Provided are a battery state monitoring circuit and a battery device that are capable of reliably controlling charge by a charger even if a voltage of a secondary battery drops to around 0 V. In the battery device provided with the battery state monitoring circuit, respective gate voltages of a P-type metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) transistor and an N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor, which together form a voltage detection circuit for detecting a voltage of around 0 V of the secondary battery, are applied by a voltage dividing resistor circuit that is connected across terminals of the secondary battery.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a battery state monitoring circuit and a battery device that detect a voltage and an abnormality of a secondary battery, and more particularly, to a battery state monitoring circuit and a battery device that are capable of controlling charge by a charger even if a secondary battery voltage drops to around 0 V.
2. Description of the Related Art
A battery device is provided with a function of allowing/inhibiting the charge to a secondary battery when a charger is connected thereto in a state where a voltage of the secondary battery extremely drops to around 0 V (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2000-308266). Hereinafter, such a function is referred to as function of allowing/inhibiting 0 V charge.
FIG. 3 illustrates a circuit diagram of a battery device provided with a conventional battery state monitoring circuit. The battery device provided with the conventional battery state monitoring circuit includes a secondary battery 1, a charge/discharge control circuit 2 for monitoring a voltage of the secondary battery 1, a switch circuit 3 for controlling the charge and discharge of the secondary battery 1, external terminals 4 and 5 between which a charger 8 or a load 9 is to be connected, and a charge switch drive circuit 7 for outputting a control signal to a charge switch 11. The charge switch drive circuit 7 includes a level shifter circuit 15 that is connected to an output terminal of the charge/discharge control circuit 2, a P-type metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) transistor 16, an N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor 17, a resistor 18, an inverter (INV) circuit 26, a NOR circuit 25, a PMOS transistor 20, and an NMOS transistor 21. The PMOS transistor 16, the NMOS transistor 17, and the resistor 18 together form a voltage detection circuit for detecting a negative terminal voltage of the secondary battery 1. The PMOS transistor 20 and the NMOS transistor 21 together form an output circuit of the charge switch drive circuit 7. The battery device of FIG. 3 has a function of allowing the 0 V charge.
The battery device described above functions to allow the 0 V charge through the following operations.
The charge/discharge control circuit 2 operates with the voltage of the secondary battery 1 to monitor the voltage of the secondary battery 1. If the voltage of the secondary battery 1 increases to an overcharge voltage or higher, the charge/discharge control circuit 2 outputs a signal of Low to the charge switch drive circuit 7. On the other hand, if the voltage of the secondary battery 1 falls below the overcharge voltage, the charge/discharge control circuit 2 outputs a signal of High to the charge switch drive circuit 7. The charge switch drive circuit 7 operates with an inter-external terminal voltage between the external terminals 4 and 5. The level shifter circuit 15 converts the signal of the charge/discharge control circuit 2 into the inter-external terminal voltage. Each of the PMOS transistor 16 and the NMOS transistor 17 has a gate connected to a negative terminal of the secondary battery 1. In a state where the secondary battery 1 has a sufficient voltage, the PMOS transistor 16 is turned ON to output a signal of Low to the NOR circuit 25. On the other hand, if the voltage of the secondary battery 1 falls to around 0 V, the NMOS transistor 17 is turned ON to output a signal of High to the NOR circuit 25.
The NOR circuit 25 outputs a signal of Low when at least one of its input signals is High. Accordingly, a voltage of an output terminal 13 becomes High to turn ON the charge switch 11 so that the charge may be allowed. On the other hand, the NOR circuit 25 outputs a signal of High when both of its input signals are Low. Accordingly, the voltage of the output terminal 13 becomes Low to turn OFF the charge switch 11 so that the charge may be inhibited. Therefore, even if the voltage of the secondary battery 1 falls to around 0 V, the charge switch drive circuit 7 allows the charge. In other words, the battery device functions to allow the 0 V charge.
Meanwhile, in the above-mentioned charge switch drive circuit 7, each of the gates of the PMOS transistor 16 and the NMOS transistor 17 forming the voltage detection circuit is connected to the negative terminal of the secondary battery 1, which leads to the following drawback.
At what voltage the voltage detection circuit removes inhibition on the charge to allow the charge to the secondary battery 1 is determined based on a threshold voltage of the PMOS transistor 16. Further, there is a fluctuation in threshold voltage of the PMOS transistor 16. The output signal of the charge/discharge control circuit 2 is indefinite until the voltage of the secondary battery 1 becomes equal to or higher than a minimum operating voltage of the charge/discharge control circuit 2. Therefore, there is a fear that the output signal of the charge/discharge control circuit 2 may be indefinite when the voltage detection circuit removes inhibition on the charge to allow the charge. If the output signal of the charge/discharge control circuit 2 corresponds to a signal of inhibiting the charge, the charge to the secondary battery 1 is inhibited. As a result, such a malfunction occurs that the inhibition of the charge to the secondary battery 1 cannot be canceled any more once the charge thereto is inhibited.

Battery state monitoring circuit and battery device


A system for managing a subscription for a data communications network comprises a main device having a data connection to the data communications network under a subscription, at least one other device capable of forming a data connection to the data communications network under said subscription, means for determining a proximity of the main device and the other device with respect to each others, and means for applying a combined subscription charging model for the data connection of the other device when the proximity is verified. The solution also concerns a method for managing a subscription a data communications network.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns a system and a method for managing a subscription for a data communications network.
2. Description of the Related Art
The amount of electronic devices being possessed by a single user is increasing. It appears that users are keen on connecting internet (i.e. having a data access) more often and in more varying situations. Therefore, the need of owning various devices suitable for such situations is growing. Device manufacturers have been paid attention to this need, and have provided wide range of devices that can be used for accessing data and for electronic communication. However, what has not been thought about in the same extent is how to arrange these devices to operate over a common feature.
There are known solutions for sharing a common feature between several devices. For example, a publication WO 99/01998 discloses sharing a single subscription to a mobile radio telephone network within a user group, where each user has a mobile telephone (being predefined for the system). The user group has a system identity and each user has a member identity, which both are needed when the subscription is commonly used. The system comprises a service node that is configured to control incoming and outgoing connections to each user. Another example is disclosed in a publication WO 01/95128, where a group of users share a network infrastructure. In this publication, a plurality of clients existing close to each other are capable of sharing a common gateway that is a primary interface for connecting network outside the group premises. Yet another example is disclosed in a publication EP 1,768,323 where functionality of a device can be expanded with features of another device. This can be done with a share module existing in both devices. By means of the share module a first device without e.g. multimedia messaging service, can send multimedia messages by using the multimedia messaging service of another device.
All the previous examples are targeted to a situation where multiple users, each having a device, share a common feature (a subscription, a bandwidth, a functionality). What is also important in such a situation, is to share charges of the common feature between the multiple users, especially if sharing of a subscription or bandwidth is in question. WO 01/95128 discloses that the applied charging model comprises paying for the bandwidth in advance by each client. WO 99/01998 on the other hand discloses a single subscriber fee that is paid for the operator and that the service node is configured to compile charging information on each member of a user group by means of a member identity.
However, none of these publications disclose a solution for the needs of a single user having multiple devices, each being capable of using e.g. a mobile data network. Such a solution should be usable for the single user so that s/he would not need to pay for the data access as many times as s/he has the devices, but also the solution should be trustworthy from the operator's point of view so that no other person than the actual subscriber could use the data access—or if could, it would be charged differently.

System and a method for managing a subscription for a data communications network


Improved horseshoe of the type substantially consisting of an element with legs (6-7), which either or not merge into each other, and whereby the upper surface (8) of which, which is intended for coming into contact with the hoof (2), is provided with unevennesses, such as grooves, ribs, protrusions or impressions, characterized in that at least one leg (6) or (7) is provided with a surface (17), (18), respectively, the surface structure of which differs from that of the remaining part (A) of said upper surface (8).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved horseshoe, more particularly a horsehoe, such as it is used for shoeing the hoofs of hoofed animals, amongst others, in order to prevent damaging the hoofs.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
It is known that such horseshoe mostly consists of a U-shaped or closed element which is attached under a hoof by means of nails.
It is also known that the surface of a horseshoe coming into contact with the hoof, often is made rough by providing it with unevennesses, for example, in the form of ribs, grooves or such, the purpose of which is to prevent any relative displacement between horseshoe and hoof.
It is also known that the hoofs of horses and similar animals comprise a so-called hoof mechanism which allows the rear half of the hoof, when the leg is lifted, to narrow, whereas this rear part will expand when the horse or similar puts its leg down.
During this putting down of the leg, the rear part of the hoof not only expands, however, also will be displaced somewhat to the rear, as a consequence of which, so to speak, a displacement is caused which is directed inclined to the rear, towards each side of the hoof.
A badly functioning hoof mechanism hampers the blood circulation of the foot, as a result of which also the formation of a healthy, resilient horn shoe is prevented.
An enormous disadvantage of the horseshoes known up to now and discussed above, which are provided with a contact surface comprising unevennesses, is that said functioning of the so-called hoof mechanism is prevented to a major extent, in consideration of the fact that the unevennesses hamper the relative displacement of the hoof in respect to the horseshoe.
Consequently, the shock-absorbing function of the hoof mechanism is counteracted and the blood circulation of the underfoot is not optimum.
Due to the functioning of said hoof mechanism, in practice, however, still a displacement, albeit a small one, of the hoof in respect to the horseshoe will occur, and this more particularly at the location of the free extremities of the horseshoe, as a result of which the hoof, at those places, due to the roughness of the contact surface with the horseshoe, so to speak, will be somewhat abraded or damaged with each step.
Thus, on one hand, by known horseshoes, also at the location of the so-called hoof mechanism, a rather solid connection is formed between horseshoe and hoof, as a result of which the good and necessary movement of the natural hoof mechanism is counteracted, and, on the other hand, this hoof mechanism still will cause a tiny, local mutual displacement between hoof and horseshoe, with an undesired wear and tear of the hoof as a consequence thereof.
The present invention aims at providing a remedy for the aforementioned and other disadvantages.
More particularly, the invention aims at an improved horseshoe, which, as the known horseshoes, comprises a surface which is provided with unevennesses and which is connected to the hoof in such a manner that any relative displacement between hoof and horseshoe is avoided, but whereby, at the location where said hoof mechanism is acting, a relative displacement between the hoof and the horseshoe remains possible, such that at that location no abnormal wear and tear of the hoof will occur.
In order to allow this latter at the location of the hoof mechanism, to wit a displacement in respect to the horseshoe, one will provide the contact surface of the horseshoe with the hoof at the location of the hoof mechanism, more particularly at the location of at least one free extremity of the horseshoe, however, preferably at the location of both free extremities of the horseshoe, with unevennesses, for example, with ribs, grooves or such which are directed according to the direction of displacement of the hoof mechanism or, still better, one will provide a smooth part by which the displacement of the hoof mechanism will not be hindered in any manner.
An improved horseshoe according to the invention substantially consists of an element with legs which either or not merge into each other, the upper surface of which, which is intended for coming into contact with the hoof, is provided with unevennesses, such as grooves, ribs, protrusions or impressions, whereby at least one leg is provided with a part, the surface structure of which differs from that of the remaining part of said upper surface.
Of course, the transition from the rough part of said contact surface of the horseshoe towards the part which must allow the displacement of the hoof mechanism either or not will be gradually.


Bis-phenols are isomerized in the presence of an acidic perfluorinated polymer catalyst.

Many processes are known to prepare bis-phenols. In some of these processes phenol is reacted with acetone to form bis-phenol-A. It is customary to then isolate the bis-phenol-A by crystallization, distillation or adduct crystallization. The concentrated residue contains many isomerizable components, such as o,p'-bis-phenol-A and other variations from bis-phenol-A. These components of the residue are usually isomerized in an acidic medium to the desired bis-phenol-A. The acidic medium includes inorganic acids such as hydrochloric acid and acidic cation exchange resins.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,221,061 discloses the preparation of bis-phenol-A and a subsequent "rearrangement" reaction conducted in the presence of a phenol saturated (mercapto alcohol modified) cation exchange resin.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,400,555 discloses a multi-step synthesis of bis-phenol-A in which acetone is injected in portions and an isomerization follows but the patent fails to illustrate the kind of catalyst in the isomerization zone.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,590,303 discloses a similar process in which the catalyst in the "rearrangement" reaction is a mercapto modified macroporous ion exchange resin and the acetone is injected into the "rearrangement" reactor. While the total conversion of acetone was increased, the percentage of undesired by-products also increased. However, from the data in the experiments in this patent, it can be seen that diverting a part of the acetone to the "rearrangement" reactor was adverse to isomerization since the selectivity to the desired bis-phenol-A became progressively worse. Thus, the desired isomerization was not demonstrated.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,375,567 discloses that both microreticular and macroreticular ion exchange resins in an unmodified form are used for isomerization. In this case, the microreticular resins were less effective for isomerization than the macroreticular resins.
There still exists a need to reduce or utilize the amount of undesirable by-products from the preparation of bis-phenols, e.g., bis-phenol-A from phenol and acetone or bis-phenolfluorene from phenol and 9-fluorenone. Obviously, the art has failed to find a method to react the two starting materials without the production of by-product isomers. Thus, there is still a need to more effectively convert these undesired isomers into the desired bis-phenol. The present invention addresses this problem and provides a new method to isomerize the undesired bis-phenols to the desired bis-phenol.


A management system for managing a plurality of computers and a plurality of pieces of software in a computer center includes: a selection data storage part for storing data regarding allocation destination selection, the data including at least either one of operation data and temperature data, wherein the operation data represent states of execution of the pieces of software by the computers, respectively, and temperature data represent temperature distribution in the computers; an instruction generation part for extracting an overheated computer that is assumed to emit more heat as compared with the other computers, and a less-heated computer that is assumed to emit less heat as compared with the other computers, by using the data regarding allocation destination selection, and generating an instruction for relocating at least a part of a piece of software allocated to the overheated computer to the less-heated computer; and an instruction part for outputting the instruction. This makes it possible to save energy for cooling the computers.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a management system such as an Internet data center (hereinafter referred to as IDC) or the like, a management program, and a management method, for managing a plurality of computers and a plurality of pieces of software allocated to the computers.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, environmental problems such as global warming have been increasingly serious, and companies and public offices are obliged to urgently institute environmental protection measures such as reduction of power consumption. Particularly, in a computer center such as IDC in which a plurality of computers composed of pieces of hardware are provided, when a plurality of computers are operating, electric power consumed for cooling down the plurality of computers accounts for a considerable part of the entire electric power consumed, and its ratio sometimes reaches approximately 40%. Therefore, reduction of the power consumption for the cooling is demanded.
In IDC, pieces of software for executing predetermined operations are allocated to a plurality of computers. In a utility computing data center, to which computer which software is allocated is controlled dynamically according to needs. For example, if software for performing high-volume processing is allocated to a certain computer, the operation amount of the computer increases. With this increase in the operation amount, the amount of heat radiated from the computer also increases. As a result, failures due to heat emission by the computer could possibly occur.
To prevent such failures due to such heat emission, it is necessary to keep low the temperature of the space where the computer is disposed, by using an air conditioner, for instance. However, to keep the temperature of the space low, a large amount of electric power is needed for operating the air conditioner. This consequently makes it difficult to reduce the power consumption.
Conventionally, as a measure to cope with heat radiated by a computer, an information processing device that executes an operation such as stopping the program executed by using the computer when a rise of temperature of the computer is detected has been proposed by, for example, JP 2005-316764A. This makes it possible to control heat emission of a computer and save energy for the cooling.

System for managing computers and pieces of software allocated to and executed by the computers


A spark plug for an internal combustion engine includes a cylindrical metal shell, a center electrode, and a ground electrode. The center electrode has an end portion which protrudes outside an end of the metal shell. The ground electrode is joined at an end thereof to the metal shell and has an inner surface facing the end portion of the center electrode. The ground electrode has a maximum width W meeting a relation of 1.3≤W≤2.0. A distance d between the center of an end surface of the center electrode and the inner surface of the ground electrode on a plane extending through the center of the center electrode perpendicular to an axis of the spark plug is selected to meet a relation of W+0.525≤d≤1.07W+0.66. This ensures the stability of ignitability of the spark plug.

1 Technical Field
The invention relates generally to a spark plug for an internal combustion engine used in, for example, an automotive vehicle.
2 Background Art
Some of spark plugs used as an ignition device for spark-ignition engines such as internal combustion engines mounted in automotive vehicles are equipped with a center electrode and a ground electrode which face each other in an axial direction of the park plug to define a discharge gap (also called a spark gap). This type of spark plugs work to create a sequence of sparks in the spark gap to ignite an air-fuel mixture in a combustion chamber of the engine.
Typically, flows of the mixture, such as swirls or tumbles, are created within the combustion chamber. Such mixture flows also pass through the spark gap to ensure ignition of the mixture in the combustion chamber. A portion of the ground electrode joined to a head of a housing (also called a metal shell) of the spark plug may, however, be located on an upstream side of the spark gap in the mixture flow depending upon an orientation of the spark plug mounted in the internal combustion engine (which will also be referred to below as mounting orientation). The portion of the ground electrode, thus, obstructs the mixture flow in the combustion chamber, which may lead to a risk that the mixture flow is stagnated around the spark gap, which results in a deterioration of ignition ability of the spark plug. In other words, the spark plugs have a drawback that the ignition ability varies depending upon the mounting orientation thereof. In recent years, lots of lean-burn internal combustion engines become frequently used. Such types of engines have a risk that the mounting orientation of the spark plug results in instability of combustion of the mixture.
Usually, it is difficult for internal combustion engines to control the mounting orientation of the spark plug, that is, the location of the ground electrode in a circumferential direction of the spark plug. This is because the mounting orientation of the spark plug usually depends upon orientation of an external thread formed on the housing of the spark plug or the degree to which the spark plug is fastened into the internal combustion engine in a spark plug mounting operation.
Japanese Patent First Publication No. 9-148045 teaches a spark plug designed to have a ground electrode in which a hole is formed or which is welded to the housing through a plurality of thin plates in order to eliminate the problem that the ground electrode obstructs the mixture flow.
The hole formed in the ground electrode of the spark plug may, however, result in a decrease in mechanical strength of the ground electrode. Thickening the ground electrode to ensure the mechanical strength thereof will facilitate interruption of the mixture flow.
Further, the use of the thin plates through which the ground electrode is welded to the housing results in a complicated configuration of the ground electrode, which will lead to an increased number of production processes or increased production cost of the spark plug.


A method, programmed medium and system are provided for enabling a user to choose a user-preferred encryption type from among a plurality of encryption types listed in a user's Kerberos configuration file. During the ticket granting process in a Kerberos system, a user is requested to select a preferred encryption type to be used in the Kerberos communication from among encryption types contained in the user's Kerberos configuration file. The user-selected encryption type is then implemented for use in encrypting a session ticket (as well as generating the session key of user requested encryption type) for use by the user machine in communicating securely with an Kerberized application server when being communicated by that particular user. Thus, the system allows different users to simultaneously communicate with the same Kerberized application server using a supported encryption type of the user's own choice.

In requesting an operation to be performed by a server being accessed by a user, it is often necessary to confirm the identity of the user before the requested operation, for example, the accessing of an identified user account, can be performed. Traditional authentication methods are generally not suitable for use in computer networks where attackers can monitor network traffic and intercept passwords. The use of a strong authentication method is therefore needed to avoid the interception of sensitive information such as passwords, user IDs, account numbers and the like. The Kerberos system is an authentication system designed to authenticate, without passing the user password over wire, and to enable an exchange of private information securely across an open network.
In general, the Kerberos process includes a ticket granting service (TGS) to assign a unique key or ticket to each user that logs on to the network. The ticket is then used for authentication and per message encryption. The Kerberos system is a distributed authentication service that allows a client running on behalf of a principal or user to prove its identity to a verifier, such as an application server, without sending authentication data (user password) across a network that might allow an attacker or the verifier to subsequently impersonate the principal.
In a Kerberos system, the session ticket issued by TGS contains the session key and the computed encryption algorithm that is to be used by the client and the server for secure communication. In the current implementation of Kerberos protocol, the encryption type (encryption algorithm) that is used for secure data transfer between the client and the server making use of the Kerberos protocol uses, as the encryption type, the first encryption type match between the list of encryption type entries present in the krb5.conf file (Kerberos client configuration file) on the client machine and the list of encryption types (encryption algorithm) supported by the server's Kerberos principal entry present in the KDC database, during the formation of the session ticket by the Ticket Granting Service (TGS), initiated by the client machine.
There is a single Kerberos configuration file (krb5.conf file) on every client machine having the administrator-defined list of available encryption types. The encryption algorithm that will get selected for secure communication between the client and the server will be the same for all users on the client machine. So for example if DES3 is the first entry in the Kerberos configuration file (krb5.conf) on the client machine and if the server supports, for example, DES, DES3 and AES encryption algorithms, then all users on the client machine will have to communicate with the server only in DES3. If one of the users on the client machine wants to communicate in AES (a higher degree of security) while some other user logged on to the same client machine at the same time wants to communicate with DES encryption type (a less secure but possibly a moderately faster encryption type), this can not be accomplished. With the current implementation, both users will have to communicate with DES3 encryption type as it is the first entry in the configuration file. So, even though a server supports both AES and DES, the users are forced to use the DES3 encryption type that is defined as the first encryption type in the Kerberos configuration file (as the first match decides the encryption type to be used between the client and the server).
Thus, there is a need to provide an improved Kerberos system in which users are provided means by which users may select different encryption types from among a plurality of encryption types contained in a Kerberos configuration file.

International Business Machines Corporation


A semiconductor device for use in a relatively high voltage application that comprises a substrate, a first n-type well region in the substrate to serve as a high voltage n-well (HVNW) for the semiconductor device, a pair of second n-type well regions in the first n-type well region, a p-type region in the first n-type well region between the second n-type well regions, a pair of conductive regions on the substrate between the second n-type well regions, and a number of n-type regions to serve as n-type buried layers (NBLs) for the semiconductor device, wherein the NBLs are located below the first n-type region and dispersed in the substrate.

The present invention relates generally to a semiconductor device and, more particularly, to a semiconductor transistor device and a method of manufacturing the same.
Power transistors such as lateral (double) diffused metal-oxide-semiconductor (LDMOS) transistors and drain extension MOS (DEMOS) transistors are generally used in high-voltage applications. It is desirable that a power transistor is designed with a relatively high breakdown voltage and a relatively low on-resistance. However, high breakdown voltage and low on-resistance may be a trade-off for a power transistor. FIG. 1 is a layout of an LDMOS device 100 in prior art. Referring to FIG. 1, the LDMOS device 100 may include a high voltage n-type well (HVNW) region 101, a pair of n-type well regions 102 in the HVNW 101 and an n-type buried layer (NBL) 103 between the NW regions 102. The LDMOS 100 may be designed with a breakdown voltage (BV) of, for example, 60V (volts) for a 40V application. To reduce the on-resistance of the LDMOS device 100, an attempt to increase the concentration of the HVNW 101 may result in a decrease in the breakdown voltage, which may not be acceptable.
It may therefore be desirable to have a semiconductor device that has a relatively low on-resistance without compromise of the breakdown voltage.

Semiconductor devices and methods of manufacturing the same


Directional capacity of interfaces for networking devices are dynamically modified. Network traffic utilization of one direction of a network interface may be determined. A modification to a capacity of the networking device to process network traffic in the one direction of the network may be determined. The modification may then be applied to the networking device so that subsequent network traffic is processed according to the modified capacity in the one direction of the interface.

Network communications are foundational to the operation of many different systems and devices. Large public networks, such as the Internet, or smaller private networks, such as corporate intranets, facilitate communications between different systems or devices, from clients of services that provide storage, computing, or data delivery to hosting internal web sites or network tools accessible to a small number of users. Such networks utilize large numbers of networking devices to facilitate the fast and reliable delivery of data, network packets, from one system to another.
Leveraging the power of network communications has greatly increased the workload upon networking devices to receive, process, and send network traffic. However, network traffic may not be evenly distributed amongst networking devices. Therefore, techniques that increase the flexibility of networking devices to adjust to changing network traffic workloads in order to optimize the processing of network traffic may be desirable.
While embodiments are described herein by way of example for several embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments are not limited to the embodiments or drawings described. It should be understood, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit embodiments to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope as defined by the appended claims. As used throughout this application, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words "include", "including", and "includes" mean including, but not limited to.
This specification includes references to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment." The appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner consistent with this disclosure.
"Comprising." This term is open-ended. As used in the appended claims, this term does not foreclose additional structure or steps. Consider a claim that recites: "An apparatus comprising one or more processor units . . . ." Such a claim does not foreclose the apparatus from including additional components (e.g., a network interface unit, graphics circuitry, etc.).
"Configured To." Various units, circuits, or other components may be described or claimed as "configured to" perform a task or tasks. In such contexts, "configured to" is used to connote structure by indicating that the units/circuits/components include structure (e.g., circuitry) that performs those task or tasks during operation. As such, the unit/circuit/component can be said to be configured to perform the task even when the specified unit/circuit/component is not currently operational (e.g., is not on). The units/circuits/components used with the "configured to" language include hardware—for example, circuits, memory storing program instructions executable to implement the operation, etc. Reciting that a unit/circuit/component is "configured to" perform one or more tasks is expressly intended not to invoke 35 U.S.C. § 112, paragraph (f), for that unit/circuit/component. Additionally, "configured to" can include generic structure (e.g., generic circuitry) that is manipulated by software or firmware (e.g., an FPGA or a general-purpose processor executing software) to operate in manner that is capable of performing the task(s) at issue. "Configure to" may also include adapting a manufacturing process (e.g., a semiconductor fabrication facility) to fabricate devices (e.g., integrated circuits) that are adapted to implement or perform one or more tasks.
"First," "Second," etc. As used herein, these terms are used as labels for nouns that they precede, and do not imply any type of ordering (e.g., spatial, temporal, logical, etc.). For example, a buffer circuit may be described herein as performing write operations for "first" and "second" values. The terms "first" and "second" do not necessarily imply that the first value must be written before the second value.
"Based On" or "Dependent On." As used herein, these terms are used to describe one or more factors that affect a determination. These terms do not foreclose additional factors that may affect a determination. That is, a determination may be solely based on those factors or based, at least in part, on those factors. Consider the phrase "determine A based on B." While in this case, B is a factor that affects the determination of A, such a phrase does not foreclose the determination of A from also being based on C. In other instances, A may be determined based solely on B.

Dynamic modifications to directional capacity of networking device interfaces


A semiconductor substrate, on which a silicon dioxide film with a resist film defined thereon has been formed, is placed inside a reaction chamber of a plasma processing system. Then, a fluorocarbon gas with a C/F ratio of 0.5 or more is introduced into the reaction chamber. In this process step, the flow rate of the gas is controlled such that the residence time xcfx84 of the gas in the reaction chamber becomes greater than 0.1 sec and equal to or less than 1 sec in accordance with an equation xcfx84=Pxc3x97V/Q, where xcfx84 is the residence time (unit: sec), P is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the gas, V is a volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q is the flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the gas. Thereafter, plasma is created from the fluorocarbon gas and the silicon dioxide film is plasma-etched using the resist film as a mask.

The present invention relates to a plasma processing method for use in a fabrication process of semiconductor devices, and more particularly relates to a plasma processing method, by which an etching or deposition process is carried out using plasma created from fluorocarbon gas.
In recent years, downsizing of semiconductor devices has accelerated so much that the required pattern definition is on the verge of reaching the 0.1 xcexcm order at last.
However, the fabrication process of semiconductor devices is basically no different from what it used to be. That is to say, first, a thin film is deposited on a semiconductor substrate. Next, a resist film (i.e., an organic film) is defined on the thin film by a photolithographic process. And then the thin film is etched using the resist film.
Nevertheless, the type of exposing radiation, typically adopted in a lithographic process, has lately changed from line into KrF or ArF excimer laser radiation to cope with the accelerating downsizing trend of semiconductor devices. In addition, organic resist films have also been developed responsive to the change of exposing radiation.
The application of the ArF excimer laser radiation as exposing radiation to the 0.1 xcexcm-order patterning is now under research and development. However, it is known that an organic resist film would be poorly resistant to an etching process in that case.
Thus, to ensure a high selectivity with respect to the resist film, various techniques have been proposed. For example, a technique takes advantage of a property of a silicon material as a fluorine scavenger by making a member inside a reaction chamber out of the silicon material. That is to say, according to the technique, the selectivity against the resist film can be improved by decreasing the concentration of fluorine in an etching gas.
Hereinafter, a known plasma processing method will be described with reference to FIG. 1.
FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic construction of an inductively coupled plasma processing system. As shown in FIG. 1, the inner walls of a reaction chamber 10 are covered with quartz plates 11. An induction coil 12 is wound around the outside of the reaction chamber 10. One end of the induction coil 12 is connected to a first RF power supply 13, while the other end of the induction coil 12 is grounded.
A gas inlet port 14 of the reaction chamber 10 is connected to a gas supply source (i.e., gas cylinder) 16 via a mass flow controller 15. A gas outlet port 17 of the reaction chamber 10 is connected to an exhaust pump 19 by way of a pressure control valve 18. Accordingly, the gas pressure inside the reaction chamber 10 is controlled using the mass flow controller 15 and/or the pressure control valve 18 and exhaust pump 19.
A sample stage 20, which will be a lower electrode, is provided inside the reaction chamber 10 and connected to a second RF power supply 22 by way of a matching circuit 21.
A control unit 23 provides control signals to the first and second RF power supplies 12 and 22, mass flow controller 15 and pressure control valve 18. In this manner, the unit 23 controls first RF power supplied from the first RF power supply 12 to the induction coil 12, second RF power supplied from the second RF power supply 22 to the sample stage 22, the flow rate of the gas supplied from the gas supply source. 16 to the reaction chamber 10 and that of the gas exhausted from the reaction chamber 10.
The gas pressure inside the reaction chamber 10 is normally controlled to a predetermined value between 0.133 and 1.33 Pa by adjusting the pressure control valve 18 with the exhaust pump 19 operated continuously.
The first RF power is applied from the first RF power supply 13 to the induction coil 12 with a process gas supplied through the gas inlet port 14 into the reaction chamber 10 and with the gas pressure inside the reaction chamber 10 kept at the predetermined value. In this manner, plasma is created from the process gas. Thereafter, the second RF power is applied from the second RF power supply 22 to the sample stage 20, thereby getting the created plasma attracted to a semiconductor substrate that has been placed on the sample stage 20. As a result, a thin film, which has been formed on the surface of the semiconductor substrate, is etched or a thin film is deposited on the surface of the semiconductor substrate.
As described above, a silicon material functions as a fluorine scavenger. Accordingly, if an etching gas containing fluorine is introduced into the reaction chamber 10, then silicon, which is the material of the sample stage 20 and a silicon ring (not shown), combines with that fluorine to produce SiFx (where x=3 or 4). In this manner, the concentration of fluorine in the etching gas is adjustable and therefore the etch rate is controllable. It is well known that the concentration of fluorine affects the etch rate of a resist film.
Thus, Japanese Laid-Open Publication No. 10-98024 suggests that a fluorocarbon gas, in which the ratio of carbon to fluorine (which will be herein called a xe2x80x9cC/F ratioxe2x80x9d) is relatively high (e.g., C5F8 gas), is preferably used to increase the selectivity of a silicon dioxide film being dry-etched (or plasma-etched) to a resist film used as a mask.
However, when the present inventors dry-etched a silicon dioxide film using the C5F8 gas with a high C/F ratio and masking the silicon dioxide film with a resist film, we didn""t find that the resultant selectivity increased compared to the conventional C2F6 gas with a low C/F ratio.
We carried out the experiment in the following manner.
An ICP plasma-enhanced dry etching system was used as an etching system. The power applied to create plasma was set at 1600 W. A mixture of C5F8 and Ar gases was used as an etching gas. The flow rates of the C5F8 and Ar gases were defined at 4.7 and 4.0 ml/min, respectively. And the gas pressure was set at 1.33 Pa. A silicon dioxide film was etched using a resist film as a mask under the process conditions such as these.
As a result, although a gas with a high C/F ratio (i.e., the C5F8 gas) was used, the selectivity against the resist film was just 1.81, which is not so much different from that of the conventional gas with a low C/F ratio (e.g., C2F6 gas).
In view of these, an object of the present invention is increasing the selectivity attained when dry etching is carried out using a fluorocarbon gas with a C/F ratio of 0.5 or more.
The present inventors believe that if a silicon dioxide film is dry-etched using a fluorocarbon gas with a high C/F ratio, the selectivity thereof to a resist film increases because of the following reason. Specifically, we believe that a polymer film would be deposited on the surfaces of the silicon dioxide and resist films and decrease the etch rates. Accordingly, if the decrease in etch rate of the silicon dioxide film is less than the decrease in etch rate of the resist film, then the selectivity to the resist film would increase. On the other hand, if the decrease in etch rate of the silicon dioxide film is equal to or greater than the decrease in etch rate of the resist film, then the selectivity to the resist film would not increase.
Thus, the selectivity to the resist film does not always increase by the use of a fluorocarbon gas with a high C/F ratio. More exactly, the selectivity to the resist film can be increased not only by using the fluorocarbon gas with the high C/F ratio but also by making the etch rate of the silicon dioxide film decrease less than the etch rate of the resist film.
Furthermore, we paid special attention to the residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas, which is given by Pxc3x97V/Q, where P is the pressure (unit: Pa) of the fluorocarbon gas, V is the volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q is the flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the fluorocarbon gas. By applying numerous combinations of pressures and flow rates of the fluorocarbon gas to reaction chambers with various volumes, we tried to find the residence times xcfx84 at which the selectivity to the resist film increases. As a result, we found that where a fluorocarbon gas with a C/F ratio of 0.5 or more was used, the selectivity to the resist film increased if the residence time xcfx84 was greater than 0.1 sec and equal to or less than 1 sec. That is to say, we found that the selectivity to the resist film did not increase if the residence time xcfx84 was equal to or less than 0.1 sec. This means that the deposition of the polymer film accelerated (i.e., the deposition rate of an organic film increased) in that situation.
As can be seen from the equation for the residence time xcfx84=Pxc3x97V/Q, the residence time xcfx84 changes with the volume V of the reaction chamber.
Thus, we also found that if Pxc3x97W0/Q, which is a product of the residence time (i.e., xcfx84=Pxc3x97V/Q) and the density Pi of power applied to create plasma (i.e., Pi=W0/V, where W0 is the magnitude of the power and v is the volume of the reaction chamber), is used, the selectivity to the resist film or the deposition rate of the organic film can be increased irrespective of the volume of the reaction chamber.
The basic idea of the present invention was acquired from these findings. Specifically, the scope of the present invention is defined as follows.
A first inventive plasma processing method includes the steps of: placing a substrate inside a reaction chamber of a plasma processing system, a silicon dioxide film having been formed on the surface of the substrate; introducing a fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; and creating a plasma from the fluorocarbon gas and etching the silicon dioxide film with the plasma. A residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber is controlled at a value greater than 0.1 sec and equal to or less than 1 sec. The residence time xcfx84 is given by Pxc3x97V/Q, where P is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the fluorocarbon gas, V is a volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the fluorocarbon gas.
In the first plasma processing method, the silicon dioxide film is etched with the residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber controlled at a value greater than 0.1 sec and equal to or less than 1 sec. Thus, the selectivity to the resist film can be increased to two or more with the process stabilized.
A second inventive plasma processing method includes the steps of: placing a substrate inside a reaction chamber of a plasma processing system, a silicon dioxide film having been formed on the surface of the substrate; introducing a fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; and creating a plasma from the fluorocarbon gas and etching the silicon dioxide film with the plasma. Pxc3x97W0/Q is controlled at a value greater than 0.8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3 and equal to or less than 8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3. Pxc3x97W0/Q is a product of a residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber and a power density Pi of power applied to create the plasma. The residence time xcfx84 is given by Pxc3x97V/Q, where. P is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the fluorocarbon gas, V is a volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the fluorocarbon gas. The power density Pi is given by W0/V, where W0 is a magnitude (unit: W) of the power and V is the volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber.
In the second plasma processing method, the silicon di-oxide film is etched with Pxc3x97W0/Q, which is a product of a residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber and a power density Pi of power applied to create the plasma, controlled at a value greater than 0.8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3 and equal to or less than 8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3. Thus, the selectivity to the resist film can be increased to two or more with the process stabilized.
A third inventive plasma processing method includes the steps of: placing a substrate inside a reaction chamber of a plasma processing system; introducing a fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; and creating a plasma from the fluorocarbon gas and depositing an organic film on the substrate using the plasma. A residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas is controlled at 0.1 sec or less. The residence time xcfx84 is given by Pxc3x97V/Q, where P is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the fluorocarbon gas, V is a volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the fluorocarbon gas.
In the third plasma processing method, an organic film is deposited with the residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber controlled at 0.1 sec or less. Thus, the deposition rate of the organic film can be increased with the process stabilized.
A fourth inventive plasma processing method includes the steps of: placing a substrate inside a reaction chamber of a plasma processing system; introducing a fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; and creating a plasma from the fluorocarbon gas and depositing an organic film on the substrate using the plasma. Pxc3x97W0/Q is controlled at 0.8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3 or less. Pxc3x97W0/Q is a product of a residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas and a power density Pi of power applied to create the plasma. The residence time xcfx84 is given by Pxc3x97V/Q, where P is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the fluorocarbon gas, V is a volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the fluorocarbon gas. The power density Pi is given by W0/V, where W0 is a magnitude (unit: W) of the power and V is the volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber.
In the fourth plasma processing method, an organic film is deposited with Pxc3x97W0/Q, which is a product of a residence time xcfx84 of the fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber and a power density Pi of power applied to create the plasma, controlled at 0.8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3 or less. Thus, the deposition rate of the organic film can be increased with the process stabilized.
In the first through fourth plasma processing methods, the fluorocarbon gas is preferably a gas containing at least one of C4F8, C4F6, C3F8, C5F8 and C6F6 gases.
In the first through fourth plasma processing methods, the residence time xcfx84 is preferably controlled by a mass flow controller provided for the plasma processing system and/or a valve and a pump provided for the plasma processing system.
A fifth inventive plasma processing method includes the steps of: placing a substrate inside a reaction chamber of a plasma processing system, a silicon dioxide film having been formed on the surface of the substrate; introducing a first fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; creating a first plasma from the first fluorocarbon gas and etching the silicon dioxide film with the first plasma; introducing a second fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; and creating a second plasma from the second fluorocarbon gas and depositing an organic film on the etched silicon dioxide film using the second plasma. A first residence time xcfx841 of the first fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber is controlled at a value greater than 0.1 sec and equal to or less than 1 sec. The first residence time xcfx841 is given by P1xc3x97V/Q1, where P1 is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the first fluorocarbon gas, V is a volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q1 is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the first fluorocarbon gas. A second residence time xcfx842 of the second fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber is controlled at 0.1 sec or less. The second residence time xcfx842 is given by P2xc3x97V/Q2, where P2 is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the second fluorocarbon gas, V is the volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q2 is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the second fluorocarbon gas. In the fifth plasma processing method, the selectivity to the resist film can be increased to two or more and the deposition rate of the organic film can also be increased with the process stabilized.
A sixth inventive plasma processing method includes the steps of: placing a substrate inside a reaction chamber of a plasma processing system, a silicon dioxide film having been formed on the surface of the substrate; introducing a first fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; creating a first plasma from the first fluorocarbon gas and etching the silicon dioxide film with the first plasma; introducing a second fluorocarbon gas, which contains carbon and fluorine and in which a ratio of carbon to fluorine is 0.5 or more, into the reaction chamber; and creating a second plasma from the second fluorocarbon gas and depositing an organic film on the etched silicon dioxide film using the second plasma. P1xc3x97W1/Q1 is controlled at a value greater than 0.8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3 and equal to or less than 8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3. P1xc3x97W1/Q1 is a first product of a first residence time xcfx841 of the first fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber and a power density Pi1 of first power applied to create the first plasma. The first residence time xcfx841 is given by P1xc3x97V/Q1, where P1 is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the first fluorocarbon gas, V is a volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q1 is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the first fluorocarbon gas. The power density Pi1, is given by W1/V, where W1 is a magnitude (unit: W) of the first power and V is the volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber. And P2xc3x97W2/Q2 is controlled at 0.8xc3x97104 secxc2x7W/m3 or less. P2xc3x97W2/Q2 is a second product of a second residence time xcfx842 of the second fluorocarbon gas in the reaction chamber and a power density Pi2 of second power applied to create the second plasma. The second residence time xcfx842 is given by P2xc3x97V/Q2, where P2 is a pressure (unit: Pa) of the second fluorocarbon gas, V is the volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber and Q2 is a flow rate (unit: Paxc2x7L/sec) of the second fluorocarbon gas. The power density Pi2 is given by W2/V, where W2 is a magnitude (unit: W) of the second power and V is the volume (unit: L) of the reaction chamber.
In the sixth plasma processing method, the selectivity to the resist film can be increased to two or more and the deposition rate of the organic film can also be increased with the process stabilized.
In the fifth or sixth plasma processing method, the first fluorocarbon gas is preferably a gas containing at least one of C4F8, C3F8, C5F8 and C6F6 gases, while the second fluorocarbon gas is preferably a gas containing at least one of C4F8, C4F6, C3F8, C5F8 and C6F6 gases.
In the fifth or sixth plasma processing method, each of the first and second residence times xcfx841 and xcfx842 is preferably controlled by a mass flow controller provided for the plasma processing system and/or a valve and a pump provided for the plasma processing system.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A process for recycling a support substrate of a material substantially transparent to at least a wavelength of electromagnetic radiation. The process includes providing an initial substrate; forming an intermediate layer on a bonding face of the support substrate having an initial roughness, with the intermediate layer being of a material substantially transparent to at least a wavelength of electromagnetic radiation; forming an electromagnetic radiation absorbing layer either on the bonding face of the initial substrate or on the intermediate layer; bonding the initial substrate to the support substrate via the electromagnetic radiation absorbing layer; and irradiating the electromagnetic radiation absorbing layer through the support substrate and the intermediate layer to induce separation of the support substrate from the initial substrate.

In the field of semiconductor manufacture, it is often useful or necessary in practice to join and/or remove films or layers of semiconducting or insulating material. On the one hand, it may be desired to prepare final stacked structures containing a three-dimensional design of electronic, photovoltaic and/or optoelectronic elements. On the other hand, thin films of high purity material and high crystalline quality may be appropriately handled on support substrates, and it is necessary to dispose of effective means for transferring these films from initial to final support substrates.
Moreover, some kinds of semiconducting materials may not be available as bulk or free-standing substrates and must be handled on support substrates, despite problems of lattice mismatch and/or thermal expansion coefficient that may arise. Methods are needed for removal of the functionalized semiconducting material layer from its support.
In the area of functionalized semiconductor layers, such as silicon layers for example, it is also useful to have available a method enabling layer transfer. Indeed, the functionalization of such semiconductor layers may involve electronic circuits, photovoltaic elements (containing, for example, a Ge seed layer, and a triple junction active layer), and/or optoelectronic elements. Being able to expose, manipulate and bond with relative ease both "front" and "back" faces of semiconductor layers enables functional elements to be introduced when the semiconductor layer treated is on a supporting substrate which allows a certain type of functional modification, and those functional elements to be occluded and then re-exposed as later required. Thus, electronic circuits may be introduced on one face of a thin layer on an initial support substrate favorable for this functionalization step, and then the exposed and functionalized "front" surface may be bonded to an intermediate substrate. The removal of the initial substrate support enables other circuits to be prepared on the "back" face of the functionalized thin layer. The exposed "back" face may be further transferred, for example, to a support adapted to the operation of the functionalized centers created, for example, for heat dissipation.
Furthermore, the group III-V materials such as InGaAs, InP or InAlAs are very useful for solar cell applications and III-nitride materials such as GaN, AlGaN or InGaN are of considerable interest in the semiconductor industry for use in light-emitting devices such as light-emitting diodes, laser diodes and related devices. GaN is a promising material for optoelectronic applications as well as for high frequency, high power electronic devices. It is important to be able to provide GaN or InGaN layers showing a low amount of crystal defects and a high quality surface.
It is of interest in these areas of technology to dispose of methods enabling III-V and III-N materials to be provided on a variety of surfaces and support materials. In techniques in which the III-V material is grown by epitaxy on a substrate surface, a high crystalline quality and appropriate lattice parameters of the growth substrate are necessary to enable sufficient quality III-V growth, restricting the choice of underlying seed support substrates for the III-V material.
In systems where it is foreseen to access the III-V layer by etching techniques, this may prove problematic and lead to degradation of the III-V material.
It is also of interest to be able to expose particular faces of III-N substrates. In effect, it is common for polar c-plane III-N material to have a specific atom surface termination such that one surface is terminated by the element from group III and the other surface is terminated by nitrogen atoms.
In all the above-related cases, methods for detaching or exfoliating thin films or layers, or a stack of them, from a substrate are needed. Moreover, there is also a need for performing such a detachment or exfoliation without destroying the substrate in order to recycle it for subsequent uses.
Document EP 0 858 110 discloses an exfoliating method for exfoliating a detached member, which is present on a transparent substrate with a separation layer therebetween, from the substrate, wherein the separation layer is irradiated through the transparent substrate with incident light so as to cause exfoliation in the separation layer and/or at the interface, and to detach the detached member from the substrate.
However, when irradiating the separation layer with a laser beam through a transparent substrate, made of sapphire (Al2O3), for instance, an undesired topology or defects are produced on the surface of the substrate on which the separation layer is formed. This surface topology can be of 30 nm.
In order to make the substrate reusable after irradiation and exfoliation, this surface topology must be removed. In view of the level of the surface topology, a significant thickness of the substrate must be removed, for instance, by polishing, after each irradiation and exfoliation. This considerably limits the recycling capacity of the substrate.
Moreover, the polishing of transparent substrates, such as sapphire or silicon carbide substrates, is generally long and expensive due to the hardness of the material of the substrates.


A heat transfer system includes a conduit having open first and second ends, first and second thermal exchange segments disposed in-between and in fluid communication with the ends, and a means for adding fluid to the first end. The first thermal exchange segment is disposed underneath and in thermal communication with the ground, a body of water, or other location with a different temperature. The first and second ends are arranged above all other section of conduit and relative to one another so that they are communicating vessels and a change in fluid level in one changes the fluid level in the other. The means for adding fluid to the first end of the conduit causes fluid to flow freely from the first end to the second end and fluid level to rise in the second overcoming any hydrostatic pressure in the system without a pump disposed along the conduit.

The transfer of heat is both a necessary and critical mechanism within a broad range of systems and processes. In fact, modern society now relies on many systems and processes utilizing heat transfer and/or refrigeration for, among other things, climate control of our houses. Refrigeration and/or the transfer of heat in most systems and processes, however, is an energy-intensive exercise which can be costly, as it often involves the use of energy to generate heat or drive an electro-mechanical compressor.
In addition to being costly and requiring large amounts of energy, many systems and processes involving refrigeration and/or the transfer of heat are also bulky and complex with many different parts, stages, and underlying principles that can limit their usefulness. In fact, due to their complexity, it is common for such systems and processes to have dedicated and trained personnel to design, install, maintain, and repair them.
However, it is a common desire to limit energy consumption as energy can be costly. Many efforts have been made to limit energy consumption in heat transfer and/or refrigeration systems. These efforts commonly either replace the system with one of a more efficient design, supplement an existing system with another more efficient system to reduce the overall energy requirements, or replace/supplement the energy source with one that is renewable and less costly. However, these efforts commonly are as complex as the systems they are replacing or supplementing. Further, regarding renewable solar energy, the source is commonly of variable efficiency based on operating conditions. For example, solar panels are less efficient as they increase in temperature.
Lastly, it is uncommon that such systems are designed to also deal with humidity and/or the production of drinking water. However, removal of humidity, particularly in warmer areas, can provide decreased chances of mold growth. Additionally, the collection and treatment of moisture may also provide a potential source of drinking water.
Consequently, it would be advantageous to have a system which could replace or supplement existing heat transfer and/or refrigeration systems, which could provide more desirable conditions for the production of renewable energy, and even lower humidity and/or provide drinking water without being overly complex, bulky, requiring numerous dedicated and trained personnel, or significantly increasing costs.

Heat transfer system utilizing dynamic fluid leveling


A child monitor system that combines the functionality of a prenatal monitor and a conventional nursery room monitor in a single device. The device comprising a local unit and a remote unit. Each unit having the capability of receiving and outputting acoustic audio signals as well as the capability of transmitting and receiving these signals to and from the units. The device also comprises a selection device for allowing a user to select from a plurality of operating modes.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to prenatal monitors and nursery room monitors and, more particularly, to a single device encompassing both.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
During the time period when expectant parents await their baby, much anticipation and excitement exists at the prospect of having a newborn. A large part of this excitement is the realization that the baby is living and growing inside the mother""s womb. Consequently, expectant parents desire to hear evidence of their baby""s existence, most notably the baby""s beating heart and other movements. This greatly enhances the experience for the parents and allows them to feel closer to their child even before the mother gives birth. As a result, expectant parents may purchase devices that allow them to hear their unborn baby""s heartbeat. These prenatal monitors, as they are called, also typically allow expectant parents to hear other sounds generated by the unborn child including kicks and hiccups. Some of these devices also allow expectant parents to record these sounds, play music or educational recordings to the child, and allow the parents to send the sound of the parents"" voices to the child. This is typically done using equipment external from the monitor itself. These devices, however, have a drawback in that their functional life is limited. Specifically, parents no longer have a need for these prenatal monitors when the mother gives birth. Thus, the parents set them aside after typically using them for only three months or less and possibly never use them again.
After the birth of their child, parents often, however, need a room monitor. These devices allow parents to monitor the activities of their child from a remote location, usually from another room within the same home or from an area just outside of the home. The monitors, sometimes called baby monitors, infant monitors, or child monitors, usually have a transmitter and a receiver. The monitors transmit signals representing the activities within the monitored room to a receiver located in another room. Usually the monitors transmit activities of an audible nature such as a child""s crying, breathing, or any other activities that generate audible signals. These devices, however, also have a drawback in that they are limited to this functionality. More particularly, parents cannot, for example, use them to monitor the heartbeat of an unborn child.
Thus, it would be advantageous to have a device that incorporates the functions of a prenatal monitor and a room monitor into a single device thus extending the life of prenatal monitors and expanding the functionality of room monitors. Such a device will provide economic efficiency in that a consumer may purchase one product instead of two and use the product for an extended period of time.
The disclosed child monitor overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art in that it allows a user to operate the system either as a nursery room monitor or as a prenatal monitor. The child monitor has two units, and the user may choose to use the system as a prenatal monitor, using one of the units, or as a conventional nursery room monitor using both the parent unit and the child unit.


A system and method provide for receiving, at a radio access network (RAN), a radio resource connection (RRC) connection request from user equipment (UE) in a disconnected/idle state; allocating signaling radio bearer (SRB) resources to the UE; sending an initial UE message to a core network; receiving an initial context set-up from the core network; establishing an RRC session with the UE in an RRC connected state; storing the context information; detecting inactivity in the RRC session while the UE is in the RRC connected state; suspending the RRC session and transitioning the UE device from the RRC connected state to an RRC inactive state based on the inactivity; determining a congested/overloaded state in the RAN; receiving an RRC resume request from the UE; and determining, using the stored context information, whether the UE is to be granted prioritized access to the RAN and transitioned to the RRC connected state.

Radio access networks (RANs) operated by wireless network providers provide shared, finite radio resources that are generally accessible to user devices via the air interface. RANs are susceptible to congestion and/or overload when the maximum number of radio links, i.e., signaling radio bearer (SRB) resources, have been established and/or the limited available bandwidth has been allocated to connected, Radio Resource Control (RRC) active user devices, i.e., data radio bearer (DRB) resources. During congestion/overload conditions in the RAN, when RRC protocol Connection Request messages are received from additional user devices seeking access, via an evolved NodeB (eNB) or a next generation NodeB (gNB), the eNB/gNB must support services designated as high priority, such as public safety and emergency communications users, etc. However, the RAN cannot simply rely on the Access Class information provided by the UE as being legitimate in determining a prioritization level associated with any given access request.

System and method of radio resource management for radio access networks


A device for stabilizing impaled objects in the human body, the device having a first and a second component each of which is comprised of a generally T-shaped support plate that is adhered to a generally T-shaped foam pad. Each component has a lower section and a base section. The support plate comprises a bend line between the tower section and the base section and a channel along each outside edge of that portion of the support, plate that comprises the tower section. The foam pad comprises a slit along each, outside edge of that portion of the foam pad that comprises the tower section. First and second fastening straps are bonded between the support plates and foam pads.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention, relates to the field of emergency treatment devices that stabilize impaled objects that protrude from the human body, and more particularly, to devices that are adjustable to match the angle of the protruding object, while also providing a degree of direct pressure to the wound area surrounding the protruding object.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 3,760,811 (Andrew, 1973) discloses an endotracheal tube clamp that comprises a pair of wafer-shaped clamping members that lock together wife matching sawtooth protrusions. The device m manufactured from molded plastic and is removed from an endotracheal tube after use by breaking apart one of the two wafer-shaped members. The device does not incorporate adjustment for different diameters of tube, nor does it incorporate adjustment for tubes protruding from a patient's body at various angles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,327,716 (Ansted, 1982) discloses an emergency stabilizer for objects such as ski poles, arrows, and industrial objects that have been accidently impaled in the human body. The device comprises a base pad that fits against the side of the body opposite to the protruding object, a plurality of circular pads with clefts that fit around the shaft of the protruding object, and a set of straps with hook-and-loop fasteners attached to the base that wrap around the invention and secure the circular pads in place around the protruding object. Unlike the present invention, this device does not comprise adjustable-angle metal supports to stabilize impaled objects that protrude non-perpendicularly from the plane of the accident victim's body. Furthermore, this device is impractical, bulky and difficult to use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,478,333 (Ashemutn, Jr., 1995) discloses a medical dressing used by first responded for treating open chest injuries. This device comprises a one-way valve with an adhesive backing that is placed over a chest wound so as to prevent the entry of outside air into the chest cavity, while allowing trapped internal air and blood to exit the chest cavity. This invention is not designed to stabilize objects that protrude from a wound.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,636,763 (Lebner 2014) discloses a device for closing lacerations or incisions. The device consists of two pieces manufactured from polymeric film. During use, one of the two pieces is bonded to each side of a wound by adhesive, and the two pieces are then bonded together with additional adhesive. This invention is not designed to stabilize objects that protrude from a wound.

Angularly adjustable device for stabilizing impaled objects in the human body


A data processing device for a high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system is provided. The data processing device includes a plurality of measuring interface systems (MIS) for measuring a voltage or current in an HVDC transmission system; a bus for transmitting data on the plurality of MISs; and an optical distribution module (ODM) transmitting the data transmitted through the bus to the HVDC transmission system, wherein the plurality of MISs increases counter values according to a data transmission completion signal of the ODM, and an MIS corresponding to the counter value among the plurality of MISs transmits data to the ODM through the bus.

The present invention relates to a data processing device and method for a high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system.
High voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission indicates converting alternating current (AC) power produced at a power station into DC power by a transmission site to transmit the DC power, and then re-converting the DC power into the AC power by a reception site to supplying the AC power.
An HVDC transmission system is applied to submarine cable power transmission, large-amount long-distance power transmission, interconnection between AC systems, etc. Also, the HVDC transmission system enables different frequency systems interconnection and asynchronism interconnection.
The transmission site converts the AC power into the DC power. That is, since transmitting the AC power by using a submarine cable is significantly dangerous, the transmission site converts the AC power into the DC power to transmit the DC power to the reception site.
Such an HVDC transmission system uses the measurement of a voltage/current on one or more points to control a system.
The HVDC system includes a plurality of measuring interface systems (MIS) for measuring the voltage/current. The MIS transmits the measurement of the voltage or current to a control part through an optical distribution module (ODM). That is, the ODM transmits data from the plurality of MIS s to the control part of the HVDC system.
In this case, since the plurality of MISs is connected to a single ODM and transmits a lot of data to the ODM, an arbiter module that may perform arbitration is added so that a specific MIS may occupy the bus to transmit data, or time division multiplexing (TDM) is used in which an MIS occupying the bus varies over time.
However, in the method of using the arbiter module, the arbiter module arbitrates so that the plurality of MISs may sequentially occupy the bus to transmit data but a signal approving the usage of the bus is transmitted in a Daisy-Chain style among the plurality of MISs, thus when an intermediate MIS is out of order or empty, there is a limitation in that the following MIS may not transmit data.
Even in the TDM scheme, data is transmitted in the Daisy-Chain style, thus when an intermediate MIS is out of order or empty, there is a limitation in that the following MIS may not transmit data, and since there are many cases where data is transmitted in series and is bypassed, there is a limitation in that there is a high probability of errors in the data transmission process.

Data processing device and method for high voltage direct current transmission system


A cooling and dust collecting apparatus for machine tool for cooling a cutter mounted on a rotating spindle and for sucking and exhausting cutting chips to the outside of the apparatus is disclosed, which comprises a cooling and dust collecting housing surrounding the rotating spindle and the cutter, a plurality of cold air passages, defined inside the housing, for sending cold air of a pressurized cold air supply portion disposed as an external device to a first cold air delivery hole and a plurality of second cold air delivery holes, a cutting chip exhaust passage, defined in the housing, for connecting a cutting chip sucking device disposed as an external device to an inner space of the housing, and an elastic hood downwardly extending from the lower end of the housing, the elastic hood defining slits at the lower end thereof, wherein the first cold air delivery holes are adapted to blow pressurized cold air toward a shaft portion of the cutter, and wherein the second cold air delivery holes are adapted to blow pressurized cold air in downwardly inclined tangent direction of the outer periphery of the cutting portion of the cutter.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cooling and dust collecting apparatus for machine tool which cools a cutter and exhausts cutting chips.
2. Description of the Related Art
Thus far, various types of cooling and dust collecting apparatuses for machine tools have been proposed. For example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 58-59746, a cooling and dust collecting apparatus is disclosed. In the apparatus, a drill is surrounded by a hood. By spraying mist of a cutting oil toward the center of the drill from four positions, the drill is cooled. In addition, by sucking the mist of cutting oil and cutting chips in the hood, they are exhausted from a dust collecting duct.
Moreover, in Japanese Patent Laid Open Publication Nos. 63-300807 and 3-3713, pressure foot for printed circuit board drilling machines are disclosed. A pressure foot is connected to a cutting chip sucking device through a hose so as to keep the inside of the pressure foot in a negative pressure state. In addition, compressed air is horizontally blown from the vicinity of the front end of the pressure foot in the tangent direction of the drill. The compressed air expands in the pressure foot in heat resisting state, thereby sharply lowering the temperature therein and blowing cutting chips. Thus, the cutting chips can be exhausted to the cutting chip sucking device.
However, in the above-mentioned cooling and dust collecting apparatuses for machine tools, since mist of cutting oil or compressed air is blown to a cutter in nearly horizontal direction, a portion of the cutter which is exposed is cooled, whereas a portion which is hidden in a workpiece is not cooled. In addition, cutting chips which are caught in a hole or groove are not exhausted.
Moreover, causes of heating of the cutter are cutting heat and heat conducted from a driving portion of the cutter. In the conventional cooling and dust collecting apparatuses for machine tools, the heat conducted from the driving portion of the cutter is not considered. Thus, the cutter is not satisfactorily cooled.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a cooling and dust collecting apparatus for machine tool which cools both portions of a cutter which are exposed and hidden in a workpiece, protects heat of a cutter driving portion from being conducted to the cutter, and exhausts cutting chips caught in a hole or groove.

Cooling and dust collecting apparatus for machine tool


A device for accurate wind measurement includes a bench carrying a camera having camera optics and a moving object connected to the camera by a string. The camera is generally directed downward and takes images of the object's movement while influenced by gravity and aerodynamic forces and is configured to stream the images to a digital signal processor or computer, which is adapted to decode the images and compute the object location and spatial angles.

It is a common practice to utilize aerial vehicles for measurement of various environmental parameters. Typical wind measurement devices onboard aerial vehicles, particularly helicopter or multi-rotors, are affected by the vehicle's body or propulsion systems, and therefore have a limited level of accuracy. Due to the high distribution and increasing utility of low-cost small and medium size aerial vehicles (UAVs), there are evident benefits to a compact, low-weight and accurate wind measurement device, capable of being carried by these type of vehicles. One of several possible applications is the external performance monitoring of wind-turbine power production. The ability to position the accurate wind measurement device according to the invention directly in front of wind turbine rotors enables wind resource characteristics (predominantly direction and speed) detected by the measurement instrumentation mounted on the wind turbines (the logged data of which are often biased due to the positioning of the instruments behind the rotor-blades) to be compared with the data taken by an external, unbiased device, mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle. The device's better accuracy enables corrections to the alignment of the wind turbine nacelle towards the prevailing wind direction among other corrections, thereby optimizing power production. The scale, mobility and autonomous capabilities of unmanned aerial vehicles carrying the device enable scheduled, sporadic, unmanned and on-demand, external and unbiased power production performance monitoring of wind turbines. This enables constant monitoring and immediate or post flight corrections to the wind turbine alignment, all of which capabilities are currently non-existent and very much required.

Device and method for accurate wind measurement


A computer-implemented method for verifying the trustworthiness of code prior to issuing code-signing certificates may include (1) receiving a request from a software publisher to sign code, the request including a copy of the code and a digital signature that verifies the integrity of the code, (2) prior to signing the code, verifying the trustworthiness of the code based at least in part on an analysis of the copy of the code included within the request, (3) upon verifying the trustworthiness of the code, signing the code by generating a digitally signed trustworthiness certificate for the code that certifies that the code is trustworthy, and then (4) providing the trustworthiness certificate to the software publisher to enable the software publisher to attest that the code is trustworthy. Various additional methods, systems, and encoded computer-readable media are also disclosed.

Many software publishers digitally "sign" files or applications created or published by the publisher in order to demonstrate the authenticity of such files and applications. For example, a software publisher may digitally sign a file by encrypting a checksum or hash of the file using a public-key cryptographic system in order to enable recipients to verify that the file was both created by the publisher and has not been altered since leaving the publisher's possession.
Because malicious or unscrupulous individuals or entities may attempt to pose as respected software publishers when distributing files, a software publisher may also obtain, and include within all files that it subsequently publishes, a digital certificate from a well-known and/or trusted certificate authority that certifies that files signed by the publisher in fact originated from the publisher in question. A digital certificate, which is typically digitally signed by a trusted certificate authority using the certificate authority's private cryptographic key, attests that a particular public key belongs to an identified entity, thereby enabling recipients to verify that a digitally signed file in fact originated from a particular entity.
Unfortunately, current digital certificates (and the authorities responsible for generating the same) fail to make any statement as to the trustworthiness of a digitally signed file and/or the publisher of such a file. As such, the fact that a digitally signed file includes a certificate from a trusted certificate authority does not preclude the possibility that the file contains (either intentionally or unintentionally) malware and/or other vulnerabilities. Accordingly, the instant disclosure identifies and addresses a need for systems and methods for providing digital certificates that attest as to the trustworthiness of digitally signed code.

Systems and methods for providing digital certificates that certify the trustworthiness of digitally signed code


An MEMS probe card with elastic multi-layer structure mainly includes a substrate and a plurality of MEMS probe assemblies. The MEMS probe assemblies are disposed on a plurality of testing pads of the substrate, and each of the MEMS probe assemblies includes a plurality of first layer bridge elements, a second layer bridge element and a probe tip. The first and the second layer bridge elements each forms a -shaped cross-section and has two piers and a beam. The piers of the second layer bridge elements are respectively disposed on the beams of the first layer elements, and the probe tips are disposed on the beams of the second layer bridge elements. According to the stacks formed by the second layer bridge elements disposing on the first layer bridge elements, the probe tips may have more elastic buffer and a better resistance to the compressive strain when probing the bumps or bonding pads on wafers.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to an MEMS probe card, and more particularly to an MEMS probe card with multi-layer structure.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor devices have to be tested before packaging. A wafer is put in a testing machine with vertical probe tips, then utilizing the probe tips of a probe card to probe a plurality of bumps of input and output signal pads of the wafer. However, because the bumps disposed on the wafer have manufacturing variations, the heights of the bumps are different with each other, especially those bumps need to be reflowed to ball bumps will have larger variations in height. To ensure the probe tips to electrically contact the bumps effectively, the probe tips may be designed to have elasticity so as to improve the electrical coupling between the probe tips and the bumps.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) probe card which is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,084,420. An MEMS probe assembly 120 is disposed on a testing pad 110, and the MEMS probe assembly 120 has a plurality of bridge elements 121, a plurality of supporting members 122 and a probe tip 123. The bridge elements 121 are laterally T-shaped and arranged in a single layer outward radiated structure, two sides of a head 121a of each bridge element 121 are respectively connected to the supporting members 122, tails 121b of the bridge elements 121 are connected together, and the probe tip 123 is disposed on the conjunction of the tails 121b of the bridge elements 121. According to the support to the probe tip 123 with the bridge elements 121 and the supporting members 122, the MEMS probe assembly 120 may have longitudinal elasticity. However, because the bridge elements 121 are arranged in single layer, they may have a limited elastic buffer. Moreover, the arrangement of the probe assembly with outward radiated structure may cause wasting of room and relatively decrease the counts of the MEMS probes assembly 120 on the probe card.


The improved heat-resistant overwrap film is formed from a resin composition that comprises (A) 98-70 parts by weight of a 4-methyl-1-pentene based polymer, (B) 1-15 parts by weight of an isobutylene based polymer having a kinematic viscosity of 2-5000 cSt at 100.degree. C., and (C) 1-15 parts by weight of a butene-1 based solid polymer, with the sum of (A)+(B)+(C) being 100 parts by weight. The film is excellent in heat resistance, flexibility, tackiness and transparency.

This invention relates to a heat-resistant overwrap film, more particularly, to an overwrap film that is improved not only in heat resistance but also in flexibility and tackiness as well.
Overwrap films are currently used as wrappers of foods under storage or cooking. Conventional overwrap films are made of thin films of polyvinyl chloride or polyvinylidene chloride, which are capable of withstanding heat at temperatures of about 140.degree. C.
As the use of overwrap films has expanded recently, a demand has arisen for products that can withstand use at even higher temperatures, namely, those which have higher heat resistance. Polymers based on 4-methyl-l-pentene melt at 220.degree.-240.degree. C. and are known to exhibit high heat resistance. Hence, it is expected that overwrap films having high transparency and heat resistance can be produced by shaping 4-methyl-l-pentene based polymers into films. However, films of 4-methyl-l-pentene based polymers have been unsatisfactory not only in flexibility but also in tackiness which is an important property in the case where they are to be used as wrappers.

Heat-resistant overwrap film from 4-methyl-1-pentene and isobutylene and 1-butene


A method of correcting an axial position of a workpiece support (1) used for removing material from a dental workpiece (2) which is held by the workpiece support (1) and is rotated together with the workpiece support (1) about a drive rotation axis (3) when material is being removed. The workpiece support (1) has at least two workpiece support parts (4, 5, 6) which can be separated from each other and connected to each other. One of the workpiece support parts (4, 5) has at least one compensation region (7) with a material projection (8) for introducing a compensation surface (9) by removing material, and the other workpiece support part (6) has a seating surface (10) for connecting to the compensation surface (9) in a form fitting manner.

The present invention relates to a workpiece support for the machining of a dental workpiece, which is retained by the workpiece support and, during the machining, is rotated together with the workpiece support about an drive rotation axis. Furthermore, the invention also relates to a method of correcting the axial position of a workpiece support.
WO 2013/020147 A1 discloses, for example, a machine tool for the machining of a dental workpiece. During the machining, the workpiece is retained in a workpiece support. In WO 2013/020147 A1, the workpiece support can be rotated together with the workpiece about an drive rotation axis in order to create optimum accessibility for the material-removal tool, e.g. a milling or grinding head. However, in WO 2013/020147 A1, the workpiece supports used therein are not designed so that the workpiece retained by the workpiece support, during the machining, is rotated together with the workpiece support about the drive rotation axis. For this purpose, that is to say for so-called rotary machining, in which the workpiece is rotated, preferably permanently, about the drive rotation axis during the machining, other workpiece supports are required. FIGS. 1 and 2 of this application show straightforward embodiments of such workpiece supports.
Practice shows that rotary machining using such straightforward workpiece supports, as are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 of this application, gives rise to problems with the axial position. In specific terms, deviations or offsets can be seen in practice between the drive rotation axis and the axis of workpiece rotation and/or axis of symmetry running through the workpiece. These result from inaccuracies in the execution of the workpiece support and/or also of the driveshaft of the machine tool. These offsets in the axial position give rise to imbalances during rotation of the workpiece, which should be very much avoided during rotary machining.

Method for correcting an axial position of a workpiece support


What is disclosed is a computer-implemented image-processing system and method for the automatic generation of video sequences that can be associated with a televised event. The methods can include the steps of: Defining a reference keyframe from a reference view from a source image sequence; From one or more keyframes, automatically computing one or more sets of virtual camera parameters; Generating a virtual camera flight path, which is described by a change of virtual camera parameters over time, and which defines a movement of a virtual camera and a corresponding change of a virtual view; and Rendering and storing a virtual video stream defined by the virtual camera flight path.

The invention relates to the field of digital video image processing. It relates to an image-processing method and device for instant replay as described in the preamble of the corresponding independent claims.
In order to provide television broadcasters with instant replay capabilities, digital video servers have been developed. Such a server allows, for example, to record a number of simultaneously incoming video streams and to store them, and to output one or more video output streams consisting of one of the input streams, either live or processed. Processing may comprise the replay of a recorded video sequence, slow motion replay, still images, creating annotated or enhanced version of such sequences and images, etc. An important feature of such a video server is that it supports the production of such replays instantly; that is, within at most just a few seconds or minutes after an interesting situation has occurred. It is in this way that the term "instant" is to be understood throughout the following text.
Furthermore, systems exist for the offline analysis and creation of virtual views of 3D sports scenes, such as presented in WO 2007/140 638 A1. However, such a system is geared towards the generation of single virtual views. It is furthermore not suited for fast or instant generation of complete virtual video sequences.

Image processing method and device for instant replay


For improving wafer fabrication, yield and lifetime of wafers are predicted by determining coefficients of a yield domain for wafer yield prediction and a lifetime domain for a wafer lifetime prediction, an integral domain, an electric/layout domain, a metrology/defect domain, and a machine sensor domain in a hierarchical manner. With the aid of the hierarchically-determined coefficients, noises in prediction can be reduced so that precision of prediction results of the yields or the lifetimes of wafers can be raised.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hierarchical wafer yield prediction method and a hierarchical lifetime prediction method, and more particularly, to a hierarchical wafer yield prediction method and a hierarchical lifetime prediction method both using a yield/lifetime domain, an integral domain, an electric/layout domain, a metrology/defect domain, and a machine sensor domain as different levels for prediction.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In conventional wafer fabrication, yield of fabricated wafers is highly monitored for improvements. Moreover, the yield may be predicted by observing data generated by fault detection and classification machine sensors which are responsible for detecting defects of the fabricated wafers.
However, there are several intermediate processes in wafer fabrication, and these intermediate processes may introduce large scales of noises in yield prediction. If these intermediate processes are highly correlative, or if these intermediate processes are performed as flat algorithms, the noises in the yield prediction will get worse.

Hierarchical wafer yield prediction method and hierarchical lifetime prediction method