Different rendering techniques are selected for portions of a scene based on statistical estimates of the portions' rendering costs. A scene is partitioned into a bounding volume hierarchy. Each bounding volume includes a statistical model of the spatial distribution of geometric primitives within the bounding volume. An image to be rendered is partitioned into screen regions and each screen region is associated with one or more bounding volumes and their statistical models. The associated statistical models of a screen region are evaluated to estimate the rendering cost, such as the probable number of geometric primitives per pixel, for the screen region. Based on the rendering cost, the screen region is assigned to a dense geometry renderer, such as a ray tracing renderer, or a sparse geometry renderer, such as a rasterization renderer. Rendered screen regions are combined to form a rendered image.

The present invention relates to the field of computer graphics. Many computer graphic images are created by mathematically modeling the interaction of light with a three dimensional scene from a given viewpoint. This process, called rendering, generates a two-dimensional image of the scene from the given viewpoint, and is analogous to taking a photograph of a real-world scene. There are many different types of rendering techniques, each with their advantages and disadvantages. Among these rendering techniques are ray tracing and rasterization.
Rasterization typically transforms the geometry of a three-dimensional scene into a coordinate system associated with a specific viewpoint and applies scan conversion to the transformed geometry to create sets of pixels forming all or part of a rendered image. Rasterization techniques typically apply clipping algorithms to determine a subset of the geometry of a scene that are potentially visible from the viewpoint. Then, rasterization techniques scan convert each of the set of potentially visible geometry in a scene to create a rendered image. The computational cost of rasterization techniques depends primarily on the geometric complexity of the scene, such as the number of potentially visible geometric primitives, rather than the number of pixels covered by the scene geometry. For this reason, rasterization techniques are generally used for real-time rendering, as they can render a large number of pixels with minimal additional computational cost. By limiting the geometric complexity of scenes, rasterization can render high-resolution images at frame rates suitable for interactive applications.
Ray tracing typically follows the path of a ray of light through a three dimensional scene to calculate attributes such as the absorption, reflection, and/or refraction of the ray. Typically, ray tracing calculates the attributes of at least one ray for each pixel in the rendered image. However, the computation time for each ray is somewhat independent of the geometric complexity of the three dimensional scene. As a result, the computational cost of ray tracing depends primarily on the number of pixels to be rendered, rather than the complexity of the scene. At typical image resolutions, the computational cost of rendering images using ray tracing is typically much greater than that from rasterization, making real-time ray tracing difficult or impossible with currently available graphics hardware and software.
There is strong demand for improved visual quality and fidelity in real-time computer graphics. To meet this demand, application developers are creating content that includes a larger number of geometric primitives. The increased number of geometric primitives are typically used to represent objects with finer levels of detail. Thus, as geometric complexity of a scene increases, the average size of geometric primitives typically decreases. For example, a character model may have a large number of small (often sub-pixel size) triangles representing each strand of its hair. Unfortunately, rasterization is often inefficient for rendering a large number of geometric primitives, especially when the geometric primitives cover a relatively small number of pixels. In these cases, rendering techniques, such as ray tracing, are often more efficient.
It is therefore desirable for a system and method to efficiently render a large number of geometric primitives by selecting the most appropriate rendering techniques for different portions of the scene to be rendered. It is further desirable that the system and method be capable of dynamically selecting the most appropriate rendering technique for geometric primitives based upon the viewpoint used for rendering and other parameters. It is also desirable for the system and method to incur minimal processing overhead in determining the most appropriate rendering technique to apply to one or more primitives. Additionally, it is desirable to be able to implement all or portions of the system and method in software and/or in dedicated hardware.


A method of displaying the local time of a called party for a portable mobile terminal includes the steps of determining whether a country code and an area code is in an inputted phone number in accordance with an input of the phone number and an input of a call request key by a user, displaying on a display section of the mobile terminal the local time and a country name corresponding to the country code and the area code, if the country code and the area code are in the phone number, and transmitting a call for the inputted phone number when the call request key is input a second time by the user.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable mobile terminal, and more particularly to a method of displaying a local time of a called party for a portable mobile terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, due to the increased popularity of portable mobile terminals, more users are enjoying the convenience of mobile calling. However, the typical ringing sound of a portable mobile terminal when receiving a call may irritate a called party if the call is received at an inconvenient time of day. Functions have been added to portable mobile terminals in an attempt to reduce the possibility of annoyance. A function of this type is referred to as a xe2x80x9ccalling manner functionxe2x80x9d and allows a user to select a mode of call notification. The user selects between a ring mode and a vibration mode in the portable mobile terminal. However, this requires a called party to switch modes regularly to avoid receiving a ring tone at an inconvenient time of day.
A typical scenario would involve calling a party in a foreign country in which it is late in the evening. A calling party may thereby unknowingly irritate a called party by calling at an inconvenient time, while relating the call time to the current time in the calling party""s location.
Therefore, a need exists for a portable mobile terminal that can display the local time of a called party in a foreign country when the user calls the party using the portable mobile terminal, thereby allowing a user to avoid calling the party at an inconvenient time of the day.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of displaying a local time of a called party in a portable mobile terminal.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of displaying a local time of a called party in a foreign country, before connecting the call, which enables a user to recognize that local time and decide whether or not to place the call at that time.
In order to achieve the above objects, a method of displaying a local time of a called party for a portable mobile terminal includes the steps of determining whether a country code and an area code is in an inputted phone number when a call request key is input by a user; displaying on a display of the mobile terminal the local time and a country name corresponding to the country code and the area code when the country code and the area code are in the phone number; and transmitting a call for the inputted phone number when the user inputs the call request key a second time.

Method of displaying a local time of a called party in a portable mobile terminal


Disclosed is a system that uses a window as a microphone as a replacement for keyless entry to a vehicle. The system includes a window which acts as a microphone using a piezoelectric transducer that captures resonance on an outside surface of the vehicle window when pressure waves (e.g., voice commands or taps) impact it. To recognize this sound, a transducer controller amplifies vibrations from the window tap or spoken commands. The system may include a low-power mode that listens for input while the vehicle is off. In a second, high-power mode, the system may detect a tapping event, which may prompt a transition to a wake-up state. The system may associate a number and timing of taps with unique user keys, similar to key selections of numbers on a keypad. The system may also recognize verbal PIN code input using the piezoelectric transducer microphone.

Vehicle users widely appreciate the ability to enter a vehicle using a keypad. They appreciate the convenience of leaving keys inside the vehicle or the ability to enable guests/children to access the vehicle without giving them the keys.
First generation keypads used mechanical buttons, which were bulky, aesthetically unappealing, and susceptible to weather conditions. Current keypads use capacitive technology, which addresses many of these issues. Nevertheless, there is a need for improved keypad entry systems. It is with respect to these and other considerations that the disclosure made herein is presented.

Systems and methods for windows as a microphone keypad entry


A first polysilicon layer (18) is initially deposited onto a layer of field oxide (16). A dielectric (26) is formed on a portion of the first polysilicon layer (18). A second polysilicon layer (28) is deposited over the dielectric (26) and the first polysilicon layer (18). After the selective deposition of a mask (30) on to the second polysilicon layer (28), the polysilicon layers (18, 28) are anistropically etched to form a polysilicon to polysilicon capacitor (34) and a contact (36) of the capacitor (34). The dielectric (26) functions as an insulator for the capacitor (34) and as a barrier during anisotropic etching for protecting the underlying polysilicon layer (18).

CMOS and BiCMOS are rapidly evolving as the premiere technology for integrating highly complex analog-digital subsystems on a single chip. Such single chip subsystems require precision capacitors. Polysilicon to polysilicon capacitors have been increasingly used to provide this necessary precision.
In prior art devices, several double level polysilicon (DLP) processes have often been developed to form the polysilicon to polysilicon capacitors. In particular, the LinEPIC DLP process uses a two-mask approach to define a capacitor bottom plate. The first polysilicon layer is masked and etched separate from the second polysilicon layer. Due to the separate masking and etching steps, this process has been considerably complicated and time consuming. Additionally, the topography that is associated with this DLP process requires an additional step of planarization prior to depositing metal on the appropriate contact points.
A second process known as the 4/3 Linear process uses a single mask approach to define a capacitor bottom plate. The first level of polysilicon serves as both the bottom plate and the CMOS gate. After the interlevel dielectric is formed, the second polysilicon layer is deposited to form the capacitor top plate. In order to eliminate filaments from the bottom plate edges and the CMOS gate edges, a large overetch is required. If there is a negative slope on the bottom plate edge, filaments will be trapped under the bottom plate edge. Since this is a DLP process, the added topography also requires additional planarization prior to metalization.
Therefore, a need has arisen for a simplified method of fabricating polysilicon to polysilicon capacitors used on CMOS and BiCMOS. Additionally, it would be an advantageous to reduce the complications and expenses associated with DLP processes. There is also a need to eliminate filaments from the bottom plate edges and CMOS gate edges without requirement of a large overetch which may cause system failure. Finally, there is a need to eliminate the step of planarization prior to applying metal to the appropriate contacts.

Method for forming a polysilicon to polysilicon capacitor


Disclosed herein are techniques for determining brand safety of a video including image frames and audio content. In some embodiments, frame-level features, scene-level features, and video-level features are extracted by a set of frame-level models, a set of scene-level models, and a set of video-level models, respectively. Outputs from lower level models are used as inputs for higher level models. A brand safety score indicating whether it is safe to associate a brand with the video is determined based on the outputs from the set of video-level models. In some embodiments, commercial content associated with the brand is insert into the video that is determined to be safe for the brand.

Enormous amount of video and image data is generated and shared every day, thanks to the ubiquity of digital cameras and Internet applications such as social networks. Video and image data constitutes a large portion of Internet content. Video is one of the most complex media formats available in the digital age. A video generally includes at least one audio track, some metadata, and thousands of image frames. With the overwhelmingly large amount of video data available, a need to automatically understand such massive amounts of data has risen. For example, some videos may include content that may not be appropriate for certain groups of people, such as content including nudity, violence, extremist, firearms, alcohol, or tobacco, and thus may not be suitable for associating with certain commercial content. By understanding the content of the video, one may determine whether the video is "brand safe" and therefore is suitable for monetizing, such as incorporating commercial content associated with a brand.


An adsorption arrangement in combination with a catalytic hydrocarbon conversion process suspends non-hydrocarbon materials that act to enhance the operation of the conversion zone by using an adsorption zone arrangement to keep the compounds in recirculation about the reaction zone. The process of this invention is particularly useful for the isomerization of hydrocarbons wherein the adsorption zone arrangement operates to maintain chloride compounds in the reaction zone and to prevent contamination of product streams with the chloride compounds. This invention can be used in combination with traditional adsorptive methods of removing contaminant from feedstreams that enter reaction zones. The invention is also useful for sulfided catalysts where it is desirable to maintain sulfur within the reaction zone and keep sulfur contamination from entering product streams.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the catalytic conversion of hydrocarbon containing feed streams in the presence of a beneficial material that is dispersible in a hydrocarbon feed and product stream.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous hydrocarbon conversion processes are widely used to alter the structure or properties of hydrocarbon streams. For example, hydrotreating is a common method for the upgrading of feedstocks by the removal of contaminants such as sulfur. Isomerization processes rearrange the molecular structure from straight chain paraffinic or olefinic hydrocarbons to more highly branched hydrocarbons that generally have a higher octane rating or increased utility as substrates for other conversion processes. Hydrocarbon dehydrogenation processes are well known methods of producing olefinic or aromatic substrates. Additional processes include alkylation, transalkylation, reforming and others. Operating conditions and methods for carrying out these process are well known by those skilled in the art. Well known methods for operating such processes include the adsorptive removal of contaminants from feed streams and the desorption of contaminants into resulting effluents or product fractions. U.S. Pat. No. 4,831,206 describes one such arrangement for the adsorption of sulfur compounds and is hereby incorporated by reference.
Many of these processes share the common feature of using a catalyst in the presence of one or more materials that enhance the effectiveness of the catalyst in the reaction zone. These performance enhancing materials can operate in many ways such as increasing or attenuating catalyst activity, neutralizing catalyst poisons, or solubilizing catalyst or feed contaminants. Such performance enhancement materials may be chemically or physically sorbed on the catalyst or dispersed in the hydrocarbon stream.
Where the hydrocarbon product stream leaving a hydrocarbon conversion zone contains the performance enhancing material or beneficent material, methods are sought for preventing contamination of the hydrocarbon product with the beneficent material and the loss of this beneficent material to the product stream. For example light paraffin dehydrogenation catalysts containing platinum, tin and germanium components have their activity attenuated with sulfur compounds. A description of such catalysts can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,786,625, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. The effluent from the dehydrogenation zone can carry the sulfur compounds into downstream processes and products. Those skilled in the art will recognize a variety of other process where the materials useful in a catalytic conversion zone degrade products or process operations by their exit from the conversion zone into the effluent streams.
Isomerization of hydrocarbons presents another case where contamination of a catalyst promoter material poses concern. Many isomerization processes employ a highly effective chlorided platinum alumina catalyst system in the reaction zone. The chlorided catalyst requires a continual addition of chloride to replace chloride lost from the surface of the catalyst into the product stream. Hydrogen chloride and/or volatile organic chlorides escape from the process with a stabilizer overhead stream and, apart from the loss of chloride, pose environmental concern. In addition to the loss of chlorides and environmental concerns, chloride loss hinders the operation of chloride promoted isomerization zones in other ways. For example, the recycle of hydrogen or hydrocarbons by a zeolitic adsorption process is not practical when a chloride type catalyst is used unless hydrogen chloride is removed from the recycle stream. Hydrogen chloride produced by the addition of chloride to the reaction zone or released from the catalyst composite results in significant amounts of hydrogen chloride leaving the effluent from the isomerization zone. Contact of this hydrogen chloride with the crystalline alumino-silicates in adsorption or conversion zones will decompose the matrix structure of many crystalline alumino-silicates thereby destroying any catalytic or adsorptive function. Therefore, absent chloride neutralization methods, chlorided catalyst systems generally have insufficient compatibility with many zeolitic catalysts or adsorbents to permit simultaneous use.
A broad object of this invention is to recover and recycle materials which act to enhance the operation of catalytic conversion zones when such materials are carried from the conversion zone by a hydrocarbon effluent stream.
A further object of this invention is to improve methods the reaction of hydrocarbon feed streams with chloride promoted catalyst systems by retaining chloride promoter and minimizing chloride contamination of the product.
A yet further object of this invention is to improve methods for dehydrogenating C.sub.3 to C.sub.5 feedstreams that use sulfur compounds in combination with a multi-component catalyst in the reaction zone by minimizing sulfur product contamination.

Hydrocarbon conversion with additive loss prevention


A fuel pump includes a camshaft that rotates in accordance with operation of an engine and a tappet provided in contact the camshaft. An ECU includes an angle determination unit configured to determine whether a rotation angle from a start of rotation of the camshaft when starting the engine is under a predetermined angle required for forming an oil film on a sliding portion of the tappet, and a control unit configured to, when the rotation angle from the start of rotation of the camshaft is determined to be under the predetermined angle, execute a limit process including at least one of limiting a fuel discharge pressure of the fuel pump or limiting a rotation of the camshaft.

Conventionally, as a fuel injection system, a system is used in which high pressure fuel discharged from a fuel pump is stored in a common rail, and the high pressure fuel in the common rail is injected into a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine by a fuel injection valve. Further, in such a fuel injection system, lubricating oil forms an oil film on a sliding portion of a tappet in the fuel pump, and the oil film prevents damage such as those caused by seizure or galling.

Fuel injection system and controller for fuel injection system


An R.F. antenna switch (102) for coupling either a high-loss port (112) or a low-loss port (114) to a common port (110) includes an unequal power splitter (104) with the high-loss port (112), the low-loss port (114), and the common port (110). The unequal power splitter (104) further has at least one high-loss path (120) coupled between the common port (110) and the high-loss port (112) and a low-loss path (122) coupled between the common port (110) and the low-loss port (114). The R.F. antenna switch (102) further comprises a switching element (106) having an input (106A) coupled to the low-loss port (114) and an output (10B) coupled to a terminating element (108). The low-loss port (114) is terminated with the characteristic impedance of the unequal power splitter (104) when the switching element (106) is switched on.

1. Technical Field
The invention relates to the field of radio frequency (R.F.) circuits and more particularly to an R.F. antenna switch.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
R.F. switches are commonly used in R.F. applications such as R.F. transceivers known from WO 88/00760. WO 88/00760 concerns R.F. transceivers having an R.F. antenna switch for switching an antenna path and an R.F. local oscillator switch for switching a local oscillator signal path.
The R.F. antenna switch is used to route a common antenna path to either a receiver block or a transmitter block of the R.F. transceiver. The antenna switch essentially consists of two PIN diode switching elements and a one-quarter wavelength transmission line. When the two PIN diodes are switched on, a transmitter port is connected to an antenna port through the first PIN diode and a receiver port is connected to ground through the second PIN diode. When the two PIN diodes are switched off, the transmitter port is disconnected from the antenna port and the receiver port is connected to the antenna port through the transmission line.
The R.F. local oscillator switch according to WO 88/00760 is used to route the local oscillator signal to either a mixer of the receiver block or to an exciter of the transmitter block. The local oscillator switch essentially consists of two PIN diode switching elements and an unequal power splitter in the form of a directional coupler.
The directional coupler has a primary line and a coupled line. Due to the small overall insertion loss of the primary line a receiver signal can be coupled from an input port of the primary line to an output port of the primary line with hardly any losses (low-loss path). Due to a relatively low coupling factor, however, the local oscillator signal transmitted from an input port of the coupled line to the output port of the primary line is strongly attenuated (high-loss path).
The input port of the primary line is connected to the output of a receiver front end circuit and the output port of the primary line is connected to the mixer. The input port of the coupled line is connected to both a local oscillator and an input of a first PIN diode. An output of the first PIN diode is coupled to the exciter. An output port of the coupled line is connected to both an output of a second PIN diode and a terminating element allowing termination of the output port of the coupled line with the characteristic impedance of the coupled line.
When the two PIN diodes are switched on, the output port of the coupled line is shorted and the one-quarter wavelength coupled line has an infinite impedance at the input port of the coupled line. Consequently, the local oscillator signal is routed through the second PIN diode to the exciter. When the two PIN diodes are switched off, the output port of the coupled line is terminated in its characteristic impedance. The local oscillator signal can then be routed through the coupled line and a portion of it is thus transmitted to the output port of the primary line.
The R.F. local oscillator switch according to WO 88/00760 consists of two PIN diodes and a plurality of passive components. However, the plurality of PIN diodes and passive components limits the degree to which the R.F. local oscillator switch can be miniaturized and increases the overall cost of the switch.
The R.F. local oscillator switch, which is used in addition to the above described R.F. antenna switch, is part of a mixer stage allowing to combine two signals. The R.F. local oscillator switch is thus not suited as an R.F. antenna switch for routing either one of two antenna signals to a common port or for routing an antenna signal from the common port to either one of a high-loss port and a low-loss port.
A further R.F. antenna switch is known from WO 97/23929. This R.F. antenna switch is configured as a mechanical component and arranged within a housing of a coaxial accessory connector. A standard antenna is mounted in a top port of the coaxial accessory connector. A radial port in the coaxial accessory connector can be coupled to a further antenna which activates the R.F. switch to disengage from the standard antenna contact and to engage a contact in the radial port. In this way, the R.F. signal is conducted to the further antenna, rather than to the standard antenna. When the R.F. switch is not activated by the further antenna, the R.F. signal is carried through the coaxial accessory connector to the standard antenna.
There is a need for an R.F. antenna switch which has a simple construction and which allows a higher degree of integration. There is also a need for a preferred use of such an R.F. antenna switch and for an R.F. device incorporating such an R.F. antenna switch.
The present invention satisfies these needs by providing an R.F. antenna switch for coupling a common port to either a high-loss port or a low-loss port, the R.F. antenna switch having an unequal power splitter with at least the common port, the high-loss port and the low-loss port. The unequal power splitter further comprises a high-loss path coupled between the common port and the high-loss port and a low-loss path coupled between the common port and the low-loss port. A switching element of the R.F. antenna switch has an input coupled to the low-loss port and an output coupled to a first terminating element. The low-loss port is terminated with the characteristic impedance of the low-loss path when the switching element is switched on.
When the switching element is switched on, the low-loss port has a non-reflecting, i.e., absorbing characteristic. The impedance of the terminating element is, therefore, preferably chosen such that the total impedance of all components coupled to the low-loss port including the impedance of the terminating element equals the characteristic impedance of the low-loss path.
The R.F. antenna switch according to the invention can be realized with only one switching element and few passive components. This not only reduces the cost of the R.F. antenna switch but also allows a higher degree of integration and further miniaturization of the R.F. antenna switch.
Moreover, unequal power splitters comprising e.g. transmission line structures can be realized with ceramic multi-layer technology in an efficient way. Any additional components of the R.F. antenna switch like the switching element or terminating elements can remain discrete components which may be placed on top of the ceramic multi-layer substrate as already practised for state of the art transmitter/receiver-switch modules. Filter structures can advantageously be realized on the same ceramic multi-layer substrate as the R.F. antenna switch. This enables further integration and cost reduction.
The R.F. antenna switch according to the invention can advantageously be used in many technical fields and above all in all kinds of transmitting and receiving applications like positioning system receivers adapted to a standard taken from the group consisting of GPS, GLONASS, BAAS, etc or mobile phones adapted to a standard taken from the group consisting of GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900, AMPS, PDC, CDMA, WCDMA, DAMPS, etc.
The R.F. antenna switch according to the invention enables to couple either a low-loss port or a high-loss port to a common port. Thus, the R.F. antenna switch allows to couple either a signal applied to the low-loss port or a signal applied to the high-loss port to the common port or to couple a signal applied to the common port either to the low-low port or the high-loss port. Preferably, the R.F. antenna switch is switched by means of changing the impedances at the individual ports of the R.F. antenna switch. Therefore, In order to couple the signal via a specific port, this specific port can be terminated with a characteristic impedance. On the other hand, in order to block a signal from being transmitted via the specific port, the specific port can be terminated with an impedance mismatch. The impedance mismatch is e.g. created by simply switching off an electrical component, like an amplifier stage coupled to the specific port, or by physically disconnecting an electrical component like an antenna coupled to the specific port.
According to a first embodiment, the R.F. antenna switch is used as an antenna switch for coupling the common port to either a first antenna connected to the low-loss port or a second antenna connected to the high-loss port. According to a second embodiment, the R.F. antenna switch is used for coupling either the low-loss port or the high-loss port to an antenna which is connected to the common port. Due to the high signal attenuation of the high-loss path, in both embodiments an active antenna can be coupled to the high-loss port.
The R.F. antenna switch of the invention may have a plurality of high-loss paths and low-loss paths. An R.F. antenna switch having such a plurality of signal paths can advantageously switch between more than two R.F. signals. Thus, novel applications of the R.F. antenna switch of the invention become feasible.
According to a preferred embodiment, the unequal power splitter is a directional coupler with a primary line and a coupled line. The common port and the low-loss port of the directional coupler are coupled to opposite ends of the primary line and the high-loss port of the directional coupler is coupled to one of the coupled lines.
In the directional coupler, microwave power propagating on the coupled line couples uni-directionally to the primary line causing microwave power to appear on it. However, due to low coupling factors only a small portion of the microwave power propagating on the coupled line is transmitted to the primary line and the remaining power continues to propagate on the coupled line. Because of the small amount of microwave power transmitted from the high-loss port of the coupled line to the common port of the primary line or vice versa, this signal path is known as high-loss path. On the other hand, due to comparatively low insertion losses between the common port and the low-loss port which connect the opposing ends of the primary line, this signal path is known as low-loss path.
The primary line and the coupled line can be realized as two closely spaced microstrip transmission lines. Each of the transmission lines preferably has a length corresponding to approximately one-quarter of the signal wavelength. Instead of transmission line structures the directional coupler may also comprise corresponding lumped component equivalents.
The directional coupler can have a isolated port arranged on an opposite end of the coupled line with regard to the high-loss port. This isolated port coupled to one end of the coupled line is preferably coupled to a further terminating element which terminates the isolated port with the characteristic impedance of the coupled line. Therefore, the isolated port has a non-reflecting characteristic for any signals or signal components propagating on the coupled line.
The isolated port coupled to the coupled line and the low-loss port coupled to the primary line can electrically be arranged on opposite sides of the directional coupler with respect to the coupling direction. This arrangement of the low-loss port and the isolated port ensures that in case of uni-directional couplers the isolated port absorbs any signal components input through the low-loss port and transmitted by the directional coupler to the isolated port. With regard to the physical arrangement of the isolated port and the low-loss port, these ports may be arranged either on the same side or on opposite sides of the directional coupler.
According to one embodiment, the R.F. antenna switch further comprises a control circuit for controlling the switching element. The switching element can be e.g. a switching transistor, a varactor diode or a PIN diode.
The control circuit may consist of one or more components and can be coupled to the switching element in many ways. The control circuit is preferably coupled to the common port or the low-loss port of the unequal power splitter.
The control circuit may have a control input terminal for inputting a control signal like a control voltage. By means of the control signal the switching element can be switched between an on position and an off position. Moreover, the control circuit may have a low-pass filter coupled between the control input terminal and the switching element. The low-pass filter ensures that R.F. signals cannot leak through the control circuit.
In many cases it is advantageous to have a supply circuit for supplying a voltage or a current to e.g. an active component which is also coupled to the coupled line. This active component can be an active antenna, an amplifier stage or a signal generator. The supply circuit is coupled to the coupled line of the directional coupler. Preferably, the supply circuit is coupled to the high-loss port or the isolated port of the directional coupler. The supply circuit can further have a supply input terminal for inputting the supply voltage. The supply circuit may also have a low-pass filter coupled between the supply input terminal and either the high-loss port or the isolated port of the directional coupler. The low-pass filter prevents R.F. signals from leaking through the supply circuit.
When the R.F. antenna switch according to the invention is implemented in an R.F. device like a mobile phone for at least one of sending and receiving an R.F. signal, this R.F. device may further comprise one or more external antenna connectors for connecting external antennas to the R.F. antenna switch. The external antenna connectors can e.g. be coupled to at least one of the high-loss port, the low-loss port and the common port of the unequal power splitter. The R.F. device can also comprise one or more antennas. These antennas are preferably either external antennas coupled to at least one of the external antenna connectors of the R.F. antenna switch or internal antennas coupled to at least one of the high-loss port, the low-loss port and the common port of the unequal power splitter. According to a preferred embodiment, the antennas of the R.F. device are designed as mobile phone antennas or positioning system antennas.
The antenna which is coupled directly, or via the external antenna connector, to the high-loss port of the unequal power splitter is preferably an active antenna or an antenna providing high gain. This is advantageous since the high-loss port of the unequal power splitter is coupled to the high-loss path so that the microwave power propagating on the high-loss path from or to the antenna is strongly attenuated.

R.F. antenna switch for use with internal and external antennas


A server load test system, device, and method for generating an artificial load and evaluating the performance of a web server. The load test system configured to generate a pool of synthetic clients and direct each synthetic client to request resources from the web server.

The present invention relates generally to data transmission on computer networks, and more particularly to a server load testing and measurement system.
The World Wide Web (Web) has proliferated over the past decade, to become an essential tool in modern communication and commerce. The number of users accessing the Web, as well as the content available on the Web, have grown exponentially. With this growth, performance demands placed upon Web servers has increased, and now manufacturers strive to develop faster web servers. Unfortunately, test equipment technology lags far behind current web server technology, such that manufacturers are unable to accurately test and measure the performance of their web servers.
Prior efforts to generate synthetic HTTP client traffic for measuring server performance have suffered from the problem that as the testing tool application attempts to increase the request generation rate, the server may become overloaded and unintentionally slow the request generation rate. This problem, explained in more detail below, is referred to as request generation throttling, and leads to inaccurate test results, thereby slowing the development of faster web server technology.
It would be desirable to provide a server load test system that does not experience request throttling, and which allows a user to simulate easily real-world request load.
A server load test system, device, and method for generating an artificial load on a web server and evaluating the performance of the Web server. The method typically includes the steps of generating a pool of more than about 1000 synthetic clients, and directing each synthetic client to request web resources from the web server.
According to another aspect of the invention, the method may also include generating a pool of synthetic clients, and establishing groups of clients within the pool of synthetic clients. Each group of clients is typically configured to simulate a user-specified performance parameter, such as connection bandwidth, packet loss rate, delay, Qsize, weighting, network interface, netmask, etc.
The system may include a load testing tool application having a request generator configured to generate a plurality of synthetic clients, each client being configured to send HTTP requests to the web server via a network. The request generator is typically configured to generate more than about 1000 synthetic clients simultaneously connected to the web server.
According to another aspect of the invention, the system also may include a request generator configured to generate a pool of synthetic clients, each client being configured to send HTTP requests to the web server. The system may further include a group configuration interface configured to enable a user to specify a performance parameter for each of a plurality of groups of synthetic clients within the pool of synthetic clients.
According to another aspect of the invention, the system may include request generator configured to generate a pool of synthetic clients, each client being configured to send HTTP requests to the web server. The system may further include a scenario generator configured to generate a scenario of web resources that the synthetic clients are to request. The scenario generator typically is configured to generate the scenario based on log data from the web server.

Server load testing and measurement system


A method and apparatus manages data and reads code from a nonvolatile writeable memory. In a nonvolatile writeable system, interrupts are disabled. A non-read operation is initiated in the nonvolatile writeable memory. A check for whether an interrupt has occurred is performed. If an interrupt has occurred, then the non-read operation in the nonvolatile writeable memory is suspended. Interrupts are enabled, and code is read from the nonvolatile writeable memory. Non-read operations may include program operations and erase operations.

One type of prior art nonvolatile writeable memory is a flash device. A typical flash device has the same array configuration as a standard Electrically Programmable Read-Only Memory ("EPROM") and can be programmed in a similar fashion as an EPROM. Once programmed, either the entire contents of the flash device or a block of the flash device can be erased by electrical erasure in one relatively rapid operation. An erasing voltage is made available to the sources of all the cells in the flash device or in one block of the flash device. This results in a full array erasure or a block erasure. The flash device or the erased block of the flash device may then be reprogrammed with new data.
Flash devices may be read, programmed (or written), and erased. For a prior art flash device, a program operation to write a byte of data typically takes on the order of 10 microseconds. Because, however, there is some margin required for guaranteeing that the program operation has properly completed, a maximum program time is specified by the flash device manufacturer. Thus, while the typical program operation may take 10 microseconds, the system may need to wait a maximum program operation time of 100 microseconds in order to guarantee that the program operation performed correctly.
Similarly, for a prior art flash device, an erase operation may take from 300-600 milliseconds in order to erase a 8 kilobyte block of data. However, the flash device may require up to a maximum erase operation time of 3 seconds in order to guarantee that the erase operation of the entire block of data has performed correctly.
Because the erase operation has such a long latency time, a prior art flash device includes an erase suspend command. When an erase suspend command is written to the flash device, the flash device suspends the erase operation that is being performed. Other operations may then be performed on the flash device. Subsequently, when an erase resume command is written to the flash device, the flash device resumes the erase operation from where it was suspended. An implementation of the erase suspend circuitry is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,464, entitled "Circuitry And Method For Suspending The Automated Erasure Of A Non-Volatile Semiconductor Memory," by Fandrich et al., and issued to the common assignee of this application.
FIG. 1 shows a prior art representation of a system comprising a processor 100, a volatile memory 102, and a flash device 104 coupled together via a bus 108. The volatile memory 102 and the flash device 104, however, could be coupled to the processor 100, via separate buses. The flash device includes a memory array for storing both code and data, wherein the code is executable by the processor.
A problem occurs in this configuration when an interrupt causes the processor 100 to autovector, i.e., automatically vector execution in response to the interrupt, to an interrupt handler located within the flash device or normal code execution attempts to execute from the flash. A typical flash device has at least two modes--a read mode and a status mode in addition to other modes. In one prior art flash device, the flash device transitions into status mode automatically when a program or an erase operation is performed. The flash device remains in status mode until the flash device finishes its non-read operation. If a read is performed during this time, status of the flash device is returned indicating whether the non-read operation has completed. In order to subsequently read data (or code) from the flash device, the flash device is changed back to its read mode by writing to a register within the flash device. Thus, if an interrupt causes the processor to read from the flash device while the flash device is still in status mode, the processor will not read the code that it is expecting--it will instead read status. (In the following discussion, "code" is used to denote bits which are executable by a processor, and "data" is used to denote bits which are not executable by a processor.)
One solution is to shadow, or copy, the code from the flash device to the volatile memory, which is typically either dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or static random access memory (SRAM). After the code is shadowed in the volatile memory, if the flash device is performing a program operation and the processor generates a code fetch request due to an interrupt, for example, then the processor can satisfy the code fetch request by reading the requested code from the volatile memory 102. The processor does not need to wait for the flash device 104 to finish its program operation in order to perform the code fetch.
This scheme, however, may be expensive if the size of the code stored in the flash device is large, since the DRAM/SRAM would need to be large enough to store the entire code block in order to overcome the program operation latency. This scheme also requires the microprocessor to have a capability to "re-vector" its interrupts to RAM. Most microprocessors do not have this capability.
FIG. 2 shows an example of a prior art system which utilizes a fixed hardware partition 110 within the flash device 104 to separate the code from the data. Extra circuitry is added to the flash device to allow only a data section to enter status mode while a code section remains in read mode. Atypical approach is to partition the memory on a block boundary and then duplicate memory array row and column decoders, and charge pump circuits. The duplicate circuitry is needed to segment the standard memory array into separate physical partitions which can be sensed separately. Thus, when the data partition status is busy (e.g., array cells are being programmed or erased), the code partition has row/column decode circuitry available for reading.
However, the extra circuitry is expensive and increases the die size of the flash device. Additionally, the fixed sizes of the data section and the code section created by the hardware partition 110 restrict the flexibility of usage of the flash device.

Apparatus and method for suspending operation to read code in a nonvolatile writable semiconductor memory


A document exchange based on user-definable validation rules provided by the exchanging parties. In one embodiment, an uploader uploads a document from a first computer, the upload being associated with a first member account registered with a network site. A user interface receives a delivery destination for the document from the first computer, the delivery destination being associated with a second member account registered with the network site. A content validator validates content of the document based on rules registered at the network site in connection with the second member account. An output adaptor determines a document delivery format registered at the network site in connection with the second member account. A delivery component delivers the document in the determined format to a second computer associated with the second member account.

The seemingly simple notion of exchanging business documents among business partners can become quite a complicated task in practice. An example of this may be found in the telecommunications industry. As a result of deregulation, communication service providers (e.g., telecommunication carriers) interconnect with other carriers when it is not possible to complete an end-to-end call entirely on a single carrier's network in the most efficient way. For instance, a call may originate within carrier A's network and terminate on carrier B's network. Alternatively, in a more complicated scenario, a call may originate on carrier A's network, transmit through carrier B's network, and then terminate on carrier C's network. In the latter case, carrier A must interconnect with carrier B and carrier B must interconnect with carrier C. These routing options force carriers to establish and manage multiple interconnect agreements in order to optimize the use of their networks, reduce costs, and increase margins.
Such contracts, invoices and other business documents related to network services are primarily transferred among carriers via fax, email (as attachments) and postal mail. These documents are then interpreted and the key data extracted and entered manually into various systems to support upstream business processes. When operating in an intensely competitive and dynamic environment that is characterized by declining prices and shrinking margins, providers such as interconnect carriers devote valuable time and resources to managing the exchange of business documents that could otherwise be spent on optimizing network operations and focusing on other important business goals.

System and method for user-definable document exchange


A substrate processing apparatus that simultaneously forms thin films on a plurality of substrates and performs heat treatment includes: a plurality of substrate holders, each including a substrate support that supports a substrate and a first gas pipe having one or a plurality of injection holes; a boat where the plurality of substrate holders are stacked and including a second gas pipe connected with the first gas pipe of each of the substrate holders; a process chamber providing a space in which the substrates stacked in the boat are processed; a conveying unit that carries the boat into/out of the process chamber; a first heating unit disposed outside the process chamber; and a gas supply unit including a third gas pipe connected with the second gas pipe and supplying a heated or cooled gas into the second gas pipe.

1. Field
The described technology relates generally to a substrate processing apparatus that simultaneously forms thin films or applies heat treatment to a plurality of substrates, and more particularly, to a substrate processing apparatus that can uniformly process a plurality of substrates by uniformly heating the substrates stacked on a boat disposed in a processing chamber.
2. Description of the Related Art
Flat panel displays have replaced cathode ray tube displays, due to superior characteristics, including light weight and small size. Typical examples of flat panel displays are liquid crystal displays (LCD) and organic light emitting diode (OLED) displays. Organic light emitting diode displays have excellent luminescence characteristics and viewing angle characteristics, as compared with liquid crystal displays (LCD) and do not need a backlight, such that they can be implemented in very small sizes.
The organic light emitting diode display generates light having a specific wavelength by energy from excitons produced by recombination of electrons injected from the cathode to an organic thin film and holes injected from the anode. Organic light emitting displays are classified into a passive matrix type and an active matrix type in accordance with the operation method, in which the active matrix type includes a circuit using a thin film transistor (TFT).
The flat panel displays are manufactured by forming a thin film with a predetermined pattern, which has electrical properties, from an organic substance or an inorganic substance on a substrate or performing heat treatment on the formed thin film. Methods of forming the thin film include physical vapor deposition (PVD), in which sputtering is used to apply and deposit plasma on a target and chemical vapor deposition (CVD), in which a reaction gas containing a source material is ejected onto a substrate, chemically forming a film on the substrate. Further, the chemical vapor deposition method is divided by the deposition type into low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD), plasma chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), and atomic layer deposition (ALD), which forms a source material in an atomic layer unit. The atomic layer deposition (ALD) method provides good uniformity of a thin film and step coverage, as compared with the physical vapor deposition method, such that it is increasingly used in the semiconductor process.
The chemical vapor deposition method uses batch type equipment that puts a plurality of substrates into a deposition chamber at one time and simultaneously forms thin films on the substrates, because the forming speed of a thin film is low when plasma is not used.
In general, substrate processing apparatuses that simultaneously form thin films on a plurality of substrates and perform heat treatment using the lower pressure chemical vapor deposition or the atomic layer deposition include a process chamber providing a space for processing, a boat including a plurality of stacked substrates, a heating unit disposed outside the process chamber, and a conveying unit that carries the boat into/out of the process chamber. In this configuration, the substrate processing apparatuses may further include substrate holders that are seated on the substrates and stacked in the boat, in order to prevent the substrates stacked in the boat from sagging.
In the substrate processing apparatuses, since the inside of the process chamber is heated by the heating unit at the outside of the process chamber and since a large process chamber is needed to accommodate the boat with stacked substrates, it is difficult to uniformly heat the inside of the process chamber only with the heating unit at the outside of the process chamber. Therefore, the portions stacked in the boat, particularly, the center portion and the edges are heated at different temperatures in the substrate, the time for performing heat treatment to the substrates increases, non-uniformity occurs in the formed film due to the non-uniform temperature distribution and non-uniformity occurs in the device characteristics due to differences in the heat treatment temperature. If temperature non-uniformity is excessive, substrate warpage may occur, such that following processes are impossible.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the described technology and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.


Methods and systems for efficiently determining a similarity between two or more datasets. In one embodiment, the similarity is determined based on comparing a subset of sorted frequency-weighted blocks from one dataset to a subset of sorted frequency-weighed blocks from another dataset. Data blocks of a dataset are converted into hash values that are frequency-weighted. These frequency-weighted hash values can be compared to frequency-weighted hash values of another dataset to determine a similarity of the two datasets. In another embodiment, upon a change of a block in a subset of the dataset, the similarity value is re-determined without resorting or hashing the blocks of a dataset other than the blocks of the subset, resulting in an increased performance of a similarity comparison. In another embodiment, blocks of a dataset are excluded based on a block-filtering rule to increase the accuracy of the similarity comparison.

The exponential growth of digital information, credited to faster processors, lower cost of digital data storage, increasing availability of high data rate access, and development of new applications has increased the demand for computer storage. This increased dependence on computer data and data storage creates a need for more efficient data analysis technology.
With the increasing availability of low-cost, high-volume data storage devices, an increasing amount of data can be stored on an individual logical storage device, such as a physical disk drive, tape drive, or optical drive. Consumer hard drives, for example, have recently exceeded a terabyte of data storage capacity to meet the increasing demands for electronic storage. However, efficiently managing large amounts of data is burdensome and costly.
Technologies, such as de-duplication, have attempted to address some of the burden of managing large amounts of data by eliminating redundant data to improve storage utilization. In the de-duplication process, duplicate data on a logical storage device is deleted, leaving only one copy of the data, along with references to that one copy of the data. De-duplication is able to reduce the required storage capacity since only the unique data is stored. Each subsequent instance of duplicated data is simply referenced back to the one saved copy.
To maximize the benefits of de-duplication, it is advantageous to aggregate, to a single logical storage device, data files having maximum similarity to one another. However, it is time-consuming, and computationally intensive to compare each data block of one file, for example, to each data block of another file to determine the similarity between the two files. The computational complexity is further increased with larger files that may be associated with a Virtual Machine (VM).
A VM is normally represented as a set of files, including one or more configuration files and one or more disk image files. A configuration file stores configuration (settings) of the virtual machine. A virtual machine disk image file represents the operating system and data contained within the virtual machine and itself typically includes numerous individual files. A single VM disk image file can exceed several gigabytes of storage space, and a single logical storage device can contain numerous VMs, up to the capacity of the storage device.
Previous efforts to determine similarity between files relied on a "brute force" method. The brute force method utilizes set similarity based on determining both an intersection and union of all data blocks of each file undergoing comparison. For example, to determine similarity between VM 'A' and VM 'B', the following "brute force" equation has been utilized: S(A,B)=|A∩B|/|A∪B|, where 'A' is the set of data blocks (or corresponding hash values) of VM 'A', 'B' is the set of data blocks (or corresponding hash values) of VM 'B', '∩' is the intersection operator, and '∪' is the union operator. However, this technique is time consuming and processor intensive, especially for larger files because every block of the file is processed.
Other techniques utilize a Broder equation to attempt to offset the brute force method, by comparing only a subset of sorted data blocks of the files being compared. This technique avoids some of the issues of the brute force method by limiting the determination of the intersection of data blocks of the files to a predetermined number (k) of data blocks and eliminating the determination of the union of all data blocks of each file being compared.
One limitation with the Broder technique of computing file similarity is its inability to efficiently re-compute the similarity of two files previously compared. Re-computing files' similarity is appropriate after data blocks on one or both of the files change. A change can occur after an existing block is removed or modified, or a new block is created in the file. Previous techniques lacked the ability to incrementally adjust the previously computed data similarity without re-computing the Broder equation, which involves at least resorting all of the data blocks of the files and introduces the problems associated with the brute force method.
Another problem with the Broder technique is that it introduces variance in the accuracy of the similarity comparison. Under the Broder technique, accuracy of the similarity comparison is a function of the number (k) of sorted data blocks utilized in the similarity comparison. The lower the number (k), the less accurate the similarity comparison will be. The higher number (k) of sorted data blocks, the greater the accuracy of the similarity comparison will be. However, increasing the number (k) results in the original problem of the "brute force" method where the computational complexity and time commitment exceeded the usefulness of computing the similarity.
Therefore, the problems of computational complexity, high time-commitments, and poor accuracy when incrementally determining a similarity comparison of large files thus far has not been addressed and hinders current efforts to efficiently utilize data storage devices to manage and organize electronic information.

Methods and apparatus for incrementally computing similarity of data sources


To reduce power consumption of a mobile station, this invention provides a wireless communication method for communicating between a base station and a plurality of terminals using a plurality of channels, the channels being slots obtained by dividing frequency-divided carriers by time, in which the base station allocates a set of the channels which is composed of a plurality of neighboring carriers and/or a plurality of successive slots for the each terminal, and the base station allocates at least one of the channels included in the channel sets for packet transmission the terminals.

This invention relates to a mobile wireless communication system including a wireless base station and wireless communication terminals, and more particularly to a technique for packet scheduling.
In the downlink communication (from a base station to a mobile station) in the cdma2000 1x-EV DO system, the base station divides time into units (slots) of 1/600 second, and the base station communicates only with a single mobile station in one slot (channel) at a certain frequency and switches the communicating station for each channel to communicate with a plurality of mobile stations.
Mobile stations receive pilot signals from the base station, estimate channel states from the pilot signals, and send the results of channel state estimation (channel state information) to the base station. The base station determines, on the basis of the received channel state information, to which mobile station the next channel should be allocated for packet transmission. The allocation of channels is called packet scheduling. The packet scheduling will be described referring to FIG. 30.
FIG. 30 shows a conventional channel schedule table, where the vertical axis shows time and the horizontal axis shows frequency. The frequency band is divided into carriers F1 to F4 and a certain length of time is divided into slots S1 to S8, so as to form time- and frequency-divided channels.
A mobile station A determines which of the carriers F1 to F4 it should use for communication. Specifically, the mobile station A monitors a reference first carrier stored in SRAM of the mobile station A and judges from broadcast information whether the first carrier is filled up by other mobile stations. When the first carrier is not filled, the mobile station A sends its own control information to the base station to register its position.
On the other hand, when the first carrier is filled up, the mobile station A monitors another, second carrier. Similarly, when the second carrier is filled, the mobile station A monitors a third carrier, so as to determine which carrier to use for communication.
In this example, the mobile station A determines to communicate on the carrier F1. Then, the mobile station A estimates channel states of the individual slots S1 to S8 of the carrier F1 and sends the channel state information to the base station. As stated earlier, the base station allocates channels on the basis of the channel state information from each mobile station. As for the mobile station A, the base station judges that the channel state of the slot S3 is good and allocates (schedules) the channel of the slot S3 of the carrier F1 for the mobile station A.
The mobile station A may communicate using a plurality of carriers. For example, JP 2003-9240 A describes a technique in which a mobile station A communicates using a plurality of carriers. The technique will be described referring to FIG. 31.
FIG. 31 shows a conventional channel schedule table, where the vertical axis shows time and the horizontal axis shows frequency.
The base station communicates with a plurality of mobile stations using carriers F1 to F8. Here, the base station and the mobile station A communicate at a low rate.
First, the base station determines to allocate three carriers to the mobile station A for communication. The base station may allocate the plurality of carriers F1, F4, and F8 to the mobile station A so that the frequency differences between the allocated carriers exceed a predetermined value. After that, the base station sends packets to the mobile station A using the carrier F1, the carrier F4, and the carrier F8. In this case, the mobile station A sends, to the base station, channel state information for each of the slots S1 to S8 on the carriers F1, F4, and F8. The base station performs scheduling on the basis of the channel state information from each mobile station. The base station judges that the channel states of the channel of the slot S3 of the carrier F1, the channel of the slot S4 of the carrier F4, and the channel of the slot S7 of the carrier F8 are good and schedules these channels for the mobile station A. The base station then sends packets to the mobile station A over the scheduled channels.

Wireless communication method with packet scheduling


A vehicle system includes a motor, a first device connected to the motor and configured to supply the motor with power, a fuel cell connected to the first device and configured to charge the first device, a second device connected to the fuel cell, a first converter interposed between the fuel cell and the first device and configured to adjust a voltage from one of the fuel cell or the first device and to supply power to the other, a second converter interposed between the fuel cell and the second device and configured to adjust a voltage from the second device and to apply the adjusted voltage to the fuel cell, and a third converter interposed between the first device and the second device and configured to adjust a voltage from one of the first device or the second device and to supply power to the other.

A solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is expected to function as a fuel cell to be installed on a vehicle from viewpoints such as high efficiency and long-time stability. A configuration with the solid oxide fuel cell installed on the vehicle is such that a high voltage battery for motor driving is charged with generated power, and power generation is stopped when the charging is finished. In a solid oxide fuel cell, a protection voltage for protecting an anode electrode is required to be applied from outside to the fuel cell for implementation of stop control (see Japanese Translation of PCT Application Publication No. 2014-523081). In the vehicle, the foregoing high voltage battery or a low voltage battery for driving an auxiliary machine of the vehicle, etc. may be used as a power supply for the protection voltage.

Electrical vehicle system with converters to share power between fuel, cell, high voltage battery and low voltage battery


The present invention utilizes agents embedded in content delivered to clients across a network to provide client-side security for the data delivered to a client. These embedded agents provide application-specific protection for the delivered content in which they are embedded and eliminate the need for using plug-ins for security functions. Different agents, e.g. programs such as Java applets, are configured having a variety of different client or application specific protection mechanisms, and the agents are dynamically configured, e.g. selected, in accordance with the application, the client to be protected or other environment criteria. Once the agent has been appropriately configured, the agent is embedded in the content, and the content is delivered to the client. Once delivered, the embedded agent is uploaded to the client and executed, providing the configured security protection at the client side for the content in which it was embedded.

As the complexity and use of web applications increases, there is an increasing need for software systems that can handle this increased level of complexity and that can facilitate the construction of integrated enterprise systems. Software systems have been developed that take advantage of agent technology to handle this increased complexity and the integration of enterprise systems. In general, agent technology utilizes agents, which are extremely high level software abstractions that provide a convenient and powerful way to describe a complex software entity and to build solutions such as integrated enterprise solutions. Agents define complex entities in terms of the behaviors associated with those entities; therefore, solutions can be constructed by simply identifying the desired behaviors. Systems constructed using agent technology can be used to perform a variety of tasks autonomously.
Traditionally, the development of agents and related technologies focused on creating systems for conducting tasks such as searching, mining, comparing, negotiating, learning and collaborating. Systems directed to security and to the protection of data in network settings have not been developed. In fact, very little development effort has been devoted to autonomic data protection systems. Data protection systems are particularly important in protecting data content once the data have been delivered from a server to a client across a network.
A minimum level of protection is afforded to the data in the network by disconnecting and logging users out of the network after a pre-determined period of non-activity on the part of a user. By closing user connections into the network and the associated access to network data, access to data across the network by unauthorized third parties is inhibited. Even though the portal into the network is closed, data, including sensitive and proprietary information, that have already been delivered to a client from the network can still be accessed by unauthorized third parties at the client. Network access is not required to access data that are resident on a user's computer. Therefore, user equipment associated with a network client that is left unattended presents an opportunity for unauthorized access to data. Network interfaces, for example web browsers, do contain tools, i.e. plug-ins, that offer limited, pre-defined and generalized protection functionalities. However, the level of protection afforded by these tools is generally low, and the tools lack the flexibility necessary to configure themselves dynamically to meet individualized needs.
Therefore, systems and methods are needed to protect data delivered and stored at a client beyond what a typical network interface or browser provides. The protection systems would eliminate the need for using either existing tools or plug-ins or other additional or proprietary plug-ins to provide the desired protection and security for data delivered to clients in the network. The systems would be flexible and customizable to the particular application in which they are deployed.

Approach to provide self-protection function to web content at client side

International Business Machines Corporation


A method for the fracking or stimulation of a hydrocarbon-bearing formation, said method comprising the steps of: providing a wellbore in need of stimulation; inserting a plug in the wellbore at a predetermined location; inserting a perforating tool and a spearhead or breakdown acid into the wellbore; positioning the tool at said predetermined location; perforating the wellbore with the tool thereby creating a perforated area; allowing the spearhead acid to come into contact with the perforated area for a predetermined period of time sufficient to prepare the formation for fracking or stimulation; removing the tool from the wellbore; and initiating the fracking of the perforated area using a fracking fluid. Also disclosed is a corrosion inhibiting composition for use with the acid composition.

In the oil & gas industry, stimulation with an acid is performed on a well to increase or restore production. In some instances, a well initially exhibits low permeability, and stimulation is employed to commence production from the reservoir. In other instances, stimulation or remediation is used to further encourage permeability and flow from an already existing well that has become under-productive due to scaling issues or formation depletion.
Acidizing is a type of stimulation treatment which is performed above or below the reservoir fracture pressure in an effort to initiate, restore or increase the natural permeability of the reservoir. Acidizing is achieved by pumping acid, predominantly hydrochloric acid, into the well to dissolve typically limestone, dolomite and calcite cement between the acid insoluble sediment grains of the reservoir rocks or to treat scale accumulation.
There are three major types of acid applications: matrix acidizing, fracture acidizing, and breakdown or spearhead acidizing (pumped prior to a fracturing pad or other operation in order to assist with formation breakdown (reduce fracture pressures, decrease injection rate pressures), as well as clean up cement in the well bore or perforations after the perforation process is completed.
A matrix acid treatment is performed when acid is pumped into the well and into the pores of the reservoir formation below the fracture pressure. In this form of acidization, the acids dissolve the sediments formation and/or mud solids that are inhibiting the permeability of the rock, enlarging the natural pores of the reservoir (wormholing) and stimulating the flow of hydrocarbons to the wellbore for recovery.
While matrix acidizing is done at a low enough pressure to keep from fracturing the reservoir rock, fracture acidizing involves pumping acid into the well at a very high pressure, physically fracturing the reservoir rock and etching the permeability inhibitive sediments. This type of acid treatment forms channels or fractures through which the hydrocarbons can flow, in addition to forming a series of wormholes. In some instances, a proppant is introduced into the fluid which assists in propping open the fractures, further enhancing the flow of hydrocarbons into the wellbore. There are many different mineral and organic acids used to perform an acid treatment on wells. The most common type of acid employed on wells to stimulate production is hydrochloric acid (HCl), which is useful in stimulating carbonate reservoirs.
It has been proven that fracking or stimulating a well will improve the production substantially, as is well known to the person of ordinary skill in the art, a well can be fracked or stimulated multiple times during its production life cycle. The process of hydraulic fracturing or fracking requires the following steps. Once the determination of the wellbore's hydrocarbon bearing areas has been assessed, the location of the perforations is determined and finalized. Subsequently, after a cemented liner or casing is in place, one must pump an isolation plug and perforating guns to a desired depth and location. The plug is set slightly beyond the desired location to be stimulated based on the well design, and then the casing in that area is perforated allowing access from the wellbore to the formation of interest, creating a path for fluid to be introduced into the formation.
The next stage prior to stimulation requires the use of perforating guns, typically a bottom hole assembly (BHA) with shaped charges moved to a predetermined location within the wellbore. Once in position, the perforating gun is discharged which perforates the casing and initiates a path for the stimulation fluid to reach the formation.
According to the conventional process, after plug setting and perforation stage is completed, the perforating tool BHA is removed from the wellbore. A ball is pumped down to isolate the zones below the plug, if not already in place. This process does not apply to solid bridge plugs (no ball) with which process it is required to squeeze or inject the wellbore fluid into the perforations at low or reduced rates until acid reaches the perforations or to initiate the fracture process with no acid. The challenge with this process utilizing no acid is the injection pressure are typically higher than when acid is introduced to the perforations which will clean cement debris as well as assist in the reduction of injection pressures, particularly in carbonate bearing formations. A challenge within the industry is the increased time and water required to use acid on all stages, thus an alternative process and acid system that does not increased the time or water usage is highly advantageous.
A volume of stimulation fluid is then pumped into the desired formation of the well. Typically, the high-pressure at which the fracturing fluid is pumped coupled with the staging or increased pumping rates and proppant in most cases, provide an increase in the fluidic pressure within the formation which leads to fractures being propagated within the reservoir allowing the flow of hydrocarbons to the wellbore for recovery.
After the desired breakdown pressure is reached, fracturing fluid containing propping agents are injected into the formation to ensure the fractures remain propped open after the stimulation is completed and the pressures are reduced.
A slickline is a single strand wire used in the oil and gas industry transport tools within a well. It is typically a single wire strand set up on a spool located on what is referred to as a slickline truck. A slickline is connected by the drum it is spooled off the back of the slickline truck. A slickline is used to lower tools within a wellbore in order to perform a specific operation.
In highly deviated wells, flow restricted wells or specific other mechanical or stimulation methods may require coiled tubing to be utilized to transport or place the perforation guns into position, i.e. at a predetermined location. Modern slickline, coiled tubing or wireline may also allow incorporated integrated information transmission technology which can communicate real time information to the operator including but not limited to; depth, temperature and pressure. This type of information provides operators sufficient information to perform a plug and perforation operation by accurately targeting desirable hydrocarbon-bearing formations.
The benefit of this strategy is greater control of the placement of perorations and thus the stimulation. In many cases, casing the entire wellbore allows the operator better control of the stimulation, production and other life-cycle aspects of the reservoir fluids. It also allows the operator to select the formation which will be stimulated in order to obtain increased well production. It also allows the operator to seal off perforated sections, which have had their hydrocarbons extracted or are producing minimal oil or gas etc.
Accordingly, in light of the state of the art of fracking technology, there still exists a need to successfully develop a method or improve the current method which reduces the waste of water, minimizes equipment time on each stage of the method, provides a more optimal, reduced injection rate for the stage, provide a method and chemical to ensure optimal diversion of acid across all perforations as currently acid will tend to go the path of least resistance due to down-hole fluid dynamics. Most acid will only reach the top portion of perforations causing an increased or non-optimal injection rate and associated pressures during the stimulation. The resolution of this problem lies in combining a chemical composition with the mechanical tools in a specific order to achieve a more efficient oil recovery method.