A control device, controlling an alarm output, includes a data network interface, with a signaling interface for outputting a control signal indicating a request for an acoustic and/or optical alarm signal a memory unit and a processor. The data network interface is configured to receive a group message indicating a sender identity and a presence of an alarm state. The memory unit provides a first data set, which indicates a list with potential sender identities, as well as further a second data set, which indicates one or more alarm output time periods. The processor is configured to operate a timekeeping function, and to output the control signal via the signaling interface as a function of an agreement between the sender identity with one of potential sender identities, and as a function of a comparison of a current value of the timekeeping function with data of the second data set.

A scenario is known in which a medical device monitors physiological patient data and controls an output of an alarm signal by means of a comparison of the physiological patient data with reference values. The alarm signal may be outputted here by the medical device itself, or else a request message for requesting the output of an alarm signal may be sent by the medical device to another device. As an alternative for monitoring physiological patient data, status data can be monitored, which indicate an operating state of other technical devices or partial devices on or in the medical device; for example, the falling off of an electrode or an increase in the pressure in a tube can be detected and indicated. An alarm signal can likewise be detected by comparing the status data with corresponding reference values.
US 2005/0271186 A1 discloses a system in which a central unit is used to determine, by a configuration of a user, which telephone shall be reached by means of a network at which times and in case of which occurring events, so that the telephone will then output an output of a signal or an alarm signal. US 2007/0229249 A1 shows a system in which an alarm is outputted in a coordinated manner by an alarm messenger, in which alarm signals are sent to different receiving units based on data of a data bank. Thus, a concept, in which a central unit is configured to subsequently send different alarm signals to different output units at different times, is proposed in both prior-art documents.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Control device for controlling an alarm output and method for controlling an alarm output as well as medical device


A push button designed such that it is not damaged or broken even when an excessive external force is applied. The push button includes a control panel having a seat depression and a switch controlling a function. A button unit is seated in the seat depression so as to be movable by a predetermined distance. A push unit passes through the seat depression and moves by a force transmitted from the button unit to push the switch. The push button also has first and second springs having different spring constants. When a normal external force is applied, the second having a smaller spring constant, is elastically compressed to turn the switch on or off. When an excessive external force is applied, the first and second springs are elastically compressed to absorb external force, thus preventing components, such as the switch, from being damaged or broken.

This application claims the benefit of Korean Application No. 2002-72343, filed Nov. 20, 2002, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to push buttons and, more particular, to a push button which is designed such that it is not broken or damaged even when an excessive external force is applied to the push button.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is well known to those skilled in the art, a push button is a device which is provided on a control panel of various kinds of electrical devices to operate a switch installed inside the control panel so that the switch is turned on or off.
FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional push button.
The conventional push button 2 is installed in a seat depression 1a which is provided on a control panel 1. The push button 2 includes a cylindrical button unit 3 which is opened at its lower portion. A rod-shaped push unit 4 extends from the button unit 3, and passes through the seat depression 1a to push a switch 6 which is provided at a predetermined position inside the control panel 1. A spring 5 elastically biases the button unit 3 in a direction away from a bottom of the seat depression 1a.
Thus, when an external force is applied to the button unit 3, the spring 5 is compressed by the external force, so the button unit 3 and the push unit 4 are moved toward the switch 6. Due to the movement of the button unit 3 and the push unit 4, an end of the push unit 4 pushes the switch 6 so that the switch 6 is turned on or off. Meanwhile, when the external force is released from the button unit 3, the spring 5 is returned to its original position, thus returning the button unit 3 and the push unit 4 to their original positions.
However, the conventional push button 2 has a problem that, when an excessive external force is applied to the button unit 3, the external force is transmitted through the push unit 4 to the switch 6 and a circuit board 7 to which the switch 6 is mounted, so the switch 6 and the circuit board 7 may be damaged or broken.
Further, the conventional push button 2 has another problem that, when a user pushes the button unit 3 to press the switch 6 by the push unit 4, a reaction force opposite to the user""s force is transmitted through the push unit 4 and the button unit 3 to the user, so a manipulation feeling is poor.
Accordingly, it is an aspect of the present invention to provide a push button, which is designed such that a switch or a circuit board is not damaged or broken even when an excessive external force is applied to the push button.
Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a push button having an excellent manipulation feeling.
A further aspect of the present invention is to provide an electrical device having the push button, which is designed such that a switch or a circuit board of the electrical device is not damaged or broken even when an excessive external force is applied to the push button.
Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the descripton which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be leamed by practice of the invention.
The foregoing and/or other aspects of the present invention are achieved by providing a push button, including a control panel having a switch controlling a function, a seat depression provided on the control panel, a button unit seated in the seat depression in such a way as to be movable by a predetermined distance, a push unit passing through the seat depression and moving by a force transmitted from the button unit to push the switch, and first and second springs having different spring constants, respectively responding to the force transmitted from the button unit.
Further, the push unit includes a support part arranged between the button unit and the seat depression, and a push part extending from the support part and passing through the seat depression to push the switch. The first spring is provided between the button unit and the support part, and the second spring is provided between the support part and the seat depression, the first spring having a larger spring constant than the second spring.
In addition, the push unit integrally extends from the button unit, and the first and second springs are integrated into a single structure and provided between the button unit and the seat depression.
Further, the seat depression is provided with a locking hole to lock the button unit to the seat depression, with a through hole being provided on the seat depression to allow the push part to pass through the seat depression. The button unit is provided with a locking hook, the locking hook being locked to the locking hole of the seat depression so that the button unit is seated in the seat depression in such a way as to be movable by the predetermined distance.


The invention relates to a refractometer comprising an optical module (4) arranged floatingly inside a housing structure, which module comprises an optical window (2) to be positioned in a process fluid (3), and means for forming an illuminating beam and for directing it into the process fluid (3) through the optical window (2) and for directing back the part of the illuminating beam that is reflected from the process fluid, and further, means for watching the image formed in said manner. The optical module (4) is arranged to be supported against the housing structure by means of sealing (5) arranged between the optical window (2) and the housing structure. In order to provide a device suitable for difficult conditions, the housing structure part (6) in contact with the process fluid (3) against which the optical window (2) is arranged to be supported via sealing (5) is formed of a material that is chemically durable, mechanically rigid and durable and has good thermal conductivity.

The present application claims priority pursuant to 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7119 from Finnish Patent Application No. 20001733, the entire contents of which is incorporated by reference herein.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a refractometer and, more particularly, to a refractometer comprising an optical module arranged floatingly inside a housing structure for measuring the index of refraction of a process fluid.
2. Background Information
The operational principle of a refractometer has been known for over a hundred years. Today, refractometers are rather widely used on several different fields. The range of use of refractometers include food processing industry, wood processing industry, chemical industry and different researches in general.
The operational principle of a refractometer can be described by way of principle in the following manner. A refractometer measures the refractive index of the process fluid by means of total reflection generated at the interface between the optical window and the fluid. The illuminating beam from the source of light is directed at the interface between the optical window and the process fluid. Part of the illuminating beam is totally reflected from the fluid, whereas part of it is partly absorbed into the fluid. This results in an image in which the location of the light and dark areas depends totally on the critical angle of the total reflection, and thus on the refractive index of the process fluid.
The essential aspect of refractometer measuring is the analysis of the image generated by the reflection of light. The objective of said image analysis is to find the critical angle of the total reflection, in other words the interface at which the light area of the image formed in the above-described manner changes over to a dark area.
As becomes obvious from the above-described aspects, the operation of a refractometer is based on very accurate angle measurement, because the critical angle of the total reflection is determined according to the refractive index of two materials. The problem with older refractometers has been angle variations of the optical window relative to the housing structure of the device. The angle variations are frequently due to the fact that the optical window in these devices is attached by means of a flexible sealing material. If the optical window is rigidly attached to the housing structure, the sealing material has to be very elastic, and thus certain materials with weak elasticity cannot be used. In several known refractometers, the optics and the light detector are rigidly attached to the housing, so that another problem is caused by an error in the angle measurement caused by the distortion of the housing structure.
To eliminate said drawbacks, a refractometer of a novel type has been provided, being disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,067,151. The advantage of this solution is that the optical window can be attached also by using a weakly elastic seal, such as Teflon, without the accuracy of the angle measurement suffering from this at all.
The refractometer described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,067,151 functions extremely well in certain environments, but a problem is caused by measurement of aggressive fluids, for instance. Aggressive fluids include strong acids and basses, such as hydrochloric acid (HCl), hydrofluoric acid (HF), nitric acid (HNO3) and sulfuric acid (H2SO4), as well as sodium (NaOH) and potassium (KOH) hydroxides and ammonia (NH4OH). A plurality of acids and bases strongly corrode most of the structural metals, and alternative metals are expensive and difficult to be machined (such as tantalum and zirconium). Further, problems are caused in measurement of less aggressive fluids in cases where impurities and metal ions are not desirable in the process fluid. In such cases, the process surfaces of tube systems and instruments must not contain any metal part.
An object of the invention is to provide a refractometer by means of which the drawbacks of the prior art can be eliminated. This has been achieved by means of a refractometer according to the invention. The refractometer according to the invention comprises an optical module arranged floatingly inside a housing structure, which module comprises an optical window to be positioned in a process fluid, and means for forming an illuminating beam and for directing it into the process fluid through the optical window and for directing back the part of the illuminating beam that is reflected from the process fluid, and further, means for watching the image formed in said manner, whereby the optical module is arranged to be supported against the housing structure by means of sealing arranged between the optical window and the housing structure. The housing structure part in contact with the process fluid against which the optical window is arranged to be supported via sealing is formed of a material that is chemically durable, mechanically rigid and durable and has good thermal conductivity.
An advantage of the invention is, above all, the applicability of the structure to the measurement of very different fluids. The solution is also simple, which enables the use of plastic materials, for example, in such parts that are not in contact with the process fluid or are not mechanically subjected to great stress, so that the manufacturing costs remain low.


A sputtering target preferably having an average crystal-grain diameter of 300 .mu.m or less and a maximum magnetic permeability of 100 or less is formed of an alloy consisting essentially of, by atom, 5- 30% Ni, 5- 14% Cr, not more than 6% V, and balance of Co and unavoidable impurities. It is preferable for the target to keep a working-strain remaining therein to reduce the maximum magnetic permeability. A method of producing a sputtering target for magnetic recording and reproducing, in which warm working or cold working is applied to the alloy.

The present invention relates to a sputtering target which is used to form Co-alloy magnetic layers for a magnetic recording medium by means of sputtering, and also relates to a method of producing the same.
A magnetic disk unit has at least one magnetic head, which faces a magnetic recording medium with a close gap, to perform recording and reproducing by conducting magnetic recording on the magnetic recording medium and reading magnetic information recorded on the medium. The magnetic recording medium has a magnetic alloy film, made of Co-Ni-Cr, Co-Cr-Ta, Co-Cr-Pt, or the like, formed on a substrate of the medium directly or via a primary-coated film. Recently, various ideas such as increasing the coercive force of the magnetic film or reducing a noise have been proposed for the magnetic recording medium to cope with high density recording.
In a publication of JP-A-1-25617, for example, a magnetic recording medium having a magnetic alloy film formed by an alloy of four elements such as Co-Cr-Ta-Pt, a composition of the magnetic alloy film for the above-described high density recording, was revealed. When the amount of platinum added is within a range of 1 to 15 atomic %, as revealed in the above publication, the coercive force of the magnetic film becomes greater than approximately 1200 Oe, and a squareness ratio of the same became 0.8 or greater.
On page 23 of the 12th Academic Lecture Review Book (1988) of the Institute of Applied Magnetism of Japan (transliteration), it is stated that a saturation magnetization of a magnetic alloy film has not been reduced much, but coercive force of the same has been improved by further addition of vanadium to the alloy composition 20 atomic % of nickel, 10 atomic % of chromium, and balance of cobalt. It is also stated that the coercive force of the magnetic alloy film has been improved by from 1000 Oe to 1500 Oe by adding 1 atomic % of vanadium to the composition thereof.
From the foregoing, it is understood when vanadium is added to the composition of the magnetic film made of Co-Ni-Cr, the coercive force of the film is improved without reducing much saturation magnetization.
A conventional method of obtaining the magnetic alloy film is introduced in the above-mentioned Review Book of the Institute of Applied Magnetism of Japan, wherein an alloy film was formed by a magnetron-sputtering apparatus by using a so-called composite target in which pellets of nickel, chromium, and vanadium were set on a Co-Ni alloy.
However, when this type of target is used for magnetron-sputtering, a difference in a sputtering speed occurs between pellets. Therefore, there has been a problem such that geometrical irregularity or steps are generated at boundaries between pellets causing the abnormal discharge, which eventually causes a fluctuation of the film thickness and reproducing outputs. In addition, the occurrence of the abnormal discharge has an unfavorable phenomenon in that it may also cause an adhesion of foreign particles (generally called as particles) in the magnetic film to increase the number of errors occurred on a magnetic disk.
Further, when an alloy of Co-Ni or Co-Ni-Cr, which becomes a base of the above-described composite target, is produced by means of conventional processes of vacuum-melting and subsequent hot rolling, crystal grain having an average diameter of only approximately 400 .mu.m can be obtained.
The sputtering speed also depends on the crystal orientation of crystal grain of the target composition. Therefore, when the crystal-grain diameter is large, the steps are produced at the boundary area of crystal grain. These steps also cause abnormal discharge in the same manner as described before; therefore, a target having a smaller crystal-grain diameter has been desired.
In addition, Co-Ni alloy system is a magnetic substance of fcc-structure having a higher maximum magnetic permeability; therefore, it is difficult to obtain a leakage magnetic flux to a target surface, which is indispensable to magnetron-sputtering. Consequently, there is a demand to develop a target which can secure a sufficient leakage flux on the target surface.

Sputtering target for magnetic recording medium and method of producing the same


There is provided a phase-change type optical recording medium, including: a substrate; a recording layer formed on the substrate, phase condition of the recording layer being changed when a laser beam is radiated thereonto, to thereby record, erase or reproduce data into or from the recording layer; and a reflection layer formed on the recording layer for reflecting a laser beam having been radiated onto the recording layer. The recording layer is formed so that the following equation is established:

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an optical recording medium capable of recording data thereinto or reproducing data therefrom, and more particularly to an optical recording medium suitable for carrying out so-called xe2x80x9csimultaneous recording and verificationxe2x80x9d where confirmation as to whether data is properly recorded is carried out concurrently with recording data into a medium. The invention also relates to a method of optically recording data into an optical recording medium and reproducing data therefrom.
2. Description of the Related Art
As one of optical disc mediums capable of recording data thereinto and reproducing data therefrom both by radiating laser beam spot thereto is known a phase-change type optical disc. The phase-change type optical disc is capable of carrying out over-recording by a single beam, which is difficult to carry out by a magneto-optical (MO) disc. An optical head system for the phase-change optical disc is simpler than that for the MO disc.
A method of carrying out simultaneous recording and verification in such a phase-change type recording medium has been suggested in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publications Nos. 60-145537, 63-183624, and 6-349067. According to these Publications, when pulse beams are radiated onto the phase-change type recording medium, an intensity of reflected beams is varied almost at the same with the radiation. The suggested methods make it possible to confirm whether data is properly recorded by detecting the variation in the reflected beams by means of either the reflected beams itself or RF signals.
Roughly speaking, data is recorded into a phase-change type optical disc medium by the following steps: radiating laser beams onto a non-recorded region, which is in crystal condition, to thereby heat a recording layer; a temperature of the recording layer being raised; melting of the recording layer; and cooling down the recording layer to thereby reduce the recording layer amorphous. Hence, non-recorded and recorded regions have different phase conditions, and as a result, non-recorded and recorded regions have different reflectivity. Accordingly, an intensity of reflected laser beams is varied in accordance with the phase condition. A phase-change type optical disc medium utilizes such variation in an intensity of reflected laser beams for recording data thereinto.
It is known that a recording layer becomes as illustrated in FIG. 1, when a recording layer is molten by a laser beam spot. Thus, all regions of a recording layer are not always molten in a beam spot, even if a laser beam is radiated onto the recording layer. Herein, the molten region 60 corresponds to a region in which data is recorded, and the non-molten region 62 corresponds to a region in which data is not recorded yet. As mentioned earlier, the molten region 60 becomes amorphous when cooled down, whereas the non-molten region 62 remains crystal. If a recording layer is not molten, the recording layer is not reduced amorphous. In the beam spot, reflectivity of the recorded or amorphous region 60 coexists together with reflectivity of the non-recorded or crystal region 62, and hence it would be quite difficult to clearly distinguish the recorded region 60 from the non-recorded region 62. As a result, it would be difficult to accurately carry out simultaneous recording and verification only based on variation in the reflectivity. Hence, verification has to be carried out again after data has been recorded into a phase-change type optical disc medium in the above mentioned conventional mediums. As a result, it is substantially impossible to carry out simultaneous recording and verification in the conventional mediums.
In addition, in the conventional mediums where the recorded region has to have reflectivity quite different from that of the non-recorded region, there would be generated a large fluctuation in RF signals in over-recording, resulting in unstable verification together with reduction in reliability.
In view of the foregoing problems of the conventional recording mediums, it is an object of the present invention to provide a phase-change type optical recording medium which is capable of accurately carrying out simultaneous recording and verification, specifically carrying out verification by which it is confirmed whether data is properly recorded both in initial recording and over-recording.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a phase-change type optical recording medium which is capable of carrying out verification with high accuracy in smaller period of time to thereby make it possible to record data with higher reliability.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method of optically recording data by employing the above mentioned phase-change type optical recording medium.
In one aspect, there is provided a phase-change type optical recording medium, including (a) a substrate, (b) a recording layer formed on the substrate, phase condition of the recording layer being changed when a laser beam is radiated thereonto, to thereby record, erase or reproduce data into or from the recording layer, and (c) a reflection layer formed on the recording layer for reflecting a laser beam having been radiated onto the recording layer. The recording layer is formed so that the following equation (A) is established:
Rc greater than Rm greater than Raxe2x80x83xe2x80x83(A)
wherein Rc indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in crystal condition, Ra indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in amorphous condition, and Rm indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in mixed condition of molten condition and crystal or amorphous condition.
By arranging the recording layer to have a thickness such that the above mentioned equation (A) is established, it is possible to have recording sensitivity suitable for recording data into and reproduce data from an optical recording medium, and accomplish simultaneous recording and verification. In addition, the phase-change type optical recording medium is capable of providing high reproducing output, being accessible at a higher speed, and recording data at a higher density.
There is further provided a phase-change type optical recording medium, including (a) a substrate, (b) a recording layer formed on the substrate, phase condition of the recording layer being changed when a laser beam is radiated thereonto, to thereby record, erase or reproduce data into or from the recording layer, and (c) a reflection layer formed on the recording layer for reflecting a laser beam having been radiated onto the recording layer. The recording layer is formed so that the following equation (B) is established:
|Rcxe2x88x92Ra|xe2x89xa65%
Rc greater than Rm, Ra greater than Rmxe2x80x83xe2x80x83(B)
wherein Rc indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in crystal condition, Ra indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in amorphous condition, and Rm indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in mixed condition of molten condition and crystal or amorphous condition.
Since the above mentioned equation (B) includes reflectivity in the laser beam spot as one of standards for judgement, it is surely confirmed as to whether the recording layer has a molten or recorded region in the laser beam spot by means of the phase-change type optical recording medium meeting the equation (B). Thus, it is possible to carry out verification while data is being recorded into the phase-change type optical recording medium.
For instance, if verification is to be carried out by employing RF signals obtained from reflected laser beams, it would be possible to obtain clearly distinguishable RF waveforms between when data is properly recorded and when data is not properly recorded. In addition, since RF waveforms obtained when data is properly recorded is stable, precise verification can be carried out. Furthermore, since a difference between Rc and Ra is arranged within 5% and Rm is arranged smaller than Rc and Ra, it would be possible to have the same RF waveforms even in over-recording as the waveforms obtained in initial recording, which ensures that accurate verification can be carried out similarly to verification in initial recording.
It would be possible to accurately carry out verification also by analyzing RF waveforms obtained immediately after a certain region of a recording layer in the laser beam spot commences to be molten. According to this mode of verification, a period of time necessary for verification can be shortened, and data can be recorded in initial recording or over-recording without reduction in transfer speed with higher reliability.
The above-mentioned equations (A) and (B) may be established in various ways. For instance, the substrate and recording layer may be designed to have a thickness so that the equation (A) or (B) is established. As an alternative, the substrate and recording layer may be made of particular material so that the equation (A) or (B) is established.
The phase-change type optical recording medium may further include a lower protection layer formed between the substrate and the recording layer, and an upper protection layer formed between the recording layer and the reflection layer, in which case the substrate, recording layer, lower protection layer and upper protection layer may be designed to have a thickness so that the equation (A) or (B) is established. As an alternative, the substrate, recording layer, lower protection layer and upper protection layer may be made of particular material so that the equation (A) or (B) is established.
A laser beam may be radiated to the phase-change type optical recording medium in any directions. However, it is preferable that a laser beam is radiated through the substrate for the purpose of simplification of a driver optical system and reduction of a recording apparatus in size.
The recording layer may be made of at least germanium (Ge), antimony (Sb) or tellurium (Te). The lower and upper protection layers may be made of any material suitable for optically recording medium. For instance, it is preferable that the lower and upper protection layers include ZnSSiO2, SiN, SiO, SiO2, TaO2 or SiAlON. The reflecting layer may be made of any material suitable for optically recording medium. For instance, it is preferable that the reflecting layer includes Al, Ti, Ta, Cu, Au or Si as principal ingredient.
The phase-change type optical recording medium may further include additional layers. For instance, the phase-change type optical recording medium may further include an UV resin protection layer formed on the reflection layer. As an alternative, the phase-change type optical recording medium may further include an intermediate layer between the IN resin protection layer and the reflection layer, which intermediate layer is made of the same material as that of the lower protection layer. In the phase-change type optical recording medium, the reflection layer is required to have a thickness through which a laser beam can pass. The provision of the intermediate layer enhances designability in the phase-change type optical recording medium.
In the present invention, verification is carried out with higher accuracy by arranging a difference between Rc and Ra at a wavelength of a laser beam used for recording data to be within 5%. Hence, if a laser beam having a certain wavelength were commonly employed for both recording and reproducing data, it would not be possible to have a preferred C/N ratio by a difference between Rc and Ra. Thus, in order to have a preferred C/N ratio, the optical recording medium may be constructed so that a difference between Rc and Ra necessary for reproducing data having been recorded in the medium is able to be obtained by a wavelength for reproducing data. However, it is preferable that crystal and amorphous regions formed in the recording layer have a phase difference, in order that a common wavelength can be employed for both recording and reproducing data. It is preferable that a phase difference xcfx86 between crystal and amorphous regions both formed in the recording layer at a laser wavelength used for recording data meet the following equation (C).
30xc2x0xe2x89xa6|xcfx86|xe2x89xa6180xc2x0xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(C)
The equation (C) may be established in various ways. For instance, the layers constituting the phase-change type optical recording medium may be designed to have a thickness or be made of particular material such that the equation (C) is established.
The phase-change type optical recording medium may be fabricated by means of conventional processes such as sputtering.
In another aspect, there is provided a method of optically recording data, including the steps of (a) preparing a phase-change type optical recording medium, the phase-change type optical recording medium comprising: a substrate; a recording layer formed on the substrate, phase condition of the recording layer being changed when a laser beam is radiated thereonto, to thereby record, erase or reproduce data into or from the recording layer; and a reflection layer formed on the recording layer for reflecting a laser beam having been radiated onto the recording layer, the recording layer being formed so that the following equation (A) is established:
Rc greater than Rm greater than Raxe2x80x83xe2x80x83(A)
wherein Rc indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in crystal condition, Ra indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in amorphous condition, and Rm indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in mixed condition of molten condition and crystal or amorphous condition, (b) radiating laser beam onto the recording layer, (c) monitoring laser beam reflected from the recording layer, and (d) judging whether data is properly recorded, based on how the reflected laser beam varies in an amount.
When laser beam having a predetermined intensity is radiated onto the recording layer, data may be judged to be properly recorded, if the reflected beam is suddenly reduced in an amount immediately after radiation of the laser beam.
There is further provided a method of optically recording data, including the steps of (a) preparing a phase-change type optical recording medium, the phase-change type optical recording medium comprising: a substrate; a recording layer formed on the substrate, phase condition of the recording layer being changed when a laser beam is radiated thereonto, to thereby record, erase or reproduce data into or from the recording layer; and a reflection layer formed on the recording layer for reflecting a laser beam having been radiated onto the recording layer, the recording layer being formed so that the following equation (B) is established:
|Rcxe2x88x92Ra|xe2x89xa65%
Rc greater than Rm, Ra greater than Rmxe2x80x83xe2x80x83(B)
wherein Rc indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in crystal condition, Ra indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in amorphous condition, and Rm indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in mixed condition of molten condition and crystal or amorphous condition, (b) radiating laser beam onto the recording layer, (c) monitoring laser beam reflected from the recording layer, and (d) judging whether data is properly recorded, based on how the reflected laser beam varies in an amount.
It is preferable that the laser beam is radiated in pulse.
The above and other objects and advantageous features of the present invention will be made apparent from the following description made with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the drawings.

Phase-change type optical recording medium and method of optically recording with the same

Abstract: Rc greater than Rm greater than Ra

Abstract: wherein Rc indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in crystal condition, Ra indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in amorphous condition, and Rm indicates a reflectivity to be obtained when the recording layer is in mixed condition of molten condition and crystal or amorphous condition. For instance, the substrate, recording layer and reflection layer may be designed to have a thickness and/or made of particular material so that the equation is established. The phase-change type optical recording medium makes it possible to accurately accomplish verification by which it is confirmed whether data is properly recorded at both initial recording and over-recording.


The present disclosure relates to a photovoltaic system comprising a switching device for switching on and off at least one photovoltaic string, to an electronically controlled direct current hybrid switching device for switching on and off at least one photovoltaic string, in a user-controlled manner, to the use of a hybrid switch for switching a photovoltaic string, and to a method for switching off and back on at least one photovoltaic string of the photovoltaic system. The photovoltaic system comprises:                at least one photovoltaic string, wherein the at least one photovoltaic string is formed by photovoltaic modules which are series-connected by means of a string line and thus generate a string voltage;        a switching device which is installed in series in the string line to switch on and off the at least one photovoltaic string with the switching device,        wherein the switching device comprises a hybrid switch with a relay and a semiconductor switching device which is connected in parallel to the relay and has at least one semiconductor switch.

A photovoltaic system typically comprises a multitude of photovoltaic modules that are series-connected to form strings in order to achieve a nominal photovoltaic generator DC voltage of currently typically up to 1000 volts or even 1500 volts. Furthermore, depending on the number of interconnected photovoltaic modules and their individual voltage, a plurality of the photovoltaic strings in turn are optionally connected in parallel, and each photovoltaic string can generate a nominal current of 10 A, for example. When a plurality of strings are connected in parallel, this is also referred to as a multi-string interconnection.
Due to the high voltage and the high currents in the DC part of the photovoltaic system, there is a risk that people might be exposed to life-threatening voltages during maintenance or incidents, for example in the event of a fire.
Therefore, photovoltaic module protective circuits have been developed which allow to individually switch off the photovoltaic modules (cf. WO2013/026539 A1 and Applicant's product SCK-RSD-100). Furthermore, starting boxes have been developed, which allow to re-enable such "smart" photovoltaic modules (cf. WO2014/122325 A1 and Applicant's products SCK-RSD-400 and SCK-RSD-600).
Furthermore, DE 10 2016 117 049 (not prepublished) describes a reverse current protective circuit which allows to separate a string from the central collection point in order to prevent cross currents. The function of DE 10 2016 117 049 is to automatically prevent current flow out of the further photovoltaic strings against the flow direction of the current photovoltaically generated in the respective string (cross current or reverse current) by means of the reverse current protective circuit.
A German patent application of the present Applicant, filed on the same date as the present application, describes a string switch-off device for switching off a single string in a multi-string photovoltaic system.
The present disclosure is based thereon, and therefore the disclosure content of DE 10 2016 117 049 and of the patent application filed on the same day as the present application are hereby incorporated by reference.
For example, a suitable DC isolator is required for electrically disconnecting a photovoltaic string from an array of parallel connected strings in a multi-string photovoltaic system.
Although a photovoltaic system typically has a DC main circuit breaker in the so-called generator junction box, however, in the case of damage caused on the solar panels or on the connection lines by fire, water, hail etc., for example, it is not able to disconnect the section upstream of the generator junction box. Furthermore, such DC main circuit breakers in the generator junction box are typically manually operated, so that higher-level remote control is typically not possible. Additionally, such manually operated DC main circuit breakers are large in terms of installation size and expensive. Also, motorized emergency switches are known, but they are large in size and expensive as well. Moreover, selective disconnection of individual photovoltaic strings is not possible at all with such switches.
Nevertheless, switching operations within a photovoltaic generator typically involve switching of a combination of high DC string voltage and high DC string current. In contrast to an AC application and due to the lack of zero crossings, a non-extinguishing arc may arise when switching a high DC voltage and a high DC current. With a common AC voltage frequency, an arc would typically extinguish by itself after 10 ms at the latest.
From WO 2016/091281 A1, a device is known comprising a switching device for switching an AC voltage or an AC current, which has a bridging means for bridging the switching device in an operating phase. However, this device is described exclusively for alternating voltage or alternating current.

Photovoltaic system, direct current hybrid switching device, use and method for switching a photovoltaic string on and off


A substantially lead-free solder, comprising: from around 96.8% to around 99.3% tin; from around 0.2% to around 3.0% copper; and from around 0.02% to around 0.12% silicon.

Many conventional solders contain lead as a major constituent thereof. Such solders often have desirable physical properties, and the use of lead- containing solders is widespread throughout several industries, including those concerned with the production of printed circuit boards.
There are, however, increasing demands for lead-free solders due, for example, to environmental considerations, and it seems likely that, within the next few years, it will be a legal requirement in several countries for solders used in the manufacture of many items to contain little or no lead.
One type of alloy that has been used as a replacement for the conventional tin-lead solders are tin-copper alloys, and an alloy consisting of 99.3% tin and 0.7% copper has become relatively widely used in certain industries. However, the properties of such a tin-copper alloy are less desirable than those of the conventional tin-lead alloy, and in particular the tin-copper alloy exhibits a lower strength, a lower fatigue resistance and a higher eutectic temperature than the conventional tin-lead alloy.
This is particularly undesirable, since many industrial machines and processes are configured to work effectively with the conventional tin-lead alloy, and ideally a lead-free solders replacement should be capable of being used with the same machines and processes without significant modification thereof. Many manufacturers have, however, found that existing soldering processes must now be significantly adapted to accommodate the use of lead- free solders, and this adaptation of processes and materials is widely regarded as a poor use of resources, particularly as the standard of articles manufactured using known lead-free solders is often considerably below that achievable using conventional leaded solders.

Quantum Chemical Technologies (Singapore) Pte. Ltd

Singapore Asahi Chemical & Solder Industries Pte.


A switching control method capable of continuously providing power is utilized for a power supply system having a first power supply unit and a second power supply unit. The switching control method includes generating a first input signal and a second input signal; performing a logical operation process on the first input signal and the second input signal to generate a first control signal; delaying the second input signal for a delay time to generate a second control signal; controlling a coupling relationship between the first power supply unit and a load according to the first control signal; and controlling a coupling relationship between the second power supply unit and the load according to the second control signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a switching control method, and a related apparatus and a power supply system, and more particularly, to a switching control method capable of continuously providing power, and an apparatus and power supply system thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With the development of electronic technology, electronic products become more diverse and more delicate, not to mention incorporating more powerful functions. As a result, more highly effective circuit designs must be implemented. Therefore, in order to meet demands for electronic products, not only power saving but also high quality power supply issues must be taken into consideration in power design.
In the aspect of smart power, i.e. power usage in different stages, a system designer should supply different levels of power. More specifically, according to the system requirements, different types of power supply should be provided for any component in need, which often necessitates the use of switches. The switches can be used for proving a correct power at a proper timing. For example, in the prior art, electronic products take advantage of oscillators. For accuracy, a stable and pure power supply is always needed when the oscillator operates. Otherwise, any subtle voltage variation could result in a non-ideal result. In this situation, the prior art usually uses a low drop out (LDO) regulator as an appropriate power supply, which has low output noise, low output ripples and low electromagnetic interference. However, compared with general power supplies, the LDO regulator has disadvantages of power consumption and low power conversion factor due to an extra current that is required. Thus, if the LDO regulator is used in the whole process for power supply, inevitably, the cost increases. Moreover, when the system operates in an initial state or a reset state, the oscillator does not require high quality for the power supply as much as it does when the system is operating. Thus, the switches are used for properly switching to a stable power supply when the components are operating or switching to a general power supply when the system operates in the initial state or the reset state.
Please refer to FIG.1, which is a schematic diagram of a power switching device 10 according to the prior art. The power switching device 10 is used for controlling a power supply 102 or an LDO regulator 104 according to a switching control signal S of one bit to provide power to an oscillator 106. The power supply 102 and the LDO regulator 104 are used for providing a supplying power VMM and a stable voltage power VREG. When the oscillator 106 is operating, the power switching device 10 controls the LDO regulator 104 to provide a stable voltage power VREG to the oscillator 106. In this situation, the LDO regulator 104 consumes a larger current, but outputs a stable voltage of 1.8 volt. In the initial state or the reset state, for power saving, the power switching device 10 controls the power supply 102 to provide the supplying power VMM. Compared with the LDO regulator 104, the voltage provided by the power supply 102 is not stable enough, but is sufficient to provide the current for the oscillator 106. The power switching device 10 includes a first switch 108, a second switch 110 and an inverter 112. An input terminal of the inverter 112 is coupled to the first switch 108. An output terminal of the inverter 112 is coupled to the second switch 110. The first switch 108 controls whether a coupling between the power supply device and the oscillator 106 is conductive or not, according to an inverted signal SINV of the switching control signal S. The second switch 110 controls whether the coupling between the LDO regulator 104 and the oscillator 106 is conductive or not, according to the switching control signal S. As a result, when the oscillator 106 is operating, the second switch 110 can conduct the coupling between the LDO regulator 104 and the oscillator 106 by inputting the switching control signal S with a high voltage level (i.e. S=1), to provide the stable voltage power VREG to the oscillator 106. When the system operates in the initial state or the reset state, the switching control signal S with a low voltage level (i.e. S=0) is inputted. The first switch 108 conducts the coupling between the power supply 102 and the oscillator 106 according to the inverted signal SINV (i.e. SINV=1) to provide the supplying power VMM to the oscillator 106.
Please refer to FIG. 2, which illustrates timing diagrams of related signals shown in FIG. 1. Since the switching control signal is delayed for a delay time TINT when inverted by inverter 112, the first switch 108 and the second switch 110 will close all powers during switching. To take an example of time T1 shown in FIG. 2, when the switching control signal S goes from high to low, the LDO regulator 104 or the power supply 102 is disabled during the time that the switching control signal S is inverted by the inverter 112. In other words, power outage could occur.
To avoid the problem caused by inverter delay mentioned above, another method is adopted in the prior art. Please refer to FIG.3, which is a schematic diagram of a power switching device 30 according to the prior art. The power switching device 30 includes a first switch 302 and the second switch 304. When the switching control signals S1 and S2 are both low (i.e. S1=0, S2=0), the system or the control switching device 30 operates in the initial state or the reset state. At this point, the first switch 302 conducts a coupling between the power supply 102 and the oscillator 106 and the second switch 304 breaks a coupling between the LDO regulator 104 and the oscillator 106. In this situation, if intending to switch to the power supplied, a switching control signal must be inputted beforehand to turn on another power. Then, another switching control signal is inputted to shut down the power in use. For example, please refer to FIG. 4, which illustrates timing diagrams of the related signals shown in FIG. 4. Assuming that the system operates in the initial state (i.e. time T1 in FIG. 4), if the system intends to switch to the LDO regulator 104 to provide the stable voltage power VREG for the oscillator 106, the switching control signal S1 with the low voltage level is inputted to the first switch 302 and the switching control signal S2 with the high voltage level is inputted to the second switch 304 (i.e. time T2 in FIG. 4) in advance, such that the second switch 304 is conductive to provide the stable voltage power VREG. Subsequently, the switching control signal S1 with the high voltage level and the switching control signal S2 with the low voltage level are inputted to the first switch 302 and the second switch 304, respectively (i.e. time T3 in FIG. 4), which allows the first switch 302 to break the coupling between the power supply 102 and the oscillator 106, and stop proving the supplying power VMM. Consequently, the power outage mentioned above can be avoided. However, since the power switching device 30 uses two bits for controlling, the power outage may still occur if the switching control signal S1 with the high voltage level and the switching control signal S2 with the low voltage level are inputted accidentally. In addition, when the system executes a reset process, the power switching device 30 must return to the reset state as soon as possible (i.e. time T4 in FIG. 4). At this point, the control unit 306 cannot wait to closes the second switch 304 before the first switch 302 is conductive. In this situation, since the first switch 302 and the second switch 304 switch at different speeds, all supplying powers are shorted off, thereby failing to continuously provide power to the oscillator 106.

Switching control method capable of continuously providing power and related apparatus and power supply system


There is disclosed an odorless, non-tearable, moisture-resistant animal collar comprising a generally circular, flexible rubber body having an extended portion on the circumference for attachment of a leash and a generally circular central opening therein which is provided with an irregular peripheral pattern to hold the collar more securely about the neck of an animal without choking it, while at the same time permitting a quick release thereof from the animal's neck.

A wide variety of animal collars are known. Such collars are configured to restrain, entrain, guide, and teach animals. Thus, their particular constructional features generally vary widely depending upon the primary aim to be accomplished by their use on animals.
Small animal collars are also known. Generally, they are simple circular structures provided with means for attaching a leash thereto and have a circular opening so that they may be disposed around the neck of the animal with a degree of facility and ease as well as to be easily removable.
A particular problem arises in providing a leash for very small animals such as ferrets, gerbils, and the like. Thus, frequently an individual walks so fast that he or she precedes the animal and thus unadvertently pulls on the leash or lifts the leash. Because these animals are so small and so light in weight, they provide little actual resistance to the force applied by the person leading the animal. As a consequence, the neck of the animal is pulled, twisted, or snapped, which frequently results in fatality. Therefore, it has been necessary to provide a collar for such animals which would permit the animal to escape from the collar when caught in such harmful positions.
Consequently, the strap, belt, or band-like collars cannot be used since once such are buckled or hooked into place they present a fixed loop from which the animal cannot escape.
Generally, collars for ferrets, gerbils, hamsters, and the like are made from a relatively pliable, inexpensive soft leather having a central opening through which the animals head can pass in either direction. The collar is formed in a flat plane, and the central opening may be cut in one or more places to allow a large head to freely pass through it.
Such known collars, while generally accomplishing their end purpose in a satisfactory manner, still exhibit a number of disadvantages. For example, they do not normally exhibit sufficient flexibility and, when further modified to make them more flexible, they do not hole about an animal's neck with a sufficient degree of security and are also so weakened as to be easily torn. In addition, since they are made of inexpensive leather, they are prone to absorb moisture and become odoriferous as well as being easily torn.
There exists, therefore, the need for an animal collar and, particularly, a small animal collar which does not exhibit such drawbacks. The present invention fulfill such a need.
These advantages and objects as well as others will be seen in the subsequent disclosure.


A nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery separator film transfer device is provided which realizes a foreign object removing technique that is less likely to cause defects in a separator. The device includes a magnet bar which is arranged in a transfer path and generates a magnetic field for removing, from a separator film being transferred, a magnetic substance adhering to a first surface of the separator film; and an air cylinder which allows a distance to the magnet bar from the first surface of the separator film to be variable.

Conventionally, there has been known a technique of removing a foreign object from a target object by use of a magnet. Examples of the target object include a slurry composition for a secondary battery (Patent Literature 1), a composition for forming a fuel-cell separator (Patent Literature 2), a positive electrode plate and negative electrode plate for a battery (Patent Literature 3), a conveyor for transferring a glass piece (Patent Literature 4), and an interlayer tape used for winding a TAB tape (Patent Literature 5).

Separator film conveyance device for nonaqueous electrolytic-solution secondary battery and method for manufacturing separator film for nonaqueous electrolytic-solution secondary battery


A differential amplifier that employs mutually coupled inductors to provide desired levels of inductance in a substantially smaller form factor in comparison to individual inductor components. Mutually coupled inductors according to the present teachings may also be used to increase common mode rejection in a differential amplifier.

Differential amplifiers may be employed in a variety of electronic circuits including circuits that operate at radio frequency (RF), microwave, and millimeter wave frequencies. A differential amplifier may include a pair of transistors that generate a differential output signal at a pair of output ports in response to a differential input signal received at a pair of input ports.
A prior differential amplifier may include a set of individual inductor components. For example, inductor components may be used for transistor biasing in a differential amplifier. In addition, inductor components may be used for impedance matching at the input and/or output ports of a differential amplifier. Inductor components may also be used for noise reduction in a differential amplifier.
Unfortunately, the physical space taken up by the winding structures of individual inductor components may hinder attempts to decrease the physical size of a differential amplifier. The size limitations imposed by the physical dimensions of inductor components may be a particular hindrance in the design of differential amplifiers contained on integrated circuit chips. In addition, electrical interactions that may occur between individual inductor components may alter the frequency response of a differential amplifier away from its desired response.

Avago Technologies Wireless IP (Singapore) Pte Ltd


A calibration phantom representative of human tissue containing variable concentrations of calcium serves as a calibration reference for quantifying calcium, bone mass and bone mineral density in radiography and CT imaging systems. The method of fabrication of the calibration phantom provides the long-term stable incorporation of calcium into a tissue equivalent material which allows accurate, standardized, and reproducible quantification of calcium and bone mineral density in radiography and CT imaging systems. A method of using the calibration phantom for quantifying calcium and bone includes placement of part of a patient's anatomy in a bolusing apparatus to provide uniform attenuation of the x-ray beam passing through and around the patient's anatomy. A x-ray filter plate may be used to predictably attenuate the x-ray beam.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a calibration device for radiography and X-ray computed tomography systems, and more specifically, to a calibration phantom which incorporates calcium into a human tissue equivalent material in terms of x-ray beam attenuation and scatter, and methods of fabrication and use of the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Osteoporosis is the most common disorder of the human skeletal system, affecting up to 32 percent of women and 17 percent of men, depending upon the age group under consideration, Basically, osteoporosis is a disease process in which the mineral content (i.e., calcium content) of a person's skeletal system is gradually reduced, leading to a higher risk of fractures particularly in the spine, hip, and wrist. Osteoporosis is a major medical problem. It has been estimated that approximately 40,000 American women die per year from complications due to osteoporosis.
In the past, osteoporosis was considered to be undiagnosable prior to the onset of symptoms, and untreatable once it became symptomatic. Thus, it was frequently called the "silent disease." More recently, however, techniques have been developed which detect the early mineral loss in a person's bones. Such techniques include computed tomography (CT) quantitative computed tomography (QCT) and dual-energy x-ray absorptometry (DEXA).
Computed tomography uses an array of detectors to collect x-ray attenuation data from x-ray beams that pass through the body. The data are input as digital data to a computer, which processes that data and reconstructs planar cross-sectional images of the internal structures of the body through which the x-ray beams pass.
DEXA uses a dual energy approach to compensate for tissue variations to allow quantification of bone mass in a projection image. QCT requires the use of a bone-equivalent calibration phantom which is scanned simultaneously with the patient to provide bone density measurements in axial images.
Each of these methods require access to and use of sophisticated and relatively expensive equipment. In addition, the images produced can vary significantly in response to a number of technical factors related to the apparatus used, as well as errors caused by beam hardening and scattered radiation within the human body.
Plain film radiographs are frequently taken to qualitatively assess bone density throughout the body. Conventional radiographic apparatuses are widely available throughout the world and thus allow easy access for most patients. Although these radiographs provide very high spatial resolution and indicate relative attenuation of neighboring tissues, they are highly inaccurate and subject to gross misjudgment in assessing the patient's condition in terms of bone mass. Due to a variety of technical factors, quantification of calcium density from single energy projection radiography has not been possible.
In particular, quantitative x-ray measurements are influenced by x-ray beam hardening due to the broad spectral distribution of x-rays. As the x-rays pass through tissue or any other medium, lower energy x-rays are preferentially absorbed. This results in a shifting of the effective beam energy to higher values. Thus, the quantitative results which are obtained will vary with the size and shape and composition of the particular patient's anatomy.
The detection and quantification of calcification in pulmonary nodules, coronary arteries, aortic calcification, breast tumors and the like has been a goal of clinical radiology for some time. Cine CT, dual energy digital subtraction fluoroscopy, and dual energy film subtraction radiography have been tried. It has long been desirable, however, to quantify calcium or bone density in conventional x-ray projection images without using dual energy techniques.
Stepwedges using material of varying thickness are frequently used in radiology for quality control testing of x-ray beam properties. By varying the thickness of the steps, the intensity and spectral content of the x-ray beam in the projection image can be varied.
Stepwedges are commonly made of aluminum, copper and other convenient and homogeneous materials of known x-ray attenuation properties. Stepwedges using bone-like absorption materials have been used in quality control tests to evaluate the ability of dual energy imaging to quantify pulmonary nodules, see Kruger, et al., "Dual Energy Film Subtraction Technique for Detecting Calcification in Solitary Pulmonary Nodules," Radiology, Vol. 140, pages 213-219, July 1981. Previous efforts have used bone phantoms imaged separately from the patient to test the sensitivity of the technique for quantification. These stepwedge-like phantoms use calcium phosphate powder or calcium phosphate powder in molten paraffin. Since the phantoms use powder and/or paraffin, they lack packing consistence, long term stability, and the homogeneity of mixing, which are desirable characteristics of a phantom used repeatedly over long periods of time.
There is therefore a substantial need for an improved test phantom representative of human tissue containing calcium in a long-term stable format, and a low cost method of quantifying bone density and calcium content which is fast, accurate, reproducible and widely available.

Calibration phantom and improved method of quantifying calcium and bone density using same


A plasma processing apparatus and method to control a temperature of a chamber component therein are described. A process chamber may include a temperature controlled chamber component and at least one remote heat transfer fluid loop comprising a first heat exchanger having a primary side in fluid communication with a heat sink or heat source, and a local heat transfer fluid loop placing the chamber component in fluid communication with a secondary side of the first heat exchanger. The local loop may be of significantly smaller fluid volume than the remote loop(s) and circulated to provide thermal load of uniform temperature. Temperature control of heat transfer fluid in the local loop and temperature control of the chamber component may be implemented with a cascaded control algorithm. The plasma processing apparatus further includes an AC heated electrostatic chuck (ESC) assembly.

In a plasma processing chamber, such as a plasma etch or plasma deposition chamber, the temperature of a chamber component is often an important parameter to control during a process. For example, a temperature of a substrate holder, commonly called a chuck or pedestal, may be controlled to heat/cool a workpiece to various controlled temperatures during the process recipe (e.g., to control an etch rate). Similarly, a temperature of a showerhead/upper electrode, chamber liner, baffle, process kit, or other component may also be controlled during the process recipe to influence the processing. Conventionally, a heat sink and/or heat source is coupled to the processing chamber to maintain the temperature of a chamber component at a desired temperature. Often, at least one heat transfer fluid loop thermally coupled to the chamber component is utilized to provide heating and/or cooling power.
Long line lengths in a heat transfer fluid loop, and the large heat transfer fluid volumes associated with such long line lengths are detrimental to temperature control response times. Point-of-use systems are one means to reduce fluid loop lengths/volumes. However, physical space constraints disadvantageously limit the power loads of such point-of-use systems.
With plasma processing trends continuing to increase RF power levels and also increase workpiece diameters (with 300 mm now typical and 450 mm systems now under development), a temperature control system capable of both a fast response time and high power loads is advantageous in the plasma processing field.


A system and method for field analysis, in an organization is described herein. According to the present invention, the system parses the software code to prepare an abstract syntax tree, extract attributes and relational report, load the report in a common repository, perform impact analysis on the said common repository based on user provided seed, and prepare the list of impacted variables. Further, if required the impacted fields are expanded based on the target size information provided.

In the present scenario, a large number of companies still maintain software applications for mainframe systems. Such applications are also referred to as "Legacy applications". The examples of these applications include Banking operations, Computer-based reservation systems, Air traffic control and power grids etc. Generally, the operations involved in the execution of such applications are complex in nature and may require performing various critical functions thereby consuming more time and resources.
As a consequence of complex nature and critical functions handled by such applications, it is very difficult to replace them. Accordingly, companies maintaining these applications need to update them frequently. Generally, development and maintenance of these mainframe or legacy applications consumes more time. Thus, while updating these applications, it may be lead to cumbersome task and may require too much time. This is due to the fact that these applications were developed long time back and generally they lack proper documentation supporting the existence of the software code.
Generally, such updates in the mainframe/legacy applications are related to the size attribute of a variable that needs to be expanded according to the current business requirements. The expansion of attribute size of variable is referred to as "Field Expansion". The common reasons for "Field Expansion" are as follows:
Business Expansion:
As a result of business expansion, few of the most generally used variables or fields in the software code executing the business module requirements need to be changed or updated. In the manufacturing industry, such a field could be the Warehouse code, Depot code or Product code. These fields play a vital role in making decisions related to future strategies and planning of the business. For example, considering the manufacturing industry involved in a specific product manufacture, if the Product code field has a length of 2 digits, the system would not support beyond 99 products types.
Business Rules Change:
The software system is considered to be the backbone of many industries and has been implemented for automating various tasks facilitating business procedures. Thus, an impact on the business scenario would lead to changes to the software system driving them. This requires updating of such software with specific to fields or variables that may be impacted due to the impact in the business scenario. Such an update may comprise expansion of the impacted fields or variables termed as Field Expansion. Examples of business rules change include compliance to Government regulations, addition of multiple language support, and changes in the structure of product or other codes.
Oversight:
This may result as a consequence of oversight during the planning phase of software development. Example: Account number field size was set without keeping in mind the fact that it may grow in future to some extent.
Due to the reasons mentioned above, few of the existing entities get impacted in the software and as a consequence of this; there is a need to perform Field Analysis on such impacted entities. Further, if required, there is a need to expand the impacted entities by employing Field Expansion. The Field Analysis task is a complex as it is much more than simple analysis of fields. In the software program, the variables are interlinked with each other, various functions and other commands. Thus, the changes required in these variables can lead to changes in the entire business logic, data storage and the data retrieval options. The data related changes include, but not limited to fields, data structures, arrays and tables.
In the background art, the field analysis and thereby field expansion is a manual process. In this process, one or more software programmers manually conduct an analysis of the software to identify the impacted variables. This is referred to as impact analysis. Further, the field size of each of the identified impacted variables is modified manually based on the requirements.
Attempts have been made in the past to automate the process of field analysis and field expansion. For example, some of the existing systems and methods work on the principle of search and replace. However, in such automation cases, the rates of false positives are high. To elaborate this further, while conducting field analysis, these systems may detect some of the variables that may have not being impacted. This therefore, leads to increase in the false positives. Moreover, the existing systems and methods are limited to perform field expansion analysis on particular set of applications mainly applications involving Y2K related problems and fail to work for updating business applications that are required to be updated due to dynamic changing scenarios such as business expansion, business rules change and oversight etc as discussed in the art.
As will be appreciated, there is a long felt need for a system and method that enables an automatic comprehensive impact analysis to perform a field expansion thereby facilitating reduction in the false positives in various legacy or mainframe applications those subjected to update procedures.

System and method for automatic impact variable analysis and field expansion in mainframe systems


A cryogenic system includes a space formed between a cooling stage of a cryocooler unit and an element to be cooled, and a thermal joint placed in the space, wherein the thermal joint is composed of a substance that has a melting point higher than the cooling temperature of the element to be cooled and that is in a liquid or gaseous state at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. The cryogenic system can achieve reproducible and excellent thermal contact at a cooling stage without applying a large mechanical stress to a cryocooler unit structure.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cryogenic system for cooling a superconducting magnet or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is well known that a superconducting magnet apparatus must be kept at cryogenic temperatures to maintain the superconductivity. Examples of cooling means include a method of immersing the superconducting magnet in a cryogen, such as liquid helium, and a method for cooling the superconducting magnet directly with a cryocooler without using a cryogen.
FIG. 13 shows a structure of a conventional cryogenic system. This is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which is known as a medical apparatus. FIG. 13 is a longitudinal section of the cryogenic system housing a superconducting solenoid magnet having a horizontal central axis.
This cryogenic system includes a cryocooler unit 51, a vacuum chamber 52, a superconducting magnet 53, a liquid helium bath 55, and a radiation-shield 56. The superconducting magnet 53 is placed in the vacuum chamber 52 and generates a large magnetic field. The liquid helium bath 55 houses the superconducting magnet 53 and contains liquid helium 54 for cooling the superconducting magnet 53. The radiation-shield 56 is provided between the vacuum chamber 52 and the liquid helium bath 55 to shield radiation from the vacuum chamber 52 to the liquid helium bath 55.
The cryocooler unit 51 has two stages; a first cooling stage 57 is thermally coupled to the radiation-shield 56 and a second cooling stage 58 is thermally coupled to a recondenser 59, each stage being cooled at each predetermined temperature. A sleeve 60 housing the cryocooler unit 51 and the liquid helium bath 55 communicate with each other. Spaces over the liquid helium bath 55 and within the cryocooler sleeve 60 are filled with helium having a saturated vapor pressure at an operating temperature of the superconducting magnet 53.
In such a helium recondensing cryogenic system, the cryocooler unit 51 that has a cooling capacity at as low as 4.2 K at the second cooling stage 58 is adopted.
Thus, the recondenser 59 has a surface temperature lower than the temperature of liquid helium. When a gaseous phase of the liquid helium 54 comes into contact with the recondenser 59, it can be recondensed into liquid helium. Thus, in the system shown in FIG. 13, a user does not need to refill liquid helium 54 as long as the cryocooler unit 51 operates, and can use the cryogenic system without monitoring a cryogenic coolant.
However, the operation of the cryocooler unit 51 shown in FIG. 13 is interrupted by periodical replacement of internal components or maintenance of a compressor unit, which supplies compressed gas to the cryocooler unit 51. During such a maintenance, an increased amount of heat is transferred to the liquid helium bath 55, promoting the evaporation of liquid helium 54. Furthermore, evaporated helium is not recondensed by the cryocooler unit 51 during the maintenance and is entirely released from the system.
Thus, liquid helium 54 gradually decreases because of repeated maintenance and must be refilled. This increases the operation cost of the system. In the system shown in FIG. 13, therefore, the maintenance time should be as short as possible to reduce the flow of heat into the liquid helium bath 55.
It should be noted that although the shutdown of the compressor does not take many hours, the maintenance of the cryocooler unit 51 takes considerable time. That is, procedures of removing the cryocooler unit 51 from the cryocooler sleeve 60; putting a new cryocooler unit 51 into the cryocooler sleeve 60; starting the new cryocooler unit 51; and waiting until a steady state is reached cannot be omitted.
Thus, in addition to the prompt replacement of the cryocooler unit 51, the reduction of the time to reach the steady state is required to be shorten. Thus, the maintenance cannot be shortened to a few hours.
The second problem in the maintenance of the cryogenic system relates to thermal resistance between the cryocooler unit 51 and an element to be cooled.
In the structure shown in FIG. 13, to get the best performance from the cryocooler unit 51, a thermal contact between the first cooling stage 57 and the radiation-shield 56, and a thermal contact between the second cooling stage 58 and the recondenser 59 must be reproducibly maintained in good condition. For example, a poor thermal contact between the first cooling stage 57 and the radiation-shield 56 results in a large difference in temperature at the interface (thermal contact resistance) when unit heat passes through the contact. This increases the temperature of the radiation-shield 56 and therefore increases the flow of heat into the liquid helium bath 55. At worst, the flow of heat into the liquid helium bath 55 exceeds the capacity of the recondenser 59; that is, not all the helium evaporated from the liquid helium 54 can be recondensed even when the cryocooler unit 51 is in operation. Thus, cryogen (liquid helium) must be added periodically. This considerably impairs the operationability of the cryogenic system.
A poor thermal joint between the second cooling stage 58 and the recondenser 59 is more serious. In the cryocooler unit 51 shown in FIG. 13, since the second cooling stage 58 has a much smaller cooling capacity than the first cooling stage 57, even a small difference in temperature at the second cooling stage 58 largely affects the recondensation. Even when both thermal joints have the same temperature difference of 1 K, for example, this is obvious when the ratio of the temperature difference to the operating temperatures of the first cooling stage 57 and the second cooling stage 58 are considered.
Thus, when the temperature difference between the second cooling stage 58 and the recondenser 59 is large, the temperature of the recondenser 59 does not decrease sufficiently. At worst, cooling fins become higher in temperature than liquid helium 54 and cannot recondense helium gas. This also leads to the refilling of cryogen.
Increased thermal resistance between the cryocooler unit and an element to be cooled partly results from contamination in the cryocooler sleeve 60.
When the cryocooler unit 51 is removed from the cryocooler sleeve 60, the temperature inside the cryocooler sleeve 60 is lower than the ambient temperature. In general, the temperature is 30 to 60 K at the radiation-shield 56, and about 3 to 5 K at the bottom of the cryocooler sleeve 60. Thus, when perfect measures are not taken to prevent the outside air from entering the cryocooler sleeve 60, the air in the amount corresponding to the cryocooler unit 51 enters from the outside of the vacuum chamber 52. This causes deposition of water vapor and air within the cryocooler sleeve 60. As a result, this decreases the contact area at the interface between the first cooling stage 57 and the radiation-shield 56, increases the thermal resistance, and may cause the same problem as described above.
In the past, many attempts to overcome these two big problems, that is, shortening of the maintenance and reduction of the thermal resistance between the cryocooler unit and the element to be cooled were made.
For example, one described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,470 is already known.
This prior art utilizes a hermetic liquid helium container, which eliminates the addition of cryogen. Furthermore, a cooling stage of a cryocooler unit and a recondenser of the liquid helium container (bath) are spaced at a predetermined interval. A thermal joint of an indium gasket is placed in the gap to reduce thermal resistance between the cryocooler unit and an element to be cooled.
However, in the technique described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,470, to make effective use of the gasket to decrease the thermal resistance, very high pressure must be applied to pinch the gasket. This may damage the cryocooler unit even with a soft metal gasket like indium.
Since the thermal contact resistance between two materials at cryogenic temperatures decreases as the contact pressure increases, the two materials should be pressed against each other at the highest possible pressure to improve heat transfer at the contact surface of the thermal joint. However, in general, the portion of the cryocooler unit between the first cooling stage and the second cooling stage is often made of very thin material to reduce the heat flow. Thus, the cryocooler unit may be damaged by a large mechanical stress.
On the contrary, an insufficient mechanical stress results in a large thermal resistance. Thus, it is very difficult to adjust the mounting position of the cryocooler unit so that the mechanical stress would not be too large and not too small.
Furthermore, when the cryocooler unit is removed for maintenance, in the cryogenic system with the indium gasket, heat may flow into the liquid helium container from the gasket. Thus, it may take many hours to resume the operation.
In addition, replacement of the gasket after removing the cryocooler unit takes additional time for maintenance.
In an attempt to overcome the problem described above, U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,077 proposed a heat transfer mechanism in which a liquid at a cryogenic temperature is introduced into a thermal joint between a second cooling stage and an element to be cooled, evaporates on the element to be cooled, and recondenses at the second cooling stage.
The prior art described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,077 has many advantages. Since the thermal joint is achieved by the evaporation and recondensation of a liquid coolant, a cryocooler unit can be easily removed and mounted. Moreover, since no stress is applied to the cooling stage, the precision of mounting position of the cryocooler unit is not an important issue.
However, for a superconducting magnet made of a superconducting metal wire as in this prior art, the element to be cooled must be maintained at the liquid helium temperature or lower. Thus, a possible thermal joint medium (cryogen) is only liquid helium. Furthermore, two mechanisms, that is, evaporation and recondensation of the cryogen are required in series between the element and the cryocooler unit. This results in a larger difference in temperature and therefore lower efficiency than the thermal transfer via a solid.
Furthermore, both techniques described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,470 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,077 cannot solve the problem of contamination in the cryocooler sleeve.


Male-produced aggregation pheromones were demonstrated in Carpophilus hemipterus (L.), Carpophilus lugubris Murray, and Carpophilus freemani Dobson (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae) using a wind-tunnel bioassay. The attractiveness of the pheromones is greatly enhanced by volatiles from a host plant, and combinations of pheromone and food volatiles typically attract 3-10 times more beetles than either source by itself. The pheromones consist of a series of 12-, 13-, 14-, and 15-carbon unsaturated hydrocarbons. The most abundant of these in C. hemipterus is (2E,4E,6E,8E)-3,5,7-trimethyl-2,4,6,8-decatetraene. In C. lugubris, the most abundant is (2E,4E,6E,8E)-7-ethyl-3,5-dimethyl-2,4,6,8-undecatetraene, and in C. freemani, (2E,4E,6E)-5-ethyl-3-methyl-2,4,6-nonatriene.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to aggregation pheromones of insects, particularly the nitidulid species Carpophilus hemipterus, C. lugubris, and C. freemani, and the use of these pheromones in combination with host plant volatiles to aid in insect control as, for example, in pheromone-baited traps.
2. References
Throughout this application, various publications are referenced by the name of the author and date of publication within parentheses. Full citations for these references may be found at the end of the specification, listed in alphabetical order.
3. Description of the Prior Art
Insect-produced volatiles (e.g., pheromones) and host plant odors (e.g., kairomones) may facilitate location of conspecifics for mating and orientation to acceptable host plants for feeding and oviposition. It is known that in several, but not all, insect species (e.g., bark beetles) pheromones and a few specific plant odors, such as monoterpenes, may act in synergy, each enhancing the attraction of the other (Borden, 1984).
Carpophilus hemipterus (L.) (Coleoptera: Nltidulidae) is a worldwide pest attacking agricultural commodities such as ripe and dried fruit, corn, wheat, oats, rice, beans, nuts, peanuts, cotton seed, copra, spices, sugar, honey, and other materials (Hinton, 1945). It is also able to vector microorganisms responsible for the souring of figs (Hinton, 1945) and fungi which contaminate corn and produce mycotoxins (Wicklow et al., 1988).
The dusky sap beetle, Carpophilus lugubris Murray (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae) is distributed from Brazil through Central America (Parsons, 1943) and probably throughout the United States (Sanford, 1958). It is found in ripe and decomposing fruit and vegetables (Sanford and Luckman, 1963), trees infected with oak wilt (Dorsey et al., 1953; Norris, 1953), and poultry manure (Pfeiffer and Axtell, 1980). It is probably most important as a pest of sweet corn (Connell, 1956; Sanford, 1958; Connell, 1975; Tamaki et al., 1982), and can cause large amounts of corn to be rejected at canneries (Luckman and Hibbs, 1959). In addition, it appears to be a vector of oak wilt (Dorsey et al., 1953; Norris, 1953; Appel, 1986), and mycotoxin-producing fungi that contaminate corn (Wicklow et al., 1988). Although tight-husked corn can provide some control, this may be defeated when corn earworms or other insects provide entry holes (Connell, 1956; Tamaki et al., 1982). However, in many cases these insects are able to enter the ears without assistance (Connell, 1956; Tamaki et al., 1982). The loose-husked varieties of dent (field) corn adopted in association with the use of mechanical harvesting promote ready entry sites for these insects (Connell, 1956).
Carpophilus freemani Dobson infests sweet corn (Sanford and Luckman, 1963) and corn seed and corn meal (Connell, 1975). It is a principal pest of figs (Smilanick and Ehler, 1976) and the principal vector of Ceratocystis canker of stone fruits including almonds, prunes, peaches, and apricots (Moller et al., 1969).
Field traps have been used to monitor or attempt to control these and other nitidulid species, and much research has gone into trap baits. Fermenting fig paste has been used as a trap bait for C. hemipterus (Obenauf et al., 1976}. Smilanick et al. (1978) determined that a 1:1:1 mixture of acetaldehyde, ethyl acetate, and ethanol was an even more effective bait for C. hemipterus than fig paste, but trap catches were still relatively small, given the huge beetle populations. Due to the low activity of 16 other host volatiles tested, Smilanick et al. (1978) concluded that C. hemipterus "appears to use a restricted number of olfactory stimuli to locate suitable hosts." Previously reported methods of monitoring C. lugubris have been of limited effectiveness. It is well known that these insects can be attracted by fermenting baits (Luckman and Hibbs, 1959). Specific methods include using freshly sawn oak or maple blocks in combination with vinegar and fungi (Neel et al., 1967; Dorsey and leach, 1956). However, the attractiveness of these baits varies over time due to changes in fermentative activity (Neel et al., 1967). Previously reported methods of attracting C. freemani are also of limited effectiveness. The only reported method specifically describing C. freemani attraction is that of Smilanick et al. (1978). The response of C. freemani to Smilanick's 3-component mixture appeared to be relatively poor compared to that of C. hemipterus, and not significantly different from fig paste or controls. Alm et al. (1985, 1986) demonstrated that esters such as propyl propionate and butyl acetate were effective baits for Glischrochilus quadrisignatus, another economically important nitidulid, but did not compete with banana. In nature, these chemicals exist in the host plant, are produced by microorganisms which have established on the plants, or both. Curiously, no pheromones have teen reported for nitidulid beetles, even though attractants of this type would probably be potent trap baits or additives to presently used baits. Pheromones have teen reported for a large number of other beetle species.

Aggregation pheromones of the nitridulid beetles Carpophilus hemipterus, Carpophilus lugubris, and Carpophilus freemani

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of Agriculture


The invention is an apparatus and method for acquiring demographic data at the point of sale. In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus includes use of a bar code scanner for two purposes: identification of the product by reading the bar code it carries and for scanning bar-coded demographic selections corresponding to assessments of demographic information made by the sales clerk about the purchaser. The selections are printed onto a chart in words and associated bar code and kept at the check out counter for scanning when the goods are purchased. The two components of data: product identification data and demographic data are associated with each other and stored by a computer until transmitted for evaluation. In an embodiment alternative to the dual use of a scanner, a key pad can be used to make the demographic selections and input them to the computer along with the product identification data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for acquiring demographic information. More specifically, the invention relates to a method and apparatus for obtaining demographic information at the point of sale of goods or services.
2. Discussion of Background
In the competitive marketplace, the capacity for assessing trends is important for strong financial growth. Consumer demographics associated with purchasing is a strong variable for directing the advertising focus in a specific market and manufacturing production rates and direction. Gathering information about consumers of goods and services is important for assessing preference for and satisfaction with those goods and services. Customer feedback is important to manufacturers as input for future products and for assessing trends in developing markets. Consumer demographic information is available from a variety of sources including, for example, the U.S. Census, telephone surveys, or questionnaires that accompany products.
Manufacturers receive data about purchases from fluctuations in inventory and from survey cards returned by consumers. Purchasing data and consumer demographic information are extracted, compiled, and correlated into reports that help in evaluating market trends. Although such reports are helpful, the time and cost in gathering this data limit their value. There remains a need for obtaining information as close to the point of sale as possible that correlates the product purchase to the demographic characteristics of the consumer, that is convenient and cost effective.
Bar code readers are in widespread use in product purchasing. U.S. Pat. No. 5,047,614 granted to Bianco describes a computer-aided shopping method and apparatus. In this method, a consumer uses a portable bar-code scanner to assemble a desired list of items to purchase. The recorded information is forwarded to the merchant for processing and subsequent, delivery of the listed items. In addition to quickly identifying a product for association with a computer-stored price, readers are known to perform comparison tasks. U.S. Pat. No. 4,791,281, granted to Johnsen, et al compares coupons through an encoding and decoding process. Coupons are presented by customers and compared against a master list to prevent repeated redemptions. U.S. Pat. No. 4,908,761, granted to Tai determines the success of advertising efforts from coded, redeemed coupons. Encoded coupons are delivered to selected households and the redeemed coupons are used to refine an original list of potential customers. U.S. Pat. No. 4,752,675, granted to Zetmeir compares coded advertising material submitted from potential customers with the initial direct mailing effort to assess the effectiveness of mass advertising.
There is yet to be a system that gathers timely demographic information by a quick and inexpensive procedure as feedback to product developers and manufacturers.

Method and apparatus for acquiring demographic information


A decorative display device has a frame member, a first scenic member contained within the frame, and a second member spaced from the first member by spacer means. One or more apertures in the first scenic member permit viewing the second member. A floor plate is affixed to the front of the scenic member and extends outwardly therefrom.

Decorative display devices for use in the home are quite popular, especially those displays which depict scenes or tableaus appropriate for particular occasions. Such devices are also prevalent in a commercial milieu where they may be used for advertising purposes, or to display particular products in a pleasing manner.
One very popular type of display device is a Christmas wreath, often hung on the outside of the front door of a house, or in a window or windows thereof. Such wreaths are most often made of suitable seasonal greenery, such as real or imitation holly or evergreen fronds. Examples of such wreaths are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos, 1,696,221 of Tubbs, 3,591,442 of Matesi and 4,100,316 of Lackey, each of which depict wreaths that may be assembled by the user. In order that the wreaths may be even more pleasing to the eye, they are often illuminated, which adds to the festive air created by the wreath. Examples of illuminated wreaths are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,033,173 of Barocas, 2,761,233 of Brown, and 3,350,555 of DiRico, all of which show means for mounting miniature light bulbs within or around the wreath. U.S. Pat. No. 3,500,035 of Franc shows a packaging ornament consisting of an illuminated wreath, wherein the electric power for the illumination is by batteries contained within or adjacent to the wreath. In many of the foregoing examples, as well as in U.S. design patent U.S. Pat. No. 206,124 of Burnbaum, a message or a scene is located in the center of the wreath and enhanced or lit by the illumination.
In all of the foregoing devices, the display of a scene or message is two-dimensional in nature, thereby placing limits on just what can be displayed, and, especially in the case of a scenic display, causing the display to lack realism and warmth. In U.S. design patent U.S. Pat. No. 168,961 of Melaragno, a wreath is shown having a single three dimensional figure of Santa Claus, which would appear to add an additional element of interest to the wreath, but the wreath itself does not appear to be readily adaptable to hanging because of the structure, being intended, instead, to stand upright on a flat surface, and it is limited, as well, in what can be displayed.

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A pattern recognition system receives an image captured by an image capture device, of an operator and the operator is identified. Operator information is accessed, based upon the identified operator, and a control signal is generated to control a mobile machine, based upon the operator information.

There are a wide variety of different types of mobile work machines (or mobile machines). Some such machines include construction machines, agricultural machines, forestry machines, turf management machines, among others.
It is not uncommon for such machines to be deployed at a worksite (such as a construction site, a forestry site, etc.) and to be operated by a number of different operators at that same site. Similarly, it is not uncommon for the different operators to have different skill levels in operating the machines.
The discussion above is merely provided for general background information and is not intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

Machine control using biometric recognition