A hitch structure for mounting attachments to a vehicle such as a skid steer loader is disclosed herein. The hitch structure includes a universal, reversible hitch structure. The hitch structure includes a first end positioned opposite a second end, a fixed locking structure located adjacent each of the first end and the second end, the fixed locking structure constructed for receiving a toe end of an attachment carrier of a loader vehicle. The hitch structure also includes a removable locking structure with a slot for receiving a locking wedge positioned adjacent a heel end of the attachment carrier. The removable locking structure is removably engageable with the hitch structure alternatively adjacent either the first end or the second end of the hitch structure to form a clamping structure with the fixed locking structure located at the opposite end from the removable locking structure for mounting the attachment to the vehicle.

A wide variety of loader attachments for vehicles such skid steer loaders, tractors or the like are available and in use. Generally, most attachments include a hitch portion and a workpiece portion. The hitch portion of the attachments is used for mounting the attachments to the loader vehicles. The workpiece portion of the attachments are constructed for a variety of uses and may include augurs, backhoes, brooms, buckets, trenchers, cutters, chippers, concrete mixers, crushers, diggers, dozer blades, graders, rakes, pallet forks, snow blowers, tillers, scrapers, clam shells, plows, bale spears, etc. Vehicles such as skid steerers, tractors, or the like typically include a structure at the front end or the back end of the loader for fixedly engaging the loader attachments so that the attachments can be operated and moved, generally by hydraulic power, by the vehicle. Such "hitch" configurations are different from the typical trailer hitch structures used to simply tow or push trailer-type assemblies. Most loader vehicle companies have designed their vehicles to include a universal type structure for engaging a plurality of attachments. One common structure found in the art is what is called a toe-heel attachment carrier that is used to engage the hitch portion of the attachments. Most vehicle companies have also designed their loader attachments with a universal type of a hitch so that they can be used with the toe-heel attachment carriers of vehicles of different manufacturers. In this manner, loader vehicles can use a variety of attachments manufactured by different companies for a variety of purposes, given that the attachment carriers and the hitch structures found on the attachments contain universal counterparts.
Whether it be universal or not, despite the versatile use of front end loader vehicles and the multitude of attachments designed for them, there is no hitch structure in the art that allows reversible coupling of loader attachments to such vehicles. It is conceivable that certain workpieces may be designed to be reversible implements where two sides of the workpiece, e.g., the top and the bottom sides, can be utilized for different purposes. For example, it is conceivable that a plow blade may have a top edge containing rubber material and a bottom edge containing metal material. The rubber edge may serve a different function than the bottom metal edge and reversibility of such a blade allows both edges to be utilized. Reversibility of, for example, a plow blade may also be useful for wear reasons.
However, the art lacks a hitch structure that would allow the reversible use of such an implement. More importantly, the art lacks a reversible hitch structure that can be used with the universal attachment carriers found on most conventional loader vehicles. Thus, only one-sided implements are commonly found in the art.
What is needed in the art is a hitch structure that allows multiple sides of an attachment workpiece to be utilized. More importantly, what is needed in the art is a reversible hitch structure that can be made universal so that it can be used with existing vehicle attachment carriers.

Reversible hitch structure for loader attachments


Probe sets for the multiplexed detection of the binding of, or interaction between, one or more ligands and target antiligands are provided. Detection involves the release of identifying tags as a consequence of target recognition. The probe sets include electrophoretic tag probes or e-tag probes, comprising a detection region and a mobility-defining region called the mobility modifier, both linked to a target-binding moiety. Target antiligands are contacted with a set of e-tag probes and the contacted antiligands are treated with a selected cleaving agent resulting in a mixture of e-tag reporters and uncleaved and/or partially cleaved e-tag probes. The mixture is exposed to a capture agent effective to bind to uncleaved or partially cleaved e-tag probes, followed by electrophoretic separation. In a multiplexed assay, different released e-tag reporters may be separated and detected providing for target identification.

The present invention relates to separable compositions, methods, and kits for use in multiplexed assay detection of the interaction between ligands and target antiligands.
The need to determine many analytes or nucleic acid sequences (for example multiple pathogens or multiple genes or multiple genetic variants) in blood or other biological fluids has become increasingly apparent in many branches of medicine. Most multi-analyte assays, such as assays that detect multiple nucleic acid sequences, involve multiple steps, have poor sensitivity, a limited dynamic range (typically on the order of 2 to 100-fold differences and some require sophisticated instrumentation. Some of the known classical methods for multianalyte assays include the following:
a. The use of two different radioisotope labels to distinguish two different analytes.
b. The use of two or more different fluorescent labels to distinguish two or more analytes.
c. The use of lanthanide chelates where both lifetime and wavelength are used to distinguish two or more analytes.
d. The use of fluorescent and chemiluminescent labels to distinguish two or more analytes.
e. The use of two different enzymes to distinguish two or more analytes.
f. The use of enzyme and acridinium esters to distinguish two or more analytes.
g. Spatial resolution of different analytes, for example on arrays, to identify and quantify multiple analytes.
h. The use of acridinium ester labels where lifetime or dioxetanone formation is used to quantify two different viral targets.
As the human genome is elucidated, there will be numerous opportunities for performing assays to determine the presence of specific sequences, distinguishing between alleles in homozygotes and heterozygotes, determining the presence of mutations, evaluating cellular expression patterns, etc. In many of these cases one will wish to determine in a single reaction, a number of different characteristics of the same sample. In many assays, there will be an interest in determining the presence of specific sequences, whether genomic, synthetic, or cDNA. These sequences may be associated particularly with genes, regulatory sequences, repeats, multimeric regions, expression patterns, and the like. There will also be an interest in determining the presence of one or more pathogens, their antibiotic resistance genes, genetic subtype and the like. The need to identify and quantify a large number of bases or sequences, potentially distributed over centimorgans of DNA, offers a major challenge. Any method should be accurate, reasonably economical in limiting the amount of reagents required and provide for a highly multiplexed assay, which allows for differentiation and quantitation of multiple genes, and/or snp determination, and/or gene expression at the RNA or protein level.
The need to study differential expression of multiple genes to determine toxicologically relevant outcomes or the need to screen transfused blood for viral contaminants with high sensitivity is clearly evident. Finally, while nucleic acid sequences provide extreme diversity for situations that may be of biological or other interest, there are other types of compounds, such as proteins in proteomics that may also offer opportunities for multiplexed determinations.
There is and will continue to be comparisons of the sequences of different individuals. It is believed that there will be about one polymorphism per 1,000 bases, so that one may anticipate that there will be an extensive number of differences between individuals. By single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) is intended that there will be a prevalent nucleotide at the site, with one or more of the remaining bases being present in a substantially smaller percent of the population. While other genetic markers are available, the large number of SNPs and their extensive distribution in the chromosomes make SNPs an attractive target. Also, by determining a plurality of SNPs associated with a specific phenotype, one may use the SNP pattern as an indication of the phenotype, rather than requiring a determination of the genes associated with the phenotype. For the most part, the SNPs will be in non-coding regions, primarily between genes, but will also be present in exons and introns. In addition, the great proportion of the SNPs will not affect the phenotype of the individual, but will clearly affect the genotype. The SNPs have a number of properties of interest. Since the SNPs will be inherited, individual SNPs and/or SNP patterns may be related to genetic defects, such as deletions, insertions and mutations, involving one or more bases in genes. Rather than isolating and sequencing the target gene, it will be sufficient to identify the SNPs involved. In addition, the SNPs may also be used in forensic medicine to identify individuals.
Thus an assay for the differentiation and quantitation of multiple genes, and/or snp determination, and/or gene expression at the RNA or protein level, that has higher sensitivity, a large dynamic range (103 to 104-fold differences in target levels), a greater degree of multiplexing, and fewer and more stable reagents would increase the simplicity and reliability of multianalyte assays, and reduce their costs.
Holland (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (1991) 88:7276) discloses that the exonuclease activity of the thermostable enzyme Thermus aquaticus DNA polymerase in PCR amplification to generate specific detectable signal concomitantly with amplification.
The TaqMan(copyright) assay is discussed by Lee in Nucleic Acid Research (1993) 21:16 3761).
White (Trends Biotechnology (1996) 14(12):478-483) discusses the problems of multiplexing in the TaqMan assay.
Marino, Electrophoresis (1996) 17:1499 describes low-stringency-sequence specific PCR (LSSP-PCR). A PCR amplified sequence is subjected to single primer amplification under conditions of low stringency to produce a range of different length amplicons. Different patterns are obtained when there are differences in sequence. The patterns are unique to an individual and of possible value for identity testing.
Single strand conformational polymorphism (SSCP) yields similar results. In this method the PCR amplified DNA is denatured and sequence dependent conformations of the single strands are detected by their differing rates of migration during gel electrophoresis. As with LSSP-PCR above, different patterns are obtained that signal differences in sequence. However, neither LSSP-PCR nor SSCP gives specific sequence information and both depend on the questionable assumption that any base that is changed in a sequence will give rise to a conformational change that can be detected. Pastinen, Clin. Chem. (1996) 42:1391 amplifies the target DNA and immobilizes the amplicons. Multiple primers are then allowed to hybridize to sites 3xe2x80x2 and contiguous to a SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) site of interest. Each primer has a different size that serves as a code. The hybridized primers are extended by one base using a fluorescently labeled dideoxynucleoside triphosphate. The size of each of the fluorescent products that is produced, determined by gel electrophoresis, indicates the sequence and, thus, the location of the SNP. The identity of the base at the SNP site is defined by the triphosphate that is used. A similar approach is taken by Haff, Nucleic Acids Res. (1997) 25:3749 except that the sizing is carried out by mass spectrometry and thus avoids the need for a label. However, both methods have the serious limitation that screening for a large number of sites will require large, very pure primers that can have troublesome secondary structures and be very expensive to synthesize.
Hacia, Nat. Genet. (1996) 14:441 uses a high-density array of oligonucleotides. Labeled DNA samples were allowed to bind to 96,600 20-base oligonucleotides and the binding patterns produced from different individuals were compared. The method is attractive in that SNPs can be directly identified, but the cost of the arrays is high and non-specific hybridization may confound the accuracy of the genetic information.
Fan (Oct. 6-8, 1997 IBC, Annapolis Md.) has reported results of a large scale screening of human sequence-tagged sites. The accuracy of single nucleotide polymorphism screening was determined by conventional ABI resequencing.
Ross in Anal. Chem. (1997) 69:4197 discusses allele specific oligonucleotide hybridization along with mass spectrometry.
Brenner and Lerner, PNAS (1992) 89:53 81, suggested that compounds prepared by combinatorial synthesis can each be labeled with a characteristic DNA sequence. If a given compound proves of interest, the corresponding DNA label is amplified by PCR and sequenced, thereby identifying the compound.
W. Clark Still, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,565,324 and in Accounts of Chem. Res., (1996) 29:155, uses a releasable mixture of halocarbons on beads to code for a specific compound on the bead that is produced during synthesis of a combinatorial library. Beads bearing a compound of interest are treated to release the coding molecules and the mixture is analyzed by gas chromatography with flame ionization detection.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,807,682 describes probe compositions for detecting a plurality of nucleic acid targets.
Methods and compounds are provided for multiplexed determinations, where the compounds can be linked to binding compounds for detection of reciprocal binding compounds in a sample. The methods are distinguished by having a plurality of binding events in a single vessel using a mixture of differentially eTag reporter-conjugated binding compounds, the release of identifying eTag reporters of those binding compounds bound to their target compounds in the same vessel, and the detection of the released identifying tags by separation of the tags in a single run. The eTag reporters are distinguished by having one or more physical characteristics that allow them to be separated and detected.
The method employs a mixture of binding compounds bound to eTag reporters, where each eTag reporter has a characteristic that allows it to be uniquely detected in a single separation run. The method involves combining the etag reporter conjugated binding compound with a sample to determine the presence of a plurality of targets under conditions where the binding compounds bind to any reciprocal binding partners to form a binding complex. After sufficient time for binding to occur, the eTag reporters can be released from binding complexes in the same vessel. Various techniques are employed depending upon the nature of the binding compounds for releasing the eTag reporters bound to the complex. The released eTag reporters are then separated and identified by their differentiable characteristics free of interference from the eTag reporters still bound to the binding compound. The techniques for differentiating between eTag reporters bound to a complex and not bound to a complex, include enzymatic reactions that require the complex to exist for cleavage to occur, modification by using ligand/receptor binding, where the ligand is part of the binding compound, so that after cleavage, eTag reporter still bound to the binding compound is modified, dual binding to the target resulting in release of the eTag receptor, where optionally eTag reporter bound to the binding compound is modified, and the like.
One set of eTag reporters are distinguished by differences, which include mass as a characteristic. These eTag reporters do not rely on differentiation based on oligonucleotides of 2 or more, usually 3 or more nucleotides, but rather on organic chemical building blocks that are conveniently combined together to provide for large numbers of differentiable compounds. Therefore, while the original eTag reporter or eTag reporter conjugated to the binding compound can have 2 or more nucleotides, when released from the binding compound, the released eTag reporter will have not more than 3, usually not more than 2 nucleotides. Of particular interest are eTag reporters that are characterized by differences in their mass/charge ratio. These compounds are distinguished by having differences in mobility and are characterized by having regions, which serve as (1) a cleavable linking region; (2) a mass-modifying region; (3) a charge-modifying region: and (4) a detectable region, where the regions may be separate and distinct or combined, there being at least two distinct regions that provide for the differentiation. These eTag reporters may be combined in kits and assays with compounds having all of the regions within a single region to further expand the number of different compounds used as eTag reporters in a multiplexed determination. These compounds find use with other compounds where the different regions are present in the same moiety, for example one to two regions, where the charge-modifying region may also be the detectable region or the mass-modifying region. By having a plurality of compounds that can serve as identifying molecules, mixtures of target compounds can be assayed in a single vessel. By using protocols that result in the release of eTag(trademark) reporters from the binding compound that are identifiable due to differences in mobility, the analysis is greatly simplified, since the eTag reporters will be substantially free of interfering materials and their differences in mobility will allow for accurate detection and quantitation.
Sets of electrophoretic tag (e-tag) probes for the multiplexed detection of the binding of, or interaction between, one or more ligands and target antiligands are provided.
The e-tag probe sets comprise j members, and have the form: (D, Mj)-L-Tj, where (a) D is a detection group comprising a detectable label; (b) Mj is a mobility modifier, having a particular charge/mass ratio; (c) Tj is a ligand capable of binding to or interacting with a target antiligand and (d) L is a linking group connected to Tj by a bond that is cleavable by a selected cleaving agent when the probe is bound to, or interacting with, the target antiligand.
When the ligand of an e-tag probe of the set interacts with a target antiligand and is treated with a selected cleaving agent, a mixture of e-tag reporters having the form (D, Mj)-Lxe2x80x2, and uncleaved and/or partially cleaved probes is produced. Lxe2x80x2 is the residue of L attached to (D, Mj) after such cleavage.
The mobility modifier imparts a unique and known electrophoretic mobility to each released e-tag reporter which is within a selected range of electrophoretic mobilities with respect to other e-tag reporters of the same form in the probe set.
The sets include e-tag probes having the form, Mj-D-L-Tj and D-Mj-L-Tj, with the corresponding e-tag reporters having the form Mj-D-Lxe2x80x2 and D-Mj-Lxe2x80x2, respectively.
Uncleaved or partially cleaved e-tag probes, but not the corresponding e-tag reporter, have one or more chemical groups capable of reacting with or binding to a selected capture agent. The capture either (i) imparts a mobility to probes bound to the capture agent that prevent the probes from electrophoretically migrating within a selected range of electrophoretic mobilities or (ii) immobilizes the probes on a solid support.
In one aspect, the target is a nucleotide, and Tj is an oligonucleotide target-binding moiety having a sequence of nucleotides Ui connected by intersubunit linkages Bi, i+1, where i includes all integers from 1 to n, and n is sufficient to allow the target-binding moiety to hybridize specifically with a target nucleotide sequence.
In this aspect, L is a nucleotide joined to U1 in Tj through a nuclease-cleavable bond; and target-binding moiety of each e-tag probe of the set contains at least one modification selected from the following:
(i) at least one nuclease-resistant bond Bi, i+1, where i includes at least 1;
(ii) a capture ligand, e.g., biotin, bound to U1 and capable of binding specifically to a capture agent; and
(iii) a nuclease-resistant bond Bi, i+1, where i includes at least 1, and a capture ligand bound to at least one nucleotide Ui and capable of binding specifically to a capture agent, where ixe2x89xa71.
Exemplary probes sets include those: (i) where the linking group includes at least a portion of an amino acid sequence that is recognized and cleaved by a selected peptidase; (ii) where the linking group includes at least a portion of an oligosaccharide that is recognized and cleaved by a selected hydrolytic enzyme; (iii) where L and Tj are linked by an ester linkage that is cleaved by a selected esterase; (iv) where L and Tj are linked by a disulfide bond, and the antiligand is attached to an oxidase enzyme, such that in the presence of a substrate for the enzyme, H2O2 generated by the oxidase is effective to cleave the disulfide linkage in a probe bound to the antiligand; (v) where L and Tj are linked by a bond cleavable by singlet oxygen, wherein the antiligand is attached to a sensitizer capable of generating singlet oxygen when photoactivated; (vi) useful in screening lignads for the ability to bind to a receptor, wherein the ligands are represented by Tj and are members of a combinatorial library of small organic molecules, and the antiligand is the receptor; and (vii) useful in screening substrates of a selected enzyme antiligand, wherein the substrate comprises a fixed moiety L and a variable moiety Tj, and interaction of a substrate probe with the enzyme is effective to cleave the substrate to release the Tj moiety from the substrate.
In the probe sets of the invention, the mobility modifier may have one or more of the following characteristics:
(i) a unique charge/mass ratio due to variations in mass, but not charge;
(ii) a unique charge/mass ratio due to changes in both mass and charge;
(iii) a unique charge/mass ratios of between xe2x88x920.001 and 0.5;
(iv) a structure that includes a selected number of negatively charged and/or positively charged amino acids; and
(v) a structure that includes an alkyl chain, and differs from other Mj in the set by 1-3 methylene groups in the chain.
In one aspect, the probe sets comprise at least 5 probes, and in a related aspect, the probe sets comprise at least 9 probes.
The label component of the probe sets of the invention may be a fluorophore, a chromophore, or an electrochemical compound capable of a detectable reaction in the presence of a redox agent. In addition, the label component of the probe set may have a selected mass and charge.
Further, a given set of e-tags probes for multiplexed detection of the binding of, or interaction between, one or more ligands and target antiligands may contain subsets of probes, each subset having a label with a unique mass/charge ratio.

Sets of generalized target-binding e-tag probes


The present invention provides a pulse width modulation (PWM) circuit comprising an PWM control circuit for setting an output signal to low when a logical level of a oscillation signal at a first input terminal changes from low to high, for resetting the output level to low in response to an effective input signal at a second terminal, a charge and discharge means for charging a first node (node1) when the output stays in low, for discharging the stored charge of node1 when the output stays in high, a comparator (C1) for outputting an output signal to the second terminal according to the first node signal and a first reference signal (Vref0), a discharge current controlling means for the stored charge on the first node, wherein the discharge current controlling means comprises a bias circuit 2 for controlling the discharge current based on constant current.

The present invention relates to a pulse width modulation circuit (referred to below as PWM circuit) for modulating pulse width, more specially the invention relates to a PWM circuit that modulate pulse width at low frequency.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of related PWM circuit. This circuit comprises a triangle wave generator with an input of oscillation signal (referred to below as OSC) and a comparator C1, the input of which is the output signal (node1) of the triangle wave generator (referred to below as TWG) and a signal Vin. FIG. 10 shows an example circuit of the TWG.
The operation of the circuit of FIG. 9 is described below with reference to the FIG. 11. The TWG outputs a triangle wave signal on node1 according to the "high" and "low" level of input signal OSC. The comparator C1 compares the level of input signal Vin at non-inverting input terminal and the level of input signal of node1 at inverting input terminal, and outputs "high" level signal or "low" level signal according to the comparison result.
To be more precise, when OSC signal level is "high", the signal level of node1 decreases gradually and increases gradually at the "low" level section of OSC signal. The triangle wave signal is generated with the repetition of this operation.
The comparator C1 outputs "high" level signal when the level of the output signal of the TWG is lower than that of input signal Vin, thus "high" level output section occupies, for example, about 40% per one cycle of OSC signal (Duty=40%). This is the case of lower level input of the signal Vin. On the other hand, in case of higher input level of Vin, "high" level output section is extended, so the "high" level section of the output signal "OUT" of the comparator C1 is reached to, for example, about 70% (Duty=70%).
In this way, a pulse width modulation of the output signal "OUT" is possible according to the input level of the signal Vin. However, the circuit of FIG. 9 must operate in the period "OSC", so faster response speed is needed for the comparator used in PWM circuit and operational amplifier used in the TWG. This leads to the drawback of increasing power consumption. In addition, the comparator operates in response to the level sifting of the input Vin, so wider input range operability is needed for the comparator. This leads to the drawback of increasing number of construction elements, increasing layout size, increasing power consumption. In addition, as the input level of Vin is shifted, so the common mode input characteristic of the comparator C1 deteriorates and a large offset voltage occurs according to the level of Vin when a supply voltage goes down. This leads to the drawback of decreasing the low voltage operation margin.


A power converter including a multi-phase output stage, a comparator, and a time calculating unit is disclosed. The multi-phase output stage includes a plurality of channels. The comparator compares a first input signal with a second input signal to provide a setting signal. The time calculating unit adjusts on time duty cycles of the channels with the variation of the load according to the setting signal. When the load becomes larger, the frequency that the comparator provides the setting signal will be increased to cause that the on time duty cycles of the channels are overlapped.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a DC-DC converter; in particular, to a power converter having faster transient response and capable of enhancing the output limitation of output voltage and an operating method thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In recent years, power supply circuits have been widely used in different electronic products, such as portable electronic products, or computer products. The power supply circuit can provide voltage or current conversion or provide power of fixed voltage or current for the electronic products to operate. In the power supply circuits, a power integrated circuit is one of the necessary active components.
In the conventional multi-phase constant on-time (COT) structure, the pulse-width modulation (PWM) output of each phase channel all uses the same on-time calculation circuit to calculate the on-time. When new on-time is triggered, the distributor of the on-time calculation circuit will distribute the on-time to the specified phase channel in order. However, because each phase channel needs to use the same on-time calculation circuit to calculate the on-time of the PWM signals in order, there is only the PWM signal of certain phase channel at high level at the same time, and the PWM signals of the other phase channels are all at low level; that is to say, the on-time duty cycles of the PWM signals of each phase channel will be not overlapped. Therefore, this conventional COT structure will form serious output limitation to the output voltage of the power converter.
For example, as shown in FIG. 1, if the conventional multi-phase COT structure includes 4 phase channels, and the PWM output signals corresponding to the four phase channels are PWM1˜PWM4 respectively, the maximum duty cycle t1˜t4 of the on-times of the PWM output signals of each phase channel is only 25% of the entire duty cycle. If the input voltage is 5V, the output voltage of each phase channel can be only 1.25V or still lower. It forms serious output limitations to the output voltage. In addition, as to the transient response, although the conventional COT structure has faster response than the fixed frequency system, once the output voltage of the constant on-time structure is increased, the advantage of the conventional constant on-time structure will be disappear even reversed.

Power converter having multi-phase output stage and operating method thereof


Provided herein are water-soluble prodrugs, compositions comprising such prodrugs, and related methods of making and administering the same. The prodrugs of the invention comprise a water-soluble polymer having three or more arms, at least three of which are typically covalently attached to an active agent, e.g., a small molecule. The conjugates of the invention provide an optimal balance of polymer size and structure for achieving improved drug loading, since the conjugates of the invention possess three or more active agents releasably attached to a multi-armed water-soluble polymer. The prodrugs of the invention are therapeutically effective, and exhibit improved properties in-vivo when compared to unmodified parent drug.

Over the years, numerous methods have been proposed for improving the delivery of biologically active agents. Challenges associated with the formulation and delivery of pharmaceutical agents can include poor aqueous solubility of the pharmaceutical agent, toxicity, low bioavailability, instability, and rapid in-vivo degradation, to name just a few. Although many approaches have been devised for improving the delivery of pharmaceutical agents, no single approach is without its drawbacks. For instance, commonly employed drug delivery approaches aimed at solving or at least ameliorating one or more of these problems include drug encapsulation, such as in a liposome, polymer matrix, or unimolecular micelle, covalent attachment to a water-soluble polymer such as polyethylene glycol, use of gene targeting agents, and the like.
In looking more closely at some of these approaches, liposome encapsulation is often plagued by low efficiencies of drug loading, resulting in an oftentimes inefficient and cost ineffective process. Moreover, the release rate of the active agent in a liposomal formulation depends upon dissolution or disintegration of the liposome, or diffusion of the active agent through the liposomal layers, thereby limiting the practical availability of the active agent to the biological system. In addition, liposomal formulations are generally restricted to lipid soluble drugs. Polymer matrix-based formulations can suffer from similar shortcomings, such as the inability to well-characterize such drug delivery systems, particular those that are cross-linked, and the variable release rates associated with active agents that must diffuse out of a hydrolytically degradable polymer matrix. In comparison, conjugation of an active agent to a polymer such as polyethylene glycol offers a more well-defined alternative, since the conjugate itself is often although not necessarily well-characterized, particularly in the case of site-specific attachment of the polymer to the active agent. However, protein-based compositions containing mixtures of positional isomers varying in both the site(s) and number of polymer chains attached to a particular protein are not uncommon. This can lead to problems with reproducibly preparing such compositions.
While modification of therapeutic proteins for the purpose of improving their pharmaceutical utility is perhaps one of the most common applications of PEGylation, PEGylation has also been used, albeit to a limited degree, to improve the bioavailability and ease of formulation of small molecule therapeutics having poor aqueous solubilities. For instance, water-soluble polymers such as PEG have been covalently attached to artilinic acid to improve its aqueous solubility (Bentley, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,461,603). Similarly, PEG has been covalently attached to triazine-based compounds such as trimelamol to improve their solubility in water and enhance their chemical stability (Bentley, et al., WO 02/043772). Covalent attachment of PEG to bisindolyl maleimides has been employed to improve poor bioavailability of such compounds due to low aqueous solubility (Bentley, et al., WO 03/037384). Prodrugs of camptothecin having one or two molecules of camptothecin covalently attached to a linear polyethylene glycol have similarly been prepared (Greenwald, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,880,131).
Camptothecin (often abbreviated as "CPT") is a phytotoxic alkaloid first isolated from the wood and bark of Camptotheca acuminata (Nyssaceae), and has been shown to exhibit antitumor activity. The compound has a pentacyclic ring system with an asymmetric center in lactone ring E with a 20 S configuration. The pentacyclic ring system includes a pyrrolo[3,4-b]quinoline (rings A, B and C), a conjugated pyridone (ring D), and a six-membered lactone (ring E) with a 20-hydroxyl group. Due to its insolubility in water, camptothecin was initially evaluated clinically in the form of a water-soluble carboxylate salt having the lactone ring open to form the sodium salt. The sodium salt, although exhibiting much improved water solubility in comparison to camptothecin itself, produced severe toxicity and demonstrated very little in vivo anticancer activity, thus demonstrating the undesirability of this approach.
It was later discovered that camptothecin and many of its derivatives inhibit topoisomerase, an enzyme that is required for swiveling and relaxation of DNA during molecular events such as replication and transcription. Camptothecin stabilizes and forms a reversible enzyme-camptothecin-DNA ternary complex. The formation of the cleavable complex specifically prevents the reunion step of the breakage/union cycle of the topoisomerase reaction. Topoisomerase I inhibitors are also known to be useful in the treatment of HIV.
In an effort to address the poor aqueous solubility associated with camptothecin and many of its derivatives, a number of synthetic efforts have been directed to derivatizing the A-ring and/or B-ring or esterifying the 20-hydroxyl to improve water-solubility while maintaining cytotoxic activity. For example, topotecan (9-dimethylaminomethyl-10-hydroxy CPT) and irinotecan (7-ethyl-10[4-(1-piperidino)-1-piperidino]carbonyloxy CPT), otherwise known as CPT-11, are two water-soluble CPT derivatives that have shown clinically useful activity. Conjugation of certain camptothecin derivatives, such as 10-hydroxycamptothecin and 11-hydroxycamptothecin, to a linear poly(ethylene glycol) molecule via an ester linkage has been described as a means to form water soluble prodrugs (Greenwald, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,011,042). The approach used relies on reaction of an aromatic, hydroxyl-containing compound with an activated polymer.
The clinical effectiveness of many small molecule therapeutics, and oncolytics in particular, is limited by several factors. For instance, irinotecan and other camptothecin derivatives undergo an undesirable hydrolysis of the E-ring lactone under alkaline conditions. Additionally, administration of irinotecan causes a number of troubling side effects, including leucopenia, neutropenia, and diarrhea. Due to its severe diarrheal side-effect, the dose of irinotecan that can be administered in its conventional, unmodified form is extremely limited, thus hampering the efficacy of this drug and others of this type.
These associated side effects, when severe, can be sufficient to arrest further development of such drugs as promising therapeutics. Additional challenges facing small molecules include high clearance rates, and in the instance of anticancer agents, minimal tumor permeation and residence time. Approaches involving the use of polymer attachment must balance the size of the polymer against the molecular weight of the active agent in order to allow therapeutically effective doses to be delivered. Finally, the synthesis of a modified or drug-delivery enhanced active agent must result in reasonable yields, to make any such approach economically attractive. Thus, there exists a need for new methods for effectively delivering drugs, and in particular small molecule drugs, and even more particularly oncolytics, which can reduce their adverse and often toxic side-effects, whilst simultaneously improving their efficacy and ease of formulation. Specifically, there is a need for improved methods for delivering drugs that possess an optimal balance of bioavailability due to reduced clearance times, bioactivity, and efficacy, coupled with reduced side-effects. The present invention meets those needs.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


Methods for authenticating and authorizing a mobile device using tunneled extensible authentication protocol are provided. The methods include evaluating an inner user identifier against a policy engine to determine a home AAA server to route an access request for inner user authentication. Instead of having a static route configured based on an outer identifier/roaming identity, the policy engine can have multiple rules and actions for routing the request. The evaluation can be based on the conditions of the inner user identifier and or other AAA attributes received in the request. The request is transmitted within a secure communication tunnel. There are several embodiments of evaluating an inner user identifier against a policy engine.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mobile communications, and more particularly, to authenticating and authorizing a mobile device using tunneled EAP.
2. Background of Invention
An increasingly large number of individuals use portable computing devices, such as laptop computers, personal data assistants (PDAs), smart phones and the like, to support mobile communications. The number of computing devices, and the number of networks that these devices connect to, has increased dramatically in recent years.
In a typical wireless Internet environment, Wi-Fi based hotspots could be adjacent or distributed in cellular telephone networks. When the services of wireless LAN and cellular networks are integrated, the mobile device (e.g., laptop computer) can move across networks. There are two types of roaming: roaming between the same type of network (e.g., wireless LAN to wireless LAN or cellular network to cellular network) is defined as horizontal roaming; roaming between different types of networks, such as a wireless LAN and a cellular network, is defined as vertical roaming.
The service provider allowing access to its network usually requires a mobile node and/or a mobile user to authenticate that it is entitled to access the network before it is granted network access. Authentication is the process of identifying a device or user. For example, when logging on to a computer network, user authentication is commonly achieved using a username and password. Authentication is distinct from authorization, which is the process of giving devices or individuals access to services and features based on their identity. Authentication merely ensures that an individual is who he or she claims to be, but does not address the access rights of the individual.
Accordingly, a wireless network generally includes many wireless nodes and users trying to gain access to a network. The primary means for controlling access include network access servers ("NAS") and authentication servers, such as authentication, authorization, accounting (AAA) servers. A NAS, which is also referred to as an access point, provides access to the network. The devices and users connect though an access point via some form of wireless connection (e.g. IEEE 802.1X) to obtain access to a network (e.g., the Internet). In typical installations, there is a local authentication server, which allows the user to authenticate the network and a user's home authentication server that authenticates the user. The authentication servers are typically RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) or Diameter servers.
In this type of network access server environment, a version of the Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) is typically used for network authentication. For further information regarding EAP, see e.g., "RFC 3748: Extensible Authentication Protocol," by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. EAP is a general protocol for authentication, which supports multiple authentication mechanisms. The client devices and the authentication server (e.g., RADIUS or DIAMTER server) exchange EAP messages by embedding them as attributes of a RADIUS packet. For further information regarding RADIUS, see, e.g., "RFC 2865: Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS)," by the IETF, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. See also, "RFC 4072: Diameter Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) Application, by the IETF, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
Certain TLS (Transport Layer Security) based Extended Authentication Protocols optionally allow user authentication to occur within the protected tunnel. EAP-TTLS (Extended Authentication Protocol Tunneled Transport Layer Security) and PEAP (Protected Extended Authentication Protocol) are EAP protocols that are authentication tunneling protocols that create a protected channel for user authentication. These protocols use a two-phase authentication approach. In the first phase, the mobile device authenticates the foreign network, that is, the mobile device uses a digital certificate to ensure that the foreign network is legitimate. After the foreign network is authenticated, an encrypted channel between the mobile device and the mobile device's home AAA (i.e. AAA/H) is established using TLS and the information provided in the digital certificate. In the second phase, user information (e.g. Inner-User-ID) is securely transmitted using the established TLS-encrypted channel. The foreign network can authenticate the user from the user information using an inner user authentication method (e.g. PAP(Password Authentication Protocol), CHAP(Challenge-handshake authentication protocol), EAP, MSCHAPv1 (Microsoft Challenge handshake authentication protocol) and MSCHAPv2). The authentication can be carried out either by a TLS-AAA (the TLS end point of the foreign network) or by a remote AAA/H. For PEAP, this inner user authentication method typically must be another EAP authentication method. For further information about EAP-TTLS, see, Internet Draft EAP Tunneled TLS Authentication Protocol Version 0 (draft-funk-eap-ttls-v0), which is hereby incorporated by reference. For further information about PEAP, see Internet Draft PEAP (draft-josefsson-pppext-eap-tls-eap-06.txt), which is hereby incorporated by reference.
In the two-phase authentication protocols, such as those described above, the foreign network must know how to route user information to the user's home server. In prior art systems, routing is typically achieved using static routes configured based on generic information transmitted between the mobile the device and foreign network during the first phase of the authentication process. In prior art systems, the foreign network routes the inner user authentication information using the outer identity/roaming identity used by the mobile device to authenticate the foreign network, in some cases even before inner user information is known. For example, the foreign network may have a list associating outer identities to home servers (e.g. outer identity user@IPprovider is routed to home server IPprovider). This front end approach can be problematic because it may be desirable to route a user's inner user authentication information to a AAA server other than the general AAA server.
What is needed are methods for wireless Internet environments that provide increased flexibility for authenticating a user.


Provided are instantaneous phase mapping deflectometry measurement systems and methods based on multiplexing phase shifted fringe patterns with color, and decomposing them in X and Y using Fourier techniques. The new methods and devices provide accurate measurements, and more robust tools with less uncertainty when reconstructing a surface (e.g., compared to prior art Fourier Transform Profilometry (FTP) methods). The systems and methods revolutionize the applications of deflectometry by enabling measuring dynamic events (e.g., in high vibration environments, and a host of other previously impossible scenarios), and including environmental changes to the bending modes of large optics. Methods of error correction applicable to the new methods and devices are also provided.

Deflectometry is a surface slope measuring tool that requires minimal hardware and acquires surface height data with nanometer-level precision (Su, P., et al., Appl. Opt. 49(23), 4404-4412 (2010); Knauer, M., et al., Proc. SPIE 5457 366-376 (2004); and Bothe, T., et al., Proc. SPIE 5457 411-422 (2004)). It directly measures slope data, and has a very large dynamic range (P. Su et. al., "SCOTS: A reverse Hartmann test with high dynamic range for Giant Magellan Telescope primary mirror segments," Proc. SPIE 8450, 84500W (2012)). At the most basic level, a deflectometry system must have a screen to display a pattern, and a camera to capture images of the surface (e.g., mirror, lens, etc.) under test, which is illuminated by the screen. A schematic of a deflectometry measurement setup is shown in FIG. 1 with relevant distances for use, in this example, with a mobile device. The camera hardware is chosen from off-the-shelf components where low signal-to-noise and fast acquisition times are desirable. The screens are also off-the-shelf, but the patterns displayed on the screens are areas of active research. To create a mapping, current deflectometry systems use display patterns such as line-scanning, binary patterns, and phase shifting (Butel, G. P., et al., Proc. SPIE 8493, 84930S (2012)). All of the prior art methods listed rely on changing the pattern with time and recording multiple images with the camera to reconstruct the optical surface under test. These methodologies cannot cope with time varying measurements because they multiplex information in the time domain. In doing this, they are limited to measurements in which the environment, or features on the surface, do not change in time.
In the field of laser interferometry, polarization to multiplex phase shifted data (Novak, M., et al., Appl. Opt. 44(32), 6861-6868 (2005); and Millerd & Wyant. U.S. Pat. No. 7,230,718 (2007)) uses spatial frequency carriers (Takeda, M. Elsevier Ind. Met., 79-99 (1990); and Sykora & P. de Groot, Proc. SPIE 8126, 812610 (2011)), and 2D grating structures (Kimbrough, B., et al., Proc. SPIE 6292 62920F (2006)). With these systems, measurements over very large path lengths and in unstable or turbulent environments are possible. However, phase shifting interferometry (PSI) requires a minimum of three phase shifted data sets (i.e., Δϕ=0, π/3, 2π/3) to reconstruct the surface under test (Schreiber & Bruning, Optical Shop Testing, Third Edition, D. Malacara, ed. (Wiley, 2007)), and an instantaneous measurement on a phase shifting deflectometry system would need to multiplex twice the amount of information than a similar phase shifting interferometry system would need to multiplex. This is because deflectometry measures slope data, which must be captured in two orthogonal directions to properly reconstruct the surface. Therefore, the direction of the slope data must also be distinguishable during data processing. For example, using the minimum number of phase shifts (three), six data sets would be needed: three for one slope direction, and three for the other orthogonal slope direction.
Fourier Transform Profilometry, a distinct metrology method from phase shifting deflectometry, can also be used to measure the phase of a displayed pattern. It has been employed extensively in the field of fringe projection (Xie, P., et al., Proc. SPIE 8200 (14), 1-8 (2011); and Yue, H., et al., Opt. and Laser Tech. 39, 1170-1175 (2007)). More recently, an instantaneous deflectometry method using FTP has also been studied and presented in the literature (Wu, Y., et. al., Opt. Eng. 55(22), 024104 (2016), and Huang, L., et al., Opt. Express 19 (13), 12809-12814 (2011)). FTP captures a single image of a fringe pattern with both x and y direction fringes and uses Fourier analysis to reconstruct the phase information from the image. The frequency spectrum is filtered and then inverse Fourier transformed, which generates a real and imaginary result. These values are then used to calculate the phase of the original object. FTP has the benefit of only requiring two pieces of information to be multiplexed because the Fourier analysis can reconstruct the phase from just a single pattern. In the most recent publication using FTP, Wu et. al. used color to multiplex the x and y fringes, which is not required by the FTP analysis, but it allowed them to reduce errors in the frequency domain due to overlapping spectra. However, as is true for all Fourier domain filtering, the exact method of filtering the frequency data is not a trivial step because the end result depends significantly on the process (17 Z. H. Zhang, Opt. and Lasers in Eng. 50, 1097-1106 (2012)).

Instantaneous phase mapping deflectometry

Arizona Board of Regents on Behalf of the University of Arizona


A suspension of gas-filled microbubbles can be synthesized by sonicating a lipid solution and a first gas in a reaction volume. The resulting microbubble suspension can be stored for later use, for example, for infusion into a patient for gas delivery thereto. Various techniques can improve the shelf life of the microbubbles. For example, the microbubble suspension can be freeze-dried to remove water and the first gas therefrom while leaving the microbubble shells intact. In an alternative, the microbubble suspension can be frozen. In still another alternative, the microbubble suspension can be formed with a first gas that has a low solubility, thereby creating microbubbles with increased stability. Prior to use, the microbubble suspension can be prepared by exchanging the gas in the microbubble cores, rehydrating, and/or raising the temperature of the stored microbubbles.

Microbubbles have been used, for example, in the field of ultrasound imaging as contrast agents. However, such imaging applications may need relatively few microbubbles, for example, on the order of 106-108 microbubbles per injection. Such quantities can be achieved using low volume batch production techniques. However, for some medical and industrial applications, greater quantities of microbubbles may be required, for which low volume batch production techniques may be inadequate. In addition, current storage techniques may be inadequate to maintain large quantities of microbubbles for significant periods of time.

Systems, methods, and devices for microbubbles

The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York


A spatial light modulator 100 comprising an array-type liquid crystal panel 115, a polarization beam splitter 120, an oblique wave plate 130 and a converging lens 135. The polarization beam splitter is orientated to direct a source light 125 towards a reflective planar surface 127 of the array-type liquid crystal panel. The oblique wave plate and converging lens are located between the polarization beam splitter and the array-type liquid crystal panel. The converging lens is configured to direct light from the reflective planar surface onto a facing surface 125 of the polarization beam splitter.

This section introduces aspects that may help facilitate a better understanding of the inventions. Accordingly, the statements of this section are to be read in this light and are not to be understood as admissions about what is prior art or what is not prior art.
There is great interest in using array-type liquid crystal panels (LCP) as a spatial light modulator in the light modulator of an optical image projection system. Typically, polarized light passes through a polarization beam splitter (PBS) to the LCP. Individual liquid crystal pixels of the array forming the LCP can be activated or non-activated to cause the light to be reflected off of the LCP with the same polarization state or the orthogonal (e.g., opposite) polarization state, respectively, as the incoming light. Depending upon the configuration of the system, one linear polarization of, which is light reflected off the LCP, will pass through the PBS to projection optics and thereby provide a bright-field pixel. The orthogonal linear polarization component of the light will pass through the PBS in the direction orthogonal to the projection optics and thereby will provide a dark-field pixel.

Light modulator for optical image projection


In a case of changing the resolution of the synthesized image signal obtained by synthesizing the first image signal and a second image signal, identification information for identifying whether or not the character signal is contained is added to the synthesized image signal based on presence/absence of the character signal, by a character signal creating unit and a character signal synthesizing unit. Then, based on the identification information, a resolution changing unit separates the synthesized image signal into a third image signal containing a component of the character signal and a fourth image signal containing no component of the character signal, changes the resolutions of the third image signal and the fourth image signal, and synthesizes the third image signal and the fourth image signal with the resolutions changed, based on the identification information.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a signal processing device for changing a resolution of a synthesized image signal obtained by synthesizing two image signals. Also, the present invention relates to an image output device outputting a plurality of synthesized image signals with different resolutions, by using such a signal processing device.
2. Description of Related Art
A conventionally known image output device is constituted so as to simultaneously output a plurality of synthesized image signals with different resolutions, by synthesizing a first image signal as a character signal such as an OSD signal for performing OSD (On Screen Display) display of channel information, time information, and menu, etc, and a second image signal as an original image signal. As an example, such a conventional image output device includes a first character signal creating unit for creating a first character signal with first resolution (such as 1920×1080 pixels); a second character signal creating unit for creating a second character signal with second resolution (such as 720×480 pixels); a first synthesizing unit for synthesizing the first character signal into the image signal with first resolution; a second synthesizing unit for synthesizing the second character signal into the image signal with second resolution; a first output unit for outputting a signal synthesized by the first synthesizing unit; and a second output unit for outputting a signal synthesized by the second synthesizing unit. Then, such a conventional image output device is adapted to create two character signals with different resolutions respectively in the first character signal creating unit and the second character signal creating unit, and synthesize these character signals with the image signal with each resolution, in the first synthesizing unit and the second synthesizing unit.
However, in the aforementioned conventional image output device, a plurality of character signal creating units (the first character signal creating unit and the second character signal creating unit) are required, for every resolution to create the character signal, and also a plurality of synthesizing units (the first synthesizing unit and the second synthesizing unit) for synthesizing the character signal with each resolution are required. Accordingly, there is a problem that the device is upsized and a cost is increased.
Therefore, the image output device is proposed, including the character signal creating unit for creating the character signal with first resolution; the synthesizing unit for synthesizing the character signal into the image signal with first resolution; the first output unit for outputting the synthesized image signal with first resolution synthesized by this synthesizing unit; a resolution changing unit for changing the resolution of the synthesized image signal with first resolution synthesized by the aforementioned synthesizing unit to the second resolution; and the second output unit for outputting the synthesized image signal with second resolution, with the resolution changed by the resolution changing unit, wherein the character signal and the image signal both having the same resolution are synthesized and the synthesized image signal is created, and thereafter the resolution of the synthesized image signal is changed.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-20847 discloses the image processing device wherein regarding the pixel at a specific position, a constituent pixel of an input image is used as it is, and regarding the pixel at a position other than the specific position, a pixel value is calculated based on the pixel value of the constituent pixel of the input image, and both pixels are synthesized to create the output image. More specifically, this image processing device includes calculating means for determining the pixel value of the pixel at the position other than the specific position, by multiplying the pixel value of the constituent pixel of the input image by a conversion coefficient expressed by a sum of power of 2; and output image creating means for creating the output image by synthesizing the pixel at the specific position (the constituent pixel of the input image as it is) and the pixel at the position other than the specific position with the pixel value determined by the calculating means.
According to a technique disclosed in the aforementioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-20847, the conversion coefficient expressed by the sum of power of 2 is used. Therefore, by the changeover of the conversion coefficient, sharpness of the output image can be easily switched, and also the aforementioned calculating means can be constituted by a simple hardware such as shift resister, thus making it possible to reduce a manufacturing cost.
However, according to a technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-20847, during processing of changing the resolution of the image signal obtained by synthesizing a character signal such as an OSD signal, the resolution of the character signal is also changed. Therefore, the character signal and the image signal are mixed, thus involving a problem of bleeding in the image of the character signal.

Signal processing device, and image output device


A system and/or method that modifies and/or configures an application based at least upon a parameter of an operating environment. An interrogation component interrogates an operating environment receiving defining parameters. A modification component modifies an application based at least upon the defining parameters of the operating environment.

Industrial control systems have enabled modern factories to become partially or completely automated in many circumstances. These systems generally include a plurality of Input and Output (I/O) modules that interface at a device level to switches, contactors, relays and solenoids along with analog control to provide more complex functions such as Proportional, Integral and Derivative (PID) control. Communications have also been integrated within the systems, whereby many industrial controllers can communicate via network technologies such as Ethernet, Control Net, Device Net or other network protocols and also communicate to higher level computing systems. Generally, industrial controllers utilize the aforementioned technologies along with other technology to control, cooperate and communicate across multiple and diverse applications.
Microsoft .NET is an operating environment used within industrial control systems which enable manufacturers to integrate disparate legacy systems with current Internet technologies, allowing applications, services, and devices to work together in a digital environment, inside and outside the company. Microsoft .NET allows integration of industrial control systems and processes across multiple enterprises. A Human Machine Interface (HMI) application may be utilized within the operating environment Microsoft .NET.
The Human Machine Interface (HMI) is an application used within industrial control systems which enables users to create and use custom screens for displaying information and controlling the industrial environment. The capabilities of HMIs include: controls and displays on a touch screen, graphics symbols or object libraries, real time trending, data logging, and alarming. The display functions within an HMI are designed to serve as operator assistance, aiding and guiding personnel to carry out daily operations plus providing assistance for rare emergencies requiring quick action. HMIs incorporate a friendly user-interface facilitating display and control functions within the industrial environment. For example, a HMI can display a pump graphic correlating to a pump within the industrial environment, which allows the operator to control the pump (e.g., rate, on/off, etc.). A downside of HMI is the cost issues arising with specific programming and the need for custom scripts.
The automation industry has evolved so much that many operating environments within the manufacturers are not compatible with new or existing applications. Reprogramming and/or editing applications to adapt to pre-existing operating environments can be costly and inefficient. In addition, application programming can be a simple and repetitive process when an application is running within operating environments associated with the same parameters. However, the application programming is a difficult and tedious process when the application is programmed for each specific operating environment associated with different parameters. There are many cost and efficiency issues involved with the programming of applications within different operating environments.
When an application is programmed for one operating environment, the application must be revised or updated in order to be used within a different operating environment. The programmer focuses on compatibility rather than functionality because of the need to revise or update an application for every operating environment it is intended to run. However, functionality should be the primary focus of a programmer.
After an application has been written and implemented within an operating environment, the application may not operate correctly with new components or a new operating environment introduced to the system. The application must be coded specifically or tailored to each new component and/or operating environment. Rather than the application being executed from the original code, the code must be revised or updated in order for new components and/or new operating environment introduced.
Operating environments and applications are frequently created and/or updated. Given the plethora of operating environments and component architectures available, agreeing on one solution across multiple enterprises is problem within the automation industry. With the rapid pace of technology, the compatibility between operating environments and applications extends beyond the threshold of programmable efficiency. In order for applications to run appropriately within a specified operating environment, programmers often tailor applications specifically for the associated operating environment parameters. However, these applications should focus upon the functionality of the code rather than the compatibility with the operating environment and the associated parameters. In view of the above, there is a strong need for computer implemented software that provides for specifically tailoring or updating applications to the various operating environments within the industrial setting.

Application modifier based on operating environment parameters


A structure that positions rotating shafts and allows continuing transmission of rotary motion between shafts or shaft segments that are not aligned with one another or that may from time to time become misaligned. The invention reduces the undesirable effect of torque or torsional transients on rotary positioning and continued transmission of rotary motion, as well as reducing vibration resulting from linear or other angular displacement on either side of the joint. The structure comprises opposing outer and inner plates, each engaging a corresponding shaft or shaft segment. The plates define a plurality of holes that support flexible members. The flexible members extend through the plates on adjacent shafts or shaft segments around the shaft ends. Torque may be transmitted from one shaft to another by the flexible members.

Supports and related structures that support for rotating shafts may be subject to forces that cause unwanted or damaging movement or vibration of the systems. The forces associated with the rotating shafts also may cause unwanted or damaging movement or vibration of the structures that support the shafts and retain them in position. The content of our copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/348,036 is incorporated herein by reference.
When it is desired to transmit torque from one rotating shaft or shaft segment to another, adjacent shafts or shaft segments may be displaced from one another laterally, angularly, or a combination of these. Such displacements may reduce or even interrupt the desired transmission of rotary motion from one shaft or shaft segment to another.
Conventional joints designed for high torsional loads include "universal" joints, such as the "U-joint" on an automobile driveshaft that accommodates the angularity of the driven wheel assembly with respect to the vehicle transmission. Such universal joints typically are passive compliant devices that will not naturally return to an undistorted condition. Another example is the conventional mechanic's universal joint that permits driving of sockets in congested areas inaccessible by a straight shaft. A major disadvantage of the mechanic's universal joint is that the "limp" universal joint allows the socket to be positioned on the bolt or nut only when a user is able to position the end of the assembly by hand, which can be very difficult in congested areas.


An image registration device includes: an associated image acquisition unit that acquires an associated image associated with a document image read from a medium on which the document image is formed, a predetermined process being to be performed on the document image; and a registration unit that registers the associated image acquired by the associated image acquisition unit with the associated image being assigned to the predetermined process.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an image registration device, an image registration system, an image registration method and a computer readable medium.
2. Related Art
There is known an image processing apparatus that effectively prevents confidential documents from flowing out in an unauthorized way. There is also known a digital copy machine that is able to prevent falsification of ordinary documents. There is also known a technique for simplifying an operation in which a new security policy is assigned to a paper document or an electronic document.

Image registration device, image registration system, image registration method and computer readable medium that register the associated image acquired by the associated image acquisition unit with the associated image being assigned to the predetermined process


A method and system of imaging an object. First, movement information of the object is determined by using a navigation sensor array and a navigation engine. Based on the movement information, an imaging sensor strobe signal is selectively asserted to control an imaging sensor array. In response to an asserted imaging sensor strobe signal, the imaging sensor array captures sub-images of the object. The imaging sensor array has a plurality of pixels for imaging a portion of the object at one time. The plurality of sub-images are captured successively by the imaging sensor array as the object moves with respect to the imaging sensor array. Then, a composite image of the object is generated based on the captured sub-images.

Biometrics is the science of using unique personal and physical characteristics as a way to verify the claimed identity of a person. One of the oldest biometric sciences involves the use of fingerprints to identify a person. Since fingerprints are formed during fetal development, and are considered to remain unchanged throughout one's life, except for the rare cases where the fingerprint may change due to diseases or scars.
It is widely accepted that no fingers have identical prints, even from the same person or from identical twins. The systematic classification of fingerprints began in the 1800s and has been developed since that time through the extensive use of fingerprints by law enforcement and forensic societies.
In current usage, a fingerprint comparison is based on minutia (i.e., individual characteristics within the fingerprint pattern). For example, these minutia can include ridge endings and bifurcations in the fingerprint. The relative position of minutia is used for comparison, and according to empirical studies, two individuals typically will not have eight or more common minutia. A typical scan of a fingerprint contains 30-40 minutia.
Since fingerprints have a large amount of data, fingerprint biometrics have a high inherent accuracy that enables low rates of false acceptance (when a biometrics system wrongly verifies the identity of a person) and false rejection (when a biometrics system is unable to verify the legitimate claimed identity of a person).
In recent years, there has been much interest in developing fingerprint biometrics systems. For example, there are several commercially available fingerprint systems. One system is available from Veridicom of Santa Clara, Calif. A second system is available from IDEX AS of Heggedal, Norway.
An important aspect of any fingerprint biometrics system is the accurate capture of the fingerprint image. To ensure accurate capture, one approach taken by companies such as the Veridicom, is to have an array of sensors that covers the entire area of the fingerprint. One disadvantage of these full-array type of finger print imagers is that these imagers require a large sensor array to perform the image capture. This prior art fingerprint imager typically employs a sensor array whose area is commensurate with the area of the entire fingerprint. The large sensor array requires a sensor for each point of the fingerprint. For example, a standard sensor array has 400,000 sensors arranged as 500 pixels by 800 pixels so that the entire image of the fingerprint can be captured at one time.
It is well known that the cost of an integrated circuit is a function of the size or area of the integrated circuit. It would be desirable for there to be a mechanism to image a fingerprint by using an array of sensors that has fewer sensors than the number of sensors needed to cover the entire area of the finger print. By reducing the number of sensors needed to accurately capture the fingerprint image, the area of the integrated circuit can be decreased, thereby leading to cost savings. Unfortunately, the prior art approaches fail to provide such a mechanism.
A second approach followed by companies, such as IDEX AS of Heggedal, Norway, is to use a scan approach where a user is required to move his finger across an array or sensors that is substantially less than the total height of the finger. This approach is described in PCT patent application, International Publication Number WO 99/43258, entitled "Fingerprint Sensor." Unfortunately, this scan-type imager has several drawbacks. First, the IDEX approach uses a curved sensor and sliding assemblies (see FIGS. 2 to 5) to adapt to and to guide fingers of differing sizes. These grooves and curvatures and assemblies increase the complexity and attendant costs to manufacture the fingerprint sensor. Second, the U-shaped groove can be uncomfortable for some and difficult to use by others. It is would be desirable to have a scan-type fingerprint imager with relatively planar sensors and without the assemblies described above.
PCT patent application, International Publication Number WO 98/58342, entitled "Method and Apparatus for Measuring Structures in a Fingerprint," further describes a system in which a scan-type sensor can be utilized. This system employs a sensor array with two or more sensor lines in order to measure structures in the fingerprint smaller than the spacing of the sensors. Since this system uses two or more lines of sensors to image a single line of the fingerprint, the system must address the problem of combining these measurements of different lines into a single signal representing the single line in the fingerprint.
In order to combine these signals into a single signal, the patent application describes different correlation techniques that can be employed to combine signals measured from different lines of sensors. The system uses an adjustment scheme that corrects for the time delay between the signals from the sensors in different lines. Unfortunately, these techniques may increase the cost and complexity of the system. Consequently, it would be desirable to have a system that employs a single row of sensors that has comparable resolution and at the same time does not require complex signal correlation techniques.
Another problem faced by scan-type systems that are not encountered with full-array type sensor systems is that the movement of the finger needs to be determined. For example, to increase the accuracy of the captured image, the movement of the finger with respect to the sensor needs to be determined. Prior art systems perform this determination by using software executing on a host computer that is remote from the sensor. Unfortunately, the host computer solution may not adequately be able to handle the rate of data transfer between the sensor chip and the host computer unless a high-speed bus, which may be prohibitively expensive to implement, is utilized. Consequently, it is desirable for a system to have a single chip solution that has a sensor array and a mechanism for determining the movement of the finger.
Based on the foregoing, there remains a need for an apparatus and method for capturing an image of a finger print that employs a single sensor chip having an integrated navigation engine for determining the change in position of the finger with respect to time.

Avago Technologies ECBU IP (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.


A package for the components of a laser device that includes an elongated laser medium, a pump source adjacent to one side of the laser medium and laser mirrors positioned in alignment with the optical axis of the laser medium, the package including a planar heat conducting structure including a base member with a cavity formed on one side and a platform at an intermediate location for supporting the laser elements, and a closure member for closing the cavity around the laser elements, and a multi-conductor connection cable mounted in the package having connections to the pump source and to a source of electrical energy.

The present invention resides in novel housing or packaging means for a laser device and particularly laser devices that use side pumping from excited laser diodes into a crystal or other gain medium. The present housing represents an important advancement to devices such as the laser devices disclosed in Applicant's U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,805,177, issued Feb. 14, 1989 and 4,864,584, issued Sept. 5, 1989. The present housing or packaging provides improved means for making the electrical connections to certain of the laser elements such as to the laser diode pump sources, it provides a relatively compact, flat rugged design, it provides adjustable mirror holders and mounts, and the subject package is able to be mounted on thermoelectric coolers and associated heat sinks located outside of the sealed enclosure of the subject means to provide means for maintaining a desired laser operating temperature. The present construction uses a one piece sculptured resonator base plate which serves as the main support for the elements of the laser, a one piece closure member, and the device employs means for adjusting the alignment of the mirrors, which adjustment mean can be controlled using external inputs thus enabling even a small amount of mirror misalignment to be compensated for and by means that can be made to operate automatically in real time. The present construction lends itself to use with lasers operating in several modes including in continuous wave mode (CW) which is an important advantage in some applications. The relatively flat construction of the subject laser housing also enables a plurality of similarly housed lasers to be arranged in a stacked configuration and held together by common fasteners if desired.

Packaging device for diode laser pumped assembly


A slotting cutter includes a disc-like cutter body rotatable in a predetermined direction on a central axis perpendicular to a plane of the cutter body. A plurality of cutting insert receiving pockets and a corresponding number of wedge receiving pockets are formed about a perimeter of the body. A cutting insert is replaceably mounted in each insert receiving pocket of the cutter body, and a clamping wedge is replaceably mounted in each wedge receiving pocket of the cutter body. A cantilevered member is disposed between each insert receiving pocket and a respective wedge receiving pocket to securely hold the cutting insert in the cutter body.

Slotting cutters are known for cutting keyways and the like and, also, for providing work members with slots of various width.
Slotting cutters are somewhat similar to milling cutters in that the cutter usually employs a disc-like member having cutting inserts mounted in the periphery thereof. In a milling cutter, the cutting inserts are generally presented axially, whereas, in a slotting cutter, the cutting inserts protrude radially from the supporting disc and are, thus, presented to the work in the radial direction.
In order to form slots rapidly and efficiently, it is desirable that the cutting inserts be solidly supported in the cutter body and have adequate clearance between the cutting edges of the inserts and the cutter body as the material is removed from the work piece. With the inserts solidly supported and having sufficient clearance between the cutter body and the cutting edges, the slotting cutter is able to withstand substantial loads and can cut extremely rapidly, freely and accurately.
Most slotting cutters clamp the insert in the cutter body by means of an insert pocket with a "saw-cut" clamp design, and an insert with a slight taper angle. This "saw-cut" design allows for the insert pocket area to spread open when the insert is seated, which creates a spring-type taper clamping effect on the insert. In order for the slotting cutter to have minimal radial run-out, an additional seating surface feature is usually added to the pocket area. This seating surface creates a positive stop, which minimizes the accumulated radial run-out that could exist without this feature. This seating surface also distributes the radial cutting forces into the slotting cutter body, which in turn keeps the insert pocket from spreading open even further.
The existing pocket designs are completely dependent on the spring ability of the cutter body to securely clamp the insert, and does not allow for pocket wear or manufacturing dimensional variations of the insert and pocket. It would be desirable to provide a design that overcomes the inability to compensate for pocket wear or manufacturing dimensional variations of the insert and pocket.

Slotting cutter with cantilevered member


A process for making a stiffened and rigid paper includes preparing a pulp slurry consisting essentially of water, a cellulosic pulp, a crosslinker, and a starch, and optionally a binder; draining the liquid from the pulp slurry to form a web; and drying the web. Alternatively, a process for making a stiffened and rigid paper includes the step of adding at least one crosslinker at one or more locations, such as at the wet-end, dry-end, or at both ends of the papermaking process. Suitable crosslinkers include a glyoxal-containing crosslinker, a gluteraldehyde, a polyfunctional aziridine, a zirconium-containing crosslinker, a titanium-containing crosslinker, and an epichlorohydrin, and mixtures thereof. When a binder is employed, it can be added either in the dry or wet form. Provided is a neutral or alkaline process to produce a paper product having the improved mechanical properties of a laminated product in the Z-direction, without a lamination step.

The papermaking industry as well as other industries have long sought methods for enhancing the strength of products formed from fibrous materials such as, for example, paper and board products formed of cellulose fiber or pulp as a constituent. The dry-strength and related properties of a sheet formed from fibrous materials are especially important for various purposes. The problems and limitations presented by inadequate dry-strength have been particularly acute in the numerous industries where recycled furnish or fiber mechanically-derived from wood is utilized in whole or in part. In the papermaking industry for example, recycled cellulose fiber is typically used in the manufacture of newsprint and lightweight coated papers. These recycled fibers, however, are of a generally shorter length than chemically-pulped fibers. Paper produced from the shorter length recycled fibers have been found to have relatively poor dry-strength properties in comparison to paper manufactured from virgin, chemically-pulped fiber. The use of virgin chemically pulped fiber for all paper and board production, however, is extremely wasteful in terms of natural resource utilization and is cost-prohibitive in most instances and applications.
Various methods have been suggested in the past for improving the dry-strength and related properties of a sheet formed from fibrous materials such as paper or board materials formed of cellulose fiber. One method known in the art for improving the dry-strength properties of paper products, for example, involves the surface sizing of the sheet at a size press after its formation. While some of the critical properties of the product may be improved through sizing the surface of the sheets, not all equipment is amenable for such processes. Many papermaking machines, for example, including board and newsprint machines, are not equipped with a size press. Moreover, only the properties of the surface of the sheet are appreciably improved through surface sizing. Surface sizing, therefore, is either not available to a large segment of the industry or is inadequate for purposes of improving the strength of the product throughout the sheet. The latter factor is especially significant since paper failures during printing, for example, are obviously disruptive to production cycles and can be extremely costly.
A well-known method for increasing the strength of the paper product, without surface sizing of a sheet, is by lamination. Laminating is the process of applying a film to either one side or both sides of a pressed paper product. Lamination has been found to add stability to the sheet, allowing it to be more durable or stand upright. There are two major lamination categories: pouch and roll. Pouch lamination films are like envelopes and are sealed on one edge. Roll lamination films can involve a process in which a layer of film is applied to the front side of a document or it can involve a process in which the document is sandwiched between two layers and sealed by various lamination seal methods. The two most common methods of lamination are thermal lamination, which requires a heat source and pressure during the lamination process, and cold lamination, in which only one side of a document is laminated. The film used for cold lamination is much more costly than for thermal lamination, but the equipment is known to be less expensive. Additionally, cold lamination may not be as permanent as thermal lamination. Regardless of the lamination type or process utilized, lamination is known to be a costly method of adding strength to the paper product. It requires additional equipment, sealants, and films, and can introduce operational challenges to production time and quality control. Additionally, the lamination layer or layers contribute to the total finish caliper of the paper. Because total finish caliper of the paper is also an important consumer characteristic, processes which employ a lamination step are often restricted to using lower basis weight paper.
Another method to increase the strength of a paper product is through the addition of chemical additives directly to the fiber furnish prior to forming the sheet. One such process is taught by U.S. Pat. No. 5,328,567 to Kinsley, Jr. Common additives at the wet-end of a paper machine, for example, include cationic starch or melamine resins. The problem presented by these known wet-end additives used in the papermaking industry, however, is their inability to dramatically improve the mechanical properties of the paper in the Z-direction, such as peel strength, surface pick resistance and Scott internal bond. Another problem presented by such known wet-end additives is their relatively low degree of retention on the cellulose fiber during the initial formation of the sheet, at the wet-end of the paper machine. In most applications, significant portions of the wet-end additives accompany the white water fraction as it drains through the wire. This is due to high dilution and the extreme hydrodynamic forces created at the slice of a Fourdrinier machine. Alternatively, a significant portion of the additive may be lost in solution during the dwell time between its addition to the stock and the subsequent formation of the sheet on the machine. Accordingly, the use of known methods for internally strengthening fiber products have not produced a paper product with improved stiffness without the high costs and operational challenges associated with a lamination process.
Crosslinkers have been used in the paper-making industry. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,281,307 to Smigo et al. uses a crosslinking agent along with a polyvinyl alcohol/vinylamine copolymer containing between 0.5 and 25 mole % vinylamine units to improve certain properties of paper. In addition, GB Patent No. 1,471,226 relates to a process for the preparation of an aqueous dispersion of modified cellulose fibers, which comprises the steps of: (a) treating cellulose fibers, in aqueous dispersion, with a crosslinking agent capable, on the application of heat, of crosslinking cellulose fibers, (b) heating the dispersion to effect at least partial crosslinking of the cellulose fibers, and (c) treating the dispersion of at least partially crosslinked cellulose fibers with a polymer containing hydroxyl and/or amino groups. The desired paper product produced according to the '226 patent is to minimize jamming in a copying machine and therefore has a basis weight of preferably from 25 to 90 g/m^2 (i.e., 0.00512 lbs/ft^2 to 0.0184 lbs/ft^2).
U.S. Pat. No. 6,379,499 to Yang et al. discloses a method of treating paper comprising: contacting the paper with a hydroxy-containing polymer and a multifunctional aldehyde, in the presence of a catalyst in some embodiments. The multifunctional aldehyde may be gluteraldehyde, and the hydroxy-containing polymer may be polyvinyl alcohol. Yang teaches a process in which the multifunctional aldehyde and polyvinyl alcohol are pre-mixed (i.e., mixed together prior to their addition to the paper-making process). The multifunctional aldehyde of Yang is used to at least partially crosslink the polyvinyl alcohol, not the starch or pulp fibers, before the multifunctional aldehyde and the polyvinyl alcohol are added to the wet end pulp slurry. As Table 3 of Yang shows, the pre-mixing and crosslinking of gluteraldehyde and polyvinyl alcohol is necessary to retain or improve the dry strength and folding endurance of the resulting paper in the process according to Yang. With increased gluteraldehyde, however, the folding endurance is significantly decreased as a detriment to the desires of Yang. High amounts of multifunctional aldehydes have generally be found to exhibit a loss of dry strength and decreased folding endurance, which is in accordance with the findings of Yang, but has now been employed to produce a rigid sheet while retaining or improving stiffness.
U.S. Publication No. 2001/0051687 to Bazaj et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 5,824,190 to Guerro et al. include small amounts of crosslinker as an insolubilizer on the surface of the paper to reduce the water solubility of the paper and improve printability. In addition, Bazaj and Guerro require the addition of a hydrophobic surface size and hydrophilic acrylamide polymer mixture. The hydrophobic surface size and hydrophilic acrylamide polymer mixture provides hydrophobicity to the surface of the paper to improve printability by imparting substantial resistance to penetration of ink and aqueous liquids to the paper.
While research into improving the mechanical properties of the paper in the Z-direction, surface pick resistance, and Scott internal bond remains on-going, there has recently been the emergence of alkaline papermaking processes to solve other unmet operational needs. Recent technologies employ a neutral or alkaline papermaking process, which is carried out at pH 6 to 10, instead of an acidic papermaking process. The neutral or alkaline papermaking process has many advantages over known acidic processes, such as, for example: (1) smaller energy utilization; (2) reduced corrosion of machinery; and (3) environmental benefits associated with the non-acidic white water system and waste stream.
In the conversion from acid papermaking to alkaline papermaking, customers often complained that the resulting paper product lost stiffness. Tests have shown that this loss was in the rigidness of the paper sheet, not in the actual stiffness measurements of the products. This is often described as a loss of snap or rattle in the paper product. As is known in the art, "rigidness" relates to the brittleness of a paper product (i.e., flexural stiffness or flexural rigidity), while "stiffness" relates to the bending resistance of the paper product. A loss in rigidness is an increase in the paper product's flexibility, but a loss in stiffness is a decrease in the amount that the paper product resists bending. To achieve a low thickness (e.g., low caliper) paper product with the necessary stiffness and rigidity, paper producers have had to thus far laminate sheets of lesser caliper together. However, this adds a substantial and costly step to the paper-making process and can not be utilized for all paper products as lamination increases the overall basis weight of the paper product.


A marine acoustic array employs a plurality of sections connected together sequentially with the outer surfaces of said sections having a non-smooth configuration to create a water flow along the length of the array as it is towed through a water layer that causes sensors within the array to provide outputs having improved signal-to-noise ratios.

This invention relates to a marine acoustic survey and, more particularly to a marine acoustic array configured to alter turbulence conditions encountered by the array as it is towed along a line through a water layer so as to reduce tow noise effect on array contained hydrophones and other sensors.
In conducting a marine acoustic survey, an acoustic energy source is employed by an exploration vessel to generate an acoustic signal, referred to as a pressure wave, which is transmitted through the water layer into the subsurface formations. A portion of the signal is reflected from the subsurface reflecting interfaces back to the water layer where it is received by an acoustic array being towed behind the exploration vessel. The array is comprised of a plurality of acoustic sensors which generate electrical signals in response to the received acoustic signals. The acoustic signals are spread along the length of the array and are electrically connected through the array to recording instruments on board the exploration vessel. Such a marine acoustic survey may be typically carried out with the exploration systems of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,357,698 to W. H. Ruehle and U.S. Pat. No. 4,581,724 to R. G. Zachariadis.
In such a marine acoustic survey numerous problems are encountered in the recording of marine data that are not encountered during a land survey. A primary one of these problems is water turbulence created by the movement of the array along a line through the water layer resulting in array tow noise. Reducing tow noise is of particular interest as it creates distortion in the received acoustic reflection signals.
It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide for a marine acoustic array that can alter such water turbulence during marine acoustic surveys so as to reduce array tow noise and thereby provide acoustic reflection signals with improved signal-to-noise ratios. Reducing noise will permit detection of deeper events and better resolution of events at all levels.
A further object is a reduction of tow noise in fixed and towed applications for locating and identifying marine vessels and marine life forms.

Marine acoustic array configured for tow noise reduction


A semiconductor device for light detection comprises:                a photodiode comprising an optical active region; and        a resistor connected to said photodiode and overlapping at least a part of said optical active region, wherein the resistor comprising an anti-reflective coating for reducing reflection loss.

Semiconductor light detectors based on the photodiode are in common use. For example, a Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) is used to detect light and comprises an array of individual pixels on a common substrate. Each pixel comprises a photodiode such as Single Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD).
A SPAD operates by applying a reverse bias that is greater than the breakdown voltage of the diode. A single charge carrier in the depletion region can thereby cause a self-sustaining avalanche through impact ionization, which enables the detection of a single photon.
After the SPAD has been triggered a current will continue to flow until the bias voltage is reduced to the breakdown voltage or below. To reduce the bias voltage, and thereby reset the SPAD, the diode can be loaded with a resistor over which the voltage drops. This is referred to as a Passive Quenching Circuit (PQC). FIG. 1 shows a circuit diagram of a passively quenched SPAD device 2 having a photodiode 4, a reverse bias voltage supply 6 and a quenching resistor 8. The voltage drop V across the quenching resistor 8 is measured. The voltage pulse is used as information that an avalanche event has happened. Without an event, the voltage of the source 6 drops nearly completely across the diode 4 (in reverse bias). Passively quenched SPADs require high ohmic resistors, which occupy a significant area and thus lower the fill factor and reduce the sensitivity of such devices. Alternatively, an active quenching circuit can be used, which actively reduces the bias voltage after the SPAD has been triggered.
In a SPAD or other photodiode device, an anti-reflective coating (ARC) may be used over the optical active region to reduce reflection losses, which occur because of the difference in refractive index at the silicon interface. An ARC layer can thus improve the light sensitivity of the device.
European Patent Publication 2040308 describes a photodiode array comprising a plurality of SPADs with passive quenching circuits.

Semiconductor device for light detection