A method for localizing a terminal includes transmitting the signal by the terminal; receiving the signal by a first and a second satellite; transmitting the signal from each satellite to a receiving station; demodulating the signal received by the first satellite to determine a signal content and the time of arrival of the signal transmitted by the terminal at the receiving station via the first satellite; determining the time of arrival of the signal transmitted by the terminal at the receiving station via the first and second satellite; determining a position for the terminal by triangulation.

The usual positioning system is for the terminal to determine its position thanks to GPS signal by measuring signals emitted by the Global Positioning System satellite network, then to report this information to the hub via any communication network (cellular, satellite . . . ).
Other systems exist, which use an hybrid approach, where the terminal measures some properties, e.g. the delay in the reception of pilot signals from two different satellites, and sends the results to the Network operating center (NOC) via a telecom network, e.g. satellite itself; in a second phase the Network operating center uses these measurements to calculate the terminal position.
Note that all methods described above require an active "collaboration" by the terminal, and rely on the exactness of the information provided by the terminal to the hub. The drawback in this scenario is that the terminal may report a false position or report false information so that the network operating center calculates a false position, and the network operating center has no way to certify the truth of the information. Within an application involving payments, or tracking dangerous goods, it is possible that "pirate" terminals are developed that intentionally report a false position so as to avoid or reduce payments; these pirate terminals would be undetectable by the network operating center.
Besides, in satellite environment, sophisticated methods exist to perform triangulation and locate, within ˜100 km, the position of a source of interference or jamming. These methods are very expensive, as they require sophisticated material as well as access to different satellites in order to perform triangulation. Also, they are based on a long period of observation of the signal. They cannot be used for single signal or in the framework of a consumer service.
The document FR no 1154663 proposes a solution based on measures of relative amplitudes. That invention requires the use of a multi-beam satellite, and the precision highly depends on the geometry of the beams operating on a same frequency band. This requirement restricts its applicability to few satellite systems in the world. Also, the problem of "impersonation", i.e. a terminal pretending to be another one, was not addressed.

Method of geo localization of a terminal sending a single signal to a satellite system


A device and system for assisting in the loading of a cremation container with a bottom surface into a crematory chamber with a floor. The device and system include a cylindrical body, with the body having a longitudinal axis and an external surface extending a length between a first end and a second end. The device and system further include an adhesive applied to the external surface, at one or more points along the length of the cylindrical body. The adhesive temporarily attaches the cylindrical body to the bottom surface of the cremation container.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved cremation box and roller system, and more particularly to a cylindrical body, e.g., a roller, and an adhesive applied to the cylindrical body for temporarily attaching the roller to the cremation box for loading into a crematory chamber.
2. Related Art
Prior art crematory devices have been used to load or otherwise move a cremation box, casket or other container into a chamber for cremation. Many prior art devices either a stationary roller positioned outside the crematory chamber such as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,367 which is incorporated by reference, a roller that is positioned in the cremation chamber prior to loading the cremation container described in the crematory operation manual of Crematory Manufacturing and Service (CMS) or none at all such as may be suggested by the support skids in U.S. Pat. No. 7,322,079 which is also incorporated by reference herein along with the other patent references cited in the accompanying information disclosure statement.
Prior to the present invention, there has been a safety issue with the use of the roller for loading the box in the crematory chamber according to known procedures, such as described in the CMS manual. According to the known procedures, the operator must reach into the preheated crematory chamber, which is approximately 1000° F., and places the roller on the brick floor of the crematory chamber. In placing the roller on the floor, it is possible for the operator to accidentally touch the floor or the side wall of the chamber causing bodily harm to the operator. Also, when the roller is placed in entrance of the chamber, the roller can actually roll further into the chamber which may cause the operator to reach into the preheated chamber to retrieve the roller and start over. This possibility increases as the floor of the crematory is worn by use.
With present roller systems, the dependability of the roller placement is also an issue. If the roller is not placed perpendicular to the travel of the box into the crematory chamber, it can shift causing it to go out of line and not work as a "rolling fulcrum" during the loading process. This is very common because of the nature of the loading process in which there is intense heat radiating from the chamber. Accordingly, the loading process happens in a matter of seconds to avoid being exposed to this intense heat and to avoid having too much heat escape from the chamber.
While prior art devices with a loader which has a frame and a slidable support surface greatly reduce the effort of the operator in loading the box into the chamber and do not have the safety and shifting issues of the roller and box systems, the costs of such loader systems are prohibitively expensive for many crematories. Accordingly, there is a need for a less expensive yet more reliable system to load cremation boxes into the crematory chamber. It would also be beneficial to provide a system which does not require much if any retrofits to the crematory chamber as this would also increase costs.


A corn detasseling head which includes a frame having a pair of generally parallel shafts projecting rearwardly and downwardly from the frame, whereby the shafts are inclined upwardly in a forward direction relative to a normal forward direction to travel of the head. A pair of cylindrical elements are mounted respectively on the shafts for rotation about their axes relative to the frame, the cylindrical elements defining a detasseling nip. The shafts lie in a plane inclined downwardly and outwardly in a transverse direction relative to the normal forward direction of travel of the head. Therefore, an outward throw angle for the detasseling nip is defined to throw tassels outwardly away from the respective row of corn stalks from which they are being removed.

The growing of hybrid seeds, particularly the staple grain of corn, long has been an important part of our agricultural business. In order to grow hybrid corn seeds, the tassels of the corn stalks must be removed so that the corn can be specially pollinated. Many years ago, detasseling corn was accomplished by a number of laborers on a suitable drawn vehicle. As the vehicle passed down the rows of corn stalks, the laborers simply manually pulled the tassels from the stalks.
As labor became expensive or scarce, various apparatus were designed for mechanically detasseling corn. Such apparatus ranged from implements employing rotary blades such as in Ackermann U.S. Pat. No. 3,025,653, to implement employing belts as in Spry U.S. Pat. No. 3,524,308, to implement employing wheels defining a nip for removing the tassels from the stalks as in Pfister U.S. Pat. No. 2,163,849.
A good example of a prior corn detasseling head which has proven quite successful is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,769,782 to Paul L. Cler, dated Nov. 6, 1973. In that patent, a construction is shown including a wheeled frame adapted to be propelled through a field. Mounted on the frame is a parallelogram linkage which, at one end, supports one or more detasseling heads. Each detasseling head includes a pair of tires arranged for rotation about parallel axes and in engagement with each other. The axes of rotation of the tires are at an angle in the range of 40.degree. to 50.degree. C. with respect to the horizontal and extend in a vertical plane encompassing the direction of movement of the vehicle. The tires are cleated and the cleats are such as to mesh when the tires are rotated to provide positive gripping action for tassels as the vehicle travels through a corn field. The tires are mounted on generally parallel shafts which are rotated by an appropriate drive means.
One of the problems encountered with using corn detasseling heads of the character described is that the tassels are thrown straight back onto the row of stalks which is being pulled or detasselled. Sometimes, the tassels fall to the ground as desired, but at other times the tassels are caught near the top of the corn stalk, which creates an undesirable condition. Various devices or attachments have been tried, with limited success, for knocking the tassels to the ground. This involves additions to an otherwise efficient and simple implement, or requires additional implements, per se.
This invention is directed to solving the problems described above by a simple concept of changing the head orientation and thereby providing a "throw angle" for the tassels away from the head and the row of corn stalks whereby the tassels fall to the ground between the rows in the field.


Disclosed is an observation apparatus and method using an electron beam, capable of measuring stress and strain information on a crystal structure in a specimen using electron beam diffraction images. A method according to the invention includes mounting a specimen on a specimen stage; irradiating a predetermined area in the specimen with an electron beam while scanning the electron beam, and acquiring an enlarged image of a specimen internal structure in the predetermined area; irradiating a specific portion included in the predetermined area and acquiring a diffraction image showing the crystal structure in the specimen; extracting information on the crystal structure in the specimen; displaying the information of the crystal structure in the specimen so as to be superimposed on the acquired enlarged image. The observation method according to the invention can obtain information on the crystal structure in a specimen with a high degree of sensitivity and with a high level of resolution.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method of observing a crystalline specimen by using a diffraction image observed by an electron microscope.
2. Description of the Related Prior Arts
An example of a conventional technique of measuring a strain from a change amount relative to reference positions of a distance between spot patterns obtained by Fourier transforming an arbitrary micro area in a lattice image observed by enlarging a crystalline specimen by about 200,000 times with a transmission electron microscope, and mapping the strains is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application No. 2000-65762 (cited document 1) under the title of xe2x80x9ccrystal strain measuring method, crystal strain measuring apparatus, and recording mediumxe2x80x9d.
A technique of automatically extracting intersecting positions of HOLZ (High Order Laue Zone) lines appearing in a CBED (Convergent Beam Electron Diffraction) image formed by irradiating a specimen with a condensed electron beam by image processing and displaying the position change amount as a strain amount strength in colors or by using contour lines is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application No. 10-162728 (cited document 2) under the title of xe2x80x9cMethod and apparatus for evaluating lattice strain by using condensed electron beam diffraction figurexe2x80x9d. An HOLZ line is a kind of a high order diffraction image and, it is conventionally known that its line spacing corresponds to a lattice plane spacing of a crystal in a specimen. That is, a stress and a strain of the crystal in a specimen can be obtained by conversion from a change in the HOLZ line spacing. Since the condensed electron beam emitted to a specimen is usually condensed to a beam diameter of 10 nmxcfx86 or less, the strain and stress can be measured with a resolution of the order of nm.
The measuring method disclosed in Cited Document 1 has a problem such that sensitivity to stress and strain is insufficient. Specifically, lattice widths in a lattice image are larger than a half of lattice spacing, so that if a change in the lattice position is not about 5% or more, a strain amount is not reflected in a Fourier transform image. The strain amount in a silicon semiconductor device is about 3% at the maximum (in many cases 1% or less), which is lower than the detection limit of the measuring method. Consequently, the measuring method has a subject to increase the sensitivity so that a smaller strain or stress amount can be measured.
The measuring method by using a convergent electron beam diffraction disclosed in Cited Document 2 has the following problem. In a high-order diffraction pattern used by the CBED method, a very small lattice strain is reflected in a diffraction pattern very sensitively, so that stress and strain sensitivity is very high. An electron beam for measurement is conversed to 10 nm xcfx86 or less, and spatial resolution is very high. However, since a high-order diffraction pattern of a low intensity appearing in diffraction spots of a transmitted low-order diffraction pattern has to be observed, it is necessary to make a specimen very thin and reduce an inelastic scattering background by using an energy filter. In such a manner, the sample thickness is suppressed to about 100 nm or less. Since the sample is processed to be very thin, the stress and strain are largely relaxed in the film thinning process, and it caused a problem such that it is very difficult to obtain information of the stress and strain originally held in the specimen. When the energy filter is necessary, a problem of higher cost occurs. Further, since high-order diffraction information is used, there is another problem such that the method is highly susceptible to an influence of damage caused by irradiation of an electron beam. Therefore, the measuring method is requested to be developed to a measuring method of observing a low-order diffraction image in a thicker sample.
In short, conditions required to evaluate a stress and a strain in a semiconductor device are realization of the method of observing a low-order diffraction image of a thicker specimen with high spatial resolution and high sensitivity to stress and strain. If even one of the conditions is not satisfied, the technique cannot be practical.
An object of the invention is therefore to solve the problems of the conventional techniques and to embody a practical stress and strain measuring technique to which a method of observing a low-order diffraction image of a thicker observation specimen with high spatial resolution and high sensitivity to stress and strain can be applied.
More specifically, an object of the invention is to provide a sample observation method using an electron beam, capable of embodying the practical stress and strain measuring technique, and a sample observation apparatus suitable for carrying out the method.
Another object of the invention is to provide a technique capable of visually two-dimensionally displaying a stress/strain distribution in a specimen at high resolution on the basis of a measurement result obtained by using the specimen observation method and apparatus.
Further another object of the invention is to establish peripheral techniques such as an inspection algorithm for a sampling inspection in a manufacturing line of a semiconductor device suitable for use in development of a stress reducing process for manufacturing the semiconductor device on the basis of a measurement result obtained by using the sample observation method and apparatus, the configuration of an inspection system capable of establishing the inspection algorithm, and sampling of an inspection sample.
To achieve the objects of the invention, the invention provides an observation method and apparatus using an electron beam, which has characteristic configuration as described below.
First, to realize observation of a fine crystal structure in a specimen at high resolution, according to the invention, a specimen is irradiated with an electron beam and a diffraction image is obtained from the electron beam diffracted in the specimen. Particularly, to irradiate a specimen with a convergent electron beam having a diameter of 10 nm xcfx86 or less, an electron beam optical path according to a so-called nano-diffraction method for converging an electron beam to a very small beam diameter by a condenser aperture of an electron microscope is employed. In the case of employing the nano-diffraction optical path, a sample can be irradiated with a narrow parallel electron beam. The parallelism of the irradiation electron beam at this time is set to 0.5 mrad or less. This is largely different from the CBED method which emits a not-parallel electron beam at a large irradiation angle of 10 mrad or larger. By irradiating a specimen with a parallel electron beam as described above, the spot diameter of an obtained diffraction image becomes sufficiently small. The lattice plane spacing of a crystal in a specimen can be measured from a spot spacing with high precision, and measurement sensitivity to stress and strain in the sample crystal can be improved. To observe a thick specimen, a diffraction spot (low-order diffraction spot) formed by an electron beam diffracted at the 222 orientation or lower, at which an electron beam absorption is little and a diffraction electron intensity is strong in a specimen is observed. It enables a thicker specimen to be observed, and relaxation of a stress and a strain in a sample which occurs at the time of thinning a specimen can be largely suppressed. By forming a low-order diffraction image by using a nano-diffraction optical path, a stress and a strain in a specimen can be measured at high resolution of 10 nm or less and with high sensitivity of 0.5% or less. Moreover, a sample which is ten times or more as thick as that can be observed by a conventional observation method can be measured. Realization of measurement of a thicker specimen at high resolution and high sensitivity is a very big advantage of the invention.
In the invention, to visually display the stress and strain distributions in a semiconductor device sample obtained by the high-resolution high-sensitivity measuring method, the following technical means is taken. The above-described diffraction image measurement is executed, for example, with respect to tens of spots in a 1-bit transistor device. A similar diffraction image measurement is executed also on a substrate portion of the same bit. A lattice plane spacing as a reference is measured in the substrate portion, and the difference between the reference lattice plane spacing and a lattice plane spacing measured at each measurement spot is obtained and used as a strain amount at the measurement spot. A stress in a specimen is in a proportional relationship with the strain amount of the lattice plane spacing, and its proportionality constant is a value peculiar to the elements in the specimen and a direction of crystal plane and can be preliminarily calculated. Therefore, by two-dimensionally superimposing a change between the diffraction spot in the direction perpendicular to the substrate and the diffraction spot in the direction horizontal to the substrate onto an electron microscope photograph, a two-dimensional distribution of stress and strain can be visually displayed in correspondence with an image of the structure in the device.
To establish a stress reducing process, a transistor device of a bit to be observed is extracted from a wafer on a semiconductor fabrication line and measurement similar to the above is performed. By extracting a specimen before and after a process to which attention is paid, a state of accumulation of a stress and a strain in the portion can be grasped. After performing a process A, a process B is executed on a wafer, and a process C is executed on another wafer, thereby fabricating devices. A device as a specimen is extracted from the wafer subjected to the process B, and a device as a specimen is extracted from the wafer subjected to the process C. The stress and strain amounts of each of the samples (devices) are measured, thereby enabling advantages and disadvantages from the viewpoint of stress and strain of the processes B and C to be grasped. By repeating it, a preferable stress reducing process can be found out.
Other objects, configurations, and action and effects produced by the configurations will become apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments.

Observation apparatus and observation method using an electron beam


A distribution apparatus for distributing liquid samples using distribution tips, which distribution tips are held in a tip rack placed in a feeder section and fitted relative to a distribution head. The distribution apparatus has a fitting stage, provided in a space between the feeder section and a distribution stage, for supporting the tip rack and fitting the distribution tips. A distribution tip alignment device is provided in the fitting stage, which aligns dislocated distribution tips at the bottom ends to a correct formation by making contact with the side wall surfaces of the distribution tips. The tip ends of the distribution tips, which are attached to nozzles of the distribution head, are aligned by the distribution tip alignment device at a certain specific pitch, at the time when the distribution tips are attached to the nozzles, or after they are attached to the nozzles. By so doing, a liquid sample can be distributed to small diameter wells without having a dislocation problem.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relate to a distribution apparatus for distributing liquid samples used in biochemical and the like fields, a method of the distribution and a method of fitting distribution tips.
2. Description of the Related Art
Distributing liquid samples or reagents in small quantities to sample vessels, or a microplate, is a common operation practiced during experimentation or analysis in the biochemical field, for example. The distribution is performed by sucking/discharging a certain liquid using a distribution nozzle. The distribution nozzle is usually fitted with a disposable distribution tip, which is replaced with a new one at any time whenever necessary.
The distribution tip is fitted to the distribution nozzle by inserting the lower end of the latter into a pipet-shaped opening of the distribution tip at the upper end. Fixing of a distribution tip to a distribution nozzle solely depends on the elastic fastening force of an elastic resin-made distribution tip surrounding the lower end of the distribution nozzle. As a result, if an external force is applied to a distribution tip during, or after, a fitting operation, the distribution tip may not be attached straight relative to the distribution nozzle, and the bottom end of the distribution tip will be dislocated. A small amount of dislocation may not cause any material trouble if the diameter of a well in the receiving microplate is sufficiently large. Namely, a small amount of dislocation is acceptable so long as the distribution tip is inserted in the well, and the sucking/discharging of liquid is performed without having any difficulty.
Recently, however, the diameter of wells on a microplate is getting smaller reflecting the general trend of pursuing a higher efficiency in the experimental work and a reduced consumption of samples and reagents. When such a microplate having the small wells is used on a conventional distribution apparatus, the distributing operation may not be performed satisfactorily because of a displaced location of the distribution tip.
The present invention addresses the above problem and offers a distribution apparatus in which the inconveniences stemming from a dislocated distribution tip are curtailed. The methods of distribution, as well as methods of fitting the distribution tip are also offered in the present invention.

Distribution apparatus, distribution method and method of fitting distribution tips

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


In a semiconductor device including a semiconductor chip featuring opposite first and second principal faces, and side faces extending therebetween, a first electrode layer is formed on the first principal face, and a second electrode layer is formed on the second principal face. A first metal electrode terminal is electrically adhered to the first electrode layer so that a part of the first metal electrode terminal protrudes out of one of the side faces, and a second metal electrode terminal is electrically adhered to the second electrode layer so that a part of the second metal electrode terminal protrudes out of the one of the side faces of the semiconductor chip. The parts of the first and second metal electrode terminals have respective soldering faces which are perpendicular to the first and second principal faces, and are coplanar with each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device including a semiconductor chip and metal electrode terminals adhered to the semiconductor chip so as to form a heat-radiation system for the semiconductor chip, and a method for assembling such a semiconductor device.
2. Description of the Related Art
For example, in a prior art semiconductor device includes a vertical-type power metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) chip and metal electrode terminals adhered to the opposite principal faces of the MOSFET chip, the metal electrode terminals are arranged so as to form a heat-radiation system because the MOSFET chip generates a large amount of heat during the operation thereof, as disclosed in, for example, US2002/0179994 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,841,865 B2 and JP-H11-074456 A.
Nevertheless, the prior art semiconductor devices fail in diminishing a mounting area which is occupied by the semiconductor device when being mounted on a circuit board, as discussed in detail hereinafter.
On the other hand, U.S. Pat. No. 7,030,445 B2 discloses another prior art semiconductor device which allows considerably diminishing a mounting area which is occupied by the semiconductor device when being mounted on a circuit board.

Semiconductor device featuring electrode terminals forming superior heat-radiation system


It is intended to provide a processing method for producing beer-like low-alcoholic beverage by using usual beer and/or low-malt beer without using any special systems other than those commonly employed in producing beer. Beer and/or low-malt beer obtained by the process commonly employed in producing beer are diluted with carbonated water to lower the alcoholic concentration to less than 1%. After adding additives capable of imparting visual and tasty characteristics thereto, beer-like low-alcoholic beverage can be obtained.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to a processing method of beer-taste low-alcoholic beverage, and more particularly, to processing method for producing beer-taste low-alcoholic beverage, in which the alcoholic content is lower than 1 v/v % (volume per volume %), and its flavor and visual characteristics are the same as beer and low-malt beer, and a beer-taste low-alcoholic beverage produced by its processing method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various processing methods for low-alcoholic fermented beverages using malt which alcoholic content is lower than 1 v/v %, that is so called low-alcoholic beer and non-alcoholic beer, have been developed by those who in the art. These processing methods can be characterized to 3 types for producing.
First type of processing method is that a fermentation process is controlled in the producing process of alcoholic beverages. (Japan patent publication 5-68528, Japan patent publication 6-343434.)
Second type of processing method is that an alcoholic concentration is reduced by distillation, dialysis, etc. after producing of alcoholic beverages. (Japan patent publication 4-45777.)
Third type of processing method is a preparing method with any type of saccharides, a malt extract, flavors, etc. without using beer. (Japan patent publication 1-165358)
However, in order to control the alcoholic concentration, conventional methods of the first type and the second type processing methods use the special method for mashing, brewers' yeast, and a fermentation control substance, or need the special systems for removal of alcohol. Moreover, the third processing method needs to produce all materials for the method in advance. Therefore, each processing method has any problems which should solve. Especially, no beverages produced by conventional processing methods have desirable taste for consumers comparing to the taste of beer.

Process for producing low-alcoholic beer-like drink and low-alcoholic beer-like drink


A run channel in an automobile door includes a U-shaped run channel body. An inner lip extends from a bottom end portion of an inner wall of the run channel body towards a peak portion. An upper lip is formed above the inner lip and extends from an intermediate portion of the inner wall to the peak portion. When a door glass abuts on the inner lip, the door glass presses the inner lip towards the inner wall to cause a distal end portion of the inner lip to press on the upper lip, whereby a reaction force of the upper lip is applied to the distal end portion of the inner lip. The inner lip in turn produces a reaction force slowing upward movement of the door glass, causing its upper edge to slowly abut on the peak portion of the run channel, thus reducing a glass striking sound.

Door glass ascent/descent systems include window regulators for moving door glasses of vehicles upward or downward. The door glass is moved upward by the window regulator for closing a window of a vehicular door. When the door glass is moved upward and then an upper edge of the door glass hits a run channel, the door glass is prevented from moving further upward. At this time, a load exceeding a threshold level is applied to the window regulator. Such an excessive load is detected to thereby stop an operation of an electric motor with the result that the door glass stops at a closed position (i.e., at an uppermost position).
The above run channel is attached to a window sash of a front side door, as disclosed in, for example, JP-A-2003-72383.
The disclosed run channel has a U-shaped cross-sectional configuration formed by an inner wall, an outer wall and a peak portion. Inner and outer lips extend from the inner and outer walls for sealing engagement with inner and outer surfaces of the door glass, respectively.
As for the run channel, a window regulator raises the door glass and thereby presses an upper edge of the door glass against the peak portion of the run channel. With the upper edge of the door glass thus pressed against the peak portion, the door glass is not raised any more and a load exceeding a threshold level is applied to the window regulator. Such an excessive load is detected to thereby stop an operation of an electric motor with the result that the door glass stops at a closed position (i.e., an uppermost position).
As for the run channel, a problem arises that the window regulator raises and strikes the upper edge of the door glass onto the peak portion of the run channel at a predetermined speed whereupon an unpleasant strike sound is produced.
There has been a demand for a run channel arranged to reduce a strike sound of the door glass when the door glass moves to the closed position.


A device for reducing corrosive constituents in an exhaust gas condensate of an internal combustion engine is provided, in which the exhaust gas of the internal combustion engine is recirculated to the internal combustion engine via an exhaust gas recirculation system having an exhaust gas cooler and at least one exhaust gas recirculation line. To protect the exhaust gas recirculation system along with intake air components and the internal combustion engine from the corrosive effects of the exhaust gas condensate, the exhaust gas recirculation system has at least one neutralization unit for neutralizing the corrosive constituents of the exhaust gas condensate, which is connected to at least one component arranged downstream, through which the exhaust gas, which has been freed of nearly all corrosive constituents, flows.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for reducing corrosive constituents in an exhaust gas condensate of an internal combustion engine, in which the exhaust gas of the internal combustion engine is recirculated to the internal combustion engine via an exhaust gas recirculation system, having an exhaust gas cooler and at least one exhaust gas recirculation line.
2. Description of the Background Art
In components for conducting exhaust gas, particularly exhaust gas coolers and charge-air coolers in low-pressure exhaust gas recirculation systems, corrosive exhaust gas condensate is produced when the temperature drops below the dew point. This corrosive exhaust gas condensate can produce corrosive effects in the components downstream and in the combustion engine itself, resulting in damage to or even failure of the components or the internal combustion engine, which come into contact with the corrosive exhaust gas condensate.
When condensate forms, strong acids are produced, which have a corrosive effect on the metallic surfaces of the exhaust gas recirculation system or the internal combustion engine.
EP 2 161 438 A2 describes a system for recirculating exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine, which has a separator unit. This separator unit separates condensate, and the condensate that is separated from the exhaust gas is discharged partially to a low pressure part of the exhaust gas system via a disposal line. Also provided is a metering unit, which introduces a definable amount of the condensate or at least of the components of the condensate into an air supply inlet channel of the combustion cylinder of the internal combustion engine.
From DE 10 2005 047 840 A1, which corresponds to U.S. Publication No. 20070261400, an air-cooled exhaust gas heat exchange system is known, in which channels for conducting the exhaust gas are embodied as tubes. Between the channels, ribs are arranged for air cooling, which are made of stainless steel and are therefore protected against corrosion.
DE 10 2005 059 717 A1, which corresponds to U.S. Publication No. 20080190403, and which describes a heat exchange device for acid-containing gases. The device comprises a heat exchanger having at least one flow channel for the acid-containing gas, which channel is made substantially of aluminum and/or an aluminum alloy and is embodied in such a way that the flow channel is protected against deep corrosion caused by the acid-containing gas, resulting in a uniform protection of components.

Device for reducing corrosive constituents in an exhaust gas condensate of an internal combustion engine


In an example of an embodiment of the invention, a repeating pattern is identified within stored data comprising a plurality of data files, each data file comprising at least a header section and a data section stored in an unknown format. At least one occurrence of the repeating pattern is identified as a header section of a respective data file, and a data section of the respective data file is identified based, at least in part, on a location of the at least one occurrence of the repeating pattern. The identified data section of the respective data file is backed up. Systems are also disclosed.

In many computing environments, large amounts of data are written to and retrieved from storage devices connected to one or more computers. For example, many large enterprises maintain local area networks ("LANs") comprising multiple personal computers ("PCs") which are used on a daily basis by employees. Typically, the employees regularly store data on the local disk drives within the PCs. As the amount of data stored on such local disk drives increases, the aggregate value of that data to the organization also increases. Consequently, it is a common practice to back up locally stored data by storing copies of the data on one or more remote, backup storage devices.
In many enterprises, the need to preserve data in backup storage systems generates a large and continuously increasing quantity of data. The increasing quantity of data can represent an ongoing challenge for an enterprise, because storage space requirements typically increase as a function of the quantity of stored data. Accordingly, there is a continuing need for effective and efficient methods for backing up data.
One well-known approach to backing up data is to generate a copy of data stored on a local storage device periodically and transmit the copy to a remote backup storage device. For example, in a large enterprise, such as that described above, data stored on one or more PCs in the network may be copied and transmitted via the network to a dedicated backup storage device located elsewhere on the network (or located outside the network). This procedure (referred to herein as a "backup session") may be performed once per day, for example, or at any other specified interval.
In accordance with one backup strategy, selected data files are designated to be backed up, and a full copy of each designated file is transmitted to the backup storage device during each backup session. Another well-known approach to backing up data is to use an "incremental-and-full" strategy. During relatively frequent "incremental" backup sessions, which may be performed once per day, for example, each designated file is examined and any incremental changes made to the file since the most recent backup session are recorded in the backup storage device. In addition to the incremental backup sessions, "full" backup sessions are performed regularly—once per week, for example. During each "full" backup session, a full copy of each file is transmitted to and stored in the backup storage device.
Regardless of which approach is used to back up data, a typical backup storage system generates a large and increasing amount of data containing a large number of redundancies. In many cases, a file is changed only slightly between full backup sessions. Nevertheless, during each full backup session the entire file may be stored in a new memory location in the backup storage device. As a result, identical copies of the unchanged portions of these files may be stored multiple times in different locations within the backup storage system. The existence of redundancies in stored data within a backup storage system represents an undesirable and inefficient use of resources.
Accordingly, there is a need to reduce or eliminate redundancies in stored data within storage systems. If the format in which data is stored in a storage system is known, and an accurate directory system for the stored data is accessible, redundancies can be identified by using the directory, for example.
However, in some instances the format of the data stored in a storage system may not be known. Because there is no universally accepted format for storing data, a variety of different formats for storing data have been developed, and a variety of different formats are used by vendors of storage systems in their respective products. For example, there exist differences between disk formats used in storage systems offered by Hitachi Data Systems, located in Santa Clara, Calif., and those offered by EMC, located in Hopkinton, Mass. It should also be noted that the formatting and organization of stored data may also be affected by the file system used. For example, there exist differences between the format used by the Microsoft NTFS file system and the UNIX EXT3 file system.
The multiplicity of formats in existing storage systems poses a challenge when a party, or a software application, that is not familiar with the format used in a given storage system, attempts to perform a desired data processing operation with respect to the data stored in the system. For example, if a software application that is selected to eliminate and reduce redundancies within a backup storage system is not familiar with the format used by the system to store data, it will have difficulty performing its designated task. Although the software application may have access to the bits of data stored in the backup storage system, it may have no way to determine where data files begin and end. Even if a desired data file is found, the application may not be able to distinguish the various sections (the header section, the data section, etc.) of the data file.
Without knowledge of the format used by a storage system to store data, it can be challenging to identify and reduce redundancies within the stored data. One solution used in some backup storage systems is to employ a brute force method to locate multiple occurrences of a selected data block within the stored data, and delete all but one (or a few) of the copies. A "sliding window" technique is one such brute force approach. A sliding window is defined to be equal in length to the length of the data block in question. The window is applied to a selected location within the stored data to define a data segment equal in length to the data block. The data block in question is compared to the defined data segment. If the two do not match, the window is shifted by one byte, and another data segment (equal in length to the data block in question) is defined. This new data segment is compared to the data block. If the two do not match, the window is again shifted by one byte, and yet another data segment is defined. This method may be repeated multiple times until the data block is located within the stored data, and may be further repeated to identify additional occurrences of the data block. If multiple occurrences of the data block are found in the stored data, a mechanism to identify and register the duplicate blocks may be applied, and one or more of the copies may be deleted. This method can be very time consuming and inefficient.
Tape Libraries and Virtual Tape Libraries (VTLs)
Tape libraries have long been used in backup storage systems to store data. A tape library typically comprises one or more tapes and a mechanism, such as a tape drive, for reading and writing data on the tape(s). In addition, a backup software application manages the storage of data in the tape library. The backup software handles read and write requests received from client computers in a network and directs the requests to the tape library, for example.
Today, large amounts of data are stored in tape libraries. However, due to the inherent limitations of tape libraries, reading or writing data on a tape is often cumbersome and restrictive. Tape is a sequential medium; consequently it requires more time to access a desired data file stored on a tape than to access a file stored on a random-access medium, such as a disk drive. In addition, many tape libraries comprise mechanical parts used to load tapes, etc., and sometimes require human intervention to identify a desired tape or perform other tasks. Therefore, in many cases, performing a data processing operation on data stored on tape is slower than performing the corresponding operation on a random access medium such as a disk drive. As a result, virtual tape libraries ("VTLs"), which typically use one or more disk drives to store data, are sometimes installed in backup storage systems to replace mechanical tape libraries.
When a VTL is added to a tape library system, read and write requests received after the installation of the VTL are typically directed by the backup software to the VTL for storage. Accordingly, any new data is stored in the VTL. Data stored in the VTL is sometimes stored using the same format used by the original, mechanical tape library. Adopting the same format allows a VTL to replace a mechanical tape library and continue to work with the existing backup software seamlessly, thereby avoiding costly changes to an enterprise's IT infrastructure.
In some cases, however, a backup software application used to store data in a VTL is not familiar with, or incompatible with, the format used to store data on tapes in the original tape library. In these instances, the inability of the backup software application to recognize data in the tape library can be inconvenient and problematic. For example, migrating data from a tape library to a VTL can be challenging when the backup software application used to store data in the VTL is not familiar with the format of the data stored in the tape library.
Use of Digests
In a variety of applications relating to the transmission and storage of data (including data security systems, data encryption systems, etc.), an ongoing need exists to represent data in an alternate form in such a way that the original data may be recovered. One approach that is commonly used involves the use of a known function to generate, for a respective data block, a value (often referred to as a "digest") that represents the contents of the data block. The digest may be stored or transmitted and subsequently retrieved and processed to recover the data original block.
To be practical, a digest should be substantially smaller than the original data block. Ideally, each digest is uniquely associated with the respective data block from which it is derived. A function which generates a unique digest for each data block is said to be "collision-free." In practice, it is sometimes acceptable to utilize a function that is substantially, but less than 100%, collision-free. A digest-generating function is referred to herein as a D-G function.
Any one of a wide variety of functions can be used to generate a digest. For example, one well-known D-G function is the cyclic redundancy check (CRC). Cryptographically strong hash functions are also often used for this purpose. A hash function performs a transformation on an input and returns a number having a fixed length—a hash value. Several well-known hash functions include the ability to (1) take a variable-sized input and generate a fixed-size output, (2) compute the hash relatively easily and quickly for any input value, and (3) be substantially (or "strongly") collision-free. Examples of hash functions satisfying these criteria include, but are not limited to, the message digest 5 (MD5) algorithm and the secure hash (SHA-1) algorithm.
The MD5 algorithm generates a 16-byte (128-bit) hash value. It is designed to run on 32-bit computers. MD5 is substantially collision-free. Using MD5, hash values may be typically generated at high speed. The SHA-1 algorithm generates a 20-byte (160-bit) hash value. The maximum input length of a data block to the SHA-1 algorithm is 264 bits (˜1.8×1019 bits). The design of SHA-1 is similar to that of MD5, but because its output is larger, it is slightly slower than MD5, although it is more collision-free.

System and method for identifying and mitigating redundancies in stored data


A lithographic apparatus includes an illumination system for projecting a beam of radiation onto a substrate. The lithographic apparatus further has a chuck assembly for supporting at least one of the substrate or a patterning device, the patterning device serving to impart the beam with a pattern in its cross-section. A heat transfer system is operable between a first surface and a second surface. The heat transfer system is capable of transferring heat between the first surface and the second surface. The first surface is at least partially formed by at least a part of the chuck assembly. The second surface is at least partially formed by at least a part of a component spaced a distance from the chuck. The second surface is mechanically isolated from and thermally coupled to the first surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lithographic apparatus and a method of manufacturing a device.
2. Brief Description of Related Art
A lithographic apparatus is a machine that applies a desired pattern onto a target portion of a substrate. Lithographic apparatus can be used, for example, in the manufacture of integrated circuits (ICs). In that circumstance, a patterning device, such as a mask, may be used to generate a circuit pattern corresponding to an individual layer of the IC, and this pattern can be imaged onto a target portion (e.g. comprising part of, one or several dies) on a substrate (e.g. a silicon wafer) that has a layer of radiation-sensitive material (resist). In general, a single substrate will contain a network of adjacent target portions that are successively exposed. Known lithographic apparatus include so-called steppers, in which each target portion is irradiated by exposing an entire pattern onto the target portion at once, and so-called scanners, in which each target portion is irradiated by scanning the pattern through the beam of radiation in a given direction (the "scanning"-direction) while synchronously scanning the substrate parallel or anti-parallel to this direction.
It is known in the art to provide a lithographic apparatus with a chuck assembly for supporting the substrate and/or patterning device (e.g. a mask or reticle) during operations. A typical prior art chuck assembly includes a chuck provided with a clamp, which for example uses electrostatic or vacuum forces. By the clamp, the substrate or patterning device can be clamped on the chuck, inter alia to retain the flatness of the clamped object. The chuck, in turn, is supported by a frame with respect to other parts of the lithographic apparatus.
However, during the lithographic process, the chuck may be subjected to temperature changes, due to heat transferred from the substrate, for example. The change in temperature affects the accuracy of the projection of the pattern on the substrate, because deformations of the chuck and the thermal changes are, at least to some extent, transferred to the substrate. Even small changes in temperature (e.g. changes smaller than 0.05 K), and in particular thermal inhomogenities of the chuck, give rise to local thermal expansions or shrinkage of the chuck in the order of the suitable precision of the projection, typically in the range of 1 micron to several nanometers.
To reduce the thermal changes in the chuck, it is generally known to provide a thermal system to the chuck which is capable of removing heat from the chuck, to maintain the chuck at a constant temperature level.
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,413,167, for example, a wafer holding block is known which comprises a wafer chuck. The wafer chuck is formed with crossing grooves communicating with a vacuum pump, for vacuum attraction of a wafer. The wafer chuck is fixed on a fine motion stage, for fine alignment of the wafer to a mask. The fine motion stage is provided on a central portion of a support table which is fixed on a rough motion stage for rough alignment of the wafer to the mask. The wafer chuck is made of an aluminum material with a high thermal conductivity. A heat exchanger is fixedly provided on the rough motion stage. The heat exchanger has a passageway coupled with two cooling water pipes. Two flexible heat pipes are used to provide heat transmission between the wafer chuck and the heat exchanger. The heat pipes have opposite end portions made of an aluminum material with good heat conductivity, and a central pipe portion made of a resin material with heat resistivity and a wick wetted with an operative liquid. When operated, heat is transported from the wafer chuck to the heat exchanger via the flexible heat pipes.
From U.S. Pat. No. 6,215,642 a vacuum compatible deformable electrostatic chuck is known. The chuck has a high thermal conductivity. The chuck includes a membrane having a layer of dielectric material, a layer of metallic film and a layer of semiconductor material. Struts and a rim are formed on the layer of semiconductor material. The rim is formed on the periphery of the layer of semiconductor material. The rim and struts contact a surface of a supporting structure and form a hollow area between the membrane and the supporting structure in which a coolant gas is circulated. The supporting structure has gas manifold holes to connect the hollow area with a source of coolant gas. Heat can be transferred away from the chuck via the coolant gas. Between the gas filled hollow area and a backside of the supporting structure, the supporting structure further has a hollow portion in which a coolant liquid is circulated.
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,171 a wafer holding block is known, which comprises a wafer chuck. The wafer chuck is formed with crossing grooves communicated with a vacuum pump, for vacuum attraction of a wafer. The wafer chuck is fixed on a fine motion stage, for fine alignment of the wafer to a mask. The fine motion stage is provided on a central portion of a support table which is fixed on a rough motion stage for rough alignment of the wafer to the mask. The wafer chuck is made of an aluminum material with a high thermal conductivity. The chuck has a reduced pressure inside space. A wick wetted with an operative liquid is adhered to the inside wall of the space. A cooling plate with cooling water passageways is interposed between the fine-motion stage and the wafer chuck. By circulation of cooling water through the cooling plate, heat can be transferred from the chuck and the cooling surface of the wafer chuck can be maintained at a temperature of about 20 degrees Celsius.
A drawback of the chuck assemblies known from these prior art documents is that the position of the chuck assembly, and the substrate, with respect to the beam of radiation is subject to vibrations and other distortions originating from the component on which the chuck is fixated. Thereby, the accuracy of the patterning is affected. The distortions are especially disadvantageous in view of current and expected trends in the accuracy requirements due to the decreasing dimensions of the structures projected onto the substrate.

Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method


A new cultivar of Cordyline australis, ‘Seipin’, characterized by its foliage that exhibits greyed purple centers and bright pink margins.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Cordyline australis and will be referred to hereafter by its cultivar name, 'Seipin'. 'Seipin' represents a new cultivar of cabbage tree or cabbage palm and is grown as a foliage plant for landscape and container use.
The inventor discovered and the new cultivar as a naturally-occurring chimeral mutation of Cordyline australis 'Red Star' (not patented) in a tissue culture lab in Lancashire, United Kingdom in 2002.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar was first accomplished by in vitro leaf base propagation in 2002 in Lancashire, United Kingdom under the direction of the inventor. The characteristics of this cultivar have been determined to be stable and are reproduced true to type in successive generations.


An apparatus and method are provided that increase yield and reduce cycle time. In particular, a gate plate for a die casting machine is configured to lessen the waste produced during die casting, resulting in greater yield. Further, the gate plate is configured with tapered sides to produce a draft, leading to less friction during the gate break/pull back sequence. This draft reduces the amount of unpressurized dwell time and subsequently the cycle time for producing the cast part.

Metal casting is an important manufacturing process. Improvements are required to make this process more efficient because metal casting can be an expensive endeavor both in terms of production time as well as in the use of materials. Different types of machines have also been developed to reduce cost and increase efficiency.
The longer it takes to produce a product, the more energy required and therefore more cost to the consumer. Thus, it is desirable to reduce the time necessary to produce the product. Further, lowering the amount of material required to produce a cast part also lowers cost for the consumer. Although there may be some level of waste associated with casting, minimizing that waste reduces cost in several ways. Less material wasted means more material is available for use for casting the product. Also, less material wasted results in lower costs associated with recycling the waste.
Therefore, it is desirable to reduce waste and improve yield. It is also desirable to reduce cycle time and therefore the costs associated with metal casting. Accordingly, a simple cost effective apparatus is needed that simultaneously increases yield and reduces cycle time.

Optimized tooling design for vertical die casting machines


A speaker assembly broadly comprises an inner housing, an outer shell, an input circuit, and a speaker. The inner housing includes outer shell attachment structure and a lower press-fit outer surface and forms a central chamber retaining the input circuit and the speaker. The outer shell includes a primary enclosure and a lower cap. The primary enclosure includes inner housing attachment structure configured to align with and engage the outer shell attachment structure. The primary enclosure is configured to be press-fit to the inner housing via the lower press-fit outer surface of the inner housing. The lower cap encloses a bottom end of the central chamber. The outer shell is interchangeable with other outer shells having different shapes than the outer shell of the speaker assembly.

Speakers come in different shapes depending on the desired visual aesthetics of a listening area in which the speakers are to be mounted. For example, decorative speakers may have housings that look like light fixtures or ornaments. Other speakers have more functional or inconspicuous housings. Speakers have internal electronic components that are arranged and mounted in their housings differently depending on the housing's shape, which results in increased design complexity and inconsistent sound quality. Furthermore, if different speaker shapes are desired, the speakers must be replaced with entirely new speakers.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A flight path of a physical aircraft vehicle is planned. A virtual three-dimensional model of a physical environment is provided. A placement indicator is tracked within the virtual three-dimensional model of the physical environment. Tracking the placement indicator includes tracking a location and an orientation of the placement indicator within the virtual three-dimensional model. A viewfinder display window that displays a simulated image captured from a simulated camera of a simulated vehicle located at the location of the placement indicator and oriented at a direction of the orientation of the placement indicator is provided. For the physical aircraft vehicle, at least a flight path and a camera image capture are planned using the placement indicator and the viewfinder display window within the virtual three-dimensional model.

Controlling a drone aircraft vehicle takes a considerable amount of skill. Traditionally, these vehicles have been controlled using a two stick controller that requires a pilot operator to provide precise commands via the controller at precise times during flight to fly the vehicle on the desired flight path. Unfortunately, vehicle crashes are common due to pilot error. Not only are these traditional controllers not intuitive for a novice pilot, timing precise movements requires quick reaction time and navigation skills that are often very difficult for an average pilot. In addition to controlling the vehicle's flight path, often the pilot must also control properties of a camera attached to the vehicle while the vehicle is in flight to capture a desired flight video footage. For example, the pilot must also control during the flight an orientation of a gimbal to orient an attached camera at a desired object to be captured in addition to controlling other camera parameters such as lens focal length. As additional time critical tasks are required of the pilot, it becomes even more difficult for a pilot to effectively control the vehicle and its camera parameters during flight to achieve a desired result. In some cases, multiple operators are needed to manage all of the variables needed to be controlled during flight. However, because the actions of the operators are dependent on each other, communication problems between the operators may lead to difficulty in achieving the desired result.


An eyestrain reducing device is disclosed. An illustrative embodiment of the eyestrain reducing device includes a lighting unit having a lighting unit housing; a plurality of light openings provided in the lighting unit housing; and a plurality of lights provided in the lighting unit housing adjacent to the plurality of light openings, respectively. At least one of the plurality of lights is an infrared light. A power source is connected to the plurality of lights. A switch is provided on the light unit housing and electrically connected between the power source and the plurality of lights.

Eyestrain is common among drivers during nighttime driving due to lack of a close focal point for the driver's eyes. The resulting eye fatigue may potentially result in an accident, particularly during long stretches of driving. Therefore, an eyestrain reducing device is needed which can be detachably attached to a vehicle to reduce eyestrain by providing a focal point for a vehicle driver's eyes during driving.


Disclosed is a portable fluorescence correlation spectroscopy instrument that includes an excitation source, at least one of a light focusing element positioned to receive light emitted by the excitation source, a detector for detecting light, the detector positioned to receive light emitted by a sample excited by the excitation source, and a correlator coupled to the detector, the correlator for processing data received at the detector and providing data including autocorrelation data, crosscorrelation data, or a combination thereof.

The invention relates to fluorescence correlation spectroscopy.
Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a single molecule detection method that has been used to detect molecules in small volume samples, e.g., femtoliters. FCS is a technique that employs confocal optics to limit the volume of sample studied to that of a confocal plane. The confocal plane is defined by the optical components of the system. FIG. 1 illustrates a laser beam illuminated volume of sample. A box is shown superimposed on the waist of the laser beam. The optical components of the system function to position the confocal plane in the waist of the laser beam. The diffusion of fluorescently labeled particles into and out of the illuminated confocal volume generates data related to fluorescence intensity fluctuation. Information about the particles in the sample can be extracted from this data.
Optics are employed in FCS to reduce out-of-focus light and limit image detection to the desired focal plane of in-focus light (i.e., the sample plane, which is also referred to as the image plane). The excitation volume (i.e., confocal volume) is minimized by illuminating the volume with a laser beam that has been focused to the limit of the resolution of a high numerical aperture objective lens. Out-of-focus light is eliminated by placing a field pinhole (i.e., aperture) in a conjugate image plane of the objective lens and before the detector. Eliminating out-of-focus light limits the volume of detection to the plane in which the object is focused. Signals from planes either above or below the object plane are focused either above or below the conjugate image plane, which renders them inefficiently collected due to the location of the aperture through which the focused image is allowed to pass. Fluorescently labeled particles that are in the sample of interest are detected only when the particles are present at the image plane of the confocal volume.
FCS is a technique used in biophysics, biochemistry, and cell biology. FCS can be used to study events at the level of single molecules. The diffusion times and the interaction of macromolecules, the absolute concentration of fluorescently labeled particles and the kinetics of chemical reactions can be measured using FCS. Applications of FCS have included studies related to ligand-receptor binding, protein-protein and protein-DNA interactions, and the aggregation of fluorescently labeled particles. The theory and applications of FCS are described in various references including Rigler, R. (1995), "Fluorescence correlations, single molecule detection and large number screening. Applications in biotechnology," J Biotechnol 41(2-3): 177-86; Schwille, P. (2001), "Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy and its potential for intracellular applications." Cell Biochem Biophys 34(3): 383-408; and Hess, S. T., S. Huang, et al. (2002). "Biological and chemical applications of fluorescence correlation spectroscopy: a review," Biochemistry 41(3): 697-705.
Typical FCS instruments are configured to include an epifluorescence microscope or a confocal microscope. These configurations are relatively large and require a user to focus and adjust the microscope and align the various components of the instrument prior to use.

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy instrument and method of using the same


A medical device, e.g., a stent, is provided with different coatings on different surfaces, or with a coating on only one of the inside or outside surface. In accordance with certain embodiments, two different stent members are provided, one to fit inside of the other. When the two stent members are separate, both stent members are coated, each with a different composition, or only one stent member is coated. Then, one stent member is placed inside the other to form the final stent. The resulting stent has one composition on its outside surface and a different composition on its inside surface, or coating only on either the inside or outside surface.

Medical implants are used for innumerable medical purposes, including the reinforcement of recently re-enlarged lumens, the replacement of ruptured vessels, and the treatment of disease such as vascular disease by local pharmacotherapy, i.e., delivering therapeutic drug doses to target tissues while minimizing systemic side effects. Such localized delivery of therapeutic agents has been proposed or achieved using medical implants which both support a lumen within a patient's body and place appropriate coatings containing absorbable therapeutic agents at the implant location. Examples of such medical devices include stents, stent grafts, vascular grafts, catheters, guide wires, balloons, filters (e.g., vena cava filters), intraluminal paving systems, implants and other devices used in connection with drug-loaded polymer coatings. Such medical devices are implanted or otherwise utilized in body lumina and organs such as the coronary vasculature, esophagus, trachea, colon, biliary tract, urinary tract, prostate, brain, and the like.
The delivery of stents is a specific example of a medical procedure that may involve the deployment of coated implants. Stents are tube-like medical devices designed to be placed within the inner walls of a lumen within the body of a patient. The tube walls of the stents are typically patterned, leaving openings, with the material of the stent forming a scaffold for the lumen wall. Stents are made, for example, of stainless steel, Tantalum, Platinum or Nitinol alloys. The stents are maneuvered to a desired location within a lumen of the patient's body, and then typically expanded to provide internal support for the lumen. Stents may be self-expanding or, alternatively, may require external forces to expand them, such as by inflating a balloon attached to the distal end of the stent delivery catheter.
The mechanical process of applying a coating onto a stent may be accomplished in a variety of ways, including, for example, spraying the coating substance onto the stent, so-called spin-dipping, i.e., dipping a spinning stent into a coating solution to achieve the desired coating, and electrohydrodynamic fluid deposition, i.e., applying an electrical potential difference between a coating fluid and a target to cause the coating fluid to be discharged from the dispensing point and drawn toward the target. In these prior stent coating systems, the stents typically are coated on all surfaces. For example, with a coating spray application system, the relatively open patterned structure of the stent permits a coating spray to pass through the open areas and coat the inner surfaces of the stent. Similarly, with a spin-dipping stent coating system, all the surfaces of the stent, interior and exterior, are exposed to the coating fluid upon immersion into the coating bath.
In the typical stent deployment, the outside surface of the stent contacts the vessel wall. The inside surface of the stent is exposed to the fluid, e.g., blood, passing through the lumen.

Stent with differently coated inside and outside surfaces


Provided are a scroll preparing method using a two-dimensional material and a scroll prepared thereby. The scroll preparing method comprises preparing a two-dimensional material. The two-dimensional material is scrolled by providing an amphiphilic substance having a hydrophilic portion and a hydrophobic portion on the two-dimensional material. As a result, a scroll composite including the amphiphilic substance disposed inside a scroll structure is formed.

Two-dimensional materials such as graphene have different thermal, mechanical and electrical characteristics from three-dimensional bulk materials. Specifically, the two-dimensional materials are known to have excellent mechanical strength, intensity and flexibility, and also have excellent electrical and thermal conductivities. Due to the excellent characteristics of such a two-dimensional material, the two-dimensional material is widely applied to an energy storage device, an energy conversion device, a sensor, a catalyst, and a bio micro electro mechanical system (bio MEMS).
Meanwhile, since a carbon nanotube, which is a one-dimensional material corresponding to an allotrope of graphene, has excellent thermal, mechanical and electrical characteristics, it is also applied in various fields like the two-dimensional material.
Research on the preparation of a composite structure including desired various materials inside the nanotube is progressing. A carbon nanotube composite material has been made by adding a desired material such as fullerene (Brian W. Smith, Marc Monthioux, David E. Luzzi, Encapsulated C60 in carbon nanotubes, Nature, VOL 396, 26, NOVEMBER, 1998), an organic material (TAISHI TAKENOBU et al., Stable and controlled amphiphilic doping by encapsulation of organic molecules inside carbon nanotubes, Nature Materials, VOL 2, OCTOBER, 2003), a metal (Jean-Philippe et al., Selective Deposition of Metal Nanoparticles Inside or Outside Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes, ACSNano, VOL. 3, NO. 8, 2081-2089, 2009) into a carbon nanotube. However, it was not easy to prepare the nanotube with open ends, and to remove a desired material after addition thereof.

Scroll composite having amphiphilic substance inside and method for preparation of the same

INDUSTRY-UNIVERSITY COOPERATION FOUNDATION HANYANG UNIVERSITY


An immunoassay test apparatus, including:                a label signal sensor that detects label signals emitted by at least one label conjugated to an antibody or antigen of an immunoassay test device such as a lateral flow test strip or microfluidic cartridge, and outputs sensor data representing the detected label signals;        a label imaging component that processes the sensor data to generate label data representing spatial locations of the detected label signals;        a test result image generator that processes the label data to generate test result image data representing a visual image of the spatial arrangement of the detected label signals; and        a display component that displays the test result image to a user of the immunoassay test apparatus to enable the user to evaluate the result of the immunoassay test.

As described in the Wikipedia1 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immunoassay: 1 The Wikipedia text quoted herein is released under CC-BY-SA, see http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0.                "An immunoassay test is a biochemical test that measures the concentration of a substance in a biological liquid, typically serum or urine, using the reaction of an antibody or antibodies to its antigen. The assay takes advantage of the specific binding of an antibody to its antigen. Monoclonal antibodies are often used as they only usually bind to one site of a particular molecule, and therefore provide a more specific and accurate test, which is less easily confused by the presence of other molecules. The antibodies picked must have a high affinity for the antigen (if there is antigen available, a very high proportion of it must bind to the antibody).        Both the presence of antigen or antibodies can be measured. For instance, when seeking to detect the presence of an infection the concentration of antibody specific to that particular pathogen is measured. For measuring hormones such as insulin, the insulin acts as the antigen.        For numerical results, the response of the fluid being measured must be compared to standards of a known concentration. This is usually done though the plotting of a standard curve on a graph, the position of the curve at response of the unknown is then examined, and so the quantity of the unknown found.        Detecting the quantity of antibody or antigen can be achieved by a variety of methods. One of the most common is to label either the antigen or antibody. The label may consist of an enzyme, enzyme immunoassay (EIA)), radioisotopes such as 1-125 Radioimmunoassay (RIA), magnetic labels (magnetic immunoassay—MIA) or fluorescence. Other techniques include agglutination, nephelometry, turbidimetry and Western Blot. A number of these do form a directly visible line or test output but require an instrument to measure or capture the test output.        Immunoassays can be divided into those that involve labelled reagents and those which involve non-labelled reagents. Those which involve labelled reagents are divided into homogenous and heterogeneous (which require an extra step to remove unbound antibody or antigen from the site, usually using a solid phase reagent) immunoassays. Heterogeneous immunoassays can be competitive or non-competitive.                    In a competitive immunoassay, the antigen in the unknown sample competes with labelled antigen to bind with antibodies. The amount of labelled antigen bound to the antibody site is then measured. In this method, the response will be inversely proportional to the concentration of antigen in the unknown. This is because the greater the response, the less antigen in the unknown was available to compete with the labelled antigen.            In non-competitive immunoassays, also referred to as the "sandwich assay," antigen in the unknown is bound to the antibody site, and then labelled antibody is bound to the antigen. The amount of labelled antibody on the site is then measured. Unlike the competitive method, the results of the non-competitive method will be directly proportional to the concentration of the antigen. This is because labelled antibody will not bind if the antigen is not present in the unknown sample.                        Because homogeneous assays do not require this step, they are typically faster and easier to perform."
As described in the Wikipedia1 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral flow test: 1 The Wikipedia text quoted herein is released under CC-BY-SA, see http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0.                "Lateral flow tests also known as Lateral Flow Immunochromatographic Assays are a simple device intended to detect the presence (or absence) of a target analyte in sample (matrix). Most commonly these tests are used for medical diagnostics either for home testing, point of care testing, or laboratory use. Often produced in a dipstick format, Lateral flow tests are a form of immunoassay in which the test sample flows along a solid substrate via capillary action. After the sample is applied to the test it encounters a coloured reagent which mixes with the sample and transits the substrate encountering lines or zones which have been pre-treated with an antibody or antigen. Depending upon the analytes present in the sample the coloured reagent can become bound at the test line or zone. Lateral Flow Tests can operate as either competitive or sandwich assays.        In principle any coloured particle can be used, however most tests commonly use either latex (blue colour) or nanometre sized particles of gold (red colour). The gold particles are red in colour due to localized surface Plasmon resonance. Fluorescent or magnetic labelled particles can also be used—however these require the use of an electronic reader to access the test result.        The sample first encounters coloured particles which are labelled with antibodies raised to the target analyte. The test line will also contain antibodies to the same target, although it may bind to a different epitope on the analyte.        The test line will show as a coloured band in positive samples.        The sample first encounters coloured particles which are labelled with the target analyte or an analogue. The test line contains antibodies to the target/its analogue. Unlabelled analyte in the sample will block the binding sites on the antibodies preventing uptake of the coloured particles.        The test line will show as a coloured band in negative samples.        Most tests are intended to operate on a purely qualitative basis. However it is possible to measure the intensity of the test line to determine the quantity of analyte in the sample. Implementing a Magnetic immunoassay (MIA) in the lateral flow test form also allows for getting a quantified result.        While not strictly necessary, most tests will incorporate a second line which contains an antibody that picks up free latex/gold in order to confirm the test has operated correctly . . .        Time to obtain the test result is a key driver for these products. Tests can take as little as a few minutes to develop. Generally there is a trade-off between time and sensitivity—so more sensitive tests may take longer to develop. The other key advantage of this format of test compared to other immunoassays is the simplicity of the test—typically requiring little or no sample or reagent preparation . . .        Probably the most well known examples of lateral flow tests are home pregnancy tests. However rapid tests or point of care tests are available for a wide range of applications including: HIV tests, Troponin T, test Malaria tests, drugs of Abuse tests, Fertility tests, Respiratory disease tests etc. Clinical tests can be applied to urine, saliva, blood, or stool samples. Tests are available for both human and animal diagnostics. Tests are also available for non clinical applications including testing food and water for contaminants."
FIG. 1 shows a typical prior art lateral or capillary flow pad assembly or strip as commonly used in rapid diagnostic applications. The strip contains an absorptive sample application or input pad 102, a conjugate pad 104, a membrane 106 along which the analyte flows, and a waste adsorbing pad 108. These components are bonded by an adhesive layer 110, onto a carrier strip 112, usually constructed from plastic sheet.
Immobilised on the membrane (typically nitrocellulose) are one or several test regions or line(s) 114 containing capture antigens or antibodies for the target(s) of interest, and a control region or line 116 containing a control capture antigen or antibody. As described above, visible or colored or fluorescent labels are incorporated, such that the test result is displayed as one or more visible or otherwise optically detectible lines at the test region(s) 114 and/or the control region 116.
Lateral flow strips such as that shown in FIG. 1 are often contained in a plastic cassette having an opening for sample introduction and a open or transparent "window" for viewing the test and control lines 114, 116.
Currently, lateral flow and other similar types of biomedical test strips are widely used to diagnose a range of medical conditions from pregnancy, health markers and infectious diseases, for example flu.
An immunoassay test device such as a lateral flow test strip lateral flow test strip or microfluidic cartridge can be broadly classified into one of two categories or types, depending on whether the immunoassay test device result can be determined by direct visual inspection of the test strip by a human user, (e.g., by reflectance or absorption), without requiring any test instrument or stimulating (e.g., optical) signal to determine the results of the test. For example, the test result of a pregnancy test strip can be viewed in the home by simple visual inspection under natural or otherwise ordinary ambient lighting conditions. For convenience of description, this general type of immunoassay test device is referred to herein as a "traditional" immunoassay test device, irrespective of its physical form.
Conversely, some other types of immunoassay test device (including those where fluorescent or magnetic labels are used) produce a test result that cannot be seen by ordinary or direct visual inspection, often requiring a stimulating signal and/or an appropriate type of sensor to detect the presence of the test lines on the strip (for example an optical signal of a specific wavelength or wavelength range, or a magnetic stimulating signal in order to stimulate the emission of a second signal from the test strip that is indicative of the test result). Furthermore, in some instances (e.g., where the label is fluorescent), the emitted second signal may be an optical signal technically visible to the eye of a user, but in a format that it outside the experience of most users such that can not be readily interpreted by a typical or inexpert user. For example, a traditional lateral flow strip result is readily assessed by an inexpert user, because it is in the form of dark absorptive lines in a red or blue or black colour against a light or white background (the membrane). However, a test result viewed under stimulation as described above might be visible only as feint lines on a dark background.
Additionally, the stimulated output can typically only be effectively imaged or sensed after the stimulating signal has been separated, for example after passing through a bandpass filter and associated optical components, and usually in the absence of ambient lighting. In other cases, the emitted second signal may not be an optical signal at all, requiring an appropriate type of sensor to detect the emitted second signal and processing of the detected signal to determine the test result.
The present invention particularly relates to this second broad class or type of immunoassay test device, where the test result is not visible to a human observer, at least without the assistance of a test instrument or apparatus. In particular, the inventor has identified a difficulty with these types of lateral flow test strips in which the test result is not directly visible to a user by simply viewing the lateral flow test strip under natural or ambient lighting. These types of tests require the use of an electronic reader instrument and/or at least specialised illumination to assess the result of the test. Currently, these test instruments or apparatus analyse the second signal emitted from the test strip in order to automatically assess the (binary) result of the test, displaying the results as a simple binary test result (e.g., "pass" or "fail") or, at best, as a quantitative (numeric) value.
Although the lack of ambiguity in the test result provided by such an instrument may have direct application, the information that is available to the user is very limited. In particular, a simple binary test result does not provide any indication of the reliability of the assessment performed by the test instrument or apparatus, thus making it difficult for a user of the test instrument to have great confidence in the test result in the absence of any other information about the test result.
It is desired to address or alleviate one or more difficulties of the prior art, or at least to provide a useful alternative.


An optical scanning device is configured in such a manner that, of four light beams for colors corresponding to black, cyan, magenta, and yellow, the angle of the reflection surface of the last folding mirror disposed in the optical path of a light beam corresponding to an image in black having the lowest brightness and the highest visibility is closest to vertical, and further, the angle of the reflection surface of the last folding mirror disposed in the optical path of a light beam corresponding to an image in yellow having the highest brightness and the lowest visibility is closest to horizontal. It is thus possible to reduce a color shift in the color image caused by reflecting a light beam having passed through the correction lens on the last folding mirror.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical scanning device that scans light beams to write and form an image for use in an image forming apparatus, such as a printer, a facsimile machine, and a copying machine, and more particularly, to an optical scanning device suitably used in a color image forming apparatus, such as a color laser printer and a digital color copying machine, and an image forming apparatus equipped with the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
An image forming apparatus in the related art using the electrophotographic method, such as a copying machine and a printer, is equipped with an optical scanning device that scans a light beam modulated according to input image data on the surface of a photoconductive drum charged uniformly by the charger. An image is formed by developing an electrostatic latent image formed by the optical scanning device into a toner image by the developing device, and then transferring the toner image onto a recording sheet of paper or the like.
Incidentally, as a color image forming apparatus is becoming faster, a digital copying machine or a laser printer adopting a method (so-called 4-drum tandem method) is now put into practical use, in which, for example, four photoconductive drums are aligned in the transportation direction of recording sheets of paper to form electrostatic latent images by exposing the photoconductive drums to light simultaneously using plural optical scanning devices corresponding to the respective photoconductive drums, and after these electrostatic latent images are developed into toner images by the developing devices that use developing agents in different colors, such as black, magenta, cyan, and yellow, these toner images are transferred onto the same recording sheet of paper successively so as to be superimposed one on another for a color image to be obtained.
According to the 4-drum tandem method, because an image can be outputted at the same speed in either color printing or monochromatic printing, it is advantageous when fast printing is desired. However, because four optical scanning devices are provided correspondingly to four photoconductive drums to expose the drums, the apparatus tends to increase in size. Meanwhile, to meet the need for a compact image forming apparatus in recent years, there has been proposed an optical scanning device that is made compact by configuring in such a manner that plural light beams emitted from the light sources provided separately for respective colors are deflected by a single deflector, so that the light beams are guided to different photoconductors to expose and scan the corresponding photoconductors (for example, see JP-A-2000-180750).
The optical scanning device of a type proposed in JP-A-2000-180750 is configured in such a manner that light beams go incident on the deflector at different angles in the sub-scanning direction for making it easier to separate optical paths of plural deflected light beams. This gives rise to bows (a phenomenon that scanning lines of light beams deflected by the defector are curved) of different quantities in the respective light beams deflected by the deflector. Because the quantities of the bows vary among the respective light beams, a color shift occurs in the resulting color image.
Such being the case, JP-A-2005-288825 proposes an optical scanning device that makes a color shift or an image curve in the color image caused by bows occurring in the light beams hardly noticeable by setting, of plural light beams corresponding to developing agents in different colors, a smaller angle of incidence on the deflector for light beams corresponding to developing agents having high visibility, that is, low brightness while setting a larger angle of incidence on the deflector for light beams corresponding to developing agents having low visibility, that is, high brightness.
For the optical scanning device of a type proposed in JP-A-2005-288825, it is, however, necessary to dispose plural folding mirrors as reflection members inside the optical scanning device to guide light beams to the corresponding photoconductors. The folding mirrors are disposed inside the optical scanning device with the both end portions being held so as not to interrupt the optical paths of the light beams. However, because the folding mirrors are held at the both end portions alone, they eventually bend due to their own weights and the reflection surfaces are curved. The scanning line of a light beam reflected on the bent folding mirror is curved as well.
In addition, for the reason of setting the optical paths of light beams, plural folding mirrors provided inside the optical scanning device are installed at different angles. The magnitude of the bend occurring in the folding mirror varies with the angle at which the folding mirror is installed. The magnitude becomes larger as the angle of installation of the reflection surface becomes closer to horizontal, and the magnitude becomes smaller as the angle of installation of the reflection surface becomes closer to vertical. Accordingly, curves of different magnitude occur in the scanning lines of the light beams reflected on the folding mirrors installed at different angles.
Generally, a correction lens furnished with an optical face tangle error correction capability is provided somewhere in the middle of each optical path of light beams, and the curve of the scanning line of a light beam as described above is corrected by allowing the light beam to pass through the correction lens. However, in a case where a curve of different magnitude occurs in the scanning line of each light beam after the light beam passed through the correction lens due to a difference of the angle of installation among the folding mirrors as described above, the curve thus occurred is not corrected and the curved scanning line directly scans the photoconductive drum. This poses a problem that a color shift resulting from displacement of the scanning line occurs in the formed color image.

Optical scanning device and image forming apparatus equipped with the same