A facsimile store and forward network (42) includes a network access device (36) and an address processing unit (38) that cooperate to interface an originating facsimile machine (10) with a store and forward inbound node (40). The store and forward network provides communication between the originating facsimile machine and a receiving facsimile machine (12), both of which are capable of communicating in a point-to-point manner via a public switched telephone network (14). In operation, the network access device receives from the originating facsimile machine a first address signal that accesses the receiving facsimile machine, generates and stores address information corresponding the first address signal, and delivers to a message entry telephone network (16) a second address signal that accesses the address processing unit of the inbound node. The address processing unit delivers to the network access device a nodal identification signal, in response to which the network access device connects the originating facsimile machine to the message entry telephone network for the transmission of message data to the inbound node. The network access device and the address processing unit form a network interface system (34) that allows the originating facsimile machine to employ the store and forward network while being operated as if the message data were transmitted to the receiving facsimile machine in a point-to-point manner.

FIG. 1 shows a conventional facsimile communication system in which message data are transmitted in "point-to-point" fashion directly from an originating facsimile machine 10 to a receiving facsimile machine 12 via a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 14. In long distance facsimile communication, PSTN 14 include a message entry telephone network 16 and a message delivery telephone network 18 connected together by a public long distance telephone network 20. Message entry telephone network 16 receives data from originating facsimile machine 10, and message delivery telephone network 18 delivers data to receiving facsimile machine 12. Telephone networks 16 and 18 are typically the public switched local calling networks within which the respective facsimile machines 10 and 12 are located.
Originating facsimile machine 10 accesses receiving facsimile machine 12 by transmitting over the PSTN 14 an address signal corresponding to the telephone number of receiving facimile machine 12. The address signal and telephone number of receiving facsimile machine 12 are sometimes referred to as "destination information." The address signal is generated either by an automatic dialer included in originating facsimile machine 10 or by a facsimile machine operator manually dialing the telephone number.
Point-to-point communication between facsimile machines 10 and 12 occurs either within a single local calling network or across a long distance telephone network. Point-to-pont facsimile communication within a single local calling network is typically inexpensive. On the other hand, long distance and, in particular, international point-to-point facsimile communication can be relatively costly. The reason is that facsimile communication frequently occurs during business hours, which are typically the times when the charges for using a public long distance telepohone networks are greatest.
FIG. 2 shows a prior art facsimile store and forward network 24 that is capable of less expensive long distance facsimile communication than is the point-to-point facsimile communication described with reference to FIG. 1. Store and forward network 24 takes the place of public long distance telephone network 20 of FIG. 1 and includes an inbound node 26 and a dedicated long distance telephone communication channel or network 28 that provides long distance communication between inbound node 26 and an outbound node 30. Inbound node 26 is in the local calling area of facsimile machine 10, and outbound node 30 is preferably in the local calling area of receiving facsimile machine 12.
Store and forward network 24 is capable of providing comparatively inexpensive long distance facsimile communication because of the combined benefits of employing dedicated communication channel 28 and transmitting a substantial amount of message data via the communication channel. More specifically, a dedicated communication channel may be established between two points (e.g., inbound node 26 and outbound node 30) by, for example, leasing the channel from a telecommunication network at a fixed "wholesale" rate. Whenever a sufficient amount of message data (e.g., message data generated by multiple subscribers to store and forward network 24) are transmitted via communication channel 28, the cost per unit of message data transmitted via store and forward network 24 is less than the "retail" long distance charges associated with point-to-point communication.
Originating facsimile machine 10 cooperates with a network communication device 32 to transmit message data, destination information, and subscriber identification information to inbound node 26 via message entry telephone network 16, as will be described below in greater detail. Inbound node 26 transmits the message data and the destination information via communication channel 28 to outbound node 30, which employs the destination information to access receiving facsimile machine 12 via message delivery telephone network 18. Once communication is established between outbound node 30 and receiving facsimile machine 12, the message data are delivered to the receiving facsimile machine.
The addressing method by which originating facsimile machine 10 is interfaced with inbound node 26 differs from the addressing method employed in point-to-point communication. A first stage of the former addressing method includes the step of transmitting over message entry telephone network 16 an address signal corresponding to the telephone number of inbound node 26 to establish communication between the node and originating facsimile machine 10. A second stage of the addressing method includes the step of transmitting to inbound node 26 the subscriber identification information and the address signal corresponding to the telephone number of receiving facsimile machine 12 (i.e., the destination information).
The transmission of the subscriber identification information and destination information is typically initiated by the facsimile machine operator in response to prompts received from inbound node 26. The information is transmitted over message entry telephone network 16 either by an automatic dialer (not shown) included in network communication device 32 or by the facsimile machine operator manually entering the information with the DTMF generating touch-tone.RTM. keypad of a telephone 33 that is connected to message entry telephone network 16 with originating facsimile machine 10.
Once the addressing procedure is completed, the facsimile machine operator manually initiates transmission of the message data from originating facsimile machine 10 to inbound node 26. Originating facsimile machine 10 is operated in such a manual mode because the automatic addressing system of the facimile machine is typically incompatible with the addressing requirments of store and forward communication. The manual mode allows the facsimile machine operator to employ network communication device 32 to perform the addressing procedure without being disrupted by the addressing signals that would be generated by originating facimile machine 10 if it were operated in an automatic mode.
Most subcribers to store and forward network 24 selectively employ point-to-point facsimile communication and communication via store and forward network 24 for different facsimile transmissions. The addressing method employed in point-to-point facsimile communication includes the step of transmitting from originating facsimile machine 10 the address signal for receiving facsimile machine 12. In the two-stage addressing method of store and forward network 24, network communication device 32 or telephone 33 is used to transmit the destination information. These different operating procedures for point-to-point communication and communication via store and forward network 24 can require subscribers to change operating procedures that were established for point-to-point communication only. Moreover, facsimile machine operators would need to be trained to implement both procedures and to determine which of the two types of communication should be employed for each facsimile transmission. Such requirements are undesirable because implementation of them could be inconvenient for the subscribers to the store and forward network.

Method and apparatus for accessing a facsimile store and forward network


Described herein are electrodeposited corrosion-resistant multilayer coating and claddings that comprises multiple nanoscale layers that periodically vary in electrodeposited species or electrodeposited microstructures. The coatings may comprise electrodeposited metals, ceramics, polymers or combinations thereof. Also described herein are methods for preparation of the coatings and claddings.

Laminated metals, and in particular nanolaminated metals, are of interest for structural and thermal applications because of their unique toughness, fatigue resistance and thermal stability. For corrosion protection, however, relatively little success has been reported in the formation of corrosion-resistant coatings that are laminated on the nanoscale.
Electrodeposition has been successfully used to deposit nanolaminated coatings on metal and alloy components for a variety of engineering applications. Electrodeposition is recognized as a low-cost method for forming a dense coating on any conductive substrate. Electrodeposition has been demonstrated as a viable means for producing nanolaminated coatings, in which the individual laminates may vary in the composition of the metal, ceramic or organic-metal composition or other microstructure feature. By time varying electrodeposition parameters such as current density, bath composition, pH, mixing rate, and/or temperature, multi-laminate materials can be produced in a single bath. Alternately by moving a mandrel or substrate from one bath to another, each of which represents a different combination of parameters that are held constant, multi-laminate materials or coatings can be realized.
The corrosion behavior of organic, ceramic, metal and metal-containing coatings depends primarily on their chemistry, microstructure, adhesion, thickness and galvanic interaction with the substrate to which they are applied. In the case of sacrificial metal or metal-containing coatings, such as zinc on an iron-based substrate, the coating is less electronegative than the substrate and so oxidation of the coating occurs preferentially, thus protecting the substrate. Because these coatings protect by providing an oxidation-preferred sacrificial layer, they will continue to work even when marred or scratched. The performance of sacrificial coatings depends heavily on the rate of oxidation of the coating layer and the thickness of the sacrificial layer. Corrosion protection of the substrate only lasts so long as the sacrificial coating is in place and may vary depending on the environment that the coating is subjected to and the resulting rate of coating oxidation.
Alternately, in the case of a barrier coating, such as nickel on an iron-based substrate, the coating is more electronegative than the substrate and thus works by creating a barrier to oxidative corrosion. In A-type metals, such as Fe, Ni, Cr and Zn, it is generally true that the higher the electronegativity, the greater the nobility (non reactivity). When the coating is more noble than the substrate, if that coating is marred or scratched in any way, or if coverage is not complete, these coatings will not work, and may accelerate the progress of substrate corrosion at the substrate: coating interface, resulting in preferential attack of the substrate. This is also true when ceramic coatings are used. For example, it has been reported in the prior art that while fully dense TiN coatings are more noble than steel and aluminum in resistance to various corrosive environments, pinholes and micropores that can occur during processing of these coating are detrimental to their corrosion resistance properties. In the case of barrier coatings, pinholes in the coating may accelerate corrosion in the underlying metal by pitting, crevice or galvanic corrosion mechanisms.
Many approaches have been utilized to improve the corrosion resistance of barrier coatings, such as reducing pinhole defects through the use of a metallic intermediate layer or multiple layering schemes. Such approaches are generally targeted at reducing the probability of defects or reducing the susceptibility to failure in the case of a defect, mar or scratch. One example of a multiple layering scheme is the practice commonly found in the deployment of industrial coatings, which involves the use of a primer, containing a sacrificial metal such as zinc, coupled with a highly-crosslinked, low surface energy topcoat (such as a fluorinated or polyurethane topcoat). In such case, the topcoat acts as a barrier to corrosion. In case the integrity of the topcoat is compromised for any reason, the metal contained in the primer acts as a sacrificial media, thus sacrificially protecting the substrate from corrosion.
Dezincification is a term is used to mean the corroding away of one constituent of any alloy leaving the others more or less in situ. This phenomenon is perhaps most common in brasses containing high percentages of zinc, but the same or parallel phenomena are familiar in the corrosion of aluminum bronzes and other alloys of metals of widely different chemical affinities. Dezincification usually becomes evident as an area with well-defined boundaries, and within which the more noble metal becomes concentrated as compared with the original alloy. In the case of brass the zinc is often almost completely removed and copper is present almost in a pure state, but in a very weak mechanical condition. Corrosion by dezincification usually depends on the galvanic differential between the dissimilar metals and the environmental conditions contributing to corrosion. Dezincification of alloys results in overall loss of the structural integrity of the alloy and is considered one of the most aggressive forms of corrosion.
Coatings that may represent the best of both the sacrificial coating and the barrier coating are those that are more noble than the substrate and creates a barrier to corrosion, but, in case that coating is compromised, is also less noble than the substrate and will sacrificially corrode, thus protecting the substrate from direct attack.

Electrodeposited, nanolaminate coatings and claddings for corrosion protection


The present disclosure provides: a thermosetting resin composition comprising: (a) bisphenol M-type epoxy resin; (b) bisphenol M-type cyanate ester resin; (c) polyphenylene ether having two or more vinyl groups at both ends of a branched chain, or oligomers thereof; and (d) a cross-linking curing agent, a prepreg comprising the composition, and a printed circuit board. The printed circuit board simultaneously has an excellent low dielectric loss characteristic, a great moisture-absorbing and heat-resistant characteristic, a low thermal expansion characteristic, thermal stability and the like.

Recently, the heat resistance of a material to be used has been required to increase in order to secure the processability and reliability of electronic parts such as a semiconductor substrate, a printed circuit board, and an epoxy molding compound (EMC). For example, by using a high melting point lead-free material which replaces lead-containing solder, a reflow temperature shows approximately 260° C. to 270° C. at the time of mounting a semiconductor and thus is increased by approximately several tens of temperature ° C. compared to the existing reflow temperatures.
Further, since the value of coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) for a polymer material is larger by several to several ten times than the values of other materials (polymer material CTE: approximately 50 to 80 ppm/° C., silicon CTE: 3 to 5 ppm/° C., and copper CTE: 17 ppm/° C.), there occur product defects such as the generation of cracks on inorganic layers, the inner layer delamination, and the generation of warpage of a substrate due to the significant difference in coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE-mismatch) between these constituent components. Therefore, there is a need for developing a material having a high glass transition temperature (Tg) in order to have excellent refluidity and secure thermal expansion characteristics at high temperature compared to the existing materials.
Further, in order to increase the heat resistance of an FR-4 laminate in the related art, a method for increasing the glass transition temperature (Tg) by increasing the curing density through a method for increasing the number of epoxy functional groups was also used. However, as the number of epoxy functional groups is increased, the number of —OH (hydroxyl) groups is increased at the ends, and accordingly, the free volume is increased, so that the moisture absorption is facilitated, and as a result, the moisture resistance and dielectric characteristics are adversely affected.
Meanwhile, as the demand for high integration, high refinement, high performance, and the like in the semiconductor device and PCB fields is currently increased, the condition is gradually changed into a situation in which the integration of semiconductor devices, the high density of printed circuit boards, and the simplicity of the wiring interval are required. In order to satisfy these characteristics, it is preferred to use a low dielectric constant which facilitates the transmission rate and a low dielectric loss material for reducing the transmission loss. To exhibit these low dielectric characteristics, a poly(phenylene ether) (PPE) resin having excellent dielectric characteristics is also applied, but there occurs a problem with the handleability due to the crumbling of prepreg, and heat resistance has not yet been sufficient.

Thermosetting resin composition having heat resistance and low dielectric loss characteristics, prepreg using same, and copper clad laminate


In one embodiment, a droop reference, comprising: a programmable low pass filter configured to filter a supply voltage; and a digital-to-analog converter configured to provide a scaled version of the filtered supply voltage.

Voltage regulators, and particularly, voltage regulator modules (VRMs), are used to provide microprocessors with an appropriate supply voltage. Typically, VRMs are mounted to a motherboard via a solder connection or a slot designed to accept the VRM. Some VRMs provide a fixed supply voltage to the microprocessor, whereas others sense the required supply voltage from the microprocessor, enabling a variable adjustment.
Microprocessors may demand fast changes in load current (e.g., when switching out of an idle or power saving state), which imposes challenges for the VRM. For instance, the VRM may experience a large step-change in load current within a period measured in nanoseconds. Voltage droop compensation is one technique used for these types of conditions, which intentionally increases the DC output impedance of a converter, lowering its output as load current increases. In effect, voltage droop compensation reduces overshoot of the supplied voltage during large step changes in load current. Choosing the amount of voltage droop to apply is challenging, since it often involves knowledge of the worst-case transient load changes, which are hard to predict. Voltage droop compensation needs to maintain close fidelity to the desired supply voltage while accommodating transient loads without experiencing an unacceptable degree of voltage droop that can be detrimental to performance (e.g., inadequate power, and hence reduced clock speeds).

Droop reference with programmable filter


A method for diagnosing and/or staging a hemoglobin disorder such as β-thalassemia involves contacting a blood sample of a subject with an Alpha-Hemoglobin Stabilizing Protein which may be present on a solid support, and detecting and/or quantifying free α-Hb. Detection or quantification can be achieved by photometry such as HTRF or immunological procedures such as EIA and ELISA. The free α-Hb is compared to a reference value, and can be used to correlate with the diagnosis and/or staging of the hemoglobin disorder for the subject.

The normal development of red blood cells requires a coordinated synthesis of the hemoglobin (Hb) subunits, the α- and β-globins in the case of adult hemoglobin (Hb A). The α- and β-globin chains are encoded by genes on different chromosomes, 16 and 11 respectively, and their expression is controlled independently. In the normal red blood cell, slightly more α-chains than β-chains are produced. Unlike the β-hemoglobin chains (β-Hb) which are soluble and form homologous tetramers, the free α-hemoglobin chains (α-Hb) are highly instable, and when in excess, form precipitates and act as active oxidants causing apoptosis and inefficient erythropoiesis.
β-thalassemias are inherited autosomal recessive diseases characterised by a decrease or abolition of the normal β-globin chain synthesis inducing inefficient erythropoiesis (Weatherall, 2004). Consequences include anemia, of different severity according to the mutations involved, several other severe disorders due to the increase in medullar erythropoiesis, impaired statural growth and bone structure, accelerated iron turnover, and heme catabolism, and their own clinical consequences.
In 2002, the molecular chaperone of α-Hb, the <<Alpha-Hemoglobin Stabilizing Protein>> (AHSP) was reported (Kihm et al., 2002). This small protein of 102 amino-acids is present at a high level (0.1 mM) in human red blood cell precursors and its synthesis is under the control of GATA-1, a pivotal erythroid transcription factor. This protein is encoded by chromosome 16. Also, in contrast to most other molecular chaperones, which are widely expressed and relatively promiscuous with respect to substrate interactions, AHSP appears to be highly tissue and substrate specific. AHSP specifically binds to α-Hb to form a stable soluble heterodimer but not to the β-Hb or to tetrameric Hb A (Kihm et al., 2002; Gell et al., 2002). Hence the role of AHSP could be to prevent free α-Hb from aggregation until the encounter of β, δ or γ chains allows formation of the corresponding tetrameric Hbs. In the red blood cell of β-thalassemic patients, AHSP acts as a scavenger against the pool of free α-chain but may be overwhelmed by a defective production or level of availability of β-like chains. Thus, the free α-Hb monomers in the red cells overload the AHSP capacity and precipitate, damaging the cell and triggering cell apoptose. For β-thalassemic patients, the free α-chain pool in the red blood cell may thus reflect the severity of a β-thalassemia syndrome.
Based on AHSP identification, US Patent Application 2005/0028229 describes a method of diagnosing an AHSP-related disorder in a test subject such as β-thalassemia by determining the presence in a sample from said test subject of AHSP and, if present, determining the expression level.
However, currently the diagnosis of β-thalassemia is still based on the hematological parameters of the patients and the molecular diagnosis is obtained by PCR techniques. More than 200 different β-thalassemia mutations have now been characterized, the majority of which are point mutations or very short deletions/insertions. Most of these mutations are country or population-specific, and their distributions have now been determined for most at-risk populations. The strategy for identifying these mutations is usually based on the fact that most populations have just a few common mutations and a variable number of rare ones. The severity of the β-thalassemia depends mainly on the nature of the mutation. Two main classes of disorders are described, first the β0-thalassemia (β0-thal) in which no β chains are produced and second the β+-thalassemia (β+-thal) in which some normal β chains are synthesized. The clinical manifestations of β-thalassemia are extremely diverse ranging from severe anemia and transfusion-dependency to the asymptomatic state of β-thalassemia trait (Thein, 2005). More generally one may need to consider the overall imbalance between the α and β family of globin chains, in order to include the different stages of development; for example, the .beta. family includes the fetal (γ) and adult (β) chains. The great variability in the phenotypic expression of the .beta.-thalassemia also depends on association with some modifiers of Hb synthesis which may modify the .alpha. biosynthetic ratio between cluster β and α-globin.
Thus, the central pathological mechanism of β-thalassemias is the imbalance between the synthesis of the alpha and beta (γ+β) family of globin chains (Weatherall and Clegg, 2001) and the severity of this disease is directly correlated with the degree of the globin chain imbalance. The in vitro study of synthesis of the α- and γ+β-globin chains of Hb from peripheral blood reticulocytes highlighted in 1965 this imbalance of globin synthesis in thalassemia (Weatherall et al., 1965). Many subsequent studies have reported the same usefulness of measuring the imbalance of globin chain synthesis from β-thalassemic reticulocytes, but all the different laboratory methods are based on the incorporation of a radioactive amino acid in the subunit biosynthesis from peripheral blood (Kim et al., 1977). Such a method could certainly not be considered as routine laboratory practice.
It results that there is currently no simple and rapid test to evaluate this parameter. In routine hematologic examinations, the excess of free α-Hb may be distinguished in cytology by the presence of inclusion bodies corresponding to the denatured and precipitated α-Hb but this approach is not specific of the α-Hb and only qualitative. It is cumbersome, expensive and time consuming procedure.
Indeed, the only technique to quantify the relative excess of free α-Hb is to carry out globin biosynthesis in vitro in the presence of a radioactive amino-acid. This technology has been used in research laboratories in the 1970s, 1980s and the measurement of the amount of radioactivity in different collected globin fractions allows a determination of the α/β chain synthesis ratio. This characterization method is less and less in use, even in research laboratories, because of the use of radioactivity.
Furthermore, until very recently, it was considered that was impossible to detect or quantify free α-Hb since the excess α-Hb either precipitates in erythroid precursors in the bone marrow (resulting in ineffective erythropoiesis), causing their premature destruction, and although partly proteolyzed binds to the cell membrane of adult erythroid cells, leading to their hemolysis and promoting apoptosis (Bank, 2007 and Yu et al., 2007).
Therefore, there is a need for a method for easily diagnosing and/or staging a hemoglobin-related disorder such as β-thalassemias carried out without using molecular or radioactive technique.

Method for diagnosing a hemoglobin-related disorder

Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale (INSERM)

Universite Paris Est Creteil Val de Marne


A memory device may include a plurality of resistance nodes. The resistance nodes may be connected serially in a NAND or AND structure, by a plurality of metal plugs. The metal plugs may have a lower resistance. A control device corresponding to each resistance node may control the resistance devices. Each control device may be connected to a bit line and a word line. The bit line may be connected to the metal plugs via a corresponding switch device.

1. Field of the Invention
Example embodiments of the present invention relate to semiconductor memory devices, for example, non-volatile memory (NVM) devices having resistance nodes.
2. Description of the Related Art
Non-volatile memory (NVM) devices may be classified as threshold voltage transition devices, charge displacement devices or resistance varying devices. Depending on the type of a storage node, threshold voltage transition devices may be classified as flash memory devices with a floating gate or SONOS devices with a charge trapping layer. Charge displacement devices may be classified as nano-crystal ferroelectric RAM (FRAM) devices or polymer devices. Resistance varying devices my be classified as magnetic RAM (MRAM) devices, phase change RAM (PRAM) devices, resistance RAM (RRAM) using a compound metal oxide or polymer memory devices.
For example, related art resistance nodes used in a resistance memory may comprise a SrZrO3 layer of which 0.2% may be doped with chromium (Cr).
FIGS. 1A and 1B are photographic images of an electron-beam-induced current (EBIC) of a related art resistance memory device and graphs illustrating current characteristics versus voltage characteristics relating to the EBIC. As shown, the resistance of a resistance node may vary as a sweeping voltage is applied to both terminals of the resistance node. The resistance node may vary from a higher resistance state (e.g., R=606 kΩ) in an initial stage as illustrated in FIG. 1A to a lower resistance state (e.g., R=10.5 kΩ) when a voltage is lowered less than −8 V as illustrated in FIG. 1B. White points in the EBIC photos indicate conductive paths.
Referring to the EBIC photos, since the resistance node varies from the higher resistance state to the lower resistance state, the white points which are the conductive paths may become larger (e.g., the white points indicated by arrows). The conductive paths may be locally (not wholly) formed on the resistance node when an amount of current flowing through the resistance node varies (e.g., when the resistance of the resistance node varies), as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view illustrating the shape of a filament of the resistance memory device of FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 2, a conductive path 80 may be disposed between two electrodes 50 and 60 via a resistance node 70. The conductive path 80 may be formed in the shape of a filament as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating the shape of the filament of a related art NAND-type resistance memory device in a block erasure operation. As shown, when the resistance node 70 having a NAND structure is serially connected, the conductive path 80 in the shape of the filament may not be connected to the length direction of the resistance node 70. In this example, a resistance node region H may utilize the disconnected conductive path 80 has a higher resistance path, such that the resistance node 70 may not be easily changed to the lower resistance state. According to the related art, a NAND-type or AND-type resistance memory device having serially connected resistance node 70 may not be operated in a unit block at a time.

Memory device having serially connected resistance nodes


At least one example embodiment provides for a frequency divider system including a delay unit configured to receive a first input clock signal having a first input clock frequency and a requirement and output a modified clock signal, and a frequency divider configured to receive the modified clock signal and output an output clock signal having an output clock frequency. The output clock frequency is an odd or even integer division of the first input clock frequency based on the requirement such as an input control word.

In modern electronic systems, a frequency synthesizer is often used to generate high frequency outputs from a fixed low frequency input. The performance of the frequency synthesizer is usually limited by a frequency divider and a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) included in the frequency synthesizer.
Programmable frequency dividers by even factors (e.g., 2*N) are often used to generate high frequency outputs from the fixed low frequency input.
FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional frequency divider system. As shown, a frequency divider system 100 includes a periodic counter 110 and a frequency divider 120.
A duty cycle of a short pulse SP that is output from the periodic counter 110 is, in general, not close to 50% and, therefore, cannot be used in most applications.
In order to solve this issue, the frequency divider 120 is generally a frequency divider by two. The frequency divider by two 120 changes its output with every pulse from the periodic counter 110, which is described below. The frequency divider by two 120 is often implemented with a single flip-flop.
The periodic counter 110 receives division factor control bits div_by <m:0> and an input clock signal clk. The periodic counter 110 is configured to output a short pulse SP after every N input clock periods. The frequency divider by two 120 is configured to receive the short pulse SP and output a 50% duty cycle output. Due to the use of the frequency divider by two 120, a total division factor is limited to even factors (2*N) only.
FIG. 2 illustrates a timing diagram for the frequency divider system 100. As illustrated, a short pulse SP is output for every N (four is used only as an example) rising edge of the clock signal clk. For every rising edge of the short pulse SP, the output signal changes from a low level to a high level or vice versa.
Conventionally, a counting frequency is doubled to achieve a frequency divider by an odd division factor. Unfortunately, maximum counting frequency is limited by technology used and, in some cases, cannot be doubled. Additionally, even when counting frequency can be doubled, it leads to excessive power and, in some cases, also area penalties.
Frequency dividers may be implemented in many different electronic systems.

Frequency divider systems and methods thereof


A method and apparatus for manufacturing polishing articles used in polishing processes are provided. In one implementation, a method of forming a polishing pad is provided. The method comprises depositing an uncured first layer of a pad forming photopolymer on a substrate. The method further comprises positioning a first optical mask over the first layer of the uncured pad forming photopolymer. The first optical mask includes a patterned sheet of material having at least one aperture. The method further comprises exposing the uncured first layer of the pad forming photopolymer to electromagnetic radiation to selectively polymerize exposed portions of the uncured first layer of the pad forming photopolymer to form pad-supporting structures within the first layer of pad forming photopolymer.

Field
Implementations disclosed herein generally relate to polishing articles, and methods and systems for manufacturing polishing articles used in polishing processes.
Description of the Related Art
Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is a conventional process used in many different industries to planarize surfaces of substrates. In the semiconductor industry, uniformity of polishing and planarization has become increasingly significant as device feature sizes continue to decrease. During a CMP process, a substrate, such as a silicon wafer, is mounted on a carrier head with the device surface placed against a rotating polishing pad. The carrier head provides a controllable load on the substrate to push the device surface against the polishing pad. A polishing liquid, such as slurry with abrasive particles, is typically supplied to the surface of the moving polishing pad and polishing head. The polishing pad and polishing head apply mechanical energy to the substrate, while the pad also helps to control the transport of slurry, which interacts with the substrate during the polishing process.
A conventional polishing pad is typically made by molding, casting or sintering polymeric materials that include polyurethane materials. In the case of molding, polishing pads can be made one at a time, for example, by injection molding. In the case of casting, the liquid precursor is cast and cured into a cake, which is subsequently sliced into individual pad pieces. These pad pieces can then be machined to a final thickness. Pad surface features, including grooves which aid in slurry transport, can be machined into the polishing surface, or can be formed as part of the injection molding process. These methods of manufacturing polishing pads are expensive and time consuming, and often yield non-uniform polishing results due to the difficulties in the production and control of the feature dimensions of the pad surface. Non-uniformity has become increasingly significant as the dimensions of IC devices and feature sizes continue to shrink.
Accordingly, there remains a need for polishing pads, methods of manufacturing polishing pads, and systems for manufacturing polishing pads that provide uniform removal rates, have extended pad life, and minimize scratching of the polished substrate.


A charge pump includes a first current source, a second current source, and a current mirror. The first current source is included to set a common mode output voltage of a charge pump core based on a desired common mode input of the charge pump core. The second current source is included to receive the common mode output voltage from the charge pump core. A first input of the current mirror receives a signal from the first current source, and a second input of the current mirror receives a signal from the second current source.

1. Technical Field
An embodiment of the present invention generally relates to a charge pump. More particularly, an embodiment of the present invention relates to a charge pump having a common mode feedback.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Electronic circuits that provide clock signals are used in a wide range of data systems, such as computer systems and digital data communication systems. Such systems generally operate at relatively high frequencies at which data bandwidth is at a premium. A phase-locked loop (xe2x80x9cPLLxe2x80x9d) may be used, for example, as part of a clock recovery unit, to derive a clock signal from incoming data signals. For instance, a PLL may be used to synchronize, or de-skew, an internal control clock with respect to an external system clock.
A PLL may include a phase/frequency detector (xe2x80x9cPFDxe2x80x9d), a charge pump, a low-pass filter, and a voltage-controlled oscillator (xe2x80x9cVCOxe2x80x9d). The PFD compares two input signals, a reference signal from the external system clock and a feedback signal. The PFD generates phase error signals (xe2x80x9cUPxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cDOWNxe2x80x9d) that are a measure of the phase difference between the reference signal and the feedback signal. The charge pump generates control signals, based on the phase error signals from the PFD. The low-pass filter filters the control signals, which are then fed into the control input of the VCO. The VCO generates a periodic signal at a frequency which is controlled by the filtered phase error signal.
The high frequency at which data is communicated in data systems, and the need for higher reliability for the transmission of such data places significant requirements and low margins of error on PLLs. One source of errors in PLLs is the charge pump circuitry. For example, charge pumps are often comprised of CMOS transistor elements. The CMOS transistor elements often exhibit slight variations in performance due to mechanical manufacturing discrepancies. Such discrepancies may result in undesirable variations in the phase error signals. Additionally, variations in the power supply used to power or bias the transistor elements also may result in undesirable variations, or jitter, in the charge pump signal.

Common mode feedback technique for a low voltage charge pump


A method for manufacturing a color filter colors a large number of filter elements on a substrate respectively in a predetermined color. A filter element is colored while an ink-jet head nozzle and the filter element are aligned. The method comprises a detection step of detecting the position of the filter element, a correction step of correcting a relative position of the filter element and a discharge nozzle for discharging coloring material, based on position information of the filter element detected at the detection step, so that the filter element and the discharge nozzle are aligned, and a coloring step of coloring the filter element by discharging the coloring material by the discharge nozzle.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a color filter, manufactured by coloring a number of filter elements on a substrate, partitioned by a light-shielding portion of a predetermined pattern formed on the substrate, a display device using the color filter, an apparatus comprising the display device, an ink-jet head, and a method and apparatus for manufacturing the color filter.
With recent advances in personal computers, especially portable personal computers, the demand for liquid crystal displays tends to rise, especially color liquid crystal displays. However, in order to further popularize the use of liquid crystal displays, a reduction in cost must be achieved. Especially, it is required to reduce the cost of a color filter which occupies a large proportion of the total cost. Various methods have been tried to satisfy the required characteristics of color filters while meeting the above requirements. However, a method capable of satisfying all the requirements has not been established. The current methods will be described below.
The first method is a coloring method, which is the most popular method. In the coloring method, a water-soluble polymer material as a colorable material is coated on a glass substrate, and the coating is patterned into a desired shape by a photolithography process. The obtained pattern is dipped in a color bath to obtain a colored pattern. This process is repeated three times to form R, G, and B color filter layers.
The second method is a pigment dispersion method, which is currently replacing the coloring method. In this method, a pigment-dispersed photosensitive resin layer is formed on a substrate and patterned into a single-color pattern. This process is repeated three times to obtain R, G and B color filter layers.
The third method is an electrodeposition method. In this method, a transparent electrode is patterned on a substrate, and the resultant structure is dipped in an electrodeposition coating fluid containing a pigment, a resin, an electrolyte, and the like to be colored in the first color by electrodeposition. This process is repeated three times to form R, G and B color filter layers. Finally, these layers are calcined.
The fourth method is a printing method of dispersing a pigment in a thermosetting resin, performing a print operation three times to form R, G and B coatings separately, and thermosetting the resins, thereby forming colored layers. In the above methods, a protective layer is generally formed on the colored layers.
The point common to these methods is that the same process must be repeated three times to obtain layers colored in three colors, i.e., R, G and B. This results in an increase in cost. In addition, as the number of processes increases, the yield decreases. In the electrodeposition method, limitations are imposed on pattern shapes which can be formed. For this reason, with the existing techniques, this method cannot be applied to TFTs (thin film transistors). In the print method, a pattern with a fine pitch cannot be formed because of poor resolution and unevenness.
In order to eliminate these drawbacks, methods of manufacturing color filters by ink-jet systems are disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 59-75205, 63-235901, 1-217302 and 4-123005.
In the above manufacturing methods by the conventional ink-jet systems, an ink-jet head is scanned on a substrate to color a number of filter elements. However, these methods have a problem in that positions of filter elements are slightly shifted from coloring dot positions of the ink-jet head, because in these methods, change of intervals between the filter elements and change of arrangement of the filter elements, due to temperature change and temperature distribution of substrate, are not considered. This causes white omissions and other problems in the filter elements.

Color filter, display device using color filter, apparatus comprising display device, ink-jet head, and color filter manufacturing method and apparatus


A blade damper for use in fluid flow control devices having damper blades mounted on an axle and having extension ears mounted at opposite ends of the damper blades. The extension ears are mounted in a 90 degree relationship to the damper blades and are semi-circular at their boundary to allow for rotation with the damper blades. The extension ears prevent fluid leakage through boundary planes perpendicular to the axle when the damper is open thereby providing near linear side blade opening versus fluid flow characteristics.

A blade damper is essentially a valve or plate that is positioned over an orifice and is used to regulate the flow of air, gas or liquids ("fluids") through the orifice. The blade damper is generally mounted on an axle for rotation within the orifice, with the axle mounted relative to the orifice. One such use of a blade damper occurs within a heat exchanger having a combustor containing a fluidized bed wherein one or more dampers are placed within the heat exchanger to control the flow of air to the fluidized bed.
In general the flow of fluid through an orifice is determined by the pressure differential across the orifice and by the surface area of the orifice. Ideally, when a damper is closed it should not allow any fluid to flow through the orifice; when it is fully open it should not restrict the flow of fluid through the orifice; and, when it is partially open, it should allow fluid to flow through the orifice relative to the percentage opening of the damper. With proper control of pressure, the flow of fluid through the orifice is approximately proportional to the opening of the damper. However, this linear relationship between the flow of fluid through the orifice and the damper opening is often impossible to obtain due leakage of fluid through the damper boundary planes perpendicular to the axle.
Several techniques are known in the prior art for preventing leakage of fluid through an orifice sealed by a blade damper when the damper is closed. For example, the blades of the damper are overlapped with the edge of the orifice, or sealing strips are provided at the edge of the blade. Other techniques are employed to allow for maximum fluid flow through an orifice when the damper blade is fully open. However, none of these techniques have addressed the problem of controlling fluid leakage through boundary planes perpendicular to the axle when the blade damper is partially open.

Blade damper with extensions to reduce boundary leakage


A stator includes a core and an over-molded midsection arranged to define a plurality of slots, and a plurality of conductors wound within the slots. Portions of the midsection immediately adjacent to the slots have iron particles embedded therein such the portions have magnetic permeability greater than other portions of the midsection lacking the iron particles.

Extended drive range technology for electric vehicles, such as battery electric vehicles and plug in hybrid vehicles, continually increases demand on electric machines used for vehicle propulsion. Achieving increased driving ranges may require traction batteries and electric machines to have higher power outputs. One way to achieve a higher power output is to increase the flux carrying capabilities of a stator, a component of the electric machine, thereby increasing its torque producing capabilities.


A gastric emptying breath test method that includes collecting a breath sample of the subject at only a single time point after the subject consumes the breath test meal, wherein the single time point is a time point selected from within an identified time window.

The digestive tract generally performs five functions when processing food. The functions include motility, secretory, digestive absorptive and elimination functions. Food processing begins in the oral cavity, which mechanically breaks down food by mastication, lubrication with saliva, and enzymatic processing. Food processing continues in the stomach where food is liquefied by gastric juices and enzymes secreted by the cells lining the stomach to produce chyme. The chyme next enters the small intestine where bile salts produced by the liver and digestive enzymes produced by the pancreas further process the chyme. The small intestine also absorbs components from the chyme through its walls. Components that are not absorbed by the small intestine enter the large intestine. Finally, the large intestine propels waste products into the colon, where they remain, usually for a day or two, until the feces are expelled by a bowel movement.
Sometimes, a person takes an abnormally long time to process food, or a person processes food abnormally fast. Such abnormal gastrointestinal functions are commonly caused by a disorder in the stomach. A stomach disorder can cause the stomach to empty food into the small intestine too quickly or after too long of a time. Stomach emptying disorders can be diagnosed by measuring the rate at which a meal empties from the stomach and enters the small intestine (the "gastric emptying rate"). When the rate is accelerated, the stomach prematurely dumps food into the small intestine, giving rise to abnormally fast rates of gastric emptying (rapid or accelerated gastric emptying). Conversely, when the rate is delayed, the stomach delays moving food into the small intestine, giving rise to abnormally slow rates of gastric emptying (delayed gastric emptying). Hence, measurements of gastric emptying rates have important clinical utility.
Various methods are known for quantitatively measuring gastric emptying rates. One known method is scintigraphy, which has historically been considered the gold standard method of measuring gastric emptying rates. In a scintigraphy method, a subject ingests a meal including at least one edible food, a component of which has been radiolabeled with a gamma emitting radionuclide. A scintillation camera or gamma counter scans the stomach at different time points over an extended time period. The scans directly measure the gamma emissions arising from the radiolabeled meal remaining in the stomach.
Two metrics are commonly utilized in scintigraphy methods. These are (1) fraction of test meal emptied at a number of different time points and (2) the time it takes to empty 50% of a standard test meal from the stomach, or "t ½." A scintigraphic t ½ value for a test subject may be obtained from using the fraction emptied values by linear interpolation between the two time points at which scintigraphic fraction emptied values bracket 0.5 (50% emptied). Thus, scintigraphy methods use metrics that require taking measurements at a number of different time points.
Another method for measuring gastric emptying is breath testing. In a breath testing method, a subject ingests a meal including at least one edible food, a component that includes a 13C label. As the subject's digestive tract processes the 13C labeled food, a labeled digestive metabolite, 13CO2, is produced which can be detected in the subject's breath. The 13C label passes through the stomach, is absorbed by the small intestine and is metabolized by the liver to give rise to 13CO2. The 13CO2 then moves through the blood to the lungs and exits the body through the subject's breath. The rate of excretion of 13CO2 in the breath signals the rate at which the stomach is emptying. During breath testing, a test administrator collects breath samples from a subject at a number of different time points. Thus, breath testing also requires taking measurements at a number of different time points.
Both scintigraphy and breath testing methods are multi-point tests. Following consumption of a meal including the label, successive measurements are obtained at multiple time points, for example at time points at selected intervals for up to six hours. Such test methods therefore are inconvenient because they require taking measurements at multiple time points and require a long period of time to complete.

Single-point gastric emptying breath tests


A multi-stage drug delivery system having a cartridge and multiple plungers positioned in the cartridge and spaced apart from one another is provided. A first plunger, a second plunger, and the cartridge form a first chamber storing a first drug. The second plunger and the cartridge form a second chamber storing a second drug. A cannula pierces the first plunger to access the first drug. As the first plunger is driven toward the second plunger, the first drug is expelled from the first chamber for delivery to a patient through the cannula. After expelling the first liquid drug, the cannula can pierce the second plunger to access the second drug. As the first and second plungers are together driven toward a closed end of the cartridge, the second liquid drug is expelled from the second chamber for delivery to the patient through the cannula.

Many patients may be required to receive dosages of different drugs. Conventional drug delivery systems, such as many conventional wearable drug delivery devices, typically only provide a dosage of a single drug. Therefore, a patient may be required to use multiple conventional drug delivery devices to receive the different drug dosages. With each additional device, the patient is required to insert a new needle to facilitate delivery of each drug. Accordingly, what is needed is a drug delivery system that can deliver multiple different drugs and dosages in a less burdensome manner while reducing patient discomfort.


A method is disclosed for condensing reported checkpoint log data that facilitates analysis of the checkpoint log data by minimizing extraneous results presented to a user. The method includes a user interface to receive a query expression from a user based on one or more conditions and one or more parameters. A record handler retrieves a checkpoint log record from a storage device. A structuring module parses the checkpoint log record into log entries. A comparison module applies the query expression to each log entry. This application of the query expression may include applying the query expression to a particular portion of the log entry specified by an offset. The output module generates a condensed checkpoint log record including log entries that satisfy the query expression.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to log data and more particularly relates to condensing checkpoint log data.
2. Description of the Related Art
Computer software generally includes a log feature that may be used during development or during normal operation of a software application. The log feature causes the software application to report various types of information regarding the health or status of each software sub-system, statistics from system control blocks, and other highly detailed information known herein as log data. Generally, log data is analyzed by software engineers or system administrators to facilitate resolving software bugs and/or inefficiencies in the software application. Typically, log data can be produced at various levels of granularity. The different levels of granularity facilitate tracking down software errors.
However, a high granularity also produces very large quantities of log data. For each software event logged, a log entry is typically generated. The log entry is typically relatively small and provides information about the operation being performed as well as context information such as inputs, outputs, and other state information.
Log data is typically stored for subsequent analysis after the software application is executed to generate the software error. Because log data may be collected during high workload periods for the computer system and/or software application, it is desirable that the logging operation add minimal overhead to the workload. Consequently, the frequently-generated log entries are typically combined into larger groups of log entries, known herein as checkpoint log records. The checkpoint log records often include a header that identifies the number and length of log entries contained therein as well as other context information such as a timestamp. Checkpoint log records can be over one hundred times larger than individual log entries. Storing fewer large checkpoint log records requires less I/O than storing many small individual log entries.
Log data can be collected during a single execution or over a period of time in order to identify more latent software bugs. Consequently, the size of the log data may grow dramatically. Analyzing such high quantities of log data has been difficult for programmers and system administrators. With the complexities of modem software and the high quantities of log data, the debugging task becomes the proverbial search for a needle in a haystack.
Storing checkpoint log records optimizes writing to the storage devices, but makes reviewing and analysis extremely difficult. In particular, search utilities currently available such as DFSERA10 provided with the Information Management System (IMS) from IBM of Armonk, N.Y., do not permit searching for a data value within individual log entries. Instead, the whole checkpoint log record is treated as a continuous, unstructured record. These conventional tools search checkpoint log records for any occurrence of the search string or data value. Consequently, conventional search tools find matching data values, also known as "hits," at various locations within a checkpoint log record. Unfortunately, these hits cross boundaries between log entries, boundaries within log entries, or occur at the wrong location within a log entry such that the hits are coincidental and of no use to the programmer. Such hits are false positives.
In addition, conventional search tools retrieve and present each checkpoint log record that includes at least one hit. Typically, this means that a high number of non-matching log entries are presented with the one or two log entries that contain the hit. Storing, printing, displaying, and sifting through the non-matching log entries together with the actual hit log entries can be tedious and labor intensive for programmers and system administrators concentrating on tracking down a software problem. The non-matching log entries make the results difficult to read. Furthermore, if the hit is a false positive, the receiving of these log records is wasted. In some instances, millions of lines of output are returned, the majority of which are extraneous.
From the foregoing discussion, it should be apparent that a need exists for a method for condensing reported checkpoint log data based on a query expression. The method should minimize false positives and the size of search results to ease storage requirements and log data analysis time.

Method for condensing reported checkpoint log data

International Business Machines Corporation


A bone plate and method of forming a bone plate having a plurality of suture loops pre-attached to the bone plate. The suture loops may be flexible and formed of a strong suture material. The suture loops may have various shapes, forms and configurations and may be provided on the bone plate in any number, depending on the characteristics of the fractured bone or bone segments, or of the plate design. Preferably, the suture loops are attached to a surface of the bone plate. The suture loops may receive a strand of suture for fixation of soft tissue to the bone plate.

Fractured bones are often treated using fixation devices that reinforce the fractured bone and keep the fractured segments aligned during healing. The fixation devices may take a variety of forms, including casts for external fixation and bone plates for internal fixation. Bone plates are typically formed as rigid metal plates that are mounted on a fractured bone or bone segments to span or bridge the fracture. Typically, bones plate are held in place by screws or other fasteners attached to the bone on each side of the fracture through apertures in the bone plate.
Bone plates are considered the treatment of choice for many fractured bones, especially long bones, because they are compact, permitting an early return to motion. As illustrated in FIG. 1, in addition to screw holes (not shown) for affixing the plate to bone, bone plate 50 can be provided with through holes 57 and cutouts 52 that allow for the fixation to the bone plate of sutures attached to tubercules or other soft tissue. In this way, the bone plate can be used to tie down the tubercules or soft tissue. However, the holes 57 and cutouts 52 have sharp edges which increase the wear rate of the suture that is passed therethrough to tie down the soft tissue.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a bone plate with a suture fastener that does not have any sharp edges. A bone plate with smooth edges which provide increased fixation strength of fractured bone, and with suture loops attached to the bone plate which provide additional fixation of associated soft tissue to the fractured bone and reliable suture connections, is also needed. A method of bone-tissue fixation using a bone plate with a suture fastener that does not have any sharp edges is further needed.


A rectification column for multi-component mixture separation with internal heat and mass exchange, which ensures a heat and mass exchange in the film mode with internal reflux generation along the whole length of heat and mass exchange tubes and which allows for an increased efficiency, is proposed. The rectification column includes the rectifying/enriching section with the heat and mass exchange in its tubular and annular spaces being topped by a heat carrier distributor with a distributor chamber (17) on top of the heat carrier distributor in such a way that a higher pressure of fluid heat carrier in the distributor chamber (17) than in the annular space is allowed. The design of the distributor allows to separate an upper outlet for heat carrier vapors and a lower outlet for liquid heat carrier from the annular space completely from the fluid supply of fluid heat carrier in the distributor chamber. A feed-in device allows the multi-component mixture to enter the tubular spaces from below. A device for liquid phase (from the multi-component mixture) discharge from the rectification column. A heating medium vessel may be connected to the annular space and steam condenser of the heat carrier medium. One or more additional lower rectification section/s (19) with the heat and mass exchange in its tubular space of the tubes being aligned with the tubes may be provided directly below the enriching section. A steaming section, wherein the tubes and may be equipped with turbulators. The rectification column permits to extract intermediate fractions of the separated mixture with the help of appropriate devices installed below the enriching section.

The rectification column with the internal heat exchange is known (Japanese patent—JP 2001046803 A). According to this technical solution shown in Fig. A, internal 4′ and external 5′ spaces of one or plenty of tubes 25′ are separated from each other by upper 3a′ and lower 3b′ tube plates inside a cylindrical body 1′ of a rectification tower. The temperature difference inside and outside tubes 25′ is established by the differing pressure in these spaces 4′ and 5′. High pressure is maintained inside of tubes 25′ while a low pressure is maintained outside of tubes 25′. During a heat transfer from a high pressure side to a low pressure side through walls of tubes 25′, the one or many tubes are used as inner and outer heat exchange surfaces. The high pressure side functions as a concentration or rectifying section and the low pressure side functions as a heat extraction surface (a steaming section). Stripping vapor enters the out-side 5′ at the bottom at 10′ and leaves the out-side 5′ at the top at 7′. Stripping liquid enters the out-side 5′ at the top at 6′ and leaves the out-side 5′ at the bottom at 11′. Vapor of multi-component mixture enters the in-side 4′ of tubes 25′ below the bottom at 12′ and leaves (as an enriched fraction) the in-side 4′ at the top at 9′. Liquid of multi-component mixture enters the in-side 4′ at the top at 8′ and leaves the in-side 4′ at the bottom at 13′. Thus both, stripping material and multi-component mixture each are cycled as a vapor and as a liquid in counter current through the column 1′. Liquid reflux is generated by a condensation of vapor arising in a regular wire-wrapped screen filter 21′ in upper part of the internal 4′ tubular surface of the rectification tower with internal heat exchange. Thus, an external condenser is avoided. The space inside tubes 25′ is used as a rectifying part of the rectification tower (vapors are enriched by lower-boiling mixture components). The space outside tubes 25′ is used as a steaming section (the liquid is enriched by higher-boiling mixture components). The spaces (4) and (5) inside and outside of the tubes (25) are filled with regular packing.
The disadvantage of this rectifying column is low efficiency of heat-and-mass transfer. It is explained by the fact that heat exchange surfaces (walls of tubes) are used only for heat transfer while the masses transfer takes places in a regular packing. The supply of fluid in inter-tubular space doesn't supply efficient interaction of fluid with heat exchange surfaces.
The above mentioned disadvantage is partially eliminated in the compact rectification tower for mixed fluid separation that contains the rectification tower (WO 03/078014 A). The tower shown in Fig. B consists of the tower body 1″ with tube-grate 3″, 4″ between which heat and mass exchange tubes 2″ are fixed. The tower has a device for vapor phase remove at the top of the tower and a device for liquid phase remove at the bottom of the tower. At the bottom of the rectification tower there is a connection point (an inlet and outlet pipe 7″) for heat carrier supply and a connecting pipe (an inlet pipe 5″) for condensate return of a heat carrier. Internal spaces between heat-and-mass exchange tubes 2″ communicate each other by a fluid medium. On the top of the tower there is a connection pipe (an inlet and outlet pipe 5″) for heat carrier vapor phase remove and condensate return of heat carrier.
The pressure regulator is installed for supply of heat carrier return into the condenser. The heat exchange takes place in this tower when vapors interacts with liquid film flowing down on the internal and external surfaces of heat and mass exchange tubes. In the upper part of the tower between the tubes there is a distribution plate 8″ under the inlet pipe 5″ which provides a gravity flow of heat carrier along external surfaces of heat-and-mass exchange tubes 2″ in the form of film.
An irregular flow of fluid on the distribution plate 8″ may be a disadvantage of the rectification tower and as a consequence there is a some difference in reflux of external surfaces of the tubes 2″. It may result in irregular heat-and-mass exchange in a cross-section of the tower.
The closest prior art of the invention is a rectification tower with an internal heat-and-mass exchange Japanese patent 2004216338 A, shown in Fig. C). The rectification tower includes a rectifying section made in the form of a vertical tube heat exchanger with vapor supplied in the tubular space and vapor removed from the tubular space that consists of a body 1″, tubes 25′″ connected to this body 1′″ and tube plates 3a′″, 3b′″, thereby defining tubular 4′″ and annular 5′″ spaces in the body 1′″ for separation of multi-component mixtures into fractions, the upper vapors outlet 7′″ from the annular space 5′″ is located below the upper fluid inlet 6′″ in the annular space 5′″. Above the upper vapors outlet 7′″ there is a fluid distributor 30′″ that distributes fluid from the upper fluid inlet 6′″ into the annular space 5′″ and provides for fluid flowing along external sides of tubes 25′″. The distributor has shallow rims around all tubes 25′″ as well as along outer perimeter of the distributor, which provide for clearances with respect to all tubes 25′″ and to the inner surface of body 1′″ which rims in order to distribute the liquid evenly to all pipes and to the inner surface of body 1′″. A packing 4a′″ may be fixed in the tubular space. The fluid flows along external sides of tubes until it comes to a packed bed 5a′″ being mandatory for the shell side 5′″ of the pipes 25′″. The fluid is supplied from the external side of tubes to the packing. The tubular space performs the function of the rectifying section while the annular space performs the function of the steaming section. The fluid distributor must have an exact horizontal alignment in order to distribute the liquid evenly to all pipes.
The disadvantage of this prototype is a low efficiency of heat transfer. It is preconditioned by at least two reasons. In this prototype column, the tubular and annular spaces are filled in with the packing. The fluid flows along the external sides of tubes only up to the packed bed then the fluid is carried off from the external sides of tubes to the packing and thereby the heat and mass exchange in the column is made worse. When the fluid is supplied from the distributor into the one point on the upper surface of each tube, the fluid is not distributed evenly on the total perimeter of the external surface of tubes. Despite the exact horizontal position of the distributor and availability of spirals on tubes, the large portion of fluid flows down in stream along the external surfaces of tubes and doesn't provide for even reflux of all external surfaces of tubes that also worsens the heat and mass exchange.

Rectification tower with internal heat and mass exchange and method for separation of multi-component mixtures into fractions using a rectification tower with an internal heat and mass exchange


An automatic disc gauging and sorting apparatus for gauging the thickness of the discs and sorting the discs into a series of predetermined ranges of varying thickness is provided. The apparatus includes a revolving disc sorting unit including a plurality of spaced-apart disc sorting containers arranged concentrically and in one plane. Each of the containers is designated to receive discs of a predetermined thickness range. A cassette transport assembly for transporting cassettes containing discs to be gauged and sorted to a disc pick-up position adjacent the sorting unit and for transporting empty cassettes away from the disc pick-up position is included, as well as a disc gauging unit associated with the sorting unit adjacent the disc pick-up position for gauging the thickness of the discs to be sorted. Finally, a disc shuttle arm unit associated with the sorting unit adjacent the disc pick-up position for removing a disc from a cassette in the disc pick-up position, inserting the disc into the disc gauging unit, removing the disc from the disc gauging unit and placing the disc in the proper container for its designated thickness is provided. A host computer coupled to the disc sorting unit controls the operations of the disc sorting unit, the cassette transport assembly, the disc gauging unit and the shuttle arm unit.

This invention relates generally to apparatus for handling hard discs. More specifically, this invention relates to an apparatus for automated handling and transfer of hard discs from disc cassette trays to a disc gauging station, where the discs are gauged and their thickness determined, and from there to containers designated to receive discs of a predetermined thickness range.
The thickness of a hard disc must be determined before plating so that the thickness of the plating material to be applied can be determined in order to ensure that all discs are, within certain tolerances, essentially the same thickness. Hence, if prior to plating, one disc is between 48.00-48.19 mils and another is between 48.20-48.39 mils, these discs will be sorted into difference thickness categories before plating. Currently, gauging hard discs during the manufacturing process, and sorting them into ranges of predetermined thickness are carried out by hand. An operator removes a disc from a cassette tray containing discs to be gauged and sorted, and places the disc on a small spindle, which extends through the central aperture in the disc.
While holding the spindle, the operator then moves the disc to a position between a pair of gauging probes in a gauging machine. The probes measure the thickness and the machine gives the operator a digital readout of the thickness. The operator then removes the disc from the gauging machine, takes the disc off the spindle, and carries the disc to the rack designated for its thickness. When a rack is full of discs, the rack is moved to a plating chamber where the discs are plated. An operator working within the foregoing parameters can process, that is, gauge and sort, discs at a maximum rate of approximately 380 per hour. Obviously, many of the foregoing operations could be carried out automatically, by machines, and it would be advantageous to do so to increase speed and accuracy. An apparatus made in accordance with this invention can process at least 1000 discs per hour.

Automatic disc gauging and sorting apparatus


A software system may be used to define configurable products for use in a selling application module by sellers of products to define custom configuration of products to satisfy customer needs. During periodic points in time, a subset of all configuration of these configurable products may be offered for sale by sellers user special price terms and conditions. Catalogs of sale products may provide a mechanism for configuring only products that are included within sale products. A catalog manager module may assist in preparing a catalog of product data and related configuration rules associated with only products included within a particular catalog.

Software based product configuration and sales systems provide sellers an automated tool to assist in the configuration of custom products from a large set of components, options and features that are available for the customizable products. Product configuration tools typically utilize product data constructed from a hierarchical set of product-option-attributes listings as well as a set of configuration rules that define how products may be customized. The configuration rules typically constrain a set of available product options given selected options already specified in defining a product.
The product data utilized in these product configuration and sales systems typically contain all products and all related options available for use when products are defined. This product data and related software may be provided to a large number of product sellers for use in their respective sales efforts. Since not all sellers offer all available products, products with all available options and option attributes, the product configuration systems may suffer performance penalties associated with use of these tools as large amounts of product data are used when only a smaller subset is of interest to a seller at any given point in time.
The product data and related configuration rules are typically specified in a specific and typically complicated format that is needed to permit specification of products having a plurality of product options, each of which may have a set of individual product option attributes. All of this product data must also be specified in terms of the associated configuration rules used to limit configuration choices as desired. This complicated product data and configuration rule specification and modification process typically prevents easy and quick modification of product data for use as sales offerings vary over time. Additional, the complicated product data and configuration rule specification and modification process typically requires a highly trained operator possessing an understanding of the complicated product data and configuration rules as well as their interaction to modify product data. Thus the development of complicated product data and corresponding configuration rules may be an expensive and time consuming process that does not lend itself to rapid modifications needed to support a rapidly changing sales environment that may be customized for individual sellers, individual customers and particular sales time periods.

Catalog management module in a custom product configuration system

Presentation Specialist Technologies, LLC


Systems and methods are disclosed for identifying and compressing rarely used data. A storage module may include a memory and a storage controller in operative communication with the memory. The storage controller is configured to identify an access of data stored at a first portion of the memory; determine, based on a first value of the access counter associated with the identified access and a second value of the access counter, that an age of the data stored at the first portion of the memory exceeds a threshold; identify data stored at a second portion of the memory that is associated with a third value of the access counter, where the third value of the access counter is within a range of the first value of the access counter; and compress together at least the data stored at the first and second portions of the memory.

Memory manufactures often utilize data compression in order to store more data on less silicon. One of the challenges in compressing data is identifying data that should be compressed together. A storage controller is able to obtain better compression ratios when compressing large blocks of data together. However, this may create inefficiencies when a storage controller needs to read data from only a small portion of the blocks of data that were compressed together. In instances like these, the storage controller would need to read the entire compressed block from memory and decompress the entire block before reading the required data. Accordingly, improved systems and methods for identifying and compressing rarely used blocks of data that may be efficiently compressed together are desirable.

Systems and methods for identifying and compressing rarely used data


A hot-melt type ink jet printer includes a nozzle head for ejecting a hot-melt type ink onto a sheet. The printer has a sheet feed passage defined by, in order from an upstream side in a sheet feeding direction, a sheet supply roller, a preheat platen, a sheet feed roller, a main platen, a cooling platen, discharge roller and a sheet discharge opening. The preheat platen and main platen have preheater and main heater, respectively, and these platen and the cooling platen are supported on a frame. A first suction port is formed between the main platen and the cooling platen and a second suction port is formed between the cooling platen and the frame. A power board and a cooling fan is provided within the frame for cooling the power board. By rotation of the cooling fan, air is introduced from the sheet discharge opening into the frame through the first and second suction ports to also cool the cooling platen and the heating platen.

The present invention relates to an ink-jet printer using hot-melt type ink and capable of heating a recording medium such as a paper and cooling the recording medium after the hot-melt type ink has been printed on the recording medium.
A conventional hot-melt type ink-jet printer includes a recording head mounted on a carriage. The recording head includes a nozzle head having a plurality of nozzles, an ink melting section including a heater, and a hopper for storing solid ink pellets. Further, a platen is provided in confrontation with the nozzle head for supporting the recording medium. The carriage is moved in a main scanning direction orthogonal to a recording medium feeding direction, while hot-melt ink droplets are ejected from the nozzles in the nozzle head to form images such as characters and graphs on the surface of the recording medium. The hot melt ink, once printed on a print medium, is extremely durable and has a weather proof characteristic. Hot-melt ink liquefies when heated and hardens at room temperature. Therefore, to print using hot melt ink, the hot melt ink in the print head is heated and melted before it is ejected from the print head.
If the hot-melt ink is ejected from the nozzle heads onto the surface of the recording medium having a relatively low temperature, the ink droplet is immediately solidified at the surface. Therefore, ink fixing property on the recording medium may be lowered. Thus, the solidified ink may be easily peeled off from the surface of the recording medium to degrade the imaging quality. In this connection, the recording medium must be sufficiently heated prior to the ink ejection. To this effect, conveying speed of the recording medium must be low prior to the printing operation to obtain sufficient heat transmission to the recording medium. As a result, high speed printing cannot be performed.
If the hot-melt ink is ejected onto pre-heated recording medium having a prescribed elevated temperature, the fixing properties of the ink on the recording medium can be improved. However, downstream of the recording head, the recording medium continues to be fed between a discharge roller and a pinch roller. If the hot-melt ink fixed on the recording medium has not solidified completely before passing through these rollers, some of the ink is transferred to the pinch roller and the like, thereby reducing the quality of the printed image.
In order to avoid these problems, in a subsequent conventional printer, a heater is provided at a back side of the platen opposite a side along which the recording medium passes for increasing the temperature of the recording medium. Further, a sheet conveying distance between the platen and a discharge section including the discharge roller and the pinch roller is designed to be longer to allow the recording medium just printed to cool while being conveyed over this longer distance. This allows the hot-melt ink to solidify before reaching the discharge section.
However, in order to lengthen the conveying distance, it is necessary to increase the overall dimensions of the printer. Moreover, if the conveying speed of the recording medium is increased after printing operation, the time required to convey the recording medium from the printing portion to the discharge section is essentially decreased. As a result, it is impossible to achieve the cooling effect when performing high-speed printing on a printer of this construction and, therefore, impossible to achieve an image of desirable quality.
Further, in a conventional hot-melt type ink jet printer, a power board is provided in a main case of the printer. Since a temperature of the power board tends to be elevated, a cooling fan is provided in the main case to cool the power board by blowing air on the same. The cooling fan is disposed in a wall of the main case, from which location external air can be easily taken in or expelled.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,025 discloses an ink jet printer having a heater whose upstream part serves as a platen and whose downstream part extending to a discharge roller. Because the heater provides an elongated conveying path, sufficient heat can be transmitted to the recording medium for improving fixation.

Hot-melt type ink jet printer having heating and cooling arrangement


A detachable operator assembly for a recliner chair including a handle, a drive rod and a threaded fastener. The handle is configured to operably connect with the drive rod without requiring a metal insert or reinforcement. The threaded fastener is inserted into a counterbore formed in the handle such that the shank freely passes through the handle and threadingly engages the drive rod. The shank extends through the drive rod to threadingly engage the handle. The operator assembly is configured so that the fastener fails before the plastic handle fails, and more specifically, so the fastener breaks between the fastener head and the drive rod, thereby allowing easy removal of the broken fastener without disassembly of the drive rod from the reclining chair.

Recliner chairs come in a variety of shapes and sizes. For example, some chairs have a rocking mechanism, some chairs have extendible footrests, while other chairs have seats and seat backs that move from a normal upright position to a reclined position. While a given recliner chair can possess these features in various combinations, most recliner chairs commonly share the need to provide a handle or manual operator by which the user can select and control various chair positions and mechanisms. The recliner handle, because it must be easily accessible by the user, is typically located along the lower lateral portion of the chair below the armrest.
Prior known handles typically have a metal insert that is molded within the handle so that only the collar portion and set screw bore of the insert are accessible. The handle is attached to the drive rod by inserting the protruding end of the drive rod into a complimentary shaped bore within the insert, and a set screw is tightened against a corner of the square drive rod to secure the handle to the chair.
One drawback of prior known handles is the increased manufacturing costs associated with molding a metal insert within the recliner handle. Another drawback of prior know handles is the set screw that is used to retain the drive rod. Specifically, the set screw does not provide an adequate locking means to prevent the drive rod from loosening when seated in a bore, nor does the set screw prevent the drive rod from rotating within the bore. It is therefore desirable to provide a recliner handle without a metal insert molded within the handle in order to reduce manufacturing costs while maintaining durability to sustain extended periods of use without breaking, bending, loosening, or rotating.

Polypropylene recliner handle with locking means


A magnetron driving circuit has a DC/AC conversion section, a transformer, and a capacitor. The DC/AC conversion section converts a direct current inputted from a direct current power source into an alternating current, and outputs the alternating current. The transformer has a primary coil and a secondary coil. The transformer raises a voltage of the alternating current outputted from the DC/AC conversion section and then induces the raised voltage from the primary coil to the secondary coil. The capacitor forms an inductance/capacitance resonance circuit by being connected in parallel with the secondary coil. Thus, in the magnetron driving circuit driven by the direct current power source, since the capacitor with a small capacitance is connected in parallel with the secondary coil of the transformer, the reverse surge voltage induced at the primary coil of the transformer is decreased sharply.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magnetron driving circuit, and more particularly to a magnetron driving circuit capable of preventing the production of a reverse surge voltage during a supply of direct current power.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a microwave oven is a device for cooking food by using microwaves, and has a high voltage transformer (hereinafter called HVT), and a magnetron MGT. The HVT steps up the normal voltage into the higher voltage, and the magnetron MGT is driven by the higher voltage to generate the microwaves of a certain frequency.
Meanwhile, such a microwave oven is designed to be driven by alternating current (hereinafter called AC), and can not be used in the places such as the outdoors, vehicles such as ship, airplane, etc., where the AC is not available. In order to solve such a shortcoming of the microwave oven, an inverter is used to convert the direct current (hereinafter called DC) into the AC for using the microwave oven in the place where the AC is not available.
The AC generated by the inverter is stepped up by the HVT to drive the magnetron MGT. Here, when the DC voltage is converted into the AC power and is outputted by the inverter, there occurs a reverse surge voltage induced at a primary part of the HVT from a secondary part of the HVT, which generates a spark at the inverter. For example, before the high voltage capacitor (hereinafter called HVC) at the secondary part of the HVT is charged, the secondary side circuit forms the short circuit and the reverse surge voltage occurs at the primary coil, resulting in a spark at the inverter. Further, after the HVC is charged, the energy of the secondary coil is reversely induced to the primary coil every half-period, again resulting in the spark at the inverter due to the energy reversely induced.
Hereinafter, the construction, operation, and problems of the inverter driven by the DC power and a magnetron driving part connected with the inverter will be briefly described as a related art.
There are various types of invertors such as the inverter using a relay, and the inverter using semiconductor devices, etc. The same applicant has disclosed a non-directional frequency generator (hereinafter called NDFG), which is an improved version of the inverter, in the Korean Patent Application, and here, the construction, operation, and the shortcomings of the NDFG and the magnetron driving section connected thereto will be described.
The NDFG converts the DC power into the AC power source by using rotatable AC converting means, and is disclosed in the Korean Patent Applications Nos. 98-18589 (filed May 22, 1998), and 98-21117 (filed Jun. 8, 1998) which have not been opened to the public yet.
FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram for showing the NDFG driven by the DC power and the magnetron driving part connected thereto according to the related art of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, the NDFG 100 includes a motor 110 driven by the DC for generating rotational force, a commutator 130 rotated by the motor 110, and a plurality of brushes such as first, second, third, and fourth brushes 121-124 as shown in FIG. 1, which are in contact with the outer circumference of the commutator 130. The commutator 130 includes a conductive part which is divided into at least two parts 132a and 132b as shown in FIG. 1, but into an even number of parts. The conductive parts 132a and 132b have an insulating part 133 of a certain width formed therebetween. The conductive parts 132a and 132b are in simultaneous contact with at least two neighboring brushes 121-124. The DC is applied to the input sides of the first to fourth brushes 121-124, while the output sides of the first to fourth brushes 121-124 are connected with a high voltage transformer (hereinafter called HVT). The first and second relays RY.sub.1 and RY.sub.2 switch on/off the operation of the NDFG 100.
The operation of the NDFG 100 is as follows: The first and second relays RY.sub.1 and RY.sub.2 are in on-state, and the commutator 130 is rotated by the DC. Accordingly, the brushes 121-124 in contact with the commutator 130 come in contact with the conductive part 132a, the insulating part 133, the conductive part 132b, and the insulating part 133 which are formed on the outer circumference of the commutator 130, sequentially.
More specifically, as the first brush 121 on the upper side of the commutator 130 comes in contact with the conductive part 132a, the electric current from the positive (+) terminal of the DC power source is inputted into the first brush 121, and flows through the conductive part 132a of the commutator 130 and the fourth brush 124, and to the upper portion of the primary coil 202 of the HVT downwardly to the lower portion of the primary coil 202 of the HVT. Then, the electric current is inputted into the second brush 122, and circulates through the conductive part 132b, the third brush 123, and to the negative (-) terminal of the DC power source.
Next, as the commutator 130 is further rotated and as the first brush 121 accordingly comes in contact with the insulating part 133, the electric current does not flow through the commutator 130.
Then as the commutator 130 is further rotated to 90.degree., the electric current from the positive (+) terminal of the DC power source is inputted into the first brush 121, flows through the conductive part 132b of the commutator 130 and the second brush 122, reverses its direction, and flows from the lower portion of the primary coil 202 of the HVT to the upper portion of the primary coil 202 of the HVT. Then, the electric current is inputted into the fourth brush 124, flows through the conductive part 132a, and the third brush 123, and then circulates to the negative (-) terminal of the DC power source.
By the constant rotation of the commutator 130 of the NDFG, the AC is generated at the primary coil 202 of the HVT in a manner as described above, then the AC is transmitted to a secondary coil of the HVT through the primary coil 202 thereof. Then, the HVT converts the normal voltage into a higher voltage, and the magnetron MGT is driven by the higher voltage converted by the HVT.
When the magnetron is driven, there occurs a problem that the secondary circuit forms a short circuit until the high voltage capacitor HVC of the secondary part of the HVT is charged. That is, when the AC induced from the NDFG 100 is applied to the HVT, the high voltage capacitor HVC connected to the secondary coil of the HVT is shorted instantaneously, and thus a reverse surge voltage occurs in the primary coil. Nearly infinite inrush current due to the reverse surge voltage generates a spark between the brushes and the commutator of the NDFG 100.
Furthermore, even after the high voltage capacitor HVC is normally charged, there occurs another problem that the electric energy of the secondary coil is induced reversely to the primary coil every half period. The reversely induced electric energy generates a spark between the brushes and the commutator of the NDFG 100.
Meanwhile, the problems do not only occur between the magnetron driving part and the NDFG driven by the DC, rather they occur between the magnetron driving part and the inverter in a broad sense for inverting the DC to the AC, including the NDFG.

Surge-resistant magnetron circuit for use with DC power source