formed in body 401 adjacent cover 19 . it will thus be seen that the shrouds and metering washers could easily be utilized with the valve construction of this invention without detracting from the uniform construction of the valve and valve body described above . the above - described embodiments are intended to be merely illustrative of the possible combinations and arrangements of this invention which afford flexibility in accomplishing many possible combinations and functions . while it will be apparent that the invention herein disclosed is well calculated to achieve the benefits and advantages as hereinabove set forth , it will be appreciated that the invention is susceptible to modification , variation and change without departing from the spirit thereof .	8
referring now to the drawings in detail , the apparatus illustrated in fig1 for cleaning low - lying layers of earth that contain noxious material has a drilling tube 1 that extends into the ground 2 that is to be subjected to a cleaning . the drilling tube 1 primarily comprises an inner tube 3 that is surrounded by an outer tube 4 . the lower ends of the inner tube 3 and the outer tube 4 are sealed off relative to one another . the end face of the inner tube 3 that extends beyond the outer tube 4 is provided with a drill bit 5 that , under the interposition of a spacer 5a ( fig2 ) rests against the inner tube 3 . just above the drill bit 5 , the inner tube 3 is provided with at least one lateral outlet nozzle 6 . by means of the annular space 8 that is formed between the inner tube 3 and the outer tube 4 , a suction or extraction opening 7 that is disposed above the outlet nozzle 6 is connected to a suction pump 9 that in turn is connected to a non - illustrated processing unit . by means of a mechanism that is not shown , the drilling tube 1 can be rotated and can be provided with an axial force , so that the drilling tube 1 can be driven axially into the ground . the displacement or dislodging of the earth is effected by the drill bit 5 , which is provided with appropriate working surfaces . by means of a high - pressure pump 10 , cleaning fluid is conveyed into the interior of the inner tube 3 , from where the cleaning fluid or medium , accompanied by a high drop in pressure , enters the respective layer of earth through the outlet nozzle 6 at a high speed . in so doing the cleaning medium , which is discharged in a highly concentrated manner , flows around the affected ground particles and thereby removes the noxious material that is found in the ground . due to the very high pressure in the inner tube 3 , the action of the discharging cleaning medium is similar to that of a cutting stream or jet , as a result of which in addition a loosening of the acted - upon layers of earth is effected . as a result of the movement of the drilling tube 1 in both an axial and a rotational manner , the cleaning medium that is discharged from the outlet nozzle 6 describes a cylindrical column of earth 11 , which is indicated in fig1 by a broken line . the diameter of the column of earth 11 depends upon the range of the cutting jet , which in turn is influenced by the nature of the ground . at the same time as the discharge of the non - loaded cleaning medium via the outlet nozzle 6 , there is effected via the effect of the suction pump 9 , and via the suction opening 7 , an extraction of the cleaning medium that is already loaded with washed - off noxious material . this is preferably effected in such a way that during the rotational introduction of the drilling tube 1 into the ground 2 , the affected layers of earth are first soaked by the cutting jet that is discharge from the outlet nozzle 6 and , after the pertaining layers of earth pass into the effective range of the suction opening 7 , the loaded cleaning medium is withdrawn by the action of the suction pump 9 and is conveyed to a subsequent processing unit . the distance between the suction opening 7 and the outlet nozzle 6 can be set by appropriate selection of the thickness of the spacer 5a . as can be seen from the detailed view of fig2 the suction opening 7 is provided with a cylindrical screen 12 that extends about the inner tube 3 and prevents an extraction of particles of earth from the ground that surrounds the screen . in order to prevent the screen 12 from becoming clogged due to the deposition of particles of earth , an edge 13 is formed on the lower end face of the outer tube 4 . as a consequence of a relative movement between the outer tube 4 and the inner tube 3 , this edge 13 scrapes in a cleaning manner over the outer surface 14 of the screen 12 , which in the illustrated embodiment is securely connected to the inner tube 3 , thereby freeing the screen 12 of any undesired deposits . as shown in fig2 and 3 , disposed in the annular space 8 between the outer tube 4 and the inner tube 3 is at least one pressure line 15 . the opening 16 of the pressure line 15 is disposed slightly above the suction opening 7 , and is directed toward the base 17 of a blind hole 17a , so that compressed air that is supplied via the pressure line 15 is deflected or turned around and flows back to the upper end of the drilling tube 1 via the annular space 8 . the blind hole 17a is disposed in the upper side of an annular flange 18 that is connected to the inner tube 3 and is axially interrupted by passages 19 . as can be seen in particular in fig3 the blind holes 17a of the annular flange 18 are each in line with a pressure line 15 , whereas the passages 19 are respectively disposed therebetween . in this way , gas , especially compressed air , that flows in under pressure via the pressure lines 15 is deflected at the base 17 by 180 ° and , accompanied by the generation of a partial vacuum adjacent to the passages 19 , is guided back to the upper end of the drilling tube 1 . since the cross - sectional surface area of the free annular space 8 is greater than the overall cross - sectional surface area of the pressure lines 15 , a partial pressure results in the region of the suction openings 7 . this suction effect is utilized in order , where the suction pump 9 illustrated in fig1 is eliminated or omitted , to generate the partial vacuum that is needed for extracting the cleaning medium that is loaded with noxious material . this last - mentioned possibility for conveying the cleaning medium back is primarily to be used where , due to the great suction height , a suction pump can no longer be utilized . as can be seen from the embodiment illustrated in fig4 the drilling tube 1 is guided within a chamber 20 that is disposed in the ground 2 and is embodied as a cylindrical tube . the top of the chamber 20 is tightly closed off by a cover 21 , with the drilling tube 1 being radially guided by a centrally disposed opening 22 in the cover 21 . the chamber 20 is lowered into the ground 2 to such an extent that its lower edge is lower than the outlet nozzle 6 of the drilling tube 1 in its lowermost operating position . in the embodiment illustrated in fig4 the chamber 20 and the drilling tube 1 are axially displaceable relative to one another . prior to introducing the drilling tube 1 into the ground 2 , and hence prior to start of the actual cleaning process , the chamber 20 is introduced vertically into the ground 2 , which can be realized , for example , with the aid of appropriate hydraulic apparatus . the previously described cleaning process subsequently begins with the introduction of the drilling tube 1 . the cover 21 of the chamber 20 is connected via a pressure connection 23a to a pressure pump 23b , preferably for the production of compressed air , so that at the surface of the ground that is surrounded by the chamber 20 , a pressure cushion is produced to enhance the suction effect of the suction opening 7 . the inner diameter of the chamber 20 should be adapted to the strength of the cleaning medium , which is discharged from the outlet nozzle 6 in the form of a cutting jet . this must guarantee that the cutting jet reliably reaches the inner wall of the chamber 20 , so that the entire layers of earth disposed within the chamber 20 are flushed . in addition , the magnitude of the suction effect via the suction opening 7 should be such that a reliable extraction of loaded cleaning medium is also assured from the regions close to the walls of the chamber 20 . the embodiment of the present invention illustrated in fig5 differs from the embodiment illustrated in fig4 by the fact that the drilling tube 1 and the chamber 20 cannot be axially displaced relative to one another . in other words , the drilling tube 1 and the chamber 20 are simultaneously introduced into the ground 2 . this can be effected either by simultaneous insertion of the two parts , or by driving in the chamber 20 while at the same time taking along the rotating drilling tube 1 . the actual cleaning process can be carried out not only while lowering the chamber 20 and the drilling tube 1 , but also during withdrawal thereof . an additional possibility is to rinse the ground 2 during the lowering process and to extract the cleaning medium that is loaded with noxious material during the subsequent raising or withdrawing process . the inventive method for cleaning layers of earth that contain noxious material is advantageously carried out pursuant to the flow diagram that is illustrated in three stages in fig6 a - 6c . fig6 a shows how in the shaded row of chambers 20a , the cleaning process has already been concluded , while nearly two further rows of non - shaded chambers 20b have already been lowered into the ground without the cleaning process having begun . the central axes of chambers that are still to be inserted are indicated by small crosses . fig6 b illustrates an already advanced process stage in which two chambers 20c have already been removed from the ground , and not - yet cleaned chambers 20b have been inserted into the incomplete rows . the cleaning process has already advanced to half way through the central row of chambers . in the further process stage illustrated in fig6 c , already more than one complete row of chambers 20c have been removed from the ground , and have been inserted at the front as viewed in the direction of operation . as can be seen from fig7 it is not necessary for the chambers to be embodied as cylindrical tubes . rather , the chambers could also have the shape of polygons that are composed of a plurality of forms 24 that have been vertically inserted into the ground . in the embodiment illustrated in fig7 a chamber having the cross - sectional shape of a hexagon is respectively composed of four forms 24 , with these forms having the shape of a trapezoid that is open along its long side . finally , fig8 illustrates that the trapezoidal forms 24 can be interconnected by coupling members 25 , 26 that can be shifted in one another . in this manner , the forms 24 are guided during introduction into the ground that is to be cleaned , with an additional advantage being that an escape of cleaning medium that is loaded with noxious material into adjacent chambers is to a large extent prevented by the coupling members 25 , 26 . of course , it is also possible to introduce the forms and coupling members into the ground simultaneously with the drilling tube 1 . this can be effected while simultaneously carrying out the cleaning process . fig9 a and 9b illustrate that the individual tubular chambers can also be disposed in such a way that the areas that are to be cleaned overlap one another . fig9 a shows that in the two dashed - line chambers 20c the cleaning process has already been concluded and the chamber 2 has been removed , whereas in the adjacent shaded chamber tube 20a , the cleaning process is underway . the areas where a chamber tube is still to be inserted are shown by a thin circular line , whereas the chamber that is to be cleaned is shown by a double circular line . the entire cleaning process is undertaken with only a single tubular chamber tube that is moved each time . fig9 b schematically illustrates that two or more chamber tubes can be used simultaneously , with the insertion locations being selected in such a way that the areas that are to be cleaned can overlap to a prescribed extent . fig1 shows a further specific embodiment of the present invention . disposed within the chamber 20 , in addition to the inner tube 3 with the lower outlet nozzle 6 , is a pump 27 for solid matter ; the pump 27 is connected to a conveying line 28 . the pump 27 can be controlled in such a way that the conveying capacity of the pump 27 conveys only that amount of sludge , which is a mixture of earth particles , noxious material , and cleaning medium , that the ground water level 31 present within the chamber 20 cannot drop below a prescribed low - level mark . the pump 27 conveys the sludge mixture via the conveying line 28 into the cleaning unit 29 , which is disposed above ground . the reference numeral 30 denotes the ground water level outside the chamber 20 . the present invention is , of course , in no way restricted to the specific disclosure of the specification and drawings , but also encompasses any modifications within the scope of the appended claims .	4
almost all the manufacturing of the disks takes place in clean rooms , where the amount of dust in the atmosphere is kept very low , and is strictly controlled and monitored . the disk substrates come to the disk fabrication site packed in shipping cassettes . for certain types of media , the disk substrate has a polished nickel - coated surface . the substrates are preferably transferred to process cassettes to be moved from one process to another . preferably , the cassettes are moved from one room to another on automatic guided vehicles to prevent contamination due to human contact . the first step in preparing a disk for recording data is mechanical texturing by applying roughness and grooves to the polished surface of the substrate . this helps in depositing a magnetic material on the substrate . during the texturing process , small amounts of nickel get removed from surface of the disk and remain there . to remove this , the substrate is usually washed . also , techniques for polishing the surface of the non - magnetic substrate of a recording medium use slurry polishing , which requires wash treatment . thus , disk substrates are washed after texturing and polishing . however , wash defects could be one of the top yield detractors . the next step is the formation of the landing area ( preferably , a 2 - 4 mm band near the center ) where the read head comes to rest . preferably , the landing area is formed by laser texturing , which is done by creating microscopic bumps , using a laser . this prevents the head from clinging to me disk surface when the disk is spinning . a final cleaning of the substrate is then done using a series of ultrasonic , megasonic and quick dump rinse ( qdr ) steps . at the end of the final clean , the substrate has an ultra - clean surface and is ready for the deposition of layers of magnetic media on the substrate . preferably , the deposition is done by sputtering . there are two types of sputtering : pass - by sputtering and static sputtering . in pass - by sputtering , disks are passed inside a vacuum chamber , where they are bombarded with the magnetic and non - magnetic materials that are deposited as one or more layers on the substrate . static sputtering uses smaller machines , and each disk is picked up and sputtered individually . the sputtering layers are deposited in what are called bombs , which are loaded onto the sputtering machine . the bombs are vacuum chambers with targets on either side . the substrate is lifted into the bomb and is bombarded with the sputtered material . sputtering leads to some spike formation on the substrate . these spikes need to be removed to ensure that they do not lead to the scratching between the head and substrate . thus , a lube is preferably applied to the substrate surface as one of the top layers on the substrate . once a lube is applied , the substrates move to the tape burnishing and tape wiping stage , where the substrate is polished while it preferentially spins around a spindle . after buffing / burnishing , the substrate is wiped and a clean lube is evenly applied on the surface . subsequently , the disk is prepared and tested for quality thorough a three - stage process . first , a burnishing head passes over the surface , removing any bumps ( asperities as the technical term goes ). the glide head then goes over the disk , checking for remaining bumps , if any . finally the certifying head checks the surface for manufacturing defects and also measures the magnetic recording ability of the substrate . burnishing can be accomplished by passing a burnishing head over the surface of the disk to eliminate asperities or other tall defects on the magnetic disk surface that can interfere with the flying head . burnishing heads can fly above the surface of the disk as it rotates and thus has their own fly characteristics . burnishing heads can also contact the disk media lightly as the disc rotates . as illustrated in fig2 , in accordance with the present invention , the burnishing heads 200 can include cutting edges 210 that can shear or cut away the asperities on the disc surface . preferably the burnishing heads 200 maintain a stable proximity fly height . further , the spacing between the burnishing head 200 and media surface can be less than 10 angstroms . the burnish head 200 can include a heating element 220 which can be embedded in the body of the head in addition to the cutting edges 210 on the slider . the passive fly height of the burnish head 200 remains the same as the conventional media burnish head 200 . upon , activation , the heater 220 in the slider body will make a controlled part of the slider ( i . e ., the burnish pad ) protrude from the slider body . the protrusion can be shaped so that it is protrudes a predetermined height of the cutting faces or islands . in accordance with one aspect of the present invention , conventional burnishing of the disk can be burnished in a conventional manner known in the art . once conventional burnishing is completed one or more final passes can be made by the burnishing head 20 with the heater 220 of the burnishing pad activated . the protruded pad can wear away the asperities . further , because the headed area is small , the flying characteristics of the burnish head will not be affected . this process will create a surface free of asperities and having a very flyable non - abrasive surface . a technique for buffing / burnishing is tape burnishing ( buffing ). however , the technique is attendant with numerous disadvantages . for example , it is extremely difficult to provide a clean and smooth surface due to debris formed by mechanical abrasions . tape burnish and tape wipe processes in which the tape moves orthogonal to the burnishing object without any rotational degree of freedom of the burnishing tape cannot generally effectively remove the particles on the surface of the disk . these particles cause failure and / or decreased performance of the magnetic disc drives . this problem can be especially critical in magnetic discs made by the servo pattern printing process . this is because the particles on the surface can damage the stamper , which sequentially affects the quality of the printed discs . this invention allows the tape burnishing and tape wiping processes to be improved to meet the demands of high storage density and low fly height criteria . the cleaning apparatus for burnishing asperities or defects from the surfaces of an article , e . g ., a rigid magnetic disk , could use an abrasive burnishing tape , a pad , a cloth , a scrubber or any burnishing object that contacts and cleans the surface of the object . if the object is a disk , then the disk preferably rotates on a spindle while the burnishing object contacts the surface of the disk . the burnishing object could be held stationary at one location on the surface of the disk or moved during the burnishing process . a burnishing head in accordance with the present invention can incorporated multiple levels of protrusion pad size and shape control . this can be accomplished using either burnish pad design or heater design . additionally , the pad can include multiple heater circuits and pad combinations so as to accommodate and handle complex head geometries as well as media topography . it is to be understood that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of various embodiments of the invention have been set forth in the foregoing description , together with details of the structure and function of various embodiments of the invention , this disclosure is illustrative only , and changes may be made in detail , especially in matters of structure and arrangement of parts within the principles of the present invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed . for example , the particular elements may vary depending on the particular application while maintaining substantially the same functionality without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention . in addition , although the preferred embodiment described herein is directed to a magnetic data storage device , it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the teachings of the present invention can be applied to optical devices without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention . the implementations described above and other implementations are within the scope of the following claims	6
in the following the invention will be described in more detail by referring to the accompanying figures . however , because fig4 has already been described above it is in the following only referred to by the reference numerals shown therein . fig1 a shows a method according to the invention for routing a message , in particular a radio resource control message sent by a terminal ue from a cell control to a mobile control mc of a distributed radio access network rnc of a radio access network ran to which the terminal is associated . in detail the method comprises a previous step 1a ) of establishing a radio resource communication rrc between the terminal and the radio access network ran . said establishing step results in that a mobile control mc is instantiated that means created and provided with a user - id identifying the terminal ue and the mobile control mc itself as well as a pp & amp ; b - id for identifying the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b functional entity associated to the mobile control mc and the transport address of said pp & amp ; b . moreover , the user - id will be stored in the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b together with the transport address associated to the newly instantiated mobile control mc . finally , the pp & amp ; b - id and the user - id will be sent to the terminal ue within the pre - existing fields srnc - id and s - rnti , respectively . from this moment on , the terminal ue will always identify itself by including this information on the srnc - id and s - rnti fields of the rrc messages it sends on the common control channel ccch of any cell . said step for establishing the rrc communication will be described in more detail later by referring to fig3 . however , that step is necessary for the method described in fig1 a and 1 b as well as for the method described in fig2 a and 2 b for instantiating the mobile control mc and for providing required identifiers id to the terminal or the mobile control . after the communication has been established the method is carried out as shown in fig1 a . in particular , in a step 1b ) the message is sent from the terminal ue via a common control channel ccch of the cell where the terminal ue is located to a cell control cc associated to said cell within said distributed radio network controller rnc . the terminal identifies itself by using the fields srnc - id and s - rnti , where it includes the information previously provided by the network during the rrc establishment , i . e . the pp & amp ; b - id of the parent paging and broadcast of its associated mobile control , and the user - id which identifies said mobile control ( since it uniquely identifies one of the mobile control functional entities associated to this particular parent paging and broadcast ). afterwards , in step 1c ) the cell control cc forwards the message received from the terminal ue to a paging and broadcast p & amp ; b functional entity associated to said cell control cc . if that paging and broadcast functional entity associated to the cell control is identical to the parent paging and broadcast functional entity identified in the message and associated to the mobile control mc , said paging and broadcast p & amp ; b forwards the message to said mobile control , identified by the user - id ( step 1d ). the transport address of the mobile control is known because it is stored by the pp & amp ; b when the mobile control is instantiated ( during the rrc connection establishment ). fig1 b illustrates the case that the paging and broadcast p & amp ; b functional entity associated to the cell control cc is not identical to a so - called parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b functional entity being associated to the mobile control mc . in that case step b ) corresponds to step b ) as described above by referring to fig1 a . according to step 1c - 1 ) the message is forwarded by the cell control to the paging and broadcast p & amp ; b functional entity associated to said cell control . afterwards said paging and broadcast functional entity sends the message to the parent paging and broadcast functional entity associated to the mobile control ( step 1c - 2 )). this is possible because the message generated by the terminal ue comprises the srnc - id identifying said parent paging and broadcast functional entity . finally , the message is again transmitted from the parent paging and broadcast to the mobile control mc ( step 1d )). in the case that the paging and broadcast associated to the cell does not correspond to the parent paging and broadcast , the paging and broadcast p & amp ; b associated to the cell control forwards the message to the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b associated to the mobile control ( identified by the pp & amp ; b - id sent within the srnc - id field of the message ), which in turn forwards the message to said mobile control using the user - id contained in the s - rnti field of the message . fig2 a illustrates the method for routing a message in the opposite direction , that means from the mobile control mc to the cell control or to the terminal ue . this method also requires the previous establishment of a radio resource control rrc connection in order to instantiate the mobile control and to provide said mobile control and the associated terminal with the required identifiers , in particular the user - id as well as the pp & amp ; b - id and a transport address both identifying the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b associated to the mobile control ( step 4a ). according to fig2 a the method comprises a step 4b ) in which the message is sent from said mobile control mc to the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b identified by its rnc - id and its transport address known by the mobile control mc . the message to be routed does not only include the user - id of the mobile control and the pp & amp ; b - id of the parent paging and broadcast functional entity but also the cell id of the cell addressed by said message and the rnc - id of the paging and broadcast p & amp ; b associated to said addressed cell . with the help of in particular the two latter - mentioned identifiers it is possible that the parent paging and broadcast forwards the message to its associated cell control in the case that said parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b is identical to the paging and broadcast p & amp ; b associated to said cell control step 4c ). in the opposite case the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b forwards the message to the paging and broadcast associated to the destination cell control identified by the p & amp ; b - id sent together with the message , which in turn forwards the message to said cell control using the cell - id . finally , the cell control cc transmits the message via the common control channel cch , which is received by all terminals located in the cell associated to the cell control . with the help of the pp & amp ; b - id and the user - id , which are sent within the fields srnc - id and s - rnti , respectively , the addressed terminal is able to recognize that the received message is addressed to it ( step 4d )). fig2 b illustrates a case similar to fig1 b , namely that the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b associated to the mobile control mc is not identical to the parent and broadcast p & amp ; b associated to the cell control addressed within the message . as already described by fig1 in that case the message is sent from the parent paging and broadcast via the paging and broadcast associated to the cell control of the addressed cell ( step 4c - 1 ), 4c - 2 )). for routing between mobile control and cell control or vice versa , each paging and broadcast p & amp ; b must be initially configured with a list of all other paging and broadcast p & amp ; bs , containing both their p & amp ; b - id and their associated transport address , as well as a list of its associated cell control functional entities ccs , containing both their cell - id and their associated transport address . moreover , each cell control must also be initially configured with the p & amp ; b - id and the transport address of its associated paging and broadcast p & amp ; b . fig3 illustrates the establishing of the radio resource control rrc connection already mentioned above . said process serves for instantiating a mobile control in the case that a terminal desires to initiate the communication towards the radio access network . moreover , it serves for applying the required identifiers ids to the mobile control mc and to the terminal ue . in particular , in the process of establishing the communication an rrc - message is sent from the terminal ue via the common control channel ccch to the cell control cc of that cell where the terminal ue is located ( step a1 ). said cell control cc notifies in step a2 ) the paging and broadcast p & amp ; b associated to it about the received rrc - message . in response to said notification step a3 ) that paging and broadcast functional entity instantiates that means creates a new mobile control mc . in that way the paging and broadcast associated to the cell receiving the rrc - message becomes the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b functional entity of the newly created mobile control . further , said parent paging and broadcast allocates a unique user - id to said newly created mobile control mc which identifies both , the terminal and said new mobile control ( step a4 ). subsequently , the parent paging and broadcast pp & amp ; b stores the user - id and the transport address of said mobile control ( step a5 ) and transmits said user - id as well as its own pp & amp ; b - id and its own transport address to said mobile control mc ( step a6 )). in a final step a7 ) a confirmation message confirming the completion of the establishment is sent from the mobile control mc back to the terminal ue . said confirmation message includes the user - id of the mobile control mc and the rnc - id identifying the parent paging and broadcast functional entity of the mobile control in the pre - existing fields s - rnti and srnc - id , respectively . both identifiers enable the terminal to identify itself when sending messages on the common control channel ccch of a cell , and will be used to route messages in particular to the instantiated mobile control as described above by referring to fig1 a and 1 b . the methods described above and the distributed radio network control equipment and the radio access network are preferably , embodied as distributed server platforms running dedicated software .	7
below , preferred embodiments of the present invention are explained with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig1 is a perspective view of an information processing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention . fig2 is another perspective view of the information processing device according to the present embodiment of the present invention . fig3 is a side view of the information processing device according to the present embodiment of the present invention . fig4 a is a plan view of the information processing device according to the present embodiment of the present invention . fig4 b is an enlarged view of a portion a in fig4 a . as shown in fig1 though fig4 b , the information processing device of the present embodiment includes a cover structure 1 , serving as a housing , a substrate 2 with a cpu ( central processing unit ) mounted thereon ( hereinafter , the substrate 2 is referred to as a “ mother board ”), an extension board 3 such as a pci card , an extension slot changer 4 for changing a direction of mounting the extension board 3 ( hereinafter , the extension slot changer 4 is referred to as a “ riser board ”), a connector 5 into which a side portion of the extension board 3 is set in , a package unit 6 , such as , a memory unit , and a holding part 7 that is formed on the cover structure 1 and holding a portion of the extension board 3 with screws . in addition , the information processing device includes a supporting member 8 , which is a long plate and is fixed on the cover structure 1 with the longitudinal direction of the supporting member 8 being parallel to one end surface of the mother board 2 ( for example , the end surface 2 a in a longitudinal direction of the mother board 2 ). in addition , the information processing device includes a holding member 9 , which is a plate - shaped member including a holding part 9 a and a supporting portion 9 b , in which the holding part 9 a pinches the extension board 3 or holds one of the upper surface and the lower surface of the extension board 3 , and the supporting portion 9 b is set on the supporting member 8 while being movable in the longitudinal direction of the supporting member 8 ( the direction the an arrow b in fig4 a ). as illustrated in fig4 b , the supporting portion 9 b of the holding member 9 has an elongated hole 9 c serving as a mounting hole , and in the supporting member 8 , there are formed plural through - holes 8 a , for example , the through - holes 8 a may be screw holes . the interval ( represented by “ a ”) of the through - holes 8 a in the supporting member 8 is less than a length b of the elongated hole 9 c in the holding member 9 in the longitudinal direction . the supporting portion 9 b of the holding member 9 can be moved to position the supporting portion 9 b to fit the outer dimension of the extension board 3 and to align the through - holes 8 a with the elongated hole 9 c , and as shown in fig1 and fig2 , a screw 10 , which serves as a fixing member , can be inserted into the through - holes 8 a and the elongated hole 9 c to fix the supporting portion 9 b of the holding member 9 to the supporting member 8 . the extension board 3 is arranged above the mother board 2 . in a holding structure of the extension board 3 in the related art , the extension board 3 is held by the connector 5 mounted on the riser board 4 and a holding member formed on the cover structure 1 . since there is not the holding member 9 as in the present embodiment , a portion c ( refer to fig1 ) of the extension board 3 far from the holding part 7 ( that is , the end the extension board 3 held by the holding part 9 a in the present embodiment .) is not supported by anything . for this reason , when an external force is imposed on the device in the z direction ( refer to fig1 and fig3 ), the extension board 3 can be bent and deformed , and as a result , the extension board 3 may touch other members nearby , and this may cause deformation and damage . in contrast , in the present embodiment , the portion c of the extension board 3 ( the portion in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the extension board 3 ) is held by the supporting member 8 with the holding member 9 , and thus the portion c of the extension board 3 is restricted . as a result , even when an external force is imposed on the device in the z direction , the extension board 3 does not bend and does not touch the package unit 6 or other members nearby . in addition , since the outer dimension of the extension board 3 has a variety , and has various sizes in the x and y direction , in order to use the supporting member 8 to support such an extension board 3 , the holding member 9 is set to be movable . specifically , the supporting portion 9 b of the holding member 9 is movable to fit the outer dimension of the extension board 3 so that the holding part 9 a of the holding member 9 holds the free end of the extension board 3 ( for example , the end of the portion c in fig1 ), and when positions of the through - holes 8 a with the elongated hole 9 c are aligned , the screw 10 can be inserted into the through - holes 8 a and the elongated hole 9 c to fix these members , thereby , the holding member 9 is fixed to the supporting member 8 , and the holding part 9 a can reliably hold the extension board 3 . fig5 is a plan view of an information processing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention . in fig5 , the same reference numbers are assigned to the same elements as illustrated in fig1 through fig4 b , and overlapping descriptions are omitted . the configuration in fig5 differs from those in fig1 through fig4 b in that a holding member 9 ′ including a holding part 9 ′ a , a supporting portion 9 ′ b , and an elongated hole 9 ′ c is arranged to be parallel to the arrangement direction d of the connector 5 to restrict the side end of the extension board 3 in the arrangement direction d of the connector 5 . therefore , it is possible to present falling - off of the extension board 3 from the connector 5 . it should be noted that as the structure for holding the extension board 3 , the supporting member 8 may be arranged to be perpendicular to parallel to the arrangement direction d of the extension board 3 . this invention can be applied to a personal computer or an embedded controller used in an information processing device , for example , household electronic devices having an extension board . while the present invention is described with reference to specific embodiments chosen for purpose of illustration , it should be apparent that the invention is not limited to these embodiments , but numerous modifications could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the basic concept and scope of the invention . this patent application is based on japanese priority patent application no . 2006 - 008506 filed on jan . 17 , 2006 , the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference .	6
fig1 illustrates a modern wind turbine 1 with a tower 2 and a wind turbine nacelle 3 positioned on top of the tower . the wind turbine rotor , comprising at least one blade such as three wind turbine blades 5 as illustrated , is connected to the hub 4 through pitch mechanisms 4 a . each pitch mechanism includes a blade bearing and pitch actuating means which allows the blade to pitch . the pitch process is controlled by a pitch controller . as illustrated in the figure , wind over a certain level will activate the rotor and allow it to rotate in a perpendicular direction to the wind . the rotation movement is converted to electric power which usually is supplied to the utility grid as will be known by skilled persons within the area . fig2 illustrates schematically one preferred embodiment of a control system for controlling the pitch angles of the wind turbine blades data of the wind turbine 1 are measured with sensor means 7 such as pitch position sensors , blade load sensors , rotor azimuth sensors , tower acceleration sensors etc . the measured sensor data are supplied to computing means 8 in order to convert the data to feedback signals . the feedback signals are used in various control systems e . g . the pitch control system 9 for controlling the pitch angle by establishing control values for controlling said at least one wind turbine blade 5 . the computing means 8 preferably includes a microprocessor and computer storage means for continuous control of the said feedback signal . as indicated by the dashed arrows at the nacelle 3 the wind turbine tower 2 can oscillate resulting in a displacement of said nacelle 3 . as will be known by skilled persons within the area said tower can oscillate at its eigenfrequency e . g . as a result of a sudden change in thrust applied to the rotor . said oscillation can result in excessive loads on said tower and in worst case cause damage . fig3 illustrates for one preferred embodiment of the invention schematically a conceptual state - sequence diagram for the invented control algorithm comprising steps of : normal operation ( state 0 ) detecting a utility grid fault event , an initial control of a wind turbine 1 in order to stabilize the wind turbine rotor speed with new control parameters as a response to said utility grid fault event ( state 1 ), an intermediate control of the wind turbine at a stabilized level during the fault event ( state 2 ), detecting a recovery of the grid , and a final control of the wind turbine while returning to normal operating conditions ( state 3 or state 13 ). as indicated on the figure state 3 is entered if means for measuring values of the mechanical oscillations and / or loads are present ( a preferred embodiment ). state 13 is entered if said means are not present . for one embodiment of the invention comprising a wind turbine 1 comprising sensor means for measuring values representing mechanical oscillations and / or loads of the wind turbine , a description of each state and the state switch conditions between said states is : for another embodiment of the invention comprising wind turbine 1 without sensor means for measuring values representing the wind turbine mechanical oscillations and / or loads , a description of each state and the state switch conditions between said states is : if the generated power by the wind turbine is below a predefined limit such as 25 % of nominal power , said fault mode will not be initiated upon detecting a grid fault , as the normal control algorithm will be able to avoid over speeding of the rotor during said grid fault event and will continue operating in normal mode since there is no imminent danger due to the low power in the wind . when a grid fault has been detected said state 1 is entered . the basis of this state of the invented control algorithm is to pitch one or more wind turbine rotor blades 5 out of the wind immediately after a fault on the utility grid is detected in order to avoid over speeding of the rotor due to excessive aerodynamically power acting on said rotor . for one embodiment of the invention the wind turbine rotor blades 5 are pitched to a no acceleration pitch angle ( nopa ) which is defined to be the pitch angle that gives equilibrium between aerodynamically power and any wind turbine losses and electrical generated power , hence giving no or substantially no acceleration of the generator . for one embodiment nopa is calculated immediately after the grid fault is detected by table lookup in a cp - table . for another embodiment nopa is established by calculation e . g . with a mathematical algorithm . for one embodiment of the invention if the grid fault is sufficiently short ( a short dip ) to have only a low impact on the turbine load , a short dip situation is detected and it is preferred to obtain normal operation and active power production as before said short dip as soon as possible . consequently for this embodiment the invented algorithm is able to determine the level of significant loads on the turbine and on that basis determine if the grid fault control sequence can be quitted or it needs to be completed . for another embodiment of the invention where the grid fault lasts too long to be detected as a said short dip but a grid recovery occurs before nopa is reached , it is preferred to obtain normal operation and active power production as before the grid fault as soon as possible . for this situation a direct jump to normal operation mode would have a too high impact on the wind turbine . consequently for this embodiment the invented algorithm jumps directly to state 2 where predefined control parameters are re - obtained as explained below . a good indicator of how much the turbine has been affected , is how much said aero dynamical thrust has been reduced . pitch angle , tower acceleration , tower load , time or combinations hereof can be fair assumptions herefore . for the example of pitch angle as said indicator , to determine when to use said short dip control strategy or to continue the grid fault control strategy to the next state , said algorithm continuously supervises how far the actual pitch angle is from the recent pitch angle before the grid fault . consequently if a grid recovery is detected and the difference between the actual pitch angle and a recent pitch angle immediately before said grid fault exceed a certain predefined level , said control algorithm will continue the grid fault control algorithm . otherwise the grid fault control algorithm will be terminated as fast as possible by returning to state 0 i . e . setting the references for e . g . pitch angle , power and generator rpm to the settings immediately before detecting said grid fault . the basis of this state of the invented control algorithm is to keep the wind turbine operating within a defined range controllable by the wind turbine controller and connected to the utility grid until the grid has recovered . for one embodiment when nopa is reached , wind turbine control is initialized with the present control settings as reference e . g . generator rpm and pitch angle , in order to keep the generator rpm constant or nearly constant at a level above the nominal speed . for one embodiment where pitching out has been stopped due to detected grid recovery before reaching said nopa , said state 2 is initiated and predefined control parameters are re - obtained . the control sequence stays in this state with the present control settings at least until recovery of the utility grid has been detected . for one preferred embodiment , when means for measuring values representing the wind turbine mechanical oscillations and / or loads are present , a switch to the next state ( state 3 ) can be initiated when pitching in the rotor blades will occur in counter phase to the mechanical oscillations and / or loads of the wind turbine e . g . oscillations resulting form a tower acceleration . i . e . pitching said rotor blades will be done in such a way that the oscillations and / or loads that will be generated by pitching said rotor blades back to normal operation is controlled and generated in counter phase to the existing oscillations and / or loads causing a dampening of the summarized oscillations and / or loads . for another preferred embodiment , when means for measuring values representing the wind turbine mechanical oscillations and / or loads are not present , said switching to the next state ( state 13 ) can be initiated as soon as recovery of the utility grid has been detected . state 3 : ( final control — if sensor means for measuring mechanical wind turbine oscillations and / or loads are present ). in order to return to normal production , reapplying of thrust is necessary by pitching the rotor blades back to their operation position . as an example of this preferred embodiment , the alternating aerodynamic torque under which the tower has been influenced caused by the sudden drop in thrust when pitching out to nopa ( state 1 ), the tower will oscillate with its eigenfrequency when the grid fault has recovered resulting in excessive physical loads on the wind turbine components , especially the tower construction . for this example a switch to state 3 has be initiated when the tower acceleration signal is within a predefined window regarding amplitude and direction . the pitch angle is ramped back in towards normal production pitch angle with a maximum pitch velocity . said pitch angle can e . g . be the value as before the detected grid fault event or if conditions has changed during the grid fault event , a new desired pitch angle . hereby it is achieved that a maximal dampening of said tower oscillation is obtained as well as the rotor speed is decreased towards the rotor speed before the grid fault event . state 13 : ( final control — if sensor means for measuring wind turbine oscillations and / or loads are not present ). in order to return to normal production reapplying of thrust is necessary by pitching the rotor blades back to their operation position i . e . the pitch value obtained before detecting a grid fault with predefined control parameters e . g . fixed pitch rate . as an example of this preferred embodiment the slope of the pitch rate can be calculated as : pitchrate = ( θ ⁢ ⁢ actual - θ ⁢ ⁢ predip ) trampback θactual = is the actual pitch angle θpredip = is the pitch angle before the grid fault event or , if conditions has changed during the fault event , a new desired pitch angle . trampback = a predefined ramp back time in one embodiment the trampback must be defined to be longer than one period of the wind turbine tower eigenfrequency in order not to cause positive interference on the tower oscillation when ramping back i . e . for a wind turbine tower with an eigenfrequency of e . g . 0 . 5 hz the trampback must be defined to be longer than 2 seconds such as up to 4 seconds . in another embodiment for another type of tower with an eigenfrequency of e . g . 1 hz the trampback must be defined to be longer than 1 second such as 1 . 5 seconds . for an embodiment of a wind turbine tower wherein the tower is very rigid e . g . a short tower the trampback may be chosen to a shorter period of time than a taller and more flexible tower such as the above mentioned embodiments . fig4 illustrates for one embodiment of the invention conditions that are to be met for the detection of said grid fault event and thereby initiation of a safety mode where the wind turbine is controlled by the invented grid fault control algorithm . firstly ( not illustrated ) the recent generated power must be higher than a predefined limit . if the generated power is less , the normal control algorithm will be able to avoid over speeding or the rotor during a grid fault event and the wind turbine will continue operating in normal mode since there is no imminent danger for e . g . over speeding of the rotor due to the low power in the wind . secondly the slope of the grid voltage drop 10 must be higher than a predefined slope limit 11 . the slope limit is defined by the operating range of the normal wind turbine controller and its ability to adapt to alternating grid voltages in order to keep control and avoid over speeding of the rotor . thirdly the voltage drop must be of a certain predefined size i . e . the grid voltage must drop to below a threshold value u threshold 12 . if said three conditions are met the grid voltage is within the crossed area 15 meaning that a utility grid fault is detected and said grid fault control algorithm is initiated . fig5 illustrates for one embodiment of the invention conditions that are to be met for the detection of a grid recovery and thereby allowing the control algorithm to proceed towards normal operation . firstly if the grid voltage rises above a predefined low voltage limit for normal operation u threshold 12 the turbine may obtain normal operation . otherwise the turbine may obtain normal operation if the grid voltage rises a predefined amount u grid , add above the present low voltage level u grid , minimum during the grid fault and the voltage is a certain predefined amount u converter , add above the limit u converter , minimum where the wind turbine converter is able to produce active power . if said conditions are met the grid voltage is within the crossed area 14 meaning that the grid has recovered and said grid fault control algorithm is allowed to proceed towards normal production . fig6 illustrates schematically one embodiment of the invention , where sensor means for measuring tower acceleration is present , a simplified timing diagram showing the relation between control states , pitch angle , tower acceleration , tower displacement and generator rpm during a grid fault . the pitch angle , tower acceleration , tower displacement and generator rpm . are ideal constant during normal operation . when a utility grid fault is detected 15 the wind turbine rotor blade or blades are pitched towards nopa 16 . the hereby sudden change in aerodynamical thrust is reflected by a tower acceleration and displacement 17 , 18 . furthermore the generator rpm is increased due to an excessive amount of aerodynamical power 19 . when said pitch angle reaches nopa 20 , yet another opposite directed change in thrust occurs and the tower will start oscillating at its eigen frequency 21 , 22 . the generator rpm is here stabilized at an over speed level 23 as there now is a balance between incoming aerodynamic power and generated power . the rotor blade or blades are pitched back to operational settings 24 when a grid recovery has been detected and for this embodiment state 3 is entered when said tower acceleration goes negative 25 i . e . reapplying of aerodynamical thrust is in counter phase to the tower acceleration . the result is damped tower acceleration 26 when returning to normal operating mode ( state 0 ), producing only a damped tower displacement 27 whereby loads on the tower has been reduced . furthermore the generator rpm is decreased 28 ideal to the level as before entering said grid fault mode 29 . fig7 illustrates schematically one embodiment of the invention , where sensor means for measuring mechanical oscillations and / or loads are not present , a simplified timing diagram showing the relation between control states , pitch angle , tower acceleration and generator rpm . during a grid fault . the description for states 0 , 1 and 2 are same for this embodiment as described for fig6 and will not be repeated here . the rotor blade or blades are pitched back to operational settings 30 with predefined control parameters e . g . trampback . for this embodiment state 13 is entered immediately after grid recovery has been detected . the pitch rate is chosen to be of a value that does not result in significant further excessive mechanical oscillations e . g . tower acceleration 31 , 32 . the result is a tower acceleration 31 , 32 when returning to normal operating mode ( state 0 ), producing a tower displacement 33 whereby loads on the tower are kept within allowable limits . furthermore the generator rpm is decreased 34 ideal to the level as before entering said grid fault mode 29 . the invention described has been exemplified above with reference to specific examples of control algorithms for a wind turbine during lvrt . however , it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular examples but may be designed and altered in a multitude of varieties within the scope of the invention as specified in the claims e . g . with use of other algorithm states or measured / detected / established / estimated values .	5
the technical solution of the present invention is further explained and illustrated below in conjunction with specific examples and comparative examples . steel making is performed by adopting a converter or an electric furnace , a slab is obtained by secondary refining of molten steel and continuous casting , and the slab comprises the following chemical elements by weight percent : 0 . 02 - 0 . 08 % of c , 2 . 0 - 3 . 5 % of si , 0 . 05 - 0 . 20 % of mn , 0 . 005 - 0 . 012 % of s , 0 . 010 - 0 . 060 % of als , 0 . 002 - 0 . 014 % of n , not more than 0 . 10 % of sn and the balance of fe and other inevitable impurities . the slabs with different components are heated at the temperature of 1150 ° c . and then hot - rolled to hot - rolled plates with the thickness of 2 . 3 mm , initial rolling and final rolling temperatures are 1070 ° c . and 935 ° c . respectively and the coiling temperature is 636 ° c . after acid washing , the hot - rolled plates are subject to primary cold - rolling so as to obtain finished products with the thickness of 0 . 30 mm . decarbonizing and annealing are performed under the conditions that the heating rate during decarbonizing and annealing is 25 ° c ./ s , the decarbonizing temperature is 845 ° c . and the decarbonizing dew point is 67 ° c ., thereby reducing the content of [ c ] in the steel plates to be 30 ppm or less . nitriding treatment process : 780 ° c .× 30sec , the oxidation degree p h2o / p h2 is 0 . 065 , the amount of nh 3 is 3 . 2 wt % and the content of infiltrated [ n ] is 160 ppm . an isolation agent using mgo as a main component is coated on each steel plate , and then high - temperature annealing is performed in a batch furnace . after uncoiling , by applying insulating coatings and performing stretching , leveling and annealing , b 8 and the production period of obtained finished product are as shown in table 1 . it can be seen from table 1 that , when the content of n element is controlled within the range of 0 . 002 - 0 . 014 %, the finished products generally have the high magnetic induction , which can achieve b 8 of not less than 1 . 88 t . on the contrary , the n element in each of comparative examples 1 - 2 does not satisy the technical solution of the present invention , and thus the magnetic induction thereof is lower than that in each of examples 1 - 3 . in addition , it also can be seen from table 1 that , when the content of n in the smelting stage is within the range of 0 . 002 - 0 . 014 %, the steps of normalizing and intermediate annealing can be avoided , and a primary cold - rolling process technology is simultaneously adopted , so that the production period from the hot - rolled plate to the final finished product ( namely the cold - rolled plate ) is controlled within 48 h . otherwise , when the content of n does not meet the requirements , as the procedures of normalizing , intermediate annealing , secondary cold - rolling and the like are required , the production period will be prolonged by about 5 - 20 h . steel making is performed by adopting a converter or an electric furnace , a slab is obtained by secondary refining of molten steel and continuous casting , and the slab comprises the following chemical elements by weight percent : 3 . 0 % of si , 0 . 05 % of c , 0 . 11 % of mn , 0 . 007 % of s , 0 . 03 % of als , 0 . 007 % of n , 0 . 06 % of sn and the balance of fe and inevitable impurities ; and then hot - rolling is performed , and the different hot - rolling process conditions are as shown in table 2 . after acid washing , the hot - rolled plates are subject to primary cold - rolling so as to obtain finished products with the thickness of 0 . 30 mm . decarbonizing and annealing are performed under the conditions that the heating rate during decarbonizing and annealing is 25 ° c ./ s , the decarbonizing temperature is 840 ° c . and the decarbonizing dew point is 70 ° c ., thereby reducing the content of [ c ] in the steel plates to be 30 ppm or less . nitriding treatment process : 800 ° c .× 30sec , the oxidation degree p h2o / p h2 is 0 . 14 , the amount of nh 3 is 1 . 1 wt % and the content of infiltrated [ n ] is 200 ppm . an isolation agent using mgo as a main component is coated on each steel plate , and then high - temperature annealing is performed in a batch furnace . after uncoiling , by applying insulating coatings and performing stretching , leveling and annealing , b8 of obtained finished product is as shown in table 2 . it can be seen from the results in table 2 that , when the hot - rolling process satisfies the following conditions : the slab is heated to 1090 - 1200 ° c . in a heating furnace , the initial rolling temperature is 1180 ° c . or less , the final rolling temperature is 860 ° c . or more , laminar cooling is performed after rolling , and coiling is performed at the temperature of 650 ° c . or less , examples 4 - 8 generally have higher magnetic induction , which can achieve b8 of not less than 1 . 88 t . on the contrary , when the hot - rolling process is not in line with the technical solution , comparative examples 3 - 7 have lower magnetic induction than the examples . steel making is performed by adopting a converter or an electric furnace , a slab is obtained by secondary refining of molten steel and continuous casting , and the slab comprises the following chemical elements by weight percent : 2 . 8 % of si , 0 . 04 % of c , 0 . 009 % of s , 0 . 04 % of als , 0 . 005 % of n , 0 . 10 % of mn , 0 . 03 % of sn and the balance of fe and inevitable impurities . the slabs are heated at the temperature of 1130 ° c . and hot - rolled to hot - rolled plates with the thickness of 2 . 5 mm , initial rolling and final rolling temperatures are 1080 ° c . and 920 ° c . respectively and the coiling temperature is 605 ° c . the hot - rolled plates are cold - rolled to finished products with the thickness of 0 . 35 mm after acid washing , then decarbonizing and annealing are performed , and the different decarbonizing and annealing process conditions are as shown in table 3 . after decarbonizing and annealing , the content of [ c ] in steel plates is reduced to be 30 ppm or less . nitriding treatment process : 800 ° c .× 30sec , the oxidation degree p h2o / p h2 is 0 . 15 , the amount of nh 3 is 0 . 9 wt % and the content of infiltrated [ n ] is 170 ppm . an isolation agent using mgo as a main component is coated on each steel plate , and then high - temperature annealing is performed in a batch furnace . after uncoiling , by applying insulating coatings and performing stretching , leveling and annealing , b 8 of obtained finished product is as shown in table 3 . it can be seen from table 3 that , when the decarbonizing and annealing process satisfies the conditions that the heating rate during decarbonizing is 15 - 35 ° c ./ sec , the decarbonizing temperature is 800 - 860 ° c . and the decarbonizing dew point is 60 - 70 ° c ., the finished products in examples 9 - 13 generally have higher magnetic induction , which can achieve b 8 of not less than 1 . 88 t . on the contrary , when the decarbonizing and annealing process is not in line with the technical solution , comparative examples 8 - 13 generally have lower magnetic induction . steel making is performed by adopting a converter or an electric furnace , a slab is obtained by secondary refining of molten steel and continuous casting , and the slab comprises the following chemical elements by weight percent : 3 . 0 % of si , 0 . 05 % of c , 0 . 11 % of mn , 0 . 007 % of s , 0 . 03 % of als , 0 . 007 % of n , 0 . 06 % of sn and the balance of fe and inevitable impurities . the slabs are heated at the temperature of 1120 ° c . and hot - rolled to hot - rolled plates with the thickness of 2 . 5 mm , initial rolling and final rolling temperatures are 1080 ° c . and 920 ° c . respectively and the coiling temperature is 605 ° c . after acid washing , the hot - rolled plates are subject to cold - rolling to obtain finished products with the thickness of 0 . 35 mm . then , decarbonizing and annealing are performed under the conditions that the heating rate is 30 ° c ./ sec , the decarbonizing temperature is 840 ° c . and the decarbonizing dew point is 68 ° c . then , nitriding treatment is performed and the different nitriding and annealing process conditions are as shown in table 4 . an isolation agent using mgo as a main component is coated on each steel plate , and then high - temperature annealing is performed in a batch furnace . after uncoiling , by applying insulating coatings and performing stretching , leveling and annealing , b8 of obtained finished product is as shown in table 4 . it can be seen from the test results in table 4 that , when the nitriding and annealing process satisfies the technical solution , namely the nitriding temperature is 760 - 860 ° c ., the nitriding time is 20 - 50 sec , the oxidation degree p h2o / p h2 is 0 . 045 - 0 . 200 , the content of nh 3 is 0 . 5 - 4 . 0 wt % and the content of infiltrated n satisfies the formula : 328 − 0 . 14a − 0 . 85b − 2 . 33c ≦[ n ] d ≦ 362 − 0 . 16a − 0 . 94 b − 2 . 57c , examples 14 - 23 generally have higher magnetic induction , which can achieve b 8 of not less than 1 . 88 t . on the contrary , when the nitriding and annealing process is not in line with the technical solution , comparative examples 14 - 19 generally have lower magnetic induction . steel making is performed by adopting a converter or an electric furnace , a slab is obtained by secondary refining of molten steel and continuous casting , and the slab comprises the following chemical elements by weight percent : 2 . 8 % of si , 0 . 045 % of c , 0 . 06 % of mn , 0 . 009 % of s , 0 . 024 % of als , 0 . 009 % of n , 0 . 04 % of sn and the balance of fe and inevitable impurities . the slabs are heated at the temperature of 1120 ° c . and hot - rolled to hot - rolled plates with the thickness of 2 . 3 mm , initial rolling and final rolling temperatures are 1070 ° c . and 900 ° c . respectively and the coiling temperature is 570 ° c . after acid washing , the hot - rolled plates are subject to cold - rolling to obtain finished products with the thickness of 0 . 30 mm . then , decarbonizing and annealing are performed under the conditions that the heating rate is 20 ° c ./ sec , the decarbonizing temperature is 830 ° c . and the decarbonizing dew point is 70 ° c . then , nitriding treatment is performed , and the effects of different contents of infiltrated n on b 8 of the finished products are as shown in table 5 . an isolation agent using mgo as a main component is coated on each steel plate , and then high - temperature annealing is performed in a batch furnace . after uncoiling , by applying insulating coatings and performing stretching , leveling and annealing , b 8 of each finished product is as shown in table 5 . table 5 reflects the effects of the contents of the infiltrated n on b 8 of the finished products . it can be seen from table 5 that , the content of the infiltrated n needs to satisfy the content of the infiltrated nitrogen [ n ] d ( 328 − 0 . 14a − 0 . 85b − 2 . 33c ≦[ n ] d ≦ 362 − 0 . 16a − 0 . 94b − 2 . 57c ) obtained by a theoretical calcualtion based on the content a of als , the content b of n and the primary grains size c in the smelting stage . when the actual amount of the infiltrated n is within the range of the calculated values , such as examples 24 - 29 , the finished products have higher magnetic induction ; and on the contrary , such as comparative examples 20 - 25 , the finished products have lower magnetic induction . it should be noted that the examples listed above are only the specific examples of the present invention , and obviously the present invention is not limited to the above examples and can have many similar changes . all variations which can be directly derived from or associated with the disclosure of the present invention by those skilled in the art should be within the scope of protection of the present invention .	2
a description will be in detail given below of an embodiment according to the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings . a connection box 10 has a plane wiring board 12 in which multi - layered circuit boards 12 a , 12 b and 12 c are piled , as shown in fig1 . a control base board 15 is mounted on the board 12 . the base board 15 is received between an upper cover 11 and an under cover 13 . they constitute a module 14 as shown in fig2 . the module 14 is received within a case 18 constituted by an upper case 16 and a lower case 17 . side walls 11 a 1 and 11 a 2 around the upper cover 11 are removably fitted to outer surfaces of upper end portions in side walls 13 a 1 and 13 a 2 around the under cover 13 via a lock hook 13 b . the cover 11 receives the board and the base board 15 in an inner side thereof . the upper surface ( on the drawing ) of the upper cover 11 forms a mounting face e , and various kinds of relays such as a micro relay 20 , a half micro relay 21 , a 2m relay 22 and the like which are outward attached , and outward attached electronic parts such as a fuse and the like are mounted thereto , as shown in fig1 and 3 . this mounting face e has insertion openings 11 b , 11 c and 11 d for the various kinds of relays . the mounting face e has an insertion opening lie for the fuse 23 . one side ( a left end portion in fig3 ) of the upper cover 3 is provided with a plurality of connectors 11 f for removably inserting mating connectors ( not shown ) in a combined manner . further , as shown in fig2 the upper cover 11 and the under cover 13 have both side walls 11 a 2 and 13 a 2 in a y direction . first pressing lock pieces 11 g and 13 c having an l - shaped cross section are integrally protruded from the side walls 11 a 2 and 13 a 2 respectively . second pressing lock pieces 13 d having an l - shaped cross section are integrally protruded from both side walls 11 a 1 and 13 a 1 in an x direction orthogonal to the side walls 11 a 2 and 13 a 2 . the plane wiring board 12 is formed by a rectangular reverse - dish - shaped hard resin board as shown in fig1 and is formed together with a lot of wiring holes 12 d . the board 12 has three plied circuit boards 12 a , 12 b and 12 c thereon . the board 12 has a plurality of arranged electric wires 56 on a back surface thereof . the respective circuit boards 12 a , 12 b and 12 c have bus bars respectively arranged thereon , and the bus bars constitute a desired circuit . the bus bars respectively have terminal portions 30 , 31 and 32 , and they are stood upward from predetermined positions . each of the respective circuit boards 12 a , 12 b and 12 c has an insulation displacing terminal 57 , which is integrally formed with the bus bar and is stood downward from a predetermined position . the respective circuit boards 12 a , 12 b and 12 c are stacked with each other . the lower circuit board 12 c has a terminal 32 , which passes through the upper circuit boards 12 a and 12 b so as to protrude above of the upper circuit board 12 a . the middle circuit board 12 b has a terminal 31 , which passes through the upper circuit board 12 so as to protrude out . the insulation displacing terminals 57 of the respective circuit boards 12 a , 12 b and 12 c are taken out to the back surface of the board 12 from the wiring holes 12 d , and are press contacted to electric wires 56 so as to be connected as shown in fig8 . accordingly , the board 12 has a desired circuit constituted by the respective circuit boards 12 a , 12 b and 12 c and the electric wires 56 . the control base board 15 has an insulation board 15 a , and various kinds of electronic parts , for example , a relay 40 , a resistor 41 , a coil 42 and a control device 43 are mounted thereto . the base board has a connector 44 at an end portion in a longitudinal direction thereof . the control base board 15 is arranged in a standing state . a terminal block 50 is mounted in a substantially perpendicular direction to a front surface ( in a near side in the drawing ) of a lower end portion in the base board 15 , as shown in fig4 . a desired number of insulation displacing terminals 51 connected to a predetermined circuit of the base board 15 protrude from a vertical outer surface 50 a ( a lower surface in the drawing ) of the terminal block 50 . the electronic parts have a power portion p constituted by the relay 40 , the resistor 41 and the coil 42 . the electronic parts have a control portion c constituted by a device ( for example , a microprocessor , rom or ram ) 43 . as shown in fig5 the power portion p having a large amount of generation heat is arranged in a half side ( in a near side in fig1 ) in a longitudinal direction of the insulation board 15 a together . the control portion c having a small amount of generation heat is arranged in another half side ( in a far side in fig1 ) in the longitudinal direction of the insulation board 15 a together . the relay 40 , the resistor 41 and the coil 42 in the power portion p , and the device 43 in the control portion c are connected by a narrow circuit pattern 46 ( refer to fig1 ). the circuit pattern 46 is structured such that a conductor is printed on the insulation board 15 a . a width of the print determines whether the circuit pattern 46 is thick or narrow . the connector 44 is independently provided from the base board 15 , as shown in fig6 . the mating connector ( not shown ) is inserted to an insertion opening 44 a thereof . the end of each of a plurality of terminals 44 b protrudes within the insertion opening 44 a . this one end is connected to the mating connector . another end of each of these terminals 44 b protrudes to an outer portion corresponding to a lower side in the drawing of the insertion opening 44 a . a front end of another end is bent perpendicular to the base board 15 . the connector 44 has a projection 44 c on a rear side , as shown in fig7 . the projection 44 c is pressed into a fitting hole ( not shown ) formed in the insulation board 15 a of the base board 15 . according to this pressing , the front end of the terminal 44 b is inserted to the control base board 15 and is connected to a predetermined circuit pattern . at this time , the insertion opening 44 a of the connector 44 is faced outward from an opening 11 h formed in the upper cover 11 . the relay 40 employs a mechanical type using an electromagnetic solenoid . the relay is structured such as to be turned on and off by the electromagnetic solenoid . this structure increases generation heat of the solenoid . accordingly , the relay 40 is supported to a relay holding board 45 mentioned below , as shown in fig8 . the relay is mounted by a predetermined spacing δ apart from the insulation board 15 a of the base board 15 . the relay 40 has power terminals 40 a and 40 b , and they are respectively connected to a terminal 51 mentioned below and a lead wire 40 c . the lead wire 40 c extends from the relay 40 to the insulation board 15 a . the lead wire 40 c extends long and in parallel to the insulation board 15 a therebetween . the extension exposes the lead wire 40 c on the insulation board 15 a . the exposed front end portion is bent to the insulation board 15 a and is fixed to the circuit pattern 46 by a solder 47 a . the exposed lead wire 40 c is provided with a heat radiating function . the terminal block 50 is separated into two pieces in a substantially center portion in a longitudinal direction thereof , so as to constitute a first separation block 50 b and a second separation block 50 c . end portions in the first and second separation blocks 50 b and 50 c which are adjacent to each other are stacked with each other as shown in fig4 so as to constitute a stacked part 52 . the both end portions and the stacked part 52 are fastened to the board 12 by a screw 53 corresponding to a fastening member , as shown in fig9 thereby fixing the terminal block 50 . the screw 53 is inserted from the back surface of the board 12 . the stacked part 52 is fastened by one screw 53 as shown in fig5 . the first separation block 50 b has a vertical inner surface 50 d , and the relay holding board 45 is provided therein in parallel to the insulation board 15 a , as shown in fig5 . the holding board 45 has a window portion 45 a in correspondence to the arrangement of the relay 40 . by fitting the relay 40 to the window portion 45 a so as to retain , it is possible to stably retain the relay 40 which is apart from the insulation board 15 a . the end of the terminal 51 protrudes from the vertical outer surface 50 a of the terminal block 50 . another end thereof has a conduct wire part 54 protruding out from the upper side of the terminal block 50 . the conduct wire part 54 is perpendicularly bent toward the insulation board 14 a of the control base board 15 so as to pass through the insulation board 15 a . as shown in fig1 , the through portion is fixed to the circuit pattern 46 of the control base board 15 by a solder 47 . further , the terminal 51 is connected to the relay 40 mentioned above , and as shown in fig8 another end thereof passes through the holding portion 45 so as to protrude within the window portion 45 a . the terminal 51 is inserted from an insertion opening 55 of the board 12 , as shown in fig1 . the terminal 51 is press contacted to a terminal of the electric wire 56 so as to be connected , as shown in fig5 . at this time , the outer surface 50 a of the terminal block 50 contacts with the upper surface of the board 12 . in this state , the outer surface 50 a is fastened and fixed by the screw 53 . in a state of fixing the terminal block 50 to the board 12 , the terminal block 50 is substantially perpendicular to the insulation board 15 a . accordingly , the base board 15 is perpendicularly mounted to the board 12 . the upper cover 11 has the mounting face e , as shown in fig1 and 2 , and the control base board 15 is arranged in a half side ( a far side part in fig1 and 2 ) thereof . this one half side forms the insertion openings 11 b , 11 c and 11 d , various kinds of relays 20 , 21 and 22 , and a bulge 60 . the relays 20 , 21 and 22 are outward mounted to the insertion opening 11 e . in the bulge 60 , a protruding amount h becomes larger than that of the fuse 23 . as shown in fig9 the bulge 60 receives the control base board 15 in an inner side thereof . the bulge 60 has a heat insulation wall 60 a as shown in fig9 . the wall 60 a insulates thermally the base board 15 from the respective insertion openings 11 b , 11 c and 11 d of the upper cover 11 . the bulge 60 has a top wall 60 b continuously provided from the wall 60 a . the bulge 60 has a rear wall 60 c covering a back side of the control base board 15 . the walls 60 a , 60 b and 60 c are formed so as to have a c - shaped cross section . as shown in fig2 the bulge 60 has both ends , and they are closed by side walls 60 d . further , the control base board 15 has the power portion p and the control portion c , as shown in fig5 and they are separately arranged . the bulge 60 has a heat insulation partition 60 e in an inner side thereof as shown in fig9 and this is inserted between the power portion p and the control portion c . the partition 60 e insulates the power portion p and the control portion c . the partition 60 e is shown by a two - dotted chain line in fig5 . accordingly , in a state of receiving the base board 15 between the upper cover 11 and the under cover 13 , the bulge 60 covers an outer side of the base board 15 . the partition 60 e is inserted into a boundary between the portion having a great amount of generation heat and the portion having a small amount of generation heat in the base board 15 . the case 18 has the upper case 16 and the lower case 17 constituting a pair , as shown in fig1 . a side wall 16 a of the upper case 16 is mated to an outer peripheral surface of a side wall 17 a of the lower case 17 . a lock hook 16 b of the upper case 16 is removably engaged with an engagement projection 17 b of the lower case 17 . the upper case 16 and the lower case 17 define openings 16 c and 17 c respectively notched at positions corresponding to the connector insertion openings 11 f and the base board connector 44 . these openings 16 c and 17 c form one opening portion 18 a at a time of mating the upper case 16 and the lower case 17 with each other . the openings 16 c and 17 c have a closing member 61 therebetween , and this is independent from the upper case 16 and the lower case 17 . the closing member 61 closes a portion between the openings 16 c and 17 c at a time of mating the upper case 16 to the lower case 17 . the closing member 61 has a lock hook 61 a , and this is fixed removably to an engagement projection 17 d of the lower case 17 . at this time , an upward - directed semi - cylinder portion 17 e is formed in a lower part of the opening portion 17 c . a downward - directed semi - cylinder portion 61 b is formed in a lower part of the closing member 61 . the semi - cylinder portions 17 e and 61 b are combined so as to form a cylindrical shape . the cylinder portion passes wire harnesses of the mating connectors ( not shown ) connected to the connector 11 f and the base board connector 44 through in a lump . a mounting leg 17 f is perpendicularly provided in the lower case 17 . at a time of receiving the module 14 in the case 18 , the module 14 is at first received in the lower case 17 and the bulge 60 is arranged in the above , as shown in fig1 . the upper case 16 is mated to the outer peripheral surface of the lower case 17 from the above . according to this mating , the hook 16 b and the projection 17 b are engaged . the mating connector is connected to the connector 11 f and the connector 44 in the module 14 from the opening 18 a . the wire harness is arranged between both of the semi - cylinder portions 61 b and 17 e . the closing member 61 is arranged in the opening portion 18 a . the hook 61 a is engaged with the projection 17 d . at a time of inserting the module 14 into the case 18 from the above so as to receive therein , the first pressing lock pieces 11 g and 13 c of both of the side walls 11 a 2 and 13 a 2 in a y direction ( refer to fig2 ) are engaged with engagement portions ( not shown ) in an inner side of the lower case 17 . front end surfaces of the first lock pieces 11 g and 13 c resiliently abut against the inner side of the lower case 17 . this abutment prevents the module 14 from loosening within the case 18 . further , when case 18 receives module 14 , the mounting face e of the upper cover 11 is arranged in a front surface 17 g of the lower case 17 . at this time , the insertion opening 11 e of the mounting face e is positioned at a right half portion ( shown by a two - dotted chain line in the drawing ) of an upper end portion in the front surface 17 g of the lower case 17 . according to the present embodiment , the right half portion of the upper end portion is previously cut , and an opening 17 h to which the insertion opening 11 e is exposed is formed . in the connection box 10 mentioned above , the base board 15 corresponding to the control portion is mounted to the board 12 . the module 14 is structured by receiving the board 12 between the upper cover 11 and the under cover 13 . the connection box 10 is structured by receiving the module 14 within the case 18 constituted by the upper case 16 and the lower case 17 . the lower case 17 of the connection box 10 is mounted within an engine room of a vehicle ( not shown ) via the mounting leg 17 f . the connection box 10 is collectively connected to the wire harnesses ( not shown ) of the various kinds of electrical equipment provided in the vehicle . in this connection box 10 , the relay 40 to be provided in the base board 15 is mounted by a predetermined spacing δ apart from the surface of the insulation board 15 a , as shown in fig8 . the relay 40 and the insulation board 15 a have an air layer corresponding to the spacing δ between . the air layer forms a heat insulation layer so as to insulate the heat produced by the relay 40 . this insulation reduces the heating of the insulation board 15 a . this results in restricting a heat influence applied to the other electronic parts mounted to the insulation board 15 a , in particular , the device 43 constituting the control circuit , in the connection box 10 . according to the reduction of the heat influence applied to the device 43 , it is possible to prevent the device 43 from being broken and it is possible to prevent the false function from occurrence . due to this prevention , it is possible to execute a stable and aimed control and it is possible to increase a reliability of the connection box 10 . it is possible to secure a stability of the relay 40 by mounting the relay 40 to the inner surface 50 d of the terminal block 50 . in the case of mounting the relay 40 to the terminal block 50 , it is also possible to prevent the heat generation of the relay 40 from being directly conducted to the insulation board 15 a of the base board 15 . since the long lead wire 40 c exposes from the relay 40 , a part of the heat to be produced in the relay 40 is conducted to the lead wire 40 c . it is possible to effectively cool the relay 40 itself by radiating the heat by the exposure portion . accordingly , according to the heat radiation in the lead wire 40 c , it is possible to reduce the generation heat contained in the relay 40 and the heat conducted from the relay 40 to the insulation board 15 a . this reduction further reduces the heat influence on the other electronic parts . the entire contents of japanese patent applications p2001 - 133531 ( filed on apr . 27 , 2001 ) are incorporated herein by reference . although the invention has been described above by reference to certain embodiments of the invention , the 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 above teachings . the scope of the invention is defined with reference to the following claims .	7
referring to the drawings , particularly to fig1 an electronic flash charging circuit 10 incorporated in a computer controlled automatic camera according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown , which is connected to a power source 1 . a microcomputer 3 is connected to the power source 1 through a regulator circuit means 2 . a back - up capacitor 4 is connected to the microcomputer 3 parallel to the power source 1 . a booster circuit 11 , which is a blocking oscillator , is connected at its input side to both the power source 1 and the emitter of a transistor 12 functioning as a switching means . the collector of the transistor 12 is connected to an input terminal 14 through a resistance 13 . a charge signal f c for the initiation of charging is input to the electronic flash charging circuit 10 through the input terminal 14 from the microcomputer 3 . the base of the transistor 12 is connected to an input terminal 15 . a prohibiting signal f p for the prohibition of charging is input to the electronic flash charging circuit 10 through the input terminal 15 from the microcomputer 3 . the booster circuit 11 is connected at its output side to a rectifying diode 16 of which the cathode is connected to a discharge tube 17 . a main capacitor 18 is connected to the booster circuit 11 in parallel with respect to the discharge tube 17 . the rectifying diode 16 is also connected at the cathode to the base of a transistor 20 functioning as a switching means through a zener diode 19 . the collector of the transistor 20 is connected to an output terminal 21 . when the transistor 20 turns on or conductive , a low level potential l is present at the output terminal 21 , whereby an end signal f e for termination of charging is output . a trigger circuit 22 is connected to the booster circuit 11 in parallel with respect to the capacitor 18 . a trigger signal f t is input to the trigger circuit 22 through the trigger terminal 23 in synchronism with releasing the shutter of the camera . immediately after a flash exposure , the microcomputer 3 changes the prohibiting signal f p to a high level h from a low level l , so as to remove the prohibition of charging and keeps the prohibiting signal f p at the high level h for a predetermined period of time ( which is defined by a holding period t 0 + a charging period t 1 ). at the end of the time period t 0 , the microcomputer 3 changes the charge signal f c to a low level l from a high level h and keeps the charge signal f c at the low level l . at this time , since the prohibiting signal f p is still kept at the high level h , the transistor 12 turns on or conductive , causing the booster circuit 11 to start oscillation and the rectifying diode 16 rectifies output from the booster circuit 11 , charging the main capacitor 18 . after the first charging period t 1 , the microcomputer 3 changes the prohibiting signal f p to the low level l , causing the transistor 12 to turn off or nonconductive , whereby the booster circuit 11 stops its oscillation , so that the charging of the main capacitor 18 terminates . after a predetermined period of time or pause t 2 , the microcomputer 3 changes again the prohibiting signal f p to the high level h and keeps the prohibiting signal f p at the high level h for the charging period of time t 1 for the second time . the charging of the main capacitor 18 for the predetermined period t 1 is intermittently repeated in the same way as for the second time . the charging of the capacitor 18 is completed in that the microcomputer 3 repeats the procedure of alternately keeping the prohibiting signal f p at the high level h for the charging time t 1 and at the low level l for the pause t 2 , namely the on - off control of the transistor 12 , for appropriate times . upon the completion of charging , a breakdown voltage is applied to the zener diode 19 , presenting a voltage at the base of the transistor 20 so as to turn the transistor 20 on or conductive . a low level of end signal f e is presented at the output terminal 21 and sent to the microcomputer 3 . upon the receipt of the low level end signal f e , the microcomputer 3 changes the charge signal f c to the high level h from the low level and keeps the prohibiting signal f p at the low level . this readies the electronic flash charging circuit 10 for another flash . when the shutter is released and a trigger signal f t is applied at the trigger terminal 23 , the capacitor 18 discharges , causing the discharge tube 17 to flash . assuming the time periods t 0 , t 1 and t 2 to be set at 20ms , 20ms and 4ms , respectively , and that the main capacitor 18 has a capacity that requires approximately four seconds to charge up if it is installed in a conventional charging circuit , the electronic flash charging circuit 10 including the booster circuit 11 according to the present invention can charge up the main capacitor 18 within approximately 2 . 4ms . this is comparable to the conventional one . during repeated change of the prohibiting signal between the high and low levels h and l , the voltage of the power source 1 changes between voltages v 0 and v 2 as is shown in fig3 . voltages v 0 and v 1 in fig3 represent a no - load voltage of the power source 1 and an operating voltage of the microcomputer 3 , respectively . if the trigger signal f c returns to the low level l from the high level h while the prohibiting signal f p is at the high level h , the charging circuit 10 allows the current to flow therethrough , including a fall of the supply voltage v of the power source 1 . upon the return of the prohibiting signal f p to the low level l from the high level h , the flow of current through the charging circuit 10 is shut off , reviving the power source 1 . that is , the supply voltage v repeatedly rises and falls according to the change of the prohibiting signal f p between the low and high levels . even if the supply voltage v falls below the working voltage v 1 of the microcomputer 3 during the prohibiting signal f p at the high level h , the back - up capacitor 4 discharges , supplying a sufficient voltage to the microcomputer 3 . the back - up capacitor 4 is fully recharged while the prohibiting signal f p is at the low level l . because the period during which the supply voltage v falls below the working voltage v 1 of the microcomputer 3 is only very short , the back - up capacitor 4 need only be small in capacity . if the period for which the prohibiting signal f p is at the high level h is short , the power supply v can be revived before it has fallen below the working voltage v 1 of the microcomputer 3 . this allows the back - up capacitor 4 to effect the prevention of noises to the microcomputer 3 . because the booster circuit means of the charging circuit is intermittently activated to charge the main capacitor of the electronic flash , the power supply of the common source falls intermittently . the shorter the period for which the booster circuit means is activated , the less the fall of the supply voltage of the common power source below the working voltage of the microcomputer , so as to contribute to a stable power application to the microcomputer . if the supply voltage of the common power source falls below the working voltage of the microcomputer , the period will in any event be quite short ; and in any event the working voltage can be complemented by a back - up capacitor . although the present invention has been fully described by way of a particular embodiment thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings , it is to be noted that various changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art . therefore , unless otherwise such changes and modifications depart from the scope of the present invention , they should be construed as included therein .	7
in the following description , for the purposes of explanation , numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of exemplary embodiments . it should be apparent , however , that exemplary embodiments may be practiced without these specific details or with an equivalent arrangement . in other instances , well - known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring exemplary embodiments . in addition , unless otherwise indicated , all numbers expressing quantities , ratios , and numerical properties of ingredients , reaction conditions , and so forth used in the specification and claims are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term “ about .” the present disclosure addresses and solves the current problem of an inability to form fins on a substrate having a fin pitch less than 40 nm and / or having a variable pitch attendant upon forming semiconductor devices , particularly sram bitcells , using a conventional sit process . in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure , the problems are solved , for instance by , inter alia , utilizing a first spacer on each side of a mandrel as a mandrel for a second spacer . further , aspects of the present disclosure enable a variable fin pitch by , for instance , adjusting the mandrel widths and spacing and the first spacer widths . still other aspects , features , and technical effects will be readily apparent to those skilled in this art from the following detailed description , wherein preferred embodiments are shown and described , simply by way of illustration of the best mode contemplated . the disclosure is capable of other and different embodiments , and its several details are capable of modifications in various obvious respects . accordingly , the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature , and not as restrictive . adverting to fig1 in accordance with exemplary embodiments , a substrate 101 , for example a bulk silicon substrate , is provided with a hardmask 103 having a first mandrel 105 a and a second mandrel 105 b . the mandrels 105 a and 105 b may be formed of amorphous silicon ( a - si ) and have widths 107 a and 107 b , respectively , which may be identical or different . as shown , the mandrels 105 a and 105 b are separated by distance 109 from each other exceeding widths 107 a and 107 b of the mandrels 105 a and 105 b . the substrate 101 , hardmask 103 , and mandrels 105 a and 105 b may be formed using conventional front - end - of - line ( feol ) steps . adverting to fig2 , first spacers 201 having widths 203 are provided on sides of each of the mandrels 105 a and 105 b . the first spacers 201 may be a formed of nitride and have identical widths . as shown in fig2 , the first spacers 201 have widths 203 being less than widths 107 a and 107 b of the mandrels 105 a and 105 b , respectively . as illustrated in fig3 , the mandrels 105 a and 105 b are removed and second spacers 301 are provided on sides of each of the first spacers 201 . adverting to fig4 , the first spacers 201 are removed and portions 401 of the hardmask 103 remain after the hardmask 103 is etched using the second spacers 301 as a mask . next , as illustrated in fig5 , fins 501 a through 501 h are formed after etching using the remaining portion 401 of the hardmask 103 as a mask . as shown , fins 501 a through 501 h include the second fin 501 b being between the first fin 501 a and third fin 501 c , the third fin 501 c being between the second fin 501 b and fourth fin 501 d , the fourth fin 501 d being between the third fin 501 c and fifth fin 501 e , the fifth fin 501 e being between the fourth fin 501 d and sixth fin 501 f , the sixth fin 501 f being between the fifth fin 501 e and seventh fin 501 h , and the seventh fin 501 g being between the sixth fin 501 f and eighth fin 501 h . fins 501 a through 501 h have a uniform thickness , but may have variable spacing . fig6 illustrates a resulting device 600 with the second spacers 301 and the hardmask 103 , including portions 401 , removed . as illustrated , fins 501 a and 501 b are separated by a first distance 601 , fins 501 b and 501 c are separated by a second distance 603 , and fins 501 d and 501 e are separated by a third distance 605 . as shown , the first distance 601 , second distance 603 , and third distance 605 are different . a coupled fin &# 39 ; s inter - spaces ( e . g ., second and third distances 603 and 605 ) are based on a width of mandrel ( e . g ., 105 a ) and a space between mandrels ( e . g ., 109 ). for instance , as a width of mandrels ( e . g ., 107 a and 107 b ) increases , an inter - space 603 of resulting fins increases , while inter - space 605 decreases . therefore , space 605 may be the same as , greater than , or less than space 603 . fig7 a , 7 b , 7 c , and 7 d schematically illustrate fins having variable pitch of less than 40 nm ( e . g ., 20 nm ) on exemplary sram bitcells , in accordance with exemplary embodiments . fig7 a , 7 b , 7 c , and 7 d include fins 701 a through 701 h , pd transistors 703 a through 703 d , pg transistors 705 a through 705 d , and pu transistors 707 a through 707 d . fins 701 a through 701 h may be generated in multiples of four ( e . g ., 4 , 8 , 12 , etc .). fig7 a illustrates an exemplary 1 - 1 - 1 sram configuration having fin 701 a formed on pd transistor 703 a and pg transistor 705 a , fin 701 b formed on pu transistor 707 a , fin 701 c formed pu transistor 707 b , and fin 701 d formed on pd transistor 703 b and pg transistor 705 b . additional 1 - 1 - 1 sram bitcells may be formed on the same substrate ( e . g ., 101 ). for instance , fig7 a illustrates a second 1 - 1 - 1 sram having fin 701 e formed on pd transistor 703 c and pg transistor 705 c , fin 701 f formed on pu transistor 707 c , fin 701 g formed on pu transistor 707 d , fin 701 h formed on pd transistor 703 d and pg transistor 705 d . as noted before , generating fins ( e . g ., 501 a through 501 h , 701 a through 701 h ) with a variable fin pitch enables efficient use of layout areas . for example , a device may require a first spacing 709 to allow for a particular layout ( such as that illustrated in fig7 a ) of pd transistors 703 and pu transistors 707 , and a second spacing 711 , larger than the first spacing 709 , to allow for a specific layout of pu transistors 707 . as such , the resulting device shown in fig7 a is configured to separate fins corresponding to pd transistors from fins corresponding to pu transistors by the first spacing 709 , and separate fins corresponding to pu transistors from fins corresponding to other pu transistors by the second spacing 711 . for instance , fin 701 b being formed on pu transistor 707 a may be separated by the first spacing 709 of 20 nm from fin 701 a which is formed on pd transistor 703 a . similarly , fin 701 b being formed on pu transistor 707 a may be separated by the second spacing 711 of 30 nm from fin 701 c which is formed on pu transistor 707 b . fig7 b illustrates an exemplary 1 - 2 - 2 sram configuration having fins 701 a and 701 b formed on pd transistor 703 a and pg transistor 705 a , fin 701 c formed on pu transistor 707 a , fin 701 f formed on pu transistor 707 b , and fins 701 g and 701 h formed on pd transistor 703 b and pg transistor 705 b . additional 1 - 2 - 2 sram bitcells may be formed on the same substrate ( not shown ). as illustrated , the exemplary 1 - 2 - 2 sram has a first distance 713 of 30 nm , a second distance 715 of 44 nm and a third distance 717 of 24 nm . the exemplary 1 - 2 - 2 sram may be formed using the processes described with respect to fig1 through 6 , for example , with a first mandrel ( e . g ., 105 a ) having a width ( e . g ., 107 a ) of 40 nm being separated by a distance ( e . g ., 109 ) of 120 nm from a second mandrel ( e . g ., 105 b ) having a width ( e . g ., 107 b ) of 90 nm , a first spacer ( e . g ., 201 ) having a width ( e . g ., 203 ) of 30 nm , and a second spacer ( e . g ., 301 ) having a width of 8 nm . fig7 c illustrates an exemplary 2 - 2 - 2 sram configuration having fins 701 a and 701 b formed on pd transistor 703 a and pg transistor 705 a , fins 701 c and 701 d formed on pu transistor 707 a , fins 701 e and 701 f formed on pu transistor 707 b , and fins 701 g and 701 h formed on pd transistor 703 b and pg transistor 705 b . additional 2 - 2 - 2 sram bitcells may be formed on the same substrate ( not shown ). as illustrated , the exemplary 2 - 2 - 2 sram has a first distance 713 of 20 nm , a second distance 715 of 44 nm and a third distance 717 of 44 nm . the exemplary 2 - 2 - 2 sram may be formed using the processes described with respect to fig1 through 6 , for example , with a first mandrel ( e . g ., 105 a ) having a width ( e . g ., 107 a ) of 60 nm being separated by a distance ( e . g ., 109 ) of 100 nm from a second mandrel ( e . g ., 105 b ) having a width ( e . g ., 107 b ) of 90 nm , a first spacer ( e . g ., 201 ) having a width ( e . g ., 203 ) of 20 nm , and a second spacer ( e . g ., 301 ) having a width of 8 nm . fig7 d illustrates an exemplary 1 - 2 - 3 sram configuration having fins 701 a and 701 b formed on pd transistor 703 a and pg transistor 705 a , fin 701 c formed on pd transistor 703 a , fin 701 d formed on pu transistor 707 a , fin 701 e formed on pu transistor 707 b , fin 701 f formed on pd transistor 703 b , and fins 701 g and 701 h formed on pd transistor 703 b and pg transistor 705 b . additional 1 - 2 - 3 sram bitcells may be formed on the same substrate ( not shown ). as illustrated , the exemplary 1 - 2 - 3 sram has a first distance 713 of 40 nm , a second distance 715 of 30 nm and a third distance 717 of 44 nm . the exemplary 1 - 2 - 3 sram may be formed using the processes described with respect to fig1 through 6 , for example , with a first mandrel ( e . g ., 105 a ) having a width ( e . g ., 107 a ) of 60 nm being separated by a distance ( e . g ., 109 ) of 126 nm from a second mandrel ( e . g ., 105 b ) having a width ( e . g ., 107 b ) of 90 nm , a first spacer ( e . g ., 201 ) having a width ( e . g ., 203 ) of 40 nm , and a second spacer ( e . g ., 301 ) having a width of 8 nm . the embodiments of the present disclosure can achieve several technical effects , including formation of fins having a variable fin pitch less than 40 nm , thereby providing more efficient use of bitcell layout area . the present disclosure enjoys industrial applicability in any of various types of highly integrated semiconductor devices , particularly sram bitcells . in the preceding description , the present disclosure is described with reference to specifically exemplary embodiments thereof . it will , however , be evident that various modifications and changes may be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the present disclosure , as set forth in the claims . the specification and drawings are , accordingly , to be regarded as illustrative and not as restrictive . it is understood that the present disclosure is capable of using various other combinations and embodiments and is capable of any changes or modifications within the scope of the inventive concept as expressed herein .	7
the drawings and description contained herein depict features of an improved sequential mask handling apparatus and method by means of which square mask plates are automatically fed from an indexable infeed magazine onto an associated fluid bearing track structure ; positioned by such track structure in a precise , predetermined location relative to a vacuum transfer arm ; transferred by such vacuum arm while the precise orientation of the plate is maintained ; and positioned by the arm onto an associated rotatable chuck at a treating station where predetermined treatment is effected thereon . following such treatment , transfer of the treated mask by a second vacuum transfer arm onto a second fluid bearing track structure is effected ; followed by insertion of such treated mask into an associated indexable discharge magazine . all such handling and treating steps are automatic , requiring no operator attention in conjunction therewith , except for replacement of the infeed and discharge magazines as required . the preferred embodiment of the subject apparatus and the article handling procedure and steps effected thereby is best seen generally schematically in the showing of fig1 . the subject apparatus is generally designated 1 and comprises three principal sections or stations , namely , an infeed or input station generally designated 2 , an intermediate treating station generally designated 3 , and an outfeed or discharge station generally designated 4 . it is between the infeed station 2 and the outfeed station 4 that mask plates m are moved in sequence to and past the treating station 3 in the manner to be described . it should be understood that the subject apparatus preferably is self - containing and requires operator attention only to insure a quantity of masks to be treated are periodically positioned at the infeed station 2 and that a quantity of masks following treatment are periodically removed from the discharge station 4 . except for such periodic attention , barring misalignment of a mask at the treating station 3 as described hereinafter , operator attention is not required , and the subject apparatus is fully automatic . as noted from fig1 the infeed station 2 is defined by a mask feeding mechanism generally designated 6 by which individual masks m are discharged in sequence onto an associated fluid bearing track structure generally designated 7 . it should be understood that the feed mechanism includes an infeed magazine generally designated 8 which is supported in known fashion for downward sequential indexing so that the lowermost mask in the magazine may be sequentially removed therefrom and placed on the fluid bearing track structure as required during the handling procedure . in that regard , it should be understood that the magazine 8 has a plurality of vertically spaced slots in opposite portions thereof in which opposite edges of successive masks are located . as required , a magazine carrying a plurality of masks , such as twenty - five , is introduced into the apparatus by the operator . upon downward indexing of the feed magazine 8 , successive masks are withdrawn therefrom and placed on the fluid bearing track structure 7 in known fashion . in that regard , reference is directed to the aforementioned lasch , jr . et al . u . s . pat . no . 3 , 645 , 581 for an illustration and description of an indexable magazine and an associated aforementioned lasch , jr . et al . u . s . pat . no . 3 , 645 , 581 for an illustration and description of an indexable magazine and an associated fluid bearing track structure for periodically withdrawing substrates therefrom . while such patent described such an indexable magazine and track structure in conjunction with the handling of generally circular articles , such as semi - conductor wafers , its applicability to the handling of square plate - like articles , such as the subject masks , should be apparent . track structure 7 employed with the feed magazine may take various forms , including the form shown in said lasch , jr . et al . u . s . pat . no . 3 , 645 , 581 . however , preferably , such track structure utilizes the less complicated construction shown in lasch u . s . pat . no . 3 , 718 , 371 . in that latter regard , reference is directed to fig2 hereof for an illustration of such track structure , which has been illustrated to correspond generally with the showing of fig1 of said patent , with modifications thereof to meet the specific requirements of the present invention . such fluid bearing track structure comprises cooperable first and second track structural members 8 and 9 with an extension 11 of member 9 underlying and contacting cooperable member 8 . interposed between such members is a flexible metal or equivalent jet insert strip 12 having directional fluid passages therein as illustrated in said u . s . pat . no . 3 , 718 , 371 . supporting fluid , such as air under pressure , is introduced through a phenum chamber 13 from any suitable source ( not shown ) into the directional fluid passages provided in one or both sides of the insert strip 12 . thus , in known fashion as described in said patents , upon fluid emanating from the plenum chamber 13 and into and through the directional fluid passages in the insert strip 12 , a layer of supporting fluid emanates from the top surface 14 of the track structure along its length to support a mask m brought into adjacent relationship relative thereto . while only one insert strip 12 is shown in the fluid bearing track structure 7 illustrated in fig1 it should be understood that two or more such strips , arranged in parallel relationship , may be positioned to extend longitudinally of the track structure as may be required , depending upon the size and weight of the masks to be transported thereon . in that regard , as described in said lasch , jr . et al . u . s . pat . no . 3 , 645 , 581 , upon feed magazine 8 being indexed downwardly by a suitable feed mechanism associated therewith ( not shown ), the lowermost mask m of the supply in the magazine is brought into overlying relationship relative to the outer end 16 of the track structure 7 . thus , upon supporting fluid being introduced through the fluid passages defined by the track structure , the lowermost mask is removed from the carrier and is transported in the direction of the arrow shown at the left of fig1 toward the inner end 17 of the track structure . in known fashion , a sensor is provided in conjunction with the infeed magazine 8 and track structure 7 to sense when a subsequent mask is to be fed from the magazine by the fluid bearing , such subsequent feeding being effected by indexing the magazine another step downwardly to bring a succeeding mask into position above the outer end 16 of the track structure so that removal thereof may be effected by the fluid emanating from the track structure . the feeding of successive masks is effected in sequence until magazine 8 is completely empty , at which time a suitable signal is transmitted by the sensor indicating attention by the machine operator is required so that another filled magazine may be placed in position of the now empty magazine 8 . it should be understood with respect to the discharge end 4 of the apparatus that a similar discharge magazine 21 is positioned at such end for receiving in sequence a series of masks after the same have been treated at the treating station 3 . discharge magazine 21 is identical in construction to infeed magazine 8 in fig1 but is indexable in the opposite direction by a suitable indexing mechanism ( not shown ). that is , magazine 21 is indexable upwardly in sequential steps following the introduction of each successive mask thereinto . thus , an empty slot may be presented to the associated fluid bearing track structure 22 so that successive masks may be introduced thereinto . suitable sensing means are associated with the discharge carrier to effect sequential indexing thereof as required . masks are fed into the upwardly indexable magazine 21 by the associated fluid bearing track structure generally designated 22 which corresponds to the track structure 7 described previously . as will be described , masks in sequence are placed on the inner end 23 of the fluid bearing track structure 22 by a vacuum transfer arm and are moved over the fluid bearing track structure on a fluid bearing toward the outer end 24 of the track structure which underlies and extends into the discharge magazine 21 . as noted , a sensor ( not shown ) of any suitable type is provided in conjunction with the discharge magazine 21 to determine when a mask has been inserted into the discharge magazine and to transmit a control signal to the indexing mechanism therefor to raise the magazine one step so that the magazine is properly oriented to receive a subsequent mask in an empty slot therein in the fashion also described in said lasch , jr . et al . u . s . pat . no . 3 , 645 , 581 . to prevent lateral displacement of a mask traveling over either of the infeed fluid bearing track structure 7 or the discharge fluid bearing track structure 22 , a guide shoulder is provided to extend longitudinally along each of such track structures , the guide shoulder of track structure 7 being designated 26 and the guide shoulder of track structure 22 being designated 27 . as noted previously , an important aspect of this invention is the efficient and effective orientation of each mask fed from the supply magazine 8 to a predetermined and precisely oriented pick - up position from which the same may be transferred to the treating station 3 . to such end , the appartus is provided with stop means for precisely locating each successive mask fed from the feed magazine 8 . such stop means in the embodiment illustrated is generally designated 31 and comprises a generally l - shaped stop shoulder which is positioned on and carried by a first vacuum transfer arm 32 mounted for pivotal movement between the feed station 2 and the treating station 3 . in that regard , the stop shoulder 31 is defined by two right - angularly oriented shoulder sections integrally connected with each other and secured to the upper surface of the vacuum transfer arm 32 . the stop shoulder may be formed integral with the arm 32 as shown in fig2 or , if preferred , the stop shoulder may be formed as a separate part held in place on the arm by screws or other suitable fastening means ( not shown ). it will be noted that the stop shoulder 31 includes a longitudinally extend portion 33 which extends along the fluid bearing track 7 in parallel relationship to the opposing guide shoulder 26 . the stop shoulder 31 also includes a transversely extending portion 34 which is positioned directly in the path of each mask fed from the feed magazine 8 . portion 34 extends at right angles to portion 33 and prevents movement of each mask beyond the position shown to the left of fig1 . it should be understood that the vacuum arm 32 is activated about the vertical axis 36 of a mounting shaft by any suitable mechanism ( not shown ) which precisely positions the arm in the two locations shown in fig1 . when positioned in the solid line location , the stop shoulder 31 is properly located to precisely receive a mask in the predetermined orientation shown in such figure . to insure location of each mask with two of its right angled edges contacting relationship with the right angled portions 33 and 34 of the stop shoulder 31 as seen in fig1 means is provided for urging each succeeding mask laterally of the fluid bearing track structure 7 while the same is supported on the cushion of air emanating upwardly through the track structure . such urging means in the illustrated embodiment comprises a laterally directed air jet , designated 41 , which emanates from a lateral air passage 42 extending through guide shoulder 26 . passage 42 is supplied by any suitable pneumatic source , such as supply hose 43 . thus , as each successive mask m is withdrawn from infeed magazine 8 by the air bearing 7 and moved therealong , the lateral air jet 41 impinges an edge of the mask and urges the same into edge - to - edge contact with the two portions 33 and 34 of the top shoulder 31 . because each mask is supported by a cushion of air emanating from the fluid bearing track structure , lateral movement thereof by lateral jet 41 to the precise location noted is simple to effect . upon the mask being urged into the position shown in fig1 vacuum is introduced through a vacuum slot 46 which extends across the end of the vacuum arm 32 . the vacuum slot 46 is connected , via conduit 47 extending longitudinally of arm 32 , with any suitable source of vacuum in known fashion . it should be understood that preferably air under pressure is emanating from the fluid bearing track structure 7 and from the lateral jet 41 associated therewith at all times . however , vacuum preferably is applied only intermittently through slot 46 following a predetermined time lapse after a mask has been removed from the feed magazine 8 as sensed by the control mechanism described previously . thus , each succeeding mask fed one at a time against the stop shoulder 31 may be picked up by the vacuum arm 32 . upon vacuum being applied to the mask shown in the position of fig1 the vacuum arm is rotated by its operating mechanism ( not shown ) and travels through a 90 ° arc to position the mask held by the vacuum pressure thereon onto a predetermined portion of the treating mechanism positioned at the treating station . when the vacuum arm 32 positions at mask at the treating station as shown in dotted lines in fig1 and in the manner to be described , the arm returns to the solid line position shown in fig .. 1 , and a subsequent mask is moved from the feed magazine when the sensor indicates that stop shoulder 31 is free of a mask thereat . means at the treating station in the illustrated embodiment is provided to effect a treating step on each mask positioned thereat . by way of illustration , the subject means is designed to apply a layer of photo - resist material onto the upper surface of the mask after the mask has been properly positioned at the treating station . in that regard , reference is directed to the aforementioned lasch , jr . et al . u . s . pat . no . 3 , 645 , 581 for a description of a suitable mechanism for applying such a photo - resist material to the mask in known fashion . briefly , however , it should be understood that the treating station is provided with a supply tank 51 of such photo - resist material ; a supply line 52 extends from the tank 51 to a position overlying the center of the mask for dispensing predetermined sequential quantities of a photo - resist material ( or other suitable liquid ) onto the upper surface of the mask for the purpose well known in the semi - conductor manufacturing art . such photo - resist material is spread evenly over the upper surface of the mask upon rapid rotation of the mask . in that regard , the treating station is provided with a rotatable chuck member , generally designated 56 , upon the upper surface of which the mask m is accurately positioned by the vacuum arm 32 . the chuck includes , as seen in fig4 a supporting shaft 57 depending from an upper generally planar surface 58 thereof ; the shaft 57 is received in a bearing 59 which supports the same for rapid rotation in known fashion by any suitable rotating means ( not shown ). the shaft 57 is hollow and includes a bore 61 through which a vacuum atmosphere may be introduced to the upper surface 58 of the chuck . communicating with the bore are a series of vacuum passages 62 which open onto the upper surface 58 of the chuck so that vacuum atmosphere may be applied to the undersurface of each mask m positioned on the chuck by the vacuum arm 32 . it should be understood that the source of vacuum for the chuck and for the vacuum arm 32 is synchronized so that when the chuck is properly located , vacuum is applied thereto and thereby to the undersurface of each mask plate presented thereto at the precise time when vacuum is cut off from the vacuum arm 32 . synchronization of such vacuum transfer is effected by any suitable control valve means of which many are known . to complete such tranfer , the chuck is vertically movable in the manner described in said lasch , jr . et al . u . s . pat . no . 3 , 645 , 581 , or by any other suitable means . the purpose of such vertical movement is to permit the mask carried by the vacuum arm to clear or pass over specially designed barrier structure provided at each of the opposed end portions 66 and 67 of the chuck . in that regard , the chuck may take any of various configurations . in the embodiment shown , the chuck is generally rectangular in outline . the barrier structure provided on the illustrated chuck comprises two raised shoulder portions 68 and 69 provided at each of the opposite ends thereof . each pair of such barrier shoulder portions defines therebetween a right angled recess ( as best shown in fig3 ), the purpose of which is to receive therein a corner portion of a mask submitted thereto . a slight dimensional clearance is designed to exist between the opposed corners of a mask and the inner surfaces of the barrier shoulder portions of the barrier structure , as seen in fig1 when a mask is properly oriented on the chuck 56 . the barrier structure is designed for two purposes : first , the barrier shoulder portions prevent a mask from shifting laterally during high speed rotation of the chuck to prevent thereby the mask from being thrown out of engagement with the chuck should the vacuum be insufficient to hold the same in position thereon ; and , second , the barrier shoulder portions insure proper positioning of the mask on the chuck and preclude operation of the chuck in the absence of such proper orientation . in that regard , referring to fig3 it should be understood that if , for some reason , the vacuum transfer arm 32 does not properly position the opposed corners of a mask between the barrier structures of the chuck so that the undersurface of the mask is prevented from coming into direct contact with the upper surface 58 of the chuck , a sensor ( not shown ) recognizes such misalignment of the mask and prevents rotation of the chuck and dispensing of any fluid from the supply tank 51 onto the upper surface of the mask . such sensor also transmits a visual or audible signal to the operator which indicates that a mask is not properly aligned so that manual correction of the situation may be effected . when a mask is properly positioned in contact with the upper surface of the chuck with its opposite corners received between the opposed barrier structures , as seen in fig1 and 4 , the spinning operation described will be effected automatically . to prevent any photo - resist material from being thrown by centrifugal force beyond the treating station 3 , a cup ( designated 86 in fig1 ) is elevated in conjunction with elevation of the chuck 56 to catch any such excess material . following treatment of a mask at the treating station , chuck rotation is halted and the chuck is brought to rest and precisely located in the position shown in fig1 . a second vacuum tansfer arm 71 is then brought into the dotted line position shown in fig1 by any suitable mechanism to remove such treated mask therefrom and to transfer the same to the solid line position shown in fig1 about the axis of rotation 72 of a mounting shaft shown in such figure . the vacuum arm 71 is constructed substantially identically to the vacuum arm 32 except for the fact the same does not include an l - shaped stop shoulder of the type shown at 31 in fig1 . however , vacuum arm 71 includes a straight stop shoulder 73 secured thereto or formed integral therewith against which an edge of a mask is engaged during transfer . the vacuum arm 71 includes a vacuum slot 74 operatively connected by a vacuum conduit 76 with a suitable source of vacuum , as seen in such figure . when rotation of chuck 56 is halted , cup 86 is retracted , i . e . moved downwardly ; then the transfer arm 71 is moved to the dotted line position shown in fig1 ; then the chuck 56 is retracted , i . e ., moved downwardly ; vacuum is then disconnected from the chuck at the same time vacuum is applied through slot 74 to arm 71 , and transfer of a mask from the chuck to the arm 71 is effected without damaging the mask . thereafter , the transfer arm 71 is rotated through a 90 ° arc to bring the treated mask to overlying relationship with the discharge fluid bearing track structure 22 . when positioned in the solid line location shown in fig1 vacuum to the transfer arm 71 is discontinued and air bearing fluid is introduced through track structure 22 which moves the mask to the right in fig1 into a waiting slot in discharge magazine 21 . it should be understood from the foregoing that the sequence of movement and treatment of successive masks in the manner seen in fig1 is effected automatically in the manner described , with operator attention being required only periodically to replace infeed magazine 8 with another filled magazine and to replace discharge magazine 21 with another empty magazine . appropriate operator control signals are provided with the apparatus to advise the operator in that regard . because the fluid bearing pressures and vacuum pressures required to support a mask and hold the same on a vacuum arm during movement and transfer thereof between the noted stations will vary , depending upon the size and weight of a given mask , illustrative pressure levels therefor have not been presented because such values are within the capability of any qualified engineer . referring again to fig1 the precise movement of a mask through the apparatus is illustrated by reference to corner 81 of a mask as it is positioned in its various locations at the feed end 2 , treating station 3 , and discharge station 4 . the arcuate paths such corner takes as it moves between the respective stations is illustrated by the dotted lines 82 and 83 shown in fig1 . from the foregoing , it should be understood that the present invention involves an improved mask plate handling apparatus and method and the protection afforded thereto is indicated by the scope of the appended claims .	7
fig3 shows , in pictorial form , distributed processing system 500 which utilizes an embodiment of the inventive method and which interfaces with monitor system 600 . as shown in fig3 distributed processing telephony system 500 is comprised of cbx multi - node switch 300 and telephones 700 , 710 , and 720 . cbx multi - node switch 300 is , itself , comprised of processing systems 310 , 320 , and 330 . processing systems 310 , 320 , and 330 are interconnected by a local area network ( lan ) which is comprised of : ( a ) communications link 400 between processors 310 and 320 ; ( b ) communications link 410 between processors 320 and 330 ; and ( c ) communications link 420 between processors 310 and 330 . cbx multi - node switch 300 is connected to monitor 600 by means of rs232 link 450 . monitor 600 is comprised of : ( a ) ibm ps / 2 interface 610 which interacts with cbx multi - node switch 300 over rs232 communications link 450 to processor 320 and ( b ) ibm 370 mainframe 620 which interacts with ibm ps / 2 interface 610 over lu6 . 2 communications link 460 . as further shown in fig3 : ( a ) user 1 is connected to cbx multi - node 300 by means of a connection between telephone 700 and processor 310 ; ( b ) user 2 is connected to cbx multi - node 300 by means of a connection between telephone 710 and processor 330 ; ( c ) user 4 is connected to cbx multi - node 300 by means of a connection between telephone 720 and processor 320 ; and ( d ) user 2 is connected to ibm 370 mainframe 620 by means of terminal 730 and communications link 470 between terminal 730 and ibm ps / 2 610 . as one of ordinary skill in the art can readily appreciate , user 2 may have information displayed for him or her at terminal 730 . the system shown in fig3 is essentially the ibm callpath system which is comprised of three major components : ( a ) ibm 370 host 620 and callpath software manufactured by the ibm corporation ; ( b ) a cbx 9751 multi - node switch 300 which is manufactured by rolm systems of santa clara , calif . ; and ( c ) ibm ps / 2 interface 610 which is manufactured by ibm corporation . the following describes a sequence of events which occurs in the overall system shown in fig3 i . e ., the system comprised of cbx multi - node switch 300 , monitor 600 and the associated telephones and terminals . the sequence of events occurs when two users , for example , users 1 and 4 , call a single user , for example , user 2 . first , we will describe the manner in which these are handled without the use of the present invention in order to better illustrate the manner in which embodiments of the present invention operate to solve the problems inherent in the overall system . the first event occurs when user 1 uses telephone 700 to call user 2 at telephone 710 . when this occurs , switch 300 sends an activity status message to monitor 600 over communications link 450 to inform monitor 600 that user 1 has placed a call to user 2 . in response , monitor 600 retrieves information relevant to user 1 from , for example , a data base which resides in or is accessed by ibm 370 mainframe 620 . this information is transferred to ibm ps / 2 interface 610 over communications link 460 and is transferred , in turn , to terminal 730 where it is displayed for user 2 . the second event occurs when user 1 hangs up telephone 700 . when this occurs , switch 300 sends an activity status message to monitor 600 over communications link 450 to inform monitor 600 that user 1 has disconnected from user 2 . in response , monitor 600 performs the relevant clean - up functions of the screen of terminal 730 and , optionally , may update the information relevant to user 1 in response to information input by user 2 as a result of a conversation between user 1 and user 2 . the third event occurs when user 4 uses telephone 720 to call user 2 at telephone 710 . when this occurs , switch 300 sends an activity status message to monitor 600 over communications link 450 to inform monitor 600 that user 4 has placed a call to user 2 . in response , monitor 600 retrieves information relevant to user 4 from , for example , a data base which resides in or is accessed by ibm 370 mainframe 620 . this information is transferred to ibm ps / 2 interface 610 over communications link 460 and is transferred , in turn , to terminal 730 where it is displayed for user 2 . the fourth event occurs when user 4 hangs up telephone 720 . when this occurs , switch 300 sends an activity status message to monitor 600 over communications link 450 to inform monitor 600 that user 4 has disconnected from user 2 . in response , monitor 600 performs the relevant clean - up functions of the screen of terminal 730 and , optionally , may update the information relevant to user 4 in response to information input by user 2 as a result of a conversation between user 2 and user 4 . since cbx multi - node switch 300 is a multi - node system , activity status messages which are transmitted from switch 300 to monitor 600 might arrive out of order . for example , activity status messages may be delayed to such an extent that the following could occur and cause monitor 600 to respond inappropriately . for example , the first activity status message in the above - described series of events which is received by monitor 600 from switch 300 is that user 4 has placed a telephone call to user 2 . in response , monitor 600 will provide information for display at terminal 730 corresponding to user 4 . the next activity status message which is received by monitor 600 from switch 300 is that user 1 has placed a telephone call to user 2 . in response , monitor 600 will clean - up the screen at terminal 730 and monitor 730 will then provide information for display at terminal 730 corresponding to user 1 . the next activity status message which is received is that user 1 has hung up the telephone . in response , monitor 600 will clean - up the screen at terminal 730 . as one can readily appreciate , monitor 600 has produced inappropriate results . embodiments of the present invention solve this problem by utilizing a called target number ( ctn ) which provides information to monitor 600 which allows it to determine whether activity status messages were transmitted thereto out of order . specifically , in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention , a ctn comprises a major ctn and a minor ctn . a major ctn is a node identifier which identifies nodes of the distributed processing system . for example , with reference to switch 300 of fig3 each of processors 310 , 320 , and 330 is a node and each such node is assigned a unique node identifier such as , for example , a node number . thus , in accordance with the preferred embodiment , the major ctn is one byte which comprises a node identifier of the node which assigned the ctn , i . e ., the assignment node . further , the minor ctn is , for example , the current value of an incremental counter that counts , for example , from 0 to 32 , 767 decimal . thus , in accordance with the preferred embodiment , the minor ctn is two bytes which comprises the value of a counter . as a result , ctn is thus ctn ( assignment node identifier , counter value ). further , in accordance with the present invention , a ctn is assigned by the node which interacts with a called user , which node is referred to as a target node , and a ctn is updated within the target node independent of other nodes . the target node assigns the ctn and the ctn is then transmitted back to the caller user &# 39 ; s node , which node is referred to as an initiator node , for the initiator node &# 39 ; s use in transmitting an activity status message to the monitor . note that , in the telephony system described herein , ctn is needed for activity status messages that refer to events which are initiated by the caller user , i . e ., the initiator user , and ctn is not needed for activity status messages that refer to events which are initiated by the called user , i . e ., the target user . thus , ctn is only included in activity status messages that refer to events which are initiated from a caller user &# 39 ; s node . in addition , a ctn need not be used for every initiator user generated event because certain types of initiator user generated events are possible which do not lead to the type of &# 34 ; race &# 34 ; conditions that have been discussed above . for example , in the telephony system described herein , ctn is only provided for initiator events relating to a new target user and to such events which occur at the start of new call since only such events can lead to a &# 34 ; race &# 34 ; condition . as such , it is within the spirit of the present invention that embodiments exist wherein only certain predetermined types of events in a system utilize ctns and that other embodiments exist wherein every event in the system requires the use of a ctn . we will now describe how the inventive method utilizes ctn to solve the problems which occur in the above - described example . the first event occurs when user 1 uses telephone 700 to call user 2 at telephone 710 . processor 330 rings telephone 710 and generates a ctn relating to caller 1 at telephone 700 , i . e ., ctn ( processor 330 , counter for event # 1 )-- we will refer to this below as ctn (# 330 , 37 ), where 37 is the value of the counter for event # 1 . then , processor 330 sends ctn (# 330 , 37 ) back to processor 310 over the lan via communications link 420 and updates its counter by 1 -- if the counter hits a predetermined maximum value , it is recycled , i . e ., it is reset to 0 . switch 300 then arranges to send an activity status message to monitor 600 over communications link 450 to inform monitor 600 that user 1 has placed a call to user 2 . this arrangement occurs when processor 310 which is handling the user 1 request over telephone 700 , queues up an activity status message to be sent to monitor 600 . the activity status message notifies monitor 600 that a call set up is being made to user 2 at telephone 710 . as an example , such an activity status message takes the following form : call assign ( phone 700 , phone 710 , ctn (# 330 , 37 )). this activity status message is placed in a queue for routing to monitor 600 by transmission , first , to processor 320 over the lan via communications link 400 , and , from there , to interface 610 over communications link 450 . the second event occurs when user 1 hangs up telephone 700 . when this occurs , switch 300 arranges to send an activity status message to monitor 600 over communications link 450 to inform monitor 600 that user 1 has disconnected from user 2 . this arrangement occurs when processor 310 which is handling the user 1 request over telephone 700 , queues up an activity status message to be sent to monitor 600 . the activity status message notifies monitor 600 that a call disconnect is being made to user 2 at telephone 710 . as an example , such an activity status message takes the following form : call disconnect ( phone 700 , phone 710 ). note that there is no ctn appended to this activity status message because the activity concerning phone 700 and phone 710 involves the same target , i . e ., there is no new target involved . further , the &# 34 ; call disconnect &# 34 ; activity status message cannot lead to a &# 34 ; race &# 34 ; condition with respect to a &# 34 ; call assign &# 34 ; activity status message since such a &# 34 ; call assign &# 34 ; activity status message would include a ctn , which ctn would enable the monitor to determine the order of calls involving user 1 on telephone 700 . this &# 34 ; call disconnect &# 34 ; activity status message is placed in a queue for routing to monitor 600 by transmission , first , to processor 320 over the lan via communications link 400 , and , from there , to interface 610 over communications link 450 . the third event occurs when user 4 uses telephone 720 to call user 2 at telephone 710 . processor 330 rings telephone 710 and generates a ctn relating to caller 4 at telephone 720 , i . e ., ctn ( processor 330 , counter for event # 3 )-- we will refer to this below as ctn (# 330 , 41 ), where 41 is the value of the counter for event # 3 . then , processor 330 sends ctn (# 330 , 41 ) back to processor 320 over the lan via communications link 410 and updates its counter by 1 -- in this example , 41 is the value of the counter which has incremented by 1 over the last value which was used , assuming that other events have intervened between the events we are discussing . switch 500 then arranges to send an activity status message to monitor 600 over communications link 450 to inform monitor 600 that user 4 has placed a call to user 2 . this arrangement occurs when processor 320 which is handling the user 4 request over telephone 720 , queues up an activity status message to be sent to monitor 600 . the activity status message notifies monitor 600 that a call set up is being made to user 2 at telephone 710 . as an example , such an activity status message takes the following form : call assign ( phone 720 , phone 710 , ctn (# 330 , 41 )). this activity status message is placed in a queue for routing to monitor 600 by processor 320 to interface 610 over communications link 450 . now we will discuss how these activity status messages are used by monitor 600 . assume that the activity status messages which are sent to monitor 600 arrive in the following order : call assign ( phone 720 , phone 710 , ctn (# 330 , 41 )); call assign ( phone 700 , phone 710 , ctn (# 330 , 37 )); and call disconnect ( phone 700 , phone 710 ). these activity status messages will be placed in a queue and monitor 600 will respond to these three activity status messages in its queue as follows . first , in response to the first activity status message , i . e ., call assign ( phone 720 , phone 710 , ctn (# 330 , 41 )), monitor 600 will retrieve information relevant to user 4 from , for example , a data base which resides in or is accessed by ibm 370 mainframe 620 . this information is transferred to ibm ps / 2 interface 610 over communications link 460 and is transferred , in turn , over link 470 to terminal 730 where it is displayed for user 2 . for example , user 2 may be a loan department agent and , in such a case , a display screen of loans will be presented which correspond to user 4 . second , in response to the second activity status message , i . e ., call assign ( phone 700 , phone 710 , ctn (# 330 , 37 )), monitor 600 will recognize that a screen is already in use at user 2 terminal . although the second activity status message , by itself , suggests that monitor 600 should present a new screen to terminal 730 which is associated with user 2 , when the second activity status message is taken together with the first activity status message , monitor 600 will ignore the second activity status message . this is because the ctn for the second activity status message indicates that the activity status message relates to target node processor 330 , as did the first activity status message . however , the second part of the ctn for the second activity status message equals 37 and 37 was generated earlier than 41 , i . e ., the corresponding portion of the ctn for the first activity status message . as a result , monitor 600 is prevented from clearing an active screen and destroying the information related to current user 4 . finally , in response to the third activity status message , i . e ., call disconnect ( phone 700 , phone 710 ), monitor 600 will discard this activity status message because monitor 600 will recognize that it refers to an inactive call . in practice , a ctn will have an indeterminate value when a monitor first begins its monitoring operation since the ctns are generated by the distributed processing system independently of when a monitor is activated . further , as one of ordinary skill in the art can appreciate , although ctns may be generated in ascending order in increments of one from a target node , there may not be an activity status message transmitted to the monitor for each ctn that is generated . as a result , the monitor may not receive consecutively numbered ctns . still further , a ctn need not be generated for each target user access . for example , if a target is a trunk in a telephony system , ctns may not be required since the need for ctns due to race conditions may be avoided by the required reseize delay of trunks of a minimum of 500 ms , which time is typically more than enough time to produce a steady state and avoid a race condition . lastly , in practice , processor nodes are designed to reset the ctn counter to zero whenever a restart occurs within that node , a restart being , for example , a minor system reset that maintains the system state by keeping active calls in progress . in the preferred embodiment described above , a minor ctn has a value in the range between 0 and 32 , 767 decimal . as a result , because : ( a ) this range of values is finite ; ( b ) the value rolls over to 0 once the maximum of the range is reached ; and ( c ) the value could cycle around to the same number in the time , for example , 24 hours , it takes to make 32 , 767 calls to a given node , it is necessary for the monitor to take some precautions in using these values in certain applications . for example , in one such application , the ibm callpath application discussed above , the following assumptions are made concerning system performance : ( a ) two minutes is a sufficient amount of time between messages for a single target to avoid the &# 34 ; race &# 34 ; conditions that the use of ctn solves and ( b ) any given target node will not produce more than 1000 ctns in two minutes . as those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate , the design of any real time system will entail the use of certain assumptions regarding the environment which is served thereby . in the callpath application , monitor 620 , i . e ., ibm 370 monitor 620 , uses a table to store records of the currently relevant , active transactions , i . e ., callpath calls . because this application occurs in a telephony environment , as was described above , monitor 620 is only concerned with the initial activity status messages for a new transaction to determine whether any &# 34 ; race &# 34 ; conditions have occurred . when an activity status message is received by monitor 620 it is assigned a time . monitor 620 then searches the table , using the telephone number fields , to see if an &# 34 ; active &# 34 ; record pertaining to a transaction involving the parties exists . if there is such an &# 34 ; active &# 34 ; record , monitor 620 determines whether the record is more than two minutes old . this is done because , if such an &# 34 ; active &# 34 ; record is less than two minutes old , then a &# 34 ; race &# 34 ; condition could exist , i . e ., two activity status messages regarding an initial transaction have been received involving the telephone number and we have determined that the ctns have not had time to &# 34 ; cycle &# 34 ; around to the same number since we do not expect to process 32 , 767 telephone calls within two minutes . thus , if the two messages are more than two minutes apart , the older message is discarded . if a newly received activity status message has arrived less than two minutes after a previously received activity status message relating to the same telephone number , the ctns of the two activity status messages are then compared . in this embodiment , this comparison assumes that for this application no more than 1000 ctns will be generated from a given node within two minutes -- 1000 was chosen for this application to be a number which is small enough that it is minimal when compared to 32 , 767 and , yet , is large enough to cover almost all race conditions which occur for the specific telephony application , given the limitation of a maximum of 32 , 768 possible ctns . if the difference between the ctn of the most recently received activity status message and the ctn of the previously received activity status message is less than 1000 , then the ctn counter has not wrapped around and monitor 620 accepts the activity status message having the larger ctn . however , since we have assumed that the difference between the ctns must be less than 1000 within the two minute window , if the difference between the ctn of the most recently received activity status message and the ctn of the previously received activity status message is greater than 1000 , then the ctn counter has wrapped around . in this case , monitor 620 accepts the activity status message of the smaller ctn since it was generated later in time . finally , those skilled in the art recognize that further embodiments of the present invention may be made without departing from its teachings .	7
an artificial synapse chip 10 embodying features of the invention is shown in fig1 . fig1 a shows a perspective view , and fig1 b a plan view of an asc . the cell - contacting surface of the asc includes the substrate 12 , which may be made with any material or materials compatible with cell attachment and growth . for example , glass , ceramic , silicon , silicon compounds and mixtures , polyimide , polystyrene , polyethylene , polylactide , teflon ® or other polymer , are suitable materials . in preferred embodiments , substrate 12 includes polyimide . a micropattern 14 is provided on substrate 12 , effective to direct and guide the growth of cells and cell processes in contact with the substrate 12 . the micropattern 14 may be etched into substrate 12 , may be deposited onto substrate 12 , or may be integral with substrate 12 . in preferred embodiments , the micropattern 14 is made by microcontact printing onto the substrate 12 . the micropattern 14 may include growth factors , cell adhesion molecules , antibodies specific to cell surface proteins of the neurite or cell body , or other molecules or atoms effective to guide or modulate the growth of a neurite or the attachment of a cell or cell process . underlying the substrate 12 is a supporting layer 16 . an intermediate layer 18 , preferably formed with silicon , is provided adjacent to and below the supporting layer . a base layer 20 is shown lying below the intermediate layer 18 , so that intermediate layer 18 is sandwiched between supporting layer 16 and base layer 20 . in embodiments of the invention , supporting layer 16 and base layer 20 are formed with silicon nitride . silicon and silicon nitride provide stable intermediate and substrate layers , and may be produced and formed with widely available tools and knowledge for fabrication . techniques for silicon device production are highly reproducible and accurate at the sub - micron level . additionally , silicon allows for greater control of aperture geometry and location , including the ability to create arrays of apertures . the devices and methods of the invention may be used to direct the growth of cells and cell processes , and to modulate or stimulate such cells and cell processes . a “ cell process ” is an elongated portion of a cell extending out from a cell body , or soma , and may be an axon , a dendrite , a neurite , a growth cone , or other elongated growing portion of a cell . a “ neurite ” is an elongated portion , or process , of a neural cell often forming the leading portion of the neural cell in its growth on a substrate . a “ growth cone ” is a specialized tip of a neurite that leads the growth or movement of a cell in the direction of the tip . the term “ neurite ” is used herein to refer inclusively to all neuronal cell processes , including axons , dendrites , and neurites and growth cones together . neurites may be extended and retracted from a cell in a variety of directions and at different times . the direction and rate of their growth may be influenced by the substrate , chemical gradients in the environment and along the substrate , electrical fields , hormones , and other physical , chemical and biological influences . as used herein , “ growth ” of a cell process such as a neurite comprises the elongation and migration are normal actions of these cell processes and may occur spontaneously or may be artificially induced or enhanced . such growth may be directed by the devices and methods of the invention . directed growth of a cell process on a device embodying features of the invention is shown in fig1 a . a cell 26 , with a cell process ( neurite 28 with a growth cone 30 at its tip ) is shown in contact with substrate 12 and micropattern 14 . the path followed by neurite 28 and growth cone 30 on substrate 12 is guided by micropattern 14 so that neurite 28 and growth cone 30 are led to recess 22 and aperture 24 . recess 22 in the substrate 12 leads to an aperture 24 which forms a passage across the supporting layer 16 . as shown in fig1 b , the floor 32 of recess 22 is formed of supporting layer 16 free of overlying substrate 12 . aperture rim 34 , in supporting layer 16 surrounding aperture 24 , defines the passageway through supporting layer 16 . although only one cell and only one neurite is shown in fig1 a , it will be understood that a plurality of cells , neurites and growth cones may be in contact with substrate 12 , recess 22 and aperture 24 . a neurite may be directed by the path of micropatterned growth factors to a microfabricated aperture 24 , as shown in fig1 a . as shown in fig1 c and 1d , which are cross - sectional views taken along plane 1 c - 1 c of fig1 a , aperture 24 opens into reservoir 36 defined by wall 38 of the intermediate layer 18 and wall 40 of the base layer 20 . a membrane 42 , such as a lipid bilayer membrane , may be formed across aperture 24 to separate reservoir 36 from recess 22 . a membrane 42 , in place across aperture 24 , may prevent substantially all passage of material between recess 22 and reservoir 36 . however , membrane 42 may be a semi - permeable membrane effective to regulate the passage of material through aperture 24 without completely preventing all passage of material . for example , membrane 42 may form a semi - permeable membrane that allows the passage of some atoms , molecules , and ions while restricting the passage of other atoms , molecules and ions . a lipid bilayer membrane has such properties ; in particular , a lipid bilayer membrane containing molecules such as ion channels or carriers is able to readily pass specific ions while restricting or substantially preventing the passage of other ions . lipid bilayer membranes may be formed by langmuir - blodgett techniques as is known in the art . see , for example montal and mueller , proc . natl . acad . sci . usa . 69 : 3561 - 3566 ( 1972 ); montal , meth . enzymol . 32 : 545 - 556 ( 1974 ); and lindstrom et al ., j . biol . chem . 255 : 8340 - 8350 ( 1980 ). recess 22 and reservoir 36 may each contain a solution ; the solution in recess 22 may be the same or different from the solution in reservoir 36 . the solutions are preferably physiological solutions , such as a saline solution , that is compatible with cell growth and proliferation . examples of such solutions include phosphate - buffered saline , bicarbonate - buffered saline , hepes - buffered saline , dulbecco &# 39 ; s modified eagle &# 39 ; s medium ( dmem , sigma chemical co ., st . louis mo ., cat . # d6546 ), and other solutions known in the art . the solutions may further contain bioactive agents 44 , so that recess 22 and / or reservoir 36 contain bioactive agents . bioactive agents present within recess 22 and / or reservoir 36 may thus have access to aperture 24 and membrane 42 . for example , reservoir 36 may contain hormones , neurotransmitters in liposomes , actual cells , or simply an ionic solution able to be held at an electric potential to stimulate the neuron . aperture 22 may thus be a stimulation site effective to stimulate a cell by chemical , hormonal , cellular , electronic , or other interactions . in all cases , the stimulation site is very specific to a single cell 26 , such as a neuron , and mimics the length scales of chemical synapses or gap junctions in the body . bioactive agents 44 may regulate the permeability of the membrane 42 , or may be capable of contacting and fusing with membrane 42 effective to deliver agents to the recess 24 from the reservoir 36 or from the recess 24 to the reservoir 36 . the bioactive agents are preferably present in reservoir 36 where the bioactive agents 44 are present in only one of recess 24 and reservoir 36 . bioactive agents 44 may include channel forming molecules , such as α - hemolysin , gramicidin , alamethicin , or other channel former ; substances such as drugs , neurotransmitters , chemoattractants , hormones , growth factors , adhesion molecules , amino acids , sugars , antibodies , and so forth ; dyes ; sources of cellular energy ; or other compounds . bioactive agents 44 may be micelles , liposomes , or biological membrane preparations containing ion channels , receptors , or other biologically active molecules that may fuse with and insert molecules into membrane 42 . such bioactive agents may be effective to stimulate cell 26 or to modulate its activity . an embodiment of the invention having electrodes 46 is shown in fig1 d . electrodes 46 may be made from any of a variety of materials , including silver , silver chloride , chromium , tin , indium , indium tin oxide , zinc oxide , colloidal stamped carbon , platinum , palladium , gold , aluminum , and other elements , oxides and materials known in the art . electrodes 46 may be used to carry electrical signals from power source 48 to supply current or impose a voltage between electrodes 46 and to stimulate cell 26 or modulate its activity . a cell , portion of a cell , or cells growing on an artificial synapse chip having features of the invention may be stimulated by neuromodulators delivered to a reservoir 36 and aperture 24 via a microfluidic delivery system . an artificial synapse chip 10 shown in fig1 e is part of a system including a fluid conduit 41 configured to carry a fluid 39 ( with fluid flow optionally induced by a pump 43 ) to a microfluidic channel 45 for delivery to reservoir 36 and aperture 24 . a fluid 39 is preferably a biocompatible fluid , such as a saline , preferably including ph buffers to maintain its ph near levels compatible with maintaining cellular health , and may include bioactive agents 44 , such as neurotransmitters , neuromodulators , liposomes including neurotransmitters , and other agents that may affect a cell . a supply of fluid 39 may be stored in a depot 47 operably connected to pump 43 and microfluidic channel 45 by fluid conduit 41 or by other means . a fluid 49 may be used to drain or remove excess or waste fluid . a pump effective to cause fluid 39 to flow in a desired direction may be any mechanism suitable for inducing fluid flow . a mechanism for inducing fluid flow may force fluid to flow due to a pressure differential , an osmotic differential , may induce flow by electrical means , including electro - osmotic means , or in other ways . for example , a pump 43 may include a mechanical pump mechanism , such as a piezoelectric , pneumatic , peristaltic , electrostatic , or electromagnetic pump . alternatively , or in addition , a pump 43 may include a non - mechanical pump mechanism , in which , for example , fluid force is generated by thermal , chemical ( including osmotic ), acoustic , magnetic , electric , or electrosomotic , means or mechanisms . pumps suitable for use with microfabricated devices , particularly electroosmotic pumps , are discussed in andersson et al ., sensors and actuators b 72 : 259 - 265 ( 2001 ); morf et al ., sensors and actuators b 72 : 266 - 272 ( 2001 ); morf et al ., sensors and actuators b 72 : 273 - 282 ( 2001 ); and zeng et al ., sensors and actuators b 82 : 209 - 212 ( 2002 ). for example , a portion of a system with a pump 43 is illustrated in fig1 f . the system includes an artificial synapse chip 10 having a cell with growth cone 30 growing over a pattern 14 on a silicon nitride substrate 16 , and a fluid conduit 41 comprised of two - parts , a buffer inlet 41 a and a transmitter inlet 41 b . not shown are a depot 47 containing buffer connected to buffer inlet 41 a and a depot 47 containing transmitter solution connected to transmitter inlet 41 b . the pump 43 illustrated in fig1 f is a micro - electro - mechanical ( mem ) pump similar to those used in ink - jet printers to eject drops of fluid . such pumps are described in , for example , u . s . pat . no . 5 , 734 , 395 to kamisuki et al . a mem pump as illustrated in fig1 f includes of a silicon diaphragm 51 , a counter electrode 53 , and a microfluidic channel 55 built over the diaphragm structure . the region of the microfluidic channel 55 above the diaphragm 51 is filled with fluid 39 and in fluid continuity with a depot 47 ( not shown ). the fluid contains bioactive agents 44 , which may be , for example , neurotransmitter agents , neuromodulatory agents , synaptosomes , or liposomes containing bioactive agents of any kind . initially , the diaphragm 51 is in a horizontal ( undeflected ) configuration . the application of a minute bias voltage between the diaphragm 51 and the counter electrode 53 is effective to deflect the diaphragm 51 downward as shown in fig1 f , thereby increasing the volume of the microfluidic channel 55 region above the diaphragm 51 and drawing fluid 39 from the depot 47 along transmitter inlet 41 b . removal of the bias voltage allows the diaphragm 51 to relax back to its initial position , forcing fluid out of microfluidic channel 55 and towards reservoir 36 and aperture 24 . neurotransmitter agents 44 in fluid 39 thus are transported near to reservoir 36 , and can diffuse into reservoir 36 and aperture 24 to contact growth cone 30 and affect the cell . in this way , for example , a brief pulse of neurotransmitter agent may be delivered to a cell having a portion growing across an aperture 24 . in embodiments of artificial synapse chips , conduit 41 would include simply transmitter inlet 41 b ; in other embodiments , such as the one illustrated in fig1 f , conduit 41 also includes a buffer inlet 41 a . flow of buffer solution through buffer inlet serves to flush out the microfluidic conduit 45 with buffer , carrying away neurotransmitter agents 44 , reducing or ending the effect of these agents . such flushing prepares the system for a subsequent pulse of neurotransmitter agents 44 as well as acting to end the effects of a prior pulse . diffusion of neurotransmitter agents 44 through aperture 24 can be very rapid due to the thinness of the aperture , which may be , for example , only about 500 nm thick . the diaphragm 51 of a mem pump 43 may flex at high frequency so as to eject fluid 39 at high frequency . pulses of bioactive agents 44 ( e . g ., neuromodulatory or neurotransmitter agents 44 ) may be delivered at high frequency , including frequencies ranging from between only a few cycles per second , or herz ( hz ) to about hundreds of khz . such rapid signaling matches the rapid signaling rates found in vivo in the brain and retina . the concentration of bioactive agents 44 is determined by several factors , including the mem ejector pulsing frequency , the flow rate of fluid through the microfluidic conduit 45 , and , where electro - osmotic flow may also be induced , the voltage on the optional buffer chamber electrodes . the concentration of bioactive agents 44 at the aperture 24 is determined in part by the diffusion rate , which is affected by the concentration . the size of a pump 43 , such as the ejector diameter determined by the diameter of the outlet 57 of transmitter inlet 41 b , can range from between a few microns ( μm ) to hundreds of μm . the size may depend on the required capacity of a microfluidic channel . the performance of a pump 43 and a system as illustrated in fig1 f depends on the design and materials used , and on the fluids employed during its use . for example , the damping experienced by the system is related to several factors , including fluid viscosity and the geometry of the microfluidic conduit 45 , the geometry of the microfluidic channel 55 , and the geometry of other components . in order to obtain the desired performance , preferred systems are configured with a diaphragm 51 comprised of polysilicon , a narrow microfluidic channel 55 and a small initial separation between the diaphragm 51 and the counter electrode 53 . since there is no threshold voltage for activating the motion of a polysilicon diaphragm , a mem ejector pump can deliver small volumes as small as attoliter to zeptoliter volumes . the power required to charge a capacitor of the size of a diaphragm 51 to a fraction of a volt is about a picowatt . a single photodiode , such as an avalanche photodiode capable of generating nanowatts of power , is thus able to charge hundreds or even thousands of such mem pumps to deliver bioactive agents to cells . the power to actuate a pump 43 may thus come from a photodiode in a photodiode array 59 as illustrated in fig1 f . light contacting such an array 59 is thus effective to actuate a pump 43 configured to pump a fluid 39 containing bioactive agents 44 into a microfluidic conduit 45 where the bioactive agents 44 may flow and diffuse through an aperture 24 and into contact with , for example , a growth cone 30 growing across an aperture 24 . in this way , for example , an artificial synapse chip 10 may be used to transduce a light signal into a biological signal . an array of artificial synapse chips 10 , or an array of systems including such chips , or an artificial synapse chip or chips having an array of apertures , may also be used in similar ways to transduce light signals into biological signals . alternatively , or in addition , electrical signals may be used to stimulate a cell or cells grown on an artificial synapse chip configured to direct the growth of cells , such as to direct cell growth towards electrodes . the components and features necessary to construct devices such as an artificial synapse chip 10 may be made using methods commonly termed “ microfabrication ” or “ nanofabrication ” techniques . methods for microfabrication useful for practice of the invention may be found in , e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 776 , 748 to singhvi et al . ; u . s . pat . no . 5 , 900 , 160 to whitesides et al . ; u . s . pat . no . 6 , 060 , 121 to hidber et al . ; u . s . pat . no . 6 , 180 , 239 to whitesides et al . ; “ patterning of a polysiloxane precursor to silicate glasses by microcontact printing ”, marzolin , et al ., thin solid films 1998 , 315 , 9 - 12 ; “ microfabrication , microstructures and microsystems ”, qin , et al . ; in microsystem technology in chemistry and life sciences , vol . 194 , manz , a . and becker , h ., eds . ; springer - verlag , berlin , 1998 , 1 - 20 ; “ unconventional methods for fabricating and patterning nanostructures ,” xia et al ., chem . rev . 99 : 1823 - 1848 ( 1999 ). all patents and publications , both supra and infra , are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety . the sophisticated microstructures that may be constructed using such microfabrication methods may be used to make devices such as artificial synapse chips 10 and to modify substrates . the structures shown in the following figures were made using the stanford nanofabrication facility ( leland stanford junior university , stanford , calif . 94305 ). an aperture 24 formed in a silicon nitride supporting layer 16 of an asc embodying features of the invention is shown in fig2 a . the view in fig2 a is in the same orientation as the view shown in fig1 b , showing the aperture 24 facing the cell - contacting surface of the asc . the aperture is approximately 10 μm in diameter ( scale bar represents 1 μm ). aperture 24 is bounded by rim 34 in exposed floor 32 of recess 22 . at the small scale shown in fig2 a , the aperture 24 is quite smooth , both in terms of shape and surface . to improve resolution , the device was first coated in gold . note that the plasma etching used for this processing does not create vertical sidewalls in the aperture . the aspect ratio of the sidewalls is roughly 2 . 5 : 1 . although the example of the aperture 24 shown in fig2 a forms a passageway through a supporting layer 16 made from silicon nitride , other materials may also be used , such as polymers and glass . a microfluidic reservoir 36 may be connected to the other side of recess 22 . a reservoir 36 may be configured to be of a size able to contain neuromodulatory agents in aqueous solution or aqueous suspension . aperture 24 provides a conduit for the delivery of the neuromodulatory agents from the reservoir 36 to at least a portion of a cell 26 . in addition , other conduits and fluidic delivery systems may be used to transport fluid and neuromodulatory agents to desired locations at or adjacent the aperture 24 , reservoir 36 , or other location . for example , where a depot containing a reserve of fluid and / or neuromodulatory agents is located at a position away from an aperture , a conduit may operably connect the depot with a reservoir 36 and with an aperture 24 . [ 0066 ] fig2 b is a scanning electron micrograph ( sem ) of a microfabricated well that has a microaperture in the bottom , showing reservoir 36 of an artificial synapse chip embodying features of the invention , viewed from the face opposite to the cell - contacting substrate surface 12 of the asc . shown at a larger scale than fig2 a , this micrograph of the reservoir 36 viewed from the trans side of the artificial synapse chip 10 shows the smooth silicon nitride surface surrounding the aperture 24 . wall 38 of the intermediate layer 18 and wall 40 of the base layer 20 are shown , with a small amount of base layer 20 shown framing the walls 38 and 40 . the black spot indicates the aperture 24 configured for cell attachment and stimulation ( not clearly visible at this magnification ). the reservoir 36 is designed for holding the culture solution for the cells . the size of the bottom of the well is 1 mm across . as shown in fig1 a and 1b , a substrate 12 of asc 10 may have a micropattern 14 effective to guide and direct the growth of a cell process , such as neurite 28 with growth cone 30 . such directed cell growth is shown in fig2 c , which is a scanning electron micrograph showing rat p7 retinal ganglion cells ( rgcs ) grown on a plastic substrate that was patterned with a laminin pattern . the insert at the bottom left of fig2 c illustrates the sawtooth pattern microfabricated onto the substrate before addition of the rgcs . as shown in the electron micrograph , both the cell bodies and the cellular processes follow the pattern quite closely . the scale bar represents a length of 100 μm . cells are also able to grow over a microfabricated aperture 24 through a supporting layer 16 of an asc 10 . fig2 d shows pc12 cells growing around and over a 5 μm - diameter aperture in a silicon nitride surface . the boundary of a reservoir 36 under the aperture 24 may be seen at the margins of fig2 d . a preferred method of producing a micropattern 14 is to contact substrate 12 with a microcontact printing stamp having an ordered assemblage of molecules , which may be a discontinuous assemblage , for deposition on to substrate 12 . microfabrication methods are suitable for making microcontact stamps . fig3 is a plan view sem of a stamp embodying features of the invention for making a micropattern 14 on a surface . the surface topology is given by the array of squares . deposition of material onto the surface of a stamp , and contacting a substrate 12 of a device , such as an artificial synapse chip 10 shown in fig1 with the stamp is effective to form a micropattern on a substrate 12 . the formation of a micropattern in this way is one method of microcontact printing . micropatterns formed by such microcontact printing methods are effective to align the position and growth of cells on a substrate . shown in fig3 is a scanning electron micrograph ( sem ) picture of a poly ( dimethylsiloxane ) ( pdms ) stamp that was made from a master that was micromachined from a silicon wafer . the microcontact stamp shown in fig3 has a surface topology given by an array of squares . other patterns , including circles , ovals , stripes , and other shapes , may be made on the surface of a microcontact stamp . microstamps such as the one shown in fig3 may be fabricated using photolithography techniques . for example , the stamp shown in fig3 was formed from a thin ( 1 - 7 μm ) photoresist layer on a silicon wafer that was patterned to create a master for the microcontact printing . the mask and stamp master was fabricated at the stanford nanofabrication facility . the master pattern consists of arrays of lines configured for cell attachment and neuron growth . the master was prepared by ultra - violet ( uv ) etching of a mask on positive photoresist on silicon , and pdms stamps were generated in situ on the master using sylgard 184 silicone elastomer followed by thermal curing . stamps were also prepared by pouring an elastomer and curing agent together to form pdms on a silicon master , degassed and allowed to set at room temperature . stamps were then made by cutting a portion of the pdms followed by plasma treatment to increase hydrophobicity for enhanced protein adsorption and imaged using sem . a variety of different stamp patterns may be produced by the methods , and adapted to the optimal line width or thickness , length and spacing for neurite growth . for example , line widths ranging from a few nanometers ( nm ) wide to several hundreds of micrometers ( μm ) wide may be used ; preferably , line widths range from about 10 nm to about 20 μm . lines may be as short as a few nm and may be as long as several millimeters ; preferably line length is within the range of about 10 nm to about 100 μm long . the spacing between lines in a pattern may range from about 1 μm to several hundreds of μm ; preferably line spacing is between about 2 μm to about 100 μm . following microfabrication of the stamps , the stamps were coated with molecules desired to be deposited onto a substrate 12 to provide a micropattern 14 . micropatterns may include biologically active molecules and agents such as neurotransmitters , hormones , growth factors such as nerve growth factors , epidermal growth factor , and insulin - like growth factor , co - stimulatory molecules , antibodies , and other biomolecules known in the art . for example , stamps may be coated with adhesion agents that promote call adhesion . adhesion agents include poly - l - lysine , cell tak ™ ( becton dickinson , franklin lakes , n . j . ), cell adhesion molecules such as neural cell adhesion molecule ( ncam ), lectins , and other adhesion agents known in the art . the adhesion agents may also be labeled with fluorescein for visualization . the pattern may be stamped on glass , silicon , silicon nitride , polyimide , polystyrene , polyethylene , polylactide , teflon ®, other polymer , or any substrate suitable for use as a substrate for cell growth . for example , a coated stamp may be contacted with a polyimide substrate on a silicon nitride supporting layer to provide a substrate to facilitate cell adhesion and growth . cell adhesion and growth may be monitored with a fluorescence microscope . a mercury arc lamp may be used to excite the fluorescent dye conjugated to the poly - l - lysine or other micropattern molecule to provide fluorescence signal for visualization of adhesion agents . a system 50 for implantation into an animal is shown in fig4 . in embodiments , the system is implanted into the retina of an animal . the system 50 includes an asc 52 , a photosensitive device 54 , a communication link 56 between the asc and the photosensitive device , and a power source 58 . the photosensitive device 54 may be separate from the asc 52 , or may be in contact with the asc 52 , or may comprise part of the asc 52 . the photosensitive device 54 may be a photomultiplier , a semiconductor photosensor , a chemical photosensor , a metallic photosensor such as a selenium or other photocell , or other photosensor known in the art . the communications link 56 may be any electrical conductor , such as a wire , tracing , or other electrical link . in embodiments , the communications link 56 is a chemical communications link , whereby a photosensor alters the chemical environment so that a chemical signal is delivered to at least a portion of the asc 52 . the power source 58 may be any power source , such as a battery , a thermal power source capable of producing power by a temperature gradient , or a photocell capable of producing energy from light . [ 0074 ] fig5 a illustrates an eye 60 of animal into which an asc 62 has been implanted . the asc 62 is shown implanted in the subretinal space 64 of the animal , so that it occupies a position between the retinal photoreceptors 66 and the retinal pigment epithelium 68 . in embodiments of the invention , the asc 62 may be implanted near the ganglion cell layer 70 on the inner limiting membrane 72 near the boundary of the vitreous humor 74 . a detailed view of the subretinal space 64 and implanted asc is shown in fig5 b . ascs may be used for implantation into the nervous system of an animal . for example , ascs embodying features of the invention may be implanted into a retina of an animal to provide a neural prostheses where the retina suffers from traumatic injury , disease or degeneration . patterns may include one or a combination of molecules such as neurotrophins and growth factors including nerve growth factor , brain - derived growth factor ( bdgf ), epidermal growth factor ( egf ), ciliary neurotrophic factor ( cntf ), glial - derived neurotrophic factor ( gdnf ), nt - 3 , fibroblast growth factors ( fgf ), insulin - like growth factor ( igf ), platelet - derived growth factor ( pdgf ), vascular endothelial growth factors ( vegf ) and others ; cyclic nucleotides such as cyclic adenosine monophosphate , cyclic guanosine monophosphate and others ; extracellular matrix molecules such as laminin , tenascin , collagen , fibronectin , integrins , immunoglobins ( including molecules such cell adhesion molecules n - cam and l - cam , axonin , cadherins , and so forth ), proteglycans , anosmin - 1 , thrombospondin and others ; myelin and myelin associated inhibitors such as myelin - associated glycoprotein and nogo ; tyrosine kinase receptors such as ephrins ; netrins ; inflammatory cytokines such as transforming growth factor δ , leukemia inhibitory factor ( lif ), tumor necrosis factors ( tnf ), interleukins , and others ; neurotransmitter such as acetylcholine and others ; stimulatory molecules such as potassium chloride , insulin , and others ; co - stimulatory molecules , antibodies , and other growth and modulatory factors known in the art . it is critical to optimize the retention of the pattern for transfer from the stamp to the cellular system for use of the substrate in implantation , such as retinal implantation . the line width and concentration of biomolecules may be used to control the number of neurites per microprinted line . the degree of pattern transfer may be determined using microscopy . as shown in fig1 the recesses 22 and reservoirs 36 of the devices of the present invention are suitable for the storage of neuromodulatory agents , and for the delivery of neuromodulatory agents to at least a portion of a cell . the present invention provides the ability to direct the delivery of neuromodulatory agents to single cells , in particular to localized portions of such cells , by directing the growth of cell processes to nanoapertures , and delivering neuromodulatory agents to the cell processes via the nanoapertures . suitable neuromodulatory agents include any agent effective to stimulate a cell , or to modulate the effects of other agents effective to stimulate a cell . for example , the neuromodulatory agents may be neurotransmitters , hormones , ions , messenger molecules , nucleic acids , nucleic acid vectors , drugs , cells , cell fragments , cell organelles , liposomes , or other biologically active materials . neuromodulatory agents such as neurotransmitters include amino acids such as glutamate , aspartate , and glycine , and related neurotransmitters and stimulatory agents such as n - methyl - d - aspartate ( nmda ), alpha - amino - 3 - hydroxy - 5 - methyl - 4 - isoxalone propionic acid ( ampa ), quisqualate , and kainate , and analogs thereof , and other glutaminergic and glycinergic agents known in the art ; cholinergic agents such as acetylcholine , suberyldicholine , analogs thereof and other cholinergic agents known in the art ; adrenergic agents such as dopamine , epinephrine , norepinephrine , analogs thereof , and other adrenergic agents known in the art ; serotinin , and serotonergic agents known in the art ; gamma - amino butryic acid ( gaba ) and other gaba - ergic agents known in the art ; taurine , octopamine , nucleotide phosphates such as adenosine triphosphate ( atp ), adenosine diphosphate ( adp ) and guanosine diphosphate ( gdp ) and triphosphate ( gtp ), cyclic nucleotides such as cyclic adenosine monoposphate ( camp ) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate ( cgmp ), and other neurotransmitter and neuromodulator molecules known in the art . in addition , neurotransmitters include all agents active at neurotransmitter receptors , such as glutamate receptors , nmda - receptors , ampa - receptors , glycine receptors , dopamine receptors , acetylcholine receptors , and others known in the art . neuromodulatory agents also include messenger agents including peptide hormones and neuromodulators such as enkephalins , endorphins , adrenocorticotrophin hormone ( acth ), vasoactive intestinal peptide ( vip ), and other peptides known in the art , steroid hormones , second messengers such as inositol phosphates , and ions such as calcium , potassium , zinc and salts thereof . these agents may be free in aqueous solution or aqueous suspension , may be present in micelles , or may be carried by liposomes . liposomes , as is known in the art , are small membranous vesicles suitable for delivery of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic compounds . pharmaceutical administration systems based on liposomes are described in , e . g ., gregoriadis , g . ( editor ) liposome technology , vol . ii , incorporation of drugs , proteins and genetic material , crc press 1984 , and in knight , c . g . ( editor ), liposomes : from physical structure to therapeutic applications , elsevier 1981 . neuromodulatory agents suitable for the practice of the invention further include biological membrane preparations containing ion channels , receptors , or other biologically active molecules , as described in , e . g ., coronado et al . j . gen . phys . 76 : 424 - 446 ( 1980 ). such biological membrane preparations may fuse with and insert molecules into a membrane 42 across an aperture 24 , or into the membrane of a cell 26 , neurite 28 or growth cone 30 . for example , gramicidin , alamethicin , and other molecules known in the art are suitable pore - forming molecules for the practice of this embodiment of the invention . ion channel molecules suitable for the practice of the invention include multi - subunit macromolecule assemblies such as ligand - gated ion channels including cyclic nucleotide - gated channels , calcium - activated channels , achr ion channels , glutamate receptor ion channels , including all nmda , ampa , quisqualate , kainate subtypes , glycine receptor ion channels , and voltage - gated ion channel molecules and multi - subunit macromolecular assemblies such as sodium channels , potassium channels , calcium channels , chloride channels , and other channels , including gap junction channels , mechanosensitive channels , non - gated , and non - selective channels . carrier molecules such as amphotericin are also suitable . alternatively , membranes may be formed with proteins , such as pore - formers and carriers , already incorporated as part of the membrane - forming material . see , e . g ., schindler , methods enzymol . 1989 : 171 : 225 - 253 . microfabricated apertures on a silicon chip surfaces have been made using the stanford nanofabrication facility . microfabricated wells with microfabricated apertures are shown in fig2 . standard silicon processing techniques were adapted for producing micrometer and nanometer - sized apertures in a silicon nitride membrane . using low - pressure chemical vapor deposition ( lpcvd ), silicon nitride was grown on the surface of & lt ; 100 & gt ; orientation silicon wafers . a combination of lithography to define the structures in a photosensitive polymer was followed by plasma etching to pattern the structures in the silicon nitride creates apertures on one side of the wafer and an etchant masking layer on the other side . an anisotropic etchant , such as tetramethylammonium hydroxide ( tmah ), was used to remove the silicon along the { 111 } crystal plane , but leave the silicon nitride unaffected . this produced a via hole ( a connecting passageway ) beneath the aperture , exposing the silicon nitride membrane and completing the processing . shown in fig2 a is a sem of the microfabricated container . note the black spot indicated by the arrow is the microetched aperture adapted for cell attachment and stimulation . the well was designed for holding the culture solution for the cells . the size of the bottom of the well is 1 mm across . fig2 b shows the microaperture in the bottom of the container shown in fig2 a . the microaperture is approximately 10 μm in diameter . although not shown , the other side of the aperture is connected to a microchannel reservoir that is made by sealing a pdms stamp with microchannels to the underside of this substrate . the conduit , or via , opens into a microfluidic channel that serves as a reservoir for neuromodulatory agents that may be applied to cells adherent to the substrate . the microfluidic channel was made from a standard pdms stamp as described above and sealed to the wafer . such a microfluidic channel can be readily sealed to the wafer with excellent sealant properties . for example , a pdms stamp having a channel may be bonded to a silicon nitride surface after acid cleaning ( e . g ., hcl ) and plasma treating , forming an irreversible bond . the microfluidic channel described has wide ranging ramifications for use including ( 1 ) acting as general purpose buffer reservoir for constant replenishing / exchanging waste products from the other side of the cell ( 2 ) delivery of transmitters , liposomes , voltage / current clamping of the cell , or ( 3 ) for sampling released products from the cell . apertures may be formed in sizes ranging from a few nm to a few tens of μm over which cells may be grown . for example , cells may be grown directly over 50 nm apertures . use of an aperture smaller than the length scale of the neuron is effective to insure that only a single cell is stimulated . this example describes the manufacture and optimization of devices embodying features of the invention for use in forming bilayer membranes across the microfabricated apertures of the devices . chips were made with surface areas of about 1 cm 2 and with a final thickness of roughly 0 . 5 mm . circular apertures of 25 μm through 250 μm ( diameter ) were plasma etched in 500 nm thick silicon nitride . the chips were covered in a thick polyimide , except for a square region of exposed silicon nitride 500 μm on a side . fabrication was done at the stanford nanofabrication facility ( snf ) with 4 inch , & lt ; 100 & gt ; orientation , boron - doped , double - polished silicon wafers , nominally 500 μm thick . using low - pressure chemical vapor deposition ( lpcvd ), a thin layer ( 500 nm ) of silicon nitride was grown on the surface of the wafers . standard contact photolithography and plasma etching of the silicon nitride was used to define the small features ( e . g ., the apertures ). the larger features on the backside of the wafer were similarly defined using backside alignment , contact photolithography , and plasma etching . the silicon was etched anisotropically along the { 111 } plane at an angle of 54 . 7 ° to the wafer surface . the square hole in the backside of the wafer was chosen to yield a square 180 μm larger than , and centered on , the aperture . this left a thin silicon nitride membrane freely spanning the region without any silicon support . because of the high tensile strength of silicon nitride , this nitride membrane was quite strong and stable , and was able to readily withstand the forces generated during processing . with the features defined in the silicon nitride , the wafers were placed in 20 % tetramethylammonium hydroxide ( tmah ) at 100 ° c . for approximately 6 hours . the silicon nitride acted as a mask , allowing the tmah to etch anisotropically through the wafer along the { 111 } crystal plane . since the exposed silicon is conductive , it was necessary to oxidize the surface to reduce capacitance and noise . this was accomplished with a steam oxidation at 1100 ° c . for 4 hours , providing ˜ 1 . 1 μm of oxide . finally , to reduce the capacitance further , a photosensitive polyimide ( durimide 7520 , arch chemicals , zwijndrecht , belgium ) was spun on 30 - 70 μm thick , exposed under a contact aligner , developed , and cured , yielding a coating 15 - 35 μm thick . to create a hydrophobic surface , the chips were then soaked in a mixture of hexadecane ( sigma , st . louis , mo . ), chloroform , and octyltrichlorosilane ( aldrich , milwaukee , wis .) in a ratio 80 : 19 : 1 ( by volume ) for 15 minutes per side . two rinses in chloroform for 5 minutes each completed the processing . the coating was tested by applying ˜ 5 μl droplets of water and verifying that the contact angle was greater than 90 °. one advantage of silicon is the ability to control the thickness of the bilayer supporting partition ( bsp ). the thickness of the silicon nitride bsp was chosen to be an order of magnitude smaller than teflon ® partitions used to form apertures for bilayer formation ( 6 - 25 μm ), with the expectation that thinner partitions provide a smaller solvent torus and a larger bilayer area . the partition is still a couple of orders of magnitude larger than a 2 - 4 nm bilayer , so bending of the lipids from the edges of the partition to the bilayer is still necessary . however , this bending distance is smaller , yielding a larger bilayer area relative to the aperture size . the impact of this upon stability is unknown , but it does allow more area for protein insertion and the ability to create bilayers across smaller apertures . an asc is to able to provide precise stimulation of neurons and the making of sensitive electrical measurements . as with any electronic circuit , excessive capacitance may present a problem by increasing electrical noise . excessive capacitance is a problem for two reasons : ( 1 ) electrical noise due to the access resistance in series with this capacitance , and ( 2 ), where a lipid bilayer is to be made across the aperture of an asc , the inability to observe the membrane capacitance over the background . since silicon is a conductor at room temperature , any contact of the bath to the silicon effectively connects the entire area of the chip to the system . a 1 cm 2 chip with 500 nm of silicon nitride ( ε ≈ 7 . 5 ) has a capacitance of 13 nf , three orders of magnitude greater than the capacitance of a 25 μm diameter bilayer . however , a thin bsp in a solution containing charge - carriers has a large capacitance , which may present a problem where precise electrical measurements or precise electrical stimulation of a cell are desired . the solution to this problem was found to be two - fold . first , to remove the electrical connection between the silicon and bath , the wafers were exposed to steam at 1100 ° c ., yielding just over a micron of oxide on all exposed silicon surfaces . this reduced the capacitance by a factor of two , since the system effectively becomes two nitride capacitors in series connected by a silicon conductor . it does , however , simplify the capacitative model of the system by removing discontinuities that would occur as the bath contacts the silicon . second , capacitance was reduced by addition of a polyimide layer . a negative , photosensitive polyimide ( ε = 3 . 5 ) was chosen that can be processed using standard lithography . an application of 30 to 100 μm of polyimide becomes 15 to 50 μm when cured . in addition , the cured polyimide is highly resistant to solvent degradation . the design leaves 500 μm by 500 μm of nitride uncovered over the aperture . manipulation of the solution level so that only 5 mm by 5 mm of the chip was exposed to solution , reducing the capacitance from 35 μm of polyimide to only 22 pf . lipid bilayers were formed by the method of montal and mueller ( 1972 ). in practicing the langmuir - blodgett technique , one raises two lipid monolayers across an aperture , allowing the lipids to align their hydrophobic tail portions across the aperture so as to form a lipid bilayer . because of the hydrophobic nature of the lipid tails , in order to form stable bilayers the surface of a bsp must also be hydrophobic . if the substrate is hydrophobic , the lipids can smoothly transition from coating the substrate to spanning the aperture . to reverse the wetting properties of the naturally hydrophilic silicon nitride , the silicon nitride was coated with an alkylsilane ( octyltrichlorosilane ). application of this coating was quite simple and very effective . it was not found to be possible to form a bilayer with untreated devices . use of longer carbon chain silanes or alternative materials to make the surface even more hydrophobic would further increase bilayer stability . the characteristics of the devices are shown in table 1 . the thickness of the polyimide was varied to verify our background capacitance model for the chips . the model is based upon our chambers , where the baths contact 5 mm by 5 mm of chip . the intrinsic capacitance of the baths and amplifier was measured to be 7 . 2 pf , and is included in this number . for a 50 μm aperture device , where the polyimide is 32 um thick , the model yields a background capacitance of 45 pf , compared to 77 pf for 6 μm thick teflon ®. the bilayer specific capacitance was determined simply by dividing the difference between the measured total capacitance and the calculated background capacitance by the area of the aperture . this number is in the range of 0 . 64 to 0 . 70 μf / cm 2 and corresponds well with that found in other artificial bilayer experiments . the total capacitance was measured within a few minutes after bilayer formation to avoid changes due to bilayer thinning . note that as the aperture area decreased , the bilayer capacitance became quite small compared to the background , yielding a large error in the specific capacitance . the empirical evidence for the formation of a bilayer on any chip was threefold . for the largest size apertures , the change in capacitance due to the bilayer was readily observable . for a typical specific capacitance value of 0 . 65 μf / cm 2 , a bilayer on a 100 μm aperture would have a capacitance of 51 pf , which is easily observed over a 65 pf background . in addition , a resistance through the aperture greater than 1 gω indicates the presence of a bilayer . for all aperture sizes , a “ gigaseal ” of at least 2 . 5 gω was observed , indicating the formation of a bilayer . for smaller apertures , it was more difficult to observe the capacitance change over the background . in this case , membrane - bound proteins that affect the electrical properties of the bilayer , such as carriers and ion channels , offered the best proof of the formation of a bilayer . the ion channel peptide gramicidin d ( gd ), was chosen for ease of use and large conductance change . a lipid bilayer membrane is required in order for gramicidin d to increase current flow . after adding 5 to 20 μl of 2 mg / ml gd ( sigma , st . louis , mo .) in ethanol to each bath , the conductance of the bilayer dramatically increased within minutes , while the capacitance remained constant . the addition of ethanol by itself had no effect . thus , the increase in current flow in response to an applied potential ( measured by an increase in conductance ) indicated that a true lipid bilayer had been formed . observing individual ion channels or pores requires that the electrical noise to be as small as possible . in addition to environmental sources and capacitative noise , there are two major sources of electrical noise : photocarriers in the silicon , and access resistance . the first noise source , light , is produced when light incident upon the chip excites carriers across the band gap , creating a fluctuating charge between the two layers of nitride . depending on the source and intensity of light , the noise produced may measure tens to hundreds of picoamperes peak - to - peak . simply shutting off room lights or enclosing the setup in a light proof box was sufficient to reduce the electrical noise contributed by from noise source . the other source of electrical noise was due to the access resistance of the baths in series with the bilayer capacitance . the total access resistance ( r a ) contains three components : the bulk bath resistivity ( 32 a - cm ), the bath resistivity in the aperture , and the access resistance to the aperture . for a small access resistance , the expected noise in amperes rms was { square root }{ square root over ( 4ktr α ( 2πf 2 c ) 2 )} where f is the measurement bandwidth . the results of this calculation for each tested chip are shown in table 1 . for the 50 μm aperture , the expectation from this calculation was 1 . 4 pa rms , while the actual measured values were between 1 . 8 pa and 2 . 4 pa . the difference was attributed to local environmental noise . bilayers were formed by the technique of montal and mueller ( 1972 ). the aperture was first pretreated with ˜ 5 μl of 1 : 9 ( v : v ) hexadecane : hexane ( burdick & amp ; jackson , muskegon , mich .). the chip was mounted between two teflon ® baths with silicone high vacuum grease ( dow corning , midland , mich .). each bath was filled with 1 m kcl to just below the aperture . a solution of 5 μl at 10 mg / ml of 1 , 2 - diphytanoyl - sn - glycerophosphocholine ( avanti polar lipids , alabaster , ala .) in chloroform was applied to each bath and allowed to evaporate . when the water level in each bath was raised , a lipid bilayer formed across the aperture , as evidenced by the capacitance and conductance of the device . the ability to support the formation of a bilayer that will be stable for an extended period of time is an important property for any supporting substrate . lipid bilayer membranes formed on ascs were found to be very stable . ascs were found to have two advantages over teflon ® partitions in terms of stability . first , lipid bilayer membranes formed on ascs were thinner than those formed on teflon ® partitions , but are also more rigid . teflon ® partitions flex under changes in pressure , whereas nitride is comparatively inflexible . second , the nitride surface and aperture edge are smooth at the nanometer level ( see fig2 ), unlike mechanically formed apertures in teflon ® partitions , which have micron - scale defects along the aperture edge . membrane stability was demonstrated by observing lipid bilayer membrane lifetime . roughly half of the bilayers broke within the first few minutes , but some were stable for much longer . the longest bilayer lifetime observed was 8 hours . no attempts to measure systematically for longer than this time scale were made . it was found that the number of stable bilayers that were formed depended heavily on the cleanliness of the chip . it was rather easy to form a stable bilayer membrane using a fresh asc device that had just completed processing . however , it was more difficult to form a stable bilayer membrane on an asc that was reused after cleaning . lipid bilayer membrane formation was found to be impossible following use of a cleaning process that left a residue across the aperture . ion channel activity due to staphylococcal α - hemolysin ( αhl ) channels was studied in lipid bilayer membranes formed across asc apertures . this 293 - amino acid heptameric pore forms 2 nm channels through the lipid bilayer . single - channel recordings were performed with a patch clamp amplifier ( heka epc - 8 , heka elektronik , lambrecht , germany ) and an analog - to - digital converter ( instrutech itc - 18 , port washington , n . y .) sampled at 10 khz . filtering was performed with a built - in 7 - pole low - pass bessel filter at 5 khz . the data was collected on computer using pulse 8 . 4 ( heka ) and analyzed with igor pro 4 . 0 ( wavemetrics , lake oswego , oreg .). the αhl pores were added to the cis chamber ( 1 to 10 μl at 321 ng / ml ), and held at − 40 mv ( trans side grounded ). addition of αhl to the trans side also yielded channels , but the diffusion time was longer due to the relatively long , narrow cavity . [ 0105 ] fig6 a and 6c illustrate α - hemolysin ( αhl ) single - channel currents recorded from artificial bilayer membranes across 100 μm apertures in microfabricated devices exposed to β - cyclodextrin ( acd ) in the trans bath . the holding potential was + 40 mv ( the cis bath was at ground potential ). shown in fig6 a are representative single - channel data for αhl channels . in similar experiments , voltage pulses of − 40 mv were applied for 750 ms , and currents were recorded , giving measured currents of 31 . 0 ± 3 . 2 pa per channel ). the calculated pore conductance of 811 ± 55 ps was typical for αhl channels . the added β - cyclodextrin ( βcd ), which inserts reversibly in the trans side of the channel , causes fluctuations in the current flow through the channel as the molecules move in and out of the protein . this effect is found at micromolar concentrations ( e . g ., 40 μm to 300 μm of βcd ). when a channel becomes blocked , a clearly observable current reduction occurs , as shown in fig6 a . partial blocking events from βcd appear as downward spikes . the βcd events are more clearly shown in the inset at higher sampling rates ( 100 khz ) and expanded time scales . these results were in agreement with previous results for such channel recordings obtained with bilayers formed across teflon ® partitions . fig6 b shows a current voltage plot of αhl single - channel currents in 1m kcl , 10 mm kpi at ph 7 . 4 . the fit ( solid line ) is through the points at − 40 mv and + 40 mv . fig6 c shows current as a function of time for two αhl channels in artificial bilayer membranes across 100 μm apertures in microfabricated devices at ± 200 mv and at ± 300 mv . use of the artificial synapse for single cell stimulation and excitation methods for stimulating cells through the nanoaperture and measuring their activity using fluorescence from ca 2 + sensitive dyes include the following : ( 1 ) voltage clamping the cell to the aperture ( applying suction via the microchannel ) and varying the voltage of the buffer in the microfluidic channel ; ( 2 ) chemical stimulation of the cell by pulsing a bolus of neurotransmitter to the under side of the cell ; ( 3 ) microfluidic bolus of liposomes containing transmitters to the aperture opening ; ( 4 ) microfluidic reservoir of engineered cells that would stimulate the neurite through the release of transmitters . a subconfluent layer of pc12 cells is cultured on an array of microapertures fabricated . cell activity is measured by fluorescence microscopy with the cells loaded with ca 2 + sensitive dyes ( such as , e . g ., indo - 1 , fura - 2 , fluo - 3 , calcium green , aequorin ). the fluorescence serves both to monitor the activity of the cell directly above the aperture and to see the effect on neighboring cells . the surface may be modified around the aperture to achieve a good “ seal ” to the cell membrane ( where a good seal is mechanically stable and has an electrical resistance near to or in excess of one gigaω ). surface modifiers may include different extracellular matrix proteins and “ cell tak ” ( becton dickinson ). different stimulation techniques suitable for use with the devices and methods of the invention include temporal and spatial resolution and chronic stimulation . the size of the aperture may be varied as well . in addition , the aperture may be coated with a single lipid bilayer with preloaded ion channels or artificial pore - forming molecules , including proteins that can form pores . these lipid bilayer membranes can be formed by as described in previous examples . the ion channel or pore - forming molecules may be are already part of the membrane if they were part of the material used to form the membrane , or are then incorporated into the bilayer . a microstamp , such as a pdms stamp , is used to make a micropattern to overlay onto an array of microfabricated apertures . the micropattern is effective to direct the growth of cells cultured on the asc substrate so that neurites of the cells grow to , adjacent to , or over asc apertures . any suitable alignment system may be used to align the microstamp pattern with the apertures on the chip . pc12 cells , retinal ganglion cells , or other cells grown on the substrate may be stimulated as described above on the array of microapertures connected the various microfluidics reservoirs . cells growing on asc substrates are stimulated by voltage pulses from electrodes in contact with the solution in the recess and in the reservoir . the voltage pulses are effective to depolarize the cell process adjacent or across the aperture . depolarization voltages range from about 1 mv to about 100 mv . depolarizations of between about 10 mv to about 50 mv are found to be the most effective . liposomes containing the neurotransmitter acetylcholine and adenosine - tris - phosphate are placed in the reservoir . a lipid bilayer membrane spans the aperture . cells with processes growing across or adjacent to the aperture are stimulated by contact with neurotransmitter released by liposomes fusing with the lipid bilayer membrane . fusion is promoted by an osmotic gradient across the liposome membrane and across the lipid bilayer membrane . fusion is also promoted by electrical gradients , optical methods , inclusion of fusion - promoting molecules in the liposomes and or membranes , and in other ways . neuronal excitation is measured using fluorescence with ca 2 + sensitive dyes , electrical recording , and biochemical analysis to detect neurotransmitter release from the cultured cells into solutions in the recess or reservoir adjacent the aperture . a device for localized fluid delivery 84 consists of two components , one for localization and one for fluid manipulation . devices as illustrated in fig1 a - 1 d , with or without a substrate 12 or base layer 20 , combined with the device of fig7 a , as shown in fig7 b , are configured for localized fluid delivery . fig7 a illustrates a fluidic channel portion 76 embodying features of the invention , configured to provide fluid flow to and from a reservoir 36 and aperture 24 of an asc 10 . a device for localized fluid delivery 84 is illustrated in fig7 b . fig7 b illustrates the bonding process between an asc 10 and a device for fluid manipulation 76 to provide a device for localized fluid delivery 84 . for localization , the devices use small apertures 24 ( 5 or 10 μm ) in thin silicon nitride membranes 16 ( e . g ., fig7 b ). by providing an aperture 24 of small enough size , fluid delivery may be limited in both volume and location . the devices 84 used in these experiments were 1 cm 2 chips , with a thickness of roughly 0 . 5 mm . the silicon nitride layer 16 was patterned using plasma etching to create the aperture 24 and a square hole ( a reservoir 36 ) in the backside of the wafer . the silicon was etched anisotropically along the ( 111 ) plane at an angle of 54 . 7 ° to the wafer surface , using the silicon nitride as an etch mask . the square hole 36 in the backside of the wafer was chosen to yield a region 100 μm larger than the aperture 24 . this left a thin silicon nitride membrane 16 freely spanning the region without any silicon support . silicon nitride is transparent to the visible wavelengths of light , so cells were easily imaged through this membrane . because of the high tensile strength of silicon nitride , this silicon nitride membrane was quite strong and stable ; it readily withstood the forces generated during processing . after localization , the other necessary component for a device for localized fluid delivery 84 is fluid delivery to the aperture . to accomplish this , a channel 78 made from pdms ( fig7 a ), in fluid continuity with an inlet 80 and an outlet 82 , was attached beneath the aperture 24 of an asc 10 ( fig7 b ). a master mold was made from 300 μm thick su - 8 photoresist on a silicon wafer using conventional photolithography and a mask made on a transparency using an office printer . the channels 78 were 900 μm wide , 150 μm deep , and 8 mm long , while the pdms was poured approximately 5 mm deep . a cartoon depicting this design is shown in fig7 a . once the pdms cured , the channels 78 were attached to the asc 10 as illustrated in fig7 b . the pdms was diced into 1 cm 2 pieces , with one channel per device . both the silicon and the pdms were cleaned in a dilute hydrochloric acid solution ( 1 : 4 ), followed by air plasma at 100 w for 60 seconds . the acs 10 with its silicon aperture 24 was aligned and centered on top of the pdms channel 78 , and bonded by squeezing the pieces together (˜ 0 . 2 n ) and heating on a hot plate at 80 ° c . ( see fig7 b ). once complete , this bond was irreversible ; the pdms will tear before separating from the silicon nitride . since rat pheochromocytoma cells ( pc12 ) do not readily adhere to most substrates , including silicon / silicon nitride , it was therefore necessary to treat the devices 84 to modify its surface before seeding with cells . the devices 84 were first immersed in poly ( d - lysine ) at 50 μg / ml for 30 minutes at room temperature . the poly ( d - lysine ) provides a sticking layer for an application of mouse laminin , to which the pc12 cells adhered and spread . after rinsing the devices 84 in phosphate - buffered saline ( pbs ), the laminin was applied at 5 μg / ml in pbs for 8 hours in an incubator ( 37 ° c ., 6 . 5 % co 2 ). the devices 84 were then rinsed in pbs and were ready for use . measurement of bradykinin stimulation was accomplished by observing changes in intracellular ca 2 + levels using fluo - 4 ( molecular probes , eugene , oreg .). the loading solution was made from fluo - 4 reconstituted in dimethylsulfoxide ( dmso ) at 1 mm mixed in ringer &# 39 ; s solution ( 135 mm nacl , 5 mm kcl , 10 mm d - glucose , 2 mm mgcl 2 , 2 mm cacl 2 , 10 mm hepes , ph 7 . 2 ) to a final fluo - 4 concentration of 1 μm . the stimulating solution was a mixture of bradykinin ( sigma , st . louis , mo . ), ringer &# 39 ; s , and sulforhodamine 101 ( sigma ). bradykinin was reconstituted in ringer &# 39 ; s at 1 mg / ml ( 1 mm ), and then diluted to the desired testing concentration . sulforhodamine ( texas red ) was reconstituted in dmso at 8 mm , and added to the stimulating solution to yield a final concentration of 4 - 8 μm . the texas red dye provided a means to visualize simultaneously the fluid flow and stimulation . changes in fluorescent levels were observed with either an inverted fluorescence microscope or an upright confocal microscope . the inverted microscope , used for the single - cell stimulation data was a nikon te300 ( 10x , 0 . 30 numerical aperture ( na )) with a hamamatsu orca er ccd camera . the data was collected with metamorph ( universal imaging corporation , downingtown pa .). the confocal microscope , used for the multi - cell and two - color experiments , was a nikon e800 ( 10 x dipping objective , 0 . 30 na ) with a nikon pcm 2000 confocal unit . two lasers were used simultaneously to excite the fluo - 4 ( argon ion , 488 nm ) and texas red ( hene , 543 nm ). images were sampled with two photomultiplier tubes simultaneously ( 515 / 30 bandpass and 605 / 32 bandpass filters ), and analyzed using simplepcl ( compix inc ., cranberry township , pa .). the microfluidic system , including devices 84 and associated fluid supply and syringes , supplied a small amount of stimulant through the aperture . the experimental design was to flow bradykinin through the channel 78 and to allow passage of bradykinin through the aperture 24 . while there are multiple methods for moving fluids in microchannels , and causing fluid to flow within a fluid delivery channel , including inducing flow by pumps , gravity , pressure ( such as pressure produced by a piston moving within a cylinder ), electroosmotic and other means , we chose a pressure - driven flow using a syringe . the bradykinin flow through the aperture 24 was due to a combination of the pressure gradient created by the syringe and chemical diffusion . the fluid was supplied by inserting 24 - gauge teflon hoses into each access hole 80 and 82 . one - milliliter tuberculin syringes were used to drive the fluid through the hoses , at a rate of 10 to 30 μl / s . injected volumes range from 250 μl through 1000 μl , taking 15 to 60 seconds to deliver . the average flow rate was 16 μl / s ; when combined with the channel geometry , this yielded a reynolds number of approximately 3100 , above the limit for laminar flow . being above the laminar limit is an advantage in this system . there is a 500 μm gap between the channel 78 and the aperture 24 due to the wafer thickness . nonlaminar flow allows mixing to occur by methods other than diffusion , speeding the rate at which bradykinin reached the aperture . with the fluidic delivery system in place , cell stimulation was accomplished by delivering an appropriate amount of stimulant to the cells growing on the supporting layer 16 . rat pheochromocytoma cells ( pc12 ) were chosen because of their usefulness as a neurobiological model , and because of the ease of their care and their ready availability . the pc12cell line changes its intracellular ca 2 + levels upon stimulation by bradykinin , achieving a maximum change at an external bradykinin concentration of 1 μm . the cells were seeded on the devices 84 at least four hours before testing to allow them to adhere . two parameters of control over stimulation radius were concentration and volume . by adjusting either the concentration or the volume of bradykinin supplied , the distance from the aperture at which cells were stimulated was controlled . when a large total quantity of bradykinin was delivered to the aperture 24 ( high concentration or large volume ), many pc12 cells were stimulated . this is shown in fig8 a - 8 c , where time - lapse confocal micrographs of multi - cell stimulation show a wave of stimulated pc12 cells as bradykinin flows past pc12 cells adherent to the surface of a device 84 . the aperture 24 was 10 μm in diameter ( half the size of a pc12 cell body ) and is shown located at the center of the dotted circles in fig8 a - 8 c . as shown in fig8 a - 8 c , bradykinin ( 100 μm ) was driven through the channel 78 for approximately 21 seconds . intensity cross - sections ( arbitrary units , constant scale ) indicate which pc12 cells were stimulated . fig8 a illustrates the control situation before application of bradykinin to the pc12 cells . the intensity plot in fig8 a shows two cross - sections at time zero , indicating that , at the starting time , no cells were stimulated . a ringer &# 39 ; s solution containing 100 μm bradykinin was applied to the channel 78 just after the frame displayed in fig8 a was taken . as the fluid radiated outward from the aperture 24 , pc12 cells were stimulated . within 3 seconds , a pc12 cell 25 μm from the aperture was stimulated , as the bright cell to the left and below the aperture 24 in fig8 b shows ( fig8 b , arrow ). after another 6 seconds , 9 seconds after the bradykinin began to flow , cells further away ( 100 μm ) from the aperture 24 were stimulated ( fig8 c , dual arrows ). other pc12 cells in the region were also stimulated ; the arrows indicate only representative events for which the intensity is displayed . this example demonstrates the ability to stimulate cells locally using a chemical stimulus , providing a neurobiological system configured to stimulate cells with physiological stimuli and configured for use at desired location within an organ or tissue of animal . by varying the amount and concentration of neurotransmitter supplied through a microaperture , the stimulation distance and timing can be controlled , providing control compatible with normal animal physiological . an artificial synapse chip is implanted into the subretinal space in the retina of a rabbit . a new zealand white rabbit is anesthetized according to standard animal surgery techniques . an incision is made in the sclera near to the equator of the eye and a small scleral flap opened to provide access to the underlying choroid and retina . an incision is gently made in the choroid , choriocappilaris , bruch &# 39 ; s membrane and across the retinal pigment epithelium layer to provide access to the subretinal space facing the photoreceptors . saline is gently infused into the subretinal space to separate the retinal pigment epithelium and the retinal photoreceptors . an asc is placed into the subretinal space and slowly advanced towards the fovea from the point to entry near the equator of the eye . after the asc is located at the desired location near to the fovea , a needle is inserted through the opening in the sclera , into the vitreous , and a small air bubble is injected into the vitreous to provide pressure against the retina to hold the retina in place over the implant . the incision is then closed . the air bubble shrinks and disappears within a few days as the gas is absorbed . it will be apparent from the foregoing that , while particular forms of the invention have been illustrated and described herein primarily in terms of an artificial synapse chip , a device for localized fluid delivery , and similar devices and systems , various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . moreover , those skilled in the art will recognize that features shown in one embodiment may be utilized in other embodiments . terms such a “ device ”, “ portion ”, “ section ”, “ steps ” and words of similar import when used herein shall not be construed as invoking the provisions of 35 u . s . c . § 112 ( 6 ) unless the following claims expressly use the terms “ means ” or “ step ” followed by a particular function without specific structure or action . while particular forms of the invention have been illustrated and described , it should be apparent that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . accordingly , it is not intended that the invention be limited , except as by the appended claims .	2
it has been found that the presence in the zinc of any substantial proportion of other metals -- lead , most notably -- is distinctly detrimental to the reduction . accordingly , zinc having a purity at least equal to that of j . t . baker reagent grade zinc powder is highly preferred . though not considered indispensable , it is highly desirable that the zinc be as finely particulate as possible , short of being pyrophoric . zinc metal commonly labeled as &# 34 ; dust &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; powder &# 34 ; is quite satisfactory . the base used is preferably an alkali or alkaline earth hydroxide , naoh being particularly preferred . however , strong organic bases such as tetramethyl guanidine , and choline , for example , may be suitable . the base which has actually been used is aqueous naoh in concentrations up to 30 wt . %. somewhat higher concentrations of naoh , up to say about 35 %, or even higher , may be operable ; however , the likelihood of undesired c -- cl group hydrolyses will be correspondingly higher . the amount of the base employed should be at least sufficient to provide two gram equivalents of hydroxyl ion per gram atom of zinc . the degree of agitation of the reaction mixture should be at least sufficient to ensure good contact between the aqueous and organic phases . this may be achieved by means of a stirrer , a circulating pump or by vigorous refluxing . preferably , the degree of agitation is such that the composition of any volume element of the mixture does not differ by more than a few percent from the average for the mixture as a whole . the rate of reduction has been found faster when the solvent used is dichloromethane than when perchloroethylene is used . both solvents are stable under the reaction conditions employed but dichloromethane has the further advantage of being lower boiling and thus is more readily removed in working up the reaction mixture . other halocarbons have not been tried but are not ruled out . that is , any halocarbon which forms a liquid solution with pcp at a temperature of about 55 ° c . or less and does not react with the base , the zinc or hydrogen ( produced by the reaction of zinc with water , particularly at temperatures of 55 ° or higher ) to an intolerable extent may be said to have the characteristics essential to the practice of the present invention . preferably , the halocarbon is one in which pcp dissolves to the extent of at least 30 grams per 100 ml . of the solvent at the contemplated reaction temperature and is of a nature such that the solution of the sym - tet produced readily disengages from the aqueous phase . at temperatures of from about 20 ° to 30 ° c ., to attain essentially complete conversion of the pcp generally requires from 12 to 10 hours . at 50 ° c ., reaction periods of 6 hours or less are generally sufficient . the progress of the reaction can readily be monitored by rapid analytical methods , such as ir or uv spectroscopy or vapor phase chromatography . the reaction mixture may be worked up by known techniques . if the organic phase readily disengages , the mixture may be allowed to stand and the phases separated . the aqueous phase can be extracted with some fresh solvent and the extract combined with the organic phase . the resulting solution is then concentrated , chilled and filtered . the following example is for purposes of illustration and is not to be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention in a manner inconsistent with the claims in this patent . a reaction mixture containing 3 . 3 grams ( 0 . 0131 g mole ) of pcp , 3 grams ( 0 . 0459 g atom ) of reagent grade zinc powder , 30 ml . of 30 % aqueous naoh and 30 ml . of methylene chloride was stirred for 10 hours at room temperature in a 100 ml . round - bottomed flask and then allowed to settle . the organic layer was separated and worked up in essentially the manner described above . 2 . 7 grams ( 95 % of theoretical yield ) of a product identified as 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 - tetrachloropyridine was obtained .	2
embodiments presented herein generally relate to systems , devices , and related processes of manufacturing small devices . more specifically , embodiments presented herein relate to systems , devices , and related processes of imprint lithography . for example , these embodiments may have application to imprinting very small features on a substrate , such as a semiconductor wafer . it should be understood that these embodiments may also have application to other tasks , for example , the manufacture of cost - effective micro - electro - mechanical systems ( or mems ). embodiments may also have application to the manufacture of other kinds of devices including , but not limited to : patterned magnetic media for data storage , micro - optical devices , biological and chemical devices , x - ray optical devices , etc . with reference now to the figures , and specifically to fig1 a and 1b , therein are shown arrangements of a template 12 predisposed with respect to a substrate 20 upon which desired features are to be imprinted using imprint lithography . specifically , the template 12 may include a surface 14 that is fabricated to take on the shape of desired features which , in turn , may be transferred to the substrate 20 . in some embodiments , a transfer layer 18 may be placed between the substrate 20 and the template 12 . transfer layer 18 may receive the desired features from the template 12 via imprinted layer 16 . as is well known in the art , transfer layer 18 may allow one to obtain high aspect ratio structures ( or features ) from low aspect ratio imprinted features . for the purpose of imprint lithography , it is important to maintain the template 12 and substrate 20 as close to each other as possible and nearly parallel . for example , for features that are about 100 nm wide and about 100 nm deep , an average gap of about 200 nm or less with a variation of less than about 50 nm across the imprinting area of the substrate 20 may be required for the imprint lithography process to be successful . embodiments presented herein provide a way of controlling the spacing between the template 12 and substrate 20 for successful imprint lithography given such tight and precise gap requirements . fig1 a and 1b illustrate two types of problems that may be encountered in imprint lithography . in fig1 a , a wedge shaped imprinted layer 16 results because the template 12 is closer to the substrate 20 at one end of the imprinted layer 16 . fig1 a illustrates the importance of maintaining template 12 and substrate 20 substantially parallel during pattern transfer . fig1 b shows the imprinted layer 16 being too thick . both of these conditions may be highly undesirable . embodiments presented herein provide systems , processes and related devices which may eliminate the conditions illustrated in fig1 a and 1b as well as other orientation problems associated with prior art lithography techniques . fig2 a through 2e illustrate an embodiment of an imprint lithography process , denoted generally as 30 . in fig2 a , template 12 may be orientated in spaced relation to the substrate 20 so that a gap 31 is formed in the space separating template 12 and substrate 20 . surface 14 of template 12 may be treated with a thin layer 13 that lowers the template surface energy and assists in separation of template 12 from substrate 20 . the manner of orientation and devices for controlling gap 31 between template 12 and substrate 20 are discussed below . next , gap 31 may be filled with a substance 40 that conforms to the shape of treated surface 14 . alternately , in an embodiment , substance 40 may be dispensed upon substrate 20 prior to moving template 12 into a desired position relative to substrate 20 . substance 40 may form an imprinted layer such as imprinted layer 16 shown in fig1 a and 1b . preferably , substance 40 may be a liquid so that it may fill the space of gap 31 rather easily and quickly without the use of high temperatures and the gap can be closed without requiring high pressures . further details regarding appropriate selections for substance 40 are discussed below . a curing agent 32 may be applied to the template 12 causing substance 40 to harden and assume the shape of the space defined by gap 31 . in this way , desired features 44 ( fig2 d ) from the template 12 may be transferred to the upper surface of the substrate 20 . transfer layer 18 may be provided directly on the upper surface of substrate 20 . transfer layer 18 may facilitate the amplification of features transferred from the template 12 to generate high aspect ratio features . as depicted in fig2 d , template 12 may be removed from substrate 20 leaving the desired features 44 thereon . the separation of template 12 from substrate 20 must be done so that desired features 44 remains intact without shearing or tearing from the surface of the substrate 20 . embodiments presented herein provide a method and associated system for peeling and pulling ( referred to herein as the “ peel - and - pull ” method ) template 12 from substrate 20 following imprinting so that desired feature 44 remain intact . finally , in fig2 e , features 44 transferred from template 12 to substance 40 may be amplified in vertical size by the action of the transfer layer 18 as is known in the use of bilayer resist processes . the resulting structure may be further processed to complete the manufacturing process using well - known techniques . fig3 summarizes an embodiment of an imprint lithography process , denoted generally as 50 , in flow chart form . initially , at step 52 , course orientation of a template and a substrate may be performed so that a rough alignment of the template and substrate may be achieved . an advantage of course orientation at step 52 may be that it may allow pre - calibration in a manufacturing environment , where numerous devices are to be manufactured , with efficiency and with high production yields . for example , where the substrate includes one of many die on a semiconductor wafer , course alignment ( step 52 ) may be performed once on the first die and applied to all other dies during a single production run . in this way , production cycle times may be reduced and yields may be increased . at step 54 , a substance may be dispensed onto the substrate . the substance may be a curable organosilicon solution or other organic liquid that may become a solid when exposed to activating light . the fact that a liquid is used may eliminate the need for high temperatures and high pressures associated with prior art lithography techniques . next , at step 56 , the spacing between the template and substrate may be controlled so that a relatively uniform gap may be created between the two layers permitting the precise orientation required for successful imprinting . embodiments presented herein provide a device and system for achieving the orientation ( both course and fine ) required at step 56 . at step 58 , the gap may be closed with fine vertical motion of the template with respect to the substrate and the substance . the substance may be cured ( step 59 ) resulting in a hardening of the substance into a form having the features of the template . next , the template may separated from the substrate , step 60 , resulting in features from the template being imprinted or transferred onto the substrate . finally , the structure may be etched , step 62 , using a preliminary etch to remove residual material and a well - known oxygen etching technique to etch the transfer layer . in various embodiments , a template may incorporate unpatterned regions i ) in a plane with the template surface , ii ) recessed in the template , iii ) protrude from the template , or iv ) a combination of the above . a template may be manufactured with protrusions , which may be rigid . such protrusions may provide a uniform spacer layer useful for particle tolerance and optical devices such as gratings , holograms , etc . alternately , a template may be manufactured with protrusions that are compressible . in general , a template may have a rigid body supporting it via surface contact from : i ) the sides , ii ) the back , iii ) the front or iv ) a combination of the above . the template support may have the advantage of limiting template deformation or distortion under applied pressure . in some embodiments , a template may be coated in some regions with a reflective coating . in some such embodiments , the template may incorporate holes in the reflective coating such that light may pass into or through the template . such coatings may be useful in locating the template for overlay corrections using interferometry . such coatings may also allow curing with a curing agent source that illuminates through the sides of the template rather than the top . this may allow flexibility in the design of a template holder , of gap sensing techniques , and of overlay mark detection systems , among other things . exposure of the template may be performed : i ) at normal incidences to the template , ii ) at inclined angles to the template , or iii ) through a side surface of the template . in some embodiments , a template that is rigid may be used in combination with a flexible substrate . the template may be manufactured using optical lithography , electron beam lithography , ion - beam lithography , x - ray lithography , extreme ultraviolet lithography , scanning probe lithography , focused ion beam milling , interferometric lithography , epitaxial growth , thin film deposition , chemical etch , plasma etch , ion milling , reactive ion etch or a combination of the above . the template may be formed on a substrate having a flat , parabolic , spherical , or other surface topography . the template may be used with a substrate having a flat , parabolic , spherical , or other surface topography . the substrate may contain a previously patterned topography and / or a film stack of multiple materials . in an embodiment depicted in fig4 , a template may include a patterning region 401 , an entrainment channel 402 , and an edge 403 . template edge 403 may be utilized for holding the template within a template holder . entrainment channel 402 may be configured to entrain excess fluid thereby preventing its spread to adjacent patterning areas , as discussed in more detail below . in some embodiments , a patterned region of a template may be flat . such embodiments may be useful for planarizing a substrate . in some embodiments , the template may be manufactured with a multi - depth design . that is , various features of the template may be at different depths with relation to the surface of the template . for example , entrainment channel 402 may have a depth greater than patterning area 401 . an advantage of such an embodiment may be that accuracy in sensing the gap between the template and substrate may be improved . very small gaps ( e . g ., less than about 100 nm ) may be difficult to sense ; therefore , adding a step of a known depth to the template may enable more accurate gap sensing . an advantage of a dual - depth design may be that such a design may enable using a standardized template holder to hold an imprint template of a given size which may include dies of various sizes . a third advantage of a dual - depth design may enable using the peripheral region to hold the template . in such a system , all portions of the template and substrate interface having functional structures may be exposed to the curing agent . as depicted in fig5 , a template 500 with the depth of the peripheral region 501 properly designed may abut adjacent imprints 502 , 503 . additionally , the peripheral region 501 of imprint template 500 may remain a safe vertical distance away from imprints 503 . a dual - depth imprint template , as described above , may be fabricated using various methods . in an embodiment depicted in fig6 , a single , thick substrate 601 may be formed with both a high - resolution , shallow - depth die pattern 602 , and a low - resolution , large - depth peripheral pattern 603 . in an embodiment , as depicted in fig7 , a thin substrate 702 ( e . g ., quartz wafer ) may be formed having a high - resolution , shallow - depth die pattern . 701 . die pattern 701 may then be cut from substrate 702 . die pattern 701 may then be bonded to a thicker substrate 703 , which has been sized to fit into an imprint template holder on an imprint machine . this bonding may be preferably achieved using an adhesive 704 with an index of refraction of the curing agent ( e . g ., uv light ) similar to that of the template material . additional imprint template designs are depicted in fig8 a , 8 b , and 8 c and generally referenced by numerals 801 , 802 , and 803 , respectively . each of template designs 801 , 802 and 803 may include recessed regions which may be used for gap measurement and or entrainment of excess fluid . in an embodiment , a template may include a mechanism for controlling fluid spread that is based on the physical properties of the materials as well as geometry of the template . the amount of excess fluid which may be tolerated without causing loss of substrate area may limited by the surface energies of the various materials , the fluid density and template geometry . accordingly , a relief structure may be used to entrain the excess fluid encompassing a region surrounding the desired molding or patterning area . this region may generally be referred to as the “ kerf .” the relief structure in the kerf may be recessed into the template surface using standard processing techniques used to construct the pattern or mold relief structure , as discussed above . in conventional photolithography , the use of optical proximity corrections in the photomasks design is becoming the standard to produce accurate patterns of the designed dimensions . similar concepts may be applied to micro - and nano - molding or imprint lithography . a substantial difference in imprint lithography processes may be that errors may not be due to diffraction or optical interference but rather due to physical property changes that may occur during processing . these changes may determine the nature or the need for engineered relief corrections in the geometry of the template . a template in which a pattern relief structure is designed to accommodate material changes ( such as shrinkage or expansion ) during imprinting , similar in concept to optical proximity correction used in optical lithography , may eliminate errors due to these changes in physical properties . by accounting for changes in physical properties , such as volumetric expansion or contraction , relief structure may be adjusted to generate the exact desired replicated feature . for example , fig9 depicts an example of an imprint formed without accounting for material property changes 901 , and an imprint formed accounting for changes in material properties 902 . in certain embodiments , a template with features having a substantially rectangular profile 904 , may be subject to deformations due to material shrinkage during curing . to compensate for such material shrinkage , template features may be provided with an angled profile 905 . with respect to imprint lithography processes , the durability of the template and its release characteristics may be of concern . a durable template may be formed of a silicon or silicon dioxide substrate . other suitable materials may include , but are not limited to : silicon germanium carbon , gallium nitride , silicon germanium , sapphire , gallium arsinide , epitaxial silicon , poly - silicon , gate oxide , quartz or combinations thereof . templates may also include materials used to form detectable features , such as alignment markings . for example , detectable features may be formed of siox , where x is less than 2 . in some embodiments x may be about 1 . 5 . it is believed that this material may be opaque to visible light , but transparent to some activating light wavelengths . it has been found through experimentation that the durability of the template may be improved by treating the template to form a thin layer on the surface of the template . for example , an alkylsilane , a fluoroalkylsilane , or a fluoroalkyltrichlorosilane layer may be formed on the surface , in particular tridecafluoro - 1 , 1 , 2 , 2 - tetrahydrooctyl trichlorosilane ( c 5 f 13 c 2 h 4 sicl 3 ) may be used . such a treatment may form a self - assembled monolayer ( sam ) on the surface of the template . a surface treatment process may be optimized to yield low surface energy coatings . such a coating may be used in preparing imprint templates for imprint lithography . treated templates may have desirable release characteristics relative to untreated templates . for example , newly - treated templates may posses surface free energies , λ treated of about 14 dynes / cm . untreated template surfaces may posses surface free energies , λ untreated about 65 dynes / cm . a treatment procedure disclosed herein may yield films exhibiting a high level of durability . durability may be highly desirable since it may lead to a template that may withstand numerous imprints in a manufacturing setting . a coatings for the template surface may be formed using either a liquid - phase process or a vapor - phase process . in a liquid - phase process , the substrate may be immersed in a solution of precursor and solvent . in a vapor - phase process , a precursor may be delivered via an inert carrier gas . it may be difficult to obtain a purely anhydrous solvent for use in liquid - phase treatments . water in the bulk phase during treatment may result in clump deposition , which may adversely affect the final quality or coverage of the coating . in an embodiment of a vapor - phase process , the template may be placed in a vacuum chamber , after which the chamber may be cycle - purged to remove excess water . some adsorbed water may remain on the surface of the template . a small amount of water may be needed to complete a surface reaction which forms the coating . it is believed that the reaction may be described by the formula : to facilitate the reaction , the template may be brought to a desired reaction temperature via a temperature - controlled chuck . the precursor may then be fed into the reaction chamber for a prescribed time . reaction parameters such as template temperature , precursor concentration , flow geometries , etc . may be tailored to the specific precursor and template substrate combination . as previously mentioned , substance 40 may be a liquid so that it may fill the space of gap 31 . for example , substance 40 may be a low viscosity liquid monomer solution . a suitable solution may have a viscosity ranging from about 0 . 01 cps to about 100 cps ( measured at 25 degrees c ). low viscosities are especially desirable for high - resolution ( e . g ., sub - 100 nm ) structures . in particular , in the sub - 50 nm regime , the viscosity of the solution should be at or below about 25 cps , or more preferably below about 5 cps ( measured at 25 degrees c .). in an embodiment , a suitable solution may include a mixture of 50 % by weight n - butyl acrylate and 50 % sia 0210 . 0 ( 3 - acryoloxypropyltristrimethylsiloxane ) silane . to this solution may be added a small percentage of a polymerization initiator ( e . g ., a photo initiator ). for example , a 3 % by weight solution of a 1 : 1 irg 819 and irg 184 and 5 % of sm 1402 . 0 may be suitable . the viscosity of this mixture is about 1 cps . in an embodiment , an imprint lithography system may include automatic fluid dispensing method and system for dispensing fluid on the surface of a substrate ( e . g ., a semiconductor wafer ). the dispensing method may use a modular automated fluid dispenser with one or more extended dispenser tips . the dispensing method may use an x - y stage to generate relative lateral motions between the dispenser tip and the substrate . the method may eliminate several problems with imprint lithography using low viscosity fluids . for example , the method may eliminate air bubble trapping and localized deformation of an imprinting area . embodiments may also provide a way of achieving low imprinting pressures while spreading the fluid across the entire gap between the imprinting template and the substrate , without unnecessary wastage of excess fluid . in an embodiment , a dispensed volume may typically be less than about 130 nl ( nano - liter ) for a 1 inch 2 imprint area . after dispensing , subsequent processes may involve exposing the template and substrate assembly to a curing agent . separation of the template from the substrate may leave a transferred image on top of the imprinted surface . the transferred image may lie on a thin layer of remaining exposed material . the remaining layer may be referred to as a “ base layer .” the base layer should be thin and uniform for a manufacturable imprint . imprint processes may involve high pressures and / or high temperatures applied at the template and substrate interface . however , for the purpose of a manufacturable imprint lithography process including high resolution overlay alignment , high pressures and temperatures should be avoided . embodiments disclosed herein avoid the need for high temperature by using low viscosity photo - curable fluids . further , imprinting pressures may be minimized by reducing squeezing force required to spread the fluid across the entire imprinting area . therefore , for the purpose of fluid based imprint lithography , a fluid dispense process should satisfy the following properties : 1 . no air bubble should be trapped between template and substrate ; 2 . direct contact between the dispenser tip and substrate should be avoided to minimize particle generation ; 3 . pressure required to fill the gap between template and substrate should be minimized ; 4 . non - uniform fluid buildup and / or pressure gradients should be minimized to reduce non - uniform localized deformation of template - substrate interface ; and 5 . waste of the dispensed fluid should be minimized . in some embodiments , relative motion between a displacement based fluid dispenser tip and a substrate may be used to form a pattern with substantially continuous lines on an imprinting area . size of the cross section of the line and the shape of the line may be controlled by balancing rates of dispensing and relative motion . during the dispensing process , dispenser tips may be fixed near ( e . g ., on the order of tens of microns ) the substrate . two methods of forming a line pattern are depicted in fig1 a and 10b . the pattern depicted in fig1 a and 10b is a sinusoidal pattern ; however , other patterns are possible . as depicted in fig1 a and 10b a continuous line pattern may be drawn using either a single dispenser tip 1001 or multiple dispenser tips 1002 . dispensing rate , v d , and relative lateral velocity of a substrate , v s , may be related as follows : v d = al ( where , ‘ a ’ is the cross section area of line pattern ), ( 3 ) the width of the initial line pattern may normally depend on the tip size of a dispenser . the tip dispenser may be fixed . in an embodiment , a fluid dispensing controller 1111 ( as depicted in fig1 ) may be used to control the volume of fluid dispensed ( v d ) and the time taken to dispense the fluid ( t d ). if v d and t d are fixed , increasing the length of the line leads to lower height of the cross section of the line pattern . increasing pattern length may be achieved by increasing the spatial frequency of the periodic patterns . lower height of the pattern may lead to a decrease in the amount of fluid to be displaced during imprint processes . by using multiple tips connected to the same dispensing line , line patterns with long lengths may be formed faster as compared to the case of a single dispenser tip . in an embodiment , a displacement based fluid delivery system may include : a fluid container 1101 , an inlet tube 1102 , an inlet valve 1103 , an outlet valve 1104 , a syringe 1105 , a syringe actuator 1106 , a dispenser tip 1107 , an x stage actuator 1109 , a y stage actuator 1110 , a dispenser controller 1111 , an xy stage controller 1112 , and a main control computer 1113 . a suitable displacement based dispenser may be available from the hamilton company . fig1 illustrates several undesirable fluid patterns or dispensing methods for low viscosity fluids . these dispensing patterns may lead to one or more problems , including : trapping air bubbles , localized deformations , and waste of fluid . for example , dispensing a single drop at the center of the imprinting area 1201 , or dispensing irregular lines 1205 may lead to localized deformations of the template and / or substrate . dispensing several drops 1202 , or lines 1206 in a circumferential pattern may lead to trapping of air bubbles . other dispensing patterns with nearly closed circumferential patterns 1204 may similarly lead to air bubble trapping . likewise , spraying or random placement of droplets 1203 may lead to trapping of air - bubbles . spin - coating a substrate with a low viscosity fluid may cause a “ dewetting ” problem due to the thin film instability . dewetting may lead to formation of numerous small drops of fluid on the substrate , instead of a thin uniform layer of fluid . in an embodiment , a fluid dispensing method may dispense multiple small drops of liquid that may later be formed into a continuous body as they expand . fig1 depicts the case of using five drops of liquid . here , five drops are used only for the purpose of illustration . other “ open ” patterns , such as a sinusoidal line , a ‘ w ’, or an ‘ x ’ may be implemented using this method . as the template - substrate gap decreases , circular drops 1301 may become thinner and wider causing neighboring drops to merge together 1302 . therefore , even though the initial dispensing may not include a continuous form , the expanding liquid may expel air from the gap between the template and substrate . a pattern effective for use in this method should be dispensed in such a way that as droplets expand , they do not trap any air between the template and substrate . small drops of liquid whose volume may be accurately specified may be dispensed using micro - solenoid valves with a pressure - supporting unit . another type of the liquid dispensing actuator may include a piezo - actuated dispenser . advantages of a system with a micro - solenoid valve dispenser as compared to a displacement based fluid dispenser may include faster dispensing time and more accurate volume control . these advantages may be especially desirable for larger size imprints ( e . g ., several inches across ). an embodiment of a system including micro - solenoid valves is depicted in fig1 . the system may include : fluid container 1401 , an inlet tube 1402 , an inlet valve 1403 , a pump 1404 , an outlet valve 1405 , a pump controller 1406 , a micro - solenoid valve 1407 , a micro - solenoid valve controller 1408 , an x - y stage 1409 , an x - y stage controller 1410 , and a main computer 1412 . a substrate 1411 may be placed on x - y stage 1409 . a suitable micro - solenoid valve dispenser system may be available from the lee company . a dispensing pattern that may be useful for large imprint areas ( e . g ., greater than several inches 2 ) is depicted in fig1 a . in such an embodiment , parallel lines of fluid 1503 may be dispensed . parallel lines of fluid 1503 may be expanded in such a way that air may be expelled from the gap as template 1501 approaches substrate 1502 . to facilitate expanding lines 1503 in the desired manner , template 1501 may be close to the gap in an intentionally wedged configuration ( as depicted in fig1 b ). that is , the template / substrate gap may be closed along lines 1503 ( e . g ., the wedge angle may be parallel to the lines 1503 ). an advantage of providing a well - distributed initial fluid layer may be that the orientation error between the template and substrate may be compensated for . this may be due to the hydraulic dynamics of the thin layer of fluid and compliance of the orientation stage . the lower portion of the template may contact the dispensed fluid earlier than other portions of the template . as the gap between the template and substrate gets smaller , the imbalance of reaction forces between the lower and higher portions of the template increases . this imbalance of forces may lead to a correcting motion for the template and substrate , e . g ., bring them into a substantially parallel relationship . successful imprint lithography may require precise alignment and orientation of the template with respect to the substrate to control the gap in between the template and substrate . embodiments presented herein may provide a system capable of achieving precise alignment and gap control in a production fabrication process . in an embodiment , the system may include a high resolution x - y translation stage . in an embodiment , the system may provide a pre - calibration stage for performing a preliminary and course alignment operation between the template and substrate surface to bring the relative alignment to within the motion range of a fine movement orientation stage . this pre - calibration stage may be required only when a new template is installed into the apparatus ( also sometimes known as a stepper ). the pre - calibration stage may consist of a base plate , a flexure component , and a plurality of micrometers or high resolution actuators coupling the base plate and the flexure component . fig1 depicts an embodiment of an x - y translation stage in an assembled configuration , and generally referenced by numeral 1600 . the overall footprint may be less than about 20 inches by 20 inches and the height may be about 6 inches ( including a wafer chuck ). such an embodiment may provide x and y - axis translation ranges of motion of about 12 inches . a second embodiment of an x - y translation stage is depicted in fig1 , and generally referenced by numeral 1700 . to provide a similar range of motion to that of x - y stage 1600 , stage 1700 may have a foot print of about 29 inches by 29 inches and a height of about 15 inches ( including a wafer chuck ). stages 1600 and 1700 differ mainly in that additional linkages 1701 are oriented vertically , thereby providing additional load bearing support for the translation stage . both x - y stage 1600 and x - y stage 1700 are flexure based systems . flexures are widely used in precision machines since they may offer frictionless , particle - free and low maintenance operation . flexures may also provide extremely high resolution . however , most flexure based systems may possess limited ranges of motion ( e . g ., sub mm range of motion ). embodiments disclosed herein may have a range of motion of more than 12 inches . it is believed that such stages may be cost - effective for lithographic applications , particularly in vacuum . further , for imprint lithography techniques , the presence of imprint forces may give embodiments presented herein significant advantages . in general , an x - y stage may include two types of components : actuation components and load - carrying components . lead screw assembly mechanisms have been widely used where the positioning accuracy is not a very significant factor . for high accuracy applications , ball screw assemblies have been used for both the actuating and load - carrying components . both of these designs may be prone to problems of backlash and stiction . further , the need for lubrication may make these designs undesirable for use in vacuum or in particle - sensitive applications ( e . g ., imprint lithography ). additionally , some designs may utilize air bearings . air bearings may substantially eliminate problems of stiction and backlash . however , air bearings may provide limited load bearing capacities . additionally , air bearings may be unsuitable for use in vacuum environments . fig1 shows a schematic of portion of a basic linkage 1800 . link 1 ( 1804 ) and link 3 ( 1805 ) may be of the same length . when a moving body 1801 moves along the x - axis , all of the joints in linkage 1800 rotate by the same absolute angle . it should be noted that the motion range may be independent of the length of link 2 ( 1803 ). due to kinematic constraints , link 2 ( 1803 ) may remain parallel to a line between joint 1 ( 1806 ) and joint 4 ( 1807 ). in linkage 1800 , the range of motion , lm , may be given as : l m = 2 d 1 [ cos ( θ o − α max / 2 )− cos ( θ o + α max / 2 )]= 4 d 1 sin ( θ 0 ) sin ( α max / 2 ), ( 5 ) where , θ o is the angle of joint 1 ( 1806 ) when all flexure joints are in their equilibrium conditions , α max is the maximum rotation range of the flexure pivots , and d 1 is the length of links 1 and 3 , ( 1804 ) and ( 1805 ). as shown in eqn . ( 5 ), for given d 1 , the motion range is maximized when θ 0 = 90 degree . therefore , the link length may be given as : therefore , using an α max of 600 , the minimum link length for a 12 inch motion range , is 6 inches . fig1 depicts an embodiment of a basic linkage similar to linkage 1800 , but with the addition of two cylindrical disks 1902 . a kinematic study shows that if joint 2 1904 and joint 3 1905 of fig1 rotate in opposite directions by the same angle , the stage may generate a pure translational motion along the x axis . by adding cylindrical disks 1902 at flexure joints 2 1904 and 3 1905 , the resulting rolling contact may rotate link 1 1908 and link 2 1906 in opposite directions . in an embodiment , no additional joints or bearings may be required since cylindrical discs 1902 may be coupled to links 1908 and 1906 . in order to prevent discs 1902 from slipping , an appropriate pre - load may be applied between the two disks . compared to conventional stages where direct driven mechanisms or bearings may be used , the contact surface here may be relatively small , and relatively easy to maintain . note that although disks 1902 are not depicted in relation to x - y stages 1600 , and 1700 , disks 1902 may be present in some embodiments . links 1602 and 1601 in fig1 may correspond to links 1908 and 1906 of fig1 . thus disks 1902 may be present at location 1603 ( as well as other locations not visible in the fig1 ). referring to fig1 , disks 1902 may be present at location 1702 ( as well as other locations not visible in fig1 ). as the actuation system for either of stages 1600 or 1700 , two linear servo motors ( as depicted in fig2 and referenced by numeral 2000 ) may be suitable . one linear servo motor may serve each translation axis . suitable linear servo motors may be available from the trilogy systems corporation . an advantage of such linear servo motors may be the absence of frictional contact . another advantage of such linear servo motors may be the fact that they may readily produces actuation forces greater than about 100 pounds . therefore , actuation components may provide only translational motion control in the x and y directions . it should be noted that in some embodiments , the actuator of the lower stage might need to be more powerful than the actuator of the upper stage . in some embodiments , laser interferometers may provide a feedback signal to control x and y positioning of the x - y stage . it is believed that laser interferometry may provide nm level positioning control . placement errors can be compensated using laser interferometers and high resolution x - y stages ( such as x - y stage 1700 , depicted in fig1 ). if the orientation alignments between the template and substrate are independent from x - y motions , the placement error may need to be compensated only once for an entire substrate wafer ( i . e ., “ global overlay ”). if orientation alignments between the template and substrate are coupled with x - y motions and / or excessive local orientation variations on substrate exist , then x - y position changes of the template relative to the substrate may need to be compensated for ( i . e ., field - to - field overlay ). overlay alignment issues are further discussed with regard the overlay alignment section . fig2 and 22 provide global and field - to - field overlay error compensation algorithms , respectively . in an embodiment , orientation of template and substrate may be achieved by a pre - calibration stage ( automatically , using actuators or manual , using micrometers ) and a fine orientation stage , which may be active or passive . either or both of these stages may include other mechanisms , but flexure - based mechanisms may be preferred in order to avoid particles . the calibration stage may be mounted to a frame , and the fine orientation stage may be mounted to the pre - calibration stage . such an embodiment may thereby form a serial mechanical arrangement . a fine orientation stage may include one or more passive compliant members . a “ passive compliant member ” may generally refer to a member that gets its motion from compliance . that is , motion may be activated by direct or indirect contact with the liquid . if the fine orientation stage is passive , then it may be designed to have the most dominant compliance about two orientation axes . the two orientation axes may be orthogonal and may lie on the template lower surface ( as described with referenced to fig4 ). the two orthogonal torsional compliance values may typically be the same for a square template . the fine orientation stage may be designed such that when the template is non - parallel with respect to the substrate , as it makes contact with the liquid , the resulting uneven liquid pressure may rapidly correct the orientation error . in an embodiment , the correction may be affected with minimal , or no overshoot . further , a fine orientation stage as described above may hold the substantially parallel orientation between the template and substrate for a sufficiently long period to allow curing of the liquid . in an embodiment , a fine orientation stage may include one or more actuators . for example , piezo actuators ( as described with reference to fig4 ) may be suitable . in such an embodiment , the effective passive compliance of the fine orientation stage coupled with the pre - calibration stage should still be substantially torsional about the two orientation axes . the geometric and material parameters of all the structural and active elements together may contribute to this effective passive stiffness . for instance , piezo actuators may also be compliant in tension and compression . the geometric and material parameters may be synthesized to obtain the desired torsional compliance about the two orthogonal orientation axes . a simple approach to this synthesis may be to make the compliance of the actuators along their actuation direction in the fine orientation stage higher than the structural compliances in the rest of the stage system . this may provide passive self - correction capability when a non - parallel template comes into contact with the liquid on the substrate . further , this compliance should be chosen to allow for rapidly correcting orientation errors , with minimal or no overshoot . the fine orientation stage may hold the substantially parallel orientation between the template and substrate for sufficiently long period to allow curing of the liquid . overlay alignment schemes may include measurement of alignment errors followed by compensation of these errors to achieve accurate alignment of an imprint template , and a desired imprint location on a substrate . the measurement techniques used in proximity lithography , x - ray lithography , and photolithography ( e . g ., laser interferometry , capacitance sensing , automated image processing of overlay marks on the mask and substrate , etc ) may be adapted for the imprint lithography process with appropriate modifications . types of overlay errors for lithography processes may include placement error , theta error , magnification error , and mask distortion error . an advantage of embodiments disclosed herein may be that mask distortion errors may not be present because the disclosed processes may operate at relatively low temperatures ( e . g ., room temperature ) and low pressures . therefore , these embodiments may not induce significant distortion . further , these embodiments may use templates that are made of a relatively thick substrate . this may lead to much smaller mask ( or template ) distortion errors as compared to other lithography processes where masks are made of relatively thin substrates . further , the entire area of the templates for imprint lithography processes may be transparent to the curing agent ( e . g ., uv light ), which may minimize heating due to absorption of energy from the curing agent . the reduced heating may minimize the occurrence of heat - induced distortions compared to photolithography processes where a significant portion of the bottom surface of a mask may be opaque due to the presence of a metallic coating . placement error may generally refer to x - y positioning errors between a template and substrate ( that is , translation along the x and / or y - axis ). theta error may generally refer to the relative orientation error about z - axis ( that is , rotation about the z - axis ). magnification error may generally refer to thermal or material induced shrinkage or expansion of the imprinted area as compared to the original patterned area on the template . in imprint lithography processes , orientation alignment for gap control purposes between a template and substrate corresponding to the angles α and β in fig2 may need to be performed frequently if excessive field - to - field surface variations exist on the substrate . in general , it is desirable for the variation across an imprinting area to be smaller than about one - half of the imprinted feature height . if orientation alignments are coupled with the x - y positioning of the template and substrate , field - to - field placement error compensations may be necessary . however , embodiments of orientation stages that may perform orientation alignment without inducing placement errors are presented herein . photolithography processes that use a focusing lens system may position the mask and substrate such that it may be possible to locate the images of two alignment marks ( one on the mask and the other on the substrate ) onto the same focal plane . alignment errors may be induced by looking at the relative positioning of these alignment marks . in imprint lithography processes , the template and substrate maintain a relatively small gap ( of the order of micro meters or less ) during the overlay error measurement . therefore , overlay error measurement tools may need to focus two overlay marks from different planes onto the same focal plane . such a requirement may not be critical for devices with features that are relatively large ( e . g ., about 0 . 5 μm ). however , for critical features in the sub - 100 nm region , the images of the two overlay marks should to be captured on the same focal plane in order to achieve high resolution overlay error measurements . accordingly , overlay error measurement and error compensation methods for imprint lithography processes should satisfy the following requirements : 1 . overlay error measurement tools should be able to focus on two overlay marks that are not on the same plane ; 2 . overlay error correction tools should be able to move the template and substrate relatively in x and y in the presence of a thin layer of fluid between the template and substrate ; 3 . overlay error correction tools should be able to compensate for theta error in the presence of a thin layer of fluid between the template and substrate ; and 4 . overlay error correction tools should be able to compensate for magnification error . the first requirement presented above can be satisfied by i ) moving an optical imaging tool up and down ( as in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 204 , 739 ) or ii ) using illumination sources with two different wavelengths . for both these approaches , knowledge of the gap measurement between the template and the substrate is useful , especially for the second method . the gap between the template and substrate may be measured using one of existing non - contact film thickness measurement tools including broad - band interferometry , laser interferometry and capacitance sensors . fig2 illustrates the positions of template 2400 , substrate 2401 , fluid 2403 , gap 2405 and overlay error measurement tools 2402 . the height of a measuring tool may be adjusted 2406 according to the gap information to acquire two overlay marks on the same imaging plane . in order to fulfill this approach an image storing 2407 device may be required . additionally , the positioning devices of the template and wafer should be vibrationally isolated from the up and down motions of the measuring device 2402 . further , when scanning motions in x - y directions between the template and substrate are needed for high resolution overlay alignment , this approach may not produce continuous images of the overlay marks . therefore , this approach may be adapted for relatively low - resolution overlay alignment schemes for the imprint lithography process . fig2 illustrates an apparatus for focusing two alignment marks from different planes onto a single focal plane . apparatus 2500 may use the change of focal length resulting from light with distinct wavelengths being used as the illumination sources . apparatus 2500 may include an image storage device 2503 , and illumination source ( not shown ), and a focusing device 2505 . light with distinct wavelengths may be generated either by using individual light sources or by using a single broad band light source and inserting optical band - pass filters between the imaging plane and the alignment marks . depending on the gap between the template 2501 and substrate 2502 , a different set of two wavelengths may be selected to adjust the focal lengths . under each illumination , each overlay mark may produce two images on the imaging plane as depicted in fig2 . a first image 2601 may be a clearly focused image . a second image 2602 may be an out - of - focus image . in order to eliminate each out - of - focus image , several methods may be used . in a first method , under illumination with a first wavelength of light , two images may be received by an imaging array ( e . g ., a ccd array ). images which may be received are depicted in fig2 and generally referenced by numeral 2604 . image 2602 may correspond to an overlay alignment mark on the substrate . image 2601 may correspond to an overlay alignment mark on the template . when image 2602 is focused , image 2601 may be out - of - focus , and visa - versa . in an embodiment , an image processing technique may be used to erase geometric data corresponding to pixels associated with image 2602 . thus , the out of focus image of the substrate mark may be eliminated , leaving image 2601 . using the same procedure and a second wavelength of light , image 2605 and 2606 may be formed on the imaging array . the procedure may eliminate out of focus image 2606 . thus image 2605 may remain . the two remaining focused images 2601 and 2605 may then be combined onto a single imaging plane 2603 for making overlay error measurements . a second method may utilize two coplanar polarizing arrays , as depicted in fig2 , and polarized illumination sources . fig2 illustrates overlay marks 2701 and orthogonally polarized arrays 2702 . polarizing arrays 2702 may be made on the template surface or may be placed above it . under two polarized illumination sources , only focused images 2703 ( each corresponding to a distinct wavelength and polarization ) may appear on the imaging plane . thus , out of focus images may be filtered out by polarizing arrays 2702 . an advantage of this method may be that it may not require an image processing technique to eliminate out - of - focused images . it should be noted that , if the gap between the template and substrate is too small during overlay measurement , error correction may become difficult due to stiction or increased shear forces of the thin fluid layer . additionally , overlay errors may be caused by the non - ideal vertical motion between the template and substrate if the gap is too large . therefore , an optimal gap between the template and substrate should to be determined , where the overlay error measurements and corrections may be performed . moiré pattern based overlay measurement has been used for optical lithography processes . for imprint lithography processes , where two layers of moiré patterns are not on the same plane but still overlapped in the imaging array , acquiring two individual focused images may be difficult to achieve . however , carefully controlling the gap between the template and substrate within the depth of focus of the optical measurement tool and without direct contact between the template and substrate may allow two layers of moiré patterns to be simultaneously acquired with minimal focusing problems . it is believed that other standard overlay schemes based on the moiré patterns may be directly implemented to imprint lithography process . placement errors may be compensated for using capacitance sensors or laser interferometers , and high resolution x - y stages . in an embodiment where orientation alignments between the template and substrate are independent from x - y motions , placement error may need to be compensated for only once for an entire substrate ( e . g ., a semiconductor wafer ). such a method may be referred to as a “ global overlay .” if orientation alignments between the template and substrate are coupled with x - y motions and excessive local orientation variations exist on the substrate , x - y position change of the template may be compensated for using capacitance sensors and / or laser interferometers . such a method may be referred to as a “ field - to - field overlay .” fig2 and 29 depict suitable sensor implementations . fig2 depicts an embodiment of a capacitance sensing system . a capacitance sensing system may include capacitance sensors 2801 , a conductive coating 2802 , on a template 2803 . thus , by sensing differences in capacitance , the location of template 2803 may be determined . similarly , fig2 depicts an embodiment of a laser interferometer system including reflective coating 2901 , laser signal 2902 and receiver 2903 . laser signals received by receiver 2903 may be used to determine the location of template 2904 . the magnification error , if any exists , may be compensated for by carefully controlling the temperature of the substrate and the template . using the difference of the thermal expansion properties of the substrate and template , the size of pre - existing patterned areas on the substrate may be adjusted to that of a new template . however , it is believed that the magnification error may be much smaller in magnitude than placement error or theta error when an imprint lithography process is conducted at room temperature and low pressures . the theta error may be compensated for using a theta stage that has been widely used for photolithography processes . theta error may be compensated for by using two separate alignment marks that are separated by a sufficiently large distance to provide a high resolution theta error estimate . the theta error may be compensated for when the template is positioned a few microns apart from the substrate . therefore , no shearing of existing patterns may occur . another concern with overlay alignment for imprint lithography processes that use uv curable liquid materials may be the visibility of the alignment marks . for the overlay error measurement , two overlay marks , one on the template and the other on the substrate may be used . however , since it may be desirable for the template to be transparent to a curing agent , the template overlay marks may typically not include opaque lines . rather , the template overlay marks may be topographical features of the template surface . in some embodiment , the marks may be made of the same material as the template . in addition , uv curable liquids may tend to have refractive indices that are similar to those of the template materials ( e . g ., quartz ). therefore , when the uv curable liquid fills the gap between the template and the substrate , template overlay marks may become very difficult to recognize . if the template overlay marks are made with an opaque material ( e . g ., chromium ), the uv curable liquid below the overlay marks may not be properly exposed to the uv light , which is highly undesirable . two methods are disclosed to overcome the problem of recognizing template overlay mark in the presence of the liquid . a first method uses an accurate liquid dispensing system along with high - resolution gap controlling stages . suitable liquid dispensing systems and the gap controlling stages are disclosed herein . for the purpose of illustration , three steps of an overlay alignment are depicted in fig3 . the locations of the overlay marks and the patterns of the fluid depicted in fig3 are only for the purpose of illustration and should not be construed in a limiting sense . various other overlay marks , overlay mark locations , and / or iquid dispensing patterns are also possible . first , in step 3001 , a liquid 3003 may be dispensed onto substrate 3002 . then , in step 3004 , using the high - resolution orientation stage , the gap between template 3005 and substrate 3002 may be carefully controlled so that the dispensed fluid 3003 does not fill the gap between the template and substrate completely . it is believed that at step 3004 , the gap may be only slightly larger than the final imprinting gap . since most of the gap is filled with the fluid , overlay correction can be performed as if the gap were completely filled with the fluid . the overlay marks may be placed such that the liquid does not cover them in this first position . upon the completion of the overlay correction , the gap may be closed to a final imprinting gap ( step 3006 ). this may enable spreading of the liquid into the remaining imprint area . since the gap change between steps 3004 and 3006 may be very small ( e . g ., about 10 nm ), the gap closing motion is unlikely to cause any significant overlay error . a second method may be to make special overlay marks on the template that may be seen by the overlay measurement tool but may not be opaque to the curing agent ( e . g ., uv light ). an embodiment of this approach is illustrated in fig3 . in fig3 , instead of completely opaque lines , overlay marks 3102 on the template may be formed of fine polarizing lines 3101 . for example , suitable fine polarizing lines may have a width about ½ to ¼ of the wavelength of activating light used as the curing agent . the line width of polarizing lines 3101 should be small enough so that activating light passing between two lines is diffracted sufficiently to cause curing of all the liquid below the lines . in such an embodiment , the activating light may be polarized according to the polarization of overlay marks 3102 . polarizing the activating light may provide a relatively uniform exposure to all the template regions including regions having overlay marks 3102 . light used to locate overlay marks 3102 on the template may be broadband light or a specific wavelength that may not cure the liquid material . this light need not be polarized . polarized lines 3101 may be substantially opaque to the measuring light , thus making the overlay marks visible using established overlay error measuring tools . fine polarized overlay marks may be fabricated on the template using existing techniques , such as electron beam lithography . in a third embodiment , overlay marks may be formed of a different material than the template . for example , a material selected to form the template overlay marks may be substantially opaque to visible light , but transparent to activating light used as the curing agent ( e . g ., uv light ). for example , siox where x is less than 2 may form such a material . in particular , it is believed that structures formed of siox where x is about 1 . 5 may be substantially opaque to visible light , but transparent to uv light . fig3 , depicts an assembly of a system , denoted generally as 100 , for calibrating and orienting a template , such as template 12 , about a substrate to be imprinted , such as substrate 20 . system 100 may be utilized in a machine , such as a stepper , for mass fabrication of devices in a production environment using imprint lithography processes as described herein . as shown , system 100 may be mounted to a top frame 110 which may provide support for a housing 120 . housing 120 may contain the pre - calibration stage for course alignment of a template 150 about a substrate ( not shown in fig3 ). housing 120 may be coupled to a middle frame 114 with guide shafts 112 a , 112 b attached to middle frame 114 opposite housing 120 . in one embodiment , three ( 3 ) guide shafts may be used ( the back guide shaft is not visible in fig3 ) to provide a support for housing 120 as it slides up and down during vertical translation of template 150 . sliders 116 a and 116 b attached to corresponding guide shafts 112 a , 112 b about middle frame 114 may facilitate this up and down motion of housing 120 . system 100 may include a disk - shaped base plate 122 attached to the bottom portion of housing 120 . base plate 122 may be coupled to a disk - shaped flexure ring 124 . flexure ring 124 may support the lower placed orientation stage included in first flexure member 126 and second flexure member 128 . the operation and configuration of the flexure members 126 , 128 are discussed in detail below . as depicted in fig3 , the second flexure member 128 may include a template support 130 , which may hold template 150 in place during the imprinting process . typically , template 150 may include a piece of quartz with desired features imprinted on it . template 150 may also include other substances according to well - known methods . as shown in fig3 , actuators 134 a , 134 b and 134 c may be fixed within housing 120 and operable coupled to base plate 122 and flexure ring 124 . in operation , actuators 134 a , 134 b and 134 c may be controlled such that motion of the flexure ring 124 is achieved . motion of the actuators may allow for coarse pre - calibration . in some embodiments , actuators 134 a , 134 b and 134 c may include high resolution actuators . in such embodiments , the actuators may be equally spaced around housing 120 . such an embodiment may permit very precise translation of the ring 124 in the vertical direction to control the gap accurately . thus , the system 100 may be capable of achieving coarse orientation alignment and precise gap control of template 150 with respect to a substrate to be imprinted . system 100 may include a mechanism that enables precise control of template 150 so that precise orientation alignment may be achieved and a uniform gap may be maintained by the template with respect to a substrate surface . additionally , system 100 may provide a way of separating template 150 from the surface of the substrate following imprinting without shearing of features from the substrate surface . precise alignment and gap control may be facilitated by the configuration of the first and second flexure members , 126 and 128 , respectively . in an embodiment , template 5102 may be held in place using a separated , fixed supporting plate 5101 that is transparent to the curing agent as depicted in fig5 . while supporting plate 5101 behind template 5102 may support the imprinting force , applying vacuum between fixed supporting plate 5101 and template 5102 may support the separation force . in order to support template 5102 for lateral forces , piezo actuators 5103 may be used . the lateral supporting forces may be carefully controlled by using piezo actuators 5103 . this design may also provide the magnification and distortion correction capability for layer - to - layer alignment in imprint lithography processes . distortion correction may be very important to overcome stitching and placement errors present in the template structures made by electron beam lithography , and to compensate for distortion in the previous structures present on the substrate . magnification correction may only require one piezo actuator on each side of the template ( i . e . total of 4 piezo actuators for a four sided template ). the actuators may be connected to the template surface in such a way that a uniform force may be applied on the entire surface . distortion correction , on the other hand , may require several independent piezo actuators that may apply independently controlled forces on each side of the template . depending on the level of distortion control required , the number of independent piezo actuators may be specified . more piezo actuators may provide better control of distortion . the magnification and distortion error correction should be completed prior to the use of vacuum to constrain the top surface of the template . this is because magnification and distortion correction may be properly controlled only if both the top and bottom surfaces of the template are unconstrained . in some embodiments , the template holder system of fig5 may have a mechanical design that causes obstruction of the curing agent to a portion of the area under template 5102 . this may be undesirable because a portion of the liquid below template 5102 may not cure . this liquid may stick to the template causing problems with further use of the template . this problem with the template holder may be avoided by incorporating a set of mirrors into the template holder to divert the obstructed curing agent in such a way that the curing agent directed to the region below one edge of template 5102 may be bent to cure an obstructed portion below the other edge of template 5102 . in an embodiment , high resolution gap sensing may be achieved by designing the template such that the minimum gap between the substrate and template falls within a sensing technique &# 39 ; s usable range . the gap being measured may be manipulated independently of the actual patterned surface . this may allow gap control to be performed within the useful range of the sensing technique . for example , if a spectral reflectivity analysis technique with a useful sensing range of about 150 nm to 20 microns is to be used to analyze the gap , then the template may have feature patterned into the template with a depth of about 150 nm or greater . this may ensure that the minimum gap that to be sensed is greater than 150 nm . as the template is lowered toward the substrate , the fluid may be expelled from the gap between the substrate and the template . the gap between the substrate and the template may approach a lower practical limit when the viscous forces approach equilibrium conditions with the applied compressive force . this may occur when the surface of the template is in close proximity to the substrate . for example , this regime may be at a gap height of about 100 nm for a 1 cp fluid when 14 kpa is applied for 1 sec to a template with a radius of 1 cm . as a result , the gap may be self - limiting provided a uniform and parallel gap is maintained . also , a fairly predictable amount of fluid may be expelled ( or entrained ). the volume of fluid entrained may be predictable based on careful fluid dynamic and surface phenomena calculations . for production - scale imprint patterning , it may be desired to control the inclination and gap of the template with respect to a substrate . in order to accomplish the orientation and gap control , a template manufactured with reticle fabrication techniques may be used in combination with gap sensing technology such as i ) single wavelength interferometry , ii ) multi - wavelength interferometry , iii ) ellipsometry , iv ) capacitance sensors , or v ) pressure sensors . in an embodiment , a method of detecting gap between template and substrate may be used in computing thickness of films on the substrate . a description of a technique based on fast fourier transform ( fft ) of reflective data obtained from a broad - band spectrometer is disclosed herein . this technique may be used for measuring the gap between the template and the substrate , as well as for measuring film thickness . for multi - layer films , the technique may provide an average thickness of each thin film and its thickness variations . also , the average gap and orientation information between two surfaces in close proximity , such as the template - substrate for imprint lithography processes may be acquired by measuring gaps at a minimum of three distinct points through one of the surfaces . in an embodiment , a gap measurement process may be based on the combination of the broad - band interferometry and fast fourier transform ( fft ). several applications in current industry utilized various curve fitting techniques for the broad - band interferometry to measure a single layer film thickness . however , it is expected that such techniques may not provide real time gap measurements , especially in the case of multi - layer films , for imprint lithography processes . in order to overcome such problems , first the reflective indexes may be digitized in wavenumber domain , between 1 / λ high and 1 / λ low . then , the digitized data may be processed using a fft algorithm . this novel approach may yield a clear peak of the fft signal that accurately corresponds to the measured gap . for the case of two layers , the fft signal may yield two clear peaks that are linearly related to the thickness of each layer . for optical thin films , the oscillations in the reflectivity are periodic in wavenumber ( w ) not wavelength ( x ), such as shown in the reflectivity of a single optical thin film by the following equation , r = ρ 1 , 2 2 + ρ 2 , 3 2 ⁢ ⁢ e - 2 ⁢ ⁢ α ⁢ ⁢ d - 2 ⁢ ⁢ ρ 1 , 2 ⁢ ⁢ ρ 2 , 3 ⁢ ⁢ e - α ⁢ ⁢ d ⁢ ⁢ cos ⁢ ⁢ ( 4 ⁢ ⁢ π ⁢ ⁢ nd / λ ) 1 - ( ρ 1 , 2 ⁢ ⁢ ρ 2 , 3 ) 2 ⁢ ⁢ e - 2 ⁢ ⁢ α ⁢ ⁢ d + 2 ⁢ ⁢ ρ 1 , 2 ⁢ ⁢ ρ 2 , 3 ⁢ ⁢ e - α ⁢ ⁢ d ⁢ ⁢ cos ⁢ ⁢ ( 4 ⁢ ⁢ π ⁢ ⁢ nd / λ ) where p i , i + 1 are the reflectivity coefficients at the interface of the i − 1 and i interface , n is the index of refraction , d is the thickness to measure of the film ( material 2 of fig5 ), and α is the absorption coefficient of the film ( material 2 of fig5 ). here , w = i / λ . due to this characteristic , fourier analysis may be a useful technique to determine the period of the function r represented in terms of w . it is noted that , for a single thin film , a clearly defined single peak ( pi ) may result when a fourier transform of r ( w ) is obtained . the film thickness ( d ) may be a function of the location of this peak such as , where δw = w f − w s ; w f = l / λ min and w s = l / λ max . fft is an established technique in which the frequency of a discrete signal may be calculated in a computationally efficient way . thus , this technique may be useful for in - situ analysis and real - time applications . fig3 depicts an embodiment of a process flow of film thickness or gap , measurement via a fft process of a reflectivity signal . for multi - layer films with distinct reflective indexes , locations of peaks in a fft process may correspond to linear combinations of each film thickness . for example , a two - layer film may lead to two distinct peak locations in a fft analysis . fig3 depicts a method of determining the thickness of two films based on two peak locations . embodiments presented herein may enable measuring a gap or film thickness even when the oscillation of the reflectivity data includes less than one full period within the measuring wavenumber range . in such a case , fft may result in an inaccurate peak location . in order to overcome such a problem and to extend the lower limit of the measurable film thickness , a novel method is disclosed herein . instead of using a fft algorithm to compute the period of the oscillation , an algorithm to find a local minimum ( w 1 ) or maximum point ( w 2 ) of the reflectivity between w s and w f may be used to compute the period information : dr / dw = 0 at w 1 and w 2 . the reflectivity r ( w ) of equation 7 has its maximum at w = o . further , the wavenumber range ( δw ) of typical spectrometers may be larger than w s . for a spectrometer with 200 nm - 800 nm wavelength range , δw = 3 / 800 whereas w s = 1 / 800 . therefore , the oscillation length of the reflectivity data between 0 − w s may be smaller than that of δw . as depicted in fig3 , there may be two cases of the locations of minimum and maximum in the δw range , given that w = 0 is a maximum point of r ( w ). therefore , the film thickness can be computed as follows : case 1 wwo : a local minimum exists at wi . therefore , w 1 = one half of the periodic oscillation , and hence d = 0 . 5 /( w 1 × 2n ). case 2 ww 1 : a local maximum exists at w 2 . therefore , w 2 = one period of the periodic oscillation , and hence d = 1 /( w 2 × 2n ). a practical configuration of the measurement tool may include a broad - band light source , a spectrometer with fiber optics , a data acquisition board , and a processing computer . several existing signal processing techniques may improve the sensitivity of the fft data . for example , techniques including but not limited to : filtering , magnification , increased number of data points , different range of wavelengths , etc ., may be utilized with gap or film thickness measurement methods disclosed herein . embodiments disclosed herein include a high precision gap and orientation measurement method between two flats ( e . g ., a template and a substrate ). gap and orientation measurement methods presented here include use of broad - band interferometry and fringe based interferometry . in an embodiment , a method disclosed herein which uses broad - band interferometry may overcome a disadvantage of broad - band interferometer , namely its inability to accurately measure gaps smaller than about ¼ of the mean wavelength of the broad - band signal . interference fringe based interferometry may be used for sensing errors in the orientation of the template soon after it is installed . imprint lithography processes may be implemented to manufacture single and multi - layer devices . single layer devices , such as micron size optical mirrors , high resolution light filters and light guides , may be manufactured by forming a thin layer of material in certain geometric shapes on substrates . the imprinted layer thickness of some of these devices may be less than ¼ of the mean wavelength of a broad - band signal , and may be uniform across an active area . a disadvantage of broad - band interferometer may be that it may be unable to accurately measure gaps smaller than about ¼ of the mean wavelength of the broad - band signal ( e . g ., about 180 nm ). in an embodiment , micrometer size steps , which may be measured accurately , may be etched into the surface of the template . as depicted in fig3 , steps may be etched down in the forms of continuous lines 3701 or multiple isolated dots 3702 where measurements may be made . isolated dots 3702 may be preferable from the point of view of maximizing the useful active area on the template . when the patterned template surface is only a few nanometers from the substrate , a broad - band interferometer may measure the gap accurately without suffering from minimum gap measurement problems . fig3 depicts a schematic of the gap measurement described here . probes 3801 may also be used in an inclined configuration , such as depicted in fig3 . if more than three probes are used , the gap measurement accuracy may be improved by using the redundant information . for simplicity &# 39 ; s sake , the ensuing description assumes the use of three probes . the step size , h s , is magnified for the purpose of illustration . the average gap at the patterned area , hp , may be given as : h p =[( h 1 + h 2 + h 3 )/ 3 ]− h s , ( 9 ) when the positions of the probes are known (( x i , y i ), where x and y axes are on the substrate surface ), the relative orientation of the template with respect to the substrate may be expressed as a unit vector ( d ) that is normal to the template surface with respect to a frame whose x - y axes lie on the top surface of the substrate . where , r =[( x 3 , y 3 , h 3 )−( x 1 , y 1 , h 1 )]×[( x 2 , y 2 , h 2 )−( x 1 , y 1 , h 1 )]. perfect orientation alignment between two flats may be achieved when n =( 00 i ) t , or h 1 = h 2 = h 3 . measured gaps and orientations may be used as feedback information to imprinting actuators . the size of the measuring broad - band interferometric beam may be as small as about 75 μm . for a practical imprint lithography process , it may be desirable to minimize the clear area used only to measure the gap since no pattern can be etched into at the clear area . further , blockage of the curing agent due to the presence of measurement tool should to be minimized . fig4 depicts a schematic of multi - layer materials on substrates . for example , substrate 4001 has layers 4002 , and 4003 , and fluid 4005 between substrate 4001 and template 4004 . these material layers may be used to transfer multiple patterns , one by one vertically , onto the substrate surface . each thickness may be uniform at the clear area where a gap measurement may be made using light beams 4006 . it has been shown that using broad - band interferometry , the thickness of a top layer may be measured accurately in the presence of multi - layer films . when the optical properties and thicknesses of lower layer films are known accurately , the gap and orientation information between the template and substrate surface ( or metal deposited surfaces for multi - layer devices ) may be obtained by measuring the top layer thickness . the thickness of each layer may be measured using the same sensing measurement probes . it may be necessary to perform orientation measurement and corresponding calibration when a new template is installed or a machine component is reconfigured . the orientation error between the template 4102 and substrate 4103 may be measured via an interference fringe pattern at the template and substrate interface as depicted in fig4 . for two optical flats , the interference fringe pattern may appear as parallel dark and light bands 4101 . orientation calibration may be performed using a pre - calibration stage as disclosed herein . differential micrometers may be used to adjust the relative orientation of the template with respect to the substrate surface . using this approach , if no interference fringe band is present , the orientation error may be corrected to be less than ¼ of the wavelength of light source used . with reference to fig4 a and 42b , therein are depicted embodiments of the first and second flexure members , 126 and 128 , respectively , in more detail . specifically , the first flexure member 126 may include a plurality of flexure joints 160 coupled to corresponding rigid bodies 164 , 166 . flexure joints 160 and rigid bodies 164 , and 166 may form part of arms 172 , 174 extending from a frame 170 . flexure frame 170 may have an opening 182 , which may permit the penetration of a curing agent ( e . g ., uw light ) to reach the template 150 when held in support 130 . in some embodiments , four ( 4 ) flexure joints 160 may provide motion of the flexure member 126 about a first orientation axis 180 . frame 170 of first flexure member 126 may provide a coupling mechanism for joining with second flexure member 128 as illustrated in fig4 . likewise , second flexure member 128 may include a pair of arms 202 , 204 extending from a frame 206 . arms 202 and 204 may include flexure joints 162 and corresponding rigid bodies 208 , 210 . rigid bodies 208 and 210 may be adapted to cause motion of flexure member 128 about a second orientation axis 200 . a template support 130 maybe integrated with frame 206 of the second flexure member 128 . like frame 182 , frame 206 may have an opening 212 permitting a curing agent to reach template 150 which may be held by support 130 . in operation , first flexure member 126 and second flexure member 128 may be joined as shown in fig4 to form orientation stage 250 . braces 220 , 222 may be provided in order to facilitate joining of the two pieces such that the first orientation axis 180 and second orientation axis 200 are substantially orthogonal to each other . in such a configuration , first orientation axis 180 and second orientation may intersect at a pivot point 252 at approximately the template substrate interface 254 . the fact that first orientation axis 180 and second orientation axis 200 are orthogonal and lie on interface 254 may provide fine alignment and gap control . specifically , with this arrangement , a decoupling of orientation alignment from layer - to - layer overlay alignment may be achieved . furthermore , as explained below , the relative position of first orientation axis 180 and second orientation axis 200 may provide an orientation stage 250 that may be used to separate the template 150 from a substrate without shearing of desired features . thus , features transferred from the template 150 may remain intact on the substrate . referring to fig4 a , 42 b and 43 , flexure joints 160 and 162 may be notched shaped to provide motion of rigid bodies 164 , 166 , 208 , 210 about pivot axes that are located along the thinnest cross section of the notches . this configuration may provide two ( 2 ) flexure - based sub - systems for a fine decoupled orientation stage 250 having decoupled compliant motion axes 180 , 200 . flexure members 126 , 128 may be assembled via mating of surfaces such that motion of template 150 may occur about pivot point 252 substantially eliminating “ swinging ” and other motions that could shear imprinted features from the substrate . thus , orientation stage 250 may precisely move the template 150 about a pivot point 252 ; thereby , eliminating shearing of desired features from a substrate following imprint lithography . referring to fig4 , during operation of system 100 , a z - translation stage ( not shown ) may control the distance between template 150 and the substrate without providing orientation alignment . a pre - calibration stage 260 may perform a preliminary alignment operation between template 150 and the substrate surfaces to bring the relative alignment within the motion range limits of orientation stage 250 . in certain embodiments , pre - calibration may be required only when a new template is installed into the machine . with reference to fig4 , therein is depicted a flexure model , denoted generally as 300 , useful in understanding the principles of operation of a fine decoupled orientation stage , such as orientation stage 250 . flexure model 300 may include four ( 4 ) parallel joints : joints 1 , 2 , 3 and 4 , that provide a four - bar - linkage system in its nominal and rotated configurations . line 310 may pass though joints 1 and 2 . line 312 may pass through joints 3 and 4 . angles α 1 and α 2 may be selected so that the compliant alignment ( or orientation axis ) axis lies substantially on the template - wafer interface 254 . for fine orientation changes , rigid body 314 between joints 2 and 3 may rotate about an axis depicted by point c . rigid body 314 may be representative of rigid bodies 170 and 206 of flexure members 126 and 128 . mounting a second flexure component orthogonally onto the first one ( as depicted in fig4 ) may provide a device with two decoupled orientation axes that are orthogonal to each other and lie on the template - substrate interface 254 . the flexure components may be adapted to have openings to allow a curing agent ( e . g ., uv light ) to pass through the template 150 . the orientation stage 250 may be capable of fine alignment and precise motion of template 150 with respect to a substrate . ideally , the orientation adjustment may lead to negligible lateral motion at the interface and negligible twisting motion about the normal to the interface surface due to selectively constrained high structural stiffness . another advantage of flexure members 126 , 128 with flexure joints 160 , 162 may be that they may not generate particles as frictional joints may . this may be an important factor in the success of an imprint lithography process as particles may be particularly harmful to such processes . due to the need for fine gap control , embodiments presented herein may require the availability of a gap sensing method capable of measuring small gaps of the order of 500 nm or less between the template and substrate . such a gap sensing method may require a resolution of about 50 nanometers , or less . ideally , such gap sensing may be provided in real - time . providing gap sensing in real - time may allow the gap sensing to be used to generate a feedback signal to actively control the actuators . in an embodiment , a flexure member having active compliance may be provided . for example , fig4 depicts a flexure member , denoted generally as 400 , including piezo actuators . flexure member 400 may be combined with a second flexure member to form an active orientation stage . flexure member 400 may generate pure tilting motions with no lateral motions at the template - substrate interface . using such a flexure member , a single overlay alignment step may allow the imprinting of a layer on an entire semiconductor wafer . this is in contrast to overlay alignment with coupled motions between the orientation and lateral motions . such overlay alignment steps may lead to disturbances in x - y alignment , and therefore may require a complicated field - to - field overlay control loop to ensure proper alignment . in an embodiment , flexure member 250 may possess high stiffness in the directions where side motions or rotations are undesirable and lower stiffness in directions where necessary orientation motions are desirable . such an embodiment may provide a selectively compliant device . that is , flexure member 250 may support relatively high loads while achieving proper orientation kinematics between the template and the substrate . with imprint lithography , it may be desirable to maintain a uniform gap between two nearly flat surfaces ( i . e ., the template and the substrate ). template 150 may be made from optical flat glass to ensure that it is substantially flat on the bottom . the template may be patterned using electron beam lithography . the substrate ( e . g ., a semiconductor wafer ), however , may exhibit a “ potato chip ” effect resulting in micron - scale variations on its topography . vacuum chuck 478 ( as shown in fig4 ), may eliminate variations across a surface of the substrate that may occur during imprinting . vacuum chuck 478 may serve two primary purposes . first , vacuum chuck 478 may be utilized to hold the substrate in place during imprinting and to ensure that the substrate stays flat during the imprinting process . additionally , vacuum chuck 478 may ensure that no particles are present on the back of the substrate during processing . this may be especially important to imprint lithography , as particles may create problems that ruin the device and decrease production yields . fig4 a and 48b illustrate variations of a vacuum chuck suitable for these purposes according to two embodiments . in fig4 a , a pin - type vacuum chuck 450 is shown as having a large number of pins 452 . it is believed that vacuum chuck 450 may eliminate “ potato chip ” effects as well as other deflections on the substrate during processing . a vacuum channel 454 may be provided as a means of applying vacuum to the substrate to keep it in place . the spacing between the pins 452 may be maintained such that the substrate will not bow substantially from the force applied through vacuum channel 454 . at the same time , the tips of pins 452 may be small enough to reduce the chance of particles settling on top of them . fig4 b depicts a groove - type vacuum chuck 460 with a plurality of grooves 462 across its surface . grooves 462 may perform a similar function to pins 454 of the pin - type vacuum chuck 450 . as shown , grooves 462 may take on either a wall shape 464 or a smooth curved cross section 466 . the cross section of grooves 462 for groove - type vacuum chuck 462 may be adjusted through an etching process . also , the space and size of each groove may be as small as hundreds of microns . vacuum flow to each of grooves 462 may be provided through fine vacuum channels across multiple grooves that run in parallel with respect to the chuck surface . the fine vacuum channels may be formed along with grooves through an etching process . fig4 illustrates the manufacturing process for both pin - type vacuum chuck 450 and groove - type vacuum chuck 460 . using optical flat 470 , no additional grinding and / or polishing steps may be needed for this process . drilling at determined locations on the optical flat 470 may produce vacuum flow holes 472 . optical flat 470 may then be masked and patterned 474 before etching 476 to produce the desired features ( e . g ., pins or grooves ) on the upper surface of the optical flat . the surface of optical flat 470 may then be treated 479 using well - known methods . as discussed above , separation of template 150 from the imprinted layer may be a critical , final step in the imprint lithography process . since the template 150 and substrate may be almost perfectly parallel , the assembly of the template , imprinted layer , and substrate leads to a substantially uniform contact between near optical flats . such a system may usually require a large separation force . in the case of a flexible template or substrate , the separation may be merely a “ peeling process .” however , a flexible template or substrate may be undesirable from the point of view of high - resolution overlay alignment . in case of quartz template and silicon substrate , the peeling process may not be implemented easily . however , separation of the template from an imprinted layer may be performed successfully by a “ peel and pull ” process . a first peel and pull process is illustrated in fig4 a , 49 b , and 49 c . a second peel and pull process is illustrated in fig5 a , 50 b , and 50 c . a process to separate the template from the imprinted layer may include a combination of the first and second peel and pull processes . for clarity , reference numerals 12 , 18 , 20 , and 40 are used in referring to the template , transfer layer , substrate , and curable substance , respectively , in accordance with fig1 a and 1b . after curing of the substance 40 , either the template 12 or substrate 20 may be tilted to intentionally induce an angle 500 between the template 12 and substrate 20 . orientation stage 250 may be used for this purpose . substrate 20 is held in place by vacuum chuck 478 . the relative lateral motion between the template 12 and substrate 20 may be insignificant during the tilting motion if the tilting axis is located close to the template - substrate interface . once angle 500 between template 12 and substrate 20 is large enough , template 12 may be separated from the substrate 20 using only z - axis motion ( i . e . vertical motion ). this peel and pull method may result in desired features 44 being left intact on the transfer layer 18 and substrate 20 without undesirable shearing . a second peel and pull method is illustrated in fig5 a , 50 b , 50 c . in the second peel and pull method , one or more piezo actuators 502 may be installed adjacent to the template . the one or more piezo actuators 502 may be used to induce a relative tilt between template 12 and substrate 20 ( fig5 a ). an end of piezo actuator 502 may be in contact with substrate 20 . thus , if actuator 502 is enlarged ( fig5 b ), template 12 may be pushed away from substrate 20 ; thus inducing an angle between them . a z - axis motion between the template 12 and substrate 20 ( fig5 c ), may then be used to separate template 12 and substrate 20 . an end of actuator 502 may be surface treated similar to the treatment of the lower surface of template 12 in order to prevent the imprinted layer from sticking to the surface of the actuator . in summary , embodiments presented herein disclose systems , processes and related devices for successful imprint lithography without requiring the use of high temperatures or high pressures . with certain embodiments , precise control of the gap between a template and a substrate on which desired features from the template are to be transferred may be achieved . moreover , separation of the template from the substrate ( and the imprinted layer ) may be possible without destruction or shearing of desired features . embodiments herein also disclose a way , in the form of suitable vacuum chucks , of holding a substrate in place during imprint lithography . further embodiments include , a high precision x - y translation stage suitable for use in an imprint lithography system . additionally , methods of forming and treating a suitable imprint lithography template are provided . while this invention has been described with references to various illustrative embodiments , the description is not intended to be construed in a limiting sense . various modifications and combinations of the illustrative embodiments , as well as other embodiments of the invention , will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the description . it is , therefore , intended that the appended claims encompass any such modifications or embodiments .	8
preferred exemplary miniature tree sculptures in accordance with the present invention are shown generally at 10 in the drawing . the sculpture includes miniature trees 12 , 13 and 15 . as shown in fig3 each tree includes an imitation tree trunk 14 and a branch structure 16 . the miniature trees 12 , 13 and 15 are shown as part of a landscape model wherein the tree sculptures 10 are mounted on a suitable base , such as an attractive rock 18 . the landscape scene or model may further include miniature mail boxes 20 , fences 22 and other suitable items which provide a realistic miniature setting for the tree sculpture 10 . these items are made from conventional materials , such as metal , wood or plastic , and are attached to the rock base 18 by any conventional method . each of the tree sculptures 12 , 13 and 15 includes a plurality of leaves z4 which are adhesively bonded to the branch structure 16 ( see fig3 ). a miniature tree 26 without leaves is also included as part of the landscape scene to show the trunk and branch structure of the miniature tree in accordance with the present invention prior to addition of the leaves . the miniature trees 12 , 13 , 15 and 26 may be made from metal , wood , plastic or any other material which can be formed into a miniature tree which is compatible with the adhesive used to bond the leaves z4 to trees . the material must also be sufficiently strong to resist breakage after it is formed into the tree structure . metal is the preferred material to be used in making the trees . the tree trunk is preferably made from standard welding or brazing rod having diameters ranging from 1 / 16 - inch to 3 / 8 - inch in diameter . diameters of 1 / 16 , 3 / 32 , 1 / 8 , 5 / 32 , 3 / 16 and 1 / 4 - inch are preferred for making tree heights in the range of 6 inches to 20 inches . the branch structure is preferably made from metal wire having diameters of 0 . 010 - inch up to about 0 . 040 - inch . mig wire having a diameter of 0 . 035 - inch works well . the small diameter wire branches are attached to the larger diameter trunk metal rod by welding or other suitable means . the trunk rod and metal branches are then bent or sculpted into the shape of a miniature tree . a torch is preferably used to assist in sculpting the trunk and branches . after sculpting , the miniature tree is painted to reflect the type of tree being imitated . in the preferred embodiment , the miniature tree is an aspen . accordingly , the tree is painted with a white base coat and then painted with black markings typical of aspens . the leaves 24 are attached to the branch structure 16 after painting is completed . the leaves can be seeds or seed hulls . suitable seeds include grass seeds having a size and shape which mimics the desired leaf structure . grass seeds are well suited for used in making pine trees and other conifers . seed hulls , such as millet seed hulls , are preferred when a broad leaf miniature tree is desired . in the preferred aspen embodiment , millet seed hulls are used for the leaves . millet seed hulls are commonly available as a waste product produced during the conventional processing of millet seed . white millet seed hulls are particularly preferred . the seeds or seed hulls are preferably dyed to achieve the desired leaf color or mixture of colors . conventional food stuff dyes can be used for this purpose . in the preferred embodiment , the white millet seed hulls are dyed according to the following process : food coloring , vinegar and water are mixed to form a dye solution . the dye solution is heated to boiling and the millet seed hulls are then added . the resulting mixture is simmered for about thirty minutes . the solution is then drained off and the shells laid out to dry . in preparing yellow leaves , one cup of millet seed hulls is added to one cup of water containing sixty drops of yellow food coloring and two tablespoons of vinegar . for green leaves , one cup of white millet seed shells is added to one cup of water containing eight drops of green food coloring , fourteen drops of yellow food coloring and four tablespoons of vinegar . red leaves are made by adding one cup of white millet seed hulls to one cup of water containing fifty drops of yellow food coloring , fifty drops of red food coloring and two and one - half tablespoons of vinegar . although a wide variety of different colors are possible , the above solutions and dying procedures are preferred when making aspen miniature trees because it was found that the resulting dyed white millet seed hulls provide a realistic and accurate imitation of natural aspen leaf coloring during various stages of growth and aging . various different millet seed hulls may be used , depending on the particular visual effect desired . white or yellow millet seed having diameters of less than 1 / 8 - inch are preferred . the seeds are bonded to the branch structure using an adhesive which is applied onto the branches . the adhesive can be applied by conventional methods , such as spraying , dipping or any other procedure which provides a uniform and controllable coating of the branches . construction - type adhesives , such as the spray adhesive marketed as touch - n - stick © by convenience products of st . louis , mo ., are preferred . the spray adhesive allows control of adhesive application so that , when desired , only selected areas of the branches will have seed hulls or seeds bonded thereto . after the adhesive is applied to the tree branches , the tree is then rolled or immersed in a bed of the dyed seed hulls or seeds . the tree is rolled or agitated within the seed hull / seed bed for a sufficient time to provide adhesive bonding of the seed hulls / seeds to the branch structure . the amount of adhesive applied to the branch structures and the time and degree of agitation of the branch structure within the seed hull / seed may be varied to achieve different leaf density . further , additional seed hulls / seeds may be sprinkled onto areas of the branches which were not covered during the initial contact with the bed of seed hulls / seeds . if additional fullness is desired , the branches may be sprayed with some additional adhesive and seed hulls / seeds sprinkled onto the locations where additional adhesive has been sprayed . the durability of the seed hulls / seeds and their attachment to the tree branches is increased by coating the tree sculpture with additional adhesive to provide seed hulls / seeds with a protective coating on their outer surfaces . the protective layer can be any of the conventional adhesives which will not adversely affect the seed hull / seed structure or appearance . elmers spray adhesive ® marketed by the borden company ( columbus , ohio ) or weldbond ® marketed by frank t . ross & amp ; sons , inc . ( dalton , ill .) are suitable adhesives for use in coating the structure . one or more coats of the adhesive may be applied and preferably the adhesive is a water soluble , non - toxic adhesive which can be diluted with water to provide application of a thin adhesive coating by dipping or spraying . it was found that two thin coats of adhesive provides increased leaf ( i . e ., seed hull ) durability without adversely affecting the visual appearance of the seed hulls . other protective coatings include various paints such as clear lacquer or other clear polymeric coating which provides a thin , clear coating which does not detract from the visual appearance of the seed hulls / seeds . the above mentioned adhesives are preferred because they not only provide a protective layer surrounding the seed hulls / seeds , but also provide increased attachment strength and durability . having thus described exemplary embodiments of the present invention , it should be noted by those skilled in the art that the within disclosures are exemplary only and that various other alternatives , adaptations and modifications may be made within the scope of the present invention . accordingly , the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments as illustrated herein , but is only limited by the following claims .	0
fig1 is a schematic view of a liquid rocket engine 102 . the engine 102 includes various mechanisms 108 ( e . g ., pumps and the like ) that feed liquid fuel to a combustion chamber and nozzle 104 . the combusted fuel escapes from the engine 102 through the outlet 106 of the nozzle 104 . the engine 102 is connected to a frame 110 of a rocket by a gimbal and actuators 112 and 114 . the actuators 112 and 114 enable the engine 102 to pivot about two axes on the gimbal relative to the frame 110 . the first actuator 112 includes a piston 120 that can telescopically move relative to a cylinder 124 . the actuator 112 is connected to the engine 102 by a first pivot 118 and to the frame 110 by a second pivot 116 . thus , movement of the piston 120 relative to the cylinder 124 causes the engine 102 to pivot about a first axis relative to the frame 102 . the second actuator 114 includes a piston 126 second telescopically move relative to a cylinder 128 . the actuator 114 is connected to the engine 102 by a first pivot 130 and the frame 110 by a second pivot 122 . thus , movement of the piston 126 relative to the cylinder 128 causes the engine 102 to pivot about a second axis ( perpendicular to the first axis ) relative to the frame 110 . in environments in which high reliability is important , an actuator that can provide mechanical feedback for control may be preferred over a feedback system that relies on electrical power ( e . g ., that uses sensors to detect position ). for example , the liquid fuel rocket engines may use actuators with mechanical feedback that enable the engines to center themselves in the event of a loss of electrical power . fig2 is a schematic illustration of a mechanical feedback actuator 200 that may be used on a liquid fuel rocket engine . the mechanical feedback actuator 200 includes a piston 210 inside a cylinder 208 . the piston 210 is connected to a connecting rod 206 , which is connected to a first pivot 202 . a second pivot 204 can be connected to the cylinder 208 . the piston 210 ( and connecting rod 206 ) can move telescopically relative to the cylinder 208 by selectively pumping hydraulic fluid ( or the like ) into and out of chambers 212 and 214 in the cylinder . for example , to move the piston 210 and connecting rod 206 in the direction of arrow d , hydraulic fluid can be pumped into chamber 212 and out of chamber 214 . the pumping of hydraulic fluid into the chambers 212 and 214 of the cylinder 208 is controlled by an actuator control 220 that includes a power valve 232 . the power valve 232 can slide in the direction of arrow g ( or in the opposite direction ) to selectively enable hydraulic pressure source p to be in communication with chamber 212 or chamber 214 . similarly , movement of the power valve 232 causes the other chamber 212 and 214 to be in communication with a hydraulic pressure return r . movement of the power valve 232 is controlled by one or more servo valves 222 . multiple servo valves 222 can be used to provide redundancy for control of the power valve 232 . under normal operation , operation of each servo valve 222 is controlled by an electrical signal . each servo valve 222 can include a torque motor 224 . an electrical current can be applied to cause an armature 226 in the torque motor 224 to twist relative to a magnet , as indicated by arrow a ( or in the opposite direction ). twisting of the armature 226 causes a flexure sleeve 228 to shift laterally in the direction of arrow b ( or in the opposite direction depending on the direction of current flow ). lateral shifts of the flexure sleeve 228 open valves 230 , which provide communication between the hydraulic pressure source p and hydraulic pressure return r and the servo valve 222 . the servo valve 222 can also move in the direction of arrow b ( or in the opposite direction ) to provide hydraulic pressure to faces of the power valve 232 to cause the power valve 232 to move the direction of arrow g . the mechanical feedback actuator 200 can provide mechanical feedback to the actuator controller 220 . the piston 210 can be coupled to an internal conical cam 260 that includes an inward - facing conical surface 262 . the conical cam 260 is movable ( in the direction of arrow h ) with the piston 210 relative to the cylinder 208 . a scissor linkage 242 can be arranged with a first end within the conical cam 260 . the scissor linkage 242 can include a first elongate member 246 and a second elongate member 248 . rollers 250 and 252 on the first ends of the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 , respectively , of the scissor linkage 242 can enable the conical cam 260 to translate relative to first end of the scissor linkage 242 . springs 254 push apart the first ends of the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 . a second end of the second elongate member 248 can be pivot about an anchor ( e . g ., anchored relative to the second pivot 204 ). a second end of the first elongate member 246 can be connected to a first feedback link 258 . as the piston 210 and conical cam 260 move relative to the scissor linkage 242 , the first ends of the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 will move toward or away from each other in the direction of arrow e . the second ends of the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 will move in an opposite direction . for example , if the piston 210 and the conical cam 260 move in the direction of arrows d and h , then the first ends of the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 will move away from each other in the direction of arrow e . at the same time , the second ends of the first elongate member 246 and second elongate member 248 will move toward each other . as discussed above , the second end of the second elongate member 248 can be fixed in place by anchor 256 . put differently , the second end of the second elongate member 248 can pivot about the anchor 256 , but cannot translate relative to the anchor 256 . thus , any movement between the second ends of the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 is transmitted to the first feedback link 258 . continuing the example above , movement of the second ends of the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 toward one another results in the feedback link moving in the direction of arrow f . movement of the first feedback link 258 can be communicated to a second feedback link 240 . the second feedback link 240 can be pivotably connected to anchors 272 , and movement of the second feedback link 240 can thereby be transmitted to feedback rods 265 . the feedback rods 265 can be connected to springs 264 , which can push on a feedback wire 266 of each servo valve 222 . an additional spring 268 can be connected to a fixed anchor 270 . the additional spring 268 can provide a biasing force that tends to move the feedback rods 265 toward a centered position . the feedback wire 266 can be connected to the flexure sleeve 228 . as discussed above , a current can be applied to an armature 226 of each servo valve 222 to cause the armature 226 to twist in the direction of arrow a . in various embodiments , a fixed amount of current or voltage can be applied to the armature 226 to results in a certain deflection ( and ultimately movement of the piston 210 ). for example , one volt applied to the armature 226 may result in one inch of displacement of the piston 210 ( from a centered position ), two volts applied to the armature 226 may result in two inches of displacement of the piston 210 , etc . the springs 264 apply a force to the feedback wire 266 and ultimately to the flexure sleeves 228 that can cancel out the electromagnetic force acting on the armature 226 . continuing the example , as the piston 210 achieves a 1 inch displacement , the resulting movements of the scissor linkage 242 , the first feedback link 258 , and the second feedback link 240 results in movement of the springs 264 and spring forces that cancel out electromagnetic forces from the armature 226 acting on the flexure sleeves 228 . as a result , the servo valves 222 will close , thereby stopping the flow of hydraulic fluid to and from the chambers 212 in 214 of the cylinder 208 . when the electrical signal that deflected the piston 210 is removed from the armatures 226 ( e . g . when a master controller wants to center the piston 210 or if the controller loses power ), the springs 264 will push the feedback wires 266 and the flexure sleeves 228 in an opposite direction ( in the direction of arrow c ), causing hydraulic fluid to flow in an opposite direction to move the piston 210 back to a centered position . as discussed above , the springs 254 push the first elongate member 246 and the second elongate member 248 outwardly such that the rollers 250 and 252 remain in contact with the conical surface 262 of the conical cam 260 . referring now to fig3 a and 3b , in a relatively low - vibration environment , the springs 254 may be sufficient to provide contact between the rollers 250 and 252 and the conical surface 262 of the conical cam 260 . for example , fig3 a is a front view of the space shuttle 300 configured for liftoff . the space shuttle 300 includes three liquid rocket engines , similar to the engine 102 shown in fig1 , and two solid rocket boosters 304 . as can be seen in fig3 a , the liquid fuel engines 302 of the space shuttle 300 are arranged significantly higher than the solid rocket booster engines 304 . as a result , the liquid fuel engines 302 are subject to a relatively small amount of vibration produced by exhaust gases leaving the solid rocket booster engines 304 . in other applications , such liquid fuel engines may be exposed to higher levels of vibration . for example , fig3 b illustrates the space launch system ( sls ) 310 being developed by the boeing corporation . in the sls 310 , the liquid fuel engines 302 ′ and solid rocket booster engines 304 ′ are aligned with one another . as a result , the liquid fuel engines 302 ′ may be subject to significantly higher levels of vibration from the solid rocket boosters 304 ′. such increased levels of vibration may induce harmonic vibration in the springs 254 of the scissor linkage 242 . such harmonic vibrations may cause the rollers 250 and 252 of the scissor linkage 242 to lose contact with the conical surface 262 of the conical cam 260 . as a result , the mechanical feedback actuator 200 would not receive feedback for control of the piston 210 , which could result in control excursions of the engine 102 . fig4 a and 4b illustrate an embodiment of a scissor linkage 400 for use in a high vibration environment , such as the environment for the liquid fuel engines 302 ′ for the sls 310 . the scissor linkage includes a first elongate member 402 and a second elongate member 404 , which are pivotable relative to one another about a pivot 406 . the first elongate member 402 includes a roller 408 that can interact with the conical cam 260 . similarly , the second elongate member 404 includes a roller 408 that can interact with the conical cam 260 . the first elongate member 402 and the second elongate member 404 can define an internal volume 410 that can house one or more spring / damper units 414 . the internal volume 410 can include recesses 412 that hold ends of the spring / damper units 414 . fig4 b illustrates a partial cross - sectional view of a spring / damper unit 414 for use with the scissor linkage 400 . the spring / damper 414 can include a first body 416 and a second body 418 . the first body 416 can include an end 422 that can interface with a recess 412 in the first elongate member 402 or the second elongate member 404 . similarly the second body 418 can include an end 428 that can interface with a recess 412 in the first elongate member 402 were the second elongate member 404 . the first body 416 can include a lip 424 and a seat 426 and the second body can include a lip 430 and a seat 432 . the spring 420 can rest against and be captured by the seats 426 and 432 . the connecting rod 434 can extend from the first body 416 and terminate with a piston 436 . the piston 436 and a portion of the connecting rod 434 can be arranged in the second body 418 . the second body 418 can define a cavity 438 and 440 in which the piston 436 can move . the cavity 438 , 440 can be filled with a fluid ( e . g ., a damping oil ) that resists movement of the piston 436 . the piston 436 can include one or more orifices 442 through which the damping fluid can pass as the piston moves within the cavity 438 and 440 . for example , fig4 b illustrates the orifice as an annular orifice between the piston 436 and walls of the cavity 438 and 440 . in one embodiment , the spring 420 can have an outer diameter of one half of an inch and the wire diameter can be 0 . 047 inches . the spring 420 can have a free length of 1 . 125 inches and , when installed between the seats 426 and 432 , and installed length of 1 inch . the spring rate for the spring 420 can be 7 . 46 pounds per inch . in various other embodiments , the spring 420 can have different dimensions and / or spring rates . in one embodiment , the piston 436 can have a diameter of 0 . 1875 inches . the piston 436 can define two apertures , each aperture having a diameter of 0 . 03125 inches . the piston 436 can have a total stroke in the cavities 438 and 440 of 1 . 12 inches . the cavities 438 and 440 can be filled with an 80 weight , silicon - based oil . the resulting damper can have a damping coefficient of 5 . 345 lbf - second / inch . in various other embodiments , the damping coefficient can be between 5 . 3 lbf - second / inch and 5 . 4 lbf - second / inch . in various other embodiments , the damping coefficient can be between 5 lbf - second / inch and 6 lbf - second / inch . in various other embodiments , the damper can have different dimensions and / or damping coefficients . the combined spring / damper can be critically damped ( i . e ., have a damping ratio of 1 ), overdamped ( i . e ., have a damping ratio of greater than 1 ), or underdamped ( i . e ., have a damping ratio of less than 1 ). in various embodiments , the spring rate and damping coefficient can be chosen such that the damping ratio is as close to 1 as possible . the damper can dampen any resonant vibrations in the springs , thereby preventing the scissor linkage 400 from losing contact with the conical cam 260 in a high vibration environment . in the embodiment shown in fig4 a , the dampers are co - located with the springs 420 . in various other embodiments , the dampers can be located next to ( i . e ., side - by - side with ) the spring 420 . also , a scissor linkage 400 can include any number of springs and dampers . for example , in certain embodiments , a scissor linkage may include a single spring and a single damper , two springs and two dampers , or other numbers of springs and dampers . dampers can also be incorporated into other springs in such a mechanical feedback actuator , such as actuator 200 shown in fig2 . for example , dampers could be incorporated into the springs 264 and 268 in the feedback rods 265 to dampen any resonant vibrations of those springs . the descriptions of the various embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration , but are not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed . many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments . the terminology used herein was chosen to best explain the principles of the embodiments , the practical application or technical improvement over technologies found in the marketplace , or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein . in the following , reference is made to embodiments presented in this disclosure . however , the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to specific described embodiments . instead , any combination of the following features and elements , whether related to different embodiments or not , is contemplated to implement and practice contemplated embodiments . furthermore , although embodiments disclosed herein may achieve advantages over other possible solutions or over the prior art , whether or not a particular advantage is achieved by a given embodiment is not limiting of the scope of the present disclosure . thus , the following aspects , features , embodiments and advantages are merely illustrative and are not considered elements or limitations of the appended claims except where explicitly recited in a claim ( s ). likewise , reference to “ the invention ” shall not be construed as a generalization of any inventive subject matter disclosed herein and shall not be considered to be an element or limitation of the appended claims except where explicitly recited in a claim ( s ). while the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention , other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof , and the scope thereof is determined by the claims that follow .	5
in the embodiment of the invention , an analysis server is used to collect data generated during the course of messaging events taking place within some or all of a communication system . ideally , to get a full picture of a call along its end to end path , it would be useful to have complete information about all the associated signalling and media messages as well as other diagnostic information . however , it will be appreciated that a call may pass across several systems which have no unified control and so collecting all the desired information would be difficult if not impossible . in reality , the operator of a portion of a network is probably only interested in the diagnosis of issues within that portion of the network over which they have control . therefore , even though the analysis server may not have access to all the data generated by all parts of the communication system , it can nonetheless still collect data about some of the transactions within a certain scope of the entire network path . it can then provide information about the passage of calls through the network within its scope . during the course of a call , a number of signalling and media messages will be generated and passed through the network . these messages may be passed through various different paths through the network , before reaching their destination . as indicated above , signalling and media messages may pass over different paths through the network and have different message formats and parameters . as these messages are received and either consumed or relayed on through each network node , elements of the message are collected and passed on to the analysis server . as will be explained below , the messages may initially be consolidated with other related messages before being sent to the analysis server . the analysis server receives and collects messages to allow subsequent analysis to identify all messages that relate to or might relate to a specific call , to allow analysis of the processing of the call and possibly why a call failed or had difficulties connecting etc . fig2 shows a portion of a theoretical network which is within the scope of the statistical analysis server of the present invention . as indicated above , the analysis server may only have access to a portion of the network over which a particular call may pass but this does not prevent analysis of the routing of the call in this portion . in the network , signalling messages 24 and media messages 22 may be passed through completely different channels depending on the specific transmission protocols being used . a media gateway ( mg ) 21 a , may receive media messages via tdm channels 22 from a pstn which it passes along to mg 21 b . it may also receive signalling messages 23 from a media gateway controller ( mgc ) 20 . the mg 21 a may also receive signalling messages 26 which it relays between the signalling gateway 25 and the stps 2 . the reception and transmission of all these messages each represents an event which may provide useful diagnostic information . the mgs may also listen to the media content of the messages , for example to detect fax tones . this media sourced information may also be collected . other information may also be collected which might not relate directly to a message . for example , a time - out event may provide additional information which can be used for diagnosis . the media gateways 21 a , 21 b collate the diagnostic event information and pass this to the analysis server . the pstn portions shown in fig2 may be third party networks which are out of the scope of the network monitored by the analysis server . equally the mgcs 20 may be out of the scope of the monitored network . the analysis server 28 uses the received messages to produce consolidated diagnostics , tying together signalling events and media events ( e . g . fax tone detection ) from one or more media gateways within the scope of its network . use of the collated data , allows searching based on certain parameters such as time of call , a unique identifier for the tdm timeslot involved ( e . g . the h . 248 terminationid ), isup / isdn signalling message parameters ( e . g . the cic / channel id , the called / calling party number , etc .). the time of a call and called / calling party number are perhaps the most likely details to be provided about a call when an issue has occurred . therefore these items provide a good key to tie all the data collected to a particular call . however , this information may not be present in all messages collected by the server and so messages must be tied together using other data which may then link them to a particular call to be matched . furthermore , matching according to a timestamp and called / calling number requires no knowledge of any configuration on any of the network elements . in the following description , a piece of diagnostic information ( e . g . “ h . 248 message received : & lt ; message contents & gt ;”) will be referred to as an “ event ”. as indicated above , events may not just relate to messages received , sent or relayed but also to the consequences of the content of a message , or even some action taking place solely within an element of the system such as an mg , e . g . a time - out event . the system also makes use of “ markers ” which are a special type of diagnostic information containing information that can help with searching and / or correlation . these are similar to events but do not necessarily relate to a specific occurrence such as a result of a call setup or of a message reception or transmission . they may simply be diagnostically useful information that has been generated or calculated by an element of the system . they are particularly used for correlating diagnostic data together and to provide indexing information for searching using enquiry data . events and markers may be correlated with each other and these correlated events and markers may be grouped together into “ trails ”. such trails will be used as a set of linked events and markers which may then be associated with a particular call either directly or by association based on a significance measure relating to the likelihood of them relating to each other . the media gateways within the system are configured to send events and markers to the analysis server . each event is sent with a utc timestamp generated by the media gateway and a media gateway identifier . the identifier should be unique at least within the scope of the analysis server . the events and markers are grouped according to their parameters into trails . the trails are collated according to their source and then according to time based parameters and id parameters . in a first trail grouping for media path related messages , all events associated with a single tdm timeslot will be associated . as there may be a large number of unrelated calls using identical tdm timeslots , further criteria must be used to distinguish between different trails . in this case , this is achieved according to the gateway control protocol messages received that are used to set up or tear down a media path . for h . 248 , these are ‘ add ’ and ‘ subtract ’ commands respectively . each trail therefore contains markers having the following identical or similar parameters : t start = timestamp of the add command t end = timestamp of the subtract command id = created from the combination of the gateway control protocol identifier for the tdm timeslot ( e . g . the h . 248 ‘ terminationid ’ parameter ) and the media gateway &# 39 ; s own unique id tid = timeslot within a given tdm carrier ( e 1 / t 1 ) as indicated above , all the markers in a trail might not have identical values for the parameters but may instead include markers that have values within a certain tolerance . for example , markers with t start within a certain margin of a value for the trail will be included . each media gateway performs the correlation of events for a single tdm timeslot . since not all events are related to or consequences of messages , they may not inherently have a timeslot identifiers ( e . g . h . 248 terminationid ). as the analysis server needs such timeslot identifiers to associate events , if all events did not have them , then correlation would not be possible . therefore , some correlation is done at the mg where it can associate each event with a corresponding timeslot identifiers and begin the process of grouping events into trails . then when the partial trails are processed with other events and markers at the analysis server , complete trails can be constructed . the partial trails are constructed at the mgs in this embodiment and then sent to the analysis server . the mg could instead add additional timeslot identifiers to each event and then send it to the analysis server so that the analysis server had sufficient information to complete the correlation process for all events / markers . however , this would add to the signalling overhead and it is therefore more efficient to form the partial trails at the mg , as in this embodiment . in a second trail grouping , all events associated by their isup message mtp3 routing label and their isup circuit identification code parameters are included in a given trail . these are common elements in every isup message . again , there may be many unrelated calls using the same label , and so further criteria must be used to distinguish between different trails . so for an event to be included in a given trail it must also be matched by call establishment and tear - down details , e . g . ‘ iam ’/‘ release ’ message timestamps respectively . alternatively , the ‘ release complete ’ timestamp could be used for tear - down . in this way , a single isup trail should only contain the messages for a single isup call ( or attempt ). each trail therefore contains markers having the following identical or similar parameters : t start = timestamp of the iam command message t end = timestamp of the release ( or release complete ) command message id = the combination of mtp3 routing label and circuit identification code ( cic ). the cic uniquely identifies a tdm timeslot as a media link between two feature servers / gateway controllers , and the mtp3 routing label identifies the pair of feature servers uniquely within a given ss7 network ( but not globally ). additionally , other markers may be associated with a trail that can help when searching for the call diagnostics . for example , this might include any isup parameters that might aid in linking a call to a particular trail , in particular : called party number and calling party number parameters . unlike the tdm timeslot trail grouping above , trail - grouping operations using isup parameter markers can be done either by the media gateway or the analysis server . however , it would likely be preferable to do the isup grouping at the analysis server since each individual message may be routed via a different signalling link on a different tdm timeslot , and so potentially on a different media gateway . for isup media trunks between two media gateways in the same deployment sending to the same analysis server , it is likely that each isup message will be logged and sent to the analysis server more than once . even so , they will be correlated with each other and still be associated into the same signalling trail . in a further trail grouping , events associated by their isdn call - related messages can be grouped . this can include using the call reference information element and a unique pri identifier . the call reference information element is assigned by the originator of a call . the value is assigned at the beginning of a call and remains fixed for the lifetime of a call . after a call ends , the associated call reference value may be reassigned to a later call . the pri consists of an id assigned by the media gateway ( for example the iua identifier ) and the media gateway &# 39 ; s own unique identifier . again , the trails are further distinguished based on the time based parameters , as for isup above . in this case the trails are distinguished by reference to the timestamps for the setup and release / release complete commands . in this way , a single isdn trail should only contain the messages for a single isdn call ( or attempt ). each trail therefore contains markers having the following identical or similar parameters : t start = timestamp of the setup command message t end = timestamp of the release ( or release complete ) command message id = the combination of the channel id from the setup command message and the media gateway identification parameter by which the trail was first grouped . other markers may be associated with a trail to aid searching for a call &# 39 ; s diagnostic events . for example , these could include markers with isdn information elements that could be of interest for searching , in particular those with called party number and calling party number parameters . again , trail grouping operations using isdn parameter markers can be done either by the media gateway or the analysis server . once the initial allocating of events / markers to trails is done either in the media gateways or in the analysis server itself , the “ signalling ” ( isup , isdn ) and “ media ” ( media gateway tdm termination ) trails are then compared and an attempt to associate or correlate pairs of trails is carried out . this second stage matching is carried out by identifying possible id pairings for future lookup and allocating a confidence value indicating the “ strength ” of that pairing , i . e . a measure of certainty . in other words , pairs of trails are compared and the strength of the pairing determined to allocate a confidence value to that pairing . various factors are used to determine that “ strength ” of pairing , including : both t start and t end for two compared trails are within a certain tolerance ( the tolerance could be configured on the analysis server , for example , 500 ms ) id relational strength the id relational strength is determined based on ranging the signalling id and the media tid . it is reasonable to assume that in most cases an entire tdm carrier ( e 1 / t 1 ) is being used for the relevant signalling protocol . on that basis , for the media gateway , if timeslot tid = 3 serves isup cic = 27 then it is a reasonable assumption to suggest that timeslot tid = 1 serves isup cic = 25 , tid = 2 serves isup cic = 26 and so on . in other words , in this example , tid = n serves isup cic = 24 + n . similarly for isdn , if timeslot tid = 5 is serving b - channel 5 , then it can be reasonably surmised that timeslot tid = 6 is serving b - channel 6 and so on . in this way , if the tid and deduced corresponding isup cic or isdn b channel match , then the pairing strength or confidence value of the two trails being compared is enhanced . in the above correlation process , the source media gateway for the trails is not taken into account , allowing for the ss7 network separation of signalling and media paths across different gateways . once the correlated data for the trails is collected in the analysis server , diagnostic analysis for a specific call can be carried out . a user can request diagnostic information by searching the database for a given marker ( or set of markers ), such as time of a call being initiated . using this , a trail having data matching the given marker can be identified . the trail containing the marker found , the “ main ” trail , can then be used to identify associated trails . using the confidence value associated with respective pairings which the main trail has with other trails , candidate associated trails can be identified . a threshold can be set for the confidence value above which candidate trails qualify as associated trails , i . e . trails having sufficiently high strength pairings from the second stage analysis above . the threshold mentioned above can be set high if the user only wishes to see highly correlated trails or the threshold may be set lower , so that more trails are identified but with lower confidence of them relating to the desired call . once the main and qualifying associated trails have been identified , they can be collated and provided to the user . they can then be used for diagnosis purposes either manually by the user or using an automated process which may include remedial steps to try to rectify any problems identified . if the main trail is a signalling trail ( e . g . isup , isdn ), then additional media trails ( e . g . media gateway tdm termination ) may be included in the results . these additional media trails are selected where their confidence value is less than the confidence value of the highest strength trail pairing but within a certain amount and which are from a different media gateway . this allows for media trunks between two media gateways in the same monitored portion of the network ( i . e . sending to the same diagnostics server ). for example in the arrangement of fig2 both media gateways 21 a and 21 b might be within the scope of the monitored scope . as such , both mgs might be sending events / marker information to the analysis server . in this situation , each mg could produce its own separate media trail , but there would only be one signalling trail . all three trails could be associated with each other so that the user could see all three trails together . the trails described above can be made larger , for example by the media gateway tying together all events associated with a single h . 248 context id . this larger group of trails would be useful if identifying data relating to an isup call passed through a media gateway in tandem , as a single correlated diagnostic trace . this would happen , for example , where an isup iam is received by an mgc that causes it determine that a call is not to be routed to a local subscriber but instead sent out over another isup trunk . in this case , there are two separate “ branches ” to that call , each of which has a separate tdm timeslot into one of the mgs controlled by the mgc . the gateway control protocol necessarily involves programming a path to connect them , either as two tdm terminations in a single h . 248 context ( e . g . if they are on the same mg ) or with some other hop ( e . g . rtp ) in between . the analysis server may include the ability to modify the pairing process by obtaining user input to adjust the pairing decision making . for example , trail pairings may be presented to the user to confirm the legitimacy of that pairing . this may be done for all pairings irrespective of the confidence value or limited trail pairings that have a confidence value that is just above or just below the threshold , within a certain range of the confidence value threshold . the user may indicate the desirable trail pairings and reject those that were not . this selection would then be passed to the analysis server to adjust the pairing decision making process . the user response can then be used to modify the threshold value or to modify the significance of specific relationships . so , if a user confirms a particular pairing , the strength for that pairing ( and associated relational pairings ) is increased significantly , and all other possible pairings involving the main trail &# 39 ; s “ id ” can be removed . equally , if a user rejects a presented pairing , that pairing is removed and the strength for associated relational pairings is reduced . the process may then move on to the next best match or a list of possible pairings to choose from . the analysis server may further include the ability to modify the pairing process by modifying the strength value associated with a relationship over time . in this way , the strength would decrease with time , so if a given tdm carrier is repurposed for a different isup trunk , newer possible pairings generated will be stronger than older ones as their strength will have decayed . in this way , newer pairings will have higher confidence values than older ones which will devalue over time . thus an older trail for a repurposed tdm carrier will have a lower confidence value . the rate at which the strength reduces can depend on a number of factors such as usage and a configured decay rate . the present invention can be extended to cover any out - of - band tdm - transported signalling protocol where the media gateway transports but does not consume the data , for example bssap ( bss application part ), which also uses ss7 . the present invention provides a means to correlate trails even when the signalling trails are on a completely different gateway to the media . however , so that the trails can be correlated , they do need to use a consistent time reference , such as ntp . so , if the gateways involved are ntp - synced , it doesn &# 39 ; t matter which gateway the different trails come from .	7
the architecture of the disclosed art is based on the client - driven intelligent content delivery platform . the preferred embodiment of the present invention is described as a client - server solution for enhancing security of web transactions . the preferred embodiment has three functional modules located at three different locations referred herein as nodes . the three nodes are a ) the client terminal 10 , b ) the authentication server 12 , and c ) the network servers 14 . the practical implementation of the preferred embodiment begins with the user inserting the rock od card 18 in the odd 20 of the client machine ( node 1 client terminal 10 ). the rock system uses the following program algorithm modules on the card device and their corresponding remote components on the client and the server . 1 . odd controller 22 gains control of the cd rom / dvd functions during the online transaction , by controlling the cd rom / dvd device drivers . sets compulsory auto run . inactivates all user functions such as cd data access , viewing , copying etc . enables compulsory auto eject after transaction completion and on any illegal command . 2 . os controller 24 cordons off the rock application by closing all programs , applications and hidden processes , to prevent data hijack by spy programs . it also prevents the launch of any concurrent program during the running of rock transaction . it thus isolates the rock program from the operating system , and runs it as a device program from the card . 3 . html compliant engine 26 displays the input and output data . allows access only to the rock defined remote servers , with hidden url addresses . no trace of the url address of server pages delivered to the rock client left in the client machine . 4 . dynamic pin encryptor 28 generates a dynamic 12 digit pin . the 4 digit pin is converted into a 12 digit dynamic pin by the pin encryption algorithm run from the client card . the dynamic pin so generated is based on the current standard server time , the ip of the client machine , the card serial number , its exe creation date and the user area code . the pin decryptor 40 is located at the server and uses a similar algorithm to decrypt the 12 digit pin and authenticate the user . 5 . biometric & amp ; personal information bank 30 — biometrics , such as photograph , signature , finger print , bank names & amp ; account nos . etc may be stored on the card . the details of such card - holder is indexed in databases located at one or more remote servers . 6 . rock replication lock 32 — although odd controller prevents the user from viewing , copying or editing the rock device data , this module makes it virtually impossible for a hacker to run the copied rock device program even if he manages to disable the odd controller functionality . the replication lock , works in the following manner . a ) the rock data on the optic disk card contains a unique virtual id , which cannot be copied over to any other data storage media . this virtual id is created while recording the original rock data at the time of creating the rock optical disc card . such virtual id is generated by marking a specific physical location on the rock optical disc card by means of a specific bit of data and its absolute location in terms of the precise positioning of the laser beam . in one embodiment this can be done by locating the innermost first data track and the outermost last data track of the rock od card incongruent with the iso 9660 standard specifications . these unique marks can be recorded for reference by the subcode channels during the recording session . as these data track markers will not be the same as on any other conventional cd , making a perfect copy will not be possible . b ) the rock replication lock algorithm checks for such virtual id before permitting the launch of the rock program . if the virtual id is missing , the rock program aborts the launch . in another simpler embodiment the rock program checks for information such as date of card creation , number of data tracks etc , before launching the program . nonconformance to these rock od card - specific marker data does not allow a duplicate cd to run the program . 7 . optional biometric scanner & amp ; verifier 36 — for added extra security the rock system can incorporate a real time biometric authentication module . description of many such biometric authentication systems are known to prior art and available as public domain . such module can be as simple as a signature pad input device , or much advanced as a finger print or body parts scanning device , for establishing the physical identification of the rock user , based on his unique biometric characteristics . the congregated effect of the above discussed algorithm modules of the rock system assigns the following properties to the odd and rock od card , which apparently transforms the odd into a rock reading device . 1 . the user cannot view the rock program files using any conventional odd . 2 . the user cannot copy the rock program files from the rock od card . 3 . the user cannot run the rock program from any hard drive or any copied optical disc other than the original rock od card 4 . the url address of pages delivered to rock application during the transaction are not displayed and permanently erased from all os and web browser engine buffers . 5 . no program or unknown process is allowed to run concurrently during the rock transaction , thereby preventing any spy program from hijacking confidential user data . 6 . the 4 - digit user pin is converted to 12 - digit dynamic pin , which changes with every transaction , hence accessing the rock server without the rock od card , even if the hacker cracks the user pin and url of the remote server , is virtually impossible , 7 . every unauthorized transaction can be back tracked as the location and the client machine id is encrypted in the rock server database . in the preferred embodiment the user action is initiated at the client terminal by inserting the rock od card in the odd of the client machine and controlling the navigation with the help of the data input devices such as keyboard or mouse 34 . for a very high level security a biometric scanner 36 , such as signature or finger print scanner can be deployed for assuring a fool proof person specific transaction . the program algorithms on the rock od card are processed by the client cpu and displayed on its html compliant interface 38 . through the html compliant interface the rock communicates with the rock server 12 , which runs the dynamic pin decryption algorithm 40 , for user access to the user info database 42 , and access to predefined network servers 14 . the user enters a 4 - digit pin 44 in a login page displayed in the html - compliant interface 38 . on submission of the pin for user authentication , the dynamic pin encryptor 28 converts the pin to a 12 - digit number 46 , which is generated by taking into account the time ( gmt from the server ) 48 and also the client location and machine id 50 . the dynamic pin decryptor 40 of the authentication server 12 also generates the same dynamic pin using the same parameters . hence the dynamic pin changes with every login . if the 4 digit pin is correct the dynamic pin matches 52 and the user session is authenticated 54 . [ 0053 ] fig3 a and 3 b illustrate the flow diagram of practical implementation of the preferred embodiment in terms of user navigation screens after the session is authenticated . thus , as illustrated in the above detailed description of the invention and the flow diagrams , an online transaction on the internet is secured by means of a physical hard key / card , which can universally work in any conventional computer without the need of a special hardware for reading such hard key / card . according to the teachings of the preferred embodiment of the present invention , such hard key / card will virtually eliminate unauthorized access and ensure a high level of security and privacy in all transactions conducted by using such hard key / card . a further feature of the preferred embodiment is the multiple layers of security built into the system , which makes it virtually impossible for a hacker to break in . even if the hacker is able to crack all the layers including the 4 - digit user pin , and succeeds in reaching the rock server without the rock od card , he will not be able to enter the server because only 12 - digit dynamic pin will be authenticated . such 12 - digit pin is generated afresh at every new transaction making it impossible to crack the 12 - digit dynamic pin . in another preferred embodiment of the present invention the security can be further enhanced by deploying biometric scanner for scanning physical characteristics of the user for access authentication . in yet another preferred embodiment the hard key / card is designed as a credit card , wherein the back of such a card has magnetic stripe and manual authentication methods , providing additional authentication methods in addition to odd based authentication . in yet another embodiment the hard key / card is deployed for authenticating login on to an assigned client computer . several embodiments of the present invention are specifically illustrated and described herein . however , it will be appreciated that modifications and variations of the present invention are covered by the above teachings . while the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in detail , it should be apparent that modifications and adaptations to those embodiments may occur to one skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention as set forth in the following claims .	6
a concurrent license is preferably used with respect to an application that is used for a particular purpose in a company , etc . ; however , there are applications that are not always used in an online environment , and there are cases where it is not possible to manage the concurrent license . for example , in a system of supporting the examination operation at a construction site , etc ., by using a tablet ( tablet terminal ), the input and output of data between the tablet and the server are performed in an online environment , while the application is often used in an offline environment . therefore , it is not possible to confirm the usage state of the application in an offline environment , and management of the concurrent license is not possible . note that for an application used in this type of system , the examination data ( map , specification , work check list , etc .) is downloaded , and the examination data ( updated data ), in which the examination results are input , is uploaded , in an offline environment . preferred embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to accompanying drawings . fig1 illustrates an example of a system configuration according to an embodiment . in fig1 , a server 1 provided in a head office server room , a pc ( personal computer ) client 3 provided in a business office a , and a pc client 4 provided in an on - site office b at a construction site are able to communicate with each other via an internal lan ( local area network ) 2 . furthermore , a tablet 5 provided at a site is able to communicate with the server 1 via the internal lan 2 when the tablet 5 is positioned inside the on - site office b ( online environment ); however , when the tablet 5 is positioned at locations in the construction site other than the on - site office b ( offline environment ), the tablet 5 is unable to communicate with the server 1 . fig2 illustrates an example of a software configuration of the server 1 . in fig2 , the server 1 includes a database 11 , an application distribution unit 12 , a pc client login processing unit 13 , a tablet login processing unit 14 , a data checkin / out processing unit 15 , and a license count unit 16 . the database 11 is for holding data to be referred to and updated , when a process is performed at the server 1 . an example of the data structure of the database 11 is described below . note that the database 11 may be managed by a database server etc ., other than the server 1 . the application distribution unit 12 has a function of providing an application in response to a request from the pc client 3 , 4 , and the tablet 5 . the application provided to the pc client 3 , 4 has a function of implementing overall management , such as creating data for an examination , confirming the examination results , etc . the application provided to the tablet 5 has a function of acquiring data used for the examination from the server 1 ( checkout , take out ), adding the examination result to the data at the site , and returning the updated data to the server 1 ( checkin ). the pc client login processing unit 13 has a function of accepting a login request and a logout request from the application of the pc client 3 , 4 , and performing a login process and a logout process . note that the pc client login processing unit 13 cooperates with the license count unit 16 , to manage the license number ( number of licenses used ) with respect to the pc client 3 , 4 , by setting the period between login to logout by the application as the usage period of the application . the tablet login processing unit 14 has a function of accepting a login request and a logout request from the application of the tablet 5 , and performing a login process and a logout process . note that the tablet login processing unit 14 does not connect the login and logout by the application of the tablet 5 , with the management of the license number . the data checkin / out processing unit 15 has a function of accepting checkout ( take out ) and checkin ( return ) of data , in response to a request from the tablet 5 . the data that is checked out is checked in as data in which the examination result , etc ., has been input ( updated data ). the license count unit 16 has a function of managing the license number of the application , in response to a request , from the pc client login processing unit 13 and the data checkin / out processing unit 15 . fig3 a through 3d illustrate examples of data structures of the database 11 , which respectively illustrate an authentication table t 1 , a usable license number table t 2 , a license number count table t 3 , and a checkin / checkout data table t 4 . the authentication table t 1 is a table used for an authentication process at the time of login , and includes items such as “ user id ”, “ password ”, “ session code ”, etc . the “ user id ” is information for identifying the user . the “ password ” is secret information for confirming the identity of the user . the “ session code ” is information issued when the user is successfully authenticated and the user has logged in , and the “ session code ” is deleted when the user logs out . the usable license number table t 2 holds a license maximum number with respect to the application for the pc client and the application for the tablet . as illustrated in fig3 b , when the license maximum number is “ 5 ”, a total of ten devices , including 5 pc clients and 5 tablets , are able to use the application . note that a license maximum number may be separately set for an application for the pc client and an application for the tablet . the license number count table t 3 is a table for managing the target that is determined as using the application at the present time point , and includes items such as “ user id ”, “ terminal name ”, “ type ”, etc . the “ user id ” is information for identifying the user . the “ terminal name ” is the name of the terminal used by the user . the “ type ” is information indicating the type of the terminal ( pc client or tablet ). the number of records for each of the pc client and the tablet in the “ type ” in the license number count table t 3 , corresponds to the license number at the present time point for the respective applications . the checkin / checkout data table t 4 is a table for managing the state of checkout and checkin by a tablet for each data item , and includes the items of “ data id ”, “ checkout status ”, “ checkout user ”, “ terminal name ”, etc . the “ data id ” is information for identifying the data . the “ checkout status ” is information for indicating whether the data is checked out ( co : presently checked out ). the “ checkout user ” is the user id of the user who is checking out the data . the “ terminal name ” is the name of the terminal that is checking out the data . fig4 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of the server 1 , and the pc client 3 , 4 . in fig4 , the server 1 , etc ., includes a cpu ( central processing unit ) 102 , a rom ( read only memory ) 103 , a ram ( random access memory ) 104 , and an nvram ( non - volatile random access memory ) 105 , which are connected to a system bus 101 . furthermore , the server 1 , etc ., includes an i / f ( interface ) 106 ; an i / o ( input / output device ) 107 , a hdd ( hard disk drive )/ flash memory 108 , and a mic ( network interface card ) 109 , connected to the i / f 106 ; and a monitor 110 , a keyboard 111 , and a mouse 112 connected to the i / o 107 . a cd / dvd ( compact disk / digital versatile disk ) drive , etc ., may be connected to the i / o 107 . the units 12 through 15 of the server 1 in fig2 are realized by executing predetermined programs in the cpu 102 . the program may be provided by a recording medium , or may be provided via a network . fig5 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of the tablet 5 . in fig5 , the tablet 5 includes a power system 501 ; a main system 502 including a processor 503 , a memory controller 504 , and a peripheral interface 505 ; and a storage unit 506 . furthermore , the tablet 5 includes an external port 507 , a high frequency circuit 508 , an antenna 509 , an audio circuit 510 , a speaker 511 , a microphone 512 , a proximity sensor 513 , and a gps ( global positioning system ) circuit 514 . furthermore , the tablet 5 includes an i / o ( input / output ) subsystem 515 including a display controller 516 , an optical sensor controller 517 , and an input controller 518 ; a touch reactive type display system 519 ; an optical sensor 520 ; and an input unit 521 . fig6 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of an application download process . in fig6 , when the pc client 3 , 4 , or the tablet 5 accesses the server 1 and requests the download of the application ( step s 101 ), the application distribution unit 12 of the server 1 sends the corresponding application to the request source ( step s 102 ). accordingly , the pc client 3 , 4 or the tablet 5 acquires the application ( step s 103 ). note that when the pc client 3 , 4 or the tablet 5 accesses the server 1 , a user id and a password may accompany the access , and the application may be sent only when the authentication is successful . fig7 through 9 illustrate an example of a login process by the pc client 3 , 4 . in fig7 , when the application is activated in the pc client 3 , 4 ( step s 111 ), a request for a login process is sent from the application to the server 1 , together with a user id , a password , and a terminal name ( step s 112 ). the pc client login processing unit 13 or the server 1 performs authentication based on the authentication table t 1 from the user id and the password , and when the authentication is successful , the pc client login processing unit 13 sends a query of the license loan status to the database 11 based on the user id and the terminal name ( step s 113 ). the database 11 confirms whether the user id , the terminal name , and the type ( pc client because the request is from the pc client login processing unit 13 ) are already present in the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response ( step s 114 ). the pc client login processing unit 13 determines whether the pc client 3 , 4 that has made the request is already using the license of the application , from the response result from the database 11 ( step s 115 ). when the pc client login processing unit 13 determines that the license is already used ( yes in step s 115 ), the pc client login processing unit 13 generates a session code and sends a response of the session code to the pc client 3 , 4 ( step s 116 ). accordingly , the pc client 3 , 4 executes the application ( step s 117 ). furthermore , when the pc client login processing unit 13 determines that the license is not used ( no in step s 115 ), with reference to fig8 , the pc client login processing unit 13 sends a query of the present license usage number to the license count unit 16 ( step s 118 ), and the license count unit 16 sends a query of the present license usage number to the database 11 ( step s 119 ). the database 11 acquires the maximum license number from the usable license number table t 2 acquires the number of pc clients presently using the license from the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response to the license count unit 16 ( step s 120 ). the license count unit 16 sends a response of the license upper limit ( maximum license number ) and the usage number ( number of pc clients presently using the license ) to the pc client login processing unit 13 ( step s 121 ). the pc client login processing unit 13 determines whether the present usage number is exceeding the license upper limit , from the response result from the license count unit 16 ( step s 122 ). when the pc client login processing unit 13 determines that the present usage number is exceeding the license upper limit ( yes in step s 122 ), the pc client login processing unit 13 sends a response that the license upper limit is exceeded to the pc client 3 , 4 ( step s 123 ), and the application of the pc client 3 , 4 displays a message that the license upper limit is exceeded and ends the application ( step s 124 ). furthermore , when the pc client login processing unit 13 determines that the license upper limit is not exceeded ( no in step s 122 ), with reference to fig9 , the pc client login processing unit 13 sends a request to count up the license usage number to the license count unit 16 ( step s 125 ), and the license count unit 16 sends a request to count up the license usage number to the database 11 ( step s 126 ). the database 11 inserts an line of the user id , the terminal name , and the type ( pc client ) in the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response of completion to the license count unit 16 ( step s 127 ). that is , the database 11 updates the management information of the license ( license management information ) to a used state . the license count unit 16 sends a response that the count up is completed , to the pc client login processing unit 13 ( step s 128 ). upon receiving the response , the pc client login processing unit 13 generates a session code and sends a response or the session code to the pc client 3 , 4 ( step s 129 ). the pc client 3 , 4 completes login ( step s 130 ), and executes the application ( step s 131 ). as described above , with respect to the application of the pc client 3 , 4 , the license number is counted up as a part of the login process . fig1 illustrates an example of a logout process by the pc client 3 , 4 . in fig1 , while the application is being executed at the pc client 3 , 4 ( step s 141 ), a logout process is requested from the application to the server 1 together with a session code ( step s 142 ), and the pc client login processing unit 13 performs a logout process based on the session code ( delete session code , etc .) ( step s 143 ). next , the pc client login processing unit 13 requests the license count unit 16 to count down the license usage number ( step s 144 ), and the license count unit 16 requests the database 11 to count down the license usage number ( step s 145 ). the database 11 deletes the line of the user id , the terminal name , and the type ( pc client ) from the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response of completion to the license count unit 16 ( step s 146 ). that is , the database 11 updates the management information of the license ( license management information ) to an unused state . the license count unit 16 sends a response that the countdown is completed , to the pc client login processing unit 13 ( step s 147 ). upon receiving the response , the pc client login processing unit 13 reports the logout completion to the pc client 3 , 4 ( step s 148 ), and the pc client 3 , 4 ends the application ( s 149 ). as described above , with respect to the application of the pc client 3 , 4 , the license number is counted down as a part of the logout process . fig1 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a login process by the tablet 5 . in fig1 , when the application is activated in the tablet 5 ( step s 211 ), the application sends a request for a login process to the server 1 , together with a user id , a password , and a terminal name ( step s 212 ). the pc tablet login processing unit 14 of the server 1 performs authentication based on the authentication table t 1 from the user id and the password , and when the authentication is successful , the tablet login processing unit 14 generates a session code and sends a response of the session code to the tablet 5 ( step s 213 ). accordingly , the tablet 5 executes the application ( step s 214 ). fig1 through 14 illustrate an example of a data checkout process by the tablet 5 . in fig1 , when acquiring data used for an examination at the tablet 5 , while the application is being executed ( step s 221 ), a request for data checkout is sent from the application to the server 1 , together with a session code , a user id , a terminal name , and a data id ( step s 222 ). when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 of the server 1 confirms that the tablet 5 has already logged in from the session code , the data checkin / out processing unit 15 sends a query of the license loan status to the database 11 based on the user id and the terminal name ( step s 223 ). the database 11 confirms whether the user id , the terminal name , and the type ( tablet because the request is from the data checkin / out processing unit 15 ) are already present in the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response ( step s 224 ). the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines whether the tablet 5 that has made the request is already using the license of the application , from the response result from the database 11 ( step s 225 ). when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines that the license is already used ( yes in step s 225 ), the data checkin / out processing unit 15 makes a checkout registration to the checkin / checkout data table t 4 with respect to the requested data , and sends the data to the tablet 5 ( step s 226 ). the application of the tablet 5 acquires the data and continues the process ( step s 227 ). furthermore , when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines that the license is not used ( no in step s 225 ), with reference to fig1 , the data checkin / out processing unit 15 sends a query of the present license usage number to the license count unit 16 ( step s 228 ), and the license count unit 16 sends a query of the present license usage number to the database 11 ( step s 229 ). the database 11 acquires the maximum license number from the usable license number table t 2 , acquires the number of tablets presently using the license from the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response to the license count unit 16 ( step s 230 ). the license count unit 16 sends a response of the license upper limit ( maximum license number ) and the usage number ( number of tablets presently using the license ) to the data checkin / out processing unit 15 ( step s 231 ). the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines whether the present usage number is exceeding the license upper limit , from the response result from the license count unit 16 ( step s 232 ). when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines that the present usage number is exceeding the license upper limit ( yes in step s 232 ), the data checkin / out processing unit 15 sends a response that the license upper limit is exceeded to the tablet 5 ( step s 233 ), and the application of the tablet 5 displays a message that the license upper limit is exceeded and returns to the state before the data checkout ( step s 234 ). furthermore , when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines that the license upper limit is not exceeded ( no in step s 232 ), with reference to fig1 , the data checkin / out processing unit 15 sends a request to count up the license usage number to the license count unit 16 ( step s 235 ), and the license count unit 16 sends a request to count up the license usage number to the database 11 ( step s 236 ). the database 11 inserts an line of the user id , the terminal name , and the type ( tablet ) in the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response of completion to the license count unit 16 ( step s 237 ). that is , the database 11 updates the management information of the license ( license management information ) to a used state . the license count unit 16 sends a response that the count up is completed , to the data checkin / out processing unit 15 ( step s 238 ). upon receiving the response , the data checkin / out processing unit 15 makes a checkout registration to the checkin / checkout data table t 4 with respect to the requested data , and sends the data to the tablet 5 ( step s 239 ). the application of the tablet 5 continues the process ( step s 240 ). as described above , with respect to the application of the tablet 5 , the license number is counted up as a part of the data checkout . fig1 illustrates an example of a screen for confirming the data that has been checked out , at the tablet 5 . in fig1 , in the screen of the tablet , display fields 51 , 52 are displayed in units of data , and by selecting the data of the desired display field and pressing the start examination button 53 , the screen transitions to a screen for displaying the examination procedures , etc ., and a screen for inputting examination results . fig1 and 17 illustrate an example of a data checkin process by the tablet 5 . in fig1 , when returning data ( updated data ) in which the examination result has been input at the tablet 5 , while the application is being executed ( step s 251 ), a request for data checkin is sent from the application to the server 1 , together with a session code , a user id , a terminal name , and the data ( updated data ) ( step s 252 ). when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 of the server 1 confirms that the tablet 5 has already logged in from the session code , the data checkin / out processing unit 15 sends a query of the data take out status to the database 11 based on the user id , the terminal name , and the data id ( step s 253 ). the database 11 confirms the data take out status based on the user id , the terminal name , and the data id in the checkin / checkout data table t 4 , and sends a response ( step s 254 ). the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines whether the number of data items and the contents of the data items ( specified by data ids ) of the checkin data are the same as those of the checked out data ( step s 255 ). when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines that the number and the contents of the checkin data and those of the checked out data are not the same ( no in step s 255 ), the data checkin / out processing unit 15 performs a checkin process of the data ( update the checkin / checkout data table t 4 , save the updated data , etc .) ( step s 256 ), and reports the checkin completion to the tablet 5 ( step s 257 ). the application of the tablet 5 continues the process ( step s 258 ). when the data checkin / out processing unit 15 determines that the number and the contents of the checkin data and the checked out data are the same ( yes in step s 255 ), with reference to fig1 , the data checkin / out processing unit 15 requests the license count , unit 16 to count down the license usage number ( step s 259 ), and the license count unit 16 requests the database 11 to count down the license usage number ( step s 260 ). the database 11 deletes the line of the user id , the terminal name , and the type ( tablet ) from the license number count table t 3 , and sends a response of completion to the license count unit 16 ( step s 261 ). that is , the database 11 updates the management information of the license ( license management information ) to an unused state . the license count unit 16 sends a response that the countdown is completed , to the data checkin / out processing unit 15 ( step s 262 ). upon receiving the response , the data checkin / out processing unit 15 performs the checkin process of the data ( update the checkin / checkout data table t 4 , save the updated data , etc .) ( step s 263 ), and reports the data checkin completion to the tablet 5 ( step s 264 ). the application of the tablet 5 continues the process ( step s 265 ). as described above , with respect to the application of the tablet 5 , the license number is counted down by checking in all of the data that has been checked out . fig1 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a logout process by the tablet 5 . in fig1 , while the application is being executed at the tablet 5 ( step s 271 ), a logout process is requested from the application to the server 1 together with a session code ( step s 272 ), and the tablet login processing unit 14 performs a logout process based on the session code ( delete session code , etc .) ( step s 273 ). next , the tablet login processing unit 14 reports the logout completion to the tablet 5 ( step s 274 ), and the tablet 5 ends the application ( s 275 ). note that in the present embodiment , a description is given of an example of realizing the management of the number of licenses being used , by counting up the number of licenses being used . however , the management method is not so limited , as long as the number of licenses being used is managed so as not to exceed the maximum number of licenses . for example , the number of licenses being used may be managed so as not to exceed the maximum number of licenses , by counting down the remaining number of usable licenses every time usage of a license is allowed . as described above , according to the present embodiment , it is possible to manage , in the same manner as a concurrent license , an application that is mainly used in an offline environment but is used in an online environment when input , and output of data is performed with a server . the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described herein , and variations and modifications may be made without departing from the wide - ranged purpose and the scope of the present invention . that is , the present invention is not to be construed as being limited by the detailed examples or the accompanying drawings . the tablet login processing unit 14 and the pc client login processing unit 13 are examples of a “ login processing unit ”. the data checkin / out processing unit 15 is an example of a “ transmission unit ”. the data checkin / out processing unit 15 is an example of a “ reception unit ”. the license count unit 16 is an example of a “ license management unit ”. the database 11 is an example of a “ storage unit ”. the data checkin / out processing unit 15 is an example of an “ accepting unit ”. according to an aspect of the embodiments , a license number management system and a license number management method are provided , which are capable of managing , in the same manner as a concurrent license , an application that is mainly used in an offline environment but is used in an online environment when input and output of data is performed with a server . all examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the invention and the concepts contributed by the inventor to furthering the art , and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions , nor does the organization of such examples in the specification relate to a showing of the superiority and inferiority of the invention . although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail , it should be understood that the various changes , substitutions , and alterations could be made hereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	6
referring to fig1 ˜ 4 , a linear actuator in accordance with the present invention is shown comprising a housing 1 , a driving mechanism 2 and at least one , for example , two limit switches 3 . the housing 1 is formed of a first half shell 11 and a second half shell 12 , having an accommodation chamber 13 extending along the length thereof , a front opening 131 located on one end of the accommodation chamber 13 , a rear compartment 132 located on the other end of the accommodation chamber 13 , a bottom receiving chamber 14 located on the bottom side of the accommodation chamber 13 , a longitudinal seat 141 set between the accommodation chamber 13 and the bottom receiving chamber 14 , a series of transverse grooves 1411 located on the longitudinal seat 141 and facing the inside of the accommodation chamber 13 , a tubular front coupling portion 15 extending around the front opening 131 , at least one , for example , and two raised portions 151 protruded from the periphery at two opposite sides . further , a metal retaining ring 16 is capped on the tubular front coupling portion 15 , having two retaining holes 161 respectively forced into engagement with the raised portions 151 . the driving mechanism 2 comprises a motor 21 , a worm 211 connected to and rotatable by the motor 21 , a push rod 23 having an inner thread 231 axially located on the inside and a nut — 232 protruded from the periphery of one end thereof , a spindle 22 threaded into the inner thread 231 of the push rod 23 , a worm gear 221 fixedly mounted on one end of the spindle 22 and meshed with the worm 211 , and a connector 24 connected to the other end of the push rod 23 remote from the nut 232 for the connection of an external device to be driven by the linear actuator . each limit switch 3 comprises a switch body 31 , and a positioning device 32 disposed at one side relative to the switch body 31 . the switch body 31 has a plurality of electrode pins 311 located on the bottom side thereof . the positioning device 32 has a button 321 protruded from the top wall thereof and suspending above the switch body 31 and adapted for triggering the switch body 31 , a locating groove 322 located on one lateral side thereof opposite to the switch body 31 , at least one , for example , two protruding blocks 323 suspending in one side , namely , the top side of the locating groove 322 , and a retaining portion 324 located on the other side , namely , the bottom side of the locating groove 322 . during the assembly process of the linear actuator , perpendicularly attach the motor 21 of the driving mechanism 2 to the rear end of the housing 1 to insert the worm 211 of the motor 21 into the rear compartment 132 of the housing 1 and then fixedly secure the motor 21 to the housing 1 , and then thread the spindle — 22 into the inner thread 231 of the push rod 23 and put the push rod — 23 with the spindle 22 in the accommodation chamber 13 of the housing 1 to force the worm gear 221 into engagement with the worm 211 of the motor 21 and to have the push rod 23 extend out of the accommodation chamber 13 to the outside of the housing 1 through the front opening 131 , and then fasten the limit switches 3 to the front and rear sides of the longitudinal seat 141 in the bottom receiving chamber 14 of the housing 1 to aim the button 321 of each limit switch 3 at the nut 232 of the push rod 23 , and then fasten the first half shell 11 and second half shell 12 of the housing 1 together and attach the metal retaining ring 16 to the tubular front coupling portion 15 of the housing 1 to force the two retaining hole 161 of the metal retaining ring 16 into engagement with the raised portions 151 of the tubular front coupling portion 15 respectively and to reinforce the strength of the housing 1 . according to the present preferred embodiment , the first half shell 11 and second half shell 12 of the housing 1 are respectively molded from a plastic material . alternatively , a metal material can be used to make the first half shell 11 and second half shell 12 of the housing 1 . referring to fig5 and fig2 ˜ 4 again , when started the motor 21 to rotate the worm 211 clockwise or counter - clockwise , the worm 211 drives the worm gear 221 to rotate the spindle 22 in the inner thread 231 of the push rod 23 , causing the push rod 23 to be moved linearly forwards or backwards . further , the electrode pins 311 of the limit switches 3 are respectively electrically connected to the circuit ( not shown ) at the start end and finish end of the linear stroke . when the nut 232 of the push rod 23 reaches the finish end during a forward linear motion of the push rod 23 subject to clockwise rotation of the spindle 22 , the nut 232 touches the button 321 of the limit switch 3 at the finish end , causing the limit switch 3 at the finish end to switch off the motor 21 , avoiding disconnection of the push rod 23 from the front end of the spindle — 22 . on the contrary , when the nut 232 of the push rod 23 reaches the start end during a backward linear motion of the push rod — 23 subject to counter - clockwise rotation of the spindle 22 , the nut — 232 touches the button 321 of the limit switch 3 at the start end , causing the limit switch 3 at the start end to switch off the motor 21 , avoiding locking of the spindle 22 and preventing worm gear damage . the distance between the two limit switches 3 is determined subject to the designed distance of the linear stroke of the nut 232 . further , the positioning device 32 of each limit switch 3 is fastened to the longitudinal seat 141 in the bottom receiving chamber 14 of the housing 1 by means of forcing the protruding blocks 323 into engagement with the transverse grooves 1411 on the longitudinal seat 141 to have the longitudinal seat 141 is received in the locating groove 322 and retaining portion 324 be abutted against the bottom side of the longitudinal seat 141 . when wishing to adjust the distance between the two limit switches 3 , remove the metal retaining ring 16 from the tubular front coupling portion 15 of the housing 1 , and then separate the first half shell 11 and second half shell 12 of the housing 1 , and then pull the limit switch 3 away from the longitudinal seat 141 , and then reinstall the limit switch 3 in the longitudinal seat 141 at the selected location . further , the formation of the series of transverse grooves 1411 on the longitudinal seat 141 constitutes a rack for engagement with the tooth - like protruding blocks 323 of the positioning device 32 of each limit switch 3 . further , the protruding blocks 323 can be made having a rectangular , dovetail - like or arched profile for positive engagement with the series of transverse grooves 1411 on the longitudinal seat 141 and easy removal of the respective limit switch 3 from the longitudinal seat 141 . fig6 is an exploded view of an alternate form of the linear actuator . according to this alternate form , the housing 1 has a motor chamber 17 perpendicularly connected to the rear compartment 132 for accommodating the motor 21 of the driving mechanism 2 . therefore , the motor 21 is well protected in the motor chamber 17 and will not be forced to bias during delivery of the linear actuator , avoiding improper engagement between the worm gear 221 and the worm 211 or any possible gear tooth damage . further when the motor 21 in the motor chamber 17 also prevent it from water and dust . in the aforesaid embodiment , the positioning device 32 of each limit switch 3 is fastened to the longitudinal seat 141 in the bottom receiving chamber 14 of the housing 1 by means of forcing the protruding blocks 323 into engagement with the transverse grooves 1411 on the longitudinal seat 141 , however this arrangement is not a limitation ; alternatively the positioning device 32 of each limit switch 3 can be fastened to the longitudinal seat 141 in the bottom receiving chamber 14 of the housing 1 by a screw joint . in general , the invention provides a linear actuator , which has the following advantages and features : 1 . the first half shell 11 and the second half shell 12 constitute the housing 1 , and the metal retaining ring 16 is fastened to the tubular front coupling portion 15 of the housing 1 to force the two retaining holes 161 of the metal retaining ring 16 into engagement with the raised portions 151 of the tubular front coupling portion 15 and to reinforce the strength of the housing 1 . when wishing to adjust the positions of the limit switches 3 , the user can remove the metal retaining ring 16 from the tubular front coupling portion 15 of the housing 1 and then separate the first half shell 11 and the second half shell 12 for allowing re - installation of the limit switches 3 . therefore , the invention facilitates adjustment of the positions of the limit switches 3 and avoids displacement of the limit switches 3 due to accidental touching by the spindle 22 or push rod 23 during installation of the driving mechanism 2 . 2 . the first half shell 11 and second half shell 12 of the housing 1 are molded from plastics for the advantages of ease of fabrication and low manufacturing cost . the use of the metal retaining ring 16 assures tight connection of the first half shell 11 and the second half shell 12 and reinforces the strength of the housing 1 , avoiding vibration of the push rod 23 during operation of the driving mechanism 2 . a prototype of linear actuator has been constructed with the features of fig1 ˜ 6 . the linear actuator functions smoothly to provide all of the features disclosed earlier . although a particular embodiment of the invention has been described in detail for purposes of illustration , various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . for example , any other linear transmission structures may be used to substitute for the worm and worm gear for transmission of rotary driving force from the motor to the spindle ; the metal retaining ring can be made having raised portions and the tubular front coupling portion can be made having retaining holes for engagement with the raised portions of the metal retaining ring . accordingly , the invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims .	8
in the instant invention , it has been found that an environment containing a chemically active species is more harmful if the liberated species is available to attack the low k material during the etching step , in the etch chamber , where the low k dielectric itself is being etched . examples of the damage that can occur are cd loss , bowing and undercut . hereafter , fluorine will be used as a representative of chemically active species . however , this invention contemplates other chemically active species other than fluorine and the methods disclosed and claimed are applicable for other chemically active species , such as oxygen . while a number of possible solutions exist , including finding a fluorine free etching chemistry , the inventors have found that conditioning the etch chamber and the surface that is to be etched can prevent one or more of the possible damage types mentioned above . a first , preferred , embodiment of conditioning the surface is shown in fig3 . an overlayer is deposited once the photoresist film is patterned . the overlayer acts as a barrier to the active species from the discharge ( plasma ). it is thought by the inventors that the fluorine ( chemically active species ) is consumed by the byproducts of the overlayer removal . the overlayer should not significantly change the sizing of the feature contemplated by the initial patterning of the photoresist . the feature size should be substantially the same as it would be without the overlayer deposition step ( assuming that the size of the feature would not be effected by a fluorine containing environment ). this means that the critical dimensions as contemplated by the design constraints can be predictably patterned without accounting for possible unpredictable processing effects that can be caused by the presence of a fluorine containing species . further , the chamber conditioning can decrease sidewall roughness . sidewall roughness can cause voiding in the subsequently formed metallization . as shown in fig3 the overlayer 20 , is deposited on the photoresist , 5 , after the photoresist is patterned with an opening 15 , having a width w 1 . the photoresist is usually patterned using photolithography techniques that are well known in the art . preferably , but not necessarily , the overlayer would be selectively deposited such that there would be substantially no overlayer deposition on the exposed surface , 25 , of the underlying layer , 10 . the overlayer acts as a barrier to the active species from the plasma . by acting as a barrier , the overlayer can prevent loss of cd . the overlayer may also produce a surface covering the resist sidewall which is smoother than the resist prior to overlayer deposition . this may result in smoother etch profiles . furthermore , the etch chamber will be in a different “ state ” during the subsequent dielectric etch process . the “ state ” of the etch chamber will be one depleted of chemically active species . it is thought that either the overlayer deposition of the overlayer or the etch of the overlayer , which directly precedes the etching of the dielectric layer depletes the chamber of chemically active species . once the overlayer was deposited the etch process would proceed . when the etch is completed the width of the feature would be substantially the same as the width of the patterned photoresist , w 1 . it is important to this embodiment that the feature size as etched in the substrate be predictable . by predictable it is meant that profile erosion ( corner rounding , sidewall tapering ) can be minimized and profile shape ( bowing and undercut ) reliably etched . additionally , the method of the instant embodiment helps control sidewall roughness which can occur as a result of the etch processes . it is of course contemplated , but not preferred , that the deposition of the overlayer could be such that the width is more narrow than the width w 1 . however , the focus of this invention is on reducing the adverse effects of the environment containing a chemically active species that can exist during the etching of the substrate , without substantially effecting the critical dimensions as they would have existed without the deposition of the overlayer . it is in fact a critical element of the instant embodiment that the feature as transferred into the substrate , 10 , ( any figure ) not be significantly more narrow than the feature as patterned in the overlying substrate . it is also contemplated that the overlayer , 20 , be embedded in the layers between the opening , 15 , in the patterned photoresist , 5 , and the substrate , 10 , itself ( see fig4 ). the substrate , 10 , may or may not be patterned and contain openings . if there are openings in the substrate , 10 , then the overlayer will preferably fill the openings . as shown in fig4 the invention contemplates alternate layerings of photoresist and overlayer . the only limitation is that the overlayer be deposited after the dielectric and etched prior to the dielectric . the composition of the plasma is not critical to the instant invention , what is critical is that first , the deposition chemistry changes the etch chamber conditioning during the subsequent etch step such that adverse effects to the substrate are avoided and second , that the overlayer itself not affect the etching of the underlying . however , in a preferred embodiment , the plasma overlayer would comprise a polymer - like material . examples of possible polymer chemistries include hydrocarbons of the form [( ch2 ) n ], fluorocarbon polymers of the form [( cf2 ) n ] and mixed hydrofluorocarbons of the form [( chxfy ) n ]. a polymerizing chemistry results in a reduction of chemically active species . also preferably , the plasma would be non - oxidizing and scavenge the detrimental chemically active species present . the thickness of the overlayer needs to be at least about several angstroms . the overlayer should cover substantially all photoresist present but would not necessarily cover the exposed surface at the bottom of the patterned feature . in a preferred embodiment , the overlayer would cover at least about ⅓ of the length of the sidewalls of the patterned feature . in a more preferred embodiment the overlayer would cover at most about ⅔ of the length of the sidewalls ( as measured from the top surface ). preferably , the thickness of the overlayer would be at least about 10 nm and at most about 100 nm , but is not limited to that range . it is contemplated that the overlayer could be several microns . the only upper limit to the thickness of the overlayer contemplated by the inventors is a thickness at which delamination of the overlayer would occur . delamination would occur when the stress in the polymer layer increases to the point where the film starts to lift off . in summary , the embodiments outlined above provide a method for reducing the effects liberated chemical species have on critical dimension line / via pattern transferrance in dielectrics , specifically low k dielectrics . while the invention has been described in terms of specific embodiments , it is evident in view of the foregoing description that numerous alternatives , modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art . thus , the invention is intended to encompass all such alternatives , modifications and variations which fall within the scope and spirit of the invention and the appended claims .	7
a typical cycle of the wiring machine is to position the wiring gun indicator at a particular backplane wiring terminal pin after which operation the &# 34 ; start &# 34 ; light and the &# 34 ; light &# 34 ; light are lit . the operator has then to take a pre - cut pair of wires , insert one pre - stripped end of the light colored wire , say for example blue of a blue black pair , into the gun tip gt and spin it onto the indicated terminal . upon completion of this operation , an advance switch is activated to advance the numerical controlled machine to the next step . the machine then advances and positions the wiring gun indicator at the next terminal to be wired and activates the &# 34 ; start &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; dark &# 34 ; indicator lights . the operator is now to take the second wire of the pair the darker or black wire of a blue - black pair at the same end and insert the pre - stripped end into the gun tip and spin it onto the indicated terminal . upon completion , the advance switch is actuated and the numerical control machine advances the gun indicator to the next wiring pin position , and activates the &# 34 ; end &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; light &# 34 ; indicator lights . the operator is now to proceed to dress the wires and take the free end of the light wire , the blue wire in this example , and wire it onto the indicated terminal and again activate the advance switch . the machine again advances this indicator to the wiring position for the remaining wire and activates the &# 34 ; end &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; dark &# 34 ; indicator lights . the operator has now to insert the stripped end of the remaining dark wire into the tip gt of the gun wg and spin it onto the indicated terminal after which operation upon activation of the advance switch the machine will advance to the wiring position for the next pair of wires and the cycle will be repeated . as can be seen from the drawing there is a negative or electronic &# 34 ; low &# 34 ; potential available from the indicator lights when they are turned on . the isolated wire wrap gun wg has a single conductor stranded wire attached to it . this wire is run alongside the air line powering the gun . the other end of the wire is attached to a pullup resistor , thereby biasing the gun to an electronic &# 34 ; high &# 34 ; potential . by the term &# 34 ; high &# 34 ; it is meant a positive three to five volts d . c ., which is current limited via a pullup resistor . this gun sense point ( gsp ) potential is used and logically combined with the two other signals that are present for each wiring position . these other signals being obtained from the wiring machine signals that operate the indicator panel lights . normally these signals are at a logic high or &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; until the time that the lights are lit , at which time the signal lead goes to a logic low or &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; potential . for each of the four operations of a wired pair wiring cycle there are present the following signals in addition to that of the gun sense point . ______________________________________start and lightstart and darkend and lightend and dark not used since this error is not possible if the previous three conditions are correct . ______________________________________ thus , by logically combining these signals for the first wire placement position there are present at the &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; gate sl input the following signals : start at &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, light at &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; and the gun sense point should not be grounded and therefore have a &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; input to result in a &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; output to keep the gate and output at a logic &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; or + 5 volts and the alarm silent . gates sd and le both have logic 1 outputs at this time . should the wiring operator place the wire on a grounded pin at this time the inputs at gate sl would then be three lows and the output would be a low to cause the gate and to output a low and thus activate the audible alarm . similarly for the second step of the wiring , the start and dark signals are at a logic low , however both signals are inverted at inverters is and id at the input of the nand gate sd thus having inputs of logic 1 + 1 + 0 resulting in a logic &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; output to keep the gate and with a + 5 volt output . the operations for the other ends of the wire pair at steps end and light and end and dark result in the same outputs . although the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated , and that form described in detail , it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention or from the scope of the appended claims .	6
referring to fig1 - 3 , a flexible package 10 is generally indicated in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention . fig1 depicts package 10 has having a first flexible top sheet 100 sealed to a second flexible embossed bottom sheet 200 enclosing a food product , ( e . g ., bacon ) 20 containing a substantial amount of solidified fat and water . package 10 includes a heat seal 30 , preferably a hermetic heat seal which seals the top sheet 100 to the bottom sheet 200 and extends continuously around the periphery 40 of the package . as shown in fig2 - 4 , bottom sheet 200 has an embossed food - contact surface 110 facing the food product . the embossed food - contact surface 110 includes a three - dimensional surface topography of peaks 111 and valleys 112 wherein each valley has a defined perimeter with a valley base 113 integrally connected to a valley wall 114 . each valley base and connected valley wall defines an individual liquid containment cell 115 . the individual liquid containment cell 115 may have any shape , size and / or depth as desired depending on the amount of water and / or grease inherent to the packaged food product . it is advantageous to provide a plurality of individual liquid containment cells having a polygon shape . in preferred embodiments , the bottom sheet comprises a plurality of the individual liquid containment cells having a polygon shape formed into a pattern which extends across a portion or the entire surface area of the bottom sheet . as depicted in fig4 , there is an enlarged partial view of one preferred embodiment of a bottom sheet 200 which includes a plurality of individual liquid containment cells 115 having a diamond shape . each individual containment cell 115 includes a valley base 113 surrounded by a valley wall 114 . in this particular preferred example , each of the individual liquid containment cells includes four discrete valley walls 114 a , 114 b , 114 c , and 114 d . fig5 illustrates another preferred embodiment of a bottom sheet 200 which includes a plurality of individual liquid containment cells 115 having a double cross - hatched shape . each individual containment cell 115 includes two valley bases 113 a and 113 b where each valley is surrounded by a valley wall 114 . fig6 illustrates another preferred embodiment of a bottom sheet 200 which includes a plurality of individual liquid containment cells 115 having a hexagon shape . each individual containment cell 115 includes a valley base 113 surrounded by a valley wall 114 . in this particular preferred example , each of the individual liquid containment cells includes six discrete valley walls 114 a , 114 b , 114 c , 114 d , 114 e , and 114 f . in order to achieve sufficient liquid retaining capacity , the food - contact surface has a reduced food - contact surface area that reduces its pre - embossed food - contact surface area by at least 20 %, at least 25 %, at least 30 %, at least 35 %, at least 40 %, at least 45 %, or at least 50 %. one method of determining the percentage of reduction of the reduced food - contact surface area relative to the pre - embossed food - contact surface area for a bottom sheet having a plurality of individual liquid containment cells may be calculated based on the dimensions of an individual liquid containment cell as is shown in fig7 . in this particular embodiment , the individual liquid containment cell has a hexagon shape and the area of the pre - embossed food - contact surface or area ld may be calculated using formula ( i ) in fig6 by measuring the length of line ac ( d 1 ) between points a and b , the length of line bd ( d 2 ) between points b and d , multiplying these distances together and finally , dividing the product in half . typically , points a , b , c and d are each a vertex of four abutting containment cells as illustrated in fig4 . points a and b may also be a midpoint between two adjacent valleys as illustrated in fig3 . the area of the embossed area or area sd which essentially represents the area lying below the food - contact surface 111 may be calculated using formula ( ii ) in fig6 by measuring the length of line a ′ c ′ ( d ′ 1 ) between points a ′ and b ′, the length of line b ′ d ′ ( d ′ 2 ) between points b ′ and d ′, multiplying these distances together and finally , dividing the product in half . points a ′, b ′, c ′ and d ′ are each a vertex of two abutting valley walls , 114 a and 114 b within a single individual liquid containment cell as shown in fig4 . the percentage of reduction of the reduced food - contact surface area relative to the pre - embossed food - contact surface area is calculated by using formula ( iii ) in fig6 by subtracting the amount of area sd , the embossed area from area ld , the pre - embossed area , dividing the remainder by area ld , and finally multiplying the dividend by 100 %. turning now to fig8 , there is shown a cross - sectional view of one preferred embodiment of a top sheet 100 . in this particular example , first film 100 includes an exterior sealant layer 101 which also functions as a frangible layer comprising a blend of a heat sealing material and a material which is incompatible with the heat sealing material , a second layer 102 positioned adjacent to the exterior sealant layer 101 which comprises a polyolefin resin , a third layer 103 positioned adjacent to second layer 102 and comprising a tie or adhesive material , a fourth layer 104 positioned adjacent to the third layer 103 which comprises an oxygen barrier material , and a fifth layer 105 positioned adjacent to the fourth layer 104 and comprising a polyamide or blend of polyamides , a sixth layer 106 positioned adjacent to fifth layer 105 and comprising a tie or adhesive material , and a seventh exterior layer 107 adjacent to sixth layer 106 and comprising an abuse material . while this example of first flexible heat shrinkable film 100 is depicted as having seven layers , it should be understood that first film 100 may be formed as having any number of layers depending upon the desired properties of the final film . thus first film 100 may be constructed from 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 or more layers . fig9 depicts a cross - sectional view of one preferred embodiment of a bottom sheet 200 . in this example , second film 200 includes an exterior sealant layer 201 comprising a heat sealing material , a second layer 202 positioned adjacent to the exterior sealant layer 201 which comprises a polyolefin resin , a third layer 203 positioned adjacent to second layer 202 and comprising a polyolefin resin , a fourth layer 204 positioned adjacent to the third layer 203 which comprises a tie or adhesive material , a fifth layer 205 positioned adjacent to the fourth layer 204 and comprising a polyamide or blend of polyamides , a sixth layer 206 positioned adjacent to fifth layer 205 and comprising an oxygen barrier material , a seventh exterior layer 207 adjacent to sixth layer 206 and comprising a polyamide or blend of polyamides , an eighth layer 208 positioned adjacent to seventh layer 207 and comprising a tie or adhesive material , and a ninth exterior layer 209 positioned adjacent to eighth layer 208 and comprising an abuse material . while this example of second flexible non - heat shrinkable film 200 is depicted as having nine layers , it should be understood that second film 200 may be formed as having any number of layers depending upon the desired properties of the final film . as used herein , the term “ sealant ” refers to a layer which is heat sealable to itself or to other materials , i . e ., be capable of fusion bonding by conventional heating means which generate sufficient heat on at least one film contact surface for conduction to the contiguous film contact surface and formation of a bond interface therebetween without loss of the film integrity . advantageously , the bond interface must be sufficiently thermally stable to prevent gas or liquid leakage therethrough . suitable sealant materials include , but are not limited to polyolefins , such as polyethylenes ( pe ), including low density polyethylene ( ldpe ), linear low density polyethylene ( lldpe ), very low density polyethylene ( vldpe ), and ultra - low density polyethylene ( uldpe ); ethylene vinyl acetate copolymers ( eva ); ionomers ; and blends thereof . the term “ adhesive layer ,” or “ tie layer ” refers to a layer or material placed on one or more layers to promote the adhesion of that layer to another surface . typically , adhesive layers are positioned between two layers of a multilayer film to maintain the two layers in position relative to each other and prevent undesirable delamination . unless otherwise indicated , an adhesive layer can have any suitable composition that provides a desired level of adhesion with the one or more surfaces in contact with the adhesive layer material . optionally , an adhesive layer placed between a first layer and a second layer in a multilayer web may comprise components of both the first layer and the second layer to promote simultaneous adhesion of the adhesive layer to both the first layer and the second layer to opposite sides of the adhesive layer . tie or adhesive layers may be incorporated into a film or laminate by any of the well - known processes for making multilayer structures such as coextrusion , adhesive lamination and the like . typical tie materials include , but are not limited to anhydride or carboxylic acid modified polyolefins , particularly , maleic anhydride modified polyolefins such as maleic anhydride modified low density polyethylene , maleic anhydride modified linear low density polyethylene , maleic anhydride modified high density polyethylene , maleic anhydride modified ethylene vinyl acetate copolymers and blends thereof . tie layer materials may further include a blend of an unmodified polyolefin or unmodified ester copolymer or unmodified ethylene acid copolymer and a modified polyolefin or modified ester copolymer or modified ethylene acid copolymer . frangible or peelable film layers are well known in the art and are disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 944 , 409 ( busche et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 875 , 587 ( lulham et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 3 , 655 , 503 ( stanley et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 058 , 632 ( evans et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 252 , 846 ( romesberg et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 615 , 926 ( hsu et al .) u . s . pat . no . 4 , 666 , 778 ( hwo ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 784 , 885 ( carespodi ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 882 , 229 ( hwo ); u . s . pat . no . 6 , 476 , 137 ( longo ); u . s . pat . no . 5 , 997 , 968 ( dries , et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 189 , 519 ( ticknor ); u . s . pat . no . 5 , 547 , 752 ( yanidis ); u . s . pat . no . 5 , 128 , 414 ( hwo ); u . s . pat . no . 5 , 023 , 121 ( pockat , et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 937 , 139 ( genske , et al . ); u . s . pat . no . 4 , 916 , 190 ( hwo ); and u . s . pat . no . 4 , 550 , 141 ( hoh ), the disclosures of which are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference thereto . in one preferred embodiment , a frangible layer is included in top sheet 100 . in another preferred embodiment , a frangible layer is included in bottom sheet 200 . non - limiting examples of such blends combine polyethylene such as low density polyethylene , linear low density polyethylene or ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer as a major component with a polybutylene - 1 as a minor component . the major component of these blends is present in an amount of at least 50 %, 60 %, 70 %, 80 % or 90 % by weight relative to the total weight of the frangible layer . typically , these frangible layers provide a relatively weak bond to an adjacent layer whereby the interface between these layers delaminates upon application of force perpendicular to the plane of the interface . oxygen barrier materials may include , but are not limited to , polyamides , ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer ( evoh ), polyvinylidene chloride ( pvdc ), metal or metal oxide coated polymer substrates and the like . in one preferred embodiment of the present invention , both the top and bottom sheets , 100 and 200 , include at least one layer comprising an oxygen barrier material . in another preferred embodiment , both the top and bottom sheets , 100 and 200 , include at least two layers each comprising an oxygen barrier material . in yet another preferred embodiment , both top and bottom sheets , 100 and 200 , include at least three layers each comprising an oxygen barrier material . however , it should be noted that the present invention does not necessarily require that one or both of the top and bottom sheets , 100 and 200 , include a layer comprising an oxygen barrier material . but , those skilled in the art will recognize that when packaging an oxygen sensitive product which may include many food items , at least one layer of an oxygen barrier material may be required in one or both films of the present invention to provide a barrier against the ingress of oxygen . abuse materials may include , but are not limited to , polyolefins such as polyethylenes ( pe ) and polypropylenes ( pp ); polyamides ; polyamide blends ; polyesters including aromatic and aliphatic polyesters , such as polyethylene terephthalates ( pet ), polyethylene isophthalates , polyethylene naphthalates ; oriented polyamides and oriented aromatic polyesters . typically , abuse materials provide additional moisture and / or chemical barrier protection to a film . those skilled in the art will recognize that abuse materials also provide a sufficiently smooth surface for the printing of indicia or graphics that appear on most packaged food or non - food products . in one preferred embodiment of the present , the abuse layer of at least one of the top and bottom sheets , 100 or 200 , includes printed indicia . in the following example , the film structure for top sheet 100 depicted in fig8 was produced using a blown film co - extrusion apparatuses , and methods which are well known to those skilled in the art . the blown film co - extrusion film apparatus includes a multi - manifold flat die head for film through which the film composition is forced and formed into a flat sheet . the sheet is immediately quenched e . g ., via cooled water bath , solid surface and / or air , and then formed into a film which is then be axially slit and unfolded to form a flat sheet . sheet 100 of the invention may be uniaxially oriented or biaxially oriented if desired . it should be noted that the physical properties of the sheet may vary from those of the polymer blend , depending on the film forming techniques used . those skilled in the art will appreciate that the thickness of individual layers for sheet 100 may be adjusted based on desired end use performance , resin or copolymer employed , equipment capability and other factors . in at least one preferred embodiment , the top sheet 100 has a thickness of between a thickness of between 12 . 7 μm and 305 μm ( 0 . 5 mil and 12 mil ), a bending resistance of between 5 and 5000 gurley units in either the machine or transverse direction , and a heat resistance to melting up to a temperature of at least 100 ° c . ( 212 ° f .). in the following example , the film structure for a bottom sheet 200 depicted in fig9 was produced using a blown film co - extrusion apparatuses , and methods which are well known to those skilled in the art . the blown film co - extrusion film apparatus includes a multi - manifold flat die head for film through which the film composition is forced and formed into a flat sheet . the sheet is immediately quenched e . g ., via cooled water bath , solid surface and / or air , and then formed into a film which is then be axially slit and unfolded to form a flat sheet . sheet 200 of the invention may be uniaxially oriented or biaxially oriented if desired . it should be noted that the physical properties of the sheet may vary from those of the polymer blend , depending on the film forming techniques used . those skilled in the art will appreciate that the thickness of individual layers for bottom sheet 200 may be adjusted based on desired end use performance , resin or copolymer employed , equipment capability and other factors . in at least one preferred embodiment , the bottom sheet 200 has a thickness of between a thickness of between 12 . 7 μm and 305 μm ( 0 . 5 mil and 12 mil ), a bending resistance of between 5 and 5000 gurley units in either the machine or transverse direction , and a heat resistance to melting up to a temperature of at least 100 ° c . ( 212 ∞ f .). in at least another preferred embodiment , the food - contact surface of the bottom sheet 200 is corona treated . this example is one embodiment of a first flexible top sheet 100 of the present invention having a layer sequence ( in the order as shown below ) and layer compositions as described below and as illustrated in fig8 . reported below is the layer composition relative to the total weight of the layer . layer 101 ( sealant & amp ; frangible ): 82 . 5 wt .-% of an ionomer - surlyn ® 1601 ( du pont de nemours and company , wilmington , del ., u . s . a . )+ 17 . 5 wt .-% of a polybutylene - polybutene - 1 pb 8640m ( equistar chemicals , lp , houston , tex ., usa ). layer 102 : 100 wt .-% of a linear low density polyethylene ( lldpe )- exxonmobil ™ lldpe 1001 . 32 ( exxonmobil chemical company , houston , tex ., usa ). layer 103 : 100 wt .-% of an anhydride modified linear low density polyethylene - bynel ® cxa 41e710 ( e . i . du pont de nemours and company , inc ., wilmington , del ., usa ). layer 104 : 100 wt .-% of an ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer ( evoh )- soarnol ™ at 4403 ( soarus l . l . c ., arlington heights , ill ., usa ). layer 105 : 100 wt .-% of a nylon 6 - ultramid ® b36 01 ( basf polyamides and intermediates , freeport , tex ., usa ). layer 106 : 90 wt .-% of a linear low density polyethylene ( lldpe )- exxonmobil ™ lldpe 1001 . 32 ( exxonmobil chemical company , houston , tex ., usa )+ 10 wt .-% of an anhydride modified linear low density polyethylene - bynel ® cxa 41e710 ( e . i . du pont de nemours and company , inc ., wilmington , del ., usa ). layer 107 : 97 wt .-% of a nylon 6 - ultramid ® b36 01 ( basf polyamides and intermediates , freeport , tex ., usa )+ 3 wt .-% of processing aids . this example is one embodiment of a second flexible embossed sheet 200 of the present invention having a layer sequence ( in the order as shown below ) and layer compositions as described below and as illustrated in fig9 . reported below is the layer composition relative to the total weight of the layer . layer 201 ( sealant ): 98 wt .-% of an ionomer - surlyn ® 1601 ( du pont de nemours and company , wilmington , del ., u . s . a . )+ 2 wt .-% of processing aids . layer 202 : 100 wt .-% of a linear low density polyethylene ( lldpe )- exxonmobil ™ lldpe 1001 . 32 ( exxonmobil chemical company , houston , tex ., usa ). layer 203 : 100 wt .-% of a linear low density polyethylene ( lldpe )- exxonmobil ™ lldpe 1001 . 32 ( exxonmobil chemical company , houston , tex ., usa ). layer 204 : 54 wt .-% of a linear low density polyethylene ( lldpe )- dowlex ™ 2056g ( doe chemical company , midland , mich ., usa ), 30 wt .-% of an ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer ( eva )- petrothene ® na442 ( equistar chemicals , lp , houston , tex ., usa )+ 16 wt .-% of an anhydride modified linear low density polyethylene - bynel ® cxa 41e710 ( e . i . du pont de nemours and company , inc ., wilmington , del ., usa ). layer 205 : 100 wt .-% of a nylon 6 - ultramid ® b36 01 ( basf polyamides and intermediates , freeport , tex ., usa ). layer 206 : 100 wt .-% of an ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer ( evoh )- soarnol ™ at 4403 ( soarus l . l . c ., arlington heights , ill ., usa ). layer 207 : 100 wt .-% of a nylon 6 - ultramid ® b36 01 ( basf polyamides and intermediates , freeport , tex ., usa ). layer 208 : 90 wt .-% of a linear low density polyethylene ( lldpe )- exxonmobil ™ lldpe 1001 . 32 ( exxonmobil chemical company , houston , tex ., usa )+ 10 wt .-% of an anhydride modified linear low density polyethylene - bynel ® cxa 41e710 ( e . i . du pont de nemours and company , inc ., wilmington , del ., usa ). layer 209 : 97 wt .-% of a nylon 6 - ultramid ® b36 01 ( basf polyamides and intermediates , freeport , tex ., usa )+ 3 wt .-% of processing aids . once the bottom sheet has been produced as a flat sheet , it is then embossed using methods well - known to those skilled in the art . in this regard , a conventional method of producing the embossed surface topography of the bottom sheet may include passing the flat bottom sheet between a male and a female compression cylinder where one of the cylinders has a surface with an “ inverse or negative ” engraving of the desired surface topography of the final embossed bottom sheet . the protrusions projecting outwardly from the engrave surface of the male cylinder produces the desired valleys of the final embossed bottom sheet . one or both cylinders may be heated to a temperature sufficient to soften , but not melt the plastic material of the bottom sheet . the compression forces along with the temperature of one or both cylinders may be adjusted as needed . a vacuum may be advantageously applied in the area of the protrusions to draw the heated sheet into the protrusions to form deeper valleys and / or to improve the definition of each individual liquid containment cell . packages according to the present invention may be fabricated by packaging manufacturing methods well - known in the art . preferred methods of package formation include , but are not limited to , form - fill - seal and vacuum packaging equipment and techniques generally well - known in the art . form - fill - seal methods may include horizontal and vertical form - fill - seal equipment and processes known to those skilled in the art . the water and / or grease retaining capacity of the embossed bottom sheets of the present invention compared to an un - embossed bottom sheet ( control ) are reported below in table 1 . example 1 is an embossed bottom sheet having a diamond shape pattern extending continually across the entire surface as illustrated in fig4 . example 2 is an embossed sheet having a cross - hatched pattern extending continually across the entire surface as illustrate in fig5 . the embossed sheets and un - embossed sheet tested had a film structure that was identical to that described above for example 2 . the test method for the measurement of this characteristic is set forth in the following paragraph . each sheet was cut into a 5 inch by 5 inch test specimen . each test specimen was secured to a flat clipboard with adhesive tape such that there was a 0 . 375 inch overhang of the test specimen at the edge of the clipboard . the weight of the test specimen and clipboard was measured . bacon grease ( hot belly bacon grease purchased from gi gi bacon grease , llc , madisonville , la ., usa ) was heated to a temperature of approximately 52 ° c . ( 126 ° f .) and a 5 - gram aliquot of heated grease was applied to the test specimen and spread evenly across the surface of the specimen . after about 30 seconds , the clipboard and test specimen were tilted to an angle of 20 ° for another 30 seconds . the weight of grease that was not retained by the test specimen and flowed off the overhang of the specimen was recorded . table 1 reports the amount of grease which was not retained by the test specimen . based upon the amount of grease that was not retained on the embossed test specimens compared to that for the un - embossed test specimen , it is evident that embossing significantly improves the liquid containment capacity of the bottom sheet . in view of the specific dimensions of the individual liquid containment cells and the number of individual liquid containment cells of the diamond pattern and double cross - hatched patterns of examples 1 and 2 , respectively , the amount of water and / or grease retained by the flexible embossed bottom sheet of the present invention was at least 155 g / m 2 ( 0 . 10 g / in 2 ) or at least 232 . 5 g / m 2 ( 0 . 15 g / in 2 ) and each of the individual liquid containment cells had a volume of at least 1 . 64 mm 3 ( 0 . 0001 in 3 ), at least 3 . 3 mm 3 ( 0 . 0002 in 3 ) or about 4 . 7 mm 3 ( 0 . 00029 in 3 ). the above description and examples illustrate certain embodiments of the present invention and are not to be interpreted as limiting . selection of particular embodiments , combinations thereof , modifications , and adaptations of the various embodiments , conditions and parameters normally encountered in the art will be apparent to those skilled in the art and are deemed to be within the spirit and scope of the present invention .	1
the invention will be now described herein with reference to illustrative embodiments . those skilled in the art will recognize that many alternative embodiments can be accomplished using the teachings of the present invention and that the invention is not limited to the embodiments illustrated for explanatory purposes . referring to fig2 a to 2k , a description is given below of an exemplary process of manufacturing a semiconductor device in a first embodiment of the present invention . the manufacture process of this embodiment begins with forming isolation oxide films 2 with a depth of 0 . 25 to 0 . 40 μm on the surface of a p - type silicon substrate 1 by using a trench isolation technique . gate oxide films 3 are then formed with a thickness of 5 to 10 nm in respective active regions isolated by the isolation oxide films 2 . this is followed by sequentially forming an n + - doped silicon film 4 with a thickness of 0 . 1 to 0 . 15 μm , a tungsten silicide film 5 with a thickness of 0 . 1 to 0 . 15 μm , and a cvd oxide film 6 with a thickness of 0 . 2 to 0 . 3 μm to cover the p - type silicon substrate 1 , as shown in fig2 a . subsequently , mask oxide films 7 with a width of 0 . 11 to 0 . 2 μm are formed by etching the cvd oxide film 6 with a photoresist pattern used as a mask , as shown in fig2 b . furthermore , cell gate electrodes 8 of a polyside structure are formed by sequentially etching the tungsten silicide film 5 and the n + doped silicon film 4 with the mask oxide films 7 used as a mask . it should be noted that this process suffers from a problem that minute particles of 0 . 05 to 0 . 15 μm produced in etching the n + - doped silicon film 4 may work as a mask and locally produce residuals 9 formed of n + - doped silicon . n - type diffusion layers 10 are then formed by using the cell gate electrodes 8 as a mask through ion implantation of arsenic , for example , with a concentration of 1 × 10 13 to 5 × 10 13 cm − 2 , as shown in fig2 c . this is followed by forming a first nitride film 11 with a thickness of 0 . 05 to 0 . 1 μm to cover the entire structure , and then forming an interlayer dielectric 12 with the surface thereof flatten by a cmp technique as shown in fig2 d . subsequently , cell contact holes 13 with an opening of 0 . 1 to 0 . 18 μm are formed by etching the interlayer dielectric 12 with a photoresist pattern used as a mask and with the first nitride film 11 used as a stopper , as shown in fig2 e . furthermore , portions of the p - type silicon substrate 1 in the cell contacts holes 13 are exposed by etching back the first nitride film 11 . in this process , sidewalls 14 with a thickness of 0 . 03 to 0 . 08 μm of the first nitride film are concurrently formed on the side faces of the cell gate electrodes 8 . at this moment , portions of the residuals 9 are exposed because of the difference in the etching rate between the first nitride film 11 and the n + - doped silicon film 4 caused by the high selectivity of the etching , as shown in fig2 f . this is followed by forming a thermally - oxidized film 23 with a thickness of 10 to 25 nm through a thermal oxidization technique involving annealing in a dry air atmosphere in an electric furnace at a temperature of 85 ° c ., for example . it should be noted that , in this process , the oxidization of the n + - doped silicon residuals 9 is enhanced due to the electron concentration higher than that of the n - type diffusion layers 10 , allowing transformation of almost the entire of the residuals 9 into oxidation - enhanced oxide films 24 as shown in fig2 g . a second nitride film 25 with a thickness of 30 to 80 nm is then formed to cover the entire structure as shown in fig2 h . this is followed by partially exposing the p - type silicon substrate 1 by performing an etch - back process on the second nitride film 25 . the etch - back process results in removing the tip portion of the oxidation - enhanced oxide films 24 , forming cap oxide films 27 so as to cover the clearances between the sidewalls 26 formed from the second nitride film 25 and the p - type silicon substrate 1 as shown in fig2 i . this is followed by filling the cell contact holes 13 with n + - doped silicon contacts 15 through depositing an n + - doped silicon film covering the entire surface and then performing an etch - back process on the entire surface , as shown in fig2 j . subsequently , capacitor contacts 17 , capacitor electrodes 18 , capacitor dielectric films 19 , and capacity plates 20 are formed above the cell gate electrodes 8 after forming another interlayer dielectric . this is followed by forming bitlines 22 and bitline contacts 21 providing connections between the bitlines 22 and the n + - doped silicon contacts 15 above the cell gate electrodes 8 after forming another interlayer dielectric . this completes the formation of dram memory cells , each including one transistor and one capacitor as shown in fig2 k . as described above , the manufacture process of the first embodiment of the present invention allows transforming almost the entire of the residuals 9 formed of n + - doped silicon into the oxidation - enhanced oxide films 24 by the thermal oxidization after the formation of the cell contact holes 13 , making use of the difference in the oxidization speed caused by the difference in the electron concentration between the n + - doped silicon film 4 and the p - type silicon substrate 1 . in addition , the formation of the sidewalls 26 from the second nitride film 25 which cover the oxidation - enhanced oxide films 24 allows electrically isolating the n + - doped silicon contacts 15 and the cell gate electrodes 8 from each other with the sidewalls 26 and the cap oxide films 27 . specifically , the cell gate electrodes 8 and the n + - doped silicon contacts 15 are insulated by the cap oxide films 27 , which are formed of oxide of material used for the cell gate electrodes 8 , at the base region where the sidewalls 26 are in contact with the surface of the p - type silicon substrate 1 . this effectively avoids the short - circuiting between the bitlines 22 and the cell gate electrodes 8 and / or between the capacitor electrodes 18 and the cell gate electrodes 8 . a description is then given of an exemplary process of manufacturing a semiconductor device in a second embodiment of the present invention , referring to fig3 a to 3k . the first embodiment is directed to provide a solution to the problem that the local residuals 9 formed of n + - doped silicon due to the formation of the minute particles of 0 . 05 to 0 . 15 μm working as a mask in the etching process of the n + - doped silicon film 4 . on the other hand , the second embodiment is directed to avoid a problem caused by minute particles of 0 . 05 to 0 . 15 μm produced in etching the cvd oxide film 6 with a photoresist pattern used as a mask . as shown in fig3 a , the process of the second embodiment begins with forming the isolation oxide films 2 , the gate oxide films 3 , the n + - doped silicon film 4 , the tungsten silicide film 5 , and the cvd oxide film 6 in the same manner as that of the first embodiment . this is followed by forming the mask oxide films 7 by etching the cvd oxide film 6 with a photoresist pattern used as a mask . in this etching , some of the mask oxide films 7 ( the third mask oxide film 7 from the right in fig3 b ) are sometimes formed with dimensions larger than the design dimensions due to the minute particles 29 as shown in fig3 b . the cell gate electrodes 8 are then formed by sequentially etching the tungsten silicide film 5 and the n + - doped silicon film 4 with the mask oxide films 7 used as a mask . this may result in forming a length - enlarged cell gate electrode 30 having a length longer than a desired length at a portion where the dimension of a certain mask oxide film 7 is larger than the design dimension . this implies that there is a need for preventing short - circuiting between the length - enlarged cell gate electrode 30 and an adjacent n + - doped silicon contact 15 as shown in fig3 c . after forming the first nitride film 11 to cover the entire structure , the interlayer dielectric 12 is formed and the surface thereof is then flatten by a cmp technique as shown in fig3 d . this is followed by forming the cell contact holes 13 by etching the interlayer dielectric 12 with a photoresist pattern used as a mask and with the first nitride film 11 used as a stopper as shown in fig3 e . one issue in forming the cell contact holes 13 so that the cell contact holes 13 are self - aligned to the cell gate electrodes 8 is that the sidewalls 14 , which are formed from the first nitride film 11 , sometimes have an insufficient thickness due to the increased length of the length - enlarged cell gate electrode 30 in the process for etching the interlayer dielectric 12 to expose the p type silicon substrate 1 . in this case , the side face 31 of the length - enlarged cell gate electrode 30 is exposed , as shown in fig3 f . a thermal oxidization is then performed , and this thermal oxidization allows changing the exposed portion of the length - enlarged cell gate electrode 30 into a side oxide film 32 while forming the thermal oxide film 23 on the p - type silicon substrate 11 , as shown in fig3 g . a second nitride film 25 is then formed to cover the entire structure as shown in fig3 h , and this is followed by performing an etch - back process to partially expose the p - type silicon substrate 1 . this results in forming the sidewalls 26 . the sidewalls 26 , which are formed to cover the side oxide film 32 , provides a double insulation structure as shown in fig3 i . finally , the cell contact holes 13 are filled with the n + - doped silicon contacts 15 as shown in fig3 j , and thus the semiconductor device similar to that of the first embodiment is manufactured as shown in fig3 k . the manufacture process of this embodiment provides secure insulation between the n + - doped silicon contacts 15 and the cell gate electrodes 8 with the sidewalls 26 formed from the second nitride film 25 and the side oxide film 32 formed from a portion of the length - enlarged cell gate electrode 30 , even when the length - enlarged cell gate electrode 30 is formed . this effectively avoids short - circuiting between the bitlines 22 and the cell gate electrodes 8 and / or between the capacitor electrodes 18 and the cell gate electrodes 8 . the manufacture process of the second embodiment , which involves the above described thermal oxidization process , provides advantages similar to those of the first embodiment . 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 of the invention .	7
fig1 shows an aircraft passenger seat in the upright position . these aircraft passenger seats with the corresponding level of outfitting are often found in the first class compartment of airliners . the illustrated aircraft passenger seat as shown in fig1 , is preferably a component of a compartment . the seat can fundamentally also be used in an arrangement next to another seat repeatedly in a row in business class for a conventional multiseat arrangement . the aircraft passenger seat is composed of individual seat components , such as a seat part 20 , a backrest 22 and a leg rest 24 . for greater clarity , in addition the cushion support for each seat components is shown only partially , so that the underlying aircraft passenger seat parts are at least partially visible . the backrest 22 is positioned to be able to swivel around an articulation point 28 by a first actuation means 26 , partially shown inclined relative to the seat part 20 extending essentially horizontally in the initial position . of the actual backrest mechanism , the front lengthwise member 30 has a lower end leading into a fork end piece 32 . one fork end interacts with the actuation means 26 , while the other fork end engages the articulation point 28 . the seat part 20 , on its front free end , has a support surface for the thigh of the seat occupant ( not shown ), and can be mounted by four stationary legs 34 on the cabin floor 36 of a passenger aircraft , a coach or the like , using a pair of floor rails 38 . along the lengthwise direction of the aircraft passenger seat , two pairs of stationary legs 34 are joined at their lower ends to a pair of floor rails 38 . the front end and back end of the two floor rails 38 are stiffened with transverse pipes 40 . the two pairs of stationary legs 34 pass upwardly into the seat frame 42 which bears the cushion parts of the seat part 20 . by another , second actuating means 44 , the rear seat edge of the seat part 20 can be lowered to enable an intermediate rest position for the seat occupant which is not detailed . the third actuation means 46 shown in fig2 allows swiveling and tilt adjustment for the leg rest 24 . the respective triggering of different seat components by different actuating means is conventional , so that it will not be described . a lightweight construction is considered for the entire seat to be able to raise the vehicle payload accordingly . the leg rest 24 , on its lower end as shown in fig2 , has a leg rest extension 48 held by the actuating means to be able to telescope into and out of the base structure of the leg rest 24 . furthermore , the backrest 22 on its top can be provided with a headrest ( not shown ), which has a vertical adjustment possibility and is otherwise an integral component of the backrest 22 itself . in the following description , in any case , the top edge of the backrest also includes a possible headrest along its top . the aircraft passenger seat is equipped with a monitoring means , for example , in the form of a control unit , a computer unit including a process minicomputer or the like . the monitoring means ( not shown ) is used to monitor the respective collision - establishing edge geometries of the movable seat components with assigned three - dimensional boundaries . the monitoring means ensures collision - free motion of all seat components within the indicated three - dimensional boundaries at any instant by triggering the respective actuating means 26 , 44 and 46 . the collision - establishing edge geometries in this case are the top edge 50 of the backrest 22 and the bottom 52 of the leg rest 24 , optionally with the inclusion of the leg rest extension 48 ( cf . fig2 ). since each seat component 20 , 22 , 24 , and 48 has its own actuating means 26 , 44 and 46 , it is provided that the monitoring means detects the positions of each individual actuating means 26 , 44 and 46 to obtain mathematical feedback about the position of the seat components . consequently , it is possible to acquire information about the tilt adjustment angle relative to a reference plane for the seat components by the setting paths of the respective actuating means 26 , 44 and 46 , with abandonment of possible motion sensors , cam - operated limit switches and the like . it has proven especially advantageous to make the individual actuating means 26 , 44 and 46 in the form of electromechanical actuators in order to obtain a path report about the adjustment path by the adjustment path of the respective actuating rod . in addition to electromechanical actuators , spindle drives and / or hydraulic and pneumatic rod drives or working cylinders can be used . when determining the collision - establishing edge geometries , preferably the body contour of the seat occupant which forms a maximum can also be included in the considerations . the three - dimensional boundaries are described by boundary curves 54 which divide from one another the spaces 56 in which one seat respectively is independently located on the cabin floor 36 . the monitoring means combines all possible movements of the collision - establishing edge geometries 50 and 52 in the manner of a common envelope curve with edges defined at least in part by the boundary curves 54 of the three - dimensional boundary for the seat to prevent collisions . as fig1 and 2 show , the two boundary curves 54 form the space dividers of a compartment in which the seat occupant moves freely , and can , for example , have access to washing facilities or the like . the indicated boundary curves 54 moreover ensure the private sphere for the seat occupant during his flight . the boundary curves 54 can also form a three - dimensional boundary for the path of travel of another seat ( not shown ) which is present in a row in front of or behind the indicated seat and which has the corresponding adjustment geometries for its seat components . in this respect , the boundary areas 54 should then be considered to ensure collisions with the preceding and following respective seats . as shown in fig2 , between the indicated boundary curves 54 , the seat can be moved out of its completely upright position as shown in fig1 into the fully reclined position ( bed position ), in which the seat part 20 , the backrest 22 , the leg rest 24 and optionally the extended leg rest extension 48 establish a plane which is continuously tilted for a resting or sleeping position to be established . to establish the rest position by corresponding actuators , the pairs of stationary legs 34 are tilted far forward around their lower pivots on the two centers of gravity present on the floor rails 38 , extending in the lengthwise direction , so that the forward edge of the seat part 20 is tilted down and the rear transition edge to the backrest 22 is raised . the floor rails 38 on which the seat can be mounted are in contact with the rear boundary curve 54 of the illustrated three - dimensional boundary with their respective one free end by way of the rear transverse pipe 40 . by monitoring the complete overall seat , the motion of all seat components is carried out such that they all remain in a type of envelope curve or envelope for the seat . the envelope curve or the envelope being three - dimensionally is selected such that collisions with the fixed three - dimensional boundaries in the form of the boundary curves 54 cannot occur . fig3 shows one embodiment of one type of a basic model which defines the actual seat by the corresponding articulation points 1 to 9 . the articulation points 1 , 2 , 4 , and 5 tension the frame for the seat frame 42 with the pairs of stationary legs 34 . reference point 1 which is the lower one as viewed in fig3 is raised somewhat by a distance along the z - axis . this distance corresponds to the height of the respective floor rail 38 relative to the cabin floor 36 , which cabin floor defines the zero line or the zero point 13 . viewed from the reference zero point 13 in left direction of fig3 in the horizontal plane , the computation is carried out with positive x values and in the direction of the upper reference point 14 with positive z coordinates . the end points 3 and 7 in fig3 in the mathematical model border the backrest 22 , with the reference point equated to the top edge 50 of the backrest . the reference point 3 relates to the articulation point 28 for the backrest 22 . the seat part 20 extends between the upper points 2 and 4 of the seat frame in the mathematical model shown in fig3 . between points 6 and 8 the leg rest 24 extends and is hinged at the upper point 6 to the seat part 20 . at point 8 , the leg rest extension 48 extends down . the reference point 9 indicates the top of the foot of the seat occupant who is not detailed , in this way to at least partially include the profile frame of the seat occupant in the mathematical model of motion . the lower reference line shown in fig3 , as already described , reproduces the cabin floor 36 as the lower boundary . the vertically extending line 13 , 14 represents a simplified mathematical reproduction of the boundary curve 54 which is shown right at the back as viewed in fig1 and 2 . the boundary curve 54 which is the front one viewed in fig1 and 2 is reflected in the mathematical model in the form of the boundary surface 58 extending between the reference points 10 and 11 in fig3 . the formula summaries shown below are based on the basic mathematical model representation shown in fig3 . the selected definitions and mathematical formulations follow from the selected programming language excel . the formula “ x coordinate backrest ” designates the geometrical characteristic of the top edge 50 of the line of the backrest 22 . the variable quantities named in the outline of formulas generally follow from the positioner position of the actuating means in the form of an actuator , for example for the seat part 20 in the lowered position ( cf . fig2 ). “ front leg geometry ” means the extension of the leg rest 24 in length . the “ backrest length ” constitutes the length of the backrest 22 , optionally including the headrest position , if a headrest is used , and with its top edge also determines the vertical position of the top edge 50 of the backrest . a raised circumflex (^) means that the following geometrical value must be indexed . therefore , for example , b3 ^ 2 means that the variable b3 which has been determined in each case by way of the positioner position can be taken as a value in the square for use in the other formulas . conversely , for example , b3 ^ 0 . 5 means that the square root is to be extracted from the value b3 . the angle functions can be recognized directly from the formulas , in the same way as the expressions in parentheses . a raised has the meaning of a multiplication sign . the expression pi ( ) means that according to the excel programming language it is mathematically π , therefore roughly the constant 3 . 14 . in addition to the x coordinate for the backrest , the z coordinate for the backrest 22 can also be determined accordingly . likewise the x and z coordinates are given below in the formulas for the leg rest extension 48 ; and the x and z coordinates of the top of the foot , which is designated 9 in fig3 , are accordingly also included in the envelope curve consideration . if at this point the seat is moved back and forth between its maximum positions as shown in fig1 and 2 and is optionally adjusted individually , the monitoring means by the aforementioned formulas continuously determines the x and z coordinates for the backrest 22 , the leg rest extension 48 and for the top of the foot 9 of an imaginary seat occupant . it goes without saying that other , possibly collision - establishing edge geometries can be added to the illustrated mathematical base structure in order to determine as accurately as possible the envelope curve within which the seat stops in each possible adjustment position . by stipulating the corresponding boundary surfaces 56 with incorporation of the cabin floor 36 , the envelope curve is then limited in its geometrical dimensions , and the monitoring means which stores the pertinent boundary spaces or lines acts on the respective servo drive or the entirety of all servo drives such that collisions are prevented with certainty . if the leg rest 24 is swiveled , for example , the backrest 22 can track the movement in order , for example , to assume the resting or fully reclined position desired by the seat occupant ( fig2 ), then the motion of the indicated seat components 20 , 22 , 24 , 48 taking place synchronously within the envelope curve . at no time is a collision as a result of this joint triggering possible . while one embodiment has been chosen to illustrate the invention , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims .	1

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