A billiard cue less bendable than a standard wood cue, which is manufactured by dividing a square lumber (20), sawed from a wood material (10), into a central member (21), having a cross-shaped section in which longitudinal sides thereof are perpendicular to transverse sides lines thereof and end terminals thereof contact edges of the square lumber (20), and peripheral members (22, 23, 24, and 25) cut off from the central member, and the peripheral members (22, 23, 24, and 25) are then bonded to the central member (21) so that the direction of the annual rings of the peripheral members (22, 23, 24, and 25) is opposite to the direction of the annual rings of the central member (21), thereby offsetting stress applied to the central member (21) due to the orientation of the annual rings of the original square lumber (20), and applied to the peripheral members (22, 23, 24, and 25), and allowing maintaining its straight state without deformation.

Generally, deformation of a wood material serving as furniture materials or building materials, such as distortion or warpage, is generated by contraction thereof. The constriction of the wood material differs according to species, age and trimming season of tree for the wood material and grain of the wood. The contraction percentage of the wood material is generally increased in order of a direction of fibers, a radius direction and a direction of age (annual ring or grain).
After trimming and sawing, wood material is dried for a designated period of time and is then processed to make products. The drying of the wood material protects the wood material from corrosion by bacterium and damage from insects, prevents damage, contraction and cracks thereof, improves strength and endurance thereof, and facilitates reduction in weight, coating and chemical treatment.
Mainly, conventional billiard cues have been made of hard maple. Instead of such a natural wood material, conventional billiard cues have been made of metal, such as aluminum, FRP, used as a material for fishing rods, or carbon fiber. The above materials have striking sensibility lower than that of the wood material, and generate the movement of the billiard cue in striking, thereby being incapable of absorbing impact in striking so that the impact is transmitted to a user's hand, thus being unsuitable for high-quality and popularization of the billiard cues.
For example, Korean Utility Model Registration No. 164192 discloses a billiard cue made of a wood material and a glass fiber pipe. The billiard cue comprises a shaft made of the wood material, including a handgrip portion and a strike portion, a glass fiber or carbon fiber pipe connected to the upper end of the shaft for preventing the warpage of the shaft, and a coating layer coating the pipe for protecting the pipe from external environmental stresses. Further, Korean Patent Laid-open No. 87-4717 discloses a method for manufacturing a billiard cue using a glass fiber pipe, Korean Utility Model Laid-open No. 86-11554 discloses a billiard cue manufactured by bonding and pressing rectangular pieces, cleaved from a material wood, to a conventional veneer board such that they cross each other and provided with a reinforcing plastic inserted into the central portion thereof, and Korean Utility Model Laid-open No. 84-4796 discloses a billiard cue manufactured by stacking four to eight layers of a thin plate material, which are infiltrated with carbolic acid resin at a high temperature, in a high-temperature and high-pressure state.
As time goes by, the billiard cues made of the wood material cannot maintain their straight states and are warped due to the contracting force of the wood material thereof, thereby being disadvantageous in that they cannot strike a correct point of a billiard ball and cannot provide desirable striking force or rotating force to the billiard ball.
In order to solve the warpage of the wood billiard cue, there was developed a billiard cue, which is manufactured by sawing straight lumber into a plurality of pieces having a triangular section, bonding the plural pieces in a radial shape, and machining the bonded unit using a lathe, as shown in FIG. 6. In case that the above billiard cue is used, a central portion of the billiard cue, which is not strong, depreciates striking force and striking sensibility, thereby causing general persons as well as pro billiard players to be reluctant to use the above billiard cue. Further, it is difficult to form an external or internal screw unit on the central portion (in case of an assembled cue), or to process the front end of the cue for attaching a tip thereto. Further, although the front end of the cue is processed, the processed end of the cue is easily damaged by impact.


A solar cell or photo diode has an n-type semiconductor layer and a p-type semiconductor layer which form a pn-junction at the metallurgical interface of the layers. A thin sheet of undoped semiconductor is located at the interface or the lower doped layer. The sheet has less recombination centers than its adjacent regions and prevents cross-doping of donors and acceptors from the n- and p-side by cross-diffusion to increase the open circuit voltage and fill-factor of the solar cells or photo diode.

High-efficiency solar cells or photo diodes are known to approach theoretical limits in collection efficiency, relating to the short circuit current. However, the actual conversion efficiency is derived by a product of short circuit current, fill factor, and open circuit voltage. It is the open circuit voltage, and to some extent the fill factor, that is known to stubbornly resist all attempts for further improvement to also approximate theoretical limits. It has long been known that recombination is a major factor that limits the actually achievable conversion efficiency. However, practical reasons prevent avoidance of recombination centers in the entire solar cell. Moreover, cross-diffusion of donors and acceptors produces automatically pairs of these that are suspected of being efficient recombination centers.
It would be desirable if some techniques could be developed for increasing the open-circuit voltage of solar cells or photo diodes to levels approaching the maximum attainable collection efficiency for the short circuit current.

Inverse delta-doping for improved open circuit voltage of solar cells or photo diodes


A disc pack coupling for transmitting torque between two shafts approximately aligned on a shaft axis includes a first hub assembly, a second hub assembly, and a center member extending between the first and second hub assemblies. Each hub assembly includes an axially compressible disc pack interposed between a hub and an end adapter. The center member has opposing ends, and is axially split into at least two pieces. A flange extending radially from each of the center member ends includes a assembly/disassembly hole formed between two of the at least two pieces.

This invention relates to shaft couplings, and more particularly, to disc pack couplings for transmitting torque between two shafts approximately aligned on a shaft axis.
Flexible disc pack couplings, such as Thomas Flexible Disc Couplings sold by Rexnord Industries, Inc., Milwaukee, Wis., are known in the art for transmitting torque between adjacent generally axially aligned first and second shafts. These couplings include a disc pack interposed between a pair of hubs or formed part of hub assemblies. The disc pack is typically formed from a plurality of stacked coaxial discs.
Close coupled disc pack couplings are especially suitable for use for close coupled gear and grid couplings, and where overall shaft to shaft spacing is minimal. In close coupled disc pack couplings, hub assemblies including a disc pack are fixed to each shaft. The hub assemblies are joined by a center member that transmits torque between the hub assemblies.
The minimal space between the hub assemblies requires an axially split center member joining the hubs in order to remove the center member and gain access to the disc packs for replacement without completely removing the hub assembly from the shaft or even completely removing the piece of equipment from which one of the shaft extends. The disc packs axially urge the hub assemblies into axial engagement with the center member. In order to remove the split center member, the disc packs must be compressed axially to disengage the hub assemblies from the center member which complicates removal of the center member. Moreover, the minimal spacing between the shafts joined by the close coupled disc pack coupling further increases the difficulty of fitting tools or clamps between the hub assemblies to compress the disc packs and remove and/or insert the center member. Therefore, a need exists for a close coupled disc pack coupling and method of use in which the disc packs can be easily compressed to remove the center member.

Method of removing a center member from a disc pack coupling


A treatment process of cyclosporine eye gel, comprising the steps of: adding carbomer to water, stirring thoroughly and homogenizing; after the prepared carbomer base swollen, stirring and homogenizing; cooling the carbomer base after moist heat sterilization, performing vacuum degassing, adjusting the pH of the base to 5.0-9.0 with filtered sodium hydroxide solution; mixing polyoxyl 35 castor oil, cyclosporin A raw material, 1,2-propanediol and water in a suitable ratio, preparing into a clear solution under a water bath at 35 to 45° C., and filtering; mixing the filtrate uniformly with the carbomer base, performing vacuum degassing; performing aseptic filling after another filtration. For the process of the present invention, sterilization and filtration is performed before adding carbomer, which is convenient for industrial production.

Cyclosporin A is a cyclic peptide containing 11 amino acids extracted from fungi and is a third-generation high-efficiency immunosuppressant for the treatment of dry eye.
For ophthalmic preparations, the state requires management according to the injection, so the sterility guarantee of the preparation is critical. At present, there are three main aspects of sterility guarantee: sterilization filtration process, aseptic process and terminal sterilization process. Cyclosporine is poorly soluble and thermally unstable, so cyclosporine aseptic preparation is a problem.
At present, the following three methods are mainly used for aseptic processing: procurement of sterile raw materials and operation in a sterile environment; end product moist heat sterilization; terminal product sterilization process. For the first method, it is difficult to purchase qualified sterile raw materials, and the preparation process and workshop environment are all sterile, rendering that the production cost is high, and the difficulty is high. For the second method end product moist heat sterilization, although the preparation can be guaranteed to be sterilized and operation is also better, but cyclosporine itself is not resistant to high temperature, which causes cyclosporine to produce more degradation impurities, increase the safety risk of the preparation, and produce side effects. For the third method terminal product sterilization process, it can only be used in the process of small-scale trials, is difficult to commercial production because the emulsion gel has a high viscosity and is easy to block a filter with small pore size, and the filtration is slow, and the production efficiency is difficult to ensure.
Patent No. CN201410033737.3 "A cyclosporine eye gel and its preparation method" discloses use of moist heat sterilization to ensure sterility. It is found via reproducible detection that moist heat sterilization causes cyclosporine to produce degradation impurities.
Patent No. CN201510785005.4 "a cyclosporine ophthalmic emulsion composition" relates to a formulation of a sterile raw material and an auxiliary material, which is industrially difficult to apply. Patent No. CN201610172271.4 "Cyclosporine Ophthalmic Emulsion" uses a configured emulsion terminal for sterilization filtration. It is difficult for a viscous emulsion to pass a 0.22 micron sterile filter, so it is not feasible. In summary, the various aseptic processes currently disclosed do not have the value and feasibility of commercial production.

Treatment process of cyclosporine eye gel

ZHAOKE (GUANGZHOU) OPHTHALMIC DRUG COMPANY LIMITED


Elements of a sensor system are encapsulated into a single package. The sensor elements are covered with a flexible gel coat and then inserted into a molding tool cavity. Each element may be individually coated with a gel blob, or all elements may by coated with a single gel blob. One or more retractable pins are incorporated into the molding tool and in their normal position are each in contact with the gel. A molding compound is injected into the cavity so as to encapsulate the device and gel coat. When the pins are extracted and the device ejected from the molding cavity, one or more passageways in the molding are left defined by the pins. The passageways expose the flexible gel covering the device elements to the atmosphere. For pressure sensitive elements, the gel, being flexible, transfers the local air pressure to the pressure sensitive element. For optical elements, the exposed gel is preferably removed to allow for the passage of radiation to and from the device elements. Alternatively, or in addition, an optically transmitting gel is used so as to allow for the passage of radiation at specific wavelengths.

The present invention relates in general to integrated monitoring systems, and more particularly to systems and methods for encapsulating a sensing element. The present invention is particularly useful for producing low cost optical sensor packages as well as multi sensor systems for the automotive industry.
Radiation sensing systems including integrated radiation sensors and often radiation transmission elements have become more widespread in their use in detecting position, rotation and fluid levels by optical means. While having the inherent drawback of requiring avoidance of any susceptibility to dirt, optical sensors impose no load on the sensed device or material. Optical sensors, including those using IR instead of visible light, often include a transmitter as well as a receiver to ensure the light levels are sufficient for accurate detection of reflected light from the target. Integrating the transmitter and the receiver into a single package has considerable cost benefits. In addition optical set up operations or tolerances can be reduced or eliminated since the combined package is manufactured and tested in a pre-aligned form.
Combining an IR radiation sensor in the same package as a pressure sensor in, for example, an automotive tire pressure sensor module can supply additional information concerning the temperature of the tire to the vehicle ECU""s for driver information or safety systems.
It is desirable to provide low cost integrated sensors, such as radiation sensors and pressure sensors, and efficient methods of producing the same.
The present invention provides integrated sensor packages for use in detecting radiation, e.g., visible and IR radiation, pressure and/or any other detectable physical property, and methods for producing the same. The techniques of the present invention include assembly methodologies that provide low cost sensor devices while maintaining the inherent high reliability as typically found in modern semiconductor packaging techniques.
According to the present invention, the elements of a sensor system are encapsulated into a single package. For example, elements of a wheel mounted tire pressure monitoring and transmitting system are encapsulated into a single package. As another example, elements of an optical transmission and detection system are encapsulated into a single package. The device elements are covered with a flexible gel coat and then inserted into a molding tool cavity. Each element may be individually coated with a separate gel blob, or all elements may be coated with a single gel blob. One or more retractable pins are incorporated into the molding tool and in their normal position are each in contact with the gel. A molding compound is injected into the cavity so as to encapsulate the device and gel coat. When the pins are extracted and the device ejected from the molding cavity, one or more passageways in the molding are left defined by the pins. The passageways expose the flexible gel covering the device elements to the atmosphere. For pressure sensitive elements, the gel, being flexible, transfers the local air pressure to the pressure sensitive element. For optical elements, the exposed gel is preferably removed to allow for the passage of radiation to and from the device elements, i.e., so as to define apertures. Alternatively, or additionally, an optically transmitting gel is used so as to allow for the passage of radiation at specific wavelengths.
According to an aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for encapsulating an integrated circuit device within a plastic molded package. The method typically includes providing an integrated circuit, the integrated circuit including a sensing element, applying a quantity of gel to the integrated circuit such as to cover at least the sensing element, thereby forming a gel-covered assembly, and inserting the gel-covered assembly into a cavity of a molding tool. The method also typically includes attaching a retractable pin to the gel-covered assembly, introducing a plastic mold compound into the cavity so as to encapsulate the gel-covered assembly and at least a portion of the pin, and removing the pin from the gel such as to leave a passageway in the plastic mold encapsulating the gel-covered assembly, thereby exposing the gel to the atmosphere through the passageway.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an encapsulated integrated circuit device is provided. The encapsulated device is typically formed, in part, by providing an integrated circuit, the integrated circuit including a sensing element, applying a quantity of gel to the integrated circuit such as to cover at least the sensing element, thereby forming a gel-covered assembly, and inserting the gel-covered assembly into a cavity of a molding tool. The encapsulated device is further typically formed by attaching a retractable pin to the gel-covered assembly, introducing a plastic mold compound into the cavity so as to encapsulate the gel-covered assembly and at least a portion of the pin, and removing the pin from the gel such as to leave a passageway in the plastic mold encapsulating the gel-covered assembly, thereby exposing the gel to the atmosphere through the passageway.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for encapsulating an integrated circuit device within a plastic molded package. The method typically includes providing an integrated circuit, the integrated circuit including a radiation sensing element and a radiation transmission element, applying a gel to the integrated circuit such as to cover at least the radiation sensing element and the radiation transmission element, thereby forming a gel-covered assembly, and inserting the gel-covered assembly into a cavity of a molding tool. The method also typically includes attaching at least two retractable pins to the gel-covered assembly, a first pin contacting the gel proximal the optical sensing element and a second pin contacting the gel proximal the optical transmission element, introducing a plastic mold compound into the cavity so as to encapsulate the gel-covered assembly and at least a portion of each pin, and removing the first and second pins from the gel such as to leave passageways in the plastic mold encapsulating the gel-covered assembly, thereby exposing the gel to the atmosphere through the passageways.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, an encapsulated integrated circuit device is provided. The encapsulated device is typically formed, in part, by providing an integrated circuit, the integrated circuit including a radiation sensing element and a radiation transmission element, applying a gel to the integrated circuit such as to cover at least the radiation sensing element and the radiation transmission element, thereby forming a gel-covered assembly, and inserting the gel-covered assembly into a cavity of a molding tool. The encapsulated device is further typically formed by attaching at least two retractable pins to the gel-covered assembly, a first pin contacting the gel proximal the optical sensing element and a second pin contacting the gel proximal the optical transmission element, introducing a plastic mold compound into the cavity so as to encapsulate the gel-covered assembly and at least a portion of each pin, and removing the first and second pins from the gel such as to leave passageways in the plastic mold encapsulating the gel-covered assembly, thereby exposing the gel to the atmosphere through the passageways.
Reference to the remaining portions of the specification, including the drawings and claims, will realize other features and advantages of the present invention. Further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention, are described in detail below with respect to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like reference numbers indicate identical or functionally similar elements.

Integrated sensor packages and methods of making the same


According to an embodiment, a semiconductor device, includes a substrate, an inter-layer insulating layer provided above the substrate, a first interconnect provided in a first trench, and a second interconnect provided in a second trench. The first interconnect is made of a first metal, and the first trench is provided in the inter-layer insulating layer on a side opposite to the substrate. The second interconnect is made of a second metal, and the second trench is provided in the inter-layer insulating layer toward the substrate. A width of the second trench is wider than a width of the first trench. A mean free path of electrons in the first metal is shorter than a mean free path of electrons in the second metal, and the first metal is a metal, an alloy or a metal compound, including at least one nonmagnetic element as a constituent element.

Semiconductor devices such as system LSIs, semiconductor memory devices, etc., have a cell region where semiconductor elements are arranged in an array configuration, and a peripheral circuit that controls the semiconductor elements in the cell region from a peripheral region. Downscaling of the semiconductor elements and multilayering of the interconnect structure are progressing to increase an integration degree of the semiconductor device. For example, such a semiconductor memory device has a memory cell region including the semiconductor memory elements, a peripheral circuit region including a circuit at the periphery of the memory cell region to control the semiconductor memory elements in the memory cell region, and a multilayered interconnect structure at the upper portions of the memory cell region and the peripheral circuit region. Each of the interconnect layers of the multilayered interconnect structure includes interconnects (hereinbelow, called cell region interconnects) that are drawn out from the elements inside the memory cell region and interconnects (hereinbelow, called peripheral region interconnects) that are drawn out from the peripheral circuit in the peripheral circuit region. Downscaling progresses for the semiconductor memory element and the cell region interconnect as the memory capacity of the semiconductor memory device is increased. As a result, the electric resistance of the cell region interconnect increases; and the delay of control signals inside the memory cell region and the increase of heat generation may occur due to the increased interconnect resistance. Although there is a method in which a metal having a short mean free path is used to suppress the increase of the resistance of the cell region interconnect, the increase of the resistance of the peripheral region interconnect is problematic.

Semiconductor device and method for manufacturing same


A device for dispensing a medicament and/or dietary supplement to a user comprises a housing; a sample inlet unit; a sample analysis unit; a data processing unit; and a dispensing assembly including a cartridge holder and a dispensing mechanism comprising means for dispensing a metered dose of said medicament or dietary supplement. The device may be used in a method for the customised provision of medicaments and/or dietary supplements to a user.

The global market for dietary supplements amounted to approximately USD 132.8 billion in 2012 and is set to continue to grow. It is estimated that by 2022, the global market in this area will be worth around USD 220 billion.
Dietary supplements include vitamins, minerals, herbal products, amino acids and various other products. People take dietary supplements for a number of reasons. While some may be aware that they are deficient in one or more nutrients, many use supplements to support their general health and well-being. With a vast array of supplements available, some will select particular products to use (Vitamin C is the most popular single vitamin supplement), and others will opt for a range of supplements, for example as available in a 'multivitamin' product. However, many individuals who regularly take dietary supplements are not aware of their personal needs. They may have adequate levels of certain nutrients but have undesirably high or low levels in others. Over-the-counter supplements may therefore include various elements of which a particular individual has no need, or they may not contain enough of something in which the individual is deficient.
Precision medicine is an emerging approach for disease treatment and prevention that takes into account an individual's genetic profile, environment, and lifestyle. Through precision medicine, treatments may be tailored to an individual on the basis of diagnostic tests based on the presence, or absence, of biomarkers. Such an approach promises better clinical outcomes, safer medicines and less wastage, compared with the traditional "one-size-fits-all" approach in the medical field.
Biomarkers are used to indicate particular biological states or conditions. In the context of the present invention, quantifiable biomarkers are employed to indicate, for example, vitamin and mineral levels, protein detection, or levels of hormones, antigens and other substances which can be indicative of particular diseases.
In the nutrient field, recommended daily intake levels for number of vitamins and other nutrients, for example those considered essential for human beings are widely publicised. Determination of specific biomarkers in the blood indicates the concentration of such nutrients in the body, and a comparison with generally accepted healthy levels can indicate, for example, if a particular individual is deficient in, or has an insufficient intake of, a particular vitamin or other nutrient.
The following is a non-exhaustive list of nutrient-related biomarkers that can be quantified through analysis of a sample of blood:
Water Soluble Vitamins:
Vitamin C: ascorbic acid
Vitamin B12: VitB12, homocysteine, methylmalonic acid (MMA), transcobalamin (holoTC)
Folate: Folate (serum or RBC), homocysteine, folic acid
Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
Vitamin B3 (niacin)
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
Fat Soluble Vitamins:
Vitamin A: Retinol, retinol binding protein.
Vitamin A (beta carotene)
Vitamin D: 1, 25 Hydroxycholecalciferol
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)
Vitamin K1 (phytonadione)
Other Minerals:
Magnesium
Iron: Ferritin, transferrin receptor, iron, hepcidin, zinc protoporphyrin/heme ratio, haemoglobin/haematocrit.
Zinc: zinc
Iodine: Iodine, thyroglobulin, TSH, T3/T4
The analysis of blood for determining vitamin and mineral levels (through direct measurements or functional tests) is well established and there are generally accepted healthy value ranges, some examples of which are listed below.
For Vitamin D, levels of from 20 nanogram/millilitre to 50 ng/mL are generally considered as healthy; a level of less than 12 ng/mL indicates deficiency
For Vitamin C (ascorbate), levels less than 0.3 mg/dL indicate significant deficiency, while levels that exceed 0.6 mg/dL indicate sufficient intake.
For Vitamin B12 (cobalamin), levels of between 200 and 900 picograms per millilitre (pg/mL) are generally considered as healthy.
For Vitamin B6 (using the reference for pyridoxal phosphate (PLP), the biological active form of vitamin B6): 5-50 micrograms/L are generally considered as healthy.
For Vitamin B1 (thiamine), using thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP): levels 2.5-7.5 micrograms/dL or 74-222 mol/L are generally considered as healthy.
For Vitamin B3 (niacin), using nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) & nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP), a value of below 130 for the ratio of NAD/[NAD+NADP]×100 suggests deficiency.
For Vitamin A (retinol), measuring retinol, ranges of from 15 to 60 micrograms/L are generally considered as healthy, with values less than 15 mcg indicating deficiency.
For Vitamin B2 (riboflavin), using flavinadeninedinulceotide (FAD) (90% of total riboflavin in blood), 137-370 micrograms/L are generally considered as healthy, with levels less than 137 mcg/L indicating deficiency.
For Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid), pa range from 1.6 to 2.7 mcmol/L is generally considered as healthyl, with levels less than 1.6 mcmol/L indicating deficiency.
For Vitamin E (tocopherol), using alpha-topherol levels in blood, anything less than 5 mcg/mL indicates deficiency.
For Vitamin B9, Folic acid (folate), using folate levels: 2-20 ng/mL generally considered as healthy, with levels less than 2 ng/mL indicating deficiency.
For Omega 3: measuring EPA and DHA, 8% total erythrocytes fatty acids is the target level in blood analysis.
For Omega 6, the target ratio with Omega 3 is 2:1 (in most western diets the ratio is 10:1).
For Iron the serum ferritin levels measured should not be below 20 ng/mL
In the medical field, biomarkers for a number of diseases are known, with the list below representing only a few of such.
Medicinal Markers:
Cardiac Disease/Injury: Troponin I
Renal (acute problems): Serum IL-6 and IL-8
Prostate (cancer): Prostate-specific antigen (PSA)
Ovaries (cancer): cancer antigen 125 (CA125)
Medullary Thyroid cancer: calcitonin
Liver cancer: alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)
Testicular cancer: human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG)
Blood testing in order to determine biomarkers in a person's blood generally involves the taking of a sample of blood by a trained clinician, with the sample then being transferred to a specialist laboratory for analysis. The process is time-consuming and labour-intensive.
Kits for blood sampling by an individual have become available, including kits intended for use by the individual at home. Generally, the individual will collect a blood sample from a finger or thumb, using a simple finger prick test kit, and will then send the sample to a specialist laboratory for assessment. Such kits are generally used to determine food intolerances and nutritional deficiencies, etc.
In the field of diabetes care, US 2014243635 discloses a device for enabling patient self-testing and treatment self-administration including a sampling mechanism for taking from a patient a sample that can be tested for a property indicative of a medical condition of the patient; circuitry such as a microprocessor for determining a treatment for the condition based on a test of the sample; and an administration mechanism for administering the treatment. This disclosure relates specifically to an integrated blood glucose monitor and insulin pen unit for collecting a blood sample from a patient, analysing the glucose level in the sample, calculating an insulin dosage based on the based on the insulin level, if appropriate, and administering the calculated dosage. Stored protocols and criteria may be employed to determine whether treatment is required. Numerous variations of the unit are mentioned, including multi-medicament possibilities, for example vitamin assortments for wellness programs, which vitamin assortments may be administered orally or by injection.
Also in the field of diabetes care, U.S. Pat. No. 8,206,340 relates to a portable insulin injection pen and blood glucose monitoring device integrated into a single unit for testing and treating diabetes symptoms. A blood glucose monitoring system for receiving a sample of the user's blood and detecting its glucose level, an insulin injection mechanism for administering an insulin injection, and a microprocessor that calculates an insulin dosage appropriate to the detected blood glucose level and sets the insulin injection mechanism to administer the calculated insulin dosage, are included in the device; the microprocessor calculates treatment regimens specific to a particular user based on the detected blood glucose level and displays the treatment regimens on an LCD display.
US2015291411 relates to a device for dispensing, for example, a nutritional supplement or a medication, based on the specific requirements of an individual. The device may include the following: a formulation and/or dose generating unit, a supplies unit, a mixing unit, an input unit, an evaluation unit, a sensor unit, a communication unit; an environment parameter capturing unit; a formulation output unit, a packaging generating unit and an injection unit.


A compressing machine includes a press unit 12 for compressing a concentrated sludge within a squeezing chamber to provide a briquette B, and a press control means 13 for controlling the press unit 12. The press control means 13 includes a parameter and compressing speed setting means 26, a parameter measuring means 28, and a compressing speed control means 27. The parameter and compressing speed setting means 26 is a means in which a relation between a predetermined parameter that may affect compression performed by the press unit 12, and a compressing speed of the press unit 12. The predetermined parameter may include a coolant temperature, ambient temperature or a coolant content and others. The parameter measuring means 28 is a means for measuring the predetermined parameter. The compressing speed control means 27 controls, based on a result of measurement by the parameter measuring means 26, the compressing speed of the press unit 12 in accordance with a content set in the parameter and compressing speed setting means 26.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a grinding sludge compacting machine for compressing a grinding sludge of hardened component parts produced in a grinding line, for example, a grinding sludge of ferrous component parts such as inner and outer races and rolling elements and others of rolling bearings and other bearing steel material, to thereby provide a briquette.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Ferrous component parts of rolling bearings such as inner and outer races and rolling elements are, after having been hardened, subjected to a grinding process to grind raceways and others. Powdery grinding scraps produced as a result of the grinding are discharged as a sludge together with a coolant to the outside of the system and are then filtered so that the coolant can be reused. The grinding sludge left as a result of the filtration is in most cases buried in landfill.
However, not only is the use of the grinding sludge for landfill generally considered undesirable from the standpoint of environmental pollution, but also it is obvious that in view of the waste treatment sites reaching an dead end, the grinding sludge would no longer be used for land reclamation. Although the amount of the grinding scraps produced as a result of the grinding is relatively small as compared with the amount of cutting scraps, a mass-production line for manufacture of, for example, bearings results in a relatively large quantity of the grinding scraps
For this reason, it has been suggested to compress the grinding sludge by squeezing to provide a compressed material (referred hereinafter to as a xe2x80x9cbriquettexe2x80x9d) so that the coolant squeezed therefrom can be reused while the briquette can be used as a material for steel production.
While the grinding sludge using an aqueous coolant can easily be compressed to provide the briquette, an oil-based coolant has a higher viscosity than that of the aqueous coolant and, therefore, the grinding sludge using the oil-based coolant poses various problems in compressing it. By way of example, during squeezing the oil-based coolant is difficult to be drained and even though the pressure used during squeezing is increased, compression of the grinding sludge to a required strength cannot be achieved. For this reason, compression of the grinding sludge containing the oil-based coolant has not yet been practiced.
Compression of the grinding sludge is considerably affected by the viscosity of the coolant being squeezed during the compressing process. Not only where the coolant is oil-based, but also where it is water-based, it tends to be considerably affected by the coolant viscosity. In particular, at the time of the start-up in the morning during the winter season, the grinding sludge compacting machine and the grinding sludge are both cold with the coolant consequently exhibiting a high viscosity enough to make it difficult for the coolant to be discharged through a gap. Accordingly, when attempt is made to forcibly apply a pressure to the grinding sludge to compress the latter, the coolant and the grinding scraps are mixed to form a sludge which subsequently flow out, making it difficult for the grinding sludge to be satisfactorily compressed.
As a machine for compressing a grinding sludge containing an oil-based coolant, the applicant(s) of the present invention has suggested a machine in which the pressure used for squeezing is controlled to a predetermined value and a predetermined compressing speed such as described in the Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-315000. According to this prior invention, the grinding sludge containing the oil-based coolant of a high viscosity can be satisfactorily compressed. However, it cannot accommodate change in parameter that affects the squeezing and, in the event that the parameter such as, for example, the ambient temperature or the oil content in the grinding sludge that affects the squeezing changes, it may be suspected that no satisfactory squeezing to provide the briquette can be achieved.
In general, because the grinding sludge contains so large a quantity of the coolant that the grinding sludge cannot be squeezed directly, the grinding sludge containing the coolant is, prior to being squeezed, filtered to provide a concentrated sludge which is subsequently compressed by the grinding sludge compacting machine to provide a briquette.
The grinding sludge compacting machine for compressing the grinding sludge has hitherto been available in the following two types; a gate type and a plug-like double cylinder type.
The gate type grinding sludge compacting machine includes, as shown in FIG. 9, a cylindrical mold 81 for accommodating a grinding sludge therein, a gate 82 for closing one end of the cylindrical mold 81 and a pressure applying piston 83 reciprocatingly movably inserted in the cylindrical mold 81 from the opposite end thereof. By pressing the piston 83 by means of a pressure applying cylinder 85, the grinding sludge can be squeezed within the cylindrical mold 81 to provide a briquette B.
The grinding sludge compacting machine of the plug-like double cylinder type includes, as shown in FIG. 10, a cylindrical mold 91 and first and second pressure applying pistons 92 and 93 reciprocatingly movably inserted in the cylindrical mold 91 through opposite ends thereof, respectively. The first and second pistons 92 and 93 are pressure applying sub-piston and main piston, respectively, which are driven by a sub-cylinder 94 and a main cylinder 95, respectively. The sub-piston 92 is held at a fixed position during the squeezing process and is adapted to be retracted away from the cylindrical mold 91 when the resultant briquette B is to be ejected out of the cylindrical mold 91.
The foregoing two systems have their own problems which will now be discussed.
(1) Gate Type (FIG. 9)
Since the sliding gate 82 is almost unable of being sealed against the cylindrical mold 81, it works while the grinding sludge is intruded into a gap therebetween and, for this reason, frictional wear is apt to occur. Once rattling occurs because of it, the gap increases and, once this gap increases to a size exceeding a limit, either the grinding sludge will blow off during the compressing operation, or the sludge will solidify within the gap between the gate 82 and the end face of the sleeve 81 with the coolant being consequently unable to be drained, resulting in difficulty in accomplishing the compression of the grinding sludge. Also, since the gate selectively open or close while the briquette B is purged firmly against the gate 82, frictional wear of respective contact surfaces of the gate 82 and the briquette B, respectively, progresses. Once the quantity of the frictional wear increases to a value in excess of a limit, the phenomenon similar to that discussed above occurs, resulting in difficulty in completing the compression of the grinding sludge.
(2) Plug-Like Double Cylinder Type (FIG. 10)
At the time of compression and ejection of the briquette B, the briquette B is pushed by the pressure applying main cylinder 95 while an outer peripheral surface of the briquette B is firmly urged against an inner peripheral surface of the sleeve 81. For this reason, the inner peripheral surface of the sleeve 91 is susceptible to frictional wear and, when in the last, a gap between an outer peripheral surface of the sub-piston 92 and the inner peripheral surface of the sleeve 91 increases to a size in excess of a limit, either the grinding sludge will blow off during the compressing operation, or the sludge will solidify within the gap between respective outer peripheral surfaces of the pistons 92 and 93 and the inner peripheral surface of the sleeve to such an extent that the coolant cannot be drained satisfactorily, resulting in difficulty in completing the compression of the grinding sludge.
The present invention is, therefore, intended as its primary object to provide a grinding sludge compacting machine capable of satisfactorily compressing a grinding sludge, containing a coolant originating from a grinding line for hardened component parts, even though a parameter that would affect the squeezing process changes.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a capability of satisfactorily achieving a compression regardless of change in temperature.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a capability of efficiently compressing the grinding sludge regardless of change in content of the coolant in the grinding sludge.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a grinding sludge compacting machine of the type referred to above that is robust to frictional wear, capable of satisfactorily compressing the grinding sludge and capable of being operated stably for a prolonged period of time.
To accomplish these objects, the present invention in accordance with one aspect thereof provides a grinding sludge compacting machine for making a briquette of a grinding sludge by squeezing a concentrated grinding sludge that is a grinding sludge which has been produced in a grinding line by grinding hardened component parts while containing a coolant and which is obtained by filtering the grinding sludge. The grinding sludge compacting machine includes a press unit having a squeezing chamber defined therein and operable to compress the concentrated sludge by application of a pressure within the squeezing chamber, and a press control means for controlling the press unit. The press control means includes a parameter and compressing speed setting means in which a relation between a predetermined parameter that affects the squeezing by the press unit and a compressing speed of the press unit is set, a parameter measuring means for measuring the predetermined parameter, and based on the result of measurement by the parameter measuring means, a compressing speed control means for controlling the compressing speed of the press unit in accordance with a content set by the parameter and compressing speed setting means.
When the grinding sludge is being squeezed to eventually provide a briquette, the compressing speed is affected by the viscosity of the coolant and the fine interstices in the grinding sludge and in turn affects the squeezing process and a result thereof considerably. A proper compressing speed depends on various parameters such as, for example, the viscosity of the coolant. However, according to the first aspect of the present invention discussed above, the relation between the predetermined parameter which would affect the squeezing and the proper compressing speed of the press unit is determined and is then set in the parameter and compressing speed setting means so that during the squeezing operation the predetermined parameter can be measured by the parameter measuring means to enable the compressing speed to be controlled in accordance with the relation between the predetermined parameter and the compressing speed that has been set in the parameter and compressing speed setting means. Accordingly, even though the parameter that affects the squeezing varies in numerous ways, the grinding sludge compacting machine can accommodate such change to compress the grinding sludge satisfactorily and efficiently to provide a satisfactorily finished briquette.
Preferably, the predetermined parameter is the temperature selected from the group consisting of the temperature of the coolant contained in the concentrated sludge, the ambient temperature of the press unit and a temperature of a predetermined portion of the press unit. In this case, the parameter measuring means preferably measures the temperatures or the ambient temperature and, based on a result of measurement performed by the parameter measuring means, the compressing speed by the press unit is controlled by the compressing speed control means in accordance with the content of the temperature or the ambient temperature and the compressing speed set in the parameter and compressing speed setting means. It is to be noted that the temperature of the coolant contained in the concentrated grinding sludge may be that before the grinding sludge is supplied into the press unit or that after the grinding sludge has been supplied into the press unit.
By way of example, at the time of start-up of the grinding sludge compacting machine, the compacting operation is initiated with the compressing speed automatically determined according to the measured temperature and the measured ambient temperature. As the compacting operation proceeds, the coolant temperature and the ambient temperature increase with the machine warmed up and, accordingly, in pursuit for change in coolant temperature and in ambient temperature, the compressing speed is automatically, for example, stepwise increased to enable the compressing operation to take place under an ordinary state. In this way, the satisfactory compression of the grinding sludge can be achieved with the compressing speed determined properly in dependence on the change in coolant temperature and others.
Alternatively, the predetermined parameter may be the content of the coolant in the concentrated sludge, in which case the parameter measuring means measures the content of the coolant and, based on a result of measurement performed by the parameter measuring means, the compressing speed by the press unit is controlled by the compressing speed control means in accordance with the content of the coolant contents and the compressing speed set in the parameter and compressing speed setting means. It is to be noted that the coolant may be an oil-based coolant or a water-based coolant.
The content of the coolant contained in the concentrated sludge to be supplied into the press unit inevitably varies depending on a condition prior to the treatment. Once the coolant content varies, the compression of the grinding sludge will be affected as follows. If the coolant content is high, the grinding scraps and the coolant are mixed to form a sludge easy to flow out when it is forcibly compressed by the press unit and, accordingly, either is the yield of the grinding scraps that can be compressed reduced, or in the worst case it may occur the total amount of the grinding sludge will flow out to such an extent as to render the compression of the grinding sludge difficult. In such case, the squeezing operation has to be performed with the compressing speed lowered. On the other hand, if the coolant content is low, the coolant will not flow out in the form of a sludge and compression can easily be performed and, accordingly, the compressing speed can be accelerated.
In view of the foregoing, by measuring the coolant content at all times and performing a control of the compressing speed in dependence on the change in coolant content based on the result of measurement, it is possible to achieve the compression efficiently with any fault in compression eliminated and with no need to lower the compressing speed.
The parameter measuring means may not be always limited to measure the coolant content directly, but may be designed to measure the coolant content in consequence. Accordingly, the parameter measuring means may be of a type capable of measuring an advanced position of a pressure applying piston, provided in the press unit, during a compressing operation. In this case, the parameter and compressing speed setting means has set therein a threshold value representative of a position, which corresponds to an ordinary advanced end of the advanced position of the piston, and a compressing speed for each division divided by such threshold value, and the compressing speed control means preferably compares a result of measurement of the piston advanced position, measured by the parameter measuring means during a compressing operation, with the threshold value, to thereby control the compressing speed in accordance with the content set in the parameter and compressing speed setting means.
The advanced position of the pressure applying piston of the press unit during the compressing operation varies depending on the coolant content in the concentrated grinding sludge. Specifically, if the coolant content is high, the advanced position will be forwardly of the position assumed when the coolant content is ordinary. Accordingly, by automatically cyclically measuring the advanced position of the piston, the compressing speed is lowered when the advanced position is forwardly of a threshold value that is set as the position assumed when the coolant content is ordinary. By so doing, even where the compression of the concentrated grinding sludge is difficult to achieve because of the high coolant content, a satisfactory compression can be achieved.
The parameter measuring means may be of a design capable of measuring the coolant content in terms of change in compressing pressure. By way of example, the parameter measuring means may measure a length of time required for a predetermined compressing pressure to be attained subsequent to start of compression when the concentrated sludge is compressed by the press unit. In this case, the parameter and compressing speed setting means has set therein a threshold value of the length of time and a compressing speed for each division divided by the threshold value, and the compressing speed control means compares the length of time, measured by the parameter measuring means, with the threshold value to thereby control the compressing speed in accordance with a content set in the parameter and compressing speed setting means.
Where the grinding sludge is to be compressed to provide the briquette, the coolant is squeezed during the first half of the compressing process and the grinding scraps are compressed during the latter half of the compressing process. For this reason, during the first half of the compressing process, a relatively low compressing pressure effective to squeeze the coolant is sufficient. For this reason, when the low compressing pressure is employed during the first half of the compressing process, the speed of movement of the pressure applying piston is affected by the concentrated sludge supplied into the squeezing chamber and, hence, the length of time required for the predetermined compressing pressure to be attained varies. If the coolant content is high, the coolant quickly fills up the squeezing chamber and quickly attains a predetermined compressing pressure at which switching of a low compressing pressure over to a high compressing pressure takes place. By monitoring the length of time required for the threshold value, that is the predetermined compressing pressure at the low compressing pressure, to be attained subsequent to such a phenomenon and then by controlling the compressing speed at the high compressing pressure according to the length of time so required, a stabilized normal compression of the grinding sludge can be realized.
In a second aspect, the present invention provides a grinding sludge compacting machine for compressing for making a briquette of a grinding sludge by inserting a concentrated grinding sludge formed by filtering a grinding sludge, produced in a grinding line by grinding hardened component parts while containing a coolant, into a press unit comprising a cylindrical mold fixed on a machine bench, a first piston reciprocatingly movably inserted in the cylindrical mold and a second piston arranged in face-to-face relation with the first piston, and compressing the concentrated sludge. In this compacting machine, the second piston has one end of a diameter larger than an inner diameter of the cylindrical mold.
With this compacting machine, the concentrated sludge supplied into the cylindrical mold is compressed by and between the first and second piston to provide the briquette. The second piston has one end that is of a diameter larger than the inner diameter of the cylindrical mold and is used to close the annular open end of the cylindrical mold when brought adjacent thereto and, therefore, upon completion of the compressing operation, the second piston is retracted in a direction away from the cylindrical mold while the first piston pushes the compressed material, that is, the briquette to eject the latter out of the cylindrical mold. In this way, since the second piston when retracted away from the cylindrical mold opens the annular open end of the cylindrical mold, no relative slippage such as observed in the gate type compacting machine will occur in the surface of the second piston and also in a surface of the compressed material that contacts such surface of the second piston and, consequently frictional wear hardly occur in the surface of the compressed material contacting the surface of the second piston. Sealing required to avoid blow-off of the grinding sludge during the compressing operation is achieved at and between the annular end face of the cylindrical mold and the second piston. Also, since the sealing is achieved at and between the annular end face of the cylindrical mold and the second piston, unlike the plug-like double cylinder type, even when the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical mold undergoes frictional wear as the resultant briquette is compressed or pushed by the first piston, the sealing function will not be adversely affected. The grinding sludge compacting machine according to this aspect is thus substantially free from any influence which would otherwise be brought about by the frictional wear and can therefore work (perform the compressing operation) for a prolonged period of time in a stabilized manner, resulting in reduction in maintenance cost.
Preferably, the end of the second piston defines a gap in cooperation with an annular end of the cylindrical mold when the second piston is held in position adjacent the cylindrical mold, said gap defining a coolant drain passage. The gap referred to above may be of a size within the range of 0.05 to 1.0 mm.
The capability of the coolant being drained will considerably affect the efficiency of the compressing operation and the quality, but if the gap between the end of the second piston and the annular end face of the cylindrical mold is utilized as the coolant drain passage, a drain circuit for drainage of the coolant can easily be defined. If this gap defining the coolant drain passage is too small, the drainage of the coolant will be adversely affected, but if this gap is conversely too large, a problem would occur that the grinding sludge will blow off from the cylindrical mold or that the grinding sludge will be clogged within the gap to such an extent as to result in incapability of the coolant being drained. Accordingly, when the gap is chosen to be of a size within the range of 0.05 to 1.0 mm, a favorable drainage of the coolant can be secured and, on the other hand, it is also possible to avoid any possible blow-off of the grinding sludge.


An image sensor includes a pixel and a control circuit to detect the optical signal transmitted by a signal line. The pixel includes a photodetector, an amplifier circuit configured to amplify an optical signal from the photodetector, and a first switch configured to control whether to output the optical signal from the pixel to the signal line. The control circuit includes a first capacitor connected with the signal line and an integrator connected with the signal line via the first capacitor. The control circuit is configured to successively supply a first potential and a second potential different from each other to the signal line in a state where the first switch is non-conductive, and measure an amplification rate determined by the first capacitor and the integrator based on outputs of the integrator when the first potential is supplied and the second potential is supplied.

This disclosure relates to an image sensor, and particularly to a technique to improve the noise characteristic of the image sensor.
Flat panel detectors (FPDs) for X-ray fluoroscopy have been improved to have higher resolution. The pixel area reduced by this improvement results in reduction of the amount of signal, which lowers the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in conventional FPDs employing a passive pixel sensor (PPS) method. One of the solutions to this problem is an active pixel sensor (APS) method that utilizes an amplifier circuit provided in each pixel. Complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensors fabricated on a crystalline silicon substrate employ this APS method.
However, for FPDs to be manufactured by disposing thin-film transistors (TFTs) on a large glass substrate, the amplifier circuits also have to be made of TFTs. This causes the following problem. The TFTs as amplifier circuits vary in threshold voltage depending on their positions on the glass substrate and as a result, the amplifier circuits have offset errors. An offset error leads to a fixed-pattern noise (FPN). An attempt to correct the FPN with a signal detector circuit or in image processing reduces the dynamic range of the signal depending on the magnitude of the offset error.
A technique to reduce the offset errors caused by the variation in threshold voltage among TFTs or other types of transistors is disclosed in JP H05-207220 A. JP H05-207220 A discloses a circuit diagram including an FPN suppression circuit and a pixel in FIG. 1 and a timing chart illustrating their operation in FIG. 2.
The FPN suppression circuit disclosed therein includes an inverting amplifier having a high gain and a feedback capacitor C2 and the FPN suppression circuit is connected with a vertical signal line VL to output the voltage of a pixel via a capacitor C1. According to JP H05-207220 A, the differential voltage between the pixel voltage after the pixel is irradiated with light and the pixel voltage after the pixel voltage is reset is amplified −C1/C2 times and therefore, the offset error is eliminated from the signal by reading this differential voltage.


A packed data structure processor (25) is disclosed. The packed data structure processor (25) includes a register file (24) of multiple registers (REG0 through REG31), each of which is connected to an input of each of a plurality of operand multiplexers (26). Each operand multiplexer (26) is associated with a shift/mask circuit (28), which permits the selection of a particular portion (e.g., BYIE, WORD, DWORD) of the contents of a selected register file, for use as an operand. An arithmetic logic unit (ALU) (30) performs data processing operations upon the operands, and presents results on writeback bus (WBBUS), to external memory (18) over a memory interface (37), or to a register file (42) associated with other circuitry (44) over a coprocessor interface (41). A destination selector (40) is capable of writing to only a selected portion of a selected register, thus permitting a packed data structure to be present within the register file (24). The packed data structure processor (25) is capable of performing single cycle test and branch operations, as a program counter (36) is closely coupled to the ALU (30).

This invention is in the field of integrated circuits, and is more specifically directed to programmable integrated logic circuits for executing data processing operations.
As is well known in the art, many advances have been made in recent years in increasing the performance of programmable logic integrated circuits, the prime example of which is the microprocessor. The architecture of modern general purpose microprocessors, such as those having the functionality and performance on a par with PENTIUM microprocessors available from Intel Corporation, generally includes one or more relatively long "pipelines", in which multiple instructions are in various stages of execution in any given machine cycle. For example, a six-stage pipeline may have six instructions in process in a given cycle, with different instructions in the prefetch, fetch, decode, schedule, execute, and writeback stages within a single cycle. Indeed, many microprocessors now are of the so-called "superscalar" type, in which multiple pipelines are provided. The pipeline technique is of particular benefit in microprocessors of the so-called complex instruction set computer (CISC) type, where most of the instructions in the available instruction set require multiple cycles to execute; through the use of pipelining, one instruction may be retired in each cycle, giving an apparent performance of one cycle per instruction.
A difficulty with pipelined architectures arises in the case of conditional branching instructions. As is fundamental in the art, conditional branch instructions change the program flow in response to various conditions, including the relationship of variables to one another or to a constant value, and including the state of various flag or status bits. In a pipelined microprocessor, however, the result of the condition will not be known until after the next several instructions have proceeded along the pipeline to some extent. However, if the condition upon execution transfers control to instructions other than those which have already partially progressed along the pipeline, the pipeline must be flushed and execution restarted from the prefetch stage for the instruction corresponding to the correct target of the conditional branch. This flushing of the pipeline, of course, results in a significant performance penalty. Accordingly, significant circuit overhead is now spent in modem microprocessors to implement branch prediction techniques, as the overall performance of the microprocessor depends in large part upon the accuracy with which conditional branches are predicted, and thus the extent to which pipeline flushes resulting from mispredicted branches are avoided.
By way of further background, microprocessors of the reduced instruction set computer (RISC) type are known in the art; examples of such RISC devices are the 88 k line of microprocessors available from Motorola, and the i860 line of microprocessors available from Intel Corporation. While the reduced instruction set nature of RISC processors tends to reduce the frequency with which multiple cycle instructions are encountered, conventional RISC processors are also pipelined, and thus incorporate the use of branch prediction techniques to avoid pipeline flushes.
Another difficulty encountered by modem microprocessors, of both the CISC and RISC type, occurs from operations upon multi-field data structures, in which the operands are of varying bit width (e.g., eight, sixteen, and thirty-two bit fields). Such multi-field data structures are often encountered in applications and microprocessors in which much of the data storage is off-chip, but where on-chip memory (although limited in size) provides important performance benefits; in such cases, multiple smaller operands may be stored within a single register or addressable memory location, while larger operands may occupy the entire register or memory location. Conventional microprocessors require multiple machine cycles to operate upon multi-field data structures, because of the need to fetch the operand, mask off the un-associated portions of the register or memory location, shift the desired operand to the proper bit position for execution of the instruction, and shift the result to the desired bit position for a masked write into the register or on-chip memory location. While pipelined microprocessors are able to efficiently handle such multi-field data operations when overall performance is measured (approaching one instruction retired per machine cycle), these microprocessors are subject to performance penalty for mispredicted branches and thus are likely to include significant circuit and performance overhead necessary to reasonably predict branch behavior.
Certain system applications of logic circuitry are sufficiently cost-sensitive as to prohibit the use of a general-purpose microprocessor, particularly one in which the maximum performance architectural features of superscalar pipelined operation, with complex branch prediction, are utilized. As such, a need exists in the art for programmable logic circuitry which may be implemented in a low-cost manner, both relative to the cost of the processing logic as well as the cost of associated memory.
However, performance is still of concern in these system applications, especially in the case where the logic circuitry is being required to operate on so-called real-time data. An example of real-time processing is the processing of message packet cells in telecommunications, such as according to the Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) protocol. Especially when video signals are being transmitted in combination with voice signals, real-time processing of the messages presents significant performance demands on the processing logic circuitry. As such, low-cost logic circuitry used in telecommunications processing also must provide a high degree of performance.
It is therefore desirable in many systems, such as those processing ATM communications, to utilize programmable logic circuitry which, for reasons of performance, relies upon on-chip memory for storage of operands and, for reasons of cost, is implemented with a minimum chip area. As a result, packed data structures are attractive in these type of systems, as the packing of data of various field widths into on-chip memory provides maximum utilization of on-chip memory, thus obtaining performance at minimum cost. However, as noted above, multi-field data structures typically involve, in conventional logic circuitry, multiple cycles to perform the shifting, masking, and other operations necessary for handling these data structures. These additional cycles either result in lower performance for the processing circuitry, or in implementation of pipelines and branch prediction techniques.
In addition to the presence of multi-field data structures, however, certain of these applications necessitate a high frequency of conditional branch operations, especially in performing real-time telecommunications processing. As such, the use of pipeline architectures and branch prediction techniques, in addition to increasing implementation cost, also degrades performance due to mispredicted branches, given the large number of branch instructions in such code.

Data processing circuit with packed data structure capability


A liquid crystal polyester resin composition includes a liquid crystal polyester (A) including repeating units represented by formulae (I) to (III),

Liquid crystal polyesters are excellent, in flowability and resistance to burr formation, and also excellent in heat resistance, mechanical properties such as rigidity, chemical resistance, dimensional precision and the like. Therefore, the liquid crystal polyesters are increasingly used for electrical and electronic components having complex shapes. In particular, the liquid crystal polyesters are often used for connectors due to requirements for high performance electrical and electronic devices, such as requirements relating to mountability (reflow resistance, i.e. resistance to heat during reflow soldering), and high-density mounting and downsizing (flowability and resistance to burr formation).
Further height-reducing and downsizing in connectors are progressing in recent years, and thus higher performance is required for resin materials from which the connectors are made. This trend is notable for FPC or FFC connectors used for connecting a printed circuit board and a flexible printed circuit (FPC), or a flexible flat cable (FFC), for example.
The FPC or FFC connector is composed of a housing component (part) and an actuator component (part), both of which have a wide width. The housing supports the actuator component rotatably between a locked position and an unlocked position. The actuator component when fixed in the locked position applies contact pressure to the FPC or FFC inserted in an insertion opening.
In this fixation, the actuator component is desirably fixed by applying a pressure force to only one end of the actuator component. Thus, when the rigidity of the resin material is not sufficient, problems such as breakage of the actuator component and insufficient fixation of the FPC or FFC occur. Thus, there is a need for an actuator component composed of a highly rigid resin material.
There are some resin materials proposed as a highly rigid liquid crystal polyester resin composition, including a resin composition obtained by blending a liquid crystal polyester with silica fine particles (Patent Document 1) and a resin composition blended with mica and a specific carbon fiber (Patent Document 2).
However, improvement in rigidity provided by these resin compositions is not sufficient, and these resin compositions are inferior in followability and mechanical strength.
Generally, it was believed that rigidity conflicts to strength in liquid crystal polyester resin compositions, and thus providing the liquid crystal polyester resin composition excellent in both rigidity and strength in a balanced manner is difficult.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Publication No. 2007-138143    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Publication No. 2011-094116

Liquid crystal polyester resin composition

Abstract: a liquid crystal polyester (B) including repeating units represented by formulae (IV) and (V),

Abstract: and surface-treated glass fibers (C) including an epoxy resin on the surface thereof, wherein the mass ratio of (A) to (B) [A/B] is from 90/10 to 45/55, the content of (C) is from 10 to 130 parts by mass relative to 100 parts by mass of the total amount of (A) and (B), and as measured in a bending test using a strip-like molded article (length: 127 mm, width: 12.7 mm, thickness: 0.5 mm), the bending strength and the bending elastic modulus of the liquid crystal polyester resin composition are equal to or more than 330 MPa and equal to or more than 20 GPa, respectively.


According to the present invention, a business is issued a deposit card readable on a debit card reader enabling the business to transmit deposit information to its bank or financial institution for crediting rather than debiting of its account. More particularly, a method is provided for facilitating bank deposits for a business having a debit card reader configured to send deposit information to a bank at which the business maintains at least one account. The method comprises the steps of:                (i) compiling deposit information concerning cash and negotiable instruments to be deposited in the account;        (ii) transmitting the deposit information to the bank via the debit card reader;        (iii) consolidating the cash and negotiable instruments into a deposit package;        (iv) labelling the deposit package to link it to the deposit information in step (ii); and,        (v) delivering the deposit package from step (iv) to the bank.

A typical retailer will deposit the daily receipts into a night deposit box maintained by a bank or other financial institution. The current practice involves counting daily cash, cheque and credit card receipts; recording the receipts on an approved deposit document; placing the cash, cheques and credit card receipts into a night deposit bag along with the deposit document; and, depositing the night deposit bag at the bank.
A problem with the present procedure arises from the time delay between the deposit document being filled out and the bank confirming and posting the deposit amounts in their reserves against a bank customer's account.
Until the bank reviews and checks the deposit document, the bank has no idea what amount the customer is depositing. Furthermore it may take days to confirm the amounts whether by contract staff or in-house staff. Still furthermore, the staff verifying the amounts may be faced with problems arising from the handwritten deposit documents which may require extra time to process illegible, forgotten or non-existent entries. From the standpoint of the bank, the bank cannot post the deposit amount to its reserves until the verification process is complete. Similarly the bank's customer has no access to the amount deposited until the bank finishes its processing.


Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method and a base station for coordinating cell interference. The method includes: receiving each backhaul signal transmitted by each cooperative base station, where the backhaul signal is determined by the cooperative base station according to strength of a signal received from a served user and strength of a signal received by a serving base station from an interfering user in the cooperative base station; and combining, at different stages of baseband processing and according to a type of each backhaul signal, a backhaul signal of a corresponding type and a user signal received from each user. An embodiment of the present invention further provides a base station. According to the embodiments of the present invention, backhaul transmission capacity is maximally utilized, backhaul transmission efficiency is improved, and relatively high performance is obtained.

Currently, capacity of a wireless mobile communication system is mainly restricted by inter-cell interference. To solve this problem, numerous researchers have put forward a concept of mutual cooperation between base stations to make full use of signals propagated across a cell boundary instead of regarding these signals as interference or noise, thereby improving spectral efficiency and system coverage. From an operator's angle, a major cost of the cooperation between the base stations comes from a backhaul (Backhaul) facility that connects the base stations to each other. Therefore, determining an effective backhaul cooperation policy becomes a key to ensuring a lowest possible cost in upgrading the backhaul facility between the base stations.
In the prior art, information transmitted by the backhaul between the base stations is usually one type of the following information: receive signals after quantization processing, estimation signals after equalization processing, bit information after decoding processing, and soft bit information after soft demodulation. For example, when receive signals after quantization processing are transmitted, optimal performance of the cooperation between the base stations can be acquired in an interference scenario, and required backhaul capacity is relatively large; or when decoded bit information is transmitted, required backhaul capacity is relatively small. In the prior art, some coding technologies are further utilized to perform compression coding on transmitted data, so as to improve backhaul transmission efficiency.
During the implementation of the present invention, the inventor finds that at least the following defect exists in the prior art: The performance of the cooperation between the base stations and the backhaul capacity are not comprehensively considered in the prior art, thereby causing low backhaul transmission efficiency.

Method and base station for coordinating cell interference


A method is provided for fabricating a microelectronic device with programmable memory that includes: i) depositing an intermediate layer of a material having a chalcogenide on a first electrode; ii) irradiating the intermediate layer of step i with ultraviolet radiation; iii) depositing an ionizable metallic layer on the intermediate layer obtained in step ii; iv) diffusing the metal ions originating from the ionizable metallic layer of step iii into the intermediate layer to form a chalcogenide material containing metal ions; and v) depositing a second electrode on the layer of chalcogenide material containing metal ions obtained in step iv to form the microelectronic device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of fabricating a microelectronic device with programmable memory, as well as to a microelectronic device with programmable memory, obtained from said method.
2. Description of Related Art
Microelectronic devices with programmable memory are typically, but not exclusively, programmable ionic conduction (metallization) cells, which are computer memories known as "non-volatile" computer memories. Such programmable ionic conduction cells are well known by the acronyms CBRAM, standing for "conductive-bridging random access memory", or PMC, for "programmable metallization cell".
That type of microelectronic structures (CBRAM or PMC) is well known to the skilled person and has been described in document U.S. Pat. No. 6,084,796, for example,
A CBRAM (or PMC) typically comprises a vertical stack of layers formed by a substrate based on a silicon type semiconductor on which the following layers are deposited in succession: an electrode termed the bottom electrode, a layer of a chalcogenide glass doped with silver (i.e. solid electrolyte), and an electrode termed the top electrode formed from silver. The layer of a chalcogenide glass is thus interposed between the bottom electrode and the top electrode.
Said electrodes are configured to cause a metallic dendrite to grow (i.e. formation of an electrically conductive bridge) from the negative of the two electrodes towards the positive of the two electrodes through the layer of doped chalcogenide glass when a voltage is applied between said electrodes. By applying an opposite voltage between said two electrodes, the reverse phenomenon is obtained, namely disappearance of the metallic dendrite (i.e. disappearance of the electrically conductive bridge) within the doped chalcogenide glass layer.
Thus, when the electrically conductive bridge is created (the step known as "writing"), the logic state of the device may be represented by "1", or may correspond to the "ON" state, whereas when the electrically conductive bridge disappears, the logic state of the cell may be represented by "0" or may correspond to the "OFF" state.
A first function that may be desired in CBRAMs is to have a microelectronic structure with a retention time (for information in the memory) that is as long as possible, which may in particular be induced by a compact layer of a chalcogenide glass. Once the electrically conductive bridge has been formed by applying a voltage between the two electrodes, the retention time corresponds to the lifetime of the electrically conductive bridge when said voltage is no longer applied.
A second desired function in CBRAMs is to have a microelectronic structure with higher electrical yield. The electrical yield of the memory structure may depend on the stoichiometry of the chalcogenide material, or in other words on the atomic percentage of the various elements that make up the chalcogenide material. Said stoichiometry is an essential factor in obtaining optimized electrical performances in programmable ionic conduction cells. As an example, when considering a chalcogenide based on germanium and sulfur with formula GexS100-x in which x is an integer, the higher the sulfur content relative to the germanium, the better the electrical performance of programmable cells formed from that chalcogenide. An example of a chalcogenide with a high stoichiometry that may be mentioned is GeS2. That particular type of stoichiometry has several advantages. It can improve the thermal stability of the chalcogenide and increase the solubility point of the doping metallic element in the chalcogenide during fabrication of said programmable cells, and thus increase the electrical performances of said cells. Thus, the more "stoichiometric" the chalcogenide, the higher can be the electrical yield of the microelectronic CBRAM structure.
However, it is known that a CBRAM microelectronic structure with a high yield, or in other words with a nigh stoichiometry, can in particular exhibit high mobility of silver ions within the layer of doped chalcogenide glass. However, high mobility of silver ions tends to perturb the stability of the electrically conductive bridge, thus the stability of the retention time.

Method of fabricating a microelectronic device with programmable memory


A formwork panel has a board and a frame for the board. The frame is made up of strips of sheet material which extend along respective edges of the board and project from the edges at right angles to the board. Each strip has a flat longitudinal marginal portion adjacent to the board and a flat longitudinal marginal portion remote from the board. The marginal portions of a strip are located in a common plane. Each strip further has two protrusions which respectively extend from the marginal portions of the strip towards the opposite strip of the frame and define recesses opening away from the opposite strip. A protuberance is disposed between the two protrusions of a strip. Each protuberance extends from the adjoining protrusions away from the opposite strip and defines a depression opening towards the opposite strip.

Such a formwork panel where the edge webs of aligned and contiguous formwork panels lie directly against one another is known from German Patent Specification No. 21 37 505. Bolts traversing keyhole-like openings in the edge webs serve as the connecting means for fastening together the edge webs lying against one another and have a stop projection and a counter-stop arranged in spaced relationship thereto.
German Patent Specification No. 24 03 325 discloses comparable formwork panels where the edge webs of adjacent formwork panels lie indirectly against one another, that is to say, intermediate parts or spacers are provided between them, while compensating elements may also be provided between such edge webs of aligned, neighbouring formwork panels.
In these known solutions, the edge webs are plane to enable them to lie tightly against one another or to enable intermediate parts to be inserted. However this results in that the stiffness of these edge webs is limited and hence the formwork panels can have only a limited loading capacity.
It is therefore also known, e.g. from German Offenlegungsschrift 27 16 864, to use hollow sections instead of edge webs of flat material. Hollow sections have a greater stiffness, but they also lead to edge webs with large cross sections and correspondingly elaborate connecting means, as well as to considerably higher weights of the formwork panels. In the case of the profiled edge webs according to German Offenlegungsschrift 27 16 864, a C-shape has been selected as the cross section, wherein that free edge of the section which is remote from the forming surface is directed towards the latter and hence does not limit the greatest width of this edge section.

Formwork panel having at the edges thereof projecting edge webs of flat material


The present disclosure relates to a system and process in which pulp is produced using a chemical mechanical pulping process, during which lignocellulosic material undergoes fiberization without chemical impregnation. Chemical treatment of the lignocellulosic material is performed during or after fiberization of the material to become fiber bundles.

Mechanical pulping processes are known to use equipment to break apart the fibers of lignocellulosic material to produce pulp. Some processes combine mechanical refining and chemical treatment, which is known as chemical mechanical pulping (CMP). In an aspect, CMP processes are believed to reduce the possibility of adverse impact on the lignocellulosic material that occurs during mechanical pulping, e.g., due to the physical abrasion and thermal energy emitted from the process, and to improve pulp strength properties and reduce refining energy in some cases.
Conventional CMP processes may involve pre-treatment of the materials before fiberization to form fiber bundles and separate fibers. Fiberization mechanically reduces lignocellulosic material into their fiber component elements. In one type of pretreatment process, chips may be pretreated by being fed through a compression screw device where saturated steam is present. After compression, the lignocellulosic material is fed into a fiberizer where the material is optionally treated with chemicals, then fibrillated. Fibrillation relates to a process that may include the external disruption of lateral bonds between surface layers of a fiber that results in partial detachment of fibers or small pieces of the outer layers of the fiber and the internal or lateral bonds between adjacent layers within a fiber and usually occurs during the mechanical refining of pulp slurries. In another type of CMP process, pulp may be manufactured through pre-treating lignocellulosic material after compression but before entering the fiberizer.
Utilization of chemical pretreatment processes of the lignocellulosic material before fiberization is believed to yield higher quantity of quality pulp that has better bleachability, fiber-bonding strength, and optical properties. Chemical pretreatment chemicals may include alkaline peroxide, alkaline sulfite, caustic soda, and oxalic acid as reflected in the U.S. Pat. No. 8,092,647, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein. Chemical pretreatment of lignocellulosic materials using alkaline peroxide chemicals is known as Alkaline Peroxide Mechanical Pulping (APMP).
One type of APMP involves a combination of an AP (Alkaline Peroxide) chemical pretreatment (or pre-conditioning) step with an AP Refiner-chemical treatment step, which may be known as the "P-RC APMP" process in the industry. AP chemicals may be distributed throughout the process (e.g., at the impregnation stage, before the refiner, and after the refiner) to reduce the impact of harsh conditions on the lignocellulosic material undergoing mechanical refining, and to reduce energy consumptions needed for the refining. Due to possible difficulties in achieving chemical distribution and efficiency at the pretreatment stage, chemicals may also be added after the primary refining stage where a significant amount of energy is spent on fiberization and fibrillation. Consequently, AP chemicals added after the primary refiner stage may not aid in the reduction of energy consumption needed for fiberization and fibrillation at the primary refiner stage.
Known P-RC APMP processes may use a chip press, screw compression, and/or other types of compression device in the pretreatment step. It is believed that P-RC APMP processes have improved APMP processes by improving chemical distribution and efficiency of equipment using the pretreatment devices for chemical impregnation of the lignocellulosic material before being refined. But it is also believed that this pretreatment in P-RC APMP processes pose potential problems of non-uniform and uneven distribution of chemicals due to the variations in lignocellulosic material sizes and degrees of macerations. Maceration relates to a process that may include softening and separation of wood chips or fiber bundles into their component parts by the application of physical mechanical treatment.
Known processes are reflected in U.S. Patent Nos. 7,300,541; 7,300,540; 7,300,550; 8,048,263; and 8,216,423.
In an effort to address the potential shortcomings of the current P-RC APMP and other APMP processes, the current disclosure seeks to provide an improved system and method for chemical mechanical pulping.

Chemical treatment of lignocellulosic fiber bundle material, and methods and systems relating thereto


A method of providing obscurant data includes receiving image data including an image of a target and receiving a preference setting corresponding to the target. Obscurant data of at least a portion of the image data corresponding to the target are determined using the received preference setting. A method of providing surveillance image data includes capturing image data including an image of a target, querying a database to receive a preference setting corresponding to the target, determining the obscurant data of the portion of the image data, and selectively modifying the received image data according to the determined obscurant data to provide the surveillance image data.

Remote surveillance is common for security, law enforcement, intelligence, and military purposes. For example, shopping centers, police stations, and other facilities catering to the public often have closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras or other devices monitoring members of the public in the facility. In another example, pole-mounted cameras have been used for traffic enforcement. One type of surveillance that is on the rise is drone surveillance. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, also known as "drones") are aircraft that do not carry human pilots or passengers, and are commonly used for surveillance and combat. Drones can be configured as fixed wing aircraft, helicopters, or other aerial vehicles. A human pilot generally controls a drone using a wireless link from one or more ground stations, but drones can include autonomous systems that perform the functions normally executed by a pilot. Drones serve to carry sensors and permit those sensors to interact with their environments in order to collect data. Drones can be used, for example, to carry out surveillance or intelligence-gathering missions using a variety of optical or other sensors, to transport goods or passengers, or to locate and respond to threats.
Various software exists for detecting moving objects or recognizing faces in captured image data, and then displaying an indicator of the detection. Various software also exists for tracking such detected image features as they move. Moreover, various techniques are used to improve the visibility of objects in captured image data. For example, military forces wear IR beacons in combat areas. These IR beacons blink in infrared wavelengths. This renders friendly forces visible in an IR camera view, reducing the probability of casualties due to friendly fire.
Drones can range in size from, e.g., small units weighing grams, to airplanes with wingspans over ten feet, to full-sized airplanes such as bombers. Particularly with smaller units, drones can permit covert surveillance of persons in public. For example, a drone airplane with a wingspan of approximately 10′, painted appropriately, with an electric drive, can be effectively invisible and inaudible to persons on the ground at an altitude of as little as 500′ above ground level (AGL). There is, therefore, a need of implementing the rights of people to be free from surveillance without cause, e.g., privacy and due-process rights, especially when the surveillance is being carried out by a small, unobtrusive drone. This need can also pertain to surveillance carried out by fixed cameras such as security or traffic cameras.