An apparatus (10) comprising: at least one processor (12); and at least one memory (13) including computer program instructions (14); the at least one memory (13) and the computer program instructions (14) configured to, with the at least one processor (12), cause the apparatus (10) at least to perform: receiving (201) configuration information for enabling the apparatus (10) to measure a first set of Downlink (DL) Reference Signals (RSs) (302) and/or a second set of DLRSs (304), wherein DLRSs (302 #0-302 #4) of the first set of DLRSs (302) are respectively associated with a first set of DL beams (303), wherein one or more DLRSs (302 #1-302 #3) of the first set of DLRSs (302) are configured to be Quasi-Co-Located (QCLed) with at least one DLRS (304 #m) of the second set of DLRSs (304), and wherein DLRSs (304 #a-304 #z) of the second set of DLRSs (304) are respectively associated with a second set of DL beams (305); receiving (202) information for enabling the apparatus (10) to determine a Quasi-Co-Location (QCL) assumption for a Channel Occupancy Time (COT), wherein the QCL assumption for the COT is indicative of the availability, for use for transmissions within the COT, of: at least one DL beam (305 #m) associated with the at least one DLRS (304 #m) of the second set of DLRSs (304), and one or more DL beams (303 #1-303 #3) associated with the one or more DLRSs (302 #1-302 #3) of the first set of DLRSs (302) and QCLed with the at least one DLRS (304 #m) of the second set of DLRS (304); and determining (203), based at least in part on the received information and configuration information, the QCL assumption for the COT.

A wireless network, such as a wireless Radio Access Network (RAN), comprises a plurality of nodes including terminal nodes, such as User Equipment (UE) and access nodes, such as gNodeBs (gNBs). A gNB may communicate with a UE wirelessly with downlink (DL) transmissions via DL beams. A UE may communicate with access nodes wirelessly with uplink (UL) transmissions via UL beams.
Listen-Before-Talk (LBT) is a channel access procedure wherein a transmitter senses (measures energy on) a channel or medium before an intended transmission. If the transmitter determines that the channel is vacant it may start its transmission. If the transmitter determines that the channel is occupied, it defers or cancels the intended transmission. Directional LBT may be used as a channel access method, wherein the transmitter senses the channel with a narrower beam than an omnidirectional or sector wide beam.
After acquiring channel access based on LBT, a device may occupy the channel for a particular period of time referred to as Channel Occupancy Time (COT). Beam Management (BM) comprises a set of procedures and functionalities that enable, maintain and refine a transmit beam and a receive beam alignment between the transmitter and receiver(s). A beam pair link established between the transmitter and the receiver comprises a transmit beam and receive beam pair.
In some circumstances it may be desirable to provide improved beam management, such as improved: beam measurement, reporting and switching as well as reduced use of resources. It may be desirable to provide improved beam management during COT.
The listing or discussion of any prior-published document or any background in this specification should not necessarily be taken as an acknowledgement that the document or background is part of the state of the art or is common general knowledge. One or more aspects/examples of the present disclosure may or may not address one or more of the background issues.

Beam management in wireless communication


An applicator for applying a composition, such as makeup or a care product composition, e.g. lip gloss, mascara, eye liner, hair color, wound care, pharmaceutical or the like, that have diverse application characteristics. The applicator comprises an applicator element comprising a support and a layout of fibers on at least a portion of the support, the fibers being flocked to at least portion of the support and allow the applicator element to be loaded with the composition. The layout of fibers defines a pattern of fibers on the support and the pattern of fibers is visible to naked eye and perceptible to touch.

Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to an applicator for applying a composition, such as a cosmetic or a personal care composition, to methods of making such an applicator and to packaging devices including such applicator. The disclosure relates more particularly to an applicator comprising an applicator element including a support and a layout of fibers defining a pattern on the support. The composition includes lip gloss, mascara, eye liner, hair color, wound care, pharmaceutical and like products.
Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, applicators for applying a composition such as lip gloss, mascara, eye liner, hair color, wound care, pharmaceutical and like products, comprise an elongated support with a multiplicity of fibers attached to the support by flocking process such that the fibers extend radially outwardly therefrom to form a fiber array surrounding the support over a substantial portion of a length of the support to form an applicator element/brush.
Flocking is a process whereby a surface is covered with more or less densely packed, upstanding fibers, typically of short length and fine diameter. The fibers typically are delivered to an adhesive coating already applied to the surface. One flocking method utilizes electrostatic delivery of fibers to the adhesive coating, although other procedures may also be employed. In conventional flocked applicators, the overall cylindrical and/or tapered profile of the fiber array is generally formed with an even distribution, density and length of fibers along the applicator element.
Some of such applicators known in the art include an applicator element configured to be connected at a distal end of a stem wherein the stem has a handle at its proximal end. Also, known in art are applicators having a flocked applicator element wherein the flocked applicator element is configured to be connected to a neck of a receptacle containing a composition. The composition flows from the receptacle towards the flocked applicator element either from its surrounding surface or through an aperture present in the applicator element.
US Pat. publication number 20120204899 discloses an applicator element having a support which has a concave surface. The concave surface is uniformly flocked with fibers of similar length so that the applicator element retains its concavity. The quantity of the cosmetic composition retained by the applicator element is increased because of the synergistic effect brought about by the combination of the curvedness of the applicator element and the effect of the flocking finish. The applicator element covered by a flocking provides a soft feeling when applied by a user.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,245,716 discloses flocked applicators having two types of bristles or fibers of different lengths. The flocked applicators disclosed in said patent comprises longitudinal voids which are devoid of flocking fibers. Such applicators are produced by masking the area of the applicator element with a sleeve and applying the fibers only on the unmasked areas. The unmasked areas may further be flocked by fibers of different length to achieve a pattern of fibers. Such applicators are difficult to manufacture because of many steps involved in the manufacturing process as they involve using a sleeve and applying different fibers at different steps of the process. The methods disclosed in the patent involve multiple steps and are too difficult to achieve the desired pattern.
There is a lot of scope for having a cosmetic applicator comprising an applicator element including a layout of fibers defining a pattern or a graphic print on flocked applicator element which may be visually attractive and can be used for marketing purposes.
The present disclosure further provides a cosmetic applicator having a flocked applicator element with at least one reservoir for retaining the composition.
The present disclosure further provides a cosmetic applicator having a flocked applicator element with fibers arranged in different patterns and which is easy to manufacture and is cost effective at the same time.


A system and method for generating high-function browser widgets with full addressability are provided. With the system and method, custom JSP tags are utilized that generate JavaScript objects to provide the high-function browser widgets. The JavaScript objects, in turn, output HTML for use by a client side Web browser. These JavaScript objects have instance-level functions or actions that are encapsulated in the widget as well as a complete client-side model representation of the data also encapsulated in the widget object. These objects and actions are fully addressable by the developer via a getWidgetByID method on a global utility object. As a result, higher-level features and full inter-widget communication are achievable using the custom JSP tags of the present invention.

Web browsers are programs that serve as a front end to the World Wide Web on the Internet. In order to view a Web site, its address, i.e. Uniform Resource Locator (URL), is typed into the Web browser's location field and the home page of that Web site is downloaded to the Web browser. The home page is an index to other Web pages on that site that can be accessed by clicking a message or an icon on the home page. The home page is either received in a HyperText Markup Language (HTML) format or is converted to an HTML format by the Web browser for displaying to the user.
Some Web pages on the Internet make use of JavaServer Pages (JSP). JSP is an extension to the Java servlet technology that provides a simple programming vehicle for displaying dynamic content on a Web page. The JSP is an HTML Web page with embedded Java source code that is executed in the Web server or application server. The HTML provides the page layout that will be returned to the Web browser, and the Java provides the processing. For example, a JSP Web page may be used in which the HTML identifies the format of the Web page and the Java source code delivers a query to a database and fills in blank fields of the Web page with the results.
In order to create a Web page using JSP, the programmer simply writes the regular HTML in the normal manner, using whatever Web-page-building tools they normally use. The programmer then encloses the code for the dynamic parts in special tags, most of which start with "<%" and end with "%>". For example, here is a section of a JSP page that results in something like    "Thanks for ordering Steve's Guide to JSP" for a URL of http://host/OrderConfirmation.jsp?title=Steve's+Guide+to+JSP:    Thanks for ordering    <I><%= request.getParameter ("title") %></I>
Normally, the programmer gives the resulting file a ".jsp" extension, and typically installs it in any place a normal Web page may be installed. Although what is written typically looks more like a regular HTML file than a servlet, behind the scenes, the JSP page is converted to a servlet, with the static HTML simply being printed to the output stream associated with the servlet's service method. This is normally done the first time the page is requested.
Aside from the regular HTML, there are three main types of JSP constructs that may be embedded in a Web page: scripting elements, directives, and actions. Scripting elements let you specify Java code that will become part of the resultant servlet. Directives let you control the overall structure of the servlet. Actions let you specify existing components that should be used and otherwise control the behavior of the JSP engine. To simplify the scripting elements, programmers have access to a number of predefined variables such as "request" in the example above.
The standard JSP tags simplify JSP page development and maintenance. However, in order to obtain additional functionality, JSP technology also provides a mechanism for encapsulating other types of dynamic functionality in custom tags, which are extensions to the JSP language. Custom tags are usually distributed in the form of a tag library, which defines a set of related custom tags and contains the objects that implement the tags. Some examples of tasks that can be performed by custom tags include operations on implicit objects, processing forms, accessing databases and other enterprise services such as electronic mail and directories, and performing flow control. JSP tag libraries are created by developers who are proficient at the Java programming language and expert in accessing data and other services, and are used by Web application designers who can focus on presentation issues rather than being concerned with how to access enterprise services. As well as encouraging division of labor between library developers and library users, custom tags increase productivity by encapsulating recurring tasks so that they can be reused across more than one application.
With JSP Web pages, the Java Source code embedded therein is compiled into bytecode, e.g., into a servlet, when first encountered by the server. A servlet is a Web server that builds Web pages based on data that may be dynamic in nature. When a JSP page containing a custom tag is translated into a servlet, the tag is converted to operations on an object called a tag handler. The Web container, i.e. runtime environment, then invokes those operations when the JSP page's servlet is executed. The result is an HTML stream to the Web browser that contains the original HTML of the JSP Web page and the HTML generated by the servlet.
Thus, custom JSP tags, when compiled and executed by the server, generate raw HTML tags. With some Web pages, the customer JSP tags may be utilized to generate limited global JavaScript functions which along with the HTML provide a low-function view of "widgets" on the web page. A "widget" is a general term for a graphical user interface element, e.g., drop-down menu, dialog window, virtual push button, and other elements of a graphical user interface. Since custom JSP tags output raw HTML with only minimal global JavaScript functions, the developer of the Web page must resort to writing his/her own JavaScript to perform higher-level features and to achieve any inter-widget communication. Here, low-level features include, for example, simple rollover techniques and button click processing, whereas high-level features include those features that actually manipulate the data after the Web page is rendered, such as sorting table columns, updating the data presented in the view, and allowing for the connection of any widget event to any other widget action in any combination that meets the needs of the developer. Thus, it is not possible with known mechanisms to generate high-level functionality widgets in a JSP Web page based on the custom JSP tags contained within the JSP Web page. Known mechanisms provide the view only, which in actual practical usage tops out quickly and requires additional custom coding.
Therefore, it would be beneficial to have a system and method for generating high-function browser widgets with not only a view but also complete model and handler objects that allow for full addressability. Moreover, it would be beneficial to have a system and method by which custom JSP tags may be used to generate high-function widgets without requiring explicit JavaScript programming of those widgets in the code of the JSP Web page.

System and method for generating high-function browser widgets with full addressability

International Business Machines Corporation


The present invention provides transgenic, large non-human animal models of diseases and conditions, as well as methods of making and using such animal models in the identification and characterization of therapies for the diseases and conditions.

Many human diseases and conditions are caused by gene mutations. Substantial effort has been directed towards the creation of transgenic animal models of such diseases and conditions, to facilitate the testing of approaches to treatment, as well as to gain a better understanding of disease pathology. Early transgenic animal technology focused on the mouse, while more recent efforts, which have been bolstered by the development of somatic cell nuclear transfer, have included larger animals, including pigs, cows, and goats. This technology has resulted in the production of, for example, pigs in which the gene encoding α-1,3-galactosyltransferase has been knocked out, in efforts to generate organs that can be used in xenotransplantation (see, e.g., Lai et al., Science 295:1089-1092, 2002). Additional applications of this technology include the production of large quantities of human proteins (e.g., therapeutic antibodies; see, e.g., Grosse-Hovest et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 101(18):6858-6863, 2004). Substantial benefits may be obtained by the use of somatic cell nuclear transfer technology in the production of large animal models of human disease.
An example of a disease caused by gene mutations is cystic fibrosis (CF), which is an inherited disease that affects many organs of the body, including the lungs, pancreas, sweat glands, liver, and organs of the reproductive tract. The disease is characterized by abnormalities in fluid secretion, which can lead to diverse physiological problems. For example, in the lungs of CF patients, secreted mucus is unusually heavy and sticky, and thus tends to clog small air passages, making it difficult for patients to breath and leading to bacterial infection and inflammation. Repeated lung infections and blockages in CF patients can cause severe, permanent lung damage. Other features of CF arise from the clogging of ducts leading from the pancreas to the small intestine, which blocks the transport of critical digestive enzymes such as amylase, protease, and lipase. This can lead to problems including incomplete digestion, diarrhea, bowel blockage, and weight loss. Digestive complications of CF can also be caused by blockage of liver bile ducts. Due to these and other features of the disease, CF causes progressive disability in patients and ultimately leads to early death.
CF is caused by the presence of a mutation in the gene encoding the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein, which is a chloride channel found in the membranes of epithelial cells lining passageways of the lungs, liver, pancreas, intestines, and digestive tract, and in the skin. The disease is autosomal recessive, and thus CF patients have mutations in both CFTR alleles, while asymptomatic CF carriers have mutations in only one allele. There are more than 1,200 different known mutations of the CFTR gene that can lead to cystic fibrosis in humans, with some mutations causing milder symptoms than others. However, about 70% of people with CF have the disease due to a particular gene mutation, a deletion of three nucleotides, leading to the loss of a phenylalanine that is normally present at position 508 of the CFTR protein. This form of the disease, often referred to as ΔF508 (CFTR-ΔF508, also called F508del-CFTR), is both the most common and the most severe form of the disease. The loss of phenylalanine at position 508 results in improper CFTR protein folding, which causes retention of the mutant protein in the ER and targets it for degradation before it even reaches the cell membrane. Additionally, this deletion alters channel gating, reducing the rate of channel opening.
There is no cure for CF. Current approaches to treatment include the use of mucous thinning drugs, digestive enzyme supplementation, bronchodilators, respiratory therapy, antibiotics, and lung transplantation. Even given the availability of these approaches to treatment, as the disease progresses, patients typically suffer from an increasingly poor quality of life. New approaches to treating diseases such as CF, which may be identified, for example, by the use of large animal models, are therefore needed for this and other devastating diseases.

Transgenic porcine models of cystic fibrosis

The Curators of the University of Missouri


A manually-operated shrink-wrap device is described. The device includes a rigid support member having first and second sections, a handle at the first section, and a flexible leash attached to the second section. The rigid support member is adapted to support a film roll, and to facilitate rotational dispensing of film from the film roll to wrap the target load, which is typically a palletized load. The device also typically includes upper and lower film roll engagements for holding the film roll therebetween. A tensioning member may provide tension to the film roll along the longitudinal axis of the support member upon movement of one of the film roll engagements towards the tensioning member.

The present invention relates generally to a device for wrapping objects. More particularly, the present invention relates to a device for supporting a roll of stretch film for manually wrapping palletized goods, containers and other objects.
When goods are shipped on palettes or in assembled packages, it is common to wrap the load with a stretched film to avoid the goods from shifting or falling. The stretched film produces a tight wrap on the load and provides basic protection from the elements. Both manually-operated and fully-automated systems exist to wrap plastic film around goods.
Manually-operated devices typically require the operator to position themselves in awkward and physically demanding positions that may pose undue risk of back injury, depending upon the size, shape, and other characteristics of the load being wrapped. One such manually-operated device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,951 entitled xe2x80x9cStretch Film Wrapping Devicexe2x80x9d, issued to Riemenschneider, III on Aug. 20, 1985. Specifically, the Riemenschneider device requires the operator to bend down low to wrap the bottom portion of the load, and to reach up high to wrap the top portion of the load. Similarly, to wrap load portions between the top and bottom, the operator must engage in a wide range of various positions in which the operator""s back, arms, and legs, may be subject to undue strain. Such awkward use is required with the Riemenschneider device because all points of manual engagement are rigid and are fixed relative to the film roll.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved manually-operated shrink-wrap device in which at least one point of manual engagement is flexible and not fixed, and in which the operator""s arms are not required to be fixed relative to the film roll while wrapping loads.
A manually-operated shrink-wrap device is described. The device includes a rigid support member having first and second sections, a handle at the first section, and a flexible leash attached to the second section. The rigid support member is adapted to support a film roll, and to facilitate rotational dispensing of film from the film roll to wrap the target load, which is typically a palletized load. The device also typically includes upper and lower film roll engagements for holding the film roll therebetween. A tensioning member may provide tension to the film roll along the longitudinal axis of the support member upon movement of one of the film roll engagements towards the tensioning member.
The device of the present invention is used by: preparing the device for wrapping an object with the film, placing a section of the film against the object; and wrapping the object with the film, by rotationally dispensing the film from the film roll. Typically, this involves grasping both the handle and the leash to maintain control of the device. In this manner, awkward and physically demanding positions that may pose undue risk of back injury may be minimized or avoided altogether, because the operator""s ability to maintain a generally upright position, even during wrapping of the upper and lower load portions, is facilitated by the flexible leash, as further shown and described herein. The operator""s arms are thus not required to be fixed relative to the film roll while wrapping loads.


The angel hair pasta basket is a cylindrical mesh basket with a flat bottom, an ergonomic handle and three retaining clips extending downward from the outside surface of the mesh basket. The mesh is a fine mesh sized to prevent fine pasta from escaping from the basket. The flat bottom allows the basket to rest on the floor of a commercial pasta cooker basin. The handle is ergonomic and is attached to the basket at an angle such that it is easy to grasp even when the basket is almost entirely submerged within a pasta cooker basin. The retaining clips allow the basket to be suspended from the side of a stockpot or the rim of a commercial pasta cooker and, thus, allow for hands-free straining.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cooking apparatus and, more particularly, to an apparatus for cooking and straining angel hair pasta that has fine mesh sidewalls to prevents fine pasta from escaping while being boiled, and has retaining clips and a flat bottom to allow the apparatus to either to hang from the side of a stock pot or rest on the bottom of a commercial gas pasta cooker.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a restaurant or other commercial cooking setting, pasta is typically prepared by placing it in a pasta basket and submerging the basket in boiling water. Typically, the boiling water is provided by a commercial gas pasta cooker, which resembles a deep fryer in a fast food restaurant. Once boiled, the pasta is then strained by holding the pasta basket above the boiling water for approximately fifteen seconds.
Two common problems are associated with cooking fine pasta, particularly angel hair pasta. First, pasta baskets or strainers used with commercial pasta cookers are not well suited for holding fine pasta. While the holes or openings in such pasta baskets are small enough to contain many types of pasta, they are too large to contain fine pastas, such as angel hair pasta. Typically, some fine pasta will escape from the pasta basket while being cooked. The escaped pasta then either travels in the boiling water to another basket, resulting in the common occurrence where a patron who has ordered one type of pasta is served small amounts of another pasta in his or her serving, or the escaped pasta simply remains in the cooker water, requiring a change of the water which, in turn, requires down-time while draining and refilling the cooker and also requires reheating time and energy while the fresh water is brought to a boil.
The second common problem associated with cooking fine pasta is that pasta baskets cannot be used in a variety of manners with a commercial pasta cooker. Pasta baskets used with pasta cookers are designed to hang from either the front or back rim of the cooker, but not to rest on the floor of the cooker basin. Thus, if both the front and back rims are completely occupied, a cook must wait for space on one of the rims to become available before cooking an additional order of pasta.
Similarly, cooking fine pasta with a stockpot presents two common problems in both commercial and home settings. Typically, pasta prepared with a stockpot is placed in a strainer that is suspended in boiling water that is contained within the pot. However, the holes or openings in stock pot strainers are not small enough to prevent fine pasta from escaping and, second, once pasta is cooked, the strainer must be lifted from the stock pot and held above the pot while water drains from the pasta. Hence, there is no simple means to prevent fine pasta from escaping from a stock pot strainer during preparation, nor is there a means of suspending a strainer above the stock pot in a manner that provides hands-free straining.
Additionally, the handles on known pasta baskets do not allow for easy grasping when the basket is almost entirely submerged in boiling water, nor do they provide for easy manipulation of the basket with one hand. Furthermore, pasta baskets used with pasta cookers are not easily interchanged with strainers used with stock pots and visa-versa.
Therefore, a need exists for a pasta basket that provides for hanging the basket on the side of a stock pot while the pasta drains, that has a flat bottom to allow the flexibility of resting on the floor of a commercial pasta cooker basin as well as being used with a stock pot, that has holes small enough to prevent fine pasta from escaping, and that has an ergonomic handle for ease of use.
Various devices have been proposed for cooking pasta. U.S. Des. Pat. No. 296,643 to Mueller shows a cooking basket which appears capable of holding large-sized pasta during preparation, but appears unable to prevent fine pasta, such as angel hair pasta, from escaping during preparation. Additionally, the cooking basket is not adapted for being secured on a stockpot while pasta within is being strained, nor does it incorporate an ergonomic handle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,055,901 to Gantos et al. shows a typical stockpot and strainer combination. The strainer has a set of handles extending outward from opposite sides of its rim that allow the strainer to be placed in and removed from the stockpot. The strainer also has circular perforations around its side which allow water or other cooking fluid to be drained from the strainer. However, as with most stockpot and strainer combinations, the strainer does not provide for hands-free straining, and its circular perforations are not well suited for holding fine pasta, such as angel hair pasta. Further, its handles do not facilitate manipulation of the strainer with one hand.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,038 to Shimazaki teaches a cooking pot with a reversible top that functions as either a strainer or a steamer. The top is concave and perforated, and has a diameter that approximates that of the cooking pot. However, the top cannot be used with either a commercial pasta cooker or pots of different sizes. Further, the top does not facilitate hands free straining of food boiled in the pot, and is not suited for preparing angel hair pasta.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,913,966 to Arnone et al. teaches a steamer pan incorporating a single U-shaped bracket that allows the device to be hung on the side of a stockpot. However, if used to submerge food in boiling water within a stockpot, the device does not allow for hands free straining. If submerged in water when hung on the side of a stockpot, the device must then be held above the pot when straining. Additionally, the device is not suited for use with a commercial pasta cooker or for preparing angel hair pasta.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,176,175 to Moreth teaches a fry basket with a disposable mesh liner. The device provides for securing a disposable mesh liner to its inside walls and is suitable for use with a deep fryer. Although the device would prevent fine pasta from escaping, it is not suitable for use with stockpots and does not provide for hands-free straining. Furthermore, if used for preparing pasta, the disposable mesh liner would need to be removed and replaced periodically.
Consequently, none of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed and, therefore, an angel hair pasta basket solving the aforementioned problems is desired.
The angel hair pasta basket is a cooking apparatus designed specifically for the preparation of angel hair pasta. The device can be used in either a commercial or home setting.
The basket is a cylindrical mesh basket with a flat bottom, an ergonomic handle and three retaining clips extending downward from the outside surface of the mesh basket. The mesh is of a grid size that prevents fine pasta from escaping from the basket. The flat bottom allows the basket to rest on the floor of a commercial pasta cooker basin. The handle is ergonomic and is attached at an angle such that it is easy to grasp, even when the basket is almost entirely submerged within a pasta cooker basin. The retaining clips allow the basket to be suspended from the side of a stockpot or the rim of a commercial pasta cooker and, thus, allow for hands-free straining.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a cooking utensil for preparing angel hair pasta that prevents the pasta from escaping from the utensil by using a very fine mesh.
It is another object of the invention to provide a pasta basket with clips that allow the user to strain boiled pasta without requiring the user to physically hold the basket over a pot or pasta cooker.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a pasta basket that can be used with either a commercial pasta cooker or an ordinary stockpot.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a pasta basket with an ergonomic handle that allows the user to grasp the handle even when the basket is almost entirely submerged in boiling water, and that also provides a thumb stop that allows its user to easily manipulate the basket with one hand.
Yet another object of the invention is to avoid pasta cooker water changes due to escaped pasta, thereby minimizing the expenses associated with down-time while draining and refilling a pasta cooker and the expenses associated with reheating fresh water in a pasta cooker.
It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.


The present invention provides a water-soluble or water-dispersible polymers. The water -soluble or water-dispersible polymer comprise a first monomer having hydrogen bonding/complexing properties to polyphenols, a second monomer having detergent properties, and a third monomer having hydrogen bonding/complexing properties to polyphenols, wherein the first monomer and the third monomer are the same or different. The present invention also provides oral care compositions comprising the water-soluble or water-dispersible polymers. The present invention also provides methods of cleaning, Whitening arid polishing natural teeth and dental prosthesis and of preventing, reducing or removing surface deposited stains from teeth by administering the oral care compositions. The water-soluble or water-dispersible polymer has a structure:

Oral care compositions such as mouthwashes and toothpastes are generally designed to inhibit or kill microorganisms that cause gum disease, retard or stop plaque formation, prevent caries and to provide teeth whitening. Teeth whitening is typically done through the use of abrasive agents or bleaching agents. Factors that enlist teeth staining include the use of coffee, tea red wine, cola, tobacco products, or other stain promoting oral products. The disadvantage of using highly abrasive toothpastes, typically used in whitening toothpaste formulations, is the potential for the destruction of tooth enamel. Tooth bleaching agents, such as hydrogen peroxide, can be harsh to oral tissue and can often cause tooth sensitivity. This invention describes a gentle means of whitening teeth which is non-abrasive and non-oxidative in nature.
Water-soluble or water-dispersible copolymer, or water-soluble salts for oral care compositions are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,682,722 and WO1999/12517.
Hydroxyethylpyrrolidone methacrylate (M-06) and related compounds are disclosed in DE/2048312A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,902,740B2, United States Patent publication No. 2013/0150481A1, European Patent No. EP2501728B1, W0/2014/160604A1, JP2011178863A, US/2009/0303304A1 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,067,163A.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to have improved oral care compositions, without the need of high amount of abrasive agents or bleaching agents, to remove stains from teeth and whiten and polish teeth more effectively.

Abstract: wherein x, y, z, mole %, n, R1, and R2 are defined herein.


A collar assembly for coupling a blade assembly and a removable jar to the base of a motorized blender includes an interlock assembly that prevents coupling of the blade assembly to the blender motor unless the jar is secured to the collar assembly, and prevents removal of the jar from the collar assembly when the collar and blade assembly is coupled to the blender base.

Blenders and similar countertop kitchen appliances generally include a jar into which food or other contents can be placed, and a base. Blades or a similar implement can be activated to operate on the contents of the jar. The jar is generally removable from the base for ease of use, ease of cleaning, or other reasons. The base contains a motor and controls for operating the appliance. The motor drives the blades in response to activation of one of the controls.


The present disclosure relates to hub apparatuses and associated systems. An embodiment of the hub apparatus includes a rotor assembly, a shaft, and a stator assembly. The rotor assembly includes first/second housing components and multiple magnets mounted on one or both of the first and second housing components. The stator assembly includes (1) a coil assembly positioned corresponding to the magnets; (2) a main circuit board fixedly coupled to the coil assembly; and (3) a battery assembly positioned inside the coil assembly and carried by the main circuit board.

In modern cities, transportation relying on personal vehicles can result in significant amount of traffic and pollution. One solution to this problem is to encourage people to use vehicles with a compact design. Some conventional compact vehicles, such as a bicycle, require human power and are not convenient for users under certain circumstances. For example, it can be challenging for a user to climb up hills or ride long distance. Therefore, there is a need for improved vehicle designs that will increase the ease of use and improve performance.
The drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be expanded or reduced to help improve the understanding of various embodiments. Similarly, some components and/or operations may be separated into different blocks or combined into a single block for the purposes of discussion of some of the embodiments. Moreover, although specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and described in detail below, one skilled in the art will recognize that modifications, equivalents, and alternatives will fall within the scope of the appended claims.


A dual pivot game controller including two rotating assemblies, one for each of a user's two hands, is described. Each of the two rotating assemblies is coupled to a base by a pivoting coupling, and each pivoting coupling includes an axis of rotation about which its respective rotating assembly rotates. Accordingly, each rotating assembly and pivoting coupling share an axes of rotation, and each rotating assembly is thus configured to rotate relative to the base to which it is coupled. The axes of rotation usually reside in a common plane and are substantially non-parallel, such that they intersect at an axes intersection angle. An axes intersection angle of about 52° is typical. The two rotating assemblies are usually operationally coupled to each other such that they rotate in tandem during use.

Game controllers are typically employed for user control of video games and computer simulations of driving, flying, weapons operation, and the like (referred to collectively as video games). The video games are typically operated on a gaming device configured to receive signals or instructions from the game controller. Typical game controllers include joysticks, dual thumb-driven, mini-joysticks, table top steering wheels, and un-mounted steering wheels, among others. All of the currently available game controllers suffer drawbacks, despite some advantages offered by various designs.
For instance, table top steering wheel controllers perform well for car driving and racing games or simulations, providing realistic performance and tactile feedback. However, such devices must typically be mounted on a stable, flat, horizontal surface in order to perform well. In the absence of mounting on a table top or similar surface, the devices typically perform poorly because the entire device, including a base designed to remain stationary while the steering wheel itself rotates relative to the base, tends to move around as a user turns the steering wheel. Table top steering wheel controllers are thus poorly adapted for use where a user sits partially reclined on a couch, or is otherwise unwilling or unable to use the device mounted on a horizontal surface.
Conversely, unmounted steering wheel controllers typically perform relatively poorly in all circumstances because they can be moved in any direction in addition to being rotated, and they provide little or no meaningful tactile feedback. On the plus side, their performance is typically no worse where a user is slouched on a couch.
Dual thumb-driven mini joysticks also do not require mounting on a flat surface, and are thus adapted to use in a variety of postures. However, such devices are controlled mainly by thumb movement, and typically require a relatively large range of thumb motion. Such requirement, combined with limits of thumb dexterity typical of most users, makes dual thumb-driven mini joysticks relatively poor performers.
Finally, regular joysticks can provide good tactile feedback and are adapted to fine motor control, resulting in high performing controllers. However, the joysticks suffer the same drawback as table top steering wheel controllers, in that the joysticks typically need to be mounted on a stable, flat, horizontal surface for good performance.
Given the limitations of prior art game controllers, a game control device that is easy to operate and provides high level performance without requiring table top mounting is needed. Such a device that provides ample tactile feedback is also desirable.
Front side refers to a side of the game controller that faces toward a user in typical operation of the controller. Back side refers to a side that faces away from the user in typical operation.


The present invention employs user modeling to model a user's behavior patterns. The user's behavior patterns are then used to influence named entity (NE) recognition.

The present invention deals with named entity recognition. More specifically, the present invention deals with modeling user patterns to enhance the recognition of named entities.
A named entity (NE) is a specific linguistic item, such as a proper name, the name of a company, an email address, a location, etc., which is treated as one unit by an application. Named entity recognizers are known, and named entity processing is known to be an important stage of linguistic analysis.
NE recognition is currently done in a number of ways. Some approaches for NE recognition use list look up when NEs are fixed (or static) such as city names, country names, first names, company names, fixed terms like product names, etc. Other approaches use regular expressions and grammar rules that can combine syntactic information with a lexicon or list look up in order to recognize NEs. Most common approaches build finite-state recognizers directly from training data.
Personal information management (PIM) continues to be a major application area of automatic speech recognition. In PIM systems, NE recognition is an important task. For example, speech enabled electronic mail programs rely on NE recognition. Processing in these applications requires the recognition of many NEs, such as email recipients. Similarly, some PIMs involve voice dialing of telephones, scheduling, etc. which also require NE recognition.
NE recognition, in general and in the domain of speech recognition engines, poses a number of problems. First, NE users may have access to a very large number of names or other terms that constitute NEs. For example, there are many distinct proper names in any given corporation or community. This leads to a very large perplexity, which in turn leads to a large error rate in the NE recognition task.
Another difficulty involves names not in the standard dictionary. It is extremely difficult to create a dictionary that contains every name in the world, or even all English sounding names. Even if such a dictionary exists, because of the vast number of possible pronunciations it would contain, using such a dictionary would significantly lower recognition accuracy.
Another difficulty presented in NE recognition is that there can be many different ways to refer to a single person. For example, different people refer to a single person in different ways. Some may call a person by his or her first name, while others may refer to the person with both the first and second names and still others may refer to the same person in different ways, such as using the first name and last initial or such as by using nicknames, etc. Moreover, a single person may refer to other people in multiple different ways. For example, a person may refer to one of his or her neighbors or coworkers using only the first name, while referring to another neighbor or coworker using only the last name.
Still another difficulty presented by NE recognition is ambiguity when only a first name is used. There are many common first names, and even if an NE recognizer (such as an automatic speech recognition system) correctly recognizes the word which forms the first name, the user may still be frustrated. For example, if the user speaks the word "David", the automatic speech recognition system may accurately recognize the word "David" as a NE. However, in a large company there may be many people with the first name "David" and the user would then be required to hunt through a list of "David's" presented by the recognizer (and typically alphabetized by last name) to find the proper one.

System and method for user modeling to enhance named entity recognition


A piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition which exhibits superior piezoelectric/electrostrictive characteristics without containing lead (Pb) is provided. A main component of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive composition is a binary solid solution represented by the general formula (1): (1−n)(Ag1−a−b−cLiaNabKc)(Nb1−x−y−zTaxSbyVz)O3+nM1M2O3; wherein 0≦a≦0.2, 0≦b≦0.95, 0≦c≦0.95, 0<(1−a−b −c)≦1, 0≦x≦0.5, 0≦y≦0.2, 0≦z≦0.2, 0≦(y+z)≦0.3, 0≦n≦0.2, and wherein M1 and M2 are combinations of metal which satisfy pretermined conditions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition, a piezoelectric/electrostrictive article and a piezoelectric/electrostrictive film type element, and more particularly, it relates to a piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition capable of manufacturing a piezoelectric/electrostrictive article or a piezoelectric/electrostrictive film type element which exhibits superior piezoelectric/electrostrictive characteristics and in which even environments are taken into consideration, and a piezoelectric/electrostrictive article and a piezoelectric/electrostrictive film type element using this composition.
2. Description of the Related Art
Heretofore, a piezoelectric/electrostrictive element has been known as an element which can control a micro displacement of an order of sub-microns. In particular, a piezoelectric/electrostrictive film type element is preferable for the control of the micro displacement, and it is to be noted that in the above element, a piezoelectric/electrostrictive portion constituted of a piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition, and an electrode portion to which a voltage is applied are layered on a substrate made of a ceramic. In addition, the above element has superior characteristics such as a high electromechanical conversion efficiency, a high-speed response, a high durability, and a reduced power consumption. These piezoelectric/electrostrictive elements are used in various applications such as a piezoelectric pressure sensor, a probe moving mechanism of a scanning tunnel microscope, a rectilinear guide mechanism in a super-precision working device, a servo valve for hydraulic control, a head of a VTR device, a pixel constituting a flat panel type image display device, and a head of an ink jet printer.
Moreover, various studies have been made as to the piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition constituting the piezoelectric/electrostrictive portion is variously investigated. For example, there is disclosed a Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3—PbZrO3—PbTiO3 ternary solid solution material (PZT-based composition), or a piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition in which a part of Pb in the composition is replaced with Sr, La or the like (see, e.g., Patent Documents 1, 2). As to the piezoelectric/electrostrictive portion itself as the most important portion which determines piezoelectric/electrostrictive characteristics of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive element, it is expected that the piezoelectric/electrostrictive element having superior piezoelectric/electrostrictive characteristics (e.g., piezoelectric d constant) can be obtained.
Additionally, the PZT-based composition unavoidably contains lead (Pb). Especially in recent years, there has been a tendency to regard as a problem an influence on global environments, such as elution of lead (Pb) by acid rain. Therefore, as a piezoelectric/electrostrictive material in which the influence on the environment is considered, there is disclosed a piezoelectric porcelain (or a piezoelectric porcelain composition) capable of providing a piezoelectric article or a piezoelectric element which exhibits satisfactory piezoelectric/electrostrictive characteristics without containing lead (Pb) (see, e.g., Patent Documents 3 to 6).
However, it is the state of the art that a large displacement, in the case of the piezoelectric article and the like obtained using the piezoelectric porcelain (or the piezoelectric porcelain composition) disclosed in Patent Documents 3 to 6, cannot be easily obtained, as compared with the piezoelectric article and the like obtained using the lead (Pb)-containing PZT-based composition. One cannot help saying that the PZT-based composition is superior in respect of superiority/inferiority of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive characteristics. Therefore, there has been a necessity of developing a piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition capable of obtaining a piezoelectric/electrostrictive article or a piezoelectric/electrostrictive element which exhibits superior piezoelectric/electrostrictive characteristics even in a case where lead (Pb) is not contained.
[Patent Document 1] JP-B-44-17103
[Patent Document 2] JP-B-45-8145
[Patent Document 3] JP-A-2003-221276
[Patent Document 4] JP-A-2003-277145
[Patent Document 5] JP-A-2002-68836
[Patent Document 6] JP-A-2004-244299

Piezoelectric/electrostrictive porcelain composition, piezoelectric/electrostrictive article, and piezoelectric/electrostrictive film type element


A computing system group processing architecture that facilitates asymmetric processing at different computing nodes within a group or cluster of nodes. Nodes within a group are assigned to subgroups. Each node in a subgroup performs similar processing, but nodes in different subgroups are able to perform different processing for the same group level protocol. All nodes monitor processing completion votes that are cast by all nodes, and node in subgroups that finish processing before other subgroups synchronize to the processing of those other subgroups by casting dummy votes during vote rounds of other subgroups that are still processing their subgroup protocol.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to operation of automated data processing equipment and more specifically to automated data processing equipment that utilizes multiple cooperating processors.
2. Description of Related Art
Automated data processing applications often execute on processing systems that have multiple processors. These multiple processors are frequently organized as groups and all of the members or nodes within the group operate in a cooperative and parallel manner. An example of a tightly integrated group of processors is a multiple processor computing cluster. One or more of these processors within a group can be referred to as a "node," where a node is defined as one or more processors that are executing a single operating system image. A node that is part of a group is referred to herein as a member of the group or a member node. The various members within a group are connected by a data communications system that supports data communications among all of the group members.
Communications among the members of a group is typically performed by a standard communications mechanism. These standard communications mechanisms are typically reliable and ordered, which means that the group communications system ensures that all members of a group receive all of the messages in the exact same order as all of the other members of the group.
Members of a computing system group, such as computing nodes within a cluster or other type of computing system group, are often assigned a series of computing tasks to perform. A unit of work that is distributed to all members of a computing system group is referred to as a "Protocol." Group protocols are generally communicated to each member using the reliable and ordered group communications system. This results in all members of the group working on the protocol together, and exiting the protocol together.
More than one group can be connected together to allow these multiple groups to handle more complex computing tasks. The processing performed by each of these groups can have a dependency on another group. For example, a group performing an application task might have a dependency on another group that is performing data storage tasks. The data storage task must produce data that is required by the application task before the application task is able to execute.
These group messaging techniques assume that all nodes require the same information as all other nodes and do not directly support dependencies among or between groups. This has resulted in the development of mechanisms outside of the group structure to handle subtask processing within and among groups. This has added complexity and additional effort in the development of inter-dependent processing protocols.
Therefore a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above, and particularly for a way to more efficiently support inter-dependent tasks that operate within or among one or more computing groups.


Dynamic random access memory (DRAM) sensing is accomplished by using capacitive mismatch between a bit line without a cell and a corresponding bit line with a cell to determine if a selected capacitor holds a one or a zero. Isolators on the bit lines are used to create the mismatch. In this manner, reference cells and bit-line twisting are eliminated, while maintaining rail pre-charge at VDD or ground. Utilizing short bit-lines, ‘Zero’ (for GND pre-charge) can be sensed by means of inherent capacitive mis-match. The zero will hold the bit-line at GND, the bit-line without a cell (or with fewer cells) will have less capacitance and rise faster than the bit-line with the cell due to capacitive mis-match. For sensing a ‘one’, the bit-line will have enough signal to overcome the capacitive mis-match.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
This invention relates to dynamic random access memories (DRAM). More particularly, it relates to capacitive mis-match sensing of bit-lines in a DRAM.
2. Background Art
In the operation of DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) devices, it is required to maintain data stored in a charge storage cell of an array for a maximum retention period without performing a refresh operation in order to offer high availability and low power consumption. When competing with Static RAM (SRAM) devices, it is also desirable to offer high performance with the same DRAM design.
In the current state of the art there are DRAM designs that offer either high retention times for the stored data or high performance.
A conventional DRAM sensing scheme is known as half-VDD sensing, in which both the true and complementary bit-lines are pre-charged to a value approximately halfway between a logic 1 voltage (VDD) and a logic 0 voltage (ground, or GND). When a cell is coupled to a pre-charged bit-line, the voltage will then slightly increase or decrease, depending on the value of the bit stored in the cell, thus creating a differential voltage with respect to the complementary bit-line and VDD/2.
However, for performance reasons, a ground sensing scheme pre-charges the bit-line pair to ground prior to a read operation. Because of the pre-charging to ground, reference word lines are needed to place a reference voltage (e.g., (Vread1-Vread0)/2) on either the bit-line or the complementary bit-line in order to be able to read a 0 bit.
Additionally, in order to reduce the effects of capacitance between adjacent bit-line pairs, a given bit-line pair is twisted at various locations along the length of the bit-line. Generally, even numbered bit-line pairs are twisted at different locations with respect to adjacent odd numbered bit-line pairs. For example, the even numbered bit-line pairs might be twisted just once at ½ of the total length, while the odd numbered pairs are twisted at ¼ of the total length, and again at ¾ of the total length.
Unfortunately, the use of bit-line twisting complicates the reference word-line schemes, in that reference cells for each region are required.
Both bit-line twisting and reference cells require area and adversely impact DRAM macro efficiency. Consequently, there is a need in the art for a a GND pre-charge scheme that does not require twisting or reference cells.
Referring to FIG. 1, under control of clock and control circuitry 88, a conventional mid-level sense amplifier system 58 pre-charge the bit-lines BTX and BCX to mid-level potentials VREFX, such as VDD/2, VDD/3, or VDD/X (where VDD is power supply voltage and X is a number greater than 1, and offer good retention times for the data stored in array 54. Rail sensing schemes pre-charge the true and complementary bit-lines BTX and BCX to VDD or ground (GND) and offer good performance. Data read from array 54 under control of clock and control 88 by sense amp 58 is typically stored to a local buffer 60 for transfer to digital circuits 62.
Both of the rail sensing (VDD or GND pre-charge) systems typically require reference cells that require area.
Referring to FIG. 2, an example of a CMOS negative field effect transistor (NFET) circuit 61 comprises a gate 63, a drain (connection to circuitry) 65, and a source (connection to ground) 67. In operation, as the voltage on gate 63 goes higher than the voltage on drain 65 by some threshold voltage, NFET 61 turns on, shorting source 67 to drain 65.
Referring to FIG. 3, an example of a CMOS positive field effect transistor (PFET) circuit 71 comprises a gate 73, a drain (connection to circuitry) 77, and source 75 to voltage VDD. In operation, as the voltage on gate 73 falls below the voltage on source 75 by some threshold voltage, PFET 71 turns on, shorting source 75 to drain 77.
Referring to FIG. 4, memory arrays 54 are composed of rows 40 and columns 42, and typically include one transistor 48 as a switch and one capacitor 50 as a storage element. A single cell 52 is accessed by decoding one row 40 and one column 42 in matrix 54. A row, or word-line, 44 connects storage capacitor 50 to columns, or bit-line 46, and storage capacitor 50 transfers charge to bit-line 46, thus altering bit-line voltage.
Referring to FIG. 5, a change in bit-line 46 voltage is amplified with a cross coupled sense amp 38, which compares bit-line voltage with a reference 47, such that (bit-line voltage)−(reference)=(signal). A positive signal amplifies to logical '1', and a negative signal amplifies to logical '0'. Differential voltage is amplified by a cross coupled pair of transistors N0, N1, connected as shown between bit-line (BL) 46 and reference voltage (BL-not) 47 and set node 56. When set node 56 voltage is less than [(V+ΔV)−Vtn1] (where Vtn1 is the threshold voltage of transistor N1) on BL 46, current will start to flow across transistor N1 from not-BL 47 to set node 56. This is referred to as "on-side conduction". When set node 56 voltage is less than [(V)−Vtn0] (where in Vtn0 is the threshold voltage of transistor N0), then current will start to flow from BL 46 to set node 56 across transistor N0. This is referred to as "off-side conduction". Off-side conduction is modulated by set speed and amount of signal, and complimentary X-couple pairs provide full CMOS levels on bit-line 46.
When one uses a GND sensing scheme during the pre-charge time, all the bit-lines of the DRAM array 54 are pre-charged to GND. Although a GND pre-charge sensing scheme can support a wider operating range and provides more overdrive during amplification and more pre-charge than conventional VDD/2 sensing, it has the problem that it consumes more power. When considering signal development, charge transfer does not begin until the word-line voltage is greater than the bit-line voltage by the amplitude of a threshold voltage (Vt). This is critical for a longer word-line that will have significant slew rate, e.g. a 1 Volt/nanosecond slew introduces an extra 750 picosecond delay for VDD/2 pre-charge (equal to about 1.5V). Although GND sense circuits require reference cells (1.5% 16 Megabyte area), they also offer static and dynamic bit-line balancing and provide an excellent interlock for sense amplifier timing generation. However, a GND pre-charge scheme suffers from the problem of degraded retention characteristics for a stored '1', where the drain to source voltage of the storage transistor is the worst case for leakage current through the storage transistor.
When one stores a data value of "1" on the storage node of a deep trench capacitor 50 of a memory cell 52, the drain-source voltage is at the level of the supply potential VDD. During the pre-charge mode, the leakage through the weak channel of the cell transistor 48 is strongly dependent on both the gate-source voltage 52 and the drain 46-source GND voltage. Therefore, in a GND sensing scheme, the retention characteristic for a data value of "1" is degraded.
Alternatively, if a VDD sensing scheme is employed for a DRAM, the data value of "0" data retention characteristic of a data value of "0" is degraded by a large degree of leakage. To compensate for such a large degree of leakage, more frequent refresh operations are needed, but frequent performance of a refresh operation has dual disadvantages. The first disadvantage is that data retention functions consume excessive power required to refresh the memory cell. The second disadvantage is that memory availability is degraded because it is inaccessible during the time consumed by performance of the increased number of refresh cycles.
Therefore, both of the above GND and VDD sensing schemes, which present the problem of high cell leakage during the pre-charge condition, are not suitable for low power applications, even if such schemes show better performance and design robustness regardless of power supply voltage.
Use of mid-level sensing such as VDD/2 or VDD/X (where X is a number greater than 1) provides better cell leakage characteristics. With a mid-level sensing scheme, the data retention characteristic of a data value of "1" is improved because the gate-source voltage of the cell transistor is negative. The degree of data retention of a data value of "0" is also better than that for a VDD sensing scheme because source-drain voltage of the cell transistor is dropped from VDD to (VDD−VDD/2 or VDD/X). Also, the degree of data retention of a data value of "0" is not an issue because another leakage source compensates for the cell channel leakage from the bit-line to the storage node of the storage capacitor. Although mid-level sensing offers better retention characteristics, performance thereof falls short of objectives.
Barth et al. (hereinafter, Barth) discovered and described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/906,471, filed 22 Feb. 2005, entitled "Bi-Mode Sense Amplifier With Dual Utilization of the Reference Cells and Dual Pre-charge Scheme for Improving Data Retention Time," that a solution to this problem is to retain the benefits of each of the above-described sensing schemes.
Accordingly, the Barth invention employs hybrid pre charge schemes wherein a bit-line level is switched from mid-level during a self-refresh, data retention mode of operation to a GND or a VDD sensing scheme during a mission mode of operation. Thus, Barth describes a dual pre-charge scheme including two operation modes which are the mission mode and the data retention mode. The mission mode is a real data access mode. The data retention mode is just to keep the data without sending or receiving data while running as a low power mode. The bit-line pre-charge level during the mission mode of operation is the same as required for the sensing scheme regardless of pre-charge or active mode. However, during the self-refresh, data retention mode, the bit-line pre-charge level is maintained around VDD/X (VREFX), making the gate-source voltage (VDD/X) and reducing the voltage drop across the cell transistor 48.
Sense amplifiers are described in J. E. Barth et al. "Embedded DRAM design and architecture for the IBM 0.11-m ASIC offering" IBM J. RES. & DEV. VOL. 46 NO. 6 pages 675-689 (November 2002).
Noise phenomenon include external noise (wire or Sx), and line to line coupling.
Referring to FIG. 6, external noise at sense amp 38 is reduced to common mode by folding BL 46 with respect to not-BL 47.
Referring to FIG. 7, line to line coupling is limited by bit-line twisting of bit-lines A 81, B 83, with respect to not-A 82 and not-B 84, respectively, as is represented at 80, 85, and 86, such that bit-line A 81 couples equally into bit-line B 83 and not-B line 84. Other forms of noise are introduced by local process variations which effectively degrades signals, Vt and )L mis-match, which is limited by longer channel length, overlay mis-alignment, which is limited by identical orientation, and capacitive mis-match, which is limited by careful physical design (symmetry).
Referring to FIGS. 8 and 9, in a conventional DRAM array of N cells, even word-lines couple N/2 cells to a true bit-line (BTx) 100, 122, and odd word-lines couple N/2 cells to a complementary bit-line (BCx) 102, 124. Isolation devices, controlled by ISO0 106 and ISO1 118, allow for sense amps 58 to be shared between upper 51 and lower 53 arrays.
Equalize phase (EQP0, EQP1) 104, 120 control the pre-charge of the bit lines BT0, BC0, BT1, and BC1.
Isolator gates (ISO0, ISO1) 106, 118 selectively isolate bit lines from amplifier 94, with unselected bit lines being isolated.
Equalize phase (EQP) 114 control the pre-charge of the sense amplifier 58.
Set N signal (SETN) 116 energize a set node signal, which is the common node for the cross coupled amplifier 94.
Column select, or bit switch, (BSN) 108 is a column multiplexor gating the data from sense amplifier 58 to the local buffers 60 via the data path FT 110 and FC 112.
Table 1 shows the state of the ISO and EQP signals of FIGS. 8 and 9 for various operations.
TABLE 1CONVENTIONAL ISO/EQP OPERATIONISO0EQP0ISO1EQP1Pre-ChargeX1X1Activate Upper100XActivate Lower0X10
Clock and control circuitry 88 provides timing and control signals to sense amplifier 58, including EQP0 104, ISO0 106, EQP 114, set node (SETN) 116, BSN 108, ISO1 118 AND EQP1 120. Data read from arrays 51, 53 is written to local buffer 60 for transfer to digital circuitry 62 (FIG. 1).
Sense amplifier 58 includes several functional components, including upper array isolate and pre-charge 90, column decode 91, pre-charge 92, set device 93, cross coupled sense amplifier 94, and lower array isolate and pre-charge 95.
Referring to FIG. 9, upper array isolate and pre-charge 90 includes NFET devices 130, 132, 134, and 136. True bit-line BT0 100 is connected to the drains of NFETs 130 and 134, complementary bit-line BC0 102 is connected to the drains of NFETs 132 and 136. The sources of NFETs 130 and 132 are connected to ground. EQP0 104 is connected to the gates NFETs 130 and 132, and ISO0 106 is connected to the gates of NFETs 134 and 136.
Column decode 91 includes PFETs 140 and 142, with their gates connected to BSN 108. The drain of PFET 140 is connected by line 301 to the source of NFET 134 and the drain of PFET 142 is connected by line 307 to the source of NFET 136. The sources of PFETs 140 and 142 are connected to local buffer 60 via nodes FT 110 and FC 112, respectively.
Pre-charge 92 includes NFETs 144, 146, and 148. The sources of NFETs 144 and 148 are connected to ground, and their drains to the source of NFET 134 on line 301 and NFET 136 on line 307, respectively. NFET 146 is coupled between the drains of NFETs 144 and 148 at x and y, respectively. EQP 114 is connected to the gates of NFETs 144, 146, 148.
Set device 93 includes PFET 150 and NFET 152. The source of PFET 150 is connected to logic voltage level VDD, source of NFET 152 is connected to ground, and their drains are coupled together by line 305. SETN 116 gates PFET 150 and EQP gates NFET 152.
Cross coupled sense amp 94 includes PFET devices 160 and 162 and NFET devices 164 and 166. The sources of PFETs 160 are connected to line 305 at the coupled drains of FET devices 150, 152. The sources of NFETs 164 and 166 are connected to ground. The drains of FET devices 160 and 164 are connected via line 301 to the sources of NFETs 134 and 170 and to the gates of FET devices 162 and 166. The drains of FET devices 162 and 166 are connected by line 307 to the sources of NFETs 136 and 172 and to the gates of FET devices 160 and 164.
Lower array isolate and pre-charge 95 includes NFET devices 170, 172, 174, and 176. The source of NFET 170 is connected by line 301 to the source of NFET 134, and to the drains of FET devices 140, 144, 160, 164, to the gates of FET devices 162, 166, and to node X of NFET 146. The drain of NFET 170 is connected to the drain of NFET 174 and true bit-line BT1 122 to the lower array 53. The source of NFET 172 is connected by line 307 to the source of NFET 136 and to the drains of FET devices 142, 148, 162, 166, to the gates of FETs 160, 164, and to node Y of NFET 146. The drain of NFET 172 is connected to the drain of NFET 176 and complemen bit-line BC1 124 to the lower array 53. The sources of NFETs 174 and 176 are connected to ground. IS01 118 gates NFETs 170 and 172, and EQP1 120 gates NFETs 174 and 176.
Referring to FIG. 10, in operation sense amplifier system 58 in step 180 starts in the pre-charge state where EQP 104, EQP0 114 and EQP1 120 are held high by control circuitry 88. SETN 116 is held inactive in the high state, and isolation gates ISO0 106 and IS01 118 held low. Column select BSN 108 is held inactive in the high state.
In step 182, the first part of activation is to take amplifier 58 out of pre-charge by lowering EQP 114 and one of EQP0 OR EQP1, controlled by a high order address. The falling edge of EQP 114 turns off FETs 144, 146, 148, 152.
In step 184, the second part of activation is to address one of arrays 51 or 53 and taken it out of pre-charge. This is done, for example for the top array 51, by taking EQP0 low, turning off FETs 130 and 132, and simultaneously activating ISO0 106 to turn on FETs 134 and 136.
Continuing with respect to top array 51 (as is shown by Table 1, the operation for lower array 53 is analogous), in step 186 a word and a reference word are activated in upper array, developing differential signals on nodes BT0 100 and BC0 102. That differential signal is passed through NFETs 134 and 136 to bit-line nodes ST 301 and SC 307.
In step 188, the differential signal at nodes ST and SC is then amplified by activation of SETN 116 going low, turning on PFET 150. That will energize the cross coupled amplifier formed by FETs 160 162 164, 166. These will amplify the differential signal to a logic level VDD and in step 190 the result is transferred to digital circuits FT and FC via PFETs 140 and 142 upon activation of column select BSN 108.
In step 192, when the activation cycle of steps 186-190 is complete, the word line 52 in the selected array (in this case, array 51) is turned off, thus trapping the charge in the DRAM cell 52 (FIG. 4) of array 51.
In step 194, the amplifier system 58 is pre-charged by charging bit-lines BT0 100 and BC0 102 to ground via FETs 130, 132 upon the activation of EQP0 104. EQP 114 is also activated, thus returning the system to the pre-charge state of step 180.

System and method for capacitive mis-match bit-line sensing


A pre-loaded delivery device that facilitates accurate placement of a stent graft assembly in the aorta is disclosed. A stent graft is carried on the delivery device and held in a pre-deployment configuration by a sheath. A split in the sheath facilitates the pre-cannulation of one or more branch arteries extending from the aorta before the stent graft is fully released in the aorta. The stent graft comprises a tubular body having at least one scalloped fenestration formed in one end of the graft material and at least one fenestration formed in the graft material of the main tubular body. A helical internal side branch extends from the fenestration within the lumen of the main tubular body. The helical side branch is configured to curve at least partially around the scalloped fenestration. The assembly further comprises a connection stent graft extending from the fenestration into a branch vessel.

This invention relates generally to medical devices, and more particularly, to an endovascular stent graft assembly and a delivery device for placement and deployment of the stent graft assembly in a vessel lumen.
Stent grafts may be inserted into an anatomical vessel or duct for various purposes. For example, stent grafts are used for treatment of vasculature in the human or animal body to bypass or repair a defect in the vasculature or to maintain or restore patency in a formerly blocked or constricted passageway. For example, a stent graft may extend proximally and/or distally away from a vascular defect, including a diseased portion such as an aneurysm or dissection, and engage a healthy portion of a vessel wall.
In recent years stent grafts have been developed for treatment of aortic aneurysms and dissections. These devices are delivered to the treatment site through the vascular system of the patient rather than by open surgery. The stent grafts include a tubular or cylindrical framework or scaffolding of one or more stents to which is secured a generally tubular shaped biocompatible graft material such as woven Dacron®, polyester, polytetrafluoroethylene, or the like. The devices are initially reduced to a small diameter and placed into the leading or proximal end of a catheter delivery system. The delivery system is inserted into the vascular system of the patient and maneuvered to the treatment site over a previously positioned guide wire. Through manipulation of a control system that extends along the length of the delivery device to a distal end of the system outside the patient, the stent graft may be deployed at a desired location after withdrawing a surrounding sheath. The stent graft becomes anchored into position to healthy wall tissue in the aorta. The delivery device may then be removed, leaving the stent graft in place and thereby bypassing an aneurysm or dissection in the aorta.
For treatment of thoracic aortic aneurysms and/or dissections in particular, it is necessary to introduce the stent graft high up in the aorta and in a region of the aorta which is curved and where there can be strong blood flow. Furthermore, in the thoracic aorta there are major branch vessels extending therefrom, such as the brachiocephalic, carotid and/or subclavian arteries. During and/or after treatment of an aneurysm or dissection in the region of the thoracic arch, it is desirable for blood supply to continue to flow to these branch arteries. For this purpose, fenestrations or side branches are provided in a stent graft that is placed in that region, through which side arms or branch extensions may be deployed and extend into the brachiocephalic, carotid and/or subclavian arteries, for example.
It has also been recognized that endovascular treatment of diseased vessels can be simplified by use of pre-loaded components such as guide wires, catheters, and/or sheaths. These pre-loaded components can be pre-loaded into a delivery system (e.g., a delivery device or introducer) and/or a prosthetic device (e.g., a stent graft) prior to introduction into a patient to aid in delivery of additional prosthetic devices (e.g., branch extension or side arm prostheses) extending from the main prosthetic device. These pre-loaded components may help to simplify and improve branch vessel cannulation, thereby facilitating accurate placement of a branched stent graft assembly in the aortic arch and descending thoracic aorta and one or more branch arteries extending therefrom.

Endovascular stent graft assembly and delivery device


The invention relates to a gate or door drive housing with a basic carrier body for preference in the shape of a bowl or shell, to which various different drive components can be secured, and a cover hood which can be connected to the basic carrier body. According to the invention, a housing extension for accommodating additional and/or larger drive components can be connected in a releasable manner in an exact fit to the basic carrying body.

The present invention relates to a gate or door drive housing with a basic carrier body for preference in the shape of a bowl or shell, to which various different drive components can be secured, and a cover hood which can be connected to the basic carrier body.
Gate or door drives, such as garage door drives, are usually arranged in a housing which, in the case of a garage door drive, is secured to the roof inside the garage. Usually arranged inside the housing are the drive motor and a gear drive system, which drives a carriage or slide element by means of a chain or belt, which runs on a rail connected to the housing. The garage door is secured to the slide element such that it can be opened or closed.
With such gate or door drives it would be desirable for the drive housing to be able to be used for different drives or for door drives equipped with different or additional drive components. Hitherto, however, different housings have usually been used for differently configured gate or door drives, in order not to sacrifice the advantage that in each case a small design of housing can be used. This practice, however, incurs high costs, inasmuch as a separate housing must be manufactured and kept available for each drive type.

Marantec Antriebs-und Steuerungstechnik GmbH & Co. KG


The present invention relates to an optical fiber cable with improved waterproof performance comprising: at least one tensile members; optical fiber units including at least one optical fiber cores; at least one buffer tube surrounding the optical fiber units; sheath covering the buffer tube and the tensile member to form a outer jacket of the cable, wherein a waterproof yarn is inserted longitudinally in the buffer tube with the optical fiber unit, and the thickness of the waterproof yarn is from 300 to 3,000 deniers, and tensile strength of the waterproof yarn is from 3 N to 150 N, and elongation rate of the waterproof yarn is from 5% to 45%, and water absorption rate of the waterproof yarn is at least 20 g/g.

The demand for optical fiber cable is increasing according to the implementation of diversified communication services, such as bidirectional communication and video call, and increase of LAN service.
Due to their high communication performance, the demand for optical fiber cable is increasing sharply to meet the increase of such communication services.
The typical optical fiber cable comprises one or more optical fiber units having one or more optical fiber cores and buffer tube or tubes covering the cores, and the optical fiber units are covered with outer sheath.
Since optical fiber cables are usually installed in wet environment, for example, underground pit or the sea-bed, they must be protected from the moisture or water to maintain the communication functionality.
The typical waterproof methods for optical fiber cable can be classified into three categories.
The three methods are inserting jelly compound in the optical fiber cable, inserting waterproof powder in the tube, and applying water-blocking tape containing waterproofing material.
The first method, inserting jelly compound in the cable, has the inconvenience of removing the jelly using special detergent or alcohol when the cable is cut off for branch joint, and contamination of environment may be occurred by the jelly material.
The method of applying water-blocking tape is difficult to be implemented, because the process of inserting water-blocking tape into the tube is not simple.
And, the method using waterproof powder has a matter that waterproof power is liable to be weakened over a long period, because the waterproof powder in the cable may move in the cable.
To solve these problems, the method of applying waterproof yarn containing waterproof material in cable is suggested.
In this method, a certain quantity of the waterproof yarn is applied in optical fiber cable to absorb the moisture penetrated into the tube.
In the waterproof yarn, waterproof powder is applied which absorbs the moisture in cable.
The waterproof yarn can be wound on the buffer tube or sheath, or laid longitudinally into the buffer tube.
The waterproof yarn may be broken by tensile stress in the process of application in the buffer tube or by cable bending, for example, during cable laying or winding on a cable drum, and that can lead to deterioration of waterproof performance.
In addition, the thermal expansion or shrinkage of the waterproof yarn may cause interference of the waterproof yarn with the optical fiber unit and that can cause optical loss.

Optical fiber cable with improved waterproof performance

Abstract: By the optical fiber cable, improve waterproof performance can be improved, and by minimizing the tensile strength of the waterproof yarn, possibility of break can be reduced.


The present invention relates to a process for preparing a polymer dispersion comprising polymerising one or more water soluble anionic monomers (m1) and one or more non-ionic vinyl monomers (m2) present in a reaction mixture further comprising a polymeric stabiliser (B) and a polymeric co-stabiliser (C). It further relates to a polymer dispersion, the use of the polymer dispersion and a process for producing paper.

An important use of aqueous dispersions of anionic charged polymers is retention and dewatering aid in paper manufacturing industry. Further uses of such polymer dispersions are as aids in various processes where they act as, for example, flocculants when treating wastewater or aids in other solid-liquid separation processes in, for example, the metal, ceramic, printing, biotechnological, and pharmaceutical industries. They can also be used as thickeners in, e.g., chemical, biotechnological, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries and soil improving agents. Generally, these polymer dispersions comprise a dispersed polymer and a dispersant in which the dispersant usually is a polymeric dispersant.
Anionic polymer dispersions are generally prepared by polymerising a reaction mixture of water-soluble anionic and non-ionic monomers in the presence of a salt. Finished polymer will precipitate from the aqueous salt solution and, by using a suitable dispersant, form a stable polymer dispersion. WO 01/18063, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,837,776 and 5,605,970 disclose processes for preparing a dispersion of a water-soluble polymer comprising polymerising water-soluble monomers in an aqueous reaction mixture containing a salt.
Factors to consider are, for example, the process viscosity, active content, stability, good retention properties, and easiness of preparing the polymer dispersion sometimes including preparing the stabiliser. Also, criteria such as environmental and safety aspects are of importance.
There are a number of criteria that the polymer dispersion should fulfil to give good results in the final application and be of commercial interest. Such criteria are for example low-cost production, rapid performance, effective flocculation or dewatering, and long shelf life.
Prior art anionic polymer dispersions described contain significant amounts of salt which makes up a great part of the weight of the polymer dispersion. There is presently a desire to reduce, or completely avoid, the use of salt in polymer dispersions due to environmental and economical reasons.
The viscosity of the reaction mixture when producing the polymer dispersion, "the process viscosity", should be kept low and viscosity peaks should be avoided, or at least reduced as much as possible, during the production of the polymer dispersion.
The shelf life of the dispersion, i.e., the stability of the polymer dispersion over time, is an important property. An efficient dispersant is needed for keeping the polymer particles stable in dispersion without settling as sediment.
A further factor to consider is the active content, i.e., the amount of dispersed polymer in the polymer dispersion. A high active content minimises transportation costs and gives easier handling at the end-application. By using an efficient dispersant, dispersions with a high active content can be obtained at the same time the viscosity can be kept low. However, an increase of the active content above a certain level may not always give improved performance in retention and dewatering in a papermaking process.
During preparation of a polymer dispersion, deposits of polymer may form and stick to the reaction vessel and stirrer. This leads to time consuming cleaning procedures of the reaction equipment.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a, preferably salt-free, water soluble anionic polymer dispersion having high stability and high active content. The polymer dispersion should also give good retention and dewatering results when used in papermaking processes, act as a good flocculant in other processes such as waste water treatment, act as a good thickener in various applications such as cosmetic formulations and also be possible to use in soil improvement processes. It is further an object of the present invention to provide a process for preparing a, preferably salt-free, water soluble anionic polymer dispersion in which the process viscosity is kept low and smooth during preparation without any large viscosity peaks, and which gives no deposits. Finally, it is an object of the present invention to provide a process for producing paper in which the polymer dispersion is used.

Process for preparing a polymer dispersion and a polymer dispersion

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Forderung der Angewandten Forschung E.V.


An apparatus and method for use in generating a print job for an offset printing apparatus. The method comprising determining a print job to be printed on the offset printer comprises an odd number of separations, and in response to determining that the print job comprises an odd number of separations, alternating a print order of at least two separations between odd and even pages of the print job.

Modern printing apparatus, for example offset printers, allow reproduction of color images on print media that can be used for brochures, books, leaflets, etc. Significant effort has been spent in improving the accuracy of the color images reproduced on the print media, and it remains an active area of research.
When printing a number of consecutive pages or documents it is generally preferable if the color reproduction on each page is similar, i.e. that color shifts between pages are avoided or limited.


A method for fabricating capacitor capable of simplifying formation processes of ruthenium (Ru) layer for storage node electrode formation of capacitor comprises the steps of: forming a first insulating layer having a first opening exposing a predetermined region on a substrate; forming a conductive plug filled within the first opening; forming a second insulating layer having a second opening exposing the conductive plug on the first insulating layer; forming a conductive layer covering the second opening by sequentially performing PECVD and LPCVD processes on the second insulating layer; exposing the second insulating layer by performing etch back on the conductive layer; forming a storage node electrode of the capacitor by removing the second insulating layer; and forming a dielectric layer to cover the storage node electrode; and forming a plate electrode. In an alternative embodiment, a thermal treatment under an N2 gas supply is performed after the step of forming the conductive layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method for fabricating capacitor, and more particularly, to a method for fabricating capacitor capable of increasing capacitance and minimizing leakage current.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is generally known, there is a rapid increase in demand of memory devices resulting from the development of semiconductor fabrication methods. The capacitor is employed as a data storage means and the capacitance depends on electrode area, distance between electrodes and the dielectric constant of the dielectric layer interposed between electrodes. However, as semiconductor devices become highly integrated, the capacitor formation region and the electrode area of capacitor are decreased, thereby reducing capacitance.
Therefore, methods have been proposed to deposit a ruthenium (Ru) layer as a storage node electrode in Metal-Insulator-Metal (MIM) capacitors and a high dielectric TaON layer is deposited thereon and then, a metal layer is deposited on the dielectric layer, thereby maximizing the capacitance of the TaON capacitor.
FIGS. 1A to 1I are cross sectional views showing the steps of a conventional method for fabricating a capacitor.
Referring to FIG. 1A, a first insulating layer 104 is deposited with oxidized silicon on a semiconductor substrate 100, including over a conductive region 102, such as a source/drain, and then, the first insulating layer 104 is etched to expose the conductive region 102 in accordance with a photolithography process, thereby forming a first opening 106 as a storage node contact.
Referring to FIG. 1B, a polycrystalline silicon layer is deposited to cover the first opening 106 on the substrate 100, including over the first insulating layer 104 and then, an etch process is performed on the polycrystalline silicon layer to form a conductive plug 108. The conductive plug 108 is formed in the first opening 106 to a depth sunken from the top surface of the first insulating layer 104, as shown.
Referring to FIG. 1C, a Ti layer and a TiN layer are sequentially formed on the substrate 100 having the conductive plug 108 in accordance with known sputtering methods and then, etch back processes are performed on the Ti layer and the TiN layer to form a barrier metal layer a1, comprising layers 110,112, respectively.
Referring to FIG. 1D, a second insulating layer 121 is deposited on the resulting structure and then, the second insulating layer 121 is etched in accordance with a photolithography process, thereby forming a second opening 122 to which a part corresponding to the barrier metal layer a1 is exposed.
Referring to FIG. 1E, a first ruthenium (Ru) layer 140 for storage node electrode formation is deposited to cover the second opening 122 on the second insulating layer 121 in accordance with a Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) process. The deposition of the first ruthenium (Ru) layer 140 is performed in a conventional CVD chamber (not shown).
Referring to FIG. 1F, a second ruthenium (Ru) layer is deposited on the first ruthenium (Ru) layer 140 in accordance with a Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) process, thereby obtaining a ruthenium (Ru) layer 142 having a desirable thickness. The deposition of the second ruthenium (Ru) layer is performed in a conventional CVD chamber (not shown) by transferring the substrate having deposited thereon the first ruthenium (Ru) layer 140 from the PVD chamber.
When the ruthenium (Ru) layer is deposited only in accordance with the CVD method, although the deposition speed is decreased on the surface of the first insulating layer, the quality of ruthenium Ru layer deteriorates. Therefore, the ruthenium (Ru) layer 142 for storage node electrode formation of a capacitor is formed by depositing the first ruthenium (Ru) layer 140 in accordance with the PVD process and then, depositing the second ruthenium (Ru) layer on the first ruthenium (Ru) layer 140 in accordance with the CVD process.
Referring to FIG. 1G, etch back processes are performed on the ruthenium (Ru) layer to expose the second insulating pattern 121, thereby forming a storage electrode 143 of the capacitor. Then, the second insulating pattern 121 is removed.
Referring to FIG. 1H, a dielectric layer 126 is formed to cover the storage electrode 143 of the capacitor and then, a plate electrode 130 of the capacitor is formed over the dielectric layer 126, as shown in FIG. 1I. Here, the dielectric layer 126 preferably is a TiON layer having a high dielectric constant and the plate electrode 130 is a ruthenium (Ru) layer formed by both PECVD and LPCVD processes, as is employed in the formation of the storage node electrode 143. Alternatively, instead of the ruthenium (Ru) layer, a TiN layer may be employed as the plate electrode 130.
However, according to the conventional method, both PVD and CVD processes are performed, respectively, during the steps for deposition of the ruthenium (Ru) layer for storage node electrode formation. Therefore, there is a problem in that extra process steps must be performed, such as transfer from the PVD chamber to the CVD chamber.
Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems and the object of the present invention is to provide a method for fabricating a method for capacitor fabrication capable of simplifying formation processes of the ruthenium (Ru) layer for the storage node electrode formation of the capacitor.
In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention comprises the steps of: forming a first insulating layer having a first opening exposing a predetermined region; forming a conductive plug filled within the first opening; forming a second insulating layer having a second opening exposing the conductive plug on the first insulating layer; forming a conductive layer covering the second opening on the second insulating layer by sequentially performing PECVD and LPCVD processes; exposing the second insulating layer by performing etch back on the conductive layer; forming a storage node electrode of the capacitor by removing the second insulating layer; forming a dielectric layer covering the storage node electrode and forming a plate electrode.
Another alternative embodiment of the present invention comprises the steps of: forming a first insulating layer having a first opening exposing a predetermined region on a substrate; forming a conductive plug filled within the first opening; forming a second insulating layer having a second opening exposing the conductive plug on the first insulating layer; forming a conductive layer covering the second opening by sequentially performing PECVD and LPCVD processes on the second insulating layer; performing a first thermal treatment on the conductive layer under an atmosphere of N2 gas; exposing the second insulating layer by performing etch back processes on the resulting conductive layer; forming a storage node electrode of the capacitor by removing the second insulating layer; forming a dielectric layer covering the storage node electrode; and forming a plate electrode covering the dielectric layer.