An apparatus and a method for supporting gateway node reselection in a communication system during a process in which a UE hands over from a source base station to a destination base station are provided. The apparatus includes the source base station for providing the destination base station with information for access control determination, the destination base station for making an access control determination according to the information provided by the source base station, the UE or a network for initiating a gateway reselection process according to the result of the access control determination. With the method, the reselection of Packet Data Network Gateway (PDN GW) or GGSN is implemented in a simple and reliable way by optimizing the existing signaling processes, in the case of user plane node reselection because UE changes position or handover to another base station.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of mobile communication technologies. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for supporting gateway node reselection in a communication system.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system in the prior art.
Referring to FIG. 1, a System Architecture Evolution (SAE) includes a User Equipment (UE) 101 which is a terminal device for receiving data. An Evolved-Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) 102 is a radio access network, which includes a macro base station (e.g., an evolved Node B (eNB)) providing the UE with an access radio network interface. A Mobile Management Entity (MME) 103 is responsible for managing mobile context, session context, and security information for the UE. A Service Gateway (SGW) 104 mainly provides the function of the user plane. In practical networks, the MME 103 and the SGW 104 may be located at the same physical entity. A Packet Data Network Gateway (PDN GW) 105 is responsible for the functions of charging, legal listening, and so on, which may be located at the same physical entity as the SGW 104. A Policy and Charging Rule Function (PCRF) 106 provides Quality of Service (QoS) policies and charging rules. A General Packet Radio Service Supporting Node (SGSN) 108 is a network node device providing routes for data transmission in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS). A Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 109 is a home subsystem of the UE, responsible for saving subscriber information including the current location of the UE, the address of the serving node, subscriber security information, packet data context of the UE, and so on.
With the increase in UE service data rate, operators provide a new technology of Selected IP Traffic Offload (SIPTO), in which in the process of the movement of a UE that has accessed a certain service, the network side can handover the UE automatically to a near radio network access point, which reduces the costs invested for the transmission network and provides a better experience for the high data rate. The current 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard has proposed that the network needs to support the abilities of SIPTO and Local IP Access (LIPA). In SIPTO, the UE accesses the Internet and other external networks through a Home evolved Node B (HeNB), a Home Node B (HNB), or an eNB. When the UE accesses the network, the network side selects a suitable user plane node for the UE. In LIPA, on the other hand, the UE accesses a home network and an intranet through an HeNB or an HNB. In the implementation of LIPA, the network side also needs to select a suitable user plane node for the UE. The user plane node may be a user plane network device or a user plane gateway. The suitable user plane node usually refers to a user plane network device or a user plane gateway near to the UE. For an SAE system, the user plane node is an SGW or a PDN GW. And for a UMTS system, the user plane node is an SGSN or a Gateway General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) Supporting Node (GGSN).
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario in which a network reselects a user plane node for a UE in order to allocate its resources in an optimized way in the prior art.
Referring to FIG. 2, when the UE changes position, when a UE handover to another base station, or when the operator updates the policies after the network has selected a suitable PDN GW or GGSN, it becomes possible that the network reselects another PDN GW or GGSN for the UE in order to allocate its resources in an optimized way. The current standards have not specified how to implement the process of reselection such that when the above situation occurs, the UE can not continue enjoying the data service normally, which impairs the user's experience.

Apparatus and method for supporting gateway node reselection in communication system


Embodiments relate to a system, program product, and method for training a contrastive neural network (CNN) in an active learning environment. A neural network is pre-trained with labeled data of a historical (first) dataset. The CNN is trained for a new (second) dataset by applying the new dataset and contrasting the new dataset against the historical dataset to extract novel patterns. Weights of a knowledge operator from the pre-trained neural network are borrowed. Features novel to the new dataset are learned, including updating weights of the knowledge operator. The borrowed knowledge operator weights are combined with the updated knowledge operator weights. The CNN is leveraged to predict one or more labels for the new dataset as output data.

The present embodiments relate to training a contrastive neural network in an active learning environment. More specifically, the embodiments relate to identifying novel patterns in a new dataset for a prediction accuracy assessment to further train the contrastive neural network.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) relates to the field of computer science directed at computers and computer behavior as related to humans. AI refers to the intelligence when machines, based on information, are able to make decisions, which maximizes the chance of success in a given topic. More specifically, AI is able to learn from a data set to solve problems and provide relevant recommendations. For example, in the field of artificially intelligent computer systems, natural language systems (such as the IBM Watson® artificially intelligent computer system or other natural language interrogatory answering systems) process natural language based on system acquired knowledge. To process natural language, the system may be trained with data derived from a database or corpus of knowledge, but the resulting outcome can be incorrect or inaccurate for a variety of reasons.
Machine learning (ML), which is a subset of Artificial intelligence (AI), utilizes algorithms to learn from data and create foresights based on this data. ML is the application of AI through creation of models, including neural networks that can demonstrate learning behavior by performing tasks that are not explicitly programmed. Supervised learning is a type of ML in which machines classify objects based on related data on which the machine has been trained. More specifically, supervised learning is trained with input and output data, and patterns present in the training data.
At the core of AI and associated reasoning lies the concept of similarity. The process of understanding and object recognition requires reasoning from a relational perspective that can be challenging. Supervised learning dictates an output for a given determinate input, but may be subject to failure when there is a novel pattern in new data. The model does not adapt to a new dataset. This training paradigm relies on the fact that training and test data are drawn from the same distribution, which may not always be true in a real world setting, e.g. synthesized training data, single source, etc. If there are novel patterns specialized in the new data but are absent from the training data, the model may not perform well. Accordingly, there is need to leverage the knowledge from the training model so that it can be adapted to new patterns in the new data.

Contrastive neural network training in an active learning environment

International Business Machines Corporation


Methods and systems for improving coding decoding efficiency of video by providing a syntax modeler, a buffer, and a decoder. The syntax modeler may associate a first sequence of symbols with syntax elements. The buffer may store tables, each represented by a symbol in the first sequence, and each used to associate a respective symbol in a second sequence of symbols with encoded data. The decoder decodes the data into a bitstream using the second sequence retrieved from a table.

Modern video transmission and display systems, and particularly those systems that present high-definition content, require significant data compression in order to produce a visually acceptable motion picture, because transmission media simply cannot transmit an uncompressed sequence of video frames at a fast enough rate to appear as continuous motion to the human eye. At the same time, and again to produce a visually-acceptable picture, the compression technique used should not unduly sacrifice image quality by discarding too much frame data.
To achieve these dual, and conflicting goals, video compression and encoding standards such as MPEG and H.264 take advantage of temporal redundancy in the sequence of video frames. In other words, in the vast majority of video sequences of interest to a person, adjacent frames typically show the same objects or features, which may move slightly from one frame to another due either to the movement of the object in the scene being shot (producing local motion in a frame), the movement of the camera shooting the scene (producing global motion), or both.
Video compression standards employ motion estimation to define regions in an image, which may correspond to objects, and associate with those regions a motion vector that describes the inter-frame movement of the content in each region so as to avoid redundant encoding and transmission of objects or patterns that appear in more than one sequential frame, despite appearing at slightly different locations in sequential frames. Motion vectors may be represented by a translational model or many other models that approximate the motion of a real video camera, such as rotation, translation, or zoom. Accordingly, motion estimation is the process of calculating and encoding motion vectors as a substitute for duplicating the encoding of similar information in sequential frames.
Though motion vectors may relate to the whole image, more often they relate to small regions if the image, such as rectangular blocks, arbitrary shapes, boundaries of objects, or even individual pixels. There are various methods for finding motion vectors. One of the popular methods is block-matching, in which the current image is subdivided into rectangular blocks of pixels, such as 4.times.4 pixels, 4.times.8 pixels, 8.times.8 pixels, 16.times.16 pixels, etc., and a motion vector (or displacement vector) is estimated for each block by searching for the closest-matching block in the reference image, within a pre-defined search region of a subsequent frame.
As implied by this discussion, the use of motion vectors improves coding efficiency for any particular block of an image by permitting a block to be encoded only in terms of a motion vector pointing to a corresponding block in another frame, and a "residual" or differential between the target and reference blocks. The goal is therefore to determine a motion vector for a block in a way that minimizes the differential that needs to be encoded. Accordingly, numerous variations of block matching exist, differing in the definition of the size and placement of blocks, the method of searching, the criterion for matching blocks in the current and reference frame, and several other aspects.
With conventional motion compensation, an encoder performs motion estimation and signals the motion vectors as part of the bitstream. The bits spent on sending motion vectors can account for a significant portion of the overall bit budget, especially for low bit rate applications. Recently, motion vector competition (MVC) techniques have been proposed to reduce the amount of motion information in the compressed bitstream. MVC improves the coding of motion vector data by differentially encoding the motion vectors themselves in terms of a motion vector predictor and a motion vector differential, where the motion vector predictor is usually selected by the encoder from a number of candidates so as to optimize rate distortion, where the candidate motion vectors consist of previously encoded motion vectors for either adjacent blocks in the same frame and/or a subset of motion vectors in a preceding frame. In other words, just as the use of a motion vector and a differential improves coding efficiency of block data by eliminating redundancies between information in sequential frames, the coding of motion vectors can exploit redundancies in situations where motion vectors between sequential frames do not change drastically, by identifying an optimal predictor, from a limited set of previously-encoded candidates, so as to minimize the bit length of the differential. The predictor set usually contains both spatial motion vector neighbors and temporally co-located motion vectors, and possibly spatiotemporal vectors.
Even using motion vector competition techniques when encoding video, however, the necessary bit rate to preserve a desired quality is often too high for the transmission medium used to transmit the video to a decoder. What is needed, therefore, is an improved encoding system for video transmission.
The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


Disclosed herein is a flat panel display (FPD) manufacturing apparatus for performing a desired process for a substrate positioned in a chamber after establishing a vacuum atmosphere in the chamber. The vacuum chamber is divided into a chamber body and an upper cover to ensure easy opening/closing operations of the upper cover.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing a flat-panel display (FPD), which can perform a desired process for an FPD substrate after establishing a vacuum atmosphere therein, and, more particularly, to an FPD manufacturing apparatus in which a vacuum chamber is divided into a chamber body and an upper cover, whereby the upper cover can be easily opened and closed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Flat-panel display (FPD) manufacturing apparatuses are designed to feed an FPD substrate thereinto and to perform a desired process, such as an etching process, for the FPD substrate by use of plasma, etc. Examples of FPDs include LCDs, PDPs, OLEDs, etc. Among such FPD manufacturing apparatuses, a general vacuum processing apparatus comprises three vacuum chambers including a load lock chamber, a transfer chamber, and a processing chamber.
The load lock chamber is used to receive a substrate, which will be processed in the FPD manufacturing apparatus, from an external station for loading the substrate or to discharge a substrate completely processed in the FPD manufacturing apparatus for unloading the substrate. The transfer chamber is provided with a robot for feeding a substrate between respective chambers, so that it conveys the substrate, which will be processed, from the load lock chamber to the processing chamber or conveys the substrate, which was completely processed, from the processing chamber to the load lock chamber. The processing chamber is used to perform a film deposition process or etching process for a substrate by use of plasma or thermal energy under a vacuum atmosphere.
Due to the fact that a variety of gases or plasma is used in the processing chamber, equipment provided in the processing chamber may be damaged or polluted if a great number of processes are repeated and, thus, it is necessary to periodically exchange or repair the equipment. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 1, the processing chamber, designated by reference numeral 1, generally consists of a chamber body 10 and an upper cover 20, so that the upper cover 20 of the processing chamber 1 can be opened and closed for the maintenance and repair of the chamber interior. To open and close the upper cover 20, conventionally, a crane has been mounted to the top of a clean room in which the processing chamber 1 is provided, so that the upper cover 20 is opened and closed by use of the crane. Alternatively, the processing chamber is equipped with opening/closing means to open and close the upper cover.
Referring to FIG. 2, an example of the conventional opening/closing means for the upper cover 20 is illustrated. As shown in FIG. 2, the upper cover opening/closing means 50 is provided at the outside of the processing chamber 1 to open and close the upper cover 20. The opening/closing means 50 includes a vertical drive unit to vertically lift the upper cover 20, a horizontal drive unit to horizontally move the upper cover 20, and a rotating unit to rotate the upper cover 20. Additionally, the opening/closing means 50 is provided with a horizontal movement guide 60 to provide a movement path of the horizontal drive unit.
Hereinafter, the opening/closing procedure of the upper cover 20 carried out by the opening/closing means 50 having the above configuration will be explained. First, the upper cover 20 is lifted vertically by a predetermined height by use of the vertical drive unit included in the opening/closing means 50. In succession, the upper cover 20 is horizontally moved along the horizontal movement guide 60 in a state of being lifted. After completing such a horizontal movement, the upper cover 20 is rotated by 180° by use of the rotating unit. As a result, both the chamber body 10 and the upper cover 20 of the processing chamber 1 are opened to enable exchange or repair of respective equipment provided in the processing chamber 1.
However, the size of a substrate to be processed by the FDP manufacturing apparatus has been recently increased, and accordingly, the size of vacuum chambers included in the FDP manufacturing apparatus is rapidly increasing. For example, in the case of a current available vacuum chamber, an upper cover thereof not only has a large size of 3 by 4 meters, but also has a heavy weight of more than 3 to 4 tons. Therefore, in order to vertically lift the large-size heavy upper cover of the vacuum chamber, it is necessary to provide the vertical drive unit with an air cylinder having an extremely high capacity. Furthermore, the bulky upper cover exhibits an increase in the lack of stability when it is vertically lifted, adversely affecting maintenance and repair in the interior of the vacuum chamber.

Apparatus for manufacturing flat-panel display

Advanced Display Process Engineering Co., Ltd.


The center locator utilizes a probe mounted for limited universal movement by a ball and socket arrangement. The center locator is affixed to the machine tool spindle so that the center of the ball coincides with the axis of the machine tool spindle. One end of the probe, provided, for example, with a sharp point, is placed in registry with a punch mark or pilot hole. The other end of the probe cooperates with two orthogonally located sensors. Each sensor includes a plunger confined for rectilinear movement by a hollow calibration nut, the plunger of one sensor being movable in the X direction in a plane at right angles to the spindle axis, and the plunger of the other sensor being movable in the Y direction in said plane. Springs cause the plungers to maintain contact with the probe end to follow the probe end along the X and Y axes respectively. The ends of the plungers are flat and move inwardly and outwardly of correspondingly flat tactile ends of the calibration nuts as the probe tilts in its mounting. When the work contacting end of the probe is precisely in line with the spindle axis, the plungers are precisely flush with the flat ends of the calibration nuts. A flush or lack of flush relationship is readily sensed by touch. The work is moved in the X-Y plane until the flush relationship is verified.

Approximate alignment of a machine tool spindle with the mark on the work may be achieved by lowering the spindle and tool to the work, observing the alignment or lack of alignment, and adjusting the work or work table relative to the spindle. The problem, however, is that the tool obscures the view of the cross hair, pilot hole or other marking, and close alignment is rarely achieved. Various implements have been devised for solving the problem. One of these is an optical system shown and described in my U.S.A. Pat. No. 4,438,567 issued Mar. 27, 1984 and entitled Center Locator for Alignment of Work to Machine Spindle. An image is projected upon the work while the critical area of the work is unobscured.
The object of the present invention is to provide a new and novel center locator in which alignment is achieved without requiring observation of the reference point. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a center locator that utilizes the delicate sense of touch rather than the sense of sight to determine optimum alignment. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a center locator that is basically simple in construction, hence affordable. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a center locator that is easily calibrated.
This invention possesses many other advantages, and has other objects which may be made more clearly apparent from a consideration of the embodiments of the invention shown and described.


Herein are techniques for dynamic aggregation of results of a database request, including concurrent grouping of result items in memory based on quasi-dense keys. Each of many computational threads concurrently performs as follows. A hash code is calculated that represents a particular natural grouping key (NGK) for an aggregate result of a database request. Based on the hash code, the thread detects that a set of distinct NGKs that are already stored in the aggregate result does not contain the particular NGK. A distinct dense grouping key for the particular NGK is statefully generated. The dense grouping key is bound to the particular NGK. Based on said binding, the particular NGK is added to the set of distinct NGKs in the aggregate result.

Analytics and reporting are activities that involve generating summary data from database tables of many rows. Often for data summarization, rows are grouped such as for calculating subtotals and/or duplicates are suppressed. Structured query language (SQL) queries involving aggregation and group-by operators are prevalent, as they provide summary results over millions or billions of rows. Grouping aggregations are very expensive and often occur, especially in online analytical processing (OLAP) and reporting. For example, the Q1 query of the Transaction Processing Performance Council hourly throughput (TPC-H) benchmark spends much of the query time performing aggregation. At the scale of a data warehouse, efficiency of grouping or deduplication significantly affects consumption of processing time, electricity, and scratchpad memory.
A histogram may contain bins for grouping and/or deduplication of data. For example, rows of a relational table having a color column that is used as a grouping key may be sorted into grouping bins by color such as with a red bin, a blue bin, and a yellow bin. When performing aggregation into grouping bins that correspond to grouping keys that occur naturally in the grouped data, such as in a relational column, some database systems use a data structure to directly map every grouping key to its corresponding aggregation bin. For a very limited range of grouping key values, such as red, blue, and yellow, pre-allocating three bins and using natural grouping keys may be feasible. However, with a range of possible grouping key values in thousands or millions such as with numeric grouping keys, pre-allocation of bins for natural grouping keys is inefficient. If actually occurring grouping key values are sparse within the range of possible values, then pre-allocation is especially wasteful, such as when most of the bins remain unused/empty. These problems are exacerbated when the grouping key is compound, such as based on multiple columns of a relational table. A worst case may be when the natural grouping key is variable width such as with text strings of more or less unlimited length and sparsity. For example, if a VARCHAR2 column is the grouping key, then pre-allocation of bins for all possible string values might be spatially and/or temporally infeasible.
Various approaches may somewhat mitigate the problem of variable-width natural grouping keys, but only by making expensive tradeoffs. For example, a hash table for grouping may use a fixed-width hash code that is generated from a natural grouping key. However, hashing is prone to collisions between different natural grouping keys that incidentally share a same hash code. Although the intent of a hash table is access in constant time, collision resolution does not occur in constant time. Collisions and pre-allocation operate as opposing forces such as when designing a hash code width. A narrower hash code needs fewer bins, which facilitates pre-allocation in less time and space. However, the narrower hash code causes more collisions, which need more time and space to resolve. Naturally occurring uneven values distribution, such as with data skew and/or hashing bias, may increase collision frequency by an order of magnitude. Hash tables are notorious for hardware cache thrashing as discussed later herein.
Another approach for variable-width natural grouping keys uses dictionary encoded grouping keys. Encoding dictionaries are expensive to maintain. For example, populating an empty encoding dictionary requires a full table scan, and bins cannot be pre-allocated without a populated encoded dictionary.

Cache conscious techniques for generation of quasi-dense grouping codes of compressed columnar data in relational database systems


A garment for protecting health care workers in environments of exposure to potentially contaminated fluids includes a tubular sheath having a pair of adhesive strips angularly oriented thereon for conforming the sheath to a leg and foot of the worker. The free ends of one strip are provided with an adhesive surface whereby the sheath may easily be conformed for a variety of different sizes of workers. The garment is preferably provided as a one-piece trouser for convenience of wearing, whereby the feet and legs of the worker are protected from contamination.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is broadly concerned with an improved garment for the protection of a health care worker against potentially contaminated fluids such as blood and the like. More particularly, it is concerned with a liquid-impervious garment including a tubular sheath of flexible, fluid-impermeable material provided with a strip attached thereto for conforming a portion of the sheath around the foot of a health care worker on which it is worn.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Operating room personnel are required to work in an environment which subjects them to exposure to the bodily fluids of the patient. In particular, surgeons and surgical nurses must work in close proximity to patients which may have blood, lymph fluid or other bodily fluids which are potentially contaminated with diseases such as hepatitis or acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Such diseases may be career-ending or even fatal if contracted by the health care worker. Accordingly, there has been developed a need for a garment which will adequately protect the physician, nurse or orderly working in the operating room from contact with these potentially contaminated fluids. This is especially the case in regard to protective garments to be worn around the health care worker's feet and ankles, as standing fluids may accumulate during the course of an operation which may result in virtually continuous contact between the health care worker's feet or shoes and the bodily fluids which accumulate on the surface of the operating theater.
In the past, shoe covers have been developed for use by workers which must protect themselves from contamination or protect the surrounding environment from contamination carried into the area by the individual. For example, shoe covers have been developed for use in the electronics-assembly clean rooms which are also used by health care workers. One example of such a shoe cover is that marketed by the American Hospital Supply Corporation as Micro-Clean 2-1-1-2 high-top shoe cover, sold under catalog number 69225.
While the shoe covers have been useful in electronics-assembly clean rooms and other environments not subjected to a large volume of fluids, health care workers who must stand in pools of accumulated body fluids during the course of a surgical operation have recognized leakage by the shoe cover around the sole portion where the fabric attaches to a synthetic resin plastic sole. Leakage also occurs through the fabric during saturation by liquids. Fully water-proof or liquid-impermeable shoe covers have proven too expensive to be disposable and too bulky for storage and proper size-ranging availability.
Yet further, the shoe covers often have a slick bottom sole which is particularly troublesome in an operating room environment where large pools of fluid may accumulate on the floor making traction difficult. Yet further, it has been found that where the garment is fully fluid-impervious, the wearer may become uncomfortable because of the weight of the material and the lack of ventilation in the garment. For this reason, garments of particularly heavy fabric are unsuitable for use in the operating room, while on the other hand, extremely thin materials are subject to tearing which defeats the entire purpose of the garment.
In addition, a desirable health care worker garment must be inexpensive and disposable to avoid the possibility of contamination to subsequent patients in successive operations. A desirable garment must fold compactly for storage until the time of use and must also protect substantially the entire lower half of the health care worker's body, i.e. from the toes to the chest. It must remain relatively light in weight, flexible and sufficiently inexpensive to construct so as to be disposable. The shoe covers of the prior art have failed to provide adequate protection to the legs of the health care worker and have not been provided in a unitary, single garment which may be easily packaged, donned and thereafter disposed.

Garment for the protection of a health care worker


A method for making an insertable or implantable medical device including a lubricous coating on a silicone substrate includes treating the silicone substrate with an atmospheric plasma at about atmospheric pressure, the atmospheric plasma formed from a noble gas; applying a solution directly to the treated silicone substrate, the solution including a thermoplastic polyurethane; and heating the silicone substrate and the applied solution to form the lubricous coating on the silicone substrate.

Silicone is commonly used in implantable or insertable medical devices because of silicone's desirable mechanical and biological properties. Silicone is flexible, durable, and biostable. However, silicone can have a tacky surface. When implanted in a patient, a medical device with a tacky silicone surface can contact body tissue and may result in tissue inflammation or abrasion of the silicone itself. Similarly, when inserted into a patient, a tacky silicone surface of a medical device can require a higher insertion force to overcome the tack, causing tissue inflammation or other damage.
For example, a medical electrical lead may include an outer insulating body for electrically insulating the conductor and allowing only the electrodes to make electrical contact with the body tissue. The outer lead body may be formed from silicone. The lead may be implanted by feeding the lead through a catheter system. It is desirable that the lead is lubricous enough to slide through the catheter system without sticking. Other implantable or insertable medical devices may include a silicone substrate that would benefit from a lubricous surface.


The present invention is directed to methods for alleviating the symptoms associated with peripheral neuropathy. The neuropathy may be the result of a genetically inherited condition, systemic disease or exposure to a toxic agent. A reduction or elimination of symptoms is obtained by administering the drug selegiline. The invention is also directed to a method for treating patients with cancer by administering a chemotherapeutic agent known to have a toxic affect on peripheral nerves together with selegiline.

The present invention relates to a medical treatment for preventing or alleviating the symptoms associated with peripheral neuropathy caused by disease or exposure to a toxic agent, e.g., a chemotherapeutic cytotoxic agent. A reduction or elimination of symptoms is accomplished by administering the drug selegiline.
Peripheral neuropathy is associated with a wide variety of causes, including genetically acquired conditions, systemic disease or exposure to toxic agents. It can manifest itself as a dysfunction of motor, sensory, sensorimotor or autonomic nerves.
Among the most important toxic agents causing peripheral neuropathy are therapeutic agents, particularly those used for the treatment of neoplastic disease. In certain cases, peripheral neuropathy is a major complication of cancer treatment and is the main factor limiting the dosage of chemotherapeutic that can be administered to a patient (Macdonald, Neurologic Clinics 9:955-967 (1991)). This is true for the commonly administered agents cisplatin, paclitaxel and vincristine (Broun, et al., Am. J. Clin. Oncol. 16:18-21 (1993); Macdonald, Neurologic Clinics 9:955-967 (1991); Casey, et al., Brain 96:69-86 (1973)). The identification of methods for preventing or alleviating dose-limiting peripheral neuropathologic side effects would allow higher, and more therapeutically effective doses of these chemotherapeutics to be administered to patients, i.e., the therapeutic efficacy of such chemotherapeutics is typically a function of dose and therefore, increasing dosage provides increased patient survival (Macdonald, Neurologic Clinics 9:955-967 (1991); Oxols, Seminars in Oncology 16, suppl. 6:22-30 (1989)).
Beyond the potential for increasing the effectiveness of cancer chemotherapy, the identification of new methods for treating peripheral neuropathy has obvious value in alleviating the suffering of patients with a wide variety of systemic diseases and genetic conditions. In many cases, progressive neuropathy in the peripheral nervous system can be debilitating or fatal.
Although selegiline has been used extensively as a treatment for Parkinson""s disease, its effectiveness in the prevention or treatment of peripheral nerve dysfunction caused by toxic agents has not been previously known. The present invention is directed to methods which rely upon this surprising and unexpected discovery to reduce or eliminate symptoms associated with peripheral nerve dysfunction.
Selegiline is a potent and selective irreversible inhibitor of monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) and has been reported to have an action in protecting or rescuing neurons of the central nervous system. For example, in a rat optic nerve crush model, selegiline has been reported to increase the survival of retinal ganglion cells that are at risk of undergoing apoptosis (Buys, et al., Invest. Opthalmol. Vis. Sci. 35:1484 (1994)). Selegiline has also been shown to have a neuroprotective effect in a model of axotomy-induced cell death in spinal motor neurons of the rat (Iwasaki, et al., J. Neurol. Sci. 125:11-13 (1994)) and to enhance neurite outgrowth in a cultured spinal cord neuron (Iwasaki, et al., Annals of Neurology 36:282-283 (1994)). In addition, selegiline has been reported to increase the survival of CNS neurons after exposure to various chemical toxins such as MPP+, kainic acid, or DSP-4 (Gelowitz, et al., Soc. Neurosci. Abstr. 20:246 (1994); Tatton, et al., J. Neurosci. Res. 31:394-400 (1992); Yu, et al., J. Neurochem. 63:1820-1828 (1994)).
With respect to peripheral nerves, selegiline has been reported to be capable of rescuing axotomized rat facial motor neurons (Salo, et al., J. Neurosci. Res. 31:394-400 (1992)). A recently issued patent also suggests that it may be used in stimulating muscle reinnervation in traumatic and non-traumatic peripheral nerve damage (U.S. Pat. No. 5,444,095).
The present invention is based upon the discovery that selegiline can be used to prevent or alleviate the symptoms associated with peripheral neuropathy. In particular, the invention provides a method for protecting a patient from, or treating a patient for, peripheral neuropathy caused by a toxic agent by administering selegiline in an amount sufficient to reduce or eliminate one or more of the symptoms associated with the neuropathy. Typically, the patient will be a human and the toxic agent will be a chemotherapeutic agent, e.g., an agent administered for the treatment of cancer. Although the method is effective for any toxic chemotherapeutic agent causing dysfunction of peripheral nerves, it is most effective for those agents with particularly severe neuropathic side effects such as cisplatin, paclitaxel, vincristine and vinblastin
Any route of delivery may be used for administering the drug, but preferred routes avoid absorption of selegiline from the gastrointestinal tract. Thus, administration transdermally, buccally, or sublingually are among the preferred methods of delivery. The preferred non-oral dose of selegiline is between 0.01 mg/kg per day and 0.15 mg/kg per day, based upon the weight of the free amine. When the oral route of delivery is used, the preferred dosage range is between 0.15 mg/kg per day and 0.75 mg/kg per day based upon the weight of the free amine (typically between about 10 and 50 mg per day).
The present invention is also directed to a method for treating a patient for peripheral neuropathy caused by a genetically inherited condition or systemic disease by administering selegiline in an amount sufficient to reduce or eliminate one or more of the symptoms associated with the neuropathy. As in the case where peripheral neuropathy is due to exposure to a toxic agent, it is preferred that selegiline be administered by a route that avoids absorption of the drug from the gastrointestinal tract. Transdermal, buccal and sublingual routes of administration are among the routes preferred. Again, the dosage of selegiline for non-oral routes of administration should be between 0.01 mg/kg per day and 0.15 mg/kg per day and, when given orally, the preferred dosage range is between 0.15 mg/kg per day and 0.75 mg/kg per day.
The present invention is also directed to a method for treating a patient with cancer by: a) administering a chemotherapeutic agent known to have a toxic effect on peripheral nerves at a dose effective at slowing the progression of the patient""s cancer; b) concurrently administering selegiline to the patient at a dose effective at preventing, reducing or eliminating the peripheral neuropathy associated with the chemotherapeutic agent; and c) increasing the individual or cumulative dosage of chemotherapeutic agent until peripheral neuropathy becomes unacceptably severe. Individual dosage refers to the amount of chemotherapeutic given at a single time, e.g. in a single infusion or injection, whereas cumulative dosage is the total amount of a chemotherapeutic administered over the full course of therapy. Thus, cumulative dosage may be increased by increasing individual dosages, extending the period of therapy or both increasing individual dosages and extending the length of therapy.
The present invention provides the following:
In a method for maximizing the individual or cumulative dose of an anti-neoplastic agent used in the treatment of a patient suffering from a cancer that exhibits a dose-dependent response to said agent, the improvement that comprises the concurrent administration of a selegiline compound in an amount sufficient to permit the individual or cumulative dose of said agent to be maximized without unacceptably severe neurotoxic side effects.
As used herein xe2x80x9cconcurrentxe2x80x9d administration of selegiline and chemotherapeutic means that the drugs are given sufficiently close in time so that their therapeutic effects overlap. The term xe2x80x9cunacceptably severexe2x80x9d refers to side effects that the patient finds intolerable or which the patient""s physician judges to reflect neuropathy that poses so serious a threat to the patient""s health that the dosage of chemotherapeutic agent must be reduced or terminated. Typically, the patient will be a human. The preferred chemotherapeutic agents are cisplatin, paclitaxel, vincristine and vinblastine.
As with the methods discussed previously, selegiline may be administered by any route, but routes that avoid absorption across the gastrointestinal tract, e.g., transdermal, buccal and sublingual routes, are generally preferred. The non-oral dosage of selegiline administered in conjunction with chemotherapeutic agent should, preferably, be between 0.01 mg/kg per day and 0.15 mg/kg per day based upon the weight of the free amine. In general, patients administered selegiline orally should receive a dose of between 0.15 mg/kg per day and 0.75 mg/kg per day.

Method for preventing and treating peripheral neuropathy by administering selegiline


A lower part structure in a vehicle body rear part has a rear suspension frame disposed in rear of a fuel tank and in front of a spare tire and has a mechanism for causing jump up of the rear part of the spare tire under load application from the vehicle rear. The lower part structure is configured so that the center in the vertical direction of the front part of the spare tire is located so as to lap on the extension line of vertical width of a frame in the vehicle width direction of the rear suspension frame, and when the spare tire is moved to the vehicle front by a load applied from the vehicle rear, the spare tire comes into contact with the rear suspension frame directly or indirectly, whereby the rear part of the spare tire is pushed up with the rear suspension frame side being the center, and is turned in the longitudinal direction.

The present invention relates a lower part structure in a vehicle body rear part.
Generally, in the lower part of the vehicle body rear part of an automobile, a fuel tank is disposed, and in the vehicle body rear part, a spare tire housing for storing a spare tire disposed horizontally is provided. In such a conventional automobile, to conform to the rule for regulating fuel leakage caused by a load applied from the vehicle rear, it has been difficult to dispose the fuel tank and a canister tank in front of a spare tire that is displaced to the vehicle front, so that the degree of freedom in layout has been restricted.
Accordingly, for example, in the spare tire storage structure disclosed in JP 2006-193046 A, by elaborating the shapes of a rear floor and the like and by providing other members, the configuration is made such that when a load is applied from the vehicle rear, the rear part of the spare tire is pushed up and turned counterclockwise toward the vehicle front, whereby the spare tire is prevented from being pushed out in the horizontal direction toward the vehicle front.
Unfortunately, the above-described conventional storage structure has a problem in that because it is necessary to elaborate the shapes of a rear floor and the like and provide other members, it is difficult to make adjustments to prevent the spare tire from being displaced to the vehicle front, and the increase in number of parts increases the cost.

Lower part structure in vehicle body rear part


The present disclosure addresses the problem of ensuring that wind turbine voltage levels within a wind power plant do not exceed predetermined overvoltage and/or undervoltage protection levels. In particular, the present disclosure relates to adjustment of an output voltage level of a wind power plant in order to protect an internal power plant grid from overvoltages.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for ensuring that wind turbine voltage levels within a wind power plant do not exceed a predetermined security level.
Description of the Related Art
Internal power grids of wind power plants connect individual wind turbines of a wind power plant to a point of common coupling—the latter being the point where power is fed onto a power supply grid from the wind power plant.
In order to do this correctly the impedance of the internal power grid between each of the wind turbines of the plant and the point of common coupling has to be taken into consideration.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, and explained in more details later, the wind turbine experiencing the highest impedance to the point of common coupling needs to generate the highest wind turbine voltage level in order to compensate for voltage drops in the internal power grid. However, by following this approach the highest wind turbine voltage level within the plant may become dangerously close to, or even exceed, an upper voltage level with the risk of damaging the internal grid. Moreover, a long time exposure to a voltage level being lower than the nominal voltage level could result in damages to the equipment. This is due to higher currents in order to keep the power level constant.
The voltage profiles of wind turbines connected to the internal power grid depend on the impedance values and the apparent power flowing through the internal power grid.
It may be seen as an object of embodiments of the invention to provide a method that ensures that a predetermined voltage level within the wind power plant is not exceeded.
It may be seen as a further object of embodiments of the present invention to provide a method that ensures that an overvoltage level and/or an undervoltage level within the wind turbine plant is not exceeded.

Method for setting an output voltage level of a wind power plant


A first information processing apparatus of multiple information processing apparatuses includes a second configuration information storage section storing second configuration information; a first configuration information modification section modifying first configuration information in the storage apparatus; a notification section notifying, a second information processing apparatus, of modified part information indicating a modified part in the first configuration information; a modified part information storage section storing the modified part information from the second information processing apparatus; and an updating section updating, before modifying the first configuration information in the storage apparatus, the modified part in the second configuration information indicated by the modified part information stored in the modified part information storage section, based on the first configuration information. Thus, when modifying setting on the storage apparatus from multiple information processing apparatuses, the integrity of the configurations is maintained, and the system can be deployed and operated at lower costs.

FIGS. 20 and 21 are diagrams illustrating examples of connection topologies of a storage system.
As depicted in FIG. 20, this storage system is configured to include a RAID (redundant arrays of inexpensive disks) apparatus 501 and a server 601, for example, wherein the server 601 reads and writes data from and to a logical volume provided by the RAID apparatus 501.
The storage system depicted in FIG. 20 is configured by connecting a single server 601 to the single RAID apparatus 501. The server 601 also includes a virtual disk service hardware provider (VDS hardware provider, also known as "VDSHP"), and, using the functions of the VDSHP, the server 601 makes configuration settings for the RAID apparatus 501 and rewrites the configuration information 502 in the RAID apparatus 501.
The VDSHP is a program for supporting Microsoft® Virtual Disk Service (VDS). The VDSHP defines an application program interface in place of a VDS, thereby providing a unified interface for managing disks and RAID volumes. Note that the VDS is a storage-related interface provided by Microsoft for the Windows Server 2003™ platform.
The VDSHP allows various configuration settings, such as allocation of logical unit numbers (LUNs) and affinity settings, for the RAID apparatus 501, by means of the storage management software supported by Windows Server 2003 R2 or the like.
Assuming an example where such VDSHPs are constructed, as depicted in FIG. 21, by connecting a plurality of servers (three in the example depicted in FIG. 21) 601-1, 601-2, and 601-3 to a single RAID apparatus 501.
Note that the reference symbols 601-1 to 601-3 are used hereinafter for referring to a specific server while reference symbol 601 is used when reference is made to any of the multiple servers.
In the topology wherein the plurality of servers 601 are connected to the RAID apparatus 501, the integrity of the configuration may be compromised when the VDSHPs in the servers 601 make a configuration setting for the RAID apparatus 501 simultaneously.
One known technique for assuring the integrity of the configuration is to use a management server, wherein the management server manages all modifications made by the servers 601 to the configuration information in a centralized manner by using a configuration information database (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-108420, for example).
This technique requires, however, a configuration information database or a management server, and accordingly, may increase the system installation and operation costs.
As an alternative, another technique has been come up with, wherein, prior to making a configuration setting for the RAID apparatus 501 in the respective servers 601, configuration information 603 stored in the VDSHP is updated (refreshed) using configuration information 502 stored in the RAID apparatus 501.
FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating a technique for refreshing configuration information in a conventional storage system.
For example, assuming that the server 601-2 wants to make a configuration setting for the RAID apparatus 501, the server 601-2 looks up the configuration information 502 in the RAID apparatus 501, before actually performing a configuration setting operation for the RAID apparatus 501.
The server 601-2 then obtains all pieces of configuration information 502 from the RAID apparatus 501, as depicted in FIG. 22, and overwrites configuration information 603-2 with the obtained can keep its configuration information 603-2 updated. The server 601-2 then modifies and sets both the configuration information 502 in the RAID apparatus 501 and the configuration information 603-2 in the server 601-2.
However, such refreshing processing for updating the configuration information 603 in the server 601 using all pieces of the configuration information 502 stored in the RAID apparatus 501 takes some time, for example, about two minutes. Experiencing such waiting time every time a user makes a configuration setting for the server 601 may impair the efficiency of processing, as well as being bothering.

Processing method, storage system, information processing apparatus, and computer-readable storage medium storing program


A method for providing stereoscopic image display in which right and left eye images are transmitted to the right and left eyes of a viewer by a lenticular lens sheet. The sheet consists of an array of lenticular lenses and a combined image obtained by combining pixels for right and left eye images with binocular disparity data. To maintain stereoscopic alignment when the viewer moves, this method detects the position of the viewer and, accordingly shifts the positions of the pixels for the right and left eye images on the combined image; thus, the right and left eye images are always correctly transmitted to the right and left eyes of the viewer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique stereoscopic image display applicable to stereoscopic television sets, stereoscopic video recorders/players, stereoscopic videotelephones for effective communications at remote locations, and the like.
2. Description of Prior Art
Conventional techniques of displaying a stereoscopic image (three-dimensional image) include a glass scheme using specific glasses, and using a lenticular lens sheet. In the case of glasses a stereoscopic image is displayed and polarized glasses, liquid-crystal glasses, or an anaglyph scheme are used. A disadvantage of this system is the need for the viewer to wear glasses. This is particularly the case since the parties will be seen wearing glasses which may not be normal.
On the other hand, the technique of displaying a stereoscopic image using a lenticular lens sheet can be of direct viewing type wherein the lenticular lens sheet is arranged on the surface of a display such as a CRT, a liquid-crystal display, or the like, or at projection type in which an image is projected on a lenticular lens sheet using a projector.
With the lenticular lens sheet scheme, a viewer can watch a stereoscopic image without wearing glasses. However, in order to assure stereoscopic viewing over a wide field, a large number of images projected from 6 to 8 places are required, and the arrangement of the apparatus becomes complicated and expensive. To realize such stereoscopic viewing by images projected from two places, a technique is known for mechanically tracking the head of the viewer (e.g., Alfred Schwartz; "Head Tracking Display" IEEE Trans. ED-33, 8 (Aug, 1986)). However, a tracking speed is limited due to its mechanical operation.

Method of stereoscopic images display which compensates electronically for viewer head movement

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation


A spiked liquid crystal display (SLCD) includes a plurality of LCD devices. Each LCD device includes an LCD panel, and a drive circuit controlling a display of the LCD panel. The drive circuit includes an adjusting equipment storing a display parameter, and the display parameters of the adjusting equipments of at least two LCD devices of the plurality of LCD devices are different.

As shown in FIG. 1, a spliced liquid crystal display (SLCD) is divided into more than two LCD devices. If panels of the LCD devices have different display characteristics such as brightness, flicker, chroma, or the like under a same color, viewers may see discontinuous image at a splice of the panels. When manufacturing the panels, panel manufacturers need select light emitting diode (LED) lights of a same brightness and chroma to provide a backlight, and control stability in a process of manufacturing panels to reduce a difference between panels. The process is so complicated that difficulty in design is increased in addition to increasing cost.

Spliced liquid crystal display (SLCD), method for checking the SLCD, and LCD device


A breathing tube connecting device is provided for connecting a breathing tube to at least two respirators. The breathing tube connecting device includes a base body with a breathing gas through duct embodied in the base body, a jacket body, which can be meshed with the base body in a positive-locking manner and thus encloses at least a part of the base body in a coaxial manner, and a transponder. The transponder is provided between the base body and the jacket body. The breathing gas through duct and the jacket body are embodied at least partly as a coupling section for a selective connection of the breathing tube to one of the at least two respirators.

Breathing tube connecting devices are used in a known manner for connecting a breathing tube or a breathing tube system, designated as breathing tube below for the sake of simplicity, to a respirator. A respirator may comprise an anesthesia apparatus. The breathing tube connecting devices differ with respect to the diameter of a breathing gas through duct. Thus, breathing tube connecting devices for neonatal use have smaller diameters compared to breathing tube connecting devices for connecting a breathing tube to a respirator for adults. Breathing tube connecting devices have either a male or female connection. A connection complementary thereto can be found in each case on the respirator. Breathing tube connecting devices for a connection to a neonatal respirator are usually designed with a female connection, whereas breathing tube connecting devices for a connection to a respirator for adults can be designed with a male or female connection. On the other hand, the connections to the neonatal respirator are usually designed as a male connection and the connections to the adult respirator are designed as a combination of male and female connections.
For the breathing tube connecting devices there is a current standard of 11, 15 and 22 mm diameters of the breathing gas through duct. Here, breathing tube connecting devices for neonatal use have a diameter of the breathing gas through duct of 11 mm, whereas breathing tube connecting devices for respirators for adults may have a breathing gas through duct diameter of 15 mm or 22 mm.
Respirators for adults generally have a breathing mode for newborns. If a neonatal patient shall now be respirated with a respirator for adults, it is desirable that the breathing tube connecting device of the neonatal breathing tube, which is designed for a connection to a neonatal respirator, can be connected both to the neonatal respirator and to the respirator for adults. Moreover, it should be possible to produce the breathing tube connecting device in a simple and cost-effective manner.


An automatic injection training device is presented having an elongated housing having a tubular demo container axially and rotationally fixed relative to the elongated housing and having a tubular wall, a reloadable plunger assembly having a plunger which is movable in the demo container between a first and a second position and a first energy accumulating member that moves the plunger from the first to the second position, an actuation assembly that holds the plunger in the first position, a biased needle cover that is movable in relation to the housing from an extended position to a retracted position and from the retracted position to the extended position, wherein the needle cover member interacts with the actuation assembly for releasing the plunger when the needle cover member is moved distally.

Automatic injection devices for delivering active substances are well known in the art. In many cases, training versions of such devices are required for showing potential users (e.g., patients or healthcare providers) how a device should be employed and for illustrating the advantages of the device. Such devices are frequently called "promotion" or "training" devices. The devices should mimic the function of different steps corresponding to a real injection device, but should not be capable of injecting an active substance.
Document U.S. Pat. No. 5,071,353 describes a training device for an automatic injector. The device comprises a cylindrical outer sleeve in the rear position of which a discharge mechanism is connected. The discharge mechanism comprises a plunger, a coil spring which acts on the plunger, a locking device, and a safety member. However, this device does not provide means allowing an accurate simulation of the resistance acting on the discharge mechanism of a regular injection device when an active substance is ejected or a simulation that the needle cover is locked after the simulated injection.


The present invention relates to a process for manufacturing activated carbon fibers having greatly improved adsorption performance time and adsorption performance when in contact with surface oxides such as in the case where gas and liquid impurities are treated. The process of the present invention comprises the following steps:. a) placing conventional activated carbon fibers between an anode and a cathode plate in an acidic or an alkaline electrolytic solution, and PA1 b) applying a certain voltage at a current density between said graphite anode and graphite cathode plate.. The present invention also relates to the product resulting from this process and the use of this product.

1.1 Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for manufacturing highly functional activated carbon fibers having oxygen functional groups introduced onto the surface thereof by anodic oxidation, the product resulting from this process and the use of this product. More specifically, it relates to a process for manufacturing activated carbon fibers having greatly improved adsorption performance time and adsorption performance when in contact with surface oxides such as in the case where gas and liquid impurities are treated by an anodic oxidation treatment of conventional activated carbon fibers by electrochemical techniques using an acidic and alkaline solution as an electrolyte.
1.2 Description of the Prior Art
As pollution of the environment has become a public concern, the removal of liquid and gas impurities has become a public demand. Under such circumstances, the development of improved adsorbents to meet such demands is urgently needed.
The activated carbon fibers have highly specific surface area and surface reactivity, good adsorptivity and micropores. They have been widely used in waste water and sewage disposal apparatus in houses and industrial facilities, apparatus for removing harmful gases in the facilities for manufacturing semiconductors and precision measuring machines, anti-gas masks for military use and general industrial use and air cleaning apparatus in offices and houses.
The activated carbon fibers have been used for the purpose of purification, collection and separation in many fields. They are organic adsorbents in a saturated binding form and have the well-developed micropores, which are the barometers for evaluating adsorptivity as adsorbents, as compared to inorganic adsorbents of an unsaturated binding form such as silica gel, alumina gel and synthetic zeolite. They also show a good molecular sieve effect, because they have a further broader adsorption surface area and a comparatively regular size of micropore as compared to conventional carbon fibers, the shape of which is restricted to a granular or powder form. In addition, they have good stability, cyclability, and processibility clue to a fiber form, thereby the demand for such carbon fibers gradually increases.
The conventional methods for improving the performance of activated carbon fibers include methods for introducing functional groups onto activated carbon fibers such as:
However, these methods have several problems. The surface structure and surface properties of the activated carbon fibers may depend on activating temperature and time, however, it is difficult to control time and temperature. Since side reactions may be caused where surface treatment is conducted in a high temperature gas, many apparatus and costs for inhibiting those side reactions are needed. In addition, since the surface functional groups attached to the surface of the activated carbon fibers are not able to continuously display their function, the adsorption performance thereof is unsatisfactory.

Process for manufacturing functional activated carbon fibers treated by anodic oxidation

Korean Research Institute of Chemical Technology


A laundry appliance defines a vertical direction, a lateral direction and a transverse direction that are mutually perpendicular to one another. The laundry appliance includes a cabinet defining an opening. A clothes vessel is rotatably mounted within the cabinet. The clothes vessel comprises a base and a hoop with a helical seam extending around the hoop. The clothes vessel is configured for receiving laundry articles to be rotated therein via the opening of the cabinet.

Various laundry appliances generally include a rotatable clothes vessel therein. For example, washing machine appliances generally include a tub for containing water or wash fluid, e.g., water and detergent, bleach, and/or other wash additives. A basket is rotatably mounted within the tub and defines a wash chamber for receipt of articles for washing. During normal operation of such washing machine appliances, the wash fluid is directed into the tub and onto articles within the wash chamber of the basket. The basket can rotate at various speeds to agitate articles within the wash chamber, to wring wash fluid from articles within the wash chamber, etc.
As another example, the rotatable clothes vessel may be a drum of a clothes dryer appliance. A conventional appliance for drying articles such as a clothes dryer (or laundry dryer) for drying clothing articles typically includes a cabinet having a rotating drum for tumbling clothes and laundry articles therein. One or more heating elements heat air prior to the air entering the drum, and the warm air is circulated through the drum as the clothes are tumbled to remove moisture from laundry articles in the drum. Gas or electric heating elements may be used to heat the air that is circulated through the drum.
Such rotating vessels, e.g., a basket of a washing machine appliance or a drum of a dryer appliance, are usually constructed with a straight line seam, such as an axial seam extending along or parallel to an axial direction of the vessel. If such an axial seam of the vessel were to separate instantaneously over an entire or substantially entire length of the seam, particularly during rotation of the clothes vessel, the instantaneous separation could result in the separated portion of the vessel impacting other components of the laundry appliance. In such instances, the momentum of the vessel, especially during high-speed rotation, may result in a sudden and complete separation of the seam, and subsequently impact on neighboring components.
Accordingly, a rotating component for a laundry appliance which provides improved durability and/or a more gradual separation of the seam should such separation occur, would be desired.

Rotating component of a laundry appliance with a helical seam


A method for producing lightweight concrete is disclosed which comprises mixing foamed particles, aggregates, and cement slurry to create a strong, lightweight concrete. The foamed particles can be created by grinding foamed plastic waste material. The aggregates comprise soluble glass, water, and polyvinyl acetate. One embodiment includes batching the cement in two stages. The concrete is pressed to within 65-70% of its volume prior to drying. Lightweight concrete comprising foamed plastic particles mixed with cement, water, soluble glass, and polyvinyl acetate is also disclosed, where the concrete, after compacting and drying possesses greater strength than common polystyrofoam concrete.

The present application claims priority to Hungarian Patent Application 0205406, filed Feb. 7, 2002.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a lightweight concrete composition containing foamed plastic balls or particles obtained by grinding foamed plastic waste material. The invention also relates to a method for the production of lightweight concrete composition wherein foamed plastic balls or particles obtained by grinding foamed plastic waste material are mixed with cement.
2. Description of the Related Art
The Hungarian Patent No. 181180 prepares polystyrofoam (PSF) concrete by using polystyrofoam beads mounting up to 60-70% of the volume of crude concrete. The polystyrofoam beads are mixed with water or with the water content of the sand, and then the mix is compacted (by vibrating press) after being poured into formwork. The concrete produced in this wayxe2x80x94as a consequence of volumetric proportionsxe2x80x94has the disadvantage of high gravimetric density, and, as a consequence, reduced heat-insulating capacity. At the same time, the bond of concrete and PSF in not ensured. (Generally lightweight concrete not reaching the value of 350-400 kg/m3 cannot be vibrated).
The process in Patent No. 213905 B applies soda soluble glass (15-18 l/m3) to treat PSFxe2x80x94to increase bondingxe2x80x94and, in this manner, manufactures building-block elements, and different materials for construction industry application.
The process in Hungarian Patent No. 174868 provides for bonding of PSF and cement by adding aluminum hydro-silicate to the mix, and, thus renders it thixotrope. The prepared mix is worked in a mold or framework. This process does not activate the surface of the PSF aggregate, but pulps the cement (using bentonite) to create better bonding.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,639,297 aims for an increase in strength of PSF concrete in such a way that heat treats the PSF granules before being added, so that it shrinks them and hardens their surface. The disadvantage of the process is the fact that the increase of strength requires significant expenditure of energy, which involves cost increment.
These processes offer solutions to two problem ranges: on the one hand, to enhance problematic bonding capacity of PSF and cement slurry, and, on the other hand, to increase the strength of lightweight concrete. The goal is only reached by deteriorating advantageous properties (181180) or by significant cost increment (5,639,297), and the compositions prepared with the applied bonding additives, in many of the cases, do not meet the required or necessary strength values, and, consequently, have limited application.
The main objective of the present invention is to provide a lightweight concrete composition that preserves the advantageous properties (good heat-insulating capacity, low gravimetric density, good water vapor permeation capability, etc.) of the conventional lightweightxe2x80x94primarily polystyrofoamxe2x80x94concrete. Nevertheless, by virtue of its increased strength, it can be used in even more complex situations and in a wider range of application fields of the construction industry than conventional concrete.
The basic idea of this invention is to add a polymer dispersion to lightweight concrete composition because, with this, the properties of lightweight concrete, in fresh and also in solid state (after having set and hardened), improve considerably. The appropriate polymer dispersion also improves the homogeneity, stability and workability of the mix.
By dosing the polymer dispersion properly, a further bond system is introduced in the mix, which also modifies the water relations of the composition: while the cement is setting during water absorption, the polymer dispersion hardens when the water has left (drying). Therefore, during the application of the process it must be taken into consideration that the state when the load can be applied sets in laterxe2x80x94in fact, after drying.
Simultaneously, as a new effect, the dispersed polymer particles also tie the components of the mix with adhesive bonding.
The invention is based on the additional idea that, after having improved the plasticity and compactibility of lightweight concrete with the above stated process, the prepared mix is to a large extent compressible. This increases further the strength improved by adhesive bonding.
The invention is also based on the idea that any profiled shape can be sawn out of the increased strength lightweight concrete block by moving an endless coarse steel wire in longitudinal and transverse direction.
The method of this invention enables the forming of more favorable and up-to-date lightweight concrete form blocks for concrete-filled masonry than the currently used ones. The currently produced form blocks have grooves at their edges, and, thus, the narrowed edges easily damage whilst transported and assembled. The form blocks butt with their plane surface so they can shift along this surface when the concrete is poured. Usually, manufacturing such form blocks requires expensive press dies, and, consequently, the blocks have a minimal size choice. The dimension of the houses constructed with them is limited by the form block types.
The basis of the invention is constituted by the perception that, in case we create increased strength lightweight concrete masonry to fill with concrete by sawing the form blocks, we can choose the block dimensions at discretion, prevent block movement by tongue-and-groove joint, and create the cavity inside the blocks. Then these blocks permit freer dimensioning, reduced risk of damage and more secure concrete filling. Due to the applied technology, the cavities do not need to be formed centrally. Therefore, the constructed masonry can have a thicker and more efficient heat-insulating layer on its exterior.
Various optional or preferred features are set out in the detailed description forming part of this specification.

Lightweight concrete with increased strength and method for producing the same

R{overscore (a)}cz Erzsebet Karthauzi u. 15/b


A system and method for interaction monitoring in a retail environment that includes executing a first monitoring system and thereby generating a first evaluation of customer selection of items; executing a second monitoring system and thereby generating a second evaluation of customer selection of items; determining monitoring alignment between the first evaluation and the second evaluation of a first customer; and triggering an action in response to the monitoring alignment.

Computer vision, sensor fusion, and other forms of activity monitoring have seen some early applications to commerce and payment and early-stage exploration for future applications. Many of existing applications are limited in nature offering only basic functionality such as error prone security systems or general environmental statistics. Exploration in more involved user interactions such as checkout free shopping have been exposed to be vulnerable to adversarial attacks. In many of the current solutions, a singular approach to sensing activity in an environment is applied, which exposes the systems to a wide range of attack surfaces through which the system may fail for legitimate actors or be gamed by exploitative actors. Thus, there is a need in the computer vision field to create a new and useful system and method for applications in multiple-factor verification of vision-based interactions. This invention provides such a new and useful system and method.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Multiple-factor verification for vision-based systems


In a nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer, the shape of a detection coil is changed from a conventional cage type to a solenoid type of higher sensitivity. Accordingly, differing from the conventional superconductive magnet of multilayer air core solenoids, a superconductive magnet is right and left divided to split magnets for generating 11 T preferably, 14.1 T in the horizontal direction, and the magnetic field uniformity is set to 0.001 ppm or less and the temporal stability is set to 0.001 ppm or less.

The present invention relates to a nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer suitable for analyzing, in a liquid-solution, the structure and interaction of protein and organic molecules such as substrate and ligand interacting with the protein.
A method for analyzing organic matter utilizing nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been making rapid progress in recent years. In particular, a method has been used in combination with the technique of strong superconductive magnets to make it possible to highly efficiently analyze the structure of an organic compound such as protein having a complicated molecular structure on atomic level. The present invention is directed to a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer necessary for analyzing the structure on atomic level and interaction of protein molecules in an aqueous solution dissolving a small quantity of protein, especially, an energy spectrometer differing from a medical MRI diagnostic apparatus aiming at imaging of a tomogram of human body needing so-called millimeter class image resolution in that performance such as the magnetic field intensity being one order or more higher, the magnetic field uniformity being of four order and the stability being three order higher is needed, thus requiring quite different design technique and apparatus manufacture technique. A detailed description of a conventional high-resolution NMR spectrometer is given in "NMR for Protein" by Yoji Arata, published by Kyoritu-shuppan, pp. 33-54, 1996. As up-to-date inventions concerning the typical apparatus construction when the NMR is utilized for analysis of protein, one may refer to an invention relating to a superconductive magnet that shows the typical construction of a multilayer air-core solenoid coil as disclosed in JP-A-2000-147082, an invention relating to a signal detection technique that shows a cage type superconductive detection coil as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,121,776 and examples of signal detection technique based on a conventional barrel type or cage type coil as disclosed in JP-A-2000-266830 and JP-A-6-237912. According to these reports, all of the conventional high-sensitivity NMR spectrometers for protein analysis use a superconductive magnet unit constructed of solenoid coils used in combination to generate a magnetic field in the vertical directions, an electromagnetic wave at 400 to 900 MHz is irradiated on a sample and a resonance wave generated from the sample is detected by utilizing the barrel or cage type detection coil. Also, as shown in an example of U.S. Pat. No. 6,121,776, a contrivance is made to improve the S/N sensitivity ratio by utilizing a detector cooled to low temperatures with a view to decreasing heat noise during reception.
Historically, in the high-sensitivity NMR spectrometer, improvements in sensitivity have been achieved by a method in which the basic constituents of a system such as antenna and magnet are kept to remain unchanged but the center magnetic field intensity of the superconductive magnet is increased. Accordingly, the maximum NMR measurement sensitivity reported till now can be obtained with a NMR spectrometer at 900 MHz utilizing a large superconductive magnet having a center magnetic field of 21.1 tesla and the basic constituents of the spectometer remain unchanged as compared to those in the prior art of JP-A-2000-147082. In the analysis of protein using a liquid-solution, the improved center magnetic field is effective to clarify separation of improvement in sensitivity and chemical shift.
In attaining the effect of improved sensitivity attributable to the form or shape of detection coil, it has been known, for example, as described in "Book of NMR" by Yoji Arata, published by Maruzen, PP. 325-327, 2000, that the solenoid coil conventionally used as detection coil is advantageous over the barrel or cage type in various points. For example, the solenoid coil is advantageous in easy controllability of impedance, filling factor and efficiency of RF magnetic field. But, according to the literature, when the sensitivity is thought much of in such an application of measuring protein dissolved by a small quantity in an aqueous solution, winding a solenoid coil around a sample tube placed vertically to the magnetic field is practically impossible and in general, is not utilized. In an exceptional application where highly sensitive measurement is carried out by using a small quantity of sample solution, the above technique is limitedly utilized through a method utilizing a particularly designed micro-sample tube to carry out measurement by using a special probe.
Recently, in a special example disclosed in JP-A-11-248810, a method is contrived according to which a bulky magnet of high-temperature superconductivity is magnetized in the horizontal direction and a NMR signal is detected with a solenoid coil. Further, JP-A-7-240310 discloses a method for constructing a superconductive magnet and a cooling container to meet a general NMR application directed to eliminate constraints on the top or ceiling height of apparatus. However, any method of improving the detection sensitivity necessary for analyzing protein and any method of technically coping with magnetic field uniformity and temporal stability of magnetic field have not been known yet.
Recently, with needs for study of protein promoted, needs for analyzing a sample in which protein has a small degree of solubility to water have increased and there is a need of improving the sensitivity of measurement of NMR. To adapt the NMR spectrometer to the needs as above, the measurement sensitivity must be improved while maintaining a sample space comparable to that of the conventional apparatus and besides the maintenance of the stability of a superconductive magnetic field over a long time of data integration is indispensable. The improved measurement sensitivity is particularly advantageous in that for samples having substantially the same solubility, not only the measurement time can be shortened but also the sampling amount can be decreased, thereby ensuring that the protein of small solubility can be analyzed to advantage. Accordingly, the NMR spectrometer used for analysis of protein is required of far more excellent detection sensitivity and stability than those in the conventional NMR and in addition, is required to have ability to detect NMR signals accurately and stably over a long time of one week or more. This is because if the magnetic field varies during measurement, the peak of NMR signal is caused to shift and especially, in measurement of interaction, the peak shift due to interaction cannot be discriminated from that due to instability of the magnetic field. If the magnetic field is non-uniform, desired peaks overlap each other, raising a problem that discrimination of interaction is difficult to achieve. Therefore, it should be noticed that, in future NMR techniques aiming at performing various kinds of analysis of protein, development of new technology not lying on mere extension of the conventional general NMR spectrometers will be needed.
For example, specification of magnetic field uniformity in the general NMR spectrometer is 0.01 ppm in a sample space, that is, 0.01 ppm in terms of temporal stability. When this value is indicated in terms of proton NMR for general 600 MHz use, a permissible error of 6 Hz results. In the case of the aforementioned analysis of interaction of protein, however, spatial and temporal resolution of at least 1.0 Hz or less is required and preferably, 0.5 Hz or less is needed. In a method capable of implementing the magnetic field stability and the temporal stability of magnetic field, the construction of superconductive magnet and detection coil must be optimized. Accordingly, the performance of the conventional, generally used NMR spectrometer is insufficient and the stability and magnetic field uniformity higher by one order or more than those of the conventional spectrometer are required.
In the prior arts, the sensitivity is managed to be improved by relying on improvements in magnetic field intensity and as a result, the apparatus is increased in size and to cope with problems of leakage magnetic field and floor strength, there arises a new problem of installation capability such as needs for a dedicated building. Further, disadvantageously, the cost of a superconductive magnet increases. The improved sensitivity has an upper limit of about 21 T because of constraints due to a critical magnetic field of a superconductive material and for more upgraded improvements in sensitivity, the advent of a technique for improving detection sensitivity based on a new means without resort to the magnetic field intensity has been desired.
The aforementioned high-sensitivity measuring method utilizing the solenoid coil can be used with a special sample tube for a very small quantity of sample and a special detection probe but it cannot be applied to analysis based on a general protein solution of about 10 cc. The method for generating a magnetic field in the horizontal direction by means of a strong magnet and detecting NMR signals by means of a solenoid coil as described in the example of JP-A-11-248810 can generate only a magnetic field of not greater than 10 T at the surface of a high-temperature superconductor, with the result that the magnetic field at a sample part is about several tesla at the most, thus proving that the method of interest cannot generate a magnetic field of 11 tesla or more necessary for analysis of protein, preferably, a magnetic field of 14.1 tesla or more in a desired sample space. Further, in this method, owing to the effect of a magnetic flux creep phenomenon of the high-temperature superconductor, the temporal stability 1.0 Hz/hour or less necessary for analysis of protein is substantially difficult to achieve. As regards the magnetic uniformity necessary for analysis of protein, non-homogeneity attributable to the manufacture process of a high-temperature superconductive bulky material also makes it difficult to attain the magnetic field uniformity within 1.0 Hz in terms of proton NMR frequency in a space defined by 10 mm diameter×20 mm length.
As described above, while a breakthrough technique meeting the needs for analysis of protein is desired to be developed in connection with the conventional techniques, the advent of a new solving method for further improvements in sensitivity has been desired under the present-day circumstances that improving the sensitivity based on the magnetic field has reached limits.
For the purpose of conducting an efficient and accurate. Analysis of the interaction of protein in a liquid-solution with low molecules such as substrate and ligand, for which needs are considered to increase in future, it is empirically preferable that a suitable quantity of sample be measured at 600 to 900 MHz and with a center magnetic field of about 14 to 21 T and the measurement sensitivity be increased beyond the present one to increase the throughput. Generally, in a spectrometer operating at 800 MHz or more, for the purpose of making full use of the superconductive characteristics to an extreme, operation is carried out by depressurizing liquid helium at 4.2 K and excessively cooling it to 1.8 K. Therefore, complexities in apparatus operation are aggravated and maintenance is laborious. In addition, the magnetic unit Increases in size to increase leakage magnetic field and typically, a dedicated building is needed. Especially, the leakage magnetic field in the vertical direction increases as the center magnetic field increases in the conventional system, so that in an apparatus of 900 MHz class, for instance, a leakage magnetic field occurs extending up to 5 m in the height direction, and from the viewpoint of apparatus installation, there needs a tall building of high ceiling. As a result, the construction cost increases disadvantageously. Further, the conventional 900 MHz superconductive magnet is sized such that only a magnet part has a diameter of 1.86 m and a height of several meters, as described in IEEE. Transactions on Applied Superconductivity, Vol. 10, No. 1, page 728-731.
The present invention intends to provide a novel NMR spectrometer in which the measurement sensitivity of NMR signals can be increased hit at least 2.5 times or more of that in the conventional apparatus at about 600 MHz (14.1 T) under a condition that a normal sample tube of 5 to 10 mm diameter is mainly used and a sample liquid-solution is charged in the tube up to a height of about 30 mm and the temporal stability and spatial uniformity of a superconductive magnet necessary for analysis of protein can be provided. In the construction of the present invention, the operating temperature of a system is not set to 4.2 K. By applying the present invention, it is also possible to aim at achieving extremity performance but depending on applications, operation at the conventional magnetic field limit 21.1 T that is, at 900 MHz and at 1.8 K can proceed and in that case, the sensitivity can be improved by 40% of that in the conventional system, proving that overcoming the detection sensitivity limit attributable to magnetic field intensity, conventionally unattainable, can succeed for the first time.

Nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer for liquid-solution


A method includes forming a first magnetic material on a first surface of a conductive loop, forming a second magnetic material on a second surface of the conductive loop opposite the first surface to form an inductor, attaching a semiconductor die to a leadframe, and attaching the inductor to the leadframe with solder balls. The semiconductor die is between the inductor and the leadframe. The conductive loop: spans parallel to the leadframe; or is between the first magnetic material and the second magnetic material.

Many types of integrated circuits (ICs) have input/output (I/O) pins that are used to connect external passive or active components. An IC (also referred to as semiconductor die) often is attached to a leadframe and then surrounded by a mold compound to form a semiconductor package. The package is then attached to a printed circuit board (PCB). A capacitor, inductor, or other type of passive electrical component may be attached to the same PCB. Through traces on the PCB, the passive electrical component is electrically connected to one or more I/O pins of the leadframe, and through the leadframe to the IC. A considerable amount of space is occupied by the semiconductor package and external passive components. Space is a premium in many applications such as smart phones or other types of mobile consumer electronic devices. Further, interconnection parasitics resulting from longer interconnection pathways can detrimentally impact performance.

Semiconductor package with integrated passive electrical component


A temperature measuring apparatus measures the temperature of a wafer in real time using a change of magnetic field during a thermal process. The temperature measuring apparatus includes: at least one conductive structure disposed on one surface of the wafer, in which an electrical conductivity of the conductive structure varies depending on temperature; a magnetic field generator installed facing the conductive structure with respect to a center of the wafer; and a magnetic field measuring sensor installed above the conductive structure.

This application claims priority from Korean Patent Application No. 10-2004-0048934, filed on Jun. 28, 2004, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
Apparatuses consistent with the present invention relate to measuring temperature using a change of magnetic field, and more particularly, to measuring temperature of a wafer in real time using a change of magnetic field at a wafer thermal processing system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Photolithography is a process used to pattern semiconductor materials stacked on a wafer. During photolithography, a thermal process is performed three times. A first thermal process is a soft bake which is performed after coating a photoresist on an entire surface of the wafer. The soft bake is performed so as to maintain uniformity of the photoresist coated on the wafer. The soft bake removes solvent from the photoresist by heating the wafer on a hot plate at 80-110° C. After the soft bake, the wafer is exposed to ultraviolet rays using a projection exposure system or the like and predetermined patterns are formed on the photoresist. After the exposure, a post exposure bake (PEB) is performed as a second thermal process. The PEB is performed so as to prevent unnecessary exposure at an exposure boundary due to scattering of ultraviolet rays. In the PEB, the wafer is baked on a hot plate at about 150° C. After the exposure, developer solution is sprayed onto the wafer, and a region onto which light is incident, or a region onto which no light is incident, is removed due to a chemical reaction. After development, a hard bake is performed as a third thermal process. The hard bake removes solvent from the photoresist and hardens the photoresist by heating the wafer on a hot plate at about 150° C.
In these thermal processes, temperature distribution and temperature uniformity across the wafer are important processing variables which have the greatest influence on quality and dispersion of line width in a semiconductor circuit. Even a slight error in temperature changes solubility of the photoresist. As a result, line widths of patterns become different. In order to obtain good quality, temperature variation must be restricted to ±0.1° C. over the entire wafer heated on the hot plate. Therefore, it is necessary to measure the wafer temperature during the thermal process to determine whether the wafer is being heated uniformly.
Conventional methods for measuring wafer temperature include a contact temperature measuring method and a non-contact temperature measuring method.
According to the contact temperature measuring method, before the thermal process is actually performed on the wafer, whether the wafer is uniformly heated is examined by heating a sensor wafer on the hot plate. FIGS. 1A and 1B are views of the sensor wafer. Referring to FIG. 1A, a plurality of temperature sensors 120 are installed on a sensor wafer 110 and a change of temperature on the sensor wafer 110 is measured through wires 125 connected to the temperature sensors 120. Referring to FIG. 1B, instead of connecting the wires complexly, a plurality of temperature sensors 120 and a memory 130 are installed on the sensor wafer 110 and a change of temperature on the sensor wafer 110 is written to the memory 130. The contact temperature sensor used herein includes a resistance thermal detector (RTD) which detects electrical resistance, a thermocouple (TC) which detects thermo-electromotive force, a metal or glass thermometer which detects thermal expansion, an integrated circuit (IC) temperature sensor which operates based on a temperature characteristic of a silicon transistor, and so on. Through these methods, a heating condition of the hot plate is adjusted until the temperatures measured by the temperature sensors become uniform. After it is checked that the entire area of the sensor wafer is uniformly heated, the wafer is actually loaded and the thermal process is performed thereon.
According to this conventional contact temperature measuring method, the temperature sensors must directly contact the wafer. However, it is difficult to correctly contact the temperature sensors with the object to be measured. Also, the conventional contact temperature measuring method is used to set an appropriate heating condition using the sensor wafer in advance, not while the thermal process is actually being performed. Therefore, it is impossible to measure the actual wafer temperature while the thermal process is being performed. That is, the conventional method does not facilitate measurement of the wafer temperature in real time during the thermal process. When an external environment changes during the thermal process, it is impossible to promptly cope with the change. As a result, the proportion of defective areas may increase during the thermal process. Also, when a defect occurs during a complex semiconductor manufacturing process, it is impossible to examine and reliably determine which process caused the defect. In order to make such a determination, the process must be stopped to measure the temperature using the sensor wafer. Thus, the semiconductor manufacturing process is delayed and manufacturing cost is increased.
In order to solve these problems, a non-contact temperature measuring method has been proposed. The non-contact temperature measuring method measures the wafer temperature in real time during the thermal process and obtains temperature history information which contains a change of temperature with respect to time during the thermal process. The non-contact temperature measuring method makes use of a principle of black body radiation. That is, the temperature is measured by detecting infrared rays radiated from the heated object. FIG. 2 is a sectional view illustrating the non-contact temperature measuring method. Referring to FIG. 2, while a wafer 110 is heated on a hot plate 140, a temperature of the wafer 110 is measured in real time using a plurality of temperature sensors 160 which are installed below a cap 150 of a thermal processing system. An infrared thermometer is widely used as the temperature sensor 160. The infrared thermometer includes a quantum infrared sensor which measures an internal photoelectric effect of semiconductor material, a thermal infrared sensor which measures change in a material constant with respect to temperature, and so on. Also, the thermal infrared sensor includes a pyroelectric infrared sensor which operates based on the pyroelectric effect in which electricity is generated in ferroelectric material bombarded by infrared radiation.
However, the conventional non-contact temperature measuring method has problems in that radiation generated from the object to be measured must sufficiently reach the sensor and an effective emissivity of the object to be measured must be accurately known, or its reproduction must be possible. Also, the infrared sensor used in the non-contact temperature measuring method has a relatively high accuracy at high temperatures (generally, higher than 1000° C.), but has a relatively low accuracy at the low temperatures (hundreds of ° C.) at which the thermal process is preformed. Further, as described above, temperature variation must within ±0.1° C. over the entire wafer. However, since resolution of the infrared sensor is about 1° C., use of the infrared sensor is inappropriate during the thermal process.

Temperature measuring apparatus using change of magnetic field