The invention relates to a method for determining an angle of arrival of a received radioelectric signal implemented by a receiving antenna system including either one rotating antenna having at least two receiving channels, or two rotating antennas with a same speed each having a receiving channel, and having different antenna diagrams. The method includes calculating and storing a series of ambiguous angle error measurement values obtained from receiving amplitude values of a radioelectric signal coming from an emitting source on said first and second receiving channels, calculating a convolution function on said angular range tween said series of ambiguous angle error measurement values and a series of theoretical angle error measurement values of said receiving channels previously calculated and stored, and determining an angle of arrival of said received radioelectric signal as a function of an estimate of a maximum of said calculated convolution function.

In these types of applications, it is known to use high-gain radar antennas, which are directional, in order to listen to radioelectric signals, and to rotate such antennas.
One particular problem arises for the determination of a direction of arrival of a radioelectric signal by one or several directional rotating antennas, also called scanners, the direction of arrival being defined by an angle of arrival relative to a reference direction, the radioelectric signal in turn being emitted by an emitting scanner.
In such a situation, in light of the sensitivity and the high dynamic of the detection equipment, it is possible to detect a radioelectric signal while the receiving scanner is not pointed toward the direction of the emitter of the radioelectric signal.
Indeed, in the case where the emitting antenna has a maximum gain greater than that of the receiving antenna, the maximum power captured on a receiving antenna tower can be obtained by reception in one of the side or diffuse lobes of the receiving antenna, when the emitting antenna is pointed toward the receiving antenna.
Known in the state of the art is a method called side lobe suppression method or SLS method. In such a method, an omnidirectional or lowly directive auxiliary antenna is added, in addition to the main directive antenna, to reject the radioelectric signals received by the main antenna via its side lobes. However, SLS methods are not effective in the case where the maximum power detection in reception is located in the diffuse lobes and not in the side lobes of the antenna diagram of the receiving antenna.
In a known manner, an antenna diagram includes a main lobe centered on the radioelectric axis of the antenna, surrounded by side lobes, then diffuse lobes that are further from the radioelectric axis than the side lobes.
Methods are also known that are based on the use of a rotating receiving antenna whereof the receiving speed is very different from the speed of rotation of the emitting antenna. But in this case, the choice of a much higher rotation speed in reception limits the likelihood of interception of the radioelectric signal. Conversely, the use of a rotation speed in reception much lower than the speed of the transmitting antenna causes processing slowness in the angular reception range.
Lastly, it is known to use an antenna of the phase or amplitude monopulse type, which has two reception channels, respectively called sum channel and difference channel, each reception channel having an associated antenna diagram, the antenna diagrams of the sum and difference channels being orthogonal. Such an antenna allows an unambiguous measurement of the angle of arrival of a radioelectric signal in a range limited to the opening of the antenna of the sum channel. However, outside this angular range, the angle of arrival measurements are ambiguous.
The invention aims to resolve the aforementioned drawbacks of the state of the art, and to propose a method for unambiguously determining an angle of arrival of a received radioelectric signal implemented by a rotating receiving antenna system, over an extended angular range.

Method and system for determining an angle of arrival of a radioelectric signal


The method comprises the following steps for each of the reinforcing bands: a) anchoring a first zone (2a, 3a, 4a) of the reinforcing band onto the construction work and establishing a free portion of the reinforcing band; b) tensioning the reinforcing band (2, 3, 4) by applying traction to a second zone of the reinforcing band located in the free portion, said traction causing an elongation (d2, d3, d4) of and a reactive force (R2, R3, R4) in the reinforcing band, with the free portion of the reinforcing band being free to slide on the construction work as it elongates; and c) mechanically attaching the reinforcing band to itself and/or to the construction work, so as to absorb the reactive force from the reinforcing band within a region of the construction work which can support the reactive force from the reinforcing band.

The invention relates to a method for reinforcing a construction work which makes use of reinforcing bands, and a construction work obtained by this reinforcing method.
It is known to reinforce construction works with additional external prestressing based on carbon/resin composites, such as laminates ortendons. These elements are prefabricated in factory by pultrusion (pulling and extrusion), and are placed on the structure to be reinforced and attached with anchors. The composite elements are then tensioned with a jack system and the stresses are absorbed by friction in the anchors. The system then functions similarly to conventional external prestressing. Such a system can be difficult to implement if there are obstructions around the structure to be reinforced.
Carbon fiber fabric is sometimes used as reinforcement for structures of reinforced concrete. It is directly applied and glued to the structure. For the composite to contribute to the strength of the structure, the support on which the fabric is glued is tensioned, which implies a certain level of fissuring within the support. This poses a problem when a complete seal is necessary, for example in an aggressive environment.
The object of the present invention is to overcome all or part of the above disadvantages, and in particular to provide a method requiring little space for the reinforcing of a construction work. Said method contributes to the strength of the structure even when it is not tensioned, and does not locally impact the mechanical strength of the structure.

Method for reinforcing a construction work using reinforcing bands


Compounds having the structure or their salts:

This invention relates to novel inhibitors of sex steroid activity, for example to compounds having antagonistic activity on sex steroid receptors. More particularly, the invention relates to certain steroid derivatives having specified side-chains at their 13-position and to metabolites thereof which block androgen action by acting, among other mechanisms, through the androgen receptors, while not activating such receptors in some or all androgen-sensitive tissues. When used to treat or reduce the risk of acquiring androgen-exacerbated diseases, when used to treat or reduce the risk of acquiring diseases related to loss of androgenic stimulation, compounds of the invention which activate androgen receptors in the target tissue may be effective even if they act as androgen antagonists in other tissues. These compounds may be effective even if they activate androgen receptors in tissues other than the target tissues.

Helix 12 directed pharmaceutical products

Abstract: are used to treat or reduce le likelihood of acquiring androgen-dependent diseases, such as prostate cancer, benign prostatic hyperplasia, polycystic ovarian syndrome, acne, hirsutism, seborrhea, androgenic alopecia and male baldness. They can be formulated together with pharmaceutically acceptable diluent or carrier or otherwise made into any pharmaceutical dosage form. Some of these compounds having tissue-specific antiandrogenic activity and tissue-specific androgenic activity can be used to treat or reduce the risk of developing diseases related to loss of androgenic stimulation. Combinations with other active pharmaceutical agents are also disclosed.


This semiconductor device has two leads (3) lying in the same axis, a prefabricated plastic can (1) which is filled with a plastic compound and has one of the leads passed through its bottom (1a), and a prefabricated die (4) attached between those sides of the inner ends (60, 70) of the leads (3) facing each other, the leads being inserted into, and having an offset within, the can.. In the manufacturing method the manufacture of the leads starts with a wire (30) which unwinds from a spool (39), passes through a major part of the manufacturing stages unseparated, and is separated into the individual semiconductor devices only after the mounting of the cans (1).

One of the currently widely used plastic packages for two-lead semiconductor devices, such as diodes--particularly rectifiers (currents of up to about 1 A and reverse voltages of about 100 V to 2 kV)--varistors or thermistors, has the shape of a cylinder with leads projecting in the same axis. The semiconductor die or chip and the inner ends of its leads are hermetically embedded in the plastic, e.g., a thermoplastic or a thermosetting plastic, and thus protected against physical damage and chemical influences, such as the entrance of moisture.
In the fabrication of such semiconductor devices with a plastic package, the manufacture of the die, i.e., a semiconductor chip, starts with a semiconductor wafer on which several 100 to several 1000 identical dies or chips are fabricated, and the leads for the semiconductor device are designed as plug leads ("head leads"), i.e., leads having a thickened, e.g., upset, portion at one end, the "head". Between the two heads, the die is attached by soldering, for example.
To achieve a high throughput, a large number of untinned plug leads is fed into magazines, a die, i.e., a semiconductor chip, is positioned on each of the heads, and the heads of other plug leads fed into a further magazine are placed on the dies. In a furnace, each of the dies is then connected with its two associated plug leads by soldering. If the finished semiconductor device is to have a high reverse voltage, the soldered dies are etched and covred with a suitable plastic.
Next, the semiconductor devices are transferred into molds where they are embedded in plastic. Only then are the leads of the individual semiconductor devices tinned, which is done by barrel tinning to achieve a high throughput. Then, however, the leads, which are bent during the tinning process, must be axially aligned again in suitable straightening devices. Only then are they tested, taped, and lettered.
Conventional straightening devices have an hourly throughput of about 20,000 semiconductor devices. As the prices of semiconductor devices are still falling, this throughput rate is much too low if low-cost volume production is to be achieved.
Although the manufacturing process described is a well proved high-volume process, efforts are being made to modify it, particularly ith a view to further reducing the manufacturing costs, and to provide semiconductor devices which can be made at even lower cost.
Accordingly, the object of the invention as claimed is to provide a semiconductor device which has a plastic package that is of a different design than the hitherto widely used plastic packages to achieve a cost reduction. The design of the leads is to differ from the conversational design, too. In the method, the above-described step of straightening the leads is to be eliminated. The same applies to the tinning following the molding or embedding. It is also within the scope of the object of the invention to provide an apparatus with which a higher hourly throughput of semiconductor devices is attainable.
One of the fundamental ideas of the invention is to manufacture the plastic package, hitherto formed by embedding or molding the die, as a can-shaped housing in a separate step, which offers the advantage of greater freedom in the choice of the starting plastic and the temperatures and pressures to be used in the packaging process, for example, as to fill the can with a plastic compound, such as a cast resin, after insertion of the die.
Another fundamental idea of the invention is the completely different starting point for the manufacture of the leads, namely to form the latter from a wire unwinding from a spool, to pass this wire through a major part of the manufacturing stages unseparated, and to separate it into the individual semiconductor devices only after formation of the plastic package, i.e., the mounting of the cans.
The invention offers the following advantages. A low-cost plastic can be used for the cans. The presses for producing the can-shaped housing can be simpler in construction and, thus, smaller than the presses used so far. The need for the straightening device described is eliminated, so that a higher hourly throughput is possible. No polarity-determining device followed by a turnover device is necessary, so that the semiconductor devices can be taped in the same direction without the turnover device, since the dies can be brought from the semiconductor wafer to the positions between the leads with a predetermined polarity, which can be maintained until the taping takes place.

Semiconductor device, method of manufacturing the same, and apparatus for carrying out the method


A communication scheme for improving the performance of communications utilizing the transport layer connection provided via a radio network, by enabling a control of the transport layer connection according to the radio communication state and property of the radio terminal, without changing implementation of the transport layer of a terminal connected to a wire network. The gateway device is provided with a control unit for controlling a connection in the radio transport layer protocol according an information regarding a radio communication state of the radio terminal device, where the information regarding the radio communication state of the radio terminal device is notified from either a radio base station device covering a radio service area in which the radio terminal device is located or a home location register for carrying out at least registration and management of the radio terminal device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gateway device, a radio base station device, a router device and a radio terminal device, which are to be used in radio communications utilizing the transport layer.
2. Description of the Background Art
In recent years there are increasing demands for carrying out not just speech communications but also data communications by radio. TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is widely used as a reliable transport layer protocol in the wire data communications, but the direct application of this protocol to radio communications causes the following problems.
A TCP segment loss in the wire communications implies the congestion of a network so that TCP is designed to avoid the congestion by lowering a data transmission rate when the segment loss is detected. For this reason, the TCP segment loss due to a radio section error and a handoff will also be interpreted as the congestion so that the congestion avoidance operations will be executed more than necessary and as a result the throughput will be lowered more than necessary.
In order to resolve this problem, there is a proposition to use the usual TCP in a wire network and the radio transport layer in a radio network and relay communications at a border between the wire network and the radio network. For example, "selective ack" is used for a high segment loss rate on the radio network side. Namely, this is a scheme for resolving the congestion problem in such a way that a data loss in the radio section is not regarded as the congestion and a re-transmission is carried out without lowering the transmission rate.
Also, in TCP, when an idle connection state, i.e., a state where no response comes from a terminal on one side and no response comes a terminal on the other side as well, is continued for two hours, a keep-alive packet will be transmitted by a server terminal in which a keep-alive option is set valid. If there is no response to this keep-alive packet which is an inspection packet, the transmission of this keep-alive packet will be continued at 75 seconds interval, but when ten consecutive trials fail, it is judged that a terminal on the client side is inactive and the connection will be disconnected.
As described, in the case of carrying out communications between a radio terminal device accommodated in a radio network and a wire terminal device accommodated in a wire network, the radio terminal and a gateway device for relaying the transport layer protocol cannot directly ascertain the radio communication state of the radio terminal that terminates the transport layer connection, so that there has been a problem that it is impossible realize the adaptive control of the transport layer connection (such as a dynamic change of a segment size) according to the radio communication state or property.

Scheme for adaptive control of transport layer connection in communications via radio and wire networks


A bipolar transistor is disclosed which substantially reduces prior art problems associated with current crowding by maximizing the active periphery of the transistor's emitter [10].

There are several considerations in bipolar transistor design and fabrication. Most notably, capacitance, particularly between the base and emitter of the transistor, should be minimized in order to attain a high rate of transistor switching. Minimal capacitance should also exist between the base and collector for the same reason. Minimization of capacitance through minimizing base-emitter area has been the major focal point concerning the layout of the base and emitter. Generally, not much emphasis has been placed on the reduction of current crowding. Bipolar transistors in recent technology tend to show considerable current crowding owing to their small and ever decreasing geometries. Current crowding results in most bipolar action occurring on the periphery of the transistor and in fact the bipolar action may further be affected by the current path from the base contact to the specific emitter edge. Further, full benefit is not received from the conventional bipolar transistor due to the fact that the most of its elemental constituents (i.e. its base, emitter and collector) are not effectively used during operation as shall be explained below.
One commonly used bipolar fabrication structure is shown in FIG. 1, a drawing which illustrates the top view layout of base contact 2 with respect to emitter 4. Although minimization of base resistance (r.sub.b) was the primary motivation behind the creation of this layout, note that the location of two base contacts as shown in FIG. 1, allows use of both sides of the emitter, each labeled FF and RR respectively, during bipolar action. In contrast, in the case where a single base contact is paired with a single emitter, only one side of the emitter is active. Current crowding would render the other sides of the emitter inactive. FIG. 2 is a drawing of such a case with a partial circuit schematic superimposed over the top view layout of single base contact 2 paired with single emitter 4. The partial circuit schematic shown in FIG. 2 is the result of assigning to a semiconductor chip surface area, distributed resistances and distributed transistors along with associated transistor modeling parameters (i.e. r.sub.b and emitter resistance, r.sub.e). In FIG. 2, distributed bipolar transistors are labeled T1, T2, and T3 respectively. Each distributed transistor is assumed to have the same Beta (.beta.). Further, the modeled parameters such as base resistance and emitter resistance respectively, are assumed to be the same The r.sub.b and r.sub.e are indicated according to subscript for its associated distributed transistor. Resistive paths from base contact 2 to emitter 4 are represented by resistors labeled R. Although not all resistive paths are illustrated, of those which are illustrated, the relative resistance of that path increases with the number of resistors along that path. Base contact 2 is assumed to be equipotentialed in voltage. As is readily apparent from FIG. 2, distributed transistor T2 is in a greater active state than distributed transistors T1 and T3 due to the lesser voltage at the bases of distributed transistors T1 and T3 as compared with the voltage at the gate of distributed transistor T2. This lesser voltage results from the greater mount of resistance encountered along circuit paths to the base of distributed transistors T1 and T3 as compared with distributed transistor T2.
Conceivably, distributed transistors like T1, T2 and T3 can be modeled all along the periphery of emitter 4. FIG. 3 best illustrates this with a schematic drawing which models the distributed resistances and distributed transistors all along the periphery of the emitter. FIG. 3 additionally illustrates the relative location of emitter 4 to base contact 2 through the superposition of the layout over the schematic portion of FIG. 2. The modeled distributed transistor resistances such as r.sub.b and r.sub.e are lumped together with other resistances and all resistances are indicated by resistors R. FIG. 3 once again demonstrates that the farther away the distributed transistor is from base contact 2, the less turned on or less active the distributed transistor is. Accordingly, distributed transistor T3 is in the most active state as compared with the remaining distributed transistors since it is physically nearer base contact 2 than the remaining distributed transistors. Further, distributed transistors T5 through T8 near side RR, are likely barely in an active state such that they can be considered turned off due to current crowding, the effect of which has been illustrated via the resistance paths shown in foregoing examples. Thus, a substantial portion of the distributed transistor hardly participates during transistor operation. Therefore a need exists to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of a bipolar transistor.


The present invention relates to a broadcasting system, a sending apparatus and a sending method, a receiving apparatus and a receiving method, and a program that make it possible to cause a user to feel a sense of realism, to display an image suitable for the preferences of a user, or the like by performing an appropriate process on a receiving side of the broadcasting system.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a broadcasting system, a sending apparatus and a sending method, a receiving apparatus and a receiving method, and a program, and, more particularly, it relates to, for example, a broadcasting system, a sending apparatus and a sending method, a receiving apparatus and a receiving method, and a program that make it possible to perform an appropriate process on a receiving side of the broadcasting system.
2. Background Art
For example, in the current broadcasting system for analog broadcasting or digital broadcasting, images and sounds are edited as material data in a broadcast station being on a sending side. The edited images and sounds are broadcasted as programs.
On the other hand, for example, in each home being on a receiving side, output of the programs broadcasted from the broadcast station, i.e., display of the images and output of the sounds as the programs, are performed by a TV (a television set) or the like.
Note that, when attention is focused on one program, one type of image and sound that is obtained as a result of editing performed in the broadcast station is broadcasted as one program in the current broadcasting system. Accordingly, users being on the receiving side can enjoy only the one type of image and sound.
However, requests for user participation, e.g., regarding one program such as a drama program, a request that a user desires to watch the development of the drama program from the point of view of a user's favorite character and a request that a user desires to cause the story development to differ depending on a point of view, potentially exist.
Hence, the present applicant has previously proposed a digital broadcasting receiving apparatus allowing a user to arbitrarily select and monitor a plurality of materials that are prepared in advance from different points of view (for example, see Patent Document 1).    [Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-217662

Broadcasting system, sending apparatus and sending method, receiving apparatus and receiving method, and program

Abstract: A sending apparatus 11 sends material data, which is acquired by a sensor, and additional information, which is used to process the material data with a receiving apparatus 12. The receiving apparatus 12 receives the material data and the additional information, and generates output data on the basis of the material data and the additional information. Further, the receiving apparatus 12 produces output on the basis of the output data, e.g., produces output with output means such as a display device or an air conditioner. The present invention can be applied to, for example, a broadcasting system that broadcasts.


A design tool and method for characterizing a circuit at a hardware level includes the steps of generating a behavioral level description of the circuit and generating a netlist from the behavioral level description. Reference equations are generated from the netlist and are translated into numeric and symbolic C-code. The symbolic C-code is compared to the numeric C-code for validation. The reference equations are translated into numeric and symbolic HDL-code. The symbolic HDL-code is compared to the numeric HDL-code for validation. The symbolic C-code is compiled and simulated. A C-code equation file is generated. The symbolic HDL-code is compiled and simulated. A HDL-code equation file is generated. A symbolic manipulation program is used to solve for a difference between the C-code equation file and the HDL-code equation file. If there are no unexpected differences, equivalence is established.

This invention relates to electronic circuits and, more particularly the design and validation of electronic circuits.
In order to fabricate an electronic circuit such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a number of steps must be performed. The first step is to design the circuit at a xe2x80x9cbehavioralxe2x80x9d level. The behavioral level is the top level of the design hierarchy. Additional steps are performed on the behavioral level to define a hardware level that characterizes the circuit using actual hardware components. The hardware level is the lowest level of the design hierarchy.
The behavioral level description typically includes a block diagram or netlist that describes the various functions of the circuit in relatively general terms. The hardware level is based on the behavioral level description. The behavioral level description does not have enough specificity to fully enable a circuit manufacturer to implement the circuit design. The conventional approach is to manually generate an electronic file that characterizes the circuit at the hardware level in a programming language such as hardware description language (HDL). A design engineer goes through the behavioral description on a component-by-component basis and generates the necessary code sets in the programming language. This approach is labor intensive and subject to human error.
Once the electronic file has been manually generated, a complex verification process is required. In the case of the ASIC design, the functionality is extensively verified from a model of the circuit written in C-code. A select set of C-code input simulation vectors (i.e. input sequences) are then also applied to the HDL circuit model. In this co-simulation, the output vectors from the HDL model are compared bit by bit to the corresponding output vectors from the C-code model to establish a correspondence between the performance verified by the C-code model and the hardware actually being fabricated. This is typically required due to the complexity of the ASIC chip and the difficulty in performing a functional simulation in HDL, the complexity and cost of the ASIC fabrication process, and the need for a high level of certainty as to the functionality and first pass success of the electronic file and its subsequent fabrication.
The manual generation of the C-code model also requires detailed knowledge of C-code which increases the labor costs that are associated with design and fabrication. Once the electronic file has been verified, it is typically converted to the format used by the manufacturer with a conversion program such as Synopsis. After the electronic file has been converted, the manufacturer fabricates the circuit.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,303 to Mandell et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 6,477,689 to Mandell et al., a design tool and method for simplifying the design of electronic circuits such as ASICs is disclosed. The design tool and method generates symbolic and numeric equations. In Mandell et al. ""303, a method is disclosed for verifying that a system that is built from smaller components implements a desired equation that represents the system. Symbolic data is clocked through the system by processing a symbolic test vector using linked equations that are written for each component of the system. The resulting symbolic equation, generated at the output of the system, is stored. The symbolic equation is then compared with the desired equation for the system using a symbolic manipulation tool. If the comparison generates a zero difference, the system correctly implements the desired equation that correctly represents the system.
A design tool and method according to the invention for characterizing a circuit at a hardware level includes the steps of creating a behavioral level description of the circuit and generating a netlist from the behavioral level description. Reference equations are generated from the netlist. The reference equations are translated into numeric and symbolic C-code. The symbolic C-code is compared to the numeric C-code for validation.
In other features of the invention, the reference equations are translated into numeric and symbolic HDL-code. The symbolic HDL-code is compared to the numeric HDL-code for validation. The symbolic C-code is compiled and simulated. A C-code equation file is generated. The symbolic HDL-code is compiled and simulated. A HDL-code equation file is generated. A symbolic manipulation program is used to solve for a difference between the C-code equation file and the HDL-code equation file. If there are no unexpected differences, equivalence is established.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are merely exemplary of the invention, and are intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the invention as it is claimed. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various features and embodiments of the invention, and together with the description serve to explain the principles and operation of the invention.

Application specific integrated circuit design tool and file structure


A method and a system derive a value representative of an actual vehicle speed in strict correspondence to actual vehicle speed. The value can be utilized to detect wheel slippage and allows precise traction control, anti-skid brake control and so forth. The method for deriving wheel slippage, according to the present invention, includes a step of deriving a projected vehicle speed, the rate of change of which varies with road surface friction. Wheel slippage is derived from on the projected vehicle speed and instantaneous wheel speed. In practice, the method includes a step for detecting the force exerted on a vehicular wheel, which force includes a resistance variable depending upon the road surface friction .mu.. Based on the detected force, the projected vehicle speed variation pattern is derived so as to derive an instantaneous projected vehicle speed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method and system for detecting or deriving wheel slippage in an automotive vehicle. More specifically, the invention relates to a method and a system for deriving a wheel slippage value to utilize in traction control for automotive vehicle wheels, in an anti-skid brake control system and so forth.
2. Description of the Background Art
In general, wheel slippage is reflected in the difference between actual vehicle speed and an assumed vehicle speed derived based on previous wheel speeds. When the actual vehicle speed is lower than the assumed vehicle speed, it means the driven wheel is spinning. On the other hand, when the actual vehicle speed is higher than the assumed vehicle speed, it means the vehicle wheel is skidding. Wheel-spin is caused by loss of road/tire traction. Therefore, in such cases, traction must be controlled in order to stop the vehicular wheel from spinning. On the other hand, wheel-skidding occurs during abrupt application of the brakes and is due to the wheels locking up. For example, such traction controls have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,893,535, issued on July 8, 1975, to M. H. Burckhardt, et al. and in Japanese Patent First Publication (Tokkai Showa) 59-68537, published on Apr. 18, 1984. In both cases, the rotation speed of a driven wheel which is driven by engine output is compared with the rotation speed of a non-driven wheel which rotates freely. The rotation speed of the non-driven wheel is treated as a parameter reflecting actual vehicle speed.
The detection of the wheel slippage as disclosed in the aforementioned prior art is not applicable to anti-skid or traction control for a four-wheel drive vehicle. This is due to the fact that a four-wheel drive vehicle has four driven wheels and thus there are no non-driven wheels free of engine output.
On the other hand, a method has been proposed for utilizing a projected vehicle speed value which is derived from the wheel speed obtaining immediately before the wheel slippage occurs. In this case, instantaneous projected vehicle speed at every moment is assumed based on the projected vehicle speed derived based on the wheel speed immediately before the wheel slippage occurs, according to a predetermined vehicle speed variation pattern.
On the other hand, vehicle speed variation is seriously affected by road surface friction .mu., Therefore, the rate of change of vehicle speed varies with the road surface friction. However, in the conventionally proposed method, the vehicle speed variation pattern is a fixed pattern regardless of possible changes in the road surface friction .mu.. Therefore, the instantaneous projected vehicle speed does not always reflect the actual vehicle speed.

Method and system for detecting wheel slippage


A circuit for a telephone such as a mobile radiotelephone. The circuit has a memory for storing phonebook items and for storing group attributes associated with phonebook items, a connection to a radiotelephone receiver for receiving telephone calls and calling party identifications, and a controller for selecting the disposition of received calls. An operating mode is selected (45) from a plurality of operating modes, e.g. “Personal”, “emergency”, “personal-plus-emergency”, “all calls”, “no calls”, etc. A received calling party identification is compared (42) with a phonebook item, and a disposition for a received call (46, 47, 48, 49) is selected dependent on a group attribute for that phonebook item and a present operating mode.

It is common in the mobile radio telephone field to provide a radio telephone with a memory in which telephone numbers and other data can be stored. This memory, typically known simply as a phonebook, can store a telephone number (which may be manually entered or may be received in the form of a caller ID number or from a directory service) and a corresponding name or nickname which is typically entered manually by a user through a keypad. Phonebooks are becoming a very valuable resource to telephone users and greatly facilitate ease of usage, avoiding the need for paper lists, diaries and telephone directories.
It is also common for an incoming call to be identified by means of a caller ID and for the phone book to be searched for a telephone number so-identified to help the user identify the calling party. If the received telephone number matches an entry in the phone book, the name or nickname entered in the phone book can be displayed on a display of the device and the user can decide whether to answer the incoming call or take some other action. If there is no match found for the incoming telephone number in the phone book, it is typical for the number itself to be displayed and the user thus knows that the calling party is not listed in the user's phone book.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,418,211 describes alternative dispositions for an incoming call dependent upon matching of a caller ID. That document describes two alternative modes, one in which call screening is enabled and one in which it is not. If call screening is not enabled, all calls are "accepted". If call screening is enabled, the caller ID number is captured and compared with a first list and a second list and depending upon these comparison, the call is either accepted, diverted to voicemail or rejected. This scheme provides the ability to screen incoming calls at times when the user does not wish to accept all calls. The scheme is, however, limited in its flexibility and application.
There is a need for a more flexible manner of allowing a user to control alternative dispositions for incoming calls.

Incoming call screening, control and prioritisation in a telephone device


The present invention relates to a test support method which is a means for predicting whether or not pathological complete response (pCR) will be attained when a preoperative chemotherapy with an anticancer drug is performed, the method using a sample (breast cancer tissue section) collected from a breast cancer patient to be subjected to the preoperative chemotherapy. The test support method includes: [1] the step of acquiring a fluorescence image of a breast cancer tissue section, which fluorescence image shows bright spots of fluorescent nanoparticles labeling one or more kinds of breast cancer-related proteins; [2] the step of acquiring at least one index relating to the expression level(s) of the breast cancer-related protein(s) on the basis of the bright spots of the fluorescence image; and [3] the step of acquiring information for predicting pCR by performing an analysis using the above-described at least one index.

A treatment with an anticancer drug that precedes a breast cancer surgery is referred to as "preoperative chemotherapy" or "neoadjuvant therapy". In the heyday of mastectomy in 1970s, preoperative chemotherapy used to be performed mainly for the purpose of increasing the effects of a surgery on a patient whose cancer had spread to the surrounding tissues and lymph nodes and was thus difficult to completely remove by a surgery alone (locally advanced breast cancer). It was considered that some of the patients who received such preoperative chemotherapy showed an effect thereof; however, the effect was not necessarily evaluated in a positive way, and it has been believed that, as compared to chemotherapy performed after a surgery, preoperative chemotherapy does not lead to "an improvement of prognosis (survival rate)", which is the primary object of a treatment. However, recent development of excellent anticancer drugs and hormone therapeutic drugs enabled to attain improved therapeutic effects by employing such drugs in combination with a surgery. Therefore, it has been advocated to call preoperative chemotherapy "PST (primary systemic treatment)" in the meaning of using preoperative chemotherapy on equal terms with a surgery.
A state where complete disappearance of cancer cells as a result of preoperative chemotherapy has been confirmed by a histopathological method using a microscope is referred to as "pathological complete response (pCR)", and it is an index with which an anticancer drug can be judged to be effective.
A molecular target drug "trastuzumab" (trade name "Herceptin" (registered trademark); an anti-HER2 monoclonal antibody), which specifically targets the HER2 protein expressed on the cell surface, is an anticancer drug that has been confirmed to have a certain efficacy/effect against "metastatic breast cancer observed with HER2 overexpression" in "postoperative auxiliary chemotherapy for breast cancer observed with HER2 overexpression". The HER2 protein is believed to perform signal transduction by forming a homodimer or a heterodimer bound with activated EGFR (HER1), HER3, or HER4, and it is presumed that the HER2 protein functions as the role of growth factor receptor in cancer cell (no endogenous ligand binding to HER2 has not been known). Amplification of the HER2 gene and overexpression of the HER2 protein are observed in 15 to 25% of a case of human breast cancer and, for example, it has been reported that breast cancer patients with HER2 gene amplification/HER2 protein overexpression have poor prognosis and show high sensitivity to anthracycline-based anticancer drugs (e.g., doxorubicin), and that such breast cancer patients show resistance to hormone therapy (e.g., tamoxifen) and CMF therapy (the use of a combination of cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and fluorouracil). From the standpoints of improvement of the cure rate and the medical economics, tests and evaluations of the HER2 gene (HER2/neu, c-erbB-2) amplification and HER2 protein overexpression are performed for selecting the subject cases of Herceptin and, for the management of the accuracy thereof, the ASCO/CAP HER2 Testing Guidelines was established in 2007 and revised in 2013.
In Japan as well, HER2 protein overexpression is evaluated by an immunohistochemical (IHC) method and HER2 gene amplification is evaluated by an in situ hybridization (ISH) method in accordance with the revised ASCO/CAP HER2 Testing Guidelines (HER2 Testing Guidelines 4th edition, Breast Cancer HER2 Testing and Pathology Committee, April 2014). In these evaluations, a formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue block (sample) is prepared from a tissue of primary focus or metastatic focus of breast cancer, and a thin section thereof which is placed on a slide and stained by prescribed procedures is utilized. In the IHC method, the stainability and staining intensity of the membranes of cancer cells in a tissue section are indicated with a score on a four-point scale based on prescribed criteria (staining pattern): 3+ (positive: intense and complete staining of the entire membrane circumference is observed in >10% of cancer cells); 2+ (equivocal: incomplete and/or weak or moderate staining of the entire membrane circumference is observed in >10% of cancer cells, or intense and complete staining of the entire membrane circumference is observed in ≤10% of cancer cells); 1+ (negative: slight or barely partial staining of membranes is observed in >10% of cancer cells); or 0 (negative: no stained image is obtained, or incomplete and slight or barely partial staining of membranes is observed in ≤10% of cancer cells). In the ISH method, based on the ratio between the number of signals of the HER2 gene on a chromosome contained in the cancer cells of a tissue section and the number of signals of the CEP17 gene as a control (HER2/CEP17 ratio) as well as the average copy number of the HER2 gene per cell (HER2 gene average copy number), an evaluation of "positive" (HER2/CEP17 ratio≥2.0, or HER2/CEP17 ratio<2.0 and HER2 gene average copy number≥6.0), "equivocal" (HER2/CEP17 ratio<2.0 and HER2 gene average copy number≥4.0 to ≤6.0), or "negative" (HER2/CEP17 ratio<2.0 and HER2 gene average copy number<4.0) is given. The HER2 gene average copy number is customarily referred to as "ISH score". In cases where the ISH method is performed first, a treatment with trastuzumab is judged to be suitable when the evaluation result is positive and, even if the result is equivocal, a treatment with trastuzumab is nevertheless judged to be suitable as long as the result of the IHC method performed on the same sample is positive, or the result of the IHC method or ISH method performed on a different sample is positive. In cases where the IHC method is performed first, a treatment with trastuzumab is judged to be suitable when the evaluation result is positive (3+) and, even if the result is equivocal (2+), a treatment with trastuzumab is nevertheless judged to be suitable as long as the result of the ISH method performed on the same sample is positive, or the result of the IHC method or ISH method performed on a different sample is positive.
As the IHC method, conventionally, a DAB staining method (IHC-DAB method) in which an anti-HER2 antibody labeled with an enzyme (peroxidase) is bound to the HER2 protein contained in a tissue section of a tissue slide by a direct or indirect method and a substrate (diaminobenzidine) is subsequently allowed to react the resultant for color development has been generally employed. In such staining with an enzyme as in DAB staining, however, since the staining concentration is greatly affected by environmental conditions such as temperature and time, there is a problem that it is difficult to accurately estimate the actual amount of an antigen or the like based on the staining concentration.
Therefore, in recent years, as an alternative to a method of evaluating the expression level of a protein of interest (e.g., HER2) using a dye (one produced from a substrate by an enzyme) as in the IHC-DAB method, a method (IHC-PID method) of evaluating the expression level of a protein of interest using nano-size fluorescent particles, for example, particles in which a phosphor such as a fluorescent dye or quantum dot is integrated into a matrix such as a resin (phosphor-integrated particles or phosphor-integrated dots: PIDs), has been proposed and increasingly put into practice. When a protein of interest is labeled with phosphor-integrated particles and an excitation light suitable for the phosphor is irradiated thereto, the phosphor-integrated particles can be observed as high-luminance bright spots that indicate the number and positions of the protein of interest with high accuracy, and the bright spots can be observed and photographed over a long period of time since their color is unlikely to fade. For instance, WO 2012/029342 (Patent Document 1), WO 2013/146741 (Patent Document 2) and the like describe IHC-PID methods where a protein of interest is immunostained with phosphor-integrated particles (also referred to as "fluorescent aggregates", "fluorescent substance-integrated particles" or the like).
The above-mentioned Patent Documents each relate to a method of quantifying a breast cancer-related protein (e.g., HER2) or a breast cancer-related gene using phosphor-integrated particles. However, these Patent Documents and other patent documents and non-patent documents do not offer any description with regard to the point that such a quantification method enables to predict whether or not pathological complete response (pCR) is attained when a preoperative chemotherapy is performed using an anticancer drug, or matters that relate to a test support method based on the prediction.

Test support method for supporting prediction of pathological complete response (pCR) using fluorescent nanoparticles


According to an image processing device includes an acquiring unit and a correcting unit. The acquiring unit is configured to acquire a stereoscopic image containing a plurality of parallax images each having a mutually different parallax. The correcting unit is configured to perform, for each pixel of the stereoscopic image, correction to set a parallax number of a parallax image viewed at a viewpoint position to a first parallax number of a parallax image to be viewed at the viewpoint position by using correction data representing a difference value between the first parallax number and a second parallax number of a parallax image that is actually viewed at the viewpoint position and on which distortion correction for correcting distortion of light beams has been performed.

There are image display devices allowing viewers to view stereoscopic images. An image display device includes, on a front face of a display panel on which a plurality of pixels are arranged, a light beam controller that controls the emitting directions of light beams from the pixels, and displays a plurality of parallax images each having a mutually different parallax.
For example, in a case of a sheet display or the like where a display area itself can be bent or in a case where parts of a panel and a lens are deformed or removed because of aged deterioration, there will occur regions where a stereoscopic image can be viewed and regions (pseudoscopic regions) where a stereoscopic image cannot be viewed in the display area (screen), and viewers therefore cannot view a stereoscopic image on the whole screen.

Image processing device, autostereoscopic display device, and image processing method for parallax correction


A computer-implemented method for managing access to a shared resource of a process may include identifying a plurality of process steps, each process step of the plurality of process steps, when executed, accessing the shared resource at a same time. The method may also include rearranging at least one of the process steps of the plurality of process steps to access the shared resource at a different time.

Process modeling may result in resource contentions and race conditions based on conflicting accesses to shared resources. Complex processes often suffer from resource contentions, which include simultaneous accesses to shared resources from multiple process steps. Concurrent modifications of shared resources from parallel process branches may also lead to race conditions such as lost update phenomena, which includes a scenario in which concurrent process steps update the same resource, where one process step overwrites the effects of the other process step.


Some embodiments are directed to a system and a method for estimating gaze from a set of eye measurement points that are indicative of a gaze pattern of a user viewing a scene. Some other embodiments are directed to obtaining sets of eye measurement points from different users viewing the same scene. In another embodiment, the different sets of eye measurement points are mapped to a common coordinate system for reciprocal calibration In yet another embodiment, a scene transformation for mapping the common coordinate system to a coordinate system associated with the scene can be calculated by matching eye measurement points from the common coordinate system to interest points of the scene. The scene transformation is thereby calculated more accurately than individually calculated scene transformations, thereby providing a more accurate estimate of the gaze points.

Gaze estimation refers to the process of determining where a person is looking at in a predefined plane, i.e., a gaze plane. Such a gaze plane may be associated with a scene, such as, e.g., a physical scene as presented in a shopping window, or a virtual scene as provided by content displayed on a computer screen. Here, the points at which a person gazes at in the scene are referred to as gaze points. Gaze estimation is increasingly important for many applications such as human-computer interaction, marketing and advertisement, and human behavior analysis.
Gaze estimation methods generally involve calibration. The calibration may be camera-based (estimating the camera parameters), geometric calibration (estimating the relations between the scene components like the camera, the gaze plane, and the user), or personal calibration (determining the angle between visual and optical axes). An extensive overview of the different approaches of gaze estimation and their calibration can be found in "In the Eye of the Beholder: A Survey of Models for Eyes and Gaze" by D. W Hansen et al., IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, Vol. 32, Issue 3, p. 478-500, 2010.
During calibration, users are usually asked to fixate their gaze on certain points in a scene while images of their eyes are captured. This procedure is cumbersome and sometimes impractical. For example, when tracking costumer's attention in shops, estimating the gaze points or regions should be done passively, i.e., without the user having to actively take part in a calibration.
It is known to use statistical data of eye movement measurements to enable such passive gaze estimation. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,657,062 B2 provides a calibration apparatus for automatically self-calibrating a set of eye tracking measurements to a reference space, said apparatus comprising: a tracking device capable of capturing a plurality of eye gaze measurements, representing a plurality of eye gaze positions; a statistical analyzer for determining a statistical distribution of said plurality of eye gaze measurements; a data storage device for storing a predetermined set of statistics data of eye movement measurements; a statistical data comparison component for comparing said statistical distribution data of said plurality of eye gaze measurements with said stored predetermined set of statistical data of eye movement measurements; and a calibration data generating component for generating a calibration data depending upon a result of said comparison.
Hence, U.S. Pat. No. 7,657,062 B2 uses statistical distribution data of which the relation to the reference space is known to calibrate the eye gaze measurements of a user. It is mentioned that the predetermined statistics may take two forms. Firstly, a set of statistics may be taken for a plurality of persons in order to obtain an "average" statistical information for human users, describing the eye movement patterns of a notional average person. Such statistics are not specific to any one individual person, but may represent a notional average person based upon an average of a test sample comprising a plurality of persons. FIG. 6 of U.S. Pat. No. 7,657,062 B2 shows that the notional average person gazes straight ahead with the highest probability. Secondly, statistics may be derived for measurements taken from just one individual person. In this case, the individual person may have their own particular quirks and idiosyncrasies.
WO 2013/059940 A1 describes a method for automating a gaze tracking system calibration based on display content and/or user actions that are likely to attract the subject's gaze. The method involves obtaining gaze data, obtaining at least one key point corresponding to a portion of media content being displayed, linking the gaze data to the at least one key point, and generating one or more calibration parameters by comparing gaze data with associated ones of the at least one key point
Disadvantageously, U.S. Pat. No. 7,657,062 B2 and WO 2013/059940 A1 each provide a relatively inaccurate estimation of the gaze of a user viewing a scene.

Apparatus and method for estimating gaze from un-calibrated eye measurement points


A method, social services data management system, and computer program product for managing data about social services. In response to receiving the data about the social services provided to a group of clients at a data collection application running on a computer system, the data collection application running on the computer system places the data into a first database in a first format using a content model identifying entities for the social services and relationships between the entities. The computer system changes the data in the first database from the first format to a second format used by a second database. The computer system moves the data in the second format to the second database. A report application running on the computer system generates a number of reports using the data in the second format in the second database.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to an approved data processing system and, in particular, to a method and apparatus for processing data. Still more particularly, the present disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for managing data relating to urban services.
2. Description of the Related Art
Social services are services directed towards social welfare and social change. Social services are often performed to promote and/or increase the well-being of individuals. Typically, social services have a goal of improving the financial situation of people who may be in need.
Many different organizations provide social services. For example, a settlement house is an organization that provides services to the economically disadvantaged. In particular, settlement houses have provided services to the economically disadvantaged in urban areas. These settlement houses have often provided food, shelter, education, and other services to the economically disadvantaged in different urban areas.
Settlement houses collect information about the users of its services. These users are often referred to as clients. This information is used for purposes, such as identifying usage of services, quality of services provided, budgeting, and other suitable purposes.
The information about clients is typically collected using paper forms. These forms are then aggregated and analyzed. Through the analysis of this information, the programs provided by settlement houses may be evaluated. This evaluation may be used to identify improvements, needs for existing programs, new programs, budget changes, and other types of changes. Further, the performance of one settlement house in one location also may be compared to the performance of settlement houses in other locations through the use of the information collected and analyzed. In this manner, changes may be made to better provide social services to the urban economically disadvantaged by settlement houses.

International Business Machines Corporation


A phase difference detector detects the phase difference between two AC signals at a high speed and with high accuracy. A phase difference computation unit computes the phase difference φr(=φ2−φ1) between two detected voltages v1 (phase angle: φ1) and v2 (phase angle: φ2). The phase difference computation unit uses a sine wave vs and a cosine wave vc generated separately and having the same frequency as the fundamental frequency of the voltages v1 and v2, to perform computation of v2s=v2×vs, v2c=v2×vc, v1s=v1×vs, v1c=v1×vc, and then extracts DC components I2=(−A2/2)·sin(φ2), R2=(A2/2)·cos(φ2), I1=(−A1/2)·sin(φ1), R1=(A1/2)·cos(φ1) at low-pass filters. The phase difference computation unit computes R3=R1×R2+I1×I2 at a complex multiplying unit to obtain R3=(A1·A2/4)·cos(φr), computes I3=R2×I1−R1×I2 to obtain I3=(A1·A2/4)·sin(φr), and computes φr=tan−1(I3/R3) at the arctangent calculation unit, thereby obtaining the phase difference φr.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a phase difference detector for computing the phase difference between two alternating current signals (AC signals) having the same frequency. The invention also relates to a program for detecting such a phase difference, and to a plasma processing apparatus utilizing such a phase difference detector.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a digital computation technique has been known for determining the phase difference between two AC signals of the same frequency. For instance, Japanese Patent No. 3808973 discloses the following method for computing the phase difference between two AC signals: s1=A1·cos(ω·t) and s2=A2·cos(ω+t+φ), where ω=2π·f, f represents frequency, and φ represents a phase difference from the signal s1.    (1) A sine (or sinusoidal) wave s3=cos((ω+ωo)·t), ωo=2·π·fo, having a frequency of (f+fo)[Hz] (fo<<f) is generated by using a direct digital synthesizer. Then, the sine wave is multiplied by each of the AC signals s1 and s2, whereby the following signals sa and sb are obtained.
                                          s            a                    =                                                        s              1                        ×                          s              3                                                                    =                                                        A              1                        ·                          cos                                            (                                  ω                  ·                  t                                )                                      ·                          cos                                            (                                                      (                                          ω                      +                                              ω                        o                                                              )                                    ·                  t                                )                                                                                =                                                        (                                                A                  1                                /                2                            )                        ·                          [                                                cos                                                        (                                                                  (                                                                              2                                                        ω                                                    +                                                      ω                            o                                                                          )                                            ·                      t                                        )                                                  +                                  cos                                                        (                                                                  ω                        o                                            ·                      t                                        )                                                              ]                                                                                s            b                    =                                                        s              2                        ×                          s              3                                                                    =                                                        A              2                        ·                          cos                                            (                                  ω                  +                  t                  +                  ϕ                                )                                      ·                          cos                                            (                                                      (                                          ω                      +                                              ω                        o                                                              )                                    ·                  t                                )                                                                                =                                                        (                                                A                  2                                /                2                            )                        ·                                          [                                                      cos                                                              (                                                                        (                                                                                2                                                            ω                                                        +                                                          ω                              o                                                        +                            ϕ                                                    )                                                ·                        t                                            )                                                        +                                      cos                                                              (                                                                                ω                            o                                                    ·                          t                                                +                        ϕ                                            )                                                                      ]                            .                                              (2) Filtering is performed with respect to the signals sa and sb to remove frequency components higher than fo, thereby extracting low frequency signals sa(A1/2)·cos(ω·t) and sbo=(A2/2)·cos(ω·t+φ) having the frequency fo.    (3) The two low frequency signals sao and sbo are transformed into rectangular waves, and by using the reference clock of a direct digital synthesizer, the period T(=1/fo) and the deviation time t of the rise timings of the two low frequency signals sao, sbo are obtained. By computing 360×(t/T)[°] or 2π×(t/T)[rad], the phase difference φ is obtained.
In the above technique for computing phase difference disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,808,973, after detected values of two AC signal s1 and s2 having a phase difference φ are converted into low frequency signal sao and sbo, the period T and the deviation time t of the rise timings of the two low frequency signals sao and sbo are measured by using a clock of a reference clock, and then the measured values are used to obtain the phase difference φ.
When the frequency of the reference clock is fCLK, the period τ of the reference clock is τ=1/fCLK, and the period T of the low frequency signals sao, sbo is T=1/fo. Thus, the resolving power N for measuring the period T is N=T/τ=fCLK/fo[times/period]. When the resolving power N is converted into a resolving power B in terms of angle, B=360/N=360×fo/fCLK[°] or B=2π×fo/fCLK[rad]. In this way, since the phase difference φ is computed by using the period T and the phase deviation time t of the low frequency signals sao, sbo in the conventional phase difference computation method, the accuracy of the computation results depends on the resolving power B.
Specifically, when the ratio of the frequencies Rf=fo/fCLK is increased, the resolving power B increases, which results in lower detection accuracy. When the ratio Rf is decreased, the resolving power B decreases, which results in higher detection accuracy. Thus, to improve the detection accuracy, it may be considered to set the value of the frequency fCLK of the reference clock high or to set the value of the frequency fo low. However, since the speed of a device such as a direct digital synthesizer that uses a reference clock for operation or a counter for measuring the period T or the phase deviation time t cannot be increased beyond a certain limit, the frequency fCLK cannot be set to a high value as desired.
On the other hand, since the phase difference φ is detected at the period T=1/fo, setting the frequency fo low leads to long detection intervals. Thus, in the case where the phase difference φ changes largely when detection is not being performed, the reliability of the detected value is low.
In this way, in the conventional phase difference detection method, the resolving power B depends on the ratio Rf=fo/fCLK and the detection period (1/fo) is a trade-off for the resolving power B (detection accuracy), so that it is difficult to set optimum values for the frequency fo and the frequency fCLK of the reference clock.

Phase difference detector, phase difference detection program, and plasma processing system using the phase difference detector


A method and an apparatus for sending a service, a method and an apparatus for receiving a service, and a network system. The method for sending a service includes obtaining, by a transmit end device, an original data stream, inserting a quantity mark k into the original data stream, to generate a first data stream, where the quantity mark k is a quantity of first data units in the original data stream, and k is greater than or equal to 0, and sending the first data stream.

The flexible Ethernet (FlexE) combines some technical features of the Ethernet and a transport network (for example, an optical transport network (OTN), and a synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH)), and is an important milestone in the evolution of an Ethernet technology. With emergence of a flexible Ethernet technology, Ethernet physical interfaces show virtualization characteristics. A plurality of Ethernet physical interfaces may be bonded together, to support several virtual logical ports. For example, a 400-gigabit (400G) flexible Ethernet physical interface group obtained by bonding four 100-gigabit Ethernet (100GE) physical interfaces may support several logical ports.
The Ethernet physical interface is an asynchronous communications interface, and is allowed to have a clock frequency difference of ±100 ppm (one ten-thousandth). For example, in 10GE, for two physical interfaces whose nominal bandwidths are 10 G, one bandwidth may be one ten-thousandth larger than the nominal value, and the other bandwidth is one ten-thousandth smaller than the nominal value, that is, 10G*(1+0.0001) and 10G*(1−0.0001). A clock frequency at the logical port inherits a clock frequency characteristic on the physical interface, and therefore the logical port also has a difference of 100 ppm. For example, actual bandwidths of two logical ports that are formed by different physical interfaces or physical interface groups and whose nominal bandwidths are 25 G may be approximately 25G*(20460/20461)*(1+0.0001) and 25G*(20460/20461)*(1−0.0001) when overheads of timeslot division and timeslot management in the flexible Ethernet are considered. When the flexible Ethernet is used to bear a service, idle-code-block (Idle) insertion or deletion needs to be performed hop by hop, to adapt a service rate to a bandwidth rate difference between the service and the physical interfaces or the logical ports. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of service transport in the flexible Ethernet in the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1, when a service between customer devices Ca and Cb is borne by using flexible Ethernet devices Pa, Pb, and Pc, the Pa, the Pb, and the Pc needs to perform idle-unit insertion or deletion.
However, idle-code-block insertion or deletion causes loss of a clock frequency and time phase information of the service, that is, the clock frequency and the time phase information of the service cannot be transparently transported, and consequently the clock frequency and the time phase cannot be synchronized between a source network device and a sink network device of the service.

Method and apparatus for sending service, method and apparatus for receiving service, and network system


Apparatus, processes, and systems for removal of solids from a hydrocarbon stream. The present disclosure utilizes a surfactant to reduce interfacial tension between a hydrocarbon phase and a water (or aqueous) phase to promote solids to be pulled by gravity out of the hydrocarbon phase and into the water phase.

Hydrocarbon streams, such as oil sands, crude oils, asphalt, bitumens, etc. typically carry varying amounts of solids within the hydrocarbon stream. Excessive inorganic or organic solids in hydrocarbon streams negatively affect hydrocarbon processing by exacerbating fouling in heat exchangers, stabilizing emulsion in desalters, as well as reducing the value of hydrocarbon products. Oil sand contains a high amount of solids which complicates oil recovery. In addition, solids can clog burners, plug catalyst feed channels and deactivate catalysts. In heat exchangers heavy crude components (e.g. asphaltene) adsorb onto solids causing them to attach onto the tube surface. The adsorbed solids provide a nucleating growth site for the foulant. In a desalter, solids adsorb onto the water/oil interface, preventing electrocoalescence within the electrodes of the desalter. Solids can also reside at the effluent water/oil interface at the bottom of a desalter and prevent coalesced water droplets from immersing into the effluent water. This creates a rag layer that is detrimental in the desalting operation.
Current practice to remove solids consists of filters (electrostatic filters, membranes, adsorbents, hydrocyclones), gravity sedimentation, and froth treatments. Using filters is costly and not practical for viscous materials with significant suspended solids such as some crude oils—i.e. the filters become clogged too quickly for efficient operation. Gravity sedimentation is only effective for larger suspended solids. Finer solids will remain suspended in the crude oil fraction and will not deposit on the bottom of the crude oil settling tank. Froth treatment is an oil refining technique which converts bitumen recovered from oil sands to diluted bitumen through use a naphthenic or paraffinic solvent, which promotes gravitational separation of solids from the bitumen. Froth treatments are costly due to the high volume of solvent required.
A less costly, but effective, method for removing solids from hydrocarbon streams would be advantageous. This disclosure provides apparatus and methods for solids removal from hydrocarbon streams using only gravity and a small amount of surfactant to promote solids extraction from the oil phase to a water phase resulting in a reduced solids hydrocarbon product stream.

Apparatus and methods to remove solids from hydrocarbon streams

EXXONMOBIL RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING COMPANY


A solid-state imaging device in an embodiment is a solid-state imaging device including an output circuit configured to amplify signals read out from a plurality of pixels. The solid-state imaging device includes a logic circuit configured to generate operation timing of the output circuit and a delay generation circuit configured to control a delay amount for adjusting a pulse generated by the logic circuit to optimum timing. The delay generation circuit is configured of a first variable delay circuit configured to generate a delay pulse, a reference clock of which is delayed by a reference delay amount, a control circuit configured to control the first variable delay circuit and calculate, as a digital signal, a delay code corresponding to the reference delay amount, and a second variable delay circuit configured to adjust the timing of the pulse using the delay code.

A linear image sensor is a solid-state imaging device that one-dimensionally reads image information, converts the image information into an analog signal, and outputs the analog signal in time series. The linear image sensor is known as a device essential for reading an image such as a facsimile, a digital copying machine, or an image scanner.
According to demands for an increase in speed in image forming apparatuses such as a digital copying machine, an increase in speed during image reading is also demanded in the linear image sensor that reads image information.

Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation


Magnetic particles each including particulate magnetic material and a readily decomposable or easily soluble polymer coating layer containing a reactive component, the coating layer being disposed on the surface of the magnetic material; and a method for producing a reaction product by use of the magnetic particles.

In reaction systems utilizing microorganisms, such as a wastewater treatment system and a system by which pharmaceuticals are produced by use of microorganisms, microorganisms are either directly added to a reaction mixture system or immobilized through a immobilization technique. When microorganisms are directly added to a reaction mixture system, reaction efficiency becomes generally lower. Also, in cases where immobilized microorganisms are employed, a substrate solution is usually allowed to pass through the immobilized microorganism phase, where the following problems are noted: insufficient contact time between the substrate and the microorganisms, or when the contact time is prolonged to a sufficient level, reaction efficiency is reduced. Therefore, from the viewpoint of reaction efficiency, direct addition of immobilized microorganisms into a reaction mixture is desired.
However, when immobilized microorganisms are directly added to a reaction system, not only does solid-liquid separation become difficult after completion of reaction, but separation and recovery of a reaction product; i.e., the target product, also become difficult. This is because the reaction mixture contains not only the reaction product, but also the starting materials, medium components, etc. Moreover, reactions making use of microorganisms and antigen-antibody reactions cannot proceed endlessly even when starting materials are added continuously. Indeed, since the reaction is eventually saturated, maintaining high reaction efficiency is difficult.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide means for realizing a reaction field of high reaction efficiency and facilitating separation and recovery of reaction product.

Magnetic particles having core-shell structure

Abstract: Employment of the magnetic particles of the present invention allows solid phase reaction to proceed efficiently and attains an easy recovery of reaction product.


A field emission device comprises an emitter tip that is optionally formed from and integral with an emitter layer. The emitter tip has a base, an apex, and an exterior surface having a profile between the base and the apex. The profile has a continuous shape that extends from the base to the apex. The devices may be part of a flat panel display device that also includes a substrate, a cathode conductive layer disposed over the substrate, an array of emitter tips each formed from an emitter layer disposed over the substrate, a conductive gate structure disposed over the cathode conductive layer, an array of apertures formed through the conductive gate structure, and an anode panel for emitting light in response to electrons emitted from the array of emitter tips.

The present invention relates to semiconductor structures for visual displays. More particularly, the present invention relates to a field emission device. In particular, the present invention relates to fabrication of a field emitter tip.
Integrated circuits are currently manufactured by methods in which semiconductive structures, insulating structures, and electrically conductive structures are sequentially constructed in a predetermined arrangement on a semiconductor substrate. In the context of this document, the term xe2x80x9csemiconductor substratexe2x80x9d is defined to mean any construction comprising semiconductive material, including but not limited to bulk semiconductive material such as a semiconductive wafer, either alone or in assemblies comprising other materials thereon, and semiconductive material layers, either alone or in assemblies comprising other materials. The term semiconductor substrate is contemplated to include such structures as silicon-on-insulator and silicon-on-sapphire. The term xe2x80x9csubstratexe2x80x9d refers to any supporting structure. As used herein, xe2x80x9cfield emission devicexe2x80x9d is defined to mean any construction for emitting electrons in the presence of an electrical field, including but not limited to an electron emission structure or tip either alone or in assemblies comprising other materials or structures.
Miniaturization of structures within integrated circuits focuses attention and effort to incorporating field emission devices within semiconductor substrates. A field emission device typically includes an electron emission structure, or tip, configured for emitting a flux of electrons upon application of an electric field to the field emission device. An array of miniaturized field emission devices can be arranged on a plate and used for forming a visual display on a display panel. For example, field emission devices may be used in making flat panel displays for providing visual display for computers, telecommunication, and other graphics applications. Flat panel displays typically have a greatly reduced thickness compared to cathode ray tubes.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,635,619 issued to Cloud et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 5,229,331 issued to Doan et al. disclose field emission devices. The foregoing patents are hereby incorporated by reference for purposes of disclosure. A general view of a field emission device (FED) much like those that are disclosed in the foregoing patents to Cloud et al. and Doan et al. particularly as geometries become relatively small, is seen in FIG. 1. The FED employs a cold cathode and includes a substrate 28, which can be composed of glass, for example, or any of a variety of other suitable materials. A cathode conductive layer 30, such as doped polycrystalline silicon, is deposited onto substrate 28.
At a field emission site location, an emitter tip 14, which is a micro-cathode, is constructed over substrate 28. A variety of shapes have been used for emitter tip 14, so long as the emitter tip 14 tapers to a relatively fine point. Surrounding emitter tip 14 is a low potential anode gate structure 38, which is separated from cathode conductive layer 30 by means of a dielectric layer 34.
When a voltage differential is applied between emitter tip 14 and anode gate structure 38 using, for example, voltage source 32, an electron flux 24 is emitted and accelerates toward an anode panel 26. The anode panel 26 includes a transparent panel 44, such as glass; a phospholuminescent panel 48; and an anode conductive layer 46, which is electrically connected to source 32. The electron flux 24 strikes and excites the phospholuminescent panel 48, thereby causing light 36 to be emitted and to pass through transparent panel 44.
The coordinated activity of a plurality of emitter tips 14 arrayed over a flat panel display provides a visual display that may be viewed by a user. Each individual or cluster of emitter tips 14 that is provided on a flat panel display may be assigned a unique matrix address. When such a flat panel display is used, the emitter tips 14 are systematically activated by means of their matrix addresses in order to provide the desired visual display.
Significant problems with emitter tip 14 in the above described device are evident in the prior art due to shrinking geometries. As seen in FIG. 1, manufacturing processes that are commonly used in the prior art typically form an emitter tip 14 that has a curvilinear vertical profile. FIG. 2 illustrates an intermediate stage in the formation of emitter tip and further depicts the curvilinear vertical profile thereof In FIG. 2, the intermediate semiconductor structure 10 comprises cathode conductive layer 30, emitter tip 14, and a hard mask 16 that covers emitter tip 14 prior to its removal. It can be seen that emitter tip 14 includes wings 18 that cause the vertical profile of emitter tip 14 to be curvilinear instead of rectilinear. Wings 18 are unintentional but persistent products of conventional methods of forming emitter tip 14. Emitter tips 14 that have pronounced curvilinear vertical profiles have been found to provide sub-grade performance compared to those that are more nearly rectilinear.
Emitter tip 14 is exposed to the etch gas at large, but it encounters two types of etch gas molecules. A primary collision etch gas molecule 8 (its trajectory illustrated) collides with emitter tip 14 by coming from the etch gas at large. A secondary collision etch gas molecule 12 (its trajectory illustrated) comes from the etch gas at large but it collides with and rebounds from hard mask 16 near the intersection of emitter tip 14 and hard mask 16 just prior to its etch collision with emitter tip 14. Because the etch is selective to hard mask 16, the secondary collision etch gas molecule 12 rebounds from hard mask 16 and, along with primary collision etch gas molecule 8, causes an intensified frequency of collisions into emitter tip 14 in the region of the intersection between hard mask 16 and emitter tip 14. The intensified frequency of collisions into emitter tip 14 by secondary collision etch gas molecule 12 in addition to primary collision etch gas molecule causes increased etching of emitter tip 14 in this region. The increased etching in this region is exacerbated by the increase in surface area that is formed due to both primary- and secondary-collision etch gas molecules. Further, the extinguishment of secondary etch gas molecule 12 causes an etch gas sink which intensifies etching in this region. Hence, wings 18 form because of intensified etching activity in the region of emitter tip 14 near hard mask 16.
As geometries continue to shrink to the point that the mean free path of secondary etch gas molecule 12 is greater than the distance from its collision point on hard mask 16 to emitter tip 14, the problem is only made more pronounced. Additionally, as wings 18 begin to form against hard mask 16, the surface area of emitter tip 14 above wings 18 increases. The increased surface area makes for increased primary and secondary etch gas molecules that collide with emitter tip 14 in this region. This increases etching in this region as compared to the region below wings 18.
In the prior art, hard mask 16 was formed by patterning a photoresist upon an oxide layer, etching to form hard mask 16, and stripping the photoresist. Problems of a curvilinear profile arose in part from etching difficulties as emitter tip geometries continued to shrink. Achieving a substantially rectilinear profile became more elusive as geometries shrank and it became more and more challenging to get an undercutting etch beneath hard mask 16 so as to yield an emitter tip having a rectilinear profile. Because an undercutting etch is a preferred method of achieving emitter tip 14, what is needed in the art is a method of forming a substantially rectilinear profile of an emitter tip as geometries continue to shrink.
The present invention relates to formation of an emitter tip that overcomes the problems in the prior art. A substrate is provided, and a cathode conductive layer is formed thereupon. An emitter layer is formed on the resistive layer. The emitter layer may be any material from which electron emission structures may be formed, especially those materials having a relatively low work function, so that a low applied voltage will induce a relatively high electron flux therefrom. An emitter tip is formed according to the inventive method. In a first procedure, the emitter layer is overlaid with a blanket dielectric which is in turn overlaid by a masking layer and patterned into a masking island according to a size that is dictated by dimensions of the emitter tip to be formed.
In a first etching stage, the masking island is used to etch substantially anisotropically into the oxide to form the oxide island that has substantially the same xe2x80x9cfootprintxe2x80x9d as the masking island.
In a second etching stage, the emitter layer is etched with an etch recipe that is selective to the underlying structure which is positioned beneath the emitter layer. Selectivity of the second etching stage recipe to the masking island is not as great as the selectivity thereof to the oxide island and to the underlying structure. The characteristics of this second etching stage are such that both isotropic and anisotropic qualities are exhibited in the etch recipe. By this combination of qualities, both penetration through the emitter layer and undercutting beneath the oxide island are achieved. In a preferred embodiment, the second etching stage is carried out under etching conditions with the following preferred etching characteristics. Firstly, the directional qualities of the second etching stage etch recipe, as set forth above, include both isotropic and anisotropic characteristics. Secondly, partial mobilization of the masking island creates a skirt region that substantially alters the etch gas that it encounters.
In a third etching stage, selectivity of the etch recipe to the masking island is configured to be lower than in the second etching stage. Additionally, the third etching stage is carried out under conditions that are substantially more anisotropic than in the second etching stage.
An advantage of the inventive method over the prior art is that the masking island does not need to be removed during the inventive etching stages. Additionally according to the present invention, selection of an application-specific chemistry for the masking island prepares the emitter layer for the buffered etching of the second and third etching stages that provide another advantage of a more rectilinear etched profile of the emitter tip.
The present invention has application to a wide variety of field emission devices other than those specifically described herein. In particular, achievement of the emitter tip with a substantially rectilinear profile increases the efficiency of electron emission and therefore lowers the power and increases the ability to achieve higher refresh rates for a video display application.
These and other features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.

Buffered resist profile etch of a field emission device structure


A medical assembly includes a cannula and a scaling cap releasably coupled to the cannula. The cap includes a body and a sealing member integrally molded with the body to form a fluid-tight seal between the cap and cannula. The cap includes a member defining an opening for passage of a medical instrument therethrough in a fluid-tight manner. The member includes a first portion surrounding the opening and being thickened to limit tearing of the first portion, and a second portion surrounding the first portion being tapered down in thickness toward the first portion to increase flexibility of the member. The assembly includes a shaft receivable in a lumen defined by an inner surface of the cannula. The shaft includes a protrusion and the inner surface further defines a protrusion receiving formation.

A cannula can be inserted into a portal in a tissue in cooperation with an obturator or trocar that is received in the cannula and has a tapered end that extends beyond the end of the cannula. Once the cannula has been inserted into the tissue, the obturator or trocar is removed and surgical instruments can be passed through the cannula into tissue to perform arthroscopic, endoscopic, or laproscopic surgery.