A wheel has a rigid rim, a soft tire arranged on the rigid rim, and a unit for generating different pressures from inside in the soft tire in contact zone of tire with road surface, at opposite sides of a vertical transverse plane of symmetry of the rim so as to cause pushing of the tire with rim of wheel along a roadway, the tire being subdivided in a plurality of separate chambers spaced from one another in a circumferential direction, the unit for generating different pressures being operative for generating different pressures in a computerized way in any chamber of the tire at any time.

The present invention relates generally to wheels. Wheels are widely known and used in vehicles for transportation. It is believed that it is advisable to further improve these existing wheels and to provide wheels having superior qualities when compared with the existing wheels.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a wheel which has a simpler mechanism of its rolling, reduces energy consumption, is completely ecologically clean, and also can use modern technology of elastic materials.
In keeping with these objects and with others which will become apparent hereinafter, one feature of present invention resides in a wheel which has a rigid rim with an elastic tire arranged on the rim and filled with a fluid so that when the wheel is loaded, a broad contact of an outer surface of the tire with a road surface is provided, or in other words a xe2x80x9cflatxe2x80x9d is permitted. While in known wheels the flat causes an additional resistance to rolling, in the wheel in accordance with the present invention this flat useful.
In accordance with the present invention, on the longitudinally increased area of support of the tire against a surface of a roadway, different pressures are generated and maintained at both sides of a vertical plane of symmetry of the wheel or its hub. The greater pressure inside the wheel pushes the wheel from the surface toward the side with the lower pressure, so as to create rolling away. Therefore, the method of rolling of a wheel which carries a load is connected with controlling of the deformation of a contact surface of the wheel with the roadway.
A local pressure increase on the wheel surface can be generated in a desired location and at a desired moment by a force or a force pulse from a drive in the wheel. The drive uses a restoring deformation of the elastic tire on the rim of the wheel at the point of contact with the roadway, in order to obtain a reaction push of the road and therefore a movement moment.
In order to obtain the force and the pulse for such a drive, pneumatic, aerostatic, aerodynamic, hydrostatic, hydrodynamic, electromagnetic, electromechanical, mechanical superconductive, and other elements and processes can be used.


A light emitting diode (LED) driving system driving a LED array of a display device includes a converter circuit, a pulse width modulator (PWM) controller, a 2D parameter circuit, a 3D parameter circuit and a microcontroller. The 3D parameter circuit outputs 3D parameter control signals when the display device is in a 3D mode, and stops from generating the 3D parameter control signals when the display device is in a 2D mode. The PWM controller outputs PWM signals to control the converter circuit according to outputs of the 2D parameter circuit and the 3D parameter circuit.

1. Technical Field
The disclosure relates to display devices, and particularly to a light emitting diode driving system of a display device.
2. Description of Related Art
Three dimension (3D) light emitting diode (LED) televisions (TV) are becoming popular. Because the LED TV in a 3D mode needs higher brightness than that in a two dimension (2D) mode, LEDs, acting as backlight of the LED TV, need much more current and voltage in the 3D mode than in the 2D mode. In other words, load characteristics of the LED driving system are different in the 2D mode and the 3D mode, which causes difficulty in designing the LED driving system.

LED driving system supporting 2D mode and 3D mode and display device using the same


Disclosed are alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates having at least one basic nitrogen and an average molecular weight of about 800 to 6,000 and wherein the alkyl group contains at least 40 carbon atoms. Also disclosed are lubricating oil compositions and concentrates containing said alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed toward dispersants compatible in lubricating oil. In particular, this invention is directed toward dispersant additives possessing improved compatibility in lubricating oil which are alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates having at least one basic nitrogen and wherein the alkyl group of said alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamate contains at least 40 carbon atoms.
The incompatibility of certain dispersant additives in lubricating oil, i.e., oils which contain other additives, is recognized in the art and arises in spite of the fact that certain of these additives are known lubricating oil dispersants.
Several theories exist as to the cause of the lubricating oil incompatibility of certain additives. Without being limited to any theory, it is possible that some of these additives interfere with other additives contained in the lubricating oil and either counterbalance the effectiveness of these additives or actually cause dissolution of one or more of these additives, including possibly the dispersant additive itself.
In another theory, it is possible that the additive will decompose in the lubricating during engine operation and the decomposition products are what cause increased crankcase deposits.
In still another theory, it is also possible that the incompatibility of the additive is related to its oil solubility.
Lubricating oil incompatible additives are less than desirable insofar as their use during engine operation will result in increased crankcase deposits, i.e., varnish and sludge, in the crankcase as measured by Sequence V-D engine tests. This problem can be severe.
The instant invention is directed to a novel class of very long chain alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates which provide improved compatibility in lubricating oil compositions. The novel additives of this invention are alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates having a molecular weight of about 800 to 6,000 wherein the alkyl group of said alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamate contains at least 40 carbon atoms.
2. Prior Art
Numerous references disclose C.sub.1 to C.sub.30 hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates as fuel additives. These include the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:
______________________________________ 4,160,648; 4,243,798; 4,521,610; and 4,191,537; 4,270,930; 4,568,358. 4,197,409; 4,274,837; 4,236,020; 4,288,612; ______________________________________
Of particular relevance is U.S. Pat. No. 4,274,837 which discloses that hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates containing certain poly(oxyalkylene) chains, i.e., oxypropylene, when used in fuels employed in combination with certain lubricating oils, produce crankcase varnish. This reference further discloses that lubricating oil compatible hydrocarbyl poly(oxypropylene) aminocarbamates are improved by employing the poly(oxypropylene) as a block copolymer having a terminus of 1 to 5 C.sub.9 to C.sub.30 oxyalkylene units.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,160,648 discloses an intake system deposit control additive for fuels which is a hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamate wherein the hydrocarbyl group is from 1 to 30 carbon atoms including alkyl or alkylphenyl groups. Specifically disclosed hydrocarbyl groups include tetrapropenylphenyl, olelyl and a mixture of C.sub.16, C.sub.18 and C.sub.20 alkyl groups. Likewise, U.S. Pat. No. 4,288,612 discloses deposit control additives for gasoline engines which are hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates wherein the hydrocarbyl group contains from 1 to about 30 carbon atoms including alkylphenyl groups wherein the alkyl group is straight or branched chain of from 1 to about 24 carbon atoms. U.S. Pat. No. 4,568,358 discloses diesel fuel compositions containing an additive such as a hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamate. This reference discloses hydrocarbyl groups such as alkyl groups of 1 to 30 carbon atoms; aryl groups of 6 to 30 carbon atoms, alkaryl groups of 7 to 30 carbon atoms, etc.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,332,595 discloses hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) polyamines wherein the hydrocarbyl group is a hydrocarbyl radical of 8 to 18 carbon atoms derived from linear primary alcohols.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,233,168 and 4,329,240 among others disclose lubricating oil compositions containing a dispersant amount of a hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamate.
While these prior art references disclose C.sub.1 to C.sub.30 hydrocarbyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates, none of these references disclose the unique alkylphenyl group of this invention nor do any of these references suggest that use of this unique alkylphenyl group would provide improved compatibility in lubricating oil compositions.

Lubricating oil compositions containing very long chain alkylphenyl poly(oxyalkylene) aminocarbamates


Techniques are disclosed to use existing vehicle speakers alone or in conjunction with other sensors (e.g. SRS sensors and/or microphones) that may already be implemented as part of the vehicle to identify acoustic signatures. Suitable low-cost and widely available hardware components (e.g., relays) may be used to modify the vehicle's existing speakers for a bi-directional mode of operation. Moreover, the vehicle's existing of audio amplifiers may be used to amplify signals collected by the speakers when operating in “reverse,” and process these collected signals to determine vehicle state information.

Data indicative of vehicle occupancy and, more specifically, which seats within a vehicle are occupied by a person may be valuable for vehicle operation. For instance, a supplemental restraint system (SRS), otherwise known as airbags, may use this information to selectively enable SRS functionality only for those seats that are currently occupied by a person for safety reasons. This data is conventionally obtained via the implementation of dedicated SRS occupancy sensors that measure the presence of an occupant in each vehicle's seat. However, such sensors increase manufacturing costs as several (e.g. 5 to 9) are typically required for each vehicle.
Additional vehicle state information such as whether sunroofs and windows are open or closed, for example, may also be useful to provide convenient features such as automatic closure in the event of rain. Moreover, vehicle state information such as diagnostic data collected while a vehicle is in use may help in the early identification of problematic issues. However, often vehicles do not have sensors for such purposes or, in the event that such sensors are present, these add to the cost and complexity of the vehicle design.
The exemplary aspects of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawing in which an element first appears is typically indicated by the leftmost digit(s) in the corresponding reference number.

In-cabin acoustic-based passenger occupancy and situation state assessment


An electronic device includes: a chassis; an input device and a display panel that are arranged within the chassis; an elastic member that is arranged between the chassis and the display panel; and a holding member that holds the input device, that is secured to the chassis, and that pushes the display panel toward the elastic member to deform the elastic member.

There is known an electronic device equipped with a chassis, in which a touch panel and a display panel arranged. As an example of a method for securing the touch panel and the display panel to the chassis, a securing member is secured to the display panel and then secured to the chassis, and a holding member holding the touch panel is assembled into the display panel. The related art is disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication Nos. 03-292523 and 09-115378.
Securing the touch panel and the display panel to the chassis needs both the holding member for holding the touch panel and the securing member for securing the display panel to the chassis. This may result in increased weight of the whole device.

Electronic device with securing mechanism for securing a display of the electronic device


A semiconductor package includes a metal plate in which one or more openings are formed, the metal plate mounting a semiconductor chip and a printed wire pattern substrate, e.g. a PCB, mounting one or more decoupling capacitors. The semiconductor chip is in direct contact with the metal plate to improve thermal characteristics, and the substrate is supported by the metal plate to increase mechanical stability of the package. The one or more openings in the metal plate accommodate the passing therethrough of plural pins electrically connected via the printed wire pattern substrate to the semiconductor chip. The semiconductor package can be usefully applied to a digital micro-mirror device (DMD) semiconductor package for use in a projection display device.

The invention is concerned with a semiconductor package, and more particularly, to a PGA package.
A sheet of wafer material is able to contain several dozens to several hundreds of chips, on which the same electrical circuits are printed. However, the chip cannot be supplied with electricity from the exterior to transmit or receive electrical signals by itself. In addition, since the chip contains micro-circuits, the chip may be easily damaged by external impacts. A package process is a procedure of making a semiconductor package having physical functions and shapes so that the chip is electrically connected and hermetically packaged to endure the external impacts to thereby render it usable in real life or environment.
Generally, the semiconductor package is classified into a resin sealing package, a tape carrier package (TCP), a glass sealing package, a metal sealing package, etc. These semiconductor packages are also classified into an insert type and a surface mount type depending upon a mounting method. Typically employed as the insert type are a dual in-line package (DIP), a pin grid array (PGA), etc. And typically employed as the surface mounting type are a quad flat package (QFP), a plastic leaded chip carrier (PLCC), a ceramic leaded chip carrier (CLCC), a ball grid array (BGA), etc.
In a conventional semiconductor package, a semiconductor chip is positioned on an accommodating space of a circuit board having a structure that enables a wire pattern to be formed, and the semiconductor chip to be received, and the semiconductor chip to be electrically connected to the wire pattern through bonding wires. Conventionally, the circuit board is made of organic material. That is, the semiconductor chip is adhered on the organic circuit board. The organic material is widely used for the circuit board because its wire pattern can be easily formed and its manufacturing cost is also inexpensive.
However, since the circuit board is formed of the organic material and is in direct contact with the semiconductor chip, thermal characteristics of the semiconductor package may be degraded. In other words, the organic circuit board may be insufficient to discharge a high temperature generated by the semiconductor chip and the circuit board. In addition, the organic circuit board is sensitive to thermal or physical impacts from the exterior.
Meanwhile, a package using ceramic material having improved thermal characteristics over that of the organic material has been proposed and used. However, forming the wire pattern on the ceramic material requires high manufacturing cost in comparison with forming the wire pattern on the organic material. In addition, the ceramic material is also insufficient to provide mechanical stability of the package since it is sensitive to a high external pressure.
In order to solve the problems concerning the mechanical stability of the ceramic material, a metal PGA package using a metal circuit board has been introduced. However, because plural insertion holes should be formed in a metal plate corresponding to a number of pins and an insulating material should fill the respective microscopic insertion holes therein, it causes a process to be complicated and difficult, requiring a high manufacturing cost as well.

Semiconductor package and method for its manufacture


A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device including the steps of: (a) preparing a semiconductor substrate formed with an insulating layer having a wiring recess; and (b) forming a conductive layer by chemical vapor deposition on a surface of the semiconductor substrate including an inner surface of the wiring recess, while lamp light is applied to the semiconductor substrate, the conductive layer being substantially made of copper. With this method, Cu wiring having a high adhesion force is formed by chemical vapor deposition.

This application is based and claims priority on Japanese Patent Application 2000-242816, filed on Aug. 10, 2000, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and its manufacture method, and more particularly to a semiconductor device with copper wiring and its manufacture method.
In this specification, wiring made of copper or copper alloy consisting essentially of copper is called copper wiring. Copper wiring is intended to be inclusive of copper wiring with a barrier layer.
b) Description of the Related Art
Demands for high integration of semiconductor integrated circuits are high. Fine circuit elements such as active elements as well as fine wiring are therefore required. For fine wiring, in place of Al conventionally used as wiring material, attention has been paid to Cu which has a lower resistance and a higher tolerance of electromigration (EM).
Cu is difficult to be worked for fine patterning. Namely, it is difficult to form a wiring line by forming a wiring layer and a mask such as resist on the wiring layer, and finely etching it, as opposed to Al wiring. In place of this method, a damascene process is performed for Cu wiring. With this process, a wiring trench is formed in an insulating layer, a Cu layer is embedded in the trench by plating or the like, and then an unnecessary Cu layer on the insulating layer is removed by chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) or the like.
In a multi-layer wiring structure, a via conductor interconnecting wiring levels is required. A single damascene process and a dual damascene process are known. With the single damascene process, a via conductor and wiring are formed by different damascene processes, and with the dual damascene process, a via conductor and wiring are formed at the same time. From the viewpoint of process simplification, the dual damascene process is more effective.
Cu has the nature that it diffuses into an insulating layer and degrades the insulation characteristics. In order to prevent Cu diffusion into an insulating layer, it is desired to form a barrier layer as an underlying layer. When a Cu layer is formed as a main wiring layer, electroplating is often used. It is desired to form a conductive seed layer for electroplating.
A barrier layer has been formed by sputtering metal nitride such as TaN and TiN. Although this barrier layer is electrically conductive, if this layer is used as a seed layer, the efficiency of electroplating cannot be made high because this layer has a high resistance. From this reason, a Cu layer formed by sputtering has been used as a seed layer.
As the degree of scaling-down proceeds, there is a tendency that the aspect ratio of a recess such as a via hole and a wiring trench becomes high. It is not easy to uniformly form a metal film through sputtering in a recess having a high aspect ration. The higher aspect ratio becomes, the more difficult it becomes to uniformly form a metal film on the side wall of a recess.
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is now becoming popular as a method of forming a uniform film in the recess having a high aspect ration. A barrier layer capable of being formed by CVD may be a TiN layer, a WN layer, a ZrN layer, a TaN layer of the like. Reports on CVD growth of TiN layer and ZrN layer have been given already. As a seed layer capable of being formed by CVD, A Cu layer has been reported which uses copper (1) trimethylvinylsilylhexafluoroacethylacetonato (Cu (hfac) tmve) or the like as source material.
Although it is desired to form the barrier layer and seed layer for Cu wiring by CVD, this technology has not been established yet.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a Cu wiring manufacturing method suitable for fine patterning.
It is another object of the invention to provide a semiconductor device manufacturing method in which high purity Cu wiring is formed by CVD.
It is another object of the invention to provide a semiconductor device manufacturing method in which Cu wiring having high adhesion force is formed by CVD.
It is another object of the invention to provide a semiconductor device having Cu wiring formed by CVD and being less peeled off.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising the steps of: (a) preparing a semiconductor substrate formed with an insulating layer having a wiring recess; and (b) forming a conductive layer by chemical vapor deposition on a surface of the semiconductor substrate including an inner surface of the wiring recess, while lamp light is applied to the semiconductor substrate, the conductive layer consisting essentially of copper.
With this method, a Cu layer having a low impurity concentration can be formed.
A semiconductor device having high reliability Cu wiring can be formed.

Manufacture of semiconductor device with copper wiring


Various embodiments of the disclosure include a dynamoelectric machine support system. In some embodiments, a support system for a dynamoelectric machine is disclosed, the support system having: a housing; a skeletal frame attached to the housing and at least partially contained within the housing; and at least one adjustment mechanism for applying a force to the skeletal frame to modify a stiffness of the skeletal frame.

Dynamoelectric machines, such as electric motors, can be configured to operate at distinct frequencies, where those distinct frequencies, e.g., 50 Hertz (Hz) and 60 Hz, correspond to distinct desired performance characteristics. However, the frame housing the dynamoelectric machine is traditionally fixed, e.g., to a surface such as a floor, using a mounting plate and foot box or other similar base. This system includes dynamoelectric machine assembled in the housing. This system is tuned for a particular frequency range. When the dynamoelectric machine operates at a frequency which matches the natural frequency of the system, resonance may degrade its performance.


A method of edge to edge assembly of panels. The method generally includes performing male and female matching cuts on the panel edges to be assembled next to each other, and assembling the panels edge to edge so that the male protuberances of one panel are inserted in the matching female cavities of the second panel, and vice-versa. Such method is applicable to aircraft and automobile manufacturing for the assembly of thin structures, primary or secondary, such as fuselage panels, airfoils, cabin and cockpit paneling, etc., and can be used for metallic as well as composite panels.

The current practice is to assemble panels by means of fasteners such as rivets, screws, nuts and bolts etc. This traditional assembly method by fasteners has a tendency to increase the total mass of the assembly. Moreover, installing these fasteners increases the assembly time required. In the case of composite materials, the use of these fasteners eliminates for the most part the advantages of the composite construction. Actually, in addition to the increased weight due to the fasteners, inasmuch as they are generally made of metal, the composite panels become susceptible of corrosion and fatigue just like metallic panels.
Panels can also be assembled by welding, e.g. laser welding. But this assembly method is only applicable to metallic panels.


A process is provided for the assessment of an active proteolytic enzyme in a blood or another biological fluid sample possibly comprising a complex of said proteolytic enzyme and xcex12-macroglobulin, wherein said sample is contacted with a substrate comprising a molecule of sufficient size coupled to a signal-substrate, said signal-substrate comprising a detectable leaving group, wherein said substrate is hydrolysed by said proteolytic enzyme but not by said complex. The proteolytic enzyme is preferably selected from the group consisting of thrombin, activated clotting factor, activated fibrinolytic factor, and activated component of the complement system. Of these, thrombin is most preferred. The molecules of sufficient size are preferably water soluble and selected from the group consisting of inert protein, preferably ovalbumin, polysaccharide, and synthetic polymer. The size of these molecules is such that they will not fit into the cavity of the xcex12M molecules.

The present invention is in the field of diagnostics and relates more in particular to a method for the determination of biologically active forms of proteolytic enzymes, such as thrombin, in blood and other fluids.
In the Western world, arterial and venous thrombosis and atherosclerosis together are currently responsible for well over 50% of all mortality and serious morbidity. In a few decades this will be the case world-wide [Murray, C. J. and A. D. Lopez, Science (1996) 274:740-743]. Thrombosis is caused by an overactivity of the haemostatic mechanism that is responsible for the arrest of bleeding from a wound. This haemostatic-thrombotic system (HTS) is a complex interaction between vessel wall, blood cells, especially blood platelets, and plasma proteins. See, e.g., Hemker H. C. Thrombin generation, an essential step in haemostasis and thrombosis. In: Haemostasis and thrombosis, A. L. Bloom et al., eds., Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh, (1994) 477-490.
In blood there are at least three series of proenzyme-enzyme cascades of great biological importance: the blood coagulation system, the fibrinolytic system and the complement system. In each of these systems proteolytic proenzymes are activated and subsequently inhibited. In general it is important that the concentration of an activated enzyme in such a cascade can be measured in order to assess the function of the system. In the following a typical description of the clotting system will be given with an emphasis on its most important enzyme, thrombin. It is to be noted, however, that the present invention also relates to other clotting enzymes and enzymes of the fibrinolytic and complement pathway.
The mechanism of thrombin generation can be outlined in some detail as follows. In the plasmatic coagulation system factor Xa is formed by the action of the tissue factor-factor VIIa complex (TF-VIIe). Factor Xa binds to tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) and the TFPI-Xa complex inhibits the TF-VIIa complex. Thrombin activates factors V, VIII and XI and so accelerates its own generation, but it also binds to thrombomodulin and so starts the protein C mechanism that breaks down factors V and VIII, thus, indirectly, inhibiting further thrombin generation. An important fraction (≈30%) of all thrombin formed in clotting plasma is bound to the fibrin clot. Clot-bound thrombin does retain its thrombotic properties, it can clot fibrinogen, activate factors V, VIII and XI as well as platelets [Bxc3xa9guin, S. and R. Kumar, Thromb. Haemost. (1997) 78:590-594; Kumar, R., S. Bxc3xa9guin, and H. C. Hernker, Thromb. Haemost. (1994) 72:713-721, and (1995) 74:962-968]. It is not inhibited by antithrombin.
Thrombin action causes receptors in the platelet membrane to bind fibrinogen, which causes platelet aggregation. Platelet activation also leads to the exposure of procoagulant phospholipids in a Von Willebrand factor dependent ii reaction [Bxc3xa9guin S., R. Kumar, I. Keularts, U. Seligsohn, B. C. Coller and H. C. Hemker, Fibrin-Dependent Platelet Procoagulant Activity Requires GPlb Receptors and Von Willebrand Factor, Blood (1999) 93:564-570; Bxc3xa9guin, S. and R. Kumar, supra (1997)]. These phospholipids are required for the proper activation of factor X and prothrombin. Recently, the picture has been complicated by the discovery that fibrin, previously thought to be the inert endproduct of coagulation, plays an active role itself. It binds and activates Von Willebrand factor, which activates platelets and provokes the exposure of procoagulant phospholipids via an alternative pathway.
The cooperation between platelets and the coagulation system, including fibrin, is central to the haemostatic-thrombotic system. The mechanism shows an abundance of positive and negative, often nested, feedback loops. Underactivity causes bleeding, overactivity causes thrombosis. Thrombosis manifests itself as coronary infarction, stroke, pulmonary embolism and a large number of less frequent diseases.
In order to assess the function of such a system, also for diagnostic purposes and for the safe use of antithrombotic drugs, a probe is needed for the functional status of the haemostatic-thrombotic system. An important function test of the HTS is the thrombin generation curve (TGC). Carried out in platelet-poor plasma, it gives information about the function of the plasmatic clotting system. In platelet-rich plasma it measures also the function of the platelets.
According to the prior art the TGC can be measured by subsampling or continuously. In the ancient subsampling method [Biggs, R. and R. G. Macfarlane, Human Blood Coagulation and its Disorders. 1953, Oxford: Blackwell; Quick, A. J., Haemonhagic Diseases. 1957, Philadelphia: Lea and Febiger], samples are taken from a clotting mixture, and the concentration of thrombin is measured in each sample.
Active thrombin survives in plasma for only a limited period of time (the half life time is 16-17 s). This is due to circulating antithrombins. Most thrombin (64%) is inactivated by antithrombin (AT), a plasma-protein of 57 kD, 23% by xcex12-macroglobulin (xcex12M), a 725 kD plasma-protein, and 13% by various other agents [Hemker, H. C., G. M. Willems, and S. Bxc3xa9guin, A computer assisted method to obtain the prothrombin activation velocity in whole plasma independent of thrombin decay processes, Thromb. Haemost. (1986) 56:9-17]. The xcex12-macroglobulin-thrombin complex (xcex12M-IIa) has the peculiarity that it is inactive towards all macromolecular substrates, but retains its activity against small molecular weight (artificial) substrates. xcex12-Macroglobulin is a glycoprotein of Mr 725,000, which is present in plasma in a concentration of 2500 mg/L or 3.5 xcexcM. It is a tetramer of identical subunits of 185 kD. The inactivation reaction of an active proteinase or activated clotting factor with xcex12M is a three step process: 1xc2x0. Formation of a loose complex, 2xc2x0. Hydrolysis of a target peptide in xcex12M, causing 3xc2x0, a rapid conformational change which physically entraps the enzyme molecule within the xcex12M molecule. [See for a review: Travis, J. and G. S. Salvesen, Human plasma proteinase inhibitors. Ann. Rev. Biochem. (1983) 52:655-709].
The group of Hemker then developed a continuous method in which thrombin-catalysed product formation from suitable substrates is monitored directly [Hemker, H. C., et al., Continuous registration of thrombin generation in plasma, its use for the determination of the thrombin potential. Thromb. Haemost. (1993) 70:617-624]. The kinetic constants of the substrate are such that, at the concentration used, the rate of product formation is proportional to the amount of enzyme present (thrombin or xcex12M-IIa). The time-course of enzyme activity in the sample can be estimated as the first derivative of the product-time curve.
A drawback of this method is that part of the thrombin in plasma binds to xcex12-macroglobulin. xcex12-Macroglobulin is the most abundant non-specific protease inhibitor of blood plasma. It quenches the biological activity of proteases (activated clotting factors, activated fibrinolytic enzymes and activated complement factors) without occupying their active centre, so that there is a residual activity on the usual oligopeptide signal-substrates.
This xcex12-macroglobulin-thrombin complex has no known physiological activity but is able to cleave chromogenic substrates. Thus, the product formation observed is the result of the combined activities of free thrombin and xcex12-macroglobulin-bound thrombin. The relevant data, i.e., the amount of product formed by free thrombin only, can be extracted from the experimental product formation by a mathematical operation. However, the operation has to be carried out on the whole course of the product generation curve. The product formation therefore needs to be monitored continuously. Although the principle of this continuous method is applicable to all substrates that give a product which can be detected in time, e.g., by fluorescent, electrochemical or NMR signals, its application is currently restricted to the use of chromogenic substrates in an optically clear medium, i.e., defibrinated platelet poor plasma (PPP).
Therefore, there is still a need for an efficient method to measure the amount of (active forms of proteolytic enzymes, such as thrombin, in blood and other fluids, which obviates the drawbacks of the prior art. The present invention provides such a method.
In accordance with the present invention, a process is provided for the assessment of an active proteolytic enzyme in a blood or another biological fluid sample possibly comprising a complex of said proteolytic enzyme and xcex12-macro-globulin, wherein said sample is contacted with a substrate comprising a molecule of sufficient size coupled to a signal-substrate, said signal-substrate comprising a detectable leaving group, wherein said substrate is hydrolysed by said proteolytic enzyme but not by said complex.
The active proteolytic enzyme is preferably selected from the group consisting of thrombin, activated clotting factor, activated fibrinolytic factor, and activated component of the complement system. Of these, thrombin is most preferred.
The molecules of sufficient size are preferably selected from the group consisting of inert protein, preferably ovalbumin, polysaccharide, and synthetic polymer. Preferably, these inert molecules are water soluble and have a size such that they just do not fit into the cavity of the xcex12M molecules. A group of preferred inert molecules has a size of about 40 kD and a solubility of at least 40 mg/ml. Most preferred are inert molecules with a size of about 20 kD and a solubility of at least 50 mg/ml.
These and other aspects of the invention will be further outlined in the description which follows.
FIG. 1 represents theoretical curves of hydrolysis products formed in clotting plasma or bloody by hydrolysis of a small thrombin substrate and a large thrombin substrate. Closed black circles indicate the total hydrolysis of a small thrombin substrate; closed gray circles indicate hydrolysis by temporarily present thrombin of a small thrombin substrate; open circles indicate hydrolysis of a large thrombin substrate; closed triangles indicate hydrolysis by formed xcex12-macroglobulin-thrombin complex of a small thrombin substrate.
FIG. 2 represents the curves of hydrolysis products of substrates S2288 coupled with ovalbumin by hydrolysis with xcex12M-IIa and thrombin, respectively. For each curve, the thick gray overlaid curve represents actually measured curves, whereas the thin black curve beneath the thick gray overlaid curve represents the obtained fits.
FIG. 3 represents the fluorescence patterns of the fluorescent substrate Ala-Arg-AMC coupled with ovalbumin by hydrolysis with free thrombin and thrombin inactivated by xcex12M, respectively. The upper curve represents hydrolysis by human thrombin, in which the open circles are actually measured points; the closed black circles are obtained by fitting. The lower curve represents hydrolysis by human xcex12-macroglobulin-thrombin complex, in which the open triangles are actually measured points; the closed triangles are obtained by fitting.
FIG. 4 shows the results of the determination of the ETP in plasma with SQ68 and OA-Phe-Pip-Lys-pNA. Closed triangles represent hydrolysis of OA-Phe-Pip-Lys-pNA in clotting plasma; closed circles represent hydrolysis of SQ68 in clotting plasma; open circles represent hydrolysis of SQ68 in clotting plasma by formed xcex12-macroglobulin-thrombin complex; open triangles represent hydrolysis of SO68 in clotting plasma by temporarily present thrombin.

Determination of biologically active forms of proteolytic enzymes


Systems and methods are provided for use in processing transactions based on biometric data used in connection with authenticating consumers to payment accounts to which the transactions are directed. One exemplary method includes causing a biometric associated with a consumer to be received, when the consumer presents a payment device for funding a transaction with a merchant via a payment account associated with the payment device. The method also includes appending, by a computing device, a biometric score to an authorization request associated with the transaction at the merchant where the biometric score is indicative of a degree of match between the received biometric and a reference biometric, and transmitting, by the computing device, the authorization request whereby an issuer associated with the payment account is able to utilize the biometric score in determining to approve or decline the transaction.

This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Consumers often use payment accounts to purchase products (e.g., good and services, etc.) from merchants. The payment accounts may operate on credit, or may be based on funds previously deposited to the payment accounts. In either case, when using such payment accounts to make purchases, or otherwise, the consumers associated with the payment accounts are often authenticated through signature, personal identification number (PIN), or otherwise. In addition, it is known to authenticate consumers, for example, by matching thumb prints of the consumers to reference thumbprints. Then, once authenticated, regardless of the manner, the purchase transactions to the payment accounts are permitted to proceed, with payment networks and/or issuers of the payment accounts approving and/or declining the transactions. The purchase transactions may be declined, for example, when insufficient funds/credit are associated with the payment accounts, when payment devices associated with the payment accounts have been reported missing/stolen, or based on one or more parameters of the purchase transactions themselves (e.g., location, transaction amount, etc.).
Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

Systems and methods for use in approving transactions, based on biometric data


A process of forming a semiconductor device using plasma processes is disclosed. The semiconductor device includes a device area, a scribed area, and a peripheral area on a wafer, where these areas have respective conductive regions. The process includes steps of (a) implanting ions to isolate the conductive regions in the device area from the conductive region in the scribed area; (b) forming a metal film so as to cover a back surface, a side, and the peripheral area in the top surface of the wafer; (c) deposing insulating film on a whole surface of the wafer; and (d) selectively etching, by the plasma process, the insulating film so as to expose the conductive regions in the device area and the scribed area. During the plasma process, the metal film in the back surface of the wafer is connected the apparatus ground that effectively dissipates charges induced by the plasm to the apparatus ground through the metal film.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process of forming a semiconductor device, in particular, relates to plasma process such as a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition, a sputtering, a reactive ion etching (RIE) and so on.
A process of forming a semiconductor device often performs plasma processes, such as a reactive ion etching (RIE), a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (p-CVD), a sputtering, and so on. The plasma etching ionizes gasses such as carbon tetrafluoride (CF4), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and so on with a radio frequency (RF) signal to make plasma. Ions and/or radials contained in the plasma may etch an insulating film of silicon nitride (SiN), silicon oxide (SiO), and so on. Such a dry etching inevitably accumulates charges on a surface of an object to be etched, which is often called as the charge-up. A prior patent document laid open No. JP-H10-079392 has disclosed a technique to couple electrons and positive ions captured within a silicon (Si) wafer during the plasm etching.
The charge-up described above raises electric potential of the surface of the object, which forms a potential difference between the surface and an interior of the object and causes a substantial current from the surface to the interior. This current sometimes induces damage in a semiconductor layer or a device, which increases a leak current. Also, the plasma sometimes causes fatal damages in the semiconductor layer by arcing. In particular, when the substrate is made of nitride semiconductor material, such as gallium nitride (GaN), which inherently shows extremely high resistivity; the charges induced during the plasma process easily concentrate on a surface of the wafer, or a center of a surface of the wafer. Accordingly, the process of forming a semiconductor device primarily made of nitride semiconductor materials is necessary to consider the charge-up during the plasma process.

SUMITOMO ELECTRIC DEVICE INNOVATIONS, INC.


A mobile crushing machine, equipped with an impact crusher having a separable casing 31 comprising a stationary casing 70 and a movable casing 30, is adopted for casing 31 with the upper end 724 of the stationary casing 70 positioned below the upper end 820 of the movable casing 80 and with the movable casing 80 arranged to permit an operator to collapse the feeding port 31A side of movable casing 80 into the rotation mechanism 39 for transporting the mobile crushing machine The impact crusher is equipped with a gap adjustment device (60).

A mobile crushing machine transported to crushing sites or building demolition sites can self-propel within a site if it is equipped with Crawler type traveling components. Nonetheless, this crushing machine cannot self-propel to the construction site on a public highway and therefore, must be towed by a trailer to the site.
Usually, a crusher installed on such a mobile crushing machine has a casing having a feeding port for feeding materials to be crushed.
Sometimes, a larger crusher, that can easily crush large rocks, concrete or asphalt blocks, is required for improved crushing efficiency. However, an increase in capacity of a crusher requires an increase in capacity of its casing. This requires one casing to have a large height, which may exceed the height limit imposed for its transportation by a trailer. To meet the height requirement, the crusher must be adapted to separate into components. These components must be reassembled when they arrive at the site which is elaborate work, time consuming and undesirable.
In an impact crusher, materials to be crushed are struck by stroke plates of a stroke component driven by a revolving rotor followed by collision onto impact plates to which the materials fly due to the striking action of the stroke plates. The size of the crushed pieces are determined by the gaps between the stroke plates and the impact plates. Therefore, to obtain crushed pieces of a given size, it is necessary to precisely adjust and maintain a desirable gap between the stroke plates and impact plates by moving the impact plates. Accordingly, the crusher of the present invention preferably includes a gap adjustment device for adjusting the gap between a stroke component (stroke plates) and the impact plates.

Crusher and mobile crushing machine equipped with the crusher


A method and apparatuses for verifying Cryptographically Generated Address (CGA) signature are provided. The method includes: receiving a message sent by a CGA address owner, wherein a RSA public key, a first RSA public key signature, a second public key, and a second public key signature are carried in the message, the first RSA public key binds one or more second public keys, and a part protected by the first public key signature includes the one or more second public keys; verifying the first RSA public key signature according to the message; extracting the second public key, and verifying the second public key signature. According to the method and apparatuses of the embodiment, the effect of supporting other public key can be achieved, the change of the IP address can be omitted, and public key deployment and computing resources are saved.

The Cryptographically Generated Address (CGA) is a kind of special IPv6 address, in which the interface identifier is generated according to a public key in combination and auxiliary information by using a unidirectional encryption hash algorithm. In the use of the CGA, a receiver needs to recompute a hash value, and compares the hash value with interface identifier in an address of a sender to verify a binding relation between the public key of the sender and the address of the sender. Protection to a network message may be achieved by attaching the public key and the auxiliary information to the message, and then signing the message by using a corresponding private key. The CGA solution solves an authentication problem of the address within the IP layer, and does not need other authoritative certificate systems or other secure architectures; therefore, the CGA solution is a simple and effective security solution.
As the CGA binds the public key/private key of an address owner, the address owner may sign a message sent by the address owner by using the private key of this public/private key system, so as to achieve a purposes of authenticating the source of the message and protecting the integrity of the message. A receiver, i.e. a verifier, must verify the CGA and the signature; if any one of the verifications of the CGA and the signature is not matched, the verification process fails and the corresponding address and message are not reliable.
The existing CGA protocol is specified that only a Ron-Shamir-Adleman (RSA) public key, which is a public key system invented by Ron-Shamir-Adleman, and may be used for signing in the network communication to achieve a purpose of authentication, is supported due to incomplete consideration when the CGA is designed as well as a purpose of implementing the protocol simply and feasible. Since the requirement of the network communication security on key strength has been enhanced, the length of the RSA key increasingly becomes a shackle of use of the CGA. At present, the commonly used 1024 bits RSA key has 128 bytes, and the industry-accepted 1024 bits RSA key is regarded to be insecure in 2010; therefore, the key with more bits becomes a mandatory requirement. However, overlong keys bring burdens to computing, storing, and communicating. Especially for a large number of mobile and portable terminal equipment and sensors, as the limitations of computing capability and storage capability, the key is required to be as short as possible with the same security strength.
In a conventional technology that the CGA binds a number of public keys, the public keys, which may include other public key other than the RSA, are bound when the CGA address is generated. However, when the technology is implemented, the original deployment of CGA addresses and the public key must be updated to generate and deploy new CGA address and related public key. The solution is not advisable under a condition that a user does not want to change the original deployment of IP address and the public key.

Method and apparatus for verifying CGA signature


The present invention provides a DC-DC power converter that comprises two or more Printed Wiring Boards (PWB) mounted parallel to one another and without encapsulation. Electronic components can be mounted on both sides of each board. The open design and parallel orientation of the PWBs allow airflow over components mounted on the PWBs. The PWBs are preferable made of FR-4 with copper foils, with one thicker board being comprised of more copper layers and the other boards comprised of less copper layers. In the preferred embodiment, the power processing elements are housed in the thicker PWB, while the thinner boards house the control circuitry.

DC-to-DC converters are common components that take a first input voltage and convert it into one or more output voltages. This allows a user to take a higher battery voltage, such as 48 volts, and convert it down to a first and second output voltage, such as 12 volts and 5 volts, enabling the higher voltage DC source to be used to power various circuits that require lower voltage. Such a converter can provide either a single output voltage or multiple voltage outputs. DC-DC power converters typically comprise one of three configurations.
The first configuration is a single FR-4 Printed Wiring Board (PWB) with parts on both sides, with or without encapsulation. Flame Resistant 4 (FR-4) is a form of epoxy resin bonded glass fabric (ERBGF). The main limitation of this configuration is the limited available board areas for mounting components. Furthermore, it does not provide thermal isolation of sensitive components and is subject to noise from the power elements. Furthermore, components often have to be shrunk to fit the available footprint, which reduces the upper power range, e.g., ˜50 W for a 1″×1″ footprint.
The second configuration comprises one Insulated Metal Substrate (IMS) board with parts on one side and optional heat sink on the other flat side, plus one FR-4 PWB with parts on both sides and interconnects to the IMS board. While this configuration offers more areas for mounting components, the outward facing surface of the IMS is not populated with components.
The third configuration typically seen with DC-DC power converters comprises multiple FR-4 PWBs with parts on each PWB. However, the "daughter" boards are not parallel to the main board, which can interfere with airflow over the components depending on the orientation of the power converter.
Many current designs also have many interconnects between the boards, which reduces the board area available for mounting components.


An exposure apparatus exposes a resist on a substrate to light via an optical system. The exposure apparatus includes: a table configured to position the substrate at an exposure position upon holding the substrate; an obtaining unit configured to obtain a distance from an alignment mark formed on the substrate to a resist surface, and a tilt of the resist surface; and a control unit configured to calculate a correction value for correcting a shift in exposure position, that occurs upon tilt correction of the table, so as to reduce the tilt of the resist surface, using the distance and the tilt, and control a position of the table in accordance with the correction value.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus, a method of controlling the same, and a method of manufacturing a device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, ultrafine patterning techniques as techniques of manufacturing a semiconductor device have been making remarkable progress. In photopatterning techniques in particular, it is usual for a reduction projection exposure apparatus (stepper) having a submicron resolution to be used; so, for example, the numerical aperture (NA) of an optical system is increased, and the exposure wavelength is shortened to further improve the resolution. For example, as the exposure wavelength shortens, exposure light sources are shifting from g- and i-line high-pressure mercury lamps to KrF and ArF excimer lasers. However, as exposure light shifts to short-wavelength light emitted by, for example, a KrF excimer laser, the usable glass material is limited, so it becomes difficult to correct chromatic aberration for the alignment wavelength of a projection exposure optical system. Hence, the recent reduction projection exposure apparatus is required to adopt an off-axis alignment detection system (OA detection system) free from the influence of the chromatic aberration of a projection exposure optical system.
On the other hand, not only conventional IC chips including a memory and logic, but also recent special devices including a MEMS and CMOS are manufactured as applied products using a conventional semiconductor exposure apparatus. However, devices including a MEMS are different from IC chips in several respects. Devices including a MEMS are different from IC chips in that, for example, the former is required to attain a relatively low line width resolution and overlay accuracy but a relatively large depth of focus.
Also, a special exposure process of forming an alignment mark on the lower side of a silicon wafer, and exposing the upper side of the silicon wafer upon alignment with reference to the alignment mark must be done. This process is executed when, for example, a through-hole via is formed to extend from the upper side of a wafer, and used to electrically connect the upper side to a circuit pattern on the lower side. As a method of detecting an alignment mark formed on the lower side of a wafer, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-280299, for example, discloses a lithography apparatus which performs alignment using a detection system arranged on the lower side (wafer chuck side). However, in the method of arranging a detection system on the wafer chuck side, only an alignment mark at a position opposite to a specific position of a wafer chuck is an object to be measured. That is, the measurement position is limited, so an alignment mark formed at an arbitrary position on the lower side of the wafer cannot be measured.
To solve this problem, a method of measuring an alignment mark on the upper side of a silicon wafer by an OA detection system including a light source that emits infrared light, using the property that silicon is transparent to infrared light (wavelength: 1,000 nm or more), is available. In lower surface alignment in which silicon has a given thickness from the wafer surface to an alignment mark, variations in tilt of, for example, a wafer table or chuck with respect to the wafer surface may occur due to variations in thickness of the silicon wafer, and variations in overlay accuracy. It has been pointed out that in conventional techniques, the detection accuracy degrades upon a tilt of, for example, the wafer table or chuck.
More specifically, as has been reported conventionally, in a measurement technique such as an interferometer, a shift occurs in position to be exposed, when a wafer is exposed in a tilted state. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-315221, for example, discloses a method of detecting the tilt of an interferometer mirror, detecting the tilt of a wafer by a tilt measurement device, and calculating the amount of flexure of a table due to its self weight, thereby calculating an Abbe error. With this method, the amount of tilt of the wafer is added to the correction items of the Abbe error to measure the alignment mark with high accuracy. Also, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-203842 discloses an arithmetic unit which calculates an error of a plane mirror for each position of a stage, and a method of driving the stage upon correcting the amount of tilt in accordance with the position, to which the stage moves, based on the error obtained by the arithmetic unit in advance.
A shift may occur in position to be exposed, during exposure when the tilt of the wafer surface changes upon lower surface alignment in which silicon has a given thickness from the wafer surface to an alignment mark, or in the interval between the alignment time and the exposure time if a thick resist is used. That is, when tilt correction is performed so as to reduce the tilt of the resist surface in exposure, a shift (shift error) may occur between a position to be ideally exposed and an actually exposed position. To attain exposure with a higher accuracy, a challenge associated with shift error correction is posed, but the conventional literatures describe no shift error correction methods.
FIGS. 12A and 12B are views for explaining a shift error that occurs in the interval between the alignment time and the exposure time, in which FIG. 12A shows an alignment state, and FIG. 12B shows an exposure state. Referring to FIG. 12A, an off-axis alignment detection system (OA detection system) 24 detects an alignment mark WM. Referring to FIG. 12B, a circuit pattern image of a mask (not shown) is transferred onto a wafer W via a projection optical system 22. The tilt of the wafer surface is different between the alignment state (FIG. 12A) and the exposure state (FIG. 12B).
The wafer W is set on a wafer chuck 51, and the alignment mark WM is formed on the surface of the wafer W, as shown in FIG. 12A. Also, the surface of the wafer W is coated (dispensed) with a resist 50. The thickness of the resist 50 on the wafer W is not uniform, but varies along the surface of the wafer W. For example, the thickness of the resist 50 on the right end side of the surface of the wafer W is defined as T1, and the thickness of the resist 50 on the left end side of the surface of the wafer W is defined as T2 (T2>T1). FIG. 12A assumes that the surface of the resist 50 has tilted with respect to an optical axis 1201 of a position detection system in wafer alignment (the surface of the resist 50 is not perpendicular to the optical axis of alignment). Although FIG. 12A shows an exemplary state in which the tilt of the surface of the resist 50 changes linearly, the definition of a shift error is not limited to this example.
On the other hand, FIG. 12B shows the state in which wafer surface measurement is performed at an exposure position, the tilt of the wafer surface is corrected, and exposure is performed. Upon tilt correction, the surface of the resist 50 becomes perpendicular to the optical axis of the projection optical system 22. As can be seen from FIG. 12B, due to the difference in tilt of the wafer surface from the alignment state, the alignment position set during the alignment time shown in FIG. 12A shifts during the exposure time shown in FIG. 12B. A shift between the position in alignment and that in exposure becomes a shift error.
FIGS. 13A to 13C are views for explaining the case wherein exposure is performed using a method which does not perform shift error correction. FIG. 13A shows the state before alignment, FIG. 13B shows the state in which the tilt of the wafer surface is corrected, alignment is performed, and exposure is performed in this state, and FIG. 13C shows the state after exposure. An example shown in FIG. 13A assumes that the surface of the resist 50 has tilted with respect to a wafer surface on which an alignment mark WM1 is formed as an alignment reference. As shown in FIG. 13B, even if tilt correction is performed, and alignment is performed so as to match the optical axis of the projection optical system 22 (FIG. 12B) with the alignment mark WM1, an alignment mark WM2 at an actually exposed position shifts with respect to a position RP to be exposed. That is, a shift error (shift) occurs, as shown in FIG. 13C. This means that when a surface layer to be exposed has tilted with respect to a layer serving as an alignment reference, in which the alignment mark WM1 is formed, a shift error occurs even if the tilt of the wafer surface is corrected, as shown in FIG. 13B.
As a method of solving the above-mentioned problem, a method of preventing a change in tilt of the wafer surface between the alignment measurement time and the exposure time so that a circuit pattern layer in which an alignment mark to be measured becomes parallel to the tilted wafer surface is available. However, when a bond wafer as mainly used in, for example, lower surface alignment is used, it is necessary to adhere a support substrate to a substrate on which a circuit pattern layer is formed, so the flatness of the substrate may degrade.
Also, to polish the substrate so that the circuit pattern layer becomes parallel to the tilted wafer surface, this must be done while measuring the circuit pattern layer and the wafer surface, so the yield may lower due to increases in cost and number of manufacturing steps.

Exposure apparatus, method of controlling the same and method of manufacturing device


Processor-implemented systems and methods are provided for generating clusters of technical documents. A method includes analyzing degrees of similarity among the technical documents using a hierarchical taxonomy code similarity model and a text clustering model. Clusters of the technical documents are generated based upon the analyzed degrees of similarity from the models.

Document clustering algorithms attempt to group documents together based on their how well they match in content. Documents that are relevant to a certain topic will typically be allocated to the same cluster. Documents allocated to different cluster, however, should have different characteristics.
Clustering can involve large volumes of documents, such as text files, e-mails, journal articles, etc. Companies may try to use a text analysis clustering approach that analyzes the textual content of the volumes of data. A text clustering process can be very time consuming to implement properly because of the unstructured nature of the data and frequently provides poor results with clusters having an unacceptable number of unrelated documents.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a computer system for organizing electronic documents with an improved clustering or grouping approach.

Processor-implemented systems and methods for synthesized document clustering


A multi-level lightpipe and housing are utilized a surface mount LEDs. The multi-level lightpipe is in the form of a single molded part which can collect light from multiple LEDs and redirect light to different locations. The lightpipe includes two or more separate passageways for separately redirecting and transmitting light from two or more separate light sources, such as two or more separate LEDs. The housing has an opening for receiving the multi-level lightpipe therein. The housing also includes an attachment mechanism for permitting the housing with the lightpipe positioned therein to be removably attached to a printed circuit board such that light from a first LED is directed and transmitted through one of the separate passageways, and light from a second LED is directed and transmitted through another of the separate passageways of the multi-level lightpipe.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to structures for mounting visual indicators on a printed circuit board in an X by Y direction wherein X is the width of the structure and Y is the height of the structure. The present invention also relates to a multi-level lightpipe design in which a multi-tiered optical waveguide is snapped onto a printed circuit board so as to redirect light from a set of surface mounted light emitting diodes which have been initially reflowed and electrically contacted to a printed circuit board.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Right angle circuit board indicators have been utilized in the form of different sizes since around 1970. To handle needs for increased packaging density and simplified assembly labor, through-hole circuit board indicators designed and built into arrays have been conventionally used. These arrays can either be horizontally grouped, vertically grouped or both.
The transition from through-hole soldering processes to surface mount processes has created the need for surface mount compatible circuit board indicators that are also right angle devices. However, the conventional approaches for increased packaging densities for through-hole indicators are less satisfactory for surface mount applications. A surface mounted LED should ideally be visible and accessible around the solder connections so that solder joint integrity is viewable and so that rework is possible. A limitation exists in package height because common component placement equipment in use can only clear components at relatively low heights from printed circuit board surfaces. Further, stability of taller surface mount devices may be a problem. Finally, the weight of an array may be greater than component placement equipment can readily accommodate.
The use of lightpipes to redirect light as well as the use of right angle circuit board indicators are known. The use of multiple LEDs to illuminate a translucent plastic part in order to provide uniform backlighting as well as the use of individual fibers to transmit multiple light sources are also well known. However, the use of a multi-level lightpipe as set forth in the present invention, which can collect light from multiple LEDs and which can redirect the light to different locations without a mixture of the light between the LEDs, has not yet been realized.

Multi-level lightpipe design for SMD LEDs


A method of improving grease and/or water resistance of a material is disclosed that comprises treating the material with wax and poly(vinyl alcohol) and optionally with a polyamine. Compositions for practicing the method and materials that have been treated by the method are also disclosed.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to compositions and methods to impart grease resistance and/or water resistance to materials, and more particularly to compositions and methods of improving grease resistance and/or water resistance that are free of fluorochemical compounds.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Materials, such as paper and textiles, are commonly treated or coated to improve their resistance to liquids such as water, grease and oil. Commercial compounds such as Scotchgard™® and Scotchban®, both products of Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co. have been widely used to improve the barrier properties of papers, textile fabrics, nonwoven fabrics, upholstery, carpet fibers, and the like.
Scotchgard™® and Scotchban®, and similar products, contain fluorochemicals, which have recently become the object of health and environmental concerns because of their persistence and tendency to bioaccumulate. Consequently, there is strong interest in replacing fluorochemical compounds such as perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), perfluoro-n-decanoic acid (PFDA) and other perfluorinated compounds that are widely used for imparting grease, oil, and/or water resistance to the substrates to which they are applied.
Recently several products have been introduced into the marketplace as potential replacements for the fluorochemical compounds. These materials are based on inorganic materials like silica and on organic polymers, or combinations of those materials. However, to date, these replacements have fallen short of the cost/performance standards established by the fluorinated compounds in this area of use.
It is well known to modify the barrier properties of various materials by the addition of a wax, and paraffin waxes have been used in many of these techniques. Examples of the use of waxes for surface treatment, coating, and the like can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,117,199. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,097,297 to Keene, an oil and water repellant barrier coating is described that consists essentially of a film forming polymer, a fluorochemical surface tension modifier, and a plasticizer. Waxes, coalescing solvents, and dyes are optionally included.
Poly(vinyl alcohol) has been widely used in films and coatings for properties that range from water dispersibility to barrier properties. Examples of these uses are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,468,526, 5,110,390, 5,283,090, 6,113,978, US 2005/0042443 A1, and GB 2 185 404A, among others. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,981,011 to Overcash et al. a coated sheet material is described that has as one component a barrier coating comprising a polymer mixture in which one polymer can be poly(vinyl alcohol).
Several references describe circumstances where either paraffin wax or poly(vinyl alcohol) can be used for one purpose or another. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,793 to Suzuki et al., a printing paper is provided that has no special coating on the printing face and does not cause bronzing in ink-jet printing. The paper also comprises an ink penetration-retarding agent on the printing face that can be, among other things, either poly(vinyl alcohol) or paraffin wax. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,648,164 to Sakaki et al., a recording paper is described in which both poly(vinyl alcohol) or paraffin wax are mentioned as potential ink penetration-retarding agents. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,919,111, to Swoboda et al., a cellulosic multi-ply paperboard is described that contains predominantly cellulosic fibers, a bulk and porosity enhancing additive, and a size press applied binder coating. The paperboard can be coated with either a binder, such as poly(vinyl alcohol), or with a wax. A similar composition having a coating of either a binder such as poly(vinyl alcohol) or a wax is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,379,497, to Sandstrom et al.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,843,544 to Andersen et al., hinged starch-bound cellular matrix clam-shell type containers are described that can be coated on the interior with a wax coating. The container can also be coated on the exterior with an elastomeric coating that can comprise poly(vinyl alcohol) in order to strengthen the outer surface and reduce its tendency to fracture during the hinging action. Similar articles produced from a starch-bound cellular matrix reinforced with dispersed fibers and having optional coatings of materials such as poly(vinyl alcohol) or wax are discussed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,660,900 and 5,683,772 to Andersen et al.
Wenzel et al., in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,654,039 and 5,837,383, describe recyclable and compostable coated paper stock comprising a substrate having a primer coat that can be poly(vinyl alcohol) and, in addition, having a top coat that can include a wax composition, which can be a paraffin wax. However, mixtures of primer coat and top coat materials are not described.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,626,945 to Berzins et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 5,635,279 to Ma et al., repulpable, water repellant paperboard is described that has a coating comprising a wax component that can be a paraffin wax, mixed with a polymer matrix of polymer chains ionically cross-linked through pendant carboxylate groups. A preferred polymer matrix was described as comprising a polystyrene-butadiene polymer copolymerized with a monomer having carboxylic acid pendant groups. In the U.S. Pat. No. 5,635,279; poly(vinyl alcohol) is described as being an ionically cross-linkable polymer that could be used in the invention, however, some carboxylate functionality must be added to the polymer prior to use by copolymerizing with a monomer having carboxylic acid pendant groups.
Other references have described the use of both waxes and substances such as poly(vinyl alcohol) for various purposes, in particular in the field of surface preparations for paper and textiles. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,151,404 to Suzuki et al. describes thermosensitive recording paper that does not curl and provides clear images with high image density. The inventors claim that paraffin wax can be used as a sizing agent in the paper, and poly(vinyl alcohol) can be used as a stiffness-imparting agent.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,763,100 to Quick et al., describes recyclable acrylic coated papers that have water and grease resistance and limited moisture vapor transmission characteristics. The papers can have a primer coat, which is commonly a water-based dispersion of a polymer such as poly(vinyl alcohol), and a further coating of a water-based emulsion of an acrylic-styrene copolymer and a wax, which can be a paraffin wax.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,180,614 to Escabasse, a supple biodegradable sheet is described that is resistant to bursting and has poor water and other liquid absorbing power. The sheet comprises fibers, an optional moisture resisting agent, a binder, which can be poly(vinyl alcohol), a moisture retaining agent, and a sizing agent, which can be a paraffin wax.
Dettling, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,773,131, describes a paper product having a flavor seal and a vapor barrier that is produced by applying a primer coating to the paper that can include poly(vinyl alcohol), and after polymerizing the coating to form an amorphous net structure, applying a cover coating mixture suitable for generating a vapor seal. The cover coating mixture can include paraffin wax.
Dragner et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,795,932, describe a surface sizing composition for nonwoven substrates that includes a waxy material, that can be a paraffin wax, but is preferably a stearylated melamine, and a surfactantless vinyl polymer or copolymer emulsion that contains an alkali soluble, acid containing copolymer, which acts as the only surfactant for the waxy material.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,928,741 to Andersen et al., laminated articles fashioned from sheets having a highly inorganically filled organic polymer matrix are described. The sheets can be coated with various materials, selected to improve water penetration, or grease and oil penetration, or to render the article substantially liquid-tight, or pressure-tight, or to increase the flexibility of the article, and poly(vinyl alcohol) and waxes are included in a list of several possible coating materials. It is stated that mixtures of the coating materials can also be used, but no particular mixture is identified as being preferred. Methods for the production of articles of a similar nature are described by Andersen et al. in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,580,409 and 5,800,647.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,159,612, Chu et al. describe multilayer films having a barrier layer containing a wax. The films are said to provide an effective moisture and oxygen barrier without requiring such barrier agents as polyterpenes, alicyclic hydrocarbons, or high barrier polyvinylidene chloride coatings. The films include a layer comprising an olefin polymer, and a barrier layer comprising a syndiotactic polypropylene homopolymer and a wax. They can further include an outer layer that can be coated, for example, with a poly(vinyl alcohol) coating.
Chang et al. describe a method of making a flushable film having barrier properties in U.S. Pat. No. 6,479,105. The film can have a water-dispersible substrate layer that can comprise poly(vinyl alcohol) that is covered with a coating of a low molecular weight amorphous poly(alpha-olefin) that can be admixed with a branched paraffin wax.
In WO 02/14426 to Dixit et al. (also US 2004/0005341 A1) a formulation for providing oil and grease resistance and release paper properties is described as including a fatty acid melamine and paraffin wax emulsion and a poly(vinyl alcohol). Alternatively, the formulation can include a fatty acid melamine wax and a poly(vinyl alcohol). A preferred fatty acid melamine wax is a stearylated melamine wax. The formulation can be used as a coating to provide oil and grease resistance on paper and paperboard, and can also be applied inline on a paper machine.
Despite the advances that recently have been made in the attempt to find effective and environmentally benign alternatives to fluorochemical barrier coatings, there remains a need for compounds or methods that can be used to replace the perfluorinated compounds in present commercial use as greaseproofing and waterproofing agents for paper and the like. It would be useful if such compounds and methods were cost effective and easy to apply. It would also be useful if such compounds and methods were more environmentally benign that the current fluorochemical compounds and it would be useful if such compounds and methods were totally free of such fluorochemical compounds.

Grease resistance and water resistance compositions and methods


A safety device for locating an individual fallen into the sea includes a visual indicator in the form of a dye and an intermittently operated lamp (3), and a radio transmitter (9) for transmitting a radio signal. The dye is contained in a vessel (4) having a trap door and control circuits (12) are provided having a power source (5) and automatically operated by a water sensitive microswitch (10) to open the trap door of the dye vessel (9), energize the intermittent lamp (3) and energize the radio transmitter (9), all of the components being integral with a helmet (1) worn by the individual. A radio receiver may also be provided on a boat for receiving signals transmitted from the radio device and guiding the boat to the radio device.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a device for locating individuals fallen into the sea from a boat, including visual and radio locating means.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Previously known devices for locating persons adrift in the sea are of types disclosed in the following patents:
British Pat. GB 2,082,126 (SUBMEX) discloses a survival floating device including means to detect the device and a housing with means for survival and that simulates the features of a human body floating on the water, the spotting means including an intermittent lamp and a transmitting radio;
U.S. Pat. No. 2,716,961 (MANHEIM) discloses a device to color the water, so as to enable an air rescue of a person shipwrecked, the device being made by impregnating by dying a floatable resin foam;
French Pat. No. FR 2,066,624 (DROGO) discloses a device to release, from a power supply and electrical contact means, buoys to detect shipwrecked persons including a radio transmitting device and eventually a telescopic antenna extendable by a powder cartridge;
British Pat. No. GB 1,179,521 (GALLOWAY) describes a buoy type rescue device that can indicate its position by means of an external visualization lamp, either permanently or intermittently engaged by a built-in battery;
U.S. Pat. No. 2,750,027 (CUMMINGS) discloses a device for producing a visual indication by producing a colored sheet on the sea from a block of dying material that includes a means for preventing mud from clogging in order to obtain a continuous sheet.
These prior art devices all have means that include either visual devices, or radio devices, or both, or dying devices, always located either on buoys, or on independent floats of the shipwreck, but none includes all of these means on the same support.

Device for locating an individual fallen into the sea


The invention relates to a structure of a cathodic finger for diaphragm electrolysis cells consisting of an external mesh and an internal reinforcing and current-distributing structure provided with protrusions suitable for maximizing the contact points with the external mesh.

The production of chlorine by electrolysis of alkali halide solutions, in particular of sodium chloride solutions, is still largely the electrochemical process of higher industrial relevance. It may be carried out by resorting to the three technologies of membrane electrolysis, diaphragm electrolysis and mercury cathode electrolysis.
The subsequent evolution of diaphragm plants has led to the introduction of polymer diaphragms made hydrophilic by means of various additives, for instance, zirconium oxide fibres or particles, instead of the traditional asbestos ones, overcoming the main inconvenience of this technology from an environmental standpoint. From the point of view of energy consumption, several improvements have been introduced which have slowed down the disposal of diaphragm cells in favour of the membrane technology, which initially appeared to be unavoidable. At first, the conventional expandable anodes of titanium activated with noble metal oxides were substantially improved by means of a so called zero-gap version, that is, provided with devices capable of exerting an elastic pressure and of bringing the movable surface of the anode into a direct and extended contact with the diaphragm. These anodes were later provided with double expanders, such term indicating the connections which allow the passage of electric current from the anode movable surfaces to the current collecting stems, with a sensible reduction of the relevant ohmic drop. Moreover, devices allowing to sensibly increase the brine internal recirculation may be advantageously installed on the anodes, with a consequent advantage in terms of lower voltage and lower oxygen release, both of which elements allow decreasing the energy consumption per ton of produced chlorine.
Finally, the replacement of the rubber linings with titanium sheets to protect the copper bases whereon the anodes are fixed and the adoption of new kinds of elastic gaskets between cathode body and anode support base and between each anode and the support base allowed to remarkably extend the operative life-time of the individual cells making up an electrolysis plant, from which followed a further decrease of the maintenance costs and a higher productive capacity for a given cell design.
A description of the functioning of chlorine-caustic soda diaphragm cells is provided in a very clear fashion in Ullmann's Encyclopaedia of Chemical Technology, 5a Ed., Vol. A6, pg. 424-437, VCH, while details of the internal structure of such cells are exhaustively illustrated in the drawings of the prior art. Only after several modifications made to the diaphragms and the anodes with the relevant way of fastening to the support base, the attention was recently focused on the cathodes, indicating with this term both the body with the relevant electrical connections and the structure of the cathode active area which is the site of the hydrogen release reaction and of the generation of caustic soda. In particular, as regards the cathode active area, this consists of a mesh of interwoven wires or of a perforated sheet both made of conductive material, generally carbon steel, shaped so as to form structures similar to prisms with a rather flattened rectangular section, secured by welding to a perimetrical chamber, also made of interwoven wires or perforated sheets, connected to the side-walls of the cathode body and provided with at least one nozzle in the lower part for the outlet of the solution containing the caustic soda product and the residual sodium chlorine, and with at least one nozzle in the upper part for the discharge of hydrogen. On these structures, known among those skilled in the art as fingers (a wording which will be therefore adopted in the following), the diaphragm is deposited by vacuum sucking of an aqueous suspension containing polymer fibres and particles which constitute the diaphragm itself, as mentioned above. In the diaphragm cell structure, the diaphragm-covered fingers are intercalated with the anodes, whose surface can be either in contact with that of the diaphragms or be spaced by a few millimetres. In both cases, it is necessary that the fingers do not undergo deflections which would cause abrasions on the diaphragm with consequent damaging thereof. Furthermore, during operation the current must be transmitted in the most uniform possible fashion to the whole finger surface. A non-uniform distribution would cause a cell voltage increase and a reduction of the caustic soda generation efficiency with a simultaneous higher oxygen content in the chlorine. It follows that for a better result, the fingers must be provided with adequate stiffness and at the same time with high electrical conductivity.
According to the prior art, the fingers are provided with a longitudinally corrugated carbon steel or copper internal plate. The mesh of interwoven wires or perforated sheet is secured, preferably by welding, to the apexes of the corrugations, solving the problem of homogeneous current distribution and of stiffening.
Nevertheless, the corrugations developed in a longitudinal direction do not allow the hydrogen bubbles to rise freely in the vertical direction, to gather along the finger upper generatrix and then to penetrate into the perimetrical chamber provided as mentioned with at least one gas discharge nozzle. The longitudinally corrugated plate forces hydrogen to gather under each of the corrugations and to flow longitudinally along each of the corrugations until discharging across suitable perforations to the perimetrical chamber. Since this flow can hardly be equalised, it follows that the amount of hydrogen present under each corrugation is variable and occludes the facing diaphragm fraction to a different extent. In a last analysis, it can be said that the longitudinally corrugated internal plate determines an inevitable unbalance in the electric current distribution. Such an unbalance, in its turn, leads to a differentiation of caustic concentration, with a negative outcome on the faradic production yield and on the oxygen content in the chlorine.
The prior art also discloses the use of corrugated internal plates, but with vertically arranged corrugations. In this case it is apparent that hydrogen can freely gather in the finger upper part. However, its flow toward the perimetrical chamber is hindered by the upper part of the corrugations. Moreover, for a given electric current distribution, the stiffening effect of the vertical corrugations may be unsatisfactory.
There has also been disclosed designs for the finger internal element in which perforated horizontal plate strips or longitudinal conductive stems are provided with vertical plate strips welded thereto. While certainly assuring an adequate stiffness, the latter solution is affected by the problem of difficult hydrogen discharge previously discussed.
While some prior art designs represent a satisfactory answer to the requirements of stiffness, current distribution homogeneity and free hydrogen discharge, they have done so at the cost of a complex structure, difficult to produce and hence excessively expensive. Furthermore, the structures do not allow the hydrogen bubble upward motion to establish an adequate recirculation of the caustic soda product inside the fingers. As a consequence of this lack of recirculation, pockets of caustic soda of higher concentration may be formed, particularly in the case of anomalies in the electric current distribution and in the porosity of the diaphragms, with negative consequences as regards the electrolysis faradic efficiency and the oxygen content in the chlorine.
A more advanced solution, overcoming to a great extent the above illustrated drawbacks of the cathode finger internal plates, has been proposed in which the plate inside the cathode fingers is provided with bumps, for instance spherical caps, arranged quincuncially, or in accordance with other patterns which facilitate the free circulation of the electrolyte while providing for an electrical connection of well distributed ohmic paths.
There has been described the use of this plate for fingers obtained both out of meshes of interwoven wires, and out of perforated sheets. As a matter of fact, if in the latter case the proposed solution appears to be entirely optimal, in the former case the coupling between mesh and bump plate is in many cases unsatisfactory. Not every wire of the mesh can in fact intercept the various protrusions correctly, and statistically many of them cannot transport the current in an effective way, since the relevant ohmic path results excessively long.
It is thus identified the specific need to find an improved design of internal reinforcing and current-distributing structure for diaphragm cell cathode fingers consisting of conductive meshes, for example interwoven wire meshes.


A patient monitoring system that enables a healthcare provide to request access to patient data via interaction directly with a local patient monitor and subsequently provide patient data to the healthcare provider's portable communication device regardless of device location.

Patient monitoring systems are widely used in the medical field to enable healthcare providers to monitor the condition of patients. Patient monitoring systems enable healthcare providers to remotely monitor patients from a central monitoring station, e.g., a nurses' station, that is in communication with multiple local patient monitors. Local patient monitors, e.g., oximeters, ECGs, or pulse rate monitors, are typically connected to a central station via a wired or wireless network in a healthcare facility. The central station may store patient data or interface with medical record databases as part of an electronic medical record (EMR) system.
Wired communications between a local patient monitor and central station is typically via a local area network using an Ethernet protocol. Wireless communications between a local patient monitor and central station is typically via a wireless local area network using a wireless Ethernet protocol based on the 802.11 family of standards. Some local monitors utilize a personal area network such as Bluetooth to support wireless communications with one or more patient sensors or to communication with a central station via an access point.
Communications between a local patient monitor and a central station or between a local patient monitor and a sensor may be protected by encryption of the data being communicated. Some patient monitoring systems support remote monitoring of patient physiological parameters via pagers, personal digital assistants (pda), and other portable computing devices that communicate with a central station or local patient monitor via the Internet or a wireless access point on the premises of a healthcare facility.
Unfortunately, existing patient monitoring systems, including local patient monitors, do not provide an efficient way of allowing a healthcare provider, e.g, physician, to securely access monitored patient physiological parameters using a portable communications device. Accordingly, there is a need to enhance the ability of healthcare providers to more efficiently and securely obtain access to local patient physiological data using a portable computing or communications device.

Systems and methods for secure portable patient monitoring

ANAESTHESIA ASSOCIATES OF MASSACHUSETTS, P.C.


A calibration standard for geometry measurement calibration of a measurement system operating by tactile and/or optical means is provided which includes a flat surface having a structure that is capturable by a measurement system operating by optical and/or tactile means. The structure has a changeable periodicity that is capturable by a sensor in a first direction and/or in a second direction and for a change in the periodicity to code position information and/or direction information. In addition, a method for calibrating a coordinate measuring machine operating by tactile and/or optical means and to a coordinate measuring machine for such a method or having such a calibration standard is provided.

For measuring the geometric dimensions, the surface roughness and/or other characteristics of components and the surfaces thereof, what are known as stylus instruments are used. Said stylus instruments operate either using mechanical probing or use corresponding optical methods. In order to obtain reproducible measurement results using such a coordinate measuring machine, a calibration of the measurement system both as regards the position and also as regards the measurement direction is generally performed. For this purpose, a large number of probing contacts are typically made on a measurement calibration sphere. This procedure generally takes a few minutes.
In a stylus instrument, a probing element, such as a diamond needle, is generally mounted to a movably supported measurement arm. During the measurement, the probing element lies against the component surface with a specified contact force and is deflected by structures on the component surface. The deflection of the measurement arm, which is to take place perpendicularly to the component surface, is captured by a transducer that generates electrical measurement signals. Over the course of the measurement, the measurement arm with the probing element is guided parallel to the workpiece surface with the aid of an advance unit. In this way, a line-shaped profile of the component surface is obtained. Contactlessly operating devices for capturing the geometry of a component surface are also known. Said devices can be used in particular for measurement on very soft workpieces. Such optical probes can be configured, for example, as autofocus sensors or confocal white light sensors.
Larger measurement systems in which the surface sensor is mounted to a coordinate measuring machine usually include a table carrying the workpiece to be measured and a position device allowing the sensor to be displaced with high accuracy in three orthogonal displacement directions X, Y, and Z relative to the table. Furthermore, coordinate measuring machines having a displaceable table that moves relative to the stationary measurement apparatus are known. Coordinate measuring machines furthermore have an evaluation and control device, which controls the movements of the positioning device.
In modern production procedures, there is increasingly the aim to continuously monitor the components that are being used or produced with respect to the manufacturing tolerances. A roughness or geometry measurement calibration in that case no longer takes place in a laboratory or at specially equipped testing sites but may actually have to be integrated in the production sequence. The problem then arises that a calibration of the measurement system is required to achieve specific accuracies. For this purpose, a calibration for the absolute position of the probing element in space and for the measurement direction must be performed. Using the techniques that are available today, this is associated with a considerable time expenditure.
For example, a great number of adaptations must be performed typically on a measurement calibration sphere so as to ascertain the absolute position. A geometric sphere can be fitted to the measurement points in space thus ascertained, and in this way the absolute position of the probing element can be ascertained. This procedure involves special requirements in terms of the probe geometry to allow a measurement on such a sphere. It is also possible that the probing element, such as a diamond needle, sustains damage during the measurement process.
For calibrating a roughness sensor, what is known as a calibration standard, or standard, is used, which has a surface structure with a calibrated average roughness depth. If the aim is to ascertain the linearity of the overall measurement system, measurements must be performed on a plurality of roughness standards with a calibrated average roughness depth. This is a complex and expensive measurement sequence. If the aim is furthermore for example to ascertain the accuracy of the advance, evaluations of a special standard with calibrated average groove spacing are possible, which again requires a separate standard.

Calibration standard for geometry calibration of a measurement system operating by tactile and/or optical means, method for calibration, and coordinate measuring machine

Carl Zeiss Industrielle Messtechnik GmbH


A method for producing 3-methyl-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid is provided.

Patent Document 1 discloses a method for producing 3-methyl-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid which comprises reacting a 3,4-dihalobutan-2-one with a thioglycolic acid in the presence of a base. However, there are problems with industrial application of this method such as the use of malodorous thioglycolic acid.
Non-patent Document 1 discloses a method for producing 3-methyl-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid which comprises brominating 3-methylthiophene to 2-bromo-3-methylthiophene, preparing the Grignard reagent of 2-bromo-3-methylthiophene and reacting the Grignard reagent with carbon dioxide. However, this method cannot give 3-methyl-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid in sufficient yields.

Method for producing 3-methyl-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid

Abstract: A method for producing 3-methyl-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid, which comprises reacting a compound represented by the formula (I):

Abstract: (wherein X is a chlorine atom or a bromine atom) with magnesium in the presence of an alkyl halide to give a Grignard reagent represented by the formula (II):

Abstract: (wherein X is the same as defined above), reacting the Grignard reagent of the formula (II) with carbon dioxide, and acidifying the reaction product.