Two multiplexing/demultiplexing sections of working and protection sides are prepared for each of a plurality of optical transmission devices which constitute a system, and the optical transmission devices are synchronized with each other to execute switching between the working and protection sides so that one of the working and protection sides can be selected for the entire system. Each expansion device collects optical line trouble information for each of the working and protection sides, and transmits to a main device. The main device integrates the information with trouble information transmitted from expansion devices per expansion device. The main device converts the integrated trouble information into point information, totals for each of the working and protection sides, compares, and decides which of the working and protection sides is to be selected.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical transmission system including a plurality of optical transmission devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, regarding an optical transmission device, to achieve a high capacity of optical transmission, an optical transmission system operated by combining some basic optical transmission devices has been constructed. In such an optical transmission system constructed by combining a plurality of optical transmission devices (also called Shelves), when each optical transmission device is provided with information including a log-in ID for optical transmission device management, and when the information is managed for each optical transmission device, a system operation becomes complex. Accordingly, there is a strong demand for a system which enables an easier operation by managing an optical transmission system including a plurality of optical transmission devices as a single device, and reducing network resources.
FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a functional constitution in an optical transmission system (referred to as "conventional device") which includes one basic optical transmission device. As shown in FIG. 14, the conventional device is arranged on a transmission line of optical signals. The conventional device includes a plurality of optical interface units (INF) 15 for receiving/transmitting optical signals from/to the other devices, and multiplexer/demultiplexer sections (referred to as MUX/DMUX sections, hereinafter) 12, 13 for multiplexing/demultiplexing the signals received by each of the interface units 15, and outputting to the interface units 15 corresponding to addresses of the signals. Each of the MUX/DMUX sections 12, 13 includes a signal connection converting section (cross connection) 12a for connecting an input signal to an outgoing path corresponding to its address.
Thus, two communication units (Units) which include the MUX/DMUX sections are disposed in the optical transmission device. One of the two MUX/DMUX sections 12, 13 is used as a working side (working line (WK)) device, and the other is used as a protection side (protection line (PT)) device used when the working side fails. Accordingly, the signal transmission line is made redundant. A state of the optical transmission device is monitored by a state monitoring section, and switching between the WK side and the PT side is carried out by a switching managing section.
There is a limit to the number of slots for connection to one basic optical transmission device, i.e., the number of optical interface units 15 mounted on one basic transmission device. Thus, to realize large-capacity transmission, an optical transmission system in which a plurality of basic optical transmission devices are interconnected must be constructed. To realize such a configuration, cooperation is necessary among the plurality of interconnected optical transmission devices in terms of signal connection. Accordingly, cooperation may conceivably be established among the optical transmission devices in terms of the signal connection by using parts of the optical interface units 15 to execute transfer of signals among the optical transmission devices.
However, when a capacity of the interface unit is used to connect each optical transmission device, a transmission permission amount of the device is consequently reduced by a connection amount with the other transmission device. Besides, presence of the signal connection converting section in each optical transmission device necessitates complex signal connection management.
Thus, in the configuration in which the plurality of optical transmission devices are connected, a functional constitution as shown in FIG. 15 is conceivable. FIG. 15 shows a functional constitution in the configuration in which the plurality of optical transmission devices are interconnected. According to the constitution, classification is employed in which one of the plurality of optical transmission devices becomes a main device (MAIN Shelf) 11, while the other optical transmission devices become expansion devices (Expansion (EXP) Shelves) 21. The signal connection converting section 12a is disposed in WK and PT MUX/DMUX sections 12, 13 alone mounted on the main device.
Accordingly, it is possible to concentrate management regarding complex signal connection conversion on the main device. Inter-optical transmission device connecting functions are provided to the WK and PT MUX/DMUX sections 12, 13 disposed in each optical transmission device, whereby signal connection conversion is enabled among the optical transmission devices, and information can be transferred between state monitoring sections 17a, 27a and between switching managing sections 171b, 271b of each optical transmission device.
According to the constitution, switching states (selecting states) of the WK/PT sides must be the same between the optical transmission devices. That is, when the WK MUX/DMUX section 12 is made active in the main device, the WK MUX/DMUX section 12 is similarly made active in the expansion device. Conversely, when the PT MUX/DMUX section 13 is used in the main device, the PT MUX/DMUX section 13 is similarly used in the expansion device. Otherwise, a signal phase difference is generated between the main device and the expansion device to cut off signals. Therefore, a switching operation of the communication unit which includes the MUX/DMUX sections 12, 13 must be executed in synchronization between the optical transmission devices.
Normally, the switching of the communication unit which includes the MUX/DMUX sections is controlled based on troubles of the unit such as a failure of the communication unit itself, unit omission, or a power supply trouble. However, in the functional constitution shown in FIG. 15, since the MUX/DMUX sections 12, 13 handle an optical line to transfer signals among the optical transmission devices, a trouble of the optical line must also be a cause of unit switching.
The signal to interconnect the optical transmission devices needs to have a signal capacity of about 100 gigabytes to realize a large capacity. Thus, many optical fibers are used to make connection. Accordingly, to set the trouble of the optical line as a cause of unit switching, line trouble states of the lines are collected by the optical transmission devices, and trouble information are combined for the entire system. A switching state that can save as many lines as possible must be determined from the huge amount of trouble information, and unit switching must be executed within a short time.
However, to manage a huge amount of trouble patterns and to decide a switching state which matches each trouble occurrence state, complex determination must be made, and much time must be expended for determination as to execution of switching. Accordingly, a case may occur in which standard switching regulations of 50 milliseconds by a single trouble and 100 milliseconds or less by a plurality of troubles cannot be met. A huge amount of test patterns must be implemented to test all the cases for the huge amount of trouble patterns, and much time must be expended to guarantee qualities. In addition, presence of the huge amount of trouble patterns makes difficult determination as to whether test patterns corresponding to all the trouble patterns are included or not, and establishment of a testing range. Therefore, it is difficult to secure a quality of the optical transmission system.
Note that conventional art documents concerning the present invention are as follows. The conventional art documents are "Japanese Patent Application No. 07-240732 A", "Japanese Patent Application No. 2003-304274 A", "Japanese Patent Application No. 03432958 B", and "Japanese Patent Application No. 02570016 B".

Optical transmission system including a plurality of optical transmission devices


There is provided an electronic apparatus which also enables the data input/output apparatus to be executed at a high speed to a small electronic apparatus having a limited installation space by using an IC card interface. In an electronic apparatus in which a detachable IC card is connected to an IC card junction portion and a CPU bus of the electronic apparatus main body is connected to the IC card by the junction portion and the IC card is used as an external memory device, there is provided pseudo card means having a junction portion which can be connected to the IC card junction portion of the electronic apparatus main body, and further, the pseudo card means has control means for converting the data input/output interface between the electronic apparatus and the pseudo card means and the data input/output interface between a predetermined external apparatus and the pseudo card means, wherein the data input/output operation can be executed between the apparatus main body and the external device at a high speed by using the bus of the IC card through the pseudo card means connected to the IC card junction portion.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an electronic apparatus and, more particularly, to an electronic apparatus in which a detachable IC card is connected to an IC card junction portion and a CPU bus of the electronic apparatus main body is connected to the IC card by the junction portion and the IC card is used as an external memory device.
2. Related Background Art
FIG. 8 shows an external view of a conventional data processing apparatus such as personal computer, word processor, or the like and an IC card which is used as a small external memory device for the data processing apparatus.
A construction of a data processing apparatus 90 shown in FIG. 8 is used in a word processor, a personal computer, or the like and has a display 68 comprising an LCD panel or the like and a keyboard 86 as user interface means. The apparatus 90 also has an IC card 50 as an external memory device. Reference numeral 91 denotes an eject lever to remove the IC card 50.
As shown in FIG. 9, a control system of the data processing apparatus 90 comprises: a CPU 65; various control circuits which are connected to a data/address bus of the CPU 65; the display 68; a power source (P/S) section 84; and the key input section 86.
The IC card 50 is connected through an IC card connector 60 in a slot which is formed in the side wall of the keyboard 86 in FIG. 8.
The IC card is used as a memory area to store processing data of the apparatus main body, operation data or KANJI (Chinese characters) font data which has already been stored in the card, or data of utility softwares, or the like.
A plurality of read only memories (ROMs) 54 and a plurality of random access memories (RAMs) 55 are enclosed in the IC card 50 and are connected to the IC card connector 60 through a buffer 53 and a junction portion 51 by an address/data/control bus 56.
The address/data/control bus of the data processing apparatus 90 and signal lines of a power source and the like are also connected from the apparatus main body to the IC card connector 60 through a buffer 62 as necessary as shown in FIG. 10. The signal is connected to the IC card 50 by the connector.
To the address/data/control bus of the CPU 65, there are connected: a KANJI (or Chinese characters) ROM 69; a DMA controller 70; an RAM 82; an ROM 83; a timer 81; an I/O controller 71; a display controller 66 to control the input/output operation for the display 68 and keyboard 86; a key input controller 85; and the like.
An external expansion bus connector 89 is provided on the rear wall (not shown in FIG. 8) of the main body. A hard disc or an external control unit can be connected to the external expansion bus connector 89 through an exclusive control board and can be used to expand the external memory or to control the apparatus.
In recent years, the realization of miniaturization of the apparatus is more and more progressed. In the apparatus as mentioned above, it is becoming impossible to provide a space enough to attach both the connector 60 for the IC memory and the external expansion bus connector 89. For instance, there are also commercially available a portable data processing apparatus and the like such as IC card system pocket book, IC card electronic calculator, and the like having a small space only for providing a connector terminal for the IC card.
On the other hand, in such an apparatus as well, a high function such as a high processing speed to input/output data from/to an external apparatus or the like is required similarly to the case of a desk-top type personal computer or the like.
As mentioned above, however, in recent years, it is difficult to assure an installation space of the connector to input/output for an external device. In the conventional construction, there is a case of a countermeasure such that the control of the external device and data input/output operation are executed or the like by using a serial communication connector. This is because an installation space for the serial communication connector is smaller than that for the external expansion bus connector since the serial communication connector has only a signal line.
According to the above method, however, the high-speed input/output operation cannot be executed by the communication using the serial communication connector. Such a method can be used for only an interface with a relatively low-speed external device such as printer, analog modem, or the like. It is difficult to apply the above method to an application field such that the memory of the IC card of a small capacity is expanded by connecting an external memory or the like.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Host system that provides device driver for connected external peripheral if device driver type is available or device driver is downloaded from memory of external peripheral to host system


A machine for hemming a panel having a fixed die with an edge contour complementary to an edge of the panel, a movable die head having prehemming and hemming dies thereon with edge contours, respectively, complementary to the edge contour of said panel, a single fluid actuator, and a cam controlled linkage for effecting both vertical and lateral movement of both said hemming die and said prehemming die relative to said fixed die upon operation of said actuator.

Hemming machines are utilized to reentrantly fold an edge portion of a primary panel against itself or against a secondary panel thereby to reinforce the primary panel edge and present a smooth finished edge surface. Initially, the edge of the primary panel is folded in the stamping process to an angle of approximately 90.degree. relative to the surface thereof. The folded edge of the panel accommodates superposition of a secondary panel in juxtaposed relation thereto. Thereafter, the upstanding edge flange on the primary panel is reentrantly folded or "hemmed" to finish the edge and to secure the secondary panel, if used.
In order to condition the upstanding flange on a panel for hemming, it is necessary to reduce the angle of the upstanding flange from 90.degree. relative to the panel to an angle short of its final folded position, for example 45.degree., but sufficient to insure proper folding of the flange when impacted by the hemming die. This is known in the art as "prehemming".
To accomplish the aforesaid prehemming, prior art hemming operations required two machines, one to effect a first or "prehemming" fold and a second machine to accomplish the final hem. Transfer of the workpiece between two work stations was required. Moreover, hemming machines heretofore known and used utilized a plurality of hydraulic cylinders to effect the required opening, closing and lateral movements of the hemming die. Use of hydraulic cylinders necessitated the use of hydraulic pumps which are characterized by excessive noise and fluid leakage. Moreover, control of the hydraulic cylinders requires relatively complex, inflexible valving.


A botnet detector collects data associated with flows between a pair of network elements. The botnet detector processes the flow data to determine whether some of the flows are associated with botnet beaconing and/or tunneling. For example, the botnet detector may determine whether some of the flows occur at a regular interval or whether some of the flows are associated with extended length sessions, respectively. To determine whether some of the flows occur at a regular interval, the botnet detector may convert the flow data to the frequency domain and may determine an interval associated with a highest vector magnitude. If the botnet detector determines that the pair of network elements are exchanging beaconing or tunneling signals, the botnet detector may forward a notification that the pair of network elements are associated with the botnet.

A "botnet" generally refers to a collection of compromised hosts (often referred to as "zombie" computers/devices) running a malicious application (referred to as a "bot") that allows the compromised hosts to be remotely controlled. The bots are controlled by a "bot master" (or "bot herder") through a "command and control" (C&C) channel. For example, bots can be implemented as individual programs (referred to as "software agents"), and the C&C channel connects the botnet to a server (referred to as a "C&C server") forwarding instructions to the bots.
For example, the bot master may send out malware, such as a virus or worm, that infects computing devices with a bot. The bot may be executed on the infected computing devices and may communicate with the C&C server to receive instructions. Some bots may also automatically scan their computing/device environment and propagate themselves to other computers/devices using vulnerabilities (e.g., weak passwords). A bot may execute in a stealth mode to avoid detection and may communicate with the C&C server using a covert channel, such as an Internet Relay Chat (IRC) channel defined in Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) Request for Comments (RFC) 1459.

Botnet beaconing detection and mitigation


A light emitting diode chip includes a substrate, an epitaxial layer, two inclined plane units, and two electrode units. The substrate has top and bottom surfaces. The epitaxial layer is disposed on the top surface of the substrate. Each of the inclined plane units is inclined downwardly and outwardly from the epitaxial layer toward the bottom surface of the substrate, and includes an inclined sidewall formed on the epitaxial layer, and a substrate inclined wall formed on the substrate. Each of the electrode units includes an electrode disposed on the epitaxial layer, and a conductive portion extending from the electrode to the substrate inclined wall along corresponding one of the inclined plane units.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a light emitting diode chip, which has small package volume and which can be rapidly manufactured, and methods for manufacturing and packaging the light emitting diode chip.
2. Description of the Related Art
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional light emitting diode chip 91 is electrically connected to external electrodes 93 on a substrate 92 by a wire bonding process. However, a larger space on the substrate 92 is required for the wire bonding process. In addition, since wire connections are made one by one using a machine during the wire bonding process, the production efficiency is relatively low and is unfavorable for a system in package or a wafer level package.
In order to alleviate the problems attributed to the wire bonding process, a flip chip process is commonly used for replacing the wire bonding process. However, in the flip chip process, there is a need to deposit plenty of gold bumps on each chip, which is time-consuming and also decreases the packaging process efficiency of the chip. Aside from the flip chip process, other packaging methods without using the wire bonding process are also proposed. For example, the chip can be flipped such that the electrodes on the chip are directly mounted onto the electrodes on the substrate without providing the gold bumps therebetween. However, in packaging method, those electrodes on the chip should be formed equally in height to have an excellent flatness. Therefore, the precision requirement for the electrodes is relatively high, and it is relatively difficult to manufacture the chips for such packaging method. Furthermore, another packaging method by modifying the structure of the chip has been proposed heretofore. According to this method, the electrodes of the chip extend from a top surface of the chip to a bottom surface thereof. For example, a method of making a chip disclosed in JP 2008-130875, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, includes: forming a via hole 941 in a chip 94, followed by forming a conductive layer 95 for electrically connecting an electrode 96 on a top surface of the chip 94 to an electrode 97 on a bottom surface of the chip 94. Therefore, the electrode 97 of the chip 94 can be provided on the bottom surface of the chip 94. However, in the case of JP 2008-130875, the via hole 941 defines a vertical via-hole sidewall. When forming the conductive layer 95 along the vertical via-hole sidewall, it is likely to result in a poor step coverage (non-uniform surface coverage) of the via-hole sidewall and a poor conductivity of the conductive layers.

Light emitting diode chip, and methods for manufacturing and packaging the same


An update publishing system receives update data representing an update made to a lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP)-based database. The publishing system identifies a list corresponding to the update data, converts the data into a wire level data format, and sends the converted data to an advanced message queuing protocol (AMQP) exchange corresponding to the list. The exchange enables a client not able to process update data in LDAP data format to receive data in a format that is compatible with the client. An update subscribing system subscribes to an AMQP messaging system for updates made to the LDAP-based database. The subscribing system receives update data from the messaging system, where the update data is in the different data format, identifies an entry identifier in the update data, and replaces an entry in a second database that has a matching entry identifier with an entry in the update data.

Many enterprises have implemented a directory service to store and manage enterprise data, such as user data, user account data, group data, etc. The directory service can be hosted by a directory server and can store the enterprise data using a directory for all of the information in a single, network-accessible repository. The directory can be a directory that uses a lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP). The enterprise data may be used by client applications, such as email applications or authentication applications. For example, a user may log in to an operating system and an authentication application may verify the authentication data against data that is stored by the LDAP-based directory service.
Enterprise data can continuously change. For example, user data may be updated with a new email address or telephone number for a user. The directory server can receive the updates and change the enterprise data accordingly. Client applications may need to receive the updates as well to ensure that the client application data accurately reflects the updates made to the LDAP-based data managed by the directory server. Not all client applications, however, may use the lightweight directory access protocol and may not have a mechanism to receive and process the updates from an LDAP-based directory server. Client applications, other than LDAP-based clients, have no means to obtain the updates made to the LDAP-based data in a format that is compatible with the client.


A pulse frequency modulation oscillating circuit includes a reference voltage generator for generating a first reference voltage and a second reference voltage, a first comparison circuit for comparing a state signal with the first reference voltage, a second comparison circuit for comparing the state signal with the second reference voltage, an output circuit for outputting a pulse frequency modulation signal according to an under-voltage signal, and signals outputted from the first comparison circuit and from the second comparison circuit, a mode generation circuit for generating the state signal, and a mode decision circuit for outputting inverse signals of the signals outputted from the first comparison circuit or signals outputted from the output circuit to the mode generation circuit according to the pulse frequency modulation signal, the under-voltage signal, and the signals outputted from the first comparison circuit and from the second comparison circuit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention provides a pulse frequency modulation oscillating circuit, and more particularly, a pulse frequency modulation oscillating circuit free from noise interference, and capable of stably controlling a DC/DC converter.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, an electric device is composed of a variety of units. Each unit may be operated under a unique voltage level. Therefore, the electric device must include a DC (direct current) to DC voltage transformation circuit for generating expected voltage levels. According to different requirements, there are different types of DC to DC converters, and all the converters are derived from step down (buck) converters and step up (boost) converters.
Please refer to FIG. 1, which illustrates a schematic diagram of a prior art step up DC to DC converter 10. The step up DC to DC converter 10 includes a voltage source 100, an inductor 102, a switching transistor 104, a diode 106, a control circuit 108, a capacitor 110, and a load resistor 112. According to a voltage level outputted from diode 106, the control circuit 108 controls the switching transistor 104, so as to raise voltage Vin provided by the voltage source 100 to an expected value, and outputs voltage Vout with the diode 106. The operating procedure of the step up DC to DC converter 10 is as follows. When the switching transistor 104 is turned on, the diode 106 receives an inverse bias and is turned off, so that the voltage source 100 outputs and stores energy into the inductor 102. Once the switching transistor 104 is turned off, the inductor 102 will generate voltage with an opposite polarity. That is, when the switching transistor 104 is turned on, the inductor 102 stores energy from the voltage source 100, and when the switching transistor 104 is turned off, energy stored in the inductor 102 is transferred to capacitor 110 and the load resistor 112 through the diode 106. Therefore, the control circuit 108 must precisely control the ON and OFF time of the switching transistor 104.
In the prior art, the control circuit 108 can be designed according to pulse width modulation (PWM) technology or pulse frequency modulation (PFM) technology. For example, please refer to FIG. 2, which illustrates a schematic diagram of a prior art control circuit 200. The control circuit 200 is utilized for implementing the control circuit 108 in FIG. 1, and includes a comparison circuit 202, a reference voltage generator 204, a ring oscillator 206, and resistors R1 and R2. Combination of the resistors R1 and R2 is a voltage divider for transforming the voltage Vout outputted from the diode 106 into voltage Vfb for the comparison circuit 202. The comparison circuit 202 compares the voltage Vfb with a reference voltage Vref outputted from the reference voltage generator 204. According to an under-voltage signal Vcom outputted from the comparison circuit 202, the ring oscillator 206 outputs a control signal Vext to control the switching transistor 104. If the voltage Vout is lower than a target voltage level, then the voltage Vfb is smaller than the voltage Vref, the under-voltage signal Vcom becomes a high level voltage and enables the ring oscillator 206, and the control signal Vext becomes a period pulse signal to switch on and off the switching transistor 104 in turn. Oppositely, if the voltage Vout is greater than the target voltage level, then the voltage Vfb is greater than the voltage Vref, the under-voltage signal Vcom is low and turns off the ring oscillator, and the control signal Vext is also low and turns off the switching transistor 104. In such case, if the voltage Vfb is close to the voltage Vref, the under-voltage signal Vcom is quickly switched between high and low, causing the ON and OFF time of the switching transistor 104 to be too short or unstable, which generates large ripples within the voltage Vout and decreases efficiency of voltage transformation.
To improve such problem, U.S. Pat. No. 6,798,262 discloses a control circuit, which adds an OR gate into the control circuit 200 to perform an OR operation for outputting signals of the comparison circuit 202 and the ring oscillator 206, and outputting a result to the ring oscillator 206. As a result, after the signal Vext becomes high, the signal Vext must stay high for a predetermined time, and then it can be low. However, considering a situation in which the signal Vext is low, and the voltage Vfb is suddenly lower than the voltage Vref, this causes the signal Vext to be high for the predetermined time, thus the off time of the switching transistor 104 is too short, which limits the application of U.S. Pat. No. 6,798,262.

Pulse frequency modulation oscillating circuit for a DC/DC converter


An epitaxial growth structure for a semiconductor light-emitting device includes a sapphire substrate having a (0110) face (substantially M face), and a wurtzite type Group III nitride mixed crystal semiconductor single crystal film epitaxially grown on the substrate. A semiconductor light-emitting device includes a sapphire substrate having a (0110) face (substantially M face), a wurtzite type Group III nitride mixed crystal semiconductor single crystal film epitaxially grown on the substrate, an insulating film formed on the single crystal film, and a metal electrode formed on the insulating film.

The present invention relates to an epitaxial growth structure for a semiconductor light-emitting device using a sapphire substrate, and a semiconductor light-emitting device using the same.
As a light-emitting device material in a region of wavelengths (wavelength=480 nm or less) shorter than that of blue, various types of light-emitting devices using ZnSe.sub.x S.sub.1-x (0.ltoreq.x.ltoreq.1), SiC, and GaN have been proposed, and their samples have been manufactured.
A sapphire (0001) face (C face) or a (2110) face (A face) is used for GaN.
In order to realize a high-efficiency light-emitting device, the material is ideally a direct transition semiconductor material, enables current injection by a p-n junction, and can manufacture a double hetero (DH) structure in which a light-emitting layer and p- and n-type cladding layers are lattice-matched. Problems of the above light-emitting device will be described below.
(a) ZnSe.sub.x S.sub.1-x (0.ltoreq.x.ltoreq.1)
Film formation is attempted on a GaAs substrate by an MOVPE (Metalorganic Vapor Phase Epitaxy) method, an MBE (Molecular Beam Epitaxy) method, and the like. In these methods, by changing a composition ratio of Se to S, a lattice constant and a band gap energy can be changed. In this material system, however, the band gap energy is solely determined if the lattice constant is determined. Therefore, no DH structure cannot be formed under lattice matching conditions.
(b) SiC
A p-n junction can be formed by doping a suitable impurity. This material, however, is an indirect transition semiconductor. In addition, no DH structure can be formed since no materials having the same lattice constant and different band gap energies are available.
(c) GaN on Sapphire C- or A-face Substrate
Since N holes serving as a donor are present at a high concentration, no p-type material is realized. That is, all of announced light-emitting devices have a structure (MIS type) in which a metal electrode is formed on an n-type GaN thin film via a GaN layer semi-insulated by Zn or Mg doping. This light-emitting device utilizes a phenomenon in which, after a high electric field is applied to the Zn- or Mg-doped layer to ionize a light emission center, light is emitted when electrons drop to their original energy level. A light-emitting device using GaN grown directly on the substrate has a low quantum efficiency. This GaN crystal has the following problems.
.circle.1 Significant three-dimensional growth is caused (a three-dimensional pattern corresponding to a film thickness).
.fwdarw.Severe problems in manufacturing a light-emitting device having a multilayered structure are posed, i.e., an electric field cannot be uniformly applied since the film thickness is not uniform, and carrier injection cannot be performed, thereby largely degrading the device characteristics. PA1 .fwdarw.It becomes difficult to perform conductivity control, and a light absorption coefficient in the material is significantly increased. PA1 .fwdarw.An improvement in crystallinity is limited, resulting in a low quantum efficiency, a short living, and a low optical output of a light-emitting device.
.circle.2 N hole (serving as a donor) concentration is high (carrier concentration=10.sup.18 to 10.sup.19 cm.sup.-3)
.circle.3 Large lattice mismatching, or noncoincidence of crystallographic symmetries between a substrate and an epitaxial growth film (Table 1; Note that the lattice mismatching is obtained by comparing minimum period units of crystals).
TABLE 1 __________________________________________________________________________ Lattice Substrate-Epitaxial Misalign- Film Interface Orientation Relationship ment Symmetry __________________________________________________________________________ (0113)GaN/Sapphire M Face [03- 3- 2]GaN//[2- 1- 10]Sapphire -2.6% Coincidence [2- 1- 10]GaN//[0001]Sapphire 1.9% (0001)GaN/Sapphire C Face [2- 1- 10]GaN//[01- 10]Sapphire 13.8% Coincidence [01- 10]GaN//[- 2110]Sapphire 13.8% (0001)GaN/Sapphire A Face [01- 10]GaN//[01- 10]Sapphire -0.4% Noncoincidence [- 2110]GaN//[0001]Sapphire 1.9% (2- 1- 10)GaN/Sapphire R Face [01- 10]GaN//[- 2110]Sapphire 13.8% Coincidence [0001]GaN//[0- 111]Sapphire 1.1% __________________________________________________________________________
Note that Table 1 compares lattice mismatching and crystallographic symmetry between a sapphire substrate and a GaN film with respect to a substrate orientation.
The above items .circle.1 and .circle.2 are caused by the following reasons.
.circle.1 In growth on the C face, the number of nuclear formation sites is small, and coarsely formed growth nuclei individually form hillocks.
.circle.2 The GaN film on the C- and A-face substrate is (0001)-axis oriented to be a Ga termination. As a result, an adhesion coefficient of N is small and an N hole concentration is high on the Ga termination face. This state is schematically shown in FIG. 1A.
Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, solid circles represent Ga, and open circles represent N. The symbols " .circle." and " .circle." represent atoms on the drawing surface, and " .circle." and " .circle." represent atoms in front of the drawing surface. In addition "--" indicates that only parallel bonds are present on the drawing surface, and ".dbd." indicates that an atom on the drawing surface is bonded to atoms before and behind the drawing surface.
In order to solve the problems .circle.1 and .circle.2 , a method in which AlN is used as a buffer layer between sapphire and GaN is reported. AlN serves as a buffer layer to reduce an interface energy between sapphire and GaN to accelerate dense nuclear formation. As a result, the problem .circle.1 is almost solved, and the problem .circle.2 is partially solved. Since, however, the problems .circle.2 and .circle.3 are essential problems in this system, the method using the AlN buffer layer is unsatisfactory in a practical device.
As described above, none of blue light-emitting devices currently proposed is practical mainly because the crystallinity of an active layer is insufficient.

Epitaxial Wurtzite growth structure for semiconductor light-emitting device

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation


A recording and/or reproducing apparatus is arranged to simultaneously record on a recording medium a plurality of divided signals which are inverted at different timing points from each other according to the inverting timing of an angle modulated information signal; to reproduce the plurality of divided signal simultaneously from the recording medium; to obtain a restored signal which is inverted according to every inverting timing of the plurality of divided signals reproduced from the recording medium; and to correct the time base of at least one of the plurality of reproduced divided signals on the basis of the restored signal.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus for recording and/or reproducing an angle modulated signal and more particularly to an apparatus for recording and/or reproducing a wide band, angle-modulated signal after converting the signal into narrower band signals by dividing the channel thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various information signal transmission systems have heretofore been developed for transmission of signals having wide bands. In the case of, for example, a video tape recorder arranged to record a signal of such a wide band as about 20 MHz as that of the luminance signal of a high quality television signal, it is very difficult to record the signal without compressing the band thereof. For recording a signal of such a high frequency, various losses such as a space loss and a gap loss greatly increase even if a relative speed between a magnetic head and a magnetic recording medium such as a magnetic tape is increased as much as possible. Besides, there are no known materials for the magnetic head that is capable of adequately operating at such a high frequency zone.
To solve this problem, it has been proposed to record or reproduce a high quality television signal of such a wide band by dividing it into narrow band signals of a plurality of channels and to have these narrow band signals recorded or reproduced respectively.
However, the above stated band compressing method inevitably somewhat degrades the picture quality of the original signal. Hence, the effective compressible extent of the band is limited. Further, the method of recording the original signal by dividing it into a plurality of channels necessitates use of, for example, a plurality of memories and a digital signal processing arrangement for channel dividing by writing or reading the signal into or from these memories under the control of a control circuit. The conventional method thus has resulted in a complex and expensive arrangement.
Meanwhile, another multi-channel method has been proposed. According to this method, a wide band information signal is frequency modulated; the timing of the rises and falls of the modulated signal are detected; timing signals thus obtained are frequency divided at different phases to obtain signals of a plurality of channels; and then these signals are simultaneously transmitted or recorded. The details of this method are as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,513,266 and Japanese Patent publication No. SHO 61-27946. This method makes a wide band information signal obtainable in a multiple channel with a relatively simple circuit arrangement.
However, with a wide band information signal recorded or reproduced by this method, it is impossible to obtain an adequately restored signal when any shift arises on the time base between a plurality of channels of reproduced signals due to the limited positional precision of recording/reproducing heads which varies between one apparatus and another. Therefore, this method necessitates a circuit for correcting the time base during a reproducing operation.

Apparatus for recording and reproducing divided signals of an angle modulated signal


A light source apparatus for an electronic endoscope includes a light source; a rotary shutter having a pair of aperture controlling rotary plates; a first planetary gear mechanism including a first internal tooth gear, a first sun gear, and a first planet gear; a second planetary gear mechanism including a second internal tooth gear, a second sun gear, and a second planet gear; and carriers holding the first and second planet gears in a same phase position and supporting the first and second planet gears. One of the first sun gear and the first internal tooth gear is non-rotatably fixed, and the other thereof is rotated together with one of the aperture controlling rotary plates, and one of the second sun gear and the second internal tooth gear of the second planetary gear mechanism is driven together with the other thereof by a phase difference motor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a light source apparatus for an electronic endoscope using a plurality of aperture-controlling rotary plates, and an electronic endoscope.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a conventional electronic endoscope, in order to provide appropriate light modulation, an endoscope record apparatus has been proposed in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-69222. The apparatus disclosed in this publication is provided with a rotary shutter having a rotatable shaft, wherein the distance between the rotatable shaft and the axis of illumination light emitted from a light source for the endoscope is variable. The rotary shutter is shaped so that a difference in the peripheral speed occurs between the radial portions thereof or the aperture is varied in accordance with the rotation of the rotary shutter. The light modulation is carried out due to a change in the distance between the axes using the peripheral speed difference.
In Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-69222, light modulation can be performed, however, the structure of the rotary shutter is complex. Furthermore, it is necessary to provide a mechanism to vary the distance between the rotary shutter and the optical axis of the light source for the endoscope. Accordingly, the manufacturing cost is high and the manufacturing process is troublesome. Moreover, in order to achieve such a construction, the outer diameter of the rotary shutter must be several times larger than that of the light bundle, thus resulting in an increase in the size of the rotary shutter. If the rotary shutter is asymmetrical in shape with respect to the rotation axis thereof in order to vary the aperture, the center of rotation does not align with the center of gravity, so that the rotary shutter tends to lose balance during rotation. Consequently, correct emission of the illumination light cannot take place and the rotary shutter and the surrounding members may break.
In view of the problems discussed above, the assignee of the present application has proposed a light source apparatus for an electronic endoscope having a light source and a rotary shutter whose rotation axis extends parallel with the optical axis of the light source and which intercepts or emits illumination light emitted from the light source toward a light guide. The rotary shutter is provided with a pair of aperture controlling rotary plates coaxial with each other, which are rotatable together and which are each provided with light intercepting portions and opening portions arranged alternately in the rotation direction, whereby the opening angle of the opening portions of the rotary shutter as a whole is varied by relatively rotating the aperture controlling rotary plates to thereby control the quantity of light to be emitted (Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-103941).
In the invention disclosed in Japanese patent Application No. 2004-103941, two motors are used to rotate the pair of aperture controlling rotary plates. One of the motors is stationary and the other motor rotates together with the aperture controlling rotary plate, and hence, providing a countermeasure to prevent interference of harnesses (wirings) extending from the motors.
Furthermore, if smooth rotation of the aperture controlling rotary plates does not occur for some reason, the illumination light may unintentionally flicker. If the opening area defined between the pair of aperture controlling rotary plates is large (if the brightness is high), the rotary shutter is less affected by the flickering of the illumination light (variation of brightness). However, if the opening area is small (if the brightness is low), the brightness of the illumination light is largely deviated from a desired value, and accordingly, the affection by the flickering of the illumination light is not negligible.
Moreover, if smooth rotation of the aperture controlling rotary plates does not occur, the rotation speed of the aperture controlling rotary plates (shutter speed) cannot be increased much.

Light source apparatus for electronic endoscope and electronic endoscope


Direct current switching apparatus having two arc extinguishing chambers each comprising a pair of spaced conductors providing cooperable arc runners divergent toward a row of non-ferromagnetic splitter plates and a stationary contact conductively mounted on one conductor, the stationary contacts of respective chambers being mounted on respectively opposite conductors, corresponding conductors in respective chambers being conductively connected to each other and to power terminals of the apparatus, permanent magnets applying a magnetic field across the respective chamber for moving an arc within the chamber, ferromagnetic plates providing flux return paths to optimize and maximize the magnetic field, a movable contact extending into each chamber bridging the stationary contacts and movable to separate from the stationary contacts, drawing an arc therebetween in each chamber, the arc in one chamber bridging the pair of conductors within that chamber establishing a circuit comprising the arc between the conductors and the power terminals in shunt of the movable contact, thereby eliminating the arc in the other chamber, the bridging arc being extinguished in the splitter plates, interrupting the circuit. The magnetic fields are applied in opposite directions in the respective chambers for non-polarized operability of the apparatus and are distorted within the splitter plate area to drive and maintain an arc at a stable arc position against a thickened sidewall portion to withstand erosion.

This invention relates to apparatus for switching direct current (DC) electric power. More particularly it relates to apparatus of the aforementioned type which is non-polarized or bidirectional, i.e. its performance is independent of polarity of the current at the power terminals, and can switch high voltage DC power. Still more particularly, the invention is related to apparatus of the aforementioned type which is compact, lightweight, may be hermetically sealed and can switch high voltage DC power at high altitude.
High voltage DC power is one of the most efficient, reliable and lightweight methods to generate and distribute energy. Development of high torque samarium cobalt brushless DC motors has resulted in low weight alternatives to hydraulic actuators used in weight and reliability-sensitive applications, e.g. aircraft. However, difficulties in switching high voltage DC power, particularly at high altitude, and the weight and volume of conventional DC switching apparatus capable of quenching high voltage circuits at altitudes, preclude the use of such switching apparatus in aircraft. As a result, the inability to satisfactorily switch high voltage DC power at altitude has delayed use of this power in aircraft.


Systems and methods for monitoring labelers of speech data. To test or train labelers, a labeler is presented with utterances that have already been identified as belonging to a particular class or call type. The labeler is asked to assign a call type to the utterances. The performance of the labeler is measured by comparing the call types assigned by the labeler with the existing call types of the utterances. The performance of a labeler can also be monitored as the labeler labels speech data by occasionally having the labeler label an utterance that is already labeled and by storing the results.

1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods for monitoring speech data labelers. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods for using an interactively generated annotation guide to train and test speech labelers.
2. Introduction
Dialog applications are applications that are often used to automate the process of receiving and responding to customer inquiries. Dialog applications use a combination of voice recognition modules, language understanding modules, and text-to-speech systems to appropriately respond to speech input received from a user or a customer. Billing inquiries, information queries, customer complaints, and general questions are examples of the speech input that is received by dialog applications. The response of the dialog application to a particular speech input depends on the logic of the dialog application.
The development of a successful dialog application, however, is a time-consuming process and requires a significant amount of manual labor because of the nature of the tasks being performed. One of the tasks performed in the development of a dialog application is the generation of an annotation guide that is used to annotate or label raw speech data. The annotation guide is generally created by a user experience person (or other user) that is familiar with the purposes and goals of the dialog application. Becoming familiar with the purposes and goals of the dialog application is also a labor-intensive process.
Currently, the generation of an annotation guide requires the user experience person to examine the raw speech data and create the categories, call types, and examples that are usually included in the annotation guide. The annotation guide aids the development of a dialog application because the annotation guide is used by labelers to classify the raw speech data with the call types defined by the user experience person in the annotation guide.
After the annotation guide is developed, labelers begin using the annotation guide to label the speech data. Because the speech data may contain thousands of different utterances, labeling the speech data using the annotation guide is a labor-intensive process that is usually performed by more than one labeler. Unfortunately, human labelers do not always interpret the annotation guide in the same way or they may not understand the contents of the annotation guide. As a result, one labeler may classify a particular utterance as being of a particular call type while another labeler may classify the same utterance as being of a different call type. Labeling problems become more pronounced when labelers attempt to label utterances that do not clearly fit in a particular call type.
For example, an annotation guide may describe a Pay_Bill call type used to label utterances that suggest the customer wants to pay his or her bill. The following utterances from raw speech data, for instance, should be labeled with the Pay_Bill call type:                I want to pay a bill; and        I got mail and I have my credit card ready.
The second example of "I got mail and I have my credit card ready" is a marginal example that is more difficult to classify that the first example of "I want to pay a bill." It is possible that one labeler will correctly label the second example with the Pay_Bill call type while another labeler will incorrectly label the second example with a different call type.
The likelihood of a particular utterance being labeled incorrectly increases if the labeler is not trained or tested. Currently, speech labelers (annotators) manually use the annotation guide to label the speech data and this process is error-prone. The performance of the labelers cannot be tracked and it is difficult to determine whether similar utterances are being classified in the same way by different labelers.
The ability to properly label the raw speech data ultimately has a significant impact on whether the dialog application can respond to speech input appropriately. If incorrectly labeled or annotated speech data is used to train portions of the dialog application such as the natural language understanding modules, the dialog application will clearly not function properly and will frustrate customers. There is therefore a need for systems and methods to train and test the labelers to help insure that the utterances in the speech data are being labeled appropriately.

Systems and methods for monitoring speech data labelers


A sewing implement is provided comprising a metallic needle fixedly attached to a short length of fibrous thread wherein the needle and thread are attached by a film of plastic coating which extends over the entire length of the needle and a portion of the adjacently disposed end of said thread.

The present invention generally relates to implements for sewing. More particularly, the present invention relates to disposable sewing implements.
Threading a needle is a tedious task that often cannot be accomplished by the handicapped, elderly and those having difficulty in performing fine motor tasks or having poor vision. Furthermore, oftentimes a short length of thread is needed for quick mending of a button or small tear, for example, which demonstrates the need for a readily available and portable needle and thread.
A disposable sewing implement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,883,096 to Dawson comprising a thermoplastic resin needle integrally merged with a length of flexible thermoplastic resin thread. The Dawson invention does not provide means for a needle combined with variously-colored fibrous thread material which is necessary for many sewing tasks wherein the thread will be revealed and continuity in appearance is desired. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,206,086 to Duffney a disposable threaded needle is disclosed wherein a plastic needle has a strand of thread embedded in its blunt end which communicates with a thread spool that is detachably secured to said needle. Like the sewing implement disclosed in the Dawson invention the Duffney threaded needle utilizes molded plastic material to form the needle portion of the device which eliminates some of the advantages of the steel or other metallic needles.
A primary consideration for the use of a plastic material for the sharp portion of a sewing implement is to prevent injury resulting from mislaid or misused sewing devices. This solution to the problem of potential injury however eliminates the handling advantages afforded by a needle formed from metals. Plastic needles must be formed with a slender diameter which does not have the rigidity of the convention steel needles and thus plastic needles often bend during use or must be constructed of a thickness unsuitable for many close tolerance uses. Therefore there remains a need in the prior art for a safe disposable sewing implement having the rigid qualities of the conventional needle.


A marker detection method includes the steps of acquiring a captured image, detecting a marker from the captured image, and determining whether or not a surrounding region of the detected marker includes a pixel of a predetermined color. An additional step includes determining, as a valid marker, a marker for which it is determined that the surrounding region does not include any pixel of the predetermined color.

A mixed reality (MR) space presentation system presents an MR space image generated by compositing an image on a real space and that on an unreal space (virtual space) via a head-mounted display (HMD), thus allowing the user who wears the HMD to experience the MR space (or MR) (see H. Tamura, H. Yamamoto and A. Katayama: "Mixed reality: Future dreams seen at the border between real and virtual worlds," Computer Graphics and Applications, vol. 21, no. 6, pp. 64-70, 2001).
In such MR space representation system, as a method of detecting the position and orientation of an image sensing device that captures the real space (or the position and orientation of a real object with respect to the image sensing device), a method using markers (also called landmarks) is known, as described in, e.g., Kato et. al.: Augmented Reality System and its Calibration based on Marker Tracking", TVRSJ, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 607-616 (1999). In this method, objects (markers) each having a predetermined visual feature are laid out at known three-dimensional (3D) coordinate positions on the real space, markers included in a captured image are detected, and the position and orientation of an image sensing device are detected on the basis of two-dimensional (2D) image positions of elements (the barycenter, vertices, and the like of each marker) of the detected markers and the known 3D coordinate positions.
Shinji Uchiyama, Hiroyuki Yamamoto, and Hideyuki Tamura: "Robust Registration Method for Merging Real and Virtual Worlds -Combining 6 DOF Sensor and ICP Algorithm-", Proc. I of Meeting on Image Recognition and Understanding (MIRU 2002), IPSJ Symposium Series, vol. 2002, no. 11, pp. I.107-I.112, 2002, discloses a method of repetitively correcting the position and orientation of an image sensing unit to minimize an error of corresponding points on a screen to have the position and orientation of 6 degree-of-freedom sensor, with a measurement error, as initial values.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-136706 also discloses a method of obtaining the position and orientation of an image sensing device using markers and a position and orientation sensor in combination. In this method, a 6 or 3 DOF (degree-of-freedom) sensor, the measurement range of which is limited and which has measurement errors is fixed to an image sensing device, and position and orientation information measured by the 6 or 3 DOF sensor and position and orientation information obtained by marker detection on a captured image are combined, thereby improving the measurement precision.
In any of these methods, the precision of the obtained position and orientation largely depends on the marker detection precision. For example, if a plurality of regions recognized as markers from a captured image include at least one erroneously detected one, the finally obtained precision of the position and orientation impairs considerably. As a factor that induces such detection errors, an object having an image feature similar to each marker may exist on the captured real space.
In order to avoid erroneous detection of a region having a similar feature other than markers, a method of using markers having visual features (shapes, patterns, colors, and the like) having a lower probability of existence on the real space is often adopted.
However, as factors that lower the calculation (estimation) precision of the position and orientation using markers, those other than "erroneous detection of an object other than markers" are present: for example, the precision drop resulting from a marker partially occluded by another object so as not to disturb detection (to be referred to as a partially-occluded marker hereinafter). Since the partially-occluded marker is detected as a region having a shape different from a region to be detected, the barycentric position and the coordinates of vertices are erroneously recognized or calculated, thus deteriorating the final position and orientation calculation precision of an image sensing device. In the following description, a state wherein marker information cannot be correctly obtained due to partial occlusion of a marker will be referred to as erroneous detection due to partial occlusion.
FIGS. 5A to 5C and FIGS. 6A and 6B are for explaining examples of erroneous detection due to partial occlusion. In FIGS. 5A to 5C, a marker (rectangular marker 4000A) includes a rectangle 5020. When such marker is used, four vertices (5030, 5040, 5050, and 5060) of the rectangle 5020 must be correctly detected.
However, when the two vertices 5030 and 5040 of the four vertices of the rectangle 5020 are occluded by a user's hand 4020R, and the rectangle 5020 is detected by an image process (e.g., binarization) shown in FIG. 5B, contacts 6010 and 6020 between the hand 4020R and rectangle 5020 are erroneously recognized as the vertices 5030 and 5040 (FIG. 5C).
FIGS. 6A and 6B show a case wherein a marker (color region marker 4010) shown in FIG. 6A is partially occluded by the user's hand 4020R, as shown in FIG. 6B. In this case, a wrong position 7010 is detected in place of an original position 7000 as the barycentric point of the marker.
The position and orientation of the image sensing device using markers are calculated based on correspondence between the known vertices or barycentric position of a marker (or a pattern of the marker) on the world coordinate system, and coordinates on the coordinate system of the image sensing device. Therefore, when the feature points (vertices, barycenter, or the like) of the marker detected in an image are erroneously detected, the precision of the finally obtained position and orientation information impairs.
However, with the conventional marker detection method, erroneous detection due to partial occlusion cannot be determined even if it has occurred.

Marker detection method and apparatus, and position and orientation estimation method


An exposure method and apparatus wherein exposures are made repeatedly and wherein an amount of exposure is controlled on the basis of detection of an integrated light quantity of a portion of exposure light used for an exposure. In response to completion of each exposure or exposures of a determined number, a ratio between intensity of the exposure light upon a substrate being exposed and the portion of the exposure light is detected, which ratio is used for the exposure amount control.

This invention relates to an exposure method and apparatus suitably usable, for example, for the manufacture of semiconductor devices such as ICs or LSIs. In another aspect, the invention is concerned with a device manufacturing method for manufacturing microdevices by using such an exposure method or apparatus.
An exposure apparatus is used to expose a wafer having a resist applied thereto to a pattern of a semiconductor chip (e.g., an IC or on LSI) with exposure light. In this exposure process, a portion of the exposure light is detected by using a light dividing element which is disposed along the path of the exposure light from a light source and which is placed between the light source and the semiconductor chip pattern. On the basis of the light detection, the integrated quantity of the partial light is measured and a amount of exposure is control. Such exposure controlled is done on an assumption that the ratio of the intensity of the partial light to the intensity of the exposure light impinging on the wafer is constant.
However, the applicant has found that, during repetition of the exposure process using the exposure apparatus, the light absorptivity of a condenser lens which may be disposed between the light dividing element and the semiconductor chip pattern and/or the light absorptivity of a projection optical system for projecting the chip pattern onto the wafer may change, and that, as a result, the ratio of the intensity of the partial light mentioned above to the intensity of the exposure light impinging on the wafer may change. If it changes, then correct exposure control is not attainable.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide an improved exposure method and/or apparatus by which the amount of exposure can be controlled precisely.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved device manufacturing method based on such an exposure method or apparatus.
In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an exposure method wherein exposures are made repeatedly, said method comprising the steps of: controlling an amount of exposure on the basis of detection of an integrated light quantity of a portion of exposure light used for an exposure; and detecting, in response to completion of each exposure or exposures of a determined number, a ratio in intensity between the exposure light upon a substrate being exposed and the portion of the exposure light, which ratio is used for the exposure amount control.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an exposure apparatus, comprising: a light dividing means disposed along a path of exposure light to extract a portion of the exposure light; exposure control means for detecting an integrated light quantity of the portion of the exposure light extracted by said light dividing means, to control the amount of exposure; and ratio detecting means for detecting, in response to completion of each exposure or a predetermined number of exposures, a ratio in intensity between the extracted portion and the exposure light upon a substrate, which ratio is used for the exposure amount control.
In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided an exposure method wherein exposures are made repeatedly, said method comprising the steps of: controlling an amount of exposure on the basis of detection of an integrated light quantity of a portion of exposure light used for an exposure; and detecting a change in ratio between the intensity of the exposure light upon a substrate being exposed and the intensity of the portion of the exposure light.
In accordance with a still further aspect of the present invention, there is provided an exposure apparatus, comprising: a light dividing means disposed along a path of exposure light to extract a portion of the exposure light; exposure control means for detecting an integrated light quantity of the portion of the exposure light extracted by said light dividing means, to control the amount of exposure; and detecting means for detecting a change in ratio between the intensity of the extracted portion and the intensity of the exposure light upon a substrate.
In one preferred form of an exposure method or apparatus of the present invention, a first photodetector is used to receive the portion of the light to produce a signal corresponding to the intensity of the received light. A second photodetector having a light receiving surface disposed substantially at the same level as the substrate is used to receive the exposure light to produce a signal corresponding to the intensity thereof. The intensity ratio is determined on the basis of these signals.
In another preferred form of an exposure method or apparatus of the present invention, the intensity ratio is determined on the basis of information which concerns changes in transmissivity, with respect to the exposure light, of an optical system for projecting the exposure light to the substrate after the portion being extracted.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon a consideration of the following description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Exposure method and apparatus for detecting an exposure amount and for calculating a correction value based on the detected exposure amount


Embodiments of the disclosure provide an integrated circuit (IC) structure, including an absorber layer separated from an optical grating coupler by a cladding material. The absorber is positioned to receive light reoriented through the optical grating coupler.

Semiconductor chips may be modified, adapted, etc., to house the various components needed to transmit light from one component to another. Semiconductor chips, which include photonic devices and microcircuitry, are known as "photonic integrated circuits" (PICs). PIC dies typically include optical components to transmit light into and from the optical devices therein such as grating couplers. The various optical components, e.g., photonic waveguides, photonic transmitters, and receivers, etc., can relay signals through light transmission. A technical challenge associated with PIC technology is the forming of structures for analyzing the optical performance of a PIC die. In some cases, structures for testing may affect the performance and/or other parameters of interest. For example, the grating coupler for optical testing may continue leaking the signal if left in place, and may cause back-reflections that can cause device performance degradation.

Integrated circuit structure with optical absorber layer over optical grating coupler


An automatically shape calculating method and apparatus for contour shape measuring machines, by which a geometric shape value and a geometric shape boundary value are calculated from shape data. A geometric shape boundary is provisionally set in accordance with the shape data, which is obtained by measuring a workpiece, and then geometric shape calculation areas are set in areas except for the vicinities of the provisionally set point, a measurement starting point and a measurement ending point. A geometric shape value of the shape data is calculated while a geometric shape of the shape data is determined under geometric shape recognition conditions for each of the set geometric shape calculation areas. The geometric shape boundary value is calculated from the calculated geometric shape value, and the calculating results are output.

With reference to FIG. 11, a contour shape measuring machine 10 consists of a horizontally feeding mechanism 13 which is provided on a column 12 standing on a base 11, and a detector 14 which has a probe 15 and is provided on the horizontally feeding mechanism 13 in such a manner as to freely move in a horizontal direction (X). The detector 14 detects the displacement of the probe 15 in a vertical direction (Z). A scale is built in the horizontally feeding mechanism 13, and the scale detects the horizontal movement amount of the detector 14.
When the detector 14 moves in the direction X while the probe 15 is in contact with a measured area on the workpiece 16, the detector 14 detects the vertical displacement of the probe 15, and the scale of the horizontally feeding mechanism 13 detects the horizontal movement amount of the detector 14. Thus, the contour shape of the workpiece 16 is measured.
Required as measured values are a geometric shape value (such as the diameter of a circle, the longer diameter and shorter diameter of an ellipse, and the central position of a circle, which are calculated by setting the shape data to a geometric shape such as a straight line, a circle and an ellipse), and a geometric shape boundary value (such as a position of a boundary where two geometric shapes intersect each other, an angle formed by two geometric shapes which intersect each other, and the distance between boundaries).
An example of the data processing unit is provided with either a system which describes a shape view (which plots values at each measurement point in X and Z directions) by outputting the shape data directly to an X-Y plotter, or a system which has a data processing unit and displays a shape view on a CRT, or both of these two systems. According to the system which outputs the shape data to the X-Y plotter, an operator must read the geometric shape value and the geometric shape boundary value on the shape view. According to the system which has the data processing unit, the data processing unit is capable of calculating the geometric shape value and the geometric shape boundary value as explained below with reference to a flow chart of FIG. 9 and a view of FIG. 10.
First, when the operator measures the workpiece 16 by the contour shape measuring machine 10 (step 121), the CRT displays a shape view which describes measured positions (step 122). FIG. 10 shows the outline of an example in which a screw-like triangular workpiece is measured. The reference numeral 141 is a measurement starting point, and 151 is a measurement ending point.
With reference to the shape view being displayed, the operator determines and designates applicable geometric shapes (all of which are straight lines in this example.) The operator also specifies an objective area of the geometric shape value calculation (step 124). Large measurement errors normally in the vicinities of the measurement starting point 141 and the measurement ending point 150, and in an area where the shape changes greatly. An area except for those areas (e.g. an area between a point 142 and a point 143 in FIG. 10) is designated as the objective area of the geometric shape value calculation. On designation of the objective area of the geometric shape value calculation, the shape data in the designated area is calculated automatically in accordance with the designated geometric shapes (step 125), and the geometric value (a straight line Lh in the case of the area between the point 142 and the point 143) is displayed (step 126).
Then, the operator determines whether to calculate a geometric shape value in the next area of the shape view or a geometric shape boundary value (step 127). To calculate the geometric shape value in the next area, the process returns to the step 123, and the operator determines and designates the applicable geometric shape and designates areas such as "an area between a point 144 and a point 145", "an area between a point 146 and a point 147", and "an area between a point 148 and a point 149." Thereby, the geometric shape values of the straight lines Li, Lj, Lk, etc. are calculated.
To calculate the geometric shape boundary value, the operator designates two geometric shapes such as the straight lines Lh and Li (step 129). A geometric shape boundary value (coordinate values at an intersection 151 and an angle of intersection .theta.d) of the designate geometric shapes is automatically calculated (step 130), and the calculating results are displayed (step 131). Likewise, coordinate values at an intersection 152 and an angle of intersection .theta.e are calculated on designation of the straight lines Li and Lj. Coordinate values at an intersection 153 and an angle of intersection .theta.f are calculated on designation of the straight lines Lj and Lk.
Thereafter, the operator returns to the step 123 in order to calculate a geometric shape value in the next area, and returns to the step 128 in order to calculate a next geometric shape boundary value (step 132).
In order to find the geometric shape value, the operator must determine and designate the type of the geometric shape corresponding to the displayed shape. The operator must also designate the objective area of the geometric shape value calculation. Likewise, in order to find the geometric shape boundary value, the operator must separately designate two geometric shapes. It takes a long time to complete such a complex operation.
The present invention has been developed in view of the above-described circumstances, and has as its object the provision of an automatic shape calculating method and apparatus for a contour shape measuring machine, the method and apparatus which automatically calculate a geometric shape value and a geometric shape boundary value in accordance with shape data without the operator's determining geometric shapes, designating objective areas of the geometric shape value calculation and designating the applicable geometric shapes of geometric shape boundaries.

Method and apparatus for automatic shape computing for contour shape determining machine


A method for designing a thermal management system on a vehicle includes the steps of determining a parametric solid model of a vehicle and determining an exterior thermal output of the vehicle from the parametric solid model of the vehicle. The method also includes the steps of determining a parametric solid model of an interior thermal management system on the vehicle and determining an interior thermal output within the vehicle, from the parametric solid model of the interior thermal management system and the external thermal output of the vehicle.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to computer-aided design of vehicles and, more specifically, to a method for designing a thermal management system of a vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
Vehicle design, and in particular automotive vehicle design, has advanced to a state in which computer-aided design techniques are frequently utilized to develop a new vehicle in a virtual environment. Computer-aided design is especially beneficial in optimizing the various systems incorporated within a vehicle, to maximize design and functional capabilities of the vehicle systems. One example of a vehicle system is a thermal management system, providing powertrain cooling and climate control. The powertrain cooling system maintains the temperature within an engine compartment of the vehicle. The climate control system maintains the temperature of an occupant compartment of the vehicle at a comfortable level by providing heating, cooling and ventilation.
One aspect of the design task for a vehicle system, such as the thermal management system, is to ensure that the system is spatially compatible with a particular environment. Another aspect of the design task is to ensure that the design complies with predetermined functional criteria, including performance and durability requirements. In the past, various methods have been utilized to determine whether a proposed design meets such predetermined parameters. For example, a proposed design may be analyzed in two dimensions, which requires many iterations of a drawing. A three-dimensional model may also be constructed to obtain a better perspective of the design. The three-dimensional model may further be subjected to testing to determine whether it complies with performance and durability criteria. This method is time consuming and expensive.
It is also known that design methods that are knowledge-based are being utilized to design a vehicle system. The knowledge-based design method provides advice to the user of the method based on the environment of the design application used. Advantageously, knowledge-based design techniques maximize the amount of knowledge utilized, while developing a new vehicle system in a minimal period of time. An example of a knowledge-based design technique is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,799,293 to Kaepp, entitled "Method For Optimizing The Design Of A Product Using Knowledge Based Engineering Techniques", the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
It is also known to use a computer-aided design technique to design a vehicle system. An example of a computer aided design technique is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/984,806, entitled "Method and System For Vehicle Design Using Occupant Reach Zones", the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. Another example is disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. patent application, Ser. No. 09/356,576, entitled "Method For Designing A HVAC Air Handling Assembly For A Climate Control System," the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
While the above design techniques work well, they do not take into account the particular functional and comfort criteria associated with designing a thermal management system for a vehicle. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a method for designing a thermal management system for a vehicle using a computer aided design and engineering technique that optimizes thermal performance and maximizes passenger thermal comfort criteria.

Method for designing a vehicle thermal management system


The invention includes semiconductor constructions containing vertically-extending pillars, and methods for forming such constructions. The vertically-extending pillars can be incorporated into transistor devices, and can contain vertically-extending channel regions of the transistor devices. The transistor devices can be incorporated into integrated circuitry, and in some aspects are incorporated into memory constructions, such as, for example, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) constructions.

Transistor devices are utilized in numerous semiconductor assemblies. The transistor devices can be utilized in, for example, memory circuitry, such as, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) constructions and static random access memory (SRAM) constructions.
Continuing goals of semiconductor device processing are to increase the scale of integration, simplify processing and reduce costs. It is desired to create new methods of forming transistor constructions which progress toward one or more of such continuing goals.
Inventive aspects described herein can be particularly useful for forming transistor devices. However, it is to be understand that although the invention is primarily described relative to such application, the invention can also be utilized in other semiconductor fabrication applications, as will be recognized by persons of ordinary skill in the art.


A platform is provided for securing a container while contents within the container are being mixed. A plurality of engagement blocks and a wedge member extend upwardly from a platform and define a container engagement area into which the container is placed. The wedge member is moved into an engagement position that decreases the container engagement area and secures the container. An area on the platform is provided on which a user stands to provide additional stability to the platform. A support block may be provided behind the wedge member. Channels may be provided to divert debris from the surface of the platform. A handle support may be provided to support tools in an upright position when not in use.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems used to mix materials and more particularly to a platform that releasably receives mixing containers in a position that substantially prevents movement of the mixing containers while their contents are being mixed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Several different materials are commonly used in the construction and repair of homes that require mixing. An example of some of these materials include joint compounds, paints, grout, adhesive, paints, and the like. Many of these materials are removed from their original packaging or containers and disposed within five gallon buckets or other mixing containers at the job site so that they may be properly prepared for use. While the materials could be manually mixed with a paddle or other such instrument, it is more common to see such materials mixed with a mixing paddle attached to a drill or other common rotary electric device. However, many of these materials are thick and require a significant amount of force to mix the material within the container. Accordingly, an unsupported container typically spins and wobbles as the material is being mixed. This not only increases the time required to properly mix the material but can also cause a mess as material is spilled from the container.
The typical prior art method of supporting a mixing container employs the use of the individual's feet or knees, tightly clamped against opposite sides of the mixing container. Unfortunately, this requires the individual to apply constant pressure against the container while mixing the material. This causes fatigue and may even cause the individual to lose his footing or fall.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,208 discloses a support for a mixing container that provides a platform having a circular recess at one end and an area for supporting the individual at the opposite end. The recess is sized and shaped to provide a snug fit around the bottom portion of the container. A non-skid material, similar to sand paper, lines the bottom and sides of the recess to engage the mixing container with a frictional force. While this is an improvement over gripping the opposite sides of the pale with the individual's knees, it too suffers from a number of shortcomings. First, the recess is not adjustable in size or shape to accommodate different containers. Some materials may be mixed in their original container, which come in a wide array of shapes and sizes. Secondly, reliance upon a friction fit within a non-adjustable recess is unsatisfactory in the construction arts. The typical construction area may have debris and fluids accidentally spilling onto various surfaces. Where such debris finds its way between the mixing container and the recess, the power of the frictional engagement will decrease rapidly. Moreover, the continued insertion of a single mixing container within the recess will, over time, deteriorate the frictional engagement between the container and the recess due to wear on both surfaces.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,188 discloses a mixing jug having a circular ring member that is supported above an operating surface by a U-shaped foot. A pair of struts extend downwardly from the ring and terminate in a pair of footpads that are positioned slightly above the operating surface. In use, the individual places the container within the ring and then stands on the footpads, which flexes the circular ring into an elliptical shape, grasping opposite side portions of the mixing container. Clearly, this device suffers from many of the prior art shortcomings encountered previously. First, it requires the individual to stand on the apparatus in order to provide the compression force on the container. Secondly, in its resting position, the device tends to wobble back and forth with the mixing container supported above the operating surface. Accordingly, due to an elevated center of gravity, it is easy to tip the apparatus with the mixing container disposed therein. Finally, the ring is provided in a non-adjustable manner, which prevents the use of mixing containers of various shapes and sizes.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,464,184 discloses a platform for securing a mixing container that has a pair of wing members, foldably disposed at opposite ends of the platform. The mixing container is positioned in the center of the platform and the wing members are folded back against the upper surface of the platform. A curved or angular shape is removed from the wing members and secured around the side portions of the mixing container. However, the device operates based upon the assumption that the shape and size of the container is slightly larger than the opening formed between the wing members, allowing at least one of the wing members to tightly engage the mixing container and stop at an angled position above the platform. Accordingly, only containers within a narrow range of shapes and sizes will be usable with this device. This design also requires the weight of the individual to engage the sides of the mixing container. Moreover, the individual must stand on an uneven and angled surface, which may promote accidents.
Accordingly, what is needed is a new device for securing a container while contents within the container are being mixed. Such a device should provide a safe and effective way of securing containers of various sizes and shapes, while remaining compact and light weight.

Platform for securing a mixing container


An imaging apparatus includes first and second imaging devices configured to capture first and second images of a scene, respectively. The first and second images include multiple first image blocks relative to a first coordinate system and multiple second image blocks relative to a second coordinate system, respectively. The apparatus further includes a processor configured to calibrate one or more first image blocks and one or more corresponding second image blocks using the first and second coordinate systems, convert each calibrated first image block to an intensity image and a first depth map, convert each calibrated second image block to a grayscale image, and generate a second depth map associated with the second image by enhancing a resolution of the first depth map for each calibrated first image block based on calculating a relationship between the intensity image and the grayscale image for each calibrated first and second image blocks.

A Time-of-Flight (or "ToF") camera is a range imaging camera based on measuring a Time-of-Flight of a light signal emitting from a camera toward a scene. Light reflected back from the scene has a delayed phase relative to the emitted light signal. The ToF camera relies on measuring the phase shift of the reflected light relative to the emitted light to calculate a distance between the camera and the scene to achieve environmental depth perception.
ToF cameras normally include image sensors to sense light reflected from the environment. The image sensors have high speed in image capturing and can perceive depth. The speed and depth perception of ToF cameras would have made such cameras good candidates for functions such as collision avoidance and navigation for small robotic toys or other high tech consumer products. The ToF cameras, however, have low image resolution relative to regular cameras, such as Red Green Blue ("RGB") video cameras, which resolution limits such uses.
A need therefore exists for an improved ToF imaging system and method with better resolution to enhance the depth recognition of ToF imaging systems.

System and method for enhancing image resolution


A light metal wheel rim apparatus is provided with an increased wheel disk area in proportion to the overall diameter of the rim. The light metal wheel rim is constructed of at least two component parts. A first component part includes an inner rim flange and rim ring. A second component part includes a wheel disk portion, upon which a design may be configured, and an outer rim flange. The first and second component parts are joined in a manner which maximizes the area of the wheel disc relative to the overall dimensions of the light metal wheel rim.

The present invention relates in general to light metal wheel rims of the kind having at least two component parts such as that disclosed in German Patent No. 28 24 972 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,363,347. In particular, the present invention relates to wheel rims having internal and external rim flanges and adjacent corner regions for seating the internal and external beads of a corresponding tubeless tire.
The present invention also relates to wheel rims assembled from two or more component parts fastened together by bolts. In such wheel rims, a first component part includes the internal rim flange, a first curved portion for seating the internal bead of the tire, the rim ring and the wheel disk. The second component part typically includes the bowl shaped external rim bed and the external rim flange. In such wheel rims, the bowl-shaped rim beds are generally formed by forging, but they may also be formed by a press; the bowl-shaped rim beds are never cut. Heat hardenable aluminum milled alloys are typically used.
One feature which is often determinative of the shape of a light metal wheel rim are the diameters and spacing between the beads of the tubeless tire to be mounted on the rim. These dimensions are, of course, determined by tire manufacturers. The dimensions of the tire beads also affect the configuration of the internal and external rim flanges.
Within the rim, space must be provided to accommodate the brake mechanism of the vehicle. Minimum safety clearances must be provided between large diameter brake mechanisms and the wheel rim.
The internal and external rim beds cannot have any openings, other than for the opening passage for the air fill valve, as is possible, for example, in the case of wheel disks. This means that any opening passages can only be provided radially inward of the rim beds, through which opening passages heat generated by the brake mechanism can be removed. In this connection, those areas of the opening passages which lie at the greatest possible radius from the center of the wheel disk are the most valuable for the purpose of heat removal, since the centrifugal force (which acts to move air out through the wheel rim) increases with the square of the distance from opening passage to the center of the wheel disk. If, for example, 10 percent of the area of the opening passages are relocated radially outwardly, then heat removal is improved, not by 10 percent, but by approximately 20 percent.
Light metal wheel rims, particularly two-part light metal wheel rims are, however, not esteemed by the public solely because of their technical characteristics. Rather, their esthetic characteristics also play an extraordinarily important role. The more aesthetically pleasing a wheel rim is, the more it will be purchased by the buying public. For the technician shaping the form, there is available only the space within the radially innermost area of the outer rim bed, because this area alone is the visible area of the wheel disk. For this reason also, it is desirable to draw a visible area of the wheel disk as close as possible to the external side of the rim, and away from the vehicle. The technician shaping the form then has a correspondingly greater surface area available with which to work.
Damage to light metal wheel rims usually occurs in the area of the external rim bed, which is expensive to manufacture. Such damage occurs, for example, from roadside stones and other hazards. For this reason, it would be advantageous to be able to replace an external rim bed. The smaller the mass of the rim bed is, and the simpler its form, the more inexpensive the rim bed is, because large complicated forms are more expensive to forge than simple and small forms. The shorter the distance is between the radially outermost and radially innermost areas of the rim bed, the greater the rigidity the bed has for a given wall thickness. Therefore, a highly convoluted or very long rim bed is in this regard disadvantageous.
The task of the invention is to describe a construction which, with regard to the above conditions, permits an optimal construction. It should also be suitable to the various material requirements between the rim bed and the rim ring/wheel disk, which typically consist of different alloys. A tire should also be able to be mounted on such a wheel rim in a conventional manner and its construction should allow it to accommodate an air fill valve. Finally, of course, the condition must be fulfilled that air tightness of the tire internal space, relative to the environment, is maintained.