An acidic cleaning formulation containing a surface modification agent selected from a group consisting of a hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane or a hydrolyzable quaternary silane and a surfactant is disclosed. The cleaning formulation is stable, provides excellent cleaning efficacy and deposits a silane coating on the surfaces to which it is applied to leave a protective coating thereon. Also, disclosed is a method for applying the cleaning formulation to hard surfaces covered by water.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an acidic cleaning formulation containing a surface modification agent selected from the group consisting of a hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane and a hydrolyzable quaternary silane. The formulation is applied to hard surfaces to clean the surface and provide a uniform silane coating on the cleaned surface. The invention also relates to a method for applying the acidic cleaning formulation of this invention to hard surfaces covered by water.
2. Related Background Art
It is known to apply silane cleaning solutions to surfaces to impart water repellency and provide a protective barrier on the treated surface. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,948,531 discloses an aqueous cleaning composition comprising (a) one or two nonionic surfactants and an amphoteric surfactant as cleaning agents, (b) lecithin and an aminofunctional polydimethylsiloxane copolymer as protective barrier components, (c) one or two glycols as solvency and grease cutting agents, and (d) water. The disclosed aminofunctional polydimethylsiloxane copolymer has the formula:
and is available as Dow Corning 531 Fluid (Dow Corning Corporation, Midland, Mich.) which is a 50% solution in aliphatic solvents and isopropyl alcohol. This composition is said to clean a surface and simultaneously leave a protective barrier on the cleaned surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,030 describes a detergent composition containing an organosilane and an anionic surfactant. The organosilane is said to attach to the hard surfaces to which the detergent composition is applied. U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,025 describes a similar detergent composition containing an organosilane, a water-soluble surfactant and a source of alkalinity. This patent also discloses that the composition preferably contains an amine oxide. However, the composition is said to be unstable when the pH of the composition is not alkaline.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,859,359 is directed to a hard surface cleaning and polishing composition comprising a solvent mixture of a glycol ether, a lower aliphatic alcohol, a hydrocarbon solvent and a minor amount of water together with an organic polysiloxane, a silane and a polycarboxylic chelating acid. The silane compound, which is said to promote the solubility of the other silicone compounds in the mixture, is represented by the formula:
R3xe2x80x94Si(OR4)3
wherein R3 is an alkyl radical containing one to three carbon atoms or phenyl and R4 is an alkyl radical containing one or two carbon atoms. The alkyl trialkoxysilanes are disclosed as preferable.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,073,195 is directed to an aqueous solution of a water silane coupling agent, preferably an amino functional silane coupling agent, and an alkyltrialkoxysilane such as methyltrimethoxysilane or isobutyltrimethoxysilane. The composition is used to treat a surface to impart water repellency to that surface.
Alkoxysilanes are known to hydrolyze upon exposure to water to form reactive silanol groups. The silanol group may then condense with a reactive site on a treated surface. However, if the silanol group is available during storage it may self-condense with other silanol groups to form an insoluble polymer. Hydrolysis of silanes in aqueous medium may be avoided by buffering the emulsions to a specific pH range such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,654. This patent describes a buffered aqueous silane emulsion containing a hydrolyzable silane that is hydrolytically stable within a determined pH range, an emulsifier having an HLB value of from 1.5 to about 20, a buffering compound and water. However, a buffered composition restricted to a certain pH range can be particularly limiting to a formulator of cleaning compositions.
PCT International Publication No. WO 92/14810 discloses that certain organosilanes containing hydrolyzable groups, especially quaternary ammonium functional organosilanes, can form clear solutions in aqueous media which are stable over extended periods of time by including a water soluble organic, non-silicon quaternary ammonium compound along with nonionic, amphoteric, sarcosine anionic or certain cationic surfactants. The stabilization of hydrolyzable quaternary silanes in the absence of a non-silicon quaternary ammonium compound is not disclosed or suggested. Moreover, the use of hydrolyzed organosilanes is not exemplified.
PCT International Publication No. WO 95/23804 is directed to a hydrolyzed silane obtained by emulsifying a hydrolyzable alkoxysilane represented by the formula:
Rfxe2x80x94(CH2)pxe2x80x94Si {(xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94CH2CH2xe2x80x94)nxe2x80x94ORxe2x80x2)3
wherein Rf is a perfluoroalkyl radical of 3 to 18 carbon atoms, each Rxe2x80x2 is independently an alkyl radical of 1 to 3 carbon atoms, p is 2 to 4 and n is 2 to 10, with an effective amount of an emulsifier of sufficiently high HLB value to simultaneously retain the hydrolyzable alkoxysilane compound in a substantially totally hydrolyzed state while inhibiting the self-condensation of the hydrolyzed alkoxysilane. Suitable emulsifiers are said to include alkylbenzenesulfonates, linear alkydiphenyletherdisulfonates, alpha-olefin sulfonates, ethoxylated alkyl alcohol ethers, ethoxylated alkyl alcohol ether sulfates, ethoxylated alkylphenols, ethoxylated alkylphenol ether sulfates, ethoxylated perfluoroalkylalkanols, C8-18 alkyltrimethylammonium salts, C8-18 alkyldimethylammonium salts, ethoxylated C8-18 amine salts, alpha-trimethylamino fatty acid betaines and perfluoroalkyl amphoteric surfactants of the type Rfxe2x80x94CH2CH(ORxe2x80x3)CH2N(CH3)2CH2CO2 (inner salt) where Rxe2x80x3 is H or acetyl, and quaternary salts of the type Rfxe2x80x94CH2CH2SCH2CH(OH)CH2N(CH3)3+Clxe2x88x92. According to PCT International Publication No. WO 95/23804, the alkoxysilanes are believed to be hydrolyzed to hydroxysilanes represented by the formula:
Rfxe2x80x94(CH2)xe2x80x94Sixe2x80x94(OH)3
which do not substantially self-condense when the emulsifier is present.
A similar, but non-fluorinated, alkoxysilane aqueous emulsion is TLF-8291, available from E.I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company, Wilmington, Del. TLF-8291 is believed to contain hydrolyzed C18-alkyltrialkoxysilane (about 10% by weight of the emulsion) in combination with C8-18 tetraalkylammonium chloride (about 30 to 40% by weight of the silane) in water. While the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane aqueous emulsion appears stable as provided, simple dilution of the aqueous emulsion has been found to give a commercially unacceptable cleaning formulation due to poor cleaning efficacy and silane attachment to glass containers holding such a formulation.
Cleaning formulations containing hydrolyzable quaternary silanes or hydrolyzed trialkoxysilanes, such as TLF-8291, which are stable, avoid substantial silane attacluhent to glass storage containers, provide excellent cleaning, uniform surface deposition after wipe out, and excellent surface wetting and leveling would be highly desirable.
This invention relates to an acidic cleaning formulation for cleaning hard surfaces comprising: (a) a surface modification agent selected from the group consisting of (i) a hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane in an amount from about 0.00001 to about 10.0 percent by weight of the formulation and (ii) a hydrolyzable quaternary silane in an amount from about 0.00001 to about 10.0 percent by weight of the formulation; (b) a surfactant in an amount from about 0.00001 to about 10.0 percent by weight of the formulation, provided that if the surface modification agent is a hydrolyzable quaternary silane then the surfactant is not a quaternary ammonium compound or sulfobetaine; (c) at least one alcohol having 1 to 12 carbon atoms; and water. Preferably, the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane is formed in an aqueous emulsion from a hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane compound emulsified in water with about 5 to 100 percent by weight of an emulsifier based on the weight of the hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane and the surfactant is different than the emulsifier. In this preferred embodiment, the emulsifier employed to emulsify the hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane must be in an amount effective to keep the hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane in a substantially totally hydrolyzed state while simultaneously inhibiting appreciable self-condensation of the silane in the aqueous emulsion. The formulation has a pH less than 7.0 which is generally attained by the addition of an acid. Preferably, the alcohol is a mono, di or tri hydric alcohol. The formulation may also include glycol ethers, solvents, fragrances and any other components well known to those skilled in the art of cleaning formulations.
Another embodiment of the present invention is directed to the above-described cleaning formulation having reduced autophobicity, ie., the tendency of the formulation to repel itself after application to a hard surface. It has been surprisingly discovered that the autophobicity of the formulations of the present invention can be reduced by the addition of a siloxane to the formulation. Such siloxanes include, for example, polydimethylsiloxane and derivative thereof.
Yet another embodiment of this invention is directed to a method of applying a surface modification agent to a surface covered by water by adding the above-described acidic cleaning formulation to the water. It has been surprisingly discovered that the surface modification agent of the formulation of this invention attaches to and modifies the surface of substrates, such as glass, ceramic, fiberglass or porcelain, when applied to the water covering such a surface. It has further been discovered that such surface modification occurs even when relatively low levels of the surface modification agents are added to the water covering such surfaces. This method employing the acidic cleaning formulations of this invention may be advantageously employed to clean and protect surfaces covered by water, e.g. toilet bowls, with a minimal use of materials and effort.
The cleaning formulations of this invention are particularly useful for cleaning hard surfaces such as glass, mirrors, tile, ceramic and the like while providing the cleaned surface with a protective silane coating. The formulations of the invention are highly storage stable even when packaged in glass containers, effectively avoid substantial surface attachment of the active silane to the storage container, and thus preserve the active silane for attachment to treated surfaces.
This invention is directed to an acidic cleaning formulation which contains a surface modification agent selected from the group consisting of a hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane or a hydrolyzable quaternary silane in a stabilized formulation. The hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane or hydrolyzable quaternary silane are available for attachment to a surface treated with the aqueous acidic cleaning formulations to form a protective barrier which advantageously inhibits the deposition of soils and grease on the treated surface.
The hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane that may be employed in the formulation of this invention is derived from a hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane represented by the formula (I):
xe2x80x83R1xe2x80x94CH2)xe2x80x94Si{(xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94CH2CH2)xe2x80x94OR2}3
wherein R1 is selected from the group consisting of a perfluoroalkyl group of 3 to 18 carbon atoms or an alkyl group of 3 to 24 carbon atoms, and R2 is independently an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, p is 0 to 4 and n is 2 to 10. Preferably R1 is an alkyl group of 3 to 24 carbon atoms and p is O, most preferably R1 is an alkyl group having 18 carbon atoms and p is O.
The amount of hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane used in the aqueous emulsion is generally in the range from about 0.00001 to about 25.0 percent by weight of the aqueous emulsion, most preferably from about 0.00001 to about 10.0 percent by weight. Any amount of hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane may be employed in the aqueous emulsion so long as the emulsion is stable prior to its use in preparing the cleaning formulation of this invention.
The hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane may be readily prepared by one of ordinary skill in the art by emulsifying the hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane of formula I in water to form an aqueous emulsion with an emulsifier of sufficiently high HLB value to simultaneously retain the hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane compound in a substantial totally hydrolyzed state and inhibit the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane compound from appreciable self-condensation. The preparation of aqueous emulsions of hydrolyzed trialkoxysilanes are shown, for example, in PCT International Publication No. WP 95/23804, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. It may also be possible to form the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane insitu by the admixture of a hydrolyzable trialkoxysilane with the other components of the formulation of this invention.
If present, the emulsifier generally has an HLB (xe2x80x9cThe HLB Systemxe2x80x9d published by ICI America""s Inc., Wilmington, Del.) value greater than 12. However, when a non-fluorinated trialkoxysilane is employed, then preferably the HLB value of the emulsifier is greater that 16, more preferably greater than 18. Compatible emulsifiers may be used in admixture as long as each meets the above-defined HLB requirements.
Emulsifiers that are preferred for use with a non-fluorinated trialkoxysilane include, without limitation, alkyltrimethylammonium quaternary salts, alkali metal alkylbenzene-sulfonates, linear C12-18 alkyldiphenyletherdisulfonates, alpha-olefin sulfonates, alkyl and alkylether sulfates, C,12-18 alkyldimethylammonium salts, polyethoxylated C12-18 alkylammonium salts and highly ethoxylated alkyl and aryl alcohols. Such emulsifiers include, for example, hexadecyltrimethylammonium 4 chloride, the sodium salt of C14-16 alpha olefin sulfonate, octadecylamine-60 E.O. and octadecydimethylammonium chloride.
A particularly preferred emulsifier, particularly for use with a hydrolyzd trialkoxysilane where R1 is a C12 to C24 alkyl group, is an ethoxylated C8-18 amine salt, more preferably tetraalkylammonium chloride, most preferably, having predominantly C16-alkyl groups.
Generally, about 5 to 100 percent by weight of an emulsifier based on the weight of the hydrolyzable alkoxysilane is employed in the aqueous emulsion. When R1 is a alkyl group of 3 to 24 carbon atoms then preferably the emulsifier is present in an amount of 10 to 50% based on the weight of the silane, most preferably 30 to 40%. A particularly preferred commercially available hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane emulsion is previously described TLF-8291, available from E.I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company (Wilmington, Del.).
Typically, the aqueous emulsion containing the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane and emulsifier is present in the cleaning formulation in an amount from about 0.0001 to about 1.0 percent by weight of the cleaning formulation, most preferably from about 0.0001 to about 0.1 percent by weight. The amount of aqueous emulsion used in the cleaning formulation will, of course, depend on the concentration of the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane in the aqueous emulsion. Thus, any amount of aqueous emulsion may be employed that provides an effective amount of hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane in the cleaning formulation to change the hydrophobicity of a treated surface by surface attachment of the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane.
Not wanting to be bound by any theory, but so as to provide a full disclosure, it is believed that the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane is represented by (i) the formula (II):
R1xe2x80x94(CH2)pxe2x80x94Sixe2x80x94(OH)3
wherein R1 and p are the same as described for formula I, (ii) by oligomers of formula II or (iii) mixtures thereof. The hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane may form oligomers by the self-condensation of the silanol groups of two or more hydrolyzed trialkoxysilanes so long as the oligomer remains soluble in the aqueous emulsion.
Again, without wishing to be bound by any theory, it is believed that the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane forms a micelle in conjunction with the emulsifier and that after this aqueous emulsion is diluted into a cleaning formulation the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane is further protected and stabilized by the addition of the surfactants used in this invention in combination with at least one alcohol having 1-12 carbon atoms and by adjusting the pH of the formulation to an acidic pH. This cleaning formulation allows delivery of the silane to a surface with excellent surface orientation after evaporation of the aqueous carrier. In addition, it is believed that the surfactant inhibits the silane, while in solution, from substantial surface attachment to the storage container and thus preserves the reactive silane for attachment to the treated surface upon application.
The hydrolyzable quaternary silane that may be employed in the formulation of this invention is represented by the formula:
wherein R3 is a hydrolyzable lower alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, R4, R5 and R6 are each independently alkyl groups having 1 to 24 carbon atoms, Q is an alkylene radical having 1 to 6 carbon atoms and X is an a halogen. Particulay preferred hydrolyzable quaternary silanes include, without limitation, 3-(trimethoxysilyl) propyldimethyloctadecylammoniumn chloride (available as Dow Corning Q9-6346 Quaternary Silane from Dow Corning Corp., Midland, Mich.) and 3-(trimethoxysilylpropyl) didcylmethylamnnonium chloride (available as Y-11724 Requat Antimicrobial Liquid from Sanitized, Inc., New Preston, Conn.).
When used, the amount of hydrolyzable quaternary silane present in the formulation will range from about 0.00001 to a about 20.0 percent by weight of the formulation, preferably from about 0.00001 to about 10.0 percent by weight of the formulations.
The surfactants employed in the formulation of this invention are selected from the group consisting of: nonionic surfactants such as, for example, linear ethoxylated alcohols (e.g., Neodol(copyright) 25-7 (C12-C15 alcohol, EO 7), Neodol(copyright) 23-6.5 (C12-C13 alcohol, EO 6.5), Neodol(copyright) 1-7 (C12-C13 alcohol, EO 7), Neodol(copyright) Neodol(copyright) 25-9 (C12-C15 alcohol, EO 9), Neodol(copyright) 45-7 (C14-C15 alcohol, EO 7), or Neodol(copyright) 91-6 available from Shell Chemical Co., Houston, Tex., Surfonic(copyright) L12-8 (C11-C12 alcohol, EO 8), Surfonic(copyright) L12-6 (C11-C12 alcohol, EO 6), Surfonic(copyright) L24-6.5 (C12-C14 alcohol EO 6.5), Surfonic(copyright) L24-7 (C12-C14 alcohol, EO 7), Surfonic(copyright) L24-9 (C12-C14 alcohol, EO 9) or Surfonic(copyright) 108-83-5 available from Huntsman Corp., Austin, Tex.), alcohol ethoxy carboxylic acids (e.g., Neodox(copyright) 23-7, Neodox(copyright) 25-6 or Neodox(copyright) 45-7) or other nonionic surfactants (e.g., Brij(copyright) 76 (polyoxyethylene (20) stearyl ether) or Brij(copyright) 97 (polyoxyethylene (10) oleyl ether) available from ICI Americas, Wilmington, Del., Pluronic(copyright) L-44 (block copolymers of propylene/ethylene oxide) available from BASF, Parsippany, N.J., Berol(copyright) 223 (fatty amine ethoxylate) available from Berol Nobel, Stratford, Conn., and Zonyl(copyright) FS-300 (fluoroalkyl alcohol substituted monoether with polyethylene glycol) available from E.I. Du Pont de Nemours and Co., Wilmington, Del.; amphoterics, such as betaines (e.g., Emcol(copyright) CC37-18 available from Witco, Houston, Tex., Lonzaine(copyright) C or Lonzaine(copyright) CO (cocamidopropylbetaines) available from Lonza Inc., Fairlawn, N.J., Mirataine(copyright) BB (lauramidopropyl betaine), Mirataine(copyright) CB, or Mirataine(copyright) Bet C-30 (cocamidopropyl betaines) available from Rhone-Poulenc, Cranbury, N.J., Monateric(copyright) CAB available from Mona Chemical Co., Paterson, N.J. and Witco DP 5C-5298-53 (C10 dimethyl betaine) or Witco DP SC-5298-49 (C8 dimethyl betaine) available from Witco), sultaines (e.g., Mirataine(copyright) ASC (alkyletherhydroxypropylsultaine) or Mirataine(copyright) CBS (cocamidoproylhydroxysultaine) available from Rhone Poulene, Lonzaine(copyright) CS or Lonzaine(copyright) (cocoamidopropylhydroxysultaines) available from Lonza Inc., Fairlawn, N.J. and Rewoteric(copyright) AM CAS (cocoamidopropylhydroxysultaine) available from Witco), or imidazoline amphoterics (e.g., Amphoterge(copyright) W (cocoamphoacetate), Amphoterge(copyright) W-2 (cocoamphodiacetate), Amphoterge(copyright) K (cocoamphopropionate), Amphoterge(copyright) K-2 (cocoamphodipropionate), Amphoterge(copyright) L (lauroamphodiacetate), Amphoterge(copyright) J-2 or Amphoterge(copyright) KJ-2 (capryloamphodipropionate) available from Lonza, Rewoteric(copyright) AM V (caprylic glycinate), Rewoteric(copyright)AM-KSF (cocoamphopropionate) or Rewoteric(copyright) AM 2L (lauroamphodiacetate) available from Witco, Phosphoteric(copyright) T-C6 (dicarboxyethyl phosphoethyl imidazoline), Monateric(copyright) Cy-Na, or Monateric(copyright) LF-Na available from Mona, and Miranol(copyright) C2M (cocoamphodiacetate), Miranol(copyright) J2M (capryloamphodiacetate), Miranol(copyright) JAS (imidazoline amphoteric) available from Rhone-Poulenc); and cationic surfactants such as amine oxides (e.g., Barlox(copyright) LF, Barlox(copyright) C, Barlox(copyright) 105, Barlox(copyright) 12, Barlox(copyright) 16S, or Barlox(copyright) 18S available from Lonza, Rhodamox(copyright) LO or Rhodamox(copyright) CO available from Rhone-Poulenc and Varox(copyright) 305 or Varox(copyright) 743 available from Witco), and quaternary cationic surfactants (e.g., Bardec(copyright) 208M or Barquat(copyright) 42802 available from Lonza and BTC 835 available from Stephan, Co., Northfield, Ill.), or dialkoxy alkyl quaternaries (e.g., Variquat(copyright) 66, Variquat(copyright) K-1215, Adogen(copyright)D 444, Adogen(copyright) 461 or Adogen(copyright) 462 available from Witco).
If the surface modification agent is a hydrolyzable quaternary silane then the surfactant is not a quaternary ammonium compound or sulfobetaine. The preferred surfactants for use with the hydrolyzable quaternary silanes are amphoteric betaines or amine oxides. For a trialkoxysilane surface modification agent, the preferred surfactants employed in the cleaning formulation of this invention include amine oxides, amphoteric sultaines, amphoteric betaines and quaternary cationic surfactants, most preferably amine oxides such as Lonza Barlox(copyright) 12 and amphoteric betaines such as Lonzane(copyright) CO.
The particularly preferred amine oxides are represented by the formula:
wherein R is a C8 to C16 alkyl group. Most preferably R is a C12 alkyl group.
If the formulation contains a trialkoxysilane, then the surfactant employed in the formulation of this invention will differ from the emulsifier described above. At least one surfactant must be present, although, it may be preferable to employ more than one surfactant.
Generally, a surfactant or mixture of surfactants will be present in the formulation in an amount from about 0.00001 to about 10 percent by weight of the formulation, more preferably in an amount from about 0.0001 to about 5 percent by weight of the formulation and most preferably in an amount from about 0.0001 to about 3 percent by weight of the formulation. However, any amount of surfactant may be employed that provides a formulation that contains a stabilized hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane or a stabilized hydrolyzable quaternary silane and which has good cleaning properties.
The formulation of this invention contains at least one alcohol having 1 to 12 carbon atoms that are preferably selected from mono, di and tri hydric alcohols. Such mono, di and tri hydric alcohols include, for example, ethanol, propanol, hexanol, isopropanol, N-pentanol, propylene glycol, glycerin, 2-pentanol, 3-pentanol, 2-butanol, diethylene glycol, Neodol(copyright) 91 (C9-C11 primary alcohol), Neodol(copyright) 1 (C11 primary alcohol) and decyl alcohol. Generally, the concentration of the mono, di or tri hydric alcohols in the formulation is in a range from about 0.00001 to about 5.0 percent by weight of the formulation. The amount of alcohol employed in the formulation of this invention should be maintained below that amount which would cause substantial alkylation of the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane.
Besides the alcohols described above, the formulations of this invention may also include other solvents, such as glycol ethers, to assist in cleaning the treated surface. Typical glycol ethers include, without limitation Dowanol(copyright) EB, (ethylene glycol n-butyl ether), Dowanol(copyright) DB (diethylene glycol n-butyl ether), Dowanol(copyright) PnB (propylene glycol n-butyl ether), Dowanol(copyright) DPnB (dipropylene glycol n-butyl ether), Dowanol(copyright) PPH (propylene glycol phenyl ether), Dowanol(copyright) PMA (propylene glycol methyl ether acetate), Dowanol(copyright) EPH (ethylene glycol phenyl ether), Dowanol(copyright) DPMA (dipropylene glycol methyl ether acetate), Dowanol(copyright) DPM (dipropylene glycol methyl ether), Dowanol(copyright) PnP (propylene glycol n-propyl ether), Witco(copyright) DM-55 (polyethylene glycol dimethyl ether) and the like. If employed, the glycol ethers are generally present in the formulation in an amount from about 0.1 to about 6.0 percent by weight of the formulation.
The formulations of this invention typically include an acid to ensure that the pH of the formulation is less than 7, and preferably from about 0.5 to about 6.95, most preferably about 0.75 to about 5. Generally, such an acid is present in an amount from about 0.00001 to about 7.5 percent by weight of the formulation. Exemplary acids include, without limitation, glycolic acid, lactic acid, acetic acid, sulfamic acid, citric acid and gluconic acid. Glycolic acid and lactic acid are preferred.
Additional adjuvants which may be employed in the formulations of this invention include fragrances, colorants and the like. The use of such adjuvants is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art.
The preparation of the cleaning formulations will vary depending on the surface modification agent employed. For example, if the surface modification agent is a quaternary silane then it is preferred to first add the surfactant to water followed by the addition of the agent. Thereafter, any solvents; bases or other adjuvants may be added to the formulations. It has been surprisingly discovered that the activity of the hydrolyzable quaternary silane is better preserved when using the method of preparation described above, while the addition of the hydrolyzable quaternary silane after mixing the other formulation components may result in a loss of activity for the surface modification agent. On the other hand, when employing a hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane, it is most peferable to add the silane last to the completed formula.
In yet another embodiment of this invention, a siloxane is added to the above described cleaning formulation to reduce the autophobicity of those formulations. The siloxanes that may be employed include polydimethyl-siloxane and derivatives thereof. Such derivatives may include, for example, polyalkylene oxide-modified polydimethylsiloxanes represented by the formula
wherein PE is represented by xe2x80x94CH2CH2CH2O(EO)m(PO)nZ wherein EO is ethyleneoxy, PO is 1,2-propyleneoxy and Z is hydrogen or a lower alkyl group, or
(CH3Si)yxe2x88x922[(OSi(CH3)2)x/y O-PExe2x80x2]y
wherein PExe2x80x2 is represented by xe2x80x94(EO)m(PO)nR wherein EO and PO are the same as described above and R is a lower alkyl group.
Other siloxanes which may be useful for reducing autophobicity include aromatic substituted siloxanes such as diphenyldimethylsiloxane copolymers, phenylmethylsiloxane polymers and methyl (propyl hydroxide, ethoxylated) bis (trimethylsiloxy) silane (Dow Corning(copyright) Q2-5211, available from Dow Corning, Midland, Mich.).
If present, the siloxane is employed in an amount effective to reduce the autophobicity of the cleaning formula. Generally, about 0.00001 to about 0.5 percent of siloxane by weight of the formulation may be added to inhibit autophobicity. However, any amount of siloxane that is effective to inhibit autophobicity is encompassed by the present invention.
This invention is also directed to a method of applying a surface modification agent to a hard surface, such as glass, ceramic, fiberglass or porcelain, that is covered by water. The above-described acidic cleaning formulation is added directly to the water in an amount effective to modify the surface covered by the water through attachment of the surface modification agent, i.e., the silane, to that surface.
Without being bound to theory, it is believed that the silane contained in the formulation of this invention has a preferred orientation for liquid/air or liquid/solid surfaces. After the acidic cleaning formulation is introduced to the water, it is believed that the surface modification agent, i.e., the hydrolyzed trialkoxysilane or hydrolyzable quaternary silane, is no longer stabilized to inhibit surface attachment and that the reactive silane migrates to the liquid/solid interface and adheres to the surface. It has been surprisingly discovered that surface modification can be obtained with as little as 0.1 ppm to 100 ppm of surface modification agent in the water.
The method of this invention can be readily practiced, for example, by the addition of an effective amount of the acidic cleaning formulation to water contacting the surface which is to be treated. The amount of acidic cleaning formulation that is added to the water is dependent on the concentration of surface modification agent in the formulation, the amount of water contacting the surface and the surface area that is to be coated. Generally, the amount of acidic cleaning formulation added to the water is an amount that will provide at least about 0.1 ppm of surface modification agent in the water. The acidic cleaning formulation may be added to the water in any manner desired, such as by direct application or by a slow release mechanism, e.g., a toilet bowl tank dispenser.
The Examples which follow are intended as an illustration of certain preferred embodiments of the invention, and no limitation of the invention is implied.

Acidic cleaning formulation containing a surface modification agent and method of applying the same


Embodiments provide improved modes of control of banked data buffer architectures. Embodiments provide modes of control of a central buffer pool (CBP) of a memory management unit (MMU). Embodiments are enabled by a cell free address pool (CFAP) module. The CFAP module may be implemented according to a banked structure. The CFAP module provides CBP/CFAP bank arbitration for selecting enqueue data cells. The CFAP module includes a green mode control module for controlling the power up/down of CBP banks according to expected data traffic through the MMU.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to data buffers.
2. Background Art
Conventional shared data buffer memory designs are power inefficient as they maintain the entire data buffer powered on regardless of expected traffic. As a result, when the data buffer size increases, chip power consumption due to the data buffer becomes significant. Accordingly, there is a need for improved data buffer designs and modes of operation in order to save power.
The present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Generally, the drawing in which an element first appears is typically indicated by the leftmost digit(s) in the corresponding reference number.


The present invention is directed to a method of fabricating very thin silicon nitride spacers on a transistor, and to a device comprising such spacers. In one illustrative embodiment, the method comprises forming a gate dielectric above a surface of a semiconducting substrate, forming a gate conductor above the gate dielectric, and forming a layer of silicon nitride above the substrate. The method further comprises performing at least one anisotropic etching process on the layer of silicon nitride using an etching recipe comprised of helium (He), sulfur hexafluoride (SF.sub.6) and hydrogen bromide (HBr). The transistor of the present invention is comprised of a gate dielectric positioned above the surface of a semiconducting substrate and a gate conductor positioned above the gate dielectric. The transistor further comprises a plurality of source/drain regions formed in the substrate adjacent the gate dielectric and a plurality of sidewall spacers comprised of silicon nitride, each of the sidewall spacers having a thickness that ranges from approximately 200-350 .ANG..

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally directed to the field of semiconductor processing, and, more particularly, to the formation of ultra thin sidewall spacers adjacent the gate dielectric and gate conductor of a transistor.
2. Description of the Related Art
As shown in FIG. 1, a typical field effect transistor 10 is comprised of a gate dielectric 12 positioned above a surface 11 of a semiconducting substrate 13, a gate conductor 14 positioned above the gate dielectric 12, and a plurality of sidewall spacers 20 formed adjacent the gate dielectric 12 and gate conductor 14. The sidewall spacers 20 may be comprised of a variety of materials, such as, for example, silicon dioxide. Additionally, a typical transistor 10 is also comprised of a plurality of source/drain regions 16 formed in the substrate 13. Each of the source/drain regions 16 may also have extensions 18 which have a width corresponding to the dimension "X" shown in FIG. 1.
The transistor 10 depicted in FIG. 1 may be formed by a variety of known techniques. For example, the gate dielectric 12 and gate conductor 14 may be constructed by forming a plurality of process layers above the surface 11 of the substrate 13 and, thereafter, patterning those process layers using traditional photolithography and etching processes to define the gate dielectric 12 and the gate conductor 14. Thereafter, the device may be subjected to an initial ion implantation process at a relatively light concentration of dopant atoms. This initial doping process results in dopant atoms penetrating the surface 11 of the substrate 13 to a depth defined by the dashed line 19, as shown in FIG. 1. As those skilled in the art will recognize, the region formed during the initial doping process is self-aligned to the gate dielectric 12. Next, a plurality of sidewall spacers 20 are formed adjacent the gate dielectric 12 and gate conductor 14 using a variety of known techniques. For example, a layer of the appropriate material, e.g., silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, etc., may be deposited above the gate conductor 14 and the surface 11 of the substrate 13 and, thereafter, subjected to one or more anisotropic etching processes. If desired, an initial layer of silicon dioxide (not shown) may be formed above the surface 11 of the substrate 13 prior to the formation of the layer of silicon nitride. After the sidewall spacers 20 are formed, the device is then subjected to a second ion implantation process at a heavier dopant concentration to result in the final formation of the source/drain regions 16. Note that during the second doping process, the sidewall spacers 20 act as a mask to prevent the heavier dopant concentration from being implanted into the substrate 13 under the sidewall spacers 20, leaving the source/drain regions 18 generally below the sidewall spacers 20.
Those skilled in the art will recognize that the source/drain regions 16 depicted in FIG. 1 have a traditional lightly doped drain structure ("LDD") commonly encountered in modern semiconductor devices. Such LDD structures are useful for various reasons, including, but not limited to, reducing hot carrier effects in field effect transistors. The width "X" of the extension 18 of the source/drain region 16 is determined by the width of the sidewall spacer 20, as measured at the surface 11 of the substrate 13. Traditionally, sidewall spacers 20 are formed having a thickness that ranges from approximately 700-1100 .ANG.. It has been observed that, all other things being equal, transistor performance, e.g., operating speed, may be increased if the width "X" of the extension 18 of the source/drain region 16 is decreased such that it has a width as small as approximately 200 .ANG.. Of course, the performance of such transistors is a very complex activity that is governed by a variety of factors. Because the thickness of the sidewall spacers 20 approximately determines the width "X" of the extensions 18 of the source/drain regions 16, it is desirable to have a process for forming such spacers 20 that is controllable and allows formation of very thin sidewall spacers 20.
Transistors may also be subjected to a salicidation process to, among other things, decrease the resistance of the polysilicon gate conductor 14 and the source/drain regions 16. During this salicidation process, there is a potential for bridging across the sidewall spacers 20, i.e., a conductive metal silicide, e.g., titanium silicide (TiS.sub.2), may be formed across the sidewall spacers 20. This bridging can, in effect, act as a short circuit between the gate conductor 14 and the source/drain regions 16. Thus, it is desirable that sidewall spacers 20 be comprised of a material and have a profile, i.e., straighter, more vertical sidewalls, that helps to reduce or prevent this undesirable bridging by, among other things, making it easier to remove the salicide metal formed on the sidewall spacers 20. However, using existing methods and etching recipes, sidewall spacers 20 comprised of silicon nitride tend to have a more bulging, rounded profile similar to the sidewall spacers 20 depicted in FIG. 1. What is desired is a method for making very thin sidewall spacers comprised of silicon nitride that have straighter sidewalls than those currently available using existing technology.
The present invention is directed to a method and apparatus that minimizes or reduces some or all of the aforementioned problems and a method of making same.

Method of fabricating ultra thin nitride spacers and device incorporating same


A method for improving the adhesion of an elastomeric, polymeric material to a support element while being shaped and vulcanized thereon, in which the support element is wetted in the region of the adhesion zone with a liquid composition of an adhesion promoter, the coating thus formed is solidified, and the elastomeric material is subsequently shaped on and solidified by vulcanization, an aqueous and/or alcohol solution of a thiocyanatosilane being used as the adhesion promoter.

The present invention relates to a method for improving the adhesion of an elastomeric, polymeric material to a support element while being shaped on and vulcanized, in which the support element is wetted in the region of the adhesion zone with a liquid composition of an adhesion promoter, the coating thus formed is solidified, and the elastomeric material is subsequently shaped on and solidified by vulcanization.
It is known per se to use silanes as adhesion promoters when vulcanizing an elastomeric material onto a support element.
This known procedure does not, however, result in a sufficiently mechanically strong joint between the elastomeric material and the support element with all elastomeric materials. Resins or latices are therefore used for the adhesion of NBR, in order to achieve sufficiently strong adhesion. For practical use in industrial-scale production, this involves considerable complexity.
Thiocyanatosilanes are known per se as additives for use in the manufacture of homogeneous rubber mixtures. Their purpose is to impart better strength to a rubber mixture.

Method for improving the adhesion of an elastomeric, polymeric material to a support element


A container to be used with a spraying apparatus which aspirates a second liquid into a first liquid transported by a hose, or with a spraying apparatus which aspirates a liquid into a gas stream such as air. The container includes a downwardly sloped bottom surface to a low point which may include an attached well. A suction tube is used to aspirate the second liquid or liquid from the container. The distal end of the suction tube is located near the low point of the bottom surface to remove most of the liquid from the container.

The present invention relates to an applicator which is attached to the end of a hose and aspirates a liquid from a container. Specifically, the present invention relates to a container which is contained within the applicator, where the container is designed to maximize the amount of liquid aspirated or otherwise removed from the container.
Applicators which spray a liquid are well known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 5,474,210 discloses a liquid applicator which pressurizes the container by the use of a hand pump. The pressure created in the container forces the liquid through a spray nozzle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,664 discloses a portable sprayer with a resealable closure, a dispensing valve, and a quick disconnecting one-way valve attached to a receptacle. As the container is filled through the one-way valve, the air inside of the container is compressed which pressurizes the sprayer. When the spray nozzle is opened, the pressure inside the container forces the liquid through the spray nozzle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,023 discloses an aspirator type sprayer which is connected to an end of a hose. The sprayer includes a device to vary the dilution ratio of the liquid within a container with that of the liquid transported through the hose. The liquid within the container is aspirated into the liquid within the hose by a suction tube. The container disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,023 has a bottom surface which has a crown shape where the high point of the bottom surface is in the middle of the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,195,664 discloses a hand held sprayer with a flexible pick up tube. The flexible pick up tube is weighted at the distal end of the tube to keep the distal end of the tube immersed in the liquid within the container. By keeping the distal end of the pick up tube immersed, more liquid is capable of being pumped out of the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,940,069 discloses an-aspirated sprayer which is connected to an end of a hose. A suction tube extends into a container which holds the liquid to be applied. The suction tube is located within a sediment trap within the upwardly crowned bottom surface of the container. The sediment trap and two screens in the suction tube prevent the spray nozzle from plugging with particles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,740 discloses an aspirator sprayer which is attached to an end of a hose. The sprayer discloses a linearly actuated valve which is actuated by applying pressure to a lever. A suction tube which aspirates a liquid from a container is located near the edge of the bottom surface. The bottom surface of the container is crowned in the middle and sloped downwardly in all directions to the edge of the bottom surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,100,059 discloses a single valve aspiration type sprayer which is attached to an end of a hose. The unitary valve design provides controlled carrier fluid flow and controlled aspiration of the liquid within the sprayer. When the sprayer is not in use, the unitary valve acts as a seal which confines the liquid within the sprayer container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,830,235 discloses a hand held sprayer. The sprayer includes a lever to siphon the liquid from a container through a pick up tube. The pick up tube is weighted, and the bottom surface contains legs which bias the pick up tube and the liquid to one side of the container. This configuration allows most of the liquid to be siphoned from the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,273,272 discloses a liquid dispenser with a flexible tube. The flexible tube is weighted such that when the dispenser is tilted, the liquid within the container and the flexible tube are in the same location allowing more liquid to be dispensed from the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,383,603 discloses an aspiration type sprayer which is connected to an end of a hose. The invention disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,383,603 includes a carrier liquid control valve and a rod valve which allows a liquid within a container to be aspirated into the liquid transported through the hose. When the rod valve is shut, the liquid within the container cannot be aspirated into the liquid within the hose.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,674 discloses an aspiration type sprayer which is attached to an end of a hose. The sprayer head includes a valve which seals the container from the liquid being transported through the hose when the valve is closed. When the valve is opened, the contents in the container are aspirated into the liquid within the hose.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,391 discloses a portable sprayer. The portable sprayer is pressurized by manipulating an air pump contained within the sprayer. When the spray nozzle is opened, the pressure within the container forces the liquid within the container through the spray nozzle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,526 discloses a liquid dispensing container having a sloped bottom wall. A flexible plastic tube extends from a dispensing spout at its upper end to the lowest point of the bottom wall. In one embodiment the lower end of the tube fits loosely into a narrow downward hole in the apex of the bottom wall.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,366,119, 5,154,324, 5,558,252, 5,749,500, 5,062,549 and 5,464,129 disclose liquid dispensers employing containers with bottoms sloped toward the lowermost point. The purpose of these designs is to maximize liquid removal from the containers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,485,942 discloses a liquid dispenser with a container having a sloped handle. The dispenser includes a tube from which liquid within the container is dispensed. An adapter is secured to the container such that the tube can be extracted from and inserted into the container allowing the dispenser to be moveable.
The present invention is a container used with a spraying apparatus which includes a suction tube which aspirates or draws liquid from the container. The container comprises a downwardly sloped bottom surface to form a low point. A distal end of the suction tube cooperates with the downwardly sloped bottom surface such that most of the liquid in the container is aspirated or drawn through the suction tube and applied by the spraying apparatus.
The container may be used in conjunction with a spraying apparatus which is attached to an end of a hose transporting a first liquid wherein the spraying apparatus includes a suction tube which aspirates a second liquid from the container. The container may also be used in conjunction with a spraying apparatus which is attached to the end of a hose transporting compressed gas, such as air. The spraying apparatus includes a tube through which liquid is aspirated from, or forced from the container, by the compressed gas, and applied by the spraying apparatus.
The advantage of the invention is to enable nearly all of the liquid in the container to be applied using the spraying apparatus. Waste is minimized because the liquid can be almost completely used. Potential environmental harm due to the disposal of the unusable portion of liquid from containers incorporated into conventional types of spray apparatuses is minimized.


A method and apparatus adjusting the lateral position of an LED bar may minimize image banding in image-on-image systems having multiple LED bar imagers. A photoreceptor may be transported past a plurality of marking stations. At each marking station an LED bar imager extends in a direction perpendicular to the direction of transport of the medium. A mark may be sensed at each station and the lateral position of the LED bar, perpendicular to the direction of transport of the medium, may be adjusted according to the deviation of the position of the mark from a desired position.

This invention relates to image plane registration systems, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for minimizing color fringing and image banding and registering multiple LED bar imagers to form a single image on a photoreceptor in an image-on-image system.
In electrophotographic systems, a photoreceptor may be supported by a mechanical carrier such as a drum or a belt. The photoreceptor may be charged to a generally uniform charge by subjecting the photoreceptor to a suitable charging device. The charge distribution on the photoreceptor may then be altered by the application of radiation, e.g., a laser, to the surface of the photoreceptor. Toner may then be attracted to the photoreceptor in a pattern consistent with the charge distribution on the photoreceptor.
Monochrome printers produce a hard copy in one toner color, typically black, and the copy may be made in a single pass of the charging device and toner source over the photoreceptor.
On the other hand, color printers use three primary colors, typically cyan, magenta and yellow, and in addition, optionally black. Several techniques have been developed over the years to adapt electrophotographic techniques to use multiple colors.
An exemplary apparatus for making high quality color prints by electrophotography is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,728,983. A single photoconductive drum is electrostatically charged, laser-scan exposed, and toner developed during one rotation. In successive rotations different colored images corresponding to color separation images are assembled in register on the drum. This assembled color image is transferred to a receptor sheet in a final rotation of the drum.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,309 to Vittorio et al. discloses an apparatus for color image registration based upon belt and raster output scanner synchronization. A laser source projects a laser beam onto a multifaceted rotating polygon that sweeps the beam into a scan line across a moving photoreceptor. A start-of-scan detector produces start-of-scan signals when the laser beam is in position to write a scan line. A belt sensor produces belt signals when indicia on the photoreceptor pass a reference position. A controller receives the belt signals and the start-of-scan and then adjusts the photoreceptors rotational velocity such that the belt signals are an integral multiple of the start-of-scan signals.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,731,622 further discloses a multicolor electrostatic plotter in which toner applicators of different colors are successively applied to portions of a medium by repeatedly driving and rewinding a portion of the medium past an image head and the plurality of toner applicators for charge and toner application to imprint multiple color rasterized images on the medium by the use of electronic circuitry. A reference track on the medium is imprinted during the first color pass and deviations are detected during successive color passes. The plotter electronically adjusts the input data from a remote rasterizer by an amount equal to the substantially instantaneous offset so that lines of raster data are shifted by an amount substantially equal to the instantaneous displacement of the medium prior to charging the particular electrodes on the image head corresponding to the charge patterns for the next successive particular lines of raster information which are to be imprinted for the particular color image.
Each of the foregoing references is incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Device and method for registering multiple LED bar imagers in an image-on-image system


A Christmas deer toy is capable of moving the head, neck, and tail thereof. The body unit, head unit, neck unit, and tail unit are pivotally connected. By a driving unit, the parts can move vividly to simulate the action of an animal. The driving unit includes a motor, a rotary arm, a main driving arm, a tail driven arm, and a head driven arm. Only a few components are used and the structure is simple. A rear end of the neck unit has an extending arm and a weight for assisting the actions of the head unit and neck unit to be more vivid.

The present invention relates to movable decorations, and particularly to a Christmas deer toy capable of moving the head, neck, and tail thereof.
Deer presents luckiness, an thus they are especially used in Christmas as a decoration. In prior arts, deer decorations are static. Afterwards, deer decorations are added with function of movement, but in general, the movement of the deer is dull. Only a part of the deer decoration is movable, even the motion is simple. Thereby, the action of the deer is mechanical and is not like a practical animal.
Some movable deer are improved to present more vivid actions but the structure is very complicated and thus many components are used so that costs in parts and labors are high.
Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a Christmas deer toy with a movable head, a movable neck, and a movable tail, wherein the body unit, head unit, neck unit, and tail unit are pivotally connected. By a driving unit, the parts can move vividly to simulate the action of an animal.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a Christmas deer toy capable of moving the head, neck, and tail thereof, wherein the driving unit includes a motor, a rotary arm, a main driving arm, a tail driven arm, and a head driven arm. Only a few components are used and the structure is simple.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a Christmas deer toy capable of moving the head, neck, and tail thereof, wherein a rear end of the neck unit has an extending arm and a weight for assisting the actions of the head unit and neck unit so as to act vividly.
The various objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the appended drawing.

Christmas deer toy capable of moving head, neck, and tail


The present invention provides a resin-coated metal pigment capable of achieving both of water resistance of a water base paint and chemical resistance of a film at a high level, and a water base paint using the resin-coated metal pigment. The present invention provides a method for producing a resin-coated metal pigment including an adsorption step of bringing a solution or a dispersion liquid of a phosphate ester component (A) into contact with a metal pigment to prepare a phosphate ester adsorbing metal pigment, a slurry preparation step of preparing a slurry for polymerization obtained by dissolving a polymerization component (B) therein, and a coating step of polymerizing the polymerization component (B) to form a resin coating layer on the surface of the phosphate ester adsorbing metal pigment; a resin-coated metal pigment obtained by the method; and a water base paint using the resin-coated metal pigment.

From heightened concern for an environmental problem, a water base paint or a powder paint has recently attracted the attention as low pollution-type paints without using an organic solvent. Even in the case of these paints, metallic decorative property is required in a diverse range of applications as in a conventional organic solvent-based paint, and therefore use of a metal pigment is indispensable. In powder coating, an article to be coated is substantially limited to those containing metal, due to restrictions of electrostatic coating and high-temperature baking. On the other hand, when a metal pigment is used for a water base paint, the metal pigment may react with water in the paint and turn into black or generate a hydrogen gas in some cases, thus causing a problem of poor storage stability of the paint.
The technologies for improving the storage stability of the paint include the followings. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2-120368 (Patent Document 1) proposes that a mixture of an organophosphate ester having an ester residue containing a saturated aliphatic group and containing no unsaturated aliphatic group, and an organophosphate ester having an ester residue containing an unsaturated aliphatic group is used as a pigment component. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 6-57171 (Patent Document 2) proposes that the surface of an aluminum flake is coated with a film of molybdic acid. International Publication WO02/031061 Pamphlet (Patent Document 3) proposes an aluminum pigment capable of forming a film derived from peroxymolybdic acid, and also contains at least one amine selected from among an alkylamine, an arylamine, an alkanolamine and an alkoxylamine.
However, the metal pigment obtained by these technologies is excellent in storage stability as a water base paint, but is inferior in chemical resistance when formed into a film. Accordingly, the use is practically limited only to the case where overcoat is applied, and thus there is a problem such as low versatility.
On the other hand, in plastic coating of a cellular phone and a personal computer, since the article has to be ready for actual use after coating just once from the viewpoint of cost, excellent chemical resistance is also required for the film in these applications. In order to solve the problem, Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 62-081460 (Patent Document 4) proposes a metal powder coated with a copolymer of trimethylolpropane triacrylate and/or trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate and a small amount of acrylic acid and/or methacrylic acid. Japanese Patent Publication No. 01-049746 (Patent Document 5) proposes a resin-coated metal pigment, wherein the surface of the metal pigment is coated by strong adhesion with a highly three-dimensionalized resin made from a radical polymerizable unsaturated carboxylic acid and/or a phosphate mono- or di-ester having a radical polymerizable double bond and a monomer having 3 or more radical polymerizable double bonds, and the alkali resistance is 1.0 or less and the pigment is not substantially agglomerated in a heat resistance stability test. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 64-040566 (Patent Document 6) proposes an aluminum flake having microscopically smooth surface, which is uniformly coated with a copolymer obtained by reacting at least two compounds selected from the group consisting of oligomers and monomers having at least one polymerizable double bond. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2005-146111 (Patent Document 7) proposes a resin-coated aluminum pigment wherein the surface of a material aluminum pigment is coated with a copolymer obtained by polymerizing a monomer having a polymerizable double bond, a monomer having a polymerizable double bond and a benzene ring, and (meth)acrylic acid.
Although these technologies satisfy the market needs in the application to an organic solvent-based paint, there remains a problem that water resistance is not sufficient in the application to a water base paint. Commonly, the chemical resistance may not be improved by a surface treatment for imparting water resistance, while the water resistance may not be improved by a surface treatment for imparting chemical resistance. As a result, it is difficult to achieve both of water resistance and chemical resistance at a sufficiently practicable level.
As a surface treatment technology combining water resistance and chemical resistance, International Publication WO96/038506 Pamphlet (Patent Document 8) proposes a resin-coated metal pigment, wherein (A) at least one kind selected from among a radical polymerizable unsaturated carboxylic acid, and/or a phosphate or phosphonate mono- or di-ester having a radical polymerizable double bond, and/or a coupling agent having a radical polymerizable double bond, (B) a monomer having 3 or more radical polymerizable double bonds and (C) a polymerization initiator are used, which is produced by adding the component (A) first to treat the metal pigment, and then gradually adding at least one of the components (B) and (C) to form a polymerized resin layer on the surface. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2000-044835 (Patent Document 9) proposes a resin-coated metal pigment that is prepared by dispersing a metal pigment obtained by a physical vapor deposition film crushing method in an organic solvent, adding (A) at least one kind selected from a radical polymerizable unsaturated carboxylic acid, a phosphate or phosphonate mono- or di-ester having a radical polymerizable double bond and a coupling agent having a radical polymerizable double bond, and further adding (B) a monomer having 3 or more radical polymerizable double bonds and (C) a polymerization initiator, in which at least one of the components (B) and (C) is gradually added, followed by polymerization.
However, in the above patent documents, the water resistance is evaluated by an amount of gas generated as measured at 50° C. for 24 hours using a paint having a pH adjusted to 9.5. Under these conditions, alkali resistance is substantially evaluated, and therefore water resistance is not properly evaluated. In recent years, the pH of a water base paint is commonly adjusted within a range from about 7.5 to 8.8, and water resistance is commonly evaluated by the generation of gas during at least several days.
In other words, the needs for a low-pollution water base metallic paint with high versatility is increasing more and more, but the technology capable of achieving both of water resistance and chemical resistance at a sufficiently practicable level has never been completed.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2-120368    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 6-57171    Patent Document 3: International Publication WO02/031061 Pamphlet    Patent Document 4: Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 62-081460    Patent Document 5: Japanese Patent Publication No. 01-049746    Patent Document 6: Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 64-040566    Patent Document 7: Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2005-146111    Patent Document 8: International Publication WO96/038506 Pamphlet    Patent Document 9: Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2000-044835

Resin-coated metal pigment, method for producing the same, and water base paint using the same


An improved memory device has a reduced number of wires for carrying local write signals. The improved memory device includes an array of memory cells. A plurality of local true bitlines is coupled to the array of memory cells. A plurality of continuous complement bitlines is coupled to the array of memory cells. The memory device also includes a plurality of write circuits. At least one write circuit is coupled to at least one continuous complement bitline and at least one local true bitline, receives information on a data input from the continuous complement bitline, and controls the local true bitline. At least one local write line is coupled to at least two of the write circuits for providing a write enable signal to the two write circuits.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to a static random access memory (SRAM) and, more particularly, to an SRAM with a reduced number of wires for write circuitry in the SRAM.
2. Description of the Related Art
Static random access memories (SRAMs), in general, and high-performance domino SRAMs, in particular, are well known in the art. An SRAM device generally has an array of SRAM cells coupled to true and complement bitlines as well as wordlines. When a wordline is asserted, SRAM cells coupled to the asserted wordline are ready for either a read or write operation. When a wordline is deasserted, SRAM cells coupled to the deasserted wordline are holding the data bits stored in the cells in a previous clock cycle.
Typically, a conventional SRAM device has a plurality of write circuits and a plurality of write predriver circuits for writing write data input to a selected number of SRAM cells in the SRAM device. A write predriver circuit generally receives the write enable signal and write data input. The write predriver circuit is also coupled to a corresponding write circuit to activate or deactivate the write circuit depending on the values of the write enable signal and write data input.
In a prior art SRAM configuration having split local and continuous bitlines, the write data input is combined with the write enable signal to create a local write signal that runs down a one-dimensional array (i.e., a column) of SRAM cells in parallel with the bitlines. This necessitates a wire for a local write signal for every one-dimensional array of SRAM cells in parallel with the bitlines.
Therefore, a need exists for an SRAM device with a reduced number of such wires required for carrying local write signals to the write circuits.
The present invention provides an improved memory device with a reduced number of wires for carrying local write signals to write circuits of the memory device.
The memory device includes an array of memory cells. A plurality of local true bitlines is coupled to the array of memory cells. A plurality of continuous complement bitlines is coupled to the array of memory cells. The memory device also includes a plurality of write circuits. At least one write circuit is coupled to at least one continuous complement bitline and at least one local true bitline. Thus, at least one write circuit receives information on a data input from the continuous complement bitline and controls the local true bitline. At least one local write line is coupled to at least two of the write circuits for providing a write enable signal to the two write circuits.

Split local and continuous bitline requiring fewer wires

International Business Machines Corporation


A surface-emitting semiconductor laser includes a substrate, a first semiconductor multi-layered reflector of a first conductivity type, an active region, a second semiconductor multi-layered reflector of a second conductivity type, a columnar structure, a current-confining layer including a conductive area surrounded with an oxidized area, a first electrode defining a light-emitting window, a first dielectric film covering the light-emitting window, and a second dielectric film formed on the first dielectric film. The second dielectric film has an asymmetrical shape having a long axis and a short axis, the second dielectric film is located at a position overlapping with the conductive area, the second refractive index n2 is greater than the first refractive index n1, the thickness of the first dielectric film is an odd multiple of λ/4·n1 (λ: oscillation wavelength), and the thickness of the second dielectric film is an odd multiple of λ/4·n2.

(i) Technical Field
The present invention relates to a surface-emitting semiconductor laser, a surface-emitting semiconductor laser device, an optical transmission apparatus, and an information processing apparatus.
(ii) Related Art
Surface-emitting semiconductor lasers are used as a light source of a communication apparatus or an image forming apparatus. The surface-emitting semiconductor laser used as such a light source works in a single transverse mode and requires high power and long lifetime. In a surface-emitting semiconductor laser of a selective oxidation type, the single transverse mode is acquired by reducing an oxide-aperture diameter of a current-confining layer up to about 2 to 3 microns, but it is difficult to stably acquire optical power of 3 mW or more with such a small oxide aperture.

Surface-emitting semiconductor laser, surface-emitting semiconductor laser device, optical transmission apparatus, and information processing apparatus


A DRAM having a data preset function is disclosed. A memory cell includes connectors which are formed of contact holes or through holes and which can be selectively formed in order to program preset data. For example, when preset data "0" is programmed, connectors are formed, and connector 17 is not formed. When a data precharge signal of a high level is applied, a transistor is turned on and as a result, a data storage capacitor is discharged. In other words, predetermined data is written into capacitor. Thus, the DRAM having the data preset function is provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor memories, and more particularly, to a semiconductor memory having a data preset function. The present invention has particular applicability to digital signal processing LSI devices.
2. Description of the Background Art
A digital signal processing LSI device for processing digital signals has been known widely. For example, in the field of video signal processing, the digital signal processing LSI device for processing video data at a high speed is often used. The digital signal processing LSI device usually uses various memories such as a line memory, a field memory, or a frame memory. In order to configure these memories, a dynamic random access memory (hereinafter referred to as a "DRAM") is provided in the digital signal processing LSI device.
Generally, a conventional DRAM stores externally applied data and provides the stored data. Therefore, desired data is not stored without writing data, causing desired data not to be provided from the DRAM.
It is often necessary to set predetermined data in the digital signal processing LSI device. For example, in the field of video signal processing, in order to adjust a television receiver, predetermined data, that is, test data for indicating color bar or cross hatch is required. The conventional digital signal processing LSI device does not have a function of producing such predetermined data in itself, so that it is necessary to provide such data from an external circuit such as a CPU. In other words, an external device is required for supplying predetermined data to the digital signal processing LSI device; however, addition of such an external device incurs increase in scale and complication.
FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of a circuit showing one example of a memory cell in the conventional DRAM. A memory cell 10 shown in FIG. 17 is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,935,869. Referring to FIG. 17, memory cell 10 includes a capacitor 14 for storing a data signal, and three NMOS transistors 11, 12 and 13. Transistor 11 is turned on in response to a signal on a write word line WW, and applies a data signal on a write bit line WB to capacitor 14. Transistor 12 is turned on or off in response to the data signal stored by capacitor 14. Transistor 13 is turned on in response to a signal on a read word line RW, and selectively pulls down a read bit line RB in accordance with the stored data signal.
In a data writing operation, the write word line WW is brought to a high level. Since transistor 11 is turned on, the data signal on the write bit line WB is applied to capacitor 14. In other words, capacitor 14 is charged or discharged by a signal charge on the write bit line WB.
When capacitor 14 is charged to a power supply voltage level (i.e. a high level), transistor 12 is brought to an on state in reading data. On the other hand, when capacitor 14 is discharged to a ground voltage level (i.e. a low level), transistor 12 is brought to an off state in reading data.
In a data reading operation, after the read bit line RB is precharged, the read word line RW is brought to a high level. Since transistor 13 is turned on, the potential of the read bit line WB is changed in accordance with the conductive state of transistor 12. In other words, when transistor 12 is turned on, the potential of the read bit line RB is pulled down through transistors 12 and 13. Conversely, when transistor 12 is turned off, the potential of the read bit line RB is not changed, that is, maintained. After conduction of transistor 13, by detecting the potential of the read bit line RB by a sense amplifier, not shown, the data signal stored in memory cell 10 is read out.
FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram of a circuit showing another example of a memory cell in the conventional DRAM. Referring to FIG. 18, a memory cell 20 includes a capacitor 23 for storing a data signal, and two NMOS transistors 21 and 22. Transistor 21 connects a first bit line BL1 to capacitor 23 in response to a signal on a first word line WL1. Similarly, transistor 22 connects a second bit line BL2 to capacitor 23 in response to a signal on a second word line WL2. In other words, memory cell 20 can be accessed through two access ports (not shown).
When memory cell 20 is accessed through a first access port, the word line WL1 is brought to a high level. Since transistor 21 is turned on, capacitor 23 is charged or discharged in accordance with the potential of the bit line BL1 in the writing operation. In the reading operation, after the bit line BL1 is brought to Vcc/2 in advance, the word line WL1 is brought to a high level. Therefore, the potential of the bit line BL1 is changed in accordance with an electric charge stored in capacitor 23. By detecting potential change of the bit line BL1 by a sense amplifier, not shown, the data signal stored in memory cell 20 is read out. On the other hand, data writing and data reading through a second access port can be carried out in the same manner as described above.
FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram of a circuit showing still another example of a memory cell in the conventional DRAM. Referring to FIG. 19, a memory cell 30 includes a capacitor 32 for storing a data signal, and an NMOS transistor 31. In the data writing operation, the word line WL is brought to a high level. Since transistor 31 is turned on, capacitor 32 is charged or discharged in accordance with the potential of the bit line BL. On the other hand, in the data reading operation, after the bit line BL is precharged to Vcc/2, the word line WL is brought to a high level. Since transistor 31 is turned on, the potential of the bit line BL is changed in accordance with the stored data signal. By detecting potential change of the bit line BL by a sense amplifier, not shown, the data signal is read out.
As shown in FIGS. 17, 18 and 19, conventional DRAM memory cells 10, 20 and 30 only store an applied data signal, and only provide the stored data signal. These memory cells 10, 20 and 30 are used in the above-mentioned digital signal processing LSI device, so that these memory cells cannot provide such data without writing predetermined data. This is also the case with a static random access memory (SRAM).

Semiconductor memory having data preset function


A rivet for joining two panels together including a solid member and a member having a tubular portion surrounding part of the solid member. In one form, the rivet has a solid shank and a tail with a tubular forward portion. The shank extends entirely through an aperture in the panels to provide good shear strength. The deformable tail retains the rivet within the aperture but does not damage the edges of the aperture, which may be composite material. The tail forward tubular portion surrounds the shank and is fastened thereto mechanically or by welding. A cavity is created between the head of the tail and the rear face of the shank so that under axial compression the tubular walls of the tail buckle outward. The tail is configured to provide grip range wherein the buckling will occur against the rear wall of the workpieces being joined within a given range of workpiece thickness.. In another form, one rivet member is a sleeve with a head on one end, and the solid member has a shank that extends into the sleeve tail and has a head which engages the sleeve tail. A cavity at the end of the shank accommodates axial movement of the solid member when a portion of the sleeve buckles outwardly.

Panels made of laminated composite materials rather than high-strength metal have many desirable characteristics, and are being used in increasing frequency for aircraft. However, high-strength solid metal rivets are not suitable for use with composite materials because forming an upset head on the tail of the rivet against a composite panel may damage the laminate. One technique for dealing with that problem is to employ tubular rivets because the tail of a tubular rivet can be bulbed or deformed more easily than the tail of a solid rivet, and thus less force is needed to upset the tail and less force is transmitted to the panel. A disadvantage of the tubular rivet is that it is generally more expensive than a solid rivet and it does not have shear strength as high as a solid rivet.
Another approach is to employ more ductile or malleable materials which will deform more readily, and hence are less likely to damage a composite panel. That approach, however, also involves a compromise with regard to shear strength, as well as the tensile strength of the deformed head needed to hold the panels together.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,426,641 and 3,747,467 provide systems which permit the upset forming of high strength, solid shank rivets in relatively soft aluminum sheets without adversely affecting the hole. This is accomplished by the use of a special forming collar. This collar, however, requires separate handling during installation, thereby increasing installation cost and complexity.
A further approach is the use of rivets made of high strength materials which have solid shanks and tubular ends. The ends can be upset without adversely affecting the structure in which the hole is formed, but if the tubular end is unsupported while it is being upset, internal buckling, eccentric head formation and cracking of the tubular end can result. In addition, because there is no internal support of the tubular upset end, it may not effectively resist the relatively high tensile separation loads on the joint.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,126,076 to Rosman discloses a fastener having a solid shank with a tubular tail, and a core pin positioned in the tubular tail to prevent inward deformation of the tail. This adds to the expense of the fastener, as well as introducing the need to retain the core pin within the rivet, both before and after installation. Also, if it is desired to use a particularly hard material, even deforming a tubular tail has its limitations in terms of ease of deformation against a soft panel. To prevent cracking of the upset tail, the Rosman patent finds it necessary that only tubular upsettable material extend beyond the face of the workpiece. That is, the solid shank end does not extend beyond the workpiece.
Because of varying design or tolerance thicknesses of panels being joined, it is usually desirable that a particular fastener be designed so that it has a grip range which will satisfactorily accommodate such variations. If the fastener does not have a satisfactory grip range, its application may be greatly limited. Various techniques have been employed for causing fasteners to buckle or deform in a desired manner or location consistent with the grip range. U.S. Pat. No. 2,030,167--Miller, for example, discloses varying the wall thickness of a buckling sleeve to affect the location of the buckle.
A need exists for a rivet having the shear strength of a solid rivet and a tail which can be readily upset so as to be usable with softer workpieces. Further, such a fastener must accommodate a reasonable workpiece thickness range. It is, of course, necessary that the rivet be highly reliable and economical to fabricate and install.


In one aspect, a system for controlled temporal extraction of ingredients of a pharmaceutical dosage form is disclosed, which comprises at least one reservoir for storing a fluid comprising a solvent, a cell having at least one inlet port in fluid communication with said reservoir for receiving a flow of the fluid from the reservoir and an outlet port through which fluid can exit the cell, where the cell is configured to receive a pharmaceutical dosage form. The system can further include an in-line heater disposed in proximity of the inlet port of the cell for heating the fluid to an elevated temperature prior to entry thereof into the cell, and a pump for causing fluid circulation between said reservoir and said cell.

The present invention relates generally to methods and systems for rapid and controlled extraction of ingredient(s) of a pharmaceutical dosage form, e.g., a tablet.
Each year, millions of pharmaceutical dosages are manufactured and consumed. Assay, content uniformity and dissolution testing of all solid oral pharmaceutical dosage forms is required. Such testing is used as a means of quality control as well as a means for correlating in-vitro and in-vivo drug release characteristics.
Although conventional systems for testing are known, such systems exhibit certain shortcomings. For example, such systems may not provide the requisite analysis speed in order to provide critical quality feedback used to control a manufacturing process.
Accordingly, there is a need for accelerated methods and systems for controlled temporal extraction of ingredients of pharmaceutical dosage forms.

Integrated dissolution processing and sample transfer system


A method, device, and computer program product for performing asynchronous remote copy verification is provided. An initial track-to-track comparison between a primary and a secondary volume pair is performed. Differences between primary and secondary volume tracks are recorded as noncompare tracks. A first predetermined time is waited for. A subsequent track-to-track comparison of the noncompare tracks is performed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to computers, and more particularly to apparatus, method and computer program product embodiments for dynamically comparing volumes for asynchronous remote copy verification.
2. Description of the Related Art
In enterprise data processing arrangements, such as may be used in a company, government agency or other entity, information is often stored on servers and accessed by users over, for example, a network. The information may comprise any type of information that of programs and/or data to be processed. Users, using their personal computers, workstations, or the like (generally, "computers") will enable their computers to retrieve information to be processed, and, in addition, to store information, for example, on remote servers.
A computer network of a business may have multiple storage networks that are located remote from one another and a business user. The storage networks may also be hosted on different types of systems. Such storage networks may be useful for clients, for example, to establish a redundant source of data in event of a failure of the primary storage system. Disaster recovery techniques that can tolerate the failure of a complete data center have become increasingly important. A classical technique used for tolerating data center failures is copying the data to a remote site. This technique is known as remote-mirroring. There are various forms of remote-mirroring. They can primarily be classified as either synchronous or asynchronous. Synchronous remote-mirroring techniques delay acknowledging an I/O to a host until it has been executed on the remote site as well. Asynchronous techniques, on the other hand, acknowledge an I/O as soon as it executes on the primary site.
Synchronous remote-mirroring techniques usually have high impact on I/O performance, high bandwidth requirements, zero data loss, and very small time to recovery. Asynchronous remote-mirroring techniques usually have low or no impact on I/O performance, low bandwidth requirements, possibility of data loss, and higher time to recovery. Asynchronous mirroring techniques can be classified further along two dimensions, including write-ordering and write-coalescing. Write-ordering is focused on maintaining the order of writes at the remote mirror. Write-coalescing is focused on coalescing multiple writes to the same block (at the mirror) into one write. Write coalescing reduces bandwidth requirements when write-locality exists.
Clients who use remote mirroring functionality of their disk storage for disaster recovery may wish to verify that the copy of the data is correct. Traditionally, such verification is performed by comparing data between the "primary" volume and "secondary" volumes.

Dynamic volume compare for asynchronous remote copy verification

International Business Machines Corporation


This invention relates to inorganic microporous solids having a framework structure of AX.sub.4 -tetrahedrons linked by their corners, wherein A denotes at least one electropositive element selected from the group consisting of Be, B, Al, Ga, C, Si, Ge, P, As and S, and at least 10 of the X atoms are nitrogen. The invention also relates to a process for the preparation of these solids.

The present invention relates to new inorganic microporous solids having a framework structure consisting of AX.sub.4 -tetrahedrons linked by their edges and to a process for the preparation of these solids.
Crystalline aluminosilicates of the zeolite type have long been known and well defined (J. V. Smith; Chem. Rev. 88 (1988) 149). More than 64 structural types with well over 1000 variations, both of natural and of synthetic origin, are known under the term of "Molecular sieves" (W. M. Meier, D. H. Olsen: "Atlas of Zeolite Structure Types"; Second Edition, Butterworth, London (1987)). The common structural element of these oxo compounds consists of three-dimensional AO.sub.4 tetrahedrons (A=Si, Al) linked at all the corners (oxygen atoms). Their characteristic feature is that they have pores of a specified, variable size which imparts ion exchange and reversible adsorption properties to these compounds without bringing about changes in the structure forming network. These micro-porous solids have found many different uses (F.Schwochow, L. Puppe; Angew. Chem. 87 (1975) 659).
They are used for the adsorption of gases (purification of gas mixtures) and liquids (molecular sieve) (B. E. Ullmann, E. Biekert "Ullmanns Encyclopadie der Technischen Chemie", Volume 17, 4th Edition, published by Verlag Chemie, Weinheim (1972) page 9). They also serve as catalysts for various reactions (hydrogenation/dehydrogenation, cracking of crude petroleum hydrocarbons, isomerisation of alkanes) and for the separation of mixtures (Chromatography, Ion exchangers) (W. Hoderich, M. Hesse, F. Naumann; Angew. Chem. 100 (1988) 232). New applications, some of which are still in the state of development, are based on their property of ionic conductors (solid electrolytes) and as carrier material for enzymes and microorganisms (Biotechnologie) (G. A. Ozin, A. Kuperman, A. Stein; Angew. Chem. 101 (1989) 373).
Common to all the compounds described is that oxygen forms the electronegative part of the structural framework. In numerous compounds which have been synthesized, silicon or aluminium has been partly or completely replaced by other electropositive elements (B, P, Fe, Cr, Sb, As, Ga, Ge, Ti, Zr, Hf) (J. V. Smith; Chem. Rev. 88 (1988) 149). This has enabled compounds with modified properties to be obtained (W. Hoderich, M. Hesse, F. Naumann; Angew. Chem. 100 (1988) 232).
The systems described do not always fulfil the desired requirements, in particular as regards their strength and chemical resistance.

Inorganic microporous solids and a process for their preparation


A system and method for enabling a user to transact an anonymous on-line transaction, wherein a form of on-line payment is requested at a transaction interface is disclosed. The method may include providing an anonymous user interface that enables a user to initiate an on-line payment, accessing a first profile comprising user data when the user activates the form of on-line payment, generating a second profile linked to the first profile, wherein the second profile comprises anonymous data, and communicating the anonymous data from the second profile to the transaction interface to enable completion of the transaction.

The rise in the popularity of interconnected, processor-based networks, such as the Internet, has increased the practice of on-line shopping. The increase of on-line shopping has made it possible for consumers to purchase goods and services with ease. Often, consumers are able to purchase items from the convenience of their own home at any hour of the day.
However, in order to complete an on-line transaction, users are typically required to submit personal, confidential, or otherwise private information over the network to the on-line merchant. Once submitted, the information may be intercepted or otherwise accessed by unintended or unauthorized persons. Obviously, this is an undesirable result. Thus, it is desirable to carry out on-line transactions without needlessly endangering private information.
For example, buyers are typically required to submit a credit card number to the on-line merchant in order to pay for the desired goods or services. However, submitting a credit card number over the network opens the possibility that the credit card number will fall into the wrong hands and unauthorized charges may result.
Buyers are also asked to provide their legal names (usually as it appears on the credit card account). For numerous reasons, buyers may not want to provide their real name over the network. For example, for safety reasons, women living alone may not want to provide their real names. Similarly, buyers may not want to provide their home address when purchasing items on-line.
These and other drawbacks exist.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Anonymous shopping transactions on a network through information broker services


The present invention provides a strip plate structure and a method for manufacturing the same. The strip plate structure comprises a strip plate array, which comprises a plurality of strip plates arranged with spacing in a predetermined direction on a same plane, wherein each of the strip plates has a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface and the strip plate array is arranged on a plane parallel to the first surface of the strip plates; a plurality of strip sheets which connect neighboring ones of the strip plates; flexible material layers, which are located on at least a portion of the surfaces of the strip sheets and/or on at least a portion of the surfaces of the strip plates.

In recent years, with rapid development in the semiconductor industry, development of semiconductor devices is oriented towards a trend of smaller dimension, higher circuit density, faster operation speed and lower power consumption; integrated circuits have entered a technical phase of submicron level nowadays. Therefore, in order to meet the demands of smaller dimension and higher density, requirements have been proposed in two aspects so far: on the one hand, it is required that the diameter of wafers should be gradually increased; silicon wafers with diameter of 300 mm have become the mainstream products by 2005, and it is predicted that silicon wafers with diameter of 450 mm (18 in) will come into use in 2012; the diameter of wafers is continuously expanded at a rate of about 1.5 times every 9 years, and wafers are evolved to have larger areas. On the other hand, another need also comes up, namely, it is desired to improve the utilization rate of surface areas of existing wafers without increasing dimensions of existing wafers, so as to increase surface areas thereof that can be processed.
Conventional materials like SiO2, SiN exhibit significant brittleness during manufacturing of semiconductor devices. Therefore, when used to manufacture devices with thin film structure such as solar cells, the materials like SiO2, SiN would rupture easily because of bending or stretching and then cause the connected device structure to break apart, which consequently destroys to the whole device structure or results in low yield or productivity of device manufacturing.

Substrate strip plate structure for semiconductor device and method for manufacturing the same


A display panel, a fabrication method thereof, and a display device are provided. The display panel is divided into a display area, a line switching area, and a bending area in a horizontal direction and includes a substrate, a barrier layer, a buffer layer, an active layer, a first gate insulating layer, a first metal layer, and a second gate insulating layer sequentially formed from bottom to top. The display panel further includes a first through hole, a second metal layer, a first organic layer, a second metal layer, an interlayer insulating layer, and a third metal layer, wherein a portion of the third metal layer penetrates the interlayer insulating layer and is electrically connected to the second metal layer.

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have been widely used in various applications due to their lightweight, self-luminescence, wide viewing angles, low driving voltage, high emission efficiency, low power consumption, and fast response times. Especially, flexible OLED display devices have become a main focus of research and development in the field of display technologies due to their properties such as bendability and easy portability.
Presently, high-end mobile phones require higher brightness uniformity. How to improve the brightness uniformity of a screen is a key future direction for major manufacturers.

Display panel, fabrication method thereof, and display device

WUHAN CHINA STAR OPTOELECTRONICS SEMICONDUCTOR DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.


In a secondary air supply device comprising a turbine and a compressor with turbine and compressor wheels having blades which are covered by wheel covers and an air filter structure disposed between the turbine and compressor wheels, so that air is supplied to the compressor and to the turbine from a common filter structure disposed between the compressor and the turbine wheels.

The invention relates to a secondary air supply device including a compressor and a turbine wheel for an internal combustion engine.
A secondary air supply device with a compressor wheel and a turbine wheel for an internal combustion engine is already known (DE 199 37 781 A1) wherein the compressor and turbine wheels however are configured in an uncovered, conventional design. The wheels are disposed in a housing with a radial gap between the wheel blades and the housing, which radial gap results in undesirable losses.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a more efficient secondary air supply device.

Air supply device for an internal combustion engine