An inverter circuit, a backlight assembly and a liquid crystal display include first and second electrodes and a balance circuit. The first and second electrodes supply a voltage of opposite polarities, respectively, among an even number of cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFLs) disposed in one direction. The first and second electrodes supply the voltage of opposite polarities to even-numbered CCFLs and odd-numbered CCFLs, respectively. The balance circuit controls currents flowing through the CCFLs. The CCFLs are halved into a first group higher in temperature and a second group lower in temperature than the first group. The balance circuit includes primary coils directly connected between at least one CCFL of the first group and at least one CCFL of the second group and secondary coils corresponding to the primary coils that are connected to each other to form a loop.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inverter circuit, a backlight assembly and a flat panel display with the backlight assembly.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, information processing devices have rapidly advanced to have various shapes and functions. Information processed by such information processing devices is in the form of an electrical signal. Therefore, users require a display device to visually recognize the information processed by the information processing devices.
An example of the display device is a flat panel display device such as a liquid crystal display ("LCD"). An LCD displays an image using liquid crystal. When compared to other display devices, an LCD is thin and lightweight and also has a low power consumption and a low driving voltage. Therefore, an LCD is widely used in various fields.
Such an LCD including a liquid crystal panel displaying an image thereon and a backlight assembly providing light to the liquid crystal panel is described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2005-49747, for example.
FIG. 1 is a schematic circuit diagram of a conventional backlight assembly.
Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional backlight assembly includes eight cold cathode fluorescent lamps ("CCFLs") 810 and a balance circuit 820. As a liquid crystal panel increases in size, the conventional backlight assembly requires a plurality of CCFLs to provide uniform brightness in the liquid crystal panel.
Sinusoidal voltages are applied from an external inverter 800 to the CCFLs 810, and thus sinusoidal currents flow through the CCFLs 810. If the CCFLs 810 are driven by sinusoidal voltages with the same polarity, the sinusoidal voltages with the same polarity cause an interference with a driving circuit of a liquid crystal panel by generating noise of interference patterns on the liquid crystal panel. To prevent the interference, the CCFLs 810 are divided into two groups as illustrated in FIG. 1, and the two groups are driven respectively by high sinusoidal voltages with opposite polarities. That is, the inverter 800 is configured to output both a high positive voltage is and a high negative voltage. The odd-numbered CCFLs 810 and even-numbered CCFLs 810, starting from the top, are driven by the high positive voltage and the high negative voltage, respectively.
The CCFLs 810 have a negative resistance and are connected in parallel to one another. Therefore, when a current starts to flow through a given one of the CCFLs 810, a resistance of the given CCFL decreases and thus a current easily flows through the given CCFL. This causes concentration of the current at the given CCFL. To prevent the current concentration, the balance circuit 820 is connected in series to the CCFLs 810, as illustrated in FIG. 1.
The balance circuit 820 includes four balance transformers. Each of the balance transformers includes: a primary coil 821 connected directly between neighboring CCFLs receiving the high positive voltage and the high negative voltage, respectively; and a respective secondary coil 822 installed adjacent to the primary coil 821. When a current flows through any one of the CCFLs 810, a current flows through the primary coil 821 and thus a current flows through the respective secondary coil 822. Since the respective secondary coils 822 are connected in series to one another, the current flowing through the secondary coil 822 causes a current to flow through the corresponding primary coil 821. As a result, currents flowing through the respective CCFLs 810 become equal to one another.
In this configuration, a balancing voltage of each balance transformer that is necessary to balance the CCFLs 810 is obtained by grounding one point of the series connected secondary coils 822 and detecting a voltage between the grounded point and a detection node 830 remote from the grounded point. In a normal state, the balancing voltage is in the range of, for example, 1 V to 2 V.
This balancing voltage varies with a distribution of resistances including the negative resistances of the CCFLs 810. Using this property, a short or open circuit due to a failure in the CCFLs 810 can be detected. That is, when a short circuit occurs due to a failure in the CCFLs 810, a voltage (e.g., 5˜6 V) higher than the balancing voltage in the normal state is detected at the detection node 830 as a result of the balancing operation of the balance transformers.
FIG. 2 illustrates an arrangement of CCFLs in the conventional backlight assembly of FIG. 1.
Referring to FIG. 2, the CCFLs 810 are arranged horizontally in a vertically-standing protection structure 920. The rear surface of the protection structure 920 is covered with a reflection plate 910, and the front surface of the protection structure 920 is covered with a diffusion plate 900. In the conventional backlight assembly, temperature increases upward due to heat by light emitted from the CCFLs 810, resulting in a temperature gradient.
The CCFLs 810 each have a temperature-dependent resistance. Therefore, due to the temperature gradient, the CCFLs 810 have a resistance that is lowered as the CCFLs 810 are further spaced apart from a lower portion of protection structure 920. In other words, the CCFLS 810 have an increase in voltage due to the lowered resistance based on the temperature gradient from bottom to top of the protection structure 920 (e.g., the temperature increases from bottom to top of the protection structure 920).
To eliminate the resistance difference between the CCFLs 810, the balance transformers operate to balance the CCFLs 810. Accordingly, a voltage of, for example, about 3V is induced at the detection node 830. However, when an increase in voltage is detected at the detection node 830 in the conventional backlight assembly, it is impossible to determine whether a resistance difference between the CCFLs 810 or a short circuit due to a failure in the CCFLs 810 has caused the voltage increase. Accordingly, it is difficult to accurately trouble-shoot a failure in the CCFLs 810.

Inverter circuit, backlight assembly and liquid crystal display with the same


A method for producing vertical bipolar transistors having different voltage breakdown and high-frequency performance characteristics on a single die comprises forming, for each of the vertical bipolar transistors, a buried collector region, and base and emitter regions above the buried collector region. The lateral extensions and locations of the base and emitter regions and of the buried collector region are, for each of the vertical bipolar transistors, selected to create an overlap between the base and emitter regions, and the buried collector region, as seen from above, wherein at least some of the overlaps are selected to be different.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for producing vertical bipolar transistors having different voltage breakdown and high-frequency performance characteristics on a single die. The invention also relates to an integrated circuit comprising transistors of the above kind.
2. Description of the Related Art
Advanced silicon bipolar or BiCMOS processes are used to manufacture high-performance high-frequency circuits, commonly used for radio and analogue functions in mobile wireless devices such as base stations for cellular networks, mobile and wireless phones, wireless networking for computers etc. The bipolar transistors have good high-frequency and analogue performance, high gain, and are excellent for driving large currents. The CMOS technology is preferably used for logic, and thus the combined BiCMOS technology is an excellent choice for mixed-signal systems.
In high-frequency bipolar and BiCMOS processes, the bipolar transistor is implemented as a vertical device. The collector contact is placed at the side of the emitter/base structure. A buried collector, or subcollector, is used to achieve a low-ohmic path for the collector current from the active device via a highly doped vertical sinker to the collector contact. A common manner to form a buried collector is by doping the semiconductor substrate to high levels using preferably a patterned oxide mask, and then an epitaxial layer of silicon is grown on the substrate and the remaining parts of the transistor—base, emitter and collector contact—are formed on the top of the epitaxial layer.
The collector-to-base and collector-to-emitter breakdown voltages (BVcbo, BVces, BVceo) are important device parameters. The breakdown voltages depend on the thickness and doping of the lowly doped collector epitaxial layer. For the breakdown voltage BVceo, the current gain of the transistor is also involved, but the gain is set essentially by the emitter and base properties. As reach-through normally occurs prior to avalanche breakdown in the base-collector diode, the buried collector will affect the voltage breakdown. The distance between the buried collector and the base must be made short to insure good high-frequency performance and low collector resistance. However, the requested supply voltage will determine the minimum distance and thus affect the high-frequency performance. The trade-off between breakdown voltage and frequency performance in transistors is called the Johnson limit.
In a typical mixed-signal circuit design, not all the bipolar devices need to be optimized for best frequency performance. Some devices may instead need higher breakdown voltages, such as transistors used for switching current or used in interfaces to other circuits. However, simultaneous manufacturing of devices with high breakdown voltage and devices with good high-frequency performance on a single chip is not easily done without increased process complexity and increased costs associated therewith.
U.S. Patent Application No. 2003/0094673 by Dunn et al., discloses a solution to this problem by using two different impurity types, arsenic and antimony, and different concentrations for the buried collector. This approach requires additional process steps as well as additional photo masks.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,770,952 by Babcock et al., discloses the manufacturing of devices with different collector design on a single wafer. However, the solution utilizes thin silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology, and can not be used in conventional BiCMOS technology on bulk wafers.

Method for producing vertical bipolar transistors and integrated circuit


An exothermic welding apparatus and an exothermic welding method, belonging to the exothermic welding field are provided. The exothermic welding apparatus includes a mold, an igniter and an electronic starter, the mold has a holding space configured to accommodate an exothermic welding flux, the igniter includes a heating wire, a first conductor wire and a first connector, the heating wire is configured to ignite the exothermic welding flux directly, one end of the first conductor wire is electrically connected to the heating wire, the other end of the first conductor wire is electrically connected to the first connector, and the electronic starter cooperates with the first connector and is configured to supply power to the first connector. The exothermic welding apparatus can ignite an exothermic welding flux by supplying power with an electronic starter.

At present, the mode of igniting an exothermic welding flux with an ignition agent is usually applied to the ignition of exothermic welding flux, while the high instability of ignition agent leads to reduction of safety factor. Moreover, the mode of igniting an exothermic welding flux with an ignition agent leads to increased cost, which adversely affects the industrial manufacture. In terms of the current technology in the art, it is difficult to achieve a continuous and stable high temperature to ignite an exothermic welding flux, thus the mode of ignition agent have to be used until the present.
The present inventors found from his researches that there are at least the following disadvantages in conventional exothermic welding processes:
low safety factor of construction operation,
complex operation, and
high cost.

Exothermic welding apparatus and exothermic welding method

SICHUAN SUNLIGHT INTELLIGENT ELECTRIC EQUIPMENT CO., LTD. . .


Disclosed are embodiments for estimating risk associated with a user of a wireless device. In some embodiments, the risk relates to a risk of infection by a contagious disease. For example, in some embodiments, the contagious disease is Coronavirus 2019. In some embodiments, locations of multiple wireless devices are estimated based on signal strengths of signals associated with the devices. Neighboring devices are identified based on highest probability regions of the devices that are determined based on associated signals. A measure of proximity to other devices is then determined based on probabilities that each device is located in neighboring regions. The risk is then based on the measure of proximity. In some embodiments, a risk of a first user associated with a first wireless device is based, in part, on a risk of a second user within a proximity of the first user.

Wireless devices have become essential to how people live. As such, people generally carry their wireless devices as they move around and travel. There are a variety of techniques which can be used to identify an individual's location based on a location of their associated wireless device. The recent Coronavirus pandemic has increased attention on the importance of maintaining a social distance between individuals, so as to reduce the spread of the infectious disease. The location determining capabilities associated with wireless devices promise to assist with managing social distance.

Estimating user risk based on wireless location determination


A machine for freezing or chilling a liquid continuously to produce a slurry of the liquid and frozen crystals feeds the liquid into a vertically oriented heat transfer tube at its upper end. A refrigerant flow at the outer tube surface evaporates in a vapor/foam stream causing the liquid to freeze at the inner tube surface. A whip rod, preferably one that is free-standing, revolves over the inner surface to dislodge the frozen crystals mechanically and to distribute the liquid. An additive to the liquid such as ethylene glycol (in water) aids the dislodging. In one form, a mechanical flow guide surrounding the outer surface produces a thin, high velocity upward flow of the boiling refrigerant to increase the heat transfer. An orbital drive propels the whip rod. In one form the orbital drive includes a pair of horizontal plates coupled between the whip rod and at least one eccentric crank. In another form, the drive includes a pair of counterweights coupled rigidly to the heat transfer tube that rotate in phase synchronization by independent motors through the dynamic design characteristics of the system.

This invention relates in general to apparatus and methods for evaporating, distilling, freezing or chilling liquids, and more specifically, to an orbital rod drive for use with a vertical heat transfer tube.
Making an ice slurry under mechanical agitation is a common practice in a wide variety of applications ranging from the manufacture of food products such as ice cream and frozen orange juice to the softening of ice on highways with salt to facilitate plowing. A particularly important application is the manufacture of ice in slurry form to be used as a cold storage. Ice slurries are also useful as refrigerants, e.g., to preserve seafood catches on a fishing vessel. Freezing and chilling apparatus and methods are also used in the manufacture of salts, the concentration of various solutions and suspensions, and the purification of water or other fluids.
Cold storage application for air conditioning systems has been urged by the utility industry as a way to transfer the power demand for cooling the air from daytime to the nighttime and thereby smooth out the overall power demand of the entire power distribution system. Freezing of water into ice would release its latent heat and hence can be an effective cold storage. Unfortunately, ice formed over a heat transfer surface tends to stick to the surface and thereby to block the heat transfer property of that surface. This has been found to be a major stumbling block for the wide use of ice for cold storage.
Currently, there are two types of cold storage systems on the market using ice. One is known as the ice harvester type, where a group of ice making machines are installed over an open storage tank. Ice formed periodically to a certain thickness is harvested into the tank by a defrosting cycle. The other one is known as the ice bank type. It employs a group of low cost heat transfer units, usually made of plastic, on which all the ice needed for cold storage accumulates continuously during each chilling cycle. In either of these two types the effectiveness of transferring the heat from the water to the refrigerant during the ice forming process is not as efficient as desired, thus increasing equipment cost.
The concept of making ice in slurry form so that the ice making machine can operate continuously without interruption and with some improved heat transfer property has been attempted in the industry by companies such as the Chicago Bridge and Iron, Inc. and more recently, by the Electric Power Research Institute ("EPRI") with their scheme publicized in the name of "slippery ice". At the present time the performance of the slippery ice cold storage system is still in the evaluation stage.
The EPRI sponsored research to develop a "slippery ice" system was reported in an article entitled "Cool Storage: Saving Money and Energy" published in the July/August 1992 issue of the EPRI Journal. In the EPRI scheme, calcium magnesium acetate, a substance similar to the chemical used for de-icing aircraft, is added to the water. According to EPRI, the use of this additive causes ice to form in the liquid pool, away from the heat exchanger surface, and results in a slushy type of substance that does not cling to metal. The advantages of the "slippery ice" for improving the economy were also reported in Sep. 27, 1992 edition of The New York Times entitled "Keeping Buildings Cool With Greater Efficiency". In this article the use of automobile antifreeze in the water to be frozen was reported to be unsatisfactory because it tends to lower the freezing point too much.
The slippery-ice concept is attractive because it causes an ice slurry to flow down a chilling surface under the influence of gravity only, without mechanical aid. While slippery ice works, how it works is not known. Moreover, this approach has several significant drawbacks. First, only one known additive lets ice overcome the initial stickiness barrier to a gravity feed of crystals down the chilling surface. This is of particular concern where the liquid being processed is a food product; this additive cannot be used. Another limitation is that the heat flux, wetting rate and additive concentration must be carefully controlled for the slippery ice to form. Also, the heat transfer surface must be electropolished.
One of the present applicants has produced evaporation and distillation apparatus and methods which use one or more vertically oriented heat transfer tubes (HTT's) mounted in a container and driven in an orbital motion. These apparatus are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,230,529; 4,441,963; 4,618,399; and 4,762,592. The tubes are smoothed surface, circular in cross section, open at both ends, and made of a material with good heat conductivity properties. A distributor directs a feed liquid to the interior of each tube. The orbital motion spreads the liquid into a film. Heat transferred radially inward through the wall of the tube evaporates a portion of the feed liquid into a vapor stream.
Many known heat transfer apparatus use a rigid wiper bar that is positively driven to rotate within the tube to spread viscous liquids into thin, evenly distributed film. However, any rigid, positively driven wiper or scraper has drawbacks. First there is a need to introduce and seal a rotational drive shaft. Second, because the wiper or scraper is rigid and moving over a fixed surface at close spacings, manufacturing and assembly become difficult and costly. The surface must be machined to close tolerances, as well as the wiper/scraper and its support structures. Further, these rigid arrangements are susceptible to, and comparatively intolerant of, wear.
To solve these problems for low viscosity fluids, e.g. 1 to 1,000 c.p., the '399 patent describes a whip rod located in the tube which spreads the feed liquid into a highly thin and uniform film to reduce its thermal resistance and to enhance its evaporation. The whip rod also controls the build up of solid residue of evaporation. The '399 patent discloses several arrangements for mounting the rod, including lengths of cables, a flexible, but non-rotating anchor connected between a base and the lower end of the rod, and a double universal joint also connected between the lower end of the whip rod and the base. While the whip rod is effective as a film distributor, the mounting arrangements have disadvantages. They increase the overall material, assembly and operating costs. Also, they fail. Material fatigue of flexible cables supporting the whip rods is a particular concern.
While the orbital tube approach has been used for evaporation and distillation, heretofore it has not been applied for freezing. One reason is that city water freezes to the heat transfer surface of an orbital tube evaporator and greatly reduces any performance advantages.
It is therefore a principal object of this invention to provide an apparatus and method for freezing and chilling a process fluid to produce a slurry continuously and at greatly enhanced energy efficiencies.
Another principal object is to provide these results with an apparatus that can be readily scaled up in size.
A further object is to provide a freezer and method of operation that are not limited to any one additive and which can freeze and chill a wide variety of liquids including seawater and food products.
Yet another object is to provide the foregoing advantages without requiring unfavorable restrictions of operating conditions such as heat flux, wetting rate and additive concentration.
A still further object is to provide a freezer and method of freezing with the foregoing advantages that is highly compact.
Another object is to provide the foregoing advantages while also providing favorable capital and operating costs as compared to comparable known equipment and methods.

Orbital type freezing apparatus and method


An adapter for connecting a agricultural implement swivel hitch to a drawing hitch on a towing vehicle that enables relative pitch and roll movement between the implement and vehicle at a single, pinned joint. Elongated openings in a first portion of the hitch adapter receive a transversely aligned connection pin. The openings are sized to allow limited pin angular movement about a vehicular roll axis. A second portion of the hitch adapter is also connected to the connection pin and configured to allow limited relative angular movement about a transverse pitch axis. The connection between the first and second portions at the connector pin allows relative angular movement therebetween about generally co-planar pitch and roll axes. The connector pin is formed from a softer material than the surrounding first and second portions thereby providing an inexpensive and easily replaceable weak link in the hitch adapter assembly.

This invention relates generally to agricultural tractors towing implements, and, more particularly, to a connection mechanism for a tractor drawbar that provides roll and pitch freedom of movement between the tractor and the towed implement.
Pull type implements have been used in farming operations for decades. For example, the agricultural implement may be a mower designed to cut and process hay or other crops. The implement may also be configured as a forage harvester, hay recovery implement, baler, sprayer, or ground breaking implement. Typically, the implement is towed and powered by a towing vehicle such as a tractor. A powertake-off shaft (PTO) of the tractor typically provides mechanical power to the implement.
The implement is typically connected to the tractor by a pivoting draft tongue. There are two common methods of attaching the draft tongue of the implement to the towing vehicle. The first is to connect the draft tongue directly to the drawbar of the towing vehicle. A simple hitch pin can be used to drop through a hole in the draft tongue and into a hole in the towing vehicle drawbar. The implement tongue may also have a ball joint to allow freedom of rotation about the vertical (yaw) axis, the horizontal transverse (pitch) axis and the horizontal longitudinal (roll) axis or the hitch pin joint may be loose enough to allow the rotation needed. A shaft spans the hitch, extending from the tractor power take-off to the implement and must be sufficiently flexible to accommodate relative movement of the tractor and implement.
The second method is to use a swivel hitch on the implement. A swivel hitch incorporates the power take-off connection into the hitch connection, typically using a set of gearboxes, one above the other, with a connecting drive shaft between them. The gearboxes can swivel relative to each other. The relative swiveling motion becomes the vertical (yaw) axis of rotation. Typically, the swivel hitch has a frame member that pivots on the same yaw axis as the swivel gearboxes and connects to the three point hitch assembly or drawbar on the towing vehicle. The upper gearbox is fixed to the draft tongue. The lower gearbox and swivel hitch frame pivot relative to the upper gearbox and follow the tractor as it turns. Additional pivot members incorporated into the swivel hitch assembly allow relative pitch and roll freedom of movement between the tractor and the towed implement. One such mechanism is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,776,432 issued on Aug. 14, 2004 to Harkcom, et al., the description portions of which are incorporated by reference herein.
Swivel hitches provide advantages over the standard pinned connection since the yaw axis is further behind the towing vehicle, allowing for much sharper turns than is permitted with a simple pinned drawbar connection. Swivel hitches are at a disadvantage since provisions for pitch and roll freedom must be incorporated into the hitch for each connected implement and present methods incorporating separate pinned joints for roll and pitch are not optimally economical.
It would be advantageous to provide an improved hitch adapter for use on a swivel hitch for an agricultural vehicle that provides for pitch and roll freedom of movement. Further advantages would be realized by a hitch adapter positioned on a tractor so that a single mechanism would provide freedom of movement for multiple implements connected by swivel hitch. Still further advantages would be realized by a hitch adapter that provides pitch and roll freedom of movement using a single pinned connection.

Drawbar hitch adapter providing roll and pitch freedom


An electromagnetic switching relay having a base member and a magnetized coil. The base member having first guide elements. The magnetized coil having a terminal and second guide elements positioned substantially between the first guide elements that engage the first guide elements. A partition layer that allows displacement of the magnetizing coil relative to the base member before the second guide elements engage the first guide elements and fixes the second guide elements to the first guide elements when the base member and the magnetized coil are pushed toward each other.

The invention relates to an electromagnetic switching relay. More particularly, the invention relates to an electromagnetic switching relay having guide elements that accurately align a magnetising coil with a base member to ensure proper spacing for an armature to interact with a switch contact.
Conventional electromagnetic switching relays have a base member on which a magnetising coil, a magnet core, a yoke and an armature are arranged. The armature interacts with a switch contact that is adjustable between a contact position in which the switch contact connects a first and a second terminal, and a release position in which the switch contact disconnects the first and the second terminal as a function of a current flowing through the magnetising coil. Electromagnetic switching relays of this type are known in the most varied of embodiments and are used, for example, in motor vehicle engineering. The known switching relays differ, in particular, with regard to the manner in which the mechanical relay parameters thereof are adjustable.
The described relays may comprise a magnetic bistable as well as a monostable magnetic circuit. Two switching positions with open and closed contacts are held by spring magnet or permanent magnet forces resulting from the insertion of a permanent magnet into the magnetic circuit. If the contacts are closed, the magnetic retention forces are generated by a permanent magnet in the bistable type or by the current-carrying coil in the monostable relay. The bistable magnetic circuit is weakened or strengthened by means of magnetic coils with opposite magnetic orientation, in order to obtain alternating switching positions. This is achieved by means of two coils with opposite windings or by electrical polar reversal.
One example of an electromagnetic relay having adjustable mechanical relay parameters is disclosed in DE 199 20 742 A1. DE 199 20 742 A1 teaches an electromagnetic relay having a base member, a magnet system and an armature spring. The magnet system has an armature on which two lever portions are formed constituting the support points for the armature spring. A further support point for the armature spring is located on a fixed relay portion. By bending the fixed relay portion the armature and, therefore, the contact spacing can be adjusted.
Because of unavoidable manufacturing tolerances, the spacing between the switch contact and the terminals does not correspond exactly to a desired value, but rather is subject to manufacturing-based variations. As a result, individual and generally manual adjustment of the contact spacing is required wherein, for example, either the magnet core is indented or a contact spring connected to the armature is bent. These known methods are time consuming and complex, and there is a risk that the adjusted contact spacing and overtravel will not remain constant, for example, owing to an elastic recovery from the plastic region of the contact spring.
It is therefore desirable to provide an electromagnetic switching relay that is simple in design and allows reliable and constant adjustment of contact spacing and overtravel for accurate arrangement of a magnetising coil with respect to the fixed contacts.
The invention relates to an electromagnetic switching relay having a base member and a magnetised coil. The base member having first guide elements. The magnetised coil having a terminal and second guide elements positioned substantially between the first guide elements that allow displacement of the magnetising coil relative to the base member and engage the first guide elements to fix the magnetising coil relative to the base member.
The invention further relates to a method for accurately arranging a magnetising coil in an electromagnetic switching relay. The magnetising coil is positioned relative to a base member by displacing the magnetising coil along first guide elements on either side of the base member and the magnetising coil. The magnetising coil is fixed relative to the base member by exerting a vertical pressure force on a partition layer by the magnetising coil or the base member.
An advantageous embodiment comprises a partition layer that is in one piece with a base member plate.
In a preferred embodiment the partition layer is incorporated at opposite longitudinal sides of a shaft. Preferably, the partition layer is a surrounding rim in a shaft of the base member plate.
In another preferred embodiment the guide elements have the shape of locking runners, whereby one locking runner comprises at least one longitudinal strut and one transversal strut.
Furthermore, it is advantageous to provide several transversal struts which are incorporated in opposite position at two longitudinal sides of the longitudinal strut.
The transversal struts preferably comprise a slanted plane which is inclined in an upward direction towards the longitudinal strut. The slanted plane allows for low-force locking between the transversal struts and the partition layer.

Electromagnetic switching relay and method for accurate arrangement of a magnetizing coil in an electromagnetic switching relay


One example a surgical data control system. A wireless data receiver receives surgical device data that is wirelessly transmitted from surgical instruments, medicine administering equipment, and energy delivery equipment during a surgical procedure. The surgical device data is stored in a memory system along with surgeon data, patient data, and environment data associated with the surgical environment in which the surgical procedure is performed. A report generator generates an aggregated surgical data set characterizing a relationship between the surgical device data, the surgeon data, the patient data, and the environment data. The report generator thus generates a surgical dashboard report comprising the aggregated surgical data set in a predetermined data format. The surgical data control system can transmit the surgical dashboard report to at least one remote device via a network upon conclusion of the surgical procedure.

The healthcare industry is becoming increasingly more competitive, and has been the subject of increases in a wide variety of innovations. In particular, in a surgical environment, it is highly necessary to manage a large number of different factors that provide both life-sustaining capabilities for a patient, particularly when induced to an unconscious state, while still performing complex and precise surgical procedures. In the United States alone, over one hundred million surgeries are performed each year. In a large number of those surgeries (e.g., approximately 6%), complications resulting from the surgery can occur. Complications resulting from surgery can cause great difficulties for patients, such as loss of quality of life or even life itself. Such complications can also result in large financial expense, such as based on legal costs incurred by healthcare providers, and in turn, increased healthcare costs. As a result, avoiding complications that result from surgery is of great concern to healthcare providers.


Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide powered fastener driving tools and clean lubricants for powered fastener driving tools that reduce contaminant, residue, and deposit buildup or accumulation in the powered fastener driving tools, and thus reduce necessary maintenance for such powered fastener driving tools (or increases the time intervals between such necessary maintenance of powered fastener driving tools).

Powered fastener driving tools are well known and commercially widely used throughout North America and other parts of the world. Powered fastener driving tools are typically electrically powered, pneumatically powered, combustion powered, or powder-actuated. Powered fastener driving tools are typically used to drive fasteners (such as nails, staples, and the like) to connect a first object, material, item, or other workpiece to a second object, material, item, or other workpiece.
Various known powered fastener driving tools include: (a) a housing; (b) a power source or supply assembly in, connected to, or supported by the housing; (c) a fastener supply assembly in, connected to, or supported by the housing; (d) a fastener driving assembly in, connected to, or supported by the housing; (e) a trigger mechanism partially in, connected to, or supported by the housing; and (f) a workpiece contact element (referred to herein as a "WCE") connected to or supported by the housing. The WCE is configured to contact a workpiece and to operatively work with the trigger mechanism, such that the WCE needs to be depressed or moved inwardly a predetermined distance with respect to the housing, before activation of the trigger mechanism causes actuation of the power fastener driving tool.
Powered fastener driving tools typically have two different types of operational modes and one or more mechanisms that enable the operator to optionally select one of the two different types of operational modes that the operator desires to use for driving the fasteners. One operational mode is known in the industry as the sequential or single actuation operational mode. In this operational mode, the depression or actuation of the trigger mechanism will not (by itself) initiate the actuation of the powered fastener driving tool and the driving of a fastener into the workpiece unless the WCE element is sufficiently depressed against the workpiece. In other words, to operate the powered fastener driving tool in accordance with the sequential or single actuation operational mode, the WCE element must first be depressed against the workpiece followed by the depression or actuation of the trigger mechanism. Another operational mode is known in the industry as the contact actuation operational mode. In this operational mode, the operator can maintain the trigger mechanism at or in its depressed position, and subsequently, each time the WCE is in contact with, and sufficiently pressed against the workpiece, the power fastener driving tool will actuate, thereby driving a fastener into the workpiece.
One issue with various known powered fastener driving tools such as various known pneumatic powered driving tools and various known combustion powered driving tools is that they need to be taken out of service for maintenance and specifically for cleaning on a regular basis due to contaminant, residue, and/or deposit (such as dust, dirt, and/or soot) build-up inside of these powered fastener driving tools.
More specifically, various known combustion powered fastener driving tools are powered by hydrocarbon fuel from removable fuel cells. These removable fuel cells typically contain a suitable hydrocarbon fuel, and an oil (such as UCON 650 oil) mixed into the hydrocarbon fuel for lubrication of the tool. This known UCON 650 oil has the following properties:
UCON 650 Oil PropertiesPropertyLB-650-XViscosity@ 100° F., SUS650ASTM D 445Viscosity Index, ASTM D 2270193Lbs/gallon @ 20° C.8.32Specific Gravity @ 20/20° C.0.999Closed Cup Flash Point233 (453)ASTM D 93, ° C. (° F.)Open Cup Flash PointASTM D 92, ° C. (° F.)279 (535)Water, wt %0.25
This known oil is employed for purposes of reducing metal to metal friction, preventing metal wear, and reducing contaminants, residue, and/or deposits in the combustion fastener driving tools. This known oil has a relatively high flash point and tends to stay in the combustion powered fastener driving tool. The known oil can be cross-linked at high pressure and high temperature such as under normal combustion tool operating conditions or long term operation. The cross-linked oil often gels and collects soot directly from fuel combustion and dust from the working environment. For example, combustion soot and byproducts can be trapped by the gelled oil over time, and can affect the spark ignition and reduce the combustion efficiency of such tools. Thus, this known oil tends to cause various contaminants, residue, and deposits to accumulate in such tools (due to accumulated oil). Thus, while this known oil provides very good lubrication for such tools, use of this known oil in such tools results in necessary periodic cleaning of the tools.
Various known pneumatically powered fastener driving tools are typically powered by pressurized air from a separate pressurized air source connected to the tool by a hose. While these known pneumatically powered fastener driving tools typically have no combustion soot, such tools typically still need lubrication to properly function. For example, various known pneumatic fastener driving tools use an oil (such as DWFP4OZOIL) to maintain their overall performance. This known oil on a long term basis tends to gel and become cross-linked. In practice, various contaminants, residue, and deposits accumulate in such pneumatic fastener driving tools due at least in part to this known oil usage.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide powered fastener driving tools and lubricants that address these problems, and specifically that reduce contaminant, residue, and deposit buildup or accumulation in such powered fastener driving tools.

Powered fastener driving tools and clean lubricants therefor


A wound electrode assembly for a non-aqueous electrolyte rechargeable battery, the wound electrode assembly including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a porous film between the positive electrode and negative electrode, the positive electrode, the negative electrode, and the porous film each being belt-shaped, and an adhesive layer on the surface of the porous film. The adhesive layer includes a fluorine resin-containing particulate, a binder particle supporting the fluorine resin-containing particulate and having a smaller total volume than that of the fluorine resin-containing particulate, and a heat-resistant filler particle. An average particle diameter of the binder particle is about 100 nm to about 500 nm. An average particle diameter of the heat-resistant filler particle is about 10 nm to about 100 nm.

1. Field
Embodiments relate to a wound electrode assembly for a non-aqueous electrolyte rechargeable battery, a non-aqueous electrolyte rechargeable battery using the same, and a method of manufacturing the wound electrode assembly for a non-aqueous electrolyte rechargeable battery.
2. Description of the Related Art
A polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)-based fluorine resin may be used as a matrix polymer of a gel electrolyte for a rechargeable lithium ion battery has been actively made. For example, a porous film made of the PVDF-based fluorine resin may be formed on the surface of a separator.

Wound electrode assembly for nonaqueous electrolyte rechargeable battery, nonaqueous electrolyte rechargeable battery including the same, and method for manufacturing the same


There is provided a semiconductor device having a storage node free of defect in geometry and capable of preventing a cylinder from collapsing, protecting an interface with an SC""s polycrystalline silicon barrier metal against oxidation, and furthermore reducing current leakage. The device includes a storage node contact insulation film disposed on a semiconductor substrate and provided with a storage node, a storage node insulation film and the storage node penetrating the storage node insulation film and positioned to extend from the storage node insulation film upward, and a storage node contact is recessed toward a bottom of the storage node and the storage node""s bottom has a protruding geometry embedded in the recess.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor devices and particularly to semiconductor devices including a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor having a highly reliable storage node.
2. Description of the Background Art
As devices are highly integrated, chips are reduced in size and in semiconductor devices memory""s capacitor is arranged at reduced intervals and also reduced in size. Developing small-size DRAMs requires a capacitor having increased capacitance. Accordingly, an electrode is formed of ruthenium (Ru), a material of metal, and as the capacitor""s dielectric film a dielectric film of high permittivity such as Ta2O5 film is used in developing an MIM capacitor.
FIG. 33 is a plan view of a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) using a conventional cylindrical capacitor. FIG. 34 is a cross section taken along a line XXXIVxe2x80x94XXXIV of FIG. 33. This cross section is parallel to a bit line BL. In FIG. 33 on a silicon substrate 151 transfer gates TGs 101 are arranged with a predetermined pitch and bit lines BLs 102 are arranged orthogonal thereto also with a predetermined bitch. The intersecting transfer gates and bit lines form meshes each provided with landing pad of polysilicon 103. The bit line overlies a bit line contact 104.
In FIG. 34, a storage node contact (SC) interlayer insulation film 105 formed of boro-phospho tetra-ethyl-ortho-silicate (BPTEOS) film is penetrated by an SC barrier metal plug 114. SC interlayer insulation film 105 underlies a storage node (SN) interlayer insulation film 7 formed of BPTEOS film and penetrated by a storage node electrode 108 and a dielectric film 109 such as Ta2O5. Furthermore, dielectric film 109 is covered with and a cylinder is also filled with a cell plate 110 of a top electrode of a capacitor. Thereon a contact interlayer insulation film 111 formed of plasma TEOS film is stacked and furthermore an aluminum interconnection 112 and a passivation film 113 are formed.
The above conventional MIM capacitor is fabricated, as described hereinafter. With reference to FIG. 35, initially as SC interlayer insulation film 105 of BPTEOS film is vapor deposited to have a thickness of 450 nm and a photoresist pattern is used as a mask to pattern the BPTEOS film. Oxide film is then dry-etched. Then as a storage node contact""s (SC""s) barrier metal 114 TiN film is provided through chemical vapor deposition. The TiN film is then chemically mechanically polished to obtain the SC barrier metal having a cross section, as shown in FIG. 35.
Then as an SN interlayer insulation film a SiN film 115 is vapor deposited to have a thickness of 80 nm and so is BPTEOS film 107 to have a thickness of 1200 nm. Photoresist is then used as a mask to pattern the SN interlayer insulation film. Oxide film is then dry-etched to obtain a geometry, as shown in FIG. 36, which shows that an opening is provided for forming a storage node.
Sputtering is then employed to vapor deposit Ru to have a thickness of 20 nm and chemical vapor deposition is then employed to vapor deposit Ru. Thus in an SN hole Ru film 108 is uniformly vapor deposited to form a geometry of SN electrode film 108 (FIG. 37).
Ru film 108, which will serve as an SN electrode, and SN interlayer insulation film 107 are then chemically mechanically polished. Then as dielectric film 109 tantalum oxide (Ta2O5 film) is vapor deposited to have a thickness of 12 nm and then oxidized at 400xc2x0 C. in ozone (O3) gas and thus crystallized.
After the oxidization in ozone, as a cell plate (CP) electrode, Ru film 110 is vapor deposited to form the CP electrode. Then as CH interlayer insulation film 111 BPTEOS film is vapor deposited and then aluminum interconnection 112 is vapor deposited and patterned (FIG. 34). Then as passivation film 113 plasma nitride film is vapor deposited to form a conventional DRAM memory cell, as shown in FIG. 34.
As has been described above, the dielectric film of high permittivity used in the capacitor needs to be oxidized by oxygen, ozone or the like. In this oxidation step, ruthenium (Ru) and other similar metals are also oxidized. However, ruthenium oxide and other similar metal oxides are conductive and the capacitor does not have its capacitance impaired.
However, ruthenium (Ru) used as a material for an electrode of a capacitor provides poor contact with oxide film. As such, (a1) when vapor deposited Ru film 8 is chemically mechanically polished the Ru film has poor contact with BPTEOS film, resulting in the film peeling off disadvantageously. Furthermore, (a2) in ozone (O3) oxidization the Ru film forming SN electrode film 108 is oxidized and as a result BPTEOS film 107 forming the SN interlayer insulation film and Ru film 108 forming the SN electrode have poor contact therebetween and a gap may result. As such between the FIG. 37 condition and the FIG. 38 condition (a3) when the intermediate product is chemically mechanically polished, as described above, the cylindrical capacitor collapses. These disadvantages have been studied, as disclosed for example in Japanese Patent Laying-Open Nos. 2002-83880 and 2002-76302 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,146,941.
Furthermore as another disadvantage (a4) when ozone is used to oxidize the dielectric film an oxidizing species of the ozone reaches the TiN plug forming SC barrier metal 114. The plug is oxidized and thus has high resistance and a current leaks disadvantageously.
The present invention mainly contemplates a semiconductor device preventing a cylinder from collapsing at a bottom electrode of a capacitor in forming the capacitor. In addition the present invention in one aspect contemplates a semiconductor device capable of preventing oxidization of an interface of an SC barrier metal and a polycrystalline silicon plug and in another aspect contemplates a semiconductor device capable of reducing a current leaking from the capacitor.
In accordance with the present invention a semiconductor device includes: a first interlayer insulation film disposed on a semiconductor substrate; a second interlayer insulation film disposed on the first interlayer insulation film; and a cylindrical metal film penetrating the second interlayer insulation film, the cylindrical metal film having a bottom facing downward and exposed to the layer of the first interlayer insulation film, the cylindrical metal film having an opening, as seen downward, and extending from the second interlayer insulation film upward. Furthermore the present semiconductor device includes a storage node contact, in contact with the bottom of the cylindrical method film, disposed in the first interlayer insulation film, the storage node contact being recessed toward the bottom of the cylindrical metal film, the bottom having a protruding geometry embedded in the recess.
Thus the cylindrical metal film and the storage node contact can contact each other over an increased area to provide reduced contact resistance. Furthermore, the film and the contact that contact each other over the increased area allow the capacitor""s bottom electrode and the contact to contact each other closer to prevent the bottom electrode from collapsing.
In accordance with the present invention another semiconductor device includes: a first interlayer insulation film disposed on a semiconductor substrate; a second interlayer insulation film disposed on the first interlayer insulation film; an etching stopper film disposed in contact with an upper surface of the second interlayer insulation film; a cylindrical metal film penetrating the second interlayer insulation film and the etching stopper film, the cylindrical metal film having a cylindrical bottom facing downward and an opening facing upward, the cylindrical metal film extending from the etching stopper film upward; a storage node contact, in contact with the bottom of the cylindrical metal film, disposed in the first interlayer insulation film and a dielectric film covering a cylindrical inner surface of the cylindrical metal film and an outer surface of a portion protruding from the etching stopper film, the etching stopper film being SiN film vapor deposited at no more than 400xc2x0 C.
A portion lower than the etching stopper film can support the cylindrical metal film to prevent the capacitor""s bottom electrode from collapsing. Furthermore, the etching stopper film that is formed at a low temperature can protect the storage node contact from further crystallization and prevent the storage node contact from having increased contact resistance.
The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


A mold for the continuous casting of metal includes a pouring portion with cooled long side walls and short side walls, wherein the pouring portion becomes narrower in the shape of a funnel in the casting direction until it reaches the size of the cast strand. In the funnel portion, the inner contours of the long side walls have in the casting direction from the top toward the bottom at least two points which have the property that they determine a straight line along which the inner contours of the long side walls are formed with at least one concave section and with at least one convex section in any selected sequence.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mold for the continuous casting of metal. The mold has a pouring portion with cooled long side walls and short side walls, wherein the pouring portion becomes narrower in the shape of a funnel in the casting direction until it reaches the size of the cast strand.
2. Description of the Related Art
The dimensions of the pouring portion are essentially determined by the cross-section of the strand to be cast, the dimensions of the pouring pipe and the depth of immersion of the pouring pipe in the molten metal.
Because of the funnel-shaped configuration of the long side walls, the mold not only narrows in the casting direction, but also a change of the shape of the strand cross-section takes place. Consequently, in contrast to a conventional continuous casting mold with planar walls, additional deformations are imparted on the strand shell when it travels through a funnel-type mold. In order to avoid the generation of surface defects of the cast product, these additional deformations may not exceed a certain boundary value, so that the strand shell is not overloaded and a uniform heat discharge over the cross-section of the strand remains ensured.
EP 0 268 910 B1 proposes to guide the strand shell which is still thin underneath the meniscus without deformation by providing long side walls which in the pouring portion extend essentially parallel to each other in a first section and are reduced to the thickness of the casting size in a subsequent section, wherein the first section extends to below the meniscus level to be adjusted during the casting operation into the area of the first strand shell formation. The entire change of shape to be imparted on the strand by the mold, which is required for reducing the strand to the thickness of the casting size, extends along the subsequent section which is formed by inclined or curved surfaces or combinations thereof.
EP 0 552 501 A2 discloses a mold for the continuous casting of steel strip in which the long side walls form a funnel-shaped pouring portion which is reduced toward the short side walls and in the casting direction to the size of the cast strip. The curvature of the funnel-shaped pouring portion is determined by lateral circular arcs and middle circular arcs connected to the lateral circular arcs at the tangential points. For reducing the friction and wear and for reducing the tensile stress and bending stress of the strand shell, the radii of the lateral circular arcs are uniform in a section which extends at least 100 mm down from the upper edge of the mold.
DE 39 07 351 A1 discloses a proposal for constructing the pouring funnel of a mold in such a way that the deformation of the metal cast strand is distributed over a travel length which is as long as possible and to avoid constrictions and the formation of cracks in the strand shell of the metal cast strand. This is achieved by forming the contour of the inner wall of the pouring funnel in the strand travel direction by three circular arcs which contact each other tangentially, wherein the radii of the circular arcs gradually increase in the strand travel direction and lead into the contour of the inner wall of the mold. A distribution of the change of the shape of the strand shell which is as uniform as possible in a pouring portion shaped in this manner is achieved thereby that the radii of the circular arcs increase in the strand travel direction with equal or unequal factors.

Funnel geometry of a mold for the continuous casting of metal


The exemplary embodiments disclose a system and method, a computer program product, and a computer system for generating a customized blueprint dynamically based on contextual data. The exemplary embodiments may include collecting contextual data within an environment and extracting one or more factors from the collected contextual data. The exemplary embodiments may additionally include generating an optimized path of egress by applying a model to the one or more factors and displaying the optimized path of egress on a device of a user.

The exemplary embodiments relate generally to generating a path of egress, and more particularly to generating a path of egress dynamically based on contextual data.
When a person needs to navigate in a large premises such as a shopping mall, industrial warehouse, stadium, airport, etc., they may need to be aware of a blueprint or floorplan of the structural building in order to locate an exit during an emergency. While some locations may have a map/directory at certain locations or a support staff to help with giving directions, there is a lot of dependability in these methods. Depending on the person, including features such as age, disability, etc., the complexity of locating an exit may vary. For example, a person with a heart condition or an elderly person will not be able to move quickly while a person with a mental disability or blindness may face different difficulties, particularly in the case of an emergency.

Generating a customized egress blueprint

International Business Machines Corporation


Systems and methods of increasing the performance of computer networks, especially networks connecting users to the Web, are provided. Performance is increased by reducing the latency the client experiences between sending a request to the server and receiving a response. A connection is obtained by a client device to the network target node addressed by a physical I/O address, to more quickly respond to requests for resource files on data storage devices. This enhancement may be implemented by connecting the controller of the data storage device directly to the network, to reduce the latency involved in mapping the logical I/O address into a physical I/O address. In that case the requested resource file is sent to the client directly by the data storage device controller, thus saving time otherwise spent in sending the request and data between computer network components.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to improving access to information resources on networked information server systems and, more particularly, to server systems and processes for efficiently addressing external servers, and hyperlink references, for purposes of improving access to information resources.
2. Description of Related Art
The recent substantial growth and use of the internationally connected computer network, generally known as the Internet, has largely been due to widespread support of the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP). This protocol permits client systems connected through Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to access independent and geographically scattered server systems also connected to the Internet. Client side browsers, such as Netscape Mozilla and Navigator (Netscape Communications Corp.) and NCSA Mosaic, provide efficient graphical user interface based client applications, implemented in the client side portion of the HTTP.
The distributed system of communication and information transfer made possible by the HTTP is commonly known as the World Wide Web (WWW, Web). Internet Service Providers (xe2x80x9cISPsxe2x80x9d) provide Internet access to customers and their network access equipment is networked between the client computer running the browser and the Web server providing the Point of Presence (xe2x80x9cPOPxe2x80x9d) for the user. A subscriber to an online service typically accesses the service using special client-based communication software. This software establishes and manages a connection from the subscriber""s computer to the service provider""s host computers (usually a group of servers linked to a LAN or WAN) and facilitates the subscriber""s interactions with the service.
The Web utilizes the HTTP client/server protocol, which is a request-response protocol. HTTP transactions include four stages: connection, request, response, and disconnection. In the connection stage, the client attempts to open a network connection to the server. Unless otherwise specified, HTTP attempts to use port 80 on the server for this connection. Establishing a connection involves one roundtrip time from the client to the server, as the client requests to open a network connection and the server responds that a network connection has been opened.
After a network connection is open, the client may send an HTTP request to the server in the request stage. A request stage involves one half of a round-trip time as the request goes from the client to the server. Once the server receives the request, the server responds by sending a response to the client in the response stage. As with the request, the response stage involves one half of a round-trip time as the response goes from the server to the client. The disconnection stage closes the network connection to the server. This stage involves one half of a round-trip time and may occur many different ways.
The World Wide Web makes hypertext documents available to users over the Internet. A hypertext document does not present information linearly, like in a book, but instead provides the reader with links or pointers to other locations so that the user may jump from one location to another. The hypertext documents on the Web are accessed through the client/server protocol of Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP).
These hyper-links often appear in the browser as a graphical icon or as colored, underlined text. A hyper-link contains a link to another Web page. Using a mouse to click on the hyper-link initiates a process which locates and retrieves the linked Web page, regardless of the physical location of that page. Hovering a mouse over a hyper-link or clicking on the link often displays in a comer of the browser a locator for the linked Web page. This locator is known as a Universal Resource Locator, or URL.
The URL is used for accessing resources on the Internet, such as hypertext mark up language (HTML) documents, images, sound files, database search engines, etc. The URL identifies a domain, a host within that domain, and sometimes a resource or file within a directory structure on the host computer. Domains can be thought of as a group of computers, such as all computers on a company""s network. For example, the domain xe2x80x9cibm.comxe2x80x9d identifies a domain for the commercial company IBM, which may include thousands of individual computers. Typically the URL identifies only those computers which are servers on the Web by prefixing the domain with a host name. Thus the URL xe2x80x9chttp://www.ibm.comxe2x80x9d identifies an individual host computer(s) within the ibm.com domain which operates as a Web server for IBM, and can process the request embodied in the URL. The word HTTP tells the host to use the hyper-text transfer protocol while delivering files over the Internet. The files to be delivered can be provided from resources such as database queries or execution of scripts by the host, as well as traditional data files. There are other protocols that can be used on the Web, such as File Transfer Protocol (FTP).
From a client side user interface perspective, a system of uniform resource locators (URLs) is used to direct the operation of a Web browser in establishing transactional communication sessions with designated Web server computer systems. In general, each URL is of the basic form
http:// less than server_name greater than . less than sub-domain.top_level-domain greater than / less than path greater than
The server name is typically xe2x80x9cwwwxe2x80x9d and the sub_domain.top-level_domain is a standard Internet domain reference. The path is an optional additional URL qualifier, which defines the location of the resources and usually contains a directory structure that leads to a particular file. The URL scheme of the Internet is flexible and adaptable, based on well-known conventions, so that application servers receive sufficient information to process a client request.
User""s selection of a URL on the client side results in a transaction being established in which the client sends the server an HTTP message referencing a default or explicitly named data file constructed in accordance with the hypertext mark up language. This data file or Web page is returned in one or more response phase HTTP messages by the server, generally for display by the client browser. Additional embedded image references may be identified in the returned Web page resulting in the client browser initiating subsequent HTML transactions to retrieve typically embedded graphics files. A fully reconstructed Web page image is then presented by the browser through the browser""s graphical user interface.
A Web server site may contain thousands of individual Web pages. The location of the file or resource containing a desired page is identified by appending a directory-path file name to the host and domain names in the basic URL to form a complete URL. Thus the URL xe2x80x9chttp://www.ibm.com/dira/dirb/dirc/intro.htmlxe2x80x9d identifies a hyper-text markup-language file called xe2x80x9cintro.htmlxe2x80x9d which resides on a host named xe2x80x9cwwwxe2x80x9d within the ibm.com domain. The file resides in the dira directory, in its dirb/dirc subdirectory. Often this HTML file contains references to other files which are loaded automatically by the client""s browser.
While the URL is used to locate a file on a host within a domain, it conventionally does not contain a physical address for the host computer. Addresses of computer machines on the Internet are specified using a 32-bit numeric identifier known as the Internet-Protocol (IP) address, assigned to each computer so that no two machines have the same IP address. The IP address is often written as four decimal numbers separated by periods. Each decimal number represents an 8-bit binary number, from zero to 255 in decimal notation. Thus a computer in IBM""s domain might have the IP address 22.214.171.124 while another computer in that domain might have the address 126.96.36.199.
FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a typical server system, having multiple computers networked over the Internet 12, with a series of high-speed communications links, which may be located between educational, research and commercial computer sites. The Internet computers utilize the Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) as the communications protocol which can network very diverse and dissimilar systems.
The server system contains a client computer 10, serving browser, and servers, such as server 14. Server 14 contains its own data storage device 20 with copies of data files, including requested file. Typically, client computer 10 browser initiates a communication session with the remote server 14 by the user selecting a URL, perhaps by mouse-clicking on a hyper-link to a new Web page. Browser imbeds requests and commands and a small amount of data in URL""s, which are transmitted to the server 14. Each URL contains about 50 to 150 bytes of information. A URL often contains information other than a requested file description. For example, when the user of browser mouse-clicks on a bitmap image displayed on a Web page, the relative coordinates of the mouse""s location when the mouse click occurred are also included in the URL: http://www.round.com/cgi-bin/coo.cgi? 102,315. Server 14 decodes the coordinates in the URL and determines where on the Web page the user mouse-clicked.
In conventional systems a host server name xe2x80x9cwww.round.comxe2x80x9d, with the URL xe2x80x9chttp://www.round.com/file.htmlxe2x80x9d, is typically sent to the domain-name-system (DNS) server, which is a special Internet server with a look-up table. DNS server is often a special server at an Internet Service Provider which contains most or all domain names on the entire Internet, or in a local region of the Internet. One DNS server may have to refer the request to another DNS server for unknown host-names.
DNS server looks through the look-up table and finds an entry for the host www.round.com. This entry contains a physical IP address for the Web-server host in the domain round.com. This IP address, such as 18 184.108.40.206, is returned to the client browser. Browser may then store this IP address in client computer cache for future use, a process known as browser caching of the IP address.
Browser then uses the IP address to initiate a communication session with the remote computer which physically has the desired Web page, such as the www.round.com server having the file.html file, in order to retrieve a file from a remote server. Once the session with server 14 is established, URL is sent to the server 14. Server 14 then accesses the data storage device 20 which includes requested file, the file.html Web page. A file copy of requested file is sent back to client browser, which re-constructs the Web page from file copy and displays the Web page on the client computer 10. Subsequently, other files may also be transferred, such as graphic image files which were not directly requested by the URL, but are referenced by the file.html file.
There is a significant amount of latency in conventional computer communication networks, occurring while the client waits for a response from the Web server. Accordingly, there is a need for systems and methods of increasing the performance of the computer networks, preferably without requiring modification of existing browsers. Performance may be increased by the network access equipment sending a resource file physical I/O address in a URL request to either a Web server or directly to a data storage device, thus by-passing some data storage device access layers, including the file I/O layer.
The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments which makes reference to several drawing figures.
One preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a method of utilizing a universal-resource locator (URL) addressing scheme, by a client network access equipment, for efficiently accessing resource files on a data storage device attached to a networked server system. The method uses a client computer browser for sending a URL request for a resource file. The URL request includes the pre-resolved resource file physical I/O address, thereby eliminating some data storage device access procedures, like logical address mapping. The requested resource file is accessed on the data storage device directly, through the physical I/O address, and then transferred between the data storage device and the client network access equipment.
The URL request resource file physical I/O address is preferably embedded in the client computer browser page URL link, pre-establishing a correspondence between the browser page element and the resource file. In this invention the network may be the Internet, the client computer browser a World Wide Web browser, the server system a Web server, and the resource file a Web page. The Web page has selectable items, including hyper-text objects, and the hypertext objects include the predetermined embedded URL link.
The other embodiment of the present invention is the system used with this method embodiment.
Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a method wherein the URL request is directly sent to the data storage device controller, without first sending a Hyper-Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request to a server. In the system embodiment of the present invention corresponding to this method embodiment, the data storage device controller is directly connected to the network and has a destination IP address, to allow accessing the requested resource file on the data storage device directly, and to allow the transfer of the requested resource file, between the data storage device and the client network access equipment, to be directly performed by the data storage device controller. The data storage device is preferably used with a SCSI or IDE controller protocol.

High performance internet storage access scheme

International Business Machines Corporation


An active, portable, stand alone memory device storage unit, comprising a housing containing a plurality of memory device receptacles, a touch sensitive display screen, and a programmed processor circuit coupled to the plurality of receptacles and the touch sensitive display. The unit provides access to each memory device installed in a receptacle to determine its identity, contents, capacity occupied, etc. and enables viewing the data stored on a memory device or transferring portions of the data from one device memory device to another, either inside or outside the storage unit, all without connecting the storage unit to a computer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to computing devices and more particularly to stand alone apparatus for storing a plurality of portable memory devices and capable of displaying identification and content information about the stored elements.
2. Background of the Invention and Description of the Prior Art
Storage of objects containing information is well known in the art. Libraries provide for storing books and other kinds of objects that contain information. The libraries include catalogs of the books stored on its shelves for users to determine what objects are stored there along with information about the contents in each object listed in the catalog.
The advent of personal computers and the availability of external plug-in devices containing memory readable by the computer led to the need for ways to store the external memory devices when not in use. Memory devices in the form of magnetic tape, or magnetic or optical discs, and more recently, miniature memory drives and semiconductor memory devices such as thumb drives and the like can typically can benefit from some form of organized storage so that a particular memory element or device can be conveniently carried by a user and inserted into the computer to access its contents. However, users of portable memory elements often encounter a tedious task to find a particular unlabeled element or to determine quickly the contents of a particular element, when the computer has one or two USB ports, for example. Even if an adapter having several USB ports is available the task is not made easier. The difficulty remains as to how to determine the contents of the memory.
Heretofore such memory elements or devices must be inserted into the computer or an accessory adapter or drive unit to determine the identity and contents of the memory and to access that contents. This is an inconvenience when many such memory elements are accumulated, especially because the memory elements themselves often contain no external indicia of its identity or contents. Examples of these conventional adapters include an adapter to connect a USB flash drive to an input port on the computing device such as a PC or tablet or mobile telephone device. Some adapters include the ability to connect several such flash drives to a computing device to access the flash drive. Adapters of this kind are not well-suited to storage of the flash drives and must be connected to a computer to determine the identity and content of the flash drive. Providing a USB port receptacle in a computing device is also not well suited to storing an accumulation of flash drives or like memory elements and providing readouts of any of the plurality of flash drive units a user may have accumulated except to insert each flash drive into the receptacle one-by-one. So-called "USB hubs" provide receptacles for connecting several USB-compatible elements to one computer at the same time, but this again is not a satisfactory way to store such memory elements as the collection of them accumulates. Further, each such element must still be connected electrically to the computer to learn its identity and contents.
There is thus a need for a system or method of organizing a multiplicity of memory elements that overcomes the above deficiencies.

Stand alone active storage unit for memory devices


The disclosure provides an intelligent lamp controller device for wirelessly controlling a lamp. The intelligent lamp controller device includes: at least one button, configured to receive a user's operation; a main control circuit board, configured to generate a lamp control instruction according to the user's operation received by the at least one button; a control instruction transmitter, electrically connected to the main control circuit board, and configured to receive the lamp control instruction from the main control circuit board and wirelessly transmit the lamp control instruction to the lamp, to control the lamp to emit light; and a preview light source, electrically connected to the main control circuit board, and configured to emit light according to the user's operation under control of the main control circuit board, so as to exhibit a luminescence effect corresponding to the user's operation to the user.

With people's increasingly higher requirements for the quality of life, the lighting functions of lamps tend to be diversified. In addition to the general traditional household lighting functions, full-color decorative lighting, scene lighting, and the like have also been developed, so that users can choose different lighting colors or different scene lighting modes according to needs, to achieve the desired lighting effect.
However, in some cases, during the user selects the lighting color or the scene lighting mode through a lamp controller, the user can see the lighting effect only after the lamp is controlled by the controller to emit light correspondingly, and then the user determines whether the lighting effect meets the needs of the user. If the lighting effect fails to meet the needs of the user, the user continues to switch to other colors or modes. In this way, frequent switching of colors or modes inevitably affects the service life of the lamp and causes unnecessary energy loss, and the user experience is not good.
Furthermore, a remote control of the lamp is generally realized by means of buttons of a remote controller. For example, for a full-color lamp, the light color of the lamp is adjusted by operating buttons or knobs of the remote controller. The buttons or knobs of the remote controller have limited numbers, and therefore, only a few artificially set colors can be obtained by operating the remote controller, and the light color of the lamp cannot be arbitrarily selected according to the preferences of the operator. For another example, as for the lamp remote controller for controlling multiple scene modes, one function button corresponds to one scene mode. With the increase of the number of buttons, the operation of the buttons of the remote controller becomes increasingly complicated, and there is no interaction with the user. Consequently, the remote control of the lamp is far from meeting the individual needs of users.


It is an object of the present invention to provide a process capable of precisely producing a plated shaped article of a large thickness such as a bump or a wiring, a negative radiation-sensitive resin composition which is preferably used for the process and has excellent sensitivity and resolution, and a transfer film using the composition. The above object is achieved by a negative radiation-sensitive resin composition comprising (A) a polymer containing structural units represented by the following formula (1) and/or the following formula (2), (B) a compound having at least one ethylenically unsaturated double bond and (C) a radiation-sensitive radical polymerization initiator, and by forming a negative radiation-sensitive resin film using the composition.

With downsizing of electronic equipment such as cellular phone, much higher integration and more multilayer metallization of large-scale integrated circuits (LSI) have been rapidly promoted recently. On that account, a multi-pin mounting process for mounting LSI on a substrate in order to mount the LSI on electronic equipment is necessary, and there has been paid attention bare chip mounting using a tape automated bonding (TAB) method or a flip chip method. In such a multi-pin mounting process, it is necessary to precisely arrange on a LSI chip a protruded electrode called a bump that is a connecting terminal.
In order to obtain various precision parts such as a bump, precision fine processing technology is necessary, and the main stream of this technology is photo application at present. The photo application is a general term of technology for manufacturing various precision parts, said technology comprising applying a radiation-sensitive resin composition to a surface of a workpiece to form a film, patterning the film by photolithography and carrying out chemical etching, electroetching and electroforming (mainly electroplating) singly or in combination using the resulting pattern as a mask.
More specifically, a bump is produced by the following procedure. First, a barrier metal that becomes an electrically conductive layer is laminated on a wafer having been worked as a LSI device, and then a radiation-sensitive resin composition, i.e., so-called a resist, is applied and dried. Subsequently, the resist is irradiated with radiation (referred to as "exposure" hereinafter) through a mask so as to form an opening corresponding to the place where a bump is to be formed, and then the resist is developed to form a pattern. Thereafter, using the pattern as a mold, electroplating is performed to deposit an electrode material such as gold or copper. Then, the resin portion is stripped, and the barrier metal is removed by etching. Thereafter, a square chip is cut out from the wafer, followed by a step of mounting such as packaging (e.g., TAB), a flip chip method or the like.
With regard to a shape of the bump, there are bumps of various shapes, such as ball bump, mushroom bump, straight bump, etc., and with regard to a height of the bump, the main stream of conventional bumps is a bump having a height of not less than 15 μm, more specifically about 20 to 30 μm.
The present inventors have already proposed a radiation-sensitive resin composition which can be preferably used for photo application (see patent document 1). If this composition is used, formation of a resin film having a film thickness of 20 to 30 μm is possible, and it becomes possible to form a bump having a height of about 20 to 30 μm. Moreover, it is also possible to form a highly precise bump because the composition has been improved in adhesion to a base in the pattern developing step, wettability by a plating solution and resistance to a plating solution.
By the way, in the case where a LSI chip is connected to a substrate through a bump as described above, a stress is caused by a difference in coefficient of linear thermal expansion between the LSI chip and the substrate, and the LSI chip and the substrate are sometimes disconnected from each other. To inhibit such connection failure and to enhance reliability of the device, it is desirable to increase the amount of gold or solder of the bump that is a connecting portion to thereby relax the stress. In this case, if the distance between bumps (also referred to as a "pitch" hereinafter) is relatively large as in the conventional devices, the amount of gold or solder can be secured by increasing the area of the gold or solder portion. However, if the pitch is narrowed with the demand for bumps of high precision, the area of the gold or solder portion cannot be increased, and hence, it becomes necessary to increase the height of the bump to secure the amount of gold or solder.
In recent years, therefore, there is a marked tendency to highly precisely form a bump having a greater height (also referred to a "high bump" hereinafter) on a LSI chip (also referred to as a "chip" simply hereinafter) by photo application. However, if a radiation-sensitive resin composition that is used for usual bump formation is used, it is difficult to form a resin film having a film thickness necessary for forming a high bump on a chip base. Even if a resin film of such a film thickness can be formed, the portion near the base is not sufficiently cured by irradiation with radiation because of low radiation transmittance, though the surface layer is cured, and as a result, a desired pattern cannot be obtained with high precision.
The present inventors have already proposed a radiation-sensitive resin composition that is preferable for forming such a high bump. By the use of this composition, a resin film having a sufficient film thickness, e.g., a dry film thickness of not less than 50 μm, can be formed on a chip substrate, and therefore, this composition can be preferably used for forming a high bump. Moreover, because this resin composition has excellent radiation transmittance, the resin film composed of the composition can be sufficiently cured even at the portion near the substrate. Accordingly, a desired pattern can be obtained with high precision by photolithography (see patent document 2).
In the case where a high bump is formed using a resin film composed of the above composition, however, a plating solution sometimes comes into the interface between the substrate and the resin film in the plating step because the adhesion between the resin film and the substrate in the developing step is not sufficient. Moreover, because of insufficient wettability of the resin film by a plating solution, plating defects sometimes take place.
Patent document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 39709/2000
Patent document 2: Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 241372/2003

Negative radiation-sensitive resin composition


Nickel-free bulk amorphous alloy, formed, in atomic percent, of:                a zirconium and/or hafnium base, forming the balance, with a total zirconium and hafnium value greater than or equal to 52.0, and less than or equal to 62.0;        copper: greater than or equal to 16.0, and less than or equal to 28.0;        iron: greater than or equal to 0.5, and less than or equal to 10.0;        aluminum: greater than or equal to 7.0, and less than or equal to 13.0;        at least two additional metals taken from the family including Ti, V, Nb, Y, Cr, Mo, Co, Sn, Zn, P, Pd, Ag, Au, Pt, Ta, Ru, Rh, Ir, Os, and Hf when the base contains none, and Zr when the base contains none, with the cumulative atomic percentage of these additional metals being greater then 6.0 and less than or equal to 10.0.

Amorphous alloys are increasingly used in the fields of horology and jewellery, in particular for the following structures: watch cases, case middles, main plates, bezels, push-buttons, crowns, buckles, bracelets, rings, earrings and others.
Components for external use, intended to be in contact with the user's skin, must obey certain constraints, due, in particular to the toxicity or allergenic effects of some metals, especially beryllium and nickel. Despite the specific intrinsic properties of such metals, endeavours are made to market alloys containing little or no beryllium or nickel, at least for components likely to come into contact with the user's skin.
Zirconium-based bulk amorphous alloys have been known since the 1990s. The following publications concern such alloys:
[1] Zhang, et al., Amorphous Zr—Al—TM (TM=Co, Ni, Cu) Alloys with Significant Supercooled Liquid Region of Over 100 K, Materials Transactions, JIM, Vol. 32, No. 11 (1991) pp. 1005-1010.
[2] Lin, et al., Effect of Oxygen Impurity on Crystallization of an Undercooled Bulk Glass Forming Zr—Ti—Cu—Ni—Al Alloy, Materials Transactions, JIM, Vol. 38, No. 5 (1997) pp. 473-477.
[3] U.S. Pat. No. 6,592,689.
[4] Inoue, et al., Formation, Thermal Stability and Mechanical Properties of Bulk Glassy Alloys with a Diameter of 20 mm in Zr—(Ti, Nb)—Al—Ni—Cu System, Materials Transactions, JIM, Vol. 50, No. 2 (2009) pp. 388-394.
Amorphous alloys with the best glass forming ability, known as and referred to hereafter as "GFA", and related to the critical diameter Dc* are found in the following systems:                Zr—Ti—Cu—Ni—Be,        and Zr—Cu—Ni—Al.
The compositions (in atomic %) of the most frequently used/characterized alloys are listed below:                Zr44Ti11Cu9.8Ni10.2Be25 (LM1b)        Zr65Cu17.5Ni10Al7.5 [1]        Zr52.5Cu17.9Ni14.6Al10Ti5 (Vit105) [2]        Zr57Cu15.4Ni12.6Al10Nb5 (Vit106) and Zr58.5Cu15.6Ni12.8Al10.3Nb2.8 (Vit106a) [3]        Zr61Cu17.5Ni10Al7.5Ti2Nb2 [4]
Given the allergenic potential of nickel, these alloys cannot be used for applications involving contact with skin, such as external watch parts or suchlike. Further, due to the toxicity of beryllium, the manufacture and machining of some of these alloys require special precautionary measures. This is a pity, because these two elements stabilise the amorphous phase, and make it easier to obtain alloys with a high critical diameter Dc*. Further, nickel has a positive effect on the corrosion resistance of zirconium-based amorphous alloys.
However, the critical diameter of nickel-free and beryllium-free zirconium-based amorphous alloys is generally lower than that of alloys containing nickel and beryllium, which is disadvantageous for producing solid parts. There is therefore a need to develop alloys that have a sufficient critical diameter Dc*.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Nickel-free zirconium and/or hafnium-based bulk amorphous alloy

The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd


An electronic component includes: a first substrate having a through-hole; a second substrate opposite the first substrate; a sealing member surrounding a sealing space formed between the first substrate and the second substrate; a functional element having at least a part thereof disposed in the sealing space, and a through-electrode filling the through-hole, the through-hole penetrating the first substrate. The sealing member includes an elastic core part on the first substrate. A metal film is on a surface of the core part and is bonded to the second substrate.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an electronic component such as a surface acoustic wave element.
2. Related Art
Electronic components on which a functional element such as a semiconductor element is mounted in a manner allowing an active face thereof to face a substrate are used in various ways. Such electronic components use the functional element itself as a substrate for forming a sealing space. In the electronic components, the functional element is disposed in a manner allowing an active face thereof to face a substrate, so that the active face is positioned inside the sealing space that is formed between the substrate and the functional element. Here, in such electronic components, measures for maintaining an environment inside the sealing space are taken in order to secure normal operation of the electronic components. For example, JP-A-11-87406, JP-A-11-97584, JP-A-2000-77458, and JP-A-2003-92382 disclose a method for sealing an active face in a sealing space by bonding a functional element and a substrate with resin or solder.
However, it has been required to improve air-tightness of the sealing space in related art electronic components.


A radiation generating apparatus includes a radiation generating unit and a diaphragm unit that functions as a projector-collimator configured to simulate a radiation field with a visible-light field. The diaphragm unit includes a light source configured to generate visible light, an optical lens configured to control a state of diffusion of the visible light emitted from the light source, and field-limiting blades. The light source and the optical lens are provided between a radiation emission window and the field-limiting blades. The light source is movable into and retractable from a path of radiation generated by the radiation generating unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to radiation apparatuses and systems thereof; more particularly it relates to a radiation generating apparatus including a movable diaphragm unit having a function of adjusting a radiation field passing therethrough, and to a radiation imaging system including such apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a radiation generating apparatus includes a movable diaphragm unit (hereinafter interchangeably referred to as "diaphragm unit" or "diaphragm"). The diaphragm unit has a function of adjusting the radiation field by blocking radiation that is unnecessary for imaging and thus reducing the exposure of a subject to radiation. The radiation field is adjusted by adjusting the size of an aperture defined by limiting blades that allows radiation to pass therethrough. Typically, the diaphragm unit has an additional function as a projector-collimator system in which the radiation field is simulated by a visible-light field so that the radiation field can be visually checked prior to imaging.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-148159 discloses a movable X-ray diaphragm device which is used to adjust the size of an X-ray field and the size of a visible-light field to be made the same as each other. Specifically, the movable X-ray diaphragm device, by limiting with light blocking plates, makes the size of an X-ray field the same as the size of a visible light field emitted from a light source; the light source is larger than an X-ray focal point.
To adjust the size of the radiation field, the related-art diaphragm unit includes a reflector plate that is obliquely oriented. Therefore, the size of an envelope that houses the diaphragm unit becomes large, making it difficult to reduce the size of the radiation generating apparatus as a whole. The envelope is made of a material whose mass is large enough to block radiation. Therefore, as the envelope becomes larger, the mass of the envelope becomes larger too.
In such a related-art diaphragm unit employing a reflection radiation tube, a heel effect that may occur in the reflection radiation tube is advantageously reduced with the presence of the obliquely oriented reflector plate. In contrast, if a transmission radiation tube, which does not produce the heel effect, is employed, the variation in the quality of radiation worsens.

Radiation generating apparatus and radiation imaging system


In a data link system a master station is provided with transmitting apparatus capable of transmitting quadrature phase signal components representative of two diverse products either or both of which may comprise radar picture products. The dual input channels to the transmitter comprise an in-phase channel and a quadrature channel for receiving data representative of two diverse products. Independent controllers are provided in each of the dual channels capable of apportioning the power in the respective channels. A multi-mode processor is coupled to the controller in each of the dual channels so that independent control of data rates, power and picture product being transmitted is achieved.

1. Related Applications
The present invention relates to my co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 09/107,209 filed Jun. 29, 1998 for A Method for Optimum Dissemination of Multi-Sensor Products.
2. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to communication data links of the type employed between airborne platforms and ground stations. More particularly, the present invention relates to a novel rulti-channel data link where each channel is independently and adaptably controllable for data rate and power.
3. Description of the Prior Art
It is known that airborne surveillance platforms are used to capture optical images, infrared images and/or radar images and to process thre sensed information into a digital format for communication to a ground station or stations over a data link. Daal mode radar images have been captured and down loaded in real time over single channel data link.
In my U.S. Pat. No. 5,559,788 which is incorporated by reference herein, there is shown and described a multi-channel communications data link in which one input channel contains control information and the other quadrature input channel contains picture product information. In this patent, the two different types of information are combined and the combined data is transmitted over two different types of antennas. Then two different types of receivers are employed in ground stations in which only one of the receivers is capable of utilizing the picture product information.
It would be desirable to provide a dual channel data link capable of transmitting simultaneously two diverse picture products to all ground stations, however, only some of the ground stations can utilize both diverse picture products. It is further desirable to be able to control data throughput and transmission energy of the two diverse picture products in a manner which optimizes the use of available transmitter power and enhances picture quality at a plurality of the receivers.

Adaptable and controllable multi-channel data link