A semiconductor device includes a substrate which has a main surface and an alignment mark which is formed on the main surface and which has a pattern, wherein the pattern in a plane view has a shape that is obtained by eliminating corners from a polygon.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device, and more particularly, to a semiconductor device including an alignment mark used in a photolithography process.
This application is counterpart of Japanese patent application, Serial Number 318501/2003, filed Sep. 10, 2003, the subject matter of which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a metal oxide ferrodielectric substance (hereinafter referred to as a ferrodielectric substance) and a metal oxide paradielectric substance (hereinafter referred to as a high-dielectric substance; in this specification, a paradielectric material having a dielectric constant of about 10 or more is referred to as a high-dielectric substance) are used for a semiconductor device. A semiconductor device using the ferrodielectric substance will be mainly described in the following.
In the semiconductor device using the ferrodielectric substance, a semiconductor device using a Bi (bismuth) layer-shaped compound of SrBi2Ta2O9 (hereinafter, a substance having a varied composition of this substance and a series of additive represented by Nb (niobium) to or for this substance are referred to as SBT) or lead zirconate titanate Pb(Zr1-xTix)O3 (hereinafter, a substance having a varied composition of this substance and a series of groups of compounds produced by adding an additive represented by La (lanthanum) or Ca (calcium) to this substance are referred to as PZT) has been brought into practical use. Then, ferrodielectric substances in the studying stage include such a substance referred to as BLT that is produced by adding La (lanthanum) to bismuth titanate and a solid solution of the ferrodielectric substance described above and the other dielectric substance. In any cases, there is such a common thing that the substances need to be subjected to a heat treatment in an oxygen atmosphere so as to show a ferrodielectric property as an oxide crystal and the invention can produce an equivalent effect. Thus, a case where a ferrodielectric film, in particular, an SBT film is used will be described in the following description.
All of the ferrodielectric substances including the SBT are metal oxide crystals and need to be subjected to a heat treatment at as high a temperature as from 600° C. to 800° C. so as to recover process damage caused at the time of crystallizing these substances and sputtering or etching the substances in the later processes. In addition, in many cases, this heat treatment is performed in an oxygen atmosphere. For this reason, in a case where a semiconductor device manufactured before forming a ferrodielectric capacitor has a wiring and a contact construction formed of W, the wiring and the contact construction are easily oxidized in the oxygen atmosphere to lose conductivity. Thus, it is necessary to take some countermeasure to prevent the oxidation of them.
On the other hand, the semiconductor device including the above-mentioned dielectric substances is manufactured by a photolithography process. Then, in this process, it is necessary to overlay (align) a pattern to be formed hereafter on (with) a pattern formed on an underlying layer with high accuracy. Thus, in addition to a device pattern, a pattern for constructing an alignment mark that only aims to perform the alignment with high accuracy are also formed at the same time. The alignment mark is broadly divided into three kinds of marks of a mark for rough alignment (search mark) and a mark for fine alignment (fine mark) both of which when a resist (photosensitive agent) is exposed to light by the use of a pattern exposure system, are read by the pattern exposure system and a mark for alignment and measurement that is used for detecting the amount of deviation from alignment by the use of an alignment measurement instrument after the resist is exposed to light and developed. These alignment marks are not directly related to the function of the semiconductor device but are necessary and indispensable at the time of manufacturing the semiconductor device.
There are three main alignment marks, as described above, and problems of the respective alignment marks and measures to solve the problems are the same for the three alignment marks. Thus, the mark for alignment and measurement will be described in the following. FIGS. 5A and 5B are schematic views of a typical structure of the mark for alignment and measurement of a conventional semiconductor device. FIG. 5A shows a schematic plan view of the mark for alignment and measurements, and FIG. 5B shows a cross sectional view taken on a line 5B—5B in FIG. 5A, the mark for alignment and measurement is formed of two patterns of an OUT-BOX 900 and an IN-BOX 910. The pattern shape of the OUT-BOX 900 is formed in a rectangular outside shape having a specified width and the pattern shape of the IN-BOX 910 is formed in a rectangular shape. The IN-BOX 910 is arranged inside the OUT-BOX 900.
For example, let's think a case where a second pattern layer yet to be formed is aligned with a first pattern layer of an underlying layer. First, the OUT-BOX 900 is formed of the first pattern layer and then the IN-BOX 910 is formed in a lithography process of the second pattern layer. Here, for example, let's assume that the IN-BOX 910 of the second pattern layer is formed of a resist. By measuring the marks for alignment and measurement constructed of the OUT-BOX 900 and the IN-BOX 910 by means of an alignment measurement instrument, the amount of deviation from alignment of the first pattern layer relative to the second pattern layer is detected. In a case where the amount of deviation from alignment is larger than a specified value, the resist is totally removed and another second pattern layer is again formed by the use of the obtained alignment correction value. Here, conversely, in a case where the IN-BOX 910 is formed of the first pattern layer, the OUT-BOX 900 is formed of the second pattern layer and then the amount of deviation from alignment is detected in the same way. In both cases, the same following operations will be performed.
FIG. 5A is a drawing corresponding to a case where the first pattern layer is a layer in which a contact hole is formed and where the OUT-BOX is simultaneously formed at the time of etching the contact hole and where the IN-BOX is formed in the following process. The structure shown in FIG. 5B is manufactured by the method to be described below. First, a contact hole is formed in an interlayer insulation film 901 in a contact hole etching process. Then, a barrier metal is formed of, for example, Ti/TiN (titan/titan nitride). Then, a tungsten film (hereinafter referred to as "W film") is formed by a tungsten chemical vapor deposition method (hereinafter referred to as "W-CVD method"). In the barrier metal and the W film, a metal film 902 is formed only inside the contact hole by the use of an etch back method or a chemical mechanical polishing method (hereinafter referred to as "CMP method"). At this time, in a case where the etch back method is used, as shown in FIG. 5B, a metal layer remains in the shape of a side wall in a mark region and in a case where the CMP method is used, the metal layer remains in the more expanded region. Thereafter, an interlayer insulation film 903 is formed and the IN-BOX is formed of the second pattern layer. A silicon nitride film, for example, is used for the interlayer insulation film 903. Alternatively, in some case, the first pattern layer is formed and then a capacitor electrode is directly formed without forming the interlayer insulation film 903. In this case, the insulation film 903 shown in FIG. 5B becomes a capacitor electrode film.
Even if the stepped portions formed in the shape of side wall are covered with the silicon nitride film or the capacitor electrode film, as shown in FIG. 5B, W (tungsten) is heavily oxidized to deform the shape of the alignment mark, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, by the heat treatment performed in the oxygen atmosphere at the time of forming the ferrodielectric substance. FIG. 6A shows an example of deformed shape of the IN-BOX and FIG. 6B shows an example of deformed shape of the OUT-BOX. Both of them are photographs taken with an optical microscope. When the alignment mark is deformed in the shape, a function as the alignment mark is not performed, and further very serious problems in manufacturing the semiconductor device such as the occurrence and separation of particles in the following processes are caused. Moreover, FIG. 7 shows a photograph of cross section of an alignment mark portion oxidized by a focused ion beam (hereinafter referred to as "FIB") and shows a state where the W film is oxidized and expanded to break the upper layer film.
Among publicly known documents relating to the present invention is the patent document 1 described below. In the patent document 1 is described a technology of replacing an accessory pattern of a pattern other than a semiconductor integrated circuit by a set of a plural constituent patterns. [Patent Document 1] JP-A-2000-171966
In addition to the above-mentioned problems of oxidation and separation of the alignment mark portion, in the pattern shape of the OUT-BOX 900 shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B whose outside shape is rectangular, there is presented a problem that since the pattern widths of the corner portions become larger than the pattern widths of the sides portions, voids are apt to occur at the corner portions. The occurrence of voids results in increasing the amount of etch back or CMP when the W etch back or the W-CMP is performed in the later process and hence causes a reduction in uniformity in the plane of a wafer.


A semiconductor chip includes on-chip clock controllers (OCCs) capable of synchronizing multiple clock signals on the device. Each OCC controller receives a scan enable signal and a unique clock signal that is generated from one or more clock generators. The OCC receiving the slowest generated clock signal passes it through internal meta-stability registers and provides an external synchronization signal to the OCCs handling faster clock signals. These faster-clock OCCs can use the external synchronization signal to synchronize their clocks and generate testing clock pulses.

Automatic test pattern generation (ATPG) is used to identify test sequences that can be applied to test circuits on a chip to determine whether they function correctly. Conventional ATPG applies mathematically generated test patterns to targeted circuitry and logic of the chip commonly referred to as the "design under test" (or simply "DUT"). ATPG testing typically involves supplying a test pattern to the DUT using a series of flip-flops arranged in a scan chain configuration. Once test data is applied to the DUT, the output of the circuitry being tested is checked to see whether it matches an expected value. If it does not, a defect can be assumed.
A scan chain configuration includes multiple flip-flops connected in a sequential manner. These flip-flops are signaled by a "scan enable" signal to operate in two different modes: (1) a shift mode, and (2) a capture mode. In shift mode, a test pattern of data is shifted into the flip-flops in the chain one bit at a time. Once the test pattern is entirely shifted into flip-flops, the scan enable signal can switch to the capture mode during which testing of the DUT is performed by passing the shifted-in test value to the DUT. The DUT's output can then be analyzed to the see whether an expected value was returned. A single chip may have myriad DUTs requiring many chains of flip-flops spread across the chip to shift in the test pattern. The test pattern must be clocked in to the various flip-flops, and different test patterns will use different clock frequencies. So each DUT may require its own unique clock signal to ensure proper testing.
On-chip clock controllers (referred to herein simply as OCCs) are used on semiconductor chips to control the clocks in shifting and capturing data in and out of scan chain flip-flops. Conventional OCCs receive a clock signal unique to a particular clock domain of a chip and synchronize that clock signal with a testing clock signal using one or more shift registers. Unfortunately, the unique clock signals of the various OCCs on a chip become de-synchronized relative to each other because each OCC typically has its own set of synchronizing registers—which may differ in quantity, type or size from other OCCs on the chip—and independently synchronize their own clock signals at different times. Disparate OCCs with different synchronizing registers operating on different scan chains will cause errors in testing because the OCCs will operate independently.
Unsynchronized OCCs affect the quality of testing that can be performed using scan chains. They also make it difficult to accurately estimate power consumption for designs requiring more than one OCC because the predicted switching activity generated by simulations of the circuitry may be inaccurate. This is largely due to the occurrence of test clock pulses in each of the clock controllers that often result in two or more clock controllers pulsing at the same time and generating a spike in the power requirements of the circuitry being tested. The negative effects of such spiking behavior compound as the size of a system on chip (SoC) and the number of interacting clock domains therein increases.


An apparatus for storing selected items within the covers of a ringed notebook or ringed binder. The notebook or binder is of a type that typically stores paper or accessories that do not extend to the full width of the covers thereby leaving presently unused volumes between the covers beyond the perimeter of the paper or other accessories. The present invention includes a thin main plate member and a storage device. The thin main plate member has a plurality of spaced openings therethrough. These spaced openings are arranged and sized so as to accommodate the rings of a ringed notebook or ringed binder. The storage device stores at least one selected item. This storage device means extends from the main plate member into a presently unused volume between the covers. Thus, the normally unused volume can be utilized to store the selected item. The storage device includes a plurality of spaced arms for grasping the at least one selected item.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to inserts for ringed notebooks and ringed binders and, more particularly, to a notebook insert which provides a storage mechanism within the normally unused volumes formed between the covers of the notebooks/binders, beyond the perimeter of paper or other accessories.
2. Description of the Related Art
Users of notebooks, including businessmen and students, often desire to have various articles such as pencils and pens at their easy disposal when they use their notebook and to be secure from being lost when they carry their notebooks from one location to another.
In partial solution to this problem, present applicant Mark A. Bedol, invented a "Notebook Organizer Including Slidable Element", U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,736. The 5,050,736 patent discloses an organizer comprising a base with holes for engagement with the rings of a ringed notebook. The base includes a plurality of partitions which divide the base into a plurality of compartments. The patent also discloses an electronic calculator having a longitudinal extension thereon being slidably engageable with, and supported between, opposing partition surfaces.
Present applicant Mark A. Bedol, has also invented "Notebook Insert With Calculator and Holepunch", U.S. Pat. No. 5,209,592, which discloses a notebook insert comprising a housing, an electronic calculator attached to the housing and a holepunch assembly also attached to the housing. The housing has a periphery with multiple holes therethrough which are spaced to be adapted for engagement with the rings of a ringed notebook.
Although these prior art devices are effective in attempting to maximize the usable space within a notebook, they have not exploited the volume within the rings of the notebook.

Storage apparatus for ringed notebook or ringed binder


An object handling control device includes one or more processors configured to acquire at least object information and status information representing an initial position and a destination of an object; set, when a grasper grasping the object moves from the initial position to the destination, a first region, a second region, and a third region in accordance with the object information and the status information; and calculate a moving route along which the object is moved from the initial position to the destination with reference to the first region, the second region, and the third region.

Conventionally, object handling devices including a robot arm have been introduced for the purpose of automating physical distribution or manufacturing in field site, for example. An object handling device grasps an object with a hand and moves or transfers an object from an initial position, such as on a conveyor or in a container storing the object, to a destination, such as in a given container or a palette. In this case, it is preferable for the grasped object and the hand of the object handling device not to interfere with surrounding obstacles. In reality, however, the object and the hand may interfere due to influence of the operational accuracy of the hand or error in measurement of the object size, a grasp position, a container wall at a destination, a previously moved object (hereinafter, may be referred to as an obstacle). In view of this, an object handling device is proposed, which includes a robot hand equipped with a force sensor that detects reaction force from an end effector. Such an object handling device performs feedback force control based on the reaction force to repulsively move a robot away from an interfering obstacle. Thereby, the robot is prevented from collision and stopping moving to be continuously operable.
However, the hand or the grasped object may be still damaged through the repulsive motion under the force control, depending on the speed of the hand or the grasped object at the time of collision with the obstacle. In such a case, collision impact can be reduced by lowering the operational speed of the arm or hand in the entire moving route or in an area in the vicinity of the obstacle. This may however prolong a length of time for transferring the object, lowering work efficiency. Alternatively, in planning the moving route to ensure a distance to the obstacle, collision risk can be lowered by estimating larger virtual sizes of the hand, the grasped object, and the obstacle than their actual sizes, that is, setting a large margin. This may however make it impossible to plan the moving route when the hand is to enter a narrow gap or densely arrange the objects.
It is thus preferable to provide an object handling control device, an object handling device, an object handling method, and a computer program product that can avoid a hand or an object grasped by the hand from interfering with an obstacle, which may otherwise damage them, and efficiently transfer the object.

Object handling control device, object handling device, object handling method, and computer program product

TOSHIBA INFRASTRUCTURE SYSTEMS & SOLUTIONS CORPORATION


The encryption device includes a random number generator for generating a random number; and a first selector for selecting one of q fixed values in response to the random number, a second selector for selecting one set of q sets of fixed S-box tables in response to the random number. An XOR XORs an input with an XOR of a key with the fixed value. A nonlinear transform transforms an input nonlinearly in accordance with the selected set of fixed S-box tables. Another encryption device includes a plurality of encrypting units coupled in parallel, and a selector for selecting one of the plurality of encrypting units in response to the random number. The masking with the fixed values improves the processing speed and reduces the required RAM area.

An encryption system generally includes a public key cryptosystem and a common key cryptosystem. The common key cryptosystem uses the same secret key for both of encryption and decryption. Ciphertext can be securely transmitted by allowing the secret key to be shared between a user of a transmitter and a user of a receiver and by keeping the key secret from others. FIG. 1 shows an example of encryption with a common secret key in a smart card 10. In FIG. 1, the smart card 10 encrypts input plaintext with a common secret key in its encryption unit, in a well known manner, to provide ciphertext.
Analysis for decryption estimates secret information including a secret key from available information such as ciphertext and the like. A power analysis attack which is one way of the analysis for decryption is described in Paul Kocher, Joshua Jaffe, and Benjamin Jun, "Differential Power Analysis" in proceedings of Advances in Cryptology-CRYPTO'99, Springer-Verlag, 1999, pp. 388-397. The power analysis attack collects and analyses dissipated electric power data when different input data is provided to an on-board encryption processor of a device, such as a smart card, to estimate the key information in the encryption processor. This power analysis attack can be applied to both of the public key encryption and the secret key encryption.
The power analysis attack includes a simple power analysis (SPA) and a differential power analysis (DPA). The SPA estimates a secret key from the characteristics of a set of dissipated electric power data in the encryption processor. The DPA estimates a secret key by analyzing the differences between a number of sets of power data. Generally, the DPA is powerful.
For example, the DPA for the public key encryption such as the RSA and the like is described in Thomas S. Messerges, Ezzy A. Dabbish and Robert H. Sloan "Power Analysis Attacks of Modular Exponentitiation in Smartcards" Cryptographic Hardware and Embedded Systems (CHES'99), Springer-Verlag, pp. 144-157. The SPA and DPA for the DES (data encryption standard) which is the current standard of the common key cryptosystem are described in Paul Kocher, Joshua Jaffe, and Benjamin Jun, "Differential Power Analysis", in proceedings of Advances in Cryptology-CRYPTO'99, Springer-Verlag, 1999, pp. 388-397. The DPA against the Rijndael method which can be a new standard of the common key cryptosystem is described in, for example, S. Chari, C. Jutla, J. R. Rao, P. Rohatgi, "An Cautionary Note Regarding Evaluation of AES Candidates on Smart-Cards", Second Advanced Encryption Standard Candidate Conference, March 1999.
Thus, the DPA generates an interest as a particularly effective method for the power analysis attack, and different DPA methods for secret key analysis have been developed. On the other hand, techniques for protection against the DPA for secret key analysis have been developed.
Described below is a conventional typical configuration for the common key encryption to which the DPA can be applied. FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 show a key XOR (exclusive OR), a linear transform and a nonlinear transform, respectively, which are operations used in the typical common key encryption.
In FIG. 2, the key XOR provides a resultant output Zi of XORing input data Xi with key information Ki. (The operator "XOR" is represented by a symbol of a combination of "◯" and "+" in the attached drawings and mathematical formulas and equations herein.) In FIG. 3, the linear transform L provides a linear transformed output Zi=L(Xi) for input data Xi, where L(x XOR y)=L(x) XOR L(y) for arbitrary x and y. The linear transform includes bit permutation, a matrix operation and the like. In FIG. 4, the nonlinear transform W nonlinearly transforms the input data Xi to provide an output Zi=W(Xi), where W(x XOR y)≠W(x) XOR W(y) for arbitrary x and y. A typical nonlinear transform often employs nonlinear transform table SBoxes, divides an input X into the number, u, of elements as X={xu−1, . . . x1, x0} (where u is a natural number), uses Sboxes, wi's (i=0, 1, . . . u), to perform each operation zi=wi(xi), and produces an output Z as a combined value Z=(zu−1 . . . z1 z0).
In the typical common key encryption, each round function is configured by an appropriate combination of these key XOR, linear transform and nonlinear transform, and the round function is sequentially repeated for a plurality of rounds.
Described below is the technique of analysis for decryption in accordance with the DPA. The DPA includes a step of measuring dissipated power data and a step of analyzing a key based on the difference of dissipated power data. In measuring the dissipated power data, input plaintext containing a sequence of different codes is serially provided to an encryption device such as a smart card and the like, and change of dissipated electric power with time in its encryption processor in response to the input plaintext is measured by using an oscilloscope and the like, to thereby obtain a dissipated power curve. FIG. 7A shows an example of such a dissipated power curve. The measuring is performed for different plaintext inputs to collect a statistically sufficient number of dissipated power curves. A set G is defined herein as a set of dissipated power curves obtained by the measurement.
Described below is the analysis of a key using the dissipated power curves. FIG. 5 shows an example of encryption which is formed by a combination of the key XOR (FIG. 2) and the nonlinear transform (FIG. 4) in series connection. The DPA for the encryption is described below. FIG. 6 shows elements relevant to an arbitrary nonlinear transform element wi shown in FIG. 5. In FIG. 6, a value mi indicates a known multi-bit value within arbitrary input plaintext, a value ki (an element in K={ku−1, . . . k1, k0}) indicates an element value of an unknown key K, a function wi indicates an element transform function in a known SBox table, and a value zi(=wi(mi XOR ki)) indicates an output. For the DPA, the element value of the key used in the processor is assumed as an arbitrary value k1′. An operation zi′=wi(mi XOR ki′) is performed in accordance with the known mi and wi, and the assumed ki′, and the set G(ki′) for the assumed ki′ is divided into the following subsets G0(ki′) and G1(ki′).G0(ki′)={G| an e-th bit value in zi′=wi(mi⊕ki′) is 0}  (1),G1(ki′)={G| an e-th bit value in zi′=wi(mi⊕ki′) is 1}  (2),where "e" is a natural number indicating the e-th least significant bit.
Then, the following difference DG(ki′) between the dissipated power curves for the assumed kl′ is generated.DG(ki′)=(average dissipated power curve εG1)−(average dissipated power curve εG0)  (3)
FIG. 7A shows an example of an average dissipated power curve obtained from the dissipated power curves which belong to the set G1. FIG. 7B shows an example of an average dissipated power curve obtained from the dissipated power curves which belong to G0. If a value of the assumed key element is equal to a value of a corresponding true key element, i.e. ki′=ki, then a spike appears in the difference dissipated power curve as shown in FIG. 7C which represents the difference between the curves of FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B. If a value of the assumed key element is not equal to a value of a corresponding true key element, i.e. kl′≠ki, then the difference dissipated power curve as shown in FIG. 7D which represents the difference between the curves of FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B becomes a generally flat curve. Therefore, the key ki can be estimated from the difference dissipated power curve with the spike which is generated in accordance with the assumed ki′. By generating the difference dissipated power curves for the kl for all i's, the key K can be successfully analyzed or ultimately determined.
How a spike appears in the power difference curve DG(ki′) in the case of ki′=kl as a phenomenon is described below. If ki′=ki, then the assumed zi′=wi(mi XOR ki′) matches with a corresponding actual zi=wi(mi XOR ki) in the processor for all mi's. Thus, when the set G(ki′) is divided into the subsets G0(ki′) and G1(ki′) in accordance with the equations (1) and (2), the following equation (4) can be obtained using the Hamming weight HW of zi, where the Hamming weight is defined as the number of bits having a value of one in a binary value which represents a certain numerical value. For example, the Hamming weight HW of a binary 4-bit value (1101)2 is 3.(averaged HW of zi's for ziεG1)−(averaged HW of zi's for ziεG0)=1  (4)
On the other hand, if ki′≠ki, the assumed zi′=wi(mi XOR kl′) has no correlation with the corresponding actual zi=wi(mi XOR kl) in the processor. Thus, even if the set G(ki′) for all mi's is divided into the subsets G0 (ki′) and G1(ki′) in accordance with the equations (1) and (2) for the assumed zi′, it is actually divided into the two subsets at random for the respective actual zi's (i.e., the actual zi which has been assumed as zi′), and the following equation (5) is established.(average HW of zi's for ziεG1)−(average HW of zi's for ziεG0)≈0  (5)
When the equation (4) is established, there is a significant difference in average Hamming weights of the load values zi's between G0 (ki′) and G1 (ki′). When the equation (5) is established, there is no significant difference in average Hamming weights of the load values, zi's, between G0(kl′) and G1(ki′).
The transform wi represented by zi=wi(xi) is performed by reading in the output value zi of the transform table SBox from a memory such as a ROM, a RAM and the like within the encryption device in accordance with a load instruction. It is generally assumed that, the power proportional to the Hamming weight of a load value may be dissipated when the load instruction is executed. An experimental result showing the relevancy of the assumption is described in T. S. Messerge, Ezzy A. Dabbish and Robert H. Sloan, "Investigations of Power Attacks on Smartcards", Proceedings of USENIX Workshop on Smartcard Technology, March 1999.
Thus, if ki′=ki, then the equation (4) is satisfied, and hence the significant difference of the dissipated power appears in the form of a spike in the difference power curve. In the case of the equation (5), however, the difference power curve has no spike and has a generally flat curve. It is known that the DPA can be also applied to an encryption device which has a configuration in which the linear transform L of FIG. 3 is incorporated into the device of FIG. 4.
FIG. 8 shows an encryption device having a configuration in which two linear transforms are added before and after the encryption device of FIG. 4. When L1 and L2 are assumed to be permutation functions and wi is assumed to be an SBox of the DES, the configuration of FIG. 8 is equivalent to the F function of the DES. For the specification of the DES, refer to FIPS 46, "Data encryption standard" Federal Information Processing Standards Publication 46, U.S. Department of Commerce/National Bureau of Standards, National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Va., 1977. The process in FIG. 8 can be converted to a process similar to the one as shown in FIG. 6, and hence the DPA can be applied to estimate a key K, similarly.
In the technique as described above, the DPA is applied to the SBox output in the process of nonlinear transform. There are further techniques of applying the DPA to a value of an XOR (an output of the key XOR) of the input mi with the key ki, and to the input value xl provided to the SBox. In a particular processor, the dissipated power as expressed by the following equation (6) in the adjacent bit model can be represented by a function of bits of a load value, to thereby obtain an effective analysis. This is reported in M. Akkar, R. Bevan, P. Dischamp, and D. Moyart, "Power Analysis, What Is Now Possible . . . " Asiacrypt 2000.V(z)=a′+a0z0+a1z1+ . . . +a7z7+a0,1z0z1+a1,2z1z2+ . . . +a6,7z6z7  (6)
In accordance with the techniques described above, a secret key K is determined by the DPA in three cases or conditions 1-3 as described below. FIG. 9 shows measured points A, B and C for measuring the dissipated power curves in the encryption device of FIG. 5.    1. A case in which an input M is known and can be arbitrarily selected or controlled by an attacker, a key K has an unknown fixed value, and transforms of Sboxes, wi's, are known. In this case, the dissipated power curve is measured at predetermined timing at the measured point A (at the output of the SBox wl) shown in FIG. 9.    2. A case in which the input M is known and controllable, and the key K has an unknown fixed value. In this case, the dissipated power curve is measured at predetermined timing at the measured point B (at the output of the key XOR) shown in FIG. 9.    3. A case in which the input M is known and controllable, and the key K has an unknown fixed value. In this case, the dissipated power curve is measured at predetermined timing at the measured point C (at the load input for indexing an SBox, wi) shown in FIG. 9.
Conventional Protection Against DPA
Conventional countermeasure protection against the DPA includes, for example, a technique of reducing the measurement precision of the dissipated power by providing a noise generator in a smart card, and a technique of providing protection in an encryption algorithm. The technique of reducing the measurement precision can be easily implemented, but it is not a drastic measure because the analysis can be achieved by increasing the number of times of measurements. On the other hand, it may not be easy to provide protection in the encryption algorithm, which, however, can be a drastic measure. A typical technique of providing protection in the encryption algorithm is described in Thomas S. Messerges, "Securing the AES Finalists Against Power Analysis Attacks," in proceedings of Fast Software Encryption Workshop 2000, Springer-Verlag, April 2000, which is called "a masking method". The masking method performs each of encryption processes on a value M′ expressed by M′=M XOR R for an input value M and a random number R as a mask rather than on the input value M per se. Since the random number R is generated for each process of encryption, this method is referred to as a "random mask value method" hereinafter.
Described below is the random mask value method. FIG. 10 shows a schematic block diagram of the process in accordance with the random mask value method. This process includes an upper encrypting unit, a lower mask value generating unit, and a random number generator as shown in the figure.
When the conventional encrypting process in which the conventional key XOR function, the linear function, and the nonlinear function as shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 are used is changed to the encrypting process shown in FIG. 10, they are replaced with a key XOR function, a linear function, and a nonlinear function as shown in FIGS. 11, 12 and 13A, respectively, in accordance with the random mask value method.
In the random mask value method, the computation of the conventional intermediate data Xi in the encryption is replaced with the computation of the Xi′ and the random number Ri which satisfy the exclusive OR, Xi=Xi′ XOR Ri. The encrypting unit computes Xi′, and the mask value generating unit computes Ri. The following equations (7) are established for Xi, Xi′, Zi, Zi′, Ri, and ROi in the operations shown in FIGS. 2 and 11, FIGS. 3 and 12, and FIGS. 4 and 13A.
                    {                                                            Xi                =                                                      Xi                    ′                                    ⊕                  Ri                                                                                Zi                =                                                      Zi                    ′                                    ⊕                  ROi                                                                                (        7        )
In FIG. 2, the XOR operation, Zi=Xi XOR Ki, is performed on the input value Xi with the key Ki. On the other hand, in FIG. 11, after the random number RKi is generated by the random number generator in the encrypting process, the double XOR operation, Zi′=Xi′ XOR Ki XOR RKi, is performed on the input value Xi′ and the key Ki. The XOR operation, ROi=Ri XOR RKi, is performed on the Ri with RKi in the mask value generating process.
In FIG. 3, the linear transform, Zi=L(Xi), is performed. On the other hand, the transform, Zi′=L(Xi′), is performed in the encrypting process shown in FIG. 12, and the transform, ROi=L(Ri), is performed in the mask value generating process.
In FIG. 4, a nonlinear transform is performed using the number, u, of SBoxes expressed by w1, w2, . . . wu−1. In the encrypting process shown in FIG. 13A, a new set of SBoxes expressed by wi′1, wi′2, . . . wi′u−1 are generated and stored in the RAM area by the process using a NewSBox unit, as shown in FIG. 13A, and a nonlinear transform is performed using these new SBoxes. In the mask value generating process shown in FIG. 13A, the process is performed using the NewSBox unit, and each of w′1, w′2, . . . w′u−1 is generated in accordance with the Ri and the internally generated random number ROi, to provide outputs w′1, w′2, . . . w′u−1 and ROi. FIG. 13B shows a detailed configuration of the NewSBox unit. The NewSBox generates ROi in accordance with the internal random number generator, generates wi′j for j=0, 1, . . . u−1 which satisfies wi′j(x)=w(x XOR rij) XOR roij, in accordance with Ri=riu−1 . . . ri1 ri0, ROi=roiu−1 . . . roi1 roi0, and the SBoxes, w1, w2, . . . wu−1, used in FIG. 13B, to provide outputs ROi and wi′j.
Described briefly below is the security of the random mask value method. In the random mask value method, the Sbox, wi′, of FIGS. 13A and 13B in each round shown in FIG. 10 and in FIG. 19 as described later changes in accordance with a random number. Thus, the content of the SBox can not be known by the DPA. That is, since the condition of the case 1 above that the SBox is known is not satisfied, the dissipated power curves measured at the predetermined timing at the measured point A shown in FIG. 8 can not be divided into G0 and G1 in accordance with the equations (1) and (2). Thus, the encryption device employing the random mask value method is secure against the DPA. Similarly, with respect to the conditions of the cases 2 and 3 above, the random element which changes each time in the measuring is combined at the measured point B at the output of the key XOR function and at the measured point C at the input to an Sbox. Thus, the condition that the key K is fixed is not satisfied. Thus it is secure against the DPA.
Described below is the Rijndael method as an example of the encryption employing the random mask value method. FIG. 14 shows a general configuration of a conventional N-round Rijndael type process without protection against the DPA. Each round of the N-round Rijndael process contains operations of an XOR, a Subbyte (substitute byte), a Shift or shifter and a Mixed column. The last round includes another XOR, but does not include a Mixedcolumn. In FIG. 14, the number N is determined in accordance with the number of bits of the secret key Ksec. If the Ksec has 128 bits, N is determined to be 10 (N=10). If it has 192 bits, N is determined to be 12 (N=12). If it has 256 bits, N is determined to be 14 (N=14). Ki is called a sub-key. FIG. 15 shows a sub-key generator for generating N+1 128-bit sub-keys, K0, K1, . . . KN, from 128/192/256-bit secret key Ksec in the Rijndael method. The method for generating sub-keys from a secret key is described in the specification of the Rijndael method accessible at http://www.nist.gov/aes/.
FIG. 16 shows a configuration of the Subbyte. This process performs a 128-bit-to-128-bit nonlinear transform using S's, each of which represents an 8-bit-to-8-bit transform SBox. FIG. 17 shows a configuration of the Shift. This process rearranges or reshuffles bytes in terms of byte positions. FIG. 18 shows a configuration of the Mixedcolumn. This process performs an operation in a matrix over the field GF (28).
FIG. 19 illustrates the N-round Rijndael method employing the random mask value method as opposed to the conventional N-round Rijndael method illustrated in FIG. 14. The N-round Rijndael method illustrated in FIG. 19 includes an upper N-round encryption unit, a lower N-round mask value generation unit, and a random number generator, as shown. Ki represents the sub-key of the i-th round in the Rijndael method. RKi represents a random mask value for each sub-key. The Subbyte performs a 128-bit-to-128-bit nonlinear transform using sixteen Sboxes, Si,0, Si,1, . . . Si,15, in the form as shown in FIG. 16. Si,0, Si,1, . . . Si,15 represent SBoxes generated by a new SBox unit "NewSBox" in the i-th round. FIG. 20 shows a configuration of the NewSBox, which generates sixteen different Sboxes, Si,0(x), Si,1(x), . . . Si,15(x), in response to an input value Rini in accordance with the internally generated random number Routi, to provide the random number Routi. The Shift and Mixedcolumn are linear transforms shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, similarly to those used in the process of the conventional Rijndael method.
The flow of the process of FIG. 19 is described below in Steps [1101] to [1109] for the encryption unit, and Steps [1201] to [1209] for the mask value generation unit as follows:    [1101] Set i=0.    [1102] Generate a random mask value Rin, and XOR the plaintext with Rin.    [1103] XOR the operated plaintext with (Ki XOR RKi). Provide a mask value RKi to the mask value generation to generate sixteen SBoxes: Si,j(x) (j=0, 1, . . . 15).    [1104] Perform the Subbyte on it, using the Si,j(x) generated at Step [1103].    [1105] Perform the Shift and Mixedcolumn on it.    [1106] i:=i+1    [1107] If i<N−1, then return to Step [1103]. Otherwise, proceed to the next step.    [1108] XOR it with KN−1, and provide RKN−1 to the mask value generation to generate sixteen SBoxes: SN−1,j(X) (j=0, 1, . . . 15).    [1109] Perform the Subbyte using SN−1,j(x), the Shift, and the XOR with KN on it.    [1110] XOR the operation output from Step [1109] with the output Rout from the mask value generation, and a resultant ciphertext is provided as an ultimate output.
The flow of the mask value generation:    [1201] Set i=0 and Mask=Rin, where Rin is a random mask value generated at Step [1102].    [1202] Perform the operation of Mask XOR RKi on the RKi received from the encryption, to generate a new Mask.    [1203] Produce sixteen Sboxes, Si,j(x) (j=0, 1, . . . 15), and the random number Routi, by providing the new Mask generated at Step [1202] to the NewSBox, to set Routi as a new Mask. The Si,j(x) is used in the Subbyte in the i-th round of the encryption.    [1204] The Mask is provided to the Shift and Mixed column, and the output from these operations is set to be a new Mask.    [1205] Set i:=i+1. If i<N−1, then return to Step [1202].    [1206] Perform the operation of Mask XOR RKN−1 on the input RKN−1 from the encryption. Then, set the operated result to be a new Mask.    [1207] By providing RinN−1 to the NewSBox, produce sixteen Sboxes, SN−1,j(x) (j=0, 1, . . . 15), and a random number RoutN−1. Then, set RoutN−1 to be a new Mask. SN−1,j(x) is used in the Subbyte in the (N−1)th round of the encryption.    [1208] Provide the Mask to the Shift. Then, the operated result is set to be a new Mask.    [1209] Perform the operation of Mask XOR RKN on the input RKN provided from the encryption, and provide the XOR output to thereby end the process.
Although it is known that the random mask value method has high security against the DPA, the encryption employing the random mask value method has drawbacks in that its encrypting speed is a few tenths lower than that of the conventional encryption and it requires a very large RAM area.
The encrypting speed is low as described above, because, in the XOR for example in the encrypting process, two intermediate values x and y are used to perform the operation z=x XOR y in the conventional implementation, while it is necessary in the random mask value method to derive the intermediate values x′ and y′ satisfying x′=x XOR Rx and y′=y XOR Ry to perform the operation z′=x′ XOR y′, and to perform the additional operation Rz=Rx XOR Ry for generating the new mask value related to the z′. For the nonlinear transform, nonlinear transform tables, called Sboxes, are held in a ROM in the conventional method, while nonlinear transform tables must be generated each time in accordance with a new mask value in the random mask value method, which requires a large amount of computations.
A large RAM area is required as described above, because, for the conventional nonlinear transform, the new Sboxes are stored in the RAM in each encryption process in the random mask value method, while the nonlinear transform tables are held in the ROM in the conventional method. For example, in the Rijndael method which uses an SBox for 8-bit-to-8-bit transform, a RAM area of at least 28=256 bytes is required to implement the random mask value method as protection against the DPA. However, for example, since a chip for a low cost smart card, such as an ST 16 (manufactured by ST Microelectron) has a RAM area of only about 128 bytes, it is practically impossible to implement the random mask value method.
It has been proposed to provide improvement of an apparent processing speed, reduction of the required RAM area and the like, by sharing mask values and by generating mask values between an encrypting process and the next encrypting process. However, since the masking with a random value is first performed in the entire process, it is impossible to achieve the improvement of the processing speed of the entire process and the reduction of the required RAM area.
The present inventors have recognized that it is advantageous to improve the processing speed and reduce the required RAM area by performing the masking with fixed values rather than the random values. The masking method using the fixed values is hereinafter referred to as a fixed mask value method.
An object of the present invention is to provide efficient protection of an encryption processor for encrypting data with a common key from analysis for decryption.
Another object of the present invention is to make it difficult to estimate a secret key, and to raise the security of the encryption processor.


An embodiment selects one or more radio frequency parameters that may be optimal for a wireless network of access points and clients. Various methods, systems, and/or computer-readable media may implement operational embodiments.

Today the volume of 802.11 products is on the rise, thus making it challenging to control the escalation of radio frequency interference. Even in enterprise environments, with IT (Information Technology) support staff, configuration of 802.11 RF (Radio Frequency) parameters to minimize interference requires a huge amount of work. In addition, while the configuration may be initially optimal, when the environment changes (e.g., a neighboring office installs a new wireless network) the configuration may require adjustment. In an ESS mesh network, identification of an optimal configuration is challenging, since the selected configuration will not necessarily be optimal for each AP (Access Point) and will instead be optimal for the network as a whole.
A current method for RF configuration is a manual method where a site survey is performed at the time of network deployment. However, this solution does not adapt to changes in the environment.
In known centralized methods APs report to a single predefined central device, which makes all configuration decisions. Centralized solutions require each network to include a specialized node, introducing a single point of failure. In addition, a centralized approach requires nodes to constantly report their status to the controlling node, introducing additional management overhead.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for an improved operation for configuring an ESS mesh network.

Systems and methods of distributed self-configuration for wireless networks


An image forming apparatus is supplied capable of informing user just after developer in an accommodating section is exhausted. In the apparatus, a developing section is used for forming and developing an electrostatic latent image through developer; an accommodating section accommodates the developer; a supplying section makes the accommodating section be installed exchangeably and supplies the developer to the developing section; a space amount obtaining section obtains a space amount of the supplying section before exchanging the accommodating section; an initial amount calculating section calculates an initial amount of developer in the accommodating section after exchanged on the basis of the space amount and an accommodating amount of the accommodating section; a use amount calculating section calculates a use amount of the developer used by the developing section; a judging section judges an existence/inexistence of the developer in the accommodating section on the basis of the initial amount and the use amount; and an informing section informs user of a judgment result when the judging section judges that the toner does not exist.

Until now, an image forming apparatus is well known, on which a developing device is installed for performing a development process by using developer such as toner and the like (For example, it may refer to the following Patent Document 1).    Patent Document 1: Japan patent publication of No. Heisei 2000-238374.
In such developing device, in order to supply the developer, there is a case to establish and use an exchangeable accommodating section of cartridge type.
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a structure of a former developing device.
As shown by FIG. 13, a developing device 90 comprises a developing section 91 for forming electrostatic latent image; a supplying section 92 for supplying developer to the developing section 91; and an accommodating section 93 which is exchangeably installed on the supplying section 92 and accommodates the developer.
The developing section 91, as shown by FIG. 13, comprises a photosensitive drum 94 which as an image carrying body. Moreover, around the photosensitive drum 94, a charging roller 95 which uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 94; an exposing unit 96 used for exposing the surface of charged photosensitive drum 94 and forming electrostatic latent image; and a developing roller 97 used for making the developer adhere to the electrostatic latent image and forming a developer image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 94, are respectively arranged.
In the supplying section 92, as shown by FIG. 13, a supplying roller 98 that is used for supplying developer for the developing roller 97, and a developing blade 99 that is used for forming uniform developer layer the developing roller 97, are connected with and arranged on the surface of the developing roller 97. Moreover, in the supplying section 92, a detecting section 100 used for detecting reduction of supplied and consumed developer from the accommodating section 93 is established.
However, in the former developing device 90 above mentioned, because the detecting section 100 is installed under installation position of the accommodating section 93, after the accommodating section 93 became empty and a long time passed, the reduction of the developer is detected. Then, the developing device 90 requires user to exchange the accommodating section 93. Therefore, even if the accommodating section 93 becomes empty, there is also a problem that the user can not immediately grasp such state.
For solving the problem above mentioned, a way to set the detecting section 100 beside the installation position of the accommodating section 93 is considered, but also there are problems about cost and so on.
Therefore, when the developer in the accommodating section is exhausted, an image forming apparatus capable of informing user of the state is expected without changing the position of the detecting section.

Image forming apparatus which informs a user that toner does not exist in an exchangeable developer accommodating section


A method, apparatus and computer product wherein interrupt thresholds are automatically adjusted based on the current state of the processor. The processor provides an output signal, possibly on one or more lines, that is indicative of the state the processor is in such as active, idle sleep. The peripherals monitor this signal and their interrupt thresholds are varied to be low when the processor is active and to be high when the processor is asleep. This causes the peripherals to delay their respective interrupts when the processor is asleep. When the processor is awakened, all peripherals requiring it may be serviced.

Currently the peripheral units in a system, activate their interrupt lines whenever they need attention from the processor without any concern for what the processor may be doing. In a low power system, the processor may be in either an active state or a low power sleep state. It usually takes a finite number of cycles for a processor to transition into the low power sleep state from the active state, and similarly a finite number of cycles to transition from the low power sleep state to the active state.
When a peripheral activates its interrupt line, the processor transitions from the low power sleep state into an active state, if it was sleeping, to respond to the interrupt. As an example, there can be two peripherals A and B, each with a separate interrupt line. When the processor is in the sleep state, if peripheral A needs attention, the voltage on its interrupt line is changed. The processor will then come out of the sleep state into the active state to handle interrupt A and after it is done, the processor goes back to sleep. A short while later peripheral B activates its interrupt line and the processor repeats the wake-up sequence to handle interrupt B. This is wasteful in terms of power consumed and system resources used.
In general many peripherals have some amount of buffering which they can use to implement a certain level of slack with respect to when they need to interrupt the processor. For example, a serial interface may have a sixteen byte first in first out (fifo) memory to hold incoming characters. The serial interface may be configured to interrupt the processor as soon as one character has come in, or may be configured to interrupt the processor when the fifo memory is half full. Other options may be possible as well. For example an interrupt can be activated after one character is received if no character is subsequently received for two character times.
Similarly, disk requests from a processor typically go into a queue. The processor sets up several disk writes and reads and triggers the disk controller. The disk controller processes elements from the queue and can interrupt the processor at different times, after each successful operation, when the queue is half empty or when the queue is fully empty.
Yet another example relates to networking. Similar to disk operations, network transfers can also be queued. The network interface has the option of interrupting the processor at different thresholds.
In some cases the changing of thresholds may affect the correctness or smooth operation of the system. For instance if the serial interface delays the delivery of incoming bytes to the processor, the processor may not acknowledge receipt of the bytes and thereby prevent the transfer of subsequent bytes on the same serial line. However in many other cases, it is acceptable to modify the thresholds where the peripherals need to signal the processor. The setting of these thresholds is often driven by optimizing some metric such as user response time or total throughput depending on whether the machine is to be used as an interactive workstation or a server.

Processor state aware interrupts from peripherals

International Business Machines Corporation


A first message, associated with going from one of a plurality of variable nodes to one of a plurality of check nodes is computed, wherein: (1) one or more connections between the plurality of variable nodes and the plurality of check nodes are specified by an LDPC parity check matrix and (2) a scaling constant is used to compute the first message. A second message, associated with going from one of the plurality of check nodes to one of a plurality of variable nodes, is computed, wherein the scaling constant is not used to compute the second message.

Low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes are used to write to and read from solid state storage, which (in turn) are used in mobile devices. Naturally, since mobile devices operate off of a battery, power consumption is an important issue for all components, including LDPC decoders.
A straightforward way to save power is to reduce the number of bits used to represent the soft information which is input by the LDPC decoder. This translates directly into a reduction in the number of operations which in turn reduces power consumption. Unfortunately, simply reducing the number of bits can cause significant performance degradation (e.g., because of numerical errors, rounding errors, and/or saturation errors). New LDPC decoding techniques which have reduced performance degradation (particularly in systems where the number of bits used to represent soft information is relatively small) would be desirable. This would, for example, enable power to be conserved without sacrificing too much performance.

LDPC decoder with a variable node updater which uses a scaling constant


The claimed subject matter is directed to defining a framework that enables wireless communicability between base stations for maintenance and configuration purposes, even while disconnected from an operator network, and/or deployed in the field. Embodiments are particularly applicable in the cases of small-cell base transceiver stations deployed in inconvenient, secluded, elevated and/or difficult to reach locations. The small cell base transceiver station is operable to communicate wirelessly to wireless terminals and mobile computing devices by emulating select functionality from dedicated components in an operator network.

Wireless data communications are a critical component of mobile computing and have become increasingly popular due to the continued development of mobile computing technologies and the deployment of massive infrastructures. Typical wireless communication systems may be multiple access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, etc.) Examples of such multiple access systems may include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, high speed packet access (HSPA), wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, among others. Additionally, the systems can conform to specifications such as third generation partnership project 3GPP, 3GPP long term evolution (LTE), ultra mobile broadband (UMB), etc.
Generally, wireless multiple access communication systems may support simultaneous communication for multiple mobile devices in a network. Each mobile device may communicate with an operator network (e.g., a cellular network), other mobile devices, by connecting to one or more access points (e.g., base stations, relay nodes, etc) of the network via radio frequency (RF) transmissions. The various available technologies that comprise the spectrum of wireless data communications often differ in local availability, coverage range and performance. Cellular networks are one type of wireless data network, where wireless service is provided over a geographical area, and this service area is divided into a number of smaller (sometimes overlapping) regions known as cells. Each cell is served by at least one fixed-location transceiver known as a cell site, base station, or base transceiver station (BTS). Individual nodes are also commonly referred to as nodes, node base stations ("node Bs"), or eNB ("enhanced node base stations"). When joined together, the network provided by these cells, stations, and/or nodes can cover a significantly wide area. This enables a large number of user-operated mobile computing devices (e.g., mobile phones, tablets, laptops, etc.) to communicate to other nodes in the network via the base stations.
Conventionally, the equipment comprising the cell sites and base stations may be co-located with antennas and assorted electronic communications equipment, and usually combined with a radio mast, tower or other high place, for better radio coverage in a cellular network. The elevated structure may include antennas, and one or more sets of transmitter/receivers, transceivers, digital signal processors, control electronics, GPS receivers, primary and backup electrical power sources, and sheltering. The combined appearance of so much technological equipment is often considered unnatural, conspicuous, and/or aesthetically displeasing. Accordingly, some cities require that cell sites be inconspicuous, for example blended with the surrounding area. One solution is to create modified treescapes by hiding cell towers inside an artificial tree or preserved tree.
Even more recently, base transceiver station units have been developed which are much smaller in size than traditional base station units. These units, referred to as small cells, or small cell base stations, have both an improved appearance (e.g., are less conspicuous), and, due to their size, may be co-located with other small cells to provide greater service in dense, urban areas. Where the size of traditional base station units limit their location to on or near ground level, the reduced size of small cells also allow small cell units to be deployed with or on pre-existing, elevated city structures, such as traffic lights, lampposts, building corners, etc, thereby eliminating the need for a cell tower.
However, being deployed at elevated locations prevents maintenance, repair, and post-deployment configuration from being performed easily, especially when a connection to the operator network cannot be utilized, e.g., when the base station is disconnected from the operator network, or a connection is malfunctioning or configured incorrectly. In such instances, because a remote computing device would no longer be able to access the base transceiver station through the network, a service technician or maintenance engineer would be required to physically connect to the base transceiver station (e.g., through a cable), to be able to perform any kind of repair or diagnosis, typically through the local maintenance terminal (LMT) of the base transceiver station. Whereas traditional base stations located at or near ground level may be configured by physically coupling a mobile maintenance device (such as a laptop or smartphone, etc.) to a port in the base station and accessing the LMT with relative ease, the often-elevated deployment of small-cell base stations can make physically connecting a maintenance device in order to access the LMT difficult and/or dangerous, often requiring specialized equipment (ladders, forklifts, etc.), and additional time to procure the equipment and for an engineer or maintenance technician to create the physical connection. This may result in further delays and increased capital and operational expenses in the maintenance, configuration, and repair of small-cell base transceiver stations deployed in the field.

Small cell configuration and maintenance in mobile terminals


A technique for controlling power for V2X communication is provided. The apparatus includes a reception message analysis process configured to analyze headers of reception messages received from communication apparatuses of roadside apparatuses and surrounding vehicles located around a vehicle, a message loss checking process configured to check whether or not loss of the reception messages occurs by counting sequential numbers included in the headers of the reception messages, a density analysis process configured to analyze a density for each of communication apparatuses located in a communication radius of preset transmission power from the vehicle when the message loss checking process determines that the loss of the reception messages occurs, and a transmission power determination process configured to determine transmission power for V2X communication by deducting the preset transmission power in units of reference power according to the density when the density around the vehicle exceeds a reference value.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for controlling power for Vehicle-to-Infrastructure/Vehicle/Nomadic/ and the like (V2X) communication, and more particularly, to an apparatus and a method for controlling transmission power to minimize power loss during communication with communication apparatuses of roadside devices and surrounding vehicles located around a vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, V2X (Vehicle-to-Infrastructure/Vehicle/Nomadic/ and the like) refers to any type of communication schemes applicable to vehicles. V2X denotes detailed communication technology for implementing 'Connected Vehicle' or 'Networked Vehicle' which is called as a general term of art. V2X networking is largely classified into three categories, that is, Vehicle to Infrastructure (hereinafter, referred to as V2I) communication, Vehicle to Vehicle (hereinafter, referred to as V2V) communication, and Vehicle to Nomadic devices (hereinafter, referred to as V2N) communication. In recent years, other types of communication categories are expected to be added as well.
Vehicles set a predetermined level of transmission power for communication with surrounding infrastructures or surrounding vehicles and perform communication with communication apparatuses located within communication radius corresponding to the set this transmission power.
Since a V2X system, which is currently being used, limits only maximum power of the transmission power of the vehicle, most of the communication apparatuses tend to set transmission power as much as possible to obtain good communication quality. In this case, the communication apparatuses serves as an interference source, and thus it is often impossible to smoothly perform communication services.

Apparatus and method for controlling power for V2X communication


A non-volatile memory device for preventing damage by plasma charges includes a gate electrode formed on a predetermined region of a semiconductor substrate, a source/drain region which is overlapped with the gate electrode and formed in a first well region of the semiconductor substrate, a first metal line coupled to the gate electrode through a first contact plug, a second metal line coupled to the first metal line through a second contact plug so that an external voltage is transferred to the gate electrode, a junction region formed in a second well region separated from the first well region, and a third metal line coupled to the junction region through a third contact plug and coupled to the second metal line through a fourth contact plug.

The present invention relates to semiconductor devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to non-volatile memory devices in which damage by plasma charges can be prevented.
In the manufacture process of non-volatile memory devices, a variety of processes employing a plasma phenomenon have been used. For example, the processes may include deposition of an insulation film or a metal film using plasma etch and plasma. Plasma is a light gas having electric charges. In the process using the plasma, there is a possibility that the destruction of the gate insulation film or degradation of the film quality may occur due to local charge irregularity.
Therefore, there is a need for non-volatile memory devices in which damage incurred by plasma charges can be prevented.

Non-volatile memory device capable of preventing damage by plasma charge


There is provided mechanisms for initial network access of a subscriber entity to a radio access network. A method is performed by the subscriber entity. The method comprises transmitting an attach message towards a network node. The attach message indicates a request for network access of the subscriber entity to a radio access network of the network node. The method comprises receiving an identification request originating from the network node. The identification request requests identification of the subscriber entity. The method comprises transmitting a response message towards the network node. The response message comprises an Access Identifier of the subscriber entity. The Access Identifier indicates that the subscriber entity is subscription-less. The method comprises receiving a grant from the network node. The grant allows the subscriber entity limited network access.

Mobile networks are being used to connect all sorts of devices for a wide range of services; automated reading of utility meters, intelligent connectivity of cars and commercial vehicles to enable drivers to access navigation, infotainment or breakdown services, traffic lights, home security and assisted living.
A subscriber identity module or subscriber identification module (SIM) is an integrated circuit chip that is intended to securely store the international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) number and its related key, as well as other information relevant for the subscription, which is used to identify and authenticate subscriptions on the devices. The SIM circuit is part of the function of a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) physical smart card.
The GSM Association (GSMA), where GSM is short for Global System for Mobile communications, has released a technical specification denoted SGP.22-RSP V2.1, below denoted SGP.22v2.1, defining remote SIM provisioning for consumer devices and a technical specification denoted SGP.02 disclosing a remote provisioning architecture for embedded UICC (eUICC), which targets machine-to-machine (M2M) type communications devices.
In remote SIM provisioning, the operator uses an entity called SM-DP+/SM-DP (where SM-DP is short for Subscription Management-Data Preparation) for creation of SIM profiles, such as universal (U)SIM profiles, that are later installed from the SM-DP/SM-DP+ to the eUICC. For the consumer devices, the profile is installed through a Local Profile Assistant (LPA) on the consumer device to the Issuer Security Domain Profile (ISD-P) on the device, such as on the eUICC. For the M2M devices, the SM-DP installs the profile via a separate (external) entity, SM-SR, to the ISD-P on the device.
In order for the profile to be downloaded to the device, the device first needs to establish a network connection.
In some cases, such as for Embedded SIM devices, the initial network connectivity to download the initial profile might be performed over a non-cellular radio network, such as Wi-Fi. This means that the device has to have a radio network interface that supports Wi-Fi in addition to the interface for cellular radio network. This adds cost and space in the device for a feature potentially only needed for the first profile download.
It is noted that the device, even without a valid subscription or IMSI, can receive some cellular radio network information and thus learn which mobile network operators are available. However, the device is not allowed to establish an operational connection to any of the mobile network operators without first having a valid subscription and IMSI.
It might be possible for the device to use alternative credentials to attach to the network. An example of such alternative credentials is device certificates, see "Secure Mechanism to Achieve Remote Credential Provisioning for IoT devices" as available at
http://portal.3gpp.org/ngppapp/CreateTdoc.aspx?mode=view&contributionId=716408 #. This would involve a new way for the device to attach to the network. Embedded SIM devices will have a device certificate for identifying and authenticating the device. This device certificate is used when authenticating to the SM-DP+/SM-DP.
Both the device, the radio access network nodes and the core network has to be modified in order to support the use of non-traditional identifiers (i.e., identifiers other than IMSI), such as certificates, for authenticating the device to the network.
Hence, there is still a need for improved mechanisms for enabling initial network access of a subscriber entity to a radio access network.

Initial network access for a subscriber entity


An improved anchor device that is capable of simultaneously securing a plurality of items while extended into the ground. The anchor device comprises a central cylindrical rod with a flanged nail head at the top for driving the apparatus into the ground and a tapered pointed end at the bottom for easy penetration into the ground. A plurality of cylindrical shaped barbs extending out from said cylindrical rod with a flanged half circle nail head at the end of each barb formed about the central cylindrical rod, extended outward and upward at an angle, oriented around the lower portion of the central cylindrical rod, spaced equally in circular, spiral, descending order for maximum extraction resistance. Cylindrical U shaped loops offset from each other and formed on opposite sides of central cylindrical rod placed under the flanged nail head for securing or anchoring objects attached to the anchor device.

1. Field of Invention
The history of the present invention relates generally to stakes driven into the ground, to serve as a survey monument, marking stakes or a stake system to be utilized within various soil conditions. More specifically, these devices were designed for the particular purpose they address.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Typically anchor devices such as stakes have been used for years. These devices usually consist of a shaft having a flanged upper end and a pointed lower end. The user drives the stake into the ground with a hammer. The user ties a rope to the upper end of the stake and then ties the other end of the rope to an object to be secured.
However, some stakes work fine for whatever purpose they are designed for. Other stakes were designed to work with different soil types and are not able to maintain their resistive extraction capabilities during extreme wind and seismic conditions.
For instance, in conditions when the stake device was driven into the ground, and a constant force was being applied to the stake, the resistive forces of the anchoring system were often weakened.
Although the various designs of stakes were created for the purpose they were designed for they may not be suitable to provide the extraction resistance necessary to prevent weakening or removal of the stake for all conditions.


An improved gas chromatograph system includes a radiant source, an insert located to receive an output of the radiant source, and an analytic column wound on a concave surface of the insert so that successive coils of the wound analytic column are in direct contact with each other and exert an outward pressure on the concave surface of the insert such that the outward pressure minimizes a gap between the analytic column and the concave surface of the insert so as to minimize thermal gradients and maximize heat transfer to the analytic column.

Many chemical separation analyses, such as gas and liquid chromatography, require the chemical sample to be temperature-controlled throughout the analysis. A chromatograph comprises an inlet where the sample is introduced, an oven containing an analytic column where the separation takes place, and a detector where the constituents of the sample are detected and recorded. Each of these parts of the instrument is temperature-controlled to ensure the integrity and repeatability of the analysis. An analysis performed at a constant controlled temperature is referred to as isothermal. To perform an isothermal analysis, the analytic column is typically placed in a temperature-controlled chamber, often referred to as an oven, which is preheated to the desired temperature. A non-isothermal analysis, in which the column temperature is gradually raised over time, is also common, especially for samples with relatively massive components that would otherwise take a long time to elute from the column.
Conventional chromatographic ovens typically use convection technology to heat and maintain the interior of the chamber, and hence the analytic column, at the desired temperature. However, conventional ovens are relatively large in comparison to an analytic column which they are intended to heat and, as a result, are very power inefficient. In addition to cost, a side effect of power inefficiency is that the oven is slow to heat and cool, resulting in reduced sample throughput and productivity.
Another goal when performing a chromatographic analysis is to quickly heat the analytic column to the desired temperature. The use of radiant sources to heat the analytic column is becoming more widespread. A factor to consider when using a radiant source to heat the analytic column is the directionality of the radiant energy provided by the radiant source. For example, light waves are directional so that the line-of-sight between the source and the analytic column is a consideration. Another factor to consider when implementing a radiant source is the phenomenon of thermal gradients, which may result in uneven heating of the analytic column.
Therefore, it would be desirable to maximize heat transfer between a radiant energy source and an analytic column. Further, it is desirable to minimize thermal gradients in an analytic column.

Systems and methods for maximizing heat transfer efficiency to and minimizing thermal gradients in an analytic column


A system for transporting a high speed data stream over a plurality of relatively low bandwidth unshielded twisted copper pairs within the local loop plant or in any environment having a plurality of copper lines, such as on campuses, within large buildings, etc. The copper twisted pairs are transformed from a plurality of low bandwidth, low reliability links into a high reliability, very high bandwidth long range communication channel utilizing optimized xDSL transmission technologies over the plurality of copper pairs. A transmit data processor perform scrambling, FEC encoding and interleaving on the data before it is divided and dispatched to the plurality of modem elements for transmission over the local loop plant, either bidirectionally or unidirectionally. On the receiving side, the individual data streams are collected, aggregated and a receive data processor performs de-interleaving, FEC decoding and de-interleaving, resulting in the high speed data stream originally transmitted. The system also includes means for increasing the performance of the xDSL modem elements including crosstalk cancellation, power and PSD control, data rate control and optimal routing of the transmitted signals within the twisted pair binders. Network elements located remotely on the other side of the plurality of copper pairs are provided electrical power. In addition, the system optionally multiplexes a plurality of low bandwidth telephony services over the high speed link using either TDM or FDM techniques.

The demand for data communications services is currently increasing at a greater and greater rate. This increase in end-user demand for more and more bandwidth is largely the result of the Internet and other data-intensive, high bandwidth applications. The Internet, in recent years, has experienced explosive growth in both the number of end users and the volume of traffic being sent. Consumers and other end-users are demanding higher bandwidth connections and faster Internet access. Another source for the demand is the increasing use by businesses of data communications networks (including traffic over the Internet) for the transmission of documents and email for both intra-office and inter-office purposes.
The demand from businesses and consumers for broadband service is increasing as most are no longer satisfied with dial-up Internet access connections. Many businesses and consumers are now requesting multi-megabit access bandwidth in order to participate in the e-revolution and to integrate their telecommunication services.
As more and more end users generate more and more data traffic, the demand for faster and faster data links will rise sharply. Currently, telecommunication companies are scrambling to meet the current demand while attempting to estimate future demand. A major roadblock preventing telecommunications providers from offering broadband services universally, however, is the local loop, referred to by some as the 'dirt roads of the information superhighway.' In order to offer high bandwidth access, these dirt roads must be paved, and in order to do so, ILECs and CLECs must invest an enormous amount of time and money in massive optical fiber infrastructure upgrades.
Currently, some carriers are using fiber optic cable to provide the high bandwidth pipes needed to satisfy the current bandwidth demand. Optical fiber, however, is not replacing legacy the copper cable plant. It is used mainly in new cable installations and in some cases to connect central offices (COs) to remote nodes, commonly referred to as Fiber to the Curb (FTTC). Notwithstanding the installation of optical fiber cable, the 'last mile' from the curb, node or patch panel to the customer premises comprises unshielded twisted pair copper cable.
Today, deployment of fiber in the local loop in the United States, for example, is relatively low. As few as 3% of the approximately 750,000 office buildings, 9% of curb cabinets and 19% of outdoor cabinets are connected by fiber optic cable to the CO. Optical fiber cable deployment in Europe is even lower. Within 15 years, deployment of fiber in the loop in the United States is expected to reach only 50%. The cost of bringing fiber to the home, for the United States, has been estimated to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars. Thus, universal deployment to every building in the local loop is an extremely time consuming and costly effort, one not likely to be undertaken by the major carriers.
In response to customer demands for bandwidth, many companies are providing alternatives to the last mile of copper, such as LEO satellite broadband, optical fiber, CATV cable, Wireless Local Loop (WLL) and other technologies. Another available technology is xDSL modem technology. Many ILECs, CLECs, and ISPs, which typically are under huge competition, have embraced DSL technology as an immediate broadband solution to serve the current demand by getting more out of the copper plant without waiting for the lengthy installation of fiber. As with many new technologies, however, many carriers face difficulties with the deployment of DSL, such as distance limitations, the lack of service parameter guarantees and the lack of the kind of reliability afforded by fiber.
Digital Subscriber Loop (DSL) technology refers to several types of services that use advanced modem elements to transmit digital signals from a data source over copper wire. DSL modem elements permit high data rate transmission of data over the public switched telephone network (PSTN). DSL modem elements can transmit data at multiple megabit speeds using sophisticated known signal processing techniques that permit voice and data to travel simultaneously over the same analog copper twisted pair wire.
Typically, the DSL services require two modem elements, one of that is located in the CO of the Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier (ILEC). CLECs, however, may collocate their DSL access multiplexers in the CO of the RBOC, enabling them to run over unbundled copper pairs, offering broadband connections to businesses.

High speed access system over copper cable plant


Base station antenna units include a first and second base station antennas that have respective first and second housings. The first housing includes a top end cap and the second housing includes a bottom end cap. A jumper cable that includes a first connector port is mounted in one of the top end cap or the bottom end cap, and a second connector port that is configured to mate with the first connector port is mounted in the other one of the top end cap or the bottom end cap. A longitudinal axis of the first connector port extends in a vertical direction and a longitudinal axis of the second connector port extends in the vertical direction.

The present invention generally relates to radio communications and, more particularly, to base station antennas that support communications in multiple frequency bands.
Cellular communications systems are well known in the art. In a cellular communications system, a geographic area is divided into a series of regions that are referred to as "cells" which are served by respective base stations. The base station may include one or more antennas that are configured to provide two-way radio frequency ("RF") communications with mobile subscribers that are within the cell served by the base station. In many cases, each cell is divided into "sectors." Typically, the base station antennas are mounted on a tower or other raised structure, with the radiation patterns (also referred to herein as "antenna beams") that are generated by the base station antennas directed outwardly.
A common base station configuration is the three sector configuration in which the cell is divided into three 120″ sectors in the azimuth plane. A base station antenna is provided for each sector. In a three sector configuration, the antenna beams generated by each base station antenna typically have a Half Power Beamwidth ("EIPBW") in the azimuth (horizontal) plane of about 65° so that the antenna beams provide good coverage throughout a 120° sector. Typically, each base station antenna will include one or more vertically-extending columns of radiating elements that are typically referred to as "linear arrays." Each radiating element may have a HPBW of approximately 65°. By providing a column of radiating elements extending along the elevation (vertical) plane, the elevation HPBW of the antenna beam may be narrowed to be significantly less than 65°, with the amount of narrowing increasing with the length of the column in the vertical direction. Typically, the radiating elements in a linear array are spaced apart from adjacent radiating elements at a fixed distance that is based on the operating frequency band of the radiating elements and performance requirements for the array. The number of radiating elements included in the linear array may then be selected so that the linear array will have a length that provides a desired elevation beamwidth.
The desired elevation beamwidth for a linear array of radiating elements will depend upon the size and geography of the cell in which the base station antenna is deployed. In order to meet cellular operator requirements, base station antenna manufacturers typically sell multiple versions of many base station antenna models that have different array lengths and hence elevation beamwidths. For example, in some cases, it may be desirable to have a small elevation beamwidth (e.g., 10-15 degrees) in order to increase the antenna gain and/or to reduce spillover of the antenna beam into adjacent cells (as such spillover appears as interference in the adjacent cells). This requires relatively long linear arrays. In other cases, larger elevation beamwidths are acceptable, allowing the use of shorter linear arrays that have fewer radiating elements.
In order to accommodate the increasing volume of cellular communications, new frequency bands are being made available for cellular service. Cellular operators now typically deploy multi-band base station antennas that include arrays of radiating elements that operate in different frequency bands to support service in these new frequency bands. For example, most base station antennas now include both "low-band" linear arrays of radiating elements that provide service in some or all of the 617-960 MHz frequency band and "mid-band" linear arrays of radiating elements that provide service in some or all of the 1427-2690 MHz frequency band. There is also interest in deploying base station antennas that include one or more arrays of "high-band" radiating elements that operate in higher frequency bands, such as some or all of the 3.3-4.2 GHz and/or the 5.1-5.8 GHz frequency bands. The high-band arrays are often implemented as multi-column arrays of radiating elements that can be configured to perform active beamforming where the shape of the antenna beam generated by the array can be controlled to form higher directivity antenna beams that support higher throughput. When beamforming arrays are used, a beamforming radio is often mounted directly on the back of the base station antenna in order to reduce RF losses. However, because the requirements for the beamforming antennas are more likely subject to change, and because beamforming antennas may experience higher failure rates, cellular operators may sometimes prefer that, the beamforming antennas be implemented as separate antennas.
Unfortunately, there are various disadvantages associated with deploying additional base station antennas. First, a separate charge typically applies for each base station antenna mounted on an antenna tower, and hence increasing the number of antennas typically results in increased installation costs. Second, cellular operators often lease space on antenna towers, and there is typically a separate leasing charge for each item of equipment mounted on the antenna tower. Third, local ordinances and/or zoning regulations may limit the number of base station antennas that can be mounted on an antenna tower, and hence additional antenna towers may need to be erected if the number of base station antennas required exceeds the number permitted by the local zoning ordinances.
When shorter base station antennas are used, it may be possible to mount two base station antennas in a vertically stacked fashion so that the two base station antennas may appear as a single antenna. For example, as disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2019/0123426, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference, first and second base station antennas may be mounted together in a vertically stacked arrangement so that the composite base station antenna unit has the appearance of a single base station antenna. The first base station antenna may comprise a conventional dual-band base station antenna that includes low-band and mid-band arrays of radiating elements, and may have a height (i.e., the length of the antenna in the vertical direction that is perpendicular to the plane defined by the horizon when the antenna is mounted for use) may be, for example, in the range of about TO meters to about 2.0 meters. The second base station antenna may comprise, for example, a beamforming antenna that operates in, for example, a portion of the 3.3-4.2 GHz or 5.1-5.8 GHz frequency bands. The height of the second base station antenna may be for example, less than about 1.0 meters.

Base station antenna units having arrays spanning multiple antennas that are connected by jumper cables


A method for adaptive long-term filtering of an audio signal, such as a decoded speech signal. The method includes measuring a smoothed periodicity of an audio signal segment, such as an audio frame, wherein the smoothed periodicity is measured by low-pass filtering an instantaneous periodicity of the audio signal segment. The periodicity of the audio signal segment is then increased in a manner that depends upon whether the smoothed periodicity is less than a predetermined threshold. By utilizing a smoothed periodicity measurement in this fashion, more accurate control of the post-filter is provided as compared to conventional solutions. Additionally, the method includes deriving filters by interpolating between filter responses of adjacent audio signal segments to minimize distortion at segment boundaries.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to techniques for filtering signals, and more particularly, to techniques for filtering speech or other audio signals.
2. Background
In digital speech communication involving encoding and decoding operations, it is known that a properly designed filter applied at the output of the speech decoder is capable of reducing perceived coding noise, thereby improving the quality of the decoded speech. Such a filter is often called a post-filter and the post-filter is said to perform post-filtering. An adaptive post-filter is one in which the filter parameters are periodically modified to adapt to one or more local characteristics of the speech signal.
Adaptive post-filtering can be performed using a frequency-domain approach or time-domain approach. A known time-domain adaptive post-filter includes a long-term post-filter and a short-term post-filter. A long-term post-filter, which may also be referred to as a pitch post-filter, is used when the speech spectrum has a harmonic structure, for example, during voiced speech when the speech waveform is almost periodic. The long-term post-filter is typically used to attenuate spectral valleys between harmonics in the speech spectrum. In contrast, a short-term post-filter is typically used to attenuate the valleys in the spectral envelope, i.e., the valleys between formant peaks.
A known method for long-term post-filtering operates to increase the periodicity of the speech signal. For periodic signals, this increases the perceptual quality of the speech signal as the distortion between harmonic components is attenuated without affecting the harmonic components.
The operation of a typical all-zero long-term post-filter may be described by the following equation:y(n)=g·[x(n)+γ·x(n−L)],where x(n) is the input signal to the long-term post-filter, and y(n) is the post-filtered signal. The parameters g, γ, and L are typically adapted on a segment-by-segment basis to fit the local characteristics of the signal. The parameter γ controls the increase in periodicity (where L is the number of samples in the pitch period) and is typically derived from the input signal to the long-term post-filter to reflect the local periodicity of the signal, or as a function of a measure of periodicity provided by other means. For example, the parameter γ may be derived as a function of parameter(s) in a speech decoder such as pitch tap(s).
Similarly, the operation of a typical all-pole long-term post-filter may be described by:y(n)=g·[x(n)+γ·y(n−L)].
In order to avoid increasing the periodicity of non-periodic signals it is advantageous to effectively disable the long-term post-filtering during non-periodic signal segments, where the γ parameter typically exhibits fluctuations and thus can incorrectly introduce periodicity. In practice, this is often achieved by setting the γ parameter to zero if a measure of the local periodicity of the signal exceeds a certain threshold. However, because the measure of local periodicity itself can exhibit fluctuations, this method can still result in less than desirable results.
Also, as noted above, the long-term post-filter parameters are typically adapted on a segment-by-segment basis to fit the local characteristics of the speech signal. The changing of the long-term post-filter parameters at segment boundaries can result in the introduction of undesired distortion into the speech signal.
What is desired then, is a method for adaptive long-term post-filtering that addresses one or more of the aforementioned shortcomings of conventional techniques.